Better Watch Out

by Dani Sinclair

  “Okay,” he said finally, “but this doesn’t leave this room, all right? We’re building a case around the supposition that Lieberman and his three pals were the burglars we’ve been looking for. Not one house has been hit since Lieberman died. We’re theorizing that there was a falling out among thieves.”

  Jackie suddenly straightened in her chair. “The basement lock!”

  J.D. nodded. “Makes sense.”

  “What about that basement lock? You keep harping on that damn basement lock,” Ben said irritably.

  “Why would Lieberman put a dead-bolt lock on an inside door? He didn’t have kids that he wanted to protect from falling down the stairs—”

  “But how convenient if he wanted to keep people from going down there when he had a basement full of stolen goods,” Jackie finished. “It all makes sense!”

  J.D. smiled, glad to see a sparkle back in her sad eyes.

  Jackie went on excitedly. “The house only stood empty for a couple of days after Donnie’s death. Bessie and Frank were in and out during much of that time, so the boys couldn’t get anything out of the house until after the funeral. They probably didn’t know Bessie asked me to move in right away.” She paused, more thoughtfully. “Only, why would Steve Pinta kill Brad in my bedroom if they were just getting stuff out of the basement?”

  “Maybe there were some things up there,” J.D. suggested. “Donnie’s personal belongings, for example. Do you have any leads on Pinta?”

  Thompkins shook his head. “We figure he’s probably three states away by now. And—” he held up a palm “—we don’t know for sure that Pinta killed anyone, either.” He smiled apologetically at Jackie. “I’m afraid as a cop I still need evidence to proceed. We don’t even have proof the boys were the burglars.”

  Jackie’s mouth parted, her expression filled with new excitement. “Yes, we do. At least, I think we do. What would you say to some hard evidence?”

  “I’d say you’d make my boss a happy man,” Ben replied cautiously.

  “Well then, get ready for a promotion. And you have J.D.’s kids to thank.” She turned to J.D. “Remember the computer you brought to the shop? Your son found two hidden files on it. One contains a list of dates, initials and abbreviated items. Compare the dates and the list and I’ll bet you’ll find they match the burglaries and stolen items. I didn’t examine the information, but I think there are dollar amounts next to each item. You might even be able to learn who they sold the things to.”

  Ben uttered a low expletive. “J.D., can I use your phone?”

  “Be my guest.” He beamed at Jackie and found her grinning back. “Want some breakfast?”

  Jackie laughed. “I’d love some. Suddenly, I’m starving.”

  J.D. was pulling out ingredients for an omelet when Ben got off the phone. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to impound your computer,” he told her.

  “Impound away. It was Donnie’s computer.”

  “Thanks. My boss is most grateful. Catch you guys later.” He grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair and headed for the door.

  “Looks like it’s finally over,” J.D. said. He instantly regretted his words when her expression darkened.

  “I can’t believe Larry’s finally dead.”

  “Believe it.” He hunkered down next to her chair. “Look, my timing probably stinks here, but—”

  “Hey, Dad! Is Jackie up yet? Oh, hi, Jackie! You’ve got to come see our cool snowman.”

  J.D. jumped as his offspring burst through the kitchen door bringing with them a bitter blast of cold air and loose snow that tumbled from their clothing to the floor. Jackie’s unexpected giggle got his full attention.

  “If you could just see your face, J.D.,” she told him around choked laughter. “Priceless.”

  “Hey, Dad, what were you doing practically kneeling on the floor?”

  J.D. closed his eyes and prayed for patience. Then he opened them and found himself staring into Jackie’s laughing eyes and knew it didn’t matter. There’d be a better time for what he wanted to ask her.

  JACKIE EYED THE SILENT house with even more trepidation than she’d felt going back into her shop earlier this morning. Between the police, reporters and everyone else, she felt as though she hadn’t had a moment to herself in the past two days. Nor, unfortunately, had she and J.D. had any time alone together. There always seemed to be someone around with another question.

  Bessie was devastated to learn her son might have been a thief, while Frank didn’t seem the least bit surprised.

  “Knew the kid was up to something,” she’d heard him telling Thompkins. “I told Seth months ago that Donnie suddenly had way too much money to spend. I figured he was selling drugs or something, you know?”

  Jackie had to bite back her annoyance, hoping Frank wasn’t saying things like that in Bessie’s hearing.

  “You sure you don’t want us to go in with you?” Angel asked, bringing her thoughts back to the present.

  Jackie offered up a smile, aware that she’d been sitting in Juan’s car for several seconds without moving. “No, that’s fine. Thanks for bringing me over.”

  “J.D. isn’t going to like you coming here alone,” Juan warned.

  “No, probably not, but I need to pick up some more things. I called J.D.’s office before we left the shop. Carol will tell him to meet me here.”

  Angel frowned. “Looks kinda spooky to me. And it’s getting dark.”

  Jackie agreed with both points. “All the more reason for you two to get moving. There’s nothing left to fear. It’s just an empty old house with expensive new locks. Thanks for helping me clean up today.”

  “Hey, no problem,” Juan assured her. “I’ll go in with Angel to open in the morning.”

  Jackie smiled at the pair and stepped from the car. J.D. had been reluctant to give up his hovering and go back to work today, particularly when he learned she planned to get the store ready to reopen.

  “Thanks for the lift. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  As much as she didn’t want to go inside the house, it was time to put the past behind her for good. Besides, she was running out of clean clothing. Maybe it was also time to go shopping for something besides sweat suits.

  Jackie entered the silent house and stood in the hall listening. The threat was over. Larry was dead. She had nothing to fear any more. So why did she still feel the house watched her with evil intent?

  The dark staircase seemed to mock her. Jackie knew she didn’t want to climb those stairs.

  Delaying the inevitable, she turned toward the living room and flipped on the light. The charred carpet and missing drape would have to be replaced before Bessie could show the house to prospective buyers. Jackie made a mental note to call about that in the morning.

  She shivered as she crossed the hall and stepped into the dining room. The bitter cold outside seemed to be seeping into the house itself, but at least everything appeared normal. The police had gone through Donnie’s personal items looking for more evidence, but this afternoon Ben had told her they were finished.

  In the hall, Jackie paused. Her gaze drifted to the basement door. Closed but no longer locked, the door drew her like a magnet.

  Had the basement really been used to store all the stolen items? There was no proof. Ben said they’d gone through the boxes stored down there, but it was all Christmas stuff like the markings said.

  Impulsively, she turned down the hall instead of going upstairs. No doubt J.D. would be here shortly, and there might be some decorations she could use for the store. Bessie kept saying she didn’t want anything from the house, that Jackie should take whatever she wanted.

  Jackie opened the door and turned on the light. As she started carefully down the steps, she saw the police had opened the boxes and left many of the contents scattered on the floor.

  Jackie frowned, surprised Thompkins would leave such a mess. Then she saw the two metal shelves that had always rested against the far wall. They wer
e pulled away to reveal something built into the wall.

  Jackie moved forward hesitantly. A safe? Ben hadn’t mentioned anything about finding a safe. But that first file Todd had shown her could very easily have been a safe combination.

  A floorboard creaked above her.

  Jackie lifted her head in shock. She was not alone in the house! Someone moved quietly overhead. Bessie? She’d given her friend the new keys to the house yesterday.

  The footsteps entered the dining room. Too heavy for a woman. Jackie turned back toward the stairs and something moved on the floor near the stack of boxes to her left.

  A scream rose in her throat, trapped by the horror that prevented her from drawing a breath. Two blue eyes stared up at her. Wide. Imploring.

  Steve Pinta lay trussed on the floor, bound hand and foot, tape running across his mouth. Terror gripped her. The footsteps crossed into the kitchen.

  Jackie scanned the Christmas items, looking for a weapon. A can of spray snow lay almost at her feet. She lifted it, decided it wasn’t heavy enough and stuffed it in her coat pocket. She reached instead for the heavy ceramic snowman.

  Steve squirmed. He made frantic sounds behind his gag. The footsteps reached the basement door. Jackie ran to the wall behind the stairs. There was no place to hide. Whoever was up there would see her as soon as he came down the stairs.

  Fear threatened to choke her as a man’s lower body came into view. “J.D., I’m GLAD YOU CALLED in,” Carol’s voice said in his ear. “Jackie called a few minutes ago. She wants you to meet her at her house.”

  Fear crawled through his belly. Larry was dead, but the police still hadn’t located Steve Pinta.

  “Carol, see if you can get hold of Ben Thompkins. Tell him…just tell him Jackie’s alone in her house. Ask him to drive by, to be sure everything’s okay. I’m on my way.”

  J.D. accelerated as he pulled onto the interstate. No doubt his imagination had become fanciful. After all, why would Steve Pinta return to the house?

  Unless there was still something inside of value. Something the police had missed.

  Grateful for the light traffic, J.D. soon turned onto Main Street. There, however, traffic came to a sudden stop. Fire blazed from a row of old buildings and shops. It took him a moment to realize both the mortgage company and Teller Photography were located on that block.

  J.D. whipped his car down the nearest side street.

  Ben hadn’t driven by the house. He’d be busy with the fire. In a town this size, everyone’s attention would be focused on the fire.

  Minutes later, J.D. pulled in front of Jackie’s house. As he stepped from the car, the first snowflake drifted from the ash gray sky overhead.

  JACKIE SHOOK, WAITING for him to turn and spot her. Seth Bislow obliged.

  “Hello, Jackie.” As he came around the staircase, she saw the gun in his left hand.

  Jackie threw the snowman. Seth dodged and ceramic shards splintered harmlessly against the concrete.

  “That wasn’t very friendly. But then, you never have liked me, have you?”

  Jackie sidestepped, frantically searching for another weapon.

  “You aren’t going anywhere, my dear. Not yet, at least. My mood isn’t particularly good at the moment, I’m afraid, so I really wouldn’t do anything else that might make me pull this trigger. I’m on a tight schedule, you see. Stand still!”

  His barked command stopped her inching progress away from him.

  “Good. Now let’s see if you can be more cooperative than Mr. Pinta over there. What is the safe combination?”

  Jackie stared at him. “How did you get in here?”

  Seth grinned. “Why, Jackie, as Frank’s best friend, I found it a simple matter to lift the new keys from Bessie’s kitchen—just like I took the old ones.”

  “You had her key to the basement lock! The one she couldn’t find.”

  “Of course. I needed to search the house after that fool, Donnie, killed himself. Then you made a production out of needing the basement key, so I had to make a copy and replace it.” His beady, little eyes narrowed. “Only you went and had all the locks changed again,” he accused.

  Jackie took a step back.

  “Come now—I told you I don’t have much time. The fire won’t keep the police occupied for long. Mr. Pinta said the combination was on Donnie’s computer. Unfortunately for him, he lied.”

  Cold fear snaked its way up her back. Seth Bislow planned to kill her.

  “You were behind the burglaries?” she asked.

  Impatience drew his mouth into a tight line across his face. “Hardly, my dear. Petty burglary doesn’t appeal to me. No, I plan on a much grander scheme, but those stupid boys nearly ruined everything when they chose my house to rob.”

  Fear pounded a staccato in her head. Keep him talking, she thought. Stall for time. It was her only hope. “Bessie never said anything about your house being robbed.”

  “Of course not. I could hardly report the burglary, now could I? Not when the bonds they stole from me were already stolen.”

  Jackie shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

  “Bearer bonds, a veritable fortune in bearer bonds, payable to the holder. And the fools didn’t even realize what they had. They took them along with my coin collection. Tomorrow, when the auditors arrive, those bonds will turn up missing—and so will I.” He glared at Steve Pinta, whose expression of hopelessness only added a new layer to her fear.

  “But the police searched the house,” she protested.

  “Yes, but they never found the safe where the boys kept all the small items. Little Donnie was quite creative. The shelves have a false back. The police probably examined the contents, but no one thought to move shelves that pressed up against a stone wall. If Donnie hadn’t panicked and driven himself off a cliff, I’d congratulate him. He really did show moments of brilliance.”

  “But if you have Steve—”

  “Unfortunately for him, he’s convinced me that only Donnie had the combination. And now, you do.”

  The hidden files.

  “Ah, I see you know exactly what I’m talking about. Open it!”

  She cringed at his snarled demand. “I can’t. I don’t know the combination!”

  He pushed against the thick glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, considering. “But you know where it is.”

  Time. She needed time.

  “I assure you, unlike your ex-husband, my dear, I’m not the least bit crazy. A bit greedy, perhaps, but not crazy. The pain I inflict will be very deliberate.”

  Before she could speak, he turned and aimed the gun at the youth lying on the floor.

  “Don’t!” Jackie screamed.

  “Then I suggest you show me where to find that combination.”

  Jackie lifted her gaze from the writhing youth. “At—at the shop. I t-took the spare computer to the store.”

  “Spare computer? There were two? No wonder I couldn’t find it on the one upstairs. Shall we go?”

  Numb with dread, Jackie turned and headed for the steps. The police had the computer, but obviously Seth didn’t know that. She had to stall for time. “Did you kill Donnie and his friends?” she managed to ask.

  “Donnie killed himself, I’m afraid. The Volmer boy was looking for the safe combination and unfortunately caught me inside the house searching for the bonds. I had no choice but to kill him,” Seth told her nonchalantly. “I didn’t realize Pinta was inside, as well.”

  His careless shrug implied he would have killed Steve, too. Jackie tried to control her trembling.

  “I followed you out into the storm that night. Pinta apparently had the presence of mind to stay behind and hide the body to keep a police investigation away from the house. I admit, I didn’t think to do that. But I was most grateful, as you can imagine. And it was rather amusing, the way you kept showing up every time he tried to get the body away from the house.”

  Jackie had almost reached the hallway when she saw a flash of
movement just inside the kitchen. Someone else was inside the house?

  She prayed for it to be Ben Thompkins and twisted in the doorway, blocking Seth from coming all the way up. “And Oggie Korbel?” she asked.

  “A young man with an attitude, I’m afraid. He recognized me, of course. We’d met several times at Frank’s place. And he was most uncooperative when I demanded my property.”

  “You killed him.”

  “Yes, I’m afraid he made me angry and left me little choice.”

  “Like me?”

  His cold stare moved up and down her body. “A shame, actually. At one point, I had rather hoped you might want to come with me. Those bonds are worth quite a bit of money, you see. And there is probably a handsome amount of cash and portable items still inside that safe.”

  Jackie braced her hand against the doorjamb and lashed out with her weak foot. Seth easily blocked the kick but his glasses dislodged, falling from his face and bouncing down the steps to the concrete below.

  “Bitch!” He grabbed her soft cast and yanked. Jackie fell to the hall floor, landing on the can of snow spray.

  “Bislow!”

  J.D.’s voice jerked her head around.

  Seth stopped, two steps from the top. “I have a gun, Mr. Frost,” he yelled. Anger made his oily voice shrill and grating. “Step out where I can see you or she dies.”

  J.D. came around the corner, lowering a kitchen chair. Tension radiated from him.

  “If you had just let him step into the hall,” he told Jackie, “I’d have clobbered him.”

  She swallowed past her terror. “How was I supposed to know?”

  Jackie fingered the lid off the can inside her pocket, as Seth stared myopically at J.D.

  “That’s the problem with modern women,” J.D. said. “They never wait to be rescued any more.”

  She yanked the can out of her pocket and depressed the nozzle. White foam struck Seth full in the eyes as J.D. threw the chair. The gun roared harmlessly. Seth toppled backward down the stairs.

  With a crash, the front door burst open.

  “Police! Freeze.”