As Megan rubbed her eyes for the third time in five minutes, she finally admitted to herself that she was too tired to make any sense of what she was reading. Tomorrow she would have to continue her Internet exploration. Maybe with a clear mind, she would be able to see where all the information she had gathered led; she had a feeling that there was something she wasn’t seeing and it was something important. Placing her laptop to the floor, she put her head down and was asleep without even bothering to turn off the light.
Chapter Eleven
Megan planned to be up early to start work, but somehow, things didn’t work out that way. When she woke up it was to the quietness of the empty cottage. She laid in bed for a few minutes, waiting for Barney’s cold nose to be shoved in her face for her normal wake-up call. Opening her eyes, squinting at the sunlight pouring through the window, Megan found that she was alone in her room; Barney’s spot at the end of the bed was empty. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she glanced down at the watch on her wrist and was shocked to see it was well past mid-morning.
Surprised at how late she had overslept, Megan woke up completely and scrambled to grab some clothes and get ready for the day. After a hasty shower, she hurried out to the kitchen to see what the others were up to. There she found half a pot of coffee ready for her and a note from Taylor explaining she was outside continuing their work with Robert’s help. She reassured Megan that Barney was with them and would be no problem to look after. There was a post-script at the bottom of the note, asking Megan to look over her notes and suggestions for the next step in their recovery project. Megan poured herself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter to look over the pages Taylor had left her. It was obvious to her that Taylor was serious about taking over the workload to free Megan up and accomplish the task of getting items back to their rightful owners. The more Megan read, the more her confidence built in Taylor’s abilities; the younger woman was organized and detailed, which was needed for this type of work. As she read, she felt as if a weight was being taken off her shoulders. Taylor would have no problems handling the work ahead of her and Megan would be able to step back and take on more of a consulting role. The fact that the first of the volunteers were scheduled to arrive tomorrow would also give Taylor more of a role of coordinator rather than gatherer. Yes, things were moving forward and this would give Megan more time to continue looking into Tom Jamison’s background. After hearing Charlotte’s message the night before, Megan was sure that something was off about Tom’s background. And it was something evil.
Finishing her first cup of the morning, Megan automatically poured herself a second and picked up her phone to call her office and then return Charlotte’s call. Since she was being given the morning off by Taylor and Robert, she decided to make the most of it and planned to get back on the Internet and see what else she could find about Tom’s background, both personal and professional.
Megan’s call to her office revealed that no problems had come up overnight and Janice was handling things in Citrus Beach. Repair work was well underway on her customers’ properties from the storm and Paul and his crews were taking care of any large-scale repair work. Janice also mentioned that the crews from Paul's business would be up after lunch to start repairs on the back deck and staircase. After assuring Janice that everything was going well up in Lady Fish Bay, Megan said goodbye and phoned Charlotte.
Charlotte wasted no time in telling Megan about her day with Paul and the confirmation that Bob Stump was in fact Tom Jamison. She filled Megan in with all the details of her impromptu dinner party the night before including the shocking fact that Tom was suffering from amnesia. Megan gasped when she heard this piece of news and realized this explained so much. The two women talked for a few minutes longer, and then agreeing to bring herself and Taylor back to Charlotte’s for dinner, Megan ended the call. Looking at the screen on her phone, she saw a missed call from Aiden’s cellphone. Quickly, she hit re-dial, but was disappointed to find that he didn’t answer and her call went straight to his voicemail. Megan left a quick message and promised to call him back.
With her phone calls finished, Megan pulled out her laptop and resumed the website searches she had started the night before. It didn't take her long to get lost in what she was doing and soon she found that she had a list of material to go back to for further research. With each new article that she read about Tom Jamison and his partner, Malcolm, the more she saw how different the two men were. It also became clear that in the time just after Tom's disappearance that the company was starting to diversify. It was clear there was still a strong percentage of imports coming in from China revolving around the decorating and art industry, but she also saw that more and more imports were coming in from the Caribbean area filled with teas and spices.
Having the cottage to herself with no distractions, Megan was able to accomplish a lot in a short period of time. She worked the rest of the morning, with just a few breaks; one to appease her growling stomach which was complaining of no breakfast. Down below, she heard Barney barking and the voices of Taylor and Robert. Deciding to put the computer away, she went down to find out what progress the others had made during the morning hours.
Barney was exceedingly happy to see her, even though he had spent a fun morning chasing squirrels and helping Taylor pick up more items to be brought back for sorting. Taylor seemed excited with her finds as well and anxious to hear Megan's input regarding her list of ideas she had left on the counter earlier that morning. Megan smiled and said “good morning” letting the younger woman talk excitedly about her plans. Taylor walked Megan around the table to show her the baskets of gathered items she had collected that morning, pointing out a few exceptional finds. Robert just nodded in Megan’s direction and quietly went upstairs to fix some food for lunch.
"Taylor, I can't believe I slept so long, thank you. I guess my body needed to catch up on sleep. I read over your outline and have to tell you, I like some of the ideas that you’ve come up with. You have a very organized mind and your attention to detail is going to be a huge benefit. Since the first round of volunteers will be arriving tomorrow morning, why don't you and I finalize the details? Remember this is going to be your project now; I'm just here for backup."
"Megan, thank you, I appreciate the vote of confidence. I want to do a thorough job, not only for the residents of Lady Fish Bay, who have lost so much, but also for my grandmother. This was such an important part of her childhood, if I can manage to retrieve any trinkets or photos for her, I would feel like I’ve accomplished my goal.”
"All right then, let’s get to work."
Taylor made suggestions about how she thought some slight changes might make retrieval of the items to the rightful owners more logical. They were so deep in discussion that Robert had to call down twice to inform them that lunch was ready. Still in deep discussion, they went upstairs to join him. They were just finishing up their meal when they heard the sound of the trucks pulling into the driveway. Looking out the window, Robert saw that it was two crews from Citrus Beach Builders ready to start the repairs on the damaged deck. Excusing himself, Robert went down to meet the crews and show them where to start working. Grabbing a bottle of water for each of them, Megan told Taylor to grab her notes and follow her out on the deck. They settled themselves in chairs on the river side of the dock, away from the noise of the men starting to work on the ocean side. Barney followed along and settled himself contently at Megan's side while the women worked. Soon the sound of hammers and saws could be heard in the yard as the men made repairs from the storm damage.
Megan and Taylor had worked steadily and before they knew it, it was time to get ready to leave for Citrus Beach. While Taylor took a quick shower, Megan took Barney for a walk and wandered over to discover what work was being done on the deck, curious to see what progress had been made. While she was there, she let Robert know that she and Taylor would be leaving soon and would not be returning until the morning. A short time later
, the women were in Megan's car headed south, with Megan wondering what type of reaction Taylor and her father would have when they saw each other for the first time in years.
The ride back was pleasant, filled with idle chitchat and gossip. With the roads now clear, the ride seemed quicker and before they knew it, they were pulling into Charlotte's driveway. There was a black BMW parked in the drive that Megan didn't recognize, but Taylor took one look at the personalized license plate that said "Beth-1", and squealed with delight. She recognized that the car belonged to her grandmother. Since there was no other vehicle in the driveway, Megan assumed that they had arrived before Tom Jamison.
"I can't believe it, Megan. That’s Nana’s car. How in the world did Charlotte get her up here so quickly?"
"Taylor, you're going to find out when Charlotte puts her mind to something, it will be done one way or another, and usually faster than you expect. Go on in, I'm right behind you. I'm sure your grandmother is just as excited to see you."
Megan smiled at the obvious excitement in Taylor's eyes as she opened the door of the car and grabbing her purse, raced inside Charlotte’s home to greet her grandmother. This was just the first of many surprises in store for her today. She followed at a slower pace, letting Barney sniff around a bit before she opened Charlotte’s back door and let the puppy off his leash. Following the sound of female voices, Barney led the way to a large family room where Lucy, Charlotte, Taylor, and a gray-haired woman, slightly overweight in a pleasant way, all stood talking at the same time. Seeing her best friend, Megan walked over to Lucy and gave her a quick hug.
“Megan, you have to meet my grandmother, Beth Jamison. Nana, this is Megan Cassidy, whom I am working with. Oh my goodness, Nana, you wouldn’t believe the stuff we are finding up in Lady Fish Bay. We actually found one of your wedding photos! And do you remember my old wooden Frog Box? Well, this clever puppy found it buried in the sand by some palm trees. Can you believe it? There are so many items that we are recovering, but it’s going to take forever to make sure that everything is returned to its rightful owner. What are you doing up here? Everything is okay at home, isn’t it?”
“Take a breath, Taylor. Megan, it is a pleasure to meet you. I want to thank you for taking Taylor under your wing. I think this is going to be a really good experience for her. Now, Taylor, I’m here because my old friend decided it was time to reach out and connect again and I’m so glad you did, Charlotte. It is wonderful to be able to catch up on old times and, for you to meet my granddaughter.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Beth. Listen, why don’t the three of you sit down and talk while Lucy and I see to some refreshments. I’m sure Ruth has a tray all made up for us, am I right, Charlotte?”
“That’s a wonderful suggestion, Megan. Of course, Ruth will have a tray ready--that woman is always prepared. She’s probably wondering why I haven’t been in to collect it yet. You two go in the kitchen, she will want to see you Megan and I’m sure there will be a treat for Barney as well.”
Charlotte waved the two friends towards the kitchen that was under the reins of her long-time housekeeper Ruth Carter. Charlotte herself rarely used the kitchen and if the truth be told, she was a bit in awe of Ruth’s domination of that area of her household. Lucy quickly caught on that Megan wanted to talk to her out of hearing range of Charlotte’s other guests. Excusing herself, Lucy led the way to her neighbor’s kitchen with Barney following behind, once he realized where they were heading. His memory told him that there was always something good coming out of the room Megan was going towards, and he never missed a chance to partake in an extra treat. Sure enough, after Ruth had said hello to the three of them, she placed a plate on the floor for the puppy. Assuring herself that the other two women would take her beautifully prepared tray of drinks and snacks to the others, she went back to work preparing the dinner that Charlotte had invited everyone for.
“Has Charlotte got everything arranged for this big meeting?” Megan asked her friend.
“When doesn’t Charlotte have everything arranged? I’m still not sure what she said to Beth to get her up here from Miami so fast, but everything seems to be going the way she wants. Paul will be here in about an hour with Bob or is it Tom? I’m still not sure what to call the poor man. I just hope this all isn’t too much for him.”
“Let’s call him by his real name, Tom. He really has amnesia?”
“Yep, there doesn’t seem to be a personal memory in the man’s head. It seems so odd, I mean he remembers the basics and seems to have a handle on current events and he doesn’t seem to have any problem retaining memories of what has happened to him since his accident, but the rest is a blank slate. We’re hoping that seeing his family will set off a spark in the wiring in his brain.”
“I just hope that it isn’t too much for everyone. Taylor has a lot of pent up hurt from his disappearance, although most of it seems to be aimed at her mother. Plus there is no love lost between her and her stepfather, Malcolm Fields. I have to say, after all the research I did on the two of them, I don’t see where her mother’s re-marriage could have created much of a loving family unit. Neither one of them has left me with a warm and fuzzy feeling, if you know what I mean.”
“I do. Know what you mean, that is. I guess we’ll just have to wait a bit longer before we start to get some answers. Here, you grab the tray of glasses and I’ll get this one; we’d better get back in there. Oh, by the way, have you heard from Aiden?”
Megan picked up the tray as directed and frowned at her question.
“We seem to be playing phone tag. I have to admit it’s getting pretty frustrating too. He was so sure that he would be able to spend time here getting settled in after he cleared up that mess from Neptune’s Trident. I guess when you’re a consultant for the FBI, you pretty much have to drop things in your own life when they call.”
“It will all work out, Megan. Just have patience,” Lucy reassured her.
Megan sighed, but mentally agreed with her. Aiden and Megan had been key in solving the murder of a young man all over the beautiful nature preserve called Neptune’s Trident. They had met during the investigation and there had been an attraction between the two of them right away; now they just needed some time to see where it would all lead. Indicating with a nod for Lucy to lead the way, they returned to the living room and the other women.
The women spent the next forty-five minutes catching up with each other. Charlotte and Beth shared some of their favorite childhood memories while Taylor stepped into her role of overseeing the Lady Fish Bay project by telling the others what progress was being made and what plans she and Megan had going forward. While they talked, Taylor and her grandmother seemed unaware of the nervous tension that was beginning to build up with the other three women. Each of them was asking herself the same question: how was Tom’s arrival going to impact the others in the room as well as himself.
It was Barney who heard Paul’s truck pull into the driveway first. Scrambling to his feet, he ran to the door to await the arrival of Charlotte’s newest guest.
“Oh, it sounds like Paul has arrived. I invited the gentleman renting the cabin out by the old grove to join us tonight too. Paul was gracious enough to pick him up on his way back into town. Taylor, would you be a dear and go into the kitchen and let Ruth know that we will be ready for dinner in about twenty minutes. She always has to have enough notice, although why I don’t know. That woman is a miracle worker in the kitchen and could put together a complete meal in ten minutes. Thank you, my dear.”
Charlotte was babbling and she knew it, but suddenly she thought that it might be too much for Tom to see both his mother and his daughter at the same time. Lucy caught on to what she was trying to do and jumped up with Taylor.
“I’ll go with you, Taylor. I bet if we plead how hungry we are, Ruth will be more than willing to let us sample some of her desserts. She loves to spoil us. You’re going to love her and she can tell you some great tales about the trouble Ch
arlotte has caused in her youth.” With a wink at Charlotte, she put her arm around the young girl, leading her into the kitchen, ready to create whatever diversion would be necessary to keep her out of the living room for the next five or ten minutes.
As the two headed into the realm of Ruth’s kitchen, the others could hear Paul and his companion come through the door. Barney’s excited barks announced that he approved of both men and he happily led them into the living room. Beth’s back was to the men as they entered the room, but Charlotte, who was sitting next to her, felt her stiffen in disbelief when she heard her son’s voice. Charlotte quickly grabbed her hand and gave a slight shake of her head to keep Beth from crying out or jumping up and throwing herself into his arms the way her initial reaction demanded. Looking at her old friend, Beth read caution in Charlotte’s eyes and held herself back, following Charlotte’s lead. Holding tightly to Charlotte’s hand, Beth waited to hear the sound she had longed for over the past ten years.
SCENT OF A MYSTERY...A CITRUS BEACH MYSTERY (Citrus Beach Mysteries Book 2) Page 10
