by Josie Belle
“Well, I suppose it’s no more than I would expect,” Alice said. “If Vera had to go and die, I’m not at all surprised that she managed to do it in John’s arms.”
Maggie had no idea what to say. If she had been asked to predict any reaction from Alice Franklin about the death of Vera Madison, it would not have been this. This was so completely off her radar that she didn’t know what to say or where to look.
She could feel Sam watching her, and she darted a quick glance at Dr. Franklin. He still clutched the paper cup of water she’d given him, and it was as full as when she’d handed it to him.
He looked utterly distraught, and she really didn’t think it was the appropriate time to ask him about Alice’s powerful dislike of Vera Madison.
“Well, I hear what you’re saying, Alice,” Maggie said, trying to keep her voice neutral. “But here’s the thing: Doc has had a bit of a shock, and I think it might be best if he didn’t attempt to drive home.”
Again, there was silence, and Maggie wondered for a moment if Alice had heard her. Finally, Alice spoke, but her voice was as brittle as the petals of a dried flower.
“Fine, I’ll be there to pick him up in twenty minutes.”
“Thank you, Alice,” Maggie said.
She replaced the receiver carefully, as if it might bite her, or worse, as if Alice might call back and let off another tirade against Vera.
“She’s unhappy, isn’t she?” Dr. Franklin asked.
“She seemed a bit dismayed,” Maggie said. “But she’ll be here shortly.”
Doc gave Maggie a thoughtful look and then looked back down at his hands. She noticed he didn’t look at the sheet draped over Vera’s body.
Sam glanced between them, and Maggie shrugged. She didn’t want to let on that Alice had been uncharacteristically unkind. She didn’t want Sam stirring up trouble with the Franklins by asking a lot of personal questions.
After all, it didn’t take a genius to figure out from Alice’s hostility that there was something between the Franklins and Vera Madison. Maggie wondered if Vera had been Doc’s girlfriend back before he’d married Alice. Alice didn’t seem the jealous type, or at least she never had, but maybe it took a tragedy to bring out all of those dormant feelings from the past.
The front door opened, and Deputy Dot Wilson, a stout black woman who Maggie knew had a weakness for designer shoes, came in with Bianca Madison. Next to Dot’s dark skin and curvaceous body, Bianca looked even thinner and paler than usual. A strand of her stringy brown hair had escaped, and her glasses were askew, as if she had been caught off guard and was not yet able to process what was happening to her.
“This is Vera’s daughter, Sam,” Dot said. Her voice was kind, and she pushed Bianca forward like a mother hen encouraging her chick out of the nest. Bianca looked scared, as if she knew something awful was happening, but not quite what.
Sam stepped forward, his face grave.
“Miss Madison, I’m afraid I have some bad news,” he said. “Your mother has passed away.”
“I’m sorry. Passed where?” Bianca asked.
The confusion on Bianca’s face might have been comical if it weren’t in regard to the death of her mother. Instead, it was just achingly sad.
The truth was that Alice hadn’t been wrong about Vera Madison. She was one of those people who managed to bend the world to her will, and the strength of her will was such that it was hard to imagine a time when she wasn’t in charge.
Maggie imagined that Bianca, having spent her entire life in her mother’s shadow, would be unable to comprehend a world in which Vera Madison did not exist and was no longer in control.
Sam seemed to catch on to the situation at the same time. He put his hand on the back of his neck, a habit of his when he was stressed, and blew out a breath.
“I’m sorry, Bianca, but your mother is dead,” he said.
Thankfully, Deputy Dot Wilson’s curves were made mostly of muscle. As Bianca drooped toward the ground like a top-heavy sunflower, Dot caught her around the middle and eased her into a chair.
One look at Bianca’s face and Maggie could tell she was on the brink of a full-on panic attack. Sweat beaded up on her forehead, her breath was coming in short gasps, she pressed a hand to her chest as if she were in pain and she was trembling like a leaf before a storm.
Dr. Franklin took one look at her and snapped into action. He put his cup of water on a low side table and bent over Bianca, easing her forward in her seat. “Here. Put your head down between your knees. Breathe through your nose.”
He took her wrist in his hand and checked her pulse. He frowned with concern.
“Is she all right, Doc?” Sam asked.
“She will be,” he said. “It’s a panic attack. They generally peak within ten minutes.”
Maggie went to fetch another cup of water, more for something to do than anything else. The clock on the wall over the main desk ticked in the silence that filled the room. Maggie shifted from foot to foot while she watched Doc calmly talk Bianca through her panic.
Bianca let out a long, mournful moan, and then a shudder wracked her entire frame. Maggie wished she knew her better and could offer her comfort, but Dr. Franklin stayed beside her, and Bianca drew in several shaky breaths and finally raised her head.
Sam and Dot stood on the other side of the sheet that took up most of the waiting room floor.
“Is that her?” Bianca’s voice broke on the question.
“Yes,” Sam said.
“Can I see her?” Bianca asked.
“Are you sure?” Dr. Franklin asked. “You can take as much time as you need.”
He glanced at Sam, who nodded, letting Doc know that was fine.
“I’d like to know, for sure,” Bianca said.
Maggie wondered if she was holding out hope that this was all some horrible mistake and that her mother wasn’t really under there. She had a feeling she’d do the same and she felt another pang of sympathy for the young woman.
Bianca rose from her seat, and Sam knelt next to the body with her. When Bianca jerked her head in assent, he pulled back the sheet, draping it around Vera’s throat.
“Oh.” Bianca’s voice was soft. “Mom.”
She reached out and tenderly smoothed a lock of Vera’s hair back into her top knot, and Maggie felt her throat get tight at the sight.
Maggie heard a sniff, and she glanced up to see Dot wipe at her eyes with the edge of her sleeve.
“Do you know what happened?” Bianca asked Dr. Franklin. “Was it her heart?”
“Uh, no,” he said. “I’m sorry to say I don’t know what happened. She was like this when I found her.”
“Bianca,” Sam said, drawing her attention to him. “Can you tell me why your mother came here?”
“When we were setting up for the market, she said she wasn’t feeling well,” Bianca said. “She wasn’t specific, but just said that she didn’t feel right.”
“Did she have a preexisting condition?” Sam asked.
Bianca gave him a pained look. “She had several.”
“But why here?” Dr. Franklin asked. His light blue eyes were intense. “Why did she come to me?”
“I know she’s not your patient,” Bianca said apologetically. “But she didn’t want to leave all of her things at the flea market to have me drive her over to her doctor in Dumontville. I promised to keep watch over the booth while she came here. She said she’d be right back.”
“Was your mother on any medication that she would use a syringe for?” Sam asked.
Bianca’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Yes, she took insulin for diabetes. It was one of her many medications. My mother was very sickly.”
Bianca’s voice trailed off, and she glanced back down at her mother. She pressed her lips together in a firm line while she closed her eyes tight, as if to hold back a flood of tears. Maggie could tell she was trying hard to keep it together.
Without thinking about it, she knelt beside her and put an
arm around her. Bianca stiffened at the contact, but Maggie didn’t let go. She hated to see the poor woman struggling with her shock and grief with no outlet among these relative strangers.
“It’s okay, Bianca,” she whispered. “We’re here. We’ll help you.”
As if she’d been waiting for someone to make it okay, Bianca turned her head into Maggie’s shoulder, let out a heart-piercing wail and began to weep.
Maggie could feel Sam’s gaze upon her, and she glanced up to see him watching her and Bianca with a look of tenderness that made her glance away before it evoked memories of a time when he’d frequently looked at her like that.
Dot handed Maggie the box of tissue from the side table. Bianca’s sobs weren’t delicate. They wracked her body like a boat being buffeted by stormy waters, and her tears soaked Maggie’s shoulder. When Maggie handed her a tissue, she paused to blow her nose with a sound that rivaled a trumpet blast before she resumed sobbing again.
“Go ahead,” Maggie said. “Let it out.”
She continued to hold Bianca, rubbing her back and letting her cry. It was several moments before Bianca pulled back to blow her nose again. Her face was splotchy red and puffy, and she looked the very definition of miserable.
“I should have come with her,” Bianca cried. “I never should have let her come alone. She needed me, and I wasn’t here.”
“Shh. There’s no way you could have known,” Maggie said. She smoothed Bianca’s hair back from her face just as she always did for her own daughter when life dealt her a crushing blow.
“What am I going to do?” Bianca cried. “I have no one now. No one.”
Chapter 6
Dr. Franklin moved to Bianca’s other side. One of the things Maggie had always admired about him was his ability to say just the right thing at the right time.
“I know it’s a shock, Bianca,” he said as he patted her shoulder. “But St. Stanley is a good community, and we look out for our own. You’ll never be alone so long as you’re a part of this community.”
Bianca looked up at him through red-rimmed, watery eyes. She gave a weak nod and patted the hand he had placed on her shoulder in thanks. She didn’t look entirely convinced, but seemed grateful for the comfort.
Maggie knew that Doc would be sure that Bianca did feel the community stand beside her. He was good that way. With quiet gentle guidance, he’d have all of his senior patients fussing over her, making sure she didn’t feel too alone.
Maggie rose and stood beside Sam and Dot. The three of them watched as Bianca sobbed softly over her mother while Dr. Franklin stayed solidly beside her.
Moments later, the door opened and Alice Franklin came in. She took in the scene before her at a glance. She was dressed casually, in jeans and a cherry red sweatshirt, as if she’d just finished her household chores before coming here.
She was slender, kept fit by maintaining an overly full schedule. Her thick silver hair was cut in becoming layers that framed her lined face in a flattering sweep. But it was the expression on her face that caught and held Maggie’s attention. Her brown eyes crackled with a furious fire, her nostrils were flared, and her mouth was drawn tight, as if it had been tied up in a knot. Rage seemed to pour off of her in waves, and Maggie was stunned.
She had known Alice Franklin her entire life. Alice was a do-gooder to the tenth power. She volunteered at the hospital, she was a deacon in her church, she was on the school board and the library board and she was president of the local gardening club.
Alice sent care packages to the soldiers overseas, she knitted booties and caps for the babies in the preemie ward at the hospital and she brought food boxes to the hungry. She baked an apple pie whenever she sensed someone needed it, and for as long as Maggie had known her Alice always had a kind word and a smile for everyone she met.
That was until today, however. The look she cast her husband as he comforted Bianca Madison was one of scalding anger, and Maggie was surprised that Dr. Franklin didn’t feel the burn.
“Mrs. Franklin,” Sam said. “Thanks for coming.”
Alice took her gaze off her husband and glanced at Sam. She didn’t speak but gave him stiff nod.
“Dr. Franklin, Ms. Madison,” Sam said. “I’m going to have to ask you wait outside. Deputy Wilson and I need to secure the scene.”
“Are you ready, John?” Alice asked. “We should get you home.”
Dr. Franklin spun around to look at her. Maggie noticed that he hastily took his hand off Bianca’s shoulder with an awkward pat that looked like he felt guilty to be caught comforting her and yet didn’t want to be rude by abandoning her completely.
“If Sam says it’s all right for me to leave, I suppose I can go,” he said. He gave Bianca a furtive glance, as if trying to determine whether she’d be all right without him.
Alice Franklin turned to look at Sam. He was studying Alice and Doc, and Maggie knew he hadn’t missed the hostility coming from Alice or the tension between the couple.
“I’ll lock up the office when they’re finished here,” Maggie said to Doc. “You go ahead.”
Sam gave Maggie a curious look, as if he knew she was watching him watching the Franklins and was trying to get them to leave.
“I suppose it would be all right if you left,” he said, looking back at Dr. Franklin. “But I may have more questions for you, and if you remember anything else, please let me know.”
“I will.” Dr. Franklin rose to his feet. His gaze skimmed over Vera as if he wanted to look at her one last time but knew that it would not be received well.
Maggie watched as they left. Dr. Franklin held the door open for his wife. Alice walked past him without acknowledging him and strode out with her head held high and her eyes still snapping with anger. It was quite an exit.
“Was it just me?” Dot asked. “Or was that awkward?”
“Very perceptive, Deputy Wilson,” Sam said. He was frowning at the door, and Maggie had a sudden urge to protect the Franklins.
“I’m sure it was nothing,” she lied.
Sam looked at her with one eyebrow raised slightly higher than the other.
“Really?” he asked. His voice was low so that only Maggie and Dot could hear him. “’Cause I think Alice Franklin just left scorch marks in the carpet.”
Maggie gave him a severe frown and turned her attention back to Bianca.
“Bianca,” she said. “The sheriff needs to finish up in here. Why don’t we go outside and get some fresh air while we wait, okay?”
“I don’t want to leave Mom,” Bianca protested. “She wouldn’t want me to leave her side.”
“I’m sorry,” Sam said. He glanced out the window and then back at them. “The medical examiner is here, and we have to make room for him to work. I know this is difficult, but we need to do this, Ms. Madison, so we can find out what happened to your mom.”
Bianca’s eyes watered up again, and tears ran down her cheeks. Maggie glanced out the window and saw the county coroner’s van parked in front of the building. They were opening the back and pulling out a stretcher. She didn’t think it would do much good for Bianca to see her mother handled by a group of strangers. She held out a tissue to her and waited while Bianca dabbed her face.
“Come on,” she said. “It’ll be all right. Dot will stay and watch over your mom.”
Bianca glanced at Dot, who nodded in agreement.
“I’ll call your housekeeper, Molly,” Maggie said. “She’ll want to know what’s happening, and she can come and give you a lift home.”
Bianca moved slowly toward the door as if her grief was holding her captive in the room with her mother. Maggie’s heart broke for her. She couldn’t imagine the shock and pain Bianca must be feeling.
Outside, Maggie led Bianca down the walkway to a small alcove made out of a cobblestone patio with a rounded concrete bench. In the spring, the alcove was surrounded by flowers, but now, in the middle of November, it was just brown earth and dry grass with dried-out tendrils
from the blooming vines that had once decorated the surrounding trellises but would be dormant until the coming winter snows melted and spring returned once more.
Maggie took her phone out of her pocket and had Bianca recite the number to dial to call her home. There was no answer.
“Did Molly have the day off today?” she asked.
“She usually works a half day on Saturday,” Bianca said. “She should still be there. Then again, Mom might have given her the day off to go to the flea market.”
“Does she have a cell phone?”
Bianca nodded and recited the numbers. Maggie dialed, and a voice answered on the third ring.
“Hello,” Molly Spencer answered in her usual polite tone.
“Hi Molly, it’s Maggie Gerber.”
“Maggie, how are you?” Molly asked. “I haven’t seen you in ages. Did you really buy My Sister’s Closet? I heard that you did, but I haven’t had a chance to pop in and check it out.”
“I did,” Maggie said. “But, listen, I can’t talk about that right now. Molly, I’m afraid I have some bad news.”
“What is it?” Her voice sounded cautious, and Maggie knew exactly how she felt. Ever since Charlie was killed in the line of duty, Maggie simply hated getting bad news.
“It’s Vera,” Maggie said. “I’m sorry, Molly, but she’s dead.”
“What?” The shock in Molly’s voice reverberated through the phone, and Maggie wished there were a better way to tell someone such awful news.
“She was found in Dr. Franklin’s office,” Maggie said. “I’m so sorry, but there was nothing he could do.”
“Oh dear,” Molly said. “Does Bianca know?”
“Yes, she’s actually here at Dr. Franklin’s with me now,” Maggie said. “I was wondering if there was any way you could come and get her? She’s understandably pretty upset.”
“Of course,” Molly said. Her voice was high and tight, as if she was fighting back some tears of her own. “I’ll be right there.”
“Don’t rush,” Maggie said. “I’m here with her, and I won’t leave.”
