The Scent of Murder, page 7
part #1 of Marissa Scott Series
Marissa looked up to see Dan in the doorway. From his expression, she wasn’t sure how much of the prognosis he'd heard.
“Mr. Scott, I was just telling your wife that Josh is going to be fine.”
“Ex-wife,” Marissa spoke out of habit.
The doctor stammered. “Sorry, I was telling your ex-wife, Joshua has a kidney infection, but he should be well enough to go home in a couple of days. We just want to observe him a little longer.”
Dan walked over to the end of the bed, keeping his distance from Marissa. He looked down, beaming. She couldn’t tell if the news would allow him to grieve for Tiffany or had only added to his shock from the past few days.
The doctor said good-bye and walked out of the doorway. Dan grabbed one of Josh’s feet and pretended to tickle it, making the boy squeal with anticipation.
“I’m glad this all worked out. Why don’t you go home for awhile and get some rest?”
Marissa looked at Dan and noticed the dark circles under his eyes. “I’m not going to leave Josh here by himself. He needs someone to watch after him.”
“I’ll stay with him. The nurses are right around the corner if he needs anything. You look beat — you haven’t had a shower in two days. You could use some rest. This has been very trying on all of us.”
Marissa looked at her son and smiled. “I don’t know if I can leave him like this. He needs me.”
Dan sighed. “He has two parents.”
“Why this sudden concern? You don’t even pick him up most weekends for visitations and now you want me to leave him with you. I’m not sure you even remember what it's like to be responsible for a kid.”
Dan turned his head towards the curtain. “The last few days have made me rethink my priorities. I've lost a lot. I thought it would be nice to spend some time with my son. Besides, there’s a whole staff here to monitor me.”
Marissa wished she could take back her words, but she knew it was too late, years too late. “I’m not sure I can sleep right now. Maybe I should go to work for a bit and try to straighten up the disaster that I’m sure is waiting for me.”
Dan turned to look at her again. His eyes were misty and red. “I don’t have to go back to work for a few weeks. The boss said I could take as much time off as I need.”
Marissa found her purse and kissed her son on the cheek. “The only way Harper would say that would be right before saying, ‘you’re fired.’”
Chapter 8
The good-byes had taken longer than the car trip home or the time she spent preparing for work. She had ensured that Dan had her work number, her home number, and the phone numbers of at least three friends. Marissa still felt uneasy about leaving Josh, but she knew her boss wasn’t likely to share her concern. Far from it.
The store felt removed from her as if she’d been gone for months. A cold front had made the snow on the store’s sidewalks as brittle as dried-out fingernail polish. She walked straight down the main aisle to the cosmetics department and turned left to her office. Pushing the swinging doors open, she found the area still cordoned off with bright yellow police tape. Officially off-limits. Her desk was clear of its usual stacks of papers and covered with gray powder. For a moment, she’d forgotten about the murder and its implications of her guilt. Too bad no one could bottle peace of mind, Marissa thought. She would hoard cases of the stuff.
She threw her coat on one of the metal bookcases on the far side of the room and left the office. Walking towards cosmetics, none of the clerks appeared to be working. While the cat’s away, she thought. Why did it not surprise her none of the salespeople would keep up appearances in her absence?
Marissa approached the counter to find Bonnie sitting on the white marble tile picking up change and leaning towards a customer at the counter. Marissa watched as the salesclerk bent down towards the woman’s skirt. She coughed loudly and held out her hand to help the clerk off the floor. Bonnie took the offer. The woman was a big, blousy redhead with hair bordering on auburn with an easy laugh and an eye for detail. She’d come to cosmetics from maternity wear in one of David Harper’s infamous personnel shifts. At least, Marissa could understand this move. The clerk wore clothes that had probably scared the expectant mothers into early labor. Today, she sported a bright orange miniskirt that bulged at the seams and a loose-fitting sheer orange top over a black tank top. Her clothes might have been fashionable on someone forty pounds lighter, but they looked vaguely obscene on her figure.
The clerk smiled, her face as red as a schoolgirl’s who’d been caught trying on eyeliner. “Marissa, hi. I wasn’t expecting you here today. How’s Josh doing?”
Marissa cocked her head to the left and looked at the redhead. “He’s doing much better. Dan’s with him right now, a father-son kind of thing. Was I imagining things just now or were you trying to look up that woman’s skirt?”
Bonnie flushed a color that clashed with her outfit. “Actually, yes, but you make it sound so dirty. I saw her shove a broach under her skirt and I wanted to verify it before I called security.”
“So you picked up some change to find out?”
“Exactly. I’d hate to accuse someone unjustly, but I remember this woman in maternity who pushed baby items under her blouse which made her look even more pregnant. My brother used to do that coin trick all the time in high school. Anyway, it was easier for him because he never wore skirts. I couldn’t exactly bend over in this thing.” The woman smoothed her miniskirt with both hands.
“I’ll call Ellen. She should be the one doing this, not you. Besides, I need to ask her what happened to everything in my office. It’s gone.” Marissa stepped into one of the octagons that spotted her area and picked up the phone. Bonnie took the opportunity to tug on her stockings, pulling them up under her skirt. Marissa turned around to avoid the scene.
Ellen’s familiar Boston accent answered the phone. “Security.”
“We’ve got a possible shoplifter down here. Bonnie thought she shoved a broach under her skirt. Do you want to come down and handle this personally?”
Ellen didn’t answer and Marissa wondered if the phone had disconnected. “I’ll send someone down in a few minutes. I’ve got big problems here.”
Marissa chuckled softly. “I never thought I’d live to see the day. Ellen Perrino, the woman who once chased a man all the way to Sears to retrieve a clearance purse, is letting someone walk out of the store with an Anne Klein pinned to her undies.”
“Look, why don’t you come up here?” Ellen’s voice sounded tired. Marissa suddenly worried for her friend. “I have something to show you. Besides, all your papers are up here. I moved you into the desk next to mine. I thought you might bear watching for a while. You have a tendency to get into trouble by yourself.”
Marissa put down the phone and saw Bonnie staring off towards the entrance, orange gauzed elbows propped on the counter.
“She got away while you were on the phone with security.”
Marissa stepped out from behind the counter and faced the clerk. “I only hope the clasp comes undone.”
The clerk’s big frame shuddered at the thought. “Ouch.”
“I have to go up to security for a while. If anyone calls for me, forward the call immediately. I don't want to miss anything about Josh.”
Without waiting for an answer, Marissa walked to the escalator and rode to the second floor in silence. She could see her whole department as she rose; it looked tranquil compared to her life of the last two days. At least cosmetics represented a constant in her life.
She took the main aisle to the rear of the store and walked past the gift wrap and returns area. Louise, the executive secretary turned gift wrapper, sat in a chair, scowling at the customers from her cubbyhole. Marissa waved without stopping and went through the door marked “Security”.
Ellen's office was a closet compared to the executive offices down the hall. Two metal desks shoved against four plain cement walls. The room stank of cigarette smoke, probably from Ellen’s last visit to the mall entrance to get her fix. Marissa recognized some of the paperwork from her own office sitting on the far desk: sales reports, promotional items, and cologne samples heaped in piles. She didn’t know if she was glad to see the missing files or if she was annoyed that Ellen had screwed up her filing system. Ellen sat at the desk closer to the door. Her head rested in her hands, staring at a piece of paper on her desk.
“Earth to Ellen. Hello.”
“How’s the tyke?”
“Better. Dan’s with him right now so I decided to come into work and assess the damage. What has you so engrossed?” Marissa leaned over her friend's shoulder, trying to see the paper. “What this time — handwritten or engraved invitations?”
“Very funny. This flyer has me puzzled.” Marissa looked at the sheet. Decorative, blue with a flower border. In the center of the paper were printed words in various sizes, but Marissa couldn't read the text.
Marissa sniffed at the paper. “That’s Escape.”
Ellen turned to look at her friend. “I wish I could escape. What do you mean?”
“The fragrance I smell is Escape. I hope you’re not wearing it. It's a man’s scent. “ Marissa sat down in the chair next to Ellen's desk and looked at the paper. “What is that flyer for?”
“I found them all over the store. In the bathrooms, around the mall entrance, the garage, everywhere. It's a request for Kantor’s and the other department stores to stop using scent strips and the fragrance models who spray perfume on customers in the mall.” Ellen held the paper up to the light, but Marissa could only see black ink against the colored paper.
“Why?”
Ellen picked up her glasses from the table and put them on her nose. “ ‘People should not be inflicted with allergens in their own homes, delivered to them as mail and magazines.’ Apparently, this group believes that they have a right to scent-free mail.”
“Okay, but why are you so upset? You passed up a shoplifter for this.”
Ellen gave a weak smile. “Harper was in here first thing this morning. Waving one of the flyers around. He found it in the can. He threatened to fire me if I can’t stop this group from distributing negative material about Kantor’s. I’m already spending more time out on the floor, but I’m still expected to do the paperwork without staff. There’s a rumor about people in gas masks picketing the store. They were at Beechmont last week and sales tanked. Customers don’t want confrontation.”
Marissa made a noise that sounded almost like a growl. “Who does that man think he is? He can’t do that.”
“I don’t want to find out if he can. I need my discount for the wedding.” Ellen sighed, standing. “You know, those scent strips that they put in with your bill always do make your tongue taste like perfume.”
Marissa put her arm around her friend and squeezed. “But the cosmetics firms pay for that luxury and I can't see Harper turning down money for someone's tongue. So it’s only a few pranks at this point and some flyers. It's not the end of the world yet.”
Ellen sat down at the desk again and ran her hands through her blond curls. The motion didn’t improve her style at all. “And maybe a murder. Unless you forgot, a woman was killed here this week and we found a scented envelope under her body.”
Marissa tried to brighten up her friend with a smile. “You can’t be serious. It’s a big step from filling the hand-soap containers in the men's bathroom with cologne to murder. Has Bandarra seen this?”
Ellen shook her head and pulled out a cigarette. Marissa could see her friend’s hand tremble as she lit up and savored each puff. She had to be upset to break company policy and smoke inside the store. Ellen was the ultimate rule follower, third-generation law enforcement and engaged to a cop. “I called him. He’s on his way over here.”
Marissa couldn’t decide if it was the tobacco or the thought of another run-in with the police sergeant, but she had an urge to go home. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
Ellen shook her head as she blew out a stream of smoke. “Not unless you can find who’s passing out these things.”
“Have the police tried?”
Ellen gave her a weak smile, as the ash from the cigarette dribbled to the floor. Marissa wondered how long she’d have to wait until she could have her office back. She couldn’t be expected to test scents with customers with the smell of smoke in her hair and clothes.
“Not really. I don’t think they took the pranks seriously. None of them hurt anyone, just smelled up whatever they touched.”
Marissa pointed at her friend. “Exactly. Which is why I can’t believe that all of a sudden this group has gone violent. Before they were literally raising a stink about Kantor’s and management. Killing Tiffany has no point in that philosophy. She was a fragrance model, not the company spokesperson. She wasn’t a threat to anyone — excepting people of good taste, anyway.”
Ellen fought back a smile. “Get back to work or go back to Josh. Bandarra and I will need some time to come up with a strategy on how to handle this. The newspapers received copies by fax and have already called about a potential story. One of the newsmagazines has a call into Calvin Klein and the Enquirer wants a quote from Ralph Lauren.”
Marissa nodded and walked into the hall. She took a deep breath of canned store air. Back to the escalators. From her vantage point, she couldn’t see much activity in the cosmetics department, surprising since Valentine’s Day was fast approaching. Usually, awkward men lined the counters for weeks before the big day, obsessing over making a good impression.
At the bottom of the moving stairs, she turned and almost ran into a dark-haired woman, carrying two large shopping bags. At least, a week’s salary from this store. Marissa thought she recognized the long, thin face, but she couldn't place her.
“Marissa, right? I’m Carly Spenser. I had been hoping to run into you, but not quite so literally. Do you have a moment?”
“If you don’t mind standing out here. I’ve been removed from my office temporarily.”
“I’ve heard. I’m not sure if you remember me from the other day, but I led the Paradise seminars.”
Marissa looked over the woman with her classically styled hair, swept back from her angular face and determined chin. The events of the past two days had scrubbed clean her short-term memory. She envied Carly the business suit, navy with large gold buttons and silk blouse under it. “I’m sorry, but I’ve had a hard week. I’m surprised you remember me though. There were a lot of people there that day and I got called away early.”
The woman’s face flushed and she tugged at an earring. “Well, that’s what I wanted to talk about. I feel a little responsible for that situation. You see, as one of the managers for the Paradise line, I hired Tiffany Wong.”
Marissa felt her jaw drop. She was too tired to pretend only a slight interest. “You hired her? Then why wasn’t she at the seminar instead of being killed in my office?”
Carly bit her lip. “We’ve had a series of seminars. Tiffany had been at one earlier this month. So she was working here instead. Kantor's was assigned as part of her territory.”
Marissa looked around the cosmetics department, the one area of her life where she felt she still had some control, and shivered slightly. The thought of having to work in conjunction with her ex-husband’s mistress was more than she could have borne. “Of course, this was all a big mistake that would have been rectified?”
“Well, that’s the strange part. Tiffany specifically asked to be assigned to Kantor’s and I really had no choice in the matter. I feel I contributed to the situation by letting her come here — as if maybe I was involved in her death.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. Only the person who stabbed her was responsible for her death. I can’t figure out why she’d want this store, though.” Marissa seethed at the thought.
Shifting her bags to one hand, Carly pushed a strand of hair back into place. “I’m not sure, but I hope it didn’t have anything to do with you. I can’t stand when an employee’s personal life gets tangled up with their work. It’s so messy.”
“What do you suggest?”
“Just hard work. I’ve devoted myself to the Paradise Corporation, heart and soul. I'm going to be a V.P. soon and it’s only been five years since my divorce.”
“And no complications?” Marissa looked at the woman as a flashbulb went off in her face. She paused, trying to focus. Little blue dots blurred her vision. “What do you think you’re doing?”
The young blond man with the camera smiled. He looked like a junior high school escapee with his wide eyes and big grin. “My job. I’m with the Cincinnati Star. Can I get your names for the paper?”
Marissa flashed him an insincere smile. “Certainly. I’m Adrian Arpel and this is Anne Klein. Pleased to meet you.” Marissa paused and then spelled the names for the man. No use in being difficult.
He closed a thin steno pad and pushed it into his back pocket of his jeans. “Have you seen the guy who found the body? I was hoping to get some shots of him too.”
Marissa realized she hadn’t seen Shawn since the day of the murder. He had seemed upset about more than discovering the body and his latest break-up as if that wouldn’t be enough to drive most people over the edge. She made a mental note to find him later. “No, I think he’s gone for the week. Our store manager is so people-oriented that he gave Shawn some time off to recuperate. You can quote me on that.”
The man walked off with his camera gripped between both hands. Marissa turned to speak to Carly, but the woman had left. She walked around the cosmetics area trying to find Tiffany’s former employer to no avail. A man stopped Marissa to ask about Hugo Boss and she tried to put the murder out of her head.
Chapter 9
Marissa spent the night at the hospital again. Dan had made himself scarce while she reassured herself Josh felt better. As she stroked his hair, Josh ran toy cars along the metal bars that fenced the side of the bed. Occasionally he looked up and smiled. Mostly he concentrated on the Hot Wheels she'd brought from his toy box.
