Black Diamond Death by Cheryl Bradshaw

motorcycle and jumped over various obstacles in his path. I imagined one day he would fly through a ring of fire and attempt a black flip, and when he did, his enormous bear head would slide off to reveal the excessively tatted Carey Hart. Motorcycle racer by day, Jazz Bear by night.
    “How did it go today with the chief?” Nick said. “I heard your client went to the paper.”
    “I had no idea she would do that.”
    “Have you made any progress?” he said.
    “I’m still doing the preliminary rounds and Maddie’s on board too.”
    He grinned.
    “Maddie must love that.”
    “What?”
    “The challenge,” he said.
    “I’m counting on it.”
    Game time. The players hustled out on the court while the announcer commenced with the necessary introductions. First up, the Lakers. They entered the sports arena to rowdy Jazz fans that spewed forth their comments while the team took their places. Then it was time for the Jazz. The team penetrated the court with a loving embrace from the crowd who stood on their feet and chanted for them.
    “Care to wager?” Nick said.
    “Loser cooks dinner,” I said.
    “You’re on.”
    “Five-course minimum, you sure about that?”
    Nick took a considerable amount of time before he answered. On one hand, no man in his right mind ever passed up one of my home-cooked meals, of this I was certain. On the other, fine cuisine wasn’t his specialty. He weighed the risk and then nodded.
    Game on.
    The players in the middle bounced on bended knee and the jump shot sprung them straight up in the air like a pair of rockets and we had liftoff. My stomach twisted with disquietude and I watched through squinted eyes. Both outstretched hands launched their fingers in the air to protrude the ball forward and two seconds later, the Lakers were in control. I breathed a sigh of relief.
    “Long way to go still,” Nick said.
    “I think of the first toss up as a sign.”
    “What’s next?”
    “My team beats yours.”
    “I meant with your case,” he said.
    “I checked out where it happened which was a huge waste of time. I also went to Charlotte’s office. Now it’s time to focus on the boyfriend while we wait for Maddie’s autopsy results to come back.”
    “What if it shows her death was an accident?”
    “Hopefully that will be enough for Audrey to put it to rest.”
    The Lakers dribbled and then swoosh , a perfect three pointer. For a moment I forgot my place in the enemy’s camp and shouted out a supportive YES! which elicited dirty looks from the spectators around me. A crotchety silver-haired man a few seats over gave me the stank eye and shook his head in disgust. My secret was out.
    “Good job,” Nick said.
    “I try my best.”
    The rest of the game went by fast, and the Jazz drove a hard bargain, but on this particular night they proved no match for my Lakers.

CHAPTER 13

    Audrey checked in with me early the next morning.
    “Any news?”
    “Not yet,” I said.
    I shared the events of the past two days, which included my conversation with the chief.
    “I didn’t mean to get you into any trouble, but those smug detectives didn’t even give a crap.”
    “From now on you need to check with me first,” I said. “No more conversations with reporters, alright?”
    The line went silent.
    “And if I don’t agree?”
    “Then I’m out,” I said.
    And I meant it.
    “I want to help you and I will do everything I can, but I need you to trust me,” I said.
    Her tone relaxed a little.
    “I suppose I owe you an apology. When those reporters got in my face, I lost it.”
    “You’ve been through a lot, it’s understandable.”
    “What more can I do to help?”
    “I need an address for Parker Stanton,” I said.
    “He has a house in Park City off Silver Lake Drive in Deer Valley. It’s the second or third house on the left. He also has some investment property downtown in Salt Lake City. The last time Charlotte mentioned it she said Parker rented it out to some tenants. I