Sutton poked her head between the curtains of the cabana. Rex lay on one side of the bed, Viv on the other, the space of a few inches in between. He held a detective novel open on his chest. It was so old the pages hung out the side.
"May I help you?" he asked. His voice implied that she interrupted.
Sutton stepped farther inside, the curtains falling behind her back. "Hey, boss, just wanted you to know I spotted another one of those HOA guys."
Viv opened her eyes. "Which one?" She'd been taking a nap. The busy morning had brought a good deal of confusion and fatigue.
"The African American guy. The one who's a pastor. The preacher guy." Sutton got a faraway look in her eye. Rex knew she was trying to imagine him standing at a lectern.
"Anyway, I looked up his background on the internet. I found lots of photos from his military days, so I knew who he was right away."
"Sammy Daniels," Rex said. "So he's here too."
Viv sat up, her round pillow dropping to the ground. "Okay, I caught most of that. Don't you think it's time for a quick review of everyone here at Three Bunch? We've got Carmine's widow and her boyfriend Pete Langford, also on the HOA. Then Joey Baker tries to hold us up at gunpoint. He's on the HOA."
Rex jumped in. "And don't forget the crooner, Dean Marcella. He's on the HOA."
"And now we have Sammy Daniels," Sutton said.
"So where exactly did you see him?" Rex asked.
"Well, boss. I'm so glad you asked. I was taking my break, flying my drone, minding my own business. Not exactly my own business, if we were to get technical about it. Anyway, I was listening in on the widow and the boyfriend, when Sammy stopped by their cabana."
"Was he dressed as a clergyman?" Viv asked. "I'd find that highly amusing, here at the spa. A man in a collar trying to convert more souls to Jesus."
"No, he had on the same white bathrobe as everyone else," Sutton said. "He was sporting some fancy flip-flops though. I want a pair of those. I checked on it. You can get them in the gift shop."
"Never mind that," Rex growled. "What did Sammy have to say?"
"That's the funny part. He was telling Beverly that he signed his wife up for a class. He wanted to know if she wanted to join. You know Three Bunch offers all kinds of instructional opportunities. The list is posted right outside the restaurant," she explained.
"I did see that," Viv admitted. "Which class? I was thinking of joining the stargazing one."
"Not the star one. He signed her up for the spirit animal class," Sutton said.
"People take classes on that?" Rex asked. "Isn't that considered not quite appropriate?"
“Not if the instruction comes from a genuine Native, it isn't," Sutton objected.
"Someone once told me, I won't mention names, that my spirit animal was a cat," Rex said thoughtfully. He remembered the woman as if it were yesterday. She was in her mid-twenties. A beautiful body and bright green eyes. Her hair, long and straight, falling around his face when they made love. She'd come to his shows and then slip backstage afterward. They'd dated for a couple of weeks back in the early 2000s. She'd be in her forties by now. Rex remembered everyone he'd been with from his past. But he never knew when they'd slip into his consciousness or why.
"How could that be?” Viv turned to him with a surprised look on her face. "You seem like a dog person to me. And Miss Kitty rarely pays you any attention."
"True," Rex admitted. "But that woman was an authority on spirit animals and she said mine was a cat, so there you have it." She had a beautiful smile too. All I had to do was sit back. She'd initiate everything.
Viv shook her head in disbelief. "Why don't you go to the class then. I'm sure the Native teacher will connect you with your real spirit animal. Which won't be a cat," she insisted.
Rex closed his eyes, still remembering. The woman never told him why she picked the cat. He didn't mind what animal she chose, just so long as it wasn't anything like a rat or a weasel.
Plus they'd ended on good terms. She hooked up with the head bouncer at the casino and that was that. The story of his life. Until he met Viv and realized not every woman threw herself at him.
By the time Sutton left, Viv closed her eyes again, leaving Rex to wonder. Four out of five in the HOA hanging out here at Three Bunch for the weekend. Is it all about the me-time, getting facials and work done? Or is it possible that they come here for other reasons? The men sign up the wives for a class and then what…
Rex settled his neck onto the round pillow and closed his eyes. An image arrived. Men sat around a round table. Each held a hand of cards. Women stood behind the men, scantily dressed in bikinis. Poker chips were stacked in front of each man.
There was another guy who stood at the door, his arms folded over his chest. He looked like a bar bouncer or a bodyguard. Rex inhaled, feeling his nerves tingle from the image.
It didn't take a mentalist to get the gist of that situation.
"The HOA men come to Three Bunch for a poker game. They ditch the wives and have at it. Probably high rollers and high stakes," he explained to Viv.
"What do you mean?" She swung her legs over the side of the daybed. He admired how athletic and toned they looked.
"Just like I said. I think the men are here for poker. That's why Sam hooked the wives up. It keeps them busy while they get down to business."
"I don't understand men," Viv admitted. "They come here for some relaxation and then hide in a back room, away from the beautiful setting and hot springs, to play a card game. Makes no sense to me." She stood up.
"I'm going for a swim," she announced. Pulling her cover-up over her head, she stepped into her flip-flops. Rex watched attentively. Then as she turned to face him, her face lit up. "You know something?" she asked him.
“Oh, I know lots of stuff," he said. "Like how that suit fits you so well. And the red looks great with the tan."
"Not that," she said stoutly. "I think we're doing the math wrong. We have the HOA guys all here. We added them up. But it's not good enough to keep adding. It's time to subtract. It's not who's here, but who isn't." She waited for Rex to catch on.
"Oh!" he said instantly. "Of course. I never thought of that. What about the HOA director, Frank Salucci?"
"That's right," Viv exclaimed. "Where is Frank in all of this?"
"Maybe he's just busy this weekend," Rex offered.
"Or maybe the other four don't like him that much. Maybe they cut him out of the game for some reason?” Viv suggested.
She picked up her towel. "Let's refocus. At the wake I overheard Salucci tell his wife that Joey killed Carmine. And we know that Beverly and Pete think Joey killed Carmine. I might dismiss Salucci's opinion if it weren't for the other two."
Rex looked thoughtful. "Maybe it's not Joey. Maybe Beverly and Pete wanted Carmine out of the way so they could go public with their relationship. They wanted Joey to take the fall."
Viv looked thoughtful. "So then once I brought Joey to them, they'd what? Get rid of him?"
"Think back. Did Salucci specifically say that Joey was the guy?" Rex asked.
"We were waiting in line to pay our last respects, but I think that's what he implied."
Rex cleared his throat. "Back to our first idea. Why is Frank Salucci the only HOA board member not here this weekend?"