A Palette for Murder Read online

  The officer whistled. “Lots of distracted drivers out there. I see it all the time. Sounds like you were lucky he was around.”

  “I know.” If it hadn’t been for the homeless man’s quick action, she would have landed in the hospital or worse.

  He looked over at Liz who was standing nearby, petting Buddy. “What about you, ma’am? Do you know anything about this Kit?”

  “Wish I knew something that would help. I’ve seen him around town, but I’ve only exchanged a few words with him.”

  “Did you two see anyone nearby when you found him? Maybe someone talking to him or walking away?”

  Rory thought back to the discovery, mentally retracing her steps from the stairs down to the beach across the sand to the water’s edge. “Not really. Just the lifeguard and those guys.” She nodded toward the beachgoers ten yards away who had now returned to their sunbathing. “The dog was barking and the lifeguard was trying to grab his leash, but no one was anywhere near Kit.” She glanced at the beach in the opposite direction. “Not that I could see, anyway. From where I was standing, though, I couldn’t see the other side of the pier. Whoever hit him could have walked under the pier across the sand on the north side and blended in with the crowd.”

  “Was he conscious when you found him? Did he say anything to you?”

  “Barely. He mumbled a name. Zoe, I think. There were a couple words before that, but I couldn’t make them out. I could hardly hear him. I might be mistaken about the name.”

  Officer Carr kept taking notes.

  “Do either of you have any idea who this Zoe is? A relative, maybe?”

  Rory and Liz both said no.

  “What about his phone?” Rory said. “Was it in his pocket? Maybe her number’s in it.”

  “Or at least emergency contact info,” Liz said.

  “He has a cell phone?”

  “I’ve seen him use one. An old flip-phone model.”

  “We didn’t find anything on him. This his stuff?” He nodded to the bicycle leaning against the post. “Maybe his wallet and the phone are in there.”

  Rory handed Buddy’s leash to Liz, who kept the dog occupied while the other two searched Kit’s belongings. Neither of the items they were looking for were in any of the bags. The only thing of interest Rory found was a picture of a clean-shaven younger version of Kit with a woman about his age. From the pose, Rory suspected she was his girlfriend or wife. She turned it over. “Me and Zoe” was written in a scrawl across the back. “This is the name he mentioned. At least now we have a face to go with it.” She handed the photo to the officer.

  “Do either of you recognize her?”

  They shook their heads.

  “I’ll take this, ask around. Someone might know something.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Poor guy. I always feel sorry for anyone who lives on the streets. It might be warm and relatively safe here at the beach, but it’s not like having a comfy bed to go home to every night.”

  “Before you leave, can we take a photo of it? We can ask around ourselves, see if anyone recognizes her. She might know about Kit’s medical history. I couldn’t tell the paramedics anything when they asked,” Rory said.

  “Good idea.” The officer held the photo while they took a picture of it with their smart phones. “Does the dog belong to him? Do you want me to call animal control? They’ll put him in a shelter until Kit gets better.”

  Rory and Liz exchanged glances.

  “That’s okay,” Rory finally said. “We’ll take care of him.”

  “That’s fine, but remember, dogs aren’t allowed on the beach. Better take him somewhere before someone complains. You know where the animal shelter is, right? I don’t want to see him running around town.”

  Rory nodded. “Don’t worry. We’ll make sure he has a home. What are you going to do now?”

  “We’ll do our best to catch the son of…um…the person who hit him. Let me know if you remember anything that can help. Thanks for your time, ladies. If I need anything else, I know where to find you.” Officer Carr headed toward the group sunbathing nearby and began questioning them.

  Rory knelt down on the sand, wrapped her arms around the golden retriever’s neck, and placed the side of her face against his. “Don’t worry, Buddy,” she said softly. “Everything will be okay. Your pal is in good hands.”

  Chapter 2

  “What are we going to do with him?” Liz nodded toward Buddy. “You’re not really planning on taking him to the animal shelter, are you?” she said, the horror unmistakable in her voice.

  Rory buried her face in the retriever’s fur before standing up. “I don’t like the idea of his going to the pound any more than you do. We need to find him a temporary home. I could take him, but I’m worried he won’t be happy with me. He’s used to constant companionship.”

  “And I’ve got a condo that doesn’t allow dogs.” Liz tapped her chin. After a moment of thought, her face brightened. “I’ve got it! I just sold a house with a big backyard to a client. Double lot in the eastern part of town. I hear they’re looking for a second dog. Buddy will need someone to play with.” She handed the leash to Rory so she could make the call.

  “Make sure they know it’s only temporary.”

  Liz nodded in acknowledgement as she scrolled through the contacts in her cell phone until she found the number she was looking for. After a brief conversation, she hung up and turned to her friend with a smile on her face. “All set. They’re happy to take care of him.”

  “Do we need to give them money for food? He’s a big dog. I bet he eats a lot.”

  “They said not to worry about it.”

  “That’s generous of them.” Rory handed the dog’s leash back to Liz.

  “They’re generous people. They’ll take care of whatever he needs, bath, food, vet.”

  “His fur’s pretty clean. Kit must have bathed him recently. I think he usually takes him in the restroom and cleans him up.”

  Liz looked down at the golden retriever who sat obediently by her side. “Well, Buddy, you’ve got a new home waiting for you and a new friend to play with. Don’t worry, though, it’s only temporary. You’ll see your pal as soon as he’s well enough.”

  The dog looked up at her and barked his approval.

  “While you take care of Buddy, I’m going to stash Kit’s things at my place. They’ll be safe there.” Rory glanced back at the bicycle still propped against the concrete post, piled high with so many bags the wheels and handlebars were barely visible. “That’s probably everything he has in the world.”

  “I don’t know if the bike will fit in my car.”

  “It’ll fit in mine, but it’ll take me a while to go home and drive back here. I don’t like the idea of leaving his stuff unattended for that long.” Rory thought about it for a moment, then called her mother on her cell. Less than five minutes later, she’d arranged to store the bicycle at her mother’s store within walking distance of the pier. “We’ll have to postpone our shopping trip.”

  Liz waved away the comment. “This is more important. We have plenty of time.”

  “Tonight’s the software test, and I have some work to do before then. Is tomorrow morning okay?”

  “Sure.” Liz picked up the trash bag filled with empty cans. “Let me take care of the recycling. That bike is enough for you to deal with.”

  While Liz led Buddy to her car, Rory wheeled the heavily laden bicycle across the sand on the north side of the pier until she found a spot where the beach was level with the bicycle path. She paused to wash her feet at the shower at the edge of the sand, then put on her flip-flops and traveled along the path and up the hill toward Main Street. The bags banged against her leg as she climbed. Half the people she encountered took one glance at the bike with its mountain of plastic bags and frowned, the other half avoided looking at her altogether. Sh
e ignored them and concentrated on pushing the bike up the steep incline. At the top, she paused to catch her breath.

  After the short break, she continued her trek, turning into the alleyway that ran behind her mother’s tole painting and scrapbooking supply store. She rested the bike against the wall before unlocking the back door of Arika’s Scrap ’n Paint, calling out to her mother as she walked from the back room through the empty classroom out onto the sales floor where Arika Anderson was talking with a slender woman clad in a vibrantly colored dress that flowed around her ankles. Arika stood next to the cash register while the owner of Beach Healing and Acupuncture stood on the other side of the counter. A paper bag rested on the surface between them.

  “…will improve your health by leaps and bounds. You and Swan will feel years younger in no time,” Willow Bingen was saying as Rory entered the room.

  “Are you and Dad okay?” Rory’s chest tightened at the thought her parents might be sick.

  Arika waved away her daughter’s concern. “We’re healthy as horses. No need to worry.”

  The charm bracelet on Willow’s wrist jingled as she pushed the paper bag across the counter. “Maybe you can convince your mother this is what she needs.”

  Rory opened the bag and sniffed. Cinnamon, ginger and a smell she didn’t recognize filled her nostrils. “What is it?”

  “Tea. My own special blend. You should try it. Never too early to worry about strengthening your immune system.”

  Arika plucked the bag out of Rory’s hand and pushed it back across the counter. “I appreciate your concern, but we’re feeling fine. I don’t know where you got the idea we weren’t.” She turned toward her daughter. “You brought the bike?”

  “It’s in the alley.”

  Arika led the way into the back room with a sigh of relief that was short lived when Willow followed them, keeping up a nonstop monologue on the healing properties of herbs.

  “Lord help me,” Arika muttered in an exasperated tone.

  Rory glanced over at Willow, but the woman seemed not to have heard the comment.

  “You can put it over there.” Rory’s mother pointed toward a spot in the back corner of the combination storage room/office. “There should be enough room for it.”

  Rory wheeled the bike inside and set it in the space carved out for it. “Thanks for doing this, Mom. I’ll come get it later with my car.”

  “Not necessary. It can stay here as long as needed.”

  Willow wrinkled her nose in disgust. “I’m surprised at you, Rory. Walking around town with a bike that looks like that. You can’t even ride it with all those bags hanging on it. Why do you need them, anyway?”

  Rory struggled to keep the anger out of her voice. “It belongs to a friend of mine who’s in the hospital.”

  “Homeless.” Willow nodded in satisfaction, pleased with herself that she’d recognized the truth. “When I moved here, I didn’t expect to find so many homeless in such a wealthy community. The good weather attracts them, I suppose. The city should do more about them though. Thieves, that’s what they all are, thieves. I’ll have to have a talk with—”

  Arika raised her voice and turned to her daughter. “Do the police know what happened?”

  “Police?” Willow said. “Why are you talking to the police? Did your friend attack someone?”

  Rory bit her lip to prevent herself from saying something she would regret. She turned her back on Willow and addressed her mother. “Looks like Kit was hit over the head and the heat got to him. I’m going down to the hospital to check on him soon. He was in pretty bad shape.”

  “Do the police know who did it?” Willow asked.

  Rory shook her head.

  “We’ll have to wait until he regains consciousness. He was pretty out of it when we found him.”

  “Probably got into a scuffle with someone over who could panhandle where,” Willow said. “Men and their dogs. One and the same, squabbling over territory.”

  “What about relatives?” Arika asked. “Are the police notifying them?”

  “I don’t know if he has any or if he even wants them to know where he is. He did mention a name though. I think he wants me to find her.” Rory brought a photo up on her cell phone and showed it to her mother. “Have you ever seen her? Her name’s Zoe.”

  Arika stared at the photo.

  “No one resembling her has come into the store. What about you, Willow? Do you know her?”

  The woman barely looked at the phone’s screen before shaking her head. “Haven’t seen her around town.” She glanced at her amber bracelet watch. “I’d better be off. I have a client coming in soon. I’ll leave the tea, no charge.” She placed the paper bag on the desk. “If you want more, remember my store’s just a few doors down.”

  As soon as Willow left, Arika sighed with relief and threw the tea in a trashcan. “She was getting on my nerves.”

  “Are you feeling okay? You’re not sick again, are you?”

  Arika patted her daughter on the arm. “Everything’s fine. That was in the past. I’m back to normal now. Willow’s just trying to drum up more business for her store. She’s been making her way down the street, giving away samples of her ‘special tea’ to everyone.” She pointed at the bicycle. “Maybe there’s something else in Kit’s belongings that will tell us how to find Zoe. Did you check everything?”

  “Wouldn’t hurt to look again.” They searched each bag. In one, they found toothpaste along with a toothbrush and tiny bars of soap with a local hotel’s name on it. In several others were a pair of clean but well-worn jeans and a handful of t-shirts—one for every day of the week—tennis shoes, socks and clean underwear. A bag of laundry rounded out the clothes. Rory set it aside to take home to wash.

  She checked the flyleaves of the two books she found, hoping Kit’s full name was inside, but nothing was written on the pages. Tucked in with the books was a paper bag that contained a half-eaten sandwich, an apple, and a slip of paper with a Bible verse written on it.

  Arika stared at the bag in her daughter’s hand. “That looks like one of the lunches from the church. You know who might know something? Reverend Paulson. He talks to a lot of the men and women who stop by for the weekly lunch giveaway. Maybe he can tell you more about Kit and give you a lead on Zoe.”

  “That’s today, isn’t it? The food is pretty fresh. He must have gotten it earlier. I’ll check with Reverend Paulson on my way home. If Kit got his lunch before someone hit him, they might have seen something. Maybe he got into a fight at the church.”

  After returning everything except the bag of laundry to its place on the bike, Rory said goodbye to her mother and headed out the door.

  Chapter 3

  When Rory rounded the corner onto Seashell Lane, she spotted a dozen men and women waiting patiently by the side door of the church she and her parents attended. A volunteer stood just inside the door, handing out lunch bags to the line which extended into the neighboring parking lot.

  She walked around the building and entered the church complex through another entrance, making her way down the familiar hallways past the sanctuary to the community room, where she found Reverend Paulson in the kitchen area, elbow deep in water, washing dishes.

  When the minister spotted her, he smiled, rinsed the last dish and put it in the drainer. “Come to help out? I’m sure we can find something for you to do.” He wiped his hands on a dishtowel.

  “Not today. I actually need your help. I think this man was here earlier. His name’s Kit.” She showed the minister a photo she’d taken of Kit and his dog the week before followed by the one of the younger version of Kit and the woman. “Do you know how I can find her? Her name’s Zoe.”

  He peered at the photo on the phone’s screen. “I’ve seen him around, but not the young lady. Is something wrong?”

  “I found him hurt on the beach
today. Before he was taken to the hospital, he asked me to find her. At least I think that’s what he wanted. He was a little incoherent.”

  The minister leaned against the sink and frowned in concentration. “He’s a regular. I don’t know much about him. I don’t have as much time to talk with everyone as I would like. If he’s who I’m thinking of, we haven’t exchanged more than a dozen words in the time he’s been coming here. Maybe one of the volunteers knows more.” He waved his hand in a come-with-me gesture and headed through the community room to a nearby storeroom where a middle-aged woman was checking supplies off a list. “You know Kit, don’t you, Victoria?” he said to the woman. “Was he here today?”

  “Sure was. Came and got his lunch at eleven on the dot like he always does. Why?”

  “He’s in the hospital. He asked me to find Zoe for him.” Rory showed her the picture.

  “I don’t recognize her.” Victoria frowned. “That’s too bad. When he was here earlier, he was coughing a bit, but I didn’t think anything of it. I guess it was more than just a cold. He never mentioned anyone named Zoe, sorry.”

  “Did you see him get into a fight with anyone?”

  “No fights, not today.”

  “Are there many?”

  “We get the occasional scuffle, but overall everyone’s pretty nice to each other.”

  Rory and the minister checked with the other volunteers, but no one could tell her anything she didn’t already know. After Reverend Paulson promised to call if he found out anything, Rory walked the rest of the way home and picked up her car for the short drive to the hospital. At the information desk, a volunteer checked the computer. When she couldn’t find Kit in the system, she made a phone call before she handed Rory a visitor’s badge and gave her directions to his room.