Traci Tyne Hilton - Mitzi Neuhaus 03 - Buyer's Remorse (19 page)

Mitzy ran around to the back door. She had to keep Fiona from getting in. She pulled on the sliding glass door and it opened. Mitzy stepped inside and shut the door behind her. She pulled the lock down. Would Fiona be willing to break down doors to get to them? Mitzy ran to the bedrooms, one at a time, and made sure the windows were shut. She could see Fiona standing at the door, ringing the bell.

Alice
switched off her machine and looked at the underslip. She puffed out the layers and frowned. Something about it wasn’t quite right. She pulled off her headphones and stood up. She put her arms overhead to stretch them out. Distracting herself with work wasn’t helping. She wouldn’t be able to concentrate until she could see Mitzy eye to eye and tell her what had happened at Neveah’s.

Mitzy ran to the front door and stood with her back to it. Not that she thought Fiona could break it down. Her heart pumped hard. What was her next move? She had to tell
Alice
what was going on. Or should she let Fiona in and try to restrain her?

Then she saw
Alice
headed up from her work room.

“Oh thank the Lord! That’s Fiona at the door. She’s come here to kill you!” Mitzy whispered.

Alice
shook her head, “What? How did you get in?”

“I snuck in through the back when you didn’t answer.” Mitzy tried to calm her breathing down but she couldn’t. Her words tumbled out, but she was trying hard not to panic. “I’ve locked all the doors. Fiona’s coming here to kill you. She thought she poisoned me but I didn’t drink the coffee so she didn’t. I don’t know what she has in store for you.”

“Well, for heaven’s sake, let’s let her in and find out.”
Alice
reached around Mitzy and unlocked the door.

Mitzy stepped aside. She appraised
Alice
.
Alice
was small but young. She didn’t appear to have any weapons on her. She was, however, holding a bunch of black tulle over her arm.

“Well hi, Fiona! Come in. How did you know where I live?”

Fiona’s face was frozen in a twisted smile.

“Let me make you at home.”
Alice
grabbed Fiona’s arm and led her to the living room.

Mitzy followed. She noticed that the tulle had some kind of straps and buckles attached.
Gothic wear.

“I’ve already told her why you are here, Fiona,” Mitzy said. “And the cops are on the way.”

Fiona’s expression hadn’t changed, but her hand moved convulsively in the pocket of her full-length faux chinchilla coat.

Mitzy eyed the moving hand. She’d bet real money Fiona had a weapon in her pocket.

Mitzy and Alice dragged Fiona to a chair, “Please, sit down.”
Alice
pushed Fiona back into the chair. “Mitzy, could I have a hand with this outfit. It’s one of Fiona’s custom orders.” She kept one hand on Fiona and passed the garment to Mitzy with the other.

Mitzy grabbed the garment and shook it out to see what it was.

“I’m glad that the cops are on their way, but don’t you think we ought to help Fiona settle in?”

“I do agree.” The garment Mitzy had was a silky bodice with a number of long straps and buckles.

“It goes like this.”
Alice
moved her hands across her chest demonstrating how the straps wrapped around the body twice. “The straps should be long enough to go around her arms.”
Alice
had the other part of the fabric and was already wrapping Fiona’s ankles.

Mitzy smiled as she bound Fiona with the vest.

“You can’t!” Fiona said, breaking her maniacal grimace for a moment.

“Oh, probably not.
We may even get to stay in jail overnight for this,”
Alice
said with an air of unconcern.

“Jail sounds better than life with Fiona loose.” Mitzy buckled the last of the buckles.

Fiona was completely restrained.

“It’s not the look I had intended, but I sort of like it, don’t you, Mitzy?”
Alice
asked.

“It’s a very appropriate outfit for the occasion.” Mitzy stared out the window. The cop cars had been almost silent, but the officers were already at the front door.

Alice
answered the unassuming knock at her front door. Mitzy could hear them murmuring their conversation.

The color had drained from Fiona’s face. She leaned back into the wingback chair with her eyes closed, but her hand continued to work convulsively in her pocket.

Alice
brought the officers to the living room. One of them knelt down next to Fiona. “Ma’am?” he said.

“Mitzy Neuhaus?” the other officer pulled Mitzy aside.

“Yes, that’s me.” Mitzy couldn’t take her eyes off of Fiona. The officer was gently moving her shoulder, trying to rouse her.

“We received the video you sent. We’d like you to come down to the station with us to make your statement. We’ll be taking Fiona into our custody.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Call an ambulance and let’s unbind this woman. This was not appropriate.” The officer undid the first buckle.

“But we had to! She was going kill us,” Mitzy began to explain.

“Yes, we heard it all in the video.”

“But her hand—she’s got something in her pocket!”

“We can’t
Mirandize
her if she’s passed out.” The first office undid the last buckle. He looked at his partner as he spoke.

Mitzy saw Fiona’s eye open a slit. “Watch out!” Mitzy cried. She
lept
forward and pushed the cop out of the way, a second too late. Fiona plunged a small knife into the officer’s shoulder.

“Yowch!”
The officer said pressed his shoulder with his hand. 

The second officer stepped forward and restrained Fiona with one arm. “Don’t be such a baby, Sean.”

“I wasn’t expecting a knife,” Sean turned to Fiona, “You have the right to remain silent…”

Mitzy followed the officers back to the station with
Alice
. The last hours of the morning had been a blur. It was only now that Mitzy realized she still needed to call Alonzo. 

“I don’t know exactly what role he has in the murder of Lara Capet, but he broke into my office with the purpose of scaring me off of the case.” Alonzo sat in the uncomfortable metal chair opposite the detective working the Capet murder. He tapped his foot with nervous energy. The police station was flooded with people and every officer looked strained.

“Thank you,” the cop said.

“Is that everything?” Alonzo asked.

The cop put the lid on his pen. “It will do for now.”

Alonzo frowned. He wanted the cop to give up a little info too. It only seemed fair. Alonzo felt like he was on their team, one of the guys. But the officer only walked away from the desk.

Alonzo stood up and walked toward the waiting room. His sister nearly knocked him over as she
came
flying through.

“Carmella!”

“Not now. I have important evidence for the Capet murder.” She had a big, black bag crushed to her chest. Alonzo took a chair.
“Officer!
I need to speak to someone about a nasty redhead who broke into my hotel…” was all Alonzo heard before Carmella shut the door behind her.

Mitzy and Alice walked into the Portland Police headquarters. Fiona had been taken away and they were going to tell everything they knew, from the beginning. Mitzy didn’t have the chunks of her platter but she did have the poisoned coffee cup. That was good physical evidence. She headed straight to the office of the detective in charge of the Lara Capet murder investigation to give it to him.

Alonzo watched Mitzy sail past him. “Hey!” he called out, but she didn’t turn around. He crossed his arms on his chest. He was staying right where he was until everyone came out and told him what was going on.

Mitzy knocked on the door and then opened it.

“Excuse me, I’m with someone right now,” the officer said to Mitzy.

“Carmella?” Mitzy asked.

“Hey! You will never guess what I saw!” Carmella said. She held up Mitzy’s keys and jangled them.

“Where did you find those?” Mitzy reached out for them.

Carmella snatched them back, “Huh-uh,” she said. These are evidence. They were in Fiona’s bag!”

“I’ve got a poisoned coffee mug!” Mitzy said with a huge smile, holding the bag out.

“That must have been what that green sludge was!” Carmella shook the keys. “Too bad I washed that out this morning. Oh well. My evidence is good anyway.”

“Fiona just came to my house to kill me!”
Alice
said.

“You washed my evidence?!”

“Ladies, ladies!
One at a time.”
The officer stopped and made eye contact with each woman in turn. “Mitzy, you and your friend can wait in the waiting room with Alonzo. I’ll call you in when I am ready.”

“Alonzo?”
Mitzy turned on her heel. She went to the waiting room as quickly as she could. When she spotted Alonzo in a chair by the water cooler she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. “We got her!” she cried out.

Alonzo held Mitzy in the tightest embrace she had ever felt.

They gathered back in the kitchen of The Miramontes Inn after everyone had given their testimony. Carmella warmed up a big dish of spaghetti for them all.

“I had an idea of what was going on when I saw how close that address was to
BLM
land,” Alonzo said. “Those Ruby Ridge types are very predictable.”

“The Tea Party is a scary group.” Carmella made the sign of the cross.

“Oh brother,” Mitzy rolled her eyes.

“Those guys in the hills are not your everyday Tea Party members, Carmella.” Alonzo said.

“You’d better not be an everyday Tea Party member either. Think of what our father would say!”

“Plead the fifth, Alonzo. This isn’t about politics, but I’m calling your hand. Alonzo, you did not know where I was headed or why.”

“Sure I did, once we got there.”

“Once you saw the greenhouses?”

“Maybe I’ll plead the fifth now.”

“That’s what I thought.”

Carmella coughed into her fist, “Tea Party.”

“Carmella.” Alonzo’s tone was serious.

“Yeah well, you’d think everyone would get the picture by now. Big business doesn’t help anyone but themselves.”

“Who in this craziness was big business, sis?”

Carmella scrunched her mouth a little.
“Small business then.”

“But back to the crazy people in
Idaho
.”

“We left that subject? I hadn’t noticed?”

“Is this because we’re eating supper while you’re washing up? If so sit down and can it.” Alonzo pulled a chair out for his sister.

Carmella draped her dishtowel over the faucet and sat down with her brother and sister-in-law. “Since the lords of industry have given me permission, I will sit down. I only half mean it anyway. Some of you conservatives aren’t completely awful.”

Alonzo just shook his head. “I don’t know who you are calling a conservative.”

“Moderate, eh?”

“What I want to know is why you didn’t just call me? Why follow me for hundreds of miles?” Mitzy asked.

“I did call you.” Alonzo pounded his fist on the tabletop like a gavel. “I called every hour. I even tried to catch up with you, speed demon. But frankly, by the time we hit Pilot Rock I was just trying not to lose track of you.”

“There was an awful lot of traffic out. Who knew?” Mitzy sipped her water and tried to look innocent.

Alonzo shook his head with a look of disgust. “You’re just lucky I kept chasing you.”

“Do you know how hard I was praying the whole drive? There wasn’t any luck involved.” Mitzy stirred her noodles with her fork.

“I want to know why you guys got married. Do you know what Mama is going to do?”

Mitzy turned pink. “I didn’t want to elope. I mean I didn’t plan it.”

“The town was overrun with Baptists, what could we do?” Alonzo scooped a forkful of spaghetti. He ate it and shrugged.

Mitzy smiled at him.
“Exactly.
One free room in a town full of Baptists on mission.
We so could not take it together.
Even if we wanted to pull a classic movie scene.
It just wasn’t going to happen.”

“Oh brother.”
Carmella scooped a big serving of spaghetti for herself. “What a honeymoon though, right? Catching a killer?”

“I’m sure there have been worse, but as soon as we can we are hitting the road, right,
babe
?” Alonzo said.