by Alec Peche
MURDER AT THE PODIUM
By Alec Peche
Text Copyright © January 2016 Alec Peche
Published by GBSW Publishing
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Alec Peche
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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About the author:
Discover “Vials”, “Chocolate Diamonds”, "A Breck Death", "Death On A Green", and “A Taxing Death” also written by Alec Peche.
A 7th book is a work in progress for this series.
Connect with me: Friend me on Facebook http://facebook.com/AlecPeche
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www.alecpeche.com
email: [email protected]
Prologue
Barb Jordan had flown to Dallas to present data to health care executives on how they could make improvements within their hospitals. She was nervous about speaking to this room of one-hundred conference attendees. Her co-panelist, Stacy Johnson, began speaking about ten minutes ago pausing to grab a sip of water. Barb was expected to take over in another seven minutes and so she was half listening to Stacy and half imagining the audience naked to calm her nerves.
She looked over at Stacy and noted that her face was pale, she was sweating, and had paused mid-sentence in her speech. Oh no! Maybe the woman had the flu hitting her at the wrong time.
Barb leaned over and said softly, “Stacy, are you feeling okay?”
Before she could respond, Stacy slumped to the floor, clutching her stomach.
Barb and several members of the audience surged forward to render aid. Someone called 9-1-1. First the woman vomited, then she moaned, mumbled some words, and then she lay back not moving and lifeless, as members of the audience began cardio-pulmonary resuscitation. Paramedics arrived and she was soon loaded in an ambulance. The woman was young and so CPR continued all the way to the hospital even though it felt futile. The hospital continued the effort for another twenty minutes before calling it quits and she was pronounced dead.
Barb was stuck back at the conference room where the smell of Stacy’s vomit was beginning to make her feel queasy. The police had grilled her incessantly about what she knew of Stacy, the exact sequence of events. Fortunately the session was taped and so there was video footage of the incident. Mostly, Barb was freaked out about how quickly the woman she had spent two months discussing this lecture with had died. Her stage fright had completely and forever deserted her. If it ever reappeared, she would pause and think of Stacy for a few seconds. She would also never drink water from a glass at one of these conventions as that appeared to contain whatever had made Stacy so sick. Her nurse’s mind was sorting through a list of poisons trying to think of what might have been colorless, tasteless and oh so deadly.
Chapter One
Jill and Nathan were checking into the Dallas hotel attached to their conference center, looking forward to a week in Texas. The trip was part business, part pleasure. They were starting off with a wine making conference, then Jill’s friends and teammates for murder investigations would arrive for a long weekend of fun devoted to cheering on the Green Bay Packers as they took on the Dallas Cowboys for a traditional rivalry of National Football Conference opponents.
At the conference, Nathan was a featured speaker lecturing on the intricacies of a wine label and the impact on consumer spending with the right label. He was a rock star speaker having been stopped by several people while they were in the hotel lobby. Many of his clients, for whom he had designed wine labels, Jill included, were attending the conference.
As they crossed the lobby and Jill looked around at people, she realized she was playing one of her favorite mental games imagining the story of their lives. This time she did a double-take and squinted at a woman coming her way. Sure enough, when they got closer, Jill recognized a friend from her past.
“Barb Jordan! What are you doing in Texas?” Jill exclaimed.
“Hey Jill, long time no see. I haven't seen you in what - five or seven years? I'm here for a healthcare conference. This hotel is where the meeting is being held. What are you doing here?” Barb asked, looking questioningly at Jill and Nathan.
“I'm also here for a convention, but not yours. I'm attending a convention devoted to wine making which is also being held in this hotel.”
“Wine making, huh? I remember that was a passion of yours. Do you have a winery now?”
“I do. Let me introduce my boyfriend, Nathan Conroy. Nathan, this is an old and dear friend that I met perhaps a decade ago. She is actually a Facebook friend as well. Hey we were just checking in. Let us take our luggage to our room and then how about if I meet you in that lobby bar in say ten minutes and we can catch up?” Jill asked pointing to a bar off the lobby.
“That sounds like a great idea. I just had the strangest experience of my life and I’d love to pick your forensic pathologist brain - a co-panelist dropped dead of what appears to be poisoning during our presentation. I’m still shaken up by the experience.”
“OMG! What an unsettling experience! Let me drop my stuff off in our room and I'll be down to chat.”
The two women parted ways with Barb heading right to the bar and Jill arriving perhaps twenty minutes later. After ordering a glass of wine she settled in to chat with her old friend.
“Although I am anxious to hear about your experience this afternoon, tell me what you’re doing now - where are you working, how's your daughter's bar doing, and why were you giving a speech at this hotel?” asked Jill.
It was typical of Jill to launch a barrage of questions at anyone new crossing her path. While Barb was an old friend, they hadn't spoken in several years.
“I'm working for Golden Star, which is the largest group purchasing organization in the United States. I’ve hospital accounts assigned to me and I'm responsible for helping them improve a variety of metrics. Some of those metrics are supply costs while others are quality indicators. It's a real interesting job and I'm very happy with what I'm doing. Given my track record in assisting hospitals with improving their operations, I was asked to co-present on a panel with a woman named Stacy Johnson. I'll tell you more about her in a moment but let me take a minute to brag about my kids and grandkids. Kelly continues to operate a bar close to the University of Wisconsin campus. I'll help serve beer on special weekends when she has an overflow of customers. My son is working for the state utility company and he's given me two grandkids to spoil.”
“And how about your partner? Are you still with J. B.?”
“Wow Jill, you have a good memory. Yeah, J. B. is still my partner. Other than Stacy dying on me while we were giving this p
anel discussion, I’ve no complaints in life. What are you up to?”
“I left a state crime lab about five years ago to operate my own winery. I bottled my first vintage of Moscato wine last year. I also built a chemistry lab on my property for the perfection of fermentation processes and to be used for forensics. I work as a part time consultant offering a second opinion on the cause of death and I have a private investigator's license as well. I average one case a month and that has been an exciting second career. I've been dating Nathan for about two years. I met him when I needed a wine label design and he’s the best artist in the industry in my humble opinion.”
“Really? Your wine career combined with the forensic pathology sounds fascinating! Could I interest you in weighing in on what may have happened to Stacy, my co-presenter?"
“Tell me more about the case - the sequence of events, Stacy's age, her behavior before your panel started - stuff like that,” Jill requested.
Barb gave her a lengthy explanation of all she knew about Stacy and the incident that day.
“So it sounds like there was something poisonous in her water glass. Did you drink from your water glass?”
“I didn't sip from my water. I was working on getting my nerves under control by imagining everyone in the room being naked,” Barb admitted.
“Did you notice if she grimaced when she sipped her water? Did you see any indication that the water tasted different than she was expecting?”
“I had my head down and I didn’t look over at Stacy until there was an extended silence at the podium.”
“What’d you see when you looked at her?”
“She was leaning heavily on the podium and grimacing as though in pain. I figured she had a sudden attack of the flu and was about to vomit. Then she just crumbled to the floor. She vomited and then I was afraid she’d aspirated her vomit as she seemed to stop breathing. Someone began CPR, then the paramedics arrived and took her to the hospital. She was only in her mid to late thirties so I hoped they could restart her heart, but whatever poison she’d drank in the water had to be potent because she didn’t survive perhaps two mouthfuls. The police were here and questioned me for a long time and they bagged the water glass. When she fell to the floor, the podium rocked and the water tipped over and crashed to the carpet. I think the crime scene team cut out the carpet where the glass landed, so I guess their lab will have an answer as to what was in Stacy’s water.”
“Did they take your water as well?” Jill asked.
“Yes and I will be completely bummed if my water was poisoned too. It’s bad enough watching your fellow panelist die after drinking the water, but to know that I was also supposed to die is beyond scary. Who did I make angry enough in my life for them to want to kill me?”
“Was it announced in the program who was going to speak first, you or Stacy?”
“Yes it was in the program that way.”
“Sounds like the police have quite an investigation to follow and some really good leads. I know what I’d be looking for if I was a consultant on the case, but I’m not,” Jill said and then she transitioned the content of their conversation. “How about you? Are you happy with your job or do you have plans to retire anytime soon? What are you up to in life?”
“So I ran for alderman of my local city and won the election. I like my job, but I think it’s time to retire and enjoy my kids and my life. The elected position is very part time and carries a small stipend so it's not something I would switch jobs for. This panel presentation was going to be my last hurrah on the job prior to retiring. Jill, you seem very happy with where you are at this point.”
“I am happy. My personal life is great. I love my winery and my consulting job. My mother is in good health. As the saying goes, life is good. Do you remember Angela, Marie, and Jo?” Jill asked.
“I’ve remained Facebook friends with them so of course I remember them. Why?”
“Nathan and I are here for a wine industry convention, but in a few days the gang is arriving and we have tickets to the Green Bay versus Dallas game. How long are you in town?”
“My convention ends in two days and then I was going to visit a few clients in the Dallas area before heading home Saturday. I would love to meet up with you guys for a meal and drinks,” Barb said and then she dug through her purse and handed Jill a business card. “Here’s my card with my cell phone number on it; let me know when we can meet.”
“That sounds like a plan and here is my card as well,” replied Jill. The two friends shared a hug and parted ways.
Chapter Two
Jill joined Nathan in their hotel suite after her conversation with her friend. For the next several days she would be playing sidekick to Nathan’s power standing in the world of wine. She was looking forward to following in his shadow, while they socialized with the denizens of the Texas wine industry. She planned on being a sponge, absorbing all she heard or learned about the wine industry. This was the fortieth meeting of the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association which was a much smaller organization than the California Grape Growers and she had already met some controversial wine growers from the great state of Texas. Jill grew the Muscat grape and it also favored the hills region of Texas. Unfortunately it was about a five to six hour drive from Dallas, and she wouldn’t have an opportunity to tour any of those vineyards.
“How’d your meeting with your friend go? Are you getting involved in the investigation?” Nathan asked.
“We caught up with each other’s lives and then we discussed what happened during her presentation today. By the way she also knows Jo, Marie, and Angela and was excited to hear that they would be visiting in a few days. As to whether I am involved in this investigation, the answer is no. It was such an unusual murder; we couldn’t resist discussing the case.”
“That’s good; I’m glad you’re not taking on the case,” Nathan replied. “Texas is different than California. To me it has a feel of a wild frontier at times coupled with brass arrogance, and a willingness for any citizen to own at least one gun and carry it with them at all times. California has a flamboyant edge while Texas has a vibe of ‘don’t mess with me’. You also don’t have Deputy Davis here for protection. I’d rather focus on our convention and your friends’ arrival than looking over my shoulder trying to figure out if someone is going to kill you.”
“I’m sorry that my investigative cases cause you such distress. I would tell you not to worry, but I know that my telling you in no way reduces your anxiety about my safety so I’ll just say nothing and thank you for caring for me and loving me despite my fairly odd and recently dangerous occupation.”
Jill had wrapped Nathan in an embrace while she was speaking and they enjoyed each other's company, taking time for hugs and kisses. Eventually, much to his dismay, Nathan pulled away, knowing that he had to make his way to the convention; business before pleasure, as his dad would always say. He felt the urge to return to the convention and socialize with people from the Texas world of wine. He knew that an artistic rival of his from Italy would be at this convention and he was interested in meeting her for the first time. He had not lost any customers to her and he didn't like the artistry of her wine label designs, but winemaking and wine labels were very personal and unique for the winery owner.
Hand in hand they approached an outdoor patio where the reception was located. At least ten Texas-based wineries had sponsored the reception by providing their wine to the attendees. Nathan commented quietly on the quality of each wine while Jill focused on the two Moscato wine offerings. The reception was on an outside patio overlooking the grounds of the hotel and convention center. Upbeat Jazz played through the speakers surrounding the patio. The temperature was in the mid-70s with some humidity so Jill was comfortable in the short sleeves of her casual dress. Other than Nathan, Jill didn’t know a single person attending the convention. She knew she appeared to be Nathan’s significant other rather than someone from the wine industry. She suffered through a few conversations w
herein someone explained a wine industry concept or word to her. Rather than taking the time to set them straight about her own winery she just smiled and continued to listen to the conversation. That behavior was so unusual for her that during a break when Nathan and she were alone, he asked her if she wanted to be introduced as the owner of Quixotic Winery.
“Actually Nathan, I’m amused by the condescension of some of your friends and colleagues. I had to bite my tongue when one of them explained what a portable wine bottle machine was. I was dying to tell him that last year's harvest had produced five-hundred bottles at my winery. I’m not capable of acting like a passive airhead, but I’ll admit I'm having an amusing time in my acting role tonight."
Nathan wasn't sure what to make of Jill’s comment so he asked her, “Do you want to leave now?"
“No, but don't be surprised if I introduce myself as a winery owner sometime tonight. That will be when you know that the airhead is permanently retired from the stage,” Jill said graciously.
