Shaded Light: The Case of the Tactless Trophy Wife: A Paul Manziuk and Jacquie Ryan Mystery (The Manziuk and Ryan Mysteries Book 1) (54 page)

Kendall rose once more and walked to the window. “She’d told Nick to meet her in the rose garden. I told her Nick wanted to meet in the Japanese garden instead, because it was more secluded.”

“When did you tell her this?”

“I was watching for her. When she came out of her room about twenty-five after three, I went out and talked to her. I told her Nick had asked me to give her the message, and that he might be a few minutes late because he had to get away without Lorry.”

“Mrs. Martin believed you?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you lie to her?”

“Because I wanted to talk to her myself, and she wouldn’t give me a chance. I knew that we would be all alone in the garden, and I thought I could make her listen.” Kendall’s voice had become a whisper, his head drooping.

“So you followed her into the garden and tried to make her listen, and she wouldn’t. And you became angry and killed her.”

“No. That isn’t what happened.” Kendall’s voice was barely audible.

Ryan couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “Kendall, we’ve found the restaurant where you and Jillian used to meet.”

He looked up. “I wondered if you would think about that.”

“How long have you known her?” Manziuk asked.

“About a month. She called me one day and asked if I’d have lunch with her. She said she wanted to get to know everyone connected with the firm, and since I was George’s son, she wanted to meet me.”

“So you met her.”

“Yes.” His voice had once more become a whisper.

“What happened?”

Kendall looked up, his cheeks red. “I fell for her.”

“She encouraged you?”

“Oh, yes.” His voice was bitter. “I think you could say she did everything she could to encourage me. She told me that she would leave Peter for me once my position with the firm was secure.”

“Why?”

“Well, at the time, I thought it was because she was in love with me, but now—I really don’t know.” His voice rose. “When I met her for lunch last Friday, she basically told me it was over.” His voice was slow and sounded honestly perplexed. “She acted like she was telling me I couldn’t have another cup of coffee. Like she didn’t care one bit.”

“Is that why you killed her?”

“Let me finish! I didn’t kill her. When I saw her at my parents’ on Friday, I tried to talk to her, but she ignored me. I wrote her a note Friday night, but when I handed it to her in the hallway, she tore it in half without even reading it and threw the pieces on the floor.”

“You typed it?”

“Yes. Mom asked me where I had been for so long, but I’m such a lousy typist I had to redo it about five times. I told Mom I’d had some calls to make.”

“And you typed a personal note like that?” asked Ryan.

“I’m a lousy typist, but my handwriting is even worse. Everybody is always telling me they can’t read what I write. The last thing I wanted was for Jillian not to be able to read the note. So I typed it to make it as clear as possible.”

“What did you do with the first attempts?”

“I burned them in the fireplace. I wanted to make sure no one else saw them.”

Ryan moved closer. “You said she tore it into two pieces. We only found one. What happened to the other half—the half with the signature?”

“That was weird. After she threw the pieces down, she got a funny look on her face.” He bent his head and took a deep breath before looking up again. “I don’t know if I can explain it. She was looking at me—almost like she was daring me to do something about it. Then when I just stood there staring at her, she looked down, just her eyes, without moving her head, as if she was reconsidering what she’d done. Not that she was sorry she hadn’t read it—something else. Then suddenly she dove down and grabbed the piece closest to her. I reacted instinctively and grabbed the other piece before she could get it. She glared at me—like she would have fought me for it, but just then Hildy’s door opened and she started to come into the hallway, so Jillian put the one piece in her pocket and took off.”

“What did you do with the piece you had?”

“I tore it into tiny pieces and flushed it down the toilet. I felt like a fool.”

“Did you feel Jillian was playing games—that she was playing with you?”

“I didn’t know what was going on. I was completely at sea.”

“So she wouldn’t talk to you or read your note?”

“By Sunday, I was getting desperate. Then just after lunch I saw her come up to Nick and more or less throw herself at him and kiss him. I couldn’t believe it! He just pushed her away, and she went into her room. She was laughing. I was furious with Nick. That’s when he told me he’d known her before and that she was trying to get him to meet her, and I saw my chance.”

“Did you tell Nick the truth?”

“Not then.”

“So you followed her to the garden?”

“Not immediately. Mom was coming upstairs, so I talked to her for a few minutes. I didn’t mind if Jillian had to wait. I wanted her to think Nick wasn’t coming so she’d be fed up with him. And then I thought I’d better check to make sure she hadn’t gone to the rose garden anyway. But I saw Nick, and he was alone. So then I went to meet her.” His gaze fixed on Manziuk’s face. “Here’s the part you aren’t going to believe. When I got there, she was dead. Lying on the grass, just like you saw.”

“What did you do?”

“I ran up to her and—” His voice broke. “I saw she was dead. It must have happened just moments before I got there. In fact, I looked around, thinking I’d see whoever it was running away. But I didn’t see anyone.”

“Did you hear anything?”

“I don’t think so, but I wasn’t thinking very clearly.” He paused and took a deep breath. “I didn’t know what to do. It seemed so surreal. Then I realized I had to get the police, so I hurried back to the house. I knew Dad was in his study, so I went there.”

“Did you tell him everything?”

“Pretty much.”

“And you made up a story about being with him the whole time?”

“Before, just after Jillian had gone downstairs, Mom had come up. I was still in the hall, so I told her I was going to look for a book. She said it was likely in Dad’s study. So Dad said to just expand on that. Say I’d gone down to the study and we’d talked while he finished sending his e-mail.”

“Why?”

“Because you’d be sure to think I was guilty, and I wasn’t.”

“Was it your dad’s idea for you to take Lorry to the garden and ‘discover’ the body?”

“Yes.” He shuddered. “I didn’t want to go back there, but he said I had to, because we needed to get the police on it right away. So I went and got Lorry, and then we saw Nick. You don’t know how relieved I was when he said he’d come with us. I offered to let them go alone, but they wanted me to come, too, so I thought I’d better. I thought it might look funny if I didn’t go.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes.” He looked straight into Manziuk’s eyes. “That’s it. I know Nick didn’t do it. He was in the rose garden, like he said.”

“Could anyone have overheard you telling Jillian to go to the Japanese garden?”

“We were in the hallway outside several bedrooms. I suppose someone could have heard us.”

“You’re ready to swear that this story is true?”

“Yes, sir. I didn’t like lying to you before. But I didn’t kill her, and I knew you’d think I did.”

“When did you tell Nick the truth?”

“Sunday night. After we went up to go to bed. I told you I was asleep, but we talked for a long time. At least an hour.”

“And what did Nick say?”

“He told me I was a total idiot, but that I was right to let you think I hadn’t known her. He said it would just complicate things and lead you on a wild goose chase. But I didn’t know you’d think he did it. I thought it would just help you concentrate on finding the real killer.”

“We still have no explanation for the Seconal’s being in the Coke Nick gave Officer Fellowes,” Ryan interjected.

“Nick didn’t give anybody Seconal,” Kendall said with conviction.

“Okay, why don’t the two of you go get Nick and let him know what you’ve told me. See if he has anything to add,” Manziuk said.

When Ryan and Kendall Brodie had gone, Manziuk sat staring at the picture on his wall. The eagle had great eyes. It could see little mice scurrying on the ground far below.

Sometimes Manziuk felt like that eagle, trying to see the one key detail that was buried among all the masses of facts or observations they had. And that one detail was often like a key that opened the door to making all the facts fit together.

But this case wasn’t coming together. Everything they discovered led to more confusion.

What was it that was nagging at him? Something at the back of his mind. And why did he keep thinking about the other murders? Because he had spent so much time on them and they were still unsolved? Because Lorry Preston had red hair?

But that was irrelevant, unless of course she happened to be the next redhead the murderer ran across. He hoped she’d take heed of the warning he’d given her. Many women with red hair were now wearing hats or dying their hair just in case.

But that wasn’t it. There was something else. Something in the back of his mind.

He put aside the report from Ford and glanced through Officer Fellowes’ statement. How else could the drug have been administered? How else except by Nick?

Idly he picked up the list of Nick’s possessions when he was arrested:

package of matches with two gone

wallet with credit cards and $180.00

driver’s license

small plastic package of Kleenex

$3.24 in loose change

keys on a chain with a skier

paper with a single phone number

cat’s eye

half-empty roll of breath mints

pen with a local chiropractor’s logo

appointment card from the same chiropractor

The phone number had turned out to be the one for the mission Lorry Preston was working with for the summer.

The chiropractor he visited occasionally to keep his back in line for skiing.

There was nothing else of interest. What on earth was a cat’s eye? And why would Nick have one in his pocket? And why did that seem to trigger bells in his brain?

The door opened, and Ryan, Kendall, and Nick walked in. Nick was holding a plastic bag filled with odds and ends.

“Good, you’ve got your possessions,” Manziuk said without preamble.

“What?” Nick stared.

“The bag. Put them on the desk. verything in your pockets.”

Nick did as he was asked, looking at Manziuk as if he thought the other man had lost his mind.

There it was. Some people might call it a cat’s eye. He called it a marble. It was quite large and swirled with gold and blue. That was the detail that had been buried in his mind, just beyond reach. He’d seen it before. Back in George Brodie’s office when he’d first interviewed Nick. Nick had been rolling it in his fingers. But it hadn’t registered on Manziuk at the time.

Manziuk’s voice was stern and cold. “Okay, Nick, I have to ask you one more time if you want to be represented by counsel.”

TWENTY

Even Ryan stared at Manziuk in surprise.

“You just had them release me,” Nick said, obviously bewildered.

“I’ve changed my mind.”

“We’ve already gone over this.” Nick looked at Kendall. “I don’t get it. I thought you said you told him.”

“What’s this?” Manziuk held up the marble.

“What?”

“It’s a marble. It was in your pocket. Why?”

Nick shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t remember seeing it before.”

“Is that right? Well, let me tell you that’s not good enough. These marbles are unique. They’re extra large. Specially made for an experiment with autistic children. Easier to hang on to than regular marbles. There were twenty-four of them. And one was missing. So I know where it came from. And I think I know how you got it.”

Nick stared at him. “Well, you know more than I do. I don’t have a clue where it came from. I’ll go further than that. I’ve never seen it before in my life.”

“Nick, you’re about to be booked on six counts of murder. The game—”

“I came here and told you the truth!” Kendall exploded. “He didn’t kill Jillian or Crystal! Why are you badgering him? And what are you talking about? Six counts of murder?”