Drawing Close: The Fourth Novel in the Rosemont Series

by Barbara Hinske

  Maggie leaned back in her chair and regarded him thoughtfully. “We’re going to get coffee and leave you alone to think about this.” She motioned for Tonya to join her. “Want a cup?”

  Tim turned to face them and a smile crept across his face. “Does the mayor serve coffee to the council members in this town? Is that one of your official duties?”

  Maggie stopped short, searching his face to make sure she correctly understood the implication of his words. Tim nodded as he stood up. Maggie closed the gap between them and swept him into a quick hug. “This is a very courageous thing you’re doing. There may be times when you’ll want to strangle me for this, but I know you’ll be proud of yourself in the long run.”

  “Thank you, Tim,” Tonya said. “I’ll show you the ropes and help you any way I can.”

  Tim checked his watch. “I’m assuming you’re staying put until the news conference?”

  Maggie nodded. “And I’d like you there with us when I announce that you’ll fill Delgado’s seat. Would you like to say a few words?”

  Tim rolled his eyes. “Not really, but I think I should. I’ll come up with something between now and then. In the meantime,” he said, heading to the door, “why don’t I go over to Pete’s and bring us back some sandwiches? I don’t imagine we’ll get out of here on time for dinner, either.”

  “Great idea and much appreciated. Will you get something for Alex as well? He’ll be here for the news conference, and I’m sure he won’t have eaten lunch.”

  ***

  Alex hurried up the back stairs at Town Hall and into the mayor’s office at three fifteen. He didn’t try to approach the elevators. The lobby was packed with reporters and curious members of the public as news of Delgado’s arrest spread like wildfire through the small town. They were all on hand for the news conference that was now running late. He burst into Maggie’s office with an apology on his lips.

  Maggie held up her hand to silence him. “Don’t worry about it because nobody’s going anywhere. Believe me—they’ll wait. A few more minutes won’t hurt them. Sit down and relax for a minute.” She reached into the small refrigerator behind her desk and withdrew a sandwich wrapped in paper. “Here,” she said, thrusting it at him. “Eat this. You don’t know when you’ll get another chance today.” She nodded to the far corner of the room. “Council Member Knudsen got it for you.”

  Alex’s head snapped up from his unwrapped sandwich. “I didn’t see you there,” he said. “Maggie told me she was going to approach you. You’re the ideal person to succeed Delgado. Thank you for agreeing to step into this quagmire with us.”

  “Is that what I’m doing?” Tim joked. “Maggie didn’t put it quite that way.”

  “Now, gentlemen …” Maggie began.

  Tim waved her off. “No worries, Maggie. I know what I’m getting into.”

  Alex turned to Maggie. “Why don’t you run through your presentation for me while I finish this?”

  ***

  Police Chief Andy Thomas met Mayor Margaret Martin and Special Counsel Alex Scanlon by the rear stairwell on the first floor of Town Hall. Council Members Tim Knudsen and Tonya Holmes brought up the rear.

  “Good work, Chief,” Maggie said, extending her hand. “Now—let’s get this news conference over with. It’s quarter to four. The building closes at five. I’ll use that as an excuse to end the conference if I have to.”

  “I think you’ll have to, ma’am,” Chief Thomas said. “The natives are restless.”

  “We’d better get started. Follow me.” Maggie turned sharply on her heel and made her way through the crowded lobby to the podium. “Members of the press and citizens of Westbury,” she began, “as you may have heard, council member and local businessman Charles Delgado was arrested this morning on eighteen counts of fraud, embezzlement, perjury, and conspiracy related to the recent theft of funds from the town’s general fund and the town workers’ pension fund. Special Counsel Scanlon is with me today, and I’ll turn the microphone over to him to give you a detailed recap of the charges.”

  Hands flew up across the room. “We’ll be taking questions after Special Counsel Scanlon concludes his remarks. First, I want to publicly thank Chief Thomas, the Westbury Police Force, Special Counsel Scanlon, and his staff for their hard work and dedication in uncovering the evidence to support this arrest. This case has been extremely complex and everyone involved has worked tirelessly to get to this point. Without—” Maggie was interrupted by a reporter from the crowd.

  “Mayor Martin, can you explain to us why it took so long?”

  “As I said, we’ll be taking your questions after Special Counsel Scanlon’s address.” Maggie motioned for the smattering of raised hands in the crowd to be lowered. “By operation of state law, Council Member Delgado’s arrest suspends his position on the council until he is cleared of all charges. As your mayor, I’m empowered to appoint his replacement. I’m pleased to announce that prominent local Realtor and lifelong Westbury resident Tim Knudsen has graciously agreed to serve out the remainder of Mr. Delgado’s term.”

  A smattering of applause spread through the crowd. “I’ll bet every one of you out there knows Tim and shares my belief that he’s exactly who we need on the council right now. Born and raised in Westbury, there’s not a square inch of this town that he’s not familiar with or a person or business that he doesn’t know. We’re very fortunate that he’s willing to take time away from his thriving real estate business to help us restore prosperity to the town and integrity to Town Hall.”

  The sea of heads in front of her nodded in agreement. “Without further ado, let me present to you Council Member Tim Knudsen. Tim—why don’t you say a few words before I turn the podium over to Special Counsel Scanlon and Chief Thomas.”

  Tim Knudsen approached the microphone. “I’m as surprised to find myself up here as all of you must be. Mayor Martin is right—I’m a born and bred local boy. I know many of you whose futures are now uncertain because your retirement funds have been snatched away from you, through no fault of your own. I’ll work tirelessly with the mayor and the other council members to right this wrong. Looking around the room, I see people I went to school with and members of my Kiwanis club, couples I’ve helped purchase their first home and people I regularly pass on the street. You know where to find me, and my door will always be open to you. I’m honored to be selected to fill this position, and I thank the mayor and all of you.” He stepped away to an enthusiastic round of applause.

  Maggie nodded to Alex and he came forward, motioning for Chief Thomas to join him. “As Mayor Martin just said, Charles Delgado was arrested at his place of business this morning and taken into custody without incident. This arrest is the culmination of months of detailed police work and Chief Thomas and the Westbury Police Force are to be congratulated for their efforts. I’ll now ask Chief Thomas to read the formal charges against Mr. Delgado.”

  When Chief Thomas finished, Maggie returned to the podium. “We’ll take as many of your questions as we can before the building closes in twenty minutes.” She pointed to a reporter she recognized from the Westbury Gazette.

  “Where is Delgado being held?

  Maggie deferred the question to Alex, who joined her at the microphone. “He’s incarcerated at the town jail.”

  Maggie pointed to another reporter.

  “How strong is the state’s case? Why did it take so long to arrest him?”

  “The state’s case is substantial; our evidence is compelling,” Alex answered and launched into a detailed account of the difficulties of subpoenaing documents from the offshore banks.

  “Do you expect Delgado to get out on bail?”

  “We really couldn’t say if Mr. Delgado will post bail or not,” Alex replied.

  “I can answer that for you,” came a booming voice from the back of the room. A tall, stocky man with an expensive suit and a confident swagger addressed the crowd in a voice that needed no amplification. “Ladies and gentlemen, let m
e introduce myself. You’re going to be seeing a lot of me. I’m Phillip Hastings, and I’m Mr. Delgado’s attorney. I’m not from these parts. I’m from Chicago. I look forward to getting to know all of you and your lovely town. A town that Mr. Delgado, much like Mr. Knudsen,” Hastings turned to glare at the newly appointed council member, “has spent his life working to make a better place. I’ve reviewed these charges,” he continued, flicking a piece of paper he raised over his head, “and can assure you that none of these will hold water. Mr. Delgado will post bail later today and get a good night’s sleep in his own bed tonight. And he’ll be found not guilty of every single charge on this sheet. I promise you that,” he concluded.

  “We’ll leave this debate for the courtroom,” Maggie replied. “It’s after five and Town Hall is now closed. Thank you all for coming.” Maggie turned and, flanked by the others, pushed her way to the elevators.

  Chapter 12

  David Wheeler sat in the waiting room of Westbury Animal Hospital with Dodger sitting like a perfect gentleman at his side. The dog was due for his annual checkup. Dodger had been working as a therapy dog at Mercy Hospital and needed to be up to date on all of his shots. Juan, the senior veterinary technician, knelt to scratch Dodger behind the ears.

  “I hear you’ve been taking the hospital by storm,” Juan said, looking up at David.

  David shrugged. “Dodger’s a natural. Everybody likes him—young and old. He loves visiting people in the hospital and nursing homes.”

  Juan nodded. “And I hear you’re an excellent handler. Weren’t the two of you doing agility before he got hurt?”

  “We’d just started.”

  “Have you ever thought about being a vet or a vet tech, like me? I love my job, and you’d be good at it.”

  “I’ve thought about it,” David said. “I’m not sure I’ll have the money to go to college.”

  “You could get loans. I did. When do you graduate?’

  “I’ll be a junior this fall.”

  “You’ve got plenty of time to figure things out. Think about it. And if you want to spend a day or two here shadowing me to see what I do, I’ll ask Dr. Allen about it. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

  David nodded. “That’d be cool.”

  “Let me see if they’re ready for you.”

  ***

  “Hello, David,” John said, extending his hand. “How’s the talk of the town?” he said, bending to stroke Dodger.

  “He’s good. We’re here to get his shots so we can keep going to the hospital.”

  “Excellent. Let me have a look at him.” John ran practiced hands over the compliant animal. “What are you doing this summer?”

  “Dodger and I spend a day a week at the hospital and at Fairview Terraces, and I’m working at Forever Friends.”

  John nodded. “The folks at the shelter speak very highly of you. You’re a natural with animals.” He paused and looked at David. “Juan tells me you might be considering studying veterinary medicine and that you’d like to spend time with us to see what we do. We’d be delighted to have you anytime you can make it. Just coordinate with Juan.”

  David smiled fleetingly. “Thank you. That would be great. But right now I need to get another job.”

  John turned his attention back to Dodger. “I see. I thought you were full time at Forever Friends.”

  “I am, but my mom’s hours got cut back, and she says we’re going to lose the house,” he blurted. “I work at the shelter during the day, but I need something on the weekends.” David fixed his gaze on his shoes.

  John glanced at the boy. “I’m very sorry to hear that, David. The two of you have been through enough.” He paused, thinking. “You know, now that Maggie and I are married and I’ve moved into Rosemont, she’s got a honey-do list for me that’s a mile long. Can you lend us a hand, like you did last year with the attic?”

  “Sure,” David replied quickly.

  “Sam Torres is installing a safe and building us cabinets for all of that silver. I know he could use some help. Why don’t you come by this Saturday about eight? Is that too early for you?”

  “Not a bit. I’ll be there, for sure.” This time, the smile remained on David’s lips.

  ***

  Sam Torres was carefully unloading lumber from the back of his pickup truck, parked along the side of Rosemont. Once he got it loaded onto his cart, he’d be fine, but transferring it to the cart was tricky business. As Joan liked to remind him, he wasn’t a kid anymore. He’d hoped to enlist John’s help, but John had been called to the animal hospital on an emergency earlier that morning.

  Sam paused and leaned against the side of his truck, catching his breath. He almost missed the solitary figure walking purposefully up Rosemont’s long, winding driveway. He waved when he recognized David Wheeler.

  “What brings you out here so early on a Saturday morning? It’s not even eight o’clock. I thought all kids your age were asleep at this hour,” Sam called.

  David grinned. “Maybe so, Mr. Torres, but not me. Dr. Allen said I should come by. I’m here to help with his ‘honey-do list,’ whatever that is.”

  “That Dr. Allen is a smart man, David. He’s been called out on an emergency, but Maggie’s inside. You can go around to the kitchen door and knock. She was in there a minute ago.”

  “I’m also meant to work with you, Mr. Torres. Can I help you unload your truck? This wood looks heavy.”

  “I’d be grateful, David.”

  The pair set to work. “Balance the load evenly on the cart, and we’ll have an easier time pushing it,” Sam said.

  “What are you working on?” David asked.

  “Shelves for all of that silver you found in the attic.” He winked at the boy. “See what a lot of work you’ve created? You’ll probably have to haul it all downstairs for her to put away, too.”

  “I hope so. We could use the extra money.”

  “What do you mean? You’re still at Forever Friends, aren’t you? Frank Haynes didn’t lay you off, did he?’

  “No—nothing like that. I’ve still got my job, and he even gave me a raise. Mr. Haynes has been great to me.” The two muscled the cart around the side of the house and stopped by the French doors to the conservatory. “My mom’s hours got cut, and she’s afraid she’ll get laid off and then we’ll lose our house. So I’m trying to make extra money this summer. Just in case.”

  Sam searched the boy’s face. “You’re being very mature and responsible about the whole thing. I’ll bet your mom is very proud of you and your dad would be, too,” he said quietly.

  David turned aside.

  “You know,” Sam continued, “I’ve got more work this summer than I can handle. Joan’s been after me to hire someone to help, but I’ve been resisting the idea. I need someone that I can trust to do a good job and to be on time. I think you’d fit the bill nicely.”

  David’s head snapped up.

  “I put in a twelve-hour day most Saturdays, but I never work on Sunday. I’d pay you fifteen dollars an hour. It’s hard work and I’m a tough taskmaster. What do you say?”

  David pumped the older man’s hand. “You’ve got a deal, sir! That’s way more than I make at the shelter. You won’t be disappointed. I’ll do a good job for you. You can count on me.” He took a breath. “My mom’s going to be so excited. That’s enough for a week’s worth of groceries, all in one day.”

  “Then you’re hired, starting now. Let’s get this lumber unloaded, and I’ll show you how to use a table saw.” David turned and began stacking the lumber along the side of the house. Sam shook his head. A sixteen-year-old shouldn’t be worrying about grocery money.

  Chapter 13

  Loretta Nash turned as Frank Haynes exited his office. He hesitated, then locked the door. “You won’t need anything in there.”

  “I shouldn’t,” she said, returning her attention to her computer screen. She knew all too well why he kept his office locked. There was a safe concealed by a picture hanging
right inside the door. She’d found it several months ago while Haynes was in the hospital after a severe kidney stone attack.

  Her curiosity, fueled by her repulsion over his connection with that reprobate Chuck Delgado, had compelled her to open the safe. Loretta knew that they sat on the town council together, but she’d never understood why her boss had business dealings with Delgado—especially after Delgado had attempted to rape her. Loretta shuddered. If Haynes hadn’t come looking for her that New Year’s Eve, Delgado would have succeeded.

  The safe contained one solitary item—a computer jump drive. She’d managed to make a copy of it, and that copy remained hidden on the top shelf of her bedroom closet. She wasn’t sure what the data stored on that drive meant, but she suspected it related to the fraud and embezzlement from the town. Frank Haynes probably kept it as some sort of insurance for himself—something to turn over to the authorities if he were ever implicated. She’d made the copy in case she ever needed something to hold over Haynes. After their dinner the other night, she wasn’t sure she wanted to keep her copy of it any longer. Loretta looked up and realized Haynes was staring at her.

  “You know what to do with the suppliers? And you’ll get the payroll submitted in time?”

  “Of course I will, Frank. You’ve given me explicit instructions, and I took careful notes,” she said, gesturing to a steno pad on the corner of her desk.

  Haynes drew a deep breath. “You’ve got my cell phone?” She nodded. “Call me if you need anything.”

  “You’re acting like a parent leaving a newborn with a babysitter for the first time,” she quipped.