"Now that I can remember, I can see that Belinda's life was out of control. I don't think she was difficult, like our mother, which is what my father told me, but she was over the edge. And I was a bratty teenager, bugging her, spying on her."
"Yes, you're probably right. And that's the answer to the differences Wild Ralph York found in all the physical comparisons he did of the murders. Marlin killed Belinda for different reasons and the differences show up in how he built the props. You know something else, Sherlock?"
She cocked her head to the side in that unique way she had. He patted her cheek. "It's all over now. Every shred of it, every scintilla. There'll be the media, but you can handle that. Jimmy Maitland will try to protect you from the vultures as much as he can. Oh yeah, there's just one other detail." He paused a moment, frowning down at his shoes. "Hannah hired a hood, one of her informants, to go after you in that car, and the same guy broke into your house. She claims that he didn't follow orders. She never told him to rape you, just scare the shit out of you. She says she's really sorry, Sherlock, claims she never meant to hurt you. She's been asked to leave the Bureau. It's up to you if you want her prosecuted."
"Did she tell you why she did it?"
"She claims she lost it. She was crazy jealous. She thought she could scare you off, make you pack up and go back to California."
"If we get the guy she hired, then she'd have to take a fall too, wouldn't she?"
He nodded, then said, "Yes. If they catch the guy, she'd be prosecuted."
"Let me think about it."
He helped her into his Porsche, then walked around to the driver's side. He gave the left front tire a good kick. "Damned car. I can't believe it wouldn't start that night. If Luke hadn't come along, we might have been in deep trouble."
"Luke's coming to the wedding?"
"Oh yes." He leaned over and kissed her. "Fasten your seat belt. I'm feeling like a wild and crazy guy."
"I'm feeling kind of wild and crazy too. Tell you what. Why don't we go home and watch old movies and eat popcorn?"
"Why don't we go home and make our own movies? Popcorn is optional."
"But you don't have a movie camera, do you?"
"Let's call this a dress rehearsal."
She gave him a slow, sweet smile. "You promise to make me a star?"
EPILOGUE
I DON'T BELIEVE THIS," Lacey said as she took a glass of chardonnay from Fuzz, the bartender.
"He never told you, never let on?" Sally Quinlan asked, saluting her with her own glass of chardonnay.
"Never a word. Sure, he would sing me country-and-western songs. But this? I had no idea. Doesn't he look beautiful up there, wearing those boots and that belt with the silver buckle?"
The two women sat back as Ms. Lily, draped in a white silk dress that made her look as epic as Cleopatra, said from the small square stage, "Now listen up, brothers and sisters, even you yahoos we've got here tonight. I've got a special treat for you. We finally got our Savich back. He and Quinlan have agreed to play for us. Take it away, boys."
"This ought to be great," said Marvin, the bouncer, at Lacey's shoulder. "You just sit back and enjoy, Chicky."
Dillon's beautiful baritone filled the smoky bar, his guitar a mellow background, Quinlan's sax running a harmony with the melody. His voice was deep and rich and sexy, carrying clearly to every darkened corner of the club.
What's a man without love?
What's his night without passion?
What's his morning without her smile?
What's his day without her in his mind?
Bring her love to my nights.
Bring her smile to my mornings.
Bring her mind to fill my days.
Just bring her back to me.
What's a man without his mate?
What's his life without her laughter?
What's his soul without her joy?
What's a man without his mate?
Bring her love to my nights.
Bring her smile to my mornings.
Bring her joy to my days.
Just bring her back to me.
Sherlock was crying. She hadn't meant to, didn't even realize she was doing it. Not making a sound, just letting the tears gather and trickle down her cheeks. When the sax and guitar faded out, there was absolute silence in the Bonhomie Club. A woman sighed. A man said, "Ah, shit."
Then the applause came on, really soft and light at first, then gathering momentum. The women were clapping louder than the men.
"It's his cute butt, Sally," Ms. Lily said, leaning over to pat Lacey. "Well, actually, it's both their cute butts. Now, little gal, when are you and my Savich going to get married? I don't allow any gal shacking up with him. He's innocent. I don't want him taken advantage of, you got me?"
"You'll get the invitation next week, Ms. Lily."
"Good. Just maybe Fuzz will bring another bottle of chardonnay that has a real live cork, just like he did for Sally and Quinlan. Your Dillon's real talented, honey. You just let him sing to you and bring him down here once a week. It's good for my soul to hear him wail out his songs. Also, no crooks dare come near the club when the two supercops are playing here.
"Now he's looking at you and he's got that wicked smile on his face. Imagine an FBI agent who could smile at a woman like that. Just goes to show you, doesn't it?
"Well, I'm off to win myself some money in a little poker game. Don't tell my boys about it, will you? Their cop genes just might get scrambled and we don't want them to feel like they're in any moral dilemma."
Quinlan said from the stage, "Savich here is going to get himself married, just like I did. It's about time. Now, we have this song for you that celebrates his short number of bachelor days left. It's called 'Love Surfin'."
Moved myself to the bright blue sea. Knew the change would be good for me. Made enough money in the old rat race,
Sure to die if 1 kept my pace.
Now I'm lying in the warm, soft sand.
Checking all the girls showing lots of tan.
All these girls-what's a guy to do? I want them all, think I'll surf right through.
Going love surfin', Gonna love them all
Love surfin' Heading for a fall
Love surfin' Such a greedy man.
Love surfin' Getting all I can.
Lacey was laughing so hard that when she threw her purse at him, it bounced off Quinlan instead.
Ms. Lily was standing outside of her open office door. She yelled out, "You taking your life in your hands, Savich, what with your chicky being an FBI agent."
Savich was beaming at Lacey. He said into the mike, "My sister wrote that one. I just came up with the music."
"I'll be speaking to your sister," Lacey called out.
"I heard you got an offer on your town house." "Yes. A very good offer. It's a done deal. I'm here to stay now, Dillon."
"Good. Let's get married on Friday."
"That would be nice but I don't think we've got the time
to pull it off. How about next month? I promised Ms. Lily that she'd get an invitation. Actually I told her she'd get one next week. Also, my friend MacDougal from the Academy just got back from the desert. I want him to come."
"You mean a big wedding? All my family? Your family? Even Douglas and Candice? My God, even your mother and father and the BMW? A ton of people? All with fistfuls of rice?"
"I guess we have to. You once told me that family was family and there was nothing you could do about it. You just made the best of it and went about your business. Hopefully Mom and Dad will try to act normal for the day; hopefully Douglas won't start screaming at Candice and then go slaver over my mother. Oh yeah, there's Conal Francis, Belinda's father, my mother's first husband. He's called my mother. My father is livid."