A Short Time to Die

by Susan Alice Bickford

  “You do have a certain family look, Mr. Harris,” Vanessa said. “I would have picked you for a Harris anywhere.”

  Larry’s face remained neutral as he continued to stare at Vanessa. “Hello, Paul.”

  Paul shuffled his feet and gave a little wave. “’Lo, Larry. Chip asked me to drive these California detectives down to see you because they found the bodies of Louise and Troy.”

  Larry leaned forward across the table and inhaled deeply. “Ahhh. Nice to smell a woman, even if you aren’t white. I don’t get that often.”

  Vanessa kept her game face planted, her eyes on Larry. She gathered that Jack did as well since Larry leaned back in his chair.

  “I am Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Detective Vanessa Alba and this is Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Detective Jackson Wong,” she said, in case Larry wasn’t up to speed. “As you’ve been told by the warden, the bones of your sister and her son were found at the base of a cliff in the Santa Cruz Mountains.”

  If Larry was upset about his twin sister or nephew, he hid it well as he stared back in stony silence.

  Jack picked up the thread. “They may have been killed first or tossed over alive. Either way, it appears that Louise and Troy went over that cliff naked. There was no clothing found and nothing like jewelry or watches. We believe that they went out to do some kind of business and got ambushed. We’d like to figure out what they were doing there and who killed them.”

  Larry turned his head in a slow, steady rotation, keeping his eyes on Vanessa. “I haven’t kept up with events. I don’t know why they went out there.”

  “According to Carl, your mother, Rosie, was about to die when they left town. Are you saying that no one told you that Louise and Troy were headed to California?” Vanessa asked.

  “Nope. I’m sort of out of the loop these days. Nobody tells me nothing.”

  “Somehow I don’t quite buy that. Were they going to take care of old foes one last time for Rosie, or did they go on other business?”

  Larry cleared his throat in a low growl. “I told you. I don’t know why they went. Maybe they went on a vacation.”

  “That’s the story of your life, isn’t it, Larry? You’re the big muscle but not the one who knows.”

  Larry scowled. Vanessa was happy she was on the far side of the table next to Jack, with Paul and the prison guard for backup.

  Jack spoke up. “You were always happy to be the punisher. You liked that. But you needed help figuring out what to do. You didn’t mind taking a few blows. You are tough. Not like Del. Del was soft. A pretty boy. In fact, you wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for Del. You’re lucky you didn’t get the death penalty for killing Max. That was Del’s idea, wasn’t it?”

  Larry blinked and Vanessa caught a glimmer in the hooded eyes.

  “You searched the town library after Del disappeared,” she said. “Looking for the odd rare volume?”

  Larry shifted his eyes her direction.

  “Rosie figured Marly was hiding stuff she’d stolen from Del and Zeke,” he said.

  “What stuff would that be?”

  Larry shifted his weight to one side and released a noisy fart. “For the record, Del wasn’t all that bright. I knew lots of things he didn’t. I knew Del was pissed as hell with Marly. He was certain she was going to talk about family business. Like Max. She’d heard talking. Del and Zeke thought Marly needed a lesson and hinted it might be soon. And there’s that field and the ravine. If you look on the map, you’ll see those are over the hill from Denise’s house. Marly and them would have used that route all the time as a shortcut into the village. Marly knew the way across that field and those woods. Tricky places. Odd bogs and quicksand and unmarked paths. She was running for home. I’d lay money on it.”

  Vanessa stared past Larry at a crack that zigged and zagged down the far wall, like lightning striking Larry’s head. She thought of the girl with the determined eyes, trapped and scared.

  Larry yawned. His breath would have peeled paint, Vanessa thought.

  “And you think she was responsible for their deaths, is that right?”

  Larry glared at her. “Rosie figured Marly didn’t stand and take it like she deserved. It would have all been over with no fuss. She must’ve ran.”

  “Your father fired his gun and shot Del by mistake. Do you think they were just going to beat up the person they were after?”

  Larry leaned back in his chair. His grin gave Vanessa goose bumps.

  “What exactly were you looking for when you searched the library?” Vanessa asked.

  Larry took his time to answer. “Marly was always sneaking around. Her father had shown her lots of places he shouldn’t have. Things were missing. We looked in her mother’s barn and house. We looked in the library. Nothing. Didn’t matter. Rosie was sure.”

  Vanessa made several mental notes on things to check, while Jack kept the patter going.

  “Louise wanted to run things, didn’t she, Larry? Rosie had managed to hold on and run the business after your father and your uncle Vernon died. Del was dead. You were gone. Now it should have been Louise’s turn, not Carl’s. She took Troy to California to prove something—a deal, revenge . . . What was it?”

  “I. Don’t. Know. But Louise had others who backed her. Not everyone sided with Carl.”

  “Like who?” Vanessa asked.

  Larry grunted and smiled. He leaned toward Vanessa.

  “You should figure out who killed my mother. Sure, she was sick, but I’d heard she had months or a year or even more. That chemo was working. Sort of funny that Louise and Troy go missing and she ups and dies a day later, don’t you think? Her sister, Diane, was living with her. She’s a nurse. She’d know how to kill someone, quiet-like. She hated the family business. Plus, she and Carl’s wife, Betty, are best buddies. That’s what you should be looking into.”

  “Not exactly our jurisdiction, Larry. We’re from California, remember?”

  “Yeah, but Marly lives in your jurisdiction, remember? The word is that Marly and Carl did a deal. Right after Rosie died.”

  “What kind of deal?” Jack asked.

  “A truce, of course,” Larry said with a snarl. “He’d get some of that high tech money. Marly’d get protection, sitting under Carl’s wings along with those kids and her sister. No more looking over her shoulder all the time. I hear that as a bonus, her sister Charlene’s husband, Greg, will be getting out on parole a few years early. Carl knows how to pull those strings.”

  Vanessa studied Larry with new appreciation. He wasn’t a dim bulb, as others had described him, and he seemed to have his fingers on some sort of Harris pulse. On the other hand, he showed signs of a significant personality disorder and paranoia that had twisted him into a freakish, amoral monster. How many of his thoughts on Rosie, Carl, and Marly were delusions?

  “Do you think Diane killed her sister? Is that what you’d like me to tell Chip Davis?” Vanessa asked.

  “Hey. I’d like you to tell Chip that he’s a bitch. He should watch his ass. You too, Paul. I’m done,” Larry said, and crossed his arms.

  * * *

  By the time they reached the car, Paul’s color had returned to his face. He protested, less than thrilled, when Vanessa and Jack insisted on stopping to see Rosie’s sister, Diane, on their way back to Avalon. Vanessa called Diane from the car. Diane didn’t sound thrilled either.

  “She lives at Zeke and Rosie’s old place,” Paul said. “Carl lets her stay there. Not a nice spot.”

  The lanes on Route 81 were hard to discern as the snow fell, mixing with the brown slush. Vanessa was glad that Paul was driving as the winter night closed in around them.

  Closer to Avalon, they pulled off the highway onto local roads. Vanessa felt claustrophobic, hemmed in by the dense night and flying snow. She tried to follow their progress using GPS, but coverage on her cell phone was spotty.

  Paul guided the cruiser through the twists and turns up into the steep hills above Charon Springs.
The roads were narrow and rutted, filled with slush. Trees bowed over the roads like ghosts, laden with wet snow on each branch and twig.

  This place is a lot creepier than Carl’s house, Vanessa thought. They had left their weapons in the trunk while visiting Larry. Now she was glad to have her gun again, tucked under her arm.

  On the bright side, Paul wasn’t nervous. He was normally a weather vane of caution.

  Vanessa leaned forward and tapped Paul on the shoulder. “Tell us about Diane,” she said.

  Paul obliged, as if she’d pressed a button. Vanessa wondered how much else Paul might tell them if she managed to tap him on the right spot.

  “Diane Connor is Rosie’s younger sister. Never married. She’s a nurse. Much nicer than Rosie. By a long shot. She’d be in her sixties now, I guess. Rosie sucked her into that business with Elaine Fardig. Diane had only driven the car, but that almost got her sent to prison and she lost her nursing license. She moved into Rosie’s house while Rosie and them were in prison, and she stayed when Rosie got out. I guess she figured Rosie owed her something. Louise didn’t like that much.”

  “So Rosie left her that place?” Jack asked.

  Paul made a humming noise. Like waiting for the gears to mesh. “Well, that was a bit muddy. Most people thought it would go to Louise, but it might have also gone to Carl, depending on who ended up running the family.”

  “Didn’t Rosie have a will?” Vanessa asked.

  Paul skirted a large pile of drifted snow. “Not all that common with them. Or maybe there was a will and it just got lost.”

  “But Rosie died, Louise and Troy disappeared, and Carl let Diane stay in the house. Is that how it worked?”

  Paul caught Vanessa’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Pretty much, I guess.”

  “What about all that stuff Larry said about Marly Shaw and Carl? Did they make a truce? Was he saying Diane had killed Rosie?”

  “Marly left here years ago and has never come back that I know of,” Paul said, his voice soft. “If she had a truce with Carl, she’d come back to visit her mother and her friends. Larry’s crazy and it makes him mean—or maybe it’s the other way round. Marly is the nicest person in that entire family. She’s missed around here.”

  Paul’s eyes met Vanessa’s again.

  Oh. An ache shot through her heart. Mrs. Haas wasn’t Marly’s only friend in Charon Springs. Poor Paul.

  Paul turned his eyes back to the road, maneuvered around one last corner with the easy grace of a man who had grown up driving in this weather, and pulled into a large yard with a faint trace of an unplowed parking area. Castle Harris.

  This was the compound where Zeke had reigned, like his father before him. This was where crimes were plotted and fates were sealed.

  * * *

  Closer inspection revealed why Carl might have left the place alone. Even in the dark, Vanessa could see that the outbuildings sagged, and tar paper covered large sections of the main house. No Marlyfication here.

  Rosie’s—now Diane’s—mudroom was part of the kitchen. A single dim light bulb overhead revealed a wood subfloor that peeked through the clean but worn linoleum tiles. The cheap kitchen countertops were chipped and stained.

  Diane was a surprise. The pictures of Rosie had shown a tall, dark, scrawny woman, with a perpetual glare. Diane was average height and plump with clear blue eyes, a blond-gray pixie cut, and an engaging smile. She had brewed coffee and steered them to the front living room, where she had laid out cookies beside a blazing fire.

  The firelight cast a cheery facade over the sad couch and chairs. The seat of Vanessa’s chair sagged so low that her knees were higher than her bottom. The best she could say was that the house was clean and orderly.

  Jack smiled, presumably to show off his disarming personality, and repeated the story about finding Louise and Troy.

  “I’d heard you were here,” Diane said.

  “You don’t sound upset,” Jack said.

  Diane smiled, but not with her eyes. “I think most of us assumed they were dead. It does give us closure.”

  “Including ownership of this house?” Vanessa asked.

  If Diane was offended, it didn’t show. “Carl offered to let me have this place free and clear with about twenty acres. He won’t contest it. That’s very generous considering the gentrification going on these days. And now there’s the fracking. Maybe we’ll share in that if it comes to anything.”

  Jack glanced at the snow hitting the windows and pressed ahead.

  “Do you know why Louise and Troy went to California?”

  Diane pressed her lips together and frowned. “No. I knew they were on some sort of business, but I stayed out of all that shit, if you’ll pardon my language. After I got caught up in the mess with Elaine, I made it clear where my boundaries lay.”

  “You lost your license to practice as a registered nurse and received twelve months of probation, is that right?”

  Diane spoke to her hands, folded on her lap. “I’d spent a lifetime keeping out of Rosie’s messes. One night. One goddamn night she asked me to drive her someplace and I lost everything. I lost my house and my savings staying out of jail.”

  She clenched her hands into fists and then relaxed them. “But I learned to draw my lines. Now I’ve got my license back. I’m working in DeRuyter and I have this house.”

  “You looked after Rosie in those last days,” Jack said. “Are you certain she didn’t say anything about where Louise and Troy had gone?”

  Diane looked up. “Betty, Carl’s wife, helped with Rosie. She was a nurse too, and she was here the night that Rosie died, so I could go to work. I never asked Rosie about Louise and Troy and she never offered. I know that they would call her at least once a day and sometimes I had to answer the phone. But I never wanted to know. I detested them.”

  “Rosie was trying to set up Louise to be her successor. Could Louise have been on a mission of revenge?”

  “It’s hard to believe that revenge alone would be enough to retain control.” Diane studied her mug. “Rosie had so many enemies and people she hated. I’m not the expert on that.”

  “Let’s go through a few possibilities,” Vanessa said.

  Diane set down her mug and turned her palms up, as if in surrender. “I can’t even begin.”

  Jack ticked off the list. “Carl? Judson Harris, Carl’s son? Elaine Fardig? Marly Shaw?” He continued with several more names.

  Diane raised her shoulders. “Who knows? She complained about all those folks and many more. It’s not as if there was one demon.”

  “You’re very different from your sister, aren’t you?” Vanessa said. She struggled to pull herself forward out of the chair, for more coffee.

  “I hope so. I also hope I’ll have a little bit of money to update a couple of things here. The Harrises were never rich. They were like all of us. This place was a bit better when Zeke was alive. He had a couple of big cars and trucks. He and his sons called all the shots. Everyone was beholden to them. Rosie loved the power and she had a huge chip on her shoulder. She got to act out, but that didn’t scratch the itch. It just seemed to make her better at acting out. I saw that. I was eight years younger. I decided to get out. I became a nurse. I lived in Manlius.”

  “Still . . .” Jack said.

  “Ah. This place is like quicksand,” Diane said. “It doesn’t kill you outright, but it holds on to you until you die of starvation or hypothermia.”

  “You survived,” Vanessa said.

  “Oh? I’m still here. Stuck.”

  Vanessa stopped fighting the chair and leaned back. “Larry thinks Carl and Marly made a deal after you killed Rosie. His belief is that Rosie wouldn’t have died for at least another year because the chemo was working. When Louise and Troy didn’t call or show up, you saw your opportunity. You’re a nurse. You’d know how to take care of things.”

  Diane laughed. The laugh faded and she put her face in her hands. “Oh shit. If that idiot ever gets out of p
rison, I’ll be dead meat. But he’s full of crap. He wants to chase this trail of Del and Zeke and Rosie. She was gravely ill. You can go get her records. I won’t stand in your way. She had Stage Four lung cancer. The chemo was working on keeping her alive, but not cured. She was still a drinker and a smoker. She’d started doing heavy pain medications and the chemo was wearing her down. She was very weak. She was just one minor infection or health incident away from death. Her doctors will tell you that and that’s what happened. The stress of the illness and the medications caused a heart attack. No one killed her.”

  “You were here when she died?”

  “I had left for my night shift. Betty was here. When I got back, Rosie was asleep and in the morning she was dead.”

  “Was there an autopsy?”

  “The coroner did a basic examination since she died unattended. He agreed.”

  “Was she cremated?” Jack asked.

  “Oh yes.”

  “What about Marly?” Vanessa asked.

  “Marly? I hardly knew her. I’ve never heard about any deal with Carl. I don’t know where Larry gets that notion. She’s long gone from this place, lucky stiff.”

  Vanessa made a final note on her pad and heaved herself up and out of the collapsing chair.

  “We need to leave now, Ms. Connor. Thank you for your time and the coffee on this cold night,” she said.

  * * *

  Back in the car, Vanessa slumped in the seat, exhausted.

  She longed for a glass of wine and a long hot bath and room service.

  Vanessa said good-bye to Jack as they passed his door and he slid his card key into the lock. As she opened the door to her room, she saw a sock lying on the floor by the door. She paused, frozen by the sight of something that wasn’t right. What the . . . ?

  She heard a noise over her shoulder and turned. Jack was running toward her, his face pale and gun drawn.

  “Vanessa. Wait. Wait. Something’s wrong. Don’t go in. Someone broke into my room.”

  Vanessa pulled out her gun as Jack took up position on the opposite side of the doorway, his back to the wall, gun pointed down, ready for action. The two exchanged signals. On the silent count of three, Vanessa kicked the door open and covered Jack as he moved into the room.