“All that plus the lies and inconsistencies you confronted her with today. Those things were just hints not proof, but they tipped me off. Now it’s up to Chip to nail down the proof."
“We needed to search her place,” Chip said. “This videotape is mostly circumstantial, but it gives us enough to get a search warrant.”
“She no doubt burned that silk scarf with the blue and red triangles,” Sandy said. “Any chance blood splattered on the suit she was wearing? Although I guess she’d have it cleaned.”
“We sometimes contact a suspect’s dry cleaner. They tend to remember bloodstains. More likely, she’d burn it if she noticed it. We’ll scope her entire closet, including the soles of all shoes. We know someone stepped in his blood splatter.”
“Remember when I was first arrested, and you tested my hands for gunshot residue?”
“It would be long gone from her hands.”
“That’s not what I’m getting at. Does GSR cling to cloth for a long time?”
“It can, but it brushes off and it washes off.”
“Well, when I first met Tammy in the restaurant at noon on the day of the murder, she had one of those large satchel handbags. I remember because it was next to her on the table, and I was thinking how well coordinated she was. I remember it was light brown because it matched her suit. As I recall, it was suede. Would gunshot residue stick to suede?”
“Like Florida bugs to a windshield.”
“Look for that suede bag when you search her place. I’m guessing after shooting Towson, she put the gun in that handbag because that’s what she was carrying that day. You won’t find the gun in there, but I’ll bet you’ll find gunshot residue.”
“If she put the recently fired gun in her purse, the lab will find residue and traces of firearm oil,” Chip explained. “They’ll do a Trace Metal Test, use infrared photography and a microscopic examination. They can match it with the residue found at the murder scene. I’m arresting her right now. We’re dropping all charges against you.”
“My nightmare ends.”
Sandy said, “A good attorney will say it’s not first degree, that she didn’t go there to shoot him, they got in an argument. Her attorney will make it sound like a lover’s quarrel, passion of the moment. She might try to plea out to manslaughter?”
“She won’t get to keep those Chinese porcelain dishes she inherited when Towson’s brother finds out they’re worth a half-million dollars,” Ray said.
“Seriously, that much?” Sandy asked.
“Easily. He had several complete settings plus the historical directory. Towson, apparently, wanted to take care of Tammy should he die. She would have been a rich woman. Instead, she goes to jail because he broke her heart. Meanwhile, Loraine has replaced me in jail, arrested for drowning Barner.”
“Loraine is a real culprit here,” Sandy said. “Her greed set off the whole chain of events, starting with framing you for the murder.”
“She still thinks Barner was the murderer, so she’s expecting to be charged with conspiracy to commit murder, as well,” Chip said. “We think she paid Barner a lot of cash up front to kill Towson. He just pocketed the money with no intention of doing anything. Let her yell. What could she do? So, when Towson was shot, Loraine naturally assumed he did it. Barner figured what the hell, tells her yeah he did it. And goes to her place for the payoff.”
Sandy said, “So, Barner was in Vegas spending the down payment, and was overjoyed when he heard about the murder. The target he had no intention of shooting had been shot. He came back pretending he had finished the murder contract, and to get the rest of the money from her. And get it before the police caught the real killer. Don’t you love it?”
Chip said, “So, she drowns him thinking she’s covering up her part in Towson’s murder, but she had no part in Towson’s murder. Furthermore, she believed the gun she was trying so hard to conceal was the murder weapon, but it had no relevance.”
“So, bug guy outsmarts Mensa Babe. Can you nail her for drowning him?” Ray asked.
“Murder by drowning is one of the toughest homicides to prove,” Chip said. ”We have motive, but only circumstantial evidence. She’s hired Gerald White, the whiz Palm Beach lawyer. Remember he got that rich Neilson kid off a couple of years ago: the senator’s no-good nephew who they charged with rape, DUI and leaving the scene of the accident that killed his date. Moran can’t compete with him.”
“So, Chip, you think Loraine will still get the big life insurance payoff on Towson?” Ray asked.
“Sure. The insurance company will try to hold things up, but I don’t see how the conspiracy charge can be proven with Barner dead.”
“Here’s the big twist,” Sandy explained, “Moran was indeed faced with the murder of a very important public figure. But, he was so focused on making it into a big national crime he overlooked a simple small-town killing for unrequited love. He’ll get a conviction on Tammy, and she’ll face some years behind bars, but the trial will be small potatoes compared to Loraine’s.”
“What do you mean?” Ray asked.
“Loraine’s trial will be a huge national sensation. It will be a circus. Think about it: you have sex, a seventy-year-old beauty in a thong, millions in insurance money, conspiracy, and a murder-for-hire scheme. Plus, one additional murder by drowning thrown in at no extra charge. Seriously, the media will go wild.”
“They’ll call it the Granny-Thong Caper,” Ray said. “I might write a book.”
Sandy continued, “The hotshot lawyer, Gerald White, will get a couple million of Loraine’s insurance money, and she’ll be acquitted. From then on, Moran will be known as the second-rate who can’t cut it in the big time.”
“So Moran will get the big sensational crime case he’s always wanted. Except he’ll be on the losing end,” Chip said. “Big toad Moran will never get out of his small pond.”
Ray said, “So heartsick Tammy goes to jail. Greedy Loraine murders and ends up free and very wealthy. And I learn a lesson about minding my own business.”
Sandy winked at him. “Well, now that I know you, I like the way you are. Don’t change too much. In truth, I thought the granny-sex was kind of cute, but by my count, you’ve slept with two murderers. You might try cutting back on that.”
“No one else could have done what you did, digging in, setting up relationships with Chip and Linda, getting in people’s faces and negotiating. You made things happen. Without you, I’d still be in jail at the mercy of little Bonaparte. You’re going to be one deadly lawyer. I owe you for all this and still owe you for way back when, Sandy.”
“Call me Sis. We were different people back then, just a couple of kids. All is forgiven. It’s lonely out there. I think I came down here because subconsciously I wanted some family in my life.”
“I glad you’re my sister.” Ray stepped toward her and reached out his hand. She took his hand and quickly pulled him to her. She gave him a light kiss on the cheek and locked her arms around him.
He was surprised and speechless. After a moment he was able to say, “You saved me, Sis.”
“Well, sisters do nice things like that,” she said. She released him and when she looked up, he saw that her cheeks were wet.
He needed a moment and then said, “And I’m getting smarter about women, Sis. Meg Emerson invited me over for dinner tonight. I think she likes me.”
Sandy rolled her eyes, “No kidding, you really think so?”
“She wants to talk about us being partners and starting a retirement plan consulting firm. She’s a whiz at sales, and I know the paperwork end.”