Debra Burroughs - Paradise Valley 06 - The Harbor of Lies

by Debra Burroughs

  “Speakin’ of murder victims, how’s the case goin’?” Maggie asked.

  “Slowly,” Emily replied. “Too many possible suspects.”

  “We’ve got to focus on narrowing the field tomorrow,” Colin said, “because it’s the last day we can assist the chief with working this case.”

  “Anythin’ I can do to help?” Maggie offered.

  Emily linked her other arm through Maggie’s. “As a matter of fact…”

  As they walked to the restaurant, Emily explained her plan to Maggie. “The point is to get the tracker on the boat without anyone seeing you do it. Can you accomplish that?”

  Maggie gave her a nod and a smile.

  Emily dug the tiny tracker out of her pocket and handed it to her friend, who promptly stuck it in her handbag.

  “No problem, Em, you’ve given me much harder assignments than this before. Flirtin’ with a man is like a piece of good ol’ southern peach pie.” Maggie winked at Emily and tossed her long blond waves over one shoulder for emphasis. “God didn’t give me these baby blues for nothin’.”

  Chapter 14

  Emily and her entourage arrived at The Lobster Shack, and music and chatter drifted out as Alex opened the main door, allowing the women to enter first. The place was teeming with customers—talking as they ate and drank—clustered around small wooden tables with a glossy resin finish. The place vibrated with a fun feeling of merriment.

  “Something smells good,” Isabel declared over the din as they crowded around the hostess stand. The air was heavy with the scent of fish and freshly baked bread.

  The walls were covered with lacquered, knotty-pine paneling and casually dotted with framed photos of celebrities that had visited the popular establishment over the years. Above the bar were colorful license plates from all over the country, set end-to-end in neat rows, nailed to the wall over an interesting array of liquor bottles in all shapes and sizes.

  “How many?” a reed-thin young woman asked over the noise as she took her place behind the hostess station, her long, dark hair pulled up into a high ponytail.

  “Six,” Alex answered her loudly.

  “Name?”

  “Alex.”

  She wrote his name on her list. “It’ll be about twenty minutes.”

  Alex looked to Colin with a questioning expression, as if wondering if they wanted to wait that long.

  “No problem,” Colin called out above the noise. With arms spread out, he corralled the girls, who were trying to chat over the din, and herded them to a corner where a few wooden chairs were lined up. “Come on, ladies, have a seat.”

  “You don’t have to be so pushy.” Camille shook her glossy, manicured fingers through her spikey red hair as she sank down onto a chair with a slight huff.

  “Please?” Colin said politely, a slight edge of sarcasm coloring the word.

  “Like herding cats,” Alex muttered to his friend.

  “I heard that,” Isabel quipped, leaning against the wall.

  “Y’all know what today is, don’t you?” Maggie took a seat beside Emily.

  “Thursday?” Emily answered.

  “That’s right, and you know what that means?” Maggie smiled at Camille, who was seated on the other side of her.

  Camille’s eyes lit up with recognition. “Girls night. I’d almost forgotten with the trip and all.”

  For the past six years, the four girlfriends had met every Thursday night for a girls-only potluck dinner. Each one took turns hosting it in their homes, with a dinner theme for each night. These get-togethers had become a sacred ritual for the girls, something they looked forward to each week, a time to catch up and stay connected. No one ever missed it, except for something extremely important.

  “I’m guessing the theme for tonight is seafood?” Camille joked.

  “Give the lady a prize,” Alex teased.

  “In case any of you girls forget,” Emily jumped in, “I won’t be able to come for the next two Thursdays.” She playfully batted her eyes at Colin as he stood across from her. “I’ll be on my honeymoon.”

  “Well, as long as it’s something important, we’ll forgive you.” Camille grinned with a hint of mischief curling on her lips.

  “We’re not in Paradise Valley tonight,” Emily’s gaze drifted to each of the women, “so I suppose there’s no harm in letting the boys have dinner with us—just this one time.”

  The men looked at each other and chuckled.

  Maggie giggled too. “Well, if we have to.”

  ~*~

  After dinner, the gang poured out of the busy bar and grill and strolled back toward the inn, chatting about their delicious meals. Alex and Isabel peeled off from the bunch to do some window shopping in the quaint downtown area, while Maggie and Camille stuck with Emily and Colin.

  “Evening, folks,” the doorman greeted, as they strolled through the entrance.

  Across the grand foyer, Emily spotted Eric Malone. “There he is,” she whispered to Maggie, tilting her head slightly in his direction.

  “I’m calling it a night.” Camille hugged Emily and Maggie and headed down the hall to her room.

  “Goodnight, Camille,” Emily called after her.

  “I’ll go and see if I can talk to our subject.” Maggie slowly moved toward the check-in desk, swaying her hips as she approached. She cast a quick glance back over her shoulder at her friends.

  Emily and Colin went and stood by the warm fire and surreptitiously watched while Maggie engaged the manager in conversation. It seemed to be going well, a nice give and take. Then Maggie threw her head back slightly and laughed at something Eric said.

  Colin leaned his cheek gently against Emily’s temple. “That woman is dangerous,” he whispered. “The poor guy doesn’t have a chance.”

  “I’m just glad Peter hasn’t arrived yet, or she wouldn’t be able to work her magic.”

  A small crowd of new guests blew through the doors, along with a chilly gust of wind, rustling a few colorful leaves in with them. Chatting among themselves, they made their way to the check-in counter and bunched around it, jostling Maggie out of the way.

  “I’d better leave you to your work. Maybe we’ll talk again later,” Maggie said above the chatter of the guests. Then she backed away from the front desk and headed toward her room.

  Emily and Colin hurried across the lobby to catch up with her.

  “What happened?” Emily asked, a little irritated by the crowd of rude guests.

  “Oh, he was pleasant enough, maybe even interested,” Maggie replied, “but he had to take care of checkin’ in all those noisy people. I’ll try again tomorrow.”

  “You’ve got to get him to show you around his boat if this is going to work,” Emily said. If she couldn’t, then what? Would it be on Emily to plant the device somehow? She could put on a show as well as Maggie could, but would Colin let her?

  “I know the plan,” Maggie assured her, “but I can’t make him do it. Give me one more day.”

  “One more day is all we have,” Emily huffed.

  “It’s just as well, Maggie,” Colin said. “If you come on too strong all at once, he’ll know something’s up.”

  “You’re right, and we can’t have that,” Emily added. Although, it would have been better to know the tracker had been planted. One less thing weighing on her mind.

  “Well, I’m headin’ to my room. I’ll leave you two lovebirds to enjoy the rest of your evenin’.” Maggie gave Emily a quick hug. “’Night.”

  Emily returned the embrace, hoping Maggie would have more success with Eric tomorrow. “Thanks for your help,” Emily called as Maggie strolled down the hallway to her room.

  Maggie waved a casual hand in the air. “You’re welcome.”

  “Now for some alone time with the love of my life.” Colin took Emily’s hand and kissed it. “Sorry we haven’t had much of it since we got here.”

  “No need to apologize.” Emily smiled. “There will be plenty of time for us to
be alone as soon as we’re married and off on our honeymoon.”

  “Yeah, the honeymoon,” he echoed with yearning in his eyes.

  They walked a few doors down to her room. Emily paused and rested her back against the door. Leaning in, Colin slid a hand around her waist and she raised her chin, looking deeply into his adoring eyes. He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her slowly, softly.

  “Best not to give the other guests a show,” Emily quietly gasped when she came up for air, her body responding to the pleasure of his kisses. With her gaze not leaving his, she tugged her key card out of her pocket. “Want to come in for a little while?”

  “I would, but,” Colin gave her a roguish smile, “what would your sister say?”

  “Well…why don’t you ask her?” another female voice inquired with a tinge of sarcasm.

  Colin pulled up quick and Emily’s eyes grew wide.

  “Oh, Susan,” she gasped.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” Susan said, “but I really need to speak to my sister. You don’t mind, do you?”

  Emily looked at Colin and shrugged her displeasure.

  “Besides, the wedding is day after tomorrow, Colin. I think you can keep your hands off her for a little while longer. Remember what I said about no hanky-panky?” Susan joked, adding a playful smile. “Now skedaddle,” she made a shooing motion with her hands, “and let me talk to my sister.”

  “Well, I, uh…” Colin’s puzzled gaze darted between Emily and Susan. “I guess I’ll see you in the morning then, Babe.” He kissed her lightly on the lips before wandering off down the hall, muttering to himself.

  Following him with her eyes, Emily swore she heard him repeat the words hanky-panky in there somewhere. A bit annoyed at the intrusion, she unlocked the door and pushed it open.

  Susan followed her inside.

  “What was so important that it couldn’t wait until morning?” Emily shrugged out of her jacket and laid it on the bed, still feeling the taste of Colin’s kiss on her lips.

  “Your wedding gown. It probably got wrinkled on the trip, so I have a dry cleaner standing by to press it first thing in the morning.” Susan opened the closet door and pulled the dress out.

  Emily spun back toward her sister, her hands angrily fisting on her hips. “That’s it?”

  Susan’s expression softened and her gaze fell to the dress she’d draped over her arm. “Well…no.”

  “What then?” Emily’s voice rose with irritation.

  Susan slowly raised her head and looked Emily in the eye. “It’s Dad.”

  Emily’s hands relaxed as her frustration quickly turned to concern. “What’s happened?”

  Quite a few years earlier, their father had been placed in a health care facility when his Alzheimer’s disease had progressed and it was clear he needed help. Eventually, he began having a harder and harder time recognizing any of his children, or grandchildren. When he no longer knew who any of them were, it was too much for them, and both sisters stopped visiting him.

  “I got an upsetting call late this afternoon from the facility he’s in,” Susan explained.

  “A call? Why?”

  “The woman who phoned, a Doctor Patel, claims Dad is getting worse, that he’s sometimes belligerent. He needs more constant care and that means more money. They’re raising his monthly charge by five hundred dollars to cover the extra nursing costs.”

  “Starting when?”

  “The first of the year. They wanted to start next month, but I told her about Brian’s accident and all the expenses, and she agreed to delay it until January. Although, I don’t know what good putting it off a couple of months will do.”

  Emily dropped onto the edge of the bed, absorbing the news. Her mind began thinking through her options as to how she was going to come up with her share of the increase.

  Susan settled beside her. “I know this isn’t exactly the best way to start your new married life, Emily, but I thought you should know. With the mountain of bills piling up for Brian’s medical care, I don’t see how we can squeeze another five hundred dollars out of our budget. You know, the whole can’t-get-blood-from-turnips thing.”

  “Yeah,” Emily muttered as she nodded mindlessly, her thoughts drifting to the small balance in her checking account. There was no way she could expect anything more from her sister, especially not at this time. “I’ve always paid my share of the costs for Dad’s expenses, you know that. I would never shirk my responsibility.”

  Susan brushed a strand of curls off Emily’s face. “I know, hon.”

  An image of the wads of cash that Evan had hidden away in a safe deposit box before he died popped into her mind. She had discovered it, long after his death, but she hadn’t wanted to spend a dime of it, not knowing where it may have come from.

  Was it stolen? Or payment for a contract hit? Or was it ill-gotten gain from some other dangerous and nefarious undertaking he may have been involved in?

  From what she had learned about Evan after his murder, any, or all, of those things could have been real possibilities.

  “With you and Colin consolidating your household expenses, I was hoping…” Susan looked at her with uncertainty in her eyes.

  “Don’t you worry about the extra money.” Emily draped a comforting arm around her sister and hugged her. “Colin and I can handle it.”

  ~*~

  After discussing their father’s situation awhile longer, Susan left, taking Emily’s wedding dress with her.

  As Emily changed into her pajamas, thoughts of the cash in the safe deposit box floated in and out of her mind. Though she had avoided spending the money on herself, she had loaned some of it to a friend once, to help him out of a serious bind. He had since repaid her and she had put the money back into the safe deposit box, but she had never told Colin about it. Was that going to come back to bite her?

  She went into the bathroom and brushed her teeth, imagining Evan’s face in the mirror. Where did all that money come from, Evan? It wasn’t as if she expected to get an answer, but she couldn’t help but wonder about it.

  After his death, Emily had slowly begun to discover clue after painful clue that her wonderful husband wasn’t the man he’d made her believe he was. Yes, he had showered her with love and passion that most women only dreamed of, and he had fiercely protected her like she was a precious jewel. She felt nothing but safe and loved for the five years they were married, but that façade began to crumble as she’d uncovered the truth.

  Why hadn’t she ever told Colin about the money? She had told him about the other things she’d found in Evan’s hidden safe deposit box—the mysterious old photograph, the various passports, the suspicious gun—but never the money. She stared at her own image in the mirror, directly into her own eyes. Was she being as secretive and deceptive with Colin as Evan had been with her?

  “No!” The word rushed out with a painful rasp, escaping from her heart, through her lips.

  She could never be like Evan, the way he had lied to her at every turn to keep his false persona intact. The questionable cash was the only thing she had ever hidden from Colin. But now, blood money or not, she was probably going to have to finally start dipping into it to pay for her father’s care.

  A shiver danced down her back as she continued to peer intently into the mirror, into her own eyes. She could no longer keep the money secret from Colin. Why had she wanted to? It wasn’t that he would care she had the money, but now he would certainly want to know why she’d felt the need to hide it from him. She wanted to know the answer to that too.

  Was it because it had been Evan’s money? Because it represented his deceptions?

  Or was it because Colin would see how totally in love with Evan she had been, so in love that she had swallowed whatever story he fed her—hook, line, and sinker? How Evan had held her in his spell and at his very touch her panties would melt?

  Just the thought of them together, even now, made her body vibrate with desire.

  She splashed
cold water on her face, then buried it in a towel. Tomorrow she would look for the right opportunity to tell Colin about the money before he somehow found out on his own. Waiting until after the wedding wouldn’t be fair to him—he had a right to know before they said I do.

  But what if he told her he couldn’t marry a liar?

  Chapter 15

  It was a little after nine o’clock on Thursday night. Isabel and Alex had just returned from their jaunt downtown, lugging a couple of bags full of souvenirs into their room. So much for window shopping.

  “I think I’ll take a shower before bed.” Alex set the bags of treasures down on the dresser. “You won’t get too lonely out here without me, will you?” He tossed her a mischievous look that told her he had something romantic on his mind.

  “I think I’ll manage,” she replied with a teasing smile. “Don’t be long.”

  Alex grinned and shut the bathroom door, just as Isabel’s phone began to ring.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey, this is Emily. I didn’t interrupt anything, did I?”

  “No, Alex is in the shower. Although, if you had called a little later…”

  “I get it,” Emily said. “So, now’s a good time to talk?”

  What did she want to talk about? Maybe she’d been seeing visions of Evan again. “Everything okay, Em?”

  “I’ve done a horrible thing and I have to come clean with Colin.”

  “How horrible?” Isabel sat down on the corner of the bed.

  “What’s that supposed to mean? Horrible is horrible.”

  Isabel was quite sure that Emily couldn’t do something horrible if her life depended on it. “Tell me what you did and I’ll tell you if you should worry about it.”

  “I lied to Colin.”

  That wasn’t like Emily at all. “About what?”

  “Well, not exactly lied.”

  Didn’t think so.

  “More like an omission. I didn’t tell him something I should have.”

  “Like what?” Isabel asked.

  “Something that I found.”

  “Stop beating around the bush, Emily, and come out with it.” The small hairs on the back of Isabel’s neck raised in anticipation. “What exactly happened?”