“What if they lock them while we’re in there?”
“Then we’ll climb the fence and get out.”
“Annie Ryan,” Georgie said in a loud whisper. “When was the last time you climbed a fence?”
“As a kid, but we went rock climbing with Laci and Beth Ann last summer. Did you forget that both of us were good climbers?”
“No, but Paul was along and he could pull us up. We’ll be stuck.”
“Stop worrying, that’s why I brought the escape ladder. We can use it to get over the fence just like we’ll use it to climb back out of the grave.”
“Uh huh,” Georgie mumbled.
Oh goodness gracious, what if she’s right and we can’t get out of here? I don’t think it’ll be too cold to sleep here until morning, but Paul will call the police, and they’ll spot my car. We’ll be caught. Stop it, Annie. It’s only a four-foot fence, and you have the ladder.
“Really, Georgie, we’ll be fine. It’s ten at night, and the gates are still open. I doubt if they close them and Horace is most likely home or down at Corners throwing back a few. I doubt with a few beers under his belt that he’ll remember and stop by to lock the gates. Plus, we have a ladder.”
I hope I sounded reassuring. Georgie usually likes adventures.
“I agree about Horace. Okay, so where do we find Barbara’s grave or future grave. What is the official word for an empty grave?”
“I don’t have any idea,” I said as I walked toward the newest section of the cemetery.
“You own a bookstore. You write mysteries. You’re supposed to know everything about books and words.” Georgie giggled.
“Empty grave. That’s what I would call it. I’m not sure if there is a proper term. To be honest, I honestly don’t want to know. Whatever it’s called, let’s find Barbara’s.”
“Over there,” Georgie pointed. “I see a mound of dirt. It looks like they covered it with a tarp. I think they do that for fresh graves.”
“There you go, call it a fresh grave instead of empty.”
“No,” Georgie retorted. “They’re only fresh right after a funeral before they lay the sod back down.”
“Goodness gracious, let’s change the subject before I change my mind and go home.”
“Okay,” Georgie said. “Let’s go. I don’t like it here.”
“It’s only a cemetery. I see a dirt mound, which has to be it, but this is the older part of the cemetery.”
“Yup, this is it. It’s a family plot. There’s one for Barbara, her brother, sister, and parents. Wow, there are grandparents here, too,” Georgie said as she shone her flashlight at the marble monument.
We stood and stared at the tarp lying on the ground covering what must be Barbara’s grave. I bent over and moved the stone anchor and flashed my light into the grave.
“It’s empty and they haven’t put up whatever that apparatus is called they place the casket on tomorrow. Guess they don’t want it tampered with overnight.”
“Right,” mumbled Georgie. “Who would come out and do that in the middle of the night?”
“You never know, teens do crazy things.”
“So do forty-something moms. Hurry up before we get caught.”
My flashlight scanned the closest graves to find a good spot to anchor our rock climbing escape ladder. At the foot of Barbara’s grave was a granite headstone that appeared sturdy enough.
“Let’s use this headstone to anchor the ladder,” I said.
“Sylvester Smallings is buried here. He might not like it.” Georgie was rubbing her hands up and down her arms.
“Sylvester was one of the nicest men I ever knew. He gave Bibles to the sick and poor and helped out at every church function. He volunteered for everything. He was a true believer. If anyone’s spirit has gone home, it’s Sylvester’s. He won’t bother us.”
A twig snapped.
Georgie grabbed my arm. “It’s Sylvester.”
I laughed when a rabbit ran past and pulled my arm away. I stepped back and slipped on the tarp. I began to fall and let out a short sigh of relief when I felt myself fall on the tarp. It was short lived, and I continued to fall. I screamed as I fell into the open grave tangled in the tarp.
I looked up at the full moon, stars, and Georgie’s face as she stared back down at me. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I replied as I dusted off my dignity. “You’ll have to attach the ladder yourself and then come down here to help me look.”
“I’ll scratch the stone,” Georgie argued.
I tossed her my sweatshirt. “Use this as a buffer. It’s warm enough down here for just my t-shirt for now.”
I could hear Georgie working at anchoring the escape ladder while praying and asking God for forgiveness and apologizing to Sylvester. I smiled and added my own prayers.
“Got it,” Georgie whispered. “Watch out, I’m going to drop it down.”
The flexible metal ladder uncoiled in front of me as it dropped. I stood on the bottom rung and called up. “It’s well anchored. Come on down.”
Georgie climbed down and stood next to me in the empty grave.
“Now what?” She asked.
“Just what we talked about. Look for a spot that looks as if it was freshly disturbed. I’m sure it’s here.”
“The entire grave is freshly disturbed. How do we find it?”
I turned and looked at Georgie, “The grave was dug with a backhoe or some other equipment. Look at the sides, they are flat and the ground solid. We need to find a spot that looks loose. Let me have the garden trowel you brought.”
“Umm, I forgot it in the car.”
I started to laugh and hugged her. “Only you could give me a reason to smile in an empty grave. We’ll have to use our hands.”
“What? I’ll ruin my manicure. Wait, I have something.” She pulled out several plastic forks and spoons wrapped individually in plastic wrap.
I laughed again, and Georgie joined me. She explained she always carried a few in her pocket.
“Hey, you never know when a fork or spoon might come in handy, like now.”
She doubled over in laughter, and I could tell she felt the same stress I did. Here we were standing in an empty grave of a soon to be buried murder victim. The murderer was still on the loose, and we were trying to dig up evidence, literally.
“Okay, if that’s all we have we’ll make do. Let’s look for loose soil.”
After what seemed like an hour Georgie said, “Here’s a spot near the bottom of the grave.”
“That makes sense, the deeper it’s buried, the less chance of being found.”
I held the flashlight while Georgie pulled loose soil away with her plastic fork. “Wait, the fork is stuck on something.”
“Pull gently, it might be a tree root or the necklace.”
She pulled, and I held the flashlight and we both squealed when a broken gold chain appeared with a diamond sparkling in the light of my flashlight.
“Don’t touch it. Use the fork to drop it into this plastic bag.”
I held opened the bag, and Georgie dropped the necklace into the bag.
“Let’s get out of here,” Georgie said as she reached for the ladder.
A bright light blinded us. A voice said, “Not so fast.” Both Georgie and I screamed.
As the light dropped from our eyes, I said, “Wait, Chief Elroy is that you?”
“Yup, now Annie Ryan and Georgie Roberts why don’t you tell me why you’re in an open grave at eleven at night?”
“How did you know we were here?”
“I shouldn’t tell you, but I find this situation amusing. Elderly Mrs. Jameson was walking Puddles and said she heard a scream, moaning, and voices coming from the cemetery. I just knew I’d either find teens partying or the two of you.” His laughter echoed through the cemetery.
Georgie said, “Clifford, it isn’t proper to laugh in a cemetery.”
“It isn’t proper to climb into empty graves either. Now clim
b out of there.”
“But we found Barbara’s necklace buried down here. The murderer must have hidden it hoping no one would find it. It might have fingerprints.”
A light flashed in our eyes.
“You took a picture, Clifford. Really?”
He snapped another as I began my ascent up the ladder.
“Sure, one is for the paper if they want to run an article on your arrest and the other is for Clark. I promised to keep an eye on you. After you’re locked up, I’ll text it to him.”
I climbed out and said, “You have a number where you can text him. Why don’t I? Anyway, you can’t arrest us, we didn’t break any laws.”
“Annie,” Clifford said putting a hand on my shoulder, “Clark is one of my detectives. Of course, I can reach him anytime even when he’s undercover.”
I handed him the bag with the necklace, folded my arms, and felt like kicking some dirt but thought better about it.
Georgie climbed out and asked, “Are we really being arrested?”
“Grave desecration is a serious crime,” Clifford answered.
I felt like yelling but spoke calmly. “We didn’t desecrate anything. Besides this isn’t really a grave. No one has been buried yet, and we found evidence.”
“I’ll give you that,” Clifford said. “The cemetery is closed. At the very least you trespassed, and we’ll see if the owners have anything to say about the damage. You could face additional charges.”
I saw red and blue lights snake through the cemetery knowing a squad car was on its way to pick us up.
“That’s Officer Dawlins. Since you handed over the necklace, I won’t handcuff you. Oh, Georgie, Paul will meet you at the station.” He turned and walked toward the squad car.
Georgie moaned. “Paul will kill me.”
Clifford called over his shoulder, “Come on ladies, you don’t want me to get out the cuffs do you.” His laughter echoed through the quiet cemetery again.
“Glad Clifford finds this amusing,” I said. “Clark is going to cancel the wedding when he sees a picture of me standing in an empty grave.”
“No, he won’t,” Georgie said putting an arm around my shoulders. “He won’t be any more upset than Paul is.”
Carolyn smiled at us as she slammed the back door of the squad car.
Oh goodness gracious, here I am again. After the last time I was nearly arrested, I swore I’d never do anything to end up in the backseat of another squad car. I did it again, and Georgie is with me. I’m doomed and dragged her with me.
~ * ~
Carolyn pulled up to the back doors of the police station. Clifford pulled in right behind her.
She opened the car door and said, “We’re here. I have to get back on patrol. The Chief will take you inside. Good luck.” Carolyn smiled and waved as she climbed back into her squad car.
Clifford ushered us into the station and an empty interrogation room. It was similar to the room Detective Berg used to question me. Dull gray walls, tile floor, mesh on the windows, and a metal table and chairs.
Georgie whispered, “At least we aren’t handcuffed to the table.”
“Why are you whispering?” I asked.
She pointed to the large mirror on the wall. “You know that’s a two-way window and they are listening to us right now. You watch TV just like I do.” She cupped her hands around her mouth as she whispered in my ear.
“Let them listen. We didn’t do anything wrong, well not much. If they try and keep us, I’ll call Lucas.”
Lucas is my attorney. He’s been my attorney since I inherited the Kelleher mansion and fortune. I could never afford him before Inga left me her fortune.
Paul’s voice sounded through the door. He seems angry. Georgie placed her hands on the table and dropped her head onto her hands. “I’m in trouble.”
“Don’t worry.” I patted her arm. “Paul’s probably just worried. Who knows what Clifford told him?”
The door burst open. Paul stormed in and yelled, “Georgianna Roberts, you’re grounded forever, and I want you to stay away from Annie.”
Georgie spun in her chair, stood, and faced Paul. “You can’t ground me. Have you lost your mind? Are you drinking? Annie is my best friend. I’m an adult and can do what I want. What is wrong with you?”
Paul dropped into a chair and rubbed his forehead. “No, I haven’t had a drink. Maybe I should if I have to worry about you every time you leave my sight. What possessed you to climb into a freshly dug grave?”
Georgie bit her lip and answered, “I was helping Annie look for evidence, and we found it. We found Barbara’s missing necklace. If there are prints on it, we’ll know who killed her.”
Paul mumbled, “We? Who’s we? You’re not the police, Georgie.”
“I should be, me and Annie. At least we found evidence,” she argued as she crossed her arms and sat down on the metal chair. “If we hadn’t and they buried Barbara in that grave tomorrow, the necklace would be hidden forever.”
“Maybe, but you know Annie’s a suspect. They might think she decided to move the necklace she hid to a better spot, and you helped. You’ll be charged as an accessory.”
“Paul,” I said. “They dug that grave today. No one in their right mind would think I hid it there and then retrieved it hours later.”
“The mayor is pushing hard to get this case settled, Annie. You two are in trouble.”
I felt my anger rise. Will they arrest us for discovering evidence?
“Paul, please go call Lucas,” I asked. “If you honestly think they’re going to arrest us, we need him now. I don’t know when they’ll let me make a call. Clifford took our phones. I think the mayor should be a suspect which is why he is pushing the police so hard.”
Paul nodded and left the room.
~ * ~
Georgie and I waited for what seemed like an hour but was most likely fifteen minutes before Clifford walked in. He pulled out a chair and sat across from us.
“Well, ladies, let’s see what kind of trouble you’ve created.” He glanced at a sheet of paper in front of him.
What the heck is he doing? He was there. He saw what happened. He’s trying to freak us out. I think it’s working on Georgie. I should have gone alone, but she would have strangled me. Wrong word, Annie. Poor Barbara was strangled. From the mark I remember on her neck, it appeared deep. Strong hands. A man’s. I still think the mayor and Phillips are involved.
Clifford cleared his throat, and Georgie jumped in her chair.
“Before we discuss charges, you should know I heard from Clark. He’s not happy.” He held up his phone so I could read the text while covering the number with his finger.
I read the text:
“Not again. Keep her out of trouble, Chief.”
I swallowed. Clark was upset, but he didn’t understand.
Clifford looked at me and said, “A night in jail would keep you out of trouble. At least until after the funeral.” He tapped his pen on the table.
“Jail,” Georgie stammered.
The door opened, and Lucas walked in wearing a hunter green jogging suit. He must have been asleep. I never saw him without a suit.
“I insist you release my clients, Chief Elroy. I spoke to Brian before I came here. He agreed that if there are any damages that he trusts Annie to pay them immediately. Although the cemetery closes at dusk, the gates were open and unlocked. That leaves an element of invitation. Trespass charges most likely won’t hold up. You have anything else against these ladies?”
Clifford shook his head and stood. He grabbed the paper off the table and said, “No, they’re free to go.” He stormed out of the room.
I looked at Lucas and said, “Thank you for coming quickly and taking care of everything.”
He smiled and answered, “You’ll get my bill. Stay out of trouble. I may not be able to help as quickly next time.” He walked to the door, stopped and looked over his shoulder. “If you can’t stay out of trouble, at least be careful.”
Georgie grabbed my arm, and we hurried out the door behind Lucas. Paul was waiting near the front doors of the police station. He stood when he saw us.
“Ready, Georgie?” Paul asked.
“Yes, but first we have to drive back to the cemetery so Annie can get her car. I’m not going to let her walk.”
The breath Paul blew out was audible across the room when he turned and left the police station.
“C’mon,” Georgie said. “He might be upset now, but I know how to calm him down.” She grinned at me, and I followed her to Paul’s car.
Chapter Eight
I was exhausted by the time I drove home. I let Yummy out to play in the puppy run for a while, and I noticed the answering machine light for my landline blinking. I pressed Play, and my heart skipped a beat when I heard Clark’s voice.
His message was short and sweet. “Stay out of the investigation and cemeteries. Love you.”
I was upset I missed his call, but I think he called my landline intentionally knowing I would still be at the station. He couldn’t take the chance of blowing whatever cover he was using in his investigation. I dropped onto the sofa.
Hmm, maybe I should butt out of the investigation. After all, I wasn’t close to Barbara, but I did find her body. Besides, if not for Georgie and me, Clifford would never have found the necklace. Who besides me would ever think to look in a freshly dug grave? I guess my creative mind helps me write my mystery stories and naturally I’d think of things that others wouldn’t. The only thing left to figure out is where Barbara was murdered. Maybe Dot will find something out about the necklace. I’m pretty sure if I can figure out where, I’ll know who.
I heard Yummy barking. I hurried out to get him. I also needed a hot shower to wash off the cemetery dirt and then sleep. If what happened tonight gets around town, there’ll be a lot of people in and out of the bookstore tomorrow.
~ * ~
Thursday morning was hectic at the bookstore. Somehow word had gotten out about my previous night’s escapade with Georgie and people flocked to the store to ask what I found out. If I had a dollar for every time I said “nothing” I would have a fortune nearly equal to the one I inherited. The talk buzzed about my being asked to leave Barbara’s visitation, too. I can’t count the number of times I heard that no one else had ever heard of that happening. Except, of course, for the time Jimmy Caldwell came to his grandpa’s funeral drunk. Now, I guess I have a reputation similar to the town’s wildest character. Wonderful.
Murder, Trouble & Family Page 7
