The Sour Taste of Suspicion

by CeeCee James

“It’s to keep people out.” Elise felt her cheeks heat with a guilty flush.

  Aunt Myrtle snorted. “You look like you just ate the canary. The tape didn’t do too good, I reckon?”

  Elise cleared her throat and glanced down the hall. “What was it you wanted to show me, again?”

  “Hmph. I wanted to show you what Anna’s after.” She thumped her cane on the floor as she slowly walked to her dead sister’s room. “You heard her the other night, right?”

  “Well, Anna’s gone. How could I have heard her?”

  “Anna’s always been that way. She does what she wants.”

  Prickles crawled up Elise’s arm as they entered the room. It felt darker than ever before. “Why are you saying that? Have you seen her?”

  The old woman licked her dry pale lips. “Well, no. But it has to be her.” She thumped her way over to the dollhouse. A smile lit up her face. Turning, she looked proudly at Elise.

  “This is lovely,” Elise peered inside the house, trying to appear as if it were the first time she’d seen it up close.

  “We need more light.” Aunt Myrtle batted at the curtain with her cane, and Elise rushed over to open it. Something clattered in the bathroom, making Elise jump. “Hold your horses, Anna. I’m just showing her.” Then turning her attention back to Elise, “My Grandfather made it for me.”

  “For you and not your sister?”

  “Yes. It was for my fifth birthday. I loved it. It sat for nearly seventy years in my room.” Her forehead crinkled into an impossible map of wrinkles. “Anna always was so jealous of it. She played with it one day, and broke the tiny cradle.” Her bony finger reached in and touched the chair. “Mother was mad at me for it. I’d told her it wasn’t me, but Mother didn’t believe me. Anna, of course, never said otherwise.”

  Sympathy filled Elise at the pain in Aunt Myrtle’s voice. “Oh, I’m sorry. That must have been hard.”

  “Hard?” The old woman looked confused. “No, it wasn’t hard. That was Anna.”

  “So, you didn’t get along with your sister then?”

  Aunt Myrtle looked to the floor and a pink hue tinged her cheeks. “Anna was just the prettiest thing. You’d fall in love with her right away if you’d seen her, just like everyone else did. Hair like a buttercup. Eyes like two violets. Just beautiful.” Myrtle cleared her throat. “Momma always said Anna must have the pink dress. I was always dressed in blue.”

  “The blue?”

  “Yes,” Myrtle looked at her again, “On account of my hair.” She touched it, now thin with pink scalp showing through the white curls.

  “You have lovely hair, Myrtle,” Elise remarked.

  Myrtle blinked and then looked sharply at Elise. “Do you have beetles for brains? What are you babbling about?” Her tone flipped from the softness it had previously.

  “I was saying your hair…. It’s quite beautiful.”

  Myrtle looked at her as though Elise were crazy. “My hair is about as beautiful as a bud of blown cotton tumbling in a muddy cow pasture. And nobody has ever called it beautiful. Plain, they said. Just plain brown. Besides that, any beauty that my hair had is long gone, now.” She scowled at Elise and turned back to the bedroom door, gripping her cane in a gnarled hand and leaving Elise to follow behind bemused.

  A half-hour later, carrying a small knapsack with a water bottle and a jacket, Elise climbed in her car and drove to Highjack Ridge. Her brain spun with Aunt Myrtle’s last conversation. She turned up the music to clear her thoughts. Not going to let anything distract me from today. It’s time to recharge.

  Brad’s jeep was already waiting in the park’s dirt parking lot when she pulled in. She took the space next to him and climbed out with her knapsack.

  He walked over and she felt her heart smile. He looked every bit as wonderful as the last time she’d seen him. Something about him just emanated security and confidence, and not just because she knew he was a police officer. He was a good man. It just radiated from him.

  And his hugs were the best.

  So far, they hadn’t gone any further in their relationship other than friendship, still feeling things out and getting to know each other. But Elise liked the way they were headed.

  “Long time, no see,” he said, grabbing her in his arms.

  “Mmmmmm,” she responded, snuggling in. His arms were strong and tight and he smelled like cedar. She looked up at his face. “Have you been chopping wood?”

  He grinned. “Look at you, Miss Detective. Solving two mysteries has sure honed your skills. Yep, I had a cord and a half delivered. Trying to get my winter pile in shape.”

  “You split wood this morning and now you’re going to hike a mountain? You are a beast.”

  His eyebrow flickered. “I’ve gotta do a lot to make sure I impress you,” he joked.

  “Hey, you already impressed me when we did that half-marathon last month.”

  “Yeah? Well, I have a few more tricks up my sleeve.”

  “Oh, really?”

  Leaving her question unanswered, he moved to his jeep and pulled out a back pack. “Come on, let’s get going.” He slid it on as he nodded toward the trailhead.

  Elise shrugged her pack on and followed him. Just a few feet down the trail and Elise felt the shift. Life suddenly felt rugged and wild in direct opposite of the civilization of the parking lot. Enormous evergreens reached for the sky for as far as she could see. She sniffed deeply. The mountain air was so fresh. An old river bed cut across the path. She glanced at the ground to be sure of her footing as she crossed the boulders.

  They traveled with minimal small talk for the first two miles, both of them recharging in the quiet of the countryside. The trail leveled out and they crossed a field of yellow flowers.

  “I can’t believe how beautiful it is here,” Elise said, unable to help herself. She did a slow spin, trying to take it all in. When she turned back he had plucked a blossom and held it between his fingers. Smiling, he took her hand and drew her close. His hazel eyes were warm as he looked into hers and he tucked the flower behind her ear. “Spoken by a true beauty.” He bent down to kiss her.

  Warmth flooded Elise as his lips pressed against hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

  After a few moments, they parted, both smiling. She rested her head on his shoulder as he hugged her again. “You can’t even believe how long I’ve been wanting to do that,” he said.

  “Really?” Reluctantly, she stepped away

  “Probably since high school.” His eyes twinkled as his hand ran down her arm. He grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze before readjusting his back pack.

  “High school, huh?”

  “Right from Mr. Thompson’s Algebra class.” He laughed. “You sat in front of me, always looking so cute. I blame you for getting such low grades that year.”

  “Whatever!” Elise rolled her eyes and pulled out a water bottle. She took a long drink.

  “Still another thousand feet to the top. You ready?” he said. She offered him the bottle and he took a swig too before passing it back.

  She nodded and returned the bottle, then pulled out two cherry suckers. He looked at it with an eyebrow raised as she handed one over. “Try it,” she smiled. “They’re organic and a little pick-me-up. I need a little bit of sugar halfway through a hike.”

  “I just gave you a little sugar,” he joked and stuck the sucker in his mouth. Winking at her, he started up the trail.

  She snorted and followed after him.

  The climb was steep and finally dwindled into steps carved into the path. Every step was an exclamation point of pain in her back, shoulders, and legs.

  “Almost there,” Brad encouraged. At this point, Elise was too tired to even look around, instead stared at the back of Brad’s legs and sneakers. One more step. I can do this. Just one more step. I lied. One more step.

  Finally, they made it, both of them grinning as the whole valley opened up below them.

  “Can you see that o
ver there? That’s the Penny Wiggle grocery store.” Brad pointed. “Look, that’s the police department.”

  “There’s my neighborhood,” Elise added, dropping her pack.

  “Yep. And over there is Montgomery Manor.”

  Elise studied it, seeing the neighboring house. She never realized how close Uncle Shorty lived to the mansion. “What’s that behind it? The golf course?”

  Brad snorted. “Well, people are dying to get in there. That’s the back of the cemetery.”

  She looked at it and shivered, despite the sun beating on her sweaty skin and Brad's corny joke.

  “You nervous or something?” Brad asked. “You can’t be cold.”

  “No. It’s just that house is a little creepy. I mean, hello? First a dead body and now there’s a cemetery right behind it.”

  “Yeah, well that brings up something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about.”

  “What?”

  “You ever think about taking a self-defense class? There’s one called Safety First starting next week at the Gilmore Village. I was thinking….” he trailed off, looking questioningly at her.

  Elise shook her head. “Nah, it’s not something I’m interested in. At. All,” she punctuated vehemently.

  Brad gave her a raised eyebrow look. “Why on earth not? I think everyone should know some basic self-defense. It would be great for you. Actually, it’d make me feel better too.”

  “I don’t know, really. It makes me feel silly somehow.”

  “Why?” He sat on a boulder and pulled out his cell to snap some photos of the valley.

  “Well,” Elise wrinkled her nose. “It’s just the way I imagine it. The yelling. The getting aggressive with someone.”

  “Sometimes you need to. You have a voice. You don’t have to be afraid to use it.”

  “I know, I know.”

  “Just tell me that you’ll think about it.” He aimed the phone at her and snapped a shot with a smile. “Man, I’m going to miss you.”

  “I know, me too. When do you leave?”

  “Monday. Two more days.”

  “You’re only going to be gone for one more week, right? And then you’re done with training for good?” Her voice ended wistfully.

  “Just one week. How much trouble can you get into?” He glared at her and held up a finger. “Don’t answer that.”

  11

  Elise drove to the manor after the hike, still filled with that butterfly-giddy feeling. For crying out loud, I’m like a teenager getting her first kiss. She smiled. In a way, that’s exactly how it felt. Indescribably wonderful.

  Tree branches bounced with the wind. Rain started, landing in fat splats on the windshield. She flipped the wipers on. Oh, boy. Time for some new ones. The old wipers left streaky arcs across the glass.

  Should she take Brad up on the self-defense class? It bothered her that her first reaction was to be repelled at the idea. But, at the same time, thinking about yelling and hitting anyone, even a trained teacher, intimidated her.

  She pulled down the driveway to the manor. Most of the lights on the upper floors were off, despite it only being nine. Everyone, including the staff, seemed to go to bed early here. They’d probably been doing it since before Aunt Myrtle was born. A structure the whole family never thought to vary.

  Elise shifted the car into park and studied the mansion through the windshield. Such a strange place. Both lonely and majestic at the same time. So full of history. What would happen to the Manor when Aunt Myrtle died? Would her kids keep it? They didn’t appear that interested, considering how little they visited.

  Those kids seemed like a whole other story. Why would children abandon their aging mother? Was it just the selfishness of young adulthood, trying to find their way in the world? That stage in life where they thought they knew it all?

  Or was there something else?

  Shaking her head, Elise climbed out of the car. Rain hit her hard, and she ran up to the front steps with her hands covering her hair. Her clothing was quite wet by the time she got to the door.

  She tried the key in the lock and let herself inside. The hall was quiet and dark, dimly illuminated by several wall sconces.

  Quickly, she hurried up the stairs, her wet clothing feeling like it was shrinking against her skin. As she rounded the landing, her hand unconsciously dropped to touch the blue globe on the statue. She stopped as if struck.

  It was gone.

  What in the world? She looked again. The globe was nowhere in sight. Squatting down, she grabbed out her cell phone and used the flashlight to look behind the statue. Nothing. She ran the light along the wall in both directions to see if it had somehow fallen and rolled.

  What the heck could have happened to it? Had somebody knocked it off and was just waiting to replace it later? Or was this what Charlotte was referring to when she said things disappeared?

  Feeling slightly discombobulated, she continued on up the rest of the stairs. The blank spot in the middle of the portraits on the hallway wall seemed to yell at her as she passed. She shook her head and entered her bedroom, locking the door behind her.

  Once in the bathroom, she peeled off the wet jeans and hung them over the shower curtain rod. After pulling her shirt over her head, she caught a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror and laughed. Her hair looked like it had been licked by a cow with the way it stuck straight up in the back. She grabbed a hair brush off the counter and smoothed it down.

  A clunk stopped her actions. Elise froze, listening. Was that back out in the hall? She walked into her bedroom and listened again. Nothing. Maybe my running to my room sent a picture off the wall? She reached for her bathrobe and slipped it on, then opened her door and shone the cell’s flashlight at the portraits. Nope. With the exception of the missing one, all of them were in place.

  She flashed the light in the other direction. What was that? For a second it looked like a light flickered from under the bedroom door that had once belonged to Anna. Her muscles tensed with nerves before she shook them off and marched over to the room. I’m going to figure out what’s going on here once and for all. She grabbed the doorknob and twisted.

  It was locked.

  Elise shook the knob to see if it was jammed, then shook it again in indignation that someone would lock it. There was no response. She knocked on the door and held her ear against it to listen. Nothing. Scratching the back of her neck, she backed away, staring at the offending handle. Had she accidentally locked it on her way out that last time? No, she was certain she’d just closed the door behind her.

  She knocked again, harder this time. “Is anyone in there?”

  The butler came around the corner. “Ma'am?” he asked, his voice tinged with sleepiness.

  “I think someone might be in there,” Elise explained, pointing to the room.

  “Who’d be in there at this time of night?” Hamilton’s face went stiff as he fought off a yawn.

  “I’m not sure who, but I saw a light under the door. And look, now it’s locked.” To demonstrate, she twisted the handle.

  It fell away from under her hand as the door swung open. Her mouth dropped as the Butler looked at her with one eyebrow raised. Shaking her head in confusion, Elise ignored him and entered the room.

  Crossing over the floor, she turned on the lamp. She glanced around and tried the windows. Everything appeared the same.

  “If there’s nothing else, ma'am?” The butler asked as he peered throughout the room inside, seeming to assure himself that Elise was just a crazy person and that there was obviously no one was in the room.

  “No,” Elise hesitated before sending him a big smile. “I’m so sorry that I woke you. My eyes must have been playing tricks on me.”

  Hamilton nodded. “It is late, ma'am. Perhaps it was a nightmare?” She raised her eyebrows at his ridiculous statement. “If there’s nothing else?”

  Elise shook her head in the negative.

  With a brief tip his head in acknowledgment, Ham
ilton turned down the hall.

  Elise raked her fingers through her hair and held it as a feeling of frustration bubbled through her. Despite what she’d just said, she’d never had her eyes play tricks on her like that. She could have sworn she saw flickering light, like a candle, tickling the bottom edge of the bedroom door. She stared at her cell phone. Did you somehow reflect on something down there?

  She glanced at the time. Well, it wasn’t that late, but it was late enough that she should probably take her shower and get into bed.

  The dollhouse stood just as majestic as ever framed by the light of the lamp. She considered it for a moment, thinking of the picture on the wall. Just for the sake of curiosity, she walked over. Leaning down, she searched for the statue on the stairwell and smiled when she found it. She still couldn’t believe the perfect detail that was captured here in miniature. Yep, there it was on the stair’s landing.

  A chill ran down her back.

  The fairy stared blankly, its hand empty of the blue sphere.

  12

  Elise hurried from the room texting Brad, her skin crawling with the heebie-jeebies. With a few short sentences, she quickly filled him in. His response was just as fast, insisting that he come over right then and check things out. Through massive persuasion, she managed to push his visit off to the next day. She already knew how Aunt Myrtle felt about the police. Surely the old woman wouldn’t be pleased to have one in her house at this time of night, even if it was Elise and Lavina’s friend.

  Needing some time to settle down, she took a shower, letting the warm water push away the chills and confusion. Afterward, she brushed her hair and braided it, hoping against hope to avoid another restless night of sleep.

  Just after lunchtime the next day, Brad pulled up the long drive in his official police car. Elise cringed, hoping Aunt Myrtle wouldn’t be embarrassed. As Elise hurried down the stairs, she could already hear the buzz his appearance created. The butler let Brad in, cutting off the whispers from the two maids watching from the foyer.

  Brad gave Hamilton a quick nod as he came in, and his eyes caught Elise’s.