by Amber Boffin
“If you hear anything else through the grapevine, let me know. And call Maggie if you get any bright ideas about that metal piece, that is, if your brain cells wake up!” Adam laughed.
“At least I’ve got one cell! It reminds me, I did see something weird this morning.”
Walking back toward the garage on The Road, Barrie spoke softly, seeing a group of grannies in front of the garage pointing at the window of The Jolly Jumpers. “The mayor. I saw her speak with Fred Wigmott at the traffic light a week ago, I think. At first, I wasn’t sure it was her; she was wearing a purple hat, not flattering to say the least. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I’d say she was angry, while he had a smile on his face. Of course, it could have been a mere political discussion, but somehow I think it was more than that. With all your questions, I’m starting to think you’ve an eye for her. Funny, I wouldn’t have guessed she could be your type, but we all have our secrets.”
Adam laughed. “Thanks mate, thought she might be more your kind of babe. Seriously, I’m only interested in her in relation to this murder case. I found the body with Maggie, and Raj might need a hand with the sergeant. Perhaps we can help him figure out the truth.”
“Watch out, though,” said Barrie, waving his finger at Adam. “We might still have a murderer at large.”
“No worries, I’m not into solar panels or politics and neither are you, so we should be fine. Cheers!” Adam slapped Barrie on the back and took his leave.
Soon after, Adam relayed his lunch conversations to Maggie, knowing she would eat out of his hand to hear it. He was curious to see how she would interpret the information; she always seemed to grasp the details and their context, thereby getting a good overview of the situation. He sensed she might be the one who would eventually find out what really happened and why. He had never met anyone like her who seemed so hooked on a case, like a terrier digging a rabbit hole without giving up. He smiled, thinking like master, like dog. Beans was a real match for her.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Constable Gupta, loaded down with a box of donuts, pushed open the glass door of the police station, quietly listening for the sergeant. The sergeant’s voice emanated from the office at the end of the corridor. “Yes, sir, I understand, sir. I’ll get a statement from Leon LeBreton about the letter. Yes, I should have asked, but everything still points to him. No, he doesn’t have an alibi. No, he hasn’t yet confessed. I understand, sir…yes, sir, but I’m sure he did it, and he did trespass. If we let him go…yes, sir. I will. Goodbye, sir.”
Sergeant Humphries slammed the phone down. He stormed out of his office, through the corridor like a tornado, into the entrance of the police station, where Raj was standing, still holding the box of donuts.
Raj noted with regret that bad news had come from above, and nothing, not even donuts, could appease the sergeant now. Sergeant Humphries said, “We can’t keep Leon LeBreton. Not enough evidence, they claim! Better safe behind bars, I say. What if something happens? I’ve warned them. I could’ve cracked the guy. Gupta, release the prisoner.”
Raj kept a low profile and simply nodded and proceeded to release Leon LeBreton. Leon walked out of the cell looking haggard and surprised. “So I’m free to go?”
“Yes, you are,” replied Raj.
“No longer a suspect then?”
“You’re still the prime suspect, and if it were down to me, you’d still be in there.” The sergeant pointed at the cell. Leon jumped because he hadn’t seen the sergeant standing behind him. “And you’ll still be on trial for trespassing and attempting to divert the course of justice. This means you can’t leave town without my permission, understand?”
Leon looked down at his feet and nodded. He let the sergeant escort him by the arm to the front door. As soon as the glass door closed, Sergeant Humphries walked back in like a bear, his arms by his side. Slightly hunched and with a grunt he said, “Gupta, keep a close eye on him. I want to know where he is at all times.”
This was the first time that Raj had to follow a suspect; he wasn’t sure how to proceed. “I follow him with the car?”
“Why, yes, or do you want to run behind him! But he mustn’t see you!”
Raj rushed out excitedly, grabbing his coat and cap.
Back at his desk, the sergeant slumped into his reclining chair with a sigh, his eyes moving in the direction of the appetizing scent. There on his desk Raj had placed the box of donuts, open to let out the aroma and ensure they would be found. He had managed to sneak in quickly when the sergeant was distracted by Leon’s release.
Sergeant Humphries picked his favourite donut, the Boston cream, placed it on a napkin in front of him, and went out to get a refill of coffee in his large insulated mug. Back in his office, he decided to enjoy the moment, brushing aside his case and peering into his in tray to see if there was any interesting newspaper or magazine.
He picked up the green leaflet on top of the pile, wondering why the mayor’s face was smiling up at him. The sergeant read the details; it was an invitation to the open discussion on the solar panel project and the increase of garbage disposal fees. Although he wasn’t particularly interested in the topics, he always liked an excuse to get out of the office and enjoy a few nibbles and local gossip. He had taken particular notice of the little bit of text at the bottom indicating there would be free sandwiches. He picked up the next paper, theDaily Stumble. He thought it was his duty to check if he had missed any local news and settled back into his chair to enjoy a quiet moment reading it. He wondered why one of the pages was missing; he would have to ask his constable about it.
*
Leon LeBreton rushed back home, relieved. After a shower, he regained his normal high confidence level, now that they had released him and didn’t seem to have any evidence against him. He decided to proceed with business as usual, brushing aside his sorrow.
Checking his diary, Leon realized the following day was the mayor’s public meeting, and he had promised her he would give a presentation on the solar panel project, hoping to gain acceptance, and even better, support from the locals. If this didn’t work out, he would go bankrupt, as he had invested all his savings into a number of solar panels and was locked into a deal for the remainder. Once Ms. Stilton had been elected mayor and Peter Wigmott could no longer interfere, he was convinced the project would get the funding from the township. Confident of the outcome, Leon had committed himself completely to the deal before the official approval had gone through.
*
On the way to her letterbox, Maggie heard her familiar frog call from her pocket. “Barrie, how’s it going?”
“Good, good, I can’t speak long, but you know the metal piece you asked me about?”
“Yes…”
“Well, I know where I’ve seen it. I polished the mayor’s Airstream trailer.”
Maggie smiled, thinking of her narrow escape from the Airstream. “So it’s a piece of it?”
“Yes, I’m sure of it.”
Maggie’s mind raced. Suddenly the image of herself standing in front of the Airstream looking at her reflection came back, and the puzzle unravelled itself before her eyes. She muttered, “That’s it, I’ve got it!”
“What? I can’t hear you?” replied Barrie.
“Sorry, thanks, that’s really helpful! I won’t keep you…”
“Glad I could help, have yourself a great day.”
“You too, bye.”
Maggie walked across the road to reach her letterbox, wondering how on earth she could make the truth come out now that she had some proof.
The municipal leaflets had been distributed that morning to all the residents and were sitting in their letterboxes. After dislodging the green paper that had been crushed to the back of her box by her package delivery of a book on how to fly, she glanced down at the crumpled black and green photograph of the mayor’s face…that was it, the solution. She only needed to gather a few items of evidence to allow her to expose the murderer.
<
br /> This public gathering is the ideal setting. No one will suspect the agenda will be different from solar panels and rubbish. Now I just need to get them to go to the meeting.
Maggie listed in her mind the key players she wanted present. Leon LeBreton was the speaker; he would have to be there. If not, he would be making his case worse. Joe Johnson had to attend; he was, after all, Leon’s right hand for his solar installations, and Heather, given the chance, would not leave Joe out of her sight. The Millers were very vocal about the solar panels. Likewise, Barrie would go; he had mentioned to her that he was upset with the proposed increase in dumping fees for oil.
There was still Patrick, Fiona McLenny’s widower. He had no direct reason to go, unless she suggested to meet him there to hand him some photographs for her website. She could always add that his presence at the meeting would be a sign to the community of his innocence.
Maggie hadn’t forgotten the slippery Fred Wigmott but felt he might be the hardest one to tackle. Perhaps the reverend could ask Fred to come? She changed her mind: no one must know her plan. Fred had openly shown his dislike for Leon LeBreton and the mayor, accusing them of being involved in the murder of his brother. What if she played on his pride and desire for recognition? She could highlight that it was a unique opportunity to avenge his brother in front of the villagers who liked Peter. She settled for initially using the excuse of discussing his quote to casually ask if he was planning on going to the meeting.
Having completed her calls, Maggie smiled at herself, thinking she was like a movie director setting the scene for the actors to play out. She would still need to intervene, an active role rather than cameo, for it to work out. For a moment she hesitated, nervous about what she was about to do. Was she right? She was choosing to influence the fate of another being for the sake of justice, her view of justice based on her observations. What would happen if she were wrong? She never ruled that option out and wanted to make sure she would not be manipulating people but rather coaxing them into telling the truth. Maggie concluded it was therefore ethically acceptable; this would be her angle, together with the evidence she had gathered.
She needed corroboration from sergeant Humphries on the DNA testing. She thought he would not tell her the results they found, but Raj might. Amy had at first been reluctant to help her, warning her of the dangers, but then Maggie managed to convince her it was a matter of helping her clear her name. Amy had even said she would try to get access to the investigation file to see if she could find anything mentioning Maggie.
Maggie had managed to gather many DNA samples: the mayor’s top, Fred’s cigarette that she had retrieved from the floor, pretending to drop a tissue when speaking with Barrie; Leon’s from a cup she had kept when he visited her for the solar panels; Adam was easy, as she had picked up a tissue he had used when visiting him; and Patrick, again a cup she was careful not to wash when he visited her.
She still had a few to gather but had already sent the ones she had and was waiting for Amy to contact her with the results and hopefully other information. She might get enough evidence without it, though, she hoped, if she could get them to speak and if her hypothesis was correct. On the one hand, Maggie wanted to involve Adam in her plot, but on the other she was afraid he would talk her out of it, and if it didn’t work out as planned, she would take all the blame.
Feeling excited with the prospects, her doubts pushed away, Maggie spent the rest of the afternoon and evening finishing off the details of her plan. The meeting was at ten o’clock the following morning. She would go for a long walk early morning with her dogs to thrash out any points she might have missed and to test her assumptions. Hopefully by then she would have the results from Amy.
That evening Maggie picked up theDaily Stumbleshe had received in the morning, intent on having a relaxed moment reading it with a cup of tea before she went to bed. She opened the second page and there on the third page was a large photograph of herself in her car, with the police and forensics team working on the scene of Fiona’s death in the background. The headline was“Death of a realtor in Foxton, likely foul play.”
She couldn’t believe what she read as her eyes moved down the paper with fury. No names were mentioned, but the arrest of a man and his release were, and one sentence did it for Maggie.“Everyone who has been seen at the crime scene and/or is related to the realtor remain suspects.”
If anyone read this, they would of course put two and two together. What was she doing there? Even if they would not suspect her, there was a form of subliminal message with her picture. She would have to corner Tina, even if it could hurt Denis, which she certainly didn’t want to do. Tina should not get away with it. The mere thought of Tina’s presence at the meeting the following day made her stamp her foot with rage.
Maggie feared Tina would be able to topple her plan just by opening her mouth. Her only hope was that she would not come, which was very unlikely, given she was the local journalist…
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Sandra, the plump blond clerk from the municipal office, was arranging rows of plastic chairs in the large room of the community hall. She seemed cheerful as always as she hummed tunes. She stopped midway as if she wanted to catch her breath and sat for a moment looking around when a loud noise of a crashing metal object broke the silence, followed by a loud swear in French.
She rushed toward the door and was confronted by a red-faced Leon LeBreton fighting with a presentation white board, papers scattered all around him on the floor. Sandra’s first reaction was, “Let me help you.” She knelt down, picking up some of the papers, then stopped short, looking up at him with a worried face. “Were you—I shouldn’t ask, but were you the one arrested?”
“Wrongly so, yes. So all the village knows then,” replied Leon angrily.
Sandra looked down at the papers, her hands shaking, and stood up as if she had been propelled by a spring when Ms. Stilton entered the room. She moved quickly toward her as if she wanted to hide behind her tall frame.
The mayor was a confident person and believed the law had to be respected; she would treat Leon as innocent until proven guilty. She would therefore act normal with him, and since she had supported his solar panel project, she couldn’t pull out of it now. She played her motherly card as she spoke. “I think we’ve got all the good arguments. You’ll see, they’ll support us, and all this mess will soon be behind you.” She smiled at him.
“I sure hope so…” Leon sighed, having gathered his papers and setting them on the pulpit.
For the occasion, Ms. Stilton had slipped into a moss-green dress, appropriate for her environmental mission, and a thin belt, attempting to break the silhouette but not enough to take away the focus from her bosom. Knowing she couldn’t hide it, she had long ago decided to decorate it instead and always wore long necklaces. This time she had matched her dress with a beaded coral necklace, smaller beads at the back of her neck and the larger ones to the front.
She knew she would look even taller than usual standing on a pair of orange stilettos, but she loved high-heeled shoes, the higher the better. Ms. Stilton felt this meeting would be the turning point of her career in Foxton. She had to convince the audience, or else she would have to resign; there was too much resentment building up now that they thought Peter Wigmott had been murdered, resulting in her election. She made a final check of the room before reviewing her speech notes once more.
*
Maggie wanted to be among the first to arrive to watch the different attendees trickle in and check if they were all there, as she hoped. She was sitting in her Big Jay, waiting for the community centre front doors to be unlocked when she saw Raj on his knees just under a side window of the building. Thinking he had lost something and might need help, she walked up to him and stood just behind him.
Maggie bent down to his ear level to ask him if he needed help, and one of her curls touched his cheek. Raj sprang up. Maggie, startled, let out a shout as she was accidently pushed ov
er by Raj’s elbow. She fell noisily down against the window and onto the ground among the bushes. Raj was franticly rubbing his cheek while doing a sort of tap dance. She looked around her at the ground, worried that he had spotted something dangerous. “What is it?”
Maggie twisted her head to see what Raj saw through the window. Leon stood on the other side of the window, pale, moving his eyes from Raj to hers, holding papers in his hand. Reassured, Maggie stood up, brushing her trousers and said, “Phew, I didn’t mean to scare you!” She smiled at Leon with a thumbs-up to show him she wasn’t hurt, assuming he had heard her fall.
Leon shook his head and walked back to the pulpit. Raj straightened his jacket by tugging at it. “What were you thinking of! I could’ve hurt you!”
“I thought you’d lost something, I just wanted to help…”
“I thought it was a spider…” Raj rubbed his cheek once more. “And now you blew my cover!”
“Sorry,” said Maggie, feeling awful, only now understanding what he had been doing.
Raj sighed, shaking his legs one after the other. “I guess now that Leon knows I’m here, I’d better go inside and stay next to him.”
Relieved that he didn’t seem too upset, she said, “I’m also going to the meeting. I’ll join you.” She hoped her plan would go well.
As they made their way to the door, Maggie felt comfort in seeing Adam arrive in his vintage Land Cruiser with Barrie, waving at them. The Millers, together with the reverend, were lined up at the coffee table, debating whether they would have a wet or dry summer after such a warm spring. The turnout appeared small so far. Richard Miller interrupted their discussion to greet Maggie. “Maggie! So are you for or against the solar farm project?”