Poor thing, Nora thought. He knows his mommy is ill. Still, at least the doctor had reassured her that it was only a consequence of age, and Mrs. Mullally was healthy still.
The doorbell rang, and Nora rushed to it, her heart beating faster. This could be… it must be…
“Sean,” her voice dripped with disappointment at finding the lanky figure of the ex-sheriff at her doorstep instead of Harvey.
“I thought we had some things to say to each other, still,” Sean said. He had a bunch of flowers in his hand. “Also, I came to apologize.”
“I don’t want these,” Nora said.
“Well, aren’t you egotistic, thinking they’re for you,” Sean teased. “I bought them along for Mrs. Mullally.”
“She’s asleep right now.”
“Good.” Sean walked into the kitchen, helped himself to an empty vase, filled it with some water and placed the flowers in it. Eyeing the plate of lasagna on the counter he said, “Would I be very greedy if I asked if you had extra lasagna in the house?”
With a sour face, Nora walked to the kitchen behind him. He sat on the counter with a big grin, trying to act nonchalant.
“Well?” she asked.
“Well,” he grinned back.
“Sean, how can you act like nothing’s happened?”
“In my mind, nothing has,” he said.
“Did you speak to the detectives about your alibi being falsified?” Nora asked, her voice icy.
“Nora…” Sean paused and rubbed his nose.
“Wallis wanted justice for his family,” Nora said, almost to herself.
“Nora, the detectives said they’re probably going to put this one out as a cold case,” Sean said. “I wanted to be the one to tell you because--”
“A cold case? What are you talking about, a cold case?” Nora looked up at him, shocked.
“I’m being reinstalled as Sheriff,” Sean said. “Detectives Jason and Rudy are leaving town, back to their own department.”
“But Ricky’s dead, and--”
“And he was the prime suspect,” Sean said, “Wasn’t he? Detectives Jason and Rudy think he did it.”
“So who killed Ricky?!” Nora exclaimed. “Wallis couldn’t have come back from the dead, could he? Ricky was blackmailing the murderer--”
“You overheard one fragment of conversation that you later recanted on,” Sean said.
“That’s because I was protecting him! Sean, come on!” Nora shouted.
Sean didn’t say anything, but Nora thought she could almost read his mind. Some protection. It had gotten Ricky killed. She sat down.
“Right,” Sean said, after another second’s pause. “Nora, I think there’s something you need to understand. Life is messy. Sometimes things don’t get resolved. In police work, we see it all the time. Now Wallis was one of us, so believe me when I say we did everything we could to find his murderer.”
“Do Jason and Rudy really believe that the case is unsolvable?” Nora asked.
“No, but they do believe that their own departments need them. There’s a limit to how much they can stay on in our little town. One thing more, they’ve assured themselves that I’m now less emotional about Wallis’ death, and that I’ll handle the case fairly.”
Nora couldn’t help it - she let out a short, sharp laugh.
Sean’s face darkened. “You got something to say, Nora?”
“They can’t believe that,” she said. “You can’t believe that, Sean. You’re involved with Wallis’ wife.”
“Shhh.” Sean looked around sharply, and made a rapid downward motion with his hands. “Don’t be so loud.”
“Why? You’re not afraid of people finding that out, are you?”
“They won’t find out,” Sean said. “Karen and I have made a decision. Until this case is resolved, we won’t be together.”
“Or you’ll continue sneaking around, just like you were before.”
“We were not sneaking around,” Sean said, his voice a low growl. “Don’t make this difficult on me. Or I can make it difficult on you.”
“What?” Nora looked at him, stunned. “Are you threatening me, Sean?”
“Harvey fought with Wallis less than an hour before he was murdered,” Sean said. “Or didn’t you think I’d find that out?”
“So what?” Nora said, trying to hide the little catch in her breath.
Sean smiled. “Nothing. I control this investigation now, and I can choose whether to dig deep into it, or...”
“You’re morally bankrupt, Sean,” Nora said, shaking her head. “Why don’t you just admit that you believe Karen did it, and getting reposted as Sheriff gives you the opportunity to cover up?”
“I don’t believe Karen did it,” Sean said. “I’m 100% convinced that she did not kill Wallis. Look at me.” When Nora didn’t, he caught her wrist, and tugged it so that she turned to face him.
“Nora, I love Karen, and I’m sworn to protect her, but if I believed she had killed Wallis, if there was even the shadow of doubt in my mind about it, I would have turned her in,” Sean said. “She was with me all along, Nora. I’m extremely sure she didn’t kill him.”
“You blacked out for a little while, didn’t you?” Nora said. “You weren’t lying about that. So how do you trust your own memory?”
“I trust the person she is,” Sean said. His eyes had that look about them, the look of a man utterly devoted to a person.
“Love makes you blind, Sean,” Nora said.
“No, love makes you see,” Sean said. “I truly believe that infatuation makes you blind, whereas love opens you up to every single fault in a person, and none of it matters because love overpowers you. But still, I promise you this, Nora, I’m going to do my best to solve Wallis’ murder. In my own way.”
“You’re not being objective,” Nora said. “You know you’re not.”
“I know that you ought to forget this whole business and move on,” Sean said. “Focus on your own diner. Take the money Tina’s offered you, and make a go of it, instead of wasting your time on the pointless death of a wild man.”
“What about Ricky, then?” Nora asked. “Or will you dismiss his death too?”
“I’m dismissing nothing,” Sean said, standing up. “Nora, if you and I were ever friends, if you feel I’ve ever helped you and that you owed me for it, I’m begging you now, keep Karen and my love a secret for now. I promise that if you have faith in me, I will do my best to solve this case.”
“That’s just the thing, Sean,” Nora said. “I don’t.”
*****
Chapter 25
Nora spent the rest of the day taking care of Mrs. Mullally, who, despite what Doctor Neil said, was still looking weak to Nora. When she wasn’t better by the evening, they invited the Doctor to have another look at her.
“Stop being afraid,” the Doctor said, after he’d checked Mrs. Mullally over. “Nora, I know you love the lady, but you have to accept she’s over a certain age now. She’s going to have to recover at her own speed. You can’t panic every time something like this happens.”
“All right,” Nora said, looking as low as she felt.
The Doctor, sensing her feelings, said, “Well, I’m done with my duties for the day. Would you like to come get some pancakes with me at Anna’s? I’d appreciate the company.”
“I was thinking of cooking dinner,” Nora said. “You could join us.”
“Mrs. Mullally is planning to sleep through the night, and I’d be ashamed of myself if I made you cook for me all the time,” the Doctor said. “No, come on, Nora. I have some serious cravings for Anna’s sugar crystal crepes right now, for some reason.”
“All right,” Nora said.
As always, the pancake house was filled with patrons. Anna gave Nora the briefest of nods, and Nora figured she was still a little sore that the deal they had met to discuss last time had fallen through.
Squeezing herself into a booth, Nora took a chunk of food on her fork and shoveled
it into her mouth. It was delicious, laden with sugar, and just a little bit of spice.
“Breakfast food at night always makes me feel like a little kid breaking rules,” Dr. Neil said. “In my family, it was a strict no-no. Meals were for nutrition. There was no place for fun. Of course, back then, we didn’t have as much variety of food as you young folk do.”
“Dr. Neil, there’s a question I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Nora said.
“What’s that, dear?” he asked.
“You looked pale when Joe talked about Wallis wanting justice for his family,” Nora said. “You looked pale when I bought it up this morning too.”
“There’s no question here,” Dr. Neil said, his features neutral.
“Why?” Nora asked.
“What if I told you that you’re just imagining this?” the Doctor asked her.
“I’d ask you why you’re lying,” Nora said.
“Wallis was my patient for a little while,” the Doctor said. “I was treating him for, well, its confidential, but let’s just say that it was perfectly harmless, curable, and happens to a lot of men. He was my patient, and he confided some things to me, things that I feel I have no right to tell others about. Unless there are warrants, though in this case, I don’t think there will be.” The Doctor shook some cinnamon over his pancakes. “Anything else?”
“Was it about Karen?” Nora asked the doctor.
The Doctor kept a straight face, and chewed his pancakes. “Nora, I’m a professional. Let’s change the topic.”
“I know she was having an affair,” Nora said. “I know that Wallis had threatened her over it. Is that what Joe meant when he said Justice for the family? Did Wallis want to take revenge on Karen?” If the Doctor said yes, Nora decided, if he even blinked the wrong way, she’d go right now to whatever authority she could, and expose Sean’s half-truths.
The Doctor only chewed on his pancakes, with no comment. “Wallis quit coming to see me, after a while,” was his only comment. “He preferred a different doctor, one from the town next to us.”
Frustrated with the Doctor’s lack of cooperation, Nora finished her pancakes, made some small talk with him, then declined his ride home. “I’d rather walk,” she said. “After a meal like that, I need the exercise.”
As if sensing her mood, the Doctor let her go without too much comment.
Nora walked back through the darkening streets, wondering why she felt so raw. Wallis’ death had nothing to do with her, really, and yet, she felt as if by being silent about Sean’s affair, she was committing a great crime. Then, there was Ricky. His death she felt almost responsible for. Trying her hardest to remember every detail of every conversation she had had with him, Nora was lost in her thoughts.
“Saw you in the pancake house,” a voice drawled behind her.
She felt a chill travel up her spine. Whirling around, she saw Alan Bridges leaning against a wall, with his friend Petey next to him. Alan held a brown paper bag with a bottle neck sticking out of it. He took a sip and passed it over to Petey.
“Well?” Alan said, “Too high and mighty to answer me.” he let out a little laugh. “Did you break up with Sean and start dating the Doctor instead? He’s a bit old for you, isn’t he?”
Alan’s presence had jogged her memory. She remembered the last time she had seen him. He’d been harassing Ricky then. She remembered pushing Alan away, and earning Ricky’s trust. Ricky had told her, later, that his ambition was to be the next Zany Motts or Elvis. Poor boy. He’d had so many ambitions. He’d had a vast stretch of time in front of him, to do what he liked with. But his time had run out sooner than he expected.
Now here she was, with Alan’s beady eyes staring at her, making her realize how dark the streets were, and how alone she was.
“No, she doesn’t want to answer me,” Alan said. “I’d be too ashamed to answer too, if I were you.” He took a step forward. His hands were clenching and unclenching.
“Alan, you better leave me alone,” Nora said.
“Or what? You’ll set Sean on me?” Alan laughed. “I heard about how he’s being reinstated. It’s all so typical. They listened to us for a few weeks, and now Wallis’ case is being closed and Sean’s back in office. Hey ho, that’s how they blow.” He laughed. “You hear that song, ever? It’s one of Zany Mott’s greatest hits. It’s called Blowhard. I was a big fan of Zany back in the day. He always talked about not giving in to The Man.”
“You’re drunk,” Nora said in disgust.
“I’m unhappy,” Alan said, moving closer to her. “I’m unhappy with how this town is run. I’m unhappy that Sean, like his father, the rich rancher, always get what they want, and the rest of us fight for crumbs. I want justice, the same way Wallis did.”
“Wallis had no family here,” Nora said. “So who did he even want justice for?”
“Oh, didn’t the doctor tell you?” Alan laughed. He was close enough now that Nora could smell the alcohol on his breath. She winced.
“No, he clearly didn’t,” Alan said. “Well my dear, I’ll tell you then. Years and years ago, Wallis had a happy family. His parents had worked with a lot of great bands--”
“Yes, yes, his father even owned an original Motts guitar,” Nora said. “I know.”
“Well, what you don’t know is that his mother’s sister, Maude, had recently married the love of her life. An older gentleman named Clay Jarvis. Clay had a teenage daughter, Helen. Seventeen and what a peach she was.”
This sounded familiar... why did this sound familiar? Had she heard rumors of the events that followed? Something about Wallis and his Aunt Maude…
“Helen, everyone in town knew, was secretly seeing a certain rich rancher. A married man. Of course, in a town this small, it doesn’t stay secret for long.”
“Wait…” Nora said. “Are you accusing Sean’s father?”
“Am I?” Alan laughed. “You bet I am. You can ask anyone if your little heart doesn’t believe me. Dracon Sr. was always attracted to young and pretty girls. He’d had plenty of affairs in his lifetime.”
Was that a habit Sean would carry on with? Or would he be different from his father? Nora wondered.
“Well, when Helen told him she was going to make it public, that she wanted to marry him, Dracon got really annoyed. After all, that would mess up his pretty life and his perfect family. A few months later, Helen was dead. Poisoning.”
Nora’s eyes went wide. “What are you suggesting?”
“I’m not suggesting anything,” Alan said. “But everyone in town knows this. The sheriff at the time was Sean’s Uncle John. Sure, like he was going to investigate his brother-in-law. It was the stepmother who went to jail instead. Wallis’ poor Aunt Maude. He hated that. He was very close to her. He used to live in her house when his parents were touring with bands. He loved that family, and he had to watch as it was slowly destroyed.”
“So he hated Sean too, then?”
“He didn’t care about Sean. He just wanted his Aunt to get the justice she deserved. His Aunt Maude has cancer now, and in a few years, she’s going to pass away. In a way, he thought that becoming sheriff would give him access to files that were locked away right now, and that this was his last chance. That’s why he was contesting against Sean.”
“I didn’t know this,” Nora said, her voice very quiet. “I’ve made a mistake.”
“Trusting Sean is always a mistake,” Alan said. “That entire family is twisted. He makes me seem normal in comparison.” He barked out a laugh.
“I have to go,” Nora whispered.
“No, you don’t,” Alan said.
She blinked, and realized that he’d backed her against a wall. He was towering over her, and his eyes had that unsteady yet predatory look that men get when they’ve got a hit of artificial confidence.
Headlights illuminated them, and Nora took her chance to break away from Alan. She ran to the parked car, and saw Harvey get out, his face a mask of fury. Running to him, she wrapped her
arms around him and buried her head in his shoulders.
“Peace, man,” Alan called out from behind her.
“You get out of here, Alan,” Harvey said, his voice holding all the menace of a snake’s rattle.
Alan put up his arms, and with an evil grin, moved away.
Nora, with tears in her eyes, looked up at Harvey and placed her lips on his. She could sense his initial shock, but within seconds, he had warmed to her. His arms wrapped around her, comforting her, his lips soft as he rained kisses on her cheek.
“I don’t know what to do,” Nora said to him.
“How about apologize?” a sharp voice said from the passenger seat of the car.
Harvey took a step back, putting a hand through his hair.
Milly got out of the car, slamming the door so hard that the entire frame shook. Nora thought she heard a window crack.
“Well,” she said, her voice icy.
“Look, Milly,” Harvey said.
“This is why you haven’t kissed me. Ha! You haven’t even held my hand since the funeral services,” Milly said, almost to herself. “Of course that makes sense. You wouldn’t care about me the minute your one true love gave you the green signal.”
“Milly--”
“Oh no, don’t bother about me,” Milly said, stalking off. “You and your precious girlfriend can carry on. I’m going to leave this stupid town as fast as possible, and you better believe it.”
“Where will you go? Didn’t your father threaten to disown you if you left here for a year?” Harvey asked.
“I got money now,” Milly said. “I made some good investments, don’t you worry about me, Harvey. Or do you feel like you need to pay me off?”
“Milly, I’m sorry. It’s just--.”
“I’m sorry too,” Nora said. “I thought he’d have told you by now.”
“I wanted to tell her,” Harvey said, turning to Nora. “I really did.”
“But you had no chance,” Nora said. “I get it.”
“Nora…” Harvey was looking a little desperate, caught between his desire to stay with Nora and race after Milly.
“Go after her,” Nora said. “She deserves a proper break up. Whatever was or wasn’t between you two, she deserves an apology too.”
Death Of A Deputy: A Culinary Cozy Mystery (A Murder In Milburn Book 2) Page 11
