by B. T. Lord
Ellis inwardly smiled. Although he’d grown up in the suburbs of Boston, since taking this job, he’d learned very quickly how little towns worked. It didn’t surprise him that Violet’s death had already made the rounds.
“What can you tell me about her?”
“I only met her yesterday when she came in looking for Andrew.”
“Andrew Munson?”
Keith nodded. “She didn’t say it in so many words, but I guessed he’d gone on one of his benders and didn’t make it home the night before.” He leaned forward. “People are saying she was helped off the cliff, if you know what I mean.”
Ellis’ face remained neutral. “Why would they say that?”
“She hated heights. Would never go near the edge. Of course, it could just be rumor. There’s not much to do around here in the winters except make up stories and gossip about your neighbors.”
“You said you guessed Andrew had gone on one of his benders. Did he have a lot of those?”
Keith chuckled. “There were many a night I had to toss him out so I could close up.”
“Was he here last night?”
“He wouldn’t dare show his face around here anymore.”
“Why is that?” Keith told him about the incident where Andrew had become violent. “Had he ever been that way before?”
“Never. I don’t know what got into him that night. I’ve had my share of dealing with disorderly drunks, but I have to admit, he frightened me that night. It was as though he was somebody else. I know that sounds odd, but he had a look on his face that still gives me the shudders. I don’t know if all that drinking finally pickled his brain, but I wasn’t about to risk my bar or my regulars to figure it out. I ordered him never to come back here again.” The big man spread his massive hands on the bar. “And when I give an order, it’s usually obeyed.”
Ellis turned to the group of men seated at the far end of the bar. “Were any of you here the night Andrew became violent?”
They all nodded. “It’s just like Keith described,” one of them spoke up. “Ain’t never seen him like that before. He’s usually one who likes to order drinks on the house for us. But that night…” the man shook his head. “It’s as if the devil himself took over Andrew.” His friends agreed.
“How long has Andrew been visiting Fiske’s?”
Keith rubbed his chin with his fingers as he thought back. “Ever since he reached drinking age, which is over twenty years ago. He’s not an islander, so I’d only see him when he and his family came over for their summer visits – usually in July.”
“Have you noticed a recent change in his drinking habits?”
“He always liked his liquor, but now that you mention it, I’ve never seen him drink as much as he did this last time.” He shrugged. “Maybe he was depressed because his mother was selling the cottage. I know he was upset when she sold the house in Maine and bought what he called a rat hole in another town. I think he was hoping she’d fork up the bucks and settle them in Bar Harbor.”
“Did he ever talk about his relationship with his mother?”
“Not really. Whenever he bitched about anyone, it was always about his brother Teddy. He resented him because he thought as the oldest, Teddy was given everything. From where I sat, it looked the opposite to me. I don’t know Teddy – he’s not a drinker so he had no reason to come in here. But I heard he’s a hard worker. He doesn’t live off the family teat, unlike Andrew.”
“What is your opinion of Andrew?”
Keith met Ellis’ eye. “He’s a man who’s made it an artform of feeling sorry for himself. It was pathetic, to be honest with you. The majority of people on this island would love to have had the advantages he did. Instead, he spent his time pissing away the family money while trying to convince everyone he was about to create God’s gift to literature.” He snorted in derision.
Ellis turned back to the men at the bar. “Did any of you see Andrew Munson last night?”
One of the men nodded. “Not sure it was Andrew I saw. But just as I was passing by the Munson place last night, I saw headlights speeding down their driveway and pull onto the road. Didn’t even slow down. I had to swerve to avoid getting hit.”
“What time was this?” Ellis asked.
“About ten o’clock. I was on my way home from here.”
“Did you happen to see what kind of car it was?”
“It’s not hard to miss. Munson likes to zip around in that little green coupe of his. In fact, that’s how we know he’s on the island. He always brings it over on the ferry and takes it back to the mainland when he leaves. It’s his pride and joy. I can’t say for sure he was driving it last night, but it was definitely the coupe.”
“Did you see the direction the car was headed in?”
“East towards town.”
Ellis turned back to Keith. “Is Mags around? I’d like to ask her some questions.”
“During the off season, it’s pretty quiet here between lunch and dinner. She goes to her daughter’s place to help take care of the grandkids before she returns, usually around five.” Keith wrote down a phone number and handed it to Keith. “That’s her cell.”
“Thanks.” He turned his face away so the men wouldn’t hear him. “When was the last time you saw Splash Mulroney?”
“He was here last night. He was upset Mrs. Munson fired him and came here to drink away his sorrows.”
“Did he say why she fired him?”
Keith shook his head. “He had no idea. He was just as shocked as we all were.”
“Do you remember what time he left?”
“I think it was close to 10 pm. He said he had to go home and make sure Molly took her medicine.” Keith gave him a stern look. “I can tell you right now Splash had nothing to do with what happened to Mrs. Munson. He’s just not capable of that kind of violence.”
Ellis said nothing. He took out his business cards and handed them around. “If any of you think of anything that might be helpful, call me.”
“You think Andrew killed his mother?” one of the fishermen asked.
“I can’t answer that yet.” He paused, then asked, “Do you think he’s capable of it?”
The men looked at each other. “If a man gets drunk enough, there’s no telling what he’s capable of.”
After thanking them for their help, Ellis left the bar. He blinked a few times to readjust from the semi-dark establishment to the bright sunshine. Since he was already in town, he decided to visit the few stores that remained open during the winter months on the off chance they’d seen Andrew the day before. After that, he’d call Mags and see what she had to say.
Walking up the slightly steep street towards the grocery store, it suddenly occurred to him that he hadn’t seen Andrew’s green coupe when he’d pulled up to the Munson Cottage. Nor had he seen it anywhere near the cliff where they found him.
If he’d crashed it, it was almost certain the news would have made its way around the island as quickly as the discovery of Violet’s body.
So where was it?
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
A wet misty fog swirled around Emmy as she left her house and set out on the wooded road with her little toy poodle Augie trotting beside her. She’d spent the night tossing and turning as details of the case danced in her tired brain. When the clock display clicked to 6 am, she knew trying to get any more sleep was fruitless. She got up, took her shower and dressed in jeans and the new thick Icelandic sweater she’d just finished knitting the week before.
“Come on, Augie. Let’s use this time to get a good walk in.”
His tiny face peeked out from beneath the blankets on her bed. He looked at the clock, then at her. He gave her a look that told her she was insane before burrowing back within the folds of the warm covers.
Emmy left the bedroom, returning with a bag of treats. “These are your favorites,” she sang as she held one of the sausage-like pieces under his nose. With some additional coaxing, he finally took one
. Then another. She managed to get him to crawl out from beneath the blankets before she swooped him up and took him to the front door where she put on his favorite purple and cream striped Burberry coat. She threw on her parka and hat, attached Augie’s harness and opened the door.
The cold, misty fog hit them both in the face. Augie growled as he gave her the stink eye. “Don’t be such a baby,” she scolded as she dragged him outside. He continued to growl in protest. “Tell you what, we’ll just go down the street and come right back, okay?”
He looked at her determined face. He wasn’t going to win this battle; not when his human seemed to think she needed this walk. Or believed he’d actually enjoy getting his paws wet in this ungodly weather. As if.
Augie sighed. The sooner she got this walk out of her system, the sooner he could be back cuddled up beneath the warm blankets. With a regal nod of his head, he allowed her to take him for his walk.
Visibility was low, but it was too early to worry about oncoming cars. Instead, picking her way along the damp dirt road, her mind drifted to the day before. The discovery that Miles Mynter could be their victim was monumental. She felt they were close to solving this case; she knew Rick felt it too.
Being so preoccupied with going through both the newspaper articles and the files she’d borrowed from Edwina, she now had time to reflect on how wonderful it felt to be working so closely with Rick. Although she’d helped out on other cases with the sheriff and deputy, this was the first time it was just the two of them. She loved the way he included her on everything, relying on her judgment and listening to her opinions.
Let’s face it. We make a pretty good team.
The thought filled her heart. “I feel we’re getting closer emotionally,” she said to Augie. “His confidence in being acting sheriff has grown so much these last few weeks. It’s only a matter of time before that confidence carries over to him and me.” She gave the dog a giddy smile. “Maybe we’ll finally become a real couple.”
For three years he’d pretty much ignored her existence, preferring to think of her as a little sister than as dating material. She’d watched while he went through the revolving door of girlfriends. But since the incident last year when he’d saved her life, the pretense of regarding her as a sibling slowly began to fall away. The only remaining obstacle was his fear of commitment. She longed to know what it was that made him so afraid of dedicating himself to one woman. It was more than just the typical fear of getting emotionally involved. Instinct told her he’d been hurt. No, he’d been shredded at some point in his past and was petrified of opening up his heart again. She’d tried to show him she was different from all the girls he’d dated. There were times she thought she’d made headway as she watched him take baby steps towards something more serious with her. Then he’d realized what he was doing and scamper away.
However, with him in charge, he’d begun to rely on her in ways he hadn’t done before. Maybe the fear was melting in his heart. If they could solve this case, he’d realize how much he needed her, not only in the office, but in his private life as well. Their dinners and lunches together made her feel they were on the same wavelength. Jeez, they were even finishing each other’s sentences.
“There’s a big change coming, Augie,” she said aloud again. “I can feel it in my bones.”
The first thing she needed to do when she went into the office that day was to track down the census records. Rick was right. Somewhere there had to be reports of who lived at 123 Fern Street in 1954. She’d take one for the team and venture back to Edwina’s basement empire. Hopefully her suggestion that someone had stolen the file before she took over the job soothed the woman’s frazzled nerves. To make sure her second visit would not cause Edwina any further stress, Emmy decided to stop off at the bakery and buy her a lobster tail pastry. The delicacy, filled with delicious vanilla custard and drizzled with chocolate would calm anyone down. In fact, at the thought of such a tasty treat, Emmy made up her mind to buy two more – one for herself and one she’d surprise Rick with.
She grinned as she thought about how proud the sheriff would be if they were able to solve a crime that had remained unsolved for so long. If the skeleton was that of Miles Mynter, his death had to be part of what happened to the teenagers. The timing and the location of his bones were too close for it to be otherwise.
Emmy felt the excitement growing within. This had to be what the sheriff felt when she was getting close to solving a case. You could almost taste it. Wow, what a rush it was to finally place that last piece of the puzzle in place and see it all make sense. Gosh, she was so lucky to have a job that made her feel this way. It made her mother’s constant whining about finding a less dangerous career easier to put up with.
Lost in thoughts of the case and of the exhilaration she and Rick would share when they solved it, she failed to notice the fog growing thicker. The sun had long ago given up trying to peek through the curtain of white. The surrounding trees resembled foreboding shapes peering out at the young woman and the tiny dog as they trudged along.
It was Augie’s sharp barking that brought Emmy out of her daydreams. She stopped and looked around, trying to get her bearings. She wasn’t sure how far she’d walked, but for a moment, she couldn’t tell where she was. Her heart beat faster as she realized she was lost.
“No, that’s crazy,” she said as she squinted into the fog. “I haven’t taken any turns. And the road’s been fairly straight.” She looked at the ground behind her and smiled. “I’ll just follow my footprints back. We’ll be home in no time. And you’ll be back under your cozy blankets.”
Augie continued to yip. It was then she realized he was shivering. He looked up at her with his most pathetic look that he knew never failed to get him what he wanted.
“Oh Augie, I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed as she scooped him up into her arms. “I’m such a space cadet. I didn’t realize you were getting wet. We’re going home right now where I’ll put your bed in front of the fireplace. You’ll be warm in no time.”
She unwound her scarf from around her neck and wrapped him in it. Hugging him to her chest, she turned around and started towards home. Augie burrowed against her.
Score!
From far off she heard a droning that she couldn’t quite recognize. Nor could she see anything through the fog. She shrugged her shoulders and kept walking.
Emmy cooed to Augie and was happy to see that her warm scarf had stopped his shivering. She began to sing aloud to him as she plodded along, thinking about the large hot chocolate she was going to make to warm her own cold limbs once she got home.
Suddenly Augie began to bark again. She tried to shush him, but he was in no mood to be shushed. If anything, his barking became sharper. More frantic. It was then Emmy noticed the droning sound, which had sounded so muffled moments before, growing louder. It took her a moment to realize that what she was hearing were the sounds of a car engine. Afraid she wouldn’t be seen through the white mist, she pressed herself along the farthest edge of the road. Unfortunately, a ditch filled with mud and a channel of water ran alongside her. Beyond that was the woods.
Hugging Augie closer to her chest, she hugged the road, thankful that she’d at least been smart enough to wear her red parka. No one driving in this pea soup could fail to spy the bright color. The sounds of the engine grew nearer. She hugged Augie closer. She noticed a whine to the engine she hadn’t heard before.
It grew nearer.
Suddenly, the headlights broke through the fog. She stopped and watched the car approach. It slowed down as it appeared to see her. Emmy lifted her arm and waved. She knew everyone who lived on this road. It was probably someone on their way to work. Whoever it was would more than likely stop and offer her a ride home. Even with a hat on her head, she must still look like a bedraggled mess.
The car approached slowly. She waved again. She couldn’t make out what kind of car it was or who was driving. All she saw were the headlights beaming at her.
Her thoughts raced in disbelief. This couldn’t be happening. This wasn’t real. They really weren’t going to hit her. It made no sense.
Leave well enough alone or you’ll join that skeleton in the ground
Oh my God! It was the person who’d sent her the threatening note!
Emmy ripped Augie from beneath her parka and threw him into the woods in an effort to save him. She then scrambled desperately over the ditch to escape the speeding car. She managed to get one leg over the streaming water when her other foot slid slideways in the thick mud, sending her into a splayed freefall. In the next moment, she felt the impact of the car against her right side. The fog met the ground with a hard thud. Then everything went black.
Ellis tried several times to reach Mags, but there was no answer. He decided to go to the address Keith had given him. But first, he needed to interview Splash Mulroney and find out why Violet felt it necessary to fire someone who’d served the family faithfully for over 30 years. More importantly, he wanted to hear how Splash felt about being let go. Right now, all fingers pointed to Andrew as Violet’s killer. But as Ellis had learned long ago during his law enforcement career, not everything was as it seemed.
I learned that the hard way the last year I was at Newport.
Picking up his phone, he dialed Dr. Rhys. “Did you finish Mrs. Munson’s autopsy?”
“Good afternoon to you too.”
Ellis chuckled. “Sorry about that. I get fixated sometimes.”
“As a matter of fact, I did finish the autopsy. And you have a right to be fixated. I’m afraid this was no accident.”
“What did you find to reach that conclusion?”
“There are bruises around her waist that indicate she was grabbed by a pretty strong person. The depths and contours of the wounds tell me she was thrown down that cliff with exceptional force. I wouldn’t expect to see the types of cuts and marks I did if she’d just slipped and toppled over.”