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Once more we paid a visit to Dominic and his son in the woods. They were still as reluctant to give us the time of day as before, and claimed they hadn’t left their precious woods all morning, and had definitely not snuck away to go and kill Dunc Hanover. It all sounded very convenient, with father and son providing each other with an alibi.

As far as I was concerned, their involvement seemed a lot more plausible than the bachelor murder theory Justina had put forward as a possible motive. But as long as we couldn’t place Dominic or Rick at the scene of the crime, there was nothing we could do.

“Maybe Dominic and Rick are going through the list of bachelors one by one,” said Dooley once we were en route to the Keystone Mall to have a chat with the mall’s owner Joel Timperley. “Maybe they’re going to kill all of them, just to make sure that the person who killed Poppy is dead. Somaybe we should have told them that it was actually Dunc who drove the car that night. Otherwise they’ll keep on killing these men.”

“It’s an interesting theory,” I said. “And it sure looks as if the Careens have something to hide. But I’m not sure if they’d suddenly turn into mass murderers thirteen years after Poppy was killed.”

“But Kristina is sick, Max. In fact she’s dying. And I think her husband and son want to make sure that before she dies, the men who killed Poppy are all punished.”

“It’s possible,” I allowed. “But if it’s true, it’s impossible to prove right now.”

“Well, we better prove it fast, or else we’ll soon run out of bachelors.”

We were in Joel Timperley’s office, which was located on the top floor of the mall, and offered a great view of its surrounding area. Mostly fields, as far as I could tell, and one sprawling housing development. There were in fact a lot of different businesses who’d set up shop at the mall, and Timperley was only one of them, though probably the most important one, since they owned the entire mall, and many more like it.

“So what can I do for you?” asked Mr. Timperley. His office was big, and right in the center of it, a model of his family’s mall had been placed, though it looked a little different from the actual mall. Joel noticed that Chase was studying the model, and he got up from behind his desk with athletic alacrity and joined us. “We’re expanding,” he explained.

“Business going well?” asked Chase.

“So well we need additional space.”

“I’ve heard that a lot of malls are actually closing. Competition with online stores.”

“Then I guess we’re the odd ones out. And Keystone Mall is still the best one out of the hundred or so we’re now operating all across the country. Though of course Keystone holds a special place in our hearts, since it was the first mall my family built. Keystone was the key to our success, you might say.” He grinned, showing perfect white teeth.

Joel Timperley was a handsome young man, and looked as if he spent as much time in the gym as the boardroom. He was dressed to impress in an expensive suit that still managed to look fashionable, and had the cockiness of a successful young entrepreneur.

“I’m afraid we have some bad news for you, sir,” said Chase, finally getting to the heart of our reason for being there. “Your friend Dunc Hanover… has just been found dead.”

Joel’s jaw sagged. “Dunc? Dead? But how?”

“He was murdered.”

“Murdered!”

“I’m afraid so, sir. We found him in his atelier, the victim of foul play.”

“Did you know that Dunc was engaged to be married, sir?” asked Odelia.

Joel had sunk down on his swivel chair and looked distressed.“Um… yeah. Yeah, he told me last month. Said he met a very special woman, and had proposed.”

“And how did that make you feel, sir?” asked Chase.

“I was surprised, of course. But happy for him. Dunc is a great guy—was.” He stared down at his desk, still coming to terms with the tragedy that had befallen his friend.

“So you weren’t upset about it? Angry that he would break the bachelor oath?”

“What?” Joel looked up with a frown. “What do you mean?”

“We talked to Omar Wissinski,” said Chase. “And he told us that he was Dunc’s buddy. That his task was to keep his friend on the straight and narrow. In this case in a state of bachelorhood. He was very shocked when Dunc told him he was going to get married.”

“Yeah, I know. Omar was the last person he told. And that’s because Omar took the whole bachelor business more seriously than the rest of us. You see, Omar’s parents had a pretty lousy marriage, and it made Omar take a dim view on the married state.”

“We also talked to Dunc’s fianc?e Justina McMenamy,” said Odelia. “And she told us she believes that one of Dunc’s friends is responsible for his murder. Once again because he had chosen not to remain a bachelor.”

Joel rocked up from his chair.“But that’s ridiculous! Dunc was one of my best friends! He even asked me to be his best man!”

“You were going to be his best man?”

“Absolutely! And proud to be. I loved Dunc like a brother—always have. Now why in the world would I want to hurt him?”