Chapter 22
Stan Turner
The following week Ram and Derek Donner came in to work on the fire loss claim. Derek Donner had been Stan’s longtime friend and had handled all his insurance matters over the years. Likewise, Stan had done legal work for Derek and they had both referred each other clients. They met in Stan’s office.
“I went by the store after you called me,” Derek said. “It must have been a big fire. There’s hardly anything left but the foundation.”
“The fire investigator said five or six Molotov Cocktails were tossed into the store,” Stan replied.
“Sammy’s done that before back in Pakistan,” Ram said.
“So, has the fire investigator talked to Sammy?” Derek asked.
“I don’t know. He said he’d have a detective question him. He’s supposed to call me when he has any new information. I’ll have Maria see if she can get him on the line,” Stan said. He pushed the intercom button and asked her to get the fire investigator on the line. She said she’d try.
“So, what do I have to do to file a claim?” Ram asked.
“I’ve got the claim form filled out,” Derek replied sliding the form over to him. “Just look it over and, if it is correct, sign it and I’ll turn it in. In a few days they will assign a claim’s representative to process it. They’ll probably want to meet you at the property and take your statement.”
“Have them come here to my office for the interview,” Stan instructed.
“Sure,” Derek said. “That shouldn’t be a problem.”
“And don’t talk to anyone about the fire,” Stan said. “They sometimes interview employees, friends and family members so the less they know the better.”
“Okay,” Ram said. “What about my wife?”
“She shouldn’t talk to anyone either,” Stan warned. “You don’t want to give the insurance company any reason to deny the claim.”
The intercom squawked and Maria came on the line. “The fire investigator is on the line.”
Stan put the phone on speaker. “Yes, this is Stan Turner.”
“Hi, Mr. Turner.”
“We were just wondering how the investigation of the fire at Pakimart Grocery was coming along.”
“Well, Detective Arnold Swan was assigned the case and the last I heard Mr. Keashkear wouldn’t talk to him.”
“So what’s he going to do about it?”
“He’s canvassing the neighborhood to see if anyone saw the men who threw the Molotov Cocktails into the building, but so far he has come up empty. In the meantime our lab boys are working on the Molotov Cocktails. They were made of beer bottles, gasoline and shredded t-shirts. They’ve found a few partial prints on some of the pieces of broken bottles but that’s about it.”
“Alright,” Stan said. “Thanks for the update.”
Stan looked at Ram and Derek and sighed. “To be realistic, it’s not likely that they will be able to prove Sammy was behind it.”
“So, how will that affect my claim?” Ram asked.
Derek took a deep breath before he answered. “It will delay the payment of the claim, I’m afraid. Insurance fraud is rampant these days and there will have to be an insurance investigation. That could take weeks.”
“But without the store I have no income. How will I feed my family and pay my rent?”
“I’ll put heat on them to pay the claim quickly. The law doesn’t allow them to drag their feet. Didn’t you tell me at the confirmation hearing that you had some money saved up?” Stan asked.
“I did but I just spent it on inventory. I’m on a cash-only basis with most of my vendors because of the bankruptcy.”
“Right. What about relatives? Can any of them help?”
“We have some friends who will make sure we don’t starve or have to sleep in the park, but that’s about it. None of them are wealthy.”
Stan felt badly at Ram’s predicament but knew getting the insurance company to act quickly would be difficult. “I’m sorry, Ram. I’ll push them and if they drag their feet too long I’ll file a lawsuit against them if I have to, but you know lawsuits move like ice flows.”
“Damn it! Just when I thought we were going to make it Sammy screws everything up again. I should just go find him and put a bullet in his head.”
“Don’t even think like that. If you did that you’d spend the rest of your life in prison and your family would be sent back to Pakistan immediately.”
“I know. This is all so frustrating. I don’t know what to do.”
“Just be patient. It will all work out in time.”
After Ram left, Derek took Stan to lunch at Emilio’s. Emilio needed a new insurance agent since Bill Rice had been murdered, so Stan suggested Derek. While Stan and Eva talked, Emilio talked to Derek about insurance. Stan and Eva met in Emilio’s small but nicely appointed office. Eva was an attractive, full-figured woman in her late forties. She had dark brown hair, hazel eyes and a vivacious personality.
“I wanted to talk to you since you apparently knew all of the murder victims.”
“Yes. I did. I still can’t believe they are all dead. They were such good friends.”
“Bill Rice was your insurance agent, wasn’t he?” Stan asked.
“Yes, we’ve known Bill and Donna for at least ten years. Bill was your typical salesman, very friendly and social. He was a clown, always telling crazy jokes. Donna was the junior league type–always working for one charity or another. I couldn’t keep up with everything she was doing.”
“So, were you at the restaurant on the night of the murders?”
“No. Had I known John and Sandy were going to be there I would have joined them for dinner, but I wasn’t informed.”
“Does that surprise you?”
“A little. Emilio should have told me they were there. I’m a little surprised too that John didn’t give me a heads up.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you weren’t there. You might have been poisoned too.”
“I know. It’s very unsettling to think that people died eating our food.”
“So, can you think of any reason why someone would want your friends dead?”
“I know John had a lot of people angry with him. In the oil business you’re bound to have a dry hole once in a while. People should understand that.”
“But he had five dry holes in a row, didn’t he?”
“Yes, but then he had two great wells. It’s just the nature of the business. Investing in oil and gas is like gambling. You just better hope you’re lucky.”
“So, did John talk to you a lot about his angry investors?”
“It came up in our conversations from time to time. Sandy complained about it a lot. She wanted him to shut down the company and get into something else.”
“How did he feel about that?”
“He liked the oil business and wasn’t about to change professions.”
“So, was their marriage in trouble? Either of them cheating on the other?”
“John suspected Sandy was cheating on him but couldn’t prove it. He almost hired a private investigator.”
“He told you this?”
“Yes, John was very open. He talked to everybody about his problems. You know the type.”
Stan nodded. “Yes. I have a few friends like that.”
“So, did you go to John’s funeral?”
“Yes. Emilio and I went. It was a very lovely ceremony.”
“Did you know most of the people there?”
“A lot of them, but there was family from out of town that I didn’t know.”
“Anybody there you didn’t expect to see?”
“No, not that I can think of.”
“Did Bill Rice sell insurance to John and his company?”
“I’m sure he did. In fact, I remember them arguing over a liability policy one time.”
“How long ago?”
“Oh, maybe six months or so. I think John was mad because one of the insurance companies canceled his cov
erage because they had too many claims. Bill tried to replace the coverage but couldn’t find a company willing to write him a policy.”
“That doesn’t surprise me. I understand there were several lawsuits and investigations in progress.”
“Yes, I think you’re right.”
“Well, you’ve been very helpful, Eva. I’ll let you go.”
“It was nice seeing you again, Stan. Say hello to Rebekah for me.”
“I will,” Stan replied as he left to find Derek.
On the way back to the office Stan asked Derek some insurance questions since he was an expert on the subject.
“So, have you heard of an agent named Bill Rice, Rice Insurance Agency?”
“Yes, I knew Bill. We both belonged to the American Underwriters Association.”
“I thought you would. Apparently John Richmond’s liability carrier canceled his coverage a while back.”
“I don’t doubt it. With all the claims against him the insurance company probably got nervous.”
“The insurance company wasn’t liable for fraud claims, was it?”
“No, but any type of claim costs them money because they have to investigate it and even provide a legal defense until it is clear that there is no coverage.”
“I wonder how much insurance Sandy collected from her husband’s death?”
Derek gave Stan a hard look. “Why do you ask? You think she had something to do with his death?”
“No. Of course not. She nearly died herself. I was just curious. Being a high-roller I’m sure he had a boatload of insurance.”
“I could probably find out.”
“No. It’s not important and I should respect her privacy.”
When Stan got back to the office he went into Paula’s office to report on his interview with Eva Bellucci. Paula was hard at work on her trial outline. She looked up and smiled.
“Learn anything exciting?” she asked hopefully.
He shook his head. “Not really. The Belluccis and the victims were all close friends. Eva seemed to be a little surprised that they were eating at the restaurant and hadn’t told her they were coming.”
“Oh, I don’t think they planned to have dinner together. They just happened to be dining there on the same evening.”
“Hmm. So, how’s the trial outline coming?”
“Good. I’m feeling better now that I have it all mapped out. I want you to look at it and see what you think.”
“Sure,” Stan replied. “Print me out a copy and I’ll study it.”
“I put Ricardo on the witness list. I think he’s got to testify.”
Stan nodded. “I think you’re right—at least as things stand right now.”
“I got the new trial setting. The judge moved the trial to December 1st.”
“Good. That will give us a little extra time to prepare.”
“Right. So, how is Rebekah? Is she any better?”
Stan smiled. “Yes, she’s much better. I think she’s finally starting to get out of her depression.”
“That’s good. I’m glad to hear it,” Paula said.
Paula smiled broadly but wondered how Rebekah would be feeling if she knew her husband was cheating on her.