Of course. Inez, back at Aunt Tallys, had packed her bags. She was returning home to shutter the place, collect some things. She thought it could be done in a day, but she wouldnt really know until she got into the middle of it. Hopefully, shed return for good when Flos killer was apprehended.
Once Aunt Tally had learned of the pictures and seen them, shed insisted Inez not be alone. While the centenarian lived alone, too, Little Mim and Blair were on Rose Hill.
Inez, back with her old friend after her sleepover, also wanted to make sure all was well back in ManakinSabot and to tell Blanca Drabek what she was doing. Liz Filmore, who had stayed over with Terri, was going to drive Inez home.
As Harry had driven Inez over to Rose Hill, she and Cooper drove back. Cooper wanted to talk to Aunt Tally, but it would wait until she returned later with Inezs laptop.
Inez, gazing out the window, never failed to be fascinated by the topographical changes as one left the Blue Ridge Mountains. Steep rolling hills and ridges that led up to the mountains gave way to land with a softer roll. The soil changed, too. The red clay and stone outcroppings yielded to Davis loam; in some spots, rich brown alluvial deposits beckoned. The red clay did not easily yield supremacy, though.
Thinking? Liz kept her eyes on the road.
Nonstop, Inez, whose light feminine voice had become a touch gravelly with the years, replied. You?
Ditto.
And?
Lizs brow furrowed. In a way, I still cant believe it. Flo was good to me; she shared her knowledge. Liz half-smiled. Sometimes more out of irritation than affection.
Inez hadnt expected such an insight from Liz. Well, dear, you can be persistent on your own behalf.
I like to think its on my clients behalf, but, she paused, Ive benefited. Tim and I have been blessed.
That means profit. Inez noticed the volume of trucks taking the exit to Zion Crossroads. Dear God, how this place has changed. Zion Crossroads.
Twenty years ago you couldnt give it away.
Oh, you werent sentient twenty years ago. Inez crossed her arms over her chest, pressed at her elbows, and released.
Made her tight back feel better.
No, but I listen to those who were. She accepted the teasing comment. Thats why I listened to Flo.
I did, too. She piloted our board through smooth as well as treacherous financial waters. Always timely with her updates, always willing to listen, always had something interesting to say.
A tear rolled down Lizs cheek. I guess I know it was Mariah who killed her.
Innocent until proven guilty, yet she did have a clear motive. You know, Liz, I will never understand why people steal. It takes so much effort, planning, execution. Wouldnt it be easier to apply that to legitimate business?
Liz slowed, because the car in front of her had swerved to the right. Its wheel caught the asphalt edge, and the driver overcorrected.
Wonder what hes on?
Could be exhaustion.
Thats the truth. Were all working ourselves to death, and I really think part of the drug epidemic is to keep awake, keep alert.
Or to escape. Wind down. But back to Mariah. It boggles the mind.
It does, but you asked why people steal when they could put the effort into honest enterprise. One word, Inez, one word: taxes.
Inezs eyes widened; she turned toward Liz. I never thought of that.
I promise you. There will be more and more white-collar crime, drug cartels, more petty cheating. Taxes are out of control. You want to throttle initiative, growth? Raise taxes.
History makes that point abundantly clear. For many reasons, Inez was glad she was at the end of her life, not the beginning; one was that she wouldnt be crushed during her most productive years by unjust taxation.
Some days Tim and I swear were going to chuck it all and move to Costa Rica.
But youre okay.
For now. Do you have any idea how many hours we waste filling out government forms or forms sent to us by Fast Grow, she named an agricultural giant, which are generated ultimately to protect against lawsuits?
So you think Mariahs goal was to keep the fruits of her labors?
Of course. Shed make a much greater profit by selling the fakes. Sure, shed pay taxes on that profit, but it wasnt as though she was taking the risk of selling OxyContin.
I see. Inez viewed the flattening of the land, recalling when, as recently as in her eighties, shed fly across it on the back of her beloved mare, Countess.
Where did the time go?
Liz pulled down the pea-gravel drive to Inezs house, passing the clinic and its attached stalls for horses needing intensive care. Behind the main clinic was a wire center-aisle barn with sixteen stalls for horses requiring other types of care. A covered arena containing a swimming pool for horses was screened by Leyland cypress.
Business holding? Liz asked.
Blanca says its fair. She gets serious cases, but people are trying to do their own doctoring on lesser ones. Blame the Internet for that. More lame and sick horses. Inez sighed. An owner reads about symptoms that they think their horse has. They may be right, but even if they are, Liz, they dont understand what may surround the injury. They know nothing about the chemicals in the equine system, the proper amount of red cells in blood, synovial fluidyou name it. Oh, well, Im bitching and moaning like an old lady.
For Tim and me, weve seen all these reasonably bright peoplelawyers, salespeople, you name itcrash and burn as day traders. Same difference.
I can imagine.
Liz pulled up and parked. Let me carry your bag.
Thank you, dear, and thank you for driving me.
My pleasure. I was glad to talk about everything. I mean, I still feel awful, but I know Im not alone. When Tim gets off the plane tonight, thats when Ill burst into tears.
Im sorry. As Inez unlocked her front door, the faint odor of cinnamon tantalized her nostrils.
Cinnamon-scented pillar candles were in each room, and even unlit, they gave off their distinctive fragrance.
Youll be okay?
Ill be fine. Inez smiled at Liz. I keep forgetting to thank you for tending to my account over the years. I know Flo was your mentor, but Im sure youll go forward. Dont worry. I wont close my account.
Thank you. Liz hugged her.
An hour later, Kenda Shindler saw the envelope icon flash on her computer screen at work. Shed been waiting for repair quotes for the water-heating system in an older classroom building. Anything like that went to the treasurers office and to the presidents as well.
She opened her electronic mail to read, Youll never catch me. Mariah DAngelo.
Inez and all the board members received the same message, except for Liz. Hers read, You insufferable brownnose. What are you going to do now? Mariah.
The next day Harry sat as a passenger for the first time in her new Volvo station wagon, with Fair driving. Old blankets filled the back so the animals could snuggle up. Eventually, someone would crawl over into the second-row seat. Mrs. Murphy, never one to miss action, bypassed the back and the second seat to sit in Harrys lap. She liked to watch the road, often commenting on what she observednot that the humans got it, but it made her feel better.
Boy, the roof is sagging on Mitchs hay shed, she noted as they passed a neighbors house.
Fair commented, How long do you give it?
Two more years. Harry laughed.
Three. Mrs. Murphy knew they werent responding to her observation, but she felt the process of communicating with humans might lead them in the correct direction.
A roof that size, shingles, eight thousand, Fair figured.
Given the Depression, I bet he could get it for six, if he shops around. People added a lot of fat to their labor over the years. Squeezed out now, she ruefully noted. Thats the nature of capitalism. Im a believer that its the best system, even when its painful. If you shave off the valleys, then the peaks are shaved, too. Government intervention is destructive and antithetical to
capitalism. Either youre a capitalist or youre not.
People dont have the stomach for it anymore. Fair said this without malice.
Honey, all people know is the nanny state. The point being, those in government think they know better than we do how to take care of ourselves. The arrogance is horrifying to me. Harry bit her lip slightly. I guess to a lot of people, in government or out, things are black and white. Life really is shades of gray, isnt it? Harry mused.
I think maturity is the ability to tolerate ambiguity.
She turned to face him, stroking Mrs. Murphy, who purred like a Mercedes on full throttle. Youre a more philosophical person than I am. Its one of the things I love about you. I learn something from you every day. You know me, honey: Im nuts and bolts, bread and butter.
Nothing wrong with that. I learn something from you every day, too, you know.
I cant imagine.
The different types of sunflowers, the oil content in the seeds. What birds like to eatsome seeds, some bugs, and some fruit. Youre a true farmer. Im not. I mean, I can tell you the nutritional value of alfalfa versus endophyte-free fescue, but thats about it.
Thats okay. Your brain is crammed with scientific data: patients, their owners. You dont need to know the stuff I do. Thats really why you picked me, isnt it? You needed someone to identify a thrushs call, tell you the hello chirp from the true birdsong. And all this time I thought it was me.
Your body. I worship and adore your body. He smiled broadly.
Tell me again.
For Christs sake, Mrs. Murphy grumbled.
I worship and adore your body. He laughed, and Mrs. Murphy had to laugh, too.
A silence followed this lovely interlude, then Fair said, Dammit, I forgot to bring the orange-blossom honey. You know how Inez loves it.
Theres Trader Joes at the Short Pump shopping center. We can get orange-blossom honey there.
He checked the time on the clock. Okay.
There are so many different honeys. The lavender one from France is divine. Harry respectfully paused following this delicious memory.
Fair, negotiating traffic, grumbled, The shopping center takes up half of Short Pump. He hadnt been this far east in a year.
Another five years and the sprawl will be all the way to Charlottesville.
He breathed in. Where do the people come from? Then he switched subjects. Worries me. Inez being chair of the alumnae board.
I know, honey, I know.
After the taunting emails last night, Inez had called Jahnae and learned that she, too, had received one. She also called Aunt Tally, who had not.
Liz, in a panic, had called Jahnae, then Inez.
Taking time to consider all the angles, Inez then called Harry and Fair. Fair, taking charge, told her hed be at her door tomorrow at one in the afternoon. He was taking her and Erno back to his and Harrys farm, where Inez would be safe.
When she protested this all had nothing to do with her, hed have none of it. Fair said shed still be close to Aunt Tally and they could visit, but Inez was going to be under his roof and sometimes with him on calls.
Inez finally gave up. She was grateful for his concern.
Every now and then last night and then today, Fair would mutter, Worries me.
Worried Harry, too.
The world looks different when your parents are gone, he said out of nowhere.
She nodded. Does.
Shes a remarkable woman. She really is a second mother to me. Im glad Inez is still strong. I dont know what Id do without her.
Fairs parents had lived much longer than Harrys, but his mother passed away five years ago, one year after his father had died.
God sends us things in our life. Harry leaned closer to Mrs. Murphy. Sent me you, too.
The feeling is mutual. Mrs. Murphy put a paw on Harrys hand.
Jesus, the traffic, Fair commented as they drove down the Short Pump exit, turning right on Route 250.
Within minutes, they pulled into Trader Joes parking lot.
Want to come in or you want me to do it? Harry asked.
Ill keep the animals company. As she closed the door, he fiddled with the radio to get NPR.
Fair, a dedicated NPR listener, soaked up everything. He liked Terry Gross in particular. Harry, on the other hand, was bored stiff. She wanted her country-and-western music, which she used to disdain. If they got into an argumentwhich was infrequentit was over who would control the radio. They settled it by the driver having the choice. If they didnt change positions for relief after three hours, the passenger handled the dial.
Pewter called out from her burrow in the blanket, Are we there yet?
What do you want, Pewts? Fair called back.
Out of this car. I want to play, she responded.
Ignore her. She probably has to go potty, Tucker teased.
If I did, Id poop on you, came the discourteous retort.
Were at Trader Joes. Mrs. Murphy stood on the passenger seat to face backward. Thats a fancy food store. Good stuff. Ive heard Harry talk about it.
Food! Why didnt you tell me? Pewter leapt into the front seat to stand next to Mrs. Murphy.
Both cats, paws on the dash, faced forward.
See? Mrs. Murphy noted all the people emerging from the store, bags overflowing with edible treasures.
I hope she remembers, the gray cat said wistfully.
Youre getting a little heiferous, Tucker called from the back, staying snuggled in the blanket. You need a kitty diet, not more food.
Harry came out of the store with two full shopping bags.
Cross your claws. Pewter was the soul of animation when Harry opened the door. Mom! Anything for me?
A muffled moan emanated from the back.
Dont start, Tucker. Ill scratch your eyes out.
Kitty babies. Treats. Harry moved both cats to the center console for a moment to take her seat after putting both bags on the backseat. Shed bought more than she intended.
She carried a small container in the shape of a cat. The top of the head and ears were yellow plastic.
Me! Pewter yowled.
Harry popped a treat in Pewters open mouth, glad her fingers werent chomped.
Mrs. Murphy, ever the lady, waited.
Here. Harry gave her one of the multicolored treats.
This is good. The tiger savored the flavor.
More!
Thats enough, Pewter. More when we get to Inezs.
How far? The gray cat was insistent. I could go into a coma from hunger.
Enough, Harry said. Tucker, theres a rawhide chew for you later.
Good.
Fair was still fiddling with the radio knob when Harry appeared. Shall I assume that both those bags arent full of honey?
You may. She leaned back in the comfortable seat. Saw you hit the off button. NPR fix again?
Cant hide anything from you, can I?
Sure you can, but you have to get up early in the morning to do it.
He backed out. They headed west on Route 250. A half hour later, they turned down Inezs driveway. What should have been a fifteen-minute drive had taken twice as long, thanks to relentless traffic. The crushed pea rock crunched under the tires.
Looks like her weather has been the same as ours, Harry said.
Tucker saw puddles of water in low spots.
Yeah, it does, Mrs. Murphy agreed.
As both Harry and Fair were Virginians, there was no need to discuss that they lived in the Piedmont while Inez lived at the edge of the Tidewater, an expanse of plain with a slight roll to the land as one moved west. Technically, the Tidewater ended at the fall linethe waterfalls all up and down the state. The weather was hotter here than in Crozet; springs arrived earlier, winters later. Sometimes the rains pounding on the Blue Ridge never made it this far east.
The years Fair spent here were some of the happiest times of his life. He was actually practicing medicine, and the little guesthouse in which he lived was perfect for a bachelor. H
arry, whom he had known since high school, would visit. He dated some Richmond girls, West End types, some of whom could be high maintenance. Inez was the one who told him he should have his head examined if he didnt marry that good-looking country girl from back home.
He did. Years later, after he became restless in his marriage and had an affair, he and Harry separated. Inez tore him a new one. The divorce upset her terribly, but she loved Fair and endured what she called his searching time. He learned, grew, worked hard to win back Harry, and did. He knew he was lucky to have had Inezs honesty and love throughout it all.
Now Fair knocked on the door of the simple taupe-colored clapboard house, the shutters a brighter green than the Charleston green Harry liked. Each shutter had a cutout of a trotting horse. The door matched the shutters and had a large pineapple brass knocker in the center.
Come in, Inez called when Erno barked, announcing company.
Harry, who had been rummaging in the food bags, pulled out the honeys. The two cats and dog shot out onto the gravel the minute the hatchback was raised.
Dont you go on the lawn. Its sodden. Youll make a mess of her rugs.
Too late: Tucker had already relieved herself on the lawn.
Fair opened the door and made his way down the short, wide hall to the living room on the right.
He embraced Inez, who had stood up. Hows my best girl?
Perfect now that youre here. She gave him a big kiss just as Pewter scuttled across the floor.
Inezs vizsla, ever attentive, remarked, Fattys come to pay a call.
Hungarian asshole.
Pewter, how you talk. Tucker came in and immediately touched noses with Erno.
Mrs. Murphy entered at a stately walk, Harry closing the door behind her against the bitter cold. Four honeys, two in each hand, didnt prevent her from kissing her hostess on the cheek.
For you. She presented the prizes.
Orange-blossom honey from Florida. Lovely. Whats this? Inez took a perfectly round glass bottle with a flattish bottom. Italian. Chestnut honey. Ive never had that. Look how amber the color is. Lavender honey from France, my second favorite, and, of course, good old clover honey. How can anyone live without honey? Thank you.
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