Murder Under Cover by Kate Carlisle Page A

can’t allow some murdering creep to chase you out of your own home. You love that place. You’ve been there for years and you know all your neighbors and you’ve got all your favorite places to shop and eat.”
    “Yeah, I guess.” She blew out a breath, but she was standing a little straighter. “Oh, hell, I don’t know.”
    I grabbed her shoulders. “And think about it. Who in their right mind would give up a two-bedroom rentcontrolled flat in the heart of Noe Valley?”
    She smiled at that. “Now, that’s the best reason you’ve come up with so far.”
    “There you go.” I pushed away from the refrigerator and straightened the soap dish on the sink. “Look, I was scared to death to come back to this place after they carted the killer away in handcuffs. Intellectually, I knew there was nothing to worry about, but I still had to beg my mom and dad to stay here with me for three nights. Finally I realized I was being silly. It was over. I was safe. And besides, Derek stopped by every day for a week.”
    “He’s so nice,” she said wistfully.
    “Yes, he really is.”
    “You’re so lucky.”
    “I know.”
    And with that, she burst into tears.
     
    After we’d managed to calm Robin down, Derek left for his office and I convinced Robin to take a long, soothing bubble bath. Then I cleaned up around the house and took out the trash. We have a trash chute in the building, so I walked down the hall and around the corner to the small trapdoor in the wall. I tossed the bag through the opening and waited, listening for the satisfying thud as it fell into the garage Dumpster six floors below.
    “Hello, Miss Brooklyn.”
    I turned and saw the little boy I’d met last night. “Hi, Tyler. How are you?”
    “Fine, thank you.”
    “Tyler?” his mother called from the far end of the hall.
    “I’m here, Mama,” he bellowed.
    “Whoa, who’s doing all the yelling?” My neighbor Suzie strolled up carrying a large white plastic trash bag. “Yo, Brooklyn, howzit?”
    “Hi, Suzie,” I said. “Have you met Tyler?”
    “Hey, munchkin,” Suzie said, grinning at the boy. “Are you our new neighbor?”
    “Yes, sir,” Tyler whispered. He stared in fascination at Suzie, whose fashion choice today was a sleeveless black leather shirt with matching bell bottoms and spike-toed boots. Her white blond hair was short and spiked, and she wore at least ten different earrings and studs in her ears. Happily, none of her other parts were pierced. At least, none that showed. She looked like a scary but sexy lesbian chain-saw artist, which was exactly what she was.
    Tyler’s mom came jogging around the bend. “Tyler, I called you to—Oh, hello.”
    “Hi, Mama,” Tyler said. “This is our new neighbor.”
    “Good morning, Lisa,” I said. “Have you met Suzie Stein? She has the place closest to the elevator on the east side of the building.”
    Lisa bowed. “How do you do?”
    “I’m dandy,” Suzie said. “I think you met my better half yesterday. Vinnie.”
    Lisa cocked her head. “I met Vinnie. She is half of you?”
    Suzie chuckled. “No, she’s my better half. That’s a kind of silly way of saying we’re a couple.”
    “Ah. She is your roommate.”
    “That’s another way to say it.”
    “I am still have problems with some colloquialisms.”
    “You’re doing great. Where in China are you from?”
    “My mother is American. She moved to China and met my father. I was born and raised in Beijing. That’s where I met my husband.” She laughed. “My mother lives back here now and would love to rid me of my Chinese accent.”
    “It’s charming,” I assured her.
    She went on to explain that her husband was a diplomat and they had moved here because of his new job with the Chinese consulate in San Francisco. His last assignment had been at the embassy in Khartoum for five years. The whole family had been taking English-immersion classes for the past three years in anticipation of her husband obtaining the