by Mary Kruger
“Yes.” It reminded her of something, just tantalizingly out of reach. Something familiar, but unknown. “I can’t remember.”
“That’s okay.” His voice was soothing. “That happens after a head injury. It’ll come back to you.”
“Yeah.” Ted finally straightened. “I want to catch the bas—”
“It’s all right, Ted.” She smiled at him, finally seeing his concern. Ted’s strongest emotions sometimes were covered by anger.
“Yeah, but you gave us a scare last night.”
“Last night,” she said, concentrating. “Yes. It had to be. The bells fell off the day before. I couldn’t put them back up because my shoulder hurt.”
“Then he came in the front door?” Josh asked, alert now.
“Yes,” she said in surprise. “That sound. That’s what it was.”
“What, the front door?”
“Yes. I didn’t even realize I’d heard it.”
“We found the back door open, though.”
“The back door?” She frowned, and winced. “Ouch. Does that mean he got out that way?”
“Or she.”
“Or she.” After all, they’d been referring to the murderer as a female all along. And surely this attack was tied to the murder. “It was after hours,” she said. “Herb Perry wanted to talk to me about something.”
“We know,” Josh said. “He found you, or so he says. Could he have a key?”
She frowned. “I don’t think so. He worked in my building once, when it was a hardware store, but I had the locks changed.” She looked up at him. “Did he do it?”
“Herb Perry?” Ted said skeptically. “I can’t see it.”
Neither could she. “What did Herb have to say?”
“He called it in. He said that someone was standing over you, holding a stick high.” He paused. “If Herb’s telling the truth.”
The stick. There was something about that…. “Long,” she said. “Round and thin. It had—Josh, it had a crook on the end.”
He bent forward abruptly. “Are you sure?”
“Like a cane. I think. Oh, I don’t know.” She moved her head fretfully. “I just don’t.”
He blew out his breath in frustration. “How thick?”
“I don’t know. It was shadowy, hard to tell. I’m sorry.”
Josh leaned back against the wall, his eyes opaque. “Hmm.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Meeting him without telling anyone was damned stupid, Ari,” Ted put in.
“I know,” she said meekly. “It’s connected to the murder, isn’t it?”
“Maybe. Who knew you were going to be there?”
Again Ari concentrated. “Herb, of course,” she said finally. “Laura. Kaitlyn was there, and her mother. She put my web page up finally.” She frowned. “No one else—oh. Barbara Watson. A couple of other customers at closing. Laura might remember who they were. But, Josh.” She looked at him. “I had the lights on. Anyone could’ve guessed I was there.”
“That narrows it down,” he said dryly. “Who’s Barbara Watson?”
“One of Laura’s friends. But she couldn’t have done it. She’s close to six feet, and thin.”
“You saw who did it?” Ted said sharply.
“Good heavens. Yes, I did,” she said in surprise. “I concentrated on her—him?—so I could tell you. Medium height. No. Just a little above. Tallish for a woman, not so tall for a man. Medium build, ditto. Not—you know something?” She stared at him. “Not really feminine-looking. Not the right shape. Or maybe the clothes were baggy. I don’t know.”
“It’s okay,” Josh said. “That helps.”
“I wish I remembered more, but the lights were out.”
“Yeah, I know.” He looked away. “Herb Perry isn’t tall, or heavy.”
“But the way she moved—”
“She?”
“Maybe he,” she admitted. “Kind of fast and easy. Herb’s not young.”
“But he walks a lot. Did you know that?”
“Yes, now that I think of it. Damn.” She put her fingers to her head as the pain flared again. Someone moved closer to her. Josh, she thought, and opened her eyes to see Ted bending over her.
“You’re damned lucky,” he said. “If you’d been hit any harder you wouldn’t be here.”
Ari closed her eyes again. She had no doubt that whoever was after her had meant to kill. But why? With Joe in jail, the killer had to be feeling pretty safe. What possible threat could Ari be to her?
“Can you think of anything else?” Josh asked.
“I told you everything I remember,” she said, hearing petulance in her voice. “I’m tired.”
“I’ll stop bugging you, then.” Josh stopped at the door. “Don’t worry. I’ve got things under control.”
“Look,” Ted said, belligerent again. “I want Ari protected.”
“I’ll have someone on her tonight.”
“Tonight?” Ari said. “Why?”
“You have to stay another night,” Ted explained, and turned back to Josh. “What about afterward? If anything happens to her, I’ll slap a lawsuit on you so fast—”
“Ted,” Ari said, before he could go on. “Please.”
Ted glanced at her and subsided. “Sorry, Ari.” He took her hand. “But, hell, you gave me a scare.”
“I’m sorry. Ted, what about Megan?”
“I’ll bring her by later.”
“I’ll see you later, Ari,” Josh called from the door.
Ari raised her hand to him, both sorry and relieved to see him go. “Poor kid. I can’t imagine what she’s thinking. She’s already had a hard time.” She looked up at him. “Did she tell you what’s been bothering her?”
“No, but maybe she will tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“I’m going to stay with her.”
“Oh, good. She needs you, Ted.”
“Yeah. When you’re better, Ari, could we talk about me visiting her more?”
“Maybe. Not now, though.”
“Yeah.” He hesitated. “You look tired.”
“I am. I think I’m going to sleep.”
“Okay. I’ll stay a while.”
“Thank you,” she said, too tired to voice her surprise. Instead she snuggled down as best she could in the unyielding hospital bed. She was aware of Ted standing beside her bed, and yet he wasn’t the one in her thoughts. It was Josh. If anyone could find out what had happened to her, he would.
“That guy has the hots for you,” Ted said, startling her just as she was beginning to drift off.
“What?” She stared at him groggily.
“That cop. He’s got the hots for you.”
If her head hadn’t ached so much, Ari probably would have laughed. “He’s investigating what happened to me.”
“You ask me, he’s investigating you.”
This time she did laugh. “Ted.”
“I’m serious, Ari.”
“I know.” She closed her eyes. “You’re wrong. Anyway, why does it matter to you? We’re divorced.”
“Yeah.”
The flat tone in his voice made her look at him again. “Ted, I can’t exactly argue with you now.”
“No,” he said after a moment. “Sorry. But you and I’ve got to talk one of these days.”
“Okay,” she said, and closed her eyes again. Josh would take care of things, she thought. She could count on it.
The next day Ari was a little shaky on her feet but otherwise all right. Back in her shop she felt safe, not only because of the throngs of customers who were drawn by this latest sensation, but because of the police car that cruised by at irregular intervals. She had no doubt that she owed that to Josh. Anyone intending her harm wouldn’t be able to predict the cruiser’s movements. Laura also seemed to be there all the time, just now muttering darkly about getting a gun. “You can’t do that,” Ari said in a harsh whisper. Across from her a customer seemed to be stud
ying a fine-spun skein of Heilo yarn from Norway, but Ari had no doubt she was listening to every word.
“You need protection, dear,” Laura said tranquilly.
“Having you here all the time is protection enough. Not to mention that you bring me back and forth from home. That’s when I make a good target.”
“Exactly. If I get a gun, no one will bother us.”
“Laura, you don’t know how to shoot.”
“I’ll learn.”
Lord help her. “Really, I don’t think whoever attacked me will do it again.”
“Why not?”
“For one thing, I’m alert now. Plus, the police are watching me, not only here but at home.”
“Have Josh Pierce stay over,” Laura suggested.
“Laura!” Ari protested, and the customer glanced over, eyes avid.
“He’ll keep you safe.”
“Good God.” Ari shook her head. A ghost of a headache whispered along her scalp. She’d have them from time to time, she’d been warned, sometimes with migraine force. This one, thank God, hadn’t yet developed into anything. “Has the world gone nuts?”
“Yes,” Laura said quite seriously. “Certainly it has, when someone as decent as you is hurt.”
“And someone like Joe is arrested.”
Laura regarded her, head tilted to the side. “I wonder how Diane is doing. Why don’t you go see her?”
“She’d probably run me off the farm. I think she blames me for what happened to Joe.”
“Now, that’s just silly. How could you be to blame?”
Ari shrugged. “It’s all tied up with me.”
“I think she knows better. Has she called you since you were in the hospital?”
“No.” And that hurt. She and Diane had been friends nearly all their lives. Before this, Diane would have been as fiercely protective as Laura. Now her allegiance had changed. Oh, Ari expected her loyalties to be with Joe, but the total lack of contact with her hurt. Not being able to talk to her best friend about everything that had happened hurt. There was a giant void in her life.
“Call her, dear,” Laura urged her. “It’ll make you feel better.”
Ari doubted it, but she smiled and touched Laura’s hand. The customer had come to the counter, bearing enough skeins of yarn to make a traditional Norwegian sweater. It was a big sale, making Ari smile. To her relief, the topic of what had happened to her, and its consequences, died for the moment.
She wasn’t as nonchalant as she tried to appear, though. She was uneasily aware that there was someone out there who meant her harm. That person could get to her at any time, in spite of the police. If enough time passed with no sign of trouble, they probably wouldn’t guard her anymore. She knew that their resources must be needed elsewhere, but their absence would leave her alone and vulnerable. That fueled her determination to find the real killer. There was now no doubt in her mind that Edith’s death held a threat against her.
The phone rang. “Ariadne’s Web,” she said absently, and her eyes grew wide as she heard the voice on the other end. “Just a minute,” she cut in. “I’m going to put you on hold.” Ari pressed the hold button and put down the receiver. “Laura, I’m going to take this in my office.”
Laura shot her a look. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes, yes.” The headache threatened again as she went into her office, but again she ignored it. This was too important a call. “You’re the last person I expected to hear from,” she said into the phone.
“I heard you were back at work,” Herb Perry said.
“Yes.”
“I didn’t hit you, Ariadne.”
Ari still wondered about that. “Then who did?”
“There was someone standing over you when I came in. You shouldn’t leave your door unlocked,” he said reproachfully.
“I didn’t.”
“Anything can happen nowadays, even in Freeport. I used to tell Edith that.” He broke off, and then continued in a constricted voice. “She wasn’t as careful as she could’ve been. Used to think no one would ever bother her.” He laughed, a mirthless sound. “Thought no one would ever dare.”
So why had she been killed, and why, Ari wondered yet again, in her shop? Someone reckless, she thought, someone used to taking risks. The problem was, she didn’t know anyone like that. At least, she didn’t think she did. But then, people she thought she knew were turning into strangers. Herb had always seemed genial to her before, but what was he really like? “Do you still have a key to my building?” she asked abruptly.
“Look, how could I if you changed the locks? I hope you’re going to do that again, young lady.”
Ari smiled faintly at the fatherly tone in his voice. “Yes, the locksmith was here yesterday. But, do you?”
“No. Yeah, I worked in the hardware store, and yeah, I cut keys, but only duplicates. Who’s your locksmith?”
“Keysmith.”
“Jack Morgan’s business. Yeah, he and I go way back. Maybe he gave me a key,” he said sarcastically. “Maybe I used Edith’s.”
Ari went still. “What did you say?”
“Hey, didn’t you know? Edith had a key.”
thirteen
ARI GASPED. “Edith had a key?”
“Yeah. Thought you knew.”
“No,” she said, stunned. “How did she get it?”
“Because she was looking to buy the building.”
That plan, which had caused Ari such concern, didn’t seem important now. “My God, Herb, she let herself and her killer into the shop.”
“You think?”
“Yes. I’ve been wondering how they got in. Have you told Josh Pierce?”
“That detective? Nah. Why should I?”
“Because someone got into my shop and killed your wife!”
“Not with her keys.”
“How do you know? It’s the most likely answer.” But why here?
“Come to think of it, how’d someone get in the other night?”
“No one knows.” She put her fingers to her forehead. The headache was settling in, in earnest. She’d have to get home soon to rest, or she’d be in rough shape.
“You sure you locked your door?”
“Yes.” But had she, Ari wondered? She couldn’t remember. An action like that was automatic, easy to forget.
“Hell, Ari, someone got in the other night. I thought you were dead at first.”
“You saw the person, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, but not very well. He was holding up a stick of some kind—”
“You saw it?”
“Sure. I saved your life, you know.”
So she’d been told, though she wondered about that. “What did sh—he look like? And the stick?”
“Baseball bat, I think.”
“Baseball? But—” she began, and stopped herself.
“Yeah. What else? Anyway, I couldn’t see much of him. Why weren’t your lights on?” he said accusingly.
“They were, and I did lock the door. This wasn’t my fault.” At least, not in the way he thought. “What did the person look like?”
“Short. Thin. Definitely a man.”
“How could you tell?”
“The way he moved. Fast, no fussing, not like a woman.”
Ari gritted her teeth. “Couldn’t it have been an athletic woman?”
“With that build? Nah. Nothing up front, if you know what I mean.”
Again Ari bit back a retort. She’d had no idea that Herb could be so offensive. Unless he was deliberately misdirecting her. “What did you want to see me about?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m still gonna buy the building, Ari.”
Oh, Lord, just what she needed. It seemed her business was threatened after all. “Oh.”
“Yeah. I gotta negotiate with Bill Harper again,” he said bitterly. “He put it back on the market. He’s got that Silveira gal as an agent, and she’s a shark.”
“I thought Susan was your agent,” Ari said
in surprise.
“Nah. She was Edith’s at one time, but not mine. Anyways, I don’t think I’ll have to raise your rent, unless I have to pay too much.”
That was a relief, though the prospect of its happening in the future was a concern. On the other hand, Bill Harper, the current owner, could also raise the rent anytime. “When will the sale go through?”
“Not for a while. I’ve gotta reach an agreement with Bill, and then wait for the closing.”
She had a reprieve, then. “You’ll let me know?”
“Yeah. Damn shame this had to happen to you,” he went on. “Edith liked your patterns.”
“She never bought any of them, as far as I know.”
“Yeah? Maybe she borrowed them.”
That sounded more like it. “Maybe.”
“Anyways, I’m sorry about what happened to you. You’re a good gal, Ariadne.”
Ari rolled her eyes at Laura, who had just come into the office. “Yes, well. Thank you, Herb. I appreciate that. You do know how sorry I am, too?”
“Yeah, well.” He fell briefly silent. “Look, I’ve taken up too much of your time. See you around, maybe?”
A chill shivered down her spine. “Maybe,” she said, and hung up. “Ugh.”
“Herb Perry?” Laura asked, eyebrows raised.
“Yes.” Ari looked up. “I didn’t know he was such a jerk.”
“Well, dear, I always did think he and Edith deserved each other.”
That startled a laugh out of her. “Maybe they did. Oh, Laura.” She leaned back. “Do you ever get the feeling you just don’t know people?”
“All the time. Look at Ted.”
Ari laughed again, the last of the unease left by Herb’s phone call fading. “Yes, once upon a time you thought he was something special.”
“Even I can be wrong,” Laura said, not a bit abashed. “Now, I didn’t come in out of nosiness, though I’ll admit I wanted to know who called. Detective Pierce is here.”
“Josh? Good. I was just about to call him.”
“Why?” Laura asked curiously.
“I’ll tell you later. Is he out there?”
“Along with five customers.”
Ari blew out her breath. At most times she’d welcome so many customers, but now it just meant there were that many people who might overhear. “All right.” She followed Laura out of the office, checking a smile when she saw Josh frowning at a sweater splashed with random designs of bright colors, making a stained-glass effect. “Detective.”
