Diane Greenwood Muir - Bellingwood 05 - Life Between the Lines

by Diane Greenwood Muir

“It is. I think we scared her. When I mentioned Bellingwood, the poor woman got nervous.”

  Nate pursed his lips together, then said. “Well, I suppose that everyone has heard about the famous author being killed at Sycamore House. I wonder if she knew he was this close to her.”

  “I don’t know,” Polly glanced back at the car. “I’ve really messed this up. Aaron is going to have my head if she runs now.”

  “From the looks of her, she isn’t running very far very fast,” Nate said, then let out an “Oomph” as his wife poked him in the side. “Well, she’s not!”

  Henry stepped in and took Polly’s hand, “If Aaron is going to kill you, do you think you might as well wade into it all the way?”

  She looked into his face and gave him a little smile. “Really?”

  He lifted one shoulder and winked, “You’ve been in trouble with him before. You’re sure that she isn’t going to have to face jail time for killing that cop in San Francisco?”

  “She didn’t do it. The police reports and Thomas’s notes all say that she was there before it happened, but had nothing to do with killing him. Maybe she’ll need a lawyer, but if she hasn’t run for twenty years, don’t you think she wants to just be finished?”

  He took a deep breath. “I don’t know what she wants, but if you want to talk to them and tell them what you’ve found, now is as good a time as any.”

  “Come with me?” she asked him.

  “I’ve been in this since the beginning, I want to see it to the end. I’m coming. Do you two mind waiting?” he asked Nate and Joss.

  “Oh, I’ll just sneak her into my big back seat and see what …”

  There was another oomph and Joss said, “We’ll be fine. Go ahead.”

  Polly saw Kevin and Sonya Campbell coming out of the school and she picked up the pace, running to catch up to him.

  “Kevin, can I speak with you a moment?” Polly called out. She could tell that he considered ignoring her, but his wife stopped and waited as they crossed the parking lot.

  “Okay,” he said. “Sonya, go ahead. I’ll be right there.” His wife looked back and forth between him and Polly, then walked away.

  “What can I do for you, Miss Giller?” he asked.

  “I have a very personal question to ask you and before you say anything, you should know that I already have the answer. I’m just looking for confirmation.”

  He took a deep breath, looked down at the ground and then back up at her. “Yes. I’m Thomas Zeller’s son. We’ve been hiding for nearly forty-five years for something my mother didn’t do. I can’t believe it’s over now.”

  Polly’s heart was in her throat and she reached out and laid her hand on his forearm. “It’s not as bad as all that. Thomas was staying at Sycamore House, finishing his last novel. But Kevin, he’s been looking for you and your mother your entire life. He has proof that she didn’t kill that policeman. In fact, the San Francisco police know she didn’t do it. There’s no need to run any longer.”

  She heard a car door open and then shut and looked across as Mrs. Campbell walked slowly across to them. “Kevin? What’s this about?” she asked.

  “Mother, this is Polly Giller. She knows who we are. Thomas Zeller was staying at her place. She says he was looking for us.”

  “Of course he was, dear. But, that’s all behind us now.” She looked at Polly, her eyes clear and full of fire. “I did not kill anyone, no matter what they may say. I suppose it is time to face this, but I had hoped to wait until the girls were a little older.”

  “How much older do they need to be, mother?” Kevin asked, his strong voice shaking. “And Polly says there is evidence clearing you of the murder.”

  “I’d like to tell you what I’ve found,” Polly said. “Thomas gave me a flash drive and I’d like to tell you about it.”

  “Then we’d like to hear about it,” the woman responded. “Kevin?”

  “Sonya?” he called. His wife walked back to join them.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked.

  “Sonya, this is Polly Giller. She owns Sycamore House in Bellingwood.” His wife’s right hand flew to her throat and she looked at her husband. He went on. “She knew Thomas and has something to tell us.”

  He turned to Polly and Henry. “We’ve been very honest with my wife. I couldn’t live with her and hide the secret. She knows everything. The girls don’t know yet, though.”

  “I understand. Do you want to meet some evening for dinner and we can talk about this?” Polly began to tick off the evenings in her upcoming week. It was busy, but she would find time.

  “If your friends aren’t in a hurry to get back to Bellingwood, we could invite you to our home this evening,” Sonya said. “I doubt that Kevin and Genie want to wait to hear what you have to say.”

  Nate and Joss had gotten into his car and started it. The night was cooling off and they were probably trying to stay warm. Polly beckoned and Nate drove over, pulling up beside them.

  “I know this extends the evening, but the Campbells have invited us to their house. Do you mind?”

  Nate chuckled. “We knew you would want to do something with them after the event. We’re thoughtful that way, aren’t we, wife?” She poked him again, eliciting another oomph. “Of course we don’t mind. Get in. We’ll follow them.”

  When they arrived at the Campbell’s home, Sonya showed them to a large living room. “I’m going to put some hot water on for tea or cocoa and take a few minutes with the girls. We started explaining this on the drive home, but it’s a little much. Make yourself comfortable. Genie and I will be back in a few minutes.”

  Polly’s eyes were immediately drawn to the bookshelves and she asked Kevin, “May I?”

  He nodded in affirmation and she looked at the shelves. From the days of only owning a couple of tattered books, he’d certainly enlarged his library. Then she found what she was looking for, the first Eddie Powers mystery. The others were there, but this would illustrate her point. She took it to the sofa and sat beside Henry.

  Sonya Campbell came in, carrying a tray with a carafe of hot water and mugs, tea bags and a small pot of cocoa mix. Genie Campbell followed with a plate of cookies and Ellie and Ann trailed behind their grandmother. The girls looked shell shocked and stared at their guests as if they were there to do something terrible to the family. When Genie took a seat in a wing chair, Ellie sat on the floor beside her and Ann pulled the ottoman to the other side, taking positions of support and protection.

  Drinks were passed around and Polly felt her stomach grow increasingly tense. The fluttering was beginning to upset her, but she wasn’t sure how to begin. Finally, she handed her mug to Henry and said, “I don’t know how to start.”

  “Just tell us what you have to say,” Kevin said. “The girls won’t understand all of it, but we can talk to them later. Go ahead.”

  Polly put her hand on the book in her lap and began, “The night Thomas Zeller was killed, he managed to make it to the door of my apartment before he died. He pressed a flash drive into my hand and asked me to ‘find him.’ At first, I thought that the ‘him’ was the murderer, but when I finally figured out what was on the drive, I realized it was his son.

  “We had talked about those early years in San Francisco. He told me how messed up he had gotten after that and about being an alcoholic and then finally drying out. What he didn’t tell me was that he had spent a lifetime looking for you. That information is what I found on the flash drive.”

  She opened the note app on her phone and pulled up the first picture Thomas had received, then stood up, setting the book on the sofa and walked over to Genie. She knelt down in front of the woman and said. “This is the first picture you sent him, isn’t it?”

  Genie Campbell nodded.

  “He went to Colorado, and found out everything he could about you. He has receipts for automobile work and found the lease for the apartment you rented. While he was there, he researched his first book so he had a reason
for being in town.”

  The woman nodded again, not saying a word.

  “Then you sent him a second photograph and he moved to Mississippi and did the same thing. Kevin, he found class pictures of you and more receipts and leases and car purchases. He wrote his second novel while there.” Polly showed the picture to Genie and then walked over to Sonya and Kevin, showing it to them.

  “Each time you moved and sent a picture, he followed you, trying to anticipate where you might go next. He obviously had no luck, but he wrote the entire Eddie Powers mystery series while he looked for you.”

  Kevin said, “We followed that series and knew that. Mom figured that as long as we were gone, it wouldn’t hurt for him to know where we had been.”

  “How closely did you read the books?” Polly asked.

  Genie Campbell finally spoke. “I read them pretty closely. I wondered if he would send me a message in the dedication or the acknowledgments, but he never wrote those.”

  “That’s because he wrote it in code,” Polly said.

  Every face in the room was staring at her by this point.

  “What?” Genie asked.

  “He wrote it in code. He was in my apartment and signed all of my books, trying to give me the hint. Henry and I figured it out this morning. I don’t think anyone ever realized what he did.”

  “Tell me,” she said.

  Polly scrolled through her notes until she found the list of codes that she and Henry had uncovered, then picked up the book and walked back over to the woman’s chair. Ann scooted off the ottoman and gestured for Polly to take it.

  “He was writing to you … and it’s Eugenie, isn’t it?” Polly asked.

  “Yes, how did you know?”

  Polly gave a little laugh. “Because he discovered that each time you moved, you changed your names. Your first names were always characters from something Poe had written and your last name always had something to do with a sewing machine. You are a seamstress, right?”

  “Right,” Genie Campbell nodded. “I thought I was being so clever and here you’ve found me out.”

  “I only did it with a lot of help and a little bit of luck. I might not have figured it out if there weren’t so many instances of it on that flash drive. I’m not sure if Thomas knew about the pattern for your last name, but he definitely knew about the link to Poe.”

  “He’s the one who taught me about the passion in Poe’s writing. His favorite poem was Annabel Lee.”

  “And you taught me,” Kevin said.

  “I have to ask,” Polly said. “Kevin has nothing to do with Poe. What happened to the naming process?”

  Kevin Campbell closed his eyes and shook his head. “I chose it as my middle name so that I wouldn’t have to be known as Napoleon for the rest of my life. That man had weird taste in men’s names. There weren’t a lot of options. I’ve been N. Kevin Campbell since the day we got our new identities.”

  “Oh!” she laughed, “Well, that explains it. It threw me off.”

  “Tell me about the code,” Genie said.

  “He took the first letter of every chapter and spelled out the words he wanted you to read. Henry and I simply went through each chapter and wrote down the first letter and found it.”

  “Why didn’t I put that together?” the woman asked. “We used to talk about different ways authors could tell their readers things. Even if it was for no other reason than to give them another opportunity to look at the book. It didn’t occur to me to think that he might use that, though.”

  Ellie and Ann had jumped up and gone to the bookshelf. Each had two books and sat down on the floor, flying through the chapters and trying to remember the letters.

  “This is what he wanted you to know,” Polly said and showed Genie Campbell the note on her phone containing the codes.

  “Nelly. I still love you. Come back.”

  “I can help you. Stop running. Love.”

  “My son is perfect. Thank you.”

  “I am destroyed. What is left?”

  “I’ll wait forever for you.”

  The woman took the phone from Polly’s hand and clutched it to her chest. Tears began streaming down her face. Kevin jumped out of his chair and knelt down in front of his mother. She showed him the note and bent over to rest her head on his. They held on to each other as she cried.

  He finally took the phone and held it out to Polly. She put the first Eddie Powers mystery into his hand. “Thank you,” he said. “This means the world to us.”

  “He was still looking for you,” Polly said. “I think he came to Bellingwood because he knew you were close. None of that research was on the flash drive, but he was writing a book here and looking for you at the same time. That’s why he asked me to find you.”

  “How did you know?” Kevin asked.

  “It was pure luck,” Polly responded. “If Nate hadn’t mentioned that your mother made costumes for different plays, we wouldn’t have put things together. When Joss told me that you read The Raven every fall, I wanted it to be you. But I wasn’t sure until I saw your mother tonight. She hasn’t changed at all.”

  Polly put her hand on the woman’s knee. “You are still the beautiful Nelly that Thomas loved.”

  The woman began to cry again and this time, Sonya crossed the room with a box of tissues. “I’m sorry you didn’t get a chance to talk to him again,” she said to her mother-in-law.

  “I am, too. I would have liked for him to know Kevin and his granddaughters.”

  Polly stood up. “We should leave.” She pulled a business card out of her wallet. “Call me if you’d like. I would be glad to talk with you about Thomas. His agent is staying at Sycamore House right now, too. She might be able to tell you even more. You are welcome to come over.” She paused. “In fact, there is a Black Masque ball on Saturday night. I suspect you have some Victorian costumes. Everyone will be in a mask and it will be a wonderful evening. If you came, I could introduce you to her then.”

  Genie Campbell looked at her son. “What do you think?”

  “It sounds like fun. We’ll be there.” He stood up and so did the rest of the room. “Thank you telling us. I’ll be in touch this week.”

  Coats were gathered and he walked with them to the front door, stopping Polly as the others went to the car. “My mother needs to talk to someone in law enforcement, doesn’t she? Should I get a lawyer for her?”

  “I don’t know. It couldn’t hurt. Sheriff Merritt is running the investigation in Bellingwood and he is a good man. Do you know a lawyer?”

  “I have a couple of parents who would help me.”

  “Then, contact someone and have them get in touch with Aaron. I don’t know anything about the process, but I’m sure it’s all going to be fine.”

  Polly was surprised when he hugged her. “Thank you again. I feel like forty years of hiding is about to be over. It will be strange not to worry that someone is going to realize we aren’t who we say we are.”

  “Keep telling her how much Thomas loved her, will you?” Polly asked.

  “I will. See you soon.” he said as she joined her friends at the car. She gave a little wave, crawled into the back seat with Henry and sighed as Nate backed out of the driveway.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Mindlessly tapping her fingers on the cell phone in front of her, Polly looked out at the emergence of the Haunted Hallway. They’d gotten quite a bit done yesterday. The wall was draped in burlap and sheer curtains, painted with fluorescent paints. There was fishing line coming down from the ceiling and crates in all the corners, draped with more painted burlap. Sycamore House’s main doors had been outlined in strands of orange lights, while pumpkins, gourds and corn stalks were arranged on the front lawn. Halloween had definitely arrived.

  She knew she had to call Aaron and tell him what she did again. As nervous as her stomach had been last night, it didn’t compare to what was happening to her right now. There was nothing worse than disappointing someone, and for some
reason she felt just like she had when she was young and had to face her father after doing something wrong.

  Finally she gathered her courage and dialed the phone.

  “Good morning, Polly,” Aaron said. “I trust that there are no more bodies and you’ve found out something more on Thomas Zeller’s flash drive.”

  “Hi, Aaron. Well, uh …”

  “You’re kidding. Another body?”

  “Oh no!” she exclaimed.

  “Then, what’s up this morning. Did you see the wonderful work we did at Sycamore House yesterday?”

  “Yes, it’s pretty cool. Your wife is amazing.”

  “She is that. So, what’s up?”

  “I think I did something bad.”

  “What do you mean this time, Polly? If I have to arrest you, my wife is never going to let me back into the house.”

  “Not that kind of bad. Bad, you’re going to be mad at me bad. I should have talked to you first, bad.”

  “In the year that I’ve known you, you’ve never really paid much attention to whether or not you should talk to me first. What did you do?”

  “I found Nelly and her son and told them that I know who they are.” She waited and didn’t hear anything. “Aaron?”

  “I’m still here. When did you figure out who it was?”

  “Well, this weekend and then I knew for certain last night and then I couldn’t hold back.”

  “Of course you couldn’t.” Polly heard the laughter in his voice.

  “How much trouble am I in?” she asked.

  He breathed loudly on the other end of the call, “Tell me the whole story and then tell me who it is that you met last night.”

  Polly took him through the entire weekend’s events, from figuring out the code in the books, to Nate Mikkels revealing the possibility of Kevin and Genie Campbell being Thomas’s son and former girlfriend, to the drama night and the visit to their home.

  “I’m pretty sure they’re going to call you,” she said before he could speak. “They don’t seem like the kind of people who are going to run.”

  “Polly, they’ve been running for forty years.”