The Ghost and the Mystery Writer

by Anna J. McIntyre

  “Oh my…” Danielle tore off a piece of her roll and popped it into her mouth.

  “When Jolene moved back to town a few months ago, Adam seemed to be over all that—didn’t give Jolene a second notice. Of course, then Jolene pulled that stunt at my Beach Drive house.” Marie took a bite of her cinnamon roll.

  “No wonder you were upset when they brought Adam in for questioning.”

  “The idea of Adam killing Jolene after all this time, well, it’s ludicrous. The boy has moved on. He wasn’t harboring some grudge against Melony’s mother. Holding grudges was Jolene’s forte.”

  “Well, we had a nice time last night. It was fun. But I imagine Melony is busy today dealing with her mother’s estate.”

  “So she’s really not having a funeral?” Marie took another bite of her roll and then set it down, reaching for her coffee cup.

  Danielle shook her head. “No. I guess not.”

  “Well, not sure Jolene had many friends left in town anyway. Seems like she’d ruffled the feathers of all the historical society’s board members, from what I hear.”

  “There is Pete Rogers. I guess he’s one of her old friends.”

  Marie nodded. “Yes, Pete. What made you think of him?”

  “Melony mentioned he was a good friend of her parents. She said they used to have bonfires over at his place. In fact, she and Adam walked down there last night and said hello to him.”

  Marie sipped her coffee and then set the cup back down. “Yes, I remember, Pete was always cozy with the Carmichaels and that whole group.”

  “Did there used to be a Mrs. Rogers?” Danielle asked. “I’ve never heard him mention a wife before.”

  “Yes. He’s a widower. Never remarried. In fact, his house belonged to her parents. Well, the house that used to be there. Burned down a few years after his wife died and he built what’s there now.”

  “Does he have kids? I’ve never seen anyone visit him.”

  Marie shook her head. “No. In fact, his wife—or more accurately his bride—died before their first wedding anniversary. Rather a tragic love story. Charlotte Michaels, she was a pretty thing. Sweet, but a mite timid, from what I recall.”

  “How sad. What happened?”

  “She got ill just months after they were married. Lingered miserably. It was so sad. When she died, there was a ruckus about her estate. Her parents had left both her and her sister, Angeline, well off. Charlotte had inherited their property in Oregon, while Angeline inherited their property in Washington.”

  “What kind of a ruckus?”

  Marie picked up a napkin, dabbed her mouth, and then set the napkin back on the table. “Doug Carmichael was Charlotte’s attorney before she ever married Pete. After she died, Angeline informed Pete that Charlotte had left everything to her, including the house on Beach Drive. Of course Pete was furious.”

  “I can understand, since they hadn’t really been married that long. But what happened, did he buy the Beach Drive house from his sister-in-law?”

  Marie shook her head. “The will had been prepared by Doug Carmichael—and according to its date, it had been revised several months after Charlotte got ill. Apparently, up until Charlotte’s marriage, Angeline was her heir. Right after she married Pete, she changed the will to leave everything to her new husband, including all the Oregon properties. But then, she changed her will again, leaving her sister everything.”

  “She wrote her husband out of her will?”

  “Yes. But not until after she got sick.”

  “So how is it that Pete has the property now?”

  “Apparently there was a later will; it left everything to her husband. According to Doug, while Charlotte had changed her will, leaving everything to her sister again when she first got ill, she later came to him and said Angeline had pressured her to write Pete out of the will, something he wasn’t aware of when he had made the changes. Charlotte had a change of heart and instructed Doug to revise her will—again. She was pretty sick by this time, but the courts later ruled she was still fully capable to make this decision. In the final will, she left everything to Pete. According to Doug, Charlotte wanted to do this because Pete had so steadfastly stood by her side and taken care of her during her illness.”

  “That’s horrible for Angeline to try to manipulate her dying sister like that.”

  Marie shrugged and picked up her half-eaten roll. “I suppose that depends which side you listen to.”

  “What do you mean?” Danielle sipped her coffee.

  “In court, Angeline claimed Pete neglected his wife during her illness—that he was cold and mistreated her. Practically accused him of abusing his sick wife. Of course, she had nothing to substantiate her claim, and then there was the will Charlotte’s own attorney had presented.”

  “So he inherited everything?”

  Marie nodded. “You may not realize it by just looking at Pete, but he’s a very rich man. Over the years he’s sold most of the properties he inherited from his wife and reinvested the money. Apparently, he’s very good with managing money—and tight as a tick.”

  Danielle chuckled and shook her head.

  “What’s funny?” Marie asked.

  “I was thinking about how upset Pete was when the historical society was talking about keeping the Eva Aphrodite on the beach as some sort of tourist attraction and how Pete freaked, worried about his property values. The way he went on, I assumed his entire financial world was wrapped up in that house. While I can understand not wanting that monstrosity blocking his view, it is kind of funny, when you think about it.”

  “Like I said, he’s tight as a tick.”

  “Thanks for coming with me, Adam,” Melony said as she and Adam walked through her mother’s house.

  “Where is all the furniture?” Adam asked.

  “When Mother moved to New York after Dad died, she took all her furniture with her. And then when she moved back, she sold it all. She couldn’t afford to ship it back.”

  “Why didn’t she sell the house or rent it out?” He glanced around the sparsely furnished living room.

  “I suspect she didn’t want to sell the house because it had belonged to her parents. And then, well, she didn’t need the money at the time. As for renting it, I don’t think she wanted strangers in it. Mother liked to hold onto what she believed belonged to her, even if she didn’t need it and someone else did.”

  “Sounds like your mom,” Adam muttered under his breath.

  They moved from the living room to the kitchen. Melony opened the refrigerator and looked in. “I need to hire someone to come over and clean this out.”

  “Hey, Mel, can I ask you something?”

  Melony shut the refrigerator. “Sure, what?”

  “Why didn’t you come back for your father’s funeral?”

  Melony shrugged. “I didn’t see the point.”

  “The way your mother talked, she moved back to New York to be with you and your new husband.”

  Melony let out a harsh laugh. “Yeah. I suspect the only reason she decided to move to New York was to give people that impression. She was pretty angry with me for not coming to Dad’s funeral and for eloping.”

  “You two never mended fences?”

  Melony turned to Adam and leaned back against the kitchen counter. “Can I tell you something in confidence?”

  “Certainly, Mel.”

  “Remember when we were in high school, and Dad always wanted me to be a lawyer like him?”

  “Sure. Which was one reason I always figured your folks were so furious with me. I’d led their straight A student astray, off the path they’d planned for her.”

  “If you will remember, it was my idea to run away,” Melony reminded him.

  “I know. And I never understood why. Back then, it just sounded like a good idea to me. Running off with a hot chick who I was crazy about.”

  Melony chuckled. “Yeah, well, you were always pretty easy to manipulate.”

  Adam scowled. �
��Not sure I like the way that sounds.”

  “Oh, come on, admit it, Adam. Teenage girls are always more savvy than boys the same age, while the boys are just—well, horny.”

  Adam shrugged. “Maybe.”

  Melony laughed. “No maybe about it.”

  “So what did you want to tell me—that I can’t tell anyone else?”

  “The real reason I ran away back then.”

  Adam frowned. “The real reason?”

  “Yes. The reason I never told you.”

  “Which was?”

  “My father fell off his pedestal. If you’ll remember, back then I started working weekends in my father’s office.”

  “I remember.”

  “I learned far more than I wanted.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He was crooked, Adam. My father, the man who I loved and looked up to, was nothing but a crook.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Melony arrived at Marlow house a few minutes after Danielle. After parking Jolene’s car along the front of the house, she walked down the drive toward Danielle, who was busy taking groceries out of the back of her car.

  “Hey, need some help?” Melony called out.

  “Thanks, but I think I got this.” Picking up the last of the groceries, Danielle juggled the bags while she slammed the back hatch shut.

  Melony held open the kitchen door for Danielle. Once inside the house, Danielle set the sacks on the counter and turned to Melony. “Did you have a productive morning?”

  “I went over to my mother’s house. I got Adam to go with me. I didn’t feel like going over there alone.”

  “That was nice of him. Have you decided what you’re going to do with her house?”

  “I’m having Adam run a comparative market analysis on it. Mother took out some loans on the property, and I suspect it’s upside down. We’ll have to see. I might have to walk away from it.”

  Danielle shook her head sympathetically. “Sorry.”

  Melony shrugged. “It is what it is.”

  “Is there a lot of stuff to go through? I had to do that after my parents were killed—and then with my cousin, Cheryl. One of my least favorite things to have to do.” As Danielle talked, she continued to put away her groceries.

  “She really didn’t have much here. Got rid of most of her things when she moved back to Frederickport from New York. There was one thing I looked for; I thought it might help Eddy.”

  Folding a now empty grocery bag, Danielle turned to Melony. “What was that?”

  “Mother always used a day planner. Figured if we could look through her schedule, we might have a better idea what was going on these last few weeks. You know, track her steps—see what kind of appointments she set. And knowing Mother, if she argued with anyone, she’d jot down something about it.”

  “It wasn’t in her house?”

  Melony took a seat at the table. “No. Wasn’t in her car either.”

  “Maybe it was in her purse? Did you check with the chief? I know they have her purse.”

  “I already asked. When Eddy described the purse they found with her, I realized the type of day planner she typically used wouldn’t have fit in it.”

  Danielle paused a moment and pointed to the covered cake plate on the kitchen table. “There’s some chocolate chip cookies under there, help yourself.”

  “Thanks.” Melony smiled. She lifted the lid off the plate and grabbed two cookies. “So how did you spend your morning?” She paused a moment and then added, “I guess that’s a silly question. Grocery shopping.”

  “Actually, I spent most of the morning visiting with Adam’s grandmother.” Danielle paused a moment and folded the sacks she had emptied. “And then I stopped at the store.”

  “Adam mentioned you two were friends.”

  Returning to her groceries, Danielle said, “Yes, Marie was a friend of my aunt—great-aunt, really—the one who left me Marlow House.”

  “Oh, that’s right…Clarence was her attorney…”

  They were both silent for a few moments, and finally Melony said, “I’m really sorry about your cousin, by the way. I knew Clarence was a crook; I just never realized he’d be capable of murdering someone.”

  Danielle paused and looked at Melony. “You know, your mother blamed me for her financial problems.”

  Melony sighed. “That doesn’t surprise me. Mother was never big on personal responsibility—at least not for herself.”

  “I imagine it was a shock for her to discover her husband’s business partner—the man she believed was his best friend—would do something like this. Which ended up wiping her out. I suppose I can understand why she resented me.”

  “Danielle, that would only be true if my parents had no idea what Clarence was up to.”

  Danielle stared at Melony. “Are you saying your mother knew?”

  “I’m not saying she knew about Clarence killing your cousin—but everything else—embezzling from clients, I’d be surprised if she didn’t know.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  “Because, I’m sad to say, my father was cut from the same cloth as Clarence Renton. They were best friends for a reason.”

  Before Danielle had time to respond, Hillary barreled into the kitchen. “Oh, you’re back, Danielle!” Hillary greeted her cheerfully, and then she spied Melony sitting at the table. Her smile vanished.

  “Hello, Hillary,” Melony said stiffly.

  “Melony,” Hillary returned, equally stiff.

  Danielle glanced from Melony to Hillary and back to Melony.

  “Melony, I’m sorry about your mother. And if it would make you more comfortable, I will find someplace else to stay,” Hillary told her.

  “I don’t imagine Eddy would be thrilled if you left town right now, considering everything,” Melony returned.

  “You know I had nothing to do with your mother’s death.”

  “I don’t know anything anymore, Hillary.” Melony stood up. “If you will excuse me, I think I’ll go upstairs and lie down.”

  After Melony left the room, Hillary took a seat at the kitchen table. With a sigh, she lifted the cake plate lid and snatched a cookie. Returning the lid atop the plate, she leaned back in the chair and took a bite.

  “Hillary,” Danielle began as she took a seat at the table. “What’s the deal with you and Melony? When she first arrived, you told me she was your attorney. Yet you two act like you can’t stand each other.”

  “Lawyers don’t always like their clients,” Hillary said as she took another bite of her cookie.

  Danielle glanced at the empty doorway and then back to Hillary. “No, I guess not.”

  “Plus, she thinks I’m crazy.” Hillary shoved the rest of the cookie in her mouth, quickly eating it.

  “Why does she think you’re crazy?”

  Hillary cocked her head to one side and looked at Danielle inquisitively. “I would have thought by now you would wonder why Melony represented me. I was quite open with you. I told you she was my attorney.”

  “You mean because she’s a criminal attorney?”

  Hillary smiled. “I was beginning to wonder if you didn’t know what kind of law she practiced.”

  “I didn’t at first.”

  “She’s an excellent criminal attorney. Although, I’m surprised she’s still practicing. She hates her job.”

  “She told you that?”

  “I can tell. She expertly defends her clients—gets them off—yet deep down, she believes they’re guilty. Which makes her feel guilty for putting a criminal back into society. Although in my case, she believes I’m insane and would like to see me locked away.”

  Danielle had to ask, “What were you charged with?”

  “Murder.” Hillary then lifted the cake plate lid again and grabbed another cookie.

  “Are you saying you were really guilty?” Danielle asked in a quiet voice.

  Biting down on the cookie, Hillary smiled at Danielle. Shaking her head, she
chewed and then swallowed the bite and said, “I didn’t kill that woman. I didn’t kill any of them. There really was no evidence, and Melony, being a master at what she does, kept it all out of the press. Although, I imagine it would have done wonders for my book sales, although I don’t really need it. I do well enough without having to kill people to get in the press.” She took another bite of the cookie.

  “So you’re saying Melony cleared you of all charges?”

  “Yes, in a way.” Hillary licked the cookie crumbs off her lips.

  “And you didn’t kill anyone?”

  Hillary shook her head. “No, I promise you. I never killed anyone. Never.”

  “But Melony thinks you may have?”

  Wrinkling her nose for a moment, Hillary considered the question and then shook her head. “I think she wonders if I was an accomplice, but there was no real evidence. Then she decided I was crazy.”

  “Crazy?” Danielle asked in a whisper.

  Hillary looked into Danielle’s eyes. “I think she may be right. I might be crazy.”

  “Did you have anything to do with my mother’s murder?” Melony asked from the kitchen doorway.

  Hillary looked to Melony. “I thought you went up to take a nap?”

  “I heard everything you told Danielle,” Melony said.

  “It’s true,” Walt announced when he appeared the next moment. “I’ve been watching Melony while she’s been lurking in the hall, eavesdropping.”

  Danielle glanced from Walt to Melony.

  “Why would Hillary kill your mother?” Danielle asked.

  “Because she’s—”

  “Crazy,” Hillary finished for Melony. “She thinks I’m crazy. Didn’t I just mention that?”

  “And you just admitted you might be!” Melony snapped.

  Danielle pressed the palm of her hand to her forehead. She was getting a headache. Glancing from Hillary to Melony, she asked, “Does this have anything to do with the fact all Hillary’s murder mysteries are based on unsolved crimes?”

  “They aren’t!” Hillary insisted.

  “And that Hillary’s notes for this new book match Jolene’s crime scene?” Danielle finished, ignoring Hillary’s interruption.