want me walking from the parking lot. You’re welcome to join John and me for dinner and drinks.”
“That’s kind of you, but I’ve had my dinner, and I just finished my drink. I’m on my way home. However, there was something I wanted to ask you.”
“Ooh, this does sound intriguing. However, I guess I shouldn’t be so glib. Your questions have to do with Todd’s death, don’t they?”
Charles nodded. “I’m just trying to gather as much information as I can. I’m sure you have heard that I was the one who punched Todd at the dance. That kind of puts me in the police spotlight.”
“Since Carrie’s revelation at the meeting this afternoon, I’m sure by now everyone has heard. However, as far as I’m concerned, Todd deserved whatever he was dealt. No one holds it against you that Todd got punched. Of course, getting punched isn’t the issue, is it? It’s the fact that someone went to the next step and murdered him. Charles, did you take it to the next step?”
“Me?” Charles was shocked that Delores was so direct.
“Yes, you. You said you were in the police spotlight. They must have more than a punch in the nose to have the light shining on you.”
“I assure you, Delores, and anyone you care to tell, that Todd was an incredibly minor character in our lives. We barely had any contact with him until the night of the dance. But now it’s time to turn the tables. What about you, Delores?”
“OK, fair is fair, but why do you ask?” Delores showed no reaction to Charles’s question.
“The famous Club rumor mill has you meeting with Todd on several occasions.” She started to answer, but Charles continued. “Before you answer that the meetings were part of the Investment Club, I should say, well…private meetings.”
“Oh my. The meetings do sound sinister, the way you tell it. How much do you know about the ladies’ TC3 Investment Club?”
“Only what Carrie mentioned from her discussions with you and the other ladies at the golf game today. However, being a businessman who has dabbled in the stock market, to me the return on investment seems extraordinarily high.”
“And as a man who has ‘dabbled,’ what are your conclusions for this high rate of return?”
“Off the top of my head, I’d say there are three possibilities. The person making the purchases is a Wall Street wizard, or he’s an extremely lucky fellow, or…” Charles hesitated.
“Or…?” she prodded.
“Or he has come up with a scheme that the rest of us haven’t discovered.”
“Charles, that’s why I like you; we think alike. I came up with the same possibilities. However, based on a particular transaction, I came to the conclusion that the third scenario was more likely than the first two.”
“Is that why you were meeting with Todd?”
“At our first private meeting, I asked him why he’d waited over a week to purchase a stock we had decided to buy in our meeting. The second time I wanted to know why my daughter,Sara, was no longer allowed to attend the Investment Club meetings. Sara works for the Barrington firm and was supposed to be sharing responsibilities,” she stated firmly.
“Carrie mentioned she was originally helping Todd with the Investment Club. And the next time you met with Todd?”
“The next and last time I met with Todd, I demanded a detailed explanation of exactly what he was doing with the Club’s investments. At that point we had all received several statements, and I thought the profits were very high. I told him if I didn’t get a satisfactory explanation, I’d have to ask his father for one.”
“Did you ask Mr. Barrington for an explanation?”
“Not formally. I did briefly mention the Investment Club to Mr. Barrington one night a couple of weeks ago, when I ran into him here at the Club. I congratulated him on the success Todd was having with our little investment group. I also commented that the returns were so wonderfully high that the ladies were
“That’s kind of you, but I’ve had my dinner, and I just finished my drink. I’m on my way home. However, there was something I wanted to ask you.”
“Ooh, this does sound intriguing. However, I guess I shouldn’t be so glib. Your questions have to do with Todd’s death, don’t they?”
Charles nodded. “I’m just trying to gather as much information as I can. I’m sure you have heard that I was the one who punched Todd at the dance. That kind of puts me in the police spotlight.”
“Since Carrie’s revelation at the meeting this afternoon, I’m sure by now everyone has heard. However, as far as I’m concerned, Todd deserved whatever he was dealt. No one holds it against you that Todd got punched. Of course, getting punched isn’t the issue, is it? It’s the fact that someone went to the next step and murdered him. Charles, did you take it to the next step?”
“Me?” Charles was shocked that Delores was so direct.
“Yes, you. You said you were in the police spotlight. They must have more than a punch in the nose to have the light shining on you.”
“I assure you, Delores, and anyone you care to tell, that Todd was an incredibly minor character in our lives. We barely had any contact with him until the night of the dance. But now it’s time to turn the tables. What about you, Delores?”
“OK, fair is fair, but why do you ask?” Delores showed no reaction to Charles’s question.
“The famous Club rumor mill has you meeting with Todd on several occasions.” She started to answer, but Charles continued. “Before you answer that the meetings were part of the Investment Club, I should say, well…private meetings.”
“Oh my. The meetings do sound sinister, the way you tell it. How much do you know about the ladies’ TC3 Investment Club?”
“Only what Carrie mentioned from her discussions with you and the other ladies at the golf game today. However, being a businessman who has dabbled in the stock market, to me the return on investment seems extraordinarily high.”
“And as a man who has ‘dabbled,’ what are your conclusions for this high rate of return?”
“Off the top of my head, I’d say there are three possibilities. The person making the purchases is a Wall Street wizard, or he’s an extremely lucky fellow, or…” Charles hesitated.
“Or…?” she prodded.
“Or he has come up with a scheme that the rest of us haven’t discovered.”
“Charles, that’s why I like you; we think alike. I came up with the same possibilities. However, based on a particular transaction, I came to the conclusion that the third scenario was more likely than the first two.”
“Is that why you were meeting with Todd?”
“At our first private meeting, I asked him why he’d waited over a week to purchase a stock we had decided to buy in our meeting. The second time I wanted to know why my daughter,Sara, was no longer allowed to attend the Investment Club meetings. Sara works for the Barrington firm and was supposed to be sharing responsibilities,” she stated firmly.
“Carrie mentioned she was originally helping Todd with the Investment Club. And the next time you met with Todd?”
“The next and last time I met with Todd, I demanded a detailed explanation of exactly what he was doing with the Club’s investments. At that point we had all received several statements, and I thought the profits were very high. I told him if I didn’t get a satisfactory explanation, I’d have to ask his father for one.”
“Did you ask Mr. Barrington for an explanation?”
“Not formally. I did briefly mention the Investment Club to Mr. Barrington one night a couple of weeks ago, when I ran into him here at the Club. I congratulated him on the success Todd was having with our little investment group. I also commented that the returns were so wonderfully high that the ladies were
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