The Mysterious Package (A Hannah and Tamar Mystery Book 1)

by Christa Nardi

  “Do you know what’s in the package?”

  Gwen huffed. “I didn’t pay attention to his ramblings on. Why would I? It’s all lies. It has to be.”

  “Gwen, what is Dirk’s last name? How did he latch on to you?” Hannah asked.

  Gwen preened and a smile replaced her pout. “I was featured in the school paper for community service along with my sorority sisters. He called and wanted to meet and talk about my family. I told him I couldn’t – that I was coming home for Thanksgiving. In the Café Car, he gave me this line about papers and stuff related to my family. Asked me if I knew what that meant and if I was interested in talking to him about it. That’s why I was so upset when you saw me in your car. He wouldn’t leave me alone.”

  “His name?” Hannah pushed.

  “When I decided to be friendly and find out what he was selling, he told me. Pritchard. He said his mother’s name was Harmony. He mentioned some other stuff like it would mean something to me. Like I was about to believe anything he said.” Gwen rolled her eyes and shook her head.

  “Did your Dad ever mention anyone by that name?”

  “No. No. No. He’s making this all up. You can’t believe him. I have to go. I want that package back though. Where are you staying? How can I get it back?”

  “We’re staying with our grandparents. If you give us your number, we’ll call and let you know how to get the package.” Tamar kept her opinion regarding Gwen’s dubious claim to the package to herself.

  She pulled out her ticket stub, scribbled her number on it, and shoved it at Tamar. “I’ll wait for your call.” She stormed off into the crowd, stumbling at least once.

  Hannah called Gramps again while Tamar ducked into the restroom. She gave him what information she had, including the seat number from the ticket stub. When Tamar joined her, they made their way to their seats to watch the rest of the game.

  It was too noisy to talk as the Mavericks kept scoring, but both girls kept watch for Gramps. The game was almost over when Gramps showed up with a security officer. At his signal, the girls followed them out of the stands. Tamar turned to look for Dylan as they headed out. He scowled when he saw them leaving.

  In the security office, the girls told the officer and Gramps what Gwen had said about Dirk and the package.

  “I really wish I’d had a chance to talk to that young lady.” He shook his head. “She had already left by the time we showed up and the other girls sitting in that section weren’t very helpful.”

  Although Gramps didn’t come out and say so, Hannah sensed from his sarcastic tone he didn’t believe they were being totally honest.

  The crowd’s roar signaled the end of the game. Another victory for the Mavericks. Despite their plans, Gramps insisted the girls go with him to the police station. Disappointed they wouldn’t see Matt or Dylan, the girls texted them with their regrets and promised to fill them in later.

  At the police station, Gramps introduced the girls to Captain Jameson. They took turns telling the story of the package, the girl, and the young man with the piercing blue eyes. Captain Jameson nodded occasionally, but didn’t comment until they had finished.

  “Okay, girls, this is what I would like you to do. I want one of you to call the number she gave you. See if she’ll agree to meet you somewhere to get her package.”

  “But what if it’s not hers? She as much as said she stole it from Pritchard.” Tamar’s impatience was evident.

  “Tamar, I know that. For now, she’s thinking it’s hers, so we’ll play it that way. Which one of you will make the call?”

  “She mostly talks to you, even if she thinks your name is Tammy. I think it’s better if you call. I don’t think she knows my name at all.”

  With her grandfather and the others listening in, Tamar made the call. Gwen answered with dramatic and sugary tones, however her tone chilled when she realized it was Tamar.

  “Can you meet me at the Mill Creek Starbucks tomorrow morning?” Tamar asked.

  “I’ll be there about 11 o’clock. Bring the package this time. Don’t be late.”

  “See you then.”

  “She expects I’ll bring the package. She’s won’t be happy if I don’t.”

  “Don’t worry about it. We’ll handle her.” Gramps reassured Tamar. Then he turned to Captain Jameson. “This Pritchard guy has me concerned. He somehow tracked Tamar and Dylan to the skating rink. Likely he knows where we live. I’d feel better if we knew more about him.”

  “We’ll do our best to locate Dirk Pritchard and check out his story.” Captain Jameson smiled at the girls. “The package won’t be released until we can determine its rightful owner.”

  Gramps and the girls discussed the possibilities on the way home. “Now girls, please don’t say anything about this to Grands. I don’t want her to worry.”

  “But Gramps, she already knows we were looking for Gwen.”

  “Yes, but … she doesn’t need to know the police are involved. She worries too much and makes a big deal of little things.”

  The girls exchanged looks, both confused and entertained by his hiding information from Grands. “Okay, Gramps, but don’t you think she’ll be upset when she finds out?”

  “I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.”

  CHAPTER 6 Post-game Celebration

  Grands was surprised when the girls walked in with Gramps. She scurried around and apologized for not having dinner ready.

  “Grands, don’t go to any trouble. It was a little crazy after the game, you know.” Hannah explained.

  Tamar added, “It was a great game and we expect to hear from Dylan and Matt any minute.”

  As if on cue, both phones rang. The foursome made new plans and girls rushed to their room to get ready.

  Tamar opted to stay with what she had on, minus the thermals. She ran a brush through her hair and gathered it up in a ponytail. Hannah hadn’t seen Matt yet and wanted to look her best for him. No longer concerned about keeping warm, she changed into her new angora sweater. The lightweight, v-neck sweater was flattering and oh so soft. She would never admit it, but she was glad she had heeded Tamar’s advice and bought the more feminine sweater.

  Tamar teased Hannah and prompted her to hurry. When the doorbell rang, Hannah took a last glance in the mirror. Her black jeans and boots were set off by the turquoise sweater she’d bought and simple jewelry. Her hair was shiny, with soft curls that framed her face.

  “… caught the end of the game and saw your stats just now on the news. Impressive. Oh, here are the girls now.”

  “Awesome game, Matt! Congratulations on the win.”

  Matt turned to greet Hannah and grinned. “Not just the win, Hannah, Matt was named most valuable player, not just for the game but for the season.” Gramps continued. “I bet the scouts will be watching the video. Any thoughts on where you’ll be playing next year?”

  Matt shuffled his feet and smiled, his eyes bright. “Not yet, Mr. Bertolet. I’ve talked to several coaches but I’ve been told not to discuss it. Once the college season ends, everything will kick into high gear.”

  He extended his hand to Hannah. “Ready to go?”

  The butterflies in her stomach launched into a gymnastics routine. She had forgotten how great-looking he was, with his dark hair, blue eyes and broad shoulders.

  Hannah added her congratulations, as did Tamar and Grands, while the girls got their jackets on. Gramps stretched and came up with some excuse to take Minxy and Maxi for a walk, exchanging a meaningful look with Dylan. Minutes later, the four climbed into Matt’s blue four-wheel drive Legacy and were off for dinner.

  “We were thinking about Gill’s Deli. It’s about 30 minutes away - my guess is anything closer will be packed with the after-game crowds. Is that okay with you?”

  “Matt, you know I love the grinders at Gill’s! Tamar?” Hannah turned to see Tamar’s smile in the back seat.

  “You bet! Best grinders around.”

  Gill’s was a go-to place
in Rutland. The first time the girls heard the term ‘grinder’ they were a little confused, but then discovered it was what in Maryland was called a sub sandwich. And at Gill’s, the grinders were great and so were the sides.

  On the drive, the four talked about the game. Hannah picked up again on a hint of wistfulness as Matt talked about the senior spotlights. He and Dylan explained to the girls that in addition to the half-time recognition of the seniors, the jumbotron featured the four seniors at the end of the game. And she had missed it.

  Seated in a booth at the deli with their grinders and drinks, the conversation soon shifted to college applications. “I get you can’t talk about football, but can you talk about the colleges you applied to and where you might want to go?” Hannah assumed he had to go through the same process she did. Then again maybe that wasn’t the case for athletes.

  Matt explained, “I’ve applied to a handful of colleges, starting with UVM for the home advantage. Although hopefully football will help with funding college, I’ve applied to colleges with good business departments all along the East coast.” He winked as he added, “Including UMaryland, UVirginia, George Washington, and George Mason. What about you?”

  Hannah blushed. “Well, I also applied to Maryland, Virginia, and George Mason - and UVM. But what about football?”

  “Oh, they all have football teams. If I can’t get an athletic scholarship, I’m hoping for an academic one. If I get offered a football scholarship some place I haven’t applied, it won’t be a big deal.” He shrugged.

  “Geez! I watched Hannah sift through all the information the guidance office provided and that ginormous book on colleges online. Sounds like you have another whole layer on top of that.” She turned to look at Dylan. “Will it be that way for you too?”

  Dylan exchanged glances with Matt. “More or less, if I want to play hockey in college. A few recruiters have been to games and talked to me. I’ve started to check out colleges with ice hockey teams. Not as popular as football, so if I go that route to get my undergrad paid for, I’ll be in the northern states or Canada. Then there are the schools with strong pre-law programs. Boston College and Boston University look pretty good so far, or maybe Denver. I’m still creating my wish list. What about you?”

  Her shoulders slumped as she responded. “The hard part is I don’t really know what I want to do. I’m interested in psychology and technology and … well lots of things. Everyone keeps telling me I should know by now, but I don’t. And of course, Grands and Gramps want us here in Vermont. With Hannah applying, mom and dad already started on the stay at home and go to Towson or some other local option.”

  She shrugged and with a resigned sigh continued. “So, I’ve decided to go the psychology route as a start. That makes it easy since almost every university has a psychology department. Now I just need to sort through all the information. The givens are UVM and UMaryland, UBaltimore, and I guess Towson.”

  Hannah reached over and gave her sister a hug. Everyone was quiet for a while as they ate their food.

  “Enough about college – too stressful. Dylan and I want to know what happened today? Why was your grandfather at the game? And where did you two disappear to?”

  The sisters answered at the same time. “That girl was there.” “He came to talk to Gwen.”

  “One at a time please!” Matt chuckled. “Hannah, you start and Tamar can finish, okay?”

  “We ran into Gwen waiting in line outside the restrooms. I called Gramps and let him know she was there, while Tamar talked to Gwen.”

  “She was rude and drunk and demanding. At least she gave us her phone number – she wrote it on her ticket stub. We gave Gramps her seat information but she took off before he got there. Then we met with Captain Jameson.”

  The girls went on to tell them about the meeting set up for the next day. On the drive back to Mill Creek, Hannah made plans with Matt for Wednesday after the meeting with Gwen and before their parents arrived. Tamar and Dylan did the same.

  CHAPTER 7 Meeting with Gwen

  Grands kept the girls busy the next morning making sure everything would be ready on time for Thursday morning. Hannah and Tamar’s parents had called as they were leaving Rosewood Glen, Maryland and were expected to arrive in time for dinner that day. Aunt Ilene called to let them she wouldn’t be arriving until Thanksgiving day morning.

  Despite all her advanced planning, Grands realized she needed more eggs. Gramps was more than happy to go to the store and said something about running an errand while the girls worked. The girls chuckled at his escape, but their amusement soon turned to concern when 10 o’clock came and went and Gramps had not returned.

  “Hannah, we need to get going or we’ll be late. Where’s Gramps? What should we do?”

  “We’ll give him a few more minutes. If he’s not back, I’ll ask Grands if we can borrow her car for a while. It’s in the garage and I guess it runs.”

  Grands caught the tail end of their conversation. “Now girls, of course it runs. I still use it occasionally to go to the library or out with the ladies. If you need to get out for a while, you go ahead and take it. I’m not certain how much gas there is in it, but Gramps never lets it get too low.”

  With a furtive glance at the clock, Hannah gave Grands a kiss and took the keys. Grands’ sedan took a few minutes to warm up, and soon the girls were on their way to Starbucks. The brakes were way more sensitive than Hannah was used to and the car jerked each time it pulled to a stop.

  Mill Creek only had the one Starbucks and it was crowded as usual. The girls got there early and at once spotted Matt and Dylan at a corner table. They started in that direction, smiling at their friends, but the boys shook their heads. Without a word, Hannah looked at Tamar and nodded.

  A group stood to leave and Tamar grabbed the table on the other of the aisle. Hannah waited in line and ordered for both of them, carrying the steaming cups of hot chocolate carefully to the table. They heard, rather than saw, Gwen and her two friends from the mall as they entered the store. They chattered excitedly, preened and posed, attracting the attention of most of the young men in the coffeehouse. Gwen snuck a look at Tamar without missing a beat in her interaction with her friends.

  “Hannah, what are we going to do? Where’s Gramps? Why did she bring her friends?” Tamar whispered in between sips of her drink.

  “Best guess? She’s hoping she can walk over, get the package, and avoid any questions. Her friends will be her excuse.” Hannah shrugged. “She’ll probably have a meltdown when it doesn’t go down that way.”

  Hannah glanced over to Dylan and Matt. They were watching Gwen and her friends as they collected their drinks.

  As the threesome looked around for a place to sit, one of them squealed, “Gwen, Marah, there’s the Maverick quarterback. Let’s go.”

  “Wait…” Gwen didn’t have a chance as the other two girls made a beeline for Matt and Dylan. She strolled over to where Tamar and Hannah were seated.

  “Okay, Tammy. The package and then I’ll go join my friends.”

  “They seem to have deserted you, so why don’t you have a seat.” Hannah motioned to an empty chair. Gwen scowled and sat down.

  “The package – you have it right?”

  “What’s in the package anyway?” With effort, Tamar kept her voice low and neutral. “Why give it to me instead of holding on to it? I’m just curious.”

  “Look, it’s none of your business. Where is it?” Gwen’s high-pitched voice was loud even in the crowded store. Hannah and Tamar looked around and smiled at the nearby customers who had turned to look at the commotion.

  “If you don’t want your friends and everyone else here to know your business, keep your voice down.” Hannah said.

  “We’re trying to help you but we also want to make sure we get the package to the right person. You said yesterday the package belonged to Dirk? If that’s the case…”

  Fuming at Tamar’s remarks, Gwen looked around before she answered. “Can�
��t you see that Dirk is a con artist? Don’t you girls know anything about identity theft or how people can take a little bit of information and then blackmail innocent people. Plain and simple.”

  “Gwen, what exactly did he tell you? Did he ask for money?”

  “What do you mean? Why else would he ask me about my family, tell me he had information I might be interested in, if not for money? That package must have pictures he thinks are worth something. All made up on Photoshop or something. Anyone with a computer can do that.”

  “Did Dirk say what was in the package?”

  “Geesh! He didn’t have to. He kept looking at the package and talking about my family. What else could it be?” Gwen flung her arms out, knocking over Hannah’s hot chocolate. She tsk-tskd, called to her friends, and stormed out, almost colliding with Gramps.

  Hannah jumped up and Tamar grabbed some napkins. They cleaned up the mess and Hannah wiped off her pants. Gramps immediately joined them.

  “I assume that was your friend who practically ran me over on her way out?” Gramps stopped short when he spotted Matt and Dylan walking toward the girls’ table. “What are they doing here?”

  Gramps glared at them. Matt explained, “Hannah mentioned the meeting and we didn’t like the idea of them meeting her alone. We didn’t get involved.”

  Gramps shook his head. “I planned to be here, but got delayed. Grands told me you girls came on your own. I guess it’s a good thing you boys were here, just in case.” Turning to Tamar, he asked, “Learn anything?”

  “She’s not the most graceful person or the friendliest?”

  “We asked her what was in the package. As far as I can tell, she doesn’t have a clue. She’s making all sorts of assumptions though.”

  “So Gramps, what next? Do I call and try to set up another meeting?”

  “I don’t know, Tamar. Let me check with the captain. Your parents should get in around 4 o’clock. What are your plans for the rest of the day? ” He looked around the table as he spoke.