Moonlight Murder on Lovers' Lane Read Online Free Page B

story that had won him some relief.
    Beekman ignored these problems. To his mind, the mystery was solved.
    But Stricker expressed doubts. He still suspected the victims’ families, certain they knew more than they were saying. Their behaviors suggested secrecy.
    Then Pearl Bahmer’s father—Pearl’s “other man”—claimed that Schneider was the killer. Schneider denied the accusation, but admitted lying about Hayes, so Hayes was released. The case was fast going cold.

Chapter 12: Scandal for Sale
    On October 16, two bloodstained handkerchiefs picked up at the Phillips farm were turned in to the police. One had no identifying marks, but the other was a smaller handkerchief, initialed in one corner with the letter “S.” Might it stand for “Stevens”?
    Around this time, Charlotte Mills said she had found a package of love letters from Edward to her mother, along with his “love diary” from the previous August. They had been hanging in a sewing bag from a doorknob in the living room of Mills’ apartment. Edward apparently had mailed his love letters directly to the Mills home.
    Instead of turning these over to the police, James sold the lot for $500 to the New York American . Charlotte explained that since the prosecutor was not cooperating with them, they owed him no cooperation in return. She hinted that she had information about how her mother’s letters ended up at the crime scene. Inexplicably, investigators just dismissed her.

    Rev. Hall and Eleanor Mills
    Beekman and Stricker decided to interrogate members of both families, tardy though the questioning was. Appointments were set up for Frances, her brothers, and Charlotte. Henry Stevens drove in from the coast. He identified the handkerchief with the “S” on it as his, but insisted he had been nowhere near New Brunswick during the murders.
    Frances was told to don the gray coat she had worn the early morning of Friday, September 15, the day after the murders, and to stand for the scrutiny of a woman who was present. No one explained who she was, and, after looking at Frances, she left the room without saying a word. The unidentified woman, Jane Gibson, would become an important witness at a later date.
    Beekman told the press in his typically coy manner that they had obtained “new information,” but made no arrests.
    Back to the crime scene: A chemist released an analysis of soil removed from beneath the bodies. These results established, from the measured volume of blood in the soil, that Mrs. Mills had been shot before her throat was cut. Also, the couple had been murdered precisely where they were found.
    The investigation now belonged, undeniably, to Somerset County.
    Beekman took over, although Stricker was not giving up easily. He continued to observe and to criticize.
    Finally, Justice Parker of the New Jersey Supreme Court claimed jurisdiction. He deputized William A. Mott as Deputy Attorney General in charge. Mott’s top investigator was James F. Mason, and they set up headquarters in Somerville, New Jersey. Mason vowed to turn over every stone to resolve the case.
    A chauffeur, Frank Csister, came forward to say that neither Beekman nor Stricker had questioned him about what he’d reported seeing on Thursday night, September 14: Two cars parked on Easton Avenue not far from De Russey’s Lane. Neither had license plates and both were unlit except for taillights. Three black men had emerged from one car. This report revived rumors, quashed earlier, of Ku Klux Klan involvement. It was clear that police were now grasping at straws.
    Then the identity of the woman who’d been at the courthouse to identify Frances was revealed. She was Jane Gibson, a 50-year-old hog farmer who claimed to have “seen” things.
    If anyone had believed this case would be “a cinch,” that person would soon find out just how muddled it truly was.

Chapter 13: The Pig Woman
    Jane Gibson, ostensibly a widow, lived with her mentally handicapped son, William,