by Lynn Emery
“Good. You and Frank can interview Mr. Summers.” Holmes pointed to Russell.
“Your office should be fine.” Ferris opened the door and waited.
“I don’t have anything to hide,” Russell said.
Still, his indignant expression faltered. He rubbed his mouth with a shaky hand. Ferris glanced at Holmes briefly, then followed Russell through the door. Holmes held the door open and looked at Nicole. He didn’t speak, simply waited for her to leave. Nicole tried not to look at Marcus before walking out, but she couldn’t help it. Cat and Shelly stood outside. Both wore frightened expressions.
“What did that detective say?” Cat whispered.
“Marcus isn’t in trouble, is he?” Shelly twisted her hands together. Both women looked over their shoulders at the same time.
“Holmes asked a lot of questions, and I don’t know how much trouble Marcus is in right now.”
Nicole was about to say more when one of the officers walked by. She went to her office with Cat and Shelly right behind her.
“The lawyer said the warrant is good,” Cat said once the door closed.
“There’s no such thing as a good search warrant,” Shelly muttered.
“You know what I mean. Anyway, they’ve been looking at personnel files again. Andre says they accessed the database. What in the world could they be looking for?” Cat stared at Nicole.
“I have a feeling we’ll find out real soon,” Nicole murmured. She paced for a time, then sat down.
“The phones are ringing like crazy. Go back to your office, Shelly. We can’t hide out all day.” Cat gestured for her to leave.
Shelly stood. “Marcus didn’t do anything wrong, Nicole. I’m positive.”
Nicole wanted to be just as sure. She couldn’t bring herself to agree, because doubt chewed at her. All she could do was nod. Shelly left, and Cat waited a few seconds before she spoke.
“What now? I know you’re not going to just sit around waiting for the other shoe to fall,” Cat said.
“In spite of everything, we do still have a business to run. What’s going to be left of it, anyway, once the news gets out.” Nicole sat down at her desk. “I’m not going down without a fight.”
“Mr. Hosea would say the same thing. You’ve got his genes, all right,” Cat quipped.
“Please, I’m trying not to be depressed. Don’t make things worse,” Nicole shot back.
Nicole looked at her desk. She didn’t make an attempt to deal with any of the paperwork or go through the pile of telephone messages. Her thoughts skittered around, making concentrating on anything but Marcus and his interview with Holmes impossible. She finally decided to give in.
“Anything on my desk a fire that needed to be put out yesterday?” She waved a hand at the neat stacks Cat had made.
“Imani and Andre could handle some of it, I think.” Cat started sorting through the messages.
“Good. Make a list.”
Nicole gave Cat instructions. Then she called Andre, Imani, and other employees. After making several telephone calls she pushed aside business as usual. She signed onto one of three information databases she’d subscribed to, and she started her own investigation.
twenty-three
The nightmare continued the next day. Nicole sat in her office at eight in the morning. Most of the staff had not yet arrived, but Nicole and Cat had gotten a head start on a long list of chores. Still, she couldn’t ignore Tuesday’s edition of the Houston Chronicle. Aliyah’s murder had made it to the front page.
Cat peered over Nicole’s shoulder at the headline. “What a horrible way to die.”
“There’s a good way?”
“Yeah, peacefully in your sleep at a ripe old age; not beaten to death, strangled, and tossed into a bayou.” Cat shivered.
Nicole read the newspaper article about Aliyah’s murder for the fifth time. She shook her head. A nameless reporter had summed up Aliyah’s life in so few words. Twenty-six years in four short paragraphs.
“Mr. Daigre from Lake Charles called again,” Cat said.
“I’ll call him,” Nicole answered in a distracted tone.
“I might be out of bounds, but…” Cat’s voice faded.
Nicole looked up from the newspaper. “I’m listening.”
“The cops are more likely to suspect Marcus. He’s the one from the ’hood, and Shaun is his pal.” Cat frowned. “It doesn’t look good.”
“No,” Nicole said in a short tone.
In the last twenty-four hours she’d ridden the emotional equivalent of a monster roller coaster. Marcus had withdrawn from her. His code of street silence had driven a wedge between them. Nicole had begun to wonder just how much he knew about what Shaun had been doing. Busy trying to salvage their remaining contracts and deal with employees, Nicole had had only scant time to wonder why he hadn’t sought her out to explain. He had to know questions were eating away at her. Cat’s voice broke through the swirl of suspicions nibbling away at her trust in him.
“Ahem, like I was saying,” Cat began again. Her eyes sparkled with zeal. She dropped the papers she held onto Nicole’s desk. “I think we should figure out who killed Aliyah. Or at least give the police a more likely suspect.”
“Us?” Nicole tilted her chair back and rocked gently.
“We’ve got the tools at our fingertips. Don’t tell me you haven’t started some investigating of this stuff.”
“Yes, I have. Only to find out more background information on Aliyah,” Nicole admitted.
“And?”
“I didn’t learn much more than what Detective Holmes told us. She had expensive taste and liked to spend other people’s money.” Nicole grunted. “Shaun Jackson had a few close calls with the police, mostly white-collar stuff. Aliyah did work with him at least twice in the last three years in telemarketing scams.”
“Any connection between her and Marcus? I know it had to be on your mind,” Cat said when Nicole squinted at her.
“None that I could find.” Nicole couldn’t shake the image of Aliyah standing close to Marcus as though sharing a secret.
“She wasn’t his type.” Cat shook her head slowly.
“How long does it take to really know someone?” Nicole murmured, asking herself the question rather than asking Cat.
“She probably shook her groove thang at him, but Marcus prefers substance, not empty flash.”
“Watch it! I’ve been called empty flash in my time,” Nicole tossed back.
“You might like a good party, but you’ve got brains, principles, and family loyalty. Why else would you put up with Russell’s crap?”
“Uncle Hosea’s will wouldn’t let me fire him,” Nicole retorted. “Firing Russell was the least of what I’ve wanted to do to him in the last month or so.”
“I didn’t say you were perfect,” Cat joked.
Nicole gave a short, humorless laugh, then frowned. She swiveled her chair around to the window. Fluffy white clouds hung against a bright blue background. The peaceful scene didn’t do anything to calm the jitters in her stomach.
“I just wish Marcus would talk to me,” Nicole grumbled.
“Maybe he doesn’t want you to be in danger. He could be on the trail of the killer and—”
“You’ve been watching too many old action movies. I’m not Foxy Brown, and Marcus isn’t Shaft.” Nicole turned her chair around again.
“I’m just saying we should find out the truth,” Cat said with a nod.
“You mean we should track down the maniac who cracked Aliyah’s skull and let him know we’re onto him. Right?” Nicole crossed her arms.
Cat put a hand to her throat. “Uh, when you put it like that it doesn’t sound like such a great idea.”
“Damn right it doesn’t sound like a good idea,” Nicole said. “Let the police handle it.”
“They are pointing a finger at Marcus. We should do something,” Cat protested.
“They’re considering Russell as a suspect, too. And me, as a
matter of fact.” Nicole felt a chill.
“More reason to take action,” Cat said. “Okay, so maybe we won’t look for the murderer. But we can help Marcus.”
Nicole stared past Cat without seeing anything. “Except he’s not talking.”
“Then make him talk.” Cat stood and planted both hands on her hips. “Shelly says he came in a half hour ago.”
“Right.” Nicole didn’t move.
Cat picked up her phone and tapped the keypads. “Marcus, Nicole for you.” She stuck the receiver in Nicole’s face.
After mouthing a silent curse word, Nicole snatched the receiver from her hand. “Guess it’s time for that talk now. I’m on my way. Happy?” she said to Cat after hanging up.
“I’ll be happy when this whole mess is over and none of us land in prison.” Cat picked up her stack of work again.
“Hold that thought,” Nicole muttered and left. Shelly nodded to her when she arrived outside Marcus’s office. “No calls or interruptions.”
“You got it,” Shelly replied.
Nicole paused to prepare. Tact and composure. She opened the door, mentally reciting the words like a mantra. Marcus stood in front of his desk, arms folded and a stiff expression on his handsome face.
“Hi.” He swept a hand out toward the chairs.
“Hello.” Nicole stood in spite of his invitation.
“I know. You don’t believe me.”
His blunt statement brought her up short. “Well, you could help by telling me what your friend Shaun has been up to lately.”
“Shaun isn’t involved in the burglaries, much less a murder,” Marcus said in a firm tone.
“You know this for a fact?” Nicole paced in a small circle in front of him.
“I know Shaun.”
“So, you’ve been with him every moment of the day for the past few days? I’m not even asking about the past six months when the burglaries increased.” Nicole stopped to face him.
“You know the answer,” he replied with an edge in his tone.
“I suppose it’s simply an incredible coincidence that Shaun’s cousin is connected to the thefts, the robbery at LaSalle’s Jewelry, and that Aliyah is Shaun’s old girlfriend.” Nicole paced again.
“You forgot to mention Shaun and I being friends.”
“I was getting to it, trust me,” Nicole snapped. She sucked in a deep breath and let it out when his eyes narrowed. “Look, whatever he’s done, at least tell me. That way we can deal with it together.”
“Don’t worry. Shaun is having money problems. He swore to me that he didn’t have any idea what Olandon was doing or know anything about Aliyah.”
“You’ve talked to him in the past day? The police want to question him. Marcus, if they find out—”
“Shaun is going to call them,” he said.
Nicole whirled around and put both fists on her hips. “Oh, come on! I’ll bet your pal is headed to a country that doesn’t have an extradition agreement with the U.S.”
“Drop the drama, all right?” Marcus leaned against his desk. “Shaun isn’t going anywhere. He doesn’t have the money, and Shaun likes to travel first class.”
“Shaun has plenty of cash somewhere for just such an emergency. And he’s left you holding the bag. Wake up!”
“You’re wrong. I talked to him this morning.” Marcus pressed his lips together.
Nicole walked over to him until they were inches apart. “Where is he?”
“He’s in town. Most likely he’ll consult his attorney and get in touch with the police.” Marcus let his arms fall to his sides. “Everything is going to be okay.”
“Aliyah worked for Shaun not so long ago. But I think you knew that.” Nicole stared at him hard.
Marcus frowned. “Look, you don’t know about police harassment on your side of the tracks. They can build a case around you so that you look guilty. He needs time to get his defense lined up.”
“He shouldn’t need that much time if he’s innocent,” Nicole shot back. “Detective Holmes said—”
“I don’t care what that so-called brother says,” Marcus hissed.
“The man isn’t a traitor because he catches criminals. Black on Black crime is a fact of life. Thugs who steal what we’ve worked hard to get should be locked up,” Nicole said, her voice raised.
“Most of your relatives don’t work for anything. They sit on their fat assets all day. People like Shaun have to scuffle for a decent share of the pie. I’m not defending her, but Tameka came from the same place we did. Being poor can push people to the limit.” Marcus gazed off, as though looking back to his own rocky childhood.
“Lots of kids grew up poor. Guess what? They went to school and got good jobs, not so they could scam their employers either,” Nicole said.
He squinted at her. “You’re talking about me?”
Nicole sat in the nearest chair with a sigh. “You shouldn’t be surprised I’ve got questions. The police are telling me about drugs and armed robbery. I feel like I’m trapped in a gangsta rap movie.”
“So, we’re all alike.”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Sure you did,” Marcus clipped.
“I thought you’d grown out of that life. Stop making excuses for those people. I meant Tameka, Shaun, and Aliyah,” she added when his dark eyebrows pulled together. “They’re from that thug life culture. You know exactly what I mean.”
“Yeah, I’m afraid I do.” Marcus looked at her with his mouth turned down at the edges.
“Don’t give me that self-righteous attitude,” Nicole said defensively. “You wondered about Shaun or else you wouldn’t have disappeared to track him down.”
“You’re right. But I listened to him. I didn’t let accusations change the way I feel about Shaun. Because of our friendship I chose to stand by him,” Marcus said evenly.
Nicole stood and faced him. “Or maybe you’ve chosen to believe what you want to, in spite of the facts.”
“The system’s version of the facts?” Marcus gave a short, grim laugh. “Even bourgie Black folks get stopped by the police just because, Nicole. You people kid yourselves that your money, family names, and connections mean something. You live in your insulated world and think you’re so damn special.”
“We have to deal with our share of barriers,” Nicole replied heatedly. “We don’t commit felonies in response.”
“No, you drink too much, shop, and when that doesn’t work you play at being hardworking business folks.”
They stared at each other in silence for several minutes. “The truth of what you think about me finally comes out,” she said.
“I was just thinking the same thing.” He gazed back at her.
Nicole searched his expression. “Let’s stop before we say too much. We’re both stressed out and more than a little wired. Space and time is what we need.”
“I agree.” Marcus went to his desk and sat down. He tapped the keyboard of his desktop computer.
“What are you doing?” Nicole frowned at him.
“You’ll have my resignation in two minutes. I’ll keep it simple.” He continued to type.
She strode over and pushed his hands away from the keys. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“No sense in putting it off. Your father and uncle should be asking for this any minute now. Besides, you don’t trust me either.” Marcus started typing again.
“I questioned your judgment when it came to Shaun, but—”
“I was going out on my own and made it clear to several of our biggest clients. Those clients would have followed me. My best friend is being implicated in a robbery and a murder. You know your father and uncle. What are they thinking?”
“I’ll deal with them. You could make it easier if you’d just…” Nicole heaved a sigh.
“Kick Shaun to the curb? I won’t do it.” Marcus shook his head and went back to typing.
“I’m going to toss that thing out a window in a minute.” Nicole picked up the ke
yboard. “Stop making your big statement for a second and let me think.”
“Okay. Next question. Do you believe in me?” Marcus said quietly. He grabbed her wrist in a tight grip.
“I know you didn’t intentionally help Shaun do anything wrong. I mean, you’re taking this loyalty thing too far. And you should have been honest with me. Even you have to admit it looks bad. I…” Nicole’s voice faded as his facial muscles pulled tight.
“Thanks for the strong vote of confidence. I’ll mail the resignation.” Marcus stood.
Nicole blocked his path and put both hands against his broad chest. “Things are coming at me so fast I can’t see straight. Slow down.”
“Maybe I need space even more than you do, Nicole.” Marcus carefully removed her hands.
“I don’t have the energy for a fight with you. Go home, cool off, and call me tonight. Try my cell phone first. I could be here real late.” Nicole pressed a palm to her forehead.
“Uh-huh.” Marcus went around her to the door.
“Marcus,” Nicole called when his hand twisted the handle to open it. He turned slowly. “You’ll call me?”
He opened the door. “I don’t see the point.”
Nicole’s heart tightened into a fist as she watched the back of his suit coat moving away from her. He didn’t look back, not even when she called his name a second time. Shelly watched him walk by, then came to the open door.
“Is Marcus okay?”
“Sure, he’s fine. We’re all on edge. He’s just going to take a break.” Nicole spun around so that her back was to Shelly. She wiped a stray tear that almost escaped down her cheek.
“How are you doing? It’s been one hell of a twenty-four hours,” Shelly said in a caring tone.
“Fine.” Nicole faced her again. She stood erect, hoping she looked more in control than she felt. “I’m going back to my office.”
“Right. I’ll tell Cat to put on a fresh pot of coffee. We’re going to have another long day.” Shelly wore a maternal expression on her young face.
Nicole could only nod. She couldn’t trust herself not to break down. Instead she strode off. Russell came out of his office seconds after she passed his door.
“Can I have a word with you?” Russell’s face looked pale and pinched.