He glanced up when the elevator dinged, and his visitor joined him.
“Glad you could make it,” he said. “I was just going over some of the designs for the new—” But then he caught sight of the small shiny object in his visitor’s hand.
There was a flash, and the shiny object suddenly lodged in his chest.
And as he gasped for air, he realized it was a knife, and he’d just been stabbed.
But then he toppled over, smashing the Keystone Mall model as he did.
Chapter 21
It rarely happens that the Keystone Mall closes, but today seemed to be one of those days. Of course there was a perfectly good reason: one of the cleaners who had arrived early that morning to start her working day had been happily scrubbing along, when all of a sudden she’d given the Zeus display a closer look and had discovered that a new figure had been added to the setup. Next to Zeus and his mortal enemy Dr. Ghoul a third figure had suddenly popped up, dressed in the kind of stretchy lycra outfit with added cape that seems to be all the rage with superheroes old and new, only this particular figure wasn’t made of plastic, like the others, but was an actual living human being.
Though the living part was moot, since Joel Timperley was very obviously very dead.
The woman had screamed so loud her supervisor had come running, figuring there had been either a breakin or she’d seen a ghost. That or she’d used the wrong kind of detergent and had left spots on the marble floor.
Soon the police had arrived, along with an ambulance, but when the owner of the Keystone Mall had been declared dead, the mall had been closed down for the time being and all personnel had been gathered in the canteen to be interviewed one by one.
Not that they’d been able to provide a lot of useful information.
“So what have you got for us?” asked Chase as he stepped onto the scene.
“Single stab wound to the heart,” said Abe Cornwall as he climbed down from the exhibit with some effort. “Very precise and very effective.”
“Knife?”
“Looks like it. That or some other sharp instrument. I’ll have to examine the wound more closely to be sure. Not a single drop of blood,” the coroner continued, studying the body with a puzzled look on his round face, “so I doubt whether he was killed here.”
“Killed elsewhere and dragged here, you think?”
“That would be my guess, yes. But as I said, I’ll know more later.”
“Time of death?”
“Sometime last night. I’d say between ten and midnight.”
“That’s the third bachelor in two days,” said Odelia.
“Bad time for bachelors,” said Abe, deadpan.
“Any CCTV?” Odelia asked.
“Somehow I have a feeling we won’t get anything again,” said Chase. “Let’s talk to his parents first. They’re waiting for us in the food court.”
“The food court?”
“They both looked like they could use a cup of coffee.”
So we walked over to the food court, the same spot where Gran had spent all day yesterday to receive Scarlett’s reports. Today the court was completely empty, with the only two people occupying it a rather heavyset man and a rail-thin woman. Abraham and Miriam Timperley looked up hopefully when we arrived.
“Did you manage to save my boy?” asked Mr. Timperley.
“I’m afraid I have some bad news for you, sir,” said Chase, not beating around the bush. “Joel didn’t make it.”
“My son… is dead?” asked the man, looking crestfallen all of a sudden.
“I’m afraid so. He died sometime last night.”
“Oh, God,” said Joel’s mom as she clasped a desperate hand to her mouth.
Joel’s dad, who’d half-risen, now dropped back into his chair like a bag of potatoes. “I don’t believe this. Joel—dead. But… how?”
“He didn’t die of natural causes.”
“You mean he was… murdered?” Mr. Timperley almost whispered the words.
“Stabbed,” said Chase. “And then placed in the Zeus display by the entrance.”
“But who would do such a thing?”
“Oh, isn’t it obvious?” asked Mrs. Timperley. “It’s that family, of course. The Careens!” She spat out the word as if it was vile, which to her it probably was.
“Did the Careens formulate any threats to Joel?” asked Chase as he took a seat at the same table, followed by Odelia. Dooley and I, meanwhile, took up position one table over. With people in distress, you never know when they’ll suddenly lash out or kick out, and it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
“Not recently, but there was a time some years back when they used to come to the house, hurling all kinds of wild accusations at Joel.”
“Who? Dominic? Or his son Rick?”
“Dominic Careen. Dreadful man. With a terrible temper. He once threw a brick through a window. We had to get a restraining order against him. He stayed away after that.”
“What did Joel have to say about it?” asked Odelia.
“Nothing much. Just that he had nothing to do with the death of the Careen girl,” said Abraham. “And neither had any of his friends.”
“Did you know that two of your son’s friends have died?” asked Chase.
“Yes, Joel told us about it. Jona and Dunc. Horrible news. Joel was sick over it.”
“Did he have any idea who might be behind their murders?”
“Dominic Careen, of course!” Abraham said. “Who else?”
“Apart from Dominic, did your son have any enemies that you know of?” asked Odelia. “Anyone who would wish him harm?”
“We have business competitors, but no one in their right mind would resort to violence to resolve a business conflict.”
“Anyone in particular come to mind?” asked Chase, his pencil poised over his notebook.
Abraham thought for a moment, then slowly shook his head.“No one in particular, no,” he said finally. “There were some issues with the New Jersey mall. Some of the neighbors lodged a complaint with the council against the plans, and one person refused to sell a piece of land. But we were going to build around it, no problem. Joel had the whole thing well in hand. In fact he was out there just last week, making some final arrangements, and the whole thing looks good to go.”
“Did Joel ever mention a bachelor pact he made with Omar Wissinski, Sergio Sorbet, Dunc Hanover and Jona Morro?”
Miriam Timperley was pressing a piece of tissue to her nose, but shook her head.“That was all youthful nonsense as far as I’m concerned. Boy talk.”
“Joel wasn’t a teenager anymore, Mrs. Timperley,” said Odelia softly.
“He was simply enjoying life as a single man,” said Joel’s dad.
“He was going to find the right girl soon enough,” said his mom. “He was simply biding his time and taking advantage of his bachelor years.”
“So you weren’t worried that he’d never settle down and start a family?”
“Not in the least,” said his father adamantly. “Joel was still young. He had plenty of time to settle down. He was sowing his wild oats.”
“Did he have a girlfriend?”
“Nothing serious, no,” his mom admitted.
“Joel was a handsome young man,” said Abraham. “Successful and wealthy, too. He was very attractive to the ladies, and he took full advantage.”
“But he didn’t let it go to his head either,” Miriam said, giving her husband a cautionary look. “He had a good head for business and his first focus were the Timpermart and Timpermall brands. He really wanted to expand the business and become the number one supermarket chain in the country.”
“We’re also making successful inroads into other markets,” said Abraham. “Even overseas. As far as Joel was concerned, the sky was the limit.” He heaved a deep sigh. “And now he’s gone.”