The Harvest Club

by Iona Morrison

  “Just give me the bill, and I’ll get out of here,” Matt said briskly.

  By the time Matt got out to his truck, Jessie was already gone. He couldn’t have had the little scene at the end play out any better. It had actually been a pleasant evening, and he hated that Jessie was about to experience small town living at its worst. She was game. He would give her that.

  He wondered what angle she was working on, because he knew she had one. She was smart, and there wasn’t a doubt in his mind she would figure some of the details out on her own. All in all, the night had worked out just like he had hoped. By morning, Blue Cove would know they’d had dinner together but that she’d walked out on him.

  Now, if only he could control this insane attraction he had for her as easily, he might actually solve this case. It was those damn blue eyes. He could forget his next sentence when she looked at him. Working with her would either cure him or drive him crazy.

  Chapter Eight

  Jessie drove home with a smile on her face. It had been a great evening. She had actually gotten what she wanted. The big plus was she got to yell at Matt to boot. Although, she had to admit he was almost likeable tonight. She had enjoyed their conversation, and he wasn’t bad to look at either.

  After meeting Gina’s parents, it was important to her to be a part of this case. No matter how unorthodox the reason was that got her involved, she wanted to be there to see it solved.

  She was stoked. When she got home, she sent off some emails to family and friends. The only other person other than Katie she told about her experience with Gina was Grandma Sadie. Jessie knew she would understand.

  Next, she wrote a rough beginning to her story about Gina and then made a list of the things she needed to do. Tomorrow was Sunday. She would go to church. Maybe if she begged, Katie would go with her. She needed to get to know some of the people who might be able to fill in some more details for her. She was especially hoping to see John Robertson.

  She looked at the clock; it was still early enough to call.

  “Hi, and where have you been all day?” Katie blurted out the question.

  “I went to Rocky Pointe for a drive and to see where Gina’s parents live. Call it rash, but I wanted to meet her parents, run the idea of doing a story about their daughter by them, and begin my research. There are some things about a person you can only learn from family.”

  “I heard you went to dinner with Matt and you walked out on him. Tell me it’s not true.”

  “No can do. It made for a great evening.” Jessie laughed. She knew Katie was irritated.

  “What were you doing at dinner with him?”

  “He asked me, and it was supposed to be a peace offering by him, which was short-lived. It’s a good thing we don’t have to negotiate a real peace agreement for others. It would be an awful disaster. Don’t worry, my friend. I think we both have concluded, we can’t get along when it’s just us. It’s a requirement now. We have to be with others to be civil.”

  “Jessie, this is no laughing matter. I don’t want you to ruin a good thing with him. He asked me questions about you the other night. He said he was interested professionally. I think it’s more than that.”

  “Don’t go there. Look, Katie, you need to let it drop. For whatever reason, we don’t hit it off. I can live with that, and so can he. Anyway, I want to ask you something but before I do...” Her voice trailed off. “How did you hear about me walking out on Matt? Good grief, it happened only a couple hours ago.”

  “It’s a small town. You keep forgetting that fact.” Katie laughed. “News travels fast. What did you want to ask me?”

  “Remind me not to do anything in public that I will regret.” She paused. “Do you want to go to church with me tomorrow? I wanted to meet some of the people who could give me the details of Gina’s time at the church.”

  “Sure, I’ll go. Someone has to keep an eye on you.”

  Jessie rolled her eyes.

  For the next couple of hours, Jessie did research. She began to put some odd connections together when it came to Pastor Rick and Brad Martin. She made a list of questions to ask Pastor John, Rick’s dad. She needed some confirmation or insight from somewhere else.

  Putting it all aside, she went to bed. Sleep was not long in coming after her head hit the pillow.

  ****

  Sitting in a pew the next morning, Jessie noticed people were in various stages of attentiveness. Her mind was doing the same thing. She wondered what they were thinking about this morning beside the sermon.

  “Wouldn’t it be fun to see what was going on in all their heads?” Jessie said under her breath.

  “No, because maybe they could see what’s going on in mine.” Katie frowned. “Man, is this guy long winded,” Katie whispered. “I wish he’d wrap it up.”

  “Shush, you’re worse than a little kid.” Jessie gave Katie the look her mother used to give her.

  “I’m hungry, and I want to get out of here. What a way to spend my day off.”

  “I’ll buy your lunch if you’ll just behave,” Jessie promised.

  “You’ve got a deal.” She grabbed Jessie’s hand. “You have to admit he does go on and on.”

  Jessie nodded and put her finger up to her mouth.

  “Don’t tell me to be quiet,” Katie whispered when someone looked at her. “I see several of the men nodding off which sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Wake me when he’s done.” Katie smiled closing her eyes.

  As soon as the final prayer was said, Katie jumped up and headed out into the foyer. Jessie was hot on her trail seeing Pastor Rick bearing down on her. Thank goodness, Reba Thompson headed him off and started bending his ear.

  In the foyer, the commotion came at Jessie like a whirlwind, her red frizzy hair pulled precariously into a ponytail of sorts on the top of her head.

  “How’s it going, Blondie?” Melinda’s voice yelled out.

  “Not bad, Red. How about you?” Jessie laughed

  “I think I’m going to survive. Have you had the joy of seeing you know who yet?” She pointed at Gina’s picture.

  “Do you mind if I to talk to you about that later?” Melinda nodded. “I need to talk to Pastor John before he leaves.” Jessie walked fast to catch up with him.

  “Hi, do you remember me?” She smiled at him.

  “I sure do, and I haven’t forgotten we are going to have lunch together. I’ll call the office this week and set up a time as soon as I know Rick’s schedule. Feel free to just call me John. I’m retired.” He smiled at her. “I’m also hungry, thanks to my long-winded son.” He winked at her and walked away.

  Jessie stopped before walking out the door when a cold chill made her shiver. She looked around expecting to see Gina. Instead, she saw a pretty young woman standing near Gina’s picture looking directly at her. Jessie walked toward her and introduced herself.

  “I’ve heard you’re writing a story about Gina. My name is Andria, and I was her best friend. No one else knows that because we tried to keep our relationship quiet. She needed someone to talk to. Is it possible we could get together away from here one day and talk?”

  “Of course, I’d love to. We could do coffee on Saturday morning if that works for you?” Jessie nodded.

  “How does Java Joe’s sound? Would 9:00 work for you?” She reached down to pick up her little girl who had latched onto her leg.

  Jessie nodded. “I’ll see you then.” She walked over to Katie.

  “Now, may we please leave?” Katie took her arm and pulled her out the door.

  “Where are we headed for lunch?” Jessie tried to pull her arm away from Katie’s tight grip.

  “Oh, no, you don’t. You’ll go back in there and try to have another boring conversation with someone.” Katie held her arm tighter. She refused to let go until they were getting into the car.

  “Have you lost your mind?” Jessie laughed and rubbed her arm where it had started to turn red. “I actually met two people who might be helpful
.”

  “I’m hungry, and even you have to admit that was a boring sermon. He went on and on.”

  “Okay, you win.” She threw her hands up. “It was awful. Sometimes, I wonder if he is really meant to be a pastor. Now, where are we headed?”

  “There’s a great place in Seaside Village called the Captain’s Table. They have a wonderful brunch. You’ll like it, trust me.”

  After lunch, she dropped Katie off at the inn and headed to her little slice of heaven by the sea. It was too pretty to stay inside. She decided to change her clothes, grab a book and some iced tea, and read outside for a while.

  Instead, she checked her email and found one from Grandma Sadie who said she would call sometime during the week, one from her parents, and Gina’s case file from Matt. Once she got into reading the file, it hooked her. She couldn’t put it aside. She was at her computer until both her neck and back were stiff.

  She stood up and walked around rubbing her neck, thinking about what she’d just read. All of it was tied to what Gina had found out about Brad’s dealings. Jessie knew that much, but how was she to find out what Gina had learned? It had gone with her to the grave. Or maybe not…

  She changed her clothes, tied her shoes, and headed out the door. Down the path toward the marina her feet pounded against the pavement, her ponytail swished back and forth slapping her neck, long even strides mile after mile. Gina, we need to talk. What did you learn? What was it that tipped you off? It had to be something easy for you to see once you started paying attention. An idea hit her. She needed to get home and research it. Jessie looked at the beautiful cove and felt euphoric as she started back the way she’d come.

  For the next several hours at her computer, she followed one rabbit trail after another. She was about to quit and go watch the sunset. She jotted off a quick email to a friend, who owed her big time, and the reply was instantaneous; he must have been on line. The email gave her links and the codes she needed that would help her access some private information. A half hour later, she found her first connection for Brad and Pastor Rick.

  “Well, well, pastor!” She eyed the numbers on her screen. “I know you don’t make that kind of money from your church. I wonder what you and Brad have been up too. You’ve been naughty boys indeed.” Jessie stood up excited, she reached for her phone. She punched in Matt’s number and was surprised when he actually picked up.

  “Hi, this is Jessie.”

  “I know, what’s up?”

  “I found my first connection between Rick and Brad. They both have big offshore accounts. I called in a favor from a friend to get this information. If Gina had found out there was an offshore account, she would have wanted to know where Brad was getting the money.” She took a breath. “Their regular checking accounts are nice and cushy, but nothing to tip anybody off. But the offshore accounts have huge deposits up to a hundred thousand dollars. Obviously, Rick doesn’t get this kind of money from pastoring a church. I’ll send the links to the site, to your email. It won’t be easy but I’m going to try to establish a money trail.”

  “What made you think of an offshore bank?” Matt asked.

  “I was running and having a little talk in my head with Gina. I tried to think like a wife. What would tip me off and cause me enough concern to think my husband was doing something illegal. The first thing I thought was if he was spending lots of money, money I knew wasn’t in our account and that we shouldn’t spend. Maybe he would say he was paid in cash. You get the picture I’m sure.”

  “I can see now that’s been one of my problems—I don’t know how to think like a wife.” He laughed. “You’ve made a great find. Follow the trail, but Jess, be extra careful.”

  “I will and check your email. I just sent you the information.”

  Jessie stretched and went to the window. The first stars were appearing in the early evening sky. Where did they get the money? Who paid them and why? Most people put money in offshore banks to hide it. She wondered what these two were up to and how many others were involved. It was bad—it had to be or Gina would still be alive. Her mind was filled with so many questions, she needed to take a break and let it go for a few minutes.

  She started to close the curtains, but the fluttering leaves on the trees changed her mind. She watched as the wind sent waves of motion coursing through the flowers and bushes. What was that? She saw something move, caught in the light for a second, before the moon was veiled by the clouds. Was Gina out there walking in the night? Her eyes tried to focus hoping to see it again. Was it her? If you are there Gina, I’m asking for your help. I want to find your killer, but I have so little to go on. She shivered, rubbed her eyes, but whatever she had seen was gone.

  Chapter Nine

  The next couple of days at work were slow. The phone hardly rang, and no one stopped by to chat. Pastor Rick came to work but went right into his office, muttering something on his way. He only came out when he was leaving for the day. He didn’t say much to her, which she didn’t mind. He was totally preoccupied.

  By Wednesday, she was bored. She was ready to climb the walls. Pastor Rick had just whisked by her for the umpteenth time mumbling that he would be back as he raced out the door. She was doodling on her note pad, and daydreaming when the ringing phone jolted her back to the present.

  “First Community Church, may I help you?”

  “Jessie, this is Neil. Say, the outline you sent me about Gina looks real promising. Even if you don’t go any farther with it, it’s a great human interest story. What are you thinking?”

  “This story is a lot broader than I imagined.” She kept her voice down. “And if it goes where I think it is heading, you’ll have a big scoop. I’m following some trails and speculating now. There are some things that can’t be shared because the case is still under investigation.”

  “Okay, keep me in the loop, and we’ll talk later.”

  “I will.”

  Jessie was just getting over the surprise of talking to her old boss when the phone rang again. She answered to find Pastor Rick’s father on the phone.

  “Hi, John, did you want to talk to your son?”

  “No, I called to set up our lunch date. Rick is leaving Sunday for a mission trip to India. So how about on Monday we have lunch?”

  “Sounds great.” She didn’t have the heart to tell him she knew nothing about the trip.

  “I’ll meet you at Patterson’s at noon, how’s that?”

  “I’ll be there.” She wrote the date and time down on her personal calendar.

  When she hung up the phone, she was baffled as to why the Pastor hadn’t told her he was leaving for India. She wondered if it was really a mission trip or something a little more sinister than that.

  Jessie was finishing up the calendar of church events when Pastor Rick came rushing back into the office and suddenly stopped by her desk. “I’m sorry I’ve been so distracted lately. I’m trying to get ready for a mission trip to India with some pastor friends and civic leaders. I should have told you sooner.” He grabbed the messages from his box. “I’ll be gone all next week and won’t be back in the office until the following Wednesday. Reverend Peterson at the Baptist Church and my dad are on call if any emergencies come up. I’ve written out the numbers.”

  “Is there anything you would like me to do while you’re gone?” She took out her notepad.

  “I’ll put a few things on a list for you. You’ll need to send the guest speaker a copy of the finished bulletin so he’ll know the order of service. He’ll email you his sermon title and the scriptures he’ll be using.”

  “Okay.” She tapped her pencil on her notepad. “When do you leave?”

  “I’m leaving after service, Sunday.” He started to walk away and then turned to look at her. “Oh, and Jessie, when I get back we need to have dinner together.” He walked swiftly to his office.

  Secretly, Jessie hoped he would forget the dinner altogether, but on the other hand, it might be a good way to get some infor
mation. She wondered who these friends of his were. How could she find out? Maybe the airline would have the information she needed. It looked like more research was in order, and coffee with Andria might also provide some useful information.

  ****

  On Saturday morning, Jessie found Andria already at Java Joe’s when she arrived. Molly wasn’t working so she got her coffee and sat down at the table with Andria.

  “I’m so glad you’re doing a story about Gina. I don’t want people to forget her.” Andria leaned forward, her expression fixed. “She was a good friend. Usually she would come to my house, and we spent hours talking and laughing. I miss her so much it hurts. She was the sister I never had.” She paused when a big man walked by their table. He sat down at table in the corner his back to Jessie.

  “When was the last time you saw Gina?”

  “I saw her a few days before the murder. She wasn’t her normal self, and I kept asking her what was wrong.” Andria looked around to see if anyone might be listening. “She told me she was afraid for her life. I asked if Brad was hurting her, and she told me she was more afraid of his friends and the people he was doing business with.”

  “So Brad wasn’t hurting her?”

  “He had grabbed her roughly, there were some bruises above her wrist, but believe it or not, he was in love with Gina. He had told her to let him take care of the business and begged her not to get involved because he couldn’t control some of his associates. He kept telling her they, whoever they were, wouldn’t let anyone out of the organization once in because they knew too much and everyone involved was getting rich. Brad also told her he was in too deep and couldn’t get out. If he tried, his life was worth nothing.”

  “I wanted to blame Brad for her death, so it could be solved right here and now.”

  Jessie sipped her coffee. “Did she believe Brad?”

  “I think she did. She said the only way to protect her life and her kids was to get away. She was saving money and had accepted a position in a church on the West Coast. She was going to move in a few weeks.”