Deadly Fall

by Elle James

  The old man held up a hand and stared at Andrew through narrowed eyes. “You’re the Stratford boy who inherited Thomas Stratford’s place. Am I right?”

  Andrew smiled. “Yes, sir.” He held out his hand. “Andrew Stratford.”

  “Richard Giddings. But you can call me Mr. Giddings. You’re too young to call me Richard.”

  “Yes, Mr. Giddings.” He turned to Dix. “This is my...friend, Dixie Reeves. We’d like to talk to you, if you have time.”

  Giddings took Dix’s hand in both of his and smiled. “Now, you can call me Richard if you like. Never could resist a pretty girl.”

  “Thank you, Richard.” Dix shot a triumphant glance toward Andrew.

  Andrew chuckled. “Mr. Giddings, I understand you and my grandfather were good friends and spent some time together before he passed.”

  Mr. Giddings released Dix’s hand and turned his attention to Andrew. “Thomas was a good man. Played a mean hand of poker, but he was a good man. What’s been troubling you?”

  “Sir, I’ve been attacked two times in the past week and I haven’t a clue as to why. Once on the cliff behind Stratford House and once inside the house itself.”

  “Told Thomas his house was far too big when he first brought his plans to me.”

  “Plans?”

  Giddings nodded. “He wanted a house big enough for a whole litter of children and his in-laws, if they wanted to stay.”

  “My grandfather had only one child that I know of,” Andrew said. “My father.”

  Giddings nodded. “Rowena had several miscarriages before she gave birth to Benjamin. I don’t think I’d ever seen her as happy as when she brought your father home.” He stared into the distance, a sad smile curling his lips. “She was so proud of him.”

  “And the in-laws?”

  “Friends from the church temporarily moved in with Thomas and Rowena to help with the baby, but Rowena never really got over Benjamin’s birth. Oh, she lived to raise him, but her health was never the same.”

  “She died shortly after I was born,” Andrew said.

  “That’s right. Young Ben came back to Cape Churn after he graduated from college. He met Laura, your mother, who was a few years younger, and they fell in love. Ben proposed and she said yes. It made your grandmother happy to know her son was happy and they’d be living close by so that she could watch her grandchildren grow up.”

  “Only my parents didn’t stay in Cape Churn,” Andrew said.

  “No, they didn’t. They would have, but your mother’s old boyfriend made their lives hell. He stalked Laura, showing up everywhere she went. Your father came to blows with him after he’d cornered your mother in the grocery store.”

  “What was his name?”

  “Nelson Clayton.”

  Clayton. The older gentleman who’d talked to him at the Seaside Café. “Isn’t he my nearest neighbor?”

  “Yes. He bought the property next to Stratford House. I remember he’d said he should have owned Stratford House. He claimed he was Thomas’s bastard son, born before Benjamin. Therefore, he should have inherited Stratford House.”

  “What?” Andrew hadn’t heard any of this. “From all the stories my grandfather told me about his wife, they were deeply in love. He didn’t have eyes for any other woman.”

  “Which is true. But before your mother came along your grandfather was quite the ladies’ man.” Giddings leaned against the counter, warming to his story. “He was known to have a fling or two among the more promiscuous women. One in particular. Darla Landis. She set her sights on your grandfather and seduced him.”

  Andrew chuckled. “I’m having a hard time picturing my grandfather being seduced.”

  Mr. Giddings smiled and puffed out his chest. “You only saw him as an old man. When we were young, we were like you—good-looking, viral men about town.”

  “Oh, I believe you,” Andrew said. “Please continue.”

  “Not long afterward—a couple days, maybe a week—Thomas met Rowena Mason and fell hopelessly in love. They hadn’t dated more than two weeks before he asked her to marry him.”

  Dix snorted. “I take it Miss Landis wasn’t too happy.”

  “Not at all. She tried to break up the wedding. Caused a big ruckus. But when the dust settled, Thomas and Rowena were happily married.”

  “What happened to Darla?” Dix asked.

  “She married Oliver Clayton, an older man who owned a fishing boat. She never was very happy. She had a child right away. Old Man Clayton didn’t live long after. He got caught out on the water in the Devil’s Shroud and sank with his boat. Darla’s baby was only a year old. She started spreading the rumor that her boy Nelson wasn’t Clayton’s baby after all.”

  Andrew shook his head and asked, “Could it have been Thomas’s?”

  Giddings shrugged. “She had the baby ten months after she and Thomas were together.”

  Dix’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve heard of women carrying their babies for ten months instead of the usual nine.”

  “It’s possible,” Giddings said. “Meanwhile, Thomas’s investments took off and he became a millionaire practically overnight. He built that massive house to show Rowena how much he loved her. Rowena didn’t care about having a big house or fancy cars. She would have loved him if he’d been dirt-poor.” Mr. Giddings straightened. “Look at me getting all nostalgic.”

  “Sounds like Thomas and Rowena had the perfect marriage,” Dix said.

  Giddings nodded.

  “Why did Ben and Laura leave?” Dix asked.

  “They didn’t want to, but Nelson wouldn’t leave them alone. The final straw was finding Nelson in the nursery with baby Andrew. It upset Laura so much, she insisted they move as far away from Nelson as possible.” The old man sighed. “Losing her son and grandson threw Rowena into a tailspin. She was so sad. Nothing Thomas did could cheer her up. Then she was diagnosed with cancer and it was all downhill after that. Ben barely made it back before Rowena passed.”

  “No wonder my parents didn’t want to come back to Cape Churn.” Andrew had thought they were selfish and hated his grandfather. He glanced up. “Did you know about the tunnels and secret passageways inside the house?”

  Giddings frowned. “Tunnels, you say?” He shook his head. “I didn’t see anything of the sort in the drawings. Wouldn’t surprise me, though. Thomas brought in workers from Southern California to do the excavation and framing. They spent a couple years building that mausoleum. Most of the workers only spoke Spanish, so they kept to themselves. When they were done, Thomas sent them back to California.” The old man chuckled. “That would be just like Thomas to do something like that.”

  Dix tilted her head. “Why?”

  “Who knows? Some say he was just a little crazy. Others said he was into smuggling, though the Prohibition was long over. There were the lunatics who tried to convince everyone that Rowena’s parents were the famous Peg and Percy Malone.” Mr. Giddings’s brow knit. “Which made an excellent motivation for Thomas to build tunnels out to the sea. If his in-laws were notorious thieves, they would have needed an escape route.”

  “And a place to stash the loot,” Dix added. Her gaze captured Andrew’s.

  “Is there any reason someone would want me off my own property...permanently?” Andrew asked.

  “No one thought you’d come back to live in Cape Churn.” The hardware store owner scratched his head. “Other than Nelson Clayton, I can’t think of anyone who’d want the Stratford House. It’s got to cost a fortune to maintain. Your heating and electric bills alone would bankrupt most of us.”

  Andrew’s lips twisted. “They aren’t minimal.” But he could afford it. So what would anyone have to gain by knocking him off? Unless... “Speaking of the Malones, what do you know about them?”

  “They wer
e a legend along the West Coast. Supposedly disappeared in broad daylight. They kind of became heroes among the working class. Not many around here were happy about Prohibition. When that big shot from San Francisco turned them in and then sold their whiskey, he got what he deserved.”

  “The theft of his jewelry store?” Dix added.

  The old man nodded. “Since then, there have been treasure hunters who’ve scoured the coastline searching for the boat they stole.” Giddings jabbed a finger in the air. “Just the other day, we had a couple of college students in buying supplies for their own treasure hunt. I heard they hired Logsdon to take them out in his dive boat.” Giddings frowned. “I also heard they ended up staying last night at your place. You sure they weren’t the ones who attacked you?”

  Dix shook her head and answered for Andrew. “Mr. Stratford was attacked on the first floor. I was upstairs, as were the Kessler boys. It couldn’t have been them.”

  Andrew understood how small towns worked. News traveled fast. Still, he was amazed at how fast it did travel. “Mr. Giddings, thank you for all the information.”

  The hardware store owner straightened slowly. “Wish I could help more. Thomas was a good friend. We played cards on occasion and had coffee once a week.” He touched a finger to his chin. “Come to think of it, in the last few weeks of his life, Thomas talked about a journal he was keeping. Did you find it?”

  Andrew frowned and shook his head. “I’ve been there for almost a year and haven’t found anything like that. I’ve been through his file cabinets and desk drawers.”

  “If he was smart enough to build hidden passages and tunnels, he’s probably got it hidden somewhere. But that’s strange he didn’t leave it where you could find it. I got the impression he was documenting things he wanted you to know should he die.”

  Andrew sucked in a deep breath to ease the tightness in his chest. His biggest regret was not coming back to Cape Churn before his grandfather died. “Again, Mr. Giddings, thank you for your help.”

  “I hope you find out who’s been attacking you.” Mr. Giddings straightened a stack of miniature flashlights on the counter. “Hate to think one of our own is causing you trouble.”

  Andrew and Dix collected Leigha on the way out.

  “Could I have a baby chick someday?” she begged. “Please?”

  Until he discovered who was trespassing and why, Andrew didn’t feel good about bringing anyone, or anything, out to Stratford House.

  On the drive home, Leigha fell asleep in the backseat.

  Andrew glanced in the rearview mirror at his daughter and then shot a sideways glance toward Dix. “Should I move Leigha and you into a hotel in town?”

  Dix shook her head. “Between me and Brewer, we’ll take care of Leigha. You’re the one I’m worried about. You’re the one who’s nearly been killed. Twice.” She held up two fingers to emphasize her point. “Maybe we need to ask Fontaine for a bodyguard assigned to you. Three attacks might be a charm. And I don’t mean that in a good way.”

  Andrew rubbed the knot on the back of his head and grinned. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re worried about me. Does that mean you’re coming around? Maybe you like me a little?”

  Dix rolled her eyes. “That’s never been what was holding me back.”

  “Ah! So you do like me.” He smirked, his blue eyes bright in the interior of the SUV. “Good to know. Now, let’s find my grandfather’s journal. I get the feeling it holds the key to why someone would want me dead.”

  Dix pressed a finger to her lips. “Shh. You don’t want to scare Leigha,” she whispered.

  Andrew wrinkled his brow. “Are you sure you weren’t a mother in another incarnation?”

  She held up her hand. “Not that I know of. Before I came to Stratford House, I didn’t believe in the paranormal, but now...” She shook her head. “I don’t know what to believe.”

  Andrew reached out a hand to her.

  Instead of drawing away, she took his hand and held it all the way back to the house.

  He called it progress. Now, if he could convince her his bed was the right place to be, he’d cinch the deal.

  A glance at Dix’s tight jaw and worried frown wasn’t reassuring Andrew. But he didn’t give up easily, not on something or someone worth fighting for.

  Chapter 18

  Leigha woke when they pulled into the yard. Though it was cloudy, night had yet to fall.

  Dix helped Leigha out of the SUV and set her on the ground. She yawned and stretched. “We didn’t get any ice cream.”

  “I bet Mrs. Purdy has some in the freezer,” Andrew said. “Why don’t we go inside and ask?”

  Mrs. Purdy exited the front door, her purse and sweater draped over her arm. “I left a lasagna in the oven. There’s a salad in the refrigerator and green beans in a pot on the stove. I’d stay, but Mr. Purdy is threatening to climb a ladder to clean a gutter on our house. If I’m not there to hold the ladder, he’s likely to fall and hurt himself.”

  “By all means, Mrs. Purdy, you should hurry home,” Andrew said.

  Brewer squeezed past Mrs. Purdy’s legs and ran straight for Leigha.

  She flung out her arms and wrapped them around Brewer’s neck.

  Dix could remember the love she’d had for her dog when she was growing up. Seeing Leigha with Brewer surfaced some very good memories of her childhood. Her heart swelled and she wondered if she really could stay in one place and not feel as if she were going to come apart at the seams.

  Mrs. Purdy paused before climbing into her sedan. “Oh, the internet has been out all day. I tried to bring up a recipe on my tablet and couldn’t connect. I called the provider. They walked me through several quick fixes and determined the line has an interruption. They’re sending someone out. He should be out anytime soon.”

  “We’ll take care of it,” Andrew said. “Thank you.”

  Mrs. Purdy drove away, leaving the three of them alone in front of the big old house.

  Dix glanced at the sky. She could just see a bit of the bay beyond the house. Already the water was a steely gray and a wall of fog crept toward land.

  “Will you and Leigha be okay if I go inside?” Andrew asked. “I want to check my grandfather’s study for that journal.”

  Dix snorted. “Good luck. The man had a knack for hiding things.” She glanced at Leigha. “Do you think Leigha could ask Bennet to find it for you?”

  Andrew stared at his daughter for a minute before shrugging. “If you’d asked me that three days ago, I would have laughed you all the way back to Vegas.”

  Dix’s lips pressed together. “Go on. I’ll let Leigha and Brewer stretch their legs before we come inside.”

  Andrew glanced at the bay, his brows dipping. “Don’t be too long. Looks like we’re in for another foggy night.”

  “Trust me, I don’t want to get caught in that any more than you do.”

  Andrew touched the side of her cheek and bent to kiss her lips. “Still working on you,” he whispered and left her standing in the grass.

  Dix touched her mouth where his lips had been. No matter how many times he kissed her, she felt that tingling sensation. Kissing Andrew never got old.

  She closed her eyes for a second, wondering what it would be like to stay there. To become another member of the Stratford household. To be a mother to Leigha and a wife to Andrew.

  Could they pull together and become a cohesive, balanced family unit?

  Dix opened her eyes and glanced around just in time to see Brewer run around the side of the house, Leigha chasing him.

  “Leigha!” she called out, already running after her. She didn’t like letting the little girl out of her sights for a moment.

  Dix raced around the corner. Her heart stopped for a second when she couldn’t see Leigha or Brewer.

&
nbsp; “Leigha?”

  Brewer burst out of a grouping of rosebushes and raced toward Dix, carrying a long string of beads in his mouth. He ran past Dix and stopped, threw the string in the air, let it fall and pounced on it. He grabbed it in his teeth and shook it. The string broke and little white beads spewed across the grass.

  “Brewer!” Leigha ran out of the same rose garden. “Give me that! That’s mine!” She stopped short when she saw the mess Brewer had made of the beads. Her shoulders slumped. “Now you’ve broken it.”

  “We can string them back together. Help me find all of them.” Dix dropped to her hands and knees to help Leigha gather the little white beads. As she collected them, she looked down. They looked like pearl beads, like those that made up the necklace her mother had worn with her best dresses. “Leigha, where did you find these?” She glanced up at the little girl and noticed the bright necklace around her neck. The stones were clear and multifaceted.

  Dix’s heart skipped several beats as she straightened, still on her knees, eye level with Leigha. “Where did you get that necklace?”

  The child touched the jewels around her neck. “I found them.”

  “Yes, sweetie, but where?” Dix stared down at the pearls in her hand. “This isn’t the kind of jewelry you play with. It’s the kind grown-ups spend a lot of money on.”

  “They’re mine. Bennet showed me where to find them.”

  “Oh, baby—”

  Dix was cut off by the sound of Brewer barking. He was out of sight on the other side of the rosebushes. Suddenly he squealed and the garden grew silent.

  “Brewer?” Leigha turned and ran toward the rose garden. “Brewer!”

  Dread filled Dix’s chest just as she heard the crunch of footsteps on the gravel path. “Leigha, wait!”

  The little girl ran into the rose garden.

  Dix leaped to her feet and ran after her. She got there too late.

  A big man, wearing jeans and a uniform shirt for the internet provider, stood with his feet braced, holding Leigha around the middle with one arm, his other hand clamped over her mouth.