Murder is Legal (The Susan Wiles Schoolhouse Mysteries Book 6) by Diane Weiner

Author:Diane Weiner [Weiner, Diane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cozy Cat Press
Published: 2016-05-12T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

Susan and Mike pulled into the Holiday Inn. Jonathan had reserved a conference room behind the lobby, and once settled, Brooks and Jonathan reported what they’d found.

“I talked to Richard and got the names of three of Maggie’s friends,” said Brooks. “One is dead. Cancer. Another lives about an hour from here. I called, and she said she’d meet with us this evening. The third was a coworker. I haven’t been able to locate her.”

Jonathan said, “I looked into the real estate records. Maggie sold a ton of houses in what was then a brand new development near the Ford plant. I tracked down the name of the builder. Maggie and he had a contract. He built the houses; she had exclusive selling rights.”

“Did you talk to him?” said Susan.

“Here’s the weird part,” replied Jonathan. “The man had a booming business. Couldn’t build houses fast enough to keep up with the demand. A few months after the trial, the guy goes and jumps off a bridge. Doesn’t make any sense.”

“Very strange,” said Mike. “Do you think he’s the one who was sending flowers?”

“I don’t know. Maybe when we talk to Maggie’s friend tonight she can answer that,” said Susan.

After making plans to meet later on, Susan and Mike headed home. Susan changed into her favorite yoga pants and a velour sweatshirt. She noticed two new messages on her phone. The first was from Westbrook High. The media specialist wanted to find out if she was still returning to volunteer the next day. Susan missed her friends at the school. Volunteering was way more fun than teaching had been. She had the time to gossip and order out for lunch—things she could never do as a teacher. Next she called Lynette.

“Mom, I wanted to let you know I checked into Maggie’s financial records. There were a series of large deposits made into her savings account at regular intervals. I couldn’t trace where they were from.”

“Were they commission checks? We found out she sold a lot of houses back then.”

“If that were the case,” replied Lynette, “the amounts would have varied. Commissions are based on a percentage of the sale price. Also the deposits wouldn’t have been made at regular intervals. If she was able to sell houses on schedule like that, she would have written a best-selling book, or at least she would have won a realtor-of-the-year trophy.”

“What then? Bribes? Was she skimming money?”

“Skimming money off her own business? I don’t think so. If she was taking bribes, for what? Who was paying her and for what?”

“We’re meeting one of her friends tonight. I’ll ask if she has any ideas.”

Susan cooked stir-fried chicken and vegetables for dinner. Since the heart attack scare back in Atlanta, Mike hadn’t been objecting at all to eating a healthier diet. She slipped a bit of her chicken to Ludwig and Johann, hoping to make up for the time away. After dinner, she packed the leftovers for Mike’s lunch, then retrieved his clean clothes from the dryer and brought the basket upstairs.

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