Still Life and Death

by Tracy Gardner

  “Would you like your second clue?”

  “Yes, please.”

  Charlotte handed her a bright yellow envelope with another silver ribbon. Inside was a collage of four cut-outs, artistically placed side by side with decorative glitter swirls around them like a frame. The glitter had to be Sydney’s work. Savanna held it up and smiled. “I love your arts and crafts.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Okay, pictures of three museums. The first is the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Then my Kenilworth in Chicago, and this one is the Lansing Museum of Fine Art. And a white Panama hat on top of the Lansing Museum.” She sucked in her breath, realizing what it meant. “Really? We’re going now? And Britt knows? Oh, you guys!”

  Skylar grinned at her in the rearview mirror. “We’re having lunch with Britt at the museum.”

  Savanna let out a little squeal. She loved the museum, and Britt Nash, the art authenticator there, was a colleague and good friend. “I’m so excited! It’s been too long since I’ve been, and since I’ve seen him! And oh my gosh, right now there’s a whole Post-Impressionist exhibit going on at the museum. Did you—” she stopped herself. They were all smiling. “Of course you knew. I love you; you’re all awesome. I’ve been dying to see it. Thank you.”

  “I told you the clues would be harder this time,” Skylar said.

  “They weren’t too tough.”

  “Really?” Sydney glanced back at her. “You haven’t even solved the whole thing yet.”

  “What? How? I figured it out.”

  “Not all of it.”

  Savanna looked down, studying the clues again. “Why did you include all three museums? Why not just Britt’s?”

  Her sisters in the front seat shrugged almost simultaneously. She looked at her mom beside her, but Charlotte’s poker face was flawless.

  “Ugh!” What on earth could it mean that all three museums were in the collage? The Met, the very first museum she’d ever visited, was where her love of fine art had blossomed into a career plan, nurtured, of course, by Caroline Carson. Kenilworth was obviously where she’d worked in that career. And the Lansing Museum was...what? It was where her colleague Britt worked. It was where she’d gone not long ago to use their lab in search of possible forgeries, just after she’d come home to Carson. What did the three have in common?

  It turned out to be the only clue she couldn’t solve. After they’d finished viewing the Post-Impressionist exhibit, Britt Nash joined them for lunch upstairs in the museum café, a lush, green oasis filled with live plants. Tall and slender, with white-blond hair and a tiny diamond earring in one earlobe, Britt hadn’t changed a bit since she’d seen him last summer—or since he’d worked on contracts at Kenilworth with her years earlier, for that matter.

  When they’d finished lunch and were sipping coffees, Britt turned to Savanna and solved the rest of the clue. “I have a proposal for you. Come and work with me.”

  Her eyes widened. “What do you mean? I can’t leave my teaching job—I love it.”

  “Come and work with me this July,” he clarified. “We’re getting an entire Marcellus DuBois collection in next month, and I’m going to need help with the provenances and authentication.”

  “Oh, wow! So, it’d be a temporary assignment?”

  He nodded. “You’re in commuting distance, unless you want to stay nearby, in which case the museum will put you up at a hotel. It’d just be a short-term summer job. With excellent pay and the added bonus of lunch with me every day.”

  Savanna got it. She turned in her chair and looked at the women at the table one by one. “A job! You already know about the job offer? That was the rest of the clue. You included all the museums where I’ve either worked or wished to work. Or something like that, right?”

  “Exactly,” Charlotte said.

  “I still had Britt’s number from the art festival last summer,” Skylar said. “I called him to let him know we wanted to make the museum one of your birthday destinations, and he told us he’d been planning to call you about the authentication contract.”

  Charlotte stood, pushing her chair in. “Britt, I can’t tell you how lovely it’s been seeing you again. We’re on a tight schedule, so we’ve got to run. But thank you so much for today.”

  There were hugs all around, and Britt pulled back from Savanna, smiling. “Is it a yes? I’ll see you this summer? I can send you all the details before you decide, if you’d like.”

  “It’s a definite yes. I’m so excited! And thank you for these.” Savanna scooped up the bouquet of yellow roses Britt had given her. “We’ll talk soon!”

  On the drive back to Carson, Savanna was content, caffeinated and basking in the glow of two more wonderful birthday destinations for which she’d fully solved the clues: a stop at a small shop she’d been wanting to check out, where her mom and sisters had her try on and choose an entire new outfit—their gift to her, followed by a favorite bakery in Lansing, where they enjoyed strong, sweet coffees in tiny cups and chocolate chip cannoli. Her thoughts drifted to this evening and the date with Aidan. The scant few minutes with him after work yesterday hadn’t been nearly enough. She couldn’t wait for tonight, and then dinner with him and her family tomorrow.

  “Skylar.” Now was as good a time as any to see if Tricia was right. “I heard yesterday at school that Anthony Kent increased Libby’s life insurance policy right before she died.”

  Skylar looked at her sharply. “Who said that?”

  “One of the teachers who has her nose in everyone’s business. Tricia Williams.”

  “Her name doesn’t sound familiar. Where would she have heard something like that?”

  “I’d planned to mention this to Detective Jordan. I can’t verify for sure where she got that information, but her best friend at school is Rosa Taylor.”

  “Rosa Taylor, as in Jordan’s partner’s wife? Rosa is the one who told you about Anthony Kent’s tantrum at the bank, right?”

  “Yes. Listen, I don’t think she knows she’s sharing information she shouldn’t. I think George Taylor is telling her too much.”

  “The blame lies with her husband,” Skylar agreed. “He knows better; he’s a nice guy, but he’s getting himself in trouble. I’ll talk to Nick.”

  “That’s a good idea. So the information passed to Tricia Williams is correct?”

  Savanna could almost see the wheels turning in Skylar’s head. Her sister was unfailingly close-mouthed about client information and always careful not to cross boundaries. “Okay. You know the Kents are my clients. Since you already have pieces of the truth, and Libby is gone, I’m comfortable telling you this, since it’s her life insurance policy in question. Anthony Kent didn’t just increase the policy on Libby; he doubled it. Two weeks before she died.”

  “Oh, my.” Charlotte spoke from the back seat. “That sure doesn’t look good.”

  “That was the information I gave to Nick the other day. He’s looking into it, don’t worry.”

  “Do you really think he could do that to Libby?” Sydney asked. “I mean, I don’t know him very well, but he’s had dinner with us on occasion. I can’t really imagine him...” She shuddered, unable to finish the thought.

  Savanna shook her head. “He’s a quiet man. I can’t imagine anyone killing Libby—that’s the problem. But logistically, he could’ve done it. He has a set of keys; he could’ve locked the shop after going into the stairwell and up to the greenhouse early that morning. But the way she was killed—it was so up close and personal. You know...” she paused, thinking out loud. “Maybe we can ask Uncle Max. He sees Anthony almost every day.”

  “Tomorrow,” Skylar said. “Let’s ask him at dinner.”

  #

  That night, Savanna stared at Aidan in the front seat of his SUV, positive he was kidding.

  “I’m serious,” he said. “I wouldn
’t make you if it wasn’t necessary. But it’ll only be for a few minutes.”

  She gave in. “Okay, fine. Go ahead.” She turned away from him, faced the window, and closed her eyes as he gently tied a wide, silky length of material over her eyes and around her head. “Is that okay? Too tight?”

  She touched the blindfold with her fingertips; it felt like a necktie. It smelled like him. She didn’t mind so much. “Nope, it’s good.” She faced forward again, slivers of light sneaking in above and below the blue fabric. She turned toward him and lifted one side, narrowing her eyes and trying not to smile.

  “You’re so cute,” he said, giving her that dimpled, crooked grin. He was cute. His gray linen dress shirt somehow made his eyes bluer, and his mildly unruly dark hair was neatly combed back tonight. Was it ridiculous that even after almost a year with him, and longer than that since they’d become friends, her heart still raced whenever he was close? If it was, she didn’t care.

  She leaned across the console, placed a hand on his cheek, and kissed him, a soft, brief encounter. His face was smooth, no trace of the usual five o’clock shadow that was standard by this time of night. She sat back and smoothed the blindfold down. “All right. I’m ready. You said it’s a short drive, right?”

  “I promise.”

  Less than ten minutes later, she felt the car come to a stop. She had no idea where they were; there’d been far too many turns and speed changes. Aidan came around and opened her car door, helping her out. She’d worn the outfit her mom and sisters had gotten her today at their second destination, a sleeveless aqua chiffon dress, and strappy gold sandals Sydney had chosen to go with it. She hoped she wasn’t overdressed. “Can I take this off yet?” She heard seagulls, but that wasn’t any kind of giveaway in a lakeside town.

  “Almost. Come on, I’ll help you.” He slipped an arm around her waist, holding her loosely against his side, and she kept an arm locked through his bent elbow. He felt so much taller than her this way, even with her low heels on, as she carefully took his cues and walked alongside him. “Okay, now you can take it off. I don’t need you falling into the water.”

  Savanna pulled the blindfold off, surprised to find they were at Carson Marina. He’d walked them past Sweetwater Boats to the third row of docks. At six-thirty, the sky had hints of pink, but the sun hadn’t set. She supposed there was time for a quick sail. “Are we taking a boat out?”

  “Not exactly.” He took her hand and led her out onto the docks, past several boats and a few vacant slips, until they were almost at the end. He stopped at the second-to-last empty slip, where he’d tied the largest red ribbon and bow she’d ever seen on dock post 142.

  She stared up at him, not understanding.

  “Happy birthday! This is your future sailboat’s slip. It’s covered for the next two years, but we can renew after that unless you want to move to a different one. I wanted to get you the actual boat. I looked—a lot—since last Wednesday. Gus helped me, but there are way too many options and sizes and colors, and I decided you’d much rather choose her yourself, so I set up an account for you. You just have to decide what your dream sailboat is, and Gus will order her. But this way, you already have a place to—”

  Savanna cut him off. She threw her arms around him, half laughing, half crying, and kissed him, hard and firm and no holding back, as his arms tightened around her and her feet left the wooden dock. Her heart pounded so loudly in her ears she was sure he must hear it. When he set her down, her breathing was rapid and her cheeks were damp. She cradled his face in her hands, searching his eyes. One more small laugh escaped her lips, and she shook her head. “I can’t believe you did this.” She drew in a slow, shaky breath, trying to regain her composure.

  “So.” His deep, baritone voice was quiet. “You like it?”

  She covered her mouth, feeling tears well up again. She fought them, looking up and blinking hard, and then met his gaze again. “You. Are. Crazy.”

  “About you.”

  She put a hand on his chest. She couldn’t find the words. Any words. She bit her lip, taking deep breaths. She had to get control. Zen. Calm. Om. Something along those lines. “I love it,” she finally said. “But I can’t accept it. Any of it.”

  The look on his face made her instantly want to pull the words out of the air and take them back.

  “I’m sorry!” She hugged him, resting her head against his chest. “I’m really sorry, but oh my God, this is way too much. It wouldn’t be right; I can’t let you do this.” She pulled back and looked up at him, her eyebrows furrowed in worry.

  “You’re not letting me do anything. It’s a birthday gift. If you don’t want it, give it away to someone else.” His voice was calm, but Savanna could hear the undercurrent of disappointment in his tone.

  “Aidan, please. I don’t want to ruin the evening. You’re amazing. It’s so wonderful you’d do this for me, but it’s... I can’t even imagine what all this cost. The slip alone is tons. And a boat? You can’t do that.”

  He was quiet now, listening and watching her. A ship’s horn sounded in the distance, and he glanced at his watch. “Oh, no. We’ve got to run. Right now—come with me!”

  She took his offered hand and ran down the dock with him, past Sweetwater Boats, all the way to the public dock, where the marina’s sunset cruise departed each evening during tourist season. They were the last ones to board the eighty-foot dinner yacht. Live music played from somewhere on the large cruiser. Aidan gave his name to the tuxedoed maître d’, who escorted them to a window table on the upper deck.

  When the man was gone, Aidan took Savanna’s hand on the white-linen-covered table. “I’m sure you’ve been on this cruise dozens of times, but I thought it sounded nice. And different than dinner in a restaurant.”

  “I’ve never been on the Moonstar. Ever! I don’t even know why. I’ve always wanted to.”

  His face lit up with a wide grin, easing her guilt a bit over declining his extravagant gift. “Really? Good.”

  They both avoided the elephant in the room throughout the four-course dinner. Savanna was loath to be the cause of that terribly dismayed look on Aidan’s face again, and she suspected Aidan was remaining quiet and hoping she’d changed her mind.

  When their table had been cleared, their waiter ceremoniously presented Savanna with an enormous hot fudge brownie sundae with lit sparklers jutting out the top. Four other waitstaff gathered around their little table, and Aidan joined them in singing “Happy Birthday” to her, making her cheeks burn furiously. She stared across the table at him, unable to stop smiling.

  He brought up the elephant toward the end of the evening while they were dancing under the stars. The front man of the band on deck announced the cruise would soon be back in port, and they launched into Iz’s version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Aidan was a good dancer. His large, warm hand at the small of her back kept her close, her fingers rested on the back of his neck, and when he spoke, his lips moved against her hair. “I need you to keep the gift.”

  She closed her eyes. It was so hard to think logically like this. She stroked the edge of his silky hair against his neck, sliding her fingers across his skin.

  “It would mean a lot to me,” he said, his voice sending shivers down her spine. “I want you to have it. You deserve it. And I’d like you to teach me.”

  She looked up at him. “Teach you?”

  He nodded. “I want to do it right. Sail. Learn how to control the boat.”

  “You can’t control the boat. But you can guide it, and change your sails based on the wind.”

  He gazed into her eyes. “Will you teach me?”

  This was as much about Aidan as it was about her, Savanna realized. Maybe he was trying to atone for the accident that had nearly killed Finn. He had nothing to atone for; he’d been a misguided, grieving kid. But she’d told him that already. “You really want to lear
n to sail?”

  “I do.”

  “I could teach you on Gus’s Catalina. That’d make the most sense.”

  He shook his head. “No. Savanna, I’ve seen you on the water. This makes the most sense. You need a sailboat, and I need to learn to sail. Look at it as a favor to me.”

  She tipped her head back, arching away from him for a second, and rolled her eyes. “A favor to you. I’m supposed to let you spend God knows how much on this crazy gift as a favor to you.” It was the absolute craziest, sweetest, most personal gift anyone had ever given her.

  “Forget about the money. It doesn’t matter. Listen.” He frowned at her, staring intently into her eyes. “Your reaction, the look on your face that instant out on the docks when you considered the possibility. That’s what matters to me.” He brushed a strand of hair back toward her temple. “Okay?”

  How could she say no? “Thank you, Aidan. This is truly the best birthday I’ve ever had, and yours is the most perfect gift I’ve ever received. I’ll think about it. Does that work for now?”

  “It works,” he said, smiling. He spun her, making her laugh, and then dipped her and kissed her.

  Chapter Eleven

  Finn Gallager stood on the porch outside Sydney’s kitchen door Sunday morning. He raised one hand in greeting as she gawked at him through the window on the top half of the door. She’d just woken up. He was over an hour early to pick her up for breakfast at the diner.

  She unlocked the door and ushered him inside, running her fingers through her mussed bedhead and shaking her hair out a little. Without makeup, Sydney knew she looked much younger than her twenty-nine years. Like, too much younger. She’d run to the coffee shop early one day last week like this—but dressed—and a woman she’d never seen before cautioned her to hurry or she’d be late for school. Facing an unexpected Finn now, with no makeup, wearing ruffled pink-and-green summer pajamas with llamas all over them, she was glad she’d already brushed her teeth. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him; she didn’t mind at all that he was so early.