by Sandy Vale
Alex tapped his wine glass for silence. “I’d like to make a toast to my wonderful sweet grandmother. My book is ready to be published and I’m dedicating it to you grandma. You’ve always encouraged me and kept me writing. Thank you.” He gave Dottie a huge hug and a kiss while everyone sipped their drinks in honor of Dottie’s birthday.
With tears in her eyes, Dottie barely managed to reply. “Thank you. You are al such dear sweet friends. I couldn’t be happier.” Kitty motioned for Maddie to fol ow her and help with the candles for the cake.
“Ready Maddie?” Kitty whispered.
“Ready. Happy birthday Dottie. Do you need help blowing out your candles?”
“I’d love that Maddie.”
Maddie whispered to Mia. “Can I decorate the cupcakes now?”
“Of course you can. I’l get you set up at the counter.” Mia put a plate of cupcakes and two containers of frosting, one pink and one purple, in front of Maddie. “Here you go. Have fun sweetheart. Who wants some cake?”
Kitty glanced at Tina and gave a slight nod. “Nicole. Come sit over here with us. I think I got off on the wrong foot the other day. It was such a shock. I’m sure you want to know more about the farm.”
“Uh, yeah, thanks Kitty.” Nicole sat down with her cake.
“Wow, this is the best carrot cake I’ve ever had. Did you make it?” Nicole mumbled with her mouth ful of cake.
“No. Mia made it. It is good, isn’t it? It’s the recipe everyone in town uses. So, what are your plans?”
“I like it here in Wil ow Fal s. I’m hoping to find out more about my grandmother.”
“And what about the farm?” Kitty met her gaze straight on.
“Wel , I’m not much of a farmer so I hope you wouldn’t mind, but I’d probably sel my share of the farm. Of course, I’d give you first consideration.” Nicole was feeling smug thinking she had Kitty in a corner.
Tina blurted out. “Oh, I guess you didn’t know.”
“Know what?” Nicole fidgeted on the couch between Kitty and Tina.
“The farm can’t be divided.” Kitty explained.
“What do you mean?”
“Wel , my grandmother sold the development rights after grandpa died and it has to remain as farmland. Al in one piece.”
“And what about al the taxes Kitty?” Tina added.
“Yeah, the taxes are pretty high. I’m hoping that I can grow and produce enough to cover the taxes at least.”
“So, this farm is worthless?” Nicole sounded disgusted.
“Not at al . It’s a great farm. It’s worth the world to me. I grew up here after my parents died.” Kitty patted Nicole’s arm. “But if you don’t like to get your hands dirty, I guess it’s not worth much. That’s a lot for you to digest, isn’t it?” Kitty sounded sympathetic.
“I’m not working on a dirty farm. That wasn’t part of the plan.” Nicole realized she said more than she should have.
Tina wasn’t going to let her get away with that mistake. “Plan? What was your plan Nicole?”
“Nothing. I didn’t mean it that way. I think I’l head home now.” Nicole got up without a thanks or good bye and walked out the door.
Frank had observed the interaction and was curious what was going on. He watched Nicole walk to her car and motioned Kitty to come look out the window. “That looks like the car we saw the day my tire got slashed.” He stared at Kitty. “What was she doing there that day?”
“I don’t know yet but I’l figure this out.”
“What did you say to her to get her to bolt out of here like that?”
“I cal ed her bluff about the farm but put my spin on it. Once she heard about the taxes and that the farm can’t be divided, she saw her little scheme start to crumble. I’l bet she’s on her way right now to confront Sheila about this. I wonder if that detective Harry knows more than he told me.
Do you think he’s mixed up in this too Frank?”
“That’s an interesting question. It certainly is odd that he had that information on Nicole right at his fingertips. It’s almost like he wanted you to find the connection between Sheila and Nicole. Maybe we should pay him another visit?”
“My thoughts exactly. Tomorrow?”
“I’l have to see if Sheila is around to watch Maddie.”
“She could stay here with Corey.”
Tina pushed in between Kitty and Frank. “Did you forget there’s a party going on? At your house?” Tina turned Kitty away from the window and her thoughts of Nicole. For the moment.
Chapter 8
“Ready Kitty?” Frank asked after he arrived with Maddie.
“I’m ready. Come on Maddie. Let’s find Corey. You get to help her with Henry and Poco this morning.” Maddie ran ahead into the barn. “Henry. I’m here.”
Frank looked amazed at Maddie’s enthusiasm. “I can’t get over the thril she gets seeing that pony. What’s the excitement?”
“Don’t worry about understanding it Frank. Just enjoy it. Maddie loves animals and has a special bond with Henry. Don’t forget, they talk to each other. Henry is her friend. Everyone needs a friend they can trust and count on.” Kitty tugged Frank’s arm. “Let’s get going.”
“I want to stop at my old house first and see if we can find any more information that Blake may have stored there.”
“Did you talk to Sheila about watching Maddie?”
“She said she was busy today. She’s up to something.”
Frank slowed down. “Here we are.” Instead of stopping in front of his house, he accelerated. “That was Sheila’s car. I don’t want to go in now.
We’l wait down the street and watch until she leaves.”
“The front door is opening. It’s not Sheila coming out. It’s Nicole.” Kitty turned and looked at Frank.
“Sheila is coming out too. It looks like they’re arguing. I wish we could hear them.”
“It doesn’t look like they’re carrying anything. They must not have found whatever they were after.” Kitty whispered. “Let’s fol ow them. We can come back to the house later.”
Frank stayed at a safe distance behind Sheila hoping she didn’t recognize his Jeep.
Sheila’s car took a few turns then pul ed to a stop at B & H Investigations.
Frank looked at Kitty with a shocked expression. “This is certainly interesting. Are they al working together? Where did Blake fit into this group?
Let’s go back to the house. We can stop back here later to talk to Harry.”
“I’m going to park down the street a little in case they come back. We can scoot out the back door if we hear anything.” Frank parked and led Kitty back to his house.
“Frank. Let’s look in your office again. Blake hid papers in your mother’s recipe box. Did you have anything else that he might think would be a safe hiding place?”
“We took al my boxes of files the last time. Let’s check the computer.”
“I’l do that. You look through the file cabinet again.” Kitty sat at the desk and waited for the computer to boot up. “Frank, I remember Harry tel ing me that Blake was working on some investigations that Harry didn’t know about. Is that normal? They were partners.”
“It depends on how they set up the client list. I would assume there would be an overal understanding of who the agency was working for but the details might not be shared unless there was a need for that. It does sound unusual if Harry didn’t even know about the clients. Maybe Blake was working on something independent of the agency.”
“Take a look at this.” Kitty excitedly pointed to the screen. “Here’s a folder labeled recipes.” She clicked to open it holding her breath. “Darn.
Looks like real recipes. Was Blake interested in cooking? Or could these be Sheila’s?” Kitty leaned back in the chair so Frank could get a better look at the screen.
“Sheila had her own laptop. Let’s look at a few.”
“Soups, Salads, Veggie, Meat, Dessert, Miscel aneous. Open the miscel aneous fi
le.” Kitty clicked to open it. What is this? Some kind of code?” Kitty slid over so Frank could pul up another chair and get a closer look.
“Mystery Stew. Pinch of H, pinch of N, pinch of S. Dangerously hot. Serve with caution.” They stared at each other. It looks like Blake knew something and he was trying to hide from his partner, Harry, and maybe Sheila too. Let’s go back to Harry’s office.” Kitty turned off the computer and put everything back exactly the way it had been when they came in. She didn’t want Sheila to know someone had been snooping around.
They double checked the room and headed down the stairs just as they saw Sheila and Nicole heading toward the front door.
“Quick. We’l go out the back door.” Frank pul ed Kitty’s arm and they snuck out of the house and ran through backyards before turning to the street where Frank’s car was parked. They slid into the Jeep letting out a big gasp. “That was close.”
“Frank? I can’t find my phone. I must have dropped it.” She looked at Frank. “Or left it on Blake’s desk.” Kitty panicked. “We have to wait til they leave and take a look for it.”
Frank started the Jeep and drove away. “Calm down. There’s nothing we can do now. We’l make a visit to Harry first, then come back.”
“Wel , wel , wel . I was wondering how long it would take you to stop by again.” Harry motioned for Kitty and Frank to have a seat in his crowded office. “What can I do for you? It certainly has been a busy morning.” Harry sat back with a smug look on his face.
“I won’t beat around the bush. We have some interesting papers from Blake. One is on you Harry.” Kitty watched Harry’s grin leave his face.
“I want to know what Sheila and Nicole are up to. You’ve been helping them.” Kitty didn’t take her eyes off Harry’s face. He blinked.
“They’re after money from you. To buy out that share of the farm your grandfather left Nicole’s grandmother.”
“You and I both know that’s a pile of crap. Did you do the research for them? They’l be wanting their money back for that investigation.” Kitty got up, then turned back to Harry. “Thanks for the file on Nicole. That was very helpful.” She left his office with Frank hustling to catch up.
“Wait.” Harry cal ed from his office.
Kitty stopped and waited for him to continue.
“That file from Blake? It belongs to me. You need to return it.”
Kitty chuckled. “Yeah, right. Don’t hold your breath.”
Frank opened the Jeep door for Kitty. “You have nerves of steel. I’m impressed. You didn’t give away anything and Blake has to be wondering what else is in that file. Good work Kitty. I’m glad I’m on your side.”
“Let’s see if we can find my phone.”
“The coast is clear. I don’t see Sheila’s car. We can retrace our steps and cal your phone.
Kitty fol owed behind Frank looking careful y along the path they had taken. Frank cal ed the phone. “Listen. I hear something.” They ran to the back door and heard Kitty’s phone ringing in the grass.
Frank handed it to Kitty. “Your lucky day. Let’s get out of here.”
“We need to take a close look at the file that I found in the recipe box.” Frank’s phone rang. “Hel o? . . . Maddie is gone? What are you talking about? . . . Nicole? . . . I’m on my way.” The color drained from Frank’s face. “Nicole has Maddie. Sheila doesn’t know where they are.” The scenery was a blur as Frank raced back to Wil ow Fal s.
Sheila and Corey were waiting at Kitty’s house.
“How could you let that girl watch Maddie? She’s not responsible at al . The judge wil hear about this Frank.” Frank ignored Sheila’s ranting for the moment. “Corey. What happened? Try to remember everything exactly as it occurred.”
“I’m so sorry Frank. Nicole was here for Mia’s birthday party and I thought she and Kitty were friends. She came looking for Kitty but when I said she wasn’t here, she told me that Sheila sent her to pick up Maddie. I tried to cal Kitty’s phone but there was no answer.” Corey was distraught with worry.
“Why didn’t you cal me you stupid girl?” Sheila screamed at Corey.
“Sheila! That’s not helping. Have you tried to cal Nicole? How wel do you know her anyway?”
“She isn’t answering her phone. I haven’t known her for long. We’re just sharing an apartment.” Sheila nervously replied.
Kitty had disappeared inside to cal Nicole away from the drama. “Nicole? Where’s Maddie? . . . I’l get rid of her, just bring Maddie back to the farm.”
“Frank? Can you help me in here?”
Frank stormed into the house. “That woman knows how to push al my buttons. And she’s lying.”
“Listen. I just talked to Nicole. She’s bringing Maddie here but you have to get Sheila to leave. We have to find out what these two are up to. My hunch is that they’re in cahoots on this whole Maddie disappearing thing.”
“Thank you Kitty. It’s a good thing one of us can keep a cool head.”
Frank took a deep breath and went back outside to face Sheila. “Listen Sheila, you may as wel go back to your apartment just in case Nicole decides to bring Maddie there. Cal me if you hear anything.”
Chapter 9
Kitty used her nervous energy to make sandwiches. They had to do something while they waited for Nicole to return Maddie.
Frank paced around the kitchen. “Kitty? Do you believe what Nicole told you on the phone? Wil she actual y bring Maddie here?”
“I have to believe it for now. If she doesn’t show up, we’l try plan B, okay?”
“What’s plan B?”
“Cal ing the police. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
“Here’s that folder from the recipe box and the folder I got from Harry. Let’s see if we can make any sense out of this information.” Kitty put the sandwiches and the folders on the table. “The papers al have the date they were printed. We could start with that and see if the dates make some kind of time line that works. The first one is the information on you, Frank. It lists the times you spent in Wil ow Fal s and the times you visited me at Fat Hen Farm. Was Blake fol owing you or having you fol owed? What would be the point of that?”
“Let me see that. This is strange. I never kept it a secret from Sheila that I was here. I wasn’t hiding anything from her. It’s like he was trying to find some dirt on me. But why?” Frank sounded confused. “What’s the next date?” Corey held up a paper. “This one is about you, Kitty. There’s a lot about your grandparents and the farm and when you moved in. It also has a little blurb when your husband was murdered.” Corey looked up at Kitty and Frank. “When did you two meet?”
“Frank was investigating a car theft ring in Wil ow Fal s when my husband was found dead in my barn. Everything was connected. I found some key evidence which impressed Frank. Romantic, huh?” Kitty smiled at Frank.
“Whatever works.” Corey said shaking her head.
“The page on Nicole is the next date. There’s not much here. Her grandmother, Becky moving to Connecticut from Wil ow Fal s, Vermont. The baby being born. Becky’s daughter died in childbirth.” Kitty looked around the table. “That must have been Nicole’s mother. Nicole was raised by her grandmother? Sheila reconnecting with Nicole when Nicole’s grandmother died. Is it the same as the information Harry gave me?” Kitty put the two papers next to each other. “Not exactly. Blake’s file is more detailed. Blake must have kept a short version at the office or Harry was doing his own investigation for some reason.”
Frank picked up the next page. “This one is about Sheila. Blake was fol owing her too? She met with Harry a lot.” Frank looked up. “This is odd.” Max barked and went to the door.
“It’s Nicole with Maddie.” Frank sounded relieved.
“Daddy, daddy. Nicole took me out for ice cream. I had chocolate with sprinkles on top.” Nicole looked guiltily at Frank. “I hope that’s okay?”
“The ice cream is okay. Taking her was not. What were you thinking?” Anger l
aced his voice.
“I’m so sorry. I was mad at Sheila and I didn’t think about how you would worry. Maddie’s a lot of fun. A great kid. We had fun didn’t we Maddie?”
“It was so much fun daddy. Can I take Nicole out to the barn and show her Henry?” Maddie looked at Frank with her big eyes and chocolate covered mouth.
“Sure. Go ahead to the barn.”
“Come on Corey. You should come too.” Maddie was al smiles.
Kitty put her arm around Frank’s waist. “Maybe Nicole isn’t the problem. I should talk to her and see what she can tel me about Sheila.”
“Or else she’s a very good actress.” Frank said with disgust.
“You should take Maddie home and I’l see if I can get some information from Nicole. You need to let Sheila know you have Maddie. Her reaction might give you a clue if Nicole and Sheila planned this together to make you look bad.”
“You’re right. I hope Nicole sheds some light on al these strange events.”
***
Kitty poured two cups of tea and carried them to the living room.
Nicole was sitting at the edge of the couch. “Why are you being nice to me Kitty?”
“I want to give you a chance to explain what’s going on Nicole. I was shocked when you first approached me but I’ve had some time to think about what you told me and I want to get to the bottom of it.”
Nicole accepted the tea, leaning back against the soft couch cushions. She gazed out the window at the view of the fields and the river.
“This is a peaceful spot. I can see why you like it. You grew up here? With your parents?”
“My parents were kil ed in a car crash when I was thirteen. I moved here to live with my grandparents. I always loved the farm.” Kitty sat back, relaxing.
“I didn’t know that. My mom died when I was born. I never knew her. My dad was never in the picture either. My grandmother raised me.” Nicole sat up. “It’s been exciting to meet the women who knew grandma when she was young. When she lived here. She never talked about the past.”
