Swan Song (Julie O'Hara Mystery Series) (4 page)

Julie waited until he had described each award. “That is really impressive,” she said. “It takes a lot of hard work for a young athlete to get to those levels. It takes dedicated parents, too, what with the cost of private instruction and all the travel to competitions.”

“Yes,” he said, smiling. Clearly, he hadn’t minded at all.

“How long have you lived in Orlando?” Julie asked, as they returned to their seats. “Ten years,” said Frank, relaxed now. “We moved here after Dianna graduated. We were sick of the winters. Just wanted to get out of the cold, you know? We waited until she got out of school and made the move.”

Betty rolled her eyes. It was slight, almost imperceptible.

“Did Dianna miss the skating?”

“No,” said Frank quickly, looking down. “She outgrew it.” He looked up again. “She wanted to get on with her life, you know how kids are.”

Betty was looking straight at Julie, her feet together on the floor. But the moment Frank said, “
She outgrew it”,
Betty shifted her position, as if uncomfortable. She looked away and crossed her right leg over her left, pointing away from him.

Change the subject…she’s upset.

“Did Dianna have a boyfriend, Betty?”

“I think so, but she never talked about him,” she said, tension giving way to a small, sad smile. “I was curious. I tried to get her to open up about that, but she was very private in that regard.”

“Did she express any feelings about work?”

“Oh, she loved her work, and her clients loved her. They would buy one of her listings and then buy
her
a gift. She worked hard. And she
was
very competitive. That helped make her successful, I think.”

“No doubt about it,” said Frank with pride.

•

“Well, any insights?” said Joe as he backed his Land Rover out of the driveway.

“Oh, yes. First off, I think these two are ultimately headed for a divorce. Not all that unusual after the death of a child, especially an only child.”

“I didn’t get that impression…what makes you think that?”

“Several things. Do you remember when we were talking about Dianna’s visit at Christmas? Did you notice how defensive Frank was about that?”

“Sure. I figured he and Dianna weren’t getting along that well. It probably made him feel guilty.
So? What’s that got to do with Betty and him?”

“He minimized Dianna’s absence, when she clearly only visited them on special occasions, something that hurt and infuriated Betty.”

“How do figure that?”

“When she said, ‘She was never too busy to call
me
, Frank’, there was a slight accent on ‘
me’
, emphasizing that
he
was the reason Dianna didn’t visit.”

“Yeah, I heard that. But it didn’t seem like such a big deal.”

“That’s because she spoke softly, Joe. She controlled her tone. But it was a shade
too
controlled, as if she might lose it. And there was a clear flash of A.U. nine.” Julie pointed to her nose. “Her levator labii superioris …”

Joe held up his hand. “Hold it! In English, please.”

“Sorry. I was referring to her facial expression. An ‘A.U.’ is a distinct movement of facial muscle, an ‘Action Unit’. There are forty-three basic movements that work in combination with each other. In this case, the A.U. was a micro expression, Joe, something a person can’t control. It was fleeting, barely noticeable, but I caught it.

“Betty scrunched her nose…
like this.
You know, the way you do when you smell something bad? Your eyebrows automatically lower at the same time, see? That’s number nine, Joe. It’s a universal expression of disgust.
But that wasn’t all. Generally, a person also lowers their eyelids. Betty didn’t do that. She looked straight at Frank, open-eyed. That was pure, undiluted anger
.
”

“Hmm, that’s interesting,” said Joe. “She never says much, but, now that you mention it, it fits with something else I thought about in there. Maybe she didn’t
want
to move to Florida. Maybe she blames him for that. Like maybe Dianna would still be alive if they never moved here. I mean, it doesn’t have to make sense for her to feel like that, right?”

“I think you’re right. And Frank was clearly disingenuous about the move. I think Betty wasn’t the only one who probably felt uprooted. What was Dianna, seventeen or eighteen? I’d be willing to bet that she didn’t want to move here, either.”

They were quiet for a few moments, as they each thought about the Wielands.

The community’s exit gate rose slowly as they approached.

“Well, it’s only noon, Merlin,” said Joe, pulling over to the curb.

“Who’s next on your list?”

* * * * * 

Chapter 6

“O
kay, Linc, thanks. We’ll see you then.”

Joe slipped the cell phone into its dashboard holster.

“He can’t meet us until four. He’s tied up at work until then. He works at Pleasure Ride Farm, near Ocala. It’s beautiful, Merlin. You’ll enjoy seeing it.”

“Good. Let’s see if we can catch Lee Porter at Porter & Brandt. I’d rather not call. I’ve learned from experience that it’s better not to give an attorney a heads-up. Besides, if he’s not there we can still talk to his secretary.”

Porter & Brandt was one of the largest and oldest law firms in the area, occupying its own building on New York Avenue, one block east of trendy Park Avenue in Winter Park. The handsome Spanish architecture of stucco and tile had aged well, and fit right in with the overall ambiance of older homes and bricked streets.

As Julie and Joe entered, they could see that major renovations were underway inside. Large, clear plastic sheets were strung across the lobby and workmen were noisily knocking down a wall behind it. A receptionist with headphones was sitting at a circular desk. She removed them as they approached.

“Hi,” said Joe, his voice raised over the ruckus. “We’re here to see Lee Porter, is he in?”

“Do you have an appointment?” she said, enunciating carefully.

“No. Would you tell him it’s Joe Garrett? It’s important.”

“One minute, please,” she said, holding up a finger and mouthing the words as if they needed to read her lips. They listened while she loudly relayed the information. A few moments later she said in the same exaggerated, gesticulating way, “Mr. Porter is in court, but Evelyn, his secretary will be right out.” She motioned them toward a bank of leather chairs.

Julie and Joe shared a smile as they turned and took a seat.

Evelyn Hoag joined them almost immediately and Julie remembered her as soon as she saw her. She was in her thirties, attractive in a healthy, athletic way. Her brown hair was cut straight and curved to the line of her jaw, framing large, intelligent eyes. One could picture her leading an exercise class, or organizing a mini-marathon for charity.

She sat close so they could hear her, apologizing for Lee Porter’s absence and for the noise.

“Is there anything I can help you with?”

Julie explained what they were doing, and Evelyn, who was obviously fond of Dianna, was eager to talk to them. “Come on back to the office where we can talk.”

They followed her down a long hallway to Lee Porter’s office which looked out on a picturesque garden area with a fountain. Evelyn’s smaller, adjoining office had the same lovely view. When the door closed behind them, the noise from the front was muffled and minimal.

“Please, have a seat,” she said, motioning them to join her at a small round table. “I can’t tell you how much I miss Dianna! We were good friends. I’m still in shock over what happened. How can I help you?”

There wasn’t the slightest doubt that she was sincere. Sadness had overtaken her features and her eyes glistened with held-back tears.

“You knew her well?” asked Julie.

“Yes.
Many years. We handled all Bay Street Realty’s commercial transactions, some residential, as well. Dianna and I became quite close. We talked regularly on the phone and met for lunch. We went out for dinner together just recently…”

Their last supper…her voice caught and she squeezed her eyes shut tightly.

As usual, Evelyn had noticed several male heads turn as Dianna left her seat at the bar to follow the hostess to their table on the outside patio. Then the waiter who came to take their order couldn’t tear his eyes away from her, either.

It was always that way. Evelyn didn’t blame them, though. How could she?

“Oh, no,” said Dianna. “He’s coming over.”

Evelyn turned and saw a blond guy, who had sent them drinks at the bar, making his way toward them, waving and smiling. He pulled up a chair, said “Excuse me,” to Evelyn and immediately commenced talking to Dianna. She listened politely to his non-stop monologue, waiting for him to take a breath so she could get a word in. Finally, she got the opportunity when the waiter arrived and interrupted him.

“You really shouldn’t have sent us drinks, Hal. I think I told you I have a boyfriend, but thanks for stopping by. Have a good evening,” she said.

Crestfallen, the man got up and retreated to his group at the bar.

“I apologize, Evelyn. Some people are just so rude you can’t be nice to them.”

Evelyn had been unable to restrain herself.

“How does it feel to be so beautiful that you mesmerize everyone who sees you?”

Dianna had blushed scarlet.

“Me? You must be kidding!”

And she actually meant it…

The tears fell now, despite Evelyn’s effort to control them.

“Evelyn? Are you alright?” asked Julie.

“Yes. Excuse me,” she said, grabbing Kleenex from a box on her desk. “I haven’t gotten over this yet. It’s just too terrible.”

This woman is grieving; she needs to talk about Dianna.

“What can you tell us about her, Evelyn?”

“She was beautiful…mesmerizing…but completely unassuming. I don’t think she realized the effect she had on people. But Dianna was beautiful on the inside, too. She
was vibrant and funny and warm. We had such good times together.” She sighed. “She was very smart, too. Maybe a little naïve…”

“Naïve?
In what way?”

“Oh, she was an optimist, that’s all. She believed in happy endings.”

“That doesn’t sound very suicidal,” said Joe.

“No. That’s the whole thing…she
wasn’t
like that. I can’t believe she did that!”

Her face crumpled.

Julie quickly reached out and covered Evelyn’s hand with her own. “Obviously, she meant a lot to you. If it’s any comfort, Evelyn, I don’t believe it, either.”

Unsure of where to go from there, Julie was glad that Joe intervened and changed the direction of the conversation.

“Evelyn, do you happen to recall a ‘letter of complaint’ that was filed against Bay Street Realty?”

“Ah, let me think,” she said, withdrawing her hand from Julie, momentarily resting her chin on her hand. Her index finger rubbed along the side of her nose. “Lee may know something about that. He’ll be here later today. Do you want to come back?”

“No, we can’t today,” said Joe, “we’re headed up to Ocala.” He stood up and so did Julie. “Just tell him we’d like to talk to him about it, if he can. One of us will call tomorrow, okay?”

“Of course, I’ll tell him you stopped by.”

They both thanked her, and she walked them out to the lobby, where workers had disappeared and the din of remodeling had abated.

They were getting into the Land Rover when Joe asked Julie a question.

“The nose thing, when I asked her about the complaint, was she lying?”

“I don’t think so, Joe. Sometimes a person just has an itchy nose, you know,” said Julie, smiling. “Seriously, though, I think it
was
significant. Up until then, her posture was open and she was leaning forward. She sat back and closed up slightly when you asked that question. But I’m thinking it was a
secretary’s
reaction. I think your question went beyond her personal feelings…and into Lee Porter’s business.”

“So she was dodging the question, right?”

“No, not dodging. She wanted us to come back
today
. She wanted Lee Porter to tell us. I believe Evelyn Hoag wants to help us in every possible way, Joe. What she felt for Dianna was more than friendship.”

“But Dianna didn’t…”

“No…probably not.”

* * * * * 

Chapter
7

T
he countryside flew by as Julie looked out the window of the Land Rover. Nothing in the passing landscape itself said
cold
. Flat land had given way to green, gently rolling pastures dotted with massive Century oaks and stands of palm, all of it bathed in brilliant afternoon sunshine. The land was stoic in the face of the frigid air that swept down overnight from the North. It lay in wait, trusting in the power of the Florida sun to eventually warm things up. But the behavior of cows gave away the breezy, mid-fifties temperature. Usually, they were grazing or reclining under the trees in a loose cluster, shaded from the hot afternoon sun. But today, as Julie and Joe sped by on the turnpike, small groups stood in the sunshine, black and white bodies pressed together, as if enclosed by invisible pens.