Whispering Walls & Murder

by Jenna St James

  Heidi’s face split into a wide grin. “Only one way to find out. Let me call Bernita. If Bridget finds out from Landry or you hear from Mike that the cops are going to stake out the auto shop all night Friday, then we’ll back off.”

  “Okay,” I said. “I’ll agree to a tentative stakeout, depending on where things stand tomorrow night.”

  The cousins did another victory squeal while I went to socialize with the remaining three customers we had. A few minutes later, Heidi motioned me back over.

  “It’s a go for tomorrow night at six. We’re to meet at the cemetery about a half mile from the auto body shop. Bernita said to dress in all black, but to dress warm. We’re going in breezy and stealth!”

  “What the heck does that mean?” I asked.

  Heidi grinned. “You’ll see.”

  Chapter 15

  The Traveler’s Bay library sat between a kitschy tourist shop that sold everything from pink flamingos to garish teapots and cups shaped like cottages, and the Traveler’s Bay City Council building. The very place Gramps now had a desk.

  I hadn’t visited the library since moving back to town over two years ago. Before that, I couldn’t even fathom a guess when I’d last been inside. Which was crazy, because I usually loved the yummy scent of musty, damp books.

  Yanking open the glass door, my eyes scanned the poster taped to the front panel. The library was having a Saturday Book Sale tomorrow from nine to noon. I made a mental note to attend to see if there’d be anything worthwhile to buy.

  I was pleasantly surprised at the changes inside since my teenaged years. Gone was the brown, beaten-down carpet with nondescript chairs. In its place was a dark wooden floor covered in brightly-colored carpeted runners marking certain sections of the library with numerous beanbags, circular futon chairs, and oversized club chairs scattered about. Still a staple were the old metal see-through bookshelves lined back-to-back and laid out in rows.

  “May I help you?” a clipped, stern voice asked from behind a desk with a plaque touting her name.

  Jane Forsythe may have been the head librarian for the Traveler’s Bay Library, but she wasn’t someone I recognized as seeing around town. Mid-sixties, oval glasses, silver-blonde hair cut in layers to her shoulders. Her pinched lips told me she was either displeased with me or the whole world in general. Small, delicate hands were folded neatly atop a short stack of books.

  “Yes,” I said jovially, “my name is Jaycee Sullivan, and I—”

  “I’m well aware of who you are.” She looked me up and down. “Well, not by sight, but by reputation.”

  She said the word ‘reputation’ like she’d swallowed a bag full of lemons.

  “Have I done something to upset you, Ms. Forsythe?”

  “You mean other than encourage avid readers to spend money on books instead of getting them for free and at the same time support their local community?”

  Her problem with me wasn’t that I owned a bar—which was usually the case—but that I sold books. No doubt about it…takes all kinds to make the world go round.

  My eyes caught on the shelf behind her, and I couldn’t help but be impressed. “Is that a first-edition Misery by Stephen King?”

  Jane’s eyes lit up. “It’s a first trade edition, yes. Very good eye.” She leaned closer to me. “It’s also signed.”

  Holy, cow! Something like that would go for fifteen hundred easily.

  “I have two other such estimable books at my house.”

  “Very impressive,” I said. “It’s nice of you to bring in a book like that so others can appreciate it.”

  “Thank you, dear.” Her gaze swept over me again, this time not so menacingly. “I may have misjudged you. My apologizes.”

  I bit my tongue to hold back the not-so-nice retort that was dying to come out. “As a librarian, I’m sure you have amazing stories you can tell.”

  “That I do,” she said. “Nearly forty years ago, I earned a Master’s in Library Science and then took a job as an archivist in San Francisco. I met so many wonderfully successful and educated book lovers, and even though most of us are retired now, we’re still friends.”

  “That’s lovely you’ve found a way to surround yourself with your passion,” I said.

  “Yes, I suppose it is.”

  “How did you find out about this job here in Traveler’s Bay?” I asked. “Do you have family from here?”

  She lifted a brow. “You ask a lot of questions, Jaycee Sullivan.”

  I let out a laugh. “I hear that a lot.”

  “I do have a younger sister who lives here. We aren’t really that close, too much of an age gap. Her husband has always lived here in Traveler’s Bay, and when they got married some thirty years ago they just settled here.” She paused, furrowing her brow. “I actually think it was my dear friend and fellow bibliophile, Edwardo Brittolli, who told me of the opening. He called one day to tell me of a small town in Sonoma County looking for a head librarian. And after all those years in the city, I was ready for a change. Imagine my surprise when I realized it was Traveler’s Bay.”

  “I know what you mean,” I said. “I was also living in San Francisco until about two and a half years ago. When Gramps suggested we open up Gone with the Whiskey, I jumped at the chance to leave the hustle and bustle of San Fran behind.”

  “I guess I’ve been here about eight years now. Goes by so fast it hardly seems real.” She peered over her glasses at me. “Now, what are you really doing here? I doubt you’re here about a library book.”

  “No, I’m not. I was hoping maybe you could tell me a little bit about David Saddler. Maybe the last few days before he died?”

  Once again her lips pinched together. “I’m not one for gossip.”

  “I’m not asking for gossip. I’m asking for information and impressions.”

  “And why exactly do you need to know this information? Are you with the police department?”

  “No, I’m—”

  “Then I don’t think I need to answer any questions.”

  I held up my hands. “I don’t mean any disrespect. I don’t know if you’ve spoken with Detective Connors or—”

  “I have.”

  “Okay. Well, did he happen to mention that my sister and I are the ones who found David’s body?”

  Her eyes widened behind her glasses. “He did not, no.”

  “Well, we were. I’ve recently come from David’s parents’ house, and I know they’d appreciate anything you could tell them about his last days here at the library, especially since he enjoyed being here so much.”

  “I don’t know how I can help with that,” Jane said. “I mean, I answered the detective’s questions when he was here, about David’s work ethic, his demeanor the last few days, how he got along here at the library doing his community service.”

  I nodded encouragingly. “Those are the kinds of things I wonder too. I didn’t know him, but I have all these unanswered questions surrounding how he came to be in my wall.”

  She touched her fingertips to her lips. “I just don’t know about people sometimes.”

  “I’ve spoken to a couple of his friends at the time,” I continued, hoping she’d divulge information if I kept talking, “and they assured me he loved his time here at the library.”

  Jane preened. “Well, he was an asset, that’s for sure.” She sat down on the barstool behind the counter then sighed. “It’s just a shame how it was he came to be here.”

  “He needed to do forty hours of community service with you, right? He’d gotten arrested and had to finish out his time at the library?”

  Jane nodded. “He did. It’s really such a shame. He was a nice boy, and he did a fabulous job here at the library. He put in his hours, was helpful, and he honestly had a way with the patrons, even the kids. He just made a bad decision he had to pay for.”

  “Did you always think he just up and left town?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “I didn’t know him that well to form an
opinion. He did talk a lot about his girlfriend and making a new life for them.”

  “But he didn’t take her,” I said.

  “I didn’t know that until the private investigator came to talk with me years back,” she said. “The Friday he left the library, I figured I’d never see him again. Or at least I hoped the next time I saw him it would be because he was checking out a book, not because he was doing community service. I didn’t really expect to see him after he put in his time here. It’s not like we were friends or I had an opening where I could hire him.”

  “I hadn’t thought about that.” Pursing my own lips in frustration, I decided to ask about Manny and Logan. “Did his friends ever stop by the library? Maybe to talk or to razz him or something?”

  “Oh, gosh, I don’t know. I’ll tell you the same thing I told the detective…it’s been too long.”

  “Any little thing you can remember,” I persisted.

  She narrowed her eyes…then brightened. “I do remember his one friend coming in.”

  “Which friend?” I asked.

  “Oh, I don’t know. The detective told me his two friends’ names, but I’ve forgotten them again.”

  “Manny Lopez and Logan Blevins?” I wondered.

  She shrugged. “This one had dark hair and dark skin. He came in one day and teased David about how since he’s spending all his time at the library, he’d just go ask his girlfriend out. It was clear he was teasing David, but David didn’t think it was funny. I ended up asking the boy to leave. I could see how distraught David was.”

  More dings for Manny.

  “I actually think I’ve seen that same boy over the last couple years,” Jane continued. “He sometimes comes in with a woman and small girl during Tiny Tot Circle.”

  “What’s Tiny Tot Circle?” I asked.

  “Once a week on Tuesday mornings, either myself or a volunteer will read a story to the little ones in the community. These are kids usually under the age of five who aren’t in school yet. Gives them exposure to books and the moms a chance to socialize. But we do have some dads who attend. I’m pretty sure he’s attended a couple times.”

  “Thank you for talking with me, Ms. Forsythe,” I said. “I guess that’s all the questions I have.”

  She sighed. “I just can’t imagine anything I told you will help that poor boy’s parents find peace.”

  I didn’t think so, either. But I wasn’t going to tell her that.

  “Before I go,” I said, “I want to tell you how much I love what you’ve done with the inside of the library. It’s completely changed from when I was a kid.”

  “Oh, thank you.” She looked around the room like a queen surveying her kingdom. “I’ve put a lot of work into making this library a vital part of the community.”

  “And you’ve succeeded.”

  With a wave, I turned and headed back outside. I hadn’t really learned anything new, except Manny had been kicked out once for razzing David about ignoring Jayla. I’d just shut the front door when I hit something solid and stumbled backward.

  “I’m sorry,” I said automatically.

  “Me, too.”

  Shocked, I looked up as Jordan Elliott steadied me on my feet. “Oh, are you going inside the library?”

  It seemed like a stupid question to ask, but I was a little surprised to see him standing in front of me.

  He gave me a grin. “Sure am.” He wiggled two books in his hands. “Avid reader. You probably wouldn’t guess that about me, but that’s okay. Plus my aunt is the head librarian, so I sometimes get a leg up on the new releases.” He leaned in and gave me a wink. “Just don’t tell her I told you about the nepotism.”

  I gave a shaky laugh. “I won’t. So Jane Forsythe is your aunt?”

  “Yep. My mom and her are sisters.”

  My mind whirled with this information. “That’s right. I remember now she told me her sister lived here, but that she wasn’t that…” I trailed off lamely. What could I say? That they weren’t that close?

  He gave me a knowing smile and patted my shoulder. “It’s okay. My mom and Aunt Jane aren’t really that close. In fact, until she moved here and became the head librarian, I didn’t even really know her. But like I said,” he shook the books again, “family has its perks.”

  I laughed. “It sure does.”

  His phone rang, and I was about to walk around him when his next words stopped me in my tracks. “What do you mean you may be late to work, Manny?” Pause. “Brought in for questioning? What on earth for?” Another pause. “Sounds like you need a lawyer. And I need a worker. You better not be too late. Get this cleared up now. You work at a family business, and this won’t look good for our family.”

  Chapter 16

  Friday lunch hour was packed with shoppers, readers, drinkers, and tourists. It didn’t slow down until after one. I only hoped it was as busy for Jax as it was for us. Taking my first break around two, I propped my feet up on the coffee table in our normal conferencing area and got down to business with Mom and Tillie.

  “Did you bring them?” I asked.

  Mom nodded. “I have two black outfits, one for you and one for Jax. Both have black hoodies since you said you needed to dress warm.”

  I shuddered. “Yeah, goodness only knows what that’s about. With Bernita you never know. What time is Andrew due in tonight?”

  “Probably around six or seven,” Mom said. “Depends on traffic on the 101.”

  “That’s true,” I agreed.

  “I’m looking forward to the meal Saturday night,” Tillie said.

  I laughed. “Me too. I’m still bringing the macaroni salad and Jax is bringing two different desserts.”

  Mom smiled. “And your Gramps is still barbecuing a huge tri-tip.”

  Tillie winked at me. “And I’m making a quinoa salad and your Gramps promised to grill me a tofu burger.”

  I grinned at her. “I’m sure Gramps is excited about all that.”

  My Gramps, the barbecue king of Sonoma County, went and married a woman who didn’t like to eat meat. She liked fish and other seafood, she just wasn’t into steak or pork or turkey or chicken or lamb or any of the other delicious meats Gramps liked to grill and eat.

  “I wonder how it’s going down at the station,” I mused.

  I was a little surprised I hadn’t heard from Mike at all…not even a text. For that matter, I hadn’t heard anything from Heidi or Bridget either, and they usually knew everything that was going on in town.

  “I’m going to the office around three,” Gramps said from behind the counter, “maybe I’ll hear something.”

  My mouth dropped. “You’d eavesdrop for me and give me the dirt?”

  Gramps chuckled. “No. I said maybe I’d overhear something.” He winked. “I didn’t say nothin’ about telling you what I learned.”

  “Oh!” I waved my arm at him and laughed.

  Sissy Parker, a regular patron in her mid-sixties with a penchant for romance novels, ambled over to the counter, bill in hand. “My daughter texted me about an hour ago and said she saw three cop cars make the turn to go out to Blevins Auto Body Shop.”

  I perked up. “Seriously?”

  “Yes. Or at least that’s where she assumed they were going. Not much out that way except the shop and the cemetery farther on down the main road there.”

  Now I was really dying to know what was going on. I knew Mike and Landry had planned on going to the shop early this morning to request Logan go in for formal questioning…and for either Mike or Landry to “accidentally” stumble upon the tarp that was in plain sight next to the building. From there he could get a search warrant for the tarp, but what else was he doing out there that required three cop cars?

  By the time three o’clock came around and Gramps left to go to the mayor’s office to check in, I was practically in knots wondering what was going on down at the station. I put Mom and Tillie to work calling everyone they knew to see if they’d heard anything.

  �
�Darlene Adams just texted me,” Mom said. “She wants to know if she should come down here and help out for a bit while you guys are off on your stakeout tonight.”

  I blinked in surprise. “How did she know about that?”

  Mom shrugged. “Jax must have told her.”

  I looked around the bookstore and bar. We were pretty busy for a Friday afternoon. “Sure. What time is she done at Jax’s bakery?”

  “Four. She said she’d just walk on down after she gets off and put in a couple hours down here.”

  “Fabulous.”

  I wouldn’t feel quite so bad leaving Mom and Tillie alone again to watch the bar if Darlene stopped by to help. She and her husband, Randy, were great about stepping in when needed.

  My jaw nearly hit the floor when Mike strode through the doors at five. His hair was disheveled and his five o’clock shadow looked more like a beard. Hurrying over to him, I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

  “I’m surprised to see you here,” I said.

  He looked around at all the customers then escorted me to the back storeroom where Gramps and I kept our overflow liquors and books. “I wish I were here under better circumstances.”

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “I might as well tell you now because I’m sure you’ll hear about it soon from Bridget or Heidi or any of the other ears this town has. I brought Manny in for questioning, and even though he admitted he knows the hardware store sells lye, he claims he never purchased any.”

  “Why would he need to?” I asked. “He worked there his senior year. Maybe he just swiped it?”

  Mike nodded. “I thought of that. Anyway, I pushed him a little more on the Jayla angle. He was defensive, but gave me nothing new there. He maintains he married Jayla because he figured David got cold feet when he found out Jayla was pregnant.”

  I frowned, thinking about that whole situation. “Jayla said Manny told you about why he and Logan had a huge falling out right before graduation. Could that falling out have something to do with David’s murder?”