Loom and Doom (19 page)

“Any other suspects?”

“Well . . . There is one other, a local developer by the name of Ronald Dempsey.” I told him how Ronald had lied and told the police he'd seen me wiping blood from my clothes, and how he'd sold Swanson a house for half its price, and how I'd gotten the threatening phone call only minutes after getting home from confronting him.

“Sounds to me like you've been busy. Why do you think Sondra Andrews was attacked?”

“I think Sondra must have known something about Mona,” I said. “Mona's sister is the only person who knew I was coming to Charlotte to meet with Sondra. And she must have told Mona.” I explained about the car I'd seen leaving city hall the morning of Swanson's death, and how Mona's car was identical to it, right down to the bumper sticker.

He nodded. “Interesting. Can you think of anybody else who might have known you were going to interview Sondra Andrews?”

“No. Not a soul—unless you count my shop assistant, and my friend who owns a coffee shop next door. But they both spent the morning at work.”

There was a knock at the door and the officer went to answer. There was a muffled conversation, of which I couldn't make out a word. He came back.

“There's somebody here—says he's your boyfriend. He's making a ruckus, insisting on seeing you.”

“Matthew's here?” I said, brightening up. “He's ex-FBI, you know. He'll vouch for me.”

“Actually, my superior just looked you up. Seems you were arrested for embezzlement a couple of years ago—”

“Falsely accused,” I said.

“—and that you were instrumental in catching the real culprit. So you were snooping even back then?” His attitude had changed. I now detected amusement in his voice.

“I was a business analyst. That was my job, checking the company's financials. That's how I found the discrepancies in the accounting.”

“You want to see your boyfriend?”

“Yes. Of course,” I said, hoping Matthew wouldn't be
too
angry at me.

“H
ow do you do it?” Matthew asked, trying to sound amused, and not very successfully. “I leave town for less than twenty-four hours, and somehow you manage to get yourself into another fix.” We were alone in the interview room, the officer having left.

“First of all, I am not in a fix. All I did was call 9-1-1 and save a woman's life—if she survived the trip to the hospital,” I added grimly. “By the way, did anybody mention how she's doing?”

“I didn't ask about her. I was worried about you.”

“I'm perfectly fine, as you can see.”

He sighed. “And that's why you sounded so scared when you called me?”

“I guess I was a bit worried.”

“A bit?”

“I thought the police saw me as a suspect again. Honestly, who would be so stupid as to call an ambulance after trying to kill someone?” I gave him a tentative smile and was rewarded with a hand squeeze.

“I happen to know you're smart, but they might not have noticed that yet.”

I gave him a quick kiss. “Can you make sure the Charlotte police let the local department know about the attack on Sondra Andrews?”

“I'm sure they will if they believe the crimes are connected.”

“But of course they're connected,” I replied, more than a little incensed at the thought that the cops could be so dense. “Who in their right mind would ever doubt that?”

“The cops don't always take well to civilians telling them how to do their jobs.”

He made a good point.

“I'm sure the Charlotte police know what they're doing,” he continued. “So you can keep out of it.”

I saw the teasing glint in his eyes and my outrage at the Belmont police descended a notch. “So, do you know how much longer I have to stay here?”

“They finished interviewing you. You're free to leave.”

“I am? Well, then. What are we waiting for?”

•   •   •

On my way out, I stopped by the dark-haired officer's desk to ask about Sondra's condition.

“Last I heard, she was still in surgery.”

“Will you let me know when she comes out?” I gave him my contact information, which he already had. “I just want to make sure you remember.”

“I will, I promise.”

“Er, if you happen to call the Briar Hollow police, you might not want to mention that I found this latest victim.”

He narrowed his eyes. “And why wouldn't I want to do that?”

“Let's just say that I'm not exactly popular with one of the officers. She seems to think I'm a busybody.”

He chuckled. “Where did she get that crazy idea?”

•   •   •

Matthew drove me back to my Jeep, which was surrounded by squad cars.

“How do you want to do this?” Matthew said. “I follow you? Or you follow me?”

I grinned. “I'll let you take the lead this time.” I hopped out of his car, but when I got closer to my Jeep, I saw it was blocked, one car was parked tightly in front and another in back. There wasn't more than six inches of space all together.

“How am I supposed to get out of here?” I looked over at Sondra's house. Two officials were standing at the door. A second later an officer wearing navy forensic overalls walked out with a cardboard box, which he carried to the trunk of a police car. I hesitated, hating to bother a cop as he worked. Then, the two officers at the door split up and one of them headed to his car. I marched off in his direction.

“Hey,” I called as he climbed into his car. “That's my Jeep over there. Could you please ask one of the drivers to move theirs?”

He got back out. “You're the owner?”

I snatched my wallet and shuffled through credit cards until I found my registration and driver's license. “Yes, I am. See?”

He came closer. “Sorry, ma'am, but this vehicle has to go through forensics.”

“What?” I was shocked. “What do you mean, forensics?”

“You know, evidentiary procedure. You'll have to call the station and make arrangements to pick it up once they're through with it.”

By this time, Matthew had climbed out of his car and was coming over to see what the fuss was about. “What's going on, Officer?”

“I was just telling this lady that she can't have her car until we check it for evidence.”

“But I need my car,” I said, looking at Matthew for help. “I don't understand why it has to go through the lab. It's not as if it's part of the crime scene.”

He put a hand around my shoulder, steering me back toward his car. “No problem. I understand, Officer.”

“Before you go, let me get you a receipt.” He went back into Sondra's house, returning with a signed form and a card. “This is the phone number you can call to get more information.”

“Let's go. We'll drive back together. And when you make arrangements to pick it up, I'll be happy to take you.”

I followed him to his car. “I don't understand why they would keep my Jeep. What's it got to do with Sondra's attack?”

He opened the passenger door for me. “They'll run it for traces of blood. If they find any, they'll then test it to make sure it isn't the victim's.”

“I don't get it,” I said as Matthew climbed in.

“You found the victim. If you were the attacker, you might have run back to the Jeep and hidden the weapon, before calling 9-1-1.” Seeing the worry on my face, he added, “It's just procedure. Nothing to worry about.”

Easy for him to say. He wasn't a suspect. I, on the other hand, was now a suspect for a third crime within the span of one week. And I was getting quite fed up with it.

“It's already almost seven,” he continued in a tone meant to cheer me up. “With rush hour traffic, we won't be back home until close to nine. I vote we drive directly over to the Longview and have dinner there.”

“I'll call and make reservations,” I said, already scrolling in my cell-phone contacts for the number. “And the first thing I want when we get there is a tall glass of wine. Actually, make that two or three.”

•   •   •

The traffic was horrendous, of course. Crazy drivers sped by only to brake once they passed us, and then, when we got on the interstate, everything slowed to a crawl.

“I swear this is one more reason I love living in Briar Hollow.” There was only one traffic light in town.

He chuckled. “You used to complain that folks there are so laid-back they'll wait through green lights rather than honk if someone falls asleep at the wheel.”

“I guess I've gotten used to driving at a more leisurely speed.”

By the time we made it to the restaurant it was nearly nine thirty—a drive, which in normal traffic, shouldn't have taken more than an hour.

As we walked in, Bunny, the owner, was behind the counter. “There you are. I was getting worried about you. Come on in.” That was another thing I loved about Briar Hollow. People here knew their neighbors and genuinely cared about one another. She proceeded down the hall to the restaurant and opened the door for us. “Enjoy your evening.”

A waiter pulled a chair for me at the same table where Matthew and I had sat just a few days ago. He handed us the menus and took our drink orders.

“The lady will have a glass of chardonnay,” Matthew said after consulting with me. “And I'll have a glass of pinot noir.” As soon as the waiter returned with our wine, Matthew raised his glass. “To you.”

“And you,” I answered. After a few sips the stress of the day began to dissipate. Only then did I realize just how tense I'd been. “Boy, did I ever need this,” I said, taking another sip. “It's been a crazy day. First, I'd gotten off to a late start for my meeting with Sondra. I worried the whole way that she might be gone when I got there. If I hadn't heard her calling for help, she would have died.”

“She's lucky you got there when you did. She's got you to thank for saving her life.”

“That's if she lives,” I said. “We still don't know if she did.” I held out my hand. It shook. “No wonder I was stressed.”

“Are you all right? Are you sure you want to stay?” Matthew asked.

“I'm fine. It just hit me that she probably got attacked because of me.”

“Why would you say that?”

I told him about Lori Stanton walking in just as I was telling Jenny my plans for the afternoon. “I'm convinced either she or her sister did it. She overheard me, and then drove to Charlotte before I got there. It couldn't have been anybody else. Nobody knew I was going to see her.”

“Does this Lori spend her days in her store the way Jenny does?”

“I think so. Whenever I walk by she's there.”

“In that case it should be easy enough to find out if she was there all day today. If she was, you can eliminate her from your list of suspects.”

“Which is down to two after today's events,” I told him. “At least for Syd's murder. I think Syd might have killed Swanson. He and Mona used to be an item before she married Swanson, and I suspect he had hopes of getting back together with her.”

“And that's why he would have killed him?”

“Whether it was his idea or she put him up to it, I don't know. But I'm convinced she was involved in killing him.”

“If she did, wouldn't that imply they were involved?”

“Or he was hoping they'd pick up their romance, and when she refused, he threatened to tell the police that she planned the murder.”

He gave me a crooked smile. “You never cease to amaze me, how good you are at this sort of thing. But what about that real estate developer, Dempsey? Have you dropped him as a suspect?”

“I think so. I just can't think of why he'd want to kill Sondra, or for that matter, how he would have known I was going to see her. The only person Sondra has any connection to or might have known something about is Swanson's new wife. Sondra might have gone out of her way to find out what she could about the woman who broke up her marriage.”

Matthew nodded. “A woman scorned.”

I thought of something. “You know who could find out whether Lori was in her shop all day is Marnie.” I fumbled through my bag for my cell.

“Don't call her from here,” Matthew said.

“I was just going to pop out for a moment.” I got up. “Be right back.” I called her from the hallway. “Marnie. I need you to do something for me.”

“It's almost ten o'clock. Can't this wait until morning?”

“Sure. I can't explain now, but I promise I'll tell you everything tomorrow.”

“Uh-oh. Does this involve spying on anyone?”

“Not really. Is there anyone you could call to find out if Lori Stanton was in her store all day, or if she was absent for any significant amount of time this afternoon?”

“How significant?”

“At least two hours.”

“I think there are a couple of people I can still call at this time. And I'll just casually ask the question during the conversation,” she said, and hung up.

When I got back to the table, Matthew said, “I forgot to tell you. Winston is at my place. I picked him up from Marnie before driving back to Charlotte. And I ordered the fresh salmon for you. That's what you wanted, right?”

“Yes.” I was about to launch into more theories as to why the two sisters killed Swanson, when from the corner of my eye I noticed somebody walking toward us. It was the saleslady I'd met at Prestige Homes, and she was wearing a big smile.

“Jenny,” she said to me. “Fancy meeting you here.” Matthew opened his mouth to say something and I gave him a swift kick under the table.

“Ouch.”

“And you must be Jenny's fiancé,” she said, sounding chirpy. “Have you picked a date for the big day yet?”

“We're still debating,” I said, aware of the blood rushing to my face, and Matthew's mounting confusion.

“Now that I've got you both together, how about we make an appointment for you to visit our project?”

“Actually, I don't have our agenda with me, so I'll have to call you back on that.”

“All right then,” she said, and then she turned to Matthew. “I know this is probably a bit late, but congratulations on your engagement. I hope you will both be very happy.” From that moment on, I have no idea what was said. All I was aware of was the growing look of displeasure on Matthew's face.

“What was that all about?” he said when at last she'd left. “Are you telling people that we're engaged?”

“No. Of course not. Let me explain. Marnie and I went to visit Prestige Homes. I just wanted to see what kind of a project it was. I thought that maybe Swanson had discovered something, like subpar materials being used. But it's a really beautiful project.” I became aware of speaking too fast. That always made me seem guilty. I forced myself to slow down. “When we met her, I pretended I was shopping for a house for my soon-to-be husband and me.”

“I see,” he said. “For a moment there, I thought you had a secret agenda.”

I laughed, but it came out like a bray. “That's just silly. I'm very happy with the way things are.”

“That's good, because marriage is not something I want to think about.”

The sip of wine I'd just taken went down the wrong way and I coughed. “Are you saying you never want to get married?”

“I'm not saying never. But certainly not in the foreseeable future. At the moment, my life is perfect just as it is.”

I thought of the engagement ring in his drawer, and swallowed hard. Luckily the food arrived at that point and I hid my disappointment by concentrating on my salmon.

•   •   •

“You seemed preoccupied over dinner,” he said later, as he drove me home.

“I'm a bit worried about my mother,” I said, for lack of a better excuse for my quiet mood. “I haven't heard from her in a few days, not even after I found Syd's body. And that is not like her. I hope nothing's wrong.”