The Jackson Case

by Diana Xarissa

  “What about the flyers?” Stuart asked. “We need them reprinted with the correct location.”

  “I’ll talk to the printer when I order the tickets,” Alvin said. “Maybe he can give us a bit of a break on the price.”

  “We want a phone number on the flyer. A number where people can ring for tickets,” Norman said.

  “We used my number on the original flyer,” Winifred said.

  “Yes, let’s change that to mine,” Norman replied. “I’d rather the calls went to my mobile than your home. The last time I rang your home number, your answering machine was full.”

  “People keep calling to ask about historical society matters,” Winifred said. “They fill up my machine with all manner of things. I can work harder to keep the machine clear.”

  “You’re working hard enough as it is,” Norman said. “I’ll handle phone orders and keep a running list. We can have those tickets at the door on the night, which means they don’t even need paper tickets.”

  “But those sales will still count towards my twenty-five, won’t they?” Winifred asked.

  “I would think you would be able to sell thirty-five easily,” Norman replied, his voice cool. “If you’d like some advice on how to do so, we can talk after the meeting.”

  “Was there anything else that we needed to discuss?” Stuart asked.

  “I think all of the auction items are ready to go,” Fred said. “I’m storing them all in my dining room, so Friday can’t get here soon enough for me.”

  “Norman and I are working on adding one or two things to the collection,” Julian said. He named an actress from one of the well-known soap operas. “We’re hoping to get an autographed script from her,” he said.

  “And we’re talking to a premier league football team about a signed ball as well,” Norman added. “Which is all the more reason why we need to sell a great many tickets.”

  “What about the food and drink?” Fred asked. “Who was taking care of that?”

  “I’ve been talking to Simon Hampton about donating the wine and some food,” Julian said. “He’s an old friend of mine. I’m sure he’ll come through.”

  “What are we having besides wine?” Fred asked.

  “Whatever Simon gives us,” Julian replied. “I’ve asked for cheese and cracker trays, and trays of finger foods and miniature puddings. As I said, he hasn’t confirmed anything yet.”

  “As his grocery shop is shut, where is he meant to be getting all of those things?” Stuart asked.

  “He’ll still have a relationship with his suppliers,” Julian said dismissively. “I’m sure he’ll have no trouble at all.”

  “If there’s nothing else, I’ll go and try ringing the printer,” Alvin said.

  “And we can unload the decorations so I can see what we have,” Stuart said.

  “Yes, I’ve a great deal to get back to as well,” Winifred said.

  “Don’t forget that the most important thing to do now is sell tickets,” Norman said as Janet heard chairs being pushed away from the table. “We need a lot of people at the auction in order to get the best possible prices for our items.”

  Janet moved away from the kettle, dropping into a seat across from Joan. The pair were having a lively conversation about their upcoming holiday when Alvin strolled into the room.

  “Is the meeting finished?” Janet asked.

  “Yes, and thank you both for your hospitality,” he told them.

  “You’re very welcome,” Joan replied.

  “I’ll show you out,” Janet said. She rose to her feet as the rest of the committee appeared behind Alvin.

  Janet walked Alvin and Fred to the door and then returned to the kitchen.

  “Only if you’re sure you don’t mind,” Stuart was saying. “It’s only for a few days.”

  “It’s fine,” Joan replied. “We’ve been working on clearing things out, but we can take a few days off from that chore.”

  Janet raised an eyebrow. “Stuart is going to store the boxes of decorations in the carriage house for now,” Joan explained to her. “As he said, it’s only for a few days.”

  Janet nodded. Anything that kept her from having to sort more boxes from the carriage house was fine with her.

  “Let’s get the boxes out of my car, then,” Norman said.

  He and Stuart headed for the door with Julian and Winifred on their heels.

  “I really don’t think I can sell that many tickets,” Winifred was saying as Janet shut the door behind them.

  “I thought you wanted to talk to Winifred about Alberta,” Joan said.

  Janet shook her head. “I do, but he’s far too busy right now. Perhaps once this event is over, he’ll be more pleasant.”

  Joan laughed. “I hardly think so,” she said.

  Janet watched as Stuart and Norman moved several large boxes into the carriage house. Once they were finished, Stuart rang the buzzer on the French doors.

  “Do either of you have a minute?” he asked when Janet opened the door. “I have boxes full of decorations and no idea how to decorate the space. I was hoping you might have some suggestions.”

  “I’ll take a look,” Janet said.

  “Me, too,” Joan added. “Although Janet is much better at such things. She used to do wonderful things with her classrooms for the holidays and for special events. I used to have her decorate my classroom as well.”

  The pair walked with Stuart to the carriage house. The boxes that Janet had watched him unload were all standing open in the middle of the floor. Janet couldn’t help but smile as she looked at rolls of gossamer fabric, piles of coloured stars, and heaps of table covers.

  “Is there a theme?” she asked.

  Stuart shook his head. “We just want it to look elegant and sophisticated,” he replied. “Like a fancy fundraiser you might go to in London.”

  Janet nodded. “There are a lot of great items here to work with,” she told him. “What’s the space like?”

  “Like a basketball court,” he replied sadly.

  Janet laughed. “I’m sure you can make it look a lot better,” she said.

  “I don’t suppose you’d like to help?” Stuart asked hopefully.

  Janet thought about it for a minute. “I will,” she said. “It might even be fun.”

  Stuart smiled. “Thank you so much,” he said.

  “When are you decorating?” Janet asked.

  “I don’t know yet,” Stuart said. “But I’ll let you know as soon as I do.”

  Janet looked at the boxes again. “When you talk to them, find out the dimensions of the room, if you can,” she said. “Ideally, we’d start decorating today, but I doubt they’ll be able to let us do that. At least if we have rough dimensions, I can start planning how to use what we have.”

  “You’re the best,” Stuart said, giving her a quick hug. “I’ll go and ring them now. Would it help if we could see the space before Friday?”

  “Yes,” Janet replied.

  “I’ll see if I can arrange that, then, too,” he said. “Oh, and one more thing,” he added. “I’d appreciate it if you’d help me think of people to sell the event tickets to. I’m supposed to sell thirty-five of them, and I’m not sure where to even start.”

  He disappeared back to his house while Joan and Janet locked up the carriage house.

  “It was kind of you to agree to help,” Joan told her sister as they walked back into Doveby House.

  “You can help, too,” Janet said. “If we can’t get into the place until Friday afternoon, we’ll need all the help we can get.”

  “Yes, it’s a big space to decorate in a very short amount of time,” Joan said. “Or, at least, it looks a big space from the outside.”

  Janet nodded. She hadn’t paid much attention to the large rectangular building that was near the centre of Little Burton, but she’d noticed it on her infrequent trips to the small village. “It does look large from the outside,” she agreed. “And, well, it isn’t exactly the mo
st attractive building, is it?”

  “It’s rather like a large shoebox,” Joan said.

  Janet laughed. “It is, isn’t it? I can’t imagine that anyone designed it. It’s really just four walls with a few windows and a door. But we shall do our best.”

  “In the meantime, we’ll have to think about helping Stuart sell his tickets,” Joan said thoughtfully. “We said we’d each buy one, and Michael is happy to come along as well, but that still leaves thirty-two tickets.”

  “Surely Stuart will be able to sell some of them,” Janet said. “I’ll ring around to the Ladies’ Club membership and see if any of them are interested. I’m not sure some of them have an extra hundred pounds to spare, though. I still think it’s an expensive evening.”

  “Yes, and one that we’re being dragged into more and more,” Joan said. “Let’s hope we don’t end up regretting that.”

  Chapter 4

  Janet spent some time on Tuesday ringing the other women from the Doveby Dale Ladies’ Club. It took some persuading on her part, but she managed to convince them all to attend the charity fundraiser. Stuart had promised to drop off any tickets that either sister sold. Janet was pleased to be able to ring him and send him to all four of the women’s homes.

  “I’ve arranged for us to have a look at the community centre tomorrow, if that works for you,” Stuart told her before she disconnected. “I’ll collect you at one o’clock and we can go together, if that suits.”

  “That’s fine,” Janet told him. “I’m not sure if Joan will be coming or not.”

  “You can let me know tomorrow,” Stuart said. “I’ll see you around one.”

  Joan had persuaded Michael to buy a ticket, and he’d rung a few of his former coworkers on Stuart’s behalf as well. By the time Joan and Janet sat down to their evening meal on Tuesday, between them they’d sold ten tickets.

  “At least we’ve sold his extra ten for him,” Janet said as she swallowed a bite of steak and kidney pie.

  “I was wondering if you should ask William Chalmers to buy a ticket,” Joan replied.

  “I did think of him,” Janet admitted. “But I’m sort of avoiding him, really.”

  Joan nodded. “Because of Edward,” she said.

  Janet shrugged. Edward Bennett had been the bed and breakfast’s first paying guest after the sisters bought it. He’d known Margaret Appleton, the previous owner, and he’d turned up on their doorstep claiming to have made a booking with her some time before her unexpected death. Janet had been attracted to the handsome man, even while finding his easy self-confidence and worldly sophistication somewhat worrying. Before he’d left, he’d told Janet that he worked for a secret government agency that had occasionally used Doveby House as a safe house.

  Months later, Janet still wasn’t sure what to believe about the man, although he’d recently spent a weekend with them. Janet had discovered that she was even more attracted to the man, which made his secretive nature incredibly frustrating. And it complicated her relationship with William Chalmers.

  William had moved to Doveby Dale shortly after the sisters purchased Doveby House. Both Janet and Joan found the man disagreeable and rude on first making his acquaintance, but over time, as he’d worked on his manner, something like a friendship had developed between the three of them. Recently, however, he’d been hinting at wanting something more like a romance with Janet. She wasn’t totally opposed to the idea, and if it hadn’t been for Edward, she might have embraced it more enthusiastically.

  “You should ask him,” Joan said. “He’ll feel hurt if he’s left out. It’s a big community event, after all.”

  “Maybe I should just suggest his name to Stuart,” Janet said.

  “Actually, Stuart should be talking to all the small business owners in Doveby Dale,” Joan said. “Todd and Ted should be asked to attend, and so should that nasty man who owns the coffee shop near the police station.”

  Todd and Ted owned a small café near the bed and breakfast. Todd did the cooking and Ted ran the dining room, and both men were very well liked in their community. The girl who worked in the coffee shop was also well liked. The shop’s owner was rarely there, and he was less popular with the residents of Doveby Dale.

  “Yes, I suppose so,” Janet sighed. “I hope the coffee shop man can’t come. We really should find out his name,” she added.

  “I thought someone said he was called Robert, but I could be wrong,” Joan said.

  “Speaking of Robert,” Janet exclaimed. “What about Robert Parsons? Do police constables go to such things?”

  Joan shrugged. “I can’t imagine he’d want to spend that much money for what sounds like not much in the way of entertainment,” she said.

  “I wonder if they’ll be having any security that evening,” Janet said. “I mean, it sounds as if some of the auction items might be valuable, and people might be paying with cash, mightn’t they?”

  “I suppose some will be. We must remember to ask Stuart about that,” Joan said.

  After dinner the sisters watched television for a while and then had an early night. They didn’t have any guests arriving until Saturday and they were both doing what they could to enjoy having their home to themselves.

  “Good afternoon,” Stuart greeted the sisters when Janet opened the front door to him on Wednesday afternoon.

  “Hello,” his wife, Mary, said from behind him.

  Janet forced herself to keep her smile in place. She wasn’t overly fond of Mary. The woman spent much of her time travelling from place to place visiting her adult children. Their marriage was the second for both of them, and Janet often wondered why they stayed together when they spent so much time apart.

  “Good afternoon,” Joan said. “Are we ready to go?”

  “Are you going?” Mary demanded.

  “I thought I would,” Joan replied. “I agreed to help with the decorating, after all.”

  “Oh, that’s okay then,” Mary said. “I won’t bother.” She turned and walked back across the street, opening the door to her home and then slamming it shut behind her.

  “Is she angry about something?” Janet asked, bewildered by the woman’s behaviour.

  “No, not at all,” Stuart said. “She was just going to come if you and I were going alone,” he told Janet.

  “If we were going alone? So that she could help?” Janet asked.

  “Er, yes, er, I mean, sure, because it’s too much work for just two people,” Stuart replied.

  Janet narrowed her eyes at him. “What’s really going on?” she demanded.

  Stuart blushed bright red. “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “Stuart, we’re neighbours and friends. Please tell me what’s going on with Mary,” Janet said.

  “Her first husband wasn’t exactly the faithful kind,” Stuart said after an awkward pause. “She worries about me when I’m going to be anywhere alone with another woman.”

  Janet stared at him for a minute and then looked over at Joan. Joan looked as astonished as Janet felt. After another minute, Janet began to laugh.

  “I’m sorry,” she said after a deep breath. “But it’s such a ridiculous notion. Perhaps she had to worry about Maggie Appleton, but I don’t think I’ve ever given her reason to think that I’d consider having an affair with a married man, have I?”

  “It isn’t you,” Stuart said. “It’s me she doesn’t trust.”

  Janet bit back a dozen questions. “Maybe we should go,” she said instead. “Once we’ve seen the space, I can start planning.”

  The drive to Little Burton didn’t take long. On the journey, Joan and Janet gave Stuart the list of names they’d come up with as possible ticket purchasers. Stuart kept nodding.

  “I’ll try all of them,” he said as he pulled into the large car park for the community centre. “I just have to hope that Winifred hasn’t beaten me to them.”

  The community centre was exactly what Janet had been expecting. The room was large and completely dev
oid of character. It was basically just a rectangle, although there was a small kitchen area tucked away in one corner.

  “I suppose the caterers will be able to heat the food here,” Joan said, inspecting the kitchen facilities. “I wouldn’t want to try to cook in here, but I imagine it will be adequate for what they need.”

  “Are they planning on doing any cooking on-site?” Janet asked.

  “I’ve no idea,” Stuart said. “Julian and Norman are dealing with the food and drink. The rest of us have enough to do.”

  “You said it was just wine and finger foods, right?” Janet asked.

  “Yes, that’s right,” Stuart replied.

  “Will they be passed around by waiters or does the decorating plan need to include a table for food?” Janet asked. She’d pulled out a notebook and was making a rough sketch of the room.

  “I don’t know,” Stuart said. “I’ll have to ring Norman to ask. I can do that now.” He pulled out his mobile phone and walked away from the sisters.

  Janet was busy sketching the rough dimensions of the space. “We’ll want some tables for the guests to sit at while they’re drinking and eating,” she said. “But we’ll also need some sort of arrangement for the auction. I wonder if they’re planning on using a stage, and if so, where they’re getting it from and when.”

  Stuart was back a moment later. “He’s not answering at the moment, but I’ve left him an urgent message.”

  Janet put her other questions to the man, but he wasn’t able to answer any of them.

  “We never really discussed any of this,” he said helplessly. “We were going to use a room in a restaurant that had some things set up already.

  “Maybe you can ask Norman about that as well when you speak to him,” Janet suggested. “I’ll just take measurements for now.”

  Stuart nodded and then sat down at a table and watched as Janet and Joan measured the room. He tried Norman’s number a couple more times while the sisters worked.

  “Mr. Long?” a voice came from near the door.

  Stuart got up and crossed the room. Janet wasn’t far behind him.