'I know he is. He was present when I discussed the terms with Lydia. Let's go in now. Considering recent events, I think we might schedule the family cocktail hour a bit earlier today.'
'Second the motion,' I said.
But despite the preprandial drinks and a fine dinner (duckling with cherry sauce), it was a lugubrious evening. Conversation faltered; the death of our neighbor seemed to make a mockery of good food and excellent wine. I think we all felt guilty, as if we should be fasting to show respect. Ridiculous, of course. An Irish wake makes much more sense.
After dinner I retired to my nest and worked on my journal awhile. Then I tried to read those books on spiritualism Mrs. Gillsworth had lent me. Heavy going. But I began to understand the basic appeal of the faith. It does promise a kind of immortality, does it not? But then so does every other religious belief, offering heaven, paradise, nirvana-whatever one wishes to call it.
It was all awfully serious stuff, and as I've stated on more than one occasion, I am not a serious johnny. In fact, my vision of the final beatitude is of a place resembling the Pelican Club where all drinks are on the house.
So I tossed the books aside and went back to wondering about the motive for Hertha Gloriana's kiss.
I came to 110 conclusion except to resolve that if there was an encore I would respond in a more manful and determined fashion.
Only to further the investigation, of course.
7
The most noteworthy happening of the following Sunday was that I accompanied my parents to church. I am not an avid churchgoer. As a matter of fact, I had not attended services since a buxom contralto in the choir with whom I had been consorting married a naval aviator and moved to Pensacola. After that, my faith dwindled.
But that morning I sat in the McNally pew, sang hymns, and stayed awake throughout the sermon, which was based on the dictum that it is more blessed to give than to receive. I supposed that included a stiff bop on the snoot. But the final prayer was devoted to Lydia Gillsworth, a former member of the congregation. The short eulogy was touching, and I was glad I was there to hear it.
We returned home to find a police car parked outside our back door. Sgt. A1 Rogoff, in civvies,
was in the kitchen drinking coffee with the Olsons. He stood up when we entered and apologized for his presence on a Sunday.
'But there are some things to talk about,' he said to my father. 'Including funeral arrangements. The Medical Examiner will release the. .' He glanced at mother, and his voice trailed off.
'Of course, sergeant,' Pere McNally said. 'Suppose you come into the study. I'll phone Gillsworth and find out what his wishes are.'
'Fine,' Al said, then looked at me before he followed my father. 'You going to be around awhile?' he asked.
'I can be,' I said.
'Do try, Archy,' Rogoff said with that heavy sarcasm he sometimes affects. 'I want to talk to you.'
'I'm on the third floor,' I told him. 'Come up when you and father have finished.'
I trudged upstairs, took off my Sunday-go-to-meet-ing costume, and pulled on flannel bags and a fuchsia Lacoste. I was wondering if I had time to nip downstairs for a tub of ice cubes when there was a knock on the door.
It was the first time the sergeant had been in my rooms, and he looked about with interest.
'Not bad,' he said.
'The best thing about it is the rent.'
He laughed. 'Zilch?' he asked.
'You got it,' I said. 'Al, would you like a wee bit of the old nasty?'
'What's available?'
'Marc.'
'What the hell is that?'
'Brandy made from wine sludge.'
'I'm game. But just a small one.'
I poured two tots, and A1 sampled his. He gasped and squinched his eyes.
'That'll take the tartar off my teeth,' he said.
I had few accommodations for visitors, so the sergeant sat in the swivel chair behind my desk while I pulled up a rather tatty leather ottoman.
'How did you and father make out with Gillsworth?'
'Okay. He's going to take the casket up north. Apparently there's a family plot in a Rhode Island cemetery. She'll be buried there.'
We sipped our minuscule drinks slowly. There is no other way to imbibe marc and survive.
'Al,' I said, 'I understand you hauled away the grandfather clock from the murder scene.'
'That's right. It's a nice antique. Bleached pine case.'
'What was the reason for taking it?'
'I wanted to find out if it was in working order before it was toppled.'
'And was it?'
'Yep, according to the expert who examined it. When it was knocked over, one of the gears jolted loose and the clock stopped.'
'So the time it showed was the time of the murder?'
'Seems like it, doesn't it.'
I sighed. 'You're not giving anything away, are you? Have you finally decided Gillsworth is clean?'
'He appears to be,' Rogoff said grudgingly. 'The time it takes to drive from here to his place at a legal speed checks out. Ordinarily his wife would have been home earlier from the seance, but she stayed awhile to talk with one of the women.'
'Who told you that?'
'The woman.' 'This is like pulling teeth,' I said. 'Would you mind telling me the woman's name, sergeant?'
'Mrs. Irma Gloriana, the mother-in-law of the medium. You know her?'
'Mrs. Irma Gloriana?' I said carefully. 'No, I've never met the lady. What's she like?'
'A tough broad,' Al said, then paused and cast his eyes heavenward. 'Forgive me, Susan B. Anthony,' he said. 'I meant to say that she's a strong-willed individual of the female gender.'
'That's better,' I said approvingly. 'Otherwise I might have to charge you with PI-Political Incorrectness. Did you meet the medium?'
'Nope. She and her husband weren't home. I'll catch up with them tomorrow, along with all the others who were at the seance. I have their names.'
'Where was the seance held?'
'At the Glorianas' condo. It's in a high-rise near Currie Park.'
'A luxury high-rise?'
'Not very,' Rogoff said. 'In fact, I thought it was a ratty place. I guess communing with the dear departed doesn't pay as well as selling pizzas.'
'Guess not,' I said. 'How did you get on to this Mrs. Irma Gloriana?'
'Gillsworth gave me her name. He had been to three or four seances with his wife and knew where they were held. But after a while he stopped going. Says the whole idea of spiritualism just doesn't grab him.'
'Uh-huh. Did you time how long it would take Lydia to drive home from the seance?'
'That was the whole point, wasn't it? Of course I timed it. If Lydia left when the mother-in-law says she did, then she would have arrived home about when her husband talked to her from your father's study.'
'So everything fits and Gillsworth is cleared?'
