Lethal Bond: Jamie Bond Mysteries Book #3 (11 page)

"It's okay. The hours are fine. Pay is okay. That could always be better. I wouldn't mind finding something a bit more adventurous though. Not quite being a PI, but not answering phones either," she said. "I'm not sure what though. Did you always want to be a model?"

"Actually I never considered it before I was approached by an agent. At first I thought of being an actress. Growing up in L.A., the idea of making it into Hollywood is everywhere."

Looking back now, I realized acting was a part of my career choices—not that the second career had been much of a choice. I couldn't say no to Derek because he was family. If I had to do it all over again though, I'd end up exactly where I was. I loved modeling, but I was glad it didn't have a long shelf-life. And now, being a private investigator was pretty rad. I was a bit disillusioned at first, with the number of cheating spouses in L.A., but in our own special way, the agency helped people. That made up for it.

"What about you?" I asked.

She sipped her drink then laughed. Loud. "I don't exactly have the look Hollywood prefers."

Elaine was small in height and rather large in the chest. The double D's might have been a selling point to casting agents, but the three-packs-a-day smoker's voice was not.

As if she could read my thoughts, she reached into her bag and pulled out a pack of Marlboros. Since she wasn't legally allowed to smoke in a public place, even a bar, she just tapped the pack on the counter several times.

"What did you dream of doing?" I asked, bringing my glass to my lips again.

"Well that's just it. I didn't have any true dreams, the ones of becoming famous or rich. I grew up in Chicago with a single mom. It was rough at times. I assumed I'd get a job waiting tables, like her, or maybe go to nursing school."

"But you didn't?"

She shook her head. "No. I fell in love and followed the boy to L.A. How original, right?"

I smiled. "It happens. Love is a powerful thing."

We both slipped into a melancholic haze. I snapped out of it fast though. I couldn't afford to wallow about Aiden, and I wasn't talking about Derek.

"You decided to stay here though. You didn't want to return home?"

She snapped her fingers at the bartender and pointed to our glasses. Hers was empty, but I still had half a drink left. "By the time he and I split, Mom had passed away."

"I'm sorry. I lost my mother young, too." There we were slipping down that Derek slope again. Was there no way to avoid him?

"And L.A. is home for me, too. I love it here. I never want to leave. Although I wouldn't mind traveling."

"Where would you like to go?"

The bartender set two more drinks down, and Elaine fished a twenty from her wallet. "My treat. No argument."

I only smiled. A free drink was close to a free meal in my book.

"Paris definitely. And Rome, London, Madrid…the popular places, but I don't want to go as a tourist and see the attractions. I want to see what the locals do."

"So you'll need a local guide for each city. A hot Italian and Frenchman and so on," I said, starting to loosen up and feel relaxed.

She leaned closer. "Are there any hot Frenchmen?"

I had to think about that. "Michael Vartan from
Alias
."

Her eyes widened. "The boyfriend?"

I nodded.

"Oooh, oui."

We laughed and continued dishing about hot men of all nationalities. We stayed away from the topic of any real men in our lives, and by the end of the night, or the early hours of the next day, I was glad I'd opted for margaritas with Elaine versus torturing myself about Franco's. She was a nice lady. She deserved great things.

And if Derek really was cheating on her, I was gonna kill him.

CHAPTER NINE

"Here you go, boss." Maya handed me the printed-out photos I took of the car shop thugs. "The three of them, Cortez, Alvarez, and Santos, are affiliated in one way or another with an arm of the Mexican mafia. The crew of a man named Eduardo Vega."

Mexican mafia? That was more than a low-level guy in Inglewood who sold to strippers.

But before I could respond, the main door opened, and Caleigh and her father walked in. A sigh escaped before I could stop it.

"Well good morning, ladies." Mr. Presley tipped his hat at us before taking it off and holding it at his chest. "I understand why my princess enjoys L.A. so much. The weather is gorgeous."

Caleigh squeezed his arm. "Daddy and I had an early breakfast." Her smile was forced.

"She introduced me to Who-vos Ran-cher-ous."

Maya and I blinked at him.

"Huevos Rancheros," Caleigh translated.

He held a hand over his belly. "It was a bit spicy. I hope my system can handle it. But it was very delicious. I hadn't realized I'd be eating foreign foods when I came to California."

I was proud of myself that I resisted the giant eye roll just begging to accompany his statement.

He widened his blue eyes. "I'd like to apologize to you lovely ladies, as well as Miss Cross, if I came across as stuffy last night. My daughter seems to think I offended y'all with my talk of women in the home and having babies."

Maya and I looked at one another not sure how to agree without coming across as rude.

Luckily he kept talking and wasn't looking for a response. "I was born in a time when that was normal. Sometimes it's hard to change your thoughts when the world changes. I meant no disrespect."

He seemed like a nice man, and he loved his daughter, wanted the best for her. I decided to cut him some slack.

I stepped forward and took his hand. "Thank you, Mr. Presley. That means a lot to us. It's hard living in a man's world."

I hadn't exactly meant that the way he obviously took it, but when he smiled and squeezed my hand, correcting his assumption didn't matter.

"And thank you for dinner," Maya said.

"It was my pleasure, darlin'. Not only did I get to meet my future son-in-law, but I got to spend time with the people who mean the most to my baby. I call that a win-win."

"Daddy, why don't you go wait in my office. I need to go over some work stuff with Jamie and Maya."

"Okay, pumpkin'. Ladies." He walked off.

"So anything new come up overnight that I need to help with?"

I shook my head. "No."

"Okay, well, I'm going to send Daddy back to my place and then check in with what Stuart Livingston is up to. Maybe he'll meet up with Nikki or Melanie for an afternoon quickie."

I wished. "This afternoon we're going to meet with girlfriend number three."

"But enough about business," Maya interjected. "Tell us about your night."

I had to admit, after the evening I'd had, it would be refreshing to hear about a successful date.

"Well, I dropped Daddy off at my place then pretended Danny and I wanted to be alone. I took him home, and then I met up with Curtis."

"Did he say anything about me?" I asked, hoping I'd hit a nerve with Danny with my fake Aiden meeting.

Caleigh wrinkled her nose. "Why would Curtis talk about you? He hasn't even met you. Well, you were there when we met, but you didn't introduce yourselves to one another. And…"

"Not him. Danny."

She giggled. "Oh. Let's see. He sat in my passenger seat and stared out the window and mumbled about tough brisket, fork-tender crab cakes, and needing a drink."

I smirked. Perhaps it was in bad taste, but I was glad to know last night wasn't uncomfortable just for me.

"He asked me if you had plans to go back to Ventura's today."

I stiffened. "Oh really?"

She cut the air with her hand, like a horizontal karate chop. "I told him absolutely not. Are you?"

I laughed. "I don't think so."

"Whew. I hate lying."

I cocked my head toward her office.

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, I know. It's killing me."

I didn't ask when she'd tell her father the truth, but eventually she'd have to tell some version. Unless, of course, she actually planned on marrying Danny.

She went to her office as the phone rang, and Maya answered it.

I sipped the coffee Maya had waiting for me. I needed it. After my night of cocktails with Elaine, I'd finally slept soundly, only to be woken extra early by an incessant car alarm on the street and then a couple fighting next door.

Sam walked in, out of breath. Her normally curly hair looked frizzy and in need of hydration. Her blouse was wrinkled, and her left shoe looked freshly scuffed.

"What happened to you?" I asked.

"Julio and I overslept. We had to rush to get him to school on time. He hates when he's tardy."

"Late night?"

"After dinner with
that man
I may have had a drink or two." Sam had clearly been the most annoyed by Daddy's comments.

I filled her in on Mr. Presley's apology.

She un-pursed her lips. "Well that was nice of him. I'll be in my office trying to get a grape jelly stain out of my skirt." She pointed to a spot near her hip then walked off.

Maya finally hung up, and I said, "Back to Vega. Are there any big cases coming up involving his crew?"

"Yes. Vega's second in command, a man named Jose Flores, was busted on a DUI. They found drugs in his car, and he's looking at a hefty sentence."

"So Rocco is probably a low level guy sent by Vega to hand off the bribe money to someone in the DA's office." The question was, who was he paying?

"Who's trying the case?"

Maya looked up with wide eyes. Her lips were pursed. "You're not going to like it."

My stomach dropped. These little warnings about my not liking something were starting to wear thin. Maybe the girls just needed to surprise me. Before Maya said anything though, I knew.

"It's Aiden."

No. I couldn't believe Aiden would do that…would he? But how well did I really know him? Maybe the "Golden Boy" act he had going on really was just an act. It was hard to wrap my head around. I didn't want to believe that, but then I envisioned him and Miranda sitting cozy at our restaurant. Although it wasn't really ours anymore.

One thing was for sure—I needed answers.

*  *  *

Sam and I headed back to Vanessa's house. Clipboard in hand, we walked up the broken concrete and knocked on her door. This time the curtains were drawn, so I couldn't see inside. After yesterday's fiasco at Ventura's, I just hoped Rocco didn't answer. The Toyota was the only car near the house, in the same spot as yesterday.

The door swung open, and Vanessa's smile instantly turned sour at the sight of us. "What do you want?" Her tone was anything but welcoming.

"We have a few more questions about…"

"No. I spoke to Rocco. He said I do not have to answer your questions. This is harassment, and I am done talking." She folded her arms across her chest.

She had us. Once she clammed up, there was no other place to get answers.

As much as it reeked, I decided to go with plan B. "Well, Rocco is wrong. When it comes to the safety and welfare of your children, we have every right to ask whatever we want. We also have every right to do what is best for them, if we determine there is just cause."

She just glared at me, not even tempted to start talking.

Fine. I glanced at Sam before saying, "And the CPS office is starting proceedings to have the children removed from your home."

Vanessa's eyes darkened, and her face flushed. She threw her hands up and yelled something in Spanish. "Go. Leave. You will not take my kids. I'm a good mother. Get out. And don't come back."

Then she took a step back and slammed the door in our faces.

That went well.

Sam raised her brows to me as we turned and headed back to my car.

"Don't give me that look. I remember what you said last time. I didn't want to do it, but I had to."

I opened my car door and slipped in behind the wheel.

She settled in then turned to me. "Okay, I give. Why?" Sam asked.

"Where do you think is the first place Rocco will turn for help with his kids' case?"

Sam grinned. "His contact in the DA's office."

"Bingo."

I turned on the ignition.

"So, you've been spying on Aiden every night?"

She made it sound so immoral. I turned at the corner and headed back to the office. "Not Aiden specifically. The whole office."

"How's that going?" I wasn't sure but I think I detected a note of sarcasm.

I shrugged, not wanting to repeat last night's fiasco. Living through it had been bad enough.

"That good, huh?"

Oh yeah, definitely some sarcasm. Thing was, I knew her concern was legit. Staking out the DA's office every night had started taking its toll on me. Not to mention sitting in the car.

"How about you let me run surveillance tonight?"

I glanced her way. It was like this woman could read my mind. "You sure?"

"Absolutely. Julio has a sleepover, and I'll just be watching some reality show anyway. Might as well make it the real thing."

"Thanks. That's great. I could use the rest."

Actually, I just wasn't sure if I could take watching Aiden and Hot Lips Miranda go out again.

CHAPTER TEN

That afternoon, Caleigh and I went to visit Livingston's third girlfriend, Marguerite Clemens. I pulled my roadster up to a wrought iron gate and pressed a button on the talk box of her Beverly Hills home. From the look of the neighborhood, Marguerite had money and plenty of it. Maya's research had pulled up that she was a fifty-seven year-old woman who never worked a day in her life. She'd gone through three husbands, and added a new wing to the house after each one.

"Stuart has great taste," Caleigh whispered from the passenger seat.

I chuckled. "You haven't seen her yet."

She waved a hand along our view. "Do I have to?"

The box crackled to life. "May I help you?"

I stifled a laugh and leaned out my window. "It's Jamie Bond and Caleigh Presley to see Ms. Clemens."

The gate slowly opened without another word.