Instead of the usual jovial atmosphere, the air was tense and the chatter sparse. It seemed no one wanted to be here.
"Let's get to it," said George Phelps as he called the meeting to order. "We've called this impromptu meeting to discuss the recent unfortunate events and what that means for the museum going forward. We took the liberty of inviting Detective Logan too. He should be here any minute," he added after a glance at his watch.
I bit my tongue to stop myself from exclaiming my surprise. The detective hadn't mentioned he was on his way here when he said he had an appointment. Did he intend to surprise me? Or did he expect I wouldn't be here?
"We remain closed until the police say we can reopen," said Artie. "Perhaps the detective will give us the go ahead when he gets here? We'll need to get the room cleaned professionally, of course, before we allow any visitors in, and I have a cleaning firm on standby. I think we should reasonably expect a fifty percent drop in visitor numbers and ticket sales for the next few months."
"That's a big drop," said Caroline. "George's quarterly forecast doesn't allow for such a large hit to the museum's finances."
"We really couldn't have foreseen this happening. We'll continue to promote the exhibition and perhaps we can prolong it by another few weeks in the hopes of local people changing their minds and new tourists arriving?" Artie glanced at me and I nodded vigorously.
"That's a great idea," I added. "The room isn't scheduled for a new exhibition yet so it won't affect anything else already advertised. We should consider extending the exhibition."
"Is everyone in agreement?" asked George, looking around at the nodding heads. "Good. Please go ahead with that, Artie, Tess. Like Caroline says, we’ll really hit our bottom line if the ticket sales collapse. We need to discuss a strategy for the worst-case scenario. It could very well impact the money set aside for the new wing but we'll have to take that up another time. Before the detective gets here, there's the matter of Lance's funeral. Declan tells us Lance's parents are flying in to take his body home. We've arranged to send flowers. Perhaps a representative of the museum should attend too?"
"I'm too old to fly," said Artie, which was total garbage because he had a big vacation including several flights planned for his retirement.
"I can't leave my daughters," I said, which was mostly true. Actually, I just didn't want to. "Perhaps someone from the board could represent all of us? Or Declan could take something commemorative to Lance's parents from us." I knew that I couldn't be the one to say nice things about him. For one, I didn't know anything nice about him, and two, I preferred not to lie. However, much as I disliked Lance, I didn't want his family to feel snubbed during their grief.
"That would be very kind," said Declan, Lance's uncle. He gave me a weak smile and I noted the gray rings under his eyes. Of course he hadn't been sleeping well but was it grief or guilt?
"We'll work that out between us," said George.
Karen stepped into the room. "Detective Logan is here," she said, waving in the detective. Instead of waiting uncertainly for an invitation to join us, he pulled out the chair next to mine and sat, resting his arms on the table. Karen gave me a small, tight smile and left quickly.
"Detective Logan, can you tell us where you are with the case?" asked George.
"We're following all the leads and working through the witness statements. As you can imagine, with so many people present that night, there's a lot of information to investigate as we build up a map of events."
"How do we know it wasn't some psycho who just wandered in?" asked Caroline.
"That seems highly unlikely, ma'am."
"But not impossible?" persisted Enid, who sat next to her.
"No, not impossible but extremely improbable. Most likely, Lance Fleming was killed by someone he knew. I can't tell you the details of an ongoing investigation but I can say there were no defensive wounds as we might expect to find if a stranger had attacked him."
"You're saying it's someone we know?" Declan gasped.
"That's a definite possibility," agreed Detective Logan.
"But why would anyone hurt him?" asked George. "None of us can work that out. He was a nice young man. Very committed to the museum."
"That's why you promoted him?" asked Detective Logan.
George nodded. "He gave a compelling interview about his vision for the museum using his background in marketing and fundraising to elevate the museum's status. His innovative strategy was integral to the museum's continued success."
Artie nudged me under the table. I stared ahead, too annoyed to say anything.
"After only working here a few months?" asked Detective Logan.
"You can't repress true talent," said George.
Next to Detective Logan, I bristled but I kept my mouth shut. Now wasn't the time to bring up personal feelings.
"So would all of you be surprised to hear that Lance was stealing from the museum?" asked Detective Logan.
"I... my gosh... yes! That's absurd!" spluttered George.
"Lance would never do such a thing!" said Caroline. "None of the employees would!"
"He's a good boy," added Declan, jumping to his feet. "You can't besmirch his name like that. That's grounds for a libel suit!"
"You can't libel the dead, sir," said Detective Logan calmly. "Please sit down, Mr. Sommersby."
"Especially if it's true," said Artie before I could jump in. "I've suspected Lance for a while and we now have concrete evidence that confirms he was stealing from the museum to line his own pockets. You all made a huge mistake by giving him a promotion and if it had gone ahead, he would have run this fine museum straight into the ground!"
"That's a lie!" shouted Declan. He leaned over the table, his mouth set into a nasty line as he stared at Artie.
"Everyone, quiet down!" shouted George over the sudden rise of appalled and annoyed voices. From what I could hear, the board members were shocked over the accusations against Lance, surprised, or disgusted that anyone employed at the museum would dare steal from it. Everyone on the board was united by their love of history and retelling stories of the past to the throngs of visitors. To hear that someone was actively working against everything they stood for was worse than horrifying. I knew how horrible it was for me the moment I realized Lance couldn't care less about the museum.
As the room calmed, I circulated my thin files, glad I made a couple of extra copies so I could give one to the detective too. Although we spoke, I didn't have time to send him the files so I knew most of the details would come as a surprise to him. I was glad I informed him about Lance's secret deal with the realtor so he would be ready for the board's reaction.
"Inside you'll find evidence I gathered that confirms a small number of books are missing from the library along with their sales listings," I told them as they opened the files.
"We didn't authorize any sales!" said Caroline, frowning as she turned the pages.
"No, we didn't, and last year's audit accounted for them so we know the books could only have been taken during the past year."
"That doesn't mean Lance took them!" said Declan. He pushed the file away, refusing to open it.
"I agree so I looked into it a little deeper, made a few calls and learned that Lance was the seller for at least two of the missing books. I've managed to get those sales canceled and arranged for the books to be returned. We're currently conducting an earlier than planned audit of the museum to see if anything else is missing."
"We suspect there will be," added Artie, his voice stern. "I caught Lance red-handed."
"That can't be true!" muttered George.
“Someone was setting up my nephew,” said Declan, shaking his head in disbelief.
"It gets worse," I started as I opened my file. "I received further news this morning that Lance fraudulently attempted to sell the derelict wing of the museum that is scheduled for remodel. You will find a copy of the realtor's contract in the file I just gave you. It lists Lance as being in potential receipt of a large fee once the paperwork was signed."
"For the benefit of the board, how did you come by this information?" asked Detective Logan.
"Tony Mausman, the realtor, came to the museum looking for Lance. He hadn't been able to reach him so he stopped by here. He explained what his business was with Lance and was able to describe him too. I found it just as outrageous as all of you do now."
"This wasn't authorized," said George. He ran his finger down the page then turned it, reading quickly.
"It seemed Lance was escalating his thefts."
"If this is true, he couldn't have gotten away with it!" said Caroline.
"I suspect he would have once Artie and I were both out of the way," I said, sounding just as cross as I felt. Perhaps the board deserved this kind of shock if only so they would realize what an awful mistake they made, but my moment of satisfaction was short-lived. "I noted in the paperwork that the sale would have entered escrow a month after Artie's departure. I'm sure that would have given Lance sufficient time to convince you all to abandon the renovation plans and sell the wing. His deception might never have been discovered."
"And if he couldn't convince us?" asked Enid.
I remembered the ticket I saw in Lance's apartment. "Maybe he had an escape route, a Plan B?" I said, hoping Detective Logan would pick up the hint. He must have gone to Lance's apartment and noticed the ticket too, and if he didn't, he might be persuaded to inquire if Lance had any forthcoming travel plans.
Declan scraped back his chair and jumped to his feet. He tossed the file towards me, allowing it to slide across the table, coming to a stop within my reach. "I can't listen to another word of this. You're dragging my nephew's name through the mud!"
"Sit down!" said Detective Logan. He fixed him with a long look until Declan flopped into his chair, his chin jutting out and his mouth pressed into a tight line. "During background checks, I noted Lance had several misdemeanors on his record. Mostly thefts."
"What?" Caroline darted a glance to Declan. He hung his head, refusing to look at anyone, and crossed his arms.
Of course! Declan had to know! I exchanged glances with Artie, seeing the annoyance written on his face.
"We didn't know anything about this," said George. "You knew?" he asked Declan. Declan looked away. George turned his attention back to the file, flicking through the pages before closing it and resting his laced fingers on top. "Obviously, we're mortified at this new information," he said, looking from me to Artie. "We would never have authorized the hiring of a thief if we’d known. Lance's past deeds were certainly not listed on his résumé and all of his references panned out to confirm his skills and abilities."
"We'll need to review our hiring process," said Joe Moore, one of the other board members, and formerly a history teacher. "This can't be allowed to occur again and as much as I don't want to erase what's already happened, we do have posts to fill, both Artie's and now Lance's too."
"All of you are fully aware that Tess should be promoted to manager," said Artie. He rested back in his chair and crossed his arms, daring anyone to defy him.
Silence descended over the room, then the sounds of shuffling and embarrassed murmurs. As for me? I was rigid with chagrin.
"I'd like to get a copy of this," said Detective Logan. He tapped the file.
"Yes, of course," I replied.
"And I'll want to talk to several of you individually," he said, rising. "Unless anyone else has something to add, I'd appreciate getting on with those interviews now while everyone is in one place."
"Just one thing," said Caroline. "The museum isn't making money while it's closed. We realize that you have a job to do, but we need to ensure the museum's upkeep costs are met. Do you know when we can reopen?"
"Tomorrow will be fine. My crime scene people have collected everything they need so I'm happy for you to go ahead and reopen the museum. Furthermore, you can access the rooms later today. I'm sure you'll want to audit the exhibition room too."
"Small blessings," murmured Caroline. Privately, I agreed. Despite the bold impudence of Lance's transgressions, we had to continue normally. Once the museum reopened, that would be possible. Even if the ticket sales were slow, I knew they would pick up eventually. All I had to do was devise the kind of exhibition that people couldn't stand to miss. The residual gossip about Lance's murder should be heavily reduced by the time summer tourists were due to arrive.
"When you're ready, I can take your statement about the thefts," said Detective Logan. "We can do it here today or down at the station. Then I can give you a report for your insurers.”
"Oh, no," said George, surprising me by shaking his head vehemently. "No, that won't be necessary."
"But, George, Tess's report suggests these books are worth thousands of dollars. We need to claim that money back," said Caroline.
"Tess already said some of the books are being returned so that minimizes our losses," replied George.
"But the others..."
"We can't risk the museum being embarrassed like that! Word will get out that we had a thief right under our noses and not one of us did a thing to prevent it. The town will laugh at us, and the museum community? We'll never be able to borrow another artifact or participate in another collaboration again. No one will trust us with their property if we can't even protect our own," explained George. When he put it so baldly, I had to consider whether he was right. Were the stolen items collectively less valuable than the loss of our standing in the museum world?
"There's nothing to suggest Lance stole anything that didn't already belong to the museum," I chipped in, wondering why the heck I was defending him. He caused all the problems. Then I realized I wasn't. I just wanted what was best for the museum, although George had a point. Would any of our collaborators trust us again?
"Regardless, this will bring scandalous publicity on top of a what is currently perceived as a terrible tragedy," said George.
"I agree. We should think of Lance's family too," said Enid, shooting a look at Lance's uncle. "We should spare them any more grief if we can."
"I'm sure we can keep any reports between us for now. There's no need for word to spread," said Artie.
I nodded. "Plus, the chances of us recovering any of the other stolen items are very low. But we do need to have them officially appraised, even in absentia. We should file a claim with our insurers for them. If we put the money to good use, some benefit could come out of this."
"That's a great idea," said Artie as supportive murmurs sounded across the room.
"The police department has no interest in spreading damaging news," said Detective Logan.
"You can't promise that you'll contain it though?" demanded George. The two men stared at each other, then Detective Logan shook his head. "We'll discuss this amongst the board but I feel the answer is clear. We'll have to write these thefts off and eat the loss. Any investigation would be difficult for us all and there's no one to prosecute now that Lance is dead. No good can come of pursuing it. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We'll let you know what we decide."
Across the table, Lance's uncle slid a little further into his chair. As Artie and I rose, after clearly being dismissed from the board's upcoming private meeting, I wondered if George were right. I was sure Lance must have had a partner helping him. His uncle helped cover up his previous petty crimes as well as landing the job here. With Declan and George so visibly friendly, did Declan have the president's ear? Did Declan secure Lance's promotion? Could Declan be Lance’s mystery partner? If he were, and things went sour between them, could he also be the man who murdered Lance?