Textbook Murder Read online

  She shook my head. “Nothing has been moved from his office since the police closed it off.” Chloe felt bad for him. To find out about his father just to lose him so quickly and not have a chance to talk to him or get to know him, that was rough. It didn’t excuse his breaking and entering efforts, though.

  “Roger, you’re going to have to tell the police. Maybe, under the circumstances, they will cut you some slack.”

  “You think so?” he asked, looking hopeful.

  “I can’t say for sure, but you won’t know until you tell them. In fact, why don’t I call Detective Rodriguez right now?”

  “Okay.”

  Chloe grabbed the detective’s card and her cell out of her bag and made the call. After hanging up, she looked back at Roger.

  “He is on his way, so don’t leave,” Chloe said. Roger looked about ready to jump out of his skin, but she wasn’t overly worried he was going to bolt. He seemed like a decent guy, and even decent guys made mistakes.

  “Coffee?” she asked, even though he was so fidgety he probably didn’t need the caffeine.

  “That would be great, if it’s not too much trouble.”

  “Nope. Follow me.” Chloe took Roger to the pot that sat behind Mallory, who wasn’t at her desk, and poured them both a cup. She leaned against the file cabinet while he added cream and sugar to his coffee. “So do you even want to study law, or was all this just a way to try and get to know your father?”

  “I’m afraid it was just to meet him. My undergrad is in environmental engineering, and I graduated last year, but my mom was sick, so I’ve been waiting tables and taking care of her. Haven’t been able to start looking in my field.”

  “Wouldn’t it have been easier to have just called him up and told him who you were?” Chloe asked as they walked back to the office.

  “In hindsight, yes. I guess I didn’t because I was afraid. Afraid he wouldn’t talk to me. I thought that if I got to know him a little, and him me, even as a student, it would make things easier.”

  Chloe started to reply but stopped when she saw Jack coming down the hall. They stopped outside the door and waited.

  “Thanks for coming, Jack. Jack, this is Roger Moorehouse. Roger, Detective Jack Rodriguez,” Chloe said, making the introductions all the way around.

  “You can use my office to chat, if you’d like,” she offered.

  “Thanks, Chloe. That would be good.”

  Jack and Roger walked into the office and closed the door, and Chloe headed back over to the bank of cubicles, kicking herself for giving up her office before grabbing some work to occupy her. With nothing else to do, she decided to waste time by logging on to one of the computers and checking to see what everyone was doing on Facebook. She kept the app off her phone to help keep her from being on it constantly. It could be such a time drain. It had been a few days, so she had several notifications waiting for her. Facebook was so trivial most of the time, but she had to admit she was as guilty as most of the population today, that she did get sucked into reading about what everyone was doing.

  About fifteen minutes later, she heard the door to her office open and could hear Roger and the detective talking as they walked out into the hall. They sounded civil, so that was a good thing. Chloe logged off her account and stood up to join them just as Mallory came down the hall and looked at all of them curiously.

  “What’s going on here? Early-morning party?” she asked, smiling wide at Detective Rodriguez.

  Chloe didn’t really know what to say, and luckily, Jack jumped in.

  “Just getting some follow-up information. I’ll be in touch, Roger. Chloe, walk me out? Have a good day, Mallory,” he said. Mallory still looked very confused. Chloe could tell she wanted to know why the handsome detective was there, but she said her goodbyes and walked to her desk.

  Chloe and Jack walked down the hall and out of the building before Chloe couldn’t wait any longer.

  “Is Roger going to be in a lot of trouble?” she asked, though she was assuming since Jack hadn’t hauled him off in handcuffs maybe it wouldn’t be too bad.

  “I don’t think so. I said I would talk to the school about not pressing charges. There’s enough going on here right now, and even though what he did was wrong, nothing was damaged or taken. They probably won’t want him to go to school here anymore, but obviously, he doesn’t care about that. I need to do a background check on him first and told him not to leave town, but I don’t think this is related to Bill’s murder in any way. He’s going to come down to the station later, and we’ll go from there.”

  “Good. Losing two parents. He’s been through enough.”

  “I ran that plate number you gave me.”

  “And?”

  “The car is registered to GlobE.”

  A puzzled look came over Chloe’s face. “The company Randall owns?”

  Jack nodded his head. “Yeah.”

  “Why would someone from GlobE be following him?”

  “Good question. I was hoping you might have an idea based on your conversations with Randall.”

  “No. He didn’t recognize the guy or the car. I mean, he could have been lying, I suppose, but I didn’t get that feeling.”

  “Are you believing he’s innocent?” Jack asked, raising his eyebrows and looking skeptical.

  “Call me crazy, but yeah.”

  “Hmm.” Jack looked lost in thought for a few seconds, then he said, “I’ll be in touch” before getting in his car.

  Chloe found his departure a little abrupt but was sure he had his reasons.

  She walked back up to the building as Jack drove off. Mallory was standing at the door peering out the glass, watching them.

  Chloe opened the door, and Mallory stepped back.

  “What were you talking about?” Mallory asked. “Was he asking you on a date?” she teased.

  “No. We were just chatting.”

  “Uh-huh. Sure, if that’s how you want to play it. I think the detective likes you. Anyways, Roger is still here. He says he needed to talk to you and wouldn’t leave,” Mallory rolled her eyes. “He sure is needy.”

  “A little.”

  “What does he want?”

  “He’s just paranoid about his work,” Chloe said, not wanting to tell Mallory what had happened until Jack had a chance to talk to the school. She really liked Mallory, but she was a bit of a gossip.

  “You’re keeping secrets,” Mallory said, and while her tone was teasing, Chloe could tell she was a little upset that Chloe was clearly holding out on her.

  “Not from you, Mallory,” Chloe said sweetly and then walked into her office, where Roger was waiting. She shut the door behind her.

  “Did he tell you?” Roger asked.

  “That he was going to talk to the school on your behalf? Yes. You should consider yourself lucky.”

  “I do, and thank you for helping me.”

  “No problem.”

  When Roger made no attempt to leave, Chloe asked, “Was there something else you wanted?”

  “Well, yes. I want you to help me find out who killed my dad.”

  “Roger, I don’t know how you expect me to do that.”

  “Listen, I know you’ve been talking to Randall Whittier.”

  “How would you know that?” Chloe was surprised.

  “I saw you two talking outside his house.”

  “You were following me?” Chloe was more than just a little annoyed.

  “Not you! I know this looks bad. It was a coincidence. I was driving by my dad’s house. You know, just to get a look at it, and I saw you two standing there talking. I swear I wasn’t following you.”

  “I still don’t see what that has to do with getting information about your dad.”

  “He and Randall were friends. I gathered that much from the news. Maybe Randall knows something. Please?”

  He looked so sad Chloe felt compelled to help him. Besides, she was sure Randall wouldn’t mind talking about Bill, especially in this
situation.

  “Okay, I’ll help you, but no more breaking and entering,” she said, shaking her finger at him.

  Chapter 13

  As Chloe parallel parked in front of Randall’s house for the third time in as many days, she realized how happy she was when she was able to help people. It really fulfilled her. If only being a practicing attorney was just about helping people then she would do it in a heartbeat. It was helping, but so many other less desirable aspects came with it.

  A few minutes later, seated in Randall’s kitchen, she said, “We need to find out what Bill knew that was so threatening. I think we have to go on the assumption he was killed because he knew something that would be damaging to others. Do you know where he kept important papers or files he was working on? The brief glimpse I saw of his office didn’t show much in there, and the police clearly haven’t found anything to give them a real lead.”

  “My guess would be his office or his house. Both of which aren’t readily accessible at this point.”

  Chloe thought for a minute. “I’ll bet he cleaned out his office, knowing he would be taking a year off. He wouldn’t want to leave anything important behind.”

  “Then that leaves his house, but with the same issue. It’s a crime scene. We can’t go in there.”

  “Ye of little faith, my friend. Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” she said, waggling her eyebrows.

  “Enough with the trite clichés. Just tell me what you’re thinking,” he joked.

  “If we wait until the sun starts to go down and go out your back door and into his, we can poke around with no one the wiser. I presume, as his neighbor and friend, you have a key?”

  “I do,” he said, nodding. “Shouldn’t you be against breaking and entering? You are a lawyer, after all.”

  “It’s not really breaking; you do have the key. And it doesn’t count if we don’t get caught. Sometimes you need to color outside the lines.” She smiled.

  “Have you talked to him at all? Marshall, I mean?” she asked, suddenly changing the subject.

  Randall shook his head. “Bill told me not to, and I’m sure the legal counsel at GlobE told Marshall the same thing.”

  “You’re probably right.” Chloe was silent for a second before remembering what else she wanted to ask Randall.

  “Did Bill ever mention a son?”

  Now Randall looked really confused, and Chloe had to laugh. “Sorry for the quick subject change again,” she said, and proceeded to fill him in on Roger.

  “He never mentioned it. He’s been married a couple times, but no kids on that front either. You think this kid is telling the truth?”

  She shrugged. “I think so. Detective Rodriguez is checking him out to be sure.”

  “Well, it wouldn’t be the first time someone had a kid no one told them about. Bill said he always wanted kids, but it never worked out that way, so had he known, I don’t think he would have ignored him.”

  “Personal experience?”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Well, not to my knowledge. Just know this stuff happens.”

  They had a couple hours to kill before dusk and decided to take their minds off things by playing cards. After Chloe had beat Randall in two games of canasta and he beat her in three games of Go Fish, she declared game time over.

  “Do you have any rubber gloves?” she asked. “You know, like the kind you use for cleaning?”

  “Uh, no. I have a housekeeper.”

  Chloe rolled her eyes. “Useless rich people,” she muttered playfully. “Well, then, what about mittens, gloves, anything we can put on our hands to not get fingerprints all over the place?”

  Randall thought for a second. “Wait right here,” he said, and went over to the hall closet and started rummaging around. After a few minutes, he exclaimed, “Ah-ha!”. He turned and handed her a pair of women’s soft leather driving gloves in a beautiful shade of cream. A shade Chloe could admire but would never buy because they would get dirty easily, and leather was so hard to clean.

  “These are gorgeous. You just happened to have them in your closet?” she asked, taking the gloves.

  He shrugged. “Ex-girlfriend. Good taste in gloves. Bad personality.”

  “I’d agree about the gloves. Someone with this good of taste couldn’t have been all bad.”

  They both laughed, though it was a little forced. They were both nervous about what they were about to do.

  Chloe knew they were taking a big risk, Randall more so than her. He could get charged with tampering with evidence, and in his current state of legal woes, that would be very bad. It would make him look even guiltier. “Maybe you should stay here and let me do this alone.”

  “No way.” He shook his head vehemently. “I’m not letting you do this alone.”

  “If I get caught, it won’t be nearly as big a deal as if you get caught. Think about it. They could charge you with tampering and toss you back in prison.”

  “I’ll take that risk. I’m not leaving you to do this alone.”

  “Got the key?” she asked him, figuring he was an adult, able to make his own choices. As bad as they might be.

  “I’ll grab it from the drawer in the kitchen on our way out the back,” he said, as they started walking in that general direction.

  They passed through the kitchen, where he got the key and headed out the door. It was getting dark and it felt sticky after being in the cool air-conditioning. Chloe loved the warm weather here, but not so much the humidity.

  She turned to Randall. “Are you sure you want to go in with me? I’m really fine going in by myself,” she asked again, for the millionth time.

  Randall shook his head. “I’m a big boy. I know what could happen if someone finds out we’re poking around in there, but I can’t just stand here waiting. It would drive me crazy. I’m coming with you. Besides, I’ve been in this house before, so I’ve got an idea of where we should head first. It will save some time, and the quicker we can get in and out, the better.”

  “Okay, let’s do this.” They crossed over into Bill’s backyard, which was almost identical to Randall’s, right down to the brick pavers used in the patio.

  “Same landscape company,” Randall said when he noticed her looking at both.

  “Got it.”

  They walked up to the back door, which Chloe could see through the window led into the kitchen, just as it did at Randall’s house. She peered in while Randall used his key, and the door soon swung open. He pocketed the key and walked in with Chloe right behind him.

  “My first guess would be his study. I think he spent the majority of his time there when he was home,” Randall said.

  “And it’s more logical he would keep things in his study than just lying around the living room. Especially if they were of a confidential nature.”

  They made their way through the hall down to the study. When they reached it and peered through the door, it was a wreck. They both stood there staring. There were papers on the floor and a knocked over plant with dirt spilling out onto the carpet.

  “Was Bill a slob?” Chloe asked slowly, hoping he was, pretty sure he wasn’t.

  “No. In fact, quite the opposite. He was a bit obsessive about his study. He told me one time that the rest of the house could go to hell, but everything in his work area needed to be in its place or he was unproductive. He would have never left a mess.”

  “Then I have a feeling someone else has been looking for something.”

  “Damn it. What’s the chance they didn’t find it, then? If whoever killed Bill and then broke into your office, also took the risk to come here, there must be something they want very badly.”

  “I agree. Just, what could it be?” Chloe mused, bending down and rifling through some of the papers on the floor, which just seemed to be printouts of case law.

  Randall started rummaging through the desk drawers, and Chloe’s attention was drawn to him opening and closing the bottom ones over and over.

  �
�What are you doing?”

  “There’s something not quite right about these drawers.” He opened the right one, backed up and looked down, taking the contents out and setting them on the floor. “I think there is a false bottom here.” He started feeling around the edges and knocking on the bottom.

  Chloe came over and peered over his shoulder. “What makes you think that?”

  “The depth in this drawer,” he said, pointing to the right, “isn’t the same as the left, so I’m thinking maybe he has a secret compartment here? This desk is an antique, so who knows what kind of hiding places it might have.”

  “I guess it’s good you came, then. That kind of detail would have totally escaped me.”

  Randall stood up. “I’m going to grab a knife or something from the kitchen and see if I can pry it loose.”

  “Okay.” Chloe nodded and walked over to the window. It had grown almost completely dark by now, so she switched on the small flashlight she had brought.

  After not finding anything of value in the cabinet, she stood back up and caught a flash of something outside. She shut off her flashlight, thinking maybe it was just the glare off the window, but she saw it again. There was a light bobbing up the walk to the front door.

  “Randall,” she whispered loudly.

  “What?” he replied, coming back into the room holding a large butter knife. “Someone’s coming up to the house.”

  “Police?”

  “No. Not unless the police have taken to skulking with a flashlight. We need to hide,” she said, just as she heard someone jiggling the handle of the front door. She heard a few more sounds. Probably whoever it was trying to jimmy the lock.

  “C’mon,” Randall said, pulling her arm back toward the kitchen. He led them to the door next to the refrigerator that, once he opened it, she saw was the pantry.

  “You want to hide in the pantry?”

  “Trust me.” They stepped inside just as she heard the front door swing open.

  Randall grabbed the shelves in the back wall of the pantry and pulled forward. They swung out like a door to reveal a decent-sized space, about the size of a small coat closet. It was empty save a couple of brooms. Randall stepped inside and pulled her toward him, closing the door behind them.