Tim laughed. “I just gave you a nudge and you got the job done.”
“Well, maybe I need a nudge once again,” Joy said.
“Anytime.” Tim cupped his chin with one hand. “Tell me about it.”
“I can’t.” Joy sighed. “Not this time. I mean, I don’t want to go into details.”
Tim shrugged. “Maybe just tell me as vaguely as you can, then.”
“Well, suppose you were following a story, and suppose the story involved a case from years and years ago. What would you do? I mean, there’s no evidence really. So how would you go about digging it up?”
“I’d talk to as many people as possible,” Tim said. “Especially people who were closest to the story in some way. That’s where you’ll find what you need, more often than not.”
“Yes.” Joy nodded and stroked her chin. “Yes that makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?”
“Nothing ever makes perfect sense because life doesn’t make perfect sense.” Tim said. “But sometimes, you can get a coherent story out of a messy situation.”
“A messy situation. Boy, you can say that again. These days, I feel like life’s just piling more and more mess on my head.” Joy took a deep breath. “I wish there was a way to clean it all up.”
“There is.” Tim grinned. “You just have to put your back into it a little. Buck up, Joy. Do the hard work that you need to do. You’re a smart girl, you’ll get results sooner or later.”
“Thanks, Tim.” Joy smiled. She meant it, too. “I’m going to do just that.”
She headed to the door, determined to talk to everyone more carefully, when a hand on her shoulder stopped her. It was Max.
“Hey, Joy. Could you give this to Aurora?” He handed her a blue notebook.
“What’s this?” Joy was puzzled.
“It’s Henrietta’s calendar. Well, it was. Aurora was pretty excited to see it earlier today. She even said she wanted to take it home and study it. But I guess she forgot.”
“Well, why don’t you just give it to her in the office tomorrow?”
“I’ve to head down to New York City for a meeting tomorrow. So I won’t be around,” Max said. “Give it to her, will you?”
“Fine.” Grudgingly, Joy took it from him. “What kind of a person gets excited over a calendar anyway?”
Max grinned. “Aurora is pretty unique. I like it.”
Joy rolled her eyes. “Sure you do. She’s pretty, too.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Max grinned. “A person can’t help what face they’re born with.”
“Yeah, but the face they’re born with sure can help,” Joy said. “I’ll see you around, Max. Have a safe trip.”
“Thanks. Bye!”
Joy got into her car and tossed the notebook on the passenger seat. Then she suddenly paused. Leaning over, she grabbed it, switched on the light inside her car and began going through it. When she reached the last page, it was as though an electric shock had passed through her body. Excitement coursed through her.
She was looking at an entry saying: Trevor Smackwell, 11 am Tuesday.
This entry was from the same week that Chip had died. It was obvious what it meant. Smackwell was Smackwell County Jail. Trevor was Trevor Sullivan. AKA…Aurora’s father. Chip had gone to meet Aurora’s father right before he had been shot to death! Max had said Aurora looked excited after seeing the calendar. This must be why. Surely, surely, Aurora was involved. There was more to the story. Chip had found something out - something Aurora didn’t want the world to know. So she killed him. The theory worked. The theory worked perfectly.
For just a second, Joy remembered being on her knees in the kitchen, scrubbing away the mess her nephew and niece had made. For that brief moment, it had been nice working side-by-side with Aurora. Joy had almost felt a connection.
Then, she remembered how scared her mother had sounded when she phoned from jail. She remembered how devastated her father had looked that night. No, Joy had no pity for Aurora. She needed to pay for her crimes. But, first, there was work to do. Joy needed to do what she did best: dig till she hit pay dirt.
Gunning the engine, Joy took off into the night. She’d soon have evidence that would help put Aurora out of her house, where she didn’t belong, and behind bars, where she very much belonged.
*****
Chapter 21
The Confession
It was late evening by the time Aurora was finally alone again. Aunt Giulia and Joy’s mother had both left after apologizing a hundred times for Joy’s accusations.
“She’s hot-headed but has the biggest heart of us all,” Aunt Giulia had said.
“You’ll be best friends with her soon, I just know it,” Joy’s mother chimed in.
Best friends? No chance of that, Aurora was sure. Personally, Aurora didn’t even want to be housemates with Joy anymore. Yet, here she was. She spent two hours cleaning up the mess Joy had made in her room, growing angry all over again. It wasn’t just the invasion of her privacy that irked Aurora. It was the absolute arrogance with which Joy had done it. Plus, Aurora remembered the fear that had flashed across Joy’s face right when Aurora had deduced that someone in her family had probably been responsible for Lauren’s death.
There was no doubt in Aurora’s mind anymore that Joy was shielding someone, namely her Uncle Beppe, but also possibly her father. From what Aurora had heard, Lauren had been a good woman. The thought that Beppe had selfishly taken her life because she rejected him burnt a hole in Aurora’s heart. There was that same arrogance that Joy had displayed, only taken up a notch. A familial trait, perhaps. Lauren had never received any justice - only a horrific end in a watery grave. In other circumstances, perhaps Aurora would have known her, would have had a mentor and a friend and a caring aunt in her.
Slamming her suitcase shut, Aurora suddenly threw it clear across the room, smashing a vase and tilting a picture frame in the process. She’d had it with the bad guys always winning. Even at her old job, she’d been the one to quit while the manager, who’d cheated innocents, continued on.
Not this time. Something had to be done. She had to talk to somebody. But who? The police? She doubted Chief Brooks would listen to her. Unless, of course, she had proof.
Smiling, she called the police station and asked for him.
“Chief Brooks here,” a deep voice answered.
“H…hi. I’m Aurora Sparks. Chief Brooks, you probably don’t know me, I’m new to town and I—”
“I know who you are,” Chief Brooks said. “I make it my business to know new folks.”
“Yes, well…this is about Chip’s murder. I have a theory you might find interesting…and maybe some proof, too.”
*****
Uncle Beppe’s farmhouse looked eerie in the twilight. Philbert stood outside, giving killer glances to a hen that was pecking in his territory. He turned around to study Aurora as she walked up the drive and there was a glint in his eye that made her walk faster. That bird was huge and scary, and she preferred to stay as far away from him as possible.
Aurora was wearing a wire. A wire! The chief had liked her plan enough to agree to execute it. Who would have thought she’d end up an honorary detective of sorts?!
The front door creaked open, with the house dark beyond it. Aurora gulped. Detectives were supposed to be brave. Even knowing that the chief was nearby, Aurora couldn’t help but feel like she’d rather turn tail and run. Only the thought of her aunt, so young and innocent when she’d died, gave Aurora the courage to step forward.
There was a dim yellow light coming from the basement. Aurora knocked on the open door at the top of the stairs and called out Beppe’s name. Then, gingerly, she descended.
She blinked as she saw two men standing facing each other. On one side was Uncle Beppe, swaying slightly, his eyes red. The other man was Joy’s father, James. He had his fists up and an expression of deep anger.
Aurora had only expected one man. Seeing two frightened her
even more. Everything in her screamed that she should make an excuse and leave. Thoughts swirled in her mind. The night that Chip had died…where had James been? He’d been missing until the police found him at Beppe’s farm. What had really happened then? Had he really been there all night?
James turned to her. “Aurora?” He sounded shocked. “What are you doing here? At this time of night?”
“I’m here to confront you. You and Beppe, both.” Aurora took a deep breath. “I had a conversation with Joy earlier today.”
James paled. “My daughter…she…she told you?”
Aurora felt her insides light up with a thousand watts of excitement. Play it cool. Play it cool. Make them confess. She kept repeating it to herself. Then, with a confidence she didn’t know she possessed, Aurora stepped forward as though she were an actor in a play.
“Beppe, I know about Lauren,” she said. The chief had coached her well: keep it vague, but be confident. That gets confessions out of men.
James buried his head in his hands. “Oh, no.”
Beppe, however, only straightened his shoulders and nodded. “I take full responsibility,” he said. Strangely enough, he almost sounded relieved. “I’ll confess to everything.”
“Then…then you do confess? You really did kill Lauren Sullivan all those years ago?”
“It was an accident,” Beppe said. “I wish I remembered, but I don’t.”
No, this wouldn’t do. Aurora needed a full and proper confession from Beppe to make something stick. “I don’t remember” could confuse a jury, and create a “not guilty” verdict where guilt was present.
“You remember everything,” Aurora said. “But it’s not just you. It’s James, too. He helped you, didn’t he? He helped you cover up.”
“James did nothing! He isn’t involved.” Beppe stepped between her and James, raising a hand to stop her from speaking any farther.
“Beppe,” James shook his head, “it’s no use. I was responsible, too. I kept quiet all these years when I should have spoken up. I should have known better.”
“Shut up, James. Don’t take blame when there is none. Think of Joy and Maria, if not yourself,” Beppe spat at him.
“Tell me everything,” Aurora demanded. “All of it.”
“I’ll tell you the truth,” Beppe said. “I was driving Lauren’s car that day. She was in the passenger seat and we were arguing. Somehow, we crashed. When I woke up, I was in shock and couldn’t remember anything. All I knew was that I had a cut on my head and Lauren…my Lauren…was dead.” Beppe’s eyes began to overflow. “Yes, I admit it. I killed her.”
Aurora felt triumph balloon inside her. “And Chip?”
“Chip?” Beppe looked confused.
“You killed him, too. Didn’t you?”
“Me?” Beppe shook his head violently. “No. Absolutely not. I’ll admit to killing Lauren, and I’ll admit that my father covered everything up. In the moment, I was a coward and went along with him. But afterwards…afterwards I confessed what I’d done to Lauren’s father. I even called the police anonymously and told them where the body was.”
“Oh, please. You expect me to believe that?”
“It’s the truth. Arthur Sullivan forgave me. Somehow. And, in a way, his forgiveness hurt more than any punishment ever could have. Maybe that’s why he did it. I don’t know. I would have turned myself in to the police, too, but he told me not to do that. That it wouldn’t change anything for Lauren.”
“You really expect me to believe that?” Aurora snorted. “Why would the father of a murdered woman tell the killer not to turn himself in?”
“Because…maybe because he knew what newspapers were like, and didn’t want the scandal. ‘What’s the point?’ he asked me. ‘Lauren’s never coming back anyway. The least we can do is let her rest in peace without her name being dragged through the mud, her being out with a different man than her fiancé. I don’t want any more attention drawn to her death - let people remember her life instead.’”
“But he would have wanted you punished!” Aurora exclaimed. “He would have wanted revenge! Anyone would!”
“I guess he was a compassionate man.” Beppe hung his head. “Or perhaps he understood me better than anyone else. He knew that any punishment the police gave me wouldn’t be as great as the punishment I’d inflict on myself. What could I do? I stayed quiet.”
“Oh, how noble of you.” Aurora sneered.
“It was pathetic and cowardly, I know it.” Beppe sighed. “But I’m ready to confess and be punished now. There’s no point hiding it any more. As for Chip, I didn’t kill him. I don’t know who did.”
“I do,” Aurora said. She looked at James. “You killed him, didn’t you, James? To protect your family. Chip’s new chapter would have told the story of how Lauren died, and you didn’t want it coming out.” This was all guess work, and Aurora hoped that James would be fool enough to confess instead of staying quiet. It was her only chance to catch him.
But James shook his head. “I didn’t kill Chip.”
“Lies! You were missing the night Chip died. Instead of being asleep at home that night, you were missing and found much later here, at Beppe’s farm. It seems like an awfully convenient thing, doesn’t it?”
“It’s inconvenient actually, since it got me arrested,” James said. “I’m telling the truth. It was just awfully bad luck.”
“Explain it to me.”
“You see, when I found out about Chip’s book, I couldn’t sleep,” James explained. “I was too worried about the kind of secrets Chip might spill. So I came out here to talk to Beppe. For years, I’d swept everything under the rug and tried not to even think of Lauren’s death. I think I always fooled myself, told myself that Beppe hadn’t done it and that I just had an overactive imagination. But now…now I knew I had to confront him.”
“And you did?”
“Beppe wasn’t home. He was at Cole’s bar,” James said.
“I was nursing a whisky, fast asleep,” Beppe confirmed.
“I fell asleep waiting for him, bad luck again. How was I to know that my wife would use my absence to sneak into Chip’s house? Terrible luck.”
“It all seems far too convoluted to be true,” Aurora said. “You expect me to believe that you were at Beppe’s house to confront him because of Chip’s book being released and that, coincidentally, your wife chose to sneak into Chip’s house right then, and someone murdered Chip that same night? Come on.”
James shrugged. “I’m not sure it’s a coincidence. The killer was probably spooked about the book being released the same way I was. There’s more than one secret in Bent River.”
James was not going to crack so easily. Aurora knew she’d done all she could. It was time to call in the policemen and let them take over.
“Nachos,” she enunciated loudly and clearly.
“What?” James blinked at her.
“Nachos!,” Aurora repeated. That was the agreed upon code word.
Sirens suddenly began to sound from the street, and men dressed in bulletproof vests burst through the door. Chief Brooks was the first among them. Both Beppe and James seemed too shocked to react. They didn’t put up any fight at all as the police arrested them. Soon enough, Officers Lundy and Samuels led Beppe and James outside, after cuffing their hands behind their backs. Chief Brooks turned to Aurora with a smile.
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