Be My Valencrime

by Amy M. Reade

  “You’re right, you should go home and rest,” he said. “It’s not a good idea to stay in a place that’s so hectic. So I’m going to advise you to go home—obviously, whether you take that advice is up to you. But I will need you to sign off on something that says I told you to go home.”

  “I’ll sign anything,” Lilly said. “I just want to get started cleaning up this place. So much for shatterproof glass.”

  Before long the paramedics and the ambulance pulled away and only one police officer was left in the store. Bill had been one of the last officers to leave, telling Lilly he would stop by after his shift so he could help clean up. The officer who was left approached Lilly. “Do you plan to press charges against Mary Louise Morrison?” he asked. Lilly exchanged glances with Harry.

  “Do I have to decide that right now?” she asked.

  “No, but we’re still going to bring her in for questioning,” the officer answered. “The district attorney may bring charges against her regardless of what you decide, so be aware of that.”

  “I will, thanks,” Lilly said. The officer left, telling her he’d be in touch after someone questioned Mary Louise.

  Lilly and Harry set about cleaning up the shop. Several of the Main Street merchants sent employees to help with the task, and by lunchtime all the glass had been swept up. Harry had put away all the jewelry displays once the police had allowed it, and someone from the hardware store had brought wood and tools to board up the front window until the glass could be replaced.

  When Lilly had thanked all the helpers who had given their time to clean up, she and Harry were left alone in the shop. Lilly sat down on the stool Mary Louise had thrown through the window.

  “Are you going to press charges?” Harry asked, leaning on the glass display counter beside her.

  She sighed. “I don’t know yet. Part of me says I should and part of me is afraid of what she might do the next time she gets a chance.”

  Chapter 41

  “She’s unstable, Harry,” Lilly said.

  “I know. I should have seen this coming. I blame myself for this whole thing, Lilly. If I had been more straightforward with her, this might not have happened.”

  “It’s not your fault, Harry. You didn’t force her to attack me or to break the window.”

  “Hmm….”

  The events of the day were beginning to take their toll on Lilly. She had managed to keep Hassan out of her thoughts until that moment, but the memory of the look he had given her when he caught her in the lie suddenly loomed large. She closed her eyes and willed herself to stay calm. She had looked forward to the days he would come into the shop and eat lunch with her, but today she would be eating alone. It wasn’t being alone that she minded—it was the reason. She took a deep breath and was relieved when a representative of her insurance company phoned just a moment later to begin discussing the damage to the store window. The agent promised to hurry over to inspect the damage before the glazier got there, so Lilly’s mind would be kept away from thoughts of Hassan, at least for a little while.

  The insurance agent arrived, took the necessary measurements, statements, and photos, and left. She was followed shortly by the glazier, who took more measurements and photos. As much as Lilly wanted to stay in the shop, she had to admit that a nap sounded good.

  “Harry, let’s close up for the rest of the day. Go home and try to relax. That’s what I’m going to do, too.”

  “Easier said than done, boss,” he said.

  “I know. But there’s no use in staying open this afternoon. You’re welcome to hang out at my house if you want, but I’m afraid it’ll be pretty boring.”

  “That’s okay. I’ll head home.”

  Harry left and Lilly called Noley for a ride. When she explained what had transpired at the jewelry store that morning, Noley was horrified.

  “Have you talked to Bill?” she asked in alarm.

  “Yes. He called an ambulance after I told him not to.”

  “Good for him,” Noley said. “You are never going to heal from this concussion, I swear. I’m taking you home and making sure you don’t do another thing today. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  Lilly pushed the End Call button, then, without thinking, dialed Hassan’s number to tell him what had happened.

  “Hello? Lilly?”

  She gasped in horror. “Oh, I’m sorry. Um, I called you by mistake. I’m sorry about that.” She hung up, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

  Not five seconds later, her phone rang. Of course it was Hassan. Should she answer it? She decided to let it ring. If he wanted to, he could leave a voicemail. She was too ashamed to answer his call. Telling him everything was just automatic—she would have to be more careful about that in the future.

  And sure enough, Hassan left a voicemail. “Hi, Lilly. I’m just calling to make sure everything is okay. Give me a call if you need anything.” To Lilly, though his words sounded sincere, the tone of Hassan’s voice radiated distance and coolness. They definitely didn’t have the timbre of someone in love.

  Lilly was miserable.

  She was so miserable that she went right to bed once Noley took her home, but not before throwing away the remainder of the gourmet chocolate Hassan had given her. Just looking at them twisted her stomach into knots—she certainly wasn’t about to eat any more of them.

  She woke up several hours later and padded downstairs quietly. Noley and Laurel were in the kitchen talking. She listened to their conversation from her place on the stairs.

  “It was definitely a rough day for your mom,” Noley was saying.

  “Why would someone break the window like that?” Laurel asked.

  “It all started over a man,” Noley replied. “There are three reasons I think Mary Louise did it. First, she was very angry. Second, she’s not playing with a full deck. And third, she probably knew she shouldn’t have approached your mom and was embarrassed to see Harry right then. As she saw it, the only way to deal with the situation was to get out of there as quickly as she could.”

  After several moments of silence, Laurel spoke.

  “I’m sure you know I’m grounded because I was with a couple girls when they put glue in the locks of a few stores on Main Street.”

  “Yeah,” Noley said in a quiet voice.

  “Do you think this happened to Mom because of what I did?”

  “You mean like some kind of karma?” Noley asked. It was clear from her tone that Laurel’s question had confused her.

  “Yeah, I guess like karma.”

  “I don’t believe in karma,” Noley said. “I don’t think what you did had anything to do with what Mary Louise did at the jewelry shop.”

  “Well, I feel really bad about it. I wish I had never done it, and not just because I’m grounded over it,” Laurel said.

  Lilly had to smile to herself. Laurel was engaging in introspection. Maybe there was a silver lining in the day’s events, after all.

  That night as Lilly, Laurel, and Noley sat down to dinner, Laurel remarked, “Hey, why hasn’t Hassan been over for dinner?”

  Lilly and Noley exchanged glances.

  “What? What’s the matter? Is he okay?” Laurel asked.

  “Hassan has been busy,” Noley said. Lilly knew she was trying to help, but she had learned her lesson about lying—at least for the moment.

  “Hassan and I aren’t seeing each other right now,” she said gently.

  Laurel’s mouth dropped open and she put her fork down. “What happened?” she asked in bewilderment.

  “He’s angry at me,” Lilly said. She may have learned her lesson about lying, but she had already lied to Laurel about the origin of her concussion, so why tell the truth now and risk having her and Hassan mad at her?

  “Why is he mad?” Laurel asked.

  “I lied to him about something,” Lilly admitted. “It was stupid and I won’t do it again. But he found out and he, rightly, doesn’t want to see me right now because I broke his trus
t.” She put her own fork down, suddenly not hungry anymore.

  “I thought you would marry him,” Laurel said quietly.

  Lilly had to swallow around a sob that threatened to burst from her throat.

  “I think we shouldn’t jump to any conclusions about Hassan,” Noley broke in. “I’m sure things will work out, but we just have to give him some time. You two aren’t going to let this delicious dinner get cold, are you?”

  Lilly and Laurel both sighed and picked up their forks again.

  “Honestly, it’s a good thing I’m here,” Noley said. “You ladies wouldn’t eat anything!” Her remark elicited smiles from Lilly and Laurel, and conversation after that was a little more upbeat.

  Lilly’s cell phone rang right after dinner. It was Bill.

  “I just wanted to let you know that we brought Mary Louise into the station for questioning.”

  “And what did she say?” Lilly asked.

  Bill hesitated. “Well, she more or less corroborated the story you gave the police.”

  “More or less? What does that mean?”

  “I can’t really discuss her statement, but don’t be surprised if you are questioned again. She kind of implied that you might have attacked her first.”

  “What?!” Lilly exclaimed. “Of course I didn’t attack her first!”

  “Easy does it,” Bill said. “No one thinks you attacked her first, but the officers in charge of the file can’t let that allegation go without investigating it. They can tell from talking to Mary Louise that she has a screw loose.”

  “Did anyone ask her again about Alice? I can’t help thinking she has something to do with Alice’s disappearance. And if she didn’t actually do it, she must know more than she’s saying about it.”

  “They did ask her again, and she swears she knows nothing.”

  “You just said yourself that they think she has a screw loose.”

  “No doubt she does, but without any proof that she did anything, there’s not much anyone can do. There are no leads that point to her,” Bill said.

  Lilly sighed. “Attacking the boss of a missing woman’s boyfriend isn’t enough?”

  “I’m afraid that’s a bit of a stretch,” Bill replied.

  Then I’ll just have to find a lead myself, Lilly thought.

  “How are you feeling?” Bill asked.

  “Well, aside from the pounding in my head and the stress that comes along with property damage and the business I lose from having to close for a day, really well.” Lilly smirked even though Bill couldn’t see her.

  “Get some rest and I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Bill said. “I talked to Nikki earlier. She said Mom had a good day.”

  Lilly could feel the shame creeping into her cheeks. “I haven’t even called over there,” she said. “I’ll go see Mom tomorrow.”

  It was late when Lilly got ready for bed that night, since she had taken such a long nap during the afternoon. Noley had decided, at Lilly’s insistence, that she would stay at her own house that night. She told her she would be over early in the morning to check on things.

  Lilly was climbing into bed when her cell phone rang. For an instant she hoped Hassan was calling, but when she looked at her phone she didn’t immediately recognize the number.

  “Hello?” she asked.

  A sob erupted on the other end.

  “Who is this?” Lilly demanded.

  “It’s Tracy. You know, from Guy’s Place.”

  “Tracy? What’s wrong?” Lilly asked.

  “Suzanne is gone.”

  Chapter 42

  “What do you mean gone?” Lilly asked. “Where did she go?”

  “She’s missing.” Tracy sniffled loudly. “She didn’t show up for her shift tonight and there was no answer on her cell or at her apartment. Guy asked me to go pick her up and she’s not there.”

  “Have you called the police?” Lilly asked.

  “Yes. I called them and then I called you right away. Do you think this has anything to do with Alice’s disappearance?”

  “I don’t know,” Lilly said. “But it’s a pretty weird coincidence if they’re unrelated. Is there anything I can do?”

  “I don’t think so.” Tracy let out a short sob. “It’s just that Suzanne is my best friend and I’m really worried about her.”

  “I am, too. My brother is on the force in Juniper Junction. I’ll ask him what the police in Lupine are saying about it. He won’t know anything tonight, but by tomorrow I ought to be able to get some information from him.”

  “Would you do that? That would be great. Do you want me to call you in the morning?” Tracy asked. The pleading tone in her voice was heartbreaking to hear.

  “I’ll call you as soon as I talk to Bill,” Lilly promised. “Are you at Guy’s Place now?”

  “Yeah. Guy’s beside himself. Two dancers missing less than three weeks apart isn’t good for business.”

  “There’s a lot more at stake here than Guy’s bottom line,” Lilly said wryly. “The lives of two women are much more important.”

  “You know that and I know that, but try telling Guy.”

  “Hang in there, Tracy. I’m sure the police will find both women,” Lilly said before she hung up.

  She hoped she was right.

  She was afraid she wouldn’t be able to sleep that night, knowing that there was someone out there preying on dancers, and she turned out to be right. When Noley dropped by early the next morning, she let out a cry of dismay when she saw Lilly in the kitchen making coffee.

  “What happened to you? You look terrible.”

  “Suzanne went missing last night,” Lilly said in a monotone.

  Noley gasped. “Have the police found her yet?”

  Lilly gave a dejected shrug. “I doubt it. Tracy probably would have called if they found Suzanne. She’s the one who called me last night to let me know.”

  “I wonder if Alice and Suzanne are together somewhere,” Noley said.

  “As much as I hate that Suzanne is also missing, I do hope they’re together,” Lilly said. “Their chances of escaping or even surviving are better with two of them, I would think.”

  “I agree,” Noley said. “Have you talked to Bill?”

  “Not yet. The case is with the Lupine police, so Bill probably won’t know anything about it yet. But I’ll give him a call in a couple hours to see if he’s heard anything.”

  “Can I do anything around here?” Noley asked.

  “There’s nothing to do,” Lilly said. “That is, unless you want to give me a ride to work. I have a doctor’s appointment this afternoon to see if she’ll clear me to drive. Then, if you don’t mind, maybe you and I could drive out to Guy’s Place so I can get my car.”

  “That’s fine,” Noley said. “Are you sure you’re ready to go back into the shop today?”

  “Yes. The glass company is supposed to replace the window first thing this morning, so I have to be there for that. Then I want to get things back to normal as soon as possible.”

  “I can understand that. Just don’t overdo. I know you, and I know you’ll be tempted,” Noley said with a mocking frown.

  Lilly smiled. “You won’t know what to do with yourself when my concussion has healed and Laurel and I are ready to be on our own again.”

  “Oh, I’ll think of something.” Noley chuckled. “Maybe I’ll reacquaint myself with Bill. I haven’t seen him too much lately.”

  The mention of Bill brought Hassan straight to the forefront of Lilly’s mind and Noley seemed to sense that. She said briskly, “Now, let’s have some breakfast and you need to get ready for work. I brought muffins. Is that coffee ready?”

  Lilly nodded, grateful for Noley’s attempt to redirect her thoughts.

  As soon as everyone had eaten and Laurel was on her way to school, Noley drove Lilly over to the jewelry shop.

  “Do you need a ride to the doctor?” asked Noley.

  “No, she’s just up Main Street. I’ll call you if she’s re
ady to let me drive again.” Lilly crossed her fingers and held them up.

  As soon as she was in the shop, she called Bill. She explained that one of Alice’s co-workers had gone missing and asked if he could find out anything about it. He promised to make some inquiries and get back to her.

  It wasn’t long before Harry arrived, followed almost immediately by the people to install the new window. It took a while, but the result was worth the wait. The man in charge of the installation confirmed that the glass was shatterproof this time, then the crew were on their way. Lilly and Harry bustled around the shop, readying the display cases for the day, and soon the customers started to come in.

  While Harry was talking to a couple who had come in to buy a birthday present for their daughter, Lilly’s cell phone rang. It was Bill. She went into the back so she could talk where it was quieter and more private.

  He didn’t waste any time getting to the point. “I’ve got bad news, Lilly.”

  Lilly froze. “What is it?” she asked, terse and quiet.

  “They found Suzanne’s body this morning.”

  “Oh, no,” Lilly breathed. She sat down hard at her desk. “I can’t believe it.”

  “I’m sorry to have to be the one to tell you,” Bill said.

  “Who found her?”

  “The owner of Guy’s Place.”

  “Guy found her? Where was she?”

  “In the woods behind her apartment building. He says he went there himself to look for her.”

  “How did he know to look in the woods?” Lilly asked.

  “Apparently he noticed some trampled brush and he went to investigate it,” Bill replied.

  “Is he a suspect?” Lilly asked. She hoped he was. There was something about that man—besides his overt racism—that she didn’t like.

  “I don’t know about that. The Lupine police are working the case. I don’t have all the details.”

  “Thanks for letting me know.” Lilly hesitated. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer to the question she had to ask. “Bill, what do you think this means for Alice?”