Colder Than Ice

by Maggie Shayne

  Josh shrugged. “He thinks I should have upgraded him to wireless service.”

  She smiled. “Typical teenager.”

  “How’s he doing? With the tutoring, I mean?”

  “We had a great session today. I assigned him Hamlet last night, and he’s already halfway through it. He’s smart, Josh. And he’s a good kid.”

  “Thanks.”

  She was quiet for a moment. The silence stretched, and it was awkward. She looked toward the kitchen. “I wish Maude would let us help.”

  “I think she’s enjoying having people to take care of,” he said.

  Beth nodded, knowing he was right about that. “So is there really anything wrong with her stove?”

  Joshua looked alarmed. “What do you mean?”

  “Come on, Josh, isn’t it obvious?” She shook her head at his puzzled look. “She’s been trying to fix me up with some ‘eligible young man’ ever since I met her. I’m afraid I was right in my earlier assumption. You are the newest candidate.”

  “Oh, that.” He smiled as if to cover it, but she didn’t miss the look of relief that crossed his face. “So you still think she’s matchmaking.”

  She shrugged. “I’m sure of it.”

  “Do you mind?”

  She shrugged. “I keep telling her I’m not in the market for a man.”

  “Ouch.”

  She looked up quickly. “I didn’t mean—”

  He held up a hand, stopping her. “It’s okay. I’m not easily offended. Or dissuaded.”

  She shrugged, not sure what to say to that. “Things seemed better between you and Bryan, this morning.”

  “Changing the subject, huh?”

  She raised her eyebrows, waiting.

  “Actually, yeah, I think things are better. And I have you to thank for it.”

  “Me? What did I do?”

  “I tried what you suggested, talked to him about what was going on with me.”

  “And it worked?”

  He shrugged. “He didn’t respond in kind. Then again, he didn’t stomp away and slam a door on me, either. I call that progress.”

  “It’s a start.”

  The dull bleat of a cell phone came from Beth’s purse, which was hanging from a hook in the tiny foyer, near the door. She crossed the living room, dug it out and answered.

  “Hey, Beth? It’s me. Is everything okay there?”

  She frowned, recognizing Dawn’s voice instantly. “Fine, hon. Where are you calling from?”

  “My cell. It’s new, don’t worry. And I’ll only stay on a minute. I’m online with someone using your screen name. I thought it was you and sent an instant message. He says his name is Bryan. I thought I’d better check on you.”

  Beth glanced into the living room, where Bryan sat by her laptop, tapping his fingers on the desk as he watched the screen. Then she looked at Josh, who was several feet away, but still within earshot. She turned her back and walked as casually as she could closer to the front door. “Yeah. One of my students. He’s cool,” she said, keeping her voice low. “I like him a lot, actually.”

  “Okay.”

  “Just watch what you say, Dawny.”

  “I know that. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Bye, hon.” She clicked the off button and carried the telephone with her back into the living room, setting it casually on the coffee table. Josh was still sitting where she’d left him, looking a little too disinterested.

  “Everything all right?” he asked.

  “Fine. Just a…former student, checking in on me.”

  The computer made a chiming tone, Bryan focused on the screen and began tapping keys again. It was a little too odd, Bryan chatting with her daughter online. It made her feel skittish. But Dawn was sharp. She wouldn’t let anything slip.

  “I see you moved your punching bag in our honor.”

  She smiled at him and nodded. “This place is too small as it is. No room for company and a punching bag.” She took her spot on the settee, trying to look relaxed even though she was tense. It was odd, having a man in her house. Though she didn’t think she would feel so tense if he were any other man. Not this tense, anyway. It was an odd sort of “quiet before the storm” kind of tension. Something was brewing between them, and as much as she’d vowed never to get involved with any man ever again, she was seriously considering making him an exception.

  He must have read it in her eyes, because he leaned forward, reached across the coffee table and covered her hands with his. “It’s sweet of you to indulge Maude like this. It means a lot to me, how good you are to her.”

  “She’s important to me.”

  “I know.”

  She licked her lips, then noticed the look Bryan sent across the room, his eyes on their hands, his brow puckered in a disapproving frown. Guiltily, she pulled her hands from beneath Josh’s.

  “So what do you do? Back in Manhattan, I mean.”

  “I’m a businessman.”

  She lifted her brows. “That’s a man for you. Sums up his entire life in one word.”

  “It really isn’t all that interesting. Small consulting firm. My partner’s running things while I’m away.”

  He had opened his mouth to say something more when a loud crash from the kitchen brought him to his feet. Beth leaped up and ran into the kitchen, and he was right behind her. Maude was lying on the floor beside a toppled chair and a broken china cup.

  Beth fell to her knees beside her friend. “Maude? Honey, what happened?”

  Maude moved her mouth as if to speak, but no words came out, only clipped, shallow breaths. Then she went still. Utterly, frighteningly still. Her eyes were open, wide-open, her face coloring pink, then red, then deepening to purple. “Maude!” Beth turned her head, “Josh, do something!”

  Josh dropped to the floor beside her as Bryan burst into the kitchen. “Bryan, get help. Call 911.” He barked the words, then leaned over Maude, a hand at her throat, his face intense.

  Beth cradled Maude’s head, holding it up just slightly. She looked into her friend’s eyes and knew beyond any doubt that Maude could still hear her, see her. She still knew what was going on. There was an awareness in those wide, frozen eyes. A panic way down deep that couldn’t seem to make its way out.

  “She’s not unconscious, Josh. God, look at her! Maude, honey, hold on. I’ll make this okay, I swear.”

  Maude wasn’t moving. No part of her was moving, not even her wide eyes, which seemed frozen in horror and were beginning to bulge.

  “Hold on, Maude. Just hold on.”

  Beth glanced behind her, through the archway into the living room, and saw Bryan speaking rapidly on the cell phone, while he clicked keys on the computer, probably logging off.

  Josh leaned closer. “Maude, what happened? Can you tell me what happened?”

  The old woman’s eyes never moved. They didn’t close. Just locked there, frozen in horror.

  “Josh, she’s not breathing!” Beth shook Maude gently. “Breathe, Maude. Jesus, why isn’t she breathing?”

  Bryan came back into the kitchen, the phone still at his ear. He came all the way into the room this time, and Beth knew when he got his first look at the expressionless nightmare of Maude’s face. It was as if she’d been flash frozen and dipped in blue dye.

  Bryan’s face paled. “Oh, God.” He swallowed, seemed to shake himself. “They’re on the way.”

  Josh laid his head against Maude’s chest, his ear over her heart. He straightened again, looking grim. “Do you know CPR?” he asked Beth.

  “Yes.” But she had already seen it—she’d seen the moment when the awareness in Maude’s eyes blinked out. They didn’t close. But the horror vanished. And something, something…left.

  Tears flowing, Beth gently tipped Maude’s chin up. She leaned over her, fingers pinching her friend’s nostrils, and blew gently into her mouth, two quick breaths.

  When she stopped, Joshua started the chest compressions, five of them. And then it was B
eth’s turn again. They fell into a steady rhythm, while Bryan stayed on the phone, filling in the dispatcher as to what was happening.

  Minutes ticked by like hours, but finally Beth heard sirens. Bryan disconnected, then ran to the front door to let the paramedics in. They were locals, though Beth barely knew them. She could probably have come up with some of their names, given a few minutes to think about it. Maude would have known them. She would have known who their parents were, how old their kids were, what their day jobs were and what they had been like as children.

  But Maude wasn’t talking.

  Beth moved aside, shaking bodily as the medics took over. She was barely aware of it when Josh’s arm slid around her shoulder. He pulled her against his side. “Hold on, Beth,” he whispered. “Lean on me if you need to.”

  Bryan went over to where they stood, actually taking hold of her hand. It was as if they were trying to comfort her—when they were the ones who were Maude’s family.

  The door was still wide-open, but it banged the wall anyway when Frankie Parker charged in. She strode across the living room to where they stood in the archway, wearing her uniform and looking pissed at the world. “What the hell happened?”

  “I don’t know, Frankie,” Beth said. “She was making us dinner. She just—collapsed.”

  The medics were jolting Maude now, sending bolts of electricity through her—two, then three, times.

  “She’s diabetic,” Frankie snapped.

  “Maybe that’s it,” Beth whispered. “She probably took her insulin already, and she hadn’t eaten yet. Maybe her blood sugar dropped and—”

  She stopped there as a medic lifted a huge needle in his fist and then stabbed it straight into Maude’s heart. “God!” Beth spun around and crushed her face against Joshua’s chest. His hands buried themselves in her hair and held her there, even as he moved her several steps away from the kitchen, farther into the living room.

  She heard someone say to continue CPR, and a second later, the medics carried Maude out on a stretcher.

  “We should go to the hospital,” Bryan said softly.

  Beth lifted her head from Josh’s chest, turning to see Bryan; his eyes were wet. Whether it was for Maude or for the memories all this must be stirring up in him—he’d lost his mother only a few months ago after all—she didn’t know. Probably some combination of the two. He put a hand on Beth’s shoulder.

  Beth’s throat closed up, and she bit her lip, so the tears that rolled down her cheeks fell in silence.

  Joshua watched, feeling helpless as the paramedics loaded Maude into an ambulance, resumed CPR even as the doors closed and took off for the nearest hospital, siren screaming. Beth and Bryan stood close together, looking shell-shocked as Josh unlocked his pickup and held the passenger door open.

  Beth watched the ambulance go, distracted until Josh touched her face, drawing her attention back to him. He helped her get in. Bryan climbed in beside her, and Josh went around to the driver’s side. He thought there was no real hurry. Maude was already gone; he felt it right to his bones. He kept a careful eye on Bryan. His son had seen too much of death lately. He didn’t need this.

  Maybe bringing him on this assignment had been yet another in Josh’s long string of mistakes. Maybe he’d screwed up beyond fixing it this time.

  Bryan said, “I think there were still burners on in the kitchen.”

  “I’ll get them,” Josh said.

  Bryan nodded. “Let’s you and I wait out here, okay, Beth?”

  Josh watched his son as he leaned over her and fastened her seat belt, and a rush of pride surged through him. His son was a hell of a man. Not a kid, but a decent, honorable young man. A man, Josh realized for the first time, he would like and respect even if he wasn’t his own son.

  He was a little surprised that this was the first time that fact had occurred to him. He shook it off and went back into the house, taking a careful look around the kitchen as he turned off the burners and the oven. Then he glanced at the floor and saw the broken teacup. Hell, better safe than sorry. He opened drawers until he located the sandwich bags, then carefully placed the broken pieces of the teacup into one of them. He took a careful look around the entire room but found nothing out of the ordinary.

  Maude was not a young woman, and he knew nothing about the state of her health, other than that she was a diabetic, though she’d certainly seemed fine. Still, there was nothing here to suggest…

  He cut himself off with a shake of his head. He had to get Beth to the hospital. Though he was dreading it. God, he hoped Bryan was going to be all right with all this going on.

  “I’m sorry,” Dr. Granger said softly. He’d just come out of the treatment room into the E.R. waiting area. Beyond him, as the door swung slowly closed, Beth glimpsed a sheet-covered form in a hospital bed. “She’s gone.”

  Beth closed her eyes as pain welled up in her chest. “I don’t understand this. It doesn’t make any sense. God, how? Why? She was fine.”

  “Her heart just gave out, Beth. There was nothing anyone could have done. Maude would have said it was just her time.” He put a hand on her shoulder. “She didn’t suffer. Small comfort, I know.”

  She looked up at him slowly. “You are so wrong about that, Dr. Granger. She suffered. I was there. I saw her. She suffered terribly.”

  He frowned at her. “Now, Beth, I know you’re upset—”

  “Her eyes were open. She was in there. She knew everything that was going on, I swear I—” She heard a gasp, realized Frankie Parker was nearby and bit her lip.

  The doctor shook his head slowly. “Beth, she’s at peace now. Please, take comfort in that.” He turned to Joshua and Bryan, who were watching her closely. “I’m so sorry for your loss. But I’m glad you both were here for her. It’s a blessing you got to spend some time with her.”

  “She really loved you, Beth,” Bryan said. “She thought of you like a daughter.”

  “I know.”

  The doctor looked at Josh. “We’ll need to know what you decide to do about the, uh…arrangements. Though I believe Maude had everything prearranged with Miller’s.”

  Josh nodded, and glanced at Beth.

  “Miller’s is the only funeral home in town, Josh. It’s okay, I’ll make the call.”

  “I can have a nurse do that for you, Beth,” Dr. Granger said.

  “Wait.” Josh glanced at Beth, then at the doctor. “Look, you were her doctor. Don’t you find it odd that she would just suddenly…I’d like to know what happened. Not your best guess, but a definitive answer.”

  “Are you asking for an autopsy?” Dr. Granger asked.

  Beth sucked in a sharp breath beside him. He looked at her, and she said, “God, please, Josh, don’t. I know how horrifying this is, but I don’t think Maude would have wanted that. If Dr. Granger thinks this was just her time…” She let her words trail off.

  “Trust me, Joshua,” Dr. Granger said. Beth thought his silver hair and gold-rimmed specs inspired as much confidence as his deep, comforting tone. “There’s nothing unusual about a woman of her age dying suddenly. Even though it seems like an aberration to the bereaved, the death of a nearly eighty-year-old diabetic is natural. Even Maude knew she could pass away at any time.” He patted Josh’s shoulder. “She was lucky, Josh. She was healthy, and she had a wonderful, full life right up until the end.”

  Josh looked from one of them to the other and seemed to be searching his mind for a reply. Finally he said, “Just make sure they don’t do anything that would make it impossible. I’ll give it some more thought and make a decision.”

  “Fair enough,” the doctor said. “Do you want to see her?”

  Beth glanced at the closed door of the treatment room. “I…don’t. Maude wouldn’t want me to. She’d have had a dozen platitudes to explain why.” She stared at the door for a long moment. “No. She always said she wanted to be remembered at her best. It would dishonor her memory.”

  “Beth, why don’t you come back
to Maude’s with us tonight?” Josh asked. “You don’t want to go home to that empty cottage. Not tonight.”

  She licked her lips, wishing she had the strength to say no. But she didn’t. And she couldn’t imagine spending the night in the cottage where Maude had died, alone with yet another ghost. “You two don’t need me hanging around tonight.” It was a lame attempt at best.

  “Yeah, we do,” Bryan said. “We really do, Beth.”

  She met Bryan’s eyes. “All right.”

  “Good,” Josh said. “That’s good.”

  Josh said he was going to bring the car around, but he used the time to place a call to Arthur Stanton, relieved when the man answered on the first ring.

  “We’ve had an…event,” he said quickly. “It’s going to take some quick action, Art.”

  “What’s happened?”

  “Maude Bickham is dead. It looks like her heart gave out, but we’re going to need to make sure. And it’s got to be discreet. I can’t think of a single believable argument for an official autopsy.”

  “Then it’ll be an unofficial one. Where’s the body?”

  “It’s being taken to Miller’s Funeral Home here in Blackberry.”

  “We’re on it. Anything else?”

  “Yeah, Beth’s cottage. That’s where she was when it happened. I need the kitchen processed, just to be on the safe side. There’s a broken teacup in a sandwich bag. I stuck it on top of the fridge. Check that, too.”

  “You can get Beth out of the house for this?”

  “She’ll be spending the night at Maude’s place with Bryan and me.”

  “Perfect. I’ll get a team in and out fast. Have a report for you, asap.”

  “Thanks, Art. It’s probably nothing. I can’t think of a reason in the world why she might be a target, but still…”

  “It’s necessary. You’re not overreacting.”

  “What about the background checks on the people in town, Arthur? Any hits?”

  Arthur sighed. “We’ve checked every hotel reservation, time share and rental unit. So far, nothing stands out. Reservations booked six months to a year in advance. No way Mordecai knew where Beth was that long ago. But we’re still looking. I’ll check back with you tomorrow.”