Gracie's Game: Sudden Anger, Accidentally on Purpose (21 page)

"I'll do what I can, Jennifer. But as his former wife I have no legal standing, you will have to speak to the funeral director yourself. I'm sure there will be papers you'll have to sign." Clarissa sighed again.
"Do this for your children,"
she told herself. "I'll go with you, if you'd like."

"Thank you, Clarissa," Jennifer said – and sounded sincere. "I mean that. I know you never liked me, but you've always treated me OK. I know you'll do a better job, and you just let me know what you want me to do."

Clarissa wasn't sure exactly how to respond to that. Was Jennifer really that stupid? "Jennifer, I – it's not that I don't like you, I just feel sorry for you is all." She laughed a little nervously. "I suppose every first wife thinks any other woman is crazy to want her ex husband. I'm no different. Charles wasn't an easy man to live with; I don't mean to be offensive but you're young, it must be harder for you to cope with his peccadilloes."

"Thanks, I think," said Jennifer, who had no idea what 'peccadilloes' meant. "But you don't have to be sorry for me, I've been handling men for a long time. I knew what I was getting into, and he wasn't so bad. At least he didn't try to run my life, I could do what I wanted during the day."

Clarissa decided she wanted to stay away from that remark! "I'll call the coroner and let you know what I find out. As distasteful as this is, we need to get it taken care of. I quite understand that you want to get the estate cleared up, and I know it'll make Jeanine happy as well. I'll call you when I know more."

School was out for the weekend and Gracie stood at her locker gathering up the books she'd need for homework. Cheryl walked by, her arms full of books too.

"Hey, Gracie!" Cheryl said cheerfully. "Wanna go hang out at the mall for awhile? It's Friday, we're entitled to a little relaxation; we can do homework later."

"Hi, Cheryl. I'd love to, but I gotta do something first."

Shawna joined the group, asking, "What's more important than shopping?"

"Mom wants me to go talk to Justin," Gracie told them. "I had a message from her and when I called back she says my Dad's funeral will be on Wednesday. She wanted me to be sure my brother knew, except he hasn't been in school the last couple days. I didn't want to tell her that, so I just said I'd take care of it."

"He probably knows your step-mother doesn't care what he does, so he's been playing hooky. I haven't seen Zack, either," Shawna said.

"Oh, Gracie," Cheryl said. "I'm so sorry. I can't imagine how horrible it must be for you. Your father's
funeral
!"

"Funerals are a bummer," Shawna said. "I went to my Great-Aunt Thelma's, everyone was crying and carrying on something awful. But I did get to hear some good stories afterward – who knew the parents actually did fun stuff when they were kids?"

"So what are you gonna do?" Cheryl asked. "Do you know where your brother hangs out?

"I thought I'd go to Dad's house, see if he's there. Maybe wait awhile and see if he shows up," Gracie answered.

"Hey! We could go swimming while we wait," Shawna declared.

The girls all went to their respective homes to drop off books and grab swim-suits. Gracie suggested Shawna pick her and Cheryl up so they wouldn't add extra hydrocarbons to the air, and also because she didn't feel like riding her bike. She was trying to act cheerful, but this funeral thing had gotten her down.

Jennifer was home when they got there, and even came out to chat for a few minutes. Mostly she seemed to be feeling sorry for herself about having to deal with the funeral. It turned out that the coroner's office had been waiting to hear from her so they could release the body. Rather surprisingly she was full of praise for Clarissa's help.

"It must be pretty terrible for you, Jennifer," Cheryl said. "All the awful things that happened, and the police
still
don't seem to know much."

"Yeah," Shawna added. "How absolutely spooky to find out someone shot at him right there in that room!" She pointed towards the sliding doors to the den.

"You can't
imagine
how scared I've been," Jennifer said. "I can hardly sleep. I hate being here alone, and I'm never sure if Justin's home or not. Not that I think he'd be any help, I mean, he'd probably run away if someone broke in." She looked at Gracie and suddenly realized she'd just dissed the girl's brother. "Sorry, Gracie," she added.

"That's cool, Jennifer," Gracie told her. "You're right. He'd probably be stoned and worried about his own skin. No need to apologize, I know what Justin's like."

One of those uncomfortable silences descended on the group. They all looked at each other, then looked away when eye contact had been made. Everyone was thinking the same thing, but no one wanted to say it out loud. There was really no need for Jennifer to stay in the house alone.

Finally Gracie decided there was no point in pretending any longer. "Why don't you get Cindy to stay here with you?"

Jennifer looked suddenly hopeful. "You guys wouldn't mind?"

"Why would anyone care?" Shawna asked. "She's your friend, and you need her right now."

"Jennifer, Cindy's more than a friend, isn't she?" Gracie asked quietly.

Jennifer didn't even look shocked, just kind of blank. "You mean you, like,
know
?"

All three younger girls nodded their heads.

"And you don't care?" Jennifer continued.

"Jennifer, let's be open about this." Gracie suddenly felt she was acting like her mother. Mom always seems to know when it was time to be honest; she just hoped she could say it as nicely as Mom would.

"We all know Dad liked pretty young girls, and you certainly qualify. We know he had money and was willing to spend it on you. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that you liked that idea. You could see Cindy during the daytime, and in a few years you could leave him and get enough money so the two of you could live together. I don't think this was exactly how you'd planned things, but now you've got that chance. If you love each other, that's the important thing."

"Then you don't think I killed him?" Jennifer asked.

"No, I don't," said Gracie, hoping it was true. She was still unsure if Cindy might've been involved.

"Uh, thanks. I don't know what to say. I mean, I thought you guys would freak out when you found out about us," Jennifer responded.

"I don't understand why you didn't just get a job and live with Cindy in the first place!" Cheryl commented.

"But what would I do?" Jennifer replied. "I mean, I finished high school, but I don't know how to do anything else that pays. Besides, guys have always been willing to take care of me so I didn't have to work."

"Didn't Cindy have a problem with that?" Shawna wanted to know.

"Yeah, she didn't really like it. I'm beginning to see she was, like, right." Jennifer laughed a little dryly. "But she can barely support herself, and I couldn't help any other way."

"Maybe this is your chance," Gracie told her. "Figure out what you'd like to do and go back to school."

Jennifer thought about it for a minute. "You know, I think I'd like that. I could be in, you know, control of my own life for a change."

CHAPTER 17

Gracie had been so interested in the details of the case that Ken had decided to fill her in on the day's findings. He'd gone to her house but she wasn't home, so he thought he'd see if she was at her dad's. Mrs. Greene answered when he rang the bell; she had seemed quite happy about something. Made him wonder if she'd talked to the lawyer, though he doubted Michaels would have told her anything unofficially. On the other hand, she was totally uninterested in hearing what he'd learned and merely told him Gracie was outside, saying she had things to do in the house. Like she was off in her own little world, he thought.

There were three girls in the pool when he walked out onto the patio. Ken called out and waved, and they pulled themselves out of the water and came running up. He was glad they wrapped towels around themselves before they sat down, it would make it easier for him to concentrate.

"Lieutenant Freeman, these are my friends Shawna and Cheryl," Gracie said as she pointed to each in turn. "And this is Lieutenant Freeman, the one I've talked about so much."

Ken shook hands with the two friends and said it was nice to meet them. The girls giggled. "So you ladies know all about me," he said, winking at them.

Cheryl said, "Gracie's told us all about the investigation. Your name
did
come up a few times."

"Well, that's why I'm here now," Ken told them. "I thought Gracie would want to hear what I've found out today. Gracie's been asking some good questions, I gather she's been sharing with you as well."

Cheryl nodded while Shawna said, "Absolutely! She's gonna help you solve the case, and we're helping her."

Gracie dipped her head, suddenly a little bashful. "I just thought I might be able to find some clue, or make sense of one you found, that's all."

"Gracie." Ken waited until she'd made eye contact with him before continuing. "Don't sell yourself short, young lady. It
never
hurts to have someone else think about a problem. And you're absolutely right, you might see something that I've overlooked. You know your father very well, and I've got to rely on what everyone else tells me about him. What I'm trying to say is, you might see something that's out of place with his character where I'd overlook it."

"She knows the other suspects, too," Cheryl put in.

"Unless it's a stranger. What do you think, Lieutenant?" asked Shawna.

"I'll be honest with you – I don't know
what
to think yet," Ken told them. "As I'm sure you've discussed among yourselves, nothing seems to make sense.
Yet.
I cannot see how someone could make
three
attempts at murder and not leave us something to go on. We either haven't found the right clue yet, or we're not seeing the one we have. So, would you like to hear what I've learned today?"

"Yes!" they all said in unison.

"Well, first I spoke to your father's attorney, Gracie. Your father had signed a pre-nuptial before he married his current wife."

Three heads nodded knowingly. "I thought so," Gracie said.

"What's she get?" Shawna asked boldly.

Ken grinned and shook his head. "You
know
I can't tell you that! But I can say that she will inherit more money under the terms of the will than if she'd divorced him."

"But she couldn't have done it!" Cheryl cried.

"Not without help," Shawna reminded.

"I understand that you can't give me the details, that's private stuff," Gracie began.

"'Privileged'," Shawna corrected.

"Yeah, 'privileged'. I guess my brothers and I will inherit something. Does anyone else? I mean, it
would
give them a motive," Gracie said.

"Let me just say that your Aunt Jeanine won't be pleased with her inheritance," Ken said wryly.

"Well,
duh,
" Gracie said. "If you gave her a million dollars she'd just be mad 'cause she didn't get two. What about Bill? He and Dad have been friends forever, did he get anything?"

"I'm not at liberty to say." Ken was pretty sure Gracie was smart enough to figure out that meant 'no'. "Do you have reason to believe he thought he might receive a bequest from your father?"

"No," Gracie answered. "He never said anything about it to me. I know he's not in great financial shape, but he didn't talk to me about it. Mostly Bill and I talk about environmental stuff."

"Speaking of money, I did some research into everyone's financial background. I assume you know your aunt is in bad shape," Ken told her.

"She's always whining about not having enough money, but is she really in trouble?" asked Gracie.

"She buys those silly fake fingernails but dresses like a bag lady," Shawna said. "If she had any extra money she'd at least buy
new
tacky pantsuits!"

"I'm afraid so," Ken told her. "I don't want to worry you, but her rent's past due."

"
Again
, probably," Gracie said.

"And she spends the day playing bingo?" Cheryl asked incredulously.

"She's convinced she'll hit the jackpot and her troubles will be over," Gracie responded.

"Gracie," Ken began. "Do you think she really
was
playing bingo on Tuesday?"

Gracie glanced at her friends for confirmation, then looked back to Ken. "Yes, I do. It's in her character, like you said a few minutes ago. It's also in her character to beg for a loan. It's
not
like her to get money by doing anything more than just talking. And in spite of the way she talks, she's real big on family; I can't see her hurting her brother, except maybe with words."

"Can I be honest with you, Gracie?" Ken asked. At her nod he continued. "I can't picture your aunt doing anything
quietly
! If she
had
shot at him she'd darned well be telling him
why
at full volume. The neighbors
might
not have heard, but anyone in the garage would – and I'd bet that Bixby's staff would've heard the commotion all the way up to the big house. Someone would have told us about a loud argument."

Everyone laughed at that.

"Unfortunately it doesn't mean she's not still a suspect. Desperate people
can
do things out of character," Ken told them. "Your step-mother was totally dependent on your father. She will inherit some money, but of course that gives her a very good motive."

Ken paused, trying to figure out how much to say. He did his best to keep people's secrets, well,
secret
if he could. If it had no bearing on the case he'd rather not embarrass them.

"Which gives Cindy the same motive," Gracie said into the silence.

Ken looked at her in surprise. "You knew about them?"

"Not for sure until just a little while ago," she said. "I
thought
I'd figured it out Tuesday night. But when we got here today Jennifer was going on about how lonesome she was here in the house, so I suggested Cindy stay for a few days and eventually we just all admitted we knew what was going on."

"I apologize, Gracie. I wasn't trying to hold out on you, just didn't want to embarrass her. So, yes, that gives Cindy motive also. She keeps her bills paid, but that's about it. She would seem to benefit from Jennifer's inheritance."

"'S OK," Gracie said. "So, who else did you check up on?"

"Your mother, of course. She's doing well, by the way. The friend, Conover, could stand an infusion of cash but isn't in any financial trouble. And your mother's boyfriend is in good financial shape, too. But his daughter has some serious money issues."

"It doesn't surprise me that Candy would need money," Gracie said. "I've met her a few times, all she can talk about is the latest styles – and boys, of course." She looked at Ken as if wondering whether to say something. "I think she drinks quite a bit. I know Clay's worried about her. But I can't see what motive she'd have; as far as I know she's never met Dad."

"Of course he's worried," Ken replied. "That's what fathers do."

"Too much sometimes!" Shawna said darkly.

"So, what else did you find out?" Gracie asked.

"Well, I looked over your father's car. Besides the two bullet holes there was a long scratch down the passenger side. Would you happen to know if that had happened
before
Tuesday?"

Gracie shook her head. "Dad's car was in the garage for the party, and..." she stopped suddenly, a tear leaking from her eyes. "That was the last time I saw him."

Cheryl reached over to pat Gracie's hand.

Gracie sniffled and continued in a slightly choked voice. "Dad kept his car
spotless
. If he'd scratched the paint he'd have had it fixed, that same day if possible."

"So if he'd spilled something on the seat would he have cleaned it up immediately?" Ken asked. "Would he maybe have waited until he got home to do it?"

"
Immediately
," Gracie said. "He'd pull over and take care of it. Or make whoever spilled it clean it up. We've all had to do that more than once. What did he spill?"

"Just some coffee and pastry crumbs. They were on the passenger seat, like maybe he'd put a bag there and it leaked. If he's that particular I'm wondering if that was why he'd come home that morning, to clean the car seat," Ken said.

"I doubt it," Gracie told him.

The patio doors slid open and Justin and Zack exploded out of them and onto the patio.

"Ooh, a little girl talk?" Justin asked sarcastically. "Can we listen in?"

Zack spotted the policeman and stopped suddenly. "Oh, hi, Sir," he said.

Justin's head whipped around, and for just a second his eyes got big as he realized who the 'sir' was. He turned back to Zack and said, "Don't mind us, we were, uh, just going swimming."

Zack said, "Yeah, right. Swimming."

The boys turned to their right and dashed to the changing room as of afraid Ken might stop them.

Ken thought about telling Gracie he'd found her brother's marijuana right where she said it should be, but decided against it. "I
did
find one important clue."

"What?" the three girls asked breathlessly.

"It seems your neighbor..." Ken nodded towards George's house to the east. "Made a complaint about 'some boys' shooting at squirrels over here last year. I sent an officer to see if he could find any of the slugs, and he managed to dig a couple out of the tree trunk."

All three girls were leaning forward in their chairs, knowing he was drawing the story out and eager to hear the end.

"They were a match to the fatal bullet, and the three bullets fired in the attempted murders." He'd tried to say it in a steady tone, but didn't quite succeed.

"Are you saying my father was shot with his
own gun
?" Gracie asked in a stunned voice.

"It does appear that way," Ken told her. "Remember that the gun was missing when your step-mother reported the burglary. My guess – and that's all it is right now – is that the thief used the gun to shoot at your father, then took it with him when he fled the scene. He (or she) tried again at the garage, and again out at Bixby's."