Joe couldn’t help smiling. The liquor was obviously making Norrick braver. He was staring directly into the detective’s eyes.
“Besides,” Shane went on. “How’d you know I was here?”
“I come in for a drink occasionally.” Joe looked back at him. “Do you come here often?”
“Not very often, but once in a while I feel like getting soused and looking at pretty women. This is a good place to do that.”
“I agree.”
Susie came to the table and asked Joe what he wanted to drink. She showed no signs that she recognized him.
He gave her the same courtesy when he ordered a beer.
“What did you want to see me about?” Shane demanded when she was gone.
Joe asked him the one question that had been confusing him since the fingerprints had been taken from Dolly’s house. “How in hell did your fingerprints get on the underside of Dolly Overton’s dining room table?”
Shane almost dropped his drink.
“How did you know?”
“We look everywhere.”
Shane recalled the night they had gotten giddy on the dinner wine and had ended up on the floor of the dining room. It was vivid in his mind because he remembered hitting his head on the release which opened the table for putting in extra leaves. He knew since the prints were there he had to confess. He dropped his head and mumbled the story.
Joe refrained from laughing. Maybe, he thought, Bett and Nola Dean were right. He couldn’t imagine this man committing murder. But someone had done it. He pressed on.
“Do you like art, Mr. Norrick.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Nothing. I just want to know if there is a particular art you favor. Paintings, sculpture, crafts...”
Oh, God, Shane thought. He knows Walter was investing in art objects. What am I going to tell him? He had a wild look in his eyes when he said, “I like paintings, especially nudes. Why?”
Joe ignored the why. “Have you ever developed any land near Inlet Point?”
Again Shane looked scared. He wished he hadn’t drunk so much. Joe Randell was going to trip him up. “I don’t develop land. I just sell it.”
“How about Walter Overton? Did you sell land to him?”
Shane shook his head.
“Are you sure. We can trace that, you know.”
“I might have sold him a few pieces. What’s that got to do with anything? I didn’t kill him.”
For a moment Joe thought Shane was going to cry. “Somebody did, Mr. Norrick. You’re as good a candidate as anyone.”
“Why would you say that? I don’t like violence. I like...”
“If you didn’t kill him, do you know who did?”
“Of course not.”
“How involved with Walter Overton were you?”
“Like I said, I did a few deals with him. Not many. We sold a few pieces of land on the side. He said we could make more money if we didn’t run it through either company. I didn’t mind that. Money’s always good.”
“How much money are we talking about?”
“I’m not sure. Walter kept track. He would give me some on each deal, then he said he’d invested the rest of it for us.”
“How did he invest it, Mr. Norrick?”
Shane knew he’d been caught. He saw no reason not to tell Randell all about it. “Art objects, of course. He said he was buying museum quality antiques nobody would ever suspect. That way we would have the money without having to open up bank accounts everywhere.”
“You trusted him to do this?”
“I had no choice. I was outvoted.”
It was now Joe’s turned to be surprised. “What do you mean, outvoted?”
“Two against one. Walter said the other partner wanted it this way and I had no choice.”
“Who was the other partner?”
“I don’t know. Walter called him Mr. Smith.”
“How could you not know your other partner?”
“Walter was the go between. I’ve never met the other guy.”
“Where are the art objects?”
“Walter had them. I guess Dolly has them now, but I’m not sure. I haven’t seen anything in her house that looks like it belongs in a museum.”
“Did you ever go to Overton’s office?”
“No. He didn’t think it was a good idea for us to be seen together. We always met at some obscure place.”
“Did you ever meet here in this club?”
Shane nodded. “Once or twice.”
“But never with the other partner?”
“No. Just the two of us.”
Joe stood abruptly. “I’ll get back to you, Mr. Norrick. We’re not through talking.”
Shane watched as the officer strolled out the door.
Link came back to the table. “What in Hell was that all about?”
“Don’t ask,” Shane said and put his head on the table.
Link didn’t press for an answer because he didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t drunk enough not to be a little embarrassed that Shane was crying.
* * * *
Nola Dean was surprised when Grady Collier called her.
“I know you expected Rex to get in touch with you, Ms. Buckingham,” he said. “But he’s tied up. I told him I would be delighted to report to you.”
“I appreciate it, Mr. Collier.”
“I don’t like to discuss business over the phone. Could we possibly go somewhere for a drink or maybe have dinner?”
“I’d be glad to meet you. Where do you suggest?”
“I like Flamingo Grill. Is that acceptable to you?”
“Yes. I like Flamingo Grill too.”
An hour later, dressed in a striking sleeveless deep purple dress with heavy lace collar around the plunging neckline and accentuated with the diamond earrings Marcus had given her on their third anniversary, she pulled into the lot at Flamingo Grill.
Grady Collier appeared at the door as soon as she entered. “I’m delighted to see you, Mrs. Buckingham. I have a reserved table for us.” He smiled at her and took her arm.
“Would you like to be seated now, sir?” the hostess asked.
“Yes, please.”
They followed her to a table, and Grady held the chair for Nola Dean.
“I appreciate you meeting me like this, Mrs. Buckingham. Since Mrs. Collier wasn’t able to accompany me on this trip, I wasn’t looking forward to having dinner alone.”
“Oh, does she usually come with you?”
“Not often, but most of the time when I’m here for business I make it a one day trip. It’s only when I come to golf that I stay any length of time.”
“If you’re a golfer, Myrtle Beach seems to be the place.”
“Yes. There are some wonderful courses. Rex and I both try to take advantage of them occasionally. Of course, we don’t get to play as much as we would like. Business, you know.”
The waitress was there as soon as they were seated and Nola Dean ordered white wine. It was only a matter of minutes before it appeared before her.
“First of all, would it offend you if I called you Nola Dean?”
“Of course not.”
“Good, Rex uses your first name and I was afraid I’d slip and use it without your permission. Please, call me Grady.”
“Thank you, Grady. I will.” Nola Dean wondered if the man was always this polite. She hadn’t been treated this royally in a long time. It then occurred to her it could be his age. A generation back, men tended to be more polite and courteous. She had to admit she liked it.
“Let me begin by telling you we’re printing a prospectus for the project at South Myrtle. As soon as they’re ready, we’ll get one to you.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
“Darn,” he said. “My cell phone vibrated.” He took it from inside his coat pocket and looked at the number calling. He shook his head. “This is a call I’ve been expecting, would you mind if I took it, Nola Dean?�
�
“Of course not. I know how it is in business.”
“I’ll step outside. I hate for people to have conversations on these things while I’m trying to have a nice dinner.” He smiled at her. “I won’t be long.”
Nola Dean sipped her wine and looked around the restaurant. It had changed little in all the years she’d been coming here. And the food remained good. She picked up the menu.
The waitress came to the table with a shrimp cocktail. “The gentleman said to bring this for you to munch on until he returns, ma’am.”
“Thank you. It looks delicious.”
“I’ll come back to take your order when he returns.”
Nola Dean smiled at her and reached for one of the shrimp.
It wasn’t long until Grady returned. “I’m so sorry, Nola Dean. I don’t usually interrupt a meal to take a call, but that one was important.”
“It’s fine, Grady.” She smiled at him. “I didn’t mind at all and the shrimp are yummy. Would you like one? “
He took a shrimp as the waitress appeared again. They paused to order dinner. Grady took a quick glance at the menu and asked for a lobster entree and Nola Dean followed suit.
“While we wait for our food,” Grady continued as if they’d never been interrupted. “Let me tell you about the project and see if you have any questions.”
By the end of the meal she was almost convinced to write him a check. He was good at his job and she now knew why the business was so large and impressive. If he treated everyone as he had her, there would never be trouble getting investors for their projects. Rex was good, but not as polished as the senior Mr. Collier.
She said, “I’m almost positive I’ll invest with you, Grady. I need a little more time. I want to see what Danny has going on and he is out of town for a few days.”
“He’s your manager, right?”
“Yes. How did you know?”
“Rex told me. He wanted to be sure I was well aware of all the details.”
She smiled. “And you remembered.”
He didn’t say the “of course” but it showed in his eyes. Instead he said, “You have time to make up your mind, Nola Dean. It will be several weeks before the project is ready to begin. But I would like an answer, say in six to eight weeks. At that time I will need to look elsewhere if you’re not interested.”
“I’ll definitely have an answer before then, Grady. Probably in a week or two.”
“That sounds wonderful.” He changed the subject. “Tell me about your company, Nola Dean.”
The conversation went from the real estate company to Emily to her marriage and the loss of Marcus and even touched on Walter’s murder before the night ended. Grady insisted on walking her to her car.
“It’s been a delightful evening, Nola Dean.” He smiled as he closed her car door. “Don’t tell Hazel, but for once I’m glad she didn’t come with me.”
“I’ve enjoyed it too.”
“You be careful going home and we’ll talk again soon.”
“Yes. I’ll let you know something as soon as I decide.”
He bade her good night and headed for his car.
Nola pulled out of the parking lot, switched on the radio, and glanced at the clock. She was surprised to see she had spent a little over three hours with Grady Collier. It hadn’t seemed that long and she couldn’t help feeling a little guilty for enjoying herself so much with a married man old enough to be her father.
* * * *
Mr. Smith watched as Nola Dean pulled from the lot. He was glad she’d met her date here. It had made it easy for him to plant the bug while she was at dinner. He switched on a button and was instantly listening to the soft music she had playing in her car. Now he would be able to listen to her as she drove as well as in her condo. If she knew something about the murder it would surely come out at one of these places. Hopefully, she wouldn’t know anything. It would be a shame to put an end to that pretty little life. She was not unlike many of the women he had loved before. But an affair with her would have to wait until the police dropped the Walter Overton matter. He couldn’t let himself get involved with anyone new at the moment though he was beginning to tire of the woman he was having an affair with at the present time.
Chapter 28
“Joe,” an officer stuck his head in the door. “Thought you might like to know that the guys have finished going over Arthur Brown’s car after it was found in the back parking lot of the hotel.”
“What did they find?”
“Not a lot. Mostly clutter. Beer cans and such. There was one peculiar thing.”
“What was that?”
“A Walmart bag with the wrapping from a new door knob and an old door lock in it.”
Joe knew immediately this was the lock from the closet door where Arthur’s body was found. “Any fingerprints?” He asked.
“The only ones found were Arthur Brown’s.”
“That figures. Anything else?”
“Some fibers and things have been sent to the lab.”
“Thanks, Gary.”
Joe turned back to the reports on his desk as his phone rang. “Randell,” he said into it.
“Joe, this is Pepper.”
“Hello, Pepper.”
“I think I might have something for you.”
“Great. What have you got?”
“Yesterday was my birthday...”
“Happy late birthday.”
“Thanks, but I quit counting them several years ago. Anyway, what I wanted to tell you, is that my sister insisted on taking me to a fancy place for dinner last night. I had the night off so I said why not?”
“And,,,?”
“Neither of us had ever been to Flamingo Grill and we decided we’d splurge. Well, as we were pulling out of the parking lot I saw one of the men who has been in the club. He was going in the front door. I didn’t think about it until I got into work today or I’d have called you earlier.”
“Did you see him get out of a car, Pepper?”
“No. Like I said, he was going in the front door. I don’t know which car he got out of.”
“Was he alone?”
“I didn’t see anyone with him.”
“Can you describe the man?”
“He was wearing a suit and tie. He was about medium height. I’m not sure how old he is because the light was kind of dim, but best I remember from the club, he’s probably around forty-five or fifty.”
“Pepper do you know Shane Norrick?”
“Oh, yeah. He comes in the club quiet often. He was in the other day. Didn’t you talk to him there?”
“I did.”
“The girls all think he’s cute, but they don’t like him much.”
“Why’s that?”
“Small tipper.”
“I see.”
“It may not be anything, Joe. But you said to call. I know I’ve seen him in here, but I couldn’t swear whether or not he ever talked to Arthur Brown. It could be I recognized him because he’s been in the club with his golfing buddies.”
Joe thanked Pepper for the information and told her to call him if she could remember anything else.
Hanging up the phone, he turned back to his paperwork. Nola Dean and Bett were probably right. It was looking less like Shane Norrick had committed the crimes. He certainly wasn’t the man that Pepper saw last night or she would have known him.
* * * *
“Oh, Rex,” Megan said. “I’m so glad you came to go over the books. Maybe we can have some more time together.” She was standing in front of the fireplace in the luxurious condominium bedroom the company owned.
He came out of the dressing room fixing his tie. “I’m glad I came too. Dad went to Atlanta this morning and I came here.” He leaned over and kissed her neck.
She giggled and some of her wine splashed on the floor. “Damn,” she said. “I’ll get a towel.”
She returned in a moment and bent to clean the spot on the floor.
�
�I don’t want to rush you, Megan, but someone is using this place. We’d better get back to the office before they return.”
“I’ll be quick.” She was about to get up when she spied something in the edge of the fireplace. “What’s this?” She picked up a sliver of broken pottery and held it toward Rex.
He looked shocked when he took it, but covered it and said, “How the hell should I know? It’s probably something the maid missed cleaning up.” He took the broken piece of pottery and tossed it in the trash can. “Ready to go?”
“I thought your Dad was here until this morning.” She sounded puzzled.
“No. A friend of his was using the place. Dad was at the hotel. I took his room. I hate to rush you, but…”
“I’m coming.”
In the car, Megan broke the silence. “It was a lovely afternoon.”
He reached for her hand. “I think so too. I know it was stupid to take a chance like this. Dad left this morning and said a friend was using this place for a few days, that’s why I’m staying at the hotel. We should have gone there.”
“I have a place, you know,” she almost whispered.
He chuckled. “How stupid of me. Why didn’t we go to your place?”
“We will, next time.” She smiled at him. “As a matter of fact, there was no need for you to check into a hotel.”
He glanced over at her. “Next time, I won’t.”
* * * *
Mr. Smith tossed the wrapper from his candy bar into the trash. He saw the sliver of pottery in the can and picked it up. Damn, I should have been more careful when I picked up the broken pieces. He looked at it carefully, trying to decide if anyone looking at it could tell it was originally a vase. He decided they couldn’t. Not even if they had been exposed to it every day in Walter’s office. He tossed it back in the trash can and went in to take a shower.
* * * *
It was late afternoon when Joe pulled up in front of Nellie’s trailer in Arthur’s beat up Mustang. Bett stopped the unmarked police car behind him. She’d told him earlier she’d wait outside for him. He knocked on Nellie’s door.
“Well, hello,” Nellie said obviously surprised to see him.
“Mrs. Brown, they have released Arthur’s car and I thought you might like to have it.”
“You’re kidding!”
Murder in South Carolina Page 20