Poisoned in Cherry Hills (Cozy Cat Caper Mystery Book 3) (4 page)

It was almost eleven o’clock at night when Kat finally returned to her apartment building. She barely had the energy to board the lobby elevator.

But despite the intensity of her physical exhaustion, mentally she was as alert as ever. Meg’s comment about Tasha’s fiancé serving time in prison had led Kat to question whether his incarceration might be related to more than just the deaths of the older Smiths. What she couldn’t figure out was how the accident could be linked to Heidi’s death. The best she could come up with was that Heidi was somehow instrumental in getting the vehicular homicide charges to stick, spurring Tasha Taylor to murder her for revenge.

But that theory didn’t account for why Tasha had seemed genuinely distraught when they had run into each other in the hotel restroom. If Tasha had just eliminated someone who she felt had done her wrong, wouldn’t she have come across as happy or smug instead?

Kat shook the thoughts aside as she exited the elevator on the third floor. She wouldn’t be able to sleep if she kept dwelling on the events of this evening.

She unlocked her apartment door, spying Matty and Tom nestled together on the couch. Just looking at them made her feel ten pounds lighter.

“You guys have the right idea,” she said, yawning. She shut the door and promptly tossed her purse on the coffee table and kicked off her shoes.

Matty looked up briefly, then settled her head back on her paws as if Kat’s return didn’t affect her in the slightest. Tom, on the other hand, stood up and stretched before jumping off the sofa and padding over to meow his greeting.

“I missed you too, buddy,” Kat said, crouching down to reach him.

After giving Matty and Tom a few minutes of attention, Kat couldn’t keep her head up any longer. She changed into her pajamas and was almost ready to settle into bed when her cell phone rang.

Groaning, she trudged into the living room and fished her phone out of her purse. Some of her weariness faded when she saw Andrew’s name lighting up the caller ID.

She punched the button to answer and pressed the phone against her ear. “Hi.”

“Hey. Did I wake you?”

The sound of his voice caused her heart to beat a little faster. “No, I just got home.”

“Okay, good.”

Kat sat down on the sofa. “What’s up?”

“I wanted to apologize for missing so much of the dinner tonight. I didn’t want you to feel abandoned.”

His words warmed her belly. “It’s okay. I know the circumstances were beyond your control.” Her mind started churning through the possibilities again. “Do you have any leads yet?”

“No. Nobody claims to have seen anything out of the ordinary, and nobody knows who might have wanted Heidi dead—other than Lucy Callahan.”

“You don’t think Lucy did it?” Kat asked.

“I’m keeping an open mind.”

Kat pressed her lips together. She didn’t miss how he hadn’t really answered her question. She didn’t know if that was because he thought Lucy was innocent or because he wasn’t at liberty to discuss the case details with a civilian.

Deciding not to push the issue, Kat said, “Did you know Heidi?”

“Yeah.” From the pain in Andrew’s voice, Kat gathered he also couldn’t fathom who would want to hurt her.

“This must be awful for Rebecca,” Kat said, her stomach clenching.

“No doubt.” He paused. “Look, do you mind if I stop by there on my way home? I’m too wound up to sleep, and you sound like you are too.”

Despite the melancholy air sparked by the topic of their conversation, Kat couldn’t prevent the surge of excitement generated by his words. “Sure.”

“See you soon.”

Kat dashed into the bedroom and exchanged her pajamas for a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Although she wasn’t quite sure yet where her relationship with Andrew was headed, they were definitely not to the point where she could comfortably sit around in her nightclothes while chatting about a woman’s murder.

As soon as she reentered the living room, Matty and Tom began their nightly wrestling match. Kat found it amusing how they waited for her to return home before chasing each other around the apartment. At least, she presumed they waited for her. Given how they were both always completely conked out when she stepped through the front door, she didn’t figure they burned off much energy during her absences.

Matty had just locked Tom in a stronghold and was using her hind feet to kick at his head when the doorbell rang. Kat shot off the couch and practically threw the door open.

Andrew grinned at her. “I would have buzzed, but somebody else was opening the outside door just as I arrived.”

“It’s okay. Come in.”

He stepped inside. He still wore the same slacks and button-down shirt he’d had on earlier, but his clothes were noticeably more wrinkled now. She supposed that was what happened when you spent all evening interviewing potential witnesses as part of a homicide investigation.

Kat shut the door and folded her hands in front of her, resisting her urge to smooth out his outfit. She was about to tell him to have a seat, but before she could voice the invitation Matty came tearing through the room, Tom at her heels. They both disappeared into the kitchen, then reappeared a second later. Matty flopped onto the carpet, and Tom pounced on top of her. They rolled around for a little while before Tom jumped up and ran back the way they’d come. This time Matty did the chasing.

Kat had to laugh at their antics, even though she’d witnessed this exact scenario every evening since Tom had come to live with them two weeks ago.

Andrew sat down on the sofa. “I’ve never seen them so rambunctious. Have you been slipping caffeine in their chow?”

“No, I’m not that generous. I keep anything caffeinated for myself.”

Andrew chuckled, his eyes never leaving her face. His dimples grew more pronounced the longer he stared at her.

Kat broke her gaze away from his, feeling awkward all of a sudden. “Can I get you something to drink?”

“Sure.” He propped one ankle on his knee. “A scotch would be great.”

She frowned. “I don’t have any scotch.”

“Then anything alcoholic will do.”

Kat fetched him a beer, opting for water herself. Drinking this late would keep her up all night.

“Thanks,” Andrew replied, taking a swig from the bottle she handed him.

Kat settled onto the sofa opposite him. “How familiar are you with the local drunk driving cases?”

He paused mid-sip. “Are you trying to tell me something? I’ll make sure this beer has worn off before I head home.”

“No, I didn’t mean to imply anything like that,” she assured him. “I know you’re a responsible driver. I’m wondering specifically about the charges against a guy named Jake Lobeck.”

Andrew grimaced. “Yeah, I’m familiar with that one. I helped put the case together for the D.A.”

Kat arched an eyebrow. “Detectives work on drunk driving cases?”

“I work on whatever I’m assigned.” His brow furrowed. “But why are you asking?”

She shrugged. “I’m not sure really. I’m just curious if there could be a connection between what happened to Heidi’s parents and what happened to her.”

“I don’t see how that’s possible. Her parents’ car accident was just that—an accident.”

“But it was serious enough to send a man to jail,” Kat pointed out.

“Yes,” Andrew conceded.

“How long is Jake being put away for?”

“We built up enough charges to get him a ten-year prison term. Whether he’ll serve the full sentence remains to be seen.”

“And Heidi wasn’t involved in his sentencing?” Kat asked.

“No.”

“She didn’t testify or anything?” Kat pressed. “She didn’t vouch for what upstanding citizens her parents were or convince the jury that Jake should get the maximum for taking their lives?”

Andrew shook his head. “Nope. And there was no jury. Jake pleaded guilty, and the judge himself doled out the appropriate sentence.”

Kat considered that. “So whoever killed Heidi must have disliked her for another reason.”

“It would look that way. That’s the angle I’m focusing on anyway.”

As they lapsed into silence, Kat’s gaze drifted to Matty and Tom. Both cats had calmed down and were now sprawled out on the carpet. They looked beat—exactly how Kat felt.

She looked at Andrew again. “Were you able to determine anything useful from that vial I found?”

“It’s too soon to tell. I sent it off to be tested. If any substances found inside match what the lab guys separated from the iced tea, we’ll at least have a partial lead.”

Kat tilted her head. “Iced tea?”

Andrew pressed his lips together, looking sheepish. “Forget I said that.”

Kat gripped the edge of the couch. “I can’t do that. And you can’t make a comment like that then refuse to tell me what it means.”

He sighed. “Fine, but this stays between us.”

“My lips are sealed,” she promised, pinching her thumb and index finger together and air-zipping her mouth closed.

“It was Heidi’s iced tea that tested positive for the poison.”

Kat absorbed that. “It would have been fairly easy for somebody to slip something into her drink when she wasn’t looking.”

“Yes, and, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to lift any fingerprints off the vial.”

“Well, just locating it in the women’s restroom gives you a bit of a clue, right?” Kat asked hopefully.

Andrew didn’t look convinced. He merely shrugged one shoulder and took another sip of his beer.

Kat slouched against the sofa, trying not to get too discouraged by the lack of leads.

“Kat.” Andrew set his beer aside and rested his elbows on his knees, peering at her with an intense look. “I know you have a habit of involving yourself in police investigations—”

“That’s not true!” she protested, straightening.

“—but we—meaning me and the other authorities—will catch whoever did this. There’s no need to put yourself in harm’s way.”

Kat screwed up her face. “How am I in harm’s way?”

“You’re not—yet. But if you start going around looking into things and sticking your nose into a murderer’s business, you could be putting yourself in danger.”

Kat’s stubborn streak flared. But, as much as she itched to argue, she did have to silently admit that Andrew’s point was a valid one. She hadn’t considered before now how getting too close to the truth might give someone incentive to kill her too.

Andrew slapped his palms on his thighs. “Well, I’ve imposed on you long enough.”

“You’re not imposing.”

He stood up anyway. “Still, it’s almost midnight. You have to be just as eager to put this day behind you as I am.”

Although she couldn’t disagree, his imminent departure still sparked a twinge of disappointment. “This certainly wasn’t the day I was expecting to have when I woke up this morning.”

“Me neither.” Andrew smiled. “We’ll have to arrange for a makeup dinner after I solve this case.”

“Sure.”

He regarded her for a long moment before saying, “I’ll catch you later then.”

“Okay.”

After locking the door behind him, the events of the past twelve hours finally caught up to her. It took all of her remaining energy to drag herself down the hallway and into bed.

“Kat!”

The sudden shout nearly caused Kat to trip over herself as she stepped out of her apartment the next afternoon. She hadn’t expected to run into anyone in the corridor, considering that she was the only building resident on the third floor. Although, now that she was recovering from the shock, she wasn’t completely surprised to see the landlord and manager standing before her.

“Hi, Larry,” Kat said, approaching the burly, bald man. “You startled me.”

“That’s only because you had your head in the clouds there.” Larry chuckled, then spread his hands toward the woman beside him as if showcasing a game-show prize up for grabs. “Kat Harper, meet your new neighbor, Lucy Callahan.”

Lucy grinned. “Hey, neighbor.”

Kat’s heart skipped a beat. “You’re moving in already?”

“Yep, thanks to your tip about the vacancies.”

Kat mentally kicked herself for opening her big mouth at the benefit event. But how was she to know that Lucy would end up becoming a murder suspect an hour later?

“After everything that happened yesterday, I realized if I don’t get my life in order now, I may never get the chance, ya know?” Lucy said. “I mean, when somebody you know keels over not fifty feet away, it really makes you reevaluate your own life. I’ve been thinking about making some changes for months. Yesterday forced me to see that if I didn’t get rid of all my old baggage now I might never get the chance. Heidi’s death was like a wake-up call for me.”

Kat squinted at Lucy, trying to deduce whether her animated tone was the result of her new lease on life or because she no longer had to worry about her archenemy stealing another one of her boyfriends ever again.

“I heard about poor Heidi,” Larry said, pursing his lips. “Guy’s gotta be crazy to kill a sweet gal like her.”

“Who said it was a guy?” Lucy argued, leaning against the wall. “I’m banking her sister did it.”

Larry screwed up his face. “Becca?”

Lucy nodded. “You know their parents died recently, right? With Heidi out of the way, she stands to inherit everything.”

Kat frowned. She couldn’t tell whether Lucy truly believed her proposed scenario, or if she were only trying to deflect suspicions from herself.

“Does Becca even need the money?” Larry asked. “She’s a pretty successful professional gal, ain’t she?”

Lucy stared at Larry as if he’d sprouted fairy wings. “Money is money. It doesn’t matter how much you have, you always want more.”

“All right, I’ll give you that,” he conceded, eyeing Kat as if he might be thinking of raising her rent.

Lucy crossed her ankles. “Besides, a man wouldn’t kill by sprinkling poison on someone’s food. Haven’t you noticed it’s always the women who do that sort of thing?”

Kat didn’t miss Lucy’s reference to the food being contaminated. Was that because she wasn’t aware of the toxic iced tea, or because she wanted to mask her guilt by pretending she didn’t know the specifics?

“Nah,” Larry said, shaking his head. “Becca doesn’t have it in her to do something like that.”

Lucy shrugged. “Believe what you want, but it couldn’t have been fun having Heidi as a sister. And Becca was sitting right next to her, giving her opportunity as well as motive.”

Lucy did have a point there, Kat admitted. Although she still had her doubts about Lucy’s innocence, she hadn’t yet figured out when she could have slipped the poison into Heidi’s drink.

Kat made a mental note to ask Andrew if he’d checked Lucy’s cell phone records for calls or texts to potential accomplices.

“Hey, Kat,” Larry said, pulling her back to the present. “Lucy tells me you convinced her to get a cat.”

Kat raised her eyebrows. “I did?”

“Yep,” Lucy concurred. “I’m going to adopt that tabby I saw yesterday. Willow will be bringing her over in a few days, after I get settled in. I’ll need some pointers on how to take care of her before she arrives. Think you can help me out with that?”

“Yeah, sure,” Kat replied absently. Typically the news of a homeless animal finding a permanent home would have made her ecstatic, but right now she was having trouble concentrating on anything other than Heidi’s murder.

Larry clapped his palms together. “Well, I’ll leave you two neighbor gals to get acquainted with one another.”

Lucy waved as he headed down the corridor. “Thanks, Larry.”

“If you need help carrying your furniture up, give me a holler. I’m in 1B,” Larry called out, stepping into the elevator.

“Will do.” Lucy turned her attention back to Kat. She smiled and raised her key up as though in toast. “Here’s to fresh new starts.”

Kat could barely manage a return smile.