One Deadly Sister
Page 27
“My nightmare ends.”
Sandy said, “A good attorney will say it’s not first degree, that she didn’t go there to shoot him, they got in an argument. Her attorney will make it sound like a lover’s quarrel, passion of the moment. She might try to plea out to manslaughter?”
“She won’t get to keep those Chinese porcelain dishes she inherited when Towson’s brother finds out they’re worth a half-million dollars,” Ray said.
“Seriously, that much?” Sandy asked.
“Easily. He had several complete settings plus the historical directory. Towson, apparently, wanted to take care of Tammy should he die. She would have been a rich woman. Instead, she goes to jail because he broke her heart. Meanwhile, Loraine has replaced me in jail, arrested for drowning Barner.”
“Loraine is a real culprit here,” Sandy said. “Her greed set off the whole chain of events, starting with framing you for the murder.”
“She still thinks Barner was the murderer, so she’s expecting to be charged with conspiracy to commit murder, as well,” Chip said. “We think she paid Barner a lot of cash up front to kill Towson. He just pocketed the money with no intention of doing anything. Let her yell. What could she do? So, when Towson was shot, Loraine naturally assumed he did it. Barner figured what the hell, tells her yeah he did it. And goes to her place for the payoff.”
Sandy said, “So, Barner was in Vegas spending the down payment, and was overjoyed when he heard about the murder. The target he had no intention of shooting had been shot. He came back pretending he had finished the murder contract, and to get the rest of the money from her. And get it before the police caught the real killer. Don’t you love it?”
Chip said, “So, she drowns him thinking she’s covering up her part in Towson’s murder, but she had no part in Towson’s murder. Furthermore, she believed the gun she was trying so hard to conceal was the murder weapon, but it had no relevance.”
“So, bug guy outsmarts Mensa Babe. Can you nail her for drowning him?” Ray asked.
“Murder by drowning is one of the toughest homicides to prove,” Chip said. ”We have motive, but only circumstantial evidence. She’s hired Gerald White, the whiz Palm Beach lawyer. Remember he got that rich Neilson kid off a couple of years ago: the senator’s no-good nephew who they charged with rape, DUI and leaving the scene of the accident that killed his date. Moran can’t compete with him.”
“So, Chip, you think Loraine will still get the big life insurance payoff on Towson?” Ray asked.
“Sure. The insurance company will try to hold things up, but I don’t see how the conspiracy charge can be proven with Barner dead.”
“Here’s the big twist,” Sandy explained, “Moran was indeed faced with the murder of a very important public figure. But, he was so focused on making it into a big national crime he overlooked a simple small-town killing for unrequited love. He’ll get a conviction on Tammy, and she’ll face some years behind bars, but the trial will be small potatoes compared to Loraine’s.”
“What do you mean?” Ray asked.
“Loraine’s trial will be a huge national sensation. It will be a circus. Think about it: you have sex, a seventy-year-old beauty in a thong, millions in insurance money, conspiracy, and a murder-for-hire scheme. Plus, one additional murder by drowning thrown in at no extra charge. Seriously, the media will go wild.”
“They’ll call it the Granny-Thong Caper,” Ray said. “I might write a book.”
Sandy continued, “The hotshot lawyer, Gerald White, will get a couple million of Loraine’s insurance money, and she’ll be acquitted. From then on, Moran will be known as the second-rate who can’t cut it in the big time.”
“So Moran will get the big sensational crime case he’s always wanted. Except he’ll be on the losing end,” Chip said. “Big toad Moran will never get out of his small pond.”
Ray said, “So heartsick Tammy goes to jail. Greedy Loraine murders and ends up free and very wealthy. And I learn a lesson about minding my own business.”
Sandy winked at him. “Well, now that I know you, I like the way you are. Don’t change too much. In truth, I thought the granny-sex was kind of cute, but by my count, you’ve slept with two murderers. You might try cutting back on that.”
“No one else could have done what you did, digging in, setting up relationships with Chip and Linda, getting in people’s faces and negotiating. You made things happen. Without you, I’d still be in jail at the mercy of little Bonaparte. You’re going to be one deadly lawyer. I owe you for all this and still owe you for way back when, Sandy.”
“Call me Sis. We were different people back then, just a couple of kids. All is forgiven. It’s lonely out there. I think I came down here because subconsciously I wanted some family in my life.”
“I glad you’re my sister.” Ray stepped toward her and reached out his hand. She took his hand and quickly pulled him to her. She gave him a light kiss on the cheek and locked her arms around him.
He was surprised and speechless. After a moment he was able to say, “You saved me, Sis.”
“Well, sisters do nice things like that,” she said. She released him and when she looked up, he saw that her cheeks were wet.
He needed a moment and then said, “And I’m getting smarter about women, Sis. Meg Emerson invited me over for dinner tonight. I think she likes me.”
Sandy rolled her eyes, “No kidding, you really think so?”
“She wants to talk about us being partners and starting a retirement plan consulting firm. She’s a whiz at sales, and I know the paperwork end.”
Sandy shook her head. “Raymond, we need to talk. Meg doesn’t want to think about business tonight. Trust me on this. Don’t take a ledger book, take a bottle of wine.”
Chip said, “I made some really sloppy mistakes. You saved my tail several times. I’d be back on uniformed patrol if not for you.”
“Nonsense, your dad would be proud of you.”
“With all this wrapped up,” he said, “this town’s going to be quiet and dull.”
“Doesn’t have to be,” she said.
The End
About the author:
Rod Hoisington has a background in business and education and lives in Vero Beach, Florida.
ONE DEADLY SISTER is the first novel in the Sandy Reid Mystery series
and is available in paperback from Amazon.
Read this excerpt from the next Sandy Reid Mystery
THE PRICE OF CANDY
The sequel to One Deadly Sister
Beyond the solid screen of sea grapes that lined Highway A1A, and down a gentle sea oat covered slope, laid an isolated patch of sandy beach warmed that late afternoon by one of the celebrated southerly breezes that enhance Florida in November. Only the murmur of the ocean disturbed the quietness. On that secluded beach, cast in the slanted shadows of the sunset, were two men and a woman. The two men were alive.
One was a sturdy younger man, scarcely thirty. He wore a Miami Dolphin’s sweatshirt and slouched with his thumbs hooked in the pockets of his faded jeans. The other man was dressed precisely for business except fine sand had scattered across his well-shined Testoni shoes. He walked away from the body, put both hands to his head, and walked back. He took off his tailored suit coat and covered the face and upper body of the woman on her back in the sand. Her orange bikini bottom and bare legs remained exposed below his coat.
The younger man knelt beside the body and started to lift the coat. “She really dead?”
“Don’t move that. Don’t look under there!”
“I’m not looking at her. Looking at her body. She’s not in there anymore. Gone, like up in smoke or whatever happens.” He raised the coat and made an unhurried consideration of the body.
“You’re looking at her.”
“Ask her if she cares. Don’t often get a free peek like this, you know. I’ll just close her eyes so she’s not staring back at me.” The younger man passed his hand over her face and the woma
n’s hushed hazel eyes closed easily.
“How’d you know that?”
“That’s what they do in the movies. Read someplace where some people believe if the eyes are left open, the dead will look around and spot someone to take with them.”
“Keep your hands off her.” The other man reached down and readjusted the coat to cover as much of the face and upper body as possible.
“Who knows what the dead are capable of? This one’s doing a good job messing with your head.”
“Don’t touch her again, okay?”
“Why, she your wife?”
The man shook his head. “I...think I’m going to be sick.” He pulled the knot of his silk necktie loose, tilted his head back, and took in a deep breath.
“Girlfriend, huh? Lucky man...at least up until now. She’s definitely from another world. You rich guys get all the goodies.”
“I don’t think about things in that way.”
“You don’t think about money at all. Like you don’t think about that fancy car parked up there. Just ask for the best or pick what you want. Like you picked which girl you wanted. Of course, now you can’t bear to look at her. Guess you’ll just have to pick another.”
“I don’t need to justify anything to you.”
“Yeah, the rich never have to justify.” He made a wide grin. “Your money won’t help when you try to explain to your wife how you happen to know Miss Universe here and why her top is off. You’re shaking already.”
The other man stiffened. “Her top came off when I put my arms around her from the back, you know, that Heimlich maneuver, squeezing her to stop her choking.” He combed his fingers through his thin brown hair.
“If you say so. When I first looked down you were behind her with your arms around her. I saw her top fall off and her boobs bouncing around. You bet I remember that part.”
“I couldn’t get the damn thing back on.”
“Must’ve been fun trying to stuff ten pounds in a five pound bag.”
“Do you have to talk about her like that? It’s not decent. She deserves our respect. She was a nice girl.”
“You knelt down beside her with your head down for a long time. What was that?”
“Just thinking about her.”
“Just crying over her is more like it. Okay, I guess you tried to save her. Don’t know how you screwed up the Heimlich. Any dork can do it.”
“I’ve never thought about learning such things. Things where I must actually touch people. There’s always someone around to do it. Of course I regret it. Someone trained might have saved her.”
“You drove here together. I saw you.”
“You saw us? Oh...I didn’t realize that. She’s sort of a friend.” He wiped his palms on the front of his trousers.
“I hope my friends do a better job if I choke.”
“She needed a ride, that’s all...she needed a ride.”
“A ride to the beach? That what you’re saying?”
The man folded his arms across his chest and didn’t answer.
“I stood up there at the top of that knoll and watched you. Funny, when she got out of your car and started changing into that bikini, it looked like you were trying to peek at her. You’ve never seen your girlfriend naked? She moved to the other side like she didn’t want you to watch her undress. She didn’t notice I had pulled in. I’m the one who got the show.”
“So she was modest. Stop saying things.”
“Modest then, won’t bother her a bit anybody looks at her now.”
“But it bothers me. You shouldn’t speak of her in that manner. It’s not...honorable. Just keep my coat over her.” He folded and unfolded his arms again. “You know I tried to help her. You know I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Relax, it’s an accident. Like you say, she choked herself to death. Crazy way to die.”
The older man said, “My cell’s in the car....”
“I’ve already phoned the police. Told them send along an ambulance.”
“Oh, you already called them? That’s good...I guess.” He turned away from the body and rubbed the back of his neck. “They’re not going to believe me...they’re not going to believe me.”
“You’re really sweatin’ this, aren’t you?”
“Of course I’m shaken. A person just died before my eyes. Her dead body is lying there.”
“I suppose you’ve got big deal friends, a big deal job, a big deal reputation.”
“You don’t know the half of it. You wouldn’t believe the fallout there’s going to be about this.” He tilted his head back and closed his eyes tightly.
“So take off.”
“What?”
“Go...leave. You’ve got nothing to do with this, it happened like you said. She happened to be on the beach. You happened to be on the beach. You tried to help her. That’s the way it was, wasn’t it?”
“I guess.”
“So, go. Get out of here. You don’t have to get involved. I’ll look after her. Things like this happen all the time.”
“I don’t think I should leave her. Should I go? I don’t think I should.”
“No sweat. Nothing else you can do here. Get moving the police will be here any second.”
“Then you’ll be in trouble.”
“No, they know me. I live around here. I take care of some things around here. Nothing bad happened. There’s been no crime. The M.E. will find she died of choking. Case closed.
“The medical examiner?”
“Yeah, like on TV. Now come on we’ll walk up to your car. You leave and I’ll wait up there for the police.”
“I should take my coat.” He reached back and picked it up off the body. He paused to look down at her. Freddy, you always want things nice and neat. Good lord, he thought, does it end this way?
“She should have something over her,” he said. “I don’t have a blanket in my car. Do you?”
The younger man shook his head.
They reached the top of the sandy knoll and could now hear the occasional hum of vehicles going by on A1A beyond the screen of foliage. The older man stopped abruptly and pointed. “Is that your SUV parked there? Wait a minute, I saw it at that truck stop up in Jacksonville. You’re lying. You’re not from around here. You pulled out right behind us on 95.”
“Not me, buddy. I’ve been here all day. Haven’t been out of town in a month. Now you should get out of here.”
“I was certain it was your white SUV that followed us.”
“You’re saying you gave Miss Universe a ride down here from Jax so she could go to the beach?”
The nervous man didn’t answer.
“Stop talking and go.”
“I can’t leave. I won’t do it.” He wondered just how much he owed her anyway. He could stay and identify himself to the police. That wouldn’t bring her back and might destroy him. Certainly he didn’t owe her that much. “I don’t know. Will she be okay? Nothing’s going to happen to her?”
“Nothing’s going to happen to her. I’ll keep an eye on her. Now leave.”
“Well, I guess it’s all right, since the police are on the way. I truly appreciate your doing this for me. So, you’ll stay up here and wait up here until they come, okay?”
“Sure.”
(End of excerpt from The Price of Candy. -- the next Sandy Reid mystery by Rod Hoisington)
Read & enjoy the entire novel.
Available in paperback at Amazon.com and eBook at:
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/rodhoisington
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37