A Key, An Egg, An Unfortunate Remark

by Harry Connolly

  Albert followed Marley into the sitting room. She got down on her knees and tied the fishing line to a chair leg at ankle height. She then strung the line across the floor and tied the other end to the couch leg. She plucked it and it twanged.

  “Um, Aunt Marley, is today Booby Trap Day?”

  She stood and examined her handiwork. “You have to keep your eyes open if you’re going to live here.” Weathers strode around the corner with a Macbook in his hand. He stepped over the line without even glancing down. “Like Weathers.”

  Albert had grown used to a casual joyfulness from his aunt, but right now he could detect none. In fact, she sounded almost nervous. “Are you all right?”

  She went to the dining room and sat in her usual chair. “All morning I’ve had the strangest feeling. Someone is coming, dear, and I’m not going to like it.”

  Weathers came back into the room. “Detective Lonagan has arrived.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  Good Friends Share Bad News

  “This time I’ll meet him at the door, Weathers, not in the library.” Weathers nodded and started toward the front of the house.

  Marley grabbed Albert’s undamaged hand and pulled him toward the front of the house. They carefully stepped over the fishing line. “Weathers, has Jenny walked the dog?”

  “No, madam,” Weathers answered. “Ms. Wu has not yet arrived.” Then he opened the door.

  Detective Charles Lonagan was a homicide detective for the Seattle Police Department. He was a few years younger than Marley, having celebrated his sixtieth birthday only two weeks earlier, but he looked older. His thinning hair was stark white and his wrinkled, sagging skin gave his face a grouchy, morose look that didn’t match his personality. He sometimes consulted with Marley on odd cases—he was one of the few people in Seattle who understood what she did and why—but today was not one of those days.

  His longtime partner, Detective Sharon Garcia, entered with him. She was about five foot five with broad shoulders and muscular arms. In her twenties, she’d been what would be politely called curvaceous. Three children and two decades later, she had added forty pounds around her middle and seemed much more comfortable with herself. Garcia knew her partner had a relationship of some kind with Marley, but since no one had ever explained who Marley was or what she did, that relationship was a mystery. Garcia hated mysteries. As far as she was concerned, whenever anyone withheld anything from her—ever—they were up to no good.

  “Hello, Ms. Jacobs,” Lonagan said. He liked a little formality. “May we come in?”

  “Of course,” Marley answered. Weathers had already returned to the kitchen. Whatever was going to happen here, it held no interest for him. “Please come in. And hello to you, too, Detective Garcia. I’m sorry I don’t see you more often. Let’s talk here in the foyer instead of the library. I don’t think you’ve come bearing good news, not if you’ve brought your partner and that expression.”

  “It’s true. I’m afraid that this time I have some bad news.”

  “Oh, no. It’s Jenny, isn’t it?”

  Garcia’s eyes narrowed. “What makes you say that?”

  “She was supposed to be here half an hour ago. Has something happened to her?”

  “She’s being held for questioning,” Lonagan said, “for the murder of your nephew, Aloysius Pierce.”

  Marley clasped Albert’s hand. She did not exclaim, cry, or break down. She only closed her eyes and became very still for ten seconds. When she looked at Lonagan again, Albert and the police detectives both thought she seemed smaller than before. “I suppose you need me to identify his body?”

  “No, the medical examiner will take care of that.”

  “Charles, I insist on seeing him. I won’t believe it’s really him until I do.”

  “Oh. Well, of course. After the autopsy, the medical examiner will release the body to a funeral home of your choice. Probably by tomorrow morning. You’ll be able to view the body there. For right now, we’d like you to come down to the station to answer a few questions.”

  “Of course. I’ll be happy to help in any way I can.”

  Albert looked from the detectives to his aunt to Weathers and back at the detectives. Everything he knew about police work came from television, but he was still young enough to think himself well-informed. “Can’t she answer questions here? Unless you’re planning to charge her…”

  Garcia spoke up sharply. “We aren’t planning to charge her at this time.” In truth, she and Lonagan believed witnesses were more helpful if they could be questioned someplace where they didn’t feel comfortable. “However, that’s where our equipment is. Doing the interview at the station makes it easier to catch the guilty party.”

  “It’s all right,” Marley said. “I prefer it, too.”

  “Excuse me,” Lonagan said, addressing Albert, “but we haven’t been introduced.”

  “Oh! I’m sorry,” Marley exclaimed. “My manners. This is Albert, my nephew.”

  Feeling vaguely as though he was admitting to something he shouldn’t, Albert said, “Aloysius was my older brother. I assume you’ll want to talk to me, too.”

  “Thank you for agreeing to come downtown with us,” Lonagan said.

  Marley laid her hand on her throat. “Er, Charles, you don’t really think Jenny…”

  “I think of us as friends, Ms. Jacobs.” Lonagan’s expression made him look annoyed, but his voice was as calm and soothing as a funeral director’s.

  “So do I.”

  “Well, I hope you understand that I won’t be able to answer any of your questions right now. I wanted to give you the news in person, because we’ve known each other for so long, but—“

  “That’s all right,” Marley said. “We should start. There’s so much to do.”

  Albert agreed to drive her, so she asked him to walk the dog, too. Ten minutes later, after Marley had changed into a cashmere turtleneck, a cotton sport jacket, and a long cotton skirt, all in black, they went to their cars and drove downtown.

  “It doesn’t feel right,” Albert said.

  Marley was searching through her cell for a number. “What doesn’t, dear?”

  “Me following a police car. It should be the other way around, shouldn’t it? I feel like the universe has been reversed.”

  Marley pressed the phone to her ear. “I know just what you mean, dear. Hello, Frederika. Marley Jacobs here. I have some work for you, I’m afraid to say. Call me when you get this message.”

  After she hung up, Albert drove in silence for a while. He stared at Marley’s reflection in the rear-view mirror, correctly reading her expression as a mixture of worry and guilt.

  “I didn’t like him.”

  Marley glanced up, startled. “What was that, dear?”

  “Aloysius. I didn’t like him.” Albert knew his aunt felt the same way, and he hoped it would be easier for her if she knew her feelings were shared.

  The look she gave him was still full of worry, but she no longer looked guilty. She looked deeply sad. “No one did, once they got to know him.”

  The visit to the police station to give their statements took up the whole rest of the day. When had they last seen Aloysius? Were they close? How well did Albert know Jenny Wu? Had he ever driven her car? Was he in Marley’s will? Was Aloysius?

  As for Marley herself, during a quiet moment she went across James Street to the King County Correctional Facility. There was a scanner at the front door, an ID check, and limited visiting hours, but Marley, being who she was, knew a trick to get around that. Marley knew quite a few surprising tricks.

  The block where she found Jenny was much nicer than what Marley remembered from her own arrests, long ago. There was a large common area, lit by garish but well-shielded fluorescent lights. The walls, doors, and door jambs were brown, yellow and red, like an extremely mellow fast food restaurant. Around the edge of the common area were the cells, and all their doors stood open. A mezzanine added a second floor and a plac
e to look down on the common area.

  Jenny was still inside her cell, sitting on the end of her bed. Marley sat beside her, startling her profoundly. “I thought this place would be more crowded.”

  “Oh! Ms. Jacobs!” She glanced around in a panic, wondering how she could keep herself safe if even her elderly employer could sneak up on her. “How did you get in here?”

  “I am a lawyer, dear,” Marley non-answered.

  “You are?”

  Marley tugged at Jenny’s orange, government-issued sleeve. “Tell me how you got into this mess.”

  “I wish I knew! I didn’t kill him. I hope you know that.”

  “I’m glad to hear it. Don’t worry. I believe you. What happened after you left my house last night?”

  Jenny took a deep breath to compose herself. “I went straight home and made dinner. I made that carrot salad thing I learned from your Miss Harriet. At about nine, my roommate Cissy came home with her boyfriend. I never told you this, but they fight all the time, just arguing and saying awful things to each other. Then, after about two or three hours of this, they...” she glanced over at Marley, unsure how to continue. “They make up. That’s even louder than the arguing, if you can believe it. I swear, I can’t even live there anymore.

  “So I went out. First to the 15th Street, but there was some kind of poetry reading that was completely ugh. So I went to the Purple Dot and ate dim sum really slowly. I stayed until after midnight, when I figured Cissy would be finished with her little routine, then went home to bed. The cops woke me up this morning and put me in handcuffs. I guess they searched Al’s phone and found the texts he’s been sending me… and the Facebook PMs.” Jenny sighed. “And the rest.”

  “Have they checked out your alibi?”

  “I don’t know. I try to pay cash at those places because it’s better for the wait staff. It was pretty crowded, and the only people I talked to were some tourists. Besides...”

  Marley waited for her to continue. Jenny wiped tears from her eyes. “I’ve already packed a couple of bags for school. I’ve been so excited to go, but when the detective saw them stacked in the corner... I’m sorry, Ms. Jacobs. I didn’t like Aloysius, but I know he was your family and no matter what I wouldn’t want anything to happen to someone you care about.”

  “Thank you, Jenny. As a lawyer, I’m afraid I can’t represent you. I just realized I might need to be called as a witness.”

  Jenny let out her bark of a laugh, then wiped her cheeks. “You just realized that, did you?”

  Marley’s phone began to play Billie Holiday’s “Nice Work If You Can Get It” and she held it to her ear. “Hello, Frederika. I’m just fine, dear, how are you? Wonderful. I’m calling with some trouble, of course, please pretend to be surprised. This time it’s my assistant, Jenny Wu. She’s at King County Correctional Facility with a murder charge hanging over her. Yes, quite serious, but I think it will be resolved quickly in her favor. Do you have time to look into it today? Wonderful. Let’s talk about the details tonight.” She hung up.

  A hulking woman nearly as tall as Albert shuffled into the doorway. Her mismatched eyes bulged and her frizzy hair stuck out in all directions. “Hey ma’am,” she said in a high, strained voice, “can I borrow your phone?”

  “Why of course, dear.” Marley handed it over. “Be sure to return it when you’re done.”

  The huge woman gave Marley an empty look. “Oh, I definitely will.” She shuffled off.

  Jenny watched her go. “Good luck getting that back in one piece.”

  “What do you mean?” Marley slipped her hand into her coat pocket, pulled out her cell phone, then put it back.

  “Oh, God, I wish you could do that with me.” Jenny curled up, wrapping her arms around her knees and shivering. She looked at the stainless steel toilet in the corner. “I don’t think I can do this, Ms. Jacobs. I’ve only been here a few hours, but I don’t think I can stand it. I can’t spend the rest of my life in prison, I just can’t.”

  Marley took Jenny’s hand in hers. “Don’t worry, dear. I have a very sharp lawyer who will help us sort this out, and you’ll get your life back. I promise.”

  “I want that. I want my life back, please. Thank you for coming to visit me.”

  “I don’t know what you mean, dear. I’m not even here. See?”

  Marley glanced toward the doorway. Jenny peered out into the common area, trying to see what Marley wanted to show her. When she turned back Marley had vanished.

  * * *

  Back at police headquarters, Detective Lonagan took a break from interviewing Albert and went into the waiting area to check on Marley. There followed a slight kerfuffle when he saw her casually reading through a copy of the General Offense Report and the patrol officer’s Statement on Aloysius’s murder, along with printouts of the crime scene photos. Lonagan and Garcia both tried to figure out who had given her a copy—the Photographic Media Envelope had not even been opened yet—but they couldn’t. They pushed as far as they could without making an incident out of it, then let it drop.

  Marley insisted, in perfect innocence, that she saw them sitting on a chair, recognized her nephew’s name, and picked them up. She apologized with all apparent sincerity when she returned the file and Lonagan, at least, seemed ready to believe that she had not bribed anyone for it.

  Eventually, the questions had all been answered and the statements taken. Business cards were exchanged, and Albert and Marley were asked to contact Det. Lonagan if they thought of anything else that might be important.

  In the SeaPark Garage outside, Detective Garcia was waiting for them beside Marley’s Town Car. “Ms. Jacobs, I know my partner likes you. You two have history, and he’s consulted with you on certain cases over the years, although God only knows why. So for his sake, I’m going to warn you not to hold anything back from him. Not only would it be bad for you, which I don’t particularly care about, but it will look bad for him. He deserves better.” She looked directly at Albert. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  Marley nodded. “I understand. I would never betray your partner’s trust, believe me. I think much too highly of him for that.”

  “Good,” Detective Garcia said through clenched teeth. “Because if I find out you’ve held back so much as a middle initial of someone’s name, I’m going to come to your house and cuff you both in front of all your high-society friends. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  “Well, I’d better get myself an interesting hat,” Albert said.

  Garcia turned her full attention on him, momentarily nonplussed. “Excuse me?” The man didn’t look like a crazy, but…

  “I’ll need an interesting hat to wear, for when you arrest my aunt in front of her friends. Maybe I’ll go with a Carmen Miranda thing; Aunt Marley, you might want to consider a propeller beanie, right? Because if you’re going to arrest us in front of her friends, with all their camera phones, for the crime of spending all day trying to help you catch my brother’s killer, I’ll want attractive and unique headwear. For the video.”

  Garcia folded her arms. “Is that right.”

  “Right,” he added. “Then who’ll look like a fool?”

  The detective stared at Albert for a moment, trying to decide if making him come back into the station would soothe her annoyance, but she knew it wouldn’t. All it would do is waste more of everyone’s time. “Get out of here.”

  Smiling, Marley approached the car. Albert let her into the backseat, and they left.

  They arrived home at dinnertime. Miss Harriet had decided to work in the kitchen that day, and they enjoyed peerless Normandy Chicken with brine-boiled potatoes. Albert sat in Jenny’s usual place. Afterward, Marley offered to call Aloysius’s mother down in California to give her the bad news, but Albert said he wanted to do it himself. He went to his room to make the call, where he stayed behind closed doors for over an hour. That gave Marley plenty of time to check in with Frederika and to carefully examine the extra copies
of the General Offense Report, Officer’s Statement, and crime scene photos, which had somehow managed to make its way into the Town Car.

  Albert returned to the library looking shaken. Marley waved him toward an over-stuffed chair beside her desk. “Are you all right, dear? How did she take it?”

  “With scotch.” He held up his left hand. It was trembling slightly. He clenched his fist and pressed it against his leg. “And songs. Sad, sad songs.”

  “Oh no. I hope it wasn’t ‘Danny Boy?’ ”

  “Danny Boy was just the start. I hung up on her during the second verse of ‘Puff the Magic Dragon.’ ”

  “Even I tear up at the end of that one.” Marley sighed. “When Daddy died, your mother insisted on a turn at the podium during the funeral. I tried to discourage her, but the rest of the family thought it only fair that she say a few words. What they got instead was a full-throated a cappella version of ‘In Dreams.’ Maybe it wasn’t entirely appropriate, considering the occasion, but her voice always did favor Roy Orbison.”

  “Yeah,” Albert agreed, sinking into a funk, “after she’d had a couple of drinks to loosed up her vocal cords.”

  Marley knew it was time to change the subject. “One thing, though, Albert. I just have to know: Why did you say what you said to Detective Garcia? About ‘attractive and unique headwear’?”

  He shrugged. “To be random. To break her rhythm and annoy her a little without being rude. She seems basically okay—and I do want her to find Aloysius’s killer, but I had just done everything I could to cooperate and she was still standing on our necks. That wasn’t cool. Anyway, she comes across like a straight charger, and few things slow down that sort like the unexpected.”

  Marley smiled. “It’s been a long day, hasn’t it?” Albert let out a long breath as he nodded in agreement. “Well, it will be longer still. Let’s get to the car.”

  Albert looked mildly surprised and, before he could stand, Marley was already out of her chair and through the open doorway, heading for the car port. He hurried after her, opened the back passenger door for her, then got behind the wheel. The sun had gone down. “Where are we headed?”