by Dawn Eastman
I stood and smiled. “I was a bit thrown by the amount of money. And after the chaos this afternoon, the whole guardianship thing is starting to sink in.” I pulled on Tuffy’s leash to keep him from digging in Mrs. Munson’s flowers. He was very attracted to her tulips.
Mac seemed satisfied with this partial truth and I resolved to find the diamonds and figure out if I needed to involve the police.
* * *
That night, after the kids had gone to bed and Mac had fallen asleep quickly and deeply, I slid out of bed and tiptoed downstairs. I needed quiet to concentrate and it was obvious to me that quiet was going to be in short supply from now on.
I took the blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it around my shoulders as I made myself comfortable on the couch. Bright silver light from the full moon and the dim streetlights cast everything in a bluish glow. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the diamonds.
At first nothing came to me. My own thoughts intruded. I worried about Grace and Paul and where they might be and whether they were in danger. How would we know if they were being followed, or had been found by whoever was after them? I worried it would be a very long time before they could return. Maybe they never would. How would this affect the kids? They seemed fine right now because it was all new and might even feel like a vacation, but once Sophie started school and realized she had to stay here, how would she feel then? How would she adjust to life without Miranda, who was arguably more of a caregiver than Grace had ever been?
I opened my eyes. I had to try again. Three slow, deep breaths this time. I focused on the diamonds and whenever a stray thought about the kids or my sister threatened to intrude, I pushed it gently aside to deal with later. The goal was to completely empty my mind so that I could be receptive to the location of the diamonds. Neila and I had worked on this technique in the past couple of months since I had given in to Vi’s insistence that we open a business together. In the past, I had approached this part of my talent in a haphazard fashion. If a location came, fine. If not, I’d just wait and see.
Now that I was getting paid, I had to be more regimented and Neila had helped me to develop a system that usually worked. I had found several lost pets and belongings since we started taking clients.
My mind was blank and I focused only on my breathing. In and out. Then I felt it. It was just a tiny tug, but I knew I had been given a hint. Only it didn’t make sense. I felt a tug toward the animal shelter. I must have begun thinking about Seth and the zombie run.
I tried again. Still, the animal shelter showed up, more clearly this time. I tried to move my mind away from the shelter and push it in a different direction. I thought about Derek in the woods but my brain kept coming back to the shelter. It felt a bit like a game of hot and cold. I could imagine locations and get a feel for whether it was a likely place to look. Every reasonable place I thought of felt cold and the shelter felt hot.
After another few minutes of trying to convince myself that I was wrong, I had to give up. I climbed the stairs quietly and slipped into bed next to Mac. How was I going to search the animal shelter without raising suspicion? It was more likely I would find a lost pet than stolen diamonds.
29
Thursday morning, Seth and Sophie bounded out of the Jeep and chattered all the way in to the animal shelter. Sophie wanted to check on the bunnies that had been dropped off after Easter and Seth had heard from Logan that there was a Great Dane that had been brought in after its owners decided to move back to the city. There was only one other car in the parking lot.
I followed more slowly, trying to tap into whatever I had sensed the night before. I still felt that tug toward the building even though I couldn’t fathom any reason why the diamonds would be at the animal shelter. I had found in recent months while working with Neila, and after taking on a few clients, that I had to quiet my rational mind and allow the feelings to take center stage. Not an easy task for a person who had been trained to focus on concrete facts. But if the lost item were anywhere rational, it wouldn’t be lost, would it?
I pushed open the door and stepped inside. Fortunately, the lobby was empty. Standing in the middle of the room, arms loose at my sides, I took deep slow breaths. The key was to remain relaxed. If I forced it, or tried to impose my ideas of where an item might be, I would never get a clear picture.
I heard Seth and Sophie moving along the cages on the other side of the swinging door. Francine spoke to them, giving Seth a list of jobs and telling Sophie about the bunnies. Dogs barked and whined as they moved toward the back of the shelter. I was definitely sensing that the diamonds were not behind that door.
My mind began to focus on the break room behind the front desk. There was a short hall to the left of the reception area that housed the small office, an exam room, some storage, and a tiny room where volunteers kept spare clothing and left their belongings when they came to work. That is where I felt I should go.
I scooted around the reception desk and hurried down the hall. Scanning the room from the doorway, I noted a small fridge and microwave nestled in the corner by the sink. A battered table and folding chairs took up most of the space in the middle of the room. Along the right-side wall, a row of cubbies spilled clothing, leashes, paper towels, and bedding. I walked toward it and waited.
Lower left. My mind focused on that corner of the unit. I knelt and pulled out an old gray sweatshirt, a pair of green scrub pants, and a pack of gum. At the very back of the cubby in the corner I felt a velvet pouch.
I could hardly believe it. Every time I found something using this method I was amazed. I clutched the bag and drew it out. My hand shook as I loosened the drawstring. I dumped the contents into my palm. A pile of sparkling stones fell out.
“What are you doing?” Francine said.
I startled and almost dropped the jewels. I closed my fist and stood. I had dropped the bag, and I shoved it under the shelf with the toe of my shoe. Next to Jillian Andrews, Francine was the main source of gossip in town. If she thought I was looking for something, everyone would know before I even got back home.
“I was just looking for Seth’s cubby,” I lied. “He said he got his things muddy last week and of course he didn’t think to bring them home.”
“Seth’s stuff is here.” Francine came forward and pulled clothing out of a top cubby at the other end of the storage unit.
“Oh, this looked like his sweatshirt.” I held up the hoodie while shoving the diamonds into my pants pocket.
Francine nodded. “That’s Logan’s stuff. They’re about the same size.”
I pushed the scrubs and sweatshirt back into the cubby and took the old jeans and T-shirt that Francine held out.
“How are the kids doing?” she asked. “They seem fine, but you can never tell with kids.”
“I think they’re okay,” I said. “It’s a big adjustment, and I’m not sure it’s really sunk in yet.”
My palms felt damp, and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. I wanted to get out of there and examine the stones. Aaron said there were thirty of them. I couldn’t tell if I had found the whole stash or if whoever had hidden them had split them up.
“Seth’s a good kid,” Francine said. “He’s a hard worker and he seems to really understand the animals and what they need.”
I smiled. She had no idea how well Seth understood. “Thanks, I’m glad it’s working out. He likes coming here.”
“It’s hard to believe we had two tragedies so close together,” Francine said. She leaned against the table and crossed her arms.
I nodded and pretended to examine Seth’s sweatshirt for mud.
“I feel terrible for Logan, but I wish people would stop blaming your sister. She’s not the only one with a link to Derek.”
I looked up at her but she was staring out the window at the dogs in the fenced pen.
I cleared my throat. “What do you mean she’s not the only one?”
I caught the glimmer in Francine’s eyes as she looked back at me. It was the same look Jillian got when she found someone who hadn’t heard her “news” yet.
“Lila and Derek. Aaron’s wife?” She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “After your sister left town, he took up with Lila for a while.”
“What?” I glanced at the door. I didn’t want the kids to overhear this. I whispered, “Did Aaron know?”
Francine shrugged. “Lila and I were good friends in high school. After the thing with Derek, she pulled away from everyone here and set up her new life in Grand Rapids.” She pushed away from the table and went to the door. “He probably doesn’t know. If he did, Derek would have been dead a lot earlier than this.”
* * *
Twenty minutes later, I nervously pulled onto Singapore Highway from the shelter parking lot, acutely aware of the tens of thousands worth of diamonds in my pocket.
Seth and Sophie chatted loudly over the music and it took a moment for me to realize Sophie was asking me a question.
“So can we?”
“Can we what?” I asked, concerned I had missed something important.
“Adopt a kitten.”
My shoulders slumped. I didn’t want to disappoint Sophie, but I didn’t think a cat would fit in with Tuffy and Baxter.
“I don’t know, Sophie.” I turned in my seat to look back at her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a black sedan parked along the road, tucked in the trees. It pulled onto the road behind us as we passed. I glanced in my rearview and saw that it stayed well back from my Jeep. But I had seen the driver. It was Flattop.
Why were they following us?
I thought that with Grace and Paul “dead,” they would have gone back to wherever they came from. Could they be following the kids? Had Grace and Paul’s plan failed?
“What’s going on?” Sophie asked.
Singapore Highway twisted through the trees and I stepped on the gas just to see what the other car would do. It sped up as well. Seth turned to look behind us. He shushed Sophie and she twisted in her seat as well.
“Hey, it’s the watchers!” she said. “Why are they following us?”
“I’m not sure, Soph.” I said.
We were about two miles outside of Crystal Haven. I slowed back to the speed limit. They weren’t actively threatening, but it seemed like they had been waiting for us.
“Should we go to the police station?” Seth asked.
“Police?” Sophie squeaked. “Are they going to hurt us?”
“No,” I said. “They aren’t going to do anything. That’s a good idea, Seth.”
I took the right fork that led into town and then turned right again onto Main Street. The police station was tucked between a crystals and incense store and a bookstore. As I pulled to the curb across from the station, our pursuers passed us and continued up the street.
They didn’t even glance in our direction. Was I being paranoid?
Seth and I exchanged a look. “Were they following us?” I asked.
Seth raised a shoulder and let it drop. “Seemed like it.”
I waited a few moments and then pulled away from the curb and turned the Jeep toward home. I wasn’t going to get Charla or Tom involved yet. What would I tell them? That some sketchy-looking guys followed us into town and then ignored us?
But the incident had left me unsettled.
30
I sent the kids out back to play with the dogs and called Vi.
She was the one who had gotten me into this predicament. Here I was with a handful of stolen diamonds stashed in my pocket while possibly being followed by mobsters. Now I sounded like Sophie.
I grabbed a sandwich bag out of the drawer and carefully transferred the diamonds into it. I counted ten fairly large diamonds. Just holding them made me nervous. I had to think of a place to hide them. The kids were all over the kitchen like a horde of locusts. They’d surely discover them if I hid the diamonds there. I finally settled on shoving them to the bottom of my box of tampons. I knew Mac and Seth would never touch that and Sophie was too young to be interested.
Vi knocked on the front door just as I came down from the upstairs bathroom. She was already talking as I swung the door open.
“I had to ditch your mother and sneak over here,” she said. “What’s the emergency?” She peered around the living room searching for the source of my urgent call.
I gestured back out onto the front porch. I was feeling trapped in the house with the diamonds and knew the kids would be back inside any minute. After we had settled ourselves on the wicker chairs, I told her about our new clients, Vaughn Jewelry.
“Diamonds!” she said.
I shushed her and glanced up and down the street. Maybe an outdoor meeting wasn’t such a good idea.
She rubbed her hands together gleefully. “Even with your ridiculously low percentage, we should earn enough to rent a real office space. That will bring in the customers for sure!” She grabbed my arm and shook it a little bit. “Why did you agree to such a low finder’s fee?” She crossed one arm over her chest and rested her other elbow on her hand. She curled her hand under her chin and studied me. “I think I should do the negotiating from now on. Maybe we can write up a standard contract. Rupert can help.”
I sighed and studied the ceiling of the porch. “Before you start spending the money, let me finish.”
She cocked her head and waited.
“I found some of them.”
“Already? That’s great.” She broke off and put her hand down. “What do you mean ‘some’ of them?”
I explained the pull to the animal shelter, the search of the premises, and finding a handful of diamonds.
“You’re sure you got all of them?” she sat back in her chair and stared out at the street. “Why would the thief split them up like that?”
I shrugged. I had been wondering the same thing. “I’m sure there weren’t any more—when I found those, I sensed that was it. I don’t think the rest of them were there.” I leaned forward, elbows on knees. “If Derek hid them before he was killed, I suppose he might have split them up thinking that if some were found, at least he’d have the rest. If he had them on him when he died, maybe his murderer did the same thing.”
Vi tapped a finger to her lips. “Who has access to the shelter?”
“Just about anyone could get in there. They have people coming through all the time to see the animals that are available for adoption. And Francine told me this past weekend had been crazy because the zombie run people came out for tours to see where their charity dollars would go. She made it sound like half the county and their cousins had been through.”
Vi grinned at me. “And their cousins? That’s a lot of people.”
I flapped my hand at her, recognized that it was her gesture, and pulled my hand back. It’s bad enough when I think I’m becoming my mother, but if I think I’m becoming my aunt, I won’t be able to live with myself.
Then I told her about the followers. She grew very quiet.
“I don’t like the sound of that,” she said. “We can’t tell your mother—she’ll flip out and try to hire bodyguards or something. Are you sure they were following you?”
I shook my head. “Not sure, but it felt like they were.”
“Then they probably were. You need to trust your instincts more. Didn’t they teach you that at the police academy?”
“They were more interested in teaching us the law and procedure. There wasn’t a lot of focus on psychic intervention.”
Vi scowled at me. “I don’t mean psychic, just instinct. I’m sure even Mac uses that.”
I wasn’t sure where she was headed with this, but I didn’t want to go along for the ride.
“I
’m going to try again in a little while and see if I can locate the other diamonds.”
“Let’s do it now,” she said. She stood and headed toward the house. “Where are the kids?”
“In the backyard with the dogs,” I said.
“I’ll send them into town to get some ice cream, then we won’t be interrupted.”
I stopped her at the door. “I don’t want them wandering around alone with those guys lurking in town.”
“Right, good point.” She pushed the door open and stepped inside. We heard the kids in the kitchen, rummaging through the fridge.
I followed Vi to the kitchen. The dogs milled around underfoot, hoping for a crumb or, even better, an all-out spill. Seth had the bread, meat, cheese, condiments, and chips all pulled onto the counter.
He looked up and grinned as we entered. “Hi, Aunt Vi,” he said. “We’re starving. Do you guys want a sandwich?” He gestured to the counter and with a practiced hip check shoved Baxter away from the meat. Tuffy was too short to reach the counter, but he leaped high enough to see what was there. Sophie was in the pantry filling the dog bowls with kibble. Both dogs pointedly ignored the food and continued to stare at the sandwich fixings.
“That’s a great idea, kids,” Vi said. “Let’s eat and then Aunt Clyde is going to demonstrate how she finds lost things.”
My mouth fell open, and I glared at her.
Sophie bounced on her toes and clapped.
“Wicked.” Seth grinned. “Do we need the pendulum?”
“What’s a pendulum?” Sophie asked.
Vi turned to her, hands on hips. “Do you mean your mother has never even shown you a pendulum?”
Seth held up a hand, “I’d never seen one before last summer.”
Vi narrowed her eyes at him. “Hmph.”