“So would I,” Helen Louise said. “She deserves happiness.”
“I guess we’ll find out about Paul before long,” I said. “She won’t thank us, though, if our advice backfires somehow.”
“We’ll have to wait and see,” Helen Louise said. “I’m ready for bed. How about you?” She yawned.
“Definitely,” I said. “I’ll clear this away and join you in a few minutes.”
“Thanks.” She kissed my cheek. “Come on, Diesel, bedtime.”
The cat followed her out, and I tidied up. While I did so, I found my thoughts alternating between Melba’s dilemma and Zac’s condition. Melba would handle her situation with strength and determination, I had no doubt, but Zac had no control over his, poor guy. I paused for a moment in my cleaning to offer up a fervent prayer on his behalf. I really couldn’t bring myself to believe that he was a killer, despite what evidence there might be to the contrary.
I never really wanted to believe that anyone was a murderer. That was the problem. Eventually, however, the facts would confront me in a way that gave me no quarter. I had yet to reach that point with these two murders and a potential third one.
“Charlie, what’s taking so long?”
Helen Louise’s voice brought me out of my reverie. “Almost done. Be there in a minute.” I hastily finished what I was doing, turned out the lights in the sitting room, and headed for the bedroom. Helen Louise and Diesel were in bed, the cat curled up next to my beloved, his head on her pillow. Love me, love my cat, I thought. I was fortunate indeed that Helen Louise did love Diesel. I couldn’t care so deeply for someone who didn’t love animals as much as I did.
I changed into my habitual nightwear, shorts and T-shirt, and slipped into bed with them. Helen Louise and I kissed over Diesel, and he meowed. I patted his head and laughed. “Go to sleep, silly boy.” He yawned.
“Good night, love,” Helen Louise said, and I bade her good night in return. The lights off, we all settled down to sleep. That sleep was interrupted not long afterward, however.
“I’ll go,” I said. “But I may yell at whoever it is knocking on the door this time.”
Helen Louise mumbled something, and Diesel didn’t stir. I forgot that I was wearing only shorts and T-shirt until I opened the door and saw Kanesha’s expression. I glanced down at myself and sighed.
“Come in.” I stood back to let her into the suite. Once I closed the door behind her, I said, “Make yourself comfortable while I go throw on some clothes.”
“Sure,” Kanesha said. “Sorry to wake you up, but I think you’ll sleep better once you hear what I have to tell you.”
I hurried to the bedroom without responding. I pulled on the pants and shirt I had been wearing previously. Helen Louise appeared to have gone to sleep, so I pulled the bedroom door shut behind me when I returned to the sitting room.
“Okay, what’s the good news?” I plopped down on the sofa, my head now clear again.
“Zac Ryan is going to recover,” Kanesha said.
“Thank the Lord,” I replied. “But did he really confess to killing two people?”
“No, he didn’t,” Kanesha said. “We showed him the so-called confession—with only an initial as a signature—and he denied that it was his.”
“Do you believe him?” I asked.
“I do,” Kanesha said. “I have Wesner’s permission to tell you this, but it goes no farther than this room, understand?”
“Can I tell Helen Louise?” I asked.
“Yes, because I know you will, no matter what I say,” Kanesha replied tartly. “But no one else.”
“What about Miss An’gel?”
“She knows,” Kanesha said. “We don’t want the rest of the group to be aware of this. It’s better that the killer thinks he or she still has a chance of Zac dying and being labeled as the murderer. Unless another member of the group does something stupid, of course, to bring attention to himself and draw the murderer’s fire.”
She looked straight at me as she gave that warning, and I couldn’t blame her, although it did rankle a bit.
“Message received,” I said.
“Good,” Kanesha replied. “Sorry I woke you, but I thought you’d want to know about Zac.”
“We hadn’t been in bed long,” I said, suddenly fighting the urge to yawn.
Kanesha rose to go. “Get a good night’s sleep, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Wait a minute,” I said as she walked toward the door. “I have a question.”
She stopped and turned back. “Yes?”
“It’s about Paul Bowen,” I said. “Do you have any knowledge of a personal connection between him and Denis Kilbride? Other than the banking connection, that is?”
Kanesha frowned. “What is this about?”
“Melba,” I said reluctantly. “She’s worried that Paul and Denis might have been connected outside the bank.”
“Not that I’m aware of,” Kanesha said. “Good night.”
I didn’t detain her, and she departed.
I turned the lights off again and went back to bed. I was going to share the good news with Helen Louise, but she was sound asleep. I debated waking her but thought the news could wait until morning. I got comfortable and tried to go to sleep.
Instead, I thought about the conversation with Kanesha. I felt relieved for Melba’s sake, and for Zac’s as well. I really wasn’t surprised to hear that his confession was a fake, although I realized that this was subject to further examination before the police would accept it as fact.
Kanesha didn’t think Paul Bowen had had any kind of personal relationship with Denis Kilbride (i.e., a sexual one), so that left Ellie Arnold as the most likely suspect once again. Ellie was so mild mannered as to be practically comatose sometimes. I found it hard to envision her aroused with enough passion to kill not only once, but twice, and attempt a third murder.
She was the one who knew about Denis’s medications, though. I couldn’t figure out why she would have taken them from his room. That made no sense to me. His death would have been more likely ruled as natural if the EMS team had found heart medication in his room. The medical examiner might have done a more cursory autopsy in that case. Probably not, but the killer could have thought that might happen.
Now I had a headache. I slipped out of bed to go into the bathroom and find some aspirin. I took a couple, washed them down with water, and crept back to bed. Helen Louise didn’t stir, nor did Diesel. Maybe now I could go to sleep. Aspirin usually helped me with that.
If I were to go for the most unlikely suspect, I mused, I would have to pick Celia. I wondered on what pretext Celia could have gone to his room and been let in. Denis must have been pretty well lit at the time, so it might not have mattered if she had a believable reason for accosting him that late at night.
In this case, I thought, the least likely suspect was probably not the killer. With that decided, I soon drifted off to sleep.
I slept soundly and didn’t wake until Helen Louise tapped me on the shoulder and Diesel stuck his nose in my ear and sniffed. That combination never failed. I turned over, yawning. “Good morning. What time is it?”
“Good morning to you, too.” Helen Louise dropped a kiss on my lips, and Diesel stuck his nose against my cheek. “It’s nearly nine o’clock, sleepyhead.”
“How long have you been up?” I asked.
“About thirty minutes,” she replied.
I took a good look at her and realized that she was already dressed. I pushed myself up and threw the bedclothes back. Diesel didn’t appreciate it that I threw them over him. He protested loudly and quickly extricated himself. “Sorry, boy,” I said. “Let me take a quick shower and get dressed. Go on down to breakfast if you want. I won’t be long.”
“I’m hungry, so I think I’ll take you up on that,” Helen Louise said
. “I desperately need coffee.”
“Go, and I’ll be down soon.” I headed for the shower.
Not until I was in the shower, scrubbing myself with soap, did I remember that I had good news to share with her. That would have to wait until after breakfast now. I couldn’t tell her any of what Kanesha had told me in public.
I discovered that Helen Louise had taken Diesel down with her. I was almost dressed and ready to leave when my phone rang. It was Stewart. I debated letting it go to voice mail, but I figured Stewart wouldn’t be calling unless it was important.
“Good morning,” I said. “How are you?”
“Are you sitting down?” Stewart said. “Have I got a juicy one for you. I think I’ve found you a really good motive for Denis Kilbride’s killer.”
THIRTY-THREE
I almost dropped the phone at Stewart’s triumphant claim. I scrabbled to keep hold of it and put it back to my ear.
“I’m not sitting down,” I said, “but go ahead anyway.”
“Right. I found out about more of Denis Kilbride’s playmates,” Stewart said. “A couple of guys I know in Memphis knew Denis and dished up some good dirt on some of his prior relationships.”
“That’s good,” I said, “and I suppose one of them is either someone in the group or related to someone.”
“Exactly,” Stewart said. “Do you know who Todd Gregory is?”
I knew I’d heard the name, but in my coffee-less state it took me a moment to dredge it up. “Burdine and Elmore’s son?”
“Yes, that’s him.”
“What happened to him?” I asked.
“He died earlier this year,” Stewart replied. “He was really unhappy, had been for years, because of depression. He was a frequent visitor to the bars in Memphis from the time he was about seventeen years old. He was fifty-one when he died, according to the obituary.”
“I’m sorry to hear about the depression,” I said. “Was it severe?”
“I believe so, especially as he got older,” Stewart said. “From what I managed to harvest from the Athena grapevine, Todd was pretty wild in his youth, like a lot of kids testing their sexuality at that age. He grew out of that phase by his mid-twenties and had a couple of long-term relationships with guys based in Memphis.”
“Why Memphis?” I asked, slightly puzzled.
“He didn’t want his parents finding out he was gay.”
“Surely they must have known,” I said.
“Knowing and acknowledging it are two different things,” Stewart said. “Todd was their only child and could do no wrong where Mummy was concerned. He was the perfect son, handsome all-American type. He even dated a few women in Athena to keep his parents happy.”
“That’s so sad,” I said. “He couldn’t be himself with his parents, and that has to weigh heavily, especially in someone who suffers from depression.”
“Yes, I think it did in his case,” Stewart said. “There’s a bit more to the story, and it involves Denis Kilbride.” He paused. “Even though they had apparently known each other from the bars in Memphis, it wasn’t until about two years ago that Todd and Denis connected. Apparently, Todd fell hard for Denis, but Denis wasn’t interested in a long-term relationship with another man. He was intent on finding a wife and keeping up his image as the proper straight businessman. That’s where Ellie Arnold eventually came in.”
“How did Todd react to this?”
“Not well,” Stewart said. “This comes from a friend of mine who knew Todd pretty well because of his parents’ chiropractic clinic. Todd really loved Denis, but Denis couldn’t handle it. Todd got more and more depressed.” Stewart paused. “According to my friend, Todd killed himself. His parents got it hushed up, though.”
My heart went out to Burdine and Elmore. I couldn’t imagine how painful it had been for them to lose their son, especially through suicide. Todd’s own pain must have been agonizing for him to end his life.
“You really have been busy,” I said around a lump in my throat. “You’ve dug up a lot. I knew I could count on you.” I paused. “If necessary, do you think your friends would share this with the police here?”
“Now, that I don’t know,” Stewart said. “If it has any bearing on the case, maybe they could be persuaded. But it might not be necessary if you flush out the killer soon.”
“Based on this information, I can see Burdine and Elmore as suspects now,” I said. “Do they blame Denis for their son’s death?”
“I should think it’s possible,” Stewart said. “I’m figuring that Todd might have finally left his parents a letter telling them why he was taking his own life. He could have indicated that Denis was partly responsible for his decision, or Burdine and Elmore could have construed it that way.”
“That’s a distinct possibility,” I said. “Or Burdine and Elmore could have found out some other way about their son’s sexuality. I find it hard to believe they were completely oblivious to it, but then some people are willfully blind to things, like you said.”
“Yes,” Stewart said. “Haskell told me Kanesha is there with you. Is that true?”
“Yes, she’s here by arrangement with the sheriff, courtesy of Miss An’gel,” I said.
“Naturally,” Stewart replied. I could see him grinning into the phone.
“Is there anything else?” I asked. “Helen Louise is expecting me downstairs for breakfast, and I’m getting desperate for caffeine.”
“Nothing else,” Stewart said cheerfully. “Ring me back when you get a chance and bring me up to date on everything.”
“Will do.” I ended the call and hurried downstairs, hoping there would still be enough food for breakfast on the buffet.
I found Helen Louise and Diesel alone in the dining room. Helen Louise filled my coffee cup the moment she spotted me. “What took so long?” she asked.
“Stewart called,” I said. “Let me grab some food, and I’ll tell you.”
The pickings were rather sparse, but I managed to score a couple of biscuits, scrambled eggs, and the last few slices of bacon. I looked at the remains of the cheese grits with great regret. Perhaps tomorrow.
Diesel immediately demanded bacon, but Helen Louise shook her head. “He’s already had two pieces.”
“I’ll give him one bite so he doesn’t pout.” I broke off a small piece and held it out to him. He sniffed it before he accepted it and inhaled it. “That’s it.”
He meowed plaintively, but I stood firm. “No. That’s it.”
He turned his back to me and stayed that way until I finished breakfast. I chuckled as I prepared my coffee with cream and sugar. I took several appreciative sips. “Ah, that’s better.” I started on my food.
Helen Louise watched me, and I knew she was burning to find out what Stewart had told me.
First, however, I wanted to share the good news about Zac. There was no one else about, not even a member of the hotel staff, so I told her.
“Wonderful,” Helen Louise said. Then her face clouded. “What if he staged this in order to make everyone think someone else tried to kill him?”
“He could have done that, I guess, but he was taking an awful risk. He could have died if Diesel hadn’t found that medicine bottle.”
“True,” Helen Louise said. “Now, what did Stewart have to say?”
In between bites of my breakfast, I told her. When I finished, she looked appalled and sad.
“What a terrible story,” she said. “Poor Burdine and Elmore. I knew their son had died, but that was all. I don’t believe there was any kind of service, and I only heard about it through the grapevine. I know a woman who was one of their patients at their chiropractic clinic.”
“Yes, their clinic. I’ve never been to a chiropractor. Have you?” I asked.
“No,” Helen Louise said. “I have friends who swear by them, though.”<
br />
“I think my mother went to one for a while,” I said as the memory suddenly surfaced.
“Given this information, I suppose it’s possible that either Burdine or Elmore, or maybe both of them together, decided to kill Denis because they blamed him for their son’s suicide,” Helen Louise said. “Horrible situation all the way around.”
“Yes, it is,” I said, my appetite suddenly gone. I pushed my plate away and picked up my coffee. I drained it and reached for the pot to refill it.
Helen Louise said, “You’ve got to tell Kanesha and Wesner about this. This puts a new spin on everything.”
“Yes, it does,” I said after a sip of coffee, “but do you really think Kanesha doesn’t already know about Todd Gregory?”
“She may be aware of some of the facts,” Helen Louise said, “but she doesn’t have Stewart’s connections in Memphis. Stewart probably picked up some bits that Kanesha doesn’t know about.”
“You’re right. I planned to talk to Kanesha,” I said. “Surely you realize that.”
“I do,” Helen Louise said. “Sorry, I’m feeling antsy. I want this to be over. I’m tired of feeling like I have to look over my shoulder all the time.”
“Me, too.” I pulled out my cell phone and called Kanesha. She answered promptly. “Good morning,” I said. “I have things to tell you. Where are you?”
“I’m with Wesner downstairs in the hotel.”
“Okay. We’re finishing breakfast. I’ll be along in a minute.” I stuffed my phone back in my pocket. “Do you want to come with me?”
Helen Louise nodded. “It may sound silly, but I’ll feel safer. I’d rather not run into Burdine and Elmore right now.”
“Can’t say as I blame you.” I downed the rest of my coffee. “Let’s go and get this over with.”
Helen Louise handed me the leash, and I led Diesel with us as we walked down the hall to the temporary headquarters for the investigation.
I knocked on the door, and Wesner called out for us to enter. “Good morning,” I said as I shut the door behind us.
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