A Discount for Death

Chapter Thirteen

Estelle glanced at her watch, then hesitated before pulling the county car into gear. Bob Torrez was right…George Enriquez’s death included too many inconsistencies to be written off as a suicide. There might be a simple explanation for the heavy revolver’s position under the chair, a simple explanation for the absence of checkering marks that should have been left by the revolver’s grips against Enriquez’s palms. But those simple explanations were eluding them.

Dan Schroeder hadn’t voiced his thoughts, but Estelle knew what they had to be. The coincidence of George Enriquez’s promised “I can give you Guzman” followed by his convenient death before he could make an explanation was enough to make anyone curious.

Alan Perrone would perform the preliminary NAA test on Enriquez’s corpse to determine if the insurance agent had fired the revolver…or at least had had it in hand when it was fired. But the odds were good that none of the lab tests, or the preliminary autopsy, would be completed before late afternoon.

Estelle had tried unsuccessfully to conjure up some recollection of Constance Enriquez, to remember a face to go with the name. Mrs. Enriquez hadn’t attended the preliminary hearing months ago when Judge Lester Hobart had released her husband on his own recognizance pending grand jury action. Estelle could see George’s round, pleasant face with the quick, flashing smile of the professional salesman. In court, George had seemed more confident and cheerful than his attorney had been, as if he were appearing to settle a simple traffic ticket.

But Connie? How had she survived through all this mess that her husband had heaped upon them?

Mimbres Drive was a short cul-de-sac, gracefully curved not because of the natural terrain but simply because that’s the way the developer had chosen to steer the bulldozer twenty years before when he turned the old Gallegos ranch into a subdivision. The dozen houses in the development were brick with wood trim.

The residence at 419 Mimbres was no surprise, showing those touches that the profits from a successful career could buy. A semicircular concrete driveway arced across the front yard, passing through decorative beds of tamed desert plants. A large self-contained camper was parked in the driveway, flanked by a late-model Cadillac. Behind the camper sat a new van, the temporary tag still taped in the tinted back window.

Estelle got out of the car and glanced at the other vehicles parked on both sides of Mimbres Drive. Several bore Texas plates. She paused behind the van long enough to read the temporary tag. The new owner, Owen Frieberg, was a partner at Salazar and Sons Funeral Home. He either was a friend of the family’s or wasn’t wasting any time drumming up business. Mr. Frieberg hadn’t shopped locally for his new van, despite the oft-published pleas of his own chamber of commerce. The expensive unit had been purchased two weeks before, in Albuquerque.

A rotund woman poured into a pair of blue jeans with a western-style blouse answered Estelle’s ring. Her eyes flicked the undersheriff from top to bottom, and she almost immediately began to shut the door.

“We’re really not interested,” she said. “There’s been a death in the family, but thanks for stopping by.” Her voice carried the nasal twang of west Texas.

“Ma’am,” Estelle said and held her badge case up briefly. “I’m Undersheriff Estelle Guzman. I need to speak with Mrs. Enriquez.”

“Oh,” the woman said. Her penciled eyebrows went up and stayed there. “Just a minute, then.” She closed the door. Estelle could hear voices inside the house, and after a moment the door opened again. Estelle smiled at the odd face that peered out at her.

“Is that who I think it is?” Father Bertrand Anselmo chortled. His bottle-bottom glasses couldn’t hide the twinkle in his eyes. Anselmo was bald except for a gray fringe around his head at ear level that looked as if a house cat had draped itself around his skull. He beamed at Estelle, showing a collection of fillings, crowns, and gaps all generated by the low-bidding dentist of the moment.

The priest held the door wide open. He gripped it tightly with one hand as if the excitement of the moment might slam it shut. “It is who I think it is. Look at this.” He released the door and advanced, both arms held wide. “Blessed saints, but it’s good to see you.”

“Father,” Estelle said, and patted him on the back until he released her. His black shirt smelled musty.

“Oh, my goodness, look at you,” he said, and for a moment it appeared as if he was going to launch into the ritual how’s-the-family grilling. But the ebullient expression faded, replaced by an awareness of the sad day in the home behind him. “There’s quite a mob scene in here,” he said, lowering his voice to a whisper.

“I would think so,” Estelle said. Brunch with the widow.

“Do you have any news for us?” the priest asked, and for a moment he sounded as if he were more from Dublin than Deming.

Estelle shook her head. “Actually, Father, I need to talk with Mrs. Enriquez. Is she home?”

“Surely, surely,” he said. “Won’t you come in?”

Estelle stepped inside and stopped on the tiled foyer. Off to the left was what appeared to be a well-appointed game room where at least fifteen people milled about, all talking at once. Another mob had taken over the kitchen. Through an archway to the right, Estelle saw three elderly women in the living room, coffee cups in hand, deep in conversation.

“Ay,” Estelle whispered to herself, and despite Father Anselmo’s hand on her elbow, she remained firmly rooted in place, fascinated by the spectacle. One way to take the widow’s mind off the deceased husband was to make her life miserable in every other way. After a day or two, that would wear off. The people would leave, and the house would become a big, silent mausoleum.

“Father,” Estelle said quietly, “I can’t talk with her here.”

Anselmo’s face hardened a bit with resolve, his shaggy eyebrows lowering until they rested on the rims of his glasses. “What do you need? You just tell me, and I’ll see to it.”

Estelle drew a card from her badge case and handed it to the priest. “Maybe…” she started to say, when one of the most enormous women she had ever seen appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.

“Ah, Connie,” the priest said, and held out a hand. “You know the undersheriff?”

“No, I don’t. Heard of you. We’ve never met,” Constance Enriquez said. She didn’t take the priest’s hand. Two inches shorter than Estelle’s five foot seven inches, the woman’s massive weight ballooned from a frame that, judging from the fine hand she extended to accept the business card, could barely cope. She walked with a slight roll, as if having to hitch each step along with protesting hips.

Plump cheeks, wet from recent tears, crowded her eyes in a broad face. Thinning hair had been chopped into a sort of modified pageboy, keeping it from being buried in the folds of fat at the back of her neck. She regarded the business card for a long moment, and when her glacial eyes flicked back up to Estelle’s, they were hard and unwelcoming.

“What can I do for you?” she said. She extended the card back toward Estelle.

“Mrs. Enriquez, I need to talk with you at some length. That’s going to be very difficult to do here. I wonder if there’s someplace that we might…”

The woman waved a hand, the curtains of fat that hung from her upper arms undulating. “We’ll use his room. That’s easiest.” She turned away. “Come on,” she said, and Estelle followed, Father Bertrand Anselmo trailing behind. Connie Enriquez ignored the glances and murmurs as they navigated past the kitchen. At the end of the long hallway, Connie Enriquez pushed open a set of double doors, revealing a spacious den.

“This’ll do,” she said.

“Father, excuse us,” Estelle said when Anselmo started to enter.

“Oh, certainly. Connie, if you need anything…” he said.

“What I need is for the circus to be over,” she muttered and reached past Estelle to latch one side of the doors. “You gotta hook this, or they’ll drift open,” she said, stretching up to push the small brass bolt into the jamb. She forcefully pushed the other side shut. “There.” She beckoned toward a leather-covered chair near a bookcase. “Sit yourself.”

She chose a stout, straight-backed chair that looked up to the challenge, reached over to the large walnut desk, and pulled the box of tissues closer. She extracted one and wadded it into a ball, dropping her hands to her lap.

“So,” she said. “You’re a very attractive young woman. How’d you happen to fall into such an awful job?”

“Thank you. And that’s a very long story, Mrs. Enriquez.”

“Call me Connie.”

“Connie. I know this is going to be painful for you, but there are some things I need to know concerning your husband and the circumstances of his death. You may be able to help us.”

“Is this all standard procedure? I mean, is this what you normally do, with things like this?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“All right.” She shifted her bulk on the chair.

Estelle pulled the microrecorder from her jacket pocket and held it up. “I need to use this. Do you mind?”

“Of course not.”

The undersheriff pushed the Record button and gently rested the gadget on the corner of the desk. “Mrs. Enriquez, in the past few days, did your husband discuss his difficulties with you?”

For the first time, something akin to a smile ghosted across the woman’s face, not enough to show teeth, but enough to touch the creases.

“Undersheriff,” the woman said. “That’s an interesting title.” Her hands folded around the tissue. “Do I call you that? Or is it officer, or what?”

“Estelle would be fine.”

“Estelle. Doesn’t that mean star or something like that in Spanish?”

Estelle smiled. “No, ma’am. You may be thinking of estrella, with an ‘r.’ ”

Connie nodded and pursed her lips. The half smile reappeared. “Let me tell you how I first learned of my husband’s antics, Estelle,” she said. “A neighbor across the way met me out in the driveway with the local paper in hand.” As she talked, Connie Enriquez’s hands remained motionless. “Nice little front-page story about my husband’s arraignment.” She paused for a moment. “Now isn’t that wonderful? A thoughtful neighbor shows me a front-page newspaper story.”

Estelle didn’t respond, and Connie continued, “Tell me how that could have happened without my knowing about it, Mrs. Undersheriff.” She took a deep, shuddering breath. “My husband’s business was investigated, charges were brought against him by your office and the state insurance board, and he was arraigned before the local judge. And when did I hear about it? When it’s splashed on the front page of the local newspaper.” Her mouth twisted in a tight-lipped smile.

“I’m not complaining, mind you,” she said. “Not knowing probably spared me some moments with George that we both would have regretted. You asked me if my husband discussed his business life with me? He didn’t. In spades.” She dabbed at her left eye. “How well do you know your husband, Estelle?”

When the undersheriff didn’t answer, Connie Enriquez leaned forward just a bit, the tissue still grubbing into her left eye. “Someone out in the kitchen is a cat lover,” she said. “Damn things drive me crazy. The dander’s all over my clothes now.” She shook her head and examined the wad of tissue. “Your husband’s the one who opened the new clinic with Alan Perrone, right? The coroner? Alan’s the dapper little guy; Dr. Guzman’s the big hunk, am I right? Great big guy with a nicely trimmed beard?”

Estelle nodded.

“If I asked you to sit down and tell me what the good doctor does all day long-and I mean in detail-I don’t think you could tell me. Am I right? And he couldn’t tell me what you do. Now maybe the two of you discuss your days with each other when you get home.” Her eyes narrowed until they almost disappeared when Estelle didn’t offer an answer. “Maybe you do. I certainly wouldn’t know. George and I didn’t discuss his days, Estelle. Or mine. Never. Ever.”

“Mrs. Enriquez, to the best of your knowledge, did your husband own any firearms?”

“No,” she said quickly. “I won’t have them in the house. And now you know why.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“George was no handyman, Estelle. He was one of those unfortunate guys who stabs himself with a screwdriver when he reaches into the toolbox to pick up a wrench. He once tried to change the oil on the Jeep, I think just to prove that he could. He dropped the thingie that plugs up the drain hole and then never could find it. He had to buy another one, which the dealer had to special-order, by the way, since no one else loses that sort of thing. That’s George and mechanical things.” She wadded the tissue and pressed it against her left eye. “If he had a gun, I could picture him trying to clean the damn thing and blowing his head off. Just like what you read about in the papers.”

“So to the best of your knowledge, your husband did not own a handgun. For that matter, a gun of any kind?”

“Not as far as I know.” She regarded the tissue, lips pursed. “I know for a while he was talking about going elk hunting, if you can imagine that. I saw one of those what do you call ’ems…game proclamations. And then I heard him talking on the phone about a hunt. Most ridiculous thing I ever heard. It would be just like George to huff and puff his way up a mountain and then drop dead from a heart attack. And elk? What would we do with one of those monstrous things?”

“He would need a rifle for that hunt.”

“I suppose. Maybe he was going to borrow one. Or buy one. I don’t know. As long as I don’t have to look at it in this house.”

She heaved a heavy breath.

“Do you know who he discussed the hunt with? Or whether he actually had firmed up plans about when to go?”

“No idea. You could ask Joe Tones. He’d probably know. You know Joe?”

Estelle nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“They work together with the chamber of commerce all the time,” Connie said. “I think the hunt was Joe’s idea. Or Owen’s. Owen Frieberg? He was here a bit ago. Who knows? Maybe he still is. I really don’t know whose idea the whole crazy thing was, but I would guess Joe. He’s the one who got my husband excited about Mexico, too-one of George’s other daring escapades.”

“Mexico?”

Connie raised a hand in mock surrender. “That sister-village thing?”

“Through the chamber, you mean?”

She tipped her head ever so slightly in agreement. “What’s the name of the place across the border? Aca something.”

“Acambaro?”

“That’s it.” Her eyes narrowed slightly. “It sounds so pretty when you say it. Why another town would want a place as pathetic as Posadas as a sister village is beyond me. Sisters in misery, I guess. Anyway, the chamber goes there a couple times a year. Christmas for the kids is one time, I know. A group of students from the school goes down with ’em. That’s Tones’ big deal. Him and George. They liked working with the schools. I know that. Joe didn’t go on the trip with them last year. I don’t remember just what the reason was.”

“Do you recall anyone else associated with the hunting trip idea?”

“Some guy called here a few nights ago, but I don’t remember his name. It wasn’t Tones or Owen.”

“But several of them were going together? It wasn’t just Tones, Frieberg, and your husband?”

Connie nodded. “George was going to take the RV to use as a base camp. I heard him say that. And I think it was on one of those game ranches up north. A ‘boys night out’ sort of thing.” She tossed the tissue into a small brass trash can with unerring aim and pulled a fresh one from the box. “And wives weren’t invited, by the way, not that I would have gone anyway. I had visions of him getting drunk and then tripping over a fence while trying to carry a loaded rifle like in one of those hunter training films we used to see in school, or maybe one of his buddies would mistake him for an elk.” She grunted with amusement. “I’d end up having his head mounted on the wall.”

“Mrs. Enriquez, do you know why your husband was at his office downtown on the day of his death?”

“Why? No idea whatsoever, other than the obvious. That’s where he goes.”

“But he’d closed the office for the week, had he not?”

“I think so. But who knows.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“When he left the house yesterday morning. Monday morning.”

“Did he say anything when he left?”

“If he did, he was talking to himself. I was still asleep.” She regarded Estelle for a moment as if waiting for a comment. “We sleep in separate bedrooms. I snore, apparently,” she said finally, and then frowned. “So actually, no…I didn’t see him Monday morning. I heard him. I remember hearing his electric razor, and then I heard the front door when he went out.”

“Did he call you at any time during the day? Either late yesterday or early this morning?”

“No.”

“Did anyone else call?”

“Other than friends of mine, no.”

“Are you aware of any arguments that your husband might have had in the past few days with anyone?”

Connie Enriquez frowned and turned her head slightly sideways, skeptical. “Argue is a word that I wouldn’t have associated with my husband, Undersheriff. Once in a while I tried to bait him just a bit, to see if he knew I was still on the planet. That didn’t do much good. He’d give that cute little shrug of his and just walk off. But that’s with me. After hearing about the grand jury investigation, I guess it wouldn’t surprise me if he had arguments with half the planet. I didn’t know anything about them. That’s what I’m saying.” She pushed at the inside of her cheek with her tongue, thoughtfully. “Are you saying that my husband’s death wasn’t an accident?”

“We’re still investigating,” Estelle said quietly.

“I can picture my husband trying to struggle out of that Jeep and accidentally shooting himself, Undersheriff. That’s exactly the sort of thing that he’d do. I can’t imagine someone else wanting to shoot George, and I can’t imagine him trying to commit suicide. That’s my bailiwick, more likely.”

“Mrs. Enriquez…” Estelle started to say gently, but the woman waved a hand in dismissal.

“Not anymore. I went through a stage for a while until I just said to hell with it. Life goes on. And now…” she shrugged. “Now I’ll play the black veil bit for a little while, make all the friends feel better, and then we’ll see.”

“What will you do?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Connie said, “Promise not to laugh?” With a forward lunge, she pushed away from the chair, using a steadying hand on the corner of the desk. She waddled around to one of the bookshelves, one that wasn’t crowded with bowling trophies, various small awards and commendations, and a handful of books, mostly insurance references. From a sea of photos, she selected one in a gold frame that was no more than three inches square.

Estelle rose and met her at the corner of the desk, taking the picture. In it, a young couple stood hand in hand, up to their ankles in surf with pure white sand behind them, lava cliffs off to the right. She recognized George Enriquez, dressed in sunglasses and skimpy bathing suit. Only twenty years old or so, he was already beginning to show sleekness around the torso. With her free hand, the girl held a sun bonnet on her head. She wore a one-piece bathing suit the same color as the surf. Soaking wet, she might have tipped the scales at ninety pounds.

“I really loved him then,” Connie Enriquez said.

“The two of you on your honeymoon?” Estelle asked.

Connie nodded. “Would you believe it?”

“It’s a beautiful spot.”

Connie laughed. “You’re such a diplomat,” she said. “I’m going back there, you know. I’m serious. By the time those Mexican doctors are through with me, I’m going to look like that again.” Her nod was slow and determined. “And then we’ll see.”

Estelle handed her the picture.

“Mrs. Enriquez, during the next few days you may remember something about your husband’s activities. I need to know who he was associating with, basically what he was doing up until the time of his death. Anything you can remember would be a help.” She withdrew the business card again, made sure that Connie Enriquez saw it, and placed it on the corner of the desk.

“George was well insured, you know,” Connie said.

Estelle raised an eyebrow in question but said nothing.

“If they think it was suicide-and it wasn’t, believe me-the insurance is void. No question about that. If someone murdered my husband, odds are that the insurance company will force me to sue somebody to hell and gone to collect a penny. If it was an accident, insurance will pay. I know that sounds cold-blooded, but that’s the way it is.” With her hands still on the desk for support, she moved closer to Estelle and lowered her voice. “Obviously, that’s not a topic of conversation for out in the kitchen. But you and I know how things go. You’ll do what you have to do.”

“May I have permission to look through George’s papers here?” Estelle asked. “I’ll get a court order if you prefer.”

Connie Enriquez pushed herself upright. “You go right ahead and look to your heart’s content, Estelle Guzman. I’d be surprised if you found anything of any value. But we never know, do we? And before you ask…I don’t know if George had any safe deposit boxes. But I’m sure you’ll find out.” The woman waddled toward the double doors. “I’ll leave you to it. If you need me again for anything, just holler. I’ll be out there dealing with cat dander.” She smiled this time, showing a set of perfectly even, fine white teeth.

The door closed behind her, leaving Estelle alone in George Enriquez’s study. She sat down in the large, padded swivel chair and gazed around the room, letting her eyes drift from object to object, taking her time. The trophy clock on the desk said that in ten minutes, Francis might be free for lunch. She found herself yearning to see his face, to feel the brush of his beard, to hear the sound of his voice.