5 Alive After Friday (23 page)

T
he
next morning when Sandy came out through the last locked door at the sheriff’s
detention center, she saw Martin and Mel waiting. She’d been miserable
overnight in the jail cell with a chatty cellmate who unceasingly related her
life’s story between interludes of sleeping off her drunk. Jail had happened
once before to Sandy under much more uncertain circumstances. This time, at least,
she didn’t have to trade her clothes for an orange jumpsuit and knew she’d be released
in the morning.

“How great to see two of my favorite people. We’ll
skip the hugs until I get a shower,” she said. “Mel, what are you doing here?”

“Just got here. Martin called and I drove down.”

Martin said. “I thought maybe he knew a judge or
someone who could get you out faster. I tried to reach you earlier last night.
I didn’t know you were in jail until you phoned later.”

She held up the phone. “Just got it back, along
with my handbag. I know you’ve been worried.” She eagerly related her incredible
Brad and Doreen story to the pair of sympathetic listeners; she ended by
saying, “—anyway, Doreen would never jump into bed with just any couple who
asks her. And Brad’s sex drive should be kept on leash.”

“Unbelievable experience,” Mel said, “and that
wild bullet could easily have hit you.”

“I want to learn more about that terrifying
episode, but my questions have to wait,” Martin interrupted. “I’ve good news
and bad news.” He wasn’t smiling. “The good news is very good. I found out Gail
hasn’t closed on that condo.”

“You’re kidding! But she was already living there.”

“One would assume that since she’s living in it
that she owns it. I never thought of the possibility she was renting until the
closing. Here’s what she said,” Martin explained. “Initially, they’d thought
about closing in ninety days. Then Gail mentioned she’d be paying cash. Well,
the seller loved hearing that, and they agreed to close as soon as both sides were
ready. And part of the deal was they let her move in immediately and rent the
place until closing.”

Sandy said, “All along, I figured a big hunk of
our money had already gone to the seller. I was hoping we’d recover what was
left and sue her later for the balance. Halleluiah, if she hasn’t closed yet,
then she still has
all
the money—or most of it.”

Martin screwed up his face. “Maybe you should sit
down before I tell you this...the closing is tomorrow afternoon at three.”

“Geez, you mean we have twenty-four hours to find
the cash?”

Mel frowned. “I hate playing devil’s advocate.
Gail might still have most of the cash for the condo purchase, but you don’t
know if that money is yours.”

“Then where’d she get all that cash?” Martin asked,
“She admitted last night that there was no lawsuit with her ex-husband’s
family.”

“We believe she was aware of Boyd getting some
money, went after it and probably shot him,” Sandy said. “No, let’s assume that
money is ours and go for it.”

“Last night, when she mentioned she was buying the
condo with cash,” Martin continued, “I told her she couldn’t just put a stack
of money on the table at closing. She laughed and said she knew that. She knew
she had to take the cash to the bank and get a bank check.”

Sandy’s eyes widened. “She actually said that?
Like she hadn’t yet been to the bank as of last night?”

“Yes, and my jaw dropped. I suggested that she let
me help her. I would help her carry the money to the bank and go to the closing
with her, as well.”

“Martin, you’re a genius.”

“Except she didn’t go for it.”

“Then we must watch her every minute between now
and tomorrow at three. She isn’t carrying all that money around with her. At
some point, possibly tomorrow morning, she’ll get that money from wherever
she’s hiding it and take it to the bank.”

“I’ve been in her apartment and would have loved
to search the place, but I never got the chance. Anyway, I don’t believe the
money is in her apartment. She didn’t seem nervous about leaving me alone in
the place while she left for the bathroom, for example.”

“Something else didn’t work out,” Mel looked sour.
“I phoned agent Hastings last night and asked if the FBI could intercept Gail
at the bank or at the closing and take possession of the money until we
straightened out everything.”

“Great idea,” she said.

“Martin’s idea. But Hastings phoned me this
morning. It’s a no go. Said he didn’t realize you were in West Palm and has
never heard of any Gail Holman. Said he can’t take it to his superiors. He was
very upset with you, by the way.”

“Geez, maybe I should have been working with him
all along.”

“I don’t think so, Sandy. We wouldn’t have been
this far along. Between Agent Hastings and Detective Dominic, we’d been left
sitting on the curb. And the FBI might not have agreed to confiscate her money
anyway,” Martin said. “I looked up the listing real estate broker and phoned
their attorney. I explained that stolen money was going to be used at the
closing tomorrow. I asked for a delay. He was sympathetic but could do nothing
without proof. As of right now, we can offer no proof that she’ll be using
stolen money.”

Mel spoke up, “Once the closing takes place it’ll
take ten years of lawsuits to either get that money back, or get that condo out
of her hands.”

“In any case, time is running out. Let’s get
going.” She checked her watch. “Martin will you run over to the Gardens Mall
and be certain Gail is at work this morning? If she’s there then she probably
didn’t have time to take that cash to the bank this morning. We’ll start
following her this afternoon when she gets off work. We need to stick to her
like bugs on a Florida windshield.”

As they were leaving through the lobby, Martin asked,
“What about the real Mrs. Powell? Anything about her?”

“I don’t actually know,” she answered. “Someone
said she was at the hospital last night. Probably yanking out Brad’s life
support tubes, or at least checking to be certain he’s adequately suffering
from his injuries. I know Gail Holman was seeing Brad at one time. Doreen told
me they pulled the same game on Gail and she went along with it. Apparently,
trying to get in touch with her inner whore.”

“I hate to tell you,” Mel said, “Chief Stabler
knows about this.”

“Yeah, the sergeant told me. Stabler and his
cronies will have some fun with it. News at eleven.”

“Prepare yourself for some fascinating party invitations,”
Mel said.

“Okay, guys enough. I’m off to the Gardens Mall,
I’ll phone you later.” Martin turned and left.

“How is the investigation going up in Park Beach?”
she asked.

“That skinny kid you scuffled with in the Lagoon
Park parking lot started cooperating. He admitted he found the new bike by the
dead body at the park maintenance building and stole it. He was a minor they
gave him a warning. They found Boyd’s prints on the bike, but nothing else
usable.”

“Meaning, that’s how Boyd got to the scene and why
his vehicle was found in a beachside parking lot.”

“The FBI hasn’t reported any activity to us lately.
They’re still upset because they weren’t called in before you dropped the
money. I’m not convinced they’re taking it too seriously. Meanwhile, I’ve kept
our people busy putting together our case of prosecuting the hood responsible
for Chip’s death. I’m asking for the death penalty.”

“I’m not certain about the death penalty, just so
he never gets out,” she said. “Are you in a hurry to get back?’

Mel shook his head.

“I have to get rolling. Will you take me to get my
car? And if Brad happens to be there, I’ve something to say to him as well. We
can talk on the way. I hope we don’t see anyone, I slept in these clothes. I’m
worried about my car as well.”

“Where’d you leave it?”

“At a used car lot on Old Dixie Highway.”

“Forget it. It’s been stripped down to the bare
axels by now.”

“Don’t even think that. But if there’s one
scratch, I’m handing the bill to Brad Powell. I want you nearby when I talk
with him and pick up my car. I don’t want any nonsense. A bandaged body full of
hurt isn’t going to keep him from getting aroused. To hear Doreen talk about it,
when he dies they’re going to have to beat his erection to death with a stick.”

M
orning
traffic had lessened on I-95 and a half-hour later, Mel pulled onto the lot of
Brad’s
Premium Cars
. Sandy expected the worst and closed her eyes as they drove
around to the back of the office building. However, her Miata MX5 was resting
there untouched beside Brad’s Mercedes SLV.

As they got out of their car, she was surprised to
see Brad come out the rear office door. His shoulder was bandaged and his left arm
in a sling. “I wanted to call you. I need to apologize.”

“No shit.”

“Come on inside. I need to explain something to
you.”

“Isn’t this where you smack your forehead with an
ice cream cone?”

“Okay, so it was a dumb idea, but you deserve to
know something. It’s about—” He glanced at Mel. “Your friend can’t hear what I’ve
to say. He stays outside.”

“That’s absurd.” Mel said. “She’s not going in
there alone with a sex offender.”

“I’m not a sex offender. Where’d you get that? Offenders
hurt women, I love them.”

“And several at a time,” Sandy added. “Well, if
not an offender, you’re certainly are a liar and a cheat.”

“Well yeah, a liar and a cheat.” He held the door
for her.

Over her shoulder, she said, “Relax, Mel. I’ll be
fine. Just some unfinished business.”

Brad followed her in and closed the door.

“I misjudged you. I was thinking, since you ran
around with Gail, you were comfortable with her style and almost certainly had
already knocked off a few hugs and giggles with her. You know, you
did
tell me you were close to her. You were giving off signals. You deny that?”

“It was necessary to mislead you because I was
carrying out a murder investigation. You were misleading me because you hadn’t
had sex since noon.”

He offered her a chair and leaned against his desk
in front her. “I didn’t believe for a second your story about Gail owing you
money. I thought that was just a pretense to get a look at me and get invited
into the game. I was surprised when you left without accepting. Then when you
phoned back later, I knew the game was on. What else was I supposed to think?”

“You’re giving me an excuse, not an apology.” She
stood slowly shaking her head. Some salesman, for an instant he had her
thinking it was her own fault. “You are a first-class creep for pulling that
stunt.”

“Believe me, I’d never pull such a stunt on an
innocent woman.”

“Who am I, Shady Sadie?”

“You didn’t sound innocent. Just the opposite, you
sounded really with it. I sensed you were teasing me, playing hard to get to
keep me interested so you could get what information you wanted from me. Sounds
predatory to me. How is that different from someone on the make? So, which of
us is the first-class creep?”

He was correct about her not sounding innocent. She’d
pretended to be someone else, which was always risky. She wasn’t going to
explain about all that. “Even if I did mislead you, it doesn’t justify what you
put me through. I didn’t appreciate having a deadly weapon pointed at me.”

“It’s a bit oversized perhaps, but I wouldn’t call
it deadly.”

“I was talking about the gun, Casanova.”

“Oh, of course.” He leaned toward her. “I do apologize.
I’m so sorry about the entire episode and want to thank you for saving my life.”

“I didn’t save your life. But the emergency
responders probably did.”

“No, you did. They told me at the hospital, if I’d
lost another half-pint of blood, I’d be dead. I didn’t have enough blood left
in me to keep a chicken alive. They said your fast thinking stopped the blood
flow and saved my life. I’d have just bled out. So great the way you rolled me
over and tried to plug up the wound.”

“I’d have done the same thing for someone I liked.”
She looked over at the wooden floor. Large bloodstains were still there. She
remembered washing the blood off her hands last night. She examined them again.
She still had a trace of blood under one fingernail.

Then she had another thought and her face suddenly
felt warm. “Wait, how did you know I rolled you over?” She stopped in
mid-sentence. Blood was rushing to her head. She looked up around the ceiling
and up and down the walls. Then stared fiercely at him. “You had a video
running, didn’t you?”

“No, absolutely not. Doreen must have told me you
rolled me over. That’s not my thing. I don’t need to live vicariously. Other
guys talk it, I live it.”

She wouldn’t put it past him but it made no
difference. She had remained fully clothed and had done nothing except bring it
all to a halt. “If any of that ends up on the Internet, your life will be
toast.”

“I heard you were involved in a murder
investigation. That gives me a problem. My wife has been screaming about this
and really tore into me. This morning she told me, if my name got in the papers
over this, she was going to cut me off.”

“Good idea, I’ll hand her the knife.”

She said I shouldn’t get involved in your murder
case in any possible way. I don’t know anything about Gail’s money anyway.”

“I believe you do.”

“I hinted that I knew something to lure you back
here. I’m sorry I can’t help you. I’m truly embarrassed about the entire
matter.”

“It didn’t embarrass you to tell the sheriff’s
department that I cooperated in the threesome.”

“Oh that. Some police sergeant told me, if I said
you volunteered, they couldn’t charge me with attempted rape. I know you
wouldn’t want me charged with that, now would you?”

“You don’t get it, do you? Playtime is over Brad. I
not only want you facing charges, I intend to instigate criminal proceedings
immediately myself, and see that you and Doreen are prosecuted. You two
conspired in this. When the gun came out, it was assault. When you threatened
me, it was assault. When you ordered me at gunpoint to strip, it was attempted
rape. When you refused to let me leave, it was kidnapping. And there’s another
charge I’ll remember in a minute.”

“Sounds awful except you volunteered, honey. You
just couldn’t believe I had the goodie Gail told you about. So you came around
yesterday afternoon checking me out and lying about how you ran with her. Try
denying all that under oath. You can deny being hot to trot, but then you’d
still need to explain why you came back again last night. Doreen will back me
up and it’ll be one of those ‘we said-you said’ deals.”

“No, Doreen will cooperate in your prosecution to
keep that cute tushie of hers out of jail. You have zero chance to prove I consented.
I’ve been working this case with Detective Dominic, West Palm Beach police.
He’ll testify I told him I was coming here last night. He checked before I came
to see if you had any priors. There’s no question why I showed up. I hope your
wife has lots of money because you’re going to need it to stay out of prison.”

His face turned the color of curdled milk and he
steadied himself against the desk. “Prison? Now wait a minute—”

“Yeah, you’ll soon forget what a woman feels like.”

“I can’t go to prison. No prison...no more talk
about prison. Okay?”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Now that I
have your attention, here’s the way it’s going to be. You’re going to tell me
without further bullshit everything you know about Gail’s money and the
purchase of that condo. It better be the truth and it better be good or I’m
walking. And if I walk I’m coming back with an arrest warrant.”

“And then you’ll drop everything?” Tiny beads of
sweat had formed on his forehead.

“You talk. I decide.”

“Okay, I know a little bit, I hope it’s enough,”
he started. “Gail stole that money. The money was from some crooked deal that
had just gone down for several hundred grand. I could tell she didn’t really
understand the details. All she knew was it was easy money. Her sister-in-law’s
boyfriend was going to pick it up and deliver it to someone. Anyway, to hear
her tell it, the money was just hanging out there waiting to be taken. She
wanted me to go with her and rob the guy. Not interested. The most I’ve ever
stolen was a sugar packet off a restaurant table. I told her the guy wasn’t
just going to hand over the money without an argument. And if we did manage to
rob him, he’d scream to the police. She said no he wouldn’t do anything,
because he was one of the crooks. That’s what she said. I told her to stay away
from it...sounded like mob money to me.”

“Where was all this happening?”

“Up in Park Beach. Does that help? Am I off the
hook? Months in prison would kill me. I can’t be away from my friends.”