Lowcountry Bombshell (A Liz Talbot Mystery) (9 page)

ELEVEN

When I walked inside the courtyard at the entrance to Calista’s house, I considered studying up on feng shui. That feeling of serenity I’d experienced on my first visit wrapped around me again. It eroded when Elenore opened the door. Something about that woman got under my skin. No wonder Warren had traded her in.

“Ms. McQueen will receive you by the pool,” she said.

I offered her a sunny smile. “Why, thank you so much.”

“This way.” She started through the house.

“Oh, don’t bother. I can find her myself.”

“Please follow me.” She ignored me, escorted me to the pool deck, and announced me again. Then she disappeared.

Today Calista and Niles were in yoga outfits. They had mats on a shady spot of grass at the edge of the pool deck. It seemed awfully hot outside for yoga, but maybe the breeze made it bearable.

As I approached, they bowed at each other. Waves broke on the sand and sluiced back out to sea, creating the perfect soundtrack.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” I said.

“Liz.” Calista walked towards a row of recliners shaded by a curved swath of concrete and white billowy drapes. “Let’s talk over here.” She arranged herself on a modern-looking chaise.

I took the one beside her. They were way more comfortable than they looked. Niles had followed her and stood nearby with a towel around his neck.

Calista looked up at him. “Why don’t you get something to drink? And would you ask Mrs. Harper to bring some water with lemon for Liz and me?”

“Certainly. Can I get you anything else?”

“No, thanks. That was a great workout.”

Niles nodded and exited stage left. He moved with hesitant steps, as if he weren’t committed to the journey. I had the feeling he didn’t like leaving. I watched him go.

“What did you want to talk about?” Calista asked.

“I don’t want to worry you, but I need to let you know that Jim Davis is in the area. I caught him watching your house this morning around five-thirty.”

Calista’s hand fluttered up to her face. “You see, Harmony was right. Do you think he killed her?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve done a good bit of research on him. He doesn’t have a criminal background. There’s nothing to suggest he’s the violent type. But…people who aren’t violent types turn violent when something sets them off. It’s hard to figure what might have set him off after all this time. But, we can’t rule him out as a suspect.”

“I think he’s only violent where I’m concerned.”

“Was he abusive during your marriage?”

Calista stared out at the Atlantic. “He’s not aggressive by nature. I think they made him a little crazy—Mother and Grace, I mean.”

“Are you aware that Grace’s real name was Donna Clark? And your mother, her name was Gwen Monroe. They both changed their names the week after you were born.”

“But Mother’s name is listed as Gladys Monroe on my birth certificate. I have a copy.”

“I suspect Donna put her up to entering her name that way. Hospitals weren’t barcoding patients back then. It would have been easy enough, I think, to give a variation on a first name. The initial was the same.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“I think they manipulated as much of your life as they could to create the illusion of a parallel.”

“Well, they didn’t manipulate the way I look.”

“There is that. My theory is they took the coincidence nature offered them with your birth date and time and tried to capitalize on it. It seems they got wildly lucky with your looks.” That double coincidence nagged at me. As coincidences go, either one of them would be a doozy. But combined they were nearly impossible to swallow. But, there she sat.

“That sounds right. I just didn’t know they’d changed their names. That makes everything else a little suspect, doesn’t it?”

“It explains some things. It’s possible they paid someone off to alter the time you were born, especially if it was close.” I pondered whether there was any margin in chasing that rabbit and decided against it. “So, you think their schemes made Jim violent?”

“He wanted me to get into modeling and acting. But that could easily have come from them. They were always around, always pushing me—pushing him. He never hurt me, but when I refused to go on auditions he would get really mad and throw things and storm out. He scared me.”

Elenore appeared with a tray. She set it on a nearby table, served us each a glass of iced water with lemon, and slid away.

“Thank you, Mrs. Harper,” Calista said.

“Calista, how did Elenore Harper come to work for you?”

“Niles introduced us. I think her daughter is one of his students. Something like that. She’s odd, but very efficient.”

I tucked that away to think about later. “Why do you think Jim has tracked you down eighteen years later?”

“Money? Revenge?”

“But how did he find you?”

“I’m hoping you’ll find that out.”

I sighed. “Me, too. Tell me about your security system. I understand from Michael Devlin that you hired someone from Los Angeles to put it in. Is it possible someone at the security company knows your ex? The LA connection concerns me.”

“First of all, the company’s headquarters is based in Los Angeles, but I dealt with their office in Charleston. Their business is private security. They secure royalty and heads of corporations—billionaires. It’s hard to imagine anyone there has loose lips. No one there knows anything about my background.”

“Yeah, they wouldn’t hold onto that clientele if they weren’t keeping people safe. Still. Security companies have all kinds of resources for checking into people. Surely they could have uncovered your background if they looked hard enough. I was able to verify it. Of course, I knew where to look because you told me. Still. Money can be a powerful motivator.”

“That’s true.” We listened to the waves for a few moments. “You know,” she said, “everyone thinks they want to win the lottery. They don’t. If you have great wealth, you have to spend your whole life guarding it from all the people who want to take it away from you. That’s no way to live. You can never fully trust anyone. Almost anyone can be bought for the right price.”

I felt bad for her. She was so beautiful, and rich enough to do anything she wanted. But she was so alone. “I can see how that much money would isolate you. When you were married to Jim, was he focused on money?”

“Very much so. He thought I could make us rich.”

“Ironic how you came into more money than she ever made.”

“Isn’t it, though? I don’t know how he found out where I am, but I think it must be like Harmony said. He thinks I owe him money, and he’s come to collect.”

“But, logically, if he kills you, he wouldn’t inherit a dime.” This was the biggest reason I didn’t think he would kill Calista. But it didn’t clear him regarding Harmony.

“He must have an angle.”

“I think Grace and your mother were the ones with all the angles.”

“They may be behind this. I’d sure hate to think my own mother would have me killed.”

“Is she currently in an institution?”

“Last I heard, no. My attorney handles the trust that takes care of her. He might know.”

“I’ll need his contact information.”

“It’s Robert Pearson. He’s local. You know him, right?”

“I’ve known him all my life. I heard he handled your land purchase, but he handles your other business as well?”

“Yes. He does now. Switching attorneys periodically makes me feel safer.”

“I’ll check in with him. But, I’ll need you to sign a release so that he can speak to me.”

“Sure thing.”

“Back to the security system. Walk me through it.”

“They consulted with Michael on construction. All the windows are bulletproof. Of course, the walls are as well. I have a safe room. The air is filtered. I have cameras inside and out. The exterior ones are motion activated.”

“Who monitors the system?”

“Security Solutions in Charleston. That’s the company that designed it.”

We’d both been watching waves. I turned to look at her. “So you got a call when I walked through your yard this morning?”

Calista looked at me, alarmed. “No, actually.”

“And you had armed the perimeter system?”

“Yes. I always do when I’m in for the night. To be honest, I only activate the interior cameras and motion detectors when I’m away. I can’t bear the idea of someone watching me in my own home.”

“Understandable. But the system failed rather spectacularly this morning. That could have put you at great risk. I’m going to need you to call and ask them to talk to me. You may need to sign a release for them as well. Who is your contact there?”

“Mack Ryan.”

“Do you have the list of contacts we talked about, and the shopping list that was altered?”

“Yes. I put them both on the credenza in the foyer for you.”

Elenore came out of the house, crossed the far end of the pool deck, and entered the guesthouse.

“She has a lot to clean between the house and the guesthouse,” I said.

“Oh, she doesn’t normally clean in there every day. She’s staying in the guest house while the hardwood floors in her house are being refinished.”

“That’s very nice of you to let her stay here.”

“It’s more convenient for me, really. And after all, I have the guesthouse just sitting there. Why should she stay in a hotel? Plus, I feel safer having someone else here.”

Somehow I couldn’t reckon with Elenore as protection. “Do you have the same security features in the guesthouse?”

“Yes, but the guest house is a separate zone. The house has several zones.”

“Is the master suite a zone?”

“Yes. Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.”

“Did you always want to be a private investigator?”

“No.” I gave her a wan smile. “I wanted to be an actress. Mamma insisted I pick a college major that would give me something to fall back on if that didn’t pan out. I decided on English. I thought maybe I could teach at the high school and manage the drama program. Everything changed when I took a course in criminal behavior as an elective. For a while I thought I might go into police work, maybe even the FBI. But all that bureaucracy seemed stifling—and don’t get me started on the wardrobe. Private investigation was a better fit for me. Why do you ask?”

“Everyone else had dreams for me, but I never had any for myself until I left California. I just wondered.”

I stood to leave. “Okay, I’m going to check in with my partner and see if he has eyes on Jim Davis. Call the security company as soon as I leave and let them know you had an undetected breach this morning. They should jump right on that. They have a reputation to protect. Then, for the next few days, I’d recommend you be vigilant about arming the security system inside and out. You can turn off the camera and motion detectors in the guesthouse and your bedroom and bath, but still have them on in the rest of the house. That will protect your privacy but alert the security company if someone enters the house while you’re asleep.”

“I’ll forget to disarm it, and walk into the kitchen for water in the middle of the night.”

“So, you may be billed for a few false alarms. That’s the least of your worries.”

“I guess you’re right. If Niles stays over, I can disarm the guestroom as well, but leave the system on in the common areas.”

I felt my face squinch. “Niles sleeps over?”

“Sometimes. If he’s had a quarrel with his boyfriend, or if I’m feeling especially blue.”

I took a deep breath and patted her on the shoulder. I wondered what it would feel like to have no family to rely on, no close friends to turn to. I had the urge to befriend her, but needed to maintain my professional objectivity. “I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon. We’ll talk more then.”

“All right.”

“Hey, I meant to ask you about your license plate. I’m just curious. What does it mean?”

“Fifty-cent soul.”

“What’s the significance?”

“It’s something Marilyn said once. It stuck with me. She was so much deeper than people gave her credit for. She said, ‘Hollywood is a place where they’ll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul. I know, because I turned down the first offer often enough and held out for the fifty cents.’ I owe her quite a lot, when you think about it. If I hadn’t known how her story ended, I might have let them turn me into a movie star. Instead, I kept my fifty-cent soul and left town.”

TWELVE

Mamma called as I pulled out of Calista’s driveway. “Liz, honey, your daddy has gotten himself another computer virus. Can you run by the barn? I’m positively mortified. I’ve heard from three members of the church, and Father Henry to boot. Your daddy’s computer has been broadcasting pornography over email.”

I resisted the urge to bang my head on the steering wheel. “I’ll head over there now.”

“Liz?”

“Yes, Mamma.”

“See if you can get him to go to the doctor and have his blood pressure checked.”

“I’ll do my best.” Daddy wasn’t fond of seeing doctors, even Warren Harper. And he liked him, generally speaking.

“Thank you sweetheart. Come by and take some more of this pimento cheese if you can use it.”

“Thanks, Mamma, but that’s not in my best interests. That stuff is like crack cocaine to me.”

“Well, I guess if I don’t see you before, I’ll see you at dinner Sunday.”

“Okay. Wait, Mamma. Nate’s in town.”

“Well, bring him along.”

My stomach clenched. “All right. See you then.” I ended the call wondering how Nate was going to feel about having dinner with my family, and how they would receive the news that Nate and I were partners in more than one sense of the word. They purely hated Scott, with good reason. This might be weird.

Before she would let Daddy retire, Mamma insisted he find something to occupy his time besides sandpapering her nerves all day. Since his two favorite pastimes consisted of haunting flea markets and cussin’ at the stock reports on cable news channels, we all put our heads together and came up with the idea for Talbot’s Treasures.

It was in an old red barn on the other side of the island from their house on Marsh Point Drive just south of forty acres of woods. It was out of Mamma’s hair, is what I meant.  We pitched in to help renovate the barn, and air-conditioned it to the point you could’ve hung meat in there. Daddy didn’t like to sweat. To help pay the outrageous electricity bills, he rented booths to a few of his cronies and the occasional bored housewife. Near the front door, he sat vigil over the stock ticker with his sad-sack basset hound, Chumley, surfed the World Wide Web, and occasionally sold junk.

And that’s exactly where I found him when I stepped out of the sweltering heat and a swarm of no-see-ums and into his massive, frigid man cave. 

“Top of the afternoon, Ms. Tutie,” he called out, not taking his eyes off the television.

Apparently, he had trouble recalling the name they’d put on my birth certificate, because he seldom used it unless something was wrong. Tutie was the latest in a long succession of nicknames that came from the vast, unknown frontiers of my daddy’s brain. It wasn’t just me. When all was right in his world, he rarely called anyone by their actual name.

I hugged his neck, careful not to muss his hair. He looked much younger than his fifty-two years and was quite vain. There wasn’t a single gray hair in his sandy blond head, which was the exact same color as mine before Phoebe got ahold of me.

“Hey, Daddy. How’re you feeling? Mamma’s afraid your blood pressure’s up.”

“The whistle pigs got into your mamma’s bulbs again last night,” he said, eyes still glued to the stock ticker.

Stella Maris had a thriving herd of wild hogs. In the aftermath of a hurricane back in the 1800s, most of the livestock wandered the island until fences and barns were repaired or rebuilt. This particular gang of hogs was never apprehended. Daddy called them whistle pigs. Don’t ask me why. I was pretty sure that whistle pig was technically another name for a woodchuck, but Daddy never was much troubled by technicalities. Anyway, as far as I knew, no one had ever heard one of the hogs whistle.

They were mostly harmless, but they liked to snack on in flowerbeds and vegetable gardens, which made them unpopular. It wasn’t clear to me from his response whether the hogs had Daddy’s blood pressure up, or if it was something on the stock ticker.

“Those things are a menace.” The idea of hogs running loose always bothered me. I harbored the suspicion one of them might attack somebody, although I’d never heard such a thing happening.

The town council had discussed at length what to do about them, but no consensus was reached. The island’s matriarchs were too tenderhearted to hear tell of the hogs being exterminated, and the swine were wily enough to evade efforts at rounding them up.

“Computer’s acting up again,” Daddy said.

“That’s what Mamma said. Let me take a look.” I sat down at his desk and moved the mouse to kill the screen saver. I opened a web page. “Do you want all these toolbars on here?”

“Toolbars?”

“All these things at the top.”

“I don’t know how those things got on there. Get rid of ’em, why don’t you?”

I updated his virus protection, scanned the computer, and removed the excess toolbars. “I’m going to change the password on your email account.”

“Write the new one down for me.”

“I’m taping it right where the old one was, inside your top drawer. I’ve underlined the letters you need to capitalize.”

He stared at me for a minute. I could see his eyes dancing with mischief, though he didn’t throw the game by grinning. He looked away. “Stocks are in the toilet.”

“Daddy, when’s the last time you had a physical?”