“Will do, and thanks for the call. According to the terms of Dr. Ramsey’s trust he disinherited his widow. Now I wonder what she’s planning on doing with the antiques in the house. When I’m finished at Dr. Ramsey’s office, I probably need to get a court restraining order prohibiting her from doing anything with the collection that’s in the house. Actually, as I recall, title to the house is vested in the name of the trust, so I should be able to get an order for her to vacate the premises, which, under the circumstances, would probably be a good idea.”
“I agree, but that’s your area of expertise, not mine,” Jeff said. ‘I’ll be at my office the rest of the afternoon. When you get the situation under control and if you have a minute, I’d appreciate it if you could call me and let me know what happened. Here’s my number.”
“Will do. Talk to you later.”
CHAPTER 21
When Marty drove into the driveway of the compound and parked her car, she saw that Jeff wasn’t there yet, but it looked like everyone else was. She glanced over at the gate where her faithful companion, Duke, was waiting for her just inside the gate. She opened it and bent down to pet him.
“I’m home, big guy. How about we go for a walk before I show the new me to everyone. Let’s go.” She and Duke walked around to the far side of the compound houses where he spent a few minutes communing with nature. They walked back to the gate, but instead of Duke following her into the house as he usually did, he laid down again, watching the street in front of the compound and the driveway. “Come on, Duke. Time to go into the house like we always do when I get home.”
After five minutes of cajoling and pleading, it became apparent to Marty that Duke had some other agenda in mind, and that agenda was waiting for Jeff to come home. Clearly, Jeff had displaced Marty on Duke’s list of people he was most loyal to. She glanced at the courtyard, aware that none of the residents were there for the pre-dinner sharing of the news of the day. As she walked into her house she felt a pang of jealousy, which wasn’t an emotion she’d felt since her husband, Scott, had told her he was leaving her for his secretary.
To think I trained Duke and spent all that time putting pink booties on him, and then Jeff completely takes him away from me. I can’t believe it. It would serve both of them right if I got a new puppy, one that was entirely mine.
The second thought she had was that she was glad Duke and Jeff had bonded, because the first few days after they returned from their honeymoon had been touch and go as to whether or not Duke was going to accept the big, handsome detective who had clearly won the heart of his mistress. It had been hard enough for Duke to accept that Jeff was going to be living in his and Marty’s house, but to add insult to injury, the man was now sleeping in the bed right beside Marty, a place Duke had occupied from the time he’d been a puppy.
Marty finally decided that nothing would be gained by being jealous and decided to compliment Jeff on his ability to win Duke over. Even so, she could hear a little voice in the back of her head saying, “A new puppy really wouldn’t be all that big a deal, and Duke would even have someone to play with.”
Well, that’s one thing I don’t need to make a decision about this minute. Plenty of time for that later on.
She changed into jeans and a pale pink blouse which accentuated her new hairdo and the highlights Brett had spent so much time applying. She looked at herself in the mirror and knew Jeff was going to be happy with the results. She decided to refresh her makeup, so the version of the new Marty would be complete.
A few minutes later she walked out into the courtyard, noticing the twinkling lights which had been strung on the big tree in the center of the courtyard, which were always a welcoming sight to the residents. “Wow, you look fantastic. What’s the occasion?” Max asked, looking up from where he was putting wine glasses and wine on the table.
“No special occasion. I wanted to have my hair done by a man who is the stylist for a woman who was a person of interest in the Dr. Ramsey case. Although I think she can be crossed off the list as a person of interest, I did get a bonus with this new do. I just hope Jeff likes it,” she said.
“Jeff loves it,” a booming voice said from the gate. “Come here and let me see it,” the big detective said, Duke at his heels. “Marty, you look fantastic. Turn around.” She twirled and he caught her up in his arms. “No matter what happens in the Dr. Ramsey case, with you for a wife, I have to be the luckiest man in the world. You were beautiful when I met you, when I married you, and when we honeymooned,” he grinned suggestively, “but, this is a step beyond. I better be careful, or you’ll be leaving me for one of those Palm Springs sugar daddies we always hear about.”
Marty kissed him and whispered, “Jeff, trust me. You don’t have a thing to worry about, other than the fact that we may be having an addition to the family.”
“Whoa, lady, we talked about that, and you assured me that was not possible. I’m a little long in the tooth for the daddy gig, and sweetheart, I hate to say it, but I think you are, too.” He pushed her away and looked at her. “Tell me you’re not going to say what I’m thinking.”
She laughed and looked down at Duke. “I’m thinking maybe I need to get a puppy, because it’s becoming very clear to me that you’ve stolen my dog’s affection.”
“Marty, are you serious? Do you have any idea what I’m thinking?”
“Yes, and the answer is no. The only little addition to our family may be a puppy. I’m in the thinking stage about it.”
“Well, when you get ready to take it beyond the thinking stage, I think I should be the first to know. By the way, you really do look gorgeous. Do I want to know what it costs to look that gorgeous?”
“No. Very simply, no. We could probably buy a kennel and all the inhabitants in it for what I paid for this new do, but if you’re happy with the way I look, then it was worth every penny.”
“Tell you what, Marty. Consider it my treat.”
“Easy for you to say, since you don’t have a clue how much it cost.”
“Okay, that’s enough, you two lovebirds,” Laura said. “Marty, you look great. Love the new do, and you look ten years younger. Think I need the name of this wizard you went to.”
“I’m happy to give you his name, but I’d advise you to sell all your stocks and bonds before you go. You might also think about refinancing the houses here in the compound as well,” Marty said laughing as the three of them walked over to the large table where Max was finishing up setting the table for dinner. A few minutes later they were joined by Les and John, who also told Marty how terrific she looked.
“Okay, everyone, thanks. Now, enough about me. By the way, I had lunch at The Red Pony today, and I can confidently tell you that our fellow resident, John, outdid himself. Plus, I had to wait in line for fifteen minutes before I could even place my order.”
“I’m not surprised, considering the meals we’re lucky enough to have here, compliments of Chef John. I think we’re the luckiest guinea pigs in the world,” Les said as he smiled at John. “I really mean it. Whenever I have to go to some dinner after a gallery opening or whatever, I always wish I was at home eating your food instead.”
“Thank you, one and all,” John said. “A little later I’ll be serving chimichangas, hopefully the way Laura likes them. I’ve made a fruit salad to go with them, and for dessert we’ll be having a Mexican chocolate custard, but first I’m interested in hearing about what’s happening with the Dr. Ramsey case. Actually, I think all of us are. I have to make a quick trip to the kitchen, but just for a minute, so don’t start without me.”
CHAPTER 22
“Okay, I’m back,” John said. “Now you can start. Jeff, since you’re the lead detective on the case, what happened today?”
Jeff told them about his meetings with Sybil and Hugh. He sighed and said, “After talking to Sybil, either she’s a very, very good actress, or she’s completely innocent. I’d prefer to think she’s innocent, because I liked her, although it w
ouldn’t be the first time I’ve liked someone who later turned out to be a murderer.”
“Did she have an alibi?” Marty asked. “When I had lunch with her, that never came up, and I’ve been wondering about it. I guess what I’m thinking is if she is the murderer, I would assume she’d have an alibi, or at least the semblance of one.”
“No, she has absolutely no way of verifying that she took her dogs out for a walk when she got home, watched the news on television, and was fixing her dinner when she got the phone call about Dr. Ramsey’s murder. I agree with you Marty, usually the first thing a murderer will do is establish an alibi, one that’s as air-tight as possible. The fact that she has none certainly indicates a sense of innocence, but then again, you have to wonder if that was the whole reason for not having an alibi, to make it seem she was too innocent to have one,” Jeff said.
“That’s an angle I never thought of.”
“After years of investigating crimes, I’ve learned that you look at everything. You turn all the facts upside down, inside out, and then examine them on their face value. So, the answer to your question is no, she doesn’t have an alibi.”
“Jeff, right after I finished lunch at the Pony I called her to see how she was doing,” Marty said. “We talked for a while, and then she had another call. It was from Dr. Ramsey’s wife. She told Sybil she’d hired a moving van, and they were on their way to the office to pack up his antique collection. I told her to call you, did she?”
“Yes, I’d just gotten out of a meeting with Paul Donaldson’s boss, when I saw that she’d called. By the way, from what his boss told me, Paul’s someone I think we can cross off the suspect list. His boss said although Paul wasn’t thrilled with how his wife looked immediately after her surgery, he’s gotten to really like the way she looks now. According to his boss, the guy is a combination of a saint and an Eagle Scout.
“Anyway, I returned Sybil’s call, and long story short, I called Roger Sills, Dr. Ramsey’s attorney, and he went over to the office to take care of the problem. He told me that, according to Dr. Ramsey’s trust, everything goes to his children and his ex-wife, Lisbeth. He said he’d call me when he had a chance, but I haven’t heard from him yet.”
“Well, Mrs. Ramsey was a busy lady today,” Marty said. “I told you she’d asked me to go to her home to meet with her this morning. I found out the purpose of my visit was that she wanted to know what I thought the value of Dr. Ramsey’s collection was, so she’d have some idea of what to sell it for. I told her since I’d been instructed that the collection belonged to the trust, I couldn’t discuss it. She was furious and even offered me a lot of money if I’d tell her, but I turned it down for ethical reasons. In retrospect, that probably wasn’t the smartest thing for me to do, considering how much money it cost for my new do.”
“Sis, I know you well enough to know that you’re only kidding,” Laura said. “Jeff, what about Mrs. Ramsey? Does she have an alibi?”
“Yes. I went to her home the night of the murder, and I was the one who told her about his death. She was hosting her monthly bridge club group. There were seven other women there and from what she and the others told me, they’d been playing bridge since three that afternoon. A lot of them play golf most mornings, so the bridge game is at an odd time of day. I don’t think there’s any way she could have left the game, gone to his office, committed the murder, and returned without anyone noticing her. That really doesn’t make sense.”
“No, but what if she hired someone to murder him?” Laura asked.
“That’s always a definite possibility, but we usually start with the more immediate people of interest. Trying to find a hit person is really difficult. Marty, we all know you had your hair done today and you have a new do, but as I recall, that wasn’t the real purpose of your visit to the hair salon, although the results are fabulous, no matter how the rest of your visit went.”
“Guys, can you hold that thought?” John said. “I want to hear everything, but Max just gave me the high sign that dinner is ready. We’ll be back in a minute with it.”
“Actually, that’s perfect timing. I see I have an incoming call from Dr. Ramsey’s attorney. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes as well,” Jeff said as he rose from the table and walked towards the gate where he could take the call without the others listening in on what was said.
CHAPTER 23
“John, I have a deep, dark secret to tell you,” Laura said. “I had decided no matter how good the chimichangas were, I was going to tell you that maybe you should make them again, that they weren’t quite right. That way I figured I could have them at least one more time,” she said with a sigh, “but I just can’t do it. That was absolutely the best chimichanga I’ve ever had. I ate so much, I’ll probably never sleep tonight trying to digest it along with the chocolate custard. Once again, you’ve outdone yourself.”
Everyone agreed with Laura’s assessment of the chimichangas and the chocolate custard. “Hey everybody, if you get hungry tomorrow, the leftovers will be in my refrigerator. You know I never lock the door to my house, so enjoy.”
“Say no more, John. I’ll come home for lunch, and I intend to be at the head of the line. You can count on it,” Laura said smiling. She turned to Jeff who had returned to the table after taking his phone call. “What did the attorney have to say?”
“It was an interesting conversation. His name is Roger Sills, and he told me Dr. Ramsey and Lisbeth Ramsey were going to reconcile. Dr. Ramsey had met with one of the attorneys in his law office, and his divorce papers had been drawn up, but here’s the interesting part. Dr. Ramsey told Roger he was going to tell Ashley he wanted a divorce and that he planned on telling her the night before he was murdered. Quite frankly, I’m not sure what to make of that.”
“That goes along with what Lisbeth told me this afternoon,” Marty said.
Everyone’s head turned in her direction. Jeff was the first to speak. “You never told me you were planning on talking to Lisbeth. Why would you do that?”
“I really hadn’t planned on doing it, it just kind of happened. I got to thinking that maybe she knew something. After all, from what we’ve learned, she seemed to be the love of his life, and I thought maybe she could shed some light on his murder. I didn’t have anything in mind, but after I left the hair salon, I drove to her house. When I talked to Sybil after I’d finished lunch and was killing time before my hair appointment, I asked her for Lisbeth’s address, which she gave to me. I’m here to tell you she is as beautiful as we’ve heard, but she is also one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.”
“Did you find out anything?” Jeff asked.
“Not about the murder, but I did find out that for the past six months she and Dr. Ramsey had been seeing each other. She told me she realized she’d made a terrible mistake with the pool guy and that she still loved Dr. Ramsey. They started seeing each other after Lisbeth made up some excuse that she needed to talk to him about their daughter and one thing led to another. He admitted he’d never loved Ashley, and that he’d married her on the rebound. It’s really sad to think they were going to reconcile, and then he was murdered.”
“So, your opinion of her was favorable?” Laura asked.
“Very. Although I don’t have your psychic abilities, I never had any sense that she was other than what she seemed to be, simply a woman who had made a mistake and really regretted it. I don’t know what the alimony and child support arrangements were between them, but they must have been pretty good, because she was driving a Ferrari.”
“From what Roger told me, she’s going to be a very wealthy woman. According to the trust, she gets half of the doctor’s estate, and her children will get the other half. She’ll be the guardian of their estate until they reach the age of twenty-one. As such, she’ll make all the financial decisions regarding what amount of their trust funds goes for clothes, schooling, and other personal things. He told me he didn’t have a final number of what the estate was worth, but he thou
ght it would be in the neighborhood of twenty million dollars. Believe me, that will buy a couple of Ferraris, probably even a fleet.”
“Before you all look at me like I’m speaking psychically, I’m not. I am curious, though, whether or not Lisbeth knew she and the children were the beneficiaries of his estate.”
“I don’t know, Laura,” Jeff said. “I had no idea his estate was that large, and although I figured the doctor would provide for his children, I didn’t know until I spoke with Roger that his ex-wife would be inheriting half of it.” He turned to Marty and said, “You’re the one who personally spoke to her. Do you think she knew she’d be named as a beneficiary, and a substantial one at that?”
“No, I never got that sense from her, and I’d be willing to bet she didn’t know. I could really be off here, but all I came away with from my meeting with her was a sense of her profound sadness at the tricks life can play on you, such as realizing you made a mistake, admitting it, looking forward to having a second chance at happiness, and then it all blows up and is gone in one devastating moment. Call me a romantic, but I think it’s very sad. I believe she really loved him.”
They shook their heads in sad agreement, and as if someone had sent out a silent message that it was time to end the evening, they all headed off to their respective houses.
*****
“Jeff, I just thought of something,” Marty said as they got ready for bed. “Weren’t you going to meet with Dr. Thurston late this afternoon?”
“Yes, and I did,” he said as he pulled on his pajamas. As usual, he checked the nightstand next to his side of the bed to make sure his telephone and pistol were on it.
Satisfied, he turned back to her as Marty said, “Want to tell me about it or are you too tired?”
Murdered By Plastic Surgery Page 10
