A Deadly Row (18 page)

As I searched the small apartment, I kept my eyes open for the cow pendant necklace Barton had mentioned. There wasn’t much in the place in the way of jewelry, just some oversized earrings and a few glittering peace symbol necklaces housed in a small wooden box that appeared to have been made at summer camp a long time ago. Cindy had retro tastes in her jewelry as well as her curtains and bedspread. The material in her bedroom for both sported a matching pattern of brown, gold, and green rings on an orange background. I wondered what her clothes were like. As I opened the small closet door, I found mostly work clothes, but among her prim business suits, I found another section of the closet filled with flared blue jeans and bright tops. Cindy was clearly button-down at work, but when she played, it was obvious that she enjoyed casual comfort. In the kitchen, I searched each drawer and cabinet in turn, but it was so generic that it could have been anyone’s place, so there was nothing to add to the pile. The living room, the only other room in the apartment besides the tiny bathroom, had few things of a personal nature in it. All I could come up with was a half-finished crossword puzzle, and a well-read copy of
Fahrenheit 451
by Ray Bradbury. I was about to leave it on the table, but then I spontaneously added it to the pile.

As I walked back into the living room, I saw that there was a blinking light on her answering machine. Out of habit, I hit the play button and heard a man’s voice say, “Cin? Are you there? Call me, this fight is ridiculous.” Who was she fighting with, and why? Hadn’t he heard that she was dead?

This sounded like something Zach should know. I picked up my cell phone and dialed my husband’s number.

He picked up on the fourth ring, just before it went to voice mail. “’Lo?”

“Hey, did I call at a bad time?” I asked.

“No, I was digging into one of the last boxes of evidence, and I couldn’t hear my phone. What’s up? Are you still at the Glass place?”

“I am,” I said. “I promised Barton I’d stay as long as I needed to.”

“Is he there with you?”

“No, he came in with me, but he couldn’t take it. I’m collecting a few things for him, and I was walking past the answering machine when I noticed that the light was blinking, so I hit the play button.”

“You shouldn’t have done that,” he said. “We’re in the middle of an active police investigation.”

“You’re the one who gave me permission to come here, remember?” If he was going to use that tone of voice with me, he was going to get it right back.

“Sorry. You’re right. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I’m just tired, I guess. What did it say?”

“Evidently she was fighting with someone, and he called to make up with her.”

“If he killed her, he had to know she wouldn’t be getting the message.”

“I thought of that.” I said. “But what if he’s trying to make it look like he’s innocent? That call might help him, if a jury hears it. Shouldn’t you trace it?”

“It’s probably innocent enough, but I’ll have Joe look into it. He’s the guy who drove me over here today. Hang on.” He covered the mouthpiece, but I could still hear some of his conversation.

A minute later, he asked, “Is there anything else?” “I’m not sure I want to share the rest of it with you,” I said.

“Come on, give me a break, Savannah. I’m up against the wall here.”

My voice softened. “Did Davis give you a hard time today?”

Zach snorted. “He never showed up for our meeting, and no one’s seen him around here all day.”

“That’s a good thing then, isn’t it?”

“I don’t know about that. When the police chief bails out on you, it can’t be good.”

“How about Grady? Have you spoken with him?”

“Nobody knows where he is, either. He told his assistant that he was taking the day off. Who knows, maybe the two of them are off somewhere conspiring.”

“Slow down, Zach. Don’t let the paranoia get to you.”

He sighed. “I know. I’m just whipped.”

“I am, too. I found a photo of Cindy and a man in her lingerie drawer.”

“Really? I looked there, but I didn’t see anything.”

I kept my comment about my husband going through a woman’s lingerie drawer to myself. He didn’t need to hear me teasing him at the moment. “It was in the back, wedged in. I’m not sure it means anything. The guy’s face has been ripped out of the picture.”

“Wrap it up in your handkerchief and don’t touch it any more than you have to. I’ll get it from you tonight. What else did you find?”

“It’s what I didn’t find that’s bothering me. Do you know if the investigating officers collected any personal correspondence from her place?”

“Sure, I don’t even have to look. There’s a box of letters she kept, along with some photos that might be significant, and a few other things. Why?”

“Did they find a silver chain with a cow pendant on it?”

He paused, and then said, “I don’t think so. Hang on; let me grab the inventory list.” I could hear him pull out some papers, and then he said, “No, nothing here about that. They took some photos of her jewelry box, but they didn’t take it as evidence. Does it matter?”

“It must to Barton. It’s the main reason he wanted to come here tonight.”

“Well, we don’t have it,” Zach said. “How much longer are you going to be?”

“I’m just about finished. Why? Are you ready to come back to the hotel?”

“I wish I were, but I’m afraid I’ll be here half the night.”

“Should I come join you?” I asked.

“No, I’m not going to be very good company. Why don’t you go back to the hotel, and I’ll see you sometime later?”

I thought about telling him about the box Uncle Thomas had given me, but if I did that, I knew Zach would insist on being by my side when I opened it, and he was needed right where he was. I’d deal with it—or not—by myself, one way or the other.

“Don’t stay there too late,” I said.

“I’ll try not to fall asleep on the table, but I’m not making any promises. Call me later, okay?”

“You know I will.”

After I got off the telephone with Zach, I took one last look around the apartment. There might be something there that had value to Barton, but without knowing what it was, I couldn’t say. I was certain he’d have a crew come in after me and bag, tag, and catalogue the apartment’s contents, so I didn’t worry too much about missing anything.

That wasn’t why I’d been there.

I looked at the paltry selection and frowned. What was I missing? Cindy hadn’t been all that sentimental, if the limited personalized things before me were any indication.

I hated to go back to Barton so empty-handed, but I didn’t have much choice. I couldn’t manufacture sentiment out of thin air.

I finally picked up my cell phone and called the hotel.

“Garrett, it’s Savannah Stone. I’m ready for my ride back to the hotel.”

“Yes, ma’am. The driver is waiting for you outside.”

I hadn’t expected that. “Barton’s not still here, is he?”

“No, he’s in his penthouse suite here. As soon as you arrive, I’ll escort you there.”

“I thought we had the top floor.”

“Of the public rooms, yes, but there is one more floor above you.”

“Then I’ll see you in a few minutes,” I said.

I found the driver out front, but before I walked to the limousine, I locked the door to Cindy’s apartment behind me.

“I’ll take the key, if you don’t mind,” the driver said.

“Oh. Of course,” I answered as I handed it to him. “I’m Savannah.”

“I’m Henry,” he replied, and then he smiled brightly. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Don’t tell me you’re a puzzle fan, too.”

He looked surprised by the question. “No, ma’am, I’m not exactly sure what that is, but you’ve done a service for my employer, and I greatly appreciate it. He hasn’t asked anyone for help as long as I’ve known him. You should feel honored.”

“I do, but I’m not sure I did much good.” I had collected the few things I’d managed to find in a paper grocery bag, and it felt too light in my hands.

“You helped, trust me.”

As he drove us back to the hotel, I asked from the back, “Did you know Cindy Glass?”

He nodded, and I could see a tear in the corner of one eye. “She was special; there was no doubt about that. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to harm her. I thought it was going to kill Mr. Lane. He didn’t leave the penthouse for five days, but talking to you on the telephone when you and your husband first arrived seemed to revive him. Today, I finally believe that he is beginning to mend.”

“I wish I could take credit for it, but I haven’t really done anything.”

Henry shrugged. “Sometimes three quarters of the battle is just showing up and trying your best. At least that’s what my grandmother used to say.”

“She was a smart lady,” I said.

As we drove through traffic to the hotel, I leaned back in my seat, trying to get a handle on what I’d seen. I wanted to go through the letters the police had taken from Cindy Glass’s apartment. More than that, I needed to. Before, she’d just been a name to me.

Now she was a real person.

And if there was anything I could do to help Zach find her killer, I was going to do it.

Garrett had evidently been waiting for me by the front of the Belmont, and he opened the door to the limo for me, but I didn’t leave until I spoke to Henry first. “Thank you for the ride.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“Mine, too,” I said.

“Ms. Stone, would you do me a kindness?”

“If I can,” I replied.

“Tell your husband a great many people are pulling for him. He’s got an army at his disposal. All he need do is ask.”

“I’ll let him know.”

Garrett raised an eyebrow as I got out.

“Something to say, Garrett?” I asked him.

“You seem to make friends wherever you go,” he said.

“I just listen to people when they talk to me,” I said.

“That explains a great deal. You have a tendency to make the person you’re with the center of your universe. It’s quite intoxicating.”

That wasn’t the first time I’d been told that I was a good listener. “My mom always told me that there was more skill in listening than there was in speaking, and that she never learned anything by running her mouth.”

“It’s an admirable ability, but one that I’m afraid is becoming a lost art in this day of technology.”

“There are always people behind emails and text messages,” I said. “It just takes a different kind of listening to hear what’s being said.”

“True.”

As we walked through the lobby, I noticed several of the staff watching us surreptitiously. When I caught a glance or two, there was always a smile backing it. I wasn’t sure what I’d done to merit their goodwill, but I wasn’t about to rebuff it.

I walked toward the main elevator, but Garrett touched my arm to stop me.

“It’s this way,” he directed. He showed me to a nondescript nook in the lobby that I hadn’t noticed before. Garrett opened a door to reveal a private elevator. He held the door open, swiped his card, and then started to get out.

“Aren’t you going with me?”

“It’s Mr. Lane’s orders. No one is allowed upstairs without his direct consent. If there’s anything you need, at any time, it is yours to ask.”

“Thanks,” I said, but the doors were already sliding closed. I didn’t know why I was so nervous about seeing Barton Lane again, but I was. Perhaps it was because I was seeing him on his home turf. Maybe it was due to the light bag of memories I was taking him. Whatever the reason, I was as nervous as a teenage girl on her first date.

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when the elevator doors opened. Our suite was elegant, so I couldn’t imagine how nice the penthouse must be. It didn’t let me down, either. The floors were tiled with marble, and the furniture looked to be all antiques. The ceiling in the entryway was at least twenty feet high, and there was a crystal chandelier hanging that looked like it would fit in a presidential palace. I took all of that in in a moment, because the second I saw Barton Lane’s face, I knew that the man was in some serious pain, and I didn’t have time to look around at my surroundings anymore.

“Did you find her necklace?” he choked out.

“No, I’m sorry. I didn’t, and I checked with my husband on the way over here. The police have no idea where it is, either.”

He physically sagged at the news, and I had to step in to hold him up. What significance could that little cow pendant have for him?

“Was it important?”

“She loved cows, so I bought it for her on her twenty-third birthday. Cindy never went anywhere without it.”

No wonder it had so much sentimental value to him. I had to do something.

“I did find a few things that looked like they might hold memories for you,” I said.