Bring Your Own Poison Read online

  The partygoers started moving out of the back room. Warren and Elmer Lee stood aside, as did Dixon Vance and the other police officers. Wanda Nell stayed where she was for the moment, keeping an eye on Gerald Blakeley. He hadn’t moved from his chair, still nursing his cup of coffee. Wanda Nell didn’t think he was aware of anything going on around him.

  Elmer Lee came over to Wanda Nell. “You need to clear the room, too, Wanda Nell. We’ve got work to do back here, and we can’t have you standing around in the way.”

  “Nice to see you, too, Elmer Lee,” Wanda Nell said, giving him a sweet smile. She nodded toward Gerald Blakeley. “But I think somebody needs to look after him.”

  Elmer Lee turned to stare at the young man. “Gerald.” He put his hand on Blakeley’s shoulder. “I’m sure sorry about your brother.”

  Gerald stared up at him. “What do you mean?”

  Elmer Lee squeezed his shoulder. “I’m afraid your brother died. They couldn’t save him.”

  Gerald didn’t respond for a moment. He fixed his eyes on the cup in his hands. He nodded.

  “We need to clear the room.” Bill Warren had come up behind Elmer Lee.

  “Wanda Nell,” Bill said. He stared down at her. “You’re looking good.” He paused. “It’s been a long time.”

  Wanda Nell nodded. “It sure has.” Bill had been really upset when she broke it off with him, and even now she felt a bit guilty just thinking about it. At the time, she hadn’t given much thought to the way he felt.

  At the moment, though, she could read nothing in his eyes. He had a disconcerting, noncommital stare, and she dropped her gaze.

  Wanda Nell remembered the glass vial. She stepped a few feet away from Gerald Blakeley and motioned for Bill and Elmer Lee to follow her.

  “What is it?” Elmer Lee demanded.

  Wanda Nell pulled the napkin-covered vial from her pocket. “This,” she said, holding it out for the men.

  Bill took it gingerly in his big hand. He opened the napkin, and he and Elmer Lee stared down at the glass tube. They exchanged a brief glance.

  “Where did you get this?” Bill asked.

  “From Gerald,” Wanda Nell said. “He showed it to me, and when I asked him where he found it, he said he wasn’t sure.” She frowned. “He was pretty drunk at the time.”

  Bill cautiously lifted the vial to his nose and sniffed. His eyes narrowed. He folded the napkin over the tube again before handing it to Elmer Lee. Startled, Elmer Lee almost dropped it.

  Bill stepped around Elmer Lee and strode over to Gerald Blakeley, still sitting quietly in his chair.

  Placing a hand on the young man’s shoulder, Bill shook it roughly. “Gerald, look at me.”

  Startled out of his trance, Gerald stared up at the state cop.

  “Did you kill your brother?” Bill asked, his voice harsh. He shook the younger man again when Gerald didn’t respond. “Answer me.”

  Gerald still didn’t answer. His head dropped, and he started sobbing.

  Wanda Nell was getting angry with Bill. He shouldn’t be treating the poor boy like this. She was about to say something to Elmer Lee about it when Bill yanked Gerald up out of the chair.

  “Answer me, you little sonofabitch. Did you kill your brother?”

  This time Gerald spoke, his words barely audible through the crying. “I don’t know.”

  Five

  Gerald Blakeley was such a miserable sight, standing there like a mouse in the clutches of a big cat, Wanda Nell felt sorry for him. Even if Bill Warren thought Gerald really killed his brother, he didn’t need to treat him like this.

  She opened her mouth to speak, but Elmer Lee forestalled her. “Warren, let go of him. Now!”

  The state cop’s body tensed, and at first Wanda Nell thought he was going to ignore Elmer Lee. His hand loosened on Gerald’s shoulder, and he stepped back. Gerald sank down into his chair again, crying and shaking his head.

  Warren turned to face Elmer Lee, and the hard set of his face unnerved Wanda Nell. This man was nothing like the sweet, easygoing boy she remembered. He looked mad, and he looked dangerous. Without realizing what she was doing, she took a step back.

  Warren saw her do it, and for a moment his face softened as he looked at her. The next moment, he was all business again as he addressed Elmer Lee. “I want you to take him down to the jail for more questioning.”

  “We’ll take care of that,” Elmer Lee said, his voice firm. “But first I think we need to start talking to everyone else, find out what they saw, if anything.”

  There was an edge to Elmer Lee’s voice, one that Wanda Nell knew all too well. She knew better than to mess with him when he got that tone, and she was curious to see how Warren would react.

  He backed down, and Wanda Nell relaxed. The tension between the two men had been making her nervous.

  “Right,” Warren said. “But I want someone keeping an eye on him at all times.” He jerked his head toward Gerald.

  “No problem,” Elmer Lee said. “Now let’s get out of the way so these men can do their jobs.” He nodded at Wanda Nell. “You go on up front. We’ll talk to you in a minute.”

  “Sure,” Wanda Nell said, glad to get away from Warren and Elmer Lee, at least for a little while. She cast a worried glance at Gerald Blakeley, but there didn’t seem to be much she could do for him at the moment.

  Why was Bill Warren so sure Gerald had killed his brother? She shook her head over that as she walked behind the counter and toward the front of the restaurant where Melvin stood at the cash register. She wondered what motive Gerald might have to do such a thing. She would have to talk to T.J. about him, because he knew the boy far better than she did. She didn’t know if T.J. had had much contact with him over the past year. T.J. had been gone from Tullahoma for a while, and since he’d been back he hadn’t hung around with his old friends that much. Most of them were uncomfortable with T.J. being gay.

  Thinking of T.J. brought her up short because she thought about Tuck, too. The way things looked at the moment, Gerald Blakeley was going to need a lawyer. Wanda Nell didn’t like the way Bill Warren seemed so sure of the boy’s guilt. She had faced that kind of prejudice herself when Bobby Ray got himself killed, and she wanted Gerald to have a fair shake, even if it turned out he was guilty.

  Should she try to call Tuck now? What if Gerald didn’t want a lawyer? She wavered, indecisive.

  “What’s going on back there?” Melvin asked her.

  In a low voice, Wanda Nell told him what she knew.

  Melvin frowned. “I just wish they’d get the hell out of my restaurant,” he said. “Something like this may kill my business. Why did somebody have to choose tonight to kill the bastard?”

  “Did you know him? Travis Blakeley, I mean?”

  “Yeah, I did,” Melvin said. “Didn’t like him either. He was one cold sonofabitch, I can tell you that.”

  “Then why did you book that bachelor party?” Wanda Nell had to ask, but she already knew the answer.

  “Couldn’t turn down the business,” Melvin said. He cut his eyes down at her. “You know how much we make on a party like that. Or at least, we usually do.” He shrugged. “Who knows whether anybody’ll pay for it now?”

  Wanda Nell knew they both ought to feel more guilty about being so concerned with themselves, when a man had died in the back room of the restaurant. Probably murdered, too. But feeling sorry about Travis Blakeley’s death wasn’t going to pay her bills, or Melvin’s either. That might be cold, but she couldn’t help that. She had a family to look after. She tried not to think about the hefty tips she had lost tonight.

  Some men from the sheriff’s department had been questioning people in the restaurant, and from what Wanda Nell could see, they were letting anyone who hadn’t been a party guest leave after taking down names and addresses. Pretty soon only the party guests remained, along with the cops and the restaurant staff.

  One of Elmer Lee’s men parked Gerald Blakeley on a stool toward the
end of the counter. Wanda Nell kept an eye on them both, and when the deputy stepped away for a moment, she seized her chance.

  Moving quickly down the counter to Gerald, she bent down and spoke quietly to him. “Gerald, do you have a lawyer?”

  His eyes dull, he looked at her. He shook his head.

  “I think you’re going to need one,” she said. “And I know a real good one.” She watched the deputy’s back as she spoke. He might turn around at any minute. “I can call him for you,” she said.

  Gerald frowned. “Don’t I know you?”

  Wanda Nell wanted to shake him. “Yes, I’m T.J. Culpepper’s mama. Y’all were in school together.”

  “Yeah, I remember now,” Gerald said. Then his eyes narrowed. “I heard T.J. was…well, you know.”

  “Yes, he is,” Wanda Nell said, responding to the unspoken word.

  “T.J.’s a good guy,” Gerald said, surprising her.

  “Thanks,” Wanda Nell said. She glanced at the deputy, and he was starting to turn back in their direction. “Listen, you want me to call that lawyer for you?”

  “I guess so,” Gerald said, frowning. “My head hurts. I can’t really think.”

  “I’ll go call him right now,” Wanda Nell said. She moved away from Gerald, trying not to attract any attention. She glanced over her shoulder, and the deputy had taken up his spot by Gerald again. He didn’t appear to have seen her talking to the boy.

  She hurried through the kitchen, back to Melvin’s office where she could use the phone in private. She punched in the number of Tuck’s cell phone and waited for an answer.

  She was afraid the call was about to go to voice mail when she heard Tuck’s voice.

  “Tuck, it’s me, Wanda Nell,” she said.

  “Hey there,” Tuck said. “What’s up?”

  Wanda Nell explained the situation in as few words as possible. When she finished, Tuck didn’t respond for a moment.

  “Tuck? Can you be his lawyer?”

  Tuck expelled a short breath into the phone. “I’ll be glad to, Wanda Nell. I think he’s going to need one.”

  “Do you know him at all?”

  “A little,” Tuck said. “I knew his brother better.”

  From the tone of his voice, Wanda Nell figured Tuck hadn’t cared for Travis Blakeley all that much.

  “You didn’t like him either,” she said.

  “No,” Tuck said. “He was the kind of man who should never have been allowed to wear a badge, and frankly, I’m not too sorry he’s gone.”

  “That’s what I’ve heard from several people, more or less.”

  “I don’t think there’ll be many people crying at his funeral,” Tuck said. “More than likely, they’ll be dancing on his grave. Look, I’d better get going. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  Wanda Nell put the receiver down. She hadn’t even asked Tuck what he was doing. He and T.J. were supposed to be going to the movies with Juliet, Miranda, and Teddy. If that’s where they were, then Tuck could be here pretty fast.

  She thought for a moment about what Tuck had said, that no one would be crying at Travis Blakeley’s funeral. For the first time, she thought about the girl Blakeley had been going to marry. What about her? Wouldn’t she be upset?

  Wanda Nell felt sorry for the girl, but if everything people said about Travis Blakeley was true, maybe the girl was better off without him. She shivered. Who would want their daughter to marry a man like that?

  When Wanda Nell came through the kitchen door, she found Elmer Lee standing at the counter, frowning.

  “Where have you been?” he asked.

  “I had to make a phone call,” she said.

  Elmer Lee’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Did you call Tucker?”

  Wanda Nell nodded.

  “Probably not a bad idea,” Elmer Lee said, surprising her. “That kid’s going to need him.”

  Then he looked like he was sorry he had said anything. His expression hardened. “Come on over here,” he said, jerking his head to the left. “We need to talk to you.”

  Wanda Nell walked around the counter and followed Elmer Lee to the back table in the front dining room. Bill Warren stood as they reached the table, and he motioned for Wanda Nell to take a seat.

  There was activity all around them, but neither Elmer Lee nor Bill appeared to notice. All their attention focused on her. She sat down, took a deep breath, and folded her hands in her lap. She faced Bill Warren squarely.

  “It’s been a long time, Wanda Nell,” he said.

  “Yeah, it has,” Wanda Nell said. “Twenty years or more.” Now that they were this close together, she examined Warren as discreetly as she could. He had aged well. He was far more attractive now than he had been in high school. There was something about a confident man that Wanda Nell couldn’t help responding to.

  “About that long,” Warren said. He examined her, not discreetly at all. “Sorry you have to be involved in all this, but from what Johnson here tells me, it’s not the first time.”

  Wanda Nell resisted the urge to pinch Elmer Lee. “No, it’s not.”

  Warren raised one eyebrow, and Wanda Nell regretted her sharp tone. Baiting Elmer Lee was one thing, but Bill made her uncomfortable, and she wasn’t sure why. She wasn’t going to rile him if she could help it.

  “Tell us about this evening,” Warren said, ignoring her tone. “Tell us as much as you can remember, okay?”

  Wanda Nell nodded. She paused for a moment before speaking to organize her thoughts. She started with the moment the bartender and the first guests arrived. She tried to picture it all in her mind as she spoke, and it was only when she reached the point of Travis Blakeley’s collapse that she wavered. Remembering that made her a little bit nauseated. He might have been a terrible man, but watching anyone die was a nasty experience.

  “That’s good,” Warren said. “You’ve given us a very clear picture.”

  “Yeah,” Elmer Lee said. “Wanda Nell’s usually a good witness.”

  Wanda Nell’s eyes narrowed as Elmer Lee spoke, but she couldn’t detect any irony in his voice.

  His lips twitching slightly, Warren asked, “Did you see anybody put something in the victim’s glass?”

  “No,” Wanda Nell said. “I didn’t. The way they were all talking and laughing and carrying on, I don’t think anybody would have noticed. There was too much going on.”

  When Warren didn’t respond right away, Wanda Nell ventured a question. “Does that mean y’all think he really was poisoned?”

  “I’m afraid I can’t answer that,” Warren said. “It’s too early in the investigation for us to come to any conclusions.”

  Wanda Nell thought Elmer Lee muttered something, but she wasn’t sure. Warren’s eyes narrowed, and Wanda Nell felt a sudden chill. He had that dangerous look on his face again, and she didn’t want to do anything to make him angry with her.

  “Good evening, gentlemen.”

  Hearing Tuck’s voice, Wanda Nell relaxed. With him here, she felt a lot better. He was more than capable of dealing with Bill Warren.

  Warren and Elmer Lee stood up. Wanda Nell turned in her chair to watch.

  “Tucker,” Warren said, his voice flat. “I’m afraid you’ve missed the ambulance.”

  Only because she knew him so well did Wanda Nell see Tuck’s reaction to such an obvious insult. Tuck didn’t respond to Warren’s words.

  “I’m here to speak to my client,” Tuck said. “Evening, Sheriff Johnson.” He nodded at Elmer Lee.

  “Evening, Tucker,” Elmer Lee said. “Who’s your client? Wanda Nell here?”

  Tuck didn’t appear amused at Elmer Lee’s little sally. “I’m here for Gerald Blakeley. I’d like to speak to him. Now.”

  Tuck and Warren stared at each other. The cop was a bit taller and more muscular, but Tuck didn’t appear the least bit intimidated. Wanda Nell was very proud of him.

  “We’re just about to take him down to the jail,” Warren said. “You can talk to him
there.” He nodded at Elmer Lee. “Tell your man to take him in.”

  “Are you arresting him?” Tuck asked.

  “No, but he’s a material witness,” Warren said. “I’m going to have to question him at length, and I don’t think this is the place to do it.”

  Tuck nodded. “Right. I’ll meet him at the jail then, but I’m going to speak to him first.”

  Warren snorted. “Do you even know who he is? Who called you anyway?”

  Tuck didn’t respond. Instead, he turned and walked right over to Gerald and started talking to him.

  Warren muttered an obscenity, just loud enough for Tuck to hear it. Wanda Nell saw red, and without even thinking about what she was doing, she jumped up from her chair. She drew back her hand and slapped Bill Warren so hard his head snapped back.

  Six

  Elmer Lee grabbed Wanda Nell by the arms and held her. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” His voice hissed in her ear.

  There was dead silence in the restaurant. Everyone was watching to see what would happen next.

  Wanda Nell shook loose from Elmer Lee. She looked straight up into Bill Warren’s face. Warren was rubbing his cheek and glaring at her, but Wanda Nell didn’t back down.

  “Don’t you ever let me hear you say such a thing, Bill Warren,” Wanda Nell said. “You ought to be ashamed of yourself.”

  “You ought to be more careful about assaulting officers of the law,” Warren said, scowling at her. “I’ve got half a mind to have you hauled down to that jail, too.”

  “You just go ahead and do that,” Wanda Nell said, her temper still up. “And I’ll be glad to tell whoever the hell I have to what you said. Don’t think I’ll let you get away with it. I’ll go to the governor himself if I have to.”

  She waited a moment for Warren to respond. When he remained silent, she said, “I have a witness, too. Right, Elmer Lee? You heard what he said.”

  Both Wanda Nell and Warren looked at Elmer Lee. He met both their gazes before exhaling. “Yeah, I heard it, Wanda Nell.”