Who Glares Wins (Lexi Graves Mysteries) (40 page)

I knocked on the glass panel door, Solomon a step behind me
,
and we waited a few minutes
,
but no one came. Solomon leaned past me and tried the handle. It was locked.

"Let's walk around back," he said
.
I
noticed he ditched his jacket
, and h
is gun
was
holstered at his waist. He unclipped the flap, his hand resting on top. "Just in case," he said when he saw me looking.

“Is it legal?”

“Of course
,
it’s legal.”

We moved around the side of the house, underneath the carport
,
and found a half-sized wooden gate in the fence. I reached over, drew back the slim bolt
to
push it open
,
and we
entered
the garden. There weren't any flowers to speak of
,
now we'd moved into fall
,
but the lawn led right down to the lake where
they saw
a
n empty,
wooden jetty. I could
just
imagine it in the summer
,
with bo
a
ts moored there, people getting ready to sail across the beautiful lake
.
N
ow
, however, it was
framed with the orange
s
and golden browns of
trees shedding their summer foliage
.

"You really think you'll need that?" I asked Solomon as he stepped past me.

"It doesn't hurt to be ready," he said. "Remember that next time you go into a hotel room blind
,
and there’s someone waiting to pistol whip you
."

"Gotcha." We took the steps up to the deck, passed the wood clad wall and the tarp-covered furniture,
now
secured against the coming winter. The back of the house had long
,
glass windows, the kind that folded back on themselves on hot days
.
They
reveal
ed
a cozy sitting room and adjoining kitchen with a large
,
eat-in breakfast nook. Someone had decorated entirely in neutrals
, dotting the walls with
huge canvasses of the l
ake
.

At the counter
,
Marissa Widmore
sat,
a
blanket over her knees,
a
book in
one
hand,
and
a mug in front of her
.
S
he rested her chin in her hand, her elbow on the countertop
.
She looked tired.

I nudged Solomon and knocked. Marissa didn't lift her head. I knocked again, my fist heavier against the pane
,
and this time
,
she glanced upwards, saw us and leapt off the stool,
but not before
grabbing a carving knife from the rack next to her.

“You were supposed to look reassuring,” murmured Solomon.

"Marissa Widmore?" I shouted through the glass.

"Who are you? What do you want?"
H
er voice
was laced with sheer panic
.

"Your friend
,
Elisabeth Fong
,
sent us. I'm Lexi Graves. This is my boss
,
John Solomon."

She stepped closer
,
but her grip remained tight
ly
on the knife. "Elisabeth sent you?"

"She's been worried about you. She thought something happened to you. Can we come in and talk? We want to help you." I pulled my ID from my purse and held it to the window
as
Solomon did the same
, angling his hip away so she wouldn’t see his gun
.

Marissa stood unmoving for a moment
,
then seemed to make up her mind, crossing to the kitchen door and unlocking it. She stuck her head onto the deck. "Come in."

Marissa was a ball of nerves
but
she made us coffee, in
viting us into the sitting room
,
as I explained why Elisabeth asked me to look for her.

"How did you find me?" she asked. "Did Elisabeth guess?"

I shook my head. "Once I was s
ure nothing bad happened to you
,
I figured you'd
go
somewhere you felt safe."

"I never meant to cause
so
many problems," she told us
, fussing around
,
collecting mats for the cups
. "I'm really sorry. I needed to get out of town fast
,
and this was the first place I thought of."

"What about your car? It was impounded."

"I needed to switch.
I saw Ally and I knew she would be out of town for a while
,
so I…
borrowed it
.
I knew no one would notice it was missing.
I didn't want to be found."

I chanced my theory. "Marissa, I know you were scared out of town. That's partly why we're here. We're working for The Montgomery and I know you worked there when you decided you
had to
leave town.
Did you
r
leaving hav
e
something to do with the sabotage there?
"

"Is this why you're here? I swear I had nothing to do with
it
!
I don't care what she tells you, it wasn't me! I'll take a polygraph."

"That won't be necessary," I assured her. "I know none of the sabotage was down to you."

"She said if I told anyone, she'd make sure the police thought it was me. I mean, it was her word against mine
,
and everyone loves her. I'm just a temp. She said she'd tell the board about Edward and
me, and
that would ruin him too. I didn't know what to do."

"What did you see?" asked Solomon. He sat forward, his attention sharp.

"Edward asked me to stay late one night. He's so lovely to work for and I'd do anything for him. I was just running some extra towels up to the service closet on the fifth floor when I saw her coming out of the guest room with a laptop. She saw me and told me not to say a word. I didn't get it at first. I mean, it didn't look anything bad. Then the next day, Marta
,
who works the front desk
,
told me a laptop had been stolen and I realized
, i
t
was
her all the time. I'd seen her at the concierge desk too, deleting stuff, but it didn't even occur to me that she would do something like this."

"What happened next?" I asked.

"I didn't know what to do. She must have overheard Marta tell
ing
me
,
and realized I’d guessed
." Marissa wrapped her arms around herself and her shoulders gave a subtle shake. "She cornered me later that day and told me I was in big trouble. She said everyone knew I'd be
en
on the fifth floor and that she would tell them she saw me with the laptop. She said if I said anything
,
the police would find it hidden in my office and I'd be arrested. I
would
lose my job and then my apartment." Marissa burst into tears and through her sobs, she wailed, "
a
nd Edward would hate me and he's the best thing that ever happened to me!"

"You don't have to worry. We know it wasn't you. You don't have to be afraid of Sylvia anymore."

Marissa's crying subsided and she wiped at her eyes with her sleeve. "Sylvia?" she sa
id, frowning. "It wasn't Sylvia.
"

Solomon and I exchanged surprised glances and I gulped. I'd told Maddox to look closer at Sylvia!

"If it wasn't Sylvia, who's been sabotaging The Montgomery?" I asked.

"You really don't know?" Marissa looked from Solomon to me.

"No."

And Marissa told us everything.

Chapter Seventeen

It wasn't easy to persuade Marissa to return with us, but once we
explained that
an innocent person would go to jail if she didn't tell the police what she
saw
, she agreed.

"I need to call Maddox," I said, hitting
“
speed dial
” and
waiting while the call failed. "No bars," I told Solomon, with a sigh.

"Call him from the road."

I waited until we loaded up Marissa's gear and Solomon assured her someone would come back
to
pick up Ally's car. We drove away from the lake house
, though with
all
the nervous energy I
contained,
I probably could have run all the way back to Montgomery.

I
t was
a few
miles
, and several tries later, that I
got Maddox's cell phone. No wonder Marissa had never picked up her messages. The lake
house was in a dead zone.

"Are you serious?" Maddox asked, after I repeated what Marissa told us.

"I've just collected Marissa Widmore," I said. "She can confirm what she saw."

"Who's Marissa Widmore?"

"She's
the
missing person case I was working on. And she was also Edward Killjoy's last assistant. She witnessed one of the thefts."

"But not the murder," Maddox pointed out.

"No, not the murder."

"There's been a murder?" Marissa said from the back seat
,
but I
signaled
her to
remain
quie
t
.

"And I didn't see anything either," I said. There was a long pause
,
and I winced, realizing my mistake.

"What do you mean you didn't see anything?"

"I..."

"Lexi!"

"I'm sorry!"

"You were there?"

"Kind of. I got hit over the head and knocked unconscious."

I think
I heard
Maddox scream.

"But I'm fairly certain I can prove who did that too," I said when I heard him breathing
heavily on
the line. "And it wasn't Sylvia."

"Did you see someone
,
or didn't you?"

"Not exactly."

"It's not enough for me to go on. We're ready to make the arrest."

"You can't arrest her," I protested. "Sylvia didn't do anything."

"It sounds like I could also arrest your missing person." I thought he might add
“
or you,
”
but he didn't. Perhaps that was a cop girlfriend perk. I wouldn't get arrested for murder unless the evidence was unequivocal.

"She didn't do it," I said.
“She wasn’t there.”

“I bet she can’t prove it.”
Maddox sighed. "Does Marissa know where the stolen property is?"

"Wait. I'll ask." I asked Marissa
,
but she shook her head. "She doesn't know, probably because, oh
yeah
, she didn't steal it!"

"I'm calling in backup to search the hotel," he said. "If anything's here, we'll find it. I can hold them off until you get here
,
but hurry.
You better hope I find a connection because I really
prefer not
to arrest you.
"

A thought occurred to me, something that hadn't even seemed important until now. "Check to see if there are any unlimited
-access
employee passes in use," I said. "I have one. Killjoy has one. The pass
can
get the holder into any room and any area."

"You think that's how all the thefts happened? Someone used an unregistered all
-
access pass?"

"I'll place a bet on it," I
replied with certainty
.

"I'll let you know what happens. When will you be back?"

I checked the clock on the dashboard. "Forty minutes, give or take."

"Drive safe
ly
." Maddox hung up and I slid the phone into my pocket, wondering how high I currently rated on his balls-up scale.

"He going to
make the arrest?" asked Solomon, glancing at me before returning his eyes to the road
and stepping
on the gas.

"Not yet," I
told them,
as I noticed
Marissa
was looking
depressed again. "He's going to have the hotel searched."

"She'll say it was me," Marissa whimpered
softly
.

I bit my lip
,
and Solomon stared hard at the road. I watched the needle on the speed dial edge up.

"I've got an idea," I told them, "But you're not going to like it."

"I don't like the whole situation," said Solomon. "What's your idea?"

I twisted in my seat.
"Marissa, have you ever heard of a honeytrap?"

"Yeah."

"We're going to lay one." And I set out my idea. At the end, Solomon nodded and a
ghost
of a smile
curled
on his lips.

"You sure this will work?" asked Marissa.

"Nope. But I'm gonna try."

I pulled out my phone and re-
dialed
Maddox, detailing the plan.

"I don't like this," he said, "but it might work."

Next
,
I
dialed
Edward Killjoy's direct line,
and
got him to call me back on his cell phone. I was sure I knew how my meeting with
Greg Conlan
had been infiltrated
,
and it was safer to talk on an untapped line. First off
,
I told him Marissa was fine and on her way in
,
but to keep that to himself.

It was time to put this case to bed.

We met Maddox around the corner from the hotel, well
a
way
from
prying eyes. Solomon drew up next to Maddox's SUV and rolled down the window as Maddox climbed out and walked around to
our side
.

"Marissa, meet Detective Maddox
,
"
I said as Maddox leaned his arms against the window rest.

Marissa leaned forwards
,
giving
him a
forced
smile.
"Hi."

Maddox nodded to her. He wanted to know what she saw and she told him quickly. "Good enough for me," he told us. "We can arrest her for theft
,
if nothing else. I got my guys searching the hotel. We haven't found anything yet.
Maybe she’ll spill when I get her
in
to questioning.
"

"Keep looking," I said. "I'm sure the stolen property is in there somewher
e. What's going on at the hotel?
"

"We're still
interviewing
the employees. No one's allowed to leave."

This was good news.

"I have a wire," I said.

"Do I even want to know why you have a wire?" asked Maddox. Solomon gave him a look that summed it up and Maddox shook his head. "If you recorded anything pertinent to my homicide,
you’ll have
to turn it over."

"Solomon?" Maddox's mouth set into a firm line as I deferred to my boss
with a
slight
movement of my head
.

"Anything we have pertinent to your case
I'll
turn over," Solomon agreed.

Maddox nodded and pulled out his own wire kit. "You'll need to wear mine
this time
. I'll have my guys listening in
,
and I'll be right outside. You need me
,
just yell."

I took the kit, slipping it under my shirt and checked
to be sure it was
activated. A moment later
,
Maddox got a call on his cell phone.

"We're good to go," he said.

"Do I need a safe word or
anything
?"

"No. Yelling should do it. Get going before I change my mind," he said, slapping a hand against the car door
as he walked
away.

Solomon pulled out
,
drove around the corner,
and parked
in the front lot in
a
space reserved for guests. He pulled out a guest pass and
placed
it on the dash.

"You sure?" he said. "I seem to remember saying something about not putting you in
any
danger."

"I'm sure. How bad can it get?"

Famous last words.

Solomon called Killjoy to meet us out front
,
and a moment later
,
he was there, looking around for Marissa. I swear
,
he
galloped over
the moment he saw her, enveloping her in a bear hug
;
and for the second time today
,
she burst into tears, her arms
cinched
around him.
They got into the backseat and Solomon grinned as they embraced again.

Well, who knew? Solomon liked romantic ending
s
.

I gave them a brief look.
Someday
,
I
hoped
someone
would
hug me with that kind of passion. Though preferably
,
not after
hiding for
two terrified weeks
in jeopardy of having my name
ruin
ed as well as my
relationship
, not to mention
the fear of
get
ting
thrown in jail.

“Show time,” I said, mostly because
it was something
I’d always wanted to say,
and
climbed out of the SUV.
I walked through the lobby, nodding to Peter
,
who waved back before refocusing on
the handsome uniform currently
addressing
him
. I walked past the lingering police officers and made my way to the employee areas, head
ed
towards my office.

Instead of walking in
to my room
, I stepped past, pausing at Louisa Moore's door.

"Hey," I said. "How's it going?"

"Lexi?" Louisa started in surprise. "Oh my gosh. I wondered where you were. I thought maybe you decided working for The Montgomery was a bit too much. Glad to see you're still here."

"Here I am," I agreed. "But you're right
,
that it's got
ten to be
a bit too much. This is my last day."

"Sorry to hear that."

"Me too, but don't worry, I got you a replacement."

"From the agency?" Louisa frowned.

"No. I found Edward's previous assistant, Marissa Widmore. Isn't that great?" I grinned brightly, waiting for her reaction.

"Marissa?" Louisa stammered, then sighed, shaking her head. "Oh, Lexi, I wish I'd warned you. You better come in."

"Someth
ing wrong?
" I rolled off the doorjamb and stepped inside.

"The thing is, Lexi, if Marissa hadn't up and left, I would have let her go. She was bad news." Louisa sighed again, as if
it were
really hard for her to say. "I caught her stealing. More than once, I'm sad to
admit
."

"
Marissa
was behind all the thefts?"

"I think so, yes."

"And what about the other sabotage?"

"Some of it, maybe. I think she was working with someone.
Sylvia
,
perhaps
."

I raised my eyebrows. "
Sylvia
?"

"Sylvi
a has been retaliating ever since Chef Fabien broke off their engagement and Marissa... well, Marissa was
seducing
Edward. I've seen it before. Handsome, older man, younger woman who thinks she can relieve him of
some of
his money. Very sad that he couldn't
handle
the situation. I'm glad to tell you actually.
I needed to get it off my chest.
It wasn't
any
fun telling the board earlier. Edward will lose his job."