Bones And Buried Secrets (An East Pender Cozy Mystery Book 5)

by Leona Fox

  “I have to say, this is all rather thrilling,” Matthew said. So far he had been on the periphery of the mystery-solving part of Kelly's life and he was glad to be involved like this.

  “We're only asking people a few questions,” she said.

  “I know, but it's exciting to be part of something like this.”

  “It's good you're able to help. I think this whole thing is getting under Ellen's skin.”

  “You sure? She always seems so composed when I see her.”

  “She doesn't like to let on about these things but trust me, when you know her as well as I do you can see the little signs she gives off. She's not happy about this and I can't say I am either.”

  “I never took you for a social justice-type of person. Don't get me wrong, I know you care about people but I figured, given your artistic way of thinking, you had a wider view of the world.”

  “I don't want to see people lose their jobs. In the grand scheme of things, it probably won't make much difference. People go on living, after all. It wouldn't be the first time a big company has turned around and ruined a small town, but I don't want it to happen here. I like the way East Pender is and I don't think Charlotte should be able to get away with it so easily. But somehow we have to find out the truth about Michael van De Lay.”

  “You really think people are going to remember things that long have been forgotten?”

  “There's only one way to find out,” she said, and they began interviewing people.

  It was an arduous process and there weren't many people who could offer much help. All of them expressed hope they could stop Charlotte before she tore down the foundations of East Pender, and they all said they wished they could help more, yet none of them were able to do so. Most of them said anything their parents and grandparents had was lost or thrown out. It made Kelly sad to think that all those memories, all those lives, just had been forgotten over time. It was a depressing session. Despite everything, they had not made any progress. Afterward, before they got back in the car, Matthew urged her to take a romantic stroll. He grabbed her and then they walked around the block. The night was calm and the stars twinkled overhead while the waxing moon shone brilliantly.

  “Were you close with your family?” Kelly asked.

  “I used to be, but then I moved away for work and we never really kept in touch. My grandparents died when I was young and my parents and I never were that close. They always let me go out when I wanted and I felt closer to my friends than I did to them. Then I got married and that started to become more important.”

  “It just makes me sad to think that all of those people lived their lives, probably thinking that everything they did was going to be remembered, but it's all been left in the past,” she said hopelessly.

  “I think the biggest mistake people make is thinking they need to leave something behind, something to mark that they existed. The only thing we need to do is live our lives the best we possibly can and get as much enjoyment out of life as we can while we are able. That's why I'm with you. That's why I didn't want to waste a second,” he said. Then he swept Kelly up in his arms, embracing her in a long kiss that reached down into her very soul.

  He kissed her in a way that made her back arch. He dipped her down as though they just had finished dancing, and Kelly's soul felt relieved. They continued talking of little matters as lovers do, and took a lingering walk back to the car before going back to Kelly's place. Once there Matthew, as he often did, looked at the painting that she was working on and gave Kelly effusive praise.

  “I think it's so great you've managed to make a living for yourself as an artist,” he said. “It takes a hell of a lot of determination and willpower. I always thought to myself when I was younger that I would write a book but, like so many other things, I just never found the time. I think that's the same for a lot of people. It's all well and good having the ideas and the dreams, but actually putting them into action must take a lot. Especially because it's so hard to make a living out of it. Did you ever think about doing anything else?”

  “Sometimes...” Kelly admitted, “but I knew it was the only thing I ever would be happy doing. I’ve worked a lot of crappy part-time jobs over the years and I never wanted my whole life to be like that.”

  “It was one of the first things that attracted me to you,” he said, putting the painting down and walking over to her with that look in his eyes that made her tingle all over.

  But deep in her heart she was holding onto a secret she never had told anyone before. She wanted to tell Matthew but she was so afraid, so scared to reveal it and unleash it upon him because it might change the way he saw her. She thought back to what Ellen said about having to be honest with each other or else it was pointless, but the fear was so strong. Yet she knew she had to be honest with him because it was going to destroy her inside if she couldn't open up to Matthew. But before she could say anything he had whisked her into his arms again. He was kissing her passionately, giving her the full force of his love. She was unable and unwilling to interrupt the feelings of bliss cascading through her soul as he led her to the bedroom. So for another night the secret she had held onto so desperately over the years remained just that, a secret.

  Chapter 5

  Ever since James and Charlotte had made The Chrome Cafe their official meeting place the location had been packed. Ellen knew they had done this to spark fear and discussion among the people of East Pender. Although it was good for business and profits were through the roof, it annoyed her to no end. She was tempted to refuse service to the two of them but remembered what she had said to the townspeople in that very cafe. So she bit her tongue as she showed them the kindness and generosity that so personified East Pender. Their meetings were filled with documents that went back and forth and, although Charlotte had made statements about selling to the highest bidder, there did not seem to be any other interested parties. So if she was going to sell to anyone then it seemed likely it would be James.

  Day after day they sipped coffee and laughed loudly as they plotted the downfall of the town right in front of its citizens. There were a couple of occasions when people, ignoring Ellen's advice, walked by and gave them scathing words but they only were met with laughter. Perhaps in some ways Charlotte was right, Ellen thought. They didn't have the sharpest fangs, especially not when compared with the city, and Charlotte would have dealt with much worse things back there. As far as Ellen could gather, as soon as the paperwork all went through Charlotte was going to sell her majority share in the mill for a handsome sum and retain a stake in the business so she would receive a share of future profits. With James at the helm Ellen was confident profits would be through the roof as he eagerly planned to cut people's jobs and have the mill working with a skeleton staff. Ellen overheard them talking about installing various pieces of machinery that would drastically cut down on the need for manual labor. It seemed most of the jobs were in jeopardy.

  “We've tried being nice but how can we continue when they are so determined to ruin us?” a number of people asked Ellen.

  It was a common question and Ellen wasn't sure of the answer. She wanted to be better than Charlotte and James, wanted to show them the way of life in East Pender could triumph when faced with greedy jackals from the city, but the more this saga dragged on the harder it became to hold onto that philosophy. This was made even more difficult when Charlotte would make comments whenever Ellen was within earshot about how Andy was not like the typical man one would find in the city. It riled Ellen and it was all she could do not to explode with anger, but she knew it would do no good in the long term. She also had spent a long time trying to master control of her emotions. A lot of people asked her why she did not simply throw Charlotte and James out of the cafe. Ellen only could reply with, “It's not the East Pender way,” and hoped that if she led by example then the others would follow. But she was not blind, and could see the tension that had spread through the town. Charlotte and James were poking and
prodding the good will of the town and the people of East Pender did not have infinite tolerance or patience.

  It did not take long for it to come to a head.

  Ray, leading a crowd of people, many of whom worked at the mill, approached the cafe and stood outside. Ellen groaned inwardly, knowing that no good was going to come of this.

  “You two vultures need to come out here and face the people you're going to put out of work. You want to take over the mill and ruin people's lives? Fine, you go right ahead and do that, but don't hide behind your plans and schemes. Come out here and speak to the people you're going to hurt. You think you're so much better than us. So come on, show us you have the guts to face us. Show us you're not cowards and that you do at least have some respect for the people you're treading on.”

  Ellen never had seen expressions change more quickly. It gave her a morbid satisfaction to see the color drain from James and Charlotte's faces. They glanced at each other, then at Ellen, expecting her to help, but she merely shrugged.

  “Measly peasants, all they can do is crow and think they're effecting change but it's all meaningless. If we just ignore them they'll-” she said, but was cut off as James pumped his fist in the air and turned to face the crowd.

  “You're all doomed, the lot of ya. For so long you've been wrapped up in your cotton wool view of the world but you don't see it for what it really is. This town is stuck in the dark ages and finally we have someone here who actually sees the light. Sure, some of you are going to lose your jobs but this is going to make East Pender a good place for industry and I am going to be at the forefront of it. All of you have tried to laugh me out of town but I'll be the only one laughing when this is all done.” James returned to his seat with a proud grin on his face but Charlotte held her head in her palms.

  “You are a fool,” she said. James looked insulted because he didn't understand what he had done wrong.

  Outside, the crowd had been riled up even more by James' words and were baying for blood. Ellen rolled her eyes at James' outburst but she also chewed her lip with worry. The crowd outside only was growing and Ray was yelling back at James.

  “Come out here now! We're not going down without a fight. You want to take the mill from us then you can do it by force!” he said, and the rest of the crowd cheered.

  Even Scampy barked loudly, which made James and Charlotte jump. Worry lined their faces and, finally, Ellen saw Charlotte's composed façade crack. While she enjoyed a perverse amount of pleasure from witnessing the sight she knew this was not the way to go about things. Worried about the crowd’s anger, she called Andy and, soon enough, the police arrived to break up the crowd. Ellen, Charlotte, and James watched as the police forcibly broke up the crowd, dragging people away as they screamed and shouted, even the usually-composed Ray, who looked as though a demon had possessed him. His white-hot eyes burned into Charlotte and James and they were visibly flustered by the experience. Andy came through the cafe.

  “My hero,” Charlotte said, still trying to stir up trouble, but Andy paid her no mind. He walked straight up to Ellen.

  “What's been going on here?” he asked.

  Ellen gave him the update. “All because they like to conduct their business out in the open where everyone can see,” Ellen said, making sure to raise her voice so James and Charlotte could listen.

  “Did any of them try coming into the cafe?” he asked.

  Ellen shook her head. “I think they were able to keep enough of their composure to realize that wouldn't have done them any good. It's not the first angry mob I've had outside the cafe but I'll never get used to the sight of it. Can't blame them really, a lot of them are faced with losing their jobs and their livelihoods. They're just scared.”

  “I understand that, but that doesn't give them the right to cause public disturbances. I'm glad you called me when you did. I've seen too many of these things go wrong, even when they're begun with harmless intentions.”

  “I don't think they would have stormed the place if that's what you're worried about,” Ellen said, but Andy remained unconvinced.

  “Emotions are high right now and when that happens people are put under a lot of stress. That's when mistakes are made, when people make the wrong kinds of judgment calls.”

  “I'm just glad you had our best interests at heart,” Charlotte piped up, interrupting the conversation.

  Andy stiffened as he heard the shrill tone of her voice. Ellen gave him a sympathetic look. She motioned that she would deal with Charlotte herself, after all it was her cafe, but Andy held up a hand.

  “This falls under official police business, I think,” he said.

  He flipped his notebook shut and shoved it in his pocket, then spun on his heels and approached the table. James and Charlotte both had smug grins on their faces as they watched the people outside being hauled away. Their attention quickly was brought back to the table as Andy slammed his palms against it, making their cups of coffee wobble. Andy lowered his voice and slowly twisted his head from side to side as he spoke to them menacingly.

  “Now listen to me you two, you might think you're playing a trick on this town and that we're all simple but don't forget you're playing with people's lives here. If you want to make this decision then that's on you, but this isn't a game. What you're doing has real consequences and, I'm telling you right now, if I wasn't a police officer I would be right outside with all of them. No one here likes what you're doing and we all know you don't care, but at least have some dignity about it, at least for your own safety if nothing else.” And without another word he rose and left them.

  “I think I'm in love,” Charlotte said, fanning herself with a piece of paper as she watched the chief of police walk away. James grumbled and looked away, folding his arms like a sulking brat.

  “Oh do cheer up, you're not making this whole thing very fun,” Charlotte said.

  Andy went back over to Ellen and looked outside worriedly.

  “This is only the beginning, you know that, right?” she said.

  “I know; it's only going to get worse. I'm going to have trouble containing this.”

  “It's okay, we'll turn up something, I'm sure of it.”

  “If there's something there you'll find it, but if there's not then East Pender is going to change dramatically very soon,” Andy said. Neither of them thought it was going to change for the better.

  “I'd better go and sort out this mess,” he said. “You two, stay here until it's clear,” he ordered.

  James and Charlotte chose to obey him. Secretly both of them had been chilled by the incident and neither of them wanted to face the beast they had created. Ellen followed Andy's path and she watched from the doorway as the people she had considered friends were roaring and clawing for freedom like wild animals. Their faces were contorted with anger and many of them practically were foaming at the mouth. It was only a thin line between beasts and men but the fear of being threatened was enough to push some people over that line. It was sad to see, in a way, and Ellen did not like seeing her friends in such a state of mind. But worse still was the reaction when they saw her, for they called her a traitor.

  “You're not really one of us,” they said, and the words cut deep into her soul.

  She had tried her best to do her best for the town but they were quick to condemn her for harboring Charlotte and James, even though throwing them out would have gone against every virtue that she wanted the people of East Pender to uphold. She looked back at Charlotte, at the manicured nails and the manufactured appearance. Everything about her was designed to give off a certain impression and Ellen wondered if she had been a whisker away from something similar. She had left East Pender once for a long time and the city almost swallowed her up. It was only after she returned that she had discovered what kind of person she was. East Pender was her home, but if she hadn't returned...would she have been able to become the person she wanted to be? This question plagued her as the night went on. She was forced to endur
e James and Charlotte's company for a while longer, until the coast was clear outside and they could leave without the fear of suffering from the crowd's wrath.

  “I think we've seen the true face of East Pender tonight and it doesn't make for very pretty viewing. Perhaps that's the image that should be on the tourist board. The cute little kitten thinks itself a tiger. It's rather sweet when you think about it,” she said, and Ellen again festered with rage. Later that night she was with Andy.

  “How was it at the station?” she asked, cuddling up beside him, enjoying the warmth of his body and his steady heartbeat.

  It was like a drum, and never wavered, unless they were lost in the heat of love. Her head was resting against his chest and his arms were draped around her, holding her tightly against him. The television was playing in the background but neither of them were paying much attention to it, instead preferring to lose themselves in each others' scents and rhythm of breathing.

  “Not great. Turns out people don't like being pulled apart when they think they're in the right, especially when they know you sympathize with them. They were very uncomplimentary and thought we had no right to protect James and Charlotte.”

  “I had a few comments like that thrown my way as well. How do you deal with it, with people thinking you're the villain when you're only trying to do the right thing?”

  “I don't know; you just have to compartmentalize it. These people...emotions are running high at the moment and they're not thinking clearly. It's up to us to try looking at the bigger picture and do what's best for everyone. I know they wanted to have it out with Charlotte and James tonight but that wouldn't have led to anything good. As much as I admire all those people I know what the mob mentality is like. You can't trust them. Even if they never intended it to get violent it would have if Charlotte and James had stepped out of the cafe.”