Hot Stuff

Chapter NINE

Cate plugged her key into the lock on her front door and the door swung open.

“Oh crap,” Cate said. “Déjà vu.”

Kellen stepped inside and looked around. “This isn’t good.”

Cate and Beast followed him into the foyer and gaped at the mess. Tables were overturned, furniture was askew, and couch cushions were on the floor.

“This wasn’t a normal search,” Kellen said, walking through the condo. “It looks to me like there was a fight here. There’s a spray of blood droplets on the kitchen floor, like someone was punched in the nose.”

“That makes no sense.”

“Maybe Marty returned and someone followed him.”

“I can’t see Marty leaving the front door open or walking away from blood on the floor. Marty is fastidious.”

“Maybe Marty didn’t walk away.”

A half hour later Cate and Kellen were in Marty’s small office, and Kellen was in Marty’s desk chair, rifling through Marty’s drawers.

“Nothing of any value in his file cabinet,” Kellen said. “His computer is traveling with him. I can’t find any memory sticks or disks or safety deposit box keys. No James Bond fake drawers or revolving bookcases. This office is clean. In fact, so far as I can see the whole condo is clean. And I don’t believe it. I know I’m missing something.”

“You’re nothing if not tenacious,” Cate said.

Kellen smiled slyly. “Something to remember. I could make Pugg look like an amateur.”

“Should we call the police?”

“Yeah. This is the second break-in and someone bled all over your floor. It wouldn’t hurt to have a report on record.”

“Will the police test the blood?”

“Not unless they find a body in the stairwell.”

Cate and Kellen locked eyes.

“Maybe I should check the stairwell,” Kellen said.

Cate pocketed the key to the condo front door and followed Kellen into the stairwell. It was well lit, and it was easy to see that the stairs were speckled with tiny dark dots.

“Blood?” Cate asked.

Kellen was stopped at the third-floor landing. “Lots of it. And a dead guy.”

Cate caught up to him and clapped a hand over her mouth. There was a large man lying in an awkward position on the landing floor. He was Caucasian, with brown hair and a severely receding hairline. Late forties. Dressed in a short-sleeved white dress shirt and brown slacks. He was on his stomach with his legs twisted at odd angles. His head was turned to the ceiling. He looked surprised. Blood had pooled under him.

“You aren’t going to scream or faint or throw up, are you?” Kellen asked.

“I’m not going to scream, but I might throw up.”

“Sit down and take some deep breaths.”

“Are you sure he’s dead?” Cate asked.

“His head is on backward. That usually indicates death.”

Cate crept closer. “Looks like he’s the one who got punched in the nose. Guess that’s the least of his problems now.”

“I don’t see any bullet holes or knife wounds. It almost looks like he fell down the stairs and broke his neck. Do you know him?”

“I think he might be Marty’s agent. I don’t remember his name. I’ve only seen him a couple times, when he came to the bar to hear Marty sing.”

“Go back upstairs,” Kellen said. “We definitely need to call the police.”

Cate looked past the young detective talking to Kellen and spotted Julie and Sharon standing in the hall with a cluster of curious condo residents. Sharon was wearing her robe and jammies, and three-inch stiletto-heeled slippers. Julie was in her party trolley attire of white Party Trolley T-shirt and black jeans.

Cate waved to Julie and Sharon, and they broke from the group and joined Cate in the condo.

“We came as soon as we figured it out,” Sharon said. “Julie saw the police when she came home from work.”

“At first I thought it was a domestic disturbance,” Julie said. “You know how the Millers are always yellin’ at each other and threatenin’ to call the police. But then I saw them cart someone out in a body bag, and I called Sharon.”

“This is horrible,” Sharon said. “Do you have any idea what something like this can do to property values?” She paused for a moment. “On the other hand, if the person in the body bag lived here, there could be a unit going up for sale. I might be able to get the listing if I move fast.”

“I don’t think he lived here,” Cate said.

“Did you see him?” Julie asked. “I bet you know all the details about the deceased.”

“Not a lot of details to know,” Cate said. “Kellen and I discovered him in the stairwell. It looked like he’d fallen down the stairs.”

“That’s tragic,” Julie said. “Bodies are so fragile. One minute they’re walking around and then bang, they’re all broken. And fate is capricious. I just learned that word today and I’m not sure I used it right.”

Sharon leaned toward Julie. “Have you been drinking?”

“They were serving margaritas on the trolley, and they mixed up too many, so when everyone left I had to drink some.”

“You had to?”

“It was the polite thing to do.”

Sharon turned to Cate. “If you found the body in the stairwell, why are the police swarming all over your condo?”

“It’s possible that the dead man was in here first. My door was unlocked and things were disrupted.”

“That’s sooo creepy,” Julie said. “I’d totally freak if I thought a dead man had been walking around in my apartment. My Aunt Margery kept my Uncle Lester in the living room for two months after he died. She said it kept her from gettin’ lonely. Of course he didn’t walk around, but he was there all the same, laid out on the living room couch. Truth is, every time I saw my Uncle Lester alive he was on the couch, and he didn’t look so different when he was dead. And then one day my Uncle Lester wasn’t in the living room no more, and everyone said Aunt Margery buried him in the backyard. We didn’t know for sure since no one was present at the burial, but there was a big patch of garden dug up. Aunt Margery always planted late-season cabbages there and they grew like the dickens.”

Sharon and Cate didn’t know what to say. They stared at Julie and their mouths dropped open slightly.

“I always felt a little funny eatin’ them cabbages,” Julie said as an afterthought.

Kellen moved behind Cate and put his hand on the small of her back. “Ladies,” he said to Julie and Sharon.

“Howdy,” Julie said.

Sharon nodded.

“The police are getting ready to clear out,” Kellen said to Cate. “Is there anything you need to add to your statement?”

“No,” Cate said. “I can’t think of anything else.”

“Would you like some company tonight?” Sharon asked Cate. “Julie and I could sleep over, so you wouldn’t be alone up here. Or you could come down to my apartment.”

“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll be okay,” Cate said. “I have Beast.”

“Call if you change your mind,” Sharon said.

Minutes later Kellen closed and locked the front door, and he and Cate stood for a moment appreciating the silence. The crime scene people were working in the stairwell, but everyone was out of the condo. A police strobe flashed against the living room window. The strobe originated from a lone squad car parked four floors below on the street. The strobe blinked off, and Cate sighed in relief. It was close to midnight.

“Are you really going to be okay alone in this condo tonight?” Kellen asked.

“Sure,” Cate said. “I’ll be fine.” And she burst into tears.

Kellen gathered her to him and held her close, resting his head on hers.

“I don’t know why I’m crying,” Cate sobbed. “I didn’t even know that dead guy. And nothing’s missing or broken in Marty’s condo. And I’m really pretty safe when I throw the bolt from the inside, right?”

“Right,” Kellen said.

“Why am I blubbering like this?”

“Emotion,” Kellen said. “Sometimes it just has to come out. You held yourself together when we found the body and during the whole police investigation, and now you can relax and let the emotion escape. It’s like a safety valve.”

“Why aren’t you crying?”

“I’m a big strong man. It would be unseemly for me to cry like a little girl.”

“Will you cry when you’re alone?”

“No. I’ve seen a lot worse than this.”

Cate snuffled and hiccupped and went to the kitchen in search of a tissue. She blew her nose and stared at the butcher-block knife holder on the granite countertop. The large carving knife was missing. She looked in the dishwasher. Not there. She looked in the silverware drawer and the junk drawer. Not there.

Cate went back to the living room where Kellen was straightening furniture. “The large carving knife is missing,” Cate said.

Kellen looked over at her. “Are you sure?”

“Pretty sure. I looked in all the drawers, and I can’t find it.”

“The body in the stairwell didn’t have any knife wounds.”

Cate shrugged and did one of those hand gestures that said I dunno.

“It’s late,” Kellen said. “And we’re both tired. I think we should go to bed and clean this up in the morning.”

“I have to get the blood off the floor tonight.”

“I hear you. Where do you keep the mop?”

“It’s not your problem.”

“It is my problem,” Kellen said, wrapping his arms around Cate. “I really like you. I mean, really like you.”

“I like you too,” Cate said. “But I’m not sure I trust you.”

“Smart woman,” Kellen said. And he brushed a kiss across her lips, and then he gave her a second kiss that lingered and deepened and turned very serious.

Cate felt the need curl into her, and she instinctively pressed herself against Kellen. His hand immediately moved to her butt, holding her in place.

“Oops,” Cate said. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

“It’s done,” Kellen said. “You can’t take it back.”

“It was an accident.”

“I liked it.”

“I can tell,” Cate said.

Kellen looked down at her. “Still too soon?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, how about this… I clean your kitchen floor, and you go to bed. When I’m done I’ll sleep in Marty’s room. Tomorrow morning I’ll buy you breakfast, and we can talk.”

“That would be really nice of you. I wasn’t looking forward to dealing with the blood. I’ll owe you.”

“I’m counting on it,” Kellen said.

Kellen was on the couch, text-messaging on his BlackBerry when Cate emerged from her bedroom with Beast.

“Did you sleep okay?” Cate asked Kellen.

“Yes. And I had a chance to comb through the condo again. And again, I found nothing. Marty steals expensive jewelry. He needs to keep it someplace until he moves it out to a fence. There’s no safe here. Not even a strongbox. Where does Marty keep the jewelry?”

“He keeps his personal jewelry in the top drawer of his dresser. I’ve never seen any other jewelry in the condo. Maybe he uses a safety deposit box at his bank.”

“I’ve been through his records. I can’t find any evidence of a safety deposit box. No receipt. No reference to one. That doesn’t mean one doesn’t exist, but usually someone as organized as Marty keeps paperwork on file.

“The only item of interest that I found in my search is a key. One single key on a gold key chain. It looks like a house key. Does Marty have a partner?”

“You mean like a boyfriend? I don’t think so.”

“He never brought anyone home?”

“No. I’m sure he has friends, but he never brought anyone here. Maybe Marty has a second condo.”

“If he does it isn’t under his name. I’ve checked tax records.”

“Beast and I are going walking,” Cate said. “We’ll be back in a half hour. You promised to take us to breakfast.”

“We can do both simultaneously,” Kellen said. “I’ll walk Beast with you, and we can eat breakfast burgers in the park.”

It was a little after eight in the morning and traffic was moving on Cate’s street when they all trooped out. Sometime during the night it had rained, and the air felt scrubbed fresh of grime and toxins. Beast pranced in the cooler air and did what he had to do in the park. Kellen carted cartons of coffee and bags of egg-and-sausage burgers to a bench.

“I love this,” Cate said, feeding a burger to Beast. “It’s a morning picnic.”

“I’d love it better if I felt I could keep you safe,” Kellen said. “I don’t like people breaking into your condo.”

“One of the people who broke in isn’t going to break in any more.”

“True. But there were at least two people in your kitchen. I have a friend who’s a locksmith. I’m going to send him over later this morning to change your front door lock.”

“I can’t do that. It isn’t my condo. And Marty won’t have a key.”

“If Marty wants to get in he can ring the doorbell. And if you aren’t home he can call you. I’m sure he has your cell number.”

“I just assumed someone was picking the lock.”

“It’s possible, but it could also have been someone who had a key. You live in a secure building. The only way to get through the outside door is to get buzzed in by a tenant or to unlock the door with a key fob.”

Cate finished her coffee and breakfast sandwich, and gave one last sandwich to Beast. They gathered the wrappers and bags and cups, tossed them all in the trash, and crossed the street. They were in front of the condo building when Kitty Bergman screeched to a stop and parked her Mercedes in a no-parking zone.

Kitty jumped out of her car and stormed over to Cate, waving a copy of the morning paper. Beast yelped and hid behind Kellen.

“What the heck is this about?” Kitty yelled. “Marty’s agent found dead in the stairwell! Preliminary investigation suggests he fell down the stairs and broke his neck. First of all, I know Marty’s agent, and that sack of horse manure would never use the stairs. And second, you killed him, didn’t you?”

“Why would I want to kill him?”

“Everyone wanted to kill him. He was a disgusting parasite.”

“I didn’t know him,” Cate said. “And I wasn’t in the building when it happened.”

“She was with me,” Kellen said.

“Who are you?” Kitty asked.

“Kellen Koster.”

Kitty hiked her Prada tote higher on her shoulder and narrowed her eyes at Kellen. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?”

“Not today, but maybe someday.”

“Spare me the riddles,” Kitty said. “I wouldn’t be talking to you at all, but you look like you have a good package.”

Cate and Kitty and Kellen studied his package for a moment.

“Thanks,” Kellen finally said, smiling.

The elevator door opened, and Cate stepped in and pulled Beast in after her.

“Nice meeting you,” Kellen said to Kitty. He followed Cate and Beast into the elevator and hit the button for the fourth floor. “Obviously a woman with keen powers of observation,” Kellen said to Cate.