“He’s worried about you,” Nora said. “He thinks you’re being held hostage by Ray.”
“Adam’s wrong,” Donna said flatly. “So are you. Leave me alone, ok? I’m not a hostage.”
“What do I tell Adam? He’s been trying to call you and your cell phone is switched off.”
“Tell him…” Donna hesitated, then took a pendant off from around her neck. With shaking hands, she gave it to Nora. “Tell him I’m returning this. Tell him never to talk to me again.” She paused and then desperately said, “Please. Tell him that, and make sure he forgets me forever.”
*****
Chapter 9
Ray or Adam?
“Did Ray tell you anything interesting?” Nora asked as Sean drove the car back into town. The weather had turned more ominous. The mountains, which had seemed cheerful and lively, now felt foreboding in the distance, with dark clouds hanging over them. Nora traced a single raindrop as it made its slanting way across her window.
Sean bit his lip. “Well…” he said, “He told me that he was thinking it through and that last night he’d seen Mrs. Mullally leave her trophy and scarf at the table. So she couldn’t have been the one to kill Rosemary. He said he saw someone else hanging around near the table and that he now suspects this was the killer.”
“Good,” Nora said. “Then Mrs. M is entirely in the clear.”
“Good for her, yes,” Sean said. “But not so good for Adam. That’s who Ray saw near the table.”
Nora groaned. “Ray’s just trying to cover his own tracks, Sean. I’ve a strong feeling he is the one who killed Rosemary.”
“I don’t know,” Sean said. “I don’t like Ray at all. But at the same time, I don’t like to pin him as my main suspect.”
“Why not?” Nora asked. “He is prone to bursts of violence, he was in the military so he’s strong enough to be that vicious and she was his sister. Isn’t a murder committed by those closest to the victim nine times out of ten?”
“All good points,” Sean said. “But not good enough to get a conviction. Plus, there’s the lack of motive. Money isn’t a motive, Rosemary has no insurance policy that would leave him a fortune, and she has no will. So Donna will inherit everything in the bank account, which is a measly 1,259 dollars. Not a sum to sneer at, but not worth killing over, either.”
“What about…” Nora gulped. “What about the woman Donna saw? Don’t tell me you believe that she was lying?”
“I want to believe that Ray threatened her, or that she’s keeping quiet because she’s scared, but I can’t,” Sean said. “Believe me, Nora, I pressed her on the issue. I assured her that if Ray was threatening her, I’d protect her. She stuck to her statement all the same.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Nora said. “Why would she make up that story and then, just hours later, take it back?”
Sean shrugged. “If she idolized you, maybe she reacted strangely. It can happen. People are weird sometimes.”
“No.” Nora shook her head. “She’s doing it to protect someone. That’s the only explanation.”
“Protect who? Ray? I don’t think so,” Sean said. “She told me herself that Ray would never murder her mother. Besides, if Ray wanted to murder Rosemary, why do it in the middle of a very crowded, public place where he could get caught? He could do it right in the privacy of their huge mansion and make it seem like an accident. No, I’m ruling out Ray unless I get some startling new evidence pointing to him.”
“Then who else can she be protecting…” Nora’s words trailed off. Sean met her eyes and nodded. “Exactly,” he said. “There’s only one other person Donna could be protecting. And that’s Adam.”
Nora felt cold all over. Yes, it all did add up. Adam was desperately in love with Donna. Adam hated Rosemary for the way she treated Donna. So, in a fit of rage, he’d grabbed Mrs. Mullally’s trophy from the table, killed Rosemary and then run away. Maybe Donna had put this together only hours ago. Maybe that’s why she sent Adam a message saying they were breaking up. She couldn’t bear to be with him anymore and she couldn’t bear to report him to the police either.
Nora pictured Adam, the skinny, nervous-looking boy who’d been trying so desperately to reach Donna. Could he really be the murderer? Every instinct told her he wasn’t. Every instinct told her that Ray was involved somehow. Yet, Sean was right. There was simply no evidence for it. Disliking a person didn’t mean that you could brand them a murderer. And liking a person, sadly, didn’t mean they weren’t capable of killing someone.
“Shall I drop you home?” Sean asked. “I’ve got to go interview Adam, in an official capacity this time. Can’t take you along.”
“I understand,” Nora nodded. “But do you think you could drop me off at Mrs. Mullally’s? There are some questions I want to ask her.”
“Sure,” Sean said. “Don’t trouble her too much, okay? She needs to relax and forget about this incident, if possible.”
“You know her, Sean. Do you think she will?”
Sean sighed. “Guess not. Ok, give Maynard my love and tell him not to stick his nose into any garbage cans. I had to rescue him last week when he got his head stuck in one. Silly fellow walked around for an hour with the lid around his neck like a collar.”
*****
Chapter 10
Mrs. Mullally Again
Mrs. Mullally was delighted to see Nora again.
“Just in time for lunch, too,” she smiled, shepherding Nora into the bright, tile-lined kitchen with Maynard delightedly wagging his tail behind them. “I wasn’t planning on eating anything fancy. Just a sandwich. But I’d love for you to join me.”
“Thanks,” Nora said. “I’m actually starving. But I insist on cooking.”
“You spoil me,” Mrs. Mullally smiled.
“And you deserve to be spoiled.” Nora pushed her gently into a chair and opened the fridge. After some consideration, she drew out the red bell peppers, cream cheese and ham. She toasted two bagels and spread a healthy chunk of cream cheese on both, then sprinkled some fresh dill on top. The sliced ham came next, topped by the red bell peppers. Slicing up an apple, she arranged both bagels on a plate and presented them to Mrs. M.
“Thank you, dear,” Mrs. M said gratefully, biting into the bagel. “Mmm, it’s delicious!”
Nora was quiet as she chomped through the bagel, surprised at how hungry she was. Harvey had called earlier and promised to take care of the kitten for the day, so she didn’t need to go back home anytime soon. Mrs. Mullally seemed to be in high spirits now that she’d been cleared of the crime. Nora was glad to see that her appetite was back. Once they were done with the sandwiches, Mrs. Mullally magically produced a tart from the fridge.
“Tina came over to visit and brought me this,” Mrs. Mullally said. “It’s a brown butter raspberry tart. Fancy a slice?”
“Tina’s becoming quite the ace baker, isn’t she?” Nora smiled, helping herself to a fat slice and adding a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on the side.
“She’ll outdo you soon, the way she’s going,” Mrs. Mullally teased.
“I’ve got no problem with that as long as I get to enjoy her creations,” Nora laughed. She gave a happy sigh as she leaned back in her chair, only crumbs remaining on her plate. Maynard sidled up to her, giving her soulful, pleading looks with his large, chocolate-brown eyes.
“Oh, quit it,” Nora said to him. “You’ve probably got a fuller belly than mine the way Mrs. M feeds you.”
In response, he only doubled his pleading look, cocking his head from one side to the other.
“He should be a travel agent with the kind of guilt trips he gives,” Nora said. Mrs. Mullally laughed. “He’s a darling.”
Nora gave in and fed him some ham, then turned her attention onto Mrs. Mullally. “So I wanted to ask you some questions about Frank.”
“Frank?” Mrs. Mullally frowned. “What did you want to ask?”
“What kind of a man is he, for one? A gullible one, obviously, si
nce he fell for Rosemary’s scams.”
“I wouldn’t say he’s gullible, exactly,” Mrs. Mullally frowned. “He has a sharp head for business, but when it comes to human beings, he’s almost incapable of figuring out social cues.”
“Ah,” Nora said. “The stereotypical nerd?”
“Well, more like the stereotypical genius,” Mrs. Mullally said. “He has a knack for inventing things. None of them gave him any business returns, but they’re ingenious all the same. He figured out a way to make furniture that folds up into suitcases and how to make roses rainbow-colored. He even invented a machine that ties shoelaces. Very random stuff.”
“How was he with money?” Nora asked.
“He’s frugal, but only because he genuinely doesn’t seem to need much,” Mrs. Mullally said. “His house was handed down to him, so was the Cadillac. He doesn’t buy new clothes, he doesn’t like to travel and he isn’t interested in parties. So there isn’t much he spends on.”
“And Rosemary? Did she spend his money?”
“I rather thought she did,” Mrs. Mullally said. “Once she started living in his house, he gave her free access to his credit cards. I told him over and over that this was an insanely stupid thing to do but I don’t think he ever listened. She’d buy new clothes, new jewelry, a brand new cellphone, whatever. And he just didn’t seem to care.”
“Wow,” Nora said.
“Yes! Exactly! You or I would be horrified, but this man, let’s just put it this way, if you have a swimming pool worth of money, you don’t notice a few drops going missing here and there.”
“Did Ray and Donna get access to the credit cards too?” Nora asked.
“Maybe through Rosemary but not through Frank,” Mrs. Mullally said. “At least Frank had that much self-preservation. Although…” She hesitated.
“Although what?”
“Although I wonder if that was even Frank’s idea,” Mrs. Mullally said. “It might have been Rosemary who convinced him not to give them access to his bank accounts, so that she could control them. I wouldn’t put it past her.”
“She sounds like a thoroughly unpleasant woman, to be honest,” Nora said. “I don’t mean to-”
“That’s alright.” Mrs. Mullally said. “I thought she was an absolute gold digger, and I told Frank so.”
“Did he ever agree?”
“I nagged him quite a bit, and he finally agreed that he’d get his lawyer to check up on her past.” Mrs. Mullally said. “That was probably why Rosemary came and yelled at me the other day, telling me to stay out of his business.”
Nora whistled. “Wow.”
“Actually, Frank’s lawyer is supposed to be contacting him tomorrow about whatever he found out,” Mrs. Mullally said. “Maybe the sheriff would find that information interesting, too?”
“Sean definitely would,” Nora said. “So would I! Adam mentioned that Donna’s moved to seventeen different cities with her mother in twenty two years. It wouldn’t surprise me if there was something in Rosemary’s past that came back to bite her.” Nora frowned then added, “Or someone…”
“What’s that, dear?” Mrs. Mullally had bent down to scratch Maynard’s ears.
“Nothing,” Nora said. “Just an idea. That’s all. Thanks for lunch, Mrs. Mullally. I have to go!”
“Wait ! Where are you running off to?”
“The bank,” Nora said. “I’ve got a theory that needs testing!”
*****
Chapter 11
The Reluctant Manager
Nora knew the bank manager quite well, having met Jennifer Dooley on several occasions. On some of these, she’d been begging for a loan for the diner and on other, happier occasions, she’d finished paying them off.
Jennifer, a redhead with a round face and gentle smile, had always treated her with courtesy and kindness. On this occasion, however, Jennifer’s face was closed off and stern.
“I’m afraid that’s absolutely out of the question,” Jennifer said. “We can’t do anything of the sort. Why, I could be fired for even considering it!” Dressed in a dark business suit with grey stripes, the only spot of color on Jennifer other than her bright red hair was a pair of blue feather earrings dangling from her ears. She played with them anxiously now as she glared at Nora.
“Now, Jenny, I’m not asking you to show me his account statements,” Nora said. “Far from it. I just wanted to check if there’s any recent activity that one could call…concerning.”
“Nora, I don’t think you understand. I can’t just talk to you about another customer! I think you’d better leave before I call security,” Jennifer said. “This is a very silly thing to do. Even if the sheriff himself came and asked me to do it, I’d have to ask him for a warrant or a sign-off from a judge before I could-”
“Hold on, hold on,” Nora said, making a downward motion with her hands. “I’m not asking you to let me into his accounts.”
“Oh,” Jennifer looked relieved. “I’m glad to hear that, because I wouldn’t let you anyway. It’s the most ridiculous-” Jennifer seemed to be swelling as she launched into a volley of words.
Nora interrupted her hastily. “Jennifer, relax. I’m not saying that. I’m asking you to look. You’re Frank’s bank manager, aren’t you? You’re allowed to monitor his account for signs of fraud, surely! I’m telling you, there’s a high probability that some fraudulent charge has occurred in the last week.”
“Well…”
“Think of it this way - I’m doing the bank a big favor. If Frank’s account has been compromised and you catch it sooner rather than later, everyone stays happy. If you ignore me, and then it turns out that you ended up losing him millions, however…” Nora shrugged. “You can see how that would be to your detriment, surely.”
Jennifer gave Nora a long, hard stare then sighed. “Fine,” she said, getting up from her comfortable leather chair. “I’ll go check. But I’m warning you, Nora, I’m not going to tell you a thing. It’s absolutely forbidden.”
“Sure, I understand,” Nora said. “I’ll just wait right here.” She folded her hands into her lap and leaned back into her chair, staring up at the ceiling. Jennifer gave her a look full of doubt before disappearing into a little side door in the maze of the bank’s back office.
Nora was humming to herself, wondering what the results would be, when the door behind her swung open and Harvey walked in.
“Well, hello,” he said. “Look who’s here!”
Nora swiveled her chair around and grinned up at him. “Are you following me, hubby?”
“Actually, I’m just here to see Jennifer,” he said, leaning down to kiss Nora. “I guess you’re a fringe benefit. What’s up? Why are you here?”
“Oh, just cleaning out our accounts and running off to Mexico,” Nora teased.
“Can I come with you?” Harvey grinned. “Sometimes, I get so frustrated with my clients I feel like running off and never looking back. How about that? Would you like it if I decided to just retire and spend the rest of my life learning how to play piano?”
“I wouldn’t mind at all,” Nora said. “But you’d probably die of boredom within a week.”
Harvey sighed and sat next to her. “Right you are.... I would.” He reached out and caught her hand. “So what are you really doing here, Nora?”
Nora told him the story, leaving out none of the details. Donna’s mysterious behavior, Ray’s anger, Adam’s desperation… all of it combining together with Frank, a man she wasn’t entirely sure was as innocent as he looked.
“I’m not so sure about him myself,” Harvey said. “Adam was sure that it was Rosemary who was pushing Donna to marry Frank. But what if it was the other way around? What if Frank were interested in Donna? What if he was using his money to slowly “persuade” Rosemary, too?”
Nora looked shocked. “I didn’t even think of that.”
Harvey shrugged. “It’s just a possibility. Of course, I could be wrong. Mrs. Mullally is friends with him, after all, an
d she’s generally a good judge of character.”
“She thought you were a sleazeball when she first met you,” Nora pointed out.
Harvey gave her a friendly waggle of his eyebrows. “Well, maybe she was right. Maybe I just changed after I met you.”
Nora smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. “I don’t know. I’m really confused. The best theory I have, so far, is that this mysterious woman was blackmailing Rosemary and that Ray was helping her do it. If that’s the case, maybe Rosemary stole from Frank to pay off her blackmailer.”
“Careful, Nora,” Harvey said. “These people sound like they’re a dangerous sort.”
“I promise I will be careful.” Nora kissed him on the nose. “Thanks.”
The door burst open and Jennifer came hurrying in, her face pale. “Nora, you need to leave now,” she said, not even noticing Harvey.
Nora stood up instantly. “Was I right?”
“I need to call the sheriff,” Jennifer said. “Please, both of you…” She took in Harvey and seemed puzzled as to when he’d arrived. “Both of you need to go now.”
“Sure, we’ll leave.” Harvey took Nora’s arm. “Come on, Nora.”
But Nora was staring at Jennifer as though she’d suddenly seen the light. “Jennifer, your earrings,” she said. “Where did you get your earrings?”
Jennifer looked totally taken aback. “My earrings?” she touched her ears self-consciously. “What does it matter?”
“Just tell me!” Nora exclaimed. “It’s really important!”
“I bought them last week at the boutique on Maple Street, Kimberly’s Lair,” Jennifer said. “Why?”
“Harvey, let’s go.” Nora took off with a puzzled-looking Harvey following her.
*****
Chapter 12
Back To The Mansion
“Nora, are you sure about this?” Harvey asked as Nora rapped her knuckles on Frank’s door.
The Milburn Big Box Set Page 93