No One Left to Tell (14 page)

‘Wow.’ It was like being in a real gingerbread house. The walls looked like cookies and had giant lollipops sticking out at random angles. ‘
Kids
have parties here?’

‘In this room,’ Grayson said. ‘There are eight party rooms, plus a banquet hall for wedding receptions. Lisa’s husband started the catering business and Lisa turned it into a one-stop party shop.’ He pointed to an adult-sized table. ‘We can talk here.’

‘This place is damn creepy,’ Clay muttered, sitting in a gingerbread-man chair.

Paige couldn’t stop the chuckle that escaped. ‘If your friends could see you now.’

‘That’s the point,’ Grayson said soberly. ‘Nobody knows you’re here. Nobody can listen in. We can discuss our situation and figure out what the hell we need to do.’

Paige took a seat, Peabody obediently at her feet. She met Grayson’s eyes, and cut to the chase. ‘Why did you follow me before you knew I was a PI, working for Elena?’

He lightly drummed the table, considering. ‘She visited me last week. She wanted a new trial for her husband.’

‘She said she might try. What did you tell her?’ she asked.

‘I said there was no evidentiary reason for a new trial. If she had this evidence, why didn’t she tell me about it then?’

‘She didn’t have it then,’ Paige said. ‘She just got it last night, from Denny Sandoval.’

Grayson leaned back, his doubt clear. ‘Elena told you the cops did it.’

‘I asked her who’d done this to her. Her exact answer was “Cops. Chasing me”. If it had been a legitimate pursuit with shots fired, there would be a record of it, right?’

‘Yes,’ Grayson allowed.

‘Did the cops find both weapons used to shoot Elena?’ Clay asked.

Grayson hesitated a long time. ‘No,’ he finally said. ‘Only one. Not the rifle. Look, we won’t begin to get to the bottom of all this until I know what the evidence was.’

‘It’s files on a flash drive. Three photographs.’ From her backpack Paige took out the pages she’d printed when she’d changed her clothes. She slid the first picture across the table to Grayson and watched his eyes flicker. ‘You remember this man?’

‘It’s Ramon Muñoz’s best friend. Jorge Delgado.’

‘Some best friend,’ she said. ‘Ramon swore that they watched a ball game on the bar’s TV. Time and date stamp on this photo are six years ago, the same time and date that the murder of the college girl was happening. Trial transcripts show that both Sandoval and the “best friend” swore that Ramon wasn’t there. Sandoval swore there weren’t any cameras focused on the bar patrons, only at the cash register. He lied.’

‘A photograph can be Photoshopped. Date and time stamps can be easily faked,’ Grayson said evenly. ‘That’s all you have?’

‘There were three files,’ Paige repeated. She gave him the second photo. ‘This is Denny Sandoval and another man I don’t know. The really bad fake mustache and eyebrows are an obvious disguise. The only thing identifiable on the man is that he has nice hands and a sparkly pinky ring that might be a diamond. The man is giving Sandoval a paper.’

Grayson studied it. ‘You can’t tell what’s written on the paper.’

‘The third is a receipt for wire transfer,’ Clay said. ‘Fifty grand to Larabella, Inc.’

‘I ran a background check before we came here,’ Paige said. ‘Sandoval’s mother’s name was Lara. I know that Sandoval did a major bar renovation a few years ago. Installed big-screen TVs, replaced pool tables. New wooden booths, tables, and chairs.’

‘Pricey stuff,’ Grayson said. ‘How do you know this?’

‘Maria . . .’ She swallowed hard.
Poor Maria. Poor Ramon
. ‘Maria and Elena both knew Sandoval was lying in the trial. For a long time they watched for any indication that he was spending money. But he didn’t, and the women ended up working so hard to make ends meet that they didn’t have time to keep checking on Denny. Then Elena went by the bar a month ago and noticed its new front door. She went in and noticed all the upgrades. She noticed Denny had himself a new car.’

‘Did she confront Sandoval?’ Grayson asked.

‘No.’ She glanced at Clay. ‘That must have been when she put her plan into play.’

‘When she came on to Sandoval,’ Clay murmured.

‘Yes. When Maria came to me, weeks ago, she said she was afraid Elena would do “something desperate”. I thought at the time she meant that Elena was going to shoot Sandoval. But Elena got real cozy with him. I didn’t know that when I visited the bar.’

‘You visited?’ Grayson asked.

‘Sure. I wanted to meet Sandoval, see what I could find out about him.’ She met his gaze pointedly. ‘To see if he was an honest man.’

‘And was he?’ Grayson asked.

‘No. I told him I was new in town, looking for a place to hang. Sandoval gave me the tour, ending with his apartment upstairs. And his bed. He’s one smooth operator.’

Grayson’s eyes flashed angrily. ‘Did he try anything?’

‘Yes. I told him no. He tried . . . harder. I put him in a choke-hold.’ She watched most of the fire in Grayson’s eyes bank. His fury at Sandoval’s advances made her feel good. His acceptance that she’d taken care of herself made her feel oddly better. ‘He left me alone and I didn’t go back. Fast forward to today, when Elena discovers these files. She’s shot, she says cops are chasing her, and she’s murdered. I, the last person to see her alive, am attacked, and the man she stole the files from “kills himself”.’

She leaned forward. ‘Assuming these pictures are authentic, the murder weapon found in Ramon’s house had to have been placed there.’

Grayson pressed his fingers to his temples. ‘Dammit.’

Seconds of tense silence ticked by. Then, at Paige’s feet, Peabody began to growl. The door opened a crack and Lisa stuck her head in. ‘Food?’

Grayson rose abruptly. ‘Yes,’ he said, clearly relieved. He took the tray from Lisa’s arms, put it on the table. Then he looked into the hall, his smile suddenly so warm that Paige couldn’t tear her eyes from his face. ‘Holly,’ he said. ‘You’re here, too.’

A young woman followed Lisa, pushing a cart laden with food. Smaller even than the petite Lisa, her hair was the same shade of rich mahogany. Sisters, Paige thought.

When the young woman looked up at Grayson her face broke into a smile even more dazzling than his. She was somewhere in her twenties and she had Down Syndrome.

‘Of course, silly,’ she said as he wrapped his arms around her. ‘I work here.’ She hugged him back. ‘You haven’t been to visit in a long time. Why not?’

‘Been workin’, babe,’ he said, then tilted up her chin. ‘Just like you.’

‘And I got a raise.’ Then her eyes grew wide. ‘Oh my God. That’s the lady from TV.’ She pulled away from Grayson to peek under the table. ‘And her dog.’

Grayson caught her arm before she could run over to Peabody. ‘Just a minute, honey. Paige and Clay, this is my sister, Holly. This is Paige and her friend Clay. And that’s Peabody under the table.’ He looked at Paige. ‘Is Peabody dangerous?’

Paige smiled at Holly. ‘No. You know how to let the dog smell your hand, right?’

Holly nodded, approaching with her hand out. ‘He’s pretty.’

‘Thank you.’ Paige murmured a command that had Peabody all but melting at Holly’s feet. ‘He likes to be scratched behind his ears.’

‘Did you train him yourself?’ Holly asked, laughing when Peabody rolled over to have his belly rubbed.

‘Not exactly. One of my friends trains dogs. I helped her out by feeding the dogs when she was out of town or busy working. She gave Peabody to me.’

‘For your birthday?’

‘No. Because . . . because another friend of mine died and I was sad and lonely. And scared. Peabody makes me feel safe.’

‘I’m sorry,’ Holly said, her lips drooping sadly. ‘I lost my friend too.’

‘When?’ Paige asked.

‘Last month. He had a bad heart and he died.’

Grayson and Lisa looked at each other, stricken.

‘I’m so sorry, Holly,’ Paige said. ‘What was his name?’

‘Johnny. He was my age. What was your friend’s name?’

‘Thea. I miss her.’

‘I know. I miss my friend too.’ She paused, lips pursed. ‘I saw you on TV today.’

Paige winced. ‘I’m sorry you had to see that woman killed.’

‘I didn’t watch the part where the lady died. I turned it off.’

‘You’re very wise.’

‘I’m very smart,’ Holly said. ‘I have a job.’

‘Where you got a raise,’ Paige said, smiling at her. ‘Congratulations.’

‘Thank you.’ Holly nodded firmly. ‘I saw you jump. That was . . . amazing.’

‘I was really scared,’ Paige admitted. ‘I’ve never jumped that far before.’

‘The lady on the news said you do karate.’

‘That’s true.’ Paige could see the question in Holly’s eyes. She’d seen that question so many times before. ‘You’re wondering if you could do karate.’

Holly lifted a careless shoulder. ‘Oh, I couldn’t. I’m not very co . . . coordinated.’

‘Do
you
have a heart problem?’ Paige asked. Grayson and Lisa watched, their expressions filled with warning. Paige had seen this too, in families that watched out for their own.

‘No,’ Holly said. ‘I did, but I got surgery. I have a big scar. But I’m fine now.’

‘If your doctor says you’re fine, then I can teach you,’ Paige said.

Holly’s eyes lit up. ‘Really?’

Grayson shook his head, hard. ‘No,’ he mouthed.

‘Really,’ Paige said to Holly. ‘I’ll give you my phone number before I leave. You can call if you’re interested.’

‘I’m interested,’ Holly said, giving Grayson a quelling look. ‘Will I be able to jump?’

‘No,’ Lisa said firmly. ‘You won’t.’

Paige smiled at Holly, deliberately misunderstanding the older sister’s concern. ‘Not like I did this morning. I’m not sure I’ll ever jump like that again. I hope I never have to. You might not jump far, but you’ll have better balance. And more confidence.’ She glanced at Lisa. ‘That’s never a bad thing.’

‘I’m glad you came.’ Holly cast a wary eye at Clay, who’d remained silent. ‘You too,’ she added politely, then turned to Grayson, her chin lifting defiantly. ‘Don’t tell me no, Grayson. I can do it. I can do all kinds of things.’

Grayson chuckled, but the sound was strained. ‘I know you can.’ He kissed her forehead. ‘We have to work now. I’ll come see you before I leave.’

‘You’d better,’ Holly said, then waved to Paige. ‘Bye, Paige. Bye, Peabody.’

Lisa put her arm around Holly’s shoulders, throwing a worried glance at Grayson before leaving. Grayson closed the door then turned, furious. ‘What the hell, Paige?’

Paige regarded him levelly. ‘Does she have any medical conditions that keep her from moderate physical exertion, like walking up stairs?’

‘No.’ Grayson’s jaw was taut. ‘She’s healthy now. We will keep her that way.’

‘You love her, I can see that.’ And it tugged at her heart. ‘But she’s a grown woman. If a doctor says she’s physically healthy and she wants to learn, let her learn.’

‘She is not to be hurt.’ It was almost a growl. ‘You know she can’t do karate.’

She smiled at him gently. ‘I know no such thing. And neither do you.’

He faltered. ‘Look, we just . . . She’s been hurt before. She took a dance class and people . . . they laughed at her. It devastated her. We won’t let that happen again.’

Paige’s heart cracked. ‘I’ve had several students with Down Syndrome. No one laughed at them, I can promise you that. I can teach her if she wants to learn.’

She stood up. ‘Let’s eat, then you tell me what our options are. I’d like to teach Holly and I want to get justice for Elena and Ramon, but I can’t do any of that if I can’t stay alive.’

Chapter Six

Tuesday, April 5, 5.05
P.M
.

‘L
et’s hear it,’ Clay said harshly, pushing his empty plate to the center of the table. ‘Paige has told you everything and we need answers. What are our legal options?’

‘The first step is easy,’ Paige said. ‘We get Ramon out of jail as soon as possible.’

‘I don’t think so. Hear me out,’ Grayson said quickly when Paige opened her mouth to protest. ‘Let’s say all this is true, that the pictures are authentic and that Muñoz is innocent. As you’ve pointed out, multiple times, it means someone framed him.’

‘Duh,’ Paige muttered. ‘And I don’t even have a law degree.’

‘But I do. Now that I know this, I’m responsible for what happens next.’

She met his eyes, unwavering challenge in hers. ‘You’d prefer not to know?’

‘No,’ he said. ‘I believe in the system, but the system is run by humans and humans make mistakes. They even lie. Everything seemed . . . believable. The evidence, the witnesses. I don’t regret the way I prosecuted him.’

Except
, he thought,
I do. Now, I do
. All the witnesses had been credible, except one.
You felt it then, but ignored your gut because he said what you wanted to hear
.

He rubbed his forehead. ‘If Ramon was framed, who did it? You think it was the police and obviously Elena believed that too. Maybe it was and maybe it was someone else. Until we know, I think it’s a bad idea to change Ramon’s status.’

‘We tip our hand,’ Clay said.

Grayson nodded. ‘Exactly. I—’

‘
No
.’ Paige stood up and, fists on the table, leaned close, her dark eyes flashing. ‘You’re not seriously saying we leave him in prison while we sort this out all polite-like, are you? Because that is
so
not going to happen.’

‘Sit down,’ he said calmly, though the sight of her avenging and angry was enough to make his mouth water. ‘Please.’ He waited until she’d sat, arms crossed over her breasts. ‘Nothing will get Muñoz out of prison today or even tomorrow. These things—’

‘Take time,’ she finished coldly. ‘That’s bullshit. Bureaucratic bullshit.’

His jaw tightened. ‘You’re right, but that’s also reality.’

‘
Your
reality,’ she snapped. ‘You sit there in your expensive suit and play games with other people’s lives. Motions, objections, paperwork.’ She lurched to her feet again, her fists clenched at her sides. ‘Ramon has lost six years of his life. He’s lost his wife, and his mother worked herself to death to feed the family because he wasn’t there to do it. And you want me to sit idly by while you drag this out for maybe years with
bullshit
?’ Her voice had risen and she checked herself. ‘Your reality sucks, Counselor.’