Page 29 of Caper Crush
“I thought the same thing,” I say excitedly. “And he didn’t arrive with framed photos.”
“And he was very curious about the security footage. Did Annabelle reject him?”
“Yes.”
William makes some notes on the spreadsheet. “We’ve got Vinnie and Annabelle with a money motive; Rex with a foil-career motive; Annabelle, Vinnie, and the catering staff with the means of removal; Annabelle, Vinnie, and Edmund with potential ties to the catering staff. And both Vinnie and Mary knew the paintings were in the closet.”
“It doesn’t make me happy to see Annabelle with both means and motive. We should talk to Vinnie. He’s got motive, knowledge, and potentially means.” I gather the dishes and empty food containers, piling them on the tea trolley. “What did Ryan say when you talked to him?”
“He was with my other friends for most of the night. They spent the evening catching up. I was also with them when I wasn’t attending to hosting duties. I did chat with Diane because she always makes me laugh,” Takashi says. “But Ryan didn’t notice anything particularly unusual among the other guests. He said Vinnie left the room when we were all singing karaoke and that Vinnie was pretty drunk and seemed to go to the bathroom a lot. By that time, it was down to you, Rex, Vinnie, Ryan, Diane, Edmund, Annabelle, Tony, and me. We were able to visualize where everyone was sitting, except Vinnie. The catering staff was cleaning up in the kitchen. But Vinnie didn’t actually leave until the end.”
“That’s true. Vinnie didn’t sing one song. And Edmund never sings.” I push the trolley out of the room, leaning my back against the door to open it.
William gets up and rummages in his backpack. “I forgot to give you Obaachan’s gift earlier.” He hands Takashi green tea tins with both hands. “She sends the green tea that you love.”
“Aw, my favorite.” Takashi bows slightly. “I always stock up when I visit Tokyo.”
William gives a lower deferential bow back.
“Is she still matchmaking?” Takashi asks.
I maneuver the trolley out of the room but leave the door slightly open to listen in.
“Yes, but I told her that Kiyoko said I’m too taikutsu for her,” William says.
I wish my Japanese were better. I know some words from hanging out with Takashi, but clearly, I need to brush up.
“She did not,” Takashi says.
“Not in so many words, but …”
“But?” Takashi asks.
I peer around the door to see William raise his eyebrow and shrug.
Takashi nods and pours some more tea. “We could have a dinner and show her you’re not.”
William half-smiles. “I’d rather not repeat that rejection.”
The door closes softly behind me. Google translates taikutsu as boring. He doesn’t seem boring to me. Not anymore.
The kitchen is spotless. I shake my head as I scrub the dishes clean. William’s dating life should be of no interest to me. Except it’s important to know your detecting partner’s strengths and weaknesses. I put the last plate into the drying rack and return to the dining room.
“Vinnie just called. The police interviewed him,” Takashi says. “He seemed depressed. He left for his country house.”
“Then we can’t just go over and talk to him,” I say.
“We can drive up there tomorrow,” William says.
“I told Officer Johnson I wouldn’t interview people for another day—unless he’s already talked to them,” I say. “Vinnie is now fair game.”
“He got you to agree to that?” William asks.
I look at him, affronted. “I’m very reasonable. Especially since we have a backup plan. I called Star Catering and asked to be put back on the available waitstaff. The only issue is that I’m performing Thursday and Friday of this week, so if we’re going to do it this week, it has to be Saturday or Monday. If they’re actors, Monday is the most likely day for them to be free.”
I can’t believe he’s actually willing to do this.
“I’ll call Star Catering right now.” William gets up from the table and stands by the windows, making the call. He requests me, Miju, and Lena for this Monday. They’re not available. He requests any Monday. They’re available next Monday. He turns to give me a thumbs-up. “Now to invite some friends.”
