The April Fools' Day Murder
Page 21
“What did you do?” I asked.
“I had the key to Winnie’s house.”
“You had a key too?” I had never thought to ask. I knew Roger had one but he had moved out.
“Roger gave it to me years ago, in case one of his parents had an emergency and I couldn’t reach him. I waited till I knew Toni was taking Winnie out and then I drove over, let myself in, and left the cane in the basement room where they found it. The window was already open, so I just made it seem it had been thrown inside. I actually got up on a stool and stood near the window and pushed it in the right direction. Then I left. I didn’t know when they’d find it, but I knew I wasn’t going down to that basement till someone had seen it. I wasn’t going to be the one who found it.”
“Did you tell anyone you’d done it?”
“No one. I came home that day, two weeks ago this afternoon, and you know what? I felt light. I felt as if all my cares had been taken away. For a while I wondered if that was what it felt like to be on drugs.”
“I think you should turn yourself in, Doris.”
“I know I should.”
“You can get a lawyer first if you want.”
“Yes.”
“Will you do that?”
She thought for a moment. “Yes, I will. I’ll call our lawyer now.” She got up and went to the kitchen.
I followed and stood where I couldn’t see her but I could hear. She dialed and then had a brief conversation, telling the lawyer she needed to see him right away and would he come over? When she hung up, I said goodbye and went out the front door.
29
There were two cars across the street from the house. One was Jack’s and he was at the wheel. The other I didn’t recognize, but as I crossed the street, Joe Fox got out of it.
“Get a confession?”
“I think someone will be turning himself in at the police station,” I said, using the grammatically correct form of the pronoun that did not disclose the gender of the unknown person.
“That’s all you’ll tell me?”
“That’s all. I don’t think you should question anyone till a lawyer arrives.”
“They already call a lawyer?”
“They did,” I said, smiling.
Jack had joined us. “You’re not talking?”
“Not at the moment. You know, it’s lunchtime. Why don’t we all go out and have a nice lunch? It’s over and I’m really hungry.”
“I think I’ll just wait till the lawyer arrives,” Detective Fox said.
I didn’t want to leave him alone, afraid he might ring the doorbell before the lawyer arrived. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him. I just wanted to make sure that Doris had representation.
About ten minutes later a car pulled into the driveway and a man in casual clothes got out and hurried to the front door. Doris opened it quickly and the man went inside.
“It’s all yours,” I said.
“The killer gonna turn himself in?” Joe Fox said.
“That’s the plan. If he doesn’t I’ll give you a name. Lunch?”
He seemed to think about it. “I’ll just wait,” he said. “I’m a detective. Waiting is the name of the game.”
Jack took me up on the lunch idea and we went to the diner, to Eddie’s delight, and had a good lunch.
“So why didn’t I think of Doris?” he asked.
“Because everything pointed to Roger or Winnie. Or even Mr. Vitale. And plunging a knife into someone’s chest doesn’t strike us as a woman’s crime.”
“You said it.”
“But I thought about Harry’s story, how Will had pulled a gun when he found Amelia and Harry together. Harry tried to protect himself and Will got himself shot by accident. This was the same kind of thing. I could see Will using his cane to intimidate someone who angered him. After all, that was the reason he always carried one. And if someone got it away from him, as Harry had gotten control of that gun fifty years ago, that would be the beginning of the end for Willard.”
“So she went to the house to be a peacemaker.”
“That’s what she said, and I believe her. It was a very important day in all their lives, and she thought she could make Willard see the light.”
“But she couldn’t and he got sore at her for trying. Any hard evidence around?”
“She tossed the cane in the back of her car. Maybe there’s some blood on the upholstery. That’s pretty hard.”
“Sure is.”
“I think Doris was trying to get Roger to come back home. That’s what it was all about. And he may have been thinking about it.”
“Won’t happen now.”
“We don’t know. She was defending herself against a very angry armed man. She didn’t go there with a weapon. She used one that the victim used against her.”
“Maybe you should get a law degree.”
I reached over to where Eddie was sitting and moved his glass of milk so it wouldn’t tip. “You’ve said that before. I don’t think so.”
“So Vitale had nothing to do with all this.”
“Nothing at all. Not that he didn’t have a motive. Eddie, be careful.”
“I want some ice cream.”
“Well—”
“Good idea,” Jack said. “Let’s all get some ice cream. Any objections?”
I valued my life too much to say anything.
“So what about the second will?” Jack asked after he had ordered our desserts.
“I have an idea. I think Winnie didn’t destroy it. But I can’t be sure. I expect with Doris confessing to this, Winnie will be happy to have the will reappear.”
“This is a very sad case,” my husband said.
“It is. I hope she can convince a jury the way she convinced me.”
“You think she was telling the truth?”
“I do. She wanted her husband back, she wanted to get rid of the secrets in their lives. It just couldn’t happen. Willard had a personality defect, if you will. He needed to lord it over his son. As you said, it’s very sad. Even if Doris is acquitted, or better yet, if no charges are filed against her—”
“Unlikely.”
“Right. That family is forever destroyed. A child gone. It breaks my heart. Oh Eddie, look what’s coming.”
His eyes were as wide as his smile. “Ice cream!”
“You bet. I can’t wait to dig in.”
Nor could he.
Our little tree had been planted on the front lawn and I saw it when we got back. It looked delicate and lovely on a background of grass that was now greening up. The men who planted it suggested to Jack that we think about enlarging the planting site with a few low-growing shrubs, and we talked about it and decided to do it.
Eddie, stuffed from our lunch out, went up for a nap, and I took the opportunity to drive up to Winnie’s house. She opened the door, her face tearful, and let me in.
“You’ve heard,” I said.
“Doris called me before she went to the police station. I couldn’t believe it.”
“She didn’t mean to kill him,” I said.
“I know that. I know what was going on inside her. It was going on inside me too, but Will wouldn’t listen to me. I tried to talk to him many times. I suppose I could have saved him that day if I’d heard them out in the garage, but I didn’t hear anything.”
“You thought Roger did it, didn’t you?”
“I don’t know what I thought.”
I walked over to the bucket of canes in the living room and took one out. “Do you mind if I open this?” I asked, not waiting for her reply. She mumbled something as I pressed a button on the top of a beautiful silver-topped walking stick. As I pulled out the sharp knife within, I saw a curled piece of paper in the empty bottom.
“Chris—”
I ignored her and pulled that out too. It was page seven of a legal document. “You hid the pages in the canes,” I said.
“Just in case you found a killer that wasn’t my son. And you did.”
“I’m glad you didn’t destroy it. Roger deserves whatever his father left.”
“He’ll get it,” Winnie said, “but not for a while. I’m still a young, healthy woman.”
I smiled. “I’m glad to hear it. I feel the same way about you.”
“Thank you,” Winnie said.
“You’re very welcome.”
30
A lot of things did and didn’t happen over the next several months. Doris was charged with a lesser degree of manslaughter, and I felt confident she would be acquitted or get a suspended sentence. Roger took a long trip and came back to try to live with his wife. Winnie offered me an acre of land near her house and I turned her down very firmly.
The Saturday after Doris’s confession, I came down to breakfast to find a large box tied with pink ribbon. “This better not be a belated April Fool’s Day prank,” I said suspiciously.
“Open it,” Jack directed.
Inside was a cordless phone for the kitchen. I was thrilled. It goes to the family room and all the way out to the backyard. If ever I decide to be a lady of leisure, it will help.
After the summer months were over, Mr. Vitale sold his land to a builder. He got over two million for the acreage and kept one acre for himself. They intend to break ground next spring. Before he closed down, we had him plant some wonderful shrubs near our red Japanese maple, which is the most beautiful tree on the street.
Willard Platt’s second will was filed not long after Doris confessed to the killing. It had a bequest to leave a nice sum to the high school to be used for a modern, state-of-the-art auditorium, which they will build next year. It will be named the Willard Platt Theater, and they are planning a festive opening ceremony to which the whole town is invited.
I don’t think I will attend.
In memory of Sister Redempta McConnell,
a wonderful person it was a privilege to know.
By Lee Harris
Published by Fawcett Books:
THE GOOD FRIDAY MURDER
THE YOM KIPPUR MURDER
THE CHRISTENING DAY MURDER
THE ST. PATRICK’S DAY MURDER
THE CHRISTMAS NIGHT MURDER
THE THANKSGIVING DAY MURDER
THE PASSOVER MURDER
THE VALENTINE’S DAY MURDER
THE NEW YEAR’S EVE MURDER
THE LABOR DAY MURDER
THE FATHER’S DAY MURDER
THE MOTHER’S DAY MURDER
THE HAPPY BIRTHDAY MURDER
Don’t miss any of the
Christine Bennett mysteries
by Lee Harris
THE GOOD FRIDAY MURDER
The first Christine Bennett mystery
THE YOM KIPPUR MURDER
THE CHRISTENING DAY MURDER
THE ST. PATRICK’S DAY MURDER
THE CHRISTMAS NIGHT MURDER
THE THANKSGIVING DAY MURDER
THE PASSOVER MURDER
THE VALENTINE’S DAY MURDER
THE NEW YEAR’S EVE MURDER
THE LABOR DAY MURDER
THE FATHER’S DAY MURDER
THE MOTHER’S DAY MURDER
THE HAPPY BIRTHDAY MURDER
Published by Ballantine Books.
Available at your local bookstore.