by Cindy Bell
“What car?” Jason asked, obviously confused.
“I saw a car driving by the parking lot really slow earlier this evening. It parked in the brush by the driveway. It must have been the killer.”
“The killer?” Jason frowned again. “Suzie, just take a breath, I think you're getting ahead of yourself.”
“Jason, you can believe what you want, but this was a murder,” Suzie huffed.
“I'm going to take a closer look, then maybe we can figure out what happened,” Jason said and walked away from her towards Dune House. Suzie watched him step into the home that used to belong to his father. She respected Jason as a police officer, and as her cousin, but she didn't like what he was implying. If he was so quick to assume that it was an accident, which might imply that it was due to negligence on her part, then wouldn't everyone else be quick to assume the same thing?
“What did he say?” Mary asked as she walked away from the paramedics and over to Suzie.
“He thinks the railing gave way,” Suzie said darkly. “He thinks it was nothing more than an accident.”
“Well, that is how it looks,” Mary said as she watched the officers step carefully out onto the balcony.
“You know that's not possible, Mary,” Suzie said and turned to look at her friend. “Don't you?”
“I do,” Mary agreed. “I was here for the inspection, I saw it with my own eyes.”
“I'm sure they're going to find some evidence of someone else throwing Warren off the balcony. But the question is why?”
“A murder at Dune House,” Mary sighed. “Even after we prove that it wasn't our fault, we are going to take a hit for this. Good thing it is after tourist season.”
“That’s one good thing at least,” Suzie replied as she watched the officers inspecting the loose railing. “But, I have a feeling we're going to need all the help that we can get with this.”
“I think so, too,” Mary agreed. “I’ll be back in a second, I’m just going to see that John hasn’t been woken by the commotion.” She walked back into the house. Suzie realized that she was still in her loose nightgown with all of these people around her. She shivered in the cool breeze that was coming off the water.
“Here,” Jason said from beside her. She hadn't even seen him come back outside. He draped his jacket around her.
“Thank you,” Suzie said quietly. His expression was tight, his eyes narrowed. “What is it Jason?” she asked.
“Suzie, I'm going to have to ask you a few questions,” he said with a frown. “I know that it's going to be awkward, but I have paperwork that I have to fill out before I can wrap this up.”
“Wrap this up?” Suzie asked with shock. “What are you talking about? Do you know who did it?”
“Who did what?” Jason asked. “It was an accident, Suzie.”
“That's impossible,” Suzie frowned.
“Suzie, there is no evidence of the railing being damaged. There's no sign of any struggle in the room, or on the balcony. My best guess is that the victim walked out on the balcony to wait for the sunrise, and when he leaned against the railing, it gave way.”
“How could it?” Suzie demanded. “It was sturdy, we had it inspected…”
“It looks like it might have lost a screw or two. Maybe in the high winds we had a couple of weeks ago,” he shrugged. “Sometimes the weather does more damage than we realize.”
“Jason, there's no way,” Suzie insisted. “I check the balconies after every weather event.”
“Maybe you overlooked one,” Jason said grimly.
“No, I didn't,” Suzie said, anger rising in her voice.
“Look Suzie, I know that this is going to put Dune House into a bit of a mess, so I understand why you're upset. But I need to ask you a few questions for the record, so are you going to answer them or should I get one of the other officers?” he narrowed his eyes.
“Fine, fine,” Suzie waved her hand. “Ask your questions.”
“Did you have any recent complaints from guests about the state of the balconies?” he asked.
“No, of course not,” Suzie snapped in return.
“Did you actually see the victim on the balcony before he fell?”
“No,” she growled. “I heard a scream, and then a thump, I came running out here to check what it was and found Warren on the ground.”
“Okay, I think that should cover it,” Jason said as he put away his paperwork. “If you think of anything else to add, just let me know. The victim will be taken to the medical examiner for an autopsy, but pending the results this is being considered an accidental death.”
“This is terrible,” Suzie muttered under her breath. “Jason, you must know that we would never put anyone in danger.”
“All I know is that there is no evidence of a struggle, no evidence of external damage to the balcony, and the only injuries I've seen on the victim are those caused by the fall. You say you had the balconies inspected, I believe you, Suzie. But this is a big house, and one balcony could have been missed, or maybe the damage wasn’t noticed. It wasn't a murder,” he said flatly. “That means it's not my department anymore.”
“It was,” Suzie crossed her arms. “Someone killed that poor man and you're going to just write it off as an accident. Jason, you have to do your job and look into it properly,” Suzie demanded. As soon as she spoke the words she regretted it. Jason's expression hardened.
“Suzie, just because you don't want it to be accident due to the railing, doesn't mean it isn't,” he shot back. He took a deep breath and swept his gaze over the scene which was flooded by flashing lights. “Listen, if anything comes up in the autopsy or any other evidence comes to light, then we can start an appropriate investigation. Until then, the death is considered accidental,” he turned and walked away from her. Suzie watched her young cousin go. She was sure she had gone too far with the remark about him doing his job properly. The truth was, he was a good police officer. Suzie knew that. She also knew he could only work from the evidence that was in front of him.
As Suzie watched the police officers begin to leave, and Warren's body was whisked away to the medical examiner's office, she wished she could force them to stay. She was certain that they were missing something important. Mary walked over to her as the last police car pulled out of the parking lot.
“Where is everyone going?” she asked with concern.
“They don't believe me,” Suzie said impatiently. “Not even Jason or Kirk.”
“It's okay, Suzie, try not to let it get to you,” Mary said soothingly.
“I'm not going to let it get to me,” Suzie said sternly. “I'm going to solve this murder myself if they won't do it.”
“No, you are not,” Mary shot back just as sternly.
“What are you saying, Mary?” Suzie asked incredulously. “Do you really just expect me to allow someone to be killed at Dune House without getting to the bottom of it?”
“Of course not,” Mary shook her head. “But you will not be solving this crime, we will be solving this crime,” she looked into her friend's eyes. “You're not alone in this, Suzie.”
Mary's words caused a warm smile to rise to Suzie's lips. “Thank you, Mary,” she said.
“Where do we start?” Mary asked as she swept her gaze over the towering form of Dune House. In the pale light of dawn it looked more like a ghost than a beautiful, old building.
“We need to inspect the balcony, and Warren's room,” Suzie said.
“Then let’s get started.”
Chapter 5
Suzie and Mary began walking towards Dune house. “If we believe that this wasn't an accident then we need to think about who would have done this to Warren and why,” Mary pointed out. “There's got to be a reason this happened. It seems to have been obviously orchestrated not just some random event.”
“You're right,” Suzie said as she held open the door for Mary. “I saw this car lingering around the house earlier this evening. I tried to tell Jason ab
out it, but I don't think that he listened. It's possible that the car had something to do with Warren’s death, especially if he was murdered.”
“The important thing is that we know that it wasn't our fault,” Mary said as they walked up the stairs towards the room that Warren had been staying in.
“That won't make much of a difference when we get hit with a lawsuit,” Suzie pointed out gravely. “We need real evidence, real proof that this was not an accident. That's not even the worst part. The worst part is that there won't be any justice for Warren's death. I know that he was killed, and yet his death will be ruled an accident. His friends and loved ones will never get the proper closure that they deserve. I hate to think that all of this could happen under our roof.”
“I know,” Mary nodded when they reached the landing of the third floor. “All we can do is hope that the autopsy turns up some evidence. Maybe, we'll find something while we're looking around the room, but I doubt the police will have missed anything. You know that Jason usually does a very thorough job, and his new partner, Kirk, seems to pay keen attention to detail.”
“Don't be so sure,” Suzie said. “If they made the assumption that it was an accident then they could have very easily overlooked some important evidence. Assuming things can make you blind.”
“Not Jason though,” Mary pointed out. “He's very observant, and very good at his job and Kirk seems to be as well.”
“Maybe so, but as far as I'm concerned he jumped to the same incorrect conclusion that the rest of the police officers did, so we can't rely on him finding any evidence,” she frowned as she recalled the way that she had spoken to him. “I think I might have upset him,” she added quietly.
“You were upset, Suzie,” Mary said with a slight shake of her head. “In the heat of the moment we all say things that we don't really mean.”
“But I shouldn’t have said it,” Suzie sighed as they reached the room that Warren had been staying in. The police had sealed off the door so no one could get in. Suzie pushed the tape aside and opened the door with her key. “Sometimes I forget that Jason and I are just about the only family we both have. I'd hate to alienate him because of a little squabble.”
“I think Jason is sturdier than that,” Mary assured her. “Trust me, my kids and I had plenty of arguments, and each one made me worry. Would they ever speak to me again? Would they hold it against me forever? But life happens, people forgive, and we all move on. It's going to be fine, Suzie, I promise.”
Suzie felt a little better. Mary always had wisdom to share, especially when it came to dealing with the younger generation. Suzie was a little too impatient to try to look at things from their perspective, but Mary always took the time to look at things through the eyes of others. Hopefully that would help them find some real evidence about what had happened to Warren.
“Jason was right, not a thing is out of place,” Suzie said grimly as she looked around the room. She ducked her head into the bathroom. All of the towels were hanging perfectly. There was nothing missing. When she stepped back into the room, Mary was studying the bed.
“It looks like he might have just got up,” Mary said as she pointed to the way the blankets were shoved aside. “It looks as if he got up quickly. It doesn't look like he had been watching television. The remote for the television is over here,” she pointed to the bureau the television was sitting on. “Maybe he was sleeping and something woke him, something startled him.”
“Yes, so why did he get up and go onto the balcony?” Suzie asked thoughtfully as she looked around the room for an explanation.
“Maybe he had a nightmare,” Mary suggested and tapped her chin lightly. “Maybe he had a phone call that woke him.”
“I can check the call logs to the room,” Suzie said with a slow nod. “I'm sure Jason has taken his cell phone and wallet so that he can make next of kin notifications. We won't be able to tell if he had a call at that time. Hopefully, Jason will at least check that.”
“Well, he didn't take this,” Mary said as she slid something out from under the bed. It was a soft-sided leather briefcase.
“See what I mean?” Suzie said with annoyance. “If they had done a thorough search they would have found that underneath the bed. Instead it is here for us to find.”
“Maybe, but what matters is we found it,” Mary said with some excitement. “Maybe there's something in here that could tell us why someone would want to kill him. Maybe he had been involved in some criminal behavior, or he had recently made someone angry enough for them to want him dead.”
“Do you think the murder could have something to do with Louis' rare book?” Suzie suggested curiously.
“Maybe,” Mary shrugged. “But what could it have to do with it? Louis has the book at his house. Warren didn't even have it yet. So, why would he be killed over it?”
“Good point,” Suzie nodded and stepped up beside her.
“Let's see what is in here,” Mary said.
She set the briefcase down on the bed and popped it open. Inside were a few file folders, a deck of cards, and a few packs of gum.
“Looks like the folders are for different clients,” Mary said. “Here is Louis'.”
She set the folder down on the bed beside the briefcase. Suzie picked it up and flipped it open. Inside were the photographs of the book that Louis had sent to Warren before Warren had agreed to come out to value it. Warren had made a few notes on the white frame around the photographs.
“The book looks authentic. If it is it will be worth a lot. I have some concern about the binding,” Suzie read aloud as she turned the picture.
“What concern do you think he had about the binding?” Mary asked suspiciously.
“He seemed to have circled the thread,” Suzie said as she pointed to a mark on the picture.
“Hmm,” Mary said as she studied the picture. “I wonder why he circled it.”
“No idea,” Suzie sighed.
“Well, then I guess we're back to square one,” Mary said with a light cluck of her tongue.
“Okay, let's forget about the book for the moment,” Suzie said. “Let's walk through what his last moments were like,” she cringed at saying those words. It was still hard for her to believe that Warren was actually gone.
“Okay, well we know that he was likely asleep,” Mary said.
Suzie walked over to the bed and stood beside it. “Which means that it would have been dark,” she said and pointed to the light switch. “Turn off the light please, Mary,” she said. Mary walked over to the light switch and flipped it off. The room was plunged into darkness, but for the dawn's light that was beginning to filter in through the sliding glass doors that led out onto the balcony. “Okay, so he wakes up,” Suzie said with a frown. “We don't know what woke him, but let’s presume that it made him jump up out of bed,” she said and walked to the end of the bed. “It's dark. Does he go over and turn the light on?” Suzie asked.
“When I came up here the light was off,” Mary said. “I turned it on when I walked into the room.”
“Wait a minute,” Suzie said and narrowed her eyes. “Was the door locked?”
“Yes, I had the master key with me,” Mary said. “I grabbed it when I heard the scream. It sounded like it was coming from this room, so after knocking and calling out when I received no answer, I unlocked and opened the door and stepped inside. It was dark, I called out again and I still heard no answer. I flipped the light on,” she said.
“Okay, so when he got up out of bed, he didn't bother to turn the light on,” Suzie said with a grim frown. “If I hear something that startles me, one of the first things I do is switch on a light,” Suzie pointed out.
“Me, too,” Mary nodded.
“So, either he knew what the sound was, or he was so startled by it that he didn't feel he could take the time to turn the light on,” Suzie explained. “If the door was locked, then it's not likely someone was in the room with him. So, how could he have been shoved off the balcony?
” she frowned and shook her head.
“Wait, you're getting ahead of yourself,” Mary warned as she stepped closer to Suzie. “He's up, he hears something, maybe sees something, but more than likely hears it since it is dark. He doesn't turn the light on, he wants to know what that noise is. No one is in the room with him. He must think it's coming from outside, right?” Mary said as she walked towards the sliding glass doors.
“Okay, so whatever he hears, is coming from outside,” Suzie said softly. “That would explain why he wouldn't turn the light on. Maybe he was frightened and didn't want to reveal that he was awake.”
“What could he hear from outside that would cause him to be frightened though?” Mary asked with a frown. “Remember, it couldn't have been too loud, or we would have heard it, too.”
Suzie and Mary stood in silence for a few minutes. Suzie kept thinking about what would cause her to be startled and even frightened if she woke up to the sound of it. Suddenly her heart dropped.
“Knocking,” she said in a whisper. “He must have heard knocking, on the sliding glass doors.”
“Oh yes!” Mary nodded. “That would have made him jump up out of bed. He would have been afraid to turn the light on, and he would have crept outside to see what the noise was.”
“Okay, so he decides he's going to look outside, which means that whatever was causing the sound was not something that he could see through the doors. He opens the door,” she said as she slid the glass door open. She gazed out at the dangling railing where there was more tape that the police had put there to warn people that it was unsafe. “He steps outside.”
“Be careful, Suzie!” Mary said as Suzie stepped out onto the balcony.
“I am,” Suzie promised her. “He's outside and, then what?” Suzie asked, puzzled.
“If there was someone knocking then they might have been waiting for him on the balcony,” Mary suggested. “Maybe when he stepped out, the person shoved him hard enough to break the railing.”
Suzie frowned. “That makes sense, but it can't be true,” she said.