The Death Card: A Liz Lucas Cozy Mystery Read online

  “Bertha, that information is dynamite. If it’s true, and I have no reason to doubt Hank, that means Madame Dika should be a prime suspect in Leroy’s murder. She certainly had a very good reason to kill him based on what you just told me.”

  “That’s what I told Hank. Hank is certain she’s the one who did it. He can’t think of any reason why anyone else would do it. He knew Donna and Leroy didn’t get along, but he’d owed her back alimony almost from the time they were divorced, so why would she suddenly do something like kill Leroy at this late date? No, Hank’s convinced it was Madame Dika, and he made me promise I’d tell you first thing this morning so consider yourself told. You probably know a lot more about this than I do, but it does make sense.”

  “I agree, it sure does, but I don’t know what to think about it. You’re right in that I do know a few things I’m not at liberty to talk about right now, because they’re part of the investigation, but please tell Hank I really appreciate finding out about the conversation he had with Leroy. Roger will be here this afternoon, and I’ll run it by him. With his background in criminal law, I use him as my sounding board, and he’s a huge help.”

  “Hank will be glad I told you. I’ve talked long enough, and I need to get to the office. I’ll be there for the rest of the day if you need anything.”

  “Bertha, the gods must have been smiling on me the day you applied for the job as the manager of the spa and lodge. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “Yeah, you probably say that to everyone who works for you,” she said laughing as she walked out of the kitchen.

  “Winston, I wasn’t kidding. She’s the best thing that ever happened to this spa and lodge. Now I need to get serious about what we’re going to have for dinner tonight. Roger’s coming this afternoon, and I don’t want to spend a lot of time cooking while he’s here, plus I’d really like to talk to him about my reading yesterday. I think he’ll be happy with what Madame Dika told me about our future together. At least I hope so.”

  Liz spent the next several hours cooking and preparing food for dinner as well as for the following morning’s breakfast. She made a list of things for Emily to do when she got to the lodge that afternoon. She was so immersed in what she was doing she almost ignored the knock on the door. When she realized someone had knocked several times she walked over to it and asked who was there.

  “It’s Lisette. May I come in?”

  “Of course, Lisette. Sorry. I get skittish when a murder’s been committed, and the killer hasn’t been caught, so I’ve been keeping the door locked. How did it go with the massage you gave Donna Morris?”

  “That’s what I want to talk to you about. I don’t know if you’ve met her, but she’s a very beautiful woman. She’s one of those women who doesn’t even need make-up to look stunning. High cheekbones, big blue eyes, and I think she’s a natural blond. She has gorgeous pale blond hair that looks like it’s naturally wavy. Really beautiful.”

  “That may be what Leroy saw in her, but if she’s that beautiful I wonder what she saw in him.”

  “I never met him, but just from the two times I’ve been with her I don’t think anyone’s going to ever mistake her for a Rhodes Scholar, if you get the drift of what I mean.”

  “I do. What, if anything, did she have to say?”

  “She told me again how happy she was she’d be getting the back alimony that was owed to her. I asked her how long she’d been divorced, and she told me for over four years. She said the last few months have been the happiest in her life. She told me she and a man named Anton were going to get married very soon. She said she’d like to get married right away, but he told her he wanted to make sure he had enough money to keep her in a very good lifestyle. She mentioned they were going to live in San Francisco after they were married. Evidently he has a room at his sister’s home here in Red Cedar, but he hates her because she’s always telling him what he should do, and she doesn’t approve of his friends. Donna said something must be wrong with his sister because she’d met a number of his European friends, and she liked all of them.”

  “Lisette, did she tell you they met at his sister’s home after Madame Dika had given Donna a reading?”

  “Yes, she did, but it sure sounds like he doesn’t like his sister. Donna said Anton was the one who told her she could get her back alimony from the proceeds of Leroy’s insurance policy and that could be her wedding present to him. She told me she remembered saying something to Anton awhile ago about how the city or police department had a life insurance policy on Leroy. She was surprised he’d remembered, because she’d totally forgotten about it.”

  “I can’t thank you enough, Lisette. Here’s the tip she would have probably given you after her massage. Is there anything else?”

  “Yes. She told me the most fun thing about Anton was that he was constantly showering her with gifts. She said rarely did a few days go by without the UPS truck pulling up and delivering a package to her from him. She told me he’d given her jewelry, fur coats, clothing, and a lot of other expensive things. She said he was completely different from Leroy who had never given her anything, because he spent every penny they didn’t need for food or rent on the horses. I guess this guy Anton must really be wealthy.”

  I find it hard to believe a waiter makes enough from customer’s tips to shower his girlfriend with gifts like that. Something’s not right here. I need to remember to tell Roger when he comes this afternoon about these things: the restaurant; Anton; and Donna.

  “Lisette, you better get back. It’s probably time for your next appointment. As I mentioned yesterday, I’d just as soon this stayed between us.”

  “Of course, Mrs. Lucas. My lips are sealed.”

  CHAPTER 20

  At 1:30 that afternoon Liz heard a car pull up in front of the lodge. She looked out the window. “Winston, Roger’s here. Come on, boy. Let’s go say hi to him!”

  She saw Roger looking at his phone, as she and Winston walked down the steps to greet him. He waved at her and said through the open window, “Just a minute. I need to make a call. Can you be free for a meeting here tomorrow morning?”

  “Of course. Want to tell me what it’s about?”

  “I’ll tell you all about it in a few minutes. Go back in, and I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  “I’ll meet you downstairs. You can use the outside stairs on the side of the building.”

  “Emily,” Liz said, as she entered the kitchen, “Roger just got here, so I’m going to ask you to finish up what needs to be done. I wrote out a list of things I’d like you to do today. I’ve started some of them, but if they’re not here on the counter, you’ll find them in the refrigerator. Winston, come. Let’s wait for Roger downstairs.”

  A few minutes later Roger opened the door to her living quarters, put his suitcase on the floor, and walked over to where Liz was standing looking out at the ocean. She turned to him and said, “No matter how many times I look at it, I still find this view of the ocean mesmerizing. Welcome, darling. I’ve missed you.”

  Roger put his arms around her and kissed her deeply. The kiss was interrupted by the sound of Winston growling. They both looked down at the big boxer who was working his way between them, forcing them apart.

  “Winston, it’s me. You know me.” Roger put his hand down so Winston could smell him. He stopped growling and stepped back.

  Liz started laughing. “Roger, you got me a dog for protection. Looks like he wants to protect me from you.”

  “I’m definitely going to have to work on that with him. I think he’s working off of Pavlov’s theory. You know the one where the dog keeps responding to the bell because he thinks he’s going to get food, and then they pretty much stop giving him food, but the dog keeps responding to the bell. Well, the last few times he’s done this, we’ve given him a treat for being a good dog and protecting you. I think it’s time to do away with the treats, and maybe he’ll get the hint there won’t be any more treats
if he comes between us. Maybe he’ll be smarter than Pavlov’s dog.”

  “I think it would be easier to put him in the other room. I kind of like being close to you. Winston, come.”

  Winston looked balefully at Roger, followed Liz into her office, and laid down on his large dog bed.

  “I’m up for resuming where we left off if you are,” she said when she came back in the room.

  “If you think I’d turn down an invitation like that, you’re crazy, woman!” he said, passionately kissing her.

  *****

  An hour later they were sitting at the kitchen table with Winston lying on the floor between them. “Roger, what was that phone call about?”

  “I have a lot to tell you, and you probably have more to tell me. I’ll start. Feel free to jump in, if you need to.”

  “Roger, you sound very serious.”

  “I am. I think I told you last night when I talked to you that I had a very good friend who’s a captain with the San Francisco Police Department. His name is Jim. I called him and asked if he could meet me today for an early lunch. He did. I told him about Leroy’s murder, Madame Dika, what Sean had discovered about her and Anton, about Ratface, Tom Rice, and about Leroy’s gambling.”

  “Does he know who Anton and Ratface are?”

  “Yes, both are well known in police circles. Ratface is definitely a bookie but very careful and has never been charged with anything. Anton is known to be part of a group of Southeastern European men, some of whom have been arrested for operating credit card theft rings. Unfortunately, none of them has ever been convicted. I showed him the email photos you sent me of the notebook pages, the electronic device, the serial numbers on the gun, and the Death card.”

  “Did you tell him about my tarot card readings at Madame Dika’s?” she asked.

  “Yes. I also told him all about her time in prison and the jewelry scam she’d been running in Beverly Hills. He wanted to know if you’d felt safe when you were there. I told him about Winston and how he was always with you. I also told him you were very good at getting out of dangerous situations.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Even with all of that, he thinks what you did was foolhardy. He said that Anton runs with a crowd that has been linked to violence, even though it’s never been proven. Jim’s coming here tomorrow morning to talk to you. He wanted to know if you had the Death card in your possession, and I told him you did. He wants it tested for fingerprints and DNA evidence. Jim did make the comment that it’s people like you who really hurt police investigations and make policemen’s jobs much harder. He’s not very happy about the fact you didn’t turn the Death card over to the sheriff.”

  “Swell, can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to meeting him,” she said sarcastically.

  “Trust me, you’ll like him. He’s as honest as they come, and he calls them like he sees them, and Liz, I want you to know that I pretty much agree with him on this issue.”

  “Yeah, and if I’d waited around to see what Seth Williams, who is a policeman like your friend, could do about the death of Barbara Nelson or Mark Scott, we still wouldn’t know who killed either one of them.”

  “Liz, you know I think you’re brilliant at solving criminal cases, but there are some who might think you got a bit lucky with those two. You can stop glaring at me like that, because Jim wouldn’t be one of them. Let’s change the subject. I’d like to see the Death card and the notebook.”

  “Follow me. They’re in my desk. I actually locked it last night in case someone was planning on breaking in. Figured they couldn’t get the drawer open without Winston or me hearing them.”

  She unlocked the desk drawer, took two pairs of gloves out of a bag on the floor next to the desk, and handed one pair to Roger. When she had her gloves on, she reached into the drawer and handed him the Death card and the notebook. He studied them for a few minutes.

  “Liz, you still don’t realize what these numbers represent, do you?”

  “No, do you?”

  “Yes. When you told me about them last night and then sent me the photos, I was pretty sure I knew. Jim confirmed what I’d thought.”

  “Well, tell me. I’d like to know.”

  “The first sixteen numbers are credit card numbers and the next three numbers after the space are the security code numbers that appear on the back of a credit card. Jim identified the photo of the electronic device as being a state of the art type of scanner.”

  “What kind of a scanner?” she asked, beginning to agree with what Roger had said last night, that this case was getting to be bigger than just about Leroy’s murder.

  “This particular type of scanner is commonly used to scan credit cards by credit card thieves. Jim told me how this type of credit card fraud works. Any retail establishment that takes credit cards could be a target, but the majority of credit card fraud occurs in restaurants. The waiter takes the customer’s credit card and quickly scans it with the electronic device. It used to be that the scanner had to be plugged into an electrical outlet, but recently small ones that run on batteries have come on the market, making it much easier to scan a credit card. It’s so small that the waiter or waitress or even the cashier can keep the scanner in their pocket. The credit card numbers scanned can then be used to purchase items. The scammer not only has the credit card number, the name on the card, and the expiration date, but the thief also has the three digit security code that’s on the back of the card.

  “Eventually the person whose card has been scammed will discover that things they never bought have been charged to their account, but the thief is long gone and using other cards by then. Additionally, in the case of cards belonging to wealthy people or businesses that employ accountants to pay their bills, months can often go by before it’s discovered that something was charged to the card that had not been bought by the person to whom it was issued. Then there’s the delay that occurs in the back and forth communications between the credit card holder and the credit card company.”

  “Wow! That never occurred to me.”

  “Probably because you’ve never tried to run a credit card scam, and believe me, I’m very glad you haven’t.”

  “Roger, this may be important. I don’t think I mentioned to you when we talked last night that I’d asked Madame Dika about her brother. I told her I’d run into him when I stepped out of the bathroom. She said he had a room in her house but rarely slept there because he worked at a restaurant in San Francisco. I told her that the gentlemen who had figured prominently in my two readings lived in San Francisco and often entertained clients at restaurants in the city. She told me the name of the restaurant was Le Petite Orangerie, and that it was very expensive.”

  “She’s got that right. I’ve been there a number of times. Hang on just a moment. I need to call Jim with this information.”

  “Roger, wait a minute. I need to tell you something else.” She told him what Donna had said to Lisette about the expensive gifts Anton had given her.

  “Jim, it’s Roger. I’m with Liz, and she just told me about a conversation she had with Madame Dika yesterday that I think you need to know about. She told Liz that her brother worked at a restaurant called Le Petite Orangerie. I’m sure you know of it. It’s really pricey. Don’t want to tell you your business, but given the restaurant’s clientele, it would be a perfect place to run a credit card scam. Again, don’t want to tell you how to do anything, but if I was you and I heard information like this, think I’d put a couple of men on it and see where Anton goes when he leaves from work at the restaurant.

  “If we’re correct and it’s a credit card scam, there’s probably a central place where calls are being made from. He may go there after work.” He listened a few moments then said, “Yes, Liz said she’s free to meet with you tomorrow morning. I also have the notebook with the credit card numbers, so I imagine someone could run a check on them to see if any have been scammed.

  “Of course if he had his own notebook, he
may be running his own scam and not giving any or all of the numbers to the credit card theft ring, if he’s a part of it, and based on what I’ve seen, I’d be willing to bet he is. Here’s one other thing Liz just told me. Anton’s girlfriend had a massage at the spa Liz owns. Liz found out from the massage therapist that Anton’s been giving his girlfriend very expensive gifts. He could be holding out on the theft ring he’s probably involved in and playing cowboy by secretly keeping some of the stolen credit card numbers for his own person use. Anyway, we’ll see you at ten tomorrow morning.”

  He ended the call and looked at her. “I can see there’s more to this. What else did you find out, and I thought you weren’t going to do any more with it today.”

  “I didn’t. I was talking to Bertha after breakfast this morning and here’s what she told me about Leroy.” She relayed the morning’s conversation.

  Roger sat quietly for a few moments. “Liz, this thing is getting very convoluted. So now we have a slew of suspects in Leroy’s murder: Madame Dika, Seth, Anton, Ratface, Tom Rice, and Leroy’s ex-wife, Donna. Then we have a Southeastern European credit card theft ring, or so we think. Additionally we have Anton who may be siphoning off numbers on the side to buy Donna expensive jewelry and things. I’m glad I don’t have any of them for clients. It could get more complicated, but I doubt it.”

  Later, Roger would look back and remember those words.

  CHAPTER 21

  “Roger, I think we both could use a little down time. Let me call Delores over at the spa and see if she has any openings for massages.”

  She pressed the spa button on the phone and the call was immediately answered by Delores. “Red Cedar Spa. May I help you?”

  “Hi, Delores. It’s Mrs. Lucas. I was wondering if you have any openings for massages this afternoon.” She waited while Delores checked her computer. “You’re booked solid for the rest of the afternoon, but you just got a cancellation for right now? That will be fine. Please put it on my account. The name is Roger Langley, and he’s on his way over there now. Thanks.”