Deadly Storm Read online

  “I don’t want Mandy to know this,” James said, staring at his desk.

  “You want us to lie to her?” Sophie looked uncomfortable with the prospect.

  “I don’t think she’s going to ask you if Ann woke up in the middle of her death and cried out,” James said. “I don’t want her thinking about this. Not right now. I’ll tell her down the road. I don’t want her dealing with it now, though.”

  “Mandy is strong, James,” Sophie said, choosing her words carefully. “She can handle this.”

  “Not right now she can’t.”

  “I don’t understand,” Sophie said, shifting so she could meet Grady’s gaze. “What am I missing?”

  “You know Ann was James’ high school girlfriend, right?”

  Sophie nodded.

  “Mandy is feeling a certain amount of guilt because she wished Ann dead once or twice … or ten times … over the course of her life. It’s important to note that Ann was really mean to Mandy when they were younger.”

  “Oh, please, do you have any idea how many people I’ve wished dead over the years?” Sophie asked, rolling her eyes. “And let me tell you something, I had a way to make people disappear. I don’t feel guilty about any of it.”

  Grady swallowed hard. Sophie’s foster father, Peter Marconi, was a notorious figurehead in the Detroit mob scene. He was a good guy – in the grand scheme of things – but he was terrifying when he wanted to be. “Did Peter offer to make your high school enemies disappear?”

  “Screw Peter,” Sophie said. “I knew how to hide a body once I hit fourteen. That bitch Becky Landers is just lucky I was too good of a person to fit her with cement shoes and drop her in the Detroit River. I had access to a boat, too.”

  “You scare the crap out of me sometimes, sugar,” Grady said.

  “Then you’d better not try to lock me in our house again,” Sophie said. “Keep that in mind. I could hide your body, too.”

  Despite himself, James couldn’t hold in his hearty chuckle. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to him, Sophie.”

  “Oh, I know.”

  “I know, too,” Grady said, leaning over and giving her a quick kiss. “Just so you know, though, I’m sleeping with one eye open from now on.”

  “That will make the sex interesting,” Sophie quipped.

  “Go back to the autopsy,” James said, redirecting the conversation to something important. “Were any skin cells found? Hair?”

  “They collected fibers, which is normal, and I do believe some hair was found,” Sophie said. “Now that I know Ann was molesting the professor in the cafeteria, though, I have to wonder if the hair is going to belong to him. He was kind of hot.”

  “You saw him?” Grady asked.

  “I met him when I stopped at Mandy’s class the night of the storm,” Sophie said. “He was with Ann then. She came over and made a stink about … something … but he seemed more interested in talking about Julie Nichols.”

  James leaned forward, interested. “Did he want to know if the police had a suspect?”

  Sophie racked her brain. “I guess. Everyone was interested about potential suspects, though. He didn’t seem overly interested. I wouldn’t say that. He seemed curious, and he said it was a tragedy.”

  “A guilty person would say that, too,” Jake said.

  “So would an innocent person,” James said. “That doesn’t prove anything. Now I wish I had seen this guy that night. I would like to have a feel for him and how he was behaving.”

  “He seems like a normal guy,” Sophie said.

  “Everyone in that building that night seemed normal,” James said. “Well, for the most part.”

  “Let’s break it down,” Jake said. “Go through everyone one by one.”

  James rubbed the heel of his hand against his forehead. “Okay. There’s Marian. She looks to be in her late twenties – maybe early thirties. She’s kind of plain looking, and she was in love with me because I’m such a romantic.”

  “Oh, good grief,” Sophie said.

  “Hey, don’t knock my romantic streak,” James warned, wagging his finger in her direction. “Anyway, Marian seemed more interested in hearing about Mandy and me than anything else.”

  “How did she react around Ann?”

  James shrugged. “Disinterested. I mean, she seemed loyal to Mandy, but she barely paid any attention to Ann.”

  “Who else?”

  “I already told you I didn’t see the professor. There were two girls, both in their early twenties, but they were definitely more interested in their phones than anything else. Well … and me.”

  “They were interested in you?” Sophie looked dubious. “They hit on you when your wife was right there?”

  “They didn’t hit on me,” James clarified. “It was more like they thought I was really hot. I was shirtless, after all.”

  “Your ego is miniscule,” Sophie said, rolling her eyes.

  “They didn’t act like anything other than normal twenty-somethings.”

  “Who does that leave?” Jake asked.

  “Mandy’s boyfriend,” James replied, grimacing.

  “Who is Mandy’s boyfriend?”

  “Some guy who was there,” James said. “I think he said his name was Steven. I can’t remember his last name. I’ll have to ask Mandy. Anyway, we were all snuggled up on the couch and he came over to bug us – even though it was obvious we wanted to be alone.”

  “You guys weren’t doing it in front of everyone, were you?” Sophie asked.

  “We’re not animals.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “You’re starting to piss me off,” James said.

  “I have a gift,” Sophie said, unruffled. “I’m not scared of you either, just for the record. Peter likes you, but he likes me better.”

  “You’re a trip,” James said. “This Steven guy was interested in Mandy. He kept talking about how he thought she was lying when she told him she was married. Apparently they met the day she registered for the class.”

  “Did you get any kind of vibe off of him?” Grady asked.

  “I got a creepy vibe off of him,” James said.

  “Just because he was hot for Mandy?”

  “No, it wasn’t just that,” James said. “Although, to be fair, what kind of idiot tries to hold a conversation with two people snuggling under a blanket?”

  “Maybe he was just lonely,” Sophie suggested.

  “Maybe he was nervous because of the storm,” Jake chimed in.

  “He was odd, though,” James said. “He was almost confrontational, but not quite. It’s hard to describe. Finally, I threatened to beat him up to make him go away.”

  Grady’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. “You threatened to get in a fight while you were all stuck in there together?”

  “He was bugging me.”

  “Patience really isn’t one of your virtues.”

  “I agree,” James said.

  “So, if you had to choose one suspect, it would be this guy?” Jake asked. “Is that what you’re saying?”

  “I guess so,” James said. “The problem is, I can’t comment on the professor because I didn’t see him, and Mandy says there were two other younger guys there. I don’t remember seeing them. I was soaking wet when I got there, and we went into the bathroom to dry my clothes. When we came back out, they were gone.”

  “Just because they weren’t in the lobby, that doesn’t mean they left the building,” Jake said.

  “We can’t rule them out,” James agreed. “So, basically, we need to find out who these two guys are – and I need to ask Mandy what that Steven guy’s last name is.”

  “That’s where we’re at,” Grady said.

  “Okay, everyone keep in touch,” James said. “Anything that comes up, I want us to share it as soon as possible. I promised Mandy we would solve this.”

  “Because she feels guilty?” Sophie asked sagely.

  “It’s not just for her,” James said. �
��I said horrible things to Ann right before she died. Mandy feels guilty, and I feel … .”

  “Guilty?” Sophie lifted a quizzical eyebrow.

  “That’s just the thing,” James said. “I’ve been trying to figure out how I feel about Ann’s death since it happened. At first I thought I felt guilty. Then I worried I was relieved because I honestly believe if I hadn’t gotten to Mandy, she might’ve been the one killed.”

  “Holy crap,” Jake said. “I didn’t even think about that.”

  “It would be just her luck to be targeted by another creep,” Grady said. “She has horrible luck when it comes to stuff like that.”

  “She does,” James agreed.

  “What are you feeling now?” Sophie asked, doing her best impersonation of a bad television psychiatrist.

  “I feel bad,” James said. “The thing is, I feel bad because I’m pretty sure I don’t feel bad enough. I should feel guilty about what I said, but I don’t. I should feel remorseful because I didn’t save her, and I kind of do. If I had it to do over again, I would try to save her.

  “When it comes down to it, though, I honestly think I’m more upset because I’m not upset enough,” he said. “I don’t know what it means, and I’m not sure how to handle it, but there it is.”

  “I don’t think there’s one correct way to deal with something like this,” Grady said. “You’re doing the best you can.”

  “I am,” James said. “For now, all I can do is keep my wife safe and keep my promise to solve Ann’s murder. In a few days maybe things will have settled enough for me to feel something other than I do. Right now, though, I’m just thankful my wife is safe. She’s not exactly happy right now, but she will be again. I have no doubt about that.”

  “You really are a romantic,” Sophie said.

  “I’m going to fit you with cement shoes if you don’t stop making fun of me,” James threatened.

  “You don’t have the skill set. I could teach you.”

  “You are truly terrifying, sugar,” Grady said. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”

  “Probably about half as much as I love you,” Sophie said, getting to her feet. “Let’s solve this. I want Mandy to be happy again. I don’t like it when she’s sad.”

  “None of us do,” James said. “Let’s do this one for my wife, shall we?”

  Seventeen

  “How was your day today, baby?” James dropped a kiss on Mandy’s cheek as he moved through the kitchen.

  “Pretty boring,” Mandy said, sipping from her glass of iced tea. “We had a full docket in the morning, but we’ve got a murder trial going in the afternoons for the rest of this week and probably all of next week.”

  “You got out early, though.”

  “It’s the first day,” Mandy said. “This is when the lawyer and the prosecutor spend hours in a little room hammering out details. The only thing missing is them whipping out their little friends and comparing them to see whose is bigger.”

  James smiled, the weight on his shoulders lifting. She wasn’t back to her usual boisterous self, but she was markedly better than she’d been twenty-four hours before. “You look pretty, wife.”

  Mandy lifted her head, her expression rueful. “Are you walking on eggshells because you’re afraid that I’m going to fall apart?”

  “No.”

  “Are you just saying that because you’re afraid I’m going to pick a fight?”

  “No.”

  “Do you love me?”

  “No … hey, you tricked me.” James wrapped his arms around Mandy’s waist and kissed her lightly. “I love you more than anything in the world. If there was an Olympic gold medal given out for loving a woman, I would win it every second of every day.”

  “Nice save, Gretzky.”

  “I have my moments,” James said, giving her another kiss before releasing her. “I have a few things I want to discuss with you before we talk about anything else.”

  Mandy stilled. “About Ann?”

  “Yes. Sophie got the autopsy report a day early. Do you want to know?”

  “Are you really going to volunteer information like that?” Mandy was surprised.

  “We’re in this together, baby,” James said. “I promised I would solve this, and I don’t want you sitting around and making yourself sick because you’re wondering what we have.”

  “Okay,” Mandy said, nodding. “I want to hear.”

  “Ann was strangled,” James said.

  “We pretty much figured that.”

  “We did,” James said. “There were signs of sexual activity, but no fluids were present. The police gathered some hairs and other fibers, but that could take some time to make its way through the lab.”

  “I’m not sure the sexual activity necessarily means anything,” Mandy said. “I saw Ann and Professor Barnes playing tongue hockey in the cafeteria. For all we know, they dropped their pants and had a quickie right there.”

  “I know,” James said. “Julie Nichols showed signs of sexual activity before her death, too. We can’t rule anything out.”

  “Do you think the same person killed both of them?”

  “I think the odds of two women from the same cooking class dying in the same manner only a few days apart having two different assailants are pretty long,” James said.

  Mandy rubbed her hand over her neck thoughtfully. “Tell me what you really think.”

  “I think there’s a predator on that campus,” James said, not pulling any punches. “I don’t know if it’s Professor Barnes, but he is a suspect for now. I’m more interested in your little boyfriend.”

  “What boyfriend?”

  James made a face. “You know very well what boyfriend,” he said. “Your little friend who tried to interrupt us under the blanket.”

  “Steven Balish?”

  “Is that his last name? I couldn’t remember. I knew his first name was Steven.”

  “Do you think it’s him?”

  James studied Mandy’s face a moment, unsure how to answer. “What answer is going to freak you out less?”

  “I want the truth, James.”

  “I think he’s our best suspect,” James said. “I didn’t like his interest in you at all. I think, if I hadn’t been there, you would have been in some serious trouble.”

  “Are you saying that Steven killed Ann because he couldn’t get to me that night?” Mandy was horrified.

  “I’m not saying that for certain,” James said, extending a finger to ward off a meltdown. “It’s one theory. No matter what happens, I do not want you blaming yourself for this. If you do, I’m wrestling you down and tickling you in your special spot until you give up on the guilt.”

  Mandy frowned. “James … .”

  “We don’t know anything yet, baby,” he said. “Even if we did, though, I refuse to feel anything other than happy about you being alive. You’re safe. That’s the most important thing in the world.”

  “It’s hard to argue when you have that look on your face,” Mandy grumbled.

  “Good.” James pulled her in for a hug, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “We also need to find out who those two guys are that you saw in the lobby before I showed up. I don’t remember what they looked like.”

  “They were young,” Mandy said. “They looked like hipsters.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Their pants were too big, their cell phones were top of the line, and they smelled like they spent a lot of time in hookah bars.”

  “Hookah bars?”

  “That’s the new hip thing.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “There are college kids in my cooking class,” Mandy said. “I’ve heard all the trendy gossip. For example, did you know that One Direction is better than the Beatles?”

  “Bite your blasphemous tongue,” James said, grinning. “What else?”

  “I know that Chris Hemsworth is hot, but Chris Evans has dreamier eyes.”

  “Those are th
e dudes from The Avengers, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Which one is Thor?”

  “Hemsworth.”

  “That’s the one you like,” James said. “I see you perk up every time he takes his shirt off.”

  “I’ll have you know that I don’t like blonds,” Mandy said.

  James wrinkled his nose. “Me either.”

  Mandy punched him playfully in the stomach. “You’re not my favorite husband right now.”

  “I’m sure we can fix that,” James said, giving her another kiss before releasing her. “What do you want for dinner? I was thinking we could order Thai and then have some outrageous sex in the hot tub. It’s going to dip below sixty after midnight, but it still should be warm enough to have fun before then.”

  “I can’t,” Mandy said.

  “What do mean?”

  “I just came home to change my clothes,” Mandy said. “My cooking class is tonight. We got an email. Professor Barnes wanted to add an extra class to this week because he has some function to go to next Wednesday.”

  James gripped the edge of the counter, his knuckles turning white. “Are you kidding me?”

  “No.”

  “You’re going back to that class?”

  “I told you I wanted to finish it,” Mandy said. “This can’t come as a surprise to you.”

  “So, let me get this straight,” James seethed. “You’re staying in this class even though a killer might be teaching it … and, oh, you don’t even want to learn how to cook?” He was close to exploding.

  “I don’t like to quit things,” Mandy said, her hands landing on her hips. “You know very well I like to finish what I start.”

  “You’ve got ten paintings out in that guesthouse that say the exact opposite!”

  “I’m not done with those paintings yet.” Mandy matched his tone, giving in to her anger.

  “Oh, let’s be honest, you’re never going to finish those paintings,” James said. “We both know you can’t paint.”

  James regretted the words the second they flew out of his mouth. It was too late to pull them back in, though, and the hurt look on Mandy’s face was something that was going to haunt him for a long time.

  “I didn’t mean that,” James said, instantly contrite.

  “Oh, you meant it,” Mandy said.