Death Loves a Messy Desk (25 page)

“She’s not,” I said, “although a reasonable person could be forgiven for thinking that. When Pepper’s being a real bitch, it’s much worse than this. Remember? She’s just trying to keep me out of it.”

“You’re such a pushover, Charlotte.” Sally sniffed. “Although maybe she’s on to something. That head wound was pretty serious.”

“The serious part is Dyan’s death and the guy in the Impala, plus Barb Douglas’s disappearance. Pepper knows something about this case and about Barb, too, and she’s known right from the beginning. That’s why she warned me off.”

“What do you think she knows?”

“I could tell she recognized Barb Douglas from the way she reacted to the photo. At that point, I thought maybe they’d been friends, neighbors, who knows. Now, I’m not so sure that she actually knew Barb or whether she knew something about the case. Nick could have blabbed at home about something. I can’t figure it out. She also told me to mind my own business, but what else is new?”

Sally perked up. “What if the cops know that Barb’s dead, and they also know she has a relationship with the victim, but they don’t want the killers to know that they know? Face it, Charlotte. This guy had to be a criminal. The average citizen doesn’t get killed and stuffed into a car trunk.”

“Are you suggesting that Barb might be a criminal, too?”

Sally shrugged. “Makes sense.”

I said, “That might explain it.”

“What?”

“Everything. Barb wasn’t running to this man.”

Sally said, “Just say it, Charlotte. Don’t drag it out.”

“Okay, Barb heard about the murder at work. She was shocked, horrified. Robbie said she sounded anguished. I saw her face. She had one hell of an emotional reaction. But maybe she wasn’t just running to him. She was also running away.”

Sally blinked.

“Think about it. She rushed to the crime site. Then she must have raced home. She was in such a panic that she left the door open even though her beloved cat might escape. She grabbed whatever she would have needed to survive. If she knew things could get dangerous, maybe she kept a little suitcase packed. Anyway, she took off. No one has seen her since.”

“But her SUV was still there,” Sally said reasonably.

I said, “Maybe she couldn’t take the chance of being seen in that car. Maybe she took a cab. Or walked. Although the crime scene was miles from Lilac Lane.”

“What if she rented a car?” Sally said.

“That’s possible. Or maybe she had access to another one somewhere. Or maybe someone she trusted picked her up and drove her. However she traveled, she was scared, and I am sure that she had good reason to be.”

Sally frowned. “But she’d be exposed. Woodbridge isn’t that large. Someone would be bound to see her. She’d need a place to stay, food—”

I thought about our friend Lilith, who had told me stories from her life on the streets. “You can disappear easily. You can sleep in the woods, change your appearance. You can steal a car if you want.”

“That’s right,” Sally said. “Todd Tyrell mentioned that there’s an epidemic of car thefts in Woodbridge.”

I sniffed. “With Todd’s love of exaggeration, that probably means one.”

“But that’s good news. If Barb is alive and hiding out because she got mixed up with dangerous people, then you don’t need to get involved. Right?”

“Wrong. Someone killed her boyfriend and also killed Dyan.” I stopped talking and touched my head. “And they tried to kill me, too, for whatever reason. I guess that means I’m still very involved whether I want to be or not.”

“And that’s why I’m not leaving you alone.”

“I’m fine today, really. My head doesn’t hurt. I’m thinking clearly.” I protested. “I have the dogs. And you have your kids. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. Now get out of here.”

Five minutes later, Sally headed out, yawning. I followed her downstairs and glanced at the open door of Jack’s apartment. Jack was fiddling with his bike in what passes for his living room. He rarely opens CYCotics before eleven in the morning, as he’s not the quickest person out the door at dawn. This morning he was still in his pajama bottoms, and he had a bad case of bed head. He blinked as he noticed my bandage.

“You okay?”

“Sure thing. You should see the other guy.” Of course, then I thought of Dyan and it didn’t seem funny.

He turned his attention back to the bike. “Good. Call me if you need me.”

Sally shot him a poisonous look, but he’d already vanished deeper into his apartment. “Can’t count on some people.”

“Relax.” I grinned. “I’m much better and I have the best locks in town.”

True enough. I put in extras for very good reasons. I have an alarm system. I even have locks on my windows. I am not taking any chances. But if someone really wants you dead, they can find a way to make that happen. Not necessarily when you’re sleeping with one eye open in your bed, but sooner or later you have to go out. You have a living to make, friends to see, places to go, dogs to walk.

I wasn’t looking forward to nonstop worrying about it. That kind of fear is made even worse if you have no idea who you are supposed to be afraid of. I knew I had to face it sooner rather than later, because the minute I climbed the stairs again, the dogs decided it was time to go.

Just to be on the safe side, I called into Jack’s apartment on the way out. “Pooch parade!”

He stuck his head out of the bathroom and waved his toothbrush at me encouragingly.

Thanks a lot, Jack
, I thought.

Never mind, I told myself. It’s like a vote of confidence. You don’t want to be a prisoner in your apartment for the rest of your life. Pull yourself together. I squared my shoulders and marched out to the curb in my froggie pajamas and pink fluffy slippers. It was a nippy morning. The dogs hate the cold, and they broke their current speed records. “That just earned you a treat,” I said.

A shadow loomed behind me just as we hit the front steps on our way back. I squeaked in alarm. I paused mid-squeak because it wasn’t my worst fear. No armed thugs, no Barb Douglas ready to bash my head with a stapler, just the khaki-clad Robbie Van Zandt.

“Oh, you frightened me for a second,” I said. But only a second, because, despite his outbursts, Robbie was one of the least intimidating people on the planet. Even Truffle and Sweet Marie didn’t bother to bark. They sniffed his shoes.

“Why shouldn’t you be frightened? Look what you’ve done.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Duh. Barb Douglas. Things were fine until you showed up, and now everything in my life has fallen apart.”

“It wasn’t my doing, Robbie. Not Barb and not Dyan.”

He scowled at me. “Who cares about Dyan? She got what she deserved.”

My mind was working fast. I had made, after all, a case against Robbie. I glanced at the window, but, big surprise, Jack wasn’t watching. Probably waxing his bike or something. I noticed a retired neighbor across the street potter ing around the garden. A bit too far away to attract attention, but close enough to get to.

“Let’s go for a walk and talk about this,” I said, smiling brightly.

“How stupid do you think I am?”

Crap.

“Actually, I don’t think you’re stupid at all.”

“I
was
stupid, though, so that’s something else you don’t know.”

“Not sure what you mean,” I said, wondering if there was anything I could use as a weapon to bean him if I had to defend myself. Somehow pallid, shy Robbie seemed very threatening.

“We’re going inside,” he said.

“It’s such a nice day. Why don’t we talk out here?”

“Because there are witnesses.”

“Oh. Well, I hope we’re not going to need witnesses.”

“I don’t care what you hope. I have a gun. It’s pointed straight at you. Get in that door and keep moving. You are going to do what I want.”

I’d heard that if someone threatens you with a firearm, the best thing to do is run in a zigzag uneven pattern because the chances that you’ll be hit are slight. The odds seemed somewhat higher with a weapon aimed at me, one foot away. No one was close enough to hear me, and even the neighbor across the street had gone inside.

I could make enough noise to attract Jack’s attention, but then what? Would Robbie shoot Jack, too?

“I’ll make you a coffee,” I said. “We can talk over that. You can tell me why you’re so angry.”

“Well, now
I
think
you’re
stupid,” he said.

“Maybe, but I could really use another cup of coffee this morning. You can have one or not, suit yourself.”

The hardest part is to keep the fear out of your voice. Inside the apartment, Truffle and Sweet Marie launched themselves at Robbie’s legs, wanting to be picked up.

“Shhh,” I said. “Try to be good. Go lie down.”

As if.

“I don’t mind them,” Robbie said, to my surprise. “I like dogs, especially little ones.”

For a heart-stopping moment, I thought he was mocking me and threatening the tiny naughty creatures I loved so much. Then I realized he meant it.

He bent down and scratched their necks, then rubbed their bellies. They fell for him hook, line, and sinker. The little rats. I should add that they are no judge of character.

Lucky for me, I can practically make coffee in my sleep. I carried in two oversize Woodbridge Library mugs that Ramona had given me for an organizing talk I’d given. I loved the huge blue mugs. Could I heave one at the head of the man who was threatening me for whatever unfathomable reason? That might give me time to . . . no, not a good idea.

Turned out he didn’t drink coffee. “Makes me jittery,” he said. His hands were definitely shaky already. For the first time, I understood that Robbie was as nervous as I was. Maybe more.

“Have a seat. Here’s a nice selection of Mars bars,” I said. “They won’t make you too jittery, and we may as well be civilized.”

I perched on the end of the sofa. He took the only chair. The dogs lay down at his feet. Little traitors. I took a sip of my coffee.

“She’s dead,” he said.

I blurted out, “Who?”

He jumped to his feet. “Who do you think? What is the matter with you?”

I gasped. “Barb? She’s dead? That’s horrible.”

He nodded.

“I am so sorry. I hadn’t heard. I tried to get the police to—”

“They’re useless. They won’t listen. That’s why I’m here. You are partly responsible and you are going to help me find her.”

My jaw dropped. I managed to speak. “But you just said she’s dead. You mean you don’t know where her . . . body is?” That sounded insensitive even to my own ears.

I watched his pale anxious face. I could almost feel his misery. He said, “She must be. Why would she do this to me otherwise? But if she’s not, we have to find her. But I don’t know what to do anymore. I’m not even making sense.”

“Robbie, I really want to find her, too. Believe me. And I need to know that you won’t freak out over anything I say. I won’t put up with any more accusations or blame or threats.”

His chin wobbled.

I said, “So whatever we do from now on will be on my terms. Or we don’t work together. Your choice.”

“All right. I don’t know where to start.”

“Do you really have a gun, Robbie?”

He shook his head. “I was just bluffing. I didn’t want you to run away. I needed to—” He pulled a Baby Ruth candy bar from his pocket.

I felt like a doofus for being spooked into thinking a candy bar was the muzzle of a gun. But I wasn’t frightened anymore. “Okay, listen and don’t get upset. The problem is that Barb Douglas knew the man who was found dead in the blue Impala on the edge of town on Sunday. Did you hear about that in the news?”

“She knew him?”

“Yes. I don’t know in what capacity, but he had driven her home a few times. The people who own her building saw them. I think that news is what sent her running from the office.”

“But what does this mean?”

“I don’t know. They could have been colleagues. Could have been friends. I haven’t been able to find out anything more. Except that they saw each other a lot.”

To my horror, tears welled up in Robbie’s eyes. “Maybe they were related.”

“I hadn’t thought of that. The police haven’t given out his name. They’re playing their cards close to their chests on this one. Maybe if we knew where she was from—”

“I thought she loved me. I think she did. Does. I believe it. I believe in her. I won’t let this change that.” He stopped and glared at me. “If we can find her, I know she’ll have a good reason for having disappeared.”

“You’re right. She doesn’t want the people who killed this man to kill her. She has panicked and gone into hiding. Let’s hope she can keep a step ahead of them.”

“Maybe she’s gone home to her family.”

I almost spilled my coffee. Of course. Her family. “Excellent idea. Do you know anything about them?”