A strange look crossed Lisa’s face.
“Go home,” she said. “It’s not safe here.”
I leaned in.
“Sorry?”
But Lisa had turned back to her bowl, her full attention on the food now.
Chapter Thirteen
I was glad when dinner was over.
Lisa had stopped speaking to me after that.
She’d finished her meal and got up from the table like she couldn’t get away fast enough. She’d stumbled out of the door without saying good night.
Barry had already fallen asleep on his placemat after eating, so he hadn’t even noticed his sister’s hasty departure.
The pastor had looked embarrassed for his hosts’ behavior and had tried to make up with his small talk and cordial smiles. But something about his demeanor came across as fake to me.
I wondered why any sane person from town would come up to this gloomy, unsociable house every weekend. It had been torture to sit at dinner that evening.
The pastor must have another reason for coming up here. Maybe I was getting paranoid, but I started suspecting everyone around the table.
Mrs. Robinson seemed grateful for our presence, and that made up for all the bizarre vibes we were getting that evening.
We stayed behind to help her clean up.
When everything had been put away, she took us to the third-floor rooms using the fire escape stairway that opened out to the kitchen. I wasn’t sure if it was because she didn’t want anyone to see us going up or because it was the route she usually took to the top floor.
Everyone else, apart from her, slept on the west wing on the third floor. Mrs. Robinson opened a door to a small room in the east wing of the third floor. We had this wing all to ourselves.
Mrs. Robinson pointedly refused Tetyana’s offer to guard her door overnight.
“It’s been four weeks and they haven’t got me yet, have they?” she’d said. “Besides, I always lock my door and put a chair next to it.”
“What about your window?” Tetyana said.
“I lock them too.” She smiled. “I’ll sleep better tonight knowing y’all are here in the house. Now you’ve come, I feel a bit silly for raising such a fuss.”
“It’s not a fuss, Mrs. Robinson,” said Katy, putting an arm around her shoulder, “that letter you showed us was real and it was nasty. You need to be careful.”
“I’ll be fine. I’m happy you came to see me. Y’all try to get some rest now. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
She closed the door behind her and left us with a friendly good night.
We turned to examine the room she’d given us.
“With so many empty rooms in this house, she put us in this tiny closet?” said Katy with a disappointed look.
“It’s a kid’s room,” I said, looking around.
“Who wants dibs on that cot?” asked Katy, pointing at the makeshift bed in the corner of the room.
I sighed.
“I’m the only one who’ll fit.”
The main bed was a child-sized one. Tetyana and Katy would fit in it if they snuggled tight, I thought, happy to have the cot to myself.
We stood in a circle, taking in the space.
The walls were painted a pastel pink. A small door led to a closet-sized bathroom, complete with a toilet, sink and shower.
The lone bookshelf contained a mix of children’s cartoon magazines and oversized picture books. A collection of young adult novels with yellowed pages and faded bookmarks filled the top shelf.
A cheap Mickey Mouse alarm clock sat on the bedside table and assorted plush toys had been piled on the floor next to the bed. Katy bent down and picked one up.
“A Care Bear. I used to have one. Didn’t they stop making these ages ago?”
Tetyana and I looked at each other and shrugged. Neither of us had grown up in North America. Instead of teddy bears, I’d been surrounded by soot-encrusted pots and pans, and Tetyana had slept next to stacks of guns and grenades.
“This is that little girl’s room,” Katy was saying, twirling around in place. “The one they put in the insane asylum.”
“There’s a reason Mrs. Robinson gave us this room,” I said. “My gut says there’s something in here she wants us to see.”
“She could also want us to hear something on this floor during the night,” said Tetyana. “Whoever delivers those letters has to start here.”
“That sounds creepy,” said Katy. “Couldn’t it be someone from town?”
“There’s no evidence of anyone breaking into the house to deliver these letters.”
“But Mrs. Robinson’s hiding something,” I said. “She’s got secrets she doesn’t want to share.”
“Aw, come on,” said Katy, “she’s like the nicest person on earth.”
“Everyone has secrets,” I said.
“Even nice old ladies,” said Tetyana. “Especially, nice old ladies.”
“What a day,” I said, moving to the windows to open them. “We need some fresh air. It feels so cooped up in here.”
I opened the windows and looked down at our car. It was still in its spot where I had parked, and so far all four tires seemed to still be in good condition.
I took a deep breath of the cool, fresh air in. It had stopped raining outside, but I could still hear the thunder rumbling from far away.
The night was dark, and the moon was hiding behind gray clouds. I wondered what the view must be like from this room on a beautiful day.
“So,” I said, turning around to my friends. “Who do you think it is?”
“Jim’s the most normal out of the lot, but that just makes me more suspicious,” said Tetyana.
“Can’t say his wife is normal,” said Katy. “She doesn’t like me.”
“She’s jealous because Jim was paying attention to you all night,” I said.
“But, I didn’t mean—”
“If it makes you feel better, she didn’t seem fond of us either,” said Tetyana.
“We can’t rule anyone out,” I said, “it could even be Mrs. Robinson sending these letters to herself.”
“Whatever for?” said Katy.
“For sympathy?” I ventured. “Maybe it’s a desperate attempt to get everyone’s attention? Perhaps in some strange way, she thinks it will bring everyone together and make them care for each other and her?”
“She could also be mentally unwell and did it on an impulse,” said Tetyana. “Or maybe....” She paused and gave us a strange look. “Maybe it’s an excuse to bring us down here.”
“What?” said Katy. “Why?”
A shiver went down my back. I’d been feeling that too. I just hadn’t wanted to articulate it in front of my friends before I had some proof.
Katy turned to me. “Do you think this has anything to do with Madame Bouchard’s will?”
“Well, technically she left us money,” I replied. “It’s conditional on our results and we may never see a dime in the end, but it’s money that belongs to this family.”
“If that’s true,” said Tetyana, her face glum, “this game just leveled up.”
I nodded.
“Peace said no one knows about Madame Bouchard’s instructions to us, but what if someone found out?”
“You guys really think this could be bigger than kooky Lisa or crazy Barry?” said Katy with a grimace. “Or that creep?”
Tetyana and I both looked at her.
“What creep?” said Tetyana.
“Katy, did Jim—” I started.
“Not Jim,” she replied, shaking her head. “It was the pastor. He put his hand on my thigh under the table and squeezed. Ugh.”
“What?” said Tetyana.
I suddenly remembered how Katy had gone unusually quiet toward the end of dinner, letting Jim and the pastor do most of the chitchatting.
“Oh, no,” I said, feeling sick to my stomach. “I’m so sorry, Katy. That shouldn’t have happened.”
She looked away, her face
turning pink. “I pushed his hand off me and that was that.”
Tetyana swore.
“If I’d known, I’d have slammed the bastard right in the face.”
“I’m having a word with him tomorrow,” I said, straightening up. “If you think he’s going to get away—”
“No!” said Katy. “Don’t make this bigger than it is. Besides, we’ve got to focus on our mission. Can’t jeopardize that.”
“But we can’t let him—”
“You know what this means, don’t you?” said Katy. “He’s got something to hide too.”
“That or he’s just another fake padre preying on good people,” said Tetyana, a dark look on her face. “It’s not like there aren’t many of those around.” She glared at Katy. “If that man comes within three feet of you, I’m throttling him.”
“I’m not keeping quiet,” I said. “We need to let him know we’re on to him.”
“Ladies,” said Tetyana, pulling out her sidearm. “I don’t care what Mrs. Robinson said, I’m patrolling the house tonight.” She looked up, her eyes like steel. “I suspect everyone in this damned house, and I’m going to keep a close eye on all of them.”
I stared at Tetyana’s weapon as she checked the chamber and racked the slide. She walked over to her bag to fish out the extra magazine she’d brought with her and slid it into her vest.
We were out of our state and didn’t have a license to carry in New Hampshire. But now, I wished I’d brought my Glock too.
A strange thing happens when you put a gun to a man’s head and pull the trigger. I’d done it once to the man who’d assassinated my parents. I’d done it again to the man who’d held my cousin by the neck, threatening to choke her to death.
Once you kill, your life changes.
I rarely slept well, as the images of those men’s dying faces haunted me every night. But I knew if I faced another murderer or rapist, I would not hesitate to do what I had before.
Tetyana’s words on our ride up flashed into my mind.
I have a curious feeling this job of yours is bigger than you think.
My gut said she was right.
“For you.”
I looked up. It was Tetyana extending an arm my way. In her hand was a gleaming black gun.
“I brought an extra sub compact,” she said, “just in case.”
Chapter Fourteen
My phone rang, startling me.
I turned it on and held it against my ear.
“Everyone okay?”
It was my resident lawyer, my childhood friend, and Katy’s estranged partner. Peace’s friendly voice sounded far away, though he was calling from only two states away.
“Had a little tire trouble, but we got here okay.”
I felt a jab on my arm and turned to see Katy mouthing at me.
“Um, Peace? Katy wants to know if Chantelle did her homework.”
“All done. Just put her to bed,” said Peace, his voice strained at the mention of my friend. “She asked when Mom’s coming back. Can you tell Katy I have the same question?”
With a sigh, I looked over at Katy who was sitting on the bed, clutching the Care Bear on her lap, a stubborn look on her face.
“Hey, Katy, Chantelle’s sleeping but she wanted to know when you’re coming home. Peace is also wondering the same thing...”
Katy looked away.
She’s still angry.
“Tell him I’ll come home when he puts me and Chantelle over his precious job,” she snapped.
Chantelle’s beautiful little face came into my thoughts. My heart ached for her as she was now probably bearing the brunt of this dispute.
I turned back to my phone with a sigh.
“All well here,” I lied, stepping away from the bed so Katy couldn’t jab me again. “Except we all want you two to stop fighting. We love you both.”
Peace let out a weary sigh. “Tell her I love her, would you? I love her as much as I did when I first met her.”
I turned to Katy. “Peace says he loves you just like he did the first day he met you.”
Katy scowled back.
“So, I got your text,” said Peace, moving on, as if he knew exactly how his wife felt about him right then.
“Madame Bouchard’s lawyer made a request to the probate judge to seal the court records to prevent anyone seeing her will. The request was granted, given her public status. This means unless someone starts a fight in court, the documents will be kept confidential just as she had wanted.”
Tetyana raised an eyebrow. I mouthed “sorry” and fumbled to turn the speakerphone on.
“Has anyone started a fight in the courts?” I asked, putting the phone on the bedside table and turning the speaker toward my friends so they could hear as well.
“So far, no,” said Peace. “We can be confident no one in the family knows of her unusual endowment to you. You can strike that worry off, for now.”
“How much do you trust her lawyer?”
“If he did anything nefarious, he’d be risking his name, his practice, his finances, and his career. He’s a big name and has some pretty public clients. I doubt he’ll risk his comfortable position by doing anything stupid. You never know, but the chance is low.”
I sighed in relief.
“Do you think Madame Bouchard had anything to do with Mrs. Robinson’s letters?”
“I can’t confirm that, but I wouldn’t put it past her.”
“She’s playing with lives here,” I said, silently cursing the day I met that woman. “What about the money? Have you learned anything more about how it all works?”
“Just had another conversation this morning with her lawyer to sort this out. Here’s what we know so far. Madame Bouchard’s given out your bakery number to a select group of people. She has supposedly told them to call you for help when the matter is too discreet to share outside the family circle or when the authorities can’t solve their problems.”
“Cold cases and such? From her friends and family?”
“Mrs. Robinson was the first person to call you. I don’t know who the others are yet, but her lawyer promised to dig into his files to see if he can find any clues. He’s being co-operative given the, er, unusual nature of this legacy.”
“So there’s real money here? She’s not playing us?”
“That I can confirm. I looked over the financial records yesterday. She had asked her lawyer to open a separate investment account twelve months before she died. She’s been scheming for a while.”
“Why didn’t she just donate it all to charity? Any orphanage would have done. It didn’t need to be ours. Why complicate matters?”
“She loved these elaborate cloak and dagger games, remember? It’s in her blood, and this was probably her last hurrah of sorts.”
“A crazy hurrah, but we’ll take it.”
“We’re also seeing a trend now with more people bequeathing to charity and do-gooders because they just can’t stomach their spoiled brats wasting their hard-earned money at Ibiza or LA.”
“So, Madame Bouchard’s will is legit, then? If we solve these problems for these people—”
“A million US dollars get transferred to anywhere in the world we have a government registered orphanage for trafficked children. As soon as her lawyer gets confirmation that the case has been solved, he will wire the money.” He paused. “I’d say she has enough for about twenty-five such, er, projects.”
Tetyana raised an eyebrow.
“Twenty-five million dollars,” I heard Katy whisper in shock.
“Wow,” I said. “Didn’t realize it was that much.”
“It’s in an investment account, which means it can fluctuate. But it’s all solid blue chip dividend funds, so it could grow over time. Expect an industry average of six to eight percent over a decade, if you’re lucky. Then again, if you solve these things fast enough, a sizeable amount will be withdrawn each time, diminishing the pot.”
“That’s the whole point,” I said
. “We want the orphanages to get these resources, so they can take care of more kids. But how will her lawyer know when we’ve solved a case?”
“We’re still trying to figure this out ourselves. According to the will, she left instructions with her contacts to call him and confirm. It was all prearranged.” He paused. “I think this first case should clear most of these questions for us.”
Tetyana and Katy were listening intently. Both raised their eyebrows when they saw me look. I knew what was going through their minds. We’d had bizarre clients in the past, but this had to cap it all.
“Thanks, Peace,” I said, turning to the phone. “Don’t know what we’d do without you.”
“Hey, you’re family,” he said, “I’m meeting with the other lawyer in three days to see if there’s anything we’ve missed. Chat then.”
“Sounds great.”
“Asha?” He paused. I could feel the tension coming back to his voice. “Be careful out there, okay? David’s worried and wondering if he should have closed the dojo and come with you.”
“Hey, this is a girls’ getaway,” called out Katy from the bed.
“We can take care of ourselves,” I said, looking at Tetyana who had her Japanese Tanto knife out now and was wiping it with a leather cloth. “Besides, Tetyana can single-handedly take on an army, if need be.”
“Just come home safely and bring Katy back in one piece. Watch her for me, would you?”
“I always do,” I said with a smile at her. Katy’s face relaxed and her pout vanished.
“I know this isn’t a big mission,” Peace was saying, “like the others we used to do, but...”
“But what?” I asked.
“Small-town secrets can be deadly.”
“Not as deadly as Saudi human traffickers.”
“Just don’t trust everyone you meet.”
He hung up after telling me to convince Katy to call back soon.
“Boy, what an exhausting day,” said Katy, as she flung herself on her back on the bed. “Ouch!”
She pulled away like something had stung her.
“What is it?” said Tetyana and me at the same time.
Katy flipped around, pulled the comforter away and peered into the bed. Tetyana and I stepped up to her.
Merciless Legacy: Merciless Murder - A Thrilling Closed Circle Mystery Series Page 7