Scottsdale Squeeze: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 2) (11 page)

The patrolman walked over to us, clipboards in hand. Since we’d been certified to have no pressing medical issues, he wanted our statements. We each took a clipboard and started writing.

~~~~

About ten minutes later, an unmarked police car came screeching to a stop in front of the house. The only reason I know it was a police car was from the flashing red light on the dashboard. The car door opened and a livid homicide detective stepped out. He went straight to the senior officer on the scene and started asking a lot of angry questions.

One of the other officers walked over to us to see how we were doing.

“Do you know who called this in?” I asked him.

“It was a neighbor. We got a call for shots fired and a fight. We were here right away, but by then the perps had already fled. I’m glad to see you weren’t seriously hurt. I’m afraid your car wasn’t so lucky.”

What?

My heart sank. “What happened to my car?”

He pointed and I saw the hatchet the guy had thrown at me was stuck in the front passenger fender.

Damn it!

We walked over to my car and saw the hatchet was wedged three inches into the fender. The officer bent over to look at it.

“He must have really thrown it hard. Good thing it didn’t hit you. You can pull it out after it’s dusted for prints.”

It figures he threw the hatchet on the passenger side. All of the previous damage was on the driver’s side. My car was now going to look like crap from any angle.

~~~~

I drove back to my apartment. I was a mess and I wanted to change my clothes before I went back to the office. On the way over, I called Sophie and told her what had happened. I should have called Lenny directly but my head was pounding with a bitch-kitty of a headache and I didn’t want to deal with his screaming.

I walked up the two flights to my floor, looking around to make sure no one was waiting outside my apartment. After the three men had rushed out of Pam’s garage, I was feeling a bit spooked.

I had opened the door to my apartment, and was about to go in, when I heard the elevator ding, signaling it had gotten to my floor. I heard the doors slide open and I tensed. I then heard the soft jingling of keys I recognized as belonging to Grandma Peckham.

She came around the corner and said “hello Laura.” She had on a bright purple jogging suit, which went well with her curly purple tinted hair. She was carrying a bag of groceries, so I took the bag while she opened her door.

We walked into her apartment and I sat the groceries on her kitchen table. Marlowe was on his chair and he woke up long enough to yawn and stretch. He then closed his eyes and fell back asleep. Grandma went to the refrigerator, pulled out two Diet Pepsis, and handed one to me.

“You look terrible,” she said. “What happened this time?”

“It’s been a rough morning. Some men tried to kidnap me.”

“This wasn’t like those brothers who kidnapped you and handcuffed you to the bed a few months back, was it?”

“Sort of. But I don’t want to think about it right now. Tell me about your day instead. How is the search for the new man going?”

“Well, I took the pictures like you suggested and put the ad on the internet.”

I got another cold shiver at the thought of Grandma taking naked selfies but I shook it off.

“Any luck yet?”

“I’ve gotten about a hundred responses so far.”

“Wow, that’s great.”

“I guess I’ve still got what it takes to attract a man. Most of them are from out of state, but there are several local men too.”

“Any of them spark an interest?”

“There are a few. I’ve been writing to three of them and they all seem nice. Hopefully I’ll go out with one soon.”

“You look good with the new hair-do, I like the purple.”

“Thanks, I thought I’d go with a new look to go with having a new man.”

“How do you feel about dating again?”

“I can’t wait. It’s been a long time since I’ve been with a man. I hope I can find one who has a penis that still works.”

“Maybe you should put that in as a requirement in your ad. It might cut down on the disappointments.”

“That’s a good idea. I wouldn’t want to get all excited about having a new man then go through all that penis nonsense again. Last time, I thought he was going to cry.”

“Well, good luck and let me know if I can help. If you get serious about anyone I’ll be glad to run a background check to make sure they aren’t a serial killer or anything.”

“I might do that. A girl can’t be too careful when it comes to this sort of thing.”

SIX

I went back to my apartment and took a quick shower. I still had dirt and bits of grass in my hair from laying on the driveway. Standing in the shower was wonderful and helped me deal with everything that had happened at Pam’s house. I wished I could stand there all afternoon.

After the shower, I put on minimal makeup and put my hair back into a ponytail. I wasn’t feeling fancy and I wanted to get back on the job.

~~~~

I drove back down to the office. Jackie had been kidnapped and I wasn’t sure what to do next. I parked in my space behind the office and went in through the rear door.

I walked up to the front offices and saw Sophie bent over her desk and furiously typing away on her computer. She always does this when Lenny is on the warpath and she wants to keep out of the way.

“Hey chica, how’s Lenny taking the news?”

She motioned me to bend down and started talking in a low voice.

“The police called about ten minutes after you did. Apparently, the homicide detective thinks Lenny set the whole thing up. Lenny went ape shit and has been drinking and screaming ever since.”

“OK, let me go in and talk to him.”

I walked into Lenny’s office. He was standing at the window, looking out at the shoppers walking on the street. He had a glass of Jim Beam in one hand and a cigarette in the other. From the half-full ashtray on his desk, he’d apparently been smoking most of the afternoon.

When he heard the door open, he turned and looked at me. When he’s upset, Lenny speaks extremely slowly, as if he’s talking to an idiot.

“All you had to do was to keep the client out of trouble until Monday. After they arrested her, she’d be in the system and we could have better dealt with this. As it stands, the homicide detective is probably at assistant DA’s office, thinking up charges they can press against us when our client doesn’t show up on Monday.”

Hey,” I said. “We were jumped by three guys with guns. Unless you wanted a shoot-out on the street there was nothing I could do.”

Lenny took a long drink of his Jim Beam. He seemed to think about it for a minute then he walked over and ground out his cigarette in the ashtray on his desk.

“Yeah, OK, you’re right. But this is really bad. We need to somehow figure out how we can make this work for us.”

He downed the rest of his Jim Beam. I could see he was going through his thought process on how to best deal with this.

“OK,” he said. “On the negative side, our client, the obvious suspect to the Roger Wade murder, has disappeared. Unfortunately, we only have our story about how it happened.”

“Didn’t any of the neighbors see anything?” I asked.

“Not a thing. Several people heard the gunshot and a woman screaming, but no one actually saw anything. The police on the scene believed your story, so that will help. It’s a shame you weren’t more seriously hurt. A gunshot wound would have gone a long way to helping us establish our story.”

What?

I didn’t get upset over Lenny’s comment. I knew from experience he wouldn’t have a clue as to how he had hurt my feelings.

“On the positive side,” Lenny continued, “If we can show who kidnapped Jackie or even why she was kidnapped, it will most likely strengthen our defense. It’s also possible the same people who kidnapped Jackie were also involved in the murder. I want you to find that tie-in.”

“And get the client back?”

“Yeah, get the client back too. Don’t be surprised if everywhere you look, a cop will have already been there. Turns out both our client and the deceased are well known in the Scottsdale social and celebrity scenes. There will be plenty of press coverage on this and you know how that tends to fuck things up. The only thing in our favor is our client isn’t officially missing unless she doesn’t show up for her scheduled meeting with the detectives on Monday morning. Go find out what’s going on and get her back.”

Lenny pushed the intercom button.

“Sophie, set up a call with the deputy mayor. I need to start getting in front of this.”

I took this as a good time to leave.

~~~~

I walked out of Lenny’s office and went to the back offices. I grabbed a Diet Pepsi from the break room fridge and downed four aspirins. I then sat down at my cubicle.

My head was still throbbing but I needed to think of the best way to solve a problem that had no obvious solution. I had no idea who took Jackie or why they took her. I had no idea where she was being held. And, I had no idea where to start looking. After about twenty minutes of getting nowhere, I did the only thing left to me.

Shit, I am so going to regret this.

I pulled out my phone and called Maximillian.

I had met Max a few months before while working on an assignment. He’s the number two man in the DiCenzo crime family. Max is a complete mystery to me. I’ve only been with him a few times and I don’t really know anything about him, including his last name. He seems to have an education, he dresses well, and he has impeccable manners. From the way he talks and acts, he seems to have some military in his background. Where Reno has the body of a boxer, Max is more the long distance runner. He’s somewhere in his mid-thirties, tall, lean, and always seemed to have endless energy. I can’t help but wonder how that would translate in the bedroom.

Stop
that.

In looks, Max reminds me of the former pro-wrestler, now actor, Dwayne Johnson. The comparison to “The Rock” stops at Max’s lips, which are larger and more sensual. I also knew from experience they were incredibly soft and delicious.

I had an immediate sexual attraction to Max, which is very rare for me. Unlike Sophie or Gina, it usually takes me weeks of getting to know someone before I'm ready for intimacy. With Max, it took all of ten seconds before we were in an embrace, his kisses pushing my libido up to the red line. What was worse, he knew exactly how I felt about him.

Max answered on the third ring. His voice was soft and strong, but it also sounded surprised.

“Laura Black,” he said. “I’d almost forgotten I’d given you this number. Not many people have the direct line. I’m glad you kept it.”

Like I’d ever get rid of it.

“Max, I need to talk to you. I’m working on the Roger Wade murder and I need some advice.”

“OK, do you want to meet somewhere public or private?

Like maybe my bedroom?

“We should probably keep it public,” I said. “Actually, I’ve been meaning to get over to the zoo before it gets too hot. I hear they’ve added some new exhibits. I’ll meet you on the bridge. When is good?”

“Tony called a meeting for later tonight, but I have some free time until then. I can meet you there in about half an hour. That will give us some time to talk.”

“Perfect,” I said, “I’ll see you there.”

Damn.

That only gave me fifteen minutes to run to the bathroom and fix both my hair and my make-up.

~~~~

The Phoenix Zoo is on Galvin Parkway, about ten minutes southwest of the office. It’s one of the gems of the city and is popular with both the locals and the snowbirds. The yearly highlight at the zoo is called Zoolights. Every night between Thanksgiving and the middle of January, the zoo lights up with millions and millions of colored lights. There are hundreds of animated lighting displays, from the comical to the beautiful. Every tree becomes a living light sculpture and every path becomes a magical adventure. Even though it is technically winter in Scottsdale, it is not uncommon to have evening temperatures in December in the sixty’s or even the seventy’s. Thousands of people come each night to walk through the zoo and experience the event.

My favorite part of Zoolights is when they combine the animated lights with music. Along two of the main trails, dozens of huge trees light up to the pulsing beat of the Christmas music as it plays through hidden speakers.

To get to the zoo from the main parking lot, you need to cross a turtle filled lagoon over a long bridge. This is where I was standing, waiting for Max. It was almost five-thirty and the sun was in the western part of the sky, about a half hour from going down.

I watched as Max walked in from the parking lot and as he crossed over the bridge. He was wearing a black shirt, a white tie, and a white linen jacket. He had on the same tinted sunglasses I remembered from the first time we had met.

Seeing Max again was enough to speed my heart up several notches and to give me a severe case of the butterflies. My libido had also gone up several notches and I was glad we were somewhere public. Self-control was never my strongest virtue and I’m not sure what would happen if we were ever to meet somewhere private.

OK, so I knew exactly what would happen.

He walked up and gave me a hug. As we embraced, I felt a wave of heat rush up and down my body and I clung to him for several seconds. At last, I came out of it and let go. He was looking down at me with a touch of amusement. As if he had just read my mind.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go walk through the zoo.”

We went in and I picked a trail at random. In a few minutes, we found ourselves walking on a long path with animals on one side and a beautiful lake on the other.

I love going to the zoo and seeing how they change it each year. I felt happy for the first time in days. I didn’t want to break the mood by jumping straight into murder and kidnapping. I was content just to stroll and chat for a bit.

“I talked to Danica the other day,” I said. “She said Alex is doing OK.”

“Actually, he’s doing better than OK. At first, Tony and Mrs. Sternwood had agreed only to give him a token role in the new resort, mostly to keep him out of trouble. But he’s really thrown himself into it. He works seventy and eighty hours every week. He’s already made a dozen suggestions and all of them will make the resort better, plus he seems to have real leadership abilities. I think he’s found a way to combine his years of being a con man with his sales skills. He has a knack for getting people to work together. As it turns out, even his recent experience with the other side of the business has been a benefit. During the police questioning, Alex never even hinted of an involvement by Tony in the affair and, from what we understand, the police actively tried to make a connection. Tony values loyalty more than anything. Of course, we also heard Lenny helped shield Alexander from the worst of the police questioning. I know Tony appreciated his efforts.”

“I’m glad Alex is working out so well. I never really got a chance to get to know him, but he seems to make Danica happy.”

“Tony and Mrs. Sternwood have agreed to have Alexander take over the day-to-day running of the hotel portion of the resort, once it gets up and running. In the meantime, he’ll help oversee its construction and he’ll be in charge of hiring some of the senior staff. Of course, our guys will have his back and make sure things go smoothly. Family or not, building a resort this size is a serious business. If we were to fumble it, it could have repercussions for the other resorts and even the other side of the business.”

We then walked in silence through the beautiful trees and foliage. We had moved into a part of the zoo with a tropical rain forest theme. There were bamboo plants, palm trees, and broad-leafed banana trees everywhere.

“You wanted to ask about the murder?” Max softly asked.

Back to reality.

“Yeah. Lenny is representing a woman named Jackie Wade. She’s a wealthy Scottsdale socialite. Her husband, Roger Wade was killed sometime last week and Jackie’s the prime suspect. She was kidnaped this morning by a group of armed men and I need to get her back. Roger apparently was involved in some of the resorts and now that he’s dead, everything will probably go to Jackie. I was wondering if you or Tony knows anything about Roger Wade that could help me piece this together.”

“When it comes to Scottsdale resorts,” Max said, “it’s a relatively small group of people and everyone knows each other, more or less. Even the resorts owned by the chain hotels are still built and run by the same local group. The Wade family has been involved in Scottsdale resort development since the beginning. We directly worked with Roger on a project a few years ago. On that project, Roger Wade and Howard Spencer were the two active partners. We were part of the financing, along with a couple of other groups. After the project was completed, we took the payout and backed out. Tony may have worked with him on other projects, but it’s the only one that comes to mind.”

“Jackie mentioned another man. He’s apparently the leader of a group of investors Roger’s been working with over the last couple of years. He’s tallish and broad, with short black hair and a black mustache. He has a big scar on the left side of his face and speaks both English and Spanish. According to Jackie, he has some deep anger issues. She thinks this is the same man who had made threats against her a week before.”

“No, doesn’t ring a bell. But again, Tony may know more. I’m assuming you’d like to talk with him?”

“Yes, I need to find out everything I can about Roger and what he was involved in. If Tony’s available, I’d like a few minutes of his time.”

Yikes!

“OK, I’ll pass along the request. Things are kind of busy at the moment but he likes you and I’m sure he’ll want to fit you in.”