Designer Detective (A Fiona Marlowe Mystery) (14 page)

“Cut it out,” I said.

We were in the far right lane. I had to move
onto the skirt of the road to avoid being banged again, and the car jerked and
jumped.

“Watch it,” called Jake. “There’s construction
over here.”

“I can’t help it. This guy is trying to run me
off the road.”

Jake wasn’t much help. It wasn’t like he could
drive. Opal woke up in the back seat with all the bumping and swerving.

“What is it?” she said.

“We’re having a little problem,” Jake said.
“Nothing to worry about.”

We were back in the slow lane. Our lane of
traffic started to move faster, and Cody’s car dropped behind.

“Jake, this is crazy.”

“Yup.
Is there
anywhere we can exit?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Let’s give it a try. Maybe we can lose them on
a back road. Does that exist in this area?”

“There are plenty of scenic back roads, but do
we want to go down a lonely back road with them in pursuit? Maybe it’s better
to stay on busy four lane highways. We could lose them easier.”

“Who are we trying to lose?” asked Opal. She
had moved forward and stuck her head between us. “My-oh-my, I must have fallen
asleep. My head feels dizzy. It must be my medication. Where are we?”

The colossal wings of the Dulles terminal loomed
before us. The bright lights on the building and the dark night made the
structure look surreal, like science fiction. I wished it were a spaceport, and
we could get a shuttle to Mars.

“We are on the way to the airport,” said Jake
“We’re trying to lose Cody. He’s in a black limo that is trying to run us off
the road.”

“That’s not very nice. What’s gotten into Cody?”
she said.

“He’s been trying to drug you, and he seems to
be involved in a weapons smuggling scheme. Albert was, too.”

I glanced at Jake. What a time for true
confessions. I guess he was trying to be kind to Opal. She didn’t respond. I
was busy trying to drive and figure out at the same time where Cody’s car was.

“Are they still following us?” said Jake.

“I can’t tell.”

I was now dodging traffic on the airport departure
level, as cars pulled over to the right to let passengers out. I stayed to the
left in the through traffic lane. Jake was pivoting about like a whirligig,
trying to see what was going on around us.

“I won’t to be able to stop long enough to let
you and Opal out at the car rental place,” I said.

“Keep moving. There has to be a million car
rental places down the road.”

We passed the terminal and were on the way to
the airport exit when the car behind zoomed up close and banged our rear
fender. This was annoying. I did not appreciate having my beautiful car abused.

“Speed up,” said Jake.

“I’m trying but there’s this small problem of
the cars in front of us.”

“I believe someone hit us,” said Opal.

“It’s Cody. He’s doing it on purpose,” said
Jake.

I glanced at Jake. He was on truth serum this
evening.

“Why is Cody trying to hit us?” asked Opal.

“He says he wants to talk.”

“We should stop and talk to him,” said Opal. “Cody
can be very persistent when he wants to be.”

“Cody might want to harm us,” said Jake.

“Oh?” said Opal.

“We found out about his weapons business, and I
don’t think he likes that so we are trying to get away from him.”

“Weapons?
I didn’t
know he had a weapons business. He has been acting funny.”

“Funny?” I said.

“Yes, he’s not himself. Back at the ranch he’s a
pretty good hand. Here, he’s a different person.”

“How so?”

Opal was quiet for a moment then said, “He’s been
short tempered with me. He’s never like that. He’s always been sweet natured. Something
is bothering him.”

Something was bothering him all right, I
thought to myself. He’s mixed up in something he can’t get out of. Maybe that’s
what he wants to talk about.

“Jake,” I said, “we should talk to Cody.”

“I think you agreed we’ve helped this family all
we can.”

Opal said, as if talking to
herself
,
oblivious to what Jake and I were saying, “Cody’s been helping me with my
medications. He insists I keep up with them, but they make me sleepy.” She gave
a huge yawn.

I checked Jake out of the corner of my eye. He
was nodding his head.

The car behind bumped us again. This was making
me mad. I floored it and cut to an opening in the left lane and hit eighty
miles per hour going back toward the city on Route 267.
The
Herndon exit shot by.

“Goodness,” said Opal. “Are we going to a fire?”

“Maybe,” I said.

A bell started chiming on the dash. I scanned
the myriad of lights and saw flashing blue on the gas tank indicator. I was
almost out of gas. We were done for.

Astutely picking up on our plight, Jake said, “Where’s
the nearest exit?”

“Reston is coming up.”

“Maybe Cody will follow,” said Opal, “and we
can have a talk with him. Maybe he wants to drive back to Oregon with us.”

“I hope not,” I said and shot across three
lanes of traffic to get into the right hand exit lane. As fortune would have
it, the light on the overpass road was green. We screeched around the corner to
the left, but hit the red light at the end of the overpass.

“Impressive driving,” said Jake, cool and calm.

My hands were slipping on the steering wheel,
and I was sure my deodorant had failed me. “Lucky I didn’t attract a traffic
cop.”

I studied the mirrors as the traffic moved
forward again.

“Is Cody behind us?” asked Opal.

“I can’t tell,” I said.

A Shell convenience store loomed on the
horizon, and I changed lanes to the right.

“When we pull into the station,” said Jake, “I
want you to hustle Opal inside. I’ll fill up. If you see Cody pull up and talk
to me, or do anything weird, don’t come out. If he doesn’t find us, come out
when you see I’m finished filling.”

“Right.”
I didn’t
question his logic, pulled into the lot and up in front of the first available
self serve pump. Jake jumped out and started filling.

“Come, Opal, let’s use the rest room.”

I opened the rear door and helped her
out,
all the while searching cars for Cody’s smiling face.
Opal had trouble getting up from a sitting position, so I reached in and gave
her a hand.

“I’m sorry it takes me so long to get out of a
car. I’m not as agile as I used to be.”

I tucked her hand under my arm and tried to
hurry her into the convenience store. A cold wind blew drops of rain by us. I
shivered and drew my jacket tighter around my neck. I wish I had brought a
heavier coat. Needless to say, I hadn’t checked the weather forecast. It felt
like snow even though it was early in the season.

Inside the store the overhead lights gleamed
garishly. Two people stood at the check out to pay. I saw the restroom sign and
hurried in that direction. “Do you need to go?” I asked Opal.

“Yes, I’d like to.”

“I’ll wait outside the door.”

She entered and locked the door while I waited,
shivering with nerves and cold. The hall where I stood led to a back entrance,
and the door blew open. I hurried to close it because the rain was now coming
down in buckets. As I reached for the door banging in the wind, Cody stuck his
head into the opening.

“We need to talk,” he said and then inconveniently
collapsed onto the pavement.

“Good Lord, Cody, get up. Can’t you see it’s
raining?” I said, bending over. “How did you get here?”

He groaned in response.

I stepped in front of the door to keep it from
banging and knelt over him, the door thumping against me. I didn’t want to move
him because I didn’t know what was wrong. I saw no blood. I looked down the
hall for anyone who might help. No knight in shining armor appeared.

Cody gasped and went limp.

I had to find help. I couldn’t lift him on my
own. I hurried inside. Opal stepped out of the rest room in front of me. I
didn’t want her to see Cody.

“My goodness,” she said, “You’re all wet. Is it
raining?”

“Sure is,” I said, hooking my arm through hers
and pulling her to the front of the store. “I’ve got to find Jake. I’m going to
help you into the car, okay?”

She smiled her pleasant little smile and trotted
along beside me. Standing inside the store I looked out, trying to locate Jake.

The car
was gone. It wasn’t at the pump where I had parked it. My eyes scanned the lot.
No sign of the car or Jake. I shivered, unable to control the shakes.

“My goodness, you’re taking a chill, Fiona.
Where’s the car?”

“I can’t see it, can you?”

“No. Where could Jake have gone?”

“Opal, stay right here. I’ll check in the
back.”

I rushed to the back entrance where I had left Cody.
He hadn’t moved, not that I thought he would. Jake was bent over him.

“What happened? Where’s Cody’s car?” he asked.

“Gone, I guess. I came to shut the door and
there he was. Where’s my car?”

“Over there,” Jake said, pointing. “When you
didn’t come out I pulled to the side out of the lights and saw you go back
inside. I came over to investigate.”

“We need to get him to the hospital. I’m not
sure he’s even breathing.”

“He’s breathing. If he goes to the hospital,
the police and everyone else will be involved.”

“We just can’t leave him here.”

“The driver must have dumped him.
But why?”
Jake looked around like he was searching for
clues.

The rain drummed on the pavement, and I was
shaking worse than ever. “What do you think happened to him?”

Jake leaned close to Cody’s mouth and sniffed.
“I think he’s been drinking and passed out. I’ll bring the car over and load
him in. Where’s Opal?”

“Inside waiting.
I’ll get
her.”

I rushed back inside convinced the convenience
store clerk must think I was a real loon. I smiled and he nodded. He didn’t
look suspicious, like this sort of running back and forth happened all the time
in his store. Opal was buying a handful of chocolate bars. There was some
logical thinking.

I steered Opal to the back entrance. Jake was
hefting Cody into the back seat. I helped Opal in the other side. When she settled
she gave a little exclamatory “oh” when she realized that Cody was her seatmate.
His head lolled against the back seat. He was groaning again.

“Oh, dear,” said Opal, “don’t tell me, he’s
been drinking. He never could hold his liquor.” She shook her head, lips pressed
tight.

I left him to Opal’s care, got in the front passenger
seat and turned on the heat full blast. I was soaked, and my teeth were
chattering. “What do we do now?”

Jake looked me over.
“You need dry clothes and your passport. We’ll go to your place.”

 
“Isn’t
it strange that guy dumped Cody off?” I said, as we barreled east toward the
Arlington.

“Fits in with the rest of the family,” Jake
said.
 

We were in fast traffic, the usual Washington
crowd going somewhere important.

Jake said, “The way his eyes were rolling
around in his head, I think he might have mixed a few drugs with the alcohol.”

“Or someone did it for him.”

“Here’s my read. Cody got sucked into this but
is trying to get out. Someone took pity on him, why I don’t know, and dumped
him out. He must be desperate for help given how hard he tried to stop us.”

“His behavior confounds me. I wonder how he got
caught in this. Could the rifles be a legitimate business?”

Jake shrugged. “Maybe, but why all the secrecy
and the guns stored in the basement?”

“And why did Opal lock you in the wine cellar?”

“She’s on drugs, too. Cody’s drugging her to
keep her from seeing what is going on in the house.”

“That’s as good an explanation as any.”

Traffic slowed at the beltway. Jake maneuvered
the car from lane to lane to get to the I-66
spur
that goes into the heart of Arlington. The rain continued, blowing sideways in
the high crime lights that lined the slick, black highway.

“At least we don’t have anyone on our tail
anymore,” I said.

I held my numb fingers against the dash heater
vents. My clothing stuck to me. I felt like I was submerged in a bowl of cold,
wet noodles. I turned to see how Opal and Cody were doing. Opal was trying to
pat Cody dry with her scarf.

“How’s Cody?”

“He’s got it bad this time. I’ve never seen him
in such a stupor. Usually, he’s a funny drunk and passes out. But he seems to
be in a coma.”

“We’re going to my place. We’ll get him into
some dry clothes and into bed. Maybe something hot to drink will help.”

When we pulled into my parking space in the
garage I breathed a sigh of relief.

“How are we going to get Cody upstairs?” I
asked.

“Where’s the elevator?”

I nodded toward the elevator bank in the middle
of the garage.

Jake backed the car out of the space and pulled
alongside the elevator. “Help me get him out, we sit him by the elevator, I
park the car, we ride up together.”

Cody was dead weight. When we got to my floor,
we dragged him from the elevator along the hall to my door. I unlocked the door,
and all three of us pushed and pulled him down the hall to the guest room.

Jake said, “I’ll get him undressed and into
bed. See if you can make some hot coffee.”

Opal followed me to the kitchen. “You get out
of those wet clothes. I’ll make the coffee.”

I flashed a thank you smile, pointed to the
coffee maker and opened the cupboard where I stored the coffee. She nodded and
went to work. I stumbled down the hall, pulling off clothes as I went. A hot
shower later, I put on my warmest lavender sweat suit and heavy red wool socks
and made my way along the hall to the guest room.