A Killer Stitch

by Maggie Sefton

  “Uhhhh…” Kelly hesitated, caught off guard.

  “That’s a nondenial if I ever heard one,” Steve said with a wry grin. Taking her arm, he headed them toward the truck. “What’s up, Kelly? You told me that little spinner at the shop was dating this guy, but that doesn’t strike me as enough reason for you to go nosing around. You didn’t even know this guy.”

  “Well, something new came up,” Kelly admitted, realizing she’d have to tell Steve the whole story or she’d never get dinner tonight. He’d park in front of the Jazz Bistro and idle the engine until she talked.

  “Gotta do better than that,” he said, opening her door and tossing both rackets behind the seat.

  “Okay, it involves a friend of Jennifer’s. I promise I’ll tell you everything, but let’s get to the restaurant first. I’m starving,” she said as she climbed up into the seat.

  Steve slammed her door and raced around to the other side of the truck. Climbing in, he started the engine, and a deep throaty rumble shook the vehicle. He revved the engine a couple of times before he backed out of the lot, then turned to Kelly. “Okay, what about Jennifer’s friend? I don’t want to wait until we drive across town.”

  Kelly stared into the December night. “It looks like Jennifer’s friend—Diane—will be a suspect in Derek Cooper’s murder,” she said bluntly.

  Steve turned his attention back to traffic. “Whoa,” was all he said as they drove off into the darkened streets.

  Nine

  Burt shook the snowflakes off his jacket and slipped it behind a chair before he accepted the cup of coffee Kelly offered him.

  “Cream and sugar, as usual,” Kelly said with a smile as she led the way into the cottage living room.

  “Okay, Kelly, what is so important that you needed to see me this morning?” he said as he settled into Kelly’s black leather sofa.

  “Well, I was wondering how the Derek Cooper investigation was going,” she said, choosing the armchair for herself.

  Burt smiled. “I figured it was something like that. All I can tell you is they’re still investigating, still interviewing people who knew the victim. Friends, business associates. In other words, the investigation is proceeding.” Burt sipped his coffee, watching Kelly from beneath his bushy gray eyebrows.

  “Any suspects yet?” she probed. “Anyone look interesting?”

  “There may be.”

  Kelly took a deep drink of coffee. Not as good as Eduardo’s but it would have to do until she could get to the café.

  “What’s up, Kelly?” Burt queried. “I sense there’s another reason you’re asking. Is it about Lucy? I know she’s still pretty shaken, but I think she’s getting better. At least she hasn’t broken down in class again.”

  “No, it’s about someone else. Someone Jennifer asked me to meet. Someone who may have already appeared on the police radar screen.”

  Burt’s bushy brows arched. “Oh, really?” was all he said, then he returned to his coffee.

  “Yes, her name is Diane Perkins.” Kelly waited for a sign of recognition from Burt. It came quickly.

  “Do you know this Diane Perkins, Kelly?”

  “Well, I’m beginning to.” Kelly gave a good-natured shrug. “The three of us met for lunch yesterday so she could tell me about her, uh, her volatile relationship with Derek Cooper.”

  “Jennifer asked you to meet this woman?”

  “Yes, Burt, she did. She’s concerned about her friend. Apparently the police have already questioned her about Derek.” Kelly released an exasperated sigh. “Diane did a stupid thing. She lied to the police when they questioned her. She didn’t tell them she went up to his ranch that night.”

  “She told you this?” Burt’s eyes narrowed.

  “Yes, she did. Diane went up there to tell him off and end the relationship.” Kelly watched skepticism flash through Burt’s gaze. “I know what you’re thinking, Burt. Yeah, she went up there to tell him off, they got into a fight, and she killed him. I admit, I was thinking the same thing until I spoke with her. Diane said she didn’t kill Derek Cooper, and I believe her, Burt. She drove right out of the canyon, and—”

  “Then why did she lie?” he interrupted.

  Kelly took a deep breath and calmed the caffeine rush. She needed a cool head to convince Burt. “Because she was scared. Suddenly a policeman is knocking on her door one morning—”

  “It was noon.”

  “Well, he was asking all sorts of questions. I’d be scared, too.”

  “No, you wouldn’t, Kelly. You’ve already been in that situation with the very same detective. Lieutenant Peterson didn’t scare you. He said you were cool as a cucumber.”

  Kelly searched for some plausible comparison. “Well, he wasn’t waking me up and banging on my door, either. That would definitely get me out of sorts—”

  “She was drunk, Kelly. Or sleeping it off. Peterson said her speech was slurred, she was disoriented, and empty vodka bottles were lying on the floor. Her friends at the bar say she does that regularly. Gets drunk and sleeps it off.”

  Kelly stared back at Burt, who was eyeing her over his coffee mug. She had no comeback to that comment. Kelly let out a sigh. “Yeah, she’s got an alcohol problem, for sure. Jennifer and I did our best to convince her to stay sober. Peterson is bound to question her again.”

  “I’d say that’s a strong possibility.”

  Kelly shook her head. “I know this sounds absolutely crazy, Burt, but I listened to that whole story, and I agree with Jennifer. Diane did not kill Derek Cooper.”

  “How can you be sure, Kelly?” Burt said, placing his mug on the table. “Maybe she doesn’t even remember killing him. There are witnesses at the bar who’ll testify she’s had blackouts before, when she doesn’t remember what she’s done. She’s a drunk. And she threatened Derek Cooper in front of witnesses. Lots of witnesses.”

  “So I’m right, then,” Kelly said ruefully. “Diane is smack-dab in the middle of Peterson’s radar screen.”

  Burt smiled. “You’ll have to ask Peterson that question. But, yeah, she’s definitely a person of interest. She had motive and opportunity. Apparently Derek had been dumping on her for years. She finally got tired of it. Sounds like she was already drinking too much when she went to his ranch. Maybe they got into a fight, and bam! She let him have it.”

  Kelly remembered Diane’s use of that same phrase, and a little shiver ran over her. Perhaps she and Jennifer were mistaken. Diane was definitely an alcoholic. Maybe she killed him in a drunken rage and couldn’t even remember it. Maybe. Then how did she drive out of the canyon without running off the road? If she was so drunk she couldn’t remember killing a man, she’d surely be too drunk to drive. Wouldn’t she? Maybe. Maybe the murder itself sobered Diane on the spot. Hell, that would sober up anyone. Wouldn’t it?

  “Add to that, she has no alibi,” Burt continued relentlessly. “She told Peterson she was at her apartment the night Cooper was killed, and there are plenty of witnesses who saw her drinking at the bar before heading to Cooper’s ranch. On top of that, she lied to the police. That makes it look even worse.” Burt wagged his head. “Not good. Not good at all.”

  Kelly felt the grimness of Diane’s situation sink over her like a dark cloud. She could see her observations about Diane’s story hadn’t impressed Burt at all. Even so, Kelly felt obligated to pass along the other piece of information that might be relevant. “Yeah, it looks bad, that’s for sure,” she admitted. “There is one thing, though. Diane swears she saw another car driving up to Derek’s ranch as she was leaving that night.”

  Burt’s eyebrows arched again in obvious skepticism. “Really? Now, I wonder why she’d say that? Maybe she’s trying to deflect suspicion from herself. Have you thought of that?”

  Kelly gave a resigned sigh. She was getting nowhere, so it was time to throw in the towel. For now. “Okay, Burt, I know it sounds flimsy, but I’d like you to pass it along to Peterson anyway, okay?”

  Burt looked a
t Kelly with that familiar fatherly expression she’d come to appreciate. “Sure, Kelly. I’ll pass it along, for what it’s worth. But I want you to promise you’ll be more skeptical of this Diane from now on, okay?”

  Skepticism was Kelly’s second nature, so she could easily agree. “I promise,” she said, crossing her heart.

  Kelly tabbed through the spreadsheet, deftly adding numbers, transferring numbers. Numbers, numbers, numbers. Thank goodness for numbers in her life. Numbers were straightforward. Either right or wrong. Numbers didn’t lie—unless someone made them. People could make numbers lie. Deliberately twisting numbers until they concealed the truth.

  She drained the last of her coffee. Is that what Diane had been doing at lunch yesterday? she wondered. Twisting the truth, so that Kelly and Jennifer would believe her and maybe convince others? Had Diane killed in a drunken rage, then sobered up enough to realize what she’d done? Was she drinking herself into a stupor every night to escape her guilty conscience?

  The cell phone jangled and she flipped it open while she continued entering figures. “Kelly here.”

  “Kelly, it’s me. I’m over at Diane’s apartment.” Jennifer’s voice was breathless. “She’s going off the deep end. Her boss called this morning and fired her. And if that wasn’t bad enough, who shows up at her door then? Peterson. And he brought another detective with him this time. She’s a basket case, Kelly. She’s crying and whimpering, almost hysterical. She has no money and no job, and now the police are after her. She’s falling apart. I left Pete’s as soon as she called me. But I don’t know what to do now. I’m afraid to leave her alone.”

  “Is she sober, Jen?” Kelly asked, wondering if this was fear or a calculated response by Diane to get Jennifer’s sympathy.

  “Ohhhh, yeah. She’s so sober she’s shaking like a leaf. Says she hasn’t had a drink since we had lunch together, and there’s no liquor in the apartment.”

  “Well, thank God for that,” Kelly breathed. “At least she was sober for Peterson’s questions.”

  “Maybe so, but he scared her senseless. Told her not to leave town. Told her they knew she’d lied to them before. Stuff like that. I’m not sure she was too rational when she talked to them.” Jennifer swore softly. “Damn it, Kelly, what do we do with her? We can’t just abandon her, but…but I don’t know what to do. Should we forcibly take her over and put her into a facility or something? I haven’t had a chance to even ask how that works. She may freak out entirely if we take her there.”

  Kelly stared at the blinking cursor on the computer screen, her mind whirling. What should they do? How could they help Diane? Suddenly a face appeared in the back of Kelly’s mind. A familiar face. Someone who’d been in this situation herself. Jayleen Swinson. Jayleen would know what to do.

  “Jennifer, let me make a call,” Kelly blurted. “Can you stay there with Diane for a while?”

  “Yeah, for an hour or so, but I’ve got clients at two this afternoon. Who are you going to call?”

  “Jayleen. She’ll know what to do. I’ll call her right now.”

  “Great idea, Kelly. Let me know as soon as you hear from her. I’ll try and calm Diane,” Jennifer said before clicking off.

  Kelly found Jayleen’s number and punched it into the phone, praying that voice mail didn’t answer. Blessedly, Jayleen’s voice came on instead. “Thank God you’re there, Jayleen. Jennifer and I need your help.”

  “Hey, Kelly, are you all right?” Jayleen sounded alarmed. “Did you two have an accident or something? Tell me where you are, and I’ll be right over.”

  “No, it’s nothing like that, Jayleen. It’s someone else who needs your help, a close friend of Jennifer’s. She’s in bad shape.”

  “My help? Is it someone from the shop? Anyone I know?”

  “No, it’s…it’s one of Jennifer’s girlfriends, a drinking buddy. She’s, well, she’s in real bad shape. Jennifer and I want to help her, but we don’t know how to handle this. Right now, she’s nearly hysterical. She’s been trying to get sober, but this morning really pushed her over the edge. Her boss fired her, and the county police showed up at her door.”

  “Whoa…” Jayleen breathed. “A double whammy.”

  “Yeah, that’s what we thought. We’re the ones who encouraged her to stay off the booze, so we want to keep helping her, but I feel like the whole situation has been kicked up a notch.”

  “You’re right, it has.” Jayleen paused for several seconds. “Why don’t you start at the beginning of this sorry tale and fill me in on how she got where she is now. What’s her name?”

  “Diane. Diane Perkins,” Kelly said, then began to relate everything that had happened these last few weeks. Diane’s drinking, her stormy shared relationship with Derek, her drunken threat at the bar, his death, lying to the police, bar stories, blackouts, Diane’s story, and Burt’s reaction. Kelly didn’t leave out anything, and she did not varnish over anything either. Diane’s behavior spoke for itself.

  Jayleen was quiet for a full minute after Kelly finished. “I have to say, that brings back a lot of memories,” she said at last.

  “I hate to say it, but that’s why I called,” Kelly admitted. “I thought you’d know what to do. Should Jennifer take Diane somewhere? A treatment center or something?”

  “Does Diane have family anywhere around?”

  “No one, according to Jen.”

  “Well, then, it looks like it’s up to us to pull this girl out of the cesspool she’s fallen into. Better yet, give her a helping hand so she can pull herself out.”

  “Hey, Jayleen, Jennifer and I don’t expect you to get involved. We simply needed some advice. We can handle it—”

  “Begging your pardon, Kelly, no, you can’t. Neither can Jennifer. Neither one of you has any experience with drunks, but I do. I was one. So I’m joining this rescue.”

  Feeling guilty now, Kelly tried again to dissuade good-hearted Jayleen’s intentions. “Jayleen, you’ve got too much on your plate right now, you told me so the other day. We cannot impose on you.”

  “Trust me, Kelly, some things are more important than others. And this is one of them. Diane sounds like she’s sinking fast. I remember when it was me, and my cousin Vickie was there to rescue me. I could never repay her when she was alive…” Jayleen’s voice drifted off for a second. “But maybe this is a way I can give back. By being there for someone else the way Vickie was for me.”

  Kelly had no response. Jayleen had told her how, after a lifetime of drinking, she’d turned her own life around with Vickie Claymore’s help. If Jayleen wanted to make that kind of difference in someone else’s life, who was Kelly to say no?

  “All right, Jayleen.” Kelly acquiesced. “But only if you’ll let me help. I can at least do your clients’ accounts. Take some of that burden off your shoulders.”

  “You don’t have to do that, Kelly.”

  “Hey, you’re not the only one who can give orders,” Kelly said. “Now, what do you want us to do for Diane? Right now, I mean. Jennifer’s babysitting her but has to leave soon.”

  “Have Jennifer bring her over to the shop until I can get over there. Will you be able to stay with Diane until later this afternoon when I can drive into town?”

  “Sure,” Kelly replied, mentally wiping her work schedule clean for the day. She could catch up tonight. “What do you plan to do when you get here? Take Diane somewhere? To a meeting or a counselor?”

  “Not yet. I’ll take her home tonight and stay with her, try to talk some sense into her if I can. She’s gonna have a rough night, if I’m not mistaken. I’ll take her to the AA meeting tomorrow night. But first, I’ll put her to work helping me at the ranch. It’ll be good for her. Is she tiny and weak or sturdy and strong?”

  “She looks pretty sturdy to me, and she worked for a landscaper for years.”

  “Great,” Jayleen exclaimed. “Then she won’t be lacking for work here. I’ve got tons of postponed projects around the barns and corrals. With
any luck, she’ll be exhausted.”

  Kelly’s mind swam with the enormity of Jayleen’s commitment. “Whoa, Jayleen, you’re taking on entirely too much. Please let Jennifer and me help. Please!”

  “If I need help, I’ll ask. And, matter of fact, I do think I’ll take you up on that offer with the accounts. I was planning to tackle them tonight, so any help will be welcome.”

  Kelly wiped the night work schedule, too. Tomorrow would be good enough. “You’ve got it, Jayleen. See you here at the shop later this afternoon.”

  “I’ll be there.”

  Kelly found herself saying a prayer of thanksgiving as she punched in Jennifer’s cell phone number.

  “Julie, could you do me a favor, please?” Kelly said as she gestured to one of the café’s afternoon waitresses.

  “Sure, Kelly. Do you want a refill?” Julie asked, reaching for the omnipresent coffee mug.

  “Not yet, but would you make two big mugs of hot chocolate for my friend? We’ll be over in the shop at the knitting table.”

  “Sure thing, Kelly. I’ll bring it over in a minute.”

  Kelly headed down the hallway and found Diane Perkins exactly where she’d left her—standing in the main yarn room. Kelly had hoped that the surrounding color and texture would entice Diane to touch something. Anything.

  Kelly had no experience babysitting adults, so she decided the best way to keep Diane occupied and distracted would be to plop her beside the knitting table and envelop her completely in colors, textures, cookies, and conversation. And hot chocolate. Kelly figured all that hot milk might calm Diane’s nervousness.

  Jumpy hardly described Diane Perkins at this moment. Gone were the glimpses of humor or self-awareness that Kelly had seen two days ago. Now Diane radiated fear. She reeked with it. The tinkling doorbell gave her a start, and she jumped at a customer’s squeal of delight at finding exactly the right yarn. Kelly had no idea if hot chocolate would help, but she figured it couldn’t hurt. Hot chocolate and the warmth of the afternoon knitting circle could do the trick. A “double dose.”