The Milburn Big Box Set

by Nancy McGovern

  “I’ve got a witness that says otherwise,” Rudy said. “Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

  “Come on,” Jason said to Nora, putting his arm around hers. “We got to go down to the morgue.”

  “Wait, I want to--”

  “Rudy will take care of Harvey.” Jason said. “You come with me.”

  “Harvey, I didn’t tell anyone…” That wasn’t true. She’d told Sean what the detectives were saying.

  But Harvey just gave her a cold look and waved her on. “You do what you have to, Nora.”

  The walk down to the morgue was cold and damp, with a puddle of water from a dark, half open door, and a strange chemical scent in the air.

  “We really need to clean up down here,” Jason said.

  The morgue itself had a thick steel door, and a metal table on which a body covered in a thin white sheet lay.

  “This is it,” Jason said. “Do you remember at all what he was wearing yesterday, Nora?”

  “A yellow sweatshirt, and blue jeans, I think,” Nora said. “To be honest, I can’t be sure. Jason, I thought you said that he was spotted leaving the county.”

  “I wish he had,” Jason said, his voice full of regret. “Anyway, I’m going to have to ask you to identify him, Nora, if possible.”

  So, he lifted the sheet from the head. Nora looked at the body, shuddered, and then turned away.

  *****

  Chapter 24

  Ricky’s death seemed to put a great load on Nora. It also coincided with a few jobs she had lined up. So, for the next three days, she was so caught up with her work that she had no chance to talk to anyone. She was too busy preparing and delivering her work to her various customers. Her feet ached from standing all day, and her hands from lifting heavy vessels. The one thing no one had told her about a chef’s job was how much physical work went into it.

  Her work finally done, Nora welcomed the two days of free time stretching ahead of her by kicking off her shoes and collapsing on a sofa, with a cup of green tea in one hand. In one corner of her mind, she seemed to keep looping and re-looping every incident with Ricky. In particular, she remembered how he had fled when Harvey had shown up with Milly on his arm. Her thoughts wandered to Milly, and she wondered how she would feel when Harvey broke up with her. Would she be very upset? Or was Harvey right, had Milly and her father just been using him as a convenient person to stay with while she tried to fight her addiction?

  A cry from Mrs. Mullally’s room roused Nora immediately. Rushing up, she found her landlady looking very pale, and clutching her heart.

  “Mrs. Mullally!”

  “Oh, its nothing, dear,” Mrs. Mullally said. “Just having a little difficulty breathing, is all.” She took short rapid breaths, wincing every so often.

  Alarmed, Nora called up Dr. Neil immediately. He arrived soon enough, with his bag in one hand, his hair sticking up all over the place, wearing an ancient looking yellow shirt with olive green trousers.

  Nora waited anxiously outside the room as the doctor checked up on Mrs. Mullally. Afterwards, he came out, his face looking cheerful.

  “I should be as fit as her,” he said. “Not a thing to worry about, Nora. It was just a matter of adjusting her dosage. She’s fine.”

  “Should she be resting for the next few days?” Nora fretted. “I keep telling her not to work so hard. She’s up on her feet all day.”

  “She needs to do whatever she likes, and be surrounded by cheerful people,” Dr. Neil said. “Like I said, not a thing to worry about, Nora.”

  “I’ll take your word for it,” Nora said. “Come to the kitchen. If you have the time, I’ve got some lasagna leftover from last night.”

  He looked at his watch. “Well… it seems a little early for lunch, but why not? I could do with some good food. I’ve been living on canned tuna for the last three days because I’ve been too lazy to go grocery shopping.”

  “That’s a shame,” Nora said.

  “I wish there were a place that delivered home-made food to me,” Dr. Neil said. “Any chance of you starting something like that?”

  “I doubt I’ll be starting anything these next few days,” Nora said.

  “Ah, yes,” he nodded. “Tina and you were talking about your diner the other day, weren’t you? The day Sean got voted out of office.”

  “That seems so long ago,” Nora said. “It’s hard to believe it was only last week.” She reached into the fridge, reheated the lasagna, and spooned some on a delicate china plate, before handing the doctor a fork.

  “It was, wasn’t it?” Doctor Neil sighed. “Ah, time… it flows by so fast.”

  In this case, Nora thought she could do with time moving even faster.

  “This is amazing,” Doctor Neil said. “I can’t wait for you to open your own diner, Nora. I think the entire town is staying up at night wondering when it will start.”

  “It’s been tough after Raquel’s death,” Nora said.

  “Yes. Of course,” he replied. “I was really sorry about that. Raquel was a good girl. A solid citizen. The kind of person that makes this town what it is. The only thing to console ourselves with is that she got the justice she deserved.” He shook his head gravely.

  Remembering a conversation they had at Wallis’ funeral, Nora said, “Doctor Neil, Joe mentioned at the funeral that Wallis wanted to become sheriff because he wanted justice for his family. What do you think that meant?”

  Instantly, the doctor’s face seemed to harden. “Why do you ask?”

  “It’s just that…” Nora hesitated. “I don’t know. It struck me as funny. You’re the town doctor. Did Wallis have any relatives around here?”

  “Actually, Wallis didn’t come to me,” Doctor Neil said. “I think he preferred to get his medical treatment from out of town.” Dropping his fork in the plate of half-finished lasagna, he stood up. “Well, I’m a busy man. I think I better get going.”

  “Oh, but you didn’t even finish this.” Nora looked up at him. “Doctor Neil, did I offend you in some way?”

  “Offend me? Far from it,” Doctor Neil said. “I’m going to see myself out.”

  Nora watched him leave, wondering what was going on. One minute he’d been the picture of happiness and good cheer. Next thing she knew, he’d decided to walk himself out.

  She went up to check on Mrs. Mullally, who was fast asleep. Maynard, her golden retriever, was sleeping under the bed, with his little black nose peeking out. Seeing Nora, he decided to scramble out, and went to her, wagging his tail. Normally, he would have jumped on her and licked her all over. This time, almost sensing Mrs. Mullally’s health, the dog tiptoed over to Nora, nudged his head on her knee as if to say hello, and then slunk back under the bed.

  Poor thing, Nora thought. He knows his mommy is ill. Still, at least the doctor had reassured her that it was only a consequence of age, and Mrs. Mullally was healthy still.

  The doorbell rang, and Nora rushed to it, her heart beating faster. This could be… it must be…

  “Sean,” her voice dripped with disappointment at finding the lanky figure of the sheriff at her doorstep instead of Harvey.

  “I thought we had some things to say to each other, still,” Sean said. He had a bunch of flowers in his hand. “Also, I came to apologize.”

  “I don’t want these,” Nora said.

  “Well, aren’t you egotistic, thinking they’re for you,” Sean teased. “I bought them along for Mrs. Mullally.”

  “She’s asleep right now.”

  “Good.” Sean walked into the kitchen, helped himself to an empty vase, filled it with some water and placed the flowers in it. Eyeing the plate of lasagna on the counter he said, “Would I be very greedy if I asked if you had extra lasagna in the house?”

  With a sour face, Nora walked to the kitchen behind him. He sat on the counter with a big grin, trying to act nonchalant.

  “Well?” she asked.

  “Well,” he grinned back.

  “Sean,
how can you act like nothing’s happened?”

  “In my mind, nothing has,” he said.

  “Did you speak to the detectives about your alibi being falsified?” Nora asked, her voice icy.

  “Nora…” Sean paused and rubbed his nose.

  “Wallis wanted justice for his family,” Nora said, almost to herself.

  “Nora, the detectives said they’re probably going to put this one out as a cold case,” Sean said. “I wanted to be the one to tell you because--”

  “A cold case? What are you talking about, a cold case?” Nora looked up at him, shocked.

  “I’m being reinstated as Sheriff,” Sean said. “Detectives Jason and Rudy are leaving town, back to their own department.”

  “But Ricky’s dead, and--”

  “And he was the prime suspect,” Sean said, “Wasn’t he? Detective Jason and Rudy think he did it.”

  “So who killed Ricky?!” Nora exclaimed. “Wallis couldn’t have come back from the dead, could he? Ricky was blackmailing the murderer--”

  “You overheard one fragment of conversation that you later recanted on,” Sean said.

  “That’s because I was protecting him! Sean, come on!” Nora said angrily.

  Sean didn’t say anything, but Nora thought she could almost read his mind. Some protection. It had gotten Ricky killed. She sat down.

  “Right,” Sean said, after another second’s pause. “Nora, I think there’s something you need to understand. Life is messy. Sometimes things don’t get resolved. In police work, we see it all the time. Now Wallis was one of us, so believe me when I say we did everything we could to find his murderer.”

  “Do Jason and Rudy really believe that the case is unsolvable?” Nora asked.

  “No, but they do believe that their own departments need them. There’s a limit to how much they can stay on in our little town. One thing more, they’ve assured themselves that I’m now less emotional about Wallis’ death, and that I’ll handle the case fairly.”

  Nora couldn’t help it - she let out a short, sharp laugh.

  Sean’s face darkened. “You got something to say, Nora?”

  “They can’t believe that,” she said. “You can’t believe that, Sean. You’re involved with Wallis’ wife.”

  “Shhh.” Sean looked around sharply, and made a rapid downward motion with his hands. “Don’t be so loud.”

  “Why? You’re not afraid of people finding that out, are you?”

  “They won’t find out,” Sean said. “Karen and I have made a decision. Until this case is resolved, we won’t be together.”

  “Or you’ll continue sneaking around, just like you were before.”

  “We were not sneaking around,” Sean said, his voice a low growl. “Don’t make this difficult on me. Or I can make it difficult on you.”

  “What?” Nora looked at him, stunned. “Are you threatening me, Sean?”

  “Harvey fought with Wallis less than an hour before he was murdered,” Sean said. “Or didn’t you think I’d find that out?”

  “So what?” Nora said, trying to hide the little catch in her breath.

  Sean smiled. “Nothing. I control this investigation now, and I can choose whether to dig deep into it, or...”

  “You’re morally bankrupt, Sean,” Nora said, shaking her head. “Why don’t you just admit that you believe Karen did it, and getting reposted as Sheriff gives you the opportunity to cover up?”

  “I don’t believe Karen did it,” Sean said. “I’m 100% convinced that she did not kill Wallis. Look at me.” When Nora didn’t, he caught her wrist, and tugged it so that she turned to face him.

  “Nora, I love Karen, and I’m sworn to protect her, but if I believed she had killed Wallis, if there was even the shadow of doubt in my mind about it, I would have turned her in,” Sean said. “She was with me all along, Nora. I’m extremely sure she didn’t kill him.”

  “You blacked out for a little while, didn’t you?” Nora said. “You weren’t lying about that. So how do you trust your own memory?”

  “I trust the person she is,” Sean said. His eyes had that look about them, the look of a man utterly devoted to a person.

  “Love makes you blind, Sean,” Nora said.

  “No, love makes you see,” Sean said. “I truly believe that infatuation makes you blind, whereas love opens you up to every single fault in a person, and none of it matters because love overpowers you. But still, I promise you this, Nora, I’m going to do my best to solve Wallis’ murder. In my own way.”

  “You’re not being objective,” Nora said. “You know you’re not.”

  “I know that you ought to forget this whole business and move on,” Sean said. “Focus on your own diner. Take the money Tina’s offered you, and make a go of it, instead of wasting your time on the pointless death of a wild man.”

  “What about Ricky, then?” Nora asked. “Or will you dismiss his death too?”

  “I’m dismissing nothing,” Sean said, standing up. “Nora, if you and I were ever friends, if you feel I’ve ever helped you and that you owed me for it, I’m begging you now, keep Karen and my love a secret for now. I promise that if you have faith in me, I will do my best to solve this case.”

  “That’s just the thing, Sean,” Nora said. “I don’t.”

  *****

  Chapter 25

  Nora spent the rest of the day taking care of Mrs. Mullally, who, despite what Doctor Neil said, was still looking weak to Nora. When she wasn’t better by the evening, they invited the doctor to have another look at her.

  “Stop being afraid,” the doctor said, after he’d checked Mrs. Mullally over. “Nora, I know you love the lady, but you have to accept she’s over a certain age now. She’s going to have to recover at her own speed. You can’t panic every time something like this happens.”

  “All right,” Nora said, looking as low as she felt.

  Sensing her feelings, he said, “Well, I’m done with my duties for the day. Would you like to come get some pancakes with me at Anna’s? I’d appreciate the company.”

  “I was thinking of cooking dinner,” Nora said. “You could join us.”

  “Mrs. Mullally is planning to sleep through the night, and I’d be ashamed of myself if I made you cook for me,” the doctor said. “No, come on, Nora. I have some serious cravings for Anna’s sugar crystal crepes right now, for some reason.”

  “All right,” Nora said.

  As always, the pancake house was filled with patrons. Anna gave Nora the briefest of nods, and Nora figured she was still a little sore that the deal they had met to discuss last time had fallen through.

  Squeezing herself into a booth, Nora took a chunk of food on her fork and shoveled it into her mouth. It was delicious, laden with sugar, and just a little bit of spice.

  “Breakfast food at night always makes me feel like a little kid breaking rules,” Dr. Neil said. “In my family, it was a strict no-no. Meals were for nutrition. There was no place for fun. Of course, back then, we didn’t have as much variety of food as you young folk do.”

  “Dr. Neil, there’s a question I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Nora said.

  “What’s that, dear?” he asked.

  “You looked pale when Joe talked about Wallis wanting justice for his family,” Nora said. “You looked pale when I brought it up this morning, too.”

  “There’s no question here,” Dr. Neil said, his features neutral.

  “Why?” Nora asked.

  “What if I told you that you’re just imagining this?” the doctor asked her.

  “I’d ask you why you’re lying,” Nora said.

  “Wallis was my patient for a little while,” the doctor said. “I was treating him for, well, its confidential, but let’s just say that it was perfectly harmless, curable, and happens to a lot of men. He was my patient, and he confided some things to me, things that I feel I have no right to tell others about. Unless there are warrants, though in this case, I don’t think there will be.
” The doctor shook some cinnamon over his pancakes. “Anything else?”

  “Was it about Karen?” Nora asked the doctor.

  The doctor kept a straight face, and chewed his pancakes. “Nora, I’m a professional. Let’s change the topic.”

  “I know she was having an affair,” Nora said. “I know that Wallis had threatened her over it. Is that what Joe meant when he said Justice for the family? Did Wallis want to take revenge on Karen?” If the doctor said yes, Nora decided, if he even blinked the wrong way, she’d go right now to whatever authority she could, and expose Sean’s half-truths.

  The doctor only chewed on his pancakes, with no comment. “Wallis quit coming to see me, after a while,” was his only comment. “He preferred a different doctor, one from the town next to us.”

  Frustrated with the doctor’s lack of cooperation, Nora finished her pancakes, made some small talk with him, then declined his ride home. “I’d rather walk,” she said. “After a meal like that, I need the exercise.”

  As if sensing her mood, the doctor let her go without too much comment.

  Nora walked back through the darkening streets, wondering why she felt so raw. Wallis’ death had nothing to do with her, really, and yet, she felt as if by being silent about Sean’s affair, she was committing a great crime. Then, there was Ricky. His death she felt almost responsible for. Trying her hardest to remember every detail of every conversation she had had with him, Nora was lost in her thoughts.

  “Saw you in the pancake house,” came a voice from behind her.

  She felt a chill travel up her spine. Whirling around, she saw Alan Bridges leaning against a wall, with his friend Petey next to him. Alan held a brown paper bag with a bottle neck sticking out of it. He took a sip and passed it over to Petey.

  “Well?” Alan said, “Too high and mighty to answer me.” he let out a little laugh. “Did you break up with Sean and start dating the doctor instead? He’s a bit old for you, isn’t he?”

  Alan’s presence had jogged her memory. She remembered the last time she had seen him. He’d been harassing Ricky then. She remembered pushing Alan away, and earning Ricky’s trust. Ricky had told her, later, that his ambition was to be the next Zany Motts or Elvis. Poor boy. He’d had so many ambitions. He’d had a vast stretch of time in front of him, to do what he liked with. But his time had run out sooner than he expected.