She shook her head as though she hadn’t heard me correctly. “No.” She squinted and powered the window back up.
I walked around and got in the passenger side, biting back a complaint that it felt like I was sitting in the road.
“What kind of car are you getting?” Fab asked as she put her sports car in gear and roared over to the highway.
“I’ll take what I’m offered and try not to gripe about it.” I leveled a stare at her, which she ignored.
Fab knew every shortcut in town and utilized all of them often. She pulled into JS Auto Body five minutes faster than her usual time. Jimmy Spoon ran an appointment-only auto repair shop for luxe autos and the restoration of older models. To anyone driving by, if it weren’t for the sign, it wouldn’t be apparent by looking that there was a business behind the twelve-foot-high fence.
“Did you know your mother was going to be here?” Fab asked, pointing to the Mercedes SUV parked in the driveway.
I sighed and got out. “Maybe she’s worried about me.”
Just as we got to the front door, it buzzed. Nothing happened on this property that security cameras didn’t pick up.
“Hi.” I smiled at Mother and Spoon, both sitting behind his desk, making a formidable pair. Before Fab could go sit on the couch, her favorite place, I nudged her to a chair in front of the desk. She could sit beside me for moral support, since Mother’s scowl telegraphed irritation.
We’d barely sat down when Mother said, “Why don’t you tell us what happened?” Really happened was implied, but not said.
I gave her the G-rated version of events—that we stopped to ask directions and got a rifle pointed at us.
“When was the last carjacking we had around here?” Mother asked.
“You think I’m making it up? For what reason?”
“I didn’t say that,” Mother snapped. “I’m just thinking you left out the part where you two went looking for trouble and found it.”
I nudged Fab’s foot.
“Not guilty.” Fab held up her hand.
Spoon stared at the two of us as though trying to read our thoughts. Good luck, big guy, you’ve been blocked from mind-reading. I’ve had plenty of training from the master sitting at your side.
“We’re both happy that you’re okay,” Spoon said.
“Thanks.” I smiled lamely, not adding that it didn’t sound like it. More was coming; I just needed to be patient.
“Did you call the police and report your car stolen?” Mother asked.
I ignored her question. “Were you able to contact Deuce?” I asked Spoon. “If not, I’ll head over to the sheriff’s office and file a report now.”
Spoon picked up his phone and made a call. “I’ve got the owner of the SUV sitting in front of me. They’re wanting to know if a police report should be filed.”
Fab growled softly at the fact that he didn’t put it on speaker the way she preferred. We were in complete agreement at that moment, but neither of us had the nerve to suggest it.
Spoon chuckled into the phone.
Both Fab and I bristled, but managed to stay quiet.
“It’s parked at AJ’s, ready for pickup,” Spoon relayed.
I nodded.
“Thanks.” He hung up.
“You have to stop involving my husband in things that are dangerous; I’m talking about the types of situations that could get him killed,” Mother said. “It’s my understanding that this Deuce character is a criminal.”
“I tend to forget that we’re not invincible. I won’t do it again.” I understood her anger and would feel the same in her shoes.
“I love Spoon and don’t care to be a widow again.” Mother sighed. “There’s an easy fix to this problem without anyone getting hurt. File a police report, let them investigate, collect the insurance, and go buy another car.”
Spoon put his arm across Mother’s shoulders, hugging her to his side. “I don’t mind helping, but your mother worries over it. None of us wants to live looking over our shoulder.”
“Another thing,” Mother said. “Doesn’t your insurance cover a rental car? If not, fine. Just know that it’s another favor my husband has to call in.”
Apparently she didn’t hear the part where Spoon offered. “I was about to tell him that I’ve got it covered and thank him for his offer.”
“I don’t want to be mean…” Mother said, taken aback.
“I get it,” I said. “I wouldn’t want my husband putting himself in harm’s way.” I didn’t see how a loaner would be that big a deal, since he’d offered in the past, but didn’t want to start an argument.
“In our defense,” Fab said. “I thought a simple hand-off of the Hummer was better than involving the police. And Spoon, you should get in the habit of saying no.”
“On that, we’re agreed,” Mother said. “I’ll be calling with the date of our next family dinner.”
“I’d like to schedule a playdate with Mila.” I held Mother’s stare.
“Do you think that’s wise, considering the trouble you attract?”
I didn’t bother to defend myself and assure her that it would be a day spent on the beach picking up shells. Next, I’d hear about sunburn. “We’re going to have a day of fun, no matter what I have to do to make it happen.” I’d kidnapped my niece once before, and the threat hung in the air that I’d do it again.
Her eyebrows shot up. “What would be fun is if you came to my house.”
Fab snorted. Mother’s eyes shot to her, her lips pursed. I wished I’d been the one to do that.
“We’ve got a meeting at the office.” I stood.
Fab shot to her feet. She’d been ready to bolt five minutes ago when her foot started tapping.
We all hugged, a deafening silence hanging over the room.
“This is my number until I get my phone replaced.” I scribbled the number for a burner I’d found in the kitchen drawer on a sticky note and handed it to Mother.
“I can have a flatbed pick up your SUV,” Spoon offered.
“I’m going to take Mother’s suggestion and file a report with my insurance company; they can have it picked up.” I smiled. If anybody had thought about it, they’d know that the opportunity had passed to report said theft, since I’d dragged my feet this long and now couldn’t do it without lying, which insurance companies frowned on and prosecuted people over.
I wanted to run back to the car, but somehow managed to walk at a normal pace.
Fab backed out of the driveway. “Who’s picking up your car?”
“You’re going to drive me to AJ’s. I’ll get behind the wheel and drive off.”
“Is it ever that simple for the two of us?”
“It will be today,” I said, with an assurance that was wavering. “Was I wrong to think that asking nicely and offering cash to get the car back was better than giving the name of a man running a criminal operation to the police?”
“Lesson learned—we need a few new connections we can count on when unexpected issues come up.”
“I love your ability to problem-solve.”
“Speaking of new connections… I’ve got a surprise for you.”
I groaned. “You always forget that I don’t like surprises. Not to mention, there’s a bunch of them waiting in the wings for me to open from my time away on my honeymoon. Please reassure me that no one died.”
Fab had volunteered to morph into me while I was gone and promised there wouldn’t be a high body count.
“I thought about shooting a couple of your tenants, but managed to restrain myself.” She laughed as she pulled up to the security gate at her business. She waited for it to roll back and drove into the underground parking, where a car I didn’t recognize was parked in one of the spaces.
The property housed two warehouse buildings; one converted to office space, the other unused. We got out and trudged up the stairs to the offices of Fab, Didier, and myself. Two businesses housed under one roof—Fab’s Investigation firm and
Didier’s real estate/design space. I’d just needed a place to spread out since Creole and I were short on space.
Fab opened the door, and the man sitting in front of her desk stood and smiled at her. “Tank,” she said, introducing the several hundred pounds of bald, over-six-foot muscle. “Our new lawyer,” she added smugly, proud of herself.
Tank and I checked each other out, head to toe.
“Lawyer?” I looked askance at his flowery Hawaiian shorts, button-down short-sleeve shirt, and cowboy boots. What was it with wearing boots in a tropical zone? He wasn’t the first person I’d seen who made that choice. “I have a few questions.”
“It’s my day off. Wasn’t about to suit up.”
“I need coffee.” I turned, and Xander waved at me from where he was sitting at the kitchen table with his laptop. “Didn’t see you sitting there.” I rounded the corner and set my bag on my desk.
The twenty-year-old was a new hire. He sucked at pickpocketing, and I’d thought, why not hire him to work in the office? He’d turned out to be wicked smart, down on his luck, and primed for a job that kept him out of jail.
“Do you have a notepad handy?” I asked, heading straight to the microwave to whip up another cup of my morning concoction.
Xander whipped out his phone.
“I want you to research crime in Card Sound. In particular, murder. Flag any mentions of body-dumping and any other weird goings on, no matter how insignificant. If any articles mention a Stephan, see what more you can find out.” When Help finally came out with the name Stephan, he’d offered up a couple of different last names, so I couldn’t be more specific than that. “I don’t suppose you have access to police reports? Nothing illegal, mind you.”
Xander snorted. “It would all be illegal. The cops frown on unauthorized individuals accessing their files.”
“I’ll call my other information guy,” I said. “I don’t want you taking any risks.”
“Let me see what I can work out. I’ve talked to GC a couple of times since you stopped taking his calls; maybe I can work it out to be your go-between.”
GC had been our previous information specialist. “In case you’ve forgotten, that relationship soured when his brother turned Fab’s and my names over to a drug dealer.”
“I remember. I was there. First time I ever had a gun pointed at me.” Xander grimaced. “Back to GC. Somehow, we went from talking about murder to computer programming; he stopped with the dumb twit kid attitude, and we’ve had some good conversations. In case you run into him and he asks, my name is VP.”
I laughed. “You’re working that Vice President title of yours.” I finished stirring my coffee and crossed the room to sit in my old spot from before I got my own designated space, dragging a chair into the corner behind Fab’s desk. Since I’d opted for a skirt that morning, I wouldn’t be putting my feet on the corner of her desk.
“So, Tank, is that the name you use in the courtroom?” I asked. “What’s your specialty?”
His brown eyes bored into mine. “Got it covered. If you need more specialization than I can deliver, I’ll find the man/woman for the job.”
“Do you have a resume?”
“Not on me.”
Fab leaned back in her chair, enjoying the byplay, judging by the smirk on her face.
“How about you hit the high points,” I said over the rim of my cup.
“I’m already hired.”
I sniffed. “If you and I don’t have rapport, this working relationship isn’t going to work out, since I’m always the one chasing down someone of your ilk. We’ll need to get along.”
Tank laughed. “In a previous life, I lived in Dallas and practiced criminal law. Not all wins, but no client got the chair. Needing a change of pace, I moved to the Sunshine State, parked my boots, and put out a shingle at one of those pay-by-the-hour office places. Got to look legit. Just so you know, I’ll only be taking cases that interest me, and I’m not so full of myself that if a case is totally out of my wheelhouse I won’t speak up. I draw the line at faking it.”
I squinted at him, a memory tugging at the back of my brain. He returned the look with his massive arms crossed, covering his equally massive chest. “Tank? Your name seems familiar. Why is that?”
Fab laughed. “We met at the jail. Told him to look me up when he got out, and here he is.” Ta-da in her tone.
“How is it you weren’t disbarred? Doing time and all?”
“It was a case of mistaken identity, and once it was straightened out, I was released to mingle in society.” Tank’s look dared me to disagree and was meant to make me squirm.
“How fortunate for us.”
“There’s something we agree on.”
I cleared my throat. “Do you mind if we run a background check? I’ll need a name.”
“You’re an unusual bunch. Patrick Cannon. I prefer Tank, unless we’re standing in front of a judge, and then it’s Mr. Cannon, sir.”
“You single? As in no girlfriend and no pending divorce?” The skin above his eyes twitched, which I assume was a surprised look since he had no eyebrows. “My mother likes to meddle in folks’ love lives, and I thought it would give her something to do besides be annoyed with me.”
“Gee, thanks. But I’ve got my love life covered.”
“You change your mind, bring it up at the next staff meeting. Be prepared. The dictator over there—” I nodded at Fab. “—likes to snap her fingers and watch us come running. I’m not sure if Fab told you, but we’re a full-service boutique agency and we’re here for all your investigation needs. Our new policy is that everything has to be legal, not even close to the grey line. Any reports you need, VP over there—” I pointed to Xander, who was laughing at me. “—can work his magic and get them delivered. All for the easy payment plan of swapping services.”
“Works for me.”
Fab ended the meeting by pointing at her watch, a reminder that it was time to go get my Hummer.
Chapter Seven
It seemed odd to be blowing up the Overseas in Fab’s Porsche, since we always rode in the Hummer. We headed north, bypassing the turn for Highway One and veering onto the road that cut through the jungle.
“In all the time I’ve lived here, I’ve only driven this way once, and that was the other day. I’d hoped not to come back.”
“Do you know the latest?” Fab asked breathlessly, staring at the road.
“Probably not. So tell me.”
“Help lives out here,” she said in a half-whisper, as though we weren’t the only two in the car. “If you call it living… No running water would bug me the most. And I think I’d get over my love of candles real quick.”
“Focus.” I snapped my fingers. “Get back on point.”
“His property is being used as a dumping ground for dead bodies.” Her tone was filled with excitement. “It’s what the guys were doing out here the other day.”
“I think Help should find someplace else to live until they catch the killer.” I stared out the window, the roadside thick with mangroves.
“What if it turns out to be a serial killer? He can’t let the killings continue to go unsolved.”
She better not be thinking about getting involved. “Even better reason to move.”
“I’m going to offer to set up surveillance cameras. That way, if it happens again, he’ll have it on tape who dumped the body. He doesn’t want to get charged just because he’s convenient.”
“That’s so sweet of you,” I said, not meaning a word. “Have you forgotten he’s a cop and has probably had the same thought? Besides, your husband, Didier—” In case she’d forgotten. “—is going to say hell no—all Frenchy and sexy—like he usually does.” I cocked my head with a slight smile. “I won’t be able to enlist as backup, as Creole will have me locked away somewhere if he gets wind of this idea. So you’d be coming out here by yourself.”
“Stop with the dramatics.”
I pointed to myself and scrunched
up my nose.
“It’s not like I’m offering to sit out here and be a target or go tent to tent and question the neighbors. I’d just be coming back with my contractor and overseeing the installation.”
“It’s actually beautiful and peaceful and green back here, but the more I hear since… yesterday—but it seems longer than that—the more I just want to avoid the area altogether.” I leaned my head back against the seat. “It’s irksome that Addy’s going to skate on stealing my car, but after talking it over with Creole, I’m letting it go and not obsessing on revenge that could go horribly wrong.”
“So Creole took it okay? Didier said it was the last time he’d turn the tables and get all sneaky, like I do most of the time. We both ended up apologizing.”
“Creole would’ve preferred that it be handled differently. Addy isn’t in the clear yet, as Help will be sharing the information with his boss, and then there’s this Deuce character. Help knows the man, no matter how noncommittal he tried to stay.”
“I briefly entertained coming back out here and setting fire to her house on a dolly.”
I laughed. “You know, those small houses are all the rage, but most people secure them to the ground unless they’re moving. In her case, she could pull out in a hot second, but then she’d stick out because I don’t think I’ve seen one on the road before.”
“That would make her easy to find.”
The drive seemed longer than before. We didn’t have the excitement of following the guys and had only the trees for scenery. Between turning off the Overseas and reaching AJ’s, we didn’t pass more than a handful of cars.
“Here’s the plan: drop me off, and I’ll get in my SUV and follow you back. I’d appreciate it if you’d keep me in your rearview mirror and stick to the speed limit so I can keep up. Once we hit town, you can leave me in your exhaust fumes.”
Fab slowed and pulled to the side of road. Once again, the parking lot was full of cars—they must do stellar marketing to do such good business despite the remoteness of the location. The Hummer was parked in the last space next to the trash area.
Initiation in Paradise Page 4