My aunt gave me a look.
“Not because I’ve got the hots for him,” I clarified. “But maybe I can think of another angle to approach this moonshine issue.”
“Sounds good to me.” Fern reached for Moose and set him on the floor, which was a testament to her strength since he weighed as much as a sack of flour. “I know just the person we should talk to.”
“That’s great! Who?”
“My neighbor, Walter.”
I scrunched my nose. “Is that the guy that likes to click his false teeth?”
“Funny how you would remember something like that since I’m not even sure you’ve met him.”
“Yes, I have, once. Two years ago. And I’ll never forget it,” I shuddered. “It was more grating than fingernails on a chalkboard.”
“Well, hon, you’d better prepare yourself then,” she laughed. “Walter listens to the scanner most of the time, or he’s at Lulu’s Steamin’ Beans. He’s in the know.”
“Okay, give me fifteen minutes to get ready and then we can go see Walter.” I slid back my chair and stood.
“Better make it thirty minutes. It’s only six-thirty. If we show up before seven, we risk Walter not having his pants on yet.”
One glance at my aunt and I realized she was serious. I’d forgotten how early it was, and I was not one to risk that kind of trauma. “Let’s make it an hour.”
A little past seven-thirty, Fern and I made our way on foot to Walter Long’s place. He lived in a small bungalow about a block and a half down the hill from Fern. With weathered gray cedar shake siding, and a cobblestone path leading up to the front porch, the house had a charming quaint coastal feel. Not what I expected from a crusty retired fisherman.
Fern gave the door several hard raps. “Walter, it’s Fern; we need to talk. You decent?” She tilted her head to look at me. “Better safe than sorry.”
I nodded my agreement. Muffled footsteps sounded before the door flung open. “Fern,” Walter mumbled, and waved us in. “Gotta get my teeth.” His lips made a series of popping noises.
Well, at least he had pants on. Fern and I made ourselves comfortable in his small living room.
“That’s better,” he said more clearly, plopping down in a recliner. Walter was a small man, and the chair seemed to swallow him up. His baggy jeans would have fallen off if not for the suspenders, worn over a tucked-in plaid flannel. He looked more like a lumberjack.
“I’m guessing you’re here to talk about Earl.” He leaned back in his chair, extending the footrest. “But first, who’s the pretty young thing you brought with you?” Walter openly gaped at me, and waggled his white bushy eyebrows.
Okay, this guy was officially weird.
“Walter, this is my niece, Charlee. You’ve met her before, but you probably just don’t remember.”
“Oh, I don’t think so. I never forget a pretty face,” he scratched his chin, stubbled with several days of growth.
“Walter,” I smiled. “We were hoping you could tell us something about Earl. Have you heard anything? Do you know of anyone who may have wanted to kill him?”
“Ain’t it usually the wife?” Walter clicked his false teeth, and I forced myself not to cringe.
“Were they having problems in their marriage?” I asked.
“Doesn’t everyone?” He clicked his teeth again.
I did my best to ignore the grating sound. “Enough to kill him?”
“Not sure. I heard that they were going to move, and that they were having money problems. Being that Earl worked in insurance his whole life, I would guarantee there’s an insurance policy. Now that Earl’s out of the picture, Patty is a free woman, with money.” He waggled his bushy brows at me again. “How about that for a motive?”
Static and garbled voices erupted from the kitchen. The police scanner. Between that and the false teeth, I wasn’t sure how long I was going to make it here.
“Fern, had you heard they might be moving?” I shifted in the worn loveseat to look at my aunt.
“Yeah, at the hairdresser’s around a month ago,” Fern replied. “But I take everything I hear there with a grain of salt. I do remember Patty mentioned wanting to live in Arizona sometime in the past year or so. To be honest, we didn’t talk very much. She kept to herself.”
“Okay, so it’s possible Patty could have killed Earl for an insurance payout,” I hypothesized.
Fern thought a second. “Possible, but not likely. I never heard any yelling or fights or anything that would lead me to believe they didn’t get along.”
“It’s the quiet ones you have to look out for,” Walter chimed in.
“Walter, is there anyone else Earl may have had a beef with?” I asked.
“Maybe his old insurance partner. Earl sold out to him some years back when he retired, and I heard there was bad blood over the deal.”
Finally, something that might be useful. I guess I could put up with more clicking dentures if it would help us clear Fern’s name.
“Any details?” I probed further.
The scanner came to life again.
Walter raised his voice to talk over it. “I heard Earl didn’t get what he wanted out of the business. He’d been doing it for over thirty years, and thought it would be worth more. But his partner, Russell, wasn’t willing to pay it. Since there wasn’t anyone else interested in buying it, Earl gave in.”
“Is Russell still in business?”
“Yes, he’s at least a decade younger than Earl. I think he does pretty well, but I hear he’s a cheapskate,” Fern said.
“So, he could be a legitimate suspect?”
“Again, it’s possible,” Fern paused. “But it seems that Earl was the one upset, not Russell. Unless there was an argument gone wrong, where Russell hadn’t intended to kill Earl, I have a hard
