by Iris Kincaid
“Margo! Margo!”
She felt him wrap his body around her, a nice, warm shield against the cold water.
“Finn, you’ve got your clothes on.”
“Yeah. I thought . . . I thought . . . was that a shark?”
Margo hesitated. “I don’t think there have been any shark sightings around here. There are lots of other things that have big fins.”
“Oh, yeah? I guess this city boy only knows about sharks.”
“We should go in. Did you like my dive?”
“You’re going to give me gray hair and a heart attack.”
Back on shore, they shivered gladly in each other’s arms. Margo had proven to herself once again that her new heart made all things possible. Meanwhile, Finn was left wondering what kinds of tricks his mind was playing on him. Margo was safe and nothing else really mattered, but what on earth had just happened?
“That’s a 200-foot jump,” Finn said incredulously.
“I highly recommend it. Seriously, you should give it a try.”
“Oh, no. Bad guys and bullets, I can handle. Heights? Now don’t laugh. I’m not good with heights. But you are just blowing my mind. Never swam in the ocean until two weeks ago, or were you just pulling my leg?”
She couldn’t come clean about everything, but it seemed important that he should know something about what her life had been like. “Finn, I used to be scared of everything, the ocean most all—undertows, rip tides, jellyfish, eels, drowning, hurricanes, tsunamis . . .”
“New England tsunamis?”
“You should know that something doesn’t have to actually exist for someone to be afraid of it. That’s right, tsunamis. I’ve seen them on the news.”
“So how is it, now, that you’re not scared of anything? Did all the fears just gradually go away?
“They did go away, although there was nothing gradual about it. I guess it’s just important to me right now to push myself to do things, to face things that used to scare me.”
Finn was equal parts admiration and alarm. She was extraordinary, no two ways about it. But he was well-acquainted with the dangers of the world. Someone facing down her fears could put herself in a very precarious spot.
*****
Regretfully, Finn had to leave Margo to catch a few winks after his overnight shift. They would meet up again after the last theater show. Bette had loaned Margo her car for the day, as the cliff diving spot was so far outside Oyster Cove. Before she dropped the car off at Bette’s hotel, Margo thought it would be nice to drop in on Delphine. Beyond her value as a magic tutor, Margo was really starting to enjoy her company.
But as she drove down the boardwalk, she saw a familiar face and a commotion that compelled her to pull over. Walter Knox’s snazzy red Lexus was being towed, and Walter was in a loud screaming match with the repo man.
“I told you guys that I would have your money by the end of this week. And . . . things got a little messed up. So it will be, you know, maybe a week and a half later. But it’s guaranteed. I’m getting an inheritance. I just have to have my grandpa die, but it’s a done deal because we’re removing the life-support ASAP so you fellas can get your money.”
“That is the sickest thing I’ve ever heard,” the repo man said with a disgusted look. “Now you get out of my face, or I will smack you down in the memory of my sainted grandmother who recently left this world. Respect your elders. That’s what I always say. Respect your elders.”
With a warning finger in Walter’s face, the repo man turned to get into his truck and drove away with Walter’s car. Margo came up from behind him.
“Need a ride?” she asked innocently.
Walter whirled around. “What? A ride from you? Why would you give me a ride? You just tried to call the police on me the other day.”
“Believe it or not, Russell’s very sad about losing his grandpa. He’s going to miss him and would like to have a photo of him. You’ve got to have some family photos around that I could take to Russell.” Lilith must’ve been a pathological liar. This was all coming so easily.
“Why would I do that for him? Or for you?”
“Because otherwise, you have a long walk ahead of you. A generous, charitable act is a reasonable exchange for a fifteen-minute drive, don’t you think? Up to you.”
“All right. All right. I live up by the golf course.”
“Get in.”
Walter was fuming for the majority of the ride. “If the hospital hadn’t lost those records, that check would be on its way to me. I’d have my car. All those bill collectors would be off my back.”
Margo remembered that Walter was her friend, Clarissa’s, accountant. He probably had a ton of clients in Oyster Cove. Why was he so broke? And then she remembered Russell saying that their grandfather had been reluctant to leave his money to such a reckless gambler. That might explain why he wasn’t paying his bills. And why he was rifling through Russell’s office looking for blank checks. This guy was a piece of work.
So was his house, actually. It was a modern architectural showstopper and looked to be about 4000 square feet. It wasn’t exactly Margo’s style, but it was undeniably impressive. It also had Margo thinking that the mortgage was probably so high that a housing repo couldn’t be far behind. As they walked to the front door, Walter regarded Newhart’s case distastefully. “I don’t know about that.”
“It’s too hot to leave him in my car. That’s really dangerous.”
Walter grunted reluctantly. Inside, Margo could see that Walter and his wife had sprung for deluxe professional decoration. It was as impeccably styled as a hotel suite. Clearly, Walter aspired to a grand lifestyle, but his gambling losses threatened to sink the whole ship. Just how desperate might he have gotten?
Margo wasn’t the only one learning new tricks. Newhart had learned to bat at his latch at just the right angle to undo it. He sprang from his cage triumphantly and jetted off to the next room.
“Unbelievable!” Walter yelled.
“I’ll get him,” Margo said.
“He’s gonna get fur all over the place.”
“Sorry.” Margo took off after her cat. He didn’t go far, just into the dining room. He leaped to the top of the large dining room table, which was strewn with overdue bills and collection threats. What kind of an accountant was this? Margo had to wonder—surely, her friend Clarissa would never entrust him with her finances if she saw how careless he was with his own money.
“You and your cat need to get out of here. This is private stuff. This is not your business.”
“No, it’s not my business. And I’m sorry to have seen it. But I have seen it. You just put a $20,000 payment on this card. I’m sorry my cat walked past that. I couldn’t help but see it. And you still owe another $20,000 on that card. But what I’d like to know is, where’d you get $20,000 for a payment? My friend Clarissa from The Clam Shack is one of your clients. Is her money safe? Is all of your clients’ money safe?”
Walter bristled. “What are you trying to imply?”
“If there were an audit on Clarissa’s business account, would every dime be accounted for?”
“’Course it would. I just . . . you know, I just need a little heads up. That’s the way it works sometimes. Shift the money from here to there. It’s called juggling.”
“It’s called embezzlement.”
“Just hold it right there. I’m going to replace every dime that I borrowed from anyone’s account. My grandfather’s inheritance is over one million dollars. Everyone gets a clean book. All the bill collectors go away. And I get to start all over with a clean slate.”
“But what would you have done if the murder had never happened? It was a pretty freakish event, right? Something you could never have counted on. What were you going to do to make everything right?”
Walter felt like yelling, but he could see that the best course of action was to try to win Margo’s trust. She could get him in a whole lot of trouble.
“I would have
been up the creek. That’s about the size of it. But Russell got involved in this murder. Nothing to do with me. And now the inheritance is headed my way. You’ve gotta play the cards you’re dealt. And every once in a while, you get a straight flush.”
“Spoken like a true gambler,” Margo noted.
“So, I don’t need you stirring up trouble. Causing any panic. Soon, I’ll have more than enough money to go around.”
Not if I can help it, Margo thought. “I’ve got to get to work.”
“Yeah, yeah. Let me get that picture for you.”
Margo dutifully waited for the photo, holding down Newhart’s cage, who wanted to try his new trick again.
“Here you go,” Walter said, handing her a sweet old photo. “So are we cool?”
“You make sure you square up with everyone, and sure, we’re cool.” Margo didn’t think it was a good idea to raise alarm in a man who was still on her list of murder suspects. She was spending an awful lot of time in the company of murder suspects.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The end of every night at the theater had now become Margo’s favorite time of day. Finn was in the habit of stopping by for a few hours before his midnight shift began. Except tonight, he had a day off, and they wouldn’t have to cut their evening short, which was nice. Sometimes, at her urging, he would even catch the evening show and she would slip in and sit beside him. After all, his film education had numerous holes in it. She was horrified to find out he had never even heard of 12 ANGRY MEN.
“That was stellar,” Finn said, genuinely impressed. “You really know how to pick ’em.”
“It always inspires me. You know. Justice. The truth destined to come out. People overcoming their preconceptions. I must’ve watched it at least three or four times now. You know what we should do? You talked about night surfing and how much fun that was. That’s what we should do. Why don’t we try night surfing tonight?”
“Oh, I dunno. I think you’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“I have?”
“Yeah. That cliff diving and . . . everything. Why not just relax, take it easy. Let’s go next door and grab a bowl of clam chowder.”
“Okay. I like clam chowder. But I think I would like night surfing too. Oh, let me just get these trash bags first,” Margo remembered.
“No, I got them. You just sit here and I’ll just be a minute.”
“Well, there are three bags. So you could do two and I’ll do one.”
“No, you just rest. Let me make myself useful.”
Rest? Hadn’t Margo just been sitting through a movie for almost two hours?
Soon enough, they were inside The Clam Shack and downing bowls of creamy chowder.
“You know what we could do after this? We can watch a scary movie. I know you have to have a lot more DVDs. How about that Alien sequel?” Margo suggested.
“Or, something a little more . . . laid back. One of your old classics, maybe.”
Margo examined Finn intently as he tried to look away innocently.
“Who told you?”
“Told me what?”
“About my heart transplant.”
Finn sighed. “I bumped into your sister on my way home this afternoon. And I mentioned the cliff diving. And she thought you were out of your mind. And she thought it was a good idea for me to know about the heart transplant. She’s absolutely right. Margo, why didn’t you ever tell me?”
“Because everyone has always treated me kindly and gently and with kid gloves. It was great to be treated as normal. No pity, no kid gloves, but as if I were strong, capable.”
“You are beyond capable. But for an operation so recent, it seems a risky thing. You just got this new heart.”
“But it passes every test I throw at it. It never lets me down. Do you know what the first twenty-five years of my life were like? Can you imagine wondering every day whether you’re going to be alive tomorrow?”
“Hmm. Now you mention it, I suppose I do. A lot of my colleagues and friends never made it home from their last assignments. Smart, brave guys. No mistakes. Just bad luck. And sometimes, a little too much courage. So, I did have to prepare myself mentally for a short life, for life ending in the line of service. It was the last thought going through my head every night.”
“Yes, and the first thing you would think about every morning—is this my last morning?” Margo said.
“Is this my last meal?” Finn added. “This roast is dry—this had better not be my last meal.”
They chuckled together.
“Did you write a will?” Margo asked.
“Oh, I’ve had one for six or seven years now. Not that I have that much to pass on. The car. Chunk of savings. Most of my savings is going to Zoe.”
“I wrote my first will when I was eight. Just as soon as I learned that my mother and I had the same heart condition. Everything I owned, down to my Chinese checkers set, had to be formally accounted for in my bequests. I’ve done that for almost twenty years. And you know what? I don’t want to think about leaving life anymore. I’d rather think about living it. You know, really living. It feels like I have so much time to make up for. I can’t play it safe anymore. Worrying about the worst things that can happen. Being careful and cautious about everything. I’m strong now. I don’t want you to think of me as weak. Ever. I’m not.”
Finn reached for her hand. “I won’t. So, whatever you want to do tonight is fine by me. You name it, we’ll do it.”
Margo gripped his hand. “I want you to take me home, get into my bed, and make my heart pound.”
Finn’s mouth hung open for a few split seconds before his thundering voice caused all nearby diners to turn around. “Check!”
Margo grinned. Hallelujah.
*****
Margo’s heart held up just fine.
Around ten o’clock in the morning, they heard Bette come in and rummage around the kitchen. They didn’t mind waiting her out, enjoying the dreamlike novelty of a morning wrapped around each other.
When Margo felt certain her sister had probably fallen asleep, they tiptoed out and down the stairs and headed quietly to the kitchen. There on the counter, they found a bowl of batter, the sign next to it saying, “Make him pancakes.”
*****
Since Margo did have a picture of Russell’s grandfather in her possession, it only seemed right pass it on. Finn gave her a ride to the station, and then they had tentatively planned on catching a mid-afternoon surfing session. From the station lobby, they could hear a big, angry commotion coming from the visitor’s room.
“Who’s got visitors?” Finn asked.
“Russell Knox. These guys say they had something financial to work out with him. But I think we have ourselves a situation.”
Finn rushed down the hallway, and Margo was on his heels. In the visiting room, Julian Meeks’s brother, Carson Meeks, was straining to get his hands on Russell and was being held back by Julian’s cousin, Lester Quinn.
“You messed with the wrong family,” Carson shouted. “That was my brother. That was my blood. Your days are numbered, buddy. My brother’s gotta die because you owe him fifty grand? That’s how you get out of paying your debts? You make me sick. Lethal injection is too good for ya. You made him suffer. No way should you get the easy way out.”
Finn pulled Carson back and handed him to two officers behind him. “Mike, Barney, get him outta here.”
“Just calm down, okay? Just calm down,” Barney told Carson sternly.
The two officers led Carson Meeks out of the room.
“What was that about?” Finn asked.
“This guy owed our family fifty grand, like my cousin said. He signed a deal with Julian, and it was really starting to look like he wasn’t going to hold up his end of the bargain. Jules was a tough guy, maybe a little harsh with him. But that’s what you gotta do when you lend money. Carson’s a hothead. But I get where he’s coming from. We’re all pretty upset about Julian. We need to see some just
ice. Now, I gotta get out here and get to my lumber office.”
Margo drew closer to Russell. “Are you okay?”
“They’re never going to believe me.”
“Does Julian’s family know about the arson threats and the fire insurance?”
“If they do, it just gives them more reason to think that I killed their brother.”
“What’s this? Arson? Fire insurance?” Finn inquired warily.
Margo thought it best to step outside the police station to explain to Finn the rather damaging motive that might lead a lot of people to believe that he was a killer. As she supplied one detail after another, Margo watched as Finn got madder and madder.
“How long have you known this?”
“A little while. A couple of weeks. The thing is, his lawyer told him not to tell the police. Because it would just be used against him. Because it looks like a really serious motive. And no one would even think about investigating other suspects if they believed Russell had such a strong reason to kill Julian Meeks.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what it looks like. That was the missing piece—the motive I didn’t quite have a handle on. It was too random, too unconnected. They knew each other, which he lied about. Julian Meeks was about to ruin him. Reason enough to kill. I can’t believe you knew all this, Margo. You knew, and you never said a word.”
“I don’t believe that Russell did this. I really don’t. And I don’t want to get him in trouble. He finally got to this good point in his life, and now it’s all been taken away. He doesn’t deserve this. He really needs someone on his side now.”
“I thought you said you barely knew him. That’s right, isn’t it? That visiting him here was pretty much the first time you spoke to him in your life. Which still doesn’t explain to me why you took such an interest in someone you barely knew. What’s up with that?”
