Purrfect Rivalry

Chapter 15

Odelia rubbed her eyes. Sucking down three cups of coffee in a row that a friendly housekeeper had brought her wasn’t helping. They’d interviewed most of the household staff and all of the security personnel, and so far they had nothing. Bupkis. Nada.

No one had seen anything—no one knew anything. And Dieber was getting more and more antsy with every passing minute. Every few seconds he stuck his head in and asked if they’d found his killer yet. She would have liked to point out that in order for there to be a killer in the house he would have had to be killed first, but bit her tongue.

“This is getting us nowhere,” she told Chase when they’d interviewed an actual butler. The man had been hired to welcome the guests in case Charlie threw one of his parties, but since the incident the security team had taken over and introduced a more stringent vetting procedure and the man was essentially out of work. The fact that he was still on staff indicated Charlie either had way too much money to burn or was a true philanthropist. Odelia suspected the former.

“Someone must have seen something,” Chase insisted.

She decided she needed a break, and went in search of a bathroom. They’d conducted their interviews in one of the guest bedrooms, but the one they’d picked didn’t have an en-suite bathroom. And she’d just walked out of the facility, after having splashed some water on her face, when none other than Max came trotting up the white marble staircase, visibly out of breath, and yelling excitedly, “Odelia! I know! I know who did it!”

She crouched down, checked if no one was around, and asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Long story—no time,” he said between gasps. “The guy who planted the knife is called Luca and he’s a security guard. One of the cats saw him and told Clarice and Clarice told us, and now I’m telling you.” He took a deep breath. “Luca. Knife. He’s the killer, Odelia!”

She smiled and rubbed him behind the ear. “You did good, Max. I think you just might have solved the case.”

He gave her a pleading look. “So now can I stay? You’re not going to sell me to the pound?”

She groaned. This Diego was doing a real number on her cats. “I told you already, Max. I’m never going to sell you to anyone. You’re my cat and that’ll never change.”

She thought he actually smiled at this, though it was hard to be sure with all the hair.

“Thanks. Oh, and say hi to Chase from me.”

“For obvious reasons I won’t,” she said with a grin, getting up. “Oh, and if you want a treat, the cat food is laid out in the kitchen pantry. It’s being replenished twenty-four-seven, so I’m sure you’ll find what you need.”

“Thanks, Odelia,” he said a little breathlessly, and gave her a look of such adulation she had to laugh.

“Dig in,” she said. “You’ve earned it.” She hurried back to the bedroom where Chase was now staring out the window at the pool, its lights giving it an eerie glow. She stopped short of blurting out her exciting discovery when she realized she couldn’t tell him about Max. So how to handle this? She decided to play it cool.

He turned when he heard her approach. “So who’s next?” he asked.

She made a display of checking her notes. “Have we talked to Luca Elrott yet?”

He frowned. “Remind me. Who is he again?”

“We saw him in Roulston’s office. He’s part of Charlie’s protection detail.”

“Oh, right. I remember. Well, since Roulston talked to his people we can skip him.”

“I… I have a hunch, Chase,” she admitted. “I think we need to talk to the guy.”

He gave her a funny look. “A hunch, huh? By all means then, call him in.”

“Thanks,” she said gratefully. There had been a time when Chase would have made fun of her hunches, but after having worked more than a few cases together, he knew how valuable they were. So she got on the horn with Roulston, and conveyed her request.

Luca Elrott was a man with a concave face, as if someone had once hit him with a football and his face had never bounced back. He had a flat nose, and eyes set too close together. The effect was a little disconcerting, like watching a cartoon character come alive.

“Hi, Luca,” said Chase, taking a seat at their makeshift interview table—a nice vanity table with the mirror removed. “Come on in. We just got a couple of questions for you.”

“I answered all of Roulston’s questions,” said Luca, sitting down across from them.

“Yeah, well, we like to be thorough,” said Chase. “A very serious incident took place here tonight, and we need to figure out who’s responsible.”

“Of course. I understand, Detective.”

He didn’t look particularly at ease, Odelia thought, and wondered how she was going to make this man confess. She could hardly go with ‘The cat saw you!’

Why would Luca want to murder his employer? He had to have a motive. Maybe a monetary one? Or could he be working for some mysterious cabal that wanted Charlie dead?

She listened as Chase asked all the usual questions, and the guy answered them all without a hitch. Suddenly she had it. She knew how she could make him talk.

She cleared her throat. “You were seen, Luca.”

“Huh?” he said, shifting his eyes from Chase to her.

“When you planted that knife? Someone saw you.”

“Who?”

She smiled. “An innocent man wouldn’t ask who. He would cry out his innocence.”

He shifted in his seat. “Yeah, I mean I didn’t do it, so whoever saw me is lying.”

“No, they’re not. Why did you do it, Luca? Why did you try to kill Charlie?”

“Are you crazy? I just told you I didn’t do it!”

“Look, we’ve established that you did, so now all I need to hear from you is why.”

“But—”

“We can cut you a deal, Luca. If you tell us who you’re working for. If not, you’ll go away for a very long time for the murder of Ray Cooper.”

The man’s eyes went wide. “But I didn’t kill Ray! We were best buds! He got me this job—you can ask anyone. I’ve known Ray since high school. We played ball together.”

“All the more reason to tell us who paid you to take that shot,” said Chase. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Look, Luca. I’ve got the warrant for your arrest right here.” He patted a folded-up piece of paper on the vanity. It contained a blueprint of the house, but Luca didn’t need to know that. “All signed and ready to go. Judge wasn’t happy being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night, but when we showed him the witness statement he was more than willing to sign. So we know you did it. Now all we need to know is who paid you.”

Luca looked torn for a moment, then shook his head. “Look, I didn’t kill Ray, all right? I’m not lying. He was my best friend. It’s just that…”

“It’s just what?” asked Chase, shooting Odelia a look of surprise.

Luca exploded. “Charlie is such a knucklehead! Some idiot shot Ray and all he can think about is his next party? Jump in the pool with his Bediebers? Come on! Show some respect, dude! A good man just took a bullet for you, and you’re sucking on your bong and hitting the pool? I just wanted to teach him a lesson, you know. Make him sit up and think.”

“So… you didn’t kill Ray?” asked Odelia.

“Of course not! We were like brothers!”

“But you did place the knife,” said Chase.

“Yeah, I did. I just wanted to scare the douchebag a little. He’s such a prick.”

Odelia believed him, and so apparently did Chase, for he gave the man a stern look and said, “I understand why you did it, Luca, but your behavior is still intolerable for a man hired to protect and serve. You can see that, right?”

“It’s tough to protect and serve a man like Charlie Dieber, Detective. A man who deserves no respect whatsoever.”

“I get that. But you knew that going in. The least you could do is act like a professional.”

Odelia thought he was going to add, ‘Dismissed,’ but instead he called in Roulston.

“So am I under arrest now?” asked Luca, gesturing at the ‘arrest warrant.’

“Nope. But I think it’s safe to say your services will no longer be required.”

“You know what? That’s actually a relief,” said Luca. He then gave Chase and Odelia a pleading look. “Please find Ray’s killer. He was a good man. He didn’t deserve to die.”

Chase clapped a hand on the man’s shoulder. “We will find his killer, Luca. You have my word on that.”

They watched as Roulston escorted him out. The moment the two men were gone, Chase turned to her. “How did you know he was the one?”

She shrugged. “Like I said. Just a hunch.”

“Just a hunch, huh? You’ve got some great hunches, Poole.”

“Thanks for trusting me, Chase,” she said, and she meant it.

“You know what your uncle told me when I first came to town?”

“No, what?”

“If my niece tells you something, you better listen.”

“Is that why you gave me such a hard time?”

He grinned. “I’ll admit, I was an idiot.”

“Yes, you were.”

“He was right, though. You’re something else, Odelia Poole.”

She placed her hands around his neck, and they shared a quick kiss.

They still hadn’t found Ray Cooper’s killer—in fact they were nowhere near solving this case—but somehow she had a hunch they were finally getting somewhere.