Chapter Four

When Jack and Kate walked into the house, laden with grocery bags, they were quite cheerful as they greeted Sara and Randal. Kate told a cute story about buying the big prawns, and Jack remarked on the four salads they'd bought.

They were so easygoing and pleasant that the older duo stared at them, their faces wearing identical looks of concentration. They were trying to figure out what was going on.

Glad they'd kept their private business to themselves, Jack and Kate went into the kitchen to put things away.

Randal looked at his sister, his eyebrows raised in question.

"Fridge," was all Sara said.

Randal gave a quick nod and followed the two young people, then got four crystal flutes out of a cabinet, removed the bottle of champagne from the refrigerator, and opened it.

By the time he was pouring, Jack and Kate had stopped moving and were looking at them in shock. "How did you know?" Jack asked.

Randal and Sara smiled as they handed out full glasses.

"How could we not know?" she said.

"To the future," Randal said. "Wherever it may lead."

"I want at least three of them," Sara said under her breath to Kate. She didn't have to explain what she meant. Three kids.

"I think it's too early to—" Kate began, but everyone drank to the toast and she didn't finish.

When their glasses were empty, Randal refilled them—and they fell into what had become a well-practiced routine. They gathered food and took it outside to the grill on the big patio. By silent agreement, the older two did not bombard the younger ones with questions about when and where and how. That would come later.

It was when the table was filled with food that Sara said, "We have decisions to make."

"Yes, we do," Kate said. "Do you think we could hire Lachlan House for the ceremony? I didn't show you the ballroom but it would be wonderful for..."

Jack took her hand in his. Sara and Randal were looking at her.

"Oh," Kate said. "You mean murder. The skeleton. Blackmail. Sorry. For a moment, I forgot about that."

"Understandable." Sara smiled fondly. "But yes, I'll get Lachlan House for you."

Kate was too embarrassed to say anything more.

"What my sister is asking," Randal said, "is if we take on this case, should we try to recreate the party?"

"Actually," Sara said, "that's not my concern. We can make all the preparations we want, but how do we get them to show up? Do we contact people who were at the party and tell them the truth of why we're inviting them?"

When no one spoke, Sara imitated holding a phone to her ear. "Remember that party you went to in Lachlan, Florida, back in 1997?" She paused. "Yes, that's the one. At Billy Pendergast's big house." Pause. "Oh, I'm glad you had fun. Anyway, we found a skeleton of one of the guests sealed up in a closet. He'd been murdered." Pause. "Yes, we're sure it was murder. Someone had sawed his skull in half." Pause. "It is indeed dreadful. So, we'd like for you to come back to the house and let us figure out if you were the one who killed him. No, it won't take long—unless you're the murderer, then it'll take the rest of your life. Ha ha. Can we put you down for the fourteenth?"

Sara's enactment was so spot-on that they just stared at her.

Randal spoke first, his voice low. "We definitely should give this serious consideration. The murder was twenty-five years ago, and Derek Oliver was a vile man, a criminal. Do we want to find out who did the world a favor and stopped him? As we know, we could tell Broward and they'll remove the bones, then we can forget about it."

"You're afraid his wife, your girlfriend, did it," Sara said.

Randal tightened his lips. "In other circumstances, that might be true, but this wasn't an ordinary crime of passion. He pushed someone to the brink, yes, but it took mental illness to saw the skull apart, and..."

"Scoop out the brain," Sara said. "It's attached. Wonder what tool he used?"

No one had an answer to her question.

"Maybe it was two people," Jack said. "One killed him with drugs or maybe shot him. He could have died of a heart attack. We don't know for sure what happened. Then someone sawed the top of his head off."

"We do know that Billy hid the body," Sara added.

"And don't forget that Kate's toy had been stuffed inside," Jack said.

"What we don't know," Randal said, "is who sewed the jewels inside the toy."

"Or who removed the contents of the skull," Sara said.

Randal said, "I bet the killer was away, disposing of the contents when Billy found the body."

"What a shock to find the body gone." Sara grimaced. "Wonder if the killer ever knew the truth."

No one replied.

"We need to decide if we want to pursue this," Randal said. "If we do, someone's life is going to be ruined."

They were silent for a moment because Randal knew all about having a life that was destroyed.

"It's what Billy told us," Jack said. "If they show up, it will be because they still have something they don't want found out. Some secret that they want to remain hidden."

Sara nodded in agreement. "A secret so big that he or she killed to keep it from being discovered. Forever."

"Forever hasn't lasted," Randal said. "Do we want to force that secret being told? That could put everyone at risk. Someone killed to keep it hidden. It could be dangerous." He glanced at his precious daughter. "To us."

Kate spoke for the first time since her embarrassing moment. "Something no one is mentioning is the will. I'm curious about the descendant of James Lachlan. Who actually owns that house? I can't sell it until we know the owner." She leaned forward. "I'd like it better if those lawyers don't get the house. The land has been sold off and most of the contents of the house are gone. I think those lawyers have benefited enough!" They knew Kate hated seeing the house desecrated. She looked at her aunt. "Did you ever meet James Lachlan?"

"I did. He was a tall man, with a magnificent head of gray hair, and he had a heavy Scottish accent. He liked Cal a lot. I think..." She took a breath as she thought of the man she'd loved. "I think maybe he saw the bruises on Cal. His father was a bastard of a man! Cal and I didn't know the story, but if Mr. Lachlan had lost both his son and his nephew, maybe he was redirecting some of what he'd missed onto Cal." Her head came up. "I just remembered that one time I saw him at one of Cal's football games."

"So he didn't isolate himself," Kate said. "He didn't hide out in his movie room and grieve for years."

"I guess he could have done both," Sara said.

Jack looked from one woman to the other. "Okay, got it. Whatever we decide to do about the murder, Sara is going to do the research to find the true owner of the house."

She was smiling. "That appeals to me. So you three are going to solve the murder? All by yourselves?"

"We'll struggle along." Randal wore a bored look.

"So it's decided that we're going to do this?" Kate asked. "Even knowing that we could find out that an American Treasure like Barbara Adair is a murderer? What was she like?" She was looking at her father.

"She—"

"He had eyes only for Derek Oliver's wife," Sara interrupted.

Randal straightened his shoulders in defense. "Mrs. Meyers and her wayward granddaughter were in the guesthouse. I was running back and forth, day and night. I didn't have time to do anything else. I—"

Jack cut in. "We didn't see a lot of the house and missed the outbuildings altogether. What are they like? In good condition or falling apart?"

"When I saw the guesthouse," Randal said, "it was beautiful. There was a trellis to the second floor. Rachel used to climb out the upstairs window at night, sneak into the house, and steal wine from the cellar. Mrs. Meyers laughed about it. She said she was just like her when she was Rachel's age."

"And the smaller building?" Jack asked.

Randal shrugged. "That's the cottage. I never went in it. Reid and his sister stayed in there. They were workers, like me."

"It's two stories." Sara had a faraway look in her eyes. "There's a bedroom and bath upstairs. It's a loft and open at the end. On the ground floor, in the back, away from where people can see it, is a two story, fifteenth-century stained glass window. It came from a French cathedral that was destroyed in WWII. The morning sun comes through the glass and makes colors on the slate floor. It is indescribably beautiful."

They were all staring at her.

Jack said softly, "I guess you and Granddad personally looked after that place."

"Oh yes," Sara said in a throaty voice that made it unmistakable as to what the teenagers did in the pretty little house. "We most certainly did."

They laughed together, with Sara being the loudest.

"So we are going to take on this case?" Jack asked and looked from one to the other.

"I guess it's up to the guests," Sara said. "We can invite them and see what they say. They could tell us to get lost."

"Do we tell them the party is because we found a body? We'd make Sara's phone call a reality." Jack wasn't being serious.

Randal said, "Let's say we're giving a party for Billy. A celebration of his life and we'd like for them to come. It's a reunion of sorts."

Sara snorted. "BVU. Blackmail Victims United."

"If they do accept," Jack said, "then we'll know they have a reason." He glanced at Randal. "It might be to renew old acquaintances or..." He looked at Sara.

"To find out what we know about a dead man."

"One that was rudely left out in the open so poor Billy had to take care of it," Randal said in sarcasm.

"And what happened to the brain?" Sara asked.

"Yuck," Kate said.

"Yes, yuck," Sara said, "but we're all thinking about it. Was it buried? Taken away as a trophy? Is it in a jar somewhere? What?"

Again, no one had an answer.

"So what's our final decision?" Jack asked.

For a moment they were silent, then they looked at each other. Each one gave a nod of agreement.

"How do we start?" Jack asked. "Anyone have Barbara Adair's private number?"

"Not her, but I might be able to contact Lea Oliver," Randal said.

Sara gave her brother a raised eyebrow look. "Has she had her missing husband declared dead so she can remarry?"

Randal was reluctant to answer, but did. "I don't know. I know that at first she stayed with her husband's family in the house they owned together." He raised his hand. "But I know nothing else. After a while, I quit keeping track of her."

"That's one person," Jack said. "What about the others?"

"Billy said that Greer passed away," Kate said sadly. "I remember her. She was odd, but I liked her a lot. She was my friend."

"Odd enough to murder someone?" Sara asked.

"No," Randal said quickly. "She was quite young, a teenager, and she lived with her grandmother. It was her first job out in the world. She wasn't pretty and now that I think about it, she might have been autistic. Derek bullied her."

"The more I hear about that man," Sara said, "the more I dislike him."

Randal nodded in agreement. "Maybe Billy knows where the family lived. Someone might know how to contact Reid."

"What about Rachel?" Kate asked. "Should we just search all of Connecticut, as Billy suggested."

"Billy's lawyer brothers might know," Sara said. "When I talk to them, I'll ask."

"You want to get permission to do this?" Kate asked.

"No," Sara said. "I plan to hit them up for money."

They looked at her in surprise.

"That place is a mess," Sara said. "We can't invite people to return when we don't even know if the toilets are working. And what about sheets, and dishes, and all the furniture we're going to need?"

"They won't pay for that," Randal said.

Sara gave a little smile. "They will if I tell them that if they don't pay for it, I'll make sure the house is held up in court as a murder scene. It'll be years before they can sell it. And as Kate pointed out, was it legal for them to sell off pieces of land? And to denude the house of its contents? I bet there were some antiques in there. I'll point out that if they pay, they'll get the murder solved quietly and discreetly. And if Jack and his crew repair it at rock-bottom prices, maybe no one will mention what's missing. It's a win-win for them."

Jack was the first to laugh. "I feel sorry for them. I hope they don't argue too long so you don't have to raise the price."

"My thoughts exactly," Sara said.

"Dora!" Kate said. "She has cleaning friends who have retired. I bet they'd like a special job."

For a moment they all thought of the big house in Southwest Ranches, where Dora lived. It was inhabited by people they'd met while solving crimes. Ava was back in Chicago with her brothers, while Everett and Arthur were in Arizona researching their next murder mystery. Only Dora and Lenny were there now.

"What about Lenny?" Sara asked. "He could use a job."

"He'd scare people," Jack said. Lenny had a deep scar across the side of his head from a gunshot he'd survived. It had been remarked more than once that Lenny could play the villain in a horror movie.

"Did you know that he can cook?" Randal was a champion of people who were down-and-out. "Billy had caterers but I had to make midnight sandwiches and scramble eggs at 5:00 a.m. Lenny could do that."

"That leaves us with The Lady herself," Jack said. "Miss Adair."

"My L.A. agent can contact her," Sara said. "I can't imagine that she'll come."

They turned to Randal as though to ask him if she would.

"Don't look at me. She was a nobody back then. Married to a big deal producer, who she left at home."

"Didn't she fool around with Roy?" Sara was being sarcastic after Billy's many mentions of the fact.

"I believe there were a few motorcycle rides—and before you judge, her husband was much older than she was. And don't forget that all of these guests were being blackmailed by Derek Oliver."

Sara frowned. "If Miss Adair was being blackmailed for having an affair, it doesn't make sense that she'd have another one while hanging around her blackmailer."

"Could have been a two-for-one deal," Jack said. "With my father, who knows?"

It was getting late and they were beginning to clean up. "What about the house?" Kate asked. "Dora cleans it, but then what? There's hardly any furniture left. Even the dishes are gone."

"I thought about that." Sara looked at Jack. "You need to make a sketch of the rooms with measurements, then Kate will go to Baer's Furniture, spend a day with Rico, and choose everything." She turned to Kate. "Rico is brilliant and he'll help with all of it, including artwork and accessories. And it just happens that this week Baer's is having a 50 percent off sale on everything in the store. It's perfect." She picked up a bowl of salad and headed to the kitchen.

"Wait!" Kate ran after her aunt. "I don't know how to do that! We should get Ivy to do it."

"She's on a job in St. Petersburg," Jack said. Ivy was his half sister and an interior designer.

"I told you," Sara said, "Rico will help you. He has impeccable taste and knows everything about furniture. Baer's has modern pieces and items from all over the world. And you'll have Jack's plan so you have the sizes. You won't have any problems." She went on to the kitchen.

"I don't know how to do this," Kate whispered.

"You'll do fine," Randal said and followed his sister.

"Buy sturdy beds." Jack smiled as he carried dishes to the kitchen.