4 Kaua'i Me a River (13 page)

“Okay,
I’ll come. I’ll try to get the next flight over.”

“I’ll wait
near the Hawaiian Airlines ticket counter. If you don’t get there before I have
to leave I’m not willing to wait.”

We
signed off and I turned to Steve.

“Let
me guess,” he said. “No shoes, Sherlock?”  

“Looks
like it.”

“But
what about the fireman dinner tonight? Your new dress? What about Hatch?”

“I’m
only going to Honolulu. I’ll get a turnaround flight and be back in plenty of time
for the banquet.”

“Wearing
butt-ugly shoes,” said Steve. “What’s in Honolulu?”

“One
of my dad’s ex-wives is willing to tell me how my mom died. But she’ll only talk
to me in person so I have to meet her at the airport. If I can get on the next
flight, I can hear her out and be back in a couple of hours.”

“This
is nuts, Pali. It’s already almost one o’clock.”

“I
know. But I can make it work.”

“And
what was that about someone contesting a will?”

“Drive
me to the airport and I’ll tell you.”

I gave
him the same TV Guide version of the reading of my father’s will that I’d given
Hatch and Farrah. As far as my inheritance, I said my dad had left me a little money
but I’d have to wait until after probate before I’d see any of it.

***

 “Peep
toe,” Steve said as we turned onto the road that circles Kahului Airport.  

“What’d
you say?”

“Peep
toe. That’s the kind of shoes I had in mind to go with your new dress.”

Steve
dropped me off and I bought a ticket for the two-thirty flight with a return
flight at four. It’d be tight, since it took a little over a half-hour to get
from Kahului to Honolulu, but I knew I could do it.

 I went
through security and called Hatch. He wasn’t happy with my plans.

“You
want me to pick you up at the airport at four-forty-five? It’ll take
half-an-hour to drive back to your place and then almost another hour to get
down to Wailea and get parked and everything. I don’t want to be late.”

“Okay,
how about this: I won’t go home after you pick me up. If you’ll go up to my
house right now and pick up my dress and shoes I can change in the airport
bathroom. Then we’ll have plenty of time to get down to Wailea.”

His
silence spoke volumes—no, an entire library—of irritation. “Pali, I know how
important knowing what happened to your mom is to you. But this banquet is really
important to me, too.”

“Have
a little faith. I’ll be there.”

CHAPTER 15

Joanie
Bush looked even more painted and blousy than she had Wednesday at the
attorney’s office. She’d teased her hair into a towering inferno of spiky blond
clumps and her talon-like nails had been re-lacquered with black nail polish
with a diagonal silver racing stripe on each one. Her clingy black and white traveler
knit outfit made her look downright upholstered.

She
was sitting in a row of chairs by the windows. As I approached, she got up and
glanced around the terminal as if checking for someone tailing her.

“Let’s
not talk here,” she hissed. “Is there a coffee shop or somewhere where we can
be alone?”

“Why
don’t we go outside by the lei stands? They have benches out there.”

“Can I
smoke?”

“I
don’t know. I suppose you can until they yell at you.”

We went
outside and walked through the parking lot to the lei stand area. We found an
empty bench and as soon as we sat down Joanie rummaged through her enormous satchel
and brought out a long brown cigarette.

“Want
one?” she said.

I
shook my head. “Never got into that.”

“Well,
you might consider starting after you hear what I have to say.”

“Joanie,
I appreciate you taking time to meet me like this, but I can do without the
drama.”

“Sweetie,
Phil was all about drama. He lived his entire life playing to an audience.”

“Tell
me about my mom.”

“Okay,
so of course I never knew her. She’d been dead almost seven years when I met
Phil. He was still married to what’s-her-name, Rita, but that marriage was
going south fast. I sold real estate. In fact, I sold your dad the Honolulu property
in the video. Real nice views. Totally remodeled, inside and out. Four-car
garage. It had granite everywhere, Brazilian hardwood floors, and even gold-plated
fixtures in the master bath.”

“How
does this relate to my mom?”

“Hold
your horses, I’m getting to that. So anyway, right after Phil and I hooked up I
realized the guy had issues. He always seemed on edge, like he was waiting for
the other shoe to drop. I asked him about it again and again but he claimed it
was just the stress of running the cable company. Back in those days, cable was
cut-throat. But Phil had friends in high places. His family back in Oregon had
beaucoup
bucks and since he was now their only son they didn’t mind throwing a little
cash his way when he needed it.”

“He was
the only one left because his brother had committed suicide,” I said. I’d
remembered that from Phil’s video.

“Yeah,
after Vietnam. Phil said his brother was messed up in the head.”

I looked
up. The sun was still high in the sky but at this rate I’d need to catch my
flight home before I learned anything of value.

“Joanie,
I’m sorry to rush you, but doesn’t your flight leave at four o’clock?”

“Yeah,
right. Well, here it is. Your mom didn’t die of natural causes. And it wasn’t
an accident, either.”

I was half-expecting
something like that, but still I felt the blood rush to my ears. I could hear a
faint
thud, thud, thud
in my left ear.

“How
did she die?”

“Before
we get to that, let me say I got this on good authority. This isn’t just idle gossip.”

I shot
her a puzzled look.

“Phil
told me this himself. He said he didn’t abandon your mom. He kept in touch. That’s
why when he found out about her getting killed he took it real hard.”

“Was
he… I mean, did he have anything to do it?”

“No
way. He said he loved her ‘like a rock.’ You know, like that old Paul Simon
song, ‘Love Me Like a Rock’? He never got over what happened.”

“What did
happen?”

“He
told me a jealous guy who had a crush on her came in and killed her one night after
she’d snubbed him. Phil said the guy was probably hopped up on something. Those
Kaua'i hippies were always smokin’ weed and dropping acid and stuff like that.”

“But
Auntie Mana said she’d died of a cerebral hemorrhage.”

“Well,
according to your father, the guy hit her over the head with a piece of wood or
something. She got a bad concussion that made her brain bleed. Seems she died
before she got to the hospital.”

Images
of my mother cowering under the blows of a crazed attacker flashed before me. “Did
they catch the guy?”

“No. According
to Phil, he totally got away with it.”

“If my
dad loved my mom so much why didn’t he demand justice for her?”

“He
said he wanted to, but there was a big cover-up. And that’s why he was nervous
all the time after he moved back to Hawaii. He said he thought the family
involved in the cover-up might come after him.”

“Why?”

“Because
they knew he knew.”

Joanie
flipped her cigarette to the ground and stubbed it out with the toe of a very
pointy black patent pump. Steve would’ve no doubt gushed over those shoes. I stealthily
slid my foot next to hers to check if they’d fit. Nope, her feet were at least two
sizes too big. Not that I’d expect her to trade her Rodeo Drive pumps for my
ABC Store flip-flops, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask.

“You’re
saying my mom was murdered,” I said by way of a wrap up.

“I’m
afraid so. And your dad never got over it. I guess that’s why he left you all that
dough. It’s totally unfair to my kids, but I guess I’ll let sleeping dogs lie.”
She shook her head. “Excuse me for being honest, but your dad was a total dog.
Half the crap that came out of his mouth was lies.”

“But he
never told you who he thought killed my mom?”

“No. He
said the guy was from an important family, and if he told me then I’d be in
danger too. He said the killer’s old man had lots of clout and lots of dough.”

I
thanked her for meeting with me and we got up and retraced our steps through
the parking lot. When we crossed the busy airport road, she veered left toward
the overseas terminal and I headed right to the interisland gates.

I took
out my cellphone and checked the time. My flight to Maui left in twenty minutes.

***

My
flight was delayed. First, they said it would be fifteen minutes. Then, after
fifteen minutes they said there was a mechanical problem and they were waiting
for a mechanic to check it out. By the time the next flight had boarded, they’d
cancelled my flight.

“I’ve
got to get to Maui,” I told the gate agent. “I’ve got an urgent appointment.”

“Our next
flight is at six-forty-five,” she said. “But I’m afraid it’s oversold. We can probably
get you on the seven-ten. It’ll get you into Kahului around seven-forty-five.”

The
banquet began with cocktails at six and then dinner at seven.

I
called Hatch and told him I couldn’t make it.

“What
the hell?” he shouted. “You promised me, Pali. Now I’m going to be the only guy
without a date. I’m gonna look like a frickin’ loser.” I assumed he’d be disappointed,
but what did the yelling accomplish? Then I remembered that guys like Hatch
don’t do sadness; they do anger. I’d seen it plenty of times in martial arts. A
guy loses a fight in a competition. He bows to his opponent like he’s supposed
to, and then he goes out to his car and kicks in the door panel.

 “I sorry.
I was really looking forward to it.”

“Then
why’d you go running off to Honolulu at the last minute?”

“Hatch,
it’s complicated. I had to hear what my dad’s ex-wife had to say.”

 “I went
and got someone to cover my shift today so I could go to this thing. And now if
I don’t show up everyone will know I’m just sitting home with my finger in my….
And I’m up for that award, too.”

“What
award?”

“What
does it matter? The point is, now I can’t go.”

“Hatch,
I said I was sorry.” A beat went by and I said, “Okay, I’ve got an idea. How
about you invite Farrah? I’m sure she’ll go. She’d do anything for you.”

“You think?
But she won’t be able to fit in your new dress.”

“I
think you’re gonna have to be okay with a date wearing a caftan.”

“But I
was really looking forward to seeing you in that dress.”

“I’d
love to be there. But I can’t.”

“I forgot
to ask about your mom,” he said. “What’d you find out?”

I
looked around and everyone in the gate area was glaring at me. Nobody likes a
waiting room blabbermouth who pollutes the air with their personal drama. “I’d
rather not talk about it right now. Have fun tonight.”

“I’ll
try. But you owe me.”

“I
know.”

We
hung up and I stared out the window. I felt bad about missing Hatch’s banquet,
but maybe it was for the best. How could I eat, drink and make merry when I’d
just learned my mother had been bludgeoned to death?

CHAPTER 16

As I slumped
in my seat at the interisland terminal it occurred to me I was already halfway
to Kaua'i. I got out my cell phone and the business card Sunny had given me.

“
Aloha
,”
she said.

“
Aloha
,
Sunny. It’s me Pali.”

“Hey, good
to hear from you. Are you here on Kaua'i?”

“Not
yet. But I’m in Honolulu and I thought if you wouldn’t mind I’d come over a day
early.”

“Sounds
great. I’ll have my driver pick you up at the airport.”

 “That’s
okay. I can rent a car,” I said.

“No,
no, totally unnecessary. Timo will be glad to have a reason to get out of here.”

I turned
in my Kahului return ticket and paid the difference for the flight to Lihue.
Then I called Sunny to let her know when I’d be landing. “Great. When you get
here, go outside and keep an eye out for a white Range Rover.”

By the
time I made it off the plane and through the Lihue terminal it’d been nearly half
an hour beyond the time I’d given Sunny. I rushed outside and spotted a big
Range Rover slowly driving along the airport circle road. I waved and Sunny’s
driver, Timo, pulled over. He jumped out and dashed around the car to open the
back door.