by Cindy Bell
“I’m sorry to hear that, Neil, but I certainly understand. In the meantime if there is anything that you need please feel free to ask.”
“What could I possibly need from you?” Suzie watched as he walked away. “Someone in this backwards town is going to pay, I promise you that.” She heard him slam the door to his room. The abrupt sound caused a shiver to race along her spine. Maybe Neil didn’t know how to express his grief, but he certainly knew how to express his anger.
“Suzie, lunch is ready!” Mary stuck her head out of the kitchen to get her friend’s attention. Suzie, still a little startled from Neil’s behavior, joined her friend in the kitchen.
“Well, I just told Neil what happened,” Suzie said as she walked into the kitchen.
“Oh? Was that the slam I heard?”
“Yes. I don’t think he was the least bit pleased. He seemed just as angry as he was upset.”
“People react to things differently.” Mary placed a grilled cheese with freshly sliced tomato on the bench in front of Suzie. All of a sudden Suzie was hungry, very hungry.
“Oh, that reminds me, I’d better let Jason know that Neil is here.” She sent Jason a text. After a few bites of her sandwich she heard a knock on the door, then the door swung open.
“Suzie?” Jason called out as he stepped into the lobby. Suzie stole another bite of her sandwich then excused herself.
“Jason, you got my text?”
“Yes. Is Neil still here?”
“Yes, he is in his room. Room six.”
“All right.” He walked down the hall towards the room.
“Jason, he didn’t take it well.”
Jason spun on his heel to look at her. “You already told him?”
“Yes.” Suzie frowned. “Is that a problem?”
“I would have liked to see his initial reaction myself. So yes, it is a bit of a problem. I wish you had waited until I arrived.”
“I’m sorry, Jason, I thought he should know as soon as possible,” Suzie said. “He was wondering why Benita was downstairs and I couldn’t lie.”
“It’s all right.” Jason sighed. He knocked on the door of Neil’s room. There was no response. Jason knocked again. Again there was no response.
“Are you sure he’s here?”
“I didn’t see him leave.” Suzie stepped past him and tried the door knob. The room was locked. “Neil?” She knocked on the door. “Neil, are you in there?”
Jason frowned when there was no answer. “Can you open it?”
“Sure.” Suzie pulled the keys out of her pocket and unlocked the door to the room. When the door swung open the room was spotless, and also empty. The bed was made and the furniture was neatly arranged. Jason started to step inside.
“Jason, what are you doing?”
“I was just going to take a quick look around.”
“No.”
“What?” Jason turned to look at her.
“Neil’s my guest. I can’t just let you into his room.”
“You did unlock it for me.” He crossed his arms.
“Yes, but that’s because I thought Neil might be hurt. Not to let you snoop through his things.”
“Really? You’re going to lecture me about snooping?” Jason laughed.
“Jason. I’m serious.”
His smile faded as he looked at her. “Suzie, Neil could be involved in this. I might be able to find a lead if I look around.”
“Do you have any reason to suspect him?”
“None. But business partners are often involved in disputes. Are you really going to deny me the chance to find evidence?”
“We don’t even know where Neil is. I didn’t see him leave.”
“He must have slipped out when you weren’t looking. Where he is doesn’t matter as much as why is he sneaking around?” Jason peered at a pile of papers on a table.
“Jason.” Suzie frowned. “I’m not comfortable with this.”
“I’ll remember that the next time you want me to give you information about someone.” He raised an eyebrow.
Suzie sighed. “All right, fine. But you know as well as I do that anything you find without a warrant can’t be used against Neil.”
“Why would anything be used against me?” Neil stood in the hall just behind Suzie. “Why are you in my room without my permission?”
Suzie cringed.
“I was looking for you, Mr. Runkin, to discuss the murder of Priscilla Kane,” Jason said as he stood tall and walked towards him.
“Are you accusing me of something? What right do you have to be in my room?” Neil glared at Suzie. “Did you let him in here? You did, didn’t you?”
“I thought you might be hurt.” Suzie frowned. “I thought you were inside and not answering.”
“Oh, now you have so much concern for your guests? Where was that concern when Priscilla was missing all night?” He chuckled. “And look who’s here. Junior Deputy Dogood.”
“Junior what?” Jason narrowed his eyes.
“You want to look around my room without a warrant?” Neil stepped into the room with Jason. “Feel free. I have nothing to hide. Priscilla and I were business partners, that’s it.”
Suzie’s stomach churned as she watched the two men face off. She couldn’t help but feel that she was somehow responsible for the fireworks of tension between them.
“Why don’t we start with you telling me where you were last night?” Jason pulled out his notebook.
“I wasn’t here.” Neil shrugged. “I was being entertained by a lady friend.”
“A lady friend? It wasn’t Priscilla?”
“Please.” Neil scowled. “After the meeting I met a woman on the beach, and well, she appreciated my plan for the future of Garber.”
“What was the name of this woman?” Jason looked up from his notepad.
“You really think I’m going to tell you that so you can smear her reputation? No. I have no reason to tell you who I was with. I was not here, and I was not with Priscilla. That’s all that you need to know.”
“So, you’re not interested in cooperating with this investigation?”
“What I’m not interested in is dealing with a small town cop who has no idea what he is doing. For all future contact you can go through my lawyer. If you don’t mind I’d like you to leave my room. I need to pack.”
“I’ll be in contact with you soon, Mr. Runkin.” Though Jason’s tone was polite Suzie could see the squint of his eyes and the tension in his jaw. He stepped out of the room. Neil promptly closed the door behind him. They both heard the click of the lock. Jason gestured towards the living room. Suzie followed after him. He did not speak until they were outside on the porch together.
“That guy is a real piece of work.”
“Yes, he is.” Suzie folded her arms across her chest.
“I’m sorry that I’ve gotten you into a problem with him. But I do think there’s good reason to suspect him. He refuses to give an alibi.”
“He did come back today with the same clothes he wore yesterday,” Suzie paused. “Actually, he must have changed between the time he came in and the time we saw him. His clothes were different.”
“Interesting. Maybe he took a shower. That might have been why he was not in his room.”
“His hair wasn’t wet.”
“Maybe he didn’t wash it.” Jason shrugged. “Either way, I’m going to see about getting a warrant. I want to know what is in his room that he didn’t want me to see.”
Suzie nodded. “I’ll keep an eye out.”
“Please do.” He started to walk away, then stopped and turned back. “No Paul yet?”
“Probably not until tomorrow. Is everything okay, Jason? You’ve been asking about him a lot.”
“Sure, everything’s fine.” Jason glanced away.
“What is it?”
“Nothing Suzie.”
“Is it about me?” Suzie’s heart dropped.
“It’s nothing bad, Suzie.” Jason smiled at her. “At l
east I don’t think it is. I just need to talk to him when he gets in, all right?”
“All right.” Suzie waved to him as he walked to the parking lot.
Chapter Seven
A few hours later Suzie was so restless that she decided it was time to do some investigating of her own. It was the only way she could get herself to calm down. She paced back and forth through the living room as she began to carve out a plan.
“Suzie?” Mary nearly collided with her as she walked into the living room. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I think so. Neither Neil nor Stewart has signed up for dinner, so do you want to go out for dinner tonight?”
“Wes is taking me out to dinner again tonight. Do you want to join us instead?”
“No, thank you.” Suzie smiled. “I’ll be back by eight.”
“Okay, I won’t be.” Mary grinned. “I’m hoping we will go for a walk after. Although, we might just avoid the beach.”
“I don’t blame you for that. Have fun. I will be on call in case any of the guests need anything. All right?”
“Great. See you later, Suzie.”
“See you later.” Suzie stepped out of the front door of Dune House and walked over to her car. With every step she took she had a strange sensation that something might just pop out at her. She looked around the property a few times, but didn’t notice anything strange, aside from a window that was off track. She tried to tug it back into place, but it was wedged. She made a mental note to ask Paul for help with it when he docked.
When Suzie arrived at Cheney’s it was as busy as ever. Suzie swept her gaze over the wait staff in search of familiar faces. Though she didn’t often dine out, when she did it was usually with Paul at Cheney’s. She had also become familiar with the employees from the restaurant and from running into them from time to time in town.
“Melissa!” Suzie waved to a young waitress who had just walked away from a large table of diners.
“Suzie.” She smiled as she walked over to her. “Where’s Paul?”
“A table for one tonight I’m afraid. Anything good on the menu?”
“Everything’s good on the menu.” Melissa winked at her. “Just a minute and I’ll get you a table by the window.”
“Thanks, Melissa.”
As Suzie waited for her table she noticed a familiar face in the crowd. It took her a moment to remember who he was. Priscilla’s driver. He glanced over at her, but didn’t seem to recognize her. Then he settled in at the bar. Suzie walked over to him and leaned against the bar beside him.
“Can I buy you a drink?”
He looked up at her. “Sure, I guess. You’re from the bed and breakfast, right?”
“Yes. I’m sorry about Priscilla.”
“Yes. That was a shock. My boss wants me to wait here until the matter is settled, so I’m staying.”
“In the motel right?”
“Yes.”
“I know the owner. Is he taking care of you well?”
“Sure, I guess. Clean towels, a working television, what more can you ask for?”
“I’m Suzie by the way. I don’t think I caught your name.”
“It’s Conner.”
“Conner, did you notice anything strange happening around the motel?”
“Strange?” He shrugged. “You mean other than the people?”
“What was strange about the people?”
“Just you know, some seedy types.”
“Sure.” Suzie nodded. “Anything other than that? Maybe someone arguing or something?”
“There was some arguing about money. I don’t know who it was though. It sounded like two guys. I didn’t see either of them, I was in my room. But I could hear them out in the parking lot.”
“Did you tell the police?”
“No reason to. I didn’t think it had anything to do with Priscilla, still don’t. They didn’t mention her or anything.”
“What about family?”
“Look, I don’t know anything about her. All I did was drive, and like I said, she was private. I didn’t get to know her.”
“All right.” Suzie glanced towards Melissa who signaled to an empty table. “Thanks for your time, Conner.”
“No problem.” He returned to his drink. Suzie didn’t think he was telling her everything. She settled at the table and ordered a glass of wine. As she relaxed into her seat she studied the others gathered in the restaurant. It was eerie to think that Priscilla had her last meal in the restaurant, if she even ate. When Melissa returned with Suzie’s wine, she placed her order for ravioli. Then she gestured to the empty chair across from her.
“Can you sit for a minute?”
Melissa glanced around at her tables, then plopped down in the empty chair. “Just for a few minutes.”
“Melissa, do you remember serving Priscilla Kane last night?”
“Sure. It’s crazy that she died. I mean, I was just talking to her.”
“Did you notice anything strange about her last night? Was she upset?”
“Not at first. She came in, I seated her, then I seated her friend.”
“Her friend? She was dining with someone?”
“Yes.”
“Did you tell the police that?”
“Well no. No one asked. It was busy when they questioned us so I guess that it just slipped my mind.”
“Do you know who he was?”
“No, it wasn’t a he. It was a young woman. And when they first sat down they were cordial to each other. I took their order, but before I could even bring them their food, they started arguing.”
“Just a little back and forth?”
“No it was more than that. Raised voices. Slammed silverware. I was close to tossing them out.”
“Did you hear what they were saying?”
“Not really. Something like, you don’t understand, you’re too young to get it. Then the young woman went on this rant about how Priscilla was selfish, how she couldn’t ever see past herself, and that would never change. Then she stormed out.”
“Are you sure there was nothing else?”
“No, I’m sorry.”
“What about payment? Did the other woman pay for the check?”
“No, Priscilla paid for all of it. She left not long after that.”
“Was she drunk?”
“She had some drinks, but I think she was more upset than drunk.”
“Did you see her leave?”
“Yes, she kind of stumbled out the door.” Melissa glanced back at the big table. “I’m sorry I have to check in on them.”
“It’s no problem, you’ve been very helpful.” Suzie made a note on her napkin about the woman who shared a meal with Priscilla. At the very least she was someone to look into.
When Suzie finished her meal she left payment and a tip on the table and walked towards the door. She noticed that Conner was still at the bar. He nursed a beer, but kept his eyes on the door. Suzie looked towards the door just in time to see Neil step through it. He didn’t notice Suzie, but walked right up to Conner. The two spoke too quietly for Suzie to hear. She frowned as she continued out the door.
It seemed rather interesting that Neil, who only liked fancy places and people would go out of his way to a small Italian restaurant, and speak to a lowly driver. As Suzie drove back to Dune House she wondered whether Mary’s night had been pleasant. She hoped that it had. When she parked she saw that Dune House was dark, but for the two lights that they always left on. The porch light and the living room light. That either meant that Mary was home and asleep, or still out with Wes. Suzie made her way into Dune House through the front door. She knew that Neil would not be there, and she presumed that Stewart would be tucked away in his room. As she walked through the living room towards the front desk she heard a subtle flutter.
“Pumpkin! Pumpkin!”
“Oh dear, not this again.” Suzie paused in front of the cage. “What’s wrong, Benita, are you hungry?” She made sure the bird’s water an
d food dish were full. But the bird continued to shriek. “Pumpkin! Pumpkin!”
“Hmm, something tells me you like Halloween.” Suzie shook her head. “I can’t have you keeping our guests awake. I guess you will have to come with me.” She picked up the cage and carried it into her room. She set the cage down on a table near the window. Then she draped a thin blanket over the top of the cage to get the bird to settle down. In the silence that followed she took a deep breath. She knew that Paul would be getting in sometime the next day. She looked forward to seeing him, but she couldn’t be too excited with the weight of Priscilla’s death hanging over her head. Who was the woman she met with in the restaurant? Why was Neil so cagey?
Chapter Eight
When Suzie woke the next morning the first thought on her mind was Paul. He would be arriving at any time that day. She smiled at the thought. The second thought was about Priscilla and what might have happened to her. She decided that the most important thing was to find out who was having dinner with Priscilla the night she died. That person might be the only person that knew exactly what happened to Priscilla. From what Melissa said she assumed the woman was much younger than Priscilla. She decided that she would attempt to ask Neil about her. She dressed and then headed for the front desk. She knew that both Stewart and Neil planned on checking out that morning. Mary already had coffee brewing.
“Did you get in late last night?” Suzie smiled at her.
“Quite late. Actually, I do have something to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Wes and I decided to walk through town instead of on the beach. We bumped into Carl, you know, he runs the pharmacy? Anyway, we started talking about the tragedy of Pricilla’s death. He mentioned that he had seen Priscilla, and another woman, walking through town together.”
“Really.” Suzie raised an eyebrow. “Melissa, the waitress at Cheney’s told me that Priscilla ate with a woman the night of her death, but she said they argued.”
“According to Carl they walked arm in arm. He noticed because it seemed a little strange to him, one of the women appeared much younger than the other. He didn’t say they were arguing.”
“Interesting, interesting.” Suzie pursed her lips. “I guess we should tell Jason about this.” Before she could even pull out her phone Neil walked up to the front desk. He dropped his bag on the floor with a thump.