Kate continued talking. “I remember she was pretty pissed when Ada took all the tropical fish out of Rachel’s fish tank and let them go in the creek in Candle Park. Ada said she wanted them to be free. And then there was the time Ada dumped a whole container of flour on the kitchen counter because she was looking for something. Her mom was pretty pissed about that.”
“I would be too,” Bernie said. “Was there more stuff like that?”
“A lot more. Like turning on the water in the bathtub and forgetting about it.”
“That would make me nuts,” Bernie observed.
Kate glanced at the clock on the wall again. “I really have to get ready to go.”
“One last question,” Libby said.
“Make it a fast one,” Kate told her.
Libby nodded. “Did Ada say anything when she was here about what happened the night Peggy Graceson died, or why she took off?”
“That’s two questions,” Kate pointed out. “But no. All she said was that she was hungry and that she needed to stay with me and that she’d made a big mistake.”
“A mistake?” Libby asked. “What kind of mistake?”
“No idea,” Kate answered. “I asked her but she said she didn’t want to talk about it. Then she told me her family thought they were so smart and flopped down on the sofa and went to sleep. She was out in like two seconds.”
“Do you know what Ada meant by that?” Libby asked.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Kate told Libby.
“How long did Ada stay with you that time?” Bernie asked, changing the subject.
“She was gone when I woke up the next morning,” Kate said. “Hey, if you catch up with her, tell her I want the forty bucks she took from my wallet back.”
“Well, there’s one thing that’s certain,” Libby said after she and her sister left Kate Silverman’s apartment and started down the stairs.
“What’s that?” Bernie asked.
“Ada can’t get far on forty dollars,” Libby noted. “At least not these days.”
“She’s got credit cards.”
“I bet they’re maxed out. I mean why else would she have taken forty bucks?”
“True,” Bernie allowed.
“So, what now?” Libby asked her sister as they walked outside.
“Same as before. We find Ada.”
“And how are we going to do that?”
“The usual way,” Bernie said.
“Which is?” Libby asked as she and Bernie climbed into Mathilda.
Bernie turned on Mathilda’s engine.
Libby leaned over, grabbed the door handle, and pulled the door closed. “Ask the Magic 8 Ball?” she said when her sister didn’t reply.
“I prefer a Ouija board myself,” Bernie replied. “On the other hand, that might not be necessary.” And she indicated the left side of the parking lot. Two people were getting out of a light gray Chevy SUV.
“Wow,” Libby said when she realized who they were.
“Yes, indeed.” Bernie grinned. “Maybe the Gods are finally smiling.”
“All I can say is it’s about time,” Libby declared.
Chapter 23
Libby and Bernie watched Ada’s brother and sister as they hurried across the parking lot. They were both the same height, about five feet ten inches, and they were walking at the same pace, but neither one was talking to or looking at the other.
Ada’s brother, Rick, had his hands jammed into the pockets of his parka, his parka zipped up to his chin, a watch cap on with a pair of large, silver headphones clamped over it, and he was looking down at the ground, trying, as Libby had, to avoid stepping into the piles of snow scattered over the ground.
Ada’s sister, Rachel, was equally occupied. She was busy looking down at her cell as she walked. Her face was partially obscured by the fur-rimmed hood on her expensive down coat and Bernie couldn’t help noticing that she was wearing fur-trimmed boots as well. Definitely not a PETA follower, that was for sure, Bernie reflected.
Bernie hadn’t gotten a good read on them on New Year’s Eve other than to think that they both thought that the world revolved around them. Watching them walk confirmed her opinion. In not looking where they were going, Rick and Rachel were assuming that everyone would watch out for them. Or was Bernie being unfair? Was this a generational thing, she wondered. She couldn’t decide. She and Libby weren’t that much older, but they hadn’t grown up glued to their cell phones.
But one thing was clear: if either sibling had been paying attention to where they were going, they would have noticed Mathilda. The van was hard to miss, what with the shop’s name painted on its side in turquoise and green. As it was, they both walked by the van on the way to the middle building’s door, the same entrance Bernie and Libby had just come out of. They were still lost in their own thoughts when Bernie turned off Mathilda’s engine.
“You think they’re going to talk to Kate Silverman?” Libby asked Bernie.
“Well, I don’t think they’re here visiting an aging relative, do you?”
“No, I don’t,” Libby replied. “Let’s find out, shall we?”
Bernie nodded and she and Libby slipped out of the van and quickly followed behind Ada’s siblings. When they closed the distance, Bernie leaned over and tapped Ada’s brother on the shoulder, while Libby did the same with Ada’s sister.
The siblings jumped and spun around.
“Jeez,” Rick said, having put his hand over his heart.
Libby smiled brightly. “Howdy,” Libby said. “Sorry if we startled you.”
“You didn’t,” Rachel told her, although they obviously had.
“Fancy seeing you two here,” Bernie added.
Ada’s sister’s eyes narrowed. “I could say the same of you. Why are you here?”
“Oh, we’re catering an event,” Bernie lied. “Are you visiting Ada?” she asked, all innocence.
The brother and sister exchanged a glance.
“We would if we knew where she was,” Rick said, removing his headphones and hanging them around his neck.
Rachel buttoned the top button on her coat and said nothing.
“We heard Ada came back,” Libby said.
Rick gave a casual shrug. “If she has, she hasn’t been in contact with me or my sister. As far as we know she’s still in the wind.”
“Ah,” Bernie said. “That’s too bad.”
“Yes, it is,” Rachel answered, even though her tone said otherwise. She pushed her hood back and ran her fingers through her hair. Bernie noticed that she’d gotten a new haircut, a shorter one that emphasized her cheekbones and the slight downward curve of her nose. “We’re all concerned.”
“Absolutely,” Rick replied, echoing his sister’s response.
“Funny, I got the opposite impression,” Bernie observed.
“Naturally, we’re all . . . annoyed . . . but we’re all concerned, too,” Rick told her as his breath made designs in the night air.
“I just wish she hadn’t taken my mom’s car,” Rachel added.
Interesting that Ada called her mother Linda, while Rachel called her mother mom, Bernie reflected. Ada really did seem to be estranged from her family.
“Yeah. Mom’s really pissed about that,” Rick confided.
“I imagine she would be,” Bernie replied. “I know my dad would have been really pissed if I’d pulled a stunt like that. What happened to hers?”
“She drove it into a ditch,” Rick responded. “She’s a really bad driver. Even though she thinks she isn’t.”
“So, now my mom’s using my car.” Ada’s sister gave a disgusted snort. “Which means we have to go to work together.”
“That’s terrible,” Bernie said.
“Yes, it is,” Rachel agreed, missing Bernie’s sarcasm. “Now I have to get up at seven in the morning.”
“Ada’s always doing that kind of stuff,” Rick noted.
“Causing problems?” Libby asked.
Rach
el nodded. “Exactly.”
“What kind of problems did she cause Peggy?” Bernie asked. She’d decided not to repeat the stories Kate Silver-man had just told her.
Rachel shrugged her shoulders. “They had this big blowup about something or other.”
“But you don’t know what?” Bernie asked.
“The police asked us that and I’m telling you what I told them. I wasn’t there. I had already left work.”
“Me too,” Rick said.
“So, who besides Ada and Peggy were there?” Libby inquired.
This time Rick was the one who replied. “Aunt Sheryl was. She was the one who told me they had the fight. Vicky could have been there, too. They were working on tax stuff that week.” Rick frowned. “The worst part is that now we have to fill in for Ada at work.”
“She’s supposed to be doing office stuff. Not that she ever does,” Rachel said, as she put her hood back up. “She has ‘issues.’ ” She bracketed the word issues with her fingers. “She’s always had issues. Even when we were kids, she never did what she was supposed to do. She made up stories about why she couldn’t. Or blamed us. And my mom believed her.”
“That must have been rough,” Bernie observed.
“It was,” Rachel agreed.
“It’s nice that you still care about her and all,” Libby added. “Is that why you’re visiting Kate Silverman?”
Rick and Rachel exchanged another glance.
“Why would you say that?” Rick asked.
Bernie replied, “It’s just that the rest of your family has been here looking for Ada so my sister and I assumed you guys were doing the same thing. You know, out of concern for your sister’s safety.”
Rick shook his head. “Ada and Kate were best friends in school, but they’re not anymore.”
“That’s not what I heard,” Libby lied.
Rachel sniffed. “Honestly,” she said, “I think you two should stick to catering, because you’re not very good at this private detective thing.”
“At all,” Rick added. “You guys don’t have a clue.”
“Then why don’t you enlighten us?” Bernie asked.
“Yeah,” Libby seconded as she looked from Rick to Bernie and back again. “We’d really like to hear what you have to say.”
“We have nothing to say,” Rachel replied.
“I’m not so sure of that. Why don’t we go somewhere and talk,” Libby suggested. “It’s too cold to be standing outside like this. We could get a drink or a nice cup of hot chocolate.”
“Thanks, but I’m fine,” Rachel said.
“If you don’t want to go someplace we could always go up to Kate Silverman’s place and chat there,” Bernie suggested.
“You really don’t take no for an answer, do you?” Rick told her.
“My sister prides herself on it,” Libby explained.
“We really need to speak to your sister,” Bernie said to Rachel and Rick.
“And we already told you we don’t know where she is,” Rick told her.
“But you think Kate Silverman does,” Libby said. “That’s why you’re here.”
“Think whatever you like,” Rick told her.
“Then what are you doing here?” Bernie demanded.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but maybe,” Rick replied, “my sister and I know someone else who lives here. Maybe I know a couple of people who live here. Or maybe Rachel and I are friends with Kate Silverman. After all, we all grew up together. Have you thought of that? Ada is not the only person in the universe—even though she likes to think she is.”
“I would if I believed in coincidence,” Bernie replied. “Which I don’t. What do you think, Libby?”
“I have to agree with you, Bernie,” Libby replied. “The odds of Rick and Rachel showing up here to not look for their sister are slim to none.”
“I don’t really care what you two believe,” Rachel told the sisters. “Last I heard it’s a free country and we can go where we want.” She frowned. “Now, if you don’t mind.”
As Rachel started to take a step toward the building, Bernie put a hand on Rachel’s arm. “Wait,” Bernie said.
Rachel spun around and gestured to Bernie’s hand with her chin. “Take your hand off of me.”
“Sorry,” Bernie said. She took a step back and was lifting her hand up when a thought occurred to her. “Or, maybe Libby and I are wrong,” Bernie said slowly.
Rick clapped. “Finally.”
Bernie ignored him. She thought about the cartons under Kate Silverman’s windows and the fact that they had bothered her when she’d seen them. Kate Silverman didn’t seem like the type of person to not unpack. So, maybe the cartons weren’t Kate Silverman’s. Maybe she was keeping them for Ada. And maybe that’s where the notebook Ada had read from was.
“Maybe you and your sister are here for the notebook,” Bernie said to Rick.
“What notebook?” Rachel asked.
“The one your sister read from on New Year’s Eve. The one your sister claims contains proof that your father and Joel Grover were murdered,” Bernie said.
Rick snorted. “Seriously? Was that ridiculous or what? You were there. You heard what Ada read. It was a bunch of junk.”
Libby raised an eyebrow.
“And some old formulas. Things that didn’t work,” Rick explained. “My dad had a habit of doing that. He logged his mistakes. Frankly,” Rick continued, “I’m surprised it was up there. My mom did a massive clean out after my dad died. She gave everything to Goodwill.”
“When was this?” Bernie asked.
“About a month after he died,” Rick replied. “I helped load the car.”
“If you ask me, the whole thing was another episode of the Ada Sinclair show,” Rachel said. “This is the kind of thing she always does. She’s a . . .”
“Disrupter?” Bernie asked.
Rachel smiled. “Yes. That’s the word I’m looking for.”
“Okay,” Libby said, “moving along. Is there anyone besides Kate Silverman that your sister would stay with?”
“No one. My sister doesn’t have any friends,” Rick said. “She’s always been a loner.”
“Except for Kate Silverman,” Bernie said.
“Not anymore. My sister is just exhausting.”
“We really need to get in touch with Ada,” Libby repeated.
Rick let out a strangled laugh. “You want my advice?” he said. “Let the police sort this out. Look at what happened on New Year’s Eve.”
“That’s what we want to talk to her about,” Bernie said.
“I wouldn’t go near her. Look what she did,” Rachel said.
“You really think your sister killed Peggy?” Libby asked.
“Why would she run if she wasn’t guilty?” Rick demanded.
“Because she was scared,” Bernie said.
Rick snorted. “That’s ridiculous.”
“People do stupid things when they’re frightened,” Bernie said, repeating what her dad told her. She stifled a sneeze. “And given the way your uncle acted later on . . . following us the way he did . . . I’d be freaked out, too.”
“Maybe he was concerned about his niece,” Rachel told her. “Have you thought of that?”
“That’s what he said, but that wasn’t the impression I got,” Libby recalled.
Rick shrugged. “Believe what you want. We have to go.”
“To do what?” Bernie asked.
“To save the world, of course,” Rick said. “You know what?” he added.
“What?” Libby repeated.
“Do yourself a favor. Stay out of this.”
“Is that a threat?” Bernie asked.
Rachel laughed. “Another drama addict. No. It’s not a threat. It’s a piece of good advice. And just for the record, don’t continue to feed Ada’s fantasies. You’re not helping.”
“We’re not,” Libby protested.
“What do you call what you’re doing?” Rachel d
emanded, after which she turned and started walking toward the apartment building Bernie and Libby had just come out of. Rick followed.
“Do you think what Rachel said about us and Ada is true?” Libby asked her sister as she watched Rick and Rachel open the door and disappear inside.
“No, I don’t,” Bernie replied as she got into Mathilda. She put the key in Mathilda’s ignition and turned it. The engine caught on the first try. A miracle.
“What about the notebook?”
“I’m out on that. However, one thing is clear. The notebook served as a catalyst to the New Year’s Eve fiasco.”
“I wonder if someone was counting on that,” Libby mused as she slammed the van door shut. “Actually, we don’t even know if they’re going to talk to Kate Silverman. Maybe we’re wrong. Maybe they really are going to talk to someone else.”
“I think I have a way to find out,” Bernie said as she drove over to the SUV Rick and Rachel had come in. She stopped the van in front of it and got out.
“What are you doing?” Libby asked.
“You’ll see,” Bernie told her. “This might not work,” she added. “A lot of vehicles don’t have car alarms anymore.” On the other hand, a lot of them still did. And Kate Silverman’s windows overlooked the parking lot. “Here goes nothing,” Bernie said to herself and she drew her leg back and kicked the SUV’s bumper with as much force as she could manage. The SUV’s horn started blaring.
“I guess this one does,” Bernie said as she watched Kate Silverman’s window.
Lights came on. People started sticking their heads out of their windows. A moment later, Rick Sinclair stuck his head out of Kate Silverman’s window and started looking around.
“What the hell!” he yelled as he spotted Bernie next to his vehicle. “Is that noise coming from my car?”
“Sorry!” Bernie shouted back. “I tapped it.”
“Stay right there,” Rick told her. “I’ll be down in a second.”
“There’s your answer,” she said to Libby once she’d jumped back into Mathilda. It was time to leave. She didn’t want to be around when Rick came downstairs. Something told her he wasn’t going to be in a good mood.
A Catered New Year's Eve Page 16