Fixing To Die

The doorbell rang, and An’gel immediately felt the level of tension in the room begin to rise. Even Peanut and Endora were quiet. She glanced at Mrs. Pace. The medium’s enigmatic expression interested her. The woman’s eyes appeared to rove from face to face. Was she getting vibrations, or whatever they were called, from people in the room? An’gel wondered.

An’gel could see the front door from where she sat, and she watched as Henry Howard admitted Lieutenant Steinberg and two other police officers, one of them female. Then several more people, also in uniform, came in behind them. An’gel began to worry. What was about to happen here?

Henry Howard escorted the lieutenant to the fireplace and then took the spot on the sofa next to his wife. Steinberg waited a moment before he spoke, letting his gaze wander over the assembled group much the same way Mrs. Pace had done not long before. An’gel was about ready to tell the man to get on with it when he finally spoke.

“I appreciate y’all’s patience as we have been investigating this case of a sudden death,” he began. “I know there’s probably been a lot of confusion and wondering what’s going on. I’d like to be able to set your minds at rest and tell you we’ve got an answer.” He paused. “Unfortunately, I can’t do that. We don’t have a definitive answer yet.”

Get to the point, An’gel thought. What answers do you have?

“I’m not at liberty to discuss all the details, pending the outcome of our investigation, you understand,” Steinberg said. “We’re still in the information-gathering stage, and I have more questions for some of you, those who were either family or close associates.”

An’gel glanced quickly at Truss Wilbanks. He had turned even grayer, if that were possible, and his hair was dark with perspiration. He was definitely frightened.

Steinberg reclaimed her attention as he continued. “I’ll need to talk to you separately, of course, and Mr. Catlin has suggested that we use the library again for that purpose. I would like for you all to remain in this room while I talk to those I’ve already mentioned.” His glance swept over An’gel, Benjy, and Dickce. “Even the ones who I don’t plan to question further today need to remain as well. My men will be examining the scene of the death more closely, and it will be easier if all of you stay here and out of the way. Are we clear on that?”

An’gel fought the temptation to say “Sir, yes, sir!” Instead she merely nodded, as did most of the others. Wilbanks still looked too scared even to nod. He stared like a hypnotized rabbit at Steinberg.

“I appreciate your cooperation in this matter,” Steinberg said. “I realize it’s getting on for lunchtime, and I plan to finish this round of questioning as soon as possible. I intend to be thorough, however, and so it might take a while. If anyone here has a medical condition that requires meals at certain times, or if you have medication you need to take, please inform the officer who will remain on duty in this room.” He paused. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, we’ll be getting on with our work.”

An’gel was thoroughly aggravated with the man. He hadn’t given them anything other than that the investigation was continuing. Why make a production out of a simple announcement like that? He could have done it with much less drama. She suspected that there was something more serious going on here, and she was going to challenge him to admit it.

She rose to her feet before Steinberg had taken two steps away from the fireplace. “Lieutenant, before you go, I have a question for you.”

Steinberg turned to face her, his expression steely. “Yes, Miss Ducote. What is it?”

An’gel figured some people were intimidated by that clipped tone, but it didn’t work with her.

“I don’t think you’re being completely frank with us, Lieutenant. I think you should tell us whether you are now treating the death of Nathan Gamble as suspicious.”

Steinberg held her gaze for a long moment, but An’gel never wavered. She was determined he was going to give her a satisfactory answer.

Finally, he spoke. “Yes, Miss Ducote, we are.”

CHAPTER 24

An’gel heard the sounds of indrawn breaths from several people in the room. Her gaze was still locked with that of the policeman. She let it go a beat longer before she said, “Thank you, Lieutenant. I appreciate your candor.”

“Ma’am.” Steinberg nodded. “I’ll be ready to start questioning in a few minutes. One of my officers will let you know.” He strode out of the room.

An’gel resumed her seat. The tension seemed to lessen with Steinberg’s departure from the room, but not greatly, An’gel felt. She glanced from face to face, trying to discern whether one of them appeared more worried than the others. After her survey she concluded that, whoever was responsible for the death of Nathan Gamble, he or she wasn’t giving anything away at the moment.