Jack leaned forward, flipping through the pages. His jaw tightened as he read Stanley’s handwriting—the withdrawals, the receipts that didn’t add up, the small amounts taken over months.
“You’re telling me,” Jack said slowly, looking up from the ledger, “that Stanley Hooper embezzled from the toy drive, blamed innocent people, and died in an accident he caused.”
“Exactly,” Nans said, her voice calm and certain.
Jack set the ledger down on his desk with deliberate care, then looked at Eddie. His expression was hard. “And you tampered with evidence.”
Eddie nodded, his voice hoarse and barely above a whisper. “Yes, sir.”
Jack’s jaw tightened, the muscles working beneath the skin. “That’s a crime, Eddie. You took evidence from a scene. You hid it. You lied to me.”
“I know.” Eddie’s shoulders hunched forward. “I know. I was scared. I thought everyone would think I took the money from the fund and killed Stanley.”
Jack exhaled hard, the sound frustrated and weary. He rubbed his face with both hands, then dropped them to the desk. “But given the circumstances... I’ll recommend community service. You’re going to make this right.”
Eddie’s eyes filled with tears, his whole body sagging with relief. “Thank you. Thank you. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“You’ll start by writing a full statement,” Jack said firmly. “Everything you saw, everything you did. And then you’re going to help us figure out exactly how much Stanley took so we can make sure every kid on that angel tree gets what they need.”
“Yes, sir.” Eddie wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. “I will.”
Jack stood, his chair scraping against the linoleum floor. He looked at Vivian, who flinched slightly under his gaze. “Vivian, I’m going to need a statement from you too. You found the body and didn’t report it. That’s a problem.”
Vivian nodded quickly, her voice shaky. “I know. I’m sorry. I was scared.”
“We’ll talk about it,” Jack said, but his voice was less harsh than it had been with Eddie. “Have a seat. This might take a while.”
Vivian glanced at the ladies, then moved to sit in the chair beside Eddie.
Jack turned to Nans and the others. “And you four?—“
“Are going to enjoy the tree lighting,” Nans finished sweetly, her expression perfectly innocent.
Jack pointed a finger at her, his expression stern but with a hint of something that might have been amusement. “Stay out of active investigations.”
“We always try,” Nans said.
Jack’s mouth twitched, fighting a smile. “No, you don’t.”
“We try to try,” Ida offered helpfully.
“That’s not better,” Jack muttered.
Helen stepped forward slightly, her voice gentle. “Jack, if it helps, we did solve your case.”
“Our investigation already determined it was an accident and now you’ve given me two more people to process,” Jack countered, gesturing at Eddie and Vivian. “So I’m not sure it’s a net positive.”
“But now you know Stanley was the one who took the money,” Ruth pointed out, her iPad tucked under her arm. “And you can clear Elaine Wilkins and Eddie and everyone else.”
Jack sighed, the kind of sigh that came from deep in the chest. “Fine. Yes. Thank you. Now go before I change my mind about charging you all with obstruction.”
“You wouldn’t,” Nans said confidently.
“Don’t test me, Mona.”
Nans smiled and turned toward the door. “Come along, ladies.”
As they filed out into the hallway—painted the same utilitarian beige as the office—Ida whispered, “Do you think Jack really would have charged us?”
