Murder at the Mena House

by Erica Ruth Neubauer

  Seeking a clock, I realized that it was nearing dinnertime, and I freshened up in my bathroom. I had enough time to take a short bath, washing off the dust and grit, before donning a navy dress with a fitted bodice and tasteful beadwork ending in a loose, flowing skirt with several layers of chiffon. I put on a pair of cream T-strap shoes with a low heel that I was particularly fond of, and headed down to the bar for a predinner drink.

  Aunt Millie was installed at what I was beginning to think of as her regular table. It was in the perfect position for her to both observe the goings-on in the bar and quickly summon a waiter for a drink. A military general couldn’t have planned better tactical positioning. I fetched myself a gin and tonic from the bar and joined her.

  “The girls aren’t dining with you this evening?” I asked.

  Millie shot me a glare. “Of course, they are. But they needed to freshen up first.” She took a long swallow of her drink. “And where did you go gallivanting off to today?” There was never anything gained by engaging with her when she was in a temper—it only gave her satisfaction. I wondered what had put her in a mood.

  “I saw the pyramids with Mr. Redvers,” I said mildly. “And how did you spend your day?”

  She sniffed. “Well, I didn’t spend it touring around.” But her tone was less sharp. It was more than likely the mention of Redvers that had mollified her. She could only be thrilled that I had spent the day in the company of a single man.

  I noticed that she kept glaring in the direction of the bar. I followed her line of sight and my eyes rested on none other than Amon Samara. He was holding court over a pair of middle-aged women who were simply aflutter under his attentions.

  I nodded in his direction. “Have you had the chance to meet Mr. Samara yet, Aunt Millie?” I was beginning to feel like a broken record.

  My aunt’s face turned sour and she took another long swig from her glass. She spent several moments flagging down the nearest waiter for another highball before bothering to answer my question. “Of course not, Jane.” She huffed. “We have not been introduced and I have been far too busy to meet everyone in this hotel.”

  I gave a small sigh. This was one mystery that was going to go unsolved.

  The girls chose that moment to join us. Lillian bent down to buss Millie’s cheek with a kiss, instantly restoring my aunt’s good humor. I set aside contemplating my aunt’s strange behavior for the moment and decided to learn more about the girls, instead.

  “How are you, ladies?” I asked, noticing as Lillian sat that she looked a bit pale. Marie glanced worriedly at Lillian and then at Millie.

  “I’m feeling a bit ill, actually.” Lillian’s voice sounded as weak as she looked. “It came on rather suddenly.”

  “Do you think you should be up and about?” Millie toyed with her napkin. She looked as apprehensive as I’d ever seen her. “Perhaps we should get you back to your room.” Marie’s head bobbed in agreement.

  “Oh!” I suddenly recalled my earlier excursion to see Dr. Williams. “I have a powder for upset stomachs. It’s in my room. Would you like me to grab it for you?”

  Lillian nodded gratefully, and I hurried off.

  By the time I returned, a thin sheen of sweat covered Lillian’s forehead. I handed her the packet, which she gratefully swirled into a glass of water and sipped at delicately. Marie and Millie fluttered on either side of her, watching for any signs of discomfort from the girl.

  “Marie,” I finally said. I was sorry that Lillian felt ill, but I would soon go mad if all we did was sit quietly and watch Lillian drink water. It was Marie’s turn to start at being addressed. “I didn’t really answer your question about Miss Stainton last time I saw you. I apologize for cutting you off.”

  Marie looked confused at the apology, but her eyes sparked with interest. I gave her a brief sketch of how I found the body, much to my aunt’s disgust. Millie spent the entire story with her lips pursed and nostrils flared. If it weren’t for her worry over Lillian, I’m sure she would have stopped my story in its tracks. For her part, Marie hung on my every word, lips parted and moving slightly as though trying to capture the words from my mouth and put them in her own.

  When I finished, I casually asked if she had known Anna herself. I hoped that if she had any information, she would share it now that I had told her my story.

  Marie shook her head. “She was a dumb tomato. I do feel bad that she’s dead, but she really thought pretty highly of herself. You could tell she looked down on everyone. Her bank was never closed, either, if you know what I mean.”

  I certainly did not know what she meant, and I must have looked very confused, because Lillian, even paler and sweating more profusely, came to my aid with a translation.

  “She was always necking with men.”

  “Ah,” I said. I was several years past the age to have picked up the flapper lingo. Talking with Marie suddenly made me feel rather old. I glanced at Millie, who looked slightly smug, for reasons I couldn’t begin to speculate on.

  “Lillian, did you know her? Perhaps from England?” I asked, but Lillian chose that moment to double over in pain. She moaned, and both Millie and Marie hurriedly pushed back from the table and anchored her on either side. Gingerly helping her to her feet, Millie shot me a glare.

  “What did you give her, Jane? She’s even worse!” My aunt, cool and collected all her life, even when faced with poisonous insects, sounded on the verge of hysteria now.

  Lillian’s glass with the white phosphorescent glow was only half consumed.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  “I only gave her the packet the doctor gave me! It was nothing but sodium bicarbonate!” Lillian looked terrible, her face contorted in pain. I hadn’t thought for a second that the doctor might have given me something other than advertised, but now I wondered what exactly that packet contained. Marie and Millie began helping Lillian from the dining room, causing quite the stir among the gathered guests. Before leaving the table and following the others, I pulled a handkerchief from my bag and wrapped it around the packet Lillian had torn open. There appeared to be some residue caught in the corner, and I hoped it was enough to test. I quickly placed the packet into my handbag.

  Dr. Williams had been lounging at the far end of the bar, but when he caught sight of the commotion surrounding Lillian, he hurried over and took charge of the scene. I was too far behind the others to bodily stop him from interfering. I wanted to tell him to back away from Lillian until I was sure he wasn’t responsible for her current condition.

  But if that powder—or poison—was meant for me, surely his oath as a doctor meant he would help Lillian?

  Watching him with her, I had to acknowledge that Dr. Williams was excellent in a medical emergency and seemed truly concerned for Lillian. He quickly brushed Marie aside, and taking Lillian’s arm, he helped Millie haul the wretched girl from the room, firing questions at both women. I decided to keep my concerns to myself, trailing in their wake beside Marie, who was wringing her hands in distress. As we moved out of the dining room, the Parkses were just arriving. Deanna caught my eye as she and Charlie passed us, and she touched my arm.

  “Is there anything we can do?” she asked.

  I shook my head and patted her hand. “You’re a dear, but I think we’ll be fine.” I gave a quick smile and continued after our small human train.

  I caught up with Marie first. Tears were slowly rolling down her face, gathering steam until they were flowing in a tidal wave of impending disaster. I was soon partially supporting Marie as her steps became more uneven and her sobbing increased. As a whole, we were quite the production.

  Once we reached Lillian’s room, I deposited the still-sobbing Marie into an armchair in the sitting room before hurrying into the bedroom. The two double beds were neatly made, and the girls’ personal items were tidy, brushes and shoes marching in neat rows.

  “Has she taken anything?” Dr. Williams barked once they had settled Lillian on her own bed. Moaning, her arm
s clamped firmly across her stomach, she curled into the fetal position atop the bedcovers. I explained that we had given her a powder for her stomach, and with a dark look, he sent Millie running for a pitcher of water.

  Meanwhile, the doctor’s medical bag arrived in the hands of an out-of-breath hotel clerk. The doctor rummaged around, pulling a bottle from the depths that I recognized as a common emetic. Within moments, the doctor had efficiently cleared everyone from the room except Millie. I waited outside with Marie, who paced the hall for a few nerve-wracking moments before she leaned against the wall and slid to the floor without regard for her lemon chiffon dress. Her face was streaked with tears, and she was pale and shaking.

  Tense minutes passed. Finally Millie stuck her head out of the door to brief us with an update.

  “She’s gotten most of whatever it was out of her system,” she said, relief evident on her face and in her voice. She didn’t even bother with recriminations against me this time, so I knew how frightened she had been. “She’s sleeping now. I’ll take the first watch.” Her words were firm, and she closed the door just as firmly. Millie must have intuited that Marie would argue with her, and indeed Marie spent several minutes struggling with whether to barge in and make her case, but I finally convinced her that arguing with my aunt was futile. Marie settled for remaining in the hall and keeping her own vigil.

  “I’ll just wait here then, and I’ll take over when your aunt gets tired,” she said.

  I felt a bit too wrung out to argue with her, even though her plan made little sense, and I headed back to the saloon. There was no further use for me there.

  Redvers found me in the bar, nursing a much-needed drink. Charlie and Deanna seemed to have vanished once again.

  “Where you go, excitement follows.” He watched as I took a long drink.

  “I wish that weren’t the case.” I sighed. “In fact, I must say this isn’t exactly the relaxing vacation I had hoped for.”

  He agreed. “How’s the girl doing?”

  “She’ll be fine. Dr. Williams is with her. I have to admit, for all my suspicions about him, he appears to be an excellent doctor.”

  “People are always complicated. He could be an excellent doctor and still have a drug problem.”

  “Did you get confirmation on that today?” My piqued curiosity brushed aside any feelings of weariness.

  His lips quirked at the ends in response to my obvious interest. “I did. Dr. Williams appears to be a regular visitor to quite a few of the opium dens around town—and some of the seedier ones, I might add.”

  “I wonder how the hotel can afford to keep him on,” I mused.

  “They most likely aren’t aware. Or they are turning a blind eye to it. As you said yourself, in a crisis, he is an excellent doctor. It would appear that his drug use isn’t yet interfering with that. From what I was told, he’s a regular visitor—at least once or twice a week, although no one would admit to seeing Anna.”

  I mulled that over while I took in the scene at the bar. I noticed that Colonel Stainton had finally joined society, although he was on the other side of the room. As I watched, he shot a look at Redvers and me. Realizing he had been caught looking, he smiled at me weakly and abruptly turned back to the bar. I frowned.

  “That was strange. Do you think the colonel saw us watching him today? At the pyramids?” I turned to Redvers, who appeared to have also witnessed the exchange.

  “I doubt it has much to do with you,” he said carefully. “The colonel isn’t exactly a fan of mine.”

  “And what have you done to offend him lately?” I kept my tone light, but I was more than a little curious about the answer.

  “Just my usual charming self,” he answered, equally as light, but I detected his reluctance to respond. I knew there was more to the story, but I wasn’t at all sure how to get the full story from him. He was incredibly closemouthed about his affairs, and even if I asked, I doubted he would give me a straight answer. I pursed my lips for a moment and tried to decide how best to uncover what I wanted to know.

  I drained the rest of my near-empty glass and handed it to Redvers. He looked bemused.

  “I’m going to give him my condolences, and since he isn’t susceptible to your charms, I think I’ll go alone.”

  “A wise choice.”

  “In the meantime, it would be lovely if you could procure us a few more drinks.”

  He raised my empty glass in salute, and headed for the near end of the bar. I headed in the opposite direction toward Colonel Stainton.

  * * *

  A bubble of empty space surrounded him, as if his grief had its own weight and presence. It kept other patrons from jostling too close, despite his valuable bar-side real estate. He smiled warmly at my approach, and I felt my own face crease into a returning smile. Just as Redvers suggested, the colonel’s negative reaction was to Redvers, not me. I felt a bit relieved. I reached out and briefly grasped his ruddy, square hand resting atop the polished wood cane, giving it a sympathetic squeeze.

  “How are you holding up, Colonel? I’m so sorry for your loss.” I knew the words held little comfort for him, but they were the only ones I could offer. He covered my hand with his for a moment, giving it a returning squeeze before I took my hand back.

  “I’m doing as well as can be expected, my dear.” He cleared his throat. “One can’t stay in their rooms grieving forever. It’s not what my dear Anna would have wanted.” My mind immediately went to the exchange we had witnessed at the pyramids, but I couldn’t bring myself to mention it to him. Not yet, at any rate.

  “No, I’m sure she wouldn’t.” I paused. “I don’t want to upset you further, but I do have a question. I ran into Dr. Williams earlier, and he mentioned Anna. Did they know each other?” The colonel nodded and squared his chin. “Yes, they had drinks together once or twice when we first arrived,” he said. “I was disappointed when she tossed him over for some of the younger chaps. The doctor is a good man.”

  I was surprised that he thought so, given what Redvers had learned about Williams, but perhaps he didn’t know the man well.

  Colonel Stainton changed directions. “I suppose you’ve taken the opportunity to visit the pyramids by now, have you not? I know you were anxious to see them, so I hope you were able to do so.” I blanched, wondering if he had, in fact, seen us watching him; but as I studied his face, I didn’t detect anything more than polite curiosity.

  “Yes, actually. I visited them with Mr. Redvers.” I nodded toward the other end of the bar, where Redvers leaned casually against the polished wood, waiting patiently for our drinks. His dark tweed suit was an obvious cut above those surrounding him, and I took an extra moment to appreciate how well he wore the suit.

  “Oh, well . . . er, very good.” The colonel cleared his throat again. “I hope you enjoyed yourself.” His smile softened. “I’m only sorry I couldn’t take you myself.”

  I nodded. “Do you know Mr. Redvers?”

  He started at my abrupt question, then glanced down the bar. “No, I haven’t had the pleasure.” His tone was dry.

  “Oh. It seemed as though you knew each other.” He shook his head, and I was left with more questions than I had started with. Was the colonel telling the truth? Had they truly never met? I supposed I was hoping he would admit to some sort of medieval feud between the two, but it was a foolish wish.

  Our conversation had stalled. It was difficult to find a neutral topic, given what had happened, and neither of us wanted to continue treading the same ground of his daughter’s murder.

  The colonel cast his eyes quickly over the room, alighting on Zaki near the doorway at the front. “It was lovely to chat with you, my dear, but if you’ll excuse me, I’m afraid I have business with one of the staff.” He patted my arm and, hanging his cane in the crook of his elbow, fluidly wove away from me.

  At first, I assumed this was a convenient excuse to leave our awkward conversation, but I saw him meet Zaki near the entrance. The two disappe
ared from view, heads bent together in conversation.

  “He doesn’t seem to need that cane,” I muttered to myself.

  “I’m sorry?” Redvers arrived at my side and handed me a fresh drink, his hand brushing mine. I was certain the touch was unintentional, but it sparked my nerve endings just the same. Flustered, I didn’t repeat my earlier observation, but made a new one.

  “Everyone in this place is acting strangely. I can’t seem to have a normal interaction with anyone.”

  “Perhaps it’s you,” Redvers said. “Bringing out the best in people.”

  This time I did pull a face at him, and he smiled mischievously, transforming his handsome face from dangerous to boyish in the space of a heartbeat. It was a smile that quickened my pulse, but I’d be damned if I ever let him know that.

  I worried my bottom lip. Perhaps I should stop spending time with the man if I couldn’t stop myself from reacting to him. Of course, there was nothing to be done about it at the moment, so I changed the subject.

  “Lillian became much worse after I gave her the stomach powder. It’s the same one that I picked up from Dr. Williams yesterday. Do you think there’s a chance it was tampered with?”

  The smile dropped from Redvers’ face and he started toward the table where we had been sitting earlier. Before he took two steps, I reached out and placed a restraining hand on his arm. “It’s already been cleared.” It was the first thing I had noticed when I reentered the saloon.

  “Damn.” His face creased in frustration.

  I smiled and dug into my handbag. “Not to worry, though. I saved the packet.” He cocked an eyebrow and I fought the urge to wink. “Just in case. I’m not sure what good it will do, though.”

  “We’ll test it, of course.” He looked extremely pleased. “See what exactly the doctor intended for you to take.”

  “Are you telling me you also have a chemistry set in your room? For late-night experiments?”

  “If I did, the hotel would no longer be standing. No, I should have said, I can have it tested. And I know just the person. I’ll take it to him tomorrow.”