Baby Brother Blues (Sammy Dick, PI Series: Book 1)

by Trudi Baldwin

  By now Delilah had stopped shaking. I could hear her taking in a deep breath as we crossed right over Dynamite Road and onto the north side of the Rio Verde ranches. I looked east and then west as we crossed and didn’t see any vehicle. We were in luck. I couldn’t wait to get far enough along to be out of range from either Karl or Liang. Delilah had grown markedly quiet as we scrunched along the sandy road.

  Apparently she’d been pondering my suggestions because she finally spoke. “I suppose your story will work. It might work for your mother, too, but Sammy, never, never again am I going to help you on one of your investigations. You may be cut out for it, but I’m not. I’m studying to be an accountant for god sakes! Fear that seeps right into my very bones is not my idea of fun. Nor is breaking the law!”

  We were now heading north, well out of sight of Dynamite Road. I took in a deep breath just like Delilah had done. The large ranches and beautiful, custom Sante Fe-style homes sped by. They were spaced well apart because the lots were five and ten-acre parcels. The roads were sandy, unpaved and slightly hilly. I slowed down even more now that we were out of sight of Dynamite. Just then a coyote crossed our path. I took that as a sign of good luck.

  “See that, Delilah? A coyote crossed our path. That’s the opposite of a black cat. It’s a symbol of good luck. All will be well.”

  “You’re just making that up, Sammy. Like you always do to meet the needs of the moment. Correction. Your needs of the moment.”

  I let her accusations fly on by. We sat in silence, trying to relax even further as the truck sailed up and down the sandy hills. After a few twists and turns, we finally reached Lone Mountain Road and turned east. All of Rio Verde slopes downward, which is problematic when the rains come, but on the other hand, the gently sloping elevations give every home site a view of the magnificent Tonto region. The Ford began the gentle descent. I fumbled in my fanny pack again for my cell, flipped open its protective cover and scrolled to Julia’s number. Quick dialed it.

  We were in luck. She answered on the second ring. “Julia? Hi, this is Sammy. Delilah and I were out riding in the area and my horse, Easy, got gouged by a tree branch. We immediately thought of you. Would it be okay for us to bring him by so you could take a quick look at it? We could catch up too at the same time.” I listened to her response, then smiled at Delilah.

  “Okay, great! See you in a few minutes.”

  I signed off and we sailed gracefully down Lone Mountain Road all the way to 176th Street, where Julia’s family lived at the very edge of habitable land. We could see Bartlett Dam spanning the desert mountain high off to the east, a massive, concrete fortress hoarding the most precious commodity of all in the desert, water.

  Now that it looked like we would not be caught by Zaiid, I heard Delilah take in another big breath of air then let it out. “It was kind of funny when Zaiid climbed that ladder and his big hairy dick was right in front of our faces,” Delilah admitted.

  “And when he ran out in his jock strap and those cowboy boots to hoist himself up onto Perfect Storm!” I chimed in.

  We both laughed tentatively, but then I couldn’t help but break into louder and louder laughter as I replayed the entire chain of outlandish events in my mind. I’m sure my laughter was fueled by the aftermath of so much adrenaline and shock.

  Delilah started laughing almost hysterically too. We laughed so hard, we both had tears running down our cheeks. The laughter was music to my ears because I knew then that our friendship would survive even this.

  The laughter also released a lot of the pent-up tension. When we finally settled down, Delilah said, “I hope you’ve learned something, Sammy.”

  “I have, Delilah! I’ve learned so much. I’ve learned there’s going to be a large run involving some unknown illegal activity this coming Monday and Liang is somehow duping his father. I’ve learned a lot!”

  “Sammy! That’s not the kind of learning I meant.”

  “But Delilah, those are important discoveries. I finally have a real lead. Geo and I now have some genuine evidence,” I crowed happily as we turned left on 176th Street and headed further north toward Julia’s desert ranch. We could see the forest up ahead stretching for miles to the east and up into the mountains. We stopped short of the turn-in to Julia’s property to pull off our disguises. Then we attempted to fluff up our hair, which looked smashed down from the wigs and hats. Then we proceeded into Julia’s family’s ranch.

  We spent two pleasant hours with Julia, whose parents were away on vacation in Europe. First Julia stitched up Easy’s rump. She said Easy’d be good as new, except he might always carry a scar from the branch gouging. Delilah caught my eyes at that point and shot me darts of, “I told you so!”

  We untacked our horses and put them in some of Julia’s empty stalls. She had ten stalls in all, with six of them full of quarterhorses. As we strolled along, we admired her horses as she explained their lineage. We then retired to her ranch home and spent the remainder of the time sipping Celestial Seasonings tea in her glass-enclosed, air-conditioned Arizona Room that faced east toward the view.

  Conversation flowed easily as we caught up on Julia’s progress toward her degree, and Delilah’s CPA plans. I tried to describe my job, making it look legal and prosperous. Somewhat of a stretch under any circumstances, but I felt that I had succeeded admirably.

  All in all, we had a very pleasant time. At the end of the two hours, we loaded up our rejuvenated horses, headed south to Dynamite, and cruised back to Scottsdale with no incident. When we arrived at my parents’ home to unload our horses, Mom swallowed my story about the tree branch, hook, line and sinker, while Delilah glared at me the entire time. All was well, and I had gained a true lead. I couldn’t wait to tell Geo.

  Chapter 22

  As soon as we unloaded the horses and secured them back in their stalls, Delilah and I switched vehicles to my Mazda3 and zoomed back to our home. It was now about 2 P.M. on a hot Saturday afternoon. I wanted to talk shop with Geo, and Delilah was hoping to take a nap and forget all about her morning with me.

  As soon as we entered the kitchen from the garage, Snack burst in through the doggie door bearing gifts: two tennis balls. As Delilah wandered down the hall to her room to take a nap, I slid open the glass door to the back patio where most of Snack’s balls were gathered near my lawn chair. I threw them one by one to all corners of the yard. Snack could barely contain himself and immediately began a frantic retrieval mission, flapping wildly through the doggy door and depositing them under the kitchen table. Then he flapped enthusiastically back out for more, probably doubling our air conditioning bill during each flap. Satisfied that Snack was momentarily happy, I went back inside and made myself a huge, sweating glass of ice water. Downed it in a few gulps, then made another. I then trotted off down the hall to see if Geo was home.

  Geo kept his room specially locked to guard all of his electronic devices. His back window was the only window on the home with bars. Both Geo and I agreed to this tactic, since so much of our own personal savings were tied up in his electronics surveillance and research systems, all as top-of-the-line as we could afford to support our fledgling business.

  When Geo’s door was locked, I usually texted him to find out if he was awake or even in there, rather than knock on the door. Geo kept odd hours to work on his studies and support our business at the same time. It was only fair not to wake him if he were in there gathering a few hours of precious sleep.

  I texted, R u awake?

  A few seconds passed, and Geo texted back. No.

  In your room? I replied.

  No.

  I know it’s surprising, but by this time I was getting impatient.

  So where R U??

  A few beats passed. With a friend.

  Who?

  This time several seconds passed and I was afraid he wasn’t going to text back at all.

  Kathy

  Kathy! Who’s Kathy? It was highly unlike Geo to be with a female friend, or
a female of any kind for that matter. Except me, his cousin and partner in crime, er…detection work. And I pretty much liked being the only female in Geo’s life. That way all attention would be on me.

  What up? I texted back furiously.

  Seconds passed before Geo replied.

  I’ll call U. 2 hrs.

  Yikes. Something was up with Geo. Who is Kathy and what’s she doing with my partner? I wasn’t at all wild about having to wait two hours to find out, either. I decided to take a nap, too. By now Snack had a good fifty balls under the kitchen table. I closed the doggy door with him inside. Checked his water. Full. Then headed to my room for a nap.

  Meanwhile, after a long lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, Geo was now happily strolling the aisles at Best Buy, explaining to an equally happy Kathy Keach about the wonders of electronics and her computing options for her new rented room in Doreen’s condo. Kathy had moved in the first night Doreen had offered the room. It was already furnished because it had been Doreen’s guest bedroom.

  Doreen seemed gracious and shared many of the same interests as Kathy, such as international and commercial title administration. Kathy was so happy in her new arrangement that she’d almost forgotten about the vicious death of Peepers and her manhunt.

  Almost forgotten, but not quite. Her plan was to enlist Geo and her new computing equipment in her hunt. When Kathy set her mind to something, she was a very determined girl. She vowed that Peeper’s death would not go unavenged.

  Kathy stopped walking down the aisle and turned to Geo. “I’m so grateful that you’re here to help me get a computer and set it up.”

  Geo stopped mid-stroll down the computer aisle, too. They’d been debating the pros and cons of laptops versus desktop computers. “But Kathy, this is one of my all-time favorite things to do.” He hesitated a moment, and an unexpected heat rose into his cheeks. “And, to be honest, doing it with you makes it one of the most enjoyable things I’ve ever done.”

  Kathy beamed in return, pleased with his open display of affection. The little dimples in her cheeks appeared. Basking in her sweet smile made Geo want to collapse in the aisle and roll over like a dog in submission, with his stomach exposed and his tongue lolligaggin’ out the side. Instead, he hurriedly zeroed all of his attention in on a Toshiba laptop. “These are very durable, Kathy. In fact, last I checked, they were the most popular in this price range.”

  “Perfect, Geo. I really can’t afford anything more expensive, and I’d like a portable computer. Let’s buy it. What else do I need to get it hooked up today?”

  Geo helped her pick out everything else she needed and they left Best Buy. Geo had picked her up in his old Camry. They loaded up the equipment and headed to Kathy’s new home, only a short drive away. The air conditioning barely made a dent in the interior heat of the car by the time Geo pressed in the code to swing open the condo’s guard gate.

  Geo carried everything up the stairs for Kathy, and she used her new key for the sixth time since she got it. Both Geo and Kathy noticed that Doreen wasn’t home, but neither one of them said anything. Doreen’s two-bedroom condo looked out on the swimming pool area from the second floor. Everything was neat, clean and orderly.

  Geo started wondering what Kathy would think of him if he ever brought her to his house, with Snack and Sammy, and his ill-assorted room bursting with electronics, term papers and black, unwashed clothing. The only nice room in the house was kept by Delilah. He’d cross that bridge if and when he came to it.

  For the time being, Geo continued to follow Kathy down the hall. A guest bathroom opened on the left-hand side, along with multiple storage closets and the washer and dryer set up. Kathy’s room was on the right, with several tall windows also facing out to the pool. The final room was a large Master Bedroom with another small balcony patio, like the living room, also facing the pool. The Master Bath was on the non-pool side of the room, but arranged so that Doreen could access it directly from her bedroom.

  “Kathy, you have found yourself a really nice place to live. It’s impressive that you just got to town on Thursday and you’re already set up like this.”

  “You’re so sweet to even notice and then take the time to remark on it, Geo.” Kathy smiled up at him. She did feel proud of her initiative and competence, but it was nice to be noticed. She beamed at him even longer.

  Geo looked like he’d melt, and not just from all of the heat they’d encountered outside. Kathy quietly leaned in and gave him a little peck on the cheek. “Thank you for all of your help, Geo. I really appreciate it.”

  Geo was very experienced at computers and electronic devices, but not very experienced at all with girls, especially ones with dimples and sparkling blue eyes like Kathy’s.

  He blushed and said, “Do you know where your outlet is?” Then he blushed even more deeply because, for some reason, that innocent query seemed to carry hidden connotations.

  “My outlet is right near the bed,” Kathy said demurely.

  Oh my God, Geo thought, this is going to be the most highly charged computer set-up of my entire life!

  Almost shaking, Geo began to pull the wiring out of the yellow Best Buy bag, moved the bed aside and started his search for Kathy’s outlet.

  Chapter 23

  When I awoke from my nap on Saturday, I was full of energy. I immediately groped for my cell phone. 4:30 P.M. Time to figure out where the hell Geo was.

  I texted him, Where R U?

  Almost home.

  Good. See u soon.

  Minutes later, I saw Geo pull up in front of the house through the picture window. Whoever got in last had to either park in the driveway or the street. Geo was in last, so I watched as he parked the Camry in the street in front of the house. By this time, I’d showered and changed into workout clothes, but first I wanted to tell Geo about our paycheck and then play Top Five with him.

  Geo entered from the front door. He looked different than I’d ever seen him. Unfocused, dazed and something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. He seemed to be ignoring me. As I watched him almost float toward the refrigerator, I finally put my finger on the third, undefinable quality that had escaped my understanding: love!

  Holy crap, Geo was in love! Now that was a new one. What would love do to our partnership? I wasn’t exactly thrilled to find out. I decided to play it low-key for now and get down to business. Besides, we had a lot of business to catch up on. Well, at least I did; I, who was risking life and limb to keep our business afloat. Who knows what Mr. TechnoGeek was up to while I was riding hell for leather in the desert with bullets blasting at my butt! More specifically, my horse’s butt.

  “How are you, Geo?”

  “Great, Kathy… I mean Sammy.”

  “Kathy? You’ve forgotten my name already?”

  “Just a little slip of the tongue,” Geo quipped happily as he gulped down his own big glass of iced Diet Coke. His eyes slid toward the front door he’d just entered as if planning a quick getaway.

  That just pissed me off more. “Who is Kathy, by the way? And what have you been doing all afternoon?” Okay, so much for playing it low key. Low key is barely in my repertoire anyway.

  On the What have you been doing all afternoon? question, Geo almost choked on his Coke. He downed it in one more big gulp, looking down into the brown, syrup-covered ice cubes in his glass before looking back up into my eyes. “Assembling electronics.” Then his eyes shifted sideways.

  Okay, Sammy, calm down, I said to myself. It’s not like I’m not with guys all the time, and Geo never gives it a second thought. He’s very accepting of me and my lifestyle, and I owe him the same. Besides, if you lose his trust, you lose your partner. And, even more besides, we’re on the biggest case of our fucking careers and you need him! I concluded this little self-talk, took a deep breath and changed my tactics.

  “Well, this Kathy person sounds special. What’s she like?”

  Geo noticeably relaxed. Ah, finally, I was starting to redirect our interchange
. “She’s amazing, Sammy. Just amazing.” And Geo proceeded, uninterrupted, as he described her eyes, her dimples, her pretty little figure, her new job, her new home, her competence, her bravery.

  “Her bravery!” I’d let him ramble on for a good ten minutes, talking in this sing-song, happy-sappy voice that was driving me up the wall. I’d never even heard a voice like that come out of him before. Well, he’d come close when he unwrapped his new Mac laptop and hooked it up, but never quite like this.

  Alright, already, time to redirect again, “Geo, speaking of bravery, do you know where Delilah and I were this morning? Do you?” Okay, okay, Sammy, be cool, I said to myself.

  “Sounds like something important happened, Sammy. Let’s play Top Five and you can tell me about it.”

  Geo had said this in all innocence, but the unwitting tone of his voice implied that the investigation and moi were both currently very low priorities for him. He had much better things to do with his time. This infuriated me to no end, and it was all I could do to keep from jumping up and down like a four-year-old throwing a tantrum.

  I shut myself down the best I could then said, “We’re not going to play Top Five right now. We’re going to play Straight Rendition, instead.”

  “What’s Straight Rendition? We’ve never played that before.”

  “I’d say it’s probably pretty obvious. But maybe not to you. It’s where I get to tell you straight out what I’ve been doing all day. Just like you’ve kind of told me, with the emphasis on kind of told me what you’ve been doing all day. Furthermore, mine too involves bravery and competence. Kathy isn’t the only brave, competent person in the whole world!”

  Damn, why am I so immature? At this point I shut up before getting myself into even more embarrassing waters.

  Geo, who was still floating on air and also had an IQ of two bazillion, suddenly smiled with a new awareness dawning on him. His eyes lit up and a huge grin spread across his features from ear to ear. He looked right at me and started giggling. It started as a low, throaty giggle. Then he started laughing out loud. His laughs turned into guffaws. I was dumbfounded. I had no idea what could possibly be so funny.