Murder in South Carolina Read online

  With a well-manicured hand she placed her purse under the desk and reached for her appointment book. There was nothing special today.

  “Damn,” she muttered and pushed the book aside. She wanted to be able to show Rex she was working as hard here as she did in Columbia.

  “Maybe Walter will have something impressive…if he shows up,” she said with a snarl. She wondered if she should give him a call and tell him Rex was coming.

  No, she decided. Let him come in or not. It was his neck he was gambling with.

  Megan didn’t like Walter Overton and at times she had a hard time hiding it. It amazed her that a man like Walter could be related to a Collier. Walter wasn’t anywhere near the Colliers’ class. She still wondered why the family had set him up in business here.

  Sighing, she looked around the office. The cleaning crew had been in the night before. It was presentable. She pulled up her chair and turned on her computer. She had done all she could do to prepare for Rex’s visit. It was now time to get busy on some proposals Walter had left unfinished.

  She smiled as she typed out the text. None of it was as good as what Rex did back in Columbia. This pleased her because Grady Collier had objected to his son being brought into the firm. Jessup Collier, the grandfather was the one who had insisted Rex be made a partner.

  Megan recalled the morning she was asked to come into Jessup Collier’s office to take notes. She could still recite the conversation between the elder man and his son.

  “Do you remember how I thought you wouldn’t be an asset to the company, Son?” Jessup Collier had asked Grady. “If your mother hadn’t insisted I take you on, I’d have lost a good man. Now I want to give my grandson the same chance I gave you.”

  “You have that right, Father. I just want you to know I have reservations about Rex. I’m not sure he’ll fit in as well as you think,” Grady Collier said.

  “Your reservations are noted, but as you know, I’m considering retirement. You won’t even have to change the name of the firm. Your son will become the second Collier and I can spend time in other pursuits.”

  “I don’t see you pursuing anything, but this business. It’s your life and you know it.”

  Jessup Collier chuckled. “I suppose you’re right. But I still want my grandson working here.”

  “Then I won’t stand in his way.”

  “Good. Now that it’s settled, let’s all get to work.”

  Megan was glad Rex was proving his grandfather right. She only wished Jessup Collier could be here to see. Jessup suffered a debilitating stroke last year and was now confined in bed with around-the-clock nurses. No one was sure if he knew anything that went on in the world about him. Though Rex told her occasionally about visiting the older man, Megan didn’t have the nerve to ask if she could visit him.

  Coming back to the present, she glanced at her watch.

  “Where the hell is everyone?” she demanded into the air. “It’s eight thirty. What a day for everyone to be late.”

  * * * *

  Jennifer Rogers paused and looked at the “Do Not Disturb” sign. She knew the same sign was on the door yesterday and the day before. She wondered if she should go into the room. She hadn’t seen anyone coming in or going out, and the occupant was certainly a quite one. She couldn’t even hear a television playing inside. Shrugging her shoulders, she decided she’d clean the room next door and wait to see if anyone came to life.

  She was spreading sheets on the bed next door when Wanda Tilton poked her head in. “When are you going to be through?”

  “About ten minutes. Why?”

  “I’m ready for a smoke break. Thought you might want to come with me. I’ve got to tell you about my date last night.”

  “What happened?”

  Wanda came into the room. “Billy took me to the Flamingo Grill.”

  “That’s great. I thought only the rich locals ate there.”

  “He wanted to impress me, I guess.” She moved to the other side of the bed and began tucking the sheet in.

  “Why would he want to impress you?”

  “It was our anniversary. Can you believe we’ve been together for three years now?”

  “That’s a record. Sam and me didn’t make it that long.”

  “You’ll meet the right man one day.”

  “I hope so.”

  They finished the room and went into the hall. Jennifer glanced at the “Do Not Disturb” sign and said, “Nobody has been seen around that room and the sign’s been there for two days now. I wonder if we should knock on the door.”

  “I wouldn’t worry about it. If they don’t want clean sheets, that’s their problem.”

  “I guess you’re right.”

  “I’m sure I am.” She took her friend’s arm. “Leave your cart here and let’s go smoke.”

  It didn’t take much convincing. “A cigarette sure would be good.” Jennifer said as she tossed her dust cloth on the cart.

  Twenty minutes later Jennifer returned to get her cart. The sign on the door still intrigued her, but she wasn’t one to interfere with the hotel guests. She was still pondering what to do when Miss Dinkins came down the hall.

  “What’s up, Jennifer?”

  “This room bothers me. I ain’t seen anybody around in two days. Do you think something could be wrong?”

  “I doubt it. It’s probably a golfer who stays out on the course most of the day and then parties at one of the strip clubs at night.”

  “I’d think they’d want clean sheets on the bed.”

  Miss Dinkins looked at her list. “They’re supposed to check out this morning. They should be up by now.”

  “Should I knock on the door?”

  “Yes, do that.”

  Jennifer tapped lightly on the door.

  There was no response.

  She tapped a little harder.

  Still no response.

  Miss Dinkins came over and knocked on the door. When no one answered, she muttered, “The fool probably left and forgot to take the sign off the door.” She put her key in the lock and opened the door. “Is anyone in here?”

  The room was empty. “Like I said. They left the sign on the door by mistake. Go ahead and clean the room.”

  “Okay, Miss Dinkins.”

  The room didn’t look as if it needed much cleaning. She took the ice bucket off the table, put a new liner in it and left clean glasses on the counter. The bathtub sparkled and none of the towels looked as if they’d been used. She replaced them anyway then took the spread off the bed.

  Jennifer thought it was funny that some guests insisted on making the bed before leaving the hotel. It wasn’t as if they were going to stay made. To her surprise the sheets were smooth and undisturbed. She was sure the bed hadn’t been slept in, but to be on the safe side she put clean sheets on the bed anyway. Though the floor looked clean, she ran the vacuum. The whole process took less than twenty minutes. That was good for a suite this size.

  “I wish everyone was a neat as this guy,” she mumbled as she went out the door and closed it behind her.

  Chapter 7

  Rex Collier soothed back his wavy brown hair and smiled at Megan. “You’ve done a splendid job, my dear.”

  She beamed. “Thank you.”

  “I don’t know why we keep Walter on here. You seem to operate fine without him.”

  She blushed. “Walter’s very good with people. The women all seem to like him.”

  “That may be true, but as for me, I’d much rather do business with a pretty lady like yourself.”

  “You flatter me, Mr. Collier.”

  “Haven’t you learned to call me Rex yet? I thought we settled that in Columbia some time back.”

  “Your wife asked me to be more formal.” She bit her lip, wishing she hadn’t said anything about Colleen Collier.

  “So? What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” He threw Megan his most charming smile. “It’s almost noon. How about lunch? “

  “
Aren’t we going to wait to see if Walter arrives?”

  “To Hell with Walter. He should have been here hours ago. If he can’t learn to be at work on time, I’m going to have a talk with him.”

  Smiling inside, she stood. “Then, I’d love lunch. Where shall we go?”

  “There’s some land near Broadway at the Beach that I heard might be bought. Why don’t we head in that direction?”

  “There are some great restaurants there, too. Hard Rock Cafe and T-Bonz are two of my favorite.”

  “Then we’ll choose one of those and have lunch.” He opened her office door.

  “Kathy,” she said to the receptionists. “We’re off to lunch.”

  “Yes.” Rex added. “And if Mr. Overton arrives tell him there’s some business Miss Eller and I need to take care of. It will probably take the rest of the afternoon.”

  Once seated in his dark blue Mercedes, Megan looked at him. “Will looking at some property take all afternoon?”

  “Probably not, but since we’ll be close to the condo the company owns, I thought we might drop by there and go for a swim or something.”

  “Is the condo not being used this week?”

  “No. There are some golfing friends of Dad’s coming in tonight, but we’ll have time for a dip.” He winked at her. “That’s why I’m staying in a hotel tonight. I’ve tried to get dad to buy another place here so we could have one for clients and one for our personal use at any time, but so far he hasn’t decided to do so.”

  Megan didn’t say anything, but her heart began to pound. She couldn’t help wondering if Rex had more in mind than going for a swim. She couldn’t help hoping he did.

  * * * *

  It was almost time for the bank to close, but Dolly didn’t want to rush. The little room where she sat to go through the safe deposit box was nothing more than a cubicle. If she hadn’t been so excited, she knew her phobia would have kicked in, but looking at all the money in the box kept it at bay. She estimated it at about a hundred thousand dollars.

  She ran her hand over the bills and closed her eyes. “Oh, Walter. How can I ever thank you? There’s enough here to last me a long time.”

  She took fifty one hundred dollar bills and slipped them into her purse. Reluctantly, she closed the box and snapped it shut. She knew Walter was right about one thing. She needed to be smart about this. She’d take the money out a little at a time and it would never be noticed in her checking account. For the first time, she’d pay cash for things. That wouldn’t be hard because all of the money was in one hundred dollar bills.

  Leaving the bank, she decided it would be a good time to go to the mall. She got into her gray Cadillac and wondered if it would be too showy to buy a sports car. A red one. She’d always wanted a red sports car. Walter had said they didn’t need showy things.

  “Slow down, girl.” She laughed. “That will have to come later when things die down. The rest of the world has to learn that Walter has skipped the country. You have to keep a cool head.”

  She’d shop until the mall closed, she decided. Then she’d get something to eat. Maybe lobster, her favorite. After this, she’d come home and celebrate her good fortune. She’d have a bottle of champagne and plan what to do with the rest of her money.

  She parked her car in front of Belk Department Store at the mall and smiled to herself. “I’m going directly to the designer departments,” she said aloud. “No bargains for this old girl today.”

  * * * *

  By early evening, Nola Dean was hungry. She’d spent so much time going over the newspaper to see if she could come up with any clues about the body that she’d skipped lunch. At three she decided to rest a little before fixing something to eat and without meaning to, she fell asleep. It was almost six-thirty when she woke up.

  She’d dreamed about Marcus again and it had left her in a melancholy mood. For a moment she wondered if she should call Dolly and Walter and see if they wanted to meet her for dinner, but she decided against it. Dolly had said Walter was on a business trip. If he was home, they’d probably want their evening to themselves.

  “I know what I’ll do, Bubbles,” she said to the cat sprawled on the barrel chair. “I’m going to treat myself to dinner out. A good meal of crab legs will make me feel better.”

  She took a shower, dressed in white slacks and a light green sweater and plaited her hair in a French braid, clipping the end with a green bow that matched the sweater.

  When she reached Kings Highway, she decided Bennett’s Seafood was a good place to stop. Though it wasn’t one of the more trendy restaurants, it had a buffet which competed with any of them and here you could have all the crab legs you wanted.

  “Just one?” The hostess asked when she stepped inside.

  “Yes,” she said and bit her lip to keep from adding, “Isn’t it all right for one person to have dinner? Does everything in life come in twos?”

  “Come this way.”

  Nola Dean followed her to the back room and was shown a table on the left side of the wall.

  “Your waitress will be right with you.”

  “Thank you.”

  The waitress took her drink order and told Nola Dean to help herself to the buffet.

  Nola Dean went to the buffet and filled a plate with crab legs. She was sitting down when a voice said, “Well, hello, Ms. Buckingham.”

  “Hi,” Nola Dean nodded.

  “Are you alone?”

  “Yes. And you?”

  “I am.”

  “Then, would you like to join me, Ms. Willis?”

  “Thanks. I get tired of eating dinner alone.”

  “Sometimes I do, too.”

  Bett seated herself across from Nola Dean. “I hope it’s good tonight?”

  “I haven’t eaten here in some time, but I’ve never been disappointed with the food.” Nola Dean cracked another crab leg.

  “Me either. I’ll get my food and be right back.”

  After Bett returned, Nola Dean asked, “How long have you been a police officer, Ms. Willis?”

  “Eight years. But I’ve only been at Myrtle Beach about a year. I was promoted to detective a few weeks ago.” She cracked a crab leg. “How about you, Ms. Buckingham? What do you do?”

  “I have a real estate company in Greenville.” She smiled at her companion. “Since we’re sharing a meal and life stories, do you think we could use first names? I’m Nola Dean.”

  “That sounds good to me. I’m Bett.”

  After a slight pause, Nola Dean asked. “What about your hobbies, Bett. What do you like to do besides catch criminals?”

  “I don’t admit this to many people, but I have a passion for books. I read every romance novel in sight. I’ve even tried my hand at writing one.”

  “Then you’re an artist too. I have a passion for sketching and drawing. I want to take some painting classes sometime. If I ever give up real estate, I think I’d like to spend my time painting.”

  “I know what you mean. I’d like to write all the time, but the bills have to be paid and Myrtle Beach is full of starving writers.”

  “I’m surprised you wouldn’t want to write mysteries.”

  “No. I get enough of that at work.”

  Nola Dean finished off the last of her crab legs. “I think I’ll go for seconds. Want anything?”

  “No, thanks. I’ll go back soon.”

  When she returned she asked, “Bett, you know I’ve been bursting to ask if you’ve found out anything about the body in my condo.”

  “I wondered if you were going to bring it up.” Bett chuckled. “I suppose you still think it was the man on the beach.”

  “I can’t help but think so. I haven’t heard about any other bodies around.” She paused with her fork in midair. “Do you think it was the same person?”

  “I don’t know, but the coroner seems to think the body was put on the beach after he died.” She laid her napkin beside her plate. “You wouldn’t be able to identify him would you?”
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  “I didn’t see him. I only fell on him when I came in.”

  “I see.” Bett stood. “I’m going for seconds now.”

  When she returned Nola Dean asked, “Do you believe me when I say there was a body in my condo, Bett?”

  “Oddly enough, I do. Joe kind of had his doubts at first, but I think it’s too bizarre to be made up. He’s beginning to think you’re telling the truth.”

  “I know he thinks I’m a nut, but I have no reason to lie.”

  “Don’t worry about what Joe thinks right now. He’s a good detective. It doesn’t take him long to realize the truth about things. I guess it all stems back to his broken engagement.”

  “Oh?” Nola Dean couldn’t help being interested.

  “Seems he was all set to marry this woman and the night before the wedding she ran off with another man. I think he’s been leery of anything a woman says since. It was several years ago and of course he dates quite a bit, but as far as I know he hasn’t had another serious relationship. I know a lot of women would like to tie him down, but nobody has been able to.”

  Nola Dean wondered if Bett was one of the women who would like to tie Joe down. She didn’t voice this but said, “I’m sorry that happened to him, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m telling the truth.” Nola Dean cracked another crab. “I’m having a hard time getting my mind around the fact that someone got into my condo without my knowledge.”

  “That’s what makes the whole thing a mystery.”

  “It’s beyond me. I have enough trouble in my life. I don’t need anything this weird to happen to me now.”

  “What kind of trouble?” Bett showed interest.

  “Not trouble exactly. Just upsetting things. I took my only child to college. I miss her terribly, but I’ll get through it I’m sure.”

  Bett was staring at her.

  “Is something wrong?”

  “I can’t believe you’re old enough to have a child in college. When did you start your family? Twelve?”

  Nola Dean chuckled. “Not quiet that young. I was nineteen when Emily was born.”

  “Then you must have a husband?”

  “No. He died in an auto accident when Emily was five. I’ve never remarried. How about you?”