Toni Donovan Mysteries- Books 1-3

by Helen Gray

  “I don’t have to talk to you.” Resentment radiated from her.

  “That’s right, but if you don’t, you’ll eventually have to explain everything to our chief of police. He has had people checking your statement that Reverend Goldman collected festival monies from workers, and they’re learning that you were the one who collected it.”

  The woman's expression altered, but she didn’t deny or confirm anything. The silence stretched. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said at last, her eyes narrowed in deliberation.

  “You kept the money,” Toni stated flatly. “Why did you steal it?”

  “I didn’t!” she denied indignantly.

  “You certainly didn’t turn it in.”

  Suddenly Wendy’s mouth trembled, and her eyes teared up.

  “Did you kill him?” Toni asked.

  “No!” She took a deep breath and struggled for composure. “No, of course I didn’t kill him. I c-c-cared about him.”

  “But you took the money,” Toni asserted. “Why don’t you tell me about it?”

  Wendy stiffened her back, as if to face the inevitable. “Okay, I collected the money,” she said, emphasizing the verb. “Brock and I were to meet at the bank the next morning to deposit it and figure up our net profit or loss. But he didn’t show. I waited over an hour and finally gave up. I was mad,” she said, speaking more calmly now.

  “What did you do with the money?”

  “I held it, waiting to hear from him,” she said tremulously. “We had argued, and I thought he was just being difficult.”

  Toni nodded, a picture forming in her mind. “You procrastinated, and then you heard that he had disappeared. So you held onto the money, and at some point you decided to keep it.”

  “I did procrastinate,” Wendy admitted. “And then, when I heard that people were saying he had run off with the money, I was so mad at him that I decided to just keep it and let him be blamed.”

  “So it was theft of opportunity,” Toni said, her head bobbing.

  “It wasn’t a theft. I put the money in a savings account, where it would draw interest for the city until Brock returned.”

  “That was some very fuzzy thinking,” Toni said, her up and down head motion changing to back and forth.

  “After keeping it, I didn’t know what to do with it,” Wendy explained. “The money’s right there in the bank, every dime of it,” she insisted, her throat raspy.

  “You have one hour to find the chief of police and tell him your story. I’ll be calling him to see if he’s heard from you. If he hasn’t, he’ll hear it from me.” She hopped off the cart and headed for home.

  As Toni hiked up the road, she felt a small glow of success for having backtracked and gotten results. Maybe she should try again. She decided to go visit Keith Ryker again, see if she could have any better luck finding out how he fit into the puzzle.

  When she arrived home, she went inside just long enough to tell Kyle where she was going and grab her purse. She got in the van and drove directly to the restaurant, only to learn that Keith wasn’t there. She drove to his house and got no answer when she rang the doorbell. Disappointed, she gave up and went home.

  Kyle was mowing the yard, and Toni was putting a ham in the oven when her dad drove up outside with the boys. He didn’t come in with them, but just let them out in the driveway.

  “Grandpa’s tired,” Gabe said as he and Garrett entered the kitchen. “He’s going home to take a nap.”

  “We caught six fish, but we turned 'em loose,” Garrett boasted, his face beaming.

  When the boys had gone back outside, Toni picked up the phone and called Buck Freeman to ask if Wendy had been in to see him. She relaxed when he said she had been there and told him about the money. She was to return it to the city Monday morning. It would be up to the city council how to pursue the matter legally. “I don’t think you’re her favorite person right now,” he concluded.

  “You mean she told you about our little talk?”

  “She didn’t volunteer the information,” he said with a deep chuckle. “I asked her what prompted her to come forward after all this time, and she said you gave her an hour.”

  “Does this mean she’s now our prime suspect?”

  “I don’t know,” Buck responded slowly. “She claims she was sick the weekend of that festival and went home as soon as she had her final duties completed. I’ll be checking everything she told me and see if anyone can verify it.”

  “After I left Wendy at the golf course, I tried to talk to Keith Ryker again. He wasn’t at the restaurant, and I didn’t find anyone at his house. I don’t know why he was so evasive when I was there before, but I was hoping for a more helpful visit with him. Do you have any idea how to catch up with him?”

  “No, but I’ll see if I can have any better luck,” he promised before disconnecting.

  That evening they had just cleared the table when the phone rang. Toni stopped loading the dishwasher to answer it.

  “Toni,” her mother said, her voice unusually tense. “We’re at the clinic. Your dad has had what might have been a stroke.”

  Toni’s breath caught, and an eerie numbness crept over her. “What happened?”

  “He collapsed when he got up from the dinner table. His right leg had gone numb and went out from under him. His right arm is also numb,” she added, regaining her calm medical tone. “He’s stabilized, and they’re getting ready to air evac him to St. Francis Medical Center in Cape. I’m not sure I want to make the drive. Can you take me?”

  “Of course, I can. I’ll be right there.”

  “Come to the back of the clinic. I’ll let you in,” Faye said before the line went dead.

  Toni put the phone down and faced Kyle, who had paused to listen to her side of the conversation, sensing trouble. “Dad collapsed, possibly from a stroke. The air evac helicopter is on the way. I have to take Mom to Cape.”

  “Will the Z’s keep the boys?” he asked. “If they can, I’ll drive, and we’ll drop them on the way out.”

  “I’ll call and see.” She dialed quickly, and explained the problem in a rush when Jenny answered the phone.

  “Bring them right over,” Jenny ordered before Toni could finish the explanation. “I’ll meet you at the end of the drive.”

  “Grab a movie or game or something, and let’s go,” Kyle told the boys, who had picked up on the conversation and were standing in the kitchen doorway, listening.

  “Is Grandpa gonna die?” Gabe asked, his face white and wide-eyed.

  “He’s being taken to a hospital where he’ll get all the help he needs.” Toni went to him and pulled him to her, her other arm extended toward Garrett, who stepped into the embrace.

  “I have to go, and you wouldn’t be allowed in with us,” she explained, struggling to keep her voice steady as she released them. “I need you to stay with the Zachary’s. Okay?”

  They both nodded solemnly. “We don’t need a movie,” Gabe declared. “Let’s go.”

  Toni grabbed her purse, checked to be sure her cell phone was in it, and hurried out the door with them. Kyle was already behind the wheel of the van. As soon as they were inside it, he backed out and headed up the road.

  When they swung into the clinic parking lot, a helicopter was just rising noisily into the air. Faye stood under the portico, clutching her purse and watching it go. When they pulled up alongside her, she opened the door and climbed into the back with the boys.

  “How are you doing?” Kyle asked, glancing back over his shoulder.

  “I’ll be fine,” Faye assured him. “It looks like a stroke, but he seems to be clear headed. I’m making an optimistic guess that it’s something else.”

  “Good.” He put the van back in motion.

  About a mile out of town they pulled into the Misty Valley subdivision and dropped the boys at the Zachary’s house, and then sped back to the highway. They rode in tense silence, each lost in private thought as the miles melted away. Approximate
ly an hour and a half after Faye’s call, they pulled in at the St. Francis emergency entrance.

  Once parked and inside the hospital, they made their way to the ER waiting room, asked a clerk how to find Russell, and were directed to the ICU waiting room. There was a large area in the center of the room that was surrounded by a high counter, with medical personnel working inside it. Around the circumference of the room were about twenty curtained cubicles. When they identified themselves, a nurse pointed out the correct cubicle.

  Faye led the way inside. They found Russell propped up in bed, dozing. He opened his eyes when they approached him.

  Faye leaned over and kissed him. “What have you been up to while we were trying to catch up with you?”

  He grimaced. “Being poked and tested, and I guess photographed,” he grumbled. “They said someone will be in to explain things as soon as they have the results.”

  Chapter 19

  Toni’s parents had always seemed so strong and been her anchors. To see her dad struggling with health issues and lying in a hospital bed was frightening. Already overwhelmed with fear for her students’ safety, she was now overwhelmed with fear for her dad’s well-being.

  She leaned over and gave Russell a hug. When she did, a short blipping sound startled her.

  “They have me dressed up like a ballerina,” he muttered, wiggling his toes and staring in disdain at the heavy white cotton hose covering his feet and legs.

  “There’s something going on down there,” Kyle said as another puff sounded.

  Russell rolled his eyes at his son-in-law.

  “He’s hooked to something that will stimulate his circulation,” Faye explained, and then admonished Russell. “Don’t complain. They’re taking good care of you, and I’m thankful for that. You should be, too.”

  He shrugged. “I guess. But there’s nothing wrong with me but some numbness on this one side.” He indicated his right hand and leg.

  A doctor stepped inside the cubicle. He looked at Faye. “Mrs. Nash?”

  “I am,” she acknowledged. “And this is my daughter and her husband.”

  “I’m Doctor Eftink,” he said, moving next to the bed where he could address all of them. “I’ve looked at the pictures we took of your brain,” he said to Russell, “and I’m happy to say that the problem is not a stroke. What you have, Mr. Nash, is a broken blood vessel in your brain.”

  “Do you think it’ll heal on its own?” Faye asked.

  The doctor eyed her closely. “That’s what we’re hoping. They sometimes do. We’ll keep him here in ICU, regulate his medication, and monitor him closely to see how he does. Are you a nurse?”

  “Nurse practitioner,” Faye said. “I’ll stay right here and keep a close eye on him.”

  He nodded. “Your presence will be good. Let me know if I’m needed.” With that he turned and left.

  Relief swept through Toni, lightening her anxiety. She understood that her dad’s condition was still serious, but knowing it was not a stroke made it seem less threatening. When Kyle reached over and squeezed her hand, she squeezed back fiercely.

  After a brief visit with Russell and hearing him complain about being constantly checked, prodded and questioned—and since there was only one chair in the small area—Toni decided they should leave her parents alone for awhile. “I need to go outside where I can use my cell phone and call John and Jenny,” she told her mother. “We’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  Once outside, Kyle waited while she called and gave John Zachary an update. After she had spoken to both boys and assured them that their grandpa was doing fine, she returned the cell phone to her purse and started back into the hospital. But before they reached the entrance, the phone rang.

  “How is Russell?” Buck Freeman asked brusquely.

  “Complaining about being asked over and over what day it is and who the President is,” she shot back in a tone that let him know the scare was over.

  A deep sigh of relief came over the line. “Good. That gold-bricker’s not about to die on me. We’ve got retirement things to do together.”

  His endearing brusqueness triggered a sudden tightness in Toni’s chest. She took a deep breath to collect herself. “I’ll let you tell him that yourself.”

  “I’ll be there to see him as soon as I can manage it.” He disconnected.

  When they reentered the hospital, Toni almost welcomed the smells of the medical facility. They signified comfort and safety when health was at risk. Back at her dad’s ICU cubicle, Faye was sitting quietly in a chair by the bed, an abnormal state for her. Their pastor stood next to Russell’s bed. “Hello, Toni, Kyle,” he greeted them pleasantly, moving over to shake hands. “Jenny Zachary called and said your dad was acting up. I thought I’d better check on him.”

  “You shouldn’t have made the long drive,” Russell protested. Then he softened. “But I admit I’m glad to see you.”

  “We’re all happy to see you,” Toni added.

  After a few minutes of visiting and having prayer with them, the pastor left. Toni and Kyle spent the evening there at the hospital, but by eight o’clock they were drooping.

  “You two go on home and get some rest,” Faye ordered. “I’m staying here. If he’s good, I’ll turn on the television and let him watch the rest of the ballgame.”

  “Probably won’t do any good,” Russell grumbled. “After being in post season play nearly every year for so long, the Cards should be contenders now. But they’re playing like little leaguers.”

  Listening to his complaining, Toni knew he was going to be all right.

  “We have to find something to eat before we leave town,” Kyle said. “I’m starving.”

  “I’ll come back tomorrow,” Toni told her mother. “And when I go back home, you can go with me. You have to rest, too.”

  “We’ll see,” is all Faye said.

  It was late when they arrived back at Clearmount and picked up the boys, who were watching a movie with John and reluctant to leave it. “It’s a DVD that I own,” John told them. “We’ll finish it when you come back.”

  “We had tacos for supper,” Gabe announced.

  Kyle and Toni both snickered. Tacos were his favorite food.

  “If you need to leave them tomorrow, just call,” Jenny called from the porch as they climbed back in the van.

  The next morning Kyle volunteered to keep the boys and take them to church while Toni returned to the hospital. When she arrived, there was a deputy standing guard at the ICU cubicle next to her dad’s.

  She found Buck Freeman sitting in the chair next to Russell’s bed. Dressed in civilian slacks and shirt, he looked tired, but it was obvious he and Russell were having a good visit.

  A middle-aged nurse entered and took Russell’s temperature. She wore a light blue tunic over white pants, no cap, and a name tag that said she was Nurse Nora Cameron.

  “Looks like I’m not needed here,” Toni said with a grin. She gave her dad a peck on the forehead.

  “You mom went to find something to eat,” Russell said. “I hope you can get her to go home with you today. She needs to get some rest.”

  The nurse turned to Toni. “You’re the daughter?”

  Toni nodded. “Is he giving you a hard time?”

  Nurse Cameron smiled. “Nothing I can’t handle. He’s fussing about going home, but that won’t happen until the doctor says so. We have to give that vessel a little more time to see if it’s going to heal itself, and we need to get his medications regulated.”

  “He’ll be staying right here,” Buck said firmly.

  Russell frowned but didn’t argue.

  “I’ll be back in an hour,” the nurse informed Russell. “Buzz if you need something sooner.” She picked up her paraphernalia and left.

  No sooner had the nurse disappeared than Faye pushed the curtain aside and entered. Her expression brightened when she saw Toni. After a welcoming hug, Toni looked closer at her mother’s face and noted signs of weariness. “You
have to go home with me when I leave.”

  “Yes, she does,” Russell said firmly. “She needs rest, and I’m fine. You take her home even if you have to hogtie her.”

  Faye shook her head. “I’ll go, but not because you guys order it. I need clean underwear.”

  Toni just smiled.

  “I guess you saw the guard next to us,” Faye said while checking Russell’s leg wear. “Some guy killed his wife, and then shot himself. I assume he’s in critical condition, but he’s under guard anyhow.”

  Buck stood and reached over to grasp Russell’s hand. “Well, old buddy, we’ve had a good visit, and you’re in good hands now. So I’ll run along.”

  Russell nodded. “Thanks for coming. We’ll get together soon as I get home.”

  As Buck left the cubicle, Toni followed him. “I had so much on my mind last night that I forgot to tell you about my brunch yesterday morning,” she said when they reached the lobby. She related the meeting with the parents of her terrific trio.

  He grinned. “Consider yourself actively involved. Do you have any plans I should know about?”

  “I’m without concrete plans at the moment, but something might occur to me when I get back to my routine.”

  “Keep me informed.” He headed for the doorway.

  Toni returned to Russell’s cubicle.

  “The doctor said it looks like the vessel is starting to heal,” Faye told her, a cheerful note in her voice. “Surgery may not be required.”

  Later that evening she didn’t argue when Toni said they should head for home. All she said was, “I’ll drive myself back tomorrow, but it isn’t necessary for you to come every day. Go on to school in the morning, and I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

  *

  Monday morning Toni and Kyle rose and had breakfast early to start another week in which he would be gone until Thursday. After he left, Toni stumbled around tiredly and made more French toast for the boys. She was putting it on the table when the phone rang.

  “Mrs. Donovan,” Jeremy Barnes’ voice greeted her when she answered. “We have ball practice this afternoon, getting ready for Wednesday’s sectionals. Could you meet me there? I have something I want to talk to you about.”