“She remembered, and you had to kill her.”
“I had no choice. Just like I don’t have a choice in killing you, Hope.” Gail nodded and then pulled out a knife from her crossbody bag.
Hope’s heart thumped. Sweat beaded at her temples. Gail had always been one to follow through on her plans, and it appeared she wasn’t going to change now. Hope backed away.
“Donna was agitated when I arrived, and I immediately knew she’d remembered seeing my dad’s truck. She told me so. She also told me she was going to tell the police. When she turned, I pushed her, and she fell. I dragged her out to the garage and staged her suicide.”
“You wrote the suicide note?”
Gail nodded.
“What about Devon?”
“Well, she was going to be a big problem. She was smart, not like that detective who handled her mother’s case. She already knew too much. I had to get rid of her. I lured her out to the old Miller farm by dangling a lead to finding her mother’s body. There was no way I was going to let what happened twenty years ago ruin my life. My dad’s life. You understand, don’t you?”
“No, I don’t. You’ve killed three people!”
“I’ll do anything for my family.”
“You won’t get away with this.”
“I think I will.” Gail stepped forward. “Let’s see . . . oh, I know. You’re in an unfamiliar space, it’s dark, and you’re in a hurry to catch up with your students when you trip and fall down the stairs. And. Break. Your. Neck.”
Chills skittered down Hope’s spine. Gail had the whole scene planned out.
Gail lunged and grabbed Hope’s arm.
Hope stretched her free arm, which held her bag, and swung it at Gail. The bag struck Gail’s head and stunned her enough to lose the hold on the knife and it fell, landing with a clank on the floor. Hope darted around Gail and headed toward the exit.
She didn’t get far. Gail recovered and was right behind her. She yanked Hope by her hair.
Hope elbowed Gail in the stomach and heard her groan.
With Gail feeling the strike, Hope stomped on her foot, forcing Gail to let go of her. As she turned to face Gail, she balled up her hand into a fist and swung at her attacker’s face, striking her. Gail lost her balance and staggered sideways.
She had no idea where this was coming from, but she was in the fight of her life and she had no choice but to fight dirty, using everything she had.
Hope lifted her leg and kicked it into Gail’s midsection, forcing the woman to stumble backward, cursing as she took the hit and fell to the floor.
Hope didn’t care if Gail was hurt or what she was saying. She just needed to get out of the library. She spun around, ready to flee, when she saw Elaine walking down the corridor.
“There you are! I’ve been calling you!” Elaine stopped and propped a hand on her jutted-out hip. “What is going on?”
“Don’t just stand there! Call 9-1-1!” Hope scrambled to grab her phone, not sure if it was damaged.
“Not until you tell me what’s going on,” Elaine said defiantly.
“She was going to kill me! Okay? Never mind.” Hope had her phone in her hand, and aside from its cracked screen, it worked. “I’ll call.”
“Hope!” Ethan’s voice bellowed from the entry, followed by rushed footsteps. “Hope! What happened?”
“That’s what I asked and all I got was attitude,” Elaine said, rolling her eyes.
“It was her! She’s the killer!” Hope pointed to Gail, who was making a run for the knife when Ethan blew past Hope and Elaine to grab Gail. There was very little struggle on his part to get control over Gail and handcuff her.
“She’s crazy! She attacked me!” Gail resisted Ethan’s grip of her arm.
“What kind of class were you running?” Elaine asked, shaking her head.
Hope sucked in several deep breaths before she could think clearly. One of the first thoughts she was able to process was the one to ignore Elaine.
“You need to arrest her!” Gail demanded.
Hope shouldn’t have been surprised by Gail’s attempt, but she was still stunned by the audacity of the woman.
“Nice try.” With her shaky hand, Hope held up her phone. “I recorded everything. I can send you a transcript,” she said to Ethan after she tapped on the app to close it.
“Recording me without my consent is illegal! Isn’t it?” Gail looked to Ethan.
“Tell it to your lawyer.” Ethan read Gail her rights and then called in the incident on his radio. Minutes later, several officers rushed into the room. One took custody of Gail and escorted her out of the building.
While Gail was handed over to the officers, Hope settled on the bench in the corridor and dropped her head into her hands. Her whole body shook, and her mind raced with what-ifs: if if she’d left earlier, if she hadn’t been able to fend Gail off, if Ethan hadn’t arrived when he did, if Elaine hadn’t strolled in.
Don’t go there.
Hope steadied her breathing. Inhale. Exhale. Repeat.
“Hey, how are you doing?” Ethan asked as he squatted down to be at eye level with her.
She lifted her head from her hands and stared into his caring eyes, thankful he’d showed up. Heck, she was thankful Elaine showed up. Never in a million years would she ever have imagined that scenario
“Okay, I think.”
“Do you need to go to the hospital?”
“No. I wasn’t hurt. Is she gone?”
Ethan glanced over his shoulder. “Yes. She’s going to be processed and held until tomorrow morning for her hearing.” He sat next to Hope. “You’ll need to make a statement. But you’re used to doing that.” He offered a smile. His attempt to lighten the mood.
“Yes, I am. Was Gail right about not being able to use the recording I made?”
“Don’t worry about that now. What happened?”
“I was getting ready to leave and she came in. I’d thought Alec had killed Joyce and Ernie had gotten rid of her body. Turns out I was half right.”
“How did you figure it out?” He sat next to her.
“Something Ernie said. He made a comment about older women getting flower tattoos. Joyce had a rose tattoo. Also, he gave Gail her phone when I was there. It was different from the one I saw her with the other day. I bet it’s Devon’s. I had no idea Gail was the killer until she mentioned the knife.”
“Guess you can only go for so long without slipping up.”
“Twenty years.” Hope rested her hand on Ethan’s thigh. “Why did you come here? How did you know?”
Ethan caressed her cheek. “I was at the diner picking up dinner when I saw your class gathered waiting for you. Then I listened to your voice mail and thought I should check on you. Little did I know I’d find you confronting a killer. Again.”
Hope covered his hand with hers and squeezed. “Well, I had no idea that’s what I’d be doing tonight.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
Hope rested her head on Ethan’s shoulder. “I will be.” She stayed there for a little while longer and allowed her mind to stop churning over the incident. With a nudge from Ethan, she picked up her laptop bag from the floor and gathered her belongings. It was time to leave.
“I might have broken my computer tonight.” She hitched the strap of her tote over her shoulder. If it was broken, it was a small price to pay to save her life.
“We’ll worry about that tomorrow. Come on.” Ethan slung his arm around Hope. She felt like he didn’t want to let her out of his control. Not in a bad way, but she’d worried him again by putting herself in danger. If he was a little overprotective, so be it.
“I can’t believe how close I came to almost being killed tonight,” Elaine said in a breathy voice as she approached Hope and Ethan. She’d been questioned by another officer about what she’d seen and heard when she arrived at the library.
“Yes, it was a close call for you.” While Hope didn’t have the energy for Elaine�
��s dramatics, she couldn’t be irritated by her either. It definitely was a conundrum. “Why did you come? I thought you had a date tonight?”
Elaine sighed deeply. “I did. But it was over the first course that I found out he was married. Not divorced, like he led me to believe. I make it a rule not to date married men.”
“Sounds like a good rule.” Ethan’s hold on Hope tightened.
Elaine’s head swayed from side to side, as if she wasn’t completely sure having morals was a good thing. Hope guessed the guy was really rich and walking out on him wasn’t an easy thing for Elaine to do.
“We’ll see.” Elaine’s hand covered her heart. “This near-death experience makes me grateful to be alive. And I don’t think I want to be in stuffy classrooms learning geeky stuff. Thanks, Hope, but I won’t be needing any private tutoring.”
Hope bit her lip to keep from smiling. “Whatever will you do?”
Ethan squeezed her shoulder as a reminder to play nice.
“You know, I was thinking about becoming a real estate agent.” Her shoulders shimmied. “Drive people around and show them houses. How hard can it be? I’m sure Claire will be more than happy to help me.”
“I’m sure she will,” Hope said.
Elaine nodded in agreement. “Well, I must get home. Toodles!” She pivoted and strutted out of the building, leaving the remaining officers to stop what they were doing to watch her leave.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Ethan asked, returning his attention to Hope.
“Yes, I am. I promise.”
“Good. I need to get my officer’s mouths up off the floor.” He stood and headed for Jefferson’s finest.
Hope leaned back and prepared for her next stop. The PD to give her statement. She was there for a couple of hours, giving her statement and then reviewing it before she signed it. The officer who took her statement made a comment: “Quite a night you had.” Now, there was an understatement.
* * *
When she arrived home, Ethan let Bigelow out while Hope put the kettle on the stove and waited patiently for the water to boil. Normally, she busied herself with tidying up a counter or replying to an email while she waited, but not tonight. She stood there at the stovetop and stared at her blue kettle.
The shrieking whistle startled her. She’d drifted back to the moment Gail pulled out the knife.
Was it really the knife she’d used to kill Joyce? She shook off the dark thought and made her cup of tea.
A gentle purr drew her attention to Princess. She settled on the sofa with her tea and the cat. The white puff ball snuggled against her leg and allowed Hope to pet her long, white hair. Bigelow settled beside Hope’s foot when he returned inside and chewed on a biscuit.
She blew on her tea to cool it and in a little while her cell phone chimed again with another text notification. She glanced at the phone. Word spread quickly through Jefferson about Gail and Ernie’s arrests.
She stroked Princess and sipped her tea. All the texts would have to wait until tomorrow. Hope needed time to process what had just happened. She needed to find the answer to the question nagging her. How had someone she’d known since grade school managed to turn into a cold-blooded killer?
Chapter Nineteen
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay while I record the podcast?” Hope asked as she inspected Devon’s podcast equipment all set out on her kitchen table. Her nerves were still frayed from last night’s encounter with Gail, and now her stomach quivered as she thought about recording the podcast.
When she’d called Felice earlier, it had seemed like a good idea. Now? She had her doubts.
“I’m sure.” She dabbed her eyes with a tissue. She’d seemed relieved to hand over the equipment.
After Felice unpacked the box of equipment, Hope gave her the earrings Joyce had left at the antique shop all those years ago. Hope had planned on giving them to her friend at the funeral, but now, alone in the kitchen, she thought it was the right time to give Joyce’s earrings to her daughter. Hope had cleaned the earrings before setting them in a small jewelry box.
Felice cried when Hope explained where the jewelry came from, and she quickly changed out her diamond studs for her mother’s delicate earrings.
“I don’t know how I can ever repay you for everything you’ve done. You almost got yourself killed.” Felice’s gratitude was eclipsed by her grief from her losses, almost exactly twenty years apart. She tucked her stud earrings into the box.
Hope didn’t want anything in return for what she’d done. She was glad justice was finally being served. Even if it took twenty years.
“I thought Gail was my friend. I thought I knew her, but . . .” Felice’s voice hitched. “But I knew nothing about her. How could I not have seen how evil she was?”
Hope reached out and rubbed Felice’s arm. “People like her are very careful to let others only see certain things. I thought we were friends too.”
The discovery of Gail’s true colors chipped away at Hope’s heart. Once again, she had to face the fact that people could be horrible and cruel. Fortunately, those individuals were few and far between.
Felice’s chin trembled. “I don’t know what it says about me, because I believed her lies all these years.”
“Hey, we all did. There’s nothing wrong with you or me. This is all on Gail and her father.”
“I guess you’re right. I also guess it’ll take some time to come to terms with everything that has happened.” Felice adjusted the purse strap on her shoulder. “I should get going. Thank you for recording the last episode of the podcast.”
“It’s my honor to do so. Call me, okay?”
Felice smiled and gave Hope a final hug before leaving the house. With the door closed and Felice heading toward her car, Hope let out a sigh of relief. Though she didn’t say it out loud, she was thankful Felice opted not to stay and listen. She really didn’t want an audience for the recording of the final episode of Search for the Missing.
While Hope had waited for Felice to arrive, she’d done an online search on how to operate the equipment. She’d never recorded a podcast before, but had been thinking about starting one for her blog. Now was her chance to take podcasting for a test drive.
Hope gathered up all the equipment and carried it to her office. The late morning sun streamed into the room, warming the space and reminding her that it was a good day for a good day. She first saw the saying years ago on a sign when shopping the Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market in New Milford. She didn’t get it then.
Now she did.
Last night, she’d come face-to-face with a killer and managed to escape unharmed.
Today was most certainly a good day for a good day.
She tucked her chair under her desk. Her stomach fluttered, creating a cold space threatening to overtake her. She inhaled a deep breath.
I can do this.
Set up on her desk was all of Devon’s podcasting equipment. What Devon used wasn’t fancy or expensive. It was functional and, lucky for Hope, it was easy to get set up quickly.
She was all ready to go. The coldness in her belly grew. It was her nerves, and she was second-guessing her decision. Was recording the episode the right thing to do? Felice had given her blessing. She believed it was a good idea to bring closure to Joyce’s story and to tell Devon’s listeners about the tragic ending of her life.
No pressure there.
Hope took in another deep breath, released it, and then pressed the Record button before she changed her mind. She leaned forward to the microphone.
“Welcome to the final installment of Search for the Missing.” She heard her voice, too soft, too fast. She had to try it again. “Welcome to the final installment of Search for the Missing.” Better. She continued. “I’m Hope Early, in for Devon Markham.”
She paused and swallowed the lump in her throat.
“Devon began this podcast to work through her own emotions about her mother’s disappearance twenty years ago an
d recently had begun her own investigation. She took you along with her as she dug into the case. Sadly, Devon is not here with us any longer to continue this podcast.
“I’m recording this episode because her quest to find out the truth about her mother’s disappearance led to Devon’s own death, which has been classified as a homicide. Gail Graves and her father, Ernie Graves, have been arrested for the murders of Joyce Markham, Devon Markham, and Donna Wilcox, a friend of Joyce’s and my attempted murder.
“So as not to compromise the case that will be brought against Gail and her father, I’m not going to share the conversation I had with Gail last night, or describe what occurred before the police arrived. All of that will come out soon enough.”
Her throat tightened as the struggle with Gail flashed in her mind.
Get it together, girl.
“What I want to tell you today is about the Devon I knew all those years ago. And I want to share with you her mother’s sugar cookie recipe. Yes, I know this isn’t a foodie podcast. Please, bear with me.”
Along with the podcast equipment, Felice had dropped off her mother’s cookie recipe, which she got from her aunt. It seemed fitting to share it with Devon’s listeners.
“Devon wanted answers not only about her mother’s case, but about the other cases she covered on this podcast. She wanted to make sure those women were not forgotten. I’d like to encourage all of you to consider making Joyce’s cookies. While we can’t always find justice, we can bake a little kindness and share it with those around us. Maybe we all can bake the world a nicer place to be, and podcasts like this won’t be needed any longer.”
Sharing her memories of Devon from high school helped Hope become more at ease in front of the microphone. She fell into a natural rhythm and even laughed at a few of the memories.
There were a few stories she’d long forgotten about, but they popped into her head as she continued to talk. There would be a lot of editing to do later, but maybe she’d just put it out there real and raw.
Hope turned off the recording and removed the headset. The session had run well over an hour. Too long for a podcast episode, in her opinion. Once she began talking, she couldn’t stop, and that surprised her. She’d never thought she’d feel so at ease recording. She was one of those people who didn’t like the sound of her own voice, and that made editing her videos challenging for her.
The Corpse Who Knew Too Much Page 25