Body in the Antique Trunk-A Lady Locksmith Mystery

by Curry, Edna

  “Not yet. I left a message in his voicemail. Maybe he forgot to charge his phone. He does that, sometimes, when he’s on the road. He’ll sleep in his rig sometimes, and doesn’t remember to plug his phone into the charger.”

  “Thanks for your help,” Chance said. “If you’ll give me your cell phone number, I’ll let you know if there’s anything else. Maybe you could go over to the store right now and see whether you notice anything missing?”

  “Sure,” Lisa said. “I’d like to grab some lunch first, if that’s okay.”

  “Okay. I haven’t eaten either. Give me a few minutes to call Kendra and then let’s grab some lunch before we go over to your father’s store.”

  ***

  After a quick lunch at the Cozy Corner, Chance drove her to Alfred’s store, where they parked on the street. Crime scene tape hung across the doorway.

  Lisa hesitated when she saw it. “Should we be crossing that?”

  “It’s okay,” Chance said. “My men are pretty much done here.” He moved the tape aside and opened the door with the key he’d taken earlier.

  They went inside and Lisa looked around. Alfred’s body had been removed, of course.

  Lisa slowly moved through the store, carefully gazing around the sales floor. Finally she shook her head. “I really can’t be sure, Sheriff, but I don’t see anything special missing. Dad was very fussy about keeping everything neat. He dusted and straightened stuff whenever he had no customers to wait on.”

  They went on back to the office. “Oh, my!” Lisa said. “I’m sure Dad never left the office in a mess like this. Do you suppose the murderer dumped his files out like this?”

  “Probably,” Chance said. “I tried not to move very much, but I did go through his computer files and made copies to search with my own computer. Do you know his bookkeeping system?”

  “I think so,” Lisa said. “If he hasn’t changed it much from what he used a few years ago. I used to help him with it, but haven’t in the last few years, since he remarried.”

  “Then why don’t you take a little time and see if you can find anything unusual that might explain why someone would want to kill him?”

  Lisa frowned. “Like what?”

  Chance shrugged. “Anything you see that looks odd to you. An unusual sale, something really expensive that he bought…hell, I don’t know. Just anything that raises a red flag to you.”

  “Okay, I can do that.” She eased into the office chair and turned on the computer.

  “I’ll leave you to it, then,” Chance said. “I’m going back to my office. If you find anything interesting, give me a call.” He handed her his card.

  “Okay,” Lisa said. “When can I start straightening up this mess?”

  “We’re done here, so that’s up to you, or whoever Alfred left the store to. Do you know?”

  Lisa chewed her lip. “No, I don’t. I guess I’ll have to ask the lawyer that, too.”

  A tall redhead appeared in the office doorway and snapped, “You’re damned right you’d better ask the lawyer. And then get your butt out of here. I’m sure Alfred left it to me. We’re still married, you know.”

  “Kendra!” Lisa said, her mouth gaping.

  Chance said, “Wow, you got here fast. You must not have had far to drive.”

  “No, I didn’t,” Kendra said. “I was already on my way out here when you called. I live in Minneapolis now, but Lola called me this morning and told me about Alfred.”

  “Count on my cousin keeping up with the grapevine,” Lisa said. “She didn’t call me. I didn’t realize you two were so close.”

  Kendra shrugged. “Alfred and I went to see his brother and wife a few times, and just Iris after he died. Lola moved in with her then, so we saw her too, of course. And Lola and I just hit it off, so we keep in touch. But don’t change the subject. You have no right here, even if you did bring a policeman with you.” She sent Chance an angry glare.

  “Hey, I’m just the homicide investigator. I don’t have anything to say about inheritances,” Chance put in. Getting in the middle of two women fighting over Alfred’s property wasn’t in his job description. He frowned at Kendra. She certainly wasn’t acting like a grieving widow. Could she have been the one to kill him? Minneapolis was, after all, only an hour away. Easy enough to drive out here and back. He’d better check on her whereabouts last night.

  Lisa raised her chin. “Until the lawyer tells me different, I’m staying. Why don’t we just call him and settle this right now?”

  “Fine with me,” Kendra said. “Go ahead, since you seem so sure you’re in the right.”

  Lisa consulted her father’s phone book and punched in the lawyer’s number. He answered on the first ring and she explained the situation, then listened, throwing a glare at Kendra.

  “I see,” she said. “Kendra’s right here. I could tell her, but I doubt she’ll believe me. Why don’t you explain it to her directly? Good. Here she is.” Lisa handed the phone to Kendra, with a satisfied smirk, then sent Chance a wink and smile.

  Kendra hesitantly took the phone and listened.

  Lisa stepped closer to Chance and said quietly, “She doesn’t get the store, I do. The two lawyers had come to an agreement on divorce terms, although her lawyer hadn’t yet reached her about it. Dad had signed the divorce terms with his lawyer, so it was all settled except for her lawyer to convince her it was the best he could get for her.”

  “I see. She’s not going to like that, I take it.”

  “Obviously not. But since Dad’s gone, there can be no further changes to the agreement.” They both turned to watch her talking to Alfred’s lawyer.

  Kendra said into the phone, “I see. I’ll call my own lawyer to figure out our next steps, then. May I suggest you tell Lisa not to sell or dispose of anything until this is settled? I’ll give the phone back to her.”

  She handed the phone back to Lisa and turned to leave, sending a disgusted glare at Chance.

  “Wait a minute,” Chance said, following her out into the main part of the store. I have a few questions to ask you before you leave.”

  She spun and glared at him. “Yeah? Like what?”

  “Would you like to calm down and answer them here, or come to my office?”

  She sighed and plopped onto a brown horsehair sofa. “Ask away.”

  Chance pulled out his notebook and sat on an antique chair opposite her. “Your full name and address? Phone number where I can reach you if I have further questions?”

  He wrote down her answers, then asked, “Where were you around six last night?”

  Kendra gaped at him. “You think I killed Al? What is this, anyway? I loved him. Sure we were getting a divorce, but that was only because we just aren’t compatible. We still cared about each other, we just don’t like the same lifestyle. He just wants to work all the time and never wants to do anything outside of playing with his antiques or going to auctions. Except for going out to dinner once in a while, he wouldn’t go anywhere with me, like to a movie or symphony or party. I need to have some fun in my life. ”

  “Answer the question, Kendra. And remember, I’ll check it out.”

  “I don’t know how you can check it out, but I was at home last night, watching a movie I’d rented. You can ask my friend, Harold Smith. He came over for dinner and spent the night with me.” She had the grace to flush after making that admission.

  Chance merely wrote it in his notebook. “Harold is your new boyfriend? The reason you wanted a divorce from Alfred?”

  Kendra snapped, “Yes. I see Lisa already told you that.”

  So, naturally, Harold would lie for her to give her an alibi. Or had Harold done it for her? It wouldn’t hurt to check him out as well. Chance eyed her. “I take it the divorce wasn’t final yet?”

  “No, as far as I know, we’re legally still married. Or were, until he died. Guess I don’t need one, now. I’m a widow.”

  “True. But you’re apparently not too sad about it.”

/>   She raised her chin again, her green eyes snapping angrily. “We all deal with things in our own way, Detective. Are we done?”

  He nodded. “One more thing. Do you know the store well enough to look around here and tell me if anything is missing?”

  “No. Alfred liked to handle things here at the store himself. Didn’t even have any employees. He just closed up when he went to estate auctions.”

  “I see. Did you help him with bookwork or anything?”

  “No. I told you, Alfred wanted to control all that, himself.”

  “Okay. That’s all for now, then. I’ll call you if I have further questions. Or you call me if you think of anything. Here’s my card.”

  “Fine.” Tossing him another angry glare, she took his card and stalked out.

  ***

  Chance stopped at the post office for his mail and went to the window to buy stamps.

  Stella, the buxom, ready to retire postmaster, greeted him and sold him the stamps. She glanced around, making sure no one else was within earshot, then said, “Detective, I probably shouldn’t say anything, what with privacy laws and all, but this is kind of weird…” She stopped and eyed him, looking as though she’d changed her mind.

  Impatiently, Chance said, “Maybe you should, Stella. Just tell me and let me decide.”

  She nodded. “Well, there’s a homeless guy who sort of hangs out around town, you know?”

  “Yeah. You mean George, the one who spends a lot of time in the park?”

  “Yes. He can’t afford a mailbox, so just gets his mail general delivery, you know?”

  “So what, Stella?”

  “So, he’s a vet and gets a disability check every month. He knows what day it’s due, so when that money comes, he always picks it up right away. But this month, he didn’t. The check’s been waiting for over a week now and I haven’t seen him. I know he travels around to various towns sometimes, but he’s never missed picking up his check before.”

  “Thanks, Stella. Can you give me his last name? I never heard it. And it’s a little hard to check him out without it.”

  “You didn’t hear it from me,” she said, and slid a piece of paper across the counter to him. It read, ‘George Janders.’

  “Thanks. I’ll ask around to see if anyone’s seen him lately.”

  Chance pocketed the paper, went back to his car and made a detour to the city park. A few mothers were there watching their small children on the slides and swings. Although they all seemed to know who George was, none of them had seen George for at least a week, they said.

  Chance sighed and stopped at a coffee shop where he’d seen George. After getting the same answer, he went back to his office. With two murders on his hands, he didn’t need another problem. Let the deputies handle this one. He’d better catch up on his research.

  But first, he checked in with Sheriff Ben and told him about George being missing. Ben hadn’t seen him either, but would check it out. “Guess he’s not someone people would notice if he wasn’t there as usual,” Ben said.

  “True.”

  Chance made a fresh pot of coffee and called Cassie. “Are you doing anything tonight?”

  “Not that I know of. What do you have in mind?”

  “How about I pick up some Chinese food and bring it over about seven or so?”

  “Sounds great. Are you sure you’ll have time? I mean, I heard about Alfred and assume you are working on that murder, too.”

  “Yeah, I am. But I need a break. You said you had rented a movie?”

  “Yes, I have one we haven’t seen yet.”

  “Good. I’ll see you tonight, then.” Pouring some fresh coffee, Chance went back to work on his computer.

  He got a match on the fingerprints from the man in the trunk. And his eyes widened in surprise as he realized he was looking at another coincidence. Or maybe not. George Janders, the homeless vet from the park, was found.

  Chance went back to the sheriff’s office and told Ben.

  Ben rubbed a long, bony finger along his nose. He leaned his long, lanky frame back in his chair, eyeing Chance and mused, “So we know who the dead man is, but why in the world was he killed? I’ve never heard anyone say a bad word about him. He’s been in and out of town for years without any trouble.”

  “According to the realtor, that house wasd empty for a couple of weeks after the Kallus’ moved out. So maybe George was living there. I know he’s squatted in empty houses before. He never caused trouble, so I didn’t give him any, either.”

  Chance knew the sheriff had a soft side to him. So it was no surprise that he’d ignore the homeless man’s squatting in an empty house as long as the owner didn’t file charges. Still, the poor man wouldn’t have had any utilities there and Minnesota weather was not very hospitable. Surely George had had better options if he was a former vet? “The postmaster said he got a monthly disability check. So, why didn’t he live in one of those government subsidized apartments on the south side of town?”

  “I asked him that once,” Ben said. “He said there were too many kids there. Too noisy. He liked things quiet. Said he had a lot of headaches.”

  “Huh. I’ll see what I can find online. Maybe I can figure out some reason someone would want him dead.”

  Chance went back to his office and called Stella to tell her that he’d solved the mystery of George. She thanked him for letting her know and said she’d return his disability check marked ‘deceased.’

  Chance spent the next couple of hours searching on the internet. Their department had access to several official paid databases.

  He learned George had been in the army for ten years, and served in Iraq for two deployments. He’d been injured in a skirmish there and was honorably discharged after spending weeks in the hospital recovering. His parents lived in a retirement community in Arizona, but he’d returned to Minnesota where he’d been raised.

  Chance called the parents to tell them of George’s death. That was one of the worst parts of this job and he always found it hard to do. He apologized for not telling them personally, but they said they understood that Minnesota was a long way from Arizona.

  His parents told Chance George had only contacted them occasionally by phone since he’d gotten out of the army. They didn’t know if he’d used a computer. He hadn’t told them much about his current life. They were shocked to learn he’d been homeless and that someone had shot him. They didn’t know of any enemies he might have had. They’d make arrangements for claiming his body and for cremation. Since few had known him in Minnesota, there would be no memorial here.

  Nothing on the internet told Chance of any enemies either. George apparently hadn’t used the internet for any social interacting, unless he’d done so under another name.

  Nor could Chance find any connection between George and Alfred, or between George and any of the others connected to the case. Not even any indication that George had known the people who’d rented the house just before his body had been found in the garage.

  Then Chance found the results were back from the lab. One of the bullets that killed George Janders was in good enough shape to be able to match it, provided of course, they had a gun to compare it to. He checked the report of the deputies who’d searched that garage and house again. No mention of a gun at all.

  But they had found a couple of shell casings in the messy living room. They had a new method of identifying casings, now, connecting them to the gun they’d been fired from. Maybe those would help them later, provided they found a gun connected to any of the suspects.

  He gave up for the day, picked up the Chinese food and drove to Cassie’s house. He definitely needed a little R & R and thinking of the lovely Cassie and spending time relaxing with her was very inviting. He wanted to forget the whole, upsetting day.

  Chapter 6

  I heard my doorbell ring and opened the door to find Chance holding bags of takeout food. He stepped in and leaned down to kiss me, saying, “Hi, Cassie.”

&
nbsp; Warmth from his kiss and the delicious smells of chicken and peapods surrounded me. “Hi, yourself. That smells good.” I closed the door and lead the way to the kitchen where I’d already set the table. I went to the stove and turned on the burner under the kettle to make tea.

  Chance opened the bags of food and put the cartons on the table. “I brought lots. I’m starved. Had only a quick sandwich for lunch today with Alfred’s daughter.”

  “Oh? I had lunch with Ardis. She told me about Alfred’s murder. Do you have any idea why he was killed or who killed him?”

  “Not yet, though it looked like the perp took the money from the cash register. Don’t know if that was the only motive, though.”

  The kettle whistled and I made the tea, poured it into our cups and sat opposite Chance.

  We filled our plates and began eating.

  He eyed me, then said, “You get around to a lot of people in town, Cassie.”

  I shrugged. “Yes, I guess. People lock themselves out of their house or car or need their locks changed or repaired. So, I’ve probably been in more houses in the area than most people.”

  “Exactly. So, can you think of any connection between these two murders?”

  I sipped my tea and glanced at him. Had he already honed in on me? I said carefully, “You mean, other than the antique cabinet we found at the first murder scene belonging to Iris, who is a sister-in-law to Alfred?”

  “Yes. Other than that. The cabinet could just be a coincidence. Though you know I hate coincidences.”

  I nodded and sighed. “The only other connection I can think of is me.”

  Chance’s fork stopped halfway to his mouth and his blue eyes widened. “You? I know you were changing the locks at the first murder scene, but what did you have to do with the second?”

  “Well, nothing, lately. But I did change the store’s locks for Alfred a couple of years ago, after his wife left him.”

  “Oh.” He shrugged and resumed eating. “I don’t think that’s really a connection. Why did he want his locks changed then?”

  “Lots of people change their locks when they divorce. It’s a smart thing to do.”