by Tim Myers
“No, I guess not. You must be a mind reader. I was just getting ready to call you.”
She frowned, then said, “What have you been up to now, Ben?”
“Hey, I’m one of the good guys, remember?”
Molly said, “Don’t try to squirm out of it that easily. Give.”
I told her what I’d done. After I was finished, she said, “That’s just like you, baiting everybody without a clue who was behind all this.”
“That’s not fair. I’ve had more than my quota of clues, and I’ve shared every one of them with you.”
Molly said, “I know, and I’m sorry if I’ve been hard-nosed about it. That’s why I came by in the first place. I’m making a peace offering.”
“I’m listening,” I said.
“I thought you should know before it hit the papers or the news. We just arrested Monique White for the murder of Jerry Sanger.”
“You’re kidding,” I said as I slumped back in my chair. I had my suspicions about Monique, but I hadn’t expected Molly to believe me without more proof than I had. “What happened?”
“We gave her some time to get comfortable again, then we paid her another visit at her soap shop. I don’t mind saying we had a devil of a time getting the second warrant, but we finally managed it. There was a small amount of drugs stashed away in the attic scuttle, just like you thought. She actually had bagged dust to spread around after you found her up there, can you believe that? I have to thank you for the tip, Ben, it really was helpful. She didn’t have lime to hide it this time.”
“So what tied her to the murder?”
Molly said, “Circumstantial evidence, mostly. Monique cracked the second we found her stash. She admitted selling drugs to some of her high-society customers. Monique said the soap shop had been a real hobby for her at first, but in the end it was just a front. Oh, and she admitted to breaking into Louisa’s apartment and trashing it before she shut up. She was looking for Jerry’s stash, thinking he might have left it with her. She said she knew we’d been through his apartment, but Monique hadn’t heard that we’d found Jerry’s supply.”
“What about my car?”
Molly nodded. “Yes, she admitted to that, too. She said you were nosing around so much, she had to do something to dissuade you.”
“I suppose the mugging in her shop was faked, too.”
Molly said, “No, that was real enough. One of her drug customers got agitated when Monique couldn’t supply them anymore. She’s turning over a list of her customers, trying to get a break on sentencing.”
I sat there in stunned silence. It was still hard for me to see Monique as a killer. “I can’t believe she confessed to tilling Jerry.”
Molly paused, then said, “It’s funny, but that’s about the only thing she didn’t admit doing. Monique’s probably trying to wriggle out of a murder charge, but we’ll get her. Anyway, I thought you should know.”
After Molly was gone, I telephoned Kelly at home.
Kelly said breathlessly, “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to call. Do you think Molly’s presence there might have scared off the bad guy?”
“It turns out it didn’t matter. She just arrested Monique White for the murder.”
Kelly said, “That’s wonderful. Louisa’s completely off the hook now.”
“I guess so,” I said.
“You don’t sound too happy about it,” Kelly said.
“I don’t know, it was just a little too neat, don’t you think? Plus, she never actually admitted to the murder, though she confessed to a host of other crimes.”
“Come on, Ben, she most likely wants to wait and try to plead it out to a lesser count. That’s what I’d do if I were her.”
“Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”
“Well, I’m happy for you. Have you called Louisa and told her the good news yet?”
“I owed you the first call. She’s next on my list.”
Kelly said, “Wow, I’m honored. Now hang up and call your sister. She needs to hear this good news fast.”
“Okay, I’ll do just that.”
I walked around the room a few minutes before calling my sister. Kelly was probably right. Monique was just holding out for a better deal. That was the only reason I could come up with why she hadn’t included murder on her list of crimes. I let myself start to relax a little, then I called my sister.
I was glad when I found her at Kate’s house. “Hey, I’ve got some good news. They just arrested Monique White for killing Jerry Sanger. She confessed to trashing your apartment, too.”
Louisa’s whooping scream on the other end of the line nearly deafened me. “That’s fantastic news,” she said. “I’m in the clear.”
“So are my other suspects.” I remembered my raw treatment of John Labott. I was going to have to find a way to make it up to all the people I’d put through the ringer over this case. Helping John out would be easy enough.
“Sis, while I’ve got you on the telephone, there’s something we should talk about.”
“What’s that?” she said.
“John Labott’s had a crush on you forever, but he’s too afraid to ask you out.”
“John? Are you certain? Ben, he hardly speaks three words to me when he comes by the shop.”
“Believe me, he told me himself. The thing is, he’s too shy to ask you out.”
Louisa was silent on the other end for some time, then said, “John Labott. Who would have figured? Thanks for the heads-up.” She paused, then added, “Have you told Mom the news yet?”
“About John? She’s probably noticed, too; not much gets past her.”
“I’m talking about Monique,” Louisa said.
“I had to call you first, didn’t I?”
She laughed. “I’m glad you did. Let me call her, will you? I want to break the good news myself.”
“That’s fine.”
Louisa said, “And Ben? Thank you.”
“I didn’t do all that much,” I said.
“You did in my book. You’re the best brother a girl could ever have.”
“I’m telling the other guys you said that,” I said.
She laughed. “Go ahead. I tell them all the time. Thanks, Ben, I love you.”
“I love you, too, Louisa.”
IT took forever for me to get to sleep, and when I did, I had the most horrendous dreams. For some reason, plants were chasing me through the shop, and not just little ones. These tendrils would have made a giant octopus proud. Every time I turned one way, they raced to cut me off before I could escape. I was cornered near the essential oils we kept in the shop when I woke up screaming.
It was one of those nights it was best I was sleeping alone.
By morning light, I was more exhausted than if I hadn’t slept at all. After turning the coffeepot on, I set the shower-head to stinging needles and used just the cold water. It was a slap to my system, and after enduring a few minutes of it, I gently eased hot water into the mix.
As I dried off, I was glad for the one luxury I still allowed Mom to do for me. She was a big fan of hanging towels outside on the clothesline, and I didn’t have the heart to make her stop doing mine once I moved out. There was a freshness to the coarse texture of the air-dried towels that I loved. Bob gave me a hard time about it, but I knew his wife Jessica still did the same thing for him.
After two cups of coffee and more eggs than I needed, I was ready to face the world again. I’d expected a sense of triumph when I finally managed to unmask the killer, but Molly had deprived me of the opportunity. Maybe if she’d let me join her on the raid I wouldn’t be feeling so down about it, but that was asking too much, even of her.
It was time for my life, or whatever I led that resembled it, to get back to some semblance of order.
I found my brothers in a joyous mood when I walked into the shop. I’d forgotten all about the remodeling, but it appeared they’d been at work for hours.
“There he is, the man of the h
our,” Jeff said as I joined them.
Bob said, “Wow, who thought all those Nancy Drew books you used to read would finally pay off.”
“It was Hardy Boys, and you know it. Kate was the one who liked Nancy Drew.”
“Come on, Bro, I caught you reading them, too. Admit it, you always wanted to be a great detective, and now you’ve managed it.”
“I don’t know how you get that. Molly made the arrest all on her own.”
Jim said, “She was after Louisa, and you know it. If you hadn’t pushed Monique on her, she never would have twigged. You’re a hero, Ben.”
“So why don’t I feel like one?”
Bob said, “Because your case is solved and now you have to help us. Grab a wrench, we’re dismantling the line.”
“You know what? Hard work is probably just what I need. Let me grab some coveralls first.”
As I worked under Bob’s direction, it felt good to be doing something useful with my hands again. I’d spent less and less time with my brothers on the line since I’d taken over teaching the soapmaking classes on the other side of the shop. It was all well and good to teach, but I loved the line, too. As we worked, there were jokes and taunts, curses at stubborn bolts, and more stories from my three brothers than I could have imagined. Some of their heroic exploits were strictly fantasy, and I did my best to top them. It reminded me of all that was good about coming from a big family.
Mom walked in just before lunch and saw the production line nearly torn down to the concrete floor.
Bob said, “Now before you panic, you’ve got to realize that I know where everything is.”
“That’s not nearly as important as knowing how it all goes back together again,” Mom said.
“Hey, trust me; I’ve got a handle on this.”
“I can only hope and pray.”
Jim said, “You need to have faith in your sons.”
“Faith I’ve got plenty of.” She grabbed me, despite the grease on my overalls, and hugged me fiercely. One apron was going to need a serious cleaning before it went back into the rotation. She said, “Benjamin, you are everything I hoped you would be.”
I didn’t know what to say to that, but fortunately, my brothers filled the gap of silence for me.
Jeff said with mock petulance, “I always knew Ben was your favorite.”
Bob said, “That’s because she dropped him on his head when he was a baby. She’s felt bad about it ever since.”
Jim added, “Don’t laugh, she dropped you, too.”
Bob retorted, “Yeah? Well, she left you in the bathtub too long.”
Mom released me and said, “Boys, I love you all equally, you know that, regardless of how you try your mother’s patience.”
“Yeah, we love you, too, Mom,” Jeff said. “Now how about letting Ben get back to work. We don’t have him back here too often, and we’re going to take full advantage of it.”
Mom said, “You boys have to eat sometime, don’t you?”
Bob said, “I wish we could, but we’ve got too much work to do.”
Jeff looked at Jim, then put his wrench down and said, “It’s time to strike.”
“You’re right, little brother. Suddenly I’ve forgotten how to work a screwdriver. How about you, Ben?”
“Let me see, what’s a wrench look like again,” fighting to hide my grin.
“This is mutiny,” Bob muttered.
Mom said, “No, it’s lunch. I’d invite you all to the break room, but I’m afraid you’d scare off our customers.”
Jeff said, “Does that mean we don’t get to eat after all?”
“Perish the thought. Louisa,” she called out, and my sister walked in carrying a basket loaded with sandwiches. Behind her came Kate carrying a tray full of glasses and a huge jug of iced tea. Mom said, “It’s Cindy’s turn to watch the front. Now eat up, boys.”
As we devoured the sandwiches and tea after dutifully washing up, Louisa joined me at the bench where I was sitting and said, “Ben, are you sure John likes me?”
“Absolutely,” I said between bites.
“I don’t know; I just don’t see it.”
I took a gulp of tea then said, “Do you really think he needs to come by the shop every week, when none of our other suppliers make it more than once a month?”
“You could be right,” she said. “He’s just never said anything.” She paused, then added, “You know what? I might be wrong. He hemmed and hawed once about seeing a movie, but before I realized he was asking me out on a date, I’d turned him down. So why didn’t he try again?”
“Maybe he’s waiting for you to ask him,” I said.
“He’s in for a long wait then. I’m done with men. Finished. Kaput.”
“Hey, I’m not saying you have to call him today, but he seems like a good guy. You should at least give him a chance.”
“Sorry, I don’t think it’s going to happen. But speaking of love lives, how’s yours going with Kelly?”
I stared at the last bit of sandwich in my hand, then I said, “If you would have asked me two days ago, I would have had a completely different answer. Now, with her daughter Annie back in town, I’m not so sure.”
Louisa patted my arm. “Don’t give up on her, Ben— I she’s worth the effort.”
I shrugged, ate the last of my sandwich, then said, “I’ve got to get back to work.”
Jeff overheard me, and said, “What about my siesta? You know I like to take a nap after I eat.”
Bob said, “You can doze off while you’re working.”
“With all this racket going on?”
Jim said, “It’s never stopped you before.”
I told the ladies, “Thanks again for lunch.”
“You’re most welcome. We’ll be back with dessert in a few hours.”
We dove into the job with fresh spirits, despite Jeff’s protests that he really needed his nap. I was feeling aches in places I’d forgotten I had, and I knew it was going to take more than a cold shower to get me moving the next day. Still, I managed to keep up with my younger brothers without slowing down too much. By the end of the day, we’d managed to pull everything off the old line and clean the individual parts.
I stared at the mess spread across the concrete floor and saw Bob studying the components of our line.
I said, “It looks like a bomb went off in here, doesn’t it?”
He shook his head. “I wasn’t lying, I know where everything is. To be honest with you, we’re further along than I thought we’d be. You really made a difference today.”
I stretched, hearing cracks and pops as I did so. “I’m glad I could help, but I’m not sure how much good I’m going to be tomorrow.”
“You’ll be fine. This was the worst of the grunt work. Tomorrow we start checking the parts and reassembling them. It’s going to be a lot easier from here on out.”
Jeff joined us and said, “Easier than today? I’m going to go play tennis after we finish up here.”
Jim countered, “If you can manage that, you didn’t work hard enough today.” I was glad to see my brothers admitting to being sore and stiff, too.
Jeff said, “Okay, you want the truth? I’m going to go home, take a shower, and go straight to sleep. I’m too tired to even eat.”
“Somebody call 911,” Jim said.
Jeff waved a loose hand at us and said, “See you all in the morning.”
I left, too, and realized the second I saw the Mustang sitting in the parking lot that I was supposed to pick up the Miata. I dialed Harry on my cell phone and told him I’d be in sometime the next day.
He said, “I knew it. You just can’t part with the Mustang, is that it?”
“Something like that,” I said. “Do you mind?”
“No, just take good care of it. I’m getting itchy having it out on rental, especially after what happened to your car. Renting you another ragtop probably wasn’t the brightest thing I’ve ever done.” He paused, then added, “If you have your hea
rt set on keeping it, I guess I could make you some kind of deal on your Miata. It might be fun to drive now and then.”
“As much as I appreciate the gesture, I think I’ll stick with what I’ve got. Thanks for offering, though.”
The obvious relief in his voice made me smile. He said, “Good enough. I’ll see you first thing in the morning. Your car’s as good as new. By the way, while I had it in here, I noticed that you were a thousand miles over your oil change, so I took care of that, too.”
“Thanks, I’ve been meaning to, but I keep forgetting.”
“Hey, no problem.”
I drove the Mustang home, then took such a long shower that the hot water ran out, something I’d done only twice since moving in. Sleep came quickly, but it wasn’t undisturbed. The plants were back in my dreams, with thicker tendrils than before. The nightmare unfolded the same way, though. When I got to the aisle with essential oils, it nearly got me, and I woke up in a cold sweat.
I just wished I knew what my subconscious was trying to tell me.
Chapter 17
The image of the leafy plant coming after me was still vividly in my mind when I woke up the next morning. It drove me crazy as I showered. I was nearly too stiff to move at first, but then my muscles loosened up under the hard spray. The dream haunted me as I ate, and I was still thinking about it as I drove to exchange cars with Harry.
“Here she is, better than new,” he said as we swapped keys. “How’d the Mustang do for you?”
“I didn’t know what to do with all that leg room,” I admitted. “If I’d had it a week, you would have had to get a court order to get me to bring it back.”
Harry nodded. “It’s sweet, isn’t it? I can’t wait to get it finished.”
I laughed. “Then you’ll find another project to dive into. You always lose interest after they’re restored, don’t you?”
Harry shrugged. “That’s the challenge, bringing them back from the edge. I found this one sitting under a tree rusting away in Hickory. It was too good to just let die like that.”
I decided to park the Miata out in front of the soap shop, not wanting to lose sight of it during the day. I was probably being overprotective about it since Monique was now safely in jail, but it made me feel better having it where I could see it. I found Bob chalking the clean-swept floor of the assembly area when I walked in. Jim and Jeff were watching him in silence, nibbling on doughnuts and sipping coffee.
