Burial Plot (A Jonelle Sweet Mystery Book 1)

by R. Lanier Clemons

  “Glad you like it. A bit hungry, are you?”

  “Yeah. I wanted Chinese, but…” She shrugged, a sly look on her face.

  After swallowing a bite of pizza, Jonelle said, “Look, I’ve really been meaning to call you. But, well, I’ve been busy with this and that. Things pile up—the fish are sick.”

  Marvin’s eyes narrowed at Jonelle. “You gonna tell me about the dead guy at the cemetery or not?”

  Adrienne gasped. She started coughing in spasms.

  Marvin looked over at her. “You all right?”

  Tears ran down Adrienne’s cheeks as she took a swig of soda. “I’m okay now,” she said in a raspy voice. “Piece of sausage went down the wrong way.”

  He turned his attention back to Jonelle. “Heard it on the news. Name rang a bell as the guy you told me about, so I thought I’d come around. See if you heard. From the look of things,” he cocked his head over at Adrienne, “I guess you have.”

  Jonelle nodded. “Have you heard anything about the cause of death?”

  “They’re not gonna know anything this soon. The police are probably still processing the scene.”

  Adrienne cast a sidelong look at Jonelle who did not meet her friend’s gaze.

  “Once they get done with that, how soon before you think they’ll know T-O-D?”

  “Tod?” Adrienne asked. “Who’s that?”

  “Not who, what,” Marvin responded. “It means time of death. Depends on what else they have on their plates. If it’s slow in the morgue, I’m guessing they’ll know fairly quickly. It’s being called a suspicious death. Heard the guy was found in a grave. Ironic, huh?”

  “Oh, it wasn’t a regular grave. It was a real shallow one, way up at the top, and… ow!” Adrienne shot an angry look at Jonelle as she reached down and rubbed her shin.

  “How do you know?” Marvin looked from one to the other.

  “She heard a rumor,” Jonelle answered. “Actually, she heard it from me. I went by the cemetery to take a look, and there was a crowd, and, well, people were talking. You know how they do.” She crammed more pizza in her mouth.

  Marvin nodded. “I know how they do, and I know how you do as well. I know once you get your mind wrapped around something, you don’t let go. Jonelle, if you know something, anything, about this, you gotta tell me.”

  As Jonelle continued chewing, her intercom buzzed. “Busy day today. Wonder who that is?” She got up from the table and walked over to the intercom.

  “Yes?”

  “It’s me, Kenny. Can I see you a minute?”

  Jonelle buzzed him in and opened the door.

  The twelve-year-old walked in dressed in baggy shorts, T-shirt, and dirty sneakers. “Don’t have school tomorrow. Some kinda teacher’s conference. So I was just wonderin’ if you needed anything done. Hey, everybody.”

  “Want some pizza, Kenny? There’s plenty,” Marvin said.

  “Naw, my mom is waiting outside for me. We’re going to Burger World. Thanks anyway,” he quickly added.

  Jonelle motioned for Kenny to follow her to the back patio. “If you don’t mind pulling some weeds and then giving the flowers a good soak, especially the ones in the pots, that’ll be great. If I’m not in, buzz the Brobishes. Mathilda has a spare key. Sounds like a ten-dollar deal, okay?”

  Kenny nodded. He stopped at the sliding glass doors. He frowned and sniffed the air.

  “Hey,” he said, his face brightening. “That smells like the white guy who paid me to give you that note.”

  CHAPTER 23

  Marvin walked up to Kenny, looked down at the boy, and smiled. “What all do you know about this white man?”

  Jonelle rushed forward. She wedged herself between Kenny and Marvin.

  “That’s okay, Kenny,” she said, grabbing the young man by the shoulder and propelling him toward the front door. “I’ve already told everything to my uncle.”

  “Hey! Oww.” Kenny shrugged off Jonelle’s hand and pushed his glasses up on his nose.

  “Sorry. How about I call you later about coming back to take care of the plants, okay?”

  “Whatever,” he said, massaging his shoulder. Kenny let himself out of Jonelle’s condo, but not before giving her another withering look.

  “Did you get another note?” Marvin demanded. “Is there something else you need to tell me?”

  Jonelle didn’t answer. She moved away from Marvin and busied herself with putting away the medicine for the fish. Lying to her uncle was useless. Whenever she tried, she ended up stuttering and stammering and finally giving up. The family often joked that Marvin’s senses were so sharp he could spot a tick on a tabby from twenty feet away.

  Adrienne picked up another slice of pizza and plucked off a piece of pepperoni. She chewed slowly, taking in the interplay between Jonelle and her uncle.

  “Are you going to tell me what’s going on here? Did you find out it was the same guy who ran the prostitution ring out of that house?”

  Jonelle shook her head. “I don’t know for sure. It’s possible someone else altogether is involved. Not sure why or who. It’s just a feeling I have. It seems to me the guy in the house, Ted something—I’ve got the last name written down somewhere—and his partner, Sandra Dee, would want Del to stay dead and buried. So to dig him up again and then try to intimidate me when I’m trying to find out what happened, well, I just don’t think it’s the same guy.”

  Marvin had raised an eyebrow at Jonelle’s use of the word intimidate. He ambled over to the dining room table and picked up his bottle of water. He drank the bottle dry.

  “Are you going to explain what you mean by intimidate?” Marvin asked.

  Adrienne’s eyes followed the exchange.

  Jonelle walked over to the dining room table. She picked up her plate and reached for Adrienne’s.

  “You done with this yet?”

  Adrienne frowned and held on to the plate.

  No one spoke as Jonelle cleaned up most of the pizza leftovers. After wiping the table around Adrienne, she stood facing her uncle, arms crossed in front of her chest.

  “Look, Uncle Marvin. The only kid in this house just left a few minutes ago. I appreciate your concern, but nothing’s really happened to me.”

  Adrienne coughed. Jonelle ignored her.

  “Fact is I can handle myself. In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t think anyone can mistake me for a delicate flower. Besides, I’ve been in contact with Detective Tankersley.”

  Marvin’s eyes widened at the news. “Gordon? You’ve talked to Gordon about this? Wonder why he hasn’t told me.”

  “Because I asked him not to and he’s obviously a man of his word. Actually, before you stopped by, I was going to call him to see if he’d give me any information about how Manross died.”

  Adrienne stood up from the table, gathered her plate, and walked into the kitchen.

  Marvin put both hands in his pockets and wandered over to the patio doors. He stared out into the backyard.

  Jonelle willed Adrienne to say something, anything, but her best friend stayed uncharacteristically silent.

  Hands still in his pockets, Marvin turned to face Jonelle.

  In a voice barely above a whisper, he said, “I can’t force you to do anything. But I’m here if you need my help. I have resources and contacts you can use. I’m not working against you, Jonelle. I want to work with you. Please don’t keep me in the dark about this.”

  Jonelle grinned. “I promise if I get myself in a bind, I’ll call on you. Really. So don’t worry. With you and the detective in my corner, I feel very safe.”

  Adrienne cleared her throat. “Umm, well, as they say, hate to eat and run, but I’ve decided to work from home tomorrow, so I gotta stop by the university to pick up some files. Thanks for the pizza, Marvin. It hit the spot.”

  Marvin nodded, a slight smile on his face. “Glad you enjoyed it, Adrienne.”

  At the door, Adrienne said to Jonelle, “I’ll see you later. Call me if you find
out anything about Manross.”

  ***

  Adrienne closed the door behind her and paused in the entryway. She didn’t know what it was, but whenever she was in Marvin Shorter’s company, she felt she had to sit up straighter and watch what came out of her mouth. Only Marvin could make her feel as if her skirts were too short and her blouses too tight.

  Not for the first time did Adrienne wonder why Marvin didn’t use his resources to suss out Del when Jonelle got engaged. Woe be to the next guy Jonelle gets cozy with, she thought.

  Once outside Jonelle’s building, Adrienne remembered the smell in the condo when Jonelle treated the fish. She knew the source of that odor. She often inhaled it when she had to deliver papers to some of the doctors at the university. Even if she was right about the source, she couldn’t imagine what the familiar scent had to do with this whole Del mess.

  CHAPTER 24

  Even in the approaching dusk, Jonelle noticed the dark sedan as she stood outside and waved goodbye to Marvin. It was the only car parked across the street under a large oak tree, the branches of which spread out like a large fan and nearly touched the car’s roof.

  A figure sat in silhouette. Though the features were hidden, Jonelle knew the person’s head was turned in her direction. The setting sun and the deep shadows caused by the tree prevented her from knowing if that person was male or female. What she could tell was that someone just sat there watching her.

  Jonelle used her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. She stared as the hand hanging out the driver’s side window lifted and waved to her.

  Startled, Jonelle turned around, looking for someone else the person could be signaling. The hand in the car motioned her to come closer. Tentatively, she made her way across the street, half wishing her uncle had stuck around a little longer.

  Jonelle relaxed as she got close enough to see who it was.

  “Marcia, I’m surprised to see you here. Is something wrong?”

  Jonelle remembered giving the woman her business card. She also knew her address wasn’t written on it.

  “I didn’t mean to just show up like this,” Marcia said. “I tried to call your cell, but it said you weren’t available, and I didn’t want to leave a message.”

  “I turned it off because I had company, and—”

  “I know.”

  “You know?”

  Marcia blushed. “Been sitting here a while. I saw some people go in your building. Didn’t know who they were but figured maybe they came to see you. I saw the kid leave and decided to wait a bit longer. A little later, a black lady in this really bright, lime green miniskirt left.”

  “That was my friend, Adrienne.”

  “Really? She does stand out, doesn’t she?”

  Jonelle smiled at the remark.

  “Well,” Marcia continued, “I was just about ready to regret driving here when I saw you come out with an older black man.”

  “That was my uncle, Marvin. He’s a private detective.” Jonelle wasn’t sure why she added Marvin’s occupation.

  Jonelle gestured toward her building. “Would you like to come in?”

  Marcia shook her head. “No, thanks. Bet you’re wondering how I knew where you lived, right?”

  Jonelle nodded. “The thought did occur to me. How about we take a little stroll around the block?”

  Marcia scooted out of the car. She used the key fob to lock all the doors and tried the driver’s side handle to make sure.

  Jonelle smiled at the clerk’s movements. “This really is a nice neighborhood. Your car should be safe.”

  “Oh, I know. Just habit I guess.”

  Jonelle walked along with Marcia in silence. About a minute later, they passed by playground equipment, ringed by a small stand of trees.

  Just as she began to wonder if Marcia was ever going to say anything, the clerk inhaled and said, “Remember when you came to the cemetery to, uh, bury your husband and you had to fill out some information?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Well, I put all that stuff into the computer.”

  “Oh, right.” Jonelle waited for the clerk to continue.

  “See, the reason I came by is…” Marcia stopped walking, turned, and faced Jonelle. She pushed a strand of hair from her face. “Jorge wanted me to contact you because he has to tell you something.”

  Jonelle’s heart raced. Finally.

  “Tell me what?”

  “Is there someplace we can sit for a few minutes?”

  “Sure, a little ways from here.”

  Both women strolled along on the sidewalk, which wound around a small man-made lake. Jonelle led Marcia over to an open area of manicured lawn, dotted with several wooden park benches. “We can sit over there.”

  They sat down on a slatted bench facing the lake.

  “When did Jorge tell you he needed to see me?”

  “This afternoon. He saw me leave with you after the coroner took Cornelius away. He called me while I was at home.”

  Marcia noticed the curious look on Jonelle’s face, and quickly added, “All the groundspeople have my cellphone number in case there’s an emergency and they can’t come to work.” She looked Jonelle in the eyes. “He’s really scared about something. I tried to get some idea of what the problem was, but all he said was that it’s very important he see you.”

  “He didn’t give you any clue about what he wants to tell me?” While Jonelle had been anxious to speak to Jorge, she was apprehensive now that it seemed the meeting might actually take place.

  “Jorge doesn’t believe what happened to Cornelius was an accident, or that he died of natural causes.” She paused. “Tell you the truth, neither do I.”

  Jonelle waited for the clerk to continue. She knew in her gut that rushing the woman would be counterproductive.

  Marcia looked around. Two people were walking their dog on the far side of the lake. She shifted nervously on the bench. “See, the thing is…”

  She paused, rubbed her hands over her face, and let out a loud sigh.

  Jonelle nodded encouragement, signaling the woman to continue.

  “Please promise you won’t go to the police. Or tell your uncle. The Reverend Clarkson is basically a very nice man. It’s just, well, money at the Rest is very tight, and he figured it really wouldn’t be any harm.” Marcia’s voice faded.

  Jonelle gently touched Marcia on the arm. “Whatever it is, I promise to keep it in complete confidence.”

  Marcia slid down the seat and leaned her head against the curved back of the bench. She stared up at the sky.

  In a voice so soft Jonelle had to lean close to hear, Marcia said, “Okay. Let me first tell you how this works. In each county, the local government pays a cemetery to bury indigents, you know, poor people? Usually these are homeless people who die on the streets, and nobody goes to the morgue to claim their bodies. Disposing of… uh, that’s not a good word.” Marcia hesitated, a confused look on her face.

  “Um, taking care of them, yes, that’s better. Taking care of them was never a problem when I started working at the Rest ten years ago. We had space for burial, or we sent them to a facility with a crematorium.”

  Marcia stopped talking. Jonelle waited for her to continue.

  “But money’s been real tight for a while now, and the county is not keeping up with the cost of things.” She turned her head and looked over at Jonelle. “The county pays us, but we have to pay a portion of what they give us to get the bodies cremated.”

  “What do you do with the ashes?”

  “They’re kept in a storage room at the cemetery.” Marcia managed a weak smile. “Usually we store them in some kind of can or box. Coffee cans work really well for that. Those who can pay go in the mausoleum.”

  “So what I hear you saying is that burying poor people wasn’t an option anymore?”

  Marcia sat up. Still gazing at the lake, she said, “Not really. Sometimes a relative shows up and pays for burial and a plaque. You know what the c
emetery is like. We’re sort of landlocked. We have to make sure we have the space for all the folks who can pay.”

  She clutched her purse tightly to her chest. “Instead of turning the county away, saying we could no longer accept indigents for cremation, we started burying some people in graves already containing a body, saving the cost of actual cremation and, uh, pocketing the money.”

  Jonelle’s stomach churned. She swallowed hard and rubbed her temples with her fingers.

  “I’m not up on these kinds of things,” she managed, “but it seems like you could have simply told the county you couldn’t handle it anymore so the bodies could have been sent somewhere else.”

  “I know that,” Marcia said too loudly. She leaned back again and stared up at the clouds. In a quieter voice, she said, “I know. But we needed the money the county gave us.”

  Jonelle stared at the woman in disbelief. In a tight voice she asked, “Did Manross and the others know what was going on?”

  “Sure. The gravediggers had to know what was happening. But no one asked any questions, and after a while I think maybe Cornelius decided to, um, take care of the bodies in another way.”

  Jonelle turned sideways on the bench. She bent her leg at the knee and let it rest on the space between them.

  “How do you know?”

  Marcia looked out the corner of her eye at Jonelle. “It’s just a feeling I have. I guess Jorge could tell you for sure.” She focused again on the clouds in the sky. “In all these years, no one has ever complained. Until you showed up.”

  Jonelle’s eyes flashed in anger. She bit her lip to keep from screaming at the woman. “Del was not a street person,” she said through clenched teeth. “How could you people let this happen?”

  Marcia shook her head.

  Jonelle mentally counted to ten. “Look, I’m not blaming you. But, are you telling me my husband is either in a Folger’s can in some closet somewhere on the property or buried on top of someone else? Or worse?”

  “I honestly don’t know what happened in your husband’s case. Jorge can explain that better than I can.” Marcia sat up again.