by Kathi Daley
“I guess you heard that Colt and I found Wesley Hamilton’s body in his own grave,” I started off.
“Sure. That’s all anyone can talk about,” Charlee answered.
“Colt is working on figuring out who put him there and I have been trying to help out where I can. Velma suggested I speak to you. She mentioned that you knew both Wesley and his friend, Ashton, pretty well from back in the days when they were high school students, and you were a teacher.”
“I imagine based on your lead-in to this conversation that Ashton is a suspect in Wesley’s death.”
“Colt is looking at him. Or at least he was before he went out of town.”
Charlee paused before answering. “Wesley and Ashton were two peas in a pod from the time they were little boys. They both came from well-to-do families and tended to enjoy a lifestyle not shared by most of their classmates. As young boys, they were bullies and troublemakers, as teens, they’d morphed into entitled snobs who looked down on pretty much everyone. I probably shouldn’t say this, but to be honest, I didn’t care for either of them. I was thrilled when they graduated, and I knew that I’d most likely seen the last of them. At least in our roles of students and teacher.”
“So as of the time they graduated, the two were still friends?”
Charlee nodded. “I’m not sure what happened exactly, but it seemed that the rift between them began while they were in college, although things didn’t get really bad until sometime after that. Eventually, they stopped speaking to each other, and then Ashton left Holiday Bay. There are those who say the only reason he took a job in Boston was to get away from Wesley, and there are others who say that the reason Ashton left was because the job was just too good to turn down. I can’t tell you that I know which is true, but I will say that the relationship enjoyed by the two before their college years was vastly different from the one they had after they returned to town.”
“Colt also mentioned a college roommate. I think his name was Preston something.” I paused and thought about it. “Preston Montgomery. Do you know anything about him?”
“I can’t say that I do. I suppose that if this Preston fellow knew Wesley in college, he might be able to explain the rift between him and Ashton.”
“Is there anyone else you can think of who one or both of them might have confided in?”
Charlee tapped her forefinger on her chin as she considered this last question. “I suppose you can ask Kendall if Wesley ever spoke to her about it. And then there is Alisha, of course.”
“Alisha Riverton?” I asked.
Charlee nodded. “She was Wesley’s girlfriend all through high school. He proposed to her the night after graduation, and she accepted despite the fact that he was going away to college and she was staying right here in Holiday Bay. They tried the long-distance thing for about a year, but in the end, they broke up. Alisha still lives in town, and I know that she and Wesley remained friends. To be honest, when Wesley proposed to Kendall, I was surprised. I always figured that Wesley and Alisha would eventually make a go of it, but I guess I was wrong on that count.”
“Is Alisha single?”
“She was until recently. After Wesley became engaged to Kendall, Alisha started dating his cousin, a man named Oswald Hamilton. Oswald never lived in Holiday Bay, but he used to summer here with his grandfather before he passed. I’m not sure what sort of relationship Oswald and Wesley had as adults, but as children and teens, they were pretty close.”
I sat back in my chair. “Okay, let me get this straight. Havilland Hamilton, Wesley’s grandfather, had three sons. He eventually left his land and his money to his oldest son, Jasper, who handed down both, along with the bank he’d founded, to Wesley. After Wesley died without a male heir, the inheritance he’d received from his father, which included the estate on the bluff and stock in the bank, went to his cousin, who I am assuming is the child of one of Havilland’s younger sons.”
“Havilland’s three sons were Jasper, Jason, and Jeffery. Jeffery died when he was still a teen. Jasper married Patrice and had Wesley. Jason married a woman named Susan, and they had a son and three daughters. Oswald is Jason’s son. Jason passed away a while back, so Oz is the only surviving male Hamilton heir, though from what I understand, the sisters are still around.”
“Were Oswald and Wesley close in age?”
“They were born in the same year, but I think Wesley was a few months older.”
“So Alisha dated Wesley all through high school, only to have their engagement broken through her choice or his while he was away at college. They seem to have remained close, but eventually, Wesley proposed to Kendall, at which point Alisha began dating Oswald.”
“Basically.”
“Wow. That family seems to be living in some sort of real-life soap opera.”
Charlee smiled. “Perhaps. I realize it sounds as if Alisha is after the Hamilton money and will go after whoever she needs to get to it, but I don’t think that is what is going on.”
In my opinion, I wouldn’t bet on that.
Chapter 13
Later that evening, after the event had ended and most of the guests had made their way up to their rooms, Georgia, Lonnie, Jeremy, Nikki, Tanner, and I worked together to clean up. Lacy had taken the kids home to put them to bed, so Tanner had volunteered to give Lonnie a ride home when we were done.
“You went to high school here in Holiday Bay, right?” I asked Lonnie.
“Yes, I did.”
“Was Wesley Hamilton there the same time you were?”
He shook his head. “Wesley was behind me by several years. By the time he was a freshman, I’d already graduated.”
“Do you know Alisha Riverton?”
“Sure. I know Alisha. Her sister, Nicole, was in my class.” Lonnie paused from loading the dishwasher. “You must have heard that Wesley and Alisha were once an item.”
“A few people have mentioned it. Charlee told me today that although Alisha and Wesley broke up, they remained friends. She thought the two of them might end up together until Wesley got engaged to Kendall.”
Lonnie poured soap in the tray. “Yeah, a lot of us thought that. Wesley’s relationship with Kendall seemed to come from out of left field. Of course, I wasn’t good friends with either of them, so it is possible that Kendall and Wesley were dating for longer than it seemed.”
“I also understand that Alisha is now dating Wesley’s cousin, Oswald, who, it just so happens, inherited the estate on the bluff and controlling stock in the bank when Wesley died.”
He paused. “I hadn’t heard that, but I suppose that makes sense. I remember hearing that Havilland wanted the Hamilton money to stay in the family. He didn’t want it being passed on to someone who didn’t have the Hamilton name.”
“Seems sexist.”
“It is. But the old guy wrote his trust a long time ago. Things have changed.”
“So maybe this Alisha offed Wesley to get at the money,” said Nikki, who was within hearing distance, putting food away.
“That was my thought as well,” I said.
Lonnie shut the door on the dishwasher and hit Start on what I was sure would be the first of many loads. “I know how it seems, but I really think Alisha cared for Wesley. I can’t see her killing him. Not only did the two date for a long time, but they seemed to remain friends after they broke up. In fact, I saw them together maybe a month ago.”
“Doing what?” I asked, even though I knew it was most likely none of my business.
“They were having lunch in Bar Harbor, and I just happened to be there to look at a remodel I was thinking about bidding on.”
“Was anyone else with them? Kendall or Oswald, perhaps?” I asked.
“No. They were alone, just the two of them.”
“Did they appear intimate?” Nikki asked.
“If you are asking if they were going at it right there in the restaurant, no. They were eating,” Lonnie emphasized. “They probably ran into each other and de
cided to grab a bite, the way old friends do.”
It was sweet that Lonnie was so innocent as to think that.
“Can you think of any reason that Wesley would have gotten himself engaged to Kendall other than love?” I asked.
Lonnie raised a brow. “Why would you ask that?”
“Several people have mentioned that while Wesley had a wandering eye, Kendall wouldn’t have killed him for cheating because she wouldn’t have cared. It has been hinted that what they had was more of a business relationship. I can’t help but wonder what sort of a business relationship would cause them to marry, especially if Wesley was still in love with Alisha.”
“Maybe Kendall came from money, and Wesley needed an infusion,” Jeremy joined in.
“No,” I answered. “Kendall comes from a modest background. It can’t be that. I remember hearing that neither of Wesley’s parents was thrilled with his choice in mate, so I suppose his engagement could simply have been an act of rebellion.”
“Seems unlikely,” Jeremy said. “Maybe Kendall was a gold digger, and she was blackmailing him into marrying her. She might not have been in love with him, but she might have been in love with his lifestyle.”
That made more sense than anything else I’d heard so far. Still, I didn’t see Wesley as the sort to give in to blackmail unless the information that was being used against him was very damaging indeed.
“So how’d it go?” I asked Georgia and Tanner as they returned to the rest of us after checking on Rufus and walking the dogs. From the way Georgia blushed and lowered her eyes before she spoke, it occurred to me there might have been more going on between them than dog walking.
“It went fine. Ramos and Molly were happy to get out of the house, and Rufus came trotting along with us like he was just another one of the dogs.”
“Rufus seems to think he is a dog/cat/human hybrid of some sort,” I agreed. “I’m glad the gang wasn’t too traumatized by being cooped up all day. I would have let them out, but there were just too many people here, and the truth is, not everyone likes dogs.”
“I get it,” Georgia said. “And there are some with allergies too, which is why I make a point of letting everyone who books with us know that there are dogs and a cat on the property.” Georgia picked up a dishtowel and began drying pots. “Can you believe how many people showed up today?”
“The response was a lot stronger than we anticipated,” I agreed. “We should go over things before next weekend.”
“We have the murder mystery dinner on Saturday next weekend. That is the only event we’ve booked for the weekend, and we closed the reservations at thirty. The inn is booked Friday and Saturday night, but it will be a pretty quiet week otherwise. David and Barbara are checking out on Tuesday, Keith and Justine tomorrow, and Dixie and Holly on Monday. All four rooms are empty until the weekend group checks in on Friday. The final weekend of the month is going to be a busy one, but we have two weeks to get our ducks in a row, so we should be fine.”
“What time should we plan for dinner tomorrow?” Georgia asked. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted to have the meal before or after Hannah’s recital.”
“Let’s have it after,” I suggested. “Faith and I discussed the fact that Hannah needed to get to bed at a decent time, and she has school the next day, so we agreed on four o’clock for wine and cheese while Hannah plays a few tunes and then dinner at six.”
“How many should we plan for?” Georgia asked.
“Keith and Justine are checking out around noon, and no one is checking in to that room, so we will just have seven guests counting Jeremy and Annabelle, unless Lily stays, which I think she might, and then we’ll have eight. Faith, Adam, and Hannah will bring the total up to eleven.”
“What about Faith and Adam’s other children?” Georgia asked.
“Faith mentioned that the boys wouldn’t want to attend.” I looked at Tanner. “Are you planning to be here?”
He glanced at Georgia. She nodded. “I’m in,” he said.
“Me too,” Nikki seconded.
“Okay, that brings us up to thirteen. If you add in us, that is fifteen.” I glanced at Lonnie. “Would you and Lacy want to attend? We can bring in an extra table for the kids if we need to.”
“My mom is taking the five older kids to a harvest festival up the coast tomorrow. If we can get Lacy’s mom to watch Maddie, I think she’d love to come. Count us in.”
“Great. That makes seventeen. I’m not sure if Colt will be back in time or not. I’ll call to ask him, but let’s plan for eighteen just to be safe. The table seats twenty, so let’s just plan for that. That way, if anyone else drops by, we’ll be all right.”
It was late by the time the inn was put back in order, and Georgia had done her prep for breakfast. It had been a good day. A really good day. Exhausting for sure, but the fact that the entire town seemed to have shown up for the first annual Harvest on the Lawn somehow made me feel both loved and accepted.
Chapter 14
Breakfast the next day was a quiet affair. Keith and Justine had decided to check out early to avoid traffic and had just taken coffee to go; Dixie, Holly, and Lily went into town to have breakfast at Velma’s before partaking of the local attractions but planned to be back by four; David and Barbara had left early to attend church with their family but likewise planned to be back in plenty of time for Hannah’s concert; Gaylord had chosen to have a tray brought up to his room so he could spend the morning writing. That left just Jeremy and Annabelle with Georgia and me. We all took our food out onto the patio to enjoy the beautiful morning.
“What time is Hannah coming over?” Annabelle asked.
“Not until four,” I answered. “I noticed the two of you hanging out yesterday.”
Annabelle grinned. “She is eight like me, so when Uncle Jeremy and I move here, we will be in the same class. I was sort of scared about changing schools, but Hannah said that I can hang out with her and her friends. She has to go to her mom’s bakery when she gets out of school, but I told her that after we move here, she can come over and hang out with me sometimes.”
“That would be nice,” I agreed. “I only spoke to Hannah for a minute, but she seems like a very nice girl.” It was great that Annabelle had already made a friend. She’d seemed to be in favor of the move as soon as it was proposed, but her life had already been disrupted with the departure of her mother, so I assumed that there would be a period of adjustment when she moved to Holiday Bay.
“Maybe I can learn to play the piano like Hannah,” Annabelle said, turning her attention to her uncle.
“I suppose lessons might be an option, but let’s get moved in and settled before we discuss it.”
“Hannah has lessons three days a week, but she has to practice every day. She said it is a pain to practice so much, but she wants to play as well as her grandmother did before she died.”
“Was Hannah close to her grandmother?” I asked.
“No. She died before she was born, so she didn’t even know her. But her grandpa has videos of her grandmother playing some of the same songs that she has learned to play. She said playing her songs makes her feel close to the beautiful woman she was named after.” Annabelle looked at Jeremy. “Was I named after anyone?”
Jeremy laughed. “Actually, I’m pretty sure you were named after a cow.”
“A cow?”
“When your mom was a little girl, she loved the Christmas cartoon Annabelle’s Wish. She used to watch it all the time, even when it wasn’t Christmas. She also had a doll named Annabelle that she took everywhere she went when she was about your age. I don’t know of any other relatives named Annabelle, so I have to assume she settled on the name for you simply because she liked it.”
Annabelle shrugged. “I like that movie too, so I guess it is okay, but I bet if I had a dad, he would have named me something different.”
“Perhaps,” Jeremy agreed. “But the name Annabelle fits you perfectly, so I’m glad you ended up with it
.”
“Hannah said her mom wanted to name her Beth, but her dad insisted on Hannah after his mother. I like both names, but it is nice to be named after someone.” Annabelle turned to Georgia. “Are you named after anyone?”
The conversation continued along those lines for a while but eventually segued on to other topics. Jeremy and Annabelle had just indicated their plan to head upstairs to shower and change when Colt called, so I excused myself to take the call.
“Did you get my message?”
“I did,” Colt replied.
“I’m not trying to rush your trip, but if you do happen to be back in time, I wanted to let you know you were invited.”
“I appreciate that. And as it turns out, I’m getting ready to start back right now. I’d planned to stay until after supper, but I got a call letting me know the other body in the gravesite has been identified, so I wanted to get back to reevaluate now that I have this new information.”
“So who is it that we found Wesley bunking with?”
“His name was Brian Coswell. He went missing from the university he was attending nine years ago.”
“Missing? Missing how?”
“He’d been a freshman at the time of his disappearance. He was last seen by his assigned roommate, a student named Joe Putman, as he headed out for an orientation for a fraternity he was interested in pledging. According to Putman, Brian was shy and introverted and had been having a hard time adjusting to life at the university. In Putnam’s opinion, pledging a fraternity would only add to the anxiety the guy was feeling, but Brian had shared that he hoped being a member of a tight-knit group would actually help. When Brian failed to return to his dorm room or to show up for classes the following week, Putman reported him missing. When a preliminary campus security investigation revealed that no one had seen Brian after he left for that orientation the previous Friday, the police were notified. It was all over the news for a while, and anyone who might have had a chance to speak to him was interviewed, but after weeks of dead ends it was determined that he most likely had met with foul play, though no evidence of was ever uncovered.”
