Deep In Death: A Shelby Nichols Adventure by Colleen Helme
“Okay…I’ll try to remember to call. What time does she get home from school?”
“Call her around three-thirty,” I said.
“Okay,” he agreed.
“Thanks honey…I love you. I’ll call you later.”
We disconnected, and I counted my lucky stars that I had such an understanding husband. Chris was the best. He put up with me and all this…stuff I had to do for Uncle Joey. It made me cringe just a little that I’d spent a few minutes in Ramos’ arms last night, but nothing happened, and it never would. Still, I vowed to be a better wife.
I dressed in a white knit tee and blue sweater combo with jeans and hoped that was good enough for the day. I hadn’t brought much, and I was running out of different clothes to wear. In the bathroom, I turned my head upside down for a quick blow-dry, going for the wind-blown look, and added a little make-up and lip-gloss. Ready, I checked the time. Seven minutes late. That was a lot better than I thought.
I knocked on Uncle Joey’s door and Jackie let me in. “Good morning, Shelby. Come on in.” She was dressed smartly in a navy pantsuit, and thinking I looked pretty good for someone who’d woken up screaming during the night. That must have been one hell of a bad dream.
Crap! She’d heard me screaming? I thought Ramos said it wasn’t that loud? Now Jackie wondered what she’d said to upset me since I was staring at her with my brows drawn together and my lips turned down.
I quickly cleared my expression and smiled at her. “Hi Jackie. Sorry I’m late. Has everyone already eaten?”
“Yes, but there’s plenty of food.”
She stepped out of the way and I hurried inside. Ramos stood from the small table, taking his plate and discarding it with the others. “Here…I’m done. You can take my place. Grab a plate and eat.”
“Thanks,” I said, relieved there was no awkwardness between us. I got my food and ate pretty fast, hating that I was the last one to eat. I wasn’t that late, but it was obvious that the food had come earlier than Uncle Joey told me. Just as I finished up, he walked into the room.
“Oh good, we’re all here,” he said, glancing at me. “Let’s get started.” He waited until he had our undivided attention and began. “We need to meet with the Passinis today and let them know I’m not dead. I was hoping that between all of us, we could come up with something good to tell the police, since I’m sure they’ll have plenty of questions.” He checked his watch. “Kate’s already at their office. She just texted to tell me that now’s a good time to stop by, so let’s head out.”
I was a little disappointed that Kate was still helping Uncle Joey out, but maybe her involvement today was part of her recompense for screwing up. We dutifully followed Uncle Joey to the parking lot, and he insisted we all ride in his car. Since he insisted on driving, I ended up in the back seat sitting between Ramos and Nick. It was a little cramped, and our thighs were touching, but neither of them seemed to mind.
Nick liked the way I smelled and hoped we’d be done today so he could get home to his girlfriend. Ramos slipped his arm along the top of the seat to give me a little more room so I didn’t have to sit so close to Nick. He didn’t like how Nick was sniffing my hair while I wasn’t looking.
I started to chuckle, drawing the attention of both of them.
“What’s so funny,” Nick asked.
“Uh…nothing,” I said.
Nick didn’t believe me, but Ramos figured it out and sent me a lopsided smile. Put off, Nick turned his head to look out the window. It was another dreary day, with gray, cloudy skies and a touch of rain, but it didn’t seem as bad to me as before. Probably because I was sitting by Ramos and he wasn’t dead.
We pulled into the parking lot of The Passini Shipping Company and got out of the car. Uncle Joey stood straight and tall, wanting to make a grand entrance. He fastened the button on his jacket and smoothed his hair. He looked like a movie star getting ready to play a part in the big scene. Jackie followed suit, straightening her jacket as well. I glanced at Nick and Ramos. They both had on jackets too, but it was mostly to hide their guns.
Compared to them, I looked like an outsider who didn’t quite know how to belong to the group. I shrugged, maybe that wasn’t so bad, and followed them inside. Since they all went in before me, I caught the tail-end of the shock and surprise coming from the office staff. After a ripple of astonishment, the whole place went quiet. Then one brave soul bolted to Jon Passini’s office and barged inside shouting the news that Joe “The Knife” Manetto was alive.
Uncle Joey sauntered in on his heels, and everyone in Jon’s office stood in shock. Julia Passini turned white, then flushed red. Her first thoughts that he was alive brought shock, then relief, followed by anger that he had conned them…and what did he want?
Jon’s relief was more heartfelt, since he knew more than Julia. He hadn’t told her that the police thought he and his family were guilty of murder and had begun building a case against them.
Alec wasn’t surprised at all, although he was certainly putting on a good show. Kate had told him the whole story, even though she wasn’t supposed to. I raised my brow at Kate, but she averted her face and tried to ignore me. She wasn’t real happy with me since I’d claimed this whole fiasco was her fault. It wasn’t, and she didn’t like that I’d blamed her. Uncle Joey didn’t blame her, although he had given her “the talk” about where she stood in his organization.
Uncle Joey ushered us all inside the office and closed the door. “We need to talk,” he said, looking from one Passini to the other and staring them all down. By the time he got done, even Alec was starting to tremble. I couldn’t help but admire the way Uncle Joey intimidated them. His presence alone commanded everyone’s complete attention, and I didn’t envy the Passinis.
He began his narrative, telling them how he and Ramos had survived the explosion, certain that the Passinis had orchestrated the whole thing. At this point, Julia’s anger disappeared, replaced by fear of reprisal. Then her momma bear instincts kicked in and she opened her mouth to deny his accusations. Uncle Joey held up his hand, and her mouth snapped shut. After a moment of total silence, he finished by saying he’d found who it was.
“Someone in my own organization wanted me dead and set you up,” he said. “Just so you know, I have taken care of the situation.”
Both Julia and Jon sank into their chairs with relief, and the tension drained from the room. “The only thing to do now,” Uncle Joey continued, “Is to figure out what to tell the police. I don’t want them to know the truth, but I think with your help, we can come up with something they’ll believe.”
“Yes,” Jon agreed. “That should work, but this is tough. I don’t have any idea where to start.”
“I have an idea,” I said. Everyone glanced my way with interest. “Why don’t you blame the two security guards that were killed? Maybe you could say they were conning both of you at the same time.”
“Hmm…perhaps,” Uncle Joey said. “But how would we make that work?”
“Maybe you could say they planted the bomb to blackmail the Passinis, but they were really telling them it was you doing the blackmailing, and you were going to set it off unless they paid you a certain amount of money. Only it would be them getting the money.”
“Okay,” Uncle Joey said. “I like this so far, but how were they conning me?”
“Um…I guess they were just going to kill you in the explosion? But you got away?”
“That wouldn’t work,” Kate argued. “If Uncle Joey was dead, then the Passinis wouldn’t need to give them the money.”
“Well…maybe they already gave them the money,” I said in defense. “At the same time, the guards trapped Uncle Joey and Ramos in the room with the bomb and told them the Passinis wanted them dead so they wouldn’t have to repay a debt.” I knew that part was true, so it wouldn’t hurt to put that in.
“Then Uncle Joey and Ramos ruined their plans,” I continued, “by getting away and locking the guards in the room wher
“I think that makes sense,” Jackie said. But she said it like she wasn’t quite sure.
Uncle Joey was thinking it a little far-fetched and made the guards look pretty stupid, but he couldn’t think of anything better. “What do you think?” he asked Jon.
“It should work,” Jon said. “Mostly because I never received word that those two didn’t make it off the yacht. Apparently, no one knew they were missing. So as long as the case gets solved, I think the police chief will buy it. Since they were the only people killed in the explosion…that will wrap things up nicely for them.” He glanced at me, thinking it was a brilliant plan so, naturally, I smiled at him.
“All right,” Uncle Joey said. “Let’s go over our stories and give the police chief a call.”
***
The detective who’d come to the funeral was the one who showed up at the Passini Company. He took everyone’s statements with a grain of salt, thinking that since Uncle Joey and Ramos weren’t dead, he couldn’t bring charges against the Passinis, so it didn’t really matter. He also knew it wouldn’t do a lot of good to look into it too hard since the mayor was cozy with the Passinis, and he’d be happy with whatever the police chief told him.
It still took over two hours to get everything down on paper. At least I had my Kindle, but I felt sorry for the detective. By the time he was done, he was more than glad to leave. He didn’t believe that story for a minute, but what could he do? The chief wanted it wrapped up, so he’d follow his orders. The story was confusing, but in some ways that made it easier to explain. He could sum it up by saying that the cons conned the wrong people. How was that for simple?
Everyone was starving by the time we got done, so Uncle Joey took us to Pike Place Market for lunch. Just as we got out of the car, sunshine broke through the clouds, making the water sparkle in the bay and warming the air. With a lighter step, I followed the others through the market and even watched the fishmongers toss salmon to each other. Lunch in the fancy restaurant was great, and I realized it was the first time I’d had any fun since I’d gotten there.
With our stomachs full and satisfied, Uncle Joey announced that he had to go back to the office to finish up some last minute details and meet with Kate, so we headed back to the car. I slowed my step as we passed the shops, pulled like a magnet to the fabulous items along the path. There were some great tee shirts here that I could get for my kids. Some of the earrings and jewelry caught my eyes too, dazzling me with their sparkle. I lingered over them for several minutes, taking it all in, and knew I just wasn’t ready to leave.
Uncle Joey didn’t need me anymore, so it wouldn’t hurt to stay, and I could take a taxi back to the hotel. I glanced up to catch him, but couldn’t see any of them anywhere and realized they were long gone. Oops. Just then my phone rang. “Hello?”
“Where are you?” Uncle Joey asked.
“Oh, well I got distracted by all the shops, so I’m still at the market. Hey, if it’s all right with you, I think I’ll just stay here for a while. I’d like to pick up some things for my kids. You don’t need me anymore today, right? I can probably take a taxi to the hotel, so you wouldn’t have to come back. Will that work?”
I heard him take a deep breath. Then he said, “Just a minute,” and covered the phone with his hand. I heard some talking going on but nothing I could make out before he came back on the line. “Where are you exactly?”
“Um…” I glanced around. “I’m real close to the guys throwing the fish.”
“Good. Stay there, Jackie’s coming.”
“Okay,” I said, and he disconnected. I realized that meant Jackie was coming to join me, and a broad smile broke over my face. Good for her. Plus, with her along, this could be a blast. She’d been through a lot these last couple of days and if anyone deserved some shopping therapy, it was her.
While waiting, I rummaged through some tee shirts on a nearby table, but didn’t find anything I liked. Just then, Jackie stepped beside me. “There you are,” she said, a little breathless. “When Joe told me you were stuck back here at the shops, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join you.” She glanced at the tables and shop displays, taking in all the merchandise surrounding us, and rubbed her hands together. “Let’s get started.”
***
Hours later, we pushed through the doors to the hotel, our arms laden with bags. Once we’d finished at the market, we decided to take the monorail to the Space Needle, and rode the elevator all the way to the top. Since the clouds had parted, we had a perfect view of the city below and enjoyed every minute of it. Back on the ground, we found even more shops to peruse, and dutifully looked into each one before finding a taxi to take us home.
After setting down a few bags, I managed to open my door and get everything inside. My feet were killing me, so it was a relief to kick off my shoes and set all my purchases on the bed. With enthusiasm, I dumped out the bags and began to sort through them, putting the tees I’d bought for my kids in a pile, and finding the earrings I’d bought for myself.
I slipped them on, then found my new tee shirt and tried it on. It was pink with cap sleeves and Seattle written in swirls with flowers around it, and it fit just right. At the last shop, I’d found the most adorable hat for Savannah. It was like a baseball cap, only lots cuter, and had Seattle in block letters across the front. I tried it on and liked it so well, I almost wished I’d bought it for me.
A knock sounded at the door, so I hurried to answer. Ramos smiled, taking in my new clothes and thinking I looked cute in the hat. It reminded him of the hair hat I’d bought in Orlando, and that made him smile even more. “Hey, we’re having a friendly game of poker and wondered if you’d like to join us.”
“What? You want to play poker with me?”
“I said it was friendly…no money involved.” He was thinking of the big bag of salt water taffy he’d bought at the market to use instead.
“I love taffy…I’m in!”
I followed him into Uncle Joey’s suite where they’d arranged several chairs around the table. Jackie was wearing her new tee shirt and earrings too, so we shared a high five. The evening passed quickly, with lots of laughter and joking. No one seemed to mind too much when I won most of the taffy, and I didn’t always win, so it mostly worked out.
After a couple of hours, I left with my taffy to call Chris and take a bath. He seemed distracted when he answered the phone, so after I told him I’d be home about one the next afternoon, I was surprised when he said he’d pick me up.
“Are you sure?” I asked. “I’ll be on Uncle Joey’s private jet so I’m practically guaranteed a ride home in his limo.”
“I’m sure,” he said. “I can come on my lunch break. Besides, I want to see you.”
My heart melted a little and I quickly agreed. “Just make certain you come to the right airport.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be there.”
After a nice soak in the tub, I was ready for bed. As nice as today was, it was time to go home. Except for knowing a serial killer was after me, everything was great. Ramos and Uncle Joey were alive, and I’d helped solve the case. Heck, I’d even come up with the plausible story to tell the police.
I’d accomplished a lot in the last few days, so I could certainly figure out what to do about a serial killer. If I could just find a connection between Sean and one of his victims, or find one of their bodies, it would be enough to arrest him. But how to do that wasn’t so simple.
At least Ramos was alive to watch out for me, and I wasn’t opposed to involving Dimples either, so that would help. But to find out what I needed to know, I’d probably have to spend some time with Sean, and just thinking about it gave me the creeps. But I could be prepared and, reading his mind, I’d know before anything ba
As comforting as that thought was, I also knew that even the best plans didn’t always work out. Since I could end up dead, I fervently hoped this wasn’t one of those times.
Chapter 11
There was nothing better than flying home in a private jet. The advantages were mind-boggling, like no getting to the airport two hours early, no worrying about missing a flight, no waiting in longs lines that dragged on forever, no passing through security and needing to take off shoes or emptying pockets, and best of all, no need to find little bottles for shampoo and toothpaste. Yup, I could certainly get used to that.
We touched down just after one in the afternoon, and a small worry that Chris knew where to pick me up tightened the muscles in my neck. As I came down the stairs, my shoulders relaxed to find his car parked behind the limo. His door opened and he stood, sending me a quick wave. The smile on his handsome face warmed me all the way to my toes.
I hurried over to greet him with a hug and kiss, grateful to be home safe and sound. As Chris loaded my luggage into the trunk, I realized I’d forgotten something so I told him I’d be right back.
I quickly made my way to Uncle Joey. “I just remembered something I needed to give you.” I took a folded piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to him.
“What’s this?” he asked.
“It’s from your wake, at the funeral home? This guy came in and, since he looked suspicious, I kept my eye on him. He seemed kind of upset that you were dead. Anyway, he put this note on your casket, so I picked it up and read it.”
Uncle Joey frowned and opened the paper. He inhaled sharply at the signature, hardly able to believe the old bastard had broken his vow and come to pay his respects. Rest in peace? Did that mean he had been forgiven?
“I couldn’t read the name…it’s kind of hard to make out, but I thought you should have it,” I said.