“Did Donald know?” Jed asked.
“He must have. He provided his mother with an alibi. At the time I thought it was the other way around, that she was lying to protect him. But Donald was lying to protect his mother. And to protect the many real estate deals that they had together. And I doubt if he really cared about Nadine. Their marriage had become one of convenience. She managed to convey the image of a happy wife to the world, which was important to him, but they certainly were no longer close. In fact, his work made it impossible for them to be together a lot.”
Susan paused for a minute. “I didn’t like her, but what a terrible way to die.”
“You said it yourself-Blaine Baines was ruthless,” Kathleen said.
“Yes, she was. But not quite as ruthless as her son turned out to be.” A deep male voice came from the doorway and everyone in the room turned to find Brett Fortesque standing there. “I knocked, but apparently no one heard me so I let myself in. I can’t say much for your security system.” He walked into the room and looked down at the pile of canines lying on the floor. “You must have the three laziest dogs in the world living with you.”
“You should see them when they’re awake,” Susan said.
Jed poured another glass of champagne and passed it to Brett.
“I’m still on duty, but, just this once I’m going to ignore that fact,” Brett said, saluting them and then taking a sip.
“Did Sophie Kincaid confess?” Susan asked.
“No. She claims to be completely innocent. And her husband has hired one of the hottest defense attorneys in the country. But it’s going to be real hard not to get a conviction. After all, you and I both saw her shoot Donald Baines. And he’s not exactly feeling kindly toward her at the moment so I think he’ll be happy to make a statement to the police about just who killed his mother.”
“She did do it, then,” Susan said.
“She did indeed. Donald lost a lot of blood and he’s not feeling too well, but he did manage to tell us that much. And he also claimed that Sophie thought it would be a good idea if his mother was found dead in the same place his wife was. So he helped her to move the body from her car into his house.”
“Good Lord. He is a cold-blooded bastard,” Jerry said.
“And a great real estate agent. He said discovering a body in a house would bring down its resale value and there was no reason to devalue two properties,” Brett explained.
“I don’t understand. Why did this Sophie kill Blaine Baines?” Jed asked.
“She helped Donald get what he wanted and he wanted the land that Woodwinds is on, but I think it may be more than that. I think Sophie probably isn’t as independent a woman as she claims to be. Her husband may have found the best defense team money can buy, but he was never around. Her only child is at boarding school. She needed something in her life. Developing property probably became that something.”
“Sounds like Donald was involved with some pretty sleazy women,” Jerry said.
“Please, no one is as manipulative and directed as Donald himself,” Susan said. “He’s been jerking me around like a puppet ever since Nadine was killed. He said he wanted me to speak at Nadine’s memorial service so that I would go to his office. Then he left the messages from his mother on his desk knowing I would see them.”
“Why?”
“They weren’t real. I’ll bet his mother was already dead at that point. He was setting up his own alibi.”
“But you used that as an opportunity to check out their old neighbors,” Kathleen said. “You wouldn’t have even met Sophie Kincaid if he hadn’t asked you to do that.”
“That’s true,” Susan said. “And that turned out to be his big mistake.”
“That and moving next door to you,” Jed said. “Anyone who is planning to be involved in committing a murder should avoid living near Susan Henshaw.”
“That’s an interesting point,” Brett said with a gleam in his eye. “I was going to mention one other thing. Donald told one of my officers that he got a bargain on his house because you were involved in investigating so many murders. Seems living next door to someone who stumbles over dead bodies is not exactly a selling point for a home in a nice neighborhood.”
THIRTY-ONE
KATHLEEN AND JERRY WERE DUE HOME FOR DINNER AND left right after Susan promised to call Kathleen first thing in the morning and share all the details of their discussion. Jed got up to let the dogs out into the backyard and Susan and Brett were alone together.
“I’m going to have to talk to the baby nurse,” he said.
“ Shannon. Her name is Shannon Tapley,” Susan said. “But why? You know who killed Nadine and Blaine.”
“Three people were murdered out at the Perry Island Care Center. It isn’t my case, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Donald or his mother hired someone to kill them. And, if that’s true, I’m sure Sophie will tell us all about them. In the position she’s in, helping the police with unsolved crimes is always a good idea.”
“So why bother Shannon?”
“Because she’s involved in Perry Island Care Center in more ways than one.” He looked at her. “That doesn’t surprise you, does it?”
“To tell you the truth, I had wondered-”
“What had you wondered?” Shannon appeared in the doorway. “Perhaps it’s time I cleared up all your questions. I think I knew I’d have to eventually when I returned to Connecticut.”
“Would you like some champagne? I can get another glass,” Susan offered.
“Thanks, but I’ll pass. I don’t think Ethan and Rosie are settled for the night. And I should run a load or two of laundry before I go to bed as well.” She sat down on the couch and crossed her arms across her chest. “I don’t know where to start.”
“You grew up on Perry Island, didn’t you?” Susan asked.
“Yes. Who told you that?”
“No one. But Donald grew up there and he refers to the island as Perry. Not Perry Island, just Perry. And you do, too,” Susan explained her reasoning.
“Yes, I grew up there. In fact, I grew up hanging out at P.I.C.C.”
“You and your cousin are the heirs to the center, aren’t you?” Susan asked.
“Just me. My father inherited it from his parents and he married my mother who was a nurse there. I’m an only child. I grew up knowing that P.I.C.C. would be mine someday. That’s probably the reason I’m a nurse.” She smiled. “My father was a doctor, but he always said that it was the nurses who were the real workers in the health care system. I never even considered going to med school. I wanted to take care of people and I knew nursing was the field for me.”
“But Mike?”
“Mike is my mother’s sister’s son. There’s no connection to P.I.C.C.”
“Except that you could help get him a job there,” Susan suggested.
Shannon sighed. “That’s true. But the patients come first. I was sure-well, as sure as I could be-that Mike had cleaned up his act when I helped him get hired there. And P.I.C.C. was in many ways the perfect place for him to work. Mike is a people person and he’s not put off by old people. He was a real asset to the center.”
“Then why didn’t he stay around?” Susan asked since Brett seemed to be letting her ask all the questions.
“Death scared him. Well, it scares us all, but Mike was spooked when people started dying and then…” She glanced over at Brett.
“You can tell Brett about Mike’s fear that he caused one of the deaths,” Susan said. “He’ll find out eventually and Brett is capable of understanding the difference between a mistake and murder.”