Vintage Teaberry Malice

by R A Wallace

  Jessilyn saw the look of concern in Seth’s eyes. “I don’t know. He won’t talk to me.”

  “Let me try,” Seth said. He looked around the kitchen. “Can you handle the grill while I go talk to Evan?”

  Jessilyn nodded in relief and watched Seth walk in the direction of the bedrooms. She gathered up the things she needed to grill the meat and went outside.

  Seth found Evan curled up in a ball on his bed. “Hey, Buddy. Come here.” Seth scooped Evan up and positioned him on his lap as Seth bent his long frame to sit on Evan’s bed.

  “Do you think I’m bigger than you are?” Seth asked Evan.

  It hadn’t been the question Evan was expecting. He peered up at Seth and gave a half nod.

  “Well, believe it or not, I used to be your size.” Seth watched Evan’s eyes widen in disbelief.

  Seth nodded. “It’s true. I used to be exactly as big as you.”

  “But then you got bigger?” Emotions flashed across Evan’s face. The last one looked like distrust. “Did you have to eat broccoli to get bigger?”

  Seth huffed out a laugh. “Well, maybe a couple of bites. But before I knew it, I was a big guy. Bigger than most of the other guys around me. They didn’t try to pick fights with me anymore after that and you know what? I even became friends with some of them.”

  Evan looked hopeful.

  Seth asked Evan what had happened at school. Then he listened quietly, without interrupting. When Evan was done talking, Seth and Evan washed their hands and joined Jessilyn for dinner. Seth flashed Jessilyn a look that meant he would explain later. After dinner, Evan took a bath and fell asleep early. Seth and Jessilyn sat out on the deck. Jessilyn had a glass of wine. Seth had a beer.

  “What did he say?” Jessilyn asked.

  “Sounds like he has a bully at school. The kid is a couple of grades older. For whatever reason, he’s decided to pick on Evan.” Seth stretched his long legs out in front of him as he leaned back in the new deck chair they’d found on sale.

  Jessilyn sat in a matching chair. “What do you think I should do?”

  “I think we should talk to the principal,” Seth said without hesitation. “Bullying is a big thing nowadays. We can’t take the chance that anything happens to Evan.”

  Jessilyn had been beside herself ever since she’d gotten home from work. Seeing her son so upset had undone her. Hearing Seth use the word ‘we’ started to loosen the knot she’d been feeling in her stomach. Facing the problem together made it seem less insurmountable.

  “Besides, it’s possible the other kid is having difficulties too,” Seth said.

  “What do you mean?” Jessilyn asked, a small frown forming between her brows.

  “There has to be a reason a kid turns into a bully. Maybe he’s having his own problems at home. Maybe someone needs to step in and help before it’s too late.” Seth looked over at Jessilyn.

  She nodded her understanding. She hadn’t considered anyone else. Her focus had been on her son. “You’re right. I hadn’t even thought about it. I’ll call the principal tomorrow and set up an appointment. Whatever the situation is, it needs to stop. I won’t have Evan afraid to go to school.”

  Chapter Ten

  The grocery store was busier than Caitlyn would have expected for a late Tuesday afternoon. Doug had offered to take her somewhere special this evening, but Caitlyn had convinced him that staying in would be a nice change. With the amount of time that Doug and Jim typically put in at the restaurant to ensure its success, knowing that he was making an effort to focus just on her gave Caitlyn a warm feeling.

  It had seemed not that long ago that Doug was stretching himself to the limits by trying to keep up with his duties at the fire station, the restaurant, and with Caitlyn. Now that both Jim and Doug had stepped back from the fire station after some long, serious conversations between them, they were both pursuing their newly found free moments with enthusiasm.

  Until now, most of Caitlyn’s time spent with Doug had been at his restaurant. She thought that it might be a nice change of pace for the two of them to spend a normal evening alone at home. In her mind, it had sounded like a great idea. In practice, she discovered that she hadn’t been cooking for two enough to successfully accomplish the feat without incident. She’d forgotten to buy a few of the items she would need for the dinner she had planned.

  She decided that once she closed the florist shop, she would pop into the small grocery store on the way home, pick up the last minute items, and hopefully still get home in time to have a nice dinner. Caitlyn sped through the grocery store as quickly as possible, grabbing the things she needed. She was almost finished and was navigating from one aisle to the next when she bumped her cart into another one.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” Caitlyn said as she looked up from her shopping list.

  The tall, attractive brunette with the other cart offered Caitlyn a frozen smile in return. Caitlyn’s mind registered that the other woman’s teeth were perfect at the same moment she realized who she was. Macey Jeffries was a local dentist and Doug’s ex-girlfriend. Caitlyn quickly smoothed her face to remove any hint of dismay and plastered on an equally icy smile.

  “Macey, my apologies. Have a nice evening.” Caitlyn backed her cart up a few inches and began navigating around Macey, who had remained frozen in place.

  “Looks like you have plans tonight,” Macey said coldly as she stole a glance into Caitlyn’s cart. “Don’t tell me he has you cooking for him? I always insisted that he handle the kitchen.”

  Rather than foster a public confrontation, Caitlyn nodded her head and continued walking.

  “Of course, with his parenting experience, he is more qualified,” Macey said loudly at Caitlyn’s back.

  Caitlyn froze temporarily, then forced herself to continue walking down the aisle. Blindly, she grabbed a few more items that she didn’t need just to give the appearance that Macey’s words hadn’t hit their mark. Then she walked to the cashier as calmly as possible and checked out. As she drove home from the store, she kept asking herself what on earth Macey was talking about. Doug doesn’t have children, does he?

  ***

  Doug stepped from the shower and finished drying off. He quickly threw on some clothes because he’d already taken longer than he wanted to get ready. He had been looking forward to an evening at Caitlyn’s for days. The decisions he had been contemplating lately about his future had been stressful, but once he’d made his choices and set them into motion he genuinely felt that he was finally on the right path. He was thinking that this was the most relaxed he had felt in a very long time. He was looking forward to a great evening with Caitlyn without interruptions.

  He grabbed his phone and glanced at it quickly. There were a few messages. He didn’t want to worry about them all evening, so he figured he’d listen to them now before he left for Caitlyn’s. There was one from his mom, one from Jim telling him that everything was okay at the restaurant and Doug could enjoy his evening without worries, and then a final message that left Doug feeling cold.

  Macey left a snarling message about a conversation she’d just had with Caitlyn. Doug listened to Macey’s message twice before he could wrap his brain around what she was saying. He stared down at his phone, wondering if he should call Caitlyn first or just go to her house. Either way, the relaxed feeling he’d had a moment before had vanished in a flash. It was now replaced with a sick feeling in his stomach that he’d put off something that he should have already done, and it was now too late.

  He drove to Caitlyn’s with his mind in a fog. All he could think of on the entire way there was that he was going to lose Caitlyn. He couldn’t believe what an idiot he had been. He should have talked to her a long time ago. He parked in front of her house and sat in his truck for several moments as he worked up the courage to go inside. He hoped that Caitlyn would let him inside. After her conversation with Macey, that was now debatable. Doug couldn’t blame her. He was certain there’d be no dinner waiting for him and
doubted that Caitlyn would even let him in the house to explain.

  He walked to the house slowly and stopped on the front porch. He was surprised when a smiling Caitlyn opened the front door before he’d worked up the courage to ring the bell.

  “Well, are you going to come in or stand outside all night? Your dinner is getting cold.” She stepped back to allow room for Doug to enter. The entryway seemed to shrink in size as soon as he did. Caitlyn saw the dumbfounded look on his face. She raised up as far as she could and gave him a quick kiss before turning and walking back to the kitchen.

  Doug stood frozen in the hallway temporarily. Caitlyn called to him again from the kitchen and that finally mobilized him. He found the table beautifully set with a special arrangement of flowers. The food smelled amazing. Doug looked over at Caitlyn with a question in his eyes.

  “Did you talk to anyone unusual today?” Doug asked hesitantly.

  Caitlyn reached for a wine glass, filled it, and walked over to Doug to hand it to him.

  “I take it Macey called you?” Caitlyn asked as she poured a glass for herself.

  “Uh, yeah.”

  Caitlyn gave him a wry grin before taking a sip. “And you figured you’d find me crying my eyes out?”

  “Or worse,” Doug said hesitantly.

  “Oh, I’ll admit she had me going for a moment,” Caitlyn said with a nod. “But it didn’t take me too long to figure out she was lying through her perfect teeth.”

  Doug’s eyes showed a flicker of hope. “You did? I mean, you figured it out? How? I was trying to figure out how to prove it all the way here.”

  Caitlyn pointed at Doug with her wine glass. “That’s easy. I know your mom. She never would have let you go through life ignoring the fact that you have one or more children running around.”

  Doug huffed out a laugh. “No, she wouldn’t at that. What I don’t understand is why Macey would even make something like that up?”

  Caitlyn shrugged. “Obviously, the woman has issues. I can’t get inside her head and I wouldn’t want to. As far as I’m concerned, we’ve already spent more time on this conversation than we should.”

  Doug nodded in relief as he set his wine glass down on the kitchen table.

  “So, we’re good?” Caitlyn asked.

  “Almost,” Doug said as he crossed the distance to Caitlyn. He took her wine glass and set it on the counter. “I realized quite a while back that I’m a lot happier when we’re together. That was one of the reasons why Jim and I have made some major life changes lately. I wanted to be able to spend more time with you. But the instant I heard Macey’s lies, I was worried that I’d lost you forever without having the chance to tell you just how much you mean to me.”

  Caitlyn smiled as she leaned into him. “I like this conversation much better.”

  Chapter Eleven

  The morning routine at the retirement community was underway. Although the weather was turning cooler, a light jacket was still sufficient for an early morning walk. Many of the residents were already out doing just that. Gina knew that once they had walked their regular route, many would take a break at the restaurant in front of the retirement community. It would allow them to get refreshments and catch up on the news from their neighbors.

  Gina and a few of her friends would miss that pleasant camaraderie this morning. They had volunteered to go through Alice’s things in the absence of any known relations to handle the task. It was bonding of a different sort for the friends. Gina had felt compelled to help since she’d been the one to discover Alice. Others were helping for their own reasons.

  “It seems funny going into Alice’s villa without her here,” Laura Davidson said as she entered the villa behind Gina.

  “Were you ever inside when she was alive?” Josie Klingerman asked. She was looking around curiously.

  “No, Alice never invited me in.” Laura stopped and looked around also.

  “Me neither,” Sam Whittaker said. “She didn’t let anyone in, I don’t think.”

  “Where do you want to get started?” Victor Muncie asked no one in particular.

  Silas Granger walked into the kitchen area and began opening cupboards. “There’s the stuff in here we’ll need to do something with.”

  Victor nodded. “And the furniture. We won’t be able to move that ourselves. Not without help.”

  “Then there are the things in the bedroom,” Josie added.

  Sam, Victor, and Silas traded glances.

  “We’ll leave that to you women,” Silas said as the other men nodded.

  “We’ll box up the dinnerware,” Victor agreed.

  “There aren’t any books or anything to add to the library in the clubhouse,” Sam commented as he continued looking around.

  Laura, Josie, and Gina quickly emptied the drawers in the bathroom and bedroom then rejoined the men in the living room. They had emptied the cupboards and drawers and packed everything in the boxes they’d brought in their golf carts. The boxes were neatly labeled. The women had left the boxes of clothes in the bedroom.

  “That really only leaves the furniture,” Victor said.

  “What is the retirement community planning to do with it?” Silas asked.

  “Alice left everything to the retirement community in her will.” Gina explained. “It was decided to just sell the furniture in the community sale that Vintage Teaberry is sponsoring. They were hoping we could tag it and get it ready.”

  “Oh, that makes sense,” Laura said as she ran her hand across the dining room table. “The furniture is solid and barely looks used.”

  “Any idea how to price it?” Josie asked.

  The men all shook their heads.

  Gina looked at her watch. “I wasn’t sure what it would be worth, so I called Leah at Vintage and asked if one of them could stop by. Daryl said he’d be here to give advice.”

  The men carried the boxes from the bedroom while they waited. They set them on the kitchen counter near the other boxes just as the doorbell rang. They could see Daryl through the screen door and called for him to enter.

  He looked around after the introductions and nodded confidently as he jotted down some ideas for prices for the furniture and the dinnerware.

  “It is solid furniture,” Daryl said as he pulled open some of the drawers. “You can tell by the construction, especially the joints.”

  Laura looked over Daryl’s shoulder as he pointed. “What’s this?”

  She pulled out a large book and flipped it open. It had hand-written notes all through it. She turned to the rest of the group.

  “It looks like some sort of journal,” Laura said as she looked at the others.

  “Let me see,” Daryl said.

  Laura held the book out to hand it to Daryl and heard something fall to the floor. Daryl reached down and picked up a key.

  “Wonder what this is for?” Daryl murmured as he looked for anything imprinted on the key that may help to identify it.

  “Does it say anything in the book about the key?” Victor asked.

  “Maybe on the pages it was in between,” Josie suggested.

  Laura wasn’t certain where that may have been. She flipped through the pages quickly trying to see if any of them had impressions from having the key wedged between them. A sheet of paper fell out.

  Daryl bent again to retrieve it. He read it quickly and frowned.

  “What does it say?” Victor asked.

  Daryl first glanced around at the group waiting expectantly. “It says, In case of death, find Alice.”

  There was a hush among the group for a moment.

  Sam spoke first. “What could that possibly mean?”

  “Yeah, why would Alice tell you to look for her if she’s already dead?” Josie asked.

  Victor thought for a moment then turned to Laura. “Are you sure it’s Alice’s journal?”

  Laura flipped to the first page and nodded. “It has her name and the date here. Oh!” Laura looked up at the others with surprise in
her eyes.

  “What is it?” Gina asked.

  “The date. It’s from when Alice used to live here. The journal starts when she was a young girl.”

  Gina narrowed her eyes as she considered the significance. Then she had a thought. “When does it end?”

  Laura flipped to the last page. “It looks like it was around twenty or so years ago.”

  “That’s not when she moved back here, is it?” Silas asked.

  Gina shook her head. “I think it’s been around ten years according to her file in the office.”

  “What do you suppose it means?” Josie asked. “Why would she stop writing after all those years?”

  Sam shrugged and tossed out an idea. “Maybe she decided she didn’t have anything more to remember?” Even Sam didn’t sound convinced.

  Laura sat on a chair and glanced through the journal briefly. “I don’t feel right reading this.”

  “What should we do with it?” Silas asked. He glanced over at Daryl.

  Daryl looked apologetic. “From a collector’s standpoint, it doesn’t have much value. If she had been famous, it would be a different story.”

  “But we can’t just ignore the note. It says to find Alice,” Josie said stubbornly.

  The others looked at her.

  “We already know where she is,” Victor said gently.

  “But, I mean, we can’t just ignore the request completely, right?” Josie said as she looked around the group.

  “But what can we do?” Laura asked as she looked back down at the journal in her hand. “I really wouldn’t feel comfortable reading this. Not after living in the same community with her for so long.”

  “What about asking someone else to read it?” Gina suggested.

  “Like who?” Laura said, almost to herself, as she considered the idea.

  The others began discussing it, each one talking over the other as they did. Daryl remained silent, figuring it was a decision they needed to make on their own.

  “What about Megan?” Gina said suddenly above the other voices.