A Felonious Frame (An East Pender Cozy Mystery Book 2)

by Leona Fox

  “I'm guessing Andy wasn't too happy with us doing this?” Kelly said.

  “Of course not.”

  “I have to admit, I'm not sure I'm all that happy about it either.”

  Ellen glanced across at her.

  “We have to do something, and this is the only thing that's going to help right now. We know they're together. Can you think of a better idea?”

  “No, but that's because we haven't had a chance to think about it. I'll follow you anywhere you want to go because you're my best friend and I'm sure I'll get a good painting out of this. But I just want to make sure you're doing it for the right reasons and not just because you want to prove something to Andy.”

  “Trust me Kelly, I'm only doing it because it's the best way to get an innocent man set free.”

  “Okay then, I guess that's settled,” she said, knowing that once Ellen had set her mind to something there was no dissuading her.

  “I just can't figure out how Chris and Tilly are linked together. It's plain she harbors some ill will toward Jack because of the way their relationship ended, but why is Chris involved?” Ellen asked aloud, trying to work through the problem in her mind.

  “Maybe you were wrong before and they are involved romantically? Maybe she asked him for a favor and he was all too happy to oblige because he was in love? Love makes people do strange things sometimes,” she said with a strange tone in her voice.

  It was as though she was hinting at a deeper story from her own past. But Ellen decided not to question her about it for she knew how private her friend. There was a reason she didn't share much from her past. Ellen respected that.

  “I still can't see that. Maybe I am wrong, but the way they were at the store...I just don't see that there's anything romantic between them. I'm going to have to ask them myself. It would take something pretty big for him to steal from his own mother. She's so sweet that I can't believe he would put her through such an ordeal unless he was going to get something worthwhile out of it.”

  “Like I said, love makes people do strange things,” Kelly said, and again her tone was such that it made Ellen's ears prick up.

  Since Kelly had repeated the same phrase in such a short span of time, and with the same haunted tone, Ellen made a note to ask her about it after all this was over. It was just in case Kelly needed to share anything that was making her uncomfortable.

  “Look,” Kelly continued, “before we do this I just want to make sure you're sure about this. Maybe we should have a contingency plan in place? Like...what happens if you're wrong?”

  “I'm not wrong,” Ellen said, clenching her jaw and shaking her head.

  “Nothing has felt right about this from the start and now I'm finally seeing why. I need to stop their plans and it's going to stop tonight. Jack has suffered enough already and I'm not going to be able to sleep until I know he's free. You should have seen him in the cell, Kelly He looked so...defeated, like he just didn't have any more strength to fight.”

  Kelly pursed her lips and nodded, and Scampy seemed to yelp in encouragement. The town was practically dead. As they drove through the rows of houses, Ellen felt a sick feeling twist in her gut. As happy and pleasant as East Pender was, behind those doors there lived people, and in those people resided the potential for crime and great evil. It saddened her immensely.

  The car pulled up around the corner from Chris' house. One of the good things about living in such a small town is everybody knows where everybody else lives. So the two women didn't have to worry about driving around for ages until they happened upon the right location.

  “Are you sure you don't want me to come with you, or Scampy?” Kelly asked.

  “No, I think it's better that I go in there alone. Just be ready to call for help if you think I need it. But I'm only going in there to talk to them.”

  “That's what you always say, and it never quite works out as simply as you assume it will,” Kelly replied in a beleaguered tone. Ellen merely shot her a wicked grin as she stepped out of the car and walked toward Chris' house.

  “I know Scampy, I worry about her, too,” Kelly said as Scampy barked at Ellen. But all the two of them could do was wait and hope that Ellen knew what she was doing.

  The night was cold and Ellen pulled her jacket tightly around her. As she breathed her breath twisted and swirled as it rose through the black of the night. A few lampposts were dotted around, and they illuminated the side of the road. They provided soft spotlights for her to walk through as she rounded the corner and approached Chris' house. He lived in a small semi-detached place. As she passed all the houses she glanced up at the windows with lights on. By now it was getting late and most of the town was sleeping peacefully, oblivious to what was going on before their very eyes. The porch lights weren't on, but the kitchen lights were and Ellen paused for a moment, steeling herself before she went in. Tilly and Chris were not pleasant people. Confronting them in Chris' own home wasn't something she would necessarily have chosen to do but it seemed to be the only thing to do. So, with a deep breath, she walked up and rapped on the screen door.

  Due to her proximity to the house she could hear music playing. The porch was shaded and dark so she couldn't make out any of the detail about the things laying around, although it didn't take long for her eyes to adjust. When nobody came after waiting a few moments she banged on the door again, this time more loudly, and the music was turned off. She heard muffled voices and then the sound of heavy footsteps coming to the door. It opened and Chris stood there, looking annoyed at being disturbed. When he saw Ellen, however, his expression changed. He puffed out his chest and his mouth twisted into an ugly, smug smile.

  “How's your boyfriend doing in jail?” he asked in a haughty tone as he opened the door. Ellen smirked.

  “My boyfriend is the one who runs the jail,” she said in a deadpan tone, and had to suppress her delight when she saw all the confidence drain from Chris' face.

  “Oh...I...I didn't know you were dating Andy, I-I mean Chief Rane,” he stammered, and left the door open for her to enter.

  It wasn't strictly the truth, but Ellen didn't mind being flexible with the truth when the occasion called for it. Seeing Chris flustered was enough of a reward in itself. As she stepped into the house she was almost staggered by how warm it was. The heat was pumped up high and it felt like a furnace, which explained how he could wear a thin T-shirt and not seem to be feeling the cold.

  “Who is it Chris?” a shrill voice crowed from the kitchen.

  Ellen's eyes flashed to Chris and she noticed the look of guilt on his face. It was as plain as day and her intuition was vindicated. Now she just had to get them to admit it. Chris gulped and seemed to be searching for something to say. His eyes darted around the room, and Tilly called out again.

  “I think we should go to the kitchen. Aren't you going to offer me a drink? That is customary for a host to do, is it not?” Ellen asked.

  Chris bristled at the suggestion but he didn't protest, and merely led her through the narrow hallway to the kitchen. Tilly was about to cry out again when the two of them entered, and her eyes narrowed when she saw Ellen.

  “Oh, it's you,” she said, with much derision in her voice.

  Ellen hadn't had many dealings with her in the past, although there had been a few occasions when she had had to tell Tilly to move along after she had been bothering her guests. Tilly was sitting at the counter, drinking the beer that Ellen had seen them buy earlier. Her eyes were bloodshot but she didn't seem to be drunk; her high tolerance seemed to suggest she was used to drinking a lot. She was wearing clothes that left a lot of exposed skin. In her youth it would have been a welcome sight but now her skin was pockmarked and sallow, and it was not a pleasant sight. She was a few years younger than Ellen, yet seemed much older and, again, Ellen had to wonder what Chris was doing with Tilly.

  “I see you've been busy,” Ellen said, looking toward the pile of empty beer cans.

  “Celebrating something?�
�� she asked. Tilly shrugged.

  “Not really, just two friends sharing some drinks. Is that against the law now?” she said defensively.

  “Be careful, she's dating the chief,” Chris said, moving from behind Ellen to stand beside Tilly. Tilly scoffed and rolled her eyes.

  “She's nothing but a busybody. I wouldn't worry about her. Do you go around bothering everyone now? I think you should go back to your little café. Shouldn't you be looking to hire someone new? I hear you have a vacancy.”

  Tilly was so confident that Ellen was overjoyed at the thought of taking her down. She was enjoying the little back and forth they had going on. Ellen looked at the two of them and shook her head slightly. Inwardly she couldn't believe the two of them could be so despicable as to go after an innocent man and try ruining his life, but she didn't voice those concerns yet. Instead, she stiffened and looked at the two of them with a cold, hard stare, which unnerved Tilly and Chris. She asked if she could open the window, for the heat was almost unbearable, and neither Chris nor Tilly seemed to mind.

  “We all know what's going on here. Just tell the truth and I'll have a word with Andy, see if he'll go easy on you,” she offered, even though she had no intention of doing such a thing. Chris looked toward Tilly, taking his cues from her.

  “I don't know what you're talking about,” Tilly said.

  “Come on, do I really have to say it? I know you set Jack up, and I know you stole from your own mother. You should be ashamed. What's it going to take for you to own up to the lies?” she asked. Chris hardened, taking a step forward after the mention of his mother.

  Ellen felt a sharp stab of fear, and wondered if she had made a mistake. But again Tilly laughed. It was a cackling, high-pitched laugh that scraped through the air. She placed a hand on Chris' arm and let it linger there. Ellen wondered how long she had been wanting to touch that arm. Ellen locked eyes with Tilly and saw in them a cold hatred. Whatever light had shone in them long ago had been extinguished. There was nothing inside her except a cruel bitterness. It was rare for Ellen to feel such hatred for someone but she felt it toward Tilly, for the woman seemed to present no redeeming qualities to anyone. She was like a leech, sucking from the world until there was nothing left, and Ellen wanted it to stop.

  “Don't worry about her, she's just a busybody who doesn't know when to stay out of other people's affairs. She doesn't know anything, she's just fishing.”

  At that Chris seemed to relax a little. Tilly took another long sip of her drink and leered at Ellen.

  “Is there anything else we can help you with? Otherwise I think you should leave us in peace. You're not welcome here,” she said.

  Chapter 8

  “I know, I know, I didn't expect her to take this long either,” Kelly said, chewing her lip anxiously as she gazed out of the window.

  Scampy was scrambling in the back seat and Kelly was just as worried as the small dog. She looked at her phone and wondered whether it was time to call someone. It had been a bad idea from the start and she wished she had raised a stronger protest. Chris and Tilly were the unpredictable sort and Ellen had just walked in with them, with no telling what they would do. It wasn't likely they would attack Ellen as that would just throw suspicion on them. However, Kelly couldn't be sure, and her heart was racing, hoping her friend was okay. The minutes ticked by and things only got worse, so much so that the waiting became unbearable. The night was dark, and as she peered across the street at the house, which was only just visible from where she had parked, she couldn't see any signs of life. So she ventured outside, walking swiftly. She did not take Scampy, for fear that he would raise the alarm. She felt bad for leaving him in the car, but she promised him she would return promptly.

  She cleared her throat as she walked across the street and approached the house. Everything seemed quiet...too quiet. Kelly told herself to be brave and that she could do this, although in her heart she was terrified. It was only her fear of something happening to Ellen that allowed her to break through her terror. However, as she approached the house she stopped in her tracks and gasped. A shadow was thrown across the yard, and she wasn't sure who it was. She moved to a fence and crouched behind it, peering over to try seeing who was standing by the side of the house. Whoever it was moved quickly. The person stood by the side of the house, standing up to try covertly looking through the window. Kelly didn't imagine it was anyone who wanted to hurt Ellen, but it was just another wrench in the works that she didn't need. Things with Ellen never seemed easy, and she found herself cursing her friend as she moved forward in the pitch black night.

  As she grew closer she could see the mysterious figure was Andy, and a wave of relief swept through her. He was trained in these situations and was far more well-equipped to handle them than she was. Kelly tried to catch his eye but he was too focused on the house. She didn't dare make a noise in case it alerted Chris and Tilly to their presence. Kelly glanced back at the car and tried remembering if she had a flashlight inside that she could use to signal Andy. But then she wondered if she even would have enough time to get all the way there and back before something happened.

  Then Andy stiffened as he seemed to have heard a noise. He rushed into the house, and Kelly, in turn, rushed to help her friend. Her mind was chaotic with dreadful thoughts about what could be happening to her.

  Inside the kitchen, Ellen snorted at Chris and Tilly.

  “Look, let's all be adults about this now. You framed Jack, for whatever reason. I don't care, quite frankly, and despite everything I'm not going to go to the police if you agree to my deal. Obviously the two of you have fallen on some hard times recently. Maybe you did this for petty revenge; maybe it was for money; maybe it was for both,” she said, gesturing to both of them in turn.

  “But the fact is Jack has been some of the best cheap labor I've ever had. I can't imagine getting anyone as pathetic as him again to work for the same pittance of a wage. So please, let's agree to a settlement. Then you can get a nice payday and I'll get back a worker, and we all can ride off into the sunset.”

  The words she said sounded abhorrent and she marveled at the way she was able to sound sincere while saying them. Tilly looked impressed, however.

  “Seems you're more interesting than I first thought,” she said.

  “The funny thing is we both had the same idea. He's at such a loose end. He's a broken man really. I keep his tips from him and he doesn't notice. I pay him a wage that means he barely can afford to even eat at the cafe and he doesn't complain. Even I've thought about blackmailing him with similar charges. He's so forgetful he doesn't even realize I'm lying to him. Truth is, I guess he's had so much bad stuff in his life he just expects the worst. Can't blame him really, but there is no hope for him.”

  “If you treat him like that why do you even care? Why not just let him rot in jail and be done with it? Why bother paying us money at all?” Chris asked.

  “Because he's worth more to me in the long run, believe me. I wish I didn't have to go through this but it seems like our webs got tangled. Now we have to untangle them. That's why I came here tonight, so we can put this matter to rest and we all can get what we want.”

  Chris stared at Ellen, trying to figure out if she was being genuine or not. Ellen was checking her nails and blew an errant lock of hair away from her face. She met Chris' stare and didn't back down. In the end the brute of a man started laughing heartily, so much so the tears ran down his cheeks and he was almost doubled over. Tilly soon joined in, and Ellen had to hide her disgust at how the two comrades reveled in their treatment of Jack. Soon enough she had had enough of it and cleared her throat.

  “So do we have a deal?” she asked curtly, playing the part of the ruthless woman to a tee. Chris dried his eyes and the laughter subsided.

  “You know, this is the only outcome I didn't consider. Well done for taking me by surprise,” he said.

  “I have to admit I was impressed by your planning. You seemed to have taken everyt
hing into account. How did you get the glasses in the first place?”

  “Ah well, that's quite a story,” he said, and looked at Tilly.

  They were smiling smugly and, like all egoists, they wanted to display their prowess. They couldn't resist telling Ellen how the whole thing had come about.

  “I actually tried stealing his mother's jewelry first. My thinking was she never wears it, so it's not like she's actually going to miss it, and why shouldn't I get a little luck? I was due some good fortune. But then, of course, he caught me and I thought I was done for. You should have seen the look in his eyes,” Tilly said, gazing at Chris with admiration. Ellen thought that if he didn't know she had a fancy for him then he was blind.

  “I knew he'd been through some hard times himself. So I decided I had nothing to lose and asked if he wanted in on the plan. Being able to frame Jack was just the icing on the cake, really. All I wanted was for him to help me out a little bit when he could, but he couldn't even give me a little money, not even after all I'd done for him.”

  “You mean like leaving him when he lost everything?” Ellen said. Tilly's lips tightened and her eyes turned cruel.

  “That was a long time ago and you don't know what it was like to see all your possessions get hauled away, to see the life you were planning suddenly get torn to shreds. It was like the sun got stolen from us. I'd like to see how you'd react if your chief fell on hard times.”