Unwilling Accomplice - Barbara Seranella

by Barbara Seranella

  She told the other guys she’d see them on Monday then loaded Asia and Jasper into her car. They all drove to what could have been their house.

  She wondered if Garret was still living with that woman he was teaching to work on cars. The one he’d met at the aquarium store before Munch and he broke up. Jenny, her name was Jenny and she was a bit of a snot or had been on the last occasion Munch had seen her. Maybe she thought Munch would try to steal back Garret.

  "What’s so funny?" Asia asked.

  "Just thinking about something," Munch said. "Nothing worth going into."

  Garret Dimond lived in West Los Angeles, which was a small area for such a big name. It was nestled among the towns of Rancho Park, Westwood, and Palms and bordered by two major freeways. As much time as she spent in, and as many recent connections she had to the neighboring communities, she had managed to avoid that particular grid of streets as if they were lined with plague bacteria. She didn’t know what scared her so much. How bad could it be to chance upon an ex? Well, two exes if she counted Derek, who, if he hadn’t moved, lived six blocks away from Garret. Nothing about Derek had ever frightened her.

  Maybe she felt guilty for dumping Garret. He had loved her, but she couldn’t return the feeling. A part of her always felt guilty about that. Maybe she was apprehensive about how she would handle seeing his organized, straight lifestyle, knowing that if she had stayed with him, she could one day be one of those upper-middle-class ladies in a station wagon with credit cards. If nothing else, Garret was steady and reliable. There were moments when she wondered if she had given up on the relationship too soon.

  Maybe that's why she avoided seeing him. Her reaction was similar to the philosophy she applied when playing the slot machines in Vegas. Once she gave up on a machine, she moved to an opposite corner of the casino. Nothing felt worse than seeing the next gambler hit the jackpot and knowing all it would have taken her was six more quarters and two more pulls.

  Twenty minutes later, she pulled into the driveway of Garret Dimond’s house behind a Saab Sonnet. An older 99-series model was on the street. Obviously he still lived here. These old Saabs were rare beasts, and mechanics who knew how to work on them were even rarer. Garret could pick and choose his clients. Lou had a good-old-boy distrust of foreign cars and those who chose to work on them. She loved the big American cars, too, but the German and Japanese imports were obviously the wave of the future. She doubted if Saabs would ever catch on.

  Garret’s front yard wasn't landscaped, not with any color anyway. A large pine tree shaded hard-packed dirt, which looked as if it had been raked. The redbrick flower box under the front window was filled with more dry dirt and topped with brown pine needles. With Asia and Jasper in tow, she rang the doorbell.

  Garret answered after several long minutes, just as Munch was thinking she should have called ahead. His expression wavered between bewilderment and pleasure. He leaned toward her and kissed her cheek. Very civilized, and to give him credit, the gesture was sincere.

  "Hi," she said. "Can we come in?"

  He opened the door wide.

  "Who’s this?" he asked, bending down to pet Jasper.

  Asia made the introductions before Munch had a chance.

  "Sorry to barge in on you like this," Munch said. "I have this I Beta tape I need to watch and I was wondering if you still had that—"

  "Cool!" Asia interrupted. Her outburst had been elicited by a hundred-gallon saltwater tank complete with its own coral reef and layers of fish of exceptional color and variety.

  He smiled. "You like?"

  Munch looked at the tank and then took in the rest of the room. His walls were painted a nice shade of apricot. Baskets of varying weaves, tapestries, and a collection of African masks decorated the walls at eye level and up. Small shelves held interesting vases and artifacts.

  "Nice," Munch said. "Why didn’t you decorate like this when I knew you?"

  "I don’t want to tell you. It would just piss you off."

  She took him at his word. She was there for a favor. This was not the time to introduce subjects that would require angry responses.

  Munch held up the tape. "Can we do this now?"

  "Sure, help yourself. It’s set up in the office." His office was a converted back bedroom where his Saab clients could sit on a couch and read a magazine while they waited for their car. Asia stayed with Garret to admire his tropical fish.

  "Don’t touch the glass," Munch heard Garret say.

  She remembered how he wasn’t really good around kids. He hadn’t seen Asia in months, and he was worried about her fingerprints leaving smudges instead of enjoying her company. Munch had made the right choice with him. He wasn’t a bad guy, but he wasn’t the right guy either. Munch and Jasper walked down the hall to the back rooms. She made a point of not turning her head and looking in his bedroom. Nothing that went on there was any of her business.

  She loaded the videotape and pushed PLAY.

  The bumpy frames of a home movie materialized. Three kids walked up to a house. She paused the picture. She knew the two boys. Steve Koon and Dave Limitz. It took her a second to recognize Painter Dave. He was wearing jeans, sneakers, and a polo shirt. His hair was short and neatly groomed.

  This tape must have been made at least a few months ago. She resumed the action. Steve was holding a baseball. The boys put on gloves and tossed it between themselves. The ball rolled into the bushes. Steve Koon went after it while Dave walked around the side of the house. A moment later the front door opened and a young girl stood in the doorway inviting them in. Munch paused the tape again. The girl was Charlotte, her hair tied back in a braid, but not dyed any outlandish colors.

  She was also wearing gloves.

  Munch pushed the button that allowed the film to continue. Nothing happened for a while, just the image of the house. She advanced the tape at a faster speed until there was new movement.

  The garage door opened and a car emerged with the three kids inside. Charlotte was at the wheel. Munch adjusted the player to resume at real time.

  She turned up the volume in time to hear a dog’s high-pitched bark. Jasper stood and stared at the television screen.

  A voice off-screen said, "Queenie, hush."

  Munch knew that voice. It was the voice of the man who had called Lisa’s house the day after Charlotte’s disappearance. She’d heard the voice since this whole mess had started, too, but she had been too distracted by other things to put it all together. She’d made a terrible mistake. Possibly a fatal mistake. She’d overlooked the obvious, what was now very obvious. She ejected the tape without rewinding it and ran back to the living room.

  "I need another favor," she said. She hated to ask, hated to incur the debt, but she knew her limitations and this was no time for ego. Garret was still big and strong, and that might come in handy. "First, can I use your phone?"

  "Local call?" Then he caught himself. "Whatever, help yourself."

  Munch called Rico. The phone rang ten times. With each ring, her impatience grew. Finally, an answering machine picked up. She waited the interminable seconds for the outgoing message to conclude, then told him where she was going and to meet her there. She also told him it was urgent.

  She hung up and turned to Garret. "Would you take a ride with me? I don’t know what we’ll find. It might even be dangerous. I’d appreciate the backup."

  "You’ll explain on the way?"

  "Yes, but we need to hurry " Mouseman had crossed the line and was eliminating everything that tied him to his crimes.

  Painter Dave had been killed because he had become a liability.

  Everyone tied to Mouseman had now become a liability.

  Chapter 23

  The Jag was in the Koons’ driveway The Range Rover was not. Munch knocked on the door. No answer. She walked around to a side window and peered inside. What she saw made her run back to the front door and try the knob. The door was locked.

  "What’s up?" Garret asked.
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  "There’s a body on the floor in there. I can see her feet."

  Munch popped open her trunk and retrieved her tire iron. Garret was already at the door, kicking at the jamb. It gave a bit, but held fast.

  "Here," Munch said, pushing him to one side, "let me."

  She forced the tapered steel tip of the tire iron into the space between the frame and the door. Garret grabbed the curved end and pried. The door gave with a crack of splintering wood. Munch pointed at Asia. "Stay in the car. Lock yourself in."

  Asia didn’t have to be asked twice. Munch rushed to the body on the floor. Empty bottles of booze and pills littered the carpet around her head. Cheryl was barely breathing. A photograph of her dead son lay under her cheek.

  Garret lifted the phone and called 911. Munch heard him explain that they had found a woman unconscious. "She appears to have overdosed on drugs and alcohol," he said. He covered the mouthpiece and said to Munch, "They want me to stay on the line tmtil the ambulance gets here."

  "Tell them to send the police, too," Munch said. "This was no accident." It wasn’t a suicide attempt either, she thought.

  The props were too obvious. This scene had been staged and she knew by whom. "Garret, keep an eye on the car. Please."

  Munch quickly searched the rest of the house.

  "Should you be doing this?" Garret asked nervously. "Did you find something?"

  "It’s what I’m not finding that’s more telling." All the home movies were gone.

  The ambulance and the police arrived within minutes of each other. Cheryl was loaded on a gurney and whisked off in a riot of sirens and flashing lights.

  At the patrol officers’ insistence, Munch and Garret waited outside. Asia was still in the car, but she’d rolled down the window.

  "Would you call dispatch," Munch asked the nearest cop, "and find out if Detective Chacon is on his way?"

  Garret raised an eyebrow.

  "That’s her boyfriend," Asia volunteered. "His name is Rico. He’s a cop." She sounded pretty smug about it.

  Munch stroked Asia’s cheek and smiled. Jasper was shaking so she made reassuring noises and stroked his head. She finally looked at Garret, realizing that she had been avoiding just that.

  "Thanks for coming here with us," she said.

  Garret shook his head. "I guess you don’t need me anymore. I'd leave now, but we came in your car."

  She wished she could zap him home magically "It was nice seeing you again, whatever the circumstances." She stroked Jasper again. "How’s Jenny by the way?"

  "Probably wondering where I am." It had started to get dark. Dinnertime for most of the normal world.

  "I’m glad that’s worked out for you," she said. "You deserve it."

  Rico arrived and made his way over to them with long, confident strides. He went to Munch first. "Are you all right?"

  "Yeah, sure, don’t worry about me."

  Rico turned his gaze to Garret. "Hi, and you are?" One thing about cops, they were trained to be direct.

  "This is Garret Dimond," Munch said quickly before Asia had a chance to comment. "Garret, this is Rico Chacon."There, that wasn’t so bad. The two men shook hands.

  Rico stared at her. His eyes looked almost black. She felt a small thrill at his apparent jealousy. She knew she shouldn’t.

  "He had a Betamax VCR." she said. "I had this tape that Jill had and I thought it might have important information— Shit. What time is it?"

  Rico looked at his watch. "Almost six."

  "We’ve got to come up with a different plan," Munch said.

  "I can’t show up in the limo now."

  "Why not?"

  "I’d be recognized. Michael Koon knows I have a limo. I was driving it the day I came here to talk to Cheryl."

  "Call the buyer and tell him the plan is off."

  Munch nodded. "Garret needs a ride home."

  Rico turned to Garret. "Where do you live?"

  "On Moore, near Rose." Garret said.

  Rico held out his hand. Munch, understanding what he wanted, retrieved the tape from her car and handed it to him.

  He crooked a finger to Garret. "You can ride with me." He turned back to Munch. "Will you go home now?"

  "I think that’s best."

  "I’ll come over later," Rico said. Then he bent down and kissed her. He wasn’t given to public displays, or at least he had never been before. She could get used to this. She watched the two men leave in Rico’s car.

  "I wonder what they’re talking about," Asia said.

  "Maybe Rico will tell us later."

  "I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you."

  Munch looked at her daughter and wondered for not the first time which incarnation she was on. Munch went back to her house and called Mr. Webster.

  "There’s been a change of plans."

  "How did you know?"

  "What are you talking about?"

  "The seller contacted me. He’s coming here, to my house. He said his schedule had changed and we needed to make our meeting later."

  "No, you can’t do that. This guy is dangerous"

  "Oh, dear." Webster said, "he has no reason to harm me."

  "He might try to rob you. The guy is serious trouble. He’s killed two boys and maybe a woman. He’s got nothing to lose and he’s running on desperate."

  "I'll call him back. Oh, no, I don’t have his number. I’ll leave a note on the door and put out the lights"

  "When do you expect him?"

  "He said to look for him around seven-thirty but he might be as late as eight. That’s why he thought I'd be more comfortable in my own home."

  "What’s your address?" Munch wrote down the street and number. "Okay, lock your doors and call the cops." She gave him the direct line to Dispatch and told him whom to ask for

  and what to say.

  "I’l1 call you right back," he said.

  Munch hung up. Two minutes later, the phone rang again. She was surprised he’d been able to get through so quickly.

  "Hello?"

  "Auntie Munch?"

  "Where are you?" Munch felt her knees weaken and realized she had feared she would never hear Jill’s voice again, a fear she had refused to acknowledge until this second. "Where are you? Are you all right? Is Charlotte with you?"

  "lt’s my mom. She's really sick. We took her to the hospital."

  "What’s wrong with your mom? How did you hook up with her?"

  "She went to her friend’s house, Charlotte figured she would. The guy sells her medicine, but it must not have been the right kind. She had one of her attacks. I really don’t know what’s happening and I’m kinda scared."

  "Where’s Charlotte?"

  "She’s talking to the doctors or somebody trying to find out what’s going on."

  "Which hospital?"

  "Daniel Freeman."

  "In Inglewood?"

  "Yes. But we’re going to leave as soon as Charlotte talks to the doctors."

  "Stay there, I'll come get you."

  "Charlotte said to ask you if we can pretend the ten years is up."

  "Sure," Munch said, understanding immediately. Ten years had been too long to begin with. "Jill?"

  "Yeah?" Her voice sounded very small. Munch wished she could wrap her arms around her. She had to get to her first.

  "Don’t worry honey. This is all fixable. Just stay safe." What she meant was "stay alive" but she figured Jill was savvy enough to figure that out.

  ***

  She parked on the street in front of the Slokums’ former home in Inglewood. The Dodge was wedged against a wall in someone’s carport, mostly hidden by a large Dumpster.

  She stood and looked around, making herself visible. A jet flew overhead and Asia covered her ears with her hands. Charlotte emerged from the bushes. She had actually put on a few pounds. The goth makeup was gone and her skin had a healthy glow. Jill followed, looking subdued.

  They spent a long minute in a wordless hug, then Munch put Jill in the ba
ckseat and Charlotte next to her. Jasper curled in Asia's lap, resting his head on the girl’s knee.

  Munch considered the picture they presented. A car full of kids. A cocker spaniel. A mom. She wished it were all as idyllic as that. Would other drivers glance their way and think, How

  nice?

  Munch was seized with an urge to stop for ice cream, to prolong the fantasy, or more accurately to delay reality.

  "I watched the tape," Munch said.

  Charlotte nodded. Tears filled her eyes.

  "Tell me what I was looking at." Munch was pretty sure she knew already. She needed to know if Charlotte was ready to come clean and begin putting this all behind her.

  "What you saw," Charlotte said, "was a burglary in progress. Mouseman taped us all." Her voice broke and the next words she said were uttered through her tears. "He kept the tapes and said they would help us learn."

  "Any job worth doing is worth doing right," Munch said.

  To her credit, Charlotte laughed. It was an important skill to be able to laugh and cry at the same time.

  "So how did you get the tape?" Munch asked.

  "We stole it," Charlotte said.

  "We?"

  "Me and Steve. I wanted to take it to the police and explain everything, but my mom had another idea."

  "Your mom knew about this?"

  "I wanted her to go with me to the cops, then Steve was murdered. She said we couldn’t bring Steve back, and that the cops would bust me, too. She said we could make Mouseman leave us alone."

  "By blackmailing him?" Munch was sure that Lisa had convinced herself that she was doing the right thing. She had for sure felt justified, and knowing Lisa, she had probably felt even a little noble, as if she were striking a blow for the greater good.

  Charlotte buried her face in her hands. "Dumb idea. I know. But she said Jill and I would be taken away from her if the cops found out that I had been breaking into homes and stealing. I only did it a few times, and I am, like, a minor. I wanted her to ask you for help, that’s why we called you."

  Munch remained quiet, waiting for Charlotte to fill in the rest.

  "Mouseman was supposed to bring the money to our house Monday night, but instead he broke in on Sunday night when we were all asleep, grabbed me, and tied me up. He locked me in one of the storage units in the same building as ours. He said he’d keep me there until Mom gave up the tape. I could hear you guys when you came that day, but I was tied up and