I shook my head. “But Mary supported his story.”
“She’s batty. You can’t go off what she says.”
“But why would he stick around town?” I asked. “Why not run away? He’d have to know that Jason would be looking for him, not to mention the police.”
“He probably figured Warner would bail him out.”
Rod shifted his weight and an ice pack fell onto the porch floor. “Is there someone else you suspect?”
“Sinclair told me Val called from a pay phone at the base of the grapevine. What if he made a second call to someone else?” I looked at Handsome. “You said the 911 call came from gang territory. What if Val called Jason and told him that instead of coming to Bakersfield he was meeting Sinclair in the orchard? Maybe Jason decided to kill him and take the money.”
Handsome chuckled. “You’re overthinking things. The simplest answer is usually the right answer. Sinclair made the call himself to divert suspicion.”
That simple solution tied up all the loose ends. “I only wish Sinclair would confess,” I said. “I’d feel a lot better if he actually said the words.”
“I’ve got men searching his house right now.” Handsome waved a dismissive hand at me. “We’ll find the money or the murder weapon, and that’ll be as good as a confession.”
“Hey,” Lucero called to Handsome. He was standing next to a TI writing something in his notebook. “You want to quit spending time with your honey and do some work?”
I felt an intense desire to study my hand.
“Coming,” Handsome called. “Always a smart-ass.”
Handsome left to join Lucero. I picked up Rod’s fallen ice pack.
“Thanks,” he said, and took it from me.
“I’m the one who should thank you—wearing a wire for the police and then stepping between me and Jason—you probably saved my life.”
He shook his head. “You saved my life. Jason was going to stab me until you knocked him down.”
“I guess we’re even.”
Rod smiled, then paused. “I’d like to explain about my phone call at the coffee shop. I don’t know how much you heard—”
“Let’s not talk about it.”
“I was calling my parents.”
I didn’t look at him. “We’d decided not to do that.”
“You decided and I went along with it.” He leaned forward. “But in the bar you said I needed to be more aggressive. When they showed your picture on TV, I decided to take action. I couldn’t say anything in the restaurant because I thought we’d be overheard. I was going to tell you as soon as I got to the car.”
“But I heard you on the phone. You said, ‘She’s not going for it. You’ll have to come get us.’ You even mentioned a deal.”
“I was telling my dad that you were never going to come down to L.A. and he’d have to come up to Bakersfield. The deal was with the police to turn ourselves in.”
“Oh.” It made sense. I had no reason to be suspicious or wary, but something inside me wanted to get away from him.
“When I got off the phone and discovered you and Bud were gone, I didn’t know what to do.”
“Why did you turn yourself in? You didn’t have to do that. You could have gone to L.A.”
“Once I realized you were gone, I called my dad again. He arranged everything by phone through his contacts in the L.A. district attorney’s office. Just to be safe, I left the tape at the restaurant where my dad could pick it up later.” Rod pointed to Handsome. His face was flush with success as he laughed at something Lucero said. “Those two came for me. I told them everything and suggested setting Sinclair up. It was your exact plan except for the police being on the other end of the microphone.”
I raised a skeptical eyebrow. “They believed you?”
“Not exactly, but it didn’t hurt to let me call Sinclair. When Frank called back, making vague threats and promising money, that’s when they got interested. I agreed to wear a wire, and Lucero put out a fake story about a manhunt on the south side of town to divert suspicion. They also picked Bud up from my description of the car and told everyone that’s why I was being released.”
“It was very brave of you to meet Dick and Dale wearing a wire. Thank you.”
Rod blushed and cleared his throat. “I was wondering …”
“Yes?”
He hesitated. “Sorry. I’m a little embarrassed.”
I felt a warning twinge, but asked anyway. “Why are you embarrassed?”
“Because I’m going to ask you out.”
“Oh.”
He raised both hands as if I were a frightened animal. “Hear me out.”
“I don’t do so well with long-term things.”
“We can take it slow.”
I shook my head. “And a short-term thing wouldn’t be good since we work together.”
“We’ll start with dinner. No big deal. Just two people having a meal together.”
I made another attempt at letting him down easily. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“I know it’s awkward about work, but we’ll figure something out.”
“Things like that don’t get worked out.” I tried to change the subject. “Did you know the little sick kid’s father ran off and left them high and dry? They may lose the house.”
He ignored me. “Nobody at the station will mind if we’re a couple. It isn’t like one of us is the other’s boss.”
I jumped up. “You’re taking an awful lot for granted here. What makes you think I even like you that way?”
Rod smiled and gazed down at the floor. He looked like a timid, geeky teenager. “Come on. You’re crazy about me.”
“I am not.”
His shy eyes looked up. “Sure you are.”
“Hey, guys,” Handsome called. “Ambulances are here. Two at the same time.”
I took decisive steps off the porch and walked to Handsome. “Hey, why don’t you ride in the ambulance with me?” I put a hand on Handsome’s arm. “I’m sure we’ve got stuff to talk about.”
He looked back toward the porch. “What about your friend?”
“He’s taking the other one.” I didn’t know if Rod had followed me, and I didn’t turn around to see. “He could have internal injuries. This way they can focus more on him.”
“Sounds good.” Handsome looked at Lucero. “Do you mind waiting for Gang Enforcement while I ride with her to the hospital?”
Lucero didn’t look happy, but nodded.
I let Handsome and the EMT help me inside the back of the first ambulance and sat down on a stretcher. I deliberately looked the other way in case Rod was standing outside the back doors.
Handsome followed me in and waved the EMT away. “I’m coming with. You can ride up front.”
The EMT closed the door, and a few minutes later we started moving.
I lay down on the stretcher. “This has been the worst day, ever.”
Handsome covered me with a blanket. “You should have told me this morning what was going on. I could have helped you.”
He hadn’t seemed eager to help me in the corn maze, but I kept that thought to myself. “I was frightened. I knew Dick and Dale were cops and they made some pretty awful threats.”
“Still. It was dumb to try and handle things by yourself.”
I decided to change the subject. “Has my uncle been released yet?”
“Should be. We never charged him with anything so it won’t take long.”
“Thanks.”
“When I saw you at the victim’s house,” he said, continuing his previous topic, “I knew something was wrong. You looked so helpless with that shiner. It was really stupid not to tell me then.”
Had he really just called me helpless and stupid?
He sat down. “You shouldn’t try to do things on your own like that.”
“Rod wanted to go to the police from the beginning. I probably should have listened to him.”
He looked away. “I g
uess your boyfriend’s pretty smart.”
“He’s not my boyfriend.”
Handsome grinned. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“Why?”
“It means I can ask you out for coffee.”
“You mean a date?”
“Kind of.” He adjusted the blanket. “Maybe a predate.”
“That’s really sweet.” Although I didn’t think asking a girl on a predate was all that sweet. “And if you’d asked me yesterday, I’d probably have fainted.”
His smile froze. “If I’d asked you yesterday? You mean you’re saying no?”
I looked at the man sitting next to me. He was strong, smart, and courageous. He was a catch and he wanted me. But he was also arrogant, condescending, and hadn’t even been nice, let alone interested in dating me, until he’d seen me with a black eye. What had the guy at the Crystal Palace said? Sad and lonely translates into needy and grateful.
“Yes,” I answered, then realized it could be misinterpreted. “I mean no. . . . I mean yes, I’m saying no.”
He pulled back. “What?”
“No offense. I’m flattered and you’re a great guy.”
His green eyes fixed on me and didn’t move. Finally he shook his head and looked out the back window.
“I guess this is going to be an awkward ride,” I said.
His head jerked back. “Is that my fault?”
“You should have asked at the end of the trip.”
“I wasn’t expecting you to turn me down.”
I pulled the blanket up. “Maybe we should talk about something else.”
“Did you throw a baseball at that little sick kid?”
“How about we don’t talk at all?”
I got home at 8:00 a.m. and found my landlord having hysterics in what remained of my apartment. Dick and Dale had really thrown themselves into their work. My mattress and couch had been sliced open and the stuffing torn out. Every jar and can in the cupboard had been emptied on the walls, furniture, ceilings—pretty much wherever they thought it would do the most harm.
“Do you know how long it’s going to take me to get this place back together?” my landlord shouted. “Do you know how long before it’s rentable? …Hello? Are you even listening to me?”
“Sorry.” I looked down from examining a chunk of mattress stuffing stuck to the ceiling. “They caught the guys who did it and they’re cops. I’m sure the city will make some kind of restitution.”
“Are you kidding me? Do you know how long that could take, and it might not cover all this damage. There’s even a hole in the wall by the front door.”
“Ah, really? …Ah …that’s awful.”
He stared at me as though I were the creature from the black lagoon. “You’re bad news. Pack up your stuff and get out.”
“You can’t do that. I know I’m month to month, but you can’t kick me out today.”
“This place isn’t going to be livable for a long time. By then your month will be up.” He started for the front door and called back to me, “And don’t even think about trying to get your deposit back.”
The phone rang around ten as I was returning, on foot, from scrounging for boxes. I let the answering machine, which had miraculously survived the trashing, pick it up.
“Lilly, this is your mother. Call me when you get home from work. We need to talk about Clem’s shower. I’ve picked out your gift.”
I reached down to the floor where the phone lay and picked up the receiver. “Mom, I’m here.”
“What are you doing home?” Her voice filled with hope. “Have you left that awful job?”
“I hope not.” I rubbed my good eye. “It’s not an awful job.”
“Yes, it is. You need to get into a nice line of work. Something where you can meet men who are real prospects. Your sister was only—”
“Did dad kill himself?”
For the first time in my life I left my mother speechless.
“Did dad kill himself?” My voice was surprisingly steady and matter-of-fact.
“Of course not.” She sounded both chipper and angry at the same time.
“Did he leave you a note or anything?”
“How can you ask me something like that?”
“Did he leave you a note?”
“Of course not.”
“He was sad, though, wasn’t he? I remember him being kind of depressed all the time.”
The chipper tone disappeared, leaving just the anger. “Why are you doing this?”
“Did he ever try to kill himself before the accident?”
“Of course not.”
“Would you tell me if he had?” She didn’t answer. I started to hang up the phone, but stopped. “Go ahead and buy Clem whatever you’ve got picked out. I’ll send you a check.”
I hung up. My mother didn’t call back for six months.
After packing for an hour I took a nap on the floor. I woke up at two in the afternoon dehydrated and sore. I took some of the pills they’d given me at the hospital, checked all my various lumps and bruises, and showered.
I took my jacket and stepped outside. I found Leland Warner standing on the walkway outside my bungalow.
“Hello.” He was wearing a similar outfit to that of the previous night, but he’d protected himself from the cold with a brown canvas field coat. His weight was supported by the same cane he’d used to save my life.
“I’m on my way out.” I closed and locked the door.
He smiled, but it was slightly more forced than the previous night. “Then I’m glad I caught you.”
“Do you know what your goons did to my place? I have to move.”
“I’d like to compensate you for your losses.”
“Drop the polite BS. Why are you here?”
He abandoned the forced smile. “You’re a straightforward person so I’ll be blunt.”
“Please.”
“I’d like you to stop cooperating with the police.”
I laughed. “I bet you would.”
“It’s not for me.” He adjusted his weight on the cane. “I’m not anticipating any legal trouble.”
“What are you talking about? You gave orders to beat me up. You had me kidnapped and brought to your house.”
“My son-in-law has confessed to giving those orders, and the men who attacked you all confirm they were reporting to Tom.”
I remembered Bud saying that Warner was born on top and would end that way. “I saw you, with my own two eyes, giving Frank orders, and I’m not changing my story.”
“It’ll be your word against everyone else’s, but that’s not why I’m here.” He paused. “The police are moving to press formal murder charges against Tom. They may charge Mary as an accessory.”
“If Sinclair killed Val Boyle, then she is an accessory.”
“She swears to me that the young man was already dead when they arrived.”
“And if that’s true, then I’m sure you’ll hire an amazing lawyer who will find a way to prove it.”
“Please, my daughter is not well.” His voice shook with emotion. “Even if she’s eventually exonerated, the strain of this will drag her down. She might never recover.”
“I’m not going to lie to the police.”
He withdrew the blue folder from inside his coat. “Would you be willing to lie in exchange for the truth about your father?”
I almost laughed. “You really are awful.”
“It’s a fair trade.”
“No deal.” I started down the walkway.
“Don’t assume it’s bad news,” he said as I passed. “Maybe I made up that business about the suicide. Wouldn’t you like to know, one way or the other, for sure?”
I stopped and turned around. “Would you like to know about Mary and what happened in the orchard?” His expression didn’t change, but I saw alarm behind those drooping eyelids. “Would you like to know, one way or the other, for sure, just how far Mary would have gone to hold on to Sinclair?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I stepped toward him. “Everyone thinks Mary is covering for Sinclair, but maybe it’s the other way around. His running away from the orchard makes a lot more sense if his wife had just committed murder.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Once Sinclair made enough money, he was sure to leave her. No Val, no money, no threat to her marriage. She had opportunity and motive. I think deep down you’re terrified she’s a killer. That’s why you were so desperate to get the tape. You don’t want her anywhere near the police.”
He opened his mouth to protest, but I cut him off. “Didn’t you push a lot harder than you had to? Hiring dirty cops to beat up journalists is pretty risky. Weren’t you desperate?”
“I know my daughter. She’s not a killer.”
“I’m not saying you believe it, just that you’re frightened it might be true.” I smiled and pointed at the blue folder. “So you ask me if I want to know some truths about my father. Maybe they’ll be good truths. Maybe they’ll be bad truths.” I paused. “What would you do? Would you like to learn some truths about Mary?”
He looked down at the folder in his hand and then up at me. He rolled it up and shoved it back inside his jacket. “Then what do you want? Please don’t say money. It’ll be a great disappointment to me.”
I shook my head. “I’m not making any kind of trade. Absolutely, end of story, not going to happen.”
He paused, then nodded. “All right then.”
I waited, but he didn’t say anything else.
Finally I broke the silence. “Aren’t you going to say it?”
“What’s that?”
“You saved my life. I owe you.”
He shook his head. “No. I won’t say that.”
I softened. “The truth is, I already told the police I have doubts about Sinclair committing the murder. It’s in my official statement.”
“Thank you.”
“And maybe I won’t raise a big stink about you giving Frank orders.”
“Thank you again.”
“But I won’t lie.”
He smiled and began walking out to his waiting car. Over his shoulder he said, “You know, you’re very like him.”
“Who’s that?”
“Your uncle Allen.” He chuckled. “Last night you mentioned you were very close to him.”
A Bad Day’s Work Page 24