by Bobbi Holmes
Overhead the sun was shining with only a smattering of white puffy clouds in the blue sky. According to the weather report it was going to be a sunny day with temperatures in the low eighties. That was a little warmer than recent weather, which suited Danielle. The slight morning breeze gently rustled the patriotic bunting and brought life to the new American flag hanging by the front porch.
Before attending to her kitchen duties, Danielle had opened all the windows on the lower floor, filling Marlow House with fresh beach air. Walt stood silently at the open parlor window, drinking in the bracing scent. Why he was unable to smell the fresh air prior to Danielle’s arrival, he was unsure. But, the why and how did not concern him. He was simply appreciative that he could now enjoy the gift.
Walt could hear the sounds of Ian and Lily’s laughter and playful banter drifting in from outside as they decorated the grounds. At one time he had been suspicious of Ian, but he had come to accept his presence and no longer believed he held some dark secret. Walt reminded himself that perhaps he should have listened to Sadie. After all, Sadie trusted the man in spite of the fact Ian had lied to Danielle and Lily about what he did for a living.
Glancing down, Walt looked at Sadie, who slept soundly in the space occupied by his feet, which wore—as they did every day—polished dress shoes. These days the dog seemed to spend more time at Marlow House than at the rental across the street, where she lived with Ian. Walt would miss Sadie when she left at the end of the summer to return to California with Ian. He wondered if he should convince Danielle to get a dog.
Hearing who he thought was Danielle walking down the entry hall to the parlor, Walt moved from the window to the open doorway. It wasn’t Danielle, but her cousin, and by the way she carried her shoes and kept looking back to the door leading to the kitchen, it was obvious to him she did not want her cousin to know she was up.
Unaware of Walt’s presence, Cheryl walked through his body and into the parlor and then gently closed the door behind her, leaving half of Walt’s body still in the room. Annoyed, he let out a grunt, which she could not hear. He stepped back into the parlor.
“What are you doing in here?” Cheryl let out a cry of surprise when she saw Sadie.
Instead of greeting the new arrival, Sadie lifted her head briefly and looked at Cheryl then glanced over at Walt before laying her chin back down on her front paws.
“Yes Sadie, she is annoying.” Walt agreed.
“I suppose I can’t stick you out in the hallway. I really don’t need to get Danielle’s attention. Damn dogs.”
Walt watched as Cheryl stepped over Sadie, walked to the window and looked outside, eavesdropping for a moment on Ian and Lily.
“I don’t understand what he sees in her,” Cheryl muttered under her breath. “But I sure as hell am not going outside and get roped into some silly job or let my cousin put me to work in the kitchen.”
Moving from the window, Cheryl grabbed a magazine, sat down on the sofa and began flipping through its pages. Walt walked to the sofa and looked down at the unaware young woman, who now had her bare feet propped up on the far arm of the small sofa as she leaned against the opposing arm. She’d tossed her pink high heel shoes on the side table and he assumed she intended to slip them on when the guests started arriving. The careless manner in which she dumped her hard spiky shoes on the cherry wood table top annoyed him. She obviously was not concerned about scratching the furniture.
She reminded him of a flapper, the way the pink fabric of her short summer dress revealed a generous portion of thigh. If her hem hiked up another inch he would have a clear view of her underpants.
• • • •
Fidgeting with the radio in the kitchen, Danielle searched for a music station. Preoccupied with the task, she didn’t notice Joanne coming through the kitchen door.
“Good morning,” Joanne greeted as she entered the kitchen, closing the door behind her.
Danielle looked up from the radio and turned to Joanne. “Morning.”
Joanne set her purse on the kitchen counter and said, “Lily and Ian are doing a wonderful job decorating. It looks very patriotic out there.”
“One thing you can say about second grade teachers, they know how to decorate for the holidays,” Danielle laughed.
“What would you like me to do first?” Joanne asked.
Danielle considered the question for a moment then said guiltily, “This morning I was moving one of the plants in the library and I tripped and got potting soil everywhere. I salvaged the plant, but I’m afraid I didn’t finish cleaning the mess, I got sidetracked. Sorry about that. Think you can finish cleaning it up?”
“Certainly.” Joanne smiled.
“Also, go up in my room and get the brochures, I left them on my dresser. They go on the table in the library, where I have the business cards. After that, I guess just help Lily and Ian. I’m going to head upstairs in a few minutes and take my shower.”
“Okay, I’m on it.”
“Thanks Joanne.”
“No problem.”
On route to Danielle’s bedroom to pick up the brochures, Joanne passed the door to Cheryl’s room. It was closed with a note attached. Taking a closer look, Joanne read the note: Private Residence, do not enter.
Remembering how the room had looked yesterday, and Cheryl’s promise to clean it, Joanne hesitantly knocked on the door. There was no answer. Ignoring the note, Joanne opened the door and peeked inside the room. Articles of clothing and towels littered the unmade bed and floor. Strewn atop the dresser were makeup and toiletry items. Propped against the far wall was Cheryl’s open suitcase, half filled with clothing.
There was no sign of Cheryl. Joanne walked into the room and looked around. Reaching down she picked up one of the towels. It was still wet. Shaking her head, Joanne tossed the towel to the bed.
“I better ask Danielle if she wants me to clean this up,” Joanne said aloud.
She left Cheryl’s room, shutting the door behind her. After picking up the brochures from Danielle’s room and a broom from the storage closet in the hallway, Joanne headed to the library.
• • • •
Silently watching Cheryl, Walt wondered if Cheryl had done the one thing Danielle requested—clean the bedroom she was using. That morning when Walt had peeked in the room while Cheryl slept, it actually looked worse than it had the day before. He couldn’t imagine it was possible for her to have straightened it since that time. It was obvious she had spent a good portion of the morning applying her makeup and fixing her hair.
Leaving Cheryl on the sofa, Walt moved from the parlor to the entry hall. On route to the stairs, he looked into the kitchen and saw Danielle, who cheerfully plated food for the open house, while moving to the beat of the music playing from the radio.
Continuing down the hall, he paused a moment at the open door of the library. There he saw Joanne, who was busy arranging something on a table.
When Walt finally arrived at the Red Room, the door was closed. He took a moment to read the attached note, before walking through the wall into the room. Walt looked around and shook his head in disgust.
He glanced at the nightstand clock. Guests would start arriving in a couple hours. That was assuming there would be no early bird arrivals, those who liked to show up fashionably early for a party. Danielle, Lily and Joanne had their hands full with the final touches for the open house and it didn’t look like Cheryl intended to clean the room. Apparently her solution to the mess was to shut the door.
Walt focused his energy on the items strewn across the bed and floor. Clothing and towels lifted into the air and effortlessly made their way to the open suitcase. He then focused on the dresser, sending Cheryl’s personal toiletry items—some of the jars still open—floating across the room and landing in the pile of clothing and damp towels inside the suitcase. A clean, unworn blouse spilled from the suitcase, not quite covered by the items added by Walt. Giving the blouse a nod, he watched it rise from the suitcase an
d wipe down the dresser, removing any evidence of spilled makeup and lotion. Before returning the crumpled and now stained garment to the suitcase he used it as a dust rag to wipe down the rest of the furniture in the room, careful to use its clean side.
Directing his energy to the closet he willed the doors to fly open. Looking back to the suitcase he watched as the lid closed and zipper secured the items inside. With minimal effort, the suitcase lifted from its place on the floor and drifted to the closet, then set itself on the top shelf before the closet doors closed.
All he had left to do was make the bed, which he did quickly. Satisfied with the results, he opened the bedroom door and removed the note and masking tape, making them into a tight wad before sending the litter sailing across the hallway, through the opened bathroom door and into the trash bin.
He was about to go downstairs but paused when he heard someone coming up the staircase. If it was Cheryl, he decided it would be amusing to stick around and see her reaction to her room.
“There you are,” Danielle greeted in a whisper when she reached the top of the landing. “Is Cheryl still sleeping?”
“No, she’s downstairs in the parlor with Sadie.”
“I didn’t know Sadie was inside. But I did see the parlor door shut. I’m glad to hear Cheryl’s up. I need to take a quick shower and I wanted to see if she ever cleaned up her room like she promised. If I have to do it, I’d rather do it before I take my shower.”
“Are you done in the kitchen?”
“Yes. Oh, do you think you can keep an eye on Sadie in case Cheryl lets her out of the parlor? She’s never been a food thief before, but I’d rather her not jump up on one of the counters and help herself. Plus, chocolate is bad for dogs, and I think I overdid the chocolate goodies,” Danielle said as she made her way to the Red Room.
“I’ll have a little talk with Sadie,” Walt said as he watched Danielle look in Cheryl’s room.
“Wow, she did it.” Danielle couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
“Not exactly.” Walt stepped to the doorway with Danielle and looked inside the room.
“What do you mean?” Danielle glanced up at Walt.
“Your cousin is a slob. I knew you and Lily had your hands full so I just wanted to help.”
“You cleaned Cheryl’s mess?”
“It wasn’t hard. I simply put everything in her suitcase, wiped down the furniture and made her bed.”
“When you say you put everything back in her suitcase, what does that mean exactly?”
“Just that. All of her personal belongings she left laying around. Although the wet towels were probably yours. You’ll want to get those out of her suitcase later.”
“Umm…when I glanced in here last night I noticed her makeup on the dresser. You didn’t by any chance put the lids back on her…well lipstick, lotion…whatever…before putting her stuff in the suitcase?”
“No. Why should I? I just gathered everything that wasn’t supposed to be here and put it in the suitcase.”
“And where is the suitcase?”
“In the closet.”
“Oh my…” Danielle didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. “Well…thanks….but do you think you could do me another favor?”
“Certainly, what?”
“After your little talk with Sadie, could you try and convince Cheryl—without throwing a croquet set at her—to stay downstairs. I would prefer she see how her room was cleaned up after the guests leave tonight.”
Chapter Sixteen
Lawn furniture dotted the side and back yards of Marlow House, suitable for groupings of four or six. Should a larger group wish to converge, it would be easy enough to rearrange the lightweight chairs and tables.
Small floral arrangements of red, white and blue carnations—each adorned with a miniature American flag—decorated most of the tables. Inside there were additional flower arrangements, some more varied in their blossoms and larger than what was outside. Those had been sent over as congratulatory gifts from local merchants and friends Danielle had met since moving to Frederickport.
Early in the week Danielle had discovered a treasure trove of antique platters and serving dishes stacked neatly in the bottom of the dining room hutch. Those she used to serve her culinary party treats. Keeping with the patriotic theme, she used fresh blueberries, strawberries and raspberries to decorate many of the desserts.
An assortment of crackers, gourmet cheeses, rolled deli meats and finger sandwiches filled platters. Candy bowls brimmed with confectioneries purchased from the local candy store. Bottles of beer and soda chilled in tubs filled with ice, and pitchers of brewed iced tea, garnished with freshly sliced lemons waited to be poured.
Ian went home to get ready for the party, taking Sadie with him. After a quick shower and changing his clothes, he returned without the dog. When he entered the front door he was greeted by Cheryl. She had what appeared to be chocolate frosting smeared across her bottom lip. He didn’t say anything.
She seemed taller than the last time he’d seen her. Glancing down he immediately recognized her shoes—the same pair he had found under the parlor couch, which explained her new height.
“You’re the first one to arrive!” Cheryl cheerfully announced.
“Actually, I’ve been here all morning.” Ian walked inside and looked around. “Where are Lily and Danielle?”
“Getting dressed, I supposed. I figured someone had to be down here to welcome the guests.”
Ian glanced at his watch. “They shouldn’t be arriving for another half hour at least.”
“You’re here.”
“Umm…yes I am.” Ian started to walk down the hall toward the kitchen.
“Where are you going?” Cheryl followed after him.
“To the kitchen.”
“Don’t you think you should wait in the parlor?”
“Why? I’m hungry and I imagine with all this cooking Danielle’s been doing I’ll find something.”
“You can’t take any food yet! Danielle told me I wasn’t to eat anything until the guests arrived.”
Ian paused a moment and looked at Cheryl. “Chocolate lipstick?”
Cheryl frowned a moment then realized what he was saying. Licking her lips she removed the evidence of her snack. “I live here. I can eat whatever I want.”
The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs interrupted their exchange.
“You clean up nice,” Lily greeted when she reached the landing and spied Ian standing outside the door of the kitchen.
“So do you,” Ian said, stepping closer to Lily, leaving Cheryl standing alone by the kitchen doorway.
He reached out and touched the end of her braided hair and said, “Red…” His hand dropped from the braid to the hem of her white shorts. Lightly touching the hem he said, “white…” From the hem of the shorts his hand move upward and touched the navy blue collar of her crisp blue and white blouse and said, “and blue. Very patriotic.”
Lily laughed and asked, “How do you like the braid? Dani did it.”
“Very nice, but I rather like your hair wild and free.”
“Like me?” Lily chuckled.
Cheryl let out a snort and said, “Oh brother.”
“You should see Dani, she looks amazing,” Lily said, ignoring Cheryl’s comment. “Of course she couldn’t dress casual like this and wear the necklace; that would look silly. She found a fabulous vintage dress at a little shop in town and it fits her like a dream. She fixed her hair in a fishtail braid, looks so feminine. I wish I could braid hair like that. When I try to braid my own hair I end up looking like Raggedy Ann.”
“You don’t look like Raggedy Ann now,” Ian said with a chuckle.
“That’s because Dani braided my hair, not me. I only know how to do a traditional braid.”
“Well I don’t even know how to do that. But I don’t think I’d look terrific in braids, so it has never been an issue.” Ian laughed.
“Oh, funny.” Lily gave
Ian’s arm a playful swat.
Disgusted with the conversation, Cheryl was about to go into the kitchen when she heard another set of footsteps coming down the staircase. Curious about her cousin’s new dress and anxious to see the necklace, she stepped away from the kitchen door and walked toward Ian and Lily.
Walt was already standing unseen next to Lily and Ian. Looking to the staircase, he watched as Danielle appeared, wearing her new pale green dress and antique diamond and emerald necklace.
“You look beautiful,” Walt whispered. Danielle flashed him a smile.
“You look gorgeous,” Ian said, letting out a whistle.
“Doesn’t she?” Lily agreed.
“Let me see the necklace!” Cheryl rushed toward her cousin, groping her neck.
“Careful, Cheryl. You’re going to break it.” Danielle stepped back.
“Then take it off, let me try it on!” Cheryl said excitedly, jumping up and down like an excited child about to wet her pants.
“Not now. After everyone leaves you can try it on. But not now.” Danielle pushed Cheryl back. The doorbell rang.
“Behave yourself, Cheryl,” Danielle hissed as she straightened her dress and watched to see who was at the door as Ian went to answer it. She suspected it was Joe Morelli, who had promised to arrive early.
“Security is here,” Ian said with a laugh as he let Joe into the house.
“Wow, you even came in uniform,” Danielle said with a grin.
“Hi Joe,” Lily greeted.
“You really didn’t need him,” Walt scoffed. “I am here, after all.”
“Ladies, you look lovely.” He glanced over at Ian as if checking out his appearance and said with a shrug, “Ian, meh.” Turning back to the women he patted the gun in his holster and said, “According to the chief I am here on semi-official business.”
“Well, I sure as hell feel safer,” Ian said dryly as he slammed the front door shut.