More Than the Leaves Caught Fire

        The abandoned mansion had marked the gateway to Sharpsburg, Maryland since around 1825. The well-maintained, authentic Colonial style home had served as a silent witness to many events, especially the multitude of Civil War battles fought on the 12 acres that surrounded the majestic structure.

        It seemed like the perfect setting for the spring fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity’s Washington County ReStore. Event Chair Melanie Granger figured that once the wealthy landowners and merchants from the nearby towns and villages filled up on the locally-grown wine and the lavish buffet featuring produce, seafood and game from across the county they would willingly donate to finance the area’s desperately-needed affordable housing.

          She and her crew of volunteers had carefully prepared the select guest list and spent several days staging the venue for the big event.

          Melanie’s husband Jeremy, an artist whose reputation recently had begun spreading from his Western Maryland home across the country, also had perfected a number of portraits of the mansion, the grounds and the three generations of the Wildow family that had previously owned the estate.

      In addition to Jeremy’s paintings, the Grangers agreed to exhibit several of the works of Harry Paulson, a budding artist who recently had begun working as an assistant in Jeremy’s art studio.

       Paulson believed the exposure he received at the fundraiser would propel his career.  He didn’t reveal, however, that he had a much greater interest in his employer’s business than that of an assistant or an artist trying to make a name for himself. His real purpose in securing the position would later reveal itself as a devious plot began to unwind.

       Jeremy had some suspicions about the new employee who seemed to pop up out of nowhere and became unusually inquisitive about the inner workings of the Grangers’ life and business.  Since his involvement would be short term and part-time the couple decided to shelve their uneasy feelings about him and welcome the extra help.  

      The Grangers planned to auction the artwork and, after paying a small commission to the artists, earn an additional source of revenue for the popular charity. The addition of Paulson’s work also promised to increase the bottom line for the charity.

          The gala moved along smoothly until one uninvited guest popped his head through the front door and almost caused Melanie to drop the tray of hors d’oeuvres she carried into the ballroom.

       Fifteen years before, prior to the exchange of the wedding vows between the Grangers, the wife had a torrid and tumultuous love affair with the man, Fillmore Thomases, now making his way across the crowded room.

         Jeremy had heard that Thomases had mentally and physically abused Melanie for several years while cheating on her with a number of other women.  

         With the behind-the-scenes help of several members of local law enforcement, he had driven Fillmore out of the area and told him that, if he ever returned, he would face fatal consequences.

          When the local version of Don Juan went away he ran a small food delivery service and barely had enough money to support himself and his stable of women. He had surfaced 10 years ago in Salisbury, received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Salisbury University, and opened a wine importing business now valued at $20 million.

           The couple figured the combination of Fillmore’s burgeoning business interests and Jeremy’s dire warning would keep him far away from the Sharpsburg area.

            Little did they know that her former lover still had deep feelings for Melanie, and had sworn, with the help of Paulson, to reclaim her while exacting revenge on her husband.

             Thus, the appearance of Melanie’s former lover at the event hit the couple like an earthquake.

           Jeremy and his wife angrily confronted the intruder and attempted to escort him from the premises.

          His reply, “I’m simply an art aficionado who wants to do his part for charity. Also, just wanted to stop by and say hello to some old friends.”

      Fortunately, newly-appointed Washington County Sheriff John Smitson stepped between the couple and the intruder before any real trouble erupted.

       Although the sheriff escorted Thomases out of the mansion, Fillmore shouted as he left, “You two have not heard the last of me. I will do what I actually came to do.”

       The gala ended on a positive note as the event raised $25,000 for the Habitat ReStore fund and local social media spread the word of Granger as one of the premier art talents in the United States and Paulson as a painter worth watching in the future.

       Two days after the fundraiser, a member of the custodial crew cleaning up the estate saw smoke coming from a pile of leaves stacked almost six feet high next to an abandoned barn on the property. 

       He grabbed a rake and feverishly raked the leaves away trying to find the source of the blaze.  At the bottom of the pile he discovered the scorched wreckage of a Mercedes pickup truck. 

      He called the sheriff and Smitson and his deputies scoured the barn around the truck. Underneath the vehicle they found a blackened mass that looked like a body. 

         The county coroner later concluded the body was Fillmore Thomases.

       Another discovery at the scene—a receipt for art store supplies purchased with a credit card belonging to Jeremy Granger.

      Smitson went to the artist’s home to take him into custody.

      The couple’s cleaning woman said they had left town right after the Habitat gala.

      Contrary to this, some of the volunteers had seen the artist near the barn a half hour after the fundraiser ended.

     The sheriff issued an all-points bulletin and stopped the couple as they boarded a flight from Baltimore to Mexico.

       During the three-week trial the prosecutor presented evidence that Jeremy and Fillmore had argued after the wine importer broke into the barn and attempted to load artworks stored there into his truck. Shortly after that several people saw the leaf pile burning next to the barn.

         Another witness saw the artist leaving the barn in the middle of the confrontation, although another man had come out before the fire started.

        Jeremy swore he had nothing to do with the fire or the murder.  He added that he had lent his credit card to Paulson to buy supplies while he waited for commissions on a few of his paintings.

            Paulson had not revealed that Thomases had hired him to assemble false allegations that Fillmore planned to use in blackmailing Granger. 

         After the sheriff subpoenaed Paulson, he testified that Fillmore had  refused to pay him when his spying produced nothing. When he confronted Thomases, Paulson had stabbed him and loaded the body onto his truck before throwing his knife into a nearby creek and setting the fire.