Murder in the Middle: A Susan Wiles Schoolhouse Mystery

by Diane Weiner

  “Yes we did. You suggested it. Remember? We had a few smash and grabs so we installed cameras.”

  “Can we look at the security footage?” asked Lynette.

  “I’ll have to see if we still have it. After a while we reuse the tape. I’ll look.”

  “Let’s hope it still exists,” said Lynette.

  “Come on back to the security closet,” said Vinnie. He rummaged through a box of recordings and found what they were looking for.

  “Pop it in the machine,” said Jackson. Vinnie hit the play button.

  “There’s the time. 6:15 p.m. And look. There’s Rusty opening up the plumbing truck,” said Jackson.

  “Sure is, but that doesn’t look like his father. Not by a longshot,” said Lynette.

  “Nope. If you ask me, that looks an awful lot like Lindsay Bateman,” said Jackson. “Maybe we should go back and talk to her neighbors.”

  “We already did.”

  “But we never asked whether or not they’d seen a plumbing truck hanging around.”

  “Let’s go.”

  Chapter 45

  Susan’s phone vibrated. She smiled when she heard her son’s voice. He had followed up on Susan’s request to ask around for recommendations for Lynette and called with the name of one of the faculty members familiar with rare eye conditions.

  “Thank you, Evan. I’ll call him right away. I knew you’d come through.”

  “Maybe you should run it by Lynette first,” said Evan.

  “Of course. While I have you on the phone, I have a question. You took that pharmacology class last year didn’t you?”

  “I did.”

  “Do you know what an overdose of the drug Medipress would do to someone?” asked Susan.

  “It’s a blood pressure medication. Causes syncope.”

  “In plain English, hot shot.”

  “Most of those make people dizzy when they stand up too quickly, especially when someone first starts taking it.”

  Susan thought back to the night at the restaurant in New York when that man at the next table collapsed. His wife said he’d started on a medication and it caused him to get dizzy. If Rusty wanted to get rid of Adam to get Sophie to himself, maybe he stole the pills from his father and slipped them into Adam’s lemonade. Or maybe he and Sophie were working together.

  “Thanks, Evan. That helps a lot. Study hard. Miss you.”

  “Miss you too, Mom. Tell Dad I said hello.”

  Rusty could have killed Adam because he was still in love with his high school sweetheart, Sophie. He had access to his father’s blood pressure pills and could have put them in Adam’s drink, with or without Sophie’s help. Then he could have come to her rescue again and murdered Caleb when Caleb threatened to come forward with the lab report. Maybe Rusty and Sophie worked together to kill one or both of the Bartolo brothers.

  Lindsay Bateman. A jealous nut case who seemed angry enough to have killed Caleb for breaking off their engagement. But she had no reason to kill Adam. Lindsay and Rusty were seeing each other. Maybe they worked together to kill Caleb. Both had motive. Susan jumped when her phone rang.

  “Susan, this is Pat, T.J.’s wife, from the jewelry store.”

  “Hi, Pat. What can I do for you?” said Susan.

  “Remember when you came by the store and asked about that engraved silver bracelet?”

  “I do,” said Susan. She reminded herself that the woman who had the bracelet engraved fit Lindsay’s description. She had thought maybe Lindsay bought it as a gift for Caleb––trying to win him back.

  “I saw something on TV this morning. You know that bookkeeper, Sophie Bartolo, the one who was kidnapped?”

  “Yes,” said Susan. “I know who you mean.”

  “I hadn’t paid too much attention to it, but last night I was watching an interview with Sophie Bartolo––a rerun from when she first came back. I recognized her. She came into the shop that day to get the bracelet engraved.”

  “What? Are you sure?” asked Susan.

  “I’m positive. I even recognized her voice.”

  “Thank you for letting me know. I really appreciate it,” said Susan. Brunette, slightly plump, she realized Pat had originally described either Lindsay or Sophie. She’d just assumed it was Lindsay. Johann nuzzled against her legs. Susan opened the blinds so he could get a bit of sunlight. She saw the mailman walking away from her box.

  “I’ll be right back, Johann,” said Susan. The wind was biting, especially since she’d run out without her jacket. She shuffled through the ads and bills until she saw the letter from the Georgia Babes Foundation. She froze in her tracks and held her breath. Maybe this was the answer she’d been searching for.

  Chapter 46

  Susan’s hands trembled as she held the envelope. She turned it over and stared at the seal. She couldn’t do it. Her knees were shaking so much that she had to sit down. She put the envelope on the coffee table and tried to stop shaking. I’ll wait till Mike comes home. She looked down and noticed the postmark. The letter had been initially delivered to the wrong address and should have arrived a week ago.

  Who am I kidding? I’ve waited long enough. She tore open the envelope and pushed her bifocals into place.

  The Georgia Babes Foundation had located a possible relative and wanted to know if she still wanted to go forward with her search. Didn’t she? After all, isn’t this exactly what she wanted? Then she took a breath. What if this relative doesn’t want anything to do with me? Is it my Mom? My Dad? Some distant cousin? She felt like Jell-O. Perhaps she was afraid of the finality. At least now she could fantasize her mother had loved her and never would have given her up if she had any other choice. What if she found out she was wrong? Maybe having a baby was just an inconvenience that her birth mother didn’t want to deal with. Maybe she had even taken her home for a while and decided she wasn’t worth keeping. Did she cry too much? Drink too much Enfamil?

  She wanted to call Mike. She knew she could count on Mike to come home and support her in making this decision. No, this was her decision alone to make. Within the hour she heard his key in the door. She hugged him tightly and spilled the contents of the letter.

  “It’s what you’ve hoped for, isn’t it? Besides, now we need to do this for Lynette. If we can find out some medical history it could be a game changer,” said Mike.

  “You’re right,” said Susan. She picked up her phone and dialed the number.

  “Well, are they picking up?” Mike had his ear next to the phone.

  “Shhh. No, it’s voicemail. The office is closed. I’ll have to try first thing in the morning.”

  “I’m sure we’ll both get lots of sleep tonight,” said Mike.

  “You don’t have to be sarcastic.”

  He knew her like a book. Whenever she had something big on her mind, Susan tossed and turned all night long, making it hard for Mike to get any sleep either. They started discussing the dinner plan but didn’t get far. Susan’s phone vibrated.

  “Hello. Jason, what’s wrong? No. Is she okay? Where are you?”

  Mike tugged at her arm. “What’s wrong? Is it the baby?”

  “Jason, we’ll meet you at the hospital.”

  “The hospital?” Mike grabbed their coats. “Where are we going? What happened?”

  “It’s Lynette. She was in a car accident. They won’t say anything over the phone. Jason has no idea how bad it is but they didn’t bring her to Westbrook Medical.”

  “Why not? Where did they take her?”

  “They airlifted her to Dansfield. We have to go right now.”

  “Dansfield Trauma? That’s not good,” said Mike. He grabbed his keys. “Let’s go.”

  Mike flew like a shooting star through space to get to Dansfield. Deer crossings and fallen rock zones zipped by before they reached the exit for the trauma center. Snowflakes melted on the windshield and a speeding ambulance passed them as they neared the three-story hospital. Did they bring Lynette in like that? No, that’s
right. She came in by helicopter. Susan picked at her cuticles until they bled. She felt like she was choking.

  “We’re here. Here’s the Emergency Room entrance. Come on.” Mike slammed the car door and pulled Susan through the double doors and into the waiting area where they found Jason holding a sleeping Annalise.

  “Jason, what’s going on? How is she?” asked Susan.

  Jason’s coat was inside out and his cheeks were flushed. “She’s in surgery. It’s serious. She was bleeding. Something about her arm, too.”

  “Jason, how did this happen?” asked Mike.

  “I don’t know. She was on her way home from work and ran a stop light. She crashed into a telephone pole, that’s what they told me.”

  “Susan hugged Jason tightly. I’ll take Annalise.” Tears spilled from Susan’s eyes.

  “Sit down with Jason. I’ve got the baby,” said Mike.

  “How badly is she hurt? What are they even operating on?” She looked at her sleeping granddaughter. What if Annalise had to grow up without her mother? She felt like throwing up. Stop Susan, don’t go there. A doctor came in to talk to them.

  “She’s still in surgery. There was some swelling around the brain, and we’re repairing her arm. We don’t know the full extent of her head injury.”

  “Is she going to make it? Tell me she isn’t going to die,” said Jason.

  “Like I said, we don’t yet know the full extent of her injuries. She’s with our top neurosurgeon. Let’s get her through surgery, then we’ll know more.”

  The doctor left and Jason sobbed like Susan had never seen before. She hugged Jason tight, dampening his shirt with tears.

  “It’ll be okay,” said Mike. “You know how stubborn Lynette is––and strong. She’ll get through this.”

  “She has to. I can’t take this.”

  Jason pulled away. “Why can’t they just say that she will be okay––that they’ll sew her up, she’ll rest here a few days, and be good as new?” His cheeks were saturated.

  “This is one of the best trauma centers around,” said Mike. “And you heard the doctor. Their best surgeon is working on her.”

  “I don’t know how this happened,” said Jason. “Lynette is a good driver; she’s never even had a fender bender before. And the roads were clear. It wasn’t like they were icy or anything.” Annalise stirred.

  “Do you have food and diapers for the baby?” asked Mike.

  “In the trunk. Lynette always keeps a full diaper bag in there just in case of emergencies.”

  “I’ll run out and get it,” said Mike. He took Jason’s keys and disappeared behind the door.

  Susan tried to be strong for Jason, but she felt like a jellyfish trying to act like a shark. The ‘what ifs’ hit her too, but she kept them stuffed inside. She couldn’t imagine losing Lynette, and prayed that the surgeon could fix whatever was wrong. Jackson and Theresa ran into the room.

  “How’s Lynette?” asked Jackson. He gave her a hug.

  “She’s in surgery. We just have to wait.” She tried to stop her tears, but the dam was broken.

  “We got here as fast as we could. Lynette is a good driver. How could she lose control like that?”

  “We’re here to help with whatever you need,” said Theresa. “It’s going to be okay. Lynette is a fighter. I figured I could take Annalise home with me. I know you’ll be here all night.”

  “Thanks, Theresa. That would be a huge help. Mike went to get her diaper bag from Jason’s car.”

  “I saw the accident report. It just doesn’t make sense,” said Jackson. He turned to Theresa. “If you could take Annalise back, I want to stay. She’s my partner. I’m not leaving without knowing that she’s okay.”

  “Of course.” Theresa took the baby. “Call me.”

  Mike came back in with the diaper bag.

  “I need to call Evan,” said Susan. “And Jason needs to eat something.

  “I’ll call him,” said Mike. “I’ll go down to the cafeteria and bring up some food. You stay. I’ve got this.”

  Susan sat in the plastic chair next to Jason.

  “She’ll be okay. She’s a fighter.” Susan didn’t know if she was saying that aloud to calm Jason, or to convince herself. Jason grasped her hand.

  Mike came in and put his arm around her. “Evan says this is one of the best trauma centers in the country. He says she’s in great hands.” He was uncharacteristically quiet as they continued waiting. Susan knew he was swallowing his own worries. Jackson sat down next to her.

  “Jackson, do you think this has anything to do with Caleb’s murder case? Did someone run her off the road?”

  “No, that’s one of the first things I asked the officer who was at the scene.”

  “Did she seem like herself when she left the station? Was something on her mind?”

  “She had a headache. She’s been getting them a lot these days. Other than that, nothing out of the ordinary.”

  Susan tried to eat, but couldn’t. Her stomach was in knots. She paced around the perimeter of the room until Mike put his arm around her and sat her back down. Jason sobbed into his hands. It was hours before the doctor came to talk to them.

  “She had a bleed in her brain. For now, she’s holding her own. We’ll have to wait until she wakes up to know more.”

  “Will that be soon?” asked Jason.

  “It could be soon, or it could be days. Weeks even. The sooner she wakes up, the more likely it is that she hasn’t suffered permanent damage.”

  “Like brain damage?” said Susan. No…she wasn’t going to have brain damage. She would wake up and be back to normal in no time. Mike whispered in her ear.

  “Do you think this had anything to do with her eye issues? Maybe she couldn’t see.”

  “My God, I bet you’re right. Should we tell the doctor?”

  “I don’t think it matters at the moment, and remember, Lynette didn’t want anyone outside the family to know. I think that includes Jackson.”

  Hours later, they were allowed to see Lynette for a few minutes. Susan was unprepared for the sight of her daughter. Lynette’s eyes were swollen and her face was covered in bruises. Her head was wrapped in gauze, and her arm was in a cotton-lined metal splint. She couldn’t control her emotions. Tears poured and she could barely breathe.

  “All that swelling is probably just from the airbag,” said Mike. “It’s not as bad as it looks. They have to wait for the swelling in her arm to go down before they can repair it.” Susan trusted Mike’s assessment because of his prior volunteer fireman experience, but she couldn’t say this was comforting. All she knew was that her baby was hurt and lying in a hospital bed.

  Chapter 47

  They were up all night, waiting for news. Lynette was in ICU and they took turns sitting at her bedside. There had been no change.

  “I hate to have to go, but I need to get to the station,” said Jackson.

  “What about Annalise?” said Jason.

  “She’s at our house. Theresa took the day off to stay with her.”

  Susan and Mike went in to see Lynette. Jason hadn’t left her side. Susan was exhausted and could barely stand. Her eyes were raw from crying.

  “Why don’t you grab a nap on the couch in the waiting room,” said Mike.

  “I can’t settle down enough to sleep. Lynette was stable but still critical. Please, God. Just let her wake up and be her old self. She called Theresa and was reassured Annalise was doing fine. That would be Lynette’s first priority. When she wakes up she’ll be happy that Theresa stepped in and we were able to be with her. They stayed at the hospital for a second night. Jackson came by at dawn.

  “How is she?” asked Jackson.

  “No change. I wish she’d wake up,” said Susan.

  “Hey, Miss Marple. She’s a fighter. She just needs to gather her strength and let her body heal.” Susan cried. Jackson tried to cheer her up.

  “You know, with Lynette out of commission, I could use some help on Cal
eb’s murder case. If you’re up to it.”

  Susan sniffled, then wiped her moist face. “I guess I could help. I’d be helping Lynette by doing that.”

  “You sure would.”

  “I got a call from T.J.’s wife. She works at the jewelry store with him.” Susan told Jackson about the bracelet.

  “That puts a new spin on things. We were leaning toward Rusty as the murderer, but maybe Sophie was also involved. Sounds like she was going to give that bracelet to Caleb, maybe as a peace offering.”

  “By the way, did a photographer come down to the station yesterday? He was going to talk to you and Lynette. He was at the lake the day Adam died.” Susan wiped her nose.

  “We questioned everyone who was there. How is that possible?”

  “He left before Adam died, but he has a picture.”

  “Of what?”

  “Of the crime scene, before it was a crime scene of course. He said Adam was walking funny, like he was drunk or something.”

  “Maybe he was,” said Jackson.

  “I don’t think so. The photographer thought they were drinking lemonade.”

  “Someone drugged Adam. Is that what you’re thinking?”

  “Rusty’s father takes Medipress. It causes dizziness. The forensic pathologist Caleb hired found the drug in Adam’s system. Adam didn’t have high blood pressure. There’s no reason he should have had it in his system.”

  “Rusty and Sophie had been seeing each other secretly. He may have been jealous and slipped the drugs to Adam hoping he’d get dizzy and fall.”

  “That’s a big gamble. I think Sophie was in on it. Maybe she was supposed to lead Adam to the edge of the waterfall and give him a little push.”

  “With the life insurance money, they could have lived happily ever after.”

  “Rusty was going to inherit the business. I don’t think money was the motivator. My money’s on jealousy.” The doctor came out of Lynette’s room. “Let’s go back in. I hope Lynette is awake.”

  Lynette looked just like she had earlier. The doctor said there’d been no change in her condition, but it was a good sign she was holding her own. Susan tried speaking to her. She had heard on Dr. Oz that when people are in comas, they can still hear what’s being said.