“Skylar,” Harvey bellowed over the railing from the apartment. “You done taking a break?”
“Actually I was just to about to go on a coffee run,” she said jokingly. Though she could have killed for a coffee. She’d been on her way over to get one that morning when she got the call and had to leave but now there was no rush. The autopsy needed to be done and with LaSalle on video, she figured this case was going to be closed by the end of the day.
“Carrabelle Junction?” Harvey asked.
“Vagabond, it’s closer,” she replied.
“I take mine black with two sugars,” Reznik said. Hanson chimed in as well even though he was still dealing with the media. “Black, no sugar.”
“How did I get demoted?” she muttered as she strode off toward her truck.
* * *
Five minutes later she entered Vagabond, and the place was packed as usual. Donnie Wu looked to be in high spirits again. Not once had she seen the guy down in the dumps. For someone that had lost his wife, he certainly hadn’t let it stop him from living. As it was Valentine’s Day he had decorated the place by stringing love hearts around the walls and placing a rose in a vase on each table. He also had a large bowl on the counter filled with chocolate hearts for anyone to take. Beside that was a blackboard sign scribbled in colorful chalk, reminding people about a poetry slam night.
“Welcome to Vagabond,” he yelled. He did it anytime someone walked in even if he knew them, and by now he’d become all too familiar with Skylar. She waited in line, glancing out to where her boat was docked. She was going to have to clean it if Scot was showing up in a few hours. She groaned. He could have at least given her a bit more notice.
“Skylar, you know the newspaper has been a little quiet lately. What’s going on? When are you going to crash a vehicle, blow up a boat or cause bodily harm to some of our lovely locals?”
“Give me a chance, it’s only morning.”
He smiled back. “What can I get you?”
“Actually a large order today, Donnie.”
‘That’s what I like to hear.”
She reeled off her request. His espresso machine kicked out steam and hissed as he went about his regular Tom Cruise in Cocktail routine of juggling several tasks at once.
“So do you have a special someone that’s taking you out this evening?” he enquired.
“Scot arrives today.”
“Wilson?”
“That’s the culprit.”
“I haven’t seen him since last year.” He looked over to her. “So are you and him an item?”
“Oh please, not on your life. Scot is a ladies’ man. And besides when you have worked with him day in and day out, you begin to wonder why anyone would date him.”
“That bad, eh?”
She paused before replying as he put a tray in front of her and started filling it with cups.
“He was a close friend of Alex.”
“Oh…”
Besides Harvey, and her therapist the only other person she’d told was Donnie, and that was because he’d lost his wife and knew the pain of loss.
“I met Alex on Valentine’s Day. I mean, I knew him before that but that was the first time we, well you know…” She trailed off.
Donnie slowed down looking thoughtful as he placed the final cup into the tray. “There is a Chinese proverb that says… Dig the well before you are thirsty. You know it’s okay to start digging, Skylar.”
“But what if the shovel is broke?”
“Shovel?” he burst out laughing. “Oh you are too much. That will be nine dollars and forty cents.” After she gave him the money, he reached under the counter and pulled out a card and slipped it across to her. It was red and had her name on it.
“What’s this?”
“Open it and see.”
She ran a thumb across it, tearing it open and pulled out a Valentine’s card. Inside it was made out to her and simply said, “Have a great Valentine’s.”
“Oh that’s very sweet of you, Donnie.”
He took a seat on a stool behind the counter and looked on curiously.
“It’s not from me.”
“Come on, of course it is. Who else would hand you a card?”
“Actually quite a lot of people.” He reached under and pulled out a stack. “Happens every year. People drop off their cards and I hand them out. Seems you have a secret admirer.”
“You’re joking, right?”
He shook his head. She turned and looked around the room.
“Okay, so you want to tell me who gave it to you?”
“I can’t.”
“Why, because they told you not to say anything?”
“No, they drop them off in that box over there. I mean it would defeat the purpose of it being secret if I knew who gave it, wouldn’t it?” He grinned and she couldn’t help think that handing out cards in a café was the weirdest thing she’d encountered since moving to Carrabelle. She slipped the card into her pocket and eyed Donnie.
“Remember…”
“I know… dig the well.”
He clicked his fingers and jumped up and went back to work. He was like an Energizer Bunny without an off switch. As she left the café, she couldn’t help wonder who the secret admirer was. Then she started to laugh. It was probably just Harvey, or worse — Reznik or Hanson. She was going to give them heck if it was. Still, no matter who it was, the fact they’d taken the time to send her one, well, it was appreciated even if it was a gag.
Chapter 3
Later that morning, Captain Joe Davenport’s face went a deep shade of red. They’d been on the way over to Elite Matchmaking when he’d called them in for a little one-on-one discussion about LaSalle. He had returned with a coffee in hand as they sat in front of his desk waiting for their marching orders. Since the previous incident, the department, more specifically the captain, had come under the scrutiny of the state attorney — something about reckless and dangerous policing.
“You need to understand that this is a reputable company that has been operating for the past eight years across the nation.”
“So he gets a free ride?” Harvey asked.
“I’m not saying that. I’m saying that we need to play this cool. The last thing I need is to have him lawyering up and coming down on the department. The man has money. For the longest time they only catered to the rich and famous but they’ve branched out. His major operation is based out of California, New York and Miami. It’s considered the crème de le crème in the matchmaking world.”
“Is that what your files say, or do you have personal experience with this?” Skylar probed.
Davenport eyed her. “In fact I do, that’s how I met my wife.”
“Sandra?” Harvey asked. “You never told me that. You said you met in a bar.”
“We did. It was all set up by Elite Matchmaking.”
“You old dog.”
He stabbed the air with his finger. “It’s how they all do it nowadays.”
“So I’m guessing you went through your fair share of duds before you found her?” Skylar asked leaning forward and placing her empty Styrofoam cup on his desk. Davenport eyed it and tossed it into the garbage can. He was a stickler for a tidy desk.
“A few. But this isn’t about me.”
“You sure about that, captain?” Harvey asked.
“Positive. I just wanted to give you a heads-up before you go barging in there all gung-ho and cause a firestorm of trouble.”
“A firestorm? Us? Come on, maybe Reid but not me,” Harvey muttered.
“Especially you. You’re just as bad as one another.” He paused and took a seat. “Look, all I’m saying is that this is a man with deep pockets. Just because he’s on camera having an argument it doesn’t mean he did it. I don’t want you to go rocking the boat until we have all the facts. Just go and have a chat.”
“Nervous, captain?” Harvey asked.
“Only about you two.”
* * *
> Elite Matchmaking’s Florida office was based out of Apalachicola. A city that was roughly the same size as Carrabelle but located on the shore of Apalachicola Bay, in an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico. Although Skylar had visited there a few times on the weekends so she could get a break from Carrabelle, she had yet to see the infamous company that had made a name for itself.
When they arrived outside the gaudy-looking establishment on Avenue East, Skylar stared up at the all-glass building. It was tinted so no one could see inside. The sign was emblazoned in gold with the words: Elite Matchmaking and the slogan, Because You Deserve Nothing Less Than Perfect.
“You still have that barf bag?” she said pushing out of the truck.
“Just let me do all the talking. I know a thing or two about these things.”
“I’m sure Elizabeth would beg to differ.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Skylar pulled back the door and motioned for him to enter.
Inside they were greeted by the sight of marble floors, a shiny chrome front desk with their logo engraved in it and a guy dressed in a dinner suit like he was going to a party for the glamorous.
Harvey flashed him his badge. “I’m Detective Baker from Franklin County Sheriff Department, we’d like to speak with Joshua LaSalle.”
“One moment.”
The man picked up a phone and swiveled in his chair away from them.
“Hard to imagine the captain using a place like this,” he muttered while leaning against the front desk.
“Oh I don’t know. I’d say it’s a great way to weed out the time wasters.”
“And you’ve been through those?”
Her brows arched. “Plenty.”
The front desk assistant turned and motioned to an elevator. “He’ll see you now. Go to the roof.”
As they made their way over to the elevators, Skylar noticed how clean the place was. There was even someone polishing the gold buttons on the elevator.
“Who on earth does that?”
“Those looking to attract the wealthy.”
They stepped into the elevator and Harv tapped the button for the roof.
“So what are your plans for this evening?” Harvey asked as the doors closed.
“Scot is arriving and Donnie Wu from the Vagabond has a poetry slam night this evening, I was thinking of showing up and heckling a few people but I’m thinking of giving that a pass. I might head out of town for the night, you know, go to Tallahassee and take in some of the city.”
“You missing New York?”
Her mind reflected back to the past, the second Valentine’s she’d spent with Alex. A flutter of memories; a dinner, a ring, a proposal.
She opened her mouth to answer when they reached their floor and the elevator dinged. The doors slid open and their senses were attacked by the sound of pulsating music and the sight of scantily clad women and guys sitting on the edge of the pool. The large blue swimming pool was full of foam noodles and a bartender on the far side was serving cocktails.
She smiled. “Well this is something.”
They moved through the crowd, a couple of women gave Harvey the eye.
“Looks like you have some admirers.”
“Don’t say anything to Elizabeth.”
“My lips are sealed.”
Skylar approached a muscular waiter wearing nothing more than a pair of Speedos and a bow tie. She scooped off a drink from the silver tray and was tempted to slap him on the butt.
“Reid, we’re on duty.”
“I know, I love this job,” she said taking a drink of her margarita and pressing on through the crowd. There had to have been at least two hundred people.
“Detectives.”
They turned to find a man dressed like Hugh Hefner, except a hell of a lot younger. He couldn’t have been more than twenty-eight years of age. “That’s LaSalle,” Skylar said.
“Uh-huh, seems so,” Harvey replied, snatching Skylar’s drink out of her hand and placing it back on a tray.
“Harv.”
He scowled as they made their way over to LaSalle who was seated on a large outdoor bench with an African American beauty and a girl with pale skin on either side of him. LaSalle looked like he’d just stepped out of college. He had slicked back hair and was having trouble growing real stubble. It was patchy and looked strange against his spray tan.
“This is quite the operation,” Harvey said gazing around.
“Just a little something we like to throw for our loyal members. Can I get you a drink?”
Skylar’s eyed widened. “That would be…”
“No, we’re good,” Harvey said casting her a look of disapproval. “You said we?”
“Yeah, I arrange the entertainment, and my partner, Ricardo over there, handles day-to-day operations.”
Skylar glanced over to see a Hispanic-looking man, five foot seven, dressed in a black suit and tie. He was talking with a group of women on the far side of the pool.
“So how can I help Franklin County’s finest?”
“We were hoping you might be able to shed some light on how your girlfriend ended up taking a swan dive over the balcony this morning.”
“She what?”
“Oh c’mon, Mr. LaSalle, I’m sure these two pretty ladies would prefer honesty. That is of course part of your mission statement, is it not?” She tossed Harv a look. “Let me see, how did it go? To empower people and inspire them into relationships that provide a lifetime of happiness, honesty and love.”
“You have a good memory,” Harv said in jest.
“No, it just had a real impact on me. In fact I was thinking of giving it a whirl myself.”
“Well detective, I’m sure we can accommodate.”
“Let’s cut the crap, shall we? Your face was seen on surveillance the night before having an argument with Teresa and the next morning she happens to fall to her death. You want to fill in the blanks?”
He studied her and motioned for the two women to go back to the party to avoid tarnishing his reputation any worse than it was. According to what Axl had dug up on him he was a bit of a ladies’ man, a real player who like to jet set around the globe and record of all of it on his Instagram account.
“I’m gathering we are speaking about Teresa Palmer?”
“Of course, unless you’re dating another Teresa.”
He smirked, and Skylar took a seat next to him and got real close. “Something amusing?”
“Yeah well first, let me correct you. Teresa and I are not dating, at least not anymore. She’s a cool chick and I let her stay at my place but that’s about it. Ask some women in this place if they’ve ever stayed the night at my apartment. I’m guessing your referring to the one on US 98?”
“Do you have others?”
“Of course.” He sniffed. “You said she died this morning, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Well that would kind of make killing her tricky. You see, I was onboard a boat in the middle of the Gulf from late last night until nine this morning.”
“And someone can verify that?”
“Fifteen people can, including Callum Jackson.”
Harvey took a seat across from him. “What are you doing hanging around with him?”
“If you want to expand a business around these parts, he’s the man to see, or should I say, he’s the man you have to see.”
Skylar glanced over at Harvey and could already see the fire in his eyes, his hatred for the man was as clear as day. “And what role does he play in this little enterprise you’ve got running here?”
“I think you’re looking at the wrong man, detective, perhaps you should be speaking with Tyron O’Brien being as he was with Teresa last night.” He then smirked. “But then I imagine you already know that, right?” He acted all cocky like he knew better than them. “And as for the reason why I was over there, sure, I’ll tell you. Teresa was playing both sides of the fence. When I learned that she was still seein
g Tyron I went over to talk with her. She kicked up a fuss and I admit I got a little strong-handed with her but check your surveillance again, you’ll see that I left that evening. I didn’t do it.”
“Well that’s still to be determined. Right now until we can verify your whereabouts, how about you take a little trip with us down to the department so we can discuss this further.”
LaSalle got up and smiled. “I’ve told you what I know. Now if you don’t mind I have guests to attend to.” He went to walk away and a small, clear pack of coke fell out of his pocket. All their eyes dropped and LaSalle was quick to react. “That’s not mine.”
“I figured you’d say that.” Harvey leaned in, twisted him around and snapped handcuffs on him. “How about we go and have that little chat.”
* * *
“What part of just go and speak with him, did you not understand?” Davenport asked. “I can expect this from someone like Reid but you, Harv?”
“He had coke on him.”
“So that gave you the right to drag his ass out of his establishment in front of a crowd? You could have used a little more tact.”
“He also said that he was with Callum Jackson on the morning of her death. Now you know as well as I do what that means.”
“What’s it mean, Harv?”
“You know full well.”
“I know you think he was behind your sister’s death but there is no evidence to support it and just because Callum happens to have some connection to LaSalle, it doesn’t immediately make him involved in Teresa’s murder.” He stared at him. “Harvey, if I’m not mistaken I would think you are trying to rush to judgment on this one. What’s going on?”
He exhaled and ran a hand over his face. “Elizabeth has been on my case about taking her out tonight. I missed it last year and well the year before that didn’t go well either.”
Davenport leaned forward in his seat. “I hear you but she knew what she signed up for when she married you. So did Sandra. We have a job to do and besides it’s only one day out of the year. It’s over-commercialized, anyway.”
Harvey’s brow knit together. “That’s what Reid said.”
Davenport cast a glance out of his window towards the rest of the office.
Death Match Page 3