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"Laila, good to see you again," said Chief Hayes. He pushed aside the paperwork in front of him. "I take it you have some news or are you here to weasel more information out of me."
His smile was all it took for me to start my narrative. "I went to Tommy's Bar yesterday."
"I didn't know you hung out on that side of town," said Donald.
I ignored his jibe. "Anyway, I talked to a man named Joe someone. I admit he was a little inebriated but he had some substantial information before it was all said and done." I told him about Frank being there that night in his Santa suit. "According to this Joe, Frank met a man at the door who was dressed in a business suit and they talked for a few minutes."
Chief Hayes became all ears. "We haven't had much luck down there. The bartender isn't saying much. He tells us he doesn't know anything. Bartenders usually know everything about all their patrons so that's doubtful. Did Joe know who the man was?"
"He had no idea. He said Frank walked out the door. The well-pressed man had a quick drink and then he left." I gave the Chief the description of the man in the suit.
"The description could fit our main suspect," he said. "Did you find out anything else?"
I didn't want to say much more, but then remembered my promise to Daniel. "When I left the bar, it was late afternoon. A lot of shadows were on that side of the building and it was hard to see clearly. Someone came up behind me and clamped his hand over my mouth. He then threatened me."
Donald Hayes moved forward in his chair. "Did he hurt you? Did you call the police?"
"By the time the police got there, he would have been long-gone. I wasn't hurt except for some soreness from being thrown to the ground while he was getting away." I had applied enough make-up to cover the light bruise on the left side of my face. "The only thing in the alley, when I had a chance to turn around, were two stray cats." I mentioned the scent of cologne or aftershave lotion on the attacker. "I've probably smelled that recently but can't place it."
“I don’t like the fact this is the second time someone targeted you,” said the Chief.
“I’m all right. A little unnerved, but alright.” I opened my purse and pulled out the ziplock bag that held the red Santa hat. "I found this on my way into the bar. It was near the storm drain next to the tavern. It has the initials F.D. under the felt rim. I've tried to protect it as much as possible so not to disturb any possible evidence."
He reached for the bag. "Have you ever thought about changing careers from a barista to a detective?"
"The career I have for now is enough. I'm not so sure I could make this my daily job." I stood to go. "That's all I have for now. I don't guess you have come across any more suspects, have you?"
"We are looking at a few but they will probably be cleared, except for our prime one, of course. The information you just gave me could possibly lead in a different direction."
"Okay. Keep me posted."
Chief Hayes smiled again. It was a good thing he liked me. I could be brazen at times. I left the precinct and went home to pick up Thor. He had a part to play in my plan.
Chapter Eighteen
My next stop was Frank Duvall's former home. In my purse I had several tools to get inside. One was a hair pin and of course, credit cards may come in handy. When I got to the residential end of Main Street, I parked. Thor tried to wag his short tail before he jumped out. I took hold of his leash. He was ready for a walk and I obliged him while scanning house addresses.
Frank's house was a modest one that set back from the street. A boarded up house was a few yards to the left of his. On the other side, there were no cars in the driveway and blinds were closed. It was a tree-lined street in the front and back of the houses. Even though the limbs were bare I counted on them being thick enough to conceal me and my dog. I presumed the police had already been there.
I led Thor along the edge of the abandoned property. We then cut across to the back of Frank’s house. I wanted to stay out of view of anyone possibly watching us. The old siding had chipped, dull grey paint. Frank's landlord appeared to be negligent in upkeep of the place. I stepped over the broken bottom step. Unknown faint shoe prints sank into crusted snow on the porch. I supposed they were left there by a cop at the time of a search. It didn't look like anyone had been there lately.
The door was locked as I expected, but if I had thought to bring a screwdriver, it could easily have been dislodged. Instead, I reached for the bobby pin already broken in half. Using the curved part I twisted it inside the lock. Once unlocked, the door swung open a few inches. A stale odor of coffee and cigarette smoke met me. Dishes waited to be washed and stacked several layers in the sink. The coffee pot held a half inch of dark cold liquid. Crumbs strewed across one end of the table. I closed the door behind us.
I moved to the next room. "Look at this," I said to Thor. "This proves he had money."
In the living room was a 42" flat screen TV that covered most of the width of the small room. Beneath it was an entertainment center with an entire gaming system. On the other side of the room was a large genuine leather recliner. A matching loveseat rested against the wall to the left of the kitchen doorway. Everything in this room was new, including two lamps with cowhide shades. If the house was cleaned up, the living room alone would have been the drawing card for decorators. Whoever chose the furnishings had good taste. Somehow Frank didn't hit me as someone with good taste in household furnishings. On the other hand, by the time he came into his wealth, Cassie was long gone from his life.
I tugged gently on Thor's leash. We went into the bedroom across the narrow hall. The queen sized bed sucked up most of the space in the room. It seemed as if someone had just gotten up and hadn't made the bed yet. Covers draped to the floor on one side. A stack of used Styrofoam cups were on the nightstand. Two stale donuts, partially eaten, crusted on top of the surface next to an overflowing, dirty ashtray. Ashes sprinkled on the floor next to the bed. A pile of dirty clothes were heaped in the corner of the room. Frank was no housekeeper. I wondered if it looked like this when Cassie was here.
"I don't und
erstand how someone can live like this, can you, Thor?" His look told me he was just as mystified as I was.
I pushed back the sliding door to Frank's closet, and stopped breathing. I stared at the large sums of bundled cash stashed in the right corner of the closet. It was at that moment I wished I had wrapped my shoes in plastic bags and worn gloves. I couldn't believe the cops didn't take the enormous amount of loot.
"They haven't even been here, Thor."
This baffled me. I would think the victim's house would be the first place inspected. I looked at my feet. If the cops got here any time soon and took prints, mine would be here along with Frank's. I pulled a clean shirt, one of two, from a hanger and wrapped it around my hand. I turned the bundles of cash over. The band that held them together read West River Bank. The bank's insignia was stamped professionally in the upper left hand over the word ‘West.' I turned them back over the way I found them. When I did that, I noticed a note sticking out from between two of the bundles.
