Donally, Claire - Cat Nap (A SUNNY & SHADOW MYSTERY)

“Maybe that’s because you weren’t,” Sunny pointed out. “Your car—”

“Do you know that he’s had people out at Sal DiGillio’s checking the repair records on my BMW?” Jane interrupted. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he got his hands on the tire, trying to prove that I gave myself a flat to create an alibi.” She shook her head. “This guy is relentless, Sunny. Sooner or later, he’ll find something he can twist into a reason to bring me back to that station again, and Tobe won’t be able to stop him.”

She shuddered. “And even if Trumbull doesn’t succeed, I still have Dani and Olek busily trying to ruin my life. It’s as if everywhere I look, I’ve got someone coming after me.” Jane got out of the chair. “I have to talk to Tobe.”

Sunny watched her friend go out the door. She seems to be seeing a lot of Tobe lately.

*

Business picked upafter Jane left. Sunny spent the afternoon looking at e-mails, answering the phone, and booking several B&B reservations. The shadows were getting pretty long outside when the phone rang and she found Will on the other end. “I’m just on a break,” he said quickly. “Would you like to grab a bite this evening? There’s a new place that’s supposed to be like a New York restaurant.”

“Sure,” Sunny replied. Since it was a school night, they set an early date. Sunny finished her work, closed up the place, and went home to check in with her dad.

Mike was delighted that she was going out. “I can make myself soup and a sandwich,” he assured her. “Have a good time.”

Sunny put on a nicer sweater than the one she’d worn to work, a soft wool number in a purplish tweed. Then she put on some makeup and waited for Will.

The place he was talking about turned out to be up in outlet-land, which should have been a warning. When they got there, Sunny realized it had formerly been a burger place that failed. Now it had a new sign, HOLLBECK’S NEW YORK DELI.

Oh yeah, she thought wryly, very New York.

The interior hadn’t changed very much from the joint’s burger-slinging days, a lot of white tile and stainless steel with very bright lights. It was also pretty loud, even though the weeknight diners didn’t crowd the place.

A waitress gave them a menu that would have looked more at home in a diner. But there were deli foods that Sunny remembered from her time in New York. “I’ll have the brisket platter,” she decided. Will went with corned beef and cabbage. When the food arrived, Sunny found that her brisket had been cooked in tomato sauce—not necessarily bad, but definitely not New York style. On the other hand, the beer—Sam Adams—was decent, and cold.

Will took a long pull from his bottle. “I’m worried about Jane and this Phillips guy,” he abruptly said.

Sunny tilted her head, a little taken aback by the dinner conversation. “You put them together.”

Will winced at her response. “I put them together professionally. But they seem to be hanging out a lot. Ben Semple saw them in a café, acting awfully friendly.”

“Well, friendships have been known to come out of professional connections,” Sunny pointed out. “They did know each other years ago. They could be catching up from old times.”

“Uh-huh.” Will took a forkful of corned beef. From the look on his face, Sunny would have thought it was rancid.

“And Jane has been under a lot of stress. It’s not surprising she might lean a little on the guy who’s helping her out.”

Will nodded, conceding the point, but he still looked discontented. “Yeah, but—”

“You know, Will, it’s nice to be invited to this real New York experience.” Sunny gestured toward the glaring lights and the loud, echoing noise in the restaurant. “But if you’re going to take me out and then whine about Jane going around with some other guy, you’ve got another think coming. This isn’t high school. We’re adults now—supposedly.”

She looked him in the face. He swallowed hard, showing a little embarrassment and a lot of shame.

“It’s not that,” he began and made a jerky gesture with his hand. “Okay. It probably is a little of that. I’m worried that they’re getting a little . . . distracted from what they need to be doing.”

“You mean, they’re pissing Trumbull off instead of persuading him to look for other suspects?” Sunny said.

Will nodded.

“Well, he certainly did his best to dispose of Christine Venables and her family.” She told him about her interrogation and the information that the detectives had dropped.

“I thought they might have been playing me, making up a story to get Jane rattled,” she went on. “But it looks as if the information was legit. I talked to Christine’s alibi.” She gave him a quick recap of her undercover haircut.

Will frowned, toying with his fork. Sunny thought he was going to lecture her about butting into Trumbull’s case. Instead, he said, “What they told you could have been only half true. Phillips should definitely check out the husband.”

Sunny nodded. “I expect he’s doing that.”

“As for the daughter, well, that’s what we call an unreliable alibi,” Will went on slowly. “The girl is out of work, depending on her mom for a place to live, and you say she has a medical condition covered by her parents’ insurance?”

“That’s right,” Sunny said.

“So she’s really dependent. Kristi may have given her mother an alibi because she doesn’t want to upset the family applecart. Or if she’s aware of Christine’s relationship with Martin Rigsdale, maybe she’s trying to avoid a scandal.”

“So you’re saying the alibi isn’t as strong as it sounds?”

“Yeah.” Will speared another slice of corned beef as if he were hunting it rather than eating it. “That’s the kind of question a district attorney would consider, trying to decide if he had a strong enough case to bring to court.”

“From Trumbull’s point of view, it looks as if Jane is guilty until she proves herself innocent.”

Will nodded in agreement. “Like it or not, she’s a strong suspect. Most murders happen over love or money. Martin humiliated Jane in one and was pestering her about the other. It’s a two-fer. No wonder Trumbull likes it.”

He dipped his corned beef in a dollop of mustard, brought it to his mouth, and chewed, looking unhappy as he swallowed. “That’s why Phillips really has to be on his game.”

“No distractions.” Sunny had some of her brisket. All of a sudden, it seemed pretty tasteless.

Somehow, they struggled through the rest of the meal on small talk. As a dating experience, Sunny would not list it among her top ten.

As they headed out for Will’s pickup, he turned to her. “I’m sorry if I said anything stupid. I like you, Sunny, and I enjoy being with you. I don’t want our time together to be a drag.”

“You had things on your mind, and so did I,” she said. “It’s not a big deal—if we don’t let it be.”

He smiled. “You’ve got a good way of putting things.”

They got into the pickup, and Sunny’s phone rang. It was Jane, her voice very shaky. “Could you come over—now? I’ve got a bit of a situation here.”

“On the way,” Sunny replied. Jane cut the connection before Sunny could ask any questions.

She turned to Will, who had his cop face on.

“That was Jane,” Sunny said. “I hate to ask this, but can you give me a lift to her place?”

“She’s in trouble?” Will asked.

“I don’t know,” Sunny had to admit.

“Well, we’ll both find out.” Will started up the truck and headed for Jane’s house.

Jane answered the door wearing one of her veterinarian’s smocks. “Oh, thank God, Sunny.”