A.L. Jambor - Where's Audrey? (15 page)

A deputy came and took Jason out of the interrogation room. He’d take Jason to a cell. He’d be transferred to the Pinellas County Jail and put in general population. When the state attorney decided what he’d be charged with, he’d be arraigned, assigned bail, and given a public defender.

Conner wondered how he had gotten out of jail that morning. He’d been arraigned on the animal cruelty charge and someone must have bonded him out. He went to his desk and looked at the court docket. Jason was bonded out by a bail bondsman on 49th Street, a block away from the jail. He dialed their number and found out that Susan, Jason’s girlfriend at the water company, had paid the ten percent on Jason’s thousand dollar bond.

“And I thought you didn’t see him anymore,” Conner said out loud when he hung up the phone.

“Did you catch that body under the trailer case?” Jim, the deputy at the next desk, asked.

“Yes. I was following up on the missing persons I got the other day.”

“That was dumb luck, wasn’t it? I guess you found ’em.”

Sadly, Conner hoped so too, although he would have preferred finding out she was in Europe.

Chapter 21

Lisa was chattering, but Mel wasn’t listening. They were sitting on the porch. The sky was overcast and it looked like it would rain soon.

“So, what
do
you want to do for Christmas?” Lisa asked.

“I’m sorry,” Mel said. “I wasn’t listening.”

Lisa smiled. “That’s okay. I just don’t know what to say to you.”

“You don’t have to say anything. Just be here.”

“How well did you know your aunt?”

“That’s just it. I didn’t know her well at all, but I’ve been close to my grandmother and I know this will hurt her terribly. I don’t want to have to tell her, but I’m gonna have to.”

“It might be better if you just do it and get it over with. She should know.”

“But I’d rather tell her after Christmas, you know? Won’t it ruin Christmas for her for the rest of her life?”

“Yeah, I guess it would. Your aunt didn’t just go to sleep. She was buried under that place.”

Mel glared at Lisa. “I know.”

“Sorry. I’m not real good with things like this. Would you like me to leave you alone for a while? I could run to the store and get stuff for later.”

“I wish Conner would call,” Mel said.

“It’s Christmas Eve. Is he working?”

“I thought he would call last night. I left a message on his voicemail. I don’t want to call again or he’ll think I’m stalking him.”

“One call doesn’t make you a stalker. Call him again.”

“Maybe he doesn’t want to tell me what happened. Maybe it’s so awful he can’t say the words.”

“He’s a cop. He has to be busy.”

“But he’s called me all along. Why stop now?”

“Mel, call him. I’m going to the store. Do you want anything?”

“Bring ice cream,” Mel said. “I need chocolate.”

After Lisa left, Mel grabbed her phone from the table between the loungers. She noticed the call from Nana Grace and felt bad she hadn’t called her back. Lisa had given her a Benadryl when they came back to the condo and Mel had slept for hours. She would call Nana Grace after she talked to Conner. She dialed his number. This time he picked it up.

“Hi,” Mel said.

“Sorry I haven’t called. I’ve been trying to get someone to do the autopsy and I’m hitting walls.”

“They haven’t done it yet?”

“No. I’m afraid it won’t be until after Christmas. I’m sorry, Mel. I really tried to get someone on it.”

“So I can’t call my grandmother yet because we don’t even know for sure it is my aunt.”

“Nothing positive yet. But by the end of next week, we will know.”

“That means I have to stay here another week.”

“You don’t have to stay. I can call you.”

“But I can’t just leave her here.”

“Oh. Well, no. Listen, I’m off tonight. Do you want to do something?”

“Lisa and I are staying in.”

“Can I come over? My family lives in the Midwest.”

“You can come, but I don’t know if I’ll be good company.”

“Give me the address.”

Mel gave him the address and hung up the phone. She looked at the water and sighed. She still didn’t know if she should call Nana Grace. What if it wasn’t Audrey’s body? She would upset the old woman for no reason. She decided to wait. She’d have to call tomorrow to say Merry Christmas, but she’d have to say she still didn’t know anything. She hoped Nana wouldn’t press her for more information.

Lisa returned carrying a small, decorated Christmas tree that she set on the kitchen table.

“I saw it and couldn’t resist,” she said. “It lights up.”

She plugged it into the outlet next to the table and smiled when the different colored lights came on.

“See,” she said, “it’s Christmas!”

Mel smiled. She was glad Lisa had brought it home. It did make it feel like Christmas.

“I have to call my grandmother tomorrow,” Mel said. “I’m not sure I can keep this from her.”

“You’ll do fine. You’re stronger than you think.”

“I am when it comes to myself, but when it comes to her, I don’t know. I don’t know if I can stand to hear her cry.”

“She’s probably stronger than you think, too. Didn’t you say she got a divorce? That was like a hundred years ago. It was hard to get one back then. She’d have to be strong to do that.”

“It was
sixty
years ago. I guess she would have to be strong to do that then. I’m just chicken, I guess.”

“Well, you don’t have to do it until tomorrow so let’s talk about something else.”

Lisa emptied the bag of groceries and showed Mel the two half gallons of ice cream she had bought.

“The store had a buy one get one free sale. I got you rocky road and for me, vanilla fudge.”

Mel took the half gallon of rocky road from Lisa’s hand and took a spoon out of the drawer.

“I’ll get you a bowl,” Lisa said.

“I won’t need one,” Mel said. She took the half gallon to the living room.

“Okay, then.”

Mel was able to eat half the carton before she surrendered to her full stomach and put the rest in the freezer.

“I feel sick,” she said.

“You want to walk around the block?” Lisa said.

“Why would I want to do that? I said I feel sick.”

“It would move it through your stomach.”

“I don’t think that will work. It feels like a brick in my stomach.”

“I got nothing else. So, do you want to go to a movie tomorrow?”

“We could. I just have to see what happens when I talk to my nana.”

“How old is she?”

“I’m not sure exactly, but I know she’s in her nineties. My mother is in her forties, and my grandmother is in her sixties.”

“What happened with your mother? I remember she used to visit you once in a while.”

“I don’t see her,” Mel said. She thought about her mother. “Did I ever tell you about her? She got pregnant when she was in high school and when I was born, my grandmother raised me while she finished school. I don’t think she had any interest in being a mom. She would come home on holidays and talk to me like I was one of her friends. It pissed me off. She treated my grandmother like shit.”

“I remember the one time I saw her, she was trying to dress like you. Why didn’t your grandmother tell her off?”

“Because grandma didn’t want her to mess with the custody arrangement. My mother still had parental rights. Grandma didn’t want her to pull something stupid like taking me away from her.”

“But if she didn’t want you, what difference would it have made?”

“There was something between them I never understood, and neither one of them would talk about it.”

“That sucks. But I’m glad you stayed with your grandma because I wouldn’t have met you if you’d been with your mother.”

“I would have liked living in California, though. I don’t like the cold. But, yeah, I’m glad I met you, too.”

“When is Conner coming over?”

“I guess after work. He didn’t say exactly.”

“I bought a frozen lasagna and two bottles of soda.”

“That sounds nutritious.”

“Says the woman who ate a half gallon of rocky road. We’re on vacation, Mel.”

“I know. I don’t know if I can eat another thing today.”

“Then Conner and I will eat it, while we gaze into each other’s eyes.”

Mel laughed. “He does have nice eyes.” She put her hands on her stomach. She could feel her full stomach and noted how hard it was. “Do we have anything for indigestion?”

“I think my dad has some Pepto Bismol in one of the medicine cabinets.”

“Oh, God, no. Not that pink stuff.”

“I can go get something. There’s a Walgreen’s down the street.”

“No. I’ll be all right.”

“Come on,” Lisa said. “We’ll go for a walk.”

She went to Mel and pulled her out of the chair. Mel groaned, but followed Lisa. They went down the stairs to the street and went to the beach. The overcast sky cloaked the full sun, giving the illusion of UV ray safety. Lisa had put on her sunblock when she got dressed, but Mel hadn’t thought of it, and when they returned to the condo, she was a nice, bright red.

“I’m going to the drugstore,” Lisa said.

“Why?” Mel asked.

“Because you’ll need some aloe vera, and I’ll pick up some antacid, too.”

Mel went to the bathroom mirror and looked at her face. She came back to the living room.

“Okay,” she said, “and thanks.”

“I should have reminded you to cover your skin. I’ll be back.”

Now Mel was not only depressed, she was sore and sick to her stomach. She thought about calling Conner and telling him not to come, but he had no family here. He’d be alone. She looked at her phone and saw that it was four. She might feel better in three hours.

Chapter 22

Mel did feel better when Conner arrived at seven-thirty. She didn’t eat much lasagna, though, and sipped coke for her stomach. Conner and Lisa ate well, and when they were done, Conner put one of the kitchen chairs on the porch so they could all sit together. Lisa lit the citronella candle.

“Why can’t they do an autopsy sooner?” Lisa asked.

“Because the M.E. has the holiday off. He’s a doctor.”

“So, of course, he has off,” Lisa said.

“Of course,” Conner said. “You really got red.”

Mel smiled, but it hurt her cheeks. “I did. Thanks for reminding me.”

Conner smiled broadly. “Don’t mention it. This is Florida, you know.”

“Be nice,” Lisa said. “She’s in pain.”

“And it’s Christmas,” Mel said.

“Okay. But it is Florida.”

“You said your family is in the Midwest. Whereabouts?” Mel asked.

“Missouri. It gets cold there.”

“Like Jersey,” Mel said. “I hate the cold.”

“I thought I’d be near Miami,” Conner said. “I should have looked at a map.”

“How did you get the job here?” Lisa asked.

“My friend lived here. He told me they were taking applications and I applied.”

“Were you a cop in Missouri?” Lisa asked.

“For a while. I went into the academy after I got my associate’s degree.”

“Do you like it?” Mel asked.

“It’s never dull,” Conner said.

“Do you think it’s her?”

Conner looked at Mel. “Yes.”

“I have to tell my grandmother something. I just want to be right when I talk to her.”

“I told her to just say Merry Christmas,” Lisa said.

“I know she’ll ask me outright if I know anything. I’m a terrible liar.”

“Don’t lie. Just say the police are working on it and you haven’t heard anything,” Conner said. “Period. Don’t elaborate or she’ll trip you up.”

“Yeah,” Lisa said. “The less you say, the better.”

“We’ll know by next week, Mel.”

“How?” Mel asked.

“DNA. You’re a relative. We’ll swab you and match it to hers.”

“Oh.”

“So, are we going to a movie tomorrow or what?” Lisa asked.

“I have to work,” Conner said.

“I don’t know if I’ll want to or not,” Mel said.

“Well, this sucks,” Lisa said. “I think I’ll go to bed.”

Conner looked at his watch. “It’s only nine o’clock.”

“I’m tired. I’ll see you. Nice meeting you, Conner.”

“You, too.”

After Lisa left, Conner sat on her lounger. He looked over at Mel’s red face. She looked like a sad little girl.

“When are you due back at work?” he asked.

“After new year’s.”

“You said you manage the place. What’s that like?”

“It’s hard because people don’t listen. They don’t show up on time. They want to wear me down so I’ll let them have their way.”

“So you’re like a parent.”

“Oh, God. Absolutely.”

“There are Starbucks down here,” Conner said.

She glanced at him. “So.”

“So you could transfer and be warm.”

“I can’t really leave my grandmother. Both of them actually.”

“Bring them with you.”

“Nana just moved into a senior complex. I doubt they want to move again. And Nana is very attached to Jersey.”

“So you’ll stay in Jersey.”

“Yeah, Jersey.”

Mel’s phone rang. She grabbed it off the table and looked at it.