by J A Whiting
“What were the rental people like? Did someone rent it for a full year?”
“No.” Lloyd scowled again and Lin wondered if that was his usual expression. She felt badly for Olive having to live with such a sour puss. “A family rented it for the summer. So much noise over there, a bunch of kids always shouting in the backyard.”
Olive made a face at her husband’s comments. “I liked it. The yard was full of life. In the off-season, a writer and her husband rented it September through March. Then a single man took over for April and May.” She scrunched up her nose. “I didn’t care for him.”
“Then that family brought their noise back with them in the summer.” Lloyd grunted. “I have to get back to work.” He turned abruptly and moved down the hallway with heavy steps.
Lin watched him go and then looked at Olive with a friendly expression. She hoped that the woman would continue their conversation for a bit longer.
“Don’t mind, Lloyd.” Olive waved her hand in his direction. “He’s an old fuss-budget. He has a very rigid way of thinking about the world.”
Lin wanted to ask Olive how on earth she could stand living with him, but thought better of it.
Olive nodded to the house next door. “The house just sat idle for almost the whole year while it was up for sale.”
Lin said, “I wonder why George Lyons didn’t rent the house that last year.”
Olive gave a shrug. “He probably thought it would sell quickly and didn’t want to have a rental agreement to honor that might slow the sale. He probably just wanted to unload the place.”
“Did you ever see any suspicious activity next door?” So far the conversation wasn’t shedding any light on how the bone might have ended up in the farmhouse’s backyard. “Somebody lurking who didn’t belong there? Lights on when they weren’t supposed to be?”
Olive shook her head. “I’d see somebody walking around the house, but Lloyd always said it was the real estate agent or a property manager checking up on it.” She laughed. “I was ready to call the police one night though. I saw the light of a flashlight in the yard, but it turned out to be Lloyd.”
Lin’s eyes narrowed. “Lloyd was over there?”
Olive smiled. “Imagine the police showing up and it’s my own husband that I called in about.”
“Why was Lloyd in the backyard?”
“He said he thought he heard someone over there … he thought he saw a light in the yard.”
Lin cocked her head. “He wasn’t concerned for his safety? If it was an intruder?”
Olive batted the air with her hand. “Lloyd does things in his own way.”
Lin wondered what else Lloyd might do in his own way. She forced a smile. “When did that happen?”
“Oh, months ago.”
They talked for a few more minutes and then Lin thanked her for her time and started down the front steps. Thinking of something, she stopped. “You mentioned you didn’t like the man who rented the farmhouse in April and May. What bothered you about him?”
Olive’s expression darkened. “He was unfriendly, abrupt. I went over with some cookies to welcome him and he just poked his head out of the door. He only opened it a crack, like he was trying to hide something. He gave me a bad feeling.”
Lin waited to see if she might add to her comments, but the woman had a faraway look on her face and didn’t say any more. “Thank you for talking with me,” Lin said.
“You know,” Olive said slowly.
Lin made eye contact with her.
“I thought I saw that guy in the yard after he’d moved out.” Olive gestured to the farmhouse. “It was dark, but there was a security light that lit up part of the yard. The guy walked briefly under the light. I thought it looked just like him.” She shook her head. “Lloyd said it was just my imagination running away with me.”
“What did you think of Lloyd’s explanation?”
Olive was quiet for a few seconds and then her jaw seemed to tighten. The woman leveled her eyes at Lin. “I thought he was wrong.”
9
Driving to meet John at the house showing, Lin couldn’t stop thinking about her visit to the farmhouse neighbors. Olive seemed to believe that she saw the creepy renter guy behind the farmhouse at night at a time when he wasn’t even renting and she reported that Lloyd was skulking around back there in the dark one night claiming to have heard and seen a possible intruder. Lin’s mind was replaying the events that had happened over the past few days and it all seemed like a carousel that was spinning faster and faster making everything a blur.
She pulled to the curb of a long driveway and she and the dog got out. In the gathering dusk, Lin could see John’s car parked at the end of the driveway near the house. The vehicle’s interior overhead light was on and she could make out John’s head bent forward. When she reached the side of the car, Lin could see that John was going over some paperwork. She said his name and waved at his window which caused John’s head to snap up as he whirled towards the sound.
When John saw Lin, he blew out a long breath. He opened the driver side door and stepped out. “I didn’t hear you come up. I’m feeling jumpy.”
Nicky gave the man a soft woof and wagged his little tail. John bent to scratch his ears.
“It’s okay.” Lin gave John’s arm a quick squeeze. “Being nervous will pass. You just need to give it time. You should make these appointments in the daylight until you feel better about going into unoccupied houses.” She looked over at the building. “It looks pretty run down.”
“It is. It’s a mess.” John locked his car and removed the house key from his briefcase. “The price is right for a person who has some money to put into renovations. Doing renovations could double or triple the value of the place.” John led the way to the front door.
“Can Nicky come in with us?”
“He is my bodyguard,” John joked as he pushed open the door.
John’s words caused a slight shiver to travel over Lin’s skin and not knowing why she had that reaction, she gave herself a shake trying to throw off the strange unease.
The house was dark and musty. The tiles in the entryway were cracked and loose. Dingy wallpaper covered the foyer walls. John fumbled for the light switch and flicked it on illuminating the living room.
Lin glanced around the sad room’s disrepair. The wood floors were scuffed and stained and a few pieces of old, torn upholstered furniture stood haphazardly about the space. The window glass was covered in grime.
John groaned. “The guy from the office was supposed to come and remove this furniture.”
Lin looked at him, the corner of her mouth turning up. “The furniture isn’t going to be the thing that stops the sale of this place.”
“It just makes it look worse.” Pulling out his phone, John made a call to the office. He paced back and forth as he talked.
Lin walked around and entered what was once used as a dining room. It was in the same sorry state as the living area. Lin leaned down near the window and peering through the grimy streaks, tried to look out into the darkening yard. She straightened up with a start. Emily Coffin stood in the side yard staring up at Lin. Her ghostly body shimmered in the evening light.
Lin bit her lower lip, her mind racing. Why is she here? What does it mean? Her heart sank. She walked back into the living room where John was still pacing and talking into the phone. He glanced up at Lin and she mouthed, I’m going to go look around.
John nodded.
“Come on, Nick.” Lin led the way to the other rooms with the dog right at her heels. Tension gathered in her muscles and she consciously tried to relax and release them. She reached to her throat for her gold pendant with the horseshoe on it. While she moved her index finger over the edges of the necklace, she tried to slow her breathing and calm her pounding heart. She was sure there was something in the house that Emily Coffin wanted her to find. Where is it? What is it?
On the first floor and then on the second, Lin moved from room t
o room, holding her breath as she flicked on the lights and opened the closet doors. Relief flooded her body each time a space was empty. Despite her attempts to control it, her tension was making her feel shaky. “I guess the coast is clear, Nick.” She and the dog hurried down the staircase. John stood in the living room sending text messages. He looked up when Lin came in.
“The clients are late. They called when you were upstairs. They’ll be here in about fifteen minutes.” John looked hopefully at Lin. “Can you stay?”
“Sure. It’s fine.” Lin nodded, but what she really wanted was to rush from the empty house and run to her car. She needed to get control of her nerves.
“I’m going to run out to the car to get some paperwork.” John went out the front door.
From the other room, Nicky let out a long whine that sent a shudder though Lin’s body. She turned and walked into the kitchen to find the dog. The little brown creature sat in front of a door. He lifted his foot and pawed at it. Lin glanced over her shoulder to the living room and then flicked her gaze back to the door. She wanted to call to John to have him come into the kitchen, but if something unpleasant was behind the door, she didn’t want to add another distressing find to his current anxious state. Lin considered telling John that they needed to leave the building, but she pushed the idea out of her head.
Nicky pawed the door again and whined.
Lin blew out a breath and put her hand on the door knob. She turned it slowly and squeezed her eyes into slits so she would have only partial sight. She pulled the door open to find the stairs to the basement.
Lin looked down the stairs into the dingy cellar and then shifted her eyes to the dog. “No way I’m going down there.”
Before Lin could grab him, Nicky rushed down the steps into the basement and disappeared around the corner.
Lin almost stomped her foot in frustration. She called to the dog. He wouldn’t return. Reaching for the light switch, she pushed on the button to turn the cellar lights on. Hesitating, Lin put her hand on the side of her face and closed her eyes for a few seconds. Opening them again, she sucked in a deep breath, grabbed the rickety banister, and slow step by slow step, descended into the cellar.
* * *
Lin reached the bottom of the stairs and warily looked around the basement. An old wooden work bench stood to one side. Two by fours were strewn across the floor, used paint cans were stacked in rows on the left side of the space, there was a box holding some rotted fire wood, and a couple of broken chairs lay in a heap.
“Nicky.” Lin’s voice was stern. She wanted to find the dog and get out of there.
Lin heard something scratch on the floor. She edged around the corner into a smaller space that had a dirt floor. Lin fumbled along the wall trying to find a light switch. She let out an exasperated sigh when her fingers couldn’t locate it. Squinting into the dank space, she made out the form of the dog. He whined sending a shiver down her spine.
“What are you doing, Nick?” Lin moved her feet a few inches at a time as she shuffled closer. The dog sat next to a rusty locker that lay on the floor like it had fallen from its upright position and was left there by someone who thought it was more useful that way. Nicky pawed the metal.
Lin’s throat tightened as if fingers were laced around her neck. A wave of dizziness came over her and she reached her hand out to find something to steady herself. Her fingers floundered in the air so she slowly sank onto her knees and put her hand on top of the locker. Zings of electricity nipped at her fingers and she yanked her arm back.
Lin’s heart pounded like it was going to leap from her chest. When the dizziness passed, she moved her trembling hand to the handle on the locker. Terrified of what she might find, she steeled herself and sucked in a breath. Twisting the knob, she flung the metal door open.
Lin’s feet scurried under her so quickly in a scramble to get away that she toppled onto her back with a heavy thud.
A sound hurt her ears. She realized it was the sound of her own scream.
10
Lin rolled onto her side and then to her hands and knees. She crawled back to the metal locker and, holding her breath, peered inside for a second time. At the bottom of the shallow locker lay a partial skeleton. The eye sockets of the skull seemed like dark eyes staring at Lin. Shaking off the shock of her find, Lin sat down on the dirt floor. Nicky licked her cheek.
“Lin!” John’s voice called from upstairs. His feet pounded the treads of the staircase as he descended into the basement.
Lin clambered to her feet and rushed into the main part of the basement. “I’m okay.” Knowing that her discovery would only add to John’s anxiety of finding a dead body in a house last month, she didn’t want John to see the skeleton without first warning him about it. “I got startled by something.”
John stared at the obviously shaken young woman. “What was it? What’s wrong?”
Lin’s hand trembled as she pushed her hair away from her forehead. “I found another bone. A skull actually.”
John looked like he’d been slapped. “A skull? Where?” His voice seemed higher than normal and his eyes darted about the cellar.
“Let’s go upstairs.” Lin took John’s arm and tugged. “You don’t need to see it. We have to call the police.”
John hesitated, but then allowed Lin to lead him to the staircase. They climbed the steps to the kitchen and went into the living room where Lin was about to sink onto one of the ratty upholstered chairs, but then thought better of it. Her body was shaking slightly from the adrenaline rush that had surged through her veins. Glancing around for a place to sit, she slid to the floor with her back against the wall.
“Can I use your phone?” she asked John.
He handed it to her.
The sound of a car door slamming caused John to turn to the front door and then immediately back to Lin. “The clients.”
Lin shook her head as she pushed the police emergency number into the phone. She tried to kid, “Just don’t let them go into the basement.” When the dispatcher answered Lin’s call, she reported the address and said, “I found a partial skeleton in the basement.”
John’s eyes went wide and his voice almost squeaked. “I thought it was just a skull.”
As Lin clicked off from the call, she raised an eyebrow at John wondering why only a skull would be less worrisome than a partial skeleton. “It’s a little more than a skull.”
John’s face was so white and his posture so stooped that Lin wondered if he would ever be able to show another house again. Lin pushed herself off the floor and headed to the door with John and Nicky right behind her. They stepped outside to wait for the police.
“You might want to tell your clients that this isn’t really a good time.”
John groaned and rolled his eyes. “The understatement of the week.”
* * *
When the police arrived, John and Lin were questioned and the house and basement were searched. Viv arrived to provide support and Jeff, who was on the mainland for a couple of days, talked to Lin by phone. After two hours, the police told them they were free to go. Despite Viv’s near insistence that John come to her house to relax, he decided to head to his office to catch up on paperwork. With a sigh and a shake of her head, Viv got into her car and followed Lin to her house.
Once in the kitchen, Lin put the kettle on and Viv poured a glass of wine. “Tea just isn’t going to cut it for me.” Lin could see her cousin’s hand shaking slightly as she raised the glass to her lips.
“Is John okay?” Lin poured hot water into her tea cup. “He’s had some tough encounters lately.”
“He’ll be okay. John’s a sweet softy, but he won’t let these things interfere with his life.” Viv pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. “At least today he didn’t see the skeleton. He’s trying to work through his anxiety from finding that dead body. It will take time. I’ll keep my eye on him though.”
The girls took seats in the comfy chairs in the living roo
m. Nicky jumped on the sofa and was asleep in a few seconds. Lin looked at him and smiled. “I’m exhausted, too.” Her body felt weak from the after effects of the adrenaline rush.
“What is going on around here?” Viv asked. “What’s with all these bones showing up?”
“Do you think the partial skeleton and the leg bone found at the farmhouse go together?” Lin questioned.
A horrified look washed over Viv’s face. “I didn’t think of that. Ugh. Why would the parts be separated?”
“We need to find out if the bones belong to one person or two people.” Lin pulled a cashmere throw blanket over her knees.
“Why does that matter?” Viv looked a bit pale.
“Because, if it’s two people then we have a bigger problem than we thought.” Lin put her elbow on the arm of the chair and rested her chin in her hand. “And, if the bones belong to two different people, then I would make a bet that there are more bones hidden out there from other people.”
Viv stood up and wrapped her arms around her body. She started to pace about the room. “Why is this happening?” She glanced at the door to the deck, hurried over and checked to see that it was locked. Viv strode into the kitchen, opened a drawer, and returned to the living room carrying a small boning knife.
A grin spread over Lin’s face. “No one is after us.”
“I’m not taking any chances.” Viv sat down and took a swallow of her wine. She stood up again and flicked the wall switch to illuminate the back deck. “I don’t want anyone sneaking up to the windows and looking in at us.”
“Emily Coffin was at the house.” Lin held her tea cup in her hand.
Viv stared wide-eyed at Lin. “Did she say anything? Was it Emily who led you to the skeleton?”
