At Witt's End

by Beth Solheim

  "That's what I heard them say,” Tim whispered. “I could hear people talking. I tried to talk to them, but they wouldn't listen. I tried to tell them about Mr. Brinks."

  "Maybe you were already dead,” Aanders said.

  Tim rolled his head to look at Aanders. “I wanted to tell them that after the car hit that tree, I heard a motor start up and drive away. Then I couldn't hear it anymore."

  "You mean like another car's engine?” Theo asked.

  "No. It was a four wheeler. It sounded just like the one Mr. Brinks has because it backfires a lot."

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  25

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  "You can't be serious,” Jane said, as she listened to Sadie's plan. “What if someone catches you? Wouldn't it be safer if you called the sheriff and told them about the murder?"

  Sadie stared at her sister while she let her impatience settle to a simmer. “That sounds like a good idea. I'll call Carl and tell him that Tim, who is deader than a doornail, told me all about a murder. Then I'll tell him the murderer, and his best friend, are one and the same."

  "I don't get it,” Mr. Bakke said.

  "What do you mean you don't get it?” Sadie said. “Carl already thinks I'm loony. Telling him I've been talking to a dead boy isn't going to make things better."

  Mr. Bakke folded the newspaper. “I mean about the doornail. Who ever came up with the saying doornails are dead? Or better yet, who ever thought they were alive?"

  "I'm talking about murder.” Sadie turned her disbelieving gaze from Mr. Bakke to her sister. “You two make a good pair."

  Theo grabbed Sadie's arm as she dug for her keys in her purse. “I'm going with you.” He spun her around. “You might get into something you can't handle."

  She batted at his hand. “Why don't you say what you really mean? You don't think I'm capable of doing it myself."

  "Precisely.” Theo took her by the elbow.

  Jane cocked her head. “It's not that I don't think you're capable. I think it's too risky. Do you really think you'll find some evidence?"

  "Don't you think Paul would have gotten rid of it?” Mr. Bakke said.

  "Nan said Richard's sister isn't coming back for a few more days. I'm hoping that means no one's been in Richard's office. If there were signs of a break in, it would give Lon even more ammunition to investigate. I'm betting Paul's waiting for Richard's sister to let him in. Tim told me where his dad hid his desk key. If we can find a way to get in the house, the rest should be easy."

  Jane wiped her hands on her apron. “Do you think I should go with you?"

  "Theo's going with me."

  "What can he do that I can't?"

  "Drive the getaway car? Stay out of sight?"

  "That's not funny,” Jane said. “I can help you look for whatever it is you're looking for."

  "Tell her there'll be less risk if one person is seen going into Richard's house,” Theo said. “You could say you were getting some of Aanders video games. People would believe that."

  "Theo's right, Jane. He says it makes more sense that you stay here. If I'm not back in an hour, you can come looking for me."

  "Where's Theo sitting?” Jane said.

  "He's standing by the door."

  Jane and Mr. Bakke looked at the door. Jane wagged her finger. “You keep an eye on her. Don't let her do anything stupid."

  Mr. Bakke tipped his head back and puckered his lips. As Sadie glared at him, he turned an imaginary key to seal his lips. “I didn't say a word. Quit giving me the evil eye."

  "I know exactly what you were thinking because death coaches can read minds."

  "No they can't,” Mr. Bakke said. “If that were the case, you'd have kicked me out years ago."

  Theo hung on to the back of the van seat with both hands when Sadie cut the corner too close. “Don't drive so fast. You're going to attract attention.” The rear tire hit the curb and bounced hard as the van bottomed out against the pavement.

  Sadie adjusted the rear view mirror. “As long as Carl doesn't see me, we'll be okay. That fool pulls me over every time he sees me driving this van. If I fart, he makes a federal case out of it."

  "Vulgarity.” Theo exhaled deeply. “Don't you remember we talked about purging those words from your vocabulary?"

  "Are you saying judges don't fart?"

  "When and if we do, we don't talk about it."

  "Didn't you ever have a chuckle over a good healthy fart?"

  "Certainly not,” Theo said.

  Hearing scrambling in the back of the van, Sadie looked in the rearview mirror. “What are you doing here?"

  Belly made his way to the front of the vehicle, trying to keep his balance although the ruts in the road made it difficult.

  "You just went through a red light,” Theo shouted, looking back at a man who gestured with his middle finger.

  "I know,” Sadie said.

  "You could have killed somebody."

  Belly rolled onto his side and stared at Theo.

  "Your dog should be kept on a leash. Then he wouldn't pester your guests or go where he's not wanted.” Theo braced his body as Sadie turned sharply causing the van to veer to the left. “Please keep your eyes on the road. That's a perfect example of why your dog should stay at home. He's distracting you."

  "He's not my dog."

  Holding his hands up at the futility of the conversation, Theo said, “Have you ever met any other death coaches?"

  "Not really,” Sadie said. “Just the one who trained me. Why?"

  "I wonder if the experience of living with another death coach would have been as unorthodox."

  "Probably,” Sadie said. “You might have gotten a death coach who didn't give a rat's ass about you. Or worse yet, you wouldn't have the pleasure of my company."

  "I'm truly damned then, aren't I? It's like one of those dreaded court cases—the kind where you're damned if it's assigned to you or you're damned if it isn't. There's always that need to control the outcome versus curiosity. Be glad you're not a judge."

  Sadie turned the van into a narrow tree-lined drive and edged into the woods until the van was hidden by the lush greenery. She eased the door open and climbed down.

  "I'd make a good judge. I've always wanted to wear one of those long robes. Just think of the things I could wear under them. Or not."

  "Spare me the lurid details.” Theo grabbed the back of her shirt to stop her progress before she walked toward a clearing adjacent to the Fossums’ yard. “How do you know nobody's in there?"

  "You don't see any cars in the driveway, do you?” She pushed Theo's hand out of the way. “The Fossums have neighbors on the other side of the bushes, but they have a separate driveway.” She looked back over her shoulder. “A good judge would have known that."

  "I don't know the first thing about the Fossum's property, but I do know breaking and entering is against the law.” Theo watched Sadie cup her hands over her eyes and peer through the front door.

  "Nobody home,” Sadie said under her breath. “I don't see any movement.” She pressed the latch on the brass handle with her thumb, but the catch didn't release.

  Theo followed her around the porch to the back door. The results were the same.

  "Let's try a few windows,” she said.

  Theo ran his fingers along the wooden frame, attempting to find an indentation where his fingers could leverage the panel upward. The first four windows refused to budge. On the fifth attempt, the panel gave way and he forced it open. “I don't think I can fit through there. Are you willing to give it a try?"

  Sadie placed her foot into Theo's cupped hand and pulled herself up. She placed a leg through the opening. “There's a shelf or some kind of board under the window.” She wriggled in through the opening.

  One thud and then another echoed from the dark opening. Sadie whispered, “I knocked a couple cans off the shelf. This must be their pantry.” She felt along the wall for a light switch.

  A light flooded the r
oom. Theo looked through the window. “Are you all right?"

  "I'm right here,” Sadie said, coming up behind Theo. He jerked upright and screamed.

  Catching his breath, he rasped in anger, “Don't do that. You startled me."

  "Sorry. I thought you might want to come in through the front door. And take that stupid suit coat off. You look ridiculous."

  "I look ridiculous?” Theo said. “I'm not the one wearing a mini skirt and a halter top. It's not me who's exposing a sagging abdomen with a tattoo of a worm."

  "That's an asp,” Sadie said. “Like the one that caused Cleopatra's death. I love that story, don't you?"

  "I hadn't given it much thought. That tattoo actually looks more like a shriveled up worm."

  Staring at Theo with her mouth askew, Sadie said, “My asp isn't any more shriveled up than your balls."

  "My balls, Madam, are about as important to me as the Ides of March were to Caesar."

  Opening her mouth to reply, Sadie paused, took a deep breath, and said, “I don't get it."

  "I didn't expect you to."

  Sadie closed the front door behind them and pointed toward an opening. “That must be his office. I see file cabinets."

  Theo sat at the desk while Sadie rifled through a stack of papers on Richard's desk. “Where did Tim say the key was hidden?"

  "Under a horse statue."

  "There's got to be twenty horse statues in here.” Theo scanned the shelves and pedestals featuring Richard's collection. “You start there and I'll take this side of the room.” Theo began by lifting the smaller pieces of art. Leaning one of the larger bronze statues against his chest, a key dangling from a felt pad tumbled to the floor. “Eureka!"

  Placing the key in the middle desk drawer, Theo pulled it open and ran his hands through the shallow drawer. He repeated the process with two more drawers. He inserted the key into a deeper bottom drawer and unlocked it.

  "This might be it.” He pulled a hard-bound checkbook from the drawer and placed it on the desk. He lifted a stack of folders and separated them into two piles. Pushing one pile toward Sadie, he said, “You start with this and I'll see what's in the checkbook."

  Sadie opened the first folder and paged through the contents. The folder held several letters with envelopes stapled to the back of each piece of correspondence. “These are all addressed to Gessal Life Insurance at a Minneapolis address.” Paging deeper, Sadie said, “Here's one from Mrs. Fading Sun."

  "Who?"

  "Mrs. Fading Sun. She lives in Pinecone Landing. Her husband died about six months ago.” As she finished reading the letter, Sadie said, “This is a letter of complaint. Apparently she thought her husband had signed a $100,000 life insurance policy. But when he died, she got a check for $10,000.” Sadie turned the letter over and tapped it with her fingers. “It looks like this letter was a second request. Here she says she previously asked for a copy of the original application, but never received one."

  Theo held out a check. “Look at this. Here's a check written to Fading Sun for three thousand dollars. He's got a note clipped to it indicating it's the return of premium payments. The check's signed by Richard Fossum."

  Sadie held up several more letters. “These are complaints, too."

  "Give me their names,” Theo said. He laid several checks on the desk's surface.

  As Sadie read the names, Theo turned the checks over one by one. “There's a check here matching each of the letters in your hand. There are also envelopes with stamps on them. I believe Richard was getting ready to mail refunds to these people."

  Opening another folder, Sadie whistled. “Looks like somebody's been making duplicate applications. Here's the original signed copy, and here's the one that actually got turned in.” She pointed to the line indicating the dollar amount. “The original application says one-hundred-thousand dollars. The copy says ten thousand dollars. These polices were altered."

  Sadie looked up in disbelief. “On this original policy it says to send the payments to a post office box in Minneapolis."

  "And look at the insurance agent's signature,” Theo said. “Paul Brinks. Gessal Life Insurance."

  "Richard obviously got his hands on the paperwork sent to the Minneapolis office. That's what Tim heard them arguing about."

  "Here's the proof we need,” Theo said. He held copies of two bank reconciliation forms. “Paul had the policy holders pay their premiums for the larger policy to a post office box in Minneapolis. That money was deposited into a personal account Paul had down there.” Theo looked up at Sadie. “Some businesses have their collections processed by holding companies and pay a fee for the processing."

  Theo tapped on the second reconciliation form. “It looks like some of those funds were transferred from his personal account in Minneapolis to the business account Richard worked with here in Pinecone Landing.” He pointed at the two forms so Sadie could see the progression from one account to the other. “Paul transferred enough from that holding account so Richard could record the receipt of premiums on the lesser policies and pay the bills. Who knows how long this went on before Richard figured it out. I would guess Gessal Life isn't involved in this scam. Gessal Life Insurance paid the larger death benefit to Paul and Paul paid the lesser benefit to the recipients."

  "Do you think Richard was ever in on it?"

  "I doubt it. I'm guessing he figured it out and worked through the process to prove it. He got his hands on Paul's personal bank account by tracking the account number the funds were transferred from. He must have requested copies by using Paul's official letterhead.” Theo pointed at a stacking tray containing letterhead.

  "Do you think he told Paul he was going to refund the money?"

  "He must have. Either that or Paul figured it out. Tim heard Paul tell Richard he'd never live to see another day if he turned him in. A threat that serious means Paul was worried,” Theo said. “Is that characteristic of him?"

  "What are you getting at?” Sadie said.

  "Did you ever think Paul was capable of murder?"

  "Shrewd. Sneaky. But not a murderer. We've got to show this to the police. With this evidence, we can get them to follow up on the rifle Tim saw. If the autopsy didn't show any evidence of Richard being shot, then maybe we can convince them to look closer at the car. Something caused that car to swerve."

  "It's not we, Sadie. It's you who has to convince them. In case you don't know it, you can't present evidence you've gathered by breaking and entering. That's against the law.” Theo tucked the reconciliation sheets back in the folder. “You're going to have to convince them to look for the same information we found. But we've got to come up with something believable before you approach them."

  A muffled bark came from outside the front door. “Oh, no. Belly followed us.” Sadie hurried to the front door. Opening it a crack, she whispered, “Shush. Be quiet."

  "Let him in before he barks, again,” Theo said. “Someone might get suspicious."

  Cracking the door to coax the dog in, Sadie's breath caught in her throat. “Paul's car just turned in to the driveway.” She released the knob and eased the plunger into place before dashing to the desk.

  Belly barked and dropped down on his haunches. Four wild tail hairs swept the porch floor in an arc.

  "Hide in the other room,” Theo whispered. He gathered the papers and shoved them in the drawer. “Hurry, Sadie."

  Paul strode up to the house, studying the dog. “What are you doing here, Belly?” He held out his hand letting the dog sniff his fingers before patting the dog's head. Paul walked to the corner of the porch and looked around the side of the house before scanning the driveway. He turned his ear toward the road. “You sure get around. The last time I saw you, you were at the nursing home."

  Belly whined his appreciation and pawed at Paul's leg.

  Paul sauntered casually around the dog, looked from side to side, and then turned the knob.

  Theo tensed. His hand stopped mid-air when he heard the latch
click.

  Realizing the door wasn't locked, Paul removed his hand and looked from side to side again. He pressed the latch again. It gave way as easily as it had the first time. He eased the oak door open and listened before poking his head through the opening.

  As Paul entered the front room, Sadie squeezed in between the pantry door and the shelving. She held her breath, listening to Paul walk across the floor toward the office.

  Paul pulled at the desk chair and rolled it back toward the credenza. Dropping into the chair, he lifted a key off a stack of papers and kneaded it in his fingers. He paged through two piles of folders. After placing them on the corner of Richard's desk, he added more folders to the pile before rummaging through the desk drawer.

  Theo stood near the desk watching Paul's fevered attempt at locating the incriminating evidence. The crosser gasped when Belly nosed through the front door and waddled over to where he was standing.

  Belly danced his glad-to-see-you dance around Theo's feet before pawing at the man's knees.

  "You stupid dog,” Paul said. He tugged on Belly's collar and pushed him toward the front door. “Get the hell out of here."

  Belly veered toward the kitchen sniffing wildly. He circled the room trying to locate his buddy. Trotting into the pantry, his tail darted in double time as he nudged behind the door and butted his head against the Sadie's ankle.

  Sadie pushed Belly back toward the door and tapped her finger to her lip to signal silence. She froze at the sound of Paul's loafers marching across the kitchen floor.

  "You stupid dog. I told you to go outside.” Paul grabbed Belly's hind leg and pulled him from the pantry. He spun him around on the slippery floor and grabbed his collar. “Quit growling, you worthless mutt.” He unlatched the kitchen door and ushered Belly out with a shove from his left foot.

  Paul locked the exterior door before striding back toward the pantry. He grabbed the doorknob. He stared into the darkness, muttered to himself, closed the door, and left the kitchen.