by Lesley Crewe
Officer Fish started off. “So. You had a robbery here yesterday.”
Everyone spoke at once.
“Hold it,” Officer Fish said. “Perhaps you could fill me in Mr. Brooks, since you’re the one who called us.”
So Graham told them what had transpired. Elsie could tell he was on edge. He made a point of ignoring Harry. Fish asked Graham to show him around and told Harry to go upstairs and dust for fingerprints on the wardrobe in the sewing room.
“I’ll show you where it is,” Elsie said quickly. Graham gave her a look as he left with Fish.
Elsie went up the stairs ahead of Harry. When they were out of view, he pinched her bottom.
“Don’t,” she squealed. “Are you crazy?”
Harry followed her into the sewing room. “I sure am. Crazy about you.” He grabbed her and whispered, “Just a kiss.”
“No. Stop it.” She tried to get out of his grasp.
“I won’t leave until I get one,” Harry smirked. “You were happy enough to give me plenty the other night.”
“One. I’ll give you one.” She let him kiss her longer than she should have. She was trying to push herself away when in walked Graham and Officer Fish. Fish gave Harry a horrified look. “We’re old friends,” was all Elsie could muster.
Graham’s expression was stony. Harry glared. Elsie was getting tired of the male sex. They were too much work.
That evening, as Mrs. Minelli made ravioli, a fight broke out between the two families as to whom she would cook for. Technically she lived with Eli, but he didn’t have any furniture and Mrs. Minelli’s belongings were still in her apartment. Eli and a buddy with a truck were going to bring it over one trip at a time. Why waste his investment dollars on a moving company? It made sense for Mrs. Minelli to stay at Elsie’s with a fully functioning kitchen, but Juliet quickly pooh-poohed that idea, saying she had a perfectly good kitchen too and why did the Brooks family get to decide everything? The lady in question was oblivious to the tug of war that went on. She stayed by the stove, stirring and humming to her heart’s content.
Since the warring factions could not come to an agreement, Graham went downstairs and stormed back up with a big pair of wire cutters. He marched outside, muttering about morons and boneheads. Everyone followed in his wake and wondered what he’d do. He soon set to work and cut a ragged doorway into the cedar bushes and the chain link fence that separated the property from Robert’s.
“There.” He pointed to his handiwork. “Mrs. Minelli can run back and forth between us. We’ll have her Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and you get her Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.”
Faith blew smoke above her head. “And what do we do on Sundays? Chop and sauté her in half?”
“This is cool,” Lily cried. “The yard looks so much bigger.” She ran towards the fence and slipped through to the other side. Dahlia and the boys followed her.
“That looks like fun,” cried Mrs. Noseworthy. She ran from her porch to join them.
Elsie came home a little early with some paperwork to finish and did a double take when she noticed her family chasing each other back and forth between a jagged hole in the fence, with Mrs. Noseworthy galloping behind them.
She flew into the yard. “Will you numbskulls get in the house and stop this? Look at poor Mrs. Noseworthy.”
The dear soul ran in circles around the yard whooping, “We’re playing musical chairs, Elsie. Go get us some chairs and some music.”
“We’re just trying to make it easier for Mrs. Minelli to get back and forth between us,” Dahlia explained.
“She’s not!” Elsie barked. “Eli, you’re the one who wanted Mrs. Minelli to come and live with you, so take one of your parental guilt cheques, and get your apartment outfitted properly. Mrs. Minelli is not our servant. She needs a home. Have you got that?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Mrs. Noseworthy looked unhappy. “Don’t ruin the game.”
Elsie stomped into the house, said a quick hello to Mrs. Minelli and ran up to her bedroom. She’d just thrown her briefcase on the bed when the phone rang. She picked it up.
“Hello?”
Someone was breathing.
She was in no mood for a crank call. “Hello? Who is this?”
Still only breathing.
She hung up and started to take off her jacket. It rang again. “Hello?”
Nothing.
She hung up. Why didn’t she have call display? It rang again and she let the machine get it. There was breathing but nothing else. Elsie unplugged the phone. She didn’t need this crap today or to have Graham scowl at her when she went back downstairs.
“What’s your problem?”
“I’d like to thank you for making me look like an idiot this morning. I’m sure you found it amusing to kiss Harry in front of me, in my own house, no less.”
“Don’t judge me, Graham. As you once told me, it’s not all about you.”
She turned around and went back upstairs, grabbed her purse and left the house, not bothering to tell anyone where she was going. She went straight to Harry’s. She needed to prove she was an independent woman who could handle her own romances—and anything else life had to offer. It was no one’s business but her own. Certainly not Graham’s. That phrase was becoming her mantra.
Later that night, as she pulled into the driveway, she didn’t see the car that followed behind and didn’t know who it was that knew exactly where she’d been, who she’d been with, and what they’d been doing all evening.
Chapter Fourteen
For Faith, Aunt Hildy’s journals were the portal into another world. Ever since she received them, she read and read and read. She’d stay up until all hours, carefully turning the fragile, worn pages. Her aunt wrote with a bold, sweeping hand, always in ink pen, the margins filled with little pictures or doodles. She jotted funny comments or observations about shipmates, co-workers and friends, but most were devoted to her lovers.
For a woman who never had a man of her own, Faith found Aunt Hildy’s adventures a revelation. At first she was titillated, and then, of course, envious. But very gradually, Faith became disturbed and anxious about these recollections. More than once, Aunt Hildy’s anguish leapt forth and grabbed her by the throat, to the point where she couldn’t bear to read anymore.
Aunt Hildy had a dreadful secret and as Faith dug deeper and deeper into the journals, fragments of the mystery about the treasure and why it was in this house began to unfold. But the complete picture still eluded her. She kept the story to herself, not wanting to share it with the others until all the pieces fit together. It seemed that’s what Aunt Hildy intended when she entrusted her with the diaries. Faith felt a great responsibility to get it right before she let the family in on what actually happened in this house so long ago.
She’d had another long day of helping Juliet and Robert organize their new apartment and was rather weary when she climbed the stairs after supper. All she wanted to do was sit on the window seat and watch the street lights come on, one after another. Gazing out the window through a veil of tobacco smoke, she tuned out the ruckus downstairs. How did Elsie manage with people trampling underfoot night after night? Did mothers just have a coping mechanism that switched on the minute the umbilical cord was cut? She’d never know.
Faith sat motionless for a long time, staring at the bedroom lights that turned on one by one in the surrounding houses. What did other people do with their time on this earth? Did they have heartache and pain, or was life happy and content? Who decides these things?
She must have dozed off because when she opened her eyes, all the bedroom lights were off, and stars twinkled in the sky above. The air in the room was stale, so she opened the window and let the cold night air creep in. There was something so soothing about night sounds, the far off whish of a car’s tires on wet pavement, a dog barking and the rustle of leaves.
That’s when it occurred to her. Aunt Hildy lived on in spite of her heartbreak. She
decided to make her life meaningful anyway. She was a courageous woman, albeit a damaged one. Faith had scars too, but maybe it could be the same for her. Maybe Aunt Hildy would help her do it. She got off the window seat and went over to her computer, gathered up the journals and placed them near her. She opened a new document and titled it, “Aunt Hildy’s Treasure, by Faith Spencer.”
She started to type.
A day later, Eli, with the help of a friend and his truck, moved all of Mrs. Minelli’s furniture into their new place. Lily helped and, amazingly, so did Juliet and Robert. They worked all afternoon and wouldn’t let Mrs. Minelli lift a finger. She’d wave out the window at them from Elsie’s kitchen from time to time and they’d wave back.
Saying they deserved a well-earned drink, Robert went into the kitchen and poured ice water into four glasses.
Eli couldn’t believe the change in the Worthingtons. It was as if the piss and vinegar had gone out of the two of them. The lost treasure had been a hard blow for them both.
“Why don’t you sit down?” Robert said. “We’d like to talk to you.”
Eli thought he was hearing things. He and Lily exchanged looks as they sat at the kitchen table. Juliet gave Robert a quick glance and folded her hands together in front of her.
“We talked last night…”
“Hollered is more like it.”
She sighed. “Will you pipe down and let me finish this?” She looked back at Eli. “You said you’d be interested in having us come in as investors for your Mrs. Minelli’s restaurant and we’d like to do that.”
Eli hoped Lily wouldn’t make a face and ruin everything. “Well, that’s great. Because it takes a lot of capital to start a business and I’m not sure even my bribery cheques will cover what we need to start up.”
“Exactly,” she nodded. “And that’s why I’m about to make the supreme sacrifice and sell my diamond tiara to give you the money.”
Eli looked at Lily, unable to believe his ears. “You. Juliet. Sell your tiara?”
“Will wonders never cease?” Lily cracked.
Eli gave her a stern look. She shut up.
“We think it would be wise to try and change careers,” Robert said.
Lily interrupted him. “Juliet’s never had a career.”
“May I point out, young lady, neither have you?” her aunt said.
Lily shut up again.
Robert continued. “I’m interested in new business opportunities and I think that between rent from the two apartments and being part owner in a restaurant, our future looks good.”
Juliet chimed in. “Robert has real estate experience and I’m sure he can find you a perfect location and, in case you didn’t know, I’m a whiz at math and can do the books. Be your accountant as it were.”
“Do you think we’d trust you after the chandelier fiasco? Maybe you’d cook the books.” Lily suggested.
Juliet gave another great sigh. “Don’t be an idiot. I want this to work as much as you do. Most of our capital will have to be poured back into the business, so why would I jeopardize that?”
Lily shut her mouth once more. Eli tried not to smile. He knew she had no idea what capital was or what could be done with it.
He sat back in his chair. “This actually sounds like a plan. I think it’s a great idea. You and I, Robert, should scout out locations so we can get this show on the road. Why wait? We’re losing money as we speak.”
And so the four unlikely business partners stood and shook hands. Across the yard, their human treasure was waving yet again from Elsie’s kitchen window.
While Eli and Lily cemented their business deal, Dahlia and Slater were in the library enjoying their day off. She flipped through another bridal magazine. He sat beside her and ran his fingers through her hair.
“It says here your parents are in charge of the rehearsal dinner.”
Slater’s heart skipped a beat. He’d been keeping a secret from Dahlia, and only he and Dahlia’s mother knew about it.
It started the day Mrs. B. found him sitting forlorn on the back step. She came over and sat beside him. “You look down in the mouth. Anything I can do to help? I’m a good listener.”
He didn’t mean to tell her. He didn’t want to worry anyone, but tears welled up and he couldn’t help it. “When I went home today, there was a For Sale sign on my house.”
“You’re moving? Does Dee know about this?”
“I’m not moving,” he said. “My parents didn’t tell me.”
The look on her face said everything. “What do you mean?”
“That’s just it. They never said a word. When I asked my dad about it, he told me to grow up and get the hell out. I don’t want Dee to know yet, because she expects them to help with the wedding, but I don’t think they’ll come now. I don’t even know where they’re going.”
Mrs. B. looked away for a few moments, then sat up straight. “Slater, this is what we’ll do. You go home and collect the rest of your stuff.You’re a member of my family now. I want you here. This is your home until you two find a little nest of your own. No one has to know about it. Not even Dee. We’ll worry about the wedding later. But I promise you, things will work out.”
He hung his head then. “I love you, Mrs. B.”
She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. “I hope you remember that when I become your cranky old mother-in-law.” She got up and gave his shoulder a pat. “Now go get your duds. Supper’s in an hour.”
So far, no one was the wiser, but now this.
Dahlia poked him with her elbow. “Did you hear me?”
“Yeah, I can ask them, but you know what they’re like.”
His fiancée made a face that said, “They’re probably going to expect my parents to do everything.”
Slater got up suddenly, went over to the window and looked outside. He stood there for awhile before he finally said, “You know what, Dee?”
“What?”
“I don’t think I want a big wedding…so many people. They’ll look at me and expect me to give speeches in front of a microphone and stuff. I don’t want to mess things up for you.”
She ran over and hugged him. “You could never mess things up.”
He swayed while she held him. “I’m afraid my parents might. They’ll get drunk or something and ruin it for you. I don’t want to see anyone that day but you. And this family. My family.”
She listened to his heart beat as she snuggled into him.
Nothing else mattered but this boy and his heart full of love for her.
She looked up at him. “Ya know what?”
“No. What?”
She pushed out of his arms, picked up the magazine and threw it in the fireplace.
“I have you. I have Aunt Hildy’s dress and we have this house. We’ll get married in the back garden and Mrs. Minelli will cook up a feast.”
Slater smiled. “Sweet.”
Elsie drove to work that morning down Oxford Street and turned left onto South. As she passed Sherriff Hall, she watched the skies. There was a weather system brewing. The wind howled as large rain clouds formed off shore. They rolled and rumbled over the city. She assumed that was the cause of her uneasiness, but as she sat in traffic with her windshield wipers swishing rhythmically, her mind returned to the liaison with Harry two nights before.
She looked at herself in the rear view mirror. “I enjoyed it,” she said firmly. So why did she constantly feel the need to peek in the mirror to look at her own eyes?
She got drenched as she ran from the parking lot into the hospital. She had five umbrellas at home. She’d pick up her sixth at Lawton’s during lunch hour.
Crystal grinned at her as she walked past into her office. “You look like a wet dog.”
“Careful. I bite.”
Elsie shrugged out of her trench coat and gave her hair a quick brush in the small mirror she took out of her drawer. Crystal stood in the doorway.
“See Harry lately?”
“Yeah,
actually.” She continued to fuss with her damp hair.
“Sooo…”
“It was good.”
Crystal grunted. “That sounds enthusiastic.”
She shoved the mirror and comb back in the drawer and closed it, then sat in her office chair and swivelled back and forth for a few seconds. “I have a sneaking suspicion sex isn’t the key to my new independence. I mean it’s fun, but something’s missing.”
“Yeah,” Crystal pouted. “I told you. I’m not getting any. Well, when you tire of Harry, do me a favour and send him my way.”
“Okay.” She grabbed the end of her desk and pulled herself in. “I better get to work.”
“Righto.” Crystal disappeared.
Elsie checked her messages.
“I know what you did,” was the first one. She couldn’t tell if it was a male or female voice. It wasn’t very clear. She checked the next one.
“You won’t get away with it.”
And the next.
“Where’s the treasure?”
And the next.
“Watch your back or you’ll join Aunt Hildy.”
Elsie dropped the receiver in horror. Then picked it up again and called Harry.
Elsie and Crystal played the messages over and over as they waited for him. Crystal agreed with her—it was hard to tell anything about the caller.
Harry finally arrived.
“Thanks for coming,” she said. “Listen to this.” She played the messages for him. When it was over, he said, “It could be a crank, but to mention your Aunt Hildy makes it more serious. I can take this to the sound lab and see if they can pick out some background noise, something that may help figure out who did this.”
“Do you mind if I speak to Harry alone, Crys?”
“Of course.” She closed the door behind her.
“Hold me.”
He reached out and took her in his arms. It made her feel a little better.
Elsie whispered into his shirt. “Why would someone do this to me?”
“There are a lot of weirdos out there. The murder was in the paper.”