Can't Keep a Brunette Down (34 page)

"Jade isn't his patient," Gary said. "He saw her buy a pregnancy test in the hospital pharmacy. Considering he'd just done the autopsy on her husband and had to wait for her to identify the body, that kind of seemed odd."

"So, she and Walter were expecting." Gilda shrugged. "That's not so strange."

He took a drag on the cigarette and met her gaze. "It wouldn't be, except Walter had a vasectomy seven years ago. Doc went back in his records to confirm it. The lovely widow was sleeping around."

Yoshida walked out the front door of Jade's house into the sunshine then got in his car.

"That's old news. Aside from the pregnancy, you're not telling me anything I didn't already know from Mick and Razi."

"Oh, he's not why we're here." Gary held up a hand to silence her. After several seconds passed, he pointed out the windshield. "We're here because of that one."

When a familiar figure emerged from the hedge and strode up the sidewalk, Gilda gasped. "Razi? What's he doing here?"

With a quick glance over one shoulder, Razi tapped on the front door. Jade stuck her head out and spoke to him, her face pinched and angry, then handed him a paper bag. Clearly not satisfied, Razi pushed past her into the house.

"Gary, I don't understand. What does Razi have to do with everything?"

"My connections all came up with dead ends. I think that's something you need to ask the man himself." Gary butted his cigarette. "From what I assume, it has something to do with his stint in the army and the fact he and the merry widow have a past. A past they might want hidden from a number of people."

"Like the other black belts," she said. "Oh wow."

 

Gilda had walked around holding her breath for so long she'd forgotten what it was like to breathe. Today was no different. After Gary dropped her off at her house in silence with more questions than answers, she paced the garden trying to piece together what was going on.

Why would Razi walk straight into Jade's house like he owned the place, and why would Gary be so cryptic if he knew the truth? If Razi and Jade had a one-time fling, there was no way he'd be so comfortable there unless…

She started to text Mick about Jade's pregnancy then stopped. Cripes, half the men in town could be the father, including Mick. How was she supposed to find the truth when Jade probably didn't even know who the father was?

Texting Razi would be an even bigger mistake, since he was straight back at the top of her suspect list. While she was sure he was too big to be the man who'd run out the back of the dojo, either he or Yoshida could have been the man in the yellow bathrobe she'd seen in Jade's house that day. The man had moved too quickly for her to get a good look.

Her phone buzzed. A text from Mick. In one more hour, the trap to catch a killer would be laid, and Gilda still wasn't sure they had the right bait. The more she thought, the more doubts nagged her. While Yoshida was her logical choice for a killer, maybe he'd been the intended target all along and the others simply got in the way. Razi's way.

Mick had kept so many secrets she wasn't sure she could trust him, even though he'd said he was innocent. Using him to lure the killer would only work if Razi wasn't the intended target and if Mick wasn't the killer about to both get his target and end his own life.

Razi had his own reasons for wanting the other black belts dead. As a former soldier, he could have been quick and efficient. What if he'd wanted Mick dead all along and planned to do it in front of everyone?

Wary, Gilda made her way to the school. At the front desk, Mick, Thayer, and Fabio glanced up as they went over some last minute instructions. Razi was nowhere in sight. She sighed when the cops went to stake out the best hiding spots.

Mick reached out and hugged her tight. "You okay?"

"No. I think this is a really bad idea." She hugged her stomach and glanced toward the dojo, fighting the urge to tell him what she'd seen. "Where's Razi?"

When Fabio returned and leaned on the counter, Mick let her go. "He had some things to tie up. He'll be here when he's done."

Her stomach lurched. Things like dealing with Jade Levy's pregnancy, perhaps? She had to stop second-guessing herself. That part was up to Thayer and Fabio.

Thayer came around and grabbed her arm. "Time for you to leave the detecting to the police. Go home."

"Not a chance." She shrugged him off. "I want to catch this guy as much as you do. Probably even more. I promise. I won't get in the way."

"I understand that," Mick said. "We all do. But maybe this isn't the best place for you to be. Anything could happen today."

Gilda huffed. "I've been knocked out and stalked and discovered two dead bodies, and you don't think I should be here to see how it all ends? Are you kidding me? I want a front-row seat."

"Go home, Gilda." Mick was stern.

When she glared in return, he moved back. "Not. A. Chance."

"I'll take her with me into the changing room," Fabio said. "She'll be safe there."

Mick grabbed her shoulders. "Whatever happens, you need to stay put. Don't do anything unless Fabio gives you the all clear. Got it?"

Angry and terrified all at once, she threw her arms around his neck. "Please be careful."

"I will," Mick said. "And when this is done, you and I can spend time alone figuring some things out."

"What kind of things?" Gilda's heart beat faster when he looked her in the eyes then kissed her and leaned his forehead against hers.

"Like where we go from here." Mick smiled. "And how we're going to make what I know we've already got work. I vote for a sunny beach and all the margaritas we can drink."

"Time alone on a sunny beach? That sounds good," she said.

When Mick glanced over to where Thayer and Fabio stood discussing last-minute ideas, Gilda followed his gaze. He waited until Thayer turned their way before he kissed Gilda so hard that her body seemed to ignite, even after he moved away and whispered, "I do love you."

She smiled through her tears and nodded, unable to speak as doubt still nagged.

Fabio led her to the changing room in back and made sure they had good views of the dojo and shrine. A strip of daylight peered through the back door Mick had left slightly ajar. The trap was set, and Gilda's heart beat in her throat.

From her vantage point, Mick was clearly visible. He'd stripped off his
gi
top and did the only thing he could to make things appear normal. He trained. Kata after kata, for half an hour until sweat dripped off his hair and rolled down the curves of his bare back.

Gilda's foot fell asleep. When she shook it, she kicked the wall by accident.

Mick flinched but didn't stop moving.

"Careful," Fabio whispered from the next stall.

She stretched without making any sudden movements. The last thing they wanted to do was give their hiding spots away. The waiting, however, was agonizing, and her stomach ached from anticipation, especially when Mick was a sitting duck and there was little anyone could do if a gunshot rang out. Luckily, that didn't seem to be the killer's style. He seemed to favor more traditional weapons.

Something banged in the wall down the hallway, and then metal grated on metal. After several seconds of holding her breath and straining her neck to see what was happening, the wall vent popped open. There was no way Razi could have fit inside the one-foot-by-one-foot square.

One narrow hand slapped the floor, then another before Yoshida crawled into the school, his dark hair mussed and dusty. Gilda wanted to scream out a warning but bit her tongue. Thayer had placed a sensor at the top of the vent and, even though he was in Mick's office across the school, probably already knew Yoshida was there before she had.

Yoshida brushed fine dust off his clothes then walked barefoot down the hall toward the dojo. He paused in the doorway.

Mick ended his kata then turned to face his teacher and bowed. "My apologies,
Shihan
. I didn't hear the door."

"I am not surprised. You were training hard and oblivious, as usual. What is it you would like to discuss?" Brusque. To the point. Business as usual. Mick must have called to lure him in, but why crawl through the vent when he had a key? He hadn't wanted anyone to see him. No witnesses.

Gilda's heart hammered so loudly she was sure both men heard. She held her breath and struggled to calm her vibrating body. Could they sense her or hear her heart beating against her ribs?

"I wanted to discuss the rental agreement for our Detroit school." Mick paced as he spoke, a jaguar with rippling muscles and raw power, but stayed within her sight. "We need to renegotiate. I can't afford that amount. I'll need a lot of equipment for start-up."

In the center of the dojo, Yoshida frowned. "I cannot do that. Since I now own the building, I need to pay the mortgage. I also need to support my fiancée as well as her children."

"Your fiancée?" Mick asked. "Don't you mean Walter's widow? Is that why you killed him? I get the katana, but poisoning him seems like overkill. Even for someone like you."

"Perhaps, but as much as his wife no longer wanted to be with him, she did not wish him to suffer. I respected her wishes." Yoshida sank gracefully to his knees and sat with his body at a forty-five-degree angle to Gilda. "Walter never appreciated her. I lavish her with gifts and keep up with her in ways her husband never could."

Mick continued to pace. "The way I hear it, she's got a lot of boy toys. What makes you think she'll give up her house and life here to go anywhere with you?"

Yoshida's back stiffened. "You are a bad liar."

"Am I?" Mick asked. "Ask around. You're not her only boyfriend. I guarantee it."

The Zen calmness was gone in a huff as Yoshida let out a slow, shaky breath. "If you will not cooperate with my wishes, I do have other ways to deal with you." He slid something out of his shirt sleeve.

Over in the next stall, Fabio made a small noise. Gilda was sure it was all he could do to hold back from running out and tackling Yoshida.

"A blowgun." Mick's voice wavered. "Am I supposed to be your next victim? Time, right? What exactly does time have to do with me?"

"Ah, you figured it out." Yoshida sounded genuinely pleased. "Clever, but too late."

Gilda sucked in a squeak, and her entire body tensed. She'd been right. Yoshida was the killer. Mick was about to die, and it was far too late for an "I told you so."

"Walter's past made him dishonorable, plus he was in your way with Jade," Mick said. "Erik was about to turn his back on you and all your training. Since he showed a lack of integrity, you literally stabbed him in the back. Xavier has me stumped, though. What did he ever do to you?"

"He wanted to be your equal and have a school of his own. I was reluctant." Yoshida frowned. "When he poisoned my tea and made me very ill, I lost patience with him and wanted to banish him."

Yet a third victim of Xavier's rash of cyanide poisonings.

"Which made him no longer loyal, so you killed him," Mick said. "The third possession."

Yoshida smiled. "You are smarter than I gave you credit for."

"Actually, Gilda—Miss Wright—figured it out. She's the smart one." Mick glanced toward her desk rather than toward the curtain she hid behind. "It wasn't wise of you to make her your enemy when you tried to beat her to a pulp in class."

She smiled, face warm. While grateful for the compliments, she wasn't sure Mick giving her credit for solving the puzzle was such a good idea. If their plan didn't work, Yoshida would come after her and Razi next. Where was Razi? Why wasn't he here to watch Mick's back?

"The receptionist?" Yoshida snorted. "Her friends are gangsters who could cause us trouble. She is weak and not worthy of your loyalty."

"You thought she suspected you all along, didn't you?" Mick went on. "That's why you went after her in the workshop. You thought if she was afraid of you, she'd never tell anyone."

Yoshida snorted. "You would listen to a silly girl's flights of fancy rather than believe in me? I am your Sensei. She is nothing."

Gilda held her breath.

"You're wrong," Mick said. "She's the backbone of this school, and I do believe her, especially since it appears she was right."

"That is of little consequence." Yoshida raised the blowgun to his mouth.

"I never took you for a coward." Mick shook his head. "A true
goju
karate master would stand up and fight like a man with his bare hands, empty hands, not resort to blowguns and weapons. Of course, he'd also never kill his students out of jealousy." Mick held up a hand. "Not that it matters but, just for the record, what are you using? Rat poison?"

"Suitable, but too obvious." A sly smile slid across Yoshida's face. "A neurotoxin not tested for in North America. Within minutes you will stop breathing. Then your heart will stop. The poison will spread even after your body dies. No one will know what hit you."

"In other words, cobra venom," Mick said. "Just like you used on Walter."

Yoshida's back stiffened. When he raised the blowgun to his lips, Gilda gripped the curtains and longed to burst out of the changing room. If he heard her, he'd shoot her instead. Mick and Razi would be safe. Had she become that fearless?

Across the dojo
,
something clicked, and her blood ran cold.

Thayer, in his socks, crept across the mats behind Yoshida and pointed a gun to his head. "Put the weapon down."

Gilda sucked in a sharp breath. She wanted to close her eyes and lay her head against the wall, but she wasn't so sure it was over. Yoshida's chest expanded, filling with air as his mouth opened so slightly Thayer would not have seen the motion. Yoshida had too much to lose.

Her muscles tensed before the bamboo reed blowgun even touched his lips. She shoved the curtain aside, aware of nothing and everything all at once as her feet touched the puzzle mats a heartbeat before Yoshida let out a sharp puff of air. Her shoulder connected with Yoshida's torso, and she shoved him to the ground. Two solid thuds vibrated the mats before everything stood still.