3 Dime If I Know

by Maggie Toussaint

  “Come on out, Cleo. I know you’re hiding in there,” Ashley said. “Keep your hands where I can see them.”

  I edged out the door, hands raised above my head. My breath came in shallow, quick pulses. This was one of my worst ideas ever. Rafe’s designing cousin wore black from head to toe, including a scarf over her nose and mouth. Her eyes blazed pure fury. In her hands was a .22 with a silencer on the barrel. Her weapon of choice, if you discounted her hobby of poisoning people.

  “You won’t get away with this,” I shrilled, wincing at my high-pitched voice. “If I figured it out, so will the cops.”

  “No more head games,” Ashley said. “Since there are two of you, I’ll set the stage for a murder suicide. Given Cleo’s aggressive behavior in Potomac, the police will believe Rafe silenced her to protect his family, felt remorse over his action, and killed himself.”

  To my horror, Rafe rushed his cousin, and the gun discharged. The shot was so quiet, you’d barely know a bullet had been fired, unless you overlooked the hole in the lampshade and the gouge in the drywall. Couldn’t think about that now. I had to save Rafe.

  I ducked behind the leather sofa, reaching underneath for the .38 revolver I’d hidden there earlier. My hand clenched around the engraved grip. Rafe might have a policy against guns, but I didn’t. Guns evened the playing field.

  “Damn you!” Ashley shrieked.

  Where was the cavalry when you needed them? This wasn’t supposed to happen so quickly. I crouched with my weapon and saw Rafe and Ashley rolling on the floor. Ashley’s pistol went flying. She kicked, bit, and bucked, but she couldn’t shake Rafe. I straightened from my defensive crouch, but I kept my gun trained on her as I edged closer. I’d confronted killers a time or two.

  They were never predictable.

  “Why?” Rafe’s voice broke with emotion. “What did Brenna ever do to you?”

  “Everything. I was the family’s darling before she came along. It was always Brenna this and Brenna that. No one gave a damn about Ashley. I fixed that problem. With Brenna out of the picture, I became the family’s poster child for success. I was prom queen. I was the head cheerleader. I won the shooting tournaments. I won the most riding trophies. I even built a business based on my good looks and great taste. All thanks to Brenna.”

  “Tie her up, Cleo. She disgusts me,” Rafe said.

  “Can’t do that, but help is on the way.”

  He glanced over at me and recoiled. “You brought a gun into my house?”

  “I believe in protection,” I said. “Ashley’s killed twice now. I knew the baseball bat wouldn’t be enough. You’re lucky she didn’t shoot you.”

  Ashley studied me. Then she summoned an enormous amount of force and headbutted Rafe. He went down, and she pushed his still body aside.

  Horrified, I kept my gun trained on her as she scooted backward. “Stay put,” I said, matching her progress.

  “You won’t shoot me,” Ashley sneered. “I know your type. You’re all talk and no guts. You don’t have any evidence here. There isn’t any. Starr never made notes about our meetings. She tried to blackmail me about a mistake I made after Hill’s well ran dry. Only I never had your kind of wealth. Daddy lost our stake when the high-tech market went south a few years back.”

  “Starr was another problem you took care of? Like Brenna?”

  “Yes. That little upstart tried to worm her kid into the Golden money machine. Her fate was sealed once I realized her intention. My Dahlia is the only true Golden child. She will inherit all the Golden money, not some trailer trash kid. I’m protecting my family, same as Shep and Amanda did all those years ago.”

  “You’re in for a surprise. The Golden family fortune has fallen tremendously in recent years. Regina isn’t the business manager that Brenna might have been, or that Rafe could be. Rafe has more money than all the rest of his family combined. You won’t see a dime of his money.”

  Ashley shrieked and kicked her cousin. “Why didn’t you die already? I’ve fed you enough poison over the years to kill a mule. Die, dammit.”

  “I researched poisonings online,” I continued. A siren warbled in the distance. I had to keep talking. I had to beat this woman at her own game. “Rafe developed a tolerance to it, and he got away from you and your poison. That’s why you framed him for Starr’s murder, right?”

  “Rafe’s a dumb jock. He got what he deserved.” Eyes on me, Ashley groped for her gun.

  “Stop,” I said. My heart thrummed in my ears. “Don’t make me shoot you.”

  “Bitch.”

  As she spoke, I aimed at her gun and fired. My bullet sliced through her extended palm, and she howled, clutching the injured hand to her belly and crooning nonsense. Blood dripped from her fingers onto the carpet.

  Knees trembling, I walked over, collected her gun, and jammed it in my waistband. “Don’t move.” She didn’t appear to hear me, but she obeyed my command. Keeping her in my field of vision, I knelt beside Rafe, checked for a pulse, and found one. Relief surged and ebbed. Why wasn’t he waking up?

  Heavy footsteps clomped up the stairs. “Cleo?” Britt yelled. “You okay?”

  “I’m fine, but I can’t say as much for this murderess.”

  “We never saw her. She must have been already inside the building,” Britt said as he huffed inside the condo. Uniformed police officers swept into the room and took Ashley away. Britt took the guns from me and parked me on the sofa. Two paramedics charged in and worked on Rafe. “She headbutted him,” I said.

  Things happened in freeze-frame shots. I watched a step out of phase with the rescuers. Please let him be all right. A vial snapped open. They waved it under Rafe’s nose. He shook his head. His eyes blinked open. “What happened? Who are you? Cleo?”

  Tears filled my eyes, clouded my vision. I scooted as close as I could get. “I’m here.”

  He craned his neck up. “Did we get her?”

  “Sir, remain still until we finish your health assessment,” the bulky attendant said.

  I nodded and fought the lump in my throat. “Yeah. We got her. Your sister’s murderer will be brought to justice. Ashley killed Brenna and Starr, and she tried to kill us. She’ll be locked up for a very long time.”

  “Thank God.”

  They rolled him out on a gurney. I sagged against the wall, out of gas. Options swirled in my head. Should I blot the blood out of his carpet? Was it evidence? Should I race to the hospital? What?

  Britt touched my arm. “You recorded everything?”

  “I did.” I unbuttoned my shirt to reveal the mini digital recorder he’d attached earlier to my bra. “Take it. And the backup recorder in my purse. You should have enough to convict Ashley for both murders.”

  “You didn’t tell Rafe about the recorders?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Rafe didn’t know about the gun either?”

  “Nope.”

  “I’d say you two have some trust issues to work out.”

  I buttoned myself back up. “That we do.”

  CHAPTER 41

  * * *

  Britt kicked me out of Rafe’s place, so I drove to the hospital. Rafe was okay, I reminded myself. He was crazy for going up against an armed assailant, but okay. We’d set the trap and caught the killer. Funny how clear events seemed at one in the morning.

  Men and women in blue scrubs buzzed in and out of the nurse’s station in the emergency room. I shielded my eyes against the bright light and scanned the motley group assembled in the lobby. No Rafe. Guess they’d already taken him back to an exam area.

  A cheerful nursing assistant directed me down a hall in the back of the facility. My shoes squeaked on the highly polished floor. A noise sounded behind me. I whirled and half-ducked, worried that I might still be dodging another bullet, but there was only a young man pushing a wheeled machine past me.

  “Sorry if I surprised you,” he said. “We’ve got a full house tonight, and I had to break this squeaky cart out of cold storage.�
��

  “It’s okay,” I managed, though my heart raced. I continued on to exam room eleven, knocked, and entered.

  Rafe rested on the bed, his eyes closed. They opened at my entry. “It’s me,” I said, easing to the side of his bed and taking hold of his hand. “How’re you feeling?”

  His fingers closed around mine as if I was his anchor. “Dumb. I should have remembered all those martial arts classes Ashley took. She was always so driven as a kid. I thought I had her pinned to the floor tonight, but she outmaneuvered me. My head hurts like a sonuvabitch.”

  I covered his hand with my other one. “If it’s any consolation, her head must ache, too.”

  He thought about it. “Nope, it doesn’t make me feel better. I’m having trouble taking this all in. I’ve never run into anyone who’s hated me so much. The worst part is I didn’t see it. Ashley presented a loving front to me. I thought we were good friends.”

  I nodded. “I’ve been in your shoes. When someone you know does bad things, it’s a complete shock. One of the unfortunate side effects of sleuthing is I became less trusting of people in general.”

  “That I understand. I don’t like being blindsided. How did I miss her true feelings about my family and me for all those years?”

  “She’s an acomplished liar. Had to be for her to get away with murder for so long.”

  “I hope there’s enough evidence to convict her.”

  “Don’t worry. The police have what they need. I taped her confession.”

  “You did? How come I didn’t know about it?”

  “You’re hearing about it now.”

  “You brought a gun into my house.”

  His surly tone rankled. My chin rose. “I did, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat to defend someone I love. Guns aren’t evil, but people can be evil.”

  “That’s a point I’d like to debate when I don’t have a raging headache.” He rubbed his thumb over the back of my hand. “Thank you. It hardly seems adequate to say those two words, but I’m grateful. You saved my life and cleared my name.” He tried to grin, though it came out a grimace. “I’ll make it up to you when I get out of here.”

  “Sure, but first let’s get you doctored up. What did the doctor say?”

  “Concussion. They want to hold me for observation overnight, but I want to go home.”

  I heaved out a breath and realized that’s what I wanted, too. I’d been away from home a lot lately. Mama’s wedding was in two days, and God only knew what disasters were waiting to unfold there. “I’ll take you home with me tonight. That way I don’t have to leave you alone in the morning to get the girls ready for school.”

  “No offense, but your place isn’t restful. I want to go home-home to recuperate. To Potomac. You were right about that. It’s time I made an effort to be part of my family.”

  Unsure of his intent, I leaned forward, searching his face. “You’re moving back to Potomac?”

  “Not in the near future. I like my life as a golf pro in Hogan’s Glen. I like dating you.”

  I smiled. “That’s a relief. I thought I’d lost you to the family business.”

  “I’m staying put. But I’m keeping an open mind about the future.”

  I dared to hope I would be in his future. “Reconciling with your family is important.” I cast about for a new subject. “Any word yet on the DNA test to determine Kylie’s father?”

  “Nothing. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear something.”

  There was a commotion in the hall. Mama and Bud Radcliff sailed into the exam room. “What’s going on in here? Did you go on a stakeout without me?” Mama asked, worry stamped in her amber-flecked eyes. She had a death grip on her triple-stranded pearls. Bud’s normally pressed slacks looked distinctly wrinkled. I tried not to think about what they’d been doing.

  Rafe’s hand jerked in mine, sending out a fresh wave of alarm. “Keep it down, Mama,” I said. “Rafe’s got a screaming headache and a concussion.”

  “Sorry,” she whispered.

  Bud’s smile stretched across his craggy face. “Good news, Rafe. With the murder solved, your name has been cleared. And your job at the course is there if you want it. You’re a free man.”

  “Thanks to Cleo,” Rafe said, trying to smile. “She kept the pressure on, and she believed in my innocence from start to finish.”

  “It hardly seems fair to applaud my pigheaded, stubborn qualities,” I said.

  “You are who you are,” Mama said, reaching up to pat my shoulder. “Don’t apologize for that.”

  Another commotion sounded in the hall. Regina, Hill, Amanda, and Shep Golden filed in. Hill strode to the opposite side of the bed from me, his handsome features ashen. “Damn, bro. You’re going to have a shiner. Little Ashley did that to you?”

  “Little Ashley has at least one black belt in martial arts, and God knows what else in her lethal arsenal,” Rafe muttered. “I’m lucky to have survived our encounter. If not for Cleo here, I’d have at least one bullet hole in me.”

  Shep Golden nodded. “Well done, Cleo.”

  As I flushed under his praise, Mama elbowed Bud toward the door. “We’ll wait for you outside, dear,” she said.

  Regina edged in front of Hill and nodded my way. “I apologize for the awful things I said about you. None of us knew the truth about Ashley. None of us had an inkling she’d killed Brenna. We tried to brush that ‘accidental’ death under the carpet, and that was the wrong thing to do.”

  I hardly knew what to say, but good manners never went out of season. “I accept your apology.”

  Amanda wormed her way in front of Shep. She worried her hands together, but her eyes were on her son. “All those years we thought you had a bad stomach, and it was your cousin poisoning you. Can you forgive us for not protecting you?”

  “It’s okay. Looking back, I wasn’t the only one with a bad stomach,” Rafe said. “Who would have suspected a killer in our home? If not for Cleo’s insistence on clearing my name, I wouldn’t have a future or my freedom. I’d be planted next to Brenna. I owe her.”

  “We all owe Cleo,” Shep said. “She’s a fine young woman.”

  I blinked back tears.

  A male nurse and an orderly came in. “There are too many people in this room,” the nurse said. “Three of you have to leave.”

  Knowing Rafe wanted to be with his family, I rose. “I’ll step out.” With care, I kissed the side of his face. “If you change your mind about tonight, call me. I’ll come get you wherever you are. Love you.”

  He nodded, his large pupils dulled with pain.

  I walked out of there under my own power, but fatigue bent my shoulders. I wanted to crawl into my bed and sleep round the clock. Mama and Bud stood up in the lobby as I entered.

  “There you are,” Mama said, as if I’d been lost for weeks in the woods. She swooped me into a big hug.

  Tears brimmed in my eyes and spilled onto my cheeks. “Here I am,” I said.

  “What’s the plan?” Bud asked.

  “Rafe wants to be with his family, and I want to go home.”

  Bud nodded. “I’ll drive you.”

  As welcome as that idea was, it wasn’t practical. “My rental car’s here.”

  “Dee and I will pick up the car in the morning and rescue the Gray Beast from the body shop,” Bud said. “You’re running on fumes. Come on, let someone else take care of you for a change.”

  “Fine.” I was too tired to argue, too tired to do anything more than trudge to Bud’s car and sit down. Mama sat in the spacious back seat with me.

  “Tell us what happened,” she said.

  I recounted the story, hitting the highlights. Mama crowed about Ashley’s downfall. “Britt should hire you to be a police consultant. You’re smart as a whip.”

  “I’m not feeling smart right now. Exhausted is more like it. Who’s with the girls?”

  “Charlie,” Mama said. “He came right over. Sure is handy with him living next door.”

&nbs
p; I drew in a full breath for the first time all evening. Rafe would heal. Ashley would go to jail. My girls were safe. The puppies were growing up and would have good homes. Sure, I didn’t have all the answers, but I’d restored order to Rafe’s life. Hopefully, my life would settle down again as well.

  Despite my optimism, a question of a different nature worried at my thoughts. The wedding. Britt was Mama’s escort down the aisle. “I’ve been meaning to ask. Why did you ask Britt to walk you down the aisle?”

  Mama and Bud exhanged glances in the rearview mirror. “Tell her, Dee,” Bud said.

  His terse instruction clanked around in my brain. “Tell me what?”

  “I’ve been meaning to tell you. I always wondered if this was the case, but Bud helped me find out for sure.”

  “What?” I sat up straighter, sensing news of great import.

  “Britt’s my nephew. He’s the son of my sister Ruthie.”

  I shook the cobwebs from my head. “Aunt Ruthie? I don’t understand. She died when you were a junior in high school. I remember you saying she died in childbirth. I thought the baby died, too.”

  “My mother thought she was doing the right thing. She put the baby up for adoption. I wish I’d known of Britt’s existence back then. I could’ve had him all this time, but I am lucky to have him now. He’s your first cousin. Heck, he’s your only cousin.”

  Britt was related to me? My hand covered my open mouth. Mama gazed at me expectantly in the faint light of the car. I slowly lowered my hand. “I hardly know what to say. How did you know?”

  “Britt reminded me of my sister from the first day he walked into my Sunday school class. His eyes, the way they flash when he’s crossed. His sense of humor.”

  News this big could take days to sort out. As tired as I was, I couldn’t manage it in the dark. Tomorrow. I’d think this through when I was good and rested. I yawned and sat back. “He has one of those?”

  “He does. Anyway, I suspected he was kin all along, and I’m not denying I favored him for years because he reminded me of Ruthie. I didn’t have any way to approach him about it, not until recently, anyway.”