LEFT BEHIND - The Sequel, Part Eleven

Rachel opened the door of the Cory Mansion. She had only been away a few days, but it seemed like ages.

"Mom! You're home!" said Matthew.

"No, Darling, I just stopped by for some clothes. I need something to wear to the Board meeting this afternoon."

"You're going through with your resignation, then?"

"Yes, Matthew. My decision is final - now, more than ever. The children need me."

"We need you!" said Matthew, "Cory Publishing needs you! Look, Mom, I know you're stressed out. Why don't you take a leave of absence from Cory? Take six months - a year -"

"I'm taking the rest of my life," said Rachel, and headed up to the bedroom she had once shared with Mackenzie Cory.

Rachel had never realized before that two-thirds of the clothes in her closet were grey, taupe or black. How had she gotten into the habit of dressing so drably? She sorted through them, looking for the clothes with a bit of style and colour.

One outfit caught her eye; it was exactly the colour of a ripe cantaloupe.

"I must have been in a good mood the day I bought this." she thought, holding it up in front of herself as she looked in the mirror. The colour did wonderful things for her. It would knock their eyes out at the Board meeting!

****

"Captain, I gotta talk to you!"

"What is it, Sinclair?" said Gabe.

"It's this wig." said Gary, "Joe says it's nothing, but - I can't stop thinkin' about it. I should of known it wasn't Carl in that alley; for once thing, Wally is about a foot shorter! But I saw the grey ponytail and I jumped to conclusions. Maybe the witness, Mrs. Cavendish, maybe she jumped to conclusions too! She never saw the perp's face, just the hair. Maybe she saw somebody wearin' the wig!"

"Someone framed Carl Hutchins - is that what you're suggesting?" said Gabe.

"Yeah, I guess it is." said Gary, "Carl didn't have any motive to kill Grant Harrison; for once in his life, he had the law on his side!"

"But, in order for Hutchins to be innocent, the real killer would have had to sneak into his house and hide the murder weapon there, for us to find." Gabe pointed out.

"Yeah. I haven't figured that part out yet." said Gary, "But my gut tells me that the wig is important. I've been to every wig store and costume place in town, and no one remembers selling it. So much for Joe's theory that it was someone's Hallowe'en costume! I want to start lookin' in nearby towns."

"If you want to do detective work on your own time, I have no objection." said Gabe, "As long as you give 100% while you're on duty."

****

"So, how did the Board meeting go?" Paulina asked, when she and Rachel met for a late lunch at the Harbour Club.

"About like I expected. " said Rachel, "Iris can't wait to start redecorating my office - or should I say her office."

"You look wonderful."

"I feel wonderful!" said Rachel, "It's like I've been carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders, and now I'm free!"

"Well, as free as you can be, with five children to look after!" said Paulina, "I wonder where Carl could be?"

"By now, he's probably out of the country." said Rachel.

****

Meanwhile, Gary approached Officer Eliot: "Carla, do you still have those photos you took at the Police Picnic?"

"Sure!" she said, "They're here in my desk."

"Can I borrow the negatives? I want to get some prints made."

****

Gary's next stop was a One-Hour Photo store.

"I want to get a blow-up made." he explained, "See here, the third guy from the left. I want a close-up of his face." It was Joe Carlino.

` "No problem!"

****

"I'll do the dishes, Grandma." said Steven, that evening."You sit down and rest."

"What have I done, to deserve such a wonderful grandson?" said Rachel.

Left alone in the kitchen, Steven put portions of the meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green beans into plastic baggies.

"Why are you doing that?" said Kirkland, as he entered the room.

"Shut up, Kirk!" said Steven, fiercely. "It's a secret! If you say anything - if you ask any more questions - I'll never speak to you again! We won't even be brothers any more! We'll be complete strangers!"

Glaring, he started loading the dishwasher.

****

Carl waited a full hour after he heard Rachel go upstairs to bed before venturing out of his hiding place. The secret panel slid open and -

"Hello, Carl."

Rachel had been sitting in the darkened living room. She turned on the light.

Carl was taken aback. "I heard you go upstairs! How did you get down again without using the staircase?"

"I slid down the banister." said Rachel, "I knew something was up. Steven was being so helpful - getting up early to put on the coffee, and doing the dishes all by himself - obviously, so that he could get at the leftovers - and then the shower was running in the middle of the night - "

"I knew my fastidiousness would be the death of me." Carl murmured.

"It was clear to me that you must be hiding out here, and that Steven was helping you. I just couldn't figure out where you were. I looked in the attic, the cellar, even the boys' treehouse. I didn’t know there was a secret room!"

"If people knew about it, it wouldn't be secret." Carl pointed out. "Well, Rachel, having found me out, are you going to call the police?"

"I should!" said Rachel, "Steven could be charged with aiding and abetting a fugitive!"

Carl held out his hands. "Put the cuffs on."

"What's the point? You'd just get out of them again!" said Rachel, "Let's put our heads together and try to figure out who framed you."

****

"Yeah, I remember," said the clerk at the WigWam, a wig boutique in a mall on the outskirts of Somerset. "It's unusual for a young man to buy a grey wig. He said he was in a play."

Gary showed her a photo. "Is this the guy?"

"Yeah, that’s him. He's got a Bronx accent, right? I remember thinking he was really sexy, except for that voice! He sounded like Fran Drescher on steroids!"

****

"Okay, so the witness didn't see the killer's face." said Rachel, "The guy could have been wearing a wig. The problem is, how did he manage to hide the gun in your room? Did you have any visitors before the police came?"

"No one." said Carl, "It was Sunday - Debra's day off. The children and I were alone."

"And I don't suppose you left the door unlocked?"

"Certainly not!"

"Then, the only way Joe Carlino could have found that gun in your room is if - "

"If he put it there!" said Carl.