The Drowning Pool Read online

  Evie raised her chin. “I am always polite. Don’t I put up with those snotty little kids?” She inclined her head toward the pool.

  “They are respectively your sister and your cousins,” he pointed out.

  “They’re still annoying.”

  Actually, he loved having all the kids around. He enjoyed the boys; they played rough as he and his own brother once had, but they were good-natured and fun to be with. He never objected to his brother and sister-in-law leaving the boys with him when they wanted some alone time.

  Jean climbed out of the pool and shook herself like a dog.

  “Hey, watch that!” Evie said.

  “Dad, do you think I’m getting fat? Mark says I’m a blimp.” There were tears in Jean’s eyes.

  “No, honey, you’re pleasingly plump. I think you look just right. Very attractive in fact.” He put his arm around her waist, gave her a squeeze and kissed her cheek.

  “Still, a diet is in order. I’m not looking forward to some future time when people refer to my sister as ‘ravishingly rotund.’ You’ve got to start cutting down on calories.”

  Mike could tell that Evie’s remark made Jean feel worse.

  “You’re beautiful just as you are,” he assured his younger daughter. “But if you want to lose weight for health reasons, that’s fine with me.”

  “As the Duchess of Windsor said: you can never be too rich or too thin,” Evie remarked.

  Gardner cocked an eyebrow. “Girls, your old man’s a cop. You’re never going to be too rich unless you earn the big bucks yourself or marry money, and trust me, there really is such a thing as being too thin.”

  “Dad, speaking of money. I plan to go shopping with my girlfriends later. I need new jeans for my date tonight.”

  “The twenty pairs she has in her closet aren’t good enough,” Jean said.

  “I think I’m missing something here,” Gardner said. “What date? You’re too young to be dating.”

  “No, I’m not. Anyway, it’s just another camp counselor. He asked me out because we’re friends.”

  Gardner walked over to check on the meat.

  “Well, I expect to meet this boy you plan on dating.”

  “Dad, must you be so old-fashioned?”

  “Something bothering you about him?” he countered. “Are you ashamed to have him meet your old man?”

  “God, you’re actually interrogating me!” Evie placed her arms across her chest, her expression fierce. “You’re treating me like I was one of your criminals.”

  Evie might be outraged, but he had no intention of backing down on this. “I ought to meet all of your dates regardless, but this one in particular since he’s your first.”

  “I’ve gone out in groups with guys and girls before. This is no big deal.” The flush on her face told him different.

  “We’ll have to see about that. The way you’re behaving, I don’t like him already.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You’re overprotective.”

  “In my line of work, I see what can happen to young girls.”

  “Your work gives you a dark view of life.”

  “No, just realistic.” He and Evie faced each other like two gladiators.

  “I know him, Dad,” Jean interjected. “I don’t think you’ll like him.”

  “Why not?” Gardner asked.

  “To begin with, he wears sloppy, torn jeans and his hair needs to be cut.”

  “That’s in style,” Evie said, turning toward her sister.

  “I prefer the clean-cut look,” Gardner said.

  “And he wears sunglasses he never takes off,” Jean continued.

  Evie’s eyes narrowed. “So what?”

  “A guy who won’t look you in the eye is up to no good.”

  Evie shrugged. “He just might have a good reason for keeping them on.”

  “Sure, like being a drug addict?”

  “Like wanting to look cool.” Evie’s face had turned scarlet. “Jean, you’re letting your imagination run away with you. Why assume the worst? You’re just jealous, aren’t you? You want to ruin my date for me.”

  Jean stuck her tongue out at Evie.

  Evie turned from Jean back to her father. “Don’t listen to her. She’s just a little kid who watches way too much TV. Dad, how can you criticize a boy you’ve never met? Why do you discount my opinions as if they aren’t worth taking seriously?”

  “I do value your opinion,” he said. “Okay, I promise not to pass judgment too hastily. Satisfied?”

  Evie nodded her head, still frowning.

  “But someone has to watch out for you kids.”

  “You’re out all day and night arresting criminals, making like super cop. You hardly have time for us.”

  Every once in a while, Evie expressed her frustration and dissatisfaction with his job. Evelyn used to accuse him of being married to police work rather than her. In some ways, Evie reminded him of her mother. It wasn’t a simple matter to reassure her. He hated it when she got into one of her dark moods.

  He heard the doorbell ring at the front of the house and walked around to greet his guest. Kim stood there looking beautiful in denim shorts and a hot pink shirt in a silky material.

  “Why are you staring at me that way?” she asked self-consciously.

  “I was just noticing how great you look.”

  “You like the outfit?”

  He folded her into his arms. “I love it.”

  “This morning I realized I had no casual clothes, nothing appropriate for an outdoor barbecue. So I went to the mall and did some shopping. Terrific bargains on sportswear this time of the year.”

  “You ought to wear casual clothes more often. I’m used to seeing you as a professional. Let me tell you something, Madam Librarian. You are truly a gorgeous gal, one sexy woman.”

  She blushed deeply. “I’m glad you find me attractive.”

  “Oh, it goes beyond that.” He held her close and whispered in her ear. “All I can think about right now is stripping you naked and having wild sex with you right here on the lawn.”

  “And scandalize your neighbors?”

  “Place is like a morgue. It’s needs a little excitement.”

  She shook her head at him. “You say the most outrageous things.”

  “Isn’t that why you love me?”

  “I’m not going to answer that. Where are the girls?”

  “Everyone’s out back. I’ll introduce you to my two rowdy nephews.” He took her arm and led her around to the yard.

  “Hey, guys,” he called out to his nephews, “we’re about ready to eat. Hustle on out of there!”

  His declaration was greeted by good-natured splashing in his direction. A fracas began over the towels, of which only one dry one remained. Mark, being smaller, lost the battle and was forced to run into the house for one. A few minutes later, he returned with an odd expression on his face.

  “Uncle Mike,” he said, large brown eyes opened wide, “there’s this big black lady, must be seven feet tall, kind of messy looking, and she asked for you.”

  Everyone turned to look at him. “Oh, that’s Bert St. Croix,” he said, flipping a hamburger. “Mark, go bring Detective St. Croix around back before she sweats to death on our front lawn.”

  The first thing that Gardner noticed was Bert’s face. It was battered, just the way Mark had observed. He made no comment, instead introducing Bert to his family. Everyone looked at her for a moment with a kind of awe; the woman definitely had presence.

  “Please sit down,” Evie said, moving toward Bert. “You must be hot. Have something cold to drink, ’cause everything’s ready.” She put a place setting in front of their guest.

  Gardner smiled at his daughter, pleased by the courteous way she had behaved.

  “I’m not hungry,” Bert said dejectedly.

  “What happened?”

  Bert looked around at the gathered family and Kim.

  “You can talk in front of them. I’ll vouch for
their integrity. They’ve all taken the oath of silence.”

  “If you say so. The fact is, I blew it, just like you thought I would.”

  “Would you like me to take a lie detector test to prove that I didn’t think you’d blow it?”

  “Come on, don’t hand me that bull!” Bert was clearly in a foul mood.

  “Did you pick up Sonny?”

  “No!”

  He was going to have to pull the information out of her, like a tooth extraction, but he had to know what happened.

  “You might as well tell me. Get it over with.”

  He watched Bert clench her fist in a militant manner and saw that the knuckles were bruised and raw. “I got to the house around 11:30 a.m., figuring the kid would be straight by then. The mother—her name, incidentally, is Nora Blake—came to the door and refused to let me in. Well, to make a long story short, I got in anyway. She proceeded to yell hysterically. That must have been some kind of signal, because three big blond dudes materialized, and they all looked like Sonny except they were older and two of them were actually bigger. They came on pretty strong, but I wasn’t going to back down. So then they eased up a little, claimed the kid was still asleep and I couldn’t talk to him until after they’d held a family conference. The oldest acted as spokesman, claimed they were thinking of hiring a lawyer for the kid. It seems the mother told them about last night. Anyway, they’re convinced the police want to stick Sonny for the Bradshaw murder. I told them we only wanted to question him, but they told me in no uncertain terms I couldn’t see him until later. I wasn’t having it. Then the mother started to cry and they told me to clear out. It got a little physical.”

  “You should have called me.”

  Bert shook her head.

  “At the very least, you could have called for backup.”

  “It happened too fast.”

  “You want to haul them in for assault?”

  “No point. I gave as good as I got. They weren’t being malicious, just trying to protect family.”

  “Suppose I go back with you after we’ve eaten? They’ll have talked to Sonny. Whether they’ve decided on a lawyer or not, we still get to question him.”

  “Sounds good. I think the kid’s got the answers we’re looking for.”

  “I agree,” Gardner said, passing Bert a plate with a steak and a burger on it. “Sonny’s got a child’s mind in a man’s body. We’ll have to probe that mind, and it won’t be easy. Children are known to be perverse, even the dull ones.” Gardner passed Kim the bowl of potato salad.

  “The kid appears to be our key to solving the murder. He’s the one real link to our perp, who I hope won’t realize that until after we’ve had a chance to extract some info.”

  Bert grabbed some buns for the meat. “You’re thinking April Nevins, aren’t you?”

  “I don’t know. As far as I’m concerned, the field’s still wide open.”

  Evie heaped some of everything on Bert’s plate.

  “You could let our guest take what she wants,” Gardner told his daughter with some amusement.

  “We can’t let a guest in our house starve. Stop talking so much, Dad, and eat or you won’t have strength to track down criminals.”

  Mike never argued with Evie when she acted that way; she reminded him too much of her mother. Apparently Bert was not about to argue either; she dutifully ate most of the food on her plate and then downed a cold beer.

  “Wonderful meal,” Bert said, “especially the salads.”

  “I fixed the salads,” Evie said, beaming. “You have to take home some fresh vegetables from the garden. We grow them organically.”

  “The girls are great at that,” Gardner said with a warm smile in his daughters’ direction.

  “Dad helps us with it,” Evie said, lowering her eyes.

  “Working the earth gives me a feeling of satisfaction. Let me get you some coffee and dessert. Kim brought us a terrific chocolate cake.”

  “Don’t say that until you’ve tasted it,” Kim said.

  Jean and the boys were loud in their appreciation and praise. Kim smiled at them. He liked watching her face light up that way.

  “Chocolate’s always a winner with these kids. Good choice.” Gardner squeezed Kim’s hand.

  “I’ve got to be going.” Bert was already on her feet.

  “Oh, no! Dessert’s the best part of the meal.” Before anyone could stop her, Evie was hurrying back into the house.

  “I’ll give her a hand,” Kim said, following Evie.

  “You’ve got a fine daughter there,” Bert said, sitting down again.

  “And a determined one,” Gardner said with a smile. “Just sit back and enjoy it. Evie won’t be happy until she sees you forced to loosen your belt a notch.” He noticed although Bert was tall, she was trim, nearly gaunt.

  Coffee, fresh fruit, cake and chocolate chip ice cream materialized as did an ice pack for Bert’s bruises.

  “Thanks, Evie. You’re a terrific hostess,” Gardner told his older daughter. She smiled, pleased with the compliment.

  The phone rang and Evie went back into the house to answer it. Kim cut the cake and gave everyone plates. When Evie reappeared, she was frowning. He could tell from her expression that the call came from headquarters.

  “They say it’s important,” she said in a subdued voice.

  He and Bert went into the house immediately. He sent Bert to the kitchen phone while he ran upstairs and listened on the bedroom extension.

  “We’re here. What is it?”

  “This is Nash. We don’t have all the facts yet, but I thought you’d want to know. About twenty minutes ago, Louise Scofield was admitted to County Regional through the emergency entrance. We got a call from a neighbor lady who heard a loud quarrel going on in the Scofield apartment. You know how thin the walls are in those new flats. By the time the patrol car arrived, there was already an ambulance.”

  “Know what went down?”

  “From the report, I’d say Mrs. Scofield was beaten up.”

  “What happened?” Bert demanded.

  “Her husband claims she accidentally fell down a flight of stairs.”

  “What does she say?”

  “Nothing, she was unconscious when they brought her in.”

  Bert muttered some curses under her breath.

  “Are you holding Scofield?” Gardner asked.

  “Nope. Granted it looks suspicious, but we have to wait until the wife comes around to hear her story.”

  “Scofield at the hospital?”

  “He was when the patrol car left.”

  “We’ll be at the hospital as soon as possible.” Gardner hung up the receiver and rejoined Bert in the kitchen.

  Her eyes narrowed to an angry squint. “You bring in Sonny. I’ll take care of Scofield.”

  “We can handle both of them together.”

  “And waste valuable time?” Her full lower lip set.

  “You’re not fooling me, you know.”

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Wasn’t one fight enough for today? I know you want to go after Scofield so you can beat him up.”

  “Someone ought to beat the crap out of that bastard!”

  “That won’t accomplish anything.”

  “Won’t it?” The initial explosion was over, but she was far from controlled. “I’ve handled cases like this before. Husbands, boyfriends, stalkers. The women get restraining orders, but it never stops these creeps. Scofield will understand to leave his wife alone only if someone throws the wrath of God into him.”

  “So you’re just going down there to knock the guy around before you find out what actually happened?” They faced each other like gunfighters at high noon.

  “All right, I see your point. I’ll talk to the asshole first.”

  “Aren’t you kidding yourself? Can you manage that kind of restraint?”

  “I can handle it,” Bert asserted. “I’m not a rookie. If we’re going to work together,
you’ve got to start trusting me.”

  She did have a way of making things personal. Gardner knew he ought to refuse outright, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. Things hadn’t gone right with Sonny, and her ego didn’t need another putdown. Still, what if his vote of confidence turned out to be at Scofield’s expense? Besides, violent manhandling of suspects would not be tolerated by the department. But in the end, he decided she was right: he had to trust her. There was no way they would be able to continue to work together otherwise.

  “Bring Scofield in,” he yielded. “Just remember, we don’t know what really happened between his wife and him. If you touch him without provocation, you could lose your job. Maybe that’s what you want, but I hope not. I’m putting my faith in you, just like you asked.”

  Bert viewed him with a fixed, sullen stare. “Anything else?”

  Gardner shook his head. “See you back at headquarters later.”

  As she left, Gardner wondered if he would have been as sensitive to his partner’s feelings if Bert weren’t black and a woman. Probably not, he conceded. Kim came into the kitchen and looked at him questioningly.

  “I have to go out for a while.”

  “So I gathered. I’ll give the girls a hand cleaning up.”

  “Could you stay? I hate to ask it, but my nephews need supervision. And Evie’s going out this afternoon.”

  “No problem. I don’t have any special plans.”

  “I really appreciate it.” He hugged her and kissed her lips, trying hard to keep it casual.

  “Really, Dad, they don’t let you alone even on your day off.” Evie stood there, hands on hips, giving him a Medusa-like stare as he adjusted his shoulder holster.

  He walked to the front hall closet and grabbed a tie and jacket. They weren’t exactly a match, but who cared anyway?

  “Dad, don’t worry if you can’t get home in time to meet my date tonight.”

  “Oh, I’ll be home all right.”

  Evie gave him a dubious look.

  “I mean it.”

  “Yeah, whatever.”

  “I’ll be back as early as I can. I won’t forget.”