"Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave"
"Oh what a tangled web we weave,
When first we practise to deceive!"
Sir Walter Scott, Marmion, Canto vi. Stanza 17.
Scottish author & novelist (1771 - 1832)
**This story occurs immediately following "Flame Lust"**
CHAPTER 1
"Houston Investigations, may I help you?" Chris Atwater answered the phone while balancing a cup of coffee and a stack of papers that she was about to take in to CJ's office.
"May I speak to Mr. Houston, please?" The voice on the other end of the line sounded like it belonged to a woman – and she was crying.
"Which Mr. Houston – Roy or Matt?" She set down the cup of coffee.
"I don't care – I just need to talk to someone about my husband." The woman went into a fit of hysterics.
"Alright – hold for just a minute, please." Chris walked into CJ's office where Matt and Roy along with CJ were going over the proposal that Roy had put together for a chain of jewelry stores. He wanted to be sure that he hadn't missed anything that they would require to complete the jobs.
"Uncle Roy, I'm sure you've got it all. As many times as you've gone over the list you would have spotted it if something was missing." He was a little surprised at how worried his uncle was about the deal.
"Excuse me, but there's a caller on line three wanting to speak to Mr. Houston – and she doesn't care which one…by the way: she's crying." Chris put the stack of papers on CJ's desk as the two men exchanged glances.
"Crying, huh? Guess you better take it, Mattlock." Roy chuckled as he busied himself with the list of hardware that he would need for the installations.
"Gee thanks." Matt swatted at his uncle with a file folder and headed over to CJ's desk to answer and hit the speaker button. "This is Houston."
"Oh, Mr. Houston! I desperately need your help. My husband…" The rest of the sentence was a garbled string of crying and what Matt thought might be words but he wasn't totally sure.
"Uh, ma'am. I'm sorry – I didn't catch that last part?"
"I said my husband has been having an affair with his office manager and I simply don't know what to do!" The woman sounded like she was about to have a complete meltdown.
"Ma'am, I'm sorry to tell you, but we don't take those kinds of cases. I could recommend someone if you like, but…" There was a screech from the other end of the line.
"But I checked around and everyone I talked to says that you're the very best…"
"Well I certainly appreciate that, but we don't handle those types of cases. I'm very sorry…" Matt shrugged at CJ and the caller hung up. CJ started snickering as did Roy.
In his best falsetto voice, Roy imitated the caller: "Oh, Mr. Houston, I desperately need your help!" He started laughing even harder as CJ pantomimed the caller by laying the back of her hand on her forehead and fanning herself with an imaginary hankie.
"Cute, real cute." Matt hung up the phone and sat back down on the loveseat to continue going over the list of parts with his uncle. After being sure that nothing had been overlooked they headed down to Ricardo's for lunch to celebrate.
Just as their orders were arriving at the table, Catey Rose was finished with her bottle and had treated the patrons of the restaurant to a couple of world class burps. Lt. Michael Hoyt walked up. "Hello, stranger. Have a seat and have some lunch with us." Matt grinned up at Hoyt, who wasn't smiling. "What's wrong?" He put his daughter into the carrier that was secured to the restaurant's high chair.
"That's a very good question." He slid into the booth next to Roy and ordered the chimichangas after telling Catey good afternoon. "I understand that you received a call from a Mrs. Frederick Hobart this morning."
"No, I don't think so…" Matt thought back. He had received several phone calls that morning but couldn't remember a Mrs. Hobart.
"Well, you did, because not only was your number the last dialed, she recorded the conversation." As Michael said the last part, Matt choked on the iced tea he was drinking.
"Recorded it? Ohhhh…" He looked at CJ. "That must be the lady that was having husband troubles. I offered…"
"To recommend someone else, I know. I heard the recording." Hoyt took a sip of tea.
"Why would she record the call and what's more why would you know anything about it?" Matt put down his knife and fork.
"Because Mrs. Frederick Hobart is now deceased. Thanks, Humberto. Looks delicious." He proceeded to cut off a bite of the entrée as Matt, Roy, and CJ exchanged a glance.
"Not so funny now, is it?" Matt looked at Roy.
"Funny?" Hoyt was diving into the food, but paused long enough to look up at Matt.
"Yeah, I put it on speaker – you said you heard the tape. These two...," he motioned to his wife and uncle, "…were making fun of it because she…well, it was pretty dramatic after all."
"Uh huh, and are you and your fellow investigators in the habit of making fun of possible clients?" Hoyt was absolutely deadpan.
Matt looked across the table at his friend. "Not nearly as much as we make fun of police lieutenants – especially when they've got a string of cheese dangling off of their chin."
Hoyt swiped at his chin and removed the cheese as Catey smiled at him. "So this morning was the only contact that you've had with the woman?"
"As far as I know." Matt looked at the other two who both nodded. He went back to his lunch. "So what happened to her?"
"She was shot – looks like a 9mm – several times. I counted sixteen bullet holes." Hoyt took another sip of tea.
"Whoa…so it was probably a fifteen round magazine and one in the pipe. Damn." Matt looked at Roy.
"Matt…" CJ gave him a disapproving look over his choice of language in front of their child.
"Sorry."
"Nothing says domestic dispute like overkill – pardon the pun." Roy took another bite of his lunch.
"You three are just a barrel of laughs today, aren't you?" Hoyt continued to declare war on his plate of chimichangas.
"So do you want some help with it – or am I a suspect now because Uncle Roy here made me take the call?" He looked over at his uncle who calmly took a sip of his drink.
"I didn't MAKE you do anything, Mattlock – you are the boss after all." He gave Matt a grin and went back to eating while CJ and Hoyt looked back and forth between the two Houston men.
Matt put down his knife and fork again and leaned back in the booth looking at his uncle for a moment before turning his attention back to Hoyt. "So?"
"So, you should be glad that I came here instead of Oxford. He wanted to bring you in for questioning." Hoyt cut his eyes up at his friend.
"Oxford can kiss…" Matt started but stopped when CJ gave him the raised eyebrow look and cleared her throat. "Well he can kiss a pig." He looked back at his wife who rolled her eyes and went back to her lunch.
"Uh huh – and in some circles that would be considered animal abuse." Hoyt made the comment without missing a beat.
Roy patted him on the shoulder. "Excellent timing, Michael."
"Thank you." Hoyt had nearly finished his lunch.
"So?" Matt repeated the question.
"I guess if you think you can do the job without making fun of the poor dead woman you can tag along."
"Make fun…?" The private investigator gave a growl and started back in on his lunch.