The Cat, the Sneak and the Secret

by Leann Sweeney

  “Seth is a pretty observant young man. Maybe he should talk to Tom about what he saw and heard between Mike and Rebecca, but that might be difficult. It could implicate his mother in murder, no matter what he believes about his mom.”

  “You think she did it? Killed her ex and then killed the chief?”

  “I don’t want to believe that, Finn. But I don’t think any of us know what’s happened yet.”

  Twenty-five

  When Shawn called asking Finn to help him out at the shelter a few minutes later, I drove him out there right away. Finn, of course, couldn’t have been happier and told me he’d call for a ride or Shawn would drop him off at home later on. When I made the turn onto the main road to go home, I was surprised to see Floretta Strickland walking a collie. I didn’t remember seeing a dog the night we’d visited that farm.

  I waved at her and was about to continue on my way when I saw her gesture almost frantically for me to stop. Maybe she wanted to chat about quilts again. She seemed like such a nice lady, so I pulled over.

  “Can you come in for coffee?” she asked when I rolled down my window. “I’d like to talk to you for a spell.”

  She had something on her mind and I got the sense it had nothing to do with cat quilts. She seemed worried.

  “I’d love to.” I opened the side door for her dog and gestured in the direction of the passenger seat. “Get in, and I’ll drive us back to your house.”

  “But it’s been raining and Betsy might mess up your van.”

  “Nonsense,” I said with a laugh. “A dog sat in that very seat not too long ago. Mud is not a problem.”

  On the short drive I mentioned I hadn’t seen Betsy when I’d met her, and she explained that the dog brought the cows in at night, so she hadn’t been around the house then.

  “Ah, that makes sense. She’s a herder.”

  When we pulled in her circular drive, I noticed her husband’s truck wasn’t in the carport. “I guess Mr. Strickland isn’t home.”

  “Nope, and that’s why this is a perfect time to have a little heart-to-heart about somethin’ that’s been on my mind. And let me tell you, seein’ you on the road was the sign from God I needed.”

  I opened the back door and Betsy leapt out and raced for the barn.

  “She’s fast,” I said.

  “Betsy prefers cows to people. Which I guess isn’t so odd. But she prefers them to other dogs, too.”

  Once in the house, Floretta made a fresh pot of coffee while I sat at her kitchen table. I was intrigued by her desire for what she called a “heart-to-heart.” Did she know that perhaps nephew Bo’s alibi wasn’t quite as tight as he’d apparently claimed when he talked to Tom? Maybe he’d skipped out on that class he was supposed to be attending. In truth I had no idea, and it didn’t seem that I’d get an answer soon. She’d begun chattering about how she’d already cut the pieces for a quilt exactly like one of mine.

  With coffee, cream and sugar in front of us, as well as a plate of banana bread, Floretta got settled at the table with me. Then she abruptly fell silent, staring at her coffee as she stirred it and clearing her throat several times.

  I added cream and sugar to my mug, patiently waiting to hear whatever it was that she felt the need to tell me.

  Finally she said, “I was gonna call that new police chief once I got up the courage, but I need to come clean right away and you’re my messenger.”

  Come clean? Had this seemingly sweet lady committed a crime? Surely not. “Go on, Floretta. I’m all ears.”

  “You remember the other night when y’all were here?”

  I nodded.

  She tapped her mug with her index finger and stared into her coffee. “Seein’ as how Wilbur was present, I didn’t exactly speak the entire truth. I felt so bad about it that I went to church last night and prayed on it. God spoke to me and said I was wrong and should make it right.”

  She was obviously nervous and I tried to reassure her. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Just tell me.”

  “I did consider givin’ away that old sofa. Called up the charity store and everything.”

  “So they came and took it?” Or did she somehow manage to get it into the truck and drive it there herself?

  She shook her head. “Nope. I left a message with some lady who answered the phone and I told her how I wanted it gone before Wilbur came back in town. She told me they’d come by. But they never did.”

  “Could they have come while you were out and simply taken it?” I asked.

  “I s’pose, but wouldn’t they leave a note or sticker on my door? Besides, I mentioned my bingo night to the woman I spoke to, said not to come by that day since I wouldn’t be home. She said she’d give Mrs. Marner the message and that was that.”

  “Mrs. Marner? You’re sure?”

  Floretta nodded. “I must say I was shocked when y’all came out and Wilbur called me to the garage and that sofa had gone and disappeared. I thought, ‘Have you lost your mind, Floretta? Did they come take it and you just plain forgot?’”

  “You don’t seem to have a memory problem.” I sipped my coffee, staying calm despite the uptick of my heartbeat. I just took in this information, trying to make sense of it. “You didn’t want your husband to know you made that call to the charity store, so that’s why you didn’t mention you’d actually made an effort to have it hauled off. Have I got that right?”

  She smiled. “I knew you’d understand. But then I thought God might be angry with me for deceivin’ my husband. You have a thought about doin’ something you shouldn’t and then, bam.” She clapped her hands and startled me. “A strange thing like this happens to bite you. I gotta admit I was scared the other night. But now that I’ve prayed on it, I’m certain somethin’ evil happened in our garage. I have to speak about it.”

  “You did the right thing. But you have no idea when the sofa or the truck disappeared? You didn’t hear anything? See anything?”

  She shook her head. “I can only think it musta been in the middle of the night. I wear earplugs ’cause a speck of dust droppin’ on the floor is enough to wake me. Isn’t this sofa business the strangest thing, Miss Jillian?”

  I had to agree, but the connection to the charity store bothered me. This could be important and Tom and Candace needed to know. “Would you feel comfortable talking to one of the officers about this?”

  “I’d be happy to talk to Candace. Remember, I’m friends with her mama. I know that child.”

  I wasn’t sure if this was something Floretta needed to report in person, but it was important. A phone call would be the quickest way to get this information to the police, and Candace could decide if Floretta should make a formal statement. I pressed Candace’s speed dial and thank goodness she answered.

  “Hey there, Jillian. I’m super busy with—”

  “Candace, I’m with Mrs. Strickland and she has something to tell you. Can I put her on?”

  “Where are you?” Candace sounded confused.

  “At her place. I’ll explain later.” I handed the phone to Floretta.

  She repeated everything she’d said to me, answered a few questions, asked about Candace’s mama and then abruptly shoved the phone back to me.

  “Candace, you there?” I said.

  “Writing it all down as we speak. She says she didn’t recognize the voice of the person she spoke to. Could have been anyone who volunteers at that store. It doesn’t mean this involves them—the message Floretta left could have been forgotten. But I’ll be getting a list of those folks who answered the phone in the last week and a half. We’ll see if Rebecca ever got this message—or perhaps she took the message and didn’t want Floretta to know who she was speaking with.”

  She disconnected before I could mention that Zoe Marner could also have taken the call. There were two Mrs. Marners who stayed busy in or arou
nd that store, after all.

  I said good-bye to Floretta not long after. She seemed brighter, relieved of her burden. As I drove back toward town, I wondered how this new piece of information fit into the puzzle—if it fit at all. This seemed like a case that had too many leads, and most of them pointed nowhere—or everywhere.

  I was surprised when, before I reached home, Belle called. Belle hardly ever called me, mostly because I saw her almost every day at Belle’s Beans. I switched on the Bluetooth and answered.

  “Hey there, Belle,” I said.

  “Hey there, Jillian. You still got Rebecca’s girl staying with you?”

  “How did you—oh, I forgot. You know everything that goes on in Mercy.” I laughed. “Yes, she needs time to make sense of losing her dad so suddenly and—”

  “Listen, I know there’s no love lost between Lindsey and her mama and that’s why she’s with you. They had a set-to right here in my place not two weeks ago. This isn’t about that. I’m wondering if she’d like to make a little extra money.”

  “At Belle’s Beans? I thought you just hired Lucy.”

  “No new baristas needed, but it does involve Lucy. See, she’s been bringing that child to work until she’s back on her feet—got money troubles—and I’ve let her girl play in my office, made sure she stays away from the equipment and the customers. But that’s not exactly working too well for me. She’s a precious child, but I can’t get a lick of work done.”

  “You need a babysitter?”

  “Exactly. I’ll pay her, but I don’t want Lucy to know this minute. If Lindsey agrees, we can say we’ve got this young woman who’s volunteering, loves kids. Could you ask her?”

  “She does have classes at the community college and I don’t know her schedule—but it can’t hurt to ask. If she can’t do it, perhaps Seth would be willing to help out.”

  “Oh. Okay. He’s a nice boy, but I wouldn’t want that little girl around Rebecca Marner. I’m not sure that would be a good thing.”

  “Seth could watch Amelia at my house—in fact, I’ve met Lucy and you could mention I’m the one volunteering to help out. I’ll care for the little girl myself, but I’ll need backup. See, Tom insists this wedding will happen regardless of what’s going on with the murder case and Mike’s death.”

  “I know. That man gets his mind set on something, he will make it happen. That’s why I’m trying to recruit young people with enough energy to keep up with a four-year-old.” She chuckled. “The child is wearing this grandma out. Lucy agreed to split her shift and come back this evening, so I’m kinda desperate.”

  “I’ll ask for everyone’s help—Finn, Seth, Lindsey, anyone—and you mention my name to Lucy.”

  “Thanks Jillian. You are such a sweetie.” She disconnected.

  Lindsey as a babysitter? Could she handle being around a child when she seemed so troubled by what had happened to her years ago?

  All I could do was ask.

  Twenty-six

  When I returned home, I found Lindsey sitting on my dock and staring out at the lake. Now that the wind had subsided, the water was still. A low orange sun peeked from behind charcoal gray clouds. I joined her, sat nearby and said nothing.

  A sideways glance revealed the glisten of tears in her eyes and the face of a young woman who felt a pain I could not fathom. We sat in silence for a good five minutes. But that was fine with me. I knew sometimes the quiet can heal.

  Finally she spoke. “Thank you.”

  “No need to thank me. After our first meeting, I told you I liked you.”

  She looked at me then. “Even though I was pretty darn rude. But I’m thanking you for giving me my power back. You’re okay with who I am.” She said this with surprise and understanding and warmth in her voice. She’d had an epiphany, it would seem.

  I touched the fist resting on the wet wood of the dock and her fingers relaxed. I said, “It’s what you deserve. To be yourself.”

  She nodded. “It was as bad as I thought it would be, seeing my mom. You know, I’ve never seen my mother cry before—but she was crying today. I believe she liked Mike a lot, but I don’t think she ever got over what my dad did to her. I took his side, thought she pushed him into that affair with Zoe. Maybe I was wrong.”

  “You knew that’s why they divorced?” I couldn’t keep the surprise out of my voice.

  “Oh, for sure. You understand, that’s why my mom and Zoe act like such good friends.”

  “You mean they aren’t?” I couldn’t keep the surprise out of my voice.

  “My mom always says ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer’ when she talks about Zoe.”

  It was all an act? Wow. And then I wondered if both women were pretending—and pretending about more than their friendship, perhaps.

  “Here’s what I think,” I said. “You should never have known why your parents split—at least not back then. It was an adult issue and you weren’t an adult yet.”

  “But I asked her—asked my dad, too. I mean, I was upset.”

  I put an arm around her. “All kids ask. That doesn’t mean the answers have to be the raw truth. ‘We can’t live together anymore’ is sometimes enough.”

  Lindsey leaned into me, resting her head on my shoulder. “I wish you’d been my mom. Then none of this would have happened.”

  “That’s one of the nicest things anyone’s ever said to me. But you’re a great daughter and I hope that you and your mom can find your way back to each other—call a truce at least.” But I sure hoped it wasn’t in the visiting room at some women’s prison.

  Rebecca Marner was an enigma. Her public behavior toward Zoe was an outright lie. She manipulated her way into a friendship with a woman she didn’t like—no, probably despised. What else was she hiding? Had whatever seethed beneath the surface all these years led her to murder her ex-husband and then kill Mike because he figured it all out? I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answers.

  “Let’s change the subject,” I said. “Belle Lowry—you know Belle, right?”

  Lindsey turned to face me and smiled. “Sure. She’s pretty awesome.”

  “She hired this lady who’s kind of down on her luck. And the lady has a little girl. To make a long story short, this person—her name is Lucy—needs a babysitter for a couple hours today and maybe on and off for the next couple weeks. I was thinking we could all pitch in to help her out. Belle is willing to pay.”

  “Who’s we?”

  “You, me, Seth, Finn—it takes a village, right?”

  “I can help her out today, no classes for me, but I won’t always be available. And I don’t need any money. My mom handed over a hundred bucks’ worth of guilt cash when I was over there today.”

  “Guilt cash?” I said.

  “The money she gives me when she feels guilty—like for not even talking to me after my dad died. She gave me a car after the whole baby thing—even though I couldn’t drive yet. So why not one word of sympathy after Daddy was murdered?”

  The whole baby thing? Lindsey didn’t sound like the shamed girl who’d cried the other night. “Why did your mother feel guilty? I mean, it sounds to me like she was more supportive during that time than she usually is. She went with you, stayed nearby, right?”

  Lindsey sucked in her upper lip, looked down. “I’m sorry. It was just a tough time. Anyway, I’m sure Seth will be happy to help out with the babysitting job when I can’t. It’ll give him something to do other than play video games now that he has no job. What’s the little girl’s name?”

  “Amelia.” I stood, my jeans damp from sitting on the dock. “I don’t know about you, but I could use some warm clothes.”

  We went to the house together and were greeted by four eager cats and one exuberant dog who’d been cooped up too long. Lindsey offered to take Yoshi out to play ball. I went to my bedroom, and the cats follow
ed me.

  They watched me change into jeans and a sweatshirt. I often wondered if what I wore offered them a clue as to what was next on the agenda. Would I stay home? Or would I be leaving again? They seemed satisfied with my choice, because Chablis jumped on the bed to resume the nap I’d probably interrupted. Cats sleep as much as eighteen hours in one day, after all. Silly Magpie attempted to pull my dirty jeans out of the hamper and when that seemed impossible, she jumped on my dresser, grabbed a comb and took off.

  I had to laugh, but I knew I might not see that comb in the near future.

  Before I called Belle to let her know Lindsey could take care of Amelia this evening, I reaffirmed Lindsey was fine with this arrangement, and she was. She asked if she could pick up Seth and the little girl and bring them here to watch a movie. It sounded like a great idea to me.

  “I have nothing planned so—wait a minute.” I thunked the heel of my hand against my forehead.

  Lindsey was standing in the kitchen, a cup of yogurt in one hand. Her spoon stopped halfway to her mouth. “Is something wrong?”

  “Is this Thursday?”

  “Um, yeah.”

  I pulled the phone out of my pocket and glanced at the time. “I’m supposed to be at church for the wedding rehearsal in an hour. How could I have forgotten?”

  “Duh. Because so much has happened this week. Who wouldn’t forget?”

  I glanced down at what I’d just changed into. “What should I wear?”

  Lindsey smiled. “You wear whatever you want. It’s your wedding.”

  A series of texts and phone calls confirmed that this was indeed the rehearsal night. But not everyone could come. Tom, Ed, Karen and Finn would be there. But Candace was running down several leads. She’d try to get to the church if she could, but she said she’d been a bridesmaid many times and wasn’t worried at all.

  I’d decided on the slacks and sweater I’d worn out to dinner. Meanwhile, I made sure Lindsey had the security and lock codes to the back door before she left to pick up Seth and Amelia. Once I changed, I took off to get Finn from the shelter so we could head to the mill town together. He was waiting outside Shawn’s office and thank goodness I’d brought him a change of clothes. He smelled as though he’d been working in a kennel all afternoon, that’s for sure.