“Dr. Snyder, you called the police earlier. Do you have any reason to believe someone could have harmed Mr. Ashcroft?”
He shrugged. “Not specifically, but I’d expect you to know that this is procedure in cases of sudden and unexpected death.”
She would have loved to be back on the beach instead of being schooled on procedure by a good old boy.
“Yes, of course. I’d still like to hear your thoughts.”
“He was a good man, decent to everyone. Someone of his standing will attract resentment over the years, jealousy mostly, but I don’t think any of his adversaries would go as far as murder him. There’s mutual respect in the business community, especially with men like Gerald who run an honest company.”
“I see.” Jordan kept her thoughts to herself. She doubted anyone could make this much money without angering people along the way, and regarding the mutual respect…You wouldn’t know anything about it, the doctor’s condescending gaze said. “What did Mrs. Santos say to you?”
He shrugged. “She was in a panic. I couldn’t understand her at first. Finally, she managed to tell me that Gerald had fallen down the stairs, and that he needed a doctor.”
“So he was alive when she called you?”
“That’s hard to tell. She was near hysterical at the time, in shock, and probably, denial. She has worked for him a long time—and he treats all his employees well.”
Jordan cast a quick look over to where Derek was standing with Mrs. Santos. Fresh tears were running down her face. How close exactly had she been to her employer?
“As his doctor, can you tell me of any conditions that could have led to his fall?”
“Anyone can stumble, but Gerald was in good health. No prescription medication, he got his exercise in every day, ate well…This is either a tragic accident, or one of his no-good children wanted to inherit before it was time.”
Jordan remembered the lieutenant’s remark about the youngest son who was keen on lawsuits. “Why do you say that?”
“Well, Gerald wasn’t just my patient, he was a friend. He told me things. Linwood is the only exception. He might be able to run the business and not run it into the ground. Abby and Craig, however…If they ever got their hands on that money, it’s not going to last long.”
“I’m sure Mr. Ashcroft left a will?”
“Yes, but you need to go through his law firm for that. Knowing Gerald, there could be a few surprises in there.” For the first time since she’d met the man, he was showing emotion.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Jordan said. “We’ll be in touch.”
“You better. How much longer will you leave him here?”
“The crime scene techs will be done in a moment, don’t worry. The coroner is already here.”
“Pleasant,” she said to Derek when he was finally out of earshot. “We have a number of suspects already…unless this poor man really fell down those stairs all by himself.”
“Poor is not a word I’d use to describe him,” Derek muttered. “As for the suspects, let me guess. The do-no-good kids. Apparently, they’re not friendly with Mrs. Santos, and on the verge of being estranged from their father.”
Jordan studied the dead man who was wearing PJs and a robe. She crouched down to take a closer look, careful not to get in the ME’s way.
“Could be that he woke up from a noise, went to check it out, and someone…Mrs. Santos’ room is where?”
“In another wing,” Derek told her.
“Okay. If it happened very quickly, we could believe that she didn’t hear anything.”
“The head wound could be from the fall, but maybe someone hit him.”
“Hm. Maybe.” Most of the blood had been pooling beneath his head. Jordan tried to picture the scene on top of the stairs. If there was an attacker, had Ashcroft seen them—confronted them? Or had the perpetrator come up behind him?
“What’s this?” she asked, pointing at a stain on the leg of the PJ bottoms. With a gloved hand, she drew the fabric aside carefully to expose the cut on Ashcroft’s chin. There was a small smear of red on her glove.
“He cut himself, came down to find a bandage and stumbled?”
“No.” She shook her head. “You can’t tell me that the master bathroom isn’t all stocked. We’ll check in a second, but I don’t think he would have to come down for that.”
“It’s a very clean, precise cut,” the new ME, Melissa Adams, remarked.
“From around the same time he fell or was pushed down those stairs?”
“No spoilers,” she said with a wink to Derek. “You’ll have to wait for the autopsy. Speaking of which…”
“We’re good, thanks,” Jordan told her. She and Derek stepped onto the stairs.
“They’re slippery,” she noticed.
“Yes, but living in this house all his life, he would know.”
Mrs. Santos had come up behind them as they were walking up. “Those stairs were recently redone,” she explained. “Gerald…Mr. Ashcroft had ordered the carpet, but delivery was delayed.”
“We will certainly look into that,” Jordan assured her. When the housekeeper lingered, she added. “We’ll be here a while. If you could please tell the staff we need to talk to all of them? We’ll also have to take everyone’s prints.”
“Sure. You can use one of the conference rooms.”
Jordan tried hard not to look too impressed, knowing she was probably failing. “We will also need the footage from any security cameras around the house.”
“There aren’t any.”
Jordan had been slow to hide both her surprise and her frustration at this puzzling fact.
“We have the gate…Gerald always said we live in a paranoid world already, and he didn’t want to add to that—and why would he? Everyone loved him…Excuse me,” she said, turning away.
“Thank you for your help, Mrs. Santos,” Jordan said softly. The housekeeper nodded and then went to talk to the staff.
“A cousin of mine worked here for a summer job, a long time ago,” Derek surprised her when they were alone again on the first floor. “Are you saying you never followed any of the gossip about the Ashcrofts? Wow.”
“It never really came up for me. Okay, show off. What do you know about this family?” Jordan asked. They had found the master suite where the bed was undisturbed.
“Linwood Ashcroft is the youngest, but he’s supposed to take over business one day…I guess that day came sooner than expected now. Abby has gone into lots of different ventures, but as far as I know, none of them hit big, and then there’s Craig, the oldest.”
“What does he do?”
“I think he works as an accountant for Ashcroft, but there’s something else…He was supposed to marry the daughter of one of Ashcroft’s business partners, but then the wedding was canceled, and not much longer, he came out as gay.”
“I’m impressed.”
“That’s all part of local history,” Derek said. “I find it fascinating.”
“I can see that.” Jordan looked through the cabinets in the master bathroom, finding a bottle of Tylenol, a prescription drug that, upon a closer look, turned out to be sleeping pills—why hadn’t the doctor mentioned it? Didn’t he think they would find it?
“Let’s get this to the lab,” she said, bagging the bottle. “I’d like to know what exactly is in this. What else did you get from the housekeeper? Doc says she was too heartbroken to think clearly, that’s why she called him first.”
“Yep, her story matches. She says she was hoping he was only unconscious, but by the time Snyder arrived, she had to realize he was dead. According to her, Ashcroft was one of the best people who ever lived. Lots of charity work, always friendly to his employees.”
“I get the feeling she appreciated him for more than his charitable work. Any ex-wives?”
Derek looked almost offended at that. “His wife died ten years ago. He never remarried. I want to look into the kids as soon as possible, if only to rul
e them out. It’s creepy to think that your own kids could want you dead, isn’t it?”
“Very,” she agreed, and he made the connection a split-second later.
“Shit, I’m sorry. That’s not how I meant it. You had no choice.”
“I know. No offense taken.” He was right, she’d had no choice other than to shoot TJ Pratt. He had survived and was currently serving a life sentence. Truth be told, Jordan didn’t think of the man as her father. He was just someone her birthmother had slept with, unfortunately. “You’re right, in any case, and now we need to let those kids know that their father died before the press gets wind of this. The lieutenant thought it was important to remind me, no mistakes.”
“Mrs. Santos gave me the address.” Derek looked unhappy, which Jordan could relate to. This was definitely the worst part of the job. However, there was a chance that one of them already knew.
* * * *
There was no blood or anything out of order in the garage, just wood planks in various sizes, paint and tools. Ellie still felt uncomfortable in the small confines of the space, reminding her of other dark, small spaces.
“What else?” Delaney asked.
“This is what got you three complaints with your neighbors?”
“That bitch is nuts. They don’t like us here, because we rent the place, so they’re trying to make us leave.”
“You have a license to run this business from home?”
Ellie scolded herself for not thinking about that question.
“Actually, yes,” he told Casey. “Check that if you want. Hell, those people complained about the kindergarten on the other end of the block. They don’t like any changes in the neighborhood.”
“I’d still recommend you try to keep it down a bit with the music. Show some good will. You still have no idea about where they could have heard the screams?”
“Oh, for God’s sake, call my wife at work and ask her if she’s all right.” He unlocked his cell phone and opened his address book.
“I don’t think that’s—”
“Why not?” Ellie interrupted Casey. “So we can wrap this up.”
“Sure. Lil? It’s me. The neighbors called the cops again, said that someone was screaming. Probably the saw, but you know how they are. A cop wants to talk to you, make sure I didn’t cut you to pieces.”
Ellie flinched. Delaney handed the phone to Casey. A few moments later, she gave it back. “All right, Mr. Delaney. Thanks for your cooperation.”
“Next time, go next door, you might find something there. That lady keeps watching from behind her curtain all the time. Now that’s creepy.”
“That was weird,” Ellie said once they were back on the sidewalk and on their way to the car. “I mean…I’m beginning to understand why Jordan likes to live in the middle of nowhere. I hope it will work better with my new neighbors.”
“Some people just can’t compromise,” Casey suggested. “At some point, you got really pale in there. You’re sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine, don’t worry.”
It would be ridiculous for this to happen after she had already gone back to work, after that fantasy vacation. Ellie was determined to be fine. The mindset had carried her through some tough spots before, and after all, she wasn’t alone anymore.
* * * *
“He’s dead? I can’t believe it! Are you sure?”
Abigail Ashcroft’s eyes filled with tears, imploring her visitors to take back their words. Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen. People said the strangest things when confronted with the finality of death.
“I’m sorry,” Jordan said. “Can you tell me when you last saw your father?”
“I don’t know, two months ago?” Noticing the look Derek and Jordan exchanged, she hurried to continue, “I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that. We had a bit of a fight, but come on, I would never…I was going to give him a great chance to invest in an amazing business, but he wouldn’t listen to me. Dad could be really stubborn about these things. I can’t believe…” she said again and started to cry in earnest. “It must have been an accident, I can’t imagine anything else. Everyone loved him. I can’t think of anyone who wanted to do him harm.”
“Do you know about any medication he might have been taking?”
Abby looked confused. “I’m not aware that he was taking any. Good genes, he always said. One can only hope. Oh God. What’s going to happen now? Does Craig know? This is going to hit him hard.”
Interesting, that she only mentioned one brother. “We will meet with your brother later. I understand that Linwood, your younger brother, is out of the country?”
She made a dismissive gesture. “Of course he is, at a time like this. He’d kill is own grandmother to make a dime…Wait, that’s not how I meant it! It’s just a figure of speech, okay? He can be a nuisance, but he wouldn’t kill anyone.”
“Craig was closer to your father?”
“Oh, yes. They had dinner every other week, discussing the books. Both of them have a passion for the boring details.”
“Well, the boring details can make or break a business. Can you tell us about the business venture that you would have liked Mr. Ashcroft to invest in?”
Her eyes lit up. “You’re really interested in that? I can show you. Come with me to my office.” The invitation was mostly for Derek, as it seemed, but Jordan followed anyway, taking in the family pictures on the mantel. One picture of the whole family, including Abigail’s late mother Sarah. There was a little girl with the same honey blonde hair, obviously Abigail’s daughter. No man—or woman—in the picture. From the display, it wasn’t hard to guess that she didn’t get along with Linwood, Dr. Snyder’s favorite, all that well. Had Ashcroft played favorites as well? Based on everything they heard so far, he had to have been a saint.
Abigail’s house wasn’t small, but nowhere near the extreme luxury of the Ashcroft mansion. She led them to an office with a view of the mountains in the distance. On the desk, there were scattered sketches. She picked up one of them.
“I came up with a great new concept for a Mascara brush. I know women will flock to that, but Dad just didn’t have the same vision. There’s real money to be made in the cosmetics industry.”
Derek’s gaze said it all. Jordan shrugged in his general direction, stifling a smile. Sorry, I can’t help you.
“This looks…interesting,” he said. “I assume you presented a business plan to him?”
“I wanted to discuss the idea first, before I invested too much time, but…” She sighed. “As you can see, it’s all a moot point now. He didn’t think it was interesting at all. Men, right?” That was directed at Jordan.
“Sure. Ms. Ashcroft, is it possible you could help us get in touch with your brother Linwood?”
“Me? We don’t really talk. On the other hand, if I tried to call him, he would know it’s a catastrophe. But I’m sorry, I don’t have his current number.”
“Just one more thing. Where were you last night?”
“Last night? I was here, working on my business proposal, after I put Savannah to bed. Really, you don’t think…?”
“I’m sure you understand that we have to ask this question, even to family members.”
She gave Derek a wry smile. “Well, I do watch TV sometimes. Other than my daughter, who only sleeps well when she sees the light in my office, I don’t have much of an alibi. I hope that isn’t bad.”
“We’ll let you know when your father’s body will be released for the funeral,” Derek told her. “Thank you for your time.”
Chapter Three
Over the course of the day, a portrait of the Ashcroft family emerged, the story differing slightly depending on the people they were asking. Craig, like his sister, was shocked to find out about his father’s death. While Abigail seemed to float from one idea to another with little motivation to stick with one, Craig apparently didn’t have much of a life outside managing his father’s books. They se
emed honest and genuine, very different from the picture Dr. Snyder had described.
Family was never without complications, Jordan thought with a sigh as she was sorting out her notes at her desk. They would see the lawyer tomorrow morning to get a clearer picture of Ashcroft’s business persona, the people he dealt with, who among them might have had an interest in harming him. If he was as kind and trusting as everyone said, it wasn’t much of a stretch to think he would have let almost anyone in late at night. They also had spokespersons of his main charities on their list.
The lieutenant had buried himself in his office, fending off calls. When confronted with what they had so far, he’d grumbled at them to keep going.
It wasn’t all that much yet, but they’d know more once the autopsy was done, and they could determine whether the fall had killed him.
“Here. I get the feeling this day is going to be much longer,” Derek said, putting a latte and a muffin in front of her. “I found the number of Linwood Ashcroft’s hotel, but he’s not picking up.”
“Thanks. Blueberry. You’re a good partner.”
“I know it can’t beat cocktails on the beach, but it’s something.”
“Wow. That seems like forever ago.”
“So you had a good time?” he asked.
“The best. I was seriously considering not coming back.” She noticed the small group of uniformed officers at the far end of the room, Casey, Libby, and Ellie who waved and smiled.
“How are things around here?”
“Good. Things are good.”
Jordan decided that if he wanted to stay vague as to his relationship with Ellie’s best friend, Kate McCarthy, she wasn’t going to prod.
“I’m glad to hear that. We can all use some peace. Now, if we could manage to locate Linwood Ashcroft before he finds out the news from the press…”
“Well, the reason why you can’t might be that he’s sitting in my office while you’re idly drinking your coffee. I can tell you he’s mad as hell. What part of ‘tread carefully,’ and ‘get this done quick’ did you not understand?”
Intrusions (Carpenter/Harding Book 4) Page 2