That Summer

by Joan Wolf

  “There's been a break of sorts in the case since you left,” Mom said.

  “A break? What happened?”

  “Apparently Justin and Leslie had a fight the day before the party. Someone came forward who saw them shouting at each other, or at least, Justin was shouting.”

  “Who saw them?”

  “One of the Nathan daughters. She was only ten when she witnessed it and at the time she didn't comprehend the significance of what she saw. She came forward now because she's old enough to understand how important such information could be.”

  “Did she overhear what they were saying?”

  “No. But she said that Justin had his hands closed in fists.”

  “So Liam wasn't the only one to have a fight with Leslie.”

  “Apparently not. And no one actually saw any confrontation between Leslie and Liam. This evidence against Justin is more damning.”

  I felt a pang of guilt, but not enough to allow me to give up the evidence that I was harboring.

  “Did the police question Justin?”

  “Yes. But he hasn't been charged.”

  I took a sip of tea and thought about Justin. “He was such a hero in high school, Mom. I don't think adults can fully comprehend how awesome Justin was to us common mortals. He could have had any girl he wanted. It had to have been humiliating to see Leslie transfer her affections to Liam. And she did it so quickly. One week Leslie and Justin were a couple, and the next week they weren't.”

  Mom poured herself a little more tea. “I don't know. It's hard to imagine anyone doing such a terrible thing because his ego was hurt.”

  “It could have been more than his ego. Perhaps Justin truly loved her.”

  “You don't kill the person you truly love.”

  “Well then, maybe Justin didn't do it.”

  Mom said, “But if Justin didn't do it, and Liam didn't do it, then who did?”

  “Maybe it was a serial killer. You seem to read about one every time you open the newspaper these days.”

  “I don't think the police are leaning that way,” Mom said.

  “It's depressing. Here we had such a wonderful time at the Derby, and we come home to be faced with this again.”

  The front doorbell rang. “I'll get it,” I said and went to open the door. Michael Bates was standing outside. He was in uniform.

  “Good,” he said. “You're home.”

  “Come on in. Mom and I are having tea. Would you care to join us?”

  “Tea sounds wonderful.”

  I brought Michael into the kitchen where he and Mom exchanged greetings. I got another mug out of the cabinet and poured him the last of the tea. I put the kettle on to make more.

  “I know you're interested in the Bartholomew case,” Michael said to me. “I just came by to give you a heads-up. The Washington Post was on the line to us today. They were asking about Liam's connection to Leslie's murder.”

  I felt my heart sink. “Oh no.”

  “I'm sorry, Anne. I know you're close to Liam. But he's in the limelight now that he has a potential Triple Crown winner and someone evidently tipped the Post off about Leslie's body being found.”

  “Did you tell them Liam is a suspect?” I asked through my teeth.

  “We said he was one of several suspects.”

  “Damn!” I was really upset.

  Mom said, “Do you know who tipped the paper off?”

  “No, Mrs. Foster. The paper wouldn't say.”

  “When did this happen?”

  “We got the call today. It should be in tomorrow's Post.”

  I said, “Does Liam know yet?”

  “No, I just stopped by here on the off chance that you'd be back.”

  “I'd better tell him.”

  “It might be a good idea to prepare him.”

  “Thanks, Michael, for stopping by.”

  He pushed his chair back and stood up. “No problem. The whole town is so proud of Liam. It's a shame this had to happen at the same time.”

  “I know.” I walked Michael to the door. He said, “How about dinner tomorrow night?”

  I was going to say no, but then I thought I should keep my link to the investigation. “Sure,” I said.

  “I'll pick you up at seven?”

  “Great.”

  Michael left and I went back to Mom.

  “This is terrible,” I said.

  “I know.”

  “Do you have Liam's cell phone number, Mom?”

  “Your father had it. Let me look in his phone book.”

  The number was in the book but when I called it there was no answer. “I'm going to take a run up the house and see if I can find him,” I said.

  “All right, honey.”

  I pulled out of the driveway and took Washington Street through town and onto the main road until I got to Lewiston Road where I turned right and went to Wellington Road. Wellington was the third farm in and I turned into the driveway and parked in front of the house. It was the dinner hour and I knocked on the front door. No one answered, so I went around to the back patio and knocked on the kitchen door. Liam answered. He was sitting at the kitchen table eating a plate of what looked like stew.

  “Annie! What are you doing here?”

  “Are you by yourself?”

  “Yes. Dad went back to Washington for a few days.”

  “Where's Kevin?”

  “I don't know. I haven't seen him since I got home.”

  “I have some bad news, Liam. The Washington Post is going to print a story tomorrow about finding Leslie's body.”

  His mouth tightened. “Shit.”

  “I know. Michael Bates stopped by to tell me. I thought you should know so you can be prepared if the press comes calling.”

  We had been standing at the door and now he said, “Come on in. Do you want some stew?”

  I shook my head. I didn't want any food.

  “Sit.” Liam gestured to the chair across from him. We both sat down.

  “It'll make a great story,” Liam said bitterly. “Owner of Kentucky Derby winner is suspected of murder.”

  “I know. What are you going to do?”

  “Nothing. If the press shows up here I'll just say‘no comment’.”

  “That's probably the best thing.”

  “I certainly am not going to try to defend myself from a crime I didn't commit.”

  We were sitting in silence, both of us contemplating the ramifications of a Post article when Kevin walked in from the dining room.

  “Welcome back, Anne,” he said. And to Liam, “Congratulations.”

  “Thanks.”

  “You looked adorable in your hat,” Kevin said to me.

  That made me smile. “Thank you.”

  “What's going on here? You both look as if you'd lost your last friend.”

  “The Washington Post is printing an article about Leslie's body being found.”

  Kevin, more than anybody, understood the importance of bad publicity. “Damn,” he said. He looked at Liam. “And they're connecting it to you?”

  “I just had a Kentucky Derby winner. For this brief moment in time, I'm more newsworthy than you are.”

  “Well this girl has come forward about seeing Leslie arguing with Justin Summers. No one actually saw you argue with Leslie, did they?”

  I kept my eyes on Kevin's face. “No,” Liam said. He did not look at me.

  “Do you think Liam should get a lawyer?” I asked Kevin.

  He shook his head. “Get a lawyer and you'll look guilty. Just refuse to answer questions.”

  “That's what I was going to do,” Liam said.

  I said, “I still think a lawyer might be a good idea.”

  Kevin's “No,” clashed with Liam's, “I'm not hiding anything. I don't need a lawyer.”

  “Okay,” I said mildly.

  Liam said to Kevin, “There's more stew on the stove, if you're interested.”

  “Mary's stew?”

  “Yes.”
>
  “I think I'll have some.” He took a plate out of the high wooden cabinet that was over the sink and dished out some stew. He took his plate back to the table and began to eat.

  I said to Kevin, “Do you want to ride tomorrow morning?”

  “With you?”

  “With me.”

  Kevin bathed me in the radiance of his smile. “I would love to go riding with you, darlin’.”

  I smiled back at him.

  Liam frowned.

  My spirit lifted.

  I stood up. “I have to be getting home. I just wanted to give you a heads-up on this newspaper story, Liam. I'm surprised no one has tried to interview you yet.”

  “We were in transit for most of yesterday.”

  “That's true.”

  Kevin said to me, “If anyone questions you, just say no comment.”

  “Are you sure? Maybe we should be friendly to the press. Get them to like us.”

  “The press never likes anyone, darling,” Kevin assured me. “All they're interested in is a nice juicy story.”

  Liam said, “I'm not defending myself to the press. I didn't do anything wrong.”

  “Okay,” I said. “I'll see you tomorrow morning, Kevin.”

  He smiled at me again. “Have a good night, Anne.”

  “You too.”

  “See you later, Liam.”

  He grunted something in response and I left.

  CHAPTER 11

  The Washington Post article rehashed Leslie s disappearance and then recounted how her body had been found. It named Liam and Justin as the major suspects and made a big deal of Leslie being the daughter of Andy Bartholomew, former star of the football Giants.

  “The coroner will have to look at the body,” Michael told me as we were driving to the restaurant for dinner.

  “Is there much left to look at?” I asked.

  “You don't want me to describe it to you.”

  I said hastily, “You're right, I don't.”

  “Doc Marshal is away on vacation, but one of the other state forensic specialists will check it out. I expect they will verify our belief that she was killed by a blow to the head.”

  “I don't expect there will be any DNA left that might give you a clue.”

  “It would be nice if that happened, but ten years is a long time to be buried in the woods.”

  I thought of Leslie and shivered. “Golden lads and girls all must/Like chimney sweepers come to dust,” I quoted softly.

  “I'm afraid so.”

  We drove in silence for a minute, then he said, “Cheer up. We're on a date. Let's talk about something positive. How about that Someday Soon?”

  I followed his lead and told him what it had felt like to watch our colt come home first.

  “I saw you on television,” he said. “You were wearing a hat.”

  “Good grief. Everyone has commented on my hat. Didn't you notice that practically every other woman at the track that day was wearing a hat?”

  “I wasn't looking at the other women. I was looking at you.”

  We pulled into the restaurant driveway and the valet came to open the door for me. Michael surrendered his key and we both walked into the Spinning Wheel Inn.

  The Spinning Wheel was a tourist restaurant with the kind of olde English atmosphere the AAA likes to recommend. Michael had made a reservation and we were shown to a table in a crowded dining room. We had been served drinks when there was a stir around the room and I looked up to see that Kevin had come in.

  For a moment I saw him as the other people in the room must see him, the beautifully sculpted face, the helmet of golden hair, the tall slim body that moved as easily as a cat's.

  “Wow,” I said to Michael. “Is he gorgeous or is he gorgeous?”

  “I know. I was always a little surprised that Leslie chose Liam over Kevin.”

  I wasn't but I didn't say so. At this moment, Kevin saw me, and his face broke into its famous smile. He came over to my table to say hello and to introduce the man who was with him as his agent.

  We all exchanged greetings.

  “Are you two here to talk business or would you like to join us?” I said.

  Kevin said; “I can talk business anytime, but I don't get many opportunities to dine with you, darling. Thank you for the invitation.”

  There were two empty chairs at our table and Kevin sat down and waved his agent, Alan Keyes, to the other.

  The agent did not look happy, but he sat.

  Michael did not look happy, but he said nothing.

  Kevin smiled at me and said, “Have you ordered yet?”

  “Just drinks.”

  The waiter appeared immediately with our drinks on a tray. Kevin ordered a Martini and his agent ordered a diet Coke.

  The rest of the room watched us, some openly, some surreptitiously. I said, “Do you ever get used to having people stare at you?”

  “Just ignore them,” he said.

  Alan said, “It's the price of fame, Dr. Foster.”

  Kevin said, “It's when they stop staring that I'm in trouble.”

  I said, “Michael and I saw your new movie the other night. It was very good.” I turned to include Michael in the conversation. “Wasn't it, Michael?”

  Kevin lifted an eyebrow. “Are we horning in on a date, Anne?” He looked at Michael. “I'm so sorry.”

  Michael looked as if he didn't believe him. “That's okay,” he said.

  I felt a pang of guilt. The Spinning Wheel was expensive and here poor Michael had asked me out and I had landed him with this extra baggage.

  I said to Kevin, “We'll let you pick up the check to atone.”

  Michael began to protest. Kevin waved his hand. “Please, Bates. It's worth it for me to have dinner with Anne.”

  Michael looked at me. I gave him an innocent smile.

  It was not an entirely comfortable dinner. Kevin and I did almost all of the talking. Alan Keyes was clearly annoyed that he had lost his opportunity to talk privately with his client, and Michael was annoyed that he had lost his opportunity to be alone with me.

  But Kevin would find a way to tell Liam that he had had dinner with me. I knew I could count on that. It had always been clear among the three of us that I belonged to Liam. If Kevin won my allegiance, he could claim a major victory in the private contest the two of them had waged for as long as I could remember.

  I was counting on two things in my plan involving Kevin. One, Liam's natural possessiveness wouldn't like seeing me with any other man; and two, seeing me with Kevin, more than anyone else, would drive Liam crazy.

  “I'm sorry, Michael,” I said as we got into his car to go home. “I really didn't think they'd join us; I just invited Kevin to be polite.”

  “It certainly wasn't the evening I had planned,” he said a little sulkily.

  “I know and I'm sorry.”

  A frown still furrowed his brow.

  I reached out to lay my hand on his sleeve. “Are you going to sulk the whole way home?”

  He sighed. “No. I won't be as adolescent as that.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I have the day off tomorrow. Are you free?”

  “Actually, I've taken over my father's job and I'm helping to break Liam's young horses. I'm pretty busy during the day.”

  “Convenient for him, I imagine, your being a vet.”

  “Yes. Having Daddy die so suddenly was difficult. He has to find a new man and, until he does, I'm it.”

  “When do you go back to your own job?”

  “The beginning of June.”

  He turned his head to glance at me. “Would you like to stop somewhere for a drink before I take you home?”

  “No thanks. I don't like to leave Mom alone for too long.”

  He nodded. “Home it is, then. How is she settling into the new house?”

  “Physically, she's settling in well. Emotionally is another story. She wanted to get away from everything that reminded her of my father, but I don
't think it's as easy as she had hoped.”

  “You can't avoid grief,” Michael said. “You have to go through it.”

  He sounded as if he spoke from experience.

  I sighed. “You're right.”

  “You have to grieve too, Anne. Right now, you're focused on your mother, but you can't ignore your own feelings.”

  I was quiet for a while. Then I said, “Thank you, Michael.”

  “You're welcome.”

  “Did you lose a parent?”

  “My mom died last year.”

  “I'm sorry.”

  “It was especially hard because I was going through the divorce at the same time.”

  “Do you have children?”

  “No. That was one of the problems with Kim and me. I wanted children and she didn't.”

  “She had her horses.”

  “Exactly.”

  “I've seen a lot of women like that in my practice.”

  We pulled up in front of Mom's new house. “Well, goodnight,” I said brightly. “Sorry I blew our evening.”

  “Every time I go out with you, I end up in a crowd,” he said half-jokingly. “If I invite you out again will you promise it will be just you and me?”

  I laughed. “It's a deal.”

  “I'll call you, then.”

  “Okay.”

  He got out of the car and came around to open the door for me. Then he walked me up to the door of the house. When we reached the door, I looked up at him. He bent his head to kiss me on the lips. “Goodnight, Anne. I'll talk to you soon.”

  “Goodnight,” I replied.

  Mom was reading a book in the living room when I went in. The furniture was all in place although there were still boxes stacked against the wall to be unpacked. She looked up from her book. “How was your dinner, honey?”

  “Very nice.” I decided not to tell her about Kevin joining us. She had warned me off Kevin before and I didn't want to worry her unnecessarily.

  We sat talking until the news came on. We usually watched the news out of Washington and, after all the political news had been reported, the station did a piece on Leslie.

  “Damn,” I cried. “Now it's on television.”

  The camera showed the place in the woods where Leslie's body had been found. They showed an excerpt from the press conference Andy had held shortly after his daughter had been found. And they showed a clip of Liam accepting the Kentucky Derby trophy.