Death Before Diamonds (Sky High Pies Cozy Mysteries Book 10) (19 page)

After he was gone, Dina stood and
came over to give me a hug.

“You’re the best,” she said. “Don’t
let Captain Grumpypants fool you. He’s genuinely grateful, as are we all, that
you’re willing to lend a hand.”

“Thanks, detective,” I said,
following her out of the room. “It’s nice to keep my skills sharp with the
occasional foray back into investigative work.”

When we reached the elevator, Dina
pushed the button for me.

“Heck,” she said. “Maybe I should
retire early and you can take my spot here.”

Her expression was so steely and
indecipherable that I didn’t know if she was joking or being serious. A few
seconds later, when the corners of her mouth quivered and a smile appeared, I
knew the answer.

“Whew!” I said, wiping imaginary
sweat from my forehead. “That was a close one!”

“Yeah,” Dina replied as the
elevator doors opened. “I’m not going anywhere, and you’re doing great at Sky
High Pies. We’re both exactly where we should be.”

CHAPTER
45

At nine o’clock that evening, Zack was
in his kitchen, filling two bowls with vanilla bean ice cream from Scoops of
Joy. Since I didn’t finish with Trent and Dina until six-fifteen, I’d offered
to buy sandwiches from Colin Drake’s deli and something for dessert so we could
eat as soon as I made it to his place.

“Hot fudge?” he asked.

I was horizontal on the sofa in the
living room, idly flipping through the channels.

“Just the ice cream, please,” I
called. “I don’t want to overindulge.”

His laughter was affectionate and
animated, heightened by the fact that his day had included a salary bump at the
newspaper and high praise from Karen in Human Resources. She’d been so touched
by Zack’s willingness to exchange the scary clown sculpture for knitting
needles and yarn that she’d already handcrafted a pair of mittens for him.

“Here we go,” he said, coming
through the door. “Something sweet for someone sweeter!”

He sat down and handed me a bowl.
We enjoyed the first few bites of the delicious, creamy treat in silence before
Zack asked about the meeting at CCPD Headquarters.

“Did they give you more details
about what happened?” he said.

“A few,” I answered, reflecting on
the meeting in the conference room. “They answered as many of my questions as
they could without jeopardizing the case.”

“Do you know who attacked Rex Greer
in front of the post office?”

I spooned some ice cream into my
mouth. Once it melted, I explained that Mildred and Bethany had both confessed
to attacking Rex, although their motives were entirely different.

“What do you mean?” Zack said. “Are
you telling me that they jumped the guy, hit him with several jolts from a
Taser and then argued afterward about why they did it?”

I shook my head. “No, not at all. At
that point, Bethany was still under the impression that her mother was telling the
truth. You see, six years ago, after the Diamond Galleria robbery, Mildred was
still known as Arlene Kozlowski. And Bethany hadn’t yet married Sid Curlew, the
guy that she divorced about a minute later. When Mildred quit the jewelry
store, she bounced around for the next three years in various office temp jobs.
She was essentially biding her time, holding the stolen gemstones in a safety
deposit box and slowly making contacts in the diamond district in New York.”

Zack frowned. “Why’d she do that?
Was she thinking about going back into the business?”

“No,” I said, scooping up more ice
cream and feeding it to him. “The people she met weren’t legitimate diamond
merchants. They were the shadowy guys that buy and sell gems of dubious origin
under the table.”

“And she was behind the robbery,
right?”

I smiled. “She was the instigator of
the heist,” I said, “but Theo Greer actually gave her the idea to rob the place
one night over a beer. She’d just been dumped by the man that owned the store for
a new sales person who was younger and more attractive. And she was mad, like,
super deluxe M-A-D and filled with venom. A few weeks after Theo joked about
getting even by robbing the store, Mildred put the plan into action. She
recruited a couple of low-level street punks, bought guns from someone she’d
briefly dated in high school and then had one of the men kill the other shortly
after the heist. The police now suspect that Mildred murdered the second man to
get rid of the final witness and cover her tracks.”

Zack rubbed his chin as he
contemplated the twists and turns of Mildred’s schemes. “Okay,” he said. “I
think that I’ve got it. Mildred orchestrated the diamond heist, and then she
waited for three years until she started selling the goods.”

“That’s right,” I said. “She’s
obviously a very patient woman.”

“How much were the diamonds worth?”
asked Zack.

I shrugged. “I couldn’t even guess
the actual value, but Trent seemed to think she could’ve cleared about six
million if she’d sold all of the stones.”

“Do you mean she held onto some of
the loot?”

“Lots of it,” I said. “She actually
gave Theo a small pouch with about fifteen diamonds so he’d walk away.”

“And then she shot him anyway?”

I smiled. “Over an insult. Rex told
Dina that Theo was leaving that afternoon when he called Mildred an unfortunate
name.”

“Does it rhyme with witch?” Zack
asked with a wide grin.

“No. This particular slur rhymes
with an entirely different word,” I said. “One that I will not be repeating.
You can use your imagination.”

He nodded, but didn’t comment.

“As soon as it seemed like things
had cooled off enough,” I continued, “Mildred began slowly unloading the
diamonds. Once the cash started to flow, she told Bethany that a distant and
very wealthy relative had included her in his will.”

“Lucky break when that happens,
huh?” Zack joked.

“I’m still waiting,” I said. “But
it was the kind of lie that Bethany accepted without question because Mildred
was suddenly flush. She treated her daughter to a seemingly endless parade of
expensive gifts, took her on a lavish Caribbean cruise and paid for Bethany’s
divorce lawyer with a stack of crisp hundred-dollar bills.”

“And she bought it?” Zack laughed.
“I mean, who goes around with stacks of money in a briefcase? That’s like
something out of a low-budget movie.”

“Or a high-stakes gamble,” I said.
“Apparently, Mildred was walking a tightrope for a few months. She was still
going to work every morning, slogging away as a temp in an insurance company
claims center. But at night, while Bethany attended classes to get certified as
a yoga instructor, Mildred was quietly selling diamonds and amassing hundreds
of thousands of dollars in cash. When she had enough, they moved to Crescent
Creek, bought the first of three houses on Edgewood Road and reinvented
themselves.”

“Why Colorado?” asked Zack.

I smiled. “Because it’s the most
amazing place on the planet,” I said. “And because there was a family
connection in the past.”

“And when did Arlene change her
name to Mildred?” he asked.

“Somewhere along the line,” I said.
“Dina and Trent are still putting the pieces into place, especially Mildred’s
years in Philadelphia. They’ve already traced her history here in town and
recreated how she ingratiated herself into the community.”

“How’d she do it?”

I shrugged. “Charitable donations,
political contributions, doing volunteer stints with every group that would
have her. I guess she’d perfected her book of lies by that point. Everyone who
met Mildred Nelson believed that she was a rich divorcée from the East Coast
with one daughter, one dog and more money than they’d ever see in their
lifetime.”

“And one brother?” Zack said. “I ran
into Blanche at the car wash. She told me that Mildred’s brother had moved in
fairly recently.”

“
Alleged
brother,” I said.
“At this point, when it comes to Mildred Nelson, everything is suspicious until
it’s been proven to be true. When police searched her house the other day, they
didn’t find anyone besides Bethany and Mildred. She probably lied about him,
too.”

Zack snickered. “Hey! What about
the presumption of innocence?”

I finished my last bite of ice
cream and put the bowl on the coffee table. Then I snuggled against his chest
and locked my arms around him tightly.

“What about the presumption of
second helpings?” I said. “Is there more ice cream?”

“There is,” he answered. “Would you
like some?”

“I would, but I should probably
refrain.”

“I don’t mind going,” Zack said,
putting his empty bowl beside mine.

“Well, I do,” I said, squeezing
even harder. “I’d much rather snuggle for a while before anybody makes a move.”

He laughed; the sound rumbled into
the ear I had pressed against his sweater.

“We could watch a movie,” he
suggested a few seconds later.

“Or not,” I said, lifting my head
and reaching one hand behind his neck. I pulled him closer and we kissed, a
soft, tender moment that was far sweeter than anything Scoops of Joy would ever
sell.

Zack leaned forward, pressing his
lips to my ear.

“There are a couple of other things
we could do instead of a movie,” he whispered. “Although they’d require
slightly less clothing and more horizontal space.”

When he leaned back on the seat
again, I turned my head and winked.

“Are we talking competitive
ballroom dancing?” I said with a smile. “Or Olympic-level gymnastics routines?”

He laughed again, filling the room
with enthusiastic joy.

“Actually,” he said, getting up
from the sofa and taking my hand. “It could be a little of both if we play our
cards right.”

CHAPTER
46

By the following morning, the
gossip around town about Mildred Nelson’s criminal history also included
whispered tittle-tattle about her attorney. As I helped Harper reset the dining
room for lunch, Blanche Speltzer called to me from where she and Minnie
Brompton sat sipping tea and dispensing conspiratorial nuggets to a steady
stream of local nosy parkers.

“Did you hear the news?” asked
Blanche in a croaky whisper. “Mildred’s being represented by that hotshot
lawyer from Austin.”

I stared at her blankly.

“He’s on CNN all the time,” she
added. “The legal expert that wears cowboy hats, hand-tooled leather vests and
silly little fringed scarves knotted like an English dandy.”

I didn’t know who she was talking
about, nor was I particularly interested. On the rare occasion that I watched
the news, I was usually looking for seasonal weather updates for our neck of
the woods instead of courtroom wizards dressed in faux cowpoke gear and showy
accessories.

“Well, she’s innocent until proven
guilty,” I said. “Let’s hope there’s justice for the men who died during the
jewelry store heist that Mildred allegedly engineered.”

Blanche sneered. “
Allegedly
?
I knew that woman was bad news from the minute I met her.”

“Is that right?” I said, catching a
glimpse of Marion and Herb McGill coming in the front door.

“You could just tell,” Minnie
Brompton said, scrunching her nose with contempt. “I mean, for crying out loud,
I saw Mildred one afternoon at Tipton’s in a low-cut nightie under a flimsy rain
slicker. It may have kept her dry, but that coat was essentially a Ziploc bag
with sleeves!”

I covered my eyes in mock repulsion.
“Somebody alert the Fashion Police!” I teased. “Before she offends again!”

Blanche reached over and tapped
Minnie’s wrist. “Don’t waste your breath,” she said. “This one’s obviously too
busy right now to give it any serious thought.” The sassy retiree looked at me
and winked. “But don’t worry, Min. She’ll come around. Katie knows that Mildred
Nelson is rotten to the core.”

I checked to see if Harper had
noticed Marion and Herb, but she’d been waylaid by a table of construction
workers who wanted to tease her about the cake frosting stains on her apron.

“Will you ladies excuse me?” I smiled
at Blanche and Minnie. “I need to greet a couple of new arrivals.”

Minnie checked over her shoulder. “Oh,
goodness,” she murmured. “There’s Marion and Herb. Did you hear that his
sister’s getting divorced from Pete Mooney?”

Blanche frowned. “Things have
changed,” she said. “Alice told me that Betty Wade was in the bank yesterday afternoon
and she overheard Carol Shaughnessy telling that skinny teller with the bad
perm that Sheila and Pete put the divorce on the back burner.”

“That’s fantastic news!” Minnie
exclaimed. “You just made my day!”

“And you’ll make mine if you stop
kicking me under the table,” Blanche whined.

“It’s that new medication,” Minnie
said defensively. “It makes me antsy if I sit too long.”

“Okay then,” I said, stepping away
from their table. “I’ll check back in a little while.”

As I walked toward Marion and Herb,
they both smiled and waved.

“Hi, Katie,” she said. “We had a
rare chance to get out for lunch, so we decided to have a sandwich and indulge
in some of that scrumptious Sky High pie!”

“I’m glad that you’re here,” I
said, giving them both a quick hug. “How’s everything in the land of cats and
dogs?”

Herb chuckled. “The morning was
pretty slow, but we’ll be busy this afternoon,” he said. “Although we had a
Great Dane come in earlier with some of the worst—”

Marion stopped him with a stern
look. “Not now, sweetheart. We’re getting ready for lunch.”

Herb winced. “Sorry, Katie. I guess
we’re so used to the highs and the lows of the animal kingdom that we don’t
think how the nasty stuff sounds to other people.”

“Believe me,” I said, gesturing at
an open table near the front windows. “We get our own challenges around here!”

After they were settled and I’d
shared the daily specials, I asked about Sheila and Pete.

“I heard a little buzz around
town,” I said. “Is it true that they’re staying together?”

Herb laughed. “Yes! And we’re both
thrilled! I love my sister, but she wouldn’t stop talking about how miserable
she was and how it was the end of her life and how she wouldn’t be able to
stand people gossiping about them if she and Pete actually split up.”

I nodded. “It can be tough. I’ve
had a few friends go through some pretty ugly divorces.”

“We’re just glad that Sheila and
Pete are working through their issues,” Marion said. “They’re better together
than they are apart.”

“That’s true,” Herb agreed. “They’re
sorting things out with a marriage counselor and some kind of fungus expert.”

Marion shook her head. “Not a
fungus expert,” she said. “Mrs. Alexander is a feng shui consultant.”

Herb made a face. “Same
difference,” he muttered. “She came in, charged a small fortune and helped them
find their—” He used his index fingers to make air quotes. “—love corner.” He
shook his head. “She told them to remove a dead plant and get rid of a cracked
vase.” He paused to chuckle again. “I mean, that’s crazy! I could’ve given them
the same advice for half of what she charged.”

Marion smiled and pushed the menu
toward her husband. “Some folks aren’t as open-minded as Sheila and Pete,” she
said.

The following silence buzzed with
tension until Herb leaned over and kissed his wife’s cheek.

“Isn’t she the best?” he asked with
a sunny smile. “We didn’t need a fungus expert to find our love corner.”

Marion tapped the menu. “Why don’t
you get busy with that,” she suggested. “I’m sure Katie isn’t interested in
hearing any more of your commentary about feng shui.”

“What about Pete’s band?” I asked.
“Wasn’t that driving a wedge between them?”

Marion smiled. “Oh, the group is still
rocking out,” she said. “But they have someone new on vocals.”

“Care to guess, Katie?” Herb’s face
stretched with an exaggerated grimace. “The new singer is a hybrid of Taylor
Swift, a John Deere tractor and one of those mouthy parrots that can’t stop
squawking all the time.”

Between Herb’s description and the
look on his face, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Is it Sheila by any chance?” I
asked.

“Wow!” Marion said. “You got it on
the first try!”

“She’s actually pretty good,” Herb
confessed. “But she’s my sister, so I like giving her a hard time.”

Marion pointed at the menu again.
“Come on, buster. What are you having?”

I watched as they exchanged a warm,
loving smile. Then I offered to get their beverages while they decided on
lunch.

“I’ll take a cup of coffee, please,”
Marion said. “How about you, Baby Cakes?”

Herb smiled. “I love it when you
call me that, Gumdrop!”

He reached over, took her hand and
began kissing the tip of each finger. I felt awkward standing beside the table,
but I still needed to get his order. After a few seconds, I gently cleared my
throat.

“Excuse me, Baby Cakes,” I said.
“What can I bring you to drink?”

“Oh, man!” Herb blurted. “I’m so
sorry, Katie! I just got caught up in the moment. I’ll have a Coke, please.”

“Coming right up!” I said, heading
for the far end of the room.

As I made my way toward the counter,
I noticed Blanche and Minnie waving their napkins.

“More coffee?” I asked when I reached
the table.

Blanche motioned for me to lean in
closer.

“What did Herb just say about
fungus?” she whispered.

“He was actually talking about feng
shui,” I said.

Her eyes tapered. “Are you sure?”

“Positive,” I told her. “Now, if
you’ll excuse me, I need—”

“Was it about Lorelei Alexander?”
Blanche asked, glancing at Marion and Herb. “The feng shui consultant from Fort
Collins?”

“I believe so,” I said.

The gray-haired hellion clapped her
hands. “Oh, I just knew it!” She reached over and gave Minnie a light tap on
the arm. “You owe me a hundred pennies, Min!”

I frowned. “Are you two taking bets
on what people are talking about?”

Minnie reached for her purse.
“Yes,” she answered. “We both got new hearing aids this month, and Mrs.
Busybody here thinks that her model is better than mine.”

“And it is!” Blanche crowed. “I
bought the upgrade package. If you’re interested, I can hook you up with Dr.
Ackerton.”

Minnie pulled out a crisp five
dollar bill and slid it across the table. “I’ll need change,” she said.

Blanche scowled at the money. “Oh,
put that away, you silly goose! We’re just having fun. We won’t play for keeps
until tonight when we’re at the theater.”

I shook my head and left the two
friends to continue their discussion. As I resumed my trek, I noticed Harper
and Julia talking through the pass window. I kept my eyes on them as I walked,
wondering if the three of us would grow old together like Blanche and Minnie.

“What was all that about?” Harper
asked when I stepped behind the counter.

I smiled innocently. “All what?”

“The two senior troublemakers,” she
said. “Were they eavesdropping on your conversation with Marion and Herb?”

Julia giggled. “Well, duh!” she
joked. “Just like we were spying on Kate’s exchange with Blanche and Minnie.”

I shook my head and went to work on
the beverages. As I listened to Julia and Harper whisper and gossip, I knew
there was no doubt. At some point in the distant future, we would gather around
a table like Blanche and Minnie, sharing a laugh, telling a joke and relishing
in the deep and abiding joy of true, kind-hearted friendship.