A Geek Girl's Guide to Justice (The Geek Girl Mysteries) Read online

  A brick of emotion wedged in my throat. “Jake’s here and I’m dressed like a Bratz doll.”

  Dan shook his head. “You’re fine.”

  “I smell like duck poop.”

  He laughed.

  “Mia.” Jake’s protective arms were around me in an instant. “What happened?”

  “Uh.” I sniffled. “I’m fine, but I found him and he’s not fine. Grandma knew him.” I pulled away. “I stink. I’m so sorry.”

  Jake’s eyes sparkled with a smile that hadn’t quite reached his mouth. He lifted his gaze to his brother. “Got anything to add?”

  Dan filled him in while I mentally lined up the questions from here to Cleveland.

  Jake crossed his arms. “How’d you get here so fast?”

  Dan looked away before answering. “I told you. I heard it on the scanner.”

  “Yeah. That’s not what I asked. I was on my way here when I heard the call. You still beat me, which means you were in the area. Anything going on tonight?”

  “No.” Dan closed his eyes for a long beat. “I met a woman for dinner. It’s new, and it’s not a big deal. I don’t want to talk about it.”

  Was everyone dating someone?

  Jake relaxed his stance. “Who found the victim?”

  “Dante,” Grandma corrected. “Polly’s dog found him in the water. Polly didn’t know it was a man until Mia came along.”

  “And you went in to save him?” Jake asked me.

  “Yeah.” Not that I was any help.

  He nodded stiffly. “Nice work.”

  “He’s dead.”

  “You didn’t know that.”

  A little bald man with a navy windbreaker hustled into our growing circle. “Archer?”

  “Yeah.” Jake and Dan turned to face him.

  He smiled. “Well, what do you know? Two Archers.” He shook their hands. “We’ve probably met before. I’m with the medical examiner’s office. Which one of you is Homicide?”

  Grandma harrumphed. Her version of I told you so.

  “That’s me.” Dan stepped forward and shook the man’s hand. “Detective Dan Archer. This is my brother, Deputy US Marshal Jake Archer.”

  Jake stared, blank-faced, at the man. The ready-for-anything expression was simultaneously sexy and terrifying. “Nice to meet you.” Law-enforcement mode was officially activated.

  “I’ve got something for both of you then.” The ME waved to a pair of medics wheeling a gurney between them. Dante was zipped into a black coroner bag on top.

  He stopped them before they loaded the gurney into a neighboring ambulance. “Just a minute, fellas.” He unzipped the bag and motioned the Archers in for a closer look.

  I hung back with Grandma.

  Dan circled the gurney, making room for Jake. “You got extra gloves?”

  The ME handed each Archer a pair of blue surgical gloves. “You see this?” He pushed Dante’s coat aside. A red stain marred the white pinstriped dress shirt. “I’ll have to run some tests, but at the moment, cause of death is a toss-up. Maybe he drowned. Maybe the stab wound killed him. I’m not sure why someone would throw a dead man in a lake, but that’s your jurisdiction, not mine. I’ll stick to pathology reports, and let you guys do the rest.”

  Jake opened Dante’s shirt and prodded the broken skin with gloved fingers.

  Dan shined a pocket light over the area. “That’s a broad wound. What do you think did this? Not a kitchen or pocketknife.”

  “Machete?” Jake offered.

  “Nah.” Dan moved the light over Dante’s abdomen. “No one stabs with a machete.”

  The ME zipped the bag. “Like I said. Tests.”

  I stepped closer. “Maybe the thing he was stabbed with is in his car. We should look for the car. He might’ve been injured there and made a run for it.”

  Dan turned serious blue eyes on me. “I’m going to need to take your statement.”

  “Polly found him. I only hauled him out after the fact.” I pointed in the direction Polly had gone a few minutes before. “Last house on the right.”

  Jake planted giant hands over narrow hips. “I’ll get Mia’s statement if you want to catch Polly before she puts Sam in the bath.”

  “Yep.” Dan jogged down Grandma’s street at a clip.

  The ME turned on Jake. “Your turn.”

  Jake peeled off the gloves. “What do you have?”

  The ME dug into his case and retrieved a baggie. “You know this guy?”

  Jake turned the baggie over in his fingers. “That’s my director. Where’d you find this?”

  I peeked around his side. “What’s in the baggie?”

  “Deputy director’s business card.”

  “Why would Dante have that?” I turned for a look at Grandma, who’d become unusually quiet.

  She tented her eyebrows. “Dante was a philanthropist. He supported local charities, schools, politicians, girl scouts.”

  “Policemen’s Ball?” I asked.

  Jake frowned. “No.” He pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen to life.

  The ME snagged the baggie and stuffed it back into his case. “Two Archers on one case. How lucky is this guy?” He hooked a thumb toward Dante’s bag.

  “Not very,” I said. “He was afraid of the water. Someone stabbed him then threw him into a lake.”

  Imagine if we all died from our worst fears. I shivered. I’d be suctioned from a spacecraft without a suit.

  Grandma wrapped her arms tight across her middle. “Polly said Sam just took off. He pulled his leash right out of her hands. She followed him the best she could, but she didn’t see anything unusual.”

  “Did she hear anything?” Jake asked.

  “Just Sam barking and water splashing. He was wet when she got there.”

  I snaked my arm behind her and pulled her close. “Dan will find out everything he can. These guys will get justice for Dante. Don’t worry.” I leaned my head against her shoulder.

  A cell phone rang and everyone reached for theirs. Jake, Grandma, the ME and I exchanged looks. It wasn’t any of ours.

  Jake and I had our flashlight apps on in a nanosecond, scanning the ground for gold.

  “I’ll bet that’s Dante’s phone,” I announced, moving swiftly in the direction of the ringing. “Or the killer’s.”

  The ringing stopped and everyone froze.

  We cast our lights in wide arcs over the stubby green grass.

  Ding!

  I pounced. “Voice mail.” A few more steps and “Got it!”

  Jake scooped it into a plastic baggie and smiled proudly. “Yes, you do.” He worked the phone through the plastic. “Password protected, but this is definitely the vic—Dante’s phone.” He shot an apologetic look at Grandma. “There’s a selfie on the lock screen.” The phone went dark a moment later.

  I opened and closed my hands in the universal sign for gimmee. “I’ve got this.”

  Jake handed me the baggie.

  “Grandma?” I swiped the phone to life. “What was Dante’s favorite team? Where’d he go to school? Did he have children?” I ran through the list of middle-aged-lazy-men passwords as she answered the questions. “It’s none of that.” I stared at the lock screen wallpaper. A much younger Dante stood on a fishing boat, surrounded by friends. He had a pole in one hand and a massive bigmouth bass hanging from a hook in the other. An aged Jack Russell panted at his side. “What’s Dante’s dog’s name?”

  “Barker? He died years ago.”

  “Perfect.” I turned the phone to face Jake. “I’m in.”

  Chapter Three

  I opened Dante’s recent call log. Whoever he’d spoken with last might give us a clue about what happened. Jake leaned over
my shoulder. Dante had an obnoxious amount of calls from two contacts: That Guy and PITA, but the last number he’d dialed was Grandma’s.

  I handed the phone to Jake. “Any idea who this PITA might be?” I turned for a better look at the area around us. Could the killer be here somewhere? Watching?

  Jake examined the phone. “Well, based on these text messages, she’s someone who likes to swear and wear low-cut dresses.” He turned the display in our direction.

  The contact photo on the screen was taken at a fancy event. Her eyes were glassy, probably from the cluster of empty wineglasses behind her, and the curve of her bra was visible in the dip of her clingy red dress. Straight black hair. Big brown eyes. Olive skin.

  Grandma poked the evidence-bagged phone. “That’s his ex-wife, Angelina, and he’s right. She is a PITA.”

  Jake’s cell phone buzzed in his pocket. “Hang on.” He handed the evidence baggie to me. “Archer.” He strode away, stopping out of earshot.

  I dug into Dante’s voice messages. The password was simple to crack. Barker again. It was disturbing how little people tried to protect their privacy. Of course, at the moment it was also incredibly convenient.

  The bulk of Angelina’s messages were in angry Mandarin mixed with some choice English names she’d most likely picked up while hanging at the county jail or with sailors on leave.

  “Wow.” I skipped through the bulk of her calls and paid special attention to the others. Angelina wasn’t the only one aggravated with Dante, though the others didn’t elaborate so colorfully. Most just left a clipped message and hung up. “He was not a beloved businessman.”

  “The good ones never are,” Grandma said. “They have to make tough choices. People don’t like when the chips fall against them.”

  I worked up an encouraging smile. Grandma was shocked and grieving. I wasn’t making this easier. “Sorry. I’m sure you’re right.” She and Dante had been good friends at one time, and kept in touch over the years, but people changed. “His personal assistant and I are online friends. I see Lara’s name pop up from time to time in a forum I frequent. I’ll reach out and see what she can tell me. Maybe there was a change in his recent work behavior, or a client who seemed exceptionally unhappy with Dante’s services.”

  “Thank you.” Grandma swiped the pad of one thumb under each eye.

  Jake sauntered back to us. He’d rearranged his features to something more sympathetic and less cop-like. “Sorry about that. How are you holding up, Mary?” His softer tone and gentler demeanor were incredibly comforting.

  I smelled a rat.

  “Find anything?” he asked me.

  “I reviewed his voice mails. Angelina’s a hostile ex. That Guy left a ton of messages, trying to touch base about something non-specific. Mostly every one sounded disgruntled.” Lara’s insight would help me sort the list into regular people and potential killers.

  I followed Jake’s gaze over my shoulder to Dan, returning from his trip to see Polly.

  “That was quick,” Jake called.

  Dan shook his head, closing the space between us at a clip. “She was in a hurry to bathe Sam and go to bed. She’s a mess. Someone should check with her tomorrow.”

  “I will,” Grandma said.

  He nodded and stopped to face off with Jake. “She didn’t see anything. She stubbed her toe and nearly tripped a half dozen times on the way up her walk. If I had to guess, I’d say her eyesight isn’t too great to start with and her night vision’s gone. She said Sam got away from her and headed for the lake. He likes to chase the geese, so she didn’t think much of the splashing or commotion. She could’ve overheard a struggle or it might’ve been the sounds of Sam jumping in.”

  Grandma tipped her chin up and squared her shoulders. “I’m going home to make tea.”

  Her blank expression worried me. “Do you want me to come with you? I can stay tonight, if you want.”

  “No. Stay and help these boys. I’ll initiate the phone tree.”

  The phone tree was a sad little list of five phone numbers, six if we couldn’t reach my sister directly. In that event, we called her husband. The other numbers on our list were Grandma’s, Mom’s, Dad’s and mine. We were a scrawny crew, but we had heart.

  Grandma headed home, alternatively illuminated and shadowed by cones of streetlamp light over the sidewalk.

  “Do you think she’s safe?” I asked. “What if the killer’s looking for her? She was the last person Dante called.”

  Dan waved to a uniformed cop. “Can you follow that woman to her home and check the perimeter?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Then let’s get the community canvassed. The killer has to be somewhere and the twenty-foot walls are going to slow him down if he hasn’t left yet. What was the victim driving?”

  “Late model black town car, sir, according to the woman at the gate.” The officer strode down Grandma’s sidewalk, easily catching up with her. He spoke into the walkie-talkie on his shoulder as he went. Hopefully, arranging a search team.

  The ambulance carrying Dante groaned to life and eased away.

  Dan rubbed the back of his neck. “Any idea what your deputy director has to do with this?” he asked Jake.

  Jake clenched and released his jaw. He gave me a pointed look. “Yeah. Headquarters called. Dante’s been working as a CI.”

  My mouth fell open. “An informant?” I stage-whispered. “What? Why?”

  Jake leveled me with cool blue eyes. “This is confidential information. Understand?”

  I nodded.

  “Anything you hear or see tonight needs to be kept in this circle.” He point to his brother, himself and me. “And keep your grandma out of this investigation. I didn’t like the look on her face when she went to make tea.” He dragged out the final word.

  I’d had the same feeling when she walked away. Hopefully her expression was a look of shock and not conspiracy. “I’ll try, but they were friends and the women in my family are...”

  “Nuts?” Jake offered.

  “Obstinate.”

  Both Archers laughed.

  They weren’t wrong. “If she’s up to something, I’ll find out.”

  Dan stepped closer and leaned in. “We’re not suggesting she’s done anything wrong. However, I know personally how tempting it can be to withhold information in the hopes of saving a friend’s reputation.”

  “Right.” Jake nodded. “Her dear old friend wasn’t the upright man she thought he was. She could be tempted to intentionally overlook something important.”

  I straightened my spine. “She doesn’t know anything.”

  “Probably not,” Jake agreed. “But Dante Weiss laundered money for criminals, most recently for Terrance Horton, a fugitive the marshals have been chasing for years.” He paused until I worked my mouth shut. “Going dark takes a lot of cash. We never understood how Horton stayed funded for so long, so we reached out to Dante. He’d been arrested years ago for funding criminals and traded his jail sentence for time serving the marshals. We asked him to get in touch with Horton and offer his services. He did, and Horton took the bait. Dante made an appointment with the deputy director. He had enough information for us to issue an arrest on Horton.”

  “What kind of fugitive is he?”

  Jake gave me a long look. “He’s a dirty businessman, not as networked as a mobster, but just as calculating and unsavory. He’s wanted for tax evasion, gambling, fraud and unlawful coercion of a minor.”

  “Gross.”

  “He’s a human leech, but a very wealthy one, but I can’t imagine he’d risk coming out of hiding to do this. Not unless the stakes were extremely high.”

  I scanned the night for someone who looked like a killer. “Could he afford to hire a gun? No. Scratch that. Doesn’t matter. Hired guns shoot peopl
e, they don’t stab and then drown people in quiet community lakes.”

  Dan shifted at my side. “I’d agree with that.”

  “So this was personal?” I looked in the direction of Grandma’s house.

  Jake pulled in a long, audible breath. “We need to locate Dante’s car. You came to the lake from your apartment?”

  “Yeah. I cut through the field behind the clubhouse when I heard the commotion.”

  He tipped his head and moved away from the scene. Dan and I followed.

  The early summer night grew cooler with each step, struggling to shake the grips of an unusually cool spring. Uniformed officers moved through darkened lawns, shining lights around trees and bushes.

  I mentally mapped the fastest way to canvass Horseshoe Falls in search of Dante’s car. No one parked on the streets and very few residents left their cars out at night. Unless Dante had left his car in a stranger’s driveway, it wouldn’t be hard to find. “I’ll take the roads east of the clubhouse. If one of you takes the west side and the other walks the parking lots running along the community’s center, we can cover the area relatively fast.” I ticked off the lots for good measure. “Clubhouse, boathouse, tennis courts, stables.”

  Jake slid out of his jacket and hung it over my shoulders. “You look miserable. You’re pale and your teeth are chattering. We can handle this. I’ll walk you home first.”

  I gripped the jacket on instinct, before it could fall. “Thanks. No. I want to help.”

  “Your lips are a little blue.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Maybe that outfit cut off your circulation.”

  Dan snorted. “She is Batman.”

  I slid my arms into too-long sleeves and snuggled beneath the soft material, pre-warmed by Jake’s body heat and scented with his signature fragrance. Shampoo, body wash and cinnamon gum. “We should split up. We’ll cover more ground faster.”

  Dan slowed at the next cross street. “Dante couldn’t have run far with a wound like that.”

  Jake cocked a narrow hip and scanned the night. “Agreed. Question is, which direction was he coming?”

  I chewed my lip. “I don’t know. From the guard gate, I’d expect him to go this way, but who knows what he was thinking?”