Murder Is Secondary (11 page)

“Thanks again, Mom. This was wonderful,” said Lynette. She gave Susan a hug.

“My first baby shower. Who knew how much fun I’d been missing?” said Jason. He was still wearing the paper plate hat that one of the guests had fashioned using the pink and blue bows from the baby gifts.

Jason and Mike took the gifts out to the car while Lynette helped Susan clear the table. When they had finished, Lynette checked her phone.

“There’s a voicemail from Amber’s father. That’s strange,” said Lynette. She put the phone up to her ear and listened.

“Why was he calling you? You look upset,” said Susan. “Is he making threats again?”

“No. Amber’s father says he talked to his private investigator tonight and he has proof as to who killed Amber. He wants me to get in touch with him first thing in the morning.”

Chapter 28

The next day, Susan and Mike came in from an early morning walk.

“I’m still worn out from last night,” said Susan. “And my legs are sore.”

“We got out a little earlier than usual this morning. Why don’t we spend a few minutes in the Jacuzzi?”

“Now that’s a great idea.” She and Mike changed into bathing suits and grabbed towels. “The worst part is getting from the house to the water. It’s cold this morning.”

“But it will be worth it,” said Mike. They opened the sliding glass door and ran to the Jacuzzi. Susan was anticipating a relaxing soak. She ran toward the pool, looked into the Jacuzzi, and screamed.

“Mike, Mike, look. Oh my God! Mike, someone’s in there. Oh my God! Someone’s in the Jacuzzi. He’s not moving. I think he’s dead.” Susan gave another scream. The body was fully clothed and floating face down.

Mike yelled, “Oh my God, you’re right. Don’t touch him.”

“Mike, who is that? Who is it? Good Lord, this can’t be happening. That looks like the shirt Zachary was wearing last night at the shower. I think it’s him. How did he wind up in here?” Susan was speaking quickly and pacing in a small circle across the cement.

“Oh my God. I think you’re right. I haven’t a clue as to why he’s in our Jacuzzi. Everyone left around the same time.”

“Yes, they did.”

“Didn’t he and Dalia take separate cars? Must be nice to have the money to rent separate cars. I remember saying goodbye to Dalia, but come to think of it, I don’t specifically remember Zach leaving. You know what? We have to call 911 right away.” Mike retrieved his cell phone from the patio table and made the call.

“Look. The Boom Box you set up last night is in there too. It’s still plugged in with the extension cord. I’m not sure this was an accident. The Boom Box was over on the picnic table, remember?”

“Yes, like you just said, I’m the one who set it up. Don’t go near him or the cord. It’s still plugged in and may be dangerous.”

“This is too much. First Amber gets killed, then your best friend gets arrested, and now this.” Susan shook her head from side to side.
This couldn’t be happening
, she thought. She felt sick to her stomach.

“Let’s put some clothes on before the police get here,” said Mike. They quickly threw on some clothes and soon heard a knock at the door. The paramedics arrived first.

“The body is out back,” said Mike. He and Susan led them to the hot tub. The paramedics carefully managed to disconnect the Boom Box and pulled the body out of the water. When they turned him over, there was no doubt that it was Zachary Chichester. One of the paramedics started CPR while the other took out the portable defibrillator. Susan couldn’t imagine how he could still be alive, but the paramedics gave a valiant effort while waiting for the police to arrive. Susan had called Lynette right after Mike called 911. Their daughter arrived almost immediately.

“Mom, are you okay? What happened? You found another dead body? Really?”

“Dad and I were going to take a soak in the Jacuzzi after our walk and that’s when I saw him. This is awful.” Pink and blue streamers were still strung across the porch from the night before.
This makes the scene even more surreal
, thought Susan.

“Did you hear anything strange at all last night? Did you or Dad come back to the porch after the party broke up?” Susan saw Lynette scan the area with her eyes. Her eyes fixated on the Boom Box.

“No, we were both exhausted. I put away the food and we both went right to bed.”

“Where was the Boom Box? By the way, no one uses that term any more. I can’t believe you still have one. How do you think it got into the hot tub?”

“It was plugged in over on the picnic table. There’s no way it accidentally fell into the water from there,” said Susan.

“Okay. Stay inside with Dad. Jackson and I will mark off the area and have a look around.” Just then the medical examiner arrived and officially stated the obvious: Zachary Chichester was dead. Jackson took photos of the area and the paramedics carried the body away.

“Someone has to tell Dalia. She’s going to be so upset and she’s all alone here in town,” said Susan. “Maybe Dad and I should go over to the ranch and tell her.”

“Mom, Jackson and I will go. We need to ask her some questions anyway. Why don’t you check up on her later in the day?”

“Okay. Call me after you leave.”

“I will. Go wait inside while we finish up here.”

Susan reluctantly gave the area one last look as she went inside with Mike. And she thought her life would be calm and relaxing after retirement? She was dead wrong.

Chapter 29

After they finished with the crime scene, Lynette and Jackson headed to the Rocking Horse Ranch to break the news to Dalia. Lynette always considered this to be one of the least pleasant parts of her job. Jackson knocked on the door and Dalia, still in her robe, answered holding a cup of coffee.

“Mrs. Chichester, may we come in?” said Jackson.

“Why so formal? Lynette and I are getting to be friends already. Please call me Dalia. By the way, beautiful shower last night. Come on in. Can I get you some coffee? I have a whole pot here from room service.”

“Dalia, this isn’t a social call. I’m so sorry but we have some terrible news,” said Lynette.

“What news? What could be so bad?”

“It’s your husband, Zachary. He was found dead in the Jacuzzi in the Wiles’ yard this morning.”

Dalia’s eyes opened wide. “What? I’m not sure I understand what you’re saying. I was with him last night. I left before him and got into bed before he came home. I figured he’d gone out early, or maybe had too much to drink and spent the night elsewhere.”

“It looks like he was electrocuted. There was a Boom Box, still plugged in, next to him,” said Lynette.

“How did he happen to fall into the Jacuzzi? It doesn’t make sense,” said Dalia. She began to sniffle but Lynette felt a lack of sincerity in Dalia’s emotion. “Poor Zachary.”

“It may not have been an accident. In fact, the Boom Box was quite a distance from the Jacuzzi. It would have been nearly impossible for it to just have fallen in.”

“Are you saying it was intentional? Someone deliberately murdered my husband?” said Dalia. What is it with this town and murders?” She was beginning to sound agitated.

“That’s what we’re thinking,” said Lynette.

“Can you think of anyone who may have wanted your husband dead? Anyone who may have benefitted from his death? Any personal or business enemies?” asked Jackson.

“Not really,” said Dalia. Lynette picked up a hesitation in her voice. “His business partner, Phillip Bachman, was quite angry at him for abandoning his customers back home, but I’m sure he wouldn’t have killed him over it.”

“Was he in town last night?” asked Jackson.

“I’m not sure. He’s been traveling back and forth between here and New Jersey trying to convince Zachary to come back to the office.”

“We will need his contact information,” said Jackson. He handed Dalia a small legal pad and a pen. She knew the number off the top of her head, which Lynette found a bit odd.

“Do you know why Zachary was here in Westbrook? I know he told us that he was involved in the housing project by the school, but we know for a fact that he wasn’t,” said Lynette.

“I have no idea. I have little interest––had little interest––in Zachary’s business dealings.” Dalia grabbed a tissue from the dresser. “What do you need me to do?” asked Dalia.

“Well, the medical examiner will be spending some time with the body. After that, you will be able to make arrangements. I assume you’ll want to bring the body back to New Jersey.”

“Yes. I’ll have to contact his poor mother and his sister. They’re going to be devastated.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” said Lynette. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you.”

“And here’s our card. If you think of anything else that you think is important, anything at all, please give us a call,” said Jackson.

“I will,” said Dalia.

When they got back to the car, Lynette said, “There’s something fishy there. I got the sense that she wasn’t all that broken up over her husband’s death.”

“Well, everyone reacts in their own way to these situations, but I know what you mean. She didn’t seem all that devastated.”

“You know, in the few times I saw them interacting, it seemed that Zachary was very condescending toward her. Maybe she’s relieved that he’s gone.”

“Maybe she even did it,” said Jackson. “We don’t know what skeletons those two had in their marital closet. She
was
there last night.”

“Yes, she was. Also, Amber’s father called me late last night. In all the excitement, I almost forgot. He said he had proof that Zachary Chichester killed Amber. That’s motive right there. Of course, I don’t know yet what that proof is. I need to talk to him. I still don’t see the connection between Zach and Amber either.”

“And we need to find out if that business partner of his was in town last night. It’s possible that he had deeper issues with Zachary than Dalia was aware of. Let’s get back to the station. We’ve got some work ahead of us,” said Jackson.

Chapter 30

Susan was feeling restless. The morning had wiped her out emotionally. She felt like an overtired child––exhausted to the point where it was impossible to take a nap. She began pulling down the balloons and streamers, then unloaded the dishes from the dishwasher. On top of everything else that was happening, she still couldn’t get the whole concept of being adopted out of her mind. She still didn’t know how she felt about searching for her biological parents. It could be a frustrating endeavor if she were unable to locate them. They may even be dead. She’d need to discuss this whole adoption issue with Mike and Lynette as soon as things calmed down.
The porch is a mess
, she thought. I’m not going anywhere near the Jacuzzi, but maybe I’ll sweep a bit. As she was sweeping, she came upon several deposits of cigarette ashes.
That’s odd,
she thought. No one at the party smoked. At least no one that she was aware of. After she’d finished sweeping and straightening up, she decided that by now it was
later in the day.
It was time to check in on Dalia. She grabbed her jacket and headed to Rocking Horse Ranch.

“Dalia, I’m so sorry about Zach. I just stopped by to see how you were holding up,” she said to Dalia upon entering her room.

“Well, I’m still a bit in shock. All those people at the shower, no one noticed anything odd at all. I can’t fathom who would have wanted him dead. After all, he doesn’t even know anyone here in Westbrook other than you and Mike.”

“Could someone have followed him here from New Jersey? Maybe he had an angry client? Did he owe anyone money? Double cross someone on a business deal?”

“Not that I’m aware of,” said Dalia. “I hope the police solve this quickly. I just want to get Zach buried and move on with my life.” Susan sensed that Dalia viewed her husband’s death more as an annoyance than as a tragedy. “I hope they don’t try to pin this on me. I’ve watched enough
Dateline
––it’s always the spouse. In this case, which one?”

“What do you mean, Dalia? You said ‘which one’? Does Zach have an ex-wife?” Susan, of course, already knew he did, but wanted to see Dalia’s reaction.

“No, of course not. I’m really stressed, that just rolled out of my mouth,” said Dalia.

“So Dalia, will you be okay financially without Zach?”
Dateline
––guilty––spouse––that was always followed by the motive: a huge life insurance policy. Susan bet that Dalia would be getting a big payoff now. Maybe that policy was just recently purchased.
Stop, it,
thought Susan. Now you’re getting carried away.

“Yes, I’m sure Zach left me well taken care of, thank goodness.”

“Well, if you need anything, give me a call. I assume you’ll be going back home now.”

“As soon as they release the body. Thanks for checking on me.”

“I was worried about you. Hang in there. I’ll touch base with you soon.”

After she left Dalia, Susan decided to stop off at the police station and see if Lynette had any updates. As she was going in, she passed Mr. Bernstein going out. He gave her a nod as he brushed by her. Susan thought that he looked very determined, like a bull charging a matador.

“Mom, what are you doing here?” said Lynette.

“I just stopped by to check on Dalia and I thought I’d say hello before I went home. What was Mr. Bernstein doing here? Did you find out what evidence his investigator had?”

“Yes, and it’s great news for Tank. I’m not sure how he managed it, but Mr. Bernstein’s private investigator located an eyewitness. It was a ten-year-old boy. He was out riding his bike at the construction site the night Amber was killed. He didn’t come forward earlier because his parents didn’t let him ride after dark. They were still at work when he was out riding so he figured they’d never know. This boy came across the bulldozer moving all crazy, so he whipped out his cell phone, zoomed in, and shot a video. There’s positive proof that Zachary was driving the bulldozer and killed Amber. We have it on video. All the charges have been dropped against Tank.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful. Have you told him yet?” Susan was so relieved. At least one positive thing had come out of this.

“I just finished with Mr. Bernstein so I haven’t had a chance yet. I can’t wait to deliver the news though.”

“What about the sexual harassment charges?”

“Well, we questioned some of Amber’s acquaintances again. A girl named Peyton Meyers admitted that Amber was blackmailing her into making up false accusations against Tank. I think those charges are a non-issue now.”

“And I just happened to run into the girl who had accused him years ago. She recanted her story as well.”

“Mom? You happened to…never mind. I don’t even want to know.”

“I’m so happy. You go and deliver the news. I can’t wait to tell Dad,” said Susan. Tank’s name was now completely cleared.