The Cart Before the Corpse by Carolyn McSparren

Author:Carolyn McSparren
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: Mystery
ISBN: 9781410425393
Publisher: Gale
Published: 2009-10-01T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Wednesday

Merry

I left the funeral home with most of the arrangements for Hiram’s funeral finished.

Now all I had to worry about was finding the honorary pallbearers and paying for all this. Maybe I should have cremated Hiram after all.

No. Somehow I’d pay the costs, even if I had to borrow money from Mr. Robertson. At the moment, American Express was on the hook for more than my yearly bill had been last year.

An hour later I left Hiram’s accountant’s office a happier camper. I would indeed be able to pay off American Express, and keep the farm’s expenses up to date as well.

Actually, after I eventually transferred all the accounts to my name, I wouldn’t be rich, but I would be comfortable. Hiram had done better than I would have imagined. He’d invested wisely and made money through the years. He had hefty checking and savings accounts not only in Bigelow, but in Aiken.

Mr. Haywood, the accountant, gave me copies of Hiram’s previous tax return and agreed to do his final tax return as well as to contact his investment accounts and social security for me.

He did not, however, have any of Hiram’s records for the current year, nor know where they were. Frustrated again.

I couldn’t transfer Hiram’s checking and savings accounts without copies of his death certificate. Mr. Robertson said they’d be sent directly from the state to the funeral home and wouldn’t arrive for a week or so. As soon as I got the funeral out of the way, I needed to start trying to find a lock box or storage shed in Mossy Creek or Bigelow in Hiram’s name. Then I’d have to start in Southern Pines and Aiken.

I hoped the death certificates would arrive before my bill for the funeral did or my credit would be shot to hell. I picked up a turkey sub and a couple of six packs of diet soda and drove straight back to the apartment. On the way I called Jacob Yoder’s cell phone. When he answered, he sounded morose and grumpy, but sober.

Probably the reason he was morose and grumpy.

“Yeah, I handled it all this morning, and I will handle it this evening and tomorrow morning.” He sighed deeply. Much put upon. Of course, it was his job, but that didn’t make him any happier about doing it. “When’s the funeral?”

I told him and asked him to be an honorary pallbearer.

“Got no suit. You will spring for one?”

I could see him buying an expensive Italian suit on my dollar. “Sorry, not in the budget. Wear whatever you wear to take your lady friend out on the weekends.”

Silence. “Very well. I suppose.”

“I’m up to my ears until the funeral’s over, Jacob. If I can count on you, I promise I’ll add another hundred to the Easter driving.” What was another piddly hundred bucks compared to what I’d already spent?

Another silence. “Very well.”

“Sober. Drunk doesn’t count.”

I hung up before he could protest. What I needed now was lunch, a nap, my laptop and a telephone.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.