Claire’s mind was off and running, so she got on the Internet and went to work. She quickly found out what college Knox had graduated from, but couldn’t find any mention of the one at which he started and from which he transferred.
Marigold’s online campaign bio listed a different college than the one Knox had graduated from. Could that be the college where the scandal happened? Stuart was much older than Knox and Marigold and hadn’t attended either college.
Claire heard a light tapping on her bedroom window. She opened the curtains and found her ex-husband looking in. She pulled up the sash.
“What in the hell is wrong with you?”
“I need some money,” he said. “You’ve got to help me.”
“Running away is only making you look guilty,” Claire said. “No one thinks you killed Knox.”
“But I’m the one who found him,” Pip said.
“They just want to question you,” Claire said. “I’ll go with you.”
“Are you sure they won’t arrest me?”
“I’m sure,” Claire said, although she wasn’t. “Let me get Melissa over here to stay with Dad and we’ll go down to the station together.”
Claire called Melissa and then got dressed. When she opened the back door, she found Pip smoking a joint.
“Oh for crissakes,” she said. “Put that out. You don’t have any more of that on you, do you?”
He looked guilty.
“Give it to me,” she said, and held her hand out.
Reluctantly, he handed over his rolling papers and a small baggie of weed.
“Don’t flush it,” he said. “It’s all I have left.”
Claire took it in the kitchen and hid it in the cabinet over the refrigerator, next to the whisky.
Melissa let herself in the front door.
“Hey,” she said.
“Thank you for coming,” Claire said. “I don’t know how long we’ll be.”
“That’s okay,” Melissa said. “Patrick’s going to come here when he gets off at two.”
“If it’s going to be any later, I’ll call.”
Claire left by the back door and Pip followed her.
“I can’t go back to jail,” Pip said. “You don’t know what it’s like.”
“This will keep you from going to jail,” Claire said. “Just tell Laurie what happened. He’ll help you.”
Claire knew Laurie was on the night shift; she just hoped he was sober.
He answered the door of the station when she rang the bell. His eyes were bloodshot and there were dark circles underneath. He looked at her, then at Pip, and his eyebrows went up.
“Good evening,” he said as he opened the door. “Mr. and Mrs. Deacon, I presume.”
“Knock it off,” Claire said.
“Hey, Laurie,” Pip said. “Long time no see.”
“Mr. Deacon,” Laurie said, and shook his hand.
“Pip’s here to assist with your inquiries,” Claire said. “He’s willing to answer your questions without an attorney, provided he’s not under arrest. If you arrest him, he wants an attorney appointed before he says anything.”
“Yeah,” Pip said. “What she said.”
“Come on in,” Laurie said. “Sherlock and Watson have the night off so it’s just me. I’ll make us some coffee.”
Pip walked past Laurie toward the break room. As Claire started past, Laurie grasped her by the arm.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called,” he said.
“That’s not why I’m here,” Claire said, as she pulled her arm free. “I’m here to help Pip.”
“I have to call Sarah,” he said. “She’s in charge of the investigation.”
“Then do it,” Claire said. “Let’s get this over with.”
With deep interest, Claire paid attention to how Sarah interacted with Laurie. If the woman hadn’t as much as confessed her deep feelings for him, Claire would never have known. Sarah was curt, insulting, and bossy; in short, she treated him the same way she treated every other member of law enforcement who wasn’t in a position to do anything for her career. Laurie was obsequious and accommodating, but the more passive he behaved the more aggressive Sarah became.
They let Claire stay with Pip while they questioned him. He told them the truth; that he had gone to Knox’s to ask for money and found him dead on the stairway inside his unlocked house. He ran off because he was scared they would think he did it.
Sarah was not as hard on him as Claire anticipated she would be. She actually treated him more like a scared child, which he basically was, and asked him the same questions several different ways. To his credit, Pip did not back off of his story and didn’t change it. Claire was proud of him.
“He was in shock when he took off. As soon as the shock wore off, he came back to help,” Claire said. “He’s not going to leave town. He has a paying job here and his mother’s here. If you have more questions, he’ll make himself available.”
“Are you vouching for him?” Sarah asked.
Claire hesitated.
“Claire,” Pip said.
“Wait a minute,” Claire said. “I’m thinking.”
“Miss Fitzpatrick,” Sarah said. “You are under no obligation to guarantee Mr. Deacon remains within the city limits; I’m asking if you truly believe he won’t take off.”
“I don’t know,” Claire said. “I hope he won’t.”
“Thanks a lot, Claire,” Pip said.
“Well, what have you usually done, Pip?” Claire asked him. “I can only go on my past experience with you.”
“That’s all anyone can do,” Laurie said.
Their eyes met and Claire knew he wasn’t talking about Pip.
Sarah and Laurie left the room to confer.
“They’re probably going to arrest me now,” Pip said, “and it’ll be all your fault.”
“Oh, Pip,” Claire said. “What’s sad is you truly believe that.”
“If you gave me some money, I wouldn’t leave.”
“If you finish the work on Sean’s office, you’ll have some money.”
“You could give me an advance,” he said. “Sean will pay you back.”
“Listen,” Claire said. “I’ll give you twenty dollars, but that’s it. Don’t ask again.”
Claire gave him the twenty.
“Thanks, Claire,” he said. “And thanks for coming with me.”
Claire took a deep breath.
“I wish they’d hurry,” she said. “Seems like they oughta be more interested in questioning Marigold than you.”
“Who’s Marigold?” he asked.
“The lady who lives across the street from Knox,” Claire said. “She was at his house before you.”
“So she killed him?”
“They don’t know,” Claire said. “They just need to talk to her.”
“I’m glad I’m not the only one,” he said.
Laurie came back in and said to Pip, “You have to write up your statement and then you can go.”
“Thanks, man,” Pip said. “D’ya hear that, Claire? I get to go.”
“That’s great,” Claire said.
“Hey, Claire,” Pip said. “Would you write that statement thingy for me?”
“No,” Claire said. “I’m out of here.”
“But Claire ...” he whined.
As Claire left the break room, Sarah came back in.
“Thanks,” she said, so softly Claire could barely hear it.
Claire didn’t speak to Laurie before she left the station. He had to chase her halfway down Rose Hill Avenue.
“Excuse me, miss,” he said as he caught up. “I think you left some of your baggage in our break room.”
“Very funny,” she said.
“Please stop,” he said. “I’d like to apologize.”
Claire turned around.
“For what?” she asked him. “For being an alcoholic? For not having it under control like you said you did? For doing exactly what you warned me you wou
ld do?”
“Well, yes.”
“I should apologize to you,” Claire said. “I expected too much, or at least more than you’re capable of.”
“Ouch.”
“It’s the truth, though, isn’t it?” she asked. “You’re not ready to be in a new relationship because you’re still in one with your wife.”
“My dead wife.”
“Yes,” Claire said. “Miss whatever-her-name-is, the second one, is only another symptom of your disease, like Sarah and all the other women you slept with. I don’t want to be your next mistake.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “You deserve better.”
“You’re damn right I do,” she said, and to her embarrassment, she began to cry. “So become someone better, Laurie, but don’t call me until you do.”
She turned and walked away, but this time he didn’t follow her.
The folder with the newspaper clippings was right where Maggie said it would be. Claire sat down at the table in Maggie’s kitchen to look through it. Maggie and Scott’s cat, Duke, twined around her legs, purring like a motorboat. He jumped up on the table and lay down on the documents Claire was trying to read. He was a big cat, and due to the stories she’d heard about him, Claire was a little afraid of him, so rather than pick him up she found the cat food, took it to the front room, and he followed.
“Don’t tell Melissa,” she said. “This will be our little secret.”
When she returned to the kitchen, she closed the door so she could read uninterrupted.
Knox had been a member of the disgraced fraternity at the college Marigold went to. His name was one of the five listed in the complaint, a copy of which Theo had somehow managed to get ahold of. Marigold’s name wasn’t mentioned, but the crime that had been committed against the unnamed young woman was. Claire shuddered; how would you ever get over something like that? And if Marigold was that young woman, why did she wait so long to get back at him?
Claire knew she should take what she had found to Laurie; instead, she called Sarah. She hadn’t left the Rose Hill station yet, so she agreed to meet Claire in the Rose and Thorn. Claire went back down Rose Hill Avenue to the Thorn, where Patrick and the stalwart late night locals greeted her with enthusiasm.
“You owe me for the free drinks you gave these bozos,” Patrick said. “I had them all house-trained and you had to go spoiling them with treats.”
Claire gave him the money, and then went to the far end of the bar to wait for Sarah.
“Can I buy you a drink?” Claire asked her when she arrived.
“No, thanks,” Sarah said.
Sarah saw Patrick and yelled, “Looking good, Fitzpatrick. What time do you get off, and can I help?”
Patrick held up his arms and made a bodybuilder pose for her. She whistled and the locals laughed.
“Your brother’s something else,” Sarah said.
“He’s my cousin,” Claire said, “and his fiancée is one of my dearest friends.”
“Miss West Virginia?” she asked. “I’ve met her. I wasn’t impressed.”
“She’s from Tennessee, actually,” Claire said, “and stop being such a bitch when I’m trying to help you.”
“Sorry,” Sarah shrugged. “What have you got for me?”
Claire gave her the folder and told her what she knew.
“Very interesting,” Sarah said. “So you think Marigold was the girl who was raped, and that she waited all this time to get her revenge.”
“I don’t know,” Claire said. “I do know that Knox and Stuart Machalvie have been paying money into an account that only Marigold withdraws money from.”
“How do you know this?”
“I’d rather not say,” Claire said. “I also heard Knox was embezzling his Aunt Mamie’s money, and this account may be where that money was going.”
“Hmm,” Sarah said. “This is all good; what else?”
“Knox started paying into this account two years ago,” Claire said. “That was right around the time he married Meredith.”
“And decided to run for the Senate,” Sarah said.
“Yep,” Claire said. “What better time to blackmail someone?”
“The feds took everything we had on Knox when they took over,” Sarah said. “I probably should take this to them.”
“Whatever,” Claire said. “I just wanted someone to know about this.”
“Why not Laurie?”
“He’s only got another couple of days here,” Claire said.
“You could have saved this for Scott.”
“I wanted it out of my hands and into someone else’s tonight,” Claire said. “That’s all.”
“Purcell’s in love with you,” Sarah said. “I saw how he ran after you.”
“I’m not in love with him,” Claire said, and then felt her face flush.
“You’re not very good at lying,” Sarah said.
“I’m not going to see him anymore,” Claire said. “I don’t want to get involved with an alcoholic who’s not doing anything to get better.”
“I see,” Sarah said. “Well, thanks for the tip. I heard the 911 call you made about the meth lab at the storage unit facility; I recognized your voice. Thanks for that tip, too. You’re single-handedly improving my promotion prospects. If you’re interested in being a paid informant, maybe we can work something out.”
“Sarah,” Claire said. “I’m sorry about Laurie.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sarah said, and stood up.
“Hey, Fitzpatrick,” she yelled at Patrick. “Meet me out back for ten minutes; I wanna strip-search you.”
“What are you looking for?” Patrick yelled back.
“A way to kill ten minutes,” she responded, and they all laughed.
All but Claire. It dawned on her that Sarah’s sexually predatory behavior was just another version of Laurie’s alcoholism, Kay’s eating disorder, and her compulsive shopping. Evidently, all bitches not only have sorrows, but self-destructive ways to battle them.
CHAPTER 8
“See, the alarm’s not hard to set,” Claire explained to Melissa, “and you know how to do everything else.”
“Are you sure Sean won’t mind me covering for you?”
“I think if he comes back and sees you already know how to do everything, and you’re doing a good job, he’s more likely to leave things the way they are. If it ain’t broke, you know?”
“If it isn’t broke,” Melissa said.
“Right,” Claire said. “Good catch.”
“Bonnie’s gonna skin me alive when she finds out,” Melissa said.
“She’s not going to kill you and eat you,” Claire said. “She’s all bark.”
“She’s gonna be my mother-in-law someday,” Melissa said. “I hate to rile her up.”
“Has Patrick proposed?”
“Patrick done asked me to marry him the day I got home from prison.”
“So?”
“I’ve known that man a long time,” Melissa said. “I wanna make sure he can be true before I get yoked to him.”
“Don’t defer your happiness,” Claire said.
“That’s what your mama’s always saying.”
“That’s where I heard it.”
“Eve was in the bakery the other day,” Melissa said. “She was downright rude to me just ’cause Ed wasn’t there to see her do it.”
“I’m not surprised.”
“Ed and me weren’t right together,” Melissa said, “but he’s a good man. I hate to see him get hornswaggled like that.”
“He’s a big boy.”
“They’re all big boys,” Melissa said. “That’s the problem.”
Claire was headed out the door when Pip arrived.
“Where’re you going?” he asked.
“Melissa and I switched jobs,” Claire said. “I’m working in the bakery now and she’s working here.”
“How come?”
“She needs secretarial experi
ence and I’m bored out of my mind.”
“Hey, could you hook me up with some free food?”
“The leftovers go to the Pendleton City Mission.”
“I’m needy,” Pip said. “I’m hungry.”
“You’ve got twenty dollars and a job,” Claire said. “Count yourself lucky.”
Claire turned to Melissa and said, “Don’t give him any money no matter what he tells you.”
“Aw, Claire,” Pip said. “You didn’t have to go and say that.”
“Don’t worry,” Melissa said. “I’m not fooled by the likes of him.”
“Have fun,” Claire told them both, and left the office.
Professor Richmond was coming down the sidewalk from the bookstore.
“Claire,” he called out to her. “So glad I caught you.”
“Hey,” Claire said. “Good news?”
“I’m afraid not,” he said. “I’m sorry to say they’ve decided to hire a recent graduate, the unfortunately named Cressida Buttercombe. Apparently our darling Cress failed to set Broadway on fire in the twelve months Mummy and Daddy allowed her to try, so she’s coming back to Eldridge to teach.”
“So she’s barely got any acting experience and zero stage and film hair and make-up experience,” Claire said. “I’m much more qualified for the job.”
“I’m so sorry,” Professor Richmond said.
“Is this because of Gwyneth Eldridge?” Claire asked. “Or because I can’t get Sloan to appear at the film festival?”
“No, not at all,” Professor Richmond said. “This is because Cressida’s parents are paying to renovate and expand the theater arts facility with ten million of darling daddy’s fertilizer export dollars. Imagine with me, if you will, the horror that will be The Buttercombe Center for the Performing Arts.”
“So it’s about money.”
“Fishes live in the sea, as men do a-land; the great ones eat up the little ones,” he said. “In this case, I’m afraid, we are but little fish compared to the great white Buttercombes.”
“Damn,” Claire said. “I really wanted that job.”
“And we wanted you to have it,” he said. “Torby and Ned will be devastated.”
“Oh well,” Claire said. “I guess that’s that.”
“Chin up,” he said. “Remember, the robbed that smiles steals something from the thief.”
Hollyhock Ridge Page 20
