by J A Whiting
The three of them walked to the back of the house. The ladder was lying in the grass and the technician set it against the sunroom. He climbed up to the sunroom roof and, from there he swung up onto the main roof. He inched to the chimney.
He called down to Olivia and the officer. “Well, that was easy.” He held up a large tool box. He eased back down to the sunroom roof, backed onto the ladder carrying the box, and stepped to the ground. “This was set across the chimney. It was completely blocked. One of the workers must have set it there and forgot to take it away when he finished.”
Olivia stared up at the roof.
“Problem solved,” the officer said.
“Why would a worker be up on the main roof?” Olivia asked. “The sunroom is the only thing being worked on.”
“One of the workers had to be up there,” the technician said. “The toolbox didn’t fly up there itself.”
“It doesn’t make any sense,” Olivia said.
“Talk to the workers. Ask why. Maybe one of them noticed a loose shingle.”
“And tell them never to leave something blocking the chimney, for Christ’s sake,” the officer said. “We almost had two dead people here last night.”
“That would have messed with the construction company’s insurance rates,” the technician said.
Olivia was scowling. She needed to talk to Jackie. But first she went into the house and looked at the carbon monoxide detector in the upstairs hall. She pulled it out of the electric outlet. If it was plugged into an electrical outlet, why didn’t it work? Batteries or no batteries. There wasn’t a power outage. Olivia opened it. The batteries were missing. She pushed the small panel aside next to where the batteries should have been inserted. Not only were the batteries missing, but so was everything else inside the thing. All the innards had been removed.
A chill ran down Olivia’s spine.
She whirled, ran down the stairs, opened the door to the garage, got in her Jeep still holding the carbon monoxide detector, and roared out of the garage. She sped down the driveway and headed for the hospital.
***
Olivia sat on Jackie’s hospital bed. Jackie was holding the CO2 detector. “Remember how I said you should be concerned for your safety? That you might be putting the squeeze on someone?” Jackie asked.
“No. Did you say that?” Olivia made a vain attempt to lighten the mood.
“Olivia.” Jackie was stern.
“Why would someone do this? Why would they risk getting caught?” Olivia asked. “Could it be unrelated to the killings? Is it some nut?”
“It’s a nut all right. One that has killed before.”
“I don’t know,” Olivia said. “Check with your workers, Jackie. Could one of them have left the toolbox on the chimney?”
“They wouldn’t. They’re well-versed in safety rules.”
“Ask them anyway if someone went up to the main roof. We have to eliminate them as the cause for the chimney being blocked.” She thought for a moment. “But who disabled the CO2 detectors?”
“My guys didn’t handle the CO2 detectors,” Jackie said. “That’s for sure.”
“Then I’d better start worrying because somebody besides us has been in the house.”
***
Olivia went down to the hospital cafeteria to get two teas while Jackie called her employees. By the time Olivia returned to the room, Jackie had spoken with each of her guys.
“So?” Olivia asked.
“No one went up to the chimney.”
Olivia removed the cover from the cup and sipped the hot tea. She looked at Jackie. “It’s adding up to trouble.”
“I’d say so.” Jackie said.
“Someone went up to the chimney,” Olivia said. “But it wasn’t one of your guys.”
“You need to tell the police.”
“They won’t do anything. What can they do? Assign a cop to tail me? Keep a cop at the house? They won’t do any of that. They’ll just say to call 911 if something is weird.”
“Tell them anyway.”
“I will, but I need to think. Someone feels squeezed. Enough to kill the person who’s squeezing him.” She pushed her hair back from her face. “It was clever, Jackie. Carbon monoxide. Makes it seem like an accident. Keeps the attention away from whoever did it.”
“It certainly was clever. When did they do it, though? While we were in Connecticut?”
“It seems like it had to be done while we were in Connecticut. I was home most of the day. The workers were there too.”
Jackie nodded.
“Somebody had to get up to the roof and get into the house to tamper with the CO2 detectors,” Olivia said. “It wouldn’t take long to do those two things. I had left some of the windows open a crack while we were gone. That’s why we didn’t react to the carbon monoxide right away. I shut the windows after we ate the omelettes and right before we went to bed.”
“But we might have kept the windows open,” Jackie said. “Then the carbon monoxide wouldn’t have affected us. The person who did this didn’t know if we would shut the windows or not.”
“The person figured I’d shut the windows sometime. The carbon monoxide would have done its job eventually,” Olivia said. “Whoever did it knew that if it wasn’t last night, it would be another night soon.”
“It could have been Overman. He’s out on bail. He could have been watching the house,” Jackie said.
“But if Kenny killed my cousins why would he ask for the DNA test?” Olivia asked. “Maybe someone is framing him.”
“Who, though?” Jackie asked. “It would have to be someone important to frame him.” Jackie sipped her tea. “Wait, maybe Overman knew the police were getting close to asking him for a DNA sample. Maybe his lawyer told him to go along with it to seem innocent. Maybe he has some made-up alibi. Maybe they planned to say someone had tampered with the evidence.”
“My head is swimming,” Olivia said. “I don’t know what to think. What about Father Anthony?”
“But you were with him,” Jackie said. “He couldn’t have messed with the chimney.”
“We stopped to change the tire on the way home. Anthony left the diner when we did. He could have made it back to the house before we did.”
They thought for a few minutes.
“Did he arrange the meeting as a sort of alibi? No one would suspect he tampered with the house because he met me in a public place. People saw us. But he could have made it back here before we did,” Olivia said.
“But he didn’t know we would have to stop on the way back,” Jackie said.
Olivia sat straight, her eyes wide. Her voice was excited. “Maybe Anthony caused the flat tire. To buy him time to block the chimney. You and I were in the diner before he showed up. He could have got to the tire before he came in to meet me.”
Jackie looked stunned. “Does he know what kind of car you drive?”
“He walked me to my Jeep the day I went to his church to see him. Maybe he was in the parking lot of the diner waiting for us to arrive. I don’t know what car he drives. I wouldn’t have noticed him if he was sitting in his car waiting.”
“God.” Jackie shuddered. “This is too dangerous. Olivia, you need to stay at my house. You shouldn’t stay alone.”
Olivia leveled her eyes at Jackie. “Then I’ll put you at risk again.”
“You cannot stay at John’s house by yourself. I won’t have it. We don’t know what’s going on. It could be someone we haven’t even thought of.”
“Jackie…”
“Wait. We can stay at my parent’s house. Lily, too. For a few days. Until we get a handle on this.”
Olivia looked out the window. She thought of last summer. Her stomach clenched. Anxiety and fear flooded her body. She closed her eyes. I should have left this alone.
“Olivia,” Jackie’s voice was firm. “I mean it.”
“Okay,” Olivia said. Her voice was small. She turned to Jackie. “You’re right. It would be better to
stay with your parents. More people around is better. More eyes watching things. Your parents won’t mind?”
“They love excitement.”
“Then they better meet me,” Olivia said. “Excitement is my middle name.” She didn’t smile.
Chapter 35
Jackie was discharged from the hospital the following day. Olivia picked Lily up from the vet and they all moved in with Jackie’s parents. The parents were happy to have the houseguests. Everyone made dinner together and then they all sat around the table and played cards for a few hours. Lily watched.
Olivia had a long talk with John about what was going on. He was horrified and told her to stay at Jackie’s with Lily until he came back home. Olivia also reported to Brad and Joe about what had happened. She tried to downplay the whole thing but Joe wanted to drive down to Howland immediately to pick her up. Brad agreed with Joe that she needed to come back to Ogunquit where it was safe.
“It wasn’t safe there last summer,” Olivia said.
Brad groaned. “It’s safe here now. Please come home.”
“I will. Soon.”
“Liv…”
“Brad, the police know what’s going on. I’m with Jackie’s parents. I’m not alone. Everything will be okay.” She was trying to convince herself too. “John will be back soon. Then I’ll go to Cambridge to start my summer class. When the class is over, I’ll come home.”
“Please don’t stay alone,” Brad said softly. “Please, Liv. Stay there with Jackie’s folks. Promise me.”
“I promise.”
***
The next morning, Olivia walked out of the Howland Pharmacy with a bottle of aspirin for herself and a prescription for Jackie. She was about to get into her Jeep when she saw Isabel Bradford sitting on a bench outside of the medical building attached to the pharmacy.
“Mrs. Bradford,” Olivia said.
“Oh, Olivia. Hello.”
“Is everything okay?”
“If you mean, am I, practically a cripple, alright sitting here, then the answer is no. This bench is killing me. That fool of an assistant of mine is late picking me up.”
“Can I give you a lift?”
Mrs. Bradford’s scowl softened. “Would you? How kind. I accept.” She held out her elbow to Olivia, who gently helped Mrs. Bradford rise from the bench. She led her to the passenger side of the Jeep and opened the door for her.
“Would you like to use my phone to call your assistant?”
“I would not. Let her get here, whenever that may be, and wonder where I am.”
Olivia backed out of the parking spot and swung out onto the main street.
“I appreciate the ride home,” Mrs. Bradford told her.
“I’m glad to do it.”
“You must be pleased with the recent news reports.”
Olivia shot her a quick glance. “How do you mean?”
“Overman. He’s been taken in for the murders,” Mrs. Bradford said. “You must be pleased that there is closure on the case.”
“Well, there still has to be a trial. He hasn’t been convicted.”
Mrs. Bradford snorted. “Formalities. The man is on his way to prison. The DNA evidence has put the nail in his coffin.” The old woman watched the scenery pass by. “He is more resourceful than I suspected.”
“Why do you say that?”
“How did he get back to Howland from Boston so quickly?” Mrs. Bradford asked.
“He says he was in Boston until evening.”
“Well, he was there until afternoon at least.”
“How do you know that?”
“I saw him.”
Olivia slammed the brakes causing the car to slide to the right shoulder of the road and jerk to a stop.
“My God,” Mrs. Bradford cried putting her hands out toward the dashboard.
“What did you say?” Olivia’s voice was sharp.
“I said, ‘my God.’ What on earth kind of driving is that? Are you trying to kill us?”
“What did you say about Kenny?” Olivia demanded.
The old woman looked confused for a moment. “What?”
“You said you saw Kenny.”
“Yes.”
Where?”
“In Boston.”
“When?”
“The day the Monahans were killed.”
“You saw him in Boston that day? How?” Olivia asked.
“I saw him from the window of the hair salon we frequented. He was on his motorcycle, parked on the side of the street,” Mrs. Bradford said.
“What was he doing?”
“Nothing. He was just sitting there.”
“What time was it? Do you remember?”
“Of course, I remember. Even though my body has betrayed me, Olivia, I still have my faculties, you know.”
“What time was it?”
“It was three o’clock.”
“How can you possibly remember that? It was forty years ago.”
“My friend and I met in Boston weekly. Every Tuesday. We had standing appointments at the salon. At three o’clock. We had our hair done, then we would go shopping, and after that, we would have dinner.”
Olivia stared at her. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “If you saw him at three o’clock, it would be impossible for him to have made it back to Howland in time to kill them.”
“Not impossible.”
“No? What did he do? Drive ninety miles an hour on that old motorbike of his?”
“How do I know?”
“Did you tell the police you saw him?”
“I did not.”
Olivia’s eyes went wide. “Why, not?”
Mrs. Bradford sniffed. “They didn’t ask.”
“This is ridiculous. You have information that confirms Kenny’s whereabouts. You’re withholding vital information.”
“What if I was wrong?”
“You seemed pretty certain a moment ago. Why didn’t you tell the police?” Olivia asked.
“How did I know if he was able to get back to Howland in time to kill them?” She batted at the air with her bony hands. “No one cared about him. He was inconsequential. If he didn’t kill them, he would have committed some crime in the future. He was useless, ruined by that drunk of a father. If he was arrested and locked up, it would have been best for society.”
“You mean it would have been best for your family,” Olivia said.
“Don’t accuse me of wrongdoing. I take care of my family. I wanted him out of our lives,” she sneered.
“So, the hell with him? Let him rot in prison for a crime he didn’t commit?” Olivia said. “You can’t be judge and jury.”
Mrs. Bradford collected herself. “None of this matters, my dear. The man’s DNA was found at the crime scene. Somehow he found a way to get back to Howland in time.”
Olivia was fuming. “Innocent until proven guilty.”
“True,” Mrs. Bradford said. “It is also true that it shouldn’t take the prosecutors very long to put Overman away.”
“You need to tell the police that you saw him.”
“I will not.”
“Then I’ll tell them what you told me.”
“Do what you must, Olivia, but I will deny it. Besides, what jury would believe the rantings of an old woman?” She smiled sweetly. “Now, may we continue our drive to my home?”
“Get out.” Olivia spit the words out. “Get out of my car and walk home.”
Mrs. Bradford turned to look at Olivia with wide eyes, incredulous that Olivia would leave an infirm elderly woman alone on the side of a country road, miles from her home.
“What do I care what happens to you?” Olivia said.
The old woman opened her mouth, horrified.
“Don’t worry,” Olivia said pushing on the gas pedal and edging back into the street. “Unlike you, I wouldn’t abandon someone.”
Neither one spoke for the remainder of the ride to the Bradford home. Olivia pulled into the long driveway and stoppe
d at the front door of the mansion. She got out, her face like stone, and walked around to the passenger side of her car. She opened the door to assist Mrs. Bradford.
Angela burst through the front door of the home with Mrs. Bradford’s assistant trailing at her heels.
“Mother, for God’s sake.” Angela stood next to Olivia and reached into the car to take her mother’s arm.
Not waiting for a reply from her mother, Angela turned to Olivia. “Thank you for bringing her home. Where did you find her?”
“I am able to speak, you know, Angela,” Mrs. Bradford said. “You can ask me the question.”
She pulled her arms away from Olivia and Angela, adjusted her cane and started to move slowly towards the front door. The women exchanged looks and Angela sighed.
Mrs. Bradford continued, “I was at the doctor’s office.”
“Lindsey got a call from the doctor’s office saying you would not allow a blood test and that you had left the building. When Lindsey arrived, you were gone. You can imagine how upset she was when she couldn’t find you,” Angela scolded.
Mrs. Bradford gave Lindsey a wilting look. “No, I can’t imagine how upset she was.”
“I was leaving the pharmacy and saw your mother sitting on the bench there. I offered her a ride home,” Olivia told her.
Angela touched Olivia’s arm. “Thank you. I was becoming frantic. ”
“Oh, Angela, how dramatic,” Mrs. Bradford scoffed. Lindsey was helping her up the front steps.
“Hold on. You need to return to the doctor’s for that blood test,” Angela said.
“I will not,” Mrs. Bradford said.
“In fact you have to go right now,” Angela told her. “Lindsey will take you back.”
Mrs. Bradford glared at Angela.
“Your prescriptions have run out and they won’t refill them without the blood test.”
It was quiet for a minute while the Bradford women exchanged stern looks. Lindsey broke the silence.
“I’ll help you to my car, Mrs. Bradford. We’ll be back before you know it.” Lindsey took the old woman’s arm and steered her to the car. When Mrs. Bradford was ushered into the front passenger seat and the door was shut, Angela turned to Olivia.
“She will be the death of me. She becomes more belligerent every day.”