Dangerous Mercy: A Novel (23 page)

Gil hesitated, seemingly surprised at Barry’s sudden show of emotion.

Jude spoke into the mike. “Let him go, Gil. We know where to find him. Let’s see if we can find out more about Jeanette’s employment at Aubry. Let’s go talk to her sister again.”

Adele sat in the sunroom, flipping through the July issue of
Better Homes and Gardens
. Why was Isabel so quiet at dinner? She didn’t have much to say about Peter Gautier’s funeral, other than his family seemed devastated, the church was half empty, and she thought there was more media outside than mourners inside.

Isabel didn’t ask about Murray’s visit, other than wanting to know what he discovered about the dishwasher and what it would take to fix it. Just as well. She would not have taken kindly to Adele’s fixing lunch for Murray. And how was she going to react when Murray came to take Adele to Scoops for one of those Banana Mountains? Pity they couldn’t just invite Isabel to come along. Then again, a third party would change the dynamic. They interacted so well. She was growing very fond of him and wondered, more than ever, about what had caused him to enter the homeless lifestyle.

Isabel walked into the sunroom. “I need to go to the grocery store.”

“Really? I thought you just went.”

“We’re low on smoked turkey and Swiss cheese. I know how much you enjoy that for lunch. Grace does too. If she comes tomorrow, there won’t be enough.”

Adele glanced up and turned a page of her magazine. The look on Isabel’s face told her that she’d figured out Murray had stayed for lunch. Why didn’t she just ask about it?

“All right, hon,” Adele said. “We could use more milk, too.”

“I saw that. I also need chocolate chips so I can bake more cookies. I can’t believe they’re almost gone already.”

Adele didn’t comment. Why should she feel guilty for having Murray stay for lunch and sending him off with a baggie full of cookies? She wasn’t going to volunteer that information to Isabel as if she were confessing some wrongdoing. If she wanted to know why they had gone through the grocery items so quickly, let her ask the question.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Isabel turned and left.

Adele set down the magazine. It was unpleasant enough sensing disapproval from her friends. She didn’t have to tolerate it from Isabel.

Lord, You’ve brought Isabel into my life for a reason, just as You have Noah and Murray. I’m irritated with her. Help me not to be. I do believe she has my best interests at heart.

Adele sighed. It occurred to her Isabel might have been sent to warn her, but she immediately dismissed the idea. She would just wait and see what Danny had to say.

CHAPTER 24

Vanessa sat on the couch in their private living quarters at Langley Manor, aware of footsteps moving across the hardwood floor in the guest room above. What if the cloud surrounding Flynn Gillis’s murder didn’t lift for a long time? Or what if his murder was never solved? Would Ethan ever agree to hire Noah back? Could they afford to? The home’s historical tie to the Underground Railroad would not be nearly as attractive to guests without the opportunity to meet a real descendant of the slave Naomi who was now a working partner with the Langleys in keeping the history alive.

Vanessa heard the back door open and close. A few seconds later, Ethan came into the living room and closed the door. He walked over and kissed her on the cheek, then sat beside her on the sofa.

“Well?” she said. “How did Noah react?”

“It’s obvious he’s hurting, but he seems confident he did the right thing by leaving until he’s cleared. I supported his decision and commended him for wanting to preserve Langley Manor’s reputation as much as we do.”

“But I don’t support his decision to leave!”

“I told him that, too.”

“What did he say?”

Ethan pushed his glasses up higher on his nose, his dark curls tight from the night’s humidity. “He said he knew that.”

Vanessa didn’t say what she was thinking. “What’s he going to do for money? A place to live? He can’t stay at Haven House.”

“Actually, Father Vince took care of that.”

Vanessa listened as Ethan told her about the six-month extension and Murray’s sharing his painting jobs.

“Honey, the minute Noah is no longer a person of interest in the case, he can move into the caretaker house. I promise.”

“Maybe he won’t want to,” Vanessa said. “Why would he want to work for someone who doesn’t trust him?”

Ethan tilted her chin and looked into her eyes. “Noah chose to turn in his keys and leave, Vanessa. And unless
you
told him I wanted him to, he did it of his own accord and because he thought it would be best for the business. I happen to agree with him. One thing all three of us agree on is that we won’t survive long with only half our rooms filled in peak season.”

Vanessa pulled away and stared at her hands. “What are we going to do if this trend continues? The last thing either of us wants to do is tell your dad and uncles that we’re in trouble and need money. They’ll be so disappointed, especially after we’ve been booked almost every night for six months.”

Ethan sighed. “We’ll find a way to hold it together. Have you contacted the people on the waiting list?”

“Every last one.” Vanessa’s eyes clouded over. “None of them are interested in booking right now.”

Ethan didn’t say anything.

Vanessa plucked a tissue from the box on the end table. “If anyone had told me a week ago that Noah’s reputation would be in question and we’d be facing financial problems because people were afraid to stay here, I’d have laughed.”

“Me, too, honey. But things are what they are. We have to deal with it a day at a time.”

Vanessa wiped the tears off her cheeks. “This afternoon, when I told Carter that Angel found a dead body in the bayou and why people are canceling, do you know what he said?”

Ethan shook his head.

“He said Noah would
protect
us. That he showed me the slave’s tunnel so I could get away from that bad man.” She looked over at Ethan. “I think Carter got it right.”

Jude sat across from Colette at a corner table at Zoe B’s, a candle flickering between them. The soft light was flattering to his bride of twenty-six years, her shoulder-length brown hair highlighted with golden strands that hid the gray she wasn’t ready to own. Why was she so hung up on hair color when he still saw her as she was the day he married her? Time had only deepened his love and given him new eyes to see beyond the aging shell that housed a soul so lovely he often wondered what it was she saw in him.

Jude picked up his stemmed glass filled with peach iced tea and held it up in front him. “To us.”

Colette touched his glass with hers, then took a sip of tea, her deep brown eyes peering over the top of the glass. “We’re going to be the last ones out of here.”

“Someone has to be. I’m just glad we were able to keep our date.”

“So am I.” She took the last bite of Cajun shrimp and rice pilaf and wiped her mouth with a napkin. “That was amazing. I don’t know how Pierce makes the batter with just the right kind of spicy. No matter how hard I try, I just can’t duplicate it.”

“That’s how I feel about the crawfish étouffée. Love this stuff.”

Jude put down his fork and picked up the stainless-steel basket of French bread and offered Colette a slice, then took one and buttered it.

“
Now
you can talk shop,” she said. “What’s going on?”

Jude told her about the latest lab report concerning DNA and about the muddy print and the soil analysis.

“Based on all that,” Jude said, “and the toxicology report that indicated all four victims were drugged with cat Valium,
and
the handwriting analysis that shows the same angle on the spray-painted numbers,
and
the fact that all four bodies were positioned exactly the same in the tub, we can say with almost a hundred percent certainty that the same perp is responsible for all four murders.”

“You suspected as much.”

“Yes, but there’s more.” Jude held her gaze. “We’re not talking to the media about this, so you need to keep it to yourself. We found Jeanette Stein—actually she was Jeanette LaBelle at the time—on a list of employees that worked for Aubry Computer Systems. She worked for their Lafayette branch for thirteen months, nearly five years ago. We confirmed the name with her Social Security number and date of birth.”

“Why didn’t her husband mention it?”

“That’s what I wanted to know. So I had Gil bring Barry Stein back in for questioning.”

“I’ll bet that went over big. What did he have to say?”

Jude told her everything he had observed during Gil and Aimee’s questioning of Barry Stein.

“Truthfully,” Jude said, “I didn’t bat an eye when he got upset. I confess it felt a little satisfying, having him on the answering end for a change. But this isn’t about my opinion of Stein. I want justice for his wife’s murder. In my gut, I don’t think he had anything to do with it. I’m not even sure he was a factor at all. I’m just trying to figure out why anyone would want her dead.”

“She
and
her boss were both murdered. That’s the closest connection so far in the case.”

“Yes, and we’re after it,” Jude said. “Gil was sending a couple detectives over to talk to Bonnie Lonigan again. She’s Jeanette Stein’s sister. For some reason, she didn’t mention Jeanette worked at Aubry either. Maybe she can shed some light on Jeanette’s employment there to help us add another piece to the puzzle.”

The waitress came over to the table. “Would you like dessert? Coffee?”

“Thanks, but we’re done.” Jude winked at Colette.

“I’ll bring the check.”

As the waitress left, the corners of Colette’s mouth twitched. “I feel like I’m in high school again, going to Kernel Poppy’s to get caramel corn this time of night.”

“We can walk off our dinner on the way.”

Colette tucked her hair behind her ear. “Do you remember the first time we ate at Zoe B’s? It was our thirteenth anniversary. Zoe had just opened the place, and it was hard to get a reservation. But you managed somehow.”

“I did indeed.” He wiped his mouth with his napkin and picked up her hand. “Anything for my lady.”

“You spoil me.”

“Every chance I get. It’s the least I can do. I’d hate to guess how many times I’ve stood you up over the years.”

“Who’s counting?”

He kissed her hand. “That’s one of things I love about you most.”

Jude walked out of Zoe B’s and was hit with a blast of thick, moist air that smelled faintly of the mesquite smoke coming from the Texas Cajun Grill on the corner. He took Colette’s hand and crossed
rue Madeline,
which had been closed to traffic since 7:00 p.m. Tourists swarmed the warm street, even at this late hour.

Jude strolled hand in hand with Colette, enjoying the anonymity of being lost in the crowd. Neon lights flashed all up and down the street, and vendors stood at the open doors to the shops, beckoning passersby.

Street vendors danced, played musical instruments, and did mimes, adding to the carnival-like atmosphere, but without the sleazy side attractions of the Big Easy.

Jude looked up at the galleries, where people stood amidst a jungle of plants and flowers, waving to those on the street.

“I love it that parents can bring their kids out here, day or night,” Colette said. “And never have to cover their eyes.”

Until the news comes on. Five murders in one week—on my watch.
Jude held his gaze on a young pregnant woman coming out of Brissette’s Nursery Nook. What kind of heartless maniac would kill a mother of baby twins?

“You’re thinking about the case again,” Colette said.

“How’d you know?”

“You tensed up.” She squeezed his hand. “There’s nothing you could’ve done to prevent the murders.”

“But why can’t I catch the killer?”

“You will.”

Jude sighed. “I can’t shake the sound of Jeanette Stein’s twins wailing as their aunt drove them away. It was heartbreaking.”

“I know,
cher
. But they didn’t know what was happening. It would’ve been so much harder if they had been old enough to understand.”

“As obnoxious as Barry Stein can be, I felt sorry for his loss.”

“You’ll catch the killer, Jude. He’s bound to make a mistake. And the more evidence you gather, the better chance you have of making sense of it. Plus this new discovery that Jeanette Stein worked at Aubry could end up being a big break.”

Jude smiled. “Why don’t
you
do the morning briefing? We could use a cheerleader.”

“You’re too good at what you do for him to elude you for long.”

“I hope you’re right, sugar.” Jude spotted the gray building and red-and-yellow neon light flashing
Kernel Poppy’s. “
What do you say we put everything on hold and go pig out on caramel corn?”

As they approached the popular establishment, Jude let his gaze move across the crowd and the many faces of adult males. The Bathtub Killer could be any one of them. He held Colette’s hand a little tighter. He couldn’t imagine losing her—and in such a horrible way.