“I gotta hear this,” Dino said.

“Charlotte killed Brix’s wife, and she was the woman the maid heard with Brix in the Lincoln Bedroom. She killed Milly Hart and Muffy Brandon, too.”

“And herself,” Dino said. “Don’t forget herself.”

“Her motive was jealousy of Brix, and she took herself out of the picture just as he did, and for the same reasons.”

Dino turned into the portico of the Hay-Adams. “I like

it,” he said, switching off the engine. “Now, let’s go upstairs and write a report that says just that, then get the hell out of town before somebody else gets offed, making fools of us both.”

“Done,” Stone replied.

As they walked through the door, the phone was ringing. Stone got it. “Hello?”

“It’s Holly. Dinner with the Lees in the family quarters at eight. Shelley Bach and I are commanded, too.”

“What do they want?”

You know what they want, and you’d better have it ready.“

“See you there,” Stone said. He hung up and turned to Dino. “We’re dining with the Lees. Let’s get that report together.”

44

STONE AND DINO MET HOLLY AND SHELLEY AT WHITE HOUSE reception, and they rode up in the elevator together, all of them quiet.

Will and Kate Lee were sitting in the family quarters’ living room when the Secret Service agent ushered the group in. Hands were shaken, drinks were ordered from the butler.

The president spoke first: “From what I hear, you fellows are about done with your work.”

“We are, Mr. President,” Stone replied. He handed the president a brown hotel envelope. “Here’s our report,” he said.

The president dropped the envelope on the coffee table before him and took a sip of his drink. “I’d rather hear it from you.”

Stone looked at Dino. “Go,” Dino said.

“Mr. President, Mrs. Lee,” Stone said. “We have been unable to prove conclusively, with the available evidence, who is responsible for all that has occurred. All we can offer you is an opinion that is supported by what we have learned, and it would never stand up in a court of law.”

The president took another sip of his drink. “Kate and I are prepared to accept your conclusions and get on with our work and our lives. Let’s have it.”

“We believe that the key to what has happened is Brixton Kendrick’s former secretary, Charlotte Kirby,” Stone said. “We believe that she killed Emily Kendrick with an edging stone from the White House garden. She and Mr. Kendrick had been having an affair for some time, and her motive was jealousy. After that, the available evidence supports suicide by Mr. Kendrick.”

“Charlotte Kirby!” Lee said, half to himself. “I hardly knew her, but she seemed such a mild person.”

“She was anything but, Mr. President, from her own testimony, which we’ve outlined in our report.”

“And the other women?”

“All killed by Charlotte Kirby,” Stone said, “who then took her own life.”

Kate Lee spoke up. “So there’s no one left to prosecute or blame?”

“That’s correct,” Stone said. “We believe Ms. Kirby was more than a little mad, and as you will see in our report, she was probably made that way by Brixton Kendrick.”

“I just have one question, Stone,” the president said. “If I had not initiated your investigation, would Milly Hart and Muffy Brandon still be alive?”

“There’s no way we can know that, Mr. President,” Stone replied. “It’s very possible that Charlotte Kirby would have gone on her killing spree even if we hadn’t turned up. You are in no way to blame for her actions. That’s in our report, too.”

Tags: Stuart Woods Stone Barrington Mystery
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