Vanished into Plein Air

by Paula Darnell

  “Let's go play fetch, Laddie.”

  Laddie deserved some extra play time. My canine companion had been a perfect gentleman while the paramedics were in the house. He'd stayed with the lieutenant while I ran outside to flag down the ambulance, and I'd noticed that the lieutenant had been resting his hand on Laddie's back when I led the paramedics into the house.

  Laddie delighted in running to fetch his hard rubber ball and rushing back to me with it so that we could repeat the process over and over. Inevitably, I tired of the game before he did, and after half an hour of strenuous play, I insisted that we settle ourselves in the shade on the patio until we cooled down. By the time Laddie stopped panting, I was ready for a quick lunch, so we went inside where I rustled up a sandwich for myself and some carrots for Laddie.

  Mona Lisa finally made her appearance as I was dropping the carrots into Laddie's bowl. She'd been hiding under my bed all morning. If I hadn't known her better, I would have been worried that she might be feeling sick, but since she often hid under the bed for hours at a time, I wasn't concerned. My calico kitty pounced on my feet and emitted a loud “meow.” She'd seen me give Laddie a snack, and she wanted one, too. I obliged her, giving her a treat, and she seemed satisfied. As soon as she finished eating it, she leaped to the top of her kitty tree, where she kept a watchful eye on Laddie and me.

  I was about ready to return to the studio and get back to my painting when Dawn called. “Hi, Amanda, I thought I'd give you an update on Bill.”

  I wondered who Bill was before it occurred to me that she must be referring to Lieutenant Belmont.

  “When Dave called to tell me about Bill's heart attack, I insisted on meeting him at the hospital during his lunch hour. Bill's all alone. He doesn't have any family, and the guys at the station aren't exactly touchy feely. Most of them wouldn't have a clue what to say to him. They don't like him much, either. Dave's about the only cop who gets along with Bill. Anyway, when we got there, the doctor told us the bad news.”

  “You mean . . . .”

  “Oh, sorry, Amanda. I shouldn't have put it that way. Bill's alive, but the heart attack was very serious, according to his doctor. We were able to see him for a few minutes. The doctor recommended bypass surgery, but he wants to wait a few days to give Bill's heart time to recover from the attack. I know he's scared, but he tried to make light of it. He asked me to thank you for getting help so promptly.”

  “Of course. I'm not too well versed on emergency medical situations, but it was pretty obvious he was in trouble.”

  “Bill's resting comfortably now, as they say, but he'll be off work for several weeks. The chief's already tasked Dave with covering the lieutenant's cases.”

  “Thanks for letting me know, Dawn.”

  “I wonder if I could ask you a favor.”

  “Sure, what is it?” I fully expected Dawn to ask me to cover for her at the Roadrunner.

  “Dave and I can't go by the hospital this evening. Our son's the starting pitcher for tonight's city league ball game. Could you stop by the hospital to check on Bill? You wouldn't need to stay long, but I'd feel better if someone looked in on him.”

  “Sure, Dawn. I can do that.”

  “He was such a bear to you a few months ago that I know it's asking a lot.”

  “It's not a problem. Really.” I still felt somewhat guilty for plying the lieutenant with cake in hopes that he'd answer my questions. Even though I didn't look forward to my third visit to Lonesome Valley Hospital in only a few days, and I wasn't sure what kind of reception I'd get from the lieutenant, I felt obligated. And as Dawn said, I only needed to stay a few minutes.

  Late that afternoon, I called Belle to find out whether she'd recovered from her dental appointment and to tell her the scoop. She asked me whether our new neighbor had made an appearance to see what was happening when the ambulance arrived, but I hadn't noticed any neighbors gathered to gawk. Most of them would have been at work that time of the day. As far as I knew, Belle and I were the only ones on our block who typically were home during the day.

  “Wait till I tell Dennis you're actually going to visit Belmont in the hospital. He's not going to believe it.”

  Dennis had a low opinion of Lieutenant Belmont. They had both been members of a photography club, but Lieutenant Belmont had been so unpleasant that the members had voted to expel him. In retaliation, the lieutenant had taken every opportunity to write them tickets for minor infractions whenever he could.

  I wasn't exactly looking forward to my hospital visit, but I'd promised Dawn I would do it. When the time came, I steeled myself for the journey. I wasn't exactly dreading it, but I wasn't sure that Lieutenant Belmont would appreciate the gesture.

  It didn't seem right to visit a patient without taking some flowers or a snack. The lieutenant didn't appear to be the flowers type, and the last snack I'd given him certainly hadn't done him much good.

  As soon as I came into the hospital's lobby, I headed straight for the gift shop, although I had no idea what to buy for a grumpy man who probably wouldn't be too pleased to see me, anyway.

  While Xena was busy at the cash register, processing a transaction, I couldn't help but noticing that my scarf display looked depleted. I made a quick count. There were eight scarves left on the display rack. When I'd sold the display to Xena on Tuesday, she'd bought a dozen.

  After her customer left, Xena noticed me checking out the display.

  “Hi, Amanda. You must be a mind reader. I was about to call you to order some more scarves.”

  “Oh, wow; that's great! I actually came in to find a little gift for a patient, but tell me how many scarves you need.”

  “We've sold four already. I'll be conservative and say six for now. Assorted colors will be fine.”

  “All right. I don't have that many in stock, but I can make more over the weekend and bring them in on Monday.”

  “Perfect. I won't be here that day, but I'll leave a check for you. Maybe I can help you find a gift for your friend.”

  “He's not really a friend, so I don't know what to take him, but I'd hate to show up empty-handed.”

  I explained enough about the situation for her to get the drift.

  “How about a plant? It would last longer than flowers, and he could take it home when he's discharged. I have one here that looks good and doesn't require much care. With a weekly light watering, it should do well.”

  “All right. I guess that'll work.”

  “I can put a nice bow around it to make it look cheerier.” She pointed to a stack of ribbons behind the counter. “Blue OK?”

  “That's fine.”

  I watched as she made a bow. She threaded the ribbon around the foil on the potted plant and deftly attached the bow to it with a thin wire.

  “How's that?”

  “It looks good.”

  I felt awkward about taking Lieutenant Belmont a gift, which he'd probably hate, anyway, but as I paid for my purchase, I remembered Dawn's words. As she'd said, I wouldn't have to stay long.

  “We water all the plants on Monday, so it won't need a drink for a few days yet.”

  “Thanks, Xena, and thanks for your order. I'll bring the scarves the first thing Monday morning.”

  I'd forgotten to ask Dawn the number of the lieutenant's room, so I stopped at the reception desk to get it before hopping on the elevator. Room 402 turned out to be at the end of a hallway, far away from the fourth floor nursing station. The door was wide open, but I didn't go in, because I could hear voices coming from the room.

  “You can't expect me to eat this stuff,” the lieutenant complained. “It's absolutely tasteless.”

  “Your doctor ordered a heart-healthy diet for you.”

  The lieutenant groaned. “If my heart doesn't kill me, this food will.”

  “I know it's not what you're used to, but try to eat a little. You'll get used to it.”

  “Hmpf! I doubt it.”

  The nurse left him to his own devices an
d bustled past me to continue her rounds.

  Hesitantly, I rapped a couple times on the door frame to let the lieutenant know someone was coming.

  As soon as he saw me, he scowled. Then, the scowl disappeared as though he'd thought of an idea.

  “I don't suppose I could talk you into running over to the Burger Palace and getting me a triple cheeseburger and some fries?”

  Chapter 20

  “I don't suppose you could,” I said, setting the plant down on the window ledge next to his bed. “I heard what the nurse said. You're supposed to be on a special diet.”

  “Just look at what they call a meal.” He lifted the lid off his plate, revealing some baked fish, green beans, and zucchini. There was a bowl of salad next to his dinner plate. He held up a white packet. “Salt substitute! They won't even let me have real salt,” he lamented.

  I didn't comment. I could understand that he liked all the food that his doctor had forbidden. I wouldn't be happy if my doctor ordered me to cut out dessert, but if I had to do it for health reasons, I'd comply. I wasn't so sure about the lieutenant.

  He gave me a canny look. “Tell you what, Mrs. Trent. You do me a favor, and I'll do you one. It'll take only a few minutes for you to run over to the Burger Palace, and when you come back with my cheeseburger and fries, I'll tell you everything I know about Durand.”

  “No way. The nurses would stop me as soon as I got off the elevator. Besides, it's for your own good. You need to take care of yourself so you can get well.”

  “Oh, all right,” he said sulkily, as I turned to leave. “Wait a minute.” He grabbed the remote control and pointed it toward the portable TV set on the wall opposite his bed.

  The sound hadn't been on, and I hadn't noticed the TV earlier. He zapped the set off, and the picture disappeared. He motioned toward a chair beside his hospital bed.

  “Sit down, Mrs. Trent,” he said. “I'll tell you what I know. You're such a snoop you probably won't leave me in peace until I do. Anyway, there's nothing on the television.”

  As I sat down, I wondered how seriously he was taking his heart attack, but maybe his bravado masked his fear. Whatever his reason, he'd volunteered to fill me in, and I intended to take him up on it.

  “Nearly thirty years ago, I was a green patrol officer, just like your pal Dyson.”

  My frown when he referred to Mike Dyson, who was a nice young man, as my “pal” made him grin, and I knew he'd said it just to get a rise out of me.

  “The first time I met the Durands, I was responding to a domestic incident call. They lived in a tiny apartment above the Corner Drugstore on First Street. Durand answered the door and told me everything was fine, but he'd been drinking and I couldn't see his wife, who'd made the call, so I insisted he let me in. I found her in the kitchen, crying. She said he'd slapped her. I asked her if she wanted to press charges, but she didn't. I figured I needed to get them separated until he sobered up, so I ended up taking him to his art teacher's house to spend the night.”

  “Ralph Anderson's house?”

  “I don't remember the guy's name, but he lived all the way out on the end of Pine Street on a couple of acres. Nice ranch house and a big separate studio out back. He let Durand spend the night in the studio.”

  “That's Ralph's house. He still lives there.”

  The lieutenant shrugged. “Whatever. Same thing happened again a few weeks later, but Jill Durand still didn't want to press charges, so I took Durand back to his art teacher's place to spend the night. He told Durand he wasn't going to put up with any more of his drunken episodes, but he let him stay.

  “The third time it happened, I arrested Durand, despite his wife's pleas not to, and he spent the night in jail. Of course, she bailed him out the next morning. I heard him sweet-talking her on their way out.

  “Next thing I knew, we got a call that Jill Durand's missing up at Miner's Lookout. The chief organized a search party, and we searched for her from around noon until dark, without finding any trace of her. Durand was with us, but several people told us that he and his wife had gone off to a secluded spot to paint, and nobody had seen either one of them all morning.

  “Well, I was sure he'd done something to her, even after he went home that night and told us that he found a note from her telling him she was leaving him. I figured he faked it, but the chief thought the note was legitimate because it was in her handwriting.”

  “For weeks afterward, I spent my time off searching for her body up by Miners' Lookout.”

  “You told me earlier that Jill really did leave Ulysses that day. When did you find out?”

  “A few months later I ran into one of the art students who'd been at Miners' Lookout the day Jill disappeared, and she'd remembered that Jill had once mentioned that she had a friend who lived in Sedona. It wasn't much to go on, especially since she didn't know her name, but she told me she thought she worked in a restaurant over there.”

  “You found her, didn't you?”

  “Sure did. A real stroke of luck. When I pulled into town, I stopped at a little restaurant for lunch, and there she was, waiting tables. When she saw me, she begged me not to tell Ulysses where she was. She said he was very possessive, but I let her know he'd left Lonesome Valley. Supposedly, he was headed to Mexico to get a divorce, but I had no way to confirm that. The chief had closed the missing person's case right after Durand found Jill's note, and when he found out I'd questioned Durand a couple of times after that, he read me the riot act.”

  “That's quite a story.”

  “Just goes to show you: not everything's a big mystery, Mrs. Trent,” he said smugly.

  I was about to tell him that there could still be a connection between Jill's disappearance years ago and Olivia's kidnapping when the nurse came in to give the lieutenant some medication, and I decided it was time for me to leave.

  “Don't forget that cheeseburger,” he called after me, eliciting a scowl from the nurse.

  “Never going to happen,” I replied.

  Lieutenant Belmont wouldn't be an easy patient. His nurses had my sympathy.

  Since I was already at the hospital, I decided to stop off on the second floor to check on Ulysses. The lieutenant's story about Ulysses's behavior years ago had cast him in a bad light, although he may have cleaned up his act in the meantime. Certainly Pamela hadn't mentioned that he'd been abusive toward her or struggled with a drinking problem. I hopped on the elevator and got off on the second floor, where I immediately spotted Brooks and Olivia conversing in the reception area.

  “What are you doing here, Amanda?” Olivia asked. “I appreciate what you did, but there's no need to troll my husband.”

  “Excuse me,” I said, putting the emphasis on “cuse.” “Actually, I came to visit a friend on the fourth floor, who had a heart attack today, and it didn't seem right to leave without checking on Ulysses.”

  “Sorry, Amanda,” Olivia muttered, as Brooks looked at her with raised eyebrows. “I'm afraid the stress is getting to me.”

  “We have some good news,” Brooks told me. “Ulysses is showing signs that he's coming out of the coma. It's possible that he may wake up very soon.”

  “That is good news,” I agreed. “I'm glad to hear it.”

  “I do appreciate your concern, Amanda,” Olivia said. “It's been such a terrible week. I hope you can understand why I'm on edge, what with Ulysses's accident and the police investigation into the kidnapping. I had to answer questions from some local police detective for over an hour this morning. It was awful. He just kept asking me the same things over and over again until I thought I'd scream. If I never see that cop again, it'll be too soon!”

  Chapter 21

  I didn't tell Olivia that her chances of encountering Lieutenant Belmont again were slim, indeed, considering his poor health and the fact that the chief had assigned Sergeant Martinez to take over the case.

  “Hang in there. It sounds as though things are looking up, at least,” I told her.

 
“I'll go downstairs with you, Amanda,” Brooks said, as I turned to leave. “I'm going to grab a drink while we're waiting for Gabrielle. Would you like me to bring you anything from the cafeteria, Olivia?”

  “No, thanks. I'm fine.” She picked up a home decorating magazine from the end table next to her and began paging through it. From the pace of her page turning, I could tell she was just passing time.

  Brooks and I squeezed our way into the crowded elevator for the quick trip to the lobby. We stepped out, followed by the other visitors and the hospital personnel, and they went their separate ways.

  “I'm going to drive Olivia back to the resort as soon as Gabrielle comes. Olivia wouldn't leave unless somebody is here for Ulysses.” He glanced at his Rolex. “I don't know what's keeping her. She should have been here half an hour ago.”

  I hurriedly told Brooks goodbye after asking him to let me know how Ulysses was faring. I had no desire to see Gabrielle, not that she'd acknowledge my presence even if I did happen to run into her.

  As I tooled up Canyon Drive on the way home, I saw Belle and Dennis walking with Laddie and Mr. Big parading in front of them. Belle had insisted on watching Laddie while I made my obligatory visit to the hospital. My canine companion had been more than happy to spend part of the evening with Mr. Big instead of Mona Lisa.

  I pulled into my carport and went to greet them, stooping to pet our enthusiastic canines.

  “You're a better person than I am,” Dennis said. “When Belle told me you planned to visit Bill Beaumont in the hospital, I about fell off my chair.”

  “I can't take too much credit for that. If Dawn hadn't asked me to look in on him, it probably wouldn't have occurred to me.”

  “How is the grouchy curmudgeon?”

  “Dawn told me his heart attack was serious, and he definitely does not look well. He's scheduled to have bypass surgery in a few days.”

  “Too bad. Even though I can't stand the guy, I wouldn't wish that on anyone.”