Fruit of the Poisoned Tree (24 page)

Just when she thought she had everything in hand, the front doorbell rang. She opened the door to find Beth and a young man in a dark gray business suit on her doorstep.

“How
could
you do this, Peggy?” Beth cried and wrung her hands. “How could you do this to
me
?”

“David Rusch.” The young man tripped over the edge of the rug at the door as he tried to shake Peggy’s hand. “I’m representing Mrs. Lamonte for Lamonte, Rusch and Peterson.”

Peggy could see the resemblance between father and son. Same dark hair and gray eyes. Except the elder Rusch was much more sophisticated, smoother, and taller. She watched David try to get his foot untangled from the fringe on the carpet for a moment before turning to Beth. “I did what I thought was right. I’m sorry if that makes it hard for you. I know
you
didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sure we’ll be able to prove that. You have nothing to worry about.”

“I’m sure we can all come to a mutual understanding.” David finally freed his foot from the fringe. “We all want the same thing. We just have to get on the same page. Keep our heads together. Fight for the team! Make the problems with this accident go away so Mrs. Lamonte can go on with her life.”

“I’m thinking that Park’s death
wasn’t
an accident, Mr. Rusch. Someone at least wanted to make him sick. They succeeded in killing him. Park was my friend. I want to know who’s responsible for his death. Don’t you want that, too, Beth?”

Beth nodded. Her hair was a mess, and her face was blotchy from crying. “The police know about the insurance policy. They know Park was cheating on me with Cindy. They asked me to come in and answer some questions.”

“I’ll need to speak to the attorney Mrs. Lamonte hired without realizing Lamonte, Rusch and Peterson would provide her defense.” David frowned and waved his briefcase, almost knocking a vase off of Peggy’s side table and rushing to retrieve it.” She’ll have to sign off on the case unless she wants to second chair. We want to provide Mrs. Lamonte the best possible defense in the light of these accusations made against her.”

“I’m sure she has nothing to hide,” Peggy defended. “And Hunter Ollson is a good
criminal
attorney, Mr. Rusch. I’m sure she’s advising Beth to do the right thing.”

“Hunter?” David stopped pacing for a moment and stared at her.

“Didn’t I tell you her name?” Beth asked him.

“Hunter
Ollson
?”

The doorbell rang again, this time persistently. It was followed immediately by pounding on the heavy portal. Peggy opened the door and stepped aside as Hunter rushed into the house.

“What the hell is going on here?” she demanded, glaring at everyone. “I thought Beth was
my
client.” She paused in midtirade and blinked her pretty blue eyes. “Davey? Is that
you
?”

PEGGY DID THE INTRODUCTIONS. The look on Hunter’s face didn’t change. She glared at the other attorney while Peggy was speaking. “I think you and I should step into another room for a word, Counselor.” Hunter opened the door to the small sitting room on the right and waited for David—
Davey
—to join her.

He shrugged and finally followed her, closing the door behind them . . .
after
closing his suit coat in it and extracting it.

Beth turned to Peggy. “I know what this
looks
like. This thing with Park and Cindy was terrible. I was out of my head when I told him to get that insurance policy before he came back to me. I don’t know what difference I thought it would make. I suppose I thought the money aspect would affect him. I don’t know. But I didn’t kill Park or Isabelle. You
have
to believe me.”

“I do. But there are some questions here that need answers.” Peggy grasped Beth’s hands firmly in her own. “It may be hard on you while they ask the questions, but you want to know the truth about what happened to Park, don’t you?”

“You know I do.” Beth squeezed Peggy’s hands in return. “I’m just terrified. I’m not only worried about myself. I’m worried about Reddman and Foxx. What if I lose them, too?”

“We’ll make sure that doesn’t happen! But it’s not going to be easy for them either. Maybe your parents could take the boys home with them for a while until we get this cleared up.”

“I don’t want to sound selfish, Peggy, but I don’t know if I can stay in the house alone right now. I want to protect the boys, but I’m so alone without Park. The house seems so empty.”

“Pack a few things and stay with me,” Peggy suggested. “You can answer questions just as well from here. And you know I have plenty of space. It’s a little chilly because that stupid furnace is screwed up, but I’d love to have you here.”

Beth blinked tears out of her eyes as she wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “Thank you, Peggy. You’re so strong. I hope you don’t mind if I lean on you for a while.”

“I’m here for you.” Peggy grinned, tears in her eyes. “We’ll see this through. Frankly, I’m more worried about Shakespeare knocking you down the stairs than I am you being blamed for Park’s death. We just have to find out what happened to him and who
was
responsible.”

As Beth was about to speak, the sitting room door burst open, and Hunter raced out, waving her hands and talking so quickly, Beth and Peggy could barely understand her. Her face was red and her hair was messed up. Her burnt-red lipstick was smudged. “Well, I think we settled
that
issue.
I’m
your attorney, Beth. I’m advising you to answer any questions the police have regarding your husband’s death. We have nothing to hide, right? I’ll be there with you the whole time. You’re innocent. You have nothing to be ashamed of.”

David walked out slowly behind her. He was straightening his blue striped tie and trying to smooth his dark brown hair back but hadn’t touched the trace of burnt-red lipstick by the side of his mouth. One persistent strand of hair stood straight up on his head. He cleared his throat. “I think Hunter will do a good job for you, Beth. We knew each other
briefly
in school. She’s a good attorney. We talked, and we’ll be talking for a while. I mean, until you get through this. Then we’ll probably still be talking, of course. Maybe about different issues. But still talking.”

Peggy smiled and offered him a tissue to wipe off the lipstick. “That much is obvious.”

The attorney’s lean face suffused with pink as he took the hint and scrubbed the tissue against his mouth. “Anyway. I have to go. Hunter has agreed to keep her breast firm . . . I mean to keep the
firm
abreast of the investigation. Don’t hesitate to call if you need anything, Beth. We’re here for you and the boys.”

She thanked him, glancing at Hunter curiously. “Thank you for your help, David. I’ll be staying here with Peggy for a while until we get things straightened out.”

“Good idea.” He cleared his throat and gruffly told Hunter, “I’ll talk to you later. Good-bye, Peggy. Sorry for the interruption. I hope you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” she reassured him, trying her best not to laugh as he almost tripped over a cane chair.

“I’ll walk you to your car to fill you in on some of the details, Davey,” Hunter volunteered with a wide smile, giving up on maintaining her professional demeanor.

“Thank you.” He opened the door for her. “We’ll just discuss a few more ideas about the . . .
case
. . . out here,” he explained to Peggy and Beth. He grinned and walked outside with Hunter, closing the door behind them.

“Well!” Peggy rolled her expressive green eyes. “
That
was interesting. Do you get the idea they may have been
more
than acquaintances in school?”

“I guess they’ll keep each other
well
-informed.” Beth sighed sadly. “It’s not going to be easy being alone, is it? I know you must be glad you have Steve in your life now. He seems so nice.”

“He is,” Peggy said. “And you’ll find someone else, too. I know it’s too soon to see that right now. But at least you have Foxx and Reddman.”

“I know.” Beth smiled. “And I’m happy I had Park all this time. But now I’ve lost my ride back to the house. You don’t by any chance have another bicycle do you?”

“No. But I’m going to call a taxi anyway, or I’ll be late. He can drop you at your house after he leaves me at the precinct.” She explained about the horse chestnut honey samples.

“And you really think eating that honey killed Park?”

“I think it was a factor.” Peggy called for the taxi, then put on her coat and scarf. “Maybe it was just an accident on the part of the honey manufacturer. Not all botanical poisonings happen on purpose. Most
are
accidental.”

They talked about the honey all the way to the uptown precinct. Peggy gave Beth a house key and told her to feel free to come and go, as she paid the driver’s fare. “I have to close up the shop when I’m done here. I should be home by seven, but if there’s a delivery, I could be later. Help yourself to some food. But whatever you do, don’t let the dog out of the laundry room. I’m afraid his lesson in obedience didn’t go well today. It may be a while before he can be in the house again.”

“Thank you, Peggy.” Beth took the key with a smile. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Waving as the taxi pulled away, Peggy glanced at her watch, then hurried into the police station. The sergeant at the desk sent her back to forensics with a visitor’s badge clipped to her sweater. She saw Mai waiting outside a door in the hall and called to her. “Sorry I’m late. I was trying to settle a few things.” She explained about Beth, Hunter, and David.

Mai frowned. “I’m not sure you should tell me anything else. This doesn’t look good for your friend. I work for the police. I can’t take sides. I can’t be your confidant in this.”

“Is something wrong?” Peggy was surprised by her attitude. Mai was helpful, determined to find the truth whether it was good for the case or not.

“I found out that I’m up for promotion,” Mai whispered with a shy, proud smile. “I might be the next senior assistant medical examiner. That means a lot to me, and I don’t want to do the wrong thing and mess it up. I’m sorry.”

“That’s all right.” Peggy smiled and patted the younger woman’s arm. “You work hard. You deserve the promotion. I’ll try not to make this bad for you.”

“Thanks. I’m glad you understand. The ME is waiting for you. We should go in.”

Peggy paused. “Would the promotion affect the situation with you and Paul?”

“You mean about the house?” Mai shrugged. “I don’t know yet. I still have so many doubts that have nothing to do with finances. I don’t know what to say. Have you spoken to him about it?”

Recalling her last visit with her son, Peggy shook her head. “No. He was upset with me about the honey. I thought it might be best to catch him when he’s more . . . amenable.”

Mai opened the door to the ME’s lab. “When it comes to talking about this house,” she told Peggy, “he’s never more amenable. Don’t worry about it. We’ll work it out. I’m sorry I tried to involve you. It was wrong. You’re Paul’s mother.”

“I’m also your friend, I hope.”

Mai smiled at her. “You are. Sorry. There’s just so much going on right now. I think I’m getting confused.”

Peggy didn’t have a chance to assure her she could handle it. When they walked into the spotless lab, there were people walking back and forth, some stopping to talk to Mai. The lab area was huge. Mai pointed out various aspects of what they could do with evidence that was collected. A new DNA processor stood proudly in the center of the room.

“We still don’t have all the resources the state crime lab has in Raleigh,” Mai explained as they passed a shower for washing off chemicals. “But we’re finally catching up. We handle evidence here from several counties besides Mecklenburg. Hundreds of cases come through here, everything from burglaries and shoplifting to rape, arson, and homicide.”

“You must be the infamous Peggy Lee.” A tall, stout man in a white lab coat joined them. He wore heavy glasses that were reminiscent of the ones so popular in England thirty years ago. He held out a hand to her. “I’m Dr. Harold Ramsey, Chief Medical Examiner for Mecklenburg County.”

“I don’t know about the infamous part.” Peggy put her hand in his and squeezed. “But the name is right. How do you do, Dr. Ramsey? I’ve heard a lot about you.”

He ran a hand across his thinning dark hair that was swept forward to cover an obvious bald spot on top of his head, then held his hands behind him and rocked back on his heels. “You know, you’re alternately a devil and an angel around these parts, depending on the day and the person speaking. You don’t sing, by any chance, do you? There’s no real connection between you and the other Peggy Lee, is there?”