“You mean about all those guys Dara was sleeping with?” Ginger asked in amazement. “Like about a hundred people didn’t already know!”
“I didn’t know,” Christine said. “She didn’t confide in me.”
Ginger rolled her eyes. “Well, she didn’t have to confide in you. You just had to keep your eyes open—” She broke off abruptly, as if suddenly remembering that Rey had supposedly been Dara’s one and only boyfriend. “Oh, gee, Rey, I’m sorry. I forgot you were in love with her, although I always thought you were nuts for choosing her!”
“Ginger!” Christine snapped.
“Well, I did think so!” No one could shut up Ginger when she got on a roll. “I mean, there was Tess, salt of the earth and just adoring him, and he didn’t even see her because he was so over the moon about Dara, who was just anybody’s for the taking!”
Rey had gone white and Christine intervened sharply. “Ginger, I think you’ve said more than enough for one day. Besides, the subject here was my being fired, not Dara’s love life. Anyway, I don’t know how soon Ames plans to replace me. In fact, he’ll probably turn the store over to Rey. But I did want to stop and say good-bye to everyone.”
“This stinks, Christine,” Rey said weakly, clearly still reeling from Ginger’s diatribe. “I don’t know what Ames is thinking.”
The irrepressible Ginger flung herself into Christine’s arms. “Mr. Prince will realize he’s being a jerk. I’ll bet you’ll be back here in a week. This store can’t get along without you. None of us can. Right, Rey?”
“Yes. That’s certainly true,” Rey said woodenly, his mind clearly back on Dara’s infidelities.
Christine forced a smile. “I want everyone to go on working as if nothing has happened. And don’t worry about me. I’ll be just fine. And Ames didn’t fire Jeremy. He says he’s not coming back without me, but I’m hoping Ames can change his mind about that.” Rey and Ginger gave her wide, false smiles. They both knew it was nearly impossible to change Jeremy’s mind about anything. “Well, I’m going next door to see if I can talk Tess into taking an early lunch. Bye, you two. I’ll see you soon.”
Christine turned and strode to the front door, hoping neither Ginger nor Rey had seen the tears welling in her eyes.
3
Calliope was the first store besides Prince Jewelry Christine had visited when she moved to Winston. She loved books, devouring at least three every week, and she’d been intrigued by the store’s name. She’d been even more fascinated when she discovered the bookstore actually housed a working calliope that had belonged to Tess’s great-grandfather. It stood at the back of the store on a sort of dais, a large mahogany machine painted with gay pastoral scenes that had been carefully restored when the calliope was moved into Tess’s store. Once Christine had talked Tess into playing it. Tess had launched into a raucous version of “Bicycle Built for Two.” The keys emitted a cacophony of harsh steam whistles that had sent them both into a hysterical laughing fit. Afterward, they’d both agreed the calliope served better as a conversation piece than to provide a musical background for the store.
Tess stood behind the counter ringing up two paperback novels for an elderly lady whose hair had been dyed an unfortunate shade of electric blue. Christine vowed to herself that even if in the future her own gray hair grew in with a yellow tinge, she would not venture into the blue and violet realms of false color meant to be flattering. She thought they made ladies look like elderly punk rockers.
The last time Christine had seen Tess was when she’d driven her and Jeremy home after Jeremy showed everyone the Dara Pin. She’d been furious that day, clearly jealous because when she’d come into the store, Rey’s arm had been around Christine’s shoulder. Tess’s reaction was ridiculous, but Christine had worried about it. She valued their friendship. She wanted to make sure today everything was okay between them.
“How’s business today?” Christine asked when the woman had left.
“Unbelievable. When the cable TV went out during the height of the flood, I think most people realized the value of books. They’re stocking up for another disaster.” Tess’s tone was bright, her smile sincere. Some of Christine’s tension eased. “How’s it going at the jewelry store?”
“I . . . uh, okay.” Christine had decided not to tell either Tess or Bethany about the loss of her job until she’d informed Rey and Ginger. Now, after facing Ames, as well as Reynaldo and Ginger, she’d decided she didn’t have the energy for another emotional scene. “Unfortunately, people didn’t feel the lack of jewelry as much as they did the lack of reading material during the flood.”
“No, I think sweat suits were the order of the day,” Tess laughed. “Oh well, high school and college graduations will be coming up in a month, not to mention June weddings. Rey will be working overtime and loving every minute of it.”
A bell over the door tinkled and they looked up to see Bethany. Her usually carefully groomed hair was pulled back carelessly, she wore no makeup except for a dash of lipstick, and her chartreuse sweater clashed jarringly with her burgundy slacks. “You’re both here!” she said as if there was no one in the world she’d rather see. “I have a million things to do today. Funeral arrangements, mostly. They’re so depressing. Picking out a casket. Choosing what clothes to bury Travis in. What flowers to pick for the casket blanket.”
She smiled brightly at both of them, then suddenly burst into a torrent of tears. “Oh, my God, I’m burying my husband in two days!”
Christine rushed to her and enclosed her shuddering body in her arms. “Beth, I’m so sorry. I know that’s an inadequate thing to say, but—”
“But what else is there to say?” Bethany sniffled loudly and Tess dashed around the counter holding a box of tissues. “I’m so damned mad at him about a dozen things, including dying. He was thirty-eight years old. He had a child. He was so bright. And he was also compulsively unfaithful and sneaky, but I miss him and I don’t know how to live without him right now.”
Christine went on patting Bethany’s shoulder, at a loss for any words that could ease her pain. She remembered when her parents died. People had tried so hard to say the right things, the comforting things. But it had all sounded like meaningless gibberish to her ears. She appreciated the kind thoughts behind the words. She recalled none of the platitudes.
A male customer came in and Bethany quickly turned away to hide her tears. The man ignored her and asked in a rather pretentious voice for a manual listing publishing houses and agents. “I haven’t decided who I’m going to let have my book yet,” he announced to Tess. “I thought I’d flip through the manual until a name caught my eye. I believe that’s the only way to go about this kind of thing. Instinct.”
Good luck with that fabulous instinct, Christine thought sarcastically. The man was so full of himself in the face of Bethany’s misery that Christine felt like slapping him. But he didn’t know what Bethany was going through. And he was proud of his accomplishment, although judging from his unbridled confidence, Christine was immediately suspicious of the book’s quality. But then, she was always leery of people who indulged in self-aggrandizement.
The phone rang while the man chattered away to Tess, and another customer entered, yelling, “You got any good romances? Something sexy to spice up my evening?”
“I’ll get the phone!” Christine called to Tess, who looked grateful. As soon as she announced, “Calliope Books,” an older woman said, “This isn’t Tess. Who is this?”
“My name is Christine Ireland. May I help you?”
“Oh, Christine, this is Thelma Brown, Tess’s mother!” the woman shouted into the phone. Tess had said her mother refused to wear her hearing aid. “I haven’t seen you for a coon’s age!”
“Yes, it’s been a while,” Christine said loudly. “I’m afraid Tess is swamped at the moment. Do you want me to give her a message?”
“Well, I think you’re a mighty good friend to leave your own business just to come over and answer Tess
’s phone!”
“I just happened to drop in.” Christine glanced over at Bethany, who stared without seeing at a rack of cookbooks. “Mrs. Brown, is there something you wanted me to tell Tess for you? Or would you like her to call you back when she gets a chance?”
“Well, she can call me back, but you can also tell her she and Geraldo are invited to Sunday dinner.” After two years of marriage, Thelma Brown still couldn’t master Reynaldo Cimino’s name. “I haven’t seen that girl of mine for ages. Asked her to come help me during flood time, but she didn’t show up. Called and said her car conked out on her.”
“Her car? I didn’t know she’d had car trouble.”
“Probably just some excuse so she wouldn’t have to come,” Mrs. Brown said petulantly.
“I’m sure it wasn’t an excuse, Mrs. Brown,” Christine returned slowly. Tess had said nothing to her about having car trouble. In fact, the car had seemed fine when Tess had picked her up at the hospital that morning. “I’m glad you came through the flood all right and I’ll have Tess call you right back.”
“Fine and dandy. Oh, and you can come to dinner, too. Nothin’ fancy, mind you. Just good country cooking.”
“Thank you. I have to go now. Tess will call back.”
Christine hung up slowly, her thoughts whirling. Although Michael was convinced Travis was Patricia Prince’s lover, no one knew for certain. What if it had been Reynaldo, who was so clearly unhappy with his marriage, who had looked positively ill at Patricia’s funeral? And if Rey had been the mysterious lover, where was Tess on the afternoon when she’d claimed she’d been at her mother’s moving items up from the woman’s flooding basement, the afternoon when Patricia had been pushed to her death in the barn?
CHAPTER 21
1
Christine looked at the clock again. Seven o’clock. The hour would seem early to most people, but she could not remember a time when Jeremy had been unaccounted for this late at night.
When she’d stopped by the fitness center at three in the afternoon, Jeremy had been having so much fun she’d hated to drag him away. “Let him stay awhile, Christine,” Danny had said. “When he got here, he seemed pretty bummed over getting fired from Prince Jewelry.”
“He didn’t get fired—I did,” Christine clarified.
“My parents think Ames walks on water, but just between you and me, I always thought the guy was a sanctimonious jerk with a stick up his you-know-what,” Danny said, making Christine smile. “Anyway, Marti’s not feeling great today—I think she’s getting this flu bug going around—and he’s actually being a big help to me. He’s fairly knowledgeable about the proper way to use all the equipment and he’s got a great personality. Give him a couple more hours. I’ll call you when he’s ready.”
Christine had glanced into the main part of the gym and seen Jeremy looking happy as he showed a middle-aged man the proper way to do crunches. At least he wasn’t mourning over his lost job at Prince Jewelry, she thought, and decided to take Danny’s advice.
But now it was seven and Danny hadn’t phoned to tell her Jeremy was ready to come home. She called him. “Danny, did you forget to call?” she asked. “I’m coming to get Jeremy now, so tell him to get his stuff together and be waiting at the door.”
“You’re coming to get him now?”
“Yes,” Christine laughed. “Are you going to tell me you still can’t do without him?”
“No. It’s just that . . . well, I thought you already picked him up.”
“Why would you think that? Oh God, he’s gone, isn’t he?”
“Well . . . yeah. The place is packed. I think everyone who didn’t come during the flood is here now. Anyway, I was looking around for him about half an hour ago and couldn’t find him. I thought he must be in the rest room. I finally went in to look and he wasn’t there. Not the refreshment room, either. That’s when I thought you must have stopped by to pick him up and I just didn’t see you with all the people here and the activity.”
“Danny, I wouldn’t have left with him without telling you.”
“That’s what Marti said. We were just getting ready to call you because we thought maybe he’d decided to walk home.”
“Three miles in the dark?” Christine’s heart had begun to race. “You know he’s got this superstition about walking at night, even though he’ll ride his bike in the dark. He didn’t have his bike with him, though. Danny, he must have left with someone.”
“Doesn’t he know not to go places with strangers?”
“He could have left with someone he knew. Have you asked around? Did anyone see him leave?”
“I’ve asked a bunch of people, but no one saw him go.” Danny took a deep breath. “Listen, Chris, maybe someone he knew did offer him a ride home and he’ll be there any minute.”
“Maybe? And what if that’s not what happened? Danny, I left him under your supervision,” Christine said furiously. “You were supposed to watch him.”
“I did watch him, Chris, but I couldn’t keep my eyes glued to him. You know I love him like a brother. God, I’m so sorry—”
“It’s a little late for that,” Christine snarled, and slammed down the phone receiver, knowing she was more upset with herself than with Danny. Jeremy was her responsibility, not Danny’s. She shouldn’t have left him for so long at the gym. Maybe he’d gotten his lost job at the jewelry store on his mind again and gone into a funk no one noticed. She should have dragged him out at three in the afternoon. She should have . . .
What? Kept him like a dog on a leash and made him feel helpless and incompetent? It was a sense of independence, of control, of responsibility, that had spurred Jeremy to accomplish all that he had in spite of his mental challenges. It had been an effort, but she’d worked hard to make herself give him enough freedom so he could develop confidence in himself.
But now what she constantly feared had happened. Jeremy was missing, and she had no idea where to look for him. Or with whom, because she knew in the core of her being that if he hadn’t left the fitness center on his own, anyone offering him an innocent ride home would have delivered him by now.
Christine immediately thought of calling Michael. But Michael was off duty, no doubt at home with his newly returned ex-wife. The image brought pain dulled only by her anxiety over Jeremy. She had to find him. And she prayed when she found him, he would be alone, not at the hands of whoever was stalking her.
“Idiot!” she said to herself when she finally remembered the policeman still keeping surveillance on her house. She ran out to the patrol car parked in front of the house. The policeman’s name was Morris, and she told him quickly that Jeremy had left the gym. Naturally he was not alarmed, giving her all the arguments Danny had already tried.
“Look, you know my brother is mentally challenged,” she said. “It’s not safe for him to be out at night without supervision. He’s afraid to walk in the dark, but he’s been upset about something going on at Prince Jewelry, where we work, and he might have gone there.”
“But the place is closed,” Morris said. “Does he have a key?”
“Yes. I’m going to the store to look for him. Will you go with me?”
“My orders are to keep an eye on you, ma’am,” he said with a smile. His face was broad and good-natured, his eyes a pleasant dark blue. “If he’s not there, we’ll just keep looking. Does he have a cell phone?”
“Yes, if he remembered to take it with him today.”
“Well, hop in the car and we’ll head for the store.”
“I’m afraid a patrol car might scare him. I’d rather drive my car and have you follow me.”
“Whatever you think is best, Miss Ireland. And you calm down. We’ll find him.”
Christine hated evenings at this time of the year, when darkness closed in around six o’clock. Summer was her favorite time of the year, when daylight lasted until nearly nine o’clock. It was easier to find people in the daylight, and fewer dangers seemed to linger than in the spectra
l semidarkness of a late March evening.
Parking spaces were plentiful on downtown streets after five o’clock when the stores closed. She pulled up in front of Prince Jewelry and Morris pulled in behind her. She went to his open car window again. “I’ll only be in the store for a few minutes and I won’t leave the lighted display room, so you can just wait in the car.”
“Sure you’re not afraid to go in alone?”
“I’m sure. Thanks anyway.”
She still had her store key and unlocked the front door. Lights were always left on over the window display cases, but she turned on all of the showroom lights. “Jeremy!” she called. “Are you here?”
No answer. Christine walked to the door of the storeroom, flipped on the lights, but didn’t enter. “Are you back here?” Once again, nothing. Jeremy would not play games with her. If he were in the store, he would answer.
She heard a crash outside, metal grinding against metal, shouts, and a shrill scream. Christine ran out to see a pickup truck gouged into the side of Morris’s patrol car. The pickup had hit with such force that the patrol car had been pushed up on the sidewalk, the front rammed into a parking meter.
Morris was out of the patrol car holding a hand up to a bleeding forehead. Inside the truck, a woman with clown red hair above a ravaged face shrieked rhythmically as if for the pure drama of it. Beside the truck stood the driver—weaving, shouting, definitely drunk. His flannel shirt had been buttoned unevenly, he wore no jacket although the temperature had dropped to about forty-five, and his face looked like a water-drenched beet.
“Goddamn car stick halfway out in the street!” the drunken driver shouted. His sweaty face sported a three-day growth of gray and black stubble. “No way I coulda missed it. Where’s the police! I wanna report an accident! Look at my truck!”
“I am the police!” Morris shouted back. “You hit a patrol car and you’re DWI.”
“I am not insane!” the driver yelled, irate. Then he bellowed at the crowd gathering in the street, “He says I’m drivin’ while insane!”
If She Should Die Page 36
