by Leena Clover
“Huh?”
“Adam,” Star said knowingly. “Why don’t you go visit him tomorrow?”
“I have no interest in being insulted,” Jenny said.
Her grouchy mood persisted the next morning. She poured coffee and served the customers without exchanging a single smile with anyone.
“You need a day off,” Captain Charlie told her.
Betty Sue Morse thundered into the Boardwalk Café at 10 AM, Heather following close behind.
“Where is your car?” she asked Jenny.
“Grandma’s run out of wool,” Heather said, looking harassed.
It was the first time Jenny had seen Betty Sue without her knitting needles.
“Are we going on a wool run?” she asked sullenly.
“We are going to visit the Newburys,” Betty Sue informed her. “Get your car and start driving.”
Heather piled into the back seat and the three of them set off for the Newbury estate.
“I am tired of the suspense,” Betty Sue said as they climbed the road that led up to the Newbury mansion. “I want to settle this once and for all.”
“Are you planning to confront Ada Newbury?” Jenny asked.
“Darn right,” Betty Sue barked. “It’s high time she came clean.”
“We haven’t called ahead,” Heather said timidly. “She doesn’t like people who turn up without an appointment, Grandma.”
“I am going to meet my husband,” Betty Sue said stoutly. “I don’t need an appointment for that.”
A maid showed them into the parlor.
“Tell Ada Betty Sue Morse is here.”
The maid scurried away without a word.
Robert Newbury came into the room and sat down in front of Betty Sue.
“This is a nice surprise,” he said, smiling at Heather. “What brings you here?”
“I need to talk to Ada,” Betty Sue began. “You better stay here, Robert. You need to listen to this too.”
Ada Newbury came in a couple of minutes later. She was dressed to go out.
“Betty Sue? Heather! I was about to leave for my spa appointment. You would have known that if you had called ahead.”
She paused meaningfully, as if waiting for an apology.
“Sit down, Ada,” Betty Sue ordered. “You’re not going anywhere until you talk to me.”
Ada Newbury turned red and opened her mouth to object. Betty Sue beat her to it.
“Tell me what you did to that poor man. Tell me now.”
Ada collapsed on a couch and cracked her knuckles. She seemed speechless for a change.
“What is all this, Betty Sue?” Robert asked his wife.
“We know you lied to us about not knowing that man,” Betty Sue said, pointing a finger at Ada. “I want to know why.”
“You have no right to question me,” Ada said haughtily. “The police have already been here. We told them whatever they needed to know.”
Jenny decided to step in.
“Mrs. Newbury, we are trying to find out as much as we can about that man. Your staff has confirmed he was here. Another woman from out of town told us you knew him well.”
“This is none of your business, Miss King.”
“I wish it wasn’t,” Jenny sighed. “But both my aunt and I are involved in this. Please, Mrs. Newbury, we need your help.”
“What have you got to hide, Ada?” Betty Sue probed. “Why don’t you come clean?”
Julius Newbury entered the room and sat down next to his wife. He took her hand in his and gave her a nod.
“This is kind of personal,” Julius started.
“You can trust Betty Sue,” Robert interrupted. “She’s family.”
Julius Newbury looked at Jenny.
“I’m not going to malign you, Mr. Newbury. I just want to get some information about that dead man.”
Julius Newbury continued.
“John was a dealer in antiques. He acted like an agent or liaison.”
“We learned that recently,” Jenny admitted.
“We had something to sell,” Julius coughed. “A very valuable heirloom, in fact.”
“Something from the ‘Bella, I bet,” Betty Sue muttered.
“Anyhoo,” Julius continued. “I put the word out. John was here on behalf of another collector.”
“Is that when you shared a drink?” Jenny asked.
“He was here for dinner one evening,” Julius confirmed.
“Do you remember what day it was?” Jenny asked.
“It was two days before the Spring Gala,” Ada Newbury said. “I have it written down in my appointment book.”
“How did your meeting go?” Jenny asked.
“Let’s say it was favorable,” Julius said. “We agreed on some terms and I was going to ship the object to the concerned party. I paid John my share of the commission.”
“Did you have any disagreements?”
“Not at all,” Julius said calmly. “It was a normal business meeting.”
“Did he mention how long he was going to be in town?”
“He said he would stick around for a day or two.”
“Did he say why?”
“I didn’t ask,” Julius shrugged. “Is that important?”
“He was alive for at least a day after he met you,” Jenny mused. “Something happened to him during that day.”
“Did you invite him to that party?” Betty Sue asked.
Ada’s disdain was clearly written on her face.
“You know I am particular about who I invite to my parties, Betty Sue.”
“Then why was he here on your beach?” Heather asked.
The Newburys didn’t have an answer for that.
“I noticed you called him John,” Jenny said to Julius. “Was John Smith his real name?”
“John Smith?” Julius said sharply. “We knew him as John Mendoza.”
Chapter 19
Jenny wasn’t sure if their visit to the Newbury mansion had been productive.
“At least we know why they met that man,” Heather said. “And we know his real name.”
“We can’t be sure of that,” Jenny said glumly. “Maybe he had a string of aliases.”
Jason Stone came to the Boardwalk Café bright and early the next day.
“What are you doing this evening?” he asked. “How about driving up to Chincoteague for dinner?”
“I could use a break,” Jenny admitted.
She looked at Jason and bit her lower lip.
“It’s not a date,” he said, reading her mind. “It’s just dinner.”
“Will you pick me up?” Jenny asked him.
“See you at six,” he said, waving goodbye. “It will take us an hour to get there.”
Betty Sue arrived for coffee with Heather in tow. Heather was clutching a bag overflowing with bright yellow yarn.
“We just got a big shipment,” she told Jenny, glancing at the bag. “We have yarn in every possible color, enough to last Grandma for months.”
Star joined them a few minutes later. She was wearing a paint splattered smock with two pockets at the front. A couple of paint brushes peeped out of one pocket.
“Do you always go around town like that?” Jenny asked her aunt.
Star nodded.
“I have a deadline. I need to finish a commission by tomorrow. I’m just here to grab a quick coffee.”
“Would you notice if one of those brushes fell out?” Jenny asked her aunt.
Star shrugged.
“I guess. I will notice it’s missing.”
“I bet that’s what happened,” Jenny told her aunt. “You must have dropped a brush somewhere and forgot about it.”
“But I don’t remember going anywhere near that beach,” Star argued. “Why would anyone pick up a paintbrush anyway?”
“We need to come up with a plausible reason,” Jenny told her.
“Why do people do anything?” Star asked, quirking an eyebrow.
Jenny slapped the lid
on a large paper cup full of coffee and handed it to her aunt. She added a bag with a warm muffin.
“I won’t be home for dinner tonight.”
“Has Adam finally asked you out?” Star asked with a smile.
Jenny’s face hardened.
“I haven’t talked to Adam in a while. I’m going out with Jason.”
“Potato, Po-tah-to…” Star said as she waved goodbye to her friends.
“So you have a hot date tonight, huh?” Heather asked Jenny when she went back to their usual table.
“It’s just dinner,” she repeated. “I’m not dating anyone.”
“What’s wrong with Jason?” Molly asked. “He’s handsome and successful. And he’s smart too. You could do worse than him.”
“Jason’s cool,” Jenny agreed. “But my divorce isn’t final yet, you know. And I’m not mentally there.”
“Anything else?” Heather asked.
“Jason’s a lawyer,” Jenny said, rubbing the charms in her necklace. “Have you thought about that?”
“So what?” Molly and Heather chorused.
“Hello! I was married to a lawyer for twenty years, and look how that turned out.”
“Every person is different, dear,” Betty Sue said, looking up from her knitting.
“Jason’s a good boy,” Petunia added. “And he’s never been married.”
“He’s older than me, right?” Jenny mused, taking a sip of her coffee. “Someone should have snatched him up long ago.”
“Maybe he never found the right girl,” Heather sighed.
“You never went out with him?” Jenny asked Heather.
“Jason’s a lot older than me,” Heather explained. “His sister was my babysitter.”
“He’s perfect for you, though, Jenny,” Molly said with a grin. “So where are you going on this non-date?”
The girls teased Jenny mercilessly until they all burst out laughing. Jenny held up a hand, holding her side with the other. She had a stitch in her side from laughing too much.
“Enough! Let’s talk about something else.”
Jenny looked at Betty Sue. She was remembering what she had said to the Newburys.
“What did you mean when you said something came from the ‘bella’?”
“She meant the Isabella,” Heather explained. “It was a steamship that went down in the shoals near the island.”
“You know the story, don’t you, Jenny?” Petunia asked.
“I have heard bits and pieces,” Jenny said uncertainly. “But what does it have to do with the Newburys?”
“That’s how the Newburys got rich,” Molly said.
“Huh?”
“The Isabella sunk in the shoals around the island in 1876,” Betty Sue started, putting her needles back in her bag. “Folks from the island tried to save them but there were only 17 survivors. The Isabella went down in the ocean. The survivors settled on the island. People dived on the wreck for years. They found little bits and pieces but nothing big.”
Jenny’s mouth was hanging open as she listened to this tale.
“Then we had the great storm of 1962,” Heather continued. “Half the island sank at that time. The Morse family lost a large portion of their land.”
“That’s when Pelican Cove was formed, wasn’t it?” Jenny asked.
“The wreck of the Isabella shifted during the storm,” Heather said in a hushed voice. “The Newburys dove on the wreck and salvaged a lot of things at that time.”
“Why didn’t anyone else dive on the wreck?” Jenny asked.
“Most people were fighting for their life,” Betty Sue explained. “Houses were washed away. People were holed up in whatever shelter they could find. They were busy saving themselves or their neighbors.”
“Everyone except the Newburys,” Heather said. “They were seen going out to the wreck in a boat.”
“It was foolhardy,” Betty Sue snarled. “Robert’s older brother was in that boat. He was swept away. They never found him.”
“But they found treasure!” Heather added.
“How do you know for sure?” Jenny asked.
“The Newburys became rich overnight,” Betty Sue said with a faraway look in her eyes. “They bought a huge tract of land from my Daddy and built their estate.”
“And that’s how the Newburys became the richest family in Pelican Cove,” Heather finished.
“Do people hold a grudge against them for taking the treasure?” Jenny asked.
“The survivors do I guess,” Heather shrugged. “It came from their ship, after all.”
“Why don’t you ask Adam about it sometime?” Molly said with relish.
“Where did your family come from?” Jenny asked her.
“We came here from neighboring towns,” Molly explained. “They were washed away during the Great Storm of 1962. Both my parents were young kids when their families sought shelter in Pelican Cove.”
“What about your ancestors?” Heather asked.
“They were early settlers on the neighboring islands,” Molly said, “just like the Stones and the Newburys and the other Pioneers.”
“So most of your ancestors were British? Is that why the locals here speak with a different accent?”
“Until the bridge was built in the 70s, the only way to get here was by boat,” Betty Sue explained. “The islanders were kind of isolated and they developed their own dialect.”
Molly stood up to leave.
“I’m glad you are talking about something other than that wretched man, Jenny. You’ve got a bee in your bonnet about him.”
“No I don’t,” Jenny said in a hurt tone. “I am trying to protect my aunt. You would do the same thing in my place.”
“Chris was talking to Ethan yesterday,” Heather butted in. “The police are beginning to think it was someone from out of town.”
“Who’s Ethan?” Jenny asked.
“Adam’s brother?” Heather sighed. “The guy who runs that fish shack at the other end of Main Street?”
“It kind of makes sense,” Molly said. “We established that he wasn’t from here. So the person harming him must also be from out of town.”
“That doesn’t make sense at all,” Jenny argued. “Let’s assume he wasn’t from Pelican Cove. But he was connected to people here. He met the Newburys and he was going to meet someone else. We just need to know who that person was.”
“Even if he knew someone else here,” Heather considered, “what possible motive could anyone have to kill him?”
“That’s the big question, isn’t it?” Jenny sighed. “We won’t know until we find this other person.”
“If the police believe the killer came from out of town, they will have to exonerate Star,” Molly pointed out. “You should be happy with that theory.”
“I’m not saying it’s impossible,” Jenny explained. “But some things don’t add up.”
“Why would an outsider trash the café?” Petunia spoke up for the first time. “They wouldn’t even know what’s going on in town.”
Kevin the mailman came up the café steps. He greeted them with his customary salute and handed over some mail to Petunia.
“Howdy ladies?”
“How are you, Kevin?” Petunia asked. “Are you staying here for lunch?”
“I think I will just get a coffee to go,” Kevin said. “Got a whole bunch of mail to deliver today.”
“Would you know if there was someone new in town?” Jenny asked Kevin as she poured his coffee.
“I would know if they got any mail delivered,” he said, scratching his head. “Why do you ask?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Jenny said. “Just a thought I had.”
The group broke up after that and Jenny got busy with the lunch rush. She hurried home after work, thinking about what she was going to wear. She ran into Adam just outside the Boardwalk Café.
“Tank and I were going for a walk. Want to join us?”
Jenny hadn’t forgiven Adam for his churli
sh behavior.
“Not tonight,” she shook her head. “I’m going out to dinner.”
Adam’s jaw tightened and he gave her a nod. He pulled at Tank’s leash and walked away before she had a chance to hug the dog.
Jenny’s mind was consumed by Adam as she walked home. Had he wanted to talk about something?
She pulled out a pale green dress from her closet and paired it with a denim jacket. She hoped it wasn’t too casual for the place Jason was taking her to.
“You look beautiful,” Jason said as he sipped cold beer from a plastic cup.
He had taken her to a crab shack situated right on the water. They ordered a huge platter of fried seafood. Jenny dipped a hush puppy in tartar sauce and tried not to blush.
“We’re not on a date, remember?”
“When do you think you might lift this dating embargo?” Jason asked, biting into a crunchy coconut shrimp.
“How was your day?” Jenny asked with a laugh, neatly side stepping his question.
“A lawyer’s life can be pretty monotonous,” Jason told her. “I spend most of my time reading boring law journals.”
“Don’t you have a paralegal?”
“I don’t need one,” Jason said honestly.
“Do you miss the city?”
“Sometimes,” he said honestly. “But I don’t miss the eighty hour work weeks and the rat race. I am ready to settle down and take it easy.”
“Are you thinking of having kids?” Jenny asked him.
“At my age?” Jason laughed. “Chances are slim to none, unless I adopt someone or start fostering.”
“My son Nick is the best thing that came out of my marriage,” Jenny admitted honestly.
“You know what? This sounds very much like a first date conversation.”
“Let’s talk about something else then.”
“How is Star?” Jason asked. “We should have some good news for her soon.”
“She’s fine…busy working on her commissions. Have you talked to Adam recently?” Jenny asked.
“I have,” Jason affirmed. “The police are pursuing a different theory. They are almost convinced someone from out of town is responsible.”
“Heather mentioned that,” Jenny told Jason. “But I’m not so sure.”
“Neither am I,” Jason agreed with her. “And do you know why? I keep coming back to the attack on the café.”
“Me too,” Jenny said, dunking a couple of fries in ketchup. “I have a feeling it’s someone around us, someone we know very well.”