A Lethal Legacy

by P. C. Zick

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  On a cool November day, I entered the nursing home where Claire had moved earlier in the year, reluctant to face the troubles that might be in store for me. Troubles named Kristina and Pamela I didn't need right now. My main concern was Claire who had been failing rapidly in recent days.

  Claire, weakened from her broken hip that had required surgery several weeks earlier, was not well. Her eyes could not focus, and her heart rate was dropping. The nursing staff greeted me as I walked toward the nurse's station with Claire's updated condition.

  "Where's Charles?" I asked the head nurse. Charles Stuart was the director of the home and had been a great help to me ever since Claire had been admitted.

  "He's getting ready to hold a staff meeting about Mrs. Townsend right now," one of the aides told me.

  "I'm going in to see Claire. I want to see Charles as soon as he's available," I said.

  When I walked into the room, neither Kristina nor Pam was there. Claire lay still on the bed. I touched her shoulder lightly as I stood next to her. When I grabbed her hand, she attempted to open her eyes. When she did, I noticed they were covered with a slight film making her dark blue eyes seem light.

  "Ed, it's you," she said so softly I had to lean over to hear. "I can't believe you're here." She began crying once again.

  "Claire, what's wrong?"

  "I'm just so sad. I wanted to spend Thanksgiving with you and Cassie and the kids."

  "You will. We're going to come here and bring you dinner," said.

  "Pam said you wouldn't be coming." She began crying harder.

  "Shush, that's silly. We'll be here."

  "Ed, what's wrong with me? I'm so scared."

  "Don't be scared, Claire. I'm here now. Cassie will probably be here later this afternoon."

  "Ed, did Pam do this to me?" she asked just as I turned to leave and find Charles.

  "What makes you say that? Has she said or done something?"

  "I can't figure out why she's here. She never liked me much and then she and Philip." Claire lost her train of thought and just stared at me with her dim eyes.

  "I don't know if she's done something or not, but if she has, I'm going to find out. Just rest, Claire. I'm here now, and I'll take care of everything."

  "Yes, you always have, Ed. Thank you. You're the bestest," and the tears began to run down her cheeks again.

  An aide came into the room just then to tell me Charles needed to see me. I asked her to stay close to Claire for as long as possible until I could get to a phone to call Cassie and ask her to find a babysitter so she could come sit with Claire.

  When I walked into the conference room, I dispensed with greetings and approached the nursing home director.

  "What's wrong with Claire? I've never seen her like this and the nurses tell me her heart rate is dropping rapidly. What's going on?" I asked.

  Charles looked at me carefully before answering. "She's not doing very well, and we've been trying to figure out why. We're going to be taking blood and urine samples immediately. Hopefully, we can find something out quickly. We've put a rush order on everything."

  Before we could continue, a nurse came into the room.

  "Charles, could we see you for a moment?" she asked.

  "Sure. I'll be right back, Ed. Make yourself comfortable."

  I paced the room and wondered what would happen next. I thought about calling Cassie, but I decided to wait until I had more definite news. I looked up as Charles entered the room solemnly.

  "Ed, I'm afraid I've got some bad news. Claire died just a few minutes ago. Probably right after you left the room. The aide said she took a deep breath, turned her head, and exhaled. That was it. It was very peaceful."

  "How could that happen? Where's Kristina, her granddaughter?"

  "No one knows. She left with her mother about an hour ago without a word to anyone. Some of the staff said the two had been arguing in the courtyard right before they left. The mother looked like she’d been crying. Would you like to see your aunt before we call the funeral home?"

  I stumbled out of the room determined to keep my composure. I managed to keep it until the nurse who had been so kind to Claire came up to me and embraced me. We stood holding one another for a long time.

  "She was a good woman," she said as she released me.

  "Yes, yes, she was, the bestest," I managed to say before going in to say my final

  goodbyes to the woman who had always been such a solid part of my life.

  After Claire's funeral, I decided to take a long walk around the neighborhood to clear my head. Cassie understood why I left even though she was suffering also. She loved Claire as a daughter loves a mother. She also made Claire's last years joyful and happy ones as she included Claire in every moment of our children's lives. I couldn't help but think back to another funeral in another lifetime. It was natural I would think about Gary as I walked alone remembering the past. For most of my life, Gary walked beside me during these times of strife. I felt his presence today more than ever. I remembered back to the last time I sat beside him at his bedside in New Orleans.

  As I continued my walk on the day of Claire's funeral, I began thinking unwillingly about Kristina. She had certainly gotten what she had wanted, and I was left once again to clean up the mess. Claire told me that she had named me as the personal representative of her estate since I lived here, but I knew that Kristina stood to inherit everything once the house, for which I had been paying Claire, was re-mortgaged and the money deposited in the trust. She probably would receive the trust immediately since Claire was adamant after Philip's death that her estate be simply turned over to Kristina upon her death with no probate.

  Kristina and Pam did not attend the funeral. As far as I knew, they didn't even know that Claire had died. When Pam first arrived in town, she made several attempts to talk to me alone. She wanted to tell me that Kristina just wanted Claire's money at any cost. I told her each time that she was mistaken. It was Pam pushing for the money. Kristina only asked for it when Pam pushed her. I thought that maybe Pam had some angle going to get money from Claire herself without Kristina's interference.

  The phone rang as I came into the house exhausted from the long walk. I was surprised to hear the voice of Claire's doctor.

  "Ed, we just received the final toxicology report on Claire. Her blood showed a fifty percent level of Phenobarbital. Forty percent is toxic."

  "How the hell did that happen?"

  "We're not really sure, but I've got to report my findings to the police. They'll probably be calling you, and I wanted you to be prepared."

  "What do you think?" I still couldn't voice the words.

  "I really don't want to speculate, but if you know where the granddaughter and her mother are, it might help in the investigation," he said. "The aides have been coming forward with some suspicious reports."

  "What kind of suspicious reports?"

  "Aides said that the mother kept rolling the bed down after being told that Claire should be left sitting up. And a couple of other strange things like that."

  "Do you think Pam could have drugged her?"

  "I don't know, but Claire didn't drug herself, that's for sure. Ed, call me if you have any questions. And I'm sorry. I thought your aunt was a very special woman."

  I hung up the phone and went into the living room to pour myself a healthy shot of scotch. I needed time to absorb this information. As I slowly sipped, I felt a welcome numbness enter my limbs as I found the reality far too harsh to absorb.

  Almost immediately, the phone rang again. This call gave me no respite from my thoughts and suspicions.

  Tim Pierce, my lawyer and good friend, had more news.

  "How'd it go yesterday?" he asked after the preliminaries.

  "It was fine, Tim. The service was small, just some folks from the country club and Claire's church and Cassie and me. No other family, of course."

  "So Kristina and her mother didn't stay aroun
d long enough to pay their respects? I have some news for you, and some for Kris, too. But legally you're the only one I need to contact."

  "What news? I'm not sure I can take anymore news."

  "Why, did something else happen?"

  " Dr. Gantt, Claire's doctor, called a few minutes ago to tell me Claire had a lethal dosage of Phenobarbital in her system when she died," I said.

  "No kidding? Who do they suspect?"

  "He's turning everything over to the police. They'll probably be calling me soon."

  "Ed, let me tell you why I called. A month ago, Claire had me come over to the nursing home, right after her first fall, before she broke her hip. Remember? Kris had just visited. She wanted to write a new will. We did it right there with the staff as witnesses."

  "She changed her will? Did she name Kristina personal representative instead of me?" I hoped this might be the case so I could finally be rid of Kristina forever. The money would no longer tie us together.

  "No, buddy, she doesn't mention Kristina Timmons anywhere in this will, which is her last will and testament, and the one we send on to the court. She told me Kris worried her lately, but she didn't want to concern you. She took her out of the will completely; she won't inherit a thing," he said.

  “Then who did she name?"

  "Her best friend and confidante, is the way she put it in the will. And, Ed, that's you."

  I sat back in my chair, overwhelmed by Claire's gesture. I had felt close to Claire all my life. Sometimes I think she wished I had been her son, even though she loved Gary. She would have liked both of us to be her sons. These past years of sharing the same house had been easy ones for Cassie and me. But for her to go against Philip's wishes of leaving everything to their only grandchild, meant that something more must have happened during Kristina's previous visit. Claire decided to keep whatever it was to herself.

  Suddenly I remembered the description of Claire's fall the day Kristina left. The staff had told me that she had become dizzy and disoriented right before she slipped. I made a mental note to ask the doctor if any urine or blood samples were taken in the emergency room when they stitched her up.

  However, I still couldn't believe that Kristina would resort to murder. I would believe it sooner of Pam than I would about Kristina. Kristina needed love, that was all. I had tried over the years, but I had always ended up loving her in the wrong way, a way that still gave her the wrong things.

  I now realized Kristina and Pam had been working all the angles. I'm certain it was the reason that Pam had shown up in Ocala. I would bet that most of the plans had been devised by Pam over the course of several years, maybe ever since Philip's death. Then they plotted to go for even more money from the nursing home for Claire's fall.

  I suspected that Kristina and Pam also wanted a way for Kristina to inherit part of Aunt Susan's estate. Why else had she been asking for her will at the court? Kristina would never receive the thing she wanted most – her legacy in the Townsend family.

  I heard through some of the nursing home staff that Kristina had started a brief fling with one of Claire's male aides as soon as she arrived. He gave her the list of meds. The poor schmuck had become alarmed as Claire's condition worsened, so he quit his job the day before Claire died.

  However, when he read in the paper that Claire died, he came forward with some interesting information. During the first few days of Kristina's visit, she had been trying to get Claire to sign a document. The aide couldn't be sure because he hadn't read it, but he thought it stated that Kris Timmons was Claire's rightful heir. Claire adamantly refused to sign the paper. Even at her weakest, she remained the strong stoic I loved all my life.

  Later the next day the police came by for my statement. They told me they had to do an investigation because of the suspicious nature of Claire's death; everyone who had been around her during the past few weeks would be interviewed as routine procedure. Even Cassie would have to be questioned. I gave them all the information I could about the last days of Claire's life.

  "How well do you know the granddaughter, Kristina Timmons?" one of the detectives asked me.

  "I've known her since she was born, but there was a gap of about fifteen or sixteen years where no one in the Townsend family had any contact with her."

  "Bad divorce?"

  "Something like that. Kristina's mother left with her when Kristina was two. She wouldn't let anyone know where they were"

  "Do you know where they are right now?" he asked.

  "I'm not sure. They were staying out at the Comfort Inn, I think, but I haven't seen her since the afternoon before Claire's death. I'm not sure if she and her mother went back to Las Vegas or not. I can give you some phone numbers, if you'd like."

  "That would be good, Mr. Townsend, if you wouldn't mind. We need to ask them some questions, too."

  I went into the study to retrieve my address book and carefully wrote down the last addresses and phones numbers that I had for Kristina and Pam.

  "We may need to question you again, Mr. Townsend, after we talk to these two women. I hope you don't mind. I know it's a difficult time for you."

  "No, no, Detective, I understand. Just call me."

  After I showed them the door, I felt swept back into the past, remembering the night of Gary's funeral and how easily I had been seduced by Kristina. I remembered all of the times I had been with her and knew she couldn't have been the one that killed Claire. Despite her tough exterior, she loved her grandmother, and she loved me. I felt certain she wouldn't destroy either of us that way.

  When the detectives called, again I wondered if I should tell them everything. At least I should tell them about my suspicions of Pam. Maybe they didn't need to know about Kristina and me. I thought about the last few years and my relationship with Kristina that had never really ended and that continually threatened to pull me under. I decided that no matter what, I would tell Cassie. Maybe by confessing this albatross, I could finally get rid of it. And if she left me, then I would have received only a portion of the punishment I deserved.

  Pam's call broke into my thoughts.

  "Ed, it's Pam. I want to see you today."

  "Did you know that Claire died?"

  "Claire died? No, I didn't know, but she wasn't doing very well when I left. I'm sorry. I know how close the two of you were."

  "Where did you go and why did you leave without saying anything?"

  "I needed to get back to Vegas for some personal reasons. But I'm back now and we really need to talk. I've brought Oscar with me, and we'd both like to meet with you. Soon."

  "Pam, I really don't know what you and Oscar could say to me at this point."

  "I think we might have some information that you might like to have, too."

  "OK, but I'm not crazy about meeting your husband. Kristina hasn't been very complimentary about him."

  "No, I'm sure she hasn't. But why don't you meet him for yourself and then decide? How about seven tonight? We can come over there or meet you some place."

  I made arrangements to meet them at a restaurant close to their motel out by the interstate.

  Later that day, Kristina finally called.

  "Ed, is it true? Is Grandma dead like they said at the nursing home?" she asked.

  "Hello, Kristina. Yes, she died four days ago. Where did you go?"

  "Mom and I had to go back to Vegas. Oscar was sick. How did she die?"

  "We're not sure," I said. I didn't know how much I should reveal before the police talked to her. "You went with Pam back to Vegas?"

  "Yes, she was really worried about Oscar so I went to give her moral support. Have I missed the funeral?"

  "It was yesterday. Where are you?"

  "I'm at the Comfort Inn at I-75. Here in Ocala."

  "Really? When did you arrive?"

  "A few minutes ago. I came back and called Magnolia Arms to talk to Grandma, and they gave me the news. Can you come over, please?" I recognized the voice pleading with me now and felt
myself pulled by the vulnerability creeping into her words.

  "Why?"

  "I need a friend. Just come over, please. You know Cassie wouldn't like it if I came over there. I'm in room 301."

  After I hung up the phone, I decided to call the detectives who had been at my house just a few minutes earlier. They asked me for Kristina’s and Pam's Las Vegas addresses, but I thought they might like to know that both of them were just a few miles away. As I prepared to meet Kristina, I remembered the last time I had been with her just days before Claire died. I felt relief that the detectives would be there to protect me from the control she always exerted over my mental and physical being.

  It came just as quickly as he always hoped it would. The release itself was ecstasy, and then, nothing. Nothing left but the blackness of the abyss and the endless feeling of falling.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Kristina opened the door of her motel room almost immediately after my first tentative knock.

  "Eddie," she said as she flung herself against me. "Hold me, please just hold me."

  Unwillingly I held her, trying not to remember how vulnerable this young woman had always seemed to me in these moments. She looked at me, and in a life-long gesture, she reached up with one hand to touch the side of my face. I smiled tenderly as I remembered the toddler at my wedding to Kelsey who had done the same thing when I had swept her into my arms.

  Almost as suddenly as those unwanted thoughts came, another sensation developed as I realized that Kristina was now pushing desperately against me and moving in a rhythmic pattern. I fought to retain control, but my body once again began responding.

  "You can't deny it, Ed. Not anymore. You have always wanted me, and I have always wanted you. We're meant for one another. You loved Gary, and you love me. Quit fighting it." She pushed harder against me, and I tried not to feel her warm breasts crush into my chest.

  "See, you think too much, let your body take control. It's OK, baby, just love me," she whispered as she felt my arousal. "Now we can be together all the time. We can leave this place and go anywhere we want. I've been making plans, Eddie. We can go away together, and I'll take care of you just like you've taken care of everyone else all these years." She continued to caress me letting her soft voice work its magic.