Art of Deception

by Brenda Donelan

  If someone had told me a year ago that this is how things would turn out, I wouldn’t have believed them. Who would believe anything so far-fetched?

  Chapter 31

  “My car?” Marlee asked, unsure if she’d heard Derek correctly.

  “Yeah. We had it with us in the fishing shack and put it in your car when we took off with it. We stashed the urn in your car when we went to Abby’s office. Then you came in and demanded your keys back. You know the rest,” Derek said, satisfied he had told enough about the case to secure his own plea deal. A deal that would show Rita as the mastermind and him as the puppet.

  Derek grabbed the pen and legal pad that was offered to him and began to detail his account of the scheme. It would no doubt paint him in the best light, as anyone seeking a deal minimized their own culpability and maximized that of their co-defendants.

  Marlee and Hector raced from the room and out to Marlee’s SUV. Her hands shook as she sought the correct key to open the car door. There was nothing in the front of the car nor in the back or under the seats. Hector pulled up the carpeted flap from the back cargo area, hoping to find the urn stashed with the spare tire. He frowned as he saw the miniature tire, alone in the slot.

  “Do you think Derek was just bullshitting us?” Marlee asked, after the two had looked through the vehicle and even inspected the undercarriage.

  Hector shrugged as he continued to search under the hood of the Honda CR-V. Slamming the hood down and rubbing his hands together for warmth, he said, “I think we need to get your car into your garage where it’s not so cold. Then we need to tear everything out of the interior.”

  Reluctantly, she agreed. Marlee loved her little SUV and hated to see it torn apart, but knew that finding the urn was of utmost importance. She parked her car inside the spacious garage and Hector left his car outside. He brought in a spotlight and two flashlights from his car, regular tools of the trade for a detective. Marlee ran to her basement and returned with a space heater.

  For the next half hour they worked to take out the front and back seats. The heater had warmed the closed garage to a level where Marlee shed her coat and gloves as she worked. Suddenly, she remembered when she bought the vehicle she was shown a small storage area in the back cargo area that could be used for extra tools and the small jack. She’d never had a need to use it and had forgotten all about it.

  “Hector, wait. I think I know where they hid the urn.” She ran to the back and along the side was a nearly invisible line. There were scratches all around it so no one would notice it if they weren’t looking. She slid the hatch open and inside was a brown, hard-topped carrying case. The case was on its side and fit perfectly in the space.

  With a flick of her index finger, the carrying case popped open and inside was an ugly, greenish colored urn. “Here it is!” Marlee shouted, although Hector was only inches from her.

  “Let’s call Detective Knutson, so he can see exactly where we found it,” Hector said as he looked at the urn.

  “So this is the urn that has caused so much trouble for Bridget?” Marlee shook her head in disbelief. It was a nondescript vessel that wouldn’t have garnered a second glance from her at a yard sale. “I’ll never understand what makes this piece of junk so valuable.”

  “Me neither. I guess we just don’t understand art,” Hector said with a laugh.

  Detective Knutson, along with two uniformed officers arrived and took possession of the real urn. He didn’t offer any appreciation for them locating it, nor did he apologize for suspecting Marlee and Bridget as thieves. The detective’s eyes were cold as he jotted down a few notes and then left with the urn.

  Back in the house, Marlee and Hector were snuggling on the couch in front of a non-working fireplace. Empty beer bottles rested on the coffee table and they each held a beer in hand as they discussed the urn and how the case was resolved. They had worked well together on this case and Marlee felt content with Hector.

  “I’ve thought a lot about it, and I think you should move in with me when you move to Elmwood,” she said as she looked at him.

  “Really?” Hector seemed surprised, but happily so. “I wasn’t sure you’d be up for it. At least not right away.”

  “Let’s give it a try. We’ve spent a lot of time together, and we get along well. It doesn’t make sense for you to get an apartment if you’re going to be over here all the time anyway,” Marlee said.

  “Great! I’ll start bringing my things here right away. I’ll get a storage unit for what doesn’t fit. I think my stuffed fish will look great over the fireplace,” Hector joked.

  “No way in hell are you hanging up dead animals and fish. You can hang that up in your storage unit.” Marlee was firm on this and didn’t intend to budge.

  “I have a feeling I’m going to be spending a lot of time at my storage unit visiting my stuff,” Hector said with a grin, not too upset that many of his possessions might not pass inspection.

  This reminds me of Harrison Ford’s character in The Fugitive. He was falsely accused of murder and sought to clear his name. I was somewhat falsely accused of a theft, but I actually did steal something. And I didn’t do much to clear my name since I was on house arrest. Nevermind….

  Chapter 32

  A knock on Marlee’s door the next morning startled her. It was only 8:30 a.m. and she was getting ready for work. For probably the first time in his life, Hector was sleeping in. A wide grin spread across her face when she opened the door to her cousin. “Bridget! You’re free!”

  “Yes, Vince just came over and took the electronic monitoring stuff away.” Bridget waltzed in the door and threw her coat on the couch. “All of the charges against me were dismissed. The prosecutor realized everything I did was because of the threats, harassment, and coercion by Rita and Derek.” She plopped down on the couch, her face in a permanent smile.

  “Can you go back to Marymount? What about your house foreclosure?” Marlee asked.

  “Everything’s still a mess, and I’ll have plenty to do to get my life back in order. I’m going to Marymount this morning to talk to the dean about reinstating my visiting professor position. And I have a huge uphill battle trying to convince the bank that I really did make my mortgage payments. But I’m not under suspicion for a crime anymore, and I don’t have to stay on home detention any longer.” Bridget looked around Marlee’s house. “I’ve missed coming over here.”

  “I missed you too, Bridget!” Marlee sniffed, rarely one to get emotional. She sat down next to her cousin and gave her a quick hug. Realizing that was too uncomfortable for both of them, she released Bridget from her embrace.

  “Where’s Hector?” Bridget asked, as she wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater.

  “He’s sleeping in,” Marlee said, jerking her head in the direction of the bedroom. “I have some big changes coming up.” She relayed the news about Hector moving to Elmwood and that he would be moving in with her.

  “Wow, that’s exciting! Are you scared?” Bridget asked.

  “At first I was terrified, but now I know it’ll be perfect,” Marlee gushed, convinced she’d made the right decision after all.

  “What about Vince?” Bridget asked, still on the side of her former probation officer.

  “He knows, but he’s mad about it.” Marlee shrugged, having given up on keeping Vince as a friend. There was too much water under the bridge for Marlee and her ex-boyfriend to be anything but acquaintances now.

  Two months later, Hector and Marlee were unloading the moving van outside Marlee’s house. It was a warm, sunny day in late March, with singing birds and blooming flowers. Hector rented the van in Chamberlain, had some friends help him load it, and then drove all of his worldly belongings to Elmwood. They were nearing the end of the items to be moved into Marlee’s house and were planning to have some lunch and then take the remaining items in the truck to Hector’s storage unit.

  A blue car pulled up and parked behind the moving van and a tall, dark-haired
woman approached them. Marlee recalled seeing her before, but couldn’t remember where.

  “Hi, Hector. Can I talk to you for a minute?” she asked, not even bothering to address Marlee.

  Hector nodded and followed her back to her car and they both got inside. What the hell’s going on here? Marlee thought as she stared at them. Her stomach clenched, knowing something was wrong. Hector and the woman both looked visibly upset as Hector got out of the car and returned to the truck.

  “Who was that?” Marlee asked. “Is everything okay?” She had never seen Hector like this. He seemed in a daze as he met her direct stare.

  “She’s Trish Riley, the deputy from the Sheriff’s Office. She’s the one who let us into the evidence locker to see the fake urn…”

  “Yeah, now I remember her,” Marlee said with a note of disgust, surprised that she’d forgotten all about Hector’s flirtation with this woman at the jail. “What did she want?”

  Hector looked down at the snow covered yard, then he stared at the front of Marlee’s Spanish-style home. When he spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper. “Trish is pregnant. And it’s mine.”

  Afterward

  Much to her disgust, Marlee attended Della Halter’s Bitches With Bitches party, in which an array of Della’s female friends all came to her house and brought their dogs. Marlee was the only person without a dog, but that was fine, since some people brought more than one. The night was a disaster, filled with fighting dogs, a drunken Della, and vigorous crotch sniffing by every dog on the premises. And Della was right; her dogs really did enjoy Marlee’s artichoke dip. They enjoyed all of it until one threw up in the dining room just as the group was eating. Bitches With Bitches was such a success that Della proclaimed it would be an annual event.

  Bridget was reinstated as visiting professor at Marymount College just in time to host The Showcase opening ceremony. Conrad Thayer graciously allowed the real antique urn to be displayed in The Showcase again, much to everyone’s surprise. The event went off without a hitch, and even though Marymount tried to keep the urn theft and the details surrounding it hush-hush, some information leaked out. This only led to greater intrigue and more people coming to view the urn.

  It took time and insurmountable effort, but Bridget was able to get her financial situation straightened out. Her home in Minnesota was moved out of foreclosure, and she was again in good standing with her bank. Rita Thayer and Derek Geppert provided enough information to satisfy the bank on how they hacked into Bridget’s bank and manipulated her finances.

  Abby finished her work with Bridget on The Showcase, but then resigned after the show was over. She dropped out of school due to a claim that she contracted mononucleosis. It was later revealed that she had moved in with her uncle and was helping him out around the house, sans maid’s uniform. Abby continued her romance with Sean Yellow Tail, waiting for him to divorce his wife.

  The provenance for the urn had been misfiled by the professor who took over The Showcase in Bridget’s absence. Once it was obtained, Conrad Thayer updated it to show himself as the current owner and kept it in a safety deposit box at his bank.

  Conrad was in the front row of the opening ceremony for The Showcase. He made a jaw-dropping entrance in an iridescent green suit with a mink stole buttoned around his neck. If a white hat and a cane had been added to his ensemble he could have been mistaken for a pimp circa 1970. The eccentric collector was the first person on his feet to start the standing ovation as Bridget ended the show and invited the attendees to wander around the venue and enjoy the art, music, and film on display. He apologized to Bridget in a British accent as he made an early departure. “Sorry I must be on my way, love. I’ve an early flight tomorrow. I’m going gorilla watching.” And with a flourish, he swept out of the venue, several pairs of eyes following him as he left.

  In plea deals, Rita Thayer and Derek Geppert both received six years in federal prison for coercing Bridget to steal the urn, stealing the actual urn, hacking into to Bridget’s bank and ruining her credit, and a host of other charges. Derek began working on an appeal, stating he was just a pawn in the scheme, whereas Rita was the mastermind. That defense strategy didn’t work in court, but he feels confident an appellate court will see things differently. Rita is housed in the women’s federal prison in Waseca, Minnesota. She’s slowly plotting her revenge against her brother and everyone involved in sending her to prison.

  New interest was sparked in Conrad’s earlier stolen pieces of artwork in other states. Detectives in Oregon and Minnesota are digging through old case material and re-interviewing witnesses. Rita denied any involvement in those thefts.

  Marlee was awarded tenure, meaning that she now had job security at Midwestern State University. No longer would she have to hold her tongue in fear of offending a colleague or administrator.

  With the neighbors watching the show, Marlee tossed out as many of Hector’s belongings as she could lift. She called him every nasty name she could think of and even invented a few new ones. He kept insisting his fling with Trish was a one-time thing and that they’d only slept together when he was certain Marlee had resumed her relationship with Vince. She stayed at Bridget’s apartment for two days, giving Hector ample time to move all of his belongings out of Marlee’s house. She refused his calls and did her best to avoid him now that he lived in Elmwood.

  In November, Trish gave birth to an 8-pound, 2-ounce baby girl.

  I never should have agreed to head up The Showcase. My field is film, yet I got stuck dealing with art and music as well. And that’s how I got into this mess. I’ve learned some valuable lessons through this whole ordeal. First, don’t agree to something that is outside your area of expertise. Second, always report illegal activity directly to the police right away. And third, never underestimate the power money has over people.

  Also by Brenda Donelan:

  Day of The Dead

  When a college professor is found dead on campus, rumors and innuendo begin to swirl at Midwestern State University. The police department and the university are mysteriously secretive about the professor’s background and the ongoing investigation. Marlee McCabe, a professor of Criminology, is unwittingly pulled into the investigation leading her to question the integrity of the police department and her university. Despite warnings, Marlee uncovers information on the professor’s death, making her the next target of someone who has nothing left to lose.

  Holiday Homicide

  Criminology professor Marlee McCabe is thrust into a criminal investigation when a janitor is murdered at Midwestern State University. Marlee's sleuthing leads her to the Lake Traverse Indian Reservation and into the dangerous underworld of trafficking Native American artifacts and sacred cultural items. Those involved are not afraid to use threats, violence, and even murder to keep their secrets buried. What will they do to keep Marlee from exposing the truth?

  Murder to Go

  On the second day of a week-long class trip, a body is discovered in a motel room. Criminology Professor Marlee McCabe struggles to continue the tour of prisons and juvenile correctional facilities while uncovering the truth behind the life and death of the victim. As she protects her students from harm, Marlee begins to suspect the killer has ties to her university. What steps will the murderer take to hide the truth and prevent Marlee from revealing it?

  About the Author

  Brenda Donelan is a life-long resident of South Dakota. She grew up on a cattle ranch in Stanley County, attended college in Brookings, and worked in Aberdeen as a probation officer and later as a college professor. Currently, she resides in Sioux Falls.

  Art of Deception is the fourth book in the University Mystery Series. Brenda is currently working on the fifth book in the series.

  The author can be reached by email at brendadonelanauthor@gmail.com. For more information on Brenda Donelan, books in the University Mystery Series, and tour dates, check out her website at brendadonelan.com or find her on Facebook at Brenda Donelan – Author.