Briles laughed. “Don't tell me you can beat my little caper?” For a second, Susan thought Briles meant her episode with Benny this morning, but then she remembered that her friend had been top contender when she'd called her brother's wife his ex-wife's name not once, but four times at her parents’ dinner party.
Susan had only won Idiot of the Month once in the year or so they had been giving the award to each other. She had walked across a crowded bar with her skirt hung in her pantyhose, showing off her rather unimpressive rear end to a hundred plus people. Now she only wore pants out at night as a rule. Forget about showing off her legs, even if they were her best feature. And Jake thought she wasn't safety conscious.
Courtney smiled a superior smile. “Darling, your little incident does not touch what I did yesterday. I've been waiting for us all to be together to tell you.” She took a sip of champagne to heighten the suspense. “So Friday, I get this email from this little twerp with the Baldwin Agency who took me out for drinks on Thursday night. He's asked if I wanted to go out again for happy hour next Tuesday with him."
“Which little twerp?” Briles always had to know details.
“That guy Tom. The one that's about a foot shorter than me with sandy-blond hair and a cute butt."
“He's not shorter than you!” Briles had told Susan once that she thought Courtney was a little too superior about her height.
“Well, he looks like it to me."
“Did you wear heels?” Briles looked pointedly down at Courtney's two-inch black mules, which Susan thought were a bad choice for dancing. But what did she know? “Of course you did. Why do you always do that? Wear flats when you date men close to your height! That's, like, basic middle school stuff."
“My legs look good in heels, for your information. Anyway, I wasn't going to sleep with him, I just wanted him to buy me a couple drinks. And he's amusing company."
“Courtney,” Susan said, joining in for the first time. “You shouldn't get their hopes up then ditch them. It's rude."
“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, so I forward the email to Briles and ask her if she wanted to come, telling her I'm pretty sure he'll spring for some free drinks. Then I add that Jim and I will be breaking up soon, since he fell asleep right in the middle of sex the other night."
“Oh my God! He did?” Susan said, right as Briles said, “Wait, I never got an email from you..."
“Yes, well that's why I win the Idiot of the Month Award. You see I hit REPLY instead of FORWARD."
Dead silence reigned in Susan's kitchen as they all sipped their drinks and contemplated the ramifications of that. And then they all burst out laughing. “Oh, oh, God, I'm going to wet my pants if I don't stop laughing so hard,” Briles gasped.
“Courtney,” Susan said, wiping tears, “you idiot!"
“I propose that Courtney wins the Idiot Award for the Month of October,” Briles said, holding out her glass.
“I second it,” Susan said, tapping her glass to Briles'.
Courtney lifted her glass and completed the circle. She waited for the other two to drink before she said, “What really sucks is that I found out I'd done it because Sue Kessler forwarded me the email when she got it. Turns out the little twerp thought it was so funny, he sent it to all his friends and Sue ended up with it from her cousin, who didn't even realize that Sue knew me."
Susan and Briles both choked on their champagne.
“That is so terrible."
“I am so, so sorry!"
Courtney sighed. “Yeah, well it serves me right for being such a pure-D-bitch to him.” She looked at Susan with a grin. “Miss goodie-two-shoes over here has been warning me for years that something like this could happen but I wouldn't listen."
“I am not a goodie-two-shoes!” Susan always protested this and did so now to try to take away her friend's pain by changing the subject. Being the Idiot-of-the-Month was funny, but not if everyone in the city—and probably in Taiwan by now the way people forwarded email these days—knew of your gaff.
“Of course you are!” Both her friends chorused joyfully, easily distracted as usual.
“For your information, I slept with someone today so you guys can forget about me entering the nunnery!” Susan couldn't help but be pleased with her announcement. This was the first time she had ever slept with anyone since they had known her. She had only slept with one guy in college and one guy in law school, both of whom she thought she would marry, until she came to her senses and ran away from them. Unlike her friends, sex was an emotional commitment to Susan. She often wished it wasn't, but if she slept with someone, she knew there would be a large probability that she would get emotionally entangled. Like she had with Jake.
Courtney gave Susan's hair a tug of affection. “We are so pleased for you.” She looked at Briles and said, “Our little baby, all grown up,” as she dashed away a fake tear from her cheek.
Susan rolled her eyes and laughed. “You guys are so stupid."
“So who is Mr. Lucky?” Courtney asked.
Susan nodded her thanks as her glass was refilled. “The detective I introduced you guys to at the bar.” Susan didn't mention his involvement with getting Briles’ purse back, since she didn't know if Briles had told Courtney about Benny. She decided the safest bet would be to avoid the subject if possible. Briles was upfront about stuff but, when it came to Benny, all bets were off. There was a large chance that she was counting on Susan to keep it secret.
Susan watched her friends exchange a glance of concern.
“You need to watch yourself with that one, Susan,” Courtney said quickly.
Briles nodded. “You don't want to get all confused with needing someone to help you through finding a body last Sunday night with love or anything crazy like that."
Susan looked at her friends and felt a tightening in her chest. For as much as they treated men lightly, they were obviously very concerned for her. “Don't worry. I slept with him before I found the body in the laundry room.” She took a sip of her champagne and looked at her friends innocently.
“Before when?"
“Last Sunday night. That's why I was doing laundry so late.” Susan couldn't control the urge she had to get another rise out of her friends. “Come to think of it, I had sex with him before I found the body this afternoon, too. Wonder if there's a correlation there?"
“You found another body?” Courtney's face was as white as a sheet.
Susan felt bad for her teasing now. “Yes. This one right outside my door."
“Susan, you shouldn't be staying here alone.” Briles was dead serious. “Why don't you move into my place until they find whoever did this?"
Susan made a T with her hands. “Okay, time out here guys. I'm not moving out of my apartment. I like my own space. You know that."
“Then one of us will have to stay with you,” Courtney said with authority. Turning to Briles, she said, “Briles, go home and pack your bag. You can stay with Susan for a couple days."
Briles stood up from the kitchen table and leaned towards Courtney, “If you're so hot for someone to stay with her, you move in here Courtney. I think it's crazy for anyone to be within a mile of this place."
“Some friend you are Briles,” Courtney said back, in a snit.
“Ladies,” Susan said, crossing her fingers under the table. “I will call Jake and have him come stay with me. How much safer can I get with a police officer sleeping in my bed? Okay? As soon as you two leave.” She stood up to. “Which should be now, because I am about to fall down I'm so tired."
“I don't know,” said Courtney, not rising from the table. “Briles and I aren't sure you can handle this guy. Maybe calling him to come over isn't a good idea."
“Why can't I handle him?” Sure, she wasn't that experienced with men but she was an attorney for God's sake. She handled people for a living. She watched as her friends exchanged a speaking look.
“Well...” Briles looked uncomfortable. “He's not really the type of guy for a fling,
Susan. He didn't even react when we were teasing him at the bar."
“And he was all possessive of you,” Courtney chimed in. “We think he might be interested in more than you're willing to give."
You have no idea what I'm willing to give. “Don't worry about my thing with Jake. It's only a week old. Who knows what will happen in the future?” The thought depressed her. She grabbed up the three champagne flutes before they could refill them and took them to the sink. She turned to her friends with a tired smile. “We'll worry about it next week. I'm too tired tonight."
Courtney rose from the table and Susan knew she had won this battle. After air kisses were exchanged, Susan locked the door behind them and fell into bed more exhausted than she been in her life.
Chapter Twelve
Jake considered running when he saw one of Susan's friends at the grocery store. Kroger was packed, as it was every Sunday morning when he and all his fellow heathens spent their time shopping instead of in church. But the minute he thought it, she looked up and recognized him and he knew he was trapped. It was the tall one with black hair, looking like a million bucks at 11 o'clock on a Sunday morning. She was wearing what might be workout clothes, although he was pretty sure he saw the same outfit on Jennifer Lopez when he was reading People at the dentist's office last month.
“Jerry, right?” She held out her hand for him to shake.
“My name's Jake.” Jake got the feeling that he was underdressed for the supermarket in his sweatpants and T-shirt. “I'm sorry, but I've forgotten your name."
He could tell she was flabbergasted, but tried to conceal it. “My name is Courtney."
“Oh yes. Sorry about that.” Jake wondered if he could wheel away without talking to her. He didn't want to be rude to one of Susan's friends, though, so it looked like he was stuck.
Courtney seemed to be searching for something to say. “Thanks for staying with Susan last night.” Her big eyes shined with gratitude. “We were so scared for her to be there alone after we left."
“Wait, you were at Susan's apartment last night?” Jake kept his face carefully blank while his mind cranked through explanations. His first bet was that she was ditsy as hell and had lost track of what night she had been there.
“Well, not last night, more like this morning. Didn't Susan tell you about the annual Idiot of the Month meeting?"
“What time did you get there?” Jake didn't even want to know what the annual Idiot of the Month meeting encompassed. He would need to have a chat with Susan about her two nutty friends. He didn't get what she saw in them but he had a feeling that if they were her friends, there must be more here than he was seeing. That scene with Benny yesterday made him think that Susan needed a keeper to protect her from her friends’ escapades.
“Oh, around one. We showed up to cheer her up. I thought about staying, of course, but Susan said she'd call you and get you to come over so Briles and I went ahead and left. It's got to be so dangerous living in those apartments with two people dying there!"
Poor Susan. She must have been dead on her feet when those two showed up. Dead tired and telling a lie to get rid of them. It looked like he'd have to drop by her place this afternoon to tell her the George Washington and the cherry tree story. Jake felt his pager buzz on his hip and caught it up for a quick glance. “I've got to go,” he said, wheeling away to the customer service counter without an explanation. With a quick word to the woman behind the counter, he left his full grocery cart in her care and headed out at a run to his car. If he didn't change, he might be able to beat Gordon to the station. Looks like old knife-in-a-paper-evidence-bag Martel had a suspect in for questioning.
* * * *
When Jake walked into the crowded outer room that contained the back of the one-way mirror for Interrogation Room One, he had to suck in his gut to fit inside. In the interrogation room itself was a man about 50-years-old. He was smoking a cigarette, which was a big no-no in the non-smoking building the detectives had their desks.
The brass constantly sent out memos that warned of disciplinary measures for anyone who allowed suspects to smoke in the interrogation rooms. So it became a bit of a joke to let people smoke in there, the logic being that if everyone did it, no one person could be singled out to be made an example of by the brass. It had worked so far and threatening memos had been the only consequence. Jake and Gordon were the exception to this because Gordon claimed that the smoke ruined his expensive suits. While Jake took a lot of ribbing about not playing along, he had never seen anyone confront Gordon, not even to the point of gentle teasing.
The man smoking was big but not like a weight lifter. He had the look of someone who spent his free time with a Stroh beer in one hand and the remote control in the other. He was dressed in standard biker fare, wearing jeans, black T-shirt and a black leather jacket with studs across his collarbone. The jacket wasn't new. It looked like it was a part of him, as if he slept in it. He snarled something at Martel, shaking his greasy head.
He looked mean enough to kill someone, but so did most of the people in this building, including the cops. He had the strength to slash someone's throat. But he didn't seem like the kind of guy to go around killing people unless they tripped over the trash on his apartment floor and landed on his lap. He might murder someone, but Jake thought he wouldn't waste the effort to keep stabbing them over and over once they were dead. If Susan's vision was true, he was definitely not the kind of guy who wore a teddy bear's raincoat.
“So how long have you lived in Woodbridge Apartments, Dwaine?"
Dwaine blew out a long stream of smoke into Martel's face. Jake caught Gordon's wince in his peripheral vision and tried not to smile. “Couple years now, I guess."
“How do you know Louise Johnson?"
“I already told you this like five times. She was my girlfriend."
Martel nodded his head, writing something on a pad of paper on the table before him. He's probably drawing pictures of crosses, Jake thought. He knew Martel wasn't writing down that the victim was Dwaine's girlfriend. They had known that since the day they had found her. “So she lived with you?"
Dwaine blew out a stream of smoke. “Yeah, she lived with me. How many times do I have to tell you the same shit again?"
“Why did you kill her, Dwaine?"
“Who said I killed her?” Dwaine looked like he was sweating hard. Sitting in the leather jacket must be making it worse, but Jake didn't see him make a move to take it off. Maybe it was his security blanket.
“We searched your apartment and found the knife. It's got your fingerprints all over it."
“How do you know they were my prints? You haven't fingerprinted me.” Dwaine shifted around in his chair.
“Your prints are on file, Dwaine, from that little scuffle you had at the Naked Lady a couple years ago."
“That wasn't my fault. You can ask anyone. I was defending myself."
“Yeah. With a knife.” Martel looked up from where he was pretending to take notes. “You're a big fan of using a knife on people, aren't you Dwaine? You've been busy with it this week. We figure you've killed three people."
Dwaine rose out of the chair. “Wait a second, now. I might of slit that bitch's throat but I didn't do those other two."
“It looked like your work, Dwaine. Why should we believe you?"
“Look, I was only trying to get Louise to shut the fuck up. She kept nagging me about what a dump we live in and I wanted her to stop. It was an accident."
“You slit her throat on accident?” Martel asked in a mild voice.
“Yeah, I did. It was an accident. I didn't kill those other two. No way did I kill those men."
“We think you did, Dwaine."
Dwaine looked completely panicked. “I want an attorney."
Martel and his partner filed out of the room.
Jake learned that the interview had gone on for hours. Jake couldn't believe it had taken Dwaine that long to ask for a lawyer. The guy must be a complete idiot.
Everyone trooped out of the observation room with a relieved sigh. It was getting hot in there.
Martel came out triumphant. “Looks like we can put the Apartment Slasher to bed.” He rubbed his hands together like a man about to be paid five hundred dollar bills from Bob Barker.
Jake moved back across the room to him. “Martel, the same person did not commit all three of these murders.” He detoured to his desk and picked up the ME's report. “The two guys were done with the same knife but not the woman."
“So he changed knives.” Martel shrugged it off. “Maybe for the next one, he was planning to use the knife he used on the woman."
Gordon moved into the conversation. “So you think he would kill his girlfriend with less passion then he would kill two strangers?"
“Come on Gordon, he lived in the next building over from Daugherty. They had to have known each other. Maybe Daugherty and Dwaine's woman were having a little on the side."
“Use your head Martel. Daugherty was twenty years her junior and from a different world. It doesn't ring true,” Jake said.
“No accounting for love, boys. We all know God works in mysterious ways."
“And Robb Connors? He is perhaps Dwaine's cousin?” Gordon's voice held no trace of sarcasm.
“Look, the Lieutenant agrees with me on this.” Martel's frustration showed through his words. “I know you two don't like to be one-upped since you are the biggest case closers on the force, but I've got this one for the history books."
Gordon asked a question that he and Jake had been tossing around for days now. “What's his motive for killing the two guys?"
Martel nodded. “Struggled with that one myself, then it came to me. He did the two men to throw us off his trail. He really wanted to kill her so he killed the other two to conceal his crimes. Same thing happened in New York last year."
Martel was right, the same thing had happened in New York last year. “But Martel,” Jake said. “Why isn't it as likely that he killed the woman to match what he read in the papers about the first murder to throw us off of him?"
Martel's eyes narrowed. “He did all three, Jake. I can smell it."
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