Mackenzie laughed, but her laugh sounded forced even to her. “No, because it’s the only thing I can make.”
Carine’s expression darkened. “We heard about Harris Mayer. I called Nate, but he wouldn’t tell me a thing. Told me not to bug you. You found the body?”
“Yesterday afternoon,” Mackenzie said.
“That must have been awful.” Carine winced; she’d come upon a murder scene once herself, before she and Tyler were married. “I remember Harris visiting Beanie. He always struck me as one of those people who had it all but still wasn’t satisfied.”
“I guess it wasn’t in his nature.”
Carine hoisted Harry higher onto her hip and smiled, kissing the top of his little bald head. “Little mister here is getting to be a lug. What are your plans?”
“I’m meeting with the state police this afternoon for an update.”
“Beanie?”
“I’m on my way out to see her right now.”
“Harry and I have had either Gus or friends staying with us this week, but Tyler gets back tonight. We’ll be at the house if you need anything.”
“I’m sorry about what happened, Carine. This guy should never have gotten away from me.”
“It wasn’t your fault. You’re not superhuman. This man had his chance with me, and he didn’t take it. He let me go. For what it’s worth, I wasn’t his target, whether or not he was thinking rationally.”
“If Tyler doesn’t make it back here tonight, will you call me?”
“Don’t worry about me, okay? You’ve got enough on your plate.” Harry gave a huge yawn, and Carine kissed him again. “Nap time.” She smiled, winking at Mackenzie. “For me, too.”
Two minutes after Carine left, Gus entered the store from the back room, grunting when he spotted Mackenzie. “When did you get here?”
“And a bright and cheery good morning to you, too, Gus.”
He sighed. “I’m in a lousy mood.”
“I can see. I arrived about fifteen minutes ago. You just missed Carine and Harry.”
“I’m running late. I was up at Beanie’s last night. She wasn’t nervous about staying at the lake by herself after her friend in Washington turned up cut to pieces, but I was.” He pushed a palm over his gray hair and glanced around the store, as if someone might have moved everything while he’d been gone. “She kicked me out an hour ago. I’ve always gotten under her skin.”
“And vice versa.”
“I guess.” He waved a hand irritably. “She’s upset, but she won’t admit it. I heard you and your FBI agent found Mayer yesterday?”
“We did.”
Gus sighed, bending down suddenly to scoop up a shirt that had fallen off a hanger. “That can’t have been good. Finding bodies – that’s worse than teaching college freshmen, don’t you think?” Gus laid the shirt on the counter, not waiting for an answer. “I assume you’re on your way out to Beanie’s.”
Mackenzie nodded. “She’s not expecting me, though.”
“Just as well. She keeps saying she’s missed something. She’s driving herself crazy.”
“I know the feeling.”
“Yeah.” Gus softened, some of the energy going out of his irritation. “If you need to borrow my truck -”
“I rented a car at the airport.”
He grinned at her. “The world must be coming to an end.”
Having a car gave her freedom of movement, but she’d also used the drive from the airport to think. She hesitated, then said, “Gus, have you talked to Beanie about Cal?”
He blew out a breath. “Yeah. She’s not thrilled with you or me right now.”
“What would she have done if she’d been in our position?”
“I tried that one on her. Didn’t work. She went on about honesty, keeping secrets from friends. She’s just embarrassed. That rat-bastard brought those women out to the lake knowing it’d humiliate her if she found out.”
“Then there was more than one. I figured as much, but I only saw him with a dark-haired woman.”
Gus seemed uncomfortable with the entire subject. “There were at least two that I know of, probably more. I drove by one day and saw him out on the dock with a blonde – young, pretty. I was tempted to stop, but I didn’t.” He added awkwardly, “Figured it wasn’t my business.”
Mackenzie picked up a notepad from his counter and handed it to him. “Write down a description. Everything you can think of – hair, eyes, height, weight, dates. Don’t censor yourself. I’ll take it with me when I meet with Detective Mooney this afternoon.”
“All right, Deputy,” he said with a sudden flash of amusement, taking the pad. “I’ll do that.”
“Thank you.”
He gave her a grudging smile. “It’s good to see you, kid. How’s the cut?”
“Healing well.”