by Jan Fields
“Well, looks like things are normal with you,” she said. Since Boots had always reacted to strangers in the house, Annie felt a small measure of relief. Whoever had searched her car had not been in the house.
Still, that didn’t change the fact that someone had searched her car. Someone wanted that small box of costume jewelry and apparently wasn’t giving up on getting it. What Annie had to do was find out who—before the person got desperate.
17
Annie spent the rest of the day inside Grey Gables with the doors locked. She tried to tell herself that she wasn’t doing it because she was afraid, but the reality was that she just couldn’t face another unpleasant surprise. She wanted a quiet day wrapped in the warmth of Grey Gables and all her memories there.
“Just a little bit of hiding,” she told Boots, who looked at her with mild interest. “Then tomorrow we have a Hook and Needle Club meeting. I’ll get back in the swing of things then.”
So Annie turned her attention to Gram’s room. She still hadn’t finished packing up Gram’s personal things and moving them to the attic. She really didn’t want Gram’s room to become a shrine, though she’d keep a few things out.
“Not a shrine,” she whispered. “Just a place that feels like family.”
She decided to tackle the closet and go through Gram’s scrap-fabric boxes to sort out some pieces she might want to use for Christmas presents. She’d seen a cute pattern at A Stitch in Time for baskets crocheted from rags. So the day passed in a cheerful haze of good memories and plans for the upcoming holidays.
The next morning brought a renewed sense of purpose. Annie was not going to be bullied; she was going to solve this mystery! After feeding her demanding, fluffy gray roommate, she settled down at the kitchen table with coffee and her notepad where she’d been keeping track of what she’d uncovered so far.
She looked down her list of suspects. Harry Stevens and Sunny Day. Sunny had definitely not been scratched by a cat. Harry could have been. There was no way to pick out cat scratches in the day-to-day wear on a fisherman’s hands. Sunny had shown an interest in Annie’s jewelry, and Harry seemed genuinely sad that she’d dumped him. Would he have broken into her house to get something to give her, something to make him seem like a richer man than he was?
He’d broken into her car once before when he thought he had a good reason. He’d even started a rock slide that could have killed her. No, Harry Stevens was impulsive and stubborn when he felt like he had good cause. But would he really want Sunny that much?
She thought a moment about seeing Sunny with John. They certainly didn’t look like strangers. What if John had put Sunny up to grabbing the hair comb, and Sunny used her obvious charms to send Harry to ransack Annie’s house? She could certainly imagine John MacFarlane doing something every bit that devious. But why would he want the jewelry? Unlike Sunny or Harry, John seemed likely to know the jewelry wasn’t real once he got a close look at it.
Annie slipped the photo out of her pocket and looked again at the laughing woman in the emerald necklace. What if John knew something about this woman? Something about the scandal? Something someone would pay money to keep quiet. She could also imagine him involved in blackmail. But she had to admit, her personal feelings colored her impressions. At this point, she could imagine him guilty of nearly anything.
Boots broke her train of thought with a soft meow. She had finished her breakfast and was ready for a little attention. Annie reached down and stroked the cat’s head. “You’re probably right,” she said. “I’m letting my imagination run away with me.”
Annie put the notepad in her overflowing project bag and left for the meeting, crossing her fingers that Stella would be there. If Stella could just solve the mystery of who was in the photo, Annie was certain they’d finally begin to make sense of this.
Pulling into a parking space, she was surprised to see Stella standing in front of A Stitch in Time. The older woman was clearly in an intense conversation with Jenna Paige.
As Annie got out of her car and walked toward them, she could hear Stella’s sharp tone. She was scolding Jenna about something. Just as Annie got close enough to make out actual words, Jenna turned away from Stella and ran across the street, heedless of the traffic. A driver had to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting the young woman, and he honked in annoyance. Jenna never even looked at him.
“What was that about?” Annie asked when she reached Stella.
Stella turned fiercely toward her. “I know you like your little mysteries, but that young woman is entirely too nosy! It’s time she was told that strangers are not welcome to pry into the private lives of people here.”
Annie blinked. “What did she do?”
“I’ll not discuss it.” Stella swept by her and into the shop. Annie followed meekly in her wake. She’d honestly all but given up on considering Jenna and Simon as suspects. She flatly couldn’t picture the young woman being that secretive or sneaky.
As they walked in, the others were already there. Mary Beth looked up and smiled, “We’re getting caught up on the mystery,” she said.
“Mary Beth was just getting to the part where you two were tormenting Norma,” Alice said.
Stella made a dismissive sound as she walked to her chair and sat down. “Norma may not be the most personable resident, but at least she never probes into the business of others.”
Mary Beth looked at Stella in surprise. “Was that meant to be a rebuke for our mystery?”
“Take it however you want.” Stella pulled out her knitting and then looked around the circle. No one else had a project out. “I seem to remember that we’re a needlework group, right? Perhaps I’m the only one who remembers.”
Peggy meekly pulled her bag into her lap and took out a place mat she was quilting, but everyone else just stared at Stella.
“I think Stella is a bit tired of interacting with Jenna Paige,” Annie said hesitantly.
Stella looked up at her sharply. “I can speak for myself. I’m sure I’ve said that before.”
“At least once,” Alice said, her tone showing she wasn’t the least bit cowed by Stella’s aristocratic scorn.
“So what did Jenna do?” Mary Beth asked.
“I don’t care to talk about it,” Stella answered.
“We could guess,” Alice said, her smile turning wicked. “She asked you how much money you have.”
“Hardly,” Stella said, her eyes never rising from her knitting.
“She asked if you were romantically involved with Jason?” Mary Beth suggested.
That brought a sharp glance from Stella. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
Gwen clearly couldn’t resist joining in and she leaned forward and said in a loud whisper. “She asked you how old you are.”
“I said I didn’t want to discuss this!” Stella’s tone rose so sharply that they all knew Gwen had hit the target.
“Well, honestly, I don’t think Jenna’s involved in the mystery anyway,” Alice said. “There is something weird about her, but I don’t see her as a jewel thief.”
Gwen shrugged. “I’m not completely certain.”
“Stella?” Annie said gently. “There is one more little thing you could do to help with the mystery.”
Stella looked up. “I am not talking to that girl again.”
Annie slipped the folded photo from her pocket. “No, I don’t need you to do that. I was wondering if you might know who the woman is in this photo? It’s from a newspaper, but I don’t know which one or when it was published. The woman is wearing the emerald necklace from the set.” Annie passed the paper over to Stella.
Stella stared at the photo for a long moment without speaking. “That’s Millicent Winters. I haven’t thought about her in years.”
“Was she involved in some kind of scandal?”
“I would say so,” Stella said, frowning slightly. “She killed her husband’s mistress.”
A collective gasp swept over the group.
&nb
sp; “How much do you know about it?” Annie asked.
“What I read in the newspapers at the time,” Stella said. “And what I heard. I didn’t really know Millicent, but we were of a similar social status, and sometimes our social engagements overlapped. I believe she had a summer home here. I’d spoken to her a few times. She was an astoundingly proud woman. Almost arrogant.”
“Did she go to prison for the murder?” Alice asked.
Stella looked up, and again her brows drew together in a frown as she thought. “I don’t remember. I know there was a tremendous outcry from the public, and the police were under a lot of pressure to arrest her. It wasn’t easy to arrest the very wealthy in those days.”
“Why would the police hesitate?” Kate asked.
“They couldn’t find the young woman’s body,” Stella said. “She simply disappeared. I believe they did find blood at the scene but only a tiny bit. No body, no arrest. Certainly not with such a wealthy suspect.”
“So what happened to Millicent Winters?” Annie asked.
“I don’t know,” Stella said. “She stopped attending social functions. They may have moved. Or the police may have arrested her. I truly don’t remember. I just know I never personally saw her again after the scandal made the news.”
“OK, so Millicent Winters once owned the jewelry, and she might have killed someone,” Alice said. “That doesn’t really help us know who is trying to get the jewelry. We certainly don’t have any suspects who are that age.”
“No,” Annie said. “But what if this jewelry is connected somehow to the murder? What if someone wants to use them to blackmail someone or to cover up something?”
“Are you sure you’re not being a little overly imaginative?” Stella asked.
“No,” Annie answered. “I’m not sure. Maybe I am. But I’m thinking I really need to get to the bottom of this. My house was broken into on the night of the ball. My car was searched the day before yesterday.”
That brought another gasp, and Alice demanded to know why Annie hadn’t told her.
“Nothing was taken,” Annie said. “And it was done while I was away. I didn’t know what good it would do to tell anyone.”
“So what do you think we should do next?” Peggy asked, glancing at Stella nervously from the corner of her eye. Of all the members of the Hook and Needle Club, Peggy hated it most when Stella disapproved of their actions. She idolized the older woman.
“I do have an idea,” Annie said. “Or the bones of one. I think we need to push the thief into doing something. I believe we need to spread a rumor of our own.”
“What kind?” Alice said.
“What if we let everyone know that I’m taking the jewelry to sell to Milt Koenig on Thursday?” Annie said. “And then I make a big show of going out somewhere with all of you for dinner or something tomorrow. That would make the perfect time for a break-in. And if we double back, we can catch the housebreaker in the act.”
“It’s tricky and sneaky,” Alice said. “I like it.”
Mary Beth looked concerned. “It sounds dangerous.”
“How about if I promise to tell Ian and Chief Edwards?” Annie asked. “Would you feel better then?”
Mary Beth nodded. “All right—if you do that, I’m in. How do we make sure all our suspects get the word?”
“I can tell Vanessa and make sure she slips it to her father tonight,” Kate said. “He’s supposed to be going to her chorus concert.”
“I can have Ian pass it on to Todd,” Annie said. “And Todd could tell Jenna and Simon. From what Ian said, they spend a lot of time on his boat.”
“When they aren’t bothering people in the street,” Stella muttered.
“I need to call Victoria Meyer about her favorite charity,” Gwen said. “The bank is planning to make a donation. At any rate, I can slip it into the conversation. If you still consider her a suspect.”
Annie sighed. “She’s the only suspect in the same social standing as the original owner. And she definitely wants the jewelry, although hearing the rumor will probably just encourage her to try to buy it again.”
“I’ll work it into as many conversations at the diner as I can,” Peggy said.
“Oh, you should tell people where in the house you’re going to keep the jewels,” Alice said. “That way you won’t end up having to clean the place up again.”
“I’m hoping to catch the person before much mess is made,” Annie said. “Still, how about the freezer? I had a neighbor once who hid money in the freezer. It always seemed like a funny place.”
“The freezer,” Peggy said. “Got it!”
Annie knew there were few ways to get the word out better than Peggy’s diner hotline. Then she made a mental note to mention it in front of Ian’s secretary. Charlotte could be busy in the Stony Point gossip network too.
“So where are we all going together?” Gwen asked. “And do we actually get to go? We could go to the History of Dance performance at the Cultural Center. I’ve been meaning to get tickets to that. Liz Booth told me the community dance ensemble did a wonderful job with the choreography, and they’re performing it for the next three nights.”
“Oh, now you make me wish I was going with you,” Annie said. “So, will that be our cover story?”
“I would be willing to go to that as well,” Stella said.
“I’m afraid you’ll have to count me out,” Peggy said sadly, then she added. “One major social event is all I can fit into my social season.”
“I’ll have to skip as well,” Kate said. “But we don’t all have to go. We just have to make it look like Annie’s house is going to be empty.”
“So we all have the rumor down?” Annie asked. Each person repeated what they would be spreading around. As Annie listened to them coordinate her story, she hoped this would turn out to be a good idea. A lot of those television mystery shows featured plans that went spectacularly wrong. She hoped that wouldn’t be the case with hers.
After the meeting, Annie headed across the Town Square toward Town Hall. The grass of the square was nearly covered by the fallen leaves from the maples and oaks that lined the Oak Lane and Elm Street sides of the square.
Annie even indulged in kicking the crispy leaves into the air as she walked. She’d loved doing that when she was a child, walking home from school and kicking the autumn leaves with each step.
When she reached the wide Town Hall steps, she brushed the leaves off her shoes and pant legs.
“Too late,” a male voice said from above her. “I saw you.”
Annie looked up and smiled at Ian Butler. “I couldn’t resist. They were so perfectly crispy.”
Ian laughed. “Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve done it too. Were you on your way to see me?”
“I was,” Annie said as she walked up the steps to join him at the top. “I want to talk to you about a plan to unmask my housebreaker.”
Ian frowned slightly. “Why am I not liking this already?”
“Would you like it better if I didn’t tell you about it?”
“No.” He folded his arms across his chest. “You should tell me everything.”
“That could take a while.”
He pulled open the door. “Then we should continue this in my office.”
Annie followed him down the warm, well-polished wood floors of Town Hall. She noticed Charlotte staring at her sharply as they walked by the older woman’s desk. Charlotte clearly had not yet decided if she was happy with her mayor spending so much time with Annie Dawson.
Ian closed the office door behind them and gestured to the well-padded leather chair that faced his desk. He took the other visitor chair beside hers. “All right,” he said. “Catch me up on the Annie Dawson mystery.”
Annie told him about visiting Maplehurst Inn, and what they’d learned from the handyman. Ian shifted anxiously as she spoke. “I’d hoped that blackout was an accident or power overload,” he said, “but it sounds like someone deliberately turned off the
power.”
“But we’re not certain they did it to take my hair comb,” Annie said. “It could have been a practical joke, or someone wanting to make Linda Hunter’s life difficult. It did result in complaints. The blackout could have simply been coincidental and convenient for the thief.”
Ian nodded. “I’ve talked to Chief Edwards. The theft of your jewelry and the break-in at your house were the only odd things reported that evening.”
“Which suggests that someone wants those pieces very badly,” Annie said. “And that’s backed up by the break-in of my car.”
“What?” Ian leaned forward, face serious.
“Nothing was taken,” Annie said. “And I wasn’t home. I was with Alice doing sleuthing at the inn. While we were there, we spotted John MacFarlane looking very friendly with Harry’s date from the ball.”
Ian winced. “How did Alice handle that?”
“She didn’t confront him,” Annie said, “but we can definitely be sure she’s not going to let him snow her under with anything.”
“Well, that’s good,” Ian said. He paused, deep in thought. “If this friendship between Sunny and John is long-standing, they may have been using Harry on the night of the ball.”
“I’ve talked to Sunny several times, and she doesn’t seem the mastermind type,” Annie said. “But I’m not sure about John.”
Annie went on to tell Ian what Stella had told her about the photo.
“I don’t remember anything about that,” Ian said. “It was before my time.”
Finally, Annie shared the plan the Hook and Needle Club members had cooked up. “Whoever wants these jewels isn’t going to want me to sell them,” she said. “A jewelry store is definitely harder to break into than an old house. I figured this is going to force the housebreaker to act. Alice and I will pretend to go out with Stella and Gwen tomorrow night. Then we’ll double back and wait. I was thinking you might want to wait with us?”
“I certainly don’t want you to wait alone,” Ian said. “But I’m not in love with this plan. What if this person is desperate? You could get hurt.”
