Sweetness and Light (A Sweet Cove Mystery Book 5) (12 page)

“It makes sense to hide it there.”  Ellie’s fingers worried at the ends of her long hair.  “If it was well-hidden, which it wasn’t, it may have been some time before someone discovered it.”

“My bet is that Mr. Finch interrupted the hiding of the gun, so the person had to be quick and haphazardly placed it in the closet.”  Courtney stretched out on the floor.  “Maybe the person intended to return later and hide it properly.”

“That’s good thinking.”  Jenna nodded.  “Let’s talk about the suspects.  Let’s go over what we know.”

“For me, a strong suspect is Bethany Winston.”  Ellie listed her reasons.  “She is smart, resourceful, and determined.  She loves Todd Moore and did not want to marry Nelson.  She was backed into a corner.  Her father seems to have directed her entire life.  She probably felt desperate.  Eliminate Nelson and be free.  Plus, Bethany’s a lawyer.  She knows how trials and evidence work.  She could easily have planned the murder since she must have known when Nelson was in his bungalow.”

“What about Todd Moore?”  Courtney scratched Circe’s cheeks. The black cat had jumped off the sofa and curled next to Courtney on the floor.  “He sure had reason to want Nelson dead.  Nelson was going to marry the woman he loves.”

Jenna said, “What about the threatening letter that Todd got?  Who sent it?  The sender could be responsible for Nelson’s murder.  Maybe Todd is next on the person’s hit list.”

“I didn’t think of that.”  Angie’s eyes were wide.  “Todd could be in danger.”

“Don’t forget that we saw Todd and Kimberley in a heated discussion on the terrace of the restaurant down near the beach.”  Jenna reminded the group.  “What was that about?  Are those two working together?”  No one had an answer to that.  “Who do you think is the most likely suspect?”  Jenna poured herself some tea from the pot on the table.  “Ellie thinks its Bethany.  Does anyone else feel strongly one way or the other?”

Angie sighed.  “I’m just not sure.  Bethany worries me.  She seems to have an answer for everything.  But then, there’s Kimberley, the spurned other woman.  Maybe she was infuriated by Nelson’s treatment and she decided to finish him off.  And, what about Nelson’s family?  Nelson made costly mistakes at the family firm and it doesn’t sound like it was an isolated error.  Could his brother or sister have tired of his foolishness and got rid of him once and for all?”

Mr. Finch held his cup and saucer on his knee.  “As yet, no one person stands out.  Do we know where these suspects were the night of the murder?  Where were they at the time Nelson was killed?”

The girls looked at Finch with blank expressions.

“Perhaps Chief Martin should be consulted,” Mr. Finch suggested.  “Are alibis solid?  Is there someone who doesn’t have an alibi?  Who has knowledge of guns and how they operate?  Mr. Rider was killed with a shot to the head.  I assume that the man was asleep at the time since the killer used a pillow to help silence the shot.  It wouldn’t require much skill to shoot a sleeping man, but it would require some familiarity with a gun.”

“I’ll talk to the chief tomorrow.” Angie felt remiss for not coming up with those questions herself.  She looked at Mr. Finch.  “Do you have suspicions about anyone in particular?”

“Yes, I do.”

The four girls leaned forward waiting for Finch to reveal his suspect.

“The person who knocked me over the head.”

The front door of the Victorian opened and Kimberley Hutchins walked into the foyer, the key to her B and B room in her hand.  She spied the gathering in the living room and nodded to them.

Euclid arched his back and hissed.  Kim looked at the cat with a worried expression.  Her eyelids looked heavy with fatigue.  She headed for the staircase to go to her room, but she stopped before heading up and looked over at Mr. Finch.  “I heard you got hurt at the service.  Are you doing okay?”

“Yes, thank you.” Mr. Finch managed a smile.  “I’m nearly as good as new.”

“Glad to hear it.”  Kimberley nodded.  She put her hand on the banister and trudged up the stairs.

Circe emitted a low growl.

When they heard the door to Kim’s room open and close, Jenna made eye contact with her sisters and Finch.  She whispered.  “Suspect number one?”

The doorbell rang.

“We have a revolving door here on this house.”  Courtney pushed herself up from the floor.  “Any guesses who this is?”  She walked through the foyer and pulled the door open.  Bethany and Senator Winston bustled in past Courtney.

“We’re looking for Mr. Victor Finch,” the Senator announced without looking at Courtney.  His face was slightly flushed.  When he spotted Finch sitting on the sofa in the room off of the foyer, he put his hand on the small of Bethany’s back and the two hurried into the living room.

Ignored by the Winstons, Courtney rolled her eyes and mouthed.  “Hello.  Lovely evening.  Do come in.”  She closed the front door and joined the others.

“So sorry for your accident.”  Senator Winston sat down across from Finch.

“It was an attack, I’m afraid, not an accident.”  Finch corrected the man.

“Attack?  A strong word.”  The Senator shook his head.  “It must have been a misunderstanding of some kind.”

“I’m not sure what kind of a misunderstanding would result in Mr. Finch being pummeled in the head and knocked unconscious.”  Courtney pulled a side chair forward and sat next to the Senator.

Bethany put her hands in her lap.  “My father means that whoever caused Mr. Finch’s injury must have thought he was an intruder, or some such thing.”

“An intruder?  If that was the case,” Ellie sniffed, “wouldn’t the person have questioned Mr. Finch before deciding to strike him?”  She leveled her eyes at the Winstons and her voice carried a tone of authority. “It was an
attack
.”

“The police will get to the bottom of it.”  The Senator dismissed Ellie’s comment and looked at Mr. Finch.  “In the meantime, is there some way we can be of assistance to you?”

“How do you mean?”  Finch’s eyebrows knitted together.

“In any way necessary.”  The Senator leaned slightly forward.  “Do you need some recuperation time?  We know several very nice spots in lovely areas of the world that would provide you with the needed luxury and attention to help you recover.  We’d be more than happy to make some calls and arrange the time away for you.  Bring a friend along.”

Finch bristled.  Perhaps Senator Winston was making the generous offer because he wanted to nip a potential lawsuit in the bud, worried that the older man might decide to sue them since the injury took place at the house they were renting.  Whatever the motive, Finch did not like the sensation of being bought-off.  “There is nowhere on earth where I would be better cared for than right here.”  He gestured towards the sisters.

The Senator chuckled, and then caught himself, realizing that Finch was serious.  “Well.”  He cleared his throat.  “At the very least, we’d be happy to take care of your medical bills.  Don’t hesitate to let us know.  Whatever you need, we’ll manage it for you.”  Senator Winston removed a card from his wallet and placed it on the coffee table.  “Call anytime, anytime at all.”  He moved to get up.

Courtney gave the Senator a smile.  “If you have a few minutes, it would be very helpful if we could chat about a few things.”

Senator Winston stayed in his seat.  “Chat?  About what?”

Courtney said, “About the events of the past days.”

Bethany narrowed her eyes.  “What is there to talk over?”

Jenna’s eyebrows went up.  “A murder, for one thing.”

Bethany modified her previous statement.  “I meant, what hasn’t already been said?”

“We have some questions regarding the crime.”  Courtney straightened in her seat.

“Why would that be something we would discuss with you?”  The Senator gave a small shake of his head.

Angie spoke up.  “Because, we work with the Sweet Cove police department.”

Senator Winston stared at Angie.  “In what capacity?”

Courtney responded to the question with what was becoming a routine reply.  “We’re criminal justice consultants.”

The Senator was about to question further when Ellie said cryptically, “We have the necessary experience.”  She folded her hands in her lap.  “We’re not allowed to say more.”

As she turned to the Senator, Angie bit her lip to keep from smiling at Ellie’s handling of the situation.  “So if you don’t mind, we’d like to ask some questions, but if you’d feel more comfortable, before we begin, I can get Chief Martin on the phone and he can reassure you about our authorization.”

Senator Winston waved his hand dismissively.  “Go ahead with your questions.”

Angie explained.  “We’re just gathering information about the night that Nelson was killed.  We’re trying to put pieces together.  Who was where?  What did people see or hear?  The smallest thing can often help lead to the killer, so we’d just like to gather your impressions.”

The Senator seemed to relax a little.

Angie started by addressing the first question to the Senator. “Could you tell us what you were doing on the night that Nelson Rider was killed?”

“Of course.  Nelson and Bethany and I had dinner together at the resort restaurant.  We finished up with our meals around nine.  After we ate, Bethany went to her suite.  She had some work to do on a case she’d been busy with.  Nelson and I went into the bar for a drink.  Nelson was still jet-lagged, so he decided to retire early and he went back to his bungalow to rest.”

“After Nelson left, what did you do?” Jenna asked.

“I had another drink and then headed back to my suite.  I had some paperwork to do.”

“Once you returned to your room, did you see or speak to anyone else?”  Ellie questioned.

Winston’s forehead creased.  “No one.”

“Did you see or speak to Nelson again that night?”  Jenna asked.

The Senator shook his head.

“Who informed you about what happened to Nelson?”  Angie watched the man’s face.

“A police detective knocked on my door.  Around eleven, I believe.  That’s how I got the news.”

“You and Nelson were close?”  Courtney asked.

A pained look passed over Senator Winston’s face.  “He was like a son to me.”

Courtney shifted her attention to Bethany.  “How did you find out about your fiancé’s passing?”

Bethany narrowed her eyes.  “I went to my bungalow after dinner.  I worked for a while, and then I got restless so I went for a drive.”  She gave Courtney a pointed look.  Bethany did not want her father to know about her late evening visit to the Roselands on the night of the murder.  “When I returned to the resort, I saw the police there, the crowd gathered.  The police notified me.”

Jenna posed the next question.  “Do either of you know how to shoot a gun?”

Bethany looked like she’d been slapped.

The Senator replied.  “We both know how to shoot.  We’ve spent time on the firing range.  We’ve hunted.”  He cleared his throat.  “When a person is in a certain position, well, you understand, it is imperative to know how to defend oneself.  I made sure that my daughter was comfortable around guns.”

“Can you think of anyone who would want to harm Nelson?”  Angie questioned.

“Nelson was a fine young man.”  The Senator squared his shoulders.  “I have no idea who would want to kill him.”

Angie looked at Bethany.  The young woman shifted her eyes away, gave a shrug of her shoulder, and shook her head.

Senator Winston stood up, and Bethany followed his lead.  “That’s all we know.  I wish we were more help, I really do.”  He gave Mr. Finch a nod.  “Remember my offer for a getaway to ease your recovery.  Think it over.  Let me know if you change your mind.”  He took his daughter by the elbow and they walked briskly through the foyer.  Courtney followed behind and opened the door for them.  She wished the Winstons a good night.

When Courtney returned to her seat in the living room, she blew out a long breath and eyed her family group.  “Someone around us knows more than they’re telling.  I can feel it.”
 

Chapter 16

“Good morning.”  Jenna placed a platter of banana bread on the dining room buffet table.

Kimberley sat at the dining table scowling at her phone while holding her coffee mug.  She looked up when Jenna came in and gave her a half smile.  She glanced at the floor for her purse and realized she’d left it in her room.  “I’m going upstairs to get my bag.  I’ll be right back.  Don’t clear my plate.”  She got up from the table and hurried away to her room.

Jenna moved to where Kim was sitting to replace the creamer with a fresh pot.  Reaching to the middle of the dining table, she noticed Kim’s phone was next to her plate and she saw that the screen was displaying the woman’s bank account information.  Jenna’s mouth dropped open when she saw the total in Kim’s savings account.

The screen darkened as the phone was about to go to sleep.  Pretending to be checking the sugar bowl, Jenna took a quick look over her shoulder, and then touched her index finger to the phone screen bringing the data back into view.  She eyed the list of most recent transactions and her heart pounded when she noticed a very large deposit credited to Kim’s account three days after Nelson Rider was killed.  Hearing footsteps on the stairs, Jenna stepped to the other side of the table, removed some used plates, and headed down the hall to the kitchen.

“Guess what.”  Jenna, breathless, burst into the room so quickly that Ellie jumped.

Courtney had gone to work at the candy store and Mr. Finch was still asleep.  Angie was busy mixing cookie dough.  She looked up, alarmed by her sister’s sudden appearance.

Tom sat at the center island eating breakfast and he swiveled his stool towards Jenna.  “What’s up?”

Jenna put the dirty dishes she was carrying onto the counter, hurried over to Tom, and slipped her arm around him.  She told Tom and her sisters that she’d seen Kimberley’s bank account on her phone and reported to them how much was in it.

Angie almost dropped the tray of cookies she was about to put in the oven.  “Over a quarter of a million dollars?”

Ellie’s blue eyes were like saucers.  She stood frozen in the middle of the room.  “Is it accurate?  Could you have been looking at something other than her bank account information?”