The Death Card: A Liz Lucas Cozy Mystery (10 page)

The next morning as they
were getting dressed, Roger said “Liz, after our meeting with Jim, I’d like to
talk to you. I need to run a few things by you.”

“That sounds
interesting. Want to give me a hint what it’s all about?”

“No. You’ll
have to wait, and I know how hard that is for you,” he said teasingly. “Just
trust me on this one. I think you’ll like it, at least I hope so.”

“Now my
curiosity is really aroused. C’mon, can’t you give me just a little clue?”

“Nope, not a
one. Be patient. Isn’t there some saying about good things come to those who
wait?”

“Yes, but I
never liked the saying. I don’t really think patience is a virtue. It’s been my
experience you lose out if you don’t act. Guess that’s where we’re different.”

“Well we
probably wouldn’t be interested in each other if we were exactly alike, would
we?”

“Probably not.
You finish dressing. I’m taking Winston upstairs, and I need to feed Brandy
Boy. He doesn’t move around much unless someone rings their cottage bell, and
he has to deliver a wee bit of brandy, but if he’s not fed on time, he moves
and definitely lets me know. A howling St. Bernard is not something you want to
experience very often.”

Roger laughed.
“I can well imagine one would not.”

“What time did
you say Jim was coming?” Liz asked a few minutes later.

“He told me
he’d be here about ten.” He looked at his watch. “We’ve got time for breakfast.
Tell you what. I’ll treat you and make it.”

“I’ll go you
one better. You forget the lodge serves breakfast continental style to the
cottage guests in the mornings. I’ll bet there’s something leftover from their
breakfast.” She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a ham and cheese puff
casserole, fresh fruit, and whipped cream cheese. “We always have bagels on
hand, so I can nuke the casserole and pop the bagels in the toaster while you
start on the cantaloupe and raspberries.

“That was
perfect,” Roger said as he finished the casserole. “Let me help you with the
dishes, and by the time we’re finished it should be about time for our meeting
with Jim.”

A few minutes
later Liz heard a car pull to a stop outside the lodge. She looked out the
window and saw a police car with a burly mustached grey-haired man getting out
of it wearing a San Francisco Police Department uniform. “Roger, I’ll bet the
guests are curious about this, not to mention the employees. He stands out like
a sore thumb.”

“Liz, try and
make nice, at least for me.”

“Just saying,
Roger, just saying.”

Roger opened
the door and walked out on the porch. “Have any trouble finding it, Jim?”

“Not a bit.
Your directions were perfect,” he said as he walked up the steps to the front
porch and shook Roger’s offered hand. “Let me introduce you to the owner of the
spa and the lodge, Liz Lucas.”

“Liz, this is
my long-time friend, Captain Jim Woods, who, as you know, is with the San
Francisco Police Department.”

“Roger speaks
very highly of you Captain. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Well, he
speaks just as highly of you, so this is a pleasure indeed.”

“I think it
would be best if we met in my quarters. Follow me down the stairs, and oh, this
is my guard dog, Winston. He goes everywhere I go.”

“From what
Roger’s been telling me about what’s been going on here, I think that’s a very
good idea.”

“May I get you
some coffee or a glass of water, Jim?” Liz asked a few minutes later when they
were all sitting around the kitchen table.

“No, I stopped
at Starbucks and got a venti. I think I’ve overdosed on coffee as it is, but
thanks.”

“Jim, we all
know why you’re here this morning,” Roger said. “Where would you like to start?”

He turned to
Liz, “I’m sorry to ask this of you, and I know Roger has told me most of it,
but if you could tell me everything that has happened, who’s told you what, and
anything else you can think of that’s relevant to the last few days, I’d appreciate
it.”

“All right.
The whole thing started Sunday evening when I received a call from the Red
Cedar Police Chief, Seth Williams…”

For the next
hour and a half Liz told him everything that had happened. Occasionally he
interrupted her with a question. She handed him a pair of gloves and showed him
the notebook and the tarot Death card. Roger had already emailed photos to Jim
of the serial numbers off the gun Liz found in the nightstand drawer in Anton’s
bedroom and the scanner. He was quiet for a long time while he looked at the
notebook and the card.

“Liz, would
you be willing to sign an affidavit that you saw this gun that seems to be Seth
Williams’ gun in Anton’s drawer?”

“I would, but
could I be arrested for I don’t know, opening something I have no right to
open, snooping as it were?”

“No. All the
affidavit has to say is where you saw it. My men are doing some research at
this very moment to see if they can get any matches on the credit card numbers.
In other words, they’re checking to see if there has been unusual activity on
those cards. What I’d like to do is get a judge to issue a search warrant for
the house. If I can tie Anton to the credit card theft ring we know is
operating in San Francisco, that would be a huge start, and I could arrest him.
Here’s the problem I’m having. If it’s Seth’s gun, and we’re all pretty sure it
is, that doesn’t mean that Seth is no longer a suspect. It just means Anton has
his gun, and don’t forget there were no witnesses, and Seth never filed a
report, so how Anton got the gun would probably become a liar’s contest.”

“What you’re
really trying to do is link Anton to the credit card ring you’re pretty sure is
operating in San Francisco. Is that right?” Liz asked

“Yes. I feel
certain he’s tied to it. Roger, I had men tail Anton after work last night, and
he went to an apartment and spent the night there. My officers saw several men
who appeared to be Southeastern Europeans enter the building within an hour of
when Anton did. That would have been about three in the morning. Their thinking
is that these men work at restaurants, in fact, a couple of them were wearing
white shirts and black pants, which is a common uniform in the better
restaurants.”

“Even if you
link Anton to this credit card theft ring and he’s arrested, that doesn’t get
us any closer to finding out who killed Leroy, does it?” Liz asked.

“I don’t think
this is a case where 1 + 1 = 2. I have a feeling it’s all tied together like a
big ball of string, and if we begin to pull on one string, the whole thing might
just unravel. It’s sort of a gut feeling I have, and I’ve learned over the
years to trust my gut feelings.”

“I know what
you mean,” Liz said. “I get what I call a niggle. It’s probably the same thing,
and like you, I feel this whole thing is somehow all tied together.”

“Liz, I’d like
to take this notebook and check it for fingerprints and also put it through DNA
testing. Likewise, I want to run a fingerprint and DNA test on the Death card.
I don’t know exactly what I expect to find, but I have a hunch there may be a
tie-in.”

“Captain,
whatever you think you need to do, please do it. You know far more about things
like this than I do.”

“I’m not so
sure about that. I think I could use your services down at the station. What
you’ve been able to find out in a very short time is amazing. Seasoned
investigators don’t usually find out this much this quickly. Like you, I wish
we could tie it all together, but let’s see what happens in the next few days.
Is that all right with you?”

“Yes. Even
though the Red Cedar Police Chief isn’t my favorite person, I don’t want him to
be considered a suspect for a crime I’m convinced he didn’t commit. I wish he
wouldn’t be re-elected, but I don’t want to see him lose the election based on
unfounded and untrue rumors.”

“You’re a charitable
person. Roger, I assume you’ll be here the rest of the weekend. I’ll call you
when I find out anything. I’ve told the people who do the DNA testing that I
have a couple of things that are top priority, and I’m meeting with them as
soon as I return to the city. Since I’m the captain, they’re going to conduct
the tests as soon as I return. Anything else either of you can think of?”

“I’m wondering
if your involvement in this is going to upset the local sheriff who’s handling
the case,” Liz said.

“Sheriff Keith
Brown is the sheriff in this county. Is that who you’re talking about?”

“Yes,” Liz
answered. “Seth called him the morning after the murder, but he was told that
the sheriff wouldn’t be in the office this week due to a family emergency.”

“I’m sure
that’s true. His wife is in hospice care, dying of cancer. They’re very close,
and I’m sure finding out who killed Leroy Moore is pretty far down the list of
what’s important to him at the moment. Keith and I have worked together for
years, and that won’t be a problem. Who knows? If we solve the murder, it will
be one less thing for him to worry about when he does return to work.” He stood
up. “Thank you, Liz, for all your help. I want to get started on this as soon
as possible. The moment I know anything, I’ll give you a call.”

“Jim, thanks
for driving up. Talk to you soon,” Roger said.

Roger and Liz
stood on the porch watching the police cruiser as it went down the lane to the
highway that led to San Francisco.

Liz turned to
Roger. “I want to remind you that you wanted to talk to me after Jim left.
Guess what. Jim’s gone. Can we have the talk now?”

“Yes. Think
it’s about time.”

I sure hope
the tarot cards were right. When a man says he wants to talk to a woman he’s
been seeing, it usually means he’s going to leave her. Well, if that’s what’s
going to happen, might as well get it over with.

Little did Liz
know that if she had been getting a tarot card reading at this moment and The
Lovers card had been turned, it would have come up smiling.

Roger turned to Liz as Jim
drove down the lane. “Let’s go downstairs. I do want to talk to you, and this
is probably as good a time as any.”

Liz was sure
Roger could hear her heart, it was beating so fast. Her mouth was dry, and her
stomach lurched as they walked downstairs.

If he’s
going to tell me this is the last time we’ll be together, I hope I don’t throw
up. That would be a real class act.

He opened the
door and said, “Let’s sit over by the windows. I love your view of the ocean.”
Moments later he cleared his throat and said, “Liz, I don’t think I’ve ever
been this nervous in my life, not even in my first trial.”

Swell, just
swell. Just what I want to hear. You think you’re nervous, Roger, believe me,
you don’t know what nervous is. Maybe we’ll have an earthquake and a deep hole
will open up and swallow me, and I won’t have to go through this.

“Liz, when I
talked to you a couple of days ago after you had your first reading from Madame
Dika, and she told you we would be together, I mentioned I might have something
to tell you. Do you remember?”

“Of course. I
wanted you to tell me at the time, but you said you’d wait until you came to
the lodge. What is it?”

“It’s going to
involve some changes for both of us. Are you ready?”

What does
he mean by changes? He must mean Madame Dika was wrong when the Lover’s Card
showed that Roger and I would find a way to be together permanently. He’s just
leading up to breaking up with me and of course, that would be a change for
both of us. Roger, let’s get this agony over with. Please, I don’t know how
much longer I can stand this.

“I was talking
to my law partners the other day, and one of them asked how I liked living and
working in San Francisco and then making the drive up here every weekend to see
the woman I loved.”

The woman I
loved. He used the past tense, but why would he even use the word if this is it
for us?

“Liz, why are
you looking down at your hands when I’m talking to you about something that’s
very important to me?”

“Roger, I
can’t stand this anymore. If you’re going to tell me the relationship isn’t
working out, just do it. I really don’t think I can take much more of this.”

He roared with
laughter. “Sweetheart, is that what you think? That this conversation is about
breaking up with you?”

“Well, why
else would you be so nervous? I’ve always read that when a man is going to tell
a woman the relationship isn’t going to work out this is how they do it.”

“I don’t know
what you’ve been reading, but in this case, you’re dead wrong,” he said.
“Please, let me continue.”

“So you’re not
going to break up with me?” she asked.

“No, I am
emphatically not going to break up with you. What I want to tell you is that my
partners want me to open a satellite law office here in Red Cedar that would
provide legal services in the county. Evidently we have quite a few clients who
live in this area and have to go in to the city for their meetings. If trials
are needed, I’d still have to go into San Francisco occasionally, but I would
conduct almost all of my meetings with clients here.”

“Oh, Roger,
that’s wonderful news! We can be together.”

Roger reached
into his pocket and held something in his hand. “Liz, if I were twenty years
younger I’d get down on my knees and ask you this, but at my age, if I got down
on my knees I might not be able to get up.” He opened a velvet covered jewelry
box and handed it to her. “Liz, will you marry me?”

She sat
speechless and motionless staring at the beautiful large emerald cut diamond
ring surrounded by three small diamonds on each side that was in the box. After
a few moments she looked up at him, tears running down her cheeks. “Yes, yes,
yes,” she screamed, jumping up from her chair and into his lap. “A million
times, yes! Oh Roger, I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life. I was
sure you were going to leave me.”

“Well, if it’s
any consolation, I’ve been a nervous wreck worried that you’d say no. Not only
would I lose you, I’d have to go back to my partners and tell them it didn’t
work out. Oh Liz, right now I think I must be the happiest man in the world.
After Bettina died, I never thought I could love another woman, but I love you
just as much as I loved her. I know this is going to take some getting used to
since this is a second marriage for both of us and both of our spouses died.
We’ve both suffered, but I think it’s time we allowed ourselves some happiness,
don’t you.”

She stood up.
“I couldn’t agree more. Roger, I have to tell Jonah and Brittany, and you need
to tell your boys. When should we get married? Where will we live? Where will
your office be?”

“I’ve always
thought a wedding before Christmas during the holiday season would be
wonderful. Let’s do it then. That will give us three months to plan for it, and
I’m sure all of our children could get time away from their jobs to come with
that much notice. You know, we’ve never met each other’s children. I hope
everyone approves.”

“They will. I
know my children just want me to be happy, and I’ll bet yours feel the same
way. Roger, let’s have a small wedding here at the lodge. Mainly the family
with a couple of near and dear friends. I’m thinking my friend Judy would never
forgive me if she wasn’t at my wedding, and of course I’d have to invite
Bertha. I’m sure you have a couple of people who would be important to you. We
could close the lodge for a week and use the cottages for our family and
friends. Maybe we should have a reception here after the ceremony and invite
people like your law partners and some of the townspeople I’ve gotten to know.”

“Sounds great.
We can work out all the details in the coming weeks. Now for the big question.
Where should we live?”

“Why can’t we
live in my apartment here at the lodge?”

“We could, but
I really would like to have a room that I could use as an office.”

“Roger, that’s
not a problem. I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed the two rooms that are
attached to my apartment that Bertha and I use as storerooms. We could convert
them into an office and maybe a man cave for you, so you could have your own
space when I’m driving you nuts.”

“Fat chance of
that, but sure, that would work fine. I love it here, and the view and peaceful
surroundings are unlike any other.”

“I think
you’ll like the view from your new office and the man cave just as much.
Presently they’re just storerooms, but we can have floor to ceiling windows put
in both of them. How does that sound?”

“Like I’ve
died and gone to heaven. Plus, I can have a massage anytime I want.”

“Could
probably be arranged, but think we’ll be putting it on our joint account,
rather than mine,” she said laughing.

“Tell you
what. I need to start thinking about getting an office. Let’s drive into town
and see what’s available. When we come back we can call our kids, and you need
to tell Judy and Bertha.”

“Actually, I’d
like to shout it from the roof of the lodge, but it probably wouldn’t be
appropriate for the owner of the lodge to be standing on the roof, screaming
that she’s going to be Mrs. Langley.”

“So you’re
going to take my name? I was hoping you would, but I know that’s kind of
old-fashioned.”

“Roger, you’re
overlooking something.”

“What?”

“Your last
name is Langley and mine is Lucas. I won’t even have to change my initials on
the towels!”

“Mrs.
Langley-to-be, I love you,” he said as he took the ring out of the box and put
it on her finger.