Secret Sisters - an LDS cozy mystery

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen  

Thank goodness you're all here," Ida Mae told her counselors after dinner. "Ren's been home for an hour, and he won't tell me anything." 

"Good for you, boy," Arlette said. "No fair spilling the beans without everyone here." 

"My thoughts exactly," Ren said. 

Ida Mae wasn't sure she liked the idea of Ren and Arlette ganging up on her. "Now, on to business," she said. "Ren, the floor is yours." 

"I have two things to report," he said. "First, I followed Nick today. He left his house and drove into Salt Lake, stopping at the McDonald's on the outskirts of town. He ordered, I believe, a breakfast muffin." 

"I bet it had meat on it," Arlette said. 

"I bet it did too," Ren said. "After McDonald's, he drove to a warehouse a few blocks away. He spent the day driving a forklift in and out of the building. Sometimes it had pallets on it, and sometimes not. It looked like a pretty normal work day, to me. He took a break around noon and ate from a lunch pail in his truck. Then he drove the fork lift until around four this afternoon. From what I could tell by glancing through the bay doors, he then worked for half an hour in the shipping department, putting containers in cardboard boxes and covering them with packing peanuts. He came home by way of the grocery store. I stayed in the car, but it looked like he bought milk." 

"That's so . . . unsuspicious," Tansy said, disappointment on her face.  

"Yeah, that's what I thought, too. But there's more." 

Tansy immediately perked up. "What?" 

"Most of the cars in the employee lot were trucks or economy vehicles. All except for one." 

"A black Jaguar," Arlette inserted. 

Ren threw her an admiring glance. "That's right. There was a black Jaguar parked right by the loading dock." 

"Could you tell if it was the same car?" Ida Mae asked. 

"There weren't any distinguishing marks on it, so I can't say for sure. But I did get the license plate number." 

"It didn't have mud on the plates?" Tansy asked. 

"No, but that doesn't mean it's not the same one. He could easily have taken it through a car wash." 

They all sat in silence for a minute, Ida Mae transcribing the new information onto her chart. 

"I don't suppose any of you have a friend who works for the DMV?" she asked. Everyone shook their heads. 

"I did a big favor for the DMV when I got my Earl to stop driving," Tansy said. "They sent me a Christmas ham that year." 

"Ren, who owns the warehouse?" Ida Mae asked. 

"It belongs to the Baby Mine company." 

Ida Mae jotted that down. "So, what does this mean?" she asked, looking up. "Nick is working at a warehouse. There's nothing wrong with that." 

"If the black Jaguar belongs to someone at work, why did that person drive all the way out here?" Arlette asked. "Why not just talk to Nick at work?" 

"Excellent question." Ida Mae wrote it down and circled it. "Unless it's a coincidence and we're dealing with two cars." 

"But how many people can say they know two people who own black Jags?" Ren asked. "I don't even know one, and I used to live in San Francisco, where there are a lot more cars to be had." 

"Good point." Ida Mae wrote it down as well. 

"Now, here's the thing," Ren said, leaning forward. "There's a help wanted sign in the window. I asked in the office-don't worry, Nick didn't see me-and they said they need a clerk."  

Tansy tapped a finger on her lips. "What we need is someone to infiltrate the warehouse," she said. "An inside man." She cast her eyes over at Ren. 

"It can't be Ren," Ida Mae objected.  

"Why not, Auntie?" Ren asked. "Surely in today's modern world, a man can be anything he wants to be." 

"Sooner or later, Nick would find out that Ren's from Omni," Ida Mae explained. "If he's doing something shady, he's not going to want anyone from home that close to his situation." 

"And it certainly can't be me," Arlette said, with the air of someone who is being begged but must, regrettably, say no. "The last time I tried to type, it was on one of those horrid manual things, and I nearly broke my pinkie finger trying to hit the a. I'm under doctor's orders never to type again." 

"I can type thirty words a minute," Tansy said hopefully, but Ida Mae shook her head. 

"We're all too old, ladies. I hate to admit such a nasty thing, but it's true." 

"I've got an idea, but I need to make a phone call first," Arlette said. "Let me get back to you tomorrow." 

"All right." Ida Mae made another note on her pad. "Now, Ren, you said you had two things to report." 

He sat up a little straighter. "Indeed, I do. I do, indeed." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a mass of wires. "This is my new invention." 

Tansy clasped her hands together. Arlette scowled. Ida Mae asked, "What is it?" 

"A motion detector. We'll string it across the trees there by the Dunns' shed, and it will record any movement that takes place."  

"Any movement? What about birds and things like that?" Arlette asks. 

"I thought about that myself, but I've worked out the bugs, I think. It will record movement that is slower than twenty miles an hour. If a car pulls back there, it has to go about fifteen to make it around the potholes. This will help us figure out when the Jaguar comes and goes." 

"I think it's too risky," Arlette said. "Anything could trip it." 

"That's why I attached the second part," Ren added. "This is a camera that is activated by the motion sensor. When the sensor is tripped, the camera snaps a picture. And it has a timestamp feature on it."  

Arlette gave a grudging nod. "Very good."  

"I don't know when I can go set it up. I've got to work tomorrow and I'm just beat after today. But we'll get it up there in the next day or two." 

The group broke up and the ladies made their way to the door. "What is this phone call you're going to make, Arlette?" Ida Mae asked. 

"I'd rather not say until I know for sure it will work," Arlette said. "I'll call you soon."  

Ida Mae doublelocked the door behind her presidency and turned, leaning against the jamb. She was so tired, she could hardly stand up.  

"Ren," she called out. "I'm going to bed." 

He appeared immediately. "Are you all right, Auntie?" 

"I'm fine, dear. It's just been a long day." 

Bed had never looked so good. Ida Mae brushed her teeth, pulled on her robe, and expected to be asleep before she even got the covers pulled up, but she couldn't stop thinking about the DMV.