A Reasonable Doubt

by Phillip Margolin

  As eerie music floated through the theater, the other assistant unlocked the padlocks. When the chains were unwrapped, the two assistants who had remained onstage raised the lid of the coffin. They looked down. Then one of them jumped back, and the other one screamed.

  “Is this part of the act?” Stanley Cloud asked Robin.

  “I don’t know. They didn’t do this when I saw the illusion on the coast.”

  Several members of the audience stood up, and Robin saw Horace Dobson race onto the stage. He looked into the coffin and lost all of his color.

  “Call the police!” he shouted. “Bobby’s been murdered.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  Tamara Robinson, a policewoman with the physique of a serious bodybuilder, met Carrie Anders and Roger Dillon in the theater lobby and told them what had occurred during the performance.

  “A guy named Joe Samuels filed a criminal complaint against Robert Chesterfield. Lou Fletcher and I came with the DA who has the case. We were going to arrest Chesterfield on theft charges when the show finished. The big finale is this Chamber of Death trick, where the magician is sealed in a coffin and they put snakes and scorpions in with him. When his assistants opened up the coffin, Chesterfield wasn’t supposed to be inside. Only he was, and he’d been stabbed to death.

  “One of the assistants screamed, and Horace Dobson, Chesterfield’s agent, ran onstage. When he yelled that Chesterfield had been murdered, we told everyone to stay in their seats and secured the doors, but some people took off as soon as they realized that the theater had turned into a crime scene. We did keep most of the audience inside. We called for backup right away, and I have officers guarding the exits.”

  “You did a great job, considering the circumstances,” Dillon said.

  Robinson shook her head. “I got to tell you, the natives are restless. I’ve had more than one person ask me for my name and badge number and tell me how well they know the mayor.”

  “Don’t sweat that,” Anders said. “We’ll back you up if anyone complains.”

  “What do you want us to do now?” Robinson asked.

  “I want everyone who was seated near the stage interviewed,” Dillon said. “You can let the people at the back of the theater out after getting names, addresses, and phone numbers, but keep anyone here who noticed anything strange.”

  “Who’s taken charge?” Anders asked.

  “Peter Ragland.”

  “What’s he doing here?” Dillon asked with obvious surprise.

  “He’s the DA who came with us.”

  “Where is he?”

  “On the stage with the ME, talking to Dobson and Norman Chow, the theater manager. Oh, and there’s a lawyer named Robin Lockwood who wanted to talk to a homicide detective. She says she has information that might be helpful.”

  “Where is she?” Anders asked.

  “Down by the front, near the stage.”

  “Thanks, Tamara. Why don’t you get started on the interviews.” As soon as Robinson walked away, Anders turned to her partner. “Why the reaction when Robinson mentioned Peter Ragland?”

  “I was promoted to Homicide twenty-odd years ago. In my first murder case, Peter Ragland prosecuted Robert Chesterfield for a double homicide. Chesterfield hired Regina Barrister. All the charges had to be dismissed after Barrister got Ragland’s evidence thrown out before trial. Those cases solidified Barrister’s reputation as a legal whiz and destroyed Ragland’s career.”

  “Do you think Ragland asked for the theft case so he could get a little revenge?” Anders asked.

  “I wouldn’t put it past him,” Dillon replied.

  “Why don’t you make sure Ragland doesn’t mess up this case while I talk to Lockwood.”

  When Dillon left the lobby, Anders followed him into the theater.

  Anders spotted Robin and waved her onto the stage so they could have privacy.

  “Hi, Robin,” Anders said as soon as they were standing behind one of the curtains. “I didn’t know you were a fan of magic.”

  “I am, but that’s only one reason why I’m here. Robert Chesterfield was a client. A few years ago, he asked me to patent the Chamber of Death. That never happened, but he did invite Jeff and me to see a dress rehearsal at his mansion on the coast. You know about his disappearing act, right?”

  Anders nodded.

  “I was there when it happened.”

  “Is that what you wanted to tell me?” Anders asked.

  “No. I have no idea how Chesterfield was murdered or who killed him, but I wanted you to know that there are several people in the audience who had it in for him.”

  “Such as?”

  Robin pointed at Rafael and Marco. “Those men work for Augustine Montenegro, a Las Vegas casino owner. Chesterfield had gambling debts. A short time ago, Montenegro sent those men to collect. They attacked Chesterfield in an alley behind a tavern. Chesterfield fought them off and stabbed Rafael.”

  “How do you know this?”

  “I saw it happen. Chesterfield asked me to meet him at the tavern to discuss a legal matter. After we were through, Chesterfield left by the back door. I left the same way a few minutes later and saw Rafael and Marco threatening Chesterfield. I told them I was calling 911. When Rafael turned toward me, Chesterfield stabbed him. A week later, they threatened me in the park across from the jail.”

  “Did you report any of this?”

  “No.”

  Anders knew Robin well, so she didn’t ask why. Instead she said, “You mentioned that there are several people in the audience who didn’t like Chesterfield. Who are the others?”

  Robin pointed out David Turner and Claire Madison. “Claire is married to Chesterfield and she’s very wealthy. Turner has been her lover for years. I read that Chesterfield has filed for a divorce. The main issue is Claire’s money and how much of it he can get.

  “Turner is a famous magician. He has a show at a Las Vegas casino that he used to close with a mystifying illusion. A few years ago, there was a TV show with a masked magician who called himself Mysterioso and revealed the secrets behind magic tricks. It turns out that Chesterfield was Mysterioso, and he told the world how Turner did his biggest trick because Turner was sleeping with his wife. That crippled Turner’s act and hampered his career.

  “Then there are those protesters outside the theater. They’re professional magicians, and they’re here because Turner let everyone know that Chesterfield was Mysterioso. They hate Chesterfield.”

  “Anyone else with a grudge?”

  Robin gestured toward Joe Samuels. “Chesterfield embezzled money from Joe Samuels, and he’s filed a criminal complaint. When we met at the tavern, Chesterfield hired me to try to settle with Samuels so he wouldn’t be arrested. Samuels rejected the offer and told me he wants Chesterfield to suffer in jail.

  “Then there’s Iris Hitchens,” Robin said, pointing toward Lily Dowd’s daughter. “Chesterfield was married to her mother, who died under mysterious circumstances. Hitchens blamed Chesterfield, although there was no evidence that he killed her. There was a protracted court battle over Dowd’s will and really bad feelings between Dowd’s children and Chesterfield.

  “Miriam Ross is also in the audience. She was Chesterfield’s assistant. I don’t know if she has a motive to kill her old boss, but she’s here.”

  “Jesus, Robin. Is there anyone in the audience who didn’t have a motive to kill Chesterfield?” Anders shook her head. “You’re not making my job any easier.”

  “Sorry,” Robin said.

  Robin had seen Peter Ragland on the stage. She knew his failure in Chesterfield’s case had torpedoed his career, but she decided not to mention that to Carrie, who already had too many suspects.

  “Okay,” Anders said. “I appreciate the help. I’ll talk to the people you named, but Chesterfield was onstage doing his act, and the people you’ve mentioned were in the audience. Doesn’t that rule them out?”

  “It was pitch-black in the theater, and ever
yone was watching the stage. The people I mentioned could have slipped out during the performance. I don’t know how they could have gotten to Chesterfield without being seen, but David Turner is a master magician, and the protesters are magicians. Turner and the other magicians might have been able to figure out a way to kill Chesterfield in the middle of the Chamber of Death trick.”

  Anders furrowed her brow. “It just occurred to me that the killer had to know how the trick was performed before he could figure out how to kill Chesterfield onstage, but this is the premiere.”

  “Most of the people I mentioned saw the trick performed a few years ago during the rehearsal at the coast. That’s where I met most of them. And Horace Dobson and everyone who works in the show would know how the illusion works. Rafael and Marco weren’t at the rehearsal, but Montenegro was, so he could have told them about the trick.”

  “Okay. Thanks for the heads-up, Robin. You and the people you’re with can leave. I’ll clear it with one of the uniforms.”

  * * *

  When Horace Dobson announced Chesterfield’s murder, Peter Ragland had ordered Tamara Robinson and Lou Fletcher to secure the doors to the theater and call for more officers. Then he had raced onto the stage to take charge of the investigation. As soon as he’d gotten Dobson and the magician’s assistant calmed down, he called Vanessa Cole. Ragland could tell that Vanessa wasn’t pleased that he hadn’t waited for a DA in Homicide, but she had let him take charge since he was on the scene and had experience in handling murder cases.

  When Peter had charged Chesterfield with murder all those years ago, the case had ruined Peter’s career. Now Chesterfield’s murder onstage during the Chamber of Death illusion would be national news. Wouldn’t it be ironic, he thought, if the magician’s murder resurrected his career?

  Peter was talking to Sally Grace, the medical examiner, when Roger Dillon walked onto the stage.

  “Hi, Peter,” Dillon said. “I didn’t know you handled homicides.”

  Ragland reddened. “Normally I don’t, but I was here to arrest Chesterfield in a theft case. Since I was here, Vanessa told me to take charge.”

  A man in his midthirties was standing next to the deputy DA and was visibly upset. “Can’t you speed this up?” he asked. “We’re trying to upgrade the image of this neighborhood, and the theater is one of our main attractions. The publicity will kill us.”

  “I appreciate your problem, Mr. Chow,” Ragland said, “but we’re investigating a murder, and everyone in this theater is either a suspect or a potential witness. I regret any harm to the theater’s reputation, but we have to follow procedure.”

  “What did I miss?” Anders asked as she joined the group.

  “Mr. Chow, Mr. Dobson, this is Carrie Anders,” Ragland said. “She and Roger Dillon are with Homicide.”

  “This is horrible,” Dobson said.

  “Did you know Mr. Chesterfield well?” Anders asked.

  “I’ve been his agent since the 1990s.”

  “Can you tell us what happened?” Ragland asked.

  “Bobby created the Chamber of Death as the finale for his show.” Dobson pointed at the sarcophagus. “He’s locked inside this coffin, and the assistants pour snakes and scorpions into it. The audience hears him screaming inside the coffin and banging on the sides. If the trick is done correctly, Bobby disappears from the coffin and reappears at the back of the theater. Only this time, someone stabbed him and he was still inside the coffin when it was opened.”

  “How does the illusion work?” Ragland asked.

  “Is this confidential? A magician’s secrets are very valuable.”

  “We’ll try to keep the solution to the illusion secret, but we can’t promise anything. It might have to come out in a trial.”

  “Do the best you can,” Dobson conceded with a sigh. “The trick is really simple. The sarcophagus is on a dolly in the back of the theater when the illusion starts. After it’s pushed up a ramp onto the stage, the platform sits right next to one edge of the coffin with a little space in between. At one point in the act, the three assistants briefly block the view of the audience, and the bright lights blind the audience so it can’t see what’s happening on the floor of the stage.

  “The audience thinks that the assistant who is in the middle is pushing Bobby down into the coffin, but what really happens is that Bobby rolls over the side of the sarcophagus and crawls into a narrow opening in the platform that supported the sarcophagus. The backdrop of the set is black, and so is the robe Bobby was wearing. The combination of the black background, the black robe and hood, and the blinding lights makes him invisible to the audience. When the middle assistant pushes the dolly offstage, he gets out and runs down a tunnel to the back of the theater.”

  “What about the screams and banging from inside the coffin?” Roger asked.

  “They’re prerecorded and piped into the coffin to distract the audience. There’s a tiny microphone in the sarcophagus that’s impossible to spot.”

  Dillon shook his head. “Every once in a while, I find out how a magic trick is done, and I always feel stupid.”

  “Do you have any idea who killed Mr. Chesterfield?” Anders asked.

  Dobson hesitated. “I hate to accuse anyone.”

  “You’re not. You’re helping us figure out who murdered your friend.”

  “There are three assistants, Sheila Monroe, Maria Rodriguez, and Nancy Porter. Sheila and Maria raise the lid of the coffin, and Nancy is the one who pretends to push Bobby down. Nancy was the only person who could have stabbed him.”

  “Where is she?” Ragland asked.

  “I don’t know. Nancy was supposed to be onstage for the finale, but she didn’t come back after pushing the dolly offstage.”

  “Has anyone searched the theater for her?” Anders asked.

  “Not that I know.”

  “What does she look like?”

  “She’s a redhead, green eyes, about five feet tall, and very slender, but strong. The assistants all have to be short and skinny so they can fit into tight spaces.”

  Roger Dillon walked to the edge of the stage and told one of the uniforms to organize a search for the missing woman.

  “We’re going to need to open the sarcophagus,” Anders said. “Are the snakes and scorpions dangerous?”

  “No. They look scary, but they’re harmless,” Dobson assured her.

  Anders signaled two officers to raise the lid that covered the coffin. She looked inside and saw snakes and scorpions wriggling and slithering over Robert Chesterfield’s body and around the knife that was buried in his heart.

  Dr. Grace looked into the coffin. “That looks like a surgical strike right into the victim’s heart. He would have died very quickly.”

  “If the audience heard Chesterfield scream when he was stabbed, they’d think that the screams were just part of the act,” Dillon said.

  Anders saw the two rectangular glass boxes. “Is there someone who can put these reptiles and scorpions back in their cages so Dr. Grace can examine the body?” she asked Dobson.

  “That’s the assistants’ job. I’ll ask them if they’re up to it. They’re both very upset.”

  Sheila, who was blond, and Maria, who had glossy black hair, were sitting on bridge chairs just off the stage, still dressed in their voluminous robes. They were talking quietly to each other, but they looked up when the agent and the detectives approached. Anders could see that Sheila had been crying. Maria looked pale.

  “I’m Carrie Anders, and I’m one of the detectives who is going to try and find out what happened to Mr. Chesterfield. I’ll want to talk to you about what you saw, but right now I need your help. I understand you two can put the snakes and scorpions that are in the sarcophagus back into their cages.”

  “It’s a vivarium,” Maria said. “That’s what you call it.”

  “Thanks. I didn’t know that. Are you up to putting the snakes and scorpions in the vivariums so the medical examiner can start to work?”
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  “Yes,” Maria answered.

  “Before you do that, I understand Nancy Porter is missing. Do you know where she is?”

  Maria said no and Sheila shook her head.

  “Can you remember what she did before and during the Chamber of Death illusion?” Dillon asked.

  “We were onstage for one of Bobby’s other illusions,” Maria said. “When he finished that trick, we went to our dressing room and put on these robes for the Chamber of Death while he did some card tricks onstage by himself. When it was time for the finale, we went to the back of the theater so we could push the sarcophagus onstage.”

  “Actually, you and I did,” Sheila said, “but Nancy couldn’t find her inhaler. She has asthma. So we left and she joined us a few minutes later.”

  “That’s right,” Maria agreed. “Anyway, she joined us just as we started pushing the sarcophagus down the aisle and onto the stage. Then Bobby got in the coffin, and we covered it while Nancy pushed the roller offstage.”

  “She’s supposed to come back onstage, but that’s the last I saw of her,” Sheila said.

  “Me too,” Maria chimed in.

  “Thanks,” Anders said. “Let’s get rid of the scorpions and reptiles so the ME can do her job.”

  The women followed Anders and Dobson to the coffin just as a policeman ran out from backstage to say, “I found Nancy Porter.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  While Ragland, Anders, and Dillon followed the policeman, he told them that he had found Porter lying unconscious on the floor of the dressing room that the assistants used. A cloth that smelled of ether was on the floor next to her. When Anders and Dillon opened the dressing room door, they saw a slender redhead clad in a bra and panties sprawled on the floor. Someone had put a pillow under her head, and an EMT was bending over her. Porter tried to sit up.

  “Take it easy,” the EMT said.

  “What happened?” Porter groaned.

  Anders squatted next to her. “I’m Carrie Anders. I’m a detective with the Portland Police Bureau. It looks like someone used ether to knock you out. How are you feeling?”