“If there is anything at all I can do, don’t hesitate to call me, okay?”
“Yeah, okay. Thank you for the information, Char, and have a good evening.”
“You too, Minnie.”
After hanging up from talking to Minnie, Char thought about their conversation and wondered if she should tell the sheriff what she had just found out. They could verify the information if they needed to, and at least it would give them some information about when he’d arrived there and why. If he was drug free, maybe he broke into the house and someone killed him. At the very least, it would show the sheriff that she was cooperating as best as she could.
Char looked up the telephone number to the sheriff’s office and punched it in on her phone. After three rings, someone answered, “Sheriff’s Office. How may I direct your call?”
“I’d like to speak with Sheriff Turner please.”
“I’m sorry, but he’s out of the office at the moment. Can I take a message or put you into his voice mail?”
“Um...how about Deputy Carter? Is he available?”
“I’ll check. One moment please.”
Char waited for a few minutes then someone came on the line.
“Carter,” the male voice said.
“Hello, Deputy Carter. This is Char Johnson, the person you spoke to about the death of Dennis Harrison.”
“Yes,” came the abrupt reply.
“I just got off the phone with Minnie Schmit, Dennis Harrison’s sister, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I thought it would be important that I get ahold of Sheriff Turner and let him know what I found out. The person that answered the phone said Sheriff Turner isn’t in the office right now.”
“That’s correct,” the deputy said.
“Is it okay to tell you what I’ve been told or do you want me to contact the sheriff later?” Come on, deputy, do your job.
“You can tell me what you found out,” Carter said.
Char let out a sigh. I don’t care what your brother says, you need some people skills.
“Minnie said that Dennis had been clean from drugs for several months and he was getting professional help for it. He decided to come down to New Mexico to look me up and let me know and to see if there was any chance of us getting back together. He apparently came here about a month or so ago, but he never did get ahold of me.” She gave him Minnie’s phone number and told him, “Minnie knows you may call her to verify this or to get additional information.”
Deputy Carter repeated the phone number back to confirm that it was correct.
“Yes, that’s right,” Char said.
“Okay, I’ll need to verify this information with the source that originally knew this so it’s not second-hand information,” Deputy Carter said, almost as if he was indifferent to what was going on.
“I understand, and that’s why I got her phone number and told her you might have to call her.”
“Is there anything else?” he asked.
“No, that’s all I have.” Char felt as if she hadn’t really given him any information at all by the time she was done talking to him.
After she ended the call and hung up the phone, she let out a sigh.
* * * *
Char was busy hanging up her picture and placing her pottery that she’d purchased at the art fair, when a call came in on her cellphone. She flipped it open and said, “This is Char Johnson.”
“Char, this is Rosie Mueller, Vincent’s sister. How are you?”
“Hello, Rosie. I’m doing fine. How are you?” she replied cheerfully, wondering why Rosie would be calling her.
“I’m doing good. I heard you have a house in Sunnyside that’s listed for sale.”
“Yes, I do. Two of them actually, one across from Vincent’s house, and another on Coronado, the next street over.”
“Yes, Alfred and Hilda Schneider. I met them a few times when we were at Vincent’s place for a cookout. What are they asking for the house?”
“A hundred and fifteen thousand,” Char replied.
“Are they willing to negotiate the price?”
“I think they would be. Would you guys like to go over and see their place?”
“Yeah, that would be great. Can you arrange it?”
“Of course. Let me get ahold of Mr. and Mrs. Schneider and find out when would be a good time for them. Is there a specific day or time that would work best for you?”
“I can go any day early in the morning, like about nine or ten. I work the midnight shift, and I get home at seven-thirty in the morning. Anything after eleven and I’m not worth crap, I’ve got to get my beauty rest in.”
“Okay, Rosie. Let me have your phone number and I’ll call them and see what I can get set up and then give you a call back, okay?”
Char took down Rosie’s number, then made a quick call to Mrs. Schneider to set up a time. When she got off the phone with Mrs. Schneider she called Rosie back.
“Hello,” Rosie said.
“Hi, Rosie. It’s Char. How does Monday at nine work for you?”
“That sounds great. Wow, you were fast girl!” Rosie replied.
“Do you want to come to the office and we can drive out together, or would you rather meet me at the house?” Char asked. She was starting to get excited about this as it could mean another sale to add to her belt in her race against Mike to keep her job.
“We’ll just meet you at the house if that works for you.”
“Sure, that’s fine,” Char answered, glad that Rosie agreed to do it that way. It meant Char didn’t have to go into the office the first thing in the morning.
“So, my friend, what are you doing this evening? Anything special?” Rosie asked.
Char didn’t know what to say. Her friend? “Umm, nothing really. Just going to get some paperwork done and do some additional searching for potential buyers and sellers.”
“That’s work,” Rosie said pointedly.
“Yeah, I know, but that’s the way my life is right now,” Char said, not really wanting to reveal too much about her boring, lack-of-friends-and-lovers life.
“Jonathan and I are going to have a cookout. I thought we’d grill some chicken. Why don’t you come over and have dinner with us? I’d love the company.” Rosie spoke with a bubbly tone.
“Oh, I don’t want to intrude,” Char said.
“You’re not intruding, and I’d really appreciate the company. We don’t entertain much because of our working schedule, so when we do have the time, we try to get people we like to come over and visit.”
Char wondered if Vincent was going to be there. “Are you sure it wouldn’t be an imposition?”
“Not at all. Come on over. We live above the Jarillo Laundromat. Do you know where that is?”
“Yes, it’s two doors down from the Jarillo Café, right?”
“Yes, that’s our business. Just park around the back and come up the stairs.”
“Okay, what time?”
“Come on over now, and spend some time with us. I can’t wait to get to know you, especially since you know Vincent too.”
“Is he going to be there?” Char felt her muscles tensing.
“Let me call him and see if he’s available. I talked to him twice today. We had breakfast together this morning and then he called me and told me about the house you had listed. I don’t think one more call is gonna kill him.”
“Oh, Rosie, you don’t need to call him.”
“Nonsense, you just come on over, and I’ll see what I can do to get Vincent here. He seems to like you a lot.”
Char didn’t know what else to do but to go over to Rosie’s place. She had gotten herself into a predicament she hadn’t expected. She knew when she asked if Vincent was going to be there that she’d opened Pandora’s box. Now she would have to come up with an excuse as to why she hadn’t gone out on her ‘date’ that she had told him about.
* * * *
When Rosie called Vincent, he answered, “What the hell do you want now? I don’t ta
lk to you in weeks, and then I talk to you three times in one day.”
“Just look at this as your loving sister trying to help you out. I called Char, and she sounds like she’s bored to tears and is doing nothing, so I invited her to come over. She’s on her way here now. Anyway, she asked if you were going to be here, and I told her I’d call you and see if I could get you to come over. We’re having chicken dinner, come and eat with us.”
“Rosie, I’d love to come for your chicken dinner, you know that. But I got this homeowners’ board meeting today at four, and then we’re supposed to have a barbeque cookout after that,” Vincent said disappointedly.
“You don’t have to go to the cookout, do you?” Rosie asked.
“No, not really, but I am the president and should make an appearance.”
“How long does the meeting last?”
“Usually about two hours, sometimes shorter and sometimes longer, depending on if we have any issues to work through. Lately things seem to have been pretty calm. Are you trying to play matchmaker here?” Vincent asked, sounding perturbed.
“No, just trying to give two people a chance to spend some time together.”
“She told me she had a date with Benjamin Marlowe.”
“With who?” Rosie asked, confused.
“With Benjamin Marlowe, a famous author,” Vincent said.
“Oh, well, she didn’t tell me she had a date with anyone.”
“I’m sorry I can’t be there for dinner, but I really have to be at this meeting.”
“Just come after you get done with the meeting. I’ll try and keep her busy until you get here.” Rosie always had the desire to make others feel good and be happy together.
“Now Rosie, you are playing matchmaker. Don’t do this.”
“Oh, nonsense. You get here as soon as you can and we’ll have a nice evening out on my deck.” Rosie hung up her phone.
Jonathan walked into the living room and asked, “What’s going on?”
“I’ve got Char, that real estate agent that Vincent brought to the wedding, coming over any minute now and staying for dinner, and I’ve got Vincent coming over after his homeowners’ association meeting this evening,” she said proudly.
“Be careful, Rosie. You know Vincent doesn’t like you doing stuff like this.”
“I’m not doing anything really. Just getting two people together who are both very lonely,” Rosie replied defensively.
* * * *
Char pulled in behind the laundromat and looked around as she got out of the car. She didn’t see Vincent’s black SUV there, so maybe he was busy. She then remembered that she saw in the newspaper that morning that the homeowners’ association had a meeting today at four, so maybe he wouldn’t make it at all. She breathed a sigh of relief and started climbing the stairs to Jonathon and Rosie’s place.
She knocked at the door, and Jonathan opened it. “Hey, Char. How are you doing?”
“I’m doing good. How are you?” Char asked.
“Fine. Come on in.” He stepped to the side so she could enter. It was cool and comfortable in the place, even though it was on top of a full-service laundromat.
“Hi, Char. Welcome to our humble abode,” Rosie said cheerfully. “I remembered that you like strawberry wine coolers so I had Jon go get some for you. Are you ready for one?”
“That sounds nice, but you didn’t have to go out and get something special for me.” Char smiled at her thoughtfulness.
Char sat down at their dining room table and looked around. The area was decorated nicely and was quite spacious for an upstairs apartment. It looked as if they’d put a lot of work into making it livable. It had two large picture windows in the living room, with the dining in the middle and kitchen on the other side of that, and another picture window and door that walked out onto the deck.
Rosie brought out two wine coolers, one for Char and one for herself. “I talked to Vincent, and he’s got a homeowners’ association meeting at four o’clock today, but I told him to hightail it over here afterward. He says the meetings usually last about two hours. He said you told him that you had a date with a famous author named Benjamin Marlowe? What happened to that date?”
Char laughed softly, and said, “I’m reading one of his books right now.”
“Ooohhh, I gotcha. You had a date with a book this evening.”
Jonathan laughed. “Did Vincent know what you meant?”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure he knew,” Char replied, embarrassed, but still chuckling a bit. Char then changed the conversation to Debbie. “Have you seen the newest member of your family?”
“Yes, I have! Let me show you pictures.” Rosie got up and went over to a table and came back and showed Char the pictures she’d taken with her cellphone.
“Oh, she’s so tiny,” Char said.
“Yes, she is. A real beauty, that’s for sure.”
“I heard her name was Emily.” Char looked up at Rosie as she slid the picture to see the next one.
“Yes, Emily Denise Carter.”
“She looks like a little Emily,” Char said dreamily.
“She is precious, that’s for sure,” Rosie said, smiling.
Jonathan walked outside on the deck to work on the grill.
“Are you and Jonathan going to have a family?” Char hoped it wasn’t too personal a question to ask.
“We’re trying, but we haven’t been successful. I started taking a fertility pill last week, so we have our fingers crossed. That’s the reason we want to move out of here and into a nice house in a nice neighborhood with a backyard for the kids to play in. Plus, we would be near Vincent. He’s the one member of our family that’s as stable as a rock. We wouldn’t be a family if it wasn’t for him. Debbie and I really depend on him a lot. Debbie especially. He gives her money every week to live on because the job she has doesn’t pay much.”
“What does she do?” Char asked.
“She answers the telephone and pages the guys at the car dealership, Jackman’s Auto Sales, between here and Hobbs.”
“I know where that is. It’s quite a large dealership.”
“Yeah, but they pay their clerical help peanuts. The only thing she has there is insurance, which is a good thing with a baby and all. Vincent wants her to get some psychiatric help to deal with her always getting herself into bad relationships. The baby’s father worked at the same dealership, which is where she met him, and he came after her once with a wrench. This is the third time she’s gotten hooked up with someone who wanted to beat her up. This time though, she got pregnant.”
“You think that maybe she is a lot like your mother?” Char ventured.
“Oh, she’s exactly like our mother. That’s why she gets into these kinds of relationships. Vincent has been talking to her about it and trying to convince her to get professional help. I agree with Vincent, she needs it. She’ll just keep repeating these things if she doesn’t.”
“Grill is ready for the chicken, love,” Jonathan called from the deck.
“Okay, here it comes.” Rosie went to the kitchen and grabbed the chicken and the vegetables to cook on the grill. She walked out and handed it to him and then came back inside. “I think Vincent feels bad that he couldn’t be here today for dinner. He loves the way I fix chicken.” Rosie winked at Char.
“So how long have you owned the laundry business downstairs?” Char asked.
“We’ve been in business for about ten years now. Jon’s mother owned it and she wanted to retire, so she let us buy her out.”
“It looks like it provides you with a pretty steady income,” Char noted.
“Yes, it does. We’re hoping that when we do get a house, we’ll be able to rent this out and this will make the bulk of the house payment for us.”
“Let me know when you’re ready to rent it out. I can run it through the rental properties section of our realtor,” Char said.
“Really? Okay. Cool. I’ll let you know when we’re ready. How’s that chicken
coming, Jon?”
“Almost there,” he hollered back.
Rosie went into the kitchen and pulled three baked potatoes out of the oven, salad and dressing out of the refrigerator.
“Can I help you carry some of that?” Char got up and walked over to help.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind, could you grab the salad and the dressing? I’ll get the potatoes and the condiments.”
There was a cool, soft breeze blowing across the deck as they sat around the patio table and ate dinner. Char had to agree with Vincent that Rosie’s chicken was the best there ever was. Char enjoyed herself immensely as she sat and talked with Jonathan and Rosie about everything and anything. She had planned to leave about six so she wouldn’t run into Vincent, but she lost track of time.
She knew she was very attracted to him, but the intense encounters with him had left her reeling with emotions and feelings she didn’t know how to deal with, and they were creating a battleground in her soul as it warred against her concern over his working at the casino. She had decided that she would try to avoid seeing him.
* * * *
Vincent arrived at Rosie’s about 6:30 PM. He walked into the living room and hollered, “I hope you left me some chicken.”
“Vincent! Come on out,” Rosie called back. “We left you a plate.”
He stepped out on the deck and smiled at Rosie as she went over to the grill and got his plate out that was piled high with food. Vincent pulled a chair out and sat down next to Char.
“I don’t know about you, Vince, but I think I’ll be glad when we go back to rehearsing. I thought this would have been a nice little vacation for me, but man, Rosie’s been running me ragged with her honey-do list.” Jonathan gave Rosie a look of mock horror.
Vincent laughed and pulled his sunglasses off and hooked them on the front of his shirt as Rosie handed him his plate of food.
“Enjoy,” she said. “What would you like to drink?”
“Iced tea or water,” Vincent replied. He looked over at Char, who appeared totally relaxed to him. “What happened to your date with Benjamin Marlowe?” he asked, giving her a small, amused smile.
“Got postponed to another day,” Char replied, looking down at her fingernails in her lap.
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