by Jack Parker
Meredith laughed, shaking her head in amusement at shared tactics. "For all I know she claimed all of those things. I think John saw through the subterfuge, yet at the same time knew he had to pretend it was real."
Ken winced inwardly. He'd hoped she would pick up on the mention of allergies, and now would have to ask outright. "Was Mrs. Redmond allergic to anything?"
"Being broke," Meredith quipped.
"Besides that."
She shrugged. "Not that I know of. You mean like bee stings or something?"
"People can be allergic to many different things," Ken said cryptically.
"Okay, I give up. Was she allergic to something?" Her face took on a look of sudden understanding. "Was that what killed her?"
"She was allergic to nuts," Ken told her.
"You mean like peanuts? I had no idea. I knew John couldn't eat nuts because his teeth weren't in good shape." Meredith made firm eye contact with the policeman. "I promise you I didn't bring a can of Planter's as a hostess gift!"
"No, I think her family would've mentioned that," Ken replied sardonically. "The trouble with death from allergic reaction is that it could be accidental."
"But the timing certainly seems more than just coincidence," Meredith said. "I understand that the Trust money gives me a motive and I can protest my innocence all day long, but I trust that you will do your job and find the guilty party. I'd hate to think that one of Robbie's kids killed her...wait. Loretta told me recently that she thinks Robbie abused her when she was just a kid."
Ken sat up straighter. "How?"
"An X-ray showed a broken arm that had been healed for many years and she doesn't remember breaking it so she thinks Robbie did it. Though she didn't say anything about continued abuse."
Well now, that was interesting, Ken thought. Aloud he said, "Thank you for your time, Ms. Rodgers. If I have any more questions I'll be in touch." He rose to leave.
"Anytime. Just one more thing, Lieutenant. I'm the one that got Gracie involved with this and I hope you know she didn't kill Robbie."
I know it, I just have to prove it, he thought. "Goodbye, Ms. Rodgers."
CHAPTER 68
Saturday
"You have a lovely home, Ms. Rodgers!" Shawna said upon stepping inside the teacher's front door.
"Thank you, Shawna," Meredith said. "Everyone come in and make yourselves at home. I thought the dining room would make a good headquarters for our strategy session, so I brought in some snacks. Keep up the brainpower, you know." She winked.
Gracie led the way with Shawna, Cheryl, and Kelly following. The buffet was loaded with soda, iced tea, and the softly bubbling coffee pot; half a dozen plates were piled with various eatables.
"Ooh, cookies!" Cheryl cried.
They filled plates and chose places at the table, Kelly gallantly taking the extra (and less comfy) chair that had been brought in to accommodate the five of them.
"So, obviously Ken told you he considers you a suspect in Mrs. Redmond's death," Gracie began.
Meredith laughed. "Clearly one of the best suspects," she amended. "I have means, motive, and opportunity in abundance. I'd be suspicious of me if this was a movie!"
That got an all around chuckle.
Gracie wrinkled her brow in confusion. "Means? Did Ken tell you what kind of poison was used?"
"It wasn't poison, per se," Meredith said. "Apparently she was highly allergic to nuts and your lieutenant thinks someone fed her some. I had no idea she couldn't eat them."
"Nuts?" Cheryl said, suddenly eying the Macadamias in her half-eaten cookie.
"Cheryl, Mrs. Rodgers has no reason to kill us; we're here to help clear her as well as Gracie," Kelly told her.
"Well, yeah, sure," Cheryl replied a bit dubiously. "Besides, that would look really suspicious, wouldn't it?" She managed a small laugh.
"You're not even allergic to nuts, doofus," Shawna said disdainfully. "Or you'd be dead a hundred times over from all the candy bars you scarf."
"Good point," Cheryl returned, looking relieved.
"Like we said Friday night, that cold would make it hard for Robbie to smell or taste the nuts," Kelly pointed out to get the discussion back on track.
"Oh, you're right," Meredith agreed. "I hadn't thought of that."
"But if you're deathly allergic to something wouldn't you make sure you didn't eat any of it?" Shawna asked.
"Normally yes," Gracie replied. "But don't forget she'd been drinking so her judgment wasn't at its best."
Cheryl picked a whole Macadamia out of the last bite of cookie and waved it for all to see. "How could you miss something this big?" she asked.
"It wouldn't have to be that big," Kelly said reasonably.
"Nor would it have to be that kind of nut," Meredith put in. "A great many kinds of cookies routinely include nuts of all sorts; peanuts, pecans, walnuts, etc. The cheaper brands chop 'em up pretty fine, too."
Cheryl popped the big nut into her mouth and crunched it noisily. "But some kinds can come with or without nuts. Like oatmeal-raisin."
"Don't forget peanut oil," Kelly reminded them. "That's used in a lot of foods, whether they have actual nuts in them or not. It's just as dangerous to people with allergies."
"We're assuming the nuts were in cookies, just because Cheryl freaked out about hers," Shawna said. "There's also candy and pastries and some casseroles have slivered almonds on top."
"Or pine nuts," Kelly added.
"Okay, points all taken," Gracie said. "Surely even if she were drunk you'd think she'd notice something like Cheryl's Macadamias."
"They're not mine." Cheryl stuck her tongue out, then picked up another cookie and deliberately took a big bite, smacking noisily.
"In the same vein you'd think she'd have been cautious about eating something likely to contain nuts," Gracie continued. "But under the influence of alcohol and unable to smell or taste well, she might not have noticed."
"I would assume that all her children would know about the allergy," Meredith said.
"Their wives, too," Cheryl said.
"Even granting what a nasty woman Robbie was, it's hard to imagine children killing their mother," Shawna said what they were all thinking.
"Step-mother in one case, but yeah, that's pretty low," Cheryl agreed.
"Let's look at motives," Gracie suggested. She nodded at the teacher. "We know that Meredith would only have motive if the Trust proves to be good – and even then she'd have to split it with Robbie's kids."
"People have killed for a lot less than twenty-three grand," Meredith said wryly.
"True." Gracie nodded acceptance of that fact. "However, Robbie's untimely death would prevent her from spending that money as well as giving you instant access to it. On the other hand, you did say you were afraid she might try to claim she was entitled to more than half. Killing her would put a stop to that!"
Meredith shook her head resignedly. "Her kids will almost certainly take up that battle if they think it's got any possibilities; more money for them."
"But the big reason you weren't likely to have killed her is that the timing is all wrong," Gracie pointed out. "Why kill her before the court rules on the Trust? Admittedly it would muddle your motive so it would be harder to figure out, but that's a pretty drastic step to take on the chance the ruling would go against you."
"If the Trustee had the Assignment, she'd have just given it to the judge instead of fighting the subpoena," Kelly said. "I'd say that's pretty good evidence that she doesn't have it and knows the Trust won't stand up in court."
"Or she's embezzling and doesn't want us to know it," Meredith said.
"Wouldn't that come out eventually?" Shawna asked. "It's easy enough to add up how much money's supposed to be in there and Robbie would've noticed the difference."
"Not if Canardi didn't tell her the true total," Meredith said. "Remember that John knew she spent too much on clothes and that's undoubtedly why he left the money in a Trust in the first place; so s
omeone else would be in control. Easy enough for her to lie to Robbie about it."
"Regardless, Kelly's right," Gracie said firmly. "Right now all the signs point to the high possibility that the money will go to the Estate. Robbie couldn't blow it at the mall until the Estate is settled and her death wouldn't stop a possible future battle over how much is her legal share. So I repeat, what's Meredith's motive to kill Robbie?"
"Maybe I just don't like her," Meredith said archly.
"Then why didn't you kill her before now?" Shawna asked disingenuously.
"Because John would've just married someone else exactly like her," Meredith replied.
"You could've done it after his death," Shawna continued that line of thought.
Meredith laughed. "You don't exactly send a box of candy to the supposedly-grieving widow! Besides that would not only have looked incredibly suspicious, it wouldn't have kept her from inheriting."
"It wouldn't?" asked Cheryl.
"If they died together, say in a car accident, John's Estate would all go to me," Meredith said. "There's some amount of leeway and I'm not sure of the details, but say he died instantly and she lingered for a few days before kicking the bucket; then I believe her Estate would inherit from him. But since that's not the case it's a moot point. She clearly outlived him and she inherits, so I wouldn't gain any Estate money by killing her."
"Besides," she continued. "Say I lied to the cop about knowing about her allergy. As we've discussed, she wouldn't willingly eat anything that might have nuts in it. Loretta told me about Robbie's drinking, but again I couldn't count on that making her careless. And I sure wouldn't have known when she had a cold! If she'd died closely following a visit from me I'd have been the Number One suspect."
"Like now," Kelly commented.
"You could've had a cookie basket delivered, but even if you paid cash the clerk would probably remember you," Gracie mused.
"You could've ordered it on-line!" Shawna suggested.
"Not without going to a lot of trouble," Cheryl nixed that idea. "You'd have to get a fake credit card or bank account to sign up for PayPal, and even then the transaction could be traced to your computer."
"You could've used a public computer, like at the library," Kelly said. "If you were willing to commit murder you'd certainly be willing to throw away a hundred dollars for a fake bank account."
"A handwriting expert could match your signature at the bank, unless you had some really good friend sign for you," Gracie said. "All of which could equally apply to any of the other suspects."
"That's what seems so weird about this," Shawna said. "Why would the killer choose nuts when so many people knew she was allergic to 'em?"
"To throw suspicion on someone else, of course," Kelly answered. "Like Mrs. Rodgers."
"So let's think of everyone else's motives," Meredith suggested.
"Money," Cheryl said succinctly. "Robbie's kids have as much to gain as you do."
"Not quite; they'll have to split Robbie's half of the inheritance five ways, assuming they inherit equally, so they each get only 1/10th. But that's all a matter of perspective and they might well think it was worthwhile for the amount involved."
"I wonder if she left a Will?" Gracie asked.
"I wouldn't know. Why would – oh, I know! Maybe she left all the dough to only one of her kids and the others knew that," Meredith said.
"Exactly," Gracie agreed. "Pardon me for saying so, but since you guys don't get along well you would make the perfect frame."
"I certainly do, don't I?" Meredith said wryly.
"So where has any of this gotten us?" Kelly asked.
"Not much of anywhere," Shawna mumbled.
"Not necessarily," Gracie told her. "We know what the murder weapon is now. An anaphylactic reaction happens quickly after eating the nuts. The killer would know that, too. Food with nuts in it would have to be eaten within a few days or it would spoil."
"Have you ever eaten a candy bar from the vending machines at school?" Cheryl asked cynically. "Some of those have been in there all semester!"
"They're wrapped," Kelly said. "Wrapped cookies would be good for awhile, too. But most people wouldn't eat anything if the wrapper wasn't sealed."
"Makes sense," Meredith mused. "But that still leaves the field wide-open. Anyone could've given her the nutty food within the last several days. I'm afraid we'll just have to wait on the autopsy to find out what it was."
* * * *
"Honey, have you seen your mother's Will?" Cindy asked.
Jason set his drink on the table beside his chair and looked up at his wife. "I thought you had it."
"I did," she insisted. "I put it in the drawer of the computer desk, only now I can't find it. I thought maybe you might've moved it somewhere."
"Why would I do that?" he asked with just a trace of alcohol-fueled belligerence.
Cindy eyed the half-empty glass and replied, "Because you might've decided it wasn't safe there."
Jason sighed deeply. "It was safer in the safety-deposit box at the bank. I don't know why you took it out in the first place, and I really wish you hadn't lied to the cop about that."
"I didn't lie!" Cindy returned with some heat. "I told him we hadn't looked for it yet; I just didn't mention that we already knew where it was."
"What difference does it make?" he asked. "You know that cop will want to see it so why didn't you just tell him about it?" He picked up his glass and took a healthy drink.
"What's in that Will would give someone a very good motive for murder," she said sharply. She paused in thought. "You didn't show it to Charlie or Loretta when they were here this morning, did you?"
"Now why in the world would I do that? What they don't know can't hurt us."
CHAPTER 69
Monday
"A plate of chocolate chip cookies?" Ken asked in surprise. "This is Monday morning; you've had all weekend to go through the house and that's the best you can come up with?"
Brent Harper, the Crime Scene Investigator assigned to the Redmond murder, replied, "'Fraid so, Ken. I found it on the nightstand beside the bed. There was a book on the floor on the other side of the bed. I'd say she'd planned to eat the cookies in bed while reading." He waited patiently to see how the lieutenant would receive this information.
Ken consulted his notebook. "Yes, the paramedic did say they'd found a book on the covers and the pages were bent so he assumed she'd dropped it when she died. So that makes sense; a little midnight snack and a good book to relax her before going to sleep."
"Only this sleep was permanent," Brent commented. "And I wouldn't exactly call it a good book - it was a trashy bodice-ripper."
Ken shook his head in amusement. "You can never tell about someone's taste, can you? She looked like such a sweet little old lady. I presume you've had the cookies tested for nuts?"
"Yes, Sir. Nothing. No nuts in the cookies, no peanut oil in the dough. They look like they might've come from a bakery, do you want me to try to track that down?"
Ken thought for a moment. "Yeah, give it a shot, Brent. If we can find out where they were purchased we can see which of our suspects live or work nearby. Although if our killer were smart they'd buy the cookies on the other side of town just to confuse the issue."
"Even though they don't appear to be, uh, the murder weapon? Brent chuckled at the thought.
"Maybe the bakery accidentally mixed in one with nuts in it. Personally I don't like nuts in my chocolate chip cookies, but a lot of people do so they come both ways. This could be an unfortunate accident; whoever bought the cookies specifically ordered them without nuts, knowing about Mrs. Redmond's allergy, but somehow one with nuts had been put in the wrong bin. Considering I'm a homicide cop none of the family wants to 'fess up that they'd bought mamma the cookies, especially since they made sure to get the right kind."
"It'd sure make our jobs a lot easier if people would just tell us everything," Brent muttered. He ran a finger down his list of item
s found in the house. "There was a plain white paper bag wadded up in the kitchen trash, maybe that's what the cookies came in. It had some greasy spots on it, want me to have it tested too?"
"Maybe later," Ken said. "Until we know more it won't tell us anything."
"I checked her medicine cabinet," Brent said. "There were seven bottles of prescription pills, all narcotics of some kind. I made a list of everything, including how many were left – oh, and which doctors prescribed what. I'd say she did a bit of doctor-shopping because there were four different doctors' names. And I also noted an epi-pen in the cabinet."
"So if she recognized the symptoms of an allergic reaction she didn't have time to get up and get the epi-pen," Ken mused.
"There is one thing that might be significant – I found two different fingerprints on the plate." Brent grinned, knowing the lieutenant would jump on it. He'd deliberately saved it for last.
Ken looked up with interest. "Why didn't you say so earlier! Someone handed her the plate, is that what you're saying?"
"Could have," Brent allowed. "You got any prints to match 'em to?"
"Not yet, but I'll get right on it!" Ken replied.
* * * *
"Tell me about Mr. Redmond's Estate," Ken prompted.
"Well, Lieutenant, it's hardly the biggest Estate I've ever dealt with," Miles Allison said crisply. "And except for the Trust it's very straight-forward."
"What about the Trust?" Ken asked
"Surely Ms. Kamp explained all that to you?" Allison asked, sounding as if his expensive time were being wasted.
"I'd like to hear it from you." Ken didn't like the man's attitude, and decided to draw out the interview for no other reason than to take up the lawyer's time. Even a slick attorney might let something slip if he talked long enough.
Allison summed up the situation of attempting to prove that the Trust wasn't validly funded in as few precise words as possible, saying nothing that Ken hadn't already known except that unsurprisingly the Trustee hadn't yet delivered the papers. After all, it had only been one business-day.