heavy and old, they had a masculine feel about them, as if a woman never lived there. The drapes were yellowed and the air smelled of stale tobacco and mildew.
I took a quick peek in the closet, saw it was still filled with Alvin’s clothes, and I thought it must be hard for a young woman to have to toss out all those physical memories of her father. My heart went out to Tanya.
There was a worn paperback copy of a Randy Wayne White novel laying half read, page down on the dresser, along with a pipe rack, a bottle of Old Spice, and a windup alarm clock. The clock had stopped running and not been rewound. It was a depressing reminder that the grim reaper was out there, watching and waiting.
I pulled Bob’s gun from under my shirt, set it on the dresser, and removed the cash from my pocket. Fanning the damp bills I slid them under the barrel so they could dry out. I was tired, and not very pleased with the way the day had played out.
Nick was dead, Bob was looking to kill me, Destiny was playing me for a sucker, and Tanya seemed to think I was a horn dog sniffing after her friend. To top it off I had no idea who killed Nick, and in the next couple of days I was going to have to face my mother. I’d been avoiding that situation for a couple of months now, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for the confrontation.
I stripped off my clothes and hung them, along with the towel, over the back of the chair. Under normal circumstances I would have slept in my boxers, but everything was wet. Since I didn’t have a change of clothing with me I decided to make the best of the situation. After I climbed into bed I heard the toilet flush at the other end of the house, a chatter of female voices, and the rough closing of a door. A few minutes later I drifted off to sleep.
The ghost of fifteen-year-old Celine Stewart often haunts my dreams. She should have been having pajama parties and dating and going to proms. Instead, because of a mistake on my part, she was dead.
That night I saw her sitting in a field of daisies. She was dressed in the same jeans and sweatshirt she’d been wearing on the day she’d been kidnapped. Heat lightning lit the sky and she tilted her face upward and stared at me. There was fear in her eyes, and sadness, and when I called to her she turned and vanished, and I began to cry.
I opened my eyes to sunshine, filtered through the folds of the curtains. Dust motes danced in the air and the scent of frying bacon permeated the room. I looked at my watch and was surprised to discover I had slept past ten.
Jumping out of bed, I stretched before slipping into my still damp clothing. It was uncomfortable, and I felt a foul mood descending upon me again. I reminded myself this case had gone about as bad as it could.
That was before I turned my attention to the dresser. Both the stack of twenty-five hundred dollar bills I’d set out to dry before going to bed, and Bob’s revolver, were gone.
Chapter 8
I clenched my teeth until my jaw hurt, but it was an unsuccessful attempt to control my anger. Someone was moving around in the kitchen. I was willing to bet my missing twenty-five hundred dollars it wasn’t Destiny.
There was a part of me that wanted to climb back into bed, curl up, and sleep all my troubles away. I had not wanted to take this case. Now, I’d have to face my mother with the fact that I’d lost the entire fee. Come to think of it, what I wanted was to find Destiny, take her over my knee and give her a good spanking. I figured the second choice would be more satisfying, so I put on a fake smile and headed for the kitchen.
Tanya looked up from the stove when I stopped in the kitchen doorway. Despite my bad mood, I couldn’t help but notice she looked damn good even though she was wearing an old pair of gray shorts and a ragged Alvin’s t- shirt. I should have been ecstatic to wake up and find a beautiful woman fixing me breakfast. Loosing twenty-five hundred dollars of company money made my stomach churn and started my mind whirling. I did not want to think about what this was going to do to my already strained relationship with my mother. She was upset enough about Nick, without adding this to her troubles. The agency was successful, but I knew a twenty-five hundred dollar loss would put a bite on the budget.
“Where’s Destiny?” I asked.
Tanya’s face clouded. “I went out and got you a toothbrush this morning,” she said, ignoring my question. “And there’s a new disposable razor and some shaving cream on the sink if you want to shave. If you want to take a shower, towels are in the closet next to the sink. Breakfast will be ready by the time you finish.”
I slammed the flat of my hand against the wall near where I was standing, “I asked you, where’s Destiny?”
Tanya jumped when my hand connected with the wall, but she ignored me and began taking pieces of bacon out of the pan.
“Are you going to tell me where she is or not?”
“I don’t know where she is,” Tanya said. “She told me she was going out for a couple of hours. She promised to be back by the time you got up. And you could be a little more courteous, you are my guest after all.”
“Damn.” I stomped over to the table.
My move startled her and Tanya dropped her spatula into the pan. She looked like she was going to cry. I felt a little tug of remorse, but I gave her a dirty look and stood there, arms folded in front of me, waiting for her to say something
“You’re putting me into the position of choosing sides and I don’t think it’s fair of you,” she said after awhile. “Gail’s been my friend since junior high school. I’ve only known you for less than two months. It’s not my job to keep you posted on her comings and goings. Besides, let’s not forget you’re my guest. I’d appreciate it if you would act accordingly.”
She was right of course. I felt myself flush, and shifted my gaze to the table. There were three plates set out. It was obvious she was expecting three of us for breakfast. I forced myself to calm down. “I don’t think we can count on Destiny being here for breakfast.”
Tanya raised her eyebrows and waited for me to continue.
“She stole twenty-five hundred dollars from me before she left.”
“Somehow, it doesn’t surprise me,” she said.
“Why?”
She shrugged. “Like I said, I don’t want to be in the middle of this.”
“I need to find her.”
Tanya picked up the plate of bacon, set it on the table, and gave it an angry spin before shoving it toward me. “I’m pissed at her because she took off and left me to take the heat from you. I’m telling you though, Wes, if you keep pushing I’m going to get just as pissed at you. I don’t think you want that-do you?”
I slumped into the nearest chair and let out a deep breath. “No.”
“Good.” She nodded toward a covered yellow bowl in the center of the table. “Eggs are in the bowl. I hope you like scrambled.”
“Scrambled is fine.” I took four strips of bacon, slid them onto my plate and when I reached for the eggs I chose my words with care. “I’m not the person you should be worried about protecting Destiny from. In fact, I may be the only thing standing between her and a bullet.”
“What do you mean?”
“Her troubles are related to the case I’m working on for my mother. It turns out she stole something from the guy who hired us. It’s possible this guy had Nick killed too.”
“That’s worse than I thought,” she said. “Although I don’t doubt she stole something from you, and from him. She’s always liked the idea of easy money. Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“No,” I said. “The less you know the better for you.”
She looked at me as if trying to decide whether I was serious or not. Finally, she gave in. “Gail and I argued when she took off this morning. I told her she should stick around until you got up. She refused. She swore she was going out to take care of the trouble she’d gotten herself into. She said she didn’t want to involve you anymore. I didn’t know anything about your money. Why were you carrying twenty-five hundred dollars in cash anyway?”
