Past Secrets, Present Love

by Lois Richer

  She frowned. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “I told you my parents never had their act together.”

  She nodded. “Yes?”

  “Actually my father was gone a lot of the time. Mostly I’m talking about my mother. I tried to forgive her for neglecting us, and that is what it was. I tried to reconcile the past, to move on, to understand that she had her own problems, that she didn’t feel valued or worthy or loved. I tried all that.”

  “But you still can’t understand why she didn’t act as if she loved you?”

  “Before I came here, I made a trip especially to see her, to ask her the things I’ve struggled with for years. Why she didn’t try harder, why the booze always came first, why Trista and I never mattered enough for her to get sober, you know?” He turned slightly so she couldn’t see his face, couldn’t see the anger and frustration that ate at him.

  “What did she say?”

  “Nothing.” He heard himself bark out a laugh and wondered if she heard the pain behind it. “She didn’t even know who I was. My own mother and I was a stranger to her.”

  “It wasn’t her fault, Ross. It’s the disease. Alzheimer’s affects the memory part of the brain. I’m sure the doctors told you that.”

  “They told me.” She didn’t understand and he couldn’t explain it properly, not without letting her see how much it hurt. “I prayed. Did you know that?” The words grated out of him and he was glad to release some of the anger. “I begged your loving God to let me talk to my mother, just one last time. I went to church, I confessed my sins, I did all the things you’re supposed to do. Do you know what happened?”

  “She still didn’t know you.”

  “Right! Some answer to prayer, huh?” He did face her then. “That’s why I’m not buying into your loving God religion. If it works for you, I’m glad. But it’s not part of my life anymore. I can’t go through that again, weeks of hoping, praying, trying to have faith and then getting smacked down. It’s a fool’s game. You’re kidding yourself if you think God is going to change one single thing in your life. If there even is a God, He must be sitting up there snoozing or playing cards or something, because He sure doesn’t seem one whit interested in what’s happening here.”

  “Oh, Ross.” Her voice brimmed with sympathy that he didn’t want to hear.

  “What I started out to say was that you’ve got this second chance with Sandra. She’s survived her cancer. She really cares about you. Don’t throw that away. It doesn’t happen very often.”

  Kelly remained silent for what seemed like eternity. He wondered if she was regretting going with him tonight, of being subjected to his personal problems. But maybe, just maybe, it would be worth it if she would let go of her fears and really get to know the woman who was her mother.

  “I promise I’ll think about what you said, Ross.” Then she opened the door, stepped into the snow and shut the door behind her.

  He sat waiting until she’d unlocked the door and was safely inside. When the light came on in her office, he shifted into gear and did a U-turn on the deserted street, thinking that Kelly had no idea how much better off she was not knowing who her father really was. But Ross knew that kind of creep, knew a hundred others like him.

  He should. Tonight he’d trail yet another loser who had abandoned his wife’s love and was on his way to creating a world of pain and heartache for those who loved him.

  As far as he was concerned, it was time God got out of His Heaven and did something about the trouble on earth.

  Chapter Nine

  “Hey, Pilar. You’re working late.”

  “I had a few things to clean up. I’m almost done.” She closed one file, picked up another. “I love getting this stuff from last year cleared away so I can plunge into the new year. What’s your excuse?”

  “That’s why I’m here, too. I intend to clean that closet out tonight no matter what.” Kelly raised her head at the noise from down the hall. “Is someone else here?”

  “A friend was here fixing that broken drawer in Anne’s desk. He wanted to do it before she got back. I think Florence is still here, too. Don’t talk to her,” Pilar warned. “She’s in a foul humor.”

  “Like that’s new?” Kelly sighed. “I’m not up to reprimanding her again. I guess I’ll just keep to myself in my little closet.”

  “You’re feeling better?”

  “Much. Eli was there, did some tests. I’ll get the results in a few days but he seems to think it’s some kind of infection. I had some soup and toast for supper. My stomach seems to have settled down at last.”

  “That’s good. We need you here, Kelly. As the new director of Tiny Blessings Adoption Agency, you’ve made us a more cohesive group and I love the atmosphere. Take care of yourself, chica.”

  “I’m trying. Thanks, Pilar.” She waved, then continued down the hall to her own office. Divested of her coat, Kelly changed into the spare pair of jeans and T-shirt she kept for just these occasions. Then she dived into her work.

  It took four trips to the basement to get rid of the mops, brooms, pail and other cleaning supplies that were left. Then she relocated the old paint cans there, too. She’d have to ask Florence to dispose of them properly.

  Finally there was nothing left in the small space but the filing cabinet. Though she tried using every possible muscle group she could think of, the cabinet would not budge from its location inside the closet. Maybe Pilar would help.

  “Pilar?” Kelly walked down the hallway hoping someone was still in the building, but the farther she got, the stronger the realization grew that she was alone.

  “Okay, shades of last time,” she muttered heading for the front door. It was locked. One by one she checked each of the fire doors, the emergency exit, every single entrance that led to outside. They were all as they should be.

  Heaving a sigh of relief, she returned to the closet, stood in the doorway staring at the cabinet.

  “Fine. If you won’t move, I’ll open you where you are. Whatever you’ve got inside you must weigh a ton. If it’s garbage, I warn you, I’m chucking it out.”

  She returned to her office, found a pair of scissors and tried prying open the lock. Hopeless. She tried jimmying it with the same lack of success. Just in case brute force might work, she used a heavy metal paperweight from her desk against the bulky cabinet. Nothing.

  “You’re beginning to bug me,” she muttered as she carried the scissors and paperweight back to her office. The ringing phone broke her survey of the office shelves for something to use. “Tiny Blessings Adoption Agency,” she answered.

  “Hey, it’s me.” Ross’s voice held none of the anger she’d heard when he dropped her off. “I was just over at Sandra’s and she has a cold. I thought I’d tell you in case you were thinking of visiting. She’s going to be laid up for a day or two, but if you wanted to see her after that, I’m sure she’d be happy to have you visit.”

  “She’s not…seriously ill, is she? She didn’t catch whatever I had?” A flutter of panic assailed Kelly. Maybe she shouldn’t have been so stubborn about getting to know Sandra.

  “She says it’s just a cold. Nothing serious.”

  “Oh, good.” Kelly glanced into the hall. An idea emerged. “Where are you, Ross?”

  “About three blocks away. Why?”

  “Would it be too much to ask you to help me out? I’ve got the closet cleaned out but I can’t get the filing cabinet to move—or open, for that matter,” she added. “I don’t know if it’s rusted or something but the lock will not budge.”

  “I’ll be there in a couple of minutes. Can you let me in the front door?”

  “Sure. Thanks, Ross.”

  “No prob.”

  She walked downstairs and stood in the lobby, watching the street. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust, but from her position at the side of the big door, Kelly could see a figure standing across the street.

  “Who is that?” she murmured. She knew she wa
s hidden by the shadows since most of the lobby lights were still off, so she shifted just a little to the left to get a better look. “Andrew?” she whispered, as car lights flashed across his face.

  Ross pulled up by the curb and climbed out of his car carrying a small box under one arm. When she glanced back across the street, Andrew was nowhere to be seen.

  “Kelly?” Ross rapped on the door and she hurried to open it.

  “Sorry.” She waited for him to step inside, then relocked the door. “I saw someone across the street.”

  He whirled around, peered into the night. “Who?”

  “Andrew Noble.”

  “That’s three times. This is obviously more than mere coincidence. What is the guy up to?” He took a second look, shook his head. “Looks like he’s gone now.”

  “Maybe he’s working for one of the people whose records were falsified by Barnaby Harcourt. I don’t know if you remember but when I first found out my own adoption papers were falsified, I also found a history of deception in our files. Maybe there’s someone like Sandra who wants to know the truth and he’s helping them.” She led the way upstairs.

  “Could be, I suppose. Though I would think he could ask first. Wasn’t there an article in the Gazette about that?”

  “Yes. Jared printed it after I’d gone to the police. He interviewed me so I could explain how I discovered the problems. We hoped that would do some damage control for the agency. Our reputation has been growing and I didn’t want to see it ruined by something that happened before I was there.”

  “I remember. I read the piece. I think it cleared Tiny Blessings pretty well.”

  “Thank you. But maybe somebody else doesn’t think so. Maybe they think I’m hiding something. That could be the reason they want me to leave.”

  Ross shook his head. “If they’re looking for the truth, they’d want you to stay, to dig deeper. But those phone calls told you to leave. It’s more likely someone doesn’t want something known. There was a breakin a few months ago, too, wasn’t there?”

  “Don’t remind me.” Kelly saw him clamp his lips together and realized he hadn’t meant to speculate aloud. He probably thought he was scaring her, but in fact it made her feel better to think there could be a reason behind the calls, that they weren’t just because someone wanted to drive her out of town for no reason.

  “There it is, the stubborn beast.” She pointed to the cabinet. She stared as Ross opened the small box he carried and displayed the curious tools inside. “What are those?”

  “Things I need to pry open this cabinet.” He set to work and in a matter of moments the lock popped open. He pulled the top drawer out. “What have we here?”

  Kelly reached in and lifted out two of the many cassette tapes that were stacked inside. She was very familiar with the writing on them.

  “These were Barnaby Harcourt’s,” she said. “I wonder what’s on them? And look at these notes!” She lifted out a yellow legal pad and tried to decipher the scrawl. A sudden burst of sound made her freeze. “What’s that?” she whispered.

  “I don’t know, but I intend to find out. Put those back and we’ll lock the drawer again.” He waited till she’d returned the notes and tapes, then closed the drawer and relocked it. “Do you have the key to lock the closet door?”

  She pulled it out of her pocket, shoved it into the knob. “I always wondered why someone had a lock on a closet. Now I guess we know.”

  “Okay, let’s go. Stay behind me, okay?”

  She nodded, realized he couldn’t see. “Yes,” she whispered.

  “I think it came from the floor below. Let’s check there first.” They crept down the stairs and into the lobby. Suddenly Ross stopped. Kelly bumped into him, wondered why he didn’t go ahead. She moved to the side, but his arm held her back.

  “What is it?” Kelly murmured, tilting forward so her lips were less than an inch from his ear. His arm dragged her against his side, his fingers pressed against her mouth to stop further speech. He pointed.

  A figure in black was standing on the sidewalk, surveying the smashed window.

  Ross stepped forward. “Hold it!”

  The words hadn’t even left his lips before Andrew disappeared. At least that’s who Kelly thought it was.

  “He’s gone. I’ll call the police. Don’t touch anything.” Ross pulled out his cell phone, began to dial, then froze.

  Kelly moved so she could see what he was looking at and gaped. Red fluorescent letters were spray painted on the wall underneath the gold letters of the agency.

  Forget the past, KY. Leave this town.

  Her fear was full-blown now. “What did I do?” she whispered, unable to control her shaking limbs. “What did I do wrong?”

  “Kelly?”

  She heard his voice but couldn’t take her eyes off the horrible words that marred the marble surface. The old bank building was a pleasure to work in even with its cranky heating system. Granite floors, marble surfaces, oak woodwork—it would have been too costly to build, but Tiny Blessings had acquired it for a song when First City Trust moved to its new premises. Now it was ruined, because of her.

  “Kelly, listen to me.”

  She heard what he said but it didn’t sink in. Why would anyone do this? What if she’d been alone? Would they have come upstairs? Was Andrew Noble watching her every move?

  “Kelly?”

  Ross’s big hands rested on her arms for a minute, then he drew her against him, held her. The warmth of his body chased away the chill of shock and after a moment she was able to draw a deep breath. His solid presence and strength empowered her. For the first time in a very long time she no longer felt utterly alone.

  “It’s okay, honey. You’re all right. Nobody’s here but you and I.”

  “And the police,” she told him as a flashing red light pulled up in front of the building.

  “Yes. We’re going to have to talk to them. Can you manage that?”

  “I think so.” She jerked her head to stare at him as panic rose like a tidal wave. “Where are you going?”

  “I’ll be right here, Kelly. I’m not going anywhere.” He set her gently away, then grasped her hand. “We’ll do this together.”

  And they did. First Kelly—then Ross—explained that they’d been working upstairs when they’d heard a noise and come to investigate. But it was Ross who mentioned Andrew to Zach when he arrived a few minutes later.

  “I don’t know what he was doing here, I can’t imagine why he would break a window and then write that on the wall.” He jerked a thumb at the ugly painted words. “But we both saw him standing on the sidewalk. And he knew we saw him. Kelly thought she saw him earlier, across the street. Maybe he was watching the building for an opportunity.”

  “Andrew Noble. You’re sure?” Zach gave them a funny look. “Why would he bother with graffiti?”

  “Why would he want me to leave town? I don’t even know the man.” Kelly shuddered, the shock of having someone after her finally settling in.

  “We’ll pick him up, ask some questions. Want me to call Ben Cavanaugh, see if he can come and board up that window? It will probably take a few days to get someone from Richmond to do the repairs.”

  “That would be great. Thanks, Zach.” Kelly stared at the gaping hole in what was left of the glass. “You know I’ve lived in this town most of my life, but this is the first time I’ve felt afraid.”

  “It’s good to be wary, to check things out before dashing ahead,” Zach said. “Just don’t let your fear take control. We’re only a phone call away. Ross here seems like he’s doing a pretty good job of being Johnny-on-the-spot. You might want to keep him nearby, too.” He gave them a teasing grin then excused himself to speak to one of the other officers.

  They didn’t have very long to wait before Ben showed up with several sheets of plywood on the back of his truck. He and Ross worked together to cover the open space. By the time they’d finished, the clock on the wall said eleven.


  “Thanks so much, Ben. You send Tiny Blessings a bill right away. And make sure you charge for your labor. I appreciate you coming out this late, especially since I’m sure you’d rather spend your evenings with your bride.”

  “Not a problem, Kelly. I just hope they find whoever did this. I don’t like to see this kind of thing happen in Chestnut Grove. I want my kids to grow up safe and sound, like I did.”

  “Me, too.” She watched him leave, noticed that most of the police had left. Ross was talking to Zach by the front door. The conversation seemed fairly heated. “Something wrong?” she asked, walking up to them

  “I had someone check. Andrew Noble claims he was across the street but that he was just out for a walk. He denies being anywhere near here when the window was broken. And he has an alibi.”

  “He’s lying. We saw him.”

  “You said you saw someone in black clothing. That doesn’t make it Andrew. Besides, at stressful times like these, perceptions can get distorted.”

  “I was a cop, Zach,” Ross countered, his face grim. “I’m used to ‘times like these.’”

  “Whatever. The alibi seems pretty solid. Anyway, I’ll do some more checking but I have to tell you, I was a little skeptical it was him in the first place.” Zach turned to Kelly. “You know as well as I do that the Nobles have all the money anyone could want. As far as I know we’ve never had any of their kids involved in any criminal activities. Andrew is hardly a kid anymore so it seems unlikely he would bother with something like this.”

  “True.” Kelly saw Ross’s face and knew he wanted to argue but she forestalled him. “Can I lock up soon? I’d like to get home and get some rest.”

  “Sure. We’re finished here.” Zach glanced around. “A team will show up in the morning to do some wrap-up but we won’t have to bother you.”

  “Great. I’ll just go upstairs and get my coat.” She left the two men to climb the stairs to her office. It was a simple thing to gather up her work clothes and stuff them into a bag she’d shoved into the credenza underneath the window.

  Kelly paused there for a moment, staring down into the street below. Everything looked calm, peaceful. But somewhere someone was up to evil. She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and turned her head to catch a glimpse of a figure in black turning the corner on a street two blocks away. She grabbed Ross’s jacket and her stuff and raced down the stairs.