One Bad Apple (9 page)

Interesting
, Meg thought. The world seemed to be rotating clockwise, and there were green sparkling spots on the fringes of her vision. Did this mean she was going to faint? She had never done it, so she had no basis for comparison. Chandler Hale was lying—or did she mean floating?—dead in her new septic tank. It was a lot to take in.
Snap out of it, Meg!

The spots cleared, the whirling slowed. Seth was watching her, clearly concerned. Meg tried to summon up a smile. “It’s okay, Seth. I’m not going to pass out on you. Are you sure it’s Chandler?”

“That’s what the ID says, although since he’s facedown we won’t know for sure until we get him out of there. We’re going to wait for the detective for that.” He hesitated, as if wondering how to phrase his next question. “You knew him?”

Meg laughed, without humor. “You could say that. Until about six months ago, we were … seeing each other, in Boston. Wait a minute—you knew him?”

“He is, or I guess he
was
, heading up the Granford Grange project. I’m on the Granford Board of Selectmen, and we’ve been involved from the beginning.”

“Small world. I don’t suppose you happened to notice how he died? Like is there a stake through his heart or something?”

“Sorry. It’s kind of dark in there, and I admit I didn’t want to look too closely. I didn’t see any blood, though. The ME will take him away and figure it out.”

Meg fought a hysterical giggle. “Poor Chandler. He was always so … fastidious. He would be appalled by this.”

Chandler, dead. Someone she knew, had known well. Someoneshe had seen only two days earlier—and someone with whom she had parted on less-than-happy terms. Someone who might possibly have been killed right here. Why would anyone kill Chandler? And why here?

Seth was still watching her. “I’m sorry.”

“Why?”

“I mean, I’m sorry he’s dead. And I’m sorry it had to be here that he was found.”

Something about his tone made Meg look at him curiously. “You didn’t like him much, did you? But I don’t suppose you killed him.”

“No, of course not. And by the way, if I had killed him, I wouldn’t have dumped the body in your lap. Besides, it’s not a great recommendation for my plumbing efforts, is it?”

If Seth was trying to be funny, he fell flat, but the effort was endearing. Meg studied him: he wasn’t green anymore, but he looked as rattled as she felt. “You didn’t ask if I killed him.”

“Did you?” Seth gave her a ghost of a smile.

“No. And just for the record, I had no reason to want him dead.”

“Then that’s all right.”

It was a funny way of putting it, but suddenly Meg was very glad that she had Seth sitting beside her. “What happens now?”

Seth leaned back and stared at the sky. “The state detective is on his way. Art’s just here to keep an eye on things, since it’s in his jurisdiction. The detective will probably want a statement from you, and I guess you can ID Chandler.”

Meg sat up straighter and turned to face Seth squarely. “You know, I hadn’t seen Chandler in months. And then he showed up at my door here, two days ago. We had dinner that night. Uh …” Meg paused, wondering how much more she should say.

“What?” Seth prompted, casting a quick glance at the men huddled by the trench. No one was paying them any attention.

“We had an argument, a minor one, at the restaurant that night. All very civilized—Chandler wasn’t the type for public scenes—but someone might have noticed we weren’t happy. Then after dinner we came straight back, and he dropped me off here and left. That’s the last I saw of him.”

Seth waited a moment before responding. “I don’t mean to pry, but was there anything about your argument that might be important? I mean, were you rehashing old stuff, or was there something else?”

“We’d both agreed that the past was past. He wasn’t trying to rekindle things, if that’s what you’re asking. His real purpose for inviting me to dinner was to find out if I’d be willing to feed him inside information about Granford and about how the development deal was going—to be his spy. I told him I wasn’t interested, although I think I said it in slightly stronger language.”

Seth looked relieved. “Shouldn’t be a problem, then. There are a lot of people around here who weren’t real happy with Chandler Hale. The detective’ll keep busy interviewing them all.”

“I’m sorry, I hadn’t realized what a big thing this project was around here. I haven’t been here long, and I haven’t been paying attention. You’ll have to fill me in, after we take care of … all this.” Meg waved vaguely at the scene before her: police chief, ME, corpse.

Seth stood up. “Meg, you’re turning blue. Why don’t you wait inside, at least until the detective arrives?” He peeled off a grimy glove and held out his hand. Meg took it and struggled stiffly to her feet.

“Thanks, Seth, maybe I will. And maybe I should make some more coffee.” She seemed to spend half her life these days making coffee, but she wanted something hot, and it would give her something to do while she waited. “I can offer these guys coffee, right? Or would that compromise the investigation?”

Seth smiled. “I think it’s a good idea—I’m sure they’ll appreciate it. Go on inside, now.”

Gratefully Meg fled into her kitchen, and went about the mundane tasks of grinding beans and pouring water into the coffeemaker. She was so lost in thought that she was startled by a loud pounding on her back door a few minutes later. At the kitchen door stood a man she didn’t recognize. Art Preston and Seth stood behind him.

“Ms. Corey? I’m Detective Marcus. I’d like to ask you some questions.”

“Of course.” Meg opened the door, and the three men entered, taking up a lot of the free space in the kitchen. “Shall we sit in here?” The trio moved to her kitchen table, then stood there expectantly. Meg realized with a start that they were waiting for her to sit down first. “Can I get you some coffee? You must be cold.”

“No, thanks.” Detective Marcus spoke decisively, and the others took their cue from him. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat, focusing on the detective.

He spoke quickly. “The ME has suggested a possible identity for the victim, based on identification found on the body, and Chapin here has confirmed it.”

Meg’s stomach unclenched; she hadn’t realized that she had been dreading looking at Chandler, dead. She’d have to thank Seth later.

The detective was still talking. “Did you know Chandler Hale?”

Meg folded her hands in front of her on the table. “Yes. We had a personal relationship when I lived in Boston, and we were professional colleagues.”

“You a banker?” the detective asked. “Did you know why he was in Granford?”

“I previously worked for a bank in Boston. But I haven’t been here very long, and I’ve had little contact with the rest of the town, so I was unaware of the development project until the other day, when Chandler showed up here.”

“He came here?” the detective asked.

“Yes, with his assistant. He said he was looking for the former tenants. He was surprised to find me here. We had dinner together Monday.”

“Here?”

“No, we drove to Amherst.”

“So you two went out. What time did you get back?”

“About nine, I think.”

“And then he left?”

“Yes, Detective, he did. I did not invite him in. We had a disagreement at the restaurant, and I asked him to drive me home. I didn’t see him after that.” Meg wondered if she should be angry about what the detective might—or might not—be insinuating, and she decided to turn the tables. “I assume you’re going to check if anyone saw him the next day?”

“You said something about an assistant?”

“Yes. Lucinda something, I forget the last name. We spoke only briefly. But she should know what Chandler’s schedule was on Tuesday.”

The detective made a note, then turned his attention to Seth. “You installed the septic tank, right?”

“Yes. It went in yesterday. I had a guy coming to fill the trench this morning, but Meg called to say she was having problems again, so I came over to check it out and found Hale.”

Detective Marcus was silent for a few moments, making some more notes. Seth and Art shifted in their chairs but didn’t say anything. Finally the sheriff looked back at Meg.

“Who else knew about the installation?”

Meg stared at him. “I don’t know.”

“Where were you yesterday?”

“Here, mostly. Once the tank was installed, I cleaned up, had something to eat, and went to a historical society meeting in town after dinner. I returned about ten.”

“Did you notice if the hole had been disturbed at all?”

“No. It was dark when I came back, and I went straight inside through the front door.”

“But you knew it was going to be filled in this morning.”

“Yes, because Seth told me. Look, can I ask what happens now?”

“We’re waiting for the forensic team. They’ll want to see the body in situ, and then they’ll extract it and process it. I expect they’ll want to drain the tank and look for any further evidence. Seth, you can get someone to clean it out?”

Seth nodded. “Sure. Your team will have to tell us what they need. But it’s only been used for a day, so it shouldn’t take long.”

Meg realized that the detective was eyeing her with curiosity. “Did you have more questions?” she asked.

“Ms. Corey, are you sure you’ve told us everything about your relationship with Mr. Hale?”

“Of course.”

“You both worked in Boston in the same profession, right? Yet you weren’t aware of his activities in Granford?”

“My bank in Boston merged with another one last year, and I was let go last fall, so I was out of the loop. Look, I was a municipal analyst, and he was involved in corporate projects. I didn’t have anything to do with real estate or property development. And we didn’t talk much about business even when we were seeing each other. Certainly not since.”

Seth interrupted. “Detective, you can’t think she had anything to do with this. She wasn’t around that night—she was in town, with a bunch of witnesses.”

The detective fixed Seth with a stare that Meg found hard to read. “You know what time he died? Didn’t think so. We have to look at all the possibilities. She knew the victim—we’ll be looking into that. She certainly knew that the tank was sitting there, open. The time frame is loose, and it’s unlikely that we’ll be able to narrow it down much. So we have to consider her. And you as well.”

“Me?” Seth said.

“You also knew about the tank. And you have a certain interest in the development project, don’t you?”

“Fair enough. But we’ve been working on that in a public forum. Why would I want to kill the man?”

“I can’t say. All I am saying is that we’re going to look into it. You can start by giving us a list of people who knew that there was a convenient hole in the ground where they could hide a body—and assume that it wouldn’t be discovered too fast.”

Another van pulled up outside, and the detective stood up abruptly. “That’ll be the lab guys. Ms. Corey, I don’t have to tell you not to leave town, do I?”

Where else would she go? “I’ll be around. You can reach me here or on my cell phone.”

“All right. Seth, when’s your guy due?”

“Anytime now.”

“I’ll go check in with the team, and then they’ll let us know what they need. Ma’am.” He gave Meg a cursory nod, then let himself out the door.

Meg, Seth, and the police chief sat silently for a moment. Art was first to break the silence. “Damn, what a mess—in more ways than one. I’d better get out there and do my duty. Seth, the guy’s got a point. You’ve got as much reason as anyone around here to try to derail this project. Not that I think you’d go so far as to kill anyone. But still, he’s got to check it out.”

Seth sighed. “I know. Remind me again why I ran for office, will you?”

Art smiled. “You’re a glutton for punishment. Ms. Corey, nice to meet you. I just wish the circumstances had been a bit more pleasant.” He followed the detective out the door, leaving Meg and Seth alone in the kitchen.

“What did he mean, you’ve got issues with this project?” Meg was trying to make sense of the undercurrents among the men.

Seth met her look squarely. “As a Granford selectman, I have to consider the needs of the town. Heck, I encouraged bringing in outside investors. We need them. But it’s a big chunk of my land that they’re talking about. That didn’t become clear until we were well into discussions. So I’m caught in the middle. And then the project kept growing, and so did the part of my property they wanted. Marcus could see it as a motive. He knows how these things work.”

Meg laughed grimly. “Funny thing—part of my land is affected also, although I didn’t even know that until the day before yesterday, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. And I suppose the detective could point to other motives for me. Maybe I’m supposed to be the jilted woman who killed Chandler for revenge. I just snapped when he showed up unexpectedly. Or maybe I killed him because he made unwanted advances. Or
didn’t
make advances but spurned
my
unwanted advances. Do I make a more convincing murderer than you do? Maybe you and I did it together. Or did one of us hire somebody else to do the dirty work?” Meg could sense hysteria bubbling up in her chest and managed to shut herself up.

Seth gave her a small smile. “Look, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We’ll see what they find when they pull out the body and clean out the tank. We’ve got a lot of questions to answer before we start worrying about how suspicious we look. Right now, I’d better get out there and do some damage control.” He hesitated, and Meg wondered what he wanted to say.

“Yes?” she prompted.

“Look, I can’t imagine that you want to stay here tonight. How about you spend the night at my sister’s? I think I told you she runs a B and B, and I’m sure she’ll be glad to have you.”