by Fiona Grace
“And that’s not legal. Your neighbor reported that you might be harboring a wild animal.”
My neighbor. Nessa, of course. She’d wormed her way right into Officer Ricci’s heart. What other lies had she been feeding him? “Yes, but I’m a veterinarian and—”
“Do you have a license?”
Well, he had her there. She shook her head.
He rubbed his temple tiredly. “All right. I’ll pretend I never saw you if you turn around right now and go back home. And if you release that animal out into the wild immediately. You understand?”
She did. She knew she had to. She nodded, but Nick, not understanding any of this, wormed his way under her arm and sat in her lap, panting like her pet. How adorable. Her heart twisted.
But Officer Ricci clearly wasn’t under the same spell. “Audrey? Are you listening?”
She sighed. “Yes. Fine. Thank you, Officer. I appreciate your help.” She stared ahead, into the wide, open valley, which was now completely off-limits to her. It was like she’d trekked a thousand miles only to have the door or her destination slammed in her face.
Somewhere out there was Mariana Fabri. A possible murderer.
Somewhere out there were answers. She was sure of it.
“You know,” she blurted suddenly, still unable to take her eyes off the road she so desperately wanted to travel. “Ernesto Fabri, the foreman, had a wife, supposedly, who he refused to divorce. She hated him for that reason. So if there was any, I don’t know, life insurance on him, she’d be a rich woman.”
He stared at her, his mouth a straight line.
“Just some food for thought!” she said brightly. It didn’t hurt to plant the seed. “I’m sure you’ve heard of plenty of disgruntled wives staging their husbands’ deaths by making it look like an on-the-job accident? Especially for the insurance money?”
“Audrey,” he mumbled, shaking his head. “Detective DiNardo and I have already investigated Mariana Fabri.”
She stiffened and slinked into the seat. Well, she hadn’t expected that little turn of events. “You have?”
“Yes. We went out there yesterday. The woman’s clean. She’d had a dinner party the night before, and over a dozen people saw her at her home the following morning. There’s no possible way she could’ve done it.”
Audrey just stared, speechless. If Mariana Fabri hadn’t done it, then …
Then that meant she was right back at square one.
He pointed. “If you make a U here, keep following this road, you’ll wind up at the center of town,” he said, which of course, she already knew.
“Thanks,” she muttered.
But what she really thought was, I am never going to be allowed to leave this town again.
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
Mason was outside, installing a new light fixture on the front stoop, when she returned, no more than thirty minutes after she’d embarked on her name-clearing journey. When she pulled the car to a grinding halt outside his house, he eyed her, his swimming-pool blue eyes wide with concern, which almost made her feel better.
Until she stepped out of the little car, came around it, and realized he hadn’t been looking at her. No, he was more concerned about the stupid car. He reached over and wiped some imaginary dust off the Fiat’s side mirror.
“Watch it, girl. Who taught you how to drive a stick?”
She sighed and held out the keys. “Some random guy, kind of like you.”
He opened his palm, and she dropped them in. He immediately opened the passenger side door and looked around, sat inside, then actually petted the dashboard.
“It was a big bust. Thanks for asking,” she muttered, heading for her house. “Come on, Nick.”
“Hey, wait—” He stopped short. “Who’s …”
Just then, Nick scampered from the back seat, onto his lap, and hopped out the door. Mason let out an almost girlish shriek.
“What the … was that thing in my car?”
“Yep.” Right now, she had more important things to worry about than offending pretty boy.
He let out a groan. “Frig. There’s hair everywhere. And little freaking paw prints!”
She whirled on him. “Listen, you car-obsessed freak. I’m a little busy dealing with other things now, so pardon me if I don’t offer to vacuum your upholstery.”
She wasn’t expecting the effect her words had on him. He actually took a step backward, like he might be scared of her. Maybe she didn’t know her own strength.
He shrugged and slammed the door. “I’m not obsessed. I just bought the dang thing. It’s not new, but it’s new to me, and I’d like it to stay that way.”
She sighed. She understood, in a strange way. She’d felt very protective of her own little house when Nessa tore into the homes in this area, calling them trash. “I’m sorry. I’m just a tad on edge right now.”
He was staring at the fox, who was now trying to wrap himself around his leg, like a cat. He shook it off a little. “I thought you got rid of this thing.”
“No. I have to. I mean, I will. Soon.” She bit her tongue at the very thought.
“So why’d you come back? You get lost?”
Audrey tilted her head at him. “No. I basically got stopped at the border by the police and told to turn around.”
“Seriously?” His mouth hung open. “They’re throwing up roadblocks for little ol’ you?”
“I guess.”
“So you didn’t get to talk to the wife.”
“Supposedly, they already did. And she’s clear. Anyway, I can’t leave here until someone figures out whoever killed the foreman,” she said, patting her thigh. “Come on, Nick. Let’s go to prison, I mean, home.”
She cringed as the word left her mouth. Home. Well, it’s my home, but it won’t be home for you, Nick, much longer. Oblivious, he scampered into her arms like a well-trained house pet and licked the side of her face.
Mason eyed the thing with disgust. “Like I told you, girl. Just let the police handle the thing. They got a hold on it. I’m sure.”
She cast him a doubtful look.
“Look, don’t go accusing them of not being able to find their backsides with both hands. They got this. Sounds like they’re doing everything right. What more do you want from them?”
She scowled at him. But maybe he was right. After all, they were right on her tail when she tried to leave town. They’d already investigated Fabri’s wife. Maybe she just needed to concentrate on her renovations and forget about it.
If only it were that easy.
She walked home silently, thinking, with Nick following faithfully at her heels. It was hard to think of anything else with everyone looking at her like she was guilty. It almost made her feel guilty. And every time Nick made a sound behind her, she only felt guiltier.
When she got home, she noticed the windows were wide open in Nessa’s house, the curtains blowing in the breeze. Classical music wafted out. Audrey peered inside. Despite the order to cease renovations, Nessa was going full-bore with her internal décor—an entire wall inside had been painted in a peach and white checkerboard pattern, and there was shiplap everywhere. So chic.
Audrey was glad that despite the open windows, Nessa was nowhere in sight.
She quickly and silently slipped inside her own house and looked around. After seeing all the beauty across the street, and the bad day she’d had, her own place only seemed worse than she remembered.
Yes, take a page from Nessa’s playbook. Press on with the renovations.
The first thing she did when she got inside was grab another apple, since she was starving. She finished it while Nick attacked the kibble in the soup bowl she’d left near his little nest in the corner of the kitchen. As he did, she wondered if there was a way around Officer Ricci’s “no wild animals” edict. After all, Nick pretty much came and went as he pleased. This wasn’t much different from leaving food outside for a stray, was it?
Besides, as she looked at his little paw, she could see t
he scar from the fence. The bandage was long gone, but the wound was still there. He was still injured.
She couldn’t just throw him out. That wouldn’t be fair. It wouldn’t be humane.
Forget about that now. Concentrate on the renovations.
Tossing the apple core in the trash, she crouched in front of the latest delivery she’d gotten from the hardware store—a railing for the staircase. Yes, the staircase was narrow, but it was also very steep, so while a small railing would impinge on the precious little real estate in the hallway, it would also probably save a few necks from breaking. A definite plus.
She grabbed her cordless drill from the toolbox and made quick work of fastening the brackets to the wall that would hold the slim iron railing up. Then she drilled in the screws to attach the iron to the brackets. This was the stuff she was great at. Her father used to call her the Drillmaster.
She smiled as she finished a half hour later, realizing that yes, making herself busy had actually helped. She hadn’t thought about the murder, hardly at all.
She placed her drill back into the toolbox as Nick wandered into the stairwell to see what she was up to. “See?” she said to him. “Small changes, little by little … we’ll make this house a home in no time.”
Stooping over, she jiggled the railing to make sure it was steady.
And it—and half of the plaster on the wall—came off in her hands.
Partly because it was so heavy, and partly because she hadn’t expected it, the thing hit the stairs with a terrific crash and slid the rest of the way down the stairwell, filling the narrow space with such a massive amount of dust that Audrey couldn’t see a thing. All she heard was Nick, letting out a snarl as he dove out of the way of the sliding railing.
When the dust cleared, not only did she not have a railing, but there were also three massive holes in the wall.
She wanted to cry.
Instead, she laughed.
She laughed so long, and so hard, that she sounded insane, even to herself.
She hadn’t checked her bank account in days, but she knew for sure it was under a thousand dollars. This new repair would only siphon more money away. When she’d moved here, she’d hoped she would’ve been able to get her license by now and start vet work. Now, that seemed like an eternity away.
For the first time in a while, she thought of the Brit she’d run into at La Mela Verde. He’d been at the end of his rope, too. Maybe he’d packed it in. Maybe he was already back in London, where things made sense.
She hadn’t thought about giving up in days. But now, the overreaching feeling came and planted itself, hard, in her head: Maybe she should be back in Boston, too.
Wiping plaster dust from her face and hair, she left the railing where it’d come to rest and climbed the stairs to her bedroom. Throwing herself on the unmade bed, she grabbed her phone and stared at the display, wanting desperately to have a lifeline to back home.
And miraculously, there it was.
She’d have preferred Brina, but she did get someone in Boston. There were three calls from Back Bay Animal Care, and one voicemail.
She frowned. What did they want? Probably to figure out whether she planned on continuing her benefits or something. She pressed the voicemail link and held the phone to her ear.
“Hi, there, Dr. Smart. It’s Dr. Carey. I hope you’re doing well,” the voicemail said, and was it her imagination or did her former supervisor sound ridiculously apologetic? “I’ve been in discussions with the Board of Directors about finding your replacement and we’ve come to the conclusion that we’d be remiss in not contacting you and giving you the option to return.”
Audrey sat up straight, clutching the phone hard to her ear.
“Our hopes are that you made the decision rather quickly and that perhaps upon further thought you may have changed your mind. If so, well, why don’t you give me a call to discuss this? I’ll be in the office all day. Hope everything is well with you.”
Now, that was interesting.
She could have her old job back. It wasn’t gone for good. All she needed to do was step on a plane heading west. She could be back in Boston, a veterinarian, treating real patients, in no time.
A little thrill went through her at the thought.
Then she remembered the little stand-off she’d had with Officer Ricci at the Mussomeli city limits.
Still, the second she was cleared to leave … she could, and a job would be waiting for her.
Settling down among her pillows, Audrey returned the call. She got one of the receptionists. “Hi, Mindy. It’s Audrey Smart. I’m returning Dr. Carey’s call.”
“Oh, Dr. Smart! Yes, Dr. Carey was anxious to speak with you. I’ll patch you right in.”
Barely a second later, the phone clicked and Dr. Carey’s no-nonsense voice came through, this time tinged with concern. “Audrey?”
“Yes, hi, Dr. Carey. How are you?”
“I’m fine. We’re all fine here. Well, we’re a little short-staffed, but we have our health.”
“Short-staffed?”
“Oh. You didn’t hear? Unfortunately Dr. Watts announced his departure. He and one of the techs ran off together, apparently, without any prior notice.”
Audrey’s eyes bulged. “And … Dr. Ferris?”
“He’s fine. Obviously a little overworked, since we haven’t been able to replace your position yet.”
Serves him right, she thought bitterly. “I’m sorry to hear that. I wish I could help you, but I’m sure you haven’t heard, I’m in—”
“Sicily. We know.”
She blinked. “You do?”
“I wanted to do this in person, so I visited your apartment. Your landlord informed me that you’d gone overseas.” She laughed a little, a sound that Audrey wasn’t quite used to hearing. “But that’s what airplanes are for, right? And rather than going through a drawn-out process of trying to hire another doctor whose work we’re not familiar with, we thought it made sense to do our due diligence and see if you would be amenable to perhaps returning, if your situation and perspective had changed at all.”
“Oh. Wow.” That wasn’t the smooth, diplomatic response she’d wanted to give, but she couldn’t help it. Her mouth was hanging open. “I want you to know, I didn’t make the decision on the spur of the moment. It was a long time coming, something that had been brewing to a head over many months of—”
“I understand. I wish you’d have voiced your dissatisfaction to me sooner. I could’ve nipped whatever problems you were having in the bud.”
“One of the problems is still there. Dr. Ferris. He’s …” A big, total jerkface. “Not exactly easy to get along with.”
“Oh, you don’t think I know that?” Now, she really laughed, which was crazy. Dr. Carey was talking to Audrey like a friend, not a supervisor. It felt like a bond was being forged, even across all those miles separating them. “I have to field complaints almost weekly from techs who claim they’d been treated as second-class citizens by him. He’s a prima donna. And Dr. Watts was a sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen. In fact, you were the only doctor I could rely on who didn’t have that excess baggage. You were solid, Audrey. Very solid.”
“Really?” She’d never been this comfortable with Dr. Carey. In fact, she might have even used her first name, if she’d known it. “Um, well, thanks.”
“So that’s why—and I’m sorry it’s taken a while but I’ve just cleared it with the board—the clinic is prepared to offer you a raise of twenty thousand dollars a year.”
Audrey’s eyes bulged. Was she talking to the right Dr. Smart?
“Oh,” was all she could get out, for the longest time. “That’s generous.”
“Yes, I thought you’d be pleased. And we will be replacing Dr. Watts with a small animal specialist so we wouldn’t expect you to take on any extra shifts.”
She nodded. It sounded so good. That extra money in her paycheck would mean the difference between that cruddy apartm
ent in Southie and a nice place, right there in the Back Bay. Plus, she and Dr. Carey had mutual respect, solidarity, an understanding, now. And she’d be back home, where things made sense.
If only she didn’t have to worry about Officer Ricci following her to the airport. How would she ever get away?
“Um … I wonder if I could have a few days to think it over?” she asked. Or a few days to see if I’m finally cleared to leave town?
“Oh, of course. But please, I can’t give you more than forty-eight hours. I meet with the board in two days and I have to give them your decision. All right?”
That was cutting it close. But she didn’t have a choice. “Yes. Thank you.”
“All right, thanks, Audrey. Have a good day.”
Dr. Carey ended the call, leaving Audrey lying in her bed, looking up at the water-stained ceiling, completely immobile.
Maybe this was a sign?
When she finally picked her jaw up off the floor, she called Brina.
Brina answered and snapped, “Well, it’s about time.”
True, back in Boston, Audrey was in the habit of calling her sister almost every day. But it hadn’t been an eternity since they last spoke, just a few days. But so much had happened in those days. “Do you think you could send me some money?”
“Really? You drop off the face of the earth and then you tell me you need money?”
“Brina. Everything has been way more expensive than I expected. I only have a thousand dollars left in my account. I thought I’d be able to get my license by now and start doing house calls, but I’ve run into a few roadblocks.”
“Fine. I’ll send you a thousand bucks. Now, no apologies for disappearing? I thought I’d see your face on a milk carton.”
“Sorry. I’ve been busy.”
“Doing what?”
“Oh, getting accused of a murder, trying to clear my name. Fun stuff like that.”
A pause. “Very funny.”
“I’m not joking. A guy across the street fell off a cliff. I found the body. So I’m a suspect.”
“Oh my god! Are you serious? That’s terrible.” A pause. “Wait … is this the guy from the construction site that was making all that noise the other day?”