Grave Haunting (A Maddie Graves Mystery Book 10)

by Lily Harper Hart

  “I … well … I didn’t think of that.” The woman tapped her bottom lip with her index finger. “We should definitely consider the pine.”

  Nick slowly shifted his eyes to Kreskin, confused. “What’s all this?”

  “This is Lola and Sam Livingston,” Kreskin replied, his eyes emotionless even though a muscle worked in his jaw, signaling his obvious displeasure. “The funeral home director called me five minutes after they arrived because they wanted him to throw their mother in a hole without a casket or embalming.”

  Nick made a face. “Nice.”

  “Yes, they’ve made it clear that they want to spend as little money as possible because that means they’ll inherit more,” Kreskin said, disgusted. “They’re horrible monsters.”

  Nick widened his eyes, caught between amusement and horror. “Tell me how you really feel.”

  “I really feel as if I can’t spend much time with these terrible kids,” Kreskin replied, shoving away from the wall and taking a step in the Livingston children’s direction. “Let’s get this over with, shall we? We’ve already confirmed their alibis so they’re not exactly suspects … although this little display is making me rethink that.”

  Nick mutely followed Kreskin toward Lola and Sam, keeping his expression neutral as they approached. Lola was the first to look over, her dark hair flying around her shoulders as she energetically bobbed her head.

  “Hey, I remember you.” The look she shot Nick was one of pure, unadulterated lust. “You’re Nick Winters. I had a crush on you when I was a kid.”

  “That’s nice.” Nick had to remind himself not to make a face. “We have a few questions for you guys regarding your mother’s death.”

  “We already provided alibis,” Sam argued. “Why do we have to do it a second time?”

  “We’re not here about your alibis,” Kreskin growled. “We’re here to ask questions about your mother. There’s a difference.”

  “I’ll answer any questions you have,” Lola said, batting her eyelashes in Nick’s direction. “I’m about to inherit money.” She uttered the statement as if it was an enticement, but all it did was turn Nick’s stomach.

  “I’m engaged,” Nick blurted out, causing Kreskin to arch an eyebrow as Lola’s smile slipped.

  “I wasn’t hitting on you or anything,” Lola complained. “You didn’t have to spit it out like that … as if I’m some sexual deviant chasing you around or something.”

  That’s exactly how Nick felt when Lola sized him up like a fat steak for a kinky barbecue, but he kept that to himself. “Yes, well, I just wanted to head off any problems. We’ve still got a lot to do when it comes to investigating your mother’s death and I don’t have time to mess around.”

  “Oh, well, if it’s about my mother’s death.” Lola rolled her eyes toward Sam. “What do you want to know?”

  “We’ve been going through her financial information,” Kreskin offered. “We understand that your inheritance is going to be small – perhaps even invisible – and were wondering if your mother got in a bad financial relationship with anyone she worried might try to hurt her.” Kreskin wasn’t generally petty, but he took a small amount of pleasure in twisting the financial knife that was clearly lodged in Lola and Sam Livingston’s backs.

  “Wait … our inheritance is going to be small?” Sam looked surprised by the notion. “I was under the impression Mom put our inheritance in a trust.”

  “Not that I saw.” Kreskin flipped his eyes to Nick. “Did you see a trust in any of those financial documents?”

  “I did not.” Nick had to fight the urge to grin when Lola’s cheeks colored with fury. “In fact, all of the documents I looked through seemed to indicate a financial deficit.”

  “What does that mean?” Sam asked, his eyes flying toward his sister. “What does he mean by that?”

  “I’m not sure,” Lola hedged, rolling her neck. “Are you saying we don’t have trusts?”

  Nick had to bite the inside of his cheek to make sure he didn’t belt out a hearty guffaw at Lola Livingston’s pained expression.

  “Why would you think you had a trust?” Kreskin asked, legitimately confused. “Your mother owned a bed and breakfast in Blackstone Bay. It was a decent living, but it was hardly raking in the big bucks.”

  “But … she owned a hotel,” Lola argued. “I saw on a television show where a woman owned a hotel and when she died her kids became millionaires.”

  “Oh, well, if you saw it on television it must’ve been true,” Nick muttered.

  Lola ignored him, his handsome face all but forgotten in the wake of her imminent financial ruin. “We have the hotel to sell, right?”

  “You’ll have to talk to your mother’s estate lawyer,” Kreskin replied. “I’m going to guess that there won’t be much left once the estate covers all of your mother’s outstanding credit card bills, though.”

  Lola’s face drained of color. “That can’t be right.”

  “Your mother was severely in debt,” Kreskin noted. “She had three storage lockers full of merchandise she bought … and then did nothing with. It seems to indicate she had a shopping addiction.”

  “Yeah, we know all about the Beanie Babies and everything else she had locked away in those storage lockers,” Sam said dryly. “How does that affect us?”

  Kreskin arched an eyebrow, surprised. He didn’t understand how the Livingston siblings could be quite this clueless. Of course, Fran raised them to be entitled so he should hardly be surprised that they felt they were owed something now that their mother had passed away. “Your mother’s debts will have to be squared before any money trickles down to you. From what I’ve seen in the accounts – which is essentially nothing – the bed and breakfast is going to have to be sold at auction and even then it won’t cover all of the bills.”

  “But … .” Lola was dumbfounded. “You’re saying we’ll get nothing. I don’t understand. That … can’t be right.”

  Nick narrowed his eyes. He had no idea why Lola was expecting a windfall, but that’s clearly what she thought would happen when her mother died. “I’ve seen your mother’s financial documents, too. I concur with Detective Kreskin.”

  “Your mother did have a separate insurance policy,” Kreskin added, causing Sam to smile. “It takes care of her burial expenses … and only her burial expenses. She picked out what she wanted done for her funeral and provided for the cost. Even if you try to skimp – you can’t – and any excess money does not go to you.”

  “But … that’s ridiculous!” Lola was outraged. “This can’t be right. I don’t believe it.”

  “I’m sorry you feel that way.” Kreskin cast Nick a weighted look, something unsaid passing between them. Clearly the Livingston siblings didn’t kill their mother themselves, but that didn’t mean they didn’t pay someone else to do it. They clearly thought they had money coming their way. The news that they didn’t was earth shattering.

  “We should probably sit down and get started,” Nick offered. “We have a lot to cover.”

  “I think that’s a great idea,” Kreskin said, bobbing his head. “Clearly you guys need to be caught up on a few things.”

  14

  Fourteen

  Maude took a deep breath, centered herself and then knocked on the door. She wasn’t in the mood for nonsense – and this meeting had the potential to be nothing but ridiculous nonsense – but she had no choice. It had to be done.

  George was surprised when he opened his room door and found his former mother-in-law standing on the other side. His first instinct was to duck in case she’d brought the hammer she kept yammering on about. His second instinct was to slam the door in her face. He did neither.

  “Maude.”

  “George Eugene.”

  “What can I do for you?”

  “I was hoping we could have a talk.” Maude gripped her over-sized purse so tightly her knuckles turned white. “I swear I’m not here to do you bodily harm.”

  Geor
ge looked her up and down a moment, conflicted. “If you attack me I’m not going to be happy.”

  “I’m not going to be happy regardless, so I guess we’re even.”

  “Fine.” George blew out a sigh, resigned, and held open his door. “I just made some fresh coffee. Do you want some?”

  Maude considered saying yes to the coffee just so she would have something to throw in his face should he annoy her. Ultimately she shook her head. “Thanks but … I’m afraid I’ll try to kill you with it.”

  Despite the surreal situation, George couldn’t stop himself from barking out a laugh as he followed Maude to the small table in the corner of the room. “You always did have a delightful sense of humor, Maude. Other than the obvious … um … how are you?”

  “I don’t have a lot of complaints,” Maude replied, sitting in the chair across from George and resting her purse on the floor. She didn’t have a weapon inside, but it was heavy enough to give him a concussion if she swung it. “I made an apartment for myself in the garage so I have my own space but am still close to Maddie. Things are fairly good.”

  “That’s good.” George licked his lips. “You seem good. Maddie seems … mostly good.”

  “Maddie is an angel.”

  George pursed his lips. “She seems like a good girl,” he agreed after a beat, bobbing his head. “She definitely looks like an angel.”

  “It’s the hair,” Maude offered. “It’s so golden you can’t see anything but goodness when you look at her. Luckily she lives up to the hype. She very rarely gets into trouble. She’s always been like that.”

  “That’s good. I’m glad she didn’t cause a lot of issues when she was younger.” George meant the words, but he was uncomfortable delivering them given his absence in Maddie’s life. “Tell me about her.”

  “Is that what you want?” Maude leaned forward. “If I tell you about her, will you go?”

  “No.”

  “Why are you here, George?” Maude didn’t bother to hide her annoyance. “Are you here to cause trouble?”

  “I’m here to get to know my daughter,” George replied. “I’m not here to take anything from her. I’m not here to do anything to her. I’m simply here to get to know her. I swear that’s all I want.”

  “And what happens when some new business opportunity arises?” Maude challenged. “You’re a charming guy, George. You always have been. Family has never been high on your priority list, though, and I will not tolerate you coming back into Maddie’s life just to walk out again when something better comes along.”

  George wanted to argue with Maude’s assessment of his motives but from her perspective, he wasn’t sure how she could think anything other than what she did. Could he assuage her? Doubtful. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t try.

  “I’m not the same man you knew all of those years ago,” George pointed out, tapping his thumb on the table. “I was barely more than a child then. You knew it. That’s why you were so angry when Olivia and I married.”

  “I knew that you weren’t mature enough,” Maude confirmed. “I knew that Olivia wasn’t mature enough either. You guys were all fire and passion – which is cute on a television show but fairly annoying in real life – and I knew the marriage wouldn’t last.”

  “You were right.”

  “I’m always right.”

  George mustered a mild grin before sobering. “Olivia got right away what I struggled with for years,” he said. “She knew she had to grow up for Maddie. I wasn’t ready to grow up.”

  “No. You definitely weren’t ready for that.”

  “That doesn’t mean I didn’t love Maddie, or want to be a good father,” George added. “I was limited in my abilities, though. And by the time I got things together it was too late. Olivia backed me into a corner and I couldn’t do what I needed to do.”

  Maude’s heavily penciled eyebrows flew up her forehead. “You’re blaming Olivia for this?”

  “Am I blaming Olivia for raising a marvelous child? No. Am I blaming Olivia for not having forgiveness in her heart and doing what was best for Maddie after the fact? Yes.”

  “Oh, that’s such crap!” Maude slapped her hand on the table, startling George. “Olivia protected Maddie to the best of her ability. She couldn’t trust you not to break that child’s heart. She did what had to be done.”

  “Fine.” George held his hands up in a placating manner. “Maddie isn’t a child any longer, though. She’s an adult. She’s about to get married herself.”

  “She is, and she’s happy,” Maude said, bobbing her head. “Do you want to ruin that for her?”

  “That’s the last thing I want, but I owe Maddie an explanation and I will not leave Blackstone Bay until I give it to her,” George replied, his tone even. “I owe her at least that.”

  “You owe her a lot more than that.”

  “I can only offer a start and see where it goes,” George argued. “I won’t force things, but I will give that girl the one thing I know she’ll need going forward … and that’s an explanation.”

  “Do you really think you can explain away years of loneliness?”

  “That’s not my intention.”

  “What is your intention?”

  “To get to know her,” George answered without hesitation. “All I know is that she’s extremely pretty, seems to love that lunk of a boyfriend she’s always with, and she runs a magic shop out of her home.”

  “That lunk of a boyfriend is a good man,” Maude clarified. “He’s always loved Maddie. He’s always stood with her … and for her. I wouldn’t try to take on Nick Winters when it comes to Maddie’s affection. You’ll definitely lose.”

  “I didn’t want to like him when I first met him,” George admitted. “I kind of like him, though. I see that he’s good for Maddie. I was merely making a joke.”

  “You never had very good comedic timing,” Maude muttered. “You should work on that.”

  “I’ll give it some thought.” George licked his lips as he leaned back in his chair. “Is she … like Olivia?”

  Maude knew what he was asking. “Will it make a difference?”

  “No.”

  “She is like Olivia,” Maude supplied. “I think she might actually be stronger than Olivia.”

  “Does Nick know?”

  “He hasn’t always, and that’s what caused their estrangement after high school,” Maude replied. “Olivia pounded it into Maddie’s head that she could never tell anyone what she could do because people would turn on her and walk away if they knew the big secret. Maddie took it to heart. Too much to heart, if you ask me.”

  “I see.” And, because he did, George felt sick to his stomach. “Olivia did that because of my reaction when I found out, didn’t she?”

  Maude shrugged. “Perhaps. Olivia overprotected Maddie. There’s no getting around that. She realized too late that she should’ve eased up on the rules. Thankfully for all of us, Nick Winters has a forgiving heart and when Maddie finally admitted the truth he reacted out of love and not fear.”

  “So … he’s okay with it?” George couldn’t help feeling bitter. Nick Winters was clearly twice the man he was.

  “Okay with it?” Maude tilted her head to the side, unsure how to answer. “He doesn’t really question it. When Maddie talks to a ghost … or has a vision … she tells him and he acts on it. I don’t believe they’ve ever had a discussion where he decided he’s okay with it.

  “Maddie and Nick were apart for ten years and it very well nearly crushed them both,” she continued. “They survived, though. Now they’re thriving. Nothing will ever come between them. I rest easy knowing that.”

  “I’m glad for her.”

  “Are you?”

  George nodded, making his decision on the spot as he leaned forward. “Maude, I love Maddie. I know you don’t believe that because I was gone for so long, but I do. I don’t want to push myself into her life if I’m not wanted. I won’t leave until I’m sure that’s what she really wants,
though.”

  “I guess I can’t argue with you.” Maude pushed herself up on shaky legs. “If you hurt her, I have a hammer.”

  George snorted, amused. “You’ve told me.”

  “I simply don’t want you to forget.”

  NICK AND KRESKIN remained flustered after their interview with Lola and Sam Livingston. Instead of dwelling on that, though, they decided to head straight for the bed and breakfast so they could interview Fran’s assistant Dora Walker. Sarah called to say she’d finally returned to work after being wrecked by Fran’s murder earlier in the week.

  “I’m not quite sure what to say about what we just witnessed,” Nick admitted, following Kreskin toward the front door of the hotel. “I’ve never seen two worse people in my entire life.”

  “Yeah, I’m not sure what to make of it either,” Kreskin said, rubbing his chin as he held open the door. “On one hand, they have to be that way for a reason. Maybe Fran raised them that way, to feel entitled, and it’s not their fault they’re such jerks.”

  Nick shook his head. “I think common decency is something that people are born with and it gets drilled out of them. Kids aren’t raised to be insufferable jerkwads who believe they’re entitled to something. Sure, I know some people are sociopaths, but the odds of both Lola and Sam being legitimate sociopaths seem small to me.”

  “I hear you.” Kreskin’s gaze bounced around the lobby before falling on a morose-looking woman behind the front desk. “I think we definitely need to look at the kids closer. There’s Dora.”

  Nick followed his gaze. “How well do you know her?”

  “Enough to wave to at the store or a festival,” Kreskin replied. “She seems nice enough.”

  “She didn’t grow up in Blackstone Bay,” Nick noted. “Fran did, but I think I remember Dora saying at some event that she grew up in Kingston.”

  “That’s not too far away.”

  “No, but we all know how Blackstone Bay feels about outsiders,” Nick supplied. “You haven’t been here your entire life and even though people know and like you, we’re still convinced that you have webbed toes.”