by J A Whiting
Hoping to get some additional information about the Connors family, Angie asked Jill a question. “Did your families socialize? Do you know Cora’s sons well?”
Jill didn’t say anything for a few moments. “We did quite a bit with the kids when they were young. Richard didn’t like the beach so Cora and I and our kids would go away for long weekends together. It worked out because my husband could never get much time off. Cora’s boys are a couple of years older than my son and daughter.”
Angie sensed some unease coming from Jill. “Did your kids get along well?”
“You know how kids are. They got along great when they were little. When they got older, they developed different interests and went their separate ways.”
“What do you think of Roman and Karl?” Jenna watched Jill’s face.
Jill chose her words carefully. “Roman’s a hard worker. Karl hasn’t found himself yet.”
Angie pushed the woman a bit with her next question. “Has Karl ever been in trouble?”
Jill’s eyebrows shot up and she pursed her lips. “What did Cora tell you?”
Angie gave a shrug. “She just told us that Karl is having a hard time finding a good job.”
Jill nodded and it didn’t seem like she would add anything else so Angie asked, “How did Karl get along with his father?”
“Like a lot of young men and their dads … he chafed at Richard’s expectations, he rebelled somewhat at his parents’ direction.”
“How so?” Finch’s voice was gentle.
Jill clutched her hands together in her lap. “Karl didn’t put a lot of time into his studies. He hung out with some kids that his parents didn’t like. I think he took some drugs.”
“What about Roman? Did he get along with his father?” Angie asked.
Jill let out a sigh. “Where Karl is a rebel, Roman is the opposite. Roman is someone who wants to please, so much so that I wonder if everything he does is just to get his father’s attention and make him happy.”
Angie made eye contact with Jill. “I know that our questions can seem intrusive, but Cora asked us to help and in order to figure this out, we have to ask some things that seem like none of our business. If people aren’t upfront with us, then we won’t be able to find any answers.” The young woman paused for a moment to let her words sink in. “We need to ask you about Cora and Richard. How was their relationship?”
Jill swallowed. “I think everything was fine. I don’t have any reason to believe that Richard strayed. He was always either working, running, or at home.”
“Was Cora happy?” Jenna asked.
“I think so.”
“You were against the relationship at first.” Mr. Finch adjusted his glasses. “Did you change your mind about it as time passed?”
Jill moved her hand in the air and forced a smile. “Oh, you know. Your best friend and your kids … they just about always choose someone you wouldn’t have chosen for them.” She gave a little shrug of her shoulder. “But it’s not your decision … you accept their choices.”
“You didn’t think that Richard was right for Cora?” Jenna asked.
“I always thought she should be with someone more fun, more social. Cora was always going out, enjoying other people’s company. She was involved with so many clubs at school. Until she met Richard. Cora is more reserved around Richard.” Still clutching her hands together, Jill chuckled. “It’s no big deal. Cora probably thinks I should have chosen a different husband than the man I married.”
Angie glanced at her sister and then looked at Jill. “What do you think happened to Richard?”
Jill blinked, her eyes wide, surprised by the directness of the question. “I….” She looked down at her hands.
Angie, Jenna, and Finch waited.
Looking at each one of her guests, Jill shook her head. “I have no idea.”
“Is it possible that it might have something to do with drugs?” Jenna used a soft tone of voice. “If Karl was involved with the wrong guys … maybe someone came looking for Karl. Maybe when Karl wasn’t home, the guy got into an argument with Richard?”
Jill’s eyes seemed to mist over. “Maybe. I don’t know.”
Jenna asked, “Do you know who Karl hung around with?”
“No.” Jill shook her head. “I have no idea.”
“Do you think Mr. Connors left of his own accord?” Mr. Finch looked over the tops of his glasses.
“I suppose it’s possible.” Jill’s eyes shifted around the room. “I know that I’ve been around Richard for years, but honestly? I feel like I just don’t know him at all.” Jill shook her head. “Not at all.”
15
The four sisters wore ski jackets, wool hats, and gloves as they trudged up Beach Street against the cold wind. Tired of being cooped up indoors, they decided to take a walk along the sand at the edge of the ocean to have some time outside in the fresh air. It was hard to believe that in just a few months, tourists would return in droves to their little seaside village to enjoy the warm days, beautiful beaches, shops, restaurants, and museums.
Except for two people walking their dogs, the Roselands were the only hearty souls braving the cold to stroll along the long stretch of white sand beside the crashing waves. The sun had finally broken through and the high cloud cover had dissipated just in time for an hour of bright blue sky before the yellow-orange ball began its descent and hid behind the world for another winter night.
Courtney had done cartwheels along the beach while her sisters chased each other and, laughing, pretended to push one another into the waves.
“It felt good to run around outside.” Courtney removed her hat and shook some sand out of the folds. “I can’t wait for spring.”
Ellie eyed Jenna and smiled. “Since the carriage house is almost ready, will the spring bring a wedding to the Roseland household?”
Jenna’s blue eyes sparkled. “It just might.”
“Really?” Angie hugged her twin sister and then her expression turned serious. “Shouldn’t we be planning things by now?”
Jenna looped her arm through Angie’s. “Tom and I are going to finalize the wedding date very soon. Then we can start planning. We thought it would be nice to have an outside ceremony and a small reception, maybe on the grounds of the resort.”
Courtney whooped with delight. “Now I really can’t wait for spring.”
Entering the Victorian, they found Mr. Finch sitting on the sofa watching a crime show in the family room with a cat curled up on each side of him. “How was your walk?”
“It was great.” Courtney, her eyes glued to the television, sat down next to Euclid and the orange boy stretched and flicked his plume over her lap before resting his head back on Finch’s leg. “What’s in this episode? What’s the crime?”
Finch explained what had happened during the first part of the hour-long show and everyone watched the last ten minutes together before moving to the kitchen to prepare pasta, grilled asparagus, and dessert for dinner. Two slow-cookers, one with a beef stew and the other with a veggie lentil bolognese, had been filled and turned on earlier in the day so that the meals would simmer for several hours. A heavenly aroma floated on the air in the kitchen causing mouths to water and stomachs to growl.
Courtney and Finch stood at the island counter mixing ingredients into two large bowls. Finch was preparing lemon drop cookies and Courtney was making a lemon meringue pie. “I’ve had a craving for something lemony.”
Finch smiled. “Well, Miss Courtney, your craving will soon be satisfied.”
At the side counter, Angie mixed together ingredients for some honey cakes that she planned to serve in the bake shop the next morning. Jenna prepared some pasta and Ellie washed and trimmed the asparagus.
“Since we’re all together, let’s talk about your trip to Mill City to see Cora’s best friend,” Ellie said.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t go.” Courtney passed the container of flour to Mr. Finch. “It sounded like a lot of inform
ation came out of the meeting.”
Angie sighed as she mixed the ingredients with a wooden spoon. “The whole thing left me feeling anxious and uneasy. I understand that Richard Connors had a terrible early life and I get that he doesn’t want to talk about it, but the lack of good information about him makes me feel like the man is a ghost.”
“Speaking of ghosts….” Jenna eyed Finch and told him about the spirit that seemed to be living in her and Tom’s house.
Finch raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to look over his black glass frames. “How interesting. You think the spirit is Katrina Stenmark?”
Euclid and Circe trilled from their perch on top of the fridge.
Jenna smiled at the cats. “The felines and the human sisters are in agreement that it’s most likely Katrina. Stirring the water, butter, and seasonings in the pot on the stove, she cocked her head to the side. “But why is she there? Why hasn’t she moved on?”
Finch formed small balls from his dough and placed them on the cookie sheet. “Perhaps, Ms. Katrina has some unfinished business.”
The sisters stopped what they were doing and stared at Finch.
“What do you mean?” Ellie’s blue eyes were like saucers. “Are Jenna and Tom in danger?”
“I don’t believe there’s any danger.” Finch dusted his palms with some flour. “Didn’t the woman die in that house?”
Jenna’s mouth dropped open. “I’d forgotten about that.” She turned the heat down so that the rice would simmer. “Maybe I deliberately forgot that detail.”
“When we found out about Katrina, it was in the middle of the necklace issue and the carriage house fire.” Angie spooned some batter into muffin tins. “It sort of got lost in all that was going on.”
Courtney rolled out the pie crust. “Not only did she die in that house, it sounded like she was murdered by someone who wanted that necklace.”
Ellie’s hand flew to her chest and she groaned. “Katrina gave her life to protect that necklace.” Making eye contact with Jenna, she added, “No wonder the woman is still living in your house.”
“Gosh.” Jenna sat down on one of the stools at the kitchen island and placed her chin in her hand. “I really pushed that out of my head.”
Finch held his cane in one hand and carried the cookie sheet to one of the ovens as he nodded to Jenna. “Well, time will tell if Ms. Katrina needs something from you or if she just needs more time to cross over due to the circumstances of her death.” Finch put the cookie sheet on the oven rack and set the timer. “In the meantime, we need to discuss Richard Connors and his disappearance.”
“I think we should look more closely into Karl’s background and what he’s up to.” Jenna folded her arms and leaned on the counter. “Cora’s friend suggested that he might be mixed up with drugs. One of Karl’s cohorts might have come looking for him that day and had a run-in with Richard, maybe killing the man.”
“It’s certainly possible.” Ellie placed the asparagus stalks on the grilling pan. “From what you’ve told me, I doubt that Richard took off with another woman, but I wonder if he’d decided to leave the family and had been preparing for a long time, maybe squirreling away money for years and getting documents ready like a false driver’s license, passport, and credit cards. His disappearance is so neat and clean. The police had no leads, nothing led anywhere. Richard Connors vanished into thin air.”
Courtney piped up. “Like Chief Martin said, you can’t make a person stay home and you can’t make a person return home. Maybe Richard doesn’t want to be found, plain and simple.”
Angie had been quietly considering everyone’s comments and ideas. “Something bothers me about this whole mess. I suppose there’s no crime if someone wants to take off. Cora has a good job and can support herself. The man’s children are grown. It’s a terrible thing to do, to put his family through so much worry, not to mention all the police resources that went into the investigation. So if Richard took off, he might be responsible for paying the police back for what it cost the department, but there is no criminal intent if he ran away.”
Courtney and Mr. Finch, the crime show experts agreed. “That’s all true.”
“But….” Angie folded her arms over her chest. “We can’t yet rule out foul play.”
“So we’ll continue with our investigation?” Jenna asked.
“I think we have to.” Angie’s eyebrows scrunched together. “Something bothers me about what Cora’s friend said to us about not even knowing where Richard went to high school.” Angie rubbed her arms. “I get feelings of unease whenever I play that over in my head. I think there’s a clue buried somewhere in there.”
Nodding, Courtney poured the pie filling into the crust. “I’ll go see if Cora is around and I’ll ask her where Richard went to high school and when he graduated.”
“Then we can look up old yearbooks for information on Richard.” Finch made himself a cup of tea and sat next to Jenna at the counter. As Courtney was leaving the kitchen, Finch said, “There’s something that’s been bothering me about Ms. Cora.”
At Mr. Finch’s words, Courtney halted and turned around to hear what the older man had to say. The three other young women trained their gaze on Finch.
“What is it, Mr. Finch?” Ellie asked. “What’s bothering you?”
“I’ve been wondering why Ms. Cora is staying here at the bed and breakfast. Her home is only an hour away. Why not drive up here whenever there’s the need? Why stay at the B and B for so many days?” Finch paused and raised an eyebrow. “Does she not feel safe at home?”
Just as a cold shiver ran down Angie’s back, Euclid and Circe each let out long, low growls.
16
The family could hear the earsplitting voice of Mel Abel and some of the B and B guests chatting in the dining room so they brought their dinners into the family room where they could talk and eat in private.
“How can that man be so loud?” Jenna placed a hand over one of her ears pretending to try to block out what sounded like Mel booming through a megaphone.
“His friends must all have gone deaf.” Courtney rolled her eyes.
When they were all settled with their meals, the discussion returned to why Cora felt the need to stay at the B and B even though she only lived an hour away.
Ellie sat in one of the easy chairs with her plate balanced on her lap. “Mr. Finch poses an excellent question. Why does Cora feel the need to stay here? Is there some reason she doesn’t want to be at home?”
“Schools are back in session. Winter breaks are over,” Jenna observed. “Why isn’t she in Mill City at her teaching job?”
“We’ll need to ask her.” Courtney had taken portions from both the veggie bolognese and the beef stew. “This veggie bolognese is delicious. Maybe I need to go vegetarian like Angie.”
Angie raised an eyebrow and gave her youngest sister a look of disbelief that she would consider giving up her meat-eating ways. She made eye contact with Courtney. “Tomorrow I’d like to drive down to Mill City and talk to Karl again. Since Karl seems to be a fan of yours, you might want to sit this visit out.”
“With pleasure.” Courtney groaned. Going to see leering Karl again was not high on her list of priorities. “I’ll do anything else to help, but I’d be happy to avoid Karl.”
“What are some reasons that Cora might not want to be at home right now?” Angie asked the group.
Finch rubbed his chin. “She may feel threatened by Mr. Karl.”
“Why now?” Angie pressed.
Mr. Finch continued, “Her unease could be unrelated to her husband’s disappearance. Mr. Karl may be involved with drugs or the young man and his mother are at odds right now because of his lack of ambition and because he is living in her house.”
“I wonder if Cora feels anxious over something that Karl let slip about his father.” Angie was trying to come up with different scenarios. “The recent use of Richard’s credit card probably got the two of them talking in earnest abou
t the disappearance again. If Karl did have something to do with his father going missing, he could have said something that caused Cora to suspect him.”
Jenna sat at her desk eating from her dinner plate and tapping at her laptop at the same time. Staring at the screen, she sat upright and blinked. “Guess what? I’ve been looking through online Mill City high school yearbooks. Richard isn’t in any of the ones you’d associate with his age. I’ve even looked forward from what should have been his graduation date in case it took him longer to finish high school. He isn’t in any of these high school yearbooks.”
“Cora wasn’t around when I went to ask her where her husband went to high school,” Courtney reported.
“Cora did say he went to high school in Mill City, right?” Ellie asked.
“That’s what she said.” Angie nodded and walked to the desk to look over Jenna’s shoulder. “Maybe Cora is wrong.”
“How many high schools are in Mill City?” Finch wiped his lips on his napkin.
“Three.” Jenna scanned the last yearbook. “Nothing in this one either.”
Angie looked at Mr. Finch. “Maybe we should stop by the high schools tomorrow morning on our way to talk to Karl.”
Finch nodded. “We can pose as freelance journalists doing a follow-up story on the missing man and explain that we wish to confirm that Richard Connors attended high school in Mill City.”
“Perfect.” Ellie went to the side table for a second helping of food. “I’d like to go along with you tomorrow. Jenna will be here working in her jewelry studio. She can help the guests if they need anything.”
“You want to go with them?” Courtney eyed Ellie suspiciously. “Why?”
Ellie sat down again in the chair. “I want to help. Is that so strange?”
“In these cases, yes, it is.” Courtney chuckled.
“Well,” Ellie sniffed. “I’m trying to be less of a wimp.”
“We’d be glad to have you.” Angie smiled. “We should leave as early as we can. I’d like to be home by 1pm to take care of things in the bake shop. I don’t want to leave everything to Louisa.”