“But they were living in the same house,” Silvie said.
“It doesn’t matter; they can still be legally separated under the same roof as long as they are not living together as man and wife.” Mr. Winters took a mouthful of coffee. “They don’t have relations; they don’t go to family occasions together; they live totally separate lives.”
“So how long had they been separated like that for; do you know?”
“From what I surmised, the two years was growing close and that’s what prompted him to have the new will drawn up.”
“Thank you, Mr. Winters, I can’t tell you how much help you’ve been.”
“Anytime, Silvie, anything you need, just ask.”
Silvie felt bad for being tempted to judge her schweschder as foolish. It was clear now that the man was in love with her if he was leaving every single dime he had to her. Maybe their love was true.
She knew from her own experience that it was easy to fall in love with someone, even an Englischer. Maybe Carmello had been a womanizer in the past, but everyone can change and he might have done just that, when he met Sabrina.
Mr. Winters leaned over closer to Silvie. “I don’t have time to tell you here because you’ll have to get back to work, but there’s something else you should know if you’re interested in Carmello Liante.”
“Yes of course I’m interested. I’d like to know anything that you know about him.”
Mr. Winters neatly arranged his knife and fork on the empty plate. “What time do you finish today?”
“I should be off at around four today unless Bill wants me to stay back.”
“I’ll expect you just after four. Tell Bill that you’ve got an appointment with me.” Mr. Winters gave Silvie a wink.
Silvie smiled and nodded. “Will do.”
Silvie could hardly wait to hear what Mr. Winters had to say about Carmello. She was hoping it was something that would help them find out who had killed him.
When four o’clock came around, she was pleased that she was free to go and did not have to stay back. She hurried down the road to Mr. Winters’s office. She’d been in his office building many times delivering lunches and coffees.
“Come in, Silvie.” Mr. Winters was just outside his office speaking to the front desk receptionist when Silvie pushed open the heavy glass door. “This way.”
His office was at the end of the corridor. The suite of offices was housed in an old building. Some of the rough red bricks were left exposed and made a startling contrast with the modern glass and stainless steel of the interior of the office partitions.
“Take a seat.” Mr. Winters had the largest office, being one of two partners in the firm. Apart from his large desk at one end of the room there was a group of black tub chairs arranged in a circular position. It was these chairs that they sat in as they spoke.
“You had something to tell me? Oh, I nearly forgot; I bought you a slice of cherry pie.” Silvie leaned down in her bag and handed Mr. Winters the white package.
“My favorite, thank you, Silvie.” Mr. Winters took the pie and placed it in his small fridge at the far side of the room. “For later.” He laughed and sat back down in front of Silvie. “What I want to tell you is something that I heard from another lawyer. We lawyers talk about our clients, even though we aren’t supposed to.”
“What was it?” Silvie’s body leaned forward.
“The lawyer was approached by a previous client of Mr. Liante. The client was unhappy with him and wanted to know his rights and whether or not he could sue Mr. Liante for anything.”
“What did he do?”
“The client went to him with a commercial real estate opportunity and had Liante crunch the numbers – that means work out whether it was a good deal or not.”
“Yes, I know. Go on.”
“Liante told his client that the numbers didn’t work and he couldn’t recommend the deal. Next thing, his client found out that the property went under contract quite quickly. Months later the client did some checking into the company that bought the property and – can you guess the rest?”
“Liante was the owner of the company?”
“Yes, the director. The client thought that this was a breech of ethics and approached the lawyer to see if he could be sued.”
“Could he have been sued?” Silvie asked.
“At best he could have been reported to the Accountancy Board. Usually accountants and professionals have their own set of criteria they are ethically bound by. He most likely breached their ethics, but legally there was no use going ahead with anything. Liante could have said that he’d already been considering the property; it was also bought in a company name and not in his own name which distances him further from any liability.”
“So the man who missed out on the deal would have been very angry?” Silvie asked.
“Very angry is an understatement from what his lawyer told me.”
“Thank you, Mr. Winters; you’ve been very helpful.”
“Anytime, Silvie. I’m here to help, and to eat cherry pie.” Old Mr. Winters laughed.
Chapter 9.
Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
1 Corinthians 1:10
Knowing that Mrs. Liante was still in the hospital after the attempt on her life, Maureen thought it the best opportunity to go to her house and speak to the housekeeper. She went as early as she could because she knew that Detective Crowley was going to have the housekeeper show him through the house that afternoon.
Maureen took a deep breath, said a quick prayer and knocked on the Liantes’ front door. She glanced down at her Englisch clothing and smoothed down her hair, conscious of the fact that her prayer kapp was missing.
Seconds later the door opened a crack. “Yes?”
“Hello, I’m Mary Templeton. Would Mrs. Liante be home at the moment?”
“No, I’m afraid not.” The housekeeper looked Maureen up and down. “Are you selling something?”
“No, I’m not selling anything. Mrs. Liante told me to come and see her the next time I had a day free. She said she’s looking for a cook and she’s interested in using my services.”
“She might be back tomorrow or the day after. Does she have your phone number? I’ll tell her you came by. What’s your name?”
“Would she authorize you to speak to me? I know she was looking for someone rather quickly and you’d be doing her a favor. I’m not sure when I’ll be free next; I’m very busy. She’ll be so disappointed that she missed me.”
The housekeeper opened the door a little wider and studied Maureen again, from top to toe. “Come on in then. Heavens knows that Mrs. Liante can’t cook. It’s about time she thought to get someone in.” Maureen was led to a living room with large floor to glass windows overlooking a garden. “It’ll take a weight off my shoulders. I’m no cook either.”
“What a lovely home. Have Mr. and Mrs. Liante lived here long?”
The housekeeper lowered her head. “Mr. Liante died just days ago.”
Maureen gasped and covered her mouth with her two hands. “How terrible. I’m so sorry I had no idea.”
“It was a horrible business. Mrs. Liante was so distraught she had to be hospitalized.”
“She’s in the hospital?” Maureen asked.
The housekeeper nodded. “Anyway, I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Maud Camry.”
Maureen shook her hand. “Very pleased to meet you.”
“Do you have any references that I can pass on to Mrs. Liante?”
“I don’t need references. Mrs. Liante has seen my work first hand. She’s been to many, many functions I’ve cooked at. She really just wanted to show me the kitchen.”
“I can do that. I can show you the kitchen. This way.” Maud walked toward the kitchen.
As Maureen followed, she not
iced that the dress Maud wore was particularly well made. She knew good tailoring when she saw it since her mother was one of the better seamstresses in the community. Maureen also knew that the silk fabric would have been highly expensive. “That’s a lovely dress you’re wearing, Maud.”
Maud stopped and turned around. “Mrs. Liante gave it to me.” Maud laughed. “We’re the same size and she gives me all her old clothes.”
“Lucky you,” Maureen said. “I’d never fit that size.” Maureen patted her full hips.
“She’s a size two, same as me. Some of the clothes she gives me have never been worn. It’s like that with rich people. Sometimes they’re far too free with their money.”
“They don’t even know the word budget do they?” Maureen laughed. “Do you live-in?”
“Yes, well nearly. I’ve got the garden house out the back. It’s two bedrooms and it’s quite roomy. It’s funny that Mrs. Liante didn’t mention you.”
“I’ve met her quite a few times. She’s a lovely woman.”
“Lovely?” Maud laughed. “I’ve heard her called many things, but not many people would call her lovely.”
“She seemed lovely to me.”
Maud’s face turned serious. “She can be lovely and she can be horrid. It depends on what mood she’s in. I’m not about to cross her in any way.”
“Of course you wouldn’t cross her because she’s your boss.”
Maud smiled. “Come on. I’ll show you the kitchen and then I’ll give you a quick look over the rest of the house. It’s quite grand.”
Maureen was happy that she was getting along so well with Maud. In real life, they might have become friends. Maureen was a little saddened that she was deceiving this lady just to find out more about Mr. Liante’s murder. Maureen took a deep breath and reminded herself of what she was there for and followed Maud as she took her on a tour of Mrs. Liante’s home.
“Well, that’s the home,” Maud said.
“It’s magnificent.”
Maud tapped Maureen on the arm. “I’ve got loads of free time since Mrs. Liante’s not here. Let’s have a nip of sherry.”
Maureen smiled. She wasn’t a drinker. It wasn’t forbidden in her community and many of her Amish friends drank in moderation. Maureen knew she had to keep a level head. “Yes, that would be lovely. I have a little time before I have to be somewhere.”
“Excellent. We can enjoy ourselves before Mrs. Liante gets home.”
Maureen followed Maud to a formal sitting room. “Sit here,” Maud said while she walked to the far side of the room and pressed a button under a concave in the wall. A bar rose up out of the floor.
Maureen covered her mouth with both hands. “Well, I’ll be. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Maud laughed. “Mrs. Liante likes her gadgets. She’s got a large television screen in the bedroom that comes down from the ceiling at the press of a button.”
Maureen noticed that Maud said that ‘she’ has the television screen in the bedroom and not ‘they.’ Maybe that was because Mr. Liante was no longer alive, but surely she would have said ‘they’ve’ got a television screen, if they were in the same bedroom. For being so early after Mr. Liante’s death, the housekeeper hadn’t made one slip with the ‘they’ when referring to her employers; it was always ‘she.’ Maureen mulled the whole thing over until she was handed a small glass of sherry in an extremely heavy and expensive looking cut glass goblet.
The housekeeper sat next to her on the blue, brocade chaise.
Maureen looked around her and then looked back at the glass. “I feel very stylish.”
Maud laughed. “They do know how to live.”
There it was; the housekeeper had said ‘they.’ Now Maureen had no reason to believe, no hope to cling to that Mr. and Mrs. Liante were separated, but living under the one roof. She had no evidence of that at all. She had hoped she could go back and tell the widows and particularly Sabrina that they had lived separately, but she could not.
“Cheers,” Maud said as she lifted up her glass.
“Cheers,” Maureen copied Maud as she sipped the sherry. “Very nice.”
“It should be. It’s the best that money can buy,” Maud said.
“And they don’t mind you drinking it?”
Maud laughed. “What they don’t know won’t hurt them. I mean what Mrs. Liante doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”
* * *
Silvie dragged Sabrina along to the next widows’ meeting, even though Sabrina didn’t want to go because she was still cross at having to go to talk to the bishop alone. Silvie knew it would be beneficial to have Sabrina at the meeting.
“That night of the murder, how did you know that it was Mrs. Liante who you saw? How could you see her face in the dark when she left Carmello’s office? You didn’t see her actually in the office, did you?” Maureen asked Sabrina.
“Nee, I didn’t actually see her in his office. I heard someone come in and then I heard someone leave. I heard the door downstairs close and I looked out the window. Just as I looked out, I could see her face as she glanced back at the building. I remember her face and it was definitely her. There was also no one else around.”
“Mrs. Liante’s housekeeper, Maud, is given all Mrs. Liante’s old clothing and she takes exactly the same sized clothing. She looks similar to Mrs. Liante; it would be hard to tell them apart at a distance. The only difference is that the housekeeper is older, but that would be hard to tell in the dark, wouldn’t it?”
“What are you saying, Maureen? Do you think that the housekeeper killed him? Why would she?” Sabrina asked. “And she wouldn’t have attacked Mrs. Liante as well, because if they’re both gone she would have no job.”
Maureen slumped back slightly in her chair, which caused the old wooden chair to creak. “I didn’t think of that.”
Ettie said, “What else did you find from going around the haus, Maureen?”
Maureen looked at Sabrina. “I’m sorry to say that I didn’t see any evidence that they had separate bedrooms. In fact, she showed me their bedroom, the master suite, she called it, and said nothing of them leading separate lives.”
Sabrina said nothing and looked sad.
“How many bedrooms do they have in the house?” Emma asked.
“Couldn’t count them. Must have been around ten bedrooms. It is possible that Mr. Liante used one of the bedrooms as his own.” Maureen said, looking at Sabrina. “I’m just saying that there was no evidence from what I saw. I didn’t look in closets or anything.”
“It’s alright, Maureen. You don’t have to be careful what you say. I know what I had with him. I know that it was real. Silvie’s got something that she hasn’t told you yet.”
All eyes turned to Silvie. “I told Sabrina as soon as I got home today. Mr. Winters gave me some very useful information. It seems that Carmello had a new will drawn up, one that was never signed. Carmello was to sign it in front of Mr. Winters the afternoon that he died and Carmello never showed up.”
“That’s an interesting turn of events. Did he tell you what was in the new will?” Elsa-May asked.
“He was leaving everything to Sabrina. Every single thing he owned, all to Sabrina,” Silvie said.
All eyes turned to Sabrina.
“See?” Sabrina said looking self-satisfied. “You all think that he was using me and I was a stupid little fool, just one of his other women, but I wasn’t.”
“Nee, we don’t think that at all, Sabrina. We want to help you, dear,” Ettie said.
Sabrina smiled at Ettie, which was the first time Silvie had seen a smile on her face in days.
“Denke, Ettie,” Sabrina said.
“And then he was killed,” Elsa-May said, obviously talking about the recent will, quite oblivious to the little exchange that Sabrina and Ettie had just had.
“Jah,” Silvie continued, “He also told me that Carmello had an extremely disgruntled client who was looking to sue him.”
“Tell us mor
e,” Maureen said.
“Mr. Winters found out from another lawyer, that a client of Carmello’s came to ask him whether a property was a good investment. Carmello told him it wasn’t worthwhile to go ahead with and then Carmello bought it with one of his companies.”
“Unprofessional, wicked and unethical,” Elsa-May said. “And because he bought it in the company name, that means he was somewhat personally protected from litigation. But, technically, what he did was most likely not a crime anyway, just wicked and unprofessional.”
“That makes the former client a suspect then,” Maureen said.
Ettie said, “Now, we have as suspects, everyone on the old will, including the wife, the housekeeper and now the disgruntled client.”
“That’s right,” Elsa-May said as she scribbled notes on her yellow pad.
“Wasn’t Detective Crowley coming here tonight?” Silvie asked.
Like clockwork, Detective Crowley knocked on the door. For the next fifteen minutes, Silvie and Maureen briefed the detective about everything that they had learned.
“Maureen, I wouldn’t say that was a good idea what you did. Showing up at the Liante house like that. Things like that need to be left to a trained professional.”
Maureen jutted out her jaw. “I found some things out.”
The detective frowned at Maureen and his cheeks went red. “You could have put yourself in danger. Please, don’t do it again; leave it to us.”
Maureen smiled through tight lips. Silvie knew that Maureen would do something like that again, as would they all if the need arose.
“What did you find out from Mrs. Liante, Detective?” Emma asked.
“She gets out tomorrow if the doctor gives her the all clear. She is going to increase the security on her house, by putting in an alarm system and security cameras.”
“Did you go to the house?” Maureen asked.
Amish Regrets (Amish Secret Widows' Society #4) Page 5