Barbara Levenson - Mary Magruder Katz 03 - Outrageous October

by Barbara Levenson

  There were four bedrooms and two more bathrooms. Everything looked as if the original furnishings of Lucy’s grandmother were in place: flowered wallpaper, patchwork quilts, chenille bedspreads, maple furniture. I was surprised Lucy hadn’t redecorated.

  Inside one of the bedrooms we came to a door with a step in front of it. I tried the door but it was locked. Sam growled a low growl at first and then an excited bark. The hair on his back stood up. He looked exactly like he does when he spies a squirrel in the backyard.

  “Come away Sam. It must lead to an attic or storage room. You probably smell a mouse or something worse like a rat or a possum.”

  I dragged Sam away and down the back steps. The wine and the drive made me sleepy so I quickly unpacked the suitcase, shut the bedroom, door and hit the bed. I pointed to the rug beside the bed but Sam leaped on to the bed and settled down. Just as I dozed off we heard a loud bump. Sam went into full bark mode. We walked back to the kitchen, listened at the back door, and checked the living room. All was quiet, so once again I hit the bed. The next thing I knew sunlight streaked through the open window.

  CHAPTER

  SIXTEEN

  I threw on jeans and a sweatshirt. I took Sam’s food and my coffee, made in a stove percolator and definitely not Starbucks, out to one of the rocking chairs. The air was cold and fresh. The mountains looming ahead of me looked purple in the morning sun. Why were they called the Green Mountains, I wondered? The woods on the side of the house were deep and covered in leaves of all colors from green to scarlet. The only thing I could compare it to, were the colors on the wild macaws that circle my backyard in Coral Gables.

  Sam and I walked out to the barn at the end of the driveway. The heavy door was not locked. It slid back to reveal a huge space. It was cool and moist inside and smelled of newly mowed grass.

  There was a black Subaru SUV parked in the front section of the barn along with an array of garden tools. Against one wall was a large worktable and woodworking tools. A stairway led to a loft.

  What a great time Lucy and her family must have up here. She never mentioned that they kept a car up here, but it would make sense for them to have ready transportation.

  Back in the house, I stacked the dinner and breakfast dishes in the sink and grabbed the Valley News with all the good tourist info. Sam and I were off for a day of sightseeing.

  Once we reached the village, I stopped at the local filling station to gas up. They also had delicious pumpkin flavored coffee and blueberry muffins in the mini-mart. I never met coffee and muffins that I could pass up. The girl behind the counter was as attractive as a South Beach model. She was tall and wore her long hair in a thick braid.

  “Haven’t seen you before. Are you one of the leaf peepers?” She smiled as she handed me my change.

  “A leaf what?” I asked

  “A leaf peeper. That’s what we call the tourists that come to view the leaves in October. By Columbus Day, it’ll be wall to wall tour buses and RV’s out there on Route four. It’s not a mean expression. We love the tourists; for our economy you know.”

  “I guess you might say I’m a peeper. I’m visiting from Miami, staying at Lucy Stern’s house. I’m Mary Katz.”

  “Well, hi, I’m Riley Simmons. I’ve known Lucy’s family for years. How are they?”

  “They’re great. She has three kids now.”

  “Excuse me a minute,” Riley said as she looked over my head.

  I realized there were people waiting to pay for coffee and papers. I moved to one side.

  “Don’t leave, Mary,” Riley said. “Hi, Norman,” she held out her hand to the man standing behind me. “If you want to see Dad, he’s over at the gift shop.”

  “No, I just want a word with you,” Norman said lowering his voice. “As the newest member of the Select Board, I want to know whether you think we should keep Sheriff Parsons on or what. The unsolved Brousseau murder makes a lot of us uncomfortable.”

  “I haven’t been on the board too long. Not long enough to start firing people. Besides I’ve known Jimmy forever. He’s the one rescued me out of the river when I almost drowned.”

  “Geez, Riley. You were eight years old then. Aren’t you worried that no one was ever arrested in the murder?”

  “This isn’t the best time to discuss town business. It’s real busy right now. Call me later.” Riley turned to the next people in line.

  I decided to try my cell phone from here while Riley was busy. I wanted to wait ‘til Riley was free. Maybe I could find out more about the murder she was discussing. It must be the same one I read about in the paper. My lawyer curiosity was aroused.

  The cell phone worked from here where the land was flat.

  “Hi, Catherine, it’s me. How’s everything? I’ll bet it’s restful with me out of your hair,” I said.

  “Are you kidding?” Just a minute. I need to take this call in Ms. Katz’s office.”

  “What?” I shouted while the connection faded and returned. There was a pause. Then I heard Catherine although she was speaking softly.

  “I couldn’t talk to you out at my desk. I’m in your office with the door closed.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because Carlos is out there for the third time since you left. And when he’s not here in person, he’s on the phone. He’s driving me crazy. He just threw an envelope with your season tickets to the Panthers hockey team on my desk. He said, and I quote, ‘tell Mary I’m giving her these tickets. She wanted them. I couldn’t stand to use them without her.’ I looked at them and they’re great, six rows off the ice. Can I use some of them?”

  “Have you let anything slip about where I am?”

  “Of course not. But you should see him. He looks like he’s going to cry.”

  “I wish he really felt that sad, as sad as I do about how things ended between us. I just can’t trust him again after that terrible lie. I can’t count the times he told me how unhappy he was married to Margarita. Then I catch him having a secret cozy dinner with her when he told me he had a business meeting. How can I ever believe him again?”

  “I hear you,” Catherine said. “It’s just hard to think that there isn’t a good reason for his actions.”

  “I can’t imagine what that could be except another lie. I just don’t want to talk about this anymore. What else is new?”

  “Well, your mother has called several times to see if I’ve heard from you. And both your brothers called. Then Chicky called and said she wanted to talk to you. I said I didn’t know how to reach you.”

  .”What about client calls?”

  “You’ve got some new referrals that I sent on to Joe Fineberg. He said to tell you he accepted two new cases for you. One concerns some athlete. I think he said a football player who got arrested for rape or something. He’ll handle it ‘til you get back. Aren’t you reading your e-mails? I’ve been sending you these updates.”

  “I haven’t even opened my laptop in three days. I’m really trying to get away from the pressure-cooker I’ve been living in. Anyway, sounds like you’re doing great. Call my cell if you need me. It doesn’t always work so just leave a voice-mail, and the phone at Lucy’s isn’t connected. I’ll keep checking in with you, and I promise to start looking at the e-mails.”

  “Mary, I miss you. It’s not so much fun without you to laugh with. I’m beginning to feel sorry for Carlos. Maybe you should come home and hear him out.”

  “I miss you, too, but Carlos is not in my future. Gotta go. Bye.”.

  My heart was pounding just hearing about Carlos. Talking to Catherine brought back all the pain of seeing Carlos with Margarita. I stood staring out the window of the store.

  “Mary, are you okay?”

  I turned back to the counter, now free of new customers. Riley came around the counter and perched on a wooden stool “Mary, I’m glad you waited. Is everything okay?”

  “Oh, sure, just office problems.”

  How long will you be visiting? I’d be glad
to show you around over the weekend. As you can see, I’m pretty tied up here at the store during the week. My dad owns this and the gift shop down by the Gorge, so he keeps me busy.”

  “I really don’t know how long I’m going to stay. I’ve needed a vacation from work and stuff at home. I’d love to have you show me around. By the way, I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation before. What’s the Select Board?”

  “Oh, it’s like a town council. See every town is made up of a group of villages. I was elected to represent the village of High Pines.”

  “That sounds different. But I guess it’s like our County Commission in Miami-Dade County. Each area has a commissioner and then there’s a mayor from any district.”

  “Oh, we don’t have a mayor; just one member who kind of runs our meetings, but we Vermonters aren’t shy about speaking up. As the saying goes, ‘put two Vermonters in a room and get three opinions.’”

  “That sounds like lawyers. I’m curious about the murder you were talking about. Is it the one in the headline in yesterday’s paper?”

  “Well, of course. We don’t usually have more than one murder to talk about. Carolyn Brousseau was murdered last October. It’s been almost one year and no one’s been arrested. Our sheriff questioned a lot of folks but nothing’s ever come of it. People in the Upper Valley are concerned that someone will strike again. It looked like a robbery, but I’ve talked to Jimmy, that’s our sheriff, and he believes that it was Carolyn’s son who did it. Don’t repeat that. I shouldn’t be telling you something told to me in confidence.”

  “Don’t worry, Riley. I don’t know anyone here to talk to.”

  “You will. It’s a very friendly place. You’ll meet lots of people in no time. Meanwhile, if you’re lonesome you know where to find me. Stop in at the end of the week and we’ll make a plan for the weekend.”

  CHAPTER

  SEVENTEEN

  “I drove to the visitor’s center, and parked at the entrance to the trails leading to the Gorge. Standing on the bridge above it, it looked like the hike would be a tough descent and an even harder climb back to the road. I put Sam on his leash and decided to get some guidance inside the center.

  Two people were behind the counter which was covered in maps of the area. Both looked to be in their seventies or older. The woman turned to the man and said, “I’ll take this one, Henry. You can take a break.”

  Henry moved from behind the counter. He leaned heavily on a walker.

  “What can I do for you?” the woman turned to me.

  “I need some information about the hike into the Gorge. How difficult is it?”

  “My land, it’s so easy little kids do it all the time. Your dog can do this hike with no effort,” she said.

  “I guess it just looks so deep. I come from Miami, Florida. We don’t have any hills except Mt. Trashmore. That’s our landfill.”

  “You really are a ‘flatlander’. No offense, that’s what we call you people from away. If you weren’t born here, you’re a ‘flatlander’. I guess the gorge is deep enough for us to have at least one suicide jump every year. We’re about due for one. Say, did you say Miami? Are you Lucy Morgan’s friend?”

  Yes, I’m Mary Katz. I haven’t heard Lucy called Morgan for a while. She’s been Lucy Stern for at least twelve years.”

  “I’m Harriet McIntosh. We heard you were coming to visit. Good to meet you. Lucy was one of our favorites. Her grandma was a great lady. We all miss her. Now let me get you some trail maps, and I’ll draw some easy hikes for you.” She produced a yellow marking pen. “And, let me suggest that you invest in some hiking boots and a good fleece jacket, if you’re going to stay for a while. You can go over to Bradford to the Farmway Store. They’re always having a sale. I’ll show you how to get there on this map. Those sneakers won’t feel so good if they get wet.”

  I glanced at the maps. “How far is it to Hanover, New Hampshire? That’s where Dartmouth College is, isn’t it?”

  “Oh, that’s just a hop and a skip from here. Not more than fifteen minutes. Maybe ten, depending how fast you drive. It’s a pretty drive and a beautiful campus especially at this time of the year with the leaves changing. You got friends over there?”

  “The son and daughter of one of my clients go to school there. Do cell phones work in this area? Maybe I’ll call them”

  “Sure do. At least most of the time. Now you stop in anytime and we’ll be glad to help you. And tell Lucy we all send our love.” Harriet turned to assist a family that had just walked in.

  I walked back to my car, and fished out my little address book in my backpack. I still hadn’t transferred most of the numbers into my cell. I found the address and phone number for Sherry Yarmouth.

  Sherry and Brett Yarmouth are the offspring of Gary and Lillian Yarmouth. Lillian was accused of stabbing Gary to death with her silver letter opener. I am the lawyer who got the charge dismissed.

  Lillian seemed like a shy fearful person that needed my protection until her case was dismissed. Then she turned into a hard-charging business executive. She grabbed the reins of her family business and she consumed the lives of her children I got to know Sherry and Brett during Lillian’s case and still get e-mails and notes from Sherry.

  I pulled out my phone, hoping for cell service, and dialed Sherry’s number. I glanced at my watch. It was ten a.m. She probably would be in class at this hour. To my surprise she answered on the second ring.

  “Sherry? It’s Mary Katz. I didn’t think I’d find you in your dorm at this hour.”

  “Mary, is something wrong with my mother?”

  “No. I’m not in Miami. Actually I’m in Vermont, in High Pines, just a few minutes from you. I thought maybe we could make a plan to get together, maybe for lunch or dinner while I’m here.”

  “Mary, this is great. You’re just the person I want to talk to. Where are you right now? I don’t have classes ‘til two this afternoon. Can you come up here for lunch? Or are you here on business?”

  “This is actually the first vacation I’ve had in ages, so no business. I was just about to start a hike into the Gorge, but that can wait. I have Sam with me. You know, my German Shepherd. Can I bring him? Is everything okay with you?”

  “Absolutely. I’ve never been better. I just need someone for some girl talk. Bring Sam. Everyone takes their dogs everywhere here and it’s all casual. Meet me in front of the Dartmouth Book Store. It’s right in the middle of town on Main Street. You can’t miss it. There are parking meters behind it. Come right away and I’ll walk you around town before lunch.”

  CHAPTER

  EIGHTEEN

  It was a beautiful drive to Hanover. The granite formations on either side of Interstate 91 looked like a study in geology or ancient history or both. Sunlight shimmered off the mountains. There was no traffic at all; this freeway and Interstate 95, my normal Miami route, have nothing in common except that they’re both freeways.

  Once off the freeway we crossed a huge bridge over the Connecticut River. Rowers were practicing on the river and a few guys and gals were stretched out on a dock enjoying the sun. At the top of a hill the town stretched to my right and what appeared to be the college campus spread out to my left.

  I turned right and saw the book store along with shops and restaurants. It looked like a backdrop for a movie about New England. I pulled down an alley and found a parking meter behind the store. Sam and I strolled back to the main drag, Every person we passed smiled and said “good morning” or “great dog.” Now I began to feel like I was in the movie The Stepford Wives.

  A large table sat in front of the store filled with all kinds of books on sale. I began to browse just as Sherry came from somewhere and tapped me on the shoulder. I automatically jumped and whirled around, fists clenched and Sam pulled close.

  “Hey, take it down a notch. This isn’t downtown Miami. This is safe and sound Hanover, New Hampshire.” Sherry laughed and hugged me. She was wearing a Dartmouth sweatshirt and jeans.
With her hair pulled back and without makeup she looked fifteen years old.

  “I am so glad to see you. You look great,” I said. It’s good to see you relaxed and without the tension when your dad died.”

  “It was such an awful time, but we’ve all managed to get on with our lives. I know Brett will be disappointed not to see you. He’s doing an internship with a wine distributor in New York, so he won’t be back at school until after Thanksgiving. So tell me, what are you doing here?”

  She took my arm and we started walking toward the campus. “This is the Dartmouth green right ahead of us, and over there is the Hanover Inn, very old, at least by Miami standards, and that big building is the Hopkins Center where there are all sorts of plays and concerts and an art gallery.”

  “Sherry, let me ask a favor of you. Please don’t tell your mother that I’m up here. I guess you could say that I’ve run away from home. I broke up with Carlos and I just felt burnt out. One of my friends owns a house in High Pines and she insisted that I come up here and give myself some peace and quiet. But I don’t want anyone to tell Carlos where I am. I don’t want him following me and breaking down my decision to end things. You understand, don’t you?”

  “Why did you and Carlos break up? I thought he was so nice and so good-looking. You seemed like the perfect couple when we all had dinner after you won my mother’s case.”

  “It’s hard for me to talk about it. Please try to understand.”

  “Sure I understand. You can trust me because I’m going to ask you not to tell my mother something. Let’s turn back to town. I’ll tell you when we sit down to lunch.”

  We circled the campus. Sherry pointed out her dorm, Baker Library, the football stadium which looked like a miniature compared to the Orange Bowl, and the hockey arena. I filed away the information about the men’s and women’s hockey games. Maybe I would still be here when they began playing.