The Rake and the Researcher

by Sara Bourgeois

  I looked at her skeptically but said nothing.

  “We’re old family friends. It’s nothing more. I get the feeling you’re sweet on him, though,” she said and masterfully turned the spotlight back on me.

  “So, you and Brody have never been involved in any kind of romantic relationship?” I wasn’t sure why I was pushing that aspect of my inquiry, but at that time, I was following my gut.

  “Okay, alright. You caught me. Brody and I dated a while back. It didn’t last long, and neither one of us is interested in each other anymore. I swear.”

  “It’s over then?” I asked but didn’t give her a chance to answer. “That’s good. I’m relieved about that. Why were you guys arguing at the Hyvee? I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it was hard not to hear that you were angry.”

  “You didn’t hear what we were saying?” she asked and waved for Jimbo. “Another shot please, baby.”

  It didn’t get past me that she answered my question with a question. She wanted to know what I knew before answering. That was a red flag.

  Was she ordering another shot because of her nerves?

  “I couldn’t hear what you were saying, but I could definitely tell that your voices were angry. It has me worried. I know it sounds paranoid, but it almost feels like you guys met there because you thought I wouldn’t be there. But that doesn’t make sense either. Why wouldn’t you guys just meet at a restaurant or something? You know what I mean?”

  “The Hyvee is the only store that has the brand of ice cream that I like. I’ve looked at every store within three counties and no one else has it. Of course, that means it sells out within a day of them stocking it cause I’m not the only one who loves it. The frozen food manager is sweet on me, so he calls me whenever it’s in,” Sylvie said.

  “You work at an ice cream shop. Surely Stan’s stuff is better than grocery store ice cream,” I said.

  “Better according to who? I like my brand,” she said, finishing her margarita.

  “That still doesn’t explain why you had Brody meet you there,” I said.

  She hesitated for a moment and then answered. “He wanted to talk to me about his father, but don’t ask me to give you details about that. That’s not my story to share,” she said. “I gotta go.”

  With that, Sylvie stood up, waved to Jimbo, and left. She called out “Good night, Lara,” as she sashayed out the door.

  Awesome, I thought. Not only had Sylvie not cleared anything up, but she’d also made the mystery deeper. What kind of family stuff could Brody be discussing with an ex-girlfriend? He had family problems with Gordon, but why would he want to talk to Sylvie about them? I hadn’t realized the two of them were that close of friends.

  I had new information, though. I wondered what Brody would have to say about what Sylvie had told me at the bar.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Gordon O’Malley

  Gordon knew that Brody had figured out what he’d done. He just hoped that his veiled threats concerning Brody’s sister, Madeline, would be enough to keep Brody’s mouth shut. The mayor hadn’t cared much about having Sylvie kill Ellie, but another death would probably have been a step too far. Especially since that simpering idiot had put a member of law enforcement in a coma during the commission of her crime.

  Sylvie also no longer seemed interested in serving him in the manner in which he’d become accustomed. The little tart had gone and grown a conscience after killing Ellie, and Gordon wasn’t too sure if he’d continue to hold her loyalty.

  One issue was that Lara was far more determined to find the truth than Gordon could have imagined. He expected her to come to town, look around, get frustrated with the search, sign off on Ash Road inheriting the estate, collect her paycheck, and move on.

  It’s what he would have done. How was she so resistant to easy money? He’d give anything for an effortless paycheck. Why was she so driven to make her own life more complicated?

  If he could figure that out, he’d know how to push her buttons. Gordon believed that everyone had buttons to push and that everyone had a price.

  At that point, Lara had passed up the opportunity for easy money, and she hadn’t fled the town in fear when her friend died. What else could he do? Then it hit him.

  Brody.

  Gordon had heard around town that the determined genealogist was sweet on his son, so those were the strings he needed to pull. The only way to get to Brody, other than through Lara, was Madeline.

  Brody’s younger sister was in a special home in New York State. She received the best care for her “condition,” but it kept the young woman far away from him. The last thing he needed was more embarrassment from her. If she came back to Ash Road and kicked up trouble, he might not get reelected.

  If Gordon was no longer mayor, the next one would discover Ash Road’s financial difficulties. If that happened, at best Mayor O’Malley would never work in politics again. At worst, he’d spend a long time in prison.

  It wasn’t just his mishandling of his duties, Gordon had been funneling the town’s money into his personal bank accounts for years. He hadn’t started out a thief, Gordon told himself. At one point he’d been a young, idealistic politician who wanted to save the world.

  But in his current opinion, the world didn’t want to be saved, and the lure of the money had been too strong. It hadn’t happened overnight, but instead, his progression from idealistic dreamer to criminal had happened a little bit at a time. Greed and lack of discipline chipped away at his core.

  As Gordon looked out the window of his office at the beautifully manicured grounds of his home, he knew that there was no way that he would go down without a fight. He would not give up the comforts that surrounded him.

  Gordon would find a way to let Brody know that Madeline’s situation was dependent on his cooperation, and Brody would benefit from the estate as well. Gordon would make sure that Brody had enough money to secure the Federal contracts that would change the trajectory of his career. All his son had to do was yield.

  If not, Gordon had accepted that the death of his son might be the necessary end.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Lara

  I got to work the next day two hours early. I’d hoped to get a chance to comb through the archives again alone. Unfortunately, Brody showed up thirty minutes into my search. At that point, I was convinced he was keeping an eye on me, or he was stalking me.

  “Lara, I’m sorry,” Brody said from behind me.

  I continued to go through the file drawer I’d been searching when he walked in and did not turn around to look at him. I heard him take a step closer.

  “Lara?”

  “What exactly are you sorry for, Brody?” I asked without turning.

  “I’m sorry that I can’t say the things you want to hear,” he whispered.

  “You didn’t tell me that Sylvie was your ex-girlfriend,” I said flatly.

  “It was brief, and I knew you’d want to know why we broke up. You seemed to like her and I didn’t want to tell you negative things about her. I’m not the kind of guy who badmouths exes. I wanted to let you form your own opinion of her.”

  “So are you going to tell me why it didn’t work out?” I asked as I finally turned to face him.

  “Are you sure you want to know?”

  “I’m sure I’m about ready for you to tell me something. You are so secretive. Give me something, Brody. Please,” I said and inhaled sharply when he took another step toward me.

  “She was using me,” he said, and his shoulders slumped.

  “For money?” I asked softly.

  “That’s what I thought at first, but she had other reasons,” he said.

  “What were the other reasons?”

  “That’s not for me to say,” he said and left the room.

  I had to take deep breaths and count to ten. I was so close to getting him to tell me something, and he left the room. I wondered what Sylvie could have used Brody for if it weren’t money. What else d
id he have that she could want?

  I stormed into Brody’s office and slammed the door behind me. He was seated at his desk with his head in his hands, and at first, I thought he might have been crying.

  “Brody?” I asked as some of my anger melted away.

  “If you keep looking into the Horowitz estate and Ellie’s murder, your path will lead you to Moody Funeral Home,” Brody whispered.

  “What?” I growled. “Was that a threat?”

  “I’m trying to help you.”

  What he said certainly sounded like a threat, but Brody’s voice and demeanor lacked malice. I was confused and a little scared. Ellie had gotten close to cracking the case and she’d ended up dead. Up until that moment, I hadn’t considered that I was putting myself in the same danger. Well, I’d thought about it, but it hadn’t felt real.

  At that moment I decided that I would keep any discoveries about Frankie’s estate a secret. I needed to watch my back, but that didn’t stop me from running my mouth.

  “If you were involved in Ellie’s death, I will find out, and I will bring you down,” I said.

  “Lara, please.” Brody’s voice shook at first, but then something changed. He stood up, and intensity filled his eyes. I recognized the alpha coming out in him again. “I had nothing to do with Ellie’s death, but I forgive you for saying that. Whatever it takes, I’m going to get to the bottom of her murder. I’ve got your back even if you hate me. No matter how mad you get at me, I will be there for you.”

  “We’ll see,” I said, but some of my malice had drained. “I won’t tell you not to have my back, but stay out of my way.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lara

  The next morning, I woke up and felt nauseated. The thought of spending another day at the record hall avoiding Brody had my stomach tied in knots.

  As luck would have it, I wouldn’t have to go to work. Nora knocked on my door just as I was getting out of bed.

  “Come in,” I called as I stood and stretched.

  “I just got a call from the hospital.” Nora couldn’t contain her excitement. “Amelia is awake. She’s out of her coma and talking. The nurses said that she asked for me. I know you’re supposed to work today, but can you drive me?”

  “Yes. Let me grab a quick shower,” I said.

  “I’ll whip us up some breakfast we can take on the road,” Nora said and headed down to the kitchen.

  I showered fast and prayed that Nora didn’t make anything heavy for breakfast. My stomach was doing backflips as I thought about talking to Amelia. I knew I would find out that day if Brody had been the one to attack her.

  Deep down, I just knew it wasn’t him, but I had so much doubt. Not only would I have been devastated if it was Brody, I’d have been shocked too. I kept my face in the water as much as I could so that I didn’t have to acknowledge that I was crying in my shower over the thought of losing him.

  I dressed in jeans and my favorite tunic. If I got the chance to talk to Amelia, I didn’t want to look like a professional interviewing her. The conversation needed to be relaxed so she would open up to me. I was glad that I had Nora to vouch for me. Otherwise, I had no reason to be there speaking with Amelia.

  “I threw together peanut butter and banana waffle sandwiches for us,” Nora said and held up a brown paper bag. “I thought that sounded light. My stomach is in a tizzy with nerves and I don’t think I can handle our usual heavy favorites. I hope that’s okay.”

  “That sounds perfect, Nora. Thank you.”

  The drive to the hospital in Memphis felt like it took forever. Nora sensed my tension and she began singing campfire songs at one point. I tried to resist, but I eventually gave in and joined her. It did help keep me sane.

  When we arrived at the hospital, the police were interviewing Amelia so Nora and I had to wait in the hallway for about half an hour. Once they were gone, we went in.

  Nora and Amelia hugged and cried for a while. When they were done, Officer Booth gave me a quizzical look.

  “I’m Lara Tyler,” I said.

  “Oh, you’re the best friend of the woman who died. I’m sorry, when I arrived on the scene, there was nothing I could do for her. I tried, but the person who I assume was the killer hit me over the head. I’m sorry,” Amelia said. “I’m lucky that my foot got stuck in the door when I fell, or I probably would have suffocated too.”

  “How did you know that Ellie was there?” I asked as gently as possible.

  “There is an emergency button inside the sealed room. Not only does it open the door, but it sends out a call for assistance and sounds an alarm. Ellie didn’t know it was there, and the killer obviously didn’t either. I can only guess that they bumped into it when they were trying to move Ellie.”

  “And then they hid when the alarm went off?” I asked.

  “I think that’s exactly it. I started to look around just in case, but honestly, I figured it was a bad luck accident. The killer must have known that I’d find them, and that’s when they hit me.”

  “Do you know who hit you?” I asked bluntly. “I’m sorry. I should be a little more sensitive.”

  “It’s okay. I don’t know for sure, though,” she said.

  My shoulders slumped and it felt like someone ripped my heart out. I was sure I’d have an answer about Brody that day. I couldn’t imagine having to continue my investigations with no more information. I was beginning to feel worn down.

  “Why? Do you have someone in mind? Do you have a lead?” Amelia asked hopefully, and I felt guilty.

  “I don’t have a lead. I’m just concerned about it being Brody O’Malley. As far as I know, he was the last person in the building with Ellie. I left them alone when I went to lunch.” I said, and Nora shot me a look. “He said he went home to make himself something to eat, but I don’t know.”

  “Oh, it wasn’t Brody,” she said resolutely.

  “How do you know?” I asked hopefully.

  “Well, you’ve seen Brody. He’s tall and very muscular. I’m almost certain, and you can check with my doctor on this, that the person who hit me was a great deal shorter than Brody O’Malley. They had to reach up to hit me,” she said. “Oh, and Brody doesn’t drink gin. If he does, I doubt he could have been tanked on it without you knowing it.”

  “You mean the person who attacked you smelled like booze?”

  “They reeked of it. If he’d smelled like that when you left for lunch, you’d know,” Amelia said.

  I felt myself relax for the first time since I arrived in Ash Road. It was enough to make me believe that Brody wasn’t a murderer. I couldn’t know for sure if he was involved in the disappearing records, but that didn’t make sense either. Ellie was killed because she got too close, so if Brody participated in the conspiracy to conceal Frankie Horowitz’s records, he was involved in the murder too.

  Right?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Lara

  I worked it out in my head that Brody probably wasn’t involved in any of the mess I found myself in currently. That meant that I needed to apologize and I needed to start working with him instead of against him.

  That was a huge frog to swallow. None of my new information explained where the records went or how Brody could be the town archivist and not know about it, but on the drive home from visiting Amelia Booth in the hospital, something my grandmother had said to me a million times before really hit home.

  You catch more flies with honey than you do vinegar, Lara.

  As soon as Nora and I arrived back home, I called Brody.

  “Hey, Lara. It’s good to hear from you. You didn’t show up at work today. I was a little worried,” he said, and I could hear the relief in his voice.

  “Yeah, Officer Booth is out of the coma. I took Nora to see her, and I wanted to speak with her as well,” I said. “I’m surprised you didn’t text or call if you were so worried.”

  “You’re a grown woman, Lara. You told me to stay out of your way so I figured I needed to
back off. Plus, by the time I actually started to worry, I wandered into the library and caught the gossip that Amelia was awake and you’d taken Nora to see her,” he said sheepishly.

  “Small town.”

  “Yeah, exactly.” The smile returned to his voice. “So, what’s up? You called. I take it there was good news with Amelia?” There wasn’t a trace of worry when he spoke. Brody wasn’t the least bit worried that Amelia had told me that he’d attacked her.

  “Yeah, she’s awake. Looks like she’ll make a full recovery. I was wondering if we could meet.”

  “I take it she told you that it wasn’t me that attacked her?” he asked.

  Suddenly I felt awful. Some of the people in Ash Road were becoming like family to me, and Brody was one of them. But I’d been treating him like a criminal. Despite that, he’d stuck by my side.

  “Yeah, but you knew that. Will you meet with me?” I asked hopefully.

  “You know I will. I’m hungry. Would you mind if we met at the diner instead of the tavern?”

  “Yeah, that sounds good. I’m hungry too. It’s been a long day on the road.”

  “What about Nora?” he asked, and it warmed my heart how much he thought of others.

  “She had a microwave dinner and fell asleep right after we got back. I believe that the adrenaline rush that had been keeping her running ended when she was sure that Amelia would be okay. I imagine she’ll be out until tomorrow.”

  “If you’re ready to go, I can come get you,” Brody offered.

  “Should we walk, or are you picking me up in your car?”

  “It’s turning into a lovely evening. Give me ten minutes to walk over there.”

  “See you in ten,” I said and hung up the phone with a smile.

  I’d never met anyone like Brody who could make me beam even when life felt stressful or overwhelming. I was still worried that he was too good to be true, but I started to believe in him more.

  Nora’s doorbell rang almost exactly ten minutes later. Brody was standing there in a blue plaid shirt and those jeans that fit him just right. I had to peel my eyes from the way his thighs stretched the material, but I was rewarded with an eyeful of his sweet smile.