by Lynn Cahoon
“Honestly, I’m not sure. Are you two doing something today? She asked Deek to cover her shift.”
“No. In fact, I called her this morning and she said she couldn’t get away this weekend. Something about inventory at the store? I was trying to get her out of the house. Harrold talked to me and told me his plans.”
My aunt had lied to her best friend. We’d done inventory last weekend. Something was definitely up. “Thanks. I guess I’ll give her a call to see what time I’m supposed to be at the shop.”
“Don’t lie to me. I knew she was making up a story when I heard it. My bullcrap meter isn’t broke and it’s going off now just like it did when I talked to Jackie. What is going on?”
I set my laptop on the coffee table and leaned back into the sofa. “I don’t know. But I’m going to find out. I’ll call you when I find her, okay?”
Mary didn’t respond, but I heard sniffles on the other end of the line.
“You’re not crying, are you? We don’t know anything yet.” I tried to sound soothing, but deep down, I was ready to bawl as well.
“Find her, Jill. She’s been acting strange since she broke it off with Harrold. I think something’s really wrong.”
I knew something was really wrong, but I’d let my aunt tell Mary the whole story. “I’ll call you as soon as I know something.”
When I got off the phone, I grabbed my tote and my keys. Emma stood at the door, looking at her leash. “Sorry, girl, you need to stay home for this trip. I’m going to find Aunt Jackie, and I might have to go somewhere they don’t allow dogs.”
Emma eyed me like I was making up these imaginary places where dogs wouldn’t be allowed. She went to her bed, made three circles, and plopped down, her head turned away, not looking at me. She thought I was lying as well.
“We’ll run tomorrow.” I went out the back door and locked it. My dog still didn’t look up. I was in big trouble and I wondered, as I crossed over to my Jeep, if I’d put away the sofa pillows. If not, I wouldn’t have any by the time I got home. Tearing up the decorative pillows was her way of paying me back. And yet I kept buying new ones, thinking she’d grow out of the phase. Hope springs eternal.
The first place I stopped was at the bookstore. I parked in the back and noticed that Jackie’s car wasn’t in its spot. I parked the Jeep there. If she was just out getting groceries, I’d be in the dog house, but it was superclose and convenient. Besides, I didn’t think my aunt was shopping. She’d never skip a shift for something that trivial.
I ran upstairs to the balcony that Harrold wanted to turn into a deck garden. Right now, it had one planter of geraniums that were just starting to bloom out for the fall. The view of the ocean from this spot was breathtaking, and there were two folding chairs. One chair was folded up, the other faced west, and I knew my aunt spent nights she wasn’t closing the store sitting here, watching the sunset.
I knocked on the door. “Aunt Jackie? Are you in there?”
No answer. I pulled out my key and, with a slight hesitation, opened the door. A chain stopped me from opening the door all the way. All I could see through the crack was a neat-as-a-pin kitchen sink cabinet. I called again. “Aunt Jackie?”
No response. If I was going to get inside, I’d have to go through the office. I shut the door and relocked it. There were scratches on the silver keyhole, as if someone had tried to pick the lock. I glanced around the patio one more time. Convincing myself that nothing else looked out of place, I slipped the key back into my pocket and headed downstairs. Instead of coming in through the back, I moved around the building and came in through the front door. The coffee shop looked busy, with several couples and a few teens sitting at tables, drinking and eating. Deek was finishing up an order but caught my eye when I entered. There were a smattering of people browsing the shelves. It looked like a typical date night for our small town. People either went to Diamond Lille’s for a full dinner or came here for a drink and a treat. Or went to the bar across the street.
I greeted several of my regulars and had more than one stop me to tell me that my book recommendation had been spot-on. That was one of the joys of running a bookstore, when you could share a great story with other people. I finally made it to the counter. Deek had just finished with the last order and leaned against the counter, watching me.
“You’re busy tonight.” I smiled as I glanced around the shop once more.
He nodded. “I like this shift. The customers are more relaxed, wanting to enjoy their time here, not just a quick in and out for coffee or their next read in between errands.”
My aunt had said the same thing. We had good traffic and great numbers in the evening shift, but she always said she didn’t need help. Deek’s observation was probably why.
He picked up a travel mug. “Can I pour you a coffee while you run upstairs?”
“How can you read me so easily?” I shook my head, amazed at my most recently hired barista. He had been with us less than a year; he shouldn’t be able to guess my actions so quickly.
“You forget about my mother. I guess I’ve learned a few tricks from her.” He glanced at me. “I’ll pack a half-dozen cookies too for your drive.”
“I don’t know if I’m driving anywhere yet.” But of course I was. If my aunt wasn’t in her apartment—and I knew she wasn’t—I was going to drive through South Cove, then head north to Bakerstown and drive to her favorite restaurants and stores. Maybe I’d get lucky. Most likely I’d burn a tank of gas and not have anything to show for it. “Never mind. Coffee and cookies would be great. I’ll be right back.”
I went into the office and headed straight up the stairs. Knocking again on my aunt’s door, I was afraid of what I might find. “Aunt Jackie? Are you there?”
I was stalling. I knew it. My aunt wasn’t in the apartment.
I opened the door and took a deep breath. Then I went inside. The apartment, like the peek at the kitchen, was spotless. I could smell the lemon cleaner Aunt Jackie used. Her morning must have been spent cleaning every inch of the apartment. Her bed was made, and as I touched the soft quilt, I could tell she’d changed out her linens as well. The bathroom shone and clean towels hung on the rods.
There was one habit both my aunt and I shared: when we were trying to work out a problem, we cleaned. My house didn’t get this deep clean often, but if I was worried or concerned about something, it shone. Like my aunt’s apartment did.
I stopped by the coffee table, where she’d left a notebook. I’d learned my habit of writing down everything I had to get done from my aunt. I opened it to the last page. An address was written in the notes after Make sure Deek understands how to close. I recognized the address. It was a park in Bakerstown. I’d gone there with Greg just last month for a joint police family day and picnic event.
What business would my aunt have at a place like this? The answer was clear. She’d gotten a message from the spammer to meet him. And because Greg had her phone, it had been before we’d talked. She hadn’t told us.
I hurried out of the apartment. I was halfway down the stairs before I realized I’d forgotten to lock the door. Hurrying back, I quickly relocked the apartment and then hurried down to the shop. I paused at the coffee counter and scribbled a note. Then I handed it to Deek. “Look, if I don’t call you in an hour, call Greg and give him this address.”
“You shouldn’t go alone.” Deek held up his hands like I was trying to give him the hot potato. “And you know the man is going to kill me if something happens to you.”
“Greg isn’t going to kill you. And nothing is going to happen to me.” I put down the piece of paper on the counter. “This is just insurance. I’m not such a total idiot that I’d go running off without at least some insurance. Trust me.”
He picked up the sheet of paper and held it, seeming to consider my request. Then he nodded. “The energy around this adventure is clear. I’
m not going to have to use this; I know it.”
“So your ‘spirits’ are telling me I’m safe?” I shook my head. “Between you and Esmeralda, I’m beginning to fall for your fortune-telling.”
“Dude, I don’t talk to spirits. I just get vibes.” He did something with his watch. “I’ve set an alarm. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll call first. If you don’t answer, I’ll call the dude and he’ll yell at me. And I don’t have to have the sight to foretell that scene happening.”
I picked up my coffee and cookies. “Thanks, Deek.”
When I got onto the highway, I put the Jeep on cruise control exactly four miles over the speed limit. I didn’t trust myself to regulate my own speed. I wanted to get to Bakerstown now to make sure Aunt Jackie was okay. Even with Deek’s positive vibes, I was worried.
Twenty minutes later, I found Jackie’s car in the front row of the parking lot for the small city park. I parked next to it, and as I left the car, I threw away the now-empty cup and bag that had held the cookies. I started down the path and saw her sitting on a park bench a few feet into the park. She was reading.
I slipped onto the bench next to her. My heart was pounding, probably from the caffeine and sugar. “You drove all this way to read?”
“You drove all this way to check up on me?” Aunt Jackie didn’t look up from the book.
“No. Well, kind of. You never skip a shift. I had something to ask you for Greg for the investigation, and then you weren’t there and I got worried.” Now that I was saying the words, I sounded totally paranoid. Or I would have, if I didn’t know that my aunt had been getting those calls.
She closed the book, tucked it in her large Coach purse; finally, she turned to me. She’d been crying. “There’s no need for me to lie now. I was meeting the caller, but as you can see, he stood me up.”
Chapter 9
“What were you thinking?” As the words came out of my mouth, I thought about all the times Aunt Jackie had asked me the same thing when she became my guardian during my high school years. And it was always about a guy. The answer then had been, I hadn’t been thinking at all. Just going with the flow. If the current guy I’d been dating had suggested something like driving up to the ski lodge and biking down the mountain, I’d said yes. Even if the adventure had sent me to the emergency room with a broken arm.
My aunt’s smile confirmed the fact that she too was remembering one of the times, though maybe not the broken-arm one. She pulled out a tissue and wiped the side of my mouth. “You were eating cookies in the car, I see.”
I wiped my mouth with my hand. “Stop changing the subject. Why are you here?”
“Just before you and Greg held your intervention, the man calling himself your Uncle Ted had set a meeting with me today. Here in this park. We used to come here on Sundays before his death.” She pointed to the fountain that hadn’t run for over six years. “We’d buy chicken and come out here to sit and talk.”
“This guy knew about that?” Now, I was wondering if all my investigating was giving me the wrong answers.
Aunt Jackie shook her head. “No. He just called it by the park name. I suggested the fountain, and it was like he’d never known one was here. That’s probably why I told you and Greg about the calls. That’s when I suspected it wasn’t Ted after all. He would have never forgotten our Sunday place.”
Now I was totally confused. “And yet you came here. Why?”
“Just in case. I couldn’t give up on him if he was real, now could I? I was his wife for over thirty years. You can’t just walk away from something like that.” She wiped at her eyes and pulled out a compact. “I look like a silly old woman.”
“You look like a strong, sensible woman.” I watched as she patted on powder. “Why didn’t you tell me? I would have come with you.”
“I wasn’t going to come. Then I had the strangest dream last night. A dream I couldn’t shake. When it was my shift time, I called Deek. If he had said no, I wasn’t going to go. I was going to call Greg with the information. When he said he could take my shift, I took it as an omen.”
I pulled out my phone. “Speaking of Deek, I need to call him to let him know I’m all right.”
“You really shouldn’t use our employees as a message machine for your little adventures.” My aunt slipped her compact into her purse. “I guess I should return home and go back to the world where my husband is dead.”
“I’m sorry.” I could smell fresh-cut grass. Happy voices from kids on the nearby playground echoed around us. It wasn’t a place to talk about pain and death, but I needed to push on. We needed to finish this.
I waited a few minutes, letting the park’s happy feel surround us. To protect us from the pain. Then I asked what might tie this all up. “Have you ever worked with someone over at the Senior Project?”
“No, at least, I don’t think so. There was a woman from some financial assistance agency who came and interviewed me when that awful man took my savings. I was living in the city then. And I don’t remember what state agency she was with. Maybe something to do with aging?” My aunt tapped her fingers on her purse. “I probably have the paperwork at home in my files. I might have her card still. She was very understanding.”
“If you could find it, Greg’s looking at an information breach at the Senior Project. Like he doesn’t have enough on his plate.” I glanced around the park. “This must have been a lovely place to spend time.”
My aunt smiled and tapped my forearm. “You’re a sweet girl. It was beautiful, and sitting here has brought back fond memories. I still miss him, you know.”
“I do.” I stood. “There’s an ice cream shop right over there by the edge of the parking lot. Do you want to get a scoop and walk around for a while?”
Smiling, she stood and took my arm. “That would be lovely too. Did you bring Emma?”
“She stayed at home. I’m pretty sure I’ll have torn-up pillows when I get home.” We strolled toward the small purple hut.
“I don’t know why you even buy those pillows. You know she has an addiction.”
* * * *
I followed my aunt’s car until we hit the South Cove turnoff on Highway 1. Then I pulled into my driveway and watched as she continued into town. Esmeralda was standing on her porch and waved before going inside. She was dressed in the full fortune-telling costume, so I figured she must have a client arriving soon. And as if I’d predicted it, a Range Rover pulled off the highway and turned into my neighbor’s driveway. I wasn’t sure why she continued working as a police dispatcher. I was sure she was raking in the money in her side hustle. But maybe the police gig was her actual side hustle, and I knew she got her benefits from her job with Greg.
Of course, that didn’t come from him. Greg was tight-lipped when it came to his employees. The good news was, Amy let some things slip when we were eating lunch.
Small towns took care of their own. At least, that’s the way it happened in South Cove. Which was one of the 101 reasons I loved living here. I just hoped that when we found the man who’d been hurting my aunt by pretending to be my uncle that he was out of the country and not down the street. I wanted to hurt him. Bad.
I went inside and, remembering my promise to Greg, looked in the fridge for something to eat besides the ice cream in the freezer. I pulled out a chicken breast and seasoned it, then put some water on to boil. I was going to make my favorite spaghetti salad to go with it. Not wanting to mess with the grill, I grabbed my grill pan and seared the chicken on both sides before tucking it into the oven to finish. The pasta was cooked and timers were set, so I grabbed a glass of wine and went out to the porch to sit on my swing.
What would it be like to live with the same man for thirty years? Greg and I had been dating for close to five. And now we were living together, which hadn’t been as much of a life change as I’d thought it would be. Of course, at the end of our dati
ng period, I saw him every day, so living together just meant he came home and stayed with me instead of going back to his apartment.
I’d been thinking about weddings, but with both Amy and my aunt getting married, I’d pushed the idea aside. I figured I was just getting antsy with all the marriage talk. But now that Aunt Jackie had canceled the engagement, I couldn’t blame my random thoughts about being Mrs. Greg King on anything but our relationship’s next big step.
While dinner cooked, I pulled out the notebook I’d started on my aunt’s mystery. There wasn’t much there except questions. And I had a few to add today. First off, who had been trying to open Aunt Jackie’s apartment door? Why were there scratches on the lock? And why hadn’t the scammer shown up? Had he been in the wings, watching my aunt? Which was a supercreepy thought. Or had he never planned on showing up in the first place? Was this meet just a way to see if she would follow his directions?
I wrote a quick note about the mislabeled death certificate and took the copy out of my tote and taped it to a page in the notebook. Now who was being creepy? I glanced over the bare facts of my uncle’s life. His full name, Theodore Walter Ekroth. No wonder he’d gone by Ted. He’d been born in South Dakota. Had I known that? Aunt Jackie and Uncle Ted had lived in California all the time I knew them.
I turned the page and made a quick to-do list. Tomorrow I’d call Esmeralda to see if she’d found anything. Then I’d go to the Senior Project to see if my aunt had been a client. She told me she would look for her records, but if she’d never worked with them, I could cross off the center as a potential information leak. Happy with my plan, I closed the notebook and finished up my dinner. Tonight, I was going to binge-watch one of the many shows I’d wanted to see forever. Maybe with a glass of wine.
* * * *
Saturday morning, I woke before my alarm. I’d had a restless night, dreaming about my aunt. Jackie would be there one minute and gone the next. I’d spent all night following her in my dreams. Typically, when I have stress dreams, I’m running after cute little puppies, trying to keep them safe. This time, the stakes were higher, and even I knew what the dream meant. I didn’t need Esmeralda to interpret.
