Trip Wire_ A Cook County Mystery - Charlotte Carter [27]
I stamped hard a few times, trying to shake out the numbness in my feet.
“Where’s Clea?” I asked.
“She quit. She’s so messed up behind what happened, she doesn’t want to be anywhere near the commune now, or even on this side of town. I don’t blame her.”
I waited while she helped a customer.
“I didn’t want to come to work today, either,” she said. “I just wanted to stay inside the apartment.”
I snorted. “Yeah. Safe inside our building. Where nothing bad ever happens.”
She made a face. “You’re just like him, Sandy. Even when something terrible happens, you can make a joke.”
Just like him. She meant Wilton, of course. Time was, I’d be bursting with pride to be told that. Now it just hurt.
“But I guess you’re right,” Beth said. “It is spooky in the apartment now. What are we supposed to do?”
“1 don’t know. It’s shit either way.”
She picked up one of the scratchy wool ponchos and wrapped it around her. “Speaking of shit . . .”
“What?” I said.
Detective Norris, red in the face, was walking toward us. “Cold enough for you girls?”
Neither of us answered.
“How’s business?” he asked Annabeth.
“Pretty much like it was the last time you swung by here,” she said. “I’m very busy. And, no, I haven’t heard a word from Dan Zuni.”
Norris turned to me then. “What about you?”
It was almost as if he was reading my thoughts. The second I saw him striding toward us, I flashed on Barry in the Volvo and my speculation that he might know exactly where Dan was. I hadn’t even decided whether I should tell Annabeth about it, let alone the cops.
Another customer interrupted just then. Beth left me alone with Norris, damn it, whose eyes I couldn’t meet.
“Did you hear me?” he demanded.
“Yeah, yeah, I did. Like she said, we don’t know where he is. We’re not hiding him in the basement or anything. Look. Wouldn’t you be better off conducting a real investigation—trying to find out who killed Wilton and Mia—instead of hounding us like this?”
“Now, why didn’t I think of that?” He took out his cigarettes, lit one, and let his gaze roam the store. “So this is where all the cute hippie chicks hang out.”
“Hey, I’m serious, okay? You’re treating Dan like he’s public enemy number one, when he didn’t have anything to do with those killings. But I’m telling you—don’t hurt him when you find him. You’ll be sorry if you do.”
That got his back up. “Threat? You think your family’s got that much pull with the PD in this city?”
“I’m not threatening you, Detective. I’m asking you to think.”
“Yeah. Okay. You say he didn’t do it, it must be so.” I noticed that he was grinning now. “I’ll tell ya. Your roommate’s got a great little shape to her.” The big creep was staring at Annabeth as she walked back toward us.
“I’m going home,” I told Beth, and then turned to Norris, “unless you’ve got something else to say to us.”
He took in a huge gulp of the dope- and incense-infused air. “Nope. Long as you understand you don’t leave town until I say you can. You girls can finish your tea party now.”
“Ha ha,” Beth said when he’d walked off.
“I’m tired as hell, Beth,” I said. “I’m gonna go.”
“You okay walking home alone?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Besides, there still seem to be uniformed cops everywhere. I guess they’d help out if somebody tried to snatch me.”
“Are you sure? Taylor’s picking me up tonight. I don’t feel so great about closing up by myself. You could hang out until he gets here.”
It just kind of burst out of me then. “Listen, Beth. I couldn’t say anything while Norris was here, but . . . I mean, I don’t even know if I should say anything, period.”
“About what?”
“Nothing. Just come home with Taylor. We can talk about it then.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“Be cool. I’ll see you in a bit. I’m going to get out of here now. I’m beat.”
She let me walk a few feet before calling to me. “I forgot. You know who else was here? Asking about you?”
“Nat.”
“Right. Did you have a bad scene with him?”
I just shook my head.
“You’re acting so weird. What’s going on with you, Sandy?”
“Nothing. Everything. Like I said, it’s all shit.”
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