The Sour Taste of Suspicion

by CeeCee James

  She studied the knife sticking out of the doll’s chest and shivered. The force it must have taken to go through the doll and into the metal. Unconsciously, she rubbed her own breast bone as she studied the knife. It looked like the same one they’d used with the turkey at lunch today. Deep in thought, her tongue darted across her bottom lip. Did it look like it had been twisted to the left? Nodding, she sprung into action, opening the car door and yanking open the glove box for a napkin. Using the napkin, she carefully pried the knife free, wincing at the noise it made as she worked it back and forth. When it was finally free in her hand, she locked both it and the doll in her trunk. She slammed the lid shut and stared at the house.

  Now, she knew who had killed the gardener.

  22

  Elise reached into her pocket to call the police. Crap! In her jitteriness earlier, she’d left without her phone. She didn’t want to run all the way back upstairs. Instead, she needed to check out her theory before someone came along and destroyed the evidence. Even though it was only three-thirty, it was already getting dark. Elise hurried around the side of the house and came out into the back yard. She skirted the outside of the maze hedge and headed for the woods behind the property.

  The same woods that lay between Uncle Shorty’s estate and Montgomery Manor.

  Her hope that there might be a clear cut path quickly withered at the sight of the underbrush and fallen leaves. Still, there were only a few acres between the two properties. She was confident that she’d find what she was looking for.

  Boulders covered in moss lay all around her. Where did they come from? Was this an old river bed? She skirted an old stump—four feet tall by nearly as wide, but obviously crumbled with age—and wondered if the Manor’s kids had come out here to play. Perhaps played king of the hill on this very spot?

  The trees around her thinned, revealing a bank running along the opposite side. She looked up at a tree, one of the largest around and covered in hanging moss. Near the top, it had split into three thick boughs like ogre fingers. This has to be it.

  She spun backward and searched for the cave in the embankment. Yes! There it is. One of the tree’s boughs butted up nearly against it. The tree must have grown quite a bit because there was no need for a rope bridge now.

  It still doesn’t change the fact that the branch is thirty feet off the ground.

  Or that someone died falling from there.

  Am I going to do it? She shook out her hands and started to jump up and down to warm up her arms and legs.

  Yep. I guess I’m crazy like that.

  She took a running leap and caught hold of the lowest branch. Her feet pedaled, like she was on a bicycle, until she scrambled up. She pulled closer to the trunk, a trunk so wide she couldn’t dream of reaching around it even if Lavina had been on the other side reaching back towards her. The tree was a behemoth, and its bark was riddled with woodpecker holes, various insects, and an ant trail marching around the jags in its surface. She looked up and swallowed. Get moving, missy. That branch just isn’t going to reach down and pluck you up.

  Clinging to the trunk, Elise got to her feet. She reached for the next branch, this one closer and just a step away. She grabbed hold of it and grimaced at the wad of sap she’d somehow found. With a lot of grunting and groaning, she pulled herself up.

  The next branch was easier, but as Elise stood on it she heard a crack. The limb trembled, and Elise along with it. Looking up, she quickly lunged for the next.

  Slowly, she made her way up the side of the tree. Her breathing sounded like a locomotive and her arms ached. How much farther? She balanced against the trunk and brushed the hair from her sweaty face, her nose wrinkling as the hair stuck to the sap. She glanced up, squinting as tiny things fell from above. Just a little bit more. I’m almost there.

  Finally, she was at the ogre fingers, two pointing to the sky and one pointing at the cave. She’d have to crawl along this one like a snake. She closed her eyes and prayed it would hold her weight and gradually crept out.

  The tip of the branch bobbled with a swish of leaves as she crawled. Her stomach was tight with knots. She slipped and grabbed the limb just as tightly. Her own adrenaline was making her shake so much it was hard to keep balance. Don’t look down. Whatever you do. Just look straight ahead. Almost there.

  Inch by inch, she crept along the branch. After what felt like an eternity, she was at the cave’s lip. Holding her breath, she slid her foot down onto it and climbed off as if she were dismounting a horse.

  This was it. This was what she’d been searching for the entire time.

  Anna’s lair.

  Elise reached for her cell phone from her back pocket, groaning slightly when she realized she’d left it behind. It is what it is. Fortunately, light from the afternoon sun splashed against the rock’s surface at the entrance and brightened the whole cave. The walls were covered in paintings of flowers. Little blobs of peeling yellow for dandelions. Red for roses. A rotting blanket lay folded on the floor, and next to that, a miniature table with a darkly smudged plate that must have held pretend food at one time.

  Elise felt a lump rise in her throat. It was a young girl’s fort. Anna was only fifteen when she died, caught between the whimsy of childhood and the threshold of adulthood.

  She picked away across the cave’s floor to the back, her eyes narrowing. One thing was missing. Where was the hiding place for the stuff that Anna liked to steal?

  Brushing the hair back from her face, she crouched and examined the back. As far as she could tell, it was a solid rock surface.

  Elise took a step back, and her eyebrows knotted together. The floor felt funny. She bounced up and down before kneeling to sweep at the dirt. After a few minutes, she’d uncovered a wooden board. Excitement danced in her heart as she pried it up.

  Underneath was a hollow filled with cigar boxes. Rows and rows of them. She reached in and pulled out the first box. As she opened it, sadness filled her when the lid tore away at its paper hinges. Inside was a paint set. The bristles had long ago disappeared off the wooden paint brushes. She set the box to one side and opened the next.

  A gasp ripped from her throat. It was filled to the brim with silver coins. She opened the next and the next, twelve boxes in all, and they were all the same.

  Her brain couldn’t do the math quickly enough. But, at ten thousand dollars a coin, she was looking at over several million dollars, she was sure. The shock of it hit her like a punch and she staggered back a few steps. All this time…just sitting here.

  Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the coin she found earlier and flipped it into the pile. It tinked before sliding to a stop. I’ve got to tell somebody, like right now. Her face flushed with excitement, she turned back to the entrance.

  Okay hurry, but don’t hurry. I don’t want to die out here.

  A rope fell from up high and pooled on the cave floor. She looked up, stunned. Dirt sifted down along with a few rocks.

  With a thump, a man in a black mask slid down and landed in front of her.

  23

  “Well, now. If it isn’t little Miss Snoopy. Put your hands up.”

  The voice was oddly familiar. The voice from the phone. And the same voice she knew somewhere else.

  Elise looked at him with her hands in the air. “Hello, Dave,” she said.

  She’d faced him before, but that was different. That was with the whole class chanting encouragement on her behalf, and Dave looking slightly bemused.

  He pulled off the mask, no longer looking bemused. In fact, deadly would be a better term, with the hard lines creasing around his mouth. She clenched her fists and brought them to her side, trying to remember what, oddly enough, he had taught her. Aim for the nose, the throat, the eyes, the groin. Scrape down the shin.

  His lip twisted into a wry grin and his fingers flicked at her, beckoning her to move closer. “Sure, come on at me. You forget that I’m the one who showed you all those moves. I know how to defend agai
nst them, too.”

  She kept her arms loose and relaxed. “Does your grandfather know who you really are?”

  “Oh, you’ve come late to the party. You think it’s just me? We’re all working together over there.” Horror filled her at his words. “There’s no one who’s coming to your aid, Missy. Not a single soul.”

  “Wha—What do you mean?”

  He pulled a pair of gloves from his pocket and casually put them on. “Who do you think told me to follow you today? A little bird?” He smirked. “A bird sure did. My girlfriend, Charlotte.”

  A whimper escaped Elise.

  “And, who do you think let me in on this little treasure hunt to begin with?”

  “Her son?” The words fell out numbly out of her mouth.

  “Stephen? No, he’s being fleeced the same as the old lady. It was dear old Mr. Hamilton. He hired me to intimidate the gardener, and in return, he was going to let me in on some of the silver booty.” Dave arched an eyebrow at the cigar boxes behind her. “Of course, we had no idea where it was, so thank you for finding it for us.”

  Elise took a small step to the left. His words were like punches, each one knocking her off guard. “What do you mean, intimidate? Seems like he’s dead.”

  Dave laughed and glanced to the left. Just one big push and I could…. Oh my gosh, could I kill him? Could I do it? He clenched his hands and the rubber gloves squeaked. I have to, or he’ll kill me first.

  “I may have gone a tad too far in my intimidation. But Hamilton already owed me money at that point. And I wanted to make sure I got paid.”

  “Why would Hamilton do that?” She took another small step to the left, trying to look like she was just shifting in place.

  “You don’t know? You, the greatest snoop of all couldn’t figure it out?” He pulled on the tips of his glove and then intersected his fingers to tighten them. “Why, he’s Anna’s old beau, the most revengeful man I know. He’s just been biding his time, using his job to torture poor Myrtle into thinking her sister’s been haunting her all these years. I think it was almost a side note for him to search for the silver.”

  “What did the gardener have to do with it?”

  “Wow, you find the money and don’t know a thing about anything else. And here, we know everything and we’ve just been spinning our tires in search for the coins all these years.” He shook his head. “The gardener was Hamilton’s cousin. They’ve been in on it all these years, ever since they saw Mr. Montgomery bring home the coins. He’d given the two of them one as a celebration for the war’s end. Recently, Hamilton got bitten by the dragon spell and was convinced his cousin had already found the coins and was holding out on him. Hamilton wanted me to shake him up a bit.” Dave raised his eyebrows. “I guess I sure did.”

  With no warning, Dave rushed at her and grabbed her around her neck. She turned her chin towards his elbow to keep him from crushing her throat. She jerked her arm down and he blocked it, expecting a groin punch.

  He wasn’t paying attention to her other hand. She reached back with her fingers stiff and straight and jabbed him as hard as she could in his eye. Immediately, he released her with a scream. He clawed at his face, for a moment, as blood poured from his eye socket.

  Without looking to see what he would do next, she darted past him and dove for the branch.

  It bounced under her weight. Quickly, she wiggled across. Her horror doubled as the branch shuddered mightily again. He had jumped too and was crawling after her. She crept as fast as she could, the forest floor spinning dizzily under her. A hand grabbed her foot but she was able to kick free. Once at the trunk, she stood, and jumped down to the next branch, nearly missing it. She caught it across her stomach and the bark scraped against her bare skin from where her shirt ripped up.

  Cracking overhead told her he wasn’t far behind. She swung her feet and made it to the next branch, and before she was completely balanced, she dropped to the next.

  The last branch was six feet off the ground. Steeling herself for the impact, she dropped to the dirt.

  Elise stumbled forward a few steps before getting her footing. She raced ahead as sounds of him landing came right behind her. Her heart was in her throat, she couldn’t breathe, her legs felt like rubber but she didn’t care. Run! Run! Run!

  It didn’t take her long before she could hear he was gaining on her. She started to search for a weapon even as her feet flew across the ground. She dodged the boulders. I’m almost there! Almost out!

  Almost? There was no one safe to help her at the house. No one.

  She was going to have to face this alone.

  He was getting closer. She could hear his feet scraping against the leaves and cracking the branches. But she could hear him panting, too. He was getting gassed out.

  I can do this. I can get away.

  Her foot rolled across a rock and she nearly fell, but caught herself against a tree. He was right behind her. She felt the sweep of his fingertips on her arm as he lunged for her.

  Then, she saw it in front of her. A perfectly shaped branch, maybe an old walking stick, that looked like it had been placed right there just for her. Without missing a beat, she picked it up and swung it around like a bat.

  CRACK! It connected with his jaw. His eyes rolled back into his head and he fell bonelessly to the ground. Shaking, she walked over to him, ready to hit him again. When she was sure he was unconscious, she reached for her phone to dial 911.

  A weight like a thousand bricks hit her as she realized she’d left it behind. There’s nothing for it. I’ll have to go back. Let’s just take care of this. She ripped the laces out of her shoe and, grunting, rolled him onto his face. With her muscles on fire from the effort, she pulled his heavy arms behind his back and tied them. She started to unlace her other shoe but, suddenly, she felt so tired. Completely drained. She just wanted to sit and to not move again for a year. Oh, man. If my bed was here I’d crawl in right now and not give a crap about any ghosts ever again.

  Finally, she unlaced it and tied his feet together.

  Stumbling, she made for the Manor. Her body felt like it had been beaten by 2x4’s. She slipped through the French doors of the living room and headed for the kitchen. Cookie looked at her questionably as she entered, but Elise didn’t offer an explanation. Instead, she grabbed the ancient phone off the receiver and dialed 911.

  After the call, Elise gave a threatening glare to Cookie. “Sit,” she told the cook, stabbing her finger towards the chair.

  Cookie waddled over, brushing down her apron nervously. Elise collapsed in the chair across from her, wanting to rest her head on the table. She didn’t dare, not without knowing who was friend or foe in the house.

  It wasn’t long before Elise heard the sirens. Another few minutes and five or six of them filed in through the kitchen, all of them with their guns drawn. Hamilton trailed behind them, calling out impotently, “Hey now. What’s this about?”

  “You guys are a sight for sore eyes,” Elise said weakly, having made her way to the front door. She led them out the French doors and pointed to where Dave still lay unconscious. Cautiously, they made their way over to him, only holstering their guns when they saw he wasn’t going anywhere.

  “Anyone else around that you know of?” One officer asked Elise, who’d followed them up the hill. He pulled out his handcuffs and secured Dave.

  “He mentioned there were others at the house that were working with him. Hamilton, the butler, Charlotte, the house keeper. I’m not sure if there are more.”

  The officers had her stay outside while they returned to the house to take those two into custody. Seeing Elise shivering, one officer brought her a blanket.

  Lavina arrived as the excitement wound down, stalking across the lawn in a panic in high heeled shoes.

  “Elise!” she yelled. “Elise, are you okay?”

  Elise smiled at her as Lavina approached. “Never better.”

  “Oh, my heavens! You’re bleeding!” Her best friend
grabbed her in a hug, and they both collapsed. And Elise couldn’t lie, she kind of collapsed emotionally too.

  24

  That night, Elise and Lavina crammed into the window seat of the library. Elise was still chilled to the bones and huddled under a quilt trying to get warm. Her face felt quilt-like too, with its crosshatch of band-aids from her trip down the tree. Aunt Myrtle sat across from them and quietly rocked in her chair.

  The fire crackled in the fireplace and made dancing shadows around the room.

  Elise sighed, as the heat finally started to soak in.

  “You okay, darlin’?” Lavina asked.

  “I’m fine. Tired.”

  “Well, you should be. You shook everything up around here,” declared Aunt Myrtle. She scowled at the flames. “And made me worried about you, too.”

  Elise knew what she meant. That was a fond compliment coming from Aunt Myrtle.

  “How is Stephen? Upset about his birthday dinner being ruined?”

  Aunt Myrtle took a sip of her tea and ignored her by saying, “Lavina Sue, I do declare tonight calls for a bit of brandy. Now, just hop up and get me a splash, will you?”

  Lavina laughed under her breath as she stood from the seat to do Aunt Myrtle’s bidding. She tipped some into Aunt Myrtle’s teacup, then poured two more swishes in a couple of glasses and carried them back to the window seat. “I should have thought of this earlier,” Lavina said, handing Elise her glass. “Sip it. You’ll be warm in no time.”

  Elise took a sip and coughed. She covered her mouth and looked up at her friend who was laughing at her. “Shut up.”

  “Watch your tongue!” Aunt Myrtle barked. “And, about Stephen, well he couldn’t have cared two hoots about dinner. That young man had a meeting with another bank. Apparently, the Manor hasn’t been doing as well as I thought, and he’s been worried these last few years, trying to think of how to make enough money to save the house.” Aunt Myrtle snorted. “He should have just come to me and not treated me as though I have duck fluff for brains.”