“I don’t really know. The shadows seemed strange, that’s all. But the hedges could explain those.” But did we have all the facts? I had an idea, but I didn’t want to share it with either Ben or Harry at this point. If my theory proved right, we’d have all the evidence we needed. If wrong, then it would be back to the beginning in looking for a suspect.
Before we had a chance to leave, someone pounded on the door. I jumped up when I spotted our friends. “Oh, no, it’s Bessie, Doris, and Clara.”
Ben laughed and headed for the door. “Curiosity got the better of them.”
The three ladies crowded the door, each trying to get in first. Finally Clara stepped back and let Doris and Bessie into the room.
Bessie clasped her hands against her chest. “Here you all are. You had us thinking something else may have happened to Abby.”
Clara glared at the men. “And what are you two doing at Abby’s house this time of morning anyway?”
Ben’s cheeks glowed pink. “Hmm, Harry and I went out and brought breakfast to Abby, so we could talk about some things.”
With her arms folded across her chest, Clara did not look convinced. Abby wanted to laugh. Although only four years older, Clara saw herself as the “keeper” of the group and as such, kept tabs on what everybody did.
“It’s true, Clara, dear. I was tired after the long evening, and they thought it would be nice to have breakfast here and go over our notes on the thefts.”
“Maybe so, but I hear you two stayed with Abby late into the evening.” Clara fairly glared at Ben.
I glanced at Bessie whose face now shown a beet red. “Oh, I’m sorry, Abby. I saw your lights on so late, and I told Doris and Clara about it this morning. That’s why we thought something might be the matter.”
Dear, sweet, Bessie, always concerned about others. “That’s okay, Bessie. I’m pleased you cared.”
Clara settled herself into a chair. “Now that’s explained, what have the three of you come with concerning those theft notes you are supposed to be studying. Are the three of you going to find out who’s behind all these robberies? I have some theories along that line.”
I gritted my teeth. There was no telling what Clara had conjured in her mind. “We’re working on some new clues, but don’t have anything to report as yet.”
Clara harrumphed and squared her shoulders. “Well, if you ask me, it’s a ring of thieves, and they’re all staff members. I’ve heard about other places where the people have lost everything from wristwatches to dentures. And it’s always an employee.”
Harry and Ben both hid smiles behind their hands. I had to swallow my own laughter. “I don’t think so, Clara, but we could check out the staff again. Soon as we follow a lead we have now, we’ll get on it.”
Bessie sat up in her chair. “A lead? Who? What?”
I wanted to bite off my tongue. Why couldn’t I have kept my mouth shut? Bessie would be blabbing all over the place, and if my theory happened to be wrong, we could scare off the real thief or cause him or her to do something that could end up hurting the others. Scowls from Harry and Ben did nothing to help either.
Harry saved the day. “We’re not at liberty to discuss any details of what we’ve discovered thus far. As soon as we have any information, those who lost items will be the first to know.”
Thank goodness he was a former police detective and knew the right words to soothe their minds.
Doris stood. “Well, I think we know all we need to know. It’s time for us to get on and let these people take care of business.” She headed for the door.
Clara and Bessie followed her, but Clara still muttered under her breath. I couldn’t make out the words but decided that was probably just as well.
As soon as the ladies departed, Ben shook his head. “I guess it’s time for us to start on our mission for the day. It might be better if you talked with Olivia alone. Harry and I could go speak with Noreen.”
“That’s a good idea. The sooner we get this all cleared up, the sooner we’ll have our friends off our backs.”
My phone rang and Noreen’s office number appeared on the screen. When I answered, Noreen’s breathless voice greeted me.
“Oh, I’m so glad I got hold of you. I have some news. Can you come over right away? Oh, and find Ben and Harry as well.”
“They’re here with me now. Be there in a few minutes.” I frowned and ended the call. “Noreen wants us over in her office.” What could be going on now?
Chapter 19
We wasted no time getting to Noreen’s office where she talked on the phone. She beckoned for us to come on in and have a seat. A minute later she hung up and grinned. “You won’t believe this, but Ellie’s other earring showed up.”
All three of gasped. My mind went into overdrive. “Excuse me? How? When? Where?” Had we missed it the other day when Mitzi found the first one?
“It’s really crazy. One of the housekeeping staff takes care of the hallways on the first floor of that wing everyday while the residents are at breakfast. This morning she found it, but didn’t think much about it. She picked it up and put it in her pocket then forgot about it until she put her supplies away and remembered the missing jewelry. She brought it to me a few minutes ago.”
Abby couldn’t believe her ears. “How in the world did we miss it when we found the other one?”
“All I can figure out is that this was dropped later or you just didn’t’ see it. I wish we could find the necklace and the other things.” Noreen massaged her forehead with her fingers. “I’m glad Ellie has her earrings, but we still haven’t found the thief or the other missing items.”
I glanced at Ben and Harry, and at Ben’s nod, I told Noreen about my theory.
Noreen glanced at Abby. “Do you really think that’s the answer to our problem?”
“I’m not sure, but I do want to visit with Olivia and ask a few more questions.”
Noreen blew out her breath. “Okay. Let me know what you find out. I have some decisions to make about this, but I’ll wait until you report back. Ellie’s grandson needs to know about the earrings as does Jacob Wentworth.”
I rose and nodded at the men. “Then it’s time to see what we can discover.”
Ben and Harry followed me into the hallway. Ben stopped and stroked his chin. “Wait a minute. Could it be possible that Jim took those earrings to begin with then made sure they would be found?”
Harry chuckled. “You know, I wouldn’t put it past that old geezer.”
“Listen to yourselves. I never heard such talk. If he took those pearls, I’ll eat my hat. Besides, where is the necklace?”
Ben shrugged. “Stranger things have happened, and he could be keeping the necklace to make a big show of finding it later.”
I shook my. “I think you are both way off track. Think of all the other things missing.”
Ben rubbed neck. “I guess you’re right, but this is getting frustrating. I never had this much problem finding information to clear my clients when I practiced law.”
“I’m sure you didn’t, but this is much different.” We passed the activity room entrance and when I glanced in I spotted Ellie and Jim in conversation.
I stopped and held Ben’s arm. “Wait a minute, I’m going in to speak with Ellie and Jim.”
When I entered, Ellie saw me and clapped her hands. “Did you hear my other earring has been found?”
“I heard. And I’m happy for you. I know how relieved you must be to have both of them back in your possession.”
“I am, oh, I am. I just hope we can find the necklace now.” Ellie reached over and grasped Jim’s hand. “And I owe it all to this wonderful man.”
If their smiles at each other were any indication, then love blossomed between Jim and Ellie. And that wasn’t a bad thing. Unless . . . I refused to think about it.
Ben and Harry joined us, and Harry knelt beside Ellie. “I promise you, Miss Ellie, we’ll take care of the rest of this mystery sooner than you c
an sneeze.”
My heart did a double-jump. Why on earth would Harry promise something like that? To make such a statement when we had no more clues this minute than we did earlier this morning.
Another thought popped into my head, and I frowned at Harry. Had he and Ben come up with something without telling me? They’d better not be holding back information.
Harry stood. “Jim, let’s go back to the hallway where the housekeeper said she found the second earring. Abby will take Ellie back to her room.”
Jim’s smiled, pleased as punch with himself. “I’d be glad to show you. Sure would be nice if we could find the other things like this.”
It looked like I’d have to wait until I could get Ben and Harry alone to see if they had more clues they hadn’t mentioned. I grasped the handles on the back of the chair and guided Ellie back into the hallway. “Shall we?”
“Yes, and it’s been such fun. He’s really a nice man, not at all as cantankerous as everyone else says.”
I laughed. “Love can do that to a fella, so I hear.”
“You should know. Just look at how much nicer Ben is to everyone now that you’re his girl.”
My head jerked and my mouth gaped. After a moment, I gathered my wits. “Say what? Where did you get that idea?”
Ellie turned her head and stared at me. “Where do you think? I’ve seen you two together, and you’ve been out several times.”
Just what I feared would happen when we went out that one time. What could I do now to curtail the talk? “You have it all wrong, Ellie. We’re still trying to solve our little mystery, so we spend a lot of time together. I’m with Harry a lot as well.”
“I know what I’m seeing, so don’t go making all kinds of excuses.”
No use in arguing with Ellie now that she was back on that track with Ben and me. I had hoped she’d forgotten about it. Even if something may happen between me and Ben, I’d have to squelch it until he got over his anger against the Lord.
A tiny needle of pain started just above my temple and threaded its way through my head. I winced. I didn’t need a headache to waylay me right now. I still had too much to do.
I unlocked Ellie’s door and wheeled her inside. “I’m sorry, but I seem to be getting a headache. If Ben and Harry stop by here, tell them I’ve gone down to my house. I’ll meet them back here for lunch.”
“Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. You better take something when you get home and lie down to rest.”
“I will, I promise.” Indeed, that would be one promise easy to keep. I closed the door behind her and headed to my cottage. A cup of green tea and a headache relief tablet would suffice until the pain went away.
After taking a pill, I laid back in my recliner until the medication took over. I hadn’t been rested five minutes when Ben and Harry opened the door, both of their heads peaking through the crack.
“Are you okay, Abby? Ellie said you weren’t feeling well.” Ben followed his words by opening the door wider.
“I’m okay, just a little headache.” I raised the recliner to greet them.
They sat down on the sofa across from me. Ben leaned forward. “Can I get you some tea or anything?”
His voice held the same concern as it had when I’d sprained my ankle. Could Ellie be right? Ben had certainly paid me a lot more attention the past few months. I rejected the idea. Ben was just being nice because we were friends. I didn’t have the time to deal with him and his spiritual problems on top of everything else.
“No, I’ve already had a cup of tea. I’ll be okay in a bit. We still have to pay Olivia a visit. She adores Mitzi, so I’m taking my little mutt with me. It may help Olivia answer the questions I have.”
“We went with Jim and talked to the maid. She showed us where she found the earring and it was almost exactly the same spot as the other one.”
Harry grinned. “Jim was excited about it being found and said he wished we could find the other stuff that easily.”
So did I. “Why don’t you give me half an hour and I’ll meet you in the lobby with Mitzi, and we can go visit Olivia.”
Ben peered at me a moment. “I suppose I should go with you.”
Harry shook his. “Nope, I’m not going to visit that lady. I might be more than she can handle. You two go do that, and I’ll wait for you so you can tell me what you found out.”
“He’s right, Abby. Another new face right now may confuse her, and she won’t be able to help us at all.” He stood. “C’mon, Harry. Let’s give Abby a chance to rest.”
After they left, I set the alarm on my phone for half an hour from now and leaned back almost flat again. I forced my body to relax, but my mind still spun with questions about Olivia and her wanderings about the halls. Could it all be connected in some way?
Before I settled anything in my thoughts, my alarm sounded. I groaned and sat up. The pain had lessened, so I may as well get on with our investigation.
Mitzi lay on the floor beside my chair. I leaned over and picked her up. “Well, sweetie, we’re going to make another visit to that nice lady from the other day. You were very well-behaved then, so I know you will be today as well.”
A few minutes later, I had her on a leash and walked her to the main building. The next hour or so could bring the answers to all of our questions or put us right back where we started weeks ago.
One thing was certain, I had to be very careful with how I questioned and treated Olivia. I did not want or need the wrath of one Jacob Wentworth rain down on me for mistreating his mother.
Chapter 20
I met Ben and Harry in the lobby of the main building. Harry said he planned to watch a little TV in the activity room and wait for us to return from our visit with Olivia
When Ben and I walked down the hall toward Olivia’s apartment, a sudden urge to pray came over me. “Ben, stop a minute.”
He did and peered at me with concern in his eyes. “Are you okay? Is your headache back?”
“No, it’s nothing like that. I feel we need to stop and pray about Olivia.”
Skepticism replaced the concern of a moment before. “If you think it will do any good, I guess we can do that.”
I held Mitzi close and bowed my head. “Lord, we need Your guidance as we talk with Olivia. May she understand what we are asking and may she have answers we need. Let my words be filled with kindness toward her and not frighten her. In Your precious name I pray. Amen.”
With those words, my anxiety eased. “Okay, now I’m ready for whatever happens.” If my theory proved to be wrong, no harm would be done. If it proved correct, then we’d have a whole new issue to handle.
When Olivia opened the door, she frowned a moment before recognition lit her face. “Come in Abby, and you too, Mr. Barton.” Then her face lit up with delight. “Oh, and you brought that adorable little dog with you.” She stepped aside so we could enter her apartment.
Ben made no attempt to correct her missing his name. I guess he figured she was close enough.
“Please have a seat, and may I get you tea? Coffee? Water?”
Remembering the last incident with making tea, I shook my head. “Oh, no, Mrs. Wentworth, we don’t need anything. We actually came to see if you could help us with our investigation into some thefts that are going around our building.”
“Oh, my, that’s terrible. I have to be very careful with my things because I leave them all over the place. I don’t want anyone coming in and stealing them from me.”
“No, we wouldn’t want that to happen either. We found a pair of earrings out in the hallway near your apartment, and we were wondering if you’d seen anything or anyone suspicious.”
Mitzi started wiggling in my lap and straining toward Olivia.
“Oh, you cute little thing,” Olivia held out her hands, “do you want to come sit on my lap?”
Mitzi barked once, and I handed her over. She settled in Olivia’s lap like she belonged there. Once again I thanked the Lord for giving Mitzi such a friendly p
ersonality.
She asked Ben something about what he did, but I didn’t listen because I had to come up with a way to get back into her bedroom. Then an idea struck. Ben had admired her antiques on a previous visit, and the sleigh bed in Olivia’s bedroom should attract his attention.
“Olivia, when I was here a few days ago, I noticed the beautiful bed in your room. Ben is very interested in antiques, and I’m sure he’d love to see this one.”
Her eyes sparkled. “Oh yes, it’s a wonderful antique, and sleigh beds like it are rare. I’ll be glad to show it to you.” She rose, still holding Mitzi and walked toward the hall.
Ben grabbed my arm and all but hissed at me. “What are doing? I don’t know anything about sleigh beds.”
I pulled him toward the hall. “Just follow my lead and go along with whatever I say.”
Today the drapes were open and gave the room a much lighter feel than the last time I was here. Once again, nothing appeared out of place. Mitzi begin yipping and wiggling which startled Olivia and caused her to drop the dog.
Mitzi scurried around the room and then jumped up at the drapes. She struggled with something in her mouth. I panicked and tried to pick her up, but she held on to whatever she had grabbed. Finally, she quit struggling and looked up at me as I picked her up. I almost dropped her again when I realized a string of pearls hung between her teeth.
I stood there with my mouth dropping open and shifted my gaze to Ben who stood as speechless as I had become.
Olivia hugged Mitzi. “Oh, you sweet girl, you found my beads again.” She turned to me and shook her head. “I keep losing so many things. I found these in another room and brought them back here where they belong.”
I exchanged glances with Ben, my head full of questions. I managed to extract the pearls from Mitzi’s mouth, praying she hadn’t damaged them with her teeth. “Olivia, where else have you found your things.”
She waved a hand in the air. “This house has so many rooms, and I’ve found things in a lot of them. I don’t know how they got there, but I brought them all back here.”
The Case of the Missing Pearls Page 11
