At that question, Sebastian’s cheeks under his beard grew ruddy. “So you know.”
“The word is out. Haven’t you talked to Lizbeth?”
“Not in the past few days.”
“You don’t know about Rena and the police?”
“Rena from Sunrise Tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“Tell me,” he said wearily.
So while Caprice helped Sebastian close cupboard doors, as they put cushions back on furniture and books back on the shelves, she told him what had happened with Rena and Lizbeth.
“So Lizbeth was actually going to go to the police and tell them we were having an affair?”
“I think she was. Maybe you should do the same.”
“Kevin started all this, didn’t he, with the conversation he overheard?”
“Yes, but I’m sure it would have all eventually come out. He just helped hurry the investigation along.”
“Do you think that was the impetus for this break-in? I mean, just look at the place. Even the cushions are slashed. Whoever came in here was motivated and it wasn’t for robbery. They were looking for something.”
“Like Wendy’s journal or her thumb drive.”
“Exactly. And what would have happened if we were here?”
“My guess is that whoever did this either knew you and the boys would be gone, or was watching your house and they were sure you were gone.”
“You mean someone is stalking us?”
“Think of it more as surveillance.”
Sebastian ran his hand through his hair. “The police don’t have enough manpower to put a patrol car here. Maybe I should hire security.”
“If whoever broke in made a thorough search, they might realize by now that you and the boys don’t have the journal or the thumb drive. I mean, let’s face it. If you or the boys found it, you’d turn it over to the police. As soon as you did, there’d be a flurry of activity in the department and a lot more suspects brought in for questioning.”
“Then why did they bother to break in?”
“To be sure . . . to see if what you couldn’t find, they could.”
“What if they found it? What if the journal or thumb drive was here and we didn’t know?”
“If they found it, then it could be a long while until they’re caught.”
“If ever.” He sighed.
Not one to hold back, Caprice asked, “So you and Wendy were having problems?”
“Not problems exactly.”
She looked Sebastian straight in the eye. “What exactly?”
“I didn’t kill her if that’s what you’re thinking. She didn’t even know who I was having the affair with.”
“But she knew you were having an affair?”
“Not explicitly. But I think women just know. She was spending more time at Sunrise Tomorrow. And, really, that had been the whole problem from the start. She’d gotten so wrapped up in her work there, we hardly had a life together.”
“Lizbeth is wrapped up in her work there.”
“Yeah, but Lizbeth wasn’t a permanent thing. I knew it would never be a permanent thing. She was just an outlet because I was so frustrated with Wendy.”
An outlet. Caprice was sure Lizbeth would be really pleased to know that. Men. Were men really from Mars and women from Venus? No. Grant had confided Naomi had had an affair, too . . . because of grief and loneliness. The bottom line was simply communication, becoming bogged down, stilted, closed. She and Grant had to make sure that never happened with them.
And they’d start with dinner with his parents tonight. She wanted everything out in the open. She couldn’t wait to meet them, but for some reason, Grant was anxious about the whole thing.
She’d soon find out exactly why.
* * *
Caprice smelled trouble with a capital T. Her palms were sweaty and now she was doubly anxious about having dinner with Grant and his parents. She’d been keeping those nervous quivers at bay until she received Grant’s phone call a half hour ago.
He’d said, “My parents are settled in at the Purple Iris, but they think their room’s too fancy and they don’t want to have dinner downstairs at the hoity-toity restaurant. So how about if you meet us at the Sunflower Diner in about half an hour? Unless you’d like to run in the other direction and then I might be tempted to run with you.”
The last had been said with an attempt at humor, but she could hear the dismay in his voice.
“It’s going to be okay, Grant. The Sunflower Diner is fine. If they’re more comfortable there, so be it.”
“Why can’t they just accept what I want to give them?”
“I don’t know. Your dad probably has a lot of pride and he wants to stay and eat at a place he can afford. Maybe after I meet them, I’ll be able to understand them.”
“Don’t think you’re going to psychoanalyze them. It won’t do any good.”
“Anything I should know before I show up?”
“No, just be yourself. And I’ll try to be myself, which is always more difficult when I’m in their company. See you in half an hour.”
Caprice hadn’t been sure what to wear, but he’d told her to be herself. She wore an outfit she’d found at Secrets of the Past by a new designer who concentrated on the mid-century look. It was something Twiggy might wear. The dress had a cream and black geometric design. Pleats ran around the lower part of the hem. What made the outfit, in Caprice’s estimation, was the cream jacket that had a double row of buttons down both sides that didn’t altogether meet in the middle. She decided the weather was cool enough for black leather boots that came up to her knees just under the hem. She thought about changing into red bell-bottoms, Beatles T-shirt, and fringed vest. That would have been more casual and definitely “her.” But she felt she wanted to get a little dressed up for this encounter simply for added confidence.
When Caprice walked into the Sunflower Diner, she spotted Grant and an older couple in a back booth. He stood and waved, though he didn’t have to. Her Grant-radar could find him anywhere. His mother and father sat in the booth with their backs to her.
She said hello to the hostess who knew her and pointed to the back to Grant. Then she made a beeline toward him.
When she arrived by his side, he hesitated only a moment; then he wrapped his arm around her. “Mom and Dad, meet my fiancée, Caprice De Luca. Caprice, these are my parents, Diane and Samuel Weatherford.”
Caprice didn’t hesitate to extend her hand and first shake Samuel’s and then Diane’s. “It’s good to meet you.”
Grant’s parents were older than hers, maybe by about five years. In her sixties, Diane’s straight gray hair was cut in a bowl shape around her face. It was soft and cottony and shiny. At five-three with a rounded figure and a frown, she didn’t look at all comfortable. Caprice hoped she was just tired from her trip.
Grant’s dad was tall, maybe five-eleven or six foot. He had black hair like Grant’s, laced with gray. It was parted to the side and thinning just a bit, but not much. He had a hard jaw, high cheekbones, and a well-proportioned nose. It was easy to see what Grant would look like thirty years from now. His father wore jeans and a light flannel shirt. His mother wore navy slacks, a white Oxford blouse, and a navy windbreaker lay on the seat beside her. Caprice wanted to step into the conversation gap, but she wasn’t sure where to go. That was unusual for her.
Finally, Mr. Weatherford said, “This was quite a surprise—your engagement, I mean.”
Caprice stole a look at Grant. He gave a little what-can-I-say shrug, which probably meant he hadn’t talked to his parents very much over the past year or told them about their involvement.
Because she couldn’t think of anything else to say, she came up with, “Grant and I have known each other for a long time, since he and my brother went to college together.”
This time Diane and Samuel exchanged a look. “He knew you before Naomi?”
Now Caprice turned to Grant, and he stepped into
the gap. “I did. Remember, I told you Caprice’s brother, Vince, was my roommate at college.”
“And when you came home with him, you saw her,” Samuel clarified.”
“It wasn’t like that back then. Caprice was younger, still in her teens.”
“But I had a crush on him,” Caprice admitted, wanting to be honest with them.
Now Diane spoke. “I see. So you started practicing law in Pittsburgh and met Naomi.”
“Yes,” Grant responded.
“So now you’re going to say you never really loved her even though you had a child together.”
“Mom, I really don’t want to get into that,” Grant said. “It’s between Caprice, me, Naomi, and the church.”
Samuel’s eyebrows arched as if he wasn’t used to Grant standing his ground.
Fortunately, the waitress came to take their orders. Caprice didn’t even have a menu, but she quickly borrowed Grant’s, chose something easy and non-messy to eat, and realized the rest of dinner could be as much of an ordeal as the beginning of dinner.
After the waitress left, Caprice clutched at something Grant had told her about his mom. “Grant said you have a vegetable garden. What do you raise?”
“A little bit of everything,” Diane answered, perking up a bit. “We have broccoli and zucchini, kale, Brussels sprouts, and of course, tomatoes.”
“My mother raises heirloom tomatoes from seed. I plant them in my yard too.”
“What kinds?” Diane asked.
“Marianna’s Peace, Anna Russian, and Amish Paste.”
“It’s unusual for someone your age to be interested in planting heirloom tomatoes.”
Grant patted her knee under the table as if she’d made a point. Good for her.
Gardening and farming were the topics until their orders arrived. But then the conversation went downhill again. His father asked Grant, “So you’re still working from home?”
“I’m working both places, my home and downtown. Patches is learning how to behave at the office so I can take him along. When I have a court date, my neighbor takes care of him.”
“I can’t see that working from home is a good thing when you have clients to see. It’s just not professional, and I really think it’s a stupid idea to do it all because of a dog.”
Unable to hold her tongue, Caprice backed up Grant. “I have two cats and a dog. Lady goes with me lots of places, just as Patches goes with Grant. Our fur babies are family. I believe loving them teaches us how to love people better. We also learn how to receive unconditional love in return.”
Grant’s father looked at her as if she were crazy, but Grant’s mother studied her speculatively. “That’s a very interesting philosophy.”
In case that topic wouldn’t bring out the best in his father, Grant asked about a few people they knew back in Vermont. While he and his dad had a quiet conversation, Caprice showed his mom her ring, exclaiming how much she loved it, and how great Grant’s taste was.
“A heart diamond,” Diane mused. “I never would have thought Grant would be so sentimental.
Somehow they finished dinner. No one wanted dessert. Grant’s father insisted on paying the check, and Grant let him, maybe remembering what Caprice had said earlier about his dad having pride.
Once outside, Caprice walked with them to Grant’s SUV. She said, “I’m so happy you came to Kismet. I’d like you to meet my parents. You’re staying through the weekend, right? Maybe you could come to dinner on Sunday night.”
Samuel cut a glance at his wife. “We’ll talk it over and let you know.”
After Grant’s parents were seated in his car, Grant took her by the arm and led her to the blind spot where they weren’t in plain sight. “Do you still want to marry me?”
She couldn’t help but smile. “I do, even more than before.”
He shook his head and kissed her. “I’ll try to convince them to have dinner with you and your parents, but don’t hold your breath.”
“I wouldn’t think of it,” she teased, then headed for her Camaro.
If her parents and his parents did have dinner together, the occasion could be quite entertaining.
Chapter Seventeen
Caprice sat across from her nana the following afternoon. While they shared a cup of tea and nibbled on biscotti, Lady chased Nana’s kitten Valentine up the cat condo. The animals stared at each other until finally Lady sat and Valentine, a gray tabby Caprice had found in her backyard last February, curled in a nap position.
Nana liked to keep up to date on Caprice’s decorating schemes and she told her all about the Tuscan Dream house.
“It sounds lovely.”
“I hope it will be. Grant says maybe Tuscany would be a good place to take a honeymoon.”
“Aha,” Nana said, pointing her biscotti at Caprice. “Now that’s a topic I think we should discuss. How did dinner go last night? No one in the family seems to know anything about it. That means you didn’t call us afterward, and that means, maybe it didn’t go so well?”
“His parents are . . . are . . .” Caprice wanted to put this in the most positive of terms. “They’re not as supportive and accepting as you and Mom and Dad.”
“I see. You mean they criticized Grant, though I don’t see what there is to criticize.”
Caprice smiled. “I don’t either. I’m not sure they approve of the annulment. I’m not sure they approve of me. But I asked them to come to dinner on Sunday night with you and Mom and Dad. Are you game?”
“I’m always game for a good conversational rumble.”
“I’ll let you know what they decide. Grant is trying to convince them it would be a good idea to have our families meet.”
“It will work out,” Nana proclaimed, patting Caprice’s hand. “Tell me something, though, do Grant’s parents know you’re involved in a murder investigation?”
“I’m not really involved—”
Nana gave her a knowing look.
“No, I don’t think they know anything about me being involved with murder investigations. Maybe it’s better we keep it that way.”
Nana held up one finger. “The truth always . . .”
“Comes out,” Caprice said along with her. “I know. But we’ve got to get past the introductions stage first.”
“And what about the murder investigation? Have you figured out who killed Wendy?”
“You’re kidding, right? This one’s a tough one.”
“So go over it with me. You know how it works. Maybe an idea will pop out of you when we talk about it.”
She hadn’t really discussed the suspect list with anyone, and now she did, from Warren Shaeffer to Wendy’s ex-husband to Lizbeth and Sebastian, and even Rena.
“You do have quite a mixture there. What’s your gut feeling telling you?”
“Maybe this time I can’t see clearly because I can’t get past Wendy’s death. I just feel so bad for Sebastian’s boys, especially Kevin. He seems to be really connected to her. He told me about the bike rides they took to the old Wyatt estate. There’s a Saint Anthony shrine there and Wendy believed Saint Anthony could help find lost things. When I saw Kevin the last time, he told me he’d prayed to Saint Anthony to find his password list, and he did. I think he’s finally a believer.” She took a sip of tea, then admitted, “The break-in that happened at Sebastian’s worries me. Sebastian’s talking about hiring security until the murderer is caught.”
“That could be quite expensive.”
“I know. But it’s either that or take the boys and go stay somewhere else for a while.”
“So you don’t think Sebastian is the murderer.”
“I really don’t. I don’t think he’d do that to his boys, even if he and Wendy were having problems.”
“And you have no idea what the intruder was looking for?”
“Oh, we do. We think he or she was looking for a journal and or a thumb drive that Wendy kept somewhere and nobody knows where.”
Nana looked thoughtf
ul for a moment. “I suppose the talk about Saint Anthony came up between Wendy and Kevin because of the shrine?”
“Yes.”
“Have you ever seen it?”
“No, I’ve never been to the back of the property. I’ve only been inside the house.”
“If I remember correctly, that shrine is closed in and protected. It’s huge.”
Suddenly Caprice remembered that Wendy had told Kevin if he ever lost something, he should go to the shrine to pray to Saint Anthony and he would help him find it. Caprice snapped her fingers. “Maybe Wendy left us a clue. She told Kevin if ever he lost something, he should go to the shrine and pray to Saint Anthony. I just wonder—”
“Wonder if something could be hidden there?”
“Yes, I think I’m going to make a pilgrimage to visit Saint Anthony.”
“Are you going to take someone with you?”
“Grant’s entertaining his parents today. He’s going to drive them to Gettysburg to see the Battlefield and the Peace Light. And truthfully, I don’t know how much I trust anyone else. I’d ask Sebastian to go along, but I’ve been wrong about suspects before.”
“What about your uncle Dom? He might be game.”
“Yes, he might. I’ll take Lady home and go out for a good play session with her. Then I’ll give him a call. But if he’s not available, I’m going to go myself. This can’t wait any longer, especially if something’s hidden there.”
“If you do go alone, you have your cell phone in one hand and your mace gun in the other. Understood?”
“Got it, Nana.”
Then Nana solemnly said, “May all the saints protect you.”
* * *
Caprice parked her van to the rear of the Wyatt estate just outside the gate. When she’d called her Uncle Dom, she’d heard his voice mail message. She’d waited fifteen minutes and tried again. When he still didn’t answer, she figured he was on a pet-sitting assignment. Instead of waiting or trying to call again, she decided to take Lady with her. What could it hurt? When she took her pup along, she had to use her van with Lady’s crate in the back. It was the safest way for Lady to travel.
Mid-October dusk was starting to settle in and she knew she had to make this excursion quick. As she’d promised Nana, she kept her cell phone in her hand. Her mace gun was in her pocket. She opened the door to the van and unfastened the latch on Lady’s crate. Lady came out and sat.
Shades of Wrath Page 22
