Chapter Text
Chapter 1: An Old Friend in Trouble
Saturday, October 17, 2026
Maple sat at the kitchen table enjoying her first cup of coffee when the doorbell rang.
She glanced toward the living room, wondering who would be stopping by this early in the morning. Setting her mug down, she pushed herself to her feet and crossed the room.
When she opened the front door, surprise spread across her face.
Standing on her porch was a woman she hadn’t seen in nearly 25 years.
“Mary Whitmore? Is that you?”
The woman offered a weary smile as she said, “It is. I’m sorry to show up unannounced after all these years, but... I didn’t know who else to turn to.” She hesitated before quietly adding, “I’m in trouble, Maple. I was hoping you might be able to help me.”
Seeing the worry etched across her old classmate’s face, Maple stepped aside. “Of course. Come in.”
“Thank you.”
Maple led Mary to the kitchen table, saying, “I just made a pot of coffee. Would you like a cup?”
“That would be nice. Black is fine, thanks.”
“Coming right up.”
A minute later, Maple returned with a steaming mug and placed it in front of Mary before taking her own seat.
For the first time, she had a chance to really look at her former classmate. Time had been kind to Mary. Her long platinum-blonde hair still framed her slender face, and her crystal-blue eyes remained striking, though the youthful sparkle Maple remembered had been replaced by exhaustion. Only a few faint wrinkles marked the passage of time. She wore an elegant light-blue dress that suggested she’d come straight from an evening out rather than spending the night sleeping.
Maple wondered what the story was as she said gently, “So, what’s happened?”
Mary wrapped both hands around her coffee mug as she said, “I’m a suspect in my husband’s murder.”
Maple froze as she waited for Mary to continue.
After a moment, Mary said, “My husband was murdered last night, and the police think I killed him.”
“What makes them believe that?”
“The murder weapon was a sculpture I made him for his birthday last month.”
Maple raised an eyebrow. “A sculpture?”
Mary nodded. “It was a ceramic piece. About a foot tall and heavy enough that whoever hit him with it...” Her voice faltered before she finished, “Well, the police believe that’s what killed him.”
“What was it supposed to be?”
A trace of embarrassment crossed Mary’s face. “Two figures embracing. I called it *Together*. Doug always joked that it was one of my uglier pieces, but he kept it displayed in his study because I made it for him.”
She swallowed before continuing, “On top of that, security cameras across the street captured a woman who looks exactly like me getting out of a car that looks exactly like mine during the estimated time of death.”
“I assume that wasn’t you.”
“No.”
“So where were you?”
“At the playhouse.”
Maple raised an eyebrow as Mary said, “I have my ticket, witnesses who saw me there, and security footage from the playhouse. The police even confirmed my car was in the parking lot the entire time.”
Maple frowned. “Your car?”
“Yes. Apparently, there are cameras covering the parking lot. They show me arriving around 6:45 p.m., and my car doesn’t leave until after intermission at 8:30 p.m.”
“And yet another camera apparently shows you arriving home in the same kind of car.”
“Exactly.” Mary shook her head before continuing, “I don’t understand it either.”
“Had you planned on attending the play?”
“No. That’s the strange part.”
Maple leaned forward. “What do you mean?”
“I go to the playhouse fairly often. I’m on their mailing list and have been for years. Yesterday afternoon, I received an envelope saying they’d held a drawing for some of their regular patrons and I’d won a complimentary ticket to see *The Importance of Being Earnest* that evening.”
“You hadn’t entered a drawing?”
“Not that I remember. But I assumed it was some kind of patron-appreciation promotion. The letter looked legitimate, and there was a real ticket inside.”
“Did your husband know you were going?”
“I told him when I got home.”
“What did he say?”
“Not much. Things had been tense between us lately. I figured an evening apart might do us some good, and he seemed to agree.”
Maple considered that before saying, “Did anyone else know you’d received the ticket?”
“Not that I know of.”
“And you’ve told the police all of this?”
“Yes.”
“What did they say?”
“That they’re looking into it.”
Maple sat back. Assuming Mary was telling the truth, someone had apparently gone to considerable trouble to get her out of the house on the exact night her husband was murdered. And then someone who looked like Mary had shown up at the house in a car that looked like hers.
That didn’t feel like a coincidence.
Mary sighed. “I spent the entire night trying to figure out what to do. Then I remembered reading in the newspaper recently about you helping solve a few unusual cases. So... here I am.”
Maple considered everything Mary had said. The evidence certainly sounded convincing. But she’d also learned that convincing evidence wasn’t always truthful.
“I can’t promise I’ll solve it,” Maple said, “but I’ll listen.”
“That’s all I’m asking.”
“Then let’s start with the obvious question.”
Mary nodded as Maple asked, “What reason would you have for wanting your husband dead?”
Color crept into Mary’s cheeks as she sighed. “Unfortunately... plenty.” She stared into her coffee before continuing, “He was having an affair with his administrative assistant. I even confronted her at the grocery store a few days ago. We argued in front of half the produce section.”
“I can see why the police would view that as a motive.”
“There’s more. My husband’s life insurance names me as the primary beneficiary.”
“I see.”
“If I were investigating this case, I’d probably arrest me too.”
Despite herself, Maple smiled. “Honesty is usually a good sign.”
“I figured lying wouldn’t help.”
“If you didn’t do it, who else had reason to want him dead?”
Mary thought for a moment before saying, “Our son, Cory.”
“What about him?”
“He’s been trying to launch a start-up company. He asked Doug for money to help get it off the ground, but Doug refused.”
“What kind of company?”
“Some kind of app-based delivery business. Cory swears it’s going to make him rich, but Doug thought the whole thing was a bad investment.”
“Did they argue about it?”
“More than once. Cory took it personally. He thought his father didn’t believe in him.”
“I see. Is there anyone else who comes to mind?”
“There is also our daughter, Alice. She was released from jail a few months ago.”
Maple raised an eyebrow. “What was she in jail for?”
“Stealing.”
“From whom?”
“Mostly stores, although there were a few other incidents. Doug and I spent years getting her out of trouble, and after she was arrested the last time, Doug finally had enough.”
“What did he do?”
“He told her that if she stole anything again, he was cutting her off completely. No money. No help with a lawyer. Nothing.”
“So, she had reason to resent him.”
Mary sighed. “Unfortunately, yes.”
“Would she inherit anything if he died?”
“Yes.”
“Anyone else?”
“My husband’s business partner, Frank.”
“What was their relationship like?”
“They got along well enough, but I never trusted him.”
“Why?”
“There’s just always been something about him. He’s the kind of man who smiles at you while making you wonder what he’s thinking. And then, of course... there is the administrative assistant.”
“The woman your husband was having an affair with.”
Mary nodded as she spat out the words, “Tina.”
“Did any of these people have a reason to frame you specifically?”
“My children have both had problems with us over money. Cory thinks we refused to support his future, and Alice thinks we abandoned her when she needed help.”
She gave a bitter laugh. “Maybe Doug and I spent too many years fixing their problems for them. Eventually, when we stopped, they saw it as some kind of betrayal.”
“And Frank?”
“He and I have never liked each other.”
“What about Tina?”
Mary’s expression hardened as she said, “Considering I confronted her about sleeping with my husband, I’d say she has more reason than most.”
“Where was she when your husband was killed?”
“The police questioned her last night. From what I understand, she has an alibi.”
“What kind of alibi?”
“I don’t know the details. Only that the police seemed satisfied she couldn’t have been at the house when he was killed.”
That caught Maple’s attention. The wife and the mistress. Two women with obvious reasons to want the victim dead. And apparently, neither one could have done it.
Interesting. What was going on here?
“When did the police estimate your husband died?” Maple asked.
“Between 8:10 p.m. and 8:20 p.m.”
“And you left home around...”
“5:45 p.m. It’s about a 45-minute drive, but I stopped for gas.”
“So, you arrived...”
“About 6:45 p.m.”
“And the performance started?”
“7 o’clock.”
Mary reached into her Michael Kors purse and removed the playhouse ticket. “I brought this.”
Maple examined it. The admission time was stamped 6:45 p.m. “When did you leave?”
“At intermission.”
“Why?”
“I developed a terrible headache.”
“What time was that?”
“About 8:30 p.m.”
“And when did you find the body?”
“Around 9:30 p.m.”
Maple went to hand the ticket back, saying, “I’d like to speak with everyone you’ve mentioned.”
“Keep the ticket for now.”
Then Mary took out a notepad and carefully wrote down names, addresses, and phone numbers before handing the page across the table.
“If you think of anything else,” Maple said, “please don’t hesitate to call.”
“I will.”
Mary stood with a somber look on her face. “Thank you, Maple.”
“I’ll do what I can.”
“I hope so.”
After Mary left, Maple remained seated at the kitchen table. She looked down at the list of suspects. A cheating husband. An angry wife. A son whose business ambitions had been rejected. A daughter recently released from jail. A mistress. A business partner.
Plenty of people had wanted the man dead. But something about Mary’s story bothered her. Someone had apparently sent Mary a ticket to a play she hadn’t planned to attend. Then, while Mary and her car were safely captured on camera miles away, someone who looked just like her had arrived at her house in a car that looked just like hers.
Assuming Mary was innocent, someone hadn’t merely tried to frame her. They had gone to extraordinary lengths to do it. The question was why. And, more importantly, who? That was what Maple planned on finding out.