Watson Manor Investigations (Watson Manor Mystery Series Book 3)

by Ronald S. Craig

  Watson

  Manor

  Investigations

  Ronald S. Craig

  Watson Manor Investigations Copyright © 2015 by Ronald S. Craig

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests or to contact the author go to: www.roncraigbooks.com.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  ISBN: 13-978-1519633545

  ISBN: 10-1519633548

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I wish to thank all those that continually gave support throughout the creation of this third novel. A heartfelt thank you to, Laurie Nelson, Jacque Ramirez, Stacy Mitchell and Rosalyne Bowmile, a friend and fellow author. Their ideas and encouragement have been a true blessing to me.

  A special thank you goes to my editors, Charlea Moore, Charlene Marquez, Alex Smith and my daughter Nicole Ebert, for their enormous contributions and countless hours spent working with me on this novel beyond the mechanics of grammar to enlightened plot enhancements.

  Cover designed by Nikki of Book Stylings.

  Web site www.bookstylings.com

  Other novels in the

  Watson Manor Mystery Series

  Watson Manor Eventually

  Watson Manor Unfolding

  PROLOGUE

  Watson Manor, a four story Victorian styled bed and breakfast in Marina, California opened its doors in July of 1996. It was the dream of Charlie and Jenny Watson and in the course of its construction they discovered another bond they shared. Two years following the Grand Opening of Watson Manor they converted one of the bottom floor units into an office for Watson Investigations. They found the need to help others had continued to pull them away from the focus of being the inn keepers they set out to be during those initial two years of running the bed and breakfast.

  Julia Edwards was hired to manage Watson Manor three months prior to the official opening of Watson Investigations. The Watsons met Julia during the initial construction of Watson Manor. It was Julia Mason at that time when Timmy, her son, and two other children were found in a raid of the home of human traffickers. The other two children were reunited with their families immediately following the raid. Timmy's parents could not be located through the typical missing person or child abduction sources. Timmy touched their hearts immediately when Charlie and Jenny were court appointed temporary guardians of him during their search for Julia.

  The Watsons have had a special bond with the Marina Police Department over the past three years and Detective Stan Edwards was hooked by Julia Mason the moment Charlie and Jenny introduced them. That thrilled the Watsons because it brought Julia and Timmy back from Sacramento to Marina and into their lives again.

  Lisa Addams lives at Watson Manor and in addition to providing care for Madison when Charlie and Jenny had to be away, she also doubled as the cook for Watson Manor. Jenny knew Lisa from her days teaching in West Helena, Arkansas before she and Charlie met. They had stayed in touch and when Lisa, in her mid-forties called a year ago frustrated with the system in the middle school, they both found answers to prayers.

  Chapter 1

  Charlie Watson's gaze shifted to the wall beside their desks in the first floor office. "I realize it's only our second month officially as Watson Investigations, but I hope we didn't spend all that time getting our P.I. licenses to prove another spouse is sampling in a different garden."

  "I didn't get that feeling after talking to Henry Wilson yesterday," Jenny replied. "Running away with a new lover and not taking at least a suit case doesn't sound like the norm. What did Chief Walker say?"

  "He filed the missing person report yesterday; but not a clue where she is or any sighting of her car around Marina." There was a knock on their office door.

  "Stan wants to know, now that you've opened Watson Investigations, if you want anything from the 'Watson Wall' at the department?" Julia asked poking her head in the door of their new office.

  "Knowing Edwards, I'm sure it will be replaced with the 'Julia and Timmy Wall'," Jenny said smiling.

  "Who are you kidding, Jenny? That wall started changing a year and a half ago."

  "Thanks, Julia. We have everything, including your tenth grade photo," Jenny said.

  "I know. Despite my best attempts to hide it, it keeps reappearing on the wall."

  "Hey, we stay current. Your wedding photos are there also," Charlie said. "Six months in a couple days; where does the time go?"

  "Can you believe it, Charlie? Our six-month anniversary was over two years ago," Jenny returned with a smile.

  "And has only gotten better every day," he said.

  "You know, of course, that being around you two inspired me to take that leap of faith," Julia said smiling.

  "That and not being able to keep your hands off each other," he said laughing.

  "Well, there was that. Oh, I wanted to tell you that the August promotion has done well. It looks like we'll exceed the seventy-five percent occupancy from last August."

  "You're doing a wonderful job, Julia. I'm so pleased that … I hired you," Charlie said with a grin.

  "As you'll learn, Julia, letting them think it was their idea makes our decisions flow so much easier," Jenny said, laughing.

  "There's the front desk phone. Thank you both, I love being here," Julia said dashing for the front desk.

  "We've done well with her, partner," Jenny said. "Speaking of great teamwork, we can get an hour in at the park when Madison wakes up before meeting Henry Wilson today."

  "I'm torn between the park or reading to her at night as my favorite," he said.

  "She loves story time, but I don't think you even need to open the book, Manny and Stanley any more. Surely you've memorized by now."

  "Maybe I love it and she humors me," Charlie said looking over at Madison waking up in a portable play pen. "The park is calling."

  When the Watsons returned from the park they knocked on Lisa's door. "Lisa, we should be back in a couple of hours," Jenny said after giving Madison a kiss goodbye in Lisa's unit, also on the ground floor.

  "Take the time you need. Come here, precious. Aunt Lisa has cookies."

  "I'm thrilled you love cooking, but at fourteen months, I was hoping Madison would stay below a hundred pounds."

  Charlie took Shadow, their all black Shepherd mix, up to their residence on the fourth floor. Then he met Jenny at the car and they drove to talk to Henry Wilson at his home in Marina. They parked at the curb of the Wilson's well-maintained starter home in their two year old Honda Accord. It had been a joke with them when they found themselves trying to hide in Charlie's huge crew cab pickup truck while tailing someone. When they received their P.I. licenses their first order of business was to get that 'blend-in Honda'.

  "Thank you for coming, my Rosie, Rosalyne spoke highly of you two," Henry said. "Please come in."

  Henry was in his mid-twenties, wearing a suit with his tie loose and his face conveying the worry inside.

  "Why do I know that name, Rosalyne Wilson?" Jenny asked.

  "She works for the Marina Press Newspaper. Two years ago you gave her
career a boost with an interview after the Nelson Crown incident."

  "I remember, the only interview we gave," Charlie said. "A real go-getter, as I recall."

  "This is not like Rosie to leave without a word. I've been worried sick about her."

  Jenny walked over to a side table and picked up a wedding photo in an expensive frame. "Yes, I remember her. She also did the story on the Grand Opening of Watson Manor," Jenny said. "She was also a beautiful bride. When was this taken?"

  "Almost three years ago, we got married in our junior year of college. Rosie was a journalism major and I was in computer science."

  "Do you have a photo we can borrow?" Charlie asked.

  "Please, sit down. I'll get one from an album in the bedroom." When Henry walked back into the room slowly with his eyes fixed on the photo in his hand, they felt his pain. "I took this a couple of months ago, a picnic in the park."

  Jenny reached for the photo and showed it to Charlie. "Thank you, Henry. Did you notice any change in her behavior lately?" she asked.

  "Rosie did a 'What's Rockin' in Marina' column and although she was happy, I knew she always felt doing it was just a step. After she did the interview with you, which turned into a feature story, the bug bit. She kept looking to expand into an investigative reporter. To answer your question, yes, she was excited about something she found."

  "Do you have any idea what it was?" Charlie asked.

  "Not this time. In the past when Rosie got like this I knew I'd have to wait until she pulled it all together and she'd let me read it before she sent it off."

  "She did freelance work with other papers?" Jenny asked.

  "Yes, every couple of months she'd find something. She had a few things printed in the San Jose Newspaper."

  "Did these other papers give her a project?"

  "I don't think that’s how it worked."

  "We have the description of her car from Chief Walker. Are there any notes on the computer she used here?" Charlie asked.

  "Her laptop is an appendage. Everything she's working on is on it. The only things I can give you are copies of the other newspapers she's had articles in."

  "That will help and give us a feel for the type of stories she went after," Jenny said.

  "I think she was onto something important," he said then pulled out his cell phone. "This is the last message I received from her two days ago."

  "Honey, this one's good. Get some dinner. Sorry I'll be home late tonight. Love you."

  Chapter 2

  "Let's talk to her editor at the Marina Press. I'm sure we're following in the Chief's footsteps here," Charlie said opening the car door for Jenny.

  "I don't feel a happy ending here, Charlie. If Rosalyne was checking into someone like Nelson Crown…I'm really scared for her."

  Jenny started reading the articles as Charlie drove to the Marina Press Newspaper office. It was a small building of about a thousand square feet, one street off of Reservation, the main street that ran through the downtown area of Marina. It looked like a converted metal warehouse that received a facelift on the street side, adding a large window and double glass doors. Charlie parked in the small lot and they went inside.

  The front area was an open, twenty-five foot square, with five desks staggered in a way that allowed an extra two square feet of personal space. A sixth desk in the back of the room was clearly the Editor's area, as it had a four-foot-tall fabric covered room divider on the left side, was open in the front and sat against the side wall of the building on the right. Only one desk was occupied and a woman casually dressed in her mid-twenties looked up as they walked in.

  "May I help you," the woman asked.

  "Hello, we're Charlie and Jenny Watson and would like to speak to the Editor," he said.

  "He is in the back. May I help you?"

  "We're looking for Rosalyne Wilson and …" Jenny started to say.

  "It's so bizarre! Rosalyne has always been very dependable."

  "Do you know what she was working on?" Jenny continued.

  "Working on? She's responsible for our 'What's Rockin' in Marina' column. It's like an events calendar; what new business is coming or leaving, stuff like that. She also sells ad space and takes classified listings."

  "We understand from her husband Henry she sometimes did an investigative reporter piece?"

  "She has many irons in the fire, that's for sure! I know she runs ideas past Steve from time to time. He's my husband and our editor. "

  "Can we speak to Steve?" Charlie asked.

  "Of course, I'm Debbie by the way. He's running the press. I'll see if he can talk to you now," she said walking to the back of the office area. When she opened the back door the rhythmic sound of the press became much louder, but she closed it quickly. They watched as Steve followed Debbie back through the door.

  "Hello, I'm Steve, the Editor. We can talk over here," he said leading them to his cubicle. Charlie and Jenny sat down in the chairs in front of his desk.

  "We're the Watsons. We can see you're very busy. Thank you for taking the time," Jenny said.

  "Besides my wife and I, Rosalyne is our only full time employee. Anything we can do to help find her."

  "Did you have her working on anything special, Steve?" Charlie asked.

  "Not at the moment. We are a very small independent press and we all wear a lot of different hats around here. Most of our news comes over the wire and Rosalyne kept track of the local news. It didn't happen often, this is a sleepy little beach town, but I enjoyed the few times I could send her out on a story. Wait, Watson's about two years ago, Nelson Crown?"

  "Yes and we own Watson Manor here in town."

  "Ok, of course," Steven said. "I've heard some very good things about your bed and breakfast and we've run ads for you as well. So you know Rosalyne. She did the exclusive interview with you two."

  "We met her two years ago, the Crown story … and then later our grand opening. I may have spoken to her placing ads, but her husband asked us to look for her," Jenny said.

  "She wants and deserves more than we could give her here. She's very talented. She has a knack for smelling a rat."

  "I briefly looked at some of her freelance articles," Jenny said. "It appears she was a community government watch dog?" Jenny said.

  "That’s probably a good assessment of who she is," Steve said.

  "Is there anyone you can think of we should talk to? Anyone she may have rubbed the wrong way? Anything at all?" Charlie asked, handing him one of their Watson Investigations business cards.

  Steve looked at the card and then back at them. "I see you two are following a natural calling as well. I'll call with anything that comes to mind. Right now, I'm sorry to say and as I mentioned to Chief Walker yesterday, I don't have any idea where she is or why."

  "Thanks again for your time, Steve," Jenny said as the stood up and walked to the front door.

  "Thank you also, Debbie," Jenny said handing her a business card. "Anything at all could help."

  "We hope you find her," Debbie said as they passed through the glass front doors.

  When they were walking toward the car, Jenny stopped. "Charlie, she has a desk here. Maybe we are missing something … a phone message, a note pad."

  "Let's go look. Right now we're dead in the water," Charlie replied. They walked back into the Marina Press office and Debbie looked up. "Debbie, can we look at Rosalyne's desk?"

  "Sure, it's that one," she said, pointing. "She used her own laptop though." Jenny sat down and looked over the surface. There was a calendar-type blotter that covered most of the surface, with notations for days of events, company sales and reminders. The day she went missing, there was a notation, 'call Dave'.

  "Debbie, does the name Dave mean anything to you?"

  "Dave Nadalet is the manager of the Marina Supermart," she said. Jenny looked in the Rolodex and found only last names under 'D'.

  "May I borrow this index? I promise to return it," Jenny asked.

  "If
it'll help, borrow whatever you need," Steve said from behind them.

  "Do you see any impressions on the blotter, Jenny?" Charlie asked running a pencil over the Marina Real Estate note pad."

  "I think it's like Henry said, her computer holds the answers." Jenny pulled the lap drawer out and found the typical assortment of pens, paperclips and a box of staples. There was a pamphlet from Cinemagic Theater Corporation, but since Marina didn't have a theater in town she didn't regard it as related.

  The larger bottom drawer held file folders labeled with dates and they all seemed to have newspaper articles, correspondence and printed emails in them. She pulled the two most recent files out of the drawer with 'May 1998 and June 1998' on the tabs and set them aside. Reaching for the phone she said, "Charlie, we need to get Henry's approval to listen to her cell phone messages. Her desk phone message box is clear."

  "I have an impression here, can't tell if it's a phone number or just a number. Let's look it all over back at the office and study her articles in more depth."

  "I'm done here as well." Jenny stood and turned toward Debbie. "Thank you both again and don't hesitate to call us with anything."

  Jenny was going through the files she borrowed from Rosalyne's desk as Charlie drove them back to the office. "There has to be something here!" she said in frustration.

  "Jenny, we just got started, something will pop."

  "I can't shake this sense of urgency though, Charlie. It seems as if we're racing against a clock. When it strikes midnight, we'll get a "body found" report."

  "I feel it too. We can only give it what we have. I hope my little buddy will forgive us for missing his little league baseball game this afternoon."

  "Timmy knows we love him and that very few things keep us away," Jenny said and reached for her cell phone. "Hello Chief, anything from the hospital search for Rosalyne Wilson?"