Bare-Naked Lola (A Lola Cruz Mystery) (23 page)

“The one and only. I remember you,” he added with
un poquito
of an accusation. “You and your friend are coming to the Halloween Ball. You can be my guests and I’ll give you a personal moonlit tour of the grounds.”

I tried to detect the leer in his voice that I was sure was there, but really, he just sounded more hang-ten than creepy. “Oh, well, thanks so much, but I already took a tour—”

My mind hiccupped. Wait a second. I’d been on the grounds. I stared at the brochures, trying to remember. Lucy, Selma, and I had walked from the hot tub, past the parking lot, past some storage buildings…
numbered
storage buildings.

I tried to remember how many buildings there were. Three? Or maybe four?

Jennifer had written
#1
and
#2
on the different brochures. Could it be related?

Craig’s voice brought me back to the phone call. “Oh no, no buts,” he said. “It’s tomorrow night and everyone will be here. It’s the biggest party we have at
Cuerpo y Alma
. And the only one that allows a wee bit of clothing,” he added, as if he could read my mind and knew that there was no way in hell I’d be going to a Halloween party—or anywhere, for that matter—stark naked. “You just have to be creative.”

I’d been asking myself if I’d really be able to do it—and flaunt it—if it meant I could bring Jennifer’s killer to justice. At this moment, talking to Craig, the answer was a definite no.

“I work tomorrow night,” I said, stalling for time. The Royals had a game, but I could go to the party afterward. To get a closer look at those buildings.

“After you get off work. We won’t start the party without you.”

I must have sputtered into the phone, because he quickly followed up with, “Kidding. The party gets going around ten or eleven.”

Maybe I’d be done. Unless the buildings turned out to be a big clue and I found a killer to follow. Or something. “I’ll think about it.”

“Okey-dokey, then,” he said.

I came back around to why I’d called in the first place. The member list. “Mister…er, Craig…” There was no way I could ask him about the people who came to
Cuerpo y Alma
without telling him who I was. I grimaced, imagining the phone call I was going to have to make to Jack in a minute. “Uh, thanks again for the invitation. I guess I’ll give it a go. Sounds like fun.”

If he was surprised he’d convinced me to come, he didn’t show it over the phone. He rattled off a few details, then hung up, leaving me wondering just what kind of skimpy, yet chaste, costume I’d be able to pull together by tomorrow night.

Chapter Twenty

I spent the rest of the afternoon scouring Jennifer’s Facebook friends for any stray connection or clue as to why she might have been killed. I found Craig, Deirdre, Victoria, and Selma, but not Lance, Tiffany, Carrie, Vanessa, or any other Courtside Dancers. They’d all left Rest In Peace comments, noting how much she’d be missed and how devastating losing her was, but no one had left a comment saying, “I killed her!”

Big surprise.

Unfortunately, the word “Guilty!” wasn’t stamped on anyone’s forehead, either.

After I added some notes to the whiteboard bullet points I’d started on the case, I stood back to consider. Steve had acted so oddly but I couldn’t fathom a motive. Given more time, maybe. Larry had known Jennifer and he’d stood up to his brother as her defender. His presence was all over her final Facebook page. I’d heard from the dancers, and from Steve, that Larry attended every game. Which meant he could be the letter-writer.

A niggling sensation started inside me, working its way from my gut to my head. What if
he
was the boyfriend she met at the hot tub? Was that even possible? Selma had said something about the guy not being comfortable with the nudist life—Larry seemed conservative to me, what with his beige Dockers and plaid button-down shirts. He didn’t strike me as the nudist type, but my brief experience at C
uerpo y Alma
told me that naturists came in all shapes and sizes, and trying to pigeonhole them into being a certain way wouldn’t get me anywhere. I needed an open mind.

Would he strip it all off for a woman?

For Jennifer?

But then why kill her? Had she broken it off with him? Had the green-eyed monster reared its ugly head when he found out about her other conquests?

All speculation, which wouldn’t convince Manny I was on the right track, and certainly wouldn’t close the case for Detective Bennett.

But it did make me hungry.

Hmph. I capped my markers, tidied up my file on Jennifer, and headed outside. Sure, it was October, but my jeans and blouse stuck to my body, the definition of stretchy redefined as they hugged every single curve I had. I hightailed it to Abuelita’s, changed into my work uniform—black pants and a white peasant blouse—and scarfed a bowl of
sopa de calabaza
, which Papi’d made with fresh pumpkin. As I started work, I wondered if there would ever be a day when I could stop helping out at the family restaurant.

“
Mira
, Lola!” My cousin, Chely, skipped into the restaurant, skidded to a stop in front of me, and tossed her textbook and binder onto the counter. “My cheerleading coach showed me this cool move!”

I’d been holding my own and hadn’t needed private cheer lessons from her, but watching her slide into the splits, then pop back up as if she were a rubber band made me cringe. I was only twenty-nine and I could do a high kick Bruce Lee would have been proud of, but the splits? No way.

“So you like cheerleading?”

She shrugged. “It’s okay. I mostly like it because my mom doesn’t.” She grinned. “She can’t say anything about the makeup or the outfits, because they’re required.”

“
Ay, Chely
. Your mom’s just—”

“Pink and blue and butterflies for the
quinceañera
, remember?”

How could I forget? Her fifteenth birthday celebration had coincided with my first big case.

“But we made it work,” I reminded her.

“Yes we did.” She slugged my arm, snatched up her chemistry book and binder, and scurried off to the break room to get ready for work. I finished filling the chip baskets, worried that if I didn’t solve this case, I’d be out of a job and,
ay caramba
, I’d be grateful to be a waitress at Abuelita’s.

…

Three hours later, my shift was almost done and I was no closer to figuring out an idea for a costume to wear to the
Cuerpo y Alma
Halloween Ball. Glancing at the clock above the cash register, I spewed out a sigh of relief. Eight forty-five.

“I’m outta here at nine,” I said to Antonio as he passed by, carrying a bussing bin of dirty plates.

“Take care of table twelve.”

I stared him down. He and our father ran the restaurant, but Antonio was handling more and more of it. The pressure was getting to him. No small talk. No friendly brother of the year.

He stopped at the In door to the kitchen and turned back to me. I hadn’t budged.

“
Ahorita, por favor
,” he said, faking a grin.

I saluted him. “Ay, ay,
capitán
.”

“Funny, Lo,” he said. “I have a lot on my mind, it’s late, but it’s still swamped. I need you to stay late.”

“Fine,” I said. At this rate, I’d be wrapping myself in Saran Wrap for a costume. Which probably wasn’t a bad idea.

A wave of dizziness fluttered through my body. I needed to sneak in something to eat. Something more than pumpkin soup.

I delivered an order to a rowdy group of teenagers in the back and headed to the kitchen. I had to eat…
now
. I couldn’t come up with a costume idea—plus solve Jennifer’s murder—on an empty belly. I grabbed a handful of chips from the warmer and scanned the lobby. The customers kept coming. Good for business, but that didn’t help me with my schedule.

I turned to head back into the kitchen, stopping when I spotted a vibrant head of red hair. I’d only seen that color hair on one person—Jack’s sister, Brooke. She was a Sacramento cop, but instead of her blues, just then she wore a sweater, jeans, and boots. She was as ready for fall as I was.

I started toward her for a quick hello but froze in my tracks. She was arguing with a woman—a tall, blonde, pretty woman—pulling her toward the door by the sleeve of the woman’s ratty sweatshirt.

My breath caught in my throat, my head suddenly full of cotton.

Sarah.

She was back.

And she looked right at me, her mouth curved up in a smirk.

My sister, Gracie, who was also filling in tonight, breezed up to the hostess station, counted out a stack of menus, and called, “Sanchez, party of six. Sanchez?”

Just like in the movies, as the group of people stepped forward and Gracie led them to the dining room, the door to the restaurant opened and a breeze fluttered in. A flash of panic zipped across Brooke’s face. Sarah’s lips twisted.

And there, darkening the door, was the perfect specimen of a man—something I now knew from my own personal experience—Jack Callaghan.

…

I leaned against the wall and watched as if it were one of Mama’s
telenovelas
come to life right in front of me. My own personal soap opera, complete with a movie star hero. Sandy brown hair, golden-honey skin, a body that had already turned my insides to goo, smoky blue eyes.

And a crazy ex-girlfriend who just wouldn’t stay away.

¡Dios mío!
Forget that damn dimple. How dare he? How could he have come here to Abuelita’s with…with…
Sarah
? And after our night together…

He saw Brooke, who mouthed something to him and still looked like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming semi-truck. Jack scowled at her, then turned to Sarah. He stood with his hands in the front pockets of his jeans, listening to whatever Sarah was saying, but, as if he could sense me, his gaze turned in my direction.

The color drained from his face. Guess he hadn’t expected me to be here tonight.

Busted.

I suddenly felt weak in the knees and inexplicably hot. I lunged into the kitchen. The Sarah problem wasn’t resolved, that was clear, but I didn’t have to see them together

My dad pushed four steaming plates forward on the stainless steel warming shelf.

“Food’s up, Dolores. Table five.
¡Ándale!
”

“
Hijo de la chingada
,” I swore under my breath, cursing my father’s timing.

I tightened my uninspired ponytail. I was worse for wear after a long day, and my coppery salon highlights were probably as dull as a tarnished pot. I ran my fingers through the few strands that framed my face. If I was going to witness the demise of my brand new relationship with Jack, I would do it with style.

I headed toward the oval mirror by the kitchen’s In door. I was a five-foot-seven-inch woman with boobs, hips, and killer biceps. I’d never be a supermodel, but I was okay with that because I could take any empty-headed stick woman in a dark alley—or anywhere else. Including
la pendeja
, Sarah.

But as I started to pinch my cheeks and swipe my lips with the MAC O I had in my pocket, my dad slammed his hand down on his cutting board. “The food is ready, Dolores!
¡Pronto!
”

“
Lo siento, Papi.
” There was no more stalling.

I balanced three plates with my left hand and took the fourth in my right. Sure, it
looked
precarious, but I’d been working at Abuelita’s since I was thirteen. I could waitress with my eyes closed. I backed out of the kitchen, pushing the door open with my foot.

The door swung closed behind me. I swiveled my body and glanced around; every noise in the restaurant seemed magnified. The clock’s ticking sounded like a woodpecker nipping at my skull. The clatter of the late-night dinner customers was a low buzz in the back of my brain.

Instantly, my eyes locked with Jack’s. The sides of his lips tugged downward. Was that helplessness I detected? Or was it resignation?

Sarah stood straight and tall, like she was rooted to the ground and refused to budge. Brooke whispered something in Jack’s ear. His eyes never left me, but he lips moved as he responded to her.

Something didn’t feel right. The plates I carried wobbled and I shifted to rebalance, still watching him. Watching them.

The kitchen door swung out behind me, creaking a warning. Somewhere in the recesses of my mind a voice screamed, “Move out of the way!”
Pero
, too late.
Smack!
The door swung open, hitting me squarely on the ass, plunging me forward into the dining room.

I struggled to keep upright as refried beans and clumps of Spanish rice careened through the air. The plates crashed to the floor. There was a silent moment before applause broke out in the restaurant with the loudest whoops, whistles, and hollers coming from the table of teenage boys in the back.

A flurry of Spanish flew at me from my grandparents’ regular booth in front.

Muttering a guttural animal sound, I pulled myself upright. I stepped back and turned around, facing the swinging kitchen door. I still held one plate in my right hand; only half the food had flown off it. It was a small save, hardly worth celebrating, but it felt like a victory.

It was short-lived.

The kitchen door flung open and banged against me again. The plate in my right hand smashed against my chest.

“
Híjole
.” I dropped the plate, jumping up and down, fanning my hands in front of me. “Hot! Hot!” It didn’t do a bit of good.
Mole
sauce oozed down my blouse, scorching my skin. With clawlike fingers, I pulled the cloth away and blew on my burning chest.

“Lola!” Antonio stood holding onto the pass-through door to the kitchen, his face grim. “What the hell are you doing?”

I stared him down. “What am
I
doing?” I hunched forward, trying to keep my blouse away from my skin. “What are
you
doing, Tonio? That’s the
Out
door!” My eyes bulged and I threw out my arms. “
Mira
. Look at me!”