by J A Whiting
“I think it’s the hottest day yet.” Lin ran her hand over the dog’s smooth fur while he lay on his belly watching the squirrels scurry about at the back of the property.
Lin glanced through the tree branches and bushes over to Olive and Lloyd’s place. She couldn’t see any cars in the driveway and wondered if either of them was at home. Lin decided to find out.
As soon as Lin knocked, Olive opened the front door and gave the young woman a broad smile. “Come in.”
“I only have a minute and anyway, I’m a dirty mess. I’ll stay out here on the porch.”
Olive stepped out and closed the door behind her.
“I was wondering if you happened to recall the name of the landscaping service that took care of the mowing and trimming when the farmhouse was being rented.”
Olive screwed up her face in thought and tapped the side of her cheek with her finger. She brightened. “It was a small company, just a man and his son. I don’t know if they’re in business anymore. I never see them around, at least not out this way.”
Lin waited for Olive to tell her the name of the landscapers, but she didn’t say anything. “What was their name?”
“Oh, of course.” Olive tittered at her omission. “It was something like Thomas Mowing and Clean-up. Why do you ask?”
“Some of us were talking. We wondered if the lawn guys might have noticed anything odd going on at the farmhouse when they were working there.” Lin left out the concern that one of the lawn guys might be the very person stealing the bones and hiding them. “I met Jonas Bradley the other day.”
Olive’s face looked like she’d sucked on a lemon. “Why?”
“An acquaintance suggested him to me to review tax issues for my new landscaping business. He has an office in town.”
Olive groaned. “I hope I never run into him. What did you think of him?”
“He was very professional.” Lin chose her words carefully. “He didn’t have a lot of personality. No casual talk at all. Only business.”
“That’s about the nicest thing you can say about him.” Olive glanced to the farmhouse. “I’m just glad he doesn’t live next door anymore.”
“Did he have a run-in with you or Lloyd?”
Olive was about to say something, but the front door opened and Lloyd’s head poked out. “I wondered where you were. I heard voices.” He looked at Lin.
“Hello,” Lin said.
“We’re just chatting.” Olive’s tone was slightly dismissive. Lin thought the woman probably picked up the tone from her husband and was now using it on him.
“Something I can help with?” Lloyd looked over his reading glasses.
“No, dear.” Olive stared at her husband until he started to withdraw into the house like a turtle pulling back into his shell.
“What about lunch?” Lloyd asked.
“Soon, dear. I’ll let you know.”
Lloyd closed the door.
“You were about to say something about a run-in with Jonas?” Lin tried to jog Olive’s memory.
“Was I? It was nothing.” Olive bent and pulled a spent blossom from the huge container of flowers near the steps. “Would you like some lunch?”
Lin declined noting all the work she still had to do. She almost forgot to ask, but then the question popped into her head. “Do you remember what kind of car Jonas drove?”
Olive frowned. “He had a big old boat of a car. Black. In good shape, but really? Why would a younger man want to drive that ugly old thing? So old-fashioned. Lloyd liked the car. He loves all those big old things. Not me. Give me something fun or classy.” She chuckled. “Or both.” Olive checked to see if the soil in the flower pot was dry. “Right before Jonas moved out, he got a new car. A Toyota SUV. Not my style, but an improvement over what he’d had.” Olive straightened. “Why do you ask?”
Lin lied. “Someone almost side-swiped me the other day. I thought the driver looked like Jonas. I wondered if he was unhappy with the meeting we had.” She chuckled. “It was a truck that did it, so it wasn’t him.” Lin walked down the steps. “Thanks for your help.”
“Anytime.”
Lin heard the click of the Sawyer’s front door shut as Olive went inside the house. A sensation of cold slid over Lin’s skin and she glanced around to see if a ghost was nearby. Seeing nothing, she shrugged and thought her goose bumps must be from having been so sweaty and then standing in the shade of the porch while talking to Olive. Walking into the warm sunshine, the hint of an idea flickered for a moment in Lin’s brain, and then was gone.
19
Lin, Jeff, Jeff’s older sister, Dana and her husband, Andrew sat around the small pub table listening to Viv and John’s band and sipping drinks. Lin agreed to go to the new venue on the condition that her cousin wouldn’t call her up on stage to join them in a song. “I just want to sit with Jeff and relax tonight.”
The place was packed and the band was getting a raucous reception. Lin had never heard her cousin sing and play so well. When the set was over, the band members walked through the crowd talking with friends and acquaintances while they took their break. Dana and Andrew headed for the bar.
Lin told Jeff the latest developments about Chloe Waring driving the dark car and about chatting with Olive Sawyer.
“Maybe Chloe bought Jonas’s car when he got the new SUV.” Jeff leaned on the table and watched the people milling about.
“So Jonas might not be involved with the bones at all.” Lin held a glass of seltzer in her hand and brought it to her lips. “But what about Chloe?”
Jeff gave a shrug. “There are probably quite a few large dark cars driving around Nantucket. Just because Chloe drives one doesn’t mean she has anything to do with the bones.”
Lin pushed her hair back and groaned. “Nothing adds up. Nothing stands out.”
“At least there haven’t been any new bones showing up anywhere.”
Lin sat up. Jeff’s comment made her stomach feel icy cold. She scanned the room looking for ghosts. “Jonas and Olive seem to really dislike each other. Neither one says why though.”
“Some neighbors don’t get along.” Jeff ordered a beer from the waitress. “There might not be any one thing that set off the dislike. Olive seems friendly and Jonas sounds the opposite. She may have found Jonas’s behavior aloof and he might have found Olive intrusive.”
“Why do you make so much sense?” A smile crept over Lin’s lips and Jeff leaned down and kissed her.
Dana came back to the table. “No public smooching,” she teased.
“Where’s Andrew?” Lin asked.
“He’s talking to someone he knows about buying a car.” The noise level in the pub was increasing so Dana leaned forward to get closer to her brother and Lin. “He’s just about run his car into the ground.”
“How’s your truck been running?” Jeff asked Lin.
She rolled her eyes. “I think I need to replace it. I need a reliable vehicle for my business. I just hate to spend the money.”
“Maybe you should talk to Andrew’s friend.” Dana turned around to see if Andrew was heading back. “He sells used cars. We always buy from him.”
“The manager of the cemetery where I have a contract told me he has a truck he’s selling. I was planning to talk to him about it next time I’m working. If that doesn’t work out then I’ll try Andrew’s friend.”
“Quinn’s selling a truck?” Jeff asked.
Lin nodded. “He told me it runs great.”
Dana looked interested. “Is that Quinn from the Mid-Island Cemetery? He and his wife love cars. They collect them. He has a huge barn where he keeps them.”
“How do you know Quinn?” Lin asked.
“I knew him in school. He was a few years younger.” Dana smiled. “I should pretend I’m younger than he is. I run into Quinn and his wife from time to time. We have some mutual friends.”
Lin said, “Recently he’s had to go off island every week or so to take care of some family issues.
I hope he’s around later this week so I can make arrangements to see the truck.”
“What family issues does he have?” Dana increased her voice volume since the band was re-taking the stage.
“He said elderly problems. He didn’t elaborate.”
Dana made a face. “Really? His parents died right after he graduated high school. Maybe he means his wife’s parents.”
“Could be.”
The music started up and some people hurried to a small dance floor to gyrate to the beat. Andrew had to maneuver around the patrons to make his way back to the table. He looked glum. Leaning close, he told them, “My car won’t start. I was showing it to my friend as a trade-in and it not starting made a really good impression.” Andrew gave a wry smile and looked at Jeff. “We’ll need a ride home, if you don’t mind.”
“You want to go now?”
“We both have early mornings tomorrow,” Dana told her brother.
Lin declined to go along for the ride to the other side of the island in favor of walking home and getting to bed since she and Leonard had arranged an early start time at the farmhouse.
It took some effort to get through the crowd, but Dana and Andrew shuffled along following Jeff who made a path through the teeming mass.
Lin sat for a few more minutes sipping her drink and enjoying her cousin’s band until a few too many yawns convinced her to head home as well.
* * *
The evening air felt refreshing after the crowded noisy pub and Lin sucked in a long deep breath. Walking along the brick sidewalks under the old-fashioned streetlamps, she looked in store windows and watched the people strolling past. Summer was her favorite time of year. Lin loved the hustle and bustle of tourist season, the sunshine, swimming in the ocean, and riding her bike along the many dedicated bicycle paths around the island.
Lin’s thoughts turned to the bones and who might be responsible for hiding them. A wave of uneasiness engulfed her. She didn’t feel that she was doing enough to find the culprit and she carried a heavy sense of responsibility about helping the spirits who showed themselves to her. There were a number of people who seemed suspicious or at least who could be possible suspects, but Lin didn’t feel particularly drawn to any of them as the guilty party. Something was missing.
A couple passed her carrying ice cream cones and Lin suddenly had a craving for a sweet, cold, and creamy taste of ice cream. She turned into the pharmacy where a good-sized line of people waited at the small take-out counter to order their milky treats.
A little boy who was up way past his bedtime was fussing and clinging to his mother’s leg. She bent and spoke kindly to him asking if he’d like to go home or would he like to wait and get the ice cream. If he wanted to wait, then he would have to be quiet. The boy rubbed his eyes with his little fist. He wanted the ice cream so he would stop fussing. His mom picked him up and he rested his head on her shoulder.
Lin smiled at the way the young mother had handled the crying and at the little boy who did what he had to do to get what he wanted.
A light went off in Lin’s head. Motive. Who had motive to steal the bones? If she could figure that out, then she’d have a better chance to find the thief. Selling bones could bring in a lot of money.
Lin looked out the pharmacy window at the people strolling by. Just as she was about to move up in the line, something across the street caught her eye.
A tall, slender woman with long blonde hair hurried down the street. Chloe?
Lin left the ice cream line and stepped outside craning her neck to try to see the person. Catching a glimpse, she headed after the woman keeping her distance and trying to blend in with the crowd. After following for a few blocks, she was almost certain that it was Chloe Waring. Lin wondered if she lived in town and wanted to follow to see if she was heading home. Chloe walked towards the docks and stopped at the corner of the first boat slips. There were plenty of tourists strolling around the area, but Lin felt vulnerable and wanted to be sure she wasn’t seen, so she stepped into a small shop and pretended to browse near the window display.
Chloe shifted from foot to foot and looked around like she was expecting someone. She wasn’t standing directly under a streetlamp and Lin wouldn’t have recognized her if she didn’t have that long blonde hair which seemed to glow even in the meager light. Lin thought Chloe needed to push her white blonde hair up under a hat if she wanted to be discreet.
A man approached from the docks walking in a slow, relaxed way, but there was something about him that made Lin guess that he was meeting the pretty blonde. She watched as he walked up to Chloe, said a few words, and handed her what looked like a small white envelope. As soon as the exchange was over, Chloe moved an inch closer to the man, put her hand on his arm, and then turned around to head back up the street.
Lin squinted through the shop’s window. The man watched the young woman for a few seconds as she walked away, then he headed back the way he’d come. As he turned to go, he stepped into the pool of light from the streetlamp. Lin’s heartbeat sped up.
Quinn Whitaker from the cemetery.
20
Lin sat at her desk in the small second bedroom trying to focus on the computer programming work she needed to get done for the company on the mainland. She really should be in bed, but she was so antsy after arriving home from seeing Quinn and Chloe together near the docks that she decided to try and focus on programming for a distraction. It wasn’t working. Nicky was asleep on the rug at her feet and she looked down at him enviously.
After Chloe hurried away from Quinn, Lin tried to follow her, but got caught up in a crowd of tourists and lost sight of the young woman. Ever since she saw the two together, her mind had been working at the puzzle of what was going on.
She turned her desktop computer off and padded in her stocking feet to the kitchen where she put on some water for tea. Leaning against the counter, Lin wished she could talk to Viv about what she’d seen. It was too late to call so she’d just have to wait until morning. The tea kettle started to howl and Lin nearly jumped out of her skin. Taking a deep breath, she removed it from the burner and poured the water into the cup. A loud knocking on the front door startled her and caused hot water to spill over the counter. Nicky started to bark.
Lin whirled around with the kettle still in her hand. Who could be knocking at this hour? Her throat tightened and her heart raced. She walked softly to the door and peered through the peephole.
Leonard stood on her front steps.
Lin swung the door open. “What are you doing here?”
Nicky danced around the man to welcome him.
“Hello to you, too.” Leonard looked slightly sheepish. “You okay?” He noticed Lin was holding a tea kettle. “You making tea or are you going to hit me with that?”
Lin stepped back to let him in. “You scared me to death when you knocked. If someone was about to break in I thought of pouring boiling water over him.”
Leonard’s mouth turned up in a grin. “Good thinking.”
The two walked to the kitchen with the dog still wiggling around Leonard.
“It’s kind of late for a social call.” Lin took out another mug. “Tea?”
Leonard nodded. “I was out. I was driving home and I….”
Lin turned slowly around and cocked her head. “And what?”
Leonard shifted around uncomfortably. “I saw you had the lights on so I stopped.”
Lin didn’t believe a word of it and said so. “What’s the real reason you’re here?”
The creases in the man’s face seemed to deepen and worry lines showed at the corners of his eyes. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
Lin put a hand on her hip. “Viv could have been staying over or Jeff might have been here. You know those things. Why wouldn’t I be okay?” Lin thought back to the last case she’d looked into. The murderer ended up sitting in her living room and when he attempted to attack her, Leonard happened to show up at that very moment.
“What?” Leonard sputtered. “No.”
“Because if you did, then tell me.” Lin glanced at the kitchen door that led to the deck. She hurried over and locked it. She tried to remember if she’d locked the front door when she’d let Leonard in. “Leonard, did you or didn’t you sense something?”
He looked down at the floor. “Maybe.”
Lin rushed to the front door and bolted it. She hurried about the room turning off the lamps so somebody standing outside couldn’t see into the room. When she returned to the kitchen, her eyes were wide and her hands were shaking. Leonard wouldn’t make eye contact with her.
Lin touched his arm. “You need to be straight with me. What did you feel?”
Leonard turned around and poured himself a cup of tea. “It’s just stupid. I shouldn’t have come.”
Nicky sat at the man’s feet and whined.
“Take it seriously.” Lin hesitated and then said, “I get feelings, too.”
The big man slowly moved to face Lin. He seemed to be wrestling with something. “Okay. I wasn’t out, I was home watching TV. I felt all cold inside and I had a feeling that you weren’t safe. It was a strong feeling. I had to come over. When I got here, I saw the lights were on and no one’s car was out front, so I knocked. Now you probably want to have me locked up.”
Lin smiled. “Thank you. For coming over even though it seemed silly.” She teased him. “You could have just called.”
“Somehow, that didn’t seem effective enough at the time.” Leonard took a swallow of the tea. His cheeks were flushed with embarrassment. “I guess I can go now.”
Lin sat down on one of the stools at the kitchen island. “Stay and finish your tea. I need to talk to you.”
* * *
Lin told Leonard everything that had happened since she and Nicky found the bone behind the farmhouse even though he’d heard some of it before. She did leave out the part about seeing ghosts.
