Page 5

Angus smiled at the young man walking toward them. He looked younger than the nineteen he knew him to be. Could probably pass for sixteen if he wanted. He was a few inches shorter than Angus, but fit and probably found time to work out several days a week. His dark brown hair brushed his shoulders and blew in the wind enough that he had to brush it from his face several times. "Jared Winder?"

Jared nodded. "Yes." He offered his hand. "I'm glad to see you. I was wondering what was going on with Scott's body and if there would be a funeral. All those long conversations we had, and we never talked about what his plans were when he died. I feel kind of bad now for not asking."

"It's a hard conversation to have." Franks offered his hand. "I'm Detective Franks. We're hoping to find something like a will or maybe a receipt from a cemetery if he bought a plot. Right now, the M.E. is holding the body until they find someone to release it to."

"And if there is nothing inside the house?" Jared asked.

"Then someone claims the body and pays for a burial or cremation, or the M.E. decide whether to donate the body to science or cremate it and either hold or do a burial of the urn." Angus glanced at Franks. "I'm not real sure on how it's handled, but I can find out."

"Yeah, I'm not sure on that either. I know they hold them for a while, but I'm not sure how long." Franks shrugged.

"If no one claims the body, I will. I don't know how I'll pay for a burial, but I'll find a way. He was a good friend. He deserves that much. I know he has no other family around, but maybe a friend or something knows what he wants." Jared stared at the house. "I just can't believe he's gone."

"We're sorry for your loss." Angus saw the pain in Jared's face. "Hopefully, Mr. Mayburn left some plan for what he wants done."

Jared nodded and pulled out a small keychain. On it were three keys. "He gave me these a few years ago. One opens the front door, the other opens the garage door, and this one is for his car. I used to drive him to the store when he wasn't up to driving himself." He turned and walked toward the house. "The last few years, he didn't like to drive."

"Was he sick?" Franks asked.

"No. It was just age. His eyesight wasn't great, and he felt his reaction time had slowed. Honestly, I didn't see it. I think he just wanted company. I never saw anyone visit him other than me and my brother." Jared put the key in the lock and turned it. He pushed the door open and sighed. "It still smells."

Angus noticed the scent of death immediately. He wasn't surprised since the body had sat in the home for several days before being found. "It's to be expected. Once we figure out what he wanted done with his home, there are companies that can come in and clean to help get rid of any smell or stains left from the body."

Jared glanced toward the kitchen. "I was surprised how fast he started to decompose."

"Yeah, it doesn't take long." Franks moved farther into the house. "Do you have any idea where he kept important papers? Did he have an office or anything?"

"No, he did all his work at the kitchen table. He had a file folder he kept bills and receipts in. He'd take it out of his bedroom when I saw him with it. As for his car title or the papers for the house, I have no idea." Jared sighed. "Sorry. Again, I should have asked him about those things."

"It's okay. We'll start with the bedroom and go from there. Maybe he has a filing cabinet or something. Hell, my uncle keeps everything in a dresser drawer. If there is something here, we'll find it." Franks moved down a small hallway as he slid on a pair of gloves. "Which room is his?"

"The one at the end on the left." Jared followed and stood in the doorway. "I'm sorry I can't stay to help. I have to work at eleven. I'll be home around eight tonight if you have questions for me."

"It's not a problem. We'll lock up when we leave. We can hide the keys or bring them back to you tomorrow if that's easier." Angus focused his attention on Jared while Franks looked around the small bedroom.

"You can just drop them under the flowerpot on the back porch. I'll get them tonight. Would you call me and let me know if you find anything? I know I'm not his family, but I'm all he had. I'd like to know if I need to sell my car or something so I can bury him." Jared looked pained at the idea but determined.

"Maybe sell his car instead of yours. Of course, that will depend on if there is a will and if the estate ends up in probate or anything." Angus glanced around, trying hard not to go directly to the closet where he knew things were. He quickly pulled on a pair of gloves, ready to start looking. "We'll let you know what we find. You're a good friend for stepping up."

"Thanks. He was good to me. Helped me a lot when my mother died." Jared sighed. "I need to go. You'll see the flowerpot on the back steps. There's only one." He turned to go.

Angus listened for the front door to close before looking at Franks, who had been opening and closing dresser drawers as if looking for something. "Closet?"

"Let's hope it's there." Franks walked over and slid the closet open. Inside hung several expensive suits along with some casual pants and shirts. Three pairs of shoes sat on the floor, and above, on a shelf, right where they were told it would be, was the lockbox. Franks took a few photos before he reached up and pulled it down. Going to the bed, he set it there, opened the top, and took a few more photos.

"This has to be it." Angus looked at the thick pile of folders and papers inside.

Franks pulled the stack out and set it aside before taking the first paper and reading over it. "This is the information on the house insurance." He set it aside and grabbed the next papers.

They continued until they'd found everything they needed. Angus held the will, the attorney's information, and the sealed envelope that had OPEN UPON DEATH on the front of it. He sighed as he took several photos of it. "We need to read this. Where do you want to do it?"

"In the car. I want to get away from this smell." Franks frowned. "I'd open a few windows if I wasn't worried about someone breaking in."

"Could be worse. He was only here three days. We've walked in after a week and been hit with a smell that makes you gag." Angus took the papers and headed back out to the car. He left the house unlocked, sure that they would want to look around the backyard once they read the confession.

"True, but it's still a smell you never get used to. I don't know how Lance and the others deal with that smell every day." Franks followed Angus to the car.

"He says he barely notices it most days, but they do have ways to minimize it if it's bad. He's convinced he comes home smelling like death, but usually, I don't notice it. It's why he always heads to the shower first thing." Angus got into the car, pulled off the old gloves, and put a new pair on.

Once Franks had gotten in and did the same, he nodded to the envelope. "Open it."

Angus carefully tore open the envelope using a small knife he always carried. He pulled out the papers inside and paused to take photos of each one with his phone. Once done, he put them back in order, trying hard to not focus on the map he'd seen drawn at the end. He read one page, then passed it to Franks so he could do the same.

It was exactly as Scott had relayed to Lance. There were a few minor other details, but he claimed his father had strangled his mother and buried her in the yard, never speaking of it again until now. Scott apologized for keeping the secret for so long and to whoever would have to handle the mess once he was gone. Angus could sense the emotion in the written words, making it almost as if Scott was telling him personally what had happened.

"Wow. Again, I don't know how he lived with that secret for so long. You can tell it upset him." Franks sighed as he set the last page down. "Think there's anything left to find back there?"

"Could be. Lance would know better how fast a body decomposes. He said something about it depending on the soil and temperature. But the teeth would still be there and probably some bone. He mentioned something called grave wax. I'm not sure I want to know what that is."

"Yeah, me neither. Your man deals with some very strange shit." Franks laughed.

"And we don't?" Angus had a ton of stories about odd things they'd found or investigated. "I could write a book on odd police calls."

"True, but there's something about grave wax that's just eerie." Franks mocked a horrified shiver.

"Thankfully people like Lance take on the hard jobs so we don't have to." Angus slid the papers back into the envelope. He left everything in the car but the map as he climbed back out. "Let's go see what we're working with, then lock up and hide the keys."

"Do you have a will?" Franks asked.

Angus nodded. "I do, but I need to change it now that I'm with Lance. Right now, everything would go to my parents. Don't you have one?"

"It's basic. I probably need to update it since I bought the house. Like you, everything would go to my family. I only got one because of the job I have. I don't know that I would have thought about planning ahead if I worked a job that wasn't dangerous." Franks walked into the house and straight through to the back door. He unlocked it and pushed it open. "Nice yard."

Angus agreed. It was a well-maintained yard with thick trees and flowers. A small patio table sat to the right of the steps that led down from the house, and to the left was a window well, and beside it, right where the body was supposed to have been buried, was a small flower garden that went to the corner of the house.

"You'd never guess there was a body there." Franks glanced at the map as Angus held it up.

"Makes you wonder how many bodies get buried that we never know about." Angus moved closer.

"Do we know anyone with a cadaver dog?" Franks asked.

"No. They have one in the next county over we've called in before, but I don't know of one in our area. Ground penetrating radar might be our best bet, but it's not cheap and it will destroy the flowers."

"We'll destroy the flowers anyway if they find something," Franks pointed out. "One way or another, we need to find out what's under there. First, let's lock up and go see the attorney. We need to get that body released and let Jared find out he's the sole heir. He just inherited a nice yard with a probable grave that we need to dig up."

Angus grimaced. "I'm not looking forward to informing him of that."

"Maybe we can let the attorney do it." Franks started back inside. "I'll lock up in there and make sure all the lights are off, then meet you back here."

Angus nodded, noticing part of the fence near the garage was a gate. As he waited, he wondered how deep the body was buried. The confession letter didn't say, and if Scott had watched his father bury it from the window, he might not have known how deep the grave was at the time.

It would take a day or two to get a crew in to confirm they had a body, then possibly another day or two to start digging. There was nothing he could do now other than talk to the attorney, then let Jared know to stay out of the backyard until they got everything they needed done. It seemed silly to worry about the scene after seventy years, but no matter the age, they did things a certain way and stuck to those rules.

"Catch." Franks stood at the gate and tossed the keys.

Angus missed and had to bend down to pick them up. He put them under the flowerpot, then followed Franks back to the car. Once there, he pulled out his phone and found the phone number for Walter Thomas, attorney-at-law. He briefly spoke to a polite receptionist before ending the call. "We're free to go see the attorney now. He's in the office until four. If we go now, we should be done in time for us to get a late lunch and for me to get to the house to give John the keys."

"Sounds like a plan. Where am I going?" Franks started the car.

Angus gave him directions. "It's near that café we like that serves those amazing French dips. We can walk over there after talking to him."

"Oh, that sounds great. They had those thick shakes there too. We haven't stopped in there for a while." Franks turned out of the neighborhood to the main road.

"I took Lance there a while back. He said there is a ghost that hangs out there. He didn't talk to the ghost, but said it was an older man wearing a red and white striped apron. We noticed when we were leaving that there are photos on one wall. We think the ghost is the man who opened the café back in the sixties. His grandson runs the place now."

"Does that happen a lot?" Franks asked.

"What?"

"You and Lance walk into a place to find there's ghosts around?"

"More often than you think. He usually won't make eye contact with them so they have no clue he can see them, but there's usually a ghost around when we go out. He said there's a group of older women who are ghosts that hang out around the grocery store. They're usually sitting on the benches out front, gossiping. He smiles and nods at them when he goes in, but seldom talks to them. He also said there is a group that hangs out at the golf course. He hasn't spoken to them but sees them as we drive by."

Franks laughed. "I can't imagine what that must be like. Don't you feel like you're never alone?"

"Nah, the ghosts leave us alone if we want privacy. Most of the time, they don't know Lance sees them, and those that do know, they tend to know when we're on a date or unable to talk to them. Ray and Bethany told us there are ghostly gatherings going on all the time around town." Angus smiled. "You don't have to stop living just because you're dead."

"Good to know, but I still think I'd move on. It's got to be better where we go, right?"

"I'd hope so, but we can't know until we go there. Once we go, there's no coming back." Angus pointed. "It's down that way. The bigger building on the right."

"Ah, my mortgage company is in that building."

"Walter's on the fifth floor." Angus gathered the information he had into a pile on his lap. "I hate notifying people of a death, but this is even worse. We're letting him know Scott's dead, and there's been a murder. I don't know how it will affect what he's got to do."

"Yeah, he's not going to be happy when we tell him what we have and he sees the mess Scott left. But, like most of us, I think he'll be happy to put Scott's mother at rest finally." Franks parked the car and they both climbed out.

As they headed into the office, both stayed quiet. They took the elevator up to the fifth floor and found the law office to their left. Angus led the way in and stopped at the reception desk. "Detectives Young and Franks to speak with Walter Thomas."

"Of course. Just one moment. I'll let him know that you're here." The middle-aged woman stood and hurried down a short hallway.

A moment later, she returned, followed by an older man with graying hair. He wore an expensive suit, and Angus thought for a moment he'd seen the man in court before.

"Gentlemen, it's nice to meet you. I'm Walter Thomas. Come on back to my office and we can discuss what brought you here. Rachell, will you get us refreshments please? "

Angus held up his hand. "Thank you, but we're good."

"Alright then. Let's go discuss things." Walter led them down the hall to his large office. He directed them to sit on a long couch instead of at his desk. "What brings you to see me today?" He took a seat in a chair across from them.

Franks and Angus exchanged a glance, but it was Angus who spoke. "You have a client by the name of Scott Mayburn?"

"I do." The man looked a bit suspicious at them.

"We hate to inform you that he died several days ago," Angus said softly.

"He did?" Walter looked truly upset by the news. He took a moment of silence, then refocused. "Please tell me he wasn't killed. You're homicide detectives, correct?"

"Yes, but we aren't here because of Mr. Mayburn's death. Well, not how you are thinking at least. We had to get the neighbor to let us in to look for a will or anything that might tell us what he wanted done with his body. We found his will and some other papers that led us to you," Franks explained.

"Yes, I have a copy of his will and a few other papers he left to me. If I recall, there was no other family and Mr. Mayburn was going to leave everything to a young friend of his."

"Correct, that's what we saw as well. The young man is his neighbor who let us into the home. As of now, he has no idea he's Mr. Mayburn's sole heir. We figured that might be best coming from you." Franks took the confession letter from the stack of papers Angus had set on the coffee table. "What we do need from you is to have you contact the medical examiner and let him know which mortuary to release the body to."

"Oh, the M.E. is involved?" Mr. Thomas looked surprised.

"It was an unattended death at home. It was several days before he was found. Without a doctor's name to call or family to share his medical history, the M.E. was called in. He died of a stroke. It sounds like he went quickly."

"That's a blessing." Mr. Thomas sighed. "Give me a moment and I'll have Rachel bring me in his file." He got up and went to his phone, returning a minute later. "If I recall, Scott had prepaid for his burial. He wanted it simple. I'll have that information in the file."

"In the papers that we found was a sealed envelope that said to open it upon death. We did. What we found there was quite troubling, and honestly, the reason you now have homicide detectives sitting in your office." Franks handed the opened envelope to the attorney. "We'll give you a moment to read."

They sat in silence as the attorney read the letter. He stiffened as he read and gasped at a couple points, shaking his head as if in disbelief. It was only when a soft knock came from the door and Rachel walked in with a very thick file that Mr. Thomas looked up. He had tears in his eyes as he tried to smile at his receptionist. "Thank you, Rachel. That will be all for now." He took the file she held. He waited until she closed the door again before looking at Franks and Angus. "Well, that caught me by surprise. I never expected it. I mean, I was always curious why a rich man like Scott never sold that old house and moved somewhere nicer, but who am I to ask questions? I'd been over to his place for dinner several times and was never told about any of this." He shook the paper in his hand.

"It sounds as if he didn't tell anyone," Angus acknowledged.

Mr. Thomas set the letter down and opened the file he'd just gotten. "I represented Scott for many years. He was a self-made millionaire, working hard to turn a run-down hotel into one of the best in the area. He won awards for his work. Did you ever stay at the Mayburn?"

Both detectives shook their heads.

"It was a place to experience. There was nothing like it. I hated to see him sell it, but as he aged, he just couldn't keep up with things. It was then he decided to put everything in a trust for his young neighbor. I thought he was crazy, but he said this kid had been cutting his yard for free and helping him around the house for years. He was as close as family. I do what my clients ask me to do." He paused and read one paper. "Fairway mortuary will pick up the body and deliver it to Fairway Cemetery. There is to be no funeral, but he did say if anyone requested, they could be there for the internment. He's paid for everything, including the headstone. I have a fund to pay for any unexpected costs, and what I don't use will go into the trust money given to a Jared Winder."

"We met him today. Nice man. He'll be very surprised by all of this. He was worrying he might have to sell his car to pay for Mr. Mayburn's burial." Angus smiled.

"My goodness, no. It's all taken care of. In fact, Mr. Winder is about to become an instant millionaire with what Scott Mayburn left him. The man was very stingy about spending his money and he invested it well." The attorney pulled out another paper. "This is the trust set up for Jared Winder. I'll go over that as soon as I can make contact with him. Do you have his current number? The one I have is several years old and might have changed."

"We do. We'll be happy to leave it with you," Franks told him.

"And this looks like what you described that you found at his home." Mr. Thomas held up a sealed envelope that had the same message on the front as the one they'd found.

"I'm guessing he wanted to make sure someone was aware of his mother's murder." Angus sighed. "We are going to have to investigate, so for the time being, the backyard and possibly the whole home will be a crime scene. We will have ground penetrating radar done to confirm there is a body or at least what might be left of a body after so many years. If it's confirmed, the body will be exhumed, tested, and then reburied at the plot beside Mr. Mayburn."

"I always wondered why he bought two plots. He refused to explain. I guess now I know." The attorney shook his head. "I can't believe he never told me about any of this." He set the papers down and slid open the envelope. He read it once, then nodded. "Yes, it's exactly the same as the one you showed me, except it includes instructions for his mother's burial. Do you need me to hold off on contacting Mr. Winder?"

"No, feel free to contact him as soon as possible. He lives just a few houses down from Mr. Mayburn's home and will see the police activity. Better for him to know beforehand what's going on than to be caught off guard by it all. I'm going to ask the Medical Examiner's Office to get a DNA sample from Mr. Mayburn to compare with any bones we might find. Once they do that, the body can be released, and burial can happen. That won't take long. I'm guessing they could pick him up as early as tomorrow afternoon." Angus made a note to remind him to ask Lance to do that. "I'm not sure how long it will take us to confirm there is a body there, but we will work as quickly as we can to release the house and yard back to Mr. Winder. I would suggest that a cleaning team come in to air the house out and clean up some minor staining where the body was before he does anything with it."

"I will handle that. Make sure when you leave, I get your information so I can contact you if there are any problems, and please keep in touch so I know when I can release the home to Mr. Winder. I will call him this afternoon and set up a time to meet. "

"It sounds as if he works from eleven to seven, so you may have trouble getting him during those times," Franks warned.

"No worries. I'll leave him a message and he can call me at his leisure. I'm not against meeting after hours if it is easier for him." He shook his head again. "I can't believe Scott is gone. He was a good friend. Honestly, knowing about his mother's murder explains a lot I never understood about him. I'll do my best to assist you with whatever you need from my side. You just let me know."

"We will. Thank you." Franks stood and offered his hand.

"We're sorry about your friend." Angus shook his hand as well.

"Part of the job sadly. I've seen many die off. I honor them the best I can by fulfilling their final wishes. Good luck with your case, Detectives. I'm sure we'll talk soon." Mr. Thomas stood and led them out.

Once back in the car, Angus sighed. "Well, that wasn't as bad as I thought it might be."

"No, but now we have a body to find. Let's grab lunch and talk over the plan. I'll go with you to drop the keys off to John, then we can head back to the office and get things going." Franks started the car.

Angus nodded, closing his eyes and hoping there were no more surprises in his day.