With the meal and a tidy up behind them, she and Hugh went to the church.
“I must prepare my Whitsun sermon,” Hugh said, “while you peruse wedding service websites.”
“Yes dear.” Berdie was only amenable momentarily.
Hugh was still banging on about her becoming the church wedding planner and one verbal scuffle was enough for the day.
What she truly anticipated was her visit with Lillie and moving on in her own investigation.
The church door emitted a gentle squeak when Hugh opened it. “I must get Mr. Braunhoff to see to that.”
But Berdie barely paid attention. Someone was at the front altar rail kneeling, she assumed, in prayer. “Shh,” Berdie hushed and pointed in the direction of the altar.
Hugh strained forward. “Who is that?” he whispered. “I don’t recognize her.”
Berdie stared. “I do.” She put a hand on her hip. “I shouldn’t expect her here, but here she is.”
“That sounds a bit portentous.”
“It’s fine. I’ll see to her. You get about your preparation for Sunday morning.”
Hugh smiled and quietly stepped to the sacristy.
Berdie couldn’t help but wonder, staring at the unexpected person, what would bring Elise Davies to the altar rail of Saint Aidan of the Wood Parish Church. She had to find out. Not wanting to be intrusive, she took a seat on the second pew, making sure she was respectfully quiet.
But it wasn’t more than a half minute before Elise apparently sensed someone was near and arose from the rail. She turned. ”Mrs. Elliott, how long have you been there?”
“Not even a minute.” Berdie smiled and it appeared to draw the woman toward her.
Elise’s small eyes looked moist, her cheeks more flushed than usual. Her straight chin-length hair surrounded a face that held not an ounce of joy.
“Did you finally win the wrestling match with your front garden?”
Elise stepped to the pew. She lowered herself gradually until she was seated. She swallowed. “She’s gone, isn’t she, Mrs. Elliott, my mum’s gone.”
Oh. “Missing, Mrs. Davies, yes.” This seemed a very different Elise Davies, a decidedly more subdued, almost frightened woman.
“I wouldn’t believe it, couldn’t believe it. But it’ll soon be a week.”
Berdie simply nodded. “I’m working on the situation. There’s been some headway.”
“Why won’t the police do something?”
“I’ve just gotten some information today that may interest them. At least, it has the potential to do so. But tell me, Mrs. Davies, are you all right?”
Elise slumped back against the pew. “It’s my fault, God forgive me. It is.” She put her hands to her face.
Berdie put her hand on the woman’s shoulder. “Elise?”
The distressed daughter of Olivia Mikalos lowered her hands to her lap as a single tear escaped and slid down to her chin. “If only I had been there.”
“Been where?”
She studied Berdie’s face as if looking for sustenance. “My mother and I had a row.” Head bowed, she pushed a finger into her palm. “Nothing new about that. And though she hasn’t said, I think she blames me for Mr. Broadhouse’s departure. I was far from welcoming.” She raised her chin. “My mother and I seldom see eye to eye at the best of times. And this time around, I was especially angry with her, the way she plays herself to Linden’s emotions.” Elise pulled a tissue from her trouser pocket. “I was supposed to fetch her for the Ascension fete that morning, but made some excuse that the children were taking too long to ready themselves. So, Linden took Mum, instead. I and the children were to meet her there and take her home after. But, I despised the thought of spending a single minute with her and couldn’t bring myself to do it.” Several tears now tumbled from Elise’s sad eyes. She tried to catch them with her tissue and sniffed.
“Does Linden know this?”
Elise shook her head. “He’d be so angry.”
“What exactly happened that day?”
“I drove here to Aidan Kirkwood. The children were so very keen to come to the fete. When I saw a neighbor and her children from our terrace, I asked if Phillip and Madeline could join them. Then I left.”
“You left to go where?”
Elise shrugged. “I just drove and drove. I put together, in my mind, a speech telling mother that I no longer wanted to have anything to do with her. I wished her dead.” Elise took deep breaths of air as tears continued their steady course. “Now she’s gone.”
“We don’t know she’s gone exactly, only missing.”
“Well, she wouldn’t be missing, nor gone, had I been there with her, would she?” Elise crinkled her face as if to hold back the river of tears that welled, and bent her head as if in shame.
Berdie scooted closer to her. “Now Elise, I want you to clearly hear what I am saying.” Berdie was commanding.
Elise lifted her head.
“Whatever your relationship with your mother, whatever your thoughts toward her, that’s something you have to take care of here.” Berdie pointed to her heart. “I’d say you’ve probably made a good start on that.”
Elise looked at the altar and gave a tentative nod.
“Your disparaging thoughts toward your mother did not bring about this situation. And we have no guarantee that had you been with her at the fete, her kidnapping would not have taken place.”
Elise gasped. “Kidnapped. But mother’s so strong-willed.”
“Not if she was rendered incapable.”
“Incapable?”
“I have some ideas about that, but at the moment they’re only ideas.” Berdie squeezed Elise’s hand. “Now, what you need to think about right now is the welfare of your own family.”
“That’s just it. If I hadn’t been so foolish Madeline’s tummy upset wouldn’t be raging.” She dabbed at her nose. “She’s sensitive, you know, like her father. Linden wouldn’t have a black eye, and despondent Phillip would have his Tiddles.”
“Ah, now there’s a bright spot.” Berdie cheered her tone. “I’ve found Tiddles, and he’s in the best of care. With Madeline being allergic, I think it best Tiddles stay right where he is until things get a bit more settled. Still, assure Phillip that his cat is fine and in time, they’ll be restored. You see there, one thing taken care of already.”
Elise wiped an eye. “At least that’s good, isn’t it?”
“And I believe your mother will be found soon. Devote yourself to prayer on her behalf and comfort your family.”
Hugh opened the sacristy door and observed what was going on.
“Should I ask Lillie to ring back later?” he asked diffidently.
Elise was on her feet. “Please, I’ve taken enough of your time. Don’t let me interrupt.”
“You needn’t leave. You’re welcome to stay as long as you wish,” Berdie offered.
“I didn’t feel I could go to St. Matthew without word getting about and reaching Linden. So I came here to…” She glanced forward at the spot where she had knelt.
“I’m so glad you did.”
“I really must go. And thank you, Mrs. Elliott.”
For the first time in this conversation, a slight smile emerged beneath Elise’s thin red nose. She looked to Hugh. “She can take that call.”
Berdie stood. “I’ll keep you informed.” She gave Elise a final nod, and the woman turned.
“I’ll see you to the door,” Hugh offered Elise. As Hugh passed Berdie, he caught her elbow. “I wouldn’t have interrupted, but Lillie was insistent she speak to you now,” he whispered.
Berdie nodded and entered the cozy room.
There was Lillie’s visage, on the laptop screen, and her face was bright, alight with excitement and no longer sporting her distinctive glasses. Voices could be heard in the lowly lit background.
“You managed your way through the rain, then,” Berdie greeted. “Your glasses get wet?” she teased.
“They’
re in my pocket. And yes, despite the surly cab driver, here I am.”
“You have company?”
“What? Oh, that’s the telly. A bit loud, I guess. I’m trying to find a weather report.”
“Don’t want to get rained on again?”
“I want to hire a boat.”
“What?”
“Oh, Berdie, you will not believe what I have uncovered.” Lillie almost gurgled as she thumbed through her notebook.
“Oh?”
“I’m really beginning to wonder if this case could be linked with Olivia Mikalos’s disappearance.”
“Linked?” Berdie was intrigued. “How so?”
“You see there’s this agency, well it’s a home, but not really, difficult to find, well, apart from that manicured tree, and if they both applied, and both do seem the type,” Lillie rattled on. “The whole thing is very confidential, but then that sets things up, doesn’t it? And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
“What are you going on about?”
“Oh, now listen to this.” She tapped her pencil. “Livy’s bank account has disappeared, at least, all of her money has.”
Berdie took a deep breath. That was not good news. In fact, it sounded ominous.
“Lillie, how did you get that information, and how many people know you have it? You must be very careful.”
“You’re beginning to sound like Loren.”
“Speaking of, have you rung him?”
“Too busy,” she quipped.
“Not a word the whole time you’ve been away?”
Lillie tapped her finger on the notebook. “Now, can we get on?”
“Lillie, slow down, start at the beginning again and fill in all the details.”
Just as Lillie began to speak, a shadowed darkness gathered behind her.
Berdie’s heart fluttered. “Lillie!” Berdie interrupted. “Is someone…?”
Abruptly, a large hand holding a swathe of dark cloth pushed the fabric into Lillie’s face, covering her eyes, nose, and mouth. And just for a moment, the force of it angled Lillie’s head to the side.
“Lillie!” Berdie screamed as she caught only a passing glimpse of what appeared to be a male figure towering behind her dear friend. “Dear Lord.”
Lillie choked. She used her hands to strip the cloth away from her face, but the man slammed his other hand over her shrouded lips and pushed her head backward. Lillie clawed at his hand, her screams muffled.
“Lillie!”
Lillie worked to lift herself from the chair and shake the powerful grasp, but she suddenly lost stamina and went limp.
“Kick him, Lillie, use your feet.”
In an instant, with no more than a heavy breath, one of the masculine hands reached toward the laptop and snapped it shut.
Berdie pushed back from the desk. “Oh, dear Lord. Oh, dear Lord.” Her pulse leapt and her mouth felt suddenly dry as she shot from the chair.
Hugh entered the room, his face stern, body commanding. “Berdie, I could hear you out in the nave. What’s going on?”
“Hugh,” she screamed, “call the police. There’s been another kidnapping. Lillie!”
13
“I still don’t understand how this happened.” Loren’s rapid strides made it difficult for Berdie to stay abreast of him and Hugh while they moved down a hall that led away from the Timsley Hospital Morgue to the building’s public lounge.
“I’ve already explained all that as best I can.” Berdie felt herself nearly panting as Hugh flashed that arching left eyebrow her direction.
Loren all but ripped the door of the lounge off its hinges and stood aside for Berdie and Hugh to enter. He pointed to a mahogany colored couch where Berdie and Hugh seated themselves.
“How could a simple rearrangement of holiday plans in Cornwall trigger such a response? Investigating! She should have never gone to Portugal.” Loren paced near the couch.
“Loren, I think you can realize it wasn’t a single event that sent Lillie on this escapade.”
Hugh glared at Berdie.
“We can all take a certain element of responsibility.” Berdie tried to keep her voice even. “That said, Lillie made her own decisions. The point now is what we do from here. How do we go about finding her?”
“We?” If Hugh’s eyes had been scissors, they would have cut her words into bits and left them lying on the floor.
“I must go to Portugal.” Loren’s forehead wrinkled. “How can I ask for the time off when I’ve just returned from the London conference? And we’re short staffed.”
“Loren, not to undermine your sincerity or capacities, but isn’t that much of the reason Lillie’s in her predicament?” Hugh inhaled. “We don’t need more would-be detectives dashing about, especially when it involves the Portuguese underworld.”
Berdie frowned. “We don’t know that the Portuguese underworld is involved.”
“You said she had just been to the docks.”
“Marina, she’d been to the leisure craft pier earlier in the day. But that doesn’t mean…”
“Loren, let the professionals deal with it,” Hugh went on. “They’re trained. They know their jurisdiction and how to best take care of the situation.”
Loren stopped. “Yes. I’ll hire Mr. Finn to find Lillie.”
Hugh nodded. “Spot on. We’ve already notified both the Portuguese and English police.”
“Well, Goodnight, anyway,” Berdie added with bite.
“The British Embassy in Portugal has been alerted and is giving support. All possible resources are at work.”
The doctor released a slow exhalation.
Berdie leaned back on the couch. All resources were at work except hers.
Hugh continued to calm Loren with gentle, reassuring patter.
Berdie tried to think constructively through her conversation with her now-missing friend. Lillie said she was going to hire a boat. Why? She believed there was a common thread, a link between the disappearances of Livy and Olivia. What was it? Berdie tried to remember Lillie’s ramble. She said the thing that may link the cases together was a home that wasn’t a home. So something that appeared to be a home, but wasn’t. Berdie worked to recall Lillie’s words. Difficult to find, that manicured tree. That tree! Could Lillie mean that exotic olive tree, that house? No numbers on purpose. Z in Olivia’s address book. Confidential? Yes, Lillie said confidential. Berdie’s mouth flew open with a huge gasp.
“What?” Hugh sounded alarmed.
“Hugh, do you remember the name of the road we stopped on to find our way to the sports club when we got lost?”
Hugh furrowed his brow. “St. Olive.”
“St. Olive?” Berdie raised her voice. “She’s the one who was kidnapped by marauding troops.”
“And was imprisoned for her faith, yes.” Hugh relaxed his wrinkle. “Berdie, I know you’re distressed, but can you stay with us? We’re sorting Lillie’s dilemma.”
“St. Olive. It was right there, but I didn’t see. I’ve got to go to that house.”
“What house? Are you mad, Berdie?”
As if deaf to Berdie’s words, Loren rubbed his hand on the thigh of his trousers. “I’ll go upstairs and speak to the chief of staff. Yes, and call Mr. Finn.”
Hugh stood. “Do you want me to go with you, Loren?”
“You know more than I, at the moment. That would be helpful.”
“We’ll call you if we need you, Berdie. Keep your mobile at hand.” Hugh sounded as if he was scolding her.
He and Loren exited the room.
“I’ve got to get to the Stanford house,” Berdie said aloud. “Or what seems to be a house.” She pulled her head back and looked at the ceiling in realization. The Stanfords, Mr. Moore, and Gavin Broadhouse, the angry man, yes, all were connected to that building. She felt a shiver shoot down her spine.
The sound of a ricochet bullet exploded inside Berdie’s purse.
Someone seated nearby in the room went to the window and pee
red out into the dark street as if they were looking for trouble.
Berdie could make out the music of her mobile now, but she didn’t care what her ring was at the moment. “Let it be Lillie,” Berdie whispered as she ripped her bag open and brought the mobile to her ear.
There was a graveled breath. “Your friend’s in danger.”
Oh, him. “Abducted.” Berdie bit into the word.
The caller was silent. Then a long breath escaped.
“You didn’t know.” Berdie tried not to sound surprised. The caller was usually way ahead of her. “And there’s active police involvement.”
“Yes.” There was no edge of surprise in his voice.
“Then why are you calling me?”
An undecipherable grunt was the response.
Berdie thought about her conversation with Lillie and decided to try it on. “How do boats fit in the picture?”
“Boats?”
“Where’s Olivia?”
Another long distorted sigh.
“Where?” Berdie almost yelled.
“Would I play cat and mouse if I knew?” he snapped back, a sure sign that he sensed the urgency as much as she did.
She must stay calm to keep the man calm. “The Stanford house with the exotic tree, it’s a link, isn’t it?”
“Ah,” grated through the mobile. “Good. Very good, but very dangerous. Don’t get caught.”
Berdie suddenly felt her mouth full of cotton. “Caught? Are you suggesting break and enter?”
“Suggesting? If your friend’s life means anything to you,” he drew a shallow breath, “it must be tonight.”
Berdie felt her moral compass wrench from true North. Break and enter. That was a breach of the law. But how could she not, when it appeared Lillie’s well-being depended on it? “Go on.”
“Half two,” Raspy droned. “Next security check at half four. Take a flash drive. Entrance security code: Stobbworth 3.
“Stobbworth.” Berdie’s thinking became simply practical. “Is that with two B’s?”
The familiar silence of an empty line met Berdie’s ear. She pushed her mobile into her bag. “How does he know the code? Stobbworth 3. Tonight. Two B’s or not.” She drew a long breath. “Lord, have mercy.”
Into the Clouds Page 19
