by Jessica Beck
I did as he suggested, and after I got the dispatcher on the line, I said, “There’s been a murder at the Finney estate. Jake Bishop has confirmed that the victim is dead,” I added as I looked at Jake, who nodded his head sadly as he stood up from the body.
Phyllis made a move toward her late grandfather, and as her hand reached out for the letter opener, Jake restrained her.
“Don’t touch a thing,” he said as the dispatcher said the same thing to me.
“We can’t just leave him like that,” Phyllis protested, struggling against my husband’s firm grip.
“I’m truly sorry, but that’s exactly what we’re going to do,” Jake said, and then he looked over at Henry, clearly looking for help that he wasn’t going to get.
I hung up and decided to step in instead. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here. You don’t need to see this, Phyllis,” I said as I coaxed her out of the room. Her companion was being absolutely worthless, his gaze stuck on the man’s dead body. “How about a little help here, Henry? Henry!”
That got his attention. “Come, Phyllis. Let’s get you some water.”
“What I need is alcohol,” she said numbly.
“I’m sure we can handle that as well,” he answered.
Once they were both out of the room, it was just Perry, Jake, and me. Jasper’s former partner stared at him for a second before joining the others. I couldn’t tell what the expression on his face meant. It was almost as though he’d somehow been expecting this ultimate end for his former partner, however unlikely that might have been.
Then it was just the two of us.
“What do you make of it?” I asked Jake softly, as though speaking up might disturb Jasper in some way.
My husband examined the wound, being careful not to touch anything, and after a moment, he studied Jasper’s body, as well as taking in its surroundings. Jake was currently in full-on “inspector” mode, and it was fascinating to watch him evaluate the crime scene. After a few moments, he said, “There may be fingerprints on the handle, but I’m not putting too much hope there. From the look of things, Jasper was struck from behind, so it was someone he trusted enough to turn his back on.”
“How can you possibly know that?” I asked him.
“Look at the angle of the letter opener,” he said. “It’s pointing slightly downward and to the right side.” Jake made a motion of stabbing the air, and I could see what he was saying, much too clearly for my taste. “If it had been from the front, the angle and the cant would both be different.”
“Do you think Chief Grant will see that?” I asked. The chief was young, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t good at his job. The only reason I said it was because Jake had a great deal of experience on the state level.
“I’ll make sure that he does. We’ll have a little chat when he gets here,” Jake said as he looked around. “I don’t see anything else that looks out of place.”
I pulled out my cell phone and started taking pictures of Jasper, the blade, and our surroundings. I took them from every angle, including from behind the murder victim looking out into the hallway, as well as out the window and toward the bookcase, a monstrosity made of quarter-sawn oak that must have weighed a ton. I caught glimpses of the trees outside the window, as well as the lawn, parts of the garish gold-and-green carpet runner in the hallway, and at least a dozen different hardcover thriller novels in the bookcase. It appeared that Jasper had enjoyed his fiction rough and tumble, whereas I liked mine gentle and cozy. I often said that when it came to my reading preferences, the small town and its locals I enjoyed reading about were very nearly ideal, if it weren’t for all of the dead bodies, at any rate.
“Are we going to investigate this murder ourselves?” Jake asked when he saw what I was doing.
“How can we not? I knew Jasper was in trouble, and yet I did nothing about it. I feel somewhat responsible for what happened to him.”
Jake took my hand in his after I put my cell phone away. “Unless you plunged that blade into his heart, you can’t hold yourself responsible for what happened here,” he said.
“I know that, but he was clearly crying out for help.”
“And you were doing your best to provide it,” Jake said. “There’s no way you could have predicted this was going to happen.” He glanced around, and then he asked me, “Should I take some shots of the crime scene for Ray? He’s going to be screaming for some, you know.”
“Take some that are out of focus, or pointing at the wrong things,” I suggested. “If he asks me, I’ll tell him that I was so shaken up by what I saw that my hands were unsteady.”
“Good idea,” Jake said as he did as I suggested.
A moment later, there was a ruckus at the study door, and I looked up to see Ethan and Bobby Finney rushing into the room.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Ethan asked in protest.
“We’re securing the crime scene,” Jake said as he shoved the camera back into his pocket.
“Grandpa,” Ethan said, his voice fading as he took in the scene. “Is he dead?” he asked as he studied Jasper’s lifeless body.
“Come on, Dad. There’s nothing we can do for him,” Bobby said as he pulled at his father’s arm.
Was it my imagination, or was the younger Finney unable to look directly at the body of the family patriarch? Was that significant in any way?
“Somebody needs to call the police,” Ethan said as we all heard sirens approaching.
“That would be them,” Jake said. “We’ve got this under control.”
Ethan made a move toward the old man’s body, but Jake was clearly not having that, so he backed off quickly.
Chief Grant came in thirty seconds later and said automatically, “Please clear the room.”
Ethan and Bobby started to go, but Jake and I stood our ground.
Ethan noticed our reluctance to leave immediately. “If they can stay, then so can we.”
The chief shrugged. “He’s right. Suzanne, would you mind stepping outside?”
“What about him?” Bobby asked as he pointed an accusatory finger at Jake.
“He’s the former police chief and a retired state investigator. That makes him more than capable of assisting me at the crime scene.” The way Chief Grant said it, there was no room for debate.
“Let’s all wait outside,” I said as I put a hand on each man’s shoulder and herded them outside. Once we were in the hallway, the study door was firmly closed, and we were on the outside, wondering what was going on just on the other side of it.
Ethan started to break down after a moment. “I spoke with him less than an hour ago in the kitchen,” he said, fighting back his sobs. “He was perfectly fine then.”
“It’s not like he was coming down with something,” I said. I realized how callous it must have sounded the moment I said it. “I’m sorry for your loss. Both of you.”
“Thanks,” they said in unison.
“When was the last time that you saw him, Bobby?” I asked.
“It must have been at lunch,” he said. “Why do you want to know that?”
“Just curious,” I said. I had established a time of death, or at least a window of less than an hour. That might help in the investigation. Then again, it was a big house, a great many folks were there, and there was no way to say who had a solid alibi and who didn’t.
“You don’t think for one second that my son did this, do you?” Ethan asked, enraged by the mere suggestion that Bobby had played any part in what had happened to Jasper.
“Why? Did he have a motive?” I knew about the gambling debts, but I wasn’t sure I was ready for them to know I knew quite yet.
“Of course not, and neither did I,” he said angrily. “Why would we kill him?”
“If I had to
guess, I’d say that a presumed inheritance might be reason enough,” I replied, searching for some kind of reaction from either one of them.
I got one, but it was slightly delayed, as though Ethan had weighed the level of response before he acted. When he did, he took three quick steps toward me, doing his best to cow me into submission.
If that was indeed his aim, he was out of luck. I’d faced down killers before, and I wasn’t about to let him intimidate me. If anything, it only served to make me more determined to find out the truth. “Take that back. We didn’t need his money.”
I couldn’t let that smug expression on his face stand, even though it may have been in my best interests to keep my knowledge to myself. “So then, are you saying that it’s not true that your real estate firm is going bankrupt and that you’ve been appropriating funds that don’t belong to you? Does that also mean that Bobby doesn’t have a stack of gambling debts that are reaching untenable heights?”
I couldn’t have scored two more direct hits if I’d slapped each man simultaneously. “Where did you hear that?” Ethan asked me in a whisper.
“A little birdie told me,” I replied. “I’m curious about Jasper’s will, though. Have either one of you happened to have seen a copy of it?”
They both looked at me with such anger that I was beginning to wonder about the wisdom of going after them so directly. To my relief, the study door opened just then and Jake stepped out, being careful to close it behind him.
“What’s going on out here?” he asked, sizing up the situation instantly.
“You’d better muzzle your woman,” Ethan said threateningly.
Jake didn’t like that one bit. He got up in Ethan’s face, mere inches from him, and said, “First of all, Suzanne is her own woman, and no one else’s. Second, I pity the man who ever tried to muzzle her. My guess is that they’d pull back stubs instead of fingers, but if you think you’re up to the task, you’re more than welcome to try. The only thing is, though, that you’ll have to get past me first. So, what do you say? Are you interested in having a go of it?”
Ethan clearly didn’t want to tangle with Jake. “Come on, Bobby. I need some fresh air.”
His son trailed along behind him without a word.
“What did you say to them, Suzanne?” Jake asked me.
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t take their innocent acts, so I mentioned that Ethan was going bankrupt and Bobby had a great deal of gambling debts. You should have seen their faces when they realized I knew what I was talking about. Ray’s information really paid off.”
“In more ways than you know. I already shared it with the chief, too,” he said calmly.
“I know I shouldn’t have pushed them, but I did find out the last time either man admitted to seeing Jasper alive,” I said.
“Go on.” It was clear that Jake was a little unhappy with how I’d handled things, but he’d have to get over it. I’d done what I’d felt had been needed at the time, and there was no going back now, even if I wanted to.
“Bobby claims that he last saw Jasper at lunch, while Ethan says that he saw him an hour before we found the body. What did the chief say about your theory of Jasper being stabbed from behind?”
“He’s taking it under consideration,” Jake said with a shrug.
“Doesn’t he realize that you are better at this than he is?” I asked. I’d long been a fan of Stephen Grant, and no one had cheered louder when he’d finally been made permanent police chief, but that didn’t mean I thought he was in any way better or more qualified for his job than my husband was.
“Take it easy. He’s a good cop,” Jake said, defending him.
“Should we tell him what I just discovered?” I asked.
“Let me do it,” Jake said. “I know you’re the one who found out, but if you’re in the room with me, I’m going to have to tell him that the father-and-son team know that we have information about motives for them both.”
“You’re not going to keep it from him, are you?” I asked.
“No, but I’d like to tell it to him in my own way, without interruption or justification,” he admitted. “Do you have a problem with any of that?”
“No, that’s fine by me,” I replied. Jake was right. I’d get emotional if I was in the room. Let him handle this one.
“Good. Hang around, though. I’ll be right back.” Jake knocked on the study door, and then after a moment, he walked back inside.
I was left in the hallway, where Bethesda Long found me ten seconds later.
“I need to see Jasper,” she said brusquely. “Is he in there?”
“Yes, but you can’t speak with him,” I said. Evidently the party planner hadn’t heard the news of her boss’s demise yet.
“Nonsense. I wouldn’t ask if it weren’t important. Now step aside.”
She was about to knock on the door when I said, “Bethesda, somebody killed him. I’m afraid that Jasper Finney is dead.”
“No. It can’t be,” she said as she started to fall onto the ornately patterned carpet runner in the hallway. Only the nearby wall kept her erect. Somehow she managed to right herself after brushing the floor with both hands. “Murder? Who would do such a thing? I spoke with him half an hour ago, and he was fine,” she mumbled. “In fact, Angelica and I told him that the DeAngelis women were leaving. He seemed content, almost resigned to the fact that the party was going forward.”
“Was there ever any doubt?” I asked her.
She frowned before she spoke again. “An hour ago, he approached me and said that it was a bad idea, that he wanted to end it before it began. I thought he was just getting cold feet, so I did my best to talk him out of cancelling, and ultimately, I succeeded. I was just coming to tell him that everything was set, and now you tell me that he’s dead. I just can’t bring myself to believe it.”
“It’s true enough,” I said. “I saw the body.”
“What happened? Was he shot? I never heard a firearm go off.”
“What makes you think it was a gun?” I asked her, curious about her leap of reasoning.
“Isn’t that how most people are murdered these days?” she asked. “If he wasn’t shot, then how was he killed?”
There was no reason to try to keep that information to myself, since quite a few people already knew about it. “He was stabbed in the chest with a letter opener,” I said.
“Oh, dear,” she said. “I suppose this means that the party will be cancelled after all.”
Was she seriously still concerned about the dead man’s birthday party, even after what had just happened? I knew some people could be focused on their own jobs to the point where everything else was shaded out, but this was crazy. “There’s not going to be a party. I’m sure the police will turn folks away as they try to come down the drive.”
“What are we going to do with all of that food? And what about your donuts?”
“I could care less about any of that,” I said. “Donate everything to the soup kitchen, for all I care. I know Jasper was quite fond of that particular cause, so it would have pleased him. My friend is dead. That’s all I can think about right now.”
“Of course,” Bethesda said, getting her wits about her again. “I’ve known of Jasper for many years, but this was the first time I had the privilege to work for him.” She lowered her voice as she added, “You should go straight to the bank and cash that check. I don’t know what’s going to happen with his estate, but you deserve to be paid for your services.”
“Don’t worry about that. It’s already in the bank,” I admitted.
“That was quick,” she said.
“I had my assistant drop it into our account after we finished the work,” I admitted. “Are you going to get paid for your services?”
She nodded. “It’s already been
taken care of as well. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must go see about shutting things down.”
“I wouldn’t do anything until the police speak with you first, if I were you,” I said.
“Why would they want to talk to me?” she asked, clearly confused about the possibility of being interviewed. “Do you know something that I don’t?”
“At this point, I can’t imagine it,” I said. “I’m just guessing, but I have a feeling that every last one of us is going to be a suspect in Jasper Finney’s murder.”
“Even you?” she asked me incredulously.
“Even me,” I acknowledged. “You, too.”
“This is ridiculous,” she said as four officers and two EMTs hurried into the hallway. I pointed them to the study, and they quickly disappeared inside. “I’ll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me.”
“That sounds like a solid plan to me,” I said. At least Momma and Phillip hadn’t arrived for the party yet, or Grace, either. They wouldn’t be buried under clouds of suspicion like Jake and I were sure to be. I doubted that anyone would actually think that we’d kill Jasper, but then again, the rumor mill around town wasn’t exactly based on intellect and sound reasoning.
I tried to think of something I could do while Jake was inside with the other professionals working the case.
Then it occurred to me that I had information about when each of my other suspects had seen the victim last, with the exception of Phyllis Carlisle and Perry Kilroy. I wasn’t sure if Chief Grant would appreciate me gathering facts before he had a chance to, but I wasn’t going to not investigate Jasper’s murder. Thinking of his demise reminded me of the envelope he’d slipped into my hands just the day before, along with the warning not to open it unless he was dead. What did it say, this missive from beyond the grave? Was it a clue as to who might want him dead, or was it something a great deal more mundane? I didn’t know, and I wouldn’t until I made it back to the donut shop. I’d jammed the letter into my apron pocket, and as far as I knew, that’s where it still was. I’d have to retrieve it sooner rather than later, though, now that Jasper was dead.