by K P Stafford
“Are you sure Grams?”
She looked at me with a hint of sadness in her eyes. “Yes. Life is too short to not use the best dishes more often.”
I set the table and poured us both a glass of white wine even though I wasn’t sure what we were eating. According to Grams, when it came to white wine, you could have it with anything. She placed the food on the table and we both sat down. She’d made a roast, meatloaf, gravy, mashed potatoes and her famous homemade biscuits. I could already tell I’d overstuff myself.
We ate in silence for a bit. I finally reached over and touched Grams' arm. “How are you holding up, Grams?”
She put her fork down. “I’m doing okay, sweetie. It’s just been a long time since…since anything like this has happened here.”
“Is it bringing back memories of Aunt Agatha?”
A tear formed in her eye. “Yes. I know it’s been twenty-five years, but I still miss her so.” She wiped her eyes. “A lot of my friends are reliving the same old memories too. It’s hard on all of us.”
Baxter swooped down and landed on the table. I could have sworn he was trying to console Grams. She looked at him and smiled. “I’m okay Baxter.” She pinched off a piece of biscuit. “Have a little treat.”
He took the piece of bread and flew back to his perch.
Grams looked back at me, “Do you and John have any leads yet?”
“Not really. Everything so far is a dead end. Mr. Copeland could care less that his residents are missing. He told me to get a court order if we wanted to look at their home..” I trailed off for a moment. “I guess I’ll go see the Magistrate tomorrow and find out about that. She’s the closest thing to a judge here.”
“She can be something to deal with. She’s a good woman, just very serious when it comes to her job. Don’t let her get under your skin.”
“Thanks for the tip.” I refilled my wine glass and sat back in the chair. “I went to see Jake Donovan too.”
“What does he have to do with it?”
“John wanted to find out about an insurance policy. He was about as helpful as Copeland and told me to get a court order.”
He’s such a nice young man,” Grams said. I could have sworn she swooned. “He would make a nice young fella for you, dear.”
I rolled my eyes. Not that he wasn’t attractive, but I didn’t need Grams playing match-maker. “He did ask me out.”
“So when is the big date?” Grams got a sparkle in her eye.
“I didn’t agree to go.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. He kinda made me mad about the court order. I should have accepted, though. He might have given me some kind of information about their insurance. I think I blew it, but he did have their policy on his desk.”
“I’m sure he’ll ask again. Don’t fret none. You can ask Mavis about that court order too when you see her tomorrow.
I laughed. “She’ll probably find it odd that I need so many.”
“Oh, I’m sure she knows the drill. I can’t imagine she doesn’t have some kind of knowledge of the law, considering what her job is.”
“True.”
Grams and I got the kitchen cleaned up and took our final glass of wine out to the back porch. We saw a few rabbits. They were probably looking for Paisley and her carrots.
It was nice to enjoy this time with Grams, just the two of us. I could feel a definite sadness about her these days, but she stayed busy. She stayed busy all the time, but even more so lately. I don’t think I’ve ever known a woman as spry as she is at her age. The years have been kind to her. That’s for sure.
I looked over and noticed she was staring at the full moon and whispering. I vaguely remember her doing that when I was a little girl. I don’t remember if she ever told me why she does it. I didn’t feel tonight was a good time to ask. So I sat there, staring at the moon with her.
CHAPTER 6
The alarm sounded at 6:00 am. It was just getting light outside after breakfast so I decided to take a walk through the woods. I needed to get my thoughts together before tackling my day and the barrage of phone calls that would await me at the office.
Peyton and I loved these woods as kids. There were still many of the old trails left. The main ones led to different places, so you really couldn’t get lost. At least, I didn’t think so in my younger days.
Baxter tagged along with me. He could be such a strange bird, but I didn’t mind his company. At times, I preferred to be with him instead of people. He never asked a slew of questions. He just listened to me talk things out with myself, much like I’d heard Grams doing last night. From time to time he’d reply. Like he was really listening.
We meandered through the woods for forty-five minutes or more, not paying attention to where I was going. I looked around to see if anything seemed familiar or if I heard traffic from any of the streets. I’d never been this far into the woods since I’d returned. Baxter flew by, nearly grazing my shoulder. He landed on an outcropping of rocks off to the right. There was a small area where you could get under the ledge of the rocks. He squawked and glided down to the ground. He was pulling at something in the leaves that had piled up under the rocks. It was probably a worm, judging by the looks of it. Baxter’s noise-making got louder and he was really after something. I walked down the embankment to inspect his treasure.
A gold chain caught my eye. The soil was loose so I brushed some of it away, jumping back when I realized it was a bracelet. And it was attached to a woman’s hand. Oh my gosh, please don’t let this be Mrs. Swanson. I dug for my cell phone to see if I had a signal. There was none.
I walked for half an hour before I got a signal, almost to Grams’ house. I dialed John’s office. Relief eased over me some when he answered on the second ring. “John, this is Lexi. You need to come to the woods behind the house. I’ve found…” I trailed off. All I’d seen was a hand. I couldn’t be sure it was a whole body.
“Lexi, speak up. What have you found?”
“I think it’s a dead body. I saw a hand in the dirt.”
“Oh, my. I’ll be there as soon as I can. Meet me at the house.”
By the time I finished walking the short distance to the house to meet John, Baxter flew in behind me, scaring the crap out of me. My nerves were on edge.
Within twenty minutes John pulled in with a county cop. Grams came out of the house as he stepped out of the car. He looked at her and shook his head. “Velda, what are you doing here?”
“I live here! What are you doing here?”
“Lexi has found something. I need you to stay here until we can check it out.”
“Is it the Swansons?” She asked and then looked at me. “Lexi, is it them?”
“I don’t know Grams. Do what John says and just stay here. It’s a good ways into the woods.”
John turned to face Grams again, “Please Velda. We don’t need you traipsing off through the woods. It could be a long walk. Stay here.”
“John Ballard, I've walked these woods my entire life. I am not some worn-out, old piece of shoe leather.” And with that, she walked right past him and headed off into the woods.
I caught up with her while John and the other cop pulled shovels out of their car trunks. I knew it was useless to try and talk sense into my grandmother, so I just paced in, along beside her, figuring the men would catch up soon enough.
Grams shot a look of aggravation at me, “Don’t say a word, child.”
“I’m not saying anything, Grams.”
“I’m not sitting around the house waiting.”
“I noticed,” I said. I wanted to chuckle at her determination, but under the circumstances, it wasn’t appropriate.
John and the deputy caught up. John looked over at me, “How far into the woods did you go?”
“I’m not real sure. It was almost a straight line, though. It was actually Baxter who discovered it, so it’s a bit off the trail.”
We walked on for a bit. When I noticed the t
rail was starting to follow a ridge, I told John we were close. The hand I’d found was under a rock formation. It should be easy to spot, but I noticed this area had several formations on the hillside.
Baxter landed in a tree just up ahead. Grams looked at him, “Baxter, take us to the trinket you found earlier.”
I gave Grams a quizzical look but she ignored it. I know she’s not senile, but expecting a crow to understand what she says is just a bit odd.
Baxter flew up the trail and started squawking. Grams picked up the pace and the rest of us fell in behind her. John picked up his pace, intent on keeping her from finding the hand first.
We stopped and looked down the ridge where Baxter was. John and the deputy made their way down to Baxter. Grams tried to follow, but I grabbed her arm, “Grams, let’s let John do his job. Okay?”
She shot me a look of annoyance but stayed put. I looked at the bird and wondered if he did understand everything we said. I stifled a chuckle at how silly I was starting to think since being back.
John and the deputy looked around the spot where the hand was sticking out and started digging.
CHAPTER 7
An hour later a shallow grave was uncovered with the bodies of the Swanson’s beneath the fresh earth and leaves. The coroner had arrived and was inspecting the scene. Orvel Haynes was an odd man. He reminded me of a mad scientist from old black and white films. His hair was disheveled. Grams said it had been that way as long as she could remember.
There was something strange between him and Grams when they spoke. I got the feeling she didn’t like or trust him, but for some reason she tolerated him. As far as I knew, Grams had never dated anyone after the death of grandpa, but there was definitely a tension between this man and my grandmother. A tension I’d never seen her show with anyone.
The assistant ME arrived about fifteen minutes later on a four-wheeler towing a cart behind it. They had borrowed them for easy transport of the bodies out of the woods.
A few hours later I had Grams at home with a cup of hot tea. She was holding herself together pretty well. I expected her to show more despair knowing they were dead than when she announced they were missing. She was like a rock. I guessed she’d break down in her own time.
We sat in the backyard, silent for awhile. I finally broke the silence, “What’s up with that creepy mortician?”
Grams looked over with an odd look on her face, “What do you mean?”
I ran my foot across the blades of grass. I wasn’t real sure how to ask so I just came out with it. “There seems to be something hinky between the two of you.”
Grams let out a sigh. “He was in love with Agatha. I know it seems crazy, but it’s like I have a connection with her through him.”
“Was she in love with him?”
“No. They dated some, but she wasn’t looking for anything serious between them.” She paused. “After her disappearance, he came by several times, trying to keep my spirits up, I guess.” She creased her eyebrows, “I never really knew why he felt the need to do that. I was sure he loved her, though, so in a way, it did ease my mind that we were both missing her terribly.” Grams reached over and patted my hand. “That’s old news. Now we have this murder mess going on.”
“Can you think of anyone who wanted them dead?”
“Oh heavens no. They could be feisty, but they were such a sweet couple. Always helping others out, volunteering at every event in town. I just can’t imagine.”
“Did they have any family who might want their money?”
“Not that I know of. They never had kids.” Grams sat up in her chair and looked over at me, “Do you think this is about money?”
“I don’t know, but it’s one of the main reasons people kill other people.”
“You should go see that Jake fella again. Try to get some answers from him.”
“Grams I can’t do that. It’s in the hands of the county police now.”
“Nonsense. He’s more likely to talk to you. You should accept his dinner invitation.”
Here we go again. Grams didn’t know I had suspicions of Jake Donovan. Dinner with him could be enlightening or a complete disaster if he found out I wanted to investigate why he still had their insurances papers out on his desk the other day. But the fact remained this wasn’t my job. I didn’t need to be snooping around in people’s business.
Grams looked over at me. “I guess it’ll be easier getting those court orders now.” She trailed off, not wanting to use the word dead in reference to her friends.
CHAPTER 8
The phone rang more than usual at the office. The whole town was in a frenzy about the death of Earnest and Wilma. John came through the door around ten and said he’d given up on trying to reach me by phone. He didn’t quite grasp the concept that I have a cell number and he could reach me as long as I had a signal. He waved it off as nonsense and asked if I’d mind taking care of a few things.
By lunch time the phones had quieted down so I headed to the sandwich shop. Peyton said she'd meet me there. We liked the quietness of the sandwich shop. John had asked me to go see about the court orders after lunch.
Peyton was running late, so I ordered her the usual Club sandwich. It arrived at the table about the time she did. She started in telling me how the news had traveled and a few people had canceled their reservations for the weekend. Even more had called wanting to know if she had rooms available. People wanted to come and witness a real live murder case. Her B&B was booked solid for the next week so she was having to send people to another one in town. She was a non-stop chatter box.
“Isn’t this crazy?” She finally asked. “This town has been boring my whole life and as soon as you come back, it gets very interesting.” She winked.
“What are you saying? You think I'm jinxed or something?”
“Heck no. It’s just like old times when we were kids and solving all the missing stuff in school. It’s sad, you know, but it’s kinda cool too.”
You had to love Peyton. She was a bit naive and hadn’t ever ventured out of this town, but she had a bright way to looking at things, even the bad things.
“You’re going to be great at figuring this out.”
“Peyton, this is police business. I’m only helping John with the phones and paperwork.”
“Pffft. When we were kids, you could figure anything out and you have to admit, it might be fun seeing if we figure it out before the cops do.”
“I suppose you have a point.”
“Good, I’ll come by this evening and we can put some notes together.” She stood up to gather her things before heading back to the B&B. “You want me to grab pizza?”
“No, Grams has plenty of leftovers. She went on a cooking spree the other day.”
“Meatloaf?” She perked up.
“Uh-huh.”
“Oh my gosh, your Grams' meatloaf is divine.”
I grabbed my things and gave Peyton a hug, “It is.”
The walk to the constable’s office wasn’t far, but I had to stop at the town magistrate’s office.
Grams was right about Mavis Clark. She was not a trusting soul, questioned everything. What should have taken a few minutes to put in a request for some court orders from the judge, took nearly forty-five minutes. She had to call John to make sure the request was proper. Getting him on the phone took almost half an hour. They discussed implications of the case, although she was trying to make sure I didn’t hear what she was saying. She also had issues with the county boys who’d already been in her office that morning with the same request.
She hung up the phone and looked at me with her beady eyes. They weren’t really beady, I just expected them to be after all the hoops she’d put me through. “The judge has already signed off on court orders for the county cops. I can’t ask him to sign off on the same papers twice.”
“Then why did you call John and have me wait?”
“Just a formality.” She had a despicable grin on her face. She knew she
could get away with this kind of hee-hawing around and was taking great pleasure in it.
“I think you did this on purpose.”
“Prove it. I’m just doing my job. If you don’t like the procedures around here, then find another line of work so you don’t have to deal with it.”
I stood up straight and went on the defensive. “Do you know who I am?” Grams seemed to have some pull in this town and I was hoping it’d help me out.
“Yes, and that doesn’t mean a hill of beans in this office, young lady.” She grabbed a few papers from the counter. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have a job to do.” She turned and went back to her desk.
I felt deflated. It was silly to try and use my grandmother as a way to get a favor, but I’d done it and failed miserably. On the way back to John’s office, I kept wondering what she had against Grams. She was the first person I’d encountered that didn’t sing the praises of Velda Wheeler.
As soon as I walked into the constable’s office, the phone was ringing. I dropped my things in the chair by the door and ran to pick it up. It was Grams scolding me for bringing up her name at the magistrate’s office. This definitely peaked my curiosity into their past.
CHAPTER 9
John returned to the office soon after I did. He had a thin folder tucked under his arm and dropped it on my desk. “This is all the county boys have on Agatha’s disappearance.”
“I picked it up and thumbed through it. “It’s not very much is it?”
“Not at all. I was sure there’d be something in there to help us work on this case.”
“According to the magistrate, we’re not even supposed to be working this case.”
“Did she say that?”
