“Get out,” he said angrily.
“Oh no, I don’t think you want that,” Allegra said sweetly. “Penny names you, and she had proof. I don’t think the Dean would be too happy if I told him what you did. Or when I show him this video.”
“Did Penny put you up to this?” he growled, “that girl is a liar who just wants attention.”
“Not anymore,” Allegra said seriously, leaning forward to look him in the eyes. “She’s dead. That picture you saw was her grave. Someone decided to strangle her and bury her in a shallow grave. Are you starting to see where I’m going?”
“I didn’t kill her,” he protested, looking at Matty for help. Matty shrugged as he glared at the panicked man. “I demand to see my lawyer,” he said quickly.
“That would be a bad idea,” Allegra promised him.
“You can’t do this! It’s illegal.”
“No,” Allegra told him, “it’s illegal if he does it.” She gestured toward Matty. “But I’m not with the police. And I’d like to see you try and prove it once this video gets out. Now, Professor Brand, tell me. Where were you last Friday?”
“You can’t do this,” he hissed, “I didn’t do anything illegal. Penny is legal.”
“Was,” Allegra snapped, slamming her hand on the desk. “She was, Professor Brand. But it doesn’t matter. She was a student, and you’re not allowed to do that sort of thing.”
“I’m not talking to you.”
“I’ll take it that you don’t have an alibi,” Allegra said with a wolfish smile, “I’ll have to ask Mrs. Brand if she remembers something.”
“You can’t do this,” he repeated, starting to look uneasy.
“You also can’t use your position to seduce naïve girls. Then hit them when they realize what you are,” Allegra stood up abruptly and leaned over him, spitting the words at him. “What did you do, Richard? Kill her when she decided to call you out? Your little ego couldn’t take it, could it?”
“I didn’t kill her,” he yelled angrily.
“Really?” she asked innocently, “because you look very guilty right about now.”
“Get out,” he snarled.
“Sure,” she began walking to the door, “where’s the Dean’s office? Oh, never mind, Martha will know. I wonder if she’s seen this video yet?”
“Wait,” he said quickly when Matty got up to follow her.
“What?”
“I was at a conference in Seattle. I have the receipts right here.” He quickly pulled up his email and turned the screen to her. Allegra leaned in and read the online hotel confirmation. Allegra’s heart sank when she realized what he meant by ‘conference’.
“You move on quickly,” she told him in disgust.
“Yeah, whatever. But this proves I didn’t do it.”
“Let’s go,” she told Matty, shaking her head sadly.
“Wait,” he called again, looking panicked. “I did what you asked. You’re not going to show anyone that video, right?”
“A deal is a deal,” she told him tiredly, feeling sick as he leaned back in his chair in relief.
“I did care about her,” he called loudly as they walked out.
Matty didn’t say anything as they walked down the hall, but he laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. She smiled back at him, but he could see that her heart wasn’t in it.
“Excuse me,” she asked Martha politely. “Could you please tell me where I can find the Dean?”
Chapter Fifteen
“I’m sorry that didn’t go well,” Matty said quietly after the long drive back.
“Are you kidding?” she said happily, “I might be back at square one, but at least Brand’s getting fired.”
“I still can’t believe you yelled at him like that,” he shook his head in amazement, “and the blackmail? Brilliant. DO you think he actually believed you were going to forget about it?”
“I think so,” Allegra chuckled, “he looks like the sort of guy who’s too obsessed with himself to notice when people are lying to him. He feels safe, but not for long.”
“The Dean couldn’t believe his eyes,” Matty smiled happily, “I thought he was going to blow up right there.”
“It helped that he has two little girls at home. I don’t think anyone is going to like what he did. And I’m betting that once the girls realize that someone said something, more will come forward.”
“I hope so,” he said seriously, “he deserves everything he’s going to get. I’m just glad the Dean promised to keep Penny’s name out of it. I don’t think her family will be too happy about the scandal.”
“I can guarantee it,” she said seriously, a somber mood settling in as he drove onto the estate. Matty’s smile fell as they drove up the driveway and Allegra felt sad all over again. “Stop!” she called out.
Matty stomped on the brakes, and the two of them were propelled forward but launched back by their seatbelts. The gravel made a satisfying crunch under the tires and a cloud of dust flew up around them.
“What’s wrong?” he asked as she frantically released her seatbelt and jumped out of the car.
“It’s Violet,” she pointed to Penny’s mother who was standing on the lawn, looking catatonic. “I have to go talk to her. Thanks for doing this Matty, I’ll see you in a few days.”
“Wait!” he called, but she was already making her way to Penny’s mother.
“Violet?” Allegra asked gently, walking up to the woman who was still in her nightgown. Her hair was greasy and unkempt, but it didn’t look like she cared much about what she looked like. When Allegra walked up, she turned to face her, her eyes sunken into her head and her eyes red from crying. “What are you doing out here?”
“I thought I heard Penny,” Violet said softly, looking back at the lawn with a wistful expression on her face. Allegra didn’t say anything, but sat down next to Violet, looking out on the lawn with her. Violet looked surprised but sat down next to her after a minute or two. “Don’t make me go back inside,” she asked in a small voice, causing Allegra to look back at her.
“I’m in no rush to go back,” Allegra told her comfortingly.
Violet turned to her and nodded slowly before looking out at the garden again. The two sat in companionable silence for a little while, just enjoying the sun. At least, Allegra was enjoying the sun, she wasn’t sure what Violet was doing.
“You know,” Violet said after a while, “I’m a painter. Or at least, I was. That’s how Christopher and I met. He came to one of my art shows and we hit it off right away. I never thought I’d want to settle down and have kids, but all that changed when we got married.”
“Do you regret it?” Allegra asked candidly.
“One day,” Violet told her heavily, “you’ll have a child of your own. I’ll ask you the same question, and you’ll understand why I don’t. My children are the light of my life, they make everything else worth it. Nothing matters except their happiness.”
“What about your happiness?” Allegra asked curiously. “Please, don’t think I’m being rude, I’ve just always wanted to ask these questions. You know, most of my friends stopped what they were doing to have children, and I like the kids. I just don’t think I’d ever be able to do it.”
“I didn’t think so either,” Violet admitted. “I was a committed bachelorette by the time I met Christopher. My mom called it an ‘alternative lifestyle’. She was so happy when she met Chris.”
“What changed?” Allegra asked her.
“I got pregnant. Tyler came out of the blue, and after that it didn’t matter anymore. Those dreams that seemed so important, just didn’t make much sense. I thought I’d regret it, but I didn’t. I still don’t. Every day with them is a gift.”
“Every day?”
“Okay,” Violet amended, “some days I thought they were monsters. But they were always my monsters.”
“I’m so sorry to do this, Violet, but I have to ask, do you have any idea who could have done this?”
“I don’t know,” Violet said heavily, closing her eyes and sighing, “she was light, you know? Whenever she walked into a room, everything was brighter. Who would want to take that away?”
“I’m sorry,” Allegra said sadly, putting her arm around Violet to comfort her. “I can’t imagine why anyone would want to hurt her.”
“Sarah told us you found a video diary,” Violet told her, hugging her knees, “may I please watch it?”
“It’s all yours,” Allegra said generously, “I’ll give you the link and password.”
“I can’t believe she had a secret website,” Violet shook her head. “I thought we told each other everything.”
“Don’t take it too hard,” Allegra advised, “you remember what it was like to be a young girl. She probably thought it was exciting. Secrets are less exciting when you share them. Besides, just because she didn’t tell you certain things didn’t mean that she loved you any less. Penny knew how wonderful you are. I don’t think she’d ever take you for granted.”
“Thank you,” Violet said in a hollow tone.
“What are you doing?” a deep voice asked harshly.
“Tyler?” Violet asked, turning to face her son. “When did you get home?”
“An hour ago,” he snapped, glaring at Allegra. “I’ve been looking for you. What are you doing out here?”
“I thought I heard Penny,” Violet told him honestly, looking out at the garden again as if she expected Penny to come walking past at any second. Allegra frowned and put her hand over Violet’s.
“Don’t do that,” Tyler told her angrily, holding his hand out for his mother to take. “Come on, mother, I think it’s time for your medication.”
“No,” Violet said decisively, turning away from him and hugging her knees again. “I don’t want to.”
“Mother,” Tyler sighed in exasperation.
Allegra watched the exchange with a keen interest. She had forgotten how much Penny looked like her brother. If it weren’t for the age difference, the two could have been twins.
“I want to sit out here for a little while,” she told him resolutely. “You can sit, or you can leave.”
“This isn’t good for you,” he protested. “You need to rest. You know that.”
“I am resting, Tyler.”
“Mother, you came out here because you thought you heard her. That’s not healthy. You know what happens when you don’t take your medication. I don’t have time for this. I have to get back to work.”
“This isn’t about you,” Violet told him patiently, not looking at him. “I told you I’m fine.”
“I wasn’t making this about me,” he said impatiently, “I was just stating a fact. The company doesn’t run when I’m not there.” Allegra frowned at this statement.
“I’m not going back inside.”
“Could you give us a moment,” he turned to Allegra, glaring at her as if she had caused this unforeseen problem. She held up her hands in mock surrender and retreated, not wanting to get involved in the family’s drama.
That didn’t mean that she was going to abandon Violet. She retreated far enough to give them their privacy, but if Violet looked up, she would see her standing there. To pass the time, Allegra took out her phone to check the time. To her surprise, she found a missed call from Greta. Usually her phone rang loudly, but she had switched it to silent that morning when they were driving to the school.
“It’s about time!” Greta announced when she picked up her phone. “I was about to send a search party to look for you. Why don’t you answer your phone?”
“Sorry, mom,” Allegra said sarcastically. “I went with Matty to talk to the professor.”
“Oh,” Greta said with interest, “how did it go?”
“He didn’t do it,” Allegra sighed, “he was in Seattle.”
“Great,” Greta groaned, and Allegra could almost sense her disappointment. “I really wanted it to be him. I could see him in jail for the rest of his miserable life.”
“I agree,” Allegra told her honestly, “at least he’s not going to get away with being such a jerk. We went to the Dean and showed him that video.”
“Victory!” Greta cheered.
“I know,” Allegra said with a mischievous smile, “anyway, what did you want to talk about?”
“You called me?” Greta reminded her in confusion.
“No,” Allegra argued, “you called me first.”
“Oh, right,” Greta remembered. “Bud said I had to call you about Mark Smith.”
“What did you find?”
“Well, the newspaper just about ignored him until about 1955. Then all of a sudden, they started running these vicious stories about him.”
“That’s interesting,” Allegra mused. “Sarah told me that Ruby had to go away for a while because his interest in her became so intense. Sarah says that Ruby spoke to her parents and they agreed to send her to Switzerland.”
“I don’t get it,” Greta said in confusion, “why send her away and not do something about him?”
“Mark got a scholarship to their private school, Sarah says that her father believed in the guy and wanted him to succeed. Maybe they didn’t want to ruin his chances just because he made a few mistakes.”
“That’s the thing,” Sarah told her seriously, “these stories must have ruined him, but they’re also so minor that it doesn’t make sense that they would put it in the local paper. Half the time, it’s not backed by facts. It’s as if the editor had a personal vendetta against the guy.”
“I feel like you’re leading up to something here.”
“I am,” Greta said proudly. “I found a picture of the editor at the golf club.”
“How wonderful,” Allegra said sarcastically. “At least he was keeping in shape.”
“No,” Greta sighed, “that’s not the big news. The big news is that he and Matthew Allerton were golfing partners. They won local tournaments and stuff like that. Now, you may recognize that name. Matthew Allerton was Ruby’s father.”
“No way,” Allegra gasped.
“That’s right,” Greta said triumphantly. “Daddy Allerton and the editor were best friends.”
“That would explain the systematic slander,” Allegra realized. “Matthew couldn’t have been happy with Mark obsessing over his daughter, so he decided to punish him by influencing the people of the town against him.”
“I don’t think you realize how vicious these stories are,” Greta told her seriously. “After Ruby disappeared, they just got worse. They all but call him a murderer. These stories must have ruined his life. Why would Matthew hate him so much?”
“I agree, it is a bit extreme, but I don’t see what else it could have been.”
“Well, did Ruby love him back?”
“No,” Allegra said firmly, “Sarah was very clear about that. Ruby didn’t care about him.”
“You know, I doubt Sarah would think her granddaughter would have an affair with a married man either.”
“That’s true,” Allegra sighed.
“And come on, who goes away for a whole year to just one place?”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that Ruby disappears for a year, an amazingly good-looking guy is in love with her, while her dad starts printing vicious rumors about him.”
“Please tell me you’re not suggesting what I think you are.”
“Darling, I’ve seen pictures of Mark Smith. There is no way Ruby felt nothing when he was around. I bet you a hundred dollars that she was pregnant.”
Chapter Sixteen
Allegra ended the call after declining the hundred-dollar bet. It took a while to convince Greta that she did believe in her theory and that there was no need to throw good money away. When she finally managed to convince her friend, she turned around in amusement, only to find Tyler walking over to her with a sheepish expression on his face.
“Can I help you?” she asked wearily, not wanting to get into a fight with th
e heir of Allerton Incorporated. The less enemies she made, the better. Unfortunately, based on their earlier interaction, Tyler wasn’t too keen on avoiding a fight.
“I’m sorry about how I acted earlier,” he told her sincerely, catching her entirely off guard. “This is just such a tough time for us. We lost Penelope and we found out about Ruby. You can only imagine what it’s been like.”
“It’s okay,” Allegra told him cautiously. She wasn’t sure how to react to his friendly behavior. She might have been wrong about him, but she didn’t want to dismiss her gut instinct so easily. Then again, her gut was wanting lunch, so she couldn’t rely on it too much.
“My mother and I would like to talk to you,” he told her, “if you don’t mind.”
“Sure, but Sarah would also be happy to give you my progress report. I haven’t solved it yet, I’m afraid.”
“That’s not what we want,” Violet told her as she sat down. Tyler looked uncomfortable and Violet tugged at his arm. He rolled his eyes and sat down, immediately checking to see if there were grass stains on his trousers. There weren’t, and he relaxed slightly. “We want to tell you more about Penny’s life. I think it would help if you knew a bit more about her.”
“That would be great,” Allegra said enthusiastically. “You have no idea how much that could help me.”
“We’d like to do all we can to help,” Tyler said with a tight smile and Allegra wondered what his mother said to him.
“Okay,” Violet said dreamily, “where do we begin?”
“My sister hated broccoli,” Tyler blurted, and Allegra gave him a strange look. He blushed and looked down at the grass, playing with a few blades as he tried to mask his discomfort.
“That’s helpful,” she said uncertainly.
“Tyler,” his mother chided, rolling her eyes at him. “Penny was at school to get her business degree.”
“My dad wanted her to take over half the company. We were busy arranging a place for her on the board and stuff.”
“That’s true, but I always wondered about that,” Violet said thoughtfully, “it turns out that my theory was right. She had been taking film classes at school. That’s why she came home. She wanted to change her major but needed a break. She was working too hard at something that she didn’t love. The two of us were thinking of a way to break it to her father.”
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