Dearly Departed

by Tristi Pinkston

  “What was Beverly’s last name again?” Arlette asked. “Bird?”

  “Partridge. It’s an unusual name, so there shouldn’t be a problem finding it.”

  Arlette nodded.

  “Take the file and come back out through the glass doors. I don’t know how we’ll get the file back in there, but I don’t imagine they’ll need it quite yet, since the paperwork for the privacy notice probably hasn’t gone through. We’ll need to be quick, but I think we’ll have a window of opportunity.”

  “Or a sliding glass door of opportunity.” Tansy smirked. “When do we start?”

  “Right now. The sooner the better,” Ida Mae said.

  Arlette made her way down to the courtyard, and Ida Mae and Tansy moseyed over to the other side of the building where the doctor’s office was located. They hung around for a few minutes until a resident left, and then, before the nurse had the chance to usher in the next appointment, Tansy started to scream.

  “Ida Mae! Ida Mae! Are you all right?”

  This was a little extreme, but it could work. Ida Mae pressed her hand to her forehead, closing her eyes.

  “What’s the matter?” the nurse asked, coming out the doorway and into the hall. “Oh, my! Doctor, come quick!”

  Ida Mae kept her eyes closed as Dr. Wilson crouched next to the chair and poked and prodded her. “Get me a blood pressure cuff,” came the command, and one was provided and used.

  “I feel a little woozy,” Ida Mae said, trying to sound disoriented.

  Dr. Wilson checked her heartbeat with a stethoscope. Ida Mae didn’t know how much time Arlette would need, but if she kept up the pretense much longer, they’d be calling an ambulance.

  Ida Mae opened her eyes wide and looked around. “What happened?”

  “I think you swooned,” Tansy said. “Did she swoon, Doctor?”

  Dr. Wilson leaned back on her heels. “Probably. Ida Mae, did you have breakfast this morning?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “And how are you feeling right now?”

  “Warm.” Ida Mae raised her hand and made a feeble fanning motion. “I feel . . . very warm.”

  “The temperature is supposed to hit a hundred today,” the nurse said. “I’ve been overheated myself.”

  “I think we should take you back to your room and get you cooled off,” Dr. Wilson said. “Nurse, would you please ask the other patients to wait a few minutes?”

  Dr. Wilson pushed Ida Mae’s chair to her room and helped her get situated on the bed. “Let’s hook this fan up,” the doctor suggested, pulling one out of the closet and plugging it in. “How’s that?”

  Truth be told, Ida Mae was getting cold, but she pretended to feel relief. “That’s much better,” she said, putting a weak note in her voice.

  “Are you her friend?” Dr. Wilson asked Tansy.

  “I’m her very best friend,” Tansy said. “In the world.”

  “Will you stay here with her a little bit and make sure she’s cool enough? And get her some liquids. I’ll send someone up with ice, and Gatorade for electrolytes. And I’ll be back up to see her again in about an hour, after she’s cooled down. You call if she starts to feel faint again. Can you do that for me?”

  “Of course.”

  Dr. Wilson scribbled something on a card and handed it to Tansy. “This is my pager number. If she starts to feel woozy, page me right away. Otherwise, I’ll be back in one hour.”

  “I’ll take good care of her,” Tansy promised.

  As soon as the door shut behind the doctor, Ida Mae sat up. “Where’s Arlette?”

  Tansy walked over and opened the door, then cautiously stuck her head out and looked left and right. A nurse brought up the ice and Gatorade, and Tansy thanked her, then returned to her vigil. “Here she comes,” she said a moment later.

  Arlette entered the room, clutching a file under her arm. “I’ll never do that again. I could feel my heart almost coming out of my chest the whole time.”

  “We’ll have to figure out a way to return the file,” Ida Mae said.

  “Return the file?” Arlette sounded aghast. “You’re right—we’ll have to. But how?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll think of something.” The three women gathered around and studied the medical charts and notes as Arlette pulled them out of the folder and spread them on the bed.

  “I wish I understood some of these medical terms,” Ida Mae said a moment later. “I get the basic idea, but the details are escaping me.”

  “From what I can tell, she’s always been in pretty good physical health,” Arlette said. “I don’t see any notations about a wheelchair or a walker, and all these reports are pretty glowing, from a physical standpoint. Look, here she was sent over to see Dr. Greene.”

  “Oh, please don’t tell me we have to break into Dr. Greene’s files,” Ida Mae said. “If I pretend to swoon again, they’ll ship me off to the hospital.”

  “Wait.” Arlette flipped the pages around. “Here’s a copy of Dr. Greene’s report.”

  “Thank goodness.”

  They read the file front to back, then back to front. “I don’t see one thing in here about her heart,” Tansy said.

  “Her blood pressure looked good, no history of heart disease in her family . . . I just don’t get it,” Ida Mae said. “How could she have died from heart failure?”

  “Those things do sneak up on a person,” Arlette pointed out.

  “And sometimes, a death is made to look like it was caused by a heart problem,” Ida Mae said. “I’m willing to bet that’s what happened here.”

  “One more thing,” Arlette asked. “Did either of you see any notes about paranoia? I didn’t.”

  “Nothing,” Tansy said.

  Ida Mae nodded. “I think Beverly was telling the truth when she said someone was out to get her. I’ve always been inclined to believe her, but this chart just confirms it for me.”

  Arlette gathered up the sheets of paper. “I want you to be careful, Ida Mae. You’re here by yourself several hours a day, and I don’t want you to stumble onto something even more dangerous.”

  “Stumbling would be the best way to describe it,” Ida Mae said. “Who knows when I’ll be walking again?”

  “We do have a problem.” Tansy glanced at her watch. “Your doctor will be coming soon, and we’ve got to get this file back in place.”

  “The timing couldn’t be better,” Ida Mae said. “Arlette, the doctor will be out of the office while she’s up here with me. You could just slip in and replace that file quick as a wink, and no one would know.”

  Arlette shook her head. “I don’t know why I do these things for you, Ida Mae. Breaking the law, running around like a criminal—it’s more than a person should be asked to do.”

  Ida Mae didn’t respond. She knew Arlette would come around, given a couple of seconds.

  “Oh, all right. But if I get caught . . .”

  “If you get caught, I’ll make it up to you,” Ida Mae promised.

  “How can you make up something like jail? That would take more than a pan of brownies, Ida Mae.”

  “But there wouldn’t be any jail,” Tansy pointed out. “You could just pretend to be lost and confused. It works for me all the time.”

  “You’d better go,” Ida Mae said. “The doctor will be back here any minute.”

  Arlette slipped out the door, and Tansy helped Ida Mae lie back down. “How do I look?” Ida Mae asked.

  Tansy considered. “A little pale, but much better than you did an hour ago.”

  “Good. That’s what I want. And we should probably have my dinner sent up here too, to complete the picture.”

  Tansy placed a call to the kitchen and requested the meal to be delivered. Within moments, the doctor arrived.

  “How are you?” Dr. Wilson asked, pulling out her blood pressure cuff. Ida Mae hated how those things felt, but she did appreciate the information they provided.

  “Much, much better,” Ida Mae said. “I th
ink I just got too warm.”

  The doctor nodded when she saw the numbers on the cuff’s gauge. “I think you’ll be fine, but I want you to drink a lot of fluids, all right? And when your friend leaves, let us know, and we’ll have the staff keep an extra-sharp eye on you.”

  “All right,” Ida Mae said, and the doctor left, as efficient as ever.

  “I hope Arlette had enough time,” Tansy said.

  “Well, at least she knew exactly where to put the file. Before, she had to hunt it down.”

  The two sat nervously waiting until Arlette returned, a flush of pink on her cheeks. “That was close,” she announced. “The nurse came in to get something and I had to duck behind the cabinet. Thankfully, she didn’t stay long.”

  “Thank you, Arlette,” Ida Mae said. “I know it wasn’t easy, but we really needed it done.”

  “I suppose you’re welcome, although I now know what my medical chart is going to say about me down the road,” Arlette grumbled. “My heart aged a hundred years just this afternoon, and we all know it wasn’t very young to begin with.”

  “It was for a good cause. I think we’re finally getting some concrete information about Beverly.”

  “But nothing solid enough to take to the police,” Tansy sighed. “Why is that always our luck?”

  “I don’t think I’d call it luck,” Arlette said. “I’d call it destiny.” She looked at the clock. “Tansy, hadn’t you best be getting home to Earl?”

  Tansy stood up with a start. “I didn’t realize it was getting so late. Do you mind, Ida Mae?”

  “Not at all. You go feed that hungry man.”

  “Okay, I’ll be back tomorrow. And thanks for giving us the things out of your freezer. Earl has really enjoyed the chicken casseroles.”

  “You’re welcome,” Ida Mae said. Not once since her arrival at Shady Aspens had anyone tried to serve her a chicken casserole, and that was priceless.

  “I’ll stay with you for a bit,” Arlette said. “It would look strange if all your friends took off so quickly after your little incident.”

  When Ida Mae’s dinner arrived, there were two plates of food. “Dr. Wilson told me you didn’t feel well, and I thought you might still have a friend here with you,” the server explained. “I brought an extra dinner just in case.”

  “Well, if you aren’t the nicest.” Ida Mae just couldn’t believe how kind all the employees had been. “Thank you.”

  “My pleasure.” He arranged their plates on the small table in the room, then said he’d be back later to collect the dishes.

  Arlette sat down to her meal with an amazed look on her face. “This is better than a five-star resort. Why don’t people come here on vacation?”

  “I don’t know, but I think they should,” Ida Mae said. The aroma of the herbed chicken wafted up to her nose like a song from on high. “I start looking forward to the next meal the minute I’m done eating the last one.”

  “I don’t blame you.”

  18

  On Thursday evening, most of the residents of Shady Aspens were loaded onto a bus and taken downtown to see the circus. Ida Mae was excited, even though she hadn’t expected to be. What woman her age got excited to see the circus? Well, apparently, she did.

  As they were wheeled to the front row, George commented, “Isn’t this amazing, Ida Mae? Can’t you just feel it in the air? It’s like Christmas.”

  She nodded. There was something in the air—a tangible sense of anticipation. “When I was a child, I wanted to be a bareback rider,” she said, voicing a dream she hadn’t entertained since she was six. “In a white spangled costume and my hair pulled up with a tiara.”

  “And what would your horse’s name be?” George asked.

  “Sparkles,” Ida Mae responded immediately, then blushed. What kind of fool was she making of herself? George didn’t say anything, but just patted her hand. She guessed he understood.

  The lights went down a few minutes later and she leaned forward, focused entirely on the show. Elephants, tigers, horses, and clowns—all performing just feet away. She guessed being in a wheelchair wasn’t all bad if it meant she got front row seats.

  “I loved being in the circus,” George said in a quiet moment. “There was nothing like it.”

  “How long were you with the show?” Ida Mae asked.

  “Just a year,” George replied. “Then the company hit hard times, and I had to move on.”

  “What about your parents?”

  “They died when I was ten, and I was sent to an orphanage,” George explained. “But I took off when I was fifteen and made my own way in the world.”

  Ida Mae was touched by the simplicity with which he spoke. “I’m sorry to hear that. It must have been hard.”

  “It was,” George said. “But I learned a lot, and I can’t say I’d trade in my experiences for any others. It’s what we take out of life, not what life gives us.”

  “Very true.”

  The next batch of performers made their way into the rings, and all chance for conversation was lost until the end of the show. In fact, all thoughts of anything not circus related fled from Ida Mae’s mind until they were back on the bus, and she wondered why Eden hadn’t gotten back to her with the information on Beverly’s will. Until they had that crucial knowledge, Ida Mae didn’t think they’d be able to move forward with solving this mystery.

  Kevin appeared at the corner of Eden’s cubicle, startling her.

  “Don’t you ever work?” she asked.

  He grinned. “Constantly. All the time. In fact, I’m working right now.”

  “On what?”

  “Employee intercommunication. It’s extremely important. And why don’t you ever come see me in my cubicle? I’m starting to feel like I’m putting all the work into this relationship.”

  She chose to ignore that, not knowing what it meant and not having the time to figure it out. “I’ve got three more obituaries to proof, Kevin. What can I do for you?”

  “I read your book.”

  He had her attention now. She turned from the screen and looked at him, trying to read his facial expression. Should she be afraid—very, very afraid?

  “And?” she prompted after a long moment of silence.

  “I think it’s brilliant,” he said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but it was absolutely brilliant. You took the Gothic genre and created the perfect parody without openly mocking it, but subtly, romantically.”

  She blinked. She hadn’t expected him to get it so completely. “Thanks,” she said.

  “And I’m sorry for teasing you about it. I’m in your corner, one hundred percent.”

  “Thanks,” she said again, feeling like a parrot but unable to tack more words onto her sentence. She didn’t know why Kevin’s approval mattered so much to her, but it did, and she was overwhelmed with relief.

  “I’m hoping someone will be home, since it’s Saturday,” Eden said, parking her car at the house across the street from Dr. Brent’s. “These people can’t be gone all the time, can they?”

  “Some people are,” Kevin said. “Maybe they just come home to sleep and change, and then they’re off again.”

  “I think I see some movement through the window. Let’s go up and see who’s there.”

  Eden rang the bell and counted to twenty. She was about to ring it again when the door opened and a pretty blonde woman, probably about Eden’s age, stepped onto the porch.

  “Hi,” Kevin said. “My name is Kevin Harper, and I’m a reporter for the Salt Lake Sentinel. We’re doing a story on the murder that took place across the street about a week ago, and we wonder if we could ask you some questions.”

  “I’m sorry, I really don’t know anything,” the woman said. “I’m at work almost all the time. Saturday’s my only day off.”

  “You didn’t notice anything unusual at all?” Kevin pressed.

  “I’m sorry, I was at work.” The expression on her face was still friendly, but her voice had taken on
a frosty tone. “I really don’t have anything to tell you.”

  Kevin smiled. “That’s all right, ma’am. We’ll be on our way.”

  He and Eden turned and walked slowly to the car.

  “That was really disappointing,” she said. “I guess we’ve exhausted all our possibilities.”

  “From this angle, yes,” Kevin said. “But we’re not going to give up, are we?”

  “Absolutely not,” Eden replied. “If there’s one thing I never do, it’s give up.”

  “Let’s plan our next move over lunch. I’m starved and I don’t think you’ve eaten, have you?”

  “Nope.”

  “Great. It’s on me.”

  They pulled in to Taco Time, Eden’s craving for a crispy bean burrito having overcome all other possibilities. They carried their trays past the condiment stand, where Eden loaded up on small plastic cups of Ranch dressing. “I’ve got to dunk my burritos,” she explained when Kevin looked at her curiously.

  “You’re kidding me.”

  “Just try it.” They sat down, and Eden pushed a tub of dressing toward Kevin. He dipped the smallest corner of his burrito, the look on his face absolutely priceless. “It’s not going to poison you.”

  He took a bite, and then his eyes popped open. “That’s fabulous. I’ll be right back.”

  He made his way to the condiment bar and came back with two more containers. “You’ve corrupted me.”

  “No, I’ve educated you. It’s totally different.”

  Eden’s phone rang, and she pulled it from her pocket. “It’s Peggy.” She flipped the phone open. “Peggy, thanks for returning my call. Oh, that’s fine. Sometimes I don’t get to my messages for a while either.”

  She listened for a moment, a smile growing on her face. “That’s wonderful, Peggy. And I know Ida Mae will appreciate it.”

  “What was that?” Kevin asked after Eden hung up.

  “Peggy’s brother finally got back in town, and they read the will. All of Beverly’s money went to Peggy.”

  “Does that make her a suspect?”

  “I don’t think so,” Eden said. “She’s the one who asked us to investigate. Would she have done that if the police had been ready to close the case?”