Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. Vol. 40, No. 6, June, 1995

“I know,” Aisa said after a pause. “I agree with you. Money doesn’t replace a husband and father. I agree with you all. I’ll clean up the water thing, I’ll be in charge of it myself this time.” He sighed. “I guess I’ll also be looking for somebody to take my place,” he grimaced. “I’m getting too old to look after things if a trick like that can be played right under my nose. I’m more sorry than I can say.” He lifted a hand, turned, and then got lost in the milling agitated crowd.

Detective Hahn resumed charge of his prisoner’s exit, and people shuffled away to mull over the many shocks they’d absorbed. Skip melted away from sight as if aided by a witch. Which he had been.

They made a mellow, subdued party under the trees, sipping Aisa Garrett’s excellent red zinfandel — Aisa Garrett, Rachel, and Mrs. Risk... the witch... in painted aluminum lawn chairs. Ernie and Skip sat sprawled out in the grass.

“As agreed, I’ll reimburse everybody for the debts incurred on... ah... Phantom’s behalf, Skip,” said Aisa. “Including the mortgage on the property. I guess I wouldn’t mind moving next door to Mrs. Risk.” He chuckled. “Maybe Ernie’ll build me a house, whaddya think, Ernie? Fireproofed, though.”

Ernie lifted a glass to Aisa and nodded.

Skip flushed. “I don’t think it’s right that you pay anything, Mr. Garrett.”

“Don’t be silly, Skip,” said the witch sharply. “He’s fulfilling his part of a bargain we made, one you know nothing about. You certainly couldn’t pay, regardless. The gas leak, after all, was the root of the problem. And Aisa’s entirely correct to assume the liabilities acquired by not personally overseeing the cleanup to its completion. It was his error — and his responsibility. Taking care of the carpenters widow isn’t, but Aisa’s a good man.”

Aisa smiled at her for that. He patted Skip on the arm. “She’d figured out what Matthew was doing, and made a very shrewd guess as to what he planned to do next. Saved my life, bigod. It’s just money, boy. But that’s something you’ll find out, I’m sure. Speaking of which, I don’t want to be indelicate, but what was it exactly that you

were going to get out of this?”

Ernie spoke up, surprising everyone. “My guess is, the insurance payoff. The house that burned down was probably full of nothing except Skip’s imagination. If he’d actually taken out a real insurance policy, the amount would’ve come to a sizable bit more than the total debts Mark — uh, Skip... can’t quite get used to that other name yet, sorry — that Skip owed after the fire.”

“Yeah, Mr. Garrett. That’s about it.” Skip cast an anxious glance at the witch, but she added nothing.

“Instead, he loses his fifty grand,” put in Rachel with a grin. “But now he’s so much smarter.” She winked at Skip.

He smiled nervously back at her, then frowned. “Just who are you, anyway?”

She made a mocking face. “Oh, like you, just somebody who’s in the process of being made smarter.” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Like, an apprentice ‘witch.’ ” She grinned at him again. He looked at Mrs. Risk uncertainly, but she was busy refilling glasses.

“Oh ho.” Aisa Garrett’s bushy brows elevated as he finished some mental figuring. He nodded. “Would’ve been a nice return on your investment, boy. But you’re lucky I was your ‘insurance policy.’ This lovely lady kept you from a sure jail sentence by preventing you from defrauding an insurance company.”

“Yes, that was the one poorly conceived part of your plan, Skip,” said the witch. “Insurance companies are notoriously curious about large claims. They would have conducted a thorough investigation and would have exposed your entire game.”

“I’m surprised a sharp young boy like you wouldn’t have known that,” put in Aisa. “But give him some credit, my dear. Except for that one major blunder that would’ve destroyed his plan and changed his entire life, he did pull off the rest of it with some panache, after all. He showed some sound technical thinking.”

The witch gave an incredulous snort that sounded odd from her elegant nose.

Ernie stretched out on the grass and poured himself more wine. He was grinning to himself.

The witch prodded him with a toe. “What are you so complacent about? You’re not going to broadcast the news about Skip’s confidence trick all over the village, are you? He could still be arrested for attempting to defraud. At the very least, it could ruin his chances with his young woman. Why spoil a lesson well learned?”

“Me? Hell, no. Besides, the ones who’d believe me are the same ones who’d never speak to me again for busting their dreams of how close they got to being buddies with Phantom. Uh-uh. I was just thinking how right I was about you all along.”

The witch tucked her bare feet under her black gauze dress and straightened her back. “In what way could that be, Mr. Block?”