HAMMERED (Mrs. Fix It Mysteries Book 1) (6 page)

Jessica looked down at her mug, a finger running along the rim. “I went to St. Pius at the same time.”

“I thought you weren’t from here?”

Kate didn’t understand.

“I’m not. My parents sent me to St. Pius when I got pregnant. It was far enough away that no one would know.”

Kate reached out and put a hand on hers. “Everyone makes mistakes.”

She’d forgotten how easily people talked to her. Jessica might spill something if she sat here.

“Thank you.” She glanced over her shoulder at the kitchen door. “Greg was helping me look for the son I gave up for adoption.”

“Greg? As in my Greg?”

What expertise did her husband who was a professor at the local community college have to help her find her son?

“Uh, yes. I guess he didn’t mention it. Never mind. I haven’t found him yet, but I’m afraid that Dudley doesn’t want me to look.”

“My husband was helping?”

Greg hadn’t mentioned it, but he might have been sparing Jessica’s feelings. She’d thought that they’d shared everything. Why would Greg have taken on this task? He was a professor of Middle Eastern studies. What did that have to do with finding children given up for adoption?

“Yes, Kate. I happened to run into him at the college’s library. He just pointed me in the right direction. He was a professor. Very good at research.”

Hmm. There was something that Jessica wasn’t telling her, but she chose not to press it. None of it would bring Greg back. Instead, she needed to focus on Jackie.

“So you knew Jackie in high school. You stayed here after high school?” Kate said.

“Yes, I liked this area and I attend the community college. I met Dudley not long after. We fell in love and the rest is history.”

She smiled then, but it didn’t reach her eyes. How sad not to know where her child was. Kate had been having a hard enough time adjusting to her twins being away from home. She couldn’t imagine if she’d never raised them.

Back to Jackie. Stay focused.

“Did your husband know Jackie?”

“Yes, he did. Not well, I don’t think. Some business deal of his.”

“What did she do for a living?”

That might be key to her murder.

“She was a real estate developer, I think. She’d made a good living, and from what I heard, Scott didn’t pay her alimony. She refused it.”

How interesting. Yet another reason why Scott could not have killed her. Each time Kate talked to someone, she had more questions than answers.

“That rich?”

“Yes, that rich, “Jessica said. “She was pretty high-powered in the Philadelphia circles. We didn’t hear about her out in the sticks. I haven’t really kept in touch with her other than maybe a political gathering with Dudley. We crossed paths at those.”

Politics might have been involved? Well, this was Pennsylvania. The corruption and lawlessness in the state made the Sopranos of New Jersey look like a glee club.

“I didn’t know Dudley was that connected.”

“He’s trying to be, but not sure why. He doesn’t always share everything with me.”

She put a hand over her mouth as if she said too much. Kate chose to ignore it and put her out of her discomfort.

So Dudley was connected to the state political machine? Or was trying to be. Did he have higher aspirations than mayor? Or did he want those connections for his business? How would they benefit a trucking company?

“Was that how he met Jackie?”

“Yes. When he found out that I had known her, he had me introduce them at a party. I wasn’t privy to their conversation, but he’d been doing deals with her lately. I guess real estate deals. I let Dudley handle the financials.”

Hopefully, for Jessica’s sake, Dudley wasn’t involved in anything shady. The wife was the last to know.

Kate thought that might explain her husband’s disappearance. And she’d be the last to know the truth about his life. She hadn’t thought anything sinister at the time, but the more years that passed the more she assumed he’d met a bad end at the hands of someone else.

“Several people in town have done deals with Jackie. Ken, from the police department, did also.”

Chapter Six

Kate had to stop by the Rock Ridge Municipal Complex to check on a permit to do some work. She didn’t expect it to be done, but she could hope. Rock Ridge was notoriously slow with issuing permits in a failed attempt to slow down growth of the town.

Maybe someone needed to rein in the planning and zoning boards. They kept approving developments and the building department did their best to stall the actual building of them. Several developers had brought lawsuits again the town.

Knowing what her tax bill was, Kate didn’t think that the town was spending its money wisely.

The building bustled with kids coming out of the library. They were all fresh-faced and eager to run around outside. The town had built a playground outside for that purpose.

Once past the library, Kate took a right down the hallway for the building department. She would get her permit, then talk to Ken about Jackie. He wouldn’t be happy, but she wanted him to know that he wasn’t going to just accuse Scott and get away with it.

Kate waited for one customer in front of her, who was trying to build a deck on her property. Guess someone else had gotten that job. Oh well, she couldn’t fix the whole town. Besides, she had plenty of work to keep her busy without running herself ragged.

Which reminded her that she needed lunch after talking to Ken. Finally, it was Kate’s turn.

She smiled because a little good will went a long way. Bobbie Hamden gave her a harried smile. Bobbie had been two grades ahead of her boys. She’d attended the community college then snagged a job working for Rock Ridge. It was a coveted position with good benefits and many holidays.

“Your permit still isn’t ready. Not sure what the holdup is,” Bobbie said.

“That’s not good. I’d like to get started on that project. It’ll bring in some good money.”

“I know. I promise I’ll put it at the top of the pile, today.”

“Thanks, Bobbie.”

Kate walked away, hoping the permit would be there tomorrow. She didn’t want to begin work until she had it in her hands. Sometimes they wanted different plans than she sketched up. Other times she planned on replacing what was there with the same thing, but in the time the item had first been installed, the code had changed.

Most of the things she did didn’t require a permit, thankfully. Made her job easier.

The police station connected to the Municipal Building via a glass corridor. The sun was out now and the clouds had gone away. Coincidentally, Ken walked out of the police station into the hallway. She figured he had parked his car out this way, but she was thankful to run into him.

“Ken.”

“Kate.”

He eyed her suspiciously. Had someone told him that she was asking around about the murder? He might be mad, but she hadn’t done anything illegal.

“Just the man I wanted to talk to.”

“I have no news. The coroner’s office is backed up and won’t get to the autopsy until tomorrow. Not that this is any of your business.”

He looked harried; his hair was out of place. He didn’t hold his usual casual posture. Was the investigation straining him already? Or was he feeling guilty for arresting Scott?

Either way, he didn’t look good.

That wasn’t going to stop Kate from asking questions. She wasn’t going to let anything stand between her and the truth.

“I heard, Ken, that you knew the deceased.”

He flinched. If she hadn’t been watching him, she wouldn’t have noticed.

“I fail to see what that has to do with anything. I also fail to see what business it is of yours.”

He was angry now. Was Jackie York a sore spot? For not living in Rock Ridge, she’d known a lot of people here. Had the mayor connected her to the rest of the town?

“I heard something about a deal gone bad?”

His eyes fell closed momentarily. He sighed. “None of your business, Kate. I can arrest you for obstructing justice.”

“How am I obstructing justice? I’m asking you some questions.”

He frowned at her. “I don’t like your tone.”

“Tough. You may be following a path to put the wrong person in jail.”

He stood a little straighter. “First off, I’m following all of the leads. Secondly, I don’t have any reason to falsely accuse the chief.”

“No? Did he get the job you wanted?”

Ken frowned. She’d held her breath thinking she might have pushed him too far.

His tone didn’t have any anger in it. “I’m acting chief and I’ll be glad to give it up. I should be retiring.”

“Why aren’t you?”

“Because my 401K says I can’t yet.”

But he should have a police pension. His financial matters were not her concern. Except if they impacted this case.

“How did you know Jackie?”

Ken frowned, then crossed his arms. “You aren’t going to let this go?”

“Nope.”

“You were always that way. Sometimes Carly complained about it.”

Kate had no doubt that Carly had complained about her tenacity. She’d been jealous and also didn’t like to be badgered. Kate could be like a Chihuahua that hung on to something out of pure stubbornness.

“So tell me. You know I have other ways of finding out. I know your whole family.”

“If I tell you, will you leave me alone? Stop playing Nancy Drew?”

“I prefer to think of myself as Stephanie Plum, but no, I won’t stop.”

He sighed. “A couple of us invested in some property with Jackie. It turned out to be a bad investment as the economy tanked. I lost a lot of my retirement money.”

“That would make you want to kill her, wouldn’t it?”

“I was pissed, and so was Celia, but I wouldn’t kill anyone over it.”

“Who else was involved?”

“That is none of your business, Kate. I’ve told you enough already.”

She crossed her arms. “I’m not going to let this go.”

“You still have a thing for Scott? Didn’t he break your heart?”

“Holy moly. That was high school. We were kids. No, I don’t have a thing for Scott. I just don’t want to see anyone falsely accused.”

Ken snorted as if he didn’t believe her. Whatever. She wasn’t going to explain her relationship with Scott to anyone because there wasn’t one. She did work on his house and that’s where it ended since he’d paid her today. She had to get that check to the bank. She would stop at the ATM before she went home.

“The deal was a few years ago, with Jackie. Didn’t set me back too many years. I’ll just have to work longer until retirement.”

“You aren’t upset about that?”

“No, and I have an alibi. None of which is your business. Now, I need to go, Kate. Is the interrogation done?”

“Done for now.”

He gave her a stern, fatherly look. Once upon a time she’d been scared of that look. No longer. She was an adult now. Not a teenager who had done something wrong.

“Make it done for good. You need to keep out of this. It is a police investigation.”

“People talk to me, Ken. I could be a bartender.”

“If they say something about the case, you need to tell me.”

She pondered that. “Yes, I guess I do. You are the lead officer investigating, correct?”

“Yes, I am. We’re outmanned because there hasn’t been a murder in Rock Ridge in decades.”

“You calling in help?”

How ironic that the one person that could help them is the person that stands accused. Murder had been Scott’s specialty in Philadelphia.

“None of your business. I’m going now, Kate. Good-bye.”

He left her standing in the hall. Kate had a little more information, and now she wanted to know who had lost money because of Jackie’s deal. Did Scott know? Was he married to her then?

The list of suspects just got longer. Too bad she didn’t know exactly who was on that list. She could ask Scott. She did need to put another coat on that wall. It hadn’t been dry when she left.

He would probably know, but would he tell her? She frowned. She drove to the bank pondering what Ken had said. If people had lost savings because of Jackie, they would be mad. Who would have access to Scott’s house that was on that list?

Ken would. Who else? Kate had to admit she was more puzzled than ever. If she got that list, she’d have some idea who to talk to. Maybe the mayor had invested, but he’d just put that addition on his house. He couldn’t be hurting for money.

Made sense to plant Jackie’s body in Scott’s house, but she didn’t know if Jackie had actually been killed where she’d been found. Another question for Scott.

With her check deposited, she debated not seeing Scott. He might talk her into dinner.

Maybe she should eat with him to pick his brain. That decided, she climbed into her truck.

***

Kate paused in front of Scott’s door. She heard the chords of an electric guitar. Guess he’d been jamming. He still played. For a moment, she was transported back to high school. Beside his souped-up car and black leather jacket, Scott had played guitar. His cool factor was high, and as an awkward high schooler, that had appealed to her. She’d always wondered what about her had attracted him.

She listened for a moment. She wasn’t musical. She couldn’t sing or play an instrument, so Kate was always impressed when someone could do either or both. Putting a hand on his door, she took in the passion with which he played.

It came through even though she stood outside. She absorbed the notes even if she didn’t recognize the song. Some part of her had missed that sort of passion. That sort of connection to someone else.

Her husband hadn’t been musical, either. He could play guitar, but not with the same mastery. Damn.

She had to stop waxing sentimental whenever Scott was around. She had a job to finish.

She rang the doorbell, and the music cut off abruptly. A moment later, Scott opened the door. He wore cutoffs, a T-shirt and a broad grin. His feet were bare. How did he dress so casually and look so good? Damn him.

“Hey.”

“Hi, I just wanted to check on that spot to see if it needed a second coat.”