The partners in crime co.., p.70
The Partners in Crime Collection, page 70
“We have to. It’s been too long already. Granted, we have the excuse of the different last names and so on, but she should’ve been notified as soon as possible,” Jack said.
“She’s been at a summit in Davos, Switzerland until this morning, so we’ve got a little breathing room. This isn’t news you give over the phone, so we can use that to explain the delay. She’s still going to rip us a new one, and rightly so.”
“Let’s give it a few and get some food in us before we go, and make sure Doc can get that bag of clothes. I’d like to say we have a suspect before we face her,” Jack said.
“Then come with me. Tara’s in the kitchen and we can find out what she learned from Mira,” Jamie said.
They settled on stools at the island and Tara handed them each a bowl of clam chowder, then slid a plate of sandwiches between them. “Glad you two could take a minute to eat.”
“Thank you for putting this together,” Jack said. “It’s delicious. So, what did Mira tell you about the property?”
“The original deed to that property belonged to a John Francis Fitzgerald,” Tara said, eyes gleaming. “Who then gifted the property to his nephew, Thomas Fitzgerald, upon the occasion of his marriage to Celia Keith.”
“Woah,” Jamie said. “Honey Fitz was Tommy’s uncle? That explains a lot.”
“Who’s Honey Fitz?” Jack asked.
“John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s grandfather,” Tara replied.
“Okay, so why did their bodies sit in the cellar for a century with no one finding them?” Jack asked.
“The house burned to the ground the night Patrick and Celia were murdered. They found five bodies in the ruins, and assumed two of them were the couple. The place was bulldozed over and flattened, sealing the cellar like a time capsule,” Tara replied.
“Woah. So, they were murdered, then someone started the fire to hide the murders?”
“Yeah, Jack. That’s what it looks like. The property was sold at auction to Francis Burke, along with three other lots that had also burned that night. It was the start of his empire,” Tara said.
“And here we are, dealing with the Burke family, yet again,” Jamie muttered.
Jack sucked in a breath and stared at Jamie, then looked at Tara. “You can’t say a word.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t. But it does seem rather prophetic, doesn’t it? Your ancestor’s murder and a new murder – and they’re both tied to the Burke clan,” Tara said.
“Some things never change,” Jamie said as he finished his sandwich.
A chirp from Jack’s phone and she flipped it over where it lay on the counter. “Doc says he got the bag of clothes and there is blood and seminal fluid. He’s testing it now.”
“Thank the gods for that,” Jamie sighed. “We need solid evidence if we’re going after yet another politician, or the Comish will have our heads.”
“He loves us, and you know it,” Jack replied. “But yeah, we don’t need to make his life more difficult than it already is by screwing up a high-profile case. As much as we want to storm into Burke’s office and drag him out in handcuffs, we have to make sure we have evidence to convict.”
“And now you two have to go meet with Ms. Cabot. Be safe out there,” Tara said and leaned over to kiss Jamie. “You can tell Patrick the news when you get back. You’re probably going to want to have Mike here in case he rages.”
“Good point. Okay, Jack, let’s go,” Jamie said and kissed Tara in return before grabbing his coat.
They pulled up to the elegant brick brownstone where Marissa Cabot lived a few minutes later. The man that answered the door was dressed in a dark blue suit and a striped, blue tie, so Jack didn’t immediately categorize him as house staff.
“Detectives Forbes and Kennedy here to speak with Ms. Cabot,” Jack said.
“Do you have an appointment?” the man asked.
“No, we’re here to discuss Ms. Cabot’s daughter, Samantha Colson,” Jamie replied.
“Have a seat in here. I’ll see if Madame will see you,” he said.
“Tell Madame that she has to see us now. Thank you,” Jack said and stepped into the small parlor as directed. She wandered around the room while Jamie stood near the doorway and watched the man walk down the long hallway, then tap on a door and step inside a room near the back of the house.
“Five minutes and we go down and walk into that room ourselves,” Jamie murmured to Jack.
“The murder hasn’t been on the news yet, has it?” Jack asked.
“No, we’ve kept it quiet. It’s only been a little over a day. Unless Cady called her, or someone else, she doesn’t know. Doc said he had Cady do the identification since she knew about the death, and he didn’t know who the family was based on the little bits of info we had at the time,” Jamie said.
Five minutes passed. Jamie started to leave the room and Jack reached out to put a hand on his arm. “Let’s wait a little longer. We’re here to do a notification. No point in making it more upsetting than it already will be.”
“It just really bothers me when someone doesn’t drop everything to find out why cops are here about their kid,” Jamie grumbled.
“Sam told us she wasn’t a fan, so maybe this is a powerplay for her? We don’t know what’s going on, so let’s just give it a few more minutes,” Jack replied.
The sound of heels clicking on polished wood let them know that Ms. Cabot was finally about to join them. The woman that paused in the doorway looked closer to her daughter’s age than the forty-nine years she’d lived. Hair slicked back into a perfect chignon was the same honey-blonde hue as her daughter’s hair, her eyes bright green where Samantha’s were blue. She wore a Chanel suit in a shade of green that brought out her eyes, the dark gold of her shoes echoing the gold embossed buttons on the short jacket.
“Ms. Cabot?” Jamie said. “I’m Detective Kennedy and this is Detective Forbes. We’re here -“
Ms. Cabot interrupted him with a dismissive wave of her hand. “You’re here to discuss whatever silliness my daughter has got herself involved in. I told her she should just move on, but of course, she would want to make a statement.”
“No, Ms. Cabot, that’s not why we’re here,” Jack said, her tone gentle. “Would you please sit down?”
Something in Jack’s expression caught Marissa Cabot and she blinked twice, then perched on the edge of one of the side chairs. “Why are you here?” she finally asked.
“We’re so sorry for your loss, Ms. Cabot. Samantha was found dead in her home yesterday morning. We only learned of your relationship today,” Jack said.
“How?” Marissa Cabot said. Her voice cracked on that one word.
“She was shot. When she didn’t show up at the theater as she had planned, or answer any of their calls, one of her friends went to her place the next morning and had the concierge open the door. The concierge called the Harbor Police and we arrived on scene,” Jamie said.
“You’re sure it’s Samantha?” That faint note of hope in her voice broke Jack’s heart.
“We’re sure. The medical examiner verified her fingerprints. We are so sorry that we didn’t get to you sooner, but it took a bit to learn who Samantha’s family was. Is there anyone we can call for you?” Jack asked.
“No,” Marissa Cabot said. “My clerk, Jeffrey, is still here. He will…” She stopped speaking, then let out a shaky breath. “When can I see her?”
“You can go to the morgue today and see her, but we cannot release the body yet,” Jamie said as they stood, and he handed her a card. “Here is our information. Call us with any questions, and we will keep you up to date as best we can during the investigation. Again, we’re so sorry.”
Marissa Cabot took the card from Jamie and gave a faint nod as they left the room and stepped outside. As soon as the heavy door closed behind Jamie, they heard a wail of grief and pain that made them both stop in their tracks. Jack closed her eyes and took a slow breath, before she started down the steps while Jamie gently closed the storm door behind him.
No matter what the relationship had been between Marissa and Samantha – a mother had just learned of the death of her child.
“Right now, she’s in pain. Soon, she’ll shift to anger,” Jack said as they buckled into their seats. “When she gets there, we had better have some answers.”
“Amen to that,” Jamie said.
Dead Ringer: Chapter Seven
“So, that’s why no one found you for years. They assumed two of the bodies in the fire were you and Celia, and buried you in St. Anne’s cemetery in South Harbor. They buried the one they thought as Celia with Tommy, and the one they thought of as you was put right next to them in another grave. We can use DNA and try and find out who those bodies really belonged to, and put your real bodies in those graves, if you wish,” Jamie said as he and Mike sat with Patrick in the living room, a fire burning on the hearth and sleet painting the outside of the windows as a storm rolled in off the sea.
“That makes me feel better,” Patrick said. “Knowing that they thought they’d found us and just leveled out the lot, not realizing we were right under their feet.”
“We also found out a bit about the property ownership. It was given to Thomas by his uncle, who is rather famous,” Jamie said.
“Honey Fitz was famous? For what, being the mayor or something?” Patrick asked.
“Being the grandfather of the 35th president. He was John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s grandfather, through his daughter Rose who married Joseph Kennedy,” Jamie said.
“Huh. That’s interesting. So, yeah, Tommy owned the house but when he died, it all went to Celia. When she died, who got it?”
“It went back to Honey Fitz, who then sold the lot to Francis Burke,” Jamie said. “Burke bought a few more properties around it and eventually had buildings put up on some of the lots, but that one couldn’t be dug down, because of the subway system, so it became a parking area for a couple of the buildings.”
“What about my house and my shipping business?” Patrick asked.
“We haven’t figured out that yet. Been a little busy with the current murder investigation, too. We’re doing what we can to figure out what happened, Uncle Patrick, but it’s not easy when the murder is a century old,” Jamie said.
“He’s got people working on finding information while he tries to figure out who killed a girl that’s younger than your Celia was when she was killed. You’ve met Samantha, right?” Mike said.
“I saw her, but I didn’t know if it was okay for me to talk to her, so I stayed out on the balcony. If it’s fine with you two, I’d like to talk to her,” Patrick said.
“Sure, go ahead. If you learn anything useful, let us know?” Jamie said. “She was pregnant when she was murdered, and didn’t know she was. We think someone else found out and killed her because of the baby.”
“That’s just not right,” Patrick muttered.
“No, it’s not. And her mother is a powerful woman in her own right, so we need to find answers, and fast. Any help you can give us would be most welcome,” Jamie said.
“Be a gentleman,” Mike said. “She’s a good girl and this is a horrible situation.”
“Of course,” Patrick sounded indignant. “You should remember that my fiancée was a madame and her girls were nice girls who had no other way to survive. Some were war widows; some were the daughters of men who never came home, and their mothers couldn’t feed all of the kids. They did what they had to do. There ain’t no shame in making sure you’re fed and sheltered.”
“Girls today are comfortable with their bodies, and most are fine with being sexually active, and they’re careful not to get diseases. We believe Samantha was raped by a powerful man, and he’s the one that got her pregnant,” Jamie said.
“Poor kid. Yeah, I’ll talk to her and see if I can help,” Patrick said.
“We appreciate that,” Mike told him. “See? I knew there would be a way for you to help out.”
Tara looked over at Jamie as they snuggled in bed, each with a book in their hands. “Has Patrick said anything to you about me?”
“No, why should he?” Jamie asked.
“He’s been watching me. A lot. I think he’s worried that I’m not good enough for you,” Tara said.
“Tell him to back off and give you some privacy. Better yet, I can go tell him,” Jamie said.
Tara reached out and rested a hand on Jamie’s arm. “I can handle Patrick,” she said. “I just wanted to make sure I discussed what was going on with you.”
“He’s been wanting something to do,” Jamie said. “So we’ve asked him to befriend Samantha. Maybe giving him a task will help keep him off your back.”
“I heard him speaking with Mike the other day. The sheer amount of time he spent locked in that basement has clearly messed with his head. He was questioning Celia’s love for him and then said something about making sure I wasn’t doing to you what Celia did to him. Do you know what he was talking about?”
“I think he feels that if Celia really loved him, she would’ve stayed in the cellar with him and not crossed over. Mike explained that it’s different for every person, and that she may not have known she could stay, while Patrick stayed because he wanted justice or revenge.”
“Or both,” Tara said.
“Or both,” Jamie agreed. “Celia was married to Thomas first, and he died in World War I. She was with Patrick for years, and had only finally agreed to a long engagement, but wanted to wait until they had enough money to leave the city before they married and had kids. I’m not so sure she would’ve ever married him, to be honest. Sounded like she liked her life the way it was.”
“I can see why he’d feel she’d left him for Tommy,” Tara said. “Maybe I can talk to him and ease some of his concerns.”
“Just be careful. Not that he’s dangerous, but I have no idea what he’s capable of. Never knew a ghost this old before.”
Tara leaned over and kissed Jamie’s shoulder. “I love you, Jameson Kennedy. Would you like to marry me?”
Jamie froze, then very carefully put his book down and turned to Tara. “You want to get married?”
“Well, yeah. Not right this minute, but yes, I’d like to marry you. I’m not interested in having babies, and I figure you’ve already got kids, right? I’d like to show you that you’re the only one for me, for the rest of my life,” Tara said.
Jamie cupped her face in his hands. “I don’t need more kids, no. But I do need you in my life, for the rest of my life. I didn’t think you’d want that, so I hadn’t considered asking. I figured that sharing a home and our lives was about the best I could expect.”
“I didn’t think I’d ever want to get married, to be honest. I was happy with who I was and how my life was going. Then I met you and my life got better. You make me happier than I ever remember being, just by sitting next to me and watching a stupid movie. Sharing my life with you is what I want to do, for the rest of my life.”
“If this is what you really want, then yes, I will marry you. But I’m asking you properly at some point, with a ring and everything. So be ready to say yes again, okay?” Jamie said.
Tara kissed him, then pulled away to put her e-reader aside before she tugged him down into the bed with her. “Let’s practice that wedding night thing, shall we?”
Jamie chuckled and slid his body on top of hers. “Practice makes perfect, right?”
“Oh, baby, oh, baby,” Tara giggled.
Dead Ringer: Chapter Eight
Jack pulled another pan of blueberry muffins out of the oven and set them aside to cool. She loved to bake and there was something meditative about it for her. It helped her work through things and gave her mind something to focus on while it chewed through information in the background.
“Hey, Jackie, you okay?” Doc’s voice came from behind her, and Jack turned with a smile.
“Yeah, I’m okay. Just needed to work through stuff and baking always helps,” Jack said.
Doc looked at the two dozen chocolate muffins, the apple turnovers that filled a platter, three loaves of bread and a dozen blueberry muffins that cooled on the stove. “Uh, do you have plans for all of this? I can take some into work, and you can do the same, but neither one of us needs to eat all of this.”
“I figured I’d fix up a container for your office and mine, one for Avery to share with his friends, and that’d leave a normal amount for us to enjoy for breakfast the next few days.”
Kendrick slid his arms around her from behind and breathed in the scent of her. Shampoo and baking and something that was just Jack filled his senses. “I love you. You sure you’re okay? Want to talk it out?”
Jack turned in his arms and kissed him, then sighed. “Could you fix us a couple of coffees and you can sit and sample while I clean up?”
“I can help you clean,” Doc started, and Jack shook her head. “I’ve got it. But having you to bounce some of this off of would help. Oh, speaking of help, did you get the DNA back on the fetus yet?”
“We did, late last night. I set it up to run through the system and when it’s done processing, it’ll send an alert to my phone.”
“And a senator’s DNA would be in the system, right?” Jack asked as she filled storage containers with baked goods.
“Yes. They instituted that a while back in case of a terrorist attack, they could identify people,” Doc said. He put a mug down near Jack and took his own over to the table. He selected a turnover and settled back at the table with a napkin and his treat. “Do you really think Senator Burke is the one that fathered the child?”
“I do. Cady told us she was acting weird around the Senator after he drove her back from Yale in October, and then Sam confirmed when she told us where to find the bag of clothes.”
