“Neither did I.”
“You know, Joe could never understand why I wanted to keep running Marlow House as a bed and breakfast. Especially after the inheritances. He’s right, I certainly don’t need the money.”
“I understand. It’s fun meeting new people.”
“Exactly!” Danielle nodded emphatically.
“And I’ve come to realize we all need to do something constructive.”
Danielle glanced over at Lily. “You thinking about going back to teaching?”
“As much as I loved teaching, now that I don’t have to do it, I honestly don’t know if I want to. Oh, I want to do something with kids again. I need to start being productive again, but I don’t know if I want to deal with all the political BS that comes with being a teacher. Not to mention the paperwork these days.” Lily paused and looked directly at Danielle. “Do you understand?”
“Completely.”
“But I can’t keep spending my days following Ian around, being nothing more than his sidekick while he’s doing research and writing. I’m sure he likes having someone around to make him coffee when he’s deep in research or making him a sandwich when he’s hungry, but that’s not how I want to spend the rest of my life. I need to find something constructive, positive, to do with my time.”
“You’ll figure it out.” Danielle reached into the overhead cabinet and removed a cup. She looked at Lily. “You want some coffee?”
“Sure. If we can have some of that crumb cake you made.”
“We just finished breakfast,” Danielle teased as she removed a second cup.
“So?” Lily removed the lid from the cake pan and picked up the plate, carrying it to the table. She set it down and then glanced around the room. “Have you seen Walt this morning?”
“He was with us at breakfast.” Danielle carried the now full cups to the table. “But then he said something about going up to the attic to finish that book he was reading.”
Lily cut a piece of cake for Danielle and one for herself, setting each one on a napkin. She then took a seat at the table. “When are we going to get Walt a Kindle? I think he’d get a kick out of downloading books. Look how much he loves the Netflix subscription you gave him for Christmas.”
Joining Lily at the table, Danielle shook her head. “I’m not sure Walt is ready for eBooks.”
“What, you think I’m incapable of mastering technology a child Evan’s age can handle?” Walt asked indignantly when he appeared, standing by the table.
His abrupt appearance startled Danielle, and she splashed coffee on the table. She glared at Walt as he sat on one of the empty chairs. “I wish you wouldn’t sneak up on me.”
Lily glanced over at the seemingly empty chair next to her and watched as it repositioned itself. “Morning, Walt,” she said before taking a bite of her coffee cake.
“And anyway,” Danielle said as she wiped up her spilled coffee with a napkin, “I just meant that with older people, figuring out computers and reading tablets is often more challenging than for children.”
“Older people? Might I remind you I am younger than both you and Lily.”
Danielle shrugged and tossed her now crumpled and soaked napkin aside. “In your estimation you’re in your late twenties, and I see you as a little over a hundred and twenty. About a century discrepancy there, wouldn’t you say?” Danielle wrinkled her nose at Walt and took a bite of her cake.
“You know what is really strange?” Lily said as she broke off a small piece of cake.
“What?” Danielle asked.
“I actually know what you two are talking about, and I’m only hearing one side of the conversation.”
Thirty minutes later, Danielle and Lily were in the library, where Lily was busy surfing on her iPad while Danielle sat at her desk, working on her computer.
“Oh, Dani! You are not going to believe this!” Lily abruptly sat upright on the sofa, placing her feet on the floor. Still holding the iPad in her hands, she hastily scrolled through whatever website she was viewing.
Danielle looked up from the computer. “What is it?”
Holding the iPad with her right hand, Lily used her left hand to wave dismissively in Danielle’s direction. “Just a minute.” Still staring at the tablet, Lily muttered, “I don’t believe this? Who is this person? How did they get that picture?”
Sounding bored and slightly annoyed, Danielle looked over to Lily. “What are you going on about? I’m trying to post these invoices, and I really need to focus.”
“It’s about you, Dani!”
Danielle frowned. “What’s about me?”
“This blog! There’s an entire blog dedicated to you and Marlow House!”
“What are you talking about? What blog?”
Lily leapt up from the sofa and carried her iPad to Danielle, who continued to sit at her desk. “The blog is called Mysteries of Marlow House. It even has its own URL.”
Danielle took the iPad from Lily and stared at it. “That’s a picture of me? Where did they take that?”
“It was obviously taken last year at the open house. You’re wearing the Missing Thorndike and your vintage dress.”
Staring at the image, Danielle shook her head. “I don’t remember that picture. It wasn’t the one in the newspaper or on the B and B website. It was obviously taken in the backyard. Who took it?”
Lily took the iPad from Danielle and looked at it again. “I don’t know. But go to the website on your computer, and you can see for yourself.”
Danielle turned her attention back to the computer. “What did you say the URL was again?”
“All one word, Mystery of Marlow House dot com.”
Sitting on the arm of the sofa with her iPad, Lily faced Danielle. “It appears the blog started after you went missing. And since then, they’ve been making regular entries.”
Staring at her monitor, Danielle frowned. “This is weird. Whose blog is it? I can’t find any name.”
“I couldn’t either. But whoever it is, they seem to be fixated on you.”
“That is just creepy,” Danielle said as her fingers danced over the keyboard.
“What are you doing?” Lily looked over her iPad to get a better look of what Danielle was doing on the computer.
“I’m doing a WHOIS search to see who owns the domain.”
“Playing Jessica Fletcher again?” Lily teased.
“I told you it’s Nancy Drew,” Danielle reminded her, her eyes never leaving the monitor. “Jessica is too old.”
“Hmm…does that make Walt a Hardy Boy?”
“Hardy har har,” Danielle said dryly. “Whoever it was hid their identity. But you’re right, it was started the day after we went missing, at least according to the domain information. That’s when it was registered.” Danielle looked up from the computer.
“I wonder if it is someone we know,” Lily said.
“If the blogger took the photo, not necessarily. There were a lot of people in and out of here on the day of the open house. There were a lot of people there that I didn’t know and never saw again.”
Lily stood up, setting her iPad on the sofa cushion. She began to pace the room. “Then whoever it is, maybe they’ll return to the scene of the crime.” Pausing, she faced Danielle and made a poor attempt at wiggling her eyebrows.
“What are you talking about? And stop doing that with your eyes. Makes you look like a geek.”
Lily started pacing again. “Just saying, if the blogger did take that picture, then perhaps they’ll come to your anniversary open house. We’re having it, right?”
“I told you. No anniversary celebration.” Danielle looked back at her monitor. “Now hush, I’m going to read what my cyber stalker has been writing about me.”
Ten
Pastor Chad took her gloved hands in his and gave them a gentle squeeze. He continued to hold them as he looked into her eyes and said, “I am so pleased to see you here today, Mrs. Nichols.”
Pastor Chad and
Marie Nichols stood outside on the steps of the Frederickport Community Church as the parishioners made their way inside for the Sunday service. It had been months since Marie had attended church, but after she opened her birthday gift from Danielle several weeks earlier, she knew she had to go, in order to show off the lovely dress Danielle had given her. It was obvious Lily and Danielle had conspired when selecting their gifts for her ninety-first birthday, considering the lovely little hat Lily had given her perfectly matched the dress. Marie wore them both today, along with her white gloves. Women rarely wear gloves anymore, Marie thought.
“I figured it was about time I made an appearance,” Marie said as she removed her hands from his, yet not before giving the minister’s hands a friendly pat. “At my age I can be called up at any moment, and I figure it might give me some points if he knows I’ve made a recent visit to his house.”
The reverend smiled and said, “I do understand it’s not always easy for you to get here every Sunday. I’ve told you before if you ever need a ride—”
Reaching out and patting his hand again, Marie interrupted him by saying, “Yes, yes, I know. But frankly I’m a little too old to do any significant sinning these days to warrant weekly sermons, and I don’t imagine there is much you can tell me that I haven’t already heard. But I do appreciate your offer.”
Marie didn’t wait for Pastor Chad to respond, but instead abruptly excused herself and moved to the doorway into the church, leaving the minister to greet his other parishioners. A few moments later she stood inside the church, the leather strap of her white handbag draped over her right forearm. Glancing around, deciding where to sit, she heard several people call her name in greeting. Responding with a friendly wave and cheerful smile, Marie made her way down the aisle.
One friend, who called out, pointed to the empty space next to her on the pew, yet before Marie took a step in that direction, someone else claimed it. Just as that happened, Marie noticed Beverly Klein sitting alone just two pews down. Picking up her step, Marie bustled in Beverly’s direction.
“Marie,” Beverly greeted her in surprise when the elderly woman took the space next to her.
Making herself comfortable, Marie set her purse on the floor by her feet and said, “I’m beginning to feel like a sinner the way everyone seems so surprised to see me here this morning.”
Beverly tittered and patted Marie’s arm. “Not at all. Goodness, I haven’t come for months myself. But after Steve…” Beverly didn’t finish her sentence, but instead let out a sigh.
Marie turned to Beverly, a concerned expression on her face as she studied the much younger woman’s delicate profile. “How are you doing, dear?”
Beverly shrugged and then smiled at Marie. “Taking one day at a time. It’s hard getting used to being alone.”
Marie patted Beverly’s knee and then turned to face the front of the church. “It will get easier over time. I promise you. It was rough after my husband died, but can I tell you a secret?”
Looking at Marie, Beverly cocked her head slightly. “Sure, what?”
“Sometimes living alone can be rather nice. No one’s messes to pick up after. If I don’t want to cook dinner, I don’t have to. Of course, with my husband, it wasn’t just dinner. It was breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But from what I understand with the younger generation, the husbands seem to help more around the house.”
“Not Steve,” Beverly said under her breath, and then added in a conspiratorial whisper, “Can I tell you a secret?”
“Certainly.”
“I feel that way now.”
Marie laughed. “Well, I understand. But you’re still young. I’m sure you’ll find someone else.”
“I imagine your grandson has told you I’m thinking of leaving town.”
“You are? He never mentioned anything,” Marie lied.
“Really? I just assumed he would have.”
“Oh no,” Marie said seriously. “Adam is a professional. He never discusses his clients’ private business.”
Beverly smiled. “That’s nice to know.”
“But you know, dear, Frederickport has some eligible bachelors you should first consider before you go running off.”
“You mean like your grandson?” Beverly asked with a grin.
“Oh no!” She quickly added, “I didn’t mean that as it sounded. It’s just that you have grown children, and I can’t imagine you would want to have any more, whereas when Adam finally settles down, he’ll want to start a family—children of his own.”
Suppressing a smile, Beverly asked, “Who exactly did you have in mind?”
“Why, the police chief. Of course, he does have young boys at home, but they seem to be good boys. The poor man.”
“I still can’t believe Carol Ann was involved in that hijacking. And then a kidnapping! I would have never guessed in a million years she would do something like that.”
Marie nodded her head in agreement. “I was in total shock. Of course, I always say you never really know someone. For example—” Marie lowered her voice and leaned close to Beverly as her gaze darted about the church, looking at the people sitting on the pews around them “—someone sitting under this roof could very well be a killer, and we would never know.”
Beverly smiled and glanced around the room. “You’re right, Marie. Nothing surprises me anymore.”
Marie nodded emphatically. “Isn’t that the truth.”
“Which reminds me, I suppose you know what happened at the bank yesterday. After all, you are close with Danielle Boatman.”
Marie frowned. “No, I don’t know. What happened?”
“Apparently, Danielle went to the bank yesterday morning to remove those gold coins from her safe deposit box—the coins she found at your house—and they were gone!”
“Gone?” Marie gasped.
Beverly nodded. “Yes. They have the FBI looking into it. I understand they’ve been going through the surveillance videos of the vault. Something like this would not have happened had Steve still been alive.”
Marie started to ask Beverly how she knew, but then thought the question foolish, considering Beverly’s late husband had been the bank’s manager for a number of years. She imagined the widow kept in close contact with her associations from the bank.
“What all did the thieves take?” Marie asked.
“From what I was told, the only thing they know that’s missing is the gold coins. From what I understand, Danielle opened her other safe deposit box and removed the Missing Thorndike and took it home with her.”
“Took it home with her?” Marie gasped. “That seems a little dangerous, keeping something so valuable at her house.”
Beverly shrugged. “She does run an inn; I would imagine she has some sort of safe there.”
“She does, but still…”
“You can hardly blame her. If my deposits weren’t federally protected, I’d be tempted to close my account myself,” Beverly said.
“Do you know if the bank is liable for those coins?”
“From what Steve always told me, safe deposit boxes aren’t insured per se. Of course, if the bank could be proven negligent in some way, I would imagine they might be held liable for some damages. Yet from what I’m hearing, Alan Kissinger—that’s the new bank manager—insists the only person who was ever in that safe deposit box was Danielle. According to him, it’s her word against the bank’s.”
“Danielle would never lie about something like that!”
“I’m not saying she would. In fact, Susan Mitchell insists the gold coins were in the box the last time Danielle was in it.”
“Then why is the manager trying to say Danielle lied?”
“I imagine to save his own hide.”
Adam Nichols had dropped his grandmother off at church that Sunday morning. He had been a little surprised when she had called him up the night before and had asked him for a ride to church. But when he picked her up that morning and saw her all dressed up in the new outfit
Danielle and Lily had given her, he had a good idea the real reason she wanted to go. These days, his grandmother didn’t have many opportunities to dress up in all her finery. He made himself a mental note to take his grandmother to Pearl Cove for dinner in the near future.
After she had asked him for a ride, she tried to talk him into attending services with her. He respectfully declined, telling her he already had an appointment with a client on Sunday morning. It wasn’t exactly the truth. His appointment was in reality breakfast at Pier Café with Bill Jones, who was an old friend and part-time employee—not a client.
At breakfast, Bill told him an interesting story about someone stealing Danielle’s gold coins from the bank. Initially, Adam didn’t believe the story. For one thing, he knew Bill was still annoyed over the gold coins, believing the two could have ended up with them had Adam been more cooperative and arranged for Bill to search his grandmother’s rental property. Yet by the end of breakfast, Adam was beginning to believe Bill was telling the truth.
Adam finished breakfast and left Pier Café before Bill, as he needed to head back to church and pick up his grandmother. She had been fairly cheerful when he had initially dropped her off that morning, but when she climbed into his vehicle after services, she was clearly agitated.
“What’s wrong, Grandma?” Adam asked as he put his car in gear and pulled back into the street.
“I just heard the most troubling news,” Marie said as she fastened her seatbelt. She then went on to tell Adam what Beverly had told her.
“Bill mentioned that at breakfast,” Adam said without thinking.
“Bill? Breakfast? I thought you had an appointment with a client?”
“Uhh…well, I did. But right when I got to the office this morning, the client called and cancelled. And a few minutes later Bill called and asked me for breakfast.”
“Right…” Marie said, unconvinced.
Adam shrugged guiltily.
“So how did Bill know about what happened at the bank? From what Beverly told me, they’re trying to keep it hushed up while the FBI investigates.”
The Ghost and the Leprechaun Page 6
