Assault and Batter

by Jessica Beck

  “Well, you were wrong. Sure, I’ll get them a nice present, but if you’re not going, then neither am I.”

  “But you’re in the wedding,” I protested.

  “The second I learned that Emily dropped you, I bowed out. She didn’t like it, but she understood. Suzanne, you and I have been friends for a lot longer than Emily and I have been.”

  “You didn’t have to do that for me,” I said.

  “Oh, but I did.” Grace shrugged, and then she asked, “Now, how are we going to approach Max and Peter? Should we split them up, or grill them together?”

  “I’m just hoping that we find them at Max’s place,” I said. “I haven’t thought it through beyond that, to be honest with you.”

  Grace grinned. “Even better. We’ll play it by ear. I believe our investigations always go better when we fly by the seats of our pants, don’t you?”

  “It appears to be the best way we know how to investigate,” I replied with a grin.

  “Max, we need to talk,” I said as he answered the door.

  My ex-husband replied with the hint of a smile despite our earlier differences, “Boy, in the old days, that would have sent chills down my spine.”

  “But no more?”

  “No more,” he said, almost laughing as he spoke.

  “Why are you in such a good mood all of a sudden?” I asked him. It wasn’t entirely uncharacteristic, but it did strike me as odd, given the cloud of the murder hovering over his impending wedding day.

  “I’m getting married tomorrow,” he said. “And if that itself isn’t reason enough to be happy, I just got a call from Victor White. You know Vic, don’t you?”

  Vic White was a heavyset man with a penchant for raspberry-filled donuts, and not a week went by when he didn’t come by to pick up a dozen or two. “Of course I know him; he’s the main reason I have to keep reordering raspberry filling.”

  “Well, I’m so happy that I could kiss his bearded face right now,” Max said.

  “This I’ve got to hear. And thanks for that image, by the way. It’s going to take me days to get that out of my head.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “So, why are you so happy to hear from Vic?” Grace asked. “Does he owe you money?”

  “It’s even better than that. He just got back into town, and he wants to try out for Falstaff in my latest production.” When Max wasn’t acting, he was directing our own local community theater.

  “I thought you just used older actors,” I said. Max was notorious for mining all of his talent from the Senior Center.

  “Sometimes I cast outside of my core group,” he said. “Anyway, Vic left town the night Jude was murdered, and he just now got back. I’m the one who told him the news about what happened.”

  “I’m still waiting to hear why that makes you so happy,” I said.

  “Vic saw Jude downtown alone by the clock an hour after Emily and Jude had their little chat. It proves that he was still alive after they spoke. That’s got to go a long way toward clearing her, don’t you think?”

  “You might be right,” I said.

  “I know that I am. I was about to call the police chief when you rang my doorbell. My bride is about to be cleared of all suspicion,” Max said.

  I didn’t know that I’d go that far, but it did look better for Emily than it had yet. In order for her to have killed him, she would have had to track Jude down again an hour after they spoke. “It still doesn’t prove that she’s innocent,” I said.

  “As a matter of fact, it does. You see, given the new potential times of death, Emily has her own mother as an alibi, along with three of her cousins. They were all working on the wedding together.”

  “That is good news,” I said. “Be sure to tell her that I’m happy it worked out that way.”

  “But don’t you see?” Max asked as he hugged me. “That means that you’re back in the wedding.”

  “Not so fast,” I said. “That’s Emily’s call, but even if she invited me now, there may be too much bad blood between us to make a difference. No, I believe that I’ll skip the festivities, if it’s all the same to you.”

  Max’s smile faded. “You don’t mean that, Suzanne.”

  “Is it really that important to you that I come to your wedding?”

  “There wouldn’t even be a wedding without you,” Max said.

  “I’m sure you two would have worked things out on your own,” I said. “Don’t give me too much credit; I don’t deserve it.”

  “You’re selling yourself too short,” Max said, and then he turned to Grace. “Talk some sense into her, would you? You two can come together.”

  “Sorry, but I’ve already bailed out, too,” Grace said.

  “What is it with you both? Can’t you just be happy for me?” He looked genuinely distraught now.

  “We’re happy for you,” I said. “Right, Grace?”

  “Absolutely. We’re just not coming.”

  “Fine. Whatever,” Max said. “Nothing’s going to get me down today. I’m getting married tomorrow.”

  “In spite of the murder investigation?” Grace asked him.

  “Why should that matter now? As soon as I tell Chief Martin what Vic told me, Emily is off the hook.”

  “I hate to bring this up,” I said, “but you and Peter have to still be on his list.”

  “None of that matters,” Max said. “I know that we’re innocent, and that’s all that counts.”

  “I’m not sure the chief is going to feel the same way,” I said as my cellphone rang. It was Chief Martin himself. “Speak of the devil and he appears,” I said.

  “If that’s the chief, I want to talk to him,” Max said.

  “Let me see what he wants first,” I answered as I stepped away to take the call.

  “What’s going on, Chief?” I asked.

  “Good news, at least for your ex and his best man,” the chief said.

  “I’m listening,” I replied, not wanting to give anything away.

  “One of my officers was interviewing folks who had rooms near the one where the two of them were the night of the murder, and she hit pay dirt.”

  “What did she find?”

  “It’s kind of sad, really. A man in the room next to theirs was out on the balcony the entire time Max and Peter were there. He can alibi both of them.”

  That seemed like a piece of good luck for Max and Peter. “He never left for one minute?”

  “The man was thinking about jumping, if you can believe that, but he heard voices, so while he was waiting for them to go back inside, he sat there in the dark and listened. Evidently Max was so enthusiastic about living that he actually convinced the man not to jump after all.”

  “He’s going to love hearing that. I’ll let you tell him yourself, since he’s right here.”

  “Suzanne, I don’t mind if you pass on the news yourself,” the chief said.

  “Actually, he has a bit of news himself he wants to share.”

  After a moment’s pause, the chief said, “Put him on, then.”

  “The chief wants to speak with you,” I said as I handed Max my cellphone.

  “What was that all about?” Grace asked me softly as Max relayed the same story to Chief Martin that he had to us.

  “Max and Peter are in the clear. A witness was next door on his balcony, and he eavesdropped on them both the entire time they were there, so neither man could have killed Jude.”

  “Wow, what are the odds of that?”

  “It’s lucky it happened,” I said, “but it was good police work uncovering it. The chief is a lot better at his job than most folks give him credit for.”

  “Including you?” Grace asked with a smile.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You haven’t always been his biggest fan, especially since he started dating your mother.”

  “A person’s entitled to change her opinion, isn’t she?” I asked.

  “Absolutely. You’re living proof o
f that. If I’d told you right after your divorce that you’d ever end up being friendly with Max again, you would have laughed in my face.”

  “So, maybe I’m not the only one with the capacity to change,” I said as Max hung up and handed my cellphone back to me. “What did he say?”

  “He’s headed over to Vic’s right now,” Max said happily.

  “Did he tell you the other news?” I asked.

  “About our friendly neighbor hiding in the shadows? He did,” Max said, his smile broader still. “It was lucky for us, wasn’t it?”

  “It sounds as though you had a hand in keeping that man from jumping,” I said.

  Max, never one to decline credit in the past, just shook his head. “I don’t know if I’d say that.”

  “You don’t have to,” I said. “The chief told me as much himself.”

  “Then it was a lucky night for all three of us,” Max said. “I can’t wait to tell Emily. There’s nothing stopping us from getting married now.”

  After we left him, Grace said, “It’s funny how things work out sometimes.”

  “It is,” I agreed. “We’re closing in now. I can feel it.”

  “Unless we don’t even know the real killer,” she said.

  “I suppose it’s possible, but my gut is telling me that it’s one of our remaining three suspects.”

  “Then even though Max, Peter, and Emily might be out of this, we’ve still got a lot of work to do, don’t we?” Grace asked.

  “We do,” I agreed.

  “What do we do now?”

  “Honestly, I don’t have a clue,” I said.

  Chapter 20

  We were heading back into town when my cellphone rang again.

  “Hi, Momma.” I had to hide the disappointment in my voice when I answered my mother’s call, since I’d been hoping that it was Jake. Clearly he couldn’t call me every half hour with updates. I knew that it was an unreasonable expectation, but that didn’t make it any easier to take. “What’s going on?”

  “You’re eating at home tonight, aren’t you?”

  “That depends,” I said with a smile. “What are we having?”

  She laughed. “Oh, no, you’re not about to catch me in that particular trap. I’ve been cooking all afternoon, so is there really any doubt in your mind if it’s any good or not?”

  “No, ma’am,” I replied. “I withdraw the question.”

  There was a pause on the other end, and then Momma asked, “Is something wrong?”

  The woman could read me as easily as she could large print. “Actually, we’ve gotten some good news, but Grace and I are still having trouble figuring out how to catch Jude Williams’ killer.”

  “You can tell me all about it over dinner,” Momma said. “Bring Grace. Goodness knows that I made plenty.”

  “Will the police chief be joining us?” I asked.

  “No, Phillip is eating at his desk these days,” she said. “I may take a plate to him later.”

  I did my best not to laugh. Momma had done that more and more as the chief had worked late. I had to give the man credit. When he’d first started trying to woo my mother, he’d hit a solid wall of resistance, but he’d been determined, and now she was bringing him food to his office. “That’s nice.”

  She must have heard a hint of humor in my voice, despite my best efforts to hide it. “That’s enough of that, young lady.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said. “Grace and I will be there.”

  “Good. I’m looking forward to it.”

  After we hung up, Grace asked, “Did I just accept a dinner invitation without knowing it?”

  “You did,” I said. “Is that okay?”

  “It’s fantastic,” Grace said, “as long as your mother’s cooking.”

  “Hey, I’m a good cook, too,” I said.

  “As good as your mother?”

  I just shook my head. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind who the superior chef was in my family. Grace tapped my arm as I drove home. When I turned toward her, she said, “Suzanne, nobody makes a donut as good as you do.”

  “You know what? I’ll take it.”

  “You should. Did she tell you what we’re having?”

  “It’s going to be a surprise, I guess,” I said.

  “Ordinarily I’m not a big fan of surprises, but in this case, I’ll make an exception,” Grace replied with a smile. She was as fond of my mother’s cooking as I was.

  “Wow, that smells amazing,” I told Momma as Grace and I walked into the kitchen. “I love your lasagna.”

  “That’s good, because, as usual, I made much too much,” she said as she smiled at the comment. My mother was an excellent cook, but she was so much more than that. She was a shrewd businesswoman who owned properties and businesses I didn’t even know about. To say that she kept her financial affairs secret would be the understatement of the century. Given how much she was probably worth, it still amazed me that we still lived in our charming little cottage on the edge of April Springs’ park. The cottage had sentimental value to both of us, though. Built by our family long ago, it was where she had lived with my father and me, and that made it priceless in both our points of view.

  “You can never make too much lasagna,” Grace said with a twinkle in her eye.

  “I’m glad you feel that way, because I’m sending some home with you tonight.”

  “You don’t have to twist my arm,” Grace said.

  “There’ll still be enough for us to have leftovers though, right?” I asked.

  Momma patted my shoulder. “Never fear, Suzanne. Our freezer is full as it is.”

  “But not with lasagna,” I said. “Did you make cheddar-chive loaf, too?” I asked as I spotted the dark brown loaves on the cooling rack. Momma had taken a basic recipe and modified it to yield the most savory bread imaginable, filled with sharp cheddar cheese, fresh green scallions, and just the right amount of thyme and other spices. It was great fresh out of the oven with butter melting into the crevasses of the bread, but it was at its best after it had cooled and was toasted, at least in my opinion.

  “I made it this morning,” Momma said. “I’ll toast a batch of it as soon as the lasagna is nearly ready.”

  “Is there anything that we can do?” Grace asked.

  “Thanks, but I’ve got it covered. We’ve got twenty minutes before the lasagna is ready, so if you two would like to sit out on the porch and enjoy this glorious weather we’re having, that’s fine by me.”

  “Thanks, Momma,” I said as I kissed her cheek. Grace buzzed the other one, and Momma smiled.

  “Off with you now,” she said playfully, and Grace and I took her advice and retreated to the porch.

  “We are going to feast like royalty tonight,” Grace said once she was situated on the porch swing.

  “We do most nights around here,” I admitted as I grabbed one of the rocking chairs. That was what I loved about our porch. It was wide enough to hold a party on and always offered protection from the elements. As a child, I could remember curling up on the swing wrapped in a blanket and watching it snow.

  “So, what’s our plan of attack with our remaining suspects?” Grace asked me.

  “We can’t just keep questioning them and hope that somebody breaks,” I said after some thought. “That’s not going to work anymore.”

  “What else did you have in mind?”

  “Grace, you know I hate to do it because it can be scary-dangerous, but I don’t think we have any other options left. We have to set a trap for our killer.”

  Grace took that in, and then she asked, “I can see your point, but what are we going to use as bait?”

  “That’s the question, isn’t it? I don’t really want to use anybody else if we can help it. It’s not fair to ask someone else to assume a risk that we’re not willing to take ourselves.”

  Grace breathed heavily, and then said, “Okay. I’ll do it.”

  “We both will,” I said. “I just wish that Jake was here t
o back us up. It’s not going to do us any good if we trap the killer and they turn the tables on us.”

  “We can’t exactly ask the police for help,” Grace said.

  “No, my relationship with the Chief Martin is good, but it’s not that good. If he finds out what we’re planning to do, he’ll shut us down in a heartbeat. There’s only one option as far as I can see.”

  As I reached for my cellphone, Grace asked, “Who are you going to call?”

  “I think it would be neighborly if we invited the mayor over for dinner, don’t you? You heard Momma. She made more than she knows what to do with, and besides, she likes George.”

  “Are we really going to drag him into this?” Grace asked me.

  “Drag? Are you kidding? He’s been dying to get involved again. Besides, we really don’t have any other options left.”

  “I wouldn’t mention that particular fact to him when he comes,” Grace said.

  “I wasn’t planning to,” I said as I dialed the mayor’s number.

  “George, what are your dinner plans tonight?” I asked as he answered my call.

  “I thought I’d drift over to the Boxcar a little later,” he said. “Make me a better offer, and I’m there.”

  “Don’t you like Trish’s cooking anymore?” I asked playfully.

  “I love it, but it does tend to run to type, doesn’t it? I’d just about kill for a homemade meal.”

  “Well, homicide isn’t on the menu, but Momma just made lasagna, and you’re welcome to join us. Can you make it in twenty minutes?”

  “I’ll be there in two,” he said as he hung up.

  I stood. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Where are you going?”

  “To tell Momma that we’re having more company.”

  I made it back to the front porch fast enough, but George was already there. “What did you do, strap on a jetpack and fly over here?” I asked.

  “I was in the neighborhood,” he said. “Thanks for the invitation.”

  “You’re most welcome. Momma was delighted to hear that you’d be joining us.”

  George started to stand. “You didn’t ask her first? Suzanne, I can’t stay under those circumstances.”

  “Sit back down, your honor,” I said with a grin. “This isn’t entirely a neighborly invitation. Grace and I need your help in our investigation.”