Money Can Be Deadly (Sage Gardens Cozy Mystery Book 2) Page 6

  Samantha grew quiet as she studied his profile. Eddy was often brusque but occasionally he gave her a glimpse of what his inner world was like. She could tell that there were things that haunted him. She hoped that one day he would consider her a good enough friend to confide some of those things. As far as Samantha knew, she, Walt, and Owen, were Eddy's only real friends. He had many contacts in the police department, but none of them seemed to be his friends.

  “I'm sure you had some experiences that you wish you could undo,” Eddy commented turning the car to follow after Lily.

  “I did,” Samantha agreed. “I have to say everything felt tense, you know? Sometimes situations seemed a lot more dramatic than they actually were. But I was always waiting for things to get hairy.”

  “You are one brave woman, Samantha.” Eddy looked over at her with a brief smile. “Or foolish, I'm not sure just yet.”

  “Oh, thanks for that almost compliment.” Samantha laughed. “Oh look, she's turning into that plaza.” Samantha pointed through the side window.

  “Great, we tailed her to her manicurist.” Eddy shook his head as one of the shops in the plaza was a hair and nail salon. He started to drive past the plaza as he didn't see a reason to continue following her. Samantha grabbed the crook of his elbow.

  “Turn in!” Her words were hissed with urgency. Eddy was startled by her tone and almost took the curb when he turned into the entrance of the plaza. He managed to straighten the car without losing control of it, but his cheeks were red with anger.

  “Samantha, you could have gotten us both killed,” Eddy said sharply as he looked over at her. He pulled the car into the parking lot.

  “She didn't go into the salon.” Samantha frowned. “She went around behind the building.”

  “So, maybe there is more parking back there?” Eddy suggested.

  “Why would she need more parking? The place is practically empty.” Samantha pointed to all of the empty parking spots right in front of the salon. Eddy nodded a little.

  “That's still no reason to nearly kill us.” Eddy steered the car slowly around the side of the building.

  “I'm sorry, I just reacted.” Samantha's gaze was fixated to the window. “I am certain she is up to something. Every secret meeting I've ever heard of takes place in an empty parking lot.”

  “I can't disagree with you there.” Eddy nodded. He stopped the car at the corner of the building. “If we pull all the way around she's going to know that we're here.”

  “On foot?” Samantha asked.

  “Only if you promise to listen to me.” Eddy met her eyes. “We have no idea what Lily is up to. At the very least it's probably something to do with the money. She may be stealing from petty cash. At worst it could have something to do with Vince's murder. If you're not going to listen to me, then you need to stay in the car.”

  “Oh Eddy!” Samantha looked at him with a soft smile. “You're so sweet and naive.”

  Eddy stared at her with confusion. “What?”

  “To think that anyone gets to tell me what to do.” Samantha smirked. She climbed out of the car before Eddy could stop her. She had been in enough dangerous situations to handle herself, and she had never been armed in any of them. As she crept towards the corner of the building, Eddy caught up with her. He shot her a glare, but didn't argue. He peered around the corner as well. There were only two cars behind the building, Lily's and a brown sedan.

  As Samantha and Eddy watched, the driver's side door of the brown sedan swung open. A man stepped out, dressed in one of the most ridiculous suits that Samantha had ever seen. That was saying a lot considering the places that she had been. The suit was mostly white with splashes of color on the lapels, stripes on the pants, and a neon yellow dress shirt under the jacket. She had never seen anything like it before. The hat perched on top of his head had a thin, short brim and was just as colorful as his suit.

  As he walked towards Lily, Samantha felt some anxiety. What if Lily was in danger? What if they just stood there and watched as she got herself into a bad situation? Samantha looked over at Eddy. He was completely focused on the scene that was unfolding. Samantha knew how important it was to find out what Lily was up to, but she felt such an urge to intervene. Lily greeted the man with a slight nod. There wasn't a hint of affection, or even fear.

  “Do you have it?” he asked sternly.

  “I said I would, didn't I?” she spat her words in return. It was clear that there was no love lost between the two of them. Samantha could sense the tension building as they glared at one another. Eddy handed his phone to Samantha and indicated to her to take a photo of the man.

  “So? Where is it? I don't want you playing any more games with me, Lily,” his voice carried across the parking lot. His words were rumbled in a way that made everything he said sound like a threat. Samantha positioned the phone and took a photo as she listened closely.

  “I'm not playing any games,” Lily said as she reached into her purse and pulled out a thick envelope. Samantha suspected that it had money stacked inside. As she watched, Lily handed it over to the man. “This is the final payment.”

  “All of it?” The man looked genuinely surprised. He flipped the envelope open and just as Samantha had suspected he lifted a stack of cash halfway out of the envelope. He began sorting through the bills. “Did you win the lottery?” He chuckled.

  “That's not really any of your concern,” Lily said sternly. “Our business is finished. I don't expect to hear from you again.”

  “That hurts, Lily,” he said mockingly. “After all I've done for you, that's how you treat me?”

  “Goodbye.” She turned and started to walk back towards her car. Samantha's heart fell. She had hoped that Lily would turn out to be innocent, but from the way it looked, she was definitely involved.

  “We should go,” Eddy hissed beside Samantha's ear. “We don't want them knowing that we were here.”

  Samantha nodded. She looked once more in Lily's direction. Then she followed Eddy to the car. As Eddy sped out of the parking lot, Samantha stared out the window.

  “What's wrong?” Eddy asked. He looked over at her with some concern. “I'm not used to you being so quiet.”

  “It just seems to me that Lily hired that man to kill Vince. I mean it's the only thing that makes sense, isn't it? The way she said that their business was finished. It made me sick to my stomach to think that she could have hired someone to slaughter Vince.” She closed her eyes briefly. “I really wanted her to be as nice as she seemed.”

  “Wait a minute, pump the brakes.” Eddy shook his head. “You're making an awful lot of assumptions.”

  “Am I? What else could it be about?” Samantha replied. “She was stealing from petty cash to pay for Vince's murder. It's disgusting. In a way our rent probably funded a murder for hire.”

  “If that's what happened.” Eddy pulled back into Sage Gardens. “Things are not always as they seem, Samantha. I didn't peg Lily for a killer.”

  “I didn't peg her for one either, but that doesn't mean that she isn't.” Samantha sighed. “It's much easier to pay someone to do your dirty work than to do it yourself.”

  “But it's also possible that Lily was paying him for something else, like drugs.” Eddy frowned. “We still don't know what happened to that cocaine, or even where it came from. She might have bought it from the man in the parking lot, and needed to pay her debt for it.”

  “That's true.” Samantha nodded slowly.

  “The best way to find out what she was doing with him, is to find out who he is. We've got his picture, I'm going to take it to one of my guys in the lab at the police station. He can run it through facial recognition and we might get a hit. I find it very unlikely that he doesn't have a criminal history.” He parked the car.

  “That's a good idea.” Samantha opened her car door to get out.

  “Samantha, wait just a minute,” Eddy asked. He looked at her with a pleading expression.

  “What is it
?” She turned back to look at him.

  “Listen, I know that sometimes I get a little forceful. Old habits die hard. No hard feelings?” He met her eyes with concern. Samantha was touched that he seemed worried about whether he had offended her.

  “No hard feelings. Just remember, next time I'm putting you on your back.” She smiled saucily and closed the car door behind her. As she walked away she could hear him chuckling behind her. Her friendship with Eddy had its strained moments, but she was beginning to see that he really only had the best intentions.

  Chapter Eight

  Eddy was still troubled by the way he had spoken to Samantha as he drove to the local police station. He knew that a young lab tech, Chris, would be working, and he wanted to be there in person to make sure that he would evaluate the photograph that Samantha had taken. He parked in the public lot and walked up to the police station. He noticed a few looks from officers and staff that recognized him, but he didn't stop to talk. Instead he just kept walking towards the lab. He knew that at any moment someone might stop him as he was entering a private area, but he didn't care. If he was questioned then he would explain himself, otherwise he would just keep going. As he reached the lab Chris was just stepping inside. He paused when he saw Eddy.

  “Eddy!” He smiled from ear to ear. “It's so good to see you.”

  “And you.” Eddy smiled in return. “I'm sorry I haven't dropped in much lately.”

  “Hey, that's all right. What can I help you with?” Chris lifted an eyebrow. “I know that you're not here just for a visit.”

  “Actually, I have a picture of someone. I was hoping that you could run it through the facial recognition program, if it's not too much trouble.”

  “No trouble at all.” Chris glanced around as if he was looking for someone in particular, then he gestured to the door of the lab. “Go ahead. We'll upload the picture and get the program started.”

  “Great.” Eddy stepped into the lab. He noticed that Chris looked around again before shutting the door. The door did not provide much privacy as the lab was mostly windows.

  Not long after Eddy uploaded the photograph to Chris' computer there was a swift, sharp knock on the door of the lab. Chris looked up fearfully. Eddy followed his gaze to the face in the window of the door.

  “Oops, looks like I've been spotted,” Eddy muttered as Detective Brunner opened the door to the lab.

  “What's going on in here?” Detective Brunner asked. His annoyance was clearly depicted by the crease in his forehead and the curl of his upper lip.

  “Nothing of interest.” Eddy met the detective's eyes without hesitation.

  “You don't have clearance to be in the lab.” Detective Brunner gestured to the door. “Leave please!”

  Eddy gritted his teeth, but he did not argue. He didn't want to do anything that would put Chris' job in jeopardy. Once he was out in the hallway, Detective Brunner followed after him.

  “Look, Chris is a friend, I was just visiting.” Eddy frowned.

  “I don't believe that at all.” Detective Brunner narrowed his eyes. “I think you're poking your nose into things.”

  “Shouldn't I?” Eddy raised an eyebrow. “I don't see you doing the job properly.”

  “Excuse me?” Detective Brunner shook his head. “We have a suspect in custody.”

  “Wrong, you have an innocent man in custody.” Eddy tried to stay calm as he didn’t want to antagonize Detective Brunner unnecessarily. “When the truth comes out you're going to have a scandal on your hands.” Eddy eyed him grimly.

  “And you know this, how?” Detective Brunner asked.

  “I think you need to do a more thorough investigation.” He fixed Detective Brunner with a hard gaze. “I don’t think this murder is as simple as it seems. You need to stop rushing it and look into it further.”

  “Or maybe you need to remember that you are retired.” He pointed to the exit. “Now leave, before you get arrested.”

  Eddy stared at him with disbelief. He felt an extreme urge to get into a scuffle with the man, but he forced himself to resist. He would never sully the sanctity of a police station with violent behavior.

  “I'll leave, just remember what I said.” Eddy sneered with disgust. As he walked out of the police station he felt a pang of regret. He missed belonging to the police force, he missed the detectives he had once known and worked with, who would have turned every rock to make sure the murder was adequately investigated and solved. He felt as if so much had changed since he wore the badge. Despite the fact that he was no longer a detective, the obligation he felt to seek justice still weighed on him just as heavily as it always had.

  Samantha was waiting for Eddy in front of his villa when he returned.

  “Where have you been?” She noticed the troubled look on his face.

  “I took the photograph into the police lab to have it analyzed for facial recognition.” He unlocked his door and opened it for her.

  “What happened?” Samantha followed him in. “Did you get a match?”

  “No match yet. I don't think.” He frowned and tossed his keys into a small ceramic bowl on the table and placed his hat on the coat rack. “I should hear soon.”

  “Are you doing okay, Eddy?” Samantha asked. He had barely looked at her.

  “Yes, I just wish that we were a little closer to finding the actual killer. I mean we have theories, but none of them really hold water yet. We need the missing pieces.”

  “I know you're frustrated. So am I,” Samantha said. “I hate to admit it, but I'm not comfortable in my own home. I keep thinking about what will happen if the killer is spooked.”

  “Samantha, you shouldn't have to worry about that. I will do my best to make sure that you don't have to.” Eddy looked as if he was about to say more, but the ring of his cell phone interrupted him.

  Eddy picked up his cell phone on the first ring.

  “What do you have for me?”

  “I have the identity of the man in the picture you gave me,” Chris said. “He's a well-known loan shark.”

  “A loan shark?” Eddy asked.

  “Doesn't that sound right to you?” Chris sounded troubled. He was always eager to please Eddy.

  “No, I'm sure it's right, it's just not what I expected. Did he have any involvement with drugs in the past?”

  “No, nothing like that.”

  “What about working as a hitman? Or even hired muscle?” Eddy suggested.

  “No, his only arrests have been non-violent,” Chris insisted. “I don't even see any known associates that were involved in violent crime or drugs. He seems to be purely a financial predator.”

  “Thanks for your help, Chris.”

  “I'm sorry if I didn't get you the answers that you're looking for.”

  “You did great, Chris. Thanks a lot.”

  “What did he say?” Samantha asked eagerly as Eddy hung up his phone. He looked puzzled as he thought about what Chris had told him.

  “It seems that our drug dealing hitman is neither. He's just a loan shark.” He shrugged.

  “A loan shark?” Samantha pursed her lips for a moment as she replayed in her mind the encounter they had witnessed. “So, the money she gave him was likely to pay off a loan.”

  “Well, we don't know that for sure. It's possible that he branched off into more violent activity recently. It's unlikely given his lack of violent history, but it's always possible.”

  “I suppose. It just seems like we're going around in circles with this.” She sighed.

  “There's really only one way to find out exactly what he was up to. We can go to him and ask him.” Eddy smiled.

  “As if it's that simple?” Samantha laughed at the idea. “I don't think that he's going to talk that easily.”

  “Maybe not, but we won't know unless we ask, will we? I can have Chris text me some of the places he frequents. I don't think that it will take us long to find him, as outlandish as his style is.” He chuckled at the memory of it.

>   “That's true. I suppose that it couldn't hurt to try. Shall we go together?”

  “I was hoping you'd agree.” He picked his keys up out the bowl. “I'll drive.”

  “All right.” Samantha nodded. As they walked towards the parking lot, Walt waved to them from the office. The three met in the middle of the courtyard.

  “Where are you two off to?” Walt asked.

  “We're going to pay a visit to a loan shark.” Eddy looked towards the office. “Were you in the office?”

  “Yes, I was just giving Lily my rent check,” he said as he ushered the two of them away from the office. “I just saw Lily on one of those online poker sites,” he whispered.

  “Really?” Eddy asked with wide eyes.

  “Yep.” Walt nodded. “When she saw I was there she quickly closed down the page.”

  “Maybe she is involved in gambling,” Samantha said thoughtfully.

  “Maybe that’s why she needed the money,” Eddy suggested.

  “Yeah, maybe she has a gambling problem,” Walt agreed.

  “So, Lily was gambling?” Samantha said thoughtfully. “Maybe she got in too deep and that’s why she borrowed money from the loan shark.”

  “That still doesn't explain why she killed Vince, or if she did. I think we still need to talk to the loan shark.” Eddy glanced at Walt. “Want to come along?”

  “No, thank you. I don't do seedy well.” He shook his head sharply.

  Samantha tried not to laugh at his reaction.

  “Okay, we'll let you know what we find out,” Eddy promised.

  ***

  Eddy and Samantha stopped at several clubs and hangouts throughout the city. It was getting to be very late by the time they stopped at the last potential location for the loan shark. The parking lot was half-filled with cars. It was just getting to be happy hour, and Samantha was sure that more people would be arriving soon.

  “Might be crowded.” Eddy frowned as he stepped out of the car.

  “I don't think that he'll be very hard to spot.” Samantha smiled at Eddy and climbed out the passenger side.