I laughed. "Of course you did." I was surprised she didn't have Itty and Bitty back there as well.
We sat there under the stars, enjoying the night air, catching up on each other's lives and munching on brie, grapes and sesame crackers.
"So you really like Jack?" I asked.
"Sure. He's fun to hang out with. He's not looking for a relationship, though. He's a bit of a player which is fine by me. I'm enjoying just worrying about me and my girls. No crazy man drama to deal with."
I couldn't blame her after the way her last relationship turned out. We perked up as car lights turned in. Nope. Not the white BMW.
I took a sip from a mini-water bottle. "Has Jack ever mentioned to you how much he disliked Rose Faraday?"
She turned to me, swallowing and shaking her head. "No. Not until his conversation with you at Landon's Halloween party. Something about her making dog owner's lives miserable at their condos?"
"Yeah. Apparently Rose was president of the HOA there. She implemented this program where all the dogs had to have their DNA on file and if any doggie mess was found, it would be tested and the culprit would be fined $1,000. If they didn't pay, their dog could be confiscated."
"Oh, that's what he was talking about?" Frankie looked like she didn't know whether to laugh or be angry. "That's ridiculous."
"That's not the worst part. Apparently, Rose threatened to poison Jack's dog, Monkey."
Frankie's face turned red. Now she was angry. "Well, if she went around threatening to poison people's pets, it wouldn't surprise me if someone offed her." She bit into a cracker violently. Tiny bits of it sprayed the dashboard. "I just don't understand some people."
"Me either, Frankie." I sighed and repositioned my legs. My hip had gone to sleep and was tingling. Where in heavens was Nova tonight? What if she was spending the night at Bernard's place?
Frankie squinted as another car entered the lot and parked. White but not a BMW. "Well, Jack's the president now so the residents don't have to worry about her threatening their pets anymore."
Yeah. That's what worried me. That was a pretty solid motive for murder in my book.
* * *
Around midnight we were tired of sitting, and getting ready to throw in the towel, when the white BMW pulled into the parking lot.
"Get down!" Frankie clutched my arm and we ducked as the car lights swooped over us. The car slid into a space two spots down from us. We listened for the door to shut and then raised our heads up.
"It's her," I whispered. "Let's go."
We jumped out and ducked behind her car. Frankie peered over the hood. "Okay, she's at the walkway. Come on."
We made a wide arch through the parking lot so we could get a better view of which condo she entered. She paused at a door, keys in her hand.
"I think this is it," I whispered. Nova turned suddenly and looked our way. Frankie pulled me down behind a truck. We were breathing heavy and I felt ridiculous. If someone saw us, they would probably call the police. "Do you think she spotted us?"
"Don't know." Frankie got down on her hands and knees and crawled out from behind the tire. I bit my lip and tried not to giggle at the sight of her leopard print derriere sticking up in the air. "She's going in."
We rushed forward just as the door to condo number fourteen was closing. I held up my hand for a high five.
Frankie smacked it with a huge grin. "Bingo!" Then we both stared at the door, our hands on our hips, our breathing shallow. "Now what?"
Time to spy. "Let's go around back, see if there's a window to peek in."
As we silently made our way around the back of the building, trying to stay hidden and counting the condos to find number fourteen, Frankie nudged me. "I hope you have Will's number on speed dial if we get caught."
"Not sure he'd pick up the phone," I mumbled, stepping over a prickly pear cactus. "We kind of had a fight about Zach."
"He's not jealous of Zach, is he?"
I shrugged and swatted at a mosquito buzzing around my face. "I don't know. I think it's more like he doesn't like me keeping things from him. I should have told him sooner that we believed Rose had been murdered."
"Well, he does seem like the kind of guy that appreciates full disclosure. That's an easy thing to fix, though. Just tell him everything. I'm sure you two will be back canoodling in no time."
Yeah, easy for someone without crazy secrets to say. I glanced at Frankie as we arrived at the back of the condo. "Canoodling?"
She grinned and pointed at the sliding glass door then gave me a thumbs up. The blinds were slanted open enough that shards of yellow light spilled out onto the patio. We snuck up to the patio and plastered ourselves against the peach stucco wall on either side of the sliding doors. I nodded and we both peeked in.
Through the slats in the blinds, I spotted Nova sitting on the sofa in a flowery yellow dress. She was busy with something on the coffee table in front of her, but I couldn't see past the edge of an overstuffed chair to see what it was. I scanned the room behind her. Two large aquariums sat against the wall, lights hung over them. Must be her snakes. I mentally kicked myself for not bringing binoculars. I would have loved to see what kind of snakes were actually in there. I glanced over at Frankie. She was motioning furiously at me.
"What?" I mouthed. I decided she probably had a better view so I scurried around the patio furniture and glued myself to the wall next to her. "What is it?"
Frankie pulled me in front of her. I peered through the blinds at the new angle and my heart leapfrogged into my throat. Now I could see what she was doing. She was expertly cleaning a gun.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Yawning, I ran a feather duster over the pet boutique countertops, computer monitor and counter items: jars of impulse treats, a basket of hand-crafted Halloween-shaped cat toys, bumper stickers for pet lovers and a myriad of other things for sale. I wasn't sure how long I had been dusting, lost in thought, until a knock on the door startled me. A quick glance at the time told me we still had twenty minutes before opening. I mumbled to myself as I walked around to see who was there.
Zach threw up a quick wave. Heavens, what was he doing here? I motioned for him to give me a second and went to retrieve the keys.
"You're out and about early." I frowned as I let him in. "Everything all right? Want some tea?" I helped myself to a cup, motioning for him to have a seat in a chair in front of the window.
He settled into the chair. "No tea, thank you." He wore a fitted gray t-shirt, black jeans and cowboy boots. It suited him.
"So, what's up?"
One brow raised as his eyes raked over my body. "Your shirt is on inside out."
I glanced down and felt my face heat up. Yep, there were the seams and backsides of three buttons. I blinked and forced a laugh. "Guess I shouldn't get dressed in the dark."
His head tilted and a genuine look of concern narrowed his eyes. "Having trouble sleeping?"
"No, no." I waved off his concern, though I knew the shadows under my eyes betrayed me. The curse of pale skin. "I'm fine. So, what brings you here?"
Zach relaxed back into the chair and folded his hands in his lap with a little shrug. "Just want to compare notes. Find out any new information this weekend?"
"Yes. You?"
"Yes."
I blinked at him over my tea cup. I still didn't trust him. "Well?"
He seemed amused suddenly. "I followed Bernard Grayson and his woman friend to Albert Whitted Airport yesterday morning. I couldn't get through the gate, but my contact there told me they were headed to Brazil."
"Well, nothing surprising about that. That's where he buys his snakes." But, seriously, how many snakes did one man need? "Was Sammy Harris the pilot?"
"That I don't know," Zach answered. "But most likely."
I bit the inside of my cheek, thinking. "We had dinner with Sammy Friday night. He's sort of dating my sister. He got an emergency call and had to leave. So maybe someone else flew them. Mallory hasn't heard f
rom him yet."
"Anything is possible." Zach let his gaze wander to the window and then back to me. "Did you find something out at this dinner?"
I sipped my tea and nodded. "Sammy mentioned the rattler that killed your mother probably came from a man named Jet Jamison. Apparently he captures them in the wild. His story was one got loose after he brought it back to St. Pete. That would explain why it was so close to civilization but not microchipped." I shook my head. "But still doesn't explain why Jamison said it got loose when someone actually slipped it into her lanai in the middle of the night."
I realized my mistake too late. My face flushed.
Zach's attention shifted back to me with laser precision. His eyes darkened. "It's time for full disclosure, Darwin. What do you know about that night that you aren't telling me?"
I was about to deny knowing anything more when I realized that the idea of actually being honest with someone about my gift was very appealing. And Zach already knew more than anyone else about me, besides my family. He seemed to know about my father. Plus his mother was a psychic. If there was ever anyone I could confide it, it was probably him.
I sat my cup down and looked him square in the eyes. "Okay." Deep breath. "When we found Lucky that night and I touched her..." I repositioned myself in the chair and tucked a short wave of hair behind my ear. What's the simplest way to explain this? "Well, if an animal has experienced recent trauma and I touch them, I get visions of whatever it is that hurt them or scared them. Pictures, feelings or sometimes smells. So when I touched Lucky, I saw a person in a dark hooded jacket putting the rattler on the lanai through a cut in the screen. Lucky apparently ran through that same hole to escape the snake. That's how she got out." I pressed my lips together and waited for him to respond.
Zach stared at me for a long moment. "And you have not shared this with your homicide detective boyfriend?"
I blinked, squirming under the heap of guilt that question buried me in. "No, I have not."
His mouth twitched, but it wasn't a smirk. "You don't think he would believe you?"
I sighed, suddenly tired. "Either way, it wouldn't work out in my favor. He would either not believe me and think I was a crazy person, or he would believe me and know I was a crazy person. I know it's a selfish reason." I glanced up at him. "But, you believe me?"
"Of course," he said. "You are part Elemental." The casual way he said this lifted something off my heart. It was so nice hearing someone, outside of my family, believe me and accept who I was. All of me. The human part and the secret part.
Tears sprang to my eyes. I blinked them back. Get a grip, Darwin. "Thank you," I whispered. "And I'm sorry for not telling Will. If I had, he might be looking for your mother's killer right now."
"If he actually believed you. Which is unlikely." Zach leaned forward and rested a hand on mine. It felt like a heat lamp had just switched on. I should have pulled away, but frankly it felt comforting. "We will find some hard evidence to take to him. No need for him to think of you as a crazy person."
I fought the urge to hug him and then I remembered last night. "Oh, also Frankie and I staked out Nova Diaz's place last night. That woman definitely isn't who she appears to be. She was sitting on her sofa messing with a gun. And she looked like she knew what she was doing." I didn't mention her warning to me and him. I figured the gun thing was enough. Why make him worry more?
Zach's brows raised and then he frowned. "You put yourself in danger." He leaned back in the chair. "Can I ask why you care to help find my mother's killer? You didn't even know her."
I blinked, not expecting that question. "Why? Because I'm the only one who knows it wasn't a freak accident. I couldn't live with myself if I just let it go, let someone get away with murder."
Zach shook his head and rubbed his hands on his jeans. "Okay. I'm staying in my mother's condo." He stood up, fished a card out of his wallet and dropped it on the table. "Well, I guess it's my condo now. If you find out anything else, you can contact me there or call me." He slipped his hand in mine and pulled me up to stand with him. "Or if you just want some company." His eyes held mine. Too close. I couldn't take in a full breath. I felt like a rabbit, frozen, trying to stay invisible to the fox. I managed a nod. Mercifully he backed away. "I'll let myself out."
I watched him out the window as he disappeared down the sidewalk. My insides were swirling with a mixture of relief he was gone, guilt for confiding in him and a strange feeling of happiness that he knew who I was and didn't judge me. I shook it off and flipped the Open sign over.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Wednesday was All Hallows Eve. This was the first year I was actually enjoying Halloween and not dreading the tomatoes that would be thrown at our house in Savannah, or all the kids who would dare each other to ring our doorbell and, when we'd open the door to give them candy, run screaming back through the yard. Mallory had always spent Halloween crying in her room, though she would never admit it. Willow didn't seem to care one way or the other.
Halloween in St. Pete was fun. People were in good spirits, already walking around in costumes, toting around kids with painted faces during the day. We gave a treat to every pet that came in and had a bucket of candy for the humans, too.
I was in good spirits, too. Will had called me last night and apologized for not calling sooner. He was wrapping up a case and would be free tonight. We were going to have dinner and talk. I wasn't sure what I was going to say to him, but I was leaning more and more toward the truth. At least about how I knew Rose was murdered. The thought of that conversation made my palms sweat.
Mallory brought an armful of organic cat food to the counter, a small man trailing behind her. "Mr. Boseman needs something to stop Elizabeth Taylor from pulling hair out of her tail."
"Oh, poor kitty." I winked at Mallory. "The cherry plum and chicory mix should help."
"Be right back." She patted Mr. Boseman on the arm. "Darwin will ring you up."
I eyed the elderly man thoughtfully. "Have you moved or changed anything in Elizabeth Taylor's environment that would cause her stress, Mr. Boseman?"
His watery Basset Hound eyes blinked at me. "My son helped me move my living room furniture around a few weeks back. That's about all that's changed for us in ten years."
I smiled. "Well, that could be enough to cause her to over-groom from anxiety, but you might want to have your vet check her over just to be sure y'all aren't dealing with a skin disease."
"Here we are." Mallory handed me the brown bottle to wrap up, plucked a tootsie pop from the bowl of candy on the counter and handed it to him. "And Happy Halloween!"
I watched her bop over to another customer and smiled to myself. She was on cloud nine. Sammy had finally called her last night. They were going out tonight. She promised she would stay in a public place and begged me to let them go out alone. I caved. Truth be told, I wanted to spend time alone with Will, too. I did make her promise to text me every hour and let me know she was safe and to be home by 11:00. She had rolled her eyes but agreed.
After we closed up the pet boutique, we raced upstairs to the townhouse to shower and change. I had settled on a peach sundress and slipped into it as Lucky moved from my pillow to curl up on the pile of rejected clothes on the bed.
I clipped my white-blonde bangs back with a gold barrette and swooped my eyelashes with some mascara. "Don't get comfy on there, Lucky." I threw on a cream sweater over the dress and scratched her behind the ear. She squinted at me and stretched out on the pile. "Fine, stay there. Gives me a good excuse not to hang them back up right now." I grabbed a pair of gold hoop earrings off the dresser and padded down the stairs for my bag and flip-flops.
"You look very pretty, Mal." I said, meeting her in the kitchen. "Where are you two off to?"
"You, too." She smiled and hugged me. "Dinner and then movie. They're playing Halloween in Straub Park on a giant screen at 10:00. Thanks for not chaperoning, by the way." She smoothed my hair behind my ear like Mom used to do.
"Come clean with him, Sis."
I sighed. "When did you get so grown up?"
A smile lit up her face. I scooted her out of the kitchen. "Have fun. Be safe. Don't forget to text me."
I checked the clock after she left. Half an hour until I met Will. The townhouse felt suddenly too quiet and my own self-doubt was beginning to talk. Time to skedaddle.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
The walkways and streets were packed. The air held just a hint of a chill. The sky was a clear, wide open canvas for all the stars. I took in a deep breath as I made my way through the crowds next door to the Parkshore Grill. It would be a great night to sit outside and people watch. As I neared their outdoor tables with the blue umbrellas, my heart skipped. Will must have had the same idea. He had arrived early and was already seated outside, waiting for me.
"Hi." The word got stuck in my throat as I greeted him. He stood and stared down at me, drinking in my face like he hadn't seen me for a year. I bit my bottom lip. No one had ever looked at me like that before. His blue eyes swelled with emotion. I suddenly felt so guilty for causing him pain. I wanted to blurt out everything. I didn't want my secrets to be the wall between us anymore. I had to fix this.
"Hi," he whispered, trying to smile. It didn't reach his eyes.
"Will, I'm so sorry—" His mouth on mine halted the words. His lips were warm and gentle. I slipped my arms around his waist as he deepened the kiss. The muscles in his back were hard and tense beneath a cotton polo shirt. When he finally pulled away and rested his forehead on mine, my legs were trembling.
"God I've missed you." He cleared the emotion from his throat, slipped his hand in mine and motioned to the chair.
We sat down, but still held hands, neither one of us willing to let go. That is, until two waiters arrived, one with a bottle of wine and one with a tray of steaming, mouth watering appetizers.
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