Murder At The Podium Read online

  “I’ll start with reviewing the finances of the cartel and of the Johnsons,” Jo declared. “Since the cartel is based in Mexico and the Johnsons are private citizens, this could be a very short search. I’ll take a look at the employers of the Johnsons as well but I don’t know if my financial skillset will be much help on this case.”

  “I’ll do my usual people search on the Johnsons and the cartel,” Marie added. “I briefly looked at Facebook this morning and was happy to see that the cartel didn’t have a Facebook page. Sure they’re mentioned in a lot of posts and I heard El Chapo was on Twitter, but at least they don’t have a cartel page.”

  “I’ll make an appointment to interview Adam Johnson and Barb Jordan,” Angela proposed. “She is still here in Dallas isn’t she? Is she coming to the Packers-Cowboys game?”

  “Barb should still be in the area - she was going to visit a few clients and no she isn’t attending the game. She would love to have dinner or at least a drink with us.”

  “I would like to borrow your car so I can go interview Adam in person, see him in his own home,” Angela said. “I’ll set up an appointment for tomorrow. I can’t imagine that he has returned to work, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

  “It’s a five hour drive, one of us should go with you,” Marie noted.

  “I’ll go with Angela,” Nathan volunteered. “I didn’t like Adam, but maybe if I give him a second chance, I’ll warm up to him. I’d visit local wineries along the way, but there’re none in that region of the state. I guess oil and grapevines don’t mix.”

  “Wow, thanks Nathan for volunteering,” Jill replied. “I’m going to try and see what I can find about the poison. I have the autopsy report from the medical examiner and perhaps based on the findings, I can speculate on the poison. Sounds like we have a good plan going forward, but Angela and Nathan’s trip tomorrow cancels some of our Dallas sightseeing and I feel bad about that.”

  “Actually, I think that we could take in one sight tomorrow. I don't have much work so far on this case and since I am the money person I want to visit the US mint in Fort Worth. However since Nathan and Angela have the car tomorrow and I think Fort Worth is some distance from Dallas – I mean we can’t walk there I’ll save that excursion for the following day. What's within walking distance of this hotel?”

  Jill drew a quick map of the Dallas region with a few ideas on what they could see within walking distance. In the end they decided on the JFK Memorial, where the last American President to be assassinated in office occurred. Depending on their available time, they might hit the same museums, parks, food truck area that Nathan and Jill had visited a few days earlier. With the next day planned and research efforts related to the case assigned, they closed up their laptops and concentrated on each other. Jill spoke of her thoughts regarding the future tasting room, Marie described her training for sprint triathlons, Angela caught them up on several mutual friends, and Jo was planning a vacation with her partner Jack in the winter in Mexico as she described her new focus was beyond Cabo San Lucas. After multiple trips to that region of Mexico she was looking for new cities to explore. Finally as one, they all turned on Nathan with inquiring eyes. He searched his mind for something to share.

  “Ladies, I live a simple quiet life and can't think of anything to update you with.”

  “Nathan, I find that hard to believe. I think the last time we chatted with you, you were designing glasses for beer. Whoops, I meant wine of course you’re a wine label designer,” Angela corrected herself. “How's that going? What kind of unique designs have you come up with?”

  Before he could answer Angela's question, Marie asked, “Have you spoken with Nick or Henrik recently?”

  Then Jo asked him, “How's Arthur doing with Trixie?”

  “The wine glass design is fine but a small part of my portfolio, yes, fine.”

  At the look of their frustration with his brief answers he elaborated on his short comments.

  “The wine glasses are being used by five clients and if you give me a moment, I’ll bring the glass pictures up on my tablet.”

  Jill hadn’t only seen the designs, she had copies of the wine glasses in her cabinet, and once her friends viewed the designs they were soon asking Nathan for copies of the glasses. They were very unique and added a level of sexiness to a glass of wine. The lower stem area was full of curves yet the top of the glass was appropriate to a wine breathing. Nathan promised them he would mail copies of the glasses to them.

  “Tell us about your conversations with Henrik and Nick,” Marie urged.

  “Henrik has decided to plant a vineyard on his property in Germany,” Jill said. “Nathan and I flew out to spend a long weekend with him about two weeks ago. He is such a nice person and he has been so helpful with our work that I wanted to say thanks in person. While we were there, he picked Nathan’s brain for a winery name and spoke with both of us about which grape to grow. I wasn’t any help since I only know grapes that suit California’s climate, but Nathan arranged a tour while we were there of some vineyards within about seventy-five miles and so he hooked Henrik to some good sources close-by. In the end, he decided to grow mostly Riesling grapes, but he also is devoting a small amount of land to a hard grape to grow in Germany just for the challenge.”

  Looking at Nathan, Jo asked “Did you design his label and help him name his winery?”

  “I gave him some ideas. I thought he should name the winery something very modern that implies that he has used the best science to create an exquisite grape flavor. Germans admire engineering feats and so he could approach it from that angle. They also value tradition, but as a new vintner he’ll be able to stand out better if he avoids tradition yet still appeals to the German people.”

  “That’s really fun to be in on the early stages of a new venture,” Marie noted. “I wish him luck.”

  “Actually he would like to see all of us back at his estate. He asked if we would consider a long weekend in early December. Apparently the German craftspeople go nuts over the holidays and it is an exciting place to shop. He offered to send his plane to California to pick up Nathan and I with a stop in Wisconsin to pick up you three. What do you think?”

  “Fly on a private jet, enjoy Henrik’s house, and shop? Count me in!” Jo said. “In fact that sounds like such a great idea, I would be happy to move up the visit to two weeks from now as we could hit Oktoberfest.”

  “That’s a brilliant idea!” Angela said. “Marie and I are always looking for new beers to add to our beer app. In my photography business, I’ll be finished with senior pictures and it’s before the rush of Christmas family portraits, so it’s a good time to take off.”

  Marie had been looking at her calendar and nodded agreement that she could take a long weekend in two weeks.

  “I’ll give Henrik a call in a few hours and check his availability. My guess is that he’ll be happy to host us sooner rather than later.”

  “How about Nick, do you think he could join us?” Angela asked. “Last I heard they were on good terms.”

  “Henrik mentioned inviting him over the same time we’re there. He can just take a train or drive. They’ve had a few dinners together and seem to be good friends.”

  “And Jo your final question about Arthur and Trixie,” Nathan remarked with a grin. “Let’s just say the war is still on and Arthur appears to have secured his empire at my house. When Trixie visits, it’s very clear who the alpha cat and subservient dog are in the equation.”

  “Trixie behaves in the subservient manner in order to get fed fabulous food created by Nathan. When she’s with me at my house, then its treats and dog food. At Nathan’s, having to tolerate Arthur is just part of her plan to get more table scraps.”

  With the final comments about the pets, they were ready to call it a night and head to bed. Maria, Angela, and Jo were on a lower floor and got out of the elevator first. The elevator continued to Jill and Nathan’s floor and soon they were strolling, hands casually c
lasped together, to their hotel room.

  Chapter Seven

  Angela and Nathan were on the road to Odessa. Angela was driving, as Nathan hadn’t really woken up yet. True he was dressed in jeans and a polo shirt and had taken time to shower and shave judging by his scent and smooth cheeks, but she knew him well enough not to say anything for several hours. She was listening to the NFL channel since the rental car had satellite radio stations, and Nathan sat beside her with his eyes shut. She was glad for the company and knew that he would do the five hour drive home. Adam Johnson was on bereavement leave from work and would accommodate the interview whenever they reached town.

  Angela expected the drive to be relatively bland. Texas was flat in this part of the state and after Fort Worth, the next large city she would pass would be a hundred and fifty miles later, and then another two hundred miles to Odessa. Maybe she would play a game with herself. Count the number of Wisconsin license plates that she passed or passed her, or maybe the number of oil rigs. New to Interstate 20, she would stick with the license plates; she imagined that some parts of the state had oil rigs as far as the eye could see which would make counting hard. She counted five Wisconsin plates in the greater Dallas area - even if you were coming for the Packers game it was a little too far to drive. Once she’d reached the Interstate, she hadn’t seen a Wisconsin license plate all the way to her first break in Abilene. She gassed up the car, used the bathroom, and settled back in to continue the drive, noticing that Nathan had barely stirred at the drop in speed, or the noise she made with the gas nozzle and getting in and out of the car. Perhaps he had a long conversation with Henrik and stayed up late on the phone.

  Three hours later she dialed Adam Johnson’s number on the outskirts of Odessa. Nathan had been awake and a good conversant for the past hour or so and he had taken notes for Angela of the questions she would ask Adam. Shortly they pulled up in front of a two-story brick house in a nice neighborhood. Adam opened the front door and invited them in to a family room. On the mantle of the fireplace were several family photos of Stacy and the children.

  “How was the drive? I generally find it boring and flat.”

  “I think that about sums it up,” Angela replied. “It wasn’t on my bucket list and now I know why.”

  They exchanged a few more pleasantries and then got down to business. Angela began with the list of questions that they discussed in the car. Nathan had met Adam before but had kept his thoughts to himself. He thought that of the four women, Angela was the most perceptive, perhaps that was a result of her studying so many faces in her photography business.

  “Tell me about Stacy’s family. When did you meet her and when did she mention her family ties?”

  “We were both students at the University of Texas - she was in the nursing program and I was in engineering and we met in a humanities course as freshman. We continued to date and married a few months after we graduated. We decided that with our degrees whoever was offered a job first, the other would find a job in the city we moved to. I found a job first and we settled in Odessa. Stacy worked at the Medical Center of Odessa, but once the children were born, she wanted a nursing job that she could work at from home and so she was hired by Golden Star. She was happy working with them and delivered perhaps four speeches a year around Texas, and the surrounding seven states.”

  “Over the course of your marriage did she ever speak of fear that the cartel would find her?” Angela asked. “Was she nervous at any time or did she feel like someone was watching her?”

  “She told me about the cartel after I proposed marriage, but even in college I didn’t have a feeling that she was looking over her shoulder, worried that someone was after her. She was relaxed and easy-going. At the christening of our third child she looked a little sad and I remember asking her what was wrong. I figured the problem was that we had decided to be happy with three children and perhaps she was rethinking that decision as our last child was christened. Instead she said she wished her mother had been there to witness the ceremony. My wife chose our third child’s name and so I think it is somehow related to her mother’s name, but that is all I know about any connection to the cartel since our marriage.”

  “What’s the child’s name?”

  “Maria Camilla, we call her Cami for short.”

  “What a pretty name and unusual. My day job is that of a photographer and I do photos for a lot of families and some schools, so I can tell you that it is an unusual name for a girl at the moment. Did Stacy mention anything else about her mother or any other family members throughout the course of your marriage?”

  “That was her only mention in the thirteen years we were together.”

  “You weren’t curious and didn’t ply her with questions about her family?”

  “When I proposed marriage and she explained her family connections, she asked at that time that I never mention her family again and so I didn’t.”

  Angela decided to switch directions and asked, “Tell me about Stacy’s relationship with your family, friends, and co-workers.”

  “I can’t think of anything to tell you - she had a good group of girlfriends and they traveled somewhere together every year. She volunteered at our kids’ school, was an active member of a bible study group at our church, and was a ranked tennis player at a local tennis club. Stacy was very active and loved by all.”

  “And your marriage? Life was going well for your relationship with your wife?”

  Adam looked a little affronted at the question, but answered, “Yes, we loved each other as much as the day we were married and our children as well. We both wanted more kids, but realistically knew we couldn’t afford more.”

  Angela continued with questions that she and Nathan had discussed on the journey to Odessa, but really she gathered little new information. So she ended the conversation with a final question, “Can you think of anyone besides the cartel that we should consider as a suspect for murder? Anyone that seemed mad at her? Think back a few years as people can remain angry a long time.”

  Leaving the question sitting on the air in Adam’s family room produced a long, thoughtful moment of silence and at the end he uttered a single word.

  “No.”

  Nathan and Angela stood up preparing to leave. Angela had noticed a restaurant that was close to the house. After saying their goodbyes they got in the car to drive to the restaurant. They were hoping for a decent lunch and planned to pick the server’s brain as to whether she or he knew Stacy or Adam. In a town of 100,000 people, they were making a guess as to whether Stacy was a regular at any of the local restaurants, but maybe they would luck out by picking one close to Stacy’s home.

  They sat at a café style booth, menus in hand. The food was Southwestern and American. Angela loved spicy foods and ordered a spicy vegetarian fajita and Nathan did likewise with his spicy fish tacos. He cooked many nights for Jill and she liked bland food, so his only opportunity to satiate his spicy taste buds was when they dined out or he dined without Jill.

  When the server arrived to take their order, Angela eased into a conversation about the Johnsons.

  “We’re just passing through this town- we came to pay our respects to Adam Johnson.”

  The server looked at them blankly, poised to take their order which they quickly gave.

  “Ok, this entire day has nearly been a waste of time,” Nathan said in frustration. “I wish we had traveled by air to Odessa. Even with security screening, we would have been tied up traveling for no more than two hours; instead we have a ten hour drive round trip. Arrgh.”

  “Oh well, we’ve seen a part of Texas that we’ll never need to see again the rest of our lives,” replied Angela with her usual dose of optimism. “Consider that item checked on your bucket list.”

  “It wasn’t on my bucket list,” grouched Nathan.

  Angela just looked at him cheekily and said, “Well it should have been. It’s probably been labeled the best road for napping in America!”


  With the last comment by Angela, Nathan let go of his frustration with the non-productive day and laughed, then he asked, “So what did you think of Adam?”

  “I felt sorry for him losing his wife while having to raise three young children. I lost a friend to cancer two years ago and she left behind seven children, some in college, some in kindergarten and everything in between. In her case, her death was expected so the husband had time to prepare the children, but still it was very hard. I think his young ones will have a hard time understanding the situation for a while, but they’ll manage.”

  “Any other impressions?”

  “Yes, but why are you asking?”

  “When Jill and I met with him in Dallas, there was something I didn’t like about him. Ever since I’ve been trying to figure out if he is hiding something or if I am mad at him for exposing Jill to the cartel’s violence.”

  “I’ve found over the years working for Jill that people are rarely themselves in the days following the death of someone they love. Sometimes overwhelming grief has changed them, and other times it’s because they are guilty as sin of murder and so the weird vibe is them hiding that secret. I haven’t come across a magic formula for detecting which is which at the beginning of the case.”