Cold Case, Hot Accomplice

by Carla Cassidy

  “Why would she want to keep him a secret?” Roxy asked, still reeling with the shock.

  “She never wanted you girls to believe that anything or anyone came before you.”

  Roxy’s heart squeezed tight. “But we’re all grown-up now. We’d be delighted if we knew that Aunt Liz had found somebody who made her happy. She deserved to have a life of her own after all the years she gave to us.”

  Treetie smiled at her. “You know Liz—to her you all were always going to be her baby girls.”

  The numbness that had washed over Roxy at various times since her aunt’s vanishing now overwhelmed her as Steve continued to question Treetie.

  Was it possible that Aunt Liz was someplace with this Edward Cardell? That perhaps he had swept her away somewhere for a romantic weekend without her knowing his plans? Maybe she’d been so flustered by the unexpected event that she’d left her purse and forgotten about delivering the usual items to the restaurant.

  There was a certain relief in that thought, and yet she couldn’t imagine Liz not insisting that before they go anywhere she take care of her duty in delivering the baked goods to Roxy for the day.

  But look what men managed to do to your mother, a little voice whispered in the back of her head. Men and drugs had ruined Ramona’s life. Men often caused women to make bad choices. Wasn’t it possible Aunt Liz was so crazy in love that she’d been talked into being whisked away without any thought of Roxy or responsibilities?

  By the time she and Steve got back in the car, the numbness that had overtaken Roxy had transformed to an excitement mixed with hopeful possibility. “We need to find this Edward Cardell,” she said as Steve started the car. “Maybe he and Aunt Liz are together somewhere.”

  “Maybe,” Steve replied. “But the first thing we’re doing is heading back to the station. I want to check in with Frank and see if he’s managed to get a location on your mother or any information from Liz’s cell phone, and it’s time for this partnership to end.”

  “What are you talking about?” Roxy asked. “We have a lead, Edward Cardell, and we should follow up on it immediately.”

  “We aren’t doing anything, Roxy. I’m going to take you back to your car, and you need to get back to work at the Dollhouse or go talk to your sisters, or do whatever you want to do, but you aren’t coming with me.”

  “Are you worried that being seen with me might make one of your other girlfriends mad?” she asked.

  “Knock it off with the girlfriend thing, Roxy. It’s getting old. I’m doing my job, and it isn’t professional or right for you to be with me while I’m conducting an investigation.”

  “It’s exactly right for me to be with you while you’re interviewing my aunt’s friends and acquaintances. If I hadn’t been here, I wouldn’t have known that Aunt Liz was seeing somebody.” A frantic feeling rose up inside Roxy. She had to be a part of this. She needed to be a part of it.

  “A fact she obviously didn’t want you to know,” he returned.

  Roxy chewed her thumbnail thoughtfully and then dropped her hand to her lap. “There’s only one reason why Aunt Liz would have kept her relationship with this Edward a secret, and that would have been because she thought we wouldn’t approve of him. Which means Edward probably wasn’t right for her. For all we know, he’s a serial killer or a sexual deviant.”

  Steve shot her a quick glance, one of his dark blond eyebrows lifting. “Now you’re a matchmaker who knows what’s best for your aunt and an assassinator of character without even meeting this Edward?” he asked sarcastically.

  “It’s the only thing that makes sense,” she countered.

  “Maybe she just didn’t want to introduce him to you because she was afraid you’d be rude, judgmental and a control freak. She was probably afraid you’d scare him off.”

  She drew in a sharp breath as he pulled his car to a halt in front of the police station. “And you’re a jerk, just like I always thought you were.” She got out of the car and slammed the door.

  “Where are you going?” he asked as she headed for the station house door.

  “I’m going to find out if your partner Frank has found out where my mother is.” She blew through the front door with Steve at her heels.

  The cop at the counter buzzed them through, and she was grateful to see Frank Delaney at his desk. He started to rise when he saw her, but she quickly motioned him back down.

  Steve stood next to her, and she realized she’d managed to tick him off. Not that she cared; he’d ticked her off, as well. First by telling her he was dropping her off here, and second by telling her that she was rude and judgmental.

  “Have you located my mother?” she asked Frank, who immediately cast his blue eyes to Steve as if asking his permission to give her any information.

  After getting a nod from Steve, Frank looked back at her and shook his head. “I haven’t been able to find out anything. Apparently she doesn’t have a vehicle registered in her name, there’s no address and she’s not working. She’s basically off the grid.”

  Roxy sighed, not surprised. “She’s been off the grid for years. For all I know, she could be dead. Can you get me Edward Cardell’s address?”

  “Roxy.” Steve’s voice held a steely warning. “I have your cell phone number. I’ll call you with any information I get.”

  “Fine. Whatever.” She whirled on her heels, grateful that at least with her back to him he couldn’t see the tears that once again burned in her eyes.

  She left the police station, got into her car and sat, unsure where she should go or what she should do but knowing she needed to do something. She couldn’t just go home and twiddle her thumbs while Aunt Liz was missing. She also wasn’t ready to share with her sisters what she’d found out, not until she knew more about this Edward Cardell.

  Steve had called her a control freak. For crying out loud, of course she was a control freak. Otherwise she couldn’t manage a successful business, take care of herself and her sisters and stay sane. The first seven years of her life had been so wildly out of control that she now clung to control and refused to relinquish it for anything or anyone.

  Her aunt was missing, and her entire world was turned upside down. She’d lost control of things, and she’d do whatever it took to find Aunt Liz and make her world right once again.

  With this thought in mind, she started the car and pulled out of the parking space. She’d check in at the Dollhouse, where the lunch rush would be in full swing, and while she was there she’d check the phone book. Surely Edward Cardell would be listed, and along with his phone number there would be an address.

  Unless he didn’t have a landline. If that was the case, then Roxy would get on her laptop to find him, or she’d walk the streets and ask people if they knew Edward and where he lived. The town wasn’t so big that somebody wouldn’t know him, especially if he had retired from the post office.

  She didn’t need to be with Steve Kincaid to investigate. She could do it on her own.

  Unfortunately, when she reached the Dollhouse she found things in chaos. One of the waitresses that Josie had called in to help cover Roxy’s absence hadn’t showed up, and although Josie was doing the best she could with the staff on hand, it wasn’t enough.

  Roxy grabbed an apron and got to work. The afternoon passed in a haze, with Roxy alternating between the kitchen and the customers. Each time her cell phone rang she fumbled in her pocket to retrieve it, hoping it would be Steve calling to tell her he’d found her aunt with Edward Cardell and she was fine.

  Instead, each call was from concerned friends or her sisters, checking in to see if there was anything new. By the time the restaurant closed at five, Roxy was exhausted and yet filled with a frustration that required some sort of action. She’d heard nothing from Steve all afternoon.

  “Roxy, sorry about the mess this a
fternoon,” Josie said as Roxy pulled an old thin phone book off a shelf.

  “It’s not your fault. You couldn’t know that Allie would get sick half an hour before she was due to show up. We managed just fine,” she said absently as she flipped through the phone book to the c’s.

  “I haven’t seen you eat all day,” Josie said. “Have you eaten anything?”

  Roxy frowned and looked at Josie. “Actually, I haven’t.” She looked back down at the phone book, a small edge of triumph yelling inside her as she found Edward Cardell. She memorized the address, then placed the phone book back on the shelf and looked at the clock on the wall.

  It was five-thirty. Why hadn’t she heard from Steve by now? Surely he’d been to Edward Cardell’s place and had learned something.

  “Roxy, you really need to eat,” Josie said in concern.

  “I don’t have time now. I have someplace I need to be. I’ll grab something on the way.” There was no way she intended to call Steve for the answers she wanted. She’d just go find them out herself.

  With Edward Cardell’s address burned in her brain, she took off her apron, grabbed her car keys and headed outside. She knew the general area where Cardell’s house was located, although it was on the opposite side of town and not exactly familiar stomping grounds.

  Even though she knew Steve wouldn’t be happy if he found out what she was doing, she felt compelled to speak to the man who had apparently been a part of her aunt’s life for the past year...a secret part.

  What other secrets might her aunt have? Secrets that might have brought some kind of danger into her life? Had she seen other men before Edward? Did she have an ex-lover who might want to hurt her? The very idea of her aunt having any lovers boggled her mind.

  It took Roxy twenty minutes to find Edward Cardell’s home, an older two-story that appeared to be in pristine condition. The front yard sported a huge pine tree, and the lawn looked neat and tended.

  She was surprised to feel a wave of nerves sweep through her as she parked in the driveway and approached the front door. Surely Steve had already been there, and since he hadn’t called her, there must have been nothing to report.

  Still, she felt compelled to follow through. Drawing in a deep breath, she knocked firmly on the door. There was no response. She knocked again, this time harder. When there was still no reply, she left the porch and peeked into the garage door windows.

  No vehicle.

  Apparently nobody was home. Was that why Steve hadn’t given her an update? Because when he’d come by, nobody was there?

  Roxy got back into her car and stared at the house. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten all day. Sooner or later Edward Cardell would have to come home, and she intended to be there when he did.

  She backed out of the driveway, knowing what she had to do. She’d seen enough movies to know that the only way to assure she was there when Edward returned was to conduct her own private stakeout.

  Half an hour later she parked on the opposite side of the street with Edward’s house two driveways down the block. A quick stop at the nearest grocery store had set her up with enough food and beverages to last the entire night if necessary.

  Who needs Detective Steve Kincaid? she thought. She’d take care of things herself, just like she always had and always would. She unscrewed the cap of a bottle of apple juice, grabbed a string cheese from the package and settled back to wait for the man who might have the answers to where Aunt Liz was.

  * * *

  Steve typed in the last of his report on the interviews he’d conducted throughout the afternoon, interviews that had given him nothing to work with in the case of the missing woman. He’d gone by Edward Cardell’s place and found nobody at home. He’d tried to call the house several times throughout the afternoon but continued to get an answering machine.

  He’d left no message. If the man was somehow responsible for Liz’s disappearance, then he certainly didn’t want Cardell to have a heads-up that he was potentially being looked at as a person of interest.

  Liz’s cell phone records had yielded nothing. Most of the incoming calls had been from Marlene, Sheri, Roxy or women friends, and there had been no incoming or outgoing calls on the morning she’d disappeared.

  “Want to get a drink when you finish up?” Jimmy asked from his desk.

  “I’m in,” Frank replied. He leaned back in his chair and released a weary sigh. “Between trying to find some sign of Ramona Marcoli any place on the face of the earth and checking Liz Marcoli’s finances, I’m beat.”

  “What did you find out about her finances?” Steve asked.

  “Nothing worthwhile. Her bank account has had no activity for the last week. She isn’t worth a ton of money. She owns her home and has some money in savings, but nothing to warrant a kidnapping for ransom.”

  “So if she has been kidnapped, we know the motive probably wasn’t money.” Jimmy got up and stretched.

  “We still don’t know that a kidnapping took place,” Steve reminded them both. “Although I have to admit, the longer she stays missing, the more I believe that foul play was involved.”

  “She’s only been officially gone for one night. It just feels early in the game for us to jump to the conclusion that she’s in any kind of trouble,” Jimmy said.

  “Try telling that to Roxy,” Steve noted drily. She’d been on his mind all afternoon, mostly because he couldn’t guess what she might be up to, but he knew she probably wasn’t consoling her sisters or taking a nap. If he was to guess, she was up to her ears in something that could either cause trouble for him or for herself.

  He hadn’t called her because he hadn’t had anything to report. He looked at his watch, surprised to discover it was after seven. “About that drink, I think I’ll pass,” he said. Maybe he should check up on Roxy and see exactly what she might be up to.

  “Are you sure? It’s Saturday night. The Wolf’s Head Tavern will be jumping with hot women and half price beers,” Frank said, as if sure that Steve couldn’t resist the temptation.

  The three of them often spent their Saturday nights at the bar just down the street from the police station. Rustic and without pretense, it was a popular place on weekends.

  “Actually, I need to check in with Roxy and make sure she’s staying out of trouble,” Steve admitted.

  Jimmy grinned. “So you plan on spending the night wrestling with a wildcat.”

  “Something like that,” Steve said. “I’ll see you two Monday morning. Don’t do anything tonight that I wouldn’t do.”

  “Ha. I’d like to get the chance to do something that you would do,” Frank replied.

  Minutes later Steve was in his car and headed toward the Dollhouse, where he hoped to find Roxy curled up in a chair in her living quarters with her sisters by her side.

  He’d tried to call Edward Cardell again and still had gotten no answer. He had no idea if that indicated anything or if it was just a coincidence.

  He turned down the alley that would take him to the back of the Dollhouse, where he knew Roxy parked her car. The back of the establishment not only had parking for the staff and a large Dumpster for trash, but also a flagstone patio with a couple of umbrella tables that people sat at when the weather was particularly nice.

  When he reached the area, he was somehow not surprised to find Roxy’s car missing. Damn. He parked and pulled out his cell phone, calling first Marlene and then Sheri, neither of whom had any idea where Roxy might be.

  Double damn. Steve frowned and tried to crawl into Roxy’s brain and figure out where she might be and what she was doing.

  He was unsurprised to discover that it was impossible to crawl into her brain, but he knew what he would do in a situation like this if he was as determined as Roxy at finding answers.

  He backed his car out of
the lot and headed in the direction of Edward Cardell’s house. It was the only lead Roxy knew about, the only lead that had yet to be checked out because the whereabouts of Edward Cardell were, at the moment, unknown.

  By the time he reached Edward’s street, twilight had begun to sweep over the area. He immediately spied Roxy’s car parked ahead of him. Surprise, surprise, he thought, not surprised at all.

  He pulled to a stop, cut his engine and got out of his car. He approached her vehicle, irritated that she was there, yet understanding why she was.

  He peered into the passenger window. She was slumped back in the driver’s seat, sound asleep, and the passenger side was littered with string cheese wrappers and two juice bottles, one empty and one full. There was also a bag of ready-to-eat celery, a couple of protein bars and two apples.

  She looked as if she was settled in for a long night. She also looked stunning in sleep, with her lovely features relaxed in a way he’d never seen them and with her curly black hair in its usual disarray.

  It was the first time he’d seen her without movement, without that defensive cast to her shoulders, the readiness for a fight in her eyes. It was also the first time he embraced how she physically drew him in a way no woman had in a very long time.

  She was beautiful, and she definitely inspired a healthy dose of lust inside him, but she was also drama, unbridled emotion and unpredictability, and he’d already been there, done that and would never do it again.

  Jeez. She was sound asleep and her doors weren’t even locked. He opened the passenger door and she jerked up, her gaze hazy, as if for a moment she didn’t know where she was or what was happening.

  He swept the items off the passenger seat and to the floor, then slid inside. “I always knew you were a messy girl,” he said.

  She blinked as if to clear the sleep from her head. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’d say the real question of the hour is what are you doing here?”