by Kate Bell
“It should. Come on up,” he said, squatting down on the platform.
“Sure doesn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy,” I said, and moved up to the next rung. The ladder shuddered again and I closed my eyes and pulled myself up the rest of the way. Climbing this thing was like pulling off a bandaid. Better to do it all at once.
“See now, that’s not so bad, is it?” he teased as I made it to the platform.
“Well, it kind of is,” I said, pulling myself up on the platform. The stand shuddered again. I couldn’t tell for sure, but I thought it listed to the side a little.
“Look,” he said, pointing out to the woods.
“Oh, wow,” I said. We had the perfect view of what looked like the exact spot that Todd Spellman had fallen. There was an opening in the trees that didn’t look natural.
“Yeah. Todd had an enemy.”
“If Bob is to be believed, it could be any one of his employees,” I said. A breeze stirred, and I heard the stand creak. “Okay, time to get down.” I moved the couple of steps back to the ladder and started down.
Alec chuckled. “Don’t be a ‘fraidy cat,” he said.
“I will be a ‘fraidy cat if I want to,” I said, feeling my feet hit solid ground. I picked up my coffee and watched him climb down.
“Come on,” he said and led the way through the woods.
“What kind of gun do you think it was?” I asked.
“We won’t know exactly until we get the bullet from Todd Spellman’s body examined by forensics, but it was a long gun of some type. Fitted with a silencer which is why we didn’t hear it,” he said as we walked.
“I heard a whistling noise. It was creepy, knowing what it was now. I thought silencers were against the law?” I asked.
“Only in some states. Not Maine. They do have to fill out extra paperwork at the time of purchase, but honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was stolen.”
We walked a ways in the woods.
“Is this?” I asked when he stopped.
“Yes, this is where he was shot. See the trees? They cut off some branches, so they had a clear view,” he said, pointing.
I looked at the ground and was relieved I didn’t see blood. “I would hate to know what they would have done if he had been in a pack of runners at the time he passed this spot,” I said, shuddering.
“Since they didn’t hesitate to fire at us, I think we both know what they would have done,” he said. “The deer stand is due to be dismantled later today and brought to the lab in Bangor. It was already dusted for prints, but there wasn’t anything. Maybe the lab will have better luck finding something.”
“Do you think the killer might have come back to the area and tampered with anything?” I asked. I had easily gotten past the crime scene tape.
“George spent last night in his car right out here in the middle of things. Just about everything has been removed and photographed at this point. I just wanted to go over things again, to be sure nothing was overlooked. I would have caught you entering the area had I been expecting you to be so nosy. Of course, I don’t know why I didn’t expect you to be.”
I smiled at him. “You know me.”
“That I do. As soon as Yancey and George return to get the deer stand, I’ll go back to the office. Tomorrow morning I’m going to have a chat with Todd’s family. They were initially questioned by Sam Bailey, but he didn’t seem to think there was much there. Just a grieving family,” he said.
“How did Mr. Spellman take it?” I asked.
He shrugged. “Sam seems to think he might have been given a sedative of some sort. He was really out of it. Maybe he’ll be more alert when I go over there.”
“Take me with you?” I asked hopefully.
He sighed. “Well if I don’t, what are the chances you’ll sneak up on me from behind while I’m there?”
“Pretty good,” I said, nodding.
“I figured as much.”
--7--
“You know the drill, right?” Alec asked as he turned down Taylor Street.
“Yes, keep my mouth shut and just observe,” I answered. The window of his SUV kept fogging up from the cold, even with the defroster running full blast. I leaned forward and wiped my sleeve over the front of the windshield so I could see.
“You know I’m on to you, right?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” I asked, turning toward him.
“’Keep your mouth shut and observe’ is your code for ask a lot of questions and make accusations. I’m catching on to you,” he said with a small smile on his lips.
I grinned. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, turning to look forward. The city was hanging Christmas lights. There would be a Christmas parade on the first of December, always at night, under the Christmas lights. An old familiar ache tugged at my heart. My kids had lived for that parade when they were small, and no matter how cold it was, my husband Thaddeus bundled them up and we went to watch all the homemade floats, marching bands and horse riders.
“All right, plead the fifth if you must. But I’m not buying it.”
I giggled. He hadn’t put up much of a fight when I told him I wanted to go with him to speak to Todd’s family, and I was glad of that. I hated when I had to beg.
He pulled up to the Spellman’s house and I could see a light on inside. It was just before eight and I had wondered if anyone would be up and about yet.
We got out of the car and headed to the front door.
A tall woman with graying hair and bifocal glasses opened the door and peered at us for a moment before speaking. I could smell coffee brewing from inside the open door. “Yes?” she said. I guessed she must be close to sixty.
“Good morning Ma’am, I’m detective Alec Blanchard and this is Allie McSwain. May we have a few minutes of your time?”
She took a step back, and hesitated, then looked over her shoulder. Her face was free of wrinkles and I decided I was wrong about my first guess on her age. The gray hair and bifocals aged her, but in a better light, she looked to be in her mid to late forties.
She turned back to us. “Yes, of course,” she said and held the door open. “We’re just getting up and around. I’m Connie Sutter, Todd’s sister.”
“Thank you,” Alec said, and we followed her as she headed down the hall.
She led us into a formal living room that looked like it had been decorated in the early nineties and had not been sat in since.
“Let me get my husband. Would you like coffee?” she asked over her shoulder as she headed out the door we had come through.
“Yes, please,” I said before Alec could answer. Coffee would allow us a few extra minutes of time here. I was curious about the life of Todd Spellman. He was the kind of person that nearly everyone in town knew because of his philanthropic endeavors.
A balding middle-aged man entered the room. He stopped, straightened his glasses and gave us a pinched smile. “Hello, I’m Terrence Sutter, Todd’s brother-in-law,” he said, extending a hand to Alec and then to me.
Alec introduced us. “I’m sorry for your loss. We understand it’s a difficult time for your whole family, but we have a few questions.”
“Yes, of course,” he said, and came over to sit on the sofa across from us. “We’ve been expecting you.”
“How is Mr. Spellman?” I asked. I knew he had to be devastated.
“Dad’s doing as well as can be expected. The doctor gave him something to settle his nerves. He had some minor sleep issues before this happened, and he really needed a little help.”
“Of course,” I said. I didn’t blame Mr. Spellman one bit. I had needed to rely on medication for a month or more after Thaddeus died.
“Mr. Sutter, do you know if there was anyone in your brother-in-law’s life that wanted to harm him?” Alec asked.
“Please, call me Terrence. And no, I had never heard him say he had any issues with anyone,” Terrence said with a shrug. He put on a smile and glanced at the livin
g room door.
“Did he ever discuss his job?” Alec asked.
Terrence shook his head. “No, never. This is all so devastating you know.”
“I can imagine,” Alec said sympathetically. “Any death is difficult, and murder makes it more so.”
Connie Sutter entered the room holding a silver tray with four cups of coffee and a creamer and sugar bowl and set it down on the coffee table with a carafe of coffee. “Please, help yourselves,” she said, motioning toward the tray and giving us a strained smile. My heart went out to her. How terrible to lose a loved one during the holidays.
“I’ll ask you the same things I asked your husband, Mrs. Sutter. Did Todd ever mention having any trouble with anyone, or perhaps problems at work?” Alec asked, reaching for a cup of coffee and a spoon.
“No, he never discussed work and never had a bad thing to say about anyone,” Mrs. Sutter said. “He was always so thoughtful of others.” Her voice cracked, and she looked away.
“I’m sorry Mrs. Sutter,” Alec said. “I only have a few more questions and we’ll leave you alone.”
I looked at the silver tray. I reached for a cup of coffee and ran my finger over the tray. It was plastic beneath a silver coating. I looked around the room. The walls were filled with paintings in gold trimmed frames. I got up while Alec asked his questions and wandered over to a beautiful landscape painting. There were snow covered mountaintops with an impossibly blue sky, a couple paintings with river scenes, and several more with ponds.
The mountain painting reminded me of something you only saw in a foreign country. Perhaps Sweden or Switzerland. I took a closer look. At first glance, everything seemed expensive, but upon further inspection, a different story was revealed. The frames were plastic and in places, the gold paint was flaking off. I wondered if the painting itself if it was just a good print beneath the glass.
It reminded me of a television show set. I wondered if Todd had been merely thrifty or if he had wanted to keep up appearances by making others think he had invested a lot of money in the paintings. Maybe all his charity work was to cover up for something.
“That’s an original painting by a famous artist. The Swiss Alps,” Connie said, coming up behind me.
I jumped a little. I hadn’t heard her get up. “Oh, it’s lovely,” I said.
“Yes, Todd was quite the art aficionado,” she said, smiling at the painting.
I looked at her curiously. It really didn’t take much to see that the painting was a cheap knock off, and it wasn’t just because the frames were inexpensive. The paintings were under glass, and authentic paintings usually weren’t kept like that.
“Todd was so involved in the community,” I said. “He will be missed.”
The smile left her lips. “Yes, he certainly will. He’ll be missed by many people.”
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Sutter,” I said. I decided she must just be clueless about art.
She sniffed. “Please, call me Connie.”
“Connie, where do you and your husband live?” I asked.
“Michigan. I wish we had taken the time to come visit more often, but you know how it is. Life gets in the way and you always think you have time. Until there is no more time,” she said, her voice cracking on the last part.
“That’s the truth,” I said. “Will you be taking Mr. Spellman back to Michigan with you?”
“Oh, of course. Daddy is going to have such a hard time with this. We want to do all we can to help him through it.”
“I would imagine having him close will also help you through your grief. I write a blog on grief. I’ve written a large number of articles on working through the process on it. It’s called very simply, Working Through Grief,” I said. “I’ll get you a business card with the web address on it.”
“That’s very thoughtful of you,” she said. “Yes, family is everything and I know having my father home with me will be a help to both of us.”
“Can we see Mr. Spellman before we leave? So we can pay our respects?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m sorry, but he’s still sleeping. He’s had such a hard time getting to sleep and the meds the doctor gave him make it a little hard for him to wake up,” she said, repeating what her husband had said.
“Oh, of course,” I said, feeling a little disappointed. I had really wanted to check in on him.
Alec finished up with his questions and I gave Connie my business card before we left.
“Well, how did that go?” I asked him as he pulled away from the curb.
He shrugged. “I didn’t really discover anything new or unusual. With them living so far away, it would be hard for them to know many details of Todd’s life.”
I nodded, thinking about the fake paintings. I couldn’t imagine how Connie could have been fooled by it, but perhaps she was.
--8--
Sunday came far too soon, and it was time to say goodbye to Thad. Five days just weren’t enough.
“Do you have everything packed?” I asked, hovering near him. His suitcase was still open on the bed.
“I think I do,” he said, rummaging through his toiletry case.
“You know Thad, you could easily transfer to the University of Maine to finish your studies. It would be so nice to have you closer,” I said. I had tried not to meddle and coerce him into moving home, but I couldn’t help it. The few weeks a year that I was seeing him just weren’t enough.
He smiled without looking at me. “I know mom. I wish Wisconsin weren’t so far away, too.”
I sighed and swallowed tears that began at the backs of my eyes. “I know, you’re all grown up and you don’t need me anymore.” I couldn’t help the dramatics. I was feeling sorry for myself.
“Now Mom, you know that isn’t true,” he said and turned toward me and had me in a bear hug before I knew what happened. I let loose with the tears then. There wasn’t anything I could do to stop them. “Don’t do that, mom,” he said softly.
“I know, I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“So what’s going on in here?” Sarah asked, suddenly appearing in the doorway.
I pulled away and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. “Nothing,” I said, and left the room, heading for the living room. I needed to pull myself together. He was all grown up now, and he had a life to live. That’s what his father and I had raised him to do.
“What’s going on?” Jennifer asked, sliding her slipper clad feet across the hardwood floors in the living room.
“Oh, nothing. Your brother’s getting ready to leave,” I said, and went to the kitchen to pour myself a cup of coffee. I needed a good strong shot of caffeine to perk up my mood.
“I can drive him to the airport, if you want,” she said, taking a mug from the cupboard.
I thought to protest, because I wanted the last few minutes with Thad, but then I thought better of it. I could cry here in private, instead of at the airport where all the holiday travellers were milling about. I didn’t need an audience.
“That sounds good. But you better get dressed or he’ll be late for his plane. They. They’ll be late for their plane,” I corrected myself. I couldn’t forget Sarah although I wanted to. I needed to get over this, and fast. Thad seemed to be serious about Sarah and I needed to make her feel welcome, in case this became a permanent thing. I shuddered at the thought.
“Got it,” she said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “It won’t take but a few minutes for me to be ready.”
I poured myself some coffee and went and sat on the sofa. I picked up the Bangor morning paper and read the headlines.
MAN SHOT DEAD DURING ANNUAL SANDY HARBOR TURKEY TROT
The article beneath it rehashed what I already knew. There wasn’t anything new to be told, and if there was, I was pretty sure Alec would have let me know about it. I sighed and wondered where the murderer was this morning. Probably gloating that they had gotten way with it.
“Okay, I guess we’re ready,” Thad announced, carrying out his and Sarah’s suitcases
. He was bundled up in a jacket and knit hat.
I smiled at him. “I still can’t get over how much you look like your dad.”
He gave me a big smile back. “But I have your winning personality.”
I laughed and went to give him a final hug. “That, you do.” My eyes teared up again and Sarah came up from behind him. I didn’t care. I had almost lost my only son a few days earlier, and I was going to cry. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”
“I know Mom, I am too. I’m even more glad that you’re safe,” he said, squeezing me tight.
“All right, enough with the love fest. We gotta get a move on,” Jennifer said, entering the room, now fully dressed and with proper shoes on her feet.
I sighed, pushed away, and held Thad at arm’s length. “Call me when you get back to Wisconsin.”
He nodded. “You know I will.”
I said my goodbyes to Sarah and in a moment they were gone. I watched through the living room window until Jennifer’s car was out of sight. The phone in the kitchen rang, and I hurried to get it before the caller hung up.
I grabbed the receiver on the third ring and had just a moment to glance at Caller ID. Todd Spellman. My heart leapt in my chest.
“Hello?” I said.
There was silence on the other end.
“Hello?” I repeated. There was still no answer, and I glanced at the Caller ID again. Todd Spellman. “Hello? Who is this?”
I waited for what seemed like forever before hanging up and watched the name Todd Spellman disappear from the display. I took three steps back, still staring at the phone. What was that all about?
The hair on the back of my neck stood up as I remembered the last phone call I had gotten on this phone. It was last month and was from a soon to be dead Diana Bowen. Of course, she didn’t know she was about to be dead when she made the phone call, but still. By the time I had listened to the voicemail, Diana was already dead and it was creepy. And this was creepy too, since I had never called Todd while he was alive and I wasn’t aware that anyone in that household had my home phone number.
