by Jude Pittman
Kneeling in front of Lynda’s headstone, Kelly bowed his head and sent up a prayer. He had never been sure if anyone heard his prayers but he hoped so. He always felt better after he said one and he supposed that was the main thing.
Sinking wearily onto the grass, he rested his head against her stone. Floral Hills had a restfulness that seeped into his bones. He could think better here than anywhere else. He needed to do that today. His mind had been in turmoil ever since he’d awakened from the dream. What he had to do now was disassociate himself from Krystal and think like a cop.
Penny said Krystal had gone to meet a man who knew something about Anna’s murder. Was it the killer? If so, what was the point of the fire? And where did Andrew Davis fit into the picture? Kelly had convinced himself that the key to Anna’s murder lay in her past. But did it? What about Frank and his mysterious inheritance?
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Kelly stood up and brushed himself off. After they found Krystal, he’d take another look at everybody involved in the case—including his friends at Indian Creek. Right now, all he wanted to do was find her.
Saying goodbye to Lynda, he headed back to the truck. The trip to the cemetery had helped him clarify his mind and barring evidence to the contrary, he’d decided to believe Krystal was alive. If later events proved him wrong, he’d have to cope but for now he needed a clear head.
With that decided, Kelly’s next thought was that Krystal might have tried to call. He hadn’t even checked his machine. That galvanized him and he made the trip to Indian Creek in fifteen minutes flat.
In the cabin, the red light flashed on his answering machine and Kelly’s heart leapt to his throat. He pushed the playback button and held his breath.
“Kelly,” a man’s voice came from the tape. “This is Ernie Forbes. Jim asked me to give you a call about that probate matter you were looking into. Everything seems in order as far as I can find out.
“The estate was probated in April and the property divided between the son and daughter. There was no mention of her brother and there weren’t any other beneficiaries. The only other payments were the standard tax and funeral expenses. I hope this helps. Let me know if you want me to do any more digging.”
The tape ended and Kelly let out his breath. There weren’t any more messages. Making a mental note to tell Gus about Frank, he dialed Bubba’s number and got him on the phone.
“Hey, Kelly,” Bubba said. “I figured you was off somewhere this morning. Jake showed up a couple hours ago and I gave him breakfast.”
“Thanks. I’ve been over at Krystal’s. They had a fire there last night.”
“No kidding. She okay?”
“I don’t know, Bubba. She’s missing. Look, I haven’t time to explain now but I’m headed for Houston. Keep an eye on Jake while I’m gone, will you?”
“Sure thing. Don’t worry, I’ll look after things here.”
“Thanks, Bubba. I’ll be in touch.”
Kelly hung up and headed into the bedroom. Thirty minutes later, showered and changed, he climbed into Old Blue, tossed his overnight bag onto the seat and headed for Dallas Fort Worth Airport.
At the airport, Gus waited with news. “Andrew Davis has disappeared,” he said after they’d checked in at the Southwest booth and picked up their boarding passes.
“Disappeared? What makes you think that?”
“Two of our Houston detectives went out to his house to pick him up and take him downtown. They figured on having him waiting by the time I arrived. Stella met them at the door and told them Andrew had received a telephone call during lunch and right after that, he packed a bag and took off. She doesn’t have a clue where he went.”
“Maybe the telephone call was from Krystal.”
“Then why all the secrecy and why the suitcase? There’s something else too. The Houston boys questioned Stella about how much money Andrew had on hand. She didn’t know but she agreed to check with the bank and it turns out that early this morning Andrew withdrew a hundred grand from their savings account.”
“Whew! That’s a helluva lot of money. Do you think Andrew’s paying off a kidnapper?”
“It kind of looks that way. Of course, we haven’t any proof there’s been a kidnapping but Krystal’s disappearance, coupled with Andrew’s withdrawal of a large sum of money, sure raises the possibility.”
“So what do we do now?”
“We get that search warrant and do a filter job on the Davis house. The way I see it, there’s two ways of looking at this setup. Either Krystal has been kidnapped and Andrew is making the payoff, or Andrew’s behind the whole thing and it’s part of an elaborate plan to get rid of Krystal.”
Kelly flinched and seeing it, Gus cut himself off. “We’d better get out to the gate,” he said. “They’ll start boarding in a few minutes.”
Chapter Sixteen
They checked into a double at the Holiday Inn and Gus stopped long enough to drop off his bag, then headed downstairs to wait for the official car that had been dispatched to pick him up.
With Gus gone, Kelly picked up the phone and called Stella.
“I’ll pick you up in ten minutes,” she responded when Kelly explained he’d be on his own for the next few hours.
Kelly locked up the room, left a message with the desk clerk for Gus and stepped out the front door just as Stella’s Jaguar swung into the driveway.
“You know what I’d like to do?” she said when he joined her in the front seat.
“What’s that?”
“I’d like to take a spin out to the Gulf. There’s a quaint little place in Channelview that has the best hot, spiced shrimp you’ll ever taste. What do you say?”
“You’re the driver.” Kelly sighed and leaned back in the seat. His mind could use a break from all the worry and speculation about Krystal and no doubt Gus would appreciate Stella’s absence.
“Okay, we’re off.” Stella laughed and tossed her head like a delighted child.
Mirabelle’s was definitely quaint—a gaudy, pink building perched on tall stilts sitting precariously over the water.
“Follow me,” Stella said, leading the way up a set of creaky wooden steps.
“This is some view,” Kelly said, following her across the partially enclosed walkway onto an open-air patio.
“It kind of reminds you of a garden, doesn’t it?”
“That it does,” Kelly said, running his eyes over the tables. Each one sported a bright yellow umbrella with petals that flapped in the wind like a giant sunflower.
“It’s chilly out here,” Stella said, rubbing her arms. “Maybe we should go inside. There’s a gigantic fireplace and we can cozy up in front of it and gobble shrimp until we burst.”
“Lead on,” Kelly said, motioning.
Inside, it was uncrowded with the only other couple at the fireplace being occupied in the food and each other.
“This is living.” Kelly sank into one of the cushioned seats and holding his hands out to the crackling flames.
A waitress arrived and Stella gave her their order for a large bowl of shrimp and a couple of cold mugs. With that done, she heaved a sigh and settled back against the cushions. “Have you heard anything from Krystal?” she asked.
“I wondered if anyone had told you.”
“Andrew said she was missing. But he didn’t seem too worried. I suppose you realize Krystal doesn’t exactly feel obligated to keep in touch with her family.”
Kelly frowned. “It’s too bad you two can’t iron out your differences. It’d make life easier for both of you.”
Stella shook her head. “Our differences, as you call them, are a little too complicated to iron out. Besides, I’m not the one who’s kept the pot boiling, although I imagine you’ve been told all about the wicked stepmother and how miserable she made Krystal’s childhood. That girl is deeper than you think, Kelly. I wish you hadn’t gotten involved with her. She’s bad news.”
“That’s pretty strong stuff,” Kelly said, a spark fla
ring in his eyes.
“Okay!” Stella threw up her hands. “Let’s drop the subject. Just remember I tried to warn you. Now, tell me what you’re doing in Houston. I’m not dumb enough to believe you came down here just for the pleasure of my company.”
“Maybe not exclusively but I had a great time when I was here before and I don’t think I’ve ever danced with a better partner.”
“Why thank you, sir”, she said, her eyes glistening. “Now how about answering my question?”
“Okay. Time to confess. Gus thinks Andrew might know something about Anna’s murder and he’s getting a search warrant to go through your house. I’m keeping you out of the way so he can have a free hand.”
Stella gaped at him. “You don’t pull any punches, do you?” She threw back her head and laughed. “I ought to be mad as hell but what can I say in the face of such honesty? I don’t have anything to hide and if Andrew does, that’s his problem. At least you’ve been frank with me. Okay…so the cops are searching the house. What’re you doing?”
“Interrogating you.”
Stella’s eyes flashed. “Oh, you are, are you? Well, in that case, I’ve got terms.”
Kelly smiled. He liked Stella. She had plenty of spunk and he suspected it’d take a lot to throw her off kilter. “I’m listening,” he said.
“Okay, I say we head on over to the Longhorn for a couple of hours and do a bit of dancing. Your cop friends won’t want me around while they’re going through my underwear and since you seem to have been appointed my official babysitter, you might as well keep me occupied.”
Kelly laughed. “You’ve got a deal,” he said. “On two conditions.”
“What’s that?”
“I call Gus and tell him where to find us and you answer enough of my questions to convince me that I’m not entertaining a killer.”
“You’re on,” she said. “Ask away.”
“Okay, first question. Where were you the night Anna was murdered?”
Stella smiled. “Let’s see. That was Saturday night, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, I guess I could say I was home with Andrew.”
Kelly lifted his eyebrow. “Yep, you could say that but would it be the truth?”
Her eyes flashed and a smile played at her lips. “No, it wouldn’t but I want your promise if I tell you where I spent the night, it won’t go any further than this room.”
Kelly shook his head. “I can’t do that, Stella. The police are investigating a murder and now Andrew’s relationship with Anna has been established, it’s important you verify your whereabouts the night she was murdered.”
She looked at him for a long minute then shrugged. “I spent the night with Senator Stegman. I’m sure you can understand why I don’t want you passing that along to the cops.”
Kelly kept his face expressionless. “Well, since you’re obviously not implicated in the murder, I’m sure the police would respect your desire to keep your whereabouts private. I know for a fact Gus would.”
Stella laughed and shook her head. “There’s no such thing as a confidential statement when it involves a state senator. Your friend, Gus, might be just as pure as you seem to think he is but he’s not working in a vacuum. The minute I put Mark’s name down on a piece of paper, somebody’s going to see dollar signs and you can bet your sweet ass, some lucky reporter’s going to buy himself a scoop.”
Kelly chewed on his lip. Stella had a point. He’d seen it happen too many times to be naive. Mark Stegman had come in two years ago on a landslide ticket that stood for integrity, decency and family responsibility. A front-page scoop about Mr.-Family-Values being shacked up with a married woman would sell a bunch of newsprint.
“I’ll tell you what I’ll do,” he said. “I’ll tell Gus and I’ll try and get his word that as long as nothing comes up that seriously implicates you in the murder, he’ll verify your alibi himself and vouch for your whereabouts without making an official report on the alibi itself. Will that suit you?”
“I guess it’ll have to. Now, what’s your next question?”
“Actually, you’ve already answered it. I was going to ask if you could verify Andrew’s whereabouts but considering where you spent the night, you can’t very well do that, can you?”
“No, I can’t. As far as I know, he followed his normal routine—golf in the afternoon, dinner somewhere with one of his cronies, then home to his office to spend a few hours playing with his toys. He’s a computer buff and that’s how he spends most Saturday nights, unless of course, we have a dinner engagement…which obviously we didn’t.”
Kelly grinned. “That’s it for the questions. Are you ready to go dancing?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” she said and reached for her bag. “Let’s go.”
“I need to give Gus a call, then we can be on our way.”
“Okay. I’ll get the car and meet you out front.”
“Where are you?” Gus answered on the first ring.
“Out at the channel with Stella. You told me to keep her occupied.”
“Yeah, did but there’s been a change in plans. We’ve found a ransom note. I’d like to have Stella at home in case Andrew tries to get in touch.”
“So you were right about the kidnapping?”
“Possibly.”
The hesitation in Gus’ voice let Kelly know that Gus had reservations.
“What’re you going to do now?”
“The note gives us a credible reason to go through Andrew’s office. We’re heading over there now. Meantime, I’d appreciate it if you and Stella would head over to the house in case Andrew attempts to phone.”
“Sure thing. Stella’s got her cell, but we’ll go back to the house and wait. Will you be on your cell?”
“Yes. I’ll get back to you if anything comes up.” “Okay. Good luck.” “Thanks. And don’t worry about Krystal. We’ll do everything we can.” “I know.” Kelly hung up the phone.
“I’m afraid I’ve got bad news,” Kelly said when he climbed into the Jag.
Stella braked and turned to face him. “What bad news?”
“Gus found a ransom note. Krystal’s been kidnapped.”
“I don’t believe it. Why?”
“The usual reason. Money.”
“And Andrew’s gone to pay the kidnapper?”
“It looks that way.”
Stella frowned and shook her head. “That doesn’t sound like Andrew. If he got a ransom note, the first thing he’d do would be call the cops and demand they do their duty.”
“Maybe the kidnapper convinced Andrew he’d kill Krystal if the money wasn’t paid.”
Stella kept her eyes fastened on Kelly’s for a long moment. “Which would mean Andrew would have control of the business and all the money,” she finally said.
“Are you saying Andrew would deliberately allow his niece to be murdered?”
“What do you think?”
“I don’t know, Stella. But if you’re right, it’s more important than ever that you and I get back to the house. Gus is on his way over to Andrew’s office to see what he can find there. Meanwhile, he’d like you to stay close to the telephone. If Andrew calls you and he’s playing some kind of game with Krystal’s kidnapper, maybe you can reason with him.”
“He’s not in the habit of listening to anything I have to say. But of course, I’ll give it a try. I’m not overly fond of Krystal but I don’t want anything to happen to her.”
“That’s my girl.” Kelly squeezed her arm. “Now let’s get back to the house and hope that Andrew calls.”
“Okay but why don’t you drive? I’m feeling kind of shaky right now.”
“Sure thing,” Kelly said, climbing out of the car and waiting until Stella had settled into the passenger seat before sliding behind the wheel.
At the Holiday Inn, Kelly pulled up in front of the lobby and ran upstairs for his bag.
“No messages,” he said, back in the car. “Do y
ou need to make any stops?”
She shook her head and they drove the rest of the way in silence.
Chapter Seventeen
“Should I put the car inside?” Kelly asked when he pulled into Stella’s driveway.
“Please,” she replied, reaching into the glove box and pushing the door opener.
Kelly garaged the Jag, got out of the car opened Stella’s door and grabbed his bag out of the back seat. “That the way we go?” he pointed at a lighted doorway.
She nodded. “It’s open.”
Kelly pushed the door open and stood aside for Stella to enter.
She led him into a cozy sitting room furnished with plush leather chairs and a brass fitted bar. “Make yourself comfortable while I check with Maria.” She dropped her bag on a table and left the room.
Kelly sank into one of the chairs and clasped his hands behind his head. Thoughts of Krystal and the brief time they’d spent together flooded his mind. He’d been making an effort not to wonder what might be happening to her but here, in the house where she’d grown up, it was impossible to push those thoughts aside.
“No calls.” Stella entered the room and walked over to the bar. “What would you like to drink?”
“Coffee—if it’s not too much trouble.”
“One coffee coming right up.” She flashed him a bright smile. “I think I’ll have something stronger, though.”
Kelly listened to the clink of bottle on glass and the sound of coffee making. After she handed him a steaming mug, he watched her curl up in a chair.
“Well!” She fixed her eyes on his. “Where do we go from here?”
“I want to ask you something and I’m trying to word it so you won’t be offended but frankly it’s a little difficult considering the subject matter.”
Stella tilted her head and gave him a cocky grin. “Why don’t you just go ahead and spit it out? That’s usually the best way.”
Kelly returned her grin. “Okay! What would you say if I suggested Andrew might be setting this whole kidnapping thing up so he can kill Krystal and blame it on a kidnapper?”
“But Andrew was here at home when Krystal was supposedly kidnapped. I can vouch for that myself.”