Bodies & Buried Secrets: A Rosewood Place Mystery (Rosewood Place Mysteries Book 1) (16 page)

“According to this letter, he was an associate of John Cooper himself, and a suitor of Rose Cooper’s. She was John’s sister, and I believe she died quite young. Suzy had a copy of a local history book that mentioned the siblings briefly. They ran the plantation after their parents died, and John was noted to have been an astute businessman who pulled the farm back from the brink of ruin. If you ask me, this letter indicates that Edward McKinney may have had something to do with that.”

Annie couldn’t help but read the letter with a bitter taste in her mouth. She knew it was silly to hate a man that she’d never met, one that had lived centuries ago, but she couldn’t help herself. After reading Rose’s diary and John’s confessional letter, Annie had a pretty bleak opinion of Edward McKinley.

My fragrant Rose,

Although you are far more exotic than any jewel, I humbly offer you this trinket of my affection. This brooch is mere gutter glass compared to your beauty, though it carries with it a certain value all the same.

If you would be so kind as to urge your dear brother to accept my offer of assistance, I am certain that this would only be the first of the dear trinkets I could place upon your breast. I fear that we may not have much time together, for my business up North requires my presence forthwith. However, I shall be keening for you, my dear, and await the day when I shall once again stroll the lovely hills of your plantation.

Yours affectionately,

Edward McKinney

Annie read the short letter again. It reeked of insincerity and bordered on lecherous, in her opinion. There was no date, but she assumed it was sent sometime during the two years accounted for in Rose’s journal. Annie wished that she knew how Suzy’s uncle had come to have it, but with both him and Suzy dead, she knew that she wasn’t likely to find out any time soon.

She passed the letter to Rory, who read it quickly, but gave no indication that he had any previous knowledge about the plantation. “That’s certainly some trinket,” he noted, nodding towards the brooch. “I don’t know a lot about jewelry, but it certainly looks like it could be authentic. Have you had it examined by a jeweler?”

Daniel nodded. “I have, and they informed me that the large stone was an emerald.”

“Oh, my,” Annie exclaimed. “That must make it worth a small fortune.”

Daniel smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Oh, yes. But, that’s not the most interesting thing about it. According to the appraiser, he’s seen one other brooch like this one, and it was also traced back to McKinney. In fact, according to the jeweller, another fellow history buff, it’s believed that these pieces were part of a much larger collection that was being housed at Fort Charlotte in the early 1800’s. There was a raid on the fort, one of many, and the raiders stole the whole lot, along with somewhere in the area of thirty thousand dollars’ worth of gold coins.”

Annie glanced at Rory, who watched Daniel as though he was a rattlesnake about to strike. “That would be worth much more today, wouldn’t it, with gold prices much higher?” Daniel nodded, flashing Annie a knowing grin. “Well, that’s certainly an interesting theory,” Annie replied, “but how can you be so sure that it’s actually a part of that stolen loot?”

Daniel took the letter back from Rory and returned it to his pocket. “Well, now, I can’t be positive, because that was two-hundred years ago. However, while I was digging through some of those old history books, I came across an interesting entry about one Edward McKinley who was hanged for thievery. He had been found with some of the stolen gold coins, though he claimed to have no knowledge of the jewels.”

Annie wished she could get her hands on these history books that Daniel had
just
happened upon. She also wished that he would
just
leave. His droning on about the treasure was both annoying and somehow intimidating. Annie suddenly felt as though Daniel sensed that she knew more than she was admitting, and perhaps his questions were simply meant to trip her up.
Well, I have no intention of telling this disturbed fool anything
, she thought wryly.

Annie glanced out the window and saw that the rain had stopped. The air was heavy with a mist that meant the temperature was rising and the air would soon be uncomfortably humid. She realized that she’d never called Emmett about the mysterious person that Daniel claimed to have seen. She broached the subject again, despite having the distinct feeling that Mr. Tremaine had lied to her face about seeing someone enter the barn.

“Rory, have you seen anyone leave the barn?” Annie asked casually, though the question was fully loaded. Rory had been peering out the back window for the entire time that they’d been in the kitchen, apart from the few seconds it took him to read McKinley’s letter, and he would have easily seen someone opening the heavy barn door from his vantage point.

“Nope, not a soul,” he replied drily. “Maybe you saw a ghost, Mr. Tremaine.”

If Daniel was shaken, he hid it well. “Nonsense. Mr. Tremaine was my father. Please, call me Daniel.”

A flicker of recognition sparked in Rory’s eyes. “Does your father own the big Victorian house over on the ridge? The big yellow one?”

Daniel nodded. “Well, he did own it, but now it’s mine. Dad passed away last year.” He paused for half a second, then added, “Cancer.”

Rory’s jaw clenched slightly. “Man, I hate to hear that. I did some work for your dad a few years ago--he was a nice guy, really down to earth.”

“Thanks, he was. I take care of the house now, though Suzy and I were living in my apartment until she...well, until her murder.”

“Maybe I should call Emmett, just in case someone is lurking around here. I mean, you never know what kind of person could be creeping around. Someone could have heard about the murders and--”

“Murders?” Daniel asked. “Who else was killed here?”

“Emmett--the Chief of Police--thinks that Suzy’s uncle Thomas was murdered, too.” Annie figured that Emmett wouldn’t mind if she shared this bit of information. After all, it would soon be common knowledge once the investigation went public.

“Well, now, that is quite shocking,” Daniel replied. “However, I doubt that anyone would risk sneaking onto private property to snoop around just to get a fix for morbid curiosity.”

“You did just that, didn’t you?” Rory asked, his face expressionless. “I wouldn’t dream of trying to guess what some people would or wouldn’t do.”

Daniel stiffened. “Well, I’ve obviously troubled you for long enough. I apologize if my showing up today upset you in any way, but I just wanted to try and see if I could learn anything else that might help me figure out who killed my fiancée.” He glared at Rory, and then at Annie. “It certainly seems that you don’t want anyone asking questions around here. Perhaps you have something to hide?”

Annie bristled at his implication. “I think it’s time you left, Mr. Tremaine. As I said before, I am sorry for your loss, but you have no right to come into my house and throw out accusations. I’m not sure where you parked your Merc, but I think you’d better get on back to it. You never can tell when another storm is bound to brew up around here.”

Daniel took a deep breath, composing himself before he rose from his chair. “I’m leaving, but don’t you think that you can get away with being so rude, Annie Richards. I know the same lawyers you do, and I’m sure that my reputation holds a great deal more sway than some bitter housewife or her ex-con boyfriend’s do. You keep that in mind when the police start asking you those hard questions.”

As he finished his thinly-veiled threat, Daniel reached up and tugged at his collar. A flash caught Annie’s eye, and she couldn’t help but stare at the brilliant blue stone set in his cufflink. Her mind told her that it looked terribly familiar, and while she tried to think of where she’d seen such a pretty little piece of jewelry, she noticed that the matching cufflink was missing. How typical of the pompous man to be so careless about what looked like very expensive jewelry.

As she watched him stalk away into the woods past her barn, Annie shuddered. The tension of the day had been almost too much for her, and this confrontation with Daniel Tremaine was just icing on one terribly bitter cake.

“That man,” she began, giving up the sentence for an exasperated sigh.

“He’s an ass,” Rory offered helpfully. “Don’t let his pompous attitude bother you. He’s just a realtor, it’s not like he’s anybody big or special.” He continued watching out the window until he was sure that Tremaine was gone, then he turned to Annie with a slight grin pasted on his face. “Go get Devon, and tell your mother to lend me her walking stick.”

“Why?” Annie had no idea why Rory was smiling, and she couldn’t possibly imagine any use he’d have for her mother’s walking stick.

“We’re going to go up on the hill,” he explained. “I’m in the mood to find a grave, and I’d like to do it before Mr. Pompous comes nosing back around here.”

Annie hesitated, but her own curiosity got the better of her. “Let me get my rubber boots. I wouldn’t want to step on any sneaky snakes out there,” and with that, she headed into the parlour to gather the rest of her small family for the big adventure.

The air was beginning to feel sticky with humidity, and the grass beneath her feet was heavy with rain from the storm. Annie noticed that a tree on the edge of her property had come down half-way, and she made a mental note to call someone in to finish bringing it down safely. As it lay, precariously perched on some weaker branches of a fellow tree, it was a serious danger to anyone who might pass underneath since it could fall at any time.

They walked up the hill in a line, with Annie leading, Devon and Bessie following behind her, and Rory bringing up the rear. They walked in silence, and Rory occasionally peered back over his shoulder to make sure that they would have no more unexpected guests show up to bother them. Annie realized that they must look like some sort of odd gang, heading up the hill with various looks of determination (Rory), hesitation (Annie), and the sheer joy of going on a grand adventure (Devon and Bessie), but thankfully there were only a few wildbirds and squirrels there to witness their parade.

The walk up the hill took less than ten minutes, and would probably take much less once she had the land cleared. As it was, knee-high weeds, twisting brambles, and large, jagged pieces of rock covered the slight incline leading up to the more level area that was Annie’s destination. The rugged terrain seemed as though it would be too much for Bessie, but with a little help from Rory and her trusty walking stick, the elderly woman managed quite well. Finally, after more than a few redirections and missteps, they found themselves on a fairly level piece of land.

It was also covered in weeds, but there seemed to be fewer rocks to trip them up and there was even a large section of a fallen tree that provided a place for Bessie to sit and catch her breath.

“Well, now, isn’t it pretty up here!” the elderly woman exclaimed, wiping her forehead with one sleeve. “Once y’all get these weeds and things cleared up, it’ll be much easier to get up here. Annie, you can see for miles from this little hill. You ought to put some tables and chairs up here, maybe build one of those patios for guests to enjoy.”

Annie scanned the horizon, taking in the beautiful view. Her mother was right, it would be a great place to entertain guests. She wondered whether the ground was suitable for gardening, and briefly entertained the idea of growing grapes for winemaking. Her daydream was interrupted by Devon, who had been diligently picking through the brambles, looking for signs of the old graveyard.

“Grandma, I don’t think people want to sit out on top of a graveyard, no matter how pretty it is,” he suggested. “Hey, look at this! Rory, mom, I think I’ve found something.” Devon was pulling at the briars near the base of the fallen tree, but the sharp thorns were pricking his fingertips, causing them to bleed. Rory joined him, donning the gloves he’d brought, and easily pulled away the smallest of the thorny vines. Beneath the briars and tangled weeds, a small cherub statue lay overturned, green with age and very much weather-worn.

Rory lifted the small statue carefully from the ground. “Well, I’d say we’re definitely on the right track.” He surveyed the land around them, admiring the view. “I can see why the Coopers thought this would be a good place for a graveyard. It’s one of the most beautiful spots on the whole property. It’s also high enough so that flooding wouldn’t be an issue,” he added.

“Why would anyone worry about a graveyard getting flooded?” Devon asked, sucking one bloody fingertip gingerly.

“Oh, in the olden days floods could cause the coffins to float up to the surface and wash away the bodies,” Bessie explained before Rory could reply. “My mama told me about a big flood over in Catawba back in 1916. She said it flooded so bad, they were still finding bodies for weeks, sometimes they just found empty caskets,” she added with a shudder. “Lord only knows what happened to the folks that were inside them.”

“That’s awful,” Annie gasped.

“That’s cool!” Devon countered. “I wonder if they became like, zombies or something?”

“More than likely they were just victims of grave robbers,” Rory clarified. “It was pretty common for people to be buried with their jewelry and other valuables in those days.”

“Well, then, I guess it makes sense for John to have buried Rose with some of her jewels,” Annie added.

“Annie, I think it’s pretty clear from John’s letter that he buried a lot more than just a few pieces of jewelry with his sister’s body.”

Annie brushed her hair back from her face and sighed. “We should have brought some hedge clippers or a weed eater up here. I don’t think it would be respectful to just run a bush hog over the graves. How many do you think are buried up here?” She tried to see if she could tell where each grave was by looking for any remaining headstones or even indentions where the ground seemed to dip, but the overgrowth was just too thick. Who knew when this small family cemetery had last been maintained?

“I’m not sure. I’d say at least Rose’s parents and herself, and likely her grandparents. Maybe six or seven graves, but it could be more.” He reached down and pulled up a clump of tangled weeds, which came away easily from the muddy ground. “I think this is a job best done by hand,” Rory said quietly. “It’s more respectful that way.”

Annie threw her head back and peered up into the sky. It was blue and full of sunshine, with no trace of the sudden storm that had taken them by surprise earlier. Birds were singing and there was a slight breeze that almost offset the humidity perfectly. “I guess we can get started today, but we’ll need to go get some more gloves and some gardening tools.”

Rory frowned. “I only have these; the rest are in my truck, which is still being held by the police,” he reminded her.

“Don’t you worry about that,” Bessie interjected. “I have all kinds of gardening gloves and tools back at the house. You know I love my gardening,” she added. “It’s just a shame that we won’t have time to put one out this year. Summer tomatoes taste so good fresh from the garden, and your daddy’s green beans used to feed us all year long.” The elderly woman rose from her perch on the fallen tree. “Rory, you help me down the hill and I’ll show you where they are. I think I’ll get in out of the sun for a bit and make us up a pitcher of fresh lemonade. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

Rory agreed that it did, so he took Bessie by the arm and helped her begin the walk back down the hill towards the house. Devon stayed with Annie, determined to be the first person to spot Rose’s grave. “I can’t believe that we’re on a real-life treasure hunt! I guess we’d never be doing this in New York, huh?”

Annie grinned, despite the grim task ahead. “I guess you’re right about that. I’m just so glad to see you excited about something down here in South Carolina.” She hesitated, watching his face for signs that he didn’t want to talk about it. When she saw nothing other than concentration as he searched through the briars, she continued.

“Dev, I know this move was hard on you. I know you miss the city, and I can’t say how sorry I am that we had to leave your friends behind, but this adventure is for both of us. Your grandmother needed us, and to be honest, I think we needed her, too.” Devon didn’t respond, but his face tensed up in that familiar I-don’t-want-to-talk-about-it teenaged scowl.

She didn’t press the matter, and they worked in silence for a few minutes. It was Devon who pierced the uncomfortable quiet. “Mom, I’m not mad at you for bringing me here.”

It was a simple, short statement, but it was all Annie needed. She felt a lock open and fall free from her heart. Of all the things she had worried about most these past few months--their finances, her husband’s affair before his death, the fact that she had been forced to uproot their tiny, broken family and try to piece it together again so far away from the life that Devon had grown up knowing--her biggest worry had been whether or not Devon would blame her for all of it.

“Oh, honey, you don’t know how much I’ve worried about how all this has affected you,” she replied, dropping the weeds that she’d pulled into a growing pile at her feet. “I mean, I can’t imagine how hard it must have been on you these past few months. Losing your father wasn’t easy on either of us, but for you--”

“Oh, I’m still mad, but not at you,” he clarified. “I’m mad at Dad for dropping dead and leaving us with hardly any money. And I’m mad at whoever is trying to ruin things for us now. I may not have been thrilled about moving down here with Grandma, but our house is pretty cool and Rory is really nice. It’s just not fair that somebody’s trying to mess with that after we lost everything in New York.”

Annie pulled her son into an awkward hug, both trying to avoid getting caught in the briars that surrounded them. “Nobody’s taking anything from us, not if I can help it.”

Devon hugged her back, then released his arms and cleared his throat. She thought she detected the glistening of a tear in the corner of his eye. He was already learning to be a tough guy, and it broke her heart just a little. “Let’s make this old graveyard really pretty again,” he suggested. “I think it’s really cool that there’s so much history in this place. People are going to love it when we get it all fixed up again.”

His optimism made Annie smile. She was so glad that Devon had taken after her side of the family when it came to personality. Looking back on her marriage, it was clear only in hindsight that her husband had been a person with a negative outlook and absolutely no sense of loyalty. Of course, it was possible that her opinion of him was colored greatly by the revelation that he’d been cheating on her for who knows how long before he died and left them in a financial bind, but either way, she was extremely relieved to see that Devon had such a positive outlook on their future here in Coopersville.

They continued pulling weeds, but with only one pair of gloves between them, it was slow going. Annie stopped to inspect the palm of her one ungloved hand (Rory had suggested they each wear one to at least have some protection) and saw that she was getting the beginnings of a blister at the base of one finger. Letting out a sigh, she wondered what could be taking Rory so long.

Devon had fallen silent, so Annie rose from where she was kneeling and stretched her legs and back before calling out to him. “Devon, do you want to go down the hill and see what’s taking Rory so long? Maybe we should both go--my back needs a break.” She turned around, expecting to see her son lounging on the fallen tree or examining some bit of rock in the hopes that it was the grave that they were looking for. She didn’t see either of these things.

Devon was still standing, but someone now stood behind him. A hand covered Devon’s mouth and another was holding a gun, which just happened to be pointed at Annie.

“I don’t think you’re going anywhere, Ms. Richards.” The voice of Daniel Tremaine was different than Annie remembered it being just an hour or so before. Gone was the polite politician-like drawl, replaced by the cold hiss of a liar and a con man. Annie thought very briefly that she’d found a snake in the grass alright--a snake who wore tailored suits and drove an expensive car. And one who, it seemed, had murder on his mind.