Sinner or Saint

by Brenda Donelan

  “That’s all,” Bettina scoffed as she brought the coffee pot to the table and filled everyone’s mugs. “Sounds clear as mud.”

  Marlee picked up a black marker and wrote Patrick Rafferty and Mary Catherine Rafferty below Kelsey’s name and drew arrows between them. “We know she wasn’t their daughter but pretended to be.” Then she wrote down the names of the Raffertys’ other two daughters and put question marks by their names. “Who knows if they’re even related?”

  The three looked at each other, quietly sipping their coffee. “What happens now?” Bettina asked. “Is this how your brainstorming chart usually works?”

  “Very funny. You’re a detective, you know how it works. Usually we have more information than this to add,” Marlee said with a grimace.

  “Let’s look at this from another angle. What brought Kelsey to Elmwood? Conrad Thayer, right?” Hector stood and walked toward the sliding glass door, looking into the dark night.

  “Right. And he supposedly hired Ian O’Sullivan to procure the pipe and emeralds and Kelsey was used to transport them,” Marlee said. “But why? Conrad could afford to buy pipes and emeralds here in the U.S. at any price if he wanted. Why go through the charade of having Kelsey bring them, especially when they were worthless?”

  “And why the charade of her posing as the Raffertys’ daughter at the B&B? There’s no way that was a coincidence,” Bettina said. “Was she planted there?”

  Marlee laughed, but Hector nodded. “I think you’re on to something, Bettina. Marlee is involved in all of this somehow, and the involvement began back in Ireland. Actually, I wonder if it began before she even got there.” Hector continued pacing in front of the window.

  “You think I was the mark?” Marlee’s eyes widened with the realization that the plot involved more than smuggling fake emeralds.

  “Maybe not the actual mark, but you were instrumental in this whole thing coming together. Somebody wanted you in the middle of it. Maybe to take the blame or just bring all the pieces and parts together,” Hector surmised. “But why?”

  “Who would want you to get into legal trouble?” Bettina asked.

  Marlee snorted. The list continued to grow over her past several years at Midwestern State University. “Della would like to see me knocked down a peg. I don’t think she’s evil enough to get me sent to prison, but she’s pissed that I’m coming up for promotion to full professor soon, and she’s been stuck at associate professor for years even though she’s been in the department longer than anyone else. She’d like to see my promotion derailed.”

  “All of this just to hold you back at work?” Hector asked. “Seems a little extreme.”

  “That’s how it works in academia. Professors are like crabs in a barrel. As soon as one tries to better themselves, the others pull them back down to their level.” Her mind replayed numerous instances of professors’ careers torpedoed by jealous colleagues in their own department.

  “So, Della’s link to Conrad is what brought this all about? What’s his motive other than love for Della?” Bettina asked.

  “He’s disliked me since I first met him a few years ago. Conrad’s a pompous ass, and I’ve never hesitated to let him know it. He gets a kick out of throwing around his money and tries to make everyone else feel inferior. I don’t fall for his little games, usually, so he hates that he can’t control me. I helped figure out that his sister was a crook, and that put a spotlight on him and some of his shady dealings. Conrad hasn’t been charged with anything yet, but I suspect the added scrutiny has slowed up some of his unethical practices in securing his precious collectibles.” Marlee drained her cup of coffee and poured another.

  “So, Della and Conrad together came up with this elaborate plan to involve you in an emerald-smuggling operation involving the whole Rafferty family, Kelsey, and Ian O’Sullivan? And it ends in Kelsey’s death? I don’t think so.” Bettina shook her head and frowned.

  “Maybe Kelsey’s death was an accident. Or it was never intended, but then whoever ran her off the road felt they had to because everything went wrong,” Hector suggested.

  Darkness turned to twilight as the three worked on the crime chart, dismissing every theory suggested. “I have to get back to the office,” Bettina finally said, checking the time on her phone.

  “Me too,” Hector said, a hint of reluctance in his voice. “I’ll let you know as soon as we find out anything.”

  Marlee nodded, doing her best to act disappointed that the two detectives were leaving. “I’ll hang out here and do some more Internet searches on Kelsey Sheehan.”

  Bettina and Hector had no sooner departed when Marlee placed a call to her cousin. “Get dressed, Bridget. I’ll pick you up in fifteen minutes. I need your computer expertise.”

  A grumbly Bridget plopped down in the passenger seat of the loaner car provided by Marlee’s insurance company. Bridget gave her the evil side eye. “This better be good. My first class isn’t until noon, and I was going to sleep in.”

  Marlee handed her a slice of breakfast pizza and a large coffee. “I got breakfast for us when I filled up the gas tank.” As Bridget nibbled at the pizza and sipped her coffee, Marlee gently informed her of Kelsey’s death.

  “And they think it was murder?” Bridget asked, wiping away a tear rolling down her cheek. “I knew Kelsey was a girl with a lot of problems, but I never thought…” She threw the majority of the uneaten pizza slice on the floorboards.

  “Hector found out that Kelsey Sheehan was an actress and had no known association to the Rafferty family. Somebody hired her to play the part of their daughter and to smuggle fake emeralds, which isn’t even technically smuggling since the synthetic emeralds have very little value.” Marlee steered the compact sedan outside the city toward the Sommerset development. The roads, coated with newly fallen snow, weren’t plowed yet, and the vehicle fishtailed when they turned a corner.

  “Who would do that? And why?” Bridget’s confusion mirrored Marlee’s from a few hours ago. The only difference was that some of Marlee’s shock had worn off while Bridget was still dealing with hers.

  “That’s what we’re going to find out. Everything connects in one way or another to Conrad Thayer.”

  Bridget shook her head. “It’s not even 7:00 a.m. He won’t be up for hours.”

  “That’s what I’m counting on,” Marlee said as she parked a block away from the Thayer mansion. “Come on. And be quiet!”

  The McCabe cousins trudged through the snow toward Conrad’s home, careful to avoid streetlights. Marlee hoped they wouldn’t be spotted by neighbors up early getting ready for work, not that a lot of the Sommerset residents had to work. They approached a back door, one that was used as a service entrance for deliveries.

  Marlee took her lock-picking tools from her coat pocket and went to work on the back door. For a rich man, Conrad’s lock was surprisingly simplistic. No doubt, he believed his Dobermans provided him with adequate security. The McCabe cousins were inside within thirty seconds, closing the door behind them.

  From previous visits to the Thayer home, Marlee recalled seeing a computer in the study on the main floor. Once inside the room, Marlee sat at the desk chair while Bridget looked around the room with the light from her cell phone. It took less than a minute to find a scrap of paper under the keyboard with the current and former passwords. She typed in DELLA4EVER and was able to gain access to the documents on the desktop computer. “For a computer genius, this guy’s a nitwit,” Marlee whispered over her shoulder to Bridget.

  Scrolling through the documents on Conrad’s computer, she noticed nothing out of the ordinary. She stood up and turned the computer over to her cousin.

  Bridget tapped away at the keyboard, realizing anything incriminating was under the name of something ordinary that no one would be interested in looking at. She spent what seemed like hours but was only twenty minutes before she opened a document entitled ‘UTILITIES 2017’ and found more than she expected. Before Bridget could fully
grasp the contents of the document, Conrad’s two dogs ran into the room barking as if there were intruders on the premises. Marlee smiled, as she’d prepared for this very situation. Reaching into her coat pocket, she pulled out a wad of greasy napkins and tossed the dogs each a slice of breakfast pizza.

  “That’s how you handle dogs,” Marlee whispered to Bridget as the dogs lapped up the delicious breakfast treat. She wasn’t worried about the barking, knowing Conrad would be in an alcohol-induced deep sleep for the next few hours.

  “What about me?” A deep voice came from the darkened doorway. “Did you bring something for me too?”

  For two smart people, Marlee and Bridget sure do a lot of dumb things. They’d never last a day on the streets.

  Chapter 32

  Conrad’s six-foot-six bodyguard stood in the doorway, his bulky frame consuming the entire entryway. “Weren’t expecting me, huh?” Ralph asked as he walked toward the computer.

  Marlee ran toward the door only to be grabbed by Ralph and tossed into a chair like a ragdoll. “Try that again, and I’ll use my Taser on you.”

  Marlee and Bridget stared at each other, unsure what to do. Neither had given any thought to the fact that Ralph might be on duty since he was only around intermittently. Now, they were faced with a dire situation and no easy solution. Ralph would either call the police or wake up his drunken boss, who would call the cops himself. Either way, this wasn’t looking good for the McCabe cousins.

  “So, what now?” Marlee asked, looking at Ralph. She’d only seen him at the house twice before and didn’t have much of a read on him.

  Ralph glared at Marlee and Bridget as he scratched his chin. “I’m thinking.” He may have won the lottery in the physique department but seemed to fall short in brains.

  “You could let us go. We really haven’t caused any harm,” Marlee said, attempting to talk her way out of the situation. “Bridget and I just wanted to take another look at Conrad’s antique book collection, but we couldn’t find the right room.”

  “So, you decided to log into his computer instead?” Ralph motioned Bridget away from the computer. “I’m not buying it. What are you two really up to?”

  He’s not as dumb as I’d hoped, Marlee thought as her mind raced. “Okay, I’ll come clean. I teach in the same department as Conrad’s girlfriend, Della. She’s been a thorn in my side for years, and I just wanted something to hold over her head. You know, incriminating photos of her and Conrad that she wouldn’t want made public.”

  A surprisingly high-pitched laugh emanated from Ralph’s burly throat. “Not buying that either. I think it’s time to try out my new Taser!” He glanced at the device, held in his right hand, and turned it on.

  “Ralph, think fast!” Marlee yelled as she threw a piece of breakfast pizza toward the bodyguard’s face.

  Startled, Ralph dropped the Taser and blocked the flying pizza with his right hand. Bridget took the opportunity to lunge toward the Taser. She landed on her stomach and rolled upward to point the Taser toward Ralph’s crotch before hitting the switch.

  “Oh, my nuts!” Ralph shrieked as he fell to the floor, drawing his knees up to his stomach.

  “One more time, Bridget!” Marlee yelled, worried the bodyguard would regain his composure and come after them.

  Bridget hit the button, Tasing Ralph in the shoulder. He stopped moaning and moving but was still breathing. “Let’s get out of here!”

  “Holy shit!” Marlee exclaimed as they breathlessly jumped into Marlee’s rental car and sped away. “That was close. Nice work on getting the Taser and knowing how to use it.”

  “How many slices of breakfast pizza did you have in your coat?” Bridget asked.

  “I bought a whole pizza and wrapped the slices into napkins. There’s still some left if you want it.” Marlee felt inside her jacket pocket and found the remaining slices had slid from the napkins encasing them. Cheese stuck to her pocket lining and sausage crumbles rolled around. “Never mind.”

  Back at the house, the McCabe cousins set up their laptops side by side at the dining room table. Bridget pulled a USB drive from her pocket and brought up the documents she’d copied from Conrad’s desk computer. “To be on the safe side, I copied as many documents on his computer as I could before Ralph barged in.”

  “What did you find?” Marlee asked.

  “This document starts off with information about Conrad’s utility bills, but then on the third page, there’s a step-by-step list of things to do, and your name is mentioned.”

  “My name? What does it say about me?”

  Bridget held up her hand officiously as she scrolled through the document. “Apparently, this is some type of game Conrad is developing. The working title of the game is ‘Mystery Box’.” She continued to scroll and read, updating Marlee with the new information as she went along. “Players receive information through the mail and online to solve a mystery. They can also opt for the ‘total immersion’ package where actors insert themselves into the clients’ everyday lives and provide clues and red herrings.”

  “So, this whole thing with Kelsey was a game? Why was I involved? I never signed up to play one of his wackadoodle games! Besides, why would someone pay to have people come into their lives and mess with them?” Marlee said.

  “People with too much time and too much money?” Bridget guessed. “He has a fairly lengthy list of potential clients in an Excel file. I don’t recognize any of the names, but they’d be easy enough to check out.”

  “What about the actors he was using for this charade?” Marlee asked.

  “Also listed here on another tab in this file,” Bridget said pulling up the requested information. “Right here: it’s Kelsey Sheehan.”

  Marlee peered over her cousin’s shoulder, scanning the list of actor names. Also listed were the Rafferty family and Ian O’Sullivan.

  Bridget gasped, still reading and scrolling through Conrad’s documents. “Aha! Here’s a draft for an advertisement about Mystery Box. Look at this part right here,” she said, pointing to large black text under a haunting photo of a house in the fog.

  THINK YOU CAN SOLVE THE MYSTERY? DON’T BE SO SURE. MYSTERY BOX HAS OUTSMARTED POLICE DETECTIVES AND CRIMINOLOGY PROFESSORS!

  “So, this was all for a stupid game? Conrad has been playing us the whole time, through Kelsey, Ian, and the Raffertys. But why?”

  Bridget and Marlee looked at each other, their minds sifting through the new information. “But how would Conrad know that I was going to Dublin? Or where I’d be staying? Della must be involved too. She could’ve told him about Dublin, but I didn’t share much else with her about my research or my trip.”

  “Maybe Della broke into the dean’s office and found out the particulars. Or accessed his computer somehow,” Bridget suggested.

  “Nah, Della’s not that sharp with computers, and I don’t think she could be quiet enough to break in. Plus, she’d bring her dogs with her, so everyone would know what she was up to.” Marlee said.

  “But Conrad’s smart enough to hack into the dean’s computer,” Bridget said.

  “Sure, but why?” Marlee’s question hung in the air as the wheels in her brain began to click. “Why access the dean’s computer when he could just hack into mine? I had all my travel and lodging information right here.” She pointed to the laptop Midwestern State University provided her for her research trip. “Conrad could’ve hacked into my computer and found out where I’d be staying.”

  “It seems pretty coincidental that the Rafferty B&B was open to having an actor play their daughter,” Bridget said.

  “A little too coincidental, if you ask me. I think we need some answers from Conrad.”

  “I’ll bring the Taser,” Bridget said, lifting the device from her coat pocket.

  Come to think of it, Marlee was the only one I could trust.

  Chapter 33

  Hector came back to Marlee’s house just as she and Bridget were leaving to confront Conrad about his Mystery B
ox game and find out how and why it involved Marlee. “Wanted to stop in and let you know the initial toxicology screen on Kelsey showed a deadly amount of fentanyl in her system. It’s a surprise she could drive at all. There wasn’t any Oxy, which was a surprise. The complete autopsy will be done later today, and we’ll know more then.”

  “You still think her death was intentional? If she was zonked out on drugs, then she probably rolled the vehicle after losing control in the new snow. She didn’t have much driving experience,” Marlee said.

  “The driver side of your SUV was damaged by another vehicle. We could tell by the dents and the paint residue. The quantity of drugs in Kelsey’s system might have killed her anyway. Somebody wanted her dead.” Hector stood in the entryway of Marlee’s house, looking around. When they didn’t speak, he began reiterating old facts about the case.

  The McCabe cousins nodded along, listening to Hector recount the details of the story that they all knew. Marlee tapped her foot as they waited for Hector to leave.

  “Did you two find out anything in your computer search?” He glanced at the open laptops on the table.

  “Nope,” Marlee said.

  “Still looking,” Bridget commented, looking down at the carpet.

  “Okay, then. Guess I’ll head back to the station,” the detective said, realizing he wouldn’t be offered so much as a cup of coffee.

  After Hector left, Bridget grabbed for her coat, which was slung across the back of a dining room chair. “Hold up, Bridget. Let’s wait a bit before we leave.”

  “Why? Don’t you want to talk to Conrad right away? He might sober up if we wait too long.”

  “Good point, but Hector’s waiting for us to leave, so he can follow us. I saw the look on his face when he left. He knows that we know something. Let’s go to The Depot and grab some breakfast while we wait him out.”

  Marlee drove her loaner car to The Depot, located on Main Street, one of the many one-way streets in downtown Elmwood. “Hector won’t be able to spy on us from afar. He’ll have to park within a short distance to see where we go. And if he can see us, then we can see him.”