Judith frowned. “Dead?”
He held up three fingers as if keeping score. “Natural causes. About a year ago.”
“The poor Morrisons. Losing both daughters. How sad.”
“Okay, my turn. How is your relationship with Jasmine’s parents?”
“I haven’t seen them since we were kids.”
“How was it then?”
“Okay, I guess. Of course, I didn’t agree with Mr. Morrison’s views. But in order to remain friends with Jasmine, I kept my mouth shut around him.” She felt her cheeks redden in shame.
He held up one finger. “I think I still have one question left,” he began, then looked her directly in the eyes. “Would you consider yourself to be racist, Judith?”
She felt herself draw back. “No! Of course not. Not at all. That was probably the hardest part about my friendship with Jasmine. And I suspect if the Morrisons hadn’t moved during junior high school, it might have eventually ruined our friendship altogether. I suppose it was a blessing in a way that they left when they did. It allowed us both to remember our friendship in the sweet frame of childhood and young adolescence.”
He nodded. “I guess that makes sense. And I happen to know that you’ve taught in a mostly black inner-city school for the past several years. So I really didn’t think you were racist, but I just wanted to hear it from you.”
“I see. Okay, here’s my next question. What can you tell me about Jasmine’s parents, these days—are they still in Mississippi?”
“Nice move, asking several questions in the form of one.” He smiled. “Okay, the Morrisons...they own homes in both Cedar Crest and Jackson, Mississippi. During the early seventies, they lived in Mississippi, renting their Cedar Crest home. Then in 1976 they moved back over to Cedar Crest. Just the parents and Constance. Jasmine had gone off on her own by then.”
“College?”
He shook his head. “Not that I’ve found any record of.”
“Too bad. She was really smart.”
The waitress began clearing their table now, and to Judith’s dismay she realized the meal was over. Adam glanced at his watch. “I suppose I should let you be getting on your way. May I ask where you’re staying these days? Or perhaps you’re heading home?”
For some reason, she no longer distrusted him as much. But at the same time questioned whether that was wise or not. She also realized how many questions she’d not had time to ask. “You may as well know that I’m staying here,” she admitted.
He smiled. “I thought so.”
“Okay, let me ask you one more question. What brings a sharp detective like you to a little hole-in-the-wall town like Cedar Crest?”
He grinned. “You’re good. Well, you see the government has implemented a new program to help disperse more experienced law officers to smaller towns. I was becoming a little jaded about big-city life, and so I decided to take a break and try small-town living for a while.”
“And how do you like it?”
His mouth twisted up on one side. “Actually, there are some things I really like. And unfortunately there are lots of others I don’t.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean.”
“Look, Judith, I really want to continue this conversation, but I have some things I need to take care of tonight. Do you think we could meet again?”
“Sure. I have lots more questions.”
“So do I. Maybe we should make a list.”
“I already have.”
“Good for you,” He picked up the check.
“Let me pay for mine.” insisted Judith.
“Nah, this one’s on me.”
“But—”
“You should know better than to argue with a cop.”
She held up her hands. “Fine, go ahead then. I don’t want to wind up in jail.”
He grinned. “Smart.”
They agreed to meet at the same time, same place tomorrow, then said good night. As Judith walked back to her room, she wondered if perhaps she’d been all wrong about him in the first place. Or could it be that he was just trying to win her over so that he could extract more information? She wasn’t sure, but somehow it didn’t worry her too much. What did worry her was spending too many more nights at this expensive resort. Perhaps she could get in to see Aunt Lenore tomorrow, and find out if the old woman had really intended for her to stay in her home or not. That option was looking better all the time.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“LENORE BARKER IS NO longer here.” said the woman at the front desk.
“Has she gone home then?” asked Judith hopefully.
She looked down at her computer screen then spoke. “I’m not allowed to give out any personal information regarding our patients.”
Judith frowned. “But she’s a very dear friend and—”
“I’m sorry.” The woman turned away, obviously finished with their brief conversation.
Judith went back to her car and decided to head over to Aunt Lenore’s house and see for herself. Maybe she’d find the old woman back at home, happily tending her garden. Judith had checked out of her room at the resort this morning, unsure of where she would stay next, but Aunt Lenore’s house was an option she still considered. And the more she’d thought about it, the more certain she felt that this was what the old woman had been trying to say. Still, she wondered, what if Aunt Lenore had taken a turn for the worse? What if she had died even? “Oh, please, God, not that.” She prayed as she turned down Aunt Lenore’s street. “Please, let her be okay.”
She pulled into the narrow driveway. The house still had an abandoned look to it, and she strongly suspected that Aunt Lenore was not here. Just the same, she knocked loudly on the door and waited, glancing over her shoulder in case Martha might be around. She longed for a second chance to speak to her, to explain that although Judith had been friends with Jasmine, other than sweet Aunt Lenore she had no real connections to the Morrison family. But Martha was nowhere in sight. So Judith proceeded to the back door, taking a moment to glance once again over the gate into Martha’s yard, but all was quiet and still over there. She knocked on the back door now, then unlocked it and let herself into the house. She called, “Aunt Lenore, are you here?” but only heard silence against the exterior sound of a feisty blue jay screeching in the backyard.
“Well, Aunt Lenore.” she said aloud to no one in particular. “I shall take you up on your gracious invitation and stay here for a while.” She smiled at herself, pleased at her decision. She felt fairly certain that Aunt Lenore would be pleased as well. She looked through the refrigerator and cupboards, threw out several spoiled things, washed a few dishes and cleaned up, then made a quick list of some provisions she might need to keep her for a few days. Then she locked everything up and started to drive over to the grocery store. On her way, she decided to go through her old neighborhood once more, wanting another glimpse of her childhood home. As she drove down her old street, she noticed a U-Haul truck parked right in front of the old Paxton place. She slowed down for a better look, wondering what kind of people might be moving into Eli’s old house, when she observed a tall man in the driveway, carrying a large cardboard box. But what really caught her attention was the color of his skin—a rich hue of burnished bronze. She pulled her car to a stop and studied this man more carefully. To her stunned amazement, he looked so much like Mr. Paxton that she thought she must be hallucinating. Yet surely, Mr. Paxton would be in his seventies by now. Then it occurred to her—Eli! She jumped out of her car, and quickly made her way to him, yet even in the same moment, questioned herself as to whether she was simply imagining the resemblance or not.
“Eli?” she called out with uncertainty.
He turned and looked, a smile of recognition slowly breaking onto his face. “Judith? Judith McPhearson?”
She nodded, rushing over to him as he set down his box and threw open his arms. In the same instant, they both fell into a big hug. “Oh, Eli!” she cried. “I can’t believe it’s really
you. What in the world are you doing here?”
“I’m wondering the same about you.” Then he held her back at arm’s length and studied her face. “You’ve gotten older, girl.”
She gently punched him in the arm. “Same back at you. In fact, I think I see some gray hair on your temples. And whatever happened to that old “fro I used to love?”
He threw back his head and laughed. Same rich, hearty, throaty laugh, only deeper. “I lost that a long time ago. Man, Judith, it’s sure good to see you again.”
“But tell me, Eli, what are you doing here? It looks like you’re moving in.”
He grinned. “I am. Coming back to my roots.”
She shook her head. “Amazing. That’s sort of how I’ve been feeling lately too.”
“So, how about you? Are you moving back to the old stomping ground too?”
She sighed. “No, not really. I’ve been here about a week. But I plan to stick around awhile longer.”
“Just a vacation then?”
“Sort of. Do you remember Jasmine Morrison, Eli?”
He frowned. “Yeah. Mostly I remember her folks. Why?”
“Well, she died—they say she shot herself. Several weeks ago. I came out here to figure it out.”
“Shoot, Judith, I’m sorry. I remember how close you two were. But why did you come here to figure it out? Jasmine wasn’t living here, was she?”
“Actually, she moved back about a year ago and married a guy in town, which is a long story in itself. But there are
many unanswered questions surrounding her death and her family.”
He nodded his head knowingly. “Well, it’s been my experience that anything to do with the Morrison family comes with all sorts of unanswered questions.”
She looked into his dark eyes, laced, it seemed, with sadness. “I still don’t get why you’re moving back here, Eli. Are you on your own or do you have a family?”
“I think what you’re really wanting to say is “Have you lost your mind?’”
She smiled. “Well, sort of. From what I’ve been hearing lately, this town isn’t really accepting of...cultural differences.”
“Believe me, I’m fully aware of the racism that runs rampant in Cedar Crest. It’s what drove me and eventually my entire family out of here. Another long story, Judith—a bad one, at that.”
“Well, Eli, I hate to take up too much of your time. I know you’re busy and...” She glanced over to the moving truck. “Hey, maybe I could help you unload things.”
He grinned. “You sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?”
“Eli, I’d love to help you. That way we can talk and catch up.”
While carrying in boxes, Judith learned that Eli had moved from the Seattle area.
“That’s so weird,” she said. “Jasmine had been living up there too.”
“Small world.” Then he went on to tell her that he had two college-aged sons, but had lost his wife to cancer just a year ago.
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Eli,” she said as she carefully set a box marked “fragile” on the kitchen counter. Without trying to make too much of it, she quickly told him of her own losses. “I know where you’re coming from.”
“Sounds like we have a lot in common.” he said as he opened the box and removed a dinner plate.
“Those are beautiful.” said Judith, admiring the pattern.
“My wife, Kate, picked these out a couple years ago. She decided with the boys grown and off to college, it was time for some new dishes. Unfortunately she didn’t get to use them for very long.”
“Too bad. Would you like me to put the kitchen things away for you while you continue unloading the truck?”
“Thanks, Judith. I’m still pretty hopeless in the kitchen.” He grinned. “In fact, I wasn’t looking forward to that part at all. You must be my angel in disguise.”
She listened to him whistling as he went in and out of the little house. She wiped down cupboards before carefully placing Eli’s beautiful dishes into their small spaces. She was impressed by the quality of Eli’s things. Apparently money, or the lack of it, wasn’t an issue for him. But why in the world was he moving back here of all places? Finished with the kitchen, she found him hanging his shirts in the bedroom closet.
“Eli, I was about to head to the store to get some food for myself. Would you like me to pick up a few things for you while I’m out? I see you’ve got staples, but I thought you might like some fresh produce and dairy products.”
“Thanks, Judith, I’d appreciate it. Here, let me make a quick list.” He jotted down a number of things, then fished in his wallet to hand her a hundred dollar bill. “I think that’ll cover it.”
“Sure.” she said, thinking once again how he seemed to be doing pretty well financially. “Eli, you still haven’t told me why you’re moving back here—”
“How about if we sit down to some lunch when you come back. I promise to explain everything then.”
At the grocery store, Judith replayed the last time she and Eli had gone together in high school. She remembered how they had broken up shortly before she and her mom had moved. But what was it that had broken them up that time? She picked up a head of romaine lettuce when it hit her—marijuana! Eli and some of his buddies had begun experimenting with marijuana, and for some reason that whole scene had put her off. But then she had moved, and naturally the two had lost touch. Until today. Now, she felt relieved that Eli had moved on from his drug experimentation and toward a more successful life. Or, she frowned as she picked out some tomatoes, how was she to know whether or not he’d continued along those same lines? What if he’d actually made his money by selling drugs? She shook her head. No, that was totally ridiculous. Eli seemed like a good man, a responsible citizen. She was simply imagining things.
Suddenly, she remembered what Adam had asked her last night about being racist. Was it possible that because Eli was black and had money she had made the racist assumption that he’d become wealthy illicitly? The thought sickened her. No, she told herself, race had nothing to do with it. In fact, she would wonder the same thing about Tommy Reynolds. He’d been Eli’s best friend and the one who’d introduced Eli to pot in the first place. If she would make assumptions about anyone, it would be Tommy. So race had nothing to do with it. Still, it bothered her that she had paused to even consider such a possibility.
“Hey, there.” she called as she walked through the opened door. “Anyone home?”
“In here,” said Eli from the kitchen.
She unloaded two bags onto the oak table while noticing that Eli looked somewhat grim. “Something wrong?” she asked as she put a carton of milk into the refrigerator.
“Got met by the neighborhood welcoming committee.” he said as he stood looking out the kitchen window toward the street.
Judith felt her insides twist. “Your neighbors aren’t being too neighborly?”
He laughed, but it sounded hollow. “Well, I didn’t expect them to be. But I guess I was hoping they’d hold themselves back on the first day.” He turned and faced Judith. “Sorry to sound so glum. Believe me, this is no surprise, and I do know what I’m getting myself into.”
“Do you really?” She began to set the ingredients for sandwiches on the counter; then carefully layered slices of roast beef and lettuce and tomato onto whole wheat bread.
“Yes, probably better than you do.”
“Care to explain?” She poured them each a tall glass of lemonade.
“Well, I promised I’d explain everything over lunch. By the way, thanks for fixing that. I don’t know what’s become of my manners.”
“No problem.” She arranged their sandwiches onto plates, then opened a bag of chips and placed their lunch on the space he had just cleared on the table.
“You see, when my wife died, I began to look at my life very closely. And suddenly I became aware that all I’d been living for was to make money—and lots of it. I think I had something to prove, you know, to show
the world that I was just as good as the rest of you white folks.”
“Ouch.”
“I don’t mean you personally, Judith. You’ve always treated me right.” He paused then added. “Well, almost always.”
She grimaced. “But I’ve already apologized for my stupid years, Eli. After Jasmine moved back to Mississippi I came running back to you and practically fell on my
hands and knees to beg your forgiveness. And we were okay after that, weren’t we?”
He nodded. “But the pain of those years still hits me sometimes. That and a lot of other things. But, hey, I’m getting sidetracked here.”
“Yes, tell me about what happened to you when you lost your wife.”
“I began to take this sort of inventory of my entire life. And despite a beautiful home overlooking the Sound, a great job, more stocks than I’d ever imagined owning, two intelligent sons in a couple of the finest colleges in the country, I still came up bankrupt. Spiritually bankrupt, as it turns out.”
“Spiritually?” Judith took another bite of her sandwich and listened with interest.
“Yes. My wife and I had attended church for most of our. married lives. Both boys grew up going to Sunday school and church camp. I was even on the church board. But I suddenly came to the realization that I really didn’t know God at all. My wife, during her last months, had graciously tried to point this out to me. I swear, she was more worried about my eternal well-being than she was her own. Of course, now I know why. So, I began to read—I mean really read—my Bible. And then I rededicated my life to God. And I told him that I would do whatever it was that he wanted me to do with the rest of my life.” He paused to take a bite.
“Wow, that was brave.”
He nodded. “You’re telling me. But you know what, Judith? I’ve never felt more fulfilled and alive in my entire life. I took early retirement, which I’d been considering anyway—you can only last so long in the computer software business, and since I’d gotten in on the ground floor, I was pretty well set. Then I took a couple semesters of Bible college, all the while asking God what it was he wanted me to do with the rest of my life. And for some reason I kept thinking about Cedar Crest. It’s like I couldn’t get it out of my mind.”
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