decent.”
Ali glanced around Valerie’s cluttered living room, and the words “the blind leading the blind” came to mind. It occurred to Ali that Molly Handraker wasn’t the only one who was stuck.
“Tell me about Molly and her brother,” Ali said. “How do they get along?”
“Not well,” Valerie said. “Think fire and water. When they were growing up, Chip was definitely the favorite, the apple of his mother’s eye and his father’s pride and joy. He was the true-blue honor student, the one who could do no wrong. I think they rubbed Molly’s nose in that a lot. Later on, though, the worm turned. By the time anybody knew Doris was sick, James Ralston was at war with his beloved son. I think giving Molly the power of attorney and making sure she’d be the one calling the shots was their father’s way of getting back at Chip once and for all.”
“This doesn’t sound like a warm-and-fuzzy family. So how did Chip end up going back home to live?”
“He went around Molly and asked his mother,” Valerie said. “Doris may have said yes, but Molly is the one who dictated the terms, and she had him over a barrel. She agreed that he could live in the casita, but only on one condition-that he stay out of her way.”
“He has no say in his mother’s care?”
“None. If it were up to me, I’d be going around looking for help from whoever was available, but Molly’s not me. So Chip lives in the casita, and his new girlfriend stays over more nights than not.”
“I got the feeling Doris doesn’t approve,” Ali offered.
Valerie laughed. “Yes,” she said, “and never the twain should meet. Well, they did once, sort of. Lynn came up the driveway just as Molly and Doris were coming home from a concert. Chip came out and tried to introduce Lynn to his mother, but Doris went completely nuts. She may not remember much of anything else, but she’s still all Gemma, all the time. Doris went into a screaming fit and tried to go after Lynn with her cane. She ended up having to be physically restrained. I don’t think they’ve crossed paths since. Chip’s made sure of it.”
“And what about Lynn and Gemma? Did they ever meet?”
“Oh, yes,” Valerie said. “There was a big stink just last week. Something about the divorce settlement that was still hanging. Gemma had stopped by to see Doris. As she was leaving, Chip tried to talk to her about some documents he needed her to sign-something to do with a purchase offer on a piece of property they’re trying to sell.
“Gemma said forget it, that she wasn’t signing anything without talking to her attorney and maybe not even then. Lynn was with Chip at the time, and the three of them got into a huge shouting match out in the yard. According to Molly, Lynn was screaming at Gemma that she had no right to destroy Chip and why couldn’t she just let the poor guy be. To which Gemma replied that as far as she was concerned, the only way she would be done tormenting Chip Ralston was when he was dead or else when she was. To which Lynn said something to the effect of maybe that could be arranged. I think that’s when it happened, when Lynn decided to take Gemma out of the equation.”
“How is it that you know about this quarrel?”
“Gemma told me all about it first, but so did Molly. Gemma thought the whole thing was a big joke. Once she went missing, I didn’t think it was funny. The first time I talked to the cops at Gemma’s house, I told them they needed to take a close look at Chip and Lynn; that if there had been some kind of foul play, one of them would be behind it.”
“All right, then,” Ali said, changing the subject. “Let’s talk about Gemma’s personal life for a moment. Can you tell me anything about her current romantic entanglements?”
“Not much,” Valerie allowed. “I know she had dipped her toe back in the dating game, but I also know she had no intention of getting married again. She just wanted to have fun-nothing too serious. You know, the old friends-with-benefits kind of thing.”
“And nothing that would risk turning off her alimony checks from Chip Ralston.”
Valerie smiled. “That, too.”
“Did she have any beaus in particular?”
“None that I can think of,” Valerie answered. “She was mostly just playing the field.”
“Did she tell you about her boyfriends?”
“Not really,” Valerie said, shaking her head. “We played tennis, but between Gemma and me, talking about our love lives was off limits-sisterly rivalry and all that. Gemma wasn’t much good when it came to that kind of competition.”
There had been a slight lull in the conversation while Ali considered her next question, but her train of thought was interrupted by a question from Valerie. “Did she do it?”
For a moment Ali was stumped. “Did who do what?”
Valerie shook her head in exasperation. “Did Chip’s girlfriend murder Gemma? That’s what Molly seems to think, regardless of who pulled the trigger-not that there was a trigger,” she corrected quickly. “I’m sure you know what I mean, there’s only one person who’s ultimately responsible for what happened.”
“Who would that be?” Ali asked.
“Chip Ralston, of course. That’s his modus operandi. Sooner or later, he lets everybody down-his parents, his wife, his sister. Mark my words, he’ll do the same thing to Lynn Martinson.”
There didn’t seem to be anything more to be gained by continuing to ask questions. Ali closed her iPad and stood up. “Thanks for your help,” she said, walking toward the door.
“Isn’t that what friends are for?” Valerie asked.
As Ali headed for her car, she found herself feeling incredibly sad. Supposedly, Gemma and Molly and Valerie had been the best of friends, but there seemed to be very little genuine grief coming from the two survivors. The only person who seemed to be truly mourning Gemma Ralston’s death was the woman’s former mother-in-law, someone whose current mental condition left her unlikely to remember much of anything, including the fact that Gemma was no longer among the living.
Ali walked away from Valerie Sloan’s house feeling sorry for everyone involved but for Gemma Ralston most of all.
22
Ali’s cell phone rang as she climbed into the Cayenne. She put the Porsche in gear and got on the road toward Phoenix before she answered.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Dave Holman demanded. “I want you to get out of my case and stay out.”
“Good morning to you, too,” Ali said.
“I mean it, Ali. I’ve got two homicides on my hands, and I don’t need someone like you running interference with potential witnesses.”
“Why?” Ali asked. “Has someone complained?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, they have. I’ll give you three guesses.”
“Molly Handraker?”
“She says she caught you prowling around her mother’s place last night. She said she almost called the cops.”
“Did she also happen to mention that she pulled a gun on me?”
“She did, but it turns out she has a concealed-carry permit. It’s a miracle the two of you didn’t plug each other. Not only that, from what she said, it sounds as though you’re passing yourself off as a private detective, which, according to the laws of Arizona, you can’t possibly be.”
“I’ve accepted a writing assignment,” Ali said.
“I don’t care what you say you’re doing. I want you to get out of my case and stay out.”
Ali was messing around in two of his cases, but remembering the old saw about the best defense, Ali turned the tables. “I must have missed the memo,” she said.
Dave paused in midrant. “What memo?”
“Either we got married without my noticing, or you’ve been elected sheriff and I’m one of your hapless deputies, because I don’t see any other possibilities for your deciding you can order me around. Just because we’re
