Cause for Murder (8 page)

"Just some loose ends we need to tie up. Good seeing you two.” With that, the detective gave a wave, and the two men scurried up the porch steps.

Sam noticed the frightened look that crossed Lilly's face when she opened the door.

"Yes, what can I do for you?” she asked, a slight quiver in her voice.

"Mrs. Parker, we'd like to talk to you and your daughter. May we come in."

She stepped back to let them inside and closed the door.

Richard touched Sam's arm. “What'd he say to her? She looked scared."

"He just said they needed to talk to her and Maryann."

"She's got something to hide. I could tell by her eyes,” Richard said, staring at the house.

The next morning, Lilly awoke to a loud noise in her front yard. She peeked out the window and spotted the two young men taking turns wrestling a rototiller. She didn't dare complain, but she sure could have slept another hour. Sighing, she padded into the bathroom and examined her puffy eyes in the mirror. “Oh, my,” she mumbled. “I look awful."

She splashed cold water on her face, then patted her skin dry with a soft towel. Going to her closet, she selected a loose fitting house dress since she planned to stay home until work time. She shoved back the shoe box that rested on the ledge above her clothes. That shelf must not be level, she thought. Seems like the box inches itself forward every few days.

Closing the closet, she left the room and moved softly past Maryann's door. She went into the kitchen and put on the coffee pot. Not feeling very hungry, she decided on a bowl of dry cereal. No sooner had she finished her breakfast and poured herself another cup of coffee, when someone knocked on the front door.

Thinking it must be one of the boys, it jolted her to come face to face with two men, one in a police uniform and the other flashing a badge.

"Yes?” she asked.

"Hello, Mrs. Parker. I'm Detective Williams of the Medford Police Department. This is Officer McDonnell. May we come in? We'd like to speak to you about the death of your husband."

Lilly felt her stomach tighten as she ushered the men into the living room and offered them a seat on the couch. “Can I get you a cup of coffee?"

"No, thanks. We're fine."

She sat on the edge of the overstuffed chair, her back straight and hands clenched on her lap. “What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Detective Williams straightened his tie. “Is your daughter here? It would be best if she were present."

"Yes, I'm here."

He jerked his head around and eyed the young woman. “Good."

Maryann crossed the room and sat down on the arm of the chair next to her mother.

The detective cleared his throat. “It's never easy to be the bearer of bad news."

"I already know my husband is dead, Mr. Williams. What worse news could there be."

Unfortunately, we suspect your husband didn't die of natural causes."

Lilly put a hand to her throat. “You mean murdered?"

Williams raised a hand. “No, I'm not saying that. It could have been accidental. But we need some personal information about him. Did he have health problems? Was he on medication?"

Maryann stared at him with a piercing gaze. “Why don't you go to his doctor and find out those things?"

"I intend to do just that. But I need to verify the name of the doctor on the prescriptions we found in the room. Was Dr. Clevenger his regular doctor?"

Lilly nodded. “Yes."

"Mrs. Parker, did your husband consume a lot of alcohol?"

Maryann's eyes narrowed. “If you mean, was he an alcoholic? Yes. And an abusive one at that."

Lilly grabbed her daughter's hand. “He probably drank more than he should? Why?"

"Some of the tests have come back showing a high percent of alcohol in his blood. Which could have reacted with the medications.” Williams stood. “I will probably have to ask you more questions as we get deeper into the investigation. Please don't leave town."

"Why would I leave? I live here."

He nodded. “Don't get up. We'll show ourselves out. Thanks for your cooperation."

When Lilly heard the door close, she rose from the chair and crossed to the window. Hugging her waist, she peered through the sheer curtains as the two men got into the unmarked car. She noticed Sam's and Richard's heads turn toward the house as soon as the vehicle drove away. Her hands dropped to her side and she glanced at Maryann. “I don't like this. It's just the beginning."

Maryann put an arm around her mother's shoulders. “Maduk will be safe. He knows how to hide."

She nodded. “I wonder what they found that makes them so suspicious? It certainly wouldn't surprise me if Burke died because he mixed his medications with booze."

Maryann moved away from her mother, and headed toward the kitchen. “I need a cup of coffee."

Lilly followed her daughter and poured her cold coffee down the drain and replaced it with the hot brew.

Maryann sat down at the table. “I gathered from the way the detective talked, they don't have all the test results."

She sighed. “Well, once they talk to the doctor, they'll know Burke trod on dangerous ground with all his drinking."

"Do you think the doctor realized how much Burke drank?"

Lilly threw up her hands. “I don't know. But I might as well prepare myself for a lot of questions."

"Me, too,” Maryann said, taking a sip of coffee.

"You weren't even here, so the police probably won't bother you."

"Mom, you've forgotten. If Burke had been dead for a few days before they found him, I could very well be a suspect. Remember, I was home over the Memorial weekend. In fact, I spent most of the day with Richard.” She pointed toward the yard. “The deaf boy helping Sam."

Lilly felt the blood drain from her cheeks as she stared at her daughter.

Richard broke up the clumps of dirt caused by the rototiller, then raked the ground smooth so they could sow the grass seeds. Sam had taken his truck to return the machine. While in town, he planned to check a couple of the garden centers and inquire if they had any leftover patches of sod from previous landscaping jobs which they might be willing to donate.

Sam had suggested the authorities suspected Mr. Parker hadn't died of natural causes. Richard's gaze drifted to the front door. This worried him, because he knew Maryann and her mother would be questioned extensively, especially if the rumors of Burke's abuse were true.

He wondered if the detective knew anything about Mrs. Parker's boyfriend, in his mind, a prime suspect with a motive. And being a Native American, the man might well know how to mix up a toxic potion from plants. Richard shook his head. Maryann and Mrs. Parker also had a reason to kill the late Mr. Parker.

His thoughts were interrupted when Maryann hurried out the front door, ran down the steps and headed straight toward him. He stepped over some dirt chunks to the narrow sidewalk.

She folded her arms at her waist and smiled. “Hi, how's it going?"

"Real good. We should finish the lawn today. Then we'll start painting tomorrow."

"That's great.” She glanced around the yard. “Where's Sam?"

"He'll be back shortly."

She looked down at her feet, then up at him. “Uh, Richard, I'd like to ask a favor."

"Sure, if I can."

"Don't tell the cops I was here over the Memorial Day weekend."

Richard felt a stab of shock at her request. “Why?"

"It's just important they don't know."

"But there were other people who saw you."

"That's true, but I doubt the police will track them down."

Richard frowned. “I won't lie, Maryann. If they ask me, I'll tell them, but I won't volunteer the information. I don't see why it should matter if you've nothing to hide."

She dropped her hands to her side. “Of course, I don't expect you to understand, and your response is fair.” Turning on her heel, she hastened back into the house.

Richard always thought he could read faces pretty well, especially eyes, but Maryann concealed her feelings extremely well. Her orbs were like two big black obsidian stones set in a beautiful face, but they reflected no emotion. Deep in his gut, he felt an ominous squirm. He now realized Sam had tried to warn him against establishing a relationship with Maryann, without telling him point blank to stay away from her.

Maryann dashed back into the house and went straight to her room. She flopped down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. Her mind told her she'd just made a big mistake. Thinking Richard had fallen for her, she believed he'd do anything she asked. What a surprise to find his ethics outweighed his feelings. Now she'd raised his suspicions and more than likely he'd tell Sam. She'd made too many blunders in the past week. When Sam offered to fix up the house for her mother, she translated it as his wanting to get closer. But he hadn't made one advance toward her since he'd been coming to the house. In fact, he avoided her as much as possible. Even if she caught him looking at her, his gaze held mistrust. What had she done to make him dislike her so? She hit her fists on the bed. “Dammit,” she muttered, “I've got to change his opinion. I don't want his pity."

The aroma of food wafted under her nose. She jumped off the bed and traipsed into the kitchen. “Mom, what the heck are you doing? Looks like you're cooking enough for an army."

Lilly had cut up two chickens and proceeded to drop the flour coated pieces into the large hot iron skillet on the stove. Potatoes were boiling and salad makings were strewn across the cabinet.

"I've got to keep busy, Maryann. I can't just sit around and think about Burke's death. I decided those boys have been working very hard on our place and I'm sure they have big appetites. The least I can do is make them a good meal. And I don't know of any young man who doesn't like fried chicken."

"That's good of you, Mom. I hope you've told them so they don't go get sandwiches for their lunch."

She put a floured hand up to her forehead, causing a white smudge. “Oh, dear, I hadn't thought that far ahead. Will you go tell them?"

Maryann let out a sigh. “Sure."

When she went outside, Sam had returned and the two were unloading what looked like rolls of grass. “What the heck are you doing?” she asked walking toward them.

"I really lucked out,” Sam said, huffing, as he carried a large bundle to the edge of the yard and dropped it onto the ground. “Some guy had just finished putting in a sod lawn and had all these left over pieces. When I told him what we were doing, he just loaded them right into my truck without ever taking them inside the garden center. I'm sure we have enough to cover the whole front yard."

Maryann peered into the bed and pointed to a dozen paint cans stacked against the cab. “That says interior paint. You're not going to use that for the outside, are you?"

"No, I already have those under the porch. The paint shop next door to the garden center was going to dispose of that line of colors to make room for a new batch and the owner asked if I wanted them. Naturally, I accepted. So, if your mom wants us to paint the inside, we can do that too."

Maryann noticed Richard attentiveness, even though he continued to unload the large rolls. She imagined he'd grasped the gist of the conversation.

"Oh, Mom sent me out here to tell you she's making fried chicken for you guys and it will be ready in about an hour. She wants to do something to show her appreciation for all you're doing."

Sam's eyes lit up. “Richard, did you catch that?"

"Yeah,” he said grinning. “Makes me hungry just thinking about it."

"Good. I'll leave you alone so you can continue. I'll let you know when the food is ready."

"Tell your mom, thanks,” Richard said.

Richard wanted to inform Sam about Maryann's request to keep quiet about being together over the Memorial Day weekend, but realized his monotone voice carried a great distance and he didn't want to risk Maryann overhearing. He decided to wait until they headed home.

They wet down the soil and Sam filled the rented roller with water. It weighed about eight pounds to the gallon, making it one heavy piece of equipment. They took turns running it over the moistened ground, then worked hard laying the sod. They had about half of it down, when Maryann called from the front door.

"Food's on."

Sam patted Richard's shoulder and motioned toward the house. “Time to eat."

The boys removed their heavy work gloves, brushed off their clothes and stomped on the cement sidewalk to knock off as much dirt as possible from the soles of their boots. Then they washed their hands under the hose and slipped on their tee shirts before heading for the house. When they entered the living room, they both sniffed the air.

"Oh, man, does that smell delicious,” Sam said.

Lilly smiled and motioned toward the table set for four. “Sit down. I'll join you as soon as I get the dinner rolls from the oven."

"Wow, this looks like a feast,” Richard said. “We won't want to work after eating this, we'll need to take time out for a siesta."

Maryann laughed as she pulled out a chair and sat down. “I think you're right. I'll definitely be stuffed for the rest of the day."

"They filled their plates and ate in silence for several minutes, until Sam broke the quietness. “Mrs. Parker, this is excellent. Thank you so much."

Richard nodded. “It's delicious."

Lilly patted her mouth with a napkin. “Thank you, boys. I'm glad you're enjoying it."

Sam raised his hand. “Oh, Mrs. Parker, before I forget. The paint shop next to the garden center donated some interior paint and there's plenty for several rooms. If you'd like, we can also paint the inside."

She smiled. “Oh, my, that would be nice. But you boys are using up your vacation on my house."

"We don't mind. In fact, we're both glad to help."

Lilly stared at her plate for a few moments. “I guess you noticed the police were here this morning and you're probably wondering what's happening."

Maryann dropped her fork and glanced at her mother. “Mom, I doubt the guys are interested in our private life."