by Beth Ziarnik
“We’re going now, Dad,” Jill said. “We’ll come back later.”
“Come back soon. I have … more questions.”
“We will,” Jill said. “In the meantime, you rest and get stronger.”
In the hall, Jill turned to him. “I’m afraid. I don’t think he’s getting better at all.”
The deep concern in her eyes pushed his pulse up a notch. He had learned to trust her instincts.
“Let’s talk.” She glanced about. “But not here.”
Jill closed the door to her room and retreated to the farthest corner near the windows before she turned to face Clay. Barely keeping her emotions in check, she paced. “I can’t shake this awful feeling that if we don’t do something, Dad’s not going to recover this time.”
“Okay,” he said, “then how about getting me up to speed. Who has access to him?”
She scrunched her forehead. “Except for Kat, you’ve met them all. Dora, Lillie, the housekeeper, Brian. And Alice, of course.”
“No one else?”
Jill shook her head and placed her hands on Clay’s strong shoulders. “What I still can’t understand is why anyone would want to kill my father.”
He quirked a brow. “Possibly because of you?”
“What?” Suddenly lightheaded, she teetered. “Why because of me?”
Clay guided her to a nearby chair. His gray eyes darkened with concern. “You said Dora hates you. When your father invited you to the house as a guest without informing her, she might have taken that as the last straw.”
“Do you mean that as long as I wasn’t in his life, she could tolerate the situation, but now that I’m here—”
“Something like that.”
“Then coming here was a huge mistake.” She felt sick to her stomach.
“Not necessarily, but your unexpected arrival might have triggered her anger enough to make your father pay for insult and injury.”
Jill shook her head. “Alice’s suspicions of poisoning began before I arrived.”
He tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear. “Well then,” he murmured, “let’s back up. When did your father first become ill?”
Weary, she moved closer and rested her head against Clay’s chest. “Maybe two weeks before I came.”
His arms encircled her, and she drank in their comfort, listening as he continued. “Is it possible that, though Dora didn’t know you were coming, someone else in the family did? Who else was unhappy about your arrival?”
Jill pulled back and looked into his clear eyes. “Kathryn. She accused me of arriving just in time to collect my share of the inheritance.”
“We know that’s not true,” he said, stroking her hair. “But if she believes it, she might be trying to prevent it.”
“By killing our father?” Jill shuddered with the thought. “That wouldn’t help. Besides, I think she genuinely loves him and attacked me to protect her family.”
“You don’t think she cares more about the inheritance?”
“Only to the extent of excluding me.”
“What about money problems? Did you pick up on any she might have?”
Jill mentally filed through previous conversations with her sisters and their grandmother. “Kat runs her own chain of fitness centers. They must do well enough to support her decently. She owns a condo, dresses nicely, and drives a Lamborghini.”
“A pretty expensive car. She could be way over-extended.”
He was right, of course. “Or it might have been part of her divorce settlement. I don’t know. I just can’t believe she’d scheme to kill her own father.” At least she hoped not. On the other hand, she didn’t know enough about Kathryn to be sure. She sought her chair again, and Clay took the one nearest it.
“What about the younger sister?”
Jill almost laughed at the idea. “Lillie hasn’t a cruel thought in her head. Though she does have unusual spells where she appears a little unbalanced.”
Clay leaned forward. “Tell me more.”
“She loves plants and has quite a green thumb.” Jill couldn’t help but smile. “All the beautiful potted Christmas plants you see around the house belong to her. She operates a greenhouse of sorts in an area off the dining room.”
“Christmas plants? Besides that Poinsettia, what others are we talking about?”
“I bought her a Star of Bethlehem. Then there’s holly, ivy, and something she called red angel’s trumpet. Um … Christmas rose and amaryllis … a calla lily. Oh, and a death camas. They seem to fascinate her.”
“Every plant you named is poisonous.”
She sucked in a quivering breath. “That has to be a coincidence. Lillie is kind and accepting. She welcomed me right away.”
“Unlike the others,” he said, tipping his head.
“What are you getting at?” Her heart thumped in her chest.
Elbows on his knees, he said nothing, but his eyes spoke volumes.
Jill’s words came slow and deliberate. “You’re wrong. You have to be. I don’t think Lillie has a deceptive bone in her body.”
Leaning back in his chair, he drew in a deep breath and released it slowly. “As distasteful as this is, we have to examine every possibility. What about the housekeeper?”
Jill flinched. Hannah was the one person who seemed to despise her for no reason. “I don’t know much except that she’s devoted to Dora and so old she should have retired years ago. She must not have anywhere else to go.”
“What’s she like around your father?”
His questions were relentless, yet she knew that, for her father’s sake, she needed to share all she knew. “I was too busy to notice on Christmas Day, and that’s the only time I’ve seen them in the same room.”
“But she does prepare the food.”
Jill sat up ramrod straight. “She could be doctoring his food?”
“We’re only considering possibilities.” Clay leaned forward. “Now, what about Brian?”
She rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. He would be the easy one for Clay to blame. “What would he have to gain?”
“Your father’s law practice, if it became available.”
Jill wrinkled her forehead. “He’s not even a partner.”
“But he’s here often. Your father must think very highly of him.”
“Only because he’s temporarily running the office—under Dad’s direction.”
“You don’t think he’d scheme to take over a well-established law practice?”
Obviously, Brian would jump at the chance to have his own law practice. But Clay had to be wrong. “Brian couldn’t afford to buy it even if it were for sale. He hasn’t been with my father long enough to make that kind of money. A couple of years at most.”
“On the other hand, through you, he might gain an in with your father—a chance.”
“Me? You can’t be serious.”
“You know him pretty well. Is he above scheming to get what he wants?”
“He’s a go-getter, but I wouldn’t call him a schemer. And yes, I do know him well.” She bit her lip. At least she once did.
Heat washed over Jill as she realized her voice had raised a notch and taken on a defensive edge. She held herself still under Clay’s scrutiny. His long silence brought more heat to her face. She might be the one who was wrong, defending someone who may no longer be the person he was two years ago. She lowered her voice. “I’m sorry, and you’re right. We do need to consider everyone objectively.”
He touched her cheek. “I didn’t mean to be so hard on you. This situation is far from what we expected when we decided to come here, but together, we’ll figure this out. Trust me. The truth always comes out in the end.”
His phone began its call tune. He pulled it out. “Are you kidding me?” he mumbled. He looked at Jill with an odd expression. “I’d better take this.”
Turning his back, he strode to the opposite corner of the room and lowered his voice. A minute later, she heard him murmur, “Yes, Francesca.”
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Chapter Fifteen
Clay held up his phone. “This shouldn’t take long.”
Jill looked puzzled when he left her room. He couldn’t blame her. Francesca had a gift for the worst possible timing.
He bounded up the steps two at a time, made it to his room, and closed the door. “Now, what can I do for you, Francesca?”
“I’ve been thinking …”
Clay remained silent. He was sure she had been. The woman was no quitter. But he had made himself clear before he left the island. And unless she had changed her mind about signing the contract …
“I didn’t treat you … fairly,” she said.
She had that right.
“You will forgive me, won’t you? I do prefer your skills for renovating my hotel.”
As much as that stroked his ego, he hadn’t changed his mind. “If you’re suggesting we continue contract negotiations, no. The one I left with you is more than fair. If you sign it and forward the advance stipulated to my bank account, I’ll take the job.”
Did he have much choice? He needed the work. And he had prayed about it this time. If she took his terms, he could sign that contract.
“You do forgive me then?” Her voice sounded hopeful, almost wistful.
He grimaced. Why did she persist in making this sound like more than it was? “Ours is purely a business arrangement.”
“Of course.” Her voice deflated.
Was she finally getting the point? He hoped so, because working with a difficult client was risky enough. “So, what are you suggesting?”
Clay found Jill’s door ajar, the room empty. He glanced across the hall. Was she visiting her father? He rapped on her father’s door.
Alice opened it and stepped aside.
Sitting at her father’s bedside, Jill glanced up, her eyes full of questions.
This was awkward, but Clay couldn’t waste time. He reached her side with Alice in his wake. “I have to leave for a while to access a fax machine. I’ll make it quick.”
“John has one in the study,” Alice said.
“Can I use it?”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, though I don’t know the access code.” She adjusted her patient’s blanket.
Clay observed the quiet man whose eyes were closed. “Is he asleep?”
“I’m not asleep, young man. Are you sending or receiving?” His eyes remained closed.
“Both.”
“Jill, write down this number … and give it to him.”
Alice pulled notepaper and a pen from the drawer of the bedside table and handed them to Jill. As John spoke, she wrote the number and handed the paper to Clay.
He scanned it. “Thank you, sir.”
Jill’s brow scrunched with worry. “Is anything wrong?”
He didn’t want her father privy to his business. “I’ll tell you later. Francesca is waiting.”
“Francesca?” Her father said the name as if rolling it around in his mind and grasping for its significance.
When Jill turned back to check on him, she found a slight frown on his tired face. His eyes focused intently on her. “Are you sure about this young man of yours?”
What? “Of course. Why would you ask?”
“I don’t know him well enough, but …” He dragged in a labored breath. “It’s probably nothing.”
Jill’s heart ached for her father. He was way too ill to wrestle with her problems. Or Clay’s. “You’ve done all you can do, Dad. Time to rest. I’ll be right here until Alice returns.” Then she had a few things of her own to take care of.
He nodded once as if it were too much effort to do more. Then he closed his eyes. Within minutes, his slow, even breathing assured her he had fallen asleep.
She examined his pallid face. Lord, he’s so much worse than when I first arrived. How I hate seeing him like this. Please show us how to help him get well.
Now that her father was worse, why hadn’t Alice brought in the doctor, even if her father objected? Maybe then he would finally consent to go to the hospital. Once there, he would not only have the benefits of better medical equipment and care but protection from a possible killer. He might protest, but surely at this stage, a doctor could convince him of his need for more help than he could get at home.
When Alice returned, Jill met her at the door and put the question to her.
Alice put a hand on her shoulder and whispered, “It’s not my decision. Or yours.”
“But you told someone you trust at the hospital what you suspect, didn’t you?”
“We still need proof. Can you imagine how Dora would react to an accusation like that? We’d get tossed out of the house and lose our chance to discover the truth. I know it’s frustrating, but all we can do right now is what we have been doing. Watch and hope we’re wrong.”
“And pray.”
Alice blinked. “I … uh … well, yes. If you’re a praying person.”
“You’re not?”
“I prayed when I was a child, but my mother never came back to me. I guess God didn’t hear me. Later, I was too busy with my nursing studies and then work. No time for church and such.” She moved into the room. “Please excuse me. It’s time to check John’s vitals.”
The hint of annoyance in Alice’s voice made it clear that Jill had stepped on a sore spot and should leave. Just as well. She would do more than just watch and hope as Alice recommended. She would pray and search for answers and already had a few ideas to start.
At the foot of the stairs, Jill found the door of her father’s study across the hall. By now, Clay should be receiving the fax. He might even be finishing his transaction with Francesca.
When she knocked on the door, Clay opened it, still on the phone. He motioned for her to enter, then returned to his call. More than once he tried to interrupt Francesca before finally seizing the moment. He ended the call and checked the machine, seemingly satisfied that it had enough paper and was otherwise ready.
He turned to Jill. “Francesca signed the contract and is faxing two copies to me. I’ll have to do the same and send a copy back to her. It shouldn’t take long.”
Clay looked relieved. For that, Jill thanked God who had made the impossible possible after all. “I’m happy for you.”
The phone on her father’s fax machine rang, followed by a few coded tones. As the first sheet of paper began to print, he checked to make sure the printing was proceeding as it should.
While Clay tended to business, Jill soaked in the fascinating details of her father’s study. Decidedly a man’s room, but warm and welcoming with walls, floors, fireplace mantle, and cabinets all in various kinds of polished wood. She recognized oak, walnut, cherry, and maple. German proverbs had been beautifully scrolled high on each wall. Her limited knowledge of the language enabled her to translate one: A feeling heart suffers pain.
How true. Hearts in pain filled this house. Hers included.
Clay turned from the noisy machine. “I’m sorry this is taking longer than I expected.”
“No problem. I’m going to check out Lillie’s conservatory and stopped to see if you wanted to join me. We can’t wait for something to prove Alice’s theory. It’s time we search for those answers, find that proof we need—if it exists.”
He glanced at the machine. “As soon as I finish here, I’m with you. Will you wait, or should I meet you when I’m done?”
“Meet me there.”
He grinned in that way of his that made it seem they were the only two people in the world.
Jill hurried through the dining room to the conservatory, glad no one else was using this part of the house. It shouldn’t take long to check the variety of plants her sister grew. Not that she believed Lillie would use her beloved plants to hurt their father. They were so close to the kitchen, anyone could access them. She glanced at the pantry door and pulled her phone from her pants pocket to use the camera feature.
As she entered her sister’s plant sanctuary, Lillie peeked up at her f
rom the far side of the Star of Bethlehem. Jill turned the phone off and slipped it into her pocket.
Her sister grinned sweetly and set down a watering pot. She wiped her gloved hands on her gardening apron and came into full view. “Can I help you with anything?”
“I hope you don’t mind. I came to see your plants. They’re all so beautiful. How do you do it?”
Lillie beamed. “Lots of loving care. They are my friends, after all, so I talk to them and try to make them feel as much at home as possible. Just the right light, water, fertilizer. I’m sorry Grandmother interrupted us the last time. Before I could introduce you. Would you like to meet them now?”
Jill stilled as she observed this side of Lillie she had not experienced before. A little strange, but not enough to suspect her sister might suffer a mental incapacity. Perhaps Lillie was simply a lonely soul who took comfort in her plants.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt your work, but I’d love to meet them if you have the time.”
Lillie stripped off her gardening gloves and set them aside, then held out a hand to Jill. “My friends always enjoy visitors who appreciate them.”
Lillie’s hand was cold to the touch but warmed as Jill followed her to the first introduction.
“This is Star. But of course, you know because you brought her to me.” Lillie leaned over the plant with its profusion of tiny white star-shaped flowers. “Star says thank you. She loves her new home.”
Her plants talk to her? A bit taken aback yet not wanting to offend her sister, Jill put on what she hoped was a pleasant face and spoke to the plant. “I’m happy to hear that, Star.”
Lillie moved to Star’s immediate neighbor. “And this is Holly. She’s a bit prickly until you get to know her, but she does have such lovely, shiny leaves, doesn’t she?”
“Indeed.” The plant displayed an abundance of such leaves.
“Oh, and this is my Angel.”
“What gorgeous red flowers.” Astounding, really. But not sure how Lillie would react, Jill did not attempt to touch the flowers.
Lillie grinned. “She’s a red angel trumpet and very proud of her blossoms. You’ve made a friend, Jill. Be careful though. She’s a bit jealous of our Rose here.”