Page 50 of Little Hidden Fears

“She was my closest friend at the club, and I figured she’d offer me some good advice. I just didn’t expect her to be so upset about what I told her. She’d always been so levelheaded. When she reacted the way she did, part of me regretted saying something. If it all came out, and I was wrong about my suspicions, I would have lost my job.”

“You can always get another job. And hey, you’re still alive. The same can’t be said for Noelle.”

Annie bowed her head, voice lowered as she said, “Do you think it’s possible someone at the club murdered Noelle?”

“I don’t know yet. I don’t even know whether she was killed by a male or a female. But I will figure out what happened to her and why.”

Given Annie had strong-looking hands, she was an easy suspect. She’d also been harboring a secret, one she was worried might come out before she was ready to reveal it. Seemed like a motive for murder to me.

Upon hearing me say I suspected the killer could be of either gender, Annie gasped. “You think awomancould have murdered Noelle?”

“I’m open to the possibility.”

“Huh, I wouldn’t think a woman would strangle a person to death, not when there are so many easier ways to kill someone.”

It was such a peculiar thing to say.

“What method would you considereasy?” I asked.

She gave the question some thought, shrugged, and said, “Poison, I guess.”

She was right and she was wrong at the same time.

Poisoning as a murder method was used by women in 4% of their cases and by men in just 1%, accounting for only 0.5% of all murders overall.

“In Noelle’s case, it isn’thowshe was murdered that matters,” I said. “I care more about statistics. In women, murder is often personal. Over 75% are killed by someone they know.”

“Wow, I had no idea. You said you don’t know who did it, but do you have any suspects yet?”

She was getting ahead of herself, making me feel like I was being steered in another direction, one where she spared herself from telling me what she’d told Noelle. I wasn’t about to let that happen.

“I have a few suspects,” I said, “which brings me back to the tennis club.”

“I must admit, I’ve been fraught with worry, wondering if something I shared with Noelle in confidence could in some way be related to her death.”

“I think you should assume it could be, which is why I need to know everything. If someone is stealing money from the club and that person found out Noelle knew about it, she could have been killed to keep the truth from coming out.”

Annie went silent, her hands shaking. “What if he did find out she knew, and what if he finds out the information came from me? It’s enough to make me want to forget this whole business, forget I know anything about it.”

“I know you're afraid,” I said. “And even though you might have some regrets about telling Noelle, something inside you knew you needed to do it, that it was the right thing to do.”

“I thought I could confide in her, and she’d keep my secret until I could prove it. Seems that’s not what happened.”

“Whatdidhappen?”

There was a long pause. “Oh, all right. I suppose there’s no getting out of it now, is there? Here’s what I know. A little over a year ago, a man who’d worked in accounting for over twenty years decided to retire. Clark started interviewing potential replacements, and then out of nowhere, he hired Owen Beaumont, a guy who’d been working in client services.”

“Did Owen have any experience in finance?”

“He said he went to school for accounting, but I’m not sure Clark ever took the time to check and see whether he was telling the truth or not.”

“Clark strikes me as a guy who would vet a person, even if that person already worked there.”

“You’re right. Here’s the catch. Owen’s uncle is the biggest shareholder of the tennis club, meaning, what he says goes. He made it clear to Clark that he wanted Owen moved to a position where he could earn more money. Once Owen had the new job, it wasn’t long before Clark noticed Owen was overwhelmed, but he knew he’d face backlash over removing Owen from the position. That’s where I came in.”

“How long did Owen work in accounting before you were hired?”

“About nine months. I was brought on to be his part-time assistant, even though I could do in two hours what he couldn’t do in eight.”

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