Murder is Academic

by Lesley A. Diehl

  By this time Donald was almost sobbing. He wiped the tears from his face. “Then I heard President Talbot was killed. I talked with Dr. Stanford about what we should do with the water samples once President Talbot was gone. I was hoping we both could come clean on this because I figured the whole thing was going to blow up anyway with the state and federal government coming in. Dr. Stanford told me to sit tight for a while. Then he committed suicide.” Donald gasped for breath and took in huge gulps of air, then put his head down on the lab table. His shoulders shook.

  None of us said anything. As Donald began to calm himself, Der asked, “Did you at any time suspect Dr. Stanford of being involved in President Talbot’s death?”

  “Certainly not.” Donald seemed shocked at the idea. “Dr. Stanford was a good man. He wouldn’t do such a thing.”

  “He was a good man who engaged in fraud,” Der said. “And he certainly pressured you with respect to the water samples and keeping your mouth shut. Why would you remain so loyal to him?”

  Donald looked as if he were going to remain silent in response to Der’s question, but he seemed to have resigned himself to telling the complete truth about his situation.

  “He knew I didn’t have a degree, yet he was willing to keep me on in this position. I told the college personnel office when I was hired here that I had a college degree. I don’t. They didn’t check my record or my references, I guess.”

  “Good God,” I said, “is there anyone involved in this case who didn’t have some secret to keep hidden?”

  “I hope you’re not suggesting Dr. Stanford killed President Talbot. That’s not possible. He wasn’t capable of taking a human life.” Donald appeared adamant about Stanford’s innocence.

  “He took his own,” Der said.

  Donald shook his head. “I won’t believe that. I just won’t believe that Dr. Stanford had anything to do with President Talbot’s death. He was working here at the lab. I told you that when you questioned me before.”

  “You also told me the two of you were working in separate buildings and you didn’t see him from an hour before sunset to after it was quite dark. He had plenty of time to meet Talbot, do him in and dump the body at the construction site, then drive Talbot’s car to the college and get back here. It would be tight, but he could do it,” Der said.

  “N-n-n-n-o.” Donald appeared shattered by the thought his mentor was a murderer.

  I felt bad for Donald. Without a degree and having lied to the college about having one, it was unlikely they would keep him on staff, to say nothing of what the college and other authorities might do when they found out Donald played along with Stanford’s and Talbot’s fraud with the lake water samples. I doubted Donald would be able to find work easily in the future.

  As if reading my thoughts, Donald recovered himself enough to ask, “What will happen to me?”

  “I can’t really answer that one right now. We need to tie up the loose ends with respect to Talbot’s death. Then there’s the question of college regulations with respect to your record and Talbot’s and Stanford’s behavior. I can only guess at the number of regulations they violated at the college. Finally, the courts will have to handle the issue of the condominium developers polluting the lake, the cover-up by Talbot and others as well as how to handle clean-up, if necessary, and the installation of an adequate system to handle the waste water. That could take years.”

  “Yeah, and I’ll bet the developers get off with only a slap on the wrist while those poor people who bought the condominiums will be paying enormous maintenance bills for the next decade to offset the cost of putting in the right system of wastewater treatment. I’m sure there will be numerous additional lawsuits aimed at the developers for defrauding the buyers. Maybe Bunny will be named also since she sold many of the units. What a mess.” I said.

  “We’ll let the courts and the lawyers handle all of that,” Der said. “Meanwhile, Donald, there are some questions which remain unanswered, and I may need you around to supply some information.”

  Der walked out the door and down the steps to the parking lot. I rushed after him to stop him before he got into his car.

  “What questions do you still have in this case?”

  “There’s still something suspicious about those large sums of money coming out of Talbot’s account every month. And I still need to know who the hydrologist is. Certifying a system of waste water treatment to be adequate when it isn’t is a crime. I’ve got a lead on several men by that name living in Montreal. One is married, and I’m trying to talk with his wife. He seems to have disappeared, and I was informed by his wife’s employer she was out of the country on a vacation, but will be returning soon. I can’t rest until this is all cleared up.”

  “But you’re convinced Stanford murdered Talbot?”

  “I’ve got more motive than I need for ten murders and opportunity. It looks pretty certain. You’re not convinced yet?”

  I was silent for a minute. Something was bothering me, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. It had something to do with Stanford’s suicide. I still couldn’t believe he took his own life. Like Beth and others I also found it difficult to think of him as a murderer. I voiced these concerns again.

  Der leaned back onto the fender of his car. “You’re a student of human behavior. You know anyone is capable of murder if the circumstances are right. In Stanford’s case they were. You said yourself he would lose his position and standing in the academic community if the truth about those water samples came out. And with the additional phonied evidence he was an investor in the condominiums, his colleagues would treat him like a pariah. Can you imagine his having to deal with Rudolf Pruitt when the truth came out? Rudolf would probably have been made director of the field station and would have the utter joy of firing Stanford.”

  What Der said made sense. His mentioning of Rudolf’s name tickled a memory.

  “I did a little research at the county office building and guess what I found?”

  Der pushed himself off the car and leaned forward. I had his attention now.

  “What?”

  “There were quite a number of people associated with the college who bought condominiums on the lake when Bunny was selling them. Want to know some of the names?”

  He nodded.

  “Rudolf Pruitt was one name. Others included my very own department chair and Edmond Dewar and Orin Dailey.”

  “Well, you sure hit it big. All of the people you really admire will have to foot the bill for a new wastewater treatment system for the condos. And you called them ‘those poor condo owners’ just a minute ago. What a hypocrite you are.” Der chuckled as he started the engine of his car.

  “I meant the other owners,” I said to myself as he drove off.

  I turned to go back into the building to see how Beth was doing. As I entered I heard her assuring Donald she would do all she could for him with respect to his position at the college. She patted him on the shoulder then looked up as I entered the room.

  Donald smiled weakly at her and then excused himself saying he needed to go home and get some sleep if she didn’t need him any longer tonight in the lab.

  “We’ll leave off for tonight. Be here early tomorrow, and we’ll collect the samples together.”

  Donald shuffled out of the room.

  “I really feel bad for him even though he lied about his degree and continued to help Will when he knew it was wrong,” Beth said. “I told him I would go to bat for him and help him stay on at the college.”

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Beth.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because you don’t have a leg to stand on in terms of making a case for him. Maybe that sounds cruel, but he needs to find out the consequences of his wrongdoing and pay some price for that. If he’d blown the whistle on Talbot and your husband in the beginning, he wouldn’t be in this mess now, and the college and others wouldn’t have suffered either. Maybe two people wouldn’t be dead. And now thi
s is about much more than his job, Beth. It’s about the health of the college as well as that of the lake.”

  “It’s not all his fault.”

  “I know. I’m simply saying he had a significant role in continuing a host of lies that have ended two lives and damaged a lot of others including your own. Think about it. He’s a big boy who made the wrong decision.”

  Although I could see that Beth was disappointed in my stance on Donald’s behavior, she needed to see him for what he really was, not a victim in the situation, but one of the perpetrators.

  “I suppose you’re right. It’s just that Donald seems so broken up over this whole thing. I wish I could be of some help.”

  “You can be of help by continuing your supervision of his work until such time as the college takes action against him. If that takes some time, and he continues to work diligently and competently under you, you might be able to provide a positive perspective on his skills to a prospective employer. But really, Beth, that’s about all you can do now.”

  Beth nodded, then looked up at me. She had dark circles under her eyes, and she looked more exhausted than I had ever seen her. I realized the past weeks had taken a toll on her, and she needed sleep more than anything else.

  “Come on.” I took her arm and directed her toward the door and out of the building. “You need to go home, take a hot bath and go to bed. I’ll follow you in my car to make sure you make it there all right. And then I insist on coming in, making you a cup of tea and seeing to it that you get into bed after that bath.”

  Beth could see that it was no use arguing with me. She seemed too tired to put up much of a fight.

  As we were about to get into our cars, I noticed Donald’s car was still in the parking lot.

  “I thought he said he was going home earlier. Don’t tell me I have to play nursemaid to both of you.” I turned to go back into the building to find Donald when Guy pulled up on his motorcycle.

  “I was just about to follow Beth home to see that she got some much needed sleep. Why don’t you follow us, and I’ll fill you in while Beth’s relaxing in the tub. Actually, you follow Beth. I’ll be along in a minute. I just need to shoo Donald home, too. It’s been quite a night for everyone, and we’re all a bit exhausted.”

  Guy nodded and prepared to follow Beth’s car. I ran up the steps to the second floor lab. As I approached the lab, I could hear Donald’s voice coming through the door. He was on the phone with someone, and I didn’t want to disturb him. I just wanted to eavesdrop.

  “Don’t worry about it, ma cherie. We’ll survive.” The person on the other end of the line said something, followed by Donald’s “Bon nuit” and the sound of the receiver being replaced. I hesitated a moment and then stepped into the room. Donald looked as if he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

  “Oh, Dr. Murphy, you’re still here. I thought I heard you leave.” Guy began to fiddle with some papers on the desk in front of him. “I just thought I’d straighten things up here before I went home.”

  “When I saw your car still in the lot, I thought I’d run up and tell you to head home. You’ve had a rough night. We all have.”

  Donald appeared relieved at my words.

  “I was a bit worried about you. You weren’t talking to yourself just now, were you? I heard your voice from down the hall. It sounded like you were speaking French. I didn’t know you knew French, Donald.” I raised a quizzical eyebrow.

  “I don’t really. I just picked up a few words here and there. I worked for a while in Quebec Province. I was just talking to a friend. Thought I’d let her know that I might have to leave my job here.” His gaze darted around the room, and he clasped and unclasped his hands.

  I smiled. So Donald had a girlfriend, someone he could confide in. I’d let Beth know. It would make her feel better about Donald’s plight.

  “Well, goodnight. Don’t stay too late. Things will look better after a good night’s sleep.”

  “Thanks, Dr. Murphy. That’s just what my friend said. ‘Sleep on it’ was what she recommended. I’ll walk out with you.”

  He hit the light plunging the lab and adjacent hall into darkness before I could reach the stairway. I stumbled and quickly caught my balance by grabbing hold of the banister.

  “Watch your step there. The college doesn’t need someone else on the staff injured or worse.” Donald grabbed my arm and led me down the stairs. “I know this place like the back of my hand, even in the dark.”

  I was surprised by the strength in his hands and arms. For a wiry little fellow, he was surprisingly powerful. I was grateful he’d caught me before I plunged down those stairs.

  We parted in the parking lot, and I drove off toward Beth’s house. Donald’s car lights followed mine for a while on the road, then turned off at the edge of town.

  Chapter 24

  “What a guy your Guy is.” Beth greeted me at the door in a fluffy robe. “He made me tea and ran my bath. I just got out. What took you so long?”

  “Oh, I chatted a while with Donald. I caught him on the phone with his girlfriend, I think. It sounded as if she was comforting him a bit.”

  “Well, I’m glad he’s got someone. He’s never made friends at the college that I know of. He’s really not faculty, and he rarely encounters anyone on the staff because he’s out at the field station most of the time.”

  The three of us talked for a while until Beth could no longer hide her yawns or keep her eyes open.

  “Time for us to go, and for you to hit the sack, Beth.” She offered no resistance, and I expected her sleep would come quickly and last far into the morning. “We’ll let ourselves out. You go on up to bed. We’ll tidy up the tea things and lock the door after us.”

  The night sky looked as if it were preparing for another storm. No stars were out, and the cloud cover obscured the moon, too. I expected a real blow by morning. A tornado might be brewing, and it would be hard to spot coming at night. Even in the day the rolling terrain and heavy-forested hilltops hid a funnel cloud until it was on top of you.

  We had been lucky around the lake. Only a few small twisters had come through the area in the past decade or so. Since most of the houses on the lake didn’t have basements, there was no safe place to take cover. The best I could do was to drive into the college, assuming I had time to get there.

  When Guy and I got back to the house, I ran for the TV to check the weather station and the local forecast.

  “What’s up?” Guy asked.

  “I don’t like the looks of this weather. If there’s a tornado on the way, we’ll be better off getting out of here and into a building with a basement.”

  “And where would that be?” He looked worried.

  “Well, we could go into town and stay at Annie’s apartment. There’s a basement there. Or the college library. There’s both a basement and a sub-basement in there. And it stays open until midnight.” I ticked off the possibilities.

  “I guess the reason no one has a basement on this lake is because of the spring run-off from the hills above the lake.”

  “One of my neighbors decided to dig himself a basement several years ago. It was fine until the February thaw when he had a swimming pool filled with about three feet of water in his newly constructed basement. Next summer he filled it in. That was the first and last basement in this neighborhood.” I smiled at the memory of his endeavor. He was warned against attempting it by the old timers in the area, but, being a city person and smarter than they, or so he thought, he ignored their advice. Everyone had a good laugh out of his folly and showed up at his house during the thaw with floats, beach balls and rubber rafts. Some were even clad in bathing apparel.

  I shared the story with Guy while I kept half an ear on the weather channel. The local forecast predicted thunderstorms for the lake area, but no tornado watch was issued. We muted the sound, but kept the video on to catch any updates as they came onto the screen.

  Guy pulled some chilled spring water out of
the fridge and poured us two glasses while I ran upstairs and changed into my robe. The storm was gaining strength, and the trees in the yard were losing limbs to the churning winds.

  “Better drop the blinds so the windows are covered in case a limb comes through one,” I called to Guy down the stairs. “It’s not much protection, but at least it’ll contain any flying glass.”

  “Already done, ma cherie.”

  I slowly descended the stairs. Guy noticed the expression on my face. “What’s wrong? Storm given you the willies?”

  “What did you just say?”

  “Sorry. I just called you my dear in French. Don’t you like it? I know you’re not one for expressions of affection, but…”

  “No, no, it’s not that. It’s just that’s the second time I heard that phrase tonight.”

  “Okay, give. Who’s been wooing you in French? I’ll have his head.” Guy filled his voice with mock anger and jealousy.

  A large tree limb hit the side of the house with a bang just as a lightning strike hit somewhere in the trees across the lake.

  My eyes traveled to the television screen. The thunderstorms were upgraded to severe thunderstorms.

  “No one’s been wooing me. But I did overhear Donald Hall talking to someone on the phone he called ‘ma cherie’. He told me it was a friend of his. His use of French jogged a memory in my mind that I can’t quite get hold of. Didn’t you say you thought you had met him somewhere before?”

  “You know, I’ve been thinking about that. But the only memory that comes to mind is from Canada on a road project one summer. The guy seemed heavier and his hair was lighter. Maybe it wasn’t him.”

  “Maybe it was him. Donald looks pretty small, but tonight when we left the field station together, I tripped and he caught me. I was surprised at his strength.”

  “What would Donald be doing working on a road crew?”