The Puzzle of Piri Reis (25 page)

Ibbara frowned. "You couldn't prove it by me."

At that moment, the phone rang. Edna excused herself.

Ibbara moved closer to the prints. "What kind of
figures are these?" He studied them a moment longer,
and then with a shake of his head turned back to me.
"You're a better man than me, Boudreaux, if you can
figure them out."

I laughed. "I'm not much of a puzzle person. When
I was a kid learning my catechisms, the sisters would
sometimes administer tests in a crossword puzzle format. I flunked them all."

He shivered and stared at the palm of his hand.
"Oh, yeah. The sisters. How well I remember them"
He paused. "So, you got no idea?"

"No. There are so many different codes and ciphers,
that unless a person has an idea of the key, they're almost impossible to solve"

He chuckled. "That sounds like Uncle Bernard"
When I frowned, he gestured to the prints. "If those
are puzzles, then he's probably grinning like a possum
right now because no one could figure them out. He was
like that. Biggest ego of anyone I've ever known" He
arched an eyebrow. "Don't misunderstand, Boudreaux.
I loved the old man, but if he hadn't been my kin, I
would have probably detested him for the egomaniac he
was."

At that moment, Edna reappeared. "Louis, it's the
station. They need you"

"Be right there" He turned to me. "Hang in there,
Boudreaux. You need anything, let me know."

I muttered a soft "Thank you, Lord," when Edna
followed Louis from the den, closing the door behind
her and leaving me alone. Quickly, I turned to the fabric couch next to the wall. According to Maddox, he
helped Odom to the couch. When he left, Odom was
sitting on the edge with his face buried in his hands.

Reconstructing the murder, I figured the killer entered from the door which was to the side of the couch,
struck Odom on the back of his head, and when he discovered the old man was not dead, suffocated him with
one of the throw pillows on the couch.

I glanced around the den, searching for the instrument the killer used to strike Odom. The lamps on the end tables were heavy brass, perfect for the job, but both
had bulky shades, which would have made enough noise
for Odom to look around.

No. The killer didn't use either lamp.

I scanned the den. Too bad Odom wasn't into medieval history. A mace or war ax would have been a
juicy discovery.

Then my eyes settled on the two heavy gold crosses
on either side of the door. I caught my breath. Was it
possible?

My heart thudded against my chest as I inspected
the crosses. A layer of dust covered the first, but on the
second, the horizontal and vertical axis of the cross
had been wiped clean. I looked closer, but there was
no physical evidence visible to the eye. Quickly, I
pulled out the spray pump in which I had poured a few
ounces of water before I left the hotel, dumped in the
vial of Luminol, and shook the pump vigorously.

Holding my breath the door wouldn't open, I quickly
sprayed the cross, then drew the heavy drapes, plunging
the room into gloom except for the dim bluish-green
glow on the axis of the cross.

I was right. Bernard Odom had been murdered, and
now I had one of the murder weapons.

Hastily, I sprayed the cushions from the couch. As
the Luminol hit the second one, the same bluish-green
glow appeared. Now I had both weapons.

Suppressing my excitement, I headed to Edna's office.

She was standing in front of the wall of pictures,
straightening them. She smiled warmly. "Any luck,
Tony?"

I said nothing about what little progress I'd made. I
shrugged. "To tell the truth, I'm getting nowhere."

Edna frowned in disappointment. "I'm sorry. You've
looked everywhere in the den?" She straightened a picture on the wall and stepped back to study it.

"Yeah. Everywhere." I sighed. "Shame about Lamia
Sue. Have you heard anything about her?"

"No. The funeral's tomorrow at two. Teddy wanted it
here at the house, and then we'll take her to the mausoleum. You're more than welcome" She indicated the
picture. "Here's one of her last year."

I studied the picture. It was Lamia Sue and Edna on
the porch. "She was a pretty little thing," I whispered.

Beside the picture was the one of Edna at The Clock
I had seen earlier. She was seated on a bench in front
of the translucent clock with her silver watch glistening on her left wrist while her hand carefully covered
the other in her lap. Like the first time I looked at it,
something seemed out of place. I glanced at the one of
her and Lamia Sue, trying to discern the difference,
but with no luck.

I studied the older woman for a few moments. Her
eyes reflected the anguish she was feeling. "Sorry"

She drew a deep breath. "It's a sad thing but something like that was inevitable for her."

"Because of her drugs?"

Edna looked at me in surprise. "You knew?"

"Yeah. I learned she was a stringer."

"Stringer?"

"Sold drugs for a dealer."

"Oh. I didn't know that."

"It's a shame. Here she was, a pretty young woman with
a nice income from her uncle. And then this happens"

A sad smile played over Edna's thin lips.

I played dumb. "What kind of allowance did Odom
provide for her? A couple thousand a month?"

Edna's eyes grew wide and a tiny smile curled her
lips. "Two thousand? Heavens no"

I frowned. "Oh? Not that much, huh?"

She shook her head emphatically. "Oh, no. Much
more. Eight thousand."

"Eight thous-" I whistled softly. The figure surprised me, but not for the reason she thought. "Eight
thousand?"

"Yes. Mr. Odom could afford it. He was a very generous man."

"He must have been" I couldn't help wondering if
Ted knew how much his father had been giving his
cousin. And then I began to question whether or not
Teddy had given me the correct figure on his allowance.
"Teddy told me that his allowance was five thousand a
month. Is that about right?"

Edna shifted about in her chair. "Yes"

I frowned. "Why the difference?"

She shrugged. "That was Mr. Odom. He was always
harder on Teddy than Lamia Sue. He was always much
more protective of her than of Teddy"

"Does Teddy know?" I knew the answer but I was
curious as to her response.

Slowly she shook her head. "Mr. Odom instructed
me to keep it quiet. Teddy never asked"

"Lamia Sue didn't tell him?"

"No. She knew to keep it quiet also"

At that moment, I felt a sense of genuine sorrow for
Teddy Odom and a sense of growing dislike for his old
man.

Edna sensed my irritation. She hurried to explain.
"Mr. Odom would have done anything in the world for
Teddy or Lamia Sue. He was truly a good man. He just
wanted his son to stand on his own two feet"

I drew a deep breath. "I can understand that" I changed the subject. "By the way. You might have mentioned it earlier, and I just forgot, or it went in one ear
and out the other."

"Oh? What was that?"

"Well, when I was interviewing Leo Cobb, he admitted he had threatened to kill Odom in front of you,
but I don't remember you mentioning that."

For a fleeting moment, she froze, her dark eyes
growing hard, but in the next instant they softened. She
gave me a tolerant smile. "Leo and Mr. Odom were
friends for years. He didn't mean what he said, and I
couldn't see any reason to stir up trouble for him." She
shrugged. "He's got enough problems as it is."

Not wanting her to sense my skepticism at her reply,
I laughed. "I know what you mean. Oh, and one other
question. A few days ago, Rebecca Wentworth told me
Mr. Odom had mentioned donating the Piri Reis to the
Wingate Museum of Art. Did he ever say anything to
you about it?"

She laughed softly and waved the idea aside. "Nothing to it. Oh, he did mention it once, but decided not to"

"Did he say why?"

"No. I'm sorry."

I started to ask her about the Rolls and Joe Hogg,
but decided to wait.

As I drove away from the mansion, I was ticking off
the tasks that lay ahead. First, being away from the puzzle had cleared my head. I was anxious to return and see
if my newest idea was the key.

Then, I wanted to check the bank accounts Eddie
Dyson had provided to find out just what kind of allowance the old man gave the kids.

I picked up a soft drink in the lobby of the hotel.
Upstairs, I popped it open and glanced idly at the financial information Eddie had sent.

Regular deposits of five thousand a month were
made to both Lamia Sue and Teddy's bank accounts. I
frowned. Teddy's made sense, but where was the other
three thousand that Edna said the young woman had
been receiving?

Glancing at Edna's account, I saw she had an automatic deposit of forty-eight hundred a month. Her
balance was a little over ten Gs and her savings were
close to thirty. I suspected she had a few annuities or
401, which was certainly not unusual for a single
woman on the same job for over thirty years. Thirtyfour to be exact.

I stared out over the balcony at the River Walk below, sipping my water and wondering about the other
three thousand Lamia Sue was supposed to be getting.

Dusk crept over the city. Bright lights began punching gay holes in the growing darkness. Below, several
young women in jeans and scanty blouses strolled
the River Walk, giggling and hugging their bare arms
against the sudden chill. On impulse, I grabbed my
jacket and headed for the Elena Towers wondering if
Lamia Sue's so-called roommate was around.

The clerk at the front desk of the Elena Towers
solemnly informed me that Lamia Sue Odom had suddenly passed away. Feigning surprise, I frowned and
shook my head at the young woman. "That's too bad.
Does she have any family around that you know of?"
Before she could reply, I patted my coat pocket and
continued. "I was hired to give her an important document that is very valuable. I have no idea what it is,
but the attorney told me it was worth several thousand
dollars to her. So, you can see my predicament."

The brown-haired clerk pursed her lips. "I'm sorry.
I don't know, but maybe her roommate would be able
to help."

"That would be ideal. Can I see him?"

She smiled awkwardly. "It's a her, but she's out
right now."

I gave her my room and telephone number at the
Grand Isle. "I'll be there all evening. And there is a
finder's fee for helping us contact the appropriate individuals."

Back in my room, I pulled out the second puzzle
along with the partial translation I had come up with
earlier.

Print Number Two

Assuming the spacing in the puzzle indicated four
words, I saw I was missing two characters in the first,
four in the second, all in the third, and two in the fourth.

I pulled out the new key and tried to fit the puzzle
into it.