“How may I help?” the nurse asked me.
“May I have something to eat?”
“Let’s get a doctor in here to make sure that’s okay.” The nurse said as she checked my vital signs on the monitor next to my bed. “You stick around, okay? I’ll be right back,” she said as she rushed out the door.
A tall woman in a white lab coat entered my room and introduced herself as Dr. Phillips.
“How are you feeling?” she asked, much less hurried than the nurse had been.
“A little lightheaded, but that might be a lack of coffee,” I said.
The doctor chuckled. “We have really rotten coffee here, so I suggest you get out of here and find something decent. I’ll send the nurse to discharge you.”
“Do you know what drug I took?” I asked the doctor.
“We’re assuming an opioid, but what specifically, we don’t know. We’ve been treating you with an anti-opioid medication called Naloxone, which stops the effects of narcotics. You’ve bounced back after a couple of doses, so I can only assume that is what you consumed. We’re running some tests to verify, but we won’t have the results for a couple of days.”
“Am I going to be okay?”
“You should be fine. You might feel a little dizzy and lightheaded for day or two. I wouldn’t go running any marathons if I were you.”
“No chance of that,” I replied, happy to hear I could get out of this place and return to leading my mostly normal life.
“If you’re still feeling dizzy by the midweek, please get in touch with your doctor. If anything surprising shows up in your lab work, we’ll be in touch,” Dr. Phillips said from the doorway.
“Thanks,” I said. Tessa helped me get dressed. The less time I spent in the hospital, the better. I asked Tessa how the fashion show and auction had been, as I suspected I’d been zonked out for so long I’d missed the event.
“You didn’t miss it, silly. You’re not like Rip Van Winkle. You haven’t been asleep for years. The gala is tonight.”
“Are you ready? Is everything ready? I mean, I didn’t even—”
“Relax, everything is fine. We’re ready.”
“Do you think I can come?”
“The doctor didn’t give you any restrictions, so as long as you behave yourself, I don’t see why you can’t go.”
“But, did Val’s Uncle Freddie get in touch with you? Does he know what to do?“
“We’re ready. All you need to do is show up tonight. I’ll make sure Zachary can bring you to the theater. You probably shouldn’t drive quite yet.”
The nurse arrived with several forms for me to sign, and I settled into the requisite wheelchair for the ride downstairs.
“I’m going to get the car,” Tessa said, placing my handbag and the giant pink bear in my lap with a smirk and parted ways with us.
As I was wheeled down the corridor by the nurse, I noticed a uniformed police officer standing outside the open door of one of the patient rooms. Glancing into it, I saw Nika sitting on the side of the bed.
“Excuse me, can you please stop for a moment? I’d like to talk with someone.” The nurse stopped. I got out of the wheelchair, grabbed the pink bear, and walked on shaky knees to the officer. “May I please visit the person in this room?”
“Sorry, ma’am, I’ve got strict orders not to let anyone in here,” the officer replied.
“Oh, but I’ve got this adorable gift for her.” I thought maybe a little guilt might help. “Please don’t send me away without being able to give it to her.”
“Ma’am, I’ve got strict orders. No visitors.”
I wobbled back to the wheelchair, putting the bear in the seat, and grabbed my phone out of my purse. I made a call, and then took the phone to the officer.
“Yes, of course, Detective Grant.” After a brief conversation the officer hung up and handed the phone back to me. It’s good to have friends in high places, or a boyfriend who works in the homicide division of the Seattle PD.
“Go on in, but don’t try and take her out of there,” the officer said, chagrinned.
I entered the room and sat down next to Nika.
“I don’t want to talk to you,” she said, her arms folded across her chest.
“I just want to understand what you were doing. And why.”
“Austin and Amanda—they had so much, but they didn’t know how to use it. Austin spent all his time volunteering, trying to help the poor and the little people like me. Amanda—she spent all of her time trying to make more money so people would admire her.”
“And the drugs—were you giving them to Austin?”
“He was in pain, and I was just trying to help. He’d fallen off the ladder at the theater and broken his hip, and he had a lot of pain for months and months. The doctor had been giving him Oxycontin but eventually cut him off. He said he didn’t want Austin to become addicted. But it was too late. So, I did him a favor, I made some trades, and I got him the drugs he needed. I slipped them into his coffee. He was so happy to be pain-free—he thought he was finally well. I couldn’t break the news to him that he was addicted to narcotics. Anytime I cut back, he’d get sick, and the longer he went, the angrier he’d get, until he was raging at everyone. I swear. I didn’t want to harm him. I was just trying to help. Besides, if I told him, he would’ve wanted to know where the drugs came from. How was I supposed to tell him they came from his own wife’s drug smuggling business?”
“But why did you care what happened to Austin?”
“Look, Austin decided I was his favorite little homeless girl. How could I resist that? He gave me a roof over my head and a job. The only thing I could do was ease his pain. How else could I ever repay him?”
“I don’t know. Maybe by killing him?”
“That doesn’t make sense, does it? I didn’t want anything to change. Everything was going fine. Amanda was happy with all the money coming in, and that left Austin to run his theater and give it cash infusions whenever the coffers were empty. Me? I got a nice salary and some not-strictly-legal fringe benefits. If Austin were dead, then Amanda wouldn’t need to raise money for the theater. She’d already told me she didn’t want to keep importing. She was ready to retire, but couldn’t stop as long as Austin continued donating everything she made, minus my cut.”
“But why couldn’t you just sell beads? You didn’t have to smuggle drugs.”
“Are you kidding me? You think I could make enough money selling beads to live a decent life?”
“I do. Mine aren’t silver, they’re glass, but sure, I make enough to make ends meet most months.”
“We couldn’t sell enough beads to fund Austin’s little pet projects and donations all over the city. Such a philanthropist—if they only knew where the money was coming from.”
“So, you’re a drug trafficker, but not a murderer?”
“Something like that.” She gave me a look that was hard to decipher—a mix of defiance and defeat.
The nurse with my wheelchair knocked on the door.
“Excuse me, but I think we should be going,” she said, peeking her head inside the room.
“Wait. Just one more thing—how did you know I was working for someone to investigate you?”
“Come on, Jax. You’re not a Tony Award winning actor.” Nika gave me a disdainful sneer.
She rose on her crutches and headed for the wheelchair as if it was meant for her. The cop stopped her at the door.
“Excuse me,” I said, barging past her, grabbing the pink bear, and plopping myself down into the wheelchair. “Let’s go.”
TWENTY-TWO
Tessa drove up the narrow alley between my house and Mr. Chu’s and pulled in next to my car.
“Wow! How did the Ladybug get back here? I left her at the Greers,” I said.
“Zachary took your keys and drov
e it back here. He’s been worried sick about you, you know, but isn’t too keen to sit idly by your hospital bed. He’d rather be out doing something. Oh, and he told me he put your purse and your keys on the kitchen table.”
And for that, I appreciated Zachary more than he would ever know.
As Tessa helped me out of the van, Mr. Chu hurried across the alley with a small package in his weathered hands.
“Your friend, that man who brought your car back, he told me you were in the hospital. I have this little gift for you—from my shop.”
“Oh, thank you, Mr. Chu,” I said, accepting the package and attempting to hug him.
He waved me away. “You better get in bed, save your hugs for someone else.” Mr. Chu, I had learned long ago, wasn’t much of a hugger.
“I’ll see you tonight at the auction. I’ve got to get ready and feed my cats. Otherwise, I won’t be able to go,” he said with a wave as he headed back across the alley.
Tessa settled me in bed with my package from Mr. Chu.
“You rest. I’ll make sure Zachary picks you up and brings you to the gala. You just need to be dressed and ready by six. Okay? And you can call Val, she can help you, too. I’ve got to get over to the theater.” Tessa gave me a hug and left. She was back a minute later with the large pink bear.
“You don’t want to forget this,” Tessa said, placing the bear on the bed next to me and dashing out the door before I could throw it at her.
Opening the small box from my neighbor, I discovered an egg-sized bronze sculpture of a chicken. How odd. I didn’t have a particular affinity for chickens, but the sculpture was interesting and unusual. I would have to ask him about it when I saw him tonight. Testing out my wobbly legs, I slowly wandered back to my studio and placed it on the window ledge above my worktable among the many other treasures I’d collected over the years. After that, I rested on the sofa for a while, dozing on and off all afternoon. Gumdrop joined me mid-afternoon to knead his claws into my side.
“Geez, Gummie, why don’t you settle down here with me?” My cat didn’t say a word. He just walked back and forth across the couch. “Oh, I know, you want to be fed. I bet Val hasn’t been feeding you.”
Gumdrop and I padded across the living room to the kitchen. I was a still little lightheaded, but I felt like I was functioning pretty well given the circumstances. I scooped half a can of cat food into Gumdrop’s bowl.
Val burst in my front door, startling both me and Gumdrop.
“Hello, my little honey bunches! How are you feeling? Tessa told me I should check on you. Are you okay? Do you need to—”
“Val, slow down, will you? I’m fine, just a little woozy.”
“You can’t go and get yourself killed, you know. Gumdrop needs you,” Val said, crushing me in a hug.
“Just Gumdrop?” I squeaked as Val continued to squeeze me. “Um, Val? You can let go now.”
“Oh, sorry. I need you too,” she said, releasing me from her killer grip so I could breathe again.
“Whoa, Val—”
“Too much?”
“You’re always too much and that’s why I love you,” I said, stabilizing myself by grabbing the edge of the kitchen table.
“I love you too and want to take care of you. It’s also why I’m going to help you get ready for the gala.”
“Oh, that’s okay. I’m sure I can manage,” I said. Val’s high energy was taking its toll. I was already exhausted.
“No, I insist,” Val said, charging toward my bedroom. “Let’s see what we’ve got here.” Val started flipping through the dresses hanging in my closet, muttering to herself as she evaluated each one, “no, no, no.”
“Wait! I have a new dress,” I said, rummaging through my handbag to find my car keys.
“Where is it?”
“In the trunk of the Ladybug.” I tossed her my keychain.
Val popped out to the car and met me in my bedroom a moment later.
“Bravo! What a spectacular dress,” she said, pulling off the plastic cover to get a good look at my little black dress. “I’m so proud of you. You picked this out yourself?”
“I did. And I even have some jewelry to wear with it. It’s in the top drawer of my dresser.”
Val found the necklace and held it up to the dress. The black beads with red polka dots and the red beads with black polka dots, strung into a short choker, worked perfectly. I was so happy I’d decided to keep this piece.
“That works for you. Me, I like something a little more sparkly.” This was not at all surprising, because nothing was ever sparkly enough for Val.
“And speaking of jewelry, did Tessa get enough necklaces for all the outfits?”
“She did! We have ten, two for each girl. There are two from you, two from Tessa, one from Mr. Chu, one from me, one from Rosie, one from Dylan, one from Frankie, and one from Amanda Greer. It took some searching to find the silver one from Amanda—it had fallen down behind your worktable. Probably Gummie knocked it off.”
“Sorry about that. Gumdrop has been spending a lot of time on that table rearranging things.”
“Now, do you want me to help you with your clothes?” Val asked.
“No, I am capable of dressing myself. Besides, there are a couple of hours to go before the gala even starts. And, I think I need another nap.”
I heard a double-honk coming from the street in front of the house.
“Oh! That must be Buff. He’s taking me to the theater on his motorcycle. How exciting is that? The models will be arriving soon so I can do their hair and makeup. Take care, doll, see you tonight.”
“Is that what you’re wearing?” I asked her. She wasn’t in one of her over-the-top outfits today. Instead, she was wearing all black.
“Everyone knows you must wear black when you’re working backstage,” Val said, as she posed like Vanna White so I could fully appreciate her skin-tight black leather pants and black long sleeve sweater with a plunging neckline. “See you tonight for the big event!” She blew an air kiss at me and headed out the door.
I followed Val to the door. I had to see this. She skipped down the front steps to Buff and his ride.
Buff handed her a leather jacket and a bright yellow helmet, which she pulled on with difficulty over her fluffy red hair. A fringe of bangs nearly covered her eyes, and a big puff of hair at the bottom edge of the helmet made her look like a demented lion with a shaggy mane.
“Do not laugh,” Val shouted at me from the curb. She situated herself in the sidecar of the motorcycle, Buff gunned the bike’s engine, and they were off. Val squealed as they drove away.
I didn’t laugh—much.
Back inside, I wobbled back to my studio. I needed to find some earrings to match my necklace and dress, and having a little time to spare, I looked through my plastic storage bins for the perfect pair to pull from my inventory. I found some dangly seed bead earrings that were black and red—they’d be perfect with the rest of the outfit. It was good I’d found something I’d already completed. I wasn’t sure if I could have managed to use my jewelry pliers to make new ones with wire and beads, since my strength wasn’t back to normal quite yet.
Zachary arrived, as promised, at six. I had made it into my new black dress and matching jewelry. I’d even applied my standard makeup: bronzer and tinted lip balm. My lightheadedness had subsided into a low buzz at the base of my skull, which was a relief.
“You look fantastic. So beautiful,” Zachary said, hugging me and giving me a gentle kiss on the cheek.
“It’s my new dress, and see, I even had a necklace and earrings to match.” I did a little twirl, which I realized right away was the wrong thing to do. I stopped and grabbed one of Zachary’s arms. “Whoa! I guess I shouldn’t do that.”
“Are you sure you feel well enough to go?”
“I’m going. I just need to t
ake it easy. No more spinning for me. Good thing I don’t have to be on the runway tonight. I don’t think I could make any of those high-fashion model moves.”
“We’ll leave that to Tessa’s girls,” Zachary said.
He looked handsome in his charcoal wool suit. Usually, his choice of neckties was terrible, but tonight, he’d picked something new—a bow tie.
“Oh, you look so cute in your bow tie,” I said, pulling him close.
“I wasn’t going for cute. I was going for respectable. I guess I missed the mark,” Zachary replied.
“I like it. It’s a keeper, and so are you.” I found my handbag and checked my dress in the mirror by the door. “Any news on what drugs Nika gave me?”
“They’re working on it. Nika isn’t the most cooperative person.”
“What have you been able to find out from Amanda Greer?” I asked Zachary.
“Nothing. She’s gone. No one can find her. We’ve gotten a warrant and searched her house—not a soul there. I think it’s safe to assume she’s in Thailand and we may never see her again.”
“I don’t think so. Nika and Vega both told me Amanda never leaves the house.”
“Maybe they’re lying.”
“I think Nika spends most of her life lying. But why would Vega lie? Actually, do you know if your team found a panic room at the Greers’ house? When I met Vega, she said when threatened, Amanda would retreat into her panic room. I thought it was a metaphor when she said it. I mean, who has an actual panic room in their house?”
“I don’t know, but I’d bet the Greers do. Let me get in touch with the officers who did the search and have them search again. We may need to get our hands on the blueprints to the house to find the room, which might take a little time.”
“You could ask Vega. She’d know where to look.”
“Good idea. I’ll have them get in touch with her.” While Zachary called his team, I went to put on my shoes. Coming in the bedroom door, I was faced with an enormous pink teddy bear. Oh dear! I really didn’t want to explain the bear. I picked it up and turned to stuff it into my closet, but it was too late.
To Bead or Not to Bead, Glass Bead Mystery Series, Book 4 Page 17