There was a message on my machine when I got home. It was Flori. Sometimes she screams into my machine.
“Mabel, someone saw you driving out of the city today. You’d better get home soon or Jake and I will be out looking for you. What are you doing driving out that way anyway? It gets dark sooner now and you’ll end up in the ditch some place. You know your night vision is not what it used to be. And your car isn’t what it used to be either. Jake says it’s not good for it just sitting in your garage like that. He says you should let him take it out for a drive once in awhile to get rid of the carbon dioxide or something. Next time you decide to go gallivanting, you make sure you tell me where you’re going. I don’t know…” Thankfully, the tape ran out.
I hit number one on my phone, which is my speed dial for Flori.
Chapter Sixteen
It was nine-thirty, Tuesday morning, and Reg was in having a cup of coffee. I was happy for the company because Flori was off to her son’s place again. For my own safety and the saving of my eardrums, I didn’t tell Flori where I went the day before. After explaining about a dozen times that my car needed the run and that Jake agreed, she finally let up, although I could tell she was still suspicious.
Reg was drinking his coffee, shaking his head, and muttering all at the same time. “I can’t believe you drove out there, Mabel. Why would you go after I told you not to?”
“Well, I don’t think you specifically said not to go. Besides, you’re only the mayor now, Reg, so I really don’t have to obey you.”
“You never obeyed me when I was a cop.”
I quickly topped off his cup before he could get too carried away.
“I did learn a few things, you know.”
“Really? Like what? Paul Patterson has a big shotgun and he can spit tobacco juice?”
“His name is Paul? I didn’t know that. Somehow it doesn’t suit him.”
“I doubt there’s any name that would suit that character. You still haven’t told me what you found out during your suicide run.”
“Reg, it was not a suicide run. I learned a great deal. For example, did you know that Mrs. Patterson wrote to her children after she left?”
There was a look of genuine surprise on the mayor’s face. “Really? I wonder if that’s why they stopped their search for her body.”
“Could be. Also, did you know that Brady, who lets customers in, is really a very nice boy and would like to be a farmer? Did you know that?”
“I definitely did not know that. Okay, now that’s a shocker. Are you sure about that, Mabel? He looks like one tough cookie to me. I wouldn’t want to meet him in an alley. And why call him a nice ‘boy’? He has to be over forty by now.”
I nodded. “I know but if you’ve been kept at home with a dictator for a father all your life, you don’t ever grow up. Barkley, his twin brother, is another story. Brady says he’s like his dad - real mean. Brady told me that he hopes after his dad dies that he can farm the land. Isn’t that sweet, Reg?”
Reg laughed and shook his head. “Mabel, you never cease to amaze me. Well, now that you’ve been out there and gotten it out of your system, you can stay in Parson’s Cove. Right?”
“I have no other place to go, Mr. Mayor.” I took a sip of coffee. “I still wouldn’t mind checking out Robert Campbell though. If he’s selling drugs, he can’t be a doctor and you know it, Reg.”
Reg nodded. “I’ll have a talk with Jim. Did this Brady tell you that Robert was selling?”
I shook my head. “No, all he said was that every time Robert came out, his father got very upset. I don’t know though; do you think Robert Campbell would chance losing his career by doing something as stupid as selling drugs? Personally, I can’t see it.”
“Well, let’s face it, Mabel, there’s no point in asking Robert or Paul because we won’t get an answer. This Brady is probably our only hope. Maybe he knows more than you think.” He stared at me. “I might take you out with me to talk with him. We won’t take Jim because I think a sheriff would scare him.”
“Reg, that’s a great idea. I’d love to drive out there with you.”
“First of all, I said I might take you. And, secondly, I would drive.” He stood up. “I would drive your car.” He walked to the door. “You can stop grinning because I have no idea when I’ll be able to do this.” He opened the door and looked back at me. “So don’t start making plans behind my back.”
It was strange, but my Tuesday afternoon turned out to be quite profitable. It was a special treat when Ettie dropped in about two in the afternoon. I didn’t tell her about my drive back to her farm. She might not be too pleased if she knew what I was doing. I wished there was some way I could get some information out of her without making her suspicious. Like Brady, she might have more to tell than she realized.
“How’s Robert settling in to his new job?” I asked, very casually.
“Oh, I suppose all right. As you know, he never says anything to me about it. I did ask if there was anything I could do at the hospital. Volunteer work would be nice but he said there wasn’t anything. It would be good for me to have something to do. Don’t you think so, Mabel?”
“Yes, I do. Did he volunteer any information about going out to Patterson’s place?”
After I said it, I wished I hadn’t because she looked so hurt.
“No, he didn’t say a word and neither did I. I get so upset and then I think; I raised a good boy, why do I believe he’s doing something really bad? There has to be an explanation but I can’t come up with one.”
I took her cup and refilled it. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. Why don’t you pick out some books you’d like to read for the winter? Beth Smee brought a bagful in.”
We spent the rest of her visit checking out books and talking about what life was like when we were young.
I spent a quiet evening at home with my cats. The temperature was slipping down to almost freezing for overnight now and my body needed to adjust.
At eight, Flori called to tell me about her day. I couldn’t even imagine so many adjectives to describe one tiny baby.
Chapter Seventeen
Thursday morning, Nathan stopped in during his break.
“Nathan, you are a stranger. Things must be getting very serious with Shayla when you stop coming over for your favorite cup of coffee.”
I wasn’t sure if he blushed because of his girlfriend or because I mentioned coffee.
“None of the above, Mabel. I’ve just been busy. I miss coming over.” He grinned. “Not the coffee though.”
“Thanks so much. By the way, how is the romance coming?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t really think I’m ready to settle down. My mother still needs me too. What do you think, Mabel? You never got married and look how happy you are.”
I stared at him. No one had ever given me as an example of a happy single person.
“Well,” I said. “I don’t know if you can use me as an example, Nathan. Or, even listen to me for advice. I might have been much happier married but there was really no one around to ask me. Do you think you want to spend the rest of your life alone with four cats?”
“I wasn’t thinking of getting four cats. It just seems that you have a good life; that’s all. You don’t have to worry about anyone but yourself. What if I can’t be a good husband? What if Shayla gets bored with me? I’m not very exciting. That’s what I’m saying.”
“You are really down on Nathan Horne today, aren’t you? Maybe you should get your mind on something else for a while. Or, does Shayla want to get married right away?”
He shook his head. “No, she hasn’t said anything. I worry that she might think I should ask her though.”
“Nathan, I am definitely not the person to talk to but my advice is to get busy with something else and see how it goes. Shayla might not be interested in getting married right away either. The only advice I will give though is not to worry about looking after your mother. Trust me; she
’d give anything for you to find a wife.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He laughed. “Maybe that’s an excuse for getting cold feet.”
“Well, don’t think about something so serious right now. What’s happening at the hospital? How is Shayla getting along with Carly?”
He shrugged. “Everything seems to be going pretty well. She said that Carly is actually quite a nice person. And smart. All the time Carly was on the computer and Shayla thought she was just playing games or something, she was wrong. Carly’s been taking courses.”
“Really? Is she still involved in the other line of work that some people here in Parson’s Cove think she’s involved in?”
Nathan turned a pretty pink. “Well, that’s just what I heard, Mabel. I don’t know about her private life, you know.”
I nodded. “No, none of us do so it’s best not to spread rumors. By the way, I’d love to meet Carly. I wonder if there’s a way I could without rousing suspicion.”
Nathan’s eyes brightened. “Why? Do you think there’s something going on with her and Dr. Campbell?”
“Well, personally, I wouldn’t be all that interested but I’m just saying that if I were her, I’d be cautious when it comes to that man.”
“Really?”
I shrugged. “We still don’t know where all his money comes from, remember?”
“Oh, that. Shayla said quite a few folks were talking about it at work, but she heard that he went through med school on scholarships. Apparently he’s very smart.”
“Apparently he must be. I’d still like to talk to Carly though even if it’s just to talk about her brother.”
“Why? What happened to her brother?”
“Nothing. At least, not yet. If he keeps working out there for his father selling moonshine and drugs, he might get into trouble though.”
“How do you know he sells moonshine and drugs?”
“He told me.”
“What? When did you meet him? We are talking about a Patterson, right?”
“Yes. We’re talking about Brady Patterson. He’s Carly’s brother and he’s a very decent man. I wish I could help him before it’s too late.”
Nathan was staring. “Is that where you went when you drove out of town the other day? You were going out to Patterson’s?”
“Yes, that’s where I went. Was everyone in the Post Office staring as I drove by?”
“Mabel, you know that as soon as your car moves out of the garage, half the town knows. So?”
“So what?”
“What happened? What’s it like out there? Do they really meet you at the gate with a loaded shotgun?”
“Yes, they do, Nathan. And as for everything you’ve heard, it’s probably all true. Do not go out there.”
“If it’s like everyone says, how come you got out alive?”
“I had a purpose in calling, Nathan.”
“You wanted to buy moonshine?”
“No, I wanted to see if Mr. Patterson would make wine for me.”
“Are you serious? You really thought old man Patterson would make wine?”
I wish people wouldn’t react to that with such a shocked look.
“It was worth a try. Besides, I wanted to see why our esteemed new doctor would drive out there.”
“And why would he?”
I shook my head. “I don't know; I guess he would if someone were sick.”
“And did you find any sick people?”
I laughed. “Not a one. Why don’t you ask Shayla if she’ll tell Carly to drop in to visit me? She can tell Carly that I want to talk about Brady.”
“Why don’t you just phone her?”
“I don’t have her number and, besides, all you young people have cell phones so there’s no way I can get her number anyway.”
Nathan checked the Coke clock on the wall. “Yikes, I’d better get back. I’ll ask Shayla to get Carly’s phone number.” He was out the door before I could protest. He should know by now that I hate talking on the phone.
My afternoon was quite eventful. Shirley, who is our one and only realtor, came in with a couple of potential homebuyers - not for my store, of course, but it seemed she was trying to sell them on Parson’s Cove. They ‘oo-ed’ and ‘aw-ed’ over everything in the store and bought enough to pay for a week’s worth of coffee beans.
Fifteen minutes before I was going to close up, Carly Patterson walked in. I had never met the young woman but I knew who she was immediately. Maybe it was the sadness in her eyes. Sadness mixed with defiance. Sometimes that’s not a good mixture.
“You wanted to talk to me?” That was all she said. She didn’t sound angry. In fact, she didn’t sound anything. It was almost more of a statement than a question.
I smiled. “Are you Carly?”
“I think you already know that, Mabel.”
“Well, I’ve never met you so I wanted to make sure.”
“You were expecting someone else?”
I shook my head. “No. I wasn’t even expecting you. I thought Shayla would get your phone number for me.”
“Her boyfriend, Nathan Horne, came to see me. He made it sound urgent. It’s about my brother? You wanted to talk to me before you go to the cops or what?”
I didn’t know what to say for a few seconds.
“No, I have no intention of talking to the cops. Why would you say that?”
She sighed. “Well, that’s usually the way it goes.” She put her hand on the doorknob. “I don’t really see why you want to see me then.”
“Carly, can you stay and have a cup of coffee? I met your brother Brady. I was impressed.” I smiled and hoped it was compelling enough to make her take her hand off the door handle. “It’s true you have to get past the long hair and beard.” I laughed and raised my eyebrows. “And the gun.” I waited to see if there could be any humor in those dark eyes. There was a touch. “However, once I got past those, we had a good conversation. Brady is not like your brother or your father. Did you know that?”
She nodded and there was a touch of a smile. Her eyes softened. “Of course, I do. He never was like the others. Brady’s got a tender spot for sure.”
“Did you know he wanted to be a farmer?”
This time her smile was wide enough for me to see teeth. “Yeah, he always loved animals.” She laughed and it sounded like music. Not many people sound like that when they laugh. Most of us really don’t sound all that good. But no matter how awful we sound, we still sound happy.
“Please stay,” I said. “I have some coffee that’s still hot.” I picked up two cups. “I have a couple of chocolate chip muffins too if I can interest you.”
She hesitated for a moment; then I guess, realizing I wasn't a threat, she nodded and sat down in the extra chair.
As I fixed her coffee with the two creams and one sugar as she had asked and put the muffins on a plate, I noticed her looking around the shop.
“You have such a pleasant shop, Mabel. I’m sorry I never came in to look around.” She took her cup and one of the muffins. “I remember when I was a kid dreaming about owning my own bookshop.”
“You dreamt about owning something like this?” I waved my hand to take in everything.
She nodded. “Just like this. I think this is wonderful. I wish I had time to sit and read all those books over there.”
I took a sip of coffee. It was only my fifth cup of the day. “Carly, you come in whenever you like. If you don’t have time to read books, just come and have a cup of coffee with me.”
She smiled. “My mother always talked about owning a bookstore too.”
“Really? Your mother and I would have been best friends. I wish I could have known her.”
She looked down at her coffee. “I wish so too.”
“I’m sorry that she left you so soon, Carly. But I know you must have felt better when she sent the letters.”
Suddenly tears like drops of water ran down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away. “There were no
letters.”
“Yes, there were. Brady told me about them. Your mother wrote to you after she left. Didn’t you know?”
She looked up. Even with the tear-stained cheeks and smudged mascara, Carly Patterson was a beautiful woman. Perhaps not in a way most people might describe as beautiful. She was almost exotic with her dark hair and eyes and her high-cheek bones.
“Brady thinks there were letters but there weren’t. My father wrote them and read them to us. We never saw them or held them in our hands.”
“How do you know that he wrote them?”
“I saw him but I knew they weren’t from her anyway. She would have said she loved us and missed us, but all he said was how much fun she was having and that someday she’d call us.”
“Did your father keep any of them?”
She shook her head. “Oh, no. We watched as he burned them because he said we shouldn’t ever think we had a good mother. She left us and he didn’t want us to talk about her or think about her.”
“So Brady and Barkley believed you received letters from your mother but you never told him otherwise?”
She shook her head.
“Brady was the closest to Ma so I didn’t want to break his heart. He still goes on believing in her.”
“You don’t?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know what to believe. Now that I’m older, I understand. She was in a very abusive relationship. I might have done the same thing.”
“Was your father good to all you kids though?”
“He was strict but he was okay. I guess he treated me better because I was his little girl. Once he took the boys out of school and they started doing illegal things, I left.”
I reached over and put my hand over hers. “I’m glad you did. From what I’ve heard about your mother, I think she must have felt she had no choice but to leave. Maybe she thought it would even be better for her children if she wasn’t there and you wouldn’t have to witness the abuse.”
I let her take a few minutes to finish her muffin and drink her coffee. As soon as she’d drained her cup, I filled it half full and handed it back.
Cold Case Conundrum Page 10