Murder the Tey Way: A Golden Age of Mystery Book Club Mystery (The Golden Age of Mystery Book Club Mysteries 2) (26 page)

I shrugged. “We had a bit of an argument.” I turned away. “I was pissed because he knew Sadie Lu was pregnant and didn’t tell me.”

“Ah. And who’s Sadie Lu?”

I explained.

Rosie gripped my arm.

“Ouch!”

“You like this Brian Donovan, don’t you?”

I nodded.

“Then don’t screw it up.”

“I didn’t set out to screw anything up. I only—“

She squeezed my arm again. “Lexie, you’re at the critical stage in this relationship. You’re involved, you care about the guy, and you’re suddenly terrified because you realize how much you care.”

I opened my mouth to argue, then closed it. “I’m not terrified. Just a bit nervous, which I never realized till now.”

Rosie gave me her know-it-all grin. I felt like smacking her and grabbing her in a bear hug at the same time. I did neither. Instead, I considered her observation.

“I suppose it never dawned on me because I’ve been so busy, but the fear was working inside me all the time.”

“Which is why you blew up the way you did.”

I shrugged. “Could be you’re right.”

“I
am
right.” She hooked her arm into mine, and we walked side-by-side into the living room where everyone else was milling around.

*****

Too soon my houseguests left me and I was on my own. Gayle set out early Sunday morning. We hugged and promised to keep in touch and visit regularly. The kids’ flight to L. A. took off in the early evening. I drove back from the airport feeling forlorn and abandoned. Jesse had been especially affectionate when I dropped them off, and tried to get me to promise that I’d come out to California some time during my winter vacation.

“Come on, Mom. You’ve never seen my digs. And Dad would love to see you.”

I made a face. “Sure he would.”

“No, really. I’ve heard him telling Stacey how great things were between the two of you the first few years.”

Right. Until you came on the scene
. I quivered as a pang of the old hurt passed through me. Then I realized I was pleased. “What an idiotic thing to tell your long-time live-in girlfriend.”

Jesse grinned. “You don’t know Stacey. She’s so cool, a compliment to you wouldn’t upset her.”

“I suppose that’s why she and your father have lasted this long.”

Cici surprised me with a big hug. “It was so nice spending a real Thanksgiving with you and your family, Lexie. It’s one holiday my family managed to skip all these years.”

“My pleasure,” I said, meaning it.

“And do fly out to California.” She lowered her voice. “It would mean a lot to Jesse.”

The house felt like an empty shell when I returned. Even Puss, who usually greeted me when I walked through the door, was fast asleep on a living room cushion. A heavy cloak of self-pity enveloped me. No family, no boyfriend, and tomorrow I had to tell Al that we were through. The way things were going for me, he’d probably tell me to vacate the premises within forty-eight hours.

Stop being a drama queen. Jesse and Gayle went home because all guests go home. As for Brian, you’ll straighten things out, or try to.

The phone rang, jarring me from my dismal thoughts. It was Al.

“Hi, Lexie. I thought I’d touch base. Is now a good time?”

“As good as any.”

I was relieved if a bit surprised that he hadn’t picked up on my somber tone. We exchanged news about our Thanksgiving dinners. I talked about Jesse and Cici, Gayle, and our visit to Rosie and Hal. I omitted mentioning Brian.

“I was hoping we’d be able to get together tomorrow right after your classes, but it looks like I’ll be tied up until the evening. How about dinner at L’Etoile?”

My face lit up. “I’d adore dinner at L’Etoile! But isn’t it kind of pricy?”

Al laughed. “Nothing but the best for you, my dear. Shall I pick you up at seven?”

We hung up, leaving me looking forward to dining at one of Long Island’s finest French restaurants, yet sad because of what lay ahead. Al was a wonderful guy—sweet and kind, bright and cultured. In fact, he was perfect. Unfortunately, I didn’t love him.

I switched on the TV, then turned it right off. The phone rang again. It was Brian.

“Has everyone left?” he asked.

“Uh-huh. I’m here on my lonesome.” I bit my tongue.
Why did it have to sound like I was begging him to come over?

“Sounds appealing.”

“Really? I thought you were cooling things between us.”

That brought on a deep sigh. “So did I.”

“And?”

“Maybe I’ll come by—if you want me to.”

“I’d like that,” I said.

Brian came and stayed the night. We said little about what had driven a wedge between us, but our lovemaking was passionate and wild. Makeup sex, people called it. A way for two lovers to say they were sorry they’d quarreled and hoped it never happened again. The following morning, we each drove our own car to the local diner for an early breakfast. From there, we both had to go to work.

In the parking lot, he walked me to my car. “Don’t be too hard on West,” he said, grinning maniacally. “The poor guy lost out to the Guy in Blue”

“Did he ever,” I said, wrapping myself around Brian as if he were a pole dancer’s pole. “I only wish people didn’t have to get hurt.”

“I wish people didn’t kill other people,” Brian quipped. He dropped a kiss on my nose and left.

I hummed as I drove to the university. Spending time with Brian Donovan left me like a car that had just been tuned to its optimum condition. Though we saw the world differently and Brian rarely read books, let alone the classics, I felt in sync with him and was happiest when we were together. We laughed, we talked, we understood one another.

Was that love?

After my classes, I ran a few errands, so I didn’t arrive home until close to two o’clock. The phone was ringing when I walked in the house. Joy wanted to chat. I brought her up to date on my love life.

“I’m glad things are good again with you and Brian,” she said. “Are you nervous about breaking it off with Al tonight?”

“A bit,” I admitted. “He’s a good guy. A wonderful catch, actually, for anyone in her right mind.”

“Anyone not in love with someone else.”

Love. There was that word again.

I must have been truly sleep deprived because I dozed off while rereading
To Love and Be Wise
, something I never did during daylight hours. I awoke feeling rested. I glanced at my watch. It was a quarter to four.

Puss came ambling by, meowing for an early dinner. I fed him the rest of the can of cat food, then realized I hadn’t any more for his breakfast tomorrow. There was plenty of dry cat food in the cupboard. He’d have to make do with that.

Who was I kidding?
He’d sniff at his dish, look disdainfully at me, and leave the kitchen, tail in the air. Sighing, I shrugged into my parka and headed for the garage.

All of the parking spots near the pet supplies warehouse were occupied. I drove around to the other side of the lot. The only available space was near a run-down, weather-beaten warehouse. The place looked deserted. I had no idea what, if anything, was stored inside. Fifteen minutes later, I wheeled out my cart filled with three cases of cat food and the few toys I couldn’t resist, and loaded them into the trunk of my car. As I slid into the driver’s seat, an SUV drove up alongside the front door of the warehouse not twenty feet to my right. Evan Billings stopped out.

I opened my mouth to call out to him, then closed it when I caught sight of his grim expression. Good thing I didn’t, because a minute later a huge goliath of a man, as bald as Mr. Clean with a black Vandyke beard, emerged from the warehouse. He spoke to Evan, much too softly for me to hear what he was saying. When Evan started to speak the man turned his back and entered the warehouse.

I’d seen the man before, albeit without facial hair. Of course! It was The Giant, the man Evan had words with in the bowling alley parking lot about bringing Eloisa to the United States.

But all that was resolved! Why was Evan here? I was in such a state of confusion, I almost didn’t notice Evan drive his SUV to the back of the warehouse.

I made sure no one was around, and stepped out of my car. I walked quickly to the warehouse, then inched along the side, both terrified and excited at what I might encounter. Brian would kill me if he had any idea of what I was doing, though The Giant would probably kill me first if he caught me spying. There was no doubt in my mind he was a thug and a criminal. I had to find out what hold he had over Evan.

I peered around to the back of the building, and was glad I hadn’t gone one inch  further. Two men stood beside a van, smoking and laughing. Evan had parked close to the back door of the warehouse. He climbed down from the SUV and retrieved a large duffel bag from the back seat. From the way he held it, I could tell that whatever was inside weighed at least forty pounds.

“Hand it over,” The Giant ordered from the open door.

I couldn’t hear what Evan said, but clearly he wasn’t eager to comply. The Giant zipped open the duffel bag and held up a pair of ornate silver candlesticks three or four feet tall. He examined them with reverence, then placed them back in the bag  with care. He turned to Evan, a mock expression of gratitude on his face.

“Thank you, Mr. Billings. We’ll let you know when we need your services again.”

“I can’t do this,” Evan mumbled.

“Oh, but you agreed. You knew what you were getting into.”

“No, I didn’t,” Evan insisted.

“People had to be taken care of so you could have your precious granddaughter.”

“I had no idea!”

“Don’t play the innocent! You had a choice: pay more money or help us acquire items. Now your hands are dirty, same as ours.” The Giant pointed a finger at Evan. “Remember, we have you on tape.”

Evan opened his mouth to argue, but once again The Giant left him standing as he disappeared inside the warehouse.

What had Evan gotten himself into?
I drove home wondering what The Giant meant when he said people had to be taken care of. Paid off? Murdered? Clearly The Giant’s gang had boxed Evan in, forcing him to steal for them.

Whoever
they
were.

I drove home, wondering if this gang had been responsible for putting Evan on the “No Fly” list. I shook my head, knowing how improbable that was. Besides, the “no fly” problem had been cleared up.

But why was Evan beholden to The Giant and his gang? It was Corinne who had delivered Eloisa into her grandparents’ hands. Or had the people she’d contacted inadvertently employed the gang that had tried to stiff the Billingses, making them angrier than ever?

One question led to another, and I couldn’t answer any of them. Frustrated, I put away the cat food and dangled a new toy in front of Puss. He sniffed it and turned away. So much for gratitude.

I called Brian on his cell phone to tell him what I’d observed. He didn’t sound happy.

“You actually walked around to the back of the warehouse, Lexie?”

“No. I just peered around the side.”

“Did anyone see you?”

“I told you no one saw me.”

He gave a snort of exasperation. “That’s good, because the thieves who store their loot in that warehouse have security cameras that scan the backyard.”

Suddenly I was frightened. “How do you know?”

“Robbery’s keeping a close watch on them until they’re ready to raid the place.”

“How can a gang of thieves use a warehouse in plain sight of everyone?” I said. “It’s across the parking lot from where I buy cat food.”

“They know who to watch for.”

“They probably sent Evan around to the back to catch him on camera and incriminate him further. They said they have proof he stole the candlesticks.”

“I’ll check it out,” Brian promised. “And no, I won’t bring your name into it.”

“Thanks, Brian.”

He laughed. “Go have fun on your date.”

“Right,” I grumbled.

I enjoyed a long soak in the bath, then put on a cashmere sweater and black trousers for my evening out with Al.

As I blow dried my hair, I practiced how to tell him, as kindly as possible, that our relationship was over.

“Sorry, it just happened,” came to mind. Only it hadn’t
just
happened. I was attracted to Brian Donovan the moment we met. I liked Al, of course. Liked him a lot. But my feelings for him never had the magical spark I felt when I was with Brian.

Al arrived promptly at seven. We hugged, and I was startled at how glad I was to see him again. He kissed my cheek then held me at arms’ length.

“How are you, Lexie? You look terrific.”

“You look well yourself.”

He was elegantly well dressed as always, his light brown hair a bit longer than the going style. Without his beard he looked younger. A catch, if ever there was one.

Al beamed at me. “Ready to go?”

I nodded, and went to get my coat. Al held it for me as I slipped my arms into the sleeves.

In the car I asked him about his daughters, and he asked me about Jesse’s visit. Conversation was comfortable, mundane. Thank goodness he didn’t bring up the subject of our moving in together because that would have brought our evening to a crashing halt. For some reason, I felt it was important that we have our last evening together.

Al stopped in front of an elegant manor house. A valet helped me out of the car. Another restaurant employee opened the entrance door of L’Etoile and bid us welcome. “Lovely,” I murmured as the
maitre d’
led us to a table in the dimly-lit dining room. Two candles rose above the snowy white tablecloth.

When we were seated, I said, “I’ve been wanting to eat here for years.”

Al reached across the table to squeeze my shoulder. “I’m happy to make your wish come true.”

We ordered drinks, then our dinners. I decided on filet mignon, though I rarely ate beef. I wasn’t going to let this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity pass me by.

We chatted easily about people we knew in common then about Al’s project in London, which he said was going very well. I sensed we were both sidestepping any discussion concerning the two of us. Part of me wanted to tell Al I was madly in love with Brian. Part of me wanted to wait until he introduced the subject or it magically arose on its own.