The Telltale Turtle (The Pet Psychic Mysteries) (10 page)

"I don't know. Probably one of my cousins. As you know, I'm an only child. Aunt Ferndelle didn't have any children. My family isn't terribly prolific. I'm guessing it would be Cousin Bob. He's a lot older than I am. He probably doesn't want to wait for me to die in case he goes first."

"What about Charlene Tate?"

"What?" He stopped pacing. "What are you talking about?"

"I think you know what I'm talking about." Mary Catherine went to put on the kettle for tea as she explained about Tommy telling her about Charlene. "We met her and her poodle, quite by accident, and Tommy believes she was there when your aunt was killed."

"That's not possible." Colin cleared his throat. "She was with me.

"Tommy already told me you weren't there when your aunt was killed." She nodded toward the turtle that was quiet now in his bowl on the table. "If you're sure she was with you, I guess that clears Charlene. But I wonder how he knew her."

"What does a turtle know anyway?" Colin surged to his feet. "I believe in you, Mary Catherine, but I don't think he knows what he's talking about."

"As I explained to another doubting Thomas earlier today," she began, "animals are pretty explicit about humans. They notice things about them we wouldn't notice. He recognized Charlene's voice."

"That's ridiculous. He's a turtle, for God's sake. You can't even teach a turtle to do tricks."

The kettle whistled and Mary Catherine turned off the stove. "Tommy knew you weren't there."

"I guess he does know something." Colin stirred sugar into the cup of tea she put in front of him. "Can he describe what the person looks like who killed Aunt Ferndelle?"

"I'm afraid not. But he knows you and Charlene were together and I don't think Mindy was there, was she?"

"Maybe not." He fidgeted with his broken glasses. "I might've told Aunt Ferndelle that Charlene was Mindy. It was only a misunderstanding."

"Misunderstanding? Colin, how could you do something like that? Does Mindy know?"

"I don't know what to say." He sat down abruptly on the sofa, then slid to the floor. "I feel really weird."

Before she could decide if she should call 911 or Danny, there was a knock on the back door. She looked out the peephole and saw Charlie waiting on the stairs. In this case, it became better the devil she sort of knew or at least was familiar with than some devil she didn't know. "Come in quickly." She grabbed his hand and yanked him into the apartment.

Charlie didn't complain, even when she locked the door behind him. "I was hoping you'd had a change of heart. I didn't realize you'd changed this much."

"I haven't changed anything," she told him briskly. "I need your help."

Charlie studied the young man on the floor. "You like them young, huh?"

She smirked. "I wouldn't need your help to get him off the floor if that were the case. Could you help me and save the smart remarks for later? I might have a client for you"

"This guy?" He picked Colin up without her help and put him on the sofa. "He really needs a bath."

She was surprised and a little thrilled watching him. Charlie was obviously one of those strong, wiry types like her third late husband had been. They could be deceptively strong.

Baylor cautioned her about getting involved with anyone just because he could pick up a human as scrawny as Colin. If he could catch a mouse, that would be a different story.

"This is Colin," she explained to Charlie. "Ferndelle Jamison's nephew."

"Thanks, but no thanks. The Wilmington police and I have an agreement about open cases. They leave me alone to do what I do and I don't mess with their problems. What's he doing here anyway?"

Mary Catherine explained about the threat to Colin's life and his inheritance. "He might've been set up by this Cousin Bob to take the fall for the deaths in his family so Bob can inherit everything."

"Then why would Bob bother threatening him?" Charlie sat down at the kitchen table as he took in everything around the room. "If Colin goes to prison, it would all go to Bob anyway."

She considered what he'd said. "Maybe he doesn't want to wait. Or maybe he's afraid the police will find Ferndelle's real killer and Colin would inherit everything anyway."

"Got any coffee?" Charlie sat back in his chair. "What's your connection to Colin? I know you aren't letting him stay here because you work with him."

"He needed someplace to go. Danny found him wandering around the radio station. I thought he'd be safe here," Mary Catherine said as she poured a cup of tea for Charlie.

"So he's a puppy who needs shelter." He nodded. "I get it now."

"I don't think he's a puppy and you don't have to sound so disparaging. What's so terrible about wanting to help people?"

Colin moaned and Mary Catherine went to him, not noticing as Charlie used his camera phone to take pictures of the room. She wet a washcloth and used it to clean Colin's dirty face. He needed a good dunk in a tub, but that was going to have to wait.

"You can't be right," Colin said. "Charlene can't be involved."

"He knows Charlene Tate?" Charlie put away his phone and paid attention to the conversation.

"Who's he?" Colin struggled to sit up. "Is he a cop?"

"Man, you never lose the look." Charlie went to shake Colin's hand. "I used to be the police. Now I work for myself. Charlie Dowd. Are you by any chance sleeping with Charlene Tate?"

Colin looked up at the older, larger man and passed out again.

"Do you look like Charlene's husband by any chance?" Mary Catherine guessed.

Charlie waited around for Colin to wake up. He drank some chamomile tea, but Mary Catherine could see he didn't enjoy it. "How well do you know Colin?" he asked.

"I've worked with him for the last two years." She shrugged. "I guess I know him as well as you can know someone you work with."

"Which means he could've killed his aunt and his parents and you wouldn't know the difference."

"I suppose that's true. Do you know something about him that would make you think he could kill someone?"

"Not really. At this point, I'm just fishing. He's obviously the man I've been looking for. Funny, I wouldn't have taken him to be Charlene's lover. Tom Wilson at the spa, I could see him. But this guy. What does a woman see in someone like this?"

"My second husband was very sensitive, like Colin. He was a wonderful man. I'm sure Colin is nice to be with. A man like that doesn't take you for granted. He pays attention to what you need."

He studied her. "I wouldn't have taken him to be attractive to a woman like you either. I guess you never know."

Mary Catherine was dealing with his intent stare, feeling a little lightheaded thinking about what might happen between them. She was almost sorry when she heard Colin moan. Baylor made fun of her for thinking about Charlie that way. She ignored him, wishing their rapport wasn't quite so mutual. She'd been able to tell what animals were thinking since she was a child. Baylor was the only animal who could read her thoughts as well.

"Maybe you better go over and talk to him," Charlie suggested. "I'd like a chance to get a few answers before I go."

She agreed and sat by Colin's side, holding his smooth, manicured hand. That alone should've told the police something about him. Colin never did anything with his hands if he could help it. She wouldn't be surprised if she found out he'd hired someone to kill his aunt. But the idea that he physically killed the woman was preposterous.

"Is he gone?" Colin whispered, not opening his eyes. "I didn't know Charlene's husband was so big. I was picturing him short. Maybe with a mustache."

"You mean you've never met him?"

"No! Why would I? You usually don't hang out with your lover's husband."

Mary Catherine sighed. She was disappointed in Colin. She'd pictured him dating sweet, intelligent girls like Mindy. She wouldn't have taken him for a cheater. "Charlie isn't Charlene's husband. He's a private detective who was hired to look for her lover. I guess he was looking for you."

Colin sat up quickly. "Don't tell him! I'll get dressed and get out of here before he comes back."

Charlie smiled and waved. "Still here. I'm not going anywhere until I've had some questions answered, killer."

"What did you call me?" Colin's face turned redder than Mary Catherine's furniture. "I've taken on men twice your size."

"I'm sure you have" Charlie stood up. "On the polo field, right?"

"I've never played polo. I was captain of my lacrosse team!"

"Whatever. How long have you been banging Tate's wife?"

Mary Catherine winced. "Could we have a little civility?"

"Sure," Charlie agreed. "How long have you been boffing Charlene Tate?"

"I don't see where that's any of your business," Colin defended himself. "What Charlene and I do has nothing to do with you."

Charlie shrugged. "That works for me. I'll give her husband, Elmore, a call and he can ask the questions."

"Elmore?" The name conjured up another man like Colin. Mary Catherine expected Charlene's husband to be named Jack or something with initials. Why would Charlene cheat on her husband with someone just like him?

"He's a stockbroker," Charlie said, as though that explained everything.

"Okay." Colin sat back down with a defeated look on his face. "What do you want to know?"

Charlie took out his notebook. "How long have you been seeing Charlene?"

"About three months. We met at the old Wilmington City Market. I was shopping for some handcrafted slippers for a friend and we bumped into each other. We've seen each other almost every week since then"

"What kind of car do you drive?"

"I have a sweet BMW convertible, if the weather's nice. During the winter, or if we have heavy rain, I have a Cadillac Escalade. I'm thinking about having that one painted. Black is so yesterday."

Charlie put away his notebook. "Okay. That's all I need to know."

Colin's mouth hung open. Mary Catherine shut it with one hand. "Is that all? Don't you want to beat him up or something?"

"This isn't the time to be funny," Colin protested.

"That's not what I was hired to do." Charlie sat down at the table again and drank a big gulp of tea. He made a face as though he'd forgotten what it tasted like. "My job is to give this information to my employer. He'll decide what to do with it. Smile!" He used his cell phone to take Colin's picture.

"Great! Then he'll beat me up."

"When you play, sometimes you pay." Charlie pushed the teacup away from him. "Next time, don't sleep with a married woman. Especially one who looks like Charlene. They're always married, kid."

"Always young, blond, and gorgeous" Mary Catherine bristled at the hint of testosterone in the air.

"Yeah" Colin and Charlie both agreed at the same time.

"She's awesome," Colin continued. "And you wouldn't believe what she can do with her tongue."

"Clever of you not to bother telling me," Mary Catherine said. "What about Mindy? She's gorgeous."

"Mindy's good looking," Colin agreed. "But she's not hot."

"Not like Charlene," Charlie added.

"You know Mindy? My Mindy?" Colin demanded.

"Sure. She hired me about six weeks ago to find out who you were sleeping with." Charlie smiled. "I love getting a double."

Colin dropped Mary Catherine's blanket on the floor. "Please! You can't tell Mindy about this. It would break her heart. She isn't worldly, you know. And I think she may have a serious medical condition. You wouldn't want to be responsible for killing her."

Mary Catherine waved her hand. "She doesn't have anything wrong with her except for you. I'm sure she can take the strain."

"We're supposed to be married next summer. She could tell the station owner. It could mean my job."

Neither Charlie nor Mary Catherine were sympathetic to his plight. "As Charlie said," Mary Catherine quoted, "sometimes you play and you pay."

"I was just kidding anyway, kid. I don't know your fiancee" Charlie laughed. "You should've seen the look on your face!"

"That wasn't funny. I'm a man on the edge. I've been accused of murdering my aunt, and now someone wants to kill me." Colin paced the floor. "Since you're so good at finding people, maybe you could find the killer. It seems like that's the least you could do, considering you tried to ruin my life."

Charlie thought about it. "Sure. Five hundred per day, plus mileage."

Mary Catherine tried to intervene. "I don't think you need to hire him to find out what's going on."

Colin laughed. "At least I can hear him, unlike your turtle friend. I need help. Cousin Bob wants that money. I think he'd do anything to get it."

Charlie took out his notebook again. "What's Cousin Bob do? Is his name Jamison too? Where does he live?"

"I think you're going about this the wrong way," Mary Catherine told Colin with a sweep of her apricot caftan as she sat down. "Maybe Charlene was involved with this. I know she was with you when your aunt was killed, Colin. But what if her husband is the one calling you? It's possible she didn't accidentally run into you. She and her husband may have set this whole thing up."