Diamond in the Rough(3)

Brian decided to take his lunch break, and then headed over to Charles Wingate’s home to search for answers. When he pulled into the driveway, the sight of the estate took his breath away. The ranch was magnificent. He drove the half mile of the willow lined drive to the home and got out. Stretching his legs, he got out and walked to the front door.

Before he could ring the door bell a petite woman appeared. She was clearly the maid; her black and white starched uniform gave her away.

“I am Detective Russell from the HPD. I ‘m sure you have heard that Charles Wingate was found murdered in his office early this morning. I would like to ask you a few questions if you have a moment.” The maid stood at the door for a moment eyeing the handsome detective. With a look of resignation she said, “Questioning me will not be necessary.” Detective Russell eyed her intently and he had a feeling that she knew exactly what he was looking for. Introducing herself as Maria, she invited him in and gestured for him to have a seat. She quickly disappeared from the room.

So, this is how the other half live, he thought, as he sank into the velvety overstuffed couch. The maid returned with two glasses of iced tea.

She took a seat directly across from him after serving him the iced tea.

“I believe I have information that will help.” It was as if a weight had been lifted off of her small shoulders as she continued to speak. “For twenty five years I have taken care of his home and personal affairs and through the years I have also kept his secrets. Although I never agreed with keeping her away, Charles has…I mean had a daughter who would be his next of kin.”

He digested the news as she started talking again.

“However, despite me telling him to go meet his only child, Charles had never met his daughter. He never even laid eyes on her. Although he wanted to, he had a constant fear that his money would make her a target, and she would be in danger. The decision was made twelve years ago, when he told me that it would be best to never contact her. But he knew that he need to find someone to leave his company to in the event of his death. He knew that we all have to go sooner or later and he was a man who liked to always be prepared. It became a huge quest for him. He was obsessed with searching for the perfect person who could run his business in his absence and after a while he found Jason Turner.”

Brian thought it odd that a maid would be privy to Charles Wingate’s affairs and his secrets, especially one as large as this.

She has been with him for twenty five years though, he told himself but something about it struck him odd.

“You said secrets, as if there were more than one.” Brian chided. “Is there anything else that would help our investigation?”

Maria looked like the cat that ate the canary. “No, nothing that would pertain to your investigation but it may make a good novel someday.” Brian could not suppress a chuckle but quickly regained his composure.

“What led him to decide to never contact his daughter? It makes no sense to come to that decision with no reasoning behind it.”

“Her mother was the victim of a robbery. She died as a result of it. Before that, Charles was going to contact his daughter when she turned eighteen, but after the incident, he decided to not contact her at all. He thought long and hard about reaching out to her after her mother’s death, but decided that the pain and shock of losing her mother would be too much for anyone to bear, and the addition of a father who had come out of nowhere might be an even bigger shock. Especially when the father was a target of sorts thank to his wealth. He did not want to add any additional trauma to her life by showing up out of the blue. Like I said before, I did not agree with it but he was a stubborn man. He lived his life the way he saw fit and no one could tell him any different.”

“Do you have any information on her? Any way to contact her?” he asked. She reached into her pocket and removed a small piece of paper. Detective Russell looked down at the paper. Cheyenne Wingate was her name. “Can you tell me if Mr. Wingate had any enemies? Anyone who may have wanted to see serious harm done to him?” he asked.

“The only enemies Charles had were home grown. He had been receiving threats for the past year, but ignored them. I always thought that Jason Turner had something to do with the threats.” She said as she sipped her tea.

“What type of threats?” He asked.

She hesitated for a moment before answering. “Run of the mill threats, I guess. He was never really specific about them.” After a few more inconsequential comments, Detective Brian Russell thanked her for her help and walked toward the door.

He swung his truck around in the elegant drive and headed for the office. He knew the Chief would not be happy with his progress. He was not too happy with his own progress. Grabbing a cup of coffee he walked to the Chiefs door; he was still thinking to himself before taking a drink of the stale coffee and made a face as the taste hit him.