Kane released a slow breath before he finished her sentence. "When someone got revenge on Marvin. But who?"
"I think I have the answer to that," she said. "We just need proof."
"How do we get that?"
Gilda thought. "First we go see Mick, then we convince Thayer and Fabio to confiscate Henry's computer and see what he really knows."
CHAPTER FIVE
As they walked through the hospital, Kane glanced at Gilda. "I don't remember seeing Gary at the funeral. If he's supposed to be looking out for Mrs. Watson, where's he been lately?"
Gilda frowned as they walked down the hall. "I don't know. He talked to Mrs. Watson at Marion's house then organized and paid for Marvin's funeral, but I haven't actually seen him since before the explosion."
"You don't think he had something to do with Marvin's death, do you?" he asked.
She paused as a thought struck her. "No, I think he knows who might have, though, and is avoiding being questioned."
"You look worried, love. Everything okay?"
"It's tough having Mick in the hospital not able to hear or remember what happened. I know he saw something or knew something." She hesitated. "What are we going to do when he's released? I know he wants me there to help him, but…"
Kane grinned. "But you're nosy and he doesn't want to answer five hundred questions."
"It's not that." Gilda sighed. "What if he doesn't want me to stay with him twenty-four hours a day while he heals? I know we're dating and talked about moving in together, but…"
"But you're afraid he won't want to have to rely on someone," Kane finished. "He's a guy. We all think we're pretty self-reliant until suddenly we're not. Mick's always done everything for himself, love. Having to get someone to help take care of his wounds and be his ears is making him feel less like a man."
"So what do I need to do to help him?"
He winked. "Aside from the obvious? Don't rush in and do everything for him. Let him figure things out for himself."
"In other words, don't be a mother hen."
"Exactly, love."
They came around the corner and entered Mick's hospital room.
Doc, hovering nearby, glanced up. "Hey, guys. Mick's parents just ran out for coffees. You guys have half an hour before they get back."
Mick smiled, but worry edged his eyes as he reached out to hug her. While he held her, he whispered, "I remember."
She sat next to him on the bed then stared. "What do you remember?"
Mick glanced at Kane. He reached for the notepad and a marker on a nearby table and handed it to Gilda. "I can't hear you. Write."
What do you remember? she wrote.
Before she could hand it to him, someone knocked on the door. Marion waved from the doorway. "Looks like I'm crashing the party."
Kane shook his head. "You're fine, love. Where's your shadow?"
She blew out a long breath and sat in a hard chair near Mick's bed. "Sleeping. The poor dear drank two glasses of spiked lemonade and headed to the guest room. She'll probably be out until dinner tonight. Arguing with Brutus took a lot out of her."
Mick took the notepad from Gilda then passed it back. "Marvin was shot."
She nodded and wrote, We know that. The police found him.
He read her note then frowned. "He was dead when I found him. Gary told me someone was using the old school for illegal stuff, so I went to look for trespassers."
Kane stood next to Mick. "Ask him who else was there."
She wrote the question, handing back the notepad, which Kane intercepted. He added another sentence before passing the paper to Mick.
"I heard a gunshot, and then someone ran out the back door when I entered the building," Mick said. "The killer took Marvin's computer and left the cords behind. Then the bomb went off before I could go after them."
Gilda stared at Mick in thought. When he met her gaze and took her hand in his, her eyes watered. She could have lost him so easily. "We need to call Fabio and talk to Mrs. Watson about who Marvin's friends were."
"Give the woman a break, will you?" Marion sat up. "Her grandson died, she's lost everything, and her son disowned her at the funeral."
"I know her life has fallen apart, but if she was really that controlling of everything Marvin did, she'd know better than anyone who he hung out with and what he was up to." Gilda stood. "The sooner we can talk to her, the better."
Marion sighed. "What do you think will happen if we wait a couple hours?"
"The killer could already be long gone." Kane leaned against the wall.
"Maybe," Gilda said. "Or maybe he doesn't want to be obvious. Let's go talk to Mrs. Watson before we bring Mick's notes to Fabio."
Mick narrowed his eyes and grunted. "What's going on?"
Gilda wrote her plan out quickly, surprised when he threw back his blankets and struggled to get out of bed. She pressed a hand to his chest. "What are you doing?"
"I'm coming."
He was quickly subdued by Doc, who shook his head. "No. You're not. Stay here."
Mick flared his nostrils. "I need to protect Gilda. She'll get in to trouble."
She glanced at the bandages on his right shoulder and bowed her head, then wrote, No, I won't. I promise.
Mick read her note. He hugged Gilda hard, clutching her to his chest with his good arm before he turned to Kane. "Take care of her. Keep her safe, or else."
"Yes, Sensei." Kane gave a small bow. "You hear that, love? You don't go anywhere or talk to anyone without me or you'll have to answer to your boyfriend."
"That's fine." Gilda kissed Mick and clung to him a few seconds longer, mindful of his shoulder, then headed for the door. "Let's go talk to Mrs. Watson."
"I guess we'd better go now then," Marion said. "Gary's coming to pick her up at four to take her to her sister's house in New York."
Marion led the way, grumbling the entire time about how they should respect the old lady's privacy and leave her to nap for another hour or so. She opened her front door and ushered Gilda and Kane to the guest room door with one finger to her lips. "She might still be asleep. Let me check on her first."
"No problem." Gilda took a small step back.
Marion opened the door and gasped. "What the heck are you doing?"
"Oh. Hello, dear." Mrs. Watson sat on the bed with a drink in one hand, a laptop on her thin legs, a bag of potato chips, and a stack of papers beside her as she stroked the keyboard. "I just thought I'd do a little banking before my trip."
"Where did you get the computer?" Marion stared. "I thought all your things were destroyed in the explosion."
Mrs. Watson shrugged. "All the unimportant things."
"It was you all along, wasn't it? You were Marvin's partner." Gilda flew across the room and grabbed the laptop. "Kane, call Fabio. This is Marvin's computer."
"Oh, don't be so melodramatic." Mrs. Watson sighed. "We don't need the cops. In an hour or two from now, I'll be long gone and you won't have to worry about me anymore."
"Your trip to New York." Marion hadn't moved.
Kane stood in the doorway. "You're not going to New York, are you, love? You printed off your ticket. One way to the Cayman Islands. You must have come into a little money."
"The insurance company gave me a generous quote." Mrs. Watson reached for the papers next to her.
Gilda snatched them out of her reach and handed the laptop to Kane so she could skim over the documents. "You had your building insured for two million dollars and Marvin insured for another million. That's a lot of money."
"Yes, a lovely little retirement fund." Mrs. Watson smiled. "I figure once the insurance money goes into my Cayman account, I should have about five million to enjoy. That'll buy me a lot of cabana boys." She studied Kane. "If you would've played your cards right, you could be on Easy Street for the rest of your life."
"Eww!" Marion wrinkled her nose.
Gilda read through the insurance papers. If Mrs. Watson was insured for three million, wh
ere had the other two million come from? "You and Marvin weren't only partners in buying the building, you were partners in crime. His name is on the Cayman Island account along with yours. Is that why Brutus was so mad at you?"
"Brutus and that simpering little wife of his are prudes." Mrs. Watson rolled her eyes. "They've never broken a single rule in their lives. Where's the fun in that?"
The front door opened downstairs and Fabio's voice echoed up the stairwell.
"Up here," Kane called. "We've got her cornered."
Gilda wasn't ready to give Mrs. Watson over to the police without digging out the truth. "I'm guessing this wasn't the first scam you've run together. Whose idea was the auction site?"
"Whose do you think?" Mrs. Watson reached for a cell phone near her leg. "Marvin couldn't have scratched two matches together to make a fire. His friends were more helpful than they even knew."
"How's that?" Marion asked, snatching the phone away.
Mrs. Watson scowled. "Cory and Henry have their electronic fingerprints all over everything. They helped him set up the website and the advertising pages using their own passwords and computers. Marvin's was the only name that appears, but there are ways to track down the other two, which is why the police were asking about them too. Anyone who searches for a way to connect me to this will be sadly out of luck. Who would believe a little old lady with no material goods left in this world could do such a thing?"
"I would." Fabio stepped into the room. "I'm sure there's plenty of evidence on that laptop that will help convict you as well. Not to mention the fact you even have it after the building blew up and a lot of the other evidence was destroyed. Dorothy Watson, you are under arrest. You have the right to—"
Gilda moved between Fabio and Mrs. Watson. "Wait. Who set off the bomb?"
She sighed. "Anyone can make a little bomb with stuff off the internet these days. I got Cory to build it and I set the timer for when I knew Marvin would be next door getting packages ready to send to our clients."
"Clients? You mean the people you scammed?" Gilda asked. "Then who shot Marvin?"
For a brief second, it seemed as if all the air was sucked from the room. Gilda didn't take her glare off the old lady, even as Mrs. Watson stood and slowly came toward her.
"His friends are such computer geeks none of those boys could fire a gun." Mrs. Watson shrugged. "A lady's got to do what a lady's got to do."
Marion squawked. "You shot your own grandson in the head? What is wrong with you?"
"Probably a lot of bad drugs in the sixties," Kane said. "It's no wonder Brutus didn't want you to be at Marvin's funeral. Does he know what you've done?"
"Not exactly." Mrs. Watson pressed her lips together.
Gilda blew out a slow breath. "You're not the nice old lady we all thought we knew. You were a nurse in Doc's office, then ran the consignment shop, then… Who are you?"
"She's a wanted felon and has been since the sixties." Gary del Garda appeared behind Fabio. "I only looked after her when she came to town because of Marvin. He wasn't the smartest kid in the world, but he was worried she was getting into some things that might get her in serious trouble. In the end, he decided to join her and get rich so he could move to California and become a movie director."
Gilda shook her head. "Were you really going to take her to New York?"
Gary winced. "You ever heard the saying about birds of a feather? I have friends in New York who'd take care of her."
"But she wasn't going to New York." Kane handed him the airline tickets. "Cayman Islands to start her own male harem."
Gary read the papers then handed them to Fabio. "Dorothy, I've covered for you long enough. I don't care if your late husband was my uncle."
Mrs. Watson's nostrils flared. "You're still my kin and you gave your word to your uncle on his deathbed. You vowed to do whatever you could to keep me safe."
"Keeping my word to my uncle isn't worth it when you keep ruining my already bad reputation." Gary folded his arms across his chest. "Have a nice time in prison. Cuff her, Fabio. I'm done with her. Even I can't make this problem go away."
CHAPTER SIX
Gilda's entire day might have been spent on a treadmill for all that it mattered. When Kane didn't show up, she and Gary helped Mick's parents take him home to his condo and spent the whole time answering a barrage of questions she would have rather not had to think about for the moment.
Mick wore a sling when he left the hospital, then took it off in the car and refused to take the painkillers Doc prescribed. Once they got to his place, he began to play up his injuries and talk about how long it would take to heal and how long he'd have to stay with her once his parents left.
She'd settled Mick on the couch with his phone in easy reach and left him drinking tea with his mom while she ran out to get a few groceries. Instead, she'd run ten miles, broken into a sweat that soaked her tank top, shorts, bikini and running shoes, yet she'd gotten nowhere. Constant, non-stop motion for nothing but a gnawing hunger, burning thighs, and a need for a cold shower.
She took off her running shoes and shuffled across the beach then slumped onto her favorite log on the beach, shooing a seagull away as her eyes swarmed with tears. Marvin's murderer was behind bars, Mick was on the mend and out of hospital, and would live with her while he healed. Overall, life was relatively back to normal. So why was she feeling so anxious?
Between Mick's interrogation and plans to move in with her, Kane's meddling in her life, Marion's constant complaints about how Mrs. Watson had fooled them all, and the realization Gary del Garda wasn't only her guardian angel, but had covered up for a real life criminal, she felt like a brick wall ready to crumble. She seriously needed to not only be less trusting, but learn to keep her nose out of things.
Kane, shimmering with sweat, straddled the log and handed her a paper cup. "Care for a drink, love?"
Her first instinct was to say no. She'd never drink again. Then she blew out a slow breath.
"Thanks." She took a sip and spit it out into the sand. "This isn't coffee. It's cold tea."
He grinned. "Brewed iced tea, no sugar. Way better for you. I noticed you drink too much coffee. Besides, after a long, hard run, you'd need something refreshing."
Gilda raised her eyebrows. "How do you know what I've been doing?"
"Easy." He winked. "I followed you."
She sighed. "Don't you have anything better to do today?"
Kane shook his head, dreadlocks slapping his face. "Not really. I don't teach classes until later today. Since you didn't want me anywhere near you, I followed at a safe distance."
"What do you mean a safe distance?"
"I know I've been sticking pretty close to you lately, but I'm not a fan of being bumped off by someone like your friend Gary." He hesitated. "Speaking of Gary, I hear Fabio let him off easy even though he'd aided and abetted a felon."
"Yeah. Gary was really cooperative with them. He also has friends in high places. At least he showed up to help me get Mick home and settled into his apartment, which you'd offered to do, by the way. Where were you anyway?"
"I'd tell you, but it's not all that important."
Gilda raised one eyebrow. "Did you finally meet a girl?"
"Actually, Sherlock, I was making Mick a gift. A new katana for his office to ward off bad guys, or you when you get those crazy ideas to solve crimes again." He grinned.
"Ha. Ha." She sipped her tea.
"You know Mick will get a lot of insurance money, right?"
Gilda frowned. "How do you figure that?"
"He owned the old martial arts building outright. Now that Mrs. Watson's going to jail for blowing it up, he'll get a huge payout."
"He'll be happy about that, not that it'll help his hearing come back any faster." She sipped her tea. "What's going to happen if his arm doesn't heal properly, and he can't teach anymore? Or if his hearing doesn't come back, and he can't live on his own anymore?"
"He's still got me and other p
eople to teach classes and you to help him at home and run the school," Kane said, then met her gaze. "Are things okay with you two?"
"Yeah." She smiled. "I convinced him to stay at my place for a while. I'm hoping the gardens and being close to the beach will help him relax and we can see if…"
Gilda closed her eyes. Kane Garrick was the last person she should be talking to so candidly.
"If things between you two are solid enough to work out." Kane gave her a sideways glance. "And if they're not?"
Gilda met his gaze. She had no idea.
Lemonade Margaritas
2 oz Tequila
½ oz Triple Sec
1 oz Lemonade
Sugar
Ice
Mix tequila, lemonade, and triple sec in shaker with ice.
Wet the rim of a cocktail glass with water then dust it with sugar.
Serve over ice.
Sit in the sunshine and enjoy!
* * * * *
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Diane Bator is an avid hiker, yoga enthusiast, Reiki Master, wannabe runner, and martial artist, who loves to make a mess in the kitchen and putter in the garden. Moving across the country with three boys and a cat, then joining a writing group, was the catalyst for coming out of the creative closet and writing her first murder mystery series. Hard at work on her second series, she lives in Southern Ontario, Canada with her husband, three teenagers, and a cat who thinks he's a Husky.
To learn more about Diane Bator, visit her online at:
http://penspaintsandpaper.com
BOOKS BY DIANE BATOR
Gilda Wright Mysteries:
Can't Keep a Brunette Down
Hardheaded Brunette
A SPOT OF MURDER
(Cookies & Chance Mysteries)
by
Catherine Bruns
* * * * *
CHAPTER ONE
I gripped the stark white piece of paper tightly between my hands, trying to come to terms with the finality of the situation. For the last ten minutes I'd re-read the same lines over and over as the words echoed in my head and forever bruised my heart.
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