Taylor Made Read online

  Delta followed Alexandria into the kitchen. “Please. Cream and Sweet and Low if you have it.”

  “Preservatives. Yuck. Do any police officers eat right?”

  “Sure we do. Denny’s, Winchell’s, The Happy Hound Dog; three balanced meals a day.”

  “All that cholesterol will kill you.”

  Delta snickered. “I seriously doubt that’s what’s going to take me out.”

  Handing Delta a steaming cup of coffee, Alexandria poured one for herself. “Okay, what’s got you all fired up?”

  Delta reached over and pulled a tape from the inner pocket of her jacket. “I’ve got something here that’s of real interest.”

  Cocking her head, Alexandria followed Delta into the sunken living room.

  Snatching the controls, Delta popped the tape in the VCR. “First off, I’m here as one friend to another. I’m not Officer Stevens, and you’re not the district attorney.”

  “Uh-oh.”

  “I can’t answer any questions unless you agree that’s the way we play it.”

  “I don’t know—” Alexandria paced across the room to stand closer to Delta, her robe belt flapping behind her like a tail. “You make me nervous when you cut deals like that.”

  Delta crossed her arms. “That’s the way it has to be. Any other way won’t work.”

  Alexandria frowned. “Fine.”

  “Friend to friend?”

  Alexandria nodded, wrapping both hands around her mug. “Friend to friend.”

  Delta studied the control device for a moment before figuring out how to work the VCR.

  “Is there an introduction, or is this subterfuge from beginning to end?”

  “Patience. Believe me, it’s well worth the wait.”

  Suddenly, the television screen came to life with a still picture of a very large, very white kitchen.

  “Home videos?”

  “Hardly. Shh,” Delta admonished, turning the volume up.

  “Whose house? Can you tell me that much?”

  “Look.”

  The back of a female figure walked past the camera and opened the refrigerator before turning. As her face came into focus, Delta paused the video. “Recognize her?”

  Alexandria nodded. “That’s Teresa Wainwright. Delta, what’s going on?”

  “You have to see this to believe it. Trust me.” Hitting the play button, Delta glanced over at Alexandria, who was staring fixedly at the TV. She watched Teresa Wainwright pace back and forth across the kitchen floor, checking her watch every now and again.

  “Nervous woman,” Alexandria surmised.

  “She has a lot to be nervous about.”

  Suddenly, the phone rang and Mrs. Wainwright snatched the receiver before it could complete one ring. “Yes?” she said curtly. “I received your notes and I do not appreciate—” Mrs. Wainwright stopped suddenly and listened to the caller. “But we had a deal. You said twenty thousand,” her voice lowered a bit. “That’s what you asked for, that’s what I paid. How dare you come back and—”

  Delta paused the tape and turned to Alex, who didn’t move. “Alex?”

  Slowly removing her eyes from the screen, Alexandria looked at Delta. “I’m not sure I should see the rest of this.”

  “Of course you should. It’s fascinating, really.” Delta clicked the button and Teresa Wainwright continued.

  “...demand more! Do you know who you’re dealing with? Twenty thousand is a great deal of money...” Again, she lowered her voice. “...to pull a trigger a few times.” Listening, she tapped a pencil on the counter. “Look, everyone knows she saw your face, you idiot. What were you thinking?” Pause to listen. “No, you’re the one in trouble, mister! She saw you, not me. So, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll take the money and get the hell out of town.”

  “Delta stop.” Alexandria stood up and reached for the controls. “I can’t hear any more. Please.” Adjusting her robe, Alexandria paced over to the huge picture window overlooking her garden. It was still pretty dark outside, but the moonlight cast an eerie glow upon the plants.

  “Alex,” Delta said, pausing the TV, “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “Upset me? Good God, Delta, that’s an understatement and a half.”

  Delta gazed steadily into her eyes. “She planned this whole thing, Alex. She paid that guy to shoot at you with daddy’s money. She knew your schedule, she knew the press would be there, and she knew that getting you out of the picture meant victory for her husband.”

  “But why? Why would she do such a thing?”

  “Connie gave me some background on her life, and it appears that her daddy didn’t care much for Wainwright. Connie thinks that she was willing to set you up because her daddy would have approved of Wainwright becoming the DA.”

  “I feel like vomiting.”

  Taking Alexandria in her arms, Delta lightly caressed her back. “I won’t show you the rest if you don’t want to see it.”

  Holding Delta tightly, Alexandria sighed. “I need to see it. I need to get angry enough to prosecute her ass.”

  Gently pulling away, Delta smiled warmly. “That’s more like it. If you need me to pause it again, just let me know.” Delta grabbed the remote and the video resumed.

  “Look, you son of a bitch,” Teresa hissed. “You’re not threatening some dumb little girl. One call to your parole officer and you’ll spend the next five years behind bars.” Mrs. Wainwright listened a little more. “No. What you have is twenty thousand dollars. No proof, no nothing. So stop trying to squeeze me. You got all you’re going to get, so I suggest you spend it wisely. If you even try to snitch on me, I’ll take you down with me, you understand?” With that, Teresa slammed down the phone, pulled out a cigarette from her purse, and lit it with trembling hands.

  “Blackmail me, you stupid fuck, and I’ll see that you rot in hell.” Drawing deeply on the cigarette, Teresa stared out the window. “Should have finished her off myself,” she growled, tapping her ashes into the sink. Puffing once more, she checked her hair in the mirror.

  Delta clicked the VCR off and leaned back. For a long, suspended minute, Alexandria stared at the blank television set, neither blinking nor moving. Only the gurgling sounds from an aquarium filter disturbed the early morning silence. Then, ever so slowly, she turned. “So... what now Officer Stevens?”

  “That’s up to you. We can’t go public with this tape because it would—”

  Alexandria held her hand up. “I don’t want to know how you obtained this incredible piece of filth. The less I know, the better.”

  “Connie said she’s done everything to get Wainwright in her daddy’s favor. It seems this is the only thing that could do it.”

  “Daddy would be horrified if he knew his little daughter was a conspirator to commit murder.” Alex slowly stirred her coffee. “Okay, we can’t take this to the authorities, we can’t take it to the press, so...”

  Delta had a peculiar glint in her eye that did not go unnoticed. “I do have a plan.”

  Alexandria smiled. “Why am I not surprised. What do you want me to do?”

  Delta leaned forward. She loved it when plans came together. “I want you to hold a press conference this afternoon at three. Tell them you have a suspect in the shooting and that an arrest will be made shortly.”

  Alexandria’s eyes grew wide. “An arrest? You want me to arrest her?”

  Delta shook her head, but her smile never wavered. “As a civilian at this moment, I think it best if you don’t know all of the details, but trust me when I say we should have the shooter by nightfall. If worse comes to the worst, and he slips through our hands, we’ll settle on Mrs. Wainwright and take our best chance with her.”

  “Delta, blackmail is out of the—”

  “For you, of course. But this isn’t your operation Ms. Pendleton. It’s ours.”

  “I won’t hear of it—”

  “Don’t worry. Blackmail is only the backup plan, and you have noth
ing to do with it. There are other people I have to protect.”

  “What others?”

  “Can’t say. But this is important to them as well.”

  Alex nodded, smiling at Delta. “What now?”

  “Now, I want you to get in the shower, and then dress in the most powerful suit you’ve got. We have an election to win.”

  Suddenly, Alexandria’s eyes glazed over as she took both of Delta’s hands in hers. “I can’t thank you enough.”

  “Don’t thank me yet, Alex. Give me twenty-four hours, and I’ll be eating a lobster dinner with you in the back room of Pauline’s.”

  Alexandria grinned. “Pauline doesn’t serve lobster.”

  “She will if you bring it in.” Delta winked at her.

  “You pull this off, and I’ll buy the damned restaurant.”

  Gently retrieving her hand, Delta wiped away a single tear clinging to the corner of Alexandria’s eye. “The lobster will suffice. I won’t let you down, Alex.”

  Smiling weakly and pulling her robe closed, Alexandria nodded. “You never have, Delta Stevens. Never.”

  It was almost 7:30 in the morning when Delta arrived at Connie’s. Connie answered the door dressed from cap to boot in a chauffeur’s uniform.

  “You rang?” Connie said in a deep voice.

  “Lurch was a butler, not a chauffeur. You give me the willies wearing that thing.”

  Connie held her hands up for Delta to see. “But at least I still have all my digits.”

  “Digits, maybe; marbles, I’m not so sure. Where’s all your hair?”

  Connie doffed her cap to reveal a short-cropped black head. “A wig from one of our Halloween parties. You like?”

  Delta shook her head. “Nope. I love you just the way you are, Chief.”

  “Aw, shucks.”

  “What time does she expect you?”

  “About 8:15.”

  “What about him?”

  “Appointments all day. He won’t be a problem.” Hopping in the cab of Delta’s truck, Connie set her cap in her lap and adjusted the wig. “Alex okay?”

  “It shook her up, but she handled it. She’s a pro.” For the next few minutes, they rode in silence until Delta turned up the street toward Sal’s house. Out in front sat a shiny, black limousine with Sal leaning against it, reading a magazine.

  “She’s ready to roll,” Sal said, rolling up a copy of Today’s Weapons magazine and putting it in her back pocket.

  “You’re incredible, Sal,” Connie said, hugging the little woman. “You finished her so soon?”

  Sal shrugged. “I called in a few favors.”

  “She’s a beaut,” Delta said, caressing the chrome bumper.

  “She’s okay for a limo.”

  “We should have her back to you in a few hours, Sal, and then we’ll set a date for that dinner we owe you.”

  “Owe, shmoe. When Josh and I go into the PI business, you can pay me back with all sorts of favors.”

  Checking her watch, Delta nudged Connie. “We should be off.”

  “Go get ’em, gals. Oh, and Con, just flip the little red switch on the door and it will activate the locks on all four doors. The button on the console will bring up the glass, and the knob will adjust the speaker volume. Let’s see...anything else?”

  “The keys?”

  “In the ignition. Good luck.”

  Connie smiled. “Thanks.”

  “You guys are an adventure. Oh, I gotta run. I’m expecting a fax from South America. Call me about dinner.” After hugging Delta and Connie goodbye, Sal dashed into the house.

  “I sure do like her,” Delta said.

  “I know. What’s not to like?”

  “You ready?”

  Connie nodded. “And you?”

  “I relish the opportunity of scaring the hell out of Mrs. Wainwright. Mess with my friends, will she?”

  “That, my dear, was Mrs. Wainwright’s greatest mistake.”

  Delta watched the limousine from a safe distance. It wouldn’t be much longer before Teresa Wainwright entered it for the ride of her life. Delta hummed a seventies sitcom theme song as she popped open the lid to her Chapstick. She was confident that this would save Alexandria’s career and keep Connie out of harm’s way. Squeezing Teresa Wainwright would likely be more fun than Delta imagined, and if she had to, she’d squeeze until she couldn’t squeeze anymore.

  Two minutes later, Delta saw the woman who had threatened Alexandria’s life and career saunter past Connie and say something to her before ducking her head into the back of the limo. Connie snapped Teresa’s door closed. Delta waited until the limousine pulled into the street before following them.

  Inside the truck, Delta grinned.

  Less than twenty-four hours ago, she’d felt defeated; like she’d lost a battle. Maybe she had. But in the end, she would win the war, and that was all that mattered: the end.

  She smiled to herself as she thought about the ending to a different story in the early years of her life. It was the bottom of the seventh, one out, her team was down two to one, with runners on second and third, and Delta was up. Delta’s coach called a time out and motioned her over.

  “You know they’re going to walk you,” her coach had said, putting her arm around Delta and turning her back to the field. Delta had a .312 batting average for the season and surpassed that at Nationals thus far. Walking her was the wisest choice.

  “I know.”

  “I want you to let the first three pitches go by. On the fourth, I want you to get your bat out there and lay down a squeeze.”

  Delta couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Suicide or safety?”

  Her coach smiled. Safety had never been Lynn’s style, and she wasn’t about to start changing now. “Suicide. They’ll never expect it. Tronvig’s been in a slump the whole tournament. We need to tie this thing up right now.”

  Delta had looked into Lynn Eubanks’ eyes at that moment and knew she could do it. Her whole life had been filled with women who believed in her. No wonder she felt the awesome responsibility of always coming through for others. It was her way of paying the universe back; her way of acknowledging that although she was born gifted, it took many, many people to mold her gifts into useful skills. Lynn Eubanks went against the grain that day; she made a call some coaches applauded and some criticized as too risky. But she wanted the game tied, and she put that responsibility in the hands of a woman she knew could come through. And come through, Delta did.

  Pulling a baseball cap over her head and putting on clear, wire-framed glasses, Delta followed the limo for about a mile before seeing Connie steer over to the side of the road and remain there.

  Pulling onto a side street and then walking up to the limo, Delta ripped the door open and sat next to Teresa before the shaken woman could utter a sound.

  “Hi there,” Delta said, closing the door. As she did, an ominous click reverberated throughout the car.

  “Driver!” Teresa said, tapping the glass. “Get this person out of here this instant!”

  Connie pulled her cap over her eyes and pretended to sleep. Teresa simply stared at Delta before raising her hands in the air. “I...I don’t have any money with me.”

  “Neither do I,” Delta quipped, tapping the glass. Without looking, Connie adjusted her cap and continued driving.

  “Oh...my...goodness...” Mrs. Wainwright said, grabbing her chest.

  “You wouldn’t know goodness if it bit you on the ass.”

  Teresa went pale and backed as far away from Delta as she could. “Please, don’t hurt me. My husband—”

  “Is a jackass, Mrs. Wainwright. And you needn’t worry that we’re going to harm you.” Delta pulled the videotape from her inner jacket pocket and popped it in the VCR tucked in the far corner of the limo. “I have something here that I think you’ll be quite interested in. I want you to watch it in complete silence, and when we’re through, then we can talk. Do you understand?”

  Teresa Wainwright n
odded and started for her purse. “I need a cigarette.”

  “And give me your secondhand smoke? I think not. Just watch the video.” Pressing play, Delta leaned back into the soft, black leather. As the tape flickered on the screen, Delta watched Mrs. Wainwright go completely white as she saw herself walk into the camera view.

  “What is this?”

  “I said without a word, Mrs. Wainwright. Don’t make me have to gag you.”

  Ball one.

  When the video came to the part where she was speaking to the shooter, she raised one hand to her mouth to stifle an anguished yelp. “Turn it off.”

  “Nope. No can do. The best part is yet to come.”

  Teresa Wainwright watched the remainder of the tape in complete silence. When it was over, she cleared her throat and said in a voice indistinguishable from her own, “How much?”

  Ejecting the tape and placing it back in her pocket, Delta crossed her legs. “How much what?”

  “Please. Let’s not play games, Ms—”

  Delta smiled. “No, that would be Agent,” Delta replied, pulling Connie’s fake FBI badge out and showing it to Teresa. The cool, haughty arrogance in her eyes went out like a light.

  Ball two.

  “I see,” she said coldly, ineffectively trying to hide her fear.

  “I don’t think you do.” Putting the badge away, Delta turned and faced Teresa Wainwright. “Have you any idea what the sentence is for conspiracy to commit murder?”

  “I’m married to a lawyer, Agent—”

  “Storm. Agent Storm.”

  “Well, Agent Storm, I am aware of many things concer—”

  “Then you must know that this tape is going to send you to the Big House and destroy your husband’s career. You’re going to jail, Teresa, and if we can prove it, so will your husband.”

  “No! He had nothing to do with this. I swear! He would die if he knew...if...”

  “I’m afraid you won’t really enjoy the prison cuisine, Teresa, and the weekly strip-searches—”

  Teresa narrowed her gaze at Delta. “Please, that’s enough. What is it you want from me?”

  Ball three.

  “Want? What makes you think I want anything?”