Twisted Game, Nora Kane [the giving tree read aloud .TXT] 📗

“Good,” Margot said as she got up.

“Are you leaving?”

“I have some people to talk too. I’ll be back.”

Margot was at the door when Phoebe said her name.

“What?” Margot asked.

“Thank you,” Phoebe told her.

“You’re welcome, but I haven’t really done anything yet.”

“Yeah, but…you’re trying.”

Chapter 6

Margot was on her way to see Derek Helms when her phone rang. She had Bluetooth in her new Toyota Prius, so she was able to answer hands-free.

“What part of discreet don’t you understand, Margot, or should I call you Viuda Negra?”

“Who is this?”

“Harry.”

“Harry Lee?”

“Yeah.”

“How’d you get my number?”

“It wasn’t hard. You’re in business, aren’t you?”

He was right about her being in business, but since she partnered up with Shaw, all work calls came in through the office and then Shaw’s long-time secretary, Ms. Collins, routed the calls to the proper place. If Ms. Collins had routed the call, Margot would know.

Margot decided finding out how Harry got her number was a question for later. Instead, she asked, “What are you talking about? I haven’t said a word.”

“Then why is some vlogger talking about us meeting at Palms? I sure as hell didn’t tell her I saw you at the Palms and I sure as hell didn’t hire you to kill anybody.”

“Is this vlogger named Cassandra?”

“The show’s called Cassandra’s Coastal Crime Alert, so I’m going to say yes. Do you know her?”

“Not exactly, but she’s made me a subject of her show before.”

“You need to make her stop. I don’t need this kind of publicity.”

“We don’t exactly talk.”

“How’d she know we met last night at The Palms?”

“She must have followed me, or she paid off Theo. Either way, it didn’t come from me. I’m not a fan.”

“I can see why. According to her, you're a regular one-woman crime wave. Is she right?”

“No, of course not. Do I seem like some kind of hitwoman to you?”

“You don’t not seem like a hitwoman.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

“Do I need to take care of this Cassandra?”

“No, please don’t.”

“Then I suggest you do it. Maybe give her the Bobby treatment.”

“Bobby treatment?”

“Yeah, mace her, stomp on her a couple of times, like you did to Bobby last night.”

That actually sounded good to Margot, but she figured that wouldn’t go as well. Unlike Bobby, Cassandra would probably press charges.

She told Harry, “I’ll handle it.”

“Do you still have my number?”

“Yeah.”

“Call me sometime, maybe we can put this Cassandra situation behind us.”

“It already is,” Margot said as she ended the call.

Margot was tempted to pull over and watch the video but decided all it would do was piss her off. She was doing a good job all by herself pissing off a guy like Harry Lee without Cassandra making it worse for the sake of YouTube views.

She was pretty sure the only way Cassandra could have known she saw Harry Lee last night was to have followed her. The only person who knew she was going there was Radcliff and he wouldn’t have said anything. She must have hung around and saw them both leaving the Palms and jumped to the conclusion they were there discussing some business.

That part wasn’t entirely untrue. Margot was a little disappointed Cassandra hadn’t figured out who she was working for. It seemed the real story about a gangster’s married mistress’s husband ending up dead was a lot better story than some made-up nonsense about Margot being a professional killer.

Margot started wondering if Cassie was tailing her right now. She made a sudden left turn across traffic and then pulled into the first gas station she saw. Margot pulled up to the pumps and then hurried inside. She knew she looked funny standing there staring out the window, but she did it anyway.

A beat-up Ford Focus slowed down as it passed the station. Margot watched it speed up and go past before parking in the lot next door.

“Do you have a back door?” Margot asked the clerk who looked barely old enough to drive.

“Uh, yeah, why?”

“I’m going to use it, if you don’t mind.”

“Okay, um have I seen you before?”

“I doubt it?”

“You’re not that Viuda Negra chick from the CCCA show, are you?”

“If I was, would it be wise to mess with me?”

The clerk suddenly looked very afraid and it was clear he believed the bullshit Cassandra was selling. He pointed to a door in the back of the store and Margot walked away thinking being able to scare young minimum wage employees was the only thing good about Cassandra’s stupid YouTube show.

She came up behind the Ford and was glad to see it was indeed Cassandra sitting behind the wheel. Otherwise, she would have wasted her time and put a scare into the poor clerk for no reason. Margot walked up and tapped on Cassandra’s window. When Cassandra looked over at her she said, “Get out of the car.”

Cassandra lowered her window, “What if I don’t want to?”

Margot laughed and shook her head before she said, “You know that you're full of shit, don’t you?”

“Actually, I don’t think I’m full of shit at all.”

“Yes, you do. Either that or really fucking dumb,” Margot said as she leaned down so she was looking Cassandra in the eye. “If you really thought I was some hitwoman they called Viuda Negra and you had half a brain, you’d be pissing your pants right now. You actually seem like you have half a brain, so I’m thinking you don’t really think I’m anything more than what I really am, which is a private detective who got involved with some nasty people doing some nasty shit.”

Cassandra didn’t really have an answer for that.

“You’re going to quit following me, Cassie. I’m not