Municipal Blondes
30
Kidnapped
FINALLY SATURDAY! I promised myself I would sleep in as long as I wanted. I would go out to play with Mazie, go to the park, have coffee at Tovoni’s. Then I’d pick up Teresia at her hotel and we’d have an elegant lunch overlooking the Sound and talk about plans for scattering Dag’s ashes tomorrow. We’d share stories and have a cry and I’d make a new friend.
Call for backup
“We’re going out to play, Mrs. Prior,” I said. “I was wearing jeans and a punk band T-shirt I’d found among Dag’s clothes. And my winter coat. It sure wasn’t warm enough to go without that.
“Have a nice day at the office, dear,” she answered.
“No office today. We’re going to the park and play. Then maybe we’ll get all prettied up and I’ll take Maizie to meet Dag’s cousin.”
“Really?” Mrs. Prior knelt down and Maizie danced on her hind legs to kiss her. “Maizie thinks you should go to the office. She says she has unfinished business there. After coffee.”
“Maizie? This is supposed to be a fun day for the two of us. You really want to go to the office?” I said. Her little front legs were beating the air while she danced on her hinds. “You know what that means? I need to change clothes.” One thing Dag had always insisted on was professional wear in the office. I know. It’s my office now. I can dress however I want. I went upstairs and changed from ripped jeans into a pair of wool slacks and a sweater. Casual Saturday. Or as Dag would say, ‘Weekends and holidays are days I don’t wear a tie to the office.’
We stopped at Tovoni’s and I had my espresso while Maizie primly lay beside me nibbling on her biscuit. Then we headed down the hill. We were almost to the office when my phone rang. I glanced at the screen wondering what Cinnamon was doing awake at this hour. It wasn’t even ten yet!
“Hey, sexy,” I said. “What’s the good word?”
“Um… Miss Riley?” Cinnamon’s voice sounded hesitant and very un-Cinnamon.
“What is it Cinnamon?” I asked.
“Miss Riley, I’m in trouble,” she said formally.
“Where are you, Cinnamon? Are you in jail?”
“No. I’m at the Condo.”
“I thought it was closed up.”
“Ms. B has a key.” Damn! Brenda Lamb Barnett was back in town? “She says you are to come directly to the Condo. If you send for police, she’ll take me off the roof with her. I’m sorry, Deb. I’m scared.” The line went abruptly dead. Cinnamon must be scared. Her voice sounded wooden. Or maybe she was trying to tell me something else. Was I going to have to face down Davy? Did she have other goons with her?
I jogged the rest of the way to the office with Maizie. Ms. B isn’t the only one with a key to the Condo. I glanced up from the window and could see the rooftop garden. Hang in there, Cinnamon. Help is on the way.
I’d been through this before. Dag and I went through every move when he rescued me from the Condo and analyzed what went wrong and what went right. The one thing I learned was to call for backup. I dialed Jordan’s number.
“She’s unbalanced,” I said, “so it’s possibly a credible threat. I can’t imagine that Cinnamon couldn’t fight her off if they were alone. There must be someone else with her.”
“Put on a wire and give me the frequency, Deb. I’ll let you take point so we don’t spook her but I’ll be right behind you. It’s time to close this down once and for all.”
That was comforting. I opened the vault and grabbed one of the little transmitters Dag had collected. I need to replenish the stock of electronics. I’m going through things kind of fast.
I looked at Maizie and she barked. Yeah. This time I’m taking reinforcements in with me.
“Let’s go partner,” I said.
Gunpoint
Maizie and I walked through the front door of the building like we owned the place. I used my keycard to access the elevator and went straight to the Condo. There was no sense climbing stairs or using a service elevator. I was expected and was sure Brenda was watching me. As soon as we were in the elevator, I unsnapped Maizie’s leash. “Keep a low profile, girl,” I said. It was kind of funny. She’s only eight inches tall.
The elevator doors opened and I stepped into the entryway. Crime scene tape was still stretched across the metal detector and I could see the device wasn’t lit up. I just ripped through the tape and marched straight to the office. I didn’t bother to knock. She was watching and I was on my way. I lost track of where Maizie was but didn’t see anyone else in the Condo. I keyed in my security code and pushed the door open, dropping my bag in the doorway to block it open.
What I saw wasn’t what I expected. Brenda and Cinnamon were there, all right. Cinnamon was tied in the very chair I’d spent time in a month ago. It looked like she could have gotten free if she tried. Brenda was tied to the desk chair with tape across her mouth. Behind her, Angel held a gun.
“Angel?”
“I knew you’d want to be here for this,” she said. “We’ll never be free until she’s dead. She blamed Dag for killing Simon and she’s made it impossible for us to be together as long as she’s alive. We’re just going to arrange a little accident.”
“Angel, you can’t do this,” I said. “Let’s just call the police and turn her over.”
“What good are they?” she demanded. “They let her loose when they had her in jail. They couldn’t keep her confined in Belize. Oh, yes. I knew where she was all along. And I knew she was back in town.” She threw a cash card on the desk. “Don’t ever believe you can’t be traced through these. I own the database. I tagged all the cards I knew she had and watched for the account to activate. When she showed up in Seattle, I was waiting. This is where it started and this is where it ends.”
Angel looked a mess. Her hair was ratted and mascara was smeared. Her clothes looked like she’d slept in them. She had a wild crazy look in her eyes and the gun trembled as she held it on Brenda.
“Angel, bad as she is and as much as she deserves to die, we can’t just execute her.”
“We’re not. We’re rescuing poor Cinnamon. Ms. B was trying to throw her off the roof. Didn’t you get the message? We came to rescue our dear friend. Just like I saved Simon when Ray tried to kill him. She’ll just tip over the edge of the roof.” Angel looked worse with every word she spoke, her mouth pulled back in a grimace. Her clothes were too tight. She looked old. She was turning into what she hated right in front of us. She looked like Brenda. Insane. Now what am I going to do?
“Let’s talk this out,” I said. “Let’s hear what she has to say.” Brenda kept shaking her head frantically.
“No! I’ve heard enough of her. Let’s go.” Angel waved the gun around and gave Brenda a push out of the chair. She stumbled to a knee and stood up. “Bring Cinnamon,” Angel snapped at me. I moved behind my assistant and untied her hands. She looked fearful and I removed her gag.
“I’m sorry, Deb. I thought we were just going to hold her for the police. I didn’t know what Angel planned. Honest, I’m sorry.” I hushed her by laying a finger on her lips.
“Just follow my lead. Help is on the way.” We followed Angel and Brenda out of the office and through the poolroom to the roof. “Maizie,” I whispered. My little buddy popped her head around the corner and followed us out.
When we were all standing in the frigid wind, Angel pushed Brenda toward the edge of the roof.
“You can’t just toss her over with her hands tied and her mouth taped shut,” I said calmly. “It doesn’t look like either an accident or suicide.”
“Cinnamon,” Angel barked. “Go untie her.” Cinnamon obediently went to Brenda and first ripped the tape off her mouth. If the old woman was growing any lip whiskers, they were waxed as she screamed and started a steady stream of invective.
“You stupid bitches!” she yelled. “You’ll never get away with this. I own your whore asses. You’ll all hang. Three blonde cunts dangling from adjoining ropes. I will be there to watch.”
Cinnamon worked the knot loose from Brenda’s hands, paying more attention to Angel’s gun than to what she was doing. I saw it a moment too late to act. As soon as Brenda’s hands were free, she wrapped an arm around Cinnamon and pulled her in front as a shield. Cinnamon screamed and struggled but she’s really tiny and was no match for Brenda. And they were dangerously close to the low wall at the edge of the roof.
“Now get back!” Brenda yelled, propelling Cinnamon in front of her toward the door. “If I go over the edge, so does she.”
“You see,” Angel snarled coldly. “I told you she was threatening to pull Cinnamon over the edge with her. Now I’ll have to shoot her.” Angel raised the gun to take careful aim with her shaking hands. There was no way she could make the shot with Brenda ducking behind Cinnamon but I could see she was going to shoot anyway.
I saw Maizie streak across the roof from the open door Brenda was moving toward and went into action. I grabbed Angel’s arm and forced it up as she fired. She swung toward me and I used her momentum to trip her and wrench the gun from her hand. It went flying across the roof and Angel went down on one knee. In the meantime, Maizie had run up behind Brenda and bit her on the calf. Brenda fell backward with Cinnamon on top of her but didn’t let go. Maizie ran in a circle barking and went for Brenda’s arm. It loosened enough for Cinnamon to roll free but Angel was on her feet and diving on top of Brenda.
There was no way to get between the two women, each of whom was bent on killing the other. They grappled to their feet in a catfight, pulling hair and scratching at each other. Angel had one hand in a chokehold. Maizie circled, diving in to nip where she thought it would help. I reached to grab Angel’s hand away from Brenda’s throat. When I loosened her grip, Brenda drove her elbow into Angel’s face, knocking her out of my grip and into the low wall. She teetered there for a moment and I thought she had regained her balance as I reached a hand for her. But Brenda rushed her to give her that last push over the edge. Angel caught Brenda in a hug as she passed the point of no return and both women disappeared over the edge of the roof. I rushed to look and sat back on my butt. Cinnamon wrapped her arms around me and rocked me back and forth.
I could hear voices in the Condo behind us. Maizie crawled into my lap as officers came through the door onto the roof. There was nothing left for them to do. Jordan hobbled through the Condo before he heard the report of two women going over the edge. He rushed out to find us as quickly as he could with a cane and cast on his leg. Cinnamon abandoned me and rushed into his arms. I didn’t blame her. If my legs had any bones in them, I’d join her.
Two officers approached me but kept their distance as Maizie growled every time they got near. They looked to Jordan for instructions and he motioned them away.
“Secure the apartment,” he commanded. “I’ll take it from here. Have an ambulance standing by. She’s in shock.” I think that’s what he said. It might as well have been, “Get a net. I’m throwing her off the roof.” He managed to get down on one knee with his cast sticking out. He let Maizie sniff the back of his hand and she butted it to get her ears scratched.
“That’s a good girl, Maizie,” he said. “You did a good job protecting Riley. Let’s take care of her now. It’s been a hard day.”
Cinnamon helped us to our feet and reached out to gently straighten my wig. We both leaned on him as we made our way back to the elevator. Who was supporting whom? Jordan shook Maizie’s leash at the door and she sat waiting to be hooked up.
EMTs helped Cinnamon and me into the ambulance and we clung to each other as they checked our vital signs. Jordan and Maizie sat across from us waiting for them to finish their exam.
I would be happy if I never saw the inside of an ambulance or a hospital again.
I would be happy if I never saw someone die again.
I would be happy if I never lost another friend.
I would be happy. But I’m not.
Comments
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