by Mary Kruger
“Yes, it has.”
Sarah’s gaze sharpened. “But I haven’t told you how distressed I was to hear about Edith Perry.”
Ari sighed. “Yes, I can’t believe she was murdered. How horrible.”
“And to think I saw her just a few days before.” Sarah moved her cart to make way for another shopper. “And now you’ve been attacked. Are you feeling all right?”
“Yes, just an occasional headache. I was lucky.”
Sarah shook her head. “Sometimes I think the world’s going to hell in a handbasket. To think of Joe Camacho, of all people, in jail.”
“He didn’t do it,” Ari said swiftly.
“No, I don’t think he did. Peter!” she called sharply to her grandson. “Don’t you dare eat those grapes.”
The boy made a face. “Aw, but Mémère—”
“Not until we pay for them.” This time Sarah sighed. “I’d better get the little monsters home before they tear up the place.”
“Yes, I have to go, too.” Ari turned her cart to walk beside Sarah. “But come into the shop next week. I’ve got some new patterns and yarn I think you’d like.”
“Yes, I’ll do that. That’s a lovely sweater, by the way. Did you design it?”
“In a way. It’s based on a traditional Icelandic design.” The sweater was predominantly teal, with rose and pink in a zigzag design at yoke and waist, knitted in heavy Lopi yarn.
“I like it. Edith did, too, now that I think of it.”
Ari frowned. “Edith? But this is the first time I’ve worn it.”
“Is it? Maybe it was something similar, then. She did say it was your design.”
Ari frowned. “When was that?”
“When I saw her, just before she died.”
“But she never bought my patterns,” Ari said.
“This time she did.”
“What did it look like?” It was possible Edith had seen the sweater when she had it on display and had adapted it herself. She had been an expert knitter, after all.
“It was just a plain piece of paper, with the directions and a nice color picture.”
Ari stared at her. None of the pictures on her patterns were printed in color. It cost too much. “Are you sure?”
“Why, yes. I remember exactly because she was excited about it. As excited as she ever got,” Sarah amended. “You see, she said that she could finally afford to buy one of your designs.” Sarah eyed her curiously. “I never thought your prices were high, but you know how Edith was. Have you marked them down?”
“No. How could she have—”
“Oh, no,” Sarah said at the same time, turning sharply around at the sound of long, rolling thunder. Apples were everywhere on the floor, some still rolling, to come to rest beneath counters and near people’s feet. In the midst of the disaster stood Mia, looking both frightened and guilty. “Mia! What did you do?”
“I only wanted an apple, Mémère,” Mia said.
“Oh, what am I going to do about this—where is Kyle?”
“He’s there. Uh-oh, Mémère. He’s been bad.”
“What? Oh, no,” she said, starting toward Kyle, who held a half-eaten peach in his hand. “I’m sorry, Ari, but I have to go.”
“Yes,” Ari said, stifling both a smile and gratitude that it wasn’t Megan who’d caused the problem. “Will you come to the shop so we can talk more?”
“Yes, of course,” Sarah said distractedly. “Tuesday?”
“Yes, fine,” Ari said, and turned toward the checkout counters, feeling blindsided. The mystery surrounding Edith, and herself as well, had just gotten deeper. How in the world, Ari wondered, had Edith gotten a pattern that hadn’t been on display before her death?
Ted was waiting for her when Ari came home. “Where have you been?” he barked as soon as she walked in the door.
“Where do you think?” Ari held up a bag as she pushed by him. “Shopping. What are you doing here on a Friday?”
“I’d like to have Megan tonight.”
“Tonight!” Ari stared at him as she dropped her bags on the kitchen table. “That’s not part of the agreement.”
“Yeah, well, we’ve worked around it before.”
Ari frowned as she began unloading the grocery bags. “You could have called.”
“I did. I called the shop, and Laura told me you were gone. Your cell phone’s not on, and you weren’t here. So I thought I’d just come.”
“Ted, I’ve really had enough of this.”
“Of what?”
She gestured toward him. “You, being here all the time, when you never were before. It’s driving me nuts.”
“It’s only because I care.”
“If you cared this much before, we’d still be married!” she shouted.
“Hey.” Ted held out his hands, palms out. His eyes were surprised, as they always were on the rare occasions when she lost her temper. Even she admitted that her anger could be an awesome thing. “You don’t have to yell. I was worried.”
“You badger me.” She pointed an accusing finger at him, nearly connecting with his chest. “You accuse me and you yell, Ted, not me, and you make me feel in the wrong. Do you think I brought any of what happened on myself? Do you? Do you think I want it? Jeez, Ted.” She turned her back to him, gripping the edge of the counter. “You’ve got no right to tell me what to do anymore.”
“We’ve got Megan to think about, Ari.”
Ari stood still, her head turned a little to the side. He was right. As Megan’s parents, they shared a bond that would never be broken. “I’m tired of it, Ted,” she said, quieter now, but no less passionate. “I’ve got enough problems without you acting this way.”
“I’m sorry,” he said after a moment. “But this whole thing’s gotten to me.”
“It’s gotten to me, too.”
“I know.” He leaned back against the wall, his attitude at odds with his stylish Italian tailored suit and expensive leather shoes. “We have to think of what it’s doing to Megan, too.”
“I know,” Ari said, after taking a deep breath.
“She said anything to you?”
“No.”
“Okay, let me ask that a different way. Have you spent enough time with her for her to tell you anything?”
“Have you?” she shot back.
“It’s why I’m here early. I heard she got in trouble in school for fighting.”
“Who told you that—oh, Mom, I bet.”
“Yeah.”
It figured. For some reason, her mother had always liked Ted. “I wish she hadn’t.”
“Hey, someone had to.”
“I was going to,” she said defensively.
“Yeah,” he said after a moment. “I guess you would.” For all their problems, each agreed that the other tried to be a good parent. “Got any idea what it was about?”
Ari spread her hands helplessly. “I don’t know. The boy she fought with has always been fresh, but…”
“Megan isn’t.”
“I know.”
“I think you’re too wrapped up in what’s going on.”
“Yes, of course I am. Someone attacked me, Ted.” She paused. “But I don’t ignore Megan.”
“Okay, but how do you think she feels about everything? Especially since you’re dating that cop.”
“How’d you find out about that—oh. Mom,” she said again. “We’re just going out to dinner.”
“Yeah? I’m telling you, Ari, he’s got the hots for you.”
Ridiculous. “Ted, sometimes I wonder that you keep any clients, the way you talk.”
“I can talk sophisticated with the best of ’em, babe.” Unexpectedly, he grinned at her, and for a moment Ari remembered what had drawn her to him in the first place: his self-deprecating sense of humor and honest outspokenness. Unfortunately, that latter trait was hard to live with. “Ted, what are we fighting for? We both care about Megan.”
“Are you dating that cop?”
She
hesitated. “You’ve dated other women.”
“Yeah, but—”
“So why is this different?”
“Because Megan doesn’t see it when I date.”
The unfairness of that enraged Ari again. “That’s not fair, Ted! Yes, I’m going out with Josh. Why shouldn’t I?”
“Megan needs stability now, not a new man in her life.”
“Ted, are you jealous?” Ari asked curiously.
“Nah. We’re divorced.”
“I meant about Megan.”
He was quiet a minute. “Yeah, maybe.”
“You don’t need to be. She knows who her father is. She loves you, Ted.”
Ted shrugged. He never had been good at expressing emotions. “Yeah, well I love her, too.” He looked away. “So where’s he taking you?”
“The Lucky Dragon for supper, and then a movie at the Oxford.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“No.”
“He splashes money around, doesn’t he? Chow mein sandwiches and a second-run movie.”
“A foreign one this week.”
He snorted. “It’s still a cheap date.”
“Ted, I am not a cheap date!”
He looked surprised again. “Didn’t say you were, Ari. But, jeez, he could treat you better.”
“We’re not serious.”
“No?” His look was skeptical. “I saw the way he looked at you in the hospital. He’s interested, all right.”
“You’re wrong, Ted.
“If you believe that, I’ll sell you the Fairhaven Bridge.”
That made her laugh. “No, thanks.”
“Nah,” he said, grinning. “Bad deal. But look, Ari. Go slow here, will you?”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a cop, and you were a suspect. What’s his real reason for this?”
That cut too close to home for comfort. “Just for fun. Don’t you think I’m allowed that? Especially after everything.”
“Yeah. Of course you are. I just want you to be careful.”
“I will,” she said, surprised and touched. “Nothing’s going to happen to me, Ted.”
“Hope not. Ari, I really want—”
“Here we are,” Eileen Jorgensen called cheerfully from the hallway, cutting Ted off in the middle of what Ari was certain was going to be another attempt at reconciliation. Megan trailed behind her, her face sullen. “All ready to go.”
Ari glared at Ted. “You were confident, weren’t you?”
“Hey, she wants to go,” he insisted.
She smiled down at Megan, hoping she hadn’t heard the angry exchange between her parents. “Hi, sweetie. This is going to be fun, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Megan looked down at the floor.
“You’ve got Kitty with you?” Ari asked, though the white, round-faced stuffed animal was tucked under Megan’s arm. Clutched in her other hand was a clear vinyl tote bag, filled with vials of lip gloss, dolls, and various stickers.
“Uh-huh.”
“And all your makeup, I see.”
“Uh-huh.”
There was something else in the bag, something familiar. “Megan, is that a knitting knobby?”
“Yup.” Megan pulled out a long, narrow spool with four prongs on the end. Colorful yarn was wrapped around the prongs, and from the hollow center of the spool a long knitted cord dangled. “Nana bought it for me.”
“That was nice of her,” Ari said, after giving her mother a surprised look. She knew better than to remark that she herself had learned how to knit using a knobby.
“Uh-huh. Mom, do I have to go?”
Surprised, Ari dropped to her knee. “Megan, what is it?”
“Hey. Don’t you want to spend some time with me?” Ted protested at the same time.
“You don’t want to go, Megan?” Ari asked.
“C’mon, Ari, don’t make a big deal of this.”
“Ted,” Ari said sharply, turning to him. “Just wait. Honey, can you tell me why?”
For answer, Megan shrugged. “I just don’t want to.”
Ari frowned. “Did something happen in school today?”
“I don’t remember.”
Which meant that Megan didn’t want to tell her, Ari thought. “Honey, you’ll have a good time with your father. You know that.”
“Waterfire’s this weekend,” Ted put in. “You like that, don’t you? You like the bonfires and the music. Hey, tell you what. Let’s go on one of the gondolas on the river.”
“Mom.” Megan’s eyes were pleading. “Please.”
“Megan—”
“Please, please, please? I don’t want to go.”
“Megan, I want to spend time with you, too,” Ted said.
“Daddy’s right,” Ari said reluctantly, though if it were left to her, she’d keep Megan home. “You know I have to work tomorrow, and I’m going out tomorrow night. So what’ll you do? Stay in and watch TV all day?”
“I never see you, Mommy.”
“C’mon, kid.” Ted had picked up Megan’s backpack. “Let’s get a move on.”
Megan looked up at Ari. “Mom?”
“Daddy’s right, honey,” Ari said, making a painful decision, and then rising. She couldn’t face those big sad eyes anymore. “You have to go. You’ll have fun.”
“Mommy.” Megan flung her arms so hard around Ari’s waist that she nearly toppled over. “Mommy.”
Ari knelt again, returning the hug. “Honey, everything’s okay.”
“Will you be here when I get back?” Megan whispered.
Oh, poor kid. “Of course I will. Where else would I be?”
“I don’t know.”
“Right here, sweetie. Tell you what. Let’s go to McDonald’s.”
Megan’s face brightened. “Now?”
“Now?” Ted said at the same time. “I thought we had an agreement.”
“Not right yet.” She grinned at Megan, who already looked more cheerful, and got up. “Come on.” She held her hand out to her daughter, who slid her own into it, somewhat to Ari’s surprise. Megan, newly independent, didn’t like to hold her mother’s hand anymore. “Maybe you’ll get a good toy there.”
“Yeah. They have princess things now, Mom. Krissie came in with a crown yesterday.”
“Really? Maybe you’ll get one. We’ll be quick,” she added to Ted, whose face was dark.
“Don’t take long.”
Ari simply smiled at him and went out, Megan clinging to her hand. That was one problem averted, if only for the moment. Something was bothering Megan, and of all Ari’s troubles, this was the most serious. The yarn shop, her estrangement from Diane, even Edith’s murder, paled by comparison. Maybe it was time to put all this investigating nonsense into second place in her life, where it belonged. Let Josh do his job. There were some things that were more important.
fifteen
ARI WENT INTO THE SHOP EARLIER THAN USUAL the next day and tried to busy herself with paying bills, though she wasn’t able to concentrate. Yesterday’s problems had kept her awake the night before and left her feeling uneasy about Megan, even though Megan had called from Ted’s last night, sounding more cheerful. There was nothing she could do about that, Ari thought now, though in hindsight she wished she’d let Megan stay home. Sometimes she despaired of ever getting the mommy thing right.
A knock on the door broke Ari out of her reverie, and she looked up to see Kaitlyn. “What are you doing here so early?” she asked as she opened the door.
“I figured you might need some help, with everything going on,” Kaitlyn said as she came in.
“I can’t pay you for extra time.”
“I know, but I had nothing else to do.” Kaitlyn looked a little lost. “It’s no fun being at home.”
Ari cast her a sympathetic look, but decided not to say anything about it. “Do you have a game after this?” she asked, looking at Kaitlyn’s outfit. She was dressed in a short plaid pleated skirt, worn with knee socks and heavy sho
es, much like soccer spikes. Kaitlyn might not like going to UMass Dartmouth, but she’d taken advantage of the sports program there. In summer it was softball; in winter, basketball. This season’s game was field hockey.
“Yeah, but I’m not playing. I don’t feel up to it.”
Ari peered at her. Kaitlyn did look a little pale. “Are you feeling all right?”
“Yeah, just a little tired. Do you mind that I came dressed like this?”
“No, not at all.”
“I figured I wouldn’t have time to change.”
“It’s actually a nice style,” Ari said. “All you need to add to make it preppy is an oxford shirt and a cable sweater. Or a sweater vest.”
“Yeah.” Kaitlyn perked up. “Hey, maybe I’ll design one. Retro’s always in. Only in some fun fur or funky color.”
“That’s a thought,” Ari said neutrally, though she hoped that Kaitlyn would keep her design conservative this time. “If you don’t, do you mind if I do?”
“We-ell—”
“Never mind.” Ari spoke quickly. She hated the thought of someone stealing her own ideas. “That was wrong of me.”
“Yeah. It was. I mean, Ari, how would you feel if someone wanted something you made for nothing?”
“As a matter of fact, I’ve given designs away. Oh, that reminds me. Edith didn’t buy any patterns here recently, did she?”
“No,” Kaitlyn said, sounding surprised. “You know that.”
Ari nodded. Last night she’d called both Laura and Summer, and they’d said the same thing. “You didn’t by chance show her anything I was working on?”
“Why would I do a thing like that?”
“Okay. I have to ask. According to Sarah Mailloux, Edith made a sweater from one of my patterns.”
“Who?”
“She used to teach history at the high school.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember. She retired before I had her.” Kaitlyn made a face. “I was glad. I heard she was an old witch.”
“No, she wasn’t. She was hard, but fair.”
“So they all say.”
Ari stared at her. “Kaitlyn, why are you so prickly this morning?”
Kaitlyn stared down at the sales counter. “I had a fight with my dad.”
“Oh. I’m sorry. I was just wondering.”
“Yeah.” There was silence for a moment. “How did Mrs. Mailloux know they were your patterns?”
