The Partners in Crime Collection, page 95
“Does George have the master key?” Jamie asked.
“He does, but he didn’t want to open the door without the police with him,” Mimi said. “She probably just forgot to take out her trash before she left. He gets so flustered about the silliest things.”
“Okay, Mimi. You stay here and we’ll drive over and help George,” Jack said and left the woman babbling about how silly George was as they left the office.
“She’s not really that stupid, is she?” Jack asked once Jamie was back in the SUV.
“Yes and no. People don’t want to admit there’s a dead body around,” Jamie said. “And they’ll come up with all kinds of excuses as to why something is a certain way.”
They stopped outside a row of four townhouses with a large number six on the parking lot end of the brick structure. They could see George pacing near a set of concrete steps with a shiny black railing. He wore a polo shirt in bright yellow, tucked into creased khaki slacks with a brown leather belt and brown loafers. His head was bald and gleamed in the light.
“George Agnew?” Jack called out and held up her badge. “Detectives Forbes and Kennedy. Your wife sent us over.”
“Thank gods, yes, I think there’s something dead in there. I’ve smelled dead before, but it was a racoon. This smells worse. I’m afraid to go inside,” George babbled at them much like his wife had earlier.
Jack looked at Jamie and blinked, then turned back to George. “Do you have the master key?”
“Here you go. You can go in, and I’ll wait here. Mimi thinks it’s just the trash being left behind, but I know what week-old trash smells like and it’s not that smell. That’s a dead thing smell.”
Jack took the master key and when she stepped up on the front steps, the smell hit her. “Yep, that’s a dead thing smell. You stay out here, George.” She opened the door and pushed it in, and the smell rolled out like a physical thing. All three of them turned away and took a moment to breathe and control their gag reflex. George took a few steps further back and pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket to cover his mouth and nose.
The buzz of flies led them to the bathroom where a body lay in the tub. As bloated and disfigured as it was, they could tell it had probably been female. They backed out of the bathroom and closed the door, then cleared the rest of the house. A handbag sat on the table near the door, and the wallet inside belonged to Arlene Springford. They stepped out into the fresh air and sucked in a few breaths before Jamie called for the ME and CSI to come process the scene.
“Where is Mrs. Springford’s car?” Jack asked George.
“It’s not in her usual spot, and I didn’t see it in the lot, so we assumed she’d driven herself to the airport. Usually she takes a cab, but the car was gone,” George said. “Is it a dead animal inside?”
“No, George. It’s Arlene. Dead in her bathtub. We’ve called the medical examiner and crime scene people to come process and take her out of there,” Jamie said as he joined them. “What kind of car did Arlene have?”
George looked it up on his phone and gave them the information, and Jack put a BOLO out on the car.
Jack came back over and told George, “I had them put a Be On the Lookout for Arlene’s car. It may be stolen. We can’t tell if she died of natural causes or if someone helped her along, so until the ME can tell us, this is a crime scene and no one can go in there, okay?”
“Yes, Detective,” George said. “I should let her children know.”
“We’ll take care of that when we have some information, George. Please don’t call anyone or speak to any reporters or anything until we say it’s okay, got it?” Jamie said. “You could help a killer go free if you say the wrong thing at the wrong time. So, no discussing it. Not with anyone.”
“Not even my Mimi?” George asked.
“Do you think she can keep this a secret?” Jack replied.
“No,” George said with a sigh. “I’ll just tell her the police are handling it and hope you can let me say something soon. This is going to be so hard.”
“Not as hard as things are right now for Arlene,” Jack muttered.
Apparently, George heard her because he looked abashed and turned away.
“Go on back to the office, George. Here’s your master key. We’ll take it from here,” Jamie said and sent the man on his way.
Once George was gone, Jack leaned against a tree. “I’m not going back in there until the body is out and the techs are working the place. They can open all of the windows and I won’t want to hurl with every breath.”
“Do you think she was murdered?” Jamie asked.
“No clue, but the car being gone makes me wonder. The house didn’t look tossed, so maybe someone just took advantage of the car sitting for a couple of days and stole it, and it has nothing to do with Arlene rotting in her bathtub,” Jack replied.
The coroner’s van pulled up and two of Doc’s assistants got out. Jack went over to the van and gave them a heads up, so they took the time to pull on the hazmat suits and grab the air filter packs, then pulled the gurney and specialty bag up to the stairs and inside.
Jack watched some of the neighbors come out and she gave Jamie a nod. “Ready to talk to the lookie-loos?”
“Let’s go. You take the left, I’ll take the right,” Jamie said.
By the time they’d hit the first ten or so each, a patrol car had shown up to help with crowd control and a couple of uniforms started to take down names and contact information. Jack and Jamie went and sat in her SUV to wait out the coroner’s team and go over their notes so far.
“I got either ‘she was a lovely person’ or ‘that rabid bitch complained about everything’,” Jack said.
“Same here,” Jamie replied. “A couple of the older folks said she seemed nice enough, but anyone under forty pretty much found her reprehensible.”
“At least we’re not dealing with her ghost,” Jack replied. “Because not being able to bitchslap her would suck.”
Jamie snorted laughter and shook his head. “We’re not going to be able to do much inside until the techs are done, and we need the coroner’s office to tell us how she died. I’m going to guess that it was a heart attack in the tub and the car being gone is just someone who paid attention and took the car that hadn’t moved in a while.”
“You’re probably right,” Jack said. “Besides, who’d steal a ten-year-old Taurus? They’re not exactly hot commodities.”
“Let’s get out of here and write up our reports and wait to see what they say for cause of death. If it is murder, then we can come back and go over the place after it’s had some time to air out,” Jamie said.
Jack started up the SUV and waited for the patrol cops to clear the crowd around them so they could back out. She pulled up next to the officer and smiled. “We’re going to go write up our reports and let that place air out a bit. Lock it up and put the tape over the front and back doors when the techs are done, would you? We can’t do much more until the cause of death is determined.”
“Yes, sir, Detective,” the officer said. “I’m Officer Pearson and my partner is Officer Hill. We’ll take point on this for now.”
“Sounds good, Pearson. Stay safe out there,” Jack said, and they pulled away.
“He didn’t look old enough to shave,” Jamie muttered.
“I know. They keep getting younger every time I turn around. Did you see that new guy from the Antonelli Street station? I wanted to ask him if his mother knew he was playing dress up,” Jack muttered. “He looked about twelve.”
Jamie laughed. “The one with red hair and freckles? Yeah, I saw him. Officer Muldoon. Graduated from the academy two years ago.”
“How old was he when he went in? Eight? Jeezus,” Jack retorted.
When they got back to the precinct, the glass had been cleared of all of the stickers, and the box was on the floor by the door with a note that said, Take them home and put them up there. You’re welcome.
Jamie opened the office door and used his foot to slide the box inside, then shut the door behind them. “No one claimed to have cleaned it up, so I guess I don’t have to pay out the fifty.”
“I dunno, I think they’d add something to the penthouse walls of glass,” Jack teased as she got them each a coffee.
Aidan stuck his head in and sniffed. “I smell good coffee.”
“Come on in, LT. I’ll get you a cup,” Jack said and popped a fresh pod into the machine.
“You two caught the stinker, huh?” Aidan asked.
“Yeah, but it may not be murder,” Jamie said. “We’re going to have to let the coroner tell us. I’m thinking heart attack in the tub. Her purse was right there by the door with her wallet and car keys in it. There were some nice jewelry pieces on the counter in the bathroom, and some of the art pieces and electronics would’ve gone for good money.”
“Her car is gone, but we think that was just a matter of convenience. It’s been sitting there for a few days and not moved, so someone decided it was a good target,” Jack said.
“Okay, then once this is wrapped up, you two are off rotation for the next two weeks. Jamie gets married and Jack gets a vacation,” Aidan said.
“You’re not going to make her work with a floater?” Jamie asked. “Aww, come on, LT. I was hoping she’d be so tired of working with assholes, she’d welcome me back with open arms.”
“The two of you never voluntarily take time off, and you can’t carry it all over, year after year. This is my way of making sure I don’t get written up for not allowing my cops to take breaks,” Aidan replied.
Jack handed Aidan the coffee and sat at her desk. “I’ll write this one up, Jamie. You go on and get out of here. Take some time for yourself before Tara has you running all over hell and creation. I’ll see you tomorrow when I come over for the bachelorette party.”
“Wait, I thought you were his best man?” Aidan asked. “Aren’t you supposed to do the bachelor party?”
“I did. I arranged the whole thing,” Jack said. “I sent out the invites, made the reservations, and I’m handing it over to Doc and the Comish to handle the actual operation of the thing. I’m going to attend the bachelorette party and do lady things while you get to enjoy liquor, cigars, fine dining, and poker.”
“Janna’s really looking forward to the bachelorette party. She’s been buried in studies with law school and a weekend of celebration is just what we both need,” Aidan replied. “Thank you for including us.”
“You’re family,” Jamie said. “Of course you’re included.”
Aidan toasted Jamie with his mug. “So, get out of here already?”
“Yes, sir,” Jamie said and packed up his stuff, rinsed out his mug, and headed for the door.
Just before he stepped out, Aidan picked up the box, a smirk on his face, and handed it to Jamie. “Don’t forget this. I didn’t spend half an hour putting them up there for you to ignore my gift.”
“Oh, man,” Jamie said with a laugh. “You asshole.”
“You betcha. Get out of here,” Aidan said with a laugh.
“That? That was awesome,” Jack said once Jamie had left. “Well done, sir.”
“I do my best. Now finish up that report and you get on out of here, too. See you later,” Aidan said.
Dead Heat: Chapter Twenty-Eight
Tara had asked her best friend since high school, Gia Ziegler, to be her maid of honor. Gia lived in San Francisco these days, though, so she’d had to do a lot of the planning long-distance. On this September weekend, she was in Harbor once more. Instead of a wild night at a club, they’d decided to have a girl’s night at the penthouse and send Jamie off with Doc, with orders for him to sleep it off in Jack and Doc’s guest room.
Once Tara had filled Gia in on the bachelor party Jack had planned for Jamie, she turned to Jack. “You set up a fantastic evening for them with the ritzy gentlemen’s club and the steak dinner at Oceanside, and managed to avoid having to smell the cigars by coming here and partying with us.”
“I couldn’t miss a pajama party that had a pool, hot tub, champagne, and a chocolate fountain,” Jack said with a laugh. “Besides, I bought you the best gift.”
“Ooh, presents,” Tara said with a smile. “I hope it’s really raunchy.”
“Oh, girlfriend, you know it,” Jack laughed, and they joined the rest of the ladies in the living room.
They laughed at Gia’s stories about a much younger Tara, and Jack finally asked, “Okay, so how did you two - who seem to be wildly different types of women – end up friends?”
“Zeigler and Zimmerman. The last two names in the alphabet in our grade. We ended up in the same homeroom class from third grade on up and always had to sit next to each other,” Tara said.
“We hated each other at first. She was quiet, nerdy, and beautiful, while I was awkward, with braces and bad skin,” Gia said. “I wanted to be a cheerleader, and Tara wanted to be a librarian.”
“That was only for a couple of years,” Tara said. “Then we were both cheerleaders for about six months until I broke my arm during a game.”
“Ouch,” Jack said as she tucked her feet up and sipped her champagne.
“The quarterback, Bobby Warner, carried her off the field and they dated for almost a year after that,” Gia said. “It was so romantic, until it wasn’t.”
“I refused to put out and he tried to force the issue. Robert Warner went on to rape three other girls and is doing his second stretch in prison for beating up his seven-month’s pregnant sister, and she lost the baby. Murder and attempted murder,” Tara replied.
Jack winced and reached over to refill Tara’s glass. “Now you’ve got a murder cop about to be your husband. Talk about going from one extreme to the other.”
Tara held out her glass and smiled at Jack. “I went from an asshole to a true partner. There is no comparison.” They tapped glasses and Jack saluted Tara.
There were eight women at the party in total, with Ella Tremont making an appearance to have a drink and deliver her gift before she went back home. “I know I could stay, but my little Ella is home alone. While she’s a capable young woman, I worry. She’s just turned fifteen, but with Linc’s job…”
“No need to explain, Ellie,” Jack said. “We’re just glad you could make an appearance.”
Tara opened the gift at Ellie’s insistence and gasped. She slowly drew out a delicate lace-trimmed handkerchief with blue ribbon embroidery. “This is exquisite,” Tara whispered, then looked up at Ellie. “And it’s very old.”
“My great-great-grandmother had probably close to fifty lace-trimmed handkerchiefs that she’d made,” Ella said. “She tatted the lace, then embroidered the lace onto the linen squares and added ribbon embroidery to each one. My sister and I each had a few, and she only had boys. I have two girls, and there are enough pieces to pass down for many more generations. I figured the something old and something blue would be covered by this.”
“This is too much. Thank you,” Tara said, then reached out to hug Ellie. “I appreciate this so very much.”
“Well, shit,” Jack said with a dramatic sigh. “She’s gonna hate the dildo collection I got her.”
Everyone cracked up laughing and Ella nearly choked on the mouthful of champagne she’d just taken. “Jacqueline Forbes, you didn’t!”
“Wanna bet?” Jack said and waggled her brows.
“Okay, let’s do presents,” Gia said. “Because now I want to know what Jack ended up getting our Tara.”
There were naughty gifts and nice ones – everything from a basket full of penis-shaped foods from pasta to chocolates, to gorgeous silk nightgowns in a rainbow of colors. Jack had spent days collecting all of the penis-shaped foods, but she’d also bought a beautiful lace peignoir set she’d seen Tara admiring online one day.
They went for the food after the gifts and Ella pulled Jack aside. “Thank you for including Linc and me in the celebrations. We look at Jamie as one of our own, and while we’re a bit older than the rest of you, it really is wonderful to be included.”
“I sent Linc with Doc to make sure the pack of them didn’t end up in a jail cell. Have you seen our men when they get going?” Jack teased, then hugged Ellie. “You’re all family. This is family that means more to me than some of my blood relatives. You’re always, always welcome at any gathering or event.”
“It’s been difficult with Linc’s new job, to stay connected with the people we really care about. So many of the cops don’t want to hang around after hours with the commissioner because they feel they need to have a layer of distance between them for respect or something,” Ella said. “It’s been hard on Linc, to give up some of those friendships after so many years.”
“I’m so sorry. People can be stupid. In my heart, he’s still Sarge, but he’s earned the respect of being called commissioner,” Jack said. “And there aren’t many who would be able to handle the…added information that Jamie and I work with.”
“That’s very true, but he appreciates you two as much as you do him. Now, let me say my farewells and head on home. Enjoy yourself, Jacqueline. You’ve earned this.”
Jack watched as Ella hugged Tara, and was hugged by Gia, Janna, and the others. Once Ella left, the music got turned up and the dancing started.
Jamie leaned back and watched the group gathered around the poker table. Doc, Linc, Aidan, Joey, Joey’s partner Dai, Tara’s brother, Ennis, and Jamie made up the party.
“Are you gonna bet or just sit there and dream about the cards you don’t have?” Joey teased Doc.
“Careful, son. I whupped your ass the last time we played,” Doc replied and slid a couple more chips across the table.
“I remember that it was me who won the last time we played,” Jamie spoke up.
“That may be so,” Doc said. “But I still whupped Joey’s ass.”
“I’m glad I don’t get to play poker with the lot of you very often,” Ennis said with a laugh. “You’re cutthroat.”
