Chasing Suspect Three (21 page)

“You’re not one of those men who is going to
attack me once we get inside?”

“No ma’am, not me.” A curious comment, he
thought. She didn’t sound worried about it. He put a little chuckle
in his voice, so she’d know he got it. “It would be inappropriate
for me to go inside. I’ll take these as far as the back door.” That
should clear away any question of his intentions.

He followed her to the back of the house
where she maneuvered the cart into a spot behind the fenced area
that enclosed several large trash containers.

“This is where I hide it. Some just abandon
the carts and bring home a new one every time to clutter up the
neighborhood. But I don’t. I like my own cart. I keep it clean. It
is never touched by any God knows where they’ve been hands. Got a
squeaky wheel though.”

He wondered about her life story. She didn’t
appear to be some bowed and bent little old lady, yet she did seem
defeated. He doubted she had been like this her entire life. With a
little effort, she could look acceptable again. However, once you
start losing it, it’s difficult to get things together enough to
escape and come back. In any case, life can be tough even with the
best of resources. Some tragic event no doubt turned her life
toward the worst.

The back door was unlocked; she opened it and
stepped back for him to enter. Instead, he held the market bags out
to her.

“Can’t you at least carry them down the hall
to the stairs?” She walked on in before he could answer and
continued down the hall to the foot of the stairs. “You are truly a
fine gentleman. Your mother drilled the manners into you. Good
thing I didn’t have a son. Can you imagine me as a mother?”

When he hesitated, she looked at him
hopefully. Oh hell, he was being ridiculous. He shrugged and
motioned her on up the stairs ahead of him. He should have stayed
in the car. Then again, he might be taking this entire situation
too seriously. “Let’s get this stuff on up to your apartment. I
absolutely must go.”

He followed her up the steps. She unlocked
her apartment door and pushed it open. “Thank you, sir. I don’t
know your name. Just put them down on the counter over there.”

He stopped in the hall leaning into the
doorway. “I’m not coming in. Let me hand these to you.”

She motioned with her hand. “Just set them
down over there, if you don’t mind.”

“No, I can’t come in, really.” He held out a
bag. “Here take this.”

“Set the damn bags on the counter,” she said
loudly.

That was the point where he should have
dropped the bags and sprinted out the door.

She slipped her feet out of her well-worn
thongs and kicked them fiercely aside. She walked barefoot on the
vinyl tile over to the dinette table positioned in front of a small
back window. She sat down glaring at him.

Whatever it takes to get out of there, he
thought. He stepped into the apartment walking cautiously as though
the floor was going to give way at any moment. He set the two bags
on the counter.

“You managed to get yourself into my
apartment, didn’t you? You clever villain.” She spoke in a strange
authoritative tone of voice, as though she had a gun pointed at
him. She didn’t frighten him; what was there to fear from such a
woman? Even so, she was serious about something. “Is there a
problem?”

She looked over at him, and said,
“O
villain, villain, smiling, damned villain!”

“What did you say?” He looked quizzically at
her. “That’s Shakespeare...Macbeth I believe.”

“No, it’s from Hamlet.
That one may smile,
and smile, and be a villain.
I played Hamlet’s mother. I was on
my way. I was going to be a great stage actress, maybe not great,
but I could have made a career out of it. You know, my name listed
somewhere down on the playbill. I chose a man instead.”

She looked down at her clasped hands. “At the
time, I never realized how serious a choice I was making. I married
my man, and my dream of a career upon the stage slipped through my
fingers. I thought a marriage was more important than a career. I
was wrong.”

She stared at him as though expecting him to
apologize.

“I’m sorry about your problems,” he said.
“You’ve had years to think about it. You are no doubt correct. Your
career might have been a good one.”

“It wouldn’t have to be very good to be
better than my marriage. I’d have been something more than I am
now. I would have had opportunities instead of living with a man
who turned out to be less than nothing. At the present time, I
should be living in a retired actor’s home trading lines from
Shakespeare with friends. I might have received residuals from some
TV series. Now I’m living on no money at all.”

She sighed wearily. “I don’t know where the
bastard is, but I heard he’s doing all alright. That’s always the
way isn’t it?” A quiver was now in her voice. “You’ve been
warned.”

“You’ve been warned? Is that a quote from
Hamlet?”

“No, you. You’ve been warned.”

He’d had enough. “I did nothing out of the
ordinary.”

“I saw your black car while coming home
today. I have a friend who’ll say I’m right. You followed me didn’t
you?”

“No such thing!”

“I spotted your car again, this time driving
around the neighborhood. You parked and tried to open my front
door. Then you moved your car down the block and sat there watching
for me.”

“No, I didn’t. Well, yes but—.”

“Then you moved your car to the back. I saw
you waiting for Billy to leave the building. You waited and were
ready when I appeared.”

“You approached me.”

“You followed me upstairs and came into my
apartment.”

“You asked me to carry your groceries. You
were leading the way.”

“Very clever.”

“If you knew all that, why aren’t you
frightened? Why did you put yourself in this situation?”

“Because I have this.” Her left hand went to
her neck and fondled a silver-colored amulet hanging on a beaded
chain around her neck. “This gives me power over you.”

Now he was beginning to understand. She was
bonkers. He was annoyed. “So, you believe that trinket has
supernatural powers. If I don’t obey, you’ll cast a spell over me.”
He had done all he could. He’d continue to be gentle with her, yet
if the woman was unbalanced, it wasn’t up to him to provide her
with therapy.

“No, young man, it doesn’t cast evil spells.
There’s no such thing as evil spells. You’re being silly. Just the
same, it does protect me from evildoers.”

She held the amulet forward so he could see,
leaving the chain around her neck. “You think the little red spot
in the middle is an imitation jewel, don’t you? No, a jewel
couldn’t harm you. In fact, it’s a button for emergencies. It calls
911 automatically. In case, I need to play the part of the woman
who falls and can’t get up.”

He touched his forehead where little beads of
sweat were now forming.

“Or in case, some strange man is actually a
villain. Once pushed I can’t stop it. No one can stop it. The call
to my protectors soars through the air on the wings of Mercury, and
no one can bring it back. At my signal, the fury of hell is
unleashed. I flick my finger and a fleeting force of rescuers
respond with sirens screaming and lights ablaze. Isn’t science
grand? Would you like a demonstration?”

“That’s not funny. For God’s sake, get your
finger away from it.”

“I’m not afraid to use it.”

“Why are you doing this to me?”

“You are a villain.”

“Be serious.” He combed his fingers through
his dark brown hair. “What do you want, money, me...what?”

“First, I want to know why you’re stalking
me.”

“Stalking? Who said anything about
stalking?”

“I think it was Shakespeare who said, ‘If it
walks like a duck, and talks like a duck...you know the rest.”

“Stop playing with that thing.” The woman was
unbalanced. He needed to be forceful and authoritative. “Look, do
you know what I’m going to do? I’m going to walk out that door. You
are not going to set off that alarm. You would be the evil one, if
you did that. I know you’re not evil. You know I’m no threat and
I’ve been nice. I’m going out that door.”

Her fingers fondled the amulet.

He kept his eyes fixed on her. “Push that
button and you are going to ruin me and my reputation. That’s what
you’d do. That’s what pressing that button means. I know you’re not
going to do that.”

He turned his back on her and walked slowly
to the door.

At the door, he turned for a moment and
smiled at her before going on. That’s when he first heard the
sirens from hell.

T
he day was almost
gone and turning dark by the time Martin finished with the
paperwork at the police station and took refuge beside Sandy in the
front seat of her MX5. He waited for her teasing.

She started in with, “What the hell were you
trying to do out there? Chip phoned. Said you followed some old
woman into her apartment, and she was screaming for the
police.”

“Would you mind putting the top up?”

“So you can’t be seen?”

“That’s correct.” He leaned back and closed
his eyes. “I intend to withdraw to some solitary place for my
remaining life of abject seclusion.”

“No, you won’t.” She laughed and gave him a
slight poke in the ribs with her elbow. She started the engine and
ran the top up. “How did Chip get drawn into this anyway?”

“It was nothing at first. The zone cop,
Pearson, I think his name was, responded to the 911 call. He was
familiar with those apartments, because the woman and the landlord
had mixed it up in the past over the air conditioning or something.
The old bag claimed I had insinuated my way into her apartment.
Well, she didn’t say insinuated she said I sweet-talked my way
in.”

“Ye gads, imagine the poor woman all alone in
her apartment facing Martin Bronner. You animal! Why didn’t she
like you?”

“Because I’m a man.”

“Well, she has a point.”

“I’m not going to sit here and play straight
man for you, Sandy. You can cease with the smart-alecky comments.
The zone cop had me worried at first by acting as though he
believed her. He made a big production out of marching me down to
his vehicle. Once we got down there, he laughed and told me not to
worry. He’d go back up and pacify her. After a long half-hour, he
came down very accusatory. Had I parked in front for a while, did I
drive around, was I just sitting in my car parked in back, did I
offer to take her groceries in? He arrested me, handcuffs and
everything, on the charge of stalking.”

“Stalking is serious.”

“And I’m not good at it. Fortunately, Chip
noticed me at the station, and said he’d go out and pacify the
woman. I phoned Mel Shapiro, and he put everything on hold.”

“And Chip went over to Claudia’s place.”

“Of course, I was conducting an amateurish
surveillance of Claudia. This old woman lives in the same building.
Get off it, Sandy.”

She just shrugged.

“This is my story. Do you mind? Anyway, they
didn’t arrest me. My name is mentioned in an incident report that’s
all. Well, not quite all. Judy saw me at the police station about
to be booked. She asked me what was going on, and said she couldn’t
wait to hear all about it. She didn’t seem upset.”

“So, you were never officially booked?”

“Correct, between Chip and Shapiro the whole
thing was painted over. I’m glad Judy didn’t overreact and cancel
my meeting her family.”

“Meet her family? What is this 1940? She
takes you home to mom and dad for approval?”

“Judy has a thirteen-year-old daughter,
Nicola. They refer to themselves as the Family. She wanted us to
meet.”

“Geez, approval from the teenage daughter,
that’s an important milestone. Wow, I didn’t realize your romance
had progressed like that. So that makes Judy what, mid-thirties
plus or minus, making it on a police officer’s salary, with a cool
kid. And then there’s attractive and urbane you.” She wanted to add
that any woman would love to catch him—except it would be unkind to
mention that, since he had once carried the torch for her. He had
once proposed, and she had turned him down. She did say, “You are
two lucky people. Wait until Lifetime Movies gets a hold of
this.”

“Apparently, mother and daughter are quite
the buddies, they share everything. We’ve had a couple of dates.
I’m making progress.”

“I believe you are. Don’t forget your history
goes back beyond just a couple of recent dates. She realized you
were interested in her way back when you first attempted to connect
with her. She brushed you off back then thinking you had a thing
going with your best friend’s wife. She’s been thinking about you
ever since”

“Really?”

“She mom started talking about you around the
house. Now the sharp daughter wants to check you out to be certain
everything’s cool. Meanwhile, mom is scared to death worrying
whether she’d be doing the right thing for her family, since you
are so intimidating.”

“I must be the least intimidating guy on the
planet. Where are you coming from?”

“You are wonderful and down to earth. It’s
your wealth that’s in another orbit.” She expected his reaction.
“Don’t look at me like that. I’ve observed you for a year now. I
know how you live. I haven’t investigated you, because I couldn’t
care less about your wealth. Judy, however, has no doubt checked
out your lifestyle. You think that sharp gal hasn’t driven passed
your house on the barrier island?”

“I live simply. Our house has been in the
family for years. It’s nice, certainly not fancy and not the
latest. I like to drive a good car, but there are much more
expensive ones on the road.”

“You have servants.”