Fever Rich: A Mercy Mares Cozy Mystery (15 page)

I nodded.

“Where's the boy... Where's Cash?” He corrected himself.

“With his father.” I answered.

He took a deep breath. I'd forgotten about their tiff.

“You should go see them and meet your granddaughter.” I advised him.

He looked scared, but after another deep breath, he ventured inside his son's home.

“Mercy?” Charlie walked up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. “Are you okay?”

I turned to face him, tears in my eyes. “I think so, but James may never forgive me.”

He sighed. “Maybe not right away. This will be a shock to him, but he'll get over and thank you one day for helping him dodge a bullet. Excuse the pun.”

Scooter and Karen walked up behind Charlie. Officers stopped them as they approached.

Zoey instructed. “They are with me. Let them through.”

Scooter grabbed me and hugged me. “I'm sorry. I should have told you, but I didn't think it had anything to do with Jane's murder.”

“I still don't understand. Why would she have killed Jane?” Charlie asked.

I explained. “Jane was the accountant. She probably found out that Nathaniel was making payouts to Kitty and questioned it or stopped making those payments.” I explained what I thought, deferring to Zoey for clarification.

She looked at Charlie. “Maybe Karen can help us understand, but it seems to me that a household accountant would have access to all of the accounts and funds and, if there were discrepancies and they were worth their salt, they'd question it, right? I believe that's what Karen did as soon as she got her hands on the books.”

“That's absolutely right.” Karen answered.

“So, the blackmailer killed the accountant? She did all that while still continuing to blackmail Nathaniel and Lucilla?” Charlie asked.

Zoey answered,  “I don't believe she ever got the chance to blackmail Lucilla, but I believe that was on her to-do list. It looks like she was trying to leverage her bets and use Cash to get more information. Sadly, he was too young to know not to divulge information about Lucilla and her granddaughter and family situation. Sad really. No one should ever use a child for anything.”

Lucilla spoke up. “I owe you an apology, Mercy. I shouldn't have treated you the way that I did and I'm sorry. Just know that I had Cash's best interest in mind for obvious reasons.”

I squeezed her hand gently. I knew what it was like to love a child so deeply that you'd do anything to protect them and, in her case, she had two small children that she wanted to protect, plus her adult daughter. I couldn't blame her.

“You did nothing wrong, Lucilla.” I offered. “Between me and you, how did Kitty get into the house? Was that her at the door?”

Lucilla held her head down. “When I left you in the dining room, I went to the door, but it was already open. I assumed Nathaniel had let whoever it was in the house already. I shouldn't have done it, but I stepped outside to phone my daughter about taking Cash to see his father. I didn't realize that anything was going on. I had no idea that Jane was in danger.”

Zoey asked, “Did Jane and Kitty have keys to the manor or was the door unlocked?”

“I left the door unlocked. I usually did because we have Randy and his team at the front entrance, so I never imagined that there was anything to worry about.” Lucilla answered.

Zoey looked at me then Charlie. “We need to talk to Randy again.”

Scooter stepped forward. “I'm afraid that won't do any good. Randy was preoccupied at the time. I was having some difficulty with the car and I asked him if he'd take a look at it. He often helped with maintaining the vehicles. I'm so sorry. I created a distraction and Jane died because of it.”

I asked, “Aren't there any cameras on the property?”

Lucilla cleared her throat. “There were, but I had them turned off. I told Randy that Nathaniel asked that they be kept off because we'd not had an incident at the house since Monica left.”

Between everyone that worked there, they set up the perfect scenario, allowing someone to enter the property unnoticed and leave unnoticed.

“When you stepped outside to make your phone call, Lucilla, did you notice anything unusual?” Zoey asked.

“It wasn't unusual at the time, but the front gates were open. I assumed that was because Mercy was there. I didn't think anything of it.” Lucilla answered.

“That still doesn't seem right. How would Kitty have possibly known any of this? She couldn't have known that you'd ask Randy for help or that he'd leave the gates open.” I couldn't make the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

Zoey called another detective over. “Did Kitty tell you how she was able to get onto the property and leave the Rich Manor without being seen?”

The detective shook his head. “No, she hasn't yet.”

Nathaniel stepped outside carrying Bentley in one arm and holding Cash's hand with his free hand. It warmed my heart to see him acting like a grandfather should.

He walked up to the group. “I have something I must confess.”

I held my breath. He handed the children off to one of the officers and waited until they were out of earshot.

“On the morning that Jane died, I... I had a guest. A female guest.” He bit his lip.

Oh, no.
I knew where this was going.

“Was it Kitty?” I dared ask.

His cheeks reddened. “It was. She'd phoned me the night before and said that she missed me. I invited her over and one thing led to another. In the morning, I asked her to leave before anyone saw her. I had no idea Jane was there. I knew that Lucilla was holding the interview,  but I was under the assumption that Jane wouldn't be coming into work that day. We'd had a bit of a heated exchange the day before and I'd called Kitty to tell her that this nonsense had to stop.”

I hung my head. He invited an opportunistic murderer into his home. This man was a real piece of work.

“You invited a woman who was blackmailing you to pay a visit?” I asked.

“I'm not saying that I'm proud of it, but yes, I did.” He answered.

Lucilla's face reddened. “What time did she come over and how did she get to the manor? I didn't see a car.”

“Oh, I don't know. It was after dark. When I'd phoned her, she was on her way to pay a visit to her boyfriend's family, so sometime after that.” Nathaniel explained.

“That was me!” I said a little too loudly. “She showed up at my door.” The realization hit me. “She tried to use me as her alibi. What a witch!”

Charlie stepped forward. “Boy, James sure knows how to pick 'em.”

I scowled at him. This was no time for jokes.

Zoey asked, “Was Kitty known to carry weapons?”

Nathaniel's already red face turned a deeper shade of red. “Yes, she threatened me with a gun before, but I didn't take it seriously. She was the excitable type, you know. She made me persuade Jane to get rid of her dog just because she thought we were having an affair.”

“Why didn't anyone hear a struggle or a gunshot or anything?” I asked, still baffled by all that had happened.

Zoey asked Nathaniel, “Did her gun have a silencer, Mr. Rich?”

His breath caught. After a second, he nodded. “Yes.”

“And, how long have you known this?” I screamed. “You let your girlfriend come into your house, where your sick grandson resides, and she kills your accountant? I've heard of truth being stranger than fiction, but Sir Rich, you are stranger than anyone I've ever met.”

Charlie grabbed my arm and pulled me away from Nathaniel. “Calm down. You know, love does strange things to people.”

“Then, he invites the media in? What is wrong with him?” I asked.

“Plenty.” Lucilla answered. “You put us all in danger, Nathaniel. How could you do that? Is your need to be loved by these women greater than your love for your family? Your real family?”

“I suppose it is,” Nathaniel answered.

Scooter mumbled, “All along, Nathaniel was the sickest one of all. That's it. I quit, Mr. Rich.”

Karen spoke up, “So do I.”

Lucilla's face burned with rage. “Oh, you already know, I quit. I never want to see your face again. You're like a fever that won't go away.”

“Fever Rich.” Charlie mumbled. “Fever Rich.”

“I'm buying.” James announced. “This was supposed to be my wedding day and all of you – well, almost all of you – were eager to show your support for me, so the least I could do is pay for your meals.”

A flood of emotion welled in my body. Poor James put on a brave face, but I knew he was devastated to learn that the woman he thought he loved was someone else entirely.

Charlie held up his glass. “Here, here, to James. May good things come in your future and may happiness always be by your side.”

Everyone raised their glasses. “Here. Here.”

James' eyes caught mine. We hadn't spoken much since after he'd learned that Kitty had been arrested and charged. “Thank you, Mercedes.”

“You don't have to thank me. I feel horrible for ruining everything for you.” I said.

“You saved me. Again.” He draped an arm around my shoulders and planted a kiss on my cheek. “I always knew your nosiness would do somebody some good.”

Charlie teased. “Get a room.”

James patted him on the back. “You're a good guy. Promise me you'll take real good care of her.”

I interjected. “Hey, he's my friend, not my husband.”

“Not yet,” James said, winking at me.

I looked around the table. Everyone I loved was seated right there with me alongside my new friends, Zoey, Scooter, Lucilla, Nate, Jasmine, and Karen. My circle had grown, but felt just as tight as ever.

“Why are you crying, Mom?” Diana asked.

I wiped my tears. “I'm not. I'm just in awe. That's all.”

Ruby always knew what to do to lighten the mood. “Hey gang, guess what?”

When she had everyone's attention, she said, “Hank and I have an announcement.”

Whoa! What was this about?

She looked at me and winked. “We are giving our nosy little friend here a very special gift.”

I sat straighter in my seat.
This ought to be good.

They pulled a box out from under the table. I opened it and inside was a statue of Betty Boop dressed like Sherlock Holmes. Laughter rang out all around the table.

“We decided that every time you get caught up in what we're now calling one of your 'usual situations' that we will buy a new gift to celebrate your success.

Tina asked, “So, what happens now?”

The laughter stopped.

I answered, “Life returns to the way it was supposed to be, I guess. I am finally going to take some time off and do nothing. Charlie is flying home tomorrow. Little Cash gets to live with his Daddy and you finally get to start your new job. What about everyone else?” I looked around the table.

Zoey chimed in. “If you're asking about Kitty, well, she'll go to trial and eventually jail, I hope.”

Scooter addressed Tina's question. “It's about time for me to retire. I think I'll be moving in with Karen and her family. She's been asking me to for a long time.”

James sighed. “I keep doing what I'm doing. I'm not old. I'd not a bad looking guy. I will just keep living my life and loving it.”

Tina's cell phone rang. “Sorry.” She looked at it. “It's the nursing home.”

I held my breath. I hope Nubbin is okay.

“Hello?” She answered. “Yes, hold on.” She handed me the phone.

“Yes, Nubbin?” I asked.

“Silverado, I told you its always a woman. Did you see the video?”

I listened to him talk. The video was footage from Cash's first birthday. In it, you could clearly see Lucilla doting on both Cash and Nathaniel. None of us thought to bring it up because it would have been a sensitive subject, but I believe that Lucilla had been in love with Nathaniel at one time. It wasn't my place to disclose that information and it was probably for the better never to ask her about it. One hand hold does not equate to a lifetime of love.

James grabbed my hand and squeezed it gently as I listened to Nubbin go on and on. Charlie, while in the middle of a conversation with Hank, placed his hand on top of my other hand. There I sat between two of the most stubborn men I knew, talking to the third most stubborn man I knew. Life was good, if not complicated.

The End