26: Like Alice

 

 

I woke to the feel of Baxter’s arms wrapped securely around my middle and the sound of panicked knocking. The sound was too muffled to be coming from Baxter’s door, but too loud to have been from Baxter other neighbors’ place. That left my apartment. If it was my door being knocked on before the noise curfew was lifted, it was me who would get into trouble for disturbing everyone.

Gently, I tugged at Baxter’s arms. He tightened his grip and mumbled, “Don’t go. Stay.” His breath skimmed over my bare shoulder and made me shiver.

It was cold away from Baxter’s warmth and the blankets, but I knew I couldn’t stay. “Someone’s knocking at my door.”

“Ignore him,” he grumbled before pulling me against him even tighter.

“I’ll get in trouble,” I argued, “and I’m already on thin ice with Mrs. O for ditching out on planning the building Christmas party with her and Sonya. She threatened to put me in charge of face painting!”

Baxter growled, but his grip began to loosen. “Come back.”

I couldn’t help the smile that teased my lips. “Fine, now let go of me.”

The knocking got louder, and Baxter finally relented. I slipped out of bed and grabbed a sweater from the end of the bed as I hurried toward the door. I had it on over my—well, Baxter’s—t-shirt as I unlocked his door and poked my head out.

“Puck,” I said, surprised, “what are you doing?”

He spun around, his expression falling the moment he saw me. “Is this why you missed my show last night? You spent the night with him? Are we done? Because you were mad about Christmas brunch?”

I gasped. “Puck, your show, I’m so sorry. With all the chaos last night, I forgot to ever text you that I couldn’t make it.”

“What chaos?” he demanded. “Cheating on me with Baxter? That chaos?”

The dig stung, but I more than deserved it. “No,” I said, feeling like scum. “I didn’t sleep with Baxter. I got stuck being Megan’s servant at her baby shower…and then I kind of had to deliver her baby.”

He blinked, too caught off guard by my answer to hold onto his justified anger. “You…delivered a baby?”

“Well, the paramedics didn’t get there fast enough,” I said with a shrug. “It wasn’t like I wanted to.”

Puck ran a hand through his hair, well across the top of his head. He didn’t have long enough hair to actually run anything through it. He frowned and pinned me with a wary gaze. “And you didn’t sleep with Baxter?”

“No,” I said.

“But you stayed over.”

I nodded slowly.

“Why?”

“Because…I wanted to.”

I think I surprised both of us with my honesty. Puck’s brows pulled together as he tried to puzzle out what he should say to that. I braced myself for something along the lines of he was done with me. I took a step back when his hands balled into fists. Puck had never once made me feel threatened, but I knew I may have pushed him too far this time.

“I’m not giving you up that easily,” he growled.

My shoulders tensed. “What?”

“I don’t know if you’re trying to push me away or if this is some kind of test, but I’m not walking away just because I don’t understand what the hell is going on between the three of us.” He threw his hands up. “Maybe that’s stupid, because I know you’re in love with him but, damn it, I’m in love with you and I refuse to give up without trying to prove to you that I can give you more than he can.”

He didn’t give me a chance to respond. Not that I had a response ready. He would have been waiting there a good long while if he wanted me to say something coherent. He didn’t, because he stormed past me and down the stairs. I stood there watching him in confusion until he unlocked the front door and stomped out into the dark morning. I heard, more than saw, the click of the lock snapping into place as Puck locked it with the spare key I’d given him. Another rule I’d broken.

I wasn’t sure what to do then but go back into Baxter’s apartment. So I did. Walking in a haze, I got as far as standing next to the bed, trying to figure out what to say. Baxter grabbed my arm and pulled me down. A second later, I was tucked next to him with the blankets pulled up around us. I only had twenty minutes before I needed to get up for my shift at the bakery, but I couldn’t make myself pull away.

“Did you tell Puck hi for me,” Baxter asked. His voice was muffled, but the sarcasm wasn’t.

“How did you know it was him?”

He snorted. “Who else would it be? You forgot about his concert.”

I rolled to face him, not smiling. “You didn’t, apparently. Why didn’t you say something? It was too late to go by the time we left Megan’s but you could have…”

“It’s not my job to keep your relationship with Puck from its inevitable doom,” he interrupted.

“You…”

“In fact,” he cut in again, “I hope he dumped you.”

I pulled away and sat up. “That’s mean!”

He opened one eye and said, “And spending the night in my bed when you have a boyfriend isn’t?”

My breath stuck in my chest and I sat up. I couldn’t believe he’d just said that to me. My head shook in disbelief. I sat stunned, despite knowing I deserved every word. I was still frozen when Baxter’s gently pulled me back down to the bed. Without warning, he was hovering over me.  

“I’m not trying to be an asshole,” he said. Then he thought about that and corrected himself. “Okay, I am, a little bit, but I’m mostly trying to be honest. You’re not being fair to him. He thinks he’s in love with you. He thinks he has a chance when we both know he doesn’t. I’m not backing down, not anymore.”

“Neither is he,” I whispered, too confused to think straight.

Baxter laughed, the tone scoffing. “Is that what he said?” He didn’t wait for an answer and laughed at Puck’s chances. “May the best man win, then.”

“And you’re so sure that’s you?” I asked, a reserve of confused strength bubbling up from somewhere.

He leaned down close, nearly nose to nose with me. “Of course I am.”

“You don’t know that for sure,” I argued, though the force behind my words was as weak as my will to push him away.

“Yes I do.”

“How?” I demanded.

“Do you really want me to say it?” he challenged.

I clammed up immediately and shoved him off me. “I have to get ready for work,” I said hurriedly.

He had the nerve to laugh as I scurried away.

Swiping my keys from their usual spot next to his, I threw open his door and rushed the few short feet to my own door. I didn’t mean to look back, but I accidentally did. He stood leaning against the doorframe, arms folded over his chest, an obnoxious grin on his face as he watched me behave like a child.

He was the childish one, I thought as I tore off clothes on my way to the shower. He didn’t know how I felt about him in the deepest parts of my heart. Even though I’d pretty much told him last night. He didn’t get to use that as a weapon against me, did he? He seemed to think he was already a foregone conclusion for me. Well, he wasn’t. Not even when he all but confessed he wanted me to himself and would take on any challenge to have me.

My feet slowed as I stepped into the bathroom. Was that really what he’d been saying? No, I told myself, even shaking my head to really be convincing. He’d said he wasn’t backing down anymore, that he would win, that I was being mean to Puck by making him think he had a chance at a long term relationship with me. If I would have pushed him any further, he would have said the L word out loud, forced me to deny I felt the same. If I had owned up, what would his response have been?

I was trembling as I stepped in the shower and turned the cold water on. I was too numb with shock to feel it. It slowly warmed as I stood staring at the beads of water that flew past me, but it didn’t thaw the frozen part of my brain that was supposed to tell me what to do. I was terrified of getting into a real relationship with Baxter, for what it might do to our friendship and for the danger it would pose to him. He was so confident neither one would be a problem, he’d made it clear he would no longer hold back. Puck wasn’t nothing to me like Baxter made it sound. No, I didn’t love him in the way he wanted me to, but he made me happy and let me feel like a normal person when we were together. I didn’t want to keep hurting him, but I doubted he’d accept me breaking up with him even if I found the strength to do it.

Where did that leave me?

I still hadn’t figured it out by the time I got to Mina’s and she could immediately tell something was wrong. Luckily, her guess was off the mark, mostly. “You haven’t decided on a cupcake recipe yet, have you?”

“No,” I said, wishing that were my biggest problem. Which reminded me that Puck and Baxter weren’t my biggest problems either. The murderer planning to strike during the show tonight got the honor of being number one. “Any chance Gordy was planning to stop by this morning for some breakfast?”

It was kind of adorable that Mina blushed. “Well, he did say he might stop in. To give you an update,” she added.

“Mm hmm,” I said, hoping their chance at a relationship was on a way different track than either of mine. Mina turned even redder and made some excuse about needing to wipe down the glass case out front. I smiled and decided I better get to work.

It was almost time for me to leave before Gordy appeared. When I saw him, I almost teased him about sleeping in for once. Then I saw the circles under his eyes and the way he was chugging coffee like his life depended on reaching a certain level of caffeination.

“What happened?” I asked as I slid into the seat opposite him.

“We found Evan.”

“Great!” I said. “Did he have an answer for why he locked me in the alley?”

Gordy set his coffee cup down. “Not exactly.” He hesitated a moment before lifting his gaze to meet mine. “He’s dead.”

All the air went out of me.

“It’s not your fault, Eliza. He got himself into this mess all on his own,” Gordy insisted.

I fought to swallow the guilt and bile clawing its way through me. “What do you mean?” I was finally able to ask after several long seconds.

“He was killed the same way as the first two victims, two blocks from his apartment, in an alley that neighbors said people rarely used. That’s why his body wasn’t discovered until last night.” Gordy slid down in his chair, exhausted and struggling to keep his eyes open. “Luckily, Evan dropped his phone at some point and it slid under a dumpster, unnoticed by the killer. We were able to access his texts and call log quickly.”

I knew Gordy had tried to get a court order to access Evan’s phone records, but there wasn’t enough cause, according to a judge. Nobody knew whether he was in danger or had just walked off the job. Now, we knew. “What did you find?”

“He was working with the killer, Eliza. He has been from the before the first murder.” He took a long draw from his coffee before continuing. “He got a job on the show as a plant, to track security and give the killer updates on the schedule and contest. Evan’s the one who broke the card reader, from what we could gather. There was something in his card that fried the circuitry when he used it that morning.”

“Why?”

Gordy frowned. “I’m not sure. I think you’re right that the killer wants the contest boxes, but I think he’s looking for something else as well, and wanted access to the show side without his crossing being recorded. I’m having all the other card readers checked for tampering right now.”

This was getting more confusing by the minute. Why the contest boxes? Why that door? Had the killer guessed the contest boxes were in Salma’s office after coming up empty in the show-side storage? Or was there something else going on we had no clue about? Very little of this case made any sense.

“Wouldn’t the killer be caught on security cameras regardless of whether the card reader was functioning properly?”

Apparently, Gordy had already beat me to that question. “I’m having the security footage examined for loops during hours the building is closed. I can’t think of why that particular card reader would be useful to break otherwise.”

“So he could have been coming and going at night whenever he wanted?”

Nodding, Gordy said, “Salma confirmed she checks the alley door lock next to her office religiously before leaving every night, but she’s not as diligent about the store side door.”

“So he was coming in the alley, using the store side door, then got into the show side using the broken door,” I said, feeling sick to my stomach. “Aren’t both doors monitored by the security system, though? Coming in and out at night would have set off an alarm.”

Gordy sighed. “Salma admitted she often used Evan as a personal assistant and said it was possible he had seen her put in the code for the security system.” He shook his head. “We checked with the security system provider and they confirmed her personal code had been used at night several times over the past few weeks. I checked the times with Salma and she says she was at home. The codes weren’t flagged earlier because Salma comes and goes at night fairly often.”

It really seemed like Salma was making this whole situation harder than it needed to be. Whether on purpose or accident, I didn’t know. My head dropped into my hands. “So we know how the killer was getting in, but we still don’t know why.”

The sigh Gordy released was full of weariness. “And it’s very likely he’ll strike tonight.”

“Salma and Mia won’t cancel the show?”

We’d both known asking them to cancel the live show had only the slimmest of chances of being successful. Gordy’s frustrated groan said it had gone worse than expected. “Mia refused, too much money involved. Salma claims it would ruin the show to cancel last minute, but I think this is all part of her plan to get control back from Mia. I think she wants something to go wrong.”

“What makes you say that?” I asked, not because I doubted him, but because I wondered if he had found something to confirm our earlier suspicions.

Gordy shook his head. “While I was in her office last night, I caught sight of some sort of ledger. I didn’t get a good look, but it seemed to be detailed documentation of everything Mia has done to hurt the show. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s already got paperwork drawn up to file a lawsuit against Mia.” He sighed heavily. “I’ll be glad when this case is over and I never have to talk to either of them again.”

Ditto.

We fell into silence for a while as Gordy guzzled more coffee. “Did you decide on a recipe yet?”

I sank down in my chair and scowled.

“Baxter told me what happened last night,” he said. “With Megan and the baby.”

“Aren’t you glad you didn’t stay?” I asked.

Gordy chuckled. “Why didn’t you call me? I’m trained for emergencies like that. I’ve even delivered a baby before.”

“Really?”

“First year on the force. Never forgot it and hoped I never had to do it again.” He chuckled. “I could have helped, though.”

“I panicked,” I admitted. “I called Baxter before I even called 911.” I shook my head, thinking that had been a stupid move. “I shouldn’t have forced him to be there for that. Hey, wanna come help deliver your almost-ex-wife’s baby that would have been yours if she hadn’t turned out to be a cheating bitch?”

That drew a smile from Gordy. He chuckled, imagining it. “Actually,” he said, “he sounded surprisingly okay with it when we talked this morning. I think he’s good. Better than he’s been in a long time.”

“Well, there’s pretty much no doubt the baby isn’t his. That was her last hold out on signing the divorce papers. That’s got to feel good for Baxter,” I said.

Gordy nodded slowly, but seemed to be holding something back.

“What?”

He hesitated, then shook his head.

“What?” I demanded.

I thought he wouldn’t answer me, then he said, “You’re right about all of that, but I don’t think that’s why he sounded so at peace. I think you have more to do with that than Megan.”

My conversation with Baxter from earlier that morning slithered back into my mind. I pushed it away quickly and grasped at the first thing I could use as a distraction. “Did you manage to find out why Evan locked me in the alley?”

Gordy scoffed at my evasion, but said, “He seemed to be using the alley as a place to meet the killer. My best guess is that he locked the show side door, and came around to slip out through the store side door, saw you go out there, and panicked. He probably locked the door and told the killer to scram, then ran off thinking you’d discovered he was involved.”

I shivered, thinking that if I had been a little later I might have stumbled into the killer and ended up like Alice.

Shifting, Gordy sat up taller. “I know you’re not going to like this, but I’ve assigned a detail to keep an eye on you, just in case the killer thinks you know something and comes after you. He hasn’t so far, but I’d rather not take the risk.”

“That’s fine,” I said tiredly. “After this, I’ll be at Sweet Life until the live show is over. Saul’s covering for me at work again.”

A little surprised I hadn’t argued, Gordy took my easy acceptance in stride. At least, until I asked him when he was going to put Mina out of her misery and ask her out on a date. Then he suddenly had somewhere else to be, and slipped out the front door with a red face.