“Yeah, considering,” Ashley said.
“I’ll go make some tea,” Sean said.
“Thanks,” Ashley said. She sat in stunned silence, not able to say a word.
Who was it? Who had done this?
Her thought quickly turned to the man she had seen at the widow’s house. The same man she thought had come out of the ground tunnel, and that she thought she had seen in the park that night.
Was it him? she thought. Jon Carlson’s friend? Elliot Bergman? He was still alive, and had he come back to town to cover up his tracks? And was he the one who had committed the murder years ago and not Beatrice Small? And had recently killed Jon Carlson?
Ashley picked up her phone and called Thompson. It went straight to voicemail. She left a detailed message for him, and after hanging up, looked at Lara.
“Hungry?” Ashley asked.
“Not a bit,” Lara muttered. “First of all, we stuffed our faces at the tea, but after what just happened, I couldn’t eat a thing anyway.”
Ashley looked at her long-suffering husband. He was moving around the kitchen, pulling out plates. “Sean? Lara and I aren’t really hungry.”
“You girls just sit and rest. Just bringing out a little something to go with the tea,” Sean said.
They went over the car scenario more times than Ashley thought possible, and eventually made up the couch bed for Lara, and everyone finally went to sleep. Sean had checked and re-checked the doors and locks, and finally fell into bed, exhausted.
“I have to be at work super early again tomorrow morning, but I’m worried about going and leaving you girls here,” Sean said.
“We’ll be okay,” Ashley said. “I’m going to be up relatively early too and we will keep an eye out. When Nate gets back to me, I’ll ask him to come here for a report. Might be good for whoever may be lurking around to see a detective here.”
Sean reached over and turned out the light. “Good idea. Night, love you.”
“Night. Love you too,” she said.
Soon he was snoring softly and Ashley felt her lids start to flutter. She had been looking at the window, fixated on it, hoping it was secure. She remembered her Dad had put some good locks on it after the summer.
Don’t worry, it’s okay. You’re secure, and Sean is here, and he’s checked everything too, she thought. And whatever is happening, it will all be solved shortly. Just listen to your instincts.
She fell asleep to a far off sound, a cat’s cries, but not hers. Charlie and Suie Q were curled up sound asleep beside her. There was another sound of a door banging, over and over. But it wasn’t her neighbors, it seemed much farther away. Clouds started to blanket the moon, and soon a storm moved in. The snowflakes started to come down heavily, swirling furiously as the wind picked up.
But still the sound of a howling cat cut through the wind, and a door, banging again and again. Ashley tossed and turned as she slept, as if subconsciously, she needed to get up and shut the door and quiet the poor cat. She jerked several times in her sleep. The fierce wind grew louder.
***
Up on the mountain road, Arabella’s house was completely dark. Strangely, the porch light was off, and the little chair and table had been flipped over by the wind. Her front door was ajar, and every time the wind gusted, it banged loudly as it flapped on its hinges. Queenie ran in the house, and then out again, loudly howling in fear. A shoe lay at the entrance to the house, turned on its side. The shutters clapped against the old house, and the tall tree around the side creaked and groaned in the gusts. Snow had begun to drift in the backyard, and soon it would cover the body that lay there. A mound was growing already over the corpse, a tiny stain of blood on the ground. But that would shortly be covered too.
A hand reached out and grabbed Queenie the umpteenth time she ran in the house.
“Shhhhhh…”
The cat squirmed, but the hand held tight around its front haunches. Just then a large and heavy branch from the big tree next to the house broke off in the storm, and crashed through the roof, falling into the living room. The cat wriggled free in panic and ran off shrieking. The hand went limp and there was no more sound but the howling wind.
Chapter Nine
Ashley woke up with a start. She started to jump out of bed, but a wave of nausea overtook her.
Is everything okay? she wondered. Then she remembered her horrible dreams.
For a moment she panicked as the memory of last night overtook her. She crept into the living room, momentarily afraid of what she might find there. Lara was still asleep on the couch bed, and the curtains were shut tight. She crept past her friend and slowly opened a shade. Everything was covered in a deep blanket of snow, and it was still coming down. The sky was gray and foreboding.
She padded softly back to the bedroom and opened her laptop to check the weather. It said that it would continue to snow all day and turn into sleet in the night, and that residents should drive only when necessary as the roads would be icy.
Sean had left for work already, but he had left her a little note in the bathroom.
“If you don’t have to go out, don’t! Bad out there! And don’t forget to call Thompson!” He had put a little heart underneath.
Ashley reached for her phone, but felt another pang of nausea.
I have to try and not be so scared. I left a message for Thompson and he is aware of what happened and will watch over us. She smiled to herself ruefully. Besides, the weather is not fit for man or beast, including criminals.
She tiptoed into the kitchen to put coffee on, and saw Lara stir.
A sleepy voice came from the sofa bed. “Morning,” her friend said.
“Morning,” Ashley said.
“Starving!” Lara replied.
“Breakfast coming up,” Ashley said. “Why don’t you take a shower first? I’ll take one after breakfast.”
“Sounds good,” Lara said. “But first, any news from the detective?”
“No, but it’s early, I was going to try him again as soon as I got the coffee on.”
“Okay, let me know.”
Lara padded off down the hallway and Ashley could soon hear her in the shower.
Poor kid, she thought. What happened last night was directed at me, not her.
Ashley hung her head for a minute as she thought of all the times those she loved were put in peril. Even though she had helped crack cases and saved lives too, subjecting others to danger was not something that she was proud of. She knew that statistically it would catch up to her and one day, someone she loved and cared about would be hurt, or worse yet, be killed while Ashley was involved in a case.
So when are you going to stop, she thought. Not until someone dies?
For a moment she felt deep shame, and then her stomach lurched again in a spasm.
I’m so afraid, my stomach is going to pieces! she thought. Call Thompson now!
As soon as she called him, it went straight to voicemail again. What? He should be fully awake and on the job now.
She dialed the police station. “Nate Thompson please,” she said. “This is Ashley Crane.”
The desk sergeant put her right through. Ashley Crane was a familiar name around the place.
“Thompson,” said the deep voice.
“Nate! I called your cell last night and just tried this morning again. Why haven’t you picked up or gotten back to me?”
“I’ve lost my cell. I’m sure it’s in my house but I haven’t found it,” he answered.
“Have you tried calling it to see where it is?”
“Yes, but I remembered I had turned it off during the movie Clarissa and I went to see last night, and must’ve forgotten to turn it back on.”
“That’s something a lay person would do, not a seasoned detective,” Ashley said.
Thompson snorted. “Well I’m glad you think I’m above human frailty, but sorry, I make those dumb mistakes too.” Ashley didn’t answer back. In fact, her silence on the other end upset Na
te.
“I’ve been looking at the police report from last night about your incident. Please go over it with me,” he said.
Ashley explained in detail what had happened the night before with her car windows being smashed, and how scared she and her friend Lara were. Then, without even thinking about it, she began to tell him about her dream of a cat howling and a door incessantly banging.
“I had nightmares all night,” Ashley said.
“I’m sure you did; an occurrence like that would’ve given anyone nightmares,” Nate replied.
“Of course,” she said. “But I think this dream has something to do with the case.”
“Ashley, you’re starting to sound like your so called psychic friend. I appreciate your gut feelings, and I know about all the things you’ve told me before about your friend’s premonitions too, but let’s face it, we have to deal with facts and evidence now.”
“But…” she started to say.
Thompson cut her off. “First thing, I’ll send someone to look at your car before it’s repaired, and see if we can find any evidence inside it. Second, I’ll try to find out if there were any witnesses to what happened to your car. Maybe someone saw whoever it was that smashed your windows. Lastly, we’ll put another tail on you, just in case.”
“Okay,” she sighed. “It will make me feel better. Although, I’ve used enough police resources around here that I’m sure the residents are going to ask me to pay extra in taxes to cover it.”
Thompson joked, hoping to get her to calm down. “That’s why Sean gave us three hundred donuts for free! Don’t worry, I’ll ask him for some more if it will make you feel better.”
Ashley still didn’t laugh. But she felt a little better knowing a cop would be following her. And she knew Sean would feel better too.
“Well, I can see you’re not in the mood for any humor today, even if I’m trying to make you feel better,” Thompson said. He could hear her breathing heavily on the phone. “Ash?”
Her voice was soft but purposeful. “I really do think my dream had something to do with what happened last night.”
Nate started to answer her, but she cut him off.
“Gotta go! Feel sick!” she said. Ashley ran to the bathroom and pounded on the door. “Lara, I have to throw up!”
Lara opened the door and ran out, and Ashley ran in. Ashley bent over the toilet bowl, but nothing happened. She stayed there for a moment, and slowly started to feel better. Her friend knocked on the door.
“Hey, I’ve got some water for you. Drink it, you’ll feel better,” Lara said.
“Thanks, will do, coming out.” Ashley took the glass of water when she left the bathroom and chugged it. The cool water felt good going down.
“What’s up?” Lara asked.
“I don’t know. I think I’m really shook up over what happened last night, and I had a terrible dream on top of it. You know how my stomach gets when I’m nervous or upset.”
“Boy, do I. Why don’t you sit down in the kitchen? I can make us breakfast,” Lara said.
***
Ashley and Lara walked to the kitchen. Lara cooked them a nice batch of eggs, bacon, and toast and squeezed fresh orange juice to go with their coffee. Even though her stomach had just been upset, Ashley ate like a horse and had two cups of coffee to wash it all down.
“Wow that was great. Can’t believe I ate that much after feeling so nauseous,” Ashley said.
Lara laughed. “Well, hope it doesn’t all come back up!”
“On a serious note, Thompson is sending a car to tail me to make sure I’m okay. If you want, I can ask him to put one on you too.”
“Ash, I don’t think I need one, thanks. Whoever did that last night was obviously targeting you. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Lara said. “And—”
Ashley cut her off. “And with the wrong person. I’m sorry.”
“Hey, it’s okay. I had to go through a lot of drama and many sleepless nights with Will, remember? And you were the one who cleared his name. Don’t forget that.”
“I know, but…” Ashley started to say.
“Hey, I should get going. I’ll call a cab.” Lara said.
“I’ll go with you. They can drop me off at the police station after you get out,” Ashley said.
It wasn’t long before they saw a patrol car pull up in front of Ashley’s place. Shortly after, the taxi arrived. They both got ready to go.
When they opened the door, they stepped out into a winter wonderland. The snow was very deep now. The landscape looked beautiful, but Ashley couldn’t enjoy it. She couldn’t help feeling that things were buried that needed to be discovered, just like those tunnels that Mary spoke about. And other things. What was she missing?
The policeman waved to them. They waved back. A sense of relief ran over Ashley. They got in the taxi and instructed the driver to drop off Lara first.
***
There wasn’t much traffic on the road as most people were staying inside as the weather report advised. The taxi dropped off Lara first, and then Ashley instructed him to take her to the station to see Thompson. A quick look in the rearview mirror and she saw the cop car following slowly and steadily.
As soon as the taxi dropped Lara off, Ashley’s phone rang. She answered in the backseat as the driver pulled out in the direction of the police station.
“Ash?” Sean said.
“Yeah?” Ashley replied.
“You need to come by the bakery. There’s news about someone who was taken to the hospital this morning. And someone is here who has info about it.”
“Can’t you tell me now? I’m on my way to see Thompson.”
“I’m really slammed, can’t talk. Besides, if you get this information, you can take it to Thompson.”
She could hear the din of a large crowd in the background at the bakery.
“Okay, I’ll be right there…” she started to say. But Sean had already hung up.
Ashley gave the driver the address of Babycakes. He then drove down an opposite street and headed toward the bakery. Meanwhile, the cop car had started to go toward the station, but then veered left and dutifully followed the cab.
Poor guy, Ashley thought. He probably already knows how fast I can change my mind. My reputation has preceded me.
Despite her anxiety, she laughed.
***
As soon as Ashley got to the bakery, she realized why Sean had to jump off the phone. As a matter of fact, there wasn’t a space to be had in entire the parking lot. She got out and paid the taxi driver, then noticed the cop car slowly pull in lengthwise in the lot and idle while he waited for Ashley’s next move.
Well, that will scare off any trouble that could come after me here while that car is outside, she thought.
As soon as she got inside, the noise level almost bowled her over. There were several tables pushed together in the back and a large group of twenty people were sitting there, loudly talking and constantly gesturing for the servers. The line at the counter was stacked deep. She looked around for Sean and saw him running from the back, to the counter, and then to the large table. She got close to him as he swung by back to the bakery again.
“Hey! It looks crazy! Can I step in and help?” Ashley asked.
Sean’s eyes were bugging out of his head. “No thanks! You wouldn’t know where to start and I have to just keep going! A big group from the town council is in back. Wasn’t prepared for that today! You can call your Mom, though, and ask her to come in, I haven’t had a chance to do that. Sure could use her at the counter.”
“Okay, will do now. And what about the news I’m supposed to hear before going to see Nate?”
He pointed to a table in the far rear corner.
“That woman, back there! She has some news about that old murder years ago. Said she knew I was your husband and asked if I could call you to come in and talk to her. Bye!” Sean ran into the back to check on the ovens.
Ashley loo
ked behind her. A lady in the far back waved. Ashley headed back to meet her. As she got closer, she recognized who it was. It was the woman who had been at the catering dinner she did with Lara and Will. The same woman who had known the murder victim from many years ago.
Ashley extended her hand. “Hello, I’m Ashley Crane. I met you when I catered the dinner party a while ago, and I—”
“Dear, I know who you are. Don’t you remember I asked you that after the dinner? And I specifically asked your husband to call you here today to talk to you. So no need for any more formal introductions.”
Ashley stared at her. The woman wasn’t cold, or rude really. But she seemed detached; her eyes without any light behind them. She continued to stare calmly back with a slight curve to her mouth, as if she was trying to smile. But Ashley noticed her hands were folded tightly and were slightly trembling.
“I’m sorry,” Ashley said. “But that night at dinner I had a lot on my mind after cooking and cleaning up, and even though I came out into the dining room and took your hand, I can’t remember your name.”
The woman swallowed and unfolded her hands and put them in her lap. Ashley noticed by the movement of the woman’s arms that her hands were still trembling.
“Mrs. Dougherty,” she said softly, almost discernibly.
“Well, Mrs. Dougherty, can you tell me what info—?”
“Margaret, call me Margaret.”
“Okay, Margaret, can you tell me what information you have for me?” Ashley said.
“Yes,” Margaret said. She spoke so quietly it was almost a whisper. “There was a woman taken to the hospital today. Her name is Arabella Lee. She was found in her living room this morning near where her roof collapsed, probably from the storm last night. She must’ve been laying there all night. Poor thing. I hope her injuries aren’t too bad. I’ll never forgive myself…” Her voice trailed off.
Ashley opened her mouth to reply, but Margaret suddenly exclaimed.
Ashley Crane Cozy Mystery Boxed Set Page 79