"Excuse me," she called, and he turned around. He then realized who she was. He stopped and put his hands in his pockets.
"I"m sorry..." she started and introduced herself. She held out her hand, and he hesitated before he took it.
"Mark Rhodes," he grumbled and let go of her hand. Rae didn"t bat an eye as she recalled the name.
"It"s a terrible tragedy, this accident," Rae said softly as she watched him.
He frowned as he looked around the street. "Yeah" was all he said. His voice wavered a bit.
"How well did you know Amy?" she asked affably and leaned against the building.
He put a foot up on a b.u.mper of a car and sighed heavily. He then looked at her. "How well did you know her?"
She knew then that he was aware of who she was. She gave him a half smile. "Not near as well as I would have liked."
He softened a bit and only nodded. "I"ve known her for a couple years. We both go to Northwestern. I noticed Professor Connelly, she"s a good woman. Amy liked her."
He then looked Rae in the eye. Rae raised an eyebrow as he looked like he was going to say something profound. She waited, then he looked away.
"Well," he started, and Rae interrupted him.
"What do you think Amy was doing by the Chicago River? The police said her blood alcohol content was high. They also thought drugs might have been in her system, as well. Did you see her at all that week?"
He glared at her then, taking his foot off the b.u.mper. He was a bit taller than Rae but not much heavier. Rae looked at him and didn"t move.
"I don"t know what she was doing there. And no, the last time I saw her was a few days before. I-I went out of town and got back the other day. So if you want to go running to the police, go ahead. I"ve got an alibi."
Rae gave him a curious look. "The police have determined it to be an accident."
He searched her face as if trying to figure her out. "And you agree, right?"
"Shouldn"t I?"
"Look, are you a cop or private investigator?"
Rae sighed and shook her head. Again with the PI... "No, Mark, I"m neither. I just want to find out what the h.e.l.l happened."
He ran a tired hand over his face and took a deep breath. "I don"t know. Look, Amy didn"t do drugs ever. She got mixed up," he started, then stopped. Rae watched him in silence.
"I gotta go," he said quickly, then looked at her. "If you"re trying to find out something, you"d better be careful, that"s all I"m saying. You don"t know." He stopped and ran his fingers through his hair. "I gotta go."
Rae grabbed his arm as he turned to leave. She took out her business card and handed it to him. He hesitated for a moment, then took it.
"Anytime, Mark... For any reason." She touched his arm. She noticed for an instant that his lower lip quivered. Their eyes met, and he blinked once or twice. He straightened and put the card in his breast pocket.
"Okay. I"ll see ya." He walked down the street and vanished in the early evening crowd.
Rae stood there watching him as he faded out of sight. She then turned and walked back into the funeral parlor and found Sarah and Delia talking to Jane. Rae noticed Pam was nowhere in sight.
Delia was chuckling as she was telling some story. Jane and Sarah tried to stifle their laughs as Rae grinned. Delia was holding court. Two good-looking women were intently listening to her inane rambling, and Delia was in her glory.
They all looked up when Rae walked up to them. "Rae. Just in time. I was telling them about Seaman Doyle."
Rae"s eyes widened, and she laughed quietly. "Geezus, Delia. At a wake?"
Jane looked completely embarra.s.sed as she put a hand over her mouth. Sarah was wiping her eyes, trying not to laugh out loud. Jane put a hand on Delia"s arm, pleading for her to stop. Delia chuckled and agreed.
"Sorry, Miss Whiting, but Doyle was an odd young woman," she said seriously. Sarah stifled a laugh, and Jane hung on to Delia"s arm. Rae hung her head and sighed.
"All right, Detective."
"Sorry, Rae," she said as her lips quivered. Soon they were trying desperately not to laugh out loud. It was as if they were in church.
"Well, what"s so funny?" Pam"s voice rang out.
All four of them jumped and turned in her direction. For a nanosecond, everyone was silent.
"Nothing." Rae tried her best to be adult and mature. Sarah bit her bottom lip and nodded. Jane was immediately sobered, a deflated look flashed across her face. Rae noticed it; she was sure all of them did.
Pam gave Jane a particularly unflattering look that Delia took exception to but said nothing.
"Amy"s parents are looking for you," Pam said to Jane, who excused herself and walked away.
An awkward silence hung among the three of them. Sarah coughed gently. "Well, it appears Amy had a few friends," she said, looking around the room.
"Yes, she did. Excuse me," Pam said bluntly and walked away.
Delia watched her make her way up to Jane. "I don"t like her," she said. Rae stifled a grin and glanced at Sarah.
"She does seem a bit rude," Sarah agreed.
Delia then turned to Rae. "So who was the guy you followed out of here?"
"Mark Rhodes," Rae said, and Sarah"s eyes widened.
"The one who Molly mentioned?"
"Yep. He knows something. He got nervous talking about Amy. He was looking around the street as if waiting for someone to appear," Rae said thoughtfully. She absently rubbed her eyebrow as her mind wandered back to Amy"s apartment. So many expensive items that just didn"t seem to fit the typical undergrad"s economic plight.
"Okay, I"m beginning to understand your looks, Rae. What are you thinking?" Sarah asked, intrigued. Rae smiled slightly.
"So you think you know me?" she asked with a smug grin.
"Yes, I do," Sarah said confidently. "You rubbed your eyebrow and you stared off into s.p.a.ce." Rae frowned and blushed horribly. "I"ll bet it"s been a while since you"ve blushed, too."
Now Rae abruptly stopped and cleared her throat. "Okay, you"ve made your point." She then told them what she was thinking. She took the matchbox out of her pocket and showed it to Delia.
Delia looked and opened it. "It was on the kitchen counter?"
Rae nodded as she watched her. "In plain view..."
Sarah watched both of them; she didn"t have a clue what they were getting at.
"So how come..." Delia started to say.
"I have no idea. That"s my question, as well." Rae took the matchbox from her. Sarah was completely confused now.
"Okay, you two are talking in some kind of navy code. What the heck is going on?" she asked helplessly.
"Sorry. The point I"m making is this: I found that matchbox in plain view on the kitchen counter. Why didn"t McGrath see it and take it, as well? Or at least mention it?"
Sarah"s eyes widened as she started to understand. "So you think someone put it there?"
Delia shrugged. "Maybe he did see it and didn"t think anything of it. He may not know what kind of bar it is."
"My gut says no, Delia. I don"t think he saw it because I don"t think it was there when he searched Amy"s apartment. I think I need to check this place out. How about you take Sarah home and...?"
"How about I"m a grown woman and I don"t need anyone taking me home?" Sarah said emphatically, standing her ground.
"Sarah, I need to check this out. Now, please, let Delia..." Rae noticed the look of resolution.
Long ago and far away, in her previous life, when Commander Rae Jefferson spoke in such a tone, people listened and obeyed. Now in her new life, things were going to be a bit different. Sarah Connelly stood there with her hands on her hips in a defiant pose. Rae narrowed her eyes in confusion. Delia just watched.
"I know that look. Don"t ask to go with me," Rae said logically and tried the ole schmooze. "Honey, really, I don"t want you involved in this."
"You big egomaniac. You involved me in this. You came to me and now you... Fine. If you need to be the lone wolf, you go right ahead. We"re not attached at the hip, and you don"t owe me anything," she said with equal logic.
Rae frowned now and leaned back, completely confounded. She gave Sarah a skeptical glance. "If something were to happen, I"d feel better if you weren"t there." Why did she feel guilty?
"I understand. Delia can take me home. You do what you have to and call me." She smiled, then kissed her cheek. "I"m going to say good night to Jane. Be careful." She touched her cheek and walked away.
Rae and Delia stood there watching her. "So she"s just gonna let me go with no arguing?" Rae asked.
Delia rolled her eyes. "Boy, you want everything, don"t you? You want her to care, but you don"t want to include her, so she has no choice but to worry."
"I don"t want her to worry. d.a.m.n it," Rae cursed and ran her fingers through her hair. "This is why I"m better off alone."
Delia shrugged. "Well, keep it up and you"ll get your wish." She slapped her back. "I"ll take Sarah home. You check out The Snake Pit. Just remember, somebody knows you"re snooping. They have the advantage."
"I know. I won"t be long," she a.s.sured her, then walked out.
Up front, Sarah was watching Rae"s retreat. She quickly said her goodbyes and headed toward the back. She grabbed Delia"s arm and pulled her toward the door.
"Hurry, I don"t want to lose her," Sarah urged, and Delia stopped abruptly. Sarah pulled at her arm; Delia was immovable.
"Christ, are all you navy women this strong? C"mon."
"Sarah, what in the h.e.l.l do you think you"re doing?"
"I"m following Rae. Now are you coming with me or do I go alone?"
"No, no, no." Delia shook her head furiously.
Sarah let go of her arm. "Okay. I"ll go in there alone. When something happens to me, you explain to Rae how you let me go...all alone."
"You are an evil woman," she said slowly and followed the laughing Sarah out the door.
As they approached Delia"s car, her beeper went off. "s.h.i.t." She called the precinct. After listening for a moment, she said, "Be right down," and looked at Sarah.
"I"m taking you home. I"ve got to get back to the precinct," she said unwavering and ushered Sarah to her car.
Sarah pouted all the way home. Delia chuckled as she glanced at her. "You shouldn"t go into a place like that anyway. Rae would have killed both of us."
"Oh, I"m not afraid of her."
"That"s because you have no sense. I, on the other hand, do. She scares the h.e.l.l out of me. Good night." Delia smiled and pulled up to her house.
"Good night, Delia. Thanks for nothing," Sarah said flatly and heard Delia laugh as she pulled away.
She waited until she got out of sight, then ran down the street and hailed a cab. Rae was definitely not going to be happy to see her.
Chapter 23.
Rae parked across the street from The Snake Pit. "What a dive," she mumbled as she opened the door.
An odd little man stood there with a wad of money in his hand. "Upstairs, down, or both?" he asked as he sized her up and down. Rae knew what that meant. Upstairs was the bar, downstairs was, well, anything goes.
"Both," she said evenly and handed him the money.
"Have fun."
The bar was dark and not too crowded. Of course, it was only nine o"clock. The witching hour wasn"t until at least midnight. She made her way to the bar and sat. A man came over, and she ordered her drink. Looking around, she saw a few couples, mostly men, in intimate conversation. One couple at the bar was quite animated. The bartender walked over to them.
"Take it downstairs, gents," he quipped, and the two men headed for the stairs. He then turned his attention to Rae.
"I don"t remember seeing you, and I know most of the regulars." He held out his hand. "Pete."
Rae shook it but didn"t give her name, to which Pete raised a curious eyebrow but said nothing. It was common for people not to give their names. An alderman waltzed in every now and then with a different man every time.
"I was looking for a friend. I hoped she"d be in here tonight," Rae said as she took a drink.