The Seattle Cipher, page 11
“Patricia McKay,” Patricia told Veronica without batting an eye, then addressed Levi. “You better get back to Seattle. There’s a big story. Stephen Stewart killed an innocent cop and escaped.”
“What?” Levi exclaimed.
“That’s right.” Patricia shook rain off her rain jacket. She left her umbrella in Rachel’s SUV to make it appear that she was in a frantic state of mind. “The news said he overpowered a guard during transport to the courthouse and stole his weapon. Despite his leg injury, Stephen was still dangerous. Like a cornered animal, the pain just made him more vicious. I’m surprised you’re still sitting here.” She then addressed Veronica. “Levi told me that you were a reporter?”
“Sent to do an exclusive,” Veronica nearly snapped at Patricia. “The story of Stephen Stewart will be assigned to someone else. Now please, I was in the middle of an interview.”
“The interview is over. We’re splitting town,” Patricia informed Veronica.
Veronica glared at Patricia. Not many women gave her a run for her money in the beauty department, but Patricia was a very beautiful woman. Veronica didn’t like any woman challenging her beauty. “Mr. Edelstein—”
“What news station do you work for?” Patricia asked Veronica in a quick voice. “I can call them and explain why I had to interrupt your interview for you.” Patricia had already spent twenty minutes on the phone with every major news outlet in Seattle, and none of them had sent a reporter named Veronica Andrews to Northern Lights.
Levi read Patricia’s eyes and tone of voice. Something was trying to tell him something important. “Oh yes, I forgot to ask you what media outlet you worked for, Ms. Andrews.”
Veronica struggled to keep a clear, calm face. “I work for an independent media source, Mr. Edelstein. I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid you would deny me an interview.”
“Oh, I see,” Levi told Veronica and then cleared his throat. “Well, I certainly would not have denied you my time. You are a very pleasant woman. But I’m afraid that my friend is right. Stephen Stewart is a very dangerous man. We need to leave town. I’m sorry that I have to end the interview.” Levi stood up. “You should get back to Seattle. I’m sure there are bigger stories than me waiting. After all, an innocent cop has been killed. The life of that cop is far more important than my exclusive.”
“Well, yes, I suppose it is,” Veronica said and frowned, wondering how she was going to get her fangs sunk into Levi. “Well, perhaps you can walk me to my vehicle, Mr. Edelstein?”
“I’ll walk you outside. Levi, you better order us some food for the road. Rachel is back at the inn getting a few things ready,” Patricia said in a hurried voice. “We’ll drive into Canada and hide until Stephen Stewart is captured. That killer won’t rest until he has the stolen diamond.”
When Patricia mentioned the diamond, Levi saw Veronica’s eyes change. “Yes, I know,” he agreed, playing along. “Veronica, will you go get us a couple of refills on coffee?” he asked. “I need to tell you one more thing before you go, but I need some more coffee. My nerves are a little jittery.”
“I suppose I can.” Veronica took Levi’s coffee cup and walked away from the booth, leaving Patricia alone with Levi.
“Okay, what’s the deal, Patricia?” Levi whispered, pretending to put on his rain jacket.
“I don’t know who the red-headed beauty is, but she doesn’t work for any newspaper or news station in Seattle, and I doubt she works for any independent media source.” Patricia reached out a quick hand and acted like she was pulling down the collar on Levi’s rain jacket. “I called my hotel and talked to the sweet girl who told me about the traveling art exhibit. I asked her if anyone fitting that woman’s description had checked in, and the answer was yes.”
“Oh?” Levi asked, keeping his back to Veronica.
“Veronica Andrews checked into the hotel where I’m staying last week. She was due to check out today,” Patricia whispered. “I had my friend check her information. Henry Green paid for her room.”
Levi sighed. “Beauty truly does only run skin deep.”
Patricia glanced at Veronica. Veronica was speaking to the waitress. “If that woman gave honest information when she checked in, then it appears she’s from New York, but she doesn’t speak with a New York accent.” Patricia focused back on Levi. “I called my boyfriend in Georgia against my better judgment and asked him to do some checking for me. He should be calling me back within the hour, if I take his call. Brian is still acting like a real jerk.”
“And in the meantime?” Levi asked, picking up his umbrella.
“I called the local sheriff’s office to report Veronica, but I was told Sheriff O’Riley is on vacation. Some humdrum deputy spoke to me.” Patricia shook her head in disgust. “The deputy basically told me Veronica was Seattle’s problem, not his. Small town logic is grand, isn’t it?”
“I’m afraid so.” Levi looked over at Veronica. Veronica was now looking at him. “So we lead her back to Seattle?”
“That’s about the gist of it,” Patricia said and nodded. “I had my friend at the hotel put Veronica’s information in a file for me. As soon as we get back, we can lure her to the police and let them start asking why and how she was connected to a dead man.” Patricia quickly rubbed her tired neck. “I don’t want to make this situation any more difficult than it is, so play along, okay? I’m going to use the diamond to lure that spider back to her web.”
“Okay,” Levi agreed.
Patricia nodded and waited for Veronica to return. “Look, Levi,” she spoke in a fussy voice as soon as Veronica reached hearing distance, “I know the diamond is in the theater, but going back to the theater would be foolish.”
“I must insist we hide the diamond in a more secure location,” Levi jumped onto Patricia’s stage.
“Whatever. I’m too tired to argue. Oh, here’s your coffee.” Patricia turned to Veronica. “We’ve decided to drive back to Seattle instead. We have an important errand to run before crossing into Canada.”
Veronica handed Levi his coffee. “Of course, I understand,” she said, pleased to hear that the stolen diamond was hidden somewhere in a dinky old theater. “I’ll follow you back to Seattle, call my boss, and tell him I’ll finish your exclusive before changing stories,” Veronica informed Levi. “I really do want to finish our interview. You are a very nice man.”
“Well, if you insist. But I won’t be in Seattle for long, I’m afraid. An hour at the most,” Levi explained.
“That’s good enough.” Veronica offered a stiff smile that was meant to be a little flirty. “Maybe you can even ride back—”
“I have my own vehicle,” Levi quickly cut Veronica off. “I’m afraid I’m particular about who I ride with. I’m funny that way.”
“Oh no, I understand,” Veronica promised, keeping her smile steady. “Shall I meet you at the theater? I mean, museum, you work at. Say, in two hours?”
“That should work.” Levi checked the time. “Two hours will be—”
A tall, skinny, bored deputy wearing a green rain jacket strolled through the front door of the diner wearing a “Barney Fife” face. “Coffee,” he called out, taking a seat at the front counter without removing his rain jacket. The waitress behind the counter glanced nervously between the deputy and the tense conversation happening in the back booth. Veronica eyed the deputy briefly. “I’ll be outside.”
Collin Weathers spotted Veronica and made a Wow face that quickly kicked his bored expression into the dirt. And to make the situation even better, a beautiful travel writer was standing close to Veronica. Both women were breathtaking. Collin couldn’t decide which woman was more beautiful. Then his twenty-four-year-old mind actually made a sudden connection. He knew every face in town. Patricia, Veronica, and Levi were all unfamiliar, which meant that one of the women standing in the diner was Patricia McKay, the woman who had called him.
Patricia watched Collin stand up and walk toward her location. No, go away, Barney. We have this spider set to take a hard fall. Go away, don’t mess up the scene.
“Ms. McKay?” Collin asked, taking a chance on Patricia. As beautiful as Veronica appeared, the woman didn’t have the same intellectual impression that Patricia held.
“Yes, I’m Patricia McKay,” Patricia stated in a quick voice. “Uh, no time to talk. We were about to leave—”
“And you must be Veronica Andrews,” Collin addressed Veronica, trying to sound official. “Ma’am, I have some questions about your connection to the incident in Seattle.”
Veronica shot a hard look at Patricia. The trap was closing around her. Patricia moaned. “I’m a reporter—”
“Ma’am, we’ve received information suggesting you may have knowledge relevant to our investigation regarding Henry Green.”
Veronica had heard enough. She knew a setup when she saw one. Without saying a word, Veronica suddenly shoved poor Collin hard, sending the deputy stumbling backward into a table. He went down with a crash that sounded like an entire set of dishes breaking.
“I’m getting out of here,” Veronica declared, backing toward the door like a cornered cat.
“Oh no, you’re not,” Patricia said, stepping right into her path. No way was this fake reporter getting away from her.
Veronica tried to push past Patricia, and the two women started wrestling around. Patricia, thinking about all the killers she’d tangled with before, stuck her foot out and tripped Veronica. The woman went stumbling backward toward the front counter with a yelp.
“You’re not going to ruin this for me!” Veronica yelled, her face all twisted up with rage.
“Honey, it’s already ruined,” Patricia shot back, keeping her distance but staying ready. “The police know exactly who you are and who’s been paying your bills.”
Veronica looked around like a trapped animal, then grabbed a heavy coffee mug off the counter and raised it up like she was going to throw it.
“That’s quite enough of this foolishness,” came a stern voice from behind the counter.
The waitress appeared, holding a big cast-iron skillet in both hands. “I’ve been watching this whole circus, and I’ve had all I can stand.” Before Veronica could blink, the waitress brought that skillet down with a solid clang right on Veronica’s wrist.
Veronica dropped the mug and let out a howl. Deputy Collin, who’d finally gotten back on his feet, rushed over and slapped handcuffs on her.
“Well,” Patricia said, catching her breath and smoothing down her hair, “that was certainly more excitement than I bargained for with my morning coffee.”
“Thanks,” Patricia told the waitress, throwing Veronica’s body off her.
Levi struggled over to Patricia. “Are you okay?” he asked, extending a shaky hand.
Patricia grabbed Levi’s hand, stood up, and then pointed at Veronica. “I’m afraid the lunch special of the day is ruined,” she said, and then her cell phone rang. “Brian, you saved me again. All is forgiven. Love you. Call you when I can,” she spoke in broken sentences, struggling to gain control over her emotions as tears began falling from her eyes.
As Patricia put her cell phone away, a green moving truck drove into Northern Lights. The moving truck, which was being driven by two scoundrels, slithered through the downtown district at a slow, safe speed. Stephen was sitting in the back of the truck, perched on a brown couch and staring into a cell phone. An app on the cell phone was allowing him to see what a small camera attached to the outside of the moving truck was seeing. When the truck passed the diner, he spotted Patricia and Levi step out into the gray rain.
Chapter Fifteen
Collin handcuffed Veronica and dragged the woman out into a hard falling rain. “You’re going to jail,” he promised, speaking in a squeaky voice. Boy, was he ever hurting.
Patricia stood off to the side of the diner in front of a warm bakery with Levi, watching Collin haul Veronica away. “Well, I’ve learned that carefully created plans never work out the way they are designed to,” she said and sighed, unaware that Stephen Stewart was now in town, lurking close by.
Levi simply shook his head. “She had me fooled, Patricia. You tried to warn me, but I didn’t listen. I let the woman’s beauty deceive me. In my mind, a killer... Ms. Andrews was so beautiful. Killers are ugly, like Mr. Green.”
“I’ve fought with many beautiful killers.” Patricia patted Levi’s arm. “You’re a man. I’m a woman. Men are stupid and easily blinded by a woman’s beauty.”
“Which is only natural,” Levi stated, watching Collin drive Veronica away in a brown and green jeep.
“Exactly.” Patricia smiled a little, feeling sorry for Levi’s innocent heart. “Women also have their beauty to deceive with. Learn that.”
Levi sighed. “That’s the second woman who’s stabbed me in the back, Patricia,” he confessed, shoving his hands into the pockets of his rain jacket. “I’m not exactly some suave, daring, foreign agent who travels the world fighting bad guys. I’m a simple, if not nerdy, man who lives alone—a man who secretly dreams of falling in love with a beautiful woman and living happily ever after.”
“Levi, honey, love takes work, and love takes honesty, and love takes courage,” Patricia told Levi in a caring tone. “The right woman is out there for you, waiting, but you have to stop dreaming and accept reality’s hard face.” Patricia looked into Levi’s nerdy eyes. “I see a man who is terrified to embrace a serious relationship out of fear he might be rejected. But, honey, you have to step out of your box and start taking chances. Sure, Veronica Andrews was very beautiful, but so what? Her beauty was very ugly in the end, right? What you need is a woman with a heart that makes her outward beauty shine.” I’m babbling, but so what? I’m exhausted and still a little shaky from the fight. On top of that, I have no idea where Stephen Stewart is. And speaking of Stephen Stewart, I need to ask Levi a few questions and stop letting my mouth babble. “Look, we need to focus on Stephen Stewart, okay? We can return to your romantic roadblocks later.”
Levi sighed again. “Roadblocks that will always be burdensome, I’m afraid.”
“Oh, honey, don’t say that.” Patricia patted Levi’s arm again. “You’re going to find the right woman someday, I promise.”
Levi looked toward his parked vehicle. “I’m going to drive to the inn, rent a room, and get some rest, Patricia. I’m too exhausted to care about the possibility of love at this moment. I suffered through a threatening night, watched a man get shot down, and then had to suffer humiliation at the hands of a deceptive woman. I would say that’s enough for today.”
“I’ll follow you back to the inn.” Patricia studied the rainy main street, saw nothing that was of any concern, and jogged to Rachel’s parked SUV. “You can follow me,” she called out to Levi. Levi waved a tired hand at Patricia. Patricia nodded, crawled into the driver’s seat, and got Rachel’s SUV moving.
“The inn, perfect,” Stephen hissed, standing just inside the bakery door behind a stack of bread. Breaking into a lousy bakery had been simple. Small time alarm systems were a joke to Stephen. “This little town is going to become a tomb for my enemies.” Stephen yanked a loaf of bread off a wooden shelf and moved back into the shadows of the bakery, dragging his bad leg the way a hurt spider would.
“Boy, what a day,” Patricia barked into her cell phone, driving down a rainy road, watching the front windshield wipers fighting with the heavy downpour. “Edna, why can’t you send me on normal assignments?”
“Because normal assignments aren’t going to fill my new magazine with adventure, mystery, and murder,” Edna beamed as she sat behind a messy desk gobbling down a plate of Chinese noodles. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down, kiddo. Three murders, a dead cop, a killer on the loose. This is great! Except for the dead cop, I mean. My heart does break for the cop.”
Patricia sighed. “My heart breaks, too, Edna.”
“Be that as it may,” Edna continued, “we still have a magazine to run, and you still have a story to write.”
“Edna, this case isn’t over. Stephen Stewart is still on the loose,” Patricia pointed out, taking a sharp curve. Levi took the sharp curve in his vehicle and caught up to Patricia. “Look, I need to go. It’s raining really hard. I’ll call you tonight or tomorrow morning, and by the way, I’m not paying for the fancy hotel room you put me in and I want cash reimbursement for the money I’m spending.”
“In your dreams,” Edna said and laughed. She quickly ended the call.
“Yeah, in my dreams,” Patricia fussed, throwing down her cell phone. “Always in my dreams. Only my dreams stink. Paris stunk rotten eggs. Seattle stinks rotten eggs. Why can’t the world be normal?” Because the world is insane.
Patricia safely reached the inn, parked, stepped out into the rain with her umbrella and purse, and waited for Levi. “I’m in room 112,” she spoke over the falling rain. “Rachel is in room 113, right next to me.”
“I got it,” Levi promised, eager to rent a room as his eyes studied a cozy inn that resembled, in his eyes, a remote hunting lodge. “I’ll meet you two ladies in the morning for breakfast.”
“You bet,” Patricia confirmed and then jogged to her room, rushed inside, and splashed down onto an inviting, soft bed. “Ah, warmth and comfort, at least.” She sighed, hugging a soft pillow. “Come to momma.”
Patricia closed her eyes for a few minutes, rested her mind, and then decided on a hot shower. After her shower, she fell asleep only to be awoken by the sound of a hard hand knocking on her room door. “Just a minute,” she called and yawned, feeling her mind jerking out of a strange, scary dream. Sharks in the cornfield, swimming, trying to eat me. I have to get out of the cornfields… Patricia opened her eyes and found herself in a warm hotel room. “Oh, it was only a dream.”
“Patricia,” Rachel’s voice called out.
“Hold on, Rachel.” Patricia crawled out of bed, quickly changed into her gray dress, slid on her boots, and then answered the room door, expecting to see Rachel standing alone. It’s dark. Rachel’s probably hungry.
