In his raspy voice, Sandy had said, The Spanish have a saying, that when an old person dies, a library burns.
That had stuck with Harry. Although she carried a fear of poverty, she vowed that no matter what financial blows life might deal to her, she would never sell even one book. She had also vowed to read every volume in the cases. On that, she was making slow progress. She had read
War and Peace
in her twenties. It was time to read it again.
While Harry was giving in to the urge to read
War and Peace
instead of dusting the bookshelves or cleaning out the broom closet, Fair and Inez were driving up to Middleburg to see an injured mare who had been injected with her own stem cells. The tendon injury was healing rapidly, in only three weeks time. It was a miracle.
The windshield wipers swept rhythmically left and right.
What a counterpoint to the last three years of droughtlight drought, but drought nevertheless. Inez liked that Fairs truck had a separate button for heat and air-conditioning for the passenger side.
Certainly is. They passed Madison Countys high school on the right. For a small school, they sure can put together good football teams.
Love high school football, baseball, track and fieldyou name it. I like seeing young people discipline their bodies.
I figure if theyre exhausted from practice, the number of teenage pregnancies will fall.
She laughed. Dont count on it.
He laughed, too, then changed the tone. You know, Ive been thinking about Mariah sending people messages again.
We all have.
Didnt you mention to me that Mariah and Flo had a spat in the hallway? I mean at Aunt Tallys centennial celebration.
I was too far down the hall to hear it myself. It was in the doorway to the ladies room. There were a number of board members in the hallway who said they heard the whole thing.
Hearsay.
I didnt pay too much attention to it. She paused. Why?
Thought there might be a clue.
Youre starting to get like your wife. Curious. Thats a nice way to put it.
He laughed. Youre right.
Well, what more than one of the board members repeated was that Flo set herMariahup for a financial fall.
Flo wasnt her broker. That would be crazy.
No, but Mariah would occasionally ask Liz questions about stocks. Apparently Liz freely babbled her knowledge.
Surely the DAngelos had their own broker.
His and hers, I believe. Inez crossed her arms over her chest. Liz wants to avoid conflict. It could look like playing both ends against the middle. She sank down in the captains chair, then sat up straight. Forgive me. Im going to make a call, and feel free to listen in.
She dialed Lizs office number. Liz.
Inez, how are you?
Fine. Any more messages?
No, Liz sarcastically replied. No one has ever promised to barbecue my fingers before. Actually, the strangulation message that preceded the barbecue message was more imaginative.
Jahnae and I were not treated to a bun. As you know, our message was Catch me if you can. But Ive been meaning to ask, how much financial advice did you give Mariah?
A long pause followed. Too much.
Did she have an account with you?
Yes. Small.
Liz, what do you call small?
About $150,000. For Tim and me, thats small. Im surprised the St. Louis police havent questioned us. Surely theyve gone through her papers by now.
No papers. The police have found nothing. Her husband says she never shared her business news or problems with him.
This got a reaction. What?
Cooper, Harrys deputy friend, has been in contact with the St. Louis police. They arent too willing to share, but the detective in charge of the murder investigation said they have been unable to find personal records. They have the business records. Theyve checked the recorded watch ID numbers with the various manufacturers, confirming that they are false.
She destroyed her papers. Lizs voice returned to a calmer tone. She had to have planned this.
So it would appear. Inez paused. Arent you somewhat concerned for your well-being?
Tim is. Im watchful, but why would she want to kill me? I had nothing to do with the scam being exposed.
She doesnt know that.
A long pause followed Inezs discomforting statement. I guess she doesnt, but I had nothing to gain by it. I had something to lose: a client. Hers was a small account, her real money was with her Kansas City broker, but it still was an account. Why would I hurt her?
I dont know, but best not to assume shes a hundred percent rational.
O
n April 10, Good Friday, Fuji Wertland and his crew at William Woods reached the last big manure pile. Patches of snow still lay on the north side of the hills, but for the past two days theyd been moving the manure piles in dump trucks. The school had an arrangement with a local nursery. William Woods delivered the manure to acres owned by the nursery out of town. The manure was turned and monitored; long thermometer probes gauged core heat. Once the manure cooked, it was ground up into a fine mixture. It could then be applied to small pastures or large gardens. If lime or calcium needed to be added, that was done at the small plant on the acres. It was quite a profitable operation.
While Fuji and his crew used the front-end loader to fill the dump truck, Trudy Sweetwater and Jahnae went over the sum raised by Aunt Tallys centennial. A few pledges had not come in yet, but they could make a fairly accurate accounting. Including Big Mims large contribution, which pushed the sum way up, it came to $605,332.91.
I cant believe it. Jahnae was ecstatic.
Trudy, thrilled herself, said, God bless Tally Urquhart.
This is just wonderful, wonderful. Does Tally know?
I thought Id let you call her. Trudy wisely gave the credit to the president.
Jahnae, however, much as she might like that, demurred. Trudy, you did the scut work. You call her. Im not stealing your thunder.
Ill remember every syllable.
Youd better. Jahnae laughed. Before she left, Tally asked me to remember how William Woods began. She requested that this money be used for scholarships for orphans, male or female. She also requested that we pay special attention to those children fathered by American servicemen but abandoned. Youre too young to remember how many children were left in Vietnam, despised by their countrymen and with no way to come over here. You know, when the French left Vietnam in 1954, the French government arranged to bring over twenty-one thousand children and Vietnamese women, but we jettisoned our Ameriasians. It was one of the most shameful things we ever did, ever. Her face reddened. Our government finally did try to make amends. Tally never forgot. She said to me, considering the dreadful treatment of women in Iraq and Afghanistan, surely there will be orphans. Shes pulled us right back to our founding principle.
Trudy softly replied, Its easy to forget, isnt it? How people can be left behind?
You dont mind if I share. Inez said if she makes it to one hundred, her request will be that any monies raised in her honor go to abandoned horses. Jahnae paused. You know, Trudy, this university really does turn out remarkable, responsible people.
The phone rang. Jahnae picked it up, because it wouldnt be coming straight through if it werent important. Hello. Within seconds, her face changed. Good Lord! Did you call Deputy Sorenson? She paused. Good. Fuji, do what you can to keep everyone away and to keep things calm. You know the TV reporters listen in to the routing calls. Ill be there as fast as I can.