Antiques & Collectibles 09 - Mint Condition Murder

by Ellery Adams

  Before he could answer, Janell said, “Teddy had no idea where the ring came from. He thought I’d inherited it from my mother.”

  He looked at her. “Why didn’t you tell me the truth?”

  “How could I?” Janell sniffed. “You shouldn’t have touched the ring.”

  Janell was trying hard not to burst into tears, and Molly had to admit, she found herself admiring her. She was making a public confession, in front of her husband, people she knew, and the police. The burden of carrying around the guilt of that night must have been overwhelming. She had hoped she would break, but now that she had, she found herself feeling sorry for her. She didn’t condone what she and Charlotte had done, but on some level, she could understand why Janell, at least, had done it.

  Rene stepped forward, eyes fierce. “Why did you kill Charlotte? I have to know.”

  Janell shook her head. “I didn’t kill her.” She looked at Molly, her eyes imploring her to believe her. “Charlotte showed up out of the blue a couple of weeks ago. She’d followed me to the grocery store, parked right next to me, to talk to me in private. She knew I’d kept the coins, that I could never sell them. She knew the shame and guilt I was carrying. I assumed she felt it, too, but then she asked me if she could have the coins, and I realized she was perfectly okay with what we’d done, that it didn’t bother her that Larry had died that night.” She took another deep breath. “So, I told her she could have the coins, but I couldn’t give them to her that day, because Teddy and Robbie were home. They would have heard me up in the attic, and asked questions. I told her I’d bring them to the shop the next day, after closing time. And that’s what I did. I gave her the tin, with the coins and the gun, and I left.” She turned to Rene. “Charlotte was alive when I left her. I swear, I didn’t kill her.”

  Rene wasn’t convinced. “I don’t believe you, or your story about what happened to Larry Pruett. I think you killed him, and Charlotte found out. Tell the truth. Did she threaten to expose you, to go to the police about what you’d done? Is that why you killed her?”

  “I told you what happened, and that is the truth.” Janell shook her head wearily. “Charlotte didn’t blackmail me. She asked me for the coins, and I gave her the tin. I was glad to be rid of it.”

  Molly asked, “Did you wipe the box and its contents down before you buried it in your mother’s garden?”

  Janell looked confused. “What?”

  “There were no fingerprints. Did you wipe everything down?”

  “No. It never even occurred to me, or Charlotte.”

  If she was telling the truth, then Charlotte had done it before she’d hidden the box in her desk. It could be the real reason she wanted the five coins, that it wasn’t just about the money. She knew Janell had kept the coins in the box with the gun, and remembered in their rush to hide it they hadn’t wiped anything down. The gun was the biggest link to her pulling the trigger and killing Larry. She wanted it back, to reduce her exposure.

  On the other hand, if Janell had pulled the trigger that night, and been racked by guilt for years, she would have been smart enough to take care of this herself, long before Charlotte ever showed up. And if that was true, Molly knew, she was never going to admit it. That was a bridge too far. She had her son to think about. A long prison sentence would await her for first-degree murder. Better to take her chances with charges as an accomplice.

  Shelly signaled to one of the uniformed cops to follow her. Molly stepped out of the way as they walked over to Janell.

  “Janell van Wegberg, I’d like you to accompany me to the police station for further questioning,” Shelly said. “You can either go with me voluntarily, or I will place you under arrest.”

  Janell tried to stand up, but almost pitched backward. Theodore jumped up from his chair, and took hold of her arm. This time, she let him help her to her feet, and leaned into him.

  “I’ll get you a lawyer, right away,” he said. And Molly thought, good luck with that at this time of night. It must have occurred to Theodore, too. He added, “Don’t say anything, not another word, until I can arrange things.”

  Shelly led Janell away, with Theodore trailing behind them. He had trouble popping open the closet door, and Nathan went over and helped him. He shuffled outside looking like he’d aged twenty years in the last twenty minutes.

  As the door closed softly behind them, Rene said, “Well, this has certainly been a night to remember.” She turned to Molly. “If Janell is telling the truth, and she didn’t kill Charlotte, then who did? Do you even know?”

  Molly hesitated. She had felt sure about Janell’s guilt when it came to participating in the robbery-murder of Larry Pruett. Killing Charlotte, not so much. If she had confessed, that would have taken care of it, but she hadn’t. She did have another suspect in mind. She hoped she wasn’t wrong, but there was only one way to find out.

  With as much confidence as she could muster, Molly said, “Yes, I believe I do know who killed Charlotte.”

  Chapter 28

  “I know who did it, too,” Wyatt said, pointing at Quincy. “It had to be you. You were in cahoots with Charlotte, selling her the property, and you bought the coins from her. Why don’t you just admit you did it? Janell stepped up. You should, too.”

  “Don’t be an idiot,” Quincy snapped. “I didn’t buy any coins from Charlotte. And she didn’t buy the land from me. She was renting the house.”

  Wyatt was stunned. “Wh-what?” he stammered.

  “Yeah, that’s right.” Quincy’s lips curled up into a nasty smirk. “Hate to break it to you, but she pulled one over on you. I have to hand it to her, she made a fool out of you, and after what you did to her, I think it was well worth it.” He turned to Lombardi. “Why don’t you arrest Wyatt? The man was being blackmailed. Charlotte’s scheme must have sent him right over the edge.”

  “Shut up!” Wyatt yelled.

  “I know, it hurts. What was it? The last straw? She was going to tell your wife, and you needed to shut her up?”

  Pamela stood up. “Enough! My son has done nothing wrong.”

  Molly thought it was interesting how Pamela had stayed silent throughout Janell’s confession, sitting there looking like a snow queen, unmovable, unshakeable. But now her eyes were flaring, because Wyatt needed her. She went over to him and wrapped her arm around his waist protectively.

  Rene said, “Detective Lombardi, I’m with Quincy on this one. Wyatt had the most to lose. He must have killed Charlotte.”

  Molly held up her hands before Pamela could start defending Wyatt again. “Stop. All of you. Wyatt didn’t kill Charlotte. Janell didn’t kill her, either.” This was it. She glanced at Lombardi, who was well aware of what she was about to do, but should she? He nodded his head, giving her permission. “Alison killed Charlotte,” she said.

  Pamela cried out, “No! She couldn’t have.” She left Wyatt to stand there alone, and ran over to Alison. She sat down beside her on the couch and took hold of her hands. “Detective Lombardi, I cannot allow you, or Molly, to accuse this dear girl of murder. Alison has done nothing wrong. It’s simply impossible.”

  Alison chewed the inside of her lip, looking very much like a lost little girl. Her eyes were fixed on Pamela, who was gripping her hands.

  Molly said, “There really is only one person who had the most to lose, and it was you, Alison. When did you find out about the affair between your husband and Charlotte?”

  “Don’t you say a word,” Pamela said.

  It was a repeat performance of Janell, only this time it was Alison in the hot seat, and Pamela was at her side, worrying about her. But perhaps because Janell was brave enough to confess, Alison sat up straight, lifted her chin, and said, “It’s true. I killed her.”

  Pamela gasped, and she wasn’t the only one. Everyone seemed to, even Molly. She was batting a thousand, and had the crazy thought that Lombardi should bring anyone else he needed interrogated to the house, since she was on a confession roll. She felt like Wo
nder Woman.

  Alison turned to Pamela. “You’ve always been so good to me. Let me do this.”

  Pamela stared at her, unable to speak. Alison pulled her hands away from her grip, then stood, and faced Lombardi. “If I cooperate with you, and make a confession, will you get me some kind of deal so I won’t have to go to prison for a long time?”

  Molly glanced at Wyatt. He was swaying on his feet. She went over to him, and settled him on a chair, hoping he wouldn’t pass out.

  Lombardi said, “I’ll talk to the State’s Attorney, but I can’t make any promises.”

  Alison thought for a moment. Then she nodded to herself, making up her mind. “All right, I suppose that’s better than nothing. I want to tell everyone what happened. I think it will make me feel better.”

  Wyatt said, “That’s insane. Don’t do it, Alison.” His voice sounded like gravel. “I’ve hired a lawyer, one of the best. I’ll call him. Let him advise you.” He tried to get up out of the chair, but his legs had turned into spaghetti. He quickly sank back down. “Please, honey. Let me do this for you.”

  Alison’s eyes flared. “Don’t you honey me. Nothing will ever be the same, and it’s all your fault. You had to have an affair with that awful woman. How do you think I felt when I heard her voice mail messages?” Her voice was rising fast. “You didn’t even lock your phone! It’s like you wanted me to hear them. I hate you.” She spat the words, and Wyatt seemed to reel back as if she’d slapped him. Rage was pouring out of her, rage she had probably bottled up over the last several days. “If you’d been a stronger man, if you’d walked away before it got started, I wouldn’t have had to take the measures I did to put a stop to it.” Her face was red-hot with anger. “I needed you to see me. That’s why I wrecked the car, but even that wasn’t enough in the end.”

  Molly was stunned. Alison had risked her life to get Wyatt’s attention?

  “I thought you swerved so you wouldn’t hit a deer,” he said. “You could have been killed.”

  “Better dead than humiliated.” Alison turned to Pamela. “You know I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t feel I had no other choice.”

  Pamela’s eyes swiveled to Wyatt. She looked furious. “You stupid boy.” Wyatt’s face crumbled. He realized his mother was taking his wife’s side.

  Alison said, “My plan worked for a little while. Wyatt cut back on his trips to Boston, and the calls stopped. I was sure the affair was over, and we could go back to the way things were.” She walked over to Wyatt. “But then I checked your phone again. You saved some of her voice mail messages. I heard her say she was moving to Vermont so you could be together.”

  Wyatt shook his head. “No, you’ve got it all wrong, Ally. I broke it off with her. Yes, she said she was moving, but I didn’t encourage her. I had nothing to do with it.”

  Alison pursed her lips. “Then why did you go to see her on Sunday?”

  Wyatt’s eyebrows shot up. “What? How did you know? You’ve been staying with your parents.”

  “I downloaded a tracking app on your phone.” Alison sounded triumphant. “The app showed me you went to A Checkered Past. Don’t deny it.” Molly thought Alison was amazing. She’d not only spied on Wyatt, she didn’t appear the least worried that Lombardi was standing three feet away and could arrest her at any moment. She was spilling it all, and didn’t care, because she was getting back at Wyatt. It seemed to be his fate in life to be bested by the women he had wronged.

  Wyatt said, “All right, I did go to see her. Detective Lombardi knows all about it. But you have to believe me, Alison, you all have to believe me, I wasn’t involved with Charlotte anymore. I only went there because she insisted on seeing me in person to talk about the property sale. You know, the one I just found out was fake. I told her I’d give her what she wanted, anything to get her out of our lives.” He was appealing to Alison, but she folded her arms across her chest, her body language announcing she was having none of it. His expression was one of torment and disbelief. “You didn’t have to kill her.” He suddenly broke down crying. “Why, Ally? Why did you do it?”

  Alison snarled, “You’re so naïve. You think she would have left you alone, but you’re wrong. She had no intention of giving you up. She was in it to win it all. You, the money, my children. Everything.”

  Pamela stood up. “Alison, that’s quite enough. Let Wyatt call his lawyer, and if you don’t want his lawyer, I’ll find you someone else.”

  “No, I’m not done.” Alison’s voice was suddenly so whiny, Molly had the sinking feeling that something was wrong. What was she missing? “On Monday morning,” Alison went on, determined to make her confession, “I dropped the girls off at school, and I went to see Charlotte. I told her I knew about the affair. I asked her to leave us alone, to give Wyatt back to me and our girls, to think of someone besides herself. She told me I didn’t deserve Wyatt, that he was tired of me, and in love with her. She said I was a fool for thinking anything less.” She was talking at a steady pace, and Molly wondered if it was rehearsed. “I told her I wasn’t going to let her destroy my marriage. She laughed in my face, and told me to go away. I refused, and she pushed me toward the door, to get rid of me. I pushed back, a lot harder than she expected. I think she saw something shift in my eyes. I had given her a chance, but I was done being nice. I was extremely angry. And suddenly, she looked afraid, and turned and ran down the hall. I ran after her, and I could see she was trying to make a phone call while she was running, and I thought, She’s going to call the police, or maybe she’s going to call Wyatt, and I couldn’t allow that. I caught up with her just as she was about to dial, and I shoved her into one of those rooms. She stumbled, and dropped her phone, and I picked up the first thing that was handy. It was a kind of planter, heavy, and I hit her in the back of the head with it and I killed her.”

  Alison stopped talking. Her cheeks were pink, and her eyes were excited. She had admitted to killing Charlotte, and she wasn’t remorseful.

  Rene was the first to react. She walked over to Alison, and slapped her face.

  “You witch! How could you?”

  Lombardi came over, and grabbed Rene’s hand before she could hit her again. Alison laughed, even as the uniformed police officer took out a pair of handcuffs and snapped them around her wrists. Lombardi read Alison her rights, and Molly felt like she was in some kind of movie, but the ending was all wrong. What was she missing?

  Alison continued to laugh as Lombardi led her to the door. She shouted over her shoulder, “You did this to us, Wyatt! To me, and the girls. It’s all on you. Don’t you ever forget it.”

  Chapter 29

  For the second time that evening, the front door closed. Those who were left behind appeared shocked, and for a long while, no one spoke.

  Finally, Quincy said, “I did not see any of that coming. I can’t believe she killed Charlotte.”

  Rene said, “I do. It’s like Molly said. She had the most to lose. Now, she’s lost it anyway.” She sighed. “I could use a drink.”

  “Me, too.” Quincy smiled at her. “May I join you?”

  Rene nodded, and they started for the door, but she stopped in front of Molly. “When I got the invitation to have dinner tonight, I wondered if you were up to something. It’s the only reason I came.” She reached out her hand, and Molly shook it. “Thank you.” She gave her a small smile. “No offense to the police, but I don’t think Lombardi or that other cop could’ve gotten those two women to confess. You’re amazing.”

  Molly didn’t know what to say. She always got embarrassed when people complimented her. Quincy winked at her as he walked by. Molly thought he probably had bought the coins from Charlotte. She was less sure of Rene’s involvement. Perhaps hers was a crime of knowledge, but not active participation. But without any evidence, there was no way to prove it.

  Wyatt had calmed down, and was able to get to his feet. But his eyes were still damp from crying, and he looked miserable. “Molly, how could you do this to me, a
nd Alison? You forced her to confess.”

  Before Molly could reply, Pamela said, “She didn’t make Alison confess. She did that all on her own. You should give your wife some credit for being honest. She has more courage than you do.”

  Wyatt frowned. “Courage? In case you haven’t noticed, Mother, she’s been arrested, and she’ll probably go to prison, and no matter what I’ve done, it didn’t justify her taking a human life.” He walked off to the foyer, took his coat out of the closet, and went out the front door without looking back.

  Molly realized she’d cleared out the room. There was only herself, Matt, Nathan and Pamela remaining.

  Matt cleared his throat. “Well, I suppose we should be getting home. Or we could stay, and help you clean up.”

  Pamela shook her head. “Despite what I said to Wyatt, I do agree with him on one thing. There’s no cleaning up the mess Molly has made.” She turned away, waving her hand in the air like she was waving away a pesky fly. “Please go.”

  As they walked to the foyer, Pamela went into the dining room and started collecting the dirty plates and cups. Probably cleaning to keep herself from falling apart, Molly thought. And who would blame her? Alison had been led away in handcuffs five minutes ago. Life wasn’t going to return to normal anytime soon.

  Nathan handed them their coats, and spoke quietly. “I’m relieved Wyatt is off the hook, I really am, but Alison . . . this is a big blow for all of us, but especially Pamela. She loves that girl like her own.”

  Matt said, “Molly and I both feel bad about it, but I hope you can talk Pamela out of blaming her. It’s not fair. Alison confessed. What was Molly supposed to do?”

  Nathan looked at her. “I know it’s not your fault. I can’t believe Alison actually killed that woman. Not that I know her that well, but she’s into yoga, and deep breathing, and meditation. Killing Charlotte seems completely out of character. Could it be the stress? Did finding out about the affair cause her to go crazy?” He shook his head, trying to find a reason, but Molly knew from experience, sometimes there was no good reason.