The decoy

Chapt 21

Chapter Twenty One

            They sat in the front seat of Tiffany's fifteen year old Toyota. Sebastian drank coffee and Tiffany ate a scoop of banana and vanilla frozen yogurt. Eating ice cream in the car with Starr's buxom secretary made Sebastian a little uncomfortable.

            They had met at the grocery store. Tiffany had promised to meet him earlier in the parking lot but when he got there she said that she "needed to pick up a few things."

            In the grocery store she dragged Sebastian through every aisle.

            "You sure you don't need anything honey?" She would ask as she priced every item. They had spent nearly a half an hour in the store and then when they were checking out Tiffany had insisted they get something to eat while they chatted in the car. She had originally told Sebastian that she was in a hurry to get some hamburger and get home to make "a warm meal for my man" but she still seemed to be enjoying this time with Sebastian.

            They wandered over to a small food court and stood side by side like a couple of kids on a date.

            "I'll have a short scoop of vanilla and a long scoop of banana," she said, "I always enjoy a nice long banana."

She gave Sebastian a quick knowing wink.

            Sebastian smiled. He wasn't sure how to respond to her. The seventeen year old boy who was serving her ignored her comment as well.

            Tiffany's Toyota was parked near a rusted metal shopping cart hangar that stood in the middle of the lot. In the first two minutes they were parked there a lady tapped on the window and asked for change so that she could release a cart and start her shopping. Sebastian refused to make change for a dollar preferring just to give her a quarter so he could get through the interview with Tiffany.

            "My boyfriend, Todd needs a warm meal when he gets home from the garage. It's a pretty dirty job fixing peoples' cars. He likes to shower after work and then he wants his meal on the table when he comes out in his bathrobe," Tiffany explained, "He loves a homemade hamburger with all the fixins."

            "Who doesn't?" Sebastian said. "Tell me how you came to work in the offices at Vail's place."

            Tiffany was an attractive woman. Her dirty blond hair was cut short in a sort of pixie style which worked for her twenty years. She was a little heavy and liked to wear her clothes a little tighter than she should. She preferred tops that were tight enough or low cut enough to reveal what she considered to be her best assets. Today it was a tight white tee shirt with a sharp vee neck that revealed five inches of tanned and freckled cleavage.

            Her sexuality had proven over the years to have been the one quality that she could rely on to achieve some success and now she played it up all the time.

            "Things were changing around the office for the past six months or so," Tiffany said as she licked the frozen yogurt from her spoon with the tip of her tongue and smiled at Sebastian.

            "You should try this stuff. It's almost as good as ice cream but much less fattening."

            "How was it changing?"

Sebastian had to keep her focused. 

"Tell me how was it changing Tiffany?"

            "Well Paul was different. I worked in the receiving area. I saw him all the time and Paul Vail was the friendliest person you could know. He passed by my area ten times a day and he always said something. You know he would ask how I was or what Todd was working on. Once when Todd was out of work for a while he offered him a job at the site. He was always like that but the last six months something was going on.

There was a rumor that he was selling it to that guy Cory Pezzo. I used to ask Kristy Robinson but she could be real bitchy at times. You know she worked up stairs with Paul and so she thought she was special. I heard that Kristy and Paul were doing it but I thought that he wouldn't hook up with that skinny bitch. She couldn't believe it when Cam dumped her and moved me upstairs."

            "Was Cam different too?" Sebastian asked, "I heard he bought a new car back then."

            "No. Cam was Cam. He's always been the same.

You know some people talk about me and him too. I mean I've got Todd so why would I fool around. You know, we all flirt a little, right.

Cam is a great looking guy and if anything ever happened between Todd and me maybe but I am not that kind of person to fool around."

            She was quiet for a few seconds as she thought it out then she returned to her speech.

            "I mean, he learned the business just like Paul and when Paul died and Jessie put Cam in charge it was a smooth change over. The business is in good hands with Cam."

            "Do you think Cam and Jessie were fooling around?"

            "No way, Paul and Cam were friends. I don't think Cam is like that. Mind you, everyone wondered what was going on with Jessie. We didn't see much of her the last little while. I think maybe Paul and Jessie were having a tough patch and Cam was spending a lot of time up in the office to help Paul.

             He told me a couple of months before Paul died that Jessie and Paul were grooming him to take over the place. He said there were going to be some changes made around Vail's place."

            A man approached the shopping carts, put his hands in his pockets and then seeing Sebastian and Tiffany he approached their car. This time Sebastian simply shook his head signifying that he had no change.

            "Tell me something about Teddy Arsenault. Is he a friend of yours as well?"

            "God, no. Teddy has issues. I think he would be homeless if it wasn't for Cam. Cam looks after Teddy. He lets him stay at his gym and he pays him a salary. I don't know what Teddy does there but Cam is the only friend that guy has.

            I can't stand him. He looks at you. You know what I mean?"

            "Did you ever hear about the trips to Mexico?" Sebastian asked, "Do you know anything about Teddy buying drugs?"

            "I heard that Teddy has been in jail a few times. That's probably why he is so creepy.

            I don't know why Cam lets him stick around. I mean Cam is one of those guys that has it together. He has a good job running the landfill and he has his own gym.

            He's never been married. Can you believe it? A good looking man, like Cam and he has never settled down."

            "That's hard to believe," Sebastian said.

He drained his coffee and looked at his watch.

"You better go get those burgers ready for Todd. Thank you. You have been very helpful."

            "Well I hope you get whoever killed Paul. That kind of thing shouldn't happen.

I think it was that man Pezzo. Everyone thinks he did it. That's what Cam told me. He was trying to get the business from Paul and when Paul wouldn't sell Pezzo killed him.

            "Yes, that's what Cam told me too," Sebastian said.

            He climbed out of Tiffany's car and closed the door.  She rolled the window down and shouted after him.

            "If you need to talk again just call me at work. Don't call at home. Todd wouldn't like it. He doesn't get home till after seven most nights so we could meet for a beer and talk again."

            Sebastian was already in his truck and driving away.