by Carol Costa
"I heard there was trouble here. Is everyone all right?"
"Yes, we're fine. Thanks to Bob," Dana told him.
"You're welcome," Bob said as he came out of Dana's office. "Did you hear the other news? Casey and her boyfriend eloped to Las Vegas"
Bruno's face registered his displeasure. "What?" he asked a little too loudly.
"They went to the airport after our dinner last night, flew to Vegas, and got married this morning," Dana said. "What's wrong?"
"I need to talk to you, privately," Bruno replied. Noting the looks of alarm on the faces of Marianne and Bob, he quickly added, "It's about the Porter case"
"Oh, right. With everything that's been going on here, I forgot about that," Dana said. "Come on. I want the details"
She turned and walked into her office and Bruno followed, shutting the door behind him. Bob and Marianne looked at each other and smiled.
"I'm going to see if I can scare up some doughnuts. You want one?" Bob asked Marianne.
"Yes. One with lots of chocolate frosting, please. I'll make a fresh pot of coffee"
Inside Dana's office, Bruno took off his topcoat and threw it across one of the chairs while he sank wearily into the other one. Dana, feeling that bad news was coming, walked behind her desk, sat down, and folded her hands on top of the desk. "Okay. Give it to me straight," she told Bruno. "Did you arrest Judy Porter?"
Bruno shook his head. "No. I still like her for the deed, but Teddy's mother swears that she was with both of them the night Lucas disappeared. We had to let them go until I can prove that the mother is lying to protect them."
Dana sighed. "I'm sorry if you're upset about that, Bruno, but I still don't think-"
"That's not what I'm upset about. From everything I've learned whoever killed Lucas Porter did the world a favor. I'm still going to find out who did it and bring him or her or them to justice, but that's not what I'm upset about. It's Casey running off and marrying Hunter."
Dana sucked in a breath. "Why? What did you find out?"
"I ran his fingerprints through the database. The reason Hunter's existence only began two years ago is because that's when he got out of prison and got a Social Security card and began to live in the real world"
"He must have gone to jail as a juvenile," Dana said.
"That's right. He was sixteen, but they tried him as an adult."
Dana forced herself to ask the next question although she was already pretty sure she didn't want to hear the answer. "What did he do?"
"He and his older brother held up a bank. They got a bundle of money and took a woman hostage to ensure their getaway. The woman was found dead a few hours later. Eventually, the Hunter boys were arrested but the money was never recovered. They claimed the woman's death was an accident, but they both got twenty-five years to life. His brother is still in prison, but Tony was a model prisoner and got out early for good behavior."
Bruno stopped talking and let Dana digest the information he was giving her. Her hazel eyes turned to brown as the thoughts she was having darkened them.
"Where did this happen?"
"In Chicago."
"He seemed a little concerned last night when he found out you were a cop. Do you think that's why he rushed Casey off to Vegas to get married?"
"That's exactly what I think," Bruno said solemnly.
Dana leaned back in her chair. "Do you think that Casey could be in danger?"
"I don't know. I do know that he's probably not really a rich guy. There's no record of him working the last two years so his money may be running out by now. Three hundred thousand dollars doesn't go as far as it would have twenty years ago"
"Wasn't the Chicago police watching him when he got out of jail to see if he went to get the missing money?"
Bruno laughed softly. "In a big city like Chicago, guys like Hunter just fall through the cracks. No one would even remember the case or the fact that the money was never recovered"
"Right," Dana agreed. "Oh God, Bruno. What am I going to do? Casey sounded so happy on the phone. This will destroy her."
"No one says you have to tell her."
Dana jumped to her feet. "And let her be married to a criminal? A murderer?"
Bruno got up and walked over to Dana. He put his arms around her and held her close. "Listen, sweets, Hunter was a kid when the crime happened. As far as we know, he's stayed out of trouble since being released from prison."
"Except for using stolen money to live on," Dana said.
"Except for that. But after spending all those years in jail, the guy probably felt he'd paid his debt to society and the money was his to keep"
Another thought struck Dana and she pulled away from Bruno. "What if his money is running out and that's why he married Casey? He could be after her money"
"How much does she have?"
"I don't know, but when she gets back to town, I'm going to find out"
"Are you going to tell her about Hunter's past?"
Dana's eyes filled with tears and she let Bruno pull her close again. "I'm hoping she already knows."
"You think that Casey would have married him if she knew?"
"Maybe. It's like Bob said just before Flannery came bursting in here. He said that Casey has never been in love before and women in love do all kinds of crazy things."
"Except for you," Bruno said. "I keep hoping but ..."
Dana smiled in spite of her concern for Casey. "Don't lose hope, big guy," she replied.
The very next day, Del decided that he had better push up the date for Judy Porter's showing just in case Bruno was able to break her alibi.
"I still don't think Judy is guilty," Del told Dana when he called to tell her that the show was scheduled for the next Saturday. "But just to be on the safe side I've switched Judy's showing with another artist."
"I'm sorry, Del. With Casey still off on her honeymoon, we're shorthanded and I haven't had time to look into any more leads on the Porter case."
"It's okay, darling. To be honest, the continued publicity the case is getting has stirred more than the usual interest in Judy's showing."
"And if I were to be honest, I'd have to admit that I really don't have any leads to look into at the moment"
"Will you be bringing Bruno to the showing?"
"Not if it will make Judy uncomfortable."
"It would make Judy uncomfortable"
"He'll probably have to work anyway. With his mother coming for a visit soon, he's trying to clear his desk so he can spend more time with her."
"All right, darling. I'll see you Saturday."
Dana hung up hoping that Bruno would indeed have to work on Saturday night so she wouldn't have to tell him he couldn't come to the gallery with her.
A few minutes later, Marianne came in to tell Dana that she was wanted in Sam McGowan's office.
Dana had been looking at a file on a new case involving an apartment complex in Pine Grove City. One of the tenants had called the paper and reported that her landlady was hiding aliens in an empty apartment in the basement. Bob had gone over to speak to the woman thinking that she was referring to illegal aliens from another country. Instead the woman claimed the aliens were from another planet. Bob's report was quite amusing as he described his trek into the basement to look for the aliens, but Dana would have to finish reading it later.
A man Dana had never seen before was already seated in Sam's office when Dana came through the door. Both men rose and Sam introduced Dana to Benjamin Hughes, who turned out to be Floyd Flannery's lawyer.
"I'm sorry to meet you under these adverse circumstances," Hughes said as he shook Dana's hand. "I understand my client caused a scene in your office yesterday."
"To put it mildly," Dana replied.
Hughes waited until Dana was seated before he sat down again. Sam hadn't budged from his chair and Dana knew he was probably getting impatient for the meeting to begin.
"Mr. Hughes has a deal he wants to make with us," Sam said.
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"Yes. My client is very sorry for yesterday's incident and sends his sincere apologies."
"Did he spend the night in jail?"
"Yes. By the time all the paperwork was processed, it was too late for a bail hearing."
"So he sobered up and sent you here to get us to drop the charges against him," Sam said impatiently.
"Mr. Flannery still feels that your paper slandered him and caused irreparable harm to his business. However, in light of his lack of good judgment yesterday, he has decided not to proceed with the lawsuit providing that your newspaper and staff members will drop the charges against him."
"We received several complaints about Mr. Flannery's business practices," Dana said firmly. "Our investigation proved that the complaints were valid and that's what we reported. Your client doesn't have a case"
Benjamin Hughes smiled at Dana. "You have a very good reputation, Miss Sloan. I'm actually a big fan of yours, but please consider the time, energy, and money that will be expended on a lawsuit."
Dana turned to her editor. "It's Sam's call."
"I'll talk to our lawyer and get back to you," Sam said curtly. "Thanks for stopping by."
Sam's obvious attempt at dismissal didn't seem to affect Hughes, who remained seated. "I really hope we can come to an agreement on this. Mr. Flannery is a decent, hardworking man and-"
Sam stood up. "Mr. Hughes, I don't take kindly to peo pie who threaten my staff and if you want my answer to your proposition, it's no. However, I will present it to the Globe's legal advisors. You'll hear from them directly."
The lawyer reluctantly got to his feet, nodded to Dana and left the office. After he was gone, Sam sat down again and waited for Dana to voice her opinion.
"It seems rather odd for Hughes to come to us directly," Dana said. "Why didn't he just speak to our lawyers?"
"He probably has already and didn't get anywhere so he came to me hoping I'd go along with his plan."
"Maybe we'd better do a background check on Flannery and see if he could be truly dangerous," Dana suggested.
"I've already got that in the works," Sam told her. "Did Del call you about Judy Porter's art show?"
"Yes. I assume you and Emily are going?"
"I'm afraid so. I hope Bruno is going to be there."
"Sorry," Dana said. "He doesn't like the shows any more than you do, and Del would prefer he not be there to make his artist uncomfortable."
"I can understand that. Did you learn anything new on the case?"
"I haven't had time to work on it with Casey on her honeymoon. Fortunately for Judy Porter, Bruno hasn't uncovered any new incriminating evidence, either."
"When is Casey coming back?"
"Friday night, I think. I'm hoping to have a chance to talk to her Saturday before the art show."
"Did Bruno check out the new husband for you?"
Dana nodded. "He did, and that's what I need to speak to Casey about"
Sam cocked his head to one side. "Sounds serious."
"Maybe not," Dana said brightly. She stood up. "I'd better get back to the office."
Sam stood up and walked her to the door. "I guess you don't want to tell me what Bruno found out."
"No, I don't," Dana answered honestly. "Not before I talk to Casey about it."
Sam accepted her answer and watched Dana hurry out of his office and across the newsroom like she couldn't wait to put distance between them.
A few blocks away, Floyd Flannery and Ben Hughes were leaving the courthouse.
"My wife didn't even show up for the hearing," Floyd complained to his lawyer. "She's probably had the locks on the house changed already."
"Janine is upset," Ben told him. "This isn't the first time she's had to bail you out. She had to go to her brother for the money she needed for the bondsman."
"She could have put the house up for collateral. That's what she did the last time."
"I advised her not to do that," Ben told him calmly.
Floyd's face flushed with anger. "Why the hell would you do that?"
Ben stopped walking and faced his irate client. "Because you're in big trouble this time, Floyd. I talked to the lawyers for the Globe and they're not going to make a deal. There's going to be a trial and you may go to prison. Janine is going to need the equity in your house for your legal bills and her living expenses"
"It's all that reporter's fault. So what if I told people they needed extra work on their cars? The stuff I replaced needed replacing. Since that story came out in the paper, my business has gone right in the toilet."
Ben looked at his watch. "Don't blame anyone else for your problems, Floyd. The reporter was just following up on the complaints they got about you."
"If I ever catch up with that broad . .
"Shut up, Floyd. You're not going to do anything but go home and stay there"
"And if I don't?" Flannery asked belligerently.
"You'll be back in jail and using a public defender."
Hughes turned and walked away, leaving his client standing on the street corner shaking with rage.
Casey woke up early and ventured into Tony's kitchen. Their flight from Las Vegas had gotten in at 8 p.m. the night before. From the airport they had gone to Casey's mom's house. Nina Jordan had greeted them rather coolly. She was obviously upset that her only daughter had chosen to elope rather than let Nina have the pleasure of planning a nice wedding.
Casey smiled as she remembered how Tony had refused to be put off by Nina's attitude and outdid himself in the charm department. They took Nina to dinner and by dessert she was beaming at her new son-in-law, her disappointment about the way they had gotten married forgotten. Nina had quickly convinced herself that the most important thing was that Casey had found herself a wealthy husband and would never again have to struggle financially the way Nina had.
Strangely enough, Nina Jordan had never questioned her daughter's sudden progression into the elite world of the country club set. She was elated to see Casey shed her old image and take an active interest in fashionable clothes, modem hairstyles, and beauty products. When Casey brought Tony home to meet her for the first time, Nina thought all the dreams she had secretly harbored for Casey were going to come true.
Nina had divorced Casey's father shortly after the birth of her daughter and he had promptly disappeared. It had been hard to raise a child on her own, but she had done her best and Casey's natural wit and intelligence had done the rest.
After dinner, Tony and Casey stopped by Casey's apartment so she could pack some clothes to bring to Tony's place. Her lease on the apartment was up the end of March and she would give her landlord a thirty-day notice that she was not renewing it. Tony's apartment was larger and had recently been renovated, so that's where they would live for the time being.
Tony kept talking about her quitting her job at The Globe and staying home to have babies. Of course Tony was still under the impression that the inheritance that enabled Casey to join Crescent Hills Country Club was large enough that she didn't need to work.
The three Cs had thought ahead to the end of the master plan and come up with a story that Casey could use to explain the evaporation of her wealth once Prince Charming had fallen in love with her.
Casey was supposed to say, "The bulk of my uncle's estate was invested in a pyramid scheme that has now collapsed. I'm broke again"
If Tony started asking questions about the pyramid scheme, Casey was supposed to start crying and say that she didn't have any details. All she knew for sure was that the money had suddenly vanished.
Although Casey had imagined the scenario dozens of times, she never actually had the courage to broach the subject with Tony. It was just another lie to add to the larger deception that had allowed her to attract Tony in the first place.
Casey found a can of coffee in one of the cabinets and soon had a pot of coffee brewing. However, the refrigerator was barren and so was the pantry and every other place Casey looked for food.
Taking up a place at the window that looked out over a walled courtyard, Casey hugged herself. Marriage should be based on mutual trust and honesty and she would find the right time to tell Tony the truth about herself and her financial assets. If he truly loved her, and she believed that he did, it wouldn't matter how they had come to know each other and fallen in love.
"Hey, the coffee smells wonderful," Tony said as he appeared in the doorway to the kitchen. Casey spun around, startled out of the thoughts and doubts that haunted her.
"Good morning," she said, crossing the room to walk into his arms.
"Good morning. What are we going to do with this fine day?"
"Well, first of all, I think we need to go grocery shopping. Your cupboards are bare"
Tony laughed. "That's why I married you. I can't cook and don't know the first thing about grocery shopping."
"I'll teach you everything I know," she promised.
A few hours later, they had breakfast in the deli section of Sunflower Market. Ham-and-cheese quiche with sliced fruit was served on plastic plates.
George came out of the storeroom pushing a hand truck loaded with produce cartons. "Hi, George," Casey called out. Like Dana, Casey shopped at the Sunflower on a regular basis and was acquainted with George.
George stopped and waved at Casey. Then, he noticed Tony sitting across from her and walked over with a curious expression on his weathered face. "Who's this guy?" George asked. "I thought you were my girl?"
Casey laughed. "This is my brand-new husband, Tony Hunter. Tony, meet my friend George. Gee, George, I'm sorry I don't know your last name."
"Last names are not important here," George said, reaching across the table to shake hands with Tony. "You're a lucky man, Tony Hunter. Casey is a beautiful person."
"I know it," Tony said. "It's nice to meet you"
"So, are you kids going to be living in the neighborhood?"
"For a while," Casey answered. "Tony has an apartment in the Rialto building on Sixteenth Street"