Bessie followed her through an open sliding door into the glass-walled room that jutted out into the garden. It was small, but it was cosy, clean and comfortably furnished with overstuffed couches.
“Have a seat,” Joney offered. “I’ve a lasagne in the oven; it won’t be long now.”
Bessie sat down tentatively on one of the couches and then smiled and slid back into the seat. It was at least twice as comfortable as it looked.
It wasn’t long. Bessie was loath to give up her seat in the sunny conservatory only a few moments after she had sat down. The delicious smells that filtered in from the kitchen, however, had her quickly changing her mind.
“I hope everyone likes red wine,” Joney said, as she poured some into glasses that were already in place around the small kitchen table.
“Sounds good to me,” Bessie answered. Bahey looked at the bottle’s label and frowned, but she didn’t complain. Joney caught the look and grinned at her sister.
“Sorry sis, I’m sure you’re used to much nicer stuff at the Pierces’, but this is what I can afford.”
Bahey took a sip and smiled at her sister. “Actually, it isn’t bad,” she admitted. “It’s not a brand I’ve heard of, but it tastes okay.”
Joney laughed. “I just buy whatever’s on offer at ShopFast,” she told them. “This was last week’s special purchase. If you bought two bottles, you got a third one free. I figured if it was horrible I could just cook with it.”
The conversation over lunch wandered through the threesome’s shared past and then into each woman’s individual life story. Bessie heard all about Joney’s long teaching career and her wonderful son who was something important in London. She was more interested in hearing about Bahey’s life with the Pierce family, but those stories revealed nothing she thought was relevant to the murders. After sharing a few stories from her own past, Bessie decided that it was time to shift the conversation back to what she really wanted to discuss.
“I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Pierce must be ever so pleased that you’re there for them in their time of need,” she said to Bahey as Joney passed around profiteroles and chocolate sauce.
“Well,” Bahey said slowly, “I guess they are.” She shrugged. “It’s hard to tell what they’re thinking. I guess they’re just so upset that they aren’t really thinking at all.”
“Well, at least Donny must be happy to have you around,” Bessie persisted. “Especially now that he’s lost Samantha.”
Bahey snorted. “Ha, I can’t say he’s all that broken up about that,” she replied. “More like now he has plenty of room to move in on our Miss Vikky.”
Bessie tried to look as shocked as Joney did. “He wouldn’t chase after his own brother’s widow, would he?” Joney asked.
“He’s chasing, all right,” Bahey answered grimly. “And she isn’t exactly trying to run away, if you know what I mean.”
Bessie shook her head. “I thought she was really devastated by her husband’s death,” she said sadly.
“She’s just looking out for number one,” Bahey told her.
“What I don’t understand,” Joney chimed in, “is why she’s acting so posh and snobby. She’s a Foxdale girl, after all.”
“She is?” Bessie gasped.
Joney and Bahey both nodded. “I thought I recongised her when I first got to the house, so I took a few photos to show to Joney,” Bahey told Bessie.
“I recognised her right away,” Joney picked up the story. “She was born and raised right here. I even had her in my class when she was about seven or eight. She was always looking for the easy way out, even back then,” Joney said in a disgusted voice.
Bessie frowned. “Well, she certainly acted like she’d never been on the island before when I met her.”
“The family moved to Liverpool before she hit her teens,” Joney told her. “I suppose she might not really remember much about the island.”
“And she was awfully upset, that first time I saw her,” Bessie added.
“Yeah, because her meal ticket had just run out,” Bahey said caustically.
“Bahey!” Joney said sharply. “I know you don’t like the woman, but give her credit for some feeling. She’d just found her husband’s body, after all.”
“Unless she was the one who stabbed him. If she was, then she’d just rediscovered her husband’s body,” Bahey countered.
“Surely if they got into a fight, the man was strong enough to get the knife away from her?” Bessie asked.
“If they were fighting,” Bahey answered. “But what if they were having a nice romantic stroll and then she just snuggled up to him and shoved the knife in?”
Bessie shuddered. “I suppose that could have happened,” she said.
“Besides, I overheard Inspector Kelly telling Mr. Pierce that his son was pretty heavily drugged when he died. The Inspector seemed to be suggesting that anyone could have killed him; Daniel was barely conscious and certainly not in any state to fight back.”
Bessie drew a sharp breath. That was something she definitely hadn’t known. No wonder Inspector Kelly was so focussed on the drug angle.
“Did he take drugs often?” she asked.
“Not when I was living with them,” Bahey replied. “Neither of my boys was dumb enough to get mixed up with anything like that while I was around. But I can’t say as I know what’s happened since I left.”
“So the murder could have been related to drugs?” Joney asked.
“I suppose,” Bahey shrugged. “But I still think they should start by looking close to home.”
“And the widow is your favourite suspect for the murders?” Bessie asked her friend.
“Either the widow, or.…” Bahey paused and then looked around furtively. After a long and, to Bessie, overly dramatic pause, she continued. “I do wonder a bit about Donny’s wife.”
“Donny’s wife?” Bessie said questioningly. “He wasn’t married to Samantha, was he?”
“No,” Bahey said excitedly. “He couldn’t marry Samantha, even if he’d wanted to, and he can’t marry Miss Vikky, either. He’s already got a wife.”
“What you are going on about?” Joney asked.
“Donny is already married,” Bahey repeated herself. “He got married here, on the island, about two days after his eighteenth birthday.”
Bessie frowned. Now that Bahey mentioned it, she had a very vague recollection of some sort of rumours from back then about the Pierce family.
“He eloped with the oldest Kelly girl,” Bahey reminded Bessie. “She was nineteen and already had a reputation for being, um, fast.”
“The oldest Kelly girl?” Bessie was putting two and two together quickly. “That would be Inspector Patrick Kelly’s older sister?”
“That’s the one,” Bahey nodded, glancing around again as if she was worried someone would overhear her.
Her sister laughed. “We’re all alone in my house,” she teased. “Who are you looking for?”
Bahey frowned. “I really shouldn’t be talking out of turn,” she said slowly. “Mr. and Mrs. Pierce would probably never forgive me for talking about them like this.”
“But they’ll never know,” Bessie soothed. “And you can’t stop now. You have to tell me what happened to Maeve Kelly.”
“That was her name,” Bahey beamed at Bessie. “You are so much better at remembering things than I am. I had forgotten her Christian name. Of course, it was never, ever, to be said in the Pierce household, so maybe that isn’t surprising.”
“Finish the story,” Joney demanded, pouring the last of the wine into their glasses.
Bahey flushed. “Well, the pair ran off and got married in Port Erin, I think it was. Mr. Pierce and young Daniel went after them, and when they caught up with them at some cheap bed and breakfast down there, they brought Donny to their London townhouse and left Maeve there. No one ever talks about it.”
“What happened to Maeve, then? Are you sure they’re still married? There must be more to t
ell.” Bessie threw out questions as her thoughts tumbled over themselves. Bahey had to know more.
“Well,” Bahey said slowly, “I was something of a confidante of young Donny back then,” she told the others. “He told me that he made his father set up a trust fund for Maeve so that she was ‘looked after.’ He also told me that he wasn’t ever planning to divorce her. He was hoping, at least then, that when his father died, he could win her back. Of course, that was nearly twenty years ago; he may well have changed his mind.”
“And divorced her,” Joney added.
“Oh no, I know they aren’t divorced. Maeve called right after Danny was killed and wanted to talk to Donny. I, um, overheard a bit of the conversation, and Maeve made it clear that they were still legally married. From what I heard, neither of them ever felt the need to make their split legal, although Maeve is clearly the chief beneficiary of their staying together.”
“If Donny had been the one who died, I could see Maeve being a suspect,” Bessie said slowly. “She must have some right to make a claim towards his estate if she’s been his legal wife all these years. But she couldn’t possibly have had any claim on Daniel’s fortune. Why would she kill him?”
“Well,” Bahey answered. “From what I, um, accidentally overheard....” she paused, blushing, but Bessie simply smiled at her encouragingly. “I mean, there could be lots of reasons. All I know for sure is that she's definitely on the island, even though when I talked to her mother recently she said Maeve hasn't visited her for years. I actually saw Maeve in Douglas last week when I was shopping. She ignored me, but I’m sure it was her.”
“I still don't see any clear motive,” Bessie answered after a moment’s thought.
“What if she thought she was killing old man Pierce instead of young Daniel?” Joney suggested. “Or maybe she's planning to kill Donny as well but she wanted to make sure Donny inherited all of Daniel's money first. Or....”
Bahey held up a hand. “That's enough melodramatic plotting,” she said. “I just think it's interesting that Donny's wife is on the island but nobody seems to have questioned her.”
“Perhaps Inspector Kelly questioned his sister himself,” Bessie suggested.
“Whatever happened with Daniel, she certainly had a motive for killing Samantha,” Bahey added.
“Why?” Bessie asked. “Was Donny getting serious about Samantha?”
“I doubt it,” Bahey replied. “But Maeve may not have known that.”
“Anyway, she had more motive for killing Samantha than she did for killing Daniel,” Bahey continued.
“I don't think she had any motive for killing either of them,” Joney interjected. “I still think it was that Vikky that did it.”
“So neither of you believes it was drug-related?” Bessie asked.
Bahey shook her head. “I can’t see the Daniel I knew getting mixed up in something like that,” she told Bessie.
“People do change,” Joney said with a sigh.
“You were surprised that he got married,” Bessie added. “Perhaps he’d changed more than you realised.”
Bahey shrugged. “I don't know. You may be right,” she told her. “The whole family seems to have changed in the last three years. Mr. Pierce is drinking all the time. Mrs. Pierce is keeping herself medicated to the eyeballs. Daniel married that gold-digging hussy. Now Donny barely speaks to anyone other than his dead brother's wife.”
She sighed deeply. “I'm sorry now that I offered to help out. They all insist they want me there, but no one seems to know what I should be doing.”
“So leave,” Joney suggested. “You have a life of your own now. You’re not dependent on them like you were all those years. Tell them you're going back to your own life.”
“It isn't that easy,” Bahey sighed. “I don't want to leave them until Daniel and Samantha's killer is behind bars. Leaving them in the middle of this crisis feels wrong. They were like family to me for so many years.”
“Are you sure the same person killed them both?” Bessie asked another question that occurred to her.
“I don't know,” Bahey's head sank into her hands. “I can't figure out any motive for anyone to kill either of them, let alone both of them.”
“Well, I certainly hope the same person killed them both,” Joney said stoutly. “One murderer running around on the island is more than enough!”
Bessie nodded her agreement and then changed the subject. Bahey looked exhausted and upset and Bessie didn't feel like she should push her any further. The afternoon had already given Bessie lots to talk about with Inspector Rockwell and the others later.
A short time later Bessie glanced at her watch and was amazed to see that it was nearly five o'clock. The afternoon had flown past.
“What time did you say you had to be back by?” she gently reminded Bahey.
“Oh. good heavens,” Bahey exclaimed. “I told Mr. Pierce that we would have his car and driver back by five. I’d better call the driver. Hopefully, we won’t be too late.”
Moments later the fancy black car was back and Bessie and Bahey wasted little time with goodbyes.
“Thank you for a lovely afternoon,” Bessie called to Joney as she climbed into the car. “We must do it again soon.”
“Yes, I'd like that,” Joney answered.
Then they were on their way, sweeping out of Foxdale and heading towards Laxey before Bessie could collect her thoughts.
“That was very nice,” Bahey said, as the pair settled in for the twenty-minute journey.
“It was lovely,” Bessie replied. “Your sister's home is very nice and she's a wonderful cook.”
“Next time you'll have to come to my apartment,” Bahey told her. “I'm a pretty good cook too and I buy better wine.”
Bessie laughed. “I'm sure I won't be able to tell the difference,” she said, “but I hope we can do it again soon.”
The pair lapsed into silence for a short while, each lost in their own thoughts.
“Bessie?” Bahey broke the silence.
“Yes?”
“I'm really worried about Mrs. Pierce. She seems so upset about Daniel's death, but she seemed weirdly pleased when the police told her that Samantha had been killed. I know she didn't like the woman. She's never liked anyone her sons have brought home. But she seemed, well, off somehow.”
“You said the doctor is keeping her medicated,” Bessie said soothingly. “She's probably just a little bit out if touch with reality, that's all.”
“I don't know,” Bahey said doubtfully. “She told the police she was home all day yesterday, but I know she went out for a little while. I didn't see her leave, but I saw her when she was coming back in. She said she'd just gone for a little walk, but she was all windblown and wet as if she'd walked a long way or something.”
Bessie was silent as she thought about the "something" that Mrs. Pierce might have been doing.
“She wouldn't have killed her son,” Bahey said. “But if she thought Samantha had something to do with his death....” she trailed off, looking at Bessie with an anguished expression.
Bessie patted her hand, trying to reassure her friend. “Look,” she said finally, “Hugh is staying with me at the moment. Why don't I mention all of this to him, and he can figure it all out?”
Bessie wasn't sure why, but she didn't feel like mentioning that she would also be talking to Inspector Rockwell about everything she had learned that afternoon. Perhaps that was because Bahey knew Hugh. She expected that the other woman would feel more comfortable with the idea of Bessie talking to someone she knew, rather than to the inspector from “across.”
Bahey sighed. “I don't want to get Mrs. Pierce into any trouble,” she told Bessie. “But I do think her behaviour has been rather odd since Danny died.”
Bessie nodded. “I'll talk to Hugh tonight,” she promised.
The few minutes that were left in the journey passed silently. Back at her cottage, Bessie was quick to thank both Bahey and the driver before t
hey headed back to Thie yn Traie.
Inside her little home, Bessie checked her answering machine. She listened to the ten messages, most of which could be immediately deleted. The few that mattered were quickly dealt with, including a call to Doona to confirm the plans for later.
Apparently Inspector Rockwell was bringing dinner and pudding tonight. Doona told Bessie to expect them all around seven. Remembering the dust and disorder at Joney's house, Bessie spent a few minutes tidying her kitchen before sinking into a comfortable chair with another book from her latest shipment. Time flew past as she lost herself in the pages and before she knew it the doorbell was ringing.
Chapter Nine
“I brought Indian food,” Inspector Rockwell announced as Bessie showed him and the others in. “I got a bunch of different things, so hopefully there will be something here that everyone likes.”
Bessie pulled out plates as the inspector began to pull box after box of food from the bags he had brought in with him.
“Did you invite the rest of the constabulary to join us?” Doona joked as Rockwell ran out of counter space with two bags still unopened.
“Just pile the rest on the table,” Bessie suggested. “We can fill our plates and then move the boxes.”
Hugh’s eyes lit up when he saw the generous spread. “Wow, I’ve only tried about half of these before. This is great.”
Rockwell frowned at the man. “Just remember that this meeting is totally off the record,” he told him sternly. “If word gets out at the station that I’m buying dinner for certain members of my staff after hours, I could find myself in trouble.”
“Why don’t Hugh and I contribute towards the meal?” Doona offered. “Surely there’s nothing wrong with us all going in together to get some food after a long day’s work?”
Rockwell hesitated and then nodded. “I didn’t mean for you guys to chip in, but it might make things less complicated if you paid for part of it.”
Doona and Hugh were both quick to offer some cash to the inspector, who pocketed it with obvious reluctance.
Aunt Bessie Assumes: An Isle of Man Cozy Mystery Page 13
