“Uhm, we’ve been pretty busy,” the girl said. “Do you want to go in and look if she’s here? If she’s not, come back and I’ll get you seated.”
“Thanks.” I smiled at her because she looked like a fragile thread ready to snap, and I didn’t want to add to her stress. “I’ll go look.”
I heard her ask as I walked past, “How many?” to the folks behind me.
The bar side had two pool tables, two electronic dartboards, and one shuffleboard table, full-sized. I looked for Nadine. The seats around the bar were all occupied. I saw Ryan Petry sitting at a table with Ava Green, Lacy Evans, and Paul Simmons. Huh, I wondered if it was a double date.
Lacy was a single mom. The first time we met, she’d run a stoplight and crashed her car. She’d also left her baby at home alone because she’d only planned to be gone a few minutes. She was Freda’s daughter, the one I had originally suspected of the Kapersky murder. Even though she hadn’t turned out to be a killer, I still didn’t like her very much. However, I liked Ryan a lot, and if she made him happy, who was I to disapprove their relationship?
Ryan looked up and saw me. He tipped his beer and smiled. I waved, and he waved me over. “Hi, Ryan,” I said when I approached the table. “Night out, huh?”
Lacy and Ava gave me simultaneous back off looks. Paul Simmons stood up and shook my hand.
“Hi, Lily. Nice to see you again. You getting any work done on the house?”
How far out of the loop was this guy? “Not since the mummy.”
“That was your place? Jesus Christ. I’d have considered moving to the moon if I found a body in my home.”
“Our Lily’s a cool cat,” Ryan said. His word choice startled me for a moment, but I recovered when he winked. “You want to join us for some drinks?”
“Can’t. I’m meeting Nadine.” I scanned the room and found her. Finally. “There she is.” I flashed Ryan a smile. “Talk to you later.”
“You bet,” he said.
“It was nice to see you again, Lily. Let me know if you need any help with the plumbing.” Paul scooted back into the booth next to Ava. He looked over at Ryan and gave him a brief smile.
The reason it had taken me a second to find Nadine is that I had been looking for a woman sitting alone. When I landed on Nadine, she was sitting with the raven-haired coroner, Dr. Regina Crawford. Nadine saw me about the same time. Her wide smile blossomed as she waved me over.
“Hey, girl,” she said. “Reggie here needed a girls’ night out too.” She gave me a meaningful look.
“I hope it’s okay,” Dr. Crawford said. “I don’t want to impose.”
“Of course not,” I told her. “The more the merrier.” But my mood soured. I’d wanted to ask Nadine some pointed questions about Merl Peterson’s death, and having the doctor around was cramping my nosey style. On the other hand, Regina was the new coroner and might have some insight. “Where are you from, Dr. Crawford?” Her accent, like mine, wasn’t Southern Missourian.
“I’m from Kansas City. The Missouri side, of course, and please, call me Reggie,” she said. “I don’t want to play doctor tonight.”
“Unless some hot guy needs you to take his temperature,” Nadine quipped.
Reggie and I flashed each other a look of surprise, then she started laughing and I joined in.
“He better be super-hot,” Reggie said. Her black hair, which had been in a bun the previous night, was now loose and around her shoulders. It was shorter than I expected. Her dark brown eyes were warm, and I found myself really charmed by the city doctor.
I reached for small talk. “I can’t believe the storms last night.”
“They were bad,” Reggie said. “The thunder shook my whole house several times. I thought I was in the middle of an earthquake for a moment.”
Nadine gave her a look.
“What?”
She shrugged. “We’re right on top of the New Madrid Fault.”
“That’s true,” I agreed. “I read about it in a conservation magazine.”
Nadine’s eyes widened. “You’re reading conservation magazines now?”
“Parker keeps them at the shelter. It’s something to read during down time.”
“And who is this Parker?” Reggie asked. She leaned forward. “Dish.”
“He’s my boss and my friend.” Who just happened to show up at my place this morning and cook me eggs. “That’s it.”
“Is he attractive?”
Nadine giggled. “Yeah, Lily. Tell us. Is Parker attractive?”
I mouthed, I hate you, to her, but it only made her giggle more. “He’s handsome, if you go in for his type.”
Nadine wouldn’t let it go. “And what type would that be?”
“I don’t know.” Tall, rugged, muscular, beautiful blue eyes, smells good, I listed off in my head. “You know, handsome.”
“You paint a vivid picture, my friend.” Nadine got up from her seat. “You want a beer or something stronger?”
“Beer’s good to start.”
“Back in two,” Nadine said and headed to the bar.
“So,” Reggie said, a sly smile turning up the corners of her mouth. “You want to know about the body you found in your wall?”
My lower jaw almost came unhinged. “Heck yes.”
She rubbed her hands together excitedly. “Good. I’ve been dying to tell you since you got here.”
“Should we wait on Nadine?”
“She already knows. Why do you think she asked me to come out tonight?”
I laughed. “I really like you Reggie.”
“I’m easy to like,” she said with a mild shrug then grinned. “So, the guy in your wall was a wanted felon.”
“You’re kidding me.”
“I would not kid about this.” She shook her head. “His name was James Wright, and he was wanted for bank robbery.”
The guy had been dead for a while, so it couldn’t have been a recent robbery. “How old was the case?”
“The robbery took place back in 1986.” Her eyes widened for dramatic effect.
“The police have been looking for this guy for thirty years and he’s been dead the whole time,” I said incredulously. “How is that even possible?”
“But he hasn’t,” Reggie said.
“Hasn’t what?”
“Been dead the whole time. When the medical examiner dated the clothing and bones, he determined the body had been dead around seven or eight years.”
“So who put him in the wall and why?”
“Both excellent questions.”
Nadine put a beer in front of me. “Did you tell her the best part yet?”
“I was getting there,” Reggie said. She took a sip of her mojito. “That’s really strong. Lots of gin.”
“I think that’s why this place is a favorite with the college crowd,” Nadine said. “Now tell her or I am going to spill. I can’t believe I didn’t call you and blab earlier.”
Reggie put her slender, well-manicured hand up. “Okay.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “James Wright had a partner in the bank heist.”
“And do the police think the partner killed Wright?” My heartbeat quickened. “Was the old man, John Mills, the partner? Oh man, how crazy would that be.”
“Too crazy,” Nadine said dryly. “John Mills was crotchety and grumpy, and a good farmer, but he was no bank robber. Would you let Reggie tell the story?”
“Fine.” My heartbeat slowed. “He had a partner. Go on.”
“Yes, he had a partner, a guy named Gail Martin. Gail was caught two weeks after the bank job just outside Poplar Bluff. That’s about sixty miles from here. He was arrested, tried, and sentenced to forty years in maximum security.”
“But they never found Wright.”
“Nope, they never did. Until you dug him out of the wall yesterday.”
“If his partner is in jail, then who would kill him? And why?”
Nadine piped, “I think his partner put a hit out on Wright for
disappearing with the money and leaving him to face jail alone.”
I raised my brow.
“It’s a theory,” she said a tad defensively.
“What about the wounds?” I asked Reggie. “Did the medical examiner find out what kind of blade made the chest hole?”
“A gun, actually. There was black powder stippling around the wound. The examiner said it was an extremely close shot. The gun was probably pressed against Wright’s chest when it was fired.”
“Maybe a struggle,” I said. Thinking about how hard it would be to put a gun to someone’s chest without getting disarmed. You didn’t come at your prey from the front, not if you wanted the upper hand. “How big was the guy?”
“Six feet two inches. From the old photographs, he was pretty stocky as well.”
I could see shooting him from across a safe distance, but who the hell had the balls to press the barrel to his chest without fearing for their own life? “Maybe it was an accident.”
“Doubtful. The shot to the head was no accident, which is what killed him, by the way,” Nadine said. “And neither was hiding the body.”
“What about his hand? Did they find anything in it?” Other than a snapped-off finger.
“You’re good, Lily. Yes. In his right hand he was holding something. It was really corroded, so the lab is doing some tests to see if they can get it recognizable.”
“It was either something important to him personally, or a clue to the killer. You don’t hold on to something that tight at the moment of death unless you think it has real value.”
“Are you sure you weren’t a cop in a past life?” Nadine asked.
“I’m just curious is all,” I said. “There are too many rules to police work. Besides, I’d rather do what she does.” I gestured to Reggie.
“Here, here.” Reggie raised her glass and took another sip of her drink. I liked the way the mint and gin smelled together. I reminded me of Parker’s mint and juniper shampoo.
Nadine’s hand wrapped my wrist. I looked down at her fingers as she squeezed tightly. I met her gaze.
“Don’t look,” she whispered.
“What?” Automatically, I swiveled to look behind me.
Parker, wearing a black t-shirt, his best jeans, and a blue windbreaker, was being seated at a booth on the restaurant side of the tavern with Naomi Wells.
I shrank into my shoulders as the predator in me fought to climb out. My fingers curled under my palms into tight fists to hide my claws.
“I told you not to look,” Nadine said.
“What is it?” Reggie asked. “Or who?”
“It’s no one,” I said tersely.
“Dang, girl, your voice just went all Hannibal Lecter.” Nadine eased up on her grip.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to get my body under control. “I’m fine. Parker and I are friends. He can date whoever he wants.”
“Oh, the Parker,” Reggie said. “Where?”
“Left corner booth past the divider,” Nadine said helpfully.
Only Parker’s head was visible now that he had been seated.
“Okay, Lily,” Reggie admonished. “You definitely left out some details in your description. That man is fine.”
“He’s all right,” I grumbled. Stupid men.
“Who is the woman with him?”
Nadine answered. “That’s Naomi Wells. Small-town-girl-makes-good-in-the-big-city story. She’s a journalist in St. Louis, just back for a hometown celebration.”
“I think I’ve seen this movie,” Reggie said. “It was a Lifetime Original.”
“Did everyone die at the end?” I wanted the disaster of a night over and done with.
“Lily!” Nadine said with surprise. She was smiling, though, so it hadn’t taken her aback. “You’re jealous.”
“Am not.”
“What do you think, Doc?” my Moonrise soon-to-be ex-BFF asked. “What’s the diagnosis?”
“Chronic heartbreak aggravated by a severe case of jealousy. I prescribe marching over there and telling him to kick the city girl to the curb.”
“Stop it.”
Nadine touched my arm again. “I get it, Lils,” she said more seriously. “You’re scared to let yourself be with Parker, you’re scared of getting hurt, but if you don’t make a move, you are going to lose any chance of being with a guy you’re crazy for.”
I liked it better when we were talking about the dead body. “I think I’m going to call it a night. Smooshie is going to need let out soon. As it is, I fully expect the trailer to be trashed by the time I get home.” I’d barely finished half my beer, but I’d lost my taste for it.
“Don’t go, Lily,” Nadine pleaded.
“I didn’t mean to chase you away with my teasing,” Reggie added. “You should stay.”
“If you stay,” Nadine said, “I’ll tell you about Merl Peterson.”
My ears perked. Shoot. Curiosity was this cat’s Achilles’ heel! I crossed my arms and leaned back. “Fine. Tell me about Merl Peterson.”
“Merl died of blunt force trauma to the back of the head.”
“Did he fall and hit his head?”
“Not unless he fell on a marble ball from “Floating Truth” an art display out back of the admin building and the ball crawled away after.”
“Huh?”
“The marble ball, about the size of a grapefruit, was picked up and used to kill Merl. It was found about five feet from his body with blood on it.”
“Someone bashed his head in?”
“Yes.”
“Are there any suspects?”
“Merl’s wallet was missing, along with his Mason ring. The sheriff suspects a robbery gone bad.”
“Any prints on the ball?”
“No,” Reggie said, getting in on the discussion. “It had Mr. Peterson’s blood on it, but no prints.”
“So the killer was smart enough to wear gloves. But the campus has classes at night, so it’s possible this was just a crime of opportunity. Maybe the killer would have pounced an anyone walking in the back courtyard on campus.” I had liked Merl. I didn’t want to think about someone hating him enough to kill him on purpose. “What was Merl doing out there, anyhow? Do you know?”
Nadine shrugged. “No clue. You don’t have to check in on campus. He could have been there visiting a faculty member or a student, or maybe he just liked to walk out there. Who knows?”
Merl knew. And now he was one more ghost to add to the Mills house curse. Now that I owned the property, was I next? I shook my head. I had an advantage. No one except Buzz knew I was a Shifter. And humans were a lot more fragile than my kind.
“What is it, Lils? You think of something?”
I shook my head again. “I’m just being silly. Parker told me about a curse on the Mills house. How all the owners have died or disappeared. Merl was an owner briefly, and now he’s dead.”
Nadine’s brows narrowed together. “You think you’re next? Don’t be daft, Lily. John Mills lived in that house for eight years and died of old age. He was eight-nine when he passed on. That house didn’t kill him. A long life did.”
“You’re right,” I said. “I told you it was silly.”
“Are you hungry?” Reggie asked.
My stomach growled at the mention of food. “Starving,” I said.
Nadine laughed. “That’s my girl.”
Chapter 9
Two orders of hot wings, a platter of nachos, and a pile of cheesy bacon fries later, I still hadn’t gotten over Parker being at Dally’s with Naomi. I hadn’t told him I was coming here tonight, but I had told him I was having girls’ night with Nadine. Had he purposefully brought her here to make me jealous? Gah! I was being ridiculous.
“Nadine Booth,” a booming voice shouted. We all looked up. Parker’s friend Adam strolled right up to our table.
“Jesus,” Nadine whispered as she slouched in her seat. I hated to tell her, but hiding behind me would be an impossible feat.
&nb
sp; He looked at me. “Nice to see you again, Lily.”
I smiled. “Nice to see you too, Adam.”
He grinned, his shoulders relaxing so you could see his neck. He really was a big guy. He craned his head sideways to look past me. “Nadine. It is you,” he said. “I thought it was. Woo-wee, you have filled out nicely.”
“Thanks. And you’re still filled with hot air,” she said.
“Aw, now, don’t be like that.” He smiled. “I’m only in town until Monday. Give me a spin on the dance floor for old times’ sake.”
“One dance,” she said. “Then you go on. This is a girls’ night, and the last time I checked, you were no girl.”
“I’ll let you check again if you want to be sure.”
Nadine hooted with laughter. “I’ll take your word for it.”
As they went out on the small dance floor, I got a call from nature. I might have hollow legs when it came to food, but the second beer was putting serious pressure on my bladder. “I’ll be right back,” I said to Reggie. “Nature calls.”
I passed the dance floor on the way to the bathrooms. Two couples aside from Nadine and Adam were slow dancing to a sad country song. Since I didn’t keep up with music, I wasn’t familiar enough to recognize it though. There was something about beer, bars, women, and apple pie. I pushed out all the noise from my head as I went into the nearest stall, dropped my pants, and peed, thankful for the semi-peaceful moment. My senses were so overloaded, I felt a bit fried. After, I went to the sink and washed my hands with hot water, then turned on the cold and splashed my face.
In the mirror, I saw that my hair, the color of dark cinnamon, had gotten wild since I’d left the trailer. The humidity this far south had given me a serious case of the frizzies. My skin had freckled a little more since the weather had warmed, and I spent more time outside. I wore very little makeup because most of the time I’d rub it without thinking. I once gave myself two black eyes at a high school party back home. I’d forgotten that I was wearing mascara and my eyes had been irritating me, so I kept scrubbing them with my palms. It wasn’t until my friend Hazel pulled me aside and handed me a wet towelette and a compact mirror that I knew why a couple of high school jerks had asked me if I was related to raccoons.
The Money Pit Page 8