Rear-View Murder: A Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery Read online

  “The police don’t even think she was murdered,” Holly reminded her as she drove toward Richmond.

  “The police are wrong,” Gemma said simply.

  “Do you think the ring has something to do with it?”

  “I think so. It’s not a family heirloom and I doubt she could have bought it for herself.”

  “Maybe one of her customers?” Holly reasoned.

  “I doubt it. I get the feeling she wasn’t exactly serving the high rollers in town,” Gemma said. “Maybe she stole the ring.”

  “Maybe. Would she give up her life for a ring?”

  “Maybe she didn’t have a choice,” Gemma said, almost to herself. “And how did she get in the trunk of my car in long-term parking at the airport?”

  “Maybe whoever killed her put her in the trunk of the car before it got to the airport. The driver never knew.”

  “That could happen I guess” Gemma said. “Or while it was sitting in the bank parking lot at night.”

  “They weren’t able to determine cause of death, remember,” Holly reminded her.

  “A blow to the head was the only injury on what was left of her and that wasn’t life threatening.”

  “Then it must have been chemical. Maybe an overdose.”

  They located Chamberlayne Avenue and headed north. At first the street was lined with a mixture of residential and small businesses.

  “I don’t think Chester meant this area,” Holly said.

  The further they traveled the more residential it became. The houses then gave away to apartment buildings which grew more and more run down as they drove. There were weed filled lots between some buildings where it looked like something had been burned. There were dark alleys and broken down cars. The streets were littered with trash and weeds grew up between the cracks in the sidewalk.

  This was exactly how Gemma had pictured it.

  “What now?” Holly asked. They were stopped at a red light. She scanned the intersection carefully.

  “There are some ladies on the corner up ahead. Let’s talk to them,” Gemma said, chewing nervously on her lower lip.

  “What are you going to say?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I’ll start with the picture,” Gemma said, her tension increasing with every passing second.

  By the time they reached the three women, Gemma was shaking all over. She opened the heavy door of the SUV and climbed out. Her heels made little clicking sounds on the sidewalk. It had grown hotter as the day progressed, but Gemma didn’t think that’s why her palms felt so sweaty.

  The women looked up at her approach.

  “Hello,” Gemma said.

  They stood there looking at her.

  “My name is Gemma and...”

  “Honey, this is our corner,” the tallest one said, stepping forward. She had flaming red hair, sticking straight up, and that made her look even taller. That and the five inch platform heels she wore.

  “I know,” Gemma said. “And a lovely corner it is.”

  “You might as well move along,” another woman said. She wore miniscule shorts and a halter that did little to halt anything.

  “Oh, hush you two, she’s not a working girl,” said a third as she stepped up between the first two women. She was wearing what looked like baby doll pajamas. “Look at how she’s dressed. No man is gonna be interested in that. Now, what do you need, honey?” she asked before Gemma could react.

  “I just have a couple of questions,” Gemma began.

  Holly inched the vehicle up closer behind her. She could see the hood of the car just over her shoulder.

  “You a cop?” The tall redhead again.

  “No,” Gemma said, holding out the picture. “I was just...I’m looking for someone.”

  “Who?”

  “Opal Sparrow,” Gemma said and held the photo out at arm’s length for them to see.

  All three women studied it for a few moments, glancing up at Gemma from time to time.

  “Never saw her before,” the woman wearing shorts said with a shake of her head.

  After a few moments, the other two shook their heads as well. “Nope. Don’t know that one.”

  Gemma knew they were lying.

  “Okay, thank you,” Gemma heard Holly unlock the doors to the SUV and turned to climb inside, disappointed.

  “Hey,” the woman wearing pajamas called out just before Gemma closed the heavy door. “You might want to try further up that way.” She pointed with a long, scarlet tipped finger that Gemma thought looked like a claw. “She might work for Bobcat.”

  “Who is Bobcat?” Gemma asked.

  But the women had already turned away from her and Holly was moving on.

  “You need to rethink your wardrobe, evidently,” Holly said.

  Gemma looked down at her outfit. It consisted of navy cotton slacks, a white top and a colorful scarf. “What’s wrong with my outfit?”

  Before Holly could respond, they passed an alley where two women stood smoking cigarettes. Gemma wasn’t quite as nervous this time when she got out of the SUV.

  “Hello, my name is Gemma.”

  “So?” the woman closest to Gemma said. She blew a smoke ring and then crushed out her cigarette under a high heeled boot.

  “Shut up, Jolene,” the second woman snapped and put out her cigarette as well. “Hello, Gemma, so nice to meet you. Would you like to come up to my flat for a cup of tea?”

  Jolene burst out laughing and Gemma felt her face grow hot with embarrassment.

  “Sorry, we’re just bustin’ on you,” Jolene told Gemma. “Gotta do something to have a little fun down here.”

  “I understand,” Gemma said.

  “You lookin’ for somebody?” the woman asked, nodding toward the picture in Gemma’s hand.

  “Yes,” Gemma said, holding out the picture. “Her name was Opal Sparrow. Some ladies down the street thought she worked this area. Maybe worked for someone named Bobcat.”

  The two women exchanged glances and then suddenly became very still. Gemma could almost feel the fear rolling off of them. “Yeah, she works for Bobcat. Haven’t seen her around for a while though.”

  “What do you know about Opal?”

  Both women smiled. “Sweet girl. Not really meant for the streets but she tried real hard,” Jolene reported.

  “I think Sadie was probably her best friend. They shared a place over on Fulton. Sadie looked for her for a while but couldn’t find her,” the second woman told her. “Sadie would probably be real happy to know where Opal is if you could tell her.”

  “I’m afraid Opal is dead,” Gemma said.

  The two women exchanged glances again, something unspoken between them.

  “What about Bobcat?” Gemma asked.

  “Oh, he’s very much alive,” Jolene told her in a low voice just above a whisper. “He’s the meanest pimp in town. Treats his girls real rough, especially when they don’t bring in enough money. He was awful hard on Opal.”

  “Do you think he would have done something to her? Maybe got out of control?”

  There was that look again. They knew something but they were unwilling or afraid to talk.

  “Is Sadie still around?” Gemma asked, almost afraid that they would tell her Sadie had disappeared too.

  “She’s still in an old abandoned building one block over on Fulton,” Jolene said, pointing.

  “Thank you so much for your help,” Gemma said, her heart pounding as she turned back to the car where Holly waited patiently with the engine running.

  “They know something but they’re not talking,” Gemma said.

  “I had that feeling, too,” Holly added, following Gemma’s directions to drive over to the next street. There they stopped in front of a whole row of abandoned buildings. The only movement on the street was some ripped open garbage bags being blown around by an unseasonably hot wind.

  “And just which one of these lovely buildings do you think she lives in?” Holly asked, giving Gemma a point
ed look. “I mean, it’s not like we have an address.”

  Gemma took a deep breath and gazed at the scene in front of her. Empty, crumbling, abandoned buildings lined both sides of the street. They all had broken windows and missing doors. “It would be brutal to live here in the winter,” Gemma said, hugging herself as if she was cold.

  “It would,” Holly agreed.

  “I can’t even imagine,” Gemma added, letting her gaze move up and down the street. “She could be in any one of these buildings.”

  “So could this bad ass Bobcat person,” Holly reminded her.

  Gemma sighed. “I’m sorry this turned out to be a wild goose chase. I guess we might as well...”

  Before Gemma could finish her sentence, she spotted movement in a dark doorway. Without a word, she leaped out of the SUV and headed across the street toward it.

  “Gemma,” Holly called out after her.

  “Sadie,” she called out as she ran ignoring Holly. “Sadie, I want to tell you about Opal.”

  A pale figure reappeared in the doorway and held both hands out in front of her. “Stop.”

  Breathless, Gemma skidded to a stop halfway across the sidewalk. The young woman stepped just outside, almost hovering in the shadow of the building as if the sunlight would harm her. She had stringy dark hair, a pretty round face and dark eyes that were hard as glass.

  “What about Opal?”

  “She’s...she’s dead,” Gemma said.

  Sadie lifted her chin defiantly. “How?”

  “That’s what I was hoping you could tell me.”

  “I didn’t do nothin’. I loved her like a sister.”

  “I know but maybe you saw something or know something.” When Sadie hesitated, Gemma added, “Bobcat.”

  At the mention of his name, Sadie’s eyes grew wide, filled with terror. Absently rubbing at a bruise on her thin, pale upper arm, she looked right and left and then back over her shoulder. “I don’t know nothin’.”

  “Listen, I just want to help,” Gemma said, taking a step closer.

  “Opal had a special man,” Sadie said, taking a step back.

  Gemma didn’t move, sensing that Sadie was ready to bolt any second.

  “He sent a car to pick her up.”

  “Like a business man? What kind of car?” Gemma asked, her heart pounding. That would explain the ring.

  “She said he was a senator and they were in love, especially after she found out about the baby. That’s when Bobcat really got mad at her,” Sadie said, her terror becoming more apparent. She was back inside the doorway again, slowly moving away.

  “Wait. What did you say about a baby?”

  “Sorry. I gotta go. I gotta go.”

  Gemma stood there staring into the black doorway.

  “Gemma.” That was Holly. She was right there behind her in the SUV. “We’re done here.”

  “No, I think we’re just getting started,” Gemma said, turning slowly to climb back into the SUV.

  Chapter Nine

  “We’re being watched,” Holly said, one hand on the gear shift.

  Gemma followed her gaze to a dark, narrow alley that ran alongside the building where she’d been talking to Sadie. This had to be none other than Bobcat. He was dressed in a dark suit, shiny red shirt open at the neck with a dozen gold chains clearly visible in the gloom. Rings glittered across his knuckles. He was smoking, very casually, standing with one foot crossed over the other. And, to Gemma’s eye at least, he looked like pure evil.

  “That’s why Sadie was too scared to talk any longer,” Gemma said. “I’ll bet that’s our culprit right there.”

  “Culprit or not, we’re not going to confront him alone,” Holly said, rolling slowly away from the area.

  In the mirror, Gemma watched him step out of the alley and then enter the door where Sadie had been standing. She closed her eyes and sent up a little wish for Sadie’s safety.

  “Shouldn’t we call the cops?” Gemma asked.

  “What? And tell them that a man went into a building?” Holly said.

  “Why are you always so logical?” Gemma huffed and sank back into the leather seats, suddenly exhausted. Then she remembered what Sadie had said about a baby.

  “Did you hear what she said about a baby?”

  Holly nodded. “And something about a senator, too. That would explain the ring.”

  “Would a senator buy an expensive ring like that for a hooker?” Gemma asked as she tapped the screen of her phone to pull up her contact list.

  “If he was trying to shut her up, maybe,” Holly reasoned.

  Nick’s cell number appeared and she tapped that as well. His voice mail kicked in and Gemma left a message for him to please call her.

  “Let’s get to the hotel. I feel like I need a shower,” Holly said, selecting the address of their hotel on her GPS.

  Their hotel room was clean but pretty basic. Neither of them required much in the way of amenities. It had two big beds, plenty of towels and plenty of hot water and that was all Gemma needed. She was drying her red-gold curls when Holly stepped into the steamy bathroom with her phone.

  “It’s Nick.”

  “Thank you,” Gemma whispered and then tapped the screen to accept the call.

  “Hey, what’s going on in the big city?” Nick asked when she answered the phone.

  “Lots of stuff going on but not the right stuff,” Gemma told him, wiping steam off of the big mirror in front of her.

  “How so?” he asked, sounding genuinely interested.

  “The detective here isn’t any more interested in solving the case than the one in Gypsy Hill,” Gemma began.

  “Is there a case to solve?”

  “They don’t think so. They think it was an overdose or perhaps an accident,” Gemma paced around the bathroom. “They wouldn’t even take the ring I found. Told me to just keep it. They said we couldn’t even be sure it was hers, maybe it was just left in the car or in one of those old coats.”

  But you do,” Nick guessed.

  “I do.”

  “How long I’ve waited to hear you say those words to me,” Nick teased.

  The statement confused Gemma for a moment and then she rolled her eyes at her reflection in the mirror. “Nick, this is no time for joking.”

  He laughed. “Okay. Go on and tell me about your theory.”

  “Her name was Opal Sparrow. She had a mom and a dad and a little sister named Natalie. She also had an arrest record,” Gemma told him.

  “Uh-oh?”

  “Prostitution.”

  “Okay,” Nick said.

  “We went to visit her parents.”

  “I’m sure that was hard,” Nick said quietly.

  “They were somewhere between hurt and angry and in no mood to talk to us at all,” Gemma told him, running her fingers through her curls, trying to control them as they dried. “I felt especially bad for her sister.”

  “That must have been tough.”

  “And they said they’d never seen the ring before. It wasn’t an heirloom and they wanted nothing to do with it,” Gemma added.

  “So you’ll be home tomorrow,” Nick said, sounding somewhat hopeful.

  “Um, I guess,” Gemma had no intention of telling him where they’d been all afternoon or what they’d been doing. “We still have to check out some jewelry stores and maybe do a little shopping.”

  “Sounds like fun,” Nick said.

  Ignoring his sarcastic remark, Gemma said, “Nick, I was wondering if you would do me a favor.”

  Back in the bedroom, with Nick still on the line, Gemma noticed that Holly was thumbing through a catalog of precious stones. Opal’s ring lay on the little table beside her. It glowed warmly in the lamp light. Every once in a while, Holly picked it up, studied it and then placed it back on the table. Gemma sat down on the side of her bed and picked up the ring, gazing at the exquisite piece of jewelry.

  “Sure,” Nick said.

  “Could you use your journalistic
super powers to find out something about Opal for me?”

  “I could probably do that,” Nick said and Gemma pictured him reaching for a pen and the little notebook he always kept at hand. “What do you need to know?”

  Gemma wasn’t sure how long it took to get toxicology reports but surely something would tell them whether Opal was pregnant or not. “I need to know if Opal was pregnant.”

  Nick was quiet for a moment. “I’m not even going to ask what put that in your head, but I’ll do my best to see what I can find out.”

  “Thank you,” Gemma said, genuinely happy she didn’t have to explain. “You’re a good man, Charlie Brown.”

  Nick laughed. It was a way Gemma had teased him all through their school years. She realized she hadn’t said that to him in a while. That reminded her they’d once been lovers, engaged to be married, and that reminded her of the emotional turmoil she’d experienced at the loss of her parents and her decision to break off their engagement. Could they get back there again, to a time before that awful night? She wasn’t sure. She wasn’t even sure if she wanted to do that. Gemma was sure that even though they remained friends, there would one day be repercussions from her decision.

  “I’ll call as soon as I know something. It might be in the morning before I can get through to anyone,” Nick told her. “But rest assured, Lucy, I’m on the case.”

  Now it was Gemma’s turn to laugh.

  “And, when you get back, Buddy has another car for you to look at.”

  “No. Just...no,” Gemma protested. “I don’t even want to talk about that right now.”

  Nick was laughing again.

  “I’m hanging up now,” Gemma almost had to shout over his laughter and ended the call.

  “Nick is a good man,” Holly reminded her when she dropped her phone onto the bed.

  “I know,” Gemma said, lying back across the bed.

  “Do you think you’ll ever get back together?” Holly asked, resting the catalog in her lap for a moment.

  “I don’t know,” Gemma said. “Part of me wants to try again, but another part of me is so scared. What if something happens to him? What if we start a family and then something bad happens? You know how quickly it can be wiped out.”

  “What if he meets someone else and you don’t have the choice any longer?” Holly asked, giving her a level look.