by Cindy Bell
“Murder,” Suzie replied.
Jason's eyes widened. “I thought you were going to ask me about trespassing or something, what are you two involved in?”
“Well, we stumbled across something very interesting,” Suzie admitted. She studied her cousin intently. She didn't know him very well, but so far he had demonstrated that she could trust him. Still, she proceeded with caution. “It's a painting that belongs to a local artist,” she explained. “We wanted to know more about her, so we began searching for information. Her story is very intriguing, and we were just hoping that you might be able to fill in some of the gaps.”
“What local artist?” Jason asked, though his gaze was skeptical as he looked between the two. “Why do I feel like you're not telling me the whole story?”
“Alexandria Black,” Mary said quickly before Jason could investigate their intent any further.
“Oh,” he nodded and then glanced over his shoulder at the other officers. “That's a bit of a ghost story around here.”
“Is it?” Suzie asked as she leaned a little closer to him. “How about the husband? Darren Black?”
Jason shifted uncomfortably and then steered Suzie and Mary over towards a quiet corner.
“Listen, I was a bit younger than Alexandria at school and Darren only moved to Garber when he married Alexandria. I didn’t really know them but I knew of them. As you both know, this is a town that doesn't like its dirty laundry aired,” he looked directly at Suzie. “If you have questions I'll do my best to answer them, but it's best to keep this as quiet as possible.”
“Why?” Suzie asked. “I don't understand why it's such a big issue?”
“We don't see a lot of crime in this town,” Jason explained and rested his hand lightly on the gun holstered at his hip. “So, when one of the locals commits suicide not long after her husband committed an armed robbery, it was just one of those things that everyone did their best to avoid talking about.”
“Sounds a little behind the times,” Mary said with a slight frown.
“Maybe so,” Jason nodded. “But the point is, if you want to get along well in this town, you don't want to create a stir.”
“I see what you're saying,” Suzie nodded. “And honestly I'm not trying to. But I would like to know more about Alexandria's death.”
Jason furrowed his eyebrows and studied his cousin with disbelief. “She threw herself off a cliff, what more is there to know?” he asked.
“If she really did throw herself off a cliff,” Suzie replied with confidence.
“What are you talking about?” Jason asked with a little anger rising in his voice. “Are you trying to say that her death was somehow covered up?”
“No, I'm not saying that at all,” Suzie replied swiftly as she realized she might have offended him. “It's just that in my experience sometimes what looks like a suicide, might not be a suicide.”
He narrowed his eyes a little further and then nodded slowly. “I guess in some cases that might be true, but I doubt it is in this case.”
“Why?” Mary asked. “Is there something about the case that makes you certain it was a suicide?”
“Well, she left a note,” Jason said with a frown. “It's pretty evident that when someone leaves a note their intent was to say goodbye.”
“I didn't realize she left a note,” Suzie said with some disappointment. “Do you still have it?”
“I'm sure we have a copy in her file,” Jason said with a sigh. “I'll go get it.”
“Thanks Jason,” Suzie replied with a smile
He nodded as he walked away.
“I guess she really did commit suicide,” Mary said softly.
“It sure looks that way,” Suzie admitted. “But I still wonder what happened to that money. Maybe the note will give us some kind of clue.”
“Here, let’s go sit at that table over there,” Jason said with the files in his hands as he pointed to a small table and chairs at the far side of the station. The three walked over to the table.
Once they were settled Jason flipped open Alexandria's file.
“Here's the note,” Jason said. It was a short, handwritten note that seemed to be straight to the point. “Goodbye world, goodbye pain,” Jason read in a quiet voice.
“That's it?” Mary asked with surprise.
“Seems to be,” Jason replied matter-of-factly.
“Well, I guess it sums everything up,” Mary pointed out mildly.
“Does it though? I mean why go to all the trouble of writing a note, if you're not going to give some explanation of why you were jumping to your death?” Suzie shook her head. “It still doesn't sit right with me.”
“Suicide sometimes has no explanation,” Mary frowned. “People make impulsive choices. Maybe she just decided she was done with life, and scribbled out a note in case no one found her.”
“Maybe,” Suzie sighed. “Is there anything of interest in Darren's file?”
“He was arrested along with two other men,” Jason said as he opened the file on the table in front of him. “It looks like they'd been planning this for some time. He got the most time out of all three because the other two insisted he was the mastermind of the plan. However, he denied that.”
“Two against one is not favorable odds,” Suzie said with a slight shake of her head. Then she looked down at the file. The faces of the three men that stared up at her were slightly distorted by the poor quality of the prints, but there was no mistaking what she saw. She held her breath as she didn’t want to tell Jason what she recognized in front of her.
“There’s a phone call for you, Jason,” one of the officers called out to him.
“I’ll be back in a second,” Jason said as he closed the files and walked over to his desk to take the call.
“Mary!” Suzie gasped, and then covered her mouth when several officers looked in their direction. “Those two men with Darren in the photograph were the two men who came to the house yesterday,” she hissed. “Their names were Al and George.”
“Are you sure?” Mary asked as she slid her chair closer to Suzie's. “Their names were different in the file.”
“I'm sure they were using aliases,” Suzie said and narrowed her eyes. “I know it was them. I'd know those eyes anywhere.”
“Yes, they were quite menacing,” Mary agreed as she recalled the two men in the photograph. “To think you were alone with two criminals!” she frowned.
“But why were they there?” Suzie asked. “That's the important question. Obviously they weren't there just to rent a room.”
“Are you thinking that they were looking for the map?” Mary asked with a tremor of fear in her voice. “That they're after the money that Alexandria hid?”
“The map or something else that would lead them to the money,” Suzie pointed out. “It's the only thing that makes sense. They must have found out we bought the painting for Dune House and were trying to get to it.”
“To be fair, they did grow up nearby. Maybe they were just visiting for old time's sake? How could they know that we had purchased the painting?” Mary asked skeptically. “Unless,” her voice trailed off for a moment. “I guess that Luther could have told someone.”
“Small town, big ears,” Suzie reminded her. “Word travels fast, too. Maybe they heard about Alexandria's possessions going on sale and decided to show up to purchase them in the hope that something would give them a clue. But when they arrived we had already purchased the painting, so they wanted to rent a room in the house in the hope of getting a closer look at it.”
“Or even so that they could steal the painting,” Mary said quietly. “Oh, how frightening, to think that we could have been sleeping under the same roof as those awful men,” she growled and shook her head. “I have no patience for thieves. I'm sorry you faced them alone, Suzie.”
“It's okay,” Suzie shook her head with a gasp. “I'm sure they were spying on me through the kitchen window, and then again at the library. They must be followi
ng us all around town!” She glanced up quickly to survey everyone who was in the police station. But all of the men and women she saw were either in uniform, or people she recognized.
“That's probably why they came while I was gone!” Mary groaned. “They must have been watching and saw that you were alone.”
“Well, if they are here for the map, then they are not going to stop looking for the map, or the money,” Suzie said with a frown. “We need to figure out where that map leads and fast,” she glanced at her watch and then nodded. “We've got an hour before we're supposed to meet Paul at the docks. There's one more thing I want to look into,” she said as she stood up from the table and Jason hung up the phone and started walking towards them.
“Sorry about that. Is there anything else you need?” he offered as he reached the table.
“Tell him, Suzie,” Mary prompted her friend. Jason looked at Suzie expectantly. His serious expression, and the badge shimmering on his chest made Suzie hesitate. She was afraid that if she told him the truth, about the map and the men searching for it, he would demand that she turn over the map and prevent her from finding out where it led.
“Tell me what?” Jason asked, his eyes narrowing as he studied Suzie. “Is there something I should know?” he pressed when she didn't answer right away. “Is it about Dune House?” he asked.
“No,” Suzie shook her head quickly. Jason should have been the one to inherit Dune House, but his father had left it to Suzie instead. Although Jason seemed to be fine with that, she sometimes wondered if he really was. “Nothing is wrong with the house. Just a silly suspicion I have,” she shrugged mildly. “I'll let you know if it turns into something more.”
Mary frowned as she glanced at Suzie. Jason looked over at Mary and stared at her for a long moment before looking back at Suzie.
“You do that,” he said firmly. “I don't want either of you getting into trouble, if you need anything, just ask me, okay?” he looked at the two of them but his eyes came to rest on Suzie. He had a powerful gaze, it was one of the first things she had noticed about him, as it reminded her of the few times when as a child she had met his father.
“We will,” Suzie nodded, but she had no intention of asking for his help.
As they left the police station Mary spoke in a hushed voice. “Why didn't you tell him about Al and George, Suzie?” she asked. “He might have been able to help us.”
“Mary, Jason is a wonderful man, and he is a wonderful police officer,” Suzie said as they reached the car. “But he is still just that, a police officer. If you want to get to the bottom of things, sometimes you have to leave the law out of it. If I told him about Al and George he'd want to have someone watching Dune House, and he'd want to know about the map. If I gave him the map, we'd never be able to find out where it led.”
“But maybe he'd want to search with us,” Mary pointed out with a frown as she climbed into the car.
“Maybe,” Suzie said and started the engine. “But, maybe he wouldn't. Maybe he would feel obligated to turn the information over, and then we would be left without our adventure, and without the proof we need to show that Alexandria didn't kill herself.”
“We still don't know that to be the case,” Mary reminded Suzie as Suzie pulled out of the parking lot of the police station and began driving down the road.
“Exactly,” Suzie said glumly. “And how long do you think Al and George would get for asking for a room at Dune House?” Suzie pointed out. “They haven't actually done anything wrong.”
“That's true,” Mary said softly. “Nothing we can prove anyway.”
“The first thing we need to do is find a way to show that Alexandria didn't jump, and the best way to get that information is to see Dr. Rose,” Suzie said with confidence.
“Dr. Rose? The medical examiner?” Mary asked with surprise. “I doubt she worked the case, she's so young herself.”
“No, probably not, but she'll have access to the records,” Suzie said as she drove towards the county morgue.
Chapter Five
Mary shivered slightly as Suzie parked outside the county morgue. Mary had an aversion to morgues. The morgue had recently moved from the basement of the police station to a new building on the outskirts of town.
“Let's go have a chat, hmm?” Suzie said as she opened the car door.
“First you want me to go to prison, now this,” Mary said with a shake of her head. “I'm starting to think you're a bad influence, Suzie.”
“You're just realizing that now?” Suzie grinned at her friend and they walked towards the morgue. It was very quiet, without even a receptionist behind the desk.
“Hello?” Suzie called out, but not too loudly. It seemed wrong to shout in such a quiet place.
“Listen,” Mary said. “I can hear music.”
Suzie listened and heard the faint music coming from behind the double doors that led to the examining room.
“Hello?” Suzie called out again as she walked towards the doors. “Dr. Rose, are you here?” she asked.
Suzie could hear the music more clearly when she pushed open the double doors, but she still didn't see Dr. Rose. The lights were bright in the examination room. There were a few empty gurneys in the center of the room. Suzie was relieved that they were empty.
“Is she in there?” Mary asked from outside the doors. “Is anyone in there?” she added with more fear in her voice.
“It doesn't look like anyone is,” Suzie said with a frown. “Hello? Dr. Rose?” she called out loudly.
Suddenly a door at the other end of the examination room swung open, and what stepped through was more than a little startling. A figure with a plastic covering over its face and head-to-toe coveralls. The figure froze in the doorway as the music flooded the room.
“Suzie?” a female voice asked as she lifted the plastic covering up above her head. “Is that you?”
“Yes,” Suzie said with relief in her voice when she recognized Dr. Rose. “I'm sorry I know I probably shouldn't be back here, but we didn't see anyone and…”
“I told the receptionist to take the day off,” Dr. Rose said with a wave of her hand. “I only had one exam to do, and she had some damage from that storm yesterday. What can I help you with?” she asked as she tugged her gloves off and tossed them in a bio-hazard trash can. Suzie gulped as she realized that Dr. Rose was likely conducting an autopsy in the next room. “Sorry about the music,” she added. “It helps me stay focused.”
“Oh, it's fine,” Suzie nodded with a faint smile. “I'm sorry to bother you. I was just wondering if I could ask you a few questions.”
“About what?” Dr. Rose asked as she gestured to the double doors. “Why don't we talk up front?” she suggested.
“Yes,” Suzie nodded and pushed the door open for Dr. Rose. Her dark blonde hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head and covered by a hair net. From previous experience Suzie knew that Dr. Rose took her job very seriously. She wondered if she'd be willing to part with any information about Alexandria's death.
Mary was still standing nervously outside the doors. She had her hands clasped together in front of her, and Suzie could see that she was uncomfortable.
“Hi Mary,” Dr. Rose said with a smile. “Good to see you.”
“You too,” Mary replied and tried to ignore the faint splattering of blood on Dr. Rose's coveralls.
“So, what questions do you have?” Dr. Rose asked as she paused beside the front desk.
“Well, we recently purchased a painting by a local artist, Alexandria Black,” Suzie explained. “We'd just like to know a little bit more about how she passed.”
“Why?” Dr. Rose asked with a slightly furrowed brow. “Was she a friend?”
“Not exactly,” Suzie frowned. “But her painting is very intriguing, and we thought it would be a story that we could share with our guests.”
“Well, I don't know how good a story it would be,” Dr. Rose shook her head. “Alexandria Bl
ack killed herself, I believe,” she frowned as if she was trying to remember.
“That was the original finding,” Suzie said cautiously. “But is there any possibility that could be a mistake?” she asked.
Dr. Rose's eyes flashed with interest. She leaned over the computer, careful not to touch anything with her coveralls.
“Let me take a look here,” she murmured. “Hmm, there doesn't seem to be a digital record. Must have been before the conversion.”
“Oh well,” Mary said with a frown. “I guess we should just go then,” she gave Suzie's arm a little tug.
“No, we can just do this the old fashioned way,” Dr. Rose said. “Alexandria Black, yes, I read about this case,” Dr. Rose said as she glanced over at her filing cabinet. “I was still a student when this happened, but it was one of the cases I was given to study since it was so simple,” she reached into the filing cabinet and pulled out one of the files. “Alexandria Black, suicide,” she scanned the document. “Nothing unusual,” she said with a slight shrug.
“And there was never a question that it was a suicide?” Suzie pressed with disbelief. “Even though she hadn't shown signs of depression?”
“Most people don't show signs of depression,” Dr. Rose said with a frown. “I've rarely seen a suicide case where the family wasn't shocked. No one expects anyone to take their own life,” she added.
“But still, there weren't any unusual cuts or bruising?” Suzie asked insistently.
“Well, of course there were many bruises and cuts, she landed on the rocks below,” Dr. Rose explained. “But nothing that was suspicious.” Dr. Rose looked up at her curiously. “Do you have reason to think it was?”
“I just have a little hunch,” Suzie replied in an innocent tone. “It just seems so odd to me.”
“As I said before, no one really expects it,” Dr. Rose replied with a mild shrug.
“But there were no strange marks, nothing at all?” Suzie continued, she had hoped that there would be something in the file that revealed the truth, or what she believed to be the truth.
Mary was trying to get a look at the file itself when Dr. Rose closed the file with a swift snap.