Page 86 of The Happy Month
Standing up, I glanced over at the women’s section. I didn’t see Sammy anywhere. My first thought was that she’d gone to try on the tops she’d picked out. But then I noticed that two of the tops were still there. Had she gone and come back? What was happening?
I stepped into the main aisle and walked the store, skirting the women’s department as best I could. I didn’t see her for quite a while, but then I picked her out at a cashier. She was checking out. The clerk was putting her selections into a white shopping bag with a red star on the side.
I continued walking as though there was somewhere I wanted to be. I set the sweater I was carrying down on a display of football shirts. It was too warm for a sweater anyway. I guessed that she’d be going out into the mall rather than heading back to her car, so I started studying a case of perfumes and cosmetics near the front of the store.
A clerk came right over.
“Something special for the lady in your life?”
“Just browsing.”
Sammy walked by on the other side of the counter, out into the mall. She turned to the left. I walked away from the counter and went out into the mall. I followed her thelength of the mall until she went into Sears. I decided not to follow her.
There was a ninety percent chance she’d be coming back out to the mall proper. She could leave via one of the outer doors and walk through the parking lot to her car, but that didn’t really make sense. I was sure she’d come back through this entrance.
I walked back down and looked at the food at Sbarro and Panda Express. I was getting hungry. I’d like to buy some lunch, but it didn’t seem like a good idea. Sammy could be walking by at any moment. I bought a Mrs. Fields chocolate chip cookie. That didn’t seem like much of a risk.
I ate half the cookie then put it back in its bag. I went into LensCrafters. I didn’t wear glasses, but you could see the entrance to Sears from there. I’d be able to spot Sammy when she came out.
I’d very nearly agreed to an eye exam when Sammy came out of Sears. Well, hallelujah. I walked out of LensCrafters and was twenty feet behind Sammy. She’d bought a piece of luggage with wheels. It was trailing behind her.
We hadn’t gone very far when she got in line at Sbarro. I drifted on, stopping to look into the windows of the Warner Brothers Store. They had lots of Bugs Bunny merchandise, Elmer Fudd coffee cups, tables full of videos.
I kept an eye on Sammy. She had a tray in front of her and was ordering, pointing at one of the premade pizzas in the glass case. I left the Warner Brothers Store, crossed the way, and stopped at Panda Express. I skipped ahead in line and bought a Coke. I turned around and checked out the tables to find Sammy sitting at one in front of Mrs. Fields. I walked over and sat down across from her.
Holding a piece of pizza in mid-air, she stopped and set it back down. She looked much the same as she had thatspring. Blonde hair cut very short, her blue eyes a bit sunken. She was in her mid-thirties, not even a decade older than Ronnie. She gave me a very sour look.
“You bought a suitcase. Are you planning a trip?”
“I’m going to call my attorney and tell him you’re harassing me.”
“And what? He’ll ground me? Give me detention?”
“I’ll have him file a restraining order.”
“And my boss would file a response. I think you might want to avoid that.”
“What do you want?”
“I’m here to make you an offer.”
“Go ahead,” she said. Then she took a bite of her pizza.
I had a sip of my pop before I started. “You told me that Pete Michaels was trying to blackmail your husband and that’s why your husband killed him. Do you remember that?”
“Of course, I remember that.”
“My boss would like you to sit for a deposition.”
“And tell you that my husband killed Pete Michaels?”
“Yes. Exactly.”
“You’re trying to trick me.”
“I’m not a cop. I don’t care who really killed Pete Michaels. All I care about is getting my client out of prison. If you say your husband killed Pete, then all of this will be over.”
She thought about it. Chewed on another bite of pizza. She was checking out the angles, spinning it around in her head. I thought it might be a good idea to give her a business card. I picked out one with my cellular number on the back.
