Praying for Time

by Carlene Thompson

  Suddenly Vanessa had an idea. She didn’t wait to decide if it was a good idea – she acted strictly on impulse. She jumped out of bed, got her purse off the dresser, and rummaged through it until she found a business card. Then she picked up her cellphone and dialed the number scribbled on the back of the card.

  After the third ring, a loud female voice boomed, ‘Hello?’

  ‘Is this Fay Jennings?’

  ‘Well, yes,’ the woman said carefully. ‘Who is this?’

  ‘It’s Vanessa Everly.’

  ‘Vanessa! Vanessa Everly! Oh my God, that’s what my caller ID said but I thought it must be a joke. I never expected to see you again in person much less hear from you after our day on the plane together. Are you really calling me?’

  ‘Yes, I really am.’

  ‘Oh, I’m sorry. I sound like a fool rattling on and on. I’m so surprised! How are you, dear?’

  ‘I’m fine.’ She sighed. ‘Well, I’m really not fine. That’s why I’m calling. Do you mind?’

  ‘Do I mind if Vanessa Everly calls me when she has a problem? Well, I’m simply flattered out of my mind! Oh, that sounded awful. What I meant was that I’m pleased you think you can call me, that maybe I can help you, if you’re having a problem. Oh, I’m making a mess of this.’

  ‘No, you’re not. Really, Fay. And before we get into my life, how are things with you and Harold?’

  ‘Oh, great! I told you how I love Christmas and it’s almost here. I’ve nearly worn him out stringing lights and dragging in a tree and putting up wreaths. We don’t have children but some couples around town are nice enough to come and celebrate with us and I always want the house to look extra special. But that’s enough about me. Tell me what’s wrong, dear.’

  ‘It’s a long story.’

  ‘I have nothing but time. Tell me everything.’

  Vanessa began with the kidnapping of Roxanne. ‘I don’t know if you read anything about it at the time …’

  ‘I remembered some of it but when I got home – and I hope this doesn’t offend you – I read everything I could find about you on the internet. I also saw that your sister had come home after all of those years. That must have seemed like a miracle.’

  ‘Yes. She’d been held captive for eight years during which she was physically abused, drugged, and used for … well, sex.’

  Fay gasped.

  ‘I know it’s horrible,’ Vanessa nearly whispered. ‘She spent time in the hospital and then she came home to us, fragile and emotionally scarred but at least fairly physically healthy after she got over a bout of bronchitis and she had plenty of fluids and food.’

  ‘Oh, how wonderful!’

  ‘Yes, it was, but our joy was short-lived. So many things happened immediately afterward.’ Vanessa told Fay about Brody Montgomery going missing, the murder of Zane Felder, the attack on Max Newman, Grace’s death, and last of all, going to the house owned by Zane and the basement room. By the time she finished, she was in tears.

  After a minute, Fay said softly, ‘Honey, I am so sorry. Last night Harold and I watched Kingdom of Corinna and you looked so beautiful and invincible on that horse speaking to all of those soldiers. We both commented on it. And to know that this is what’s really going on in your life is shocking. You poor, dear girl. I wish I could think of something to say to make it all better.’

  ‘I didn’t call for that. No one can make it all better. No one can restore Zane Felder’s life. But I hate to see his reputation ruined on top of everything else if he’s innocent. He has a fiancé, Libby, who’s the sweetest girl you could ever meet. She’s shattered by his death and she was with us when we saw that awful room in the house he owns.’

  ‘I’m sure she was. Did she really not know him at all?’

  ‘That’s just it. I think she did know him and she swears he couldn’t have anything to do with the basement room in the house.’

  ‘But it’s his house, isn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, but, well … it was left to him by a grandfather who detested him and the whole matter of the will was handled by a lawyer named Enoch Snyder who seems to hate Zane, too. Something about it doesn’t seem right. This is a huge favor to ask, but I know Harold is a lawyer and I wonder if he could look into the matter. Zane left all of his possessions to Libby along with some shares of the software company. It’s her house now and I’m sure she wouldn’t mind Harold seeing if everything is … well, proper.’

  ‘Oh, honey … I’m sure—’ Her voice broke off, and she nearly yelled, ‘Harold! You’re home early!’

  Vanessa heard his muffled voice down the line say, ‘I thought I’d catch you with your boyfriend.’

  ‘Not today! Vanessa Everly is on the phone. Can you believe it? The poor dear is having some terrible troubles. She wonders if we can help. Well, really you.’ Fay came back on the phone. ‘Vanessa, honey, do you want to speak to Harold? Tell him everything.’

  ‘I don’t want to bother him if he just came home for lunch—’

  ‘He’s his own boss. He doesn’t have a “lunch hour”. And you wouldn’t be bothering him, believe me. He’s here, reaching for the phone right now.’

  ‘Well, OK—’

  Before Vanessa could finish a sentence, Harold Jennings was booming, ‘Vanessa Everly? Is it really you?’

  ‘Yes, I’m afraid so. How are you, Harold?’

  ‘I’m ten times better than I was five minutes ago. Fay and I were just watching you on TV last night. You were terrific!’

  ‘I’m glad you thought so … I’m not so terrific now.’

  His voice immediately softened and became sympathetic. ‘What’s wrong? How can we help?’

  ‘I told Fay a long story. Do you want to hear it all, or only the favor I’d like?’

  ‘I want to hear all of it, if you want to tell me. You sound upset. Take your time, Vanessa.’

  She went through the whole story again. Occasionally Harold asked a question, but his voice was calm and professional. ‘What I’d really like for you to check on is the house that belonged to Zane. The whole thing doesn’t make sense to me.’

  ‘Nor to me. A house that should have been destroyed years ago for health reasons is left standing, untouched, except for a sado-masochistic chamber in the basement? That’s one for the books.’

  ‘I know. But our sheriff and I were there with my sister. She threw up when she saw it. She’s not confused. That’s the house where she was kept. I want to make certain that Zane Felder was the person who created that room, who let it be part of a house that belonged to him.’

  ‘I understand. Now you said that Zane’s lawyer is John Dawson. I know him. He’s a fine lawyer. I also know Enoch Snyder, who I think should have been ridden out of town on a rail. He’s a nasty one. I’ll get in touch with both of them, but before I start, I need to talk to Libby since she’s the official owner of the house now.’

  ‘Yes, of course.’ Vanessa gave him Libby’s full name and phone numbers. ‘I don’t think she’ll mind that I’m meddling in all of this. It’s for the protection of Zane’s reputation. She’s a very sweet girl, Harold.’

  ‘I’ll do everything I can to help.’

  ‘And send the bill to me.’

  Harold laughed. ‘You don’t worry about a bill, Vanessa Everly. It’s a privilege to do a favor for Queen Na’dya.’

  TWENTY

  ‘Does this dress look all right?’ Roxanne asked. She wore a simple long-sleeved navy-blue sheath they’d selected yesterday for Grace’s funeral. ‘I haven’t worn a dress for over eight years.’

  ‘It looks perfect,’ Vanessa said, adjusting a long-sleeved short gray jacket over her own sleeveless gray dress. Grace had hated black.

  The last three days had been miserable. They’d tried to make everything normal for the kids, but losing Grace the day before Christmas made it impossible for them to be happy. They’d tried to put on a good show for the adults, but it hadn’t worked. Two days later, Vanessa had seen Cara standing beside Grace
’s hospital bed crying. ‘I really loved her like my own grandmother,’ she sniffled. ‘Sammy did, too. He’s been crying, but he tries to hide it because he thinks it isn’t manly.’

  Vanessa had done her best to comfort Cara but she knew Audrey was better at that than she was. Derek had come over and taken the children to the Everly Cliffs Café before the bed and other hospital equipment had been removed from the library and Vanessa and Roxanne had put everything back the way it had been before Grace broke her hip. Tears had dripped down Roxy’s face while they worked. When she’d caught Vanessa looking at her, she’d said, ‘I’m sorry to be such a baby when you’re so strong. But I just got home and she wasn’t glad to see me and I was so hurt. I thought in time maybe things would change, but now there’s no chance of that. And here I am feeling sorry for myself, as usual.’

  ‘I understand,’ Vanessa had said. ‘I told you she was very different from the Grace you remembered, but I don’t think you had a chance to really process the change. She did love you, though. You were her granddaughter. And she had a good life. She was eighty-six, Roxy. I hope I live that long.’

  ‘Yeah, me too.’ Roxanne wiped tears off her face with the back of her hand like a little girl. ‘Well, let’s get everything done before the children come home. I want things to seem normal for them.’

  To their dismay, the kids had seemed upset to see the library returned to its original state. ‘Where’s Grace’s stuff?’ Cara wailed.

  ‘It belonged to the hospital,’ Vanessa said. ‘They needed it, so they took it back.’

  ‘You could’ve bought it.’

  ‘Sam, that’s not polite,’ Derek reprimanded gently.

  ‘Well, they could have.’

  Vanessa smiled. ‘Sammy, Grace designed this library when she got married. She loved it the way it was before she got sick, but we had to put in the hospital bed and the other equipment. This is the way she would have wanted it.’

  ‘Oh. I didn’t know. I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s … pretty.’

  ‘You weren’t rude and Grace would be happy to know you think the room is pretty. Now tell me – what did you have at the café?’

  Shedding coats and hats, the children talked about the apple strudel, cherry-cheese Danish pastries and strawberry-and-cream-stuffed pastries they had sampled. ‘I added some new items to the menu,’ Derek said. ‘They seem to be a hit.’

  ‘The apple strudel isn’t new and I could eat my weight in it,’ Vanessa had laughed.

  Now the mood in the house was somber. Vanessa hadn’t heard the children laughing all day and it was two o’clock. She’d told Audrey and Derek that the kids didn’t have to attend the funeral, but they both said the children wanted to go. ‘They want to say goodbye,’ Derek said. ‘They both really loved Grace.’

  Both Christian and Derek were escorting Vanessa and Audrey. Pete would go with them and he arrived first wearing an ancient dark-brown suit. ‘It’s the only suit I own,’ he told Vanessa. ‘I bought it thirty years ago for my sister’s wedding. I hope it’s all right.’

  ‘It’s very smart. Would you like some coffee?’

  ‘I sure would.’ He followed her into the kitchen, stumping along on his crutches. ‘I can get rid of these dang things tomorrow. Did Wade Baylor ever find out who was hiding in the tower that night?’

  ‘No, he didn’t,’ Vanessa said, thinking about Christian saying he and Brody used to think there was an entrance from the tower into the house. Did Brody still believe it? ‘Milk? Sugar?’

  ‘Now, Miss Vanessa, you know I take it strong and black!’ Pete grinned.

  ‘Yes, I do. My mind is wandering today.’

  As Pete sat sipping his coffee, the doorbell rang again. Christian and Derek both stood on the porch. ‘We arrived at the same time,’ Christian said.

  ‘Come in. Would you like some coffee? Pete’s in the kitchen having a cup.’

  ‘Sure,’ Derek said. ‘We don’t have to leave for about twenty minutes.’

  While they were in the kitchen, Roxanne walked in looking very pale but pretty. ‘Coffee, Roxy?

  ‘Oh, I don’t think so. I’m nervous enough without caffeine.’

  Right after her came Audrey and the kids. Sammy wore a suit, Cara a golden-brown dress that went beautifully with her coloring, and Audrey a lovely dark green suit with her auburn hair pulled back in a long ponytail at her neck. ‘Do you want coffee, Audrey?’ Vanessa asked.

  ‘No, thank you. I drank too much this morning.’ She looked around. ‘Everyone looks so nice!’

  ‘My suit is brand new!’ Sammy volunteered.

  ‘It’s very handsome,’ Audrey said.

  ‘Oh yes. Very.’ Cara added, looking at him admiringly. Then she asked, ‘Will people be coming back here after the funeral?’

  ‘Yes. It’s tradition,’ Vanessa said. ‘They spend about an hour eating and drinking.’

  ‘That seems weird.’

  Derek frowned. ‘Sam!’

  ‘It seems weird to me, too,’ Vanessa told Sammy. ‘It always has. I don’t know why people think they have to stuff themselves with food after a funeral.’

  Sammy and Cara giggled. Even Derek smiled.

  The doorbell rang. ‘I wonder who that could be,’ Vanessa said. ‘We’re all here.’

  Roxanne started out of the kitchen. ‘I’ll get it.’ In a couple of minutes, she came back holding a small package wrapped in brown paper. ‘The mailman wanted to give this to someone because he was afraid it would get lost if he left it on the porch.’ She frowned. ‘It’s addressed to me.’

  Cara looked excited. ‘Open it! Open it!’

  ‘I can’t imagine what it could be …’ Roxanne tore off the paper and took the lid off a small white box. Inside was a card. She read aloud, ‘“Wear this to your grandmother’s funeral. It will look beautiful.”’ She emptied the box on the counter and there lay a gold, diamond and sapphire ring. ‘My birthstone ring,’ she said just above a whisper. ‘I was wearing this the night I was kidnapped.’

  They arrived late to the funeral. After seeing the jewelry, Roxanne had come close to fainting and had trouble getting her breath. Audrey had suggested staying home with her, but Roxanne had insisted that if she could simply have a tranquilizer, she could go to the funeral. As Roxanne got more agitated, Christian asked Audrey if she had any tranquilizers in her medical kit. She did, and when she produced the bottle Roxanne grabbed it, shook out three pills, and swallowed them dry.

  ‘Roxy!’ Vanessa cried. ‘That’s dangerous!’

  ‘I have a high tolerance. I’ll be all right by the time we get to the cemetery.’

  But Vanessa wasn’t all right. The arrival of the ring had shaken her to the core. Someone out there had held onto Roxanne’s birthstone ring for over eight years and decided to return it on what they knew was the day of her grandmother’s funeral. The thought was frightening and she was unable to concentrate on the first few minutes of the minister’s graveside service. She knew Roxanne’s tranquilizers must have taken effect. Roxy seemed slightly dazed, her face white and blank, her eyes blinking slowly. Vanessa held her hand and instead of thinking about who might be watching them from a distance, reveling in the fear the return of the ring had caused, tried to focus on the multitude of flowers in every color and the blanket of Grace’s favorite yellow roses lying on top of the mahogany coffin.

  Finally, she was able to shift her gaze and tried to notice the people in attendance without staring at them. First she saw Simon and Jane Drake along with Wade Baylor. Jane stood closer to her father than to Wade and frequently touched the arm of his coat like a little girl seeking reassurance. A bruised Max Newman stood stiffly as if he were still in pain from the injuries to his jaw and rib.

  Vanessa’s eyes drifted over the faces of some of Grace’s close friends, mostly women who had looked up to her as a social queen, which Grace had not understood at all. She’d never considered herself smarter or stronger or higher class than any of her friends, many of whom dated
from childhood. There was Verna Hodgkins wearing a net veil; beside her was Esther Edmonds in maroon lipstick; next to Esther was—

  Nia Sherwin. Nia Sherwin in a white cashmere coat far too hot for the day with her hair in an elaborate up-do and her make-up perfect. Vanessa glanced over at Derek, who’d also seen her and was pulling Sammy a bit closer to him. She shifted her gaze to Simon Drake who was watching Nia. Snake, Vanessa thought. You invited her.

  Audrey nudged her and murmured, ‘Bow your head.’ Vanessa realized the service was over and the minister was saying the Lord’s Prayer. Afterward, an endless stream of people passed by, shaking hands, offering condolences, assuming tragic faces. At least Nia didn’t have the nerve to approach them, Vanessa thought. That would have been too much.

  Her relief was short-lived, though. Back at Everly House, she, Audrey and some of Grace’s friends were setting out food for the mourners when Nia passed them holding a cookie and headed like a heat-seeking missile for Sammy. Vanessa broke away from the serving table and followed her. She arrived in time to hear the woman say, ‘Sammy, darling, it’s Mommy! I came here just to see you. Give me a hug and kiss!’

  Sammy’s blue eyes were huge and he took a step away from her. She pursued him, grabbed his jacket sleeve and pulled him into a hug. At this point Vanessa cast a desperate look around the room and caught sight of Derek. She made her way to him, explained the situation, but by the time they got back, Audrey was facing Nia. ‘You were not invited to this funeral.’

  Nia raised a perfect eyebrow. ‘It was in the newspaper. Does one need a personal invitation to a funeral these days, particularly one so heavily publicized?’

  ‘It was not heavily publicized. You didn’t even know Grace Everly. You came here to see Sammy.’

  ‘And what’s wrong with that? He is my son, Alice.’

  ‘It’s Audrey, and your husband, who has full custody of Sammy, doesn’t want you to see him.’