Etched in Tears

by Cheryl Hollon

  Edward leaned toward the server. “What was the bad news?”

  “He wouldn’t say at first. Usually, he’s open as a book to us here at El Cap’s, but not this time. He only hinted at a problem with another apprentice that was a lot of trouble to everyone.”

  “Do you know when he went back to Chicago?” asked Savannah.

  “Sure I do. He stopped in here on Saturday on his way to the airport at about six o-clock. So, he left well before the Sunday event.”

  Chapter 32

  Friday night

  “Thanks for driving downtown,” said Savannah as she held open the gate for Amanda, who was followed by Jacob. “I think it will save us all time if we consolidate everything we know before I report our findings to Officer Williams this evening.”

  “How long do you think this will take?” asked Edward who was standing behind her.

  “Not long.” She walked over to the green bench sculpture where Lucas was standing in military at ease stance. “Lucas has been kind enough to let us into the garden for one more chance to look around.”

  He nodded solemnly.

  Amanda turned to look at the bench. “Oh, look at the memorial they’ve created for Dennis. All the candles, cards, and flowers are around the bench. It reminds me of the pictures of Princess Diana’s flowers outside Kensington Palace.” She sniffed and pulled a tissue out of her bag and blew her nose. “Isn’t that right, Edward?”

  “I’m not surprised to see this. It seems that the US is adopting the European practice of pop-up memorials.”

  Jacob picked up Suzy. “What are we doing?”

  “Oh, sorry. I’m a bit distracted by the display. What we want to do is review the information that we’ve found before Officer Williams gets here in”—Savannah looked at her watch—“about ten minutes. She wants to interview us thoroughly so she can turn in her first report as the lead investigator this evening.”

  Jacob spoke. “I have decoded all the files of the gang members associated with Dennis.”

  Edward folded his arms across his chest. “Just how much information have we told Officer Williams?”

  “It’s easier to list the four things I haven’t told her yet. First”—Savannah raised her left hand and ticked off the fingers as she spoke—“what you and I discovered tonight about Dennis’s conversation with his Chicago chef friend, which was related to another of the apprentices. Second, that Jacob discovered a document buried in one of the art pieces that implicated Charles King in drug activities while he was still in high school. Third, that Dennis’s wife was trying to quickly divorce him before the trust fund transferred to her control.” She paused and left her finger pressed onto her ring finger.

  “That’s only three,” said Jacob. “The last one is that letter that was found in Dennis’s pocket. He was using it to get a chance to talk to you again.”

  Amanda frowned. “What? How do you know that? Why haven’t you told us?”

  “I found the love note. It’s in the only red piece of glass in the collection.” He picked up Suzy and rubbed her belly. “It might not have anything to do with the murder.”

  Savannah looked over to Edward. “It might not be connected to his murder, but it does indicate that our past meant something to him. I’m sorry that we didn’t get to discuss that.” She smiled. “If he asked, I would have told him that I was taken.”

  She looked at Edward’s serious face and waited. The silence stretched until Edward cracked a tiny frown. “I trust you completely, Savannah. I’m sorry you didn’t get to resolve that with Dennis.”

  “Me too.”

  “By the way, I called my mum about the flowers that were etched in your love note piece,” said Edward.

  “You did what?”

  “Mum says that daffodils mean regard, unrequited love, sunshine, and respect. Basically, the sun shines when I’m with you. The lilacs stand for the first emotions of love.”

  Savannah rubbed the corner of her eye and nodded. “I think that’s an accurate description of how Dennis felt. Thank your mother the next time you speak to her. I think that helps.”

  “Sure, luv.”

  “Another thing Jacob uncovered in the exhibit was a document scrap from the days when Dennis was involved in the gang. The piece clearly implicates one of the gang members in drug dealing.”

  Amanda spoke. “Can we see it?”

  Savannah looked at Lucas. “Could we?”

  Lucas shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t see why not? It would be great to get this business over and done with.” Hitching up his trousers, he took a little skip step and led them into the museum via the garden door into the café. They took the spiral staircase, which opened up onto the second floor special exhibit area. The large exhibit sign outside the gallery space was wrapped in black fabric with a small table beside it filled with floral arrangements. Lucas led them into the exhibit hall.

  Savannah tapped on Jacob’s shoulder and caught Amanda’s eyes. She whispered, “We don’t need to hide our talk about our investigation from Lucas anymore. I know we haven’t actually cleared anyone in this investigation, but my gut says Lucas is not involved with Dennis’s death.”

  Jacob nodded. “He is very helpful.”

  “Yes, I think he had a very good reason for pointing us in other directions.”

  Lucas turned back to see if they were following him. “Do you need—”

  “I know where it is,” Jacob said. He and Suzy moved into the exhibit hall and stood in front of the largest piece in Dennis’s exhibit.

  Amanda leaned down to look into the large green and metallic laced oblong. The surface had some etched figures located near the back of the piece. “I don’t see what you’re talking about. I can’t make out anything.”

  Savannah pointed to the last line of the etched words. “This is what Jacob found. It’s a crumpled note signed from someone with initials CK that clearly lists a date, time, and meeting place for a pickup of twenty kilos of heroin on Central Avenue.”

  Edward squinted at the etched letters. “That looks like it was behind Webb’s Glass Shop. What a cheeky choice.” He turned to Savannah. “Do you think your dad caught them and that’s how CK was brought into the apprentice program?”

  Savannah bit her lip. “I think that’s how Dad kept control of CK over the years. He had proof that he could hold over him. In the records that I found, it explained who CK grew up to be.” She stood in front of the sculptured glass.

  Amanda blurted out, “Don’t keep us waiting! Tell!”

  “I think it’s obvious, but apparently not. The apprentice was Charles King.”

  “Charles King!” Lucas took off his hat and wiped his face free of sweat with his handkerchief. “Are you saying that our sponsor, Charles King, was involved in drugs when he was a teen? That’s a powerful bit of knowledge.”

  “That’s way too powerful,” said Amanda, “if it could be proved.”

  “It can with this.” Savannah started toward the door, pulling out her phone as she walked. “Officer Williams needs to know about this. I’ll have her meet us by the bench. This is too important to wait for a report.”

  By the time they reached the bottom of the stairs, Officer Williams had answered Savannah’s call. “What have you got?”

  “We’ve found an etched note in one of the exhibit pieces that implicates State Representative Charles King in Dennis’s murder. Can you meet us here at the Dali?” Savannah ended the call and stowed the phone in her backpack. “She’ll be here in a few minutes. We need to meet her by the bench.” She looked at Lucas who was slowly descending. “That’s all right, isn’t it?”

  He reached the bottom and pulled out his handkerchief, but stopped midway to his forehead. A loud crash came from inside the glass exhibit gallery.

  “Someone’s here!” Savannah sprinted past Lucas and launched up the stairs without a thought. “They’re destroying Dennis’s pieces!”

  She bolted into the gallery and saw Charles King lift one
of the artworks and smash it to the floor. He moved to the next one and lifted it over his head. It was the piece that had the incriminating evidence etched into the surface.

  “Stop!” Savannah shrieked.

  Charles lowered the artwork and stared at Savannah with red-rimmed eyes and a dazed look. “I can’t stop. This has destroyed me. I must destroy it.” He turned and bolted through the emergency exit. He punched the glass square in the security alarm box with the heel of his hand, setting off a screaming alarm.

  Savannah followed him out the door only vaguely aware of the sound of doors clicking locked throughout the museum. They were in what appeared to be a maintenance corridor that led to a staircase. Savannah saw Charles at the top of the stairs.

  “Stop following me! You don’t want to see this.”

  “Come back.” Savannah shivered a cold streak down her back. His grip on the artwork was loose and careless. “Put down that piece of glass, Charles. Put it down.”

  He opened the door labeled ROOF and Savannah followed behind him before the door could shut. “Charles, please stop.” She stopped cold in front of the door and heard it click behind her. The view was magnificent. The vista of the waterfront park, the Albert Whitted Airport runway, and the newly constructed pier were stretched out before her. They taunted her. Her fear of heights glued her feet to the rooftop. I need to move, now.

  She saw Charles standing at the edge of the rooftop holding the green and metallic oblong in front of him. “Charles,” she screamed again. “Stop!”

  He turned a tortured face toward her. “It’s too late now. You guys know. You know all about me. It’s too late.” He lifted the glass oblong over his head.

  “I didn’t know until now,” said Savannah. “Chase is your nickname, isn’t it? That’s the connection I couldn’t make with my dad’s letter. Don’t destroy the glass. It won’t help, now.”

  “But you’re the only one who knows, right?”

  “No!” shouted Savannah. “I’ve told everyone.”

  He lightly tossed it down in a gentle arc. They both startled when the shattering sound reached them. “No, you haven’t. You’re lying.”

  Savannah took a step toward Charles. He was standing at the edge of the roof looking down at the green shards of Dennis’s globe.

  “Charles,” said Savannah in as soft a voice as she could manage. “Charles, please step back from the edge. I can’t come out there. Please, Charles.”

  He turned his red eyes toward her. His gaze seemed distant and he didn’t look into her eyes . . . just somewhere around the top of her head. “I’m lost. So lost.”

  “Charles, explain to me, please.” She stepped forward two steps. “What do you mean?”

  He looked at her then. Right into her eyes. “I had it all planned out. Each political step—one by one. It’s all a ruin now.” He turned and placed a foot at the edge of the roof. “I didn’t mean to kill Dennis. He was upset that my cash payment needed to stop. He was going to be fine with his wife’s money. I didn’t know he was sick. He wouldn’t have ever told anyone that I was responsible for the death of his brother. We were cursed by our shared past. I should have trusted him, but there’s no way to recover from this.”

  Savannah swallowed her fear and forced herself to move forward reaching to grab him tightly by the arm. “You can’t mean this. Think for just a moment.”

  He turned cold eyes back to her. “I have.” He grabbed her hand from his sleeve and pulled her toward the edge. “If you don’t tell anyone, I can continue with my political campaign. You’re going to jump off this building in despair over your lost love.”

  Savannah heard herself scream. She didn’t recognize the sound. She dropped her full weight straight down as she pulled on her hand with all her strength.

  Charles lost his grip on her hand and overbalanced over the edge of the roof.

  After an eternity, she heard the terrible sound of his body hitting the ground.

  She stood still for what seemed hours but was likely only a few seconds, then backed away from the edge to sit near the roof door, bent her head down, and sobbed.

  Chapter 33

  Saturday morning

  Savannah handed the last box of commissioned charger plates to Jacob, who wedged it into the last open space in the back of her Mini Cooper. She carefully closed the hatch.

  “Detective Parker has given Officer Williams a recommendation that she be promoted to sergeant.”

  Jacob said, “That’s good for her. She’s not that old.”

  Savannah chuckled. “No, she’s not that old. She called me late last night after all the activity at the Dali died down.”

  Jacob hopped into the passenger side with Suzy on his lap then they drove downtown to the Vinoy Hotel.

  As she pulled up to the delivery entrance in the back of the hotel, the catering manager called for several porters in their 1920s-newsboy livery to begin taking the boxes straight into the ballroom.

  “Can I see how the chargers look in their final place settings?” Savannah asked the catering manager.

  “Don’t see why not. The effect of your custom glass chargers is a game changer. We’re very pleased that you finished them in time.” He gave her a quick wink. “Even with the added quantities. A bit unfair if you ask me, but no one did.” He waved a hand to the door and Savannah scurried into the large room followed closely by Jacob holding Suzy.

  “Oh.” She just stood while the servers quickly slipped one of her chargers under each dinner plate. She soaked in the magnificent table setting for over three hundred places. The glass chargers tied together the colors of the centerpiece flowers and the ribbons that tied the backs of the fabric-covered chairs. The catering manager was right. It was a game changer.

  She jumped as he spoke. “You should be incredibly proud. I think this marks the moment when Webb’s Glass Shop is not your late father’s anymore. I think Webb’s Glass Shop now fully belongs to Savannah Webb.”

  She smiled wide and turned around. “Thanks. I believe you worked with him, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, I knew John well.”

  Jacob turned to him and held out his hand. “Hi, I’m Jacob. I work at Webb’s Glass Shop and I invented a new loading system for fusing more plates in the kiln. That’s why we could make so many.”

  Savannah smiled. That was a deliberate overture to a customer. Jacob can do this.

  After a long look and a quick cell phone photo for Amanda to post on the website, they got in the Mini and headed back toward Webb’s Glass Shop.

  “It’s time for our celebration. Is your mother dropping you off at Edward’s condo?”

  “Yes.” Jacob nodded. “Soon, she won’t have to do that.”

  Savannah turned to him sharply. “Why? Are you going to leave Webb’s?”

  “No, I would never leave Webb’s. I am going to learn to drive.” He kissed Suzy on the top of the head and stared straight out the front window.

  “That’s wonderful. Your mother will be so pleased.”

  She dropped Jacob and Suzy off at his house and drove home. After a quick shower and a change into her little black dress, she called for Rooney to get into the travel crate she had placed in the back of the Mini. He hopped right in and she drove to Edward’s condo. She snapped a lead onto Rooney’s collar and entered the elevator. He was behaving perfectly.

  The elevator doors opened and she could hear the murmur of happy voices from Edward’s open door at the end of the hall.

  “Hey, Savannah,” said Amanda. She was standing in the hallway decked out in festive green with three red loops of tree lights draped around her neck. “Oh, you’ve brought Rooney. I thought Snowy and Rooney didn’t get along.”

  “I’m trying out a new approach,” said Savannah. “If we can get Snowy to like or at least tolerate Rooney in her own territory, it will be much easier to introduce her to my house.” She raised her eyebrows. “Good, don’t you think?”

  Amanda lifted both hands and shrugged her
shoulders. “I don’t know. I’ve never had a pet.”

  Savannah led Rooney into the condo. Officer Williams was just inside the open living-dining room dressed as a civilian in jeans and a crisp white button-down shirt. She held a fizzing flute of champagne and lifted her glass. “Good, you’re the last one. You’re here to help me propose a toast.” She looked over her shoulder at Edward who was carrying a tray of flutes. “Edward, quick! Give Savannah a glass.”

  Edward’s eyebrows raised at Rooney, but he offered the tray so that Savannah could take one.

  Savannah looked over the little group that included Jacob, his mother, Edward, Amanda, bartender Nicole, the twins Rachel and Faith, Officer Joy Williams, Detective Parker, Coroner Gray, Arthur and his wife Nancy, and now Savannah. Savannah cleared her throat. “Thank you, Edward, for hosting this little celebration. Before I propose a toast, can we hear a few words from the lady of the day?”

  Officer Joy Williams smiled. “Yes ma’am. I’ve worked hard from my first day as a cadet. However, it takes more than just hard work to get ahead in the police business. It takes a lot of good luck”—she pointed her glass toward Savannah—“and a lot of support.”

  Savannah turned and raised her glass to Officer Williams, then to Detective Parker. “To our continuing success as a team that brings justice to this city. Cheers!”

  Detective Parker lifted his glass high with one hand and gathered Coroner Gray into a side hug with the other. “Cheers!”

  Savannah sipped deeply and clinked her glass with Joy’s. “You so deserve this promotion. No amount of support can substitute for your tremendous dedication and intuition. What a great combination.”

  “Okay you two,” said Rachel. “Fess up. Why did Charles—”

  “Smash all the glass and then leap off the Dali?” finished Faith.

  Savannah and Joy looked at each other.

  “Go ahead,” said Joy. “You worked it out.”

  “It started with my dad. He didn’t turn Chuck into the police for dealing drugs while he was in the apprenticeship program. He should have, but that would have probably meant shutting down the program and ruining the chances of everyone who had made a clean start . . . Dennis included.”