Wedding Day Dead: A Murder on Maui Mystery (13 page)

“No, just a dude who’s been around a lot of women. I don’t pretend to understand them. Not even close. I just understand people not wanting to get hurt. People will do anything not to get hurt.”

I thanked Foxx for the pep talk and headed into the bathroom to take a shower. I soaked my head for what must have been twenty minutes. I wouldn’t be surprised if I completely drained the hot water heater. I got out of the shower, got dressed, and took Maui the dog for a walk so he could do his business. I walked back into the house and intended to ask Foxx if he wanted to get a drink at Harry’s, but I found him asleep on the sofa. The murder shows must have worn him out. I was debating whether to get the drink by myself, when my cell phone vibrated. I walked back into my bedroom so my conversation wouldn’t disturb Foxx.

“Hello,” I said.

“Poe, this is Shae from the restaurant.”

“Hello, Shae. What can I do for you?”

“You asked me to call you if I thought of anything new about the party.”

She paused. I guessed she was waiting for me to ask her what, so I asked.

“What did you remember?”

“It’s not something I remembered. It’s just something I didn’t tell you.”

“What is it Shae?”

“Not over the phone. Is it possible for you to come to my home?”

“You can’t talk about this over the phone?” I asked.

I wondered what the hell she was going to say. Did she expect the NSA was listening? Actually, they probably were.

“I would rather tell you in person. Please, can you come over now?”

“No problem. Just text me your address. I’ll be over soon.”

I ended the call and wondered if she was actually going to tell me something useful.

I felt my cell phone vibrate again and saw Shae’s address appear on my display. I turned to leave and saw Maui sitting in the doorway of my bedroom. Once we made eye contact, he rolled over onto his back, expecting me to rub his belly.

“Maybe later, Maui. I need to go right now.”

I walked past Maui. I had no idea everything was about to change.

XII

The White Sedan

I
drove to Shae’s home. She lived in a tiny apartment less than thirty minutes from the restaurant in Lahaina. It looked like it might have been an old motel complex converted into apartments. Her place was on the second floor. I climbed the outside stairs and knocked on her door. I was immediately greeted by the sound of her dog barking.

Shae opened the door, and a Chihuahua ran out. The dog immediately tried to bite me, but it couldn’t get its mouth around my leg.

“Sorry about that,” Shae said, but she didn’t pick up the dog or try to stop it from biting me. I walked into the apartment. The dog continued to try to eat me.

“What did you want to see me about?” I asked.

“It’s about the night of the party,” Shae said.

“I’m sorry, but do you mind doing something about this?” I asked. I shook my leg gently to try to get the dog loose.

“Butterscotch, sit!” Shae told the dog.

It ignored her.

“I’m so sorry,” she said.

Shae picked up Butterscotch and walked the little beast to the back of the apartment. She placed him in another room, I assumed the bathroom, and shut the door. I could hear Butterscotch continue to bark that would probably better be described as a yelp. At least it was a muffled yelp now.

“Can I get you anything?” Shae asked.

“A glass of water would be nice,” I said.

I felt dehydrated from the run, and I had forgotten to get something to drink afterward due to the conversation with Alana. Shae returned in a minute with a tall glass of water. I tried not to immediately gulp it down. We walked over to a small, worn-out sofa and sat down. The springs on the sofa squeaked. There was nowhere else to sit in the studio apartment, except the bed, but I imagined that it squeaked too.

“I wanted to talk to you about the party,” Shae repeated.

“What about it?”

“I didn’t exactly tell you everything when we spoke in the restaurant. When I left the party, I did see Panos and Hani arguing in the parking lot, but I left out the part about Hani yelling at me.”

“Why did she yell at you?”

“She was screaming at Panos for kissing Alana, and then she confronted me and said she knew I was sleeping with Panos.”

Bombshell,
I thought. But was it really? I was beginning to think I was the only one on the island Panos hadn’t slept with.

“Were you sleeping with Panos?” I asked.

Shae nodded. There was silence for a few moments. I noticed Butterscotch had stopped barking.

“We started an affair shortly after I went to work at the View. That’s why Jim left the restaurant. He found out about Panos and me.”

“Jim was the chef ?” I asked.

I tried to remember if that was the name of the chef Wes mentioned.

“Yes, he and Panos argued about a lot of business stuff, but the affair was the real reason Jim left. Jim confronted him one day in the kitchen, and Panos didn’t deny it. He just laughed at him. He told him I wouldn’t have strayed if Jim had kept me satisfied in the bedroom. Jim tried to attack him in the kitchen, but Wes and some others broke it up.”

Add Jim the chef to the list of suspects,
I thought.

“How did Hani find out about your affair?”

“I don’t know. Maybe Jim told her. Maybe Panos did. He didn’t seem to care who knew about his women.”

“Did he actually say that to you? That he didn’t care who knew about his affairs?”

“Not really. He didn’t have to. He was so open about everything. I should have known Jim would find out. The affair was never serious. We would be together a few times a month. I knew it wasn’t going anywhere.”

“So why risk ruining things with Jim?” I asked.

“Because the relationship with Jim wasn’t going anywhere either. He cared way more about that restaurant than he did me.”

“Did Hani confront you before that night in the parking lot?”

“No. I expected her to, but she never did.”

“Panos and Hani were living in L.A. for months. Your affair was over. Why do you think Hani would still be mad?”

“She saw Panos flirting with me during the party. He said he wanted to be with me one more time before the wedding. I told him no. Part of me thought he was joking to begin with.”

“He wasn’t joking.” I guessed.

“I got home after the party, brushed my teeth and collapsed into bed. That’s when I heard a knock at the door. It was Panos.”

“Did you let him in?” I asked.

But I already knew the answer. Shae nodded.

“We talked for a few minutes. He told me about the kiss with Alana. He started laughing about it. He said he was glad you and Hani opened the door because he was sure Alana might pull out her gun and shoot him for kissing her. Then he kissed me. I told him we couldn’t.”

Shae stopped talking. I thought she might start to cry.

“I never meant to hurt Hani. He talked me into it. I made him promise he wouldn’t come back here.”

“So you and Panos had sex that night?”

“I never would have been with him after he got married. I don’t sleep with married men.”

I wasn’t sure what the difference was between sleeping with Panos the day before he got married versus the day after he got married. Did a piece of paper mean that much difference? Maybe. I guess that’s your call to make.

“What time did Panos leave here?” I asked.

“I’m not sure. I think around four. I walked him to the door, and he kissed me goodbye.”

“Did you tell the police this information?” I asked.

“No, I was afraid Hani would find out. I didn’t want her to know what I did.”

“It’s important to help establish where and when Panos was that night.”

“Do you think I could ask the police not to tell Hani?”

“I don’t know. I’ve only met this Detective Adcock once. I don’t know how willing he is to be discreet,” I said.

“There’s something else,” she said. “I watched Panos drive away, and a few seconds later, another car followed him out.”

“Are you sure they were following him?”

“It was so late. It kind of surprised me that another car would be leaving around the same time as Panos.”

“Was it one of your neighbors?” I asked.

“No, I’d never seen the car before. We all kind of know each other’s cars by now.”

“What kind of car was it?” I asked.

“It was a sedan. Four doors. White. I could definitely tell it was white.”

“I don’t suppose you saw the driver.”

“No, it was dark inside the car. I can’t even tell you if it was a man or a woman.”

“Do you remember which way Panos turned when he went out of the parking lot?”

“He turned left. I remember thinking it odd because he usually turned right to go home.”

Not really that odd,
I thought. The marina was to the left. He probably drove straight there, but I still had no idea why he went there versus his home.

“So you think I should call the police?” she asked.

“I do. This could be important for them.”

“All right. I’ll call them in the morning.”

Her delayed call was fine by me. It might be good to have some insider knowledge that Detective Adcock didn’t have, at least for the time being. I rose from the squeaky sofa and thanked Shae for the information and the glass of water. The sound of the squeak must have alerted Butterscotch there was movement in the apartment, and the dog started to yelp again.

“Please let me know if you think of anything else,” I said.

I walked to the door.

“How are things at the restaurant? Is Wes handling everything okay?” I asked.

“No. I’ve never seen him this upset. He almost seems paranoid.”

“Do you think Wes can turn the business around?”

“I don’t know. We’ve lost so much traffic since Jim left.”

Shae opened the door for me.

“Please don’t tell Hani any of this. I don’t want her to hate me,” she said.

I nodded, but did that constitute me agreeing to her request? Probably. But I certainly didn’t intend to keep this to myself. I said goodbye to Shae and walked down the steps to my convertible. I climbed inside and drove out of the apartment complex so Shae couldn’t see me use my cell phone. I pulled into a convenience store parking lot down the street and called Alana. Her phone rang several times before she answered.

“Hello,” she said.

“Hey, it’s me. I was wondering if you could answer a question for me.”

“Is it safe to say you’re still investigating Panos’ murder?” she asked.

“Maybe,” I admitted.

I heard her sigh on the other end.

“What’s your question?” she asked.

“Do you know if Peter or Wes own a white sedan?”

“I know Wes has a black SUV. I think it’s an Explorer. I have no idea what kind of car Peter drives. Why do you want to know?”

“I’m looking for a white sedan that may belong to someone Panos knew.”

“Hani drives a Honda Civic. It’s white.”

I suddenly felt sick to my stomach.

“Is her car on Maui or did she ship it to Los Angeles?”

“Poe, what’s going on? Why are you asking about a white car?”

“Please just tell me. Where is that car now?”

“Probably at Hani’s house. She went home this morning. I assume she’s still there.”

“The night you went to the rehearsal and the party afterward, did you take your car or Hani’s? I know all three of you couldn’t fit into Panos’ vehicle.”

“We took hers.”

“I remember Foxx telling me he drove you home, and I know Panos left on his own, so that means Hani was probably in her car by herself.”

“Damn it, Poe. Tell me what’s going on,” she demanded.

“Send me Hani’s address, please. I have some questions for her.”

I hung up before she could keep arguing with me. I drove to Hani’s house and found Alana standing beside her car, which was parked in the driveway. I knew I didn’t have to invite her to meet me at Hani’s. She would do it regardless. She has that irrepressible sense of curiosity that all detectives have.

“I think I have a right to know what’s happening,” she said.

“I just have a few questions for Hani.”

“I don’t want you upsetting her.”

“That’s the last thing I want,” I said. “But I got a new lead, and I think you should hear it too.”

We rang the doorbell, and a few moments later, Hani opened the door. Unfortunately, she looked as bad as Alana described her. Her hair and clothes were a mess, and she had dark circles under her eyes. She sort of looked like I did the day after I saw Alana kissing Panos.

“Poe has a few questions for you. Is that all right?” Alana asked.

“Okay, I guess.”

Hani led us into the house. It was about the same size as Alana’s, but not as nice. There were clothes scattered on the floor, and the kitchen sink was filled with dirty dishes. She definitely lacked her sister’s neat gene. We walked into the kitchen and sat around a table covered with gossip magazines, dirty plates, and an empty bag of chips.

“What did you want to know?” Hani asked.

“The last time I saw you at the restaurant, we were standing outside Wes’ office. What did you do after that?”

“Panos left the restaurant. I followed him into the parking lot, and we had an argument.”

“What happened after that?”

“I told him I didn’t want to marry him anymore,” she said.

“You called off the wedding?” Alana asked, clearly surprised.

I was a little taken aback that Hani hadn’t told Alana that little piece of information. Unfortunately, it made the other lies of omission I was about to accuse her of more believable.

“Not exactly,” Hani said. “After I told Panos that, he just laughed and said we were still getting married. He said you two just shared a simple kiss, and it meant nothing. He told me I would forget about it in the morning.”

“So you didn’t call off the wedding?” I asked.

“I guess not. I expected him to be there at the ceremony. He never said anything that would make me think he wasn’t going to show up.”

Hani turned to Alana.

“You called me that morning and told me you weren’t going to make it, but you were the only person I spoke to between the rehearsal party and arriving at the wedding.”