Dirty Little Secrets (Romantic Mystery) Book 1 in the J.J. Graves Series

by Hart, Liliana

  Dickey licked his lips and leaned back in his chair. “Geez, Jack, do I need to call my attorney? What the hell’s going on?”

  “Just answer the question,” Jack said, impatience flashing in his eyes. I could tell Dickey was working up a pretty serious mad, either because of the implication or because it was a good way to forget his own problems.

  “I was at the River House,” he said.

  The River House was one of Dickey’s vacation homes on the far side of King George and it overlooked the Potomac River. It was only one of the assets he was likely to lose in a divorce with Candy.

  “Were you alone?” Jack pressed.

  “No, I had a bottle of Jack Daniels for company. Vanessa wasn’t speaking to me, and I didn’t feel like going home to my wife, so I went to the River House. Alone.”

  “What about Sunday morning?” Jack asked. “Between seven and noon.”

  “I left to come back for Fiona’s funeral around ten o’clock. I stopped by the house to change clothes. Candy wasn’t home. She has tennis lessons on Sunday mornings and then brunch with her mother. I saw you at the funeral just like everyone else. Now will you please tell me what’s going on?”

  “In a minute,” Jack answered. “What you said to us Sunday, about finding another woman? Did you succeed?”

  “What?” Dickey asked.

  “Yesterday you said you were tired of the whole thing. With your wife and with Vanessa. You said you were thinking about finding another woman. Did you have another woman?” Jack repeated.

  “Are you kidding me? Isn’t two enough? I’ve got enough problems without adding any more into the mix. So to answer your question, no, I don’t have another woman.”

  “Dickey,” I said, trying to get him to divert his attention to me and lay off Jack a little. He was just doing his job. “Haven’t you heard any news this morning? About what happened over at the hotel?”

  He looked confused. “J.J., I walked in the bank at eight o’clock this morning and promptly had a huge blowout with the woman I love. In front of witnesses I might add. I haven’t stepped foot out of this office for so much as a cup of coffee. Why? What happened?”

  “Amanda Wallace was murdered in a room at the hotel last night,” Jack answered. “It was similar to Fiona’s death.” I could see Dickey was about to ask what that had to do with him when the light bulb went on.

  “You think I killed her,” Dickey said, pushing his chair back so it hit the wall when he stood. “You think I could do that to a woman? Any woman?”

  “Calm down, Dickey,” Jack said. “The circumstances were questionable. I had to ask you about them.”

  “You mean Amanda Wallace was having an affair at the Hanover Hotel, and the only person you could think of who’d do something like that was me. Gee, thanks a lot. And then, not only would I sleep with her but then kill her when I was finished?”

  I thought now would probably be a good time for us to go. Dickey had enough things on his plate at the moment. “Dickey, we never thought it was you, but Jack wouldn’t be doing his job if he didn’t explore every possibility.”

  “Yeah, right,” he said bitterly. “Sorry I had to disappoint you. If you guys don’t mind, I think I’m going to head out of here. I’ve had enough bad news for one day.”

  Dickey walked out without his coat, his appearance still disheveled and his office door wide open. “Shit,” Jack said, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “Sometimes I hate my job.”

  “Yeah, but the way I see it I’m not sure the day could get much worse. We already have a dead body and a pissed off best friend. What else could there be?”

  “Don’t say that,” Jack said. “Things can always get worse.”

  “Hey, I have an idea. If this thing with Brody doesn’t work out, and since you don’t want to get married for real, I was thinking the two of us could have a marriage of convenience. That way I wouldn’t end up a spinster, and I would have access to your bank account.”

  “So what you mean is that it’d be convenient for you,” Jack said with a smile. I realized it had been awhile since I’d seen a genuine grin on his face. He slung his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close.

  “Well, yeah,” I said. “That’s how I prefer things.”

  “And what do I get out of it?” he asked, rubbing the tip of his finger down the side of my neck and sending tingles places that had no business getting tingles where Jack was concerned.

  “W…well, come to think of it, I don’t really have a lot of housewifely talents. I don’t cook and I hate to do laundry and…”

  “Honey,” Jack interrupted. “You have the only talent I’d need if I was ever going to get married. You’re female.”

  “Yeesh. Nevermind,” I said and pulled out of his grasp. My face heated and my skin turned clammy. Maybe Jack wasn’t such a safe bet after all. Come to think of it, I probably wasn’t such a good catch. I’d need a lot more practice in the sexual arts before I could satisfy a man like Jack.

  Ohmigod. Why was I even thinking about having sex with Jack?

  “Get out, get out, get out,” I said aloud, knocking my fist against my temple and squenching my eyes closed. When I opened them Jack was looking at me with a cocky grin and a raised eyebrow.

  “Don’t be ridiculous, Jack,” I said, full of forced bravado. “I look okay now, but in fifty years I’m probably going to look just like my great-granny Ruth.”

  Jack’s smile faded and he looked at me with closer scrutiny. “You know, I think you’re right,” he said. “If I look real close I can see a few chin whiskers starting to sprout. Your granny had a full beard by the time she hit ninety. Facial hair on a woman is enough to keep any man from getting a hard-on.”

  “I hate you,” I said and flipped him the bird. But I felt under my chin for stray hairs just in case he’d been telling the truth. We climbed back into the Suburban to go see Dr. Hides and had just turned off the County Square into Nottingham when Jack’s cell phone rang.

  “Sheriff Lawson,” he said. He was quiet for a few seconds, his attention still on the road. It wasn’t until he said, “We’ll be there,” that I realized he was turning us around and headed back into Bloody Mary.

  “Who was that?”

  “That was Detective Colburn. He said he has some important information to tell me.”

  I could see the strain around Jack’s eyes and the tension around his mouth. “Why does that worry you?” I asked.

  “Because I think we may have just found Amanda Wallace’s lover. I thought you said the day couldn’t get much worse.”

  “I was just trying to keep a positive outlook.”

  “Well, if I’m right, it doesn’t get much worse than one of my detectives being suspected for murder. Christ, I’m going to have to get a job at the 7-Eleven if I can’t get this mess resolved.”

  “That might not be so bad,” I said. “I hear they’ve got good benefits, you’d get free Slurpies for life and you’d know what to do if there was ever a robbery.”

  Jack didn’t appreciate my suggestions.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Detective Marcus Colburn was a tall man, broad through the shoulders and thin through the hips. He was slightly graying at the temples, but attractive in a distinguished gentleman sort of way, and I’d guess his age to be around forty. I found myself thinking about what Jack said about the murderer being strong. Detective Colburn certainly fit the bill.

  He’d decided to meet us at the park near Wooten’s pond. Actually, he’d decided to meet Jack there. He was probably going to be surprised to see me. I knew him well enough to speak to him whenever I passed him in town, but not well enough to strike up a conversation at a party. He’d been on the force ten years more than Jack, but he’d actively supported him when he’d run for sheriff, so I’d always liked him for that.

  “Detective Colburn,” Jack said, shaking his hand. “Why don’t we have a seat?”

  I took my place unobtrusively on the other sid
e of Jack and decided to let him handle this newest problem. After all, it was one of his men.

  “Why don’t you tell me everything you can, and then we’ll decide what we need to do.”

  “I want you to know I didn’t find out about Amanda’s death until right before I called you. I worked the night shift last night, and I have it again tonight, so I was asleep until a couple of hours ago when the station called me to ask if I’d work overtime because of the murder.” He stumbled over the word murder a little but quickly got himself under control.

  Jack only nodded, and I guess that put Colburn at ease because he took a breath and pushed on. “I wanted to tell you that I was the one who met with Amanda Saturday night.”

  “What time did you leave her?” Jack asked, the friend replaced by the cop.

  “Sunday morning, about seven thirty. We had an early breakfast because I had some things to take care of before I went on shift. Grocery shopping, that sort of thing. If I’d stayed longer she’d still be alive.”

  “You’re as sure as you can be on the times?” Jack asked. “You know we’ll check the video tapes at the hotel. It’s best to be as up front as you can be.”

  “I’m sure,” he said. “I’m not likely to ever forget.”

  “How long have you been involved with Mrs. Wallace?” Jack asked.

  I saw Detective Colburn wince at the way Jack called her by her married name and thought he did feel some guilt over the act.

  “About six months. She was going to see her attorney this week to file for divorce. She said she wasn’t going to stay in a marriage where she wasn’t loved anymore. We were going to get married.”

  “Why’d she wait so long for the divorce?”

  “She wanted to make sure her youngest was settled into college before making any drastic changes,” he said. “I agreed with her.”

  “Do you know if she was seeing a therapist?” Jack asked.

  “Sure. She’s been seeing him for more than a year. She told me her husband wanted her to, and she said it was just nice to have someone to talk to that was completely impartial in the whole matter.”

  “Did she ever tell you anything about her sessions?”

  “No, but she did say that he was the one who finally helped her settle on divorce. And he told her he thought it was good that she was entering back into a healthy relationship at this point in her life.”

  “Do you know what days she went to the therapist?”

  “I think she usually went on Tuesday mornings, but she had to miss last week because she had an appointment with her regular doctor she couldn’t miss. She made the session up on Saturday, though. He’d do that sometimes if she had to miss an appointment.”

  My hands clinched in my lap to keep me from blurting out what I was thinking. Amanda Wallace had been the Saturday appointment that Jack and I had to vacate the office for. Very interesting.

  “What do I do now, Jack?” he asked.

  My heart went out to the guy. He’d lost his lover and might even lose his job all in the same day.

  “We’re going to do this by the book, Marcus. It’s not going to be easy, and you know there’s no way it’ll be kept quiet.”

  “I know. It doesn’t seem to matter anymore.”

  “I’m going to call Stewart and have him handle this personally.” Captain Stewart Smith was Jack’s right hand at the station. He was also one of Martha’s numerous sons. One of the ones in the middle. “You’ll need to go in and make an official statement. Volunteer to give a DNA sample and take a lie detector. You’ll have to turn in your gun and badge until your name is cleared,” he said.

  I could tell by the look on Colburn’s face that this was the biggest heartache of all next to the death of Amanda. To some men, there was no life without the badge. Jack was one of those, and apparently so was Colburn.

  “I need you back at work soon, so get this done quick and get your name cleared.”

  “I don’t know if I can come back,” Colburn said, standing. He unholstered his weapon and handed it butt-end to Jack, and he unclipped the detective shield he carried on his belt.

  “Take as much time as you need, Marcus. The badge will be there for you when you’re ready for it.”

  No one knew that little bit of wisdom better than Jack.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Why do I feel as if things are crumbling rapidly all around me?” Jack asked once we were back in the car and on our way back to Nottingham to visit Dr. Hides.

  “Don’t feel bad,” I said. “It feels that way to me too.”

  “You’re no help whatsoever. I’ve changed my mind about Dr. Hides,” he said.

  “How’s that?”

  “I was going to question him at his office, then arrest him. I think I’m just going to arrest him first and let him stew in a cell for a while. He’s made my life a living hell. Just think, if people were basically honest in nature instead of liars this thing would be solved by now. You know, I feel bad for Dr. Hides. Sometimes in small towns the paperwork can really get backed up and cause unnecessary delays.”

  “I’ve heard that,” I said.

  “And what’s going on in this town? Isn’t anyone faithful to their spouse anymore? It makes staying single a whole lot more appealing.”

  “People like you and me, Jack, we’re so careful to let anyone close, but when we do it’s for life. Marriage will be like that when we’re ready.”

  “Yeah, Lord knows if I ever do tie on the shackles, I’ll be faithful. And you’ll be faithful, but what if he’s not?”

  “Then I’ll carve off his testicles with my scalpel and put them in formaldehyde so they can sit on my shelf forever and ever.”

  “You’ve obviously thought this through before. I have to say I’m starting to feel a little pity for Brody.”

  I decided to ignore him because we’d just turned onto Covington Lane. Dr. Hides’ street looked the same as it had two days before. The same white car was parked two houses down and the red flag was up again on the mailbox in front of the attorney’s side of the town house. This place gave me the creeps.

  “You know what’s missing?” Jack asked.

  “The Stepford Wives?” I asked.

  “No,” he said, grinning. “Janette Taylor’s car. She works Monday through Friday, isn’t that what Dr. Hides said?”

  “I can give her a call if you want.”

  “Yeah, why don’t you do that. I’ll try the door.”

  Janette picked up after the third ring, and if possible, she sounded worse than she had two days ago.

  “Are you all right, Janette?” I asked.

  “No, I’m not all right. I’ve got the cold from hell.”

  “Did you call Dr. Hides to let him know you weren’t going to be in?” I asked.

  “What are you, my mother? For your information he called me last night to let me know he’d come down with the same stuff. He cancelled all of his appointments for today. Now, please leave me alone to die in peace,” she said, slamming down the receiver hard enough to make me wince.

  “Well, that was pleasant,” I said once I made my way back over to Jack.

  “What’s the story?”

  “Both of them have the crud. They probably gave it to each other just by being nasty human beings.”

  “He’s not answering the door,” Jack said. “His car’s parked at the back of the house.”

  “Janette did sound rather concerned about the doctor’s health,” I said, smiling. “Maybe he had a severe coughing fit and passed out. He could be lying in there now. What if he hit his head when he fell?”

  “Good one, Dr. Graves. It’ll help having you here to confirm that.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  “So you can back me up when I say we had probable cause to enter. Look here, the door’s wide open. I wouldn’t be doing my civic duty if I didn’t step inside to make sure there’s not anything missing or out of place.”

  “You’re pretty good yourself,” I said a
s I followed him into the spacious foyer once again.

  I smelled it before I saw the body. Death. The air was thick with the putrid smell of bladder and bowels and the coppery scent of blood, and no matter how much you tried to breathe through your mouth that first whiff would be stuck in the back of your throat for hours, sometimes days. I’d gotten so used to the stench of death the past couple of days it almost seemed odd to go somewhere without it.

  “I’d say Dr. Hides is definitely not feeling his best,” Jack said.

  I didn’t think Dr. Hides was feeling anything. Dr. Hides was wearing a white bathrobe and hanging by a rope from the second story balcony. It was odd, the downstairs was exactly as it had been a couple of days before, neat desk, stuffy furniture, long hallway and straight staircase leading to the upper levels. You almost wouldn’t even notice the body suspended above us if it wasn’t for the smell, and the puddle of body fluids dripping on the floor. I was thinking Dr. Hides surely could have found a better way to deal with the common cold.

  “I’m going to be right pissed if he offed himself because he was feeling guilty for murdering those two women. It couldn’t possibly be enough justice.”

  “I’ve got my bag in the car,” I said. “Why don’t you call it in and we’ll get started.” In the meantime, I hoped like hell we didn’t run into any more bodies. I only had room for one more in my freezer.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The police were probably still a good fifteen minutes away since Jack had had to reassign officers to keep covering the crime scene at the hotel. He had everyone on duty until further notice, and I reminded him the council wasn’t going to be happy about forking over the money for overtime. Let’s just say that Jack’s response to my comment was anatomically impossible.

  I pulled on gloves and threw an extra pair to Jack, and I was careful not to touch anything until the scene could be documented. I took pictures from the bottom floor and then made my way upstairs to snap a couple of close-ups.

  “He looks surprised,” I said, looking at the dead doctor’s face.

  “Yeah, well who knows what was going through his mind in that last second. I haven’t found a suicide note,” he said.