“So, Svetlana was in on this, too?”
“No!” George said emphatically. “She was clean. I was trying to get her to help.”
“It was you. At her house. The day she was killed!”
George’s eye opened wide. “Well, yeah, but I didn’t kill. . I was just there for help. I thought I was being followed. I thought she’d know what to do.”
“Who was following you?”
“I don’t know. .”
“Jennifer Miller?”
“Who?”
“Jennifer Miller was arrested for Brad’s and Svetlana’s murders. Michelle’s, too.”
George looked puzzled. “Jen?”
“Did she know you had a gun?”
“Not that I know of.”
“It was your gun, George, the ballistic report confirms it now. Jennifer was released by the DA for insufficient evidence, so whatever you know, you better cough it up right now, because guess who’ll be the next person the cops come after.”
“It wasn’t me.”
“Who then? Rich?”
George brought his hands up, covering his ears with them. “Geeze, Kate. Rich didn’t kill anybody. Is that what you think?”
I waved my hand in despair, motioning him for a better idea.
George shook his head. “Rich is just a stoner at heart. He didn’t want the business to get busted. In fact, we’re thinking of getting a medical marijuana license and going legit.”
Now I’d heard everything.
George continued, “Rich wouldn’t kill anybody.”
“Somebody did. Somebody killed them with your gun, George! Who knew you had a gun?” George stared at the floor. “Think. Come on.”
George remained despondent.
“Does Rich have a girlfriend?” I asked.
George shook his head. “No. I don’t think so.”
I glanced at Kiku, who was still asleep. I dug into my pocket and pulled the bracelet out, using my last-ditch effort to get George to talk. “Whose is this?”
George frowned. “What’s that?”
“It fell out of your bag.”
Fear flashed across his face as he examined the bracelet. “It’s not mine. I’ve never. . I’ve never seen it before.”
Jim and I rode home in silence, both of us caught up in our own thoughts. Jim had another meeting scheduled with Dirk Jonson later today and I imagined he was rehearsing it in his head. He also had a couple of interviews scheduled for full-time work. I said a little prayer that Jim would land something soon.
I filled him in on George’s activities. He convinced me to give Mrs. Avery an update. Especially since she was now the sole owner of both the restaurant and the shop on Haight.
At the very least she needed to know what was going on. If she wanted to press charges against Rich and George, so be it.
When we got home, we found Mom hovering over Laurie, putting something red and green on her head.
Another cap?
“What are you doing, Mom? What’s that?”
“It’s her Halloween costume! I needed to try it on before I sew the last of it. Halloween’s only a few weeks away, you know.”
“What is it?”
Mom could barely contain her excitement. “She’s going to be a strawberry! I saw the pattern in a magazine. Isn’t it adorable?”
The look on my face must have betrayed me, because Mom pursed her lips. “What did you want her to be? A pumpkin? That’s so overdone. You’ve got to be original, darling.”
Mom packed her craft supplies, gave Laurie a final squeeze, and departed. Jim got dressed and left for his appointment. I collapsed onto the bed exhausted and slept with Laurie for about an hour. I dreamt a huge strawberry was chasing me, then the strawberry turned to a wash of red blood. I woke up with a start when the doorbell rang.
I stumbled down the hallway and peered out the peephole.
Jennifer?
Tears were streaming down her face.
Should I open the door? I thought of Laurie in the back of the house. No way.
“What’s up?” I asked through the door.
“Kate?”
“Um-hum.”
Jennifer looked at the door nervously. “Can you open the door?”
“Uh, I’m not dressed,” I lied.
What are you doing on my doorstep, you pothead?
“I’ll wait,” she said.
“What do you want, Jennifer?”
“I need to talk!”
“About what?”
“I need your help! I was arrested. They think I killed Brad and Michelle and, God, my boss even! I didn’t do it, Kate! I need your help. You’re a PI, right? I didn’t do it!”
Sounded good, but how could I trust her? I’d meet her in public.
“All right. Go to the little café on the corner. I’ll be there in a bit,” I said.
I looked through the peephole as she wiped her nose on her sleeve and nodded. “Okay, I’ll wait for you there,” she said.
I watched from the front window as Jennifer made her way down the street. Then I packed the diaper purse and got myself ready. Finally, I placed Laurie into her stroller and took off toward the café.
Jennifer was seated at a booth, sipping a latte. I ordered a green tea and maneuvered the stroller next to the table.
Jennifer peeked in on Laurie, who was studying the hanging doll attached to her stroller.
“Thanks for meeting me,” Jennifer whimpered.
I nodded.
“I was framed,” Jennifer continued.
Now I had really heard everything.
I took a deep breath to keep my cool. “By whom?”
“Mrs. Avery.”
•CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE•
I let my jaw drop. “You think Mrs. Avery framed you?”
Jennifer nodded, pressing her thin lips together. “She’s had it out for me. No doubt about it. She hated that I was seeing Brad.”
“She didn’t know you were seeing Brad.”
“What do you mean? She saw us together one time at the country club. When Brad went to use the restroom, she warned me to stay away from him or else!”
I shrugged. “She told me she didn’t know who he was seeing. Maybe she thought it was a one-time thing at the club.”
Jennifer sighed, looking defeated. “Maybe. But she’s evil.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, look at the Penny thing.” Jennifer must have noticed the confused look on my face because she clarified, “Brad and Svetie’s daughter. Svet was convinced that someone Penny knew lured her into the water that day.”
Okay, I thought I’d heard everything, but now I knew I’d heard it all.
“You think Mrs. Avery lured her own granddaughter to her death?”
Laurie gave a little kick in her stroller for attention. I rocked the stroller forward and back to soothe her.
Jennifer flipped her hair. “It sounds bad, I know.”
“No offense, but it sounds preposterous. Maybe you’ve been smoking a little too much of that hippie hay.”
Jennifer shook her head. “I don’t really smoke all that much.”
“Does Rich?”
Her eyes narrowed. “I wouldn’t know.”
“Don’t you run drugs out of Heavenly Haight for him?”
Jennifer’s face registered shock. “How. . how did you know that?”
“Well, I am a PI.” I felt momentarily proud of myself.
Maybe I really could do this!
“Does Mrs. Avery know about the drugs?”
“Who do you think pulls all the strings?” Jennifer asked.
I tried to ignore the sharp pain that burned behind my temples. Mrs. Avery did have an awful lot of money. Could it have come from drug dealing?
I pressed against my temples with my fingers. “What about Svetlana?” I asked. “Was she involved?”