Chapter 20
T he coffee shop had been open for five minutes. Michelle and Nick leaned against the wall in the cold, waiting. After they realized how the players connected, Nick lined up a babysitter, and Michelle called Jim.
It didn’t take long before Margarita Smith sauntered out of the cafe with her tall, caffeinated beverage. Michelle pushed off the wall and Nick followed.
Margarita froze. The grip on her coffee tightened. “What happened? Cliff?”
“He’s in the hospital,” Michelle said.
“You said he was coming home yesterday.”
“Things change. You didn’t know he was still there?”
“I had a late shift at the club. I expected him to be there when I got home.”
“Your place, not his?” Nick shoved his hands in his pockets while he waited for her reply.
“Well, technically he didn’t live with me, but he’d been staying there for a while. I just assumed…”
“So, you expected him to be at your apartment, but when he didn’t show up, you didn’t check on him? ”
“Hey. I’m a busy woman, and the man blew me off for a week before he was shot. I’m not going to chase him.” She started toward her store. The light dusting of fresh snow muffled the clip of her heels.
Nick and Michelle flanked her.
“You didn’t go by his place?” Michelle found it hard to believe she didn’t know about the explosion.
“No. Like I said, I was working. What’s with all the questions?”
Nick’s expression darkened. “When was the last time you spoke to Junior Silver?”
Margarita frowned. “I don’t know. It’s not like we’re friends. Why?”
“He’s dead.”
She faltered. “Dead? How?”
“I think you know.” Michelle halted her. The woman’s eyes were wide, her jaw slack, but something about her didn’t seem sincere. “I think you should come down to the station with me.”
“Wait. I didn’t… Junior is dead?” Her legs trembled. Michelle didn’t know if it was from the cold or the fact the wrong man was dead.
“Who did you tell that Garmen was going home from the hospital yesterday?”
“I, uh, I didn’t say anything. I gotta get to work.” She stumbled forward, making her way toward the store.
“Nick can call your manager. I think you should come down to the station. We have some more questions.” As they rounded the corner, Officer Jenkins and her brother, Jim, stood outside the glass door to the store. Thank sweet baby Jesus . Michelle didn’t think Margarita would run in those heels, but Michelle didn’t feel like a morning jog.
Michelle said to Jim as she watched Jenkins escort Smith to the patrol vehicle. “You must have found something? ”
“Yeah. Thanks for the tip. The judge approved a phone records search warrant about an hour ago. Luckily, he’s an early riser.” Jim pulled his collar up as he continued, “She sent a text to her aunt about Cliff getting out of the hospital and his address. I found a call from Cliff to her minutes before he was shot on his phone.”
“That makes sense. He was talking on the phone when he entered the bar.”
“What happens next? You don’t think Margarita’s aunt planted the bomb?” Nick asked.
“No, but now I can subpoena her records and get warrants to search their places.”
“What about the sleigh?” Nick’s voice was calm, but Michelle could see the hope on his face.
“We’re working on it. We need to wrap up this case before they release it.”
Nick muttered a curse. “I need to get to work. Mr. Silver was devastated last night. I want next weekend to run smoothly.”
Michelle ran a hand down his arm. “I’ll call you later. I need to go to the station with Jim.”
Nick’s gaze briefly connected with hers. His message was loud and clear, as if he’d shouted it from the top of the mall. He had to figure out a Plan B, and fast. All hope had fled his expression.
Don’t watch him walk away. Don’t. As if on a swivel, her head turned. A Herculean amount of self-control would be needed for her to not stare. And she couldn’t pass up the jelly-filled donuts, let alone a tasty treat like Nick.
Jim walked with her toward the parked patrol car. “I’ll talk to the Chief. If we can lock down this case, then maybe they will release the sleigh by the festival next Saturday. ”
“Sure, and Rudolph can fly by and pick it up at the station.” Things had gone way past just a missing sleigh. Russ, aka Santa, was in no condition to have kids hopped up on candy canes like crack addicts climbing on and off his lap all day. Hell, Nick would rather run through the mall in his underwear at ten below than put on a Santa suit, and all the Santas for hire were booked. She didn’t think the sleigh could save this festival at this point.
“Have faith. It will work out. But right now, we need to button down this case. We’re close. Why don’t you talk to the aunt while I question Smith?”
“Will do. Maybe I can catch her in a lie or get some dirt on Towers.”
“That’s my sister. Get digging.” He patted her on the shoulder, then strolled off to his vehicle.
She checked the time. What were the odds that Elaine would be at the office on a Sunday morning? Michelle pulled out the card she picked up when she was at Hightower, and called. “Hightower Developing. Mister Towers office.”
“Elaine?”
There was a second of dead air before she answered, “Yes.”
“It’s Officer Michelle Swenson. Are you in the office today?” Please be there.
“Yes, I have some year-end things to finish before we close for the holidays.”
“Perfect. I’ll be there in five.” Michelle disconnected before the other woman spouted reasons for Michelle not to come.
Questions ran through her mind as she drove across town to the HighTower office building. She didn’t want to tip her hand. Just inquiring. Not suspecting her of anything… yet. She needed to let Jim do his digging before she confronted Towers’ assistant.
Come in friendly. See what she knows .
Michelle opened the door to the lobby. She blew out a breath. It echoed in the cavernous space. A lone receptionist sat at the desk. She must have drawn the short straw to work on Sunday. Today, the office ran on a skeleton crew, for sure.
Michelle smiled and removed her gloves. “Good morning. I’m here to see Evan Towers’ assistant Elaine.
“One moment, please.” The girl picked up the phone and a moment later, hung up. “Follow me.”
At the elevator, the employee badged the control panel and pushed the top button. “She’s expecting you.” Then she stepped out before the doors closed.
Well, it seemed she didn’t warrant an escort this time.
As the doors opened to the top floor, Elaine smiled from behind the desk. “Officer Swenson, Mr. Towers is out of the office at the moment.”
“That’s okay. I came to talk to you.”
“Me?” Her eyes widened.
“Yes, you were so nice and said if you could do anything to let you know.”
“Why yes.”
Michelle leaned on the desk. “I have a couple more questions about Staniski and Garmen.”
“I didn’t know them well, but ask away.” She folded her hands in her lap. Competent or hiding her nerves, Michelle couldn’t say.
“Could you give me the exact dates they worked for Towers?”
Elaine smiled demurely, her fingernails tapped on the keys. “It should be in the files I sent to the police station, but it’s no trouble.” She hit print, then snatched the paper that spit out from the machine behind her. “Here you go. ”
“Thank you.” Michelle scanned the dates. They both worked here from the time of their releases until three months ago.
“You said you knew Jonny and Cliff?” Michelle purposely used their first names.
“Not well. I had met them a few times.”
“Can you verify access of visitors?” At her nod, Michelle gave her the date and times that Jonny had been seen entering the building the day of his parking ticket. She scrutinized the other woman’s body language for tells. Did she know Staniski was in the building? Had he been in this office?
Michelle’s phone buzzed. An email from Jim popped on her screen. “Excuse me one moment.” Michelle moved away and pulled up the message. It was one line and an attachment. Jonny's phone recorded. They had been waiting on those all week.
She opened the attachment. Her mouth dropped. She hadn’t seen this one coming. One number repeated over and over until last month. Elaine's.
She glanced at Elaine and smiled. She smiled back but with less teeth.
Don’t ask her. Don’t. Let Jim do it.
She changed tactics. “Garmen had a girlfriend. Did you know if Staniski was dating anybody?” Well shit. So much for letting Jim handle it.
Her lips pursed. “No. I can’t say as I saw him with anyone. Then again, I work in the office and the men worked on the jobsites.”
“That makes sense. You’d said you had very little contact with Jonny and Cliff.”
“Yes. Except on the rare occasion when they came to pick up checks, and of course I saw them at the holiday party. ”
Michelle nodded along as Elaine spoke. “So, you wouldn’t have any reason to call them?”
Elaine’s eyes widened. “Me?”
“Did you know Horace Silver Jr.?”
“No, should I?”
“He died last night in an explosion.”
“Oh, my gracious!” Her hand flew to her chest.
She had a lot of shock for someone she didn’t know. Michelle tapped her fingers in her phone while cataloging the other woman’s reaction.
“I, uh, I need to get back to work.” She focused on the monitor, her eyes held a fine mist.
Shit. She pushed too far. Time to backtrack. “Thank you for your time. I’m just trying to find out more about Jonny’s life. If you think of anyone who might have known him on a more personal level, let me know.”
“I’ll do that.” Elaine blinked multiple times, but she didn’t look up from the screen.
It killed Michelle, not to mention Margarita, but she needed to let Jim dig first. She folded the paper and pushed the elevator button for the lobby.
In her vehicle, she typed a quick email and hit send. Before Jim could answer, Elaine came rushing from the door, phone to her ear. She didn’t even look Michelle’s way as she hustled down the street across the parking lot to her car.
“Well, this is interesting. Who are you calling?” Michelle muttered to herself. She watched the older woman shove the phone in her pocket and click her key fob. “They didn’t answer. Margarita?”
Michelle put her car in gear and waited. Might as well see where you’re going in such a rush .
It shouldn’t have surprised her when, a few minutes later, Elaine pulled into the mall. The woman speed walked as fast as those heels could carry her to the plus size shop that Margarita worked at.
Michelle ducked into a different store, out of sight. Peeking around the display in the Shoe Palace’s front window, she had a direct line of sight. Elaine breezed past the mannequins and the tables of accessories to the counter. A woman Michelle didn’t know smiled and shook her head.
“Yup, she’s not working. Now, what are you going to do?” Michelle leaned closer to the window.
“May I help you?”
She whipped around and a tower of stilettos tumbled. “Sorry. No, I’m good.” She dropped to help the employee pick up the mess, but she kept sneaking looks out the window. When Elaine huffed by, Michelle shoved the shoes into the young man’s arms and rushed after her, right into Nick. “Uff.”
He reached up and steadied her. “Hey, what’s the hurry?”
“Margarita’s aunt. I just talked to her at HighTower. I followed her here. She’s on the move.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“No. I got this. I’m not confronting her, just tracking. Besides, I need to wait and see what Jim comes up with.”
“Call me later.”
“Will do.” She pivoted and hurried after Elaine. Who knew the woman could move that fast in heels? Michelle stepped it up to a jog.
As she reached her vehicle, Elaine’s car pulled up to the light at the exit. The chase was on.
** *
Nick called in a favor when he got back to his desk. Five minutes later, Margarita Smith’s employment file was in his inbox.
“Let’s see what we can find out.” He read through her employment file and resume twice before he dropped his head into his hands.
Smith worked the night Garmen was shot, and her manager of the club was down as a reference for her employment. Not her aunt, Elaine Smith. The very one that Mickey was following at the moment.
Nick scrolled over to the folder with Garmen, Staniski, and Junior’s files. He had copies of the background checks from their hires. So far, nothing they didn’t know, but he kept going.
"There." He stopped scrolling. The reference for Staniski was one E. Smith. He didn’t put it together until this morning. He checked Garmen’s. Nope. Only Jonny’s. Why would Towers’ assistant give a reference to one and not the other? Especially when Garmen was dating her niece?
Unless…? He grabbed his phone and called Michelle. Voicemail.
Shit. He texted her his theory and shut the file. He needed to get to work. The festival was days away, and he didn’t have a sleigh or a Santa. And come the twenty-sixth, he wouldn’t have a job.