Color Me a Crime (7 page)

At least it will give me a reason not to come back to Heifer’s and Ho’s until Linda Minx’s death is solved and I’m free.

“Are the cops still here?”

“Don’t you worry about them.” She hands me a cup with piping hot tea. “You and Joel need some time away from all this.”

“Joel doesn’t trust me.” I blow on the hot tea before I take a drink. “I did not kill that woman.”

Someone is calling for Jill and she stands up. “Your aunt and friend are waiting out back in your car.” She winks before she leaves the room to see who is calling for her.

I quickly run out of the room, through the kitchen and out the back door. True to Jill’s word, Aunt Matilda is in the driver’s seat and Erin is in the back of the old Toyota. I jump in and Aunt Matilda floors it.

“Matilda, you are making this more difficult than it needs to be!” Cop Carl yells.

I look out the rear window just in time to see Carl throw his police cap on the ground, saying a few curse words under his breath.

“I know the law! I know how you operate!” Aunt Matilda screams out the open window for all the cops to hear. “Remember, I used to work with you!”

The dust cloud left behind by the tires is so thick that I can’t see anyone’s reactions.

“Don’t you worry.” Aunt Matilda’s eyes focus on me through the rearview mirror. “We will get the best attorney around. Besides, they can’t keep you here without a warrant.”

I bite the corner of my lip and don’t say a word. The country unfolds as Aunt Matilda zips around the old country roads. The usual vibrant colors don’t seem so bright today and neither does my future.

Even the sun hides behind the overcast clouds, all the way back to my house. The tires screech as Aunt Matilda throws on the brakes after making it safely into my driveway.

“Just leave the car running,” I tell Aunt Matilda and climb out of the back seat into the empty driver’s seat. “I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and finish up some paperwork at Color Me Love.”

“Oh, that reminds me.” Erin pops her head back in the car. “I know there is a lot going on with Felicia’s death, but we still have the mixer tonight for Buddy.  And we need to keep things as normal as possible.”

“I thought he said on the voicemail he was forgoing the mixer and going straight on the date with Felicia.”

“Only with Felicia. He still wants the mixer, and it is tonight.” She slams the door. She and Aunt Matilda disappear into the house, I pull out, ready to try to make some sense of what has transpired in the last twelve hours.

The Coffee Shop has an internet café where they provide the computers. I can’t use my own computer now, and Color Me Love’s computer is definitely out. I’m sure that’s the first thing Park City’s finest is going to confiscate if they haven’t already.

I have to find out everything I can about Linda Minx. And that includes the pornography business.

I pull the Toyota into the only open parking space that happens to be across the street from the already busy Coffee Shop.

The line is out the door, which doesn’t surprise me since it is still early on a Saturday morning. The Surplus sign blinking ‘open’ catches my eye. It’s never too early to go visit with my friend. While I wait for the line to dwindle down, I walk over to the Surplus.

“Mornin’,” Vive calls out into the shop from behind the counter. The only thing I can see is big puff of black hair in the top front of her head. I am sure she uses a Bump It. She stands up, and drums her fingernails on top of the glass counter and tilts her head to the side. The Bump It stays in place. “Why, Olivia Davis, what can I do for you this morning?”

“I would’ve bought you a coffee, but The Coffee Shop is packed.” I walk up to the counter and she leans closer. I can see she’s more curious than ever.

“Does your little visit have anything to do with that porno star that I saw walk right into Color Me Love?” Vive chomps on the wad of gum in her mouth. With her eyes still focused on me, she straightens back up and grabs the bedazzled fingernail file off the counter and starts sawing on her claws. “I kept my mouth shut when that cop you are sweet on came in here asking if I saw anything.”

“Joel?” My eyes widen. “He’s already been here?”

She shakes her head. The Bump It still doesn’t move, but her long straight black hair swooshes side-to-side. “He called me at home. Woke me up from a dead sleep.” She brushes her silky hair behind her shoulder. “I need all my beauty sleep. After all, you don’t look this good without it.”

Vive certainly does not have a bad body image.

“He told me to call him if I remember anything.” She blows a bubble and sticks her long fingernail in it. “I don’t trust the law, especially if I don’t know all the particulars. Do you know them?” Her cosmetically Botox brows lift clear to the ceiling.

“Here’s the deal…” I take a deep breath and begin the journey…“I have a gift.”

“For me?” Vive’s face lights up and she plants her hand across her bare-skinned chest.

“Not that sort of gift.” I try to stop Vive from scooting around the counter in her four-inch high-heeled hot pink shoes, excitement playing on her face, her arms outstretched. I put my arms out. “Whoa…I’m psychic.”

Just as fast as Vive came around the counter, she doubled-back.

“No, no, no you don’t. You take your voodoo-self right on out that door.” She points a long finger toward the street. “I can’t have any bad juju up in here.”

“It’s not like
that
either.” I plant my hands on the glass counter. Vive backs up against the wall and covers her face with her crossed forearms like I’m going to spit some type of witch spell on her. “I read auras. Like right now your aura is a pinkish red letting me know that you are a tad bit freaked.”

“Tad bit?” She springs the bottle of mace from her fancy belt holster and holds it steady at my face. “I swear I will use this if you do any of that ‘I can see into your future’ shit.”

“Wrong type of psychic.” I correct her. With some fast-talking, I let her in on my history with my family, Aunt Matilda, my nightmares, and how it all ties into Felicia Evans. “Only I didn’t kill Linda. Her real name is Felicia.”

“Hell, girl.” Vive put the mace back in her holster. “That’s some messed up shit!” She stomps her heel on the hard floor of The Surplus. “What do you need me to do to help you?”

“I’m not sure. But I do know that I need to find out everything and anything I can on Felicia Evans’ life, personal and professional,” I say. “That is why I want to use the internet over at The Coffee Shop.”

Vive pulls down her too tight blue jean mini-skirt and motions for me to follow her to the storage room in the back of the Surplus.

The storage room has boxes upon boxes of the latest guns, mace and anything else you may need to protect yourself.

I follow her to the back left corner, closest to Color Me Love, to a little desk with an old desktop computer on it. Vive pushes the button on the monitor and tower to turn the ancient dinosaur on.

With a few zips, zings, and ring sounds, the internet pops up.

Click, click.
Vive’s nails tap on the keyboard as I watch her type in Linda Minx. All sorts of Linda that we don’t need to see pops up…literally.

“So, did you really plant your fist in her jaw?” Vive laughs.

“It’s not funny.” I take over the keyboard as the front bell dings, letting us know that someone is in the store. “I’d do anything for a blue aura.”

“You are going to fix me up…for free,” She calls over her shoulder before she disappears into the front of the store. “Officer Shelton. Back so soon?”

I tap the monitor off, but not the computer, just in case Joel walks back into the storage room.

Quietly, I get on my hands and knees and crawl to the door to see why he is back so soon.

“Have you seen Ms. Davis?” He asks Vive.

“Nope. She usually doesn’t work on Saturdays.” She chomps her gum. “You should know that, though. Aren’t you two an item?”

Yeah, answer that one.
I’m more interested in that answer than why he’s looking for me.

“Ms. Kapila, this is official police business. I went by her house and her roommate and Aunt told me she wasn’t there.” He proceeds to ask more questions. “And her car is right over there. But she’s not in any of the two open stores.”

“Hm. . .” Vive continues, “Did you check Color Me Love? Maybe she’s doing some paperwork or something.”

“I knocked, but again, no sign of her.”

Looking back, I have a compulsion to flee the scene, but I can tell that Vive is holding true to her words.

“If you see her first, tell her I have that new
extra strong
can of mace she ordered.” Vive’s words drip with confidence. “You might want to buy some for yourself since the big Heifer’s and Ho’s mystery death. It’s much better than that little can you get from the police department.”

“Who said anything about Heifer’s and Ho’s, Ms. Kapila?” He questions her.

I peek between the door and the jam. Joel’s green eyes are intensely focused on Vive. His blue aura is still as beautiful as ever.

Sigh
. My heart skips a beat. I put my hand up to my chest just in case they can hear the pitter patter of my heart.

Joel doesn’t wait for Vive to answer. “Listen, Vive. I want to clear this thing up as much as everyone else does in Park City. But I’m going to need Olivia’s help to do it. If you see her, please have her call or stop by the department.”

“Will do.” Vive picks up the file and begins to saw away at her fingernails. She and I both watch him walk out the door.

“He’s dreamy,” I say breathlessly and stand up.

“We don’t have time for dreamy.” Vive grabs my arms and drags me back to the computer. She sits down in the chair, and I can’t help myself. I look at the puff from all the angles. There is no way that thing is staying in place without the Bump It.

She clicks through all sorts of links.

“Look here.” She taps the monitor. “Here is the production company that films her movies. What do you know? 4Play Production is right in Cincinnati.”

“Click it!” With a single click, I had the name and number of the company. “Hand me a piece of paper.”

Vive rushes to the front of the store. I am sure her gum chomping can be heard from outside. I realize the more intense the situation, the harder she chews her gum.

Employment opportunities.
I click on the button to see exactly what jobs they are hiring. It isn’t beneath me to put my colliding aura syndrome aside and go undercover.

“Here you go.” Vive sets the sticky notepad and pen next to the keyboard. “I have a few customers that just came in. I’ll be back.”

Not really paying attention to her, I wave her off and get back to digging around 4Play. Quickly I look for a night job or cleaning. Those are the best for my aura issues. At night, I wouldn’t have to worry about seeing anyone; well that is the case with normal companies. I don’t really know how a porn company works, but I’m willing to learn. Especially if it’s going to clear me of being a suspect.

Unfortunately, most of the jobs are vague and require you to apply in person. I can definitely clean toilets.

I glance down at my watch and notice it’s not even noon yet. I can make it to Cincinnati, apply, and be back just in time to do a few dumps, attend Buddy’s mixer, and eat dinner with Aunt Matilda and Erin.

I peek my head through the door into the Surplus and Vive is giving her big ole spiel about how important it is to protect ourselves in this crazy world to a couple customers.

I roll my eyes. Park City, Ohio is
no
t a crazy world. Who in the world is Vive trying to convince? I’m not saying that my can of mace I bought from her didn’t come in handy---it did---but it’s not as if I’ve needed to use it every day.

The fewer people that know I’m going to Cincinnati, the better. I don’t go out the front of the shop; I head out the back and into the alley behind The Surplus, The Coffee Shop, and Color Me Love.

Luckily, the back door to the Coffee Shop is open. I slip in, take a couple bucks out of my bag and put them in the honesty jar. I need all the caffeine I can get. My nerves are waning…not because I’m a suspect in Felicia Evans’ murder and my blue aura boyfriend doesn’t believe me, but because I’m about to apply for a job with a porn company.

And Aunt Matilda isn’t going to be happy about it.

Chapter Ten

I’m not sure if the coffee helps me or hurts me. My nerves are on edge as I pull into the old brick building in the not-so-great side of town in Cincinnati.

I check the address again to make sure that I’m at the right place.

Yep.
I read the address out loud.

Spies like us
, my phone sings from the passenger seat. A number I don’t recognize pops up. There is no way I’m going to answer it. It could be Cop Carl or even Joel trying to find out where I am by calling from another number. Not many people have my number and it’s not the one I use for Splitsville.

I hit the red button to silence it. I have to get my wits about me or my nerves are going to make me pass out, not colliding auras.

Before I grab my bag, I open the glove box to get my little bottle of mace. Not that Cincinnati is dangerous, but I don’t trust anyone who takes their clothes off for a film or for money.

I check the address one more time before I get out and head to suite 501.

Nothing on the building even remotely boasts that a pornography production company is in here.

I take the elevator up to the fifth floor, which opens right into the lobby of 4Play.

“They should call it what it is, the filth floor,” I mumble under my breath and let out a little laugh at my witty remark.

“Thank God you are here.” The young girl behind the counter grabs me and drags me into a room behind her. Her pink aura went well with her skimpy red dress, hoisted cleavage, and sky-high heels. “We have been going crazy all day with Linda’s murderer on the loose. We are just so thankful you could come. The interview process is going to be fast. So if you get the job, you start tomorrow.”

“Oh, that fast?” They must be in desperate need to fill the cleaning position. On second thought, what did they
do
in the bathrooms? I mean, you’d think there would be a lot of hanky panky going on in a place like this. I look around and assure her of my skills. I need this job. I want this job. “I’m really good with the scrub brush or my hands are good too. I do prefer gloves.”