Coffee & Crime

by Anita Rodgers

  I fanned out my arms and shook my head. "Wow, really? I see what you mean, you destroyed what he cared about to make him as miserable you were, right. And what better way to get back at George than to screw Jake. That must've flipped him out."

  Lily looked flat-footed for a second then recovered with a sneer. "Jake was useful. He kept me in the loop, and he didn't suck in bed. So?"

  Her response confused me — Jake hadn't been part of her plan, just a happy coincidence. I looked around the room and snapped my fingers. "This is Jake's house. No wonder he had to embezzle funds." I smirked. "What's he going to say if you bloody up his beautiful white home?"

  Lily looked down her button nose at me. "What makes you think Jake is coming back?"

  "Because it's his house."

  She looked at me in disgust. "You really do suck at this detective thing." My response was a blank stare. She flapped a hand at me. "Now that he's in custody, the feds are all over him. They've been after him for a while too." She swept her arm around the room. "This place and everything in it will end up in an auction. He'll never step foot in this place again."

  I nodded and grinned. "So, you kept Jake in line by threatening to go to the feds?" I winked. "What'd you do, put a bug in George's office, break into his files? You must’ve done something to find out what George was up to. Or did Jake do that for you?"

  Lily smiled smugly. "Like I said, I have my ways."

  I nodded in whole-hearted agreement. "You sure do. That whole brownie switching thing. Emptying George's injectors. Putting your boyfriend up as a false witness. Forcing Jake to sic the cops on us. You definitely covered everything."

  Lily's smile turned to a glare. "What are you going on about? Jake never did me any favors. Except keeping his mouth shut. Which he really did for himself because he wanted George gone too." Then she realized she'd said too much and glared at me. She circled around me, keeping the gun trained on my chest and opened the balcony door. "Enough of this crap." She pointed the gun. "Out there. Now!"

  The wind wailed, and when I backed onto the balcony, it sounded like a freight train hurtled straight for us. My hair whipped at my face and eyes like a thousand razors and my heart pounded with anticipation. I glanced over the balcony railing — if I went over the edge, there'd be little left for the coyotes. A body bag wouldn't be necessary because a zip bag would do the job. I inched toward the exterior wall, trying to get clear of the railing.

  "Stop moving," Lily said like a petulant child.

  I flicked a gaze over the railing again. "Just trying to avoid an accident."

  Lily laughed and snorted. "You crack me up Scotti. That's the whole idea girlfriend. You're going to have an accident. Poor Scotti, she went over the railing and crashed onto the rocks below." She mocked me with a sad face. "Too bad she was too nosey for her own good. If only she'd minded her own damn business!"

  I kept inching away from the railing. If I could keep her talking, maybe I could get back to the doors. "Is that how your story goes? Got it all worked out have you?"

  Her anger was replaced by a kind of euphoria — as though her dreams were finally coming true. "It'll only be scary for a few seconds. There won't be enough time to feel any real pain."

  I pushed my back harder into the exterior wall. What was the deal with Lily and balconies? "Look Lily, you don't want to do this. I get it, you've been hurt by a lot of people. And I'm sorry. But you can still get away. And I'll help you. I'll transfer all the reward money into your account. And the inheritance money too. And I've got about $70,000 that I was saving for the diner but hey, I'll give that to you too." I grinned at her. "What do say?"

  Lily raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

  I nodded my head. "Absolutely. That's two hundred grand. I know it's not the millions you hoped for, but it's not chump change either, right?" I kept inching. " All we need is a laptop to do the transfer. It'll take five minutes maybe ten tops. After the transfer is done, you can tie me up and leave me here. No one will think to look here. It'll be days before they find me. By then, you'll be hundreds of miles away." I nodded eagerly. "You could even be in Europe by then."

  Lily sneered and pointed the gun in a two-handed stance. "Get your ass back over to that railing now." The wind gusted, whipping her hair into her eyes and face but not enough for me to break for it. "Do you hear me?"

  I shook my head slowly. "Make me."

  Her voice pitched high and whiny. "I'll shoot you right here then."

  At that point Lily had held me captive for almost three hours and it dawned on me that she was stalling. She was a nasty little bitch but I didn't believe she had the nerve to pull the trigger. If she really wanted to kill me she could've done it several times by then and hadn't. At heart, Lily was chicken but as long as she had the gun she was dangerous. My best chance was to bait her into coming closer so I could tackle her. I edged closer to the doors. "You're not going to shoot me."

  Lily smirked. "I'm not?"

  I don't know how authoritative I looked with a head the size of a watermelon, but I did my best to act confident. "If you were going to shoot me, you would've done it at my house." I shook my head. "If you think I’m going to make this easy for you, then you’re wrong. You want me dead, you'll have to throw me over or shoot me, I won't help you." I smirked. "But the thing is, you don't have the nerve to do it. And we both know it."

  Lily screamed like a coyote and pulled the trigger. Fire surged through my hip. Stunned, I lifted my shirt and stared at the blood oozing out of the rip in my jeans. "You bitch! Do you know how much I paid for these jeans?"

  Lily stared at the gun as though shocked that she'd pulled the trigger. It was now or never. I lunged at her and managed a half-ass tackle around her legs. Not great but good enough to take her down and skitter the gun across the balcony floor.

  Chapter Sixty-Six

  Lily and I wrestled to get the advantage. Lily scratched. She bit. She pulled my hair. Screaming and flailing legs and arms, she was like a crazed animal ready to fight to the death.

  The pain only pissed me off. I pummeled her ribs until her hold weakened and I could throw her off me. As soon as I scrambled to my feet, Lily leapt onto my back, using a fistful of hair as a rein, and she rode me like a pony.

  It felt like my scalp was being ripped off my skull, and I screamed. Then rammed my elbow upward and caught her in the jaw. Her grip loosened, and she slid down my back but still held on. With everything I had, I drove my heel down on her foot. Lily screamed and let go. She fell back against the railing, swayed but caught herself before going over.

  A few feet away, the gun lay on the other side of the balcony, and I dove for it. Coming down hard on my hip, I groaned and reached for the gun. Lily kicked me hard in the ribs. I heard the crack, and the pain surged through me like a taser. My hand closed around

  the gun. I sucked in a deep breath, got another jolt of searing pain, and pushed off the floor. Spinning on my heel, I slammed into Lily, sent her sprawling, and she landed on her back.

  Struggling to my feet I trained the gun on Lily. "Thank God, for Pilates." I panted hard and fast. Blood and sweat ran into my eyes and I used my sleeve to wipe my face but it didn't help.

  Lily lay on the balcony floor, propped on her elbows and panting. "What are you waiting for bitch? Do it."

  I panted so hard my lungs burned. And every breath was like a knife to my side. "I'm not going to shoot you."

  She sprung to her feet and charged me. "Then you're one stupid bitch."

  But I danced away from Lily's tackle, as any waitress dances away from near collisions a hundred times a day. "Aha!" I cried sending a searing pain through my side. Clutching my injured ribs, I spun on her, but Lily was gone. "Where are you?"

  My heart pounded. The wind screamed. Hair lashed my face. I made a full circle limping turn — no Lily. Peering through the open French doors, I saw no one waited, crouched and ready to pounce. The wind gusted, pushing me forward like an invisible hand leading me toward dead.
I screamed. "Where the fuck are you?"

  My insides turned to jelly when I realized Lily had gone over the railing. Slowly, I limped to the railing and looked down to the canyons. A hand grabbed my ankle. I screamed and ducked into a crouch to keep from going over. Lily hung onto the bottom of the railing with one hand with a death grip on my ankle with the other. With clumsy fingers, I pried at her hand. "Let go, you crazy bitch!"

  Lily tightened her grasp and dug her fingers into my a boot. "Help me! I don't want to die. Please."

  We locked eyes. Human being to human being. If I helped her back to safety, she'd only come after me again. If I let her die, I could never live with myself. No matter how much she deserved it. Neither was a choice I wanted to make.

  The wind gusted harder, and my thigh muscles strained when I tried to stand. Every muscle in my body trembled, ached and screamed with pain. How the hell would I pull Lily up over the railing? I had a bullet wound, a cracked rib, and probably a broken

  Nose. The odds sucked. I yelled against the shrieking wind. "You have to let go of my ankle."

  Lily wept while the wind whipped her around like a twig in a dervish. "I'll fall!"

  "You have to move your hand to the railing." I pointed. "Let go of my ankle and grab onto the railing."

  "I can't! I'm too scared."

  Dizzy with pain and numb from the wind, my hands were a clumsy useless tool. I tucked the gun behind my back in the waistband of my jeans. Crouching, I anchored my free foot under the bottom of the railing and with both hands pried Lily's grip from my ankle then guided it to the bottom of the railing. My breath came out in trembled stutters. "Hang on. I'm going inside to find something to get you up."

  "No!" Lily screamed. "You can't leave me here! No!"

  I ignored Lily's screams and crab-walked backwards into the house and closed the door with my foot. It was so quiet inside that I wanted to lay down on the floor and sleep. I was so tired and I hurt and my head spun. My eyelids were heavy and the seduction of sleep whispered in my ear – then Zelda barged her way into my brain and ordered me to man up. My eyes popped open and I pushed myself to my feet. A wave of pain shot through me, and I buckled over. With the sleeve of my shirt, I wiped the sweat and tears that slicked my face. Screaming I pushed off my thighs with my arms and stood up.

  The wind howled, and Lily screamed outside as I scanned the room for a tool or anything I could use. But I wasn't in a hardware store, and a few pieces of stylish furniture, and a couple of lovely framed lithographs wouldn't help. Panic rumbled through me — Lily would die, and it would be my fault. I'd be put on trial for murder and only see Ted every other Wednesday. Zelda would starve to death, and Boomer would go back to living in trash cans. "Oh shit."

  The wind gusted and blew open the door then whipped through the room. The sheer drapery panels at the windows danced and billowed. I grabbed a handful of curtain. Sheer, yes — but also made of silk. Silk is strong. I ripped down panels and knotted them together. It wasn't like rope climbing in gym class, but it was all I had.

  I looped and knotted the rope of curtains around the handles of the French door and tugged as hard as I could. It had to hold. Then I crawled out onto the patio and fed the other end of the knotted panels through the bars of the railing. It whipped and twirled in the wind. I cupped my hands around my mouth and yelled to Lily. "Grab the rope and climb up!"

  Lily looked at me in horror and screamed. "That's not rope! Are you crazy?"

  "It's all we've got."

  "No! You pull me up!"

  "I can't, you nut job! You broke my ribs. "

  "I won't do it!" Lily cried.

  Operating on adrenaline alone, I could already feel my engines stalling. If Lily didn't get too it soon she wouldn't even have me to help her. "Shut up and do it, Lily! There aren't any more choices." Lily shook her head. "Do you want to live?" She nodded her head violently. "Then you have to try. I'm right here. I'll help you." I pulled the makeshift rope back up, looped it and fed it back down to Lily. After many tries and fails, she caught it and held fast. "Okay," I yelled. "Start climbing and I'll start pulling."

  I crab-walked backwards to the door, backed inside and struggled to my feet. Wedging my side between the door jamb and wall for leverage, I grasped the makeshift rope with both hands and pulled. The rope went taut as both of us pulled on it and I worried it would shred. My feet slipped on the polished tile floor and my grip loosened. I was so tired and everything hurt. I couldn't feel my hands. It was hopeless.

  I started to cry, but then the top of Lily's head crowned above the railing. Then her face. Then her arms. She hoisted her leg over the railing and then the other. It was a freaking miracle. She stood for a moment, swaying, and panting — trying to get her bearings.

  I stared in awe, never really believing it would work. "Lily?"

  She steadied herself and grinned at me. "You stupid bitch!"

  She bent and charged toward me. Unable to compute, I froze as she came at me. How much adrenaline could one skinny woman have? My brain couldn't get my muscles to respond. Everything slowed down like in an instant replay. Sound fell away. Lily got closer. And closer. My feet wouldn't work. My heart roared in my ears and I tasted blood in my mouth.

  Boom! Like a canon firing a round. Lily went wide-eyed then crumpled to the floor.

  I turned my head. Nick Farmer came up behind me, gun arm still outstretched and aimed at Lily. He turned to me. "You okay?"

  "What?"

  Farmer's face was two inches from mine, his eyes filled with concern, like he cared. "You okay? Scotti, can you hear me?" I couldn't speak. Farmer grasped me by the arms. "Are you hurt? Christ, you're bleeding!"

  Ted screamed. "Scotti!"

  I turned and reached to him, then slipped into the black and calm.

  Chapter Sixty-Seven

  Everything was gray and fuzzy. "Scotti? Baby, can you hear me?" Ted's voice? "She's awake. Get the nurse." Definitely Ted's voice but where was he? The fuzzy shapes moved, and voices talked over me. A steady beep, beep, beep. Cool fingers on my wrist. Light in my eyes. Black dots danced. Nausea rose then quelled. The fuzz got less fuzzy. I squinted and it stabbed my eyes. Ted and Zelda stared down at me.

  I moved, and pain crawled through me like a snake. My voice came out in a rasp. "Where am I?"

  "You're in the hospital."

  I lifted my head, but the nausea pushed me back against the pillows. "Lily's hanging from the balcony. She's going to fall..."

  Ted stroked my hand. "Lily's okay. You're okay."

  I turned my face to Ted. "Hi honey."

  He bent down and kissed my cheek softly. "Hi baby."

  "I'm so tired."

  He stroked my cheek. "I know."

  "It hurts."

  "What hurts, honey?"

  "Everything hurts."

  Voices mumbled and slipped away.

  When I opened my eyes again, I was disappointed that the hospital room and pain weren't a dream. "Crap, I'm still here." Ted, slouched in a chair next to the bed, asleep. Zelda stood at the window, looking out. "Hey roomie, any chance you can bust me out of this place?" I croaked.

  Zelda whipped around and flew to my bedside. "Are you awake? Do recognize me? Is my voice familiar?" She wiggled her fingers under my nose. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

  Groaning, I struggled into a sitting position, which hurt like hell. "Shut up. I wasn't that bad, was I?"

  Zelda put out a hand. "Don't stress yourself — you're pretty banged up. You need to lay back and relax."

  "You think?" Gingerly, I touched my face. "Did she break my nose? Am I missing teeth? Do I look like a circus freak?"

  Zelda sat her butt on the edge of the bed. "I'm not going to lie to you. It ain't pretty. Avoid mirrors." She cocked her head and smirked. "But the nose is okay. It's the shiners that really make a statement."

  Ted stirred and opened his eyes. "Hi, beautiful."

  Zelda winked at me. "Now, that's what I call true love."

&nb
sp; Within twenty-four hours, word got out that I was officially awake, and a parade of visitors from Marge to Franky the copy guy, stopped by with flowers, chocolates and balloons. I was horrified to have people see me looking like a freak show but they all wore frozen smiles and assured me it wasn't so bad. Liars, all but I appreciated the thought. I couldn't eat the chocolates because my face hurt so bad that even broth was a challenge. Not to worry, Zelda stepped in and obliged. She also got a kick out of the balloons, magazines and video games my visitors had so thoughtfully brought.

  According to my doctor, who didn't look old enough to drive a car, I'd be fine in a few weeks. The bullet had grazed my hip and only three stitches were needed, but I'd lost a lot of blood, which is why I passed out. I had two cracked ribs, two black eyes, a sprained ankle, cuts, scratches, abrasions and bruises everywhere. But some bed rest, anti-inflammatories and pain killers would fix me up like new. If I was a good girl, took my meds, got my rest and ate my Jell-O, I'd be out of there in a few days.