The Caspian Wine Mystery/Suspense/Thriller Series

by Maggie Thom

  Maybe it was a touch of paranoia he thought she’d glanced his way. Concerned if she spotted him it would give her the upper hand, he quickly ducked around the end of the building. A heartbeat later, he looked again only to discover that all three of them were gone.

  ~~~~

  “You have some explaining to do.” Graham quirked an eyebrow at her.

  “I do?” She dropped her gaze to the glass of wine in front of her. “Same thing as before. I needed a secure network. I was contacting a woman who is going through a bad time. End of story.”

  “And yet you called in sick because?”

  “Because I wasn’t feeling well.”

  “So you come into the office and now Bill feels he has to call me every time you show up when I’m not here. Are you sure that’s all?” Why he’d brought her to the little pub down the street from the office, he wasn’t sure but he did know it was time to clear up a few things. She’d been reluctant and not only because he wanted some answers. She kept saying she had to get home, someone was waiting for her. Probably that Chance guy she’d been mumbling about the morning after she’d gotten drunk in his office.

  She met his gaze. “Yes. I’m not selling company secrets. You can check my computer or put me through a polygraph test. I had some errands I had to do and I said I was sick because it was easier then explaining. I thought I’d clear it up when I got in.”

  Graham observed the tightening of her facial muscles, especially under her left eye. If he hadn’t been watching her closely, he’d have missed it.

  “Please explain to me why a guy in bad need of a shower and laundry services is living in an apartment I’m sure the city doesn’t know exists?”

  “Are you threaten—”

  She waved off his reply. “No. I’m trying to understand why you made that place for Bill. I thought—never mind, it doesn’t matter. But it’s nice. He’s got a bed, a bathroom, toilet, shower—which he obviously needs someone to show him how to use.”

  “Huh.” Graham nodded his head as he thought about her words.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Guy and I have been trying to get him to take a shower but he won’t. It never dawned on us that he doesn’t know how to use it. Or maybe it’s something else.”

  “Okay. So why have you set him up so well? I get the feeling he doesn’t pay rent. You guys are looking after him. Why?”

  “Because he’s a good guy. He deserves a break. And because we can.”

  Her face softened and she smiled in acknowledgement. “That’s nice. So what’s his story?”

  “He’s been on the street since he was young. As far as we can tell he left an abusive home. At some point he joined the army. We don’t know how or why but he ended up back on the street. He’s seen a lot in the forty or so years he’s been out there. He never talks about it. We’re not even sure of his name.”

  “And you tried to get him help and he refused it.”

  Surprised by her insight, he took a swig of his beer. Bill had been one of those people they’d noticed right away. He wasn’t the only homeless person in the area but he definitely was one of the honest ones, one that Graham and Guy too, had felt drawn to. It had started simply enough when they had witnessed him eating food out of a dumpster. It made them realize how good they had it. And they had learned he was a war vet which made it all that much more important to them to help him. They were still searching if he had any family.

  “So why are you helping women who’ve been abused?”

  It was as if the lights went out. Though her friendly expression never wavered almost as though it had frozen in place, her eyes darkened and became distant and veiled. A telltale sign that his comment had hit home was her hand shaking ever so slightly as she picked up her glass—and the fact that though she’d been sipping her wine, this time she downed half of it. “Same as you. I wanted to help someone. The website seemed like an ideal way to do it; I could give them a safe place to vent, to talk, to learn, to find help. Kind of like what you did for Bill.”

  He doubted that. There were a lot of questions he wanted to ask her but he didn’t know where to start and he was quite sure she wouldn’t be all that forthcoming. Besides, if he hadn’t accidentally seen a few of the nasty texts she’d received, he might have wondered more about her involvement. But knowing more kept him from asking deeper questions. They sat in silence for a while but it wasn’t the awkward silence that always seemed to hang between them. Graham drank his beer and casually glanced around the few other patrons at the pub. He was glad it was a quiet Friday afternoon.

  “Are you glad you moved out here? You must find it very different from Alberta?”

  She tilted her head. “Actually, I used to live here. So I’m used to the gross, wet summer heat and the cold winter snaps, but yeah it is different from Alberta. They have longer, colder winters, usually. Later spring. But they have the Rockies. So—” She shrugged.

  “Don’t tell anyone but I’ve never been there.”

  “You should go sometime. It’s a really unique province, prairies on one side and mountains on the other. Kind of desert in the southeast and forest, swamp in the north. The south doesn’t get near as much snow as the north. Well, not usually anyway.”

  “Sounds like you enjoyed living there?”

  “I did. All of the large cities have a river running through them. Downtown Calgary is a bit crazy but then what city’s isn’t? The river valley is gorgeous.”

  “Miss it?”

  Her eyebrows drew together and then she glanced at her phone. “Oh my god, I’ve got to get going. Jesus, I did it to him again.” She dug in her purse and tossed down some money before jumping to her feet. “Sorry.”

  She ran out the door before he barely made it to his feet. He quickly pulled out some money only to realize she’d left enough for the full bill. He ran after her but by the time he reached the office, she was pulling out of the parking lot. She either didn’t see him waving or deliberately ignored him. He was tempted to follow her but knew that would be pointless. Friday afternoon traffic could sometimes be more crippling than a weekday rush hour. Sighing, he returned to the office. As he walked by her desk, he glanced at her computer but kept going. When he reached his door he remained there. Did she or didn’t she?

  It was something he knew would piss him off to no end but he told himself he was only trying to protect her. He suspected she had as much firsthand knowledge as the women she tried to help and he needed to protect his company. He sat at her desk and logged onto her computer. This time she’d forgotten to clear her tracks, which made it so much easier to hack into her website.

  The information he read and the stories the women told made him nauseous and sick, reminiscent of a morning after a heavy binge. He’d read about incidents of abuse but thankfully, it had never been a part of his life. He’d never been exposed to it and certainly had never been this close to it. It was too unbelievable for words. He had to close his eyes at one point or he thought he’d throw up. About to log out, he noticed there was a message center. Guilt started thumping at his chest, shouting that he was making a big mistake when he opened her emails. What he read though stopped his heart almost completely.

  The real problem was what was he supposed to do about it?

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Meet me at 10 a.m. at Bronte Provincial Park, near the hole.

  Graham stared at the message. It hadn’t been meant for him but he was certain the result of that meeting would affect him and affect his business. Ignoring the twinge that told him he’d be sorry, he shut down Tarin’s website and logged off the computer. He grabbed his bike and headed home. Invited or not, he planned to be there first thing in the morning.

  Of course, the next morning, things didn’t go as planned. Since he’d forgotten to fill his tank the day before, he had to stop for gas and then he got behind someone poking below the speed limit. So when he finally reached the destination he was a good ten minutes la
te for the rendezvous.

  The Park was huge but thankfully the person had said near the swimming pool. Or at least that was how he had interpreted the reference to the hole. Once he parked he didn’t even need to follow signs; the clamor of kids yelling, screaming and splashing was easy to follow. The huge sign read, ‘Now Open’.

  No wonder I had to park a mile away.

  Since there was a fee to use the pool, he was pretty sure he wouldn’t have to enter the inner confines of the pool area. But he knew he’d better check just to make certain. His eyes tracked over the heads playing in the water, not easy to do with all the splashing. Then he looked over the ones who were lounging on towels along the beach area. He didn’t see Tarin’s blonde, sassy hairdo anywhere. Although he knew he could have easily missed her, he had a sense that wasn’t where she was going to meet her mysterious person. He started walking since standing around gawking wasn’t getting him anywhere. A woman brushed past him, like there wasn’t two feet of path on the other side of her. He shook his head as he continued on but then stopped to look at the person. She was wearing a summer hat. It hadn’t occurred to him that Tarin might have something on her head. Feeling like he was hunting for an ant in a tropical forest, he continued around the edge of the pool area.

  Twenty minutes later, he was confident that he had checked every one of the few hundred people in and around the pool and yet there was still no sign of her. He expanded his search area but still came up empty. Seeing the main office, he headed over to it.

  “Excuse me. Could you tell me where the hole is? I’m supposed to meet someone there and I thought it was the swimming pool but I can’t find her.”

  The young woman who had to be barely out of high school smiled as if she was a witness to a surreptitious tryst. “Oh that’s funny. Your friend was here a little while ago. Blonde. 5’8?”

  “Yeah. That’s her.” His heart rate quickened.

  “There’s a little known fishing area on the creek that some people call a hole. There’s trout, walleye, pike—”

  He tried not to go cross-eyed listening to her but he didn’t interrupt. Finally, she gave him directions. There were several paths, thankfully all were labelled. He ran toward the old Spruce Lane farm buildings and then followed the Half Moon Valley Trail. He hadn’t planned on a three kilometer run but jogged the first couple of k’s, then sprinted the last half kilometer. By the time he reached post number four, he realized he was only about one hundred meters from the stream. He slowed down, taking in deep breaths to calm his ragged breathing. Thankful for thick trees that could conceal him he quietly made his way down to the water.

  “Ugghhh.”

  It wasn’t very loud but it definitely sounded as though someone had fallen. Since he had no idea where Tarin was, he headed in the direction of the noise. Knowing he was probably foolish, he forgot his stealth and hurtled forward. At first as he came over a slight knoll, he didn’t see anything but a quick area scan revealed someone lying beneath a tree. He raced over to her and knelt beside her. He glanced over his shoulder but no one else was around. She moaned and rolled onto her side.

  “Tarin, are you all right? It’s Graham.”

  “What?”

  “It’s Graham. You hit your head.”

  She pushed away and sat up, swaying slightly. He rested his arm behind her back as he sat on the ground slightly behind her so she could lean against him. A slow trickle of blood made its way down her cheek from a welt high on her temple.

  “What are you doing here?” She pressed her eyelids shut.

  “I was going to ask you the same question.”

  “No. No-no-no-no-no. Dammit! You scared her away.” She tried to struggle to her feet, but her legs were too wobbly to sustain her weight. He grabbed her even though she tried to pull away. “You’ve ruined it.”

  “What, my business?”

  She pressed her hand against her head and winced.

  “You might not want to touch that.”

  “Really. Why? Because it hurts like hell? I think I got that.”

  “Care to share what happened?”

  “I need to sit. No, I need to find her.” Determined, she pulled away and weaved her way up the gentle incline.

  Swearing under his breath, he caught up to her and wrapped his arm around her waist.

  “Leave me here. You have to find her. She’s my link. She has answers.”

  “What I need to do is get you some medical help.”

  “No. Just go. I’m worried. She left so fast, I want to make sure she wasn’t injured too.”

  He had to stop her every five seconds, not only so she could catch her breath in a vain attempt to stop the dizzy spells, but also so he could tell her he wasn’t about to leave her to chase after some stranger. He had no idea what she even looked like and he wasn’t completely convinced that she hadn’t been the one to cause Tarin’s head injury.

  After arguing with her for a good five minutes, he finally convinced her to let him take her to someone who could look at her injury. Since the person he was thinking of was only ten minutes away, she finally relented. It hadn’t been easy to convince her because she was adamant there was no way she was leaving her car and there was no way he was letting her drive.

  Finally arriving, he pulled into the driveway of her townhouse, beside a bright red car. After a brief look at Tarin who was resting her head against the seat, he climbed out. The neighbor’s dog gave an excited yap and looked at him eagerly through the fence.

  “Sorry Buddy, no time today. I promise to bring a treat another day.” Walking up to the door he wanted, he knocked.

  The door opened almost immediately. “Hi. What brings you here?” A young, blonde woman, dressed in a nurse’s uniform, was holding a set of keys in one hand and her bag in another.

  “Hi. I can see you’re on your way out. I know I shouldn’t have just dropped in but I have a friend who’s been injured, can I bring her in?”

  “Well of course you can, you big idiot. Where’d you leave her, in the car? It’s sweltering.”

  He trailed behind as she barreled past him to yank open the passenger door. “Hi. I’m Jen. Are you okay to walk? Come on let me help you into the house.”

  “I’m fine, really. Just a little bump.” But she didn’t protest Jen’s assisting her into the house and disappearing with her into the bathroom off her bedroom.

  Unsure how to help and figuring she’d give him hell, he called Guy.

  “Jen, I’m outside on the phone. Call if you need me.” When no answer came, he took that as a silent consent and stepped outside. The only problem was how he could possibly explain to Guy what had happened—and have it make any sense.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  “I’m really sorry to barge in on you. I’m okay.”

  “Yeah, don’t worry about it, he’s a little overprotective. Always has been. Always will be,” Jen said. Though her words were accompanied with an exaggerated eye roll, a deep love and affection was evident in her voice.

  Tarin smiled wanly and tried to hide the pang of jealousy that pressed in on her.

  She wet a face cloth and dabbed at her cut. “You actually have quite a long gouge. Did someone throw something at you?”

  “No, I fell. I didn’t see anything but I sure felt it.”

  “Where were you?”

  “Down the road at Bronte’s Provincial Park.”

  “Oh it’s beautiful there. I bet it’s packed too, it being the first day for the pool and so hot.”

  “Yeah, it was busy.” Tarin frowned, only to instantly stop when the movement made the side of her face feel like it was on fire. Is that why the woman had chosen the hole, because it would be swamped with people? They had barely gotten started. Tears filled her eyes. She hadn’t learned anything.

  “Oh, hey. Sorry if this hurts. I want to make sure it’s clean.”

  When she was done, all Tarin wanted to do was leave but she couldn’t very well turn down the woman’s hospitalit
y after all her help. And the fact that she was Graham’s girlfriend meant Tarin couldn’t afford to offend her, like she had pretty much everyone else she’d met.

  “Can I get you something to drink?”

  Tarin nodded, “Whatever you have that’s cold would be great.” She sipped the iced tea that was offered before placing it on a coaster on the glass coffee table. Exhausted, she sank into the sofa’s soft, embracing folds. The throbbing ache that had taken residence in her temple eased slightly as she laid her head back. Her eyes automatically closed. Her mind began to wander and she lost touch with everything as she drifted. It was so relaxing and comforting, like being cuddled by a large fluffy cloud. She allowed herself to flow... not to think... not to want... not to pretend. And she did... for a while. But then things changed. The meeting with the woman came to her as though watching a movie.

  ~~~~

  She was standing by the water, wishing she’d worn her runners and not her heels, even if they had been the low ones. Some habits were very hard for her to break. Years of having to be dressed up and polished weren’t overcome in a day. The fact that she owned a pair of running shoes was a testament to that. And one day she’d even put them on. While she’d been standing on the matted, grassy bank, she’d gotten a strong sense of someone watching her though she didn’t see anyone at all. The sensation persisted until she began to wonder if it could be wildlife, perhaps a bear or a fox or a deer. Maybe she was invading their home. She’d never been comfortable in nature. The downtown streets of any city were safer to her than out there. But she waited.

  Finally, a tall, slender woman had walked down the gentle slope toward her at least she’d assumed it was a woman. The hoodie concealed her hair and shadowed her face but the build was slender, feminine.

  “Thank you for coming. I really appreciate this. Can you tell me what you know?”

  “Why are you so interested?”