Scottsdale Heat: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 1) (12 page)

~~~~

I drove to my building and took the elevator to my floor. Unlocking my door, I went in and looked for Marlowe. I searched the apartment without any luck, then went out into the hall and knocked on Grandma Peckham’s door. She answered wearing a purple jogging suit and white running shoes. Her silver-gray hair was tightly curled and today her cheeks were bright pink. In her hand was a Diet Pepsi.

“Why Laura,” Grandma said. “I haven’t gotten a chance to talk to you for days.” She rested her fingertips against my arm. “Come on in. We need to catch up.”

I walked in and saw Marlowe laying on the afghan on his chair. Two years before, Grandma had crocheted the cat-sized afghan and designated a chair for him to sleep on. As I came in, Marlowe turned his head toward me and yawned.

I was sort of hoping he’d jump down and rub against my leg or sit at my feet and meow to be picked up. After all, he was my roommate and my friend. Instead, he closed his eyes and laid his head on the afghan. Within seconds, he was asleep.

Some friend.

Grandma went to the refrigerator. She came back holding a fresh Diet Pepsi and handed it to me. As far as I know, Diet Pepsi is all Grandma Peckham ever drinks. I’d never had a Diet Pepsi before I met Grandma Peckham, and now it’s about the only soda I drink.

When she’s feeling frisky, Grandma Peckham has been known to add a little Appleton Rum to her Diet Pepsi. She calls her drinks Jamaican Jerks. With one Jerk in her, Grandma starts talking and you can’t get a word in. After two Jerks, Grandma stops talking coherently and just mumbles while staring glassy eyed into space. After three Jerks, Grandma leans over in her chair and falls asleep.

We sat on the sofa next to Marlowe and his cat chair. “So, what did I miss?” Grandma asked. “Has everything been all right?”

“I got shot at and almost kidnapped this morning, but it ended up being nothing serious.”

“I’m glad to hear that. To tell the truth, I’ve been a little worried about you. I’m somewhat psychic, you know, and I’ve been having some troubling visions about you lately.”

“What kind of visions?” I asked.

“So far there hasn’t been anything specific, mostly visions of you surrounded by a threatening masculine aura.”

“Being surrounded by anything masculine doesn’t sound so bad right now.”

“Oh, I know you think I’m nuts, but you also know my visions usually come true. Just tell me you’ll stay away from strange men for a few days. You haven’t started seeing anyone new, have you?”

“I keep trying, but no luck so far.”

“Well, maybe it’s just as well,” Grandma said. “It’s been nice and quiet over at your place the past year, not like when you were dating that policeman. Land sakes alive, when you were with him you made
a lot
of noise. The first night you had him over, I thought he was slapping you around and hurting you. I almost called the cops on him. But when I saw the two of you in the hall the next morning, you both seemed really happy. So I figured he was slapping you around and maybe you enjoyed it. Of course, after the first few nights I figured out you were just a moaner and a screamer, so I let it go.”

I felt my face flush with heat.

God, how embarrassing.

“I haven’t been close with anyone lately.” I said. “But, I did have some Scotch the other day almost as good as sex.”

“Really? What was it called?”

“It was
Balvenie
or
Ball Vinny
, something like that.”

“Humm, good as sex? Maybe I ought to learn to drink the stuff. It’s been years since I’ve had sex. The last time I even tried to have sex was about two years ago with Walter Dobson from the drugstore. He worked in the pharmacy and I’d known him for years. We went over to his house one afternoon and tried to do it, but he couldn’t get his penis to work. Figure that, and Walter wasn’t even seventy then. I tried every trick I knew to make it work. I even did the
Velvet Hummingbird
thing I had read about in Cosmopolitan magazine. That one had been guaranteed to drive any man to ecstasy, or at the very least give him a good stiffy, but it was nothing doing. You’d think working in a pharmacy he could take something to fix that.”

Grandma sighed and looked a little melancholy.

“My granddaughter says I should just get a vibrator and that way I wouldn’t ever want a man again. She said after her divorce she got a vibrator and now she doesn’t even think about dating men anymore.
My granddaughter said she wishes she had found out about vibrators before she got married. She said, if she had a chance to do it all again, she’d just get a vibrator and adopt children from Africa rather than get married and have children the normal way.”

As Grandma was talking, I got up and made my way over to the cat chair. I had also read about the Velvet Hummingbird and the thought of Grandma Peckham doing that to Walter Dobson from the drugstore was giving me the heebie-jeebies.

I picked Marlowe up and set him against my shoulder. He yawned, but otherwise didn’t protest. I thanked Grandma Peckham for the Diet Pepsi and returned next door to my apartment.

~~~~

I got back to Jeannie’s Cabaret about 9:00 that night. I drove around the parking lot looking for Alex’s car without success. The parking lot was packed and I was forced to park in one of the few remaining spots near the back.

As I walked to the front, I noticed a red velvet rope had been stretched across the entrance. There was a small line of men standing behind the rope; all were waiting to be let in. I was walking to the back of the line, when the doorman called me over. He was the same one who I had talked to earlier in the day.

“After 6:00, and on weekends, ladies don’t pay a cover and they go right in,” he said, opening the rope and waving me in.

As I walked in, I could see why they encouraged women patrons at night. The room was filled to capacity with men, mostly in small groups, but there were also many singles. Most of the singles had a look of quiet desperation and confusion. It was as though they couldn’t understand why giving a naked woman ten or twenty dollars didn’t make her hop off the stage and follow them home for a night of passion.

I scanned the room, looking for Alex or Danica. Instead, I saw Annie, the girl I had met the last time I was here. She was seated with another woman at a table near the main stage. I started winding my way towards them. About halfway to their table, I caught Annie’s eye. She smiled and waved me over to the table.

The other woman was several years older than Annie, somewhere in her late forties. She looked very stylish, wearing a low-cut blue designer evening gown and gorgeous blue suede pumps. She was decked out in sparkly rings, a diamond studded watch, and a tastefully gaudy amount of gold jewelry, including a thick ruby and diamond bracelet. Her long auburn hair was nicely styled and looked great. Her makeup was flawless, as was her skin. She had the thin body, the perfect nose, and the oversized boobs of a woman who has both a personal trainer and a favorite plastic surgeon. She also had what looked like the remains of a gin & tonic in front of her. Annie’s glass of white wine was still half full.

“Hi Annie,” I said, talking loudly to be heard over the pounding music. “Has Danica Taylor been out yet?”

“You just missed her. She got off the stage about five minutes ago.” Annie waved me to a chair across from her, next to the woman. “But don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll be back on stage again tonight. She seems to be very popular.”

“I just wanted to talk to her. Do you know how long it takes for the women to come out to waitress after dancing?”

“It seems like they come out almost right away. It looks like they get good tips from the guys who weren’t able to make it up to the stage.”

Annie then seemed to remember the other woman at the table. “Oh, sorry, I’m being so rude. Jackie, this is Laura; Laura, this is Jackie.” I reached over to shake her hand. She eyed me as she offered her hand, knuckles toward me, fingers hanging down. She gave me a strange look, like she was trying to decide why I was here.

“You must be helping Annie to find a man,” I said.

“Oh, you know about her problem around men?” Jackie asked, her face brightening.

“I met Jackie the same day I met you,” Annie said. “We were both over at the Casablanca Lounge and I told her about my problem around guys. She said picking up a guy isn’t a big deal. She does it all the time. She said she’d even come back over here where the guys are already horny and help me pick one out.”

“I’m not sure why Annie can’t talk to men,” Jackie said. “For some reason she gets tongue tied. I’ve been dating a lot since my divorce, mostly younger guys. I think we can find her a man, especially in a place like this.”

“I hope so,” Annie said, smiling. “I have a lot of needs and this is driving me crazy.”

“Why date younger guys?” I asked Jackie. “Why not guys your own age?”

“What you have to understand was I was married to a man who treated me like shit for almost fifteen years. He thought just because he made a lot of money he could treat me like a slave. It was always cook my dinner, clean my house, do my laundry. A few years ago, he started having these mood swings that would last for weeks at a time. It was a nightmare. I divorced him a year ago and I’ll be damned if I ever marry anybody else. I started out dating guys my age, but lately I’ve been dating younger guys and it’s been great.”

“OK,” I said. “I get they are young and have nice bodies. But then isn’t it just sex?”

“Yes, and that’s the beauty of it.” She saw my puzzled look and went on.

“There are few things clingier than a fifty year old divorced guy. It’s impossible to be with a guy like that for more than about three dates before he wants to introduce you to his kids. I have all the money I’ll ever need, so I don’t need a man to provide anything for me. I just want to find a guy, use him a few times, and then toss him away. I get want I want and they always seem to enjoy themselves.”

“Seems reasonable to me,” I said.

“Annie told me about this place, and I thought, why not,” Jackie said. “I usually hit the nightclubs, along with some friends of mine, but I thought it might be easier for Annie to just go to a room full of extremely horny men. There won’t be a lot of talking involved. We’ll pick up a couple of men and use them tonight. If they’re good, maybe we’ll see them again. If not, we’ll grab a couple of new ones for tomorrow. I know there’s a man for Annie out there somewhere.”

“That sounds like a plan,” I said. “Good luck.”

Jackie looked over at Annie.

“Are you ready?”

Annie looked a little nervous, but nodded her head. Jackie got up and led Annie to a table where two men in their twenties were sitting and watching the girls on stage. Jackie was doing the talking. In less than a minute they were both sitting at the table and one of the guys had called a waitress over. I noticed Jackie already had her fingers casually resting on the guy’s arm.

As I got up, Annie looked up and gave me a finger wave good-bye. I went over to an empty seat at the end of the bar.

~~~~

Danica came out from backstage less than five minutes later. She headed toward the waitress station next to my barstool.

“Hi Danica,” I said as she stood next to me, organizing her waitress tray.

She looked over, but didn’t seem to know who I was. After looking at me for about three beats, recognition flooded into her face. What followed was a wave of something I took for fright or worry. She bent down and I caught a whiff of an expensive perfume. She put her lips next to my ear, her soft voice barely audible over the pounding music.

“Have you seen Alex today?” she asked.

“No,” I said. “And I’ve tried his place, your place, here, and every other place I could think of. I haven’t seen him anywhere.”

“I think he’s missing. He left my place about 2:00 this morning. He was supposed to meet me for lunch today, but he never showed up. He never breaks a date without calling. I’m really worried.”

“Do you have any idea where he could have gone?”

“That’s just it. He wasn’t supposed to go anywhere. He said he was beat and he was going home to sleep all morning. When he didn’t show up for lunch, I called his apartment and his cell phone several times, but he doesn’t answer. I drove over to his place, but his car’s not in the lot. I even called the emergency room at Scottsdale Memorial in case he had gotten into an accident.”

“Do you have a key to his apartment?”

“Yes, but I don’t know if I should just walk into his place. What if he’s there and he just wanted to be left alone for the day?”

“Do you believe that?”

“Well, no. Maybe you’re right, but I don’t want to go there alone. I get off tonight at midnight. Meet me outside the stage door at about 12:20. We can go over and look together. OK? Maybe he’ll be back by then.”

Great, another late night.

“I’ll be there,” I said, hoping my lack of enthusiasm didn’t show.

I walked out to my car and called Sophie on her cell phone. I didn’t know if she already had a date tonight, but I figured it was worth a shot. If she was busy, I’d try Gina. I really didn’t want to go home and flip channels until midnight.

Sophie’s phone rang several times. It was about to go into her voicemail, when she answered. I heard music and voices in the background.

“Hey Sophie,” I said. “Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“Hey Laura. No, you caught us at a great time. Gina and I are at the Beach Club. Come on over. Drinks are half price tonight and some of the guys are really cute.”

In the background I heard Gina yelling “Hey Laura, get your skinny butt down here!”

“OK,” I said, “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

~~~~

The Arizona Beach Club overlooks the Salt River, just south of Scottsdale in Tempe. Of course, since this is Arizona, the Salt River is dry throughout the year. Any rain or snow that falls in Arizona stays up in the mountains in a system of huge reservoirs. A few years back, somebody got the idea of damming this part of the dry river and filling it up. The result is Tempe Town Lake. It’s now a popular recreation destination with the students from Arizona State University, which borders the lake to the south.

The Beach Club is a notch down from the glamour clubs of Scottsdale, but the drinks are cheaper and you can park without using a valet. It consists of a cavernous room with a high ceiling, a big dance floor, and a bar stretching the entire length of one of the walls. It is famous for having forty-five different beers on tap. Of course, being so close to the University, the crowd is inevitably several years younger than the clubs in Scottsdale.

I walked in and looked around for Sophie and Gina. They weren’t in the main room, so I walked out the back of the main building and onto the large outdoor patio. I always prefer the patio whenever I come here. There are two bars, a stage, several flickering Tiki torches, and a big fountain that splashes in a friendly way. It’s a little quieter than inside and a lot more pleasant.

I found Sophie and Gina sitting at a table against a white wall, next to the trunk of an enormous royal palm tree. There were three full drinks in front of each of them. I slid into an empty chair and they each handed me a drink.

I turned and looked around the patio. “Is it me or do the guys here look younger than last time?”

“Sorry girlfriend,” Sophie said. “They stay the same, you’re just maturing.”

“I hear you met the two Russians I’ve been looking for,” Gina said.

“I wouldn’t exactly say met. They sort of ran into me and invited me up to their place.”

“Any ideas on who shot up their car?” Gina asked.

“Not a clue, but I owe somebody big time. The Russians are still looking for the missing bag. They think I know where it is.”

“Wow! Do you?” Sophie asked, concern on her face.

“Not as far as I know. How close are you to finding it?”

“Not very,” Gina said. “The bag was switched a week ago and all I have to go on is a piece of grainy video. What I’ve found out so far is the two guys who threatened you were Russian Mafia bodyguards for
the Courier
, that’s what everybody is calling the little guy in the middle on the videotape. The bodyguards are still out looking for whoever switched the bag, so they’re accounted for. The courier’s a no-show.”

“As in, he’s disappeared?” Sophie asked.

“Yeah. Everyone I talk to gives me a different answer on where I can find him. I get the feeling I’m getting the runaround at the resort. I’ve been chasing my tail all day.”

“On the tape there was some big commotion right before the switch. Did you find out what that was?” I asked.

“I was lucky there. I talked to a bellman who was working at the time. A woman wearing a red string bikini had just come in from the pool. She was walking through the lobby when she apparently tripped over a chair and somehow lost her top. She had a hard time getting it back on, so naturally every guy in the lobby came over to help her, or at least get an eyeful.”

“That sounds like a diversion,” Sophie said. “Did you find out who the woman was?”

“Nope, the bellman just remembers her as a tall brunette with huge breasts and great tan lines.”

“Well, Jeez, that’s not very helpful,” I said. “That describes half the women in Scottsdale.”

“Yeah,” Sophie said. “The other half are blonde.”

“Did the bellman see the guy who did the switch?” I asked.

“No,” Gina said. “Nobody remembers anything other than the brunette and her boobs.”

“Were there any other camera angles of the lobby when the bag was switched?”

“Don’t know yet. That’s next on my list tomorrow. Somebody named Milo is delivering copies of all of the security tapes made that day. He should have them to the office by 10:00.”

“Milo?” Sophie asked. “Is he hot?”

“How should I know?” Gina said. He’s probably just another goon.”

“I don’t know,” Sophie said. “That goon who kissed Laura was damn fine. Maybe they’ll send over a hottie for me too?”

“Everything’s revolving around the bag,” I said. “Did you ever find out what’s really supposed to be in it?”

“No, I don’t even have a good idea what it looks like. The official story is still money, documents, and computer disks,” Gina said. “I get the feeling there’s more to it, but so far everybody is being very closed-mouthed. The higher up I go, the less they seem to know about it. It must be something pretty big.”

~~~~

We talked until midnight. I had my keys out of my bag and was getting ready to go when the waitress brought over three more drinks. “From the table over there,” she said and pointed.

The table was behind me, so I let Sophie and Gina look.

“Well, anything worthwhile?” I asked.

“
Yummy
,” Gina moaned. She began biting her lower lip.

“
Ooooohh,
” Sophie moaned. Her lips puckered.

I turned to look. The drinks came from two boys who looked barely old enough to shave. They were smiling and holding up their beers. I turned back to look at Gina and Sophie. They were both holding up the drinks and waving.

“You can’t be serious,” I said. They look like they’re still in high school. They probably snuck in here. You should go for older guys, you know, the ones with
money
.

“Don’t think of them as young,” Gina said, still waving. “Think of them as vigorous.”

“Yeah,” Sophie said, “vigorous, good stamina.”

“Hey,” I said. “The other day we were talking about that eighteen-year-old who was trying to seduce you. Didn’t we agree that was way too young? Didn’t you say it was gross?”

“Oh sure,” Gina said. “Eighteen is way too young, but twenty-one is
completely
different.”

“Oh yes, completely different.” Sophie said, her face taking on a light pink glow. It’s like you said the other day, these boys could pleasure us all night long.”

“Well, I can’t fight against your liquored-up libidos,” I said. “Just do me a favor and make sure they’re legal. Check their IDs before anything happens.”

“Hey Laura, good advice,” Gina said, staring at the boys, slowly running her tongue over her lips.

“Yeah, umm, I’ll keep it in mind too,” Sophie said, absent-mindedly fluffing her hair.

I stood up and waved the two guys over to our table. They came bouncing over like two puppies.

“Boys,” I said. “This is Gina and Sophie, they’ve been drinking, and they’re not as young as they used to be, so please be gentle with them tonight.”

The boys sat down. Gina waved good-bye, and Sophie blew me a kiss. Smiling, I just shook my head and headed out to my car.

~~~~

At twenty minutes after midnight, Danica came out of the stage door and spotted me in my Honda. She smiled and gave me a little wave. As she walked over, I got out and stood next to my car. During the night, the temperature had dropped into the upper 50’s. Being a seasoned Scottsdale girl, I had put on a thick jacket.

“Alex’s place isn’t far,” Danica said. Did you want to go in one car?”

I was about to say no, when I saw she was pointing towards a blue Porsche 911 Carrera, parked four spaces over from my Honda.

“Is that your car?”

“Yeah, I got it a couple of years ago. It’s really fun to drive.”

Jeez, how much money do you make by taking off your clothes?

OK, so I’ll admit it. I didn’t want to pass up a chance to ride in the Porsche. I locked the Honda and walked around to the side of her car. Danica beeped the remote and unlocked the doors.

There is something wonderful about climbing into a Porsche. The black leather seats seemed to wrap around me. It felt like sitting in a big soft hand.

Danica started the motor and the car trembled with energy. Personally, I don’t think I could ever have a car this fast. I’d be too tempted to do eighty or ninety down every quiet country road I came across. I wouldn’t be able to help myself and my insurance company already hates me enough as it is.

“You’d better put on your seatbelt,” Danica said. “I drive sorta fast.”

“Don’t you get tickets?” I asked. “A car like this practically calls out for the police to stop it.”

“Well, I get stopped a lot, but they never give me tickets. I guess I’m good at talking my way out of them.”

You don’t get tickets?

I mentally chalked up one more reason to be a beautiful sexy woman.

With the engine giving out a low powerful growl, we pulled out of the parking lot and headed up Scottsdale Road to Alex’s apartment.

“I love your car,” I said. “Now, you don’t have to tell me, but I’m curious. How much do you make dancing?”

“Well, I make about $800 a night in salary and tips, but between taxes and what the club takes it knocks down what I get to keep. Lately I’ve been clearing about $500 a night. Being Miss November last year helped give me some recognition.”

I did a quick calculation in my head. $500 a night was $2500 a week. Multiplied by fifty-two weeks gave $130,000 a year, and that’s after taxes.

Damn, I’m in the wrong business
.

Danica looked over and saw what I was thinking.

“Yes, the money’s good, but it’s not easy. I’m always on a diet. I have to work out five days a week. I also go to the dermatologist once a week. When you dance for a living, getting a zit is a disaster.”

I guess there are plusses and minuses to everything.

“Alex seems to have come into a lot of money recently,” I said. “Did he tell you where it came from?”

“He said his grandmother had released some of his trust fund. But I’m not sure if I believe that. From what he had told me, his grandmother was holding off giving him anything until he turned thirty. Then you came and said he was selling things and was being followed. It seems like the money and the sales must be related to Alex being missing.”

After that we drove in nervous silence. We were driving through a retail district, about three miles from Alex’s apartment, when I saw something out of the corner of my eye.

“
Stop the car!
” I yelled. Danica obliged by slamming on the brakes, throwing us both forward. I turned my head to look down a street we had just passed. Danica saw it at the same time.

“Alex’s car! I know it’s his,” Danica yelled.

She pulled over to the curb and started to take off her seatbelt.

“Stay here,” I said. “Let me at least see what we’re dealing with.”

I looked over to see if Danica understood. Her eyes were wide and she was breathing hard, but she nodded. I opened the car door and got out. The wind had started to pick up and I zipped up my jacket. I had my LED penlight out of my purse.

“Oh God, please don’t let Alex be dead. Please don’t let Alex be dead.” I walked up to the car repeating the words. It was as if just saying the words would keep anything bad from happening.

I got to the car and shone my light through the window and onto the front seat. No Alex and no other dead bodies visible. With my heart pounding, I angled the light around to look in the back seat.

“
Is he there?
” yelled a voice directly behind me.

I jumped so hard I almost wet myself. I turned and snapped at Danica, who was standing less than three feet from me. “Don’t sneak up on me like that!” My heart was pumping so hard I felt my head pulse with each rapid beat.

“Sorry,” Danica said in a small and shaky voice. “I couldn’t wait. Is Alex in there?”

“Not that I’ve seen so far. As long as you’re here, let’s look on the inside. Do you have keys to his car?”

With a trembling hand, Danica pulled out a set of keys. She used the beeper to unlock the doors.

I opened the driver’s side door and looked in. The car was spotless. I then walked over to the passenger’s side, opened the door, and sat down. The glove compartment was empty except for the registration and the owner’s manual. I used the button in the glove compartment to unlock the trunk. With a click, the trunk lid popped up an inch.