Fatal February

by Barbara Levenson

  “That’s what I like, a happy employee. I was going to give you a bonus after this case, but maybe the soap operas are reward enough.” We both laughed.

  Catherine held out her hand. “I’ll take the bonus. You are the best boss I’ve ever had.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  I met with Bob Rose that afternoon. He promised to get right to work on the questions I raised, and promised to work as fast as possible before more time faded any leads to Maddie and to whatever else surfaced about the Yarmouths.

  I fell back into my familiar schedule of court dates, depositions, jail visits, workouts at the gym, and, of course, Carlos. He was becoming a permanent fixture in my life.

  The anticipation of our beach weekend was better than the weekend itself. For starters, I was nervous about Sam destroying any of Angelina’s crystal vases that adorned every table, or getting muddy paw prints on her white carpet. I thought I would die when Sam crawled up on the white silk sofa next to me, his shedding black coat leaving a jigsaw puzzle design.

  Carlos kept assuring me that the cleaning crew would fix everything as soon as we left, but it was still hard to relax.

  On Saturday evening, Marielena suddenly appeared at the door, which we had failed to lock. We were lying on the floor, arms and legs entwined when her bird-like trill startled us.

  “Well, look at you lovebirds. I saw lights up here and thought your parents were back, Carlos,” she said. She took a seat on the sofa, glanced at the dog hair, and wrinkled her nose. “Mary, we read all about your exciting case. Aren’t you the clever girl, but don’t you think she murdered her esposo ?”

  Carlos’s face turned angry. “Mother told you that we would be using the beach place, didn’t she? And Mary proved that Lillian was not guilty of any crime. Can I get you something, or are you on your way out somewhere?” He got up and took her by the arm toward the door.

  “Oh, of course, I’m on my way to the club. I’ll leave you two alone. Good-bye, darling boy,” she said as she gave Carlos a kiss. She said nothing to me.

  Carlos returned to the living room. Our mood was shattered. “I want to talk to you about Frank,” he said. “Marco told me what happened at your house. I want to know why you couldn’t tell me this yourself. Why do I have to hear from my cousin that you are in danger? I could kill that Wasp, Gringo Frank.”

  “That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you. I don’t need you getting in trouble because of your Latin temper. I’m a big girl and I took care of things.”

  “Maybe you’re still in love with that jerk, and that’s why you didn’t tell me.”

  “Oh, sure, Carlos, I’m in love with Frank, but I’m having sex with you every chance we get. Use your head. You know how I dislike Frank, and you know how I feel about you.”

  “If this is so, let’s get married.” Carlos sat across the room glaring at me.

  “What a romantic proposal. You look like you’d like to slap me.”

  “I’m sorry, Mary. I want to make this relationship permanent.”

  “Carlos, it’s just too soon. We are still getting to know each other. Some day this may be right, but not yet.” I tried to sit in his lap, but he stood up and went to open a bottle of wine.

  We came back to Miami the next morning. I dropped him at his house, and Sam and I went home.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  Monday morning when I returned from court, Bob Rose was waiting for me. He and Catherine were at her desk drinking coffee and looking at an album of photos of wolves, a new addition to Catherine’s collection.

  “This is a nice surprise,” I said as Bob and I shook hands. “Come into my office.”

  Bob settled across from me and opened his briefcase. He pulled out a folder and handed it across the desk. “You can read this when you get time. It’s as much as I could find out. I’ll give you the gist of it now, in case you think of anything else I can do for you.”

  I glanced down at the first page, which was titled “Information on the Disappearance of Maddie Rodriguez.” I looked up. “Go ahead, Bob.”

  “Okay. I started at the Omni personnel office. The human relations director was reluctant to give me any information other than the fact that Maddie worked her last day on the Friday before your Monday hearing. However, I told her that the state attorney planned to subpoena all of their records as they were investigating Maddie as a person of interest in a murder. Somehow, I guess she thought I was an investigator with the State.”

  “My goodness, I wonder how she got that idea,” I said. We both smiled.

  “She said that Maddie had asked for an extended leave of absence; that she had a sick relative in another country, and had to leave immediately. Omni pulled her last pay check together quickly and she picked it up Friday afternoon and cleared out. The human relations gal thought maybe she had to go to Cuba, because she was so secretive.

  So I sent one of my investigators, a good-looking young guy, over to the hotel where she had been working. He nosed around, pretending to be one of her boyfriends. The room clerk told him that Maddie said she came into some money and was going on an extended vacation. She tried to sell him her car, but he wasn’t interested.

  “Did he say where she got this money?”

  “She told him that she made a good investment.”

  Just then Catherine appeared in the door. “I’m sorry to disturb you. Carlos is on the phone and he says it’s important.”

  Bob nodded and stood up. “I’ll go talk to Catherine for a few minutes,” he said, and closed the door on his way out.

  I picked up the phone. “What is it Carlos? Are you okay?”

  “No, I feel terrible. I acted like a jerk. I just want to say I’m sorry. Can I come over later tonight?”

  “Yes, of course. But right now I’m in the middle of a meeting. I’ll see you at my house later.” I hung up and retrieved Bob from the waiting room.

  “Okay, we had just finished with what the room clerk had to say,” he said as he glanced at his notes. “Next we searched the transfer of automobile titles at the DMV. We found a transfer of the BMW from Maddie to a Hilda Malaga. She lived in the building where Maddie had lived. Oh, we had already checked with the rental agent who said Maddie had broken her lease and paid the penalty of two months rent and forfeited her security deposit without blinking an eye; no argument at all.

  “Hilda actually drove up in the BMW while we were knocking on her door. She said Maddie wanted to leave town right away and was willing to take a very reduced price for the car if it was cash. Hilda borrowed ten thousand dollars from her boyfriend, and Maddie turned over the car. She said Maddie didn’t even take her junk out of the car and Hilda had to clean it out. She had the stuff in a shopping bag, which I took off her hands.”

  “Anything of interest in the bag?”

  “Most of it was the usual, gas station receipts, a sweater, some earrings. Then we found a piece of paper which said ‘meet L.Y. at eleven, fifty-eight-oh-one Collins Avenue, penthouse two, fifteenth floor.’ That led me to look back to my original report to Gary Yarmouth. Remember when we followed Maddie to a condo building on Miami Beach, and someone let her in? She stayed almost two hours. It seems L.Y. could be Lillian Yarmouth. I always thought she might have met Gary there, or someone he sent to pay her off.”

  “Oh, my God. Remember when you saw Maddie put something in the mailbox at the Yarmouths? It was in the report you gave Gary. Well, Lillian told me she received an anonymous letter tipping her off that Gary was having an affair. I asked to see the letter, but she told me she threw it away. Is there more in the report?”

  “We checked the airlines and found that Maddie left on Sunday before the Monday hearing on a flight to Madrid. She was using a passport from Spain. Is that a country that doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the U.S.?”

  “I don’t know. I’d have to research it, but she could go anywhere from there. We may never know where she finally lights. I appreciate your doing this work so quickly. This
report is confidential, isn’t it? Just between you and me?”

  “What report?” he said. I’m giving you the only two copies. I don’t know what it all means, and I’m not sure I want to know.” Bob closed his briefcase, and dropped his bill and some of his cards on my desk as he left.

  I couldn’t concentrate on anything after Bob Rose left. My mind whirled like a Cuisinart, grinding out one scenario after another. Finally, I packed my briefcase and left. I stopped at the market and picked up steaks and salad fixings. It had been a long time since I’d had the time or the inclination to cook. I even decided to splurge for the ingredients to bake a chocolate cake. Maybe it would be therapeutic.

  By the time Carlos arrived, I had fixed an appetizing salad and marinated the steaks. The cake was another story. I ended up calling my mother to talk me through her recipe. She was ecstatic. Her daughter was cooking instead of visiting a jail. And she was cooking for a good-looking man. The cake looked a little weird, listing to the side, but it tasted good. I ate a slice just to make sure it wouldn’t poison Carlos.

  Sam announced Carlos’s arrival by throwing himself against the front door. When I opened it, Sam almost knocked him over. I gave Sam a swat and Carlos gave me the kind of kiss that makes me forget about dinner.

  Much later in the evening, Carlos grilled the steaks on my grill while I held the flashlight so he could see. We dug into the food without even polite conversation.

  “What’s on your mind? You’re very quiet. Are you still angry at me?” he asked.

  “No, it’s not that at all. It’s a worry about Lillian and the murder.”

  “I thought you were done with that. Don’t tell me the State is filing new charges.”

  “No. It’s what I found out today. I need to talk about this. In fact, I need your insight, but you can never tell any of this to anyone.”

  “Of course, I won’t.” Carlos looked pleased that I was confiding in him, and I felt it was a big step in our relationship. I had never discussed a case with anyone other than another lawyer.

  “I asked Bob Rose to look into the disappearance of Maddie Rodriguez. She skipped out of town the day before the hearing on a plane to Spain, carrying a Spanish passport. She told one friend that she had come into money and was going to travel. She even sold her car for next to nothing.”

  “Sure she split in a hurry. She murdered her boyfriend,” Carlos said.

  “It’s more than that. She left a letter in the Yarmouth’s mailbox a few days before the murder. The Rose investigators saw her. When I told Lillian about Gary’s affair the week before her hearing, I expected tears, shock, and anger. Instead she was calm and matter-of-fact. She said she knew about it; that someone had sent her an anonymous letter. She also said that this wasn’t the first time he strayed from the home and hearth. But she said she loved him and knew he would never leave her because she was the one with the controlling stock in Elite Wines. Her father left her the biggest share of the stock.”

  “You mean the father left more of the company to Lillian than to her brother? You Anglos are a different breed. That would never happen in an Hispanic family.”

  “Oh, here we go with the macho stuff again. Do you want to listen?”

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  “When she told me that, I knew that Jack Brandeis hadn’t killed Gary. There was a time where I actually suspected him. Lillian was the one he would want to do away with, if he wanted to run the whole company.

  “Here’s the kicker. Bob Rose found a slip of paper in Maddie’s things she left behind. It said eleven a.m. L.Y. and the address of the Yarmouth condo on Miami Beach.

  “Bob Rose wrote in his original report to Gary that Maddie was observed entering that building shortly before the murder. She stayed almost two hours.”

  “Maybe she and Gary were having a good-bye funch, you know, fuck and lunch.”

  “If that were the case, and Gary gave her some money, why would she kill him, and why would she come looking for an inheritance in Gary’s will?”

  “Okay, what do you think happened, Ms. Worry-wart?”

  “I’m afraid to think what I think.”

  “Now you sound like a Spanish muchacha,” Carlos said.

  “I think Lillian met Maddie at the condo, and they planned the murder together. She promised Maddie money to get out of town and that’s the money that Maddie said she came into. Maybe she actually believed that Gary was leaving her money too.”

  “Maybe Gary did give her money. You know there are other ways to arrange such things that have nothing to do with a will or any other legal document. Maybe Lillian had nothing to do with the murder or the money. She seemed so fragile when I watched her in court.”

  “I think it was an act that she’s been using for years. She could have finally gotten fed up with Gary’s running around on her and decided to play the grieving widow. She’s a lot tougher than she appears.

  “Look, Mary, we’ll never know for sure, unless the State finally catches up with Maddie. After the lousy job they did in the case, it seems unlikely that they’ll ever find her. Are you worried because you got Lillian off?”

  “Not exactly. It’s my duty to zealously defend my clients. It’s not a matter of proving innocence. Not guilty is different than innocent. Not guilty means the government failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. That’s the standard. That’s the way our system works.”

  “So that’s what you did. You showed the judge and the state that they had no proof to show that Lillian committed a murder. What’s really bothering you about Lillian?”

  “That she completely fooled me. I thought I was a better judge of people.”

  “Well, in spite of your façade of skepticism, you believe what people tell you. Look at the time you wasted on Frank. But this is what I love about you. Inside you’re as soft as butter.”

  “You better never let anyone else know that or I’ll get Marco to beat you up.”

  “Come on,” Carlos said, let’s leave these dishes and I’ll show you how to forget all this worrying.”

  “I thought you already showed me.”

  “No, that was just a warm-up.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  Two days later, when I returned from a deposition, Catherine handed me a message. “Call Angelina Martin.”

  Oh, oh, she’s back and she found Sam’s dog hair. I dialed her immediately. Then I hung up. Maybe I should call Carlos and find out what this was about, I thought. No, I’ll face the music. I dialed her number again.

  “Oye,” Angelina answered. “I’m on the other line. Just a minute,” she said.

  “Okay, I’m back,” she said after a wait of several minutes.

  “Angelina, it’s Mary Katz, returning your call.”

  “Of course, I know it’s you darling. I have caller ID, you know.”

  “How was your trip? When did you get back? Thank you for the use of the beach house. It was a wonderful getaway.”

  “Yes, yes, you’re welcome. We got back Sunday night. It was fine. Now here’s why I called you. You are one smart lady.”

  “Well, thanks. But why do you think I’m smart?”

  “Remember when we were talking about my position on the board of directors at Elite, and I said Jack would be the new president and you said maybe Lillian would take over?’

  “Yes, I remember.”

  “I thought you were just kidding, but you were right.”

  “What?”

  “Today was the board of directors meeting to vote for the new president. Don’t tell me you don’t know.”

  “Know what?”

  “Lillian walked in with almost all the votes. She had all her shares, and Gary’s few shares he left to Beverly. You know, his secretary or assistant or whatever, and she voted for Lillian. Actually, Beverly nominated Lillian. Marian nominated Jack. Lillian and Beverly and one other member voted for Lillian and Jack conceded, so Lillian is now in charge of running Elite. And she made sure she was v
oted a nice big salary too. So you were right.”

  “Maybe she just plans to be sort of the ceremonial president,” I said.

  “Oh, no, she’s picked out her office and she said she’d be announcing some new sales policies in a few days.”

  “How did Jack take it?”

  “Marian told me on the way out to the car he’ll probably retire in a few months. Anyway, who knew Lillian was such a hard-nosed lady.”

  “Yes, who knew? Thanks for letting me know, Angelina. I look forward to seeing you and J.C. again.”

  “You must come for dinner soon, darling. Ciao.”

  Well, that’s Lillian’s story. She’s turned into an effective CEO. I went by to see her at her office, which looked like an ad in Ms. magazine. She was as calm as a regular Valium user even though phones were ringing, and employees were dashing in and out.

  Brett and Sherry have returned to Dartmouth. Lillian told me that Brett is thinking about coming into the business, and Sherry is considering law school. She got turned onto it by her mother’s case. And I received a case of Merlot from Elite Wines with a note from Lillian that she would be sending me more wines as new ones arrived.

  So here I am back at the car wash waiting for my car. Like I told you at the beginning, I went to the car wash in February and I ruined my life. I mean I ruined my old life, I broke my engagement, I was fired, I was sued, and I got a bar complaint. On the plus side, I have a whole new life. I have my own law practice, I won a murder case, and, best of all, I have a sexy new boyfriend, even though he does have a Latin temper and an impatient streak.

  The car wash is extra noisy today. I might as well not even open my briefcase. I wonder why the two young guys next to me on this bench are screaming at each other. Now they’re running down the sidewalk and they’re still screaming. I can’t make out what they’re saying. Something about cops. Now there are more guys chasing the first two guys. Oh my God, it’s the SWAT team. They just handcuffed the two young guys.