by Emily Selby
'We don't know much about him, but preparedness seems to be one of his strengths. Or weaknesses,' Katie said. 'How long were they together before she disappeared and why did she run away?'
'They were married for about eighteen months. She left because she found him difficult to live with. According to her, Benjamin was rigid, set in his ways, preoccupied with financial wealth, very risk-averse. And she didn't like living in London. She says they didn't have a social life at all. She missed her home in Ireland. And she missed having fun.'
Now, that sounded much more like a nearly ex-wife than puffy eyes and trembling lips.
'Do you think she had a motive to kill him?'
'Why do you think anyone killed him?'
Katie blinked. She inspected Chris' broad face for any signs of teasing her. 'I thought we were treating the death as suspicious, murder?'
Chris took a deep breath. The door opened with a screech and Jack walked in.
'That's the man to ask,' Chris said, clearly relieved. 'Here it is, sir. Sorry, it's taken me a while. I've been cross-examined by Katie.'
Jack shifted his gaze from Chris to Katie and back to Chris again. 'Can you take it in and read it to her? Check if she recognises any of the items and if anything’s missing.'
'Yes, sir.' Chris nodded and was out of the door.
'What was it?' Katie asked, carefully preparing her next set of questions. She wasn't going to let go of this opportunity!
'A list of what we found in his briefcase and in his property at the Fischers' house.'
'Did you find anything unusual?'
'Not really. The pillbox, empty. Tuesday's Financial Times. A packet of tissues. An inhaler. A wallet with his debit card and a couple of bills. I'm more interested in things that we didn't find, though.'
'Such as?'
'The new will, or, if I am to believe his wife, a codicil to the existing will. The rest of his pills, and his mobile phone. We've tried tracing it, but it's been powered off since Tuesday night.'
Katie sighed inwardly. Jack's questions were much better than hers.
'What about the pillbox? Where there any fingerprints on it?' Katie asked, a sudden influx of inspiration hitting her.
'His, someone else's underneath them, very likely his fiancée’s but too smudged for an ID. And two corners clean.'
'Two corners clean? What do you mean?'
'I mean no fingerprints at all. Maybe by chance, maybe by design.'
'Someone might have wiped the surface clean?'
'Potentially.'
Okay, she was maybe... just maybe regaining her powers of deduction.
'What about the missing pills? How do you know there were more pills in the box?' Katie asked.
'According to his fiancée, Mr Fischer could become a little confused. He had a bad habit of swallowing his pills without looking at them. He was prescribed a lot of medication - a handful of pills, as he often described it. His fiancée reported that she prepared his pillbox on Friday morning before he left home. She did the same thing every week. And she always double-checked what she put in the box. She claims she'd put all his regular medication in his evening box, as per his prescriptions.'
Katie inhaled sharply.
'But before you say anything about it, may I just offer that Miss MacGregor doesn't benefit from Mr Fischer's death as much as she would have, had they got married before he died,' Jack said smoothly.
'Yes, but what if she got tired of waiting? How much longer might he have lived?'
'The doctor says, anything from a few months, up to a year. She claims she loved "her Benj", as she called him, dearly and worried about his health. She cried all the way through the interview.'
A bolt of jealousy tightened Katie's throat. Was he defending her because she was so pretty?
Keep it under control, Katie!
She clasped her hands on her stomach and pursed her lips.
What were the other questions she wanted to ask him?
'Is Miss MacGregor off your list of suspects?' Katie asked as calmly as she could.
Jack cocked his head. 'Are you all right, Katie?'
'Beside being disappointed that I've missed so much today, yes. How about you?'
Jack ran his hand through his hair, mussing it to a delightful straight-out-of-bed look. He shook his head in apparent frustration. 'I'm a bit overloaded with information. These women were exhausting. And they are so alike, I'm struggling to keep track of who said what.'
Katie swallowed. The knot on her throat loosened a little. 'Cup of tea?'
Jack grinned. 'That would be great, but not now.' He hunched. 'I've got to go back to the interview room and wrap it up. But I'd love a cup of tea and your company.'
'I'd love that, too,' Katie said quietly, her throat more relaxed now. 'How about dinner? We can't go out because of Julia, but I can cook something nice.'
He gazed at her with the same dreamy look on his face that always made her knees turn wobbly.
'I didn't dare to ask you because I know you've got a lot going on at the moment. How about I order something and bring it to your place?'
'Sounds like a lovely idea,' she said, the knot tightening again. 'I’d really love it if we can just sit and chat and have a laugh.'
Jack inched forward, his deep blue eyes nailing her to the spot. A warm tingling tickled inside her chest.
'Are you trying to say, you've missed me?' he asked, cocking his eyebrow and smiling in the most heart-melting way.
Katie cleared her throat. Oh, the dreaded knot!
'I-I... I have. And you?'
He stretched his hand and tucked the loose strand behind her ear. She buckled her knees and leant forward.
'I have,' he whispered.
'Sir, she's asking if she could see the autopsy report,' Chris' voice cut through the moment, shattering it completely.
Katie jumped backwards, hitting her leg on the chair behind. Jack's face tensed. 'I'll be there shortly,' he snapped, striding to his desk and rummaged through the pile of papers.
Katie pulled a tissue out of her pocket and feigned a sneeze.
Regardless of all the unanswered, case-related questions, she wanted to get out of there right away.
Her heart was galloping, the butterflies in her chest were hatching at the speed of light, her legs wanted to march onwards until they met Jack's toes, and then climbed on the tiptoes and touch his lips with hers...
Oops! Keep it in check, Katie!
She grabbed her handbag.
'Sugars! I’ll be late for school pick up!' she called and rushed out of the station.
14
She reached the school gate in time to see her daughter walking away with one of her friends.
'Julia, darling, I'm here,' Katie called out, the mummy guilt already growing in her stomach.
Julia stopped and turned around. 'Mum, what are you doing here? I'm going to the After-School Club. I've got a music class. Did you forget?'
Ah, the afternoon class, Julia received as a Christmas present from her dad. This was the first week. How could she have forgotten?
'I'm sorry, baby,' Katie said. There was no point in arguing with Julia given the context. 'It's great that you've remembered. What time does it finish?'
'Five o’clock. Will you be there?'
'Definitely,' Katie said solemnly, pulling her phone out of her pocket. She put a reminder on her calendar to avoid any more blunders.
And since she was holding her phone, she could catch up on all the details of the two interviews today she'd missed.
Chris answered her call straight away. 'I thought you'd gone to collect Julia?'
'Yeah, but she's busy with something and I've got a lot of questions.'
'What about?'
'Those two interviews.'
'Fire away, lass. But mind, I may not be able to answer all of them.'
'So, was it a murder or a suicide?'
A long, low, "Hummm" filled the space at the other end of the phone.<
br />
'He can't exclude either yet?' Katie guessed, keeping her sarcasm in check.
'You're right on the money,' Chris replied, perking up. 'As usual, he says he doesn't have enough evidence.'
'Why? I thought he was clear on that yesterday.'
'Actually,' Chris paused. 'Some new information has come to light, which may or may not be reliable.'
'As usual,' Katie muttered.
'As usual,' Chris picked up. 'So, before you jump at me, I admit, I can see Heaton's hesitation. The wife said something that made me challenge my opinion.'
Katie swallowed the comment she had on the tip of her tongue. 'What was it?'
'The problem is, she hadn't seen him for many years. But she certainly noticed he looked pale and sick. He was short of breath. She also mentioned that he appeared preoccupied with death and preparing for it.'
'Nothing different from what we've heard from other people,' Katie expressed her doubt.
'Fair enough, but he insisted on writing the codicil then and there, and on posting it to his solicitor as if it couldn't wait until he was back at his brother's place. Obviously, ringing the solicitor in the evening was another sign of urgency.'
'Okay,' Katie said reluctantly. 'But has anyone found the codicil? Did he do anything with it?'
'He asked her to drop him off at the post office.'
'It would have been closed by then.'
'Which is why she dropped him off at the train station, so he could buy a stamp and put the letter in the post box.'
'Did you check her statement?'
'Yes, and no one saw a man matching his description at the train station on Tuesday night, which, in itself proves nothing.'
Katie sighed. If anyone wanted to do something in a public place and be unnoticed in Sunnyvale, the train station was probably the best place to do it - big enough to hide, with plenty of unfamiliar faces to blend into. Particularly now, with so many conferences happening.
Gee, she forgot about the receptionist post! She'd have to do something about it tomorrow. Or maybe tonight.
'What else would you like to know?' Chris' voice pulled her out of her hit-and-miss planning and back into the present.
'What else is important? The divorce papers. Did you see them?'
'Yes, she brought them in. She was going to post them yesterday, but she couldn't find them.'
'But she found them in the end?'
'Under the seat of her car. She says the envelope must have slipped off the back seat when she was driving.'
'Uhm, likely, you think?' Katie asked, sceptical.
'I think so. Although, I thought people paid more attention to important documents.'
'What's the wife's name by the way?'
'Ava, pronounced in the Irish way, as E-va.'
'So, Mrs Ava Fischer was the last person to see her husband alive. Besides the killer?'
'I wouldn't be so quick to assume. She says she dropped him off at the train station about 7.05 pm.'
'Didn't the post-mortem say he died around 7 pm? He might have been dead by the time she,' Katie paused to ensure Chris caught her making the "quote-unquote" speech marks. "...dropped him off at the station."
'The autopsy brackets the time of death between six- and seven-thirty. And the blood stopped trickling by the time you saw him, at around 7.35.'
'That's right. What did he look like at 7.05?'
'She says, he looked the same, except growing quite restless to get the letter posted. He barely spoke in the car. At the time, she assumed he was preoccupied with posting the codicil and feeling awkward being in an enclosed space with her.'
Katie bit her lip. Things didn't quite add up. Surely, Ava Fischer sounded suspicious. 'What did she do after he got out of her car?'
'She rang her sister in Ireland to tell her about the meeting. She also showed us her phone with the call record. And indeed, there was a call made to the same Irish number Jack had.'
'Did you check with the sister?'
'Heaton did. No one answered, but he left a message. Her sister doesn't answer her phone very often. Apparently, she has some health issues, too.'
Katie added Mrs Ava Fischer to the top of the suspect list, she just decided to start.
'He took his medicines in the café, didn't he?' Katie asked, recalling her conversation with Angie. 'Did she say anything about it?'
'Actually, yes. She said he pulled out a medicine box from his briefcase and took the tablets with his dinner. He had it all organised by day. He took the pills from one of the compartments only, she says. He insisted that the waitress served him food, as he was told to take his medicines with a meal.'
Katie suppressed a sigh. She could see how any free-spirited woman might have had problems living with Mr Fischer.
'So, he took the medicines and then what?'
'Nothing, he ate. They talked a little more, and then he wanted to post the codicil.'
It was more or less the same information Katie had collected from Angie. Yet, doubt tugged at her stomach again. 'If he died before the divorce is finalised, she would surely be better off, right? She would have been entitled to whatever a wife would be.'
'Not necessarily. Even if he excluded her from his will, and they were already divorced, she could still argue in court that she should receive some of his wealth. If he hadn't provided for her, she would have a chance to win.'
'So, in a nutshell,' Katie said, clearing her thoughts, 'she probably doesn't lose or gain anything by his death.'
'Correct. And she claims she really didn't have anything against him. In fact, they lived separately longer than they lived together. She's rebuilt her life; he had a new life.'
'The wife doesn't look particularly interested in seeing him dead?' Katie asked, disappointed, but still not keen on crossing Ava Fischer off her suspect list. 'If she was so happy to leave him and rebuild her life, why didn't she divorce him earlier?'
'She's Catholic, she was brought up in a traditional way. Her family insisted she try to reconcile with the husband, as was her local priest.'
'So, she ran away from him. Where did you say? Back to Ireland or New Zealand?'
'A bit of both,' Chris said and suddenly paused. 'Sorry, Katie,' Chris' voice sounded apologetic. 'Inspector Heaton just walked in, I need to go. You'd better come back in if you want a fuller update. We've got so much information now, I don't know what to make of it all.'
Katie ended the call. Should she go?
Her head was dizzy with the new information and the questions arising from it. Far more interesting questions.
Feast or famine.
Katie keyed the ignition and headed for the station.
15
Things were becoming ridiculous. For the third time that day, she headed for the police station, and the latest visit had nothing to do with her clerking job.
Katie parked her car in her favourite slot, just by the exit. It was the easiest one to manoeuvre in and out of - perfect for her parking skills. She slammed the door and hurried up the staff entrance.
Wow! The last few hours had been, indeed, so rich in information. What did Jack say? Information overload. That was definitely how she started to feel.
If she was to put her own lists of suspects together, Mrs Ava Fischer would be Number One, and Number Two, would be the girlfriend-stroke-fiancée. Yeah, Benjamin Fischer could have died at any moment, but his fiancée might well have grown tired of waiting.
But if he could have died at any moment, why did he die on Tuesday night? Why at the very moment when he announced to his solicitor that he wanted to change his will and needed to discuss the best approach.
The best approach. To what?
Hadn't he just signed a codicil? Apparently, this wasn't the best approach to whatever he was trying to achieve.
And what did he want the will to be changed to? To include his ex-wife in case of wrong timing between the divorce and death?
And, Katie flinched as she thought of it, if she was
to be fair, she should add Miriam and Julian to her list. As Number Three jointly, probably. Because, if she was to be fair, they were due to inherit a fortune. And, despite what Miriam told Jack during the interview, she needed money. It didn't look like Julian's health was about to improve.
Thinking of Miriam and Julian, did they really not know Benjamin was about to remarry? Katie frowned in concentration. Didn't someone mention Benjamin was about to announce it?
'Ah, families...' Katie groaned and pressed the door handle. 'You can't trust them.'
Katie entered the staffroom and, seeing Jack, the pulse in her throat accelerated. His hair was still mussed, his jacket was draped on the back of his chair - a sign of his workday heading towards an end?
Or, at least, the formal part of his working day.
No more beautiful suspects to interview. No more information to add to the overload.
Chris jumped off the desk as she glanced at him walking through the door.
'Good to see you back, lass. Celia is away on training. We could use another brain to process all this stuff. '
Katie shifted her gaze back to Jack, who grinned.
'I agree with Sergeant Fox,' he said.
'So how can I help?' Katie asked leaning against the door.
'Who are your suspects?' Jack asked.
Katie, proud of her little mental exercise done just before walking in, shared her reflection with Chris and Jack.
Jack listened nodding. Chris was a bit more expressive.
'You're spot on, lass! I'm sorry to be so cruel about your friends, but I'd probably bump Julian and Miriam up the list a little. I have a hunch Miriam didn't approve of Benjamin’s impending marriage.'
Katie rubbed her temples. She’d barely begun and already felt her brain was overheating.
'Have you talked to Sunita, Jack?' she asked, remembering his comment from earlier on.
'Ah,' he grunted. 'I knew I’d forgotten something. I'll do it now.' He grabbed the phone.
'She'll be in her café,' Katie said, reaching for her mobile. 'Here's the number.' She read it off the screen as he punched it in. After a few seconds, Sunita answered.
'And?' Katie asked, impatiently after Jack ended the conversation and put the phone down.
