Notes: I can hardly believe I'm really going to be marking Complete to this story! I am so thrilled. Thank you for your patience and your interest; I hope that if you were ever following this story, you've now been able to read the conclusion. I plan to get back to writing Perry mysteries, as the main thing holding me up was this story hanging. I wanted to finish it before I went on to anything else. I knew what I wanted for it, and I think the way it turned out is even better than my original outline. Thank you again!

Epilogue

Clay was more than happy to serve the group that night. He was just as happy when they came back several evenings later, at an earlier hour, to further the celebration and discuss the wrapping up of the case.

"Well," Hamilton began, "the big news is that Jason Gifford—who is in reality Randall Madsen—has finally confessed."

"Of course, he probably wouldn't have if he hadn't been positively identified by J.K. Stratton and Brendon Mileson," Steve grunted. "Brendon recognized his voice and Stratton recognized him."

Daniel Conway shook his head. "I can't believe he was hiding out in my company and I didn't have a clue."

"That was what he wanted," said Perry, pouring a glass of ice water from the complimentary pitcher. "He thought it would be great pickings to hide out in a perfectly legitimate company and that no one would be the wiser."

"And that poor person who was killed in the cemetery," Amory spoke up with a frown. "Did he have any idea that his friend was actually his enemy?"

"He did," Perry nodded. "That's no doubt why he was dropping Jason's name and Cal-Texas in his sales pitches. He had no way out of his job without it looking suspicious. He was hoping someone would connect the dots and find out who Jason really is."

"Unfortunately, it wasn't soon enough to save his life," Steve said grimly. "But ironically enough, Martin Davis would have lived a lot longer if Stratton hadn't lied about him having the packet of information that Ned Thompson wrote up for Mr. Fallon."

"What's going to happen to him?" Della wondered.

"Well, now that he's identified Madsen for us, he's been trying to get a reduced sentence," Hamilton said. "It's not a part of my job that I particularly relish, but sometimes plea deals have to be accepted. His probably will be. Julian Royal's too, all things considered.

"But I can promise you that Randall Madsen is going to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," he added.

"Good." Perry looked to him. "I wouldn't expect anything less."

"And of course, this is one case Perry isn't going to touch with a ten-foot pole, except as a witness for the prosecution," Della said with a smile.

"Oh, Mr. Drake, did you ever get around to looking up Frank?" Amory wondered.

"I did," Paul nodded. "He claims he had no part of any of this and had no idea it was even going on, except for what he was hearing on the news. I'm inclined to believe him."

Edith smiled, laying a hand on Amory's. "We are too," she declared.

Amory smiled as well. "It's nice to have the whole story out in the open," he said. "It takes the edge off the bad publicity I've been getting lately. At least some people are willing to believe the truth."

"And at least some new friendships have come out of all this," Edith said. "That's the best thing that's happened."

"That, and me finally being able to forgive Ned," Amory interjected.

"Has he been around anymore lately?" Andy asked, thinking all the while how strange the question sounded out of context.

"If he has, we haven't seen him," Amory said.

"I think maybe he's our guardian angel now," Edith said. "He regretted what he did to Amory before he died. I like to think that he regretted it so much that he asked to be allowed to watch over us, hoping to make up for some of the pain and hurt he caused."

"That's a nice thought, Edith, but there's no real proof of it," Amory said. "His appearance could have been a one-time thing to protect us in the hotel room."

"We did see him when everything was over," Perry said. "He was watching the both of you in Griffith Park the other night."

Edith smiled, while Amory looked surprised and then touched. "I see. Well, guardian angel or not, naturally he'd want to stick around to see how it all turned out."

"I think it's very special any way you look at it," Della said.

"It is," Amory agreed, a bit of a wistful look coming into his eyes. He missed the Ned who had been his friend. "It truly is."

"What about that guy I saw spying on Andy before the mix-up in Griffith Park happened?" Jimmy spoke up, changing the subject.

"One of Madsen's men, naturally," Andy said wearily. "He was trying to find out how much I knew about the Graveyard Murder. Back then, I hardly knew anything."

"But now you know it all," Mrs. Norden said with pride.

Andy smiled. "Yes, Mama Norden, and it's such a relief to know that I'll be able to mark the case Closed."

"Now if we could just get Virginia to confess to her part in all of this," Tragg huffed.

"She's still pleading innocent?" Hamilton said with a raised eyebrow.

"And how," Andy sighed. "She's sticking to that story like glue, about how she had no idea Madsen was a murderer and was going to murder Warner Griffith. She claims that she wasn't involved in any plot against Mr. Fallon or Mr. Conway and meeting them was always accidental. She also insists she has a right to the Petersons' treasure and the inheritance from the will. If there is any other Virginia, she can't be located. Right now, we don't have any way to prove or disprove her story."

"Has she been released?" Della wondered.

"We didn't have enough to hold her," Tragg scowled. "Technically, she helped us catch Madsen."

"And she's been bringing that up all the time," Andy grimaced with a shake of his head. "By the way, Madsen says that he really was trying to drive Mr. Fallon out of his mind. He started to worry that Mr. Fallon might have seen or heard something in Griffith Park that would lead to him piecing more things together. He wanted to push Mr. Fallon to the point of suicide."

"That's horrible!" Edith cried in indignation.

"Well, he didn't succeed with that," Amory said darkly, "but he nearly made me give up on life regardless. Then it all backfired when I remembered seeing him and his thug in Griffith Park that night, thanks to hearing that wretch speak to me when he tried to make me believe Edith was dead."

"The woman, by the way, was a female member of the organization that Madsen had grown displeased with," Tragg said. "He had her tortured and killed and then decided to fix her up to look like Mrs. Fallon after the real one got away thanks to Sergeant Brice."

Della gripped her glass. "Randall Madsen is a terrible person," she declared.

"And that's saying a lot, coming from someone who rarely has a bad word for anyone," Perry remarked.

"I'm sure we all agree with the assessment," Tragg grunted.

"And the time Miss Ames got abducted and then found Virginia when she escaped," Amory prompted. "What was the purpose of all of that?"

"Oh . . . just a way for Virginia to get her foot in the door and eventually meet you," Perry said. "And it had the additional feather in her cap of getting Miss Ames to be more on her side than yours."

Edith shook her head. "What a conniving woman."

"What about me?" Daniel asked. "I don't understand why Virginia was bothering me as well as Mr. Fallon."

"She was checking up on you," Steve said. "And also trying to have a little fun while she was at it. Of course, that's all what Madsen says. She denies every word of it."

Sampson looked irritated, but instead of commenting on her, he switched topics and said, "How are the Griffiths doing?"

"They're coming along well, last I heard," Tragg said. "Sergeant Nichols has proved that he's the real Jason Griffith. He and his father have been reconnecting. Oh." He reached into his pocket. "The last time I saw him, he asked me to give you this." He handed Sampson an envelope.

Blinking in surprise, Sampson took it and carefully opened it by hand. Then he slumped back in the chair, reading through the short but sincere note.

Greg—

I'm so sorry for everything I put you and my father through. I know you were the only

one who stood up for me after the fiasco at college. Even though I ran away and didn't

learn about that until later, it means a lot to me. You never were like the others in that

group. Neither of us were, really. I don't know why I ever wanted to be a part of it.

If you can forgive me for the pain I put you through, I'd like to go out to lunch with

you sometime soon. I don't have to avoid you now. I never should have, really. I should

have come out in the open years ago. I'm going to be the son and the friend I should have

been before.

Thank you.

—Jason

Visibly moved, Sampson replaced it in the envelope and slipped it into his pocket.

"What did he say?" Tragg asked, not even trying to hide his curiosity.

"He wants to have lunch sometime," Sampson replied, not really wanting to discuss the entire contents with everyone. He would tell Hamilton in private later. Chamberlin too, most likely.

"He won't be in trouble for not using his real name in the police department, will he?" Della asked in concern.

"He had his last name legally changed," Tragg said. "There won't be any trouble."

"I'm glad," Della declared.

"So are we," said Steve. "He's a good officer."

"Well," Perry smiled, "I'd say that just about wraps everything up."

"I would like to know what that hitman thought was in the Thompkins folder," Sampson frowned. "He said it would help prove that Thompkins was really Ned Thompson. He was willing to try to murder me to find it." His eyes darkened.

"Madsen confessed to that too," Steve said. "It was some notes handwritten by Thompson. A hand-writing expert could have proved who wrote them."

"But only if he had reason to believe that Thompkins was Thompson," Sampson objected. "Otherwise he wouldn't have anything to compare the handwriting with."

"Apparently the notes gave some information that would tie in Fallon Paints," Sergeant Brice spoke up. "Madsen was afraid that a more careful study of those notes could lead to the downfall of the entire operation. That's why his man was ready to kill for them."

Della shook her head. "How awful."

"Oh, Hamilton." Perry looked to the district attorney. "What about that young lady who showed up claiming to be another sister of Vivalene and Flo's?"

Hamilton sighed. "She seems to be legitimate," he said. "There really is a clothing company under her name. She was given clearance to see Vivalene in the prison hospital. And that's all she did—just see her," he added emphatically. Not that he really believed Jodie or anyone else would be capable of bringing Vivalene out of her coma just by their caring for her and their desire to see her come out of it. But even if he wouldn't admit it, part of him was still leery after everything he had seen lately that didn't have a clear and scientific explanation.

"Is she going to stay out here for a while?" Perry wondered.

"She had to fly back to New York," Hamilton said. "But she said she'd be in touch."

"So what does she look like?" Paul asked, his curiosity and his interest piqued.

"I'm sure you'd like her, Paul. She's probably about thirty, with long blonde hair and a nice smile." Hamilton regarded Paul in amusement.

"Call me the next time she's in town, will you?" Paul pleaded.

"I'll leave a memo in my office," Hamilton said with mock solemnity.

Perry chuckled. "Paul has quite enough women on his hands just here in the Los Angeles area," he said. "I'm not sure what we'll do if he starts branching out."

"It's not like I get much of a chance to even enjoy the women here in town, what with all the dates I've had to break off to go investigating at all odd hours," Paul grumped.

"Don't let Paulie Boy fool you," Clay said as he came back to the table. "He loves the adventure and intrigue."

"But I don't love having to tell so many beautiful women that I have to cut our evenings short," Paul retorted. Then he paused, staring at the lovely brunette that Clay was bringing over.

"Amelia!" Daniel leaped to his feet. "You didn't say you were coming to town."

"Well, it really sounds like I've been missin' all the excitement." Amelia Armitage, Daniel's girlfriend from Texas, pouted. She smiled, taking his arm. "And it sounds like you were right in the thick of it!"

Daniel flushed. "I don't know what your Texas newspapers have been reporting, but I really wasn't involved that much," he said.

"I beg to differ," Amelia countered. "After all, that killer was working right in Cal-Texas! And he was even bugging your office!"

"That's something else I've been wondering," Della spoke up. "Why on Earth was he doing that?"

"He wanted to make sure that Mr. Conway didn't get in touch with Warner Griffith or anyone else who could put him in a sticky situation," Andy explained.

"He sure thought he had it all figured out," Paul remarked. "Instead, it was just another strand in the tangled web he wove."

Everyone gave Paul an odd look.

"What?" Paul shot back. "It's true, isn't it?"

"Very true," Perry nodded. "I can't help wondering what would have happened if the mix-up in Griffith Park had never happened. Would Andy have really met with Brendon Mileson and learned about what happened that night in the cemetery?"

"I don't think so," Andy said. "Madsen and his thug were at Griffith Park that night hoping to end the whole affair. They knew that both Mr. Fallon and I were gumming up the different branches of Madsen's organization; they just had no idea that we look so strikingly identical. That threw everyone off."

"That's right," Hamilton broke in. "Mileson probably would have been killed before he could have ever met with Andy. Instead, Madsen's thug conked Mr. Fallon, thinking he'd got Andy, while someone from the militarian branch of the organization nabbed Andy, thinking he was Mr. Fallon. That gave Mileson a chance to get away. Stratton too."

"Not to mention that the people who took Lieutenant Anderson didn't even know he existed at all until they looked him up," Brice said. "The Lieutenant was Madsen's own personal problem, since he was trying to solve a murder Madsen committed."

"While Mr. Fallon was supposed to have been given the information by Ned Thompson that would lead to breaking up the entire organization," Chamberlin spoke.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Fallon never got the note Ned wrote that told about that information and where it was," Hamilton said. "Not until it was given to Andy and he brought it back."

"It's no wonder Mr. Madsen decided to let the police find the people who took Andy," Della said. "He must have been furious at their mistake."

"He was," Tragg grunted. "He kept using very unflowery language to talk about them in his confession."

"It all still makes my head spin," Della said with a sigh.

"It's certainly been one of the most convoluted cases I've ever been involved with," Sampson remarked.

Amelia looked to him with a start. Uncomfortable under her searching gaze, he immediately asked, "What is it?"

"I was just thinking," she said. "Speaking of look-alikes, you look and sound an awful lot like Daniel."

That caused Daniel and Sampson to stare at each other for a long moment. "We don't really look that much alike," Daniel protested at last.

"I don't know," Perry mused. "In some ways you do. What do you think, Paul?"

"Ohhh no," Paul retorted immediately. "I'm not going to say Yes and cause everyone to get pulled into another case of mistaken identity!"

That brought a round of laughter around the table. It felt good to enjoy a laugh again.