The Tainted Course

by Diane Weiner

  Chapter 6

  Henry got home before Emily and Maddy. He poured Meow Mix into Chester’s bowl, then foraged through the fridge and pantry. He hoped to whip up a nice dinner and surprise his girls but wasn’t having much luck. Spaghetti with veggie meatballs? He searched for a pot. They’d recently had the kitchen renovated and nothing was where it used to be. He heard the door open.

  “Henry, I’m home,” said Emily. She took off her coat and came into the kitchen. “Don’t tell me you’re cooking for us?”

  “Nothing elaborate.” Henry found a pot, filled it with water, and set it on the stove.

  “We have salad veggies in the fridge. It’ll be just great. Besides, it’s not like we can hop over to Coralee’s for dinner, is it?”

  “Unfortunately, no.”

  “Poor Coralee is beside herself. I hope the police clear her place soon. She’s losing business left and right. As a matter of fact, I stopped for coffee at the new place and the owner has a full house thanks to this scandal. What a way to drum up business.”

  “You’re not suggesting the new owner had anything to do with this, are you?”

  “Just grasping at straws.”

  “Remember Coralee’s employee, Arturo Rivera? The one who made a scene at dinner about Faith Maguire having his sister deported?”

  “Yes. I’m guessing he’s a suspect.”

  “I treated him in the ER today. Last night he got into a bar fight.”

  “So he has a temper. He had means and motive…”

  “Yeah, but he’s a hot head. Poisoning the cheesecake took concentration and a level head, don’t you think? Besides, I didn’t get the feeling he was a killer, just a brother upset over losing his sister.”

  “I don’t know what to think. The whole incident is surreal. It still could be a random act. No one has ruled that out.” said Emily.

  Maddy came in cuddling Chester.

  “How was school today?” asked Emily.

  “It was school. We had a moment of silence for Ava’s mother.”

  “Ava wasn’t in school, was she?”

  “No. I texted her and she’s with Tilly and Mila. Her Dad is here.”

  “I’m sure having her father here is a comfort,” said Emily.

  Henry salted the water and broke spaghetti into the pot. “Maddy, can you hand me a jar of sauce from the pantry?”

  Maddy complied. “I hope he doesn’t take Ava and Mila back to Georgia. Ava loves school and it sounds like Mila does, too. I forgot that Jessica is her teacher. I should call her.”

  “I’m sure she’s heard, but she works with kids. Maybe she knows the right things to say to help Mila.” Emily set the table, stopping when she heard a knock. “I’ll bet it’s Kurt. He has a knack for dropping by at meal time.”

  “That’s because he takes Prancer for a walk at this time every day,” said Maddy. Emily translated the comment into haven’t you figured out the pattern by now, dummy?

  Prancer was an affectionate Chocolate Lab. Maddy adored him; Chester, not so much. His usual reaction was to hiss, then run and hide. Sometimes he skipped the hissing and ran straight under Maddy’s bed.

  “Hey, Kurt. Come on in,” said Emily. She was amazed that he was walking Prancer wearing only a flannel shirt. Kurt said growing up in Minnesota had hardened him to the cold.

  “I went by Coralee’s earlier and saw the police out front. Do you know if something happened?” Prancer licked Maddy’s hand as she reached over to pet him.

  “It’s been all over the news. Faith Maguire, the new school superintendent, died after eating tainted cheesecake from Coralee’s. We ate with her the very night it happened.”

  “Really? That’s awful. What do you mean by tainted cheesecake? Sour milk or something?”

  “No,” said Emily. “Someone deliberately added an overdose of diabetes medication to her dessert. She took it home and must have eaten it later that night. The housekeeper found her in the morning.”

  “Do they have any suspects? That charter school tried to open but Maguire went all the way to the state board to stop it. Happened just last month. Lots of angry investors.”

  “Right now, Arturo Rivera, Coralee’s handyman, waitress Summer Martin, and the owner of the new inn are in the crosshairs.”

  Henry came out of the kitchen. “The owner of Smyth Haven? When did she become a suspect?”

  Emily said, “She’s not, really. It’s my own hunch. She had a lot to gain by hurting Coralee’s business.”

  Kurt said, “Arturo Rivera? It ain’t him. I know him. He’s done work on my cabin and my rental place. He’s a good guy.”

  Henry said, “Want to stay for dinner?”

  “Nah, thanks anyway. I’ve got leftovers in the fridge.”

  “Dinner’s ready,” said Henry. “Come on, you can have your leftovers for breakfast.”

  Kurt grumbled. “I could do that. Whatcha got?”

  “Spaghetti and salad.”

  “Meatballs?”

  “Not real ones.” Emily glared at him. “I mean, we have environmentally, cruelty-free meatballs.”

  “Kurt, have you heard from Chloe?”

  “Yeah. She’s getting started on her dissertation. She’ll be home for a visit in the summer.”

  Emily said, “Picking a topic and getting it approved is the hardest part. If she has a good advisor it’ll go smoothly.”

  “Hope so. The girl’s always studying or writing every time I call. Let me try one of those fake meatballs.” Maddy passed him the bowl.

  “Do you think Prancer wants one?”

  “That dog will eat just about anything. By the way, how’s the cat café doing?”

  “Great. All the original cats were adopted within the first few months and the turnover has continued to be quick. There are only four now, but it’ll be kitten season soon enough. I’m going to promote the two for one concept. Adopt cat siblings, twice the fun. Something like that.”

  No sooner had they finished eating, Emily’s phone vibrated. “It’s Coralee.” She stepped into the living room. “Slow down. Did you call the police? They talked to her? If it’ll make you feel better, I’ll be right there.”

  She went into the kitchen and ate the last few bites of dinner. “I’m sorry, but I have to run over to Coralee’s.”

  “Do what you have to do,” said Henry. “I’ll put the leftovers in the fridge. You can heat up more later if you’re still hungry.”

  She let Kurt out on her way to the car. Coralee had said the police took a statement. She wasn’t sure what help she’d be, but she knew Coralee was falling apart over all this. That’s what friends are for, she guessed. In her heart she knew Coralee would do the same.

  When she got to the inn, Coralee was at the front desk. “Thanks for coming. Would you mind coming with me to talk to the guest?”

  “No problem.” She followed Coralee down the hall.

  An elderly lady opened the door. “Is this your friend?”

  “Yes, this is Emily Fox.”

  “Tova Rosenbloom. The police didn’t take me seriously. I know I had another bottle of my medication in my suitcase. I always travel with extra.”

  “You told the police. What did they say?” asked Emily.

  Coralee interjected. “He acted like she was a senile old lady. I don’t think he took her seriously.”

  “He? That doesn’t sound like Ron Wooster?”

  “Of course not. The new rookie they hired,” said Coralee. “I was thinking you and I could help Tova look for it.”

  “Are you here by yourself?” asked Emily.

  “No, my son and his family are in the room next to me. They went out to the movies tonight. I told them I was too tired to go. Here, this is my suitcase where I keep my extra meds.” She opened the zippered pouch and took out Excedrin, Cortaid Cream, allergy pills, and half a bottle of cough syrup.

  “What’s this?” said Coralee. She took out an empty prescription bottle.

  “See? Those were my
extra blood sugar pills but they’re all gone. I know the policeman didn’t believe me when I told him it was full when I packed.”

  Emily said, “Coralee, you shouldn’t have touched it. Maybe there were fingerprints.”

  “The rookie picked it up with his bare hands. No gloves or anything. I’m not the first to touch it.”

  “Do you keep medication anywhere else like in your purse, or in the bathroom?”

  She opened her purse. “Well, just some Tums and my blood pressure pills in here.” She showed Emily a plastic pill case.

  “If you kept your blood pressure meds in here, why not the diabetes pills?”

  “I don’t know. They were in the bottle in my suitcase.”

  Coralee said, “What about in the bathroom?” She opened the bathroom door and saw pills spilled on the counter. “Are these them?”

  “No, those are my thyroid pills. The rest are in my make-up bag.”

  Coralee unzipped the bag to make sure the missing meds weren’t inside. “I’ll call the detectives tomorrow and get back with you,” said Coralee.

  “Thank you for believing me.” She closed the door and Emily heard her attempt to get the chain into the latch several times before the jingling stopped. They went back to the lobby.

  “What do you think?” asked Coralee.

  “She seems a little…” She searched for a euphemism for senile. “She seems a little disorganized if you ask me.”

  “Well, maybe. It’s just she was so insistent. Thanks for coming over.”

  “Anything you need, call me.”

  The bell over the door tinkled. A young man, his wife, and son came inside. The man said, “Is it too late to get some hot chocolate?”

  “Nope. I always keep some hot chocolate in the kitch…in my room. I’ll get you some. Emily, this is Tova’s family.”

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “You know my mother?”

  “I’m a friend of Coralee’s. Your mother swears she had her diabetes meds stolen. She felt like the police didn’t take her seriously, so I came over to help Coralee check it out.”

  The wife said, “Her diabetes meds?” She opened her purse and took out a pill bottle organized by day of the week. “You mean these?”

  The husband said, “Mom has a touch of dementia. She doesn’t remember what she took when. My wife keeps her pills and gives them to my mother on the correct schedule. The pills Mom has in her room are placebos, just so she can feel like she’s in charge of them.”

  “But thanks for taking her seriously,” said the wife.

  “I’m glad you cleared this up for us,” said Coralee. “In the morning, call the police station and tell them what you told us. Before they invest time into investigating her stolen meds.”

  “She had the police come out for this? I’ll have to apologize to them.”

  Coralee said, “Why don’t you go get comfortable in your room and I’ll bring by some hot chocolate in a few minutes.”

  The father scooped up the little boy. “Thanks. If he stays awake that long.”

  When they were out of earshot, Emily said, “Mystery solved.”

  “Thanks again. I’ll go work on the hot chocolate.”

  Coralee went upstairs to her room. Emily zipped her jacket and was about to go outside when another guest approached her.

  “Excuse me, but I couldn’t help overhearing. My friends call me Bear. I saw something the night the lady was killed.”

  “Saw something? Did you talk to the police?”

  He cleared his throat. “Not yet. Anyway, I was taking a walk the night it happened and got back around dinner time. I saw someone suspicious peeking in the ground floor window. The one overlooking the golf course.”

  “Where the dining room is?”

  “Yeah. I’ll show you.”

  She zippd her jacket and followed him out to the porch. “Over there?”

  “Yeah.” He walked around the side of the inn with Emily behind him. He led her to the dining room window. “He or she was standing right here looking in.”

  “What time was it?”

  “It was 7:28. I was determined to get to my room in time for Jeopardy so I checked.”

  “Can you describe the person?”

  “He or she was wearing a hoodie with a puffy black jacket on top. I couldn’t see the face, but he was shorter than me, not slim, unless it was the puffy jacket that made him look bigger than he was.”

  “Why didn’t you tell the police?”

  He looked at the ground. “I’m sort of hiding out here. My ex is after me for child support and I think she’s got a warrant out for me.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Please don’t report me. As soon as I find a job I’m going to catch up, I swear.”

  Emily shook her head, then went over to the window. There were cigarette ashes on the ledge. “Was the person smoking?”

  “Yeah, as a matter of fact.”

  Emily walked back around the side. “I’ll keep your secret if you get the information to the police.”

  “I can make an anonymous call, but if they come snooping around, I’m outta here.”

  “Okay. That’s valuable information. The back door to the kitchen is right around the corner from the window.”

  Bear went inside, and Emily headed back to the car, then turned around. It wouldn’t hurt to check out the area around the back door. She jogged around the window to the back. She spotted cellophane on the ground, like a cigarette package wrapper. And something else. Metal. She picked it up. It looked like the metal grasp for a zipper. She put on her leather gloves and picked it up. In the morning, she’d take it right to the station.

  Chapter 7

  The next morning, Henry went to the hospital. Emily told him about the ashes on the window ledge and asked him to check whether or not Arturo smoked. Not that patients didn’t lie about their bad habits, but he’d promised he’d check. He sorted through the records for Arturo’s medical history. Yep. Arturo smoked.

  While he was in the records, he thought he’d check one more thing. Faith’s daughter, Mila. Had she been here before with her seizures? Did the housekeeper know what to do if she had another seizure? She didn’t live with her father. Was he aware of how to handle a seizure? He searched…Mila Maguire.

  He scrolled through. Six times. She’d been through the emergency room six times since last September. Various tests had been run but they were inconclusive. He hated feeling helpless when tragedy struck. Keeping on top of Mila’s health was a tangible way to help. Poor little girl was going through enough dealing with losing her mother. Deep in his thoughts, Pat startled him.

  “Hey, buddy. Going through records? Not busy enough for you in the ER?”

  “I was just checking on a few things. Any progress on your proposal plans?”

  “I was thinking maybe a fortune cookie with the ring inside. I could take her to…”

  “To a romantic Chinese restaurant like China Dragon? The one next to ShopRite over in the strip mall? The one with the take-out counter in front?”

  “I was thinking Disfrutar. She loves all things Spanish.”

  “Meh.”

  “Okay, okay. I’ll go back to the drawing board.”

  “Coralee called Emily over last night. A guest reported her medication stolen, but it turned out to be a false alarm.”

  “I spoke to Megan this morning. She said they finished their investigation of Coralee’s kitchen. It was clean. No other contaminated foods or ingredients. She can reopen the dining room.”

  “That’s good. Coralee works hard to keep that place running and to support her and her son.”

  “Doesn’t that son of hers have a real job yet?”

  “I think he’s taking classes at St. Edwards. I know he helps run the inn.”

  “I gotta get going. I have to write up my report on Faith Maguire so the police can release the body to the next of kin.”

  “Her parents?”

  “The ex-hu
sband. Megan said they couldn’t find any living relatives other than the girls, of course. And they’re under age.”

  Henry put on his white coat and went to work. He was surprised to see Arturo Rivera in the first cubicle.

  “I didn’t expect to see you back here.”

  “I know you said to let the swelling go down, but last night it started bleeding and I got worried.”

  Henry examined his broken nose and looked in his throat. “Have you been resting?”

  “I had to go back to work. I was making repairs on the inn all afternoon.”

  “No physical exertion for a few days. And ice it through tomorrow.”

  “Can you write me a note?”

  A note? Like for the teacher? He cleared his throat. “I’ll say you need to rest and avoid physical exertion.” He felt bad that Arturo worried Coralee would doubt him. “By the way, I checked your records and it says you smoke. You certainly shouldn’t smoke with all the inflammation in your nasal passages and chest.”

  “I know. I’d pretty much quit even before the fight. Maria Luz was always on my back about my smoking.”

  “That night we saw you at the inn when we were having dinner, after you got upset with Faith Maguire, where did you go? The bar fight wasn’t until much later.”

  “I was in my room trying to cool off. I stayed in until after the late news on TV. Then I went to the bar.”

  Henry scribbled a note. “You can give this to Coralee. No physical exertion for a few days. Maybe you can help her with paperwork or something.”

  “Gracias, Doc.”

  “And ice. Get ice from Coralee. Twenty minutes on, twenty off.”

  Henry went back to work, planning on putting in half a day. Later in the morning, Megan dropped by.

  “Hi, Megan. Pat’s down in the morgue.”

  “I know. I had to check a few things with you for the investigation.” She showed Henry a report. “Arturo Rivera says you treated him for a broken nose and cracked ribs after the bar fight.”

  “That’s right.”

  “He told us he didn’t leave the inn until about midnight, when he went to the bar and he sustained the injuries there.”