Take Stock in Murder

by Millie Mack

  “Thanks for your suggestion. Puzzles sound like a lovely idea. But we’re here for another reason. Madge, I understand Dawn is working today.”

  “Dawn? Yes, she is, but why…” Neither Charles nor Carrie had to say a word, for she answered her own question. “Oh, of course you would want to talk with her. I mean, she dated Todd for a time, although it’s probably been six months since they were together. A tough decision for her. I’m sure she’ll tell you about it. She’s downstairs in the children’s section. Would you like me to show you the way?”

  “Not necessary. We certainly know this bookstore like our own home,” Carrie said.

  “Good. I really need to get these new kids’ books checked in. Before I know it, the preschool story hour will be here with all the youngsters. Charles, will the Tri-County Monthly be out on time?”

  “Absolutely, on time.”

  “I must call your sales department and add several more copies to our order. We sell out of the magazine the minute it arrives.”

  “Always glad to hear that.” Charles made this comment as they quickly moved away from Mrs. Luther, with Carrie leading the way to the steps going to the lower level. When they reached the top step, Charles veered off to the left.

  “Hey, where are you going?” Carrie asked.

  “As long as we’re here, I want to take a look at those mystery jigsaw puzzles Mrs. Luther mentioned.”

  “Let’s talk to Dawn first; then we’ll buy Charles a puzzle, but only if he’s a good boy and comes with me first.”

  “Oh, goody.” Charles was clapping his hands together when Carrie grabbed his arm.

  “Pull yourself together,” she said.

  They proceeded down the steps to the children’s books.

  “Look over by the window. That girl matches the description of Dawn,” Carrie said.

  “True. She has brown hair in a ponytail, but I can’t see her smile,” Charles added.

  “Come on, let’s get closer,” Carrie said, still holding on to Charles’s arm.

  “So we can see if she’s got a great smile?”

  “I was thinking more of reading the name on her identification tag.”

  “That works.”

  Charles and Carrie approached the young lady, who was dressed in the store’s uniform of a dark green golf shirt and khaki slacks. The girl was staring out the door to the garden.

  “Excuse me,” Carrie said. “Are you Dawn?” Carrie’s question was answered the minute the young woman turned around. She had a beautiful smile enhanced by the perfect white teeth Jake had described. DAWN was in bold block lettering on her name tag.

  “Yes, I’m Dawn. Can I help you find something?”

  “Well, we don’t really need help finding a book. You probably don’t know us, but I’m Carrie, and this is Charles.” No recognition showed on the girl’s face, although she continued to smile politely. “We’re Mr. and Mrs. Faraday,” Carrie added.

  Suddenly recognition showed on Dawn’s face. “Of course, you’re the Faradays. You’re the ones who had the fight with Todd the night he was murdered.” She backed away from the couple.

  Neither Carrie nor Charles made any move to frighten the girl. Carrie said very softly, “It’s all right, Dawn. I assure you that neither my husband nor I had anything to do with Todd’s death. It was an unfortunate set of circumstances that our paths crossed on the night he was killed. In reality, we know very little about him. That’s why we wanted to talk with you. We’re hoping you could help fill in the blanks about what Todd was really like.”

  “How did you find out about me?”

  “Several people at the Tri-County Country Club mentioned that you and Todd had dated. Mrs. Chaney told us you worked at the bookstore,” Charles said.

  Once again Dawn stared at the couple as if trying to get some insight into their guilt or innocence.

  “I guess it won’t hurt to talk with you. Todd and I did date, but we stopped seeing each other several months ago. I don’t know much about what he was doing since we split.”

  A woman with two children came down the steps and started looking at books near where they were standing. Dawn looked around and suggested, “Let’s go over there where there’s a little more privacy. Mrs. Luther won’t mind if I sit for a couple of minutes.” Dawn led them over by the French doors, where there was a grouping of four chairs.

  “Dawn, I know this may be difficult, but can you tell me why Todd broke up with you?” Charles asked.

  Dawn suddenly sat up very straight. “Look, why does everyone assume that Todd broke the relationship off with me? Is it because he’s from a different social class? The fact is, I’m the one who broke off our relationship.”

  “I apologize,” Charles said. “It has nothing to do with class. It’s my male chauvinism showing. My wife is constantly reminding me of this fault. Let me rephrase: Why did you break off the relationship?”

  Dawn broke into a wide grin at Charles’s honest admission. “I’m not sure how this will help, but I broke up with Todd because his values no longer matched mine. He got weird about things.”

  “Could you give an example of what you mean by ‘weird about things’?” Charles asked.

  “I’m not talking about philosophy. I’m literally talking about things—you know, possessions, material things. When I first met Todd, he was fun, lighthearted, and carefree. I’m sure you have discovered that even though Todd was from a wealthy family, he personally didn’t have much money. Sure, he had a job, but as a junior something or other, where he was making a minimum salary. As you can imagine, I don’t make a huge salary here, but it’s a perfect job while I attend college. We had friends, we went to parties, we took rides in the country, and we enjoyed being with each other. We did things that didn’t cost much, or we shared expenses. Every once in a while, because of his family’s membership, we attended an event at the Country Club. That was a big treat for me, since my family isn’t part of the Country Club set.”

  “What changed with Todd?” Carrie prodded.

  “Gradually, money became the most important thing in Todd’s life. Money became more important than our friends, and finally more important than me.” She was sitting hunched over, looking at the floor as she remembered events. “We started spending all of our time at the Country Club, attending wine tastings, dances, golf tournaments, and any other social event he could find on the Club’s calendar. Todd said he needed to be at these events because he would meet people who had money to invest. Of course, as he started to collect commissions, he also had more money to spend. Lots of money. When we weren’t attending the ‘right’ kind of Club events, we spent our time looking at things to buy: condos, cars, electronics, and jewelry. We even spent several Sundays visiting antique shops.”

  “Antiques? That doesn’t sound like Todd’s style.” Carrie, of course, was thinking of the very modern and stylish condo she and Charles had visited in the city.

  “Todd said owning antiques showed potential clients he’d reached a certain status,” Dawn said with an affected, snobbish tone.

  “Did he ever actually buy any antiques?” Charles asked.

  “In light of the murder, what he bought may seem a little strange. Maybe I shouldn’t say anything more.”

  “Dawn, please,” Carrie pleaded. “Your comments about Todd have already helped and may help us find the murderer.”

  “I assure you that anything you tell us is in confidence,” Charles added. “We won’t reveal your name or how we came by the information.”

  “You don’t have to promise that, Mr. Faraday. If the police question me, I’ll tell them the truth.”

  “The police haven’t questioned you?”

  “No, although I’ve been expecting them. Telling you folks what I know has actually provided a bit of a relief. You know, after Todd’s death, I read all the accounts in all the papers. I even went to the library and looked up past articles on both of you. Now that I’ve met you, I don’t think you killed Todd.
”

  “In that case, won’t you tell us what Todd bought?” Carrie asked.

  “I guess it won’t hurt, and maybe it will help you. He bought a small gun.”

  arrie gasped. “A gun! Are you sure?”

  “Oh yes. I was with him when he purchased it at Hill’s Antiques in Tri-City. I forget their address, but the shop is located on that street near the hospital—you know, the one where the whole street is antique shops.”

  Charles and Carrie nodded. “Do you know what kind of gun he purchased?” asked Charles.

  “It was a very small pistol, originally designed for women that could be carried in a purse or concealed in a muff. Mr. Hill had a later version of a small derringer that held four shots. Mr. Hill told us John Wilkes Booth used a similar gun to kill Lincoln, and I think that little bit of history helped make the sale to Todd.”

  “Interesting,” Charles said. “Did the gun work, and did Todd give you a reason for purchasing a gun?”

  Dawn displayed her broad smile again. “Oh, the gun worked. Todd and Mr. Hill went out behind the shop and set up cans to shoot. They were like two small boys with a new toy. I stayed inside to watch the shop in case any customers came in while they played. As to why he bought the gun, that’s a little tougher. He initially said that people dealing in securities needed to protect themselves. When I pressed him, he said he was concerned about people who wouldn’t understand the way he was helping the ladies in the Investment Club make money. Do you know about the Investment Club he started over at the Country Club?”

  “Yes, we do. Do you think he was referring to husbands of the investment ladies who might be jealous of his time with them?” Carrie asked.

  “I don’t know, but I know buying that gun was the final straw in our relationship. The thought of Todd walking around with a gun in his pocket was too much for me. In addition to his drinking, Todd had a bit of a temper. It never lasted long, but for a few minutes, he could be very unreasonable. I was afraid of what could happen in those few minutes, especially if he started waving a gun around. Our relationship had pretty much deteriorated at this point, so I decided to end it. I guess I was right about that gun being trouble, but sometimes being right isn’t much of a comfort.”

  For a moment the three sat quietly; then Carrie broke the silence. “The police haven’t found the murder weapon, which means the murderer must have taken the gun. But based on what you just told us, there’s a possibility Todd was killed with his own gun. Dawn, you have been a tremendous help, and I promise this is the last question. Can you provide any more details about this gun?”

  “I can do better than that. Follow me.” Dawn rose from her chair and went over to a small elevator. She held the door for the couple, then pushed the button for the second floor. Once they reached the second floor, she went directly to the reference book section. She dragged over a small step stool and climbed up to reach one of the upper shelves, where she pulled out a small volume. “After Todd bought the gun, I wanted to validate what Mr. Hill had said.” She flipped to a page in the book and turned it around to face the couple. The couple looked at a black-and-white photo of a small handgun.

  As Charles headed the car back to their farmhouse, Carrie sat holding a bookstore bag containing two mystery jigsaw puzzles and a historical book on guns.

  “At least now we’ve a theory of how the gun plays into the murder,” she said. “Todd probably had it in his pocket. Charles, we’re very lucky that Todd didn’t draw the gun on you.” Carrie looked over at Charles, who was staring straight ahead and didn’t respond to her comment. “Charles, are you listening?”

  “I’m listening. I’m just trying to think of what it means if Todd was killed with his own gun.”

  “For one thing, it means his murder wasn’t premeditated but accidental. And Todd wasn’t killed while he was sleeping. He probably pulled the gun on someone, they struggled, and the gun went off. This would alter the police theory that the murderer killed Todd while he was sleeping. He would have to be awake to pull the gun.”

  “Correct! However, this creates more questions. Let me pull the car over. I need to think for a moment while everything is fresh.”

  Charles guided the car into the parking lot at a county park. He took the farthest parking space from a crowd of mothers with kids and strollers heading for the playground.

  Charles said, “If Todd pulled the gun on his murderer, you would think that words were exchanged. Remember what Dawn said about Todd’s temper. But no one heard a fight because…”

  “Because there was some other noise that distracted everyone.” Carrie was now giving this great thought. “Maybe it’s a simple case of no one being around.”

  “Maybe, but the other possibility is that our timing is all wrong. There was one other time in the evening when there was enough noise to cover an argument and when very few people would have been around the library. It was during the dance. Once the dancing starts, everyone goes to the ballroom, and the music is very loud,” Charles suggested.

  “But that would mean Todd was killed shortly after we left, sometime between ten thirty p.m. and midnight.”

  “Correct, but where was the body? Remember, Jake told me he saw you when you returned early in the morning and followed you into the library. He verified there was a blazing fire in the library, casting plenty of light, and Todd’s body wasn’t there. So it means the body was hidden somewhere else. If he was murdered earlier, that explains why the murderer was there when you returned to the Club. He was there to move the body,” Charles said.

  “It also means the murderer took advantage of my being there to plant the incriminating evidence against us. Oh, Charles, if only I’d waited until morning to get my bracelet.”

  Charles reached over and put his arm around Carrie. “Don’t feel bad. Even if you hadn’t gone back, we still would have been implicated. The fight with Todd is what made us the suspects. And who knows? The murderer may have found your bracelet instead of your handbag. And if we’d arrived in the morning, we may have been the ones to discover the body.”

  “Thank you, Charles. You always say the right things to make me feel better. So, do we go to the police about Todd’s gun purchase?”

  “Good grief, no! If Todd’s gun was the murder weapon, none of the scenarios help our case. Scenario one is that Todd pulled the gun on us earlier in the evening. We knew he had a gun, so when we found him sleeping, we used his gun to kill him. Scenario two: I went back to have it out with Todd. He pulled out the gun. I got it away from him and shot him. However, I’ll call Simpson and let him know about the existence of the gun.”

  “You still think we may need a lawyer?”

  “It wouldn’t hurt to tell him about the progress we made today,” Charles said.

  “Some progress. We know Todd owned a gun. We know Todd was killed with a gun, possibly his own gun, by someone before the dance was over, but will we ever find out who that person is?”

  “Don’t worry, Carrie. We’ll find out. The murderer made a mistake when he or she tried to frame us. When you’re creating a false picture, you’re bound to make mistakes. That’s when we’ll catch the murderer.”

  ooking back, Charles realized having dinner at the Club on Saturday two weeks after the murder probably wasn’t a good idea. But Carrie insisted they keep to their routine, especially after her conversation with Terry Conan.

  It became obvious from the moment he and Carrie walked into the dining room that they were the center of attention. Word must have gotten out that Charles was the prime suspect in the murder.

  “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Faraday.” William, the maître d’, decked out in a black tie, showed no surprise at the arrival of Carrie and Charles.

  “Hello, William. Looks like a pretty full house tonight. Did the chef cook a blue-plate special?” Charles asked.

  “Blue-plate special?” Carrie asked teasingly. Charles’s vocabulary always amazed her.

  “Yes, darling. You know, a pi
ece of meat and two vegetables with gravy all over for one cheap price.”

  “Thank you, dear. I know what a blue-plate special is,” she responded as they walked toward their table.

  “Even though we’re getting busy, I managed to keep your favorite table open,” William said as he pulled Carrie’s chair out for her. William seemed pleased they were there.

  “Thank you, William. I’m glad our favorite table is in the corner. It looks a little like tourist season in the city,” Carrie commented.

  “I think it’s…you know, all the excitement.” William almost whispered his response.

  “Yes, you’re probably right, William. Nothing like a murder to bring everyone out of the woodwork,” Charles said.

  William nodded and handed each of them the printed menu sheet for tonight’s selections. As he headed back to his position at the door, a table near the couple stopped William and slipped him a tip. Charles wondered if William was receiving tips to place people as close as possible to the couple’s regular table.

  “Charles, is my slip showing, or did I forget to put my dress on? Everyone seems to be casually looking this way,” Carrie asked through her teeth.

  Charles moved closer and took her hand. “You’re perfectly dressed.”

  “Then what color underwear do I have on?”

  “What?” Charles looked confused.

  “I’m sure if you asked anyone in this room, they could tell you the color.”

  He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “Well, I’m sure they’ll find your underwear as wonderful as I do. I’m sorry, Carrie. I was afraid something like this might happen once the girls found out I was the one who punched Todd.”

  “I’ll have to make a point of thanking Terry Conan. She was the one who asked whether we were coming tonight. Apparently, she spread the word.”

  In between looks at the menu, Carrie stole glances around the room. “There are people eating here tonight that I didn’t know were still members.”

  “There are people eating here tonight that I didn’t know were still alive,” Charles added.