Анна Керн - Deadly Diamond

She knew that to be true, as she and Maggie had gone on a trip with the Husens once before.

“Thanks, Jim. I’ll keep it in mind. Tell Brenda I found that recipe she asked me for, and I’ll give her a call soon.”

Alyx completed the transaction, Jim left, and she turned her attention to the woman who introduced herself as David Hunter’s ex-wife, Joann.

“David said I should apologize.”

“You’re here because David told you to? What are you making him do for this apology?”

“Nothing he doesn’t want to do,” she replied slyly.

“We’ll see about that,” Alyx said defiantly.

Joann’s pale blue eyes flashed to her face, her full lips stretched thin. “You’re not very gracious, are you? You’re nothing but a garbage picker.”

“Yes, that’s what I do, and I hope to do more of it,” replied Alyx. She made it abundantly clear that she wasn’t willing to give David up that easily.

After the door closed behind Joann Hunter, Alyx literally dropped into the nearest chair. Wanting to comfort her, I jumped on her lap and accidentally knocked over a small picture with a decorative inlaid top sitting on the side table. Both the table and the picture had come from Althea’s bedroom. Alyx had told Maggie that she kept the picture––a soft garden scene surrounded by a delicate gold frame––not so much for its value, but more because it reminded her of Althea.

The photo landed on its face, exposing a brown paper backing that had come unglued. Alyx picked it up and took it to the workroom, searched for glue to fix it. When she lifted the paper to re-glue it, something caught her eye––another photograph was behind the first––a smaller, black and white photograph of a young woman holding a baby.

Althea hadn’t forgotten her son.

About an hour later, Hunter walked through the door. His presence commanded our attention. Misty came to stand next to me and wanted to know what was going on. Hunter surveyed the room slowly, and quickened his step when Alyx came into view on the other side of the store.

“Alyx, I need to speak to you in private for a moment.”

“Did she come crying to you that I didn’t graciously accept her apology?” Alyx asked him.

He looked at her blankly. “I don’t know what you’re referring to, but you’ll want to hear what I have to tell you.”

“Joann,” said Alyx, “She came to apologize for harassing me. She said you told her she should.”

She turned and walked away. David followed, dodging furniture and cats in trying to keep up with her.

“I told her no such thing.”

Her dead stop caused a collision of cats, furniture, and humans.

He reached for her hand and she didn’t pull away. “I realized what she was doing after I spoke to you. I told her that she and I were finished, that I was ready to move on and I hoped she’d do the same.”

“Okay, then.”

A non-committal answer for sure, but apparently the only one he was going to get.

“Now can I speak to you in private?” he reiterated.

She nodded, “Let’s go to the workroom.”

“I know you’re seeing Jonathan Steele and there’s something you need to know about him.”

“How do you know that I’ve been seeing him?” she asked, rightfully suspicious. They sat at the table.

“How I know isn’t important. What’s important is what my source told me about him.”

She wasn’t listening anymore. “You’ve been following me?”

He didn’t answer. “Listen, Alyx. Jonathan Steele is Althea’s son.”

She leaned back in her chair, daring him to tell her something she didn’t know.

“I know that.”

“Did he tell you that he doesn’t have a penny to his name, and that he doesn’t actually own the store, that it’s owned by several people?”

Alyx was stunned. “The inventory is his, isn’t it?”

He shook his head. “Most of it’s on consignment from overseas distributors; very little is his.”

“So what do you think this has to do with me?”

He stood and leaned over her desk. “I heard your store was broken into, and that only Althea’s furniture was disturbed. Could he have been looking for another will––one that left everything to him? He could use the money, and I bet his cousin Carole Berth isn’t willing to share.”

“You think he killed Althea?”

“Alyx, I care about you. I wanted to warn you, to tell you to be careful; that’s all.”

“Thank you, David.”

He left, and she sat at her desk, cradling her head.

“There are many cat quotes: some are clever, some are funny, and some are true, but a true ailurophile knows that we are as unique as any human.”––Murfy

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: A Problem With the Security System

It was almost bedtime. The phone rang and at first, no one moved. Alyx answered on the second ring. “Sorry for the late call, Ms. Hille. I thought you’d want to know that there seems to be a problem with the alarm system at Antiques & Designs.”

Alyx sat up, and I scooted closer. “What kind of problem?”

“The alarm is malfunctioning at its location. Would you like to have someone take a look at it tonight or wait until tomorrow?”

She hesitated for an instant. “I think you’d better send someone tonight.”

“Alfred Simms is on call. He’ll be driving his own vehicle rather than a company car and will meet you there in about fifteen minutes.”

Alyx was still wearing the shorts and tee shirt she’d put on that morning. She slipped into a pair of sandals and quickly went out the door with me on her heels. We pulled up behind the shop and the second I saw the parked black sedan, I immediately recognized the heavy-set man waiting by the back door––the same man who’d tried to run her over at the train station.

Alyx parked in a lighted section of the parking lot. She opened the door, and I catapulted out of the truck. Hissing violently, I galloped ahead, and lunged at the man’s head. He raised his arms to protect himself and knocked me flat against the brick wall. Alyx quickly got the picture, but instead of running away, she started running towards me. He pulled out a gun that was tucked in his waistline, fired a shot and missed. Alyx ducked behind a cement light pole five feet in front of her.

“It’s your fault; you should have minded your own business. I tried to warn you but you ignored the note on the truck and you ignored what happened at the train station. Why didn’t you leave it alone? The old bitch never did anything for anybody.”

I recovered enough to creep behind him and plan my attack while he blubbered on. He almost sounded sorry when he said, “You should have stayed out of it. I have no choice. Now I have to kill you.”

He took a step forward, and at that moment, I leaped up and sank my fangs deep into the fleshy part of his right leg, right above the ankle. He repeatedly tried to knock me off with his gun and missed for the most part, succeeding only in making me determined to hang on. The rest is a blur until Tim Schaumburg, a private investigator and a friend of David Hunter said, “Okay, Murfy, you can let go now; I have it.”

I hate the taste of human flesh, and so I promptly let go. Tim didn’t expect me to understand what he’d said, and, as it often happens, that look of amazement mixed with doubt appeared on his face. It was like catnip to me.

Alyx made a fuss over me while she checked for wounds, and held me gently, careful not to touch the tender spots.

“Thank you so much for your help, Tim. How did you happen to be here?”

“I’m not here by accident; David asked me to keep an eye on you.”

“David Hunter asked you to do that?”

He nodded once. “I was watching your house, intending to leave when you went to bed––hoping it would be soon. When you drove away instead, I knew it meant trouble, and so I followed you. I called the police on the way, and I called David who’s going to meet us at the police station.”