Murder in the Middle: A Susan Wiles Schoolhouse Mystery

by Diane Weiner

  “Oh, yes. Thanks so much for your time.”

  Susan thought she’d try dropping by the station again on her way home. She couldn’t stop analyzing the new clues she’d found. Rusty and Lindsay were involved with each other. They both knew where Caleb lived and had reason to want Caleb dead. Rusty was friends with Sophie and felt protective of her. Maybe protective enough to turn up at Caleb’s house, thinking he was holding Sophie. When he didn’t find Sophie, maybe he got angry and clobbered Caleb over the head. He’d been seen in the area a few days earlier by Caleb’s farmer landlord.

  Lindsay hated Caleb for breaking off their engagement and had recently found out that he was back in town. Maybe she went after him. Susan could see that she still harbored lots of anger towards him by the passion and venom that came out of her mouth when speaking about him. And she was crazy. She’d heard that more than once.

  She shook the snow off of her boots and went into the police station. Now Lynette was back in her office.

  “Mom? What are you doing here?” said Lynette.

  “I came by to give you some new information. I went to see Josie at Rite Aid, and we discovered that Caleb had hidden an envelope behind the cork board over his desk.”

  “You went back to Rite Aid? An envelope? We went over Caleb’s work space and didn’t find anything like that.”

  “It looked like the board may have just pulled away from the wall recently.” She closed her hand to hide her chipped nail. “Anyhow, to make a long story short, it was a report from a private investigation firm.” She handed the envelope to Lynette.

  “You took this? If there were any fingerprints on the envelope you’ve already messed those up. Why didn’t you just call me to come get it?”

  “I was trying to save you some time. Open it.”

  Lynette pulled the report out. “This shows that Adam Bartolo was not pushed over that waterfall. We already knew that.”

  “But this proves it. Now we know Sophie for sure didn’t push her husband.” Susan handed her the paper from the note pad.

  “What’s this? Playing secret decoder?” said Lynette.

  “It came from Caleb’s notepad by his phone. I could tell it had recently been written on. Look. It’s the name of a doctor.”

  “So what? Pharmacists deal with doctors all the time.”

  “But Josie had never seen the name before and she’s worked at Rite Aid for a long time. Josie had this directory and…”

  “Mom. Don’t even tell me you hunted down this doctor. Please don’t tell me that.”

  “He’s a forensic pathologist.”

  Lynette covered her ears. “I don’t want to hear it.”

  “Works over at the hospital––nice young man.”

  “Great. Don’t you think you should have brought that to me too? I’m surprised he’d even talk to you.”

  “I have my ways. All I found out was if someone is poisoned or hit with a blunt object, cause of death can be determined during a regular old autopsy.”

  “And you didn’t know that from binge watching Law and Order?”

  Jackson ran into the office holding a cell phone. “Lynette, we did it. We traced…” He stopped short when he saw Susan.

  “Well, Mrs. Fletcher, what brings you here today?” He cleared his throat and hid the cell phone behind his back.

  “So you traced that cell phone to…” said Susan. She motioned with her hand as if drawing it out of Jackson’s mouth.

  “Mom, this isn’t any of your business.”

  “What’s the big deal? You traced a lost cell phone. Come on, Jackson. Spill it,” said Susan. “You know, I just ran into someone who lost a cell phone. Lindsay, Caleb’s ex-girlfriend. It’s hers isn’t it? I see the leopard case on it. She told me that’s the kind of case she had.” She was bluffing about the leopard case, but it worked.

  “But it’s where we found it. The evidence guys came across it in the items taken from Caleb’s house the day his body was found.”

  “So that proves that Lindsay was there at his house. She must be the killer,” said Susan.

  “Mom, all it means is she was there at some time––not necessarily the day of the murder.”

  “People notice their phones are missing rather quickly. Remember that day you left yours on the park bench when we took Annalise to the playground? You noticed it was missing before we even got back to the car. It couldn’t have been sitting there for long.”

  “Mom, if you want to be helpful, how about swinging by the day care and picking up Annalise? It looks like I’ll be staying late tonight.”

  “You know, I wouldn’t give up a chance to spend time with her. Alright. But I’m taking her to the toy store on the way home. And stopping for ice cream.”

  Chapter 36

  “There you go, Annalise. We just made a nice bed for your new dolly with Grandma’s knitting project. Doll-sized is as big as that blanket was ever going to get.” Susan’s cell phone rang.

  “That’s funny, Anabanana. It rang but then someone just hung up.” The phone rang again. This time Susan could see that it was Antonio Petrocelli, her principal friend.

  “Hi, Antonio. Did you just try to call?”

  “Just now.”

  Susan shrugged. “I bet things are going more smoothly at Westbrook Middle now that Sophie has been found. Have the parents stopped bugging you?”

  “Oh yes. The hoopla has completely died down. I did have something I wanted to talk to you about, though. Remember how Sophie’s boyfriend, Mitch, was supposed to have been at that conference during the time that Sophie went missing?”

  “Yes, I do. He was shocked when he returned to find her missing.”

  “I know he was, but I needed his conference fee receipt and hotel bill in order to have him reimbursed. The temporary bookkeeper couldn’t find anything, so she called the convention center.”

  “And?”

  “And they had no record of a Mitch Coniglio attending the conference. No hotel bill either.”

  “That’s very strange. Why would he have lied about that?” said Susan.

  “I was hoping you could find out for me. If anyone finds out one of my employees was partaking in illegal activities under my nose, it’s my neck on the line.”

  Susan copied down the information about the convention and got Mitch’s home address from Antonio. She ran through the reasons that Mitch might have lied. Was he somehow involved with Sophie’s disappearance? From all accounts, he and Sophie were a happy couple. On the other hand, who knows what goes on behind closed doors?

  Did Mitch have another girlfriend that he was keeping secret from Sophie? Maybe he was married and had a whole other life. She had seen that one on Dateline more than once. She couldn’t think of any other possibilities at the moment. Maybe she should share this tidbit with Lynette.

  Mike came through the door. “Hey, who have we got here?” He swept Annalise up off the floor and gave her a kiss. Annalise giggled and tried to pull off his hat.

  “Lynette asked me to watch her; she’ll be by soon. Annalise and I had a fun trip to the toy store, right Anabanana?”

  Mike took off his coat. “Scott Bartolo came back to work this morning. Only stayed half a day. Poor guy, he’s heartbroken, losing a second son like that.”

  “If we lost Lynette or Evan, I don’t think I’d ever recover,” said Susan. She sat down on the sofa. “Mike, Antonio called before. He found out that Mitch Coniglio, Sophie’s boyfriend, wasn’t out of town the day Sophie was kidnapped. The conference had no record of him attending.”

  “That’s weird. Why would he lie about that?”

  She shared her theories. “He was back at school before Sophie was found or Caleb was murdered.”

  “If he had a secret girlfriend, he probably would have taken her to the conference with him. That way the school would be footing the bill. That’s what I would have done.”

  Susan gave him a swat.

  Lynette knocked on the door. “Here to
pick up my special girl,” she said. Annalise ran over to her.

  “Lynette, I got a call from Antonio this afternoon. Mitch Coniglio never made it to that conference. He’s lying about where he was the day Sophie disappeared.”

  “Hmmm. We took him at his word. How do you know this?”

  “Antonio told me. He must be hiding something. If he wasn’t at the conference, where was he?”

  “Jackson and I will check into it.”

  Susan’s phone rang. Faint breathing crawled through the line, but then––complete silence. Susan felt the hair on her neck tingle.

  “Lynette, Lynette.”

  “What’s the matter?”

  “This is the second time today that happened. I heard breathing but the caller said nothing. It comes up as a blocked call.”

  “Maybe it’s just some teenagers pulling a prank,” said Lynette. “Why are you answering blocked calls anyway? Who does that?” Annalise tried to squirm out of Lynette’s arms.

  “She’s getting fussy. I’m going to take her home and feed her. If you get any more hang-up calls, let me know right away.”

  Chapter 37

  Lynette arrived at work juggling two cups of Starbuck’s coffee, and told Jackson about Mitch being a no show at the conference.

  “Sounds pretty darn suspicious to me,” said Jackson. “Either it’s another girlfriend, or he had something to do with Sophie’s kidnapping,” said Jackson.

  “That doesn’t make any sense. He and Sophie had a good thing going,” said Lynette.

  “Sophie’s old boyfriend being in the picture may have awoken the green eyed monster.”

  “Sophie would have recognized her old boyfriend. She says it was Caleb.” Lynette’s desk phone rang.

  “Well?” said Jackson.

  “You’re not going to believe this. An anonymous caller insists that he saw Sophie eating solo at a restaurant a few miles outside of Westbrook during the time she was supposed to have been kidnapped.”

  “That sounds fishy. Why didn’t he come forward sooner?”

  “He says he didn’t pay attention to the whole thing until he saw Sophie on the news the other night. That’s when the light bulb turned on,” said Lynette.

  “Eyewitness reports are unreliable. It was probably someone who looked like Sophie.”

  “You’re probably right.” Lynette grabbed her coat. “Let’s take a ride over to Mitch Coniglio’s and see what he has to say about his phantom appearance at that educational conference.”

  Mitch was getting out of his car, briefcase in hand, when Lynette and Jackson pulled into his driveway.

  “Mr. Coniglio, we have a few questions for you,” said Jackson.

  “Questions?” Mitch’s eyebrow raised. “Sure. Come on in. What can I help you with?”

  “You stated that you were out of town at the time Sophie Bartolo disappeared. Is that correct?” asked Jackson.

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  “We’re a little puzzled, because there’s no record of you having registered at the conference. The bookkeeper at Westbrook Middle claims you never turned in a receipt for the reimbursement. I know when I lay out my own money for something work-related, I want that money back ASAP. What happened? ”

  “No record of you registering at the hotel either,” said Lynette.

  “Well, there must be some mistake. I swear to you I was there.”

  “Did you have a fight with Sophie Bartolo? Maybe you and Caleb were working together against a common enemy.”

  “That’s ridiculous, “said Mitch. His jaw tightened. “I won’t be insulted like that. Next time you need to question me, it will be with my lawyer present.”

  Lynette felt in her gut that it didn’t add up. Why wouldn’t Sophie mention it if she suspected Mitch was involved? What motive did he have? There wasn’t a hint of another girlfriend.

  “You and your lawyer may need to come down to the station.”

  “Maybe the convention center and hotel lost my registration. It was snowing pretty hard and the electricity went out for a while.”

  “We’ll check the security cameras. Don’t go leaving town or anything,” said Jackson.

  “I love Sophie. Why on earth would I hurt her? You are barking up the wrong tree while the real culprit is still out there.”

  In the cruiser, Jackson said, “I can’t believe he just lied to us.”

  “I know he’s hiding something. It was written all over his face. I don’t think he was involved in the kidnapping though. I think it’s something else.”

  “While we’re out, let’s see if Lindsay Bateman can tell us what her phone was doing at Caleb’s house.”

  Lindsay Bateman answered the door wearing basketball shorts and a tank top. Her hair was snarled and her hands were splattered with what Lynette hoped was melted chocolate.

  “Ms. Bateman, my partner and I have a few more questions for you,” said Lynette.

  “Okay.”

  “Have you recently lost your cell phone?” asked Jackson.

  “Yep, I did. Just got myself a replacement.” She wiped her hand on her shorts, pulled her new phone out of her pocket, and pushed it in front of Jackson’s face.

  “Where do you think you lost the original?” asked Jackson.

  “If I knew that it wouldn’t still be lost now, would it?”

  “Ms. Bateman, have you ever been to the residence of Caleb Bartolo?” said Lynette.

  “Caleb Bartolo? Why would I want to go anywhere near that man?”

  “You were once close to him, isn’t that right?” asked Jackson.

  “Ages ago. Haven’t seen the creep in years.”

  “Can you explain why we found your phone in Caleb Bartolo’s bedroom?” said Jackson.

  “What? No way. I don’t even know where he lives. Thought he was still overseas, till he turned up dead, that is.”

  “How did you feel when you heard he’d been murdered?” said Lynette.

  “Didn’t shed any tears over it, but I was surprised.”

  “Where were you the night it happened?” asked Jackson.

  “Home, watching TV with my mom. Ask her. She’ll be home from work soon. I wasn’t anywhere near Caleb, that’s for sure.”

  “We’ll talk to your mom,” said Lynette. “Meanwhile, stay in town.” Lindsay grumbled as she slammed the door shut.

  “Well, now what?” said Jackson. We have Mitch lying about the convention, and Lindsay lying about the phone. Might as well interview Pinocchio next.”

  “What about the anonymous tipster who spotted Sophie at that restaurant during the time she was abducted?” said Lynette. “Let’s follow up on that.”

  “Probably just a crank call. Some folks just love messing with the police––gives them a sense of power,” said Jackson.

  “Maybe so. We have some time before Lindsay’s mother gets home. Let’s drive over to that restaurant and see if anyone who works there saw her.” Jackson pulled up the address. “It’s not far.”

  The booths at Donna’s Diner were nearly empty at this time of day. The hostess approached with menus in hand. “Can I help you?”

  Lynette showed her a picture of Sophie.

  “I don’t remember seeing her,” said the hostess. “Try our waitresses. They might remember her.” No one did.

  “Strike three,” said Jackson.

  “Game’s not over yet.”

  Chapter 38

  Susan had visions of whipping up a gooey, macaroni and cheese casserole for dinner, but instead, she threw some chicken breasts and vegetables into her cart. Dr. Oz would be proud. She was thinking about Lindsay’s cell phone. Lindsay had to have been at Caleb’s near to the time of the murder. While examining the possibilities, she practically ran into another shopping cart.

  “Susan, how’s it going?” It was the mother of one of her past chorus students.

  “Enjoying retirement, and my granddaughter,” said Susan. “How’s Kelly doing? She must be, what? A senior already?”
/>
  “She’s a freshman in college, can you believe it? You know, she joined the glee club. Still loves to sing.”

  “Tell her I said hello when you talk to her. How are things with you?”

  “They’ve been better. My dad isn’t doing so well. He’s at the Veteran’s Hospital, upstate. Just got back from visiting him. So sad, all those ex-military people. Lots of young men folk too.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. You take care now. Hope your dad feels better soon.”

  Susan continued pushing her grocery cart. As she walked through the aisles, the hair on the back of her neck felt like porcupine needles. Was she being followed? At Shop Rite? Now that’s just absurd. You have to calm down that imagination of yours before you wind up with high blood pressure or something. She heard a squeaky cart some distance behind her.

  As Susan turned a corner, she saw someone in a parka with the hood pulled up rounding the aisle she’d just left. Who keeps a parka zippered with the hood up when they’re inside? It’s really warm in here. She couldn’t even determine if it was a man or a woman. When she got to the produce section, she looked in the fruit display mirror and caught another glimpse of the figure. Now she felt more angry than scared and turned around to approach him. She wheeled her cart quickly in his or her direction, but she wasn’t quick enough. The figure sped up, and disappeared down another aisle. I’ve lost him. She called Lynette.

  “Mom, calm down. Maybe it was just some homeless person trying to get a handout.”

  “No, Lynette. That was an expensive parka. Too new for some poor homeless person to be wearing. And if he wanted a handout, why would he have run away when he realized I saw him?” Susan picked at her cuticles.

  “So who do you think is stalking you?” said Lynette.

  “I don’t know. You’re the detective. I got those hang-up calls too. Something is wrong. I feel it in my bones.”

  “Go home. Lock your car doors.”

  “Where are you right now?”