Hide and Snoop (The Odelia Grey Mysteries) (15 page)

eighteen

We went to one
of our favorite caf
é
s near the beach. In spite of the cool, overcast day, we sat on the patio so we could keep Wainwright with us. Greg wolfed down a bacon cheeseburger with sweet potato fries while I picked at a spinach omelet and a bagel. Both of us drank extra coffee. After receiving tidbits from our plates, the dog happily napped out of the way under the table. Not once during the meal did either of us mention Connie Holt, Erica Mayfield, Lily, my job, or the police. The conversation was carefully kept to the mundane items of our life, like who was going to take Wainwright to the vet for his annual checkup next week and should we ask our gardener to plant new shrubs in the front of the house. We didn’t agree ahead of time to keep the conversation away from murder, but we both seemed to be craving the normality of our usually simple life. We munched our food in peace until Greg broke the unspoken topic taboo.

“I have something I need to say to you,” he said after the waitress took away our plates and refilled our coffee mugs.

I braced myself to be lectured on my behavior last night.

Greg reached over and covered my hand with his. “I want you to leave Woobie.”

A coarse laugh of relief escaped my lips. “I think after last night, I’ll probably get the heave-ho anyway.” I set my free hand over the top of his, making a hand sandwich. “My head was already on the chopping block, honey; this will just make the decision final.”

“But you didn’t kill Erica’s sister.”

“No, I didn’t, but law firms are very conservative, as a rule, and skittish about such things. Trust me, as soon as the police contact Carl and the questions begin, there will be a pow-wow about this, and I’ll be determined an unsavory employee. That’s why I asked you earlier if you thought the police would wait until Monday.”

Something wasn’t resting well with Greg. I could tell by the way he turned his head and looked off to the side, as if he’d find the answer to his troubles sitting on the sidewalk like an abandoned kitty.

“What is it, honey?”

Without turning to face me, Greg said, “Carl Yates is bothering me, that’s what.” He turned back and looked at me. His eyes were two dark clouds in a stormy face. “You were investigating Erica because Carl asked you to do it. The bad judgment of going over to her house in the middle of the night rests totally on you, but he asked you to find the evidence to save your job.”

“Yes, that’s about right.”

“So,” Greg stabbed the table with the index finger of his right hand. “So, why would you lose your job over this? You were just following up on something Carl assigned to you.”

Color me confused. “But I thought you didn’t want me to stay at Woobie.”

“I don’t, but it frosts my ass that you might get canned for following the orders of a partner.”

I tilted my head back and let out a short, sharp bark of laughter. “Welcome to the world of working for lawyers.”

Greg was not amused. “First you’re on the chopping block because of the backstabbing by one partner, then another gives you orders that might seal the deal.”

“But if I had proved that Mark and Erica were involved romantically, Carl probably could have turned the layoff decision in my favor.”

“It’s a game, Odelia.” Greg shook his head slowly. “They’re the kings and queens, and you and Mark are the expendable pawns. Trouble is, you’re not playing a game. This is your livelihood. Do you think I would ever treat my employees like that?”

I didn’t have to think long to answer that question. “No. Never.”

“Damn right, I wouldn’t.” Again, Greg punched the table with his finger. I half expected it to leave dents in the plastic top. “Carl should have done his own dirty work. Makes you wonder what he said to the police and his partners, doesn’t it?”

When I looked puzzled, Greg explained. “You told the police that Carl wanted you to look into Erica’s relationship with Mark Baker, correct?”

“Yes, of course. I told them the truth.”

“And I’m sure the cops asked or will ask Carl about that when they question him. Even if he tells Dev and Fehring the truth, will he honestly tell his co-owners what he had you doing? Or will he throw you under the bus so he doesn’t lose leverage with the other partners?”

I took a big swig of my coffee and gave Greg’s words a quick turn through my gray matter. “Outside of the fact that I have no reason to mistrust Carl, you have a point. In all the years I’ve worked at Woobie, he’s always had my back and the backs of most of his employees. But it’s true, the other partners will not like the fact Carl was behind my snooping, especially without their knowledge, and especially not the partners from Hamlin-Hawke. The Woobie partners sanctioned it when Steele went missing a few years back, but that was to save the firm’s reputation.”

“I’m just saying, sweetheart, leaving Woobie or not, I don’t like the way Carl might have left you hanging in the wind. It would be his word against yours, and I honestly don’t think the other partners will care much about what you have to say.”

I wrapped my hands around my coffee mug. Greg had given me a lot to consider. “Here’s how I see this playing out, Greg, based on my experience with the firm and what you’ve just said. If the police don’t question the other attorneys, they might not find out about me being at Erica’s house or about my arrangement with Carl unless Carl tells them. But if they do find out about it, the e-mails and calls between the partners will start flying, especially from those attorneys not supporting me in the layoff issue. The partners will then set a meeting to hash it out or have a conference call. The question isn’t whether they will act but if they will do anything over the weekend or wait until Monday.” I drained the coffee in my mug. “Everything hinges on what they find out and when.”

Greg picked up his own mug and tilted his head back, draining it. When he was done, he fixed me with a look of determination. “Even if they don’t fire you, I still want you to leave that job and as soon as possible. And this isn’t something new on my wish list.”

I weighed his request, not sure if it was a suggestion or a demand. Greg knew how I dug my heels in on demands, no matter how much love and concern was behind them. It was the surest way to get me to not do something, even if doing it was in my best interest. I was just wired that way. But this was different. He’d already laid out a compelling argument. If Carl no longer had my back, it was time to leave because my trust would be shattered.

“Look, Odelia,” Greg continued, dialing his passion down a notch, “this mess with Erica aside, until recently, both of us loved our jobs and the people we work with. I think it’s one of the things that added to our happiness as a couple. But ever since this merger at the law firm, you’ve been unhappy. All that stress hasn’t been healthy for you, and I’m concerned.” Greg paused, looking into his mug as if more coffee would magically appear. “These past few weeks, I was actually hoping they would lay you off. I wanted you to lose that job.” When I looked at him with surprise, he added, “Come on, sweetheart, you know yourself you wouldn’t have been that disappointed.”

“But we need me to work.”

“Not really. As I’ve told you before, we’ll be fine. Thanks to the trust from my grandfather, I paid cash for our house when I bought it. My business will support our other needs. We might not be able to save as much and might have to cut back on a few things, but we’ll be fine. Besides, Steele said he’d probably have something for you later in the year, right? But even then, if you don’t want to go back to work, then don’t. Or maybe you’d rather work just part-time. It will be your choice. And whatever you decide I’ll be cool with, as long as it’s not at Woobie.”

My head nodded on its own, but my brain thought it premature. “After finding this latest body, I doubt T and T will let Steele hire me, even part-time.”

Greg smiled. “Aren’t you underestimating Steele’s persuasion abilities?”

Greg was right. Even without the drama of Connie’s murder, it was time to leave Woobie, or what was left of it, but it had been such a major part of my life that it felt as if I were thinking about a divorce. “Tell you what,” I told Greg. “If they don’t fire me by the end of Monday, I’ll give my two-week notice first thing Tuesday morning.”

“Why not give them the notice first thing Monday?”

“Because I’m betting they fire me or lay me off on Monday, and if they do, I’ll probably get some sort of severance package. Better to leave with something than nothing.”

“And what if they fire you with nothing?”

I took a deep breath, knowing my decision was not an easy one. “Then I will kick up a fuss and sing like a bird about Carl’s involvement. Trust me, I will not go quietly if I’m betrayed.”

My husband raised his empty mug in my direction. “To you, sweetheart.”

The rest of the day went by without incident, though every time my phone rang I jumped, thinking Carl and the firm were pulling the trigger faster than anticipated. I really didn’t want to take Carl on and hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but Greg was right, Carl shouldn’t have asked me to snoop into an attorney’s private life, especially not to save my own job. Not that I wouldn’t have done that on my own, but having an attorney send me off to do something that could ultimately get me fired gave it an icky pallor. Of course, Carl had no way of knowing that Erica’s family members were involved in something sinister and would end up murdered. You just can’t make contingencies for things like that like you can for earthquakes and other natural disasters.

The murder made the TV news. A perky reporter wearing a jacket against the cool air was positioned in front of Erica’s house. Greg and I watched from our living room sofa, where we’d each been reading while half listening. Both of us dropped our books and tuned in to hear what the reporter had to say. Ironically, it was the same reporter who’d reported on the death of Connie’s husband. They didn’t say anything I didn’t already know and even left out some large chunks of information, such as the name of the victim. Nothing was said about Erica Mayfield except that the police were searching for the owner of the house for questioning.

My phone rang near the end of the newscast. I picked it up off the end table. It was Steele. I showed it to Greg and made a face. “I’ll bet he just saw the news.”

“You know if you don’t answer that, he’ll call the house phone, my phone, and probably even Seth and Zee until he finds someone.”

I punched the decline button on my phone and placed it back on the table. Sure enough, a few seconds later Greg’s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket. It was Steele.

“Don’t answer it,” I hissed. “Let him call all over the world. I don’t care.”

Greg smiled and answered the call, putting it on speaker. “Hey, Steele. How’s everything?”

“Where’s Grey?”

“She’s right here, pretending she’s not.” Greg winked at me. I stuck out my tongue.

“Grey,” Steele’s voice came from the phone. “Did you have anything to do with that body found at Mayfield’s place?”

I sneered at the phone. “There was a body found at Erica’s?”
I forced surprise into my voice.

“From your tone, I know you’re dodging the question,” my former boss said with a slight laugh.

“How do you know that was Erica’s house on the news? They didn’t say anything about who owned it.”

“I’ve been to that house with my friend.”

Greg, clearly amused by the conversation, continued to hold the phone while Steele and I bantered.

“Does your friend have any idea where Erica might be?”

“Not a clue.”

I twisted a chunk of hair in one hand. “Hang on, Steele, there’s another call coming in.” I motioned for Greg to hit the mute button.

“What’s up?” he asked after he cut Steele off from hearing us.

“It just occurred to me that Steele might be Erica’s elusive boyfriend, not Mark Baker.” I continued to torture my hair. “What do you think?”

“Do you really think he’d sleep with Erica, knowing she has it in for you?”

“Oh, please—Steele would sleep with a yak if it turned him on. I don’t think any loyalty to me would stand in the way of his need for sexual conquest.” I stopped twirling my hair. “And he did know about Erica’s attempt to get rid of me.” I motioned for him to turn the sound back on.

“Steele, I want you to answer me something truthfully.”

“I’d never lie to you, Grey. I might not say what you want to hear, but I’d never lie.”

“Are you sleeping with Erica?”

“Absolutely not! I told you I know a friend of hers.”

“People sometimes use
friend
as a smoke screen.”

“Well, not in this case, Grey. I’m telling you the truth. I’m dating someone she knows well, someone from law school, and that’s the honest-to-God, cross-my-heart truth. Erica’s not my type.”

“Why? Because she’s fat?”

Steele grunted. “No, not because she’s fat, but because she’s a Class A bitch on wheels and not a nice person. I do have some standards, you know.”

It was nice to know that even the yak would have to have something going for it besides good looks.

There was silence on both ends before Steele asked, “So, did you find the body? And if so, do you need a lawyer?”

Greg fielded the second question. “Seth Washington got Odelia through the questioning.”

“Aha!” came through the phone loud and clear. “So you did find the body. Who was it?”

“You mean your
friend
didn’t tell you?” My sarcasm lit up the phone line.

“I just saw it on the news, Grey. I haven’t talked to my friend about it yet. You were the first call I made.”

“The stiff was Connie Holt, Erica’s sister and Lily’s mother,” Greg told him.

“Oh, no—you don’t mean the sweet little girl that was with Grey at lunch?”

“Yes,” I confirmed. “The same.”

Greg chimed in. “To make matters worse, it was Lily’s dad who was found dead in Laguna Canyon recently.”

“Jesus,” Steele said, his voice low and sad. “How do you break something like that to a kid?”

“I have no idea.” My throat tightened as I wondered if Lily had been told yet, and who did the telling. And if she had been told, did she comprehend what it meant? “She’s with Seth and Zee right now. The county had issues with her staying with me since I’m involved.”