by Curry, Edna
Chance hesitated, then looked at the Bensons. “Melanie asked Cassie, a local locksmith, to meet her out here to change the locks. It’s your property, didn’t you request that be done?”
Paul nodded. “Yes, Melanie suggested it when we talked last week. She said she’d seen car tracks here when she came out to check the house for us. She was worried someone might be getting in when no one was here. I told her to go ahead and get them changed.”
“Well, when Melanie didn’t appear at ten o’clock as she’d said she would, Cassie checked the house and garage. She saw Melanie’s car in the garage and got suspicious that something was wrong. And that’s when I called you, Paul.”
“Yes. I guess we didn’t tell you about that, Anne,” Paul said.
“So, this Cassie found her?” Anne asked.
“No, she just recognized Melanie’s car and called me, I called Paul for permission to check his property. I popped the trunk and found her.”
“Ugh. How awful,” Anne said, shuddering. “But if the locksmith was here to change the locks, why did our keys still work?”
“Because she didn’t change them. I found Melanie before she got a chance to do that,” Chance said. “And then, of course, it was a crime scene, so she wasn’t allowed to.”
“I see,” Paul said. “Then we’d better have her to come back and do that. Give me her number.”
“Sure,” Chance said, repeating it from memory. “One more question, please. Melanie evidently told people she’d inherited a lot of money. Since you’re both alive and well, can you tell me who she inherited it from?”
“Inherited?” Both Anne and Martha said together as they looked at each other.
Martha added, “She told us Lou made very good money at the bank. We never had any rich relatives.”
Anne chewed her lip and then slowly commented, “Well, she did tell me one time that she’d gotten a loan on their house to do the remodeling.”
“When was that?” Chance asked.
“Oh, maybe a couple of years ago,” Anne said with a shrug.
“Thanks. When will the service be?”
“The day after tomorrow at ten at the First Christian Church. We set it up with the pastor last night.”
Chance left, wondering as he drove back to his office, if that loan had come from John at the bank? If he got some evidence on Lou, would a judge let him look into his finances? He hoped so.
Was there a connection between all these deaths? Or was it only a coincidence that they’d all happened close together? Was he looking for ties between them when there were none? He wished he knew.
Chapter 12
Ella, the middle-aged chubby waitress at Landers’ bar, watched Roy Lonn sit at a corner table drinking himself into a stupor. The place was crowded and no one paid much attention to him except her. She was used to seeing him there, usually in that same corner, drinking alone. He tipped very well, so tonight she made sure he didn’t have to signal her twice for another drink.
He’d taken her home with him several times at the end of her shift. She admired his well-toned body and complimented him on his wavy dark hair. Her brother went to the same gym Roy frequented and had told her Roy could outdo him lifting weights. She liked that, and hoped to get his attention now that rumor had it he was getting a divorce. She knew he had been a partner in the old bank before it closed and now had a good job in the new one.
When Ella got a chance for a break, she sat with him chatting him up, hoping he’d ask to take her home again. He lived alone in a new condo now, so she was sure his wife was out of the picture.
As she headed back to finish her shift, Lou Bales came in. He sat at the bar and seemed in an ugly mood. When he demanded a whiskey on the rocks, she quickly got it for him. He tossed it back and demanded another, throwing money on the bar.
Remembering his wife had just been found murdered a couple of days ago, she obeyed and went to get his change. Before she could return, she heard Roy’s voice, yelling, “Lou.”
“What?” Lou said, turning on the stool to see who was yelling at him.
“Y-you son-of-a-b-bitch, coming in here and playing the big s-shot, eh? Throwing m-money around like you owned the place. W-why aren’t you home with your in-laws? T-they kick you out?”
“That’s none of your business, Roy.”
Roy slammed his beer bottle on the edge of the table, breaking off the end to make a jagged glass weapon, and lurched at Lou.
The big bar manager yelled out, “Cool it, guys or I’ll call the cops!”
Roy ignored him and kept moving toward Lou. The manager grabbed his phone.
The other patrons suddenly quieted and backed away, leaving a path between the two men. Several shouted, “Look out!”
Lou put down his drink and stood. “What’s the matter with you, Roy? I’ve got no quarrel with you.”
“You told the new bosses on me and got me fired, you asshole. Now I don’t have a wife or a job. It’s all your fault,” Roy blubbered.
“If you hadn’t beaten up Irene, you wouldn’t be in trouble. It’s your own fault, you dimwit,” Lou shot back.
Roy swore and attacked him, slashing the bottle at Lou. Blood spurted from Lou’s arm. Roy swung again but Lou ducked away and kicked the bottle out of Roy’s hand. Roy lost his balance, went down in a heap and sat there, moaning and cursing.
Lou backed away, holding his bleeding arm.
The manager had already phoned 9-1-1 and several customers helped him keep Roy down until they arrived. Two deputies strode in. They cuffed Roy and marched off the cursing drunk, then took Lou to the ER to have his arm attended.
The other customers all started talking at once. “What was that all about?”
“How come he blames Lou for getting fired? Didn’t both he and Lou get jobs at the new bank?”
“It’s just the liquor talking. He has to blame somebody.”
“Yeah. Can’t beat up Irene anymore, now that she’s divorcing him.”
Another laughed. “And got a restraining order against him.”
The waitress listened with an open mouth. Yikes, maybe going with Roy wasn’t a good idea. He’d never hurt her, but he’d beat his wife? She hadn’t known that.
Another man laughed. “He’s a mean one. Could have killed Lou if he hadn’t kicked that broken bottle away.”
“Yeah. Wonder if he’s the one who killed that guy they found in the old bank? He’s mean enough, isn’t he?”
“Naw, that doesn’t make sense. He was John’s partner in the old bank, wasn’t he?”
“Maybe the partners had a falling-out.”
“Hm. Could be.”
***
The next day half the town attended Melanie’s funeral. While many of the women hadn’t liked her, she’d been well-known and generous with her charity gifts.
Cassie went with Chance. He was on duty, perusing those gathered to learn what he could about anyone who might have a motive for these murders. Almost all of his suspects would be there. If only someone would let their hair down and help him figure out who was the guilty one.
A young woman sang a couple songs and a young man with a nice voice sang, too. The pastor gave a nice sermon, considering that he must have been aware of the kind of parties Melanie had given. Surely someone had mentioned it to him.
It poured rain as they drove to the cemetery. Everyone stood under umbrellas as the pastor gave a quick committal ceremony. Someone tipped their umbrella the wrong way and the rain poured onto Cassie. She gasped and quickly stepped aside, trying to avoid the water, but her hair was dripping wet. The water ran down her body, soaking the side of her pantsuit.
Then they all hurried back to the church for a lunch prepared by the church ladies. Shivering, Cassie hurried to the bathroom to fix her hair. Another woman grinned at her efforts, and she smiled back ruefully. She patted it dry with paper towels and ran a brush through it, thanking her stars that it was short and naturally a bit curly. She patted most of the
water from her clothes, finally giving up. It would have to do until she got home to change.
Cassie went back to the food line. She filled a plate with some hamburger casserole and a piece of chocolate cake, then picked up a cup of hot coffee. Chance waved her over to where he’d saved her a chair.
Sheriff Ben and Deputy Tom were seated at a table near Melanie’s parents and her sister, Anne.
“I think half the town is here,” Cassie said, putting down her plate and sitting next to Chance.
“Yes, I think so.” He helped her drape her damp suit jacket over the back of her chair. “You did get wet, didn’t you?”
“A bit,” Cassie said ruefully. “But I’ll dry.”
“Did you hear anything useful?” he asked quietly.
“No. But Anne and her parents are looking pretty angry. I don’t think they’re getting along very well with Lou.”
“No, I gathered that.”
“Why is his arm bandaged?”
“He got in a brawl at the bar last night. Roy Lonn cut him with a broken beer bottle. I’ll tell you more later.”
“Yikes. His life has been pretty wild, lately, hasn’t it?”
“I guess so. His in-laws look pretty stressed, too.”
“Yeah. I changed the locks for them at their cabin. They said you recommended me. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I heard them talking about selling the cabin. Now that Melanie’s gone, they said they have no reason to come back here.”
“That makes sense,” Chance agreed, sipping his coffee. “Hey, there’s Old Earl. I think he goes to every funeral in town, just for the free lunch.”
Cassie laughed. “Well, he misses home cooking since his wife died last year. The church ladies always have a nice variety of hot dishes. Oh, and that reminds me—you remember I had an early morning lockout the day we found Melanie? I forgot to tell you that I stopped at the Flame in Landers afterward.”
“So?” He finished the last bite of his carrot cake and sipped his drink.
“Old Earl was there for his early morning coffee clutch with the guys, you know? He told me he’d given a ride to a hitchhiker that morning on highway 16.”
“Out by where we found her body? Cassie! And you’re just remembering to tell me now?”
She shrugged. “I just happened to think of it when I saw Earl now.”
“Who was the hitch-hiker? Did he know him?”
She nodded. “Yes. He said it was one of the Canton bankers, but he didn’t know his name.”
“I’ll ask him.” Chance turned and frowned as they heard raised voices at the head table. Everyone turned to look and stopped talking to listen.
Anne was standing and throwing a fit. “You’re a bad man. I know you did it,” she screamed at Lou. “God will punish you for that and for leading Melanie into a sinful life. You just wait and see!”
Lou turned purple and growled, “For God’s sake, Anne, get hold of yourself. People are staring at you.”
“Anne, please sit down, you’re making a scene,” her mother said, pulling at her arm and trying to get her to sit down.
“No,” she screamed and tried to hit at Lou who lunged to his feet and backed away out of her reach. “I hate you! Killer!”
“Stop it, Anne. You’re making a fool of yourself,” he said, nursing his bandaged arm.
Her parents shoved their chairs back and rose, too, trying to calm Anne. But she kept screaming at Lou.
Just then Earl stood and pointed at Lou and said, “Hey, you’re the guy who was walking out on highway 16 the day they found her body!”
Cassie gasped. “Oh, my God. Did Lou drive her body out there and was walking back to town?”
Everyone seemed to be coming to the same conclusion.
Lou turned to Cassie and screamed at her, “It’s all your fault. If you hadn’t gone out there and snooped and found her, I’d have been out of the country by now.” He started toward her, but Chance stepped between them.
Lou stared around the room wildly, suddenly realizing he’d given himself away. Then he started to run. Chance took off after him.
Ben and Tom were closer to the basement door and caught him before he got outside. Anne and her parents stood hugging each other and crying as the officers cuffed Lou and took him away.
***
“I want to call my lawyer,” Lou said as they put him into Ben’s car. He said nothing more.
Chance got into his own car. He called Cassie on her cell.
“Ben and Tom have Lou. Come on out to the car and I’ll drop you off at your house before I go to the office.”
“Are you sure you have time? I can catch a ride with someone else,” she replied.
“I can take you. Lou is lawyering up again, so we’ll probably get nothing out of him anyway.”
“Okay.” In a minute Cassie appeared and got into his car.
“You need to change out of those wet clothes as soon as possible,” he told her, heading to her house.
“Thanks. I’ll see you tonight?”
“It depends on what happens with Lou. I’ll give you a call.”
He gave her a kiss goodbye and drove back to the office.
Lou sat across from Ben in his office. His lawyer stood against the wall, looking furious.
“What’s going on?” Chance asked. He’d expected Lou to be silent and waiting in a cell for his lawyer to get him out. That didn’t appear to be the case.
Lou looked at him, then back at his hands. “Half the town heard me practically admit I hid her body out there,” he said. He sent a nasty glance at his lawyer.
“That doesn’t prove anything. It’s only hearsay,” the lawyer said. “Just shut up and let me handle this.”
“And have to sit through a trial with everyone looking at me again? No, thanks,” Lou said. “I’d rather plead guilty and take my chances with a judge.”
“That’s stupid,” the lawyer said.
“That’s my decision.”
“Okay. At least let me try to work out a deal for you.”
“The only deal,” Chance said, catching Ben’s eyes, “is that you tell us everything you know about all this.”
“And if I do that, what deal do I get?” Lou asked hopefully.
“The least serious charges I can work out for you,” Ben said. “It’ll all depend on exactly what you tell us.”
The lawyer rolled his eyes and threw up his hands in surrender.
Chance set up the tape and then said, “Okay, tell us what happened.”
“I woke up early that morning and heard Melanie leave our bedroom. I lay there furious, and then threw on some clothes and followed her. She went to Carl’s house and used her key to get in. I snuck in and watched. She went to his bedroom and started going through his bureau drawers. She took some diamond cuff links and a couple of rings. Then she lifted the mattress, evidently looking for something else.
“She must have heard me then, cause she looked up and screamed, then asked what I was doing there. I asked her what she was looking for. She said the expensive jewelry she’d bought for Carl and his gun. I asked her what she wanted a gun for and she said she was hoping the police hadn’t found it, cause Carl had used it to kill John.
“I asked her why would Carl do that since he barely knew John. She said she’d paid him to do it because he was going to tell everyone that he’d given her a big loan and she hadn’t paid it back.
“Why would John give you a loan? I asked her. She said they were lovers and she’d told him she was getting a big inheritance soon so could pay back the money.”
“But there was no inheritance?” Chance asked.
Lou laughed. “Of course not. She just figured he’d covered the loan with a corporation’s name and would just hide it in with all the bad loans for that housing development that went bankrupt. She thought he wouldn’t dare admit he’d fallen for her story.”
“But John was going to reveal that she’d gotten the money?�
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“Yeah. She said she couldn’t talk him out of it. So she got Carl to go see him as he was closing up the bank after the new guys took everything out. Carl was to tell John he needed something from a safety deposit box and get him into the basement.”
“But weren’t all the safety deposit boxes moved to the new bank?”
“Yeah, but they’d cooked up a story that he’d left something in one of the empty ones that were left behind. Anyway, I guess he got John down there and shot him, then locked the building, thinking no one would find him. Then drove his car into the lake late that night. Melanie helped him by picking him up after he’d done that.”
“And you didn’t notice her being gone?”
Lou shrugged, flushing. “I guess I wasn’t home that night. I haven’t been home lots of nights. We haven’t been getting along for quite a while.”
“So, you just stood there and listened to her explaining all that?” Ben said with a frown.
“Yeah. I guess I couldn’t believe she’d really done that. Then she started crying and saying it was all my fault because I didn’t love her anymore and Carl was lots nicer to her than I was. She said she wished I had died of that heart attack instead of Carl. She turned her back to me and sat on his bed, crying with her face in her hands. I…I guess I just lost it. I…I picked up an iron statue Carl had on his dresser and hit her on her head. She fell down on the bed and never said another word.”
He bowed his head and rubbed his hands over his face, weeping. “Six years we’d been married and all we’d been through together, and she wished me dead! Can you believe it?”
“So then what happened?” Chance prodded. He and Ben exchanged glances.
“She…was bleeding a lot and her eyes were staring so I knew she was dead. I panicked. I went and got her car and backed it close to the door. I put her in the trunk and drove her out to the cabin. I thought nobody would find her there until her folks came up in July or so. And I’d be long gone out of the country, as soon as I could arrange all my financing and stuff. Then your damned girl friend had to go out there and find her,” he said casting an angry look at Chance.
