Classic Revenge (24 page)

"That's very funny, dear," Edna said, but she wasn't
smiling.

Joe was the designated driver the next morning as
they headed toward the police station. "When we finish
here, I'll drop you ladies off and go see Sam. He needs
to be told what has happened"

"That's good. I'll be over at Trish's if you need me
for anything."

"Just remember," Millie said earnestly from the backseat, "we only answer Henry's questions with a `yes' or a
`no.' Don't offer any information, and don't tell him
everything we know."

Trish sighed in exasperation. "For goodness' sake,
Millie, the whole reason we're going to see Henry is to
discuss what we know about Mary. We'll have to tell
him everything."

"No, we don't," she cried. "Henry hasn't offered to
help us one bit, and now he wants us to give him all our
evidence so he can take the credit. I say, no way!"

Joe coughed and quickly looked out the side window
to hide his smile. What evidence could these three think
they had?

Larry was waiting outside when they drove up, and
he escorted them into a spacious room with a large oval
table and comfortable chairs. A sideboard held coffee
cups, sugar, and creamer. They provided all the comforts of home, Trish thought nervously as she sat down.
The only one who looked perfectly at ease was Joe as
he pulled out a chair for Edna, but then Joe always
looked perfectly at ease.

When Larry left them to get coffee for everybody,
Millie started circling the room, looking under the table,
the chairs, and behind the wall pictures.

"What in the world are you doing?" Trish hissed.

"I'm looking for bugs. This is nothing but a fancy interrogation room. Stay on your toes, girls."

"Millie, please stop acting like we're guilty of something, and sit down," Edna said. "Henry is not our
enemy."

"I'm not, unless you lie to me" Henry appeared suddenly in the doorway and closed the door behind him.

Millie sat down with a huff. "There's no need to lie
when you don't even pick up on the truth."

Trish cringed. Millie was too far away to strangle,
but Joe could slap her if he would just lean a little to the
left. But Joe just sat there, his pursed lips the only sign
he was not pleased with Millie's remark.

Henry seemed to take it all in stride as he said hello
to everybody and sat down. He carried a notebook and
pen and jotted something down, probably the address
of the prison he would be sending them to if Millie
didn't keep her mouth shut.

Larry came in, then, with a large thermos of coffee.
"Please, everyone, just help yourself. I have to make a
few phone calls, but I'll see you before you leave"

Joe raised his eyebrows at Edna, but she shook her
head. "Nothing for me, thank you, I'm fine."

Millie pushed herself from the table and sauntered
over to the sideboard. Trish closed her eyes for a moment
and sighed. She could tell by Millie's demeanor that she
was getting ready to say something they were all going
to regret. She wasn't wrong. "Okay, Henry," Millie said
as she poured a cup of coffee, "let's cut to the chase.

"I'm sure Larry has filled you in, and you know what
we know. Whoever murdered Susan also murdered Mary
Chavez. So why don't you drop the charges against Sam
and go after the real killer?" Then she turned suddenly,
in what she probably thought was a dramatic gesture,
and leaned against the sideboard, narrowing her eyes at
Henry over the rim of her cup.

Henry leaned back in his chair, tapping the end of his
pen against the notebook. "Gee, Millie, why didn't I
think of that?" he said sardonically, rolling his eyes.
"Now, sit down, please"

Millie glared at Henry, but did as she was asked.

"Larry has already filled me in on most of the details,
but I'd like to get the story directly from you. Please talk
one at a time-Millie, you go last-and tell me about
Mary Chavez. Don't leave out any details, regardless of
how insignificant you think something is. Trish, you
start"

Trish cleared her throat. This was just terrific. "Well,
you already know we were going to try to find out who
could have had a motive in setting up Sam for the murder of his wife. We decided to start with ex-employees.
We got word that, when Sam sold his business, the new
owner was bringing in his own bookkeeper, the position
Mary had held while working for Sam. We also learned
that she was not very good at her job and was extremely
upset when she was let go. Actually, there were two employees who were downright angry, Mary and a man
named Tom Jones. We haven't talked to him." At least
that much was true. Henry didn't need to know that
they knew where Tom lived, though.

She cleared her throat again before continuing, wishing she had gotten some coffee. "We found out where
Mary was currently working, and we decided to pretend
that we recognized her to gauge her reaction when we
mentioned Sam. We never got that far, though, because
Millie thought she recognized the earrings Mary was
wearing as the same ones stolen from Sam's safe."

Henry was listening intently, jotting down copious
notes off and on. "Go on"

"Well, we needed proof before we came to you. .

"So you were going to eventually tell me all this, huh?"

"Of course we were!"

"Of course you were," Henry sighed. "Go on"

"We developed a plan for Edna, who would be able
to identify the earrings better than anyone, to get up
close to Mary"

"And how was she going to do that?"

"She was going to pretend to be selling Avon" Henry
cocked his eyebrows but didn't say anything. "And it
worked. Edna was able to see the earrings close up, and
they were definitely Susan's."

Henry looked over at Edna. "How can you be so sure?"

Edna straightened in her chair. "Sam had the earrings
made special for Susan, but the telling sign was the clasp
on the studs. Susan always had a problem with the
clasps coming off her pierced earrings, so Sam had
large, clear plastic ones made. That actually isn't so unusual, but Sam had them made extra-large, to make it
easier for Susan to grip them. I know for a fact that the
earrings Mary Chavez showed me that day belonged to
Susan" When Edna finished, her voice was shaking,
but her eyes were clear and determined.

"Did you tell Mary that you knew she had Mrs.
Wiley's earrings?"

"Of course I didn't. All I could think of was getting
out of there."

Henry sat quiet for a moment, nodding his head. "So
that's the last any of you had anything to do with Mary?
You didn't talk to her or follow her to work again?"

"No, but there was a woman who drove up just as I
was leaving that day."

"Oh ... Can you tell me about her?"

"I was so upset I didn't pay her much attention, but
she was driving a black sports car. Mary must have
known her because she seemed upset. I know she was
running late for work."

Henry seemed interested in information about the
other woman and made Edna describe her as best she
could. It would be difficult to track her down with only
Edna's vague description, though. They would have to
rely on the coroner's report fora time of death.

"You forgot something, Edna," Millie said.

"What did I forget?"

"Mary told us the night we first met her at the restaurant that we wouldn't believe what she had to go through
to get the earrings. Then, when Edna was talking to her,
she said she had done a job for a man who paid her with
the earrings," Millie said smugly. "Now are you going to
drop the charges, Chief?"

"You're kidding, right?" Henry asked incredulity.

"I most certainly am not!"

"I'm trying to find out if the two cases are related. If
they are, then I will have jurisdiction. If not, then the
San Antonio Police Department will have the lead on
Mary's case. Suicide or not, they'll investigate." Then
he looked at each of them. "Regardless, I have to determine if it's possible that the man Mary mentioned could
be Sam."

V V 66what was it you said about Henry not being our
enemy, Edna?" Millie was still fuming from their visit
with Henry.

Edna sighed. "He's
not, Millie. I believe he honestly
thinks he's just doing his job"

Joe had dropped them off at Trish's a short while ago
so he could go talk to Sam. He wasn't going to tell him
everything that Chief Espinoza had said, though. Trish
had been quiet during the drive, lost in her own thoughts,
while Millie had sputtered and raged and Edna had sat
miserably, almost in tears at the thought that they could
have just made things worse for Sam. Joe had remained
silent as well, but the telltale sign of red splotches across
his cheeks revealed his anger.

Now, sitting at the dining table, Trish sipped her coffee. Something wasn't right. Henry wasn't just being
obstinate, she was sure of it. No, there was a reason he
was so doggedly convinced that Sam had murdered his wife and then later staged the break-in. It was a sure
bet, also, that he wasn't going to tell them what that reason was.

And then there were the questions surrounding Mary's
suicide. It was all just a little too coincidental to be a random act, but what was the connection? There had to be
one, other than the scenario Henry had suggested. And
it was highly doubtful now that he would share the information he received from the coroner after the names
Millie had called him before storming out of his office
earlier. Now they might never know why Mary had taken
her own life, but the reason could be important in proving Sam's innocence. Of course, there was the chance,
a really good chance, that whatever the reason was, it
could slice both ways: Sam could end up looking even
guiltier than before.

"I wonder if Larry will tell us what the official findings are concerning Mary's suicide," Trish said out loud.
"I don't think we'll be hearing anything more from
Henry" Her pointed look at Millie went unnoticed.

"That poor girl," Edna said. "I still can't believe it.
Why in the world would Mary commit suicide?"

.,She didn't." All eyes turned to Millie as she stood
abruptly and started pacing the kitchen floor. "Did you
ever tell Larry about seeing Mary at Tom's, Trish?"

"No, and I feel guilty as all get-out. I was so shocked
when he told me about Mary that I couldn't even think
straight."

"I think it's a good thing that you didn't."

"Why?" Edna asked. "We're going to have to tell him
sometime."

"We're not without something that will tie Tom to
both Susan's and Mary's murders"

"Millie, you have no proof whatsoever that Tom Jones
is involved in either death! You can't just go around accusing somebody like that. And what makes you so sure
that Mary didn't kill herself?"

"Think, Edna! Mary was a fighter. Just look at her reaction to Sam! We know her anger at him was unjustified
but she didn't think so. If she was despondent, she
wouldn't have wasted her energy being so publicly rude
to him. If Mary was in on Susan's murder, then she may
have threatened Tom and he decided to get rid of her. Or
maybe she found out about it and then threatened him.
Either way, Tom is definitely responsible for both
women's deaths. I'd bet my house on it."

"Oh, I don't know ..."

"Wait a minute," Trish said. "As much as it surprises
me to say this, Millie may have a point."

"Gee, thanks," Millie said, rolling her eyes. "Of course
I have a point! It's the only thing that makes sense."

"I don't know if murder ever makes sense, but if there
is some common link between these incidents, it must be
through Tom."

"How are we going to get anybody to listen to us,
though? We're not exactly overwhelmed with support
right now," Edna pointed out.

Millie stopped pacing. "We're going to have to find
the proof ourselves."

Trish and Edna looked at each other and then at Millie. "What did you say?" they asked in unison.

"First, we need to find out what kind of relationship
Tom and Mary had, and we need something to prove
that connection. I think that would be very interesting
information for the police to have. And I mean the San
Antonio Police. Forget Henry-he's too stubborn."

Trish almost laughed. Henry's too stubborn?

Millie caught Trish's look but chose to ignore it. "It
might make them suspicious since Mary was married. At
the very least, they would probably question Tom. Who
knows? He may get nervous and let something slip."

After a moment, Trish nodded. "You may be on to
something, Millie. But how do you propose we go about
proving it?"

She wished she hadn't asked.

"I don't like this at all. If Joe finds out, he is going to
kill me."

"Do you think if you say that one more time we'll
take you more seriously?" Millie hissed. "We told you
to stay at home and we'd take care of this part"