“Hey, Bea,” Annie said, walking into the kitchen.
“Well, hello there. Have a seat. I’m just getting some things ready to take to DeeAnn.”
“The lasagna looks good,” Annie said, picking up a few books and looking at them. “I love these. They are a lot of fun, yet they aren’t stupid, you know?”
“I’ve got so many of them and DeeAnn is bored out of her mind,” Bea said.
“I’ve been taking my books down to Blue Moon Bookstore,” Annie said. “They sell secondhand books along with new ones.”
Beatrice sat down. “You know, I haven’t been there in awhile. I forget about that place. Nice bookstore.”
“I’ve been spending a lot of time there. They have book groups, writer’s groups,” Annie said, sitting down.
“Hmmm, interesting,” Bea said. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“No, I’m not staying. The boys will be home in about ten minutes. I’ve just come from the police station and I don’t like what I heard. I wanted to run a few things by you since you’ve lived here your whole life.”
Beatrice looked up from her stack of books.
“I went over to Druid Lane where those new apartments are. It’s where the Martelino sisters lived. I just wanted to have a look around and maybe talk to some people.”
“And?”
“Well, I started to speak to a woman behind the counter at the office. She seemed nice, but then this man came up behind me and he was rude and threatening.”
“Oh dear,” Beatrice said.
“So I hightailed it over to the police department. Come to find out, it’s a hotbed of gang activity.”
Beatrice’s mouth dropped open.
Jon walked by on his way to the sink. “What? Gangs in Cumberland Creek?” He said, stopping at the table. “Did I hear that right?”
“Evidently it’s been a problem for quite some time,” Annie said. “For the most part, it’s not been in the news, but a few months ago when the young woman was raped and attacked . . . well, that was gang-related. I learned about it from DeeAnn. It checks out.”
“Do you think that’s the case with the Martelino sisters?” Beatrice asked.
“I have no idea. It certainly seems personal—sisters killed within twenty-four hours of one another.” Annie paused a moment before continuing. “But Beatrice, I wanted to ask you what you make of this gang business and what you know about Druid Lane and the neighborhood.”
Beatrice thought about it for a moment, sifting through images and memories. “Where exactly is it? Don’t think I’ve ever been there. And I thought I knew this town pretty well.”
“It’s over near the park across the river,” Annie told her. “It looks pretty new. Newly paved road, new apartments.”
“Hmm. I don’t know a thing about it.” Beatrice shrugged. “I know Cumberland Creek is growing and there’s been a lot of new construction, but I don’t know about that area.”
“Is that where the gangs are?” Jon asked.
“I don’t know,” Annie replied. “That’s what the cops say, but I covered gangs in DC and many times where you think they are is just a cover for where they really are.”
Jon’s mouth twisted. “Sounds sophisticated.”
“Wait a minute,” Beatrice said. “Did that property used to be a farm? I think it did.”
“Interesting,” Annie said. “I’ll look into who owned it.”
“I know who owned it. That was the old Drummond homestead, I believe,” Bea said. “When did they sell it to become apartments? Where have I been? How did I miss it?” A wash of nostalgia overcame her. She had such fond memories of the Drummonds, their house, and their orchard—one of the oldest in the state.
“You have a full life, Beatrice,” Annie said after a moment. “You’ve been busy with your new husband.”
“Oui,” Jon said and grinned. “Plus, so many other things.”
“But I read the paper every day and I talk to people every day. I mean, I consider myself well-informed.” Beatrice was indignant. It didn’t make sense. How could something be happening and she not know anything about it?
“As far as the gangs go,” Annie said, “the police are watching very closely. I guess they are trying to keep things quiet so as not to set off panic.”
Beatrice thought a moment. “I never thought I’d see the day I’d agree with the police. But a lot of the old-timers around here would welcome a reason to fight off a group of foreigners. Pains me to say it. Just the other day, someone was complaining about the Mexicans and other foreigners taking their jobs.”
“Really?” Annie said. “Was that at the senior center?”
Beatrice nodded. “Over bingo.” She reached for Jon’s hand. “They completely ignored the fact that a foreigner was sitting right next to me.”
Chapter 15
DeeAnn held the laptop on a pillow on her knees. She never thought she would like one of these things, but it turned out Karen had been right. She did like it.
“I’ve got a couple digital scrapbooking programs on there for you to play with and I uploaded some of your photos,” Karen said.
“So thoughtful of you, sweetie.” Upload? Digital? Those words didn’t make a whole lot of sense to DeeAnn. Oh, she knew what they meant, but she didn’t know how to use those words in the context of everyday life. But she didn’t want to let her daughter know that.
“I’ll be back tomorrow to take you to your appointment,” Karen said, getting up from the couch. “I’ll get you some more apps. You can even watch movies on it.”
“Movies?” DeeAnn said. “I might like that.”
Karen leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Anything you need before I go?”
DeeAnn looked at the little couch-side table holding a glass of water, tissues, medication, and the books Beatrice had brought over. “I’m fine. Besides, your dad will be home soon.”
After Karen left, DeeAnn called Sheila.
“How’s it going?” Sheila asked. “How are you feeling?”
“I need to get up off this couch before I kill someone,” DeeAnn said. And that was the absolute truth.
“Wouldn’t that hurt?” Sheila laughed.
“You’re damn straight it would hurt.” DeeAnn thought about the pain, muted because of the medication she was taking, but it was still there. Maybe she should take another pill? “But listen, Karen brought me a laptop.”
“Wow,” Sheila said. “Nice.”
“She loaded some scrapbooking programs on it,” DeeAnn said. “And I didn’t want her to know how stupid her mother really is.”
“Oh, DeeAnn!”
“Seriously? Upload? Download? What the heck?”
“Would you like for me to come over and explain some things? I’m happy to come over.”
“Yes, I’d like that. And maybe you can show me how to get the Internet on this thing. I want to read the news. I’m so curious about the Martelino sisters. Know anything new?”
“Today, Annie went to where they lived,” Sheila said. “Evidently, it was not a good situation.”
“What do you mean?”
“A man threatened her. And Bryant told her to never go over there alone.”
“Over where?” DeeAnn asked.
“Druid Lane.”
“Humph. That’s what Jacob said too.”
“Evidently, there are gangs over there.”
“That’s what Jacob said. I don’t know if I believe that. When I get my back straightened out, I’m going over to have a look for myself.”
“Now, I don’t think that would be a good idea,” Sheila said. “Annie is not easily intimidated and she was so upset that she went to the police station right after.”
“Humph. She needs a bodyguard.” DeeAnn laughed.
Sheila laughed, too. “That would be you.”
“Yep. So, see you in a bit?”
“Coming right over.”
Gangs in Cumberland Creek? Surely not, DeeAnn thought as sh
e looked at the clock. She felt a twinge of pain shoot through her spine. It was almost time for another pill, so she might as well take it now. She picked up the bottle and looked over the instructions and saw that yes, she could take two if the pain worsened. She shrugged and took two. She’d be very comfortable by the time Sheila came over for a visit.
DeeAnn next dialed Jill over at her bakery. “How’s everything going?” she asked when Jill picked up.
“Well for the third time today, I’ll answer that everything is running very smoothly,” Jill said, sounding exhausted and stressed. “You’ve got a good crew here, DeeAnn. It’s okay. You take care of yourself and don’t worry.”
“Have you thought about what to do for Halloween? I think we should do the Harry Potter theme again this year. I’m not sure I’ll be back on my feet in time.”
“We will take care of it, I promise.”
“We should be getting some flour in tomorrow,” DeeAnn said.
“Yes, it’s on the schedule.” Jill paused. “Anything else?”
“I’m sorry to be such a pain,” DeeAnn said after a moment. “But it is my shop. At least for the time being.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” an exasperated Jill said.
“Oh nothing. It’s . . . my back. I’m not sure . . .” DeeAnn said, holding back tears. Oh Lord, what is wrong with me? Am I going to cry over the phone to Jill? “I better go.” She clicked off her phone. Things were going well without her. Maybe it was a good time to step back from the business. If not sell it, then let Jill take over the day-to-day.
But what would DeeAnn do with herself? The boredom of lying on the couch all the time was driving her mad. What if she didn’t have the bakery to go to everyday? What would she do with herself?
She reached over for a tissue and blew her nose.
DeeAnn was a person who needed to keep busy. She didn’t like to sit around and think. It was no good. No good at all.
The doorbell rang.
“Come on in,” she called.
“Well hello there,” Sheila said, not looking at her yet, but reaching for the laptop. “That’s a nice laptop! Wow, you can do some cool stuff with this.”
“Well, that’s good,” DeeAnn managed to say.
Sheila took a look at her. “Have you been crying?” She sat down in the chair next to the couch. “Oh, DeeAnn.” She said it with so much pity in her voice that it made DeeAnn cringe.
“Listen,” Sheila said after a few minutes. “We’ll get you squared away with this digital scrapbooking and the next thing you know you are going to be completely caught up before you go back to work.”
“Well, now,” DeeAnn said, feeling a little better. “That would be a minor miracle.”
Chapter 16
Annie looked over Sam’s homework. “Looks like you’ve gotten it all right.” Her eyes were burning. She had thought she’d get some research done this evening but she was tired. Or maybe it was stress.
After all, one of the reasons they had moved to Cumberland Creek was because it was safer.
“Bath and bed,” Annie said to Sam.
He sniffed.
“Are you okay, sweetie?”
He nodded. “I hate math.”
“I know. But remember what I said. It’s one of those things you just have to get through.”
He kissed her on the cheek and she beamed. Her Sam.
“Hey Annie, did you put the last load of clothes in the dryer?” Mike said, walking into the kitchen.
“Yep,” Annie said, getting up from the kitchen table and heading to the sink to rinse a few dishes.
“What’s wrong?” Mike asked after a few minutes of silence.
“I found out there are gangs in Cumberland Creek. I was over at those new apartments on Druid today and was threatened. I was surprised by it and went to the police and found out about big problems over there.”
Mike leaned up against the sink and crossed his arms. “Does this have anything to do with the Martelino sisters?”
Annie shrugged. “I bet it does. I’m hoping to get some research done tonight.”
“How big a problem is it?” Mike asked.
“It can’t get any bigger than murder,” she said, reaching for a towel to dry her hands. “But what bothers me is that I didn’t know anything about it, you know? They are keeping it hush-hush. I’m a reporter and I’m a mother. I need to pay more attention to my community.”
Mike reached for her and wrapped his arms around her. “I think you’re doing fine. You’re the best mom I know.”
She relaxed into her husband’s arms and placed her head on his shoulder. “I was scared today. I didn’t expect to be threatened. It was a shock. I mean, I’m sure I can handle the story. I just need to be more careful, like I used to be.”
Mike brushed a long, curly strand of hair out of her face and kissed her lips. “Annie, you’ve been in some tight situations, but you are a mom, now.” He sighed. “I’m glad this is the last story. I don’t want to raise these boys alone.”
A shiver traveled up Annie’s spine and she pulled away from her husband. “Don’t worry. You won’t.” She smiled. “At least not if I have anything to say about it.”
A few years ago, the conversation might have ended differently. But something had shifted in Annie. She didn’t crave the danger anymore. She was still curious and still liked writing and finding some semblance of justice, but after being tied up and almost killed at the B and B and witnessing Jon and Elsie being shot, images of her children being without their mother taunted her. She had chosen to be a mom. They had worked at becoming parents. It was what she wanted. She wanted to be there for her kids. It was more important than anything.
Dreams shifted. Life changed.
And gangs were invading Cumberland Creek.
“Gangs?” Randy said, the next day at the scrapbooking crop. “Here?”
Annie nodded and sipped her beer.
They had decided to meet at DeeAnn’s. She couldn’t leave the house and Sheila thought it would cheer her up to have the croppers at her place. They had set up card tables and chairs around DeeAnn and her couch. DeeAnn was scrapbooking on her new laptop.
“Never thought I’d see the day,” Vera said after a minute. “This is my hometown, and I’ve never been frightened for my safety until the last few years. It’s just sad.”
“Do they think that’s who killed the Martelinos?” Paige asked.
“I don’t know,” Annie replied. “But I’ve been researching them. The sisters have been here about eighteen months. They came together. Marina has been working for Pamela ever since she came here.”
“I wonder why the other sister didn’t go to work for her,” DeeAnn said.
“It’s tough to get a job there,” Randy said. “Unless it’s as a dishwasher, you have to be qualified. I don’t think people realize that Pamela’s hired some highly qualified professionals.”
“Well, we know that you are,” Paige said. “But are there others like you?”
“Absolutely,” he said. “Marina was very gifted. Knew her stuff. I don’t know where she was trained. I never really have the time to talk to people when I’m working. It’s a very fast pace and I’m really still figuring out the way things work.”
“I’m curious,” Annie said. “You’ve said that the place isn’t managed well.”
“No, the supplies don’t seem to be,” Randy said, placing a brown, jewel-embellished paper photo frame around a picture.
“Nice,” Paige said, looking over his shoulder.
“I find that very surprising,” Vera said. “I mean, for such a successful place, you’d think she’d be more careful.”
Randy grunted, holding up his page. “I’m not sure what the problem with the supplies is. I’m looking into it.” The page was gold with a Halloween photo of him and his dad sitting on a porch swing. He was dressed as Superman and only about three years old. The cranberry jewel embellishments he’d placed on the page added just a
bit of flair. “I love those jewels. And they are so easy to work with. Now they have peel-off backs.”
“Does Pamela employ a lot of Mexicans?” Annie asked while searching in her bag for an envelope of photos she had stuck inside earlier.
“She employs mostly foreigners,” Randy said. “I’m one of the few locals there.”
“What?” Vera said, dropping her scissors.
“To be fair, most of them are doing menial jobs. Dishwashing, chopping, mixing,” said Randy. “Pamela mentioned once that she couldn’t find Americans to fill those positions.”
The room quieted.
“That’s hard to believe,” DeeAnn said. “I’ve never had a problem. In fact, I maintain a file of people who’d be happy to work for me, even if it’s just washing dishes.”
“How much is she paying those people, Randy?” Annie said, unable to ignore the pings of reporter’s intuition surging through her body.
“I imagine minimum wage,” he said, sliding his finished page into a plastic page protector. “But I really have no idea.”
“Has anybody gotten a good look at the scrapbooking pages they found with the sisters?” DeeAnn questioned.
“They’ve both been sent to the crime lab in Richmond,” Annie said, sliding out her photos of their day of hiking at Sherando Lake. She had bought some paper with stylized blue mountains in the background and couldn’t wait to preserve the memory of that day. It had been one of those moments when she wished she could stop time. The boys were so busy with soccer, music, and school that it was tough to get away as a family, even if it was just to a local lake.
“Cute pictures,” Randy said.
Annie beamed. She played around with the placement of the photos. “How open would Pamela be to chatting with me?”
Randy twisted his mouth. “Who knows?”
Chapter 17
Beatrice and Jon looked forward to Saturday nights with their granddaughter when they babysat while Vera was at her weekly crop meeting. But they were also happy when Elizabeth finally went to bed. The child was exhausting. Bea was ready for bed way before Elizabeth. Jon, on the other hand, was still playing around on the computer.
Scrapbook of the Dead Page 6
