by Ann Simas
Andi spared a quick glance at Jack, who raised an eyebrow back at her. He put his hand to the middle of her back, urging her all the way into the room.
“Andi, this is Lt. Anastasia Lowry. LT, this is Andrea Comstock, or Andi, as she prefers to be called.”
The LT stood and extended her hand. “Good to meet you, Andi. Thank you for coming in.”
“I didn’t know I had a choice,” Andi said wryly.
The lieutenant shared a look with Jack, hers questioning, his innocent choir boy. Her eyes back on Andi, she grinned. “Jack takes everything pretty seriously.”
Without looking at him, Andi said, “So I gathered.”
“Please, have a seat. Jack, will you get the door and shut the blind?”
Andi took an outside chair in the three-in-a-row and hoped Jack would take the other outside chair. Otherwise, she might cave in to her desire to punch him. Why hadn’t he told her his LT was a woman? Why had he made it seem like this meeting was mandatory? What else was he holding back?
“Would you like something cold to drink?” the LT asked. “I have water, soda, and juice.”
“Water would be great,” Andi said, her throat already dry at the prospect of giving this woman the rundown on the past few months since she’d gone to work in the Orion’s Belt building.
The LT nodded at Jack.
“How about you, boss?”
“I’ll have a water, too.”
Jack grabbed three bottles from a small fridge Andi hadn’t noticed, hidden beside the file cabinets. He passed them out, then sat, leaving the empty chair between them.
The LT uncapped her bottle. “Why don’t you tell me everything from the beginning, Andi?”
Andi removed her lid and took a sip before she began to speak. It took her twenty minutes of nonstop talking to get everything out. Lt. Lowry listened, shooting a glance at Jack occasionally, jotting down notes frequently, but never interrupting to ask a question.
Once Andi had finished, she polished off half her bottled water. She waited expectantly while the lieutenant reviewed her notes and flipped through the photocopies of the calendar on which were noted times of voice occurrences.
Finally, the LT looked up. “Do you have your journal with you? The one where you record the voices you hear?”
Andi nodded.
“May I see it?”
“Sure.” Andi dug into her purse and handed the little book over. She exchanged a look with Jack while the LT poured over the pages.
When she came to the final entry, made just that morning, the LT looked up, tears in her eyes.
“Children are the hardest,” Andi said softly. “I’d have to quit my job if there were more of them.”
“I can see why,” the LT said. “This one was only three years old?”
“That’s what she said.”
“Leukemia. How sad.”
“Lieutenant, may I ask you a question?”
The LT dabbed at her eyes with a tissue she took from a drawer. “Certainly.”
“Are you…a believer?”
“Honestly, Andi, I don’t know. What you’ve said and what I’ve read in this journal is compelling. Add to that the information provided by the ME and I have to admit, there’s some question regarding the manner of Sherry Spence Hemmer’s death.” She took a deep breath. “When Jack first talked to me about the possibility of murder, I brushed it off as not just unlikely, but impossible. But if it was, how to prove it?” She shrugged, as if to say that would be impossible.
Jack shifted in his chair. “Andi was helping the Hemmer’s nanny clean out some of Mrs. Hemmer’s belongings yesterday. She boxed up the candles and personal care items Spence’s parents told her about.”
Andi’s gaze shifted from Jack to the LT in time to see her close her eyes and shake her head. The only thing missing was a sigh of frustration. Andi squeezed her water bottle so hard it made crackling noises.
“How did you explain to Mr. Hemmer why you were removing these items from the premises?” Lt. Lowry asked.
“I didn’t remove them from the house. They’re being stored in the nanny’s closet.”
“And Mr. Hemmer didn’t question that?”
“We didn’t mention it to him.” She glanced quickly at Jack, then back to his boss. “I’m invited to a dinner there on Wednesday evening. Do you want me to tell him what I did?”
Jack choked on his water. The lieutenant laughed out loud.
“Am I in trouble over this?” Andi asked.
“No,” Lowry responded, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. She leaned forward, elbows on her desk. “My family is Catholic, Andi. I suppose you could say that because of my upbringing in the Church, I’m more open to…well, to the unusual.” She tented her fingers and tapped them against her lips. “Do you believe in fate, Andi?”
“I didn’t used to,” Andi said, wondering at the non sequitur.
“What changed your mind?”
“The voice that told me to seek out Father Riley at St. Gemma’s.” She proceeded to explain what the priest had told her about St. Gemma Galgani and St. Jeanne d’Arc.
“Here’s a little something else that I hope won’t freak you out,” Lt. Lowry said, a slight ironic smile on her lips. “My mother named me Anastasia after St. Anastasia. Are you familiar with her?”
Andi shook her head.
“She’s credited with intercessions that protected the faithful…from poison and other harmful substances.”
Andi stared at Jack’s boss in stunned silence. Her background as a software developer didn’t leave room for coincidence. But in her personal life…well, how did she even begin to explain or understand everything that had happened to her in the past few months. It was beyond coincidental. It was more like divine providence.
Andi just didn’t know how much more of God’s serendipity she could take.
CHAPTER 20
In the end, Lt. Lowry decided it was time to talk to Vaughn Hemmer in person. She recommended that when Jack made the visit, he have Andi with him.
Jack scowled at his LT in response, but didn’t argue.
“I think Andi should call and arrange the meeting, rather than have you cold-call Mr. Hemmer and cause him undue stress.”
Jack nodded. “Agreed.”
Andi pulled her smartphone from her purse and dialed. “No sense waiting,” she said by way of explanation. “Hi, Dotty, it’s Andi. Is Vaughn there?”
A few moments later, Vaughn came on the line. “Hi, Vaughn. I was wondering if it would be convenient for me to come over this evening, after the kids are in bed. I need to discuss something with you that I wouldn’t want them to hear.”
After a lengthy pause, Vaughn said, “Andi, it’s too soon after Sherry’s death. I’m flattered, but….”
For a shocked moment, Andi couldn’t speak. “Vaughn, it’s nothing like that,” she said, keeping her tone neutral. “This concerns Sherry’s death and I think it’s something you need to hear.”
“Sherry’s death? God, you must think I’m an idiot, Andi. I apologize! It’s just—”
“No apologies necessary. I’m sorry I asked in such a vague manner.” She glanced at Jack, trying to gauge his response to the one-sided conversation. His frown said it all. “Would eight o’clock be all right?”
“Yes. The boys go to bed by seven and the girls are in bed by seven-thirty. Usually, everyone’s snoring by eight. Don’t ring the doorbell, just knock, though, so you don’t wake them.”
“Okay, see you then.”
“Andi?”
“Yes?”
“Is this going to be a good or a bad conversation?”
Andi hesitated for a moment and decided not to sugarcoat it. “Both, Vaughn. I’m afraid it’s going to be both.”
Lt. Lowry thanked Andi for coming in. “If you can’t reach Jack, feel free to contact me.” She wrote something on the back of a business card before she handed it over. “I’ve put my cell number down, as well as my personal email.
” She shared another look with Jack, which told Andi that the two of them were going to be spending some quality time together trying to figure out how to get this case on the books in a legitimate way.
Andi slipped the card inside her Smokie journal, then put her hand out to the LT. “Thank you, Lt. Lowry.”
“Since it appears we’re going to be working together, you might as well call me Stacy.”
“Okay,” Andi said.
Stacy gave her hand a final squeeze. “Don’t worry, Andi. We know what we’re doing.”
It was well and good for Jack’s LT to offer assurances, but what Andi really wanted to hear tacked on was, We’re going to get this bitch for what she did to Sherry Hemmer.
She sent a prayer skyward. Please, God, help me make sure Stacy’s right.
Jack took Andi’s elbow and led her out of the squad room. By the time he got her back to Orion’s Belt, not quite three hours had elapsed since he’d picked her up. They sat in the parking lot, neither speaking until Andi finally said, “That didn’t go anything like I thought it would.”
Jack uttered a small grunt. “Me, either. Frankly, I wasn’t sure the LT wasn’t going to laugh us both out of there.”
Andi unfastened her seat belt and turned in the seat. “And yet, you went to her in the first place.”
“Had to. With the ME’s test results coming back mercury poisoning, it pretty much sealed it as a homicide, especially since no one else in the household has symptoms.”
“That we know of. Now what?”
“Now, it’s officially a murder investigation. I have another meet with the LT at four. We’ll discuss the interview with the husband.”
Andi opened her mouth to respond, but her smartphone vibrated. She took it out of her purse. “Sally Spence,” she said to Jack, even as she tapped the screen to accept the call. “Hi, Sally.”
A little tsk came over the line. “Hello, Andi. I will never get used to people knowing it’s me calling before I identify myself. Technology!”
Andi apologized. “It’s a bad habit I’ve gotten into, if the readout shows it’s someone I know.”
“I understand. Look, Andi, I was just talking to Vaughn about Wednesday night and he said you were wondering what size the girls wear. I’m going to the mall tomorrow evening to do some birthday shopping. Would you be interested in meeting me there? Maybe we could have dinner first in the food court?”
“Sure. What time?”
“Six.”
“That works for me. Is Eddie coming, too?”
Sally laughed. “No, Eddie’s doing a project for Vaughn in the garage. He’s been over there all day and he’ll be there again tomorrow. Vaughn’s going to be barbequing burgers. By the way, we’re wondering if you have a young man that you’d like to bring along for dinner on Wednesday?”
Andi bit her lip and looked at Jack. “As it happens, I’m talking to him right now. Can you hang on a minute and I’ll ask?” At Sally’s assent, she put the call on hold. “Want to go to Hemmer’s with me on Wednesday evening for the girls’ birthday dinner?”
“Could be sticky,” he said after several moments of hesitation. “I’d like to talk it over with the LT first. Besides, depending on how tonight goes, I may not be welcome.”
Andi nodded and took off the hold. “Sally, Jack says he thinks he can come, but he needs to check out a scheduling thing at work first. Can I tell you tomorrow evening?”
“That would be fine, dear. I’m looking forward to meeting him. I hope he knows how lucky he is to have found you.”
Andi’s face grew warm as she met Jack’s steady gaze on her in the police-issued sedan. Thank goodness she didn’t have the call on speaker! “See you tomorrow.”
“Perfect. ’Bye.”
Andi signed off and put the phone back into her purse.
“Why the red cheeks?” Jack asked.
Andi floundered for a response.
“Andi?”
“It was just a boyfriend comment,” she finally blurted out and felt her face grow even hotter when Jack laughed.
His hand snaked out, cupping her neck, pulling her toward him.
His eyes never left hers, and she had no trouble reading his intent. “Is it legal to kiss in a cop car?” she asked, her voice husky.
“I don’t know. I’ve never had it come up before,” he explained just before his lips took hers.
The kiss was short but hot.
It might have gone on longer if two interruptions hadn’t occurred simultaneously.
The police radio blasted into the steamy silence and a voice inside Andi’s head said, Hope you get that dentist who killed Sherry Hemmer, Andi. That poor woman is not the only one Dawna Stimack murdered.
. . .
Andi’s stomach was so tied up in knots, she couldn’t eat dinner. Now that she was fewer than thirty minutes from telling Vaughn his wife most likely had been murdered, she couldn’t do anything but stalk around her apartment in a vain attempt to relax. Her brain was about to explode! There must be a dozen ways to tell him that the evidence seemed to indicate Sherry had been the victim of a jealous woman’s desire to clear a path to his doorstep—and Andi couldn’t think of a single one of them.
For now, Jack was the only other person privy to the news that Dawna Stimack had killed someone else in addition to Sherry. Although he’d probably already told his LT. Even though Andi had shared that information with Jack, she had nothing to substantiate it except the declaration of a Smokie. She had tried to summon Sherry, but it wasn’t exactly like she could dial her number in Limbo Land and Sherry would answer.
Jack had been obviously flummoxed, but his parting words were, “I’m heading over to the morgue to see if the ME can pull up any other cases of mercury poisoning.”
“Good luck,” Andi said, and off he went. Instead of going back to work, she detoured to St. Gemma’s, where she knelt in prayer in a back pew. Sometime later, her forehead resting on her folded hands, she felt a light touch on her shoulder. She looked up, startled to find Father Riley there. She hadn’t heard him come in.
“Bad day, Andi?”
Andi finished her prayer, crossed herself, then sat back and slid over so Father Riley could sit beside her. “Not bad, really, just…difficult.”
“Want to talk about it?”
Jack hadn’t said she couldn’t talk to Father Riley and she desperately needed an impartial sounding board. Andi poured out her heart to him.
Father Riley listened without interruption until her words stopped coming. “So, you and Jack will finally talk to Sherry’s husband tonight.” He heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank God for that. I’m meeting with him tomorrow and I have, quite honestly, been agonizing over how I was going to deal with this situation, with him in the dark about the murder.”
“He may hate all of us by the time we leave there tonight.”
“No, I don’t think so. I’m usually a pretty good judge of character, even when I’ve only met someone on the phone, and he seems like an man of good moral fiber. He’s carrying a lot of guilt over his wife’s death.”
“That was my take, too,” Andi said. “He never came right out and said as much, but I could tell he’s chastising himself for not understanding exactly how serious her pain was.”
“As crazy as it seems, I believe learning that Sherry was murdered will ease his burden. Her death was something he had no control over. This Dawna person apparently planned to kill Sherry from the get-go, and did it quickly. Judging from what Avery told me about the autopsy and the toxicology results, the poisoning was severe and irreversible. Nothing Vaughn or any doctor could have done would have saved her.”
“What a horrible way to go.”
“Indeed.”
She turned tortured eyes on him. “I feel like a freak. Why is this happening to me?”
“For a reason, Andi. God chose you for a reason. Tonight, you’re going to start fulfilling your assignment.”
. . .
At quarte
r to eight, Andi pulled on her jacket and made her way downstairs. Jack was just pulling into a parking space in front of her apartment building. The drive to Hemmer’s took exactly fourteen minutes. Few words were exchanged between them, but those that were left Andi jittery, even after all of Father Riley’s earlier assurances.
“The LT and I think it would be best if you’re absolutely straight with Hemmer. When you’ve told your story, I’ll take over. You’ll need to keep out of it from there, unless he or I have a question for you. Got it?”
Andi nodded, too nervous to even speak. Jack seemed so…strident in his cop mode. Her jitters increased.
Unexpectedly, he reached over the console of his Highlander and grasped her hand. “It’s going to be okay, Andi. I’ve read about this guy. He can be a tough bastard, but he’s fair. He’ll listen without going ballistic.”
It seemed Father Riley and Jack were on the same page. Andi wished she could be as certain.
They met Dotty coming down the front steps. “I’m headed over to Sally’s. Going to finalize the plans for the girls’ birthday party,” she said to Andi, then slid a glance at Jack.
“This is a friend of mine,” Andi said. “Jack Harmon. Jack, this is Dotty Tobias. She used to live next door to Sherry’s parents and is the kids’ nanny.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Tobias,” Jack said, extending his hand.
“You, too, but please, call me Dotty.”
Jack flashed her a smile that Andi could tell melted Dotty on the spot.
“You bringing your young man to dinner Wednesday?”
Andi was glad she’d already invited Jack, otherwise the question could have been embarrassing. “Yes.” She grinned at Dotty. “You can interrogate him further then.”
Dotty grinned back. “Oh, you!” She gave Andi a quick hug and started on her way.