by Jennie Marts
She picked the note up with a pair of kitchen tongs and dropped it into the baggie, then looked from John to Zoey. “Looks like our peaceful morning is over. Zoey, you and I better go get dressed. I’ll call Mac and tell him we’re coming down to the station. He wanted to get a recording of those phone messages anyway.”
“I’ll stay here and clean up,” John offered.
Edna raised an eyebrow. “A man that cooks and cleans. I think I’m in love.” She laughed it off like she was joking, but she knew she truly was still in love with him. It didn’t matter how many years had passed or how gray their hair had gotten; her heart still recognized him as the boy she fell in love with.
##
Forty minutes later, Edna and Zoey walked into the Pleasant Valley Police Station.
Edna had the note in her purse next to her pocket Taser. Zoey was dressed in the same yoga pants and tennis shoes as the night before, but now she had her hair concealed in a ball cap and wore large, dark sunglasses. A baggy quilted jacket of Edna’s completed her disguise.
The heavy jacket seemed a little out of place for the summer weather, and the huge round frames of the sunglasses engulfed Zoey’s face. But she told Edna that she didn’t care. With the intended recipient of the note still unknown, she would rather look a little silly than be recognized.
Edna approached the counter. “We’re here to see Officer McCarthy. He’s a personal friend of mine. In fact, I usually just call him Mac.”
The desk clerk looked unimpressed. She barely glanced up from her paperwork. “Yeah, we all call him Mac. May I ask what this is in reference to?”
“No, you may not. We are here on official police business. So, if you don’t mind, could you get him, please? We’ve got a bit of an urgent matter.”
The clerk picked up the desk phone and punched a few keys. She looked Edna and Zoey up and down, as if appraising the urgency of their matter. “Hey, McCarthy, there’s a couple of ladies here to see you. They claim it’s urgent police business. One of them claims she’s a close, personal friend of yours, even gets to call you Mac.” She listened a moment then gave Edna another once-over before answering. “Yep, that’s her all right.”
She hung up the phone. “He says he’ll be right out.”
Edna tipped her nose into the air. “Told you so.”
Officer McCarthy stepped out of a back office. He spotted Edna and Zoey and made his way across the room to where they stood. “Good morning, Edna. It’s always a pleasure to see you.” He smiled down at Zoey. “Miss Allen, are you doing all right?”
Zoey smiled, and Edna noted the slight blush to her cheeks. “Yes, I’m good. Thanks.”
Edna shook her head in disgust. “You know, Mac, she’s usually more articulate than that. That girl’s smart as a whip. Graduated top of her class. She’s even good at math.”
Zoey rolled her eyes, and the slight pink of her cheeks deepened in embarrassment. “Oh, Grandma, stop it. He doesn’t care about my math skills. Let’s just get on with why we’re here.”
Mac winked at Zoey. “I don’t know about that. I’m usually impressed by a girl’s knowledge of algebraic equations.”
Zoey laughed. “Okay, I’ll quote you some tangents and cosines later.”
“I’ll look forward to it.” He looked down at Edna. “So, what can I do for you? I have a feeling this is about more than recording Zoey’s phone messages.”
Edna nodded, lowering her voice. “A threatening note was left on my doorstep this morning.”
He sighed and rubbed his hand across his shaved head. “Come on, then.”
Edna sashayed past the desk clerk, doing her best not to thumb her nose.
Mac led them through the noisy station and into an empty interrogation room. “All right. Let me see the note.”
Edna pulled the message from her purse and set it on the table.
Mac picked it up and examined it from all sides. “You did a good job putting it in a baggie. Who else touched it?”
“Just me,” Edna said. Thank goodness she had gotten the newspaper and not John. “And the person who wrote it, of course.”
“Of course. I’ll have somebody take a look at it, see if we can lift any prints from it.” He turned to Zoey. “This note could have been meant for either you or Mr. Collins. I’d still like to get a recording of that message you played me yesterday and see if we can’t get the other one you mentioned.”
Zoey pulled her phone from her bag. “Yeah, sure. This just seems crazy to me. I’ve never been threatened over anything in my life.”
“When it comes to money, people will go to extreme lengths. And it sounds like your testimony is going to cost some guys a lot of money. Have you noticed anything else suspicious? Anyone hanging around that you might not know?”
“How could I tell? There’s a huge group of reporters clustered in front of my apartment. I don’t know any of them.”
Edna gasped. “You think the guy who’s threatening her could be posing as a reporter? He could have been right outside your door, Zoey. You might have walked past him a dozen times.”
Mac held up his hand. “I’m not saying that. I just want you to be thinking about all the possibilities. Did you tell anyone that you were coming up here to see your grandma? Or have you mentioned that you have relatives in Pleasant Valley?”
Zoey shook her head. “No. Not that I can remember.”
Edna narrowed her eyes. “Why? What are you not telling us? You know something, don’t you, Mac?”
“I’m not sure if this is related to Zoey or Mr. Collins. Or it could be a random coincidence, but a guy stopped by the station yesterday and was asking a lot of questions.”
“I don’t believe in coincidences,” Edna said.
“Neither do I.”
“What kind of questions?”
“Well, they were mostly about you, Edna.”
“Me? What could someone want to know about me?”
“I’m not sure. I wasn’t here. He talked to Officer Royce. Royce said he was an older guy, claimed he’s a retired cop and up here to do a little fishing. He said he always likes to check in with the local station, say hello. All that seemed fine until he brought up your name. Said he had an old friend that lived in town and wondered if we knew where Frank and Edna Allen lived.”
“Who was he?” Edna asked. “I don’t know any retired cops. Or none that I can think of.”
“His name was Ward or Wayne-something. Royce told me about it last night after I got back from the call at your house. He’s off for the day, but I’ll call him and see if he wrote it down. I assumed it had something to do with John, but now that I think about it, maybe he was trying to ferret out information about Zoey.”
“Well, let me know if he comes by again,” Edna said. “I’d like to get a look at the guy.”
Zoey handed Mac her cell phone and a piece of paper. “Here’s my phone and the passcodes to listen to the messages. I really don’t need to hear them again.”
“I get that. Give me a few minutes. I’m gonna take this over to my tech guy and have him get a recording of these. I’ll be back in five.” He stared directly at Edna. “Do not leave this room. Understood?”
Edna shrugged and held her hands up in an “I surrender” gesture. “Understood. We’ll sit right here and be quiet as church mice.”
“I’ll believe that when I see it,” Mac muttered, then pulled the door shut behind him.
Edna turned to Zoey. “He’s a good man. And a good cop. He’ll do his best to help us figure this out.”
“Yeah, he seems nice.”
“And handsome too. So tall.”
“Grandma.”
“What? I’m just saying.”
True to his word, Mac was gone less than five minutes. He handed Zoey back her phone. “Let me know if you get any other calls or threats of any kind.”
A tinkling ringtone sounded, and Edna pulled her phone from her bag. “Hang on. It’s Sunny.” She held the phone up to her ea
r. “Hey Sunny. Listen, honey, we’re down at the police station.”
She paused, listening, then her face drained of color. “We’re with Mac now. We’ll be right there.”
She hung up the phone and grabbed her bag, herding Zoey and Mac out the door. “Sunny said someone blew up Zoey’s car. It was sitting in front of her house, and she heard the explosion. They’ve called 911 and the fire department is on the way.”
Mac quickened his pace, holding the door for the women as they raced outside. “Come on, we’ll take the squad car. I can get us there in five minutes.”
She was scared for Zoey, but Edna’s pulse picked up an extra beat at the thought of getting to ride in the police car. “Can I turn on the siren?”
Four and a half minutes later, the squad car pulled up in front of Edna’s house. The street ahead of them was blocked by emergency vehicles. They could see a plume of smoke rising into the air above a blackened shell of a car.
Edna had called shotgun and Zoey sat in the seat behind her. Edna craned her neck to see the car. “Oh my Lord, that could have been you in that car.”
Zoey stared at her car in shock. She patted her grandmother’s back. “I’m fine, Gram. But why is there an ambulance? Sunny didn’t say that anyone got hurt.”
Mac opened his door. “They always dispatch the ambulance with the fire engine, just in case. I’ll see if I can find out what’s going on.” He slammed the door and headed toward the fire truck.
“Surely he doesn’t think we’re just going to wait in the car,” Edna said, pushing open the car door. “I need to see if Sunny’s okay.”
The women hurried through the yard. They spotted Sunny and Jake and headed their way.
“Are you all right, honey?” Edna asked Sunny. “Did anybody get hurt?”
“I’m fine,” Sunny said. “No one was hurt except poor Zoey’s car.” She gave the younger woman a hug. “I was sitting in the living room reading a book when Beau stood up and growled at the front door. Then I heard a whoosh and a pop, and by the time I made it to the window, the car was in flames. I called 911 and saw Jake running for the car with the garden hose trying to put out the fire.”
“I wasn’t sure whose car it was at first,” Jake said. “I thought it was John’s, then Sunny told me that Zoey had the same model car. And that she’d parked it in front of her house last night.”
Mac strode toward them, a stern look on his face. “Zoey, you need to be inside. If this was aimed at you, the perpetrator could be watching for you to show up or for your reaction.”
Zoey scanned the neighborhood. “Little coward.”
“This could have been meant for John.” Edna slipped her arm through Mac’s as they walked across the grass to her house. “You know he drives the same model and color of car as Zoey?”
“Same car, both being threatened. Those two seem to have a lot in common,” Mac said, opening the front door of Edna’s house and stepping back for her to enter first.
“More than you know,” Edna muttered. She stepped into the house and called loudly for the dog. “Havoc, here, boy. We’re home. Zoey and I are here with our friend, Mac, the police officer.”
Mac looked down at her, the frustration obvious in his expression. “Really? Could you be any more obvious? You do know that I’m a detective, right?”
“I’m sure I have no idea what you mean. I was just saying hello to the dog.” She did her best to keep her eyes on Mac and not scan the house for signs of John.
Mac’s expression turned serious. “Listen, Edna, I know you think this guy is safe, but you haven’t seen him in a long time. He may have changed. He never said why he came to town. Maybe he’s in some kind of trouble.”
Edna looked at Zoey. “I know why he’s here, and it’s not to cause any trouble.”
“Listen, something happened last night. I was just talking to a buddy of mine, he drives the ambulance. He said they picked up Irma Jean Johnson last night and took her to the hospital. You know she works down at the courthouse. He said someone had broken into her house and beaten her up pretty bad.”
The color drained from Edna’s face. “Oh no. Of course I know Irma Jean. We play bridge together every month. Why would someone want to hurt her?”
“That’s a good question. They broke a couple of her fingers. You don’t have to be a detective to know that’s a common tactic used to get information.”
“What kind of information could Irma Jean possibly have?”
Mac shrugged. “I don’t know. She works at the courthouse so she has access to a lot of records. Do you think Mr. Collins could have been looking for information?”
“What do you mean? You think John could have done this?” Edna reached for the edge of the sofa to steady herself.
“Edna, you haven’t seen him in many years.”
“Mac, I don’t care if I haven’t seen Johnny in a hundred years, he would never purposely hurt anyone. He hates violence, of any kind. And he would never hurt a woman.”
“I’m sorry, Edna. I have to look at this objectively and with no emotion involved. A wanted fugitive arrives in town, and Irma Jean gets assaulted. It’s my job to establish if they’re connected in some way.”
“I can assure you there is no connection,” Zoey said.
Mac narrowed his eyes. “How would you be able to assure any such thing? You don’t even know him.” A light dawned in Mac’s eyes, and he turned to Edna.
She straightened her shoulders and stood up to her full five foot two. “Well, I know him, and I can assure you that last night John Collins was nowhere near Irma Jean Johnson’s house.”
Mac sighed. “I’m expecting to get the test results back on that gun you gave me any day now. So, for the moment, I’m going to pretend I did not hear that last comment. But if I find out anything, and I mean anything, that makes me even the least bit suspicious that this guy could be involved in this or in any way pose a threat to you or Zoey, I will come back and tear this house apart looking for him. You understand?”
Zoey put her arm around her grandmother’s shoulder. “Of course. We understand. We know you’re just doing your job, and we appreciate it.”
“I’ve got to get back to the station. Do you want to ride back with me or do you want to give me your keys, and I’ll have a couple of officers drop your car off later?”
“I’ll come with you,” Zoey said, pulling the large-framed sunglasses from her bag. She squeezed Edna’s shoulder. “Why don’t you lie down for a bit, Grandma? Try to get some rest. I’ll be back in a half an hour with your car.”
Edna nodded and sank onto the sofa. “That’s fine, honey. I think I could use a little rest. The keys are in my purse.”
Zoey kissed her cheek then dug the car keys out of Edna’s bag. “I’ll be back soon.”
Edna lay back, waiting for them to leave. As soon as the door closed behind them, she popped up from the sofa and hurried into the kitchen. She opened the basement door and saw John sitting on the top step, his head in his hands.
She eased down onto the step beside him. “Did you hear all of that?”
John looked up at her, and she was surprised to see tears shimmering in his blue eyes. “I did. And as much as I appreciate you standing up for me, I’m responsible for that woman being in the hospital.”
“What? You couldn’t be. You were here all night. Both Zoey and I will vouch for you.”
“I don’t mean I’m the one who actually hurt her. I could never do that. But I knew her. I just saw her yesterday.”
What was he talking about? How could he possibly know her? Was Mac right? Had it been too many years? Could Johnny really have changed that much? She didn’t believe it. Couldn’t believe that he was different at his very core. “How could you know Irma Jean Johnson? I thought you just got to town a few days ago.”
“I did. That’s when I met her. At the courthouse. I needed to see the county records. I needed to verify the dates of when you and Frank got married and to see Beth, I mean
Moonbeam’s, birth certificate. To verify if I could have been her father.”
She blew out a breath, thankful that she was right in her assumption of John’s character. “So what if you knew her? That doesn’t make you responsible for her assault.”
“Officer McCarthy is right. She got attacked right after she helped me. There has to be a connection between my visits to the courthouse and her being beaten. It’s a small town, and we know someone’s been following me. They could have watched me go into the courthouse or seen me talking to her. The rock came through your window before Zoey arrived, so regardless of who these ‘messages’ are intended for, we are dealing with a dangerous individual. And I can’t help feeling like if I hadn’t asked her for help, she would still be okay.”
Edna took his hand. “You can’t blame yourself for this. You went into a courthouse to check out some records. Even if someone was following you, you had no way of knowing they would hurt an innocent woman.”
John leaned forward and laid a gentle kiss on the back of Edna’s hand. “Thank you. You always know the right thing to say.”
The feel of his lips on her hand made her insides go a little soft. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. “Well, I have no idea what to say right now.” She touched his cheek and looked up into his blue eyes, now devoid of tears. “Johnny Collins. I can’t believe you are here. Sitting next to me. Alive. And I am touching you. You have rendered me completely speechless.”
John’s face softened, and he squeezed her hand. “You are still so beautiful, Eddy. I look at you and I still see the face of that girl I fell in love with all those years ago.” He leaned down and ever so lightly kissed her upturned lips.
An entire colony of butterflies fluttered around Edna’s stomach. Twisting and turning. A cross between excitement and terror. She had dreamt of his kisses. Of his touch. Laid awake on hot summer nights reliving the memories of the summer they spent together. He tasted like butter rum lifesavers, and she could smell the woodsy scent of his aftershave.
She felt like she was that young girl again, and she kissed him back. Hard. Kissed him with the memory of their youth on her lips. With the spirit of her twenty-year-old self and the image of his youthful hard body emblazoned in her mind.