Caprice shook her head. “This time, I think I need to talk to those who knew her best. I just have to figure out who they are.”
An hour later, Caprice was at home again with Mirabelle ensconced in her guest bedroom. After her outing, the cat just wanted to sleep. With Marcus’s okay, Caprice knew she could introduce her to Sophia and Lady soon.
After Caprice gave Sophia petting attention and took Lady outside for the necessities—a game of fetch, as well as training on all her basic commands—she settled at her computer to work on floor plans, purchase orders, and rental agreements. She was hardly aware of time passing as Lady played with her kibble ball, and Sophia washed herself in a patch of sunlight.
When her cell phone played, she picked it up and sat at complete attention when she saw the name—Twyla Horton.
“Hello,” she answered quickly. “This is Caprice.”
“Miss De Luca, this is Twyla Horton.”
The deep Southern accent was very much like Alanna’s. Twyla went on explaining; her voice was a bit husky now. “Your number came to me in a roundabout manner. A detective from Kismet, Detective Carstead, notified the police department here about what happened to Alanna.” Twyla stopped, as if she’d gotten choked up by the news she’d received.
“I’m so sorry, Miss Horton.”
After a moment, Alanna’s sister said, “Oh, please, call me Twyla. Our local police chief came to the house to inform me about what happened, but he gave me Detective Carstead’s contact information so I could find out more about it.”
“Have you spoken with Detective Carstead?”
“I have. He was very kind. He told me what he could. He has questions for me, personal information he wants filled in, I guess, about Alanna.”
“Detective Carstead is very thorough.”
“I imagine he has to be. I told him I’d be flying into BWI Airport tomorrow and can meet with him.”
“Again, I’m so sorry for your loss.”
Whether or not Alanna was liked in Kismet, she’d been this woman’s sister. Caprice knew all about sisters because of her two, Bella and Nikki. They’d always been her best friends. She couldn’t even contemplate what losing one of them would be like.
“Thank you,” Twyla responded. “I can hardly wrap my mind around this. I just saw her over Christmas. I had off from work and stayed over the holiday vacation.”
“What kind of work do you do?”
“I’m an account manager with an office furniture store in Biloxi. Since I used my vacation days over Christmas, it’s not easy for me to get off. But I have no choice, of course. Alanna’s lawyer wants to make her last wishes known. Apparently, the police need that information, too. I’ll call Mr. Travers next.” She stopped. “Sorry I’m rambling. I can’t seem to think in a straight line.”
“When I spoke with Detective Carstead,” Twyla went on, “he said I should give you a call because you have Mirabelle.”
“Yes, I do. Will you be taking her, once everything is settled?”
“That’s why I had to call you. I’m afraid I can’t. I’m allergic to dogs and cats. Whenever I stayed with Alanna, I had to take allergy medication. Oh, I didn’t mind. It was worth it, of course, to spend the time with her. But I wouldn’t be able to handle Mirabelle twenty-four hours a day.”
“I understand that.” Caprice couldn’t imagine being allergic to animals. What a terrible loss. “Do you know if Alanna had any good friends who might want Mirabelle?”
“No, I don’t. Alanna had friends she played tennis with and had lunch with. But since Barton died, she kept to herself a lot. So I don’t know that she had a best friend or anything like that. Detective Carstead said you were quite fond of animals. Are you interested in keeping Mirabelle? I want her to go to someone who will really care for her. She’s such a beautiful cat with a sweet personality.”
That she was.
“I am fond of animals. Right now, I have a cat of my own and a cocker spaniel pup, who’s less than a year. I think Mirabelle will fit in, once she gets used to them and they get used to her.”
“I don’t want to see her going to a shelter,” Twyla said with a catch in her voice. “That would be just too awful, because then if she wouldn’t get adopted—” She stopped abruptly. “Well, you know.”
Yes, Caprice did know, and she wouldn’t want to see that happen, either, not to any animal.
“I’ll be glad to keep Mirabelle and start acclimating her here. In the eyes of the law, animals are considered possessions and I didn’t want to overstep my bounds. Ace is a good friend and I want to help him any way I can, too.”
“Mr. Richland is a hoot. I met him when he picked up Alanna to take her to a New Year’s Eve dance. Of course, I Googled him and downloaded much of his older music. Alanna was happier with him than I’ve seen her and heard her in a long time. She had so many plans for them.”
That was the problem, Caprice thought. Alanna’s plans might not have been Ace’s. And if the police got wind of that, Ace could even be in more trouble. But she didn’t want to delve too deeply in her first conversation with Twyla. After Twyla Horton arrived in Kismet, she could get to know her better.
Then maybe she could figure out who had killed Alanna Goodwin.
As Caprice pulled up in front of her childhood home, she realized it was always a haven when she was unsettled, mixed up, and had to think something through. That’s why she’d driven here this evening.
Her parents had invested in the house when she was almost too young to remember moving in. Its architecture was unusual for Pennsylvania. It was a Spanish-style home, with casement windows, yellow stucco, a red-tiled roof, and more repairs and upkeep than any house should have. But that’s how her parents had been able to afford to buy it, and they all loved it. Even more now, since her parents had added an addition that Nana lived in.
The house was on a corner. Its double-bay detached garage, matching the house architecture, stood to the rear of the property. Her parents and visitors had the habit of parking along the curb, across the lawn from the side porch, and that’s where she parked now.
Caprice didn’t recognize the green sedan that was parked in front of her dad’s truck advertising his business, DE LUCA MASONRY. He was handy around the house and took on a lot of the repairs himself. To her mother’s relief, he mostly spent his time in his company’s office now and let his crews handle the brickwork contracts. But he still knew his way around a saw, hammer, and trowel.
Lady trotted beside Caprice as they approached the side porch and the dark brown, ropelike pillars, which supported it. This entrance led into a foyer. The living room, a sunroom, and a library stretched on the left. To the right, a staircase with a landing led upstairs. Straight ahead was the dining room. It had always been the center of the house, but there was an eat-in area off the kitchen, too.
After Caprice opened the door and unleashed Lady, she heard voices coming from the dining room. Lady headed that way and so did Caprice. However, the moment she faced the large mahogany table, the antique china cupboard, and the casement windows along the dining-room wall, she knew there was trouble.
The tension in the air was so thick, even Lady stopped, sat beside Caprice, and looked up at her, instead of going to one of the adults sitting around the table as she usually did.
Caprice didn’t know what was going on, but she hadn’t seen her uncle Dominic in a very, very long time. He was seated at the table with her mom and dad and Nana. But no one looked very happy.
Spotting her, her dad rose to his feet. “Caprice, come on in.”
Hmmm, she wasn’t sure that was a good idea.
In his late fifties, her father was still a handsome man, and he cared very much about his family. His black hair was laced with gray now and had receded a bit at his forehead. Putting in more time at his desk at work, he’d added a few pounds over the past couple of years. But he was still fit and strong, a quiet leader in their family. Now he forced a smile and motioned her to the table, where c
offee cups and the remains of a pie sat.
He said jovially, “Look who’s here.”
He, of course, meant Uncle Dom.
Out of the De Luca family habit, Caprice went to her uncle, with Lady following close behind, and gave him a hug. He wasn’t quite as tall as her father. Once thin, he had now added more pounds than her dad. Lots of lines creased his face. His thick tortoiseshell-framed oval glasses sat high on his nose.
He hugged her back with the enthusiasm that she remembered as a child.
When the hug was finished and she caught a glimpse of her mom’s face, as well as Nana’s, she definitely knew all was not well.
Past history or new?
Uncle Dominic was her dad’s younger brother who lived in Baltimore, about an hour and a half from Kismet. But he was the black sheep and the family never talked about him. Even Caprice knew not to bring up his name.
Twelve years ago, Uncle Dom had fallen in love and accepted the money Nana Celia had given him for his wedding. Nana had hoped for a grand celebration with her son and his new wife. But Uncle Dom’s fiancée had convinced him to elope and take a honeymoon around the world instead of having a wedding. On top of that, Ronnie hadn’t liked the big-family smothering feel of the De Lucas. She didn’t want anyone knowing her business or barging into it, as Caprice’s relatives were wont to do. With the wedding rift and Ronnie’s attitude, Uncle Dom had cut himself off from the rest of the family for all these years.
Yes, her dad visited him once in a while, but he didn’t talk about those visits. Caprice had gotten the feeling that Nana had never forgiven Dominic for cutting the whole De Luca family out of his life. To Nana, family was life.
Lady scampered to Caprice’s mom and wiggled around at her feet. Fran made a big fuss over her, and Caprice recognized it for what it was, a defensive stalling maneuver, not to have to deal with the situation at hand.
Nana, however, was looking straight at Caprice. “Your uncle Dom is visiting ... for a while.” Nana’s lips pursed shut in a tight line. Her hands fluttered in agitation as she picked up her napkin and folded it, as if there was something final in the gesture.
Caprice had rarely seen Nana unsettled. Nana Celia was a ballast for the family. She weighed in on every issue, but never dictated. Her advice was wise and practical. Tonight, though, she looked every one of her seventy-six years. She wore her long gray hair in a controlled bun at the nape of her neck, usually securing it with her favorite combs. The hairdo gave her a regal appearance. Yet, tonight, her shoulders seemed to slump a little in her high-collared blouse, and her smile was nowhere to be found.
Caprice made her way around the table to sit next to her mom, across from her father and Uncle Dom. She suddenly felt as if she had dropped into the middle of warring factions.
Since no one else was talking, she wanted to be clear on what her nana had said. She asked her uncle, “So you’ll be staying in Kismet?”
“Yes,” her uncle answered. “Your father has generously invited me to stay here.”
Uh oh.
He studied Caprice for a moment. “You’ve really grown up. You were still in college the last time I saw you.”
“I was,” she agreed, feeling every bit of the awkwardness of the situation.
Her uncle was looking at Lady now. “Is she friendly?”
“She is. A little shy, though.” Lady was a good judge of character and it would be interesting to see what happened with her uncle.
Dom came around to where Fran sat and crouched in between her and Nana. He held out his hand to Lady. She sniffed it and looked up at him with her big brown eyes.
He smiled. “Can I pet you?”
Lady cocked her head as if she were inviting the action. So Uncle Dom slid his hand under one of her ears and around her neck and gave her a scratch. She sidled up to him and rolled over on her back for a belly rub.
He laughed. “She’s great. I haven’t been around dogs in a long time, not since your father and I were kids.”
When he rose to his feet, Lady followed him around the table. She’d made a new friend and wanted more of those belly rubs.
Soon he took his seat once more, but he lowered his hand to ruffle Lady’s fur. “Your father told me how you’ve solved a couple of murders.”
“I seem to have a knack for it,” she said lightly.
“You helped out Bella and Joe. Your dad told me all about that.”
So her uncle was making it clear that he wasn’t altogether out of the loop.
“I couldn’t let members of my family be suspected of murder,” she explained.
“You like to help.”
“Don’t we all?” she returned.
He shrugged. “I guess that’s why I’ve come to your father. I might as well lay it out on the table. I’ve fallen on hard times.”
“I’m sorry.” That just seemed to be the right thing to say.
“I was the manager of a branch of Wood Hill Financial Services.”
Caprice recognized the name. It had been big news when the company folded.
Her uncle stopped petting Lady to pick up his mug and have a sip of coffee. When he set it down again, he admitted, “I couldn’t find another job when Wood Hill closed. As it was, Ronnie and I were living paycheck to paycheck. So without mine coming in, we couldn’t pay our bills. Because we couldn’t pay our bills”—he raised his hands in an I-didn’t-know-what-to-do gesture—“we had problems. We got a divorce. All my resources have run out.”
Caprice wondered if her dad had lent her uncle money and if he’d been living on that. Her mother still had not said a word.
Caprice wondered what her mom was most upset about. Her uncle Dom staying for a while? No, she loved having guests. The fact that Nana would be upset if Uncle Dom stayed? Possibly. Or, the possibility that there was no time frame for which her Uncle Dom might stay.
Caprice canvassed her dad’s face and could see the affection he felt for his brother. But she could also see that her nana and her mom were disconcerted by it all. They’d been terribly hurt at being cut out of his life for so long. She felt like she was in the middle and no step in either direction would be a good one.
She rose to her feet. “I think maybe I should go.”
But her mother took her arm. “Nonsense. You’re part of this family. You deserve to know what’s going on . . . just as we all do.” Fran seemed to give a pointed glance to her husband.
Nana spoke now, too. “We’ll make another pot of coffee. You must have a piece of pie. Nothing’s going to get solved here tonight. We all just have to get used to the idea that Dominic actually wants to be part of his family again.”
Ooh, that was a barb, and so unusual for Nana, who made a point of being kind and generous and helpful. She was really upset.
Maybe it would be a good idea for Caprice to stay for a little while and let Lady work her animal magic. Maybe some of the tension would ease. Maybe the discord between her uncle and the rest of his family would diminish.
She could only hope.
The following morning, Caprice thought about the apple pie and coffee that she’d had with her parents, Nana, and Uncle Dom last night. In her own kitchen, readying her blueberry scone recipe for a meeting she was having in half an hour to discuss reunion plans with high-school classmates, she popped the tray into the oven. Sophia was sitting at her dish, licking up odds and ends of her breakfast. All exuberant energy, Lady pushed her kibble ball across the kitchen, left it in a corner, then found a pull toy, which she brought to Caprice.
“I thought I tired you out playing catch and fetch in the yard this morning.”
Lady shook her head, the pull toy flapping back and forth as she did, as if to say, That wasn’t nearly enough.
Crouching down, knowing a few minutes wouldn’t make any difference in her schedule, she eyed Lady, held out her hand, and then said, “Let go.”
Lady didn’t. She just shook her head more, and Caprice knew the dog wanted her to take hold of
the pull toy and try to pull it from her. Instead, Caprice was trying to teach her the “let go” command.
She made eye contact with Lady, held out her hand again, and said, “Let go.” Already sitting, Lady looked confused for a moment, studied Caprice’s hand, and then opened her mouth. The toy fell into Caprice’s palm.
She made a great big fuss. “What a wonderful dog you are. You learn so fast. I’m so glad we’re best buddies.”
Caprice placed the toy on the floor and took a step back. Lady snatched it up and shook her head with it again.
Caprice laughed and held out her hand. “Let go.”
Lady didn’t hesitate this time. She let the toy drop into Caprice’s fingers. Caprice again praised her from here to next year.
Sophia was done eating now and washing herself in her pristine, catlike manner.
Caprice said to Lady, “She might be ready for a chase.”
Lady heard the word “chase.” She ran over to Sophia and barked.
Knowing that signal, Sophia took off for the living room, with Lady at her back paws.
After washing her hands and drying them, Caprice chose colorful mugs from her mug tree and set them on a hydrangea-patterned tray on the table.
Thinking about last night all over again, she hoped her uncle could figure out a solution to his problems without causing more family tension. On the other hand, she hoped her mom and Nana could accept him into the fold again. Still, twelve years of separation and hurt feelings were hard to overcome.
Caprice was removing the scones from the oven when her doorbell rang. She set the cookie sheet on the counter and hurried to answer it, grinning when she saw her friend Roz and Dylan. The dog yapped at Caprice and then trotted inside.
Caprice’s downstairs was one big circle—living room to dining room to kitchen to utility room to bathroom to her office, around the stairway to upstairs and back to the living room. Lady now stuck her head out from the office. When she spied Dylan, she barked. Dylan yapped in return.
“Go play,” Caprice said. “That will give Sophia a break.”
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