Night Magic (40 page)

"Now do your thing." Sam sat back with his
feet on another chair.

"Well, being suspected of murder makes
illegally accessing another company's computer files seem minor."
Paul laughed as he began the task of outsmarting security
codes.

He worked intensely for twenty minutes not
even noticing when Sam left. Sam returned with Savannah and
Charice. They cut off their chatter so as not to disturb his
concentration. Watching in fascination, Sam whispered explanations
while Paul's fingers moved rapidly across the keys trying different
patterns.

"When we were in school, we got into some of
the best on-line systems. The research we accessed was fabulous.
Like who had time to hang in the library all night or the money to
pay for all those services?"

"But isn't that considered a form of
stealing?" Savannah gave him a disapproving look.

"Hey, we didn't take anything but a little
information. And we didn't do it for long anyway. Besides, we got
busted by the dorm counselor and he confiscated our lap top."

"Lucky you didn't get tracked down by the
FBI." Charice pinched his right arm.

"Or kicked out of school." Savannah pinched
his right arm.

"Oww! Cut it out." Sam massaged his arms.

"Shhh!" Savannah and Charice said at the same
time.

"I think I've got it." Paul spoke over his
shoulder. "Damn, not yet." He paused for only a few seconds before
continuing.

The other three began to get worried as five,
ten, twenty, then thirty minutes passed. It was hard for them to
keep still and quiet. They snacked on chips and soft drinks from
the vending machine down the hall. Sam took them on a tour of the
office suites then the rest of the complex. Upon entering the
office again, they were surprised to find Paul sitting with his
feet up on the desk wearing a self-satisfied grin.

"I'm in."

*****

"Why am I here? What do you want with me?"
Singleton blinked as he looked from one to the other.

"I think you know these gentlemen, Mr.
Singleton." LaMar took off his black cap throwing on a nearby
chair.

"Hey, man. What's happening?" Sam waved as
though they were being reacquainted at a party.

"Hi again." Paul nodded.

"And this is Ms. St. Julien and Ms. Collins.
Friends of Paul and Sam." LaMar sat on the edge of a desk.

"I don't understand any of this. Some mugger
tries to kill me, and my cab driver rescues me and then changes
cars and drives me out of New Orleans. Is this a kidnapping?"
Singleton wiped sweat from his chin with a linen handkerchief, his
hand shaking.

"Certainly not, Mr. Singleton. May I call you
Kyle? After all, we've been through so much together. Somehow Mr.
Singleton sounds so formal. Kyle, I hate to tell you this, but that
was no mere mugging." LaMar sighed.

"No? How do you know that?" Singleton stopped
mopping his face.

"I'm a private cop. My investigation of you
and Quentin Trosclair has led me to some interesting people."

"I don't know what you mean." Singleton's
eyes slid sideways.

"Sources on the street are my life line, sir.
And those sources told me exactly when that so-called mugging would
go down. That man wasn't there to take your money."

"Uh-uh my man." Sam shook his head
slowly.

"Afraid not." Paul said.

"What are you saying?" Singleton's breathing
became audible.

"We're saying he was sent to kill you, Kyle.
You see, your partner in crime doesn't like the changes you've made
at Batton Chemical. He is seeking to dissolve your partnership."
LaMar leaned towards him.

"I- I don't what you mean by partner in
crime." Singleton's eyes moved around the room.

"Quentin doesn't intend to give up money or
power to you, Kyle. You know too much about his activities with
company funds, about Claude Trosclair's death. You have to go,
Kyle. Plain and simple." LaMar popped a mint in his mouth and
flashed his teeth in a wide grin.

"But he demanded my money."

"Only as a cover for his real purpose. After
all, folks are killed during robberies every day. Routine police
paperwork. But not a professional hit of a respectable businessman.
That would cause too many questions, too much heat." LaMar
said.

"You're lying! You're just trying to get me
to confess to something, get him off the hook." Singleton jabbed a
finger at Paul. "Well, it won't work. Now I demand that you take me
home." Singleton blustered.

"Have you got it?" LaMar turned to Paul.

"Right here." Paul held up a long computer
printout.

"As you can see, according to these documents
you have been embezzling company funds. See there? Your access
code. And here, it clearly shows that you have profited greatly at
the expense of one Señor Juan Carlos. Señor Carlos is an
import/export entrepreneur, his main product being cocaine. Quentin
gave this information to him. Señor Carlos is a little angry with
you, Kyle."

"But it's not true! I'll tell him it's a
lie."

"Those kind of men are impulsive. You won't
have time to try and convince him, Kyle. Trust me. And he's got
proof." As LaMar reminded him of it, Paul shook the printout.

"Oh God." Singleton began to shake as he read
the printout.

"We can work it so he gets his money back."
Paul held up the keyboard to the computer.

"Unfortunately, for men like Señor Carlos
that's not enough. An example must be made to discourage others
from such actions." LaMar's words caused the beginning of a hopeful
look to fade from Singleton's face.

"A matter of honor and respect." Sam folded
his arms across his chest.

"Oh God, you can't let them kill me! What am
I going to do?" Singleton began to snivel. Large drops of sweat
poured from his face and stained the underarms of his jacket.

"It so happens, we know exactly what you
should do," Paul said, slapping his back as three smiling faces
beamed at him.

*****

"Ain't dis one helluva mess!" Sheriff Triche
wore an expression of disgust. Leaving his office, he pulled the
door shut with such force the glass rattled.

"Damn! This is all I need." Daniels came from
the opposite office. He took out two antacid tablets and chewed
them. A pained frown twisting his face, he clutched his stomach.
Without speaking to each other, they both heaved a sigh. Sheriff
Triche led the way down a hall to another office. Opening the door,
he allowed the district attorney to go first. Savannah, Charice,
Sam, Paul, and Gralin looked up expectantly.

"Did they talk?" Paul sprang from the metal
chair.

"They talkin' alright. How we gone sort dis
out I don't know." Sheriff Triche rubbed his unshaven jaw."Quentin
sayin' him and Claude found out Singleton was stealin' from the
company the day before the murder. Says he thinks maybe Claude
confronted Singleton and Singleton killed him. Claims he been
suspectin' Singleton killed his grandpapa but was too scared to say
so. He claims we oughta examine Singleton's office for evidence."
Sheriff Triche looked up at the ceiling.

"Singleton says he found out Quentin was
stealing from the company. He claims Claude found out, too. That
Claude confronted Quentin and Quentin killed his grandfather. He
says we should check the floor in the rear of Quentin's car for
blood stains." Daniels sat down heavily and began to rub his
temples.

"And Miss Rousselle say dey did it together
is how she figure. Quentin told her dey didn't have to worry 'bout
the old man no more. Says he told her `We took care of it'. She
ain't had no idea he meant he'd murdered the old man. She say she
was too scared to talk 'cause Quentin beat her. Showed Deputy
Arceneaux bruises on her body to prove it. Say we oughta check the
Singleton’s Lexus SUV if we don't believe her." Sheriff Triche
said.

"What do you think, Sheriff?" Savannah stared
at him then Daniels when he did not answer.

"We don't know what to think at this point.
But we've got a real complicated situation to sort out," Daniels
said in a tired voice.

“I got a suspicion about the Kyle fella.”
Sheriff Triche rubbed the growing stubble of a beard on his
face.

"What about me?" Paul glanced from the
sheriff to Daniels.

"You not the only, or even the best suspect
now. The strongest evidence we had was motive and your
fingerprints. All three of those characters had a motive and their
fingerprints were in Trosclairs office, too." Daniels stood.

"Lord, I can see now we gone be working into
the morning impounding cars, collectin' carpet samples and the
like. Might as well call Clotilde now and tell her not to expect me
home tonight either. Better get movin'." Sheriff Triche walked out.
Shortly they heard him irritably barking orders to his
deputies.

"Sorry for any problems all this caused for
you, Honorè." Daniels gave a clipped nod before leaving.

"Man, let's get out of here. This place is
depressing." Sam put one arm around Charice's waist.

"I'm more than ready." Paul pulled Savannah
to him.On the way out, they passed the offices where all three were
being questioned separately. Quentin, his back to them, gestured
wildly. A deputy sat in front of him with a tape recorder and
tablet scribbling furiously. Singleton sat slumped, head down. His
expensive suit was crumpled giving him the look of a bedraggled
drunk driving suspect. Noticing them walk by, he turned vacant eyes
to them.

Savannah felt a tiny twitching sensation at
the back of her neck. She swung around to find LaShaun standing a
few yards away between two deputies.

"Un de ces beaux jours, Savannah. Yes, yes.
One of these fine days." Though LaShaun spoke softly, her voice
carried through the noisy station room. Her eyes flashed
hatred.Turning away, Savannah shook her head in a pitying
dismissal. LaShaun let out of stream of obscenities as she was half
carried, half dragged away.

*****

"Some night, huh?" Savannah said. They sat in
Paul's car in front of her house. They left Charice and Sam still
affectionately teasing each other at Charice's house.

"Amazing." Paul smiled shyly.

"Bet your parents were thrilled to hear
you're not a murder suspect now."

"Mama screamed and dropped the phone." Paul
laughed.

"Poppy told me to give you hug for him and
Tante Marie couldn't stop crying. She says she's going to start
organizing a big celebration party."

"That'll be great." Paul looked at her then
quickly away. He chewed his lip in silence.

"Guess I'll go in." Savannah put her hand on
the door handle.

"Wait. We haven't had a chance to really
talk. I know I've made some mistakes. Even though I acted so--
stupid, I still care about you very much. What I mean is, I love
you, Savannah."

"Me too."

"But I guess after everything that's
happened, it might be a good idea to take it slow?" Paul asked,
looking to take her lead.

"Maybe we should. I mean, talk about some of
the things that made us act the way we did." Savannah fiddled with
her purse strap.

"Sure. I, uh, could learn to open up and
share my feelings more." Paul's fingers traced an invisible line
around the rim of the steering wheel.

"And I could be more willing to trust maybe,
not so quick to judge." Savannah moved a little closer to him.

"I could let my guard down more, too." Paul's
hand covered hers.

"This is a good start. Not moving too fast."
Savannah's eyes searched his face.

"I agree."

"See you later?" Savannah eyes searched his
face.

"Yeah, later,” Paul replied.

"Bye." Savannah did not make a move to leave
but instead moved closer.

"Bye." Paul leaned towards her.

*****

A few hours later Savannah and Paul lay on
the king-sized bed at the Hilton Hotel in Lafayette. Champagne
chilled in a silver bucket on a table. Two tall champagne glasses
had a large strawberry in each. The remains of their meal sat on
fine China plates as well. The wide screen television in their
luxury suite played out the drama that had taken place in tiny Beau
Chene. For once a small town had pushed aside big city news.

“Wow,” Paul said. He used the remote to turn
off the local news. “Kyle Singleton arrested for killing Claude,
and Quentin ratting him out. Do you think Kyle acted alone without
Quentin knowing?”Savannah shook her head. “I know that Quentin has
the best defense team in the south. Kyle is going to prison,
especially with the blood trace evidence found in his Lexus.”

“Damn. You couldn’t make this stuff up.” Paul
frowned

"Let’s put on some music and wash away that
ugliness with more champagne. What a wonderful idea." Savannah
wriggled against him as Paul wrapped his arm around her. Head
tilted back, she moaned softly as his lips found hers.

"Great way to celebrate our engagement." Paul
mumbled.

"I have to agree."

"Besides, it was the only considerate thing
to do. It was bad enough we woke up your father and aunt at three
thirty in morning to tell them the good news, but to have you go
home so late bumping around the house? That would only disturb them
further." Paul spoke between kissing her face, neck, and, after
pulling her blouse over her head, her shoulders.

"So, checking into a fancy hotel is really
for them." Savannah began to unbutton his shirt.

"Absolutely." Paul unhooked her bra.

"For their own good."

"They need their rest."

"That's what I love about you. You're so
unselfish." Savannah began walking backwards to the bed pulling him
with her.

"That's the kind of guy I am," Paul said, his
body covering hers as they slipped down onto the bedspread.