Madison Westin 02-Deception in Paradise (18 page)

He looked at the paper and used a calculator. “Twelve hundred sixty dollars.”

“You gave him nine hundred. Less than two weeks later, you want twelve sixty back?” I asked.

“Does the sign out front say charity? I’m a businessman with expenses. Cha-ching, cha-ching, the amount goes up by the day. That’s how it works when you borrow money.”

“Thanks for your help.”

Fab started laughing when we walked out the door.

“Stop laughing. Thanks for warning me how awful that would be. Now what?”

“I looked at the receipts; they’re all legitimate shops. You’ll need Robert to get everything back,” Fab said.

“You knew all of this and didn’t say a word. Why?”

“For my own amusement. I wanted to see how you’d hold up against the owner, and you did good, girl.”

“You need to work on the whole friend thing,” I told her.

“You knew I was a beginner when we met,” Fab reminded me.

I sat in the car in a sulk, running through my options to come up with something other than bringing Robert back to the shop. If I called the police, then I might as well go buy new yard equipment.

“What are you going to do?” Fab asked.

“Get the c-a-s-h. Do you suppose that spells cash? Take Robert back, and get my stuff.”

“How are you going to get him to do that?”

“He’ll do it. He has no shame. He won’t be one bit sorry or even embarrassed.”

“Why aren’t you surprised by all of this?” Fab asked. “Is this a familiar road?”

“Stuff used to disappear all the time. The first time, it was my diamond tennis bracelet, a gift from Jax. Thankfully, I noticed it right away. Then, it suddenly reappeared. Another family member told me Jax found it in Robert’s backpack. It didn’t surprise me because I suspected Robert from the beginning.”

“What did Dickhead have to say?”

“Jax never held his friends responsible for their actions. I confronted him a couple of times about Robert, and the response was always the same. ‘You don’t understand about family.’ You don’t know how much that bugged me.”

“I don’t understand Jax,” Fab said.

“It’s simple, really. He doesn’t believe in himself.”

“What are you going to do about Jax? I hear Moron likes him, and you know he doesn’t like anyone. Says he knows his way around a wrench. You need to lose the cousin and the girlfriend,” Fab told me.

“Amen, sister.”

CHAPTER 24

Whit, my CPA, called with the information I needed. “Do you have good news for me?”

“The law is on your side, but…” Whit hesitated.

“I don’t want to hear a ‘but.’”

“I played golf with my friend Chet, the real estate lawyer I told you about, and we had a long talk about your situation. This is mainly a nuisance lawsuit. You being on the title before your divorce doesn’t make it community property in this state. In addition, you inherited it as your sole and separate property.”

“That’s good news.”

“Jackson can’t claim it as his homestead, which would’ve given him certain rights because neither of you claimed it as your primary residence and you didn’t contribute financially. Thankfully, both of you claimed another residence as your primary. In a nutshell, he has zero claim on the Cove Road house.”

“And the ‘but’?” I asked.

“Even a lawsuit going nowhere can be expensive to defend.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Since Jackson is cooperative, get him to sign a dismissal dropping the lawsuit.”

“He told me one hasn’t been filed,” I related.

“If anything does get filed, get him to sign off while he’s in a cooperative mood.”

“The lawyer behind all of this was Tucker; the one in South Carolina was a shield.”

“Both lawyers are bastards.” Whit snorted. “Tucker doesn’t have a down and dirty reputation for nothing.”

“Even if I could get Jax to agree to drop the lawsuit, Tucker would never let him back out.”

“What’s on Tucker’s agenda this time?”

“Same old, he wants my house. Why? I don’t know. Let’s face it; there are properties with better locations, better lots of things. Seems to me he just wants something of Elizabeth’s for some reason.”

“Maybe he thinks if he has her house, it will transfer the respect people around here had for her to him,” Whit said.

“Or I’ll have to spend so much on lawyer fees I might have to sell The Cottages. If I can get Jax to drop his lawsuit, can it be done without Tucker finding out?”

“Normally, Jackson’s lawyer would be doing the filing,” Whit advised. “In this case, since he is willing to burn Tucker, Chet can draw up a dismissal, and you file it with the court. The clerk will mail Tucker a copy, making her the bearer of the good news. My money’s on you, girl. One more thing.”

I groaned. “There’s more?”

“Chet won’t be your attorney of record in this dismissal. He’s not interested in a fight with Tucker. That’s why you’ll have to take care of the filing.”

“I really appreciate this, and I can get it filed,” I assured him.

“Keep me informed. Now that I’ve lifted the ban on gossip, I’ve become a junkie. When there’s nothing good going on in the Cove, I have Hollywood websites bookmarked.”

I laughed. “I really like you. I can see why my aunt loved and respected you.”

“I know everyone in town. You need help, call,” Whit offered.

“I do have a question. What do you know about Sid Byce?”

“Aren’t you full of surprises?” Whit laughed. “He’s the big league in this town.”

“Byce is demanding Jax be arrested,” I said. “Jax didn’t kill anyone. I want to find out who did.”

“Byce is power in South Florida. Nothing happens he doesn’t know about. It frustrates him that he can’t run it as his own little country. He has powerful friends around town: police chief, mayor, all the members on the city council.”

“What do you know about him personally?” I asked.

“He’s known to be a straight shooter,” Whit continued. “Hardnosed businessman, no personal scandals.”

“Is there a Mrs. Byce?”

“She died; they had one son, Alexander. He was arrested for drunk driving a couple of years ago; crashed into a couple of parked cars, and spent over a month in the hospital. The kid garnered sympathy because he spent some time in the hospital and then hobbled around on crutches and then a cane.”

“Anyone hurt?”

“No one else was injured, late at night, streets deserted. After he got out of the hospital, he posed for every photo he could for the local paper. Looking remorseful, promising to change.” Whit snorted. “Blah-blah nonsense, no doubt written for him.”

“Any problems at his restaurant or with his employees?”

“The food’s great. I never pass on the dessert tray. His restaurants get featured in travel books with five-star ratings. The young ones line up to work there. I hear it’s a fun place, and the money’s good.”

“This murder makes no sense,” I said.

“In what way?”

“Pavel was a straight-up guy, no criminal record, friends speak well of him, a harmless weekend drunk, and we both know a lot of those in this town.”

“So, why kill him?” Whit asked.

“Exactly! He worked for Byce. The girlfriend had a couple of arrests for drunk in public, open container. How does any of that answer your question?”

“Maybe it’s as simple as random,” Whit suggested.

“In this town? I checked out the crime stats: an occasional break-in or stolen car, mostly drunk in public and DUI arrests. The last murder was two years ago. Eighty-year-old Betsy Winters shot her husband when she walked in and caught him in bed with a younger woman.”

“I remember that.” Whit laughed. “The other woman was twenty years younger and survived.”

“What happened to her?”

“People turned on her. Everywhere she went, people called her a home wrecker and blamed her for that horny old bastard Winters’ death. After she recuperated, she moved to West Palm.”

“And Betsy?” I laughed at the idea of shooting Jax; not killing him, but making sure Mr. Sir was rendered ineffective.

“Aah, Betsy. I have it on good information that she faked out the District Attorney with a dementia defense. She never went to trial and was instead sent to a senior home where she died a year later.”

“I hope you’re wrong about the random thing because then we may never find out what really happened.” I shook my head. “In the meantime, Byce has decided he wants Jax to pay for the crime, and Detective Harder seems willing to go along.”

“Harder? I forgot about him. They’ve been friends for years. Harder’s one of the people in the power circle.”

“What’s up with that? Harder’s the only detective to investigate murders in Dade County?”

“Good friend of Byce’s. Byce probably called in the favor, and the police chief would’ve assigned Harder to the case.”

“You know what this town needs? A girls’ network that rivals the boys’.”

“I like that idea.”

“Please keep this conversation between us. No one can find out I’m asking questions.”

“No one will hear anything from me,” Whit said. “I’ll keep your secrets, like I did for Elizabeth, and take them to my grave.”

“Secrets? I’m going to take you to dinner, get you drunk, and pry those secrets out of you.”

“I’d like that.” Whit laughed. “I’ll get a dismissal drawn up by Chet and send it over, and you get Jax to sign. Chet’s name won’t be on the document. He wouldn’t screw Tucker openly because he doesn’t want a war, but it’ll hold up in court, if challenged.”

“I appreciate the info. Jax promised I would be the first to know about anything regarding the case, and that would include the filing of a lawsuit. He’ll sign the paperwork, and I’ll get it filed immediately.”

“Jackson’s a lucky man to have you watching his back. I hope he appreciates it.”

“I think he does. For the record, I’m doing it for my own self-serving interests.”

“Keep me updated,” Whit said.

CHAPTER 25

“Get up, you fat prick!” I kicked Robert in the leg as hard as I could.

“Huh? What?” Robert poked his head out from under the blanket. He blinked slowly as he focused on me. “How did you get in here?”

“Walked. Now, get up. You and I are going to the pawn shops to get my garden equipment back.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He rolled over to go back to sleep.

I leaned down and cocked my gun in his ear. “Yes, you do. I have the pawn receipts right here, signed by you.”

“Get away from me, you crazy bitch.” He eyed my gun pointed at him. “You broke in and are threatening me. I should call the cops.”

“Would you like to use my phone? I’d like to hear you explain how you stole my stuff and pawned everything.”

“What’s going on in here?” Jax asked, standing in the doorway, clad in a pair of boxer shorts. He always looked much better than I did in the mornings, and I still found it irritating.

I pointed at Jax. “Get out.”

“I told you she was crazier than when we were married,” Jax said to Robert, eyeing my gun. “Think about my mother before shooting him. She doesn’t like him either, but she wouldn’t want you to kill him.”

“I wouldn’t kill him, but I can blow his foot to bits all over this room.” I hit Robert’s foot with the gun.

“Oww. Get her out of here, Jax!” Robert yelled.

“You’re on your own.” Jax closed the door behind him.

I turned back to Robert. “You’ve got ten minutes. I’ll be waiting outside. You’ll do this, or I’ll shoot you and then call the cops.”

“Jax knew all about this,” Robert said.

I walked out of the bedroom to where Jax stood, slamming the door as hard as I could.

“Look, honey.” He pointed at his crotch. “Morning dick, like the good old days.”

“You stooped so low as to steal from me!”

He looked me in the eye. “I know you won’t believe this, but I didn’t know until after the fact.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“After everything that’s happened? I didn’t have the money to buy the stuff back. Honestly, I was hoping you wouldn’t find out.”

I shook my head. “I’ll deal with you later.”

“Thanks for not shooting him,” Jax said.

I slammed the front door in his face. It was childish, but felt good. Mac was standing under an open window next to the building. “What are you doing?” I asked.

She jumped back, hitting her head. “Ohhh! The window was open, and once I heard ‘fat prick,’ I stopped to listen. I know I shouldn’t have, but who can pass up a good ass chewin?”

“What’s happening I don’t know about?”

“When does that happen?” Mac pointed to the cottage I had just left. “If we got rid of Robert, there’d be no complaints.”

“Ms. Madison, Mac.” I turned, and saw Creole walking in from the beach. Tall, lean, and muscled, he made my heart race. Water drops clung to his chest, making me think indecent thoughts.

“Creole.” I stared at his mouth, recovered my manners, and smiled.

He barely broke stride and continued down the drive, disappearing inside his cottage.

“He winked at you.” Mac nudged my arm. “Half-naked like that, he gives me a hot flash.”

“Makes you want to see the rest,” I said. My cheeks burned.

“Listen to you. I wonder if his you-know is…”

“Stop. We’ve already agreed he’s hot.”

I needed to focus, not fantasize about Creole all day. Besides, Zach wasn’t exactly chopped liver. A night of hot, sweaty sex with Zach, and it would be Creole who?

Robert came outside. “Someone broke into our cottage,” he told Mac, staring at her boobs, which were stuffed into a child-sized shirt.

“You should call the police,” Mac said. “Be sure you get rid of the pot first.” She smiled and walked away.

“Did I tell you you’re looking really good these days?” Robert asked.

“Get in.” I pointed to my SUV.

“No, really. I’ve seen you skinny, fat, and skinny again. This in-between look is much better on you. Nice ass, sticks out in the back.”

“Thanks.” Had he just told me I had a fat ass?

“I wouldn’t kick you out of bed.”

“Look, we’re going to three pawn shops. I pay to get my stuff out of hock, you sign, and you load it in the back. I haven’t figured out how I’m going to get the riding mower back.”