Spoiled Rotten Murder: A Plain Jane Mystery (The Plain Jane Mysteries Book 5)

by Traci Tyne Hilton

  “Ew.”

  “It’s just…what if the hit and run wasn’t an accident? What if someone was waiting at the curb to hit me? Like that Brad character. Or, if not him, what if that was the kind of thing Brad was intimating when he said murder was a dangerous thing?”

  Jake was silent.

  “Dumb idea. Sorry.”

  “I’m coming home first thing tomorrow.”

  “Don’t rush. No one was trying to kill me.”

  “Our work ended early. I’d like to say I was dropping everything to come to you, but I can’t. I’m thankful that we’re done earlier than expected. First thing tomorrow. Please, stay at my place. I’ll be a perfect gentleman, and Phoebe lives there anyway.”

  “And leave Gemma alone with a killer on the loose? No way.”

  “I’m not joking around. So this guy ran over my sister and damaged her ankle badly enough that she needed surgery. But he didn’t kill her. So he wasn’t going that fast. So your idea that he was lying in wait for you, or just someone you care about, is a solid theory.”

  Jane pulled her blanket up to her chin. “Oh.”

  “Gemma can come stay, too. The old Crawford homestead has plenty of bedrooms.”

  “I’ll ask her. She’s not in right now.”

  “I’d stay at your place to protect you, but I don’t want to get run over.”

  Jane laughed again. “It’s past midnight and I have a client in the morning.”

  “Go to sleep then. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  It was all well and good to say go to sleep, but that didn’t mean it was easy.

  Fourteen

  The idea that Phoebe had been run down by someone trying to get at Jane nagged at Jane well into the next day. When she finally made it to the SCoRI office, she shared her fear with Flora and Rocky.

  Rocky held a large mug in his strong, callused hands. He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully and looked at Flora.

  She raised an eyebrow. “Paranoia is one of the side effects of our work.”

  “On the other hand, that shifty Brad character did ambush her at her apartment.” Rocky locked eyes with his wife.

  “Very true. And I don’t think we got a true reading of his character.”

  Jane let out a breath she had been holding. “Maybe not even a true version of his story.”

  “That’s a given. Never trust a hostile witness’s first version of events.” Flora pressed a button on her phone. “Miranda, would you join us?”

  “Be right there.” The speaker on the phone squawked.

  “I think looking into the hit and run won’t hurt anything.” Flora folded her hands on her desk.

  “Is your friend all right?” Rocky asked.

  “Probably, but she hit her head, so we’re still kind of waiting.”

  Rocky grunted in sympathy. “I’ve done that a time or two.”

  Miranda popped in. “Yes?”

  “Hit and run, Phoebe Crawford. She’s at Good Sam. Hit her head. Doesn’t remember anything between getting hit and waking up in the ambulance. Find the witnesses. Get a description of the car and the driver.” Flora rattled off the directions.

  “Sure thing.” Miranda glanced at Jane, a bit of condescension in her eyes.

  “Would you like me to ride along?” Jane was itching to meet the connection that could get Miranda all of those details in a blink like that.

  “Not this time.” Flora pulled some paper out of a manila folder. “I have something else for you to do.”

  Jane attempted to bury her disappointment. That looked like paperwork, and paperwork was no fun.

  “This is a list of instructions. The insurance company didn’t accept our investigation as complete. The insurance claim is your primary concern, so this is what you need to focus on.”

  Jane eyed the list. It was long.

  “I know what you are thinking.” Flora chuckled. “It’s not as long as it looks. Go to each place listed, get a signed statement that Maggie and Kyle paid for the services.” She glanced down at the paper. “There are a few other items, but it shouldn’t take more than a day.” Flora passed the paper over.

  “Okay.” Jane glanced at the list. She had already proven the point with the copies of invoices, hadn’t she? Unless… “Do insurers usually want a signed statement versus copies of invoices?”

  Rocky worked his jaw thoughtfully. “It depends.”

  “We found that IP address, and Brenna is looking into some writing similarities that may lead to a connection between the insurer and the missing groom.”

  “Go on,” Flora said.

  “What if they are responsible for Kyle’s disappearance and so they are balking at paying out—perhaps they think not paying will cover their actions?”

  Flora sighed. “I expect the only way to prove that would be to provide a completely airtight case for paying the claim. Do that, and if they don’t approve the claim, we’ll discuss your theory.”

  “I’ll do my best.” Jane gripped the paper.

  Rocky patted her shoulder. “I bet you will.”

  “One more thing,” Flora said. “Run those last boxes to the zoo for me this evening, will you? We can’t make it out and they need it.”

  “What are they?” Jane asked.

  “Volunteer T-shirts.”

  “Oh.” Jane frowned.

  “Very few of our cases are particularly interesting. And most of them have to do with catching someone funneling money away from its intended purpose and into their own bank.”

  “It’s no problem. I can do it.”

  “Thanks.”

  Rocky stood up and hefted the boxes. “Let me put these in the car for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  Jane sat in her car and called every contact on the list before she drove off. No use running around if the person who could help her wasn’t in, or if the business was closed. She got verbal affirmations that they would all sign a statement, and a good time to pop by in the day, and then turned her attention to the last items on the list.

  The first was to connect with the pastor who had done their premarital counseling. He was also in, and welcomed her to come by right away. It didn’t seem to match up with the counseling place she had seen on the notes from Kyle’s car, but apparently it was what they had done.

  The church was an older mega church. The building reflected the 90s aesthetic that it was built around, and the pastor, though completely friendly, was clean cut and wore a sharp suit, like they did in the 90s. She couldn’t remember the last time her own scruffy pastor had worn a suit.

  “Have a seat.” He indicated a brown leather sofa across from his shiny mahogany desk. He rolled his chair out from behind his desk and sat across from her, his elbow resting on the arm of his chair. “We’ve been praying for Kyle every day.”

  “For the sake of their wedding insurance claim, I need to ask you a few questions about their premarital counseling.” Jane didn’t like that she sounded as though she was reading from a script, but it was too late. The formal atmosphere made her feel like she was in school, doing a report for the newspaper.

  “I’ll try to help, but it was confidential.”

  “Sure,” Jane said. “All I really need is a confirmation that they were invested in the process. Did they make it to all of their appointments? Were they active in their counseling? And did they pay you, if there was a financial cost involved?”

  “I can answer that one. The only cost I ask is for the couples to buy their own books, which they did.”

  “That’s something.”

  “But they had quite a few scheduling complications.”

  “Oh?” Jane’s pen hovered over her notebook.

  “So they only made it to about a third of their meetings.”

  “How many, exactly?”

  He shook his head sadly. “Two.”

  “Only two?”

  “They came to the first meeting, and the second, but they cancelled the last four.”

  “That�
��s not good.”

  He lifted his shoulder and dropped it. “I agree. I had them penciled in for meetings after their honeymoon, but I highly doubted they would come.”

  “Had they participated in the sessions while they were here?”

  “They were pretty closed the first meeting, and a week later, they hadn’t read their chapter.” The pastor had big eyes that were good at showing sorrow.

  Jane set her pencil on her notepad. “Maybe I’d better not mention any of this to the insurance company.”

  “I’m afraid I’m not a very good witness in favor of the couple. I can say that they were truly in love, and that, like so many young people, they thought love was enough and that the counseling was far from a priority, but I don’t think that counts as evidence where a big payout is concerned.”

  “But you would say that?”

  He sat quietly for a moment. “You know…now that I think about it, I couldn’t say it with confidence. They said they were in love, but their body language didn’t back them up. On the other hand, with only two meetings together, I don’t think I have enough evidence to say one way or the other.”

  “Does anyone else at this church have a closer relationship with them? A small group, perhaps?’

  “I’m sorry. We aren’t their home church, and no one here knows them well.”

  Jane had no reason to distrust the pastor, but she wondered in passing if he might not have the insurance company’s interests in mind. “So, if they don’t attend here, how did they end up coming to see you for counseling?”

  “A dear lady in our church suggested us to them.”

  “Hester Paige?” Jane tossed the name out, though she was as sure as she could be that she was right.

  “No, not Hester, though she’s been a member here forever.” He stopped. “Funny you should guess her though. It was Hester’s sister-in-law Cora.”

  “You wouldn’t have contact information for Cora, would you? Maybe she knows the couple well enough to testify that they weren’t just trying to con the company.” She smiled, as innocently as she could, though her heart was drumming like a marching band.

  He leafed through a pamphlet holder on his desk. “Here, have a directory. Cora Paige is in it, under the P’s of course.” He stood up. “I hope she can help you out. I just hate what has happened to this poor couple.”

  She took the directory. “Thank you. I do as well.”

  Cora had suggested this pastor. Cora was related to Hester, who had sold them insurance. Could Cora have planted a seed of doubt in the pastor’s mind in an attempt to help Hester out?

  Jane skipped out on the next item on her list and called Cora Paige, but no one answered. She couldn’t think of a good message to leave, so she hung up, disappointed.

  Jane managed to validate the rest of the items on her to-do list with no complications, which was frankly disappointing. She had wanted to stumble over some other clue that pointed her to this Paige family and their meddling ladies.

  What did two women in their sixties have against Maggie and Kyle anyway? To stick them with insurance that wasn’t a good deal, and hook them up with Pastoral counseling that hadn’t worked out…

  Were they master blackmailers? If so, what secret could they possibly know, and how did they learn it?

  While pondering those questions over tea in the living room of her apartment, her phone rang.

  “Someone from this number called earlier today.” The voice was male, and unfamiliar.

  “Who is this?” Jane yawned. She had made an awful lot of calls today.

  “Shane Paige—Paige Tech. Ring any bells?”

  Paige? It sure did.

  Jane sat up. “I was calling for Cora Paige…I got the number from the church directory.”

  Shane laughed. “Ah. No biggie. She’s not in. Can I take a message?”

  The questions were churning now. “Sure, um…Cora recommended a premarital counselor to a friend of mine. I just had some questions. You know, before I committed to anything. So sorry for calling the business number. Don’t know how I made that mistake.”

  “Oh, that’s just Mom. She can’t be bothered to set up two phone lines.”

  “Your mom runs a tech company? She must be some kind of lady.”

  “You said it. So, you want her to call you back, or not?”

  “Yeah, that would be great. My name is Jane, she can call me back at this same number. Just curious though, what kind of tech is your mom into?”

  Shane paused, and then said something kind of muffled. “Sorry. What was your question?”

  “Nothing really. I was just curious what Paige Tech does.”

  “With a name like Paige? Ebook publishing, of course. I’ll let her know you called.”

  “Thanks.”

  As soon as the call was over, Jane Googled Paige Tech on her phone. The website was pretty iffy…as though someone’s grandma had designed it themselves, in HTML. But the content was pretty interesting.

  Paige Tech published mostly books about game cheat codes.

  And Shane claimed it was his mom’s business.

  Jane scrolled through the sixty-three books listed, and cross referenced them at Amazon. Not all of them were for sale in both places, but the ones that were at Amazon didn’t seem to be selling. She quickly checked Barnes and Noble but they weren’t available there.

  Though sixty-three books of game cheat codes and hacks was an impressive library for one person, it didn’t seem like enough to sustain a thriving business. Shane had thought perhaps someone calling the number from the church directory might have been calling about the business, so maybe Paige Tech had a good reputation in the gaming world.

  But did gamers make phone calls?

  Jane couldn’t take the lazy route any longer. She had too many questions to rely on her phone. She stretched and yawned, and heaved herself out of her overstuffed sofa.

  But before she could get her laptop turned on, there was a soft knock at the door.

  Softly knocking Shave and a Hair Cut.

  She yawned, a warm glow filling her.

  Jake.

  She let him in and greeted him with a sleepy kiss.

  “My love.” He dipped her and kissed her again. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to see you.”

  “Right back atcha.” It was funny, the little break almost completely soothed her righteous anger.

  “And thank you for checking in on Phoebe. I visited her before I came over.”

  “Of course! I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.” Jane glanced towards her bedroom, half afraid she’d forget the things she wanted to Google.

  “She’s doing well. They are going to discharge her in the morning.” He looked around the room. “I see your bags aren’t packed.”

  “To be honest,” Jane said, “I haven’t had two minutes to consider hiding out at the Crawford mansion, much less the time to pack for it.”

  “Is Gemma here?” Jake asked.

  “No, she texted earlier to let me know she was out with Grant tonight. I don’t expect her back until much later.”

  “Those two…”

  “I know, but what can I do? She says they are above board and saving themselves—that he’s a good, Southern Baptist boy. I have to trust her, no matter how often she doesn’t come home before morning.”

  “She’s a grown woman, I guess.”

  “And he’s a grown man. And imagine how annoyed she would be to have me questioning her actions while at the same time considering moving to your place for a week or two.”

  “She’s invited as well. And she knows where we stand.”

  “Does anyone really know where someone else stands? All anyone really has to judge by is appearances, and what would appearances tell the world if I moved in with you? Even with Gemma and Phoebe there?”

  “That I was taking care of my woman.” He encircled her waist with his arm and nibbled her ear.

  She scooched away, but laughed. “They’d define taki
ng care of differently than you do, and they’d expect that both Phoebe and Gemma approved.”

  Jake sighed. “I guess you’re right.”

  “So I will have to take precautions, be wise in my actions, and trust God to take care of me, even though a fledgling journalist popped over to see me uninvited and your sister got hit by a car.”

  “You make me sound like I overreacted when you put it that way.”

  “I’m trying to keep some perspective, you know? If I let myself think someone is trying to hurt me and those I love, I might as well move to Phoenix with my parents and get out of the detective business altogether.”

  “Or just marry me and let me take care of you.”

  “But you wouldn’t want me to rush the wedding just so I won’t be scared.”

  “You have very little understanding of the male psyche, my dear.”

  “You would want that?”

  “A beautiful girl who can’t wait to marry me because I can protect her? You’re right. It would be crazy for a man to like that.” He laughed. “Get your coat or purse or whatever kind of girl stuff you need. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

  Jane opened her mouth to protest, and looked toward her bedroom door again.

  “I interrupted something.”

  “Give me three minutes to make some notes. I just don’t want to forget what I need to look into.”

  Jake tilted his wrist up like he was timing her on a stop watch. “On your mark, get set, GO!”

  Jane ran to her room and made her list, careful to be sure it was readable. She really had missed Jake, and for once, she would rather see what he was up to than dig into her case.

  Jake took her all the way across the river to the McMennimins with sweeping views of the Columbia. He had underestimated the wait time, but they didn’t mind spending an extra hour walking the path that fronted the river.

  A cool breeze inspired them to walk a little closer than normal, shoulder to shoulder, her hand wrapped over his arm. She loved the smell of him: a little bit sporty-man deodorant, a little bit Dial soap. Even though he wasn’t a giant of a man, he had a few inches on her—just enough to make her feel safe.

  “You work harder than any other three people combined.” Jake’s tone was low and romantic, for her ears only. “So I feel it is my duty to remind you, now and again, that you deserve a little pampering.”