by J A Whiting
“Did he have a cell phone with him?” Tom asked.
The corner of Rachel’s mouth turned up. “My dad didn’t like the idea of a cell phone. He said he didn’t like the fact that the government could track private citizens.” Rachel shrugged. “My father was old-school. He didn’t see the need to carry a phone everywhere so, no, he didn’t have one.”
“What did the police say?” Courtney asked. “They must have done an investigation.”
“They didn’t do a whole lot according to my mother. They told her that a person is allowed to go off on his own whenever he wants and there isn’t anything they can do about it.”
“I’ll get in touch with the police on the island.” The chief made eye contact with Rachel. “Was it possible that your father decided to leave? Go off on his own?”
“No.” Rachel’s tone was adamant. “He would never leave us. He loved us.”
Angie glanced up to the top of the China cabinet where Euclid was sitting at attention. The orange boy did not react when Rachel spoke of her father’s love, he seemed to believe what Rachel was saying.
“Would your mother be open to speaking with me about what happened?” Chief Martin asked.
Rachel swallowed. “My mother passed away three months ago.”
“I’m very sorry.”
“The stress of the whole thing did her in.” Rachel looked down at the black cat curled on her lap. “Mom had a heart attack. Before she died, she made me promise to look into my father’s disappearance.” A few tears fell from the young woman’s eyes. “She didn’t want my father lying dead somewhere. She wanted him found, brought home, and buried so he could rest in peace.”
Mr. Finch looked kindly at the young woman across from him. “You’ve done what your mother hoped for, Miss Rachel.”
Rachel returned Mr. Finch’s gaze. “Yes, I’m glad for that. But I feel so very, very awful.”
Angie wanted to ask Rachel why she came to Sweet Cove to investigate her father’s disappearance if he went missing on Marion Island, but she was afraid to make the woman defensive. She tried to word the question just right. “Was there something about Sweet Cove, besides the ferry, that made you think there was a clue to the mystery here in town?”
“In his last call, Dad told my mother that he was going to a resort in the town of Sweet Cove to meet his friend for dinner. Since we didn’t hear from him after that, I thought I’d start here.”
Chief Martin asked, “Did the Marion Island police tell your mother if they came to town to check out whether or not your father had dinner at the resort?”
“I don’t know.”
“I’ll look into it.” The chief made a note in his book. “Miss Marsten, what was the man’s name who your father was going to meet?”
“John Smith.” Rachel rolled her eyes. “I know it sounds false, but that was his name. Dad told me that his friend eventually added his mother’s name, Higgins, to his surname to make him stand out.”
“Did your father and this man go to high school together?”
Rachel nodded.
“What high school did the men attend together?”
Rachel told Chief Martin the name of the school and the town where it was located in West Virginia.
“Were they in the same year?” the chief questioned.
“I don’t know. I’m not sure. Probably.”
“Did you or your mother ever meet this man?”
“No, we didn’t know him. Dad said John Smith moved away right after high school. My mother met dad in college, in another town.”
“Did your mother or father have relatives? Siblings? Cousins?”
“No,” Rachel said. “I’m an only child, my mom and dad were also only children. There isn’t anyone left.”
“Was the man who owned Rachel’s rental house named John Smith?” Jenna asked.
“No, someone else owned the rental house,” Chief Martin said.
Angie said, “Betty knew the owner. She said his name was Leon Drapper.”
The chief looked up from his notebook and nodded. “Is there anything else you think might be helpful?” he asked Rachel.
Rachel’s bloodshot eyes looked at the chief as she considered the question. Her skin had paled and dark circles showed under her eyes. Her face appeared ashen and gaunt like she’d dropped twenty pounds from her small frame in too quick a time. “I can’t think of anything else.”
“Maybe Rachel should rest now,” Ellie suggested.
“I’d like to. If it’s okay with the chief.”
Chief Martin nodded. “We can talk again. I’m very sorry for what’s happened.”
Rachel gently moved the cat so the feline would jump down from her lap and then she stood up on shaky legs. “I’m glad Dad’s been found. It means a lot to me to be able to bring him home. It would mean the world to my mother, too.” A look of horror crossed her face. “I can take him home, can’t I?”
The chief reassured the young woman. “Just as soon as he is released from the medical examiner.”
Rachel thanked everyone for their help and climbed the stairs to her room.
Chief Martin exhaled loudly. “Imagine the odds of the father turning up in the garage of the house his daughter had just rented. Truth is stranger than fiction.”
“At least the question of the man’s identity has been answered.” Mr. Finch leaned down to scratch Circe’s cheek.
“Now the remaining questions are how did he die and who killed him?” Angie noted.
Euclid let out a low growl.
“One down,” Courtney said, “two to go.”
14
The late afternoon sunlight filtered through the leaves and made dappled patterns on the lawn as Angie, Ellie, and Rachel got of the car and stared at the garage. Junk from inside the structure had been tossed out all around the garage and on the grass by the people who came to tow the old car away for police inspection. Rachel’s body seemed to be shrinking into itself and Angie wanted to distract her.
“Do you have anything in the trunk of your car that needs to be brought into the house?”
Rachel blinked at Angie. “Just a few things.” They moved to the back of the car, took the things out, and headed for the house. “I’m shaking. I don’t know if I can stay here alone.”
“Spend some time in the house,” Ellie suggested. “Do a few chores or put your things away. Maybe the feeling that you can’t be here will wane as you keep busy. We’ll stay for a while to keep you company.”
“I’m going to talk to the owner about breaking the lease due to … the circumstances. Since I’ve found my father, I have no need to stay in town. Do you think she’ll allow me to get out of the lease?”
“I hope she does.” Angie carried a box of groceries inside and set it on the counter. “It seems only fair.”
“What about the job at Francine’s shop?” Ellie asked.
“I talked to her. She said she understood and she’d put up an ad to fill the position right away. She was really nice.” Rachel brushed at her eyes.
Angie started to remove the items from the box when movement in the driveway caught her eye and she peered out the window to see Elise Wender’s car pull to a stop next to Rachel’s vehicle. “The owner just pulled in.”
“Did she?” Rachel’s eyes popped. “I don’t think I’m prepared to talk to her about the lease right now.”
“I’ll go see what she wants.” Angie headed outside thinking this could be a good time to have a chat with the owner. Before Chief Martin left the Victorian last night, he’d suggested that the sisters might try to talk to Elise to see if they could sense anything from her. The chief and some of the investigators already had the woman into the police station for an interview, but Chief Martin didn’t think it would be the last time they had a conversation with her.
Elise looked up when she heard Angie approach. “Look at this mess. The police think they can come in here and tear the place apart.”
“They did have
a reason.” Angie followed Elise closer to the garage.
The woman flapped her hand around. “Oh, I know. But they should have to clean it up.”
“Are you going to work on it now?”
“God, no. I’m meeting a guy who’s going to give me a price for hauling all this junk away.” Elise had her hands on her hips as she surveyed the scene. “Uh. I can’t believe they found a body in there. How will I ever sell this place when people find out there was a dead man in the garage. How did it get there? Who put it in there?”
Angie faced the woman. “I was just about to ask you the same questions.”
“How would I know?” Elise’s face was flushed. “I just got up here.”
“Was that your brother’s car in the garage?”
“How do I know?” Elise shook her head slowly back and forth.
“Was it listed in his will?”
“The will said the buildings and contents, nothing specific.”
Angie kept her tone neutral. “Did you see your brother very often?”
“No. I was busy with my work … he was busy with his. He came down for Christmas, but he never stayed. He only visited for the day. We talked on the phone about once a month.” Elise rubbed her neck. “God, did Leon know that body was in there?”
“If he knew, wouldn’t he report it to the police?” Angie asked.
Elise stared at Angie, her face tight and tense. “I would hope so. Leon was, he was … he had a low IQ. I hope he would know enough to report this.”
“Could your brother be responsible for the man’s death?”
“No. I don’t know.” The woman threw her hands up. “I feel like I didn’t know my brother at all.”
“Had he ever been married?”
“No.”
“Did he have a girlfriend?”
“From time to time, he had a girlfriend. No one ever stuck though. To my knowledge, Leon was single. He and his last girlfriend broke off with each other about a year ago.”
“Kids?”
Elise rolled her eyes. “Leon didn’t like kids.”
“Did Leon ever live in West Virginia?”
Raising an eyebrow, the woman replied, “Never. Why do you ask that?”
“The dead man was from West Virginia.”
“Oh.” Elise’s shoulders seemed to tighten a little. “Why are you asking all of these questions? Do you work for the police?”
“I own a bake shop,” Angie said, being careful to leave out that she and her family sometimes helped Chief Martin with cases. “What happened here is not a normal occurrence. I guess I’m nosey.”
The sound of an engine caused the two women to turn. A truck rumbled down the driveway.
“Thank God. It’s the junk man.” Elise started to walk towards the man who emerged from the truck, but stopped. “Is the girl who rented the place inside the house?”
Angie nodded. She stayed near the garage while Elise talked to the junk hauler and then watched Elise head to the house and knock on the door. When Rachel answered, her face took on a look of horror to have to let Elise into the house. Angie hoped that Ellie would help Rachel discuss with Elise her need to break the lease. She was about to go in to assist when the junk man started a conversation.
“Heck of a mess.” The man held a clipboard with a paper on it. The embroidered oval on his shirt said, Ron. “I didn’t know Leon was a hoarder.”
Angie perked up. “You knew Leon?”
“Somewhat. He did some plumbing work for me over the years. Nothing recent though. Leon sold his business quite a while ago. I’d run into him from time to time ... we’d shoot the breeze.” Ron appeared to be in his late fifties with salt and pepper hair and broad shoulders.
“Leon retired from plumbing?”
“Yeah, it was like ten, fifteen years ago.” Ron shook his head. “He must have saved a bundle to be able to retire so young.”
“How was he the last times you saw him? Did he seem the same as he always did? Was anything bothering him?”
“You mean his health? I remember he seemed to be tired a lot, but nothing that would make me think like he was going to have a heart attack.”
Angie hadn’t meant Leon’s health. She’d wondered if the man had acted differently in the last years of his life either because he knew who killed Rachel’s father or because Leon himself was the killer. “Did Leon have a run-in with anyone that you know of?”
“A run-in?” Ron wrote some things on the clipboard. “I don’t know anything about something like that. Leon could be gruff, but I never knew him to have any trouble with people.”
“Did he have any friends?”
“Leon kept to himself most of the time. Kind of a loner.” Ron wrote something down. “You know, he did have a guy he hung out with sometimes. Cole Perry. He runs an auto body shop over in West Cove.”
“You heard the news?” Angie asked. “You know what they found in the garage?”
“I heard it.” Ron poked his head into the garage to look around, but he stayed outside. “Pretty weird.”
“The body was in the backseat of a car,” Angie said. “I wondered if the car belonged to Leon.”
“What kind of a car was it? I didn’t hear all the details of the story.”
“It was an old Pontiac.” Angie watched Ron’s face.
“A Pontiac, huh.” Ron’s eyebrows went up. “What color was the car? Did you hear? Was the color mentioned?”
“It was red.” A shiver of anxiety pulsed down Angie’s back.
“Then that was Leon’s car alright. It definitely was.” Ron shook his head as he ripped a sheet of paper from the clipboard. “He told me he had an old car he planned on restoring. Guess we know how that worked out. Did Elise go inside?” The man started for the back door of the house, but stopped in his tracks and turned to Angie with a look of alarm on his face. “Does that mean Leon killed that guy?”
Angie couldn’t answer that question. Yet.
15
Josh was standing at the door of the resort when Angie approached the building. Josh had been away for a week and Angie was itching to see him. She had on a pale yellow spring dress and her hair pulled up in a high ponytail and when she saw him waiting for her, her cheeks flushed pink.
When Josh wrapped her in a hug and kissed her, Angie was sure her heart would burst through her chest.
“I couldn’t wait to see you so I’ve been standing here watching for the car.” Josh’s eyes twinkled.
“The feeling is mutual.” Angie grinned up at the handsome resort owner who took her hand and led her into the beautiful lobby. Being at the resort always filled Angie’s heart with happiness and contentment, and not just because of Josh. The Roselands’ grandmother had once owned a small cottage on Robin’s Point where the resort grounds were now located. The sisters, their mother, and grandmother had spent many happy summers together and whenever Angie was on the point, she could feel her Nana’s presence thrumming through her blood.
“There’s a wedding here tonight and they’re setting up right now. It’s similar to how Jenna and Tom want things. Would you like to take a peek?”
Angie and Josh stepped into the reception room where a fire was burning in the tall stone fireplace. Small tables covered with white linen cloths had been placed in a circle around the room with a wedding cake table in the center. Glass lanterns with candles inside had been placed in the middle of each table and small glass vases filled with spring flowers were scattered over the tabletops. Pale blue plates, silverware, and crystal goblets and wine glasses sparkled under the chandelier. A circular wall of huge windows afforded a gorgeous view of the lawns and the ocean beyond.
Angie squeezed Josh’s hand. “Oh, it’s beautiful.”
“In a couple of weeks, this will be set up for your sister’s wedding.”
“Don’t get me all teary.” Angie brushed at her eyes with her fingertip as the two headed to the formal dining room for dinner.
Over glasses of wine, Josh
and Angie took turns telling about their week, talked about the upcoming wedding, and then discussed town news.
“You heard about the body in the garage?” Angie reached for a small quiche from the appetizer plate.
“I did. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read about it. The person has been identified, right?”
Angie nodded and made eye contact with her boyfriend. “The daughter of the man had been staying at the B and B.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Josh asked. “The Roselands always seem to be in the middle of the excitement.”
Angie sighed. “Don’t forget about Mr. Finch. He’s always right there with us.”
“And Mr. Finch, too.” Josh modified his statement. “The police were here today.”
“Chief Martin?”
“And a detective. They were asking me about a businessman who has a house on Marion Island.”
“John Smith-Higgins?”
“I should have known you were on top of it.” Josh smiled as he raised his wine glass. “Have you been helping Chief Martin?”
Angie told Josh that she’d received a call from a distraught Rachel Marsten after the woman entered the garage and found the body. “We rushed over. We were there when the police arrived and started the investigation.” Angie noticed the waiter approaching their table and stopped talking. After giving their dinner orders, the conversation continued.
“Do you have any information on John Smith-Higgins?” Angie kept her voice low so other diners wouldn’t overhear.
“I know who he is. I’ve met him several times through business. He made his money through his financial and investment company, then diversified into import-exports, food distribution, casinos, car dealerships. He’s made millions, maybe even a billion.”
Angie’s jaw dropped. “I’ve never heard of this guy. He lives on Marion Island?”
“That’s just one of his residences. He’s hardly ever there. I understand he spends his time between Los Angeles and New York.”
“Did Chief Martin tell you why he was asking about Smith-Higgins?”
“He didn’t give specifics. He only said that it was in connection to a crime. I assumed it must have to do with the dead garage man.”