“Do you want to, Jane?” Miss Georgina asked.
Miss Jane sighed deeply and glanced up at her friend. “I guess we might as well. Martin’s right. No sense in calling up trouble when it may not be there at all.”
I stared after them as they left the room. I couldn’t remember Miss Jane ever admitting Martin might be right about anything.
“Are you going to be all right, sweetheart?” Benjamin took my hand and lifted it to his lips. My hand tingled, and stress seemed to slide off me.
I smiled and rested my head on his shoulder. “I’m fine.”
“Want to sit outside on the swing for a while?”
“Yes. That sounds wonderful.” I hesitated. “But what if Miss Aggie calls?”
“We’ll leave the door open so we can hear the phone.”
I stacked cups and saucers on the tea cart, and Benjamin pushed it to the kitchen for me. I grabbed a couple of bottles of water from the refrigerator, and we went outside, leaving the front door open.
We sat on the swing in silence. The sky looked almost black tonight, with a field of bright stars. Almost like a Texas sky on a clear night. But not quite.
“What do you think, Victoria?”
I took a swig of water and gulped it down. What did I think? That Miss Aggie was simply on an innocent, if mysterious, excursion of some kind? Not for a minute. I’d finally put my finger on that disturbed feeling I’d had since Miss Aggie had pulled into the garage that afternoon. Her expression wasn’t anger or impatience or any of the other emotions that played so easily on her face from time to time. The look was fear. Real fear. And mixed in with the fear was a determination that bothered me more than the fear. Whatever Miss Aggie was up to, I believed it had something to do with Clyde’s death. And I was very much afraid she was stepping into danger.
After a sleepless night that left me with a throbbing headache, I called Lauren Pennington and found that she hadn’t heard from Miss Aggie. I dressed and went downstairs. The aroma of coffee drew me to the dining room, where I found all the seniors around the table. Their hopeful eyes turned to me, and I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I haven’t heard anything.”
I went to the buffet, more to escape the dejected looks on their faces than anything. I probably couldn’t eat a bite. I poured a mug of coffee and carried it to the table.
“Victoria, you need to eat something.” Miss Jane went to the sideboard and filled a plate. Without a word, she set it down in front of me.
Sometimes it was nice having Grandma’s old friends to mother me. Other times, such as now, it was a downright nuisance. I took a sip of coffee and ignored the steaming plate of bacon and eggs. Miss Jane ignored me ignoring the food.
The phone rang, cutting through the silence and pene- trating my mind like a scream in the night.
I jumped up and rushed to grab the kitchen phone. “Miss Aggie, is that you?”
A sharp intake of breath came through the receiver. “I’m sorry, Victoria. This is Jack Riley.”
“Mr. Riley. Do you know anything about Miss Aggie’s disappearance?” I hadn’t meant to blurt it out. I needed to calm down and start using wisdom.
“I’m sorry. I don’t. Sheriff Turner talked to me this morning, and I knew if he suspected I was involved, you might, too. I wonder if you would meet me for coffee, so we can talk without the seniors around. I don’t want to upset them by speaking of Aggie.”
“Yes, do you mind if I bring Benjamin along?” I wasn’t about to go anywhere alone with Jack Riley just yet.
“Of course. Bring anyone you like.”
“Hannah’s? Or the Mocha Java?”
“Is there someplace we can meet where we aren’t as likely to run into friends and neighbors?”
Why hadn’t I thought of that? “There’s a new truck stop about five miles south of town. A lot of the townspeople went to check it out the first week or so, but I doubt we’d see any of them there. We’re all pretty loyal to locals.”
“What time would be best for you?”
“I’ll need to check with Ben. Call me back in ten minutes?”
“Very well.” I heard the click of the phone and punched in Benjamin’s number.
“Good morning, my love.”
I grinned. I really needed to get a phone with caller ID. And, I reminded myself, a cell phone.
“Good morning,” I crooned, then snapped out of it. I didn’t have time to flirt with Benjamin this morning. “Listen, Jack Riley wants to have coffee for some reason. Are you free to go to the truck stop with me sometime today?”
“How about I pick you up around nine?” His voice was alert.
“Okay, I’ll be ready.”
After Mr. Riley called back, I returned to the dining room and told the seniors about his request.
“I’m going, too,” Miss Jane stated. “If he knows some- thing about Aggie, I want to be there.”
“He says he doesn’t know anything, Miss Jane,” I re- minded her.
“Jane, please go to the center with us,” Miss Georgina pleaded. “Or maybe we should stay home in case she calls. What if she calls while you’re gone, Victoria?’
“Mabel will be here. If Miss Aggie calls, she’ll give her Benjamin’s cell phone number.”
Finally, Miss Jane agreed to go with the others, and they left after I promised to tell them every word of the conversation with Jack Riley.
I was waiting on the porch when Ben’s truck pulled up in front. He got out and kissed me soundly before opening the passenger door for me. I reached up and pushed back a lock of his blond hair, still damp from the shower.
We left town and drove the few miles to the truck stop. Trucks were pulling out one after the other, and by the time we got inside, there were only a few customers scattered around the booths.
We glanced around. I didn’t see Mr. Riley anywhere.
“Guess we beat him here,” Benjamin said. “Let’s take that back booth.”
We ordered coffee and waited, looking up every time the door opened.
“I wonder what he wants to talk to us about.” I’d been wondering ever since the man had called. Suddenly, my stomach growled.
“Did you eat breakfast?” Benjamin frowned.
“No, I wasn’t hungry. Then when Mr. Riley called, I forgot all about food.”
Benjamin signaled our waitress and asked for a menu.
I ended up ordering bacon and eggs. So much for ignoring Miss Jane.
I ate my breakfast and asked for a refill on my coffee. Mr. Riley still hadn’t arrived.
“Benjamin, it’s nearly ten. Where is he?” I was a little aggravated, and I didn’t much care if it showed.
“Maybe he got held up. Do you know Phoebe’s home phone number?”
“Yes, I do. Should we call?”
He pulled out his phone and flipped open the cover while I got my small address book out of my purse. I opened it to the Collinses’ number and slid it across to Benjamin.
Before he had a chance to punch in the number, his phone rang.
“Hello. Grant here. Uh-huh. I see.” He looked at me and mouthed “Riley.” “That’s quite all right, Mr. Riley. But can you give me an idea of what you wanted to speak to us about? I see. Yes. Good-bye.”
“Was that him?”
“Yes, he’s been called out of town.” His forehead wrinkled in deep furrows.
“What? Why didn’t he call us sooner?” The very nerve of the guy.
“He said he received an important call and couldn’t get away to phone us sooner.” He glanced at me. “I don’t know, Vickie. Something doesn’t seem right to me.”
“Me either. What if he’s done something to Miss Aggie and now he’s skipping town?” My chest felt heavy, and dizziness washed over me. “Ben, we have to stop him.”
“Honey, what’s wrong?”
My head steadied, and I took a deep breath. “Let’s go stop him before he gets away.”
“Sweetheart, if he was skipping town, would he have announce
d it to us?”
I sat back. “I guess not. But it does seem suspicious to me. And you said yourself something seemed amiss.”
He nodded. “Yes, but that doesn’t mean I think he’s harmed Miss Aggie.”
I sighed. “We might as well leave.”
He picked up the guest check from the table, and I followed him to the cash register. When we got back to the lodge, I said good-bye and promised to call him if I heard anything.
The house was quiet when I walked in, which was strange. Usually, at the least, I could hear pots rattling or Mabel singing. I walked into the kitchen.
Mabel stood beside the wall phone, the receiver in her hand. “That was the sheriff.”
“What’d he want?”
“He wants you to call him.” Eyes wide, she handed me the phone.
“Has something happened? Did they find Miss Aggie?”
“I don’t know. He wouldn’t tell me anything. But he didn’t sound happy.”
I punched in the number, and after two rings Tom Lewis picked up.
“Tom, this is Victoria Storm.”
“Hold on. I’ll transfer you to the sheriff. He wants to talk to you.”
“Victoria?” Bob Turner’s voice boomed over the wire. “Is that you?”
“Yes. Did you find Miss Aggie?”
“No, we didn’t. But we found her car. I need you to come down to the office.”
“What? Her car? Where?” Oh, dear God, please.
“Abandoned at the airport. Now don’t get all riled up. I figure she changed her mind and decided to fly instead of drive. But not knowing exactly where she was going or even what airline she used, it may take awhile to find out for sure.”
“But that doesn’t make sense. She wouldn’t just leave her car.”
“Now, she might. Did you say she had a suitcase with her?”
“Yes, yes, I put it in the trunk for her. Is it still there?”
“No, it’s gone, so that’s a pretty good indication she wasn’t nabbed or something.”
“Have you told Corky?”
“Of course. He’s her next of kin. At least around here. I called him first. He’s coming to the office, too.”
“Okay, I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Victoria.” He cleared his throat. “Now don’t go jump- ing to conclusions, but we did find something.”
Get on with it. “What, Sheriff? What did you find?”
“Her cell phone. Seems she forgot to take it out of the car.”
Chapter Nine
The seniors had to be told. I called the center and asked to speak to Frank. If anyone could keep the ladies from hysterics, it would be him.
“Frank, they’ve found Miss Aggie’s car at the airport.”
“At the airport? You mean just the car?” I knew the others must be close by, because he spoke little above a whisper.
“That’s right. The sheriff is checking airlines to find out where she went, but this seems suspicious to me. Further- more, she left her cell phone in the car. That’s not like her at all.”
“You’re right. Her favorite toy. What are we going to do?”
“The sheriff wants me to come to his office. I’m not sure why. Do you want to meet me there?”
“Okay. We’ll see you shortly.” He hesitated. “Does Corky know?”
“Yes, he’s probably at the courthouse by now.”
I hung up, then punched in Benjamin’s office number. “Cedar Chapel Gazette.”
I gritted my teeth at the sultry tone of Christiana’s voice.
“I need to speak to Benjamin, please.”
“I’m sorry. He’s busy at the moment.”
“What? Listen, this is Victoria Storm, and I need to speak with Benjamin now.”
“I’m so sorry, Miss Storm. But, as I said, Benjamin is occupied at the moment.”
I slammed down the phone and punched in his cell number, wondering why I hadn’t done that in the first place.
He answered on the first ring. “Hi, sweetheart.”
There was no time to complain about his secretary, so I quickly told him the news.
A low whistle came through the receiver. “Now Victoria, don’t jump to conclusions. You know Miss Aggie. She prob- ably decided to fly off somewhere on a whim.”
“I wish everyone would stop telling me not to jump to conclusions. Benjamin, I’m worried. First, she lies and says she’s going to Simon’s; then she abandons her car and cell phone. That’s not like her.”
“All right, honey. Do you want me to drive you to the courthouse, or should I meet you there?”
“Aren’t you busy?”
“It can wait.”
“No, no. I think he just wants us to identify the cell phone or something. You don’t have to leave work.”
“All right, if you’re sure, but call me when you get back to the lodge.”
“I will. Bye.”
I looked up to see Mabel eyeing me with a worried expression.
“What’s wrong?”
“I need to leave at noon. This is the day Bobby is bringing my little Sarah.”
“Oh Mabel, I forgot this was your afternoon off. That’s fine. You go ahead.”
“There’s a pot of soup to warm for lunch, and I’ll make a tray of sandwiches to go with it. Dinner is in the slow cooker, and there’s a salad in the refrigerator.”
“Thank you. I’ll see you Monday.”
“If you need me, call. I’ll come. Bobby and Sarah will just have to understand.”
I gave her a hug. “Okay, but I’m sure that won’t be necessary.”
I grabbed my keys and went to the garage.
Thoughts battered at my mind as I drove to the courthouse. What if something terrible had happened to Miss Aggie? It had happened before. And maybe this was connected in some way with Clyde’s murder and the scrap of paper we found. After all, the emeralds were still missing, and who knew what else? Renovations and decorating were almost finished, and Miss Aggie would be moving into the old house soon. Could someone think she had the information they wanted? Or could they be afraid she’d find what they were looking for? After all, she was the rightful owner of the emeralds. That is, if they were legal.
I turned onto the square and parked in front of the courthouse. Frank and Miss Evalina sat in their car, and Miss Jane and Georgina were there in Miss Jane’s Cadillac. Martin’s new Dodge pickup pulled in next to them.
Tom Lewis groaned as we all walked in together. Had he really thought I’d leave the seniors out of this? They’d all been friends many years before my parents were born, much less me. And no matter how aggravated they might get at Miss Aggie, she was still one of them. Her memories were their memories. There was a bond there. And they deserved our respect.
Ready to stand against Tom’s objections, I was surprised when he motioned for us all to go back to the sheriff’s private office.
Sheriff Turner stood up as we walked in. He didn’t look surprised to see the seniors, which was probably why Tom hadn’t objected, except for the groan.
“Tom, bring more chairs in here.” He left the door open and ushered the three senior ladies to the chairs that were available, including his own, which he pulled from behind the desk. When Tom had brought more, placing one behind the sheriff’s desk, we all sat.
“Isn’t Corky here yet?” I asked, glancing around the room.
“Pennington’s been here and left. He told me to let you know he’s filled out a missing person’s report for Miz Pennington-Brown, and he’ll be over to the lodge as soon as he can get away from Pennington House.”
“All right Bob, now what’s going on about Aggie? She wouldn’t have gotten on an airplane. She loved that Lexus too much.” Miss Jane eyed the sheriff like she thought he was trying to pull a fast one.
“Now Miz Brody, we can’t be sure of that. She might have wanted to go someplace too far for her to drive.”
“She used to say she’d like to see the Amazon,” Miss Geor
gina piped up.
Martin and Frank both snorted, the snorts accompanied by one that came clearly through the door from Tom Lewis.
Miss Georgina’s face flamed. “She did say that.”
“That’s right, she did.” Miss Evalina glared at Frank and Martin. “I’ve heard her say it, too, Georgina.”
“And so have I,” Miss Jane said. “But. . .Aggie hasn’t gone to the Amazon.”
The sheriff threw me a pleading glance.
“All right, we all need to listen to Sheriff Turner now.” I let my smile take all of them in and was relieved to see them relax a little. They could just as easily have gotten upset with me. “So, have you had any luck finding her on any of the flights?”
“Er, not yet.” He frowned and averted his eyes. “But they’re still looking.”
I pressed my lips together. They’d have found out by now if Miss Aggie had been on any of the flights that day.
The sheriff gave me a nervous glance, then rubbed his hands together. “Now, the reason I asked Victoria to come down was to identify the cell phone and a few other items we found in the car.”
“There was more than the cell phone?” He hadn’t men- tioned that on the phone.
He ignored me and glanced around. “Pennington iden- tified the phone but wanted to get a second opinion on the other items.”
I tensed. Aggie seldom left anything in her car. “What items, Sheriff ?”
He stepped over to his file cabinet and unlocked one of the drawers. The minute he opened it, I could smell Chanel No. 5. He sat back down and put a small box on his desk.
“We found these items in and around the car.” He pulled out a capless perfume bottle. “This was next to the car. As you can see, the top is broken. The lid must have rolled away. We didn’t find it.”
“That’s Aggie’s.” Miss Jane’s voice was low.
“We figure it fell out of her purse. I know how ladies are about leaving purses unfastened.” He grinned.
“Aggie would never have left her handbag open. She was too afraid of robbery.” Miss Evaline’s statement was true, especially since the kidnapping.
Sheriff Turner cleared his throat. “Uh, yes, and this here pearl bracelet. The clasp is broken. We found it on the floorboard. It probably fell off, and she didn’t know it.”
Rest in Peace, Miss Aggie (The Misadventures of Miss Aggie) Page 8