Dangerous Mercy: A Novel (15 page)

Adele sat at her computer desk, wishing she had the email addresses of more people so she could practice her newfound skill. She wanted to try browsing, whatever that meant. Murray promised to come back and teach her more. He had showed her which icon to click and said to type in any subject and see what happened.

She clicked on the icon that looked like a blue lowercase e with a halo and saw the space next to the word Google. She typed in Zoe B’s Cajun Eatery and pressed the Enter key. A page of results came up, and Zoe B’s was the first name listed. She clicked onto it, and, almost magically, a colorful page appeared, with a picture of Pierce and Zoe standing in front of Zoe B’s. She scrolled down the page and read everything but was afraid to click on anything else, fearing she might do something that would mess up her email.

She heard a familiar cough and looked over at the doorway and saw Isabel standing there.

“You wanted to see me when I was finished cleaning the kitchen,” Isabel said.

“Yes, come in, hon. Sit here next to me.”

Isabel walked softly across the room and sat in the chair next to the desk, avoiding eye contact.

“I didn’t want to talk about this over dinner, but we need to come to an understanding.”

“What understanding, ma’am?”

“Oh, I think you know what this is about. Let’s not play games.”

“I’m not sure I do.”

Adele looked over at Isabel and waited until she met her gaze. “I cannot run my household to suit you. I hired you to suit me.”

“I’m not following you.”

“Isabel, I like Murray, and I like Noah. I intend to keep hiring them as long as they are available and continue to do good work. While I cannot tell you how to feel about them, I can demand that you treat them like you would any guest in my home.”

“Did I say or do anything out of line?”

“You were icy polite, which, in my book, equates to rude. I promise you Murray was well aware that you do not approve of his being here.”

The color of Isabel’s cheeks told Adele she understood exactly what she was saying.

“Are we clear?” Adele spoke softly. “I like having you here. I think we do very well together, and I don’t want this to become an issue between us. Should that happen, I would find it impossible to keep you in my employ.”

“You’re asking me to just ignore my instincts?”

“You’re not ignoring them. You made your feelings known. I considered what you said. I simply don’t share your point of view. God seems to have given me the gift of mercy, and I’m drawn to people others aren’t.”

“But it’s dangerous
mercy, ma’am. Would He really call you to that?”

Adele fingered the gold cross around her neck. “Perhaps the Lord’s idea of dangerous differs from ours. After all, He knows the ending of the story.”

Isabel blew her bangs off her forehead. “Well, getting to the end of the story is the scary part. Sometimes I wish He would tell me what’s going to happen. Don’t you?”

Adele smiled. “It might frighten me to death, if I knew what He knows. I try to take it a day at a time.” Adele gently gripped Isabel’s wrist. “I’m not asking you to understand my choice of acquaintances. But I do expect you to accept those that God has brought to me.”

“How can you be sure it’s God?”

“Simple. Not one thing happens in my life that He doesn’t either orchestrate or allow for a greater good.”

“You have a lot more faith than I do. I think He gives us a brain and instincts and expects us to use them.”

“Of course He does. And we need to use them. But faith, by its very nature, requires belief in the unseen—that which we have to trust Him for. He’s called us to love others as we love ourselves. That requires a great deal of acceptance of those we aren’t drawn to naturally.”

“I’m sorry my attitude was disappointing. It won’t happen again. I really want this job. I like working for you.”

“Then we shouldn’t have any problem. Simply treat Murray and Noah as you would anyone else I’ve welcomed into my home. Can you do that?”

“Yes, I think I can. I’ll give it my best.”

“Very well.” Adele studied the computer screen, then turned to Isabel and smiled. “I would sure like to have another piece of that praline cake. Would you like to join me in the kitchen?”

“Sure. I’ll go cut us each a piece.”

Adele let out a sigh of relief. How she hated confrontation! Was she really willing to fire Isabel because the girl found it difficult to accept a couple of reformed vagabonds? Then again, if everyone reacted the way Isabel had, how would Noah and Murray be encouraged to stay on course?

But it’s dangerous mercy, ma’am.

Adele considered Isabel’s words. Wasn’t all mercy dangerous? Wasn’t there always a chance it could be abused? Noah and Murray had been nothing but kind and hardworking. What cause did she have to believe either would take advantage of her?

CHAPTER 16

The next morning, Jude sat at the desk in his office, his hands wrapped around a mug of coffee, and began reading Saturday’s issue of the
Les Barbes Ledger
.

Bathtub Killer Strikes a Third Time

Sheriff Jude Prejean and Police Chief Casey Norman are shaking their heads after the discovery Friday morning of a third victim of the Bathtub Killer. Nicole Aubry, 52, the owner and CEO of Aubry Computer Systems, was found drowned in the bathtub in her home in the upscale neighborhood of Magnolia Blossom.

Reba Chapin, Aubry’s personal assistant, became concerned when the CEO missed an important meeting and failed to return her phone or email messages. Chapin finally drove to Aubry’s home and found her fully clothed in business attire and submerged in the bathtub. The pound sign followed by the numeral three had been spray painted on the wall.

The medical examiner confirmed the victim had been drugged with a veterinary sedative called ketamine, sold on the street as “Special K” or cat Valium. The ME also placed the time of death between five and six Thursday night, which suggests that Aubrey might have been killed when she returned home from work.

The victim’s safe had been emptied. It’s unknown at this time what was taken—

A knock at the door broke his concentration. “Come in.”

Aimee walked to his desk and handed him three colored folders. “Here’s the preliminary list of all the foreclosures at the Roux River Bank in the past five years. And the list of employees at Fontaine Sugar Refinery
and
Aubry Computer Systems who either quit or were laid off or fired in the same time frame. Gil has a team cross-referencing any names that appear more than once. They’re going to create a comprehensive list. In the meantime, he knew you’d want a copy of all three.”

“I do. Thanks.”

Aimee’s gaze seemed to probe his thoughts. “What time did you finally get out of here last night?”

“I hung it up about one. I probably shouldn’t have stayed that late just going over the same information. I’d have been better off getting a good night’s sleep and hitting it fresh this morning. I feel like I’ve been run over by a semi.”

“I think the same truck ran over me.”

He held up the folders. “Anything in here stand out to you?”

“Not at first glance. But we know these murders were personal. Well thought out. Calculated. I agree that it’s significant the killer didn’t torture his victims. There’s not a scratch on any of them—no defensive wounds either. Makes me think the victims didn’t find him threatening. Maybe they even knew him. Your theory that he wanted the chance to vent before he killed them makes sense, especially if we’re right about the murders being related to a layoff and foreclosure.”

“I just really want to catch this guy before he strikes again.”

“We’re too late, Sheriff.” Gil Marcel filled the doorway. “Castille just called. We’ve got another body.”

Jude pulled up behind Aimee and Gil in front of a three-story brick and stone mansion in the new Park Heights development. A media van was already parked down the block and a camera crew set up on the sidewalk behind the barrier his deputies had set up.

Jude got out of the car, and Deputy Stone Castille ran over to him.

“What do we know about the victim?” Jude said.

“Name’s Jeanette Stein. Thirty-one.
Not
a CEO, but the wife of that hotshot defense lawyer Barry Stein. The front door was unlocked, the security alarm off, and no sign of forced entry. The victim was drowned in the bathtub in the master suite—same MO as the first three, except she was wearing a nightgown. The ME puts the time of death between nine and eleven last night.”

“Where was her husband?” Jude said.

“In New Orleans on a court case. Mrs. Stein’s sister got worried when she didn’t return her calls last night or this morning, and she came over here about thirty minutes ago and found her dead. The victim’s eight-month-old twin boys were next door in the nursery, screaming in their cribs. Hungry. Scared. Diapers dirty. The sister is packing their things now and taking them to her
house. Doucet is going to get her statement there.”

“Any chance this could be a copycat?” Jude said. “It’s odd that Mrs. Stein is the only victim that wasn’t a CEO.”

Castille shrugged. “Too soon to tell. The safe wasn’t robbed this time. But the way she was positioned in the bathtub with her hands crossed on her chest—like a body in a casket—wasn’t something we told the press. This one looked just like the first three.”

“Has Barry Stein been notified?”

“Yes, he’s driving back from New Orleans.”

“Don’t miss a step—not one—or he’ll be all over this. You know his reputation.” Jude looked up at the yellow crime-scene tape across the front door. “Find out if Stein represented Roux River Bank, Fontaine Sugar Refinery, or Aubry Computer Systems. There must’ve been numerous lawsuits filed after all the layoffs.”

“You’re reading my mind, Sheriff.”

“And find out if Mrs. Stein worked for her husband or had a personal connection to any of the other victims. I want to know what kind of relationship she had with her husband. And whether she might have been seeing someone else. We need to find out how she fits the puzzle.”

“Yes, sir. We will.”

“We’re really spread thin,” Aimee said.

Jude nodded. “I’ll ask Chief Norman to request additional manpower from other police departments. I’ve utilized all the deputies I can spare without disrupting necessary parish operations.”

Jude heard babies crying and turned toward the sound. Two young women walked from the house to the Dodge Caravan parked in the driveway, each carrying a shoulder bag on one arm and a baby in the other.

The brunette, her face red and swollen, opened the sliding door of the minivan and buckled the unhappy baby in his car seat. The blonde woman got the second twin situated in the other car seat, but he cried all the louder. Deputy Mike Doucet opened the hatch and set two suitcases in the back.

“The dark-haired woman with the long braid is Mrs. Stein’s sister, Bonnie Lonigan,” Castille said. “I don’t know who the blonde is. She looks like money.”

The two women embraced and held tightly to each other for several seconds. Then Stein’s sister slid into the driver’s seat, backed out of the driveway, and drove away, the heartrending sound of the babies’ wailing finally growing mute.

“That tears my heart out,” Aimee said. “If I didn’t know better, I’d swear those poor little boys know exactly what’s happened.”

Jude coughed to cover the tightness in his throat, glad that he wasn’t the one who had to tell Mr. Stein that the mother of his children had been murdered.

The classy blonde woman, her face streaked with mascara, walked over to them. “How many people have to die before you stop this monster?”

“I didn’t catch your name,” Jude said.

“Madison Vermilion. I live next door.” She dabbed her eyes. “Jeanette was my closest friend.”

“I’m very sorry for your loss.” The words sounded rote. But would anything he said really make her feel better?

“Sheriff, I realize there are those in the community who are convinced the killer is doing us all a favor.” The woman’s lower lip began to quiver, a tear spilling down her cheek. “But Jeanette wasn’t a CEO and never hurt a soul in her life. She was just a wife and—” Madison let out a sob and stifled it with her hand. “She had two little boys, for heaven’s sake.”

Aimee put her hand on Madison’s shoulder. “We’re going to do everything in our power to find out who killed your friend and bring that person to justice.”

Jude noticed a diamond-and-sapphire ring on Madison’s left hand. “Mrs. Vermilion, did you notice any unfamiliar vehicles parked in the driveway or at the curb? Or any unusual activity at her place?”

Madison shook her head. “I didn’t. You might ask the other neighbors. Surely someone saw something.”

Adele turned off the TV and went into the sunroom, where Isabel was cleaning.

“I’m sorry to tell you this,” Adele said, “but there’s been another murder.”

Isabel stopped and looked up, her eyes wide. “This is so out of control. Who’s the victim?”

Adele sighed. “A young mother—Jeanette something. Stein, I believe. Yes, that’s it. Stein. She was the wife of a prominent defense attorney.”

“Yes, I know who he is. He’s in the news a lot. What happened?”

“She was found drowned in the bathtub. She’d been drugged and—well, you know what this killer does. She was number four. Her husband was out of town, and she was home alone with eight-month-old twin boys. Thank the Lord they weren’t harmed.”

Isabel’s eyebrows came together. “This just proves what I’ve been saying all along. We shouldn’t presume to know who this killer is targeting. We could all be at risk. Can the sheriff even connect this woman to the other victims?”

“I doubt they would give the media that information while the investigation is in progress,” Adele said. “But your fears might not be unfounded after all. Maybe this killer
is
striking at random. It’s tragic. Simply tragic.”

The phone rang.

“Let me get that.” Adele reached over and picked up the receiver. “Hello.”

“Adele, it’s Murray. I hope I’m not bothering you.”

“Not at all.”

“How’s the email coming?”

“Oh, I believe I’ve just about got it mastered. I’m eager to learn a little more about
browsing
.”

“Great. But first things first. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to come back over there and put on those bolt locks we picked up yesterday. I’d feel a lot better after this latest murder. You heard about the young mother, didn’t you?”

“Indeed I did.” Adele pulled out a wicker chair and sat at the table. “I was just talking with Isabel about it. I think we would both feel safer if those locks were in place.”

“I should’ve put them on yesterday before we got distracted with the computer and I had that little run-in with your sprinkler head.” He chuckled. “At least I got it fixed.”

Adele smiled. “Noah will be surprised. It’s one less thing for him to do. Taking care of the grounds at Langley Manor is really a full-time job. He’s phasing out almost everything else.”

“Would it be convenient if I came over around four?”

“Absolutely. Why don’t you allow time to have another piece of that praline cake? Isabel and I certainly can’t eat all of it ourselves, and we wouldn’t want something that delicious to spoil.”

Isabel’s facial expression didn’t change, but Adele could see her jaw tighten. At least she was subtle about it.

“Okay,” Murray said. “I’m doing a paint job today, but I’ll be at your place around four.”