Sun, Sand and Murder: A Suzette Bishop Mystery (Suzette Bishop Mysteries Book 3) Read online

  “I’m glad it’s not a big deal since I did have a contact check the missing person reports for the state of Illinois for the time period immediately after the crash. I just got the results back.”

  “From what you just said, they must not have had any matches.” Suzette didn’t look too disappointed.

  “There weren’t any matches from the state of Illinois. I even had them check for missing families since we know they had at least one child with them. I also had them check for a single parent with a missing child or children but nothing came up.”

  “So we have a pretty good idea that I’m not from Illinois. Well, that does narrow things down. I only have 49 other states and all of the English speaking nations to rule out now.” She smiled. “The odds are that I will never find my parents or family. Thank heavens, I have my adopted family.”

  “I would think that eight brothers and sisters and four half-sisters would be enough family for anyone but I realize that it’s not quite the same as knowing who your blood relatives are.”

  “Thanks for trying, Randy. I really do appreciate it.”

  Marie Fletcher, their receptionist, opened the door. “Mr. Watts, your 11:00 appointment is here. Miss Bishop, your 11:15 appointment just walked in also.”

  Chapter 4

  At 12:15, Suzette pulled open the door to Benihana’s. As soon as she mentioned Mr. Stewart’s name, the tiny Japanese hostess led her to a small table in the far corner of the room. The table was screened from the other dinners by several large, potted plants, giving the illusion of privacy. As Suzette approached, Stewart stood and pulled out her chair.

  “Ms. Bishop, thank you for meeting me here. I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused you.” His movements when he pulled out her chair were tight and jerky. He bumped the table when he sat down nearly knocking over the stemmed water glasses.

  Suzette thought to herself, I wonder if he’s having a bad day in court or if something else is bothering him. He has all the symptoms of a man under some sort of terrible stress. He’ll crack, if he isn’t careful.

  As they sat down, the server handed each of them a menu. While Stewart was considering his order, Suzette looked him over. He was tall, a good 6 foot 2 inches and well built. He’d probably played college football, but he’d stayed in shape. His blond hair was carefully windblown. His eyes were a deep blue. The navy blue pin-stripe suit he was wearing probably cost a thousand dollars or more, probably much more.

  After they had placed their orders, Suzette said, “Mr. Stewart, why don’t you tell me about this case.”

  His smile was constricted although his teeth were perfectly shaped and obviously whitened. “My great aunt Cordelia lives in Florida on a big estate–just to the north of the town of Cocoa Beach–right next to the Cape Canaveral Space Center. I love my aunt very much. When my father lost all his money and then killed himself, she opened her home for my mother, my sisters and me. I was ten when he died, Julie was eight and Hallie was seven.”

  “I’m sorry. That must have been very hard on you,” Suzette said softly.

  Ignoring her comment, more because he was so concentrated on what he had to say, than any other reason, he continued, “My mother was consumed with bitterness, not so much because of the way my father died, but with the fact that he left her penniless. He was wealthy when she married him. She had quite a large inheritance from her parents when they died although she felt resentful that she didn’t get the family mansion–Cordelia, the eldest, did. He thought he was a wheeler-dealer, but all in all, he was a rather stupid, arrogant egotist. He lost all the money he had inherited as well as all the money my mother had inherited.

  “My grandfather, my mother’s father, had left Hallie’s, Julie’s, and my money tied up in a trust fund with Aunt Cordelia as the trustee. No one but Aunt Cordelia knew about the money because my grandfather didn’t trust either my father or my mother with money. It’s just too bad he didn’t tie up mother’s money in a trust fund.” He took a drink of water, his hand rigid on the stem of the glass.

  “Aunt Cordelia encouraged Julie, Hallie and me to put ourselves through school. We got jobs after school and during the summer. She pushed us to work and work hard. Aunt made us feel like we were worthwhile citizens. She helped us understand the value of money. She built us up when we got down. She listened when we talked. She taught us right from wrong.

  “When computers became the big thing, she took classes from the local college just to make sure that she understood what we should have been learning in school. She was more of a mother than my own mother, who never had time for us. We each put ourselves through college. I went on to law school, working my way through. Hallie is just finishing her doctorate in Marine Biology. Julie is a vice-president of InternetSystems.Com, one of the few e-businesses that are making money right now, most of it is because of Julie’s incredible brain.

  “When I had scrimped and worked my way through law school and had graduated, Cordelia gave me control of my trust fund after swearing me to secrecy. I wasn’t allowed to tell my sisters or my mother about the trust fund so it would come as a surprise to my sisters when they got theirs. With the amount of money in the trust fund, I could have been a rich playboy, but Cordelia had raised me too well. My two sisters got their money when they graduated from college.

  “My mother was extremely bitter when she found out about all this money. So much so, that I decided to take the bar exam here in California rather than in Florida. I felt the need to put the entire continent between me and my mother.”

  He stopped talking while the server placed his steak in front of him. Suzette had ordered Orange Chicken with Shrimp Fried Rice.

  “Hallie stayed in Florida to finish her doctorate even though my mother tried and succeeded in making life difficult for her. Of course, Aunt Cordelia acted as a buffer. Then last week, there was a fire in the Gazebo that overlooks the ocean. My mother’s body was found in the fire. Since the police haven’t released the body so we can bury her, I suspect that they are thinking foul play. I can’t get the Fire Marshal to tell me if the fire was set or not. In fact, he is always out when I call and he doesn’t return my calls. I’m getting the same tactics from the Chief of Police, just like I was a suspect, even though I was a continent away.” He smiled mirthlessly, “I also have an alibi for that night. I won’t say an unbreakable alibi, or you’ll immediately suspect me.

  “Aunt Cordelia’s home owner’s insurance company is being cagy as are the insurance companies that have the policies on my mother’s life.” He took a couple bites of food and a sip of water before he continued.

  “I think that my mother was murdered. There were several large life insurance policies on her, policies that had been taken out by my grandfather when she married. They were paid-up policies with my sister, my aunts and me as beneficiaries.”

  “You have more than one aunt?”

  “Yes, the other aunt’s name is Dorothea. Dorothea has a son named Derek. He is, in my opinion, a small time crook. He can spend more money than anyone I know. Anyway, I want to hire you to investigate the fire and my mother’s death. I know that you and your company are licensed in all fifty states, so that won’t be a problem. I want you to find out who set the fire, if it was set. I want to know if my mother was murdered, and if so, by whom.”

  “You don’t think that the police and insurance companies will find out who did it?”

  “No. I know the Chief of Police for Brevard County. He is a pompous ass. I don’t know the Fire Marshal but it irritates me that he won’t return my calls. I have a right to know what is going on.”

  “Yes, I agree that you do have some rights. You have the right to bury your mother. Your Aunt Cordelia has the right to know if the Gazebo fire was arson but you don’t have the right to know what is going on in a police investigation.”

  “I know that. I’m an attorney,” he said angrily. He set his fork down, leaned back, closed his eyes, and began breathing deeply and slowly. A
few minutes later, he said, “Sorry. I’m not really in control of myself right now. I have several tough cases coming up in court besides all these family problems.”

  He shook his head. “To be totally honest, I didn’t think I loved my mother, but now that she’s gone, all I can remember are the few good times we had.”

  Suzette smiled, “I think that’s normal. I don’t like giving advice especially to someone I don’t know well, but, I think it would be a good idea for you to get some grief counseling.”

  His eyes flashed, but as he began to speak, she held up her hand. “Please don’t misunderstand me. I think your sisters should get the same kind of counseling. In my business, I deal with people who have gone through similar ordeals. I make the same recommendation to them because when a family member dies in an unexplained accident, those left behind can feel an inordinate amount of guilt. Those feelings need to be dealt with so the grieving process can begin. You’ll do yourself a big favor, if you’ll take my advice rather than being insulted by it.”

  Stewart took a deep breath, relaxing his shoulders. “Sorry. I’ll think about what you’ve said. I do think that we’d all heal better if we knew what was going on or if we could just get Mother buried. It’s drug on for two weeks and we still don’t know when we can bury her.”

  He sipped his water, then said without thinking, “I can’t just chuck my clients and head to Florida to protect my family.”

  “Why does your family need protection?”

  “Because I don’t think my mother was the intended victim. I think whoever murdered her, did so by mistake. I think the real victim was Aunt Cordelia.”

  “But why?” Suzette asked in amazement.

  “Because mother didn’t have anything to be murdered for. She was consumed with her own bitterness and didn’t have time for anyone else. If Aunt Cordelia dies, there are several people who will benefit. My Aunt Dorothea and her sons, Derek and Doug, as well as a number of relatives. There have also been a number of hotel chains approach Cordelia about selling her property. Because of its location it’s worth millions.”

  “Tell me more about your Aunt Cordelia and the rest of the family.”

  “Aunt Cordelia is tiny, I’d say about four feet eleven inches or maybe five feet. I’ll bet she doesn’t weigh 100 pounds dripping wet but that doesn’t stop her from doing what she wants to do. For example, all her life, she was raised with the idea that ‘ladies’ don’t do anything athletic. The proper things a lady would do, is embroider, knit, tat, that kind of stuff. Well, at age 72 she took up swimming because, believe it or not, she wanted to try body surfing.”

  “Good for her.” Suzette grinned. She could just imagine a little, grey haired lady body surfing.

  Stewart grinned back. “Aunt Cordelia is a real character. Of course, Aunt Dorothea had a fit. Aunt Dorothea and my mother were fraternal twins. My grandparents had Cordelia then grandmother had five or six miscarriages and, I think, four stillborn children before she had Dorothea and Jeanette. Dorothea was engaged to be married but her fiancé was killed in some kind of an accident–at least, the police filed it as an accident. I wasn’t alive then, but my parents said that Dorothea didn’t ever get over it. She didn’t marry until after my mother, although she had numerous proposals. It seems that she held every man she met up against her dead fiancé and found them wanting.

  “Finally, she married a complete and total loser. He produced a couple of sons, then left, no doubt thinking that he’d get away with her money, but unlike my mother, Dorothea is financially savvy. He didn’t get anything but the humiliation of the divorce. After that Dorothea became a force to be reckoned with. She gets these enthusiasms and goes after them with everything in her being. She is about as easy to stop as a run-away bulldozer. Even though she is incredibly wealthy she still lives with Aunt Cordelia.

  “So Aunt Cordelia didn’t have a lot of boyfriends?”

  “No. Aunt Cordelia always said that Dorothea got all the looks and she got all the brains. She used to be a very intimidating person. I think that, rather than her lack of looks, scared away any prospective husbands.” He laughed slightly. “It’s odd, as Dorothea became intimidating, Cordelia mellowed out–unless Dorothea managed to intimidate her, too.”

  “Poor Aunt Cordelia,” Suzette said softly.

  Stewart continued, “The family mansion overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and is a prime piece of property. Like I said, I know a number of hotels have been after Aunt Cordelia to sell the house and the land with it but she won’t. She says she was born there and she’ll die there.”

  “So it looks like there are a number of people in the murder sweepstakes.”

  “Yes. Another thing. Aunt Cordelia is a stickler for having everything in perfect order. The fire couldn’t have just happened, not the way Aunt Cordelia takes care of her property.”

  “What time did the fire start?”

  “It was discovered about 1:30 by a couple who were walking on the beach. The beach is private property but that doesn’t stop people from using it at night. By then, the gazebo was almost a complete loss. All the firemen could do was keep it from spreading to the outbuildings or the main house.” He looked at her, “Suzette, my mother hated the dark. I can’t imagine why she would have left the house to go into the night. It just doesn’t make sense to me but maybe, since you’d be seeing it from a different perspective, you could make sense of it.”

  He paused and took a sip of water. “Will you take the case?”

  Suzette looked out the window at the grey skies and the falling rain that was rapidly changing to sleet. She laughed, “A case in Florida in February. Sun, sand and murder--I’d be crazy to refuse.”

  Chapter 5

  Stewart waved for the check. The waiter put down the check and two fortune cookies. Stewart put his platinum credit card on the bill.

  Suzette broke open her fortune cookie. “I don’t know why I read these fortunes since they are so generic that they could apply to anyone. I guess I’m addicted to them.” She opened the thin, shiny paper. She read out loud, “Old foes can cause much grief. Beware of them.” She thought, that’s a weird fortune especially since Randy and I were just talking about James. I think I’ll give John Marshall a call. Maybe he can tell me where James is.

  He handed her a check for $100,000. “That’s the retainer. I’ll pay for all expenses plus a bonus for you personally over and above that. You have carte blanche.”

  Suzette looked at the check, “that’s very generous.”

  “I’m causing you a great deal of inconvenience, but what I’m really paying you for is peace of mind so that I can get through the next few weeks here.” He looked at his watch, “I’ve got to get back to court. Judge Dillion will have a fit if I’m late. However, I’d like you to leave for Florida, tomorrow, if possible,” he said. “I’ll have my secretary book you a flight tomorrow afternoon.”

  Before Suzette could protest he said, “I’ll have her call you with the times that are available. If you can’t leave tomorrow, I’ll understand but I’d like you there as soon as possible.” He pulled a map from his pocket. “Aunt Cordelia lives on Cocoa Beach just south of Cape Canaveral.”

  He looked at his watch, again, adding, “If there is a Space Shuttle launch, you’ll have a fantastic view of it. You can see Launch Pads 39 A and B from Cordelia’s porch. She’s almost as close as the Banana River launch point.

  “If you leave around two in the afternoon, you will get to Orlando about 11:00 at night. You could pick up a rental car, stay overnight in Orlando then drive to Cocoa Beach in the morning.” He stood up. “I’ll have my secretary get with you as soon as possible. She’ll handle everything.”

  Suzette slowly finished her orange chicken before she followed Stewart from the restaurant. Once back in her office, she put in a call to Lieutenant John Marshall of the Las Vegas Police Force.

  “Hi, John, this is Suzette Bishop. How are you doing?”

  “Suzette, it’s good to he
ar your voice.” He paused, then asked suspiciously, “You don’t have another case in my jurisdiction, do you?”

  “John,” she bantered, “are you telling me that you wouldn’t want to work with me again. I am crushed, deeply crushed.”

  “Suzette, I’d love to work with you again, but I’m afraid that the Captain’s blood pressure isn’t up to it, yet.”

  “Well, you can relax on behalf of your captain. I don’t have a case in Las Vegas right now. I was just calling to find out if you knew where my ex is right now.”

  “James Grey, right?”

  “One and the same. I never heard if you were able to pick him up for assault.”

  “No. He traded in his rental car about twenty minutes after he attacked you, then he took the first available plane out of the state.”

  “Rats,” Suzette exclaimed.

  “Why?”

  “Our agency is handling a claim on another high profile policy that he sold. Since he seems to think I’m out to get him, I thought I’d try to track him down before anything happens on this new case.”

  “Give me a few hours and I’ll see if I can find out. I’ll call you back about three--one way or another.”

  “Great. Thanks.”

  Suzette had barely hung up the phone when it rang again. “Suzette Bishop.”

  “This is Amy Park, Jeremy Stewart’s secretary. He told me to get you an airplane reservation and a bunch of other reservations but I thought I’d call you first.”

  “I really appreciate that. I know Mr. Stewart wants me in Florida as soon as possible, however…”

  “He hasn’t given you much notice. I understand. I have been helping him with the details of the fire since he’s been working on the Natchez murder case. I can give you names, dates, places–you’re welcome to everything I’ve done.”