One Coffin Too Many

by Brendan O'Grady

  “ You give me something to offer to my client – something to break the logjam and who knows what it might yield. You just might be able to kill two birds with one stone? “

  “ We’re two birds less as it is, Mr. Dillon. What are you suggesting? “

  Dillon pursed his lips.

  “ I was thinking of second-degree murder – manslaughter and in return Mr. Horgan gives you all he has on Cremin. You don’t oppose bail and we’ll take it from there. What do you think? “

  Devoy looked at his watch.

  “ Today’s Friday. Why don’t we sleep on it. I’ll give your client until Monday morning to come up with something. Failing that we’ll just have to see what the judge says? “

  Dillon made a face.

  “ My client was really looking forward to getting out tomorrow and I’m given to believe Judge Fitzmaurice is in town on another matter. A pity. “

  “ Tell your client that if he has something really interesting for me I’ll come in on my day off – that’s tomorrow, Saturday to listen to him. I’ll even speak to the judge. How’s that for consideration? Furthermore if he really willing to open his mouth I’ll ask for him to be transferred here from the county jail. “

  “ You’re a gentleman, Inspector. A gentleman. “

  “ But I don’t want any crap, any excuses. He has to give me everything. If he’s not prepared to do that he can rot in county until his trial comes up. You tell him that, Mr. Dillon. “

  “ Conside it done, Inspector Devoy. Consider it done. “

  Devoy approached Fallon’s cautiously. He didn’t know why but it was probably connected to the fact that he hadn’t seen Margo for some time now.

  A pile of flowers and wreaths lay against the window of Fallon’s. Black crepe bordered the window and the door. A photograph of Cremin stood on a stand flanked by two wreaths. Devoy bent down and peered in. She was as he had first set eyes on her standing at the counter talking to a client only this time she was dressed entirely in black with her blonde hair tied up in a black velvet ribbon. Devoy was so totally enthralled with her that he fell into a trance until her gaze fell on him and her mouth parted in a crimson smile. She walked over to where he was and placed her left hand up against his hand on the other side of the glass. The client suspecting something between Devoy and Margo spoke to Margo and left. Devoy immediately went in. He could hardly contain his excitement.

  “ Sorry, “ he said nodding at the woman who had walked out. “ I think I cost you a client. “

  Margo shook her head.

  “ Oh, she just came in to offer her condolences. People have been coming in all morning. “

  “ I see, “ replied Devoy looking around the shop. “ He certainly got a good send off. “

  Margo came up to him.

  “ Where have you been, Frank? I’ve been waiting to hear from you for ages. Don’t do that to me. “

  “ I’m sorry. I’ve never been so busy. You don’t realize: two murders in the one week and in a small town like ours. It ‘s just unbelievable. “

  “ I saw you on the TV. You did a good job. “

  “ Thanks. And here, what’s happening here? “

  “ Mr. Cremin’s solicitor told us to continue on until things are sorted out. “

  “ So you might take over the business? “

  She shrugged.

  “ We’re always busy here. People don’t realize it but there’s no let up. They see a funeral and say: Ah, someone’s dead. I wonder who? But people are dying all the time – we just don’t notice or maybe we don’t want to notice but it’s happening every day, every night and sometimes it’s depressing. It’s like a conveyor belt of death. It makes you want to lust for life as an antidote. To look at the sky, at the horizon, to hope for dawn. Do you understand, Frank? “

  Devoy ran his eyes over her figure.

  “ God, “ he said. “ lust is the exact word for it. I cannot think of anything else. You’re the alpha and omega of it all and I never thought I’d see things that way but there it is. You enticed me into your orbit and I’ve crash-landed. I’m desolate without you. When I didn’t hear from you I fell apart. “

  “ And how do you think I felt, Frank. I thought you’d deserted me. I felt you had left me out on a limb. It was awful. I needed you. “

  “ Oh God, Margo, what can I say? Look at you. Even in your sadness you look great in black. I’ve just love that combination you’re wearing. “

  At the mention of the word both of them burst out laughing at the memory of the safe.

  “ You never told me the combination, Margo? “

  “ But why should I tell you the combination when you’re accustomed to handling it. “

  “ Christ, Margo, don’t say that to me. The day isn’t finished for me. There’s nothing I’d like better than to get better acquainted with your combination. You’ll really have to give me the numbers. “

  She brought her finger to her lips to hush him.

  He heard the voices too. They were coming in from the back of the office.

  Suddenly the door connecting the reception to the rear opened and Kennedy and another man whom Devoy didn’t recognize came into the room.

  “ Ah, Inspector Devoy, how are you? “

  “ Fine, “ replied Devoy. “

  “ This is my assistant, Dave Cooper. “

  Devoy shook the other man’s hand.

  “ I hope you’re not busy on Monday, Mr. Kennedy. “

  “ Bob, “ replied Kennedy. “ Why? What’s happening on Monday? “

  “ That strange coffin you and Wade came across in the Marshall mausoleum. I’m going to need you and perhaps another man to take it out of the Marshall mausoleum and deliver it downtown to the morgue. “

  “ Oh, “ replied Kennedy.

  “ Nobody has claimed it so the Justice Department are coming to town to take possession of it. They’ll dispose of it as they see fit. “

  “ I see, “ replied Kennedy.

  “ Does Wade know about this? “

  “ All concerned parties have been notified including the Marshall family. All I need is for you to be there along with a hearse to take it to the hospital. I’ve scheduled it for the afternoon. Say three o’clock. Is that okay with you? “

  Kennedy shrugged his shoulders.

  “ I don’t see why not. Three o’clock it is. “

  “ On second thoughts could you be there at 9 o’clock to give a hand to Mr. Wade. You, yourself said it’s a very heavy coffin. “

  “ That it is, Inspector. No doubt about that. “

  “ You can come back at three with the hearse. “

  “ Consider it done. “

  “ Fine. Just one more thing, Mr. Kennedy. “

  “ Yeah, “

  “ The Department of Justice would like this to be kept under wraps. We’d hate the public to think there are coffins going astray in our neck of the woods. So I don’t want you or anybody else talking about this. The Department of Justice takes a very dim view when it comes to leakages. “

  “ If there’s a leak it won’t be from my mouth and I can vouch for my colleague here, Inspector. “

  “ Fine. That’s all arranged then, gentlemen. I’ll see to the paperwork with Mrs. Walsh right now. “

  Both Kennedy and the other man nodded and went back the way they had come.

  “ You’re very authoritative, Frank. “

  Devoy laughed.

  “ I have to be when other men are getting in the way. “

  “ Getting in your way? What do you mean? “

  Devoy pulled her closer.

  “ This, “ he said pulling her into him. “ I’m going mad for you, Margo. I had to get rid of them. I couldn’t stand it any longer. “

  “ Well you’ll have to wait, Frank. I still have a pile of work to attend to. “

  “ So when will you finish? “

  “ Should be around six. I’ll cook you a meal if you like. “

  “ That’d
be great. “

  “ Is something else the matter? “

  “ The combination, Margo. We’ve got to do something about Cremin’s safe. I can’t leave it like that. There’s too much evidence there. We have to think of something to allow us to get back there with an warrant. It can’t be avoided Margo. You’ve got to help me on this. “

  “ You’re right, Frank. We’ll talk about it tonight. You can stay the night if you want. “

  Devoy shook his head.

  “ I’d love to, Margo but it’s out of the question. My daughter’s coming home tomorrow. Her school trip has ended. “

  “ Oh, “

  “ So how come she’s with you and not her mother, then or shouldn’t I ask? “

  “ Simple. We didn’t want to disturb her schooling or her program for the summer. I suppose we’re waiting to see how things turn out. “

  Margo shook her head.

  “ It’s never simple when children are involved. “

  “ No, I suppose it isn’t but that’s the way it is. “

  “ Strange, I never imagined you with a child, Frank. It just didn’t seem you. Maybe it was wishful thinking on my part. “

  “ Well she’s a fact, she’s fourteen and her name is Sienna. “

  “ Sienna? “

  “ That’s a town in Italy. Catherine of Sienna. I remember now. “

  “ Do you think it’s going to make a difference to us? “

  Margo shrugged.

  “ Not to me, Frank. I don’t have anybody. But I noticed something in your eyes when you came in. I felt something had changed. A gap opening up between us. “

  “ What you saw was probably the shadow of responsibility. The last time I saw my daughter was last Saturday. I didn’t even know you existed then. I never thought I’d meet anyone like you. I suppose when my wife walked out I was freewheeling. You know, going through the motions of living and then I was asked to investigate the strange coffin and everything took off after that especially after I met you. “

  “ Oh, Frank. “

  “ So that’s me. That’s my history. What about you? “

  Margo made a face as if she had to explain something unpleasant.

  “ Oh, there’s really nothing to tell, Frank. I’m a widow and I’m in my middle thirties. And I’m in love with you. There’s nothing more to be said. Let’s celebrate tonight. We may not have the pool table to play on but there’s always my bed. There! That’s an offer you can’t refuse, Inspector. “

  “ Who’s refusing it? “

  “ I’d better get back to work. Cremin’s solicitor wants everything to hand when it’s time for probate. I may even have to work the weekend. “

  Devoy stayed where he was.

  “ Is there something else, Frank? “

  “ There is, Margo. “

  She turned to face him.

  “ I’m in trouble. Is that it? “

  Devoy shook his head.

  “ No, nothing like that, Margo. I just have to ask you a question. “

  “ Oh, this sounds serious. It’s about Mr. Cremin? “

  “ You’d be right there. “

  “ Well don’t keep me on tenterhooks. Ask me. “

  Devoy took a photo from his pocket.

  “ Do you know this man, Margo or have you ever seen him before? “

  Margo took the photograph from him and examined it.

  “ That’s the man who is accused of murdering Mr. Fallon. “

  “ So you’ve seen him before? “

  “ Of course his face is in all the papers. Why? “

  “ You’ve never seen him in person? “

  “ No, can’t say I have. Why? Why all the questions, Frank. Am I a suspect? “

  “ No, you’re not a suspect, Margo. This man Horgan was linked in some way to Cremin. In fact he tried to come the heavy with me the morning Cremin was murdered. He told me to lay off Cremin. I thought maybe you’d seen him around here with Cremin. That’s all. “

  “ So you think Mr. Cremin sent him to attack you? “

  “ It would seem like that. “

  “ Mr. Cremin played a lot of golf you know. He liked to keep in with the business community. Maybe that’s where he met him? “

  “ That’s what he says. But I don’t think it was just the golf course. Horgan besides being a councilor was also an estate agent. My sources tell me he was up to all sorts of unsavoury practices over the years regarding land development. Do you know anything about that? “

  Margo shook her head.

  “ Mr. Cremin played his business cards close to his chest. Apart from here I don’t know what other business interests he had. “

  “ Do you know whether he had a holiday hideaway around here? “

  “ No, not here but he has one in France. In Brittany. Sometimes he’d take the ferry over there for a week or so? “

  “ Do you know where? “

  “ No, but I could find out. “

  “ What about Kennedy? Do you think he might have been privy to Cremin’s affairs? He seems to be au fait with everything around here. “

  “ Well he was Mr. Cremin’s right-hand man. The business would come to a standstill without him. If you want to know anything about undertaking he’s your man. Maybe you should have a chat with him. I’ll get him if you like. “

  “ No, leave for now. I’ll see you at six. Got a lot of shopping to do for tomorrow. “

  Devoy decided to call it a day. Reluctantly he headed to the supermarket, a chore he hated. He wondered was there anything in a can or frozen he had overlooked for the past week. It was getting to him his inability to prepare a meal of any sort without resorting to the can opener or the microwave oven. And Friday evening he would have to contend with the crowds trying to steal a march on the Saturday morning shoppers.

  Devoy heard the ringing but it was far away. It didn’t belong to his dream. He was happy with Margo and that was all that mattered. Suddenly his body started to be shook. He woke up. His daughter Sienna was standing over him with the telephone receiver in her hand.

  “ This is getting to be a habit, Dad, “ she said, still shaking him.

  “ What, what’s going on? “

  “ It’s your colleague again, Dad. It’s Angela. The phone’s been ringing for ages. “

  Devoy took the phone from her. As he brought the receiver to his ear he could hear shouting and sirens.

  “ What’s up, Angela. It must be after midnight. “

  “ We missed the boat, Frank. Again. “

  “ Missed the boat? What the devil are you talking about, Angela? “

  “ Horgan, Frank. Horgan. “

  “ What about him? “

  “ His house has just gone in smoke, Frank. Somebody torched it early on this evening. “

  Devoy rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

  “ You can’t be serious? “

  “ I’m deadly serious. You can ask the firemen beside me if you want to. “

  Devoy closed his eyes and tried to gather his thoughts.

  “ Somebody’s one step ahead of us all the time. “

  “ You said it, Frank. You said it. It’s like they’re privy to our discussions. “

  “ Give me ten minutes. “

  “ It’ll probably be gone by then but it can’t be helped. “

  Devoy arrived ten minutes later. All the lights were on in the neighbours’ houses and a crowd had gathered to watch the fire. The police had put a barrier around the house while the firemen still fought the blaze. Horgan’s pristine white cubes were now stained black and grey. His red Mercedes was a burnt out wreck.

  Devoy flashed his identity to the cops and was lead to the front of the house where Angela stood chatting to a fireman.

  “ Chief Carroll this is my boss, Detective Inspector Devoy, “

  Devoy shook the fireman’s hand.

  “ This is arson, Inspector. No doubt about it. We got the stench of petrol when we got here. I just hope nobody was
in that inferno. “

  “ Nobody who should have been, “ answered Devoy.

  Carroll gave him a strange look.

  “ I don’t get you, Inspector. “

  “ The owner/occupier of that house is presently been accommodated in the county jail. If anybody else is in there it’s your arsonist. “

  “ Right, “ nodded the fire chief. “ When we’ve tamped it down I’ll get some of my men to check. I’ll keep you informed. “

  Devoy drew Angela aside.

  “ Look it’s possible one of the neighbours saw something. You take the crowd down there and I’ll deal with this lot. Who knows, maybe something will turn up. “

  Angela nodded her agreement and walked off to canvass.

  An hour later both Devoy and Detective Angela Moore sat in his kitchen nursing black coffees.

  “ How’s your daughter? “ asked Angela.

  “ She’s fine. Tired after the trip. She loved Amsterdam. “

  “ Yes, it’s a charming place especially if you’re into drugs. “

  “ Oh please, Angela. Not now. I couldn’t cope with that now. Anyway, she’s asleep. Probably dreaming about some Dutch fella she met. “

  “ Getting back to tonight are you thinking what I’m thinking? “

  “ If you’re thinking about strange coincidences then we’re thinking the same. It’s uncanny. Every time we play a hunch somebody gets there before us. I’m beginning to think we’re bugged. It’s weird. “

  “ And it all started with the coffin a week ago. “

  “ Yes, Cremin was the first to go, then Fallon, now Horgan’s house. Who is next, I ask myself? Who is next? “

  “ I don’t suppose you saw Caroline there at the fire? “

  “ I never gave her a second thought curiously enough. I’m sure she had come and gone. Nothing like a fire to attract the media. “

  “ I was thinking. “

  “ Yes? “

  “ Horgan probably suspected we were going to search his house. I wonder did he sneak in a phone with him. With that he could have asked somebody to torch the house to eliminate any evidence. Ditto the car. “

  “ That seems rather extreme. “

  “ Not really. A burnt out house is nothing compared to spending at least twenty years for murder or whatever they hand down to him. The house can always be rebuilt not so a life. Think about it. Desperate situations call for desperate measures. We’ll have to ask the prison to check. See who he’s been speaking to if he has access to a phone? “