Authors: Jude Pittman
“Aw, there’s nothing in that.” Frank lowered his head and scuffed the dirt with his boot. “You know how guys get together and bullshit. Don’t mean nothin’.”
“I see,” Jack said.
Frank turned his head and nodded toward the bait house. “There’s a couple of fishermen waiting for me,” he said. “I gotta get goin’.”
Jack, who’d already gotten what he needed, accepted the dismissal. “Nice seein’ you again, Frank,” he said. “I’d appreciate a call if you come across anything I can use.”
On the way back to Fort Worth, he mulled over their conversation. Frank had done some fancy backpedaling on that story he’d told about Anna having money hidden away. The little weasel was probably hoping to find her stash and keep it for himself.
Sighing, Jack pushed Frank to the back of his mind. He’d best swing by Krystal’s apartment. At least he could give her a warning before he went to the cops.
Krystal was a graduate student at Texas Christian University and lived in one of the off-campus apartments on Camp Bowie Boulevard. It was only a short run across town.
The Mexican-style complex was attractive, neat, well landscaped and carefully tended. Jack knocked on the door of 103, waited then rapped again, harder. Finally, the handle turned and the door opened the length of a chain. An Asian girl peered through the crack.
“Yes?” She aimed her eyes at his feet.
“I’d like to see Krystal Davis.”
“Why?”
“It’s kind of important. If you’ll tell her it’s Jack Boscon, I think she’ll want to see me.”
“Mr. Boscon. Krissie’s detective?” She released the chain and opened the door.
Jack suppressed a grin. During his stint in Vietnam, he’d learned enough about Asian custom to know eye contact was considered rude. She still hadn’t looked at his face. He stepped inside and followed her into a tiny kitchenette. A round glass table, set with a tea pot and cups, faced the window. A cereal bowl filled with a milky rice mixture showed he’d caught her in the midst of breakfast.
“You like tea? Krissie having a shower. You wait?”
“Thanks.” Jack pulled out a chair. “I’m not much of a tea drinker.”
She darted a glance at his chin and nodded. “Krissie laughs at tea. No drink.”
“I’m afraid you have the advantage of me,” he said. “I don’t know your name.”
“It’s Kwon. Ah…Penny Kwon.”
She was obviously still struggling with English. In Chinese, the surname came first. “Nice to meet you, Penny. You’re not from around these parts?”
“No. Guangzhou. Canton. You know Hong Kong? Near there.”
“That must be quite a change for you. Canton to Texas.”
She lifted her eyes, made contact and dropped her head. “Yes.”
“How did you happen to hook up with Krystal? She’s from Houston, isn’t she?”
“Krissie rent this apartment when she first come here to school. I am exchange student. Krissie have ad in school paper. We like each other. Mr. Boscon, I ask something?”
“Jack.”
“Jack.” She nodded. “I worry for Krissie. You bring bad news, yes?”
Jack frowned. “Why do you ask?”
She fidgeted, her fingers twisting a paper napkin. “Krissie like sister. She upset about mother. Meeting go very bad.”
So, she did go out to the flea market. Jack’s heart sank at hearing the confirmation that the mysterious woman had indeed been Krystal. “Did anything happen out there?” he asked.
Penny tensed and her face paled. She shrunk back in her chair and tightened her lips.
Jack pressed on. “Can you tell me exactly what time Krystal got home last night?”
Penny’s fingers shredded the napkin and she glanced at the doorway. “Shower stop. Krissie here soon.”
“It’s important, Penny. I need to make sure she was home before midnight.”
Relief flooded Penny’s face. She bobbed her head. “Krissie home early. Clock say only seven.”
“Did she stay in all night or did she maybe go out again?”
“No. She take pills for sleep. Go to bed.”
Jack frowned. “You’re sure?”
“Very small apartment.” Penny waved her arm in a circle. “Krissie no leave. Sleep all night.”
“Okay. I hate to break it to you like this but Krystal’s mother was murdered last night.”
Penny clapped her hand to her mouth.
“Apparently it happened sometime between midnight and two a.m., so you’re going to be an important witness for Krystal.”
“Witness! Witness? Explain.”
“The police will want you to tell them what you’ve just told me.”
Shaking her head back and forth, she clutched her arms across her breasts. “Police? No police. I no talk police.”
“Don’t be scared.” Jack smiled to reassure her. “It’s different here. Talking to the police is nothing. They’ll ask you a lot of questions but as long as you tell them the truth, they’ll treat you just fine.”
Her voice rose. “No. Must be other way.”
“Tell me about yesterday afternoon?” Jack changed the subject.
“I wait. Krissie tell you.” Penny kept her head down but Jack spotted tears through her fingers.
“If Krystal was as upset as you say, she might not remember.” Jack’s voice was gentle, encouraging. “If I know the whole story, I’ll be able to help when the police question you.”
Penny lifted her head and almost met his eyes. “Krissie go to Houston. Come home. Say she hire detective to find mother.” Penny paused and glanced at the doorway.
Jack took a sip of coffee, waited a moment then nodded encouragement. Finally, Penny continued. “Krissie not talk much. She have fight with uncle. She ask him tell her about mother and father. He no tell. Krissie angry.”
“Did Krystal tell her uncle she was going to hire someone to find her mother?”
“Not say.” Penny shrugged.
“Okay, that’s fine.” Jack said. “Now, what about yesterday afternoon. Did Krystal say how she planned to approach her mother?”
“No.”
“Do you know what caused the ruckus?”
A puzzled expression crossed her face and she tilted her head. “Ruckus? I not know this.”
“Sorry. I mean, what happened that made the security guard think Krystal was attacking her mother?”
“Man come with whiskey. Mother drink. Krissie no like that. She try grab bottle, trip and fall into mother.”
“Did Krissie strike her?”
“Not hit. Fall over chair. Guard person come. Krissie run away.”
Jack shook his head. “I was afraid something might happen out there. Anna wasn’t exactly Harriet Nelson.”
Penny’s face clouded again and Jack corrected himself. “Sorry, that was an inside joke about an old television shows I’m sure you’ve never seen.”
“Very bad thing. Krissie not like to talk.”
“I’ll go easy on her. She’ll have to be told about her mother’s death though and she’ll need to explain to the police.”
“I go get Krissie now? You like music?”
Jack nodded and gave her a friendly smile. She reached across the table and turned on the radio. Another Asian custom—entertain your guests.
“Thanks,” he said. “You go get Krystal. I’ll be fine.”
She padded out of the room. Jack leaned back and listened to a country ballad. Sunlight streamed in the window and whoops of laugher drifted up from the swimming pool. After Penny’d been gone about five minutes, Jack started to get restless. He was up, pacing the floor, when a news bulletin caught his attention.
“Early this morning the body of a white, middle-aged woman was found by a security guard at the Indian Creek flea market. The woman, whose name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, had been strangled. The coroner estimates time of death between eleven-thirty p.m. and one-thirty a.m.
“Police are seeking a young woman who was involved in a struggle with the deceased earlier in the day. This woman is in her early twenties, attractive, with light blond hair and a slim figure. She is approximately five feet five or six and was wearing dark wool slacks and a red-and-blue print sweater. Police are asking anyone with information to contact the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department.”
Jack heard a gasp and jerked his head around. Krystal stood in the doorway. She had her hair pulled back and tied with a scarf and her slim body was wrapped in an oversize white robe. All the blood had drained from her face leaving it the color of chalk. Just as she slumped, Penny—who barely reached five feet—grabbed her from behind.
“I’ll get her,” Jack said, from behind Penny.
Penny nodded and allowed Jack to lift Krystal into his arms.
“This way,” she said and led him into a small living room.
Settling Krystal onto the couch, Jack stood back and Penny, dropping to her knees, smoothed Krystal’s hair and crooned reassurances.
The lyrics of a Texas line dance pulsed from the radio. Jack walked back to the kitchen and shut it off. Silence gripped the room. Tears spilled down Krystal’s cheeks and Penny fetched a washcloth to wipe her friend’s eyes.
“I never even got to ask my mother why Daddy killed himself,” Krystal sobbed.
“It’s okay, Krissie,” Penny soothed.
Krystal lay silent for several moments, then opened her eyes and focused her gaze on Jack.
“Is this why you’re here?” she asked in a barely audible voice.
Jack bent down beside the couch and took her hand. “It was in the morning paper. I’m afraid I’m going to have to talk to the police but I wanted to give you some time to prepare yourself for their questions.”
“Oh, no!” Her eyes sprang open. “I can’t see the police. I’ve got to talk to Uncle Andrew first. He doesn’t even know I hired you to find my mother. I’ve got to go to Houston. I can’t tell him on the telephone. I just can’t.”
Jack frowned and shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t wait that long. I could lose my license for withholding information in a murder case.”
Krystal clutched his hand, her eyes wide and pleading. “Couldn’t you wait a couple of hours? Please. Just give me time to catch a plane to Houston and tell my uncle in person.”
Her voice was pathetic. Damn! He always went soft when a pretty young thing begged for help. “I’m taking a big chance here but I guess I can give you that much. I have some business over in Arlington that’ll take me ’til about four. I’ll head over there now and call in at the cop shop after I’m done.”
“Thank you,” she smiled through her tears.
“I call. Get seat on plane.” Penny said. Then she lifted her eyes to Jack and gave him a warm, grateful smile.
Jack let himself out of the apartment and walked back to his pickup.
Leaning against his truck, Jack drew a deep breath. It had seemed like a good idea back when Krystal hired him to confirm things with her Uncle Andrew and Andrew had been grateful for Jack’s confidence. He’d felt a bit guilty at the time—technically it was a violation of Krystal’s confidence. But given the circumstances, he’d eased his own conscience by reassuring himself that it was in Krystal’s best interests to keep her uncle informed. Then too, the money Andrew paid him for duplicate copies of his reports hadn’t hurt any.