6

Prior to dinner that evening Jennifer took Marcia aside. “What do you think, is Brent a good fit for us?”

Marcia tucked her hair behind her ear and gave the question some thought. “In my opinion, he’ll be perfect to run Williams Funeral Home and be part of our team. He could teach us a thing or two with his experience. The visitation went well. He was able to monitor everything going on and he’s very personable.”

Jennifer nodded. She had the same impression.

“Well, then, we’ll offer him the position over dinner. It will be a quick meal for me, I want to catch up on a few things. It’s been a very long day.”

“I’m sorry Jen, there was no time to do the transfer for you, it was just too busy.”

“I’ll get to later, no worries.”

Marcia’s text cheeped. “It’s Ryan. He’ll be joining us.”

“Oh good.” Jennifer was happy for Marcia but hopeful that Ryan wouldn’t mention what had happened earlier in the day. She wasn’t ready to discuss it until she had time to check the handwriting. “Does Brent know?”

“I’ll tell him right now,” Marcia said happily.

Elaine remained at the funeral home while Marcia and Jennifer completed their interview with Brent. Desta had offered to come and assist with the evening visitation to help share the work load.

At the restaurant Marcia, Jennifer, and Brent took a seat. Jennifer got right down to business.

“Ryan will be joining us in a few minutes Brent, so I’d like to take this opportunity to offer you the position at Williams Funeral Home. It means you’ll be managing the firm under my supervision. I’ll prepare an offer of employment later this evening and email it to you.”

Brent looked thoughtful. “Of course, I need to discuss it with my wife. Tomorrow I’ll meet with a realtor to look at houses in the area. You should hear from me, at the latest, the day after tomorrow.”

“That would be more than acceptable,” said Jennifer.

“This evening I’d be quite happy to assist with visitation,” said Brent. “I know you have another call. The parking lot was a job in itself with so many visitors. Both sides of the street were full.”

“Thank you,” said Jennifer. “We appreciate the help. Remind me to get the safety vests from the garage, the people on parking lot duty should be wearing them. I forgot earlier.”

She turned to Marcia. “I’m going to leave the three of you as soon as I’ve eaten, to get the transfer done.” Marcia nodded, somewhat distracted. She was watching for Ryan, who chose that minute to walk into the restaurant. She waved at him. He approached the group with a smile on his face, happy to see her.

Marcia made the introductions. The two men shook hands. It didn’t take long before the conversation flowed freely. Brent was comfortable with the Detective Sergeant. Jennifer contributed a little to the chatter, her mind was on the rest of the day and the tasks ahead. As soon as she completed her meal she rose.

“If you’ll excuse me, it’s back to work,” she said politely. She had given Marcia the credit card earlier to cover dinner. Ryan caught her eye and gave a slight nod.

“Would you excuse me for a minute?” he said to Marcia and Brent. “I need a quick word with Jennifer. I’ll just walk her to the car.”

Once outside he was all business.

“The man who handed you the note was caught on a security camera outside City Hall. They’re looking at that now. His vehicle appears to have been rented, the windows blackened.”

Jennifer felt a twinge of fear. Who would go to so much trouble to hide their identity? Why? Travis had to be behind it.

“Earlier today when I spoke with the Major Crimes Unit I got the impression that Travis may have been Mr. Mitchell’s boss, not the other way around. They didn’t say that directly, that unit tends to keep things close to the chest. One of our team suggested that possibility weeks ago and I debunked it. The fact that they are concerned about your safety is enough for me.”

He took Jennifer’s arm in an effort to reinforce his next statement. She looked up at him and he held her gaze. “This is important. You cannot be alone until Travis is in custody. You’ll be getting a roommate, one of our people.”

Jennifer stared at him in disbelief.

“I’m off to do a transfer right now. All by myself. How am I supposed to do my job? Marcia hasn’t told you this because it isn’t final but I’m in the process of purchasing Williams Funeral Home. I can’t run back and forth between funeral homes, and on calls, with a sidekick trailing behind me every minute.”

He was clearly surprised at her announcement that she was purchasing another funeral home. He let go of her arm.

“That’s not very good timing,” he grumbled.

“Life isn’t always timed well.” Jennifer felt her annoyance building.

“Neither is death,” snapped the DS. “Preventing your death is my responsibility right now.” He shook his head in disgust. “Stand right there. Don’t move.” He pulled out his phone. “Ready Ziegler? Be at the funeral home in five.”

He ran his fingers distractedly through his hair, messing it up. It made him look boyish and for a second Jennifer remembered her response to seeing him for the first time. It didn’t matter now, Marcia had his heart.

“Go straight to the funeral home. Detective Constable Ziegler is your new roommate and bodyguard. You’ll do what she tells you to. Your life could depend on it.”

Jennifer felt like stamping her foot and shouting at him. She wanted to cry or yell or lash out with frustration and anger and fear. Instead, refusing to act out her emotional turmoil in front of him, she turned abruptly, got into her car, and with a little more force than necessary, slammed car door and drove off.

Once out of sight of Detective Sergeant Gillespie she pounded the steering wheel with her fist, her eyes stinging with tears. She knew her reaction was based more on fear than the need for control. Now the staff would have to be on guard too. It wasn’t fair to drag them into it. If she hadn’t found the cash in the casket it might have been buried with the deceased and none of this would have happened.

Detective Constable Ziegler better get used to wearing a dark suit, she thought meanly. She works for me now.

As Jennifer pulled into the funeral home lot she noticed Detective Ziegler standing beside a car wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Jennifer ignored her, got out and once again slammed her car door. She looked at her new roommate, turned her back and walked into the garage, slamming that door behind her. Overcome with emotion, she folded her arms, crouched down and broke down into heavy sobs.

She didn’t hear the garage door open but she did feel a gentle touch on her shoulder.

“Jennifer, I’m Sue Ziegler. We met briefly earlier. Detective Sergeant Gillespie didn’t handle that very well.” She chuckled. “He called me a minute ago to apologize. Although he is angry and concerned, he should not have taken it out on you. It shouldn’t have happened.” She helped Jennifer to her feet and gave her a hug. Jennifer, her emotions spent, did not pull away from Sue’s reassuring gesture.

“This situation isn’t your fault. You don’t deserve to go through this. I promise you I’ll let you know what’s going on with the investigation as soon as I know, and I’ll do as little as possible to interrupt your daily routine. This is the first time I’ve been asked to keep such close surveillance. If I get in your way or on your nerves, just tell me.”

Jennifer pulled a tissue from a nearby box and blew her nose. She didn’t trust herself to respond to the unexpected kindness.

“Then let’s get going, we’re off to the hospital to pick up someone’s mother,” said Jennifer. She pulled a black trench coat off the row of coat hooks and tossed it at Sue.

Sue nodded. Wordlessly she donned the long coat, got into the van and drove to the hospital. Jennifer didn’t ask for help, she didn’t volunteer information, no words were spoken. The transfer of the mother of the two sons she’d met with earlier in the day was completed in silence.

Jennifer’s mind raced over the current turn of events: a note, a roommate, a new funeral home, a new employee. It was too much to process all at once.

It’ll be a cold day in hell before I let you get the better of me Travis, Jennifer thought as she drove back to the funeral home. This mother’s life had value. Clients’ and visitors’ and families’ lives have value. You won’t scare me into quitting or hiding.

At the funeral home Jennifer pulled the stretcher from the van and wheeled it to the prep room door. She stopped and turned to Sue.

“It’s up to you whether or not you come in. Confidentiality is a given, any conversation behind the walls of this room and in the funeral home will be respectful. No coming or going in or out of the prep room unless it’s an emergency.”

Sue nodded. “Understood.” She followed Jennifer into the prep room.

Sue must have had her phone on vibrate, Jennifer saw her answer it while she worked. To her surprise Sue didn’t try to hide the conversation from Jennifer.

“Ziegler. Yes, sir, I expect we’ll be in the funeral home for the evening. Yes, sir, I’ll check in later tonight.”

Sue disconnected the call. “Detective Sergeant Gillespie is checking up on us. That man takes his job seriously.” She smiled.

Jennifer felt it was time to stop being so recalcitrant and open up a bit. “How long have you worked on the force?” she asked.

“Ten years. Four as a Detective Constable.”

“If this is your first assignment as a bodyguard then I guess you don’t deal with organized crime very much.”

“No. We see evidence of it in our job all the time. It’s the provincial police or RCMP that handle most of it.” She looked at Jennifer. “I do know that Travis may be in the area. The way the note was presented to you and how it was worded concerns us.”

“Why?” Jennifer asked, more curious than scared.

“It read like a well-educated individual wrote it.”

“Or a bully who uses the internet,” responded Jennifer. She was actually relieved to be able to discuss the situation.

“Could be. The major crime unit was closing in on Travis. He slipped right through their grasp.”

“Inside job?”

Sue nodded. “That was my first thought. No proof though.”

“Did you bring a suitcase?” asked Jennifer.

“It’s in the car.”

“When I am done here, I can take you upstairs and you can settle in.”

“I’m looking forward to meeting Grimsby.” Sue smiled.

“How did you know I had a cat?”

“It’s no secret around the station that Detective Sergeant Gillespie is in love with your friend Marcia. He’s mentioned Grimsby once or twice. He’s also mentioned the response you got from one of the officers when you mentioned Grimsby in the interview with the OPP.”

Of course he would, thought Jennifer. They talk about each others lives at work just like Marcia and I do. Maybe this isn’t going to be too bad after all.

“We’ll have to explain your presence to the staff tomorrow,” said Jennifer. “Will you do it?”

“Absolutely. There will be a few extra mourners at the funeral tomorrow as well. The OPP is sending some undercover officers hoping to see if any of Travis’ people show up.”

“Travis has people?”

“The more I hear about this situation, the murder of Mr. Mitchell, the pit boss and Jorge, the more I’m convinced that Travis was behind the whole operation. The pit boss was just a small operative.”

“Does the rest of your team agree?”

“I brought it up once, it was discredited. It’s based on intuition, not fact. I work with a bunch of guys who stick with facts.” She looked Jennifer straight in the eye. “When you interviewed with the OPP officers, the one’s whose fictitious names began with ‘D’, you based some of your information on your intuition. They probably didn’t take it seriously. Detective Sergeant Gillespie did for once. You were right.”

Jennifer couldn’t help but laugh. That interview had been a turning point for her, she’d had the courage of her convictions and didn’t let the men intimidate her. She was also starting to feel comfortable with Detective Constable Ziegler, although Jennifer knew everything she said could potentially get back to Sue’s superiors, she still let her guard down a bit.

“Empathetic people tend to be intuitive,” said Jennifer. “I never negate intuition until facts prove themselves.”

“Or conversely. Facts do negate intuition. There is room for both in my job and yours.” They chatted comfortably for a few more minutes.

“Done,” said Jennifer. She waited while Sue retrieved her suitcase and took her upstairs.

Once Sue and Grimsby were acquainted, Jennifer turned to go back downstairs.

“One more thing,” said Sue. “Don’t go outside unless someone is with you, not even to check on the parking. Here’s my number, put it on your phone.” She read it off as Jennifer entered and confirmed it.

“OK.” Jennifer pocketed her phone. This time she’d pay attention to that request. “Make yourself at home.”

Walking through the funeral home, Jennifer noted that Elaine and Desta had done the cleaning. It saved her energy—she just didn’t have the time to pitch in. With a few minutes before the family was due to come in she went into her office, drew up the offer of employment and after proofing it carefully, emailed it to Brent.

With some apprehension, Jennifer tapped on the photo of the note she’d received earlier in the day. She stared at the words, still trying to process the fact that someone wanted to kill her. That someone could be Travis. She rose slowly and hesitated as she opened the filing cabinet, her anxiety mounting. She then pulled a couple of files that Travis had done. Placing them on the desk, she sank into her chair, her heart pounding.

Slowly she opened two of the files and laid them side by side. She methodically shuffled through the files looking for handwritten notes, then willed herself to look at the photo. It was a match. Travis had written the note. Jennifer flipped to the photo of the slip of paper found near the selection room the night Jorge broke into the funeral home.

Shaking, she pulled out her phone and hit dial for Detective Constable Ziegler, not trusting herself to stand and go upstairs. Sue answered on the first ring.

“You might want to see this. I’m in my office off the lounge.”

“Coming.” Sue arrived in less than a minute. It felt longer as the realization that Travis wanted her dead washed over her.

Fighting to keep her voice under control, Jennifer explained to Sue what she’d done about the note.

“Smart thinking. I’m not sure I would have had the presence of mind to take a picture.”

“Thanks, but there is more.” She showed Sue the photo of the slip of paper with the casket number that had been found on the floor after the break-in. Had she checked it against Travis’ handwriting before, Jorge might still be alive.

“The car, that Taurus Travis used to drive hasn’t been found yet?” asked Jennifer.

“No. Not yet.”

“Then this might help.” Jennifer showed Sue the picture of the casket number. She flipped back and forth between the two photos and checked them against the file.

It matched. Travis was a murderer twice, not once. He’d killed Mr. Mitchell, the casino pit boss, hid the money in the casket, then killed Jorge, one of his drug runners, after trying to frame him for the murder of Mr. Mitchell.

Sue pulled out her phone and called Detective Sergeant Gillespie. Once again Sue didn’t hide any of the conversation from Jennifer. In fact, she put it on speaker phone.

“I’ll be in after all the visitors have gone tonight,” Ryan said. “In the meantime I’ll brief our team.” He disconnected abruptly.

Sue gave Jennifer a high five. “You have a knack for this,” she said. “No one even thought to check the first note against Travis’ handwriting, let alone the second one.” But then she grew serious. “We have to find him Jennifer. That was a large sum of money in the casket. He blames you, he blamed Jorge, he blames everyone but himself.”

“How much was it?” asked Jennifer, somewhat pleased with herself for thinking of checking the files.

“Close to seven-hundred and fifty thousand. A sum like that hurt his organization. People like Travis and those who work with him, or for him ...” She paused and looked at Jennifer, concern in her voice and eyes, “for him being the operative words now. They’ll stop at nothing to get their revenge.”

“If that’s the case, then why send a note at all? Does he think we’re stupid?”

“Good question. I know a little bit about criminal psychology. Sending the note could be a form of harassment or a ‘look what you made me do’ response. Sometimes it’s insecurity. Over time some of these guys get careless and feel invincible. They’re taunting law enforcement and their potential victim.”

“Sometimes they win,” said Jennifer. “Jorge was just a pawn in Travis’ game.”

Sue nodded. “I think I’ll stay downstairs for the evening. I’ll just run upstairs and change.” Before Sue could turn to go up to the apartment, Marcia and Brent entered the lounge. They did not yet know about Sue. Under her breath, Jennifer told Sue that Brent was a potential employee and didn’t want him to hear what was going on.

“Understood.” When Sue went upstairs to change, Jennifer told Marcia that she had extra help for the evening and would introduce her to Sue later.

With a few hours left before they closed up the funeral home for the night, Jennifer was determined to make it business as usual. It was quite a bit more than business as usual though—the funeral home was packed. The parking lot was so full, Sue put in a call to the station to send over a few patrol cars to help with traffic lined up down the street waiting for parking.

“It helps to have friends in high places,” Jennifer said to Sue, smiling. Sue didn’t leave Jennifer’s side the whole evening: scanning the crowd, helping direct visitors, checking the supplies—working with Jennifer as if she were a full-time employee.

It was well after 9:30 before the family left for the evening. The service was to be held the next afternoon at the cathedral, Jennifer reviewed the pick-up times for the limos, and the service and graveside details with the family. Opening the door, she followed them outside and said goodnight.

“I hope nothing goes wrong this time,” said Jennifer to Sue as she the door. Sue immediately headed to the garage to see if it was locked securely, then did a complete walk-through of the funeral home.

“This time?” asked Sue as they checked everything. Jennifer told her about the Werther’s graveside service and the three down in a graveyard call. Sue burst out laughing as Jennifer got further into the story. Jennifer found herself joining in. Althea and Anne were right; it was humorous and she could laugh about it now.

“Should the cemetery manager be nearby I’ll have trouble looking him in the eye tomorrow,” said Sue, as she wiped her eyes. “The man doesn’t know who he’s dealing with. You’ll be a major businessperson in this area and he messed up big time with that comment.”

Sue’s phone buzzed.

“Detective Sergeant Gillespie is here, I’ll let him in.”

“I’ll say goodbye to Brent and let him out. Can you hold off until he leaves?”

“Yep.” Sue started texting.

Jennifer straightened her shoulders and buttoned her jacket. She was determined to present a professional demeanour. Brent would find out about Travis soon enough; she first wanted him to accept the position to manage Williams Funeral Home. Jennifer knew the staff would have a few questions about Sue. She would deal with that shortly, after Brent left.

She found Marcia and Brent in the lounge. “Before you leave Marcia, I have a few things we need to take care of.” said Jennifer. “Brent, we can’t thank you enough for all your help today. You were a godsend.” She pulled an envelope with his cheque from her pocket and gave it to him.

Brent rose, accepted the envelope and thanked both of them. “I will be in touch,” he said. Jennifer walked him to the front door, aware that Sue was in the front office with Elaine and Desta.

“Brent, could you walk Desta to her car?” Jennifer asked.

“Certainly, my pleasure,” said Brent and the two of them left together.

“Thanks Desta, thanks Brent,” Jennifer said with a smile as she closed and locked the door.

“Elaine, can you spare a few minutes for a quick staff meeting?”

“Sure.”

“I’ll meet you and Elaine in the lounge,” Sue said as she walked to the garage to let Detective Sergeant Gillespie in.

“What’s up?” asked a puzzled Marcia when Elaine and Jennifer entered.

“I think I’ll let Ryan and Sue explain.”

Ryan barely glanced at Marcia as he entered the lounge and sat down. Sue sat next to Jennifer.

“Marcia, Elaine, this is Detective Constable Ziegler. She’ll be staying here for a while,” said Ryan.

“Call me Sue,” responded the Detective Constable. “For now, I will appear to be one of the staff. My job is to ensure your safety.”

“Why?” asked Marcia sharply.

“Jennifer was the recipient of a death threat today,” Ryan said.

“Not again!” Elaine cried. One look at Elaine’s face was enough for Jennifer.

“I think the best course of action at this point would be to send Elaine and Marcia to Williams to work until this is over,” Jennifer said to both Detectives.

Ryan looked thoughtful. “I hadn’t thought of that. Good idea.”

“I concur,” said Sue, nodding.

“Well I don’t concur,” said Marcia. Jennifer knew Marcia well enough to know her ire was rising and she wasn’t going to take orders.

“No arguments,” Jennifer said firmly. She looked at the two of them. “Elaine, I’d be much happier if you were at Williams until this is over. You too Marcia.”

“I feel bad,” said Elaine. “I worked with Travis for the three months before you came Jennifer. If I’d paid more attention maybe I might have known he was up to something and none of this would have happened.”

Detective Sergeant Gillespie cut in. “Elaine, people like Travis fly under the radar for years. You couldn’t have known. He’d still be under the radar, so to speak, if he’d not left that money in the casket. Marcia, as Jennifer said, there will be no arguments. Until Travis is caught I’d like you and Elaine to have minimal contact with Jennifer.”

Marcia opened her mouth to protest then snapped it shut. Jennifer knew she and Ryan would have a discussion about the situation later. Marcia could be pretty stubborn.

“I will be walking you both to your cars now,” said Ryan. Elaine rose and hugged Jennifer. She was shaking. So was Jennifer.

“I’m sorry, Elaine.” Elaine squeezed her tighter.

“What about the funeral tomorrow?” asked Marcia.

“Business as usual. You may work it Marcia,” said Ryan, in a somewhat placating tone.

Ryan took Elaine out first, waited until she drove away, then came back for Marcia. Jennifer went to the chapel, peeked out the window and watched them talking by the car. Marcia was clearly upset. She saw Ryan take Marcia by her arms and move in for a kiss. It was touching; Marcia was putty in his hands. Or maybe it was the other way around she mused, feeling a bit sheepish for spying on them. She backed away from the window and returned to the lounge.

After seeing Elaine and Marcia off, Ryan came back in and sat down wearily. Jennifer could see the stress etched on his face, his eyes were puffy and his skin appeared sallow.

“We need to come up with a plan,” said Jennifer. “Something that will lure Travis out of hiding.”

“No plans. No ‘we’. This is not something you need to be involved in,” said Ryan.

Jennifer looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “You might want to reconsider that. Travis is a threat and needs to be in custody, correct?”

Sue nodded, Ryan just scowled at her.

“And I’m involved, and not by choice. I’d prefer to keep you in the loop if I do have an idea. You’re the boss, you make the decisions. I listen to my families when they want to get involved and do my best to facilitate. Sometimes that isn’t possible, most of the time it can be done. I’d appreciate it if you’d at least hear me out and respect that I’m more than capable of keeping a confidence and, as a potential victim, of knowing my skills and limits.

Sue smiled to herself as Jennifer continued.

“It’s late, tomorrow’s going to be a very busy day. We can’t repair the world tonight. Let’s get some rest. If you want to, you may take a photo of some of Travis’ writing so you can compare it to the note with the casket number and the note I was given. I’m sure you won’t mind if I make sure nothing confidential is in your photo.”

Jennifer walked toward her office, Ryan pushed himself out of his chair and joined her. Jennifer stood by as he took the necessary photos and checked to ensure there was no information that could relate it to one of the families. Since he didn’t have the originals in hand, Jennifer showed him the photos from her phone. His face looked set in stone. He didn’t flinch as he compared them.

Detective Sergeant Gillespie nodded and without another word walked to the garage to let himself out. Sue followed and locked the door behind him. Jennifer waited at the bottom of the stairs to walk up with Sue.

Once they were in the apartment, and Sue had given Grimsby a treat, Jennifer scooped him up and cuddled him. She looked at Sue.

“I’ll be taking a self-defence course, starting ASAP. Travis is cunning. We don’t know who works for him, it could be anyone. I’m 5’ 2”—I need all the help I can get.”

“I think that’s a good idea. You’re fit, having followed you around for half a day I’m exhausted. Add a few self-defence skills to that and you should be able to defend yourself more than adequately.”

“I’m exhausted too. It was a long day. I’m going to have a bath and head to bed. Busy day tomorrow. I’d like to be off to the crematorium by nine.”

“I can look at getting one of the officers who teaches self-defence to train you,” said Sue. “It might be a good idea for me to take the course again too.”

“OK. Good night. Coming Grimsby?” Grimsby looked between Sue and his mistress, and lay down on the back of the couch. Half an hour later, when Jennifer was in bed running over the events of the day in her head, she felt him jump up and settle in for the night. In spite of her fear and apprehension about Travis, and her concern about Winter, fatigue won out and she fell into a dreamless sleep.