by B R Snow
“Did she ever mention him to you?” Josie said, glancing over at me.
“Other than saying she had an old friend who was the chef here, not a word,” I said, shaking my head. “So, you two have met?”
“Sure. I used to visit my brother out there, and I saw her all the time,” Bobbie said. “I love Chef Claire. How’s she doing?”
“She’s terrific. We have a restaurant in Clay Bay, and we’re about to open another in the Caymans.”
“That’s great. Tell her I said hi,” Bobbie said. “And make sure you stop by the kitchen when you have some time. My brother would love to meet you.”
“Do you know if they’ve stayed in touch?” Josie said.
“Yeah, a bit, I think,” she said, frowning. “But it seems to have that high-school reunion feel to it. You know what I mean?”
“Sure, sure,” I said, staring off as I recited from experience. “The old…it’s been a long time, you’re looking good, how have you been, nice catching up, see you later, don’t let the door hit you.” I looked across the table at her. “That sort of thing?”
Josie snorted.
“You’re a real romantic, aren’t you?” Bobbie said, laughing.
“I guess I’m more of a realist,” I said, shrugging. “You mentioned money problems. Did something happen?”
“I sunk every nickel I had into a business that went belly up,” she said, getting up as another ruckus broke out at Middleton’s table. “What the heck is it now?”
A man was standing directly in front of Middleton poking his finger into his chest and screaming at him. A woman was tugging at the man’s shirt trying to restrain him. But he shook her off then threw a punch that caught Middleton on the bridge of his nose. Blood began spurting all over the tablecloth. The woman dragged the man away from the table, and I watched as Middleton rocked back and forth in his chair. Then he fell forward, his head bouncing on the table. Several people huddled over him, then Middleton shooed them all away. He got to his feet holding a napkin pressed to his nose, then staggered off in the direction of the bathrooms. Bobbie picked up her tray, waited until Josie selected a few final items, then gave us a quick wave.
“It was nice meeting you,” she said. “Make sure you stop by the kitchen and say hi to my brother.”
“Will do,” I said, returning her wave then focused on Middleton who was struggling to walk without falling.
“Not one of his better days,” Josie said. “And in a room filled with animal lovers. I guess he can’t go anywhere these days without getting the snot beat out of him.”
“I think he just walked through the wrong door,” I said, looking off into the distance. “I don’t think that’s where the bathrooms are.”
“I think you’re right. But his confusion is understandable,” she said, laughing. “Who do you think that last guy who punched him is?”
“I’m gonna go with angry husband.”
“Yeah, that would be my guess. Well, it serves him right. Chase enough cars, eventually you’re going to get run over.”
“Exactly. Geez, it’s really loud in here,” I said.
“It is. And all the alcohol these people are pounding back isn’t helping.”
“You know what I’m thinking?” I said, glancing around the room.
“That instead of hanging out down here with a bunch of drunks, we should head back up to the suite?”
“Yeah,” I said, frowning. “We’re getting old, aren’t we?”
“I prefer the term mature.”
“Then let’s do the mature thing and get out of here,” I said. “And we’re bringing Jack with us.”
“Well, we can’t leave him here,” she said, getting up. “Besides, Middleton has other things to worry about at the moment. When you think about it, we’re actually doing him a favor.”
Then we flinched when we heard a blood-curdling scream coming from the back of the room. We stared off into the far corner of the ballroom and saw a dazed Roxanne wandering in a small circle. Then she screamed again and dropped to her knees. I scooped Jack up in my arms, and we walked over, inching our way through the crowd that had formed a circle around her.
“Roxanne,” I whispered as I knelt down next to her. “What is it?”
“In there,” she said, pointing to her right.
I glanced at Josie. She shrugged, and we carefully made our way toward the door Roxanne had pointed at. I slowly pulled the door open and saw the lifeless body of Joshua Middleton on the floor. His eyes were wide open, and he was staring up at the elaborate stamped tin ceiling. He was still bleeding profusely from the nose but was now sporting a white beard that had been formed by the foam streaming out of his mouth.
“What is that stuff?” Josie said, staring down at the body.
“It must be some sort of poison,” I said, handing the dog to her before kneeling. I looked closely without touching anything and sniffed the air. “It’s definitely some sort of chemical.”
“Is he dead?”
“He certainly seems to be.”
“Geez, another one? You know, we might need to consider a career change,” she said, shaking her head. “Something that involves fewer dead people.”
Marjorie and her son worked their way through the crowd that had assembled near the door. She glanced down at the body then clutched her chest.
“Is he dead?” she whispered.
“Yeah,” I said. “It’d be pretty hard to fake that.”
“Oh, my,” Marjorie said, shaking her head. “What is that stuff coming out of his mouth?”
“It looks like some sort of chemical product.”
“It’s Drano,” Thomas said.
“The stuff you use to unclog drains?” I said as my Snoopmeter turned itself on.
“Yeah,” he said.
I stared at him, an action he soon grew uncomfortable with.
“What?” he said, eventually.
“I’m just wondering how you would know that?” I said, my tone accusatory. I raised an eyebrow at him and maintained eye contact.
“Suzy, dial it down,” Josie said.
“What is it?” Marjorie said, confused.
“She’s wondering if I was the one who killed him,” Thomas said, laughing.
“Oh, that’s ridiculous,” Marjorie snapped as she shot me a dirty look.
“No, I’m not,” I said, completely on the defensive. “It’s just that you sounded so sure what it is.”
“I’m positive that’s what it is,” he said, casually.
“Are you an expert in plumbing?”
“What?” he said, frowning at me. “Of course not.”
“Are you trained in criminal procedures?” I said.
“No.”
“Psychic?”
“Well, I am pretty good at seeing annoying people heading my way.”
“Funny,” I said, fighting back a surge of adrenaline. “How do you know it’s Drano?”
“Let’s call it a hunch,” he said, pointing at the empty can of drain cleaner lying on the floor next to the body.
“Oh,” I said, flushing red with embarrassment. “Sure, sure.”
“Smooth,” Josie said, shaking her head.
“Shut it.”
Chapter 5
Swathed in a luxurious bathrobe that was like wearing a thick-cotton-massage, I ran a comb through my wet hair and looked in the mirror. I tossed the comb next to the sink and shrugged.
“Close enough,” I said, then headed for the living room.
Josie was already sitting on a couch in an identical robe with her feet up on the coffee table and Jack draped over her lap. She was flipping through the channels, landed on the local news, then set the remote down next to her.
“We need to get a couple of these robes,” I said, sitting down next to her.
“Yeah, I know. It’s like getting a hug from the Easter Bunny.”
“You mean, if the Easter Bunny was five-feet-tall and made of cotton, right?”
“Exactly. Well, it hasn’t made the news yet.”
“It won’t be long. I just saw it on my phone.”
“Pet store magnate poisoned at animal conference?”
“That was pretty much the gist of it,” I said, yawning. “Man, those cops sure took their time. It must be boring to keep asking the same questions over and over.”
“Well, you should know. They’re just being cautious. It’s a big story,” she said, draping an arm over Jack. “And horrible PR for the hotel. Not to mention the city.”
“Yeah. And there’s, what, over 600 possible suspects?” I said, shaking my head.
“What do you think happened?” she said, tucking her legs underneath her on the couch. The Jack Russell stirred and gave her the stink-eye. “Oh, I’m sorry, did I disturb you?” She laughed and waited for the dog to get comfortable.
“I suppose it could have been planned,” I said, still trying to organize the multiple thoughts that had been bouncing around my head since we first saw Middleton’s body. “But my guess is that somebody just happened to see him walk into that storage room and, you know, seized the day.”
“Yeah, that’s my guess, too,” she said. “How many suspects do you have on your list?”
“What makes you think I have a list of suspects?”
She glanced over and raised an eyebrow at me. I shrugged and forced a small smile.
“Yeah, dumb question. So far, five. But it’s still early.”
“Five? Let’s see…the two guys who punched him in the ballroom, the woman who was screaming at him…how am I doing?”
“You’re three for three.”
“You’re not thinking about Roxanne for it, are you?”
“Yeah, she has to be on the list. You saw her reaction earlier. And then she made that comment about it being too bad that the guy who hit him hadn’t killed him.”
“Roxanne is a lot of things,” Josie said, shaking her head. “But she’s not a killer.”
“Maybe not. But she’s really mad about getting dumped.”
“She was even angrier about Middleton taking back the ring.”
“There you go,” I said. “There goes the beachfront condo. All the more reason.”
“Maybe…but I seriously doubt it. Who’s the other one on your list?”
“Marjorie’s son,” I whispered.
“No way. Absolutely not,” she said, glaring at me. “You need to take him off your list, Suzy.”
“He had motive. And opportunity.”
“I don’t care if he was seen carrying a case of Drano. He didn’t do it. Knowing what we know about Middleton, there were probably fifty people in that room who could have had a good reason to kill him. Why are you obsessing about that kid?”
“I don’t know,” I said, shaking my head. “I guess it was the way he immediately jumped in when he felt his mom was being threatened.”
“She’s his mother. What else do you expect a son to do when his mom is in trouble?”
“You’re probably right,” I said. “But I just can’t shake the idea.”
“Families stick together, Suzy. You should know that better than anyone.”
“I do. And if anybody threatened my mom, I wouldn’t hesitate to jump in.”
“Jumping in is a lot different from killing somebody,” she said, staring at me.
“I guess.”
“You’d really kill somebody if you felt your mom was being threatened?”
“Are we talking specifically about Middleton or just your average Joe Schmo?” I deadpanned, then grinned.
Josie laughed.
“I give up. You win. But the kid didn’t do it,” she said, putting her feet back up on the coffee table. She began thinking out loud, something I try to avoid since it always seems to scare the crap out of people. “Roxanne, huh? That’s interesting…I suppose it’s possible. Nah, it’s not Roxanne. It can’t be her, right? No, there’s no way it’s Roxanne.”
We both looked at the door when we heard the soft knock.
“Did you order room service?” I said, getting up off the couch and heading for the door.
“No, but I could eat,” she said, reaching for the menu. “Are you hungry?”
“No,” I said, laughing. “Cool your jets. It’s just that it’s three in the morning and a little late for somebody to be dropping by.”
I glanced through the peephole and frowned.
“Who is it?”
“It’s Roxanne.”
I opened the door, and an exhausted Roxanne greeted me with a small smile. Her eyes were still red, and her hair looked like she’d been raking her fingers through it for the past few hours.
“Hey, Roxanne. We were just talking about you. Are you okay?” I said, taking a step back to give her room to enter.
“Hi. I’m sorry to stop by so late, but I didn’t know where else to go,” she said, tentatively stepping inside. “The thought of going back to my room freaks me out. Hi, Josie.”
“Hey, Roxanne. Have you been talking with the police the whole time?” Josie said, sitting up on the couch.
“Yeah, they just finished with me,” she said, plopping herself into a chair.
“And?” I said.
“Well, they haven’t arrested me yet, so I guess that’s something,” she said, glancing around. “Do you have anything to drink?”
I got up, poured her a glass of wine, then watched as she downed half of it in one gulp. I topped off her glass then sat back down in my previous spot.
“That’s good,” she said, glancing at her glass. “All they would tell me is that I’m a person of interest and not to leave the city. And I’m supposed to keep them informed if I decide to change hotels. They kept asking the same questions over and over. Then they’d change cops and start over from the beginning. They did that three times.”
“I guess since you were his fiancée and the one who found the body, you’re an important witness,” I said.
“They think I killed Josh,” she said, baffled by the idea. “None of them came right out and said it, but I know that’s what they’re thinking.”
“But you didn’t, right?” I said, raising an eyebrow.
“No, I didn’t kill him,” she snapped. “What? Now you’re going to start in on me?”
“I’m sorry, Roxanne,” I said, backpedaling. “But Joshua called off your engagement today, and you were obviously very upset when we saw you earlier. It shouldn’t surprise you that some people might be suspicious and have a lot of questions for you.”
“Some people? Like you?” she said, staring at me. “And please don’t lie to me, Suzy. I’ve seen you in action before, remember?”
I was taken aback by her direct approach. I thought about it, then decided to tell her the truth.
“To be honest, the thought did cross my mind, Roxanne,” I said, eventually.
“But if it’s any consolation, you’re pretty far down the list,” Josie deadpanned.
“What?”
“You’re not helping.”
“Disagree,” Josie said, sliding a bit further down the couch as the dog stretched out to his maximum length. “Look at it this way, Roxanne. The only way to eliminate you as a suspect is by asking a lot of questions and analyzing all the facts.”
“And?” Roxanne said.
“And what?” Josie said, confused.
“And where does that leave me right now as a possible suspect?”
“Don’t ask me,” Josie said, nodding in my direction. “She’s the one with the list.”
We all flinched when we heard another knock on the door. This one was louder and had a more formal tone to it. Either hotel management or the cops, I decided.
“Now what?” I said, getting up and heading toward the door. I opened it and found myself face to face with two of the cops we’d talked to a few hours ago. “Hello, officers. What can we do for you?”
“We have a few more questions,” the male officer said, peering over my shoulder.
> “How did you know Roxanne was here?” I said, taking a step back to let them in.
“Roxanne is here?” the female officer said, surprised by the news. “Interesting.”
“Not really,” I said.
“Actually, our questions are for Ms. Court,” the man said.
“What do you want to talk with Josie about?”
“We just have a few follow-up questions,” he said, waiting for his partner to enter first.
I closed the door and followed them into the living room. I couldn’t help but notice the man’s hand briefly come to rest on his partner’s lower back as she slid past him. The woman paused just long enough to let him know that she appreciated it, then the hand fell away. The cops shared a quick smile, then went right back to business.
“This is nice,” the woman said, glancing around. “I didn’t know the hotel had three bedroom suites.”
“This is a two bedroom,” I said, casually. “I don’t know if they have three…hey, what’s your point?”
“Oh, nothing,” she said, grinning at her male partner. “Just an observation about the possible sleeping arrangements.”
“For the record, if it were any of your business, which it’s not, Roxanne isn’t staying in the suite.”
“I’m not?” Roxanne said. “I was hoping I’d be able to crash on one of your couches. I can’t go back to my room.”
“That is interesting, Shirley,” the male cop said, grinning. “The scorned fiancée ends up in the same hotel suite as the sworn enemy of her dead fiancé. At three in the morning, no less. All sorts of possibilities come to mind.”
“Pervert,” Josie whispered.
“What did you call me?” the male cop said.
“I think you heard me,” Josie said, not backing down from the cop’s glare. “You said that you have some questions for me.”
“As a matter of fact, we do,” the cop called Shirley said, sitting down in one of the chairs. “This is really comfortable.” She glanced around the suite and nodded at her partner. “Very nice.”
“Well, the next time you two get a chance, you should check it out,” I said, deciding to poke the bear. “But I imagine you’ll only need the one bedroom.”
They both flinched and shot me a dirty look. The man eye’s narrowed as he subconsciously rubbed the wedding ring on his finger.