“How did you know where to look for Mr. Lynch?” Brianna asked her father during their Sunday morning stroll at the local nature preserve. “I’d never have guessed he would have gone to the house in the woods on Halloween.”
“He knew everybody was occupied at the Halloween party,” Dalton said, thumbs hooked on his belt. “It was the perfect opportunity for him to search for proof of his parents’ marriage without fear of discovery.”
Marla kept pace along the winding path through the wetlands. The smell of dank earth and decaying vegetation filled the warm autumn air. They needed a cold spell to bring temperatures down and make walking outdoors more comfortable.
“I can’t believe he found it,” she added. “Who would have thought to look inside the hollow arm of a white plaster statue?”
“It was clever of Nathan Ripari to hide it there,” Dalton agreed. “Too bad he never got to tell Janet, his secret bride, where he’d put it. Back in his day, the property must have had lots of those statues around. Mr. Lynch was lucky this one hadn’t been sold.”
“Or broken apart by the elements,” Brianna commented as they passed a mangrove section, where tree roots reached deep into the soggy soil. “So how did you determine Mr. Lynch was their son?”
Marla tilted her head to hear the reply. They hadn’t had time to have this conversation earlier. Friday night, they’d been too tired after discovering Mr. Lynch at the historic house and exposing his identity. Then Saturday, Marla had a full day at work. Last evening, she and Dalton had a dinner date with Arnie and his wife. So today was the first time they could review the case.
“His age was about right,” Dalton said, “and something about him bothered me. He’d told Marla he lived at a trailer park, but his address didn’t check out.”
“Principal Underwood hired him. You’d think he would have done a background check.” Brianna sidestepped around a tree trunk in their path.
“Thomas Lynch revealed his true identity to the principal and promised to donate a portion of his inheritance to the school if he could prove his heritage. For Underwood, it was a win-win either way. If Lynch couldn’t prove his parents’ marriage, the school would still benefit upon Mr. Ripari’s death. Meanwhile, Lynch kept close to Ripari, in case his cousin discovered the document’s hiding place.”
“How odd to think they were related,” Marla said.
“Bill Ripari was Joseph’s son, while Tom Lynch was Nathan’s kid. Joseph and Nathan were brothers. Nathan wasn’t aware Janet was pregnant when he was drafted into the army. She later married a man named Garvin Lynch.”
“So the janitor hoped to prove his heritage and stake a claim on the estate?”
“Ripari Senior meant for the property to be equally divided among his married children or their heirs. That meant Nathan’s son would be entitled to a share. Mr. Lynch knew Bill intended to sell the estate and wanted his half.”
“Wasn’t there a sister also?” Brianna asked with a confused frown.
“Yes, Joseph and Nathan had a sister, but she died childless.” Dalton paused beside a tall tree enveloped by a strangler fig. “You know what gets me. The Conroy family wasn’t left destitute after William Ripari bought their property. Frank bought a house on the New River, where he raised his two children. His son, Steven, became a lawyer and remained in the house after Frank died. Janet had remarried and lived elsewhere, but eventually the house passed to her. Steven was single and had no offspring.”
Her mind reeling, Marla resumed their walk. “Wait, so you’re saying the school janitor lives in a mansion on the New River? Those properties are worth millions.”
“Now they are. They weren’t worth much in Frank’s day. It had gotten to the point where Tom Lynch was having trouble paying taxes. He figured if he could prove his mother’s claim that she’d been married to a Ripari, he’d make enough money from the real estate deal Bill Ripari had mentioned, that he’d be comfortable into his old age.”
“Now with Mr. Ripari dead and no heirs, does that mean he inherits everything?” Brianna asked, her sneakers making squishy noises as they passed a wet section.
Vines trailed down from overhead trees, with the possibility of spider webs lurking among them. Beams of sunlight penetrated the canopy enough to illuminate some webs but not all. Marla kept a wary eye out as they progressed to drier ground. A creature slithered into the shrubbery to their left, making her scurry past.
“Vicki Sweetwater is making a claim on her daughter’s behalf.” Dalton scratched his arm. The mosquitoes wouldn’t abate until a cold front came to town.
“Vicki and Bill never married, so is her claim legit?” Marla asked, hoping Rose would gain some inheritance. It seemed only right.
“Vicki has a good lawyer. She and Tom can duke it out. While they both had motives, they didn’t kill Bill Ripari.”
“No, Jules did it to protect his friend. Mr. Ripari had been hitting on Patrick, whom he was supposed to be tutoring. The dirty old man,” Marla added with a grimace.
“What’s going to happen to the football coach?” Brianna asked.
“I suppose he’ll be fired. Plus, he may face charges for feeding steroids to his team.” Marla glanced at the teenager. “Maybe we should send you to a private school with better supervision.”
Dalton placed a soothing hand on Marla’s arm. “It’ll be safer now with everything out in the open. The teacher’s killer is in custody, and the rotten apples will be weeded out. Principal Underwood is sure to resign. The school board will be examining his role. He might have been acting in the school’s best interest but in the wrong way.”
“I guess so, and no doubt Brianna would rather remain with her friends.”
“Not all of them.” The teen’s eyes blazed. “Andy didn’t come to the Halloween party. Maya told me he had plans with Ilyssa for the night. I’d seen them together a couple of times, but he hadn’t mentioned anything to me.”
Marla gaped at her. “You mean, Andy is seeing someone else besides you? The rat. You don’t need a guy like him, honey.”
“Andy? Who’s that? Did I miss something?” Dalton shot his daughter a suspicious glare.
Marla laughed. “Get used to it, Dad. This is merely the beginning. Your daughter is growing into a lovely young lady, and boys are starting to take notice.”
“Oh, yeah? I’ll have to meet them first before they can notice my girl.”
“It’s my life. I don’t need you to interfere.” Brianna lifted her chin. “Besides, I have Marla to guide me, and she made the perfect choice for a husband. I trust her judgement.”
A warm glow filled her. Marla could handle teenage puppy love, as long as it didn’t involve murder. With a sigh of content, she strode along, rejoicing in her family and the upcoming holidays they would celebrate together.