“That’s who we’re here to talk about. Mary Ellen Dimitri.”
The bartender’s eyes flicked to Wolf’s, then narrowed. “What about her?”
"When did she last work?”
"I'd have to check the schedule." The man gathered some tiny pizzas out of a toaster oven and put them on a plate. Piper’s mouth watered at the sight and smell of the casino lounge fare, which meant she was beyond hungry. It had been so long since she’d eaten.
The waitress from before appeared behind the counter in front of Wolf and Piper. She slid the broken glass into the trashcan.
"What the hell happened?" the bartender asked.
"I dropped the tray."
"Shit. You’re killing me, Janine!”
"Something's wrong with Mary Ellen!” Janine shouted.
The bartender turned around, looking at them as if noticing them for the first time. "What’s wrong with her?”
“I think something happened,” Janine said.
“What happened?"
"Ask them," Janine said with a quivering voice. “Can’t be nothing good. She didn’t show up tonight. She’s not answering her phone or texts. She always shows up, Jed. You know that.” She looked at Wolf and Piper. “Tell us.”
The bartender came over, lowering his rag onto the bar counter. “Okay, you have my attention.”
Wolf looked sideways at a man sitting belly-up to the bar. He was staring at them, a forkful of food hovering over his plate.
They walked down the bar the opposite direction. “I’m afraid we have bad news. We found Mary Ellen dead in her home this afternoon.”
“Oh my God,” Janine said. “I knew something was wrong. I knew it. I knew…” She stopped talking and began crying.
The bartender put an arm around her and glared at Wolf. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?"
Wolf straightened, then turn towards Piper and leaned his other elbow on the bar. His knee brushed her leg and she held it there, letting him move first, which he did, but only after a few moments. For the first time, Wolf's non-descript masculine scent cut through the smoke and food. Probably a budget shampoo or bar soap from Walmart mixed with a generic fabric softener and a splash of aftershave. Whatever it was she decided it smelled okay on him.
The bartender waved them further down to the end of the bar and then met them at an opening. "Okay, what the hell is going on? What happened?"
"Sorry we can’t discuss any of the details just yet, not while we’re investigating.”
“Investigating? What does that mean? Was she…murdered or something?” he whispered the last part of the sentence.
Wolf said nothing for a while, then nodded. “It looks that way, yes.”
Janine made a face that would have made a D-list horror actor proud. “Who killed her? Was it Rick?”
“Are you talking about Rick Hammes?” Wolf asked.
“Yes.”
“Why would you ask that?”
She started shaking her head. “I told her what she was doing was stupid. She was screwing him on the side. Shit. Chris was killed, too.”
“We really need to know when Mary Ellen was working last," Wolf said.
The bartender nodded and pulled a clipboard off a hook on the back wall. He flipped up a sheet of paper and tapped his finger. "Says here she was first cut yesterday."
“First cut?” Wolf asked.
“Yeah. The first of the waitresses to get to go home.”
"And what time was that?”
“It’s usually seven.”
“Usually?”
“I wasn’t here. Janine, what time was first cut last night?”
“Yeah. It was like, seven,” Janine said.
"You’re sure?”
“Yes. Seven. It was seven. Monday night. It’s always seven, unless its football season. It was seven.”
Wolf nodded. “I’m sorry to give you guys this news. I know it’s hard.”
Piper cleared her throat. “Why were you asking about Rick, Janine?”
Janine looked over at Piper as if she’d just materialized. “Like I said, she was hooking up with him. We’ve all heard about Chris’s death up at the mine. Shit, Mary Ellen was crying about it last night at work. That’s why we let her go at first cut. I was just…I’ve been thinking maybe Chris’s death had something to do with Rick. I mean, Rick’s a real scary guy. I was telling her she was playing with fire with him. She’s always hooking up with the wrong guy.” She put a hand over her mouth and started crying again.
Piper's phone vibrated repeatedly in her pocket, like she was getting a call, but she ignored it. This was not the time. Damn it. She needed to get back to her father. She’d already pressed her luck by at least three hours by her count.
She reached down into her pocket and pressed the call end button.
Almost immediately the phone vibrated again, and then another time. Another call.
She turned, slipping it discreetly out of her jeans and saw it was Jerry Slavens, her father’s neighbor. Again she pressed the call end button and pocketed her phone.
“… but they went to The Picker all the time. I think she went there after work. You’d have to check with them…” Janine was really talking now.
The phone vibrated three times fast, indicating a voicemail. She pulled out her phone and read the transcribed message, and her heart almost exploded, it began beating so fast. “Shit.”
"What is it?" Wolf asked.
“I…I have to…” she shook her head. “I have to go, sir. I have to go right now.”
Chapter 14
Wolf watched Deputy Cain’s fingers dig into her thighs, her blunt nails pushing into the denim fabric of her jeans. She gripped her phone with white knuckles in her other hand.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Wolf asked.
"You could maybe drive a little faster."
Wolf hit the lights and siren and pushed the accelerator.
“Where am I going?”
“Back to my Jeep,” she said.
“No, I’ll just take you straight where you need to go. Forget the Jeep.”
“No!”
He turned to her.
“No. It’s…look it’s not that big a deal. But I need to have my own car and deal with this on my own.” She forced a smile. “Really. Thanks, though.”
They sat in silence, listening to the roaring engine. It wasn’t long before he had to jam the brakes, though. What little
