Mermaids of Bodega Bay

by Mary Birk

  “You didn’t like the girl much, Mr. Warren?” Reid kept his voice polite.

  “Nah, she was a pain. But she was Martha’s sister’s kid, so when her sister died, we were stuck with her.”

  “She lived with you and Martha?”

  “When she was in high school and when she wasn’t shacking up with some guy. She was a little wild. Drugs, booze, you name it.” Then, almost grudgingly, “But then, somehow she got it together. She had a good job. Made good money.”

  “Know anything about any of her boyfriends?”

  Gus shook his head.

  “A girl like that, she ever come on to you?”

  Gus looked at Reid, appraising the question. “Maybe a little.” He took a drink of his coffee. “You’re not from here. You have some kind of accent.”

  “Scotland. She lived in your house?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Sounds like she was the kind of girl who liked to show herself off.” Reid knew the best way to get a man to talk about something like this was to sound like he was putting the blame on the girl.

  Gus Warren exhaled a large breath. “And how.”

  “That must have been hard for you.”

  “No kidding. She swung her ass around, tight jeans, short shorts, no bra. She’d sit with her legs apart, trying to get me to look.”

  Reid shook his head as if exasperated with women in general. “How could any man not look?”

  Gus nodded. “You’ve got it right. She was a cocktease. Ever since she was old enough to know what was what. And she had guys on her like flies.”

  “Your wife made you let her stay at your house. That must have been tough.”

  “Yeah. I didn’t want her there. Martha would be at work, so she didn’t see how Lucy was acting during the day when I was there at the house.”

  “So you two…?”

  Gus was going to deny it, Reid could tell, but then gave in. “A few times.” He looked over at the door. “Well, maybe more than that. You know, over time.” Then he looked up, realizing what he’d said. “But she was no virgin, not by a long shot. And it was her idea. She was sixteen by then. She wasn’t a kid or anything.”

  “You gave her money.” It was not a question. He was guessing, but this was an old story, of which he’d heard similar versions many times during his career. He could pretty well guess at a lot of it and be fairly certain of what the answers would be.

  Gus looked down, then shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe a little. You know, just some spending money.”

  Reid waited, seeing if he would continue talking. The man looked toward the door, like he wanted to leave. But instead he went on, the silence apparently making him nervous. “Or sometimes she’d just have me buy her and her friends some booze or cigarettes. Just as a favor, you know. Not like I was paying her or anything. It wasn’t like that.”

  “How about recently? Were you and she ever together after she moved out?”

  “Not since last summer. Before that, when she’d come to town, sometimes she’d, you know.” He gestured to his mouth. “If Martha wasn’t around. She had this tongue stud thing.” Then he looked at the chief. “Don’t tell Martha about what I’m telling you.”

  “Did you hit her?” Reid asked, on the chance that now that Gus was being more forthright, he might re-visit his previous answer.

  “Absolutely not. She had that bruise already when she came over.”

  “Did you ever talk to her about maybe you and her getting together, you know, you getting a divorce from Martha?”

  Gus looked shocked. “It wasn’t like that. I didn’t have any feelings for Lucy like that. Lucy was just you know, kind of there. And she hadn’t done me at all since last summer. She was into some guy. In love, she said. Like I was shit on her shoes. I didn’t need her. I just liked it if it was around, and she liked doing it.” He looked almost proud. “Never knew a girl who liked it so much.”

  What a total arsehole this guy is, Reid thought. “Let’s talk about the night Lenore Grainger disappeared.”

  The other man eyed him warily. “Yeah? What about it?”

  “You were over at the Grainger house?”

  “No.”

  “To see Martha?”

  “Oh, yeah. I forgot. I needed to get some cash from her. I had forgotten to go to the bank.” Reid knew that getting to the bank wouldn’t have been much help to Gus Warren. The FBI had checked; that account was empty.

  “You came to the back door?”

  “Yeah, they had that fancy party going on, so I went to the kitchen.”

  “Anyone there?”

  “The caterer people.”

  “How did you let your wife know you were there?”

  “I would’ve asked someone to go tell her I was there, but there was no one to ask. The caterers were busy, so I just went up and got her.”

  “How did you know where she’d be?”

  “I figured she was in the kid’s room.”

  “And you’d been up there before?”

  “Sure. A few times. To get Martha or something.”

  “Then what happened?’

  “Nothing. She’d fallen asleep in the chair and I woke her up. She just got her purse and came down with me to the kitchen. I got the cash and she put a plate of food together for me. I ate it real quick and left.”

  “Where were you the rest of the night?”

  “Around.”

  “Around where? Your wife said you didn’t come home until Sunday evening. That’s a lot of time.”

  Gus looked away from Reid over at McLendon. “I can’t believe you guys are talking to Martha about this. Where I was and all. Hasn’t she got enough on her mind?”

  The chief shook his head. “Sorry, Gus. We have no choice. This is a murder investigation.”

  “Seems like you could have asked me first.”

  Reid flattened his hand on the table. “We’re asking you now. Where exactly were you?”

  “Just around, having a few pops. Fell asleep in my car.”

  Reid consulted a small notebook. “Actually, we have your license plate on a motel registration in Petaluma. Looks like you checked in about four in the morning.”

  Warren looked disgusted. “Shit, I didn’t know you guys could check that.” His eyes shifted down to the table. “I didn’t want Martha to think I was out wasting our money on a motel room when things have been a little tight for us.” Then putting on a smile, he said, “I was a little drunk, and didn’t want to drive. You understand that, right? I didn’t need another DUI. That would really have pissed her off.”

  The chief moved his chair so that he was more directly facing the man. “Gus, there was a break in at the marina Saturday night. You know anything about that?”

  The man’s face became stony. “I already told you no.”

  “Because I know we’ve had some trouble out there before and we had to come talk to you about it.”

  “So? I wasn’t involved then, and I’m not involved now.”

  “We had some people say that you might be passing some stuff that might have been boosted from boats.”

  “What people? Who’s saying that? That’s a lie.”

  “Can’t say right now. But we’re having the Petaluma police see if anything from the boats burglarized shows up there. And they expect to have some answers for us soon.”

  Gus looked unconcerned. “Don’t look at me.”

  “It’s not so much the break-ins we’re concerned about. We could deal on that. What we are interested in is whether whoever was out in the marina that night happened to see anything that would help us find out who took Lenore Grainger. We know her body was dumped on the other side of Bodega Head that night—early Sunday morning, actually. And the boat would have had to have come from the marina. So that’s what we want. We want to know if anyone who happened to be there, for any reason at all, saw something. Like I said, we don’t care much about the other thing.”

  When Gus said nothing, McLendon followed
up. “So, did you see anything?”

  “I told you, I wasn’t there. And I’m not talking any more without a lawyer. I’m tired of your questions, acting like I’m some kind of criminal, accusing me of all kinds of things, dredging up the past. You can arrest me, or I’m leaving. I know my rights.” He stood.

  The police chief rose as well. “If you change your mind, or if you happen to remember being at the marina or seeing something, give me a call. I’ll work with you.”

  “No offense, Chief, but don’t hold your breath.”

  Chapter 63

  REID QUIETLY UNLOCKED the Mermaids’ front door. Jeanne had told him he was welcome to join them for a pasta dinner, but he’d begged off and waited until he thought they would be finished before going back to the house. He’d hoped he could escape to his room without having to talk to anyone, but when he saw that they were all sitting in the parlor, he knew it would be inexcusably rude to walk by and ignore them. He took a deep breath and went in. Irene had gone back to the city, but at least Meg and Jeanne were there. He wouldn’t have to face seeing Anne alone.

  “Hello, there.” Jeanne’s voice was friendly, but Reid was wary, remembering young Phillip’s comment and knowing the child had been repeating what he’d heard his mother say.

  “Hello, ladies.” Reid nodded at them, then went over to where Meg sat flanked by her little dogs, and kissed her cheek. “How are you doing?”

  She shrugged. “Okay, I guess. I’ll be fine. Thanks for your help and for listening to me.”

  “Don’t mention it. Let me know if I can do anything.” Meg had such a soft heart, but Reid had a feeling that there was a center of steel inside her.

  “I will. Right now, I’m trying to forget Graham exists. So we’re not talking about him. Want a drink?”

  “I’ll get it myself. Can I get anyone else something?” After being assured that no one’s glass needed freshening, he went over to the sideboard and poured a brandy.

  Anne smiled and patted the seat next to her, indicating that he should sit there. She wore jeans and a soft pink shirt that gently molded her body. Blood rushed in his ears and he knew the tops of them were bright red. He could generally will his face not to flush, but his ears were out of his control. What this woman could do to him with a look was unbelievable. Jesus God, deliver him.

  He gave her a thin smile and, ignoring her invitation, took a seat across from her. Hurt flashed across Anne’s face, but he couldn’t help that. He felt heartsick beyond anything he could have ever imagined. She’d gone to bed with Grainger Wednesday night and he had seen her go to Grainger again yesterday when he was driving away from the house. He wondered why she wasn’t over there with him tonight. Maybe she was going over later. As much sympathy as he had for the man, the thought of Anne with him made Reid sick. Couldn’t they make a vaccination that would protect him from feeling like this about a woman who could hurt him so badly? He’d be gone soon, though, and eventually the pain would have to end. Eventually.

  Reid drank his brandy, felt his body settle down. If he didn’t look at her, he’d be all right.

  Blessedly interrupting his thoughts, Jeanne asked, “Any news on the investigation?”

  “Sorry. I’m basically being kept involved only peripherally on sufferance and am not supposed to be sharing information. Even with you beautiful ladies.”

  “Or us suspects?” Anne asked, her pretty chin jutting out. She did not like being ignored.

  He looked down at his glass. “I think it’s safe to say you’re not a suspect anymore.”

  Anne glanced away from him, turning to her sisters. “I forgot to tell you guys. I passed the lie detector test.” Her gaze turned back to him. “Thanks for leaving me the message on that.”

  He nodded.

  “Big surprise.” Jeanne rolled her eyes.

  Meg got up, helped her dogs off the sofa. “On that happy note, I think I’ll go up to bed. It’s been a long day.”

  Jeanne yawned and stretched. “I’ve had enough for today, too. I’ll go up with you. Terrence, I’m sorry to desert you, but tomorrow the kids and I are going to leave early to go to San Francisco. I’ve arranged to take Phillip out of school while we stay with Mom for a couple of weeks. Get their mind off the funeral and Lenore.”

  “That’s probably a good idea. Thank you for having me.” He smiled at her. “I’ll be happy to recommend this place to prospective guests.” He needed to get a motel room for tomorrow night. He could not stay in this house alone with Anne, even if, or maybe especially if, her nights were spent at the Colony with Grainger.

  “Good. Put your comments on my webpage. You don’t need to mention you’re related to me. Meg, if you change your mind, Mom really wants you to come, too.”

  “I’m thinking about it. I’m just not sure yet. Don’t expect me, but don’t be surprised if I come. Good night, you two.” Meg gave Reid and Anne each a quick kiss, motioned to her little dogs to follow her, and went upstairs.

  Jeanne followed her older sister’s example and, on her way up the stairs, quietly called back. “Would you guys please put my dogs out before you go to bed? And make sure you lock the doors when you come in?”

  Anne nodded.

  Reid suspected they were being left alone together on purpose. He knew enough of the ways of women to know that they wouldn’t have left Anne alone with him unless she’d wanted them to do so. But he hadn’t avoided her all this time to let his guard down now.

  He got up. “If you don’t mind, I’ll just go upstairs. You can handle the locking up alone, can’t you?”

  “Don’t go yet, please. I need to talk to you.”

  “Anne, girl, I can’t do this now.” It killed him the way she looked at him; she made his heart hurt with yearning for her.

  “Please—just come outside with me while the dogs get a last run. We can watch them from the porch.”

  He thought about refusing, but knew if he didn’t face it now, he’d have to face it later. These last few days had been some of the hardest days of his life. His attraction to this woman who he’d thought was his soulmate was something he could only fight so long. Even knowing what she wanted to talk about, the prospect of being with her was irresistible. He would just let himself be near her for a little bit. Breathe in her scent while he listened to her tell him goodbye. He would listen, but not react. Sunday he would be leaving Bodega Bay, and he would figure out how to live without Anne for the rest of his life.

  He shrugged and nodded. This was her show.

  She slipped into her coat and called for the dogs.

  Reid grabbed his jacket and followed her. They sat on the porch steps and watched the athletic German shorthairs take off in a fast run. He could see Anne’s breath in the cold night air. She was so close he could smell the light flowery fragrance she wore.

  He took a deep breath, made his voice neutral. “They’re good-looking dogs.”

  She nodded. “And sweet tempered. They’re good about staying in this area. Of course, Jeanne wouldn’t have it any other way. She runs a tight ship.” She turned and smiled at him, putting her hand on his leg companionably.

  “Aye.” The touch of her hand sent blood surging through his body. He was glad he had a coat on so she couldn’t tell what she did to him. He knew he should take her hand away before it burned through him, but he left it there, feeling the heat searing his skin. Just for a few minutes he could let himself feel her touch. It would be such a long, desolate life without her.

  “Look, the moon is full. And no clouds tonight.” Anne’s face was tilted up to look at the sky.

  “Yes.”

  They sat with a quiet between them until Anne finally spoke again.

  “I told him.”

  He kept his gaze at the moon, not able to look at her. She’d accepted Grainger’s proposal. He closed his eyes briefly, scrabbling around in his mind to figure out how he should respond. What did she want him to say? He took a breath. “I expected you would.”

  �
��I’m so glad. I was afraid you thought…”

  He shook his head, embarrassed he’d been so transparent in his desperation to get her back. God, let me hold myself together until I get away from here. He tried to smile, but knew he’d only managed a grimace. “I’ll get the annulment paperwork started right away. I know I should have done it already, but things were busy…” He stopped when he heard a quick intake of breath from Anne. Hard for her to face their failure, too, he thought. He waited for her to break the silence, but when she didn’t say anything, he made himself look at her.

  He was momentarily perplexed at what he saw. Her face was ashen. Then he understood; Anne had a hard time causing anyone pain, even someone who had caused her as much grief as he had. He found some small consolation that she cared enough about him that it had been hard for her to tell him.

  “I’m sure you’ll be very happy together. All of this mess will be cleared up soon, and then…”

  “Terrence, that’s not what I meant. I told him about us. About how I feel about you.”

  Cautiously, he tried to make sure he understood. “You told him what exactly?”

  “That I love you. That it was over for him and me.”

  He kept his face expressionless and he silently exhaled, releasing the thousands of kilos of pressure that had been pressing on his chest.

  “When?”

  “Yesterday afternoon. I was going there to tell him when I saw you leaving the house.”

  So she hadn’t been going there to sleep with him. At least not last night.

  She seemed to read his mind. “I haven’t been with him like that since you came here. I know that isn’t much to offer, but it’s all I have. I can’t change what’s already happened.” She took her hand from his leg and ran it up the front of his chest.

  He was quiet, thinking about the enormity of the torture he had put himself through the last few days, doubting her.