Detective Wilkes shook her head for possibly the hundredth time. “I can’t believe this,” she muttered under her breath. Amos was sitting up front and I in the back of Detective Wilkes’ unmarked car. We were a few doors down from the Chambers Financial Group offices. It was about three o’clock in the afternoon and the sun was high in the sky. Despite the air conditioning blasting, I was starting to sweat.
I had made an appointment first thing Monday morning with Anna. She seemed delighted to hear from me. I told her I’d read all her literature, which I had.
Now it was Tuesday, approximately two weeks from the first time I met Darius Randall at the bakery. In a few days, it would be October. The wedding was three weeks away. I knew Cedric and Carmen had talked, at least that’s what Cedric told me. Neither said anything about calling off the wedding. That was a good thing. I hadn’t breathed a word of what I knew or was planning to do the entire weekend.
Only Amos knew… and his crew, Joe and Lenny.
It took some convincing with Detective Wilkes. By her constant nervous chatter from the front seat and Amos peering back at me, I still wasn’t convinced either of them were okay with the plan.
Amos and I had approached the detective last Friday afternoon, and it took her a full minute to respond. I wasn’t sure if she thought our plan was ingenious or utterly stupid. When she did respond, I had expected her to say what she did. “You’re a civilian, Mrs. Patterson. I can’t put a civilian in harm’s way.”
I argued back. “But Mr. Amos will be there with me. All I have to do is make an appointment. We can both talk to her, and I can casually bring up the bakery scene and how Darius showed up. Amos can ask her the other questions.”
I had looked back and forth between her and Amos, who still wasn’t convinced, but had long stopped trying to argue with me.
Detective Wilkes’ face was hungry to have this whole ordeal finished, but it wasn’t in her plan to have some old lady get a possible suspect to say something incriminating. She finally caved, though I’m not really sure what convinced her.
From what I could tell, Detective Wilkes had backup. I wasn’t wearing a wire. Amos was. The plan was for Amos and I to show up as a couple. That is, a couple thinking about getting married. We wanted Anna to help us with a financial plan. Seemed pretty legit to me.
I have to admit my nervousness was more from Amos and I walking in as a couple. Could I pull that off? I mean we weren’t really thinking about getting married. That had never come up in any of our conversations.
Amos broke through my thoughts. “Eugeena, are you ready?”
I peered at my watch. It was time. “Let’s do this.”
Detective Wilkes swung her head around to look at me. “Remember, you’re not interrogating her like a cop. This is just to get some information from her. If we think it’s useful, I will question her. Got it?”
I nodded. I didn’t need the woman making me more nervous. This was my idea.
Amos smiled at me as I stepped out the car. I took a deep breath and hooked my arm in his. We were really doing this.
Eugeena, girl, you’re taking this retirement time to a whole other level. Going undercover!