Bells & The Bandit (A Willow Crossing Mystery Book 1)

by Leona Fox

  “That’s a shame.”

  “Yeah, but that’s just who he is. He’s cool, though.”

  “How is he? Is he getting along okay with his father?”

  “Sure, Mrs. Delgado. Why wouldn’t he be?”

  “I was just asking. He’s been quiet lately.”

  “That’s just Griff. You know how he is. But I know he is stoked about the job you gave him!”

  “I’m happy to hear that.”

  Ru realized she wasn’t going to get the information she was looking for out of the boys, so she let them eat their lunch before sending them to their next class. She couldn’t shake the feeling that it was possible Griffin was involved. That made her sad, so she forced herself to look at the situation from another angle…her husband’s angle. She knew what she had to do next.

  ~~~

  After work, Ruby decided she would stop at the antique mall; Kirk Enders had a booth there and she thought she would have a look around. When she reached his booth, she saw some old necklaces and brooches, but there were no bracelets.

  She went to the cashier and asked, “Do you know when Mr. Enders will be restocking his booth?”

  “No, Ma’am, I’m sorry. The dealers just pay us rent; they don’t tell us when they are scheduled to bring in more items.”

  Disappointed, Ru says, “Do you know when it was that he added to his display last?”

  “No, Ma’am, I’m sorry.”

  “Okay, thanks. Have a great night.”

  “You, too, Ma’am.”

  Before she made it to the door, she had one last idea. She turned back and approached the cashier one last time.

  “I’m sorry to bother you. I just had one more question.”

  “What can I do for you?”

  “Well, I was wondering if anyone was selling any bracelets here.”

  “You know what, I don’t know. I haven’t seen any come through the checkout, but I only work part-time. If you come back tomorrow, April will be working. Maybe she will know. Otherwise, all I can suggest is checking out the booths. Someone might be.”

  “Thanks anyway, you’ve been really helpful.”

  Ru headed home, frustrated that the day didn’t bring her any usable information. She really wanted to be able to solve the mystery for Hannah. She parked her car in the garage and went in the back door of the house. As she stepped inside, she could smell the dinner that Esteban had prepared for her. She smiled as she thought about how lucky she was to have such a loving husband…and one that could cook!

  “Mama, you’re home! I was starting to worry about you. Didn’t you get my messages?”

  “You worry too much, Papi. I just ran to the antique mall for a few minutes. I must have left my phone in the car.”

  “The antique mall? You never go there.”

  “I had to check out something,” Ru said, knowing full well her husband would probe further about what she wanted to check out.

  “Spill it, Mama,” Esteban said.

  “It smells heavenly in here…whatcha makin’?” she asked, trying to change the subject.

  “Don’t try to change the subject. Besides, you know what you are smelling. You were at the antique mall checking up on Kirk, weren’t you?”

  Knowing she couldn’t fool her husband, she said, “Yes. Just had to see if Hannah’s bracelet was there.”

  “Well? Was it?”

  “No.”

  “You should have called me. I could have met you there. I don’t like you digging around alone.”

  “But, if you had met me there, you wouldn’t have made this glorious meal,” Ru replied, hoping her cute demeanor and her compliments would stop her husband from being upset with her.

  Besides, the dinner did smell glorious! Even though Esteban is Mexican-American, his specialty is stuffed shells and Italian sausage.

  “I don’t know how you managed to make Italian food your specialty, but it smells amazing!”

  “Well, you owe me…I will take payment in the form of your amazing tamales!”

  “Deal. Now, can we forget about Kirk Enders and the bracelet and eat? I’m starving, and there’s nothing really to tell. The bracelet hasn’t been at his booth.”

  “Okay, Mama. Let’s eat. Want to get the wine while I plate the food?”

  Ru answered, “Do you want to eat outside?”

  “That sounds perfect,” Esteban answered.

  He loved dining al fresco. The sun was just about to set, so it made for perfect lighting.

  “Bring candles.”

  Usually when they ate outside and Esteban lit candles, it meant he had made dessert and their dining experience would last into the evening hours.

  “Oh, Papi, what did you make for dessert?”

  “Do you have to ask?” He questioned.

  “Of course not. Tiramisu will go perfectly. I love you Papi.”

  “Right back at you, mi amor.”

  Together, the two enjoyed an amazing dinner, followed by light conversation and a delectable dessert. There was no mention of Hannah, her bracelet, Kirk Enders or Griffin.

  Chapter 7

  During the next few days, Griffin continued avoiding Ru. Even in class he went out of his way not to make eye contact with her. After school he would rush out and hurry home. It was frustrating, because all Ru wanted to do was talk to him and try to help prove he didn’t hurt Hannah or steal her bracelet.

  On a different note, Ruby did find out Kirk Enders sold antiques online. So between classes, she would go to his website and check to see if he added the bracelet. She even checked all of the online auction sites, which took a lot of her time; she had no clue there were so many! Each time she looked, she found herself crossing her fingers that she would find the bracelet, which would get Griffin off the hook.

  At home she would sit on the couch in the evening with her laptop at her side, watching the site for the bracelet while her husband watched sports on TV. Normally she would make a fuss about not getting to watch anything, but with her being so preoccupied with the bracelet, Esteban was given the glorious chance to watch as much of whatever games were on, and that didn’t bother him one bit. Besides, he knew how much fun she had when she was trying to figure out something, so he just let her do her thing.

  One night there was a very strong, very violent thunderstorm, and it frustrated Ru when the cable went out because it meant she didn’t have internet. Not being able to search for the bracelet online wasn’t okay with her, so she turned to her phone. Thankful she recently had bought a new one with a larger screen, Ruby began her search again. It wasn’t as fun for her, and she realized her eyesight wasn’t what it used to be, but she couldn’t stop looking.

  On Friday, Ru finally managed to corner Griffin in the hallway at school. She had been so worried about him and the possibility that he was back to stealing. With Hannah pushing her and Esteban to figure out who the criminal was, Ru was feeling more pressure, and was ready to just put it all out there with Griffin.

  “I have been trying to talk to you all week, Griff. Is everything okay?”

  “Yes, jeez, Mrs. Delgado, everything is fine.”

  “You seem upset, what’s going on with you?”

  “Nothing,” he started, “Why are you asking my friends about me?”

  Ru thought hard about how she could reply, but before she could decide exactly what to say, the words just jumped out of her mouth, “I’m just worried about you. I need to ask you something.”

  Griffin rolled his eyes, knowing exactly where the conversation was going. “What?” he asked, sounding even more annoyed.

  “I hate even thinking about it, but did you take Ms. Levitt’s bracelet?”

  “What the heck, Mrs. Delgado? I already told you I didn’t. I swear!”

  His anger was multiplying by the second, “I knew you would assume it was me. The second she screamed that it was missing, I knew you would pin it on me.”

  “I’m not pinning it on you. I’m just trying to help her
figure out what happened.”

  “And you naturally assumed it was me. Why? Because I used to steal? I told you I’m done with that. I promised I would make you proud if you hired me. I don’t understand why you don’t trust me.”

  “I’m sorry, Griffin, it’s just…” before she could finish her sentence, he stormed off.

  Ru felt bad and now had to find a way to make things right with him and for him. She knew she wasn’t the only one who considered the fact that he could have been the one to harm Hannah and steal her jewelry.

  ~~~

  Along with owning the catering business, Esteban also manages the local grocery store. Ru stopped in to see her husband while he worked, and also picked up some food for dinner. While she was there she ran into Whitney.

  “Whitney! It’s so nice to see you. How was the honeymoon?” Ru asked, smiling.

  “It was beautiful. It’s so nice to see someplace other than Willow Crossing!”

  “Was this your first time out of the country?” Esteban asked.

  “Heck, this was my first time out of the state!”

  Esteban smiled, a slight look of shock on his face, “Then it must have been great for you!”

  “We wanted to go to Europe, but only having five days, we decided Hawaii was easier. It was amazing.”

  “Hey, Hawaii is beautiful,” Ru added.

  “It was truly breathtaking. We went scuba diving, and parasailing. We even did one of those zip-line adventures!”

  “Wow, you sure did pack a lot of stuff into a short trip!” Esteban said, picturing himself hovering over the island on a zip-line.

  “We did. There really was not much down time.”

  Ru asked, “Did you attend one of those fun looking luaus?”

  “We did!”

  After a few minutes of chatting about the honeymoon, Ru then said, “I’m glad we ran into you.”

  Whitney looked worried after Ru’s statement. She could tell by the look on the woman’s face that the subject was turning to a more serious subject.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Hannah was waiting for us outside of our house on Sunday. She is still really upset about her bracelet.”

  The color seemed to drain from Whitney’s face, “Really? She was at your house?” She sounded nervous and Ruby picked up on that.

  “Yeah. It’s no big deal, really. I just thought you’d like to know. She was asking for the addresses of the kids that work for us. She really wants to talk to them, especially Griffin.”

  “I’ll have Michael talk to her. I’m sorry she was bothering you.” Her tone was very flat, and it seemed like she was a million miles away in her mind.

  “She wasn’t bothering us; I just wanted you to know how upset she was.”

  “We’ll take care of it. I have to run. Thanks.”

  Whitney left her cart right there in the aisle and hurried toward the front of the store to leave.

  Esteban looked at Ru and said, “Did we say something wrong?”

  “I don’t know. That was weird. Was it just me or was she acting like a nervous wreck?”

  “It wasn’t just you. I wonder what’s up.”

  Once at home, Ru put the groceries away and then sat at the kitchen table to go through the day’s mail. She knew she was just doing anything to take her mind off of the bracelet, but Whitney’s behavior had her mind going in a million different directions. She wondered why the new bride’s attitude changed as if someone flipped a switch the second Hannah was mentioned.

  Deciding she had to get back to her own life, Ruby began preparing dinner so it would be ready for her husband when he returned home from work. She made lasagna and put it in the oven, then went to change out of her work clothes and into something more comfortable. After checking the oven, she went out to the front porch and sat on the top step with a book, trying to clear her mind.

  When Esteban pulled into the driveway, he looked at his wife and smiled. In her shorts, with her long legs crossed at the ankles and stretched down the stairs, he realized she still looked like she did when he met her in college. Her long black hair pulled neatly into a ponytail, just like the first time he saw her, and a face that needed no extravagant makeup to look youthful…it all brought Esteban back in time.

  After parking the car, he hurried to the front of the house, took Ru’s hand to help her up from the steps, and kissed her deeply.

  “I’m home Mama.”

  She giggled and said, “Yes, you are!”

  “Anything interesting happen today?” he asked his wife.

  “Well, aside from making Griffin hate me, nothing except that odd encounter with Whitney.”

  “What do you mean you made Griffin hate you?”

  “I asked him outright if he stole the bracelet. He got so upset. The look on his face broke my heart.”

  “I’m sorry, Mama,” he said and hugged her tightly.

  “You know how your students are; by Monday he won’t even remember he was upset.”

  “I don’t know, babe, he was really hurt.”

  “He’ll be fine.”

  Not wanting to talk about it anymore, she changed the subject, “Come on, I made you lasagna. Let’s eat!”

  Esteban knew that was his cue to not talk about Griffin or the bracelet anymore, and he held her hand as they went inside for dinner. Turning his attention back to how beautiful his wife was, he watched her every move as she filled his plate with delicious food. They spent the rest of the night watching movies, but Esteban knew his wife secretly was trying to solve the mystery of who stole the bracelet.

  Chapter 8

  The next morning was beautiful. The sun was shining, but the temperature was a little cooler than it had been the previous couple of weeks. Wrapped in a robe, Ru went out onto the front porch to get the morning paper. Then she stood at the porch railing and breathed in the cool early summer air. Esteban snuck up behind her and wrapped his arm around his waist, revealing a hot cup of coffee.

  “Papi, you startled me.”

  “I’m sorry, mi amor. Come on, let’s sit and enjoy the breeze.”

  This was Esteban’s favorite time of the year. He would sit on the porch swing for hours and hours if Ruby would let him. The sight of everything blooming made his heart happy. Willow Crossing was known for its large green canopies covering each of the residential streets, and the flowers were in full bloom, creating a comforting aroma that drew people in.

  “What would you like to do today?” He asked his wife.

  “I don’t know, but it is supposed to be cool and beautiful all day long. We shouldn’t waste the day by staying inside. Let’s do something fun.”

  Esteban knew when his wife wanted to have fun, it really meant she wanted to either go kayaking, or hiking. He really wasn’t up for anything so active, and it was already later in the morning, so he said, “It’s too late to go to the river, we have nothing prepared.”

  “You’re right,” Ru said and then sat quietly in thought.

  After she finished her cup of coffee, Ru went inside and made eggs, bacon, hash browns and English muffins for Esteban and cut a grapefruit in half for her. During breakfast, Ru and Esteban decided they would spend some time in the fresh air and bring Opal to the park. It was the first weekend in a while that Esteban didn’t have to work at the grocery store. They had no catering events to attend to, so they were eager to enjoy their free time.

  At the far end of the park, there is an area reserved for campers and small trailers. Griffin and his father live in one of the largest campers there, and as Ru and Esteban pulled Opal around in her wagon, Ru said, “That’s weird.”

  Esteban could see the confusion in her expression and asked, “What’s weird, love?”

  “Kirk Enders is at the Carlin’s camper. Look.”

  Esteban turned his gaze toward the campground and saw the two men standing behind the weathered camper.

  “Hmm. I wonder what Kirk is doing there.”

  “I don’t know,
but it looks like they’re arguing. Let’s get a little closer…I can’t quite make out what they are saying.”

  “Ruby Maria Delgado, that’s eavesdropping.”

  “I know, but how else are we going to know what Kirk is doing there?”

  They found a tree a little closer to the camp area and sat in the shade, pretending to play with Opal.