"Mr. Rutledge, you said you had to wait for Miss Nolan to open the office door," Sheriff Brady interrupted as he rummaged through Rhonda’s desk. "You don’t have a key?"
Sheila tried to contain her excitement. "Several items had turned up missing lately," she said, glancing at Neil. "Rhonda had complained to the owners of Cordial Manor that Neil was stealing. To play it safe, the owners installed new locks."
"How many people have keys to the new locks," Sheriff Brady asked.
"Just Rhonda and me, so far," Sheila answered.
"What about the owner?"
"They live out of town. I’ve been with Cordial five years. They trust me to handle affairs while they’re away," she said proudly.
Sheriff Brady retrieved a key marked "office" from the desk drawer, holding it up. "Then this key must have belonged to Rhonda?"
"Well, yes. That’s her key ring," Sheila answered.
Sheriff Brady walked to the door and examined it.
"There’s no sign of a break-in," Deputy Randall confirmed.
He inserted the key. "A perfect fit," the sheriff exclaimed.
"What does that prove?" Neil asked. "We said it was Rhonda’s key."
"It proves that the murderer had to have had a key when she left," Deputy Randall remarked.
"I don’t understand," Sheila said nervously.
Sheriff Brady pointed to the lock. "A deadbolt such as this can easily be locked from the inside by a turn of the knob." He demonstrated. "But to lock it from the outside, you’d need a key."
Deputy Randall nodded. "Both of you stated that it was locked when you arrived. So whoever killed Rhonda must have locked the door when they left. And Miss Nolan has already admitted that she and Rhonda had the only keys to the lock."
Sheriff Brady’s triumphant smile widened as he met Sheila’s frightened gaze. "And you unlocked it this morning."
The End
******
From Shirley McCann
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