This afternoon Aaron had asked Henry and his family to meet at Sycamore House. When Betty and Dick arrived, Aaron explained that Loren's death could not be attributed to Lois Wexler. She had admitted to murders around the state and to trying to kill Ralph Bedford, but she had no idea who Loren Sturtz was. He was prone to believe her, especially since the bullet they'd recovered from Loren's body was not the same caliber as those used during the rest of her killing spree.
"Do you have any idea who might have done this then?" Betty had asked. "Are we in any danger?"
"I don't know," Aaron had replied. "We have no leads right now. You've told us everything you know ..."
"And that's not much," she said. "The old buzzard didn't want us around at all."
"He used his shotgun to scare me off the land once," Bill Sturtz said. "You did find that gun, didn't you? Just to be sure the man didn't kill himself with it?"
"Yes, we have that. It wasn't what was used to kill him," Aaron said. "I just wanted to let you know where we're at."
"Is that because you haven't let Polly loose on the case yet?" Bill asked, grinning across the table at his daughter-in-law.
Aaron looked over his glasses at the older man. "Don't you get her going. It's bad enough that she gets involved in solving these things on her own. She doesn't need encouragement from you."
"I'm right here," Polly said. "Sitting right here. It's not like I ..."
"Don't even," Henry interrupted. "You were the one who was hell-bent on getting to Ralph Bedford's house and then to Russ Gourley's. At least I was with you when the psycho murderer showed up."
"Whatever. I don't have any good ideas about this anyway. I was perfectly fine with it being the same person who was killing older men around the state. That would have wrapped things up quite nicely. Now people are going to worry." She reached over and put her hand on top of Henry's.
"I'd really appreciate it if you didn't think any more about it, Polly Giller." Aaron had given her a glare. "You don't have any idea what my life was like this week after Lydia heard about you caught in gunfire at the hotel."
"Oh, I had lunch with her on Wednesday. She was just fine." Polly looked for support from Marie Sturtz. "Wasn't she?"
Marie just nodded and smiled. "You do keep our hearts pumping, Polly."
"I didn't know she'd be in that hotel room," Polly protested. "How could I have known that?"
Henry's Aunt Betty laughed at them. "I think it's a good thing that this family has a spitfire running around causing trouble. We were getting too comfortable and set in our ways. I, for one, am glad you make Henry's life exciting."
"You're not helping, Aunt Betty," Henry said.
"Of course I am. Any time you need someone to give you support, just call me, Polly. I'll tell this stick in the mud to get over himself."
Polly laughed and Aaron had finally stood to leave. "I know that you all probably had better things to do this afternoon, but I wanted to tell everyone at the same time that we weren't any further along on the case than we were last week. Stu Decker would have been here today, but he's busy working with departments around the state, trying to coordinate everything with Lois Wexler's arrest. I may not be able to keep him after this case. He's going to be quite a hot commodity."
He walked to the door of the conference room, "Thank you for coming, and I am truly sorry for your loss. If you think of anything else or want to talk about this, feel free to contact me."
"We really like your hired man," Betty said to Polly after Aaron left. Eliseo had actually moved into Loren's house yesterday. They hadn't cleared Loren's things out, but Eliseo was so ready to get out of the little house in the middle of town, he was perfectly amenable to having Henry's family in and out of his new home during the day while he was at work.
"I'm glad. He's going to be happy out there."
"We invited him over for dinner tonight. Dick here thinks he's found a new fishing buddy."
"Don't you be stealing him from me," Polly said.
Betty's husband smiled. "I don't think we can do that. But everyone needs time at a fishing hole and I've got just the place to take him. If he gets tired of people in town, he can hide in the woods and never see a soul."
"Last night he was already working in the yard, gathering up all of that junk that Loren let fall to pieces. If the weather stays nice, he and Dick are going to do a big burn pile this weekend. You won't recognize the place before too long, Henry."
"It's going to take a while to deal with it all," Bill said. "I told him I'd bring the trailer up next week and we could load that metal out. Might even make a few bucks scrapping some of it."
Henry leaned over to Polly and said, "It's not enough that you are restoring Bellingwood, now you're sending your minions out into the country to start restoring things there."
"You give me more credit than I'm due," she said. "Stop it."
"I'm just glad that old house is going to get some tender loving care," Betty said. "At least I can finally get my hands on mother's things. There are a few antiques in there that she had had marked for you to have, Marie, and one or two that I'd hoped to share with my kids. I'd pretty much given up on it all, though. It will be nice to rescue them before they've completely fallen apart."
She had looked up and around the table. "It sounds like I'm glad he's gone." Betty's eyes filled. "I miss my brother, but I lost him a long time ago. This poor man wasn't the boy we grew up with, was he, Bill?"
Her brother had given her a warm smile. "No he wasn't. It's too bad our kids will never know the playful prankster you and I knew. And you're right, it will be good to get into Mother's home and rediscover her treasures." He touched his wife's arm and stood. "Henry, Monday starts another busy week. I think we should take the rest of the afternoon off and relax before the real world takes over again. Marie and I are going to take a little vacation this weekend. It's surprising how much I miss her when I'm not hovering around the house all day. We're packed and ready to go. Don't bother me until Sunday night, okay?"
Henry gave his father a surprised look and stood to shake his hand, "Okay then. I'll leave you alone until you come home. You are coming back, right?"
"Just as soon as I remind your mama why she married me."
Marie stood up as well and swatted her husband's shoulder. "You old reprobate. We're going to the gardens in Ames this afternoon and then heading over to Decorah and maybe Dubuque tomorrow and Sunday. We'll stay in touch."
Betty and Dick followed them out, leaving Henry and Polly alone.
"We're going to be like that when we get older, aren't we?" she asked.
"Oh lord, I hope not," he said. "They're just embarrassing."
"I like it."
"I'm going to be too busy keeping you alive to act like an old reprobate," Henry said. "But I like the idea of taking the rest of the afternoon off."
They hadn't ended up taking any time off. Since Eliseo had moved out of his little rental home, Polly had ridden over with Amanda Bowen to clean it while Henry and Ben packed up the few belongings the couple had left. They got them moved in and settled and then gone home.
Jessie had offered to help Sylvie and Rachel prepare for the wedding rehearsal dinner that was being held in the auditorium and then had agreed to spend the evening with Rebecca and Andrew. Sarah and Polly had gone to Boone yesterday for another chemotherapy treatment and the poor woman was absolutely worn out. Rebecca checked on her regularly, but Sarah was just as glad to have her daughter spend time upstairs.
Eliseo and Jason had driven to Ames to see Ralph Bedford every afternoon this week. He'd finally come awake on Wednesday, much to Eliseo's relief. He would be transferring to a rehabilitation center before he was able to return home. More than anything, he was mad as a wet hen that he'd been caught off guard by a pretty little girl. He identified Lois Wexler as the person who had shot him and was glad to find out that she'd been caught. Eliseo told Polly that when Stu asked if he would be willing to testify, Ralph managed
to come fully alert, as if the morphine that filled his body wasn't even there. His eyes had been as clear as ever when he promised to do whatever it took to put that little hussy in her place.
~~~
Polly pulled into the parking lot at Davey's and Henry asked, "When are Joss and Nate supposed to come home?"
"Sometime this weekend. I talked to her last night. She's ready to be back."
"And she won't tell you about the baby? I can't believe she didn't send pictures."
"It's the weirdest thing," Polly said. "She won't tell me anything. I don't know if it's a girl or a boy or even what hair color the child has. Nothing. She keeps telling me that since they were surprised, I should be too."
"Okay," he said. "That's weird, though. Right?"
"I think so."
They were meeting Mark and Sal for dinner. Sal was flying to Boston on Sunday to close down her life and ship it to Bellingwood. She'd given her boss two weeks' notice and he was glad to let her use her vacation.
When they got inside, the hostess smiled and said, "They're already here, waiting for you." She led them into the dining room and Polly looked around to find Sal waving.
"We've got it. Thanks," she said and went on ahead.
"Hey sweetie." Sal jumped up and met Polly with a hug. "We ordered appetizers and a couple bottles of wine. Is that okay with you?"
Sal was the person who had taught Polly everything she knew about wine. That was more than okay.
"If you'd rather have a beer ..." Mark began.
"No, wine is good," Henry responded. "We're on vacation this weekend. My dad informed me of that this afternoon."
"Are you doing something special?" Sal asked. "Going away somewhere?"
"No way," Polly said. "We're staying home. I don't want to pack bags, I don't want to find sitters for the animals. I just want to be a slug."
"How is it with Jessie living with you?"
Polly gave Henry a sideways glance. He'd been wonderful about having a houseguest. Jessie wasn't intrusive, but she was always there. "It's been okay. I think that when she gets a job and isn't in the building all the time, it will be better for everyone."
"That poor girl. I thought my mother was tough to get along with," Sal said. "I can't imagine having a mother who didn't care whether you lived in the house or not."
"I had friends whose parents kicked them out of the house when they turned eighteen," Mark said. "The ones I felt terrible for were the kids who hadn't graduated from high school yet."
"That really happened?" Polly was aghast.
"To one of my classmates. It wasn't like they hadn't warned him. So, the day after his birthday, his things were neatly packed up and in the front hallway."
"Where in the world did he go?"
"Another buddy took him in. He lived in their basement until he was done with school and then he got a job and found his own place."
"No support from his parents?"
"As I recall, they paid for his car insurance for the rest of the year and his dad kept him on his health insurance for a while, but that was it."
"That's just so strange," Polly said. "I always knew I was welcome at home."
"Me too," Henry said. Everyone else laughed at him. "What?" he asked, genuinely confused.
"Puh-lease," Polly drew it out. "Your parents moved to Arizona so you could have the business and the house. Of course you knew you were welcome."
"Well, that's not a bad thing, is it?"
"No, it's wonderful, but not very many people get to experience that."
"The only reason my mother wanted me around was so she could control my life," Sal said. "I knew it was going to be safer to never let her have any control."
"And so you move to Iowa, just to make her crazy." Polly was teasing, but she knew there was some truth to it.
"No, I'm moving to Iowa because I couldn't stand living without my very best friend."
Polly and Mark looked across the table at each other. "Which one of us is it?" Polly asked. "You or me?"
"He's my hot lover." Sal leaned into him and ran her fingers up his chest. Then she sat up straight and wrinkled her nose. "Who comes home some nights smelling like horrible things." She waggled her well-manicured fingers and said. "These poor hands have done more laundry these last two weeks. I'm going to keep Nanette at the salon very busy."
"What are you looking at?" Polly asked, about to turn around. Both Mark and Sal had been watching the front door.
"Nothing," Sal said. "Oh, by the way. Maybe Jessie should go up to the salon and ask for an application. I saw on the door that they were hiring. I don't know what the job is, but it might be something."
"I'll tell her. Thanks. I wish I had something for her to do, but the only job I have available right now is running Sycamore Inn and I don't think she's ready for that. And besides, it isn't even really open yet."
"Just remember she's not a little girl," Sal said. "She's trying to live as an adult and you have to make sure you treat her that way."
Polly dropped her head. "I know you're right. It's hard not to see her as broken after all she's been through. I just wanted to give her this week to be anything she wanted to be with no pressure."
"I know you'll figure it out. I didn't mean to imply you would do something wrong."
"No, you're right."
There was some scuffling behind them and Polly turned around. Then she gasped and pushed her chair back.
"You're here! With the baby! Where's Nate?"
Joss was carrying a car seat and Henry jumped up to let her sit in his chair.
"He's right behind me."
"Let me see the baby," Polly said.
Before Joss pulled the blanket back, Polly saw Nate walk in carrying another car seat.
"What?" Tears began to spurt from her eyes. "Is this why you wouldn't tell me anything? You got twins?" Polly grabbed her friend into her arms and started to sob as she hugged her. "You have two babies? How did this happen? Why didn't you tell me?"
Nate had joined them and everyone shifted around the table to make room. Polly had wondered why there were extra chairs, but didn't think more of it after the initial thought flitted through her brain.
"Did you know about this?" she asked Sal.
"Maybe," Sal replied.
"We got home this morning and called Sal so that we could surprise you tonight," Joss said.
"I couldn't figure out why you were taking so long to come home. It's been five days! And I really couldn't figure out why you wouldn't tell me anything about the baby. The babies! Show me!"
Joss unbuckled one baby while Nate took the other out of her seat. Then he proudly said, "We'd like you to meet Cooper Oliver and Sophia Harper Mikkels."
"I'm not going to squeal," Polly said. "But I want to. They're beautiful!"
She reached over to touch the milk-chocolate cheek of the little boy in his mother's arms. She stroked his dark, black hair and couldn't help herself. Before she knew what had happened, a small coo had come out of her mouth. "Dear heavens, they're beautiful!"
Little Sophia opened her eyes and Polly was struck by the deep set beauty of them and the sharp lines of her little face.
"Do you want to hold her?" Nate asked.
"No, not yet. I just want to look at her. When did you know that you were getting twins?"
"I knew when I called you on Monday," Joss said. "But I couldn't say anything. At least not until we knew for sure that they were ours. And then I couldn't tell you on the phone because I wanted to surprise you with them. Are you mad at me?"
"How could I possibly be mad?"
Polly had lost her index finger to Sophia Harper's tiny little hand. "Look what she's done!" Polly exclaimed. "Her fingers are so tiny and they're wrapped around mine."
"Sal? Would you like to hold Cooper?" Joss asked.
Sal backed her chair up, stopping before she ran into the wall. "No, that's okay. I'll admire from afar. Babies and I have never been real friendly."
> Mark looked at her. "I come from a big family. I hope you're not telling me it ends here."
"No, I'm not saying anything like that. But until I absolutely have to, I'm not ready to hold babies."
"This really is the wrong crowd, isn't it," Joss said, laughing.
"No. This is just perfect," Polly replied. She took her finger back and said, "Okay. If you stay really close and put the baby in my arms very carefully, I want to hold her."
Nate waited until Polly had settled herself in the chair and then placed his daughter in her arms. Polly looked down at the sweet face staring back at her.
"You know Sophia is Greek for wisdom, right?" she asked, looking up at Joss.
Joss nodded. "As soon as we saw her, we knew that would be her name. And do you know where we got her middle name?"
"No." Polly shook her head.
"In your favorite series, the Harper is the one who sings the stories that brings all of the clans together."
"McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern stories?" Polly asked.
"Yes. It seemed like the perfect middle name. She's wise and will have plenty of stories to tell."
"And Cooper Oliver?" Henry asked.
"That was my choice," Nate said. "I'm raising someone who loves food and wine. A cooper builds barrels ... like wine barrels. And Oliver comes from those who deal in olives. I thought that those two names would give him a strong foundation for feeding the world."
"That's great," Mark said. "Did any of our parents spend that much time on our names?"
Henry laughed. "No. My name came from one of my father's relatives. They couldn't have chosen a more boring name."
"Mine too," Mark replied, laughing. "What about you, Polly?"
"Mom loved the Pollyanna books. Dad wouldn't let her use the full name. Thank goodness." She looked down at the bundle in her arms. "Oh, Joss. How can you help but fall in love with this child?"
"We did the minute we met them. I'm glad to finally be home, though. I couldn't wait to have them in our own house and quit worrying about whether or not some nurse was hanging over my shoulder checking my technique when I changed a diaper or fed them."
Tomorrow's Promises (Bellingwood Book 7) Page 26