Bone-a-fied Trouble

by Carolyn Haines

  “Felicity, you’re positive they didn’t meet at Lisa’s place?” Tabitha clarified. This was good news only because it meant Trudy probably wasn’t there when Lisa was killed. “Do you know which field? Whose property?”

  “I can’t say for sure because I didn’t go with them,” Felicity said. “But I think it was some field planted with G9-14. I think that’s what they were talking about.”

  “Did Trudy ever say what was wrong with the plants?” Tabitha asked.

  “Only that she was concerned about devastating the entire cotton crop if what she suspected was true.”

  “Anyone else know anything that could help us?” Roger asked the whole group. Folks shook their heads.

  Roger motioned to include everyone in the room. “Please keep this to yourself. Trudy’s life could depend on your ability to stay quiet. We’ve always been like a family here, and I hope you care enough about each other to do as I ask. And if you think of anything or hear anything, please come forward.”

  Felicity made fists of her hands, but then spoke. “Trudy was dating some guy she was afraid of. She was secretive about it, but I overheard her. She said she thought someone was stalking her. She was afraid.”

  “How afraid?” Roger asked. He grasped Tabitha’s hand and held it, signaling her to let him ask the questions. The gentle squeeze he gave her fingers was meant to comfort her.

  Felicity looked like she wanted to cry. “Trudy said he manhandled her once. She was mad about it. She stood up for herself, but she saw him parked across the street from her place, watching her. She mentioned that the day before she disappeared and she didn’t like it.”

  Roger saw Tabitha’s reaction, the look of fear and the blanched face. “Who was she dating? Did she say?”

  Felicity sighed. “She never said his name. She did say he owned a lot of land in Sunflower County.” Felicity threw an apologetic glance at Tabitha. “Trudy liked nice things. Cars, clothes, going out. She wasn’t interested in dating an average guy who owned a local furniture store or anything like that. She and this man liked to take his private plane to Memphis for dinner. That kind of thing. A lot of the big land owners have planes and their own landing strips.”

  Tabitha wanted to deny it, but she couldn’t. Trudy had always loved the finer things in life. She was willing to work for them and earn them, but she also liked men who could bring those things into the equation.

  “Thank you all,” Roger said. “Please don’t hesitate to come to me if you think of anything else.”

  One of the male staffers cleared his throat. “I heard Trudy was having a hard time with some guy and I offered to help her, but she said she had it under control. I got the sense she was afraid of him, but that she felt confident she could keep herself safe. I should have insisted.”

  “Trudy didn’t care for people poking around in her business,” Roger said. “You offered. You did the right thing. Thank you.” He opened his inner office door and swept Tabitha inside.

  Chapter Seven

  It’s clear to me Trudy has gotten herself into a fine pickle. She’s up to her ears in alum and almost puckered to death, or as the Brits would say, she’s reached maximum sixes and sevens. I’m going to have to figure out how this lissome bird got herself in such a predicament. And after that, I have to save her. Vesta is beside herself with worry, which means Pluto is anxious and upset. Both are smart cats, but they haven’t been exposed to the crime-solving techniques of Sherlock Holmes or my dad, Familiar. I have to take the lead, and fast. I’m annoyed that Roger and Tabitha shut me out of the office. Me and Pluto and Vesta. Really? They’re keeping their best investigators in the dark. I will not be outdone.

  I need to move the cat conclave to the back window of Roger’s office. We can see what’s on that dating DVD. Sometimes the humans simply don’t think. Wait! The door is opening, and Tabitha is signaling us inside. She’s as smart as she is pretty, and she’s redeemed herself in my eyes.

  Roger has the DVD cued up and ready to go. I take a seat on his desk with Vesta and Pluto. These humans never fail to slay me with their ridiculous romantic endeavors. They dress and strut and perform for each other like prairie grouse. They seem to forget that to engage in the act of love, they must shed those feathers of finery. Make-up will be smeared. The mating rituals of humans are worthy of a book. Cats, on the other hand, are always dressed to perfection and while a little fur may fly in a romantic encounter, by half an hour later we return to our natural state of elegance!

  I give a little hiss to Pluto to let him know to keep his mind on the missing person and not Vesta’s magnificent body. She is attractive, no doubt about it. A fine bird, as we Brits would say. There’ll be plenty of time for romance at a later date, when her person is safe and Tabitha is relieved of her burden of fear.

  I do have to make mention that I’ve watched Roger cast more than one assessing look at my glamorous little fake psychic medium. Roger went from zero to sixty in twenty seconds. He was calling her a shill and leech this morning. Now, I detect a glimmer of arousal in his grey eyes whenever he looks at her. Yes, he’s definitely interested in a romantic kind of way. And she reciprocates, if I know my long-legged beauties, and I do. They are besotted with each other but haven’t figured it out yet. Good. Solve the mystery, then dive under the quilts! But first things first. Get the sister girl home safely.

  Ah, dim the lights, where’s the popcorn, the film is about to begin.

  * * *

  Tabitha realized she was holding her breath as the image of her sister came up on the computer screen. This was a Trudy she’d seen before, but not one she felt was true to her sister. With her hair swept up in a coiffed ‘do’ and make-up heavy with smoky eyes and dark lipstick, Trudy looked like a Hollywood celebrity.

  “That’s Trudy?” Roger asked.

  Clearly this was not her normal look at work. Tabitha nodded. “Trudy always loved playing dress up.”

  Tabitha took in the diamond earrings that dangled from her sister’s ears, the Rolex on her wrist, and diamond pendant that hung provocatively between her cleavage. “I don’t know where she got that jewelry,” she added. “Trudy doesn’t own that kind of expensive stuff. This is like…Trudy doppelganger in an alternate world.”

  “She was always neat and professional at work, but nothing like that,” Roger said.

  On the video Trudy began to talk about herself, and everything that came out of her mouth was a lie. Tabitha couldn’t believe it. Her sister portrayed herself as some New Orleans belle whose family had fallen on hard times. She talked about parties and dancing and Tulane—all things Trudy had never done. Sure, they’d had fun in Nola, but not posh parties at Commander’s Palace and lawn parties in the Garden District hobnobbing with the social elite. Certainly not college at Tulane. That had never been their world—more like community college--but that was what Trudy was selling. No wonder she was in so much trouble. Tabitha felt the first tear slide down her cheek and she didn’t even bother brushing it away. Her sister was in danger, and partly because she was pretending to be someone she’d never been. Even if her stalker boyfriend wasn’t involved in the cotton or Lisa East’s murder, Trudy was in deep trouble, and now Tabitha could no longer pretend otherwise.

  They watched the entire interview before Roger turned off the computer and sighed. “It looks to me like she was playing someone,” he said. “She came here to hook a fish, but what she intended to do with the fish is the question.”

  “What do you mean?” Tabitha tried to hide her tears, but it was pointless. When Roger came to her and pulled her into his arms, she didn’t resist. She was so upset and worried she couldn’t stop herself from crying, and it had been a long time since she felt protected in someone’s arms.

  He merely held her, patting her back gently, until she’d gotten past the worst of it. When she drew in a deep breath and squared her shoulders, she stepped back and he offered her a box of tissues from his desk.

  “I’m sorry,” she said.
“It’s just the shock of her behavior, the way she looked, the coy and flirtatious way she behaved. That isn’t my sister.”

  “At least not the way I know her,” Roger agreed. “It would seem you and Trudy have something in common.”

  “What?” Tabitha looked confused.

  “You’re both very good actresses. She sold me on the whole Cinderella story of her life in New Orleans. You sold my whole family on your psychic medium tale.”

  Tabitha felt the blood rise up in her cheeks. Shame was never a comfortable feeling, but Roger was right. She’d lied about who and what she was. She, like Trudy, had come to Sunflower County under false pretenses and he had every right to call her out on it.

  “Looking at this, I can only say I’m worried sick about Trudy and I’m sorry for pretending to be a psychic medium. I was desperate to get a lead on Trudy, and it just never occurred to me that anyone would help me. I swear to you I haven’t done anything harmful to anyone and I haven’t scammed anyone.”

  Roger touched her cheek and lifted her face to his. “I didn’t mean that the way it came out. Think about this. You came here with the goal of finding your sister. You were willing to pretend to be someone you aren’t to get answers. Give Trudy the same benefit of the doubt. What was your sister trying to find out? Why would she pretend to be a socialite fallen on hard times on a dating site?”

  Roger was absolutely right! Tabitha stood up. Trudy was playing a role and not necessarily to victimize anyone. “She came here because she was looking for something and it wasn’t a date.”

  Standing up too, Roger nodded. “I believe that. Trudy was undercover, just like you were. But why? Let’s take a look at that thumb drive. There’s obviously something on it worth hiding.”

  Tabitha was unprepared for her sister’s face on the computer screen. She’d obviously made the recording at her desk in Long Agricultural. “Tabitha, if you’ve found this, I’m in trouble. I haven’t been honest with you, but not because I didn’t want to. I’m a member of Green World, a group of environmental activists. You’re not going to like this, because you believe in doing things exactly the legal way, but sometimes we don’t have time to wait for the law. The planet is under assault by these chemical companies. We have to fight. I’m sorry, because I know this will worry you. I’m helping Green World find out who’s behind the release of new crops that could devastate the agricultural world. I know you didn’t like my friends, but that’s because they didn’t want you to like them. To keep you safe. This is dangerous business, but I knew that before I agreed to move to the Delta. Please don’t ever blame yourself. Or anyone else. I wanted to do this. I wanted to make a difference. I love you.”

  The screen went blank. Tabitha felt as if someone had jabbed a knife in her chest. “What the hell was Trudy up to?” she said, focusing on holding back her tears.

  “I knew Trudy was smart, but I had no idea what she was involved in,” Roger said. “I’d say call the police, but if Trudy is being held captive, that could really put her life at risk.”

  Roger’s words were a revelation, and one that had Tabitha wondering how much about her little sister she really didn’t know. Trudy was smart and had loved science and math, growing things, seeds, the rudiments of farming. But her knowledge of agriculture was a true surprise. Now, it was like a bell gonged in Tabitha’s brain. Yes! Of course. Trudy was playing a pretend role, but to what end? Roger had asked the most important question of the day—what did Trudy know that was worth kidnapping and murder. “Then if that’s true, it would mean Trudy came to Sunflower County to find out something. This whole move wasn’t some wild hair to date a farmer or see the Delta or hang out in blues clubs like she said. She came here because she was investigating something!”

  “The cotton.” Roger pushed his fine, dark hair back from his forehead. “Dammit. I should have paid more attention. It’s all clear now. She was always hanging around, asking questions about this, that, and the other, but all of it had to do with the new crops, with research, with the pesticides and their effect on the environment.”

  Tabitha sank into a chair. “What was Trudy involved in?”

  “I don’t know, but we have to find out if we hope to find her.”

  “She’s smart, Roger.”

  “And that may be the thing that saves her skin.” Roger was pensive.

  “We need to find out who she was dating. And if he is somehow connected to this cotton issue.”

  “Yes. It’s time to pay a visit to that dating service. You’re going to have to sell yourself the same way Trudy did. You won’t be at risk—we can simply screen the applicants. See if we can pull up some suspects. After you have your session with Aunt Charline today, we’ll get you ready for your video.”

  “What do you mean?” Tabitha asked.

  “We’ll borrow some of my aunt’s finery and set you up as the same kind of woman Trudy portrayed. If that’s the shark she was fishing for, maybe we can lure him in.”

  Tabitha swallowed. This was not what she’d anticipated, but Roger was correct. If Trudy had come to Sunflower County to dig into crops and seeds and fertilizers, and she’d used a dating service to gain access to someone, the quickest way to find her was to follow in her footsteps.

  “I can’t believe my sister didn’t confide in me.”

  “She didn’t want to put you at risk, and be truthful, you would have been in the middle of this with her.”

  Tabitha nodded. “That’s true, and yet here I am, in the middle of it. And I’ve dragged you along to boot.”

  “If something is going on with cotton or the crops, it’s my business. This land is my heritage, it’s in my blood. I won’t sit back and let someone poison it or destroy it.”

  There were unexpected levels to Roger that Tabitha hadn’t anticipated. He made his living from the land, but the passion in his words went deeper. He was connected to the Delta soil in a visceral way. Tabitha understood. Her love for New Orleans was in her bones.

  “I know you’re worried, but let’s have lunch and then talk with my aunt. While you’re doing that, I’ll find the wardrobe and accessories for you to wear in your video, and I’ll check out that report you found. The car you’re leasing is the perfect touch. While you’re working with the dating service, I’ll see if I can get into the office and find out if there’s a way to access the computer files to see who Trudy may have been dating.”

  “That’s dangerous.” Tabitha could see a lot of trouble headed Roger’s way if he was caught.

  “This whole thing is dangerous.”

  Doubt assailed Tabitha, and she bit her lip to control her emotions. “What if Trudy is dead?”

  Roger picked up both her hands and held them. His hands were so much larger and roughened from outside work. “You can’t think that. She isn’t dead. We would have found the body. A better question is, who may have found out what she was up to?”

  Tabitha shook her head as she truly pondered the question. “I don’t know. It’s clear that the sister I thought I knew so well had depths that I never even looked at. What about this special cotton? Is it something people would kill for?”

  “There’s a lot of money tied up in research, and now it’s in production. It’s a big deal.”

  “Big enough to kill two young women?”

  Roger firmly held her hand. “Trudy isn’t dead or we would have found her body. They didn’t bother to try to hide Lisa East’s corpse. They just left it for someone to find. They would have done the same to Trudy. Whatever she’s doing or saying, they’re keeping her alive.

  “But for how much longer?”

  Roger chafed her hands to warm them. “You’re freezing. Look, all that matters is right now we can assume she’s alive and uninjured. It’s up to us to find her before that changes. Now talk to Aunt Charline. Make up whatever you need to say to bring her and Uncle Sam some peace.”

  “I don’t always make everything up,” Tabitha confessed. “I’m not a psychic or a medium,
but I do get a sense of dead people, and your grandmother is there at Long Hall. She’s there because she’s watching over your family.”

  Roger’s hand cupped her face. “That’s what you need to tell Aunt Charline.”

  A knock at the door interrupted them. Roger shut down the computer and motioned Felicity into the room. “I forgot to tell you but Dirk Cotwell was here early this morning. He was upset. He asked you to call him.”

  “Did he say what he wanted?”

  Felicity shrugged. “I shouldn’t speak out of school, but he was going out with Trudy. It seemed really casual, but…” She sighed. “I tried to warn her about Lily Kennedy and the engagement. Trudy swore she was just having fun and had no intention of interfering in anyone’s life or career.”

  “That’s an odd phrasing. Career?”

  “Trudy was always focused on work. I overhead a few conversations with Dirk and it was more about cotton than romantic feelings. She liked a good time, but who doesn’t?”

  Roger took the phone slip from her hand. “Thanks. Anything else?”

  “Trudy did say something the last morning she came in. She was laughing, so I didn’t take her seriously, she said that people would kill to keep a secret.”

  “Which people?” Tabitha asked.

  Felicity shook her head. “She was talking about visiting some of the cotton fields with Lisa East. She didn’t say a name. That’s all I know.”

  Roger patted her shoulder. “Thanks. That’s a help.”