Jailhouse Glock (12 page)

“Yes, but I’ve forgotten it. I remember thinking it sounded like some kind of animal.” She shot up from her chair and leaned over to kiss Maddy’s forehead. “Gotta run or I’ll be late. Don’t worry about me, Mom. I’m ten, remember?” She grabbed her backpack from the counter and headed for the door.

Maddy got up and walked out to wait with her for the school bus. Her gut told her it was too much of a coincidence that Bernardi had shown up at her house the week before she was accused of killing him. And why had the police found the photo at
his
house when they’d tossed it after his murder? He couldn’t have taken it himself, so there had to have been an accomplice. But why take it at all?

And why did he think someone named Alan lived there? She’d bought the house from Barney Krieger, a widower whose children were grown and long gone. The elder Krieger had decided that the house was too much to take care of alone and he’d gone off to one of those swanky seniors-only places in North Dallas.

And if Maddy remembered correctly, he’d only had two daugh
ters.

After hugging Jessie one last time, she watched her climb onto the bus, hiding her fears as she waved before the bus pulled away. She was beginning to get a bad feeling about all this and wished she could talk to Rogers right now. Maybe he could shed some light on all of it.

What she’d really like to do was pick up the phone and run this by her brother-in-law, but that was out of the question. She wasn’t in the mood for one of Colt’s hour-long lectures about how she’d promised to stay out of the investigation.

But how could she? This whole thing was becoming more and more personal. Someone had deliberately set her up and had worked really hard at it the week before Bernardi was killed. They’d made contact with her ten year old, for God’s sake!

Even though she’d only talked to Gino Bernardi briefly, she had no doubt the man couldn’t have known he’d be shot that night. He had been so confident he’d be getting sprung from jail by morning, he’d even invited her to a steak dinner—served with an orgasm for dessert—the next night. Plus he was way too egotistical to agree to a plan that ended up with him dead.

No, either someone had double-crossed him and decided to conveniently tie up a loose end, or he was merely an innocent pawn in
an intricate plan to blackmail her. But if he was a loose end, that meant
the other guy in the cell next to him could have been the target all along.

Dammit!
She wracked her brain trying to remember the other pris
oner’s name, but she kept coming up blank.

She turned and walked back to the house. With only half an hour before her sisters would arrive to decide what their next move would
be, she needed to grab a quick shower. Halfway up the steps, she
froze
in her tracks.

Then she sprinted back to the kitchen and grabbed the manila folder. Flipping through the pages, she finally found what she was looking for. There in black and white on the police report was the name of the guy who had positively ID’ed her as the person who had shot him at the police station.

Alan Foxworthy.

She shook her head as if she could get rid of the confusing
thoughts
overwhelming her right now. She’d never believed in coincidences, and she wasn’t about to start now.

A wave of nausea pulsed through her as her daughter’s words just a few minutes before came back to her. When she’d asked Jessie if she remembered the last name of the man Bernardi was looking for at their house, she’d said it sounded like an animal to her.

The fact that Gino Bernardi had been looking for someone with the exact name of the guy he’d fought with at Cowboys Galore and had ended up next to him in a Vineyard jail cell had to mean something.

But what?

Everyone had assumed that Bernardi hadn’t known the guy he’d nearly killed in the bar that night. What if both of them had been part of the setup?

thirteen

Deena bit down on
a breakfast burrito and reached for a second one from the opened box in the center of the table. “Rosa’s Cantina makes the absolute best breakfast burritos in town. It was a great idea to order in, Maddy.”

“Lainey brought these.” Maddy placed a nearly full bottle of orange juice and four glasses on the table. “Help yourselves.”

“Then kudos to Lainey,” Deena said. “Thanks, sis. I needed this.”

“You’re welcome.” Lainey reached for a burrito before they were all gone. “I figured Maddy had her hands full trying to prove she didn’t
kill Bernardi. Besides, Rosa’s was right on the way, and I had a couple of two-for-one coupons from the other night when Colt, Gracie, and I ate there.”

“After all the hospital food I’ve eaten for the past couple of days, this tastes like I’ve died and gone to Mexican food heaven.” Kate poured on the hot sauce before shoving the last bite of burrito into her mouth.

Watching her sisters sitting around the dining room table doing what they did best—eating—Maddy felt a sudden surge of confidence. When the Garcia girls put their heads together to work on a project, nothing stopped them. Seeing them all together again gave her a renewed hope that they’d be able to get her out of the mess she was in. She remembered their success the previous year when they’d worked relentlessly to find Tessa’s killer.

Maddy stopped midway through a huge bite and glanced around the room. Where was Tessa anyway? Her younger sister had always been the social butterfly of the group, and if anyone knew what went on behind closed doors in Vineyard, it was Tessa. She needed to be here with them now. Although she wished she could summon her up somehow, Maddy knew that Tessa’s ghost popped in and out randomly. Even Tessa herself had no control over when she made an
appearance. At least that’s what she said every time they fussed about it.

Maddy glanced at the clock above the sink. It was almost ten, and she still hadn’t given her sisters an update about what she’d uncovered the past two days. She couldn’t wait any longer for Tessa, figur
ing she could bring her up to speed later. Right now, she needed to get
the meeting started.

Taking a big gulp of her orange juice to wash down the last of her breakfast, she faced her sisters. “Okay, first off, we need someone to take notes.” She shoved a pad and pencil Deena’s way. “You’ve always been pretty good at that, Deena. Do you mind?”

Deena beamed like someone had just told her she looked like a million bucks—which was far from the truth, if Maddy was being honest. Her eyes were puffy, making Maddy wonder if her sister was battling insomnia or eating too much salt. And her hair was about a month past due for a cut and style. Sporting a pair of slacks and a dingy white blouse that looked as though it had been washed with a load of darks, the always spruced-up Deena hadn’t even bothered to put on makeup. This was so not Deena, and it worried Maddy.

She decided she’d have a private talk with her after the others left. Although Deena was two years younger than her, they’d grown up best friends, sharing everything with each other. Both could tell how the other was feeling with just a look.

And after taking another peek, Maddy was sure something was definitely up with her sister. She wondered if whatever was bothering Deena was something recent. Or had they all been too busy with their own lives lately to notice that something had been going on with her for a while? Regardless, she vowed to take care of that today, mentally scolding herself for not being there for her sister.

“Here’s what we know so far.” She proceeded to tell them about her trip to the bar with Tom Rogers, purposely leaving out the part about the hot cowboy who’d unnerved her with his intense stare.

“Something smells fishy,” Kate interrupted when Maddy repeated what the bartender has said about Bernardi. “Why would the guy
suddenly get bent out of shape over someone flirting with the
woman when she’d obviously been using the bar to pick up guys all along?”

Maybe because he got a taste of her himself and decided to go all macho and possessive on her.

Maddy turned just as Tessa walked from the living room into the kitchen and pulled up a chair next to Deena.

Or maybe he was her pimp and didn’t like the guy’s attitude. Have you given any thought to that, sis?
She plopped down and pointed to Deena’s hair.
What’s up, girlfriend? You need a new ’do.

“I did think of that, but if it’s true, why would Bernardi nearly kill the guy if he was actually her pimp? Isn’t that like throwing money away?”

“What the hell are you talking about?” the three sisters asked in unison.

“Oh, sorry,” Maddy said. “I forgot I’m the only one who can hear Tessa. She’s wondering if Bernardi was a pimp.”

“You know, that’s a real possibility,” Kate said, narrowing her eyes.
“But I still don’t get why he was so outraged and pounded on the other guy for getting chummy if he and the girl were turning tricks together.”

“From what all the witnesses at the bar said, it appeared the two men didn’t know each other.” Maddy shook her head. “It just doesn’t add up.”

“It sure doesn’t,” Deena said. “Why would the guy make a pass at this woman if he was about to get everything and more after he handed over some cash? No foreplay necessary when there’s money involved. And didn’t you tell us that Bernardi was about fifty pounds heavier, Maddy?” She waited until Maddy nodded before continuing. “So, why would the other guy grope her right in front of Bernardi if he knew there was no way he would get laid and a very real possibility he would get whaled on?”

For the same reason dogs chase cars that they have no chance in hell of catching. They’re stupid. Maybe the guy had already forked out the cash and was just getting a head start on his investment. A naked woman in bed has a tendency to overpower a man’s good sense. Hell, come to think of it, that’s assuming men have any sense at all, good or bad.

Maddy pondered that for a moment. “Okay, let’s assume Bernardi hooked up with our mystery lady recently and was just having a testosterone reaction when he saw some guy grab her tush. That would explain why he ended up pounding the living crap out of the other guy, but it wouldn’t tell us why his killing went down the way it
did that night.” She stared down at the picture of Bernardi. “Why would
someone go to all the trouble of carrying out this execution at the station in a way that would frame me? If they’d have waited one more day, they could’ve killed him in the parking lot of a bar somewhere. Or at his apartment. Seems to me that would’ve been a whole lot easier. So why am I in the mix?”

“Yeah, we’re definitely missing something,” Kate said before glancing
at her watch. “I have to be back at the hospital in an hour, Maddy. Is there anything else we need to talk about before I leave?”

Maddy sighed, knowing her sisters would all flip out when they found out that Bernardi had actually been at her house when her daughter was alone. She stood and walked to the cabinet and reached
for the vodka on the top shelf. “I need something a little stronger before
I tell you the next part.”

When the others eyeballed the half-empty bottle of vodka, there was a collective cheer around the table.

“Now you’re talking,” Lainey said, as she shoved her glass toward Maddy. “Hit me.”

“Dammit!” Kate said. “Sometimes it sucks having a job where
people’s lives actually depend on you.” She refilled her glass with juice
only. “I have to say, Maddy, I’m getting a little nervous about why you need alcohol to tell us something. You hardly ever drink—and never before dinner.”

Maddy poured a small amount of vodka into her juice and sat down with the manila folder she’d grabbed from the counter. After downing a big gulp, she opened it and slid the picture across the table.

Lainey was the first to react.
“Oh my God!
When was this taken?”

“A few days before Bernardi was arrested.”

“What in the hell was he doing at your house?” Deena asked, un
able to hide the horrified look on her face. It was just the reaction Maddy
had expected.

“He was looking for Alan Foxworthy. Thought the man lived
here.”

“Should that name ring a bell with us?” Kate asked.

Maddy blew out a breath. “He’s the guy who fought with Ber
nardi
at the bar—the one who was in the cell next to him and was also shot.”

“What? That makes no sense,” Lainey said. “And isn’t he the guy who positively identified you as the shooter”

Maddy nodded. “I’ve wracked my brain trying to figure out a reason why he’d say that. He was in on the plan to frame me or the person that shot him was disguised to look like me somehow. Either way, it would’ve been a lot easier to wait until Bernardi was out of jail before killing him.”

Who took the picture?
Tessa asked.

“I don’t know. The cops found it in Bernardi’s apartment when they searched it after he was killed,” Maddy responded then remembered the others hadn’t heard the question. “Tessa wanted to know who took the picture.”

“Okay,” Lainey said, shoving the photo back across the table.
“Sounds
like it’s time we have a little chat with our mystery barfly.”

“Already on it,” Maddy said. “I have her address, and I thought I’d run over there this afternoon to see if she can shed some light on all this. Who’s with me?”

“Can’t,” Kate said, scrunching her lips in a pout. “I always miss out on all the good stuff. Hope to hell I make it all the way through my residency so these eighteen-hour days will be worth it.”

“I can’t, either.” Deena poured herself another screwdriver. “I’m working from home today so it doesn’t count as a sick day.”

Maddy made eye contact with Lainey as a huge grin flashed across
her face.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. My curiosity is killing me. Besides, I need to bone up on my investigative skills. Anchoring the six o’clock news on the weekend doesn’t exactly stimulate my journalistic mind.” She looked around the table. “What about you, Tessa?”

Oh, hell yes. Seeing my two sisters go after that poor defenseless ho will make my day.

“It’s settled then. Tessa’s in, too. We’ll plan on meeting back here again day after tomorrow and go from there. We’ll report everything to you, Deena, so you can add it to the notes. That way, they’ll be all together when—” Maddy stopped abruptly when the doorbell rang, nearly causing her to jump out of her skin.

Scrambling from her seat, she walked quickly to the door, wondering if the wallpaper samples she’d requested before this fiasco started had finally arrived. A lot of good they’d be to her now since there was no way she could afford any more improvements on the house.

“Have you checked my references yet?”

Up this close to Jake Matthews, Maddy noticed how blue his eyes were and how the nice citrusy smell from his body tickled her nostrils. “I’ve started, but I’m not finished yet,” she lied.

Actually she’d had Tom Rogers do a complete criminal background
check on him the day before. To her surprise Jake Matthews was an ex-cop who now worked for an insurance company that catered to the world’s wealthiest clients, insuring all their high-dollar toys and assets.

“Didn’t find any dirt on me, did you?” He leaned against the door frame, never once taking his eyes off her face.

“Not yet,” she said, trying desperately to show him that his gaze didn’t faze her. “If there’s something there, trust me, I’ll find it.”

She met his stare with an intense one of her own, wondering how
a decorated cop like him—according to Rogers’s information—
could leave law enforcement altogether and be satisfied working for an insurance company.

And what exactly did an ex-cop do at an insurance company, any
how?

Jake broke eye contact first, then pulled out his wallet and handed her a check. “Like I said, I’ll only be in town for a short time. Here’s two thousand dollars for a couple of months rent plus an extra thousand as a security deposit. That should just about cover it for both rooms upstairs, right?”

Maddy stared at the check in his hand. It was way more than she’d ever intended to charge. More importantly, it was more than enough to reach the ten grand she needed for her lawyer’s retainer fee. She wanted so badly to reach for it and have all her money problems go away for a while, but something held her back.

She cocked her head and narrowed her eyes at him. “Why’d you leave the San Antonio Police Department?” She didn’t care if it was out of line and dangerously skirting the none-of-your-business range. If she was seriously considering letting this guy live in her house with her ten-year-old daughter, she had to know he wasn’t a danger to them. “And don’t lie to me because I’ll find out soon enough.”

His eyes flashed anger before a glint of mischief replaced it. “Been checking up on me down at the station, I see.” He lowered his head
and shifted the weight from one foot to the other before glancing back
up at her, a look of sadness now on his face. “I lost my partner in a drug bust. After that I questioned why I was a cop. I became a liability to anybody who was unfortunate enough to partner with me.” He took a deep breath then let it out slowly, sending the unmistakable whiff of alcohol her way.

Warning flags popped up in her head like weeds in a flower
garden.