Murder Wears a Veil

by Maddie Cochere

  I stepped forward and handed my card to the woman. “I’m Jo Ravens … uh … I mean, Jo Wheeler.” I paused for a few seconds. I really needed to get my mind set on saying Jo Wheeler. I smiled and explained, “I’m recently married and still adjusting to my name.”

  The woman positively beamed. “Congratulations. How did you meet your husband? Where were you married? Where did you honeymoon? We’re not busy, so you can give us all the details.”

  As if on cue, the three women behind her rolled their chairs forward in unison while still sitting in them. They all wore broad smiles, and I immediately had a captive audience.

  “Oh, for pity’s sake,” Addie said. She walked to the side of the waiting room and sat in one of the chairs. She flapped a hand my way. “It’s all yours. Handle this however you want.”

  I knew my chances of getting information would be better if I shared my story. I attempted to be charming, which wasn’t a natural trait for me, and put on a smile of my own.

  “I met my husband when he was eight years old.”

  All of the women clasped their hands to their chests. One of them pretended to swoon and said, “You were childhood sweethearts.”

  “Not exactly,” I said. “I was his babysitter.”

  “That’s real pervy,” Addie said from the sidelines.

  At the exact same moment, the smiles on the women turned to frowns. I wondered if they met on Saturday afternoons to practice their synchronized office behavior. I swallowed a laugh that threatened to rise up in my throat and quickly put the pervert vibe to rest.

  “I was sixteen at the time. I didn’t have any thoughts about him, but he had a crush on me. He’s a police officer now and responded to a break-in at my house two years ago. It was love at first sight, and we reconnected again – as adults.”

  “Bah!” Addie said loudly. “Love at first sight, my butt. You fought that poor man for months, because it bothered you so much that you’re older than he is. If I were a gambling woman, and I am, I would bet money the age difference still bothers you.”

  My mouth hung open. She was masterful at rendering me speechless. The only word I managed to utter was, “How?”

  She shook her head and sounded disgusted. “Hello? Are you that dense? I spent six hours with Milly yesterday. I’m caught up on the last fifteen years of Buxley news and gossip.”

  My instincts told me my captive audience was fading. I pushed forward with my story. “Ok, maybe it wasn’t love at first sight. And yes, it did bother me that he’s five years younger than I am, but it hasn’t bothered me for a long time. And now that we’re married, I never think about our age difference.”

  I ignored Addie’s loud snort.

  “I couldn’t help falling in love with him. He’s good looking, has a great sense of humor, and he’s sensitive. He’s the perfect man.” For good measure, I added, “And he has a dimple.”

  “He’s a hottie. I’ll give you that,” Addie said.

  One of the women said, “Tell us how he proposed. Did he get down on one knee?”

  I didn’t want to tell them we were making out in his bed with a houseful of guests downstairs. It was an unconventional proposal but sweet and romantic at the same time.

  “We were at his house for my birthday party. My brother proposed to his girlfriend that night, and while everyone was celebrating their engagement, we slipped away, and he surprised me by proposing, too.” I paused for a moment before adding, “He didn’t get down on one knee, but I was never one for ceremony anyway.”

  Addie couldn’t hold her tongue. “He didn’t get down on one knee, because you two ditched your guests to have sex. You were in bed, he proposed in the heat of the moment, and your dingbat mother walked in on the two of you.”

  That did it. She’d finally gone too far. There was no way I was letting her turn Glenn’s sweet proposal into something cheap.

  The murderous look on my face and the amount of steam coming out my ears either frightened her or entertained her. I couldn’t tell which. She threw her hands up and leaned back. “Ok. Ok. I embellished that part. There was no sex. Your mother tried to start that rumor, but it didn’t stick.”

  I was exasperated. Charming was too difficult, and frankly, my relationship with Glenn was nobody’s business, especially this synchronized group. I finished my story without details.

  “He proposed. We were married in our local courthouse, and we honeymooned in Hawaii. That’s where I met Mr. Sinclair.”

  “Doctor Sinclair,” Addie said.

  I shot another nasty look her way. “He’s not a doctor. He’s a dentist.”

  “He has a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree,” she said, pointing to the certificate on the wall. “You refer to him as Doctor.”

  I looked back at the women and found them all nodding in unison.

  I refused to call him doctor. “Glenn and I met Pete in Hawaii. We offered to help him find Natalie when she was missing. I was hoping to talk with him today. Will he be in the office this afternoon?”

  They all shook their heads at the same time. I wanted to yell at them to stop doing that but forced the words to remain unspoken.

  “Has he talked with any of you about what happened in Hawaii? Have you heard anything about how Natalie may have died?”

  Once again, they all shook their heads. I heard a gurgle come from Addie. I didn’t know if she was trying not to laugh or if she was dying. I ignored her.

  “Thank you for your time,” I said. “Please give Pete my card and ask him to call me.”

  Before they could do anything else in a synchronized fashion, I turned and walked out of the office. I didn’t glance over to see if Addie had died or was following me.

  Once outside, I saw there were no cabs to hail, and there wouldn’t be a cab until we called for one. I walked back into the office.

  Addie waved her phone in the air. “I’m getting a cab.”

  Her attitude was wearing on me big time. I decided against waiting with her. “I’m going to check in with Glenn. I’ll be outside.”

  I had no idea what the day held weather-wise, but it was definitely cooler here by the lake than it was at home in Buxley. The lightweight jacket I had slipped on this morning wasn’t sufficient for the wind and colder temperature, but the stubborn streak I had inherited from Mama wouldn’t allow me to go back inside to the warm office.

  I punched Glenn’s speed dial number on my phone. He was number six. I knew he should be number one, but I thought it such a silly thing to give importance to numbers on a phone. Yet, every time I punched number six, I felt a twinge of guilt, as though I were cheating on him with numbers one through five.

  The phone rang several times. I almost hung up when I remembered he was probably still sleeping, but I was glad I didn’t when he answered the phone in a muffled but cheerful voice.

  “Hi, Sherlock. Have you solved the murder yet?”

  “Ha,” I said loudly. “We’re at Pete Sinclair’s office, but he isn’t here. He’s at some hospital for a dental emergency.”

  “Are you going to track him down at the hospital?”

  “I don’t know. I suppose we should. It makes no sense to come to Chicago and not talk with him.”

  “Aunt Addie seemed to have a plan. Check with her and see what she thinks you should do. You know, Jo, she isn’t as bad as she seems. I think she’s more bluster than bite.”

  “I know. She called a truce last night, but she still irritates me, and I know she does it on purpose. It’s as though I have a torture me button on my forehead, and she keeps pushing it.”

  His laughter was soft and endearing. I could picture him warm and snuggly in our bed. The torture me button on my forehead was pushed again as I wished I could be there with him.

  “I’m not asking her for her opinion,” I said stubbornly. “We’ll run by the hospital and try to catch Pete, and then we’ll swing by the bridal shop. If I can find out where Natalie’s interior decorating offices are, we should have time to
stop there, too.”

  “Sounds good to me,” he said. “What time do you think you’ll be home?”

  “I haven’t a clue. Our flight leaves at eight fifteen. With the time difference and the drive from Pittsburgh, I’m guessing it’ll be around ten thirty or eleven. Will you be home?”

  “Oh, I’ll be here,” he said playfully.

  “Is Pepper back with Buck yet?”

  “Not yet, but I heard on the gossip hotline she’s not happy. She got to Charleston and found him with a broken leg. He won’t be able to drive for a good six weeks or more.”

  “So much for not having a scratch on him.”

  “I know. He didn’t want to tell her about his leg, because he didn’t want her to race down there worried to death about him. He didn’t need her getting into an accident, too.”

  A loud brrr sound escaped my lips as a shiver ran through my body.

  “What was that?”

  “I’m outside, and it’s freezing here. I should have worn my winter coat.”

  “I checked the weather this morning. It’s in the fifties there. You shouldn’t be freezing.”

  “It must be a lake effect thing. I think it’s below freezing with this wind chill.”

  He laughed louder this time. “It’s not below freezing. Go inside and get warm. I love you, and I’ll see you tonight.”

  I hung up and turned to go inside. As much as I didn’t want to go back in, I couldn’t stand feeling chilled to the bone.

  One of the women who had participated in the synchronized office event stood near the corner of the building. She motioned for me to come to her.

  “I need to talk to you,” she said.

  She led me around the corner of the building. I was relieved to find we were shielded from the wind, and I instantly felt warmer.

  She launched right into her story. “All of the other girls have been with Doctor Sinclair for years, and they’re loyal to him, but I’m new and don’t feel the same way. At least not yet. I’ve always thought there was something wrong between him and Natalie. She seemed to like him well enough, but he never acted like he was in love with her. He says he didn’t know she was heir to a fortune, but I think their relationship was all about the money for him.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “My husband is a computer tech, and I admit to being a snoop. After he showed me where the browsing history was on a computer, I started checking all the computers in the office to see who’s looking at what. I can’t believe no one in the office knows how to clear their history.” She paused for a moment as if recalling what she had seen. “It’s a wonder Susie gets any work done at all. She’s always on the dating sites. And Patty! She’s out of control and shopping all day long. Karen-”

  I cut her off. I didn’t want to hear a litany of everyone’s browsing habits. “What’s this got to do with Pete?”

  “I check his computer, too. Ever since he began dating Natalie, he’s been looking at expensive things – like cars and yachts. For the last two months, he’s been looking at villas for sale in Spain. He has his eye on one in particular.” She handed a slip of paper to me. It held the web address of the villa. “I don’t know if this has anything to do with anything, but he’s either a big dreamer, or he was looking to cash in on marrying Natalie, because he could never afford this place on his own.”

  None of this seemed pertinent right now. I needed other answers.

  “Why isn’t Pete in Hawaii for Natalie’s funeral?”

  “We don’t know. He came into the office on Tuesday and said he was back to work and he didn’t want to discuss anything personal with anyone. I think everyone’s been too afraid to ask what happened.”

  “Do you think he could have had anything to do with Natalie’s death?”

  “The other girls would tell you no, but there’s something in the back of my mind that makes me suspicious. I’m not sure what it is, but I’m not as confident as they are.”

  I didn’t want to give her any information, so I asked, “Is it possible they were married before her death?”

  “No way. All he could talk about was the wedding in Hawaii. Other than a few dental conventions in Michigan, he’s never been out of the state, so he was excited about going.” She paused again to gather her thoughts before saying, “That’s the thing. He was more excited about the trip to Hawaii than he was about getting married.”

  A horn honked. I peeked around the corner and saw a cab waiting.

  “I have to run. Thanks for the information.”

  “Wait,” she said. “I have one more thing. I think Doctor Sinclair might be bi-sexual.” She handed a card to me. “I’ve come across several of these in his desk. You might be able to find him there some evening.”

  The card was for Eve’s Apple on South Michigan Avenue. There wasn’t time to ask any questions about the business.

  I slipped around the corner in time to see Addie open the cab door. I was on her heels in an instant and seated beside her.

  “Where’d you go?” she asked. “I managed to get all kinds of information about Pete from those robotic women.”

  I couldn’t help smiling. “They were pretty funny, weren’t they? What did they tell you?”

  “How he met Natalie. How long they’ve been together. What a shrew she was.”

  “A shrew? Are you sure? Pete said she could be snobbish but was generally nice to people.”

  The woman I had just talked with hadn’t mentioned anything at all about Natalie being unpleasant.

  “Not according to that crew. She bossed him around like he was her manservant, and she belittled him in front of his employees. Her biggest contention was that he could train his voice to be deeper, so he would sound like a real man.”

  “How did she treat the girls in the office?”

  “She didn’t speak to them. Never. Susie said they were so far beneath her, they figured she didn’t want to breathe the same air they did.”

  This was fascinating but didn’t really advance our investigation other than to have a load of hearsay to indicate why Pete might have wanted to kill his wife.

  “Big whoop,” I said. “None of that matters. At least I got us a couple of leads.” I handed the slip of paper and the card to her. “Pete’s probably going to leave the country soon. Since he and Natalie have been married for over a month, he’ll have rights to some of her money, and as soon as he gets it, he’ll be on his way to a villa in Spain.”

  Addie nodded her head. I could see she was thinking. “What’s the card for?” she asked.

  “Pete might be there tonight,” I said.

  She raised her eyebrows.

  “He’s gay,” I said.

  A broad smile crossed her face. “Now we’re getting somewhere,” she said.

  Chapter Twelve

  “We don’t rent merchandise,” the woman said with disdain. “Everything in the store is for purchase, and there are no returns.” She pointed to a large sign with bold letters that clearly read All Sales Final.

  Getting information from the snooty woman was going to be difficult. She appeared to have developed an immediate dislike of Addie. Of course, it didn’t help when Addie sniffed loudly and proclaimed, “It smells like dirty laundry in here.”

  I handed my card to the woman and watched her focus on the words by tilting her head back and looking down her nose through a pair of glasses perched on the end.

  I didn’t want to explain my name change, so I went with the name on the card and said, “I’m Jo Ravens. I’m a private investigator looking into a possible murder.”

  The woman continued to peer down her nose at my card. She finally peered over her glasses to look at me and asked, “Do you have a warrant?”

  “She’s a private investigator not a police officer,” Addie said dryly. “She doesn’t need a warrant to ask questions.”

  The woman didn’t bat an eye and continued to peer down her nose at me, effectively ignoring Addie.

  “No,
I don’t have a warrant,” I said. I reached into my bag and pulled out the receipt from the garment bag. “What I have is this receipt from your shop. There isn’t much information here, and I was wondering if you could tell me what was purchased and who the purchaser was.”

  Before the woman could proclaim store-customer confidentiality, I added, “I don’t need a telephone number or address. I’d just like to know the customer’s name and what they purchased. You wouldn’t be divulging anything personal.”

  The woman pondered the request for a few moments. Thankfully, Addie remained silent and didn’t further antagonize the woman.

  She stepped around the counter and disappeared behind a door at the back of the shop.

  “Haven’t you ever heard the expression you catch more flies with honey?” I asked. “Do you have to irritate everyone you come in contact with?”

  Addie let out a poof noise under her breath. “It smells like a thrift shop in here. It only takes a few smelly garments to ruin it for all the others.”

  “You’re imagining things. This is all bridal attire. Everything’s probably only been worn one time and is still like new.”

  I flipped through a rack of gowns on sale for twenty percent off. A faint smell of cigarette smoke wafted up from one of the dresses. Addie might be right about the overall odor of the shop.

  Checking several tags showed prices ranging from fifty dollars to four hundred dollars. It was possible Natalie bought her gown here, but it wouldn’t make sense. She wouldn’t have spared any expense for her wedding, and buying a used dress would have been beneath her.

  The woman returned from the back room with a ledger in hand.

  “Number 0425,” she said, referencing the number at the upper left corner of the receipt. “Purchase date, the twenty fourth of March. A black tuxedo. It was one of our finest in the shop at the time. Paid for with a credit card.” She gave me a look resembling an evil eye before saying, “Name on the card was N. Ping. No first name.”