Killing in a Koi Pond

by Jessica Fletcher

  That was what I had been waiting to hear. “I suspect you heard that from Marjory, and she swore you to secrecy in the bargain.”

  “Yes,” Candy answered in a tiny voice. “I feel terrible. Please don’t tell her I slipped.”

  I stood up. “You needn’t worry. All your secrets are safe with me.”

  “Thank you, Jessica, and please, if there is anything we can do for Dolores, anything at all, just call us and we will come a-running.”

  I walked along the garden path to the driveway, deep in thought. I’d told Marjory about Dolores’s being a person of interest in the hope that she would pass that knowledge along to the Blomquists. I hoped it might rattle them, and sure enough, it had. They’d gone from being confident that Dolores would help them financially to being unsure of Dolores’s status in relation to Willis’s estate. And Candy went from worrying about her past becoming common knowledge to having it safely tucked away because the sheriff was busy looking in a completely different direction for Willis Nickens’s killer.

  If either of them thought killing Willis would be a solution to their problems, well, as it turned out, even after his death they were still in major turmoil.

  By the time I got to the car, Elton was standing next to the open passenger door.

  “Do you have a next stop in mind?” he asked as I settled into my seat.

  “Actually, I do. I’d like to talk to Sheriff Halvorson again, if I can get a few minutes of his time. Let’s go to his office.”

  We’d barely gotten to the main road when my cell phone rang. Seth Hazlitt.

  “Woman, where did you get these pictures of such a fancy putting green? Here I thought you were staying at the home of an old college friend and comforting her after a loss. Next thing, I find texts from some fancy country club all over my phone.”

  I couldn’t help laughing. “Seth, that putting green is on Dolores’s property. Her husband, Willis, was an avid golfer.”

  “More like a rich golfer, I would say.” Seth harrumphed. “Ayuh, Jessica, Doris Ann over at the library is wondering, do you have any idea when you might be coming home? She says the furniture committee is sure to run amok and spend too much money for unsuitable tables and chairs without its most levelheaded member.”

  “I wish I could give you a date, but for Dolores’s sake I want to stay for the funeral, and the coroner hasn’t released the body yet.”

  “Jessica, that’s not a good sign. Not at all.”

  “I know, and I’ve yet to tell you the worst part. The sheriff has declared Dolores a person of interest, which means it’s likely he’s not looking too hard at anyone else.”

  “Well, that settles it. I’ll tell Doris Ann not to make any committee meeting plans. You won’t be home anytime soon. And, Jess, you take care of yourself. Keep a watchful eye.”

  “Thank you, Seth. That is exactly what I intend to do.”

  Elton turned into the driveway of the Sheriff’s Department. “I’d feel better, ma’am, if you allowed me to park the car and escort you inside.”

  “Actually, Elton, I’d prefer you to wait here at the curb.” I smiled. “The sheriff tends to get annoyed by my very presence, so this may be the time we really do need to make a quick getaway.”

  Elton looked alarmed. “When I said that the last time we were here, I was joking. You look serious.”

  “Not really, although, as I said, the sheriff does tend to lose patience with me. For some reason my very existence seems to push his buttons.”

  “I can see why that would be. You are such a good friend to Miss Dolores, the sheriff sees you as getting in his way.”

  “Well, when you put it like that . . .”

  “I hear a lot of talk when I drive people around, and one thing I have learned is that the talk goes much smoother if you try to see how the other person views things. Sheriff Halvorson is not at all interested in your opinion, but you might do well to understand his.”

  “Elton, you are a genius. I just might change my approach.”

  Deputy Remington was sitting behind the counter. Bright sunlight streamed through the window and reflected off the wide blond streaks in her hair. She looked like an angel with a halo.

  “Mrs. Fletcher.” She greeted me with a smile. “How can I help you today?”

  “I’m flattered you remember me.”

  “Everyone who was in this lobby the last time you were here remembers you. It’s rare that Sheriff Halvorson changes his mind, and yet . . . that day you managed to get him to do so. I hope you aren’t looking to see him again. He’s not here at the moment.” She clicked a key on her computer and the screen changed. “Let’s see. He is at a meeting of the Professional Women’s Association over at the Marriott Courtyard. I’m sure he’ll be sorry to have missed you,” she said with an impish grin. “Is there anything I can do?”

  I thanked her and said I would try again. In the meantime I knew exactly what I planned to do.

  Elton was leaning on the fender of the Escalade. He straightened up and said, “Happy to see you’re not being escorted out of the building.”

  “Well, let’s give it another try. The sheriff is at a meeting at the Marriott Courtyard. Do you know where that is?”

  “It’s right down the road, no more than a few hops by a high-jumping frog.” Elton opened my door. “I expect you’ll want to go find him.”

  “Well, it won’t do any harm to try.”

  True to his word, Elton pulled into the hotel parking lot about five minutes later.

  The hotel lobby was spacious, with white floor-to-ceiling columns lending an air of discreet elegance. I was about to ask the desk clerk where I could find the Professional Women’s Association when I saw Sheriff Halvorson walking right toward me in the midst of an entourage of four or five people. I stepped in front of him.

  “Excuse me, Sheriff . . .”

  “Mrs. Fletcher, what are you doing here?” He wrinkled his brow. “If you are looking for the professional women’s group, they are in the meeting room off to the left. Nice crowd they have today.”

  Wishful thinking on his part. Before he could walk away, I lowered my voice and said in a confidential tone, “I have some information. It may help your case.”

  “Jim, I’ll meet you at the car,” he said to the man on his left, who immediately herded the others out to the parking lot.

  I kept Elton’s wise advice uppermost in mind. Rather than insisting that he was making a terrible mistake, I said, “I’m afraid you may be blamed for a blunder that is no fault of your own.”

  He took me by the elbow and moved me into a corner behind a row of blue easy chairs. “Ma’am, I have to ask, what are you talking about?”

  “Sheriff, when there is an estate as large and diverse as Willis Nickens’s is likely to be and there’s a recent bride who suddenly becomes a new widow . . . well, I am sure that your compatriots are searching high and low for evidence that will link her to the murder.”

  Sheriff Halvorson was losing patience. “If you’re going to try to convince me that Mrs. Nickens is not a likely suspect, all I can say is that you are wasting your breath.”

  “Oh, not at all. But I do have some information you may find helpful. I overheard a conversation between Willis Nickens and his son-in-law, Clancy Travers, mere hours before Willis died.

  “Willis apparently had a trust set up for his granddaughter, and he was explaining to Clancy that he was going to change the trusteeship from Clancy to Dolores. I’ve also learned that Willis added Dolores to the ownership of some of his companies. Clearly he trusted her.”

  “Mrs. Fletcher, even if I thought this information had some bearing on the case, why would I take your word for any of it?”

  “Oh, you don’t have to take my word. Speak to Marcus Holmes. He was Willis’s attorney, so he would have handled all the paperwork. Then ask you
rself if a man as shrewd as Willis Nickens would trust his wife with everything, including his beloved granddaughter’s fortune, if he had even an iota of doubt about her love and fidelity.”

  I thanked the sheriff for his time and courtesy and headed for the door. I knew I hadn’t sold the idea to him totally, but I could see by the look on his face that I had planted a seed of doubt. I hoped it would give me the time I needed to clear Dolores’s name.

  Chapter Twenty

  I automatically rolled away from the sunlight streaming through the bedroom window, only to bump my nose against a piece of cardboard. I opened one eye and saw the manila folder labeled norman’s screwups lying on the pillow. I’d fallen asleep last night reading Willis’s comments on odd pieces of business letters and memos, even a contract or two.

  I glanced at the clock and saw I had time for a quick jog before breakfast. I was tying my Nikes when my phone signaled a text. Harry.

  Haven’t forgotten about you. Still looking around. More info to come.

  Harry was nothing if not thorough. It would never enter my mind that he wasn’t fully investigating any case that crossed his path. It wasn’t in his nature to leave things undone.

  I went out the front door, leaving it unlatched, and took a slow jog around the gardens. Then I ran down the driveway to the gate, which was securely locked. On my way back I stopped at the koi pond. The chalk marks had faded, and the pond looked rather forlorn without the colorful fish swimming about. A frog sat on the rear timber beam, and jumped into the pond for a swim as I stood there. I wondered when the Department of Natural Resources would return the koi they’d removed, or if Dolores would have to restock. Even the water irises looked lonely.

  After I showered and changed into tan slacks and a blue and tan man-tailored shirt, I went downstairs. I heard voices coming from the dining room, but I walked toward the kitchen.

  “Good morning, everyone.”

  Elton stood, pulled on the napkin that was tucked into his shirt collar covering his green and gray plaid bow tie, and dropped it on the table. Lucinda was busy at the stove. I assumed Marla Mae was in the dining room.

  “I wanted to let you know that a Mr. Francis McGuire will be visiting this morning. He’s a criminal attorney who is going to help Dolores navigate any future conversations with the sheriff or his deputies. She will meet with him in Willis’s office and is not to be disturbed.”

  Lucinda said, “I’ll be sure and tell Marla Mae. What about Mr. Clancy and Mr. Norman?”

  I shrugged. “I see no reason for them to be told who Dolores’s visitor is. If they ask directly, please refer them to me. And Elton, please sit down and finish your breakfast. Is that a corn muffin I see?”

  “Sure ’nuff. The best one I ever tasted. I’ll be in the library shortly, ma’am, and available for whatever you or Miss Dolores might need.”

  “Later today we’ll be going to the Seven/Twenty-four Storage facility. Here—I’ll text you the address.” I entered the address from my memo pad into a text box, and in a few seconds Elton’s phone pinged.

  Lucinda said, “Would you care to have some breakfast here?”

  “Not today, thank you. I think I will join whoever is in the dining room.”

  From behind me Marla Mae said, “Good morning, Miss Jessica. That would be Mr. Clancy and Abby.”

  As I entered the dining room, I heard Abby ask, “And if anyone at school asks me why Grampy died, what can I tell them? I’m not sure myself. Did he drown in the pond? Or fall and hit his head? I know he wasn’t sick like Mommy.”

  Clancy saw me in the doorway and smiled. He seemed to be relieved that I was interrupting. “Abby, where are your manners? Say good morning.”

  “Good morning, Miss Jessica. Guess what. I’m going back to school today. Daddy says I can’t stay home forever, although I wouldn’t mind that at all.”

  “That’s wonderful news. Do you know I used to be a schoolteacher?”

  Abby’s eyes opened wide. “No! Really? You said ‘used to be.’ Do you miss being a teacher?”

  “Sometimes I do miss it. I particularly miss the energy of the interaction with my students. And I bet these past few days your teacher has been missing you.”

  “Oh, I didn’t think of that. Mrs. Creighton probably does miss me. I raise my hand a lot and always do my homework. Before we leave I’d better go get Fluffy so I can show him to my friends Rosa and Eileen. We eat lunch together.” Abby dashed out of the room.

  Clancy said, “Jessica, I had no idea you were a teacher. So what would you advise me to tell Abby about why Willis died?”

  “Well, to children most adults are already impossibly old. I would just tell her that if asked, she should say her grampy was old and tired and it was time for him to go to heaven. That should do it.”

  I heard the click click of high heels in the foyer, and then Dolores came into the room. She was wearing a short-sleeved black dress and strappy black sandals with heels higher than those of any shoes I’d worn in years.

  “Good morning. Jess, look at my drop pearl.” She leaned forward and touched a silver chain at her neck. “Isn’t it gorgeous? Willis gave it to me on the anniversary of our first date.”

  “It’s lovely. Clancy was just telling me that Abby is going back to school this morning.”

  Dolores said, “That’s probably a good idea. At the rate we’re slogging along, I can’t even guess when the funeral will be. School will keep her busy.”

  Abby burst into the room. “Granny Dolores, look. I am taking Fluffy to school to introduce him to my friends.”

  “I’m sure your friends will be happy to meet him. Now, where’s my good-morning kiss?” Dolores leaned down and Abby gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek.

  As soon as Clancy said, “Let’s go, or we’ll be late,” Dolores’s face morphed from smiling to frantic.

  She held up a hand. “Are you driving?”

  Clancy looked puzzled. “Of course. It’s much too far to walk.”

  Dolores recovered slightly. “I only meant we have Elton on standby. Perhaps you’d like him to take you both. That way he could bring you back.”

  “That’s a very kind offer, but I have some errands to run, so I’d rather take my own car. Come on, princess—we don’t want to be late.”

  Abby turned to wave good-bye as she skipped out of the room behind her father.

  Dolores leaned on the dining table for support. “I can barely breathe. Is this how it’s going to be from now on? I’ll have my heart in my mouth every time Clancy takes Abby in the car? I know he drinks too much. He knows he drinks too much. I have to do something, but I am not sure what.”

  I put my arm around her. “Dolores, I am sure there’s a solution—”

  She cut me off. “A twelve-step program is the only solution I can see. You tell me how I can force him to join one and follow the rules. He’s a grown man; he should know better.”

  There was a light tap at the door, and Elton stuck his head in. “Excuse me, ladies. Marla Mae said to tell you that Mr. McGuire is at the front gate. I’m going down to let him on in.”

  “Oh dear, I am not nearly ready. Let me go splash some cold water on my face and redo my makeup.”

  “Dolores, you look fine.”

  “Jess, I need a minute to gather my thoughts.”

  “Why don’t you go to Willis’s office and take your minute? I’ll greet Mr. McGuire and offer him coffee, and then I’ll bring him to meet you.”

  “Oh, would you, Jess? That would be grand.”

  We walked into the foyer, and Marla Mae stood there ready to answer the door. Dolores darted into the office, and I asked Marla Mae if she’d seen Norman Crayfield that morning.

  “Mr. Crayfield—he’s a strange one. In and out at all sorts of hours. I saw him drive off the grounds early this morning. When I was coming to work he was
driving out the gate.” The chimes rang out and Marla Mae opened the door.

  Francis McGuire was younger than I had thought from our phone conversation, perhaps mid-thirties, certainly no more than forty. He wore aviator glasses, a bright yellow golf shirt, and khakis. I noticed he had on brown leather loafers but no socks. The only thing lawyerly about him was his Gucci messenger bag, similar to those I had seen high-powered men in expensive suits carrying on their shoulders when I was in New York City last month.

  “Good morning, Mr. McGuire. I’m Jessica Fletcher . . .”

  “The old college friend. Yes. Mr. Holmes told me about you.” He made it sound more like Marcus Holmes had warned him about me.

  I remained pleasant. “Please come with me. Mrs. Nickens is waiting in the office.”

  He took a step backward. “Let’s get one thing straight, right from the start. I need you to realize that Mrs. Nickens and I must be completely alone when we speak.”

  “Of course you do. Any third-party presence would negate the lawyer-client privilege of confidentiality.”

  He did the closest thing to a double take that I had ever seen, so I continued. “I have no intention of staying with you and Mrs. Nickens. I am merely acting as her hostess. Would you care for a coffee?”

  I led him to the office, and while I introduced him to Dolores, Marla Mae brought in a tray with coffee and muffins. When I said good-bye, Dolores looked as though she was losing her last friend in the world.

  I gave her a hug and said, “Tell Mr. McGuire the truth and everything will be fine. I’ll see you later.”

  Ever since Willis was murdered, I’d been nervous about Dolores’s ability to cope. I’d lived through the shattering experience of losing a husband myself, and the circumstances of Dolores’s loss, the uncertainty, were devastating enough without being named a person of interest by the local sheriff. I sincerely hoped Francis McGuire could keep the wolves at bay.

  The house was quieter than usual, although I suspected if I walked down to the kitchen I would find some cheerful conversation with Lucinda and Marla Mae. Instead I decided to bring the norman file down to the dining room so I could finish my research and still be within shouting distance should Dolores need me.