Murder in South Carolina

by Agnes Alexander

  “When would it be convenient for you ladies to go look at this piece of property?”

  Olive looked at him closely. “Do you have a picture of it?”

  “Of course.” He fished out a copy of the original picture and handed it to Olive.

  “I’ll fax it to Helen.” She leaned on the desk and peered into his eyes. “She’s up on all the latest things. Has a fax machine where her children write to her. Have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous?”

  “Many people are going to fax machines.” He stood. “If you like, I’ll fax it for you. Do you have the number?”

  Nola Dean hadn’t counted on this and wondered what Olive would say. The older woman didn’t miss a beat.

  “Wouldn’t hear of it. I have to let her know it’s coming first. You don’t spring things on Helen. You have to ease into them. I’ll talk with her tonight and see if she wants me to fax it tomorrow.”

  Seeing a sale slipping away, he said. “Couldn’t you call her from here? I’d be happy for you to use my phone.”

  “Young man, Helen would faint if I called her in the day time. She knows I always wait until the rates go down at night. Besides, she goes to her bridge club this afternoon.” She stood. “I’ll call her and we’ll be back in touch with you.” She started toward the door and turned. To Nola Dean, she said, “Coming, dear?”

  Nola stood and nodded to Shane. “Thank you for seeing us. Olive will let you know.”

  Dejected he said, “I’ll be waiting for you call.”

  Neither woman spoke until they were in the car and back on Kings Highway. Then they both burst out laughing.

  “I think it went well, what about you, Nola Dean?”

  “You missed your calling, Olive. You should have been an actress.”

  “I did a little theater when I was younger.” She smiled. “Well, now that we’re alone, aren’t you going to ask me if he was the man?”

  “I was waiting for you to volunteer the information.”

  “Yes. He’s definitely the man I saw on the beach with Walter Overton.” She smiled and asked, “Now, tell me what made you think the man I saw on the beach might be Mr. Norrick?”

  “I was sitting on my balcony looking out at the ocean. And as you say, the beach is always inspiring. I was thinking about Walter and I knew he was into investments. I also remembered Shane was often asking me if I wanted to invest in beach property, so I gathered he was interested in the subject. It seemed logical to me that the two of them might get together.”

  They chatted about the caper all the way to Olive’s condo. As she got out of the car she turned to Nola Dean. “If there is anything else I can help you with, let me know. This was fun.”

  “I’ll call Joe when I get home. After I tell him the man was Shane Norrick, I’m sure he’ll want to talk with you again.”

  “Then have him call me.”

  “I’ll do that. Thanks for your help, Olive.”

  * * * *

  As soon as she got home, Nola Dean placed a call to the police station. When Joe’s voice came on the line she told him what she and Olive had done.

  “I don’t like you taking chances like that, Nola Dean,” he said without asking what they found out. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  “I wasn’t taking a chance. I knew nothing could happen to us at his office.”

  “Maybe not, but...”

  She interrupted him. “Don’t you even want to know what we found out?” She asked a little sharply.

  “Of course, I want to know, but my first concern is your safety, honey.”

  “Let me assure you, I’m perfectly safe.”

  “I’m sorry, Nola Dean. What did you find out?” His voice was gentle.

  “Olive said the man she saw on the beach with Walter was Shane Norrick.”

  “Was she sure?”

  “She was positive.”

  “Then we have more reason to look seriously at Mr. Shane Norrick.” When she said nothing, he asked, “What made you suspect he might be the man in the first place?”

  She explained about Shane’s interest in investments and ended with, “It made sense to me and I decided I’d check it out before bothering you with the idea.”

  “Honey, I don’t mind you bothering me with any of your ideas. In fact, I want you to run them by me. That way I know you’ll be safe.”

  “Joe, I feel safe with Shane. I agree with Bett. He might be involved; I don’t think he’s capable of doing all the terrible things that have happened though.”

  “I wish I could see in him what you women seem to see.”

  When they hung up, it dawned on Nola Dean that not only had he called her honey—twice—but he seemed to be jealous of Shane Norrick. She smiled.

  * * * *

  Mr. Smith listened to the rest of the conversation and then sat back. He couldn’t help wishing Nola Dean wouldn’t get so involved. Why did she have to go out and investigate things on her own? He knew he couldn’t let the police get much closer, but with her pushing, they might. He hoped he’d hear from the appraiser on the art objects before everything blew up in his face. If they turned out to be real, he’d close the whole situation and no one would be the wiser.

  He turned the rented Taurus toward Ocean Drive and headed to his room. He’d take a long bath, maybe go to a club or something and then he’d give Dolly Overton another call. He was convinced she was telling the truth about not having anything he wanted, but it was amusing to torment her.

  Chapter 26

  Link Holloway stood on the other side of the door when Nola Dean opened it. She gasped. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d left the beach.”

  “I haven’t left yet and I was in the neighborhood, so—”

  “I told you I don’t want to see you anymore.”

  “I thought maybe you’d changed your mind.”

  “I haven’t changed my mind and I won’t. I’ll never forget the crime you’ve committed.”

  “Nola Dean, it wasn’t a crime. The girl enjoyed it as much as I did.”

  “You should be behind bars. I still don’t understand why her parents didn’t have you arrested.”

  “I guess they preferred the money I paid them.”

  She was stunned. “You paid them off? That’s disgusting.”

  “If you’d slept with me, maybe I wouldn’t have done it.”

  “Are you trying to blame me for your warped morals?”

  He looked dejected. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. May I come in for a while so we could have a nice chat? We used to have such lovely talks.”

  “No. Go away, Link, and please let this be the last time I have to tell you. I never want to see you again.”

  He reached out, but before he could get hold of the door she pushed it shut and turned the lock.

  She expected him to begin pounding on the outside, but all she heard was quiet. She couldn’t help wondering why he kept popping up in her life and at the most inopportune times. She needed to go the store and she had some other errands to run before she picked Dolly up for lunch. She’d have to wait until she was sure he was gone.

  When ten minutes lapsed and she still heard nothing outside, she decided it was safe to go. She picked up her purse, reached for her keys and was about to open the door when there was a knock.

  “Darn,” she said as she started to open it. “I thought you were gone, Link.”

  “It’s Rex Collier,” a voice came from outside.

  She opened the door. “Rex, I’m sorry. I thought you were someone else.”

  “Obviously.” He smiled at her. “Is that Holloway fellow still bothering you?”

  “He showed up about ten minutes ago.”

  “There’s no one out here now. He must have left.”

  “Thank goodness.” She stood aside. “Please come in?”

  He noticed the purse in her hand. “I caught you on your way out. I should have called.”

  “I have a lunch date with Dolly
, but I have a few moments to spare.”

  He stepped inside. “I’ll only take a minute of your time.”

  She laid her purse on the table near the door and followed him into the living room.

  “Megan told me you were in the office to discuss the South Myrtle property.”

  “Yes. I’m considering it seriously. I wrote a proposal down and I’m going to call Danny about it soon.”

  “Danny?”

  “My sales manager at home. He’s got a good business head on his shoulders and I would want him to come down to talk with you.”

  “You haven’t spoken with him yet?”

  “No. I called the office yesterday, but they said he’d gone to Ashville for a couple of days. They expect him back tomorrow.”

  “I see.” He turned toward the door. “Dad and I are meeting with some other investors this afternoon and I wanted to invite you to the meeting. I’d hoped you’d be free.”

  “If it wasn’t for Dolly...”

  “I understand.” He paused at the door. “Do you mind if I call you when the meeting is over?”

  “I’d be happy for you to call.”

  She smiled and watched him head for the elevator. She couldn’t help wondering why he hadn’t called to invite her to the meeting instead of coming by to see her. She didn’t have time to dwell on it, though. Dolly would be waiting.

  * * * *

  “Well, it’s just as we thought. There were no unexpected finger prints at Collier, Collier Briggs and Burton.” Bett sat back and looked at Joe. “Ms. Eller, the other employees, Overton and both Mr. Colliers.”

  “That’s odd,” Joe frowned.

  “What?”

  “Did they not find Mrs. Overton’s prints?”

  “No. Not a one.”

  “Had she never been to her husband’s office?” He looked puzzled.

  “I don’t know. I’ll find out.”

  “What about clients?”

  “There were a few unidentified ones on his desk. They could have been clients.” Bett pushed a stray hair out of her eyes. “The place has been cleaned since he was last there.”

  “Yes, but if it had been thoroughly cleaned, we wouldn’t find Overton’s prints.”

  “How about Nola Dean? She said she was in the office the other day. I guess we’ll have to ask her if she touched anything.”

  “Have you come up with anything with the known fences in the area?” Joe asked.

  “Zilch. Nobody has seen any little jugs or vases.”

  “Well, somebody took them.”

  “Do you think it was our killer?”

  “None other.” Joe leaned back with his hands behind his neck.

  Bett had known him long enough to know he was in deep thought when he did this. She waited until he sat forward and then she asked, “Do you have an idea, Joe?”

  “Maybe.” He looked at her. “How much money was it Nola Dean found in her condo?”

  “A little over a million, why?”

  “That’s a lot of money.”

  “It sure is.” Bett looked curiously at him.

  He stood. “I want to have another little talk with Shane Norrick and Megan Eller.”

  “Sure, Joe.” She didn’t ask any questions. She knew he would tell her what was on his mind when he was ready.

  * * * *

  Link looked across the booth at Shane. “It didn’t work. Nola Dean wouldn’t talk to me.”

  “You really screwed up with her, didn’t you?”

  “I guess I did. She can’t get over the fact that I was caught in bed with a sixteen-year-old girl.” He took a sip of his beer

  “That was pretty stupid of you.”

  “Well, she told me she was eighteen. How was I to know she was lying?” He eyed Shane. “Besides, you don’t seem to be doing much better with Nola Dean.”

  “Don’t count me out yet, but I’m probably going to be moving on to more fertile fields,” Shane said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Dolly Overton. She’s been good to me financially and sexually.”

  “I called her a couple of times, but decided I didn’t want to get involved. Not even for money. I think Dolly Overton is an idiot.” Link sneered.

  “Not an idiot, just an easy mark. She received a million dollar insurance settlement when Overton died. She got everything else he had, too. She needs advice on investing some of it and I intend to help her.” He shrugged. “And believe it or not, I really like the old gal. I don’t know what it is about her, but we seem to make a pretty good team.”

  “If she teams up with the likes of you, she won’t make too much on her investments.”

  “Don’t be sarcastic. She’ll get her money back with profit.” Shane chuckled. “I learned a lot from Overton.”

  “He never got caught, did he?” Link lifted his glass.

  “He got caught for something and it cost him his life. I don’t intend for that to happen to me.”

  “We’re not doing anything that stupid, are we?”

  Shane sat back. “Not on your life. I like living. That’s why I chose you to play the game with me. When Overton bought it, I wasn’t sure I could trust anyone else in his firm. I don’t believe anyone knew what he was up to.”

  “And you did?”

  “We pulled off some sweet deals. Made a lot of money. Of course, he made a lot more than I did because he had the firm’s money to play with.”

  “How much do you think you can get from Dolly?”

  “I’m not sure. Fifty or sixty thousand for sure. Maybe more. You’ve got to come up with someone that will give you as much if you want to get in on it.”

  “Well, it’s not going to be Nola Dean. I’m history as far as she’s concerned.” Link sipped his drink. “There’s this widow from Ohio I met at the hotel. She’s got the hots for me and we had some good times. She’s gone back home.”

  “Well, man. Give her a call.”

  Link laughed. “Maybe I’ll call her tonight. She gave me her number.”

  “And you still have it?”

  “I have it. One thing I never do is throw away a lady’s telephone number.”

  “You sound like Walter Overton. He kept a lot of women’s phone numbers, too.”

  Susie walked up. “Can I get you guys another drink?”

  Link smiled up at her. “You sure can, gorgeous. Bourbon.”

  “And you,” she looked at Shane.

  “Whisky sour.”

  “I’ll be right back.”

  Susie gave the drink order to the bartender and then went to her dressing room. She quickly retrieved a card from her makeup drawer. She memorized Joe Randell’s number and went back to the bar to pick up the drinks before making the call.

  She was sure she heard Shane Norrick talking about Walter Overton. Joe had said call about anyone or anything suspicious. This sounded suspicious to her.

  * * * *

  Mr. Smith was furious. He’d taken a chance and it had been wrong. He put the phone in the cradle and poured himself a drink. It had been an exhausting day and now to find this out was almost more than he could take.

  “Damn you, Walter Overton. What did you do with it?” He looked at the remaining worthless art objects on the shelf in the closet. That was the word the appraiser had used. Worthless. Couldn’t have cost more than twenty or thirty bucks a piece, he’d said.

  “Damn all of them. Where’s my money.” He picked up a stripped vase and threw it into the fireplace in the master bedroom. Realizing what he’d done, he crossed the room and picked up the pieces. He’d have to put this stuff in a trash can. But not here. He’d take it to North Myrtle Beach. That’s where it came from. He’d get rid of it up there.

  He had dressed in the disguise. “I need to get out of here and have a little fun. I think I’ll go have a few drinks at the strip club. Nobody is ever going to recognize me in this get up.”

  He tossed the remaining vases and jugs into a grocery bag and left the condo by the
back stairs unobserved.

  Though it was reckless, he couldn’t help himself. He pulled into the club where Denise had worked and ambled inside.

  “Hi.” Susie appeared at his booth as soon as he sat down. “What can we do for you?”

  “Whiskey,” he said.

  “Sure.” She smiled at him and headed for the bar.

  He watched her and as his head moved back to the table in front of him his blood ran cold. Sitting at a booth not fifteen feet from him were Link Holloway and Shane Norrick.

  He sat close to the corner of his booth and accepted the drink when she returned. “Anything else?”

  “What time does the show start?” He mumbled.

  “There’s not a show until tonight.” She smiled. “Would you like me to wait with you for a while?”

  “No thanks. I’ll have another one of these, and come back tonight.”

  “They’ll be fine, honey,” she said when he handed her a ten dollar bill and told her to keep the change.

  He was about to relax when he saw Joe Randell come through the door. “Damn,” he muttered under his breath and bent over his drink. “Coming here was a really stupid idea.”

  Chapter 27

  Pepper met Joe at the door. “Hello, Officer Randell. It’s good to see you.”

  He smiled at her.

  “Is this business or pleasure?” She returned his smile.

  “A bit of both, I guess.” When he was sure no one could see or hear what he said he added, “It’s important that the two guys in the booth on the left see me. Could you walk me by there as if you were taking me to a seat?”

  “You’ve got it.”

  Joe made eye contact with Shane as they came close. He paused. “I’m surprised to see you here, Mr. Norrick.”

  “Officer.” Shane looked flushed, but nodded.

  Joe recognized Link Holloway and said, “I need to have a few words with Mr. Norrick, would you excuse us?”

  “You mean leave?” Link looked confused.

  “Wait at the bar. This shouldn’t take long.”

  Link shrugged and took his glass toward the bar.

  Joe slid into his vacated seat.

  “Didn’t you ask me all the questions you needed to when you came to my office and embarrassed me in front of my co-workers?”