Murder by Decay

by Suzanne Young

  “It does seem like someone had it in for Doctor Jennings, doesn’t it?” Carol said. “Why else would they leave a dead man strapped into the dental chair in his office?” She frowned. “Ten years seems to be a long time to hold a grudge though. Are you sure the good doctor didn’t do the deed himself?” She stared at Edna, seeming to want reassurance.

  “Of course Gordon didn’t do it,” Edna said without hesitation. “First of all, he’s such a kind, gentle man, I’m willing to bet he wouldn’t harm a fly. Secondly, he isn’t stupid. If he were capable of murder, which I’m emphatically saying he is not, he wouldn’t leave the body in his own office.”

  “Unless he’s clever enough to use reverse psychology,” Carol said, raising her eyebrows. She paused for several heartbeats before her face twisted with anxiety. “Oh my gosh.”

  “What is it?” Edna felt her own face flush with concern as she watched Carol’s expression distort with dismay.

  “Can you imagine how that poor woman is going to feel when she learns her husband has been alive for the past ten years? You said she’s been living near poverty level, trying to pay off his debts while raising two kids. If it’s true that he didn’t die all those years ago, he’s more horrible than I thought.”

  “And it seems that he’s just been killed again,” Edna said, feeling her stomach roil at the thought. “That’s another tragedy she’ll be reliving.”

  Chapter 11

  Conversation between Edna and Carol was interrupted when Gran appeared in the kitchen doorway. “We’re ready,” she called out as she stepped onto the deck. Codfish followed carrying a large basket. Whatever it contained was wrapped in a red-checkered cloth. Even at a distance of a dozen feet, Edna could smell freshly baked bread.

  “Is it that time already?” Carol glanced down at her watch.

  “Four?” Edna guessed. Not having worn a timepiece for years, she’d developed an innate sense of time and generally estimated fairly close.

  Gran and Codfish helped out at a local restaurant that was owned by a childhood friend of theirs and run by her daughter. The fare was limited, plain and priced for those with small, fixed incomes like students and senior citizens. Codfish had been a busboy since the diner opened the previous fall. Gran filled in waitressing and assisted in the kitchen. By staffing the diner with volunteers such as these two octogenarians and paying them in meals and tips, the owner could afford to offer breakfast, lunch and dinner at reasonable costs. Students shared shifts, allowing them to work around class schedules.

  “Sorry I have to leave,” Carol said to Edna, putting Annie down and rising to her feet. “I’m playing chauffeur until Codfish fixes his truck,” she explained with a sigh, “but I was hoping we could talk some more about the Kaileys.”

  “Why don’t you join me for supper?” Edna rose to walk with the others toward the cars. “I thawed pork chops yesterday before Albert decided to spend the night in Warwick with our older son, so I’ve enough food. Besides, I’d enjoy the company, and we should have plenty of time to discuss the case.”

  The matter having been settled, Edna drove home. Sitting at her desk to fill out the dental insurance form, her thoughts turned to Pieter Resnik. Had his absence from the office been planned before the recent murder in his building? He did seem awfully nervous when she’d arrived at his office yesterday morning. Letting her mind wander, she pictured his assistant and wondered again if Vera Baxter might be related to the imprisoned George Baxter, or was the last name merely a coincidence? It was a fairly common name, after all. Engrossed in speculation, Edna jumped when the phone rang.

  “Keeping out of trouble?” Albert quipped.

  The sound of his voice brought her up short. Had she lost track of the time? Glancing at the corner of her computer screen, she noted with relief that she still had twenty minutes before Carol would arrive at five o’clock. “So far,” Edna chuckled as she relaxed and replied truthfully.

  “I phoned earlier. When you didn’t answer, I rang your cell. My call went immediately to voice mail. Does it need to be charged?”

  “I’m sure it doesn’t,” she answered his implied accusation. Then, not wanting to start anew on an old argument, she said, “It’s in my bag. I’ll check it when we’re done.”

  He, too, was conciliatory. “I was worried when you didn’t answer either phone, dear.”

  Changing the subject, she said, “You’re out early. Is the trial over?”

  “Hardly,” he said, sounding more amused than annoyed. “The judge dismissed us early for reasons I’m not at liberty to divulge.” Edna gritted her teeth at his verbal jab. Fortunately, he hurried on before she could voice a retort. “I’m in my car. Before I head off to Matthew’s, I thought I’d call to see how you’re doing. Having dinner with Mary tonight?” His tone was teasing.

  “Actually, I’ve invited Carol to join me this evening.” After a second or two’s hesitation, she added, “This is one of Mary’s hospital nights.” She wanted him to understand that Mary’s absence wasn’t due to his attitude the previous evening.

  “Well, have fun,” he said, seeming to lose interest in a prolonged conversation.

  “Will you be home tomorrow night?” Edna hastened to ask before he could end the call.

  “Don’t think so, but I’ll phone to let you know for sure.” After a slight pause, he said with concern in his voice, “You’ll be okay, won’t you?”

  “Yes, dear. I’ll be fine.”

  “Don’t forget to check your cell,” he said before ending the call.

  After hanging up, Edna hurried to the kitchen. Her mobile could wait. She needed to take pork chops out of the refrigerator and prepare stuffing before Carol showed up. The chops would take an hour, so she’d make salad while they were baking, but she wanted to get dinner ready and in the oven before she got too distracted.

  Filling the kettle at the kitchen faucet, she set it on the stove and turned the oven to 350. She then chopped onion and celery, adding them to a bowl with torn pieces of French bread and a tablespoon of soft butter. As she prepared the dressing, she began to wonder how Fran Kailey had managed after her husband left her with a load of debt. Edna’s contemplations segued into thinking about Pieter Resnik’s wife, killed in a hit-and-run. She then tried to figure out how Pieter had identified a corpse as Billy Rob, if the body hadn’t actually been Kailey’s. She’d have to ask Charlie how such a mistake was possible. She was sprinkling poultry seasoning onto the bread mixture when the kettle began to whistle just as the front doorbell chimed, pulling her abruptly from her musings. Wiping her hands on her apron, she turned off the burner before hurrying to open the door for her guest.

  “I still can’t get an answer at the phone number I found for the Kaileys on the Internet,” Carol complained as she followed Edna into the kitchen. Placing her laptop on the table, she laid her cell phone next to it. “Maybe we could drive into town after supper and check out the address. I don’t usually like to drop in on people unannounced, but it may be the only way I’ll get to talk to them.” She slipped off her brown leather jacket and draped it over the chair back. As she sat, Benjamin jumped onto the chair next to hers. Obligingly, she scratched his ears and told him how beautiful he was.

  Standing on the other side of the table, Edna moistened the dressing mixture with a splash of boiling water, instantly filling the room with the scent of sage. “I don’t know about showing up on their doorstep. Do you know if the police have broken the news of Kailey’s death to the family? At the very least, we should wait until they’ve been notified.”

  “We don’t have to mention anything about your corpse,” Carol said. She didn’t meet Edna’s eye but proceeded to open the cover of her laptop and concentrate on the screen. Having had his greeting, Benjamin jumped down and began to rub against Edna’s ankles, reminding her of his dinner time.

  “I really wish people would stop referring to him as mine,” Edna said, putting down the bowl. Not expecting a reply, she went on, “What w
ill be your reason for bringing up the old case with his family?” Since Carol didn’t answer immediately, Edna headed for the pantry to fetch the cat food. When she returned, her young neighbor was typing and seemed totally focused on the task. “Well?” Edna prompted, opening the small can and spooning Benjamin’s chicken feast onto a plate. As she straightened up after placing the food next to his water dish, Carol finally lifted her eyes from the keyboard.

  “Sorry, Edna. Didn’t mean to ignore you, but I wanted to make some notes before I lost my train of thought. What were you saying?”

  At that moment, a noise outside distracted her and Edna turned to the kitchen window to see Charlie Rogers’ unmarked car coming around the broken-shell driveway. As she watched him pull up behind Carol’s Kia, she alerted her young friend, “Here’s Charlie. Good. I’m sure he’ll be able to answer some of our questions.”

  When Edna opened the door to the detective, she caught him stifling a yawn. The stubble on his cheeks spoke of a long day at the office, as did his red-rimmed eyes.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked, inviting him in and closing the door. “It looks to me like you should be headed home to bed.”

  Charlie nodded. “That’s my intent, but I wanted to check on you, particularly since Albert is out of town.”

  Edna felt there was more to the detective’s visit than that, but he would tell her in his own sweet time, she thought as she preceded him into the kitchen.

  “Hi, Charlie,” Carol greeted. She didn’t get up but hailed him with a raised hand.

  He looked from the open laptop to her face and back to Edna. “What are you ladies up to?” His eyes narrowed with the question.

  “Drinks, first,” Edna said, holding up a bottle of red wine.

  “Coffee for me, thanks, if you have some. Wine would probably finish me off. I wouldn’t want a DUI on my way home.”

  Once the three were seated around the table, he tipped his head toward Carol’s computer. “Working on the old Kailey case?” he guessed.

  Carol nodded. “Actually, we were just talking about going to see Billy Rob’s family,” she said, sitting back in her chair after accepting a glass of wine from Edna.

  “I told her we should wait until you’ve had a chance to notify them,” Edna said, looking across the table at Charlie, as if the statement were also a question he needed to answer.

  “We were at their home this afternoon. They’ve been told.” Charlie’s tone was subdued. He frowned into his coffee mug as if puzzling over how to bring the cup to his lips.

  Carol sat forward, studying the detective’s face. “And?”

  He lifted his eyes and seemed to make an effort to stay awake. “And,” he repeated, “his widow was shocked, to say the least.”

  “Then we can talk to her?” Carol asked.

  He shook his head. “You can’t. She left town. Her husband’s name is apt to stir folks up again. She doesn’t want to face that right now, at least not until she’s adjusted to the news that he didn’t die ten years ago.”

  “Where’d she go?” Carol pushed.

  “Can’t say,” Charlie returned.

  “I’m not like the regular press, you know,” Carol said. “I want to discuss the old case with her. I already have an agreement with one of my editors who’s very interested in the story of a man who was convicted of murdering another man who wasn’t dead.”

  “You what?” Charlie scowled. “You won’t be making friends if you make the investigating team look bad.”

  “Don’t worry. I can spin it any way I see it develop, but Kailey’s wife is a prime source. You know how to reach her, don’t you?”

  “Can’t say,” Charlie repeated and took a slow drink from his mug as he glowered at the young journalist over its rim.

  Edna knew he wouldn’t be pressured into revealing facts before he was ready. “I seem to be surrounded by men who won’t talk,” she said, hoping to distract and defuse Carol’s line of questioning.

  Carefully placing the coffee mug on the table, Charlie said, “Actually, the Kaileys are the reason I came by before going home. I’m asking you to hold off on your interviews for now. At least don’t talk to the family yet. I want to question the son and daughter, once they’ve had a chance to digest the news about their father. I’d prefer their recollections to be fresh and not rehearsed or rehashed.” He put his hands flat on the table and pushed himself out of his chair. “I’d better get home before I fall asleep on you. Thanks for the coffee, Edna. Don’t get up. I’ll see myself out.”

  Edna glanced across at Carol as Charlie left the room and could tell the young woman’s mind was working furiously. Was she wondering how to get around Charlie’s request?

  “Whacha doin’?” Mary’s voice sounded from the doorway to the mudroom. Edna had been so preoccupied in trying to figure out what Carol might be plotting she hadn’t heard her other neighbor come in by the back door. “Where’s Charlie?” the redhead asked, strolling into the room.

  Edna raised a hand toward the door to the front hallway. “Just left.”

  “Darn,” Mary muttered and picked up the goblet Edna had gotten down for Charlie. “I wanted to pick his brain,” she said pouring wine into the glass and bringing it to the table along with the bottle. “I heard they’re going to arrest Gordon for murder.”

  “What?” Edna, about to sip her own drink nearly dropped the glass. “Why? He’s not a killer.”

  “I know,” Mary said, taking a gulp before setting her wine on the table. “Don’t know what they’re thinking. That’s why I wanted to talk to Charlie.”

  “I thought you were working tonight,” Carol cut in.

  “Traded with someone. Couldn’t concentrate on what I was doing after I learned about Gordon.”

  Edna was still thinking about the gentle, kindly dentist who’d become a friend. She felt a cold wave wash over her at the idea of his arrest. “Do they have any proof, other than the fact that the body was in Gordon’s chair?” she demanded.

  Mary shrugged. “I think their case is that he lied to them. Gordon denied knowing the dead guy. Now the cops find out he lost a bunch of money to Kailey ten years ago and almost lost his whole practice.”

  “Why did he lie?” Carol asked.

  Mary frowned at her as if Carol, too, suspected Gordon of committing some heinous crime. “He didn’t. He just didn’t recognize the man with a gas mask on his nose and duct tape over his mouth. Besides the fact he hadn’t seen Billy Rob in ten years, Gordon probably wouldn’t have recognized his best friend under those circumstances.”

  A gloomy hush fell over the room for several minutes. Edna was speechless, trying to assimilate what she’d heard. The picture of Gordon hurting anyone was difficult for her to imagine. “It’s just not possible.” She finally broke the silence. “If nothing else, it doesn’t make sense that Gordon would leave the body in his office for me to find. I’m certain he couldn’t kill anyone, and I’m sure he wouldn’t be so cruel to me.”

  “Unless he’s clever enough to use reverse psychology,” Carol repeated what she’d said earlier that afternoon.

  “I’m with you, Edna,” Mary said, finishing her drink and reaching for the bottle to refill everyone’s glass.

  For another few minutes, the only sound was Carol’s fingernails clicking on her keyboard. Edna thought back to the night before last when she’d driven to the dental office. An image flashed into her head, and she sat straighter in her chair.

  “Two cars,” she said, looking from Mary to Carol and back. When she saw the blank looks on their faces, she explained. “There were two cars in the parking lot when I got there Monday night. I was relieved, thinking Gordon was already in his office, since I was early for my appointment.”

  When the others still looked as if she were talking in tongues, Edna continued, glancing from one to the other. “Don’t you see, Gordon arrived after I did, so one of those cars couldn’t have been his.” A shiver ran down her spine as she pictured the em
pty parking space that had been occupied by a green Honda. Had someone simply left their car in the lot while they walked into town for supper or shopping? If not, the car’s owner probably had been in the building when she arrived and found the body. The killer?

  “Did ya get the plate number?” Mary’s question brought Edna back from her disturbing thoughts.

  Edna shook her head. “I need to check with Charlie, but I’m guessing the SUV belonged to the victim,” she said. “If that’s true then that vehicle is accounted for. I’d like to find the driver of the Honda, if only to ask if they were in the building or if they saw anyone else Monday evening.”

  “Do you remember anything distinctive about the car, other than its color?” Mary asked, leaning forward to put her forearms on the table. “Dents? Bumper stickers?”

  When Edna shook her head again, Carol chimed in, sounding doubtful. “We could drive around town and see if you can spot it, but I think that would be a long shot.”

  Edna thought for only a few seconds before replying. She felt her energy returning along with a determination to prove Gordon innocent. “Pieter Resnik was there. I’ll go see him, find out if he knows the car or if he saw anyone else in the lot that night.” Again her gaze swiveled from one neighbor to the other as she lifted her eyebrows. “Speaking with him will also give me a chance to ask him how he managed to identify Kailey ten years ago.”

  “I hate to throw cold water on your party, but nobody knows where Resnik is,” Mary said, raising her hands, palms up. “The police haven’t been able to locate him … according to my sources, that is,” she added with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she glanced over at Carol.

  “I bet anything Vera knows where her boss is,” Edna said, feeling confident. “I have an insurance form to return, the perfect excuse to drop by the office. Who knows … maybe she’ll open up to someone who’s not with the police.”

  “Can I go with you?” Carol asked, leaning forward, her face aglow. “I’m pretty good at getting people to open up.”