Polly spoke low and quiet, "You know she's got some hurts, don't you?"
"I think we all do. Some of them are just more obvious than others." He touched his own cheek. "Mine are obvious. Hers might not be, but if you look at her eyes, you see how fresh they are. She'll be safe with us."
"Thank you," Polly said. "Henry tells me you are serious about his uncle's house."
"That's beautiful land out there and his aunt and uncle are good people. They'd make mighty fine neighbors."
"Oh, good heavens, Eliseo. Now you're even starting to talk like an Iowan."
His chest shook as he laughed. "You bet'cha. I'm just fittin' in."
"How was Ralph doing yesterday when you saw him?"
"I think he's going to be okay. There was a lot of damage and he hasn't come awake yet. They said something about keeping him in a coma so his body can cope with everything."
"I guess that means he can't tell us what happened."
"He's a good old guy. Who would hurt him like that?"
Polly put her hand on his forearm. "So you're sure he never said anything about a granddaughter?"
"Nothing." Eliseo couldn't really furrow his brow with the scar tissue covering his face, but that was his reaction. "If she'd been around, I'd have met her."
"I keep thinking about what Lucy said. That they were at the diner together and the girl said he was her grandfather."
"I had no idea."
"If Lucy's timeline was correct, he wasn't at the table when the girl said that."
"What girl was this?"
"Well, I'm wondering if it isn't Lois Wexler, our upstairs guest."
His eyes flashed at her. "Oh, come on. That can't be true. She's just a little thing."
"Well, if her prey is old men and she uses a gun, she doesn't need to have much heft to pull that off."
Eliseo sat down on a bench and leaned over to pick Hansel up. "He was busy last week. He planned to come over to do some work with the horses in the back pasture. Jason and I were clearing rocks. But he canceled both times. I just assumed it was because he was cleaning up storm debris on his own place.
Polly realized that she needed to pay better attention around here. That explained why Jason's chest and shoulders were starting to fill out. She didn't realize they were already taking the horses across the creek to the far pasture. Time was moving past her much too quickly.
He looked up at Polly. "Has the Sheriff talked to her yet?"
"I don't know. She was with another old guy last night, but I didn't know who he was. I hope she hasn't hurt him."
"Is she the one they think killed Henry's uncle?"
Polly shook her head. "I really don't know. It sounds like she finds these men in town and then latches on to them for a while. Loren never came into town. She had no way to come into contact with him. And Lois didn't have time to hook up with him. She came into Bellingwood with Sal just before the wedding party."
"Yeah. That makes sense. Ralph is all over the place. There are a bunch of those guys. They meet up at the diner every morning. Some of them eat at Davey's in the evening."
"Does Ralph have a lot of money?"
"He's in good shape. It isn't like he's overly wealthy, but he has money and there are some nice things in his home that his wife collected over the years."
"Were you in there? Did you see if everything was still in its place?"
"I haven't gone inside. I don't know if I'd even recognize that anything was missing." She watched a shudder pass through his body. "They really think there's a serial killer in Bellingwood right now?"
"I don't know, but if this is her, she's off her game. From what I understand she's never killed more than one person in a community and though she stays for a while to obscure the fact that she was the one who did it, she's never picked a second victim, she just goes silent."
"Do you think it's about the money or the murder?" Eliseo asked.
Jessie and Jason had been passing back and forth as Jason showed her how they fed the horses. When he handed the girl a muck rake, Polly grinned. Eliseo wasn't paying any attention - he was lost in his thoughts.
"Murder?" Jason asked.
"Yeah. We're just talking about what happened to Ralph yesterday," Polly replied.
"Did you see the body?" Jessie asked Jason as they went into Daisy's stall.
Polly quit listening and turned back to Eliseo. "Are you okay?"
"I am. What do you think?"
"Huh?"
"Do you think she's killing for the money or because she wants to kill."
"I have no idea. If you were to press me and I had to pull out all of my knowledge based on all of those years reading mystery books and watching police procedurals," Polly chuckled and went on, "I'd have to say that she believes it is because of the money, but in truth, she's turned into a murderer who enjoys what she does."
Eliseo grinned up at her. "Then on that basis, we'd have to assume that she is still in town because she didn't manage to kill Ralph and couldn't satisfy her need for a clean death."
"Maybe I'll talk you into joining my private investigation firm and we'll put Aaron out of business," Polly said. "Are you going back down to the hospital to see him today?"
"I don't know." He shook his head. "There's so much to do here. With him in ICU and completely out of it, there's not much I can do. I need to talk to Deputy Decker and see if I can check his house, just to make sure that it's all cleaned up and ready for him to come home." He pounded his hand down on the bench beside him, startling the cat. "He's an old man, damn it. I guess I hope he can come home at all. What a despicable thing to do."
"We should be glad he's still alive, right?"
"You're right. I know that. How's he going to take care of himself out there?"
"Now's not the time to worry about that," she said. "First we need him to wake up and be okay. He'll be in the hospital for a while."
Eliseo put the cat down on the bench and stood up. "I can't do anything sitting here getting frustrated. I'll take care of what I can and let the rest fall into place. Thanks."
"I didn't do anything."
"You didn't let me bury this in my head." This time it was Eliseo who reached out and touched her arm. "It wasn't much, but thanks."
Before she could respond he turned away. Her phone rang. "Excuse me," she said and walked to the front door. Why was Joss calling this early?
"Hello, Joss? Is everything okay?"
"Polly!" Joss squealed a little on the other end of the call.
"What?" Polly asked, laughing.
"We're on the road to Omaha!"
"Wait. What? Did the girl change her mind again?"
"No, it's another girl. She just made the decision last night and she's going to have a Cesarean this afternoon."
"But everything's okay?"
"Yes! Can you believe it?"
"I'm so excited! And I'm glad I'll be in town when you bring the baby home. I really don't think I would have been able to stand it if I was clear out in Arizona."
"Thanks for making me go out last night. I have a feeling that will be the last one of those for a very long time."
"Oh, I hope not. Surely you can make Nate stay with the baby once in a while so we can party."
"Uhhh ... yeah. Maybe. Anyway, I knew you'd be up and I had to tell someone before I exploded, but I'll call later today, okay?"
"Absolutely. I'm really happy for you. Let me know if you need anything and poke your silly husband for me."
There was a grunt in the background, followed by "That wasn't nice!"
"I did. He's confused now. I'd better go."
"Drive safe and keep me up to date."
"Love you!" Joss hung up before Polly could reply.
Polly turned to look for Eliseo. He had disappeared into one of the stalls and she knew better than to press it.
Jessie had done what she could to help Jason, but it didn't take long for her to end up on a bench with two friendly donkeys begging f
or attention. Polly sat down beside her.
"I'm going back up to the apartment. You can come and go as you please. If you want to stay here for a while, that's fine."
"Thanks," Jessie said. She giggled as Huck pushed his head under her hand. "I have to get a job and find an apartment. Maybe I should do that today."
Polly put her hand on the girl's knee. "No. Not today. Maybe not even this week. Jessie, you've been through a lot. You don't have to rush right back out into the world and live on your own."
"But that's why I came out here."
"Is it what you want to do today?"
"Well ..."
"I'm really proud of you that you don't want to sit around and feel sorry for yourself and that you're ready to grab the world, but it's okay if you relax for a few days. You've been through more in a few weeks than most people will ever face in their entire lives. Take a breath."
"I don't want to be a burden."
"You aren't. Take time to learn about what Eliseo and Jason do down here. Then I'll introduce you to Rachel and you can help her in the main building. You can work with Eliseo in the garden and if Sarah needs help in the office, you can poke around there. I might ask you to babysit with Andrew and Rebecca sometimes and we'll just take it slow."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. Get to know Bellingwood and then we'll keep an eye out for jobs that might come up. But don't worry. It doesn't have to happen today or tomorrow."
"Thank you very much. I never expected this."
"Do you want to stay here in the barn for a while?"
"Would that be okay?"
"Sure. I'll take my dog and head back. I know you don't have a phone yet, but Jason and Eliseo can reach me if you need something and can't find me."
Polly stood and patted her leg for Obiwan to follow. They went back up to the main building and she wondered about Lois Wexler. After calling Sarah last night, she'd completely forgotten about their guest. Hopefully Sarah had gotten the information that Aaron needed. Polly glanced up at the room, but it was still dark. She didn't know whether that meant the woman was gone or simply asleep. Lights were on in Sarah and Rebecca's room, but not in the room Ben and Amanda Bowen were using. It was good that Amanda had finally snapped out of her shock. Most everyone in Bellingwood was starting to find their way back to their regular lives after the tornado had spun the community out of control. Polly had noticed it last night when she was downtown. People were out and about - playing, chatting and thinking about anything other than the devastation that had hit the community.
There was no one in the apartment when she returned, so she fed the animals and went into her bedroom to take a shower. Polly was in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee and eating a piece of toast when Jessie walked in, her face flushed and her eyes bright.
"What's up?" Polly asked.
"It was awesome."
"What?"
"We let the horses out into the pasture and then I played fetch with Tom and Huck. They love that red ball. They're like dogs. Demi rolled around in some mud and Jason told me I was going to have to brush him down later on. They'll really let me do that?"
"Oh, honey, if you want to spend time with those animals, they'll let you do everything."
"That was awesome. I'm going back this afternoon, if that's okay."
"You have no schedule to keep with me."
"I talked to Rachel. She said I could help her in the kitchen this morning."
"Wow, you're really digging right in." It occurred to Polly that Kelly Locke didn't know what she was talking about when she accused Jessie of having no gumption. She decided she couldn't think about it anymore. It just made her angry.
"I don't like to sit around. I start thinking about things and then I get depressed. I need to keep busy. If you have something you want me to do up here, just tell me."
"We're good, but thanks."
"I'm going to take a shower. I've never been in anything like that bathroom."
Polly smiled. "Me either until I had these built. I thought I was doing something wonderful for my guests, but I love them. If I'm not here when you come out, I'll see you later."
With no notice, Jessie rushed at Polly and hugged her. "Thank you," she said and ran out of the room.
"You're welcome," Polly said quietly.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Filing the last few pieces of paperwork, Polly turned back to her desk when her cell phone rang. She didn't recognize the number, though it was a Boston area code.
"Hello?"
"Polly, it's me, Bunny."
"Hi sweetie, how are you?"
"I'm wonderful! I had two dates this week with the same guy!"
"Do you like him? How did you meet him?"
"You aren't going to believe it, but Drea set me up."
"Really!" Polly grinned. As snarky as Drea was, she had a heart as big as the city they lived in. "Who's the lucky guy?"
"It's one of her clients and she set us up for coffee on Thursday and then he asked me to go out for dinner with him Saturday. We're going to a little concert series in Belmont this Thursday."
"Well, what do you think of him?"
"He's sweet and he's loaded. He's divorced and doesn't have any kids yet. It sounds perfect, doesn't it?"
"I'm happy for you, Bunny. I hope you have a great time with him."
"Me too and I am going to try my best to not go overboard. Drea told me that I can't plan a wedding until he asks me to marry him and if he doesn't ask me, then I can't make a scene about it."
"She's right. I hope this works out for you." Siccing Drea on Bunny for a few hours had done the silly girl a world of good.
"Will you come out to Boston and be my Matron of Honor when I get married?"
"You're planning, Bunny. Stop it. But of course I will."
Bunny giggled on the other end of the call. "Oops, you're right. I'm going to just enjoy the moment. So, do you think the universe heard me whining at you all last week and decided it had had enough of my pitiful behavior?"
"That makes as much sense as anything. It was wonderful to see you, though."
"I'm sorry that you didn't get to go on your honeymoon. I can't believe we flew out of there just before that tornado came through. CNN was showing video of it. I couldn't believe that I'd just been there!"
"It was pretty crazy stuff."
"I wanted to tell you about Brett, but that's not the only reason I called."
"What's up?"
"I know this won't surprise you, but last night I finally got around to emptying my suitcases. I found something weird in my travel bag. I can't believe I didn't notice it while I was there. But, it's just a little black kit - kind of like a first aid kit or something. Only it's not mine."
"Okay ... ?"
"Well, I think it came from that girl who drove up to Bellingwood with us. We were jammed in the back seat of that car and this must have dropped into my bag."
"Is it important enough that you want to ship it to me so I can give it to her?" Polly wasn't really even sure how long Lois Wexler planned to stay. She quickly jotted a note to herself. It had gone in and out of her mind to ask Sarah about the dates that Lois had scheduled, but each time she'd completely forgotten.
"No, I think it's more important than that."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, there's a big roll of money in there and old lady jewelry. I think it's the real stuff, too. And then there are two big pill bottles."
"All of that could be hers."
"Polly, the bottles have bullets in them."
Polly deflated. "Crap," she said.
"I know, right?"
"Sweetie, are you going to be around this morning?"
"Yeah, I have a meeting with a client this afternoon, but otherwise I'm free."
"Let me ask some questions and I'll get back to you, okay? Don't do anything with that."
"Okay. Is it important?"
"It might be. I'm glad you called me. I'm so ex
cited to hear about a great guy in your life, too."
"You'll call me back?"
"Yes. I love you, sweetie!"
"Love you too!"
They hung up and Polly dropped her head to her chest. That was unexpected.
"Sarah?" she called as she got up and went into the main office.
"Yes?"
"Did you talk to Aaron last night about Lois Wexler?"
"Yeah. He came over and got copies of her information. What's up?"
"So, when did she register?"
"It was a last minute thing. She called that morning to see if we had a room available and Jeff told me that if you needed it, you'd have already filled it up. She wanted it for two weeks."
"Have you seen her this morning?"
"I heard someone moving around up in her room last night. She's right above our room. I was awake about three o'clock."
"But nothing this morning?"
"No. Deputy Decker was here before you came downstairs. He knocked on her door, but she didn't answer. Jeff went upstairs with him, so I don't know if they went in or not."
"Okay, thanks. All of this is happening under my roof and I know nothing!"
"What's happening?"
"She might be a suspect in the shooting of Ralph Bedford."
"I had no idea!"
It hit Polly that she'd probably said the wrong thing to a mother whose little girl was sleeping in the room right below a potential murder suspect. "She's dangerous, but mostly to old men, I think," Polly said. "You and Rebecca are safe."
That wasn't helpful either. The stalker who had pursued Henry and Polly a few months ago had held Rebecca hostage. She shouldn't have been involved at all, but in the end, her life had been in danger.
Polly leaned over and hugged Sarah's shoulders. "I feel like I'm a little dangerous to be around," she said, with a half-hearted chuckle.
"I'm trying not to be nervous about it."
"I'll bet she has cleared out. I saw her at Pizzazz last night with some old guy and that's why Aaron was checking on her. More than likely we've scared her off. Maybe even out of town for good."
"I hope so. It's kind of creepy thinking about a murderer living over my head."
Jeff came out of his office. "Now you're rubbing off on Sycamore House, Polly."
Tomorrow's Promises (Bellingwood Book 7) Page 24
