Deadly Reunion (17 page)

“Good for you
, pudding. Do you believe Adam killed Crystal?”

“Adam's a liar, cheat, thief, plagiarist, conman
—”

“You forgot cattle rustler.”

“Well, if he ever films a western, I'm sure he'll commit that crime too, but I doubt he's a murderer. I mean, what could be in it for him? That's what I can't figure out. Why do they suspect him? Lots of people hated Crystal.”

“That's rather harsh.”

“It's true. Crystal got what she deserved. I’m sure Adam wasn’t the only one who would’ve liked to see her dead.”

“Does that include you? I was at
Melodie's house the other day when you came by.”

“Did she say anything to you?”

Grace briefly considered telling him the truth, but decided a little deception might be in order. “Melodie was my best friend. She often confides in me.” There, not exactly a lie. “I would like to hear your side of the story.”

Steve snorted. “What would be the point
? You’re her friend. You’ll take her side, you always did. Besides, she wasn’t even there. She has no idea what happened.” Steve looked embarrassed. “Whatever. I’m wasting my breath. Did you tell Drake what Melodie said?”

Grace shook her head in bewilderment
. “Still, I would rather hear it from you. Melodie can be rather, um . . .” she broke off not sure how to finish her sentence.

“Eh, d
o what you like. I’m sure you will, anyway,” he said, turning to leave.

“Wait,” she said grabbing his elbow
. “We had a deal, remember? A little give and take. I told you what I knew.”

Steve smirked, “It wasn’t much.”

“Still,” she snapped, “if you want to be hired as a consultant, consider this your first interview.”

Steve stared at her, considering. “Ok
ay. Don’t ever let it be said that I’m not a good sport. Three trophies are missing. They think she was killed with one of them. The murderer took out one of the trophies, hit Crystal over the back of the head, then—get this—stole two more. He or she then tried to make it look like an accident. My source said she was killed next to the trophy case. The killer moved the body to the bottom of the stairs and then broke the heel off one of her shoes. Trying to make it seem like she fell down the stairs when her heel broke.”

“One of her heels was broken. Ky
l—Mr. Drake said that one of the heels was loose. That’s why Crystal tossed them into the trash.”

“Yeah
, but the killer didn’t know that. The killer broke the heel on the wrong shoe. He or she then cleaned up the crime, badly according to my source.”

“Which trophies are missing?”

“One of the cheerleading competitions—the one Hope won when she was captain of the squad—Adam’s debate trophy, and the 1972 football championship trophy.”

“Why three? It would have only taken one to kill her?”

Steve simply shrugged.

“Who told you this?”

“Hey, I can't reveal my source,” he said smiling. “Actually, most of that information is already around town. You know how fast information flies around here. By the way, what was your boss doing picking up detective how-to-books this morning? Seriously, if he needs my—”

“They're for me,” she said
, while making a mental note to make Kyle pay later. “My boss thought it would be funny.”

“That's rather cruel of him,” he said sighing, clearly uncomfortable with what he was about to say
. “I mean, it's all over town how you were passing yourself off as a detective when actually you're his secretary. I just thought you would want to know. You know, I don't blame you. If half those people could have gotten away with lying about their lives they would have done it, too.”

*  *  *  *

Grace opened the car door and sank down in the soft leather. She needed time to think. Crystal murdered, three trophies missing, most of her close friends suspects. That was the problem. She knew these people. Grew up with them. It was difficult to believe that one of them could be a cold-blooded murderer.

It was even more difficult to believe that either Kyle or
she would be able to figure out who did this. Their suspect list seemed to be growing by the minute. Crystal wasn't just disliked, people seemed to loath her. Grace thought back to what Crystal had been like as a teenager. Spoiled, arrogant, rude, and annoying, were the first words that came to mind. No one really liked Crystal, but other than Hope, Grace couldn't remember anyone actively hating her.

Grace turned around in her seat
, and picked up one of the library books lying in the back seat. One of these things has to have some practical information in it, she thought, flipping through the pages.

Ten minutes later
, she set the book down on the passenger seat. Absolutely useless. Still, it did have a few tips that would be worth trying. If only Kyle wasn't trying to pass himself off as some great detective, and worse, billing her friends in the process.

She laid her head on the steering wheel imagin
ing a packed courtroom. Tom on one side. Her, Kyle, and more than likely Felix, on the other. Friends and family in the seats behind them, shaking their heads in disappointment. Words like fraud, obstruction of justice, and loser being bandied around. She could easily imagine Felix grandstanding, while Kyle pulls scarves out of his sleeves, smiling at the female jurors.

Grace snarled as she lifted her head up and looked across the parking lot. Kyle and Simpson were standing on the steps to the district attorney's office. Simpson was laughing at something Kyle
was saying. Maybe she was worrying too much. After all, Kyle could be quite charming, when he wanted to be. Grace tapped her fingers against the steering wheel, considering. Having the District Attorney as a friend is probably a good thing and Kyle does have the requisite identification right now. Perhaps he won't look too closely into Kyle Drake Investigations.

With a sudden optimism
, Grace took out her cell phone and called Adam. He had lived in Crystal's house for over a month; he had to know more than what he's been saying. He definitely had been acting suspicious before and after Crystal's murder. Once Adam answered, Grace quickly arranged a time to meet, and hung up.

Smiling,
Grace looked back to the District Attorney's office door, just in time to watch Kyle fan out a deck of cards, accidentally dropping half the cards on the ground. Sighing, as her newfound optimism flew out the window, Grace laid her head back on the steering wheel.

*  *  *  *

“Well? What did you and James Simpson have to talk about?” Grace asked.

“A lot.
He's a very nice man. Very helpful. Absolutely hates your friend Adam. He's completely convinced Adam is guilty.”

“T
hat's great. You do remember that Adam is one of your clients, don't you?”

“Yes, I remember. It hasn't slipped my mind. In fact
, I think we need to see him as soon as possible.”

Grace explained that she just spoke to Adam and
had made plans to meet with him at the local diner for dinner.

“Excellent!
Did you tell him to bring a check?”

“No.”

“Cash?” Kyle asked hopefully.

“I didn't call him so
you could squeeze some more money out of him before he's arrested. He paid you to find out who killed Crystal, and that's what we are going to try to do.”

“I know that. Why do you think I've been chatting up the
District Attorney for the last thirty minutes? No help from you, I might add. Where did you run off to?”

Grace filled Kyle in
on her talk with Steve.

Kyle let out a low whistle.
“Three trophies were stolen? That's rather strange. You couldn't find out what he and Melodie were talking about?”

“I tried to trick the info
rmation out of him, but no luck. By the way, for some bizarre reason he really wants to work with you.”

K
yle smiled, as he leaned his head against the headrest. “Naturally. Who wouldn’t want to work with Kyle Drake Investigations.”

“You’re not falling for your own publicity
, are you?” she asked nervously.

“Don’t worry, I have my feet planted firmly on the ground.” He tilted his head to the side as he looked at her thoughtfully. “I just have faith that we’ll figure this out.”

Grace sighed. “Seems like everyone I know hated Crystal, but no one's willing to say why.”

“Not everyone
hated her. James Simpson thought she was the greatest thing in the world. He called Tom and Crystal the most beautiful couple he had ever seen in his life.”

“Did he say why he suspects
Adam?”

“
Crystal confided in him a few days before the reunion. She told him that she was afraid someone was going to try to hurt her. He tried to get her to tell him who she was afraid of, but she wouldn't say.”

“Wonderful
.”

“The next day
, James saw her and Adam arguing. He overheard Adam say that she had better not mess with him. He's convinced Adam killed her at the reunion. You add in Adam's missing trophy . . .” he said shrugging.

“So
, he lays in wait for her and kills her with his old debate trophy? Why not his Oscar?” she asked sarcastically.

“
Oh, be serious. It’s a high school trophy case. It wouldn’t have an Oscar in it.”

“His isn't the only one that was taken. The killer may have taken Adam's to thr
ow suspicion onto him.”

Kyle snapped his
fingers and grabbed Grace’s arm, suddenly remembering the stolen flash drive. “Maybe we are going about this all wrong. What if she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? The trophies aren't the only thing that went missing that night. Diana told me that someone had stolen a flash drive, too.”

“I don't know of a market for
flash drives,” Grace said. “Especially, not one worth killing for.”

“Well, w
e have six hours until we have to meet Adam,” Kyle said glancing at his watch. “What do you want to do in the meantime?”

“One of those books said the first thing an inves
tigator should do is organize. So, let's create a timeline and a list of suspects. Maybe if we write everything down, things will become clearer. Do you have a piece of paper and a pencil?”

Kyle shook his head as he looked in the glove compartment. “I don't think
. . . oh wait, yes I do,” he said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of orange-colored paper.

Grace took the paper out of his h
and and carefully unfolded it. In the center of the page were two phone numbers written in delicate script, and at the top was a small emblem of a blast hole drill in front of the rising sun. Larry Baker’s company. “Where did you get this?”

“
Melodie. She wrote her number on it for me, why?”

“On the day of the funeral, while we were at Crystal's house, I saw
Melodie crumple up a piece of paper like this. I don't think she was very happy with what was written on it.” Tapping her fingers on the steering wheel Grace added, “Perhaps, we should talk to both of our clients today.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

G
race readjusted herself
on Melodie's rich Italian leather sofa. For the last twenty minutes, the only information she or Kyle had succeeded in getting out of Melodie was that there was an “absolutely divine French restaurant which recently opened” that she had been “dying to try,” her house was just “so big” and she was “so lonely,” and that she had recently bought a silk nightie that she, unfortunately, was going to have to return because it “just didn't cover myself adequately.”

She was kindly
demonstrating—for Kyle—just how far the slit up the side went up her thigh, when Grace decided she had enough. “Melodie, I'm so sorry to hear about your underwear troubles. Next time, you should try the merchandise on at the store before you buy, or ask for help from one of the store clerks. Well, now that we have that problem solved, perhaps you can help solve one of ours. Why were you and your sister fighting? And don't bother saying that you weren't.”

Melodie
sat down next to Kyle. “We weren't fighting!”

“It's ok
ay, you can tell us,” Kyle said, slipping an arm around her shoulders. “We know it had something to do with your late husband.”

Grace watched as
Melodie crumbled beside Kyle. “We weren't fighting. At least we weren't when she died. We had come to an understanding, and I had decided to forgive her. I mean, you can't go through life hating your own sister. I won't say it was easy to forgive her, but I did,” Melodie said as she burst into tears.

“
Melodie, if you could just tell us what happened,” Grace said gently.

Sniffling,
Melodie looked up at Kyle. “It really isn’t important. I forgave her. Please believe me.”

Kyle held her closer. Looking over her head, he sent a questioning glance to Grace.

Realizing they were getting nowhere, Grace decided to change the subject. “What about Steve? I overheard you two arguing the other day. ”

Melodie
dried her eyes and leaned in closer to Kyle. “He’s just a pest.”             

Grace scowled.
“You said something about knowing what he was capable of. What did you mean?”

Melodie
smiled ruefully. “Nothing. I was just irritated with him. You know what a nuisance he can be sometimes.”

Kyle pulled away.
“It would help to know what you two were arguing about.”

Melodie
reached out and pulled Kyle back. “Don’t go.” It was amazing to Grace, how in just a few days, Kyle had managed to thoroughly wrap Melodie around his little finger. Sighing, Melodie said, “Steve almost killed someone once.”

“Who?” Grace and Kyle asked in unison.

“An old boyfriend of mine,” she said reluctantly. “David Hart. Steve pushed him down a flight of stairs. David was okay, though. He didn’t die. He left the very next day.”

“Why
did Steve try to kill him?” Grace asked.

“You know Steve,”
Melodie said, leaning back against Kyle’s arm. “He’s always been insanely jealous, but I doubt he had anything to do with Crystal’s death. I was just frustrated that day. I shouldn’t have taunted him.”

*  *  *  *

Grace sat down on the hard stone steps, wishing she hadn't insisted that Kyle and Melodie go on without her. Melodie had refused to say any more about Crystal, Steve, or David Hart after initially opening up, and it didn't take a genius to realize that the only person Melodie was interested in opening up to was Kyle. So, in the interest of gaining some information, Kyle offered to take one for the team and take Melodie to Chez Robere for lunch. Grace just hoped he could get her to open up about Melodie and Crystal's fight or at the very least why Steve hated Crystal so much.

Grace looked up and down the street. Jeff had promised he would
be right on his way. She was going to have to get her own car. Grace was starting to miss New York’s public transit system. Despite being mugged the year before, Grace could definitely say it was safer, more reliable, and far cleaner than riding with Jeff.

She was just about to call her brother again when she heard t
he sound of a car approaching. “About time, Jeff,” she said standing up, only to sit back down when she realized it was Diana pulling into Melodie's drive way.

“Grace, what are you doing out here by yourself, sweetie?” Diana asked
, as she walked up the front steps.

Grace explained that
Melodie had left, and she was waiting for Jeff to pick her up.

“Oh, why didn't
Melodie let you wait inside?” Diana asked perplexed.

“She was a bit distracted at the time,” Grace said
, remembering how Melodie had wrapped her arm around Kyle's, pushing and pulling him towards his car, once he had agreed to take her out.

Diana laughed.
“I take it that Mr. Drake was here at the time. She hasn't been able to talk about anyone else since he arrived. Well, come wait inside.”

Grace gratefully followed the other woman inside.

“Eric will be here soon,” Diana putting down her purse and sitting on the sofa. “We’re going to watch a movie at his place. You’re welcome to come, if you like.”

Thanking her, Grace sat down next to Diana, explaining that Jeff should be there at any moment.

“What happened to his home on Ferris Street?” Grace asked, curious as to why Eric was no longer living at the beautiful yellow Victorian.

“He gave that up,” she said, tilting her head trying to remember, “about ten years
ago. Right before you all graduated.”

“
I’m surprised he sold his house. Didn’t his great-great grandfather build the place?”

“I was rather surprised myself. I wish he hadn’t sold
that house. I absolutely hate where he’s living now.”

“Is he still planning on retiring?”

Diana laughed as she pushed her auburn bangs out of her eyes. Her ruby ring flashing in the light. “No. He just says that every year. Crystal says that he’ll be . . . I’m sorry,” she said shaking her head. “I just can’t get used to her being gone.”

Grace nodded sympathetically.

“Grace, how is the investigation going? I just wanted to let you know that if there is anything I can do to help, please let me know.”

“I don't suppose you know who would have wanted to hurt Crystal, do you?”

Diana sadly shook her head. “Besides Tom, you mean?”

“You accused him before.”

“And I will again until someone listens to me. I told one of those deputies exactly what I saw that night and he just said ‘is that all?’”

Grace leaned forward.
“What did you see?”

Diana hesitated before carefully looking over her shoulder. “Right after Crystal’s body was found, during all the commotion, I saw Tom walk out towards the parking lot carr
ying a small black duffle bag. Now why would he do that? His wife was just found murdered and the first thing he does is go to his car. Obviously, he must have been hiding something. I just wish the police had listened to me. They could have searched his car right then.”

“Do you know what was in the bag?”

“I have no idea but he was acting suspicious.” Diana shook her head. “Oh, I wish they had never gotten together, but she had been in love with him since they were children. Right from the beginning, she only had eyes for Tom.”

“I remember her and Sam dating
our senior year.”

“Her one brief moment of happiness,” she said
, running a hand over eyes, fighting back tears. “I remember when she was thirteen, her running home, and telling us she was going to marry Tom Lake. Her mother and I just laughed. We thought it was your typical crush that would go away after a while. Then we hoped and prayed that it would. When Hope and Tom announced that they were going to get married after graduation, well, I was really worried about Crystal. She was just so heartbroken. One day Sam came into my office—it was after his accident—and I asked him if he wouldn't mind taking Crystal to the New Year’s Eve dance at the Country Club. That's how it all began. Suddenly, she lost all interest in Thomas Lake. Sam became her world.”

Diana stood up and walked over to
Melodie's mini bar. She poured herself a drink, after offering one for Grace. “They were inseparable after that. At least until the accident.”

“You mean his suicide?”

Diana grimaced and nodded her head. “Sorry, I still can’t wrap my head around that. I still want to believe it was just a horrible accident. To think, none of us realized just how unhappy he had been. It still breaks my heart when I think about it.”

“I really liked Sam.”

“I did too. He was a much better man than Tom. If only he hadn’t died. Things would have been so different. At least, Crystal would have been loved. Oh, I'm sorry, I'm crying again.” Diana wiped away her tears. “I've been doing that a lot lately.”

“Tom
must have loved Crystal at some point. They seemed happy with each other during the reunion,” Grace said, remembering how he held onto her and gently kissed her shoulder while up on the stage.

Diana sighed.
“Tom is a good actor when he wants to be. The truth is he never loved anyone but himself. He certainly didn’t love Crystal.”

“If Tom didn't love her
, then why do you think he married her?”

Diana looked at Grace with a
mixture of pity and disbelief. “Money and connections, sweetie. That's why. I hate to be so crass, but that's what Tom was after. I'm sure he enjoyed your sister, but Tom was about to graduate, and he suddenly realized that Crystal and our family had far more to offer him than Hope ever could.” Suddenly realizing how insulting she sounded, Diana turned bright red. “Grace, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound so, so . . .”

“Elitist,” Grace provided helpfully.

“No, I was going to say snooty. Don’t get me wrong, we all love Hope. It’s just our family has a certain history in this town.”

Grace smiled
, taking pity on the woman. “Like you said, you have money.”

“Yes, to put it bluntly.
Tom has always had big dreams. Do you know that he plans to be a state senator someday? I always felt bad about the way he treated your sister. Even before Sam died, Tom was trying to seduce Crystal, but by then Crystal was in love with Sam, and told him he was too late. Crystal told me, she had tried to warn Hope about Tom, but you know your sister.”

Grace could just imagine what her sister's reaction was to that piece of news, espe
cially coming from her arch nemesis.

“Anyway, Sam had her heart
, but when he died . . . she was devastated and that gave Tom the perfect opportunity to slither in and take advantage. He was the first one at her side that night, all through the funeral, and basically ever since.”

*  *  *  *

“I'll have a cheeseburger, fries . . . let me see,” Grace said as she surveyed the menu, “oh, and a chocolate milkshake. Thanks.” Grace handed the waitress her menu.

Adam fidgeted in his chair. “Nothing for me.
”

“Why aren't you eating?”

“I'm not hungry. Are you going to help me or not?” he whispered across the table.

Grace shook her head, con
vinced Adam had lost his mind. “Forget it, Adam. I’m not going to help you break into the high school,” she whispered back.             

“Why not? I thought detectives did this sort of thing all the time.
Why do you think I handed your boss all that money?”

Grace wondered about that
, too. “You forget. I am just a lowly secretary. I leave the breaking and entering to the professionals. You should have called my assistant.”

“Who?”

“What? I don’t . . . what?” Grace asked, suddenly realizing her mistake. “I mean, you should call someone else.”

Adam lounged back in the booth.
“You're the only one I trust. Besides, we aren’t going to break anything. We’re just going to take a look around.” He grinned and tapped the table with his fingers. “Remember that time in junior high when we snuck into old Mr. McCollum’s place. Remember how much fun that was.”

“Hmm. I remember you,
Hope, Tom, Sam, and Melodie sneaking into old McCollum’s place, and me calling my parents and telling on all of you.”

“That was you?” he said
aghast.

Nodding her head vigorously, she said, “Yes. Maybe you should call Hope for help
.” Realizing that was a bad idea, she quickly said, “Actually, please don't.”

“P
lease meet me tonight, at midnight, and whatever you do, don't tell your boss. You're the only one I can trust, Grace. I need you.” Adam took her hands into his, softly rubbing his thumb across the back of her hand. His big hazel eyes pleading with her.