Chapter 19

19

Back at the station, Reyes and Barr learn that none of the security cameras at the Merton house were working. The cleaning lady was right. The safe has been opened, and seemed undisturbed. There was no jewelry inside. The preliminary forensic report offers little new information to help them. Reyes scans it quickly. There are numerous sets of fingerprints in the house, especially in the kitchen, which you would expect after a dinner party. Prints will be obtained from each of the family members and Irena today for exclusionary purposes—perhaps there will be a strange print that they can’t place, but Reyes is not expecting it. The killer was obviously very careful. They’ll have to track down Jake as well.

Reyes grabs his jacket off the back of a chair and says to Barr, “Come. We’re going to talk to Fred and Sheila Merton’s lawyer.”

They drive the short distance downtown. It comes as no surprise that Fred Merton used one of the top firms in Aylesford. Walter Temple is busy when they arrive, but a flash of their badges does the trick. “He’ll see you now,” the receptionist says after only a couple of minutes and leads them to his office.

Walter Temple extends his hand to each of them as they introduce themselves and offers them each a seat before sitting down behind his desk. “I imagine you’re here about Fred and Sheila,” he says.

Reyes nods. “Yes. We’re investigating their murders.”

“I’m just gutted by this,” the attorney says, visibly distressed. “Fred was a friend, as well as a long-time client.”

“What can you tell us about him?” Reyes asks.

“Fred Merton was a hugely successful businessman. He made a fortune in robotics, then sold his company—Merton Robotics—for another fortune last year. His net worth, at the time of his death, after taxes, was roughly twenty-six million dollars.”

Reyes says, “That’s a great deal of money.”

“It is,” the lawyer agrees. “Sheila leaves about six million as well.”

“Did Fred Merton, or his wife, Sheila, have any enemies that you know of?”

The lawyer leans back in his chair and averts his eyes, looking down at the blotter on his desk. “No, I don’t think so. They were well liked, respected. Fred could be very charming.” He lifts his eyes and adds, “They were good people. My wife and I dined with them regularly.”

“Did you notice anything different about either of them recently? Did they seem worried about anything? Mention anything unusual?”

The attorney shakes his head and frowns. “Not that I noticed. But you should ask my wife. She’s much more perceptive about these things, although she never mentioned anything to me. She and Sheila were close. My wife—Caroline—she’s at home, if you’d like to speak to her.” He writes out his address for them and hands it to Reyes.

Reyes asks, “Who inherits the Merton fortune?”

“I suppose I can tell you that,” the attorney replies. “Sheila’s wealth goes equally to their three children. Under Fred’s will, there are a couple of specific bequests, but the bulk of the estate is to be equally divided among his children.”

“What were the specific bequests?”

“One million to Fred’s sister, Audrey Stancik. One million to the long-time housekeeper, Irena Dabrowski.” The attorney clears his throat. “There’s something else you should know,” he says. “There are four children named in Fred’s will, not three. Fred included a child he had fathered out of wedlock as one of the equal beneficiaries. A woman by the name of Rose Cutter.” He adds, “This is going to come as a rather unpleasant surprise to the legitimate children. Probably a nice surprise for her, though. I don’t think she has any idea.” He asks, “Would you be able to put off talking to her until the other children get the news from me? That will probably be early next week, after the funeral.”

“I think we can do that,” Reyes says, beginning to rise from his seat.

“There is one other odd thing,” the lawyer says, and Reyes sinks down again. “Dan Merton called me yesterday afternoon. Fred’s sister, Audrey—apparently she was over at Dan’s house yesterday with the family after the news of their deaths got out. She told them that Fred had changed his will to give her half.” He chews his lip and adds, “She was just here, this morning, and told me the same thing. She was quite adamant that he’d meant to do it last week.”

Reyes raises his eyebrows, skeptical.

“I know, it sounds unlikely, but I was called away suddenly all last week, and when I got back, I noticed that he’d tried to see me. When I was unavailable, my secretary made an appointment for him to see me this week. That appointment was to be this morning, at ten o’clock. I guess we’ll never know for sure.”

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•   •   •after the detectives leave, Walter remains at his desk, reflecting uneasily on the situation. He’s rather disturbed by what Audrey had said. And the detectives being here—well, he’s a corporate and estate attorney, he’s not accustomed to dealing with detectives conducting a murder investigation.

He hadn’t exactly been forthcoming with the detectives, not wanting to speak ill of the dead. He hadn’t said anything that was untrue. Fred could certainly be charming, and he didn’t have any enemies that Walter knew about, but he did have an edge to him. Fred wasn’t always a fine fellow.

He hadn’t told the detectives everything Audrey had said, either—accusing Fred’s own children. It was too awful to mention. Too awful to imagine.