Alibis & Arranging

by Nancy McGovern

  ″I see.″

  ″Personally, I think it's all nonsense. There is no other will. This is it. Russell is just sore and upset,″ Max said. ″Then again, large inheritances always bring out the worst in people. If there's one thing any lawyer can tell you, it's that good people can become monsters when it comes to money.″

  ″You said Rosa really needs the money,″ Aurora probed. ″What did you mean?″

  ″Well, just between us, Jonah's farm has undergone some losses this last year,″ Max said. ″It's gotten so bad that the bank might foreclose on it. Hilda's money seemed like the perfect solution.″

  ″Huh.″ Aurora paused. ″Jonah and Rosa were dating on and off for years, weren't they?″

  ″Yep. Ten years or more, I think,″ Max said.

  ″Does it strike you as odd that Jonah chose to marry her now, of all times?″

  Max gave her a sharp look. ″What's cooking in that brain of yours?″

  ″Absolutely nothing. But, speaking of cooking, have you had any dinner?″

  ″I'm alright. You don't need to bother,″ Max protested as Aurora got up and headed to the stove.

  ″I insist. I was about to cook for myself anyway,″ Aurora said.

  ″I…uh…it's not macaroni salad like last time, is it?″ Max asked hesitantly.

  The last time Max had popped over unexpectedly, Aurora had fed him macaroni salad. Nervous to have him in the kitchen with her, she'd ended up adding way too much garlic, and both of them had abandoned it after two bites each. Not that Aurora was a bad cook, exactly. It's just that not everything she touched succeeded. At least, that's what she told herself. Joy was a lot more blunt about her culinary abilities. So, mostly, Aurora did the dishes and Joy cooked for them both.

  ″Don't worry,″ Aurora said. ″I've got leftovers. Aunt Giulia's lasagna.″

  ″Oh, wow.″ Max patted his stomach. ″Hey, let me help. I'll make us some garlic bread. Or maybe you'd prefer no garlic after last time.″ He winked.

  ″It could happen to anyone.″

  ″Oh, sure. You just used five heads of garlic instead of five cloves.″ Max grinned. ″We probably killed every vampire in Bent River that night.″

  ″Quiet.″ Aurora whacked him playfully with her oven glove. ″If you really want to make some garlic bread, go for it.″

  ″I'm an expert,″ Max said. ″In college, I used to live off ramen and garlic bread. It was a crowd pleaser.″

  ″I'll bet,″ Aurora said. ″Did you have a lot of girlfriends in college?″

  ″Well, if I invited them over, I tended to leave the garlic off the garlic bread.″ Max grinned again.

  ″Well, how would you rule out any vampires then?″ Aurora stuck her tongue out at him.

  Max laughed. Peeling a few cloves of garlic, he began to finely chop them. He cut thick slices off the bread Aurora had bought at the farmer's market and popped them in the toaster. He'd removed his jacket and rolled up his sleeves, and Aurora tried not to admire his forearms too much. She couldn't help sneaking a few glances at them anyway.

  ″The oven's warmed up, I think,″ Max said.

  ″Huh? Oh. Right.″ She put the lasagna in. There…even she couldn't mess that up.

  ″Care for some wine?″ Aurora asked.

  ″Better not. I really do have to work all night. Besides, the carb overload is going to make me sleepy enough.″

  They laughed and chatted all through dinner and Hilda's will slipped totally out of Aurora's mind. Occasionally, Aurora would catch Max looking at her, but she could never be sure what was on his mind. It was about ten thirty by the time Max left, and Aurora thought he really would end up spending all night at the office at this rate.

  She was humming to herself and cleaning up the kitchen when she noticed that he'd left his phone on the counter. Just like Max to be forgetful. Well, he could live without it for one night. She'd return it to him first thing tomorrow.

  Only, she heard a knock on the door. Apparently, he couldn't live without it for one night. He'd come back already.

  ″Don't worry, I've kept it safe. Here it is.″ She swung open the door, holding out the phone. There was a blur of movement and something swung through the air. Stars burst out over Aurora's head as a heavy object collided with her skull. Losing her senses, she collapsed on the floor.

  12

  High Beams

  Joy rushed down the halls of the hospital and screeched to a stop in front of a door. Max was leaning against the wall, his jacket and hair damp with raindrops.

  ″Is she alright? Is she in there?″ Joy had to keep herself from shaking Max's shoulders.

  Max straightened up and nodded, his face tight. ″She's alive. Lucky for her. Really lucky. The doctor said if I hadn't reached her when I did…″ He shook his head. ″Someone tried to kill her, Joy.″

  Joy's fists tightened at her sides. ″I can't believe it!″

  ″Thank goodness I forgot my cell phone.″ Max shivered. ″If I hadn't gone back there in time...″ He put a hand over his face. ″It was horrible.″

  ″Can I go see her?″ Joy made for the door, but Max barred her.

  ″The doctors are still with her,″ Max said. ″Do you know anything about her insurance? I couldn’t find her purse and—″

  ″Oh, please. We'll handle all that later.″ Joy waved it aside. Trust Max to be practical in the face of an emergency. She looked at him carefully and saw that his skin was sallow with worry. That softened her a bit. ″Thanks, Max. You did save her life, getting her to the ER so fast.″

  ″It felt like a dream,″ Max said. ″Joy, I left your house at ten thirty. I drove maybe five minutes, then realized my phone was missing and turned back. So, whoever did this, they did it in the space of that five minutes. That's terrifying, isn't it? It means they were watching her.″

  ″We can't be sure of that.″ The thought sent a chill up Joy's spine. It also sent a flood of guilt through her. It was obvious that whoever was targeting Aurora was somehow mixed up in the Hilda Braithwhite business. Aurora hadn't even wanted to clean the estate until Joy had pushed her to do so. It didn't make sense, though. Why Aurora? What could she possibly have done that spooked someone badly enough to want to kill her? It was too random. Or was it? Joy had a sudden flash of Teresa's face on the day of the BBQ.

  ″Did you notice any cars parked near our house when you came?″ Joy asked.

  ″No.″ Max shook his head. ″Although…″ He raised his head and blinked, suddenly remembering something. ″Funny you should mention cars.″

  ″Yes?″

  ″When I was driving up the hill back to your house, a car passed me. It actually irritated me because they had their high beams on and they got into my eyes.″ Max looked horrified. ″I didn't think about it then, but I know you're the only ones who live up on the hill now with your neighbor gone. Do you think that means…well…was it the psycho in that car I passed?″

  ″Very likely,″ Joy said. ″Are you sure you remember nothing of the car?″

  ″Only that it was a dark-colored sedan of some kind. No make, no model, nothing.″ Max sighed.

  ″It wasn't bottle-green, was it?″ Joy asked.

  Max shook his head. ″It was too dark, and the car passed me in a fraction of a second. Man! I wish I'd paid more attention!″

  ″You couldn't have known,″ Joy said. ″And, when you went up the driveway, other than the door being open, did anything strike you? See any footprints or something?″

  ″I think I knew something was wrong as soon as I pulled into your driveway. As soon as I saw the door was open, all my senses were tingling,″ Max said. ″It was pouring rain and I remember Aurora shutting the door behind me when I left. So there was no reason for the door to be open. But it was. The door was open and Aurora was just…lying there. At first, I thought she'd slipped or something. But then I felt the nasty lump on her head. That's when I knew someone had done this to her.″

  ″So you carried her to your car and drove her here?�
�

  ″Yep.″ Max nodded. ″I called the chief on my way over, too.″

  ″I should go talk to him.″ Joy rubbed her hand over her face. ″What a day.″

  ″What a night,″ Max agreed.

  The door to Aurora's room opened and a doctor stepped out. Joy knew him - Dr. Alex Smith had once been a student of her father's. When she was still a teen, he'd had many a dinner at her parents' house.

  ″Alex. Is she okay?″ Joy asked.

  ″She's doing fine,″ Dr. Alex said. ″She’s extremely lucky. We think the attacker hit her as soon as she opened the door. She's got partial amnesia. I asked her what she remembered last and she mentioned something about garlic bread and vampires, which is why we tested her for a concussion.″

  ″Oh, I can explain that.″ Max looked relieved. ″We were joking about it over dinner. So she's alright.″

  ″Can I see her?″ Joy asked.

  ″Well, I think I'm only allowed to let family through right now. But I guess you can go.″ Dr. Alex winked at her. ″Just don't tell the nurses. Don't question her too much, either, Joy. She's probably going to last five minutes tops with all the meds we've given her. Best thing for her is a full night's sleep right now.″

  ″Alright, I just need to see that she's okay,″ Joy agreed. ″I'll save the interrogation for tomorrow.″

  Joy tiptoed in, feeling guilty all over again at the sight of Aurora in a hospital gown with a white blanket tucked to her chest. She had a white bandage wrapped around her head, and her elbows were scraped where she'd fallen to the ground.

  ″Hey,″ Aurora said, her eyes drooping. ″I'm ok.″

  ″Yeah, you are.″ Joy felt an unexpected lump in her throat. ″I'm sorry, Aurora.″

  ″Don't be. Take care of the pup, will you?″

  ″The pup?″ Maybe she was delirious, Joy thought.

  ″Beagle. Statue.″ Aurora yawned. ″So sleepy.″

  The pup! Of course! Joy caught on immediately. ″Go to sleep,″ she told Aurora. ″I'll handle everything else.″

  ″Mmm hmm. Do me a favor?″

  ″Anything you please,″ Joy said.

  ″Tell Max he's no vampire.″ Aurora had a smile on her face as she drifted away.

  13

  The Shards

  It was well past midnight when Joy got home. Aurora was going to have to stay the night at the hospital, but Chief Brooks had asked Joy to come back home and answer a few questions. Joy reached home, noting the police vehicles parked on her street. Instead of being quiet and deserted, her lane had cars parked along every inch of the curb. Joy smiled broadly. Looked like word had gotten around to her family.

  When Joy entered, Chief Brooks and his men had made themselves at home already. They had mugs of coffee in their hands, and were seated around the kitchen table. Joy's parents, Uncle Beppe, Aunt Giulia and Uncle Pietro had all turned up, too. The family was milling around in different rooms, chattering among themselves.

  Bent River PD was represented by Chief Brooks and Deputies Lundy and Samuel, along with Rita in administration. The chief was a friendly man, with an undercurrent of strictness that served him well in rounding up drunks or handling domestic disputes. Violence of any kind was a rare thing in Bent River. Once in a while, you'd have reports of pots being thrown around in a home, or of two men getting aggressive in a bar but, generally, the people all knew each other and kept to their lanes.

  ″Ah, Joy.″ Chief Brooks raised his cup towards her. ″Hope you don't mind us helping ourselves.″

  ″Sure,″ Joy said. ″I'm just surprised Aunt Giulia hasn't fed you anything yet.″

  ″Well, she tried but we're on duty, you know.″ Deputy Lundy sounded a little sad about this.

  ″You mind coming around to the backyard with me?″ Chief Brooks stood up. ″I'd like a private chat.″

  ″Of course. Might be a little slushy though, what with all the rain earlier,″ Joy said.

  Chief Brooks nodded. ″Yep. Got something to show you.″

  Joy walked with him, ignoring the looks and questions from her family. They could wait. When the door was shut behind them and they were standing on the brick porch out back, Chief Brooks took a breath. ″Phew. Every time I get a phone call about your family I know I'll need crowd control. It's never just one of you.″

  ″Buy one, get twenty free. That's our family motto.″ Joy smiled. Then, a little more seriously, she said, ″I think we both know what this is about. Right, Chief?″

  ″I don't like to jump to conclusions,″ Chief Brooks said. ″You took that talk with Rita seriously, I heard. You've been digging around.″

  Joy nodded. ″So far, I don't like the whole business. One thing I am sure of is that there's more to Hilda's death than meets the eye.″

  ″Well, that may be so. I'm still not sure if the attack on Aurora was related to it. She doesn't have any jealous exes, does she?″ Chief Brooks asked.

  ″Aurora?″ Joy snorted. ″Not here in Bent River, that's for sure.″

  ″Well, the attack happened right after Max left her house. If she had a stalker, that might fit. There was no burglary. Nothing seemed missing when we went through the rooms.″

  ″I bet. You didn't happen to notice a ceramic statue of a dog, did you? It originally belonged to Hilda,″ Joy said. ″Aurora said it was on her nightstand.″

  ″Hilda's pup?″ Chief Brooks looked surprised. ″No, I sure didn't notice. I checked that room myself.″

  ″You know about the statue?″

  ″Sure. Hilda loved that thing.″ Chief Brooks nodded. ″Loved it like it was a real animal, so I heard. She named it Emmanuel. The last few months, every other week or so we'd get a call from her that Emmanuel was missing. Then he'd always reappear within the day. I just thought she was growing old and forgetting where she kept him.″

  ″Well, she didn't lack for eccentricity,″ Joy said. ″Strange.″

  ″Why did Aurora have Emmanuel in her possession?″ Chief Brooks frowned. ″Does Rosa know about it?″

  ″We recovered it from Teresa's car,″ Joy said. ″We were going to give it back to Rosa tomorrow.″

  ″Teresa's car? You mean the one Jonah's lent her?″

  ″There's not much you don't know.″ Joy was impressed, despite herself.

  ″Well, as a matter of fact, I saw her driving around in it. I know it's Jonah's car because I sold it to him myself. About a year ago. He said he needed an extra for hauling things around the farm. I warned him it was a real old heap. Fit for the junk yard almost. But he said he was pretty good at fixing up cars. Ok. Tell me everything you know, Joy. Start from the beginning.″

  ″Not so fast,″ Joy said. ″You said you wanted to show me something.″

  The chief sighed and put a hand to his face. ″I did, actually. Come around here.″ He led her to a spot that was directly underneath Aurora's balcony and pointed his flashlight on the grass. There were shards of a white ceramic littered across the ground.

  ″Oh,″ Joy said.

  ″This was the one thing I found that felt out of place. I know how neat your Aurora likes to keep the house. Didn't think she'd abide for shards of ceramic in the backyard,″ Chief Brooks said. ″I couldn't figure out what it could be before. But now…do you think that's Emmanuel?″

  ″I'm not sure.″ Joy paused. She squatted down and used a handkerchief to pick up a piece. It was white, and glittered in her hand under the chief's flashlight. ″It could be.″

  ″I'm not sure, either,″ Chief Brooks said. ″Aurora's balcony isn't too high up, and if this was the ceramic statue, I think we'd still be able to tell. Wouldn't we? The pieces would be larger and more distinctive.″

  ″Yes,″ Joy agreed. ″These pieces look like someone took a hammer to them first and then tossed them out the window.″

  ″And yet we didn't find any residue up in Aurora's room,″ Chief Brooks said. ″What do you think of that?″

  ″It doesn't make any sense.″ Joy frowned. ″Nothing does. So, somebody came
to our house, attacked Aurora, then took a hammer and finely ground up Emmanuel while leaving no residue in Aurora's room, and then escaped? All in the space of five minutes?″

  ″Fishy business,″ Chief Brooks said.

  ″Highly improbable,″ Joy said, frowning. ″You agree with me that it's not a jealous ex, right? This is linked to Hilda's death for sure.″

  ″Yes, now that I know about Aurora having Hilda's statue, I guess I'd rule out any jealous exes. I agree this is linked with Hilda's death.″

  ″Any news on that, by the way?″ Joy asked. ″I mean…anything suspicious come up?″

  Chief Brooks shook his head. ″The forensics came through. I thought it was an overdose at first, but it wasn't. Hilda kept two medicines next to each other in her cabinet. She must have taken the wrong medicine that night and, somehow, it killed her. The bottle had only Hilda's fingerprints on it. This is one smart murderer we're dealing with…if it's murder at all. So far, I can only say it was accidental.″

  ″You still have doubts?″ Joy was incredulous. ″Of course, it's murder. The dog statue's somehow tied up in it all, too. Maybe it was a ridiculously valuable piece or something. You know, I heard about an old lady who kept a Picasso buried under old newspapers in her garage because she didn't know what it was worth. It was only when she died that her relatives found out she had it.″

  ″Oh, that wasn't it,″ Chief Brooks said. ″I know it wasn't, because Hilda herself told me she'd had the statue valued. The statue was a cheap souvenir, not worth much more than regular old cutlery. But she said that the sentiment one attaches to a piece is what makes it valuable.″

  ″It's a head scratcher. All of it.″ Joy sighed. ″So if Hilda was killed, there's no real way of figuring out how it was done?″

  Chief Brooks shook his head. ″My current theory? Someone with access to the house possibly switched labels on the two medicine bottles. Then they snuck back in at night when Hilda had passed out and re-labelled them. But…let's just say that it's going to be very difficult to catch a murderer based on that.″