Poe's First Law: A Murder on Maui Mystery

me through what happened when you finally got home,” I said.
“I saw her car in front of the house, which surprised me because she didn’t usually get home that early,” Livingston said.
“Do you have any idea why she was there?” I asked.
“I checked with her manager at the bank. He said Lucy left early that day because she was feeling sick,” Mitchell said.
“I’d decided that I was going to tell her to leave,” Livingston said. “We both owned the house, but I’d be damned if I’d let her get our home too. I figured she could go live with her lover for all I cared. I went inside and called out to her. I walked directly back to the bedroom when I didn’t get a response.”
“Why the bedroom?” I asked.
“It’s a small house like most homes on Maui. You can see the living room and kitchen from inside the front door. There’s only one bedroom, so she had to be back there,” Livingston said.
“Where was she exactly?” I asked.
“She was on the floor of the bedroom,” Livingston said.
“But where exactly in the bedroom? Was she beside the bed? Near the doorway?” I asked.
“Near the doorway, maybe a few steps inside the room.”
“Where on the body was she shot?”
“Twice in the chest,” Mitchell answered for his client.
“Who knew you had a gun?” I asked.
“My wife knew, but that’s the only person I can think of. I’d always go to the range by myself. I didn’t talk about the gun with anyone,” Livingston said.
“Where did you keep the gun and was it locked up?” I asked.
“In the nightstand and I didn’t keep the drawer locked.”
“Why not?”
“Because I wanted quick access to it should someone break into the home. We didn’t have any kids, so it wasn’t like someone could accidentally get their hands on it,” Livingston said.
“When you came into the room and saw your wife, where was the gun?” I asked.
“It was on the carpet near the nightstand. It was like someone had pulled it out of the nightstand, shot my wife, and then dropped it where they stood.”
“What did you do next?” I asked.
“I checked to see if she was alive. I felt for a pulse but couldn’t find one. Then I called 911.”
“Who do you think murdered her?” I asked.
“I don’t know. My wife didn’t have any enemies that I knew of,” Livingston said. He paused a long moment. Then he continued. “I can pay whatever rate you want to take this case.”
“It’s never about the money.”
“I find that hard to believe,” Mitchell said.
“Will you take my case?” Livingston asked.
“Look me in the eyes and tell me whether or not you killed your wife,” I said.
“I didn’t kill her. I swear.”
Have I been fooled by clients before? I think you already know the answer to that question. So, why did I agree to take his case? Let’s chalk it up to insanity at the moment.
“I’m going to need access to your house,” I said.
“That’s easy. We have one of those keypads on the front door. The combination is ten-twenty. It’s my anniversary date,” Livingston said.
“How many people know that code?”
“Just my wife and I.”
“You didn’t share it with anyone else like a pet sitter?” I asked.
“We don’t have any pets and we’ve never needed a house sitter for anything.”
“Could your wife have given the code to someone?”
“She could have, but I don’t see why,” Livingston said.
“Let me know if there’s anything you need from me,” Mitchell said.
“I will. I can’t promise you two there will be some last-minute rush into the courtroom like they have on those TV shows. This could take days, maybe even weeks to uncover the truth.”
Of course, the truth may have already been revealed. Guy Livingston had shot and killed his wife.
“I understand,” Livingston said.
I left Guy Livingston and Henry Mitchell sitting at the table. I was almost back to my car when my phone vibrated. I looked at the display and saw the name Yuto Takahashi.

10


There’s Always Two Sides
As I mentioned earlier in this tale, Yuto works as the general manager of one of the largest hotels in Kaanapali. He’d told me before that he’d reserved two weeks of vacation time for his honeymoon in Paris. Therefore, he didn’t have time to take off the week of the wedding. I say all of this to explain why he asked me to come to his hotel and why he was still working at a time like this.
I could hear the despair in the man’s voice when he called, and I agreed to meet him at once. It took about an hour to get back to Kaanapali due to heavy traffic. I didn’t listen to any music during the drive. I wanted my mind free of distractions as I tried to figure out what I could say to help Yuto.
When I arrived at the hotel, I left my convertible with the valet and headed into the lobby. Yuto must have told the front desk staff to be on the lookout for me, for one of the women picked up the phone and called him as I walked up to her. She put down the phone a few seconds later and looked up at me.
“Mr. Takahashi is on his way now.”
“Thank you,” I said.
Yuto arrived in less than one minute. Had the man sprinted to the lobby?
“Thank you for coming, Edgar. Perhaps we can speak in my office so we can have privacy,” he suggested.
“Of course. Wherever you like.”
I followed Yuto back to his office. It was a small space, much smaller than you’d assume the general manager of a massive hotel would have. I sat down while Yuto walked behind the desk and had a seat on his leather chair.
“I don’t know where to start,” he said.
There was the obvious question for me to ask. Namely, what in the world were you thinking? But I didn’t do that. What was the point?
“Have you spoken with Hani since the party?” I asked.
“No, I tried calling