Sedona Law 6 by Dave Daren (ebook pdf reader for pc .TXT) 📕

don’t know,” she laughed and waved her palm. “I’m not an investigator or anything. I’m just a wedding planner that reads too many websites. And watches too many mystery shows.”

She gestured toward Benedict on the wall and laughed. Vicki and I didn’t say anything.

“So back to your wedding website,” she said.

“Right, right,” Vicki said and pointed to a template. “I think I like this one. But I’m not sure about this font.”

“That’s a good observation,” she said. “The designer on that one couldn’t decide either, so he recommended multiple fonts that would work well with this template.”

Vicki and Jessica agonized over fonts for the next twenty minutes or so, but I didn’t hear a word of it.

The trumpet was poisoned?

Chapter 21

We drove up to a small brown wooden house with a terracotta style roof and a copious flower garden.

“I guess if I had had to guess where AJ lived,” Vicki said. “It wouldn’t be here. I’d always imagined something a little more artsy.”

“She lives with her mom,” I said as we exited the vehicle.

AJ greeted us in the driveway. Outside of work, she wore denim shorts and combat boots, and a black tee under a studded black faux leather jacket.

“Hey,” she said in a somber tone. “He’s inside.”

“He’s in a lot of trouble if…” my voice trailed off.

“He didn’t do it,” she said. “I swear, I know him. He didn’t do it.”

“If he knows who did and doesn’t say,” Vicki said. “He could get in a lot of trouble in the end.”

AJ rubbed her forehead in stress. “This is all so complicated.”

“Can we just talk to him?” I asked.

“Yeah,” she said, and motioned us inside.

We followed her up a stone pathway and into the house.

The front door opened to a foyer hallway, and a gorgeous abstract canvas painting filled most of the entryway. It looked like a Picasso imitation, with bold dark colors, and boxy shapes.

“My sister,” AJ said once she noticed me staring at it.

“She painted this?” I asked.

I didn’t know AJ had a sister, and I wondered if Harmony knew her.

“Yeah,” AJ’s tone was clipped. “Before...well, anyway.”

“Before what?” I asked.

“She died,” she stated simply. “Hit and run. She was fifteen.”

“I’m sorry, AJ,” I said. “I had no idea.”

“I don’t talk about it,” she said, “But that’s why I started that blog in the first place. I was going through a dark period and wanted to solve crimes. That’s why I don’t like people I know to read my poetry, because it’s about all her and the accident and I don’t want people to ask me about it.”

“Well,” I said. “You’ve helped a lot of people over the past year.”

She smiled weakly. “Yeah.”

She gestured into the living room. It was a spacious room, all in earth tones, and brown linoleum. Large windows let in the sunlight and brown and wicker seating spaces, dotted the large room, accented by luscious green plants at intervals. Several ceiling fans silently swirled and the breeze occasionally shook the leaves.

Ana and Tony sat on the couch.

“Thank you for coming,” Ana stood and shook our hands. She looked more at ease than she was at the police station. She moved about her home with grace in a flowing blue dress, and leather sandals.

“Can I get you something to drink?” her voice was calm, and its peaceful tone belonged in the earthen room.

“No,” I said. “We’re good.”

AJ stood in the entryway and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed arms and watched the exchange.

“Have a seat,” Ana offered Vicki and me.

We sat across from Tony who looked annoyed.

“I told the lady everything I know,” he insisted. “I don’t know anything else. Believe me. If I knew more, I would tell it, because of the immunity thing.”

“But the immunity only covered the smuggling,” I said, “and you knew that.”

“Of course I knew that,” he said.

“So you knew that anything you said about James’ death,” I said, “wasn’t covered under that deal.”

He was quiet and studied the floor.

“Look,” I said. “We’re lawyers, we can’t send you to jail. But, if you know about James’ death, you’re in a lot of hot water. We can help you navigate this process, but we’ve got to know what you’re dealing with.”

“Fuck,” he stood and ran his hands though his long dark hair. “I did everything you asked me today!”

His voice rose with frustration. “Please, I know you’re good with AJ and all, but please, talk to someone else. Talk to Roy. Talk to Irwin. Talk to Brent. I don’t know anything else!”

“Tony, Tony,” Ana said softly. “Calm down. It’s okay. They’re just here to help.”

On the other side of the room, AJ traced the floor with her boot. Tony shook his head at Ana.

“I can’t do this,” he said. “I’m sorry, AJ.”

He swiftly marched toward the front door. I did the only thing I could think of to get him to stay.

“I know about the trumpet,” I blurted out.

Tony stopped dead in his tracks.

“It was poisoned,” I continued. “And I know you know where it is.”

I didn’t know any of those things. I was just talking out of my ass. Fishing is the technical term. But, Tony turned around aan looked at me with a horrified expression.

“Do the police know?” he choked out.

Ho-ly fuck. Our wedding planner was right.

“Not yet,” I said. “But they will. Tell us what you know, and we can help you.”

He slowly walked back to the couch, and I caught AJ’s expression. She looked purely shocked.

“What about the trumpet, Tony?” she asked as she joined him on the couch.

“I don’t know that he was going to use it for that,” Tony said.