Sexy Girls (11 page)

 

 

^{“I'll ride with Edie. I want to explain everything we know and everything we've found. She'll help us, because she'll see things, something we don't.”}

^{Cyndie said, “Sure. I think that's a good idea.”}

^{Edie had removed her big black hat revealing her below-the-shoulder sleek black hair. Edie and Cyndie munched on fruits and raw veggies as I packed the cars.}

^{Cyn looked incredible. She packed a mixed wardrobe of Goth black and pure summer light colors. After I packed the cars I noticed Cyn had changed out of her black clothes into a pink g-string, a pink halter top, white bike shorts and white sandals. It was a pleasant surprise and I thought she was rising to the beauty challenge provided by Edie. I smiled at that thought but kept silent.}

^{The warm day reminded me of August instead of early June. The skies remained sunny, and cloudless. By 3:30 we were off, Cyn in the Miata and Edie and me in the SUV.}

^{We wound through the backstreets of my neighborhood, Brandywine Hundred, and stopped at
Starbucks
to get green tea for Edie and two lattes for Cyn and me. Three minutes later we entered I-95 from Marsh Road and began our 100-mile ride south to Rehoboth, first on Interstate 95, and then on Route 1.}

^{Cyndie shifted into fifth, got the Miata's speed up to 80 miles per hour and blew past us and everyone else in sight. Edie turned to me and said, “So, tell me what happened, Stevie.”}

^{The story filled the first hour of our trip. Edie stopped me a few times with well-thought out questions. Her expressions changed from sadness, to anger, to uncertainty, and finally, to determination. Bottom line, Edie wanted to help. She showed me that she knew Andi enough both to understand her motivations and to recognize the dangers beautiful women face, especially those in the public eye, like models.}

^{“When did you fall in love with Andi?” The question caught me off-guard.}

^{After a moment's pause I answered, “Well, really, from the moment we met. It was twelve years ago...”}

^{I filled Edie in on that crazy first encounter with Andi and Cyndie at the fashion show in Manhattan when we were all younger.}

^{I ended the memory with, “…yes, she was gorgeous. Her body looked so perfect then. We were both 25 at the time, but she looked 18. Yet, she was a superstar and had been so for a few years. I had no idea she would completely display both her body and her vulnerability for me. She hadn't had her implants yet or her other surgeries and she had an incredible model-thin body. I admit I was in a total trance that day. It seemed like a strange dream and I didn't know how to react. But, Cyndie did and she was the one that sought me out. You know how that's gone. Andi was the one that was always out of reach.”}

^{Edie smiled and said, “Andi wasn't always out of reach. You guys got in on in Los Angeles.”}

^{“Yes, I misspoke, but that was the only time.”}

^{“Now, that's true.”}

^{I turned and looked at Edie.}

^{“Andi couldn't keep a secret, especially about you.”}

^{I thought about her reply for a few seconds. Memories of the incredible adventure in California in August 1995 flooded back. Andi got in big trouble and I helped her out of it. Okay, yes, Andi and I had a fling. No, it was more than that. We couldn't stop ourselves. It all happened so fast. I was dating Dee Dee, and Andi was really happy for me. I met Edie during the investigation and she was the missing link that helped us solve the mystery and save Andi's life. But, that time together changed things between all three of us. Edie and I connected. We almost started something. But, the whole experience weirded me out, and I needed to get out of L.A. and go home.}

^{Afterward, Cyn and I moved Andi out of L.A., got her a job at the modeling agency, and she met Robert. The next year Andi married Robert. Last summer, I visited Edie in her Arizona home and we rekindled our friendship. Again, we almost started a relationship but the timing wasn't right; I was still dating Dee Dee and she was seeing an actor from her TV show.}

^{Then, last fall, Andi and I had a real heart-to-heart and saw that it was all a series of mistakes that kept us apart. We had plans to connect after Andi's divorce was final. I soon realized Edie knew all of these recent events because Andi told her.}

^{At that moment, we caught up to Cyn in the Miata. We were about 100 yards behind her and I tried to keep pace the rest of the trip.}

^{I took a glance outside my side window at the farm lands of Kent County, the center of Delaware. Edie reached over and put her right hand on my left knee and squeezed it.}

^{“Look, Stevie. I'm interested and want to help. I understand how it went. Andi told me her side of this story. Andi and Cyndie both loved you. Andi fell in love with you from that first time, when you investigated her stolen bikini. It's amazing to me that you never married one of them. I know the timing was never right with Andi. And, Cyndie is the independent type and didn't want to marry anyone.”}

^{A lot of thoughts passed through my mind, but I said only, “She still doesn't.”}

^{Edie said, “Hmm… But, the reason I'm asking about you three is that it may matter to the blackmail and Andi's killing.”}

^{“What do you mean?”}

^{Edie answered, “God, Stevie, I've never known three people that had such a strong, weird bond. You three loved each other, all slept together a few times, but you each had other lovers in your lives that interacted with you and Andi and Cyndie. It seemed to work for you guys, but it was strange. Believe me, others knew it, too. Don't you see?”}

^{I wasn't sure really. “I guess, but, what are you getting at, Edie?”}

^{“Look, Stevie. Through the last twelve years, even if you were with other people, you three still loved each other, right?”}

^{“Yes, putting it that way. It felt right though.”}

^{“May be it did, but to others, it can seem weird. No, let me put it this way; it did seem weird to me, and I'm an open-minded person.”}

^{“Well, that's tough for them.”}

^{“I'm not disagreeing, Stevie. However, the way you three acted could piss off people too. You three weren't discreet. Or, you may have been, but, Cyndie wasn't sometimes and Andi never was.”}

^{A light bulb turned on in my mind. “You're right, Edie. I've thought about it too, and guessed the blackmailer, and now the killer, could be someone who knew Andi. I just didn't think it could be someone very close.”}

^{“It's a possibility, Stevie. Let's talk about that, and see if we can identify anyone to follow up on.”}

^{I looked at Edie, got distracted because she's so cute, smiled and whispered, “God, this is scary. This is murder and blackmail.”}

^{“I agree. Just like last time, we're not going to do anything stupid. We'll work as a team. Okay?”}

^{I hesitated.}

^{Edie pleaded, with her adorable, young girl's voice, “Plus, you aren't thinking clearly – you can't – you're too close. So is Cyndie. Let me try. I've got some perspective.”}

^{I thought only a moment. She reminded me of John Samuel, my boss, who used similar words when he gave me advice; “Always step back and take a different look at it – gain perspective – question your findings at least once – before you reach a conclusion.” Now, Edie was doing that for me, making me explain myself and my feelings. I felt good confiding in her, as the minutes and miles passed inside the SUV, her point of view felt right too.}

^{I told her, “Yes, Edie, I need your help. Thanks for offering.”}

^{“You're welcome. I want to talk about Andi's crazy life and what you've found out, but, first, let's go over your love life and Cyndie's love life.”}

^{I said, “Okay.”}

^{“Let's start with you. I know a fair amount about you, but, we have time, why don't you give me an overview of your life story?”}

^{I began with the basic stuff. It's not the most interesting life; accounting degree from the University of Delaware, CPA exam, public accounting for two years, a major insurance company for three years, and the last 10 years at
Center City Investigators
.}

^{I played high school football. I was a strong safety on defense and a played a little on offense too, as a receiver. The best memory is my one touchdown catch in my senior year. We, the Indians, were down by six with a minute to play. I was brought in on the left side of a double tight end formation. It was third down on the Green Knights nine yard line. The other tight end, the two wide receivers, the halfback, and I all took off for the end zone at the snap. With five offensive receivers flooding the defensive backfield, an outside linebacker was forced to cover me. I faked inside, to my right, and then, broke left. I had three steps on the linebacker after he took the fake. A soft pass from the quarterback made for an easy catch to tie the game. With the extra point kick we had a great Indians win.}

^{I played freshman ball at Delaware, but stopped after that as the competition was way above my talents. I'm the only child of Christian and Caroline Garrett of Delaware County, Pennsylvania. My mother is deceased and my father is remarried and living in St. Petersburg, Florida. I have cousins in southeast Pennsylvania, but don't see them too often.}

^{Edie asked, “Tell me about your ex-girlfriends, Eve and Dee Dee.”}

^{“I met Eve in Philadelphia after our L.A. adventure. We got serious quickly, and I thought I might marry that smart woman. But, being with Eve was life on the edge. Eve challenged me and I didn't always win, in fact, I didn't always play. I didn't always want to confront her. However, I've never met anyone else who was more fun to argue with if I was in to it. I rarely changed her mind or got her to agree that I was right. But, the few times I did, I've never felt better. I had to be ready for any discussion with her. Obviously, we didn't have a perfect relationship, far from it. We argued, we didn't agree on our future plans, and came to believe marriage wouldn't work for us. We lived in frustration with each other. I wasn't her ideal partner, her best friend, her confidant or her hero. I wasn't any of these things.}

^{“Edie, I liked Eve's petite, pretty body and we had some fun together. But, it wasn't enough. I drove Eve crazy. I did love her. I don't now and I don't miss her.”}

^{“You broke up a month or so before you visited me last year, right?” Edie asked.}

^{“That's right. I think it was only a couple of weeks earlier.”}

^{“So, you guys were together almost five years. Boy, that's a long time to go nowhere.”}

^{“Yes, way too long.”}

^{“Did she blame anyone else for your breakup?”}

^{“No, not really. She was always thought Cyndie was creepy, but she just started to hate me for who I was.”}

^{Edie asked, “Were you faithful during your relationship?”}

^{“Yes, actually, I was. I was tempted a lot, especially after things went bad. But, I didn't go out with Dee Dee until after we broke up.”}

^{“Now, tell me about Dee Dee.”}

^{“Dee Dee is a sweetheart and she's my barber. She works in the Liberty Place shops and we dated two different times. First, way back at the time of our L.A. adventure.”}

^{“Right, I remember. So, why did you break up?”}

^{“Well, I met Eve and…”}

^“OK.”

^{“Then, after all those years, after Eve and I split up, Dee Dee and I tried again. We were together for about a year. We broke up at the beginning of this year, but we're good friends. I still get my hair cut by her.”}

^{“She doesn't hate Andi or Cyndie or you?”}

^{I answered, “No, she doesn't. Dee Dee really likes me. She's a confidant of mine. We were both on the rebound and good friends when we started dating again and it ended well. I was always honest about the other women in my life and she liked my stories. We had a ton of fun, but didn't expect it to last.”}

^{“Okay. Now, Eve is Robert Grayson's attorney, right?”}

^{“Yes, that's what Cyndie tells me. Eve and I don't have a need to speak to each other anymore.”}

^{“Sure, so, you're a nice guy and no one you know hates you or your sexy ladies.”}

^{I turned and looked right at Edie. “Boy, I thought I got to the point. But, you have the ability to sum up a situation in a few words, you know that.”}

^{“Thank you. Okay, let's talk about Cyndie. Besides you and Andi, who else has been in her love life?”}

^{I answered, “A couple of people. Most recently, it was Red Sable. She's a photographer and worked for the Grayson Agency.”}