by Deborah Camp
“Sabra seems to have left,” she said, and the others looked up from the puzzle. “Her closet and chest of drawers are empty.”
“What?” Alan stared at her, stupefied. “But, that can’t be.” He turned to his wife. “Did she tell you she was going somewhere?”
“No. I assumed she was upstairs. When could she have left?”
“Maybe when we were in the back yard after brunch,” Quintara said. “We sat out there for a good hour watching the hummingbirds dance around the feeders.”
“Oh, yes. That must have been when she left.” Rhema flung out her hands, clearly agitated. “But why did she leave without saying a word to us? That makes no sense. She must be coming back here, Alan. She wouldn’t just disappear like that.”
“You’re right. I don’t understand this.” He turned to Trudy again. “Everything is cleared out of her room?”
“Everything except for hangers and a few things in the medicine cabinet.” Trudy shrugged. “She’s gone.”
Alan fell back in the chair, aging before Trudy’s eyes. He doesn’t need this, she thought, recalling his recent health scare.
“I’m at a total loss about this,” he went on, his face growing as white as his beard. “Why would she leave without letting us know? You didn’t say anything to upset her, did you, dear?”
“Me?” Rhema splayed one hand under her throat. “No! After she came home last night, she went straight to bed. She said she had a headache.”
“That’s right.” Alarm bolted across Alan’s face. “I hope she didn’t get worse and check herself into the hospital! Maybe she didn’t want to worry us, so she left without telling us that she was ill.”
“No, Alan.” Rhema shook her head and her smile was sweetly indulgent. “She wouldn’t do that. She would talk to you first. And she wasn’t ill. She was tired and had a bit of a headache. She probably drank one too many margaritas.”
“Who was she drinking with last night?” Levi asked.
“Some old friends from her high school days,” Rhema said. “Isn’t that right, Alan? Friends from high school?”
“Yes, that’s what she said.”
“Was she one of the popular kids in school?” Levi asked.
“I suppose so.” Alan smiled. “She had several good friends and she dated a few boys, so I suppose she was well liked.”
“She was Homecoming Queen wasn’t she?”
“No, Rhema. She was an attendant.” Alan grimaced. “That’s a sore spot for her.”
“She had her heart set on receiving the title?” Trudy joined in, taking the lead from Levi, anxious to gather tidbits on what had formed Sabra’s personality, what had led to an aberration that very possibly could have created a murderer.
“Yes, she did. But it wasn’t in the stars for her.” He smiled, but it held no joy. Only regret. “Her mother warned her that she wasn’t going to be crowned and that she should receive the title of attendant graciously. Sabra didn’t care for that news.” He glanced up, beseechingly. “Sabra didn’t care for any of Eudora’s insight. Sabra would tell Eudora to keep her opinions to herself and quit ‘bad-mouthing her’ or ‘jinxing everything for her.’ That’s how she felt about her mother’s predictions.”
“Teenagers,” Quintara spoke up in a bored tone. “They think they know everything and that adults know nothing.”
“That’s about the size of it,” Alan agreed. “But it was tough on Sabra. I felt badly for her. I really did. She hated to go anywhere with Eudora because Eudora would stop people – strangers – and tell them about their lives, what was going to happen, who they should avoid, which job they should accept. That drove Sabra nuts! It was very embarrassing for her. She said she wished she could dig a hole and crawl into it when her mother insisted on giving impromptu readings.” Alan lifted his hands in a helpless gesture. “But what could I do? Eudora was so gifted and she was compelled to relate her knowledge to others. She couldn’t keep it all bottled up or she would explode. It was her destiny, don’t you see?” He looked from one nodding head to the next. “Ah, but our sweet Sabra didn’t see it that way. And she has an analytical mind, so it’s always been impossible for her to give any credence to ESP. She’d try to get me to agree, since we are both into the sciences, but I couldn’t.”
“She and her mother didn’t have a good relationship, I take it,” Levi said.
“It was contentious. I believe that, if Eudora were still here, she and Sabra would have a good relationship now. It was those teen years that were the worst. Sabra would scream at Eudora to keep her nose out of her business, and Eudora and I would be forced to ground Sabra or take away some liberty for speaking that way to her mother.” He ran his hand through what hair he had left. “Thinking back to those years, it was a bad time for all of us. And then Eudora died and it seemed my whole world toppled over.”
“Honey,” Rhema crooned, leaning sideways to place her arm across his shoulders for a side-hug. “Don’t worry about this. Sabra will call us and have a perfectly sensible explanation. She probably said something to us about having to get back to St. Louis, or thought she did.”
“Yes, of course.” Relief washed over Alan’s face and he kissed Rhema’s cheek. “You’re right. It’s a misunderstanding. That’s all it is.”
A buzzing emitted from Alan’s shirt pocket and he beamed. “I bet that’s her calling now.” He pulled the thin phone from his pocket and squinted at the readout. “Oh. It’s Sunshine Marmalade. I bet that Sabra is with her. Hello, Sunny. Hey, is Sabra there?” He listened as Sunshine’s high-pitched voice filtered out. “Okay. Oh, really? Thanks for calling and letting us know. Yes, we will.” His brown eyes swiveled to Trudy and Levi. “They’re here with us. I’ll tell them. We’ll see you there. Okay. Be safe.” He ended the call. “She said that one of the nurses she struck up a friendship with called her and said that the doctors are going to bring Billy Rocknell out of his coma tomorrow.”
Levi drummed his fingers on the tabletop. “We should head for Fayetteville, then. Quintara, my love, you’re coming with us.”
Quintara regarded him with haughtiness. “I am? Do you decree it?”
“I miss you madly,” he said, giving her a look that could be poured over a dozen flapjacks. “Ride with us to Fayetteville and release me from my misery.”
Her cinnamon eyes sparkled and one corner of her mouth curled up. “You are such a pretty liar, Levi Wolfe. And I am a sucker for gorgeous men who know how to ladle it on thick.”
Trudy looked from Quintara to Levi, admiration for her husband growing. She had to hand it to him. With very little effort, he’d charmed Quintara into coming along without a squabble. Of course, it helped that Quintara adored him.
“I want to be there when Billy is back with us, too,” Rhema said. “Alan, call Sabra now and ask her where she is.”
“Oh, Right!” He stared at his phone as if he’d just discovered it, then punched in a number. The ringing on the other end floated into the room.
Trudy wondered if everyone was holding their breath. She was, as she listened to every ring, one through ten, until the automation picked up so that Alan could leave a message.
“Sabra, honey, it’s Daddy. Call me back, please. As soon as you can.” He ended the call on a sigh and slipped the phone back into his pocket. “She’ll get back to me. She’s a good girl.”
Trudy jumped a little when the doorbell chimed. Rhema got to her feet and Levi stood, too, ever the gentleman. She went to answer the door while Quintara added one more piece to the puzzle on the table.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Martin.”
“Oh, hello, Lt. Moore. I didn’t know you were in Eureka Springs.”
Trudy was right behind Levi as he strode toward the front door.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“We just got word that Billy Rocknell’s doctors are planning to bring him out of his coma tomorrow.”
“Yes, we heard that, too.” The officer looked past Rhema to Levi, Trudy, and Alan,
who had all joined her in the entryway. She nodded to them, stern-faced and serious as taxes.
“We’re trying to get hold of Sabra and let her know. She’s . . . well . . .” Rhema’s laugh fluttered like a butterfly’s wing and she glanced back at Alan as if seeking help.
“Mrs. Martin, Dr. Martin, I’m here to inform you that we have Sabra Martin in custody.”
Chapter 18
The drive to Fayetteville was excruciating. It seemed that they couldn’t get there fast enough. Sabra was being jailed there to await charges, and then she’d probably be transferred to the Little Rock Detention Facility. Lt. Moore had taken Alan and Rhema into Alan’s office to brief them privately about Sabra’s current situation. When the couple had emerged from the briefing, they’d both were pasty-faced and obviously in shock. All the light seemed to have been sucked out of their eyes, leaving dark holes of disbelief.
They’d agreed to travel to Fayetteville immediately. In the front seat beside Levi, Quintara’s sigh bordered on a moan. “This is horrible, isn’t it? I feel so terrible for Rhema and Alan. I can scarcely believe it. Sabra?” She stared at Levi’s profile. “Did you have any inkling that Sabra was behind these murders?” Her gaze shifted to Trudy in the backseat. “Did you?”
“We both did,” Levi said before Trudy could answer. “But only recently.”
“What tipped you off? Did you sense her murderous intent? I must admit that I felt no such evil in her. She’s a teacher, for God’s sake!”
Levi chuckled. “Being a teacher doesn’t make you a saint, Quintara. Sabra has never kept it a secret that doesn’t believe that ESP is real.”
Trudy’s phone dinged and she fished it out of her purse. “Hey, I have a text from Perchance. She’s already at the hospital and she says that Billy is out of his coma.”
“How can that be? It’s only Friday.” Quintara frowned. “I thought that was going to happen until Monday.”
Trudy read the next balloon. “Perchance said the doctor says he’s doing fine. His relatives have been in to see him and they said he’s still groggy, but recognized them and knew why he was in the hospital.”
“Interesting,” Levi murmured.
“What?” Quintara probed.
“The timing.” He sought out Trudy’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “Billy is out of his coma, earlier than reports we’ve been getting from the hospital, and Sabra is arrested. Makes you wonder if Billy’s coma reversal timetable was being kept under wraps and that, when he was conscious again, he named his assailant.”
Trudy finished responding to Perchance’s text and slipped her phone back into her purse. “I’m glad he’s awake. He has a long recovery ahead of him.”
She looked at Quintara. “Were you around Sabra and Eudora much? Did they get along?”
“Rhema and I knew Eudora for years. She was certainly a gifted psychic, but she could be quite overbearing. She ruled that household with an iron fist, I tell you. Alan never had a say in anything. Whatever Eudora wanted, Eudora got. Sabra was a lot like her in that way, and so, naturally, the two clashed.”
“Clash of the Titans,” Trudy quipped. “
“Eudora was the star and Rhema and I were sort of her attendants or ‘also-rans.’ Still, we would pal around from time to time, especially when we’d meet up at conferences and psychic fairs. When we were at meetings near Eureka Springs, Eudora would have us spend the night at her and Alan’s home. There was tension between Eudora and Sabra. Eudora could say that the earth was round and Sabra would challenge her about it. The sort of sparring that sets your teeth on edge and makes you want to snatch out a plug of Sabra’s hair and stuff it into her bratty mouth.”
Trudy shook her head in amusement. “Please, be blunt, Quintara.”
Levi chuckled. “Yes, don’t spare us your true feelings.”
Quintara flounced her shoulders and tipped up her round chin. Her crystal-encrusted earrings flashed in the sunlight. “I believe that children should respect their elders and keep their lippy opinions to themselves. Especially in front of guests! Alan even bucked up once or twice and told Sabra to quit yelling at her mother.”
“Oh, there was yelling?” Trudy asked.
“Oh, yes! Eudora and Sabra would yell at each other, their faces as red as tomatoes, and their hands doubled into fists. It was quite disturbing.”
“And, yet, you’re surprised that Sabra could get mad enough to kill someone.” Levi’s tone was droll and his expression gently scolded Quintara.
“Getting mad at your mother and wishing she would stop embarrassing you is not nearly in the same category as cold-blooded murder,” Quintara retorted before sadness drifted over her face. “This is going to be so hard on Alan. To think that his daughter might have killed her own mother.” She made a tsking sound. “And then the others after that. Why would she want to hurt old Kathryn, sweet Glenn, and fun-loving Billy? Everyone adores Rockabilly!”
“Sheriff Rocknell probably had tripped her up somehow or she sensed that he had her in his crosshairs.” Levi flipped on the turn signal to exit the highway. A blue sign bore a white H for a hospital exit. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Billy was ahead of all of us in knowing that Sabra was the reason for this mess. I think he might have even steered the police in her direction. He knew Eudora and he went to school with Sabra.”
“You’re right.” Quintara became more animated. “I believe they even dated back then.” She ran her hands up and down the butterfly sleeves of her beet-colored caftan. “There we were, sleeping in the same house with a murderer. It gives me chills to think about it.”
“It’s been nerve-wracking,” Levi said, his raspy voice deepening. “Having someone like her on the loose who could be targeting you or Trudy . . .” He shook his head, his frown finishing the thought.
“Or you,” Trudy tacked on. “I don’t know why you always thought you weren’t on the hit list.”
“Because I’ve been useless. I couldn’t contact the victims and get any information that could help locate the killer.”
“How would that keep you off her radar? She has it in for psychics and you’re one of the top psychics in the whole world.”
They’d reached the hospital and Levi let them out at the entrance while he parked the car in the multi-floored garage. Trudy and Quintara went into the building and took the elevator to the designated floor. As soon as the doors opened, they spotted Sunshine and Chason huddled by a vending machine, each holding cups of coffee. Trudy wondered if Perchance had already given Chason the heave-ho.
“You’re here!” Sunshine rushed forward, eyes wide and shining. “Did you hear? Did you? Billy said it was Sabra who tried to kill him and the police arrested her!”
Chason came toward them more slowly, hanging back a little as he sipped his coffee and smiled at them.
“Yes, we’ve heard.” Trudy glanced down the hall. “Where’s Perchance?”
“She’s in the waiting room with everyone else.” Sunshine rolled her eyes. “Everyone is here! All except for Alan and Rhema. I think they’re going to see Sabra.”
“Yes, that’s right,” Quintara said. “And they’re looking into hiring her an attorney.”
“I feel so terrible for them,” Sunshine said, her happy smile turning upside-down. “But I would have never guessed that Sabra would do such things. I mean, murder!” She turned her saucer-sized eyes toward Chason. “You’re lucky you weren’t one of her victims. But I’m assuming too much. The police officers took her in for attempted murder of Billy. She might not have offed Glenn and Kathryn.”
“You were close to her, Chason,” Quintara said, smooth as silk. “You didn’t suspect her? Nothing seemed off about her?”
“No.” Chason’s smile was tight and forced. “You’ve known her far longer than I have, Quintara. Did you notice any odd behavior?”
“No, but I haven’t been around Sabra that much lately. Certainly, you have a more intimate relationship with her.” Quintara’s eyebrows hitched up an
d down.
“So, how’s Billy doing?” Trudy asked, ending the verbal jousting.
“The reports we’ve received are that he’s coming around more and more,” Chason said, grabbing onto the new conversation thread. “He was groggy at first, but he’s alert now. Still, no visitors except for his aunt, uncle, and grandmother. And they can only visit him for a few minutes at a time.”
The elevator binged and the doors slid open to allow Levi to join them. He stared pointedly for a few tense moments at Chason before edging closer to Sunshine to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. Chason moved away, striding down the corridor away from them. Or, more precisely, away from Levi.
“Hello again, Sunny,” Levi said, staring after Chason with a smirk. “Good to see you. Where’s Perchance?”
“In the waiting room. Come on. You want to grab a coffee first?”
Levi eyed the vending machine and made an “icky” face. “I’ll pass. Trudy? Quintara?”
They both declined and they followed Sunshine to the waiting room where Billy’s relatives, Perchance, Joshua Longfeather, and a few men in sheriff’s uniforms sprawled in plastic chairs or stood near the televisions suspended in the corners of the room. From talking with the others, Trudy gleaned Sabra had called the police, disguising her voice, and asked for the sheriff. She told him that she thought that someone had driven off the cliff ledge at the overlook, and could he please check. While there, he’d left his car running and Sabra had gotten into it and ran him off the edge. He’d gotten a glimpse of her behind the wheel before he went sailing into midair.
“God, that must have been horrible,” Quintara said, giving a shudder. She stiffened as if a thought had lodged in her mind. “Oh, my dear. Did you see it happen?” she asked Trudy in a whisper.
Trudy nodded. “And it was horrible. But not to Sabra. She was proud of herself.”
“Mrs. Wolfe? Mr. Wolfe?”
Trudy spun toward the voice. Lt. Gloria Moore had joined them. She looked official in a three-piece skirted suit, sensible heels, and a pin-striped shirt. “Oh, hello.”