Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. Vol. 124, Nos. 3 & 4. Whole Nos. 757 & 758, September/October 2004

They heard the throbbing roar as the helicopter took off, and Sergeant Ambrose came in to see them. “Jerry Wax will be held overnight for arraignment in the morning. Then he’ll probably be released on bail.”

“Tell him what you just told us,” Mark said to Leopold.

He went through it all again for the sergeant, and they showed him the newly discovered paintings. “We might be able to confirm it,” Ambrose said. “They lifted a partial print from that vial. I was going to have to fingerprint all of you. But couldn’t the mistake have been made at the table?”

Leopold shook his head. “Southby carried in the plate for Mark himself, and it was two seats away from his plate. Once the plates were on the table they couldn’t have been moved without attracting attention.”

Ambrose nodded. “I’ll call you within an hour about that print. You’d better let me take these paintings, too, until we establish ownership. I’ll give you a receipt.”

They waited up over an hour for his call, but when it came the news was good. The partial print on the poison vial belonged to Wade Southby.

Leopold rose early in the morning, and told Mark they’d be heading home after breakfast. “We’ve already stayed a night longer than planned. Molly was supposed to be back in her office this morning.”

“I can’t thank you enough,” Mark said. “I don’t know what we’d have done without you.”

“I’d do anything for Molly’s brother.”

Sarah came down with Molly to join them for breakfast. Afterward she suggested that Mark bring down their bags while she gave Leopold a final tour of the vineyard. “They’re finishing the harvest today. It’s a good year. We’ll send you a case when it’s ready.”

They walked among the rows of vines and Leopold said, “It’s a beautiful place you have here.”

“It is that.” She stopped and turned to him. “I just wanted to thank you. For everything.”

“What—?”

“I could see it in your face last night.”

“Yes.” He stared out at the lake, following the progress of a small boat. “You saw Southby poison your husband’s fish, so you switched the plates.”

“How did you know?”

“A man like Southby doesn’t get confused, not when he’s committing murder. The poisoned fish was on Mark’s plate when he carried it into the dining room. You and Suzie and I were the only ones in the kitchen with him when he must have poured that poison over the sauce. Only you or Suzie could have seen him do it.” He turned back to face her. “It seemed no one could have switched the plates when we were all at the table, but then I remembered the helicopter just before we started eating. We all ran out on the back porch to see it. Suzie was one of the first out, so she couldn’t have switched plates. It had to be you. Only you had both the knowledge of the poisoning and the opportunity to switch plates.”

“I didn’t know it was poison, then. I didn’t know what it was. I just knew I didn’t want my husband eating that fish. When Southby got so deathly ill I was horrified at what I’d done.” She lowered her eyes. “Will you have to tell Ambrose?”

“I’m the jury,” he said, “to paraphrase the title of an old novel. And the jury just found you not guilty.”

“Thank you again, for Mark and Megan. And for myself.”

Leopold heard Molly calling to him from back at the house. It was time to head home. “Goodbye, Sarah. I hope we see you again soon. Give Megan a hug for us.”

She smiled at him. “We’ll send you that case of wine.”

Cigarettes by Michael Z. Lewin

Most of author Michael Z. Lewin’s twenty-odd books are set in Indianapolis, where he grew up, and feature either police detective Leroy Powder or private eye Albert Samson. But since 1971 the author has lived in England, and a few years ago he decided to create a series set in his adopted country and in the town in which he currently lives, Bath. EQMM will have a story in that series, about a family P.I. business employing three generations, later this year.

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I should stop smoking. I’m sure I should. I know I should. Smoking is bad. And it can lead to bad things.

On the other hand, there is a good side to smoking, especially these days. It’s a social thing. And that’s it. Smoking is social, and I don’t just mean lighting up and sharing a cig after you-know-what.