Death by Nostalgia

by Andrew Stanek

  “When was the last time you saw Adriana Kettering, Mr. Hamilton?”

  “Yesterday at around noon. Her and the rest of all those hooligans. Jack Kettering, her good-for-nothing brother. Davey Kempt, oily little creature. Vicky Melbrush, nasty liar. And Peter Ulverson. He’s wearing a uniform finally, I guess they’ve put him to work killing people. It’s probably what he’s best at.”

  “It’s my understanding that you had an argument with Vicky Melbrush-”

  “Damn straight I did. Would have thrashed the little liar if Peter Ulverson hadn’t gotten in the way.”

  “But you didn’t. So then what happened?”

  “Everyone started walking away in different directions. The wife and I went back to the car. We sat there for a while. She kept saying how it would be good to get out of the heat, let my temper cool off a bit. Then she went for food. I stayed in the car.”

  “You were in the car at the time of the demolition?”

  “Yes.”

  “So you didn’t go find Jack Kettering to ask him to help fix your car?”

  Mr. Hamilton emitted a short, snorting laugh. “Ask Jack Kettering to fix my car? The kid’s a crook! If I’d done that I’d probably have come back to find it up on bricks, tires gone, engine gone, and who knows what else. I just told Reva that I’d go look for Jack Kettering to keep the peace. You know, I didn’t want to start an argument with my wife. There’s no sense in that.”

  “What do you mean Jack Kettering is a crook?”

  “You mean you don’t know? I’d expected the lot of you to have his number! That ‘dealership’ Jack Kettering used to work was in the business of reselling stolen cars, and the ‘service center’ he worked at was a chop shop. Boy was a thief. The police shut down that dealership not all that long ago. I don’t know how he wasn’t arrested. Said he didn’t know anything about it, I expect, but if I were you, I’d reopen the case. He was probably the ringleader. I’d never ask him for help fixing my car if he were the last car mechanic on earth.”

  “So you stayed in your car instead.”

  “Yes. I took a look under the hood to try to see if I could fix it, but what do I know about cars?”

  “Why didn’t you call a tow truck?” asked Felix quietly.

  Will Hamilton shot him a sharp glance. “I did, this morning.”

  “Why not before?”

  “Well, I didn’t have the number of a tow truck place. I had to wait to get home before I could call.”

  “Hm...”

  Felix trailed off and Alders took the opportunity to jump back into the interrogation.

  “Did you see any other members of your group after you returned to your car?”

  “Not until much later. The wife and I went to look for Adriana - she’d promised to drive us back, you see, but we never found her. Davey drove us back eventually.”

  “I see. And did you see anything suspicious yesterday? Anything you’d like to tell us about?”

  “Nothing,” said Hamilton firmly. “I watched the apartments come down and that was all. I really was glad to see them go. I hated them.”

  From where he was leaning by the door, Felix closed his eyes. “Mr. Hamilton, yesterday Vicky Melbrush asked you ‘If it was such a terrible place, then why did you live here?’ It was one of the questions that infuriated you.”

  The color rose a little in Hamilton’s cheeks. “Yes,” he confirmed.

  “Well, I would like to know the answer to that question, Mr. Hamilton,” Felix said calmly. “If you did not like the apartment building, why did you live there?”

  William Hamilton seemed to be grinding his jaw trying to answer this.

  “Two reasons,” he said with even more gruffness than his usual tone. “First, my wife used to teach at a school not far from the building, so it was convenient. Second, it’s a good property, even if it does have these awful subsidized housing apartments built on top of it. I wanted to keep a close eye on that property. I knew when it was knocked down, at last, there would be a fortune in redeveloping it, if only we could acquire the title. Projects aside, it’s prime real estate. It’s only a bad neighborhood because that building is there; it’s not exactly in the inner city. Once it’s gone, anything built on or around that land would skyrocket in value.”

  “So you lived in it to ‘keep an eye on it’?”

  “Yes.”

  Alders listened to this exchange with interest, then finally jumped back in.

  “Mr. Hamilton, can you think of any reason that anyone would want to harm Adriana Kettering?”

  “No. She was the one good one in the bunch. Behaved herself, or if she didn’t, didn’t trouble the rest of us, and made something of herself. Respectable. Not murderers and criminals like the rest of this group turned out to be.”

  “Alright. Thank you, Mr. Hamilton.”

  When the Hamiltons had been shown out, Felix was leaning against the wall, rolling a pen thoughtfully between his fingers.

  “Please don’t tell me that’s my pen,” Alders said irritably.

  “It isn’t.”

  “Good.”

  “At least, not anymore.”

  A muscle started twitching in the corner of Alders’ cheek. “I can’t think of anyone else I’ve ever met who could possibly be dumb enough to start stealing things in the middle of a police station.”

  “Steal things? My dear detective Alders, I never steal. Besides, worrying about this pen is distracting you from the essential facts of the case.”

  “It’s not the pen I’m worried about - and what essential facts of the case?”

  “The tow truck. You don’t need to be at home to call a tow truck. The tow truck business depends on the idea that people can call them wherever their car breaks down. Mr. Hamilton could have called a directory service or walked into a local store or asked to use their phone book even if he doesn’t have an internet-enabled phone. It would have been easy to find the name of a tow truck company.”

  “Maybe he was simply procrastinating,” Alders suggested.

  “Perhaps. But then there’s what he said about living in the building to keep an eye on it. That seems a little odd, doesn’t it? Actually moving into a property that you want to observe? I think he had some other interest in living in the projects, a good enough reason to get him to live in a building he obviously hates.”

  “Maybe he was an unsuccessful real estate developer?”

  Felix shook his head. “So unsuccessful that he lives in the projects?”

  “What about what he said about his wife?”

  “Hm... Reva Hamilton said she was a teacher, but Will Hamilton said she used to teach at a school near the 20th Street projects, meaning that she taught there in the past. Where does she teach now?”

  “We can probably find out from the municipal school records,” Alders said.

  Just then, his cell phone rang. He gestured at Felix to wait, then stood and left, returning a moment later with several sheets of paper.

  “I’m still waiting for the autopsy report and the ballistics report, but I have Adriana Kettering’s bank records,” he said. “There isn’t much here to see. She wasn’t wealthy - quite the opposite, she had a lot of student debt she was still working to repay. Nothing pops out at me. No large withdrawals apart from loan payments and no unusual deposits, just her regular paychecks. Her balance wasn’t particularly large, certainly not worth killing over.”

  Felix traced along it with his stolen pen, checking off the regular deposits, then finally nodding.

  “I agree. Completely ordinary.”

  “Which means we’re still at a loss for motive,” Alders said with a sigh.

  “Well, maybe we can close that gap with our next interview.”

  And with that, Alders called in Victoria Melbrush.

  Chapter 5

  Victoria Melbrush was a short woman with light brown hair and a slightly mousey look about her. She sat down easily in the chair, almost lounging in it, before exploding into
speech.

  “Is it really true that Adriana was shot? And I passed the Hamiltons coming in - does that mean you think it’s someone in our circle who did it? I never expected her to be the one to go. I mean, I thought if anyone would kill anyone, Jack would kill Davey. I’m sure of it.”

  “Why?” asked Alders, puzzled at this sudden outburst.

  “You mean you don’t know?” Vicky asked, looking positively gleeful. “Well, Jack and Davey have always hated each other, they used to argue all the time when they were children. Davey would tease him and tease him, you know, about he relied on his big sister, and they’d fight, and Davey would win and Jack would run away crying... so they’ve always just argued and fought, but that’s not why - do you really not know? Davey’s an insurance person, I don’t know what he does exactly, but he sells car insurance or evaluates claims or something. And last year someone tried to buy car insurance on a stolen car, and they knew it was stolen because one of their other customers had put in a claim for the theft. So Davey looked into it and he found out that the stolen car had been bought at Jack’s dealership and Davey had the place shut down. And Jack hasn’t been able to find work since he has this bad reputation as having worked for thieves. It’s just marvelous. When Jack saw Davey yesterday, he just stared at him, and then Davey started going on about how Jack depended on his sister - ooh, I thought Jack was going to kill him.”

  “I see,” said Alders slowly. “But it was Adriana who was killed and not Davey, so I’d like to get back to that topic-”

  “Oh yes, well, Jack would never kill Adriana, of course, he clings to her like he wouldn’t know what to do without her-”

  “Yes, well, could I just have a few pieces of information for the record first?” Alders said irritably.

  With some difficultly, he managed to get her usual information - Victoria Melbrush, age 26, administrative professional, and so on.

  “Now, when was the last time you saw Adriana?” Alders asked.

  “Oh, it was yesterday, of course. I was taking a walk with Peter, you know, and I saw her walk by. She pretended like she couldn’t see us but I know she could and she must have just been sick with jealously, but she tried to stick her nose up at me-”

  “You passed Adriana? Where?”

  “It was near the back of the construction site. I don’t know what she was doing back there, but she certainly didn’t stop to talk to me. Not that I would have spoken to her anyway. I was too busy talking to Peter, and we were having just the most marvelous time.”

  “When was this?”

  “I don’t know. Half past twelve, maybe.”

  “Peter Ulverson can presumably verify this?”

  “I’ll bet he can, yes. And before you ask, I couldn’t possibly have killed Adriana. I was with Peter all day, right up until I left, so I couldn’t have gone back and killed her, could I? Not that I would have wanted to. I’m sure everyone’s been telling you all about how Adriana and I used to fight over Peter, but I won in the end, didn’t I, so it doesn’t really matter?”

  Alders coughed. “So, you arrived at the construction site, you met Adriana Kettering, you got into a fight with William Hamilton-”

  “I wouldn’t say I got into a fight exactly, so much as he threw a punch at me, but Peter saved me. He’s my hero, you know, getting between that brute and me. It’s not the first time he’s done it either. Way back when, when we were teenagers, Mr. Hamilton started going on this horrible rant about the building and everyone who lived in it, me included, and Peter overheard him and marched over there and punched him, just like that. There was the most awful fight, but even though he was only a teenager at the time, Peter won. He gave Mr. Hamilton a black eye. Mr. Hamilton didn’t yell so much to our faces anymore, but he just seethed every time he saw Peter after that. I think he really hated him.”

  She was placing emphasis in odd places and speaking with a speed and intensity that strongly reminded Alders of a teenage girl rather than an adult woman. He was about to bring them back to the day of the murder when Felix interrupted.

  “Did Mr. Hamilton ever confront Peter after that?”

  “Confront him? Oh no, I don’t think so. Not after the thrashing Peter gave him the first time. I think he wanted to call the police but Mrs. Hamilton talked him out of it so he just sat there nursing his black eye. After that, he would talk around Peter behind his back like he was some sort of thug or something, but you know that Peter is really quite sweet. It’s just that Mr. Hamilton is such a - a lout - I guess you call them. I think he was furious when Peter joined the army, years ago, because everyone in the building thought it was such a brave thing to do. But he kept saying that Peter was a violent murderer at heart and the army was the best place for him.”

  “He said he was a murderer?” Felix repeated.

  “Oh, well, I don’t think he meant Peter had actually killed anyone but he meant that Peter could kill someone, but don’t you listen a single word that Will Hamilton says. He doesn’t know Peter and he’s always born a grudge because of that fight. I know Peter didn’t kill Adriana because he was with me the whole time. I’ve already said that.”

  Alders cleared his throat. “Returning to the events yesterday, you got into an altercation with Mr. Hamilton, the group split up, and you immediately followed Peter Ulverson.”

  “Yes, he just looked so handsome in his uniform, you know, and I just couldn’t-”

  Thinking it was probably better to head her off before she got started on Peter Ulverson, Alders cut her off with another question.

  “And you spent the whole time at the construction site with him until he left?”

  “Exactly, although I have to say that a demolition isn’t exactly a romantic occasion, is it? Though we do have to make the best of the cards we’ve been dealt. I hadn’t seen Peter in so long and I was just so happy to see him, so we took a walk around the site once or twice and talked about the old days.”

  “And where were you at the time of the demolition?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. Off somewhere. The side that faces the hills, maybe, what is that - east? I sort of lost track of things.”

  “What did you do after that?”

  “Oh, I kept walking with Peter until we said goodbye. Then I went home.”

  “Do you know of anyone who might want to do Adriana Kettering harm?”

  “Oh yes, of course. Mr. Hamilton. He must be absolutely livid with her.”

  Alders paused at this and stared at her.

  “Why?” he asked.

  “You don’t know that either?” she asked, her eyes shining with sudden blissful delight. “Well, I don’t know everything, but here’s what I’ve gathered. Adriana works down at the hospital, yes? And she found out that Mr. Hamilton had an STD. You know, a disease he must have gotten having an affair with another woman, since his wife is clean. Well, I understand that Mr. Hamilton has been paying her to keep quiet, because there would be hell if Mrs. Hamilton found out.” Vicky giggled. “He must have been absolutely furious with Adriana. So if you ask me, he must have slipped away from his wife and offed Adriana.”

  Alders’ mouth was hanging open and he started write furiously, but Felix regarded Vicky with a look of suspicion.

  “How do you know all this?” Felix asked quietly.

  “Oh, you know. I hear things.”

  Felix fixed her with an unreadable expression for a moment, then nodded slowly.

  “And have you told anyone else about this?”

  “Oh, no. Not yet.”

  “Did you see anything suspicious yesterday?” Alders asked. “Anything to support this theory of yours?”

  “Oh, well, no, I suppose not, but Mr. Hamilton was looking furious.”

  Four or five additional questions later, Alders dismissed Victoria Melbrush.

  “That was very informative,” Alders said as he sat down heavily. “Though if we’d kept her here, I think she would have talked our ears off.”

  “Informative?” Fel
ix repeated. “No, no... if anything, it makes the situation muddier. She said Mr. Hamilton was furious, but he was furious with her, not with Adriana. He may have been generally ill-tempered, but it was Vicky that William Hamilton tried to attack. And all these stories she told us are very suspicious. The story about Davey shutting down Jack’s dealership. The story about Peter beating up Mr. Hamilton. The story about Adriana blackmailing Mr. Hamilton. How would she possibly have known Adriana was blackmailing Mr. Hamilton? Her claims about STDs and so forth included information that I don’t see her obtaining easily.”

  “Adriana’s bank account didn’t have any unusual deposits,” Alders recalled, picking up the print-out of her financial statements. “If she were blackmailing someone, I’d assume it would appear here, at least in part. But what reason would Vicky have to lie?”

  “She could be trying to put us on a false trail. After all, the only person we’ve established with a motive to kill Adriana is Vicky. However, she also claims to have a very solid alibi, so I’m inclined to believe a different explanation. All these stories - I think she is one of these people that tells stories, that makes things up, just for the sake of doing it. In her stories, all the characters play the parts she expects of them. She hears about Jack’s dealership closing down due to criminal activity. She knows that Jack and Davey have always hated each other, so she tells a story where Davey caused Jack’s dealership to close. She idolizes Peter and hates Hamilton, so she tells a story where Peter beats Hamilton up. And she hates Adriana as well, so she invents a story where both Adriana and Hamilton are guilty of wrongdoing.”

  “You’re saying she lies compulsively, like you steal,” Alders said, as he turned this over in his mind.

  “I don’t steal,” Felix replied stiffly. “But it seems likely from her mannerisms, from the way she speaks, that she’s an insufferable gossip at absolute best, and I certainly would not put it past her to hyperbolize. On the other hand, suppose Mr. Hamilton is having an affair, or had an affair. If his mistress lived in the old apartments, that would explain Mr. Hamilton’s decision to live there instead of in a nicer neighborhood.”