by Diane Weiner
Susan remembered how he couldn’t name the trees, blew leaves all over the path, and mowed the grass in the rain. “You sure did.”
“Let’s get you back to Audrey’s. She and Lynette have been out of their minds worrying about you,” said George.
Chapter 50
“I wish you didn’t have to go back tomorrow,” said Audrey. Annalise sat happily on her lap, pulling at her necklace.
“I think I’m ready to relax back into retirement for a while,” said Susan. “Besides, you’ll be coming to New York in a few months. I won’t take no for an answer.”
“Thanks to you, Susan, the school will stay open. I’ve got letters ready to send to the parents and donors. Now that the killer is dead, and the drug ring has been busted, everything can go back to normal.”
“The killer isn’t dead,” said Susan. “I talked to Kevin. Alonzo didn’t kill Celia, Kymani did. They found a used latex glove down by the canal. It had Kymani’s prints and Celia’s blood on it.”
“He used gloves to preserve Alonzo’s fingerprints on the tam tam mallet, then he carelessly leaves the glove out in the open?” asked Lynette.
“Mom, we’re not talking genius here.” Susan heard a knock on the front door.
“I’ll get it. It’s Kevin,” said Lynette.
“Mrs. Wiles, looks like you’ve found yourself a second career as a detective,” said Kevin, entering.
“Well, I must say I have a knack for it,” said Susan. Lynette rolled her eyes.
“Don’t encourage her, Kevin,” Lynette said.
“Poor Celia finally has justice,” said Audrey. “We’re going to plant a tree in her name out in the arboretum so she’ll always be part of our school.”
“You might want to hold off on that,” said Kevin. “Celia wasn’t as innocent as you think. Turns out, she was the mastermind behind the whole drug operation.”
“What?” said Susan. Audrey’s jaw dropped.
“Celia knew Jacobs from back in college. They met when they were both music majors at Indiana University. They remained close, and it was her idea for him to assume the position at Trinity Village.”
“Are you kidding?” said Susan.
“We interviewed Marshall. He knew the whole story. Celia knew about Jacob’s change of identity. She was running the whole show. She got greedy and was taking a bigger cut. That’s why Kymani killed her.”
“Why did they kill Alonzo?” asked Audrey.
“He wanted out. He wanted a buy out so he’d have money to bring back to his family. He threatened to go to the police if Kymani and Marshall didn’t pay up. I’m guessing Kymani and he were at least smart enough to realize Alonzo would forever be in a position to blackmail them,” said Kevin.
“And here we were feeling sorry for Celia, thinking she was an innocent victim,” said Audrey. “And she was the one who brought the corruption to our school in the first place.”
“One more little tidbit. Remember the brothers who broke into Celia’s home ten years ago?” said Kevin.
“Yes. One she killed; the other spent ten years in jail,” said Susan.
“That was no random robbery,” explained Kevin. “Those two brothers were key players in the drug ring. They wanted a bigger share. Celia had invited them over that night to talk. Celia shot the one brother as a warning to the other. She knew if they were in her house that she had a right to protect herself. So she set it up to look like a robbery. I went back and looked at the report. There was no forced entrance that night. I don’t know why the living brother’s attorney didn’t bring it up.”
“Why did the living brother go along with Celia’s story?” said Audrey.
“Celia made a deal with him. He’d pay the consequences for armed robbery, and she’d cover up any evidence tying him to the drug ring. He already had a prior drug arrest before the robbery. He would have had a much longer jail sentence.”
“Were Marshall and Alonzo involved back then?” said Susan.
“They were the replacements. Took over for the two brothers. Celia introduced them to Dr. Jacobs, and Jacobs got Marshall a job at Trinity.”
“What about Kymani?” said Susan.
“He came on board later, when the operation grew.” The doorbell rang at that moment. “I’ll get it,” said Kevin.
“Are you expecting someone?” said Audrey.
“Yes. There’s someone I want you all to meet.” He opened the door and escorted in a blond hunk wearing a shirt tight enough to show off his six-pack abs.
“Everyone, I’d like you to meet Daniel. He’s my fiancé.”
Susan’s jaw fell to the floor. “Your fiancé?”
“We’re planning a June wedding. You’re all invited.”
“Congratulations!” said Audrey. “I’ll be there.”
Susan whispered to Lynette, “You knew about this all along? You knew Kevin was gay?”
“That’s why we broke up. We kept it under wraps all this time because he was afraid it would hurt his career as a policeman. Sorry, Mom. It was amusing watching how you worried he’d come between me and Jason.”
“Kevin, I’m so happy for you!” said Susan. “Marriage is a beautiful thing.”
“We’ll be going now,” said Kevin. “Have a safe trip back to New York, and thanks for all your help, both of you!” said Kevin. “Lynette, we’ll keep in touch.”
Chapter 51
“Lynette, give Annalise…”
“I know, Mom. See? It’s in my hand. I’ll give her the bottle so her ears won’t hurt on take-off.”
Susan relaxed into the seat. Out the window, the green and blue land disappeared under the clouds.
“I can’t believe I actually met my birth mother. Sometimes I still can’t get over the fact my Mom kept this from me all those years.”
“She loved you and like I said before, she was probably afraid of losing you if you found out the truth.”
“Our meeting answered a lot of questions.”
“I think it was every bit as important to Audrey as it was to you,” said Lynette. “Imagine giving away a child and not knowing what became of her all those years?”
“I’m sure you’re right. I can’t wait to sleep in my own bed tonight. I’m not used to being away from Dad for so long. You just watch; Johann and Ludwig will give me the cold shoulder for a few days. You know cats––God forbid they let you know they missed you.”
“I’m looking forward to going back to work. Jackson said his temporary partner is a flake. I’m going to have to explore daycares this summer. It’s going to be tough, leaving Annalise.”
“I told you I can watch her,” said Susan.
“That’s very generous, but you should enjoy your freedom now that you’re retired.”
“I’m going to relax with one of those new books Annalise got me for my birthday.” She pulled a paperback out of her purse. When she opened it, a yellowed newspaper article fell out onto the seat.
“What’s that?” said Lynette. Susan skimmed the article, then showed it to Lynette.
“It’s a newspaper article with a photo. Maybe Audrey stuck it in there.”
“Here we go again,” said Lynette.
Handwritten over the picture with a Sharpie, was a simple message: Help him.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Diane Weiner is a veteran public school teacher and mother of four children. She has enjoyed reading for as long as she can remember. She has fond memories of reading Nancy Drew and Mary Higgins Clark on snowy weekend afternoons in upstate New York and yearned to write books that would bring that kind of enjoyment to her readers. Being an animal lover, she is a vegetarian and shares her home with two adorable cats and a little white dog. In her free time, she enjoys running, attending community theater productions, and spending time with her family (especially going to the mall with her teenage daughter and getting Dairy Queen afterwards). Murder Is Private is the fourth book in her Susan Wiles Schoolhouse mystery series and she has plans for many more.
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