Acre Under a Green Sky

Florence Eagle was arrested for the murder of Janet Banner McConnell. Her prints matched those found on the murder weapon. Rod Eagle asked my father to represent Mrs. Eagle, and he agreed.

During questioning, Mrs. Eagle would say only that she killed a snake in the garden. Neither her son, Rod, nor her mother, Old Lady Eagle, could provide even a hint to Mrs. Eagle's motive for killing Janet. They were lying, of course. They knew full-well what had happened and why. They had been keeping Mrs. Eagle under house arrest for months.

My father learned the truth from Mrs. Moskowitz. It was Mrs. Moskowitz who had spent the morning of Janet's murder addressing Library Fund envelopes with Irene, and it was Mrs. Moskowitz who had discovered Janet's body. She had no idea at the time how much she knew, but it all became painfully clear after learning of Mrs. Eagle's arrest. It had been staring her in the face all the time, but it had all seemed so meaningless –– so petty –– hardly motive for murder.

Mrs. Moskowitz figured the whole thing started when the truth came out about the Sisters McConnell. Estelle didn't know such things existed until then. She was horrified, and in short time she began to question the closeness between Rod and Angel. She was imagining all sorts of indecent things.

"No one paid her any mind," Mrs. Moskowitz said, "She was such a fool –– a silly old woman spreading malicious gossip."

But when little Jeff fell under Rod's spell, Estelle went ballistic. She was going from door to door spreading the most terrible lies. Not even Gwen could stop her. And when Flo heard about it, she confronted Estelle. They had a terrible fight. Flo was terrified word of it would get back to the bank. From that day on, she hated Estelle and was always fretting that Estelle was slandering her boy behind their backs.

"Really, I think Flo could have killed Estelle," Mrs. Moskowitz said, "She was that angry!"

Then someone did kill Estelle, and Flo was terrified a finger would point to her and that all those wicked lies Estelle was telling would become public for the whole town to hear.

"It was those murders, you see. There was so much light on them. It seemed the whole world was watching. And Flo was afraid that some of that light would fall on her and her boy. If it wasn't for those murders. Well, none of us wants the petty nonsense of our everyday lives lit up for the whole world to see. You understand. People can be so unkind. And there you were, Mr. Wiley, asking a lot of questions. Talking to everyone. Flo came to me, too, you know. She was begging everyone not to talk to you.

"I think Janet planned to tell you about the bad feeling between Flo and Estelle. She never told me so, but I think Janet truly believed that Flo killed all those Luka people. And I think Flo went to Janet that morning to beg her to keep still about it."

And there you have it. Flo was killing a lie that would have destroyed her son –– a lie no one would have taken seriously had it not been for those murders. So many dark corners illuminated by those murders. "Murder kills everyone a little," someone had said that summer. I think it was my mother, but I'm not sure.

She would have raised bloody hell if she had heard the lies. I'm sure that's why Janet was afraid to share her suspicions with my mother. Too often, we condone lies with indignant silence. My mother confronted lies and prejudice and bigotry with rage to the point of tears –– heartbroken that we are all so alone and furious that for some people "alone" means "different" and that "difference" is license for abuse. Even license to kill.

Months later, Mrs. Eagle was hospitalized after successfully pleading not guilty by reason of insanity. It was a major success for my father. It was written up in all the law books; though I couldn't tell you why. Dan could tell you. He's a lawyer now himself at Wiley & Wiley Law Offices.