Murder Under Cover (21 page)

His eyes narrowed to black slits. “If they were any good at all, she never would’ve known they were in her house.”

I shook my head. When he said stuff like that, I was reminded that he could be as dangerous as he looked.

“And that night,” he went on, “she brought the book to your house. Alex didn’t know it, but his window of opportunity closed at that moment. I must say, I’m not impressed with his operative skills.”

“I have this picture of him as a ladies’ man. You know, a smooth-operator type.” I shook my head in disgust. “Maybe he thought he could pull off the job by cozying up to Robin instead of just taking care of business. And that got him killed. I know it’s mean to say this, but I’m not all that sorry he’s dead.”

“Darling, I love it when you’re vindictive.”

“Don’t laugh. I already feel bad for saying it.” I bunched up my fists. “But he just makes me so angry that he endangered Robin. I never even met him, but I want to punch him.”

He grabbed my hand and kissed it. “You mustn’t feel bad. You’re being protective of your friend, and that makes you fierce and sexy. It’s quite a turn-on.”

“Oh, please.” I couldn’t help but laugh while heat rose up my neck. “Now you’re making fun of me.”

“Your cheeks are pink,” he said in amazement, and his dark eyes gleamed with laughter. “How charming.” Turning my hand over, he kissed my palm, all the while keeping his eyes on the road.

“You’re going to miss the off-ramp,” I murmured, when I could breathe normally again.

“Never,” he said with a grin. “I’m a highly trained professional.”

We drove to my brother’s house along a road that meandered through the vineyards, rising slowly until we reached the top of the highest hill overlooking Dharma.

“The view is spectacular up here,” Derek said.

“But he’s so isolated.”

“Yes, that’s certainly part of the appeal.”

Austin’s house was relatively small and shaped like an alpine cabin, with a back deck that extended out over a small canyon. I hadn’t been inside in a few years, but I knew it was one large high-ceilinged room with an open kitchen and a sleeping loft reached by climbing up a ship’s ladder. It was cozy and wonderful for one person or a very intimate twosome.

It took them almost five minutes to answer the door when I knocked. They both wore bathrobes and satisfied smiles. I couldn’t help but thank all the gods in the heavens that we hadn’t arrived ten minutes earlier.

“Hey, Derek,” Austin said pleasantly, then looked at me. “Brooklyn, what are you doing here?”

“Where have you guys been?” I demanded.

“We went camping for a few days,” he said with an easy grin. “Just got back a while ago.” He swung the door open and waved us inside.

“Do you want coffee?” Robin said on her way to the kitchen. The swelling on her face had almost disappeared, but the skin around her eye was still bruised. All in all, she looked much better. Rested and relaxed. I guessed Austin was treating her well.

“No, thank you,” Derek said.

I followed Robin into the kitchen. “Camping? You?”

“I know.” Her smile stretched a bit wider. “But it was fun. Did you know there are hot springs up here? I never even knew about them.”

“I’ve heard my brothers talk about them for years, but I’ve never seen them.”

“You should,” Robin said with a serene smile. “It’s so beautiful. But it’s a hike.”

“Yeah, that’s the part where I’m having trouble picturing you.”

Robin laughed, poured herself a cup of coffee, then walked over and sat on the wide, tan leather sofa that faced the rustic fireplace. “So what’s going on?”

Austin stood and leaned one elbow on the sturdy log mantel. The pose was casual but his eyes were watchful.

Derek sat on the brick hearth directly across from Robin and rested his elbows on his knees. “We won’t take up much of your time, but we had some questions to ask you.”

“Yeah, we didn’t want to disturb you,” I said, settling into the bentwood rocking chair Austin had made by hand years ago. “But you people really should answer your phones.”

“Brooklyn, don’t be angry,” Robin said softly. “Austin took me out to get my mind off of things. We didn’t take our phones.”

I left the chair and knelt in front of her. “Honey, I’m not angry. We were just worried. See, after we dropped you off up here the other day, we got back to find my door bashed in and my place trashed. Then yesterday, another guy broke in again and it turns out someone had shot him, so he died right there in my workroom. And the police think it’s a turf war, but then Derek got some information from Interpol that there’s a missing flash drive, and the Ukrainians . . .”

I stopped talking when I noticed the two of them staring at me in varying degrees of horror.

Robin sat forward, gripped my shoulders, and peered at me. “What is it with you and trouble? I’ve barely been here two days. How could that much happen in two days?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. But I’ve got to say, I’m really glad you were here instead of at my place. These guys are playing hardball. We think whoever killed Alex is looking for this flash drive that you might’ve brought back from India. Derek and I are pretty sure it’s connected to the Kama Sutra.”

“The Kama Sutra?” Austin frowned and glanced from Robin to me to Derek. “I’m not following any of this.”

“It’s a long story,” I muttered.

Robin shook her head. “But how could the book have anything to do with Alex? I got it from my mother’s friend Rajiv. I don’t understand.”

I lifted both shoulders in bewilderment. “We don’t know yet, but that’s why we came here. We’re hoping you can shed some light on a few things.”

Robin’s eyes clouded and she sighed heavily. “It’s never going to go away.”

“Yes, it is,” I insisted, hating to see Robin feeling so down. Just a few minutes ago, she’d been all smiles and now . . . “But look. The sooner we find out where this flash drive is, the sooner—”

“That’s enough.” Austin brushed past me to sit next to Robin on the couch. He enveloped her in his arms and whispered, “Come on, babe. No more worries, remember?”

Then he gave me a fulminating stare and I mentally shrank a few inches. If he weren’t my big brother, the look wouldn’t have bothered me so much, but Austin had always been able to nonverbally smack me down with little effort.

“Look, I’m sorry,” I said, meaning it. “We just really need some answers. But maybe we can come back later and . . . I don’t know.” Feeling helpless and frustrated, I gazed at Derek.

He patted the brick next to him, and I retreated to the hearth to sit, putting some distance between me and my brother.

Derek spoke directly to Austin. “It’s of the utmost urgency that we talk to Robin. We can give you some time to get dressed; then we can either come back here or meet you in town. Is there a restaurant or café you can suggest as a meeting place?”

“I’ve got a good idea,” Austin said, more amenable now that Derek had spoken. My brother could be exasperating and old-fashioned when the mood hit him. “Let us get ourselves together, get dressed, and we’ll meet you at Mom and Dad’s in an hour. She’s expecting us for lunch.”

“And we’ll talk?” I asked.

Robin lifted her head and looked from Austin to us. Her eyes were clear as she nodded at me. “We’ll talk.”

I knew I shouldn’t have been annoyed at Robin, but I was. She was acting like a twit, trying to pretend nothing had happened. I understood that she’d been through hell, but now wasn’t the time to hide. I needed her to be proactive.

She was my best friend and always would be, so I couldn’t be mad at her forever. But at the moment, having just watched her ignore me while clinging to Austin, I couldn’t help but think she was milking the situation.

Yeah, yeah, she woke up to a bloody dead body in her bed. And yeah, she’d had sex with him the night before, so yes, absolutely, that was a total bummer. But hey, I’d been a witness to murder, too. More than once, but who was counting? It’s not like I was making it a little kids’ competition between us.
Neener, neener, I’ve seen more dead bodies than you have!
It wasn’t like that, I swear.

I was just disappointed that instead of soldiering up and answering a few critical questions, she’d pulled the girlie-girl card and used Austin as a shield.

So yeah, I guess I was a little pissed off. But like I said, I’d get over it. No worries.

Derek parked the Bentley in front of my parents’ house. “Shake that off,” he said calmly.

I looked down at my shirt, then brushed my jeans. “Shake what off?”

“The chip you’re carrying on your shoulder. It won’t do you any good to walk into your parents’ house carrying all that anger.”

I shrugged. “I’m okay.”

“No, you’re not.” He cupped and turned my chin until we were eye-to-eye. “You’re upset. I don’t blame you, but I know your lovely mother. She’ll pick up on that vibe in two seconds flat and proceed to harangue you until you’ve willingly revealed every naughty thing you’ve ever done in your life.”

I didn’t want to let go of this warm and righteous anger bubbling inside me, and I definitely didn’t want to smile. But hearing Derek utter the word
naughty
tossed my best intentions right over the edge.

“All right,” I said, and sighed. Why couldn’t I have a poker face like normal people? It wasn’t fair. Every little emotion I experienced showed up as clear as day on my face.

Derek waited patiently until I was no longer twitching in irritation.

“All right, I’m good. See?” I flashed him a supersize grin.

“That’s my happy girl,” he said drily. “Your mother will never guess it’s not real.”

“I’m counting on that.”

He climbed out of the car and jogged around to meet me. “I promise you can yell at Robin later.”

“I’m holding you to that.”

“Hello, sweeties!” Mom cried a minute later when we announced ourselves through the front door screen.

I walked into the family home I grew up in and felt myself turning into an eight-year-old. All I wanted was lots of hugs and love from my mom and dad. They complied, then acted properly overjoyed when I begged for an invitation to join them for lunch.

“Wonderful!” Mom said. “Austin and Robin will be here, too. And I left a message for Gabriel, but I haven’t heard back.”

“He hasn’t missed a meal so far,” Dad said jovially.

“It’ll be good to see him,” Derek said, and sounded like he meant it.

Then Dad lured Derek away with an offer to taste his latest barrel experiment, a melding of cabernet franc, merlot and petit verdot that he was downright giddy over.

Mom led the way to the kitchen to put the finishing touches on lunch. But as soon as we entered the sunny room, she turned and patted my cheek. “What’s wrong, sweetie?”

Damn, she was good. What would be the point of having a poker face anyway? Mom would always be able to see past it.

As if I were Pavlov’s dog, I started talking the minute Mom gave me that look. “Nothing’s wrong. Oh, well, except I just had a silly little run-in with Austin. But seriously, it’s no big deal. In fact, they should be here any minute and I’m as happy as pie about it.”

“So you’ve already stopped off at Austin’s?”

“Yes, Derek wanted to ask Robin a few questions about that guy she was dating recently.”

“The one she found murdered in her bed.”

I grimaced. “That’s the one.”

“What about him?” She whipped an apron out of a drawer and wrapped it around her waist. As we talked, she grabbed two pot holders, opened the oven door, and removed a huge casserole dish of lasagna. I didn’t want to give Mom too much information about big guys knocking down my door and dying in my house, because she would worry about me. But she turned and looked at me with those clear blue eyes and I couldn’t seem to stop myself.

“There are more questions than answers. Someone’s still out there causing trouble, and we need Robin to fill in some blanks.”

“So let me guess what happened,” Mom said. “Austin became the ferocious knight in shining armor, protecting his lady fair, Robin, from your impertinent questions.”

I chuckled. “
Impertinent?
You’ve been watching reruns of
Pride and Prejudice
again, haven’t you?”

“Busted.” She let out a trill of laughter. “I can’t get enough of that Colin Firth.”

I followed her into the dining room, where she’d already set out serving dishes filled with potato salad, Japanese cole slaw, marinated green beans, and a green salad, along with flatware, plates, and napkins on the wide Mission-style table we’d used forever. I placed a trivet in the middle of the table and Mom settled the lasagna on top of it.

“I blame you for Austin’s behavior,” I said, nudging her as we returned to the kitchen.

“Me?”

“Yes. Your enchantment spell has turned them both upside down and inside out. Robin’s perfectly happy with her head stuck in the sand, and Austin’s gone into total protective mode. It’s freakish.”

Mom made a
tsk
ing sound as she pulled a bowl of fresh corn-and-blueberry pasta salad from the refrigerator. “I’d love to take credit for that, sweetie, but honestly. Enchantment spells?” She rolled her eyes at me. “You know it’s all a bunch of hooey, right?”

“Hooey?” My eyes goggled. “Mom, are you feeling okay?”

She laughed again. “Oh, sweetie, you’re so gullible.”

“
Moi?
” I said, my voice squeaking in outrage. “Come on, Mom. Hooey is your raison d’être.”

She bopped me with a pot holder. “Silly. Help me get the rest of the food on the table.”

It was a beautiful day, so we filled up our plates and took them outside on the terrace. Dad had made lemonade, and there was plenty of wine and beer. Gabriel showed up a bit late with apologies, then eagerly filled his plate with Mom’s food. He’d recovered from his injuries and looked amazingly healthy and handsomer than ever, if that was possible. I secretly wondered how long it would be until he grew tired of the quiet life in rural Sonoma County.