Taggart thanked him and headed toward the front door.
Parker called to him, and pointed out the police car that was keeping watch.
“There will be someone here night and day for the time being.”
“Thank you, but I’m just going inside to call everyone and tell them to stay home. Safe or not, I’m not opening our doors again until things are settled.”
“And you think this meeting will settle things?”
“My grandfather thinks so,” Patrick said, and then he went inside.
“Things are getting out of hand.” Jo said.
“I’m going to speak with Rachel. If she knows anything, maybe I can get her to talk.”
“Do you want me along?”
“No, I think it would be best if I talk to her alone.”
“All right, and good luck,”
“Thanks, I’ll need it.”
***
Timothy Hearn heard the knock at his back door and found Nico standing there.
“What the hell did you do now?”
Nico smiled. “That’s how you say good morning?”
“I’m serious. Old man Taggart called me and said he wants a meeting at his house. He said that my latest ‘stunt’ crossed the line. What was he talking about?”
“I doused the building in gasoline.”
Hearn’s face went white.
“You burned down the building?”
“No, I just soaked its base in gasoline, but it got the message across. By the way, I was here last night. The two of us played cards until dawn.”
“You want me to alibi you again?”
Nico smiled and slapped Hearn lightly on the cheek.
“We’re in this together, Timmy, now tell me, what time is the meeting?”
“It’s at eight,”
“I’ll go in your place.”
“You’ll go?”
“I’m sure I can get a lower sale price than you can, and the less you pay for the bar, the more you’ll have left to pay me.”
“What if the police have bugged the place?”
“Let them. I’ll admit to nothing and only name a figure. Either the old man accepts the deal or he gets more grief.”
Hearn walked about in a circle with his hands pressed against the side of his head,
“I should have never gotten involved with you.”
“This is just the beginning, Timmy, in a few years we’ll own this town.”
Hearn dropped into a chair and sighed.
Out in the hallway, Rachel turned and slowly eased back up the stairs. When she reached the top, she heard the back door open and close. She rushed to the bedroom window and saw Nico climbing over the rear fence.
Her phone rang. When she checked the caller ID, her eyes widened in surprise, even as her lips spread in a smile.
“Hello Rick,”
“Good morning, Rachel,”
“To what do I owe this call?”
“I need to talk to you. Can we meet this morning?”
“Sure, I’m on second shift today, so why don’t I come over and make you breakfast?”
“No, I’m already out and about, but I could meet you at the Main Street Diner.”
“All right, I’ll be there in an hour, and Rick?”
“Yeah?”
“I’ve missed you.”
“I just want to talk, Rachel.”
“Whatever you say,”
***
Parker made it to the diner first and snagged a booth in a back corner.
When Rachel arrived, he felt his heart speed up as he watched her walk his way. She was a beautiful woman and a part of him still loved her.
When she reached him, she leaned over and gave him a quick kiss.
“I’m so glad you called.”
“You may not be when you hear the reason.”
A waitress came over. She was pretty, but Parker thought her smile looked tentative, as if she could sense his distress over this meeting. After he and Rachel had both ordered only coffee, the girl returned swiftly with their cups and then disappeared.
Rachel pushed her cup aside and smiled seductively.
“Why don’t we go back to the house? You know you want to.”
“Stop it. This is not about us. I’ve come here to warn you.”
The smile left Rachel’s face.
“Warn me about what?”
“Nico Umbria is not someone you want to tie yourself to, Jo and I are certain that he killed Charles Woolley, and he’s also behind the trouble at Taggart’s.
“Jo and you are certain? Jo and you do more than work together, don’t you?”
“What?”
“I met her yesterday; and yes, she’s beautiful, but I bet she doesn’t move you like I do. Take me home, Rick, and I’ll make you forget all about that partner of yours.”
Parker hung his head and closed his eyes, as he tried to keep his anger in check.
“Joanna Knight and I are not sleeping together; she’s my partner on the job, and a friend.”
Rachel studied him.
“I believe you.”
“Good, now, back to Nico, we know why Hearn is offering him an alibi, the two of them are working together to buy Taggart’s cheaply, but there’s no reason why you should let them drag you into this thing. Come back to the station with me and make a statement.”
“What was the name of the girl who came to the hospital with you the other day?”
“Her name is Heather, but now listen to me, we will question you eventually and it’s much better if you come in yourself. We’ll find out the truth anyway. If you lie to protect Hearn or Nico it will not end well, and then there won’t be anything I can do to help you.”
Rachel stared at him, as her features grew harsh.
“You’re bedding that girl, aren’t you, that girl Heather?”
“What? Rachel, listen to me. If you get tangled up in Hearn’s lies it will drag you down with him.”
“That girl is young enough to be your daughter, Rick.”
“That’s none of your business, now will you come back with me to the station and talk?”
Rachel stood and glared down at him.
“I’m not going to help you hurt Tim, and once we’re married you won’t be able to make me testify against him.”
“Married? You’re marrying him?”
“That’s right, so go have fun with your teenager and leave us alone.”
Rachel walked out of the diner in a huff as Parker sat stunned by the news of her impending marriage. By the time he roused himself and went outside, she was driving away.
He took out his phone and called Jo.
“So, how did it go?” She asked.
“She’s not going to help us, or herself, how about on your end?”
“I put in requests for Hearn’s and Rachel’s phone records, but Nico doesn’t own a phone, at least not one in his name. I’m also trying to get a warrant to check Hearn’s computer records; maybe we’ll find something there.”
Parker said nothing in return.
“Hey Rick, you still there?”
“I’m here, but... the chief was right. I’m too close to this case now that we’re investigating my ex-wife and her lover. As much as I hate to do it, I’m going to bow out of the investigation.”
Jo sighed.
“I was actually going to bring that up when you got back. I’m glad you came to the conclusion yourself.”
“You don’t need me in order to solve it. You’re one of the best cops I’ve ever worked with, but I do have some news for you.”
“What’s that?”
“Rachel told me that she and Hearn are getting married.”
“I’m sorry if that hurts you, Rick.”
“Thanks, but I was actually thinking about how it might impact the case. If she’s willing to marry him, she’ll definitely lie for him.”
“I agree, so I’ll have to break both of their alibis, but one way or another, we’ll g
et Nico for Charles Woolley’s murder.”
“I know you’ll do it, now I’d better call the chief.”
“All right, and I’ll keep you informed.”
Parker called Chief Gabe Howard and told him about his decision. The chief not only agreed, but told him that he would have been reassigned in any event. He also suggested to Parker that he take a few days off to let his injuries heal properly.
Parker declined that offer, but did opt to take the rest of the day off. He was no longer investigating the murder of Charles Woolley, and so Heather was no longer off limits.
Also, Taggart’s was closed, and that meant that Heather had the evening free.
He drove to her home, and as he did so, he passed by the scene of a previous murder, the murder of Tiffany Grace.
He slowed as he drove by the Kents’ home and saw that it and the Grace home next door both had For Sale signs in their yards. Both homes also looked uninhabited and no cars were parked in their driveways.
He shook himself free from the memory of the sad events that had taken place inside the Kent home, but cheered as he parked in front of Heather’s house and spotted her car.
When she answered the door, she let him in, but then gave him a subdued smile and asked him why he was there.
“I’ve come to see you of course,”
Heather folded her arms over her chest.
“I have a friend who is a waitress at the diner. She told me that she saw you having breakfast with your ex-wife. Is there something you want to tell me, Rick?”
“It wasn’t a date, Heather. It actually involved the case. The man she’s seeing has given Nico Umbria an alibi, and I was warning her not to get involved.”
“Is that why she kissed you?”
Parker grinned. “You’re actually jealous?”
Heather unfolded her arms and gazed up at him with a pleading look.
“This isn’t funny, and I have to know that I can trust you.”
Parker opened his arms.
“Come here,”
Heather hugged him and he spoke to her.
“You can trust me. I know what it’s like to be betrayed and I would never hurt you. Rachel did kiss me before she sat down, but she left in a huff because I tried to warn her that she was heading for trouble.”
“But now that she’s part of the case you’ll be seeing more of her, no?”
“No, because now that she’s a part of the case I can’t continue to work on it. I’ve been reassigned.”
“So your off the case, how does that affect us?”
Parker smiled, lowered his head, and kissed her,
“Does that answer your question?”
Heather let out a squeal.
“I want to go on a date, our first date. What time do you get off today?”
“I’m free all day.”
She turned and stared at a coffee table full of textbooks.
“I’m supposed to be studying for a test, but I guess I could study late tonight instead.”
Parker shook his head.
“No. You keep studying and I’ll come back at six and pick you up. How does dinner and a movie sound?”
Heather grinned. “It sounds great.”
After they talked a little longer, Heather walked him out to his car.
As he started the engine, she leaned in and gave him a kiss.
“I can’t wait until tonight.”
“Me too, and why don’t we go to Philly? I know a lot of good restaurants there.”
“That sounds good.”
Parker drove home, feeling happier than he had in a long time, and although he was off the case, he couldn’t stop thinking about it, and his mind turned to the meeting scheduled that night at Nathanial Taggart’s home.
Was the old man willing to back down to Hearn’s pressure, or were things going to escalate? He let those thoughts go and returned his mind to Heather Jones.
“Our first date,” he whispered to himself, and then smiled.
Life was good.
10
“Life is shit, boy; don’t you know that by now?”
Patrick Taggart looked down at the scowling face of his aged grandfather.
“It doesn’t have to be shit. There’s a whole world out there besides this little town, and I can’t believe that Tim Hearn is giving us so much grief over a bar.”
“Hearn thinks I’m so old that I’m done, and he knows you have no backbone, so why not move in and take things over?”
Patrick sank into a chair and checked his watch; it was eight o’clock.
“Tim should be here any minute and then we’ll hash out a sale price.”
His grandfather rolled the wheelchair closer and stared at him in disgust.
“Do you really think I’m selling that weasel my bar?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Hell no!”
“Well then, why have the meeting?”
The old man’s gaped-tooth grin was cagey.
“You’ll find out, and when he gets here, you answer it. I sent Margaret off to her sister’s for a few days.”
“Why did you do that?”
The bell at the gates rang and the old man nodded.
“Let our guest in, and let’s get this show on the road.”
***
When Patrick returned with Nico, the old man pointed at him.
“Who the hell are you?”
“My name is Nico Umbria.”
“Umbria is Italian. You ain’t no Italian,”
“My father was Italian, and my mother was Cuban, but I’m not here to discuss my roots; I’m here to buy a bar.”
“Where’s that bastard, Hearn?”
“Tim and I are friends. He sent me to negotiate for him, and by negotiate I mean that he’ll pay you exactly half of the last offer he made.”
Patrick looked stricken.
“Half? But, his last offer was insult enough. He must be joking?”
Nico moved closer to Patrick, uncomfortably close.
“If you think we’re joking then you haven’t been paying attention.”
Patrick backed away and scurried behind his grandfather’s wheelchair. Nico laughed as he watched him, and then took a seat across from them in a leather wing chair.
“What’s it gonna be old man? Do we make a deal, or do we continue to dance?”
Nathanial Taggart chuckled, and the sound was so filled with phlegm that it made Nico clear his own throat.
“Let me tell you something boy, I’ve been dealing with punks like you for over eighty years, and I’ll tell you just what I told the others.”
Nico smirked. “And just what would that be?”
“Die,” the old man said. “I told them to die.”
As he talked, a withered hand slipped beneath the blanket on his lap and found the gun hidden there. It was an ancient .32 Colt.
The old man fired while the gun was still under the blanket and the first bullet hit Nico in the chest.
Nico looked down at the blood spreading across his shirt in amazement, and then jumped up. As he charged the wheelchair, a second shot was fired at an upward angle and the slug caught him above the right eye and entered his brain.
Nico screamed while clutching his head, and then fell backwards to the carpet, where he twitched in spasms with his eyes closed.
Patrick had staggered backwards into the desk and was half sitting on it when his grandfather spun the wheelchair around and smiled at him.
“That’s how you handle punks, Pat, and let me tell you something boy, it works every time.”
Pat stared at his grandfather, a look of horror on his face.
“You, you, you killed him, murdered him right in our house.”
“He ain’t quite dead yet the way he’s twitching, but he will be... and he ain’t the first man I shot in this house; believe me... although it’s been a while since the last one.”
“Oh God, the police will lock you away, even at your age, they’ll lock
you away.”
The old man gave him a confused look.
“What the hell are you talking about? Once you bury this sorry sack of shit... he’ll be forgotten, and I guarantee you that Tim Hearn won’t try any more nonsense. Now, go get a shovel and dig a hole in... in the woods before he starts to rot.”
“Are you mad? The only thing I’m going to do is call the police and an ambulance, maybe, maybe they’ll believe it was self-defense.”
The old man reddened with rage.
“Police? Damn you boy, be a man for once. We don’t need no police... especially that woman. Now, go do like I told you and... and get a damn shovel.”
Patrick picked up the phone on the desk to dial.
“Put that phone down! Damn you Pat, you listen to me, I—aaaghhh,”
Nathanial Taggart grabbed at his chest as he clenched his eyes tightly.
“Grandfather!”
Patrick replaced the phone in its cradle and went to him, but there was nothing to be done. The old man stiffened in his chair, let out a gasp, and slumped back in his seat, dead.
Patrick checked his pulse and found nothing, and the age-speckled flesh already felt cool to the touch. On the floor, Nico continued to twitch, but the spasms were growing less intense.
For the second time that night, Patrick staggered backwards to the desk, but as he gazed at the dead form of his grandfather, two words entered his mind.
I’m free.
***
Parker had turned his phone off that night so that nothing came between him and Heather, and so didn’t learn of the events at the Taggart estate until he checked his messages after taking Heather home.
The date had been fantastic and he and Heather realized that despite the difference in their ages that they viewed the world in similar ways.
Parker found her more mature than many of the women he had dated and realized that her commitment to becoming a doctor was total.
Between her classes, studying, and job at the bar, there was little time left for a social life. Parker was a man who worked long hours himself at a job that was more than a way to make money, and he both understood and appreciated what it would take for her to reach her goal of becoming a heart surgeon.
The date ended in a deep embrace with the promise that there would be more dates to follow, and Parker couldn’t wait.
***
Two weeks later, Parker and Knight sat at their desks, after having just finished doing the paperwork on their capture of a burglary ring.
Homicide! (Parker & Knight Book 2) Page 6