The Ashford Place

by Jean Copeland

“I don’t want to leave you,” Belle said and lay her head on Ally’s shoulder. “An hour isn’t such a bad commute, is it?”

  “It’s not—for a while anyway. If we want more someday, that’s a different story. I’m going to be sheriff here, sooner than later. Bob was planning to finish out the year, but I’m reasonably certain he’s gonna make his retirement official by the end of summer. I’m going there for dinner tonight, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he tells me then.”

  Belle sighed. So much to digest. She wanted Ally to question Bob about what he knew about Judy when she was little, but with his illness so grave, she felt like a heel every time she thought to bring it up.

  And then there was Ally’s less than subtle insinuation that her career was a priority over any relationship. At the moment, she wasn’t sure what to do with that new information, but it hadn’t left her feeling warm and fuzzy.

  “You okay?” Ally gently nudged her with her shoulder.

  “Yeah,” Belle said, looking straight ahead.

  “You got so quiet.”

  “Why does everything have to be so complicated?”

  “I wouldn’t recognize my life if it wasn’t.”

  Belle gave a halfhearted giggle. “I love you, Ally.”

  “I love you, too, Belle.”

  As Ally was moving in for a kiss, her cell began to ring. “Hey, Shirley,” she said with a concerned expression. “Shit,” she whispered. “Do you need me to meet you there? Are you sure? Okay. Let me know. I’ll be there as soon as I finish up here.”

  “Bob?” Belle asked.

  Ally nodded as she ended the call. “She’s taking him to the ER. He’s having trouble breathing.”

  They gathered their trash and started the walk to the station.

  “Can I do anything?” Belle asked.

  “Thank you, but Chloe’s been at her friend’s all day. She should be okay there while I run up to the hospital.”

  “I’ll be around later if you need me to stay with her. I can take her for dinner or something.”

  “That’s so nice of you, Belle. But I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

  “Why not? I almost broke my neck flying off a temperamental horse for her. I think we’re cool to have pizza together if need be.”

  “Okay. Thank you.” Ally gave her a kiss. “I’ll text you later.”

  Belle drove home hoping Ally would need her. She truly liked Chloe’s company, but anything she could do to help Ally was a bonus. She’d been balancing a lot in the short time they’d known each other, and nothing warmed her heart more than seeing Ally happy.

  But until she was called upon to don her superhero cape, she needed to get home and don her crummy painting T-shirt and tackle the first-floor bathroom.

  ***

  Halfway through dinner, Belle could take the awkward silence no longer—well, awkward for her anyway. Chloe seemed content to devour her pizza, picking off the toppings and eating them first, while streaming some TV show on her phone.

  She hadn’t struck Belle as a rude kid. She must’ve felt funny having dinner with her aunt’s girlfriend alone. Who could fault her? Belle wanted to engage her in a natural conversation as opposed to a Q&A session in which she felt like was trying to shove a watermelon through a garden hose, but how?

  And then genius struck.

  “So, I had a great time horseback riding yesterday.”

  “You did?” Not only had Chloe’s face blossomed with joy, but she actually put down her phone. “Do you want to go again?”

  “Uh, only if you promise to pick me a horse they don’t refer to as El Diablo.”

  “Why?” Chloe squealed. “He was so cool.”

  “He was very cool but a little high-strung for my level of experience. My hands still ache from my death grip on his reins.”

  “You’re supposed to hold the reins loosely. They’re only for steering the horse.”

  “Well, yeah.” Belle said it like she knew exactly what Chloe was talking about.

  Chloe narrowed her eyes at her. “Was that your first time?”

  “It might as well have been. I was around your age the first and only time I rode.”

  “You were good for a beginner.” Chloe’s nod of approval made Belle feel like she’d scored admittance into the most coveted sorority.

  “Thank you. Coming from an expert like you, that’s high praise.” Belle raised her soda glass to toast with Chloe.

  “I can teach you.”

  “I have no doubt. Hey, isn’t your competition coming up?”

  “It’s on the twentieth. I can’t wait. I’m going to training camp for five days next week.”

  Belle smiled at her nearly breathless enthusiasm. “I’m looking forward to it.”

  Her phone then buzzed with a text from Ally.

  “Your aunt wants to know if you’re having a good time.”

  Chloe giggled as she made silly faces into her own phone. “Tell her yes, and she doesn’t have to keep checking up on me.”

  “She says she’ll be leaving soon.”

  “Mmm-hmm,” Chloe replied, still captivated by some phone app.

  Is she minding her manners? Ally asked in a text.

  She’s fine, a perfect little lady, Belle wrote back as Chloe let out a belch.

  I can’t thank you enough for this. You’re so sweet.

  I’m happy to spend time with her. How’s Bob?

  OK. A little down though. They’re keeping him overnight for observation.

  Give Shirley and him my best, Belle wrote.

  I’ll text when I’m leaving. Love you.

  Love you more. Belle added a string of heart emojis.

  Poor Bob and Shirley, she thought. They were such a cute pair. For some reason, she projected into the distant future, imagining herself and Ally as an elderly couple. Who would be hooked up to IVs and wires, and who would be keeping the bedside vigil?

  Ugh. What a morbid thought.

  “Hey, if you want to stop in and visit Bob and Shirley at the hospital for a few minutes, I’ll take you.”

  Chloe looked up from her phone. “Do I have to?”

  “No, of course not. Ally told me you’re close to them, so I thought…but I understand you not wanting to see him like that.”

  Chloe crinkled her nose as she wagged her head back and forth.

  Belle signed off on the credit-card receipt. “Well, we should get you home and see what Red is up to.”

  “You can stay and hang out if you want,” Chloe said as they got into the car.

  She couldn’t decipher whether Chloe was afraid to stay home alone or she genuinely liked having her around, but in either case, the offer pleased her. “I think I’ll take you up on that.”

  ***

  Later, when Ally got home, Belle was curled up on the couch watching Modern Family reruns with Red lounging at her feet.

  “Hey, guys. Comfy?” Ally said with a smile.

  Belle and Red got up to greet her.

  “Did you eat?” Belle asked after kissing her.

  Ally shook her head as she stripped off her uniform shirt down to her tank top and tossed her shirt on the recliner.

  “Let me warm up some leftover pizza for you.”

  “Have some wine with me, too?”

  “If you insist,” Belle said with a grin.

  She threw some pizza slices into the oven, opened a bottle of red, and joined Ally on the couch. Ally moaned her approval as Belle grabbed her feet for a foot rub.

  “Shit, if this isn’t a ‘Honey, I’m home’ moment…” Belle said.

  Ally laughed. “Right? If I was a guy, you’d be single-handedly setting the women’s movement back seventy years.”

  “I can’t help it.” Belle slid up to Ally’s lips. “It’s a huge turn-on playing your servant.”

  Before their kiss could even warm up, Chloe hovered over the couch.

  “Can I sleep over at Emma’s?”

  Belle sprang back to the other side, her cheeks burni
ng with embarrassment.

  “Like I’ve never seen people kiss before,” Chloe said, rolling her eyes.

  “Uh, why are you going there now?” Ally inquired. “It’s a little late to be heading out for the evening.”

  “Auntie, it’s eight thirty,” Chloe whined. “C’mon. I already told her I was coming.”

  “First of all, please don’t make plans with people without asking me first. And secondly, I want you to visit Bob and Shirley with me tomorrow.”

  “Why?”

  “What do you mean, why? They’ve been very good to you, and you haven’t seen them in a long time. Bob could really use some cheering up.”

  “All right,” she said with maximum attitude. “Can I go now?”

  “Chloe, why are you being like this?”

  She sighed in either an attack of conscience or a calculated strategy to gain permission for a sleepover. “I’m sorry, Auntie. I’ll visit them with you, but can I stay over at Emma’s tonight?”

  “Okay, but I’m driving you.”

  “You don’t have to. They’re on their way home from dinner, so they’re coming by to get me.”

  “You arranged it with her parents before you even asked me?”

  “Love you,” she said with a grin and kissed her cheek. “I’ll be on the porch waiting for them.”

  Red followed her out the door to wait with her.

  Ally plopped back on the couch and looked at Belle. “What?”

  “Nothing,” she said with a knowing grin.

  “I know. I’m a pushover. I’ve always been a pushover for her, and now it’s coming back to bite me in the ass.”

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself. Most kids have figured out how to manipulate their parents by this age. She’s basically a good kid, right?”

  Ally agreed. “I’m surprised by her attitude about seeing Bob and Shirley. That’s not like her.”

  “It must bother her that Bob’s sick. He looked terrible the last time I saw him. She probably doesn’t want to see him like that.”

  “Good point, but I’ll have a talk with her anyway.”

  Belle took her hand and rested her head against Ally.

  “Boy, did I luck out meeting a beautiful college professor who understands kids,” Ally said.

  “I didn’t do so bad either.” Belle gazed up from the comfort of Ally’s chest and slipped her arm around her torso, squeezing tight.

  Ally wrapped both arms around her. “Please say you’ll stay over tonight.”

  “I was planning to even before you asked,” Belle said with a kiss.

  “That is so not funny.”

  Belle went to the kitchen to get Ally’s warmed-up pizza, absently replaying her chat with Charlene in her mind. She thought about how she said a priest had driven Aunt Marion home the night Judy died. Maybe back in those days it wasn’t unusual for a priest to be that involved in his parishioners’ lives. But then in those days the archdiocese also traded pedophile priests around parishes like Green Stamps.

  She brought Ally a dish of pizza and sat on the couch next to her. “Craig’s sister said the night Judy died a priest drove Aunt Marion home. Do you think that’s odd?”

  “In general, no,” Ally said as she chewed. “But in this context, it means I have to put my pizza down and take out my notepad.”

  Belle laughed. “No. Keep eating. All she said was Father McKeenan drove Marion home that night. She didn’t say anything else, and it didn’t occur to me to ask.”

  “It didn’t? Well, I guess you’re off the list of potential deputies when I’m sworn in.”

  “I better not be,” Belle said as she leaned in for a kiss.

  Ally relaxed against the back of the couch and exhaled. “Okay. Tomorrow I’m stopping in at Bob’s when he gets home. I’ll see what they know about the boarders and the priest. What was his name?”

  “McKeenan,” Belle said. “I’ll text you to remind you tomorrow.”

  “I’m sure you will.”

  Belle smiled. “I’m here to serve.”

  Her head still reclined in exhaustion, Ally pointed to her lazily-puckered lips.

  Chapter Eleven

  After admiring the job Angelo had done on the stone fire pit, Belle smiled with approval and offered him a beer, which he accepted. After he’d guzzled a fair amount, Belle revisited the subject of the koi pond—with its new location on the opposite side of the yard.

  “Are you out of your mind?” He nearly screeched. “I didn’t even wanna come back here to finish the fire pit. This place gives me the creeps.”

  “Thank you, but Deputy Yates is hard at work finding a logical explanation for whatever went on here all those years ago.”

  “Logical?” He scoffed before taking another sip.

  “Yes,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. “This isn’t some haunted murder house, so please don’t go spreading that around. I’ll never sell it.”

  “Listen, honey, I’d love to forget what my Bearcat dug up—or at least stop dreaming about it.”

  “How about I add another two hundred on top of your original quote?”

  “I’m a mason, not a grave digger. Thanks for the beer.” He swigged it until it was nearly gone, then handed her the bottle.

  “Angelo, come on. You’re not gonna dig up anything else.”

  “Oh, is that right? Well, the only way I can be sure of that is if I don’t dig. Good luck if you ever want to put in a pool.” He grabbed his tool bag and headed out of the yard.

  Belle sighed and decided maybe one of Ally’s flower-garden designs would be best after all. She wouldn’t have to dig so deep.

  When her stomach rumbled again, she consulted her watch. It was nearly midafternoon. She could go to the grocery store, come home, and make a salad, but by the time she sat down to eat, it would be closer to dinner.

  Or she could pedal into town for one of Ethel’s garden-salad-of-the day jobs and satisfy her hunger within half an hour.

  ***

  Ethel flipped the sign on the door to Closed and walked back behind the counter as Belle ate lunch. Belle watched her barrel-shaped grandma body move the condiment containers into the fridge and marveled at how agile she was for a woman well into her seventies running a café almost entirely on her own.

  “I didn’t realize you close at two, Ethel. I’m sorry for holding you up. I’ll take this to go.”

  “Eat. You’re almost finished,” she said as she waved to the last customer walking out.

  Belle glanced around, and upon seeing the place was empty, she went for it. “Do you remember Father McKeenan?”

  “Arthur? Oh, yes. What a dear man. You know him?”

  “Not me, but he was apparently friendly with my aunt.”

  Ethel propped herself against the counter and grinned. “He was friendly with a lot of the pretty widows and divorcées.”

  “Is that right?” Not what Belle expected but okay. She recalled a Dateline about a child predator who dated single mothers to get access to their children. “Did these widows and divorcées happen to have young kids?”

  “Sure. Some did.” Ethel moved closer to Belle even though the café was empty. “Rumors were a couple of kids grew up to look a lot like him.” She punctuated her sentence with a wink.

  “Nooo,” Belle said dramatically, to egg her on.

  “Now I’m not suggesting any impropriety on Father McKeenan’s part. I’m just telling you what I’ve heard—because you asked.”

  “Of course,” Belle said with a reassuring nod.

  “He was the kind of man you felt comfortable confiding in, telling your troubles to, you know?”

  “The kind of man a vulnerable widow or divorcée needed at such times.”

  “Exactly,” Ethel said. “Say, are you asking ’cause you need someone to confide in? I’ve been known to lend an ear from time to time over this counter.”

  “I’m sure you have, but, no. I’m fine. I was hoping he was still around is all. Might be nice t
o chat with him about my aunt.”

  “Oh, thank goodness. No. He doesn’t live here anymore. When he retired, he was fixin’ himself up in a little place in Florida.”

  “I could’ve bet on that one,” Belle grumbled.

  “He’s one of them snowbirds, you know? If he’s still alive. I think he is. Haven’t heard otherwise.”

  “So he didn’t move down there permanently?”

  Ethel shook her head. “I ran into his sister, oh, about a year or so ago, and asked about him. She said he stays with them up here for a spell during the summer.”

  “Is she still around?”

  “She’s not too far from here, down in Coventry. Some ritzy senior-living outfit. If I had brains, I’d be there myself instead of running this place at my age.”

  By this time Belle had taken out her phone and was typing the info in her notes app while Ethel spoke. “And let someone else run this monument to rustic life?” she said. “Friend, you’re a legend in this town.”

  Ethel’s adorable old-lady laugh rolled up from her belly. “Say. Are you sure you’re not writing a book?”

  “I didn’t intend to, but depending on how my stay here goes, I just might. You wouldn’t happen to know how I could get ahold of his sister.”

  “Gorman’s her last name, but I don’t remember the husband’s first name.”

  “This’ll do fine,” Belle said as she texted Ally the info. “Ethel, when the book comes out, you’ll get the first autographed copy.”

  She laughed again as she cleared the plate and collected the cash Belle placed on the counter. “Look forward to it.”

  Belle left the café and walked down the street to the sheriff’s station, eager for Ally’s take on this new lead.

  ***

  Belle had relayed the rest of the information to Ally, and the next day they were on a road trip to the Sunset Ridge senior-living community. She’d thought she’d have to go a few rounds with Ally for permission to take the ride with her, but luckily, she was all for it.

  “You won’t get in trouble for bringing me along on a suspect interview, will you?” Belle weaved her hand through the wind outside the passenger window as she took in the rural scenery and wrinkled her nose at the smell of cow manure.