If Hooks Could Kill

CHAPTER 17


“I didn’t think I’d be able to make it, but here I am,” CeeCee said in a happy, though slightly rushed, voice. She put her tote bag on the worktable in the yarn department and pulled out her chair. It was late in the day for the Hookers to get together, but everyone had schedule issues. The dinner hour was the slowest time in the bookstore and a good time for us to meet as far as I was concerned. Mrs. Shedd never objected to me joining the group when things were quiet.

CeeCee looked down the table. “I hate to sound like a broken record, but I checked the donation box for the Jungle Days booth, and it’s still looking pretty slim.” She turned to Adele. “Dear, I think we’re going to have to include the items Kelly made. At least let me have a look at them.”

Not missing a beat, and still wearing her Dorothy outfit, Adele rummaged in her tote bag and brought out some more of the cowls. “These are much better.”

The whole group groaned in unison. “Adele, have you lost your mind? Not those cowls again. It’s August, it’s hot. September is often even hotter around here. Nobody wants something around their neck,” Rhoda said.

Elise tried to soften it a bit, but said pretty much the same thing in her birdlike voice. Sheila got tense just looking at them. Dinah said she was sticking to making washcloths which she could put together with some nice soap.

Eduardo brought out several pairs of earrings made in silvery thread. CeeCee looked at them and smiled. “That’s more like it.” She turned to the whole group. “With things heating up with my career, I haven’t had enough time to work on things myself.” She sighed and brought up Kelly’s funeral. “Even with my schedule, I’m planning to attend.” She looked to the rest of us and went around the group getting a yes from everyone. When she got to me, she asked if there was any news on Kelly’s killer. I heard Adele having a sputtering fit before she jumped out of her chair.

“You should be asking me,” she said. “I’m way ahead of Pink in the investigating department.” She let her gaze move over the whole table. “Here’s the crux of the whole case. There’s a chink in the golden triangle of guilt. We need to find the murder weapon and a little more direct evidence to tie . . .” Adele’s voice trailed off as she checked the area then dropped her voice. “We’re all sure Dan did it, but we need something more before we can charge him.” Adele adjusted her pigtail as her lips curved in a self-satisfied smile. “And there’s something else. After story time, I met with Eric. You know he’s a motor officer and was the first responder.”

“We know,” Rhoda said in her nasally voice. “Get to the point.”

“The point is, I told Eric about something I found out this morning. There’s something going on with Dan Donahue and his neighbor.”

Dinah and I looked at each other. Adele was out of control.

Thankfully, CeeCee changed the subject back to the crochet pieces for our booth at the fair. She knew it was hopeless to get Adele to stop making the cowls, but said it would be nice to have more of Eduardo’s bracelets from the rest of us. When the group broke up, Dinah and I walked to the front of the store.

“I’m not competing with Adele to solve this case,” I said to Dinah.

“Of course, you’re not.” Dinah said. “It’s just that if Adele does beat you to the punch, we’ll never hear the end of it.”

“We should really see what we can find out about Nanci Silvers,” I said, but I’d already lost Dinah’s attention. Commander Blaine had just come through the door. Dinah had no problem with his longish thick white hair, but she was still adjusting to his clothing choices. The wrinkle-free dress shirt tucked into the khaki slacks with sharp creases was a little too perfect for her taste.

As soon as he caught sight of Dinah, Commander’s eyes lit up. Sadly, Dinah was even having trouble with that part. After an ex-husband who was a jerk and several boyfriends who were about the same, she was having a hard time getting used to someone who actually wanted to spend time with her, and didn’t have a line of ladies on the side. But Commander was a gentleman through and through.

“Ready?” he said linking arms with Dinah after giving her a welcoming hug. “You’re welcome to join us,” he said to me. We’re putting on game night at the senior center. Charades, Monopoly, Parcheesi, and more. You’ll have fun.”

I thanked him, but declined and went back to work as they left. Not that there was much to do.

Mrs. Shedd and Mr. Royal were busy conferring over the e-reader display. Even the table in the yarn department was empty for the moment. I walked around the bookstore picking up stray books and putting them back where they belonged.

Mason came in as I was doing a little housekeeping in the yarn department. “I thought I would just come by instead of calling,” he said giving me a hug. “Can you leave?” He glanced around the empty store. “I thought we could get dinner or something.”

He was still in his work clothes, a tan-colored suit and a cream-colored shirt with the collar open. Despite his smile and the lightness of his comments, I sensed something was wrong. He usually appeared untarnished by the day, but not this time. I’d never seen him look quite this way. Exhausted? Strained? I wasn’t sure what it was.

I suggested he sit down while I finished putting all the skeins of yarn in their correct bins. “There’s something wrong, isn’t there?” I said as he took a seat.

He smiled briefly and then his expression dimmed and he looked away. “You caught that, huh,” he said in a low voice. “Run away to the beach with me and I’ll tell you all about it. We can still make the sunset.”

I checked with Mrs. Shedd and she was fine with me taking off. Mason was waiting by the door when I came to the front with my things.

“Okay, what’s up?” I said once we were in the black Mercedes sedan and on the freeway.

He sighed deeply. “I have been spending too much time with my ex-wife. I can’t trust her to do anything on her own with this wedding. I spent the afternoon tasting appetizers and looking at flowers. Jaimee can’t seem to get it through her head that we need someplace for the flowers to be delivered to first. If she would just let me handle it, it would be better, but she’s insisting on being in the middle of everything. When I told you my ex and I had a civil relationship that was because we barely saw each other when there wasn’t other family around.”

I had never seen Mason like this. He was usually jovial and fun. And yet I liked it because he was opening up to me.

“By the way, I gave my daughter the hankie you crocheted. She thought it was lovely.”

“I’m just curious. Who did you tell her it was from?”

“I said you were a special friend,” he said starting to get back to the Mason I was used to.

“And she probably thinks I’m the sweet little old lady who lives down the block, right?” I looked over at Mason and he was grinning.

“Maybe,” he said in a teasing tone. He’d gotten on the 101 Freeway and transitioned onto the 405. Traffic wasn’t bad and we flew past the mountains in the Sepulveda Pass and then through the Westside. I had expected him to turn off someplace, but he kept driving. I wondered if he was so distracted by everything with Jaimee that he’d forgotten where we were going—wherever that was. All he’d said to me was the beach. Should I say something?

As I watched the connection to the Santa Monica Freeway go by, I decided to speak up. “Are we headed any place in particular?” I said gingerly. “I thought I better say something before we ended up in Tijuana.”

“Sunshine, I assure you, I’m never so distracted that I’d drive through the border crossing without noticing,” he said with a good-humored laugh. He let out a deep breath and his shoulders relaxed. “I have a plan. I need the ocean, but not the usual Malibu or Santa Monica.”

He finally turned off the freeway and took surface streets going toward the sun that was hanging low in the sky. I was glad he knew where he was going, because I hadn’t a clue. He pulled into a parking structure and we got out. When we reached the street, he made a grand gesture with his arm. “Manhattan Beach.”

It had to be at least twenty degrees cooler than the Valley, which was a welcome relief. He took my hand and we crossed the street to a coffee place. “Cappuccinos are a perfect complement to the sunset,” he said before ordering one for each of us. Carrying our drinks we headed down the street of interesting shops and restaurants that sloped toward the water. Ahead the ocean caught the orange sun and a pier jutted out into the water. Just before the beach, a paved walkway went off in both directions. Being a weekday, it wasn’t crowded. The stragglers were carrying their folding chairs and brightly colored towels as they left the beach. A few joggers went past and, on the separate bike trail, some riders rode by. Mason suggested we go to the right.

“Take a deep breath, sunshine. Smell that cool breeze,” he said as we strolled down the path, sipping our drinks. A gull was almost eye level as it rode on the wind, before it flapped it wings and changed directions. The sky was apricot and pink as the sun hovered over the water.

On one side was the beach and on the other, houses that were so close to the walkway, we could have stepped right onto any patio and plopped on their lawn furniture. We found a bench and sat facing the water.

“Uh-oh,” he said with his trademark grin. “I’m starting to think about my ex and the wedding again. Quick, distract me with something in your life. What’s going on with the murder investigation?”

“You asked for it,” I said, with a laugh. I started to download everything that had happened. “Dan Donahue still seems to be the number one suspect.” I listed the motives, from insurance money to help his business, to it being the no-pay way to get a divorce. “But the trouble is the absence of a murder weapon,” I said. Then I told him about all the swabbing and testing that had been done on Dan’s gun and how none of it came back incriminating Dan. “They need the murder weapon. They need some solid evidence so they can arrest him.”

“You seem to have a lot of inside information,” he said. “Barry?”

I rolled my eyes and rocked my head. “Mostly as a stall when I asked him about when he’d be moving out.”

Mason’s expression faded and he asked if Barry and I were spending a lot of time together. Before I could say anything, he asked if I’d gotten anything specific about when Barry was moving out. Mason shook his head when I told him about the work being done on Barry’s place.

“That could go on for a year,” Mason said. “You’ve made it entirely too comfortable for him and his son.” Mason realized his tone sounded a little harsh and put his hand over mine. “I know. It all started when he was injured and vulnerable. You are too kind. But that’s what I lov—like about you so much. And you’re fun besides. And I want more time with you.”

This seemed like the perfect time to bring it up and I asked him about my coming to the wedding.

“I don’t know. My daughters have never met anyone I—” He interrupted himself. “What is it you were telling me about your day?”

At least I could tell he was thinking about inviting me. It wasn’t so much about the wedding itself, it was about letting me have full access to his world. He certainly had access to mine.

But I let the subject go and told him about Adele in her Wizard of Oz outfit and Jeffrey trying to get into the L.A. 911 shot and how weird it was that Jeffrey’s girlfriend’s mother was the Donahue’s next-door neighbor. When I got to the part about sending Jeffrey down to check out the action, Mason seemed concerned again.

“You’re really attached to that kid, aren’t you?”

I sighed. “Yes, I can’t help it. No matter that its over between Barry and me, I don’t want to let go of Jeffrey.”

Mason didn’t look happy.

By now the sun had slipped into the water like a coin into a piggy bank. The last of the pink and orange glow hung above the water while the sky had turned a soft blue. The breeze felt cold now and Mason took off his suit jacket and draped it around my shoulders. I covered the silence by going on about Adele and Eric and how she kept flaunting all her inside information. Finally Mason chuckled.

“You’re worried she’s going to solve this one before you do,” he said. I hung my head and nodded.

“Do you have any idea of what it would be like if she did?” I said and Mason chuckled again.

“I think I have a pretty good idea. But Molly, you’ve solved mysteries without inside information. You always said all Barry ever said to you was to keep out of it. You’ve done it with this,” he said touching the side of my head to indicate my brains. “And maybe a little help from me on occasion.”

Twilight was slowly deepening and the sand, water and sky were all blending together. Mason let out a little shiver. “I don’t know about you, but a nice cozy restaurant and some food sounds good.”

We retraced our steps up the hill and went back to the car. Mason had a restaurant in mind in Palos Verdes. He pulled into a parking lot on a cliff high above the water. The restaurant had a wall of windows and outside the twilight had almost turned into night.

“Maybe I can help you. Tell me everything you know about the case.”

I began to throw out things I remembered or had heard. “Kelly had an online business according to Dan. She sold things she crocheted. Dan is obsessed with his store. He would talk about Kelly for a moment and then go back to talking about his plans to have a nationwide chain.” I stopped and sighed. “I don’t think this is getting anywhere.”

“How about talking about the last time you saw her?” Mason said. He even suggested I close my eyes and describe what I saw.

“It was a treat to see Kelly’s workroom again.” I sighed. “When Barry goes and I get all my stuff out of the storage locker, I’m going to get my room organized.” I heard Mason laugh and then he encouraged me to go on.

“The lamp,” I said. “How could I have forgotten to tell the group and you about that. It was there the first two times I went to Kelly’s but when we went afterward, it wasn’t there. Dan didn’t know anything about it, or so he said. I told Barry about it, but I don’t know what he’ll do with the information.” I had opened my eyes and Mason urged me to close them again.

No sooner had I shut them when out of nowhere, I remembered Kelly going to answer the door. “Kelly said it was a real estate agent handing out brochures. Wait,” I said in an excited voice. “Kelly had us go out through the yard. I bet she didn’t want us to see who it was.” I laughed out loud. “And Adele, super detective that she claims to be, never even noticed.” I put my hands up in a triumphant Rocky pose. “I’ve got an important clue and she doesn’t.” Maybe I sounded a little childish, but then she’d sounded that way first.

“You’re a genius,” I said to Mason throwing my arms around him. “All I have to do now is figure out who came over.”