by Gene Epstein
Except for being a suspect in a murder case, Robert felt like a kid again when he started back to class at Temple University School of Law. This time his attitude was totally different. Instead of just studying to obtain good grades he wanted to study to learn and to excel. He realized from his experiences prior to working for Mrs. Moore, during his employ there and the subsequent ongoing investigations that he wanted to be a great attorney. Possibly a criminal attorney.
Every day after classes he wandered over to Mitten Hall where students congregated mostly to study but some to socialize. His sole intent was to study and study hard. After a few hours there he went to Amanda's apartment where he was spending more and more time.
By this time Amanda knew everything that Robert had told her about the ongoing investigation but she never told Robert that she still chatted with Detective Harrison and on occasion Detective Simpson to be in the loop. She was positive that Robert was innocent but still, until they found out the results of the ballistic report, she couldn't feel a true hundred percent positive. Since she was an assistant district attorney she used that to reach someone in ballistics at Montgomery County. She expressed her interest in knowing the results as soon as possible. They told her they would do the best that they could with no guarantees as to time.
Robert entered her apartment with a handful of books which he placed on the cocktail table to the left of the sofa. He saw Amanda coming out of the bedroom looking her gorgeous self as he walked towards her.
“You look exhausted, Robert. Too much studying?”
“This time I can never do too much studying. I want you to be proud of me and I want to be proud of myself. Every time I see you, you look more and more gorgeous. I'm a lucky guy to have you by my side and I appreciate you being supportive of me. I do not intend to disappoint you.”
Every time Robert spoke Amanda would be upset with herself for ever doubting him. Tonight she didn't do any cooking, nor did he. On the way home from work she stopped at Foo Wok her favorite Chinese restaurant and brought home cartons filled with hot food. Robert enjoyed sitting at the counter instead of the formal dining room table. As he started to eat his dinner he leafed through some pages of one of his law books.
“I see you're really serious, Bobby, or should I now refer to you as Robert?”
“I just had something on my mind and I wanted to see if I understood it properly.” He closed the book and reached over to kiss her.
“Mandy, I love you. More than you could ever imagine.”
Thirty minutes later they were both finished eating and together they cleaned up the counter and kitchen. In the microwave was some hot saké, which she brought over to the sofa and placed the container on a bamboo trivet on the cocktail table. Robert poured the hot saké into two small cups.
“Did you study enough to relax?” Amanda asked Robert.
“Never too much but more than enough for my class assignment.”
Amanda opened up a small sterling silver embossed jewelry box resting on the cocktail table. Inside were several rolled joints. She took a fireplace matchstick, smiling while looking at Robert, and lit it. After taking two long drags, she invited Robert to partake. Robert was sitting there and idolizing Amanda then just smiled as he reached over to accept her offering.
He went to put something on the CD and found Barry White’s “Can’t Get enough” and Rex Smith’s “Take my Breath Away.”
Amanda cuddled up in Robert’s arms as Barry White’s recording was playing. They were in another world of just the two of them closing out everything else from their minds.
A night of love and caring continued seemingly forever.
***
The smell of fresh coffee awakened Robert. Amanda wanted to please him even though her presence was all that he needed and wanted.
Once the coffee took effect Robert was back to thinking about the upcoming ballistics report and what would that do to his relationship with Amanda.
Amanda, standing on the other side of the counter wearing his undershirt and no panties, wasn't thinking about the ballistics report. She had other things on her mind.
As sensuous as she looked, Robert opened up one of his law books and started to read.
“Mandy, you want me to do great don't you? I know you do. Just give me a half-hour to absorb this and then we will absorb each other.”
Without saying a word she walked behind Robert and took his right hand off the book that he was reading and put it between her thighs.
“I may not be able to wait for you.”
Robert placed his bookmarker in the spot that he was reading, closed the book, and made love to her in the kitchen. He never got back to his book that day.
Chapter 28
Simpson took his notebook and headed for Marvel Auto Body Collision on Upland Avenue to meet with Anthony Cordone, the owner. Anthony was very friendly and explained that he knew Alek’s background and that he was a good worker. He then went into his secretary's office to open up the filing cabinet where prior timecards were stored. Simpson gave him the date of the homicide and within moments he found the timecard. It appeared as though Alek had worked the second shift that day coming in at 2 p.m. then signing out for a thirty-minute lunch break at 6 p.m. and then finally signing out at 9:54 p.m.
Simpson asked the secretary to make a photocopy of the card, plus one for the day before and the day after just so they could check the patterns. He thanked everyone for their help and headed back to headquarters.
Once again he updated Detective Harrison and showed him the cards. Harrison picked up the fact that the following day the card shows that Alek checked in at work at 8 a.m.
“He must be an extremely busy person if he left work at 9:54 p.m., drove from Chester to Gladwyne, rampaged the house and killed Mrs. Moore, then somehow got back home, supposedly slept and was back at work by 8 a.m.,” Harrison commented.
“I don't think anyone could get there in much less than one hour from the body shop and that's if there's no traffic,” Simpson responded.
“That still comes easily within what the medical examiner thought was the timeline of death.”
“I'm going to call that smart ass back,” Simpson said. “I want to check what kind of car he drives and then tell him someone spotted it in the area. Let's see how he reacts.”
Before doing that Simpson placed a call back to Anthony Cordone to ask him what kind of car Alek drives. The secretary paged Anthony, who was in the back of the shop where he picked up the phone. There was all kind of the hammering and banging typical of a body shop.
“Mr. Cordone. I'm sorry to bother you but I'm just checking on the type of automobile that Alek drives.”
“Back then he had an Oldsmobile 88 coupe but wrecked it sometime last December. It's still sitting in the back. He was waiting for a front A-frame section but I told him he might as well just junk the car rather than spending time and money to put it together.”
“May I ask how he got to work then and now if his car was wrecked?” inquired Simpson.
“Oh, that's easy, Detective. I lent him our loaner car with our sign painted on the doors and the trunk. He just keeps up the gas and service. I don't charge him to use it because he is a good worker. Plus people see my advertisement wherever he goes thinking that he's a customer. Take a look on the back of my business card. It shows a picture of the car. Underneath it says, ‘Always a free loaner for a good customer.’ ”
A dejected Simpson again thanked the shop owner and reported to Harrison that he can't imagine anyone driving a painted-up automobile with signs all over it trying to sneak into a place without being noticed. Yet Harrison directed Simpson to speak with Aleksander because he still could have used someone else's automobile. Then he told him to confirm his whereabouts that night.
Simpson felt it was another worthless trip but he arranged to meet Aleksander in two days since he was working two day shifts in a row.
Chapter 29
More than two weeks went
by without having any contact with either Detective Simpson or Harrison. The thought of the pistol being the one that killed Mrs. Moore hung like the proverbial albatross around Robert's neck. But this albatross also was hanging around Amanda's neck. It would be impossible for her to have absolutely no doubts about Robert, yet she did everything to push any negative thoughts out of her mind. Anytime she wasn't busy at work at the district attorney’s office her thoughts focused on Robert. This is the young man that she loves and wants to marry but until Mrs. Moore’s murderer is discovered, she's uncertain. One night with Robert lying by her side in a sound sleep she prayed that this would come to a good end.
Robert called her office at lunchtime knowing that she would be there. He used a payphone at Mitten Hall since he did not have another class for 45 more minutes. While he was reading some case law, out of the clear blue some thoughts came into his mind. He told Amanda that he remembered apologizing to his friend and confidant Bill Spaulding for not calling him until after the police and medical examiner left the premises instead of calling him as soon as he found out that Mrs. Moore was murdered.
“This is terrible,” Bill Spaulding had said to him. “Who in the world would do such a thing? What is there that’s worth anything? Her paintings? Nobody would do such a thing to steal the paintings; they’re too traceable.”
How did Bill Spaulding even know what was stolen and how did he know that no one ever stole the paintings? Robert knew that he never told him. And Bill Spaulding had a key to the house. Robert wasn't certain if he ever told the detectives. And years ago it was Bill Spaulding that told him to go to Ruttenberg’s and purchase a Colt Jr. 22-caliber pistol since it was small enough to keep in his pocket or under his pillow.
“Amanda. Am I going crazy? None of this makes any sense to me” Robert sounded confused and upset.
“Bobby, calm down. There's no way that Spaulding did anything like that. Why in the world would he do it?”
“I have some things to tell you when you get home. I have one last class that's over at 3:30, so I'll be there at four and wait for you.”
“Bobby, I will be there at 4 o'clock. Just relax.”
Robert could barely keep his mind on his studies. He dreaded the time that he would have to tell Amanda about the proposal that Bill Spaulding had made to him.
***
Both Robert and Amanda reached the portico at 1700 Rittenhouse at the same time. He didn't reach out to hug and kiss her but just to hold her hand which he did very tightly. Not a word was spoken until they both entered Amanda's apartment.
Robert asked her to sit down on the sofa and he sat next to her holding her hand.
“When we first met here at your apartment I was overwhelmed with how successful you were and what a failure was. I told you that I had taken the job basically to take care of everything to do with Mrs. Moore and the estate of Hampton Court. It was through Bill Spaulding, who was my agent and a friend since our days at Temple. He became a lawyer and eventually a partner with this prestigious firm but still never gave up being an agent for actors. He had advanced me money for years and I had nothing but small parts in plays. Then one day he called me to tell me that he's got a good job for me that will pay well. I remember that day. I thought I was going to get an acting job in a major production but those were my dreams and he brought me down to reality. He told me that his client needed someone to oversee her property and to take her to medical appointments, which included physical therapy and trips to Pennsylvania Hospital. He told me the job would pay $750 a week plus the use of an automobile and a lovely carriage house apartment on the estate. He also told me that she was dying from some type of tumor on her brain and did not know how long she would live but he wanted me to be there to comfort her and to help her with whatever her needs were. He then told me that if I do a good job he is sure that I will be placed in her will. That if I was placed in her will and she subsequently passed on, he wanted one third whatever I may receive.
I never took the job to get included in her will. That meant nothing to me. I was disappointed that I wasn't having an opportunity to be in the theater but at the same time, I wasn't able to pay my own bills. He was such a good friend to me for so many years and he was going to recommend me for the position. I found it impossible to turn down. He told me that when he initially represented me many years before that I signed a contract with him which I remember was a typical representation contract that he would get a percentage of my future earnings. There were no future earnings and he had advanced me a lot of money to pay many of my bills. Even with odd jobs tending bar and waiting tables, each month I found myself a little bit more in debt. He wrote up a new contract and it stated that he would get one third. He then told me that he wanted the automobiles since he loves collecting cars and that Mrs. Moore’s deceased husband had collected some very desirable automobiles. I didn't care about the cars, nor did I care about being in the will. He handed me $500 in cash and told me to get a new suit and a haircut for an interview. He gave me the date that the advertisement was going to be in the Philadelphia newspaper and told me to apply for the job just like everybody else and that if it's a close call he will recommend me.
“As it turned out she was such a wonderful woman to be with that I felt great doing the work. I loved it there. It was the first time in many years that I felt comfortable sleeping at night. After Mrs. Moore was murdered I had no thoughts about anything in the will. No one had mentioned a thing to me until after the funeral. Bill called me to tell me that I'm the sole beneficiary of everything that she owned. I literally didn’t pay attention to anything he said. I was so upset that she was dead. We had just come back from dinner after having a great time.
“Then Bill told me that the real estate market was terrible and mortgage rates were astronomical that nobody was purchasing homes. He suggested some brokers because there was no way that I wanted to live in that home. I could not even afford the taxes. I had no income after she passed away. Then he told me that the contract states that I must pay him one-third of my worth after 30 days. He said he knew some brokers that deal with investment properties and there's someone that will buy the place who is willing to wait for the market to change if it ever did. They had an offer that was, according to him, very low but he suggested that I take it since he needed the one third immediately because he made a bad investment. He handled everything. I went to settlement. The sale of the home was $750,000. Out of the settlement, Bill took $250,000 plus $50,000 extra, which still left me a lot of money. More money than I've ever seen in my life. He also explained to me that the state inheritance tax had to be paid immediately, which was 15% of the $900,000 since the old cars were worth $150,000 according to Bill. I still thought I had a lot of money. Then Bill wanted the titles signed over to him, which I had agreed to. Later the accountant figured out that after I paid the money due on April 15 to the IRS that I'd wind up with about $75,000. I'm confused. I trusted him and I still do but something doesn't seem right.”
***
The following morning as soon as she arrived at work, Amanda placed a phone call to Detective Harrison's office inquiring about the ballistics report. He was out so she left a message to please contact her and bring her up-to-date with anything else of significance about the case. She then called the district attorney’s office in Montgomery County asking if they would, as a courtesy, get her the results from the forensic lab including reports and photographs of the bullet that killed Mrs. Moore and the photographs and results of the bullet from the 22-caliber Colt pistol that they were testing. She gave the assistant DA her mailing address at City Hall and asked him to mark the envelope ‘Personal.’
The next thing she did was to contact two real estate agents that specialize in upscale properties in the Gladwyne area. She asked one agent about Hampton Court and if he knew the value of that property. He had no information to help her but informed her that the real estate market has been exceptionally soft over the last couple years. She then plac
ed a call to another real estate agent who knew of the property and informed her that it will be listed very shortly. He said currently it is a ‘pocket listing,’ explaining that the brokerage firm has not yet placed it on the exchange. To her surprise, the price was a firm $2.5 million, including furnishings and decorations. Amanda asked who the owner was and the agent was not able to provide her the name, only that it was purchased by a corporation.
Later that same day she had an idea and contacted a friend of hers who works for a real estate title company and gave him the address of Hampton Court. He informed her that the information that she was seeking would take just a few days.
***
Robert was attending law school classes and that week was his first quiz. He was thrilled when his professor remarked to the entire class that he had scored the highest. He felt like the old man since all the other students were nearly ten years his junior.
***
Nearly a week later, Amanda received a manila folder from the District Attorney's Office of Montgomery County addressed to her personally. She opened it and found two reports. She skimmed through them until she found what she was looking for. The Colt Jr. 22-caliber pistol serial number 59711CC that was recovered from Robert Snyder's safe deposit box definitely was not the pistol that fired the 22-caliber bullet that killed Mrs. Jacqueline Phyliss Moore.
An ecstatic Amanda screamed out loud, “Thank God!” There was no one in her office; however, two people came running in from the adjacent office wondering if she was OK.
She assured both of them that everything was wonderful.
She knew that she could not contact Robert since he was at school but would have great news when he came to her apartment at dinner time. Once the adrenaline stopped pumping, she wondered why Detective Harrison or Detective Simpson never called her. They certainly would've been the first to be informed of the results before she received them in the mail. Then she thought, perhaps they're just too lazy.