Cutler's Friend (#3) - paperback

Chapter 1

Even though it was a wig, the long blond hair looked natural. It cascaded beyond her left clavicle yet did nothing to disguise the breadth of her shoulders. The length of the purple dress was below her knees. The fabric seemed airy and light—perfect for a summer evening. Perhaps, it clung a little too tight to her midsection, but it was still a nice choice.

She strolled by the restaurant’s windows but didn’t bother to look in. Maybe it was confidence. Perhaps it was because she had no idea what I looked like and gawking for me would call further attention to herself. Had she looked, though, I might have waved—probably would have waved. Regardless, she flowed by the window—a big woman on a mission.

I’d already waited twenty minutes for Terry Newsome to arrive. Better to be early than arrive tardy and discover she left upon not finding me. The meeting was my request and expected to take only a few minutes. Therefore, it was my burden to be there first, even if that meant some missed time with my visiting daughter.

This was Erin’s final day in town. We spent most of it together in Riverfront Park. Above everything, she wanted to ride the Looff Carrousel once more before leaving. It seemed a funny request from a newly minted teenager, but I agreed to do it again—anything to keep the little girl in her alive a while longer. Tomorrow morning, she would head home to the west side of the state and her mother. It was surprising how fast a week went by.

After stepping inside, Terry Newsome clutched a small purse and searched the lobby. Not seeing me there, her eyes went deeper into the restaurant until she saw my raised hand.

As she strode in my direction, I noticed her heels. They were light purple and matched the dress. They weren’t too high but tall enough for me to appreciate. It made it tough to gauge her height but not her poise. Terry was a graceful woman.

She stopped next to the table. “Mr. Cutler?”

I nodded. “Call me John.”

Tucking her dress behind her knees, she slid into the booth. She set her purse on the seat next to her. “Thank you.”

“For?”

“Being polite.” Her eyes flicked briefly toward the bar.

It was then I noticed it. The high rumble of chatter that had been in the restaurant before Terry’s entrance was now a low hum of rumor and innuendo. Many heads turned in our direction.

“We can go elsewhere,” I said. “Some place more discreet.”

She waved a dismissive hand. “It’s the same wherever. Nothing changes.”

I didn’t know what to say, so I remained quiet. I’d already made peace with my biases. Terry Newsome was born differently than she dressed. It was something I couldn’t quite comprehend. Maybe it made her feel good. Perhaps she was searching for something. My job wasn’t to criticize her choices. It was to get something back.

A server in her mid-twenties walked over and opened her notepad. She cast a bored glance to Terry then eyed me with equal apathy. “Can I get you two something?” She’d probably worked a downtown restaurant long enough to see this type of scene before.

Terry’s eyes shifted to the server. “Just a water, please. No ice. With a slice of lemon.”

“You?” she asked me. “Ready now?”

“A cup of decaf. Black.”

“Anything else?”

I shook my head.

She frowned and walked off.

“A couple of big spenders,” Terry said.

The bar must have gotten bored with Terry’s presence because the roar of after-work excitement returned. Behind me, a table full of fraternity rejects cheered something occurring on a television.

I leaned in. “Where’s it at?”

Terry sighed. “Why won’t she talk with me?”

“That’s not my concern. Marian hired me to get the ring back.”

“A private investigator.” She frowned and turned to look through the window. Or maybe she was checking out her reflection. Whatever she was doing was wasting time I could potentially spend with my daughter.

“Please, Terry. I need the ring. She’s prepared to pay for it.”

Her face contorted, but she continued to look out the window. “You think I did it for money?”

“I don’t know why you did it.”

Looking at me now, she said, “I want her to talk with me.”

“She’s not going to. That’s why she got the no-contact order.”

“I didn’t do anything to deserve that.”

“The court thinks differently. Then you went and proved them right by taking the ring.”

“But she’s avoiding me.”

I stared at her.

“Why won’t she talk with me?” Terry whined.

“I’m not a counselor. Where’s the ring?”

She shrugged.

“Let’s not play this game. You took it to hurt her.”

Terry held a hand to her chest and feigned shock.

“We both know it worked. Now, give it back.”

Her features hardened. “Not until she talks with me.”

“The no-contact order,” I reminded her.

“Totally bogus.”

“You didn’t leave harassing phone calls at her work?”

She rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe I shouldn’t have done that, but I was upset.” She tapped the table. “Why is she the only one who gets to be upset? She broke it off. I’m hurt, too.”

“That’s old news.”

“Not to me.”

“We’re not going to change it tonight.”

Terry looked away—this time into the bar. She must have seen something she didn’t like because she turned back. “Some people,” she muttered.

“Where’s it at, Terry? Where’s the ring?”

“I don’t know.”
Terry leaned back from the table as the server returned. The younger woman placed a glass of water in front of Terry and a white ceramic mug in front of me. She also set a small container of sugar and powdered milk packets on the table. “Change your mind on something to eat?”

I shook my head.

“Maybe later,” Terry offered cheerfully.

The server nodded politely and walked away.

“Nice girl,” Terry said.

“The ring. For the third time, where is it?”

She pulled her glass to her and lifted the lemon slice from the water. With manicured fingers, Terry squeezed it. “For the third time—I do not know.”

“You were the only one who knew where it was, the only one who knows how much that ring meant, and the only one who knew how to get into Marian’s house without a key.”

“Please.” She bit into the fruit slice and puckered. Her face scrunched, and she playfully shook her head. The long hair flopped away from her left shoulder. When she regained her composure, Terry pulled the hair back to where it was previously. “When she got the ring, Marian showed it to all our friends. Told everyone how it had been her mother’s. How her father had scrimped and saved to buy it, then proposed on his knee up at Cliff Park. Blah blah blah. Oh, my God, she loves that story. Everyone knew what it meant and where she kept it. Somebody else has it.”

“No one else took it. You did.”

Terry looked at the window again. This time I was sure she was considering her reflection since she briefly made duck lips. “After her mother died…” Terry let the words hang in the air for so long I thought she lost her train of thought. She inhaled deeply and held it. Then she said, “Marian changed. She wasn’t the woman I got involved with anymore.”

It was the pot calling the kettle black, and I’d had enough. This should have been a simple handoff, but Terry was making it a bigger show than it needed to be. Because of that, I was missing time with Erin. The whole thing pissed me off.

“So, what if she changed? I’m sure the same thing could be said of you, Terrance.”

She slowly turned to me as her eyes narrowed.

I’d gone too far, and I knew it. As a private investigator, dealing with people is often an artform—one I’m not always proficient in. It’s especially tough when I’m battling my own prejudices. There’s an old saying about catching more flies with honey, but I’m just as likely to bring a pile of feces to capture those same flies.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“Neanderthal.”

I raised a hand in deference. “I am sorry.”

She grabbed her purse and glared at me.

“Listen,” I said, “Marian hasn’t reported the ring stolen. She doesn’t want you in any more trouble. She just wants it back.”

Terry’s jaw tightened, and her eyes bore into me. “Pay the tab.”

“Huh?”

“The ring is in my car.” She slid out of the booth and slung the purse over her shoulder.

“For real?”

“The sooner I give it back, the sooner I can be away from you and done with this whole mess.”

I laid a ten-dollar bill on the table and stood.

Terry led the way out of the restaurant. On the heels, she stood a couple of inches taller than I am. Even from this view, I was still impressed by her dexterity in the shoes.

Once outside, she stopped on the sidewalk and stared up at the Claremont Apartments where I previously lived. “How many stories are in this city?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“That old television show,” Terry said. “Eight million stories in the city. How many are in this one? Two hundred thousand?” She faced me. “Well, this is my story.” She grabbed her dress and splayed it out. “Marian knew this is who I was. Who I am. I didn’t keep anything secret.”

I don’t know when Marian learned about the dresses, but she seemed okay with it. She explained when Terrance got made up like this, he desired to be called a woman and referred to with feminine labels. Marian might not have fully grasped what Terrance felt, but she used terms like gender fluidity and dysphoria to describe what he was going through.

Tears welled in Terry’s eyes. “I never would have thought it would come to this. Her sending a goon after me.”

“Aw, hell, Terry. You took the ring, and I’m no goon.”

She wiped away some tears and smeared her mascara. “You’re bought and paid for. That’s the definition of a goon.”

Through the bank of windows lining the restaurant, several patrons watched us. A table full of men laughed at Terry. Maybe they were laughing at me, too. I don’t know. Seeing their intolerance so blatantly on display made me ashamed of my own. I scowled at them, but that seemed to make them laugh harder.

“Do you think you can stop me?” Tears rolled down her cheeks.

“What?”

Terry angrily wiped her chin. “I’m not giving it to you. Not now.”

“What did I do?”

Inside the bar, the guys at the window howled with delight. One of them jumped and pointed. It seemed others were crowding around their table to get an eyeful of the big woman as she melted down.

Terry must have caught their motion from the corner of her eye because she turned to watch them. She pulled her shoulders back, set her jaw, and took a deep breath. “I want to talk with her. Not you.”

“But you can’t.”

Once more, Terry faced me. “You’re not going to tell me what I can and can’t do.” She lifted the palm of her hand and held it in front of my face. “I’m done.”

She turned to leave, but I grabbed her wrist.

Shocked, Terry said, “Let go.”

“Wait.”

She tried to yank free, but I held tight.

“Get your hand off me.”

“Not until you give me the ring.”

Anger flared in her eyes. “I’ll cry rape.”

I barked a single laugh. “Get real. Nobody’s gonna believe—”

With her free hand, she slapped my face.

I should have prepared for it. My laugh was disrespectful, and this moment was already charged enough. It wasn’t the first time a woman slapped me, but it was the first time it had the power of a large man behind it. I spun, my knees buckled, and I fell into a window.

The group inside the restaurant cheered with delight. This is what it must feel like to be on the other side of the glass in a hockey rink.

When I righted myself, Terry was already moving down the sidewalk. Damn, she flowed in those heels. She crossed the street and was into the neighboring parking lot before I made it to her.

“Terry,” I hollered. “Wait.”

She stopped digging in her purse. “Stay away from me. I’m warning you.”

“The ring.” I held out my hand. “Maybe Marian will talk after she has it back.”

“You’re trying to trick me.”

“I just want the ring.”

“Walk away now. You don’t want this fight.”

“I don’t want to hit a woman.” I felt stupid for saying that, but I was trying—really trying—to be respectful.

She set her purse on the hood of her car and lifted her hands. “This will go badly for you.”

I smiled. “Terry, I think you have me confused with someone else. You’re not going to surprise me again.”

A crowd from the bar formed on the opposite corner. Several of them chanted, “Fight! Fight!” while the rest hooted with derisive laughter.

Terry shifted her weight onto the balls of her feet. She looked like a fighter preparing for the bell to start a round. It was odd to see a woman in a dress and heels assume that posture.

I spread my hands wide and affected a disarming smile. “C’mon, man, are we really going to do this?”

“Man?”

She jabbed. It was so fast and straight that I didn’t see it coming until it hit me in the face. I stumbled back a couple of feet. Terry moved forward. The grace she had shown before was nothing like she displayed now. She was crouched and on the balls of her feet—the heels were off the ground.

Across the street, the assembled mob roared with laughter. “Bitch blasted you good!” someone yelled.

I lifted my hands to a guard position and blinked the tears from my eyes.

“I was a Golden Gloves champion,” Terry said. “Treat me with some respect.”

“I’m trying, man. All I want—”

“Man?”

She fired another jab—a beautiful stiff one. But I spotted it and rolled under it. The pride I felt in my evasive move was short-lived as I realized too late the punch was only a decoy. It moved me to where she wanted—bent over and looking up. A right cross clicked across my chin, and I dropped to the ground.

The crowd danced and cheered with delight.

“Stay down,” Terry said. “You’re no match.”

I lifted a hand in surrender. She was right. Even in heels, she was right. Humiliated, I rolled to my butt and touched my jaw.

Terry walked to her car and picked up her purse. It only took a moment to find her keys.

“Hey,” I said.

She opened the driver’s door.

“Give me the ring.”

“Like hell.”

“Or I’m gonna call the cops.”

Terry paused as she had started to climb in. “So?”

Shakily, I stood. The second punch was a hell of a shot.

“What are you going to tell them?” she asked. “That you accosted me?”

“Is that what the witnesses will say?”

She looked over my shoulder to the still-hooting crowd.

“You think I’m embarrassed to say I got beat up by a woman?” I was, but the whole bar saw. It was too late for my pride now.

Terry’s gaze returned to me.

“And when I tell them you’re a Golden Gloves champion, well, that’s going to look pretty bad. I mean, I had no chance, right? You even said so.”

Her face slackened when I reached into my pocket and pulled out my flip phone.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Calling the cops like I said.”

She lifted a hand. “Wait.”

“And when I tell them you stole Marian’s ring, she can get it back that way. I mean, she didn’t want to involve the cops, but she didn’t say anything about me not calling them. I don’t know why I didn’t think of this sooner. Would have saved a lot of embarrassment.”

“Wait a goddamned minute!”

I lowered the phone.

She pointed into her car. “It’s in the console.”

Terry bent inside. When she stepped back out, she tossed a little box. Inside was a simple diamond ring. It hardly seemed worth the fuss, but most family heirlooms weren’t. I snapped the box closed.

Terry said, “I only wanted her to know how much she hurt me.”

“She knows.”

“She changed the locks before she told me we were over. Who does that?”

I started to turn.

“Tell her I love her.”

“She knows,” I called over my shoulder.

“I’ll always love her,” he yelled.

“She probably knows that, too.”

I was halfway to the laughing crowd when I thought better of it. Turning south, I headed into the alley. It was the long way back to my truck but screw it. My ego was bruised enough. I didn’t need to go through a bunch of jackals just to show their words wouldn’t hurt me.