Part 38 (2/2)
I sat thinking ... all the questions I needed answers to. ”What about the note, and the jewelry box?”
”What note do you mean?” she asked.
”Craig said he found a note, one that talked about T.D., and then he found the jewelry box. Oh ... but he knew about the jewelry box before he killed ... her. It had the negatives of Wolfgang and Kelly inside. Probably just a way of offering me something so I'd help him, take him into my confidence.”
”Yes.”
”And Kelly hid notes all over the house. Easy for Craig to find one if he was looking.”
Caroline got up and began making another pot of coffee.
Sue looked at her watch, then at me. ”I have to run,” she said, ”but we should meet again soon-this week. Your latest report is almost complete. I should have everything ready by late tomorrow afternoon or early the following day. Unfortunately-or maybe not so unfortunately-there's not much new to add. I'll call you as soon as I have it all in order.”
”Okay.”
Sue turned around in her chair and smiled back at Caroline, then stood and held out her hand. ”It was very nice getting to know you, Caroline. Hope I get a chance to see you again sometime.”
”Likewise. Actually, you know what? I do have a friend who might need your services. He wants to check out this guy before he goes into business with him. Would you be interested?”
”Sure, let me know.”
Chapter 25.
Sue and I sat inside her van, parked outside the Wild River Grill. It was close to noon. She was back to her original disguise, the western look, cowboy hat and boots, but now with a great looking cowhide jacket.
”Everything's in there, same as before,” she said, pointing to the shopping bag sitting between us on the floor. ”Do you want me to brief you on what I found, or would you rather-?”
”Go ahead. Please.”
”Well, like I said, we still didn't get anything on Trevor, and at this point, I don't think we will. I can only guess that if something was going on between Sylvia and your husband, it's sure not now. You will be interested to know that he has known, or knew of, Sylvia, at least three years prior to these recent real estate dealings. He wasn't involved with her other than on a business level, but it appears she was interested in Trevor from the beginning. One of the reasons she handpicked Bob Morris to work with her, we believe, is his close a.s.sociation and friends.h.i.+p with Trevor. I'd say Trevor was her target all along. We were able to get close to a good friend of Sylvia's-female-and she gave us many of these details. We, also, of course, checked out her information soon after that.” Sue smiled. ”It never hurts to have a great looking guy on the staff. Women find him very easy to talk to, plus the ladies we question get a free meal and drinks out of it-at the very least. You'll find all this in the report in more detail.”
”In the beginning,” I said, ”Trevor never mentioned Sylvia, only Bob. So when Bob said Sylvia was the one that brought Trevor onto the team, I did wonder if possibly they had been involved before. But you say they weren't.”
”No. Not according to my sources.”
”G.o.d, I'm not sure what to do. I suppose there's no reason to keep watching Trevor if it looks like nothing's going to develop.”
”No. Although I could keep a couple people working on it, if you'd like. But to be honest, I think you'd be wasting your money. When Sylvia and Trevor do meet up now-and that's not too often-it's always with Bob Morris along.”
”Then, I think we might as well call it off. For now anyway.”
It made me happy to hear that Trevor was only dealing with Sylvia through Bob, even though everything else indicated that something had been going on.
”Tell me, Sue, what would you do? Would you stay with a man who cheated on you?”
”Can't say. Sure can't say for you. I'd rather just collect the facts and stay out of the rest of it. But, since you asked, I'll tell you this. A lot of men cheat on their wives. I can attest to that. And not every woman tosses the guy out, the first time, or the second. I think it's a personal decision, and in some ways, a cultural one. A lot of women here in the States are taught that if the guy cheats, he's a b.a.s.t.a.r.d, and that's that. And if you don't toss him out, you've got rocks in your head. But I don't think it's that simple. I've seen marriages revived after the guy is discovered, and others dissolve. Depends on the couple, what's right for them. But if a man is cheating-and it's not just men, you know-you have to consider the other issues. Health hazards are a big one.
”It's strange,” she said, ”but the thing I've found to be the most perplexing, is how many guys are willing to forgive a woman who strays. Yeah, the men, they yell and they have a holy fit, but in the end a lot of them will take her back-if she wants to stay. Maybe the guys are more likely to forgive because they know how easy it is to make a mistake. Or maybe their love is just a little less conditional. I don't know. I just know what I've seen.”
I looked at her. ”Thanks ... for your honesty.”
”No extra charge for my dime store psychology. So, on that note, we still have the issue of your sister and Wolfgang. Now that's a whole different ball of wax. I did some more checking, and though Wolfgang has never been married before, your sister isn't the first well-heeled woman he's wined and dined. With his previous women, he either took off when trouble brewed or was tossed out. He spent a few nights in jail in one instance, on charges of abuse. I also checked out that other item you mentioned. And yes, Wolfgang's parents did die in an avalanche. And he did live with an uncle, but not until he was eight years old. Before that, he pa.s.sed through a series of foster homes. So, we'll give him that. He had a tough time growing up. But we won't give him a whole lot else.”
She stopped to look over her notes. ”Oh-and Josh. Of course, we know now that he didn't have anything to do with Kelly, or her murder. The Vancouver thing-looks like Josh just wanted to get away for a while. His father lived in British Columbia when he was a young boy, used to talk about it with Josh, reminisce on how much he enjoyed his life there. Then Josh's father moved to the States and married Josh's mother. All in all, from everything I can see, Josh appears to be a pretty all-round nice guy.”
”He is.”
”There's more videotape for you to look at, more emails, etcetera, but no new revelations, like I said. You might find some of it interesting though. You have any questions for me?”
”Actually, I do have one-if you don't mind. But it's a little personal.”
”Go ahead. Shoot.”
”You don't talk much about yourself. Maybe that's a good idea in your type of business, but I am curious about the disguises you use, and how you were able to so accurately imitate my sister's voice.”
She shrugged. ”Actually, it's just fun for me, using a disguise, a way to make a sometimes dull business more exciting. And it can be helpful if I need to hang out at a location where I might be spotted. At least, I look like a different person each time. I think I always wanted to be an actress, play different roles ... though, of course, on an amateur level. I'm not talented enough for the big time, nor would I want to pursue that whole Hollywood scene. And the voice? Kelly's? I do have a gift for mimicry, been having a good time with that since I was a kid. I have what you might call a very good ear and unusually adaptable vocal cords. Plus, I practice a lot.”
”Would you do one for me? A voice?”
”Sure. I can do that. Umm, let me think. Okay, see if you can guess who this is. I'll give you a hint. The actress played this particular character in a popular s.e.xy TV series.... Without shoes, life would be dull, drab, and boring. I absolutely love my new pair of strappy sandals. I'm not quoting anything here. It's just something I made up that sounds like something she might say.”
”Oh, that was way too easy. Sarah Jessica Parker playing Carrie in s.e.x and the City.”
”You guessed it.”
”You're absolutely amazing. And I didn't need your hint at all.”
”Thanks. I hadn't tried her out on anyone yet. Wondered how close I was.” She glanced at her watch. ”Well, Caroline's probably wondering what in the heck's taking us so long.”
”Yes, she's probably hungry. Are you ready to eat?”
”Yep. Hope she's got them wings a cookin',” Sue said in a very believable southern tw.a.n.g.
”And some ribs,” I said.
”Yes indeedy.”
On my way home from lunch, I pa.s.sed by the bank. The garbage bags with Kelly's money were still locked inside the storage locker down in the bas.e.m.e.nt. Today would be as good a day as any to do the unpleasant job of taking it all to the bank to be formally counted.
I walked downstairs and pulled out one of the bags to begin a preliminary count. First, I cleared a table to stack the money, then unzipped one of the smaller vinyl bags inside and shook the cash out, stacked it, unzipped the next. But as I shook out the fifth bag, a sheet of paper slipped out and drifted to the floor.
I picked it up, my breath catching in my throat.
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