To Hatch a Thief

by Zara Keane

  The golfer, Brendan Malone, scowled but stood to join his Australian cousins. “I’ll help.”

  Others got to their feet, and Sergeant Reynolds soon had a solid team of volunteers, all of who had received their orders.

  “Looks like my first time as the Chicken Dance leader will be my last,” Lenny said, removing his ridiculous leprechaun hat. “If you take care of the chickens, I’ll go and help combat the flood damage.”

  “Maybe I can persuade Niall to look after them, and then I can join you.” My gaze swept over the audience who’d gathered to watch our disastrous performance and located Niall. He was whispering to an older woman I recognized as Mary Driscoll, the secretary at Aaron and Jennifer’s legal practice. I stared harder, and my heart rate kicked up a notch. Could it be…?

  Lenny made to move toward Reynolds, but I grabbed his arm. “Does Mary Driscoll have a child?”

  My friend looked surprised by my question. “Well, yeah. She’s Niall’s mum.”

  I looked back at Niall. He’d said his mother had been at school with the Malone brothers. That put her in her mid-fifties, and Niall had to be ten years older than me, which made him around forty. I cast my mind back to the night in Mamie Byrne’s living room. What had Mamie said about rumors surrounding the Malone brothers? Hadn’t she mentioned Mick Malone allegedly getting a girl pregnant?

  “Lenny,” I whispered. “Do you know who Niall’s father is?”

  He blinked. “No idea. I don’t think Mary ever said. She had him young. I know that much. I guess that caused a scandal back in the day.”

  “Do you remember Mamie Byrne telling us about Mick Malone getting a girl pregnant? What if the girl was Mary, and the baby was Niall?”

  Lenny sucked air through his teeth. “Their ages fit.”

  “Yeah. And it would give both of them a strong motive for wanting to steal Mick Malone’s inheritance.”

  “And Mary works for Aaron and Jennifer—” Lenny said.

  “—And could have discovered the code to the safe,” I continued, “despite what her employers believe.”

  The volunteers began to leave the room and head to their cars.

  “We need to tell Sergeant Reynolds. If both Mamie and the Driscolls have a motive for doing the Malones harm, the police need to stop focusing on Jennifer as the culprit.”

  “I agree, but now’s probably not the moment. Come on. Let’s get changed and go to Smuggler’s Cove. There’s got to be some way we can help.”

  By the time Lenny and I had changed back into our street clothes, and I’d persuaded a very reluctant Niall to take charge of the chickens, the rest of the volunteers had all left. We made a beeline for the lobby when the front door of the club burst open. A panic-stricken Noreen stood on the threshold, her hair in disarray. When she saw us, relief flooded her face. “Come quickly. We need your help.”

  I rushed forward. “What’s happened?”

  “It’s Günter. He got word that his houseboat was adrift and he went out to try to save it. The storm’s so wild it began to sink. Some fishermen are helping, but…” she trailed off on a choke.

  “Where’s Günter?” I demanded, already fearing the worst.

  My aunt’s terrified eyes met mine. “Still on the boat.”

  11

  The floor seemed to shift beneath my feet. If Günter were aboard a sinking boat in this storm, he’d have no choice but to swim to the shore. I sucked in a breath. I’d seen the size of the waves around Whisper Island on days with a mild wind. The idea of those waves in a storm sent a shiver of fear down my spine. “How many people are trying to help Günter?”

  “Three fishermen tried to sail out to him, but the waves forced them back.” Noreen’s lips trembled. “Günter’s an able seaman, but I’ve seen too many people drown in the bay over the years to rate his chances highly if he’s forced to swim.”

  I’d grown up in San Francisco and was all too familiar with hazardous currents. “I don’t know what we can do to help, but we’ve got to try. We can’t stand here knowing Günter’s out there alone.”

  My cousin appeared in the lobby, ashen-faced. “What’s this about Günter?”

  “His boat is sinking, and he’s still on it,” I said, getting straight to the point. “I’m heading to Carraig Harbour to see if I can help. Everyone else is focused on combating the flooding in Smuggler’s Cove.”

  Lenny touched my arm. “I’ll come with you, and we’ll take my van. It’s higher than Julie’s MINI for driving in this weather.”

  In spite of the warmth of the lobby, my cousin wrapped her arms around her body. “How can we help Günter? I know you can sail, Lenny, but do you have access to a boat at Carraig Harbour? That’s where Günter was keeping his houseboat, right?”

  Lenny squared his shoulders. “I’m a lousy sailor, but if I can find a boat to take out, I’ll give it my best shot.”

  “No need.” Mary Driscoll appeared behind my cousin, flanked by her son and Mamie Byrne. “I’m a strong sailor, and so is Niall.”

  Niall was already pulling on his coat. “If Lenny deals with his chickens, I’ll come with you now.”

  Relief flooded Lenny’s face. “Thanks, mate. I’d probably sink the boat before I’d lifted the anchor.”

  In spite of the gloomy atmosphere, Lenny’s brutal honesty made us all laugh.

  “I keep a small fishing boat at Carraig Harbour,” Niall continued. “Assuming my boat is still there, I’ll try to get out to Günter. How fast is Günter’s boat taking on water, Noreen?”

  “Dickie Ahearn said he’d be good for an hour or so, but not much longer. And that’s only if the boat doesn’t capsize.”

  “I’ll come, too,” Mamie said. “I was a nurse before I opened the B&B.”

  I turned to Lenny and gave him a brief hug. “Good luck with the chickens.”

  “Be careful, Maggie. Don’t underestimate the power of the ocean.” My friend slipped a key out of his pocket. “Take my van. I’d feel more comfortable knowing you were higher up than in Julie’s MINI.”

  I pocketed the key. “Thank you.”

  A few minutes later, I drove over roads that were slick with rainwater. Julie, Noreen, and Mamie had opted to come with me, while Niall and Mary Driscoll took his car. None of us was in the mood to talk, and I covered the distance from the Whisper Island Golf Club to Carraig Harbour in silence.

  The instant after I’d pulled into a free spot in the harbor’s parking lot, Julie rolled out of the car and ran to the side of the cliff. The rest of us hurried to catch up with her.

  When my cousin looked at me, I read bleakness in her eyes. “I see Günter’s boat. It’s sinking fast.”

  The strong wind whipped the words out of her mouth, making it sound like she was far away instead of a foot in front of me.

  I grabbed her arm. “Let’s go down to the pier.”

  “What pier? The pier is completely submerged.” Mamie came to my side, a pinched look on her weather-beaten face. “Niall will have to swim to reach his boat.”

  “Mamie’s right. We’re safer up here. Until Niall gets Günter to shore, there’s nothing we can do.”

  I pulled my heavy raincoat tight around my body. “I hate feeling helpless. I came out here hoping I could assist with the rescue, but that’s crazy talk.”

  “I feel the same, love.” The rain had rendered Noreen’s spectacles useless, so she’d removed them and was now blinking owlishly at the blurs around her.

  “You raised the alarm,” I said gently. “Well done.”

  “Do you think we should get back in the van?” Mamie’s teeth chattered as she posed the question. “It’s freezing out here.”

  Before answering, I surveyed my surroundings. My gaze settled on the whitewashed building next to the elevator. “The ferry office,” I exclaimed in excitement. “They might have a radio in there. We could try to message the coast guard.”

  I was running before any of my companions had had a chance to react. As I’d expected, the
office door was locked. I slipped my Swiss Army knife from my pocket. After a few minutes of fiddling, the lock gave way, and I burst inside. Mamie, Noreen, and Julie trooped in after me. Courtesy of the storm, the lights weren’t working, but I found flashlights and a battery powered radio in a storage room and spent a frustrating fifteen minutes trying to coax the radio into life.

  “Give up, love.” Noreen bustled into the ticket office where I was working on the broken radio and handed me a mug of warm instant coffee.

  I sniffed the mug, allowing the steam to warm my frozen face. “Where did you find a way to boil water?”

  My aunt’s smile was smug. “There’s a portable gas cooker in that storage room you ransacked earlier. I figured if I couldn’t do anything to help the rescue, I could at least make warm drinks for when everyone returns.”

  “Good thinking.” I put the radio down and concentrated on my coffee. It tasted vile, but I needed the warmth offered by the hot liquid. “Where’s Mamie? I wanted to ask her something.”

  “In the kitchen with Julie. Should I ask her to step in here?”

  “Yes, please.” If I couldn’t contribute to Günter’s rescue, I’d use the opportunity to talk to Mamie about her family’s connection to the Malone brothers.

  A moment later, Mamie came into the ticket office, clutching a mug in one hand, and perched on the stool opposite mine. She raised an eyebrow. “Noreen said you wanted a word with me.”

  “It’s about something you said when Lenny and I visited Sergeant Reynolds at your B&B.”

  A flicker of unease passed over her lined features. “Oh, yes?”

  “You mentioned that there were rumors about Mick Malone getting a girl pregnant. You took pains to add that you didn’t know if that rumor was accurate.”

  Mamie jutted her jaw and fixed me with a defiant stare. “What of it? That was a long time ago.”

  “Was it a coincidence that you came into the golf club lobby at the same time as Mary Driscoll and her son? Because I got the impression that you and Mary were comfortable around one another, maybe even friends.”

  Mamie’s stare didn’t falter. “I have a lot of friends on Whisper Island. I’ve lived here my whole life.”

  “See, here’s the thing: you and Mary are of a similar age. You must have gone to school at the same time. And Mary must have been a teenager when Niall was born. The guy’s got to be around forty, and Mary can’t be more than mid-fifties.”

  Finally, Mamie averted her gaze. “So?”

  “So…is Mick Malone the father of Mary’s son?”

  The woman shrugged. “And what if he is? It’s not as if the man was ever involved in Niall’s life.”

  “The reason I ask is that the circumstance gives both Mary and Niall a strong motive to steal that necklace, and Mary works at the legal practice where it was stolen. It’s not a stretch to imagine she could have discovered the combination to open the safe.”

  Mamie’s eyes flashed with anger. “Mary would never do that. She’s as honest as they come. And she needs that job. She’d never put her livelihood at risk to steal a necklace she wouldn’t know how to sell.”

  “What about Niall? He strikes me as a clever sort. He could have stolen the necklace with the intention of selling it on the black market.”

  “Niall is my godson,” Mamie said in an icy tone. “He would never do a thing like this.”

  “So you were deliberately vague about the details of the girl Mick Malone got pregnant.”

  She glared at me. “Mary is my best friend. She’s stuck by me through all the ups and downs of my life. I’d never betray her. Mentioning the pregnancy to you was a mistake on my part.”

  “I have no intention of leading the police to an innocent person,” I said, “but we both know Jennifer Pearce didn’t take that necklace. She doesn’t deserve to have her name dragged through the mud, and her professional reputation trashed.”

  Mamie’s fists clenched at her sides. “Mary and Niall had nothing to do with the stolen necklace.”

  “What about you?” I asked softly. “Did you take the necklace to avenge the attack on your father?”

  The woman jerked as if I’d struck her. “How did you find out about that?”

  I didn’t want to put Sergeant O’Mara in her line of fire, so I hedged. “The Whisper Island gossip mill has a long memory.”

  Mamie’s eyes narrowed to slits, and her mouth trembled with rage. “I hate the Malones. It drives me crazy to see them staying in a fancy hotel like the Whisper Island Hotel and being feted like celebrities at the golf club.”

  “Did you take the necklace?” I repeated, keeping my voice steady.

  “No.” The word exploded from her, and then Mamie Byrne’s ire appeared to deflate. “I can’t stand the Malone brothers, but I have no beef with their sisters. I wouldn’t want to jeopardize their inheritance.”

  Mamie sank onto the stool and stared unseeing into her mug.

  “I’m sorry, Mamie, but I had to ask. Sergeant O’Shea has fixed on Jennifer as the culprit, and I don’t trust him to look any farther.”

  The older woman snorted. “He’s lazy, and Jennifer humiliated him during that murder case that you helped solve. O’Shea’s perfectly happy to trash Jennifer’s reputation.”

  “True.” I sighed. “Unfortunately, none of this information brings me any closer to figuring out who stole the necklace.”

  “If you want, I can brainstorm with you,” Mamie Byrne said in a gentler tone than she’d hitherto used during our fraught encounter.

  “Let’s go all out and ask Noreen and Julie if they want to help.” I got to my feet. “It’s either that or stress about how Günter’s doing.”

  “I’ll take the binoculars and look over the cliff to see how the rescue is progressing. Meanwhile, get your aunt and cousin in here and we’ll have a proper brainstorm when I return.”

  After Mamie had left, I asked Noreen and Julie to join us in the ticket office. Julie, a typical teacher, went in search of notepads and pens for all of us. We’d just finished getting everything ready for our brainstorming session when the door to the ticket office burst open. Mamie’s reconnaissance hadn’t taken long.

  I glanced up, and my jaw dropped. Lenny stood on the threshold, rain running off his raincoat in rivulets. In his right hand, he lifted up a chicken cage containing a green-capped fowl. “Look what I found in Dooley’s cage.”

  I frowned and took a step closer. And sucked in a breath. “Whoa. Is that—?”

  “Yes.” Lenny’s bony face was agile with excitement. “Dooley is sitting on a diamond necklace.”

  12

  I stared into the chicken’s cage. Sure enough, Dooley the Runaway Chicken was perched atop a long, glittering necklace. I was no jewelry expert, but the diamonds looked like the real deal.

  My eyes found Lenny’s. “When did this happen?”

  “I don’t know. After you guys had left, I went back to the dressing room. I guess Niall had already gotten the chickens back in their travel coops. I didn’t even notice the necklace at first because two of the chickens were fighting and had to be separated.”

  I suppressed a laugh at this image. “They were getting pretty restless once their performance was interrupted.”

  “Right.” Lenny ran a hand through his scraggly brown hair. “They usually travel two to a coop, but Dooley and Donald were going for each other. Maybe they’re into diamonds. Who knows? Anyway, while I was removing Donald from their shared coop, I noticed the necklace. Dooley won’t let me anywhere near it. He goes nuts if I try.”

  I gave the chicken a wry smile. “Dooley has expensive tastes.”

  The chicken squawked as if to agree with my assessment.

  Julie peered into the cage. “That must be the missing necklace that Jennifer is accused of stealing.”

  “Undoubtedly,” Noreen said. “It’s not like Whisper Island is swimming in millionaires.”

  “Speaking of swimming,” I said, straightening, “how on
earth did you get here? I took your van.”

  Lenny shot Julie a sheepish look. “I sort of hot-wired Julie’s MINI.”

  My cousin opened and closed her mouth, fishlike. Finally, she said, “You never cease to amaze me, Lenny. I’m not sure which part shocks me most. The diamond necklace in the chicken coop or your misspent youth.”

  At that moment, the door swung open for the second time, and Mamie raced in, windblown and bedraggled. “I saw Niall and Mary pull Günter into their boat. There’s no sign of his houseboat, so it looks like it sank faster than expected and Günter was forced to swim.”

  My cousin turned deathly pale. “Was he breathing?”

  “I should say so. He swam to Niall’s boat of his own accord.”

  Relief that matched my own flooded Julie’s face. “Thank goodness.”

  “It’s time for us to go out and help them.” I looked around the room for confirmation. “They won’t be able to use the elevator in this weather, so their only option is to climb the metal staircase.”

  Noreen shook her head. “Having us all hanging around on the edge of the cliff makes no sense. We’ll take turns in keeping watch, divided into pairs. If they need help getting up the stairs, one of the watchers can run back and get the rest of us.”

  “There’s rope in the storage room,” I said. “I can take the first watch.”

  “No.” Mamie patted my arm. “Stay here and do your thinking, Maggie. You can take your turn later.”

  “In that case, Julie and I will go out now,” Noreen said. “Lenny, Mamie, and Maggie can brainstorm to their hearts’ content. We’ll come get you when we need you.”

  Over the next few minutes, we helped my aunt and cousin into their rain gear and provided them with rope and waterproof flashlights from the ticket office’s emergency supplies room. After they’d left, Mamie, Lenny, and I armed ourselves with notepaper and pens and began our thinking session in earnest.

  I went first. “So far, we’ve assumed that the theft of the necklace had two possible motives: financial gain and revenge. Under the financial gain list, we’ve put Mick and Enda Malone—Matt Malone’s sons and two of his direct heirs. We’ve also added Matt and Enda’s sons, Rob, Darren, and Brendan.”