Retirement Can Be Murder

by Susan Santangelo

  “Nancy and I met Grace today, and she told us that Rhodes, or Dick, or whatever name you want to call him, had asked her for a divorce and she came east from California to find out why. She was really angry at him, and didn’t try to hide it from us, right Nancy?”

  Nancy had remained quiet throughout most of this, but I could see she was dying to put in her two cents’ worth.

  “Mark,” she said, “Grace also told us that she and Rhodes came up with the concept of the Retirement Survival Center together. She’s a lifestyle coach, too, just like her husband was. Apparently, now that the Center has become successful, Rhodes wanted to cut her out of it. That’s a pretty strong motive for harming Rhodes, don’t you think? And who would know better than his wife if he had any drug allergies?”

  “This is all very interesting, ladies,” said Mark. “How did you happen upon this Grace Retuccio?”

  I told Mark about going to Maria’s Trattoria to plan a retirement shower for Mary Alice. I could see his eyes glazing over slightly, so I skipped the shower details and got right to the part where Maria shared information about Rhodes being a regular customer at the restaurant, how he treated the staff, and his bringing in a woman who turned out to be Grace.

  Nancy added the piece about tracking down the wife through the Realtors’ network.

  I hoped Mark was impressed with our detecting. And I desperately hoped this new information would get Jim off the hook.

  “I appreciate your telling me all this,” Mark said. “We’ll certainly follow up on Grace Retuccio.”

  “Do you have to tell her how you got her name?” Nancy asked. “I don’t know if I violated any Realtors’ ethics by tracking her down the way I did.”

  I was annoyed that Nancy could be so concerned about protecting her precious Realtor’s reputation when My Beloved was in such hot water, but I kept quiet. I couldn’t resist shooting her a dirty look, though.

  Mark snapped his notebook shut. “The police don’t have to reveal where our information comes from,” he said. “I’ll try to keep your name out of it. But Mrs. Andrews,” he went on, “I still need to talk to your husband. As soon as possible. That cell phone message is pretty damaging.”

  I must have looked shocked, because Mark added, “Don’t worry. We don’t use rubber hoses any more. I have to talk to him, if only to eliminate him from a list of people who could have harmed Rhodes.”

  He looked at his watch. “What time does he usually get home from New York?”

  “Jim won’t be home tonight until very late,” I said. Thank God. “He planned to go to the Retirement Survival Center directly from the train.

  His boss has assigned him to organize the Davis Rhodes memorial service, and Jim’s meeting with Sheila Carney about it.” Another prime suspect who could have harmed Rhodes, if you asked me.

  “Ok,” said Mark. “Then I’ll head over there and perhaps catch both of them. We wanted to talk to Sheila Carney, too.”

  I scolded myself for giving Mark too much information. But maybe he’d find something incriminating about Sheila and forget about Jim. I hoped he wasn’t susceptible to beautiful blondes the way My Beloved was.

  “Does Jim need a lawyer present?” Nancy asked. “Sorry to interfere, but I just remembered that Larry and Claire are in the Berkshires for a few days.”

  “You’re not interfering,” I said gratefully. I looked at Mark. “Does Jim need a lawyer?”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary,” he assured me. “I’d tell you if I did.

  Now, no more playing detective, both of you, though I must say I’m grateful for the information you gave me about Grace Retuccio.

  “And please don’t call and tell Mr. Andrews I’m coming to the Center to talk to him,” Mark added. Although he said the last part politely, I got the impression he was giving me an order, not a suggestion. “If he has nothing to hide, he has nothing to be worried about. I’ll show myself out.”

  I reached out to take the cell phone, but he slipped it back into his pocket.

  “Say hi to Jenny for me. We had a good time on our coffee date, at least most of it. I’d like to see her again soon.”

  The kitchen door closed behind him, and he was gone.

  Nancy took both my hands and squeezed them, hard. “I know what you’re thinking. But you can’t go to pieces now. Jim hasn’t been charged with anything yet. The police haven’t even come out and said the word ‘murder.’ ”

  At that, I started to cry.

  Nancy handed me a tissue so I could wipe my leaking eyes. “You’re not listening to me, Carol. I know that everything is going to be all right and Jim will be completely cleared. Do you want to know how I know?”

  I nodded my head.

  “I am absolutely, positively sure that Mark will clear Jim, because the last thing he said to us, when he was leaving, was that he wants to see Jenny again. Mark’s not going to let anything happen to the father of the girl he wants to date.”

  I had to admit, she had a good point.

  After Nancy left, I decided to switch gears and check my e-mail. Ordinarily, I check it at least five times a day, for no particular reason. I just hate to miss anything. And once I’m online, I can amuse myself for hours by visiting all sorts of web sites.

  Scrolling down and deleting all the special offers I’d received during the day, I saw an e-mail from my darling son.

  Hey Cosmo Girl!

  Just a quick e-mail to let you know that Jenny has been keeping me up to date on what’s happening to Dad. I know you haven’t said anything to me yourself because you don’t want me to worry, but I’m really glad she’s kept me in the loop.

  So, what gives? Is Dad really in big trouble? Should I come home? I can certainly find someone to watch over the bar if you need me there. Let me know.

  Please. Love you. The Florida Branch of the Family What a doll that Mike was. I know all moms think their kids are terrific, but in my case, it certainly was the truth. I was glad that Jenny had e-mailed him about what was going on up here, although I hated to have him worry long-distance. It was nice to know that the siblings were communicating, and I was selfishly relieved that the burden of explaining the whole mess to him had been taken on by Jenny.

  I started to dash off a quick reply to assure him that things were under control when I heard the front door open.

  “Hi, Mom,” Jenny called from the front hall. “I had some car trouble at school. That’s why I’m late.”

  “Oh, Jenny, I’m so glad you’re home. You won’t believe what happened today. Nancy and I…” I stopped myself in mid-sentence because Jenny interrupted me.

  “But I was so lucky that Linda Burns came along to help me. She was nice enough to follow me home, to be sure I got here all right.”

  “Hi, Carol,” said Linda, following Jenny into my office. “I was glad to help Jenny out. How are you doing? I haven’t seen you since we met at the hair salon.” She gave me a quick once-over. Probably checking to see if my roots were showing already.

  I was trapped. What could I do but be polite to her? I quickly closed the lid of my laptop so she couldn’t read my e-mail.

  “Thank you so much for helping Jenny get home.” I was trying extra hard to be gracious, mainly because I had no choice. “Where did she go?”

  I looked around, but my daughter had disappeared.

  “I think she went to change,” Linda replied. “Do you mind if I use your powder room before I leave? I got some grease on my hands fiddling with Jenny’s car. I can find it myself. Thanks.” She was up the hallway before I had a chance to reply.

  Be nice, Carol. She helped Jenny out of a tight spot, and she won’t stay long. I hope.

  Linda came back into my office, drying her hands on one of my good guest towels. You know the ones I mean—we all put them out just for show and nobody ever uses them. Some nerve.

  She handed the damp towel to me and settled herself into the sofa for a cozy chat. Great. Just what I needed. I had to get rid o
f her before Jim came home.

  I rose from my desk chair and stood over her, hoping she would take the not-so-subtle hint.

  “It was so nice of you to help Jenny today,” I said again with as much warmth as I could muster. “I don’t want to keep you. I’m sure you’re in a rush to get home.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Linda said with a laugh. “I called Bruce and told him I’d be a little late because I was stopping off here.” Too bad you didn’t call me, too, I thought uncharitably. I would’ve found someplace else to be.

  Linda looked around my office. “This is really a nice setup. I don’t think I’ve ever been in here before. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever been inside your home before.”

  Oh, please God, don’t let her ask for a tour of the house, I prayed, remembering the unmade bed in the master bedroom and the wet towels hanging over the side of the bathtub.

  “Now, Carol,” Linda continued, motioning me to sit beside her on my sofa just like we were best girlfriends, “I heard from Jenny that you’re planning a retirement shower for Mary Alice. You know she is absolutely one of my dearest friends.”

  Really, I thought. Does Mary Alice know that?

  “I want to organize it with you. I’m excellent at party-planning. In fact, I don’t want to brag, but Bruce’s boss is always pestering me for ideas about parties at the office. He says if I ever decide to leave teaching, I could have a whole new career as an event planner.” She gave me a big insincere smile.

  At that point, I would have promised her almost anything just to get her out of my house. I knew Nancy would kill me, but I heard myself saying, “That’s so generous of you, Linda. We’d love to have your help. The party’s planned for Labor Day at Maria’s Trattoria. I’ve already been in touch with Maria, and she’s going to come up with some menu suggestions and get back to me in the next few days.”

  I stood up and looked down on her—I mean, at her. “Why don’t I give you a call when I hear from Maria, and you and I and Nancy and Claire can all get together and talk about the party. Ok?”

  At that point, Lucy and Ethel, who had been snoozing in a sunny spot on the kitchen floor, came bounding into my office and began to give Linda some serious sniffing in rather personal parts of her body.

  “Oh, dear,” Linda said, shooing the dogs away and getting up from the sofa in a flash. “I’d forgotten I have to stop and pick up some food at the supermarket on the way home. I’ll wait for your call. Tell Jenny good-bye for me, and a big hello to Jim.”

  When I heard the front door close behind Linda, I took the dogs into the kitchen and rewarded them for their bad behavior with three dog biscuits apiece.

  * * *

  * * *

  Chapter 21

  Q: What is the common term for someone who enjoys work and refuses to retire?

  A: Nuts!

  “Sorry to leave you alone with Linda Burns,” said Jenny, walking into the office with her wet hair wrapped in a towel. “I know she’s not one of your all-time favorite people. But I was desperate to take a quick shower after fiddling around with my car. It’s a good thing Linda came along when she did and helped me. I was clueless when I couldn’t get it started.”

  She took a hard look at me. “Something’s up with you, and it’s a lot more serious than my stupid car problems. Or your having to deal with Linda Burns for a little while.”

  I poured out the whole story of my day to Jenny, starting with the good news: Nancy’s finding Grace Retuccio, our visit to her, and all the amazing things we found out from Grace about Davis Rhodes. And how much Grace hated him for asking her for a divorce now, when the Center was becoming successful.

  Jenny was impressed at my sleuthing. And excited at my progress.

  “God, Mom, you’ve got to tell Mark right away. This might let Dad off the hook, and it sure gives Grace a good motive for Rhodes’s death.”

  “I told Mark already. Unfortunately, when Nancy and I got back from Westfield, he was waiting for me. He wanted to ask me more questions about Dad’s and my relationship with Davis Rhodes. And unfortunately, none of this lets Dad off the hook.”

  When Jenny heard about my cell phone arriving at police headquarters under such mysterious circumstances, together with the note about checking the voice mail messages, she realized why I was so upset. “This could be damaging, but it doesn’t have to be,” my sensible daughter pointed out. “Somebody, obviously not you, sent the phone to the police.

  Can’t they check the package for fingerprints or something, and find out who did it?”

  “I never thought to suggest that to Mark,” I admitted. “I’m sure that’s done automatically. At least, it is in all the mystery books I read.”

  I was beginning to realize how little a real life murder investigation resembled those books I’d read over the years. One would think that all that reading would have given me tips on investigating a crime, but sadly, it hadn’t. Where were my little gray cells when I needed them? They probably self-destructed due to hot flash overload.

  “Mark left here a little while before you came home with Linda,” I said. “He was on his way to the Center to question your father and Sheila Carney. He warned me not to call there and let your father know that he was coming. I feel like such a traitor. But I’m glad that Mark is on the case. I have to believe he’ll do everything he can to get this mess cleared up and find the person who was responsible for Rhodes’s death.”

  “He better,” said Jenny, “or the next time he calls me for a coffee date, I’ll slam the phone down right in his ear.”

  Jim came home from the Center two hours later, very subdued and upset. I think the reality of his situation was finally beginning to sink in.

  He tried to put up his usual brave front when Jenny was around, but when she went upstairs to do some work on her computer, he took out his anxiety on the handiest person—me.

  “I can’t believe you didn’t call and warn me that the police were coming to question me, Carol. Do you enjoy seeing me in trouble? Mark had that odious partner of his with him, which made things even worse. He kept threatening to take me downtown if I didn’t cooperate. Damn it, I was cooperating! And I couldn’t reach Larry, either. Where the hell is everybody when I need them?”

  “I wanted to call you,” I answered in my defense, “but Mark told me not to. Ordered me, in fact. Nancy was here, and she’ll tell you the same thing. Larry and Claire have gone to the Berkshires for a few days, but I’m sure he’s reachable on his cell phone.” Oops. Probably shouldn’t have mentioned the words “cell phone” to Jim.

  “That’s another thing. Where did you lose your blasted cell phone?

  How could you be so careless? And why didn’t you erase my voice mail message as soon as you heard it?”

  Jim ran his fingers through what was left of his hair. “God, with family support like this, I’ll probably end up in prison.”

  I knew My Beloved was frantic, but that didn’t make being the convenient scapegoat for his tirade any easier for me. I felt miserable enough about the cell phone debacle without his rubbing it in.

  “I don’t remember where I lost it,” I snapped back. “If I knew where I’d lost it, I would have found it, right?” Well, that logic made sense to me.

  “What I’d like to know is, who did find it and turned it into the police anonymously. Who would want to cause us so much grief?”

  I crossed the room and put my arms around him. “Honey, I love you. I do.” We held each other tight, just for a minute. “I would never, ever, deliberately do anything to cause you pain. I only want what’s best for you.

  Please, believe me. We are in this together, and we’ll get out of it together.”

  Hell, truth be told, I didn’t trust Jim to get himself out of this mess on his own. He seemed to be getting in deeper and deeper. I conveniently ignored the part my own carelessness had played in his plight. Couldn’t dwell on that now.

  It looked like Mark Anderson was on our side, but
I wasn’t so sure how much help he could be without jeopardizing his job. I was positive he would do the best he could, because he wanted to stay in our (that is, Jenny’s) good graces. But the bottom line was, Mark was one of the policemen assigned to this case. Hmm. That did have its plus side, because he would be privy to inside information, if I could just get him to share it with me.

  Think positive, Carol. You can do this. I just had to be sure that Jim didn’t know what I was up to, because I was positive that he would tell me not to interfere.

  I decided it was time Jim knew what Nancy and I had found out about his precious Davis Rhodes.

  “Sit down a minute,” I said. “I have some things to tell you. Just hear me out, and maybe you’ll decide that things aren’t as bleak as they seem.”

  I held out a kitchen chair for him and repeated, “Sit.”

  “Who do you think I am, Lucy or Ethel?” Jim said, with just a trace of his old humor. “I hope it’s not a long story. I have to reach Larry tonight before it gets too late.”

  I tried not to be annoyed. Jim had already decided that what I was going to tell him wasn’t important.

  I started with my visit to Maria’s Trattoria to plan the retirement shower for Mary Alice, and some of the information I got from her about Davis Rhodes.

  Jim immediately interrupted me. “When did Mary Alice decide to retire? You never told me that.”

  “I forgot to tell you with everything else that’s been going on. But don’t concentrate on that right now. You have to hear what I found out about Davis Rhodes.”

  Then I told him about Nancy and her Realtors’ network, and how we managed to track down and talk to Davis Rhodes’s wife. Jim was not impressed when I informed him that Grace had come up with so much of the concept for the Retirement Survival Center.

  “She could have been exaggerating how important her contribution was, Carol.”

  “But, don’t you see, it was when Rhodes asked her for a divorce that she decided to come east and confront him. She didn’t want to take a chance on losing her share of the Center’s profits.” That made perfect sense to me.