Free Plum Gone: A Sonoma Wine Country Cozy Mystery (Sonoma Wine Country Cozy Mysteries Book 2) by A. J. Carton Page B

kill.
    And what about Randall’s nephew? What if the Gomez lawsuit bankrupted the old man’s estate ? Did Curt’s nephew and heir kill Gomez to stop the suit? And then frame his uncle for the murder?
    Finally, Emma wondered, what about the prune fanatics? Would Silas Bugbee go so far as to frame Randall to stop the plum ranch sale? The look in Bugbee’s eye when he talked about the “slaughter” of the trees had certainly unnerved her. Emma asked herself, is the plum sucker capable of more than tears?
    Point number three, Emma concluded . Regardless of who killed Gomez, settling the farm workers’ grievances out of court made sense .
    Did all out war ever achieve a better result than an agreement? she asked. More importantly, if Randall didn’t kill Santiago Gomez, then Steve’s wrongful death action could destroy an innocent old man.
    Before Emma finished rehearsing, she’d pulled into the parking lot in front of the free clinic. Unfortunately her attempt to articulate one universal “point” had raised more questions than answers.
    Emma turned off the engine knowing she wasn’t prepared for her meeting. But it was 10:05. She had no more time to rehearse. She got out of the car, locked it and entered the building.
    As she strode past the reception desk, Emma noted that Barbara had embarked on a new romance. This one was titled Rid Hard and Put Away Wet . Its cover featured what looked like a buxom bar maid galloping over dusty Western terrain chased by a fierce looking posse. 
    Barbara looked up, “Steve’s been wondering where you were. Says you have a ten o’clock.
    “Well, I’m here, aren’t I?” Emma answered before opening the door to Steve’s office.
    Steve gave Emma a big smile when she walked in the door. “Boy, this Gomez thing is heating up fast,” Steve said. “The sooner we lodge a wrongful death action, the better. Yolanda Gomez is completely on board. What kind of punishment is a life sentence for a sick, eighty-eight year old murderer? I want money for the widow and children.”
    Emma started to argue that Randall was innocent, but Steve cut her off.
    “I know, Randall’s out on bail,” he said. “But if you recall, Emma, the standard of proof in a civil suit is the ‘preponderance of the evidence,’ not ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ which is the standard for a crime. I agree there could be a ‘reasonable doubt’ as to whether Randall killed Gomez. But I’ll bet my bottom dollar that Randall’s bloody knife, his threat to kill Gomez, and Gomez’s late night visit to Randall’s Sonoma ranch provide more than a preponderance of evidence to win a civil action against him.”
    Steve paused to let that information sink in.
    “So here’s my question, Emma,” he continued. “Who do you know at the Chatham Club who might have heard those threats Randall made against Gomez?”
    Emma immediately thought of Jack.
    Steve watched her hesitate for a few seconds before adding, “What about that guy you’re seeing? Jack? Jack Russo? He’s a member of the club. I hear he hangs out there all the time.”
    How , Emma wondered, does Steve know about Jack?
    She shook her head, but Steve ignored it. “Here’s the other thing I need you to do,” he continued. “I know it’s asking a lot, but I just don’t have time or the money to do this any other way. Besides,” he glanced up quickly to smile at her again, “you know how much I trust your work.”
    Without letting her reply he added, “I need you to drive down to Coachella with me this week. You can check out other possible suspects - the jealous husband and that blackmail thing – while I get a handle on how much money we can reasonably get for the wrongful death of a seasonal worker. I’ve talked an old friend down there from Coopers into helping us crunch the numbers for free.”
    Emma’s head was spinning. Using Jack as a witness to Randall’s threats was totally out of the question. As for accompanying Steve all the