Sink Trap (19 page)
Authors: Christy Evans
Tags: #Fiction, #General, #Mystery & Detective, #Women Sleuths, #Large Type Books, #Mystery Fiction, #Murder, #Crime, #Investigation, #Murder - Investigation, #Oregon, #Plumbers
What was I thinking?
Paula was right on time, arriving just a couple minutes before the pizza delivery while Sue was giving the dogs their post-walk treats.
Paula didn’t waste any time. Before I even had my first piece of pizza, she said, “Now do you believe me that Martha didn’t leave town voluntarily?”
“I know no such thing, Paula.”
“She does too,” Sue chimed in. “She just doesn’t want to admit it. I don’t either, for that matter, but this . . .” She waved at my taped-up ankle, resting on a pillow next to the pizza. “This makes me wonder.”
I lowered my foot to the floor, out of her line of sight, and reached for a piece of pizza. Sue glared at me. “I could have handed that to you,” she said accusingly. “Now get that foot back up.”
“Yes, Mom.” I leaned back and put my foot back up.
“Seriously.” Paula went back to her one-track conversation. “Why else would that tank break just when you picked it up?”
“Uh, because it was cracked?” I sighed with exasperation.
“Really, guys. It was an accident. Stuff happens, especially in old houses.”
“Really, guys. It was an accident. Stuff happens, especially in old houses.”
“It wasn’t,” Paula said quietly.
Sue and I both stared at her. How in the world could she say such a thing? She held my gaze for a silent moment, then continued. “I heard Barry talking to Gregory on the phone. He said it looked like there was a fresh crack in the side of the tank, and he told Gregory he couldn’t imagine any way that happened accidentally.
“From what I heard, it sounded like Gregory didn’t believe him.” Her voice rose in indignation. “Barry would never lie about something like that!”
A chill ran down my back. Barry had told the one person I completely distrusted about my accident.
“Why did it have to be Gregory?”
I didn’t realize I had voiced the thought until Sue answered. “Duh! He owns the house, or at least he will as soon as the paperwork gets done. He’s responsible if someone gets hurt on the job site.”
That argument had some merit, but I still thought Gregory was a prime suspect. “You may be wrong there, Sue. It’s a job site; the contractor is responsible for the safety of his employees. It’s Barry’s responsibility, not Gregory’s.”
Paula nodded. “That’s what Barry kept saying. That he would be the one in trouble for on-the-job injuries. He was upset about Georgie, and he wanted to be sure no one else got hurt.” She looked at my ankle and back at me. “Do you really think Gregory might have something to do with this?”
“She hates him,” Sue said around a mouthful of pizza. “Hates the idea that her mother is sl—”
A well-aimed sofa pillow interrupted her. I’d always had a pretty good arm, if I say so myself.
“Well, it’s true.” Sue had the good sense to duck this time, and the other pillow sailed harmlessly past her.
“Now that you’re out of ammunition,” Paula said to me, “can you answer my question? I’m serious, Georgie.
Do you really think Gregory Whitlock could have anything to do with your accident, and with Martha’s disappearance?”
Do you really think Gregory Whitlock could have anything to do with your accident, and with Martha’s disappearance?”
“If not him,” I asked, “then who else? I mean, he has the most to gain, doesn’t he? If Martha disappears, he can pretty much do anything he wants to that property. She can’t stop him from whatever plans he has.”
“Except that he could do that anyway, as soon as the sale goes through,” Sue said.
“Unless she changed her mind once she found out what he was planning,” I replied. “He’s going to develop that tract out by the warehouse, and maybe she didn’t like the idea. I know he’s planning to flip the house, and he expects to make a
lot
of money off it. Maybe she didn’t like that plan, either.”
lot
of money off it. Maybe she didn’t like that plan, either.”
“How do you define ‘a lot’?” Paula made quote marks in the air with tomato-smeared fingers.
“Neighborhood of low- to mid-six-figure houses, based on what I saw.”
Paula’s mouth formed a little O.
Sue sucked in a deep breath. “Nice neighborhood.”
“That’s what I thought. He has several thousand reasons to want her out of the way.”
“What about the housekeeper?” Sue asked.
“Janis.” I turned to Paula. “That was one of the things I wanted to ask you about. Do you know Miss Tepper’s housekeeper?”
Paula looked thoughtful for a moment. “She was angry when Martha left, even came by the library, thinking I knew where she went.”
“Can’t say as I blame her,” Sue said. “Losing your job and your home at the same time, without any warning.”
“That’s not true! She did have warning.” Paula leaped to Miss Tepper’s defense. “Martha had been talking about moving for weeks, maybe months, before she left.”
“Justified or not,” I said, “she was angry. Was she angry enough to do something before Miss Tepper left? Desperate people do desperate things, after all.”
“I don’t believe it.” Paula’s mouth was set in a tight line. “Janis loved Martha, would do anything for her. And she thought Martha was coming back to pack and close the house. That was what she asked about when she came to the library.
“Of course that was before Rachel Gladstone threw her out.” She grimaced.
Sue shot me a glance, clearly remembering my suspicions of my mother. “Rachel threw her out?” she asked.
Paula nodded her head.
Sue leaned forward, her hands clasped in front of her, anticipating a story.
“The way I heard it from Janis, Rachel showed up in ‘that big car,’ and told her the house was going to be sold and she had to get out. Janis said she came in the afternoon and wouldn’t let her stay that night, or even pack her clothes, or get any of her things.
“She threatened to call the police if Janis didn’t leave. The poor thing had to sleep in her car.” Her voice shook with indignation, and I was reminded of Wade’s warning about Paula’s dramatic stories.
“It was probably the buyer’s idea.” I wasn’t ready to let my mother completely off the hook. “I bet they made Rachel evict her, instead of doing it themselves.”
“Now that doesn’t sound like Sandra Neverall,” Sue said. “Your mother is one tough cookie when it comes to her work. She doesn’t pass the buck.”
“What about Gregory?” I shot back. “And if it isn’t them, who is it?”
“Well, what about the Gladstones?” Sue countered. “Rachel apparently was the one who threw Janis out.”
Before I could say anything, the phone rang. Sue jumped up to answer it for me, with an expression that looked suspiciously like relief.
She returned, carrying the phone at arm’s length, and handed it to me.
Your mother
, she mouthed.
Your mother
, she mouthed.
My heart sank. I knew, just from Sue’s expression, that I was in trouble. The only question was, how much.
A lot, as it turned out.
“Georgiana? Georgiana, what happened?”
“What do you mean?” I tried to play dumb, as though I didn’t know what she was talking about.
“You know perfectly well what I mean.” Righteous indignation radiated over the phone line. “Why is it I am the last person in the world to find out that my daughter was practically killed?”
“Why, I’m just fine, actually. Thank you for asking. It’s just a couple little bruises. But I do appreciate your concern.”
I couldn’t keep the sarcasm completely out of my voice, and my mother pounced. “Of course I’m concerned, Georgiana! And it isn’t just a couple bruises, according to your boss. He told Gregory you were seriously injured, and he practically accused him of causing the accident!”
“Mother! Calm down. I’m sure Barry didn’t say that. He was concerned about the accident, sure. After all, he’s responsible for whatever happens on the job site, and it could have been a lot worse than it was.
“But it is just a couple bruises, and I’m going back to work in the morning, so it isn’t any big deal.”
“Well . . .” Mom sounded unconvinced. “It was very embarrassing, Georgiana. We were having dinner, and Gregory said he hoped you were going to be okay, and I had no idea what he was talking about. You should have called me!”
I sighed. “I probably should have, Mom. It just didn’t seem like a big deal.”
“All right,” she said. “Next time, please let me know, okay? I have to go, Gregory’s still at the dinner table, and I’m sure he’s wondering what’s taking me so long in the kitchen.”
She giggled, a sound that sent another chill down my spine. “Okay. Mom? Would you please remind him he was going to get me Martha’s forwarding address?” It was just a little dig, but it made me feel better.
Sue took the phone from me with a knowing grin.
“You didn’t tell your mom you got hurt, huh? And she heard about it from Gregory?”
“You didn’t tell your mom you got hurt, huh? And she heard about it from Gregory?”
I bristled. “Do you call your mother every time you get hurt at work?” I countered.
“When I get hurt at work,” Sue called over her shoulder as she carried the phone to the kitchen, “it’s a scratch from an overexcited puppy. Not somebody dropping a toilet on me.”
“Don’t exaggerate! It was just a piece of the tank, and nobody dropped it on me. It was an accident.”
“No it wasn’t. Paula told you what Barry said.”
I glanced at Paula, and she nodded.
“Whatever,” I muttered. “Paula, I did have one other question, though. Do you know if Janis had a key to Miss Tepper’s house? I mean, she said she waited until ‘that woman’—I guess she meant Rachel Gladstone—went away and left the house unlocked. But is it possible she has a key, and she could get back in?”
Paula shook her head. “I don’t think so. She said Rachel took her key.”
5
prevent collateral damage
Duct tape placed around the jaws of your pliers will help prevent scratches on the polished surfaces of faucets and drains.
chapter 17
Our evening ended on a somber note. Instead of offering some relief from my dark mood, the conversation had reinforced my greatest fear.
We all had the same thought: Martha Tepper had not left Pine Ridge by choice. Something bad had happened to her, and we might never see her again.
Paula’s pain was almost physical. When she finally allowed the realization to sink in, she doubled over as though she had taken a shot to the gut.
“We need to tell someone,” she said, her voice thick and her eyes glistening with moisture.
“Like who?” Sue asked.
“Can’t we file a missing person report with the police?” Paula was desperate for action.
“They’ll want some kind of proof.” I tried to control the bitterness. I remembered trying to convince some junior detective in San Francisco that Blake Weston and his pals were stealing from Samurai Security. He told me I needed evidence, not just suspicion, and to come back when I had it.
“Then how about your boyfriend?” Paula said.
Despite the serious subject, I saw Sue’s mouth twitch at the mention of Wade.
“He’s not my boyfriend. He’s just someone I’ve gone out with a couple times.”
“He was your boyfriend, wasn’t he? And you’re dating again. That’s got to count for something. Besides, he’s on the City Council. Maybe he could get the sheriff to at least search the house or something.” Paula was pleading now, anxious for someone, anyone, to take up the hunt for Martha Tepper.
Against my better judgment, I agreed to talk to Wade.
I blame the pain pills.
Wade, of course, didn’t take well to the suggestion he help out with our investigation. Even when I cooked dinner. Okay, so it was meatloaf, packaged salad, and baked potatoes, but at least I couldn’t mess that up.
It didn’t help.
“You want me to do what?” he asked. “That is a bad idea in more ways than I want to think about.”
“I didn’t think you’d go for it,” I confessed.
I stood up and carried the stack of dirty dishes to the counter.
“There are just so many things that don’t add up. I hoped maybe you could do something that would help put Paula’s mind to rest and answer our questions about Martha.”
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