The Master Plan (2009)

by Carol Costa

  "Don't know the place," George admitted. "Well, I'd better get this lettuce put up before the big rush starts. My good wishes to you both"

  George hurried off to the produce department guiding the handcart expertly through the aisles that were already beginning to fill up with Saturday-morning shoppers.

  By the time Tony and Casey finished their breakfast and got to the produce department George had finished filling the lettuce bins. They heard his name announced over the store's intercom system. George was needed at checkout stand number three.

  "Bagging groceries is George's favorite job. He always insists on helping the ladies to their cars with their groceries," Casey said.

  Tony was studying a bag of corn chips and not really listening to Casey. "What about these?" he said, turning to Casey. "It says they're low in fat and salt."

  "And taste," Casey told him. "Get the brand-name on the top shelf."

  Finally, their cart was loaded with groceries and Tony pushed it to the checkout lanes. As he was unloading their purchases to be checked out, Casey saw Carmen enter the store and called out to her.

  Carmen came rushing over. "Where have you been?" she asked breathlessly. "I've been calling you for days at home and on your cell. You didn't answer either."

  "I know. I haven't had a chance to return my calls yet. I've been in Las Vegas with Tony." Casey paused dramatically. "We got married."

  Carmen let out a big squeal and hugged Casey. Tony turned around to see what was going on. "Oh, hi, Carmen. How are you?"

  "I'm great and I'm so happy for you two. I can't believe you did it. How exciting is that?"

  Tony smiled and nodded at her patiently, and then turned back to the cashier, who was still ringing up all the groceries they had purchased.

  Carmen and Casey chatted for another few minutes and then Carmen said she had to work this morning and just stopped by to pick up doughnuts for the office staff.

  "It's Saturday," Casey said.

  "I know but the bigwigs are coming here from Chicago on Monday and the boss wants the office in primo condition. Call me later," Carmen said giving Casey another quick hug.

  "That will be $210.53," the checkout lady said to Tony as Casey turned back to see the groceries had all been bagged and stacked back into the cart.

  Tony looked at his wife. "Honey, I forgot my wallet. You'll have to pay the bill."

  Casey tried not to show her alarm, she had no cash and her checking account had less than $50 in it. She knew that Tony didn't use credit cards and the one she had in her purse was close to being maxed out. She had used it in Las Vegas to buy the dress she had been married in.

  "I'll have to write a check," Casey finally said. The bank would be closed today and Casey would have to go there first thing Monday morning to cover it. She took out her checkbook and started writing the check, hoping that Sunflower Market didn't have one of those electronic terminals that accessed the bank account to make sure there were sufficient funds to cover customers' personal checks.

  Casey held her breath as the cashier processed the check and let it out when the woman smiled and handed her the receipt and wished them a good day.

  Casey relaxed some as she and Tony unloaded the groceries into the back of his Cadillac Escalade. Tony's vehicle was top of the line with all the bells and whistles. She didn't have to worry about money any longer; she had married a wealthy man. Under false pretenses, her conscience chided.

  Casey was silent on the short drive back to the apartment, worrying about the conversation she needed to have with her new husband.

  "What's wrong, Casey?" Tony finally asked when they were back in his kitchen putting the groceries away. "You've been awfully quiet since we left the store"

  "Nothing," Casey replied. "I'm just stunned that we spent so much at the store, and we still have empty shelves in your pantry."

  "Since when do you have to worry about things like that?" he asked.

  "I haven't always had money," Casey said. "I inherited what I have and." She stopped. "Oh, never mind. I don't want to talk about it now."

  Tony looked at her with a frown. "Are you mad because I forgot my wallet and you had to pay for the groceries?" he asked sharply.

  "No, of course not," she said quickly.

  "Good, because a lot of my funds are tied up right now and you may have to pay some of the bills until the market adjusts itself."

  Casey stopped with her hand on the freezer handle and a bag of frozen corn in midair. Tony was using the line she was supposed to use on him. She quickly opened the freezer and was grateful for the cold air that hit her burning cheeks as she placed the frozen corn inside.

  When she finally closed the freezer door and turned around to face Tony, he was staring at her. His frown had turned to suspicion as he waited for her to comment on his last statement.

  "Tony, darling," Casey said softly. "Maybe we'd better sit down and talk about our finances."

  "Why? Is paying a few bills going to be a problem for you?"

  Casey didn't answer. She walked swiftly out of the kitchen into the living room and sat down on the leather sofa that occupied one whole wall.

  Tony's apartment was filled with expensive furniture, but the walls and mahogany tables were empty. No artwork, no family photos, and no travel mementos to make the rooms comfortable and homey.

  In the middle of the living room floor, Tony had set up an electronic golf contraption so he could practice his putting while he waited for the frozen greens at the country club to thaw.

  Tony came into the room and pulled a putter out of the golf bag that stood next to his practice equipment. He deftly stroked a golf ball setting at the end of the artificial strip of green and watched the ball sink into the plastic cup at the other end.

  "Tony, please sit down here. I want to talk to you."

  Tony sighed and leaned the putter against his golf bag. He walked over and sat down on the sofa next to Casey.

  "Okay, darling. What do you want to tell me?"

  "Something I should have told you long ago. I haven't been completely honest with you. I love you, Tony, and I hope you'll listen with your heart and see how sorry I am that I didn't tell you before now."

  Tony smiled at her and took her hand. "Come on, Casey. I love you too. You're my wife now. There's nothing you can say that will make me think badly of you"

  inspired by the thought of Judy Porter's art show that evening, Dana got up early and painted. If Judy Porter could finish seven or eight paintings in twenty-four hours, Dana told herself that she could surely finish the one piece she'd been laboring over for months.

  The painting was a scene that was very dear to Dana's heart, and perhaps that's why she was having so much trouble finishing it. She wanted to get it perfect.

  The farm where Dana had grown up had changed a lot over the years as it became more modern and mechanized. That was fine and good for her family, who still lived there, worked the land, and tended the animals, but Dana wanted to capture the images she had from her childhood on the canvas.

  At one time in her life, Dana had been sure she would become a professional artist. She had always loved to draw and paint and everyone said she was very talented. It was while she was pursuing an art degree in college that Dana suddenly altered her career path.

  When Dana was in her second year at the University of Illinois, she began dating the editor of the college paper. Craig talked her into helping out at the paper so they could spend more time together. Dana liked the newspaper office and the creative aspects of putting the paper together.

  Soon she was helping Craig chase down stories and write copy. The next semester, Dana changed her major to journalism and had been working in the field ever since, letting her art become a part-time hobby.

  The doorbell rang and Dana put down her brush and went to answer it. Bruno had called earlier and said he would be working all day and half the night, so she knew it wasn't him.

  Dana opened the door and found Casey st
anding there wearing a pair of dark glasses. "Hi, Dana. I'm sorry to show up unannounced, but I need to talk to you"

  Dana pulled her inside and hugged her. "I'm really glad to see you. I wasn't sure what time you were getting back."

  Casey was trembling and Dana knew immediately that something was wrong. She pushed the door closed and led Casey to the sofa and sat her down.

  Casey shrugged out of the coat she was wearing and took off her dark glasses. Her eyes were red and puffy and when she read the look of concern on Dana's face, she began to cry again.

  A few days ago, Casey seemed to be the happiest girl on earth and now she was a wreck. Given the information Bruno had given her about Tony Hunter, Dana's concern for her friend was escalating into cold hard fear.

  "What's wrong, Casey?" Dana said firmly. "Has something happened between you and Tony?"

  Casey nodded and began wiping her face and nose with a tissue. Dana reached behind her and handed Casey the box she kept on the end table next to the sofa.

  "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to fall apart like this," Casey muttered.

  "Just tell me what happened," Dana said. "Did he hurt you?"

  "Tony wants a divorce."

  "A divorce? You haven't even been married a week."

  "I know, but I've been deceiving him from the beginning and now that he knows the truth he doesn't want me anymore. I thought he loved me. I thought he would understand"

  Dana was struggling to make sense of what Casey was saying. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Casey. You'd better start at the beginning and tell me everything."

  Casey nodded and took a deep breath. "We got back last night and went to see my mom. Then we went to my place and I packed up most of my clothes and we moved everything over to Tony's apartment. Everything was wonderful. I was so happy."

  "Okay," Dana said slowly. "Then what happened?"

  "This morning, I discovered that Tony had nothing in the house to eat, so I suggested that we go to the grocery store. We got in his car and drove over to Sunflower Market. It's close to Tony's place. That's where we saw Carmen."

  "Who's Carmen?"

  "My girlfriend. We went to high school together and were roommates at college. Anyway, she was very excited when I told her Tony and I had just gotten married. We were at the checkout counter and the girl was ringing up our groceries. Then, Tony discovered he hadn't brought his wallet with him to pay for all the groceries we bought. I had my checkbook with me, so I wrote a check for the groceries and we went home. I was upset because I knew there wasn't enough money in my account to cover the check I wrote."

  "Your paycheck is at the office," Dana told her. "If it will help we can go over and pick it up so you can put it in the bank right away."

  "I know, but Tony saw that I was upset and we started talking about our finances and I broke down and told him about the master plan."

  Now Dana was really confused. "The master plan," she repeated. "What on earth is that?"

  "It's a crazy, stupid thing Carmen and I and Cathy thought up one night."

  "Tell me about it," Dana said.

  "It's really embarrassing."

  "I don't care, Casey," Dana told her. "I can't help you if I don't know the whole story."

  Casey nodded and told Dana about the scheme she and her two friends had devised to meet and marry rich husbands. When she was finished, Dana got up and began to pace.

  "That's a pretty dramatic twist," Dana said, trying not to sound too judgmental. "All this time you've been trying to check Tony out to make sure he was who he appeared to be, while you were pretending to be somebody you're not."

  "I told you it was embarrassing," Casey said. "But as crazy as it sounds, it actually worked. I met Tony and Carmen is dating his golfing buddy, Fred, and Cathy is hot and heavy with the club's tennis pro"

  "All three of you are nuts," Dana exclaimed. "Do the guys Carmen and Cathy are dating know about the plan?"

  "No, but it doesn't matter. Fred and what's his name know the girls came to the club as my guests and have accepted the fact that they aren't rich, like I'm supposed to be"

  "It seems to me that you took all the risks, Casey."

  "I knew that up front. I guess I should have told Tony the truth from the beginning. I'm sure it's the fact that I've been lying to him since we met that really made him angry."

  "What if you found out that Tony had been lying to you too?"

  "I love him, Dana. I would forgive him and I thought he felt the same about me. I guess it's just as well he found out now. I couldn't keep up the pretense much longer. He's been telling me I should quit my job so we could have children. That and the way he spends money convinced me he had enough money for us to live on without me ever having to work again."

  "All right," Dana said. "So you told Tony that you're actually a poor working girl and he reacted badly."

  "He literally threw me out of his apartment. He said I was nothing but a gold digger and he never wanted to see me again" Dana thought Casey might start crying again, but she squared her shoulders and tossed her head defiantly. "Well, you know what? He is going to see me again. I have to go back there and get my things." Casey stood up and grabbed at her coat. "Will you come with me?"

  "Hold on, Casey," Dana said. "You confessed your scheme to Tony, but I take it you still don't know anything about his background ""

  "No, I don't, and at this point, I don't care. I think he married me for the money he thought I had, which means he's not what he seems to be, either. Boy, that would be the real twist"

  "Yes, it will be," Dana said softly. "Put your coat down, Casey. I'm going to make a pot of coffee. You and I have a lot more to talk about"

  Dana had invited Marianne to come to the gallery showing that evening. Marianne's boyfriend, Greg, was at a seminar in Chicago. Greg was a policeman turned social worker who worked with teenagers trying to keep them out of trouble and harm's way.

  Marianne had offered to drive to the gallery because she had a vehicle with four-wheel drive and they were predicting more snow for that evening. She picked Dana up at 7:30. The first thing Marianne asked when Dana got into the Jeep was whether she had heard from Casey.

  "Yes, as a matter of fact, she came by earlier today," Dana said carefully.

  "So, how's she doing?"

  "She's okay," Dana lied. "I'm sure she'll want to tell you everything herself when she comes back to the office on Monday."

  Marianne stopped at a traffic light and turned to look at Dana, who was casually gazing out her window. "I'll bet Casey is just glowing, isn't she?"

  "Not exactly," Dana replied, not wanting to give Marianne the details, but not wanting to mislead her either.

  "Is something wrong?"

  "Nothing earth-shattering," Dana replied. "She and Tony had a squabble, but I'm sure they've worked things out by now."

  "Oh, I see," Marianne said smugly. "It's probably just a lover's quarrel. All couples go through that."

  Dana laughed. "Bruno and I have one almost every day."

  "Greg and I had one on our third date, but we kissed and made up and things have been great ever since."

  "What kind of seminar is he attending in Chicago?" Dana asked. She was grateful to have been able to maneuver the subject away from Casey. Dana could still see the stunned expression and the hurt in Casey's eyes when Dana told her what Bruno had uncovered about Tony Hunter.

  "No wonder we could only trace him back a few years," Casey had finally said. "That's when he got out of prison."

  Casey's shock had quickly turned to anger as she realized the secrets that Tony had been keeping from her were a lot more serious than the one she had been keeping from him.

  "How could I have been so stupid?" Casey said, jumping off the stool she had been sitting on at Dana's kitchen counter. "I've been an investigator for almost five years; I know better."

  "Don't be too hard on yourself, Casey," Dana had told her. "You fell in love and love makes us want to believe the b
est about our partner."

  "And he had the nerve to call me a gold digger," Casey said softly. "He's a thief and a murderer. I'll bet that money he's been throwing around is from the bank he robbed."

  It took Dana more than an hour to get Casey calmed down. Finally, she got Casey to agree that she should not confront Tony until she took some time to think everything through. Casey left Dana's apartment, promising to go to her own apartment to think things through.

  "I'm going to the show at Pitman Gallery," Dana told her friend. "Call me on my cell phone if you need me."

  As Marianne chattered on about Greg and the work he was doing with teenagers, Dana's cell phone rang.

  "Excuse me," Dana said as she pulled the phone out of her purse and answered it.

  "Hi, sweets. Where are you?" Bruno said cheerfully.

  "I'm with Marianne. We're on the way to Judy Porter's show at the gallery."

  "Oh, yeah. The one I'm not invited to attend"

  "That's right," Dana replied. "You're working, remember?"

  "Yes, I am, and I'm making some real progress tonight."

  "Really? On what case?"

  "Can't tell you, honey. I'll be done about nine. I thought I'd drop by the gallery and pick you up ""

  "Okay, but promise me you'll wait for me in the parking lot. I don't want you coming inside and upsetting Judy. This is a big night for her and for Del too."

  "It may turn out to be bigger than she expected."

  "What does that mean?"

  "I've got another call. I'll see you later."

  Bruno hung up and Dana stared at her phone. "He's going to cause trouble," she said instinctively.

  "For Judy Porter?" Marianne asked.

  "I think so"

  "Uh-oh. Do you think he's found some new evidence?"

  "Probably. He was much too cheerful."

  "Are you going to warn Del?"

  "No. It would just upset him"

  Marianne drove into the parking lot of the gallery. It was already filled with cars. "There's Sam's car," she said.