Riddle (25 page)

              While Kort went to his room to pack a duffel bag she sat primly on the edge of the couch and suggested Grace could stay at the house. “There’s plenty of room and I wouldn’t bother you.” Hesitating briefly she went on, “Do you have enough room at your apartment?” The implication was apparent, the question unspoken. What she wanted to know was whether or not Kort and Grace were sleeping together. Grace deftly avoided the question by asking for a glass of water.

              Agnes jumped up, “I am so sorry. I never thought to offer you something to drink. Would you like tea?”

              “Oh don’t go to any trouble. Just a glass of water will be fine. Kort should be down soon.” Grace looked anxiously toward the stairs.

              As if on cue he descended the stairs and tossed his bag on the hall floor before going into the living room. He read the discomfort on Grace’s face and raised his eyebrows questioningly. She gave a small shake of her head.

              “Kort, I was just telling Grace it might be a good idea for her to stay here. We have the guest room and she wouldn’t be alone.”

              “It’s okay Mother. I work right there at the complex and when she’s ready to go back to work I can take her down the road.”

              Agnes sat down heavily. “Of course. She doesn’t have a car again Oh my.” She had completely forgotten about the glass of water.

              Grace stood up and moved slowly toward the hall. Agnes followed close behind, wringing her hands and murmuring her concern. Once again she offered to prepare dinner or make up the guest room, her tone almost desperate now. Grace politely declined while in her head she was screaming at the woman to shut up. Kort managed to get them both outside and into the truck. Agnes pulled her sweater tightly closed and called after them to be careful on that road. She watched the truck’s taillights disappear into the growing twilight followed by a low black car. Something clicked in her head and she remembered she had seen that car a lot recently. Then the thought drifted away and she returned to the living room to watch the evening news for details of the accident.

\Chapter 44

              Grace’s cell phone rang repeatedly all evening. Jack called to tell her how it went with Mandy’s mother and to check on her. Ashlee called, crying uncontrollably and telling Grace about her conversation with Mandy’s parents and sister. Apparently the body had not been released by the coroner yet.

              “What are they looking for?” Ashlee sniffled.

              “I really don’t know. I guess it’s just something they need to do; maybe checking for drugs or something.” Grace rubbed her temple with one hand wishing she could just lie down.

              “Mandy didn’t do drugs!” Ashlee exclaimed.

              “I know Ashlee. This is all just procedure.” Grace looked pleadingly at Kort hoping he would find a way to rescue her. Just then her phone beeped indicating she had another call. After asking Ashlee to hold on she switched over to the other line.

              “Grace? Detective Bishop here.” There was noise in the background as though he was in a crowded room.

              Signaling Kort to sit next to her she asked him to hold on while she said good bye to Ashlee. Returning to the detective she asked what was going on.

              “You ex-fiancé hasn’t returned home. That would make me more suspicious of him except for the fact no one has been able to get him on the phone, he didn’t return his rental car as planned, and no one at the motel where he was staying has seen him.”

              Grace struggled to process the information. “What does that mean?”

              The detective’s voice dropped. “Are you alone? Is Kort there?”

              She hesitated before responding. “No and yes.”

              “I know where he was when Mandy had the accident so I’m sure he had nothing to do with that. On the other hand I have a missing man who had an altercation with Kort recently. When was the last time you saw or spoke with David?”

              “He never contacted me again after last week at the diner. I thought he must have gone home.”

              Kort leaned back on the sofa. He had a feeling he knew where this was going. It was a waste of time. Instead of worrying about where David was they needed to find out if they were dealing with an accident or someone trying to kill Grace.

              “It’s possible he’s hanging around. I’m heading over to the motel to check his room. The manager said he didn’t leave anything so he might have just moved on to another motel. But the car thing doesn’t make sense. I have a bolo out on it which makes the rental company very happy. I stand by the advice I gave you earlier. Don’t go back to work yet. I’ll have a car pass by a few times every day. Kort is staying with you right?”

              “Yes, yes he is. I appreciate it Detective Bishop. When will you know if it was an accident?” She prayed he would say it probably was an accident. But something in his voice told her he thought it was something more serious..

              Bishop hesitated a moment before telling her, “I don’t think this was an accident Grace. I don’t know if Mandy was the target or if you were. But it looks like someone purposely ran your car off the road and Mandy was wearing your jacket and the jacket hood was up.”

              “Oh God.” Grace breathed. She felt lightheaded.

              “I have to go now. But I’ll check in with you tomorrow. Be careful.” With that he was gone leaving Grace holding her phone and feeling faint. She looked into Kort’s eyes. “David is missing.”

              Kort leaned forward running both hands back through his hair then burying his face in his hands. “What next?” He looked at Grace. “Let me guess, our detective friend thinks I had something to do with it.” It was a statement, not a question.

              “He didn’t say that Kort. I don’t think he does. He knows you had nothing to do with Mandy’s accident. But he does seem to think it was deliberate and directed at me. I don’t know anyone here. Who would try to run me off the road?”

              “Grace, it has to be David. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he’s laying low somewhere.”

              She shivered involuntarily. “Do you think he’ll try again? Do you think he wants to kill me?”

              “I think he wants to scare you. He went too far though.” Kort’s voice grew hard. “If he tries to hurt you I swear to God, I’ll kill him Grace.”
              She put her hand over his mouth. “Don’t say that! Please! He’s not worth it.”

              He caught her hand in his and kissed her palm. “You’re worth it.” Then he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. “I’m not leaving your side until this is cleared up.”

Chapter 45

              The buzzing of his cell phone woke Kort. Slipping his arm from beneath Grace’s head he glanced at the caller I.D.  Jeri Lawrence’s name flashed at him from the screen and with a start he realized he had missed his appointment with his parole officer. He answered the call as he swung his legs out of bed and headed for the other room.

              He began speaking as soon as she answered, hoping to avoid a lecture. “I apologize, Miss Lawrence. Something happened…”

              She cut him off. “I know what happened, Kort. I rescheduled you for this afternoon at two. We need to discuss what’s going on.”

              Kort took a deep breath. “Am I going to be arrested?”

              “Arrested? Why would you be arrested?”

              “I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me?” His voice was sharp now. The feeling of being toyed with was getting to him.

              “Look Kort, as far as I know you are not going to be arrested. There is an investigation involving your case. Detective Bishop has some questions and he’s following up with witnesses.” Her voice lowered. “I’m not supposed to say anything but there may have been a mistake in your case. I don’t know what he’s turned up but the detective has something and it may be connected with current events.”

              Kort sat down heavily on the couch. “What?” He stared straight ahead as he tried to understand what he was hearing.

              “Just be here at two this afternoon. Detective Bishop will be here too. I’m hoping he’ll clear things up for us.” When Kort didn’t respond she asked, “Do you understand? Be here at two.”

              “I understand. I’ll be there.” She disconnected and he sat for a few minutes holding the phone to his ear. When he looked up, Grace was standing in the bedroom doorway. Lowering the phone slowly he said, “I have to go see my P.O. this afternoon at two o’clock.”

              Grace didn’t respond. She had heard part of the conversation and Kort’s expression seemed to say the news was bad.

              He stood up and went to stand in front of her. “I think they’re re-opening my case. Detective Bishop is investigating…”

              “I don’t understand.”

              Shaking his head Kort admitted he didn’t understand either. “He thinks Desiree’s murder might somehow be connected to what’s happening now.” He slipped his arms around her and pulling her close he buried his face in her hair. Inhaling deeply he let her scent fill his head.  “Grace, Grace. I think you’re my good luck charm.”

              “If what happened to Desiree is connected to the accident then it can’t be David. Who killed her? And how could her murder be related to Mandy or me?”

              “I don’t know, Grace. But I’ll find out this afternoon.” He took her face in his hands. “Maybe you should come with me. You could wait in the truck or downstairs.” Then he shook his head. “No. I won’t be gone long. You’ll lock the door and stay here and not let anyone in. You’ll be safer here.”

              She hadn’t given thought to the fact she would be alone while he went to see Jeri Lawrence. Part of her wanted to ask him not to go but she knew that wasn’t an option. Another part of her wanted to go with him. He sensed her uncertainty. “You’ll be safer here Grace. Just stay inside. I’ll be back as fast as I can.”

              “Okay. It’s okay. How about if I make us some breakfast and you take a shower?”

              “That sounds good to me.” He kissed her deeply. “Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

              Grace smiled brightly. “Absolutely sure. Go take a shower.” She watched Kort go back into the bedroom and head toward the bathroom. Her smile faded. She wasn’t going to tell him how truly frightened she was. This was too important. And he was right; she would be safe as long as she stayed in the apartment.

Chapter 46

              After making certain that Grace was locked in and safe in her apartment, Kort headed to the City/County Building. He found parking quickly and practically raced to Jeri Lawrence’s office. Several heads turned to watch him as he strode down the hall. Detective Bishop was already seated in Lawrence’s office when he entered.

              “Have a seat,” Bishop indicated the chair next to his.

              Kort sat uncomfortably looking from the detective to his parole officer. “Well?”

              Jeri nodded at Bishop. “This is your show Detective.”

              He turned in his seat to face Kort. “Let’s go back to the beginning. You claim you and Desiree had an argument at the river and when you left she was alive. You stated you did not know she was pregnant. I got to wondering if she knew she was pregnant. I know she never saw a doctor to find out. Not one of her friends had any idea and Butch had no idea. We know the baby wasn’t his thanks to DNA testing. Butch has an alibi so we know he didn’t kill her. So we’re left with you and suspect “X”.”

              “Suspect X?”

              “Suspect X is someone who had something to gain by Desiree’s death. I considered her parents because there was a hefty life insurance policy but they didn’t need the money. I thought about the other cheerleaders. Desiree was the head cheerleader and girls can be vicious.” He glanced at Jeri, “Sorry Miss Lawrence.”

              She shrugged, “You’ll get no argument from me.”

              Turning back to Kort he continued. “Then I got to thinking about you. You didn’t have a girlfriend so a jealous girl seemed out of the picture; until I talked to some of the students. You didn’t have a girlfriend but you did have a very good female friend. The more I investigated the more I learned about Norma Hensley.”

              “Norma? Norma wouldn’t hurt a fly.” Kort protested.

              “It looks that way on the surface. Did you know she told people if Desiree wasn’t in the picture, she would be your girlfriend? Did you know she told her mother and her aunt that you were taking her to the senior prom? Did you know that in addition to running track she took classes in tae kwan do and had a black belt?”

              Kort stared at Bishop in disbelief. “Norma? Norma can’t weigh more than a hundred pounds dripping wet.”

              “Actually she weighed one twenty six back then. She’s put on a few pounds since.”

              “She’s a nurse! She helps people!” Kort leaned forward in his chair. “This is crazy.” What he had hoped would be answer to the mystery of Desiree’s murder seemed to be slipping away.

              “You may have heard that Doug Sutton’s body was found near the river shortly after you got back in town. Our friend Butch apparently heard him make some comment to you at the bus depot. He took it into his head that you may have decided to have a little talk with Sutton. He was trying to make some connection between you and the death. This was in spite of the fact that it appeared to have been accidental. The autopsy results came back with something odd though. When they did Butch lost all interest. That made me curious. Why would Doug Sutton be in the woods with a high dose of
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate
in his system?”

              Puzzled, Kort asked, “What is that?”

              A strange smile touched the detective’s face and he glanced quickly at Jeri before turning back to Kort. “It’s the most commonly used DFSA drug.”

              Kort shook his head, “The what?”

              “Drug facilitated sexual assault drug, a date rape drug.” Bishop watched Kort’s face closely.

              Completely confused Kort stared back at the detective. “Why would a guy take a date rape drug?”

              Bishop leaned forward in his chair, his hands folded between his spread knees. “What makes you think he took it himself?”

              “Alright then, why would anyone give a guy a date rape drug? Unless…” his eyes widened. “You think some guy…”

              “Kort. Think outside the box.”

              Jeri laughed softly and Bishop shot her an annoyed look.

              “Sorry,” she mumbled and began shifting papers around on her desk.

              As he realized what the detective was suggesting, Kort held his hands up in front of his chest, “Wait a minute. Why would Norma give Doug Sutton a date rape drug? She can’t stand him.”

              “Maybe that was how she lured him out there. We know his body was found no more than twelve hours after he ingested it. I think it may have been a lot less than that. A group of hikers reported seeing a small black Chevy speeding away from the cut off shortly before finding the body.”

              The detective watched as Kort processed the information. Then he continued, cocking his head to one side. “Just before Mandy went off the road in Grace’s car a driver passed her illegally, and looking in his rearview mirror he saw a small black car moving up fast behind her. He thinks it was a Chevy Cobalt. Do you know what kind of car Norma drives? A black Chevy Cobalt. I haven’t found our friend, David the fiancé, yet but I did learn something interesting at his motel. A black Chevy Cobalt was parked outside his room the last time anyone saw him.”

              “Hang on. Are you saying you think Norma did something to Doug and David? Why would she? And why would she want to hurt Mandy or Grace?” Jeri snickered and Kort looked at her sharply. “What?”

              “Are you dating Grace?” Jeri asked.

              “Yes but… oh come on now! Are you suggesting Norma tried to kill Grace? Why? Her crush on me, if you are even right about that, was years ago. We were kids. She’s an adult and I’ve been away for over seven years.”

              Bishop leaned back in his chair. “She has never had a boyfriend. We know she wrote to you in prison. She picked you up at the bus depot. Is there anything else we should know about your relationship?”

              The memory of his night with Norma filled his mind and he felt his face grow hot. “This is ridiculous.”

              “You didn’t answer my question Kort. Think about it. Is there any reason Norma would think Grace was standing between you and her?”

              Kort began breathing heavily. “Oh my God. This can’t be right.” Burying his face in his hands he began to tell them about the night he had dinner with Norma. “I don’t know what happened that night. It was almost as though I was drugged.” As soon as he said it something clicked.

              Jeri and Detective Bishop exchanged glances. “
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate
has no odor. It has a slightly salty taste. It lowers inhibitions. Sometimes it causes hallucinations. The thing is it leaves the system pretty quickly. How was your dinner?”

              Kort remembered the salty taste of the oysters, the peculiar flavor of that second glass of champagne, the way the room seemed to tilt and spin, and how he awoke knowing something was wrong.

              Jeri spoke up then. “Think about it; she punished you and Desiree. Desiree is dead and you went to prison. Now that you’ve been punished and you’re back in town she can be with you; except for Grace who’s in the way.”

              It made sense. The picture was suddenly clear. As much as he wanted to argue in Norma’s favor, he remembered her response to Grace the first time she saw her in the diner. His mind went back to the fair and the incident in the fun house.“What happens now?” Kort asked softly as he continued to put the pieces together in his mind. The office suddenly seemed tiny and crowded. Kort closed his eyes momentarily. Then he looked directly at Detective Bishop , waiting for his response.

              “I’m going to bring her in for questioning. I plan to make it sound as though I suspect you ran Mandy off the road thinking it was Grace. That would be murder. And we aren’t talking about you going away for seven years. We’re talking about life in prison. She won’t risk that. She has to make it either look like an accident or make it look like someone else did it.”

              Looking from Jeri to the detective he asked softly, “What if she doesn’t do either? What if you’re wrong? What if David did run Mandy off the road?”

              “Kort the man has disappeared. He doesn’t answer his phone. He doesn’t respond to calls from his parents or his new girlfriend. My guess is he is dead. Either he found out something or she decided to make it appear that he was responsible for Mandy’s death. I want to move on this fast. I believe Grace is in danger. Mandy’s funeral is Saturday. My guess is she will make a move sometime around then. I need your help.”

              “What can I do?”While Kort wasn’t saying he believed Norma was guilty, he wasn’t taking any chances. The evidence pointed in the direction of Norma’s involvement. Yet Kort couldn’t imagine a woman committing such a vicious crime.

              “I want you to call her. I want you to tell her we brought you in for questioning and we think you were responsible for Mandy’s accident and that you might have done something to David as well. We’ll wire you. Hopefully she’ll break down. I’ll be putting pressure on her to implicate you. Unless I get positive proof of her guilt or a confession from her, that’s all I can do for now.”

              “When do you want to do this?” Kort asked unsteadily.

              “I’m going to bring her in later today. I may go by her house and do it. You can call her tonight. Tell her you were questioned and I indicated I suspect you. She’ll want to see you. Put it off until tomorrow. We’ll wire you before you meet up with her. Do it someplace public; the diner, a restaurant, the park; someplace we can monitor you.”

              Kort nodded. “I’ll do it but I still think you’re way off.”

              “It’s better to be safe than sorry,” Jeri said gently. “And this might be a chance to clear your name.”

              Kort heard the words and while the thought he would be absolved of Desiree’s murder, the idea that Norma had killed her and let him go to prison for the crime seemed impossible. “Should I tell Grace?”

              Bishop looked thoughtful. “It might not be a good idea. Just tell her to be careful; we aren’t sure what happened. Don’t let her go to work; stay with her. If things go on past the weekend we’ll tell her. But for now let’s keep this between us.”

              After saying good bye and agreeing to let them know when his date with Norma was set up Kort left the office. His mind was spinning as he made his way back to his truck. He went over conversations he’d had with Norma since he’d returned to Riddle. By the time he climbed into the truck he was thinking about that night when he’d had sex with Norma. At the time he’d blamed his responses on the wine, on her seduction, on his own weakness. Now he had to wonder if she had both planned the evening and somehow drugged him. As a nurse she would have access to drugs. Perhaps she had found an illegal drug. But even as he considered all that, he couldn’t imagine her killing anyone. Admitting to himself he’d known Norma was attracted to him, he questioned his responsibility in encouraging her by maintaining a relationship with her. He knew he could have stopped talking to her or just been honest and told her there could never be anything between them. But he hadn’t. He had let things go on because she was practically the only person from his past who believed him and didn’t treat him like a murderer.

              “Because she knows I didn’t kill Desiree,” he thought. “She knows I didn’t kill Desiree because she did it. And now she wants to get Grace out of the way.” A wave of panic hit Kort hard. Grace was home alone. He needed to warn her. Whatever Detective Bishop said, he had to tell Grace she was in danger because of him.

              Kort sped back to Grace’s apartment, ignoring the speed limit and navigating traffic like a race car driver. Unlocking the door he called out to her as he entered the apartment. The lights were on but she didn’t answer. An alarm went off in the back of Kort’s head. Rushing into the bedroom he saw the bed was still unmade, Grace wasn’t in the shower, and it was apparent she was not in the apartment. He didn’t hesitate before calling Jeri Lawrence, hoping the detective would still be in her office. He got her voice mail and left a message. Pulling out his wallet he looked for the detective’s card but couldn’t find it. Panicking, he began searching his pockets, then he looked through some papers that were on the kitchen counter. Finding the card he quickly punched the detective’s number into his cell phone.

              As soon as Bishop answered Kort began speaking. “Grace isn’t here. I told her to stay inside and she isn’t here.”

              “Whoa slow down. Maybe she just went out.” Even as he said it he was on his feet and headed to his car.

              “She wouldn’t do that. She was afraid. Something happened.” Kort was pacing from room to room. “Besides she doesn’t even have a car. Why would she go walking? She knows it’s dangerous.”

              Detective Bishop got into his car. “I’m on my way. Is anything disturbed in the apartment? Does it look like there was a struggle?”

              Back in the living room, Kort scanned the room. “No everything looks…” Then he spotted her cell phone on the coffee table. “Her phone is here. She wouldn’t leave without her phone.”