Fogbound: A Lin Hanna Mystery (6 page)

“It’s me, and
you’re Ellen Clark.
 
Your parents
are John and Hillary.
 
You can drop
the title now, you know.
 
I’m no
longer a principal.
 
I’m retired and
you’re all grown up.
 
Call me Lin,” she
suggested.

Ellen shook her
head.
 
“That’s hard for me to
do.
 
How did you know I was here?”

Lin introduced
Sue and asked if Ellen felt like visiting for a bit.
 
The young girl nodded eagerly, “Yes, I’m
all alone right now, please sit down.”

They perched on
the straight chairs that were the only available seating in the small
room.
 
Lin carefully explained how
she and Sue had found Ellen on the Parkway, and how they’d stayed with her
until help arrived.

“I’m so
grateful,” Ellen said, tears still rolling freely.
 
The doctor here told me I could’ve bled
to death if someone hadn’t helped me.
 
Of course, I didn’t know it was you and your friend.” She choked back a
huge sob.
 
“A deputy sheriff was
just here earlier.
 
He told me they
found Pete.
 
Pete’s dead.” Ellen
broke down at that point.

Lin and Sue sat
quietly and waited for Ellen to regain control of herself before they asked her
any more questions.
 
Finally she
appeared calmer and Lin asked about her parents. “Have your parents been
reached yet?
 
Are they coming home
from their trip?”

Ellen nodded
and swallowed hard.
 
Her crying had
abated for the moment. “They called me from Germany this afternoon.
 
The first flight out they could get
leaves early tomorrow.
 
They won’t
get back to Charlotte until tomorrow night because they have lots of
layovers—they couldn’t get a direct flight—but they should be up
here by Wednesday morning.
 
The
doctor said I could probably be discharged by then, but I’ll have to do a lot
of rehab on this shoulder so my folks will probably want me to leave summer
school and go back home with them for that.” Ellen didn’t seem as if she wanted
to do that.

“It might be
easier,” Lin told her. “I had a bad shoulder injury myself about a year
ago.
 
After surgery I needed a good
bit of help while I was rehabbing.”

Ellen nodded
but didn’t say anything more for the moment.

Sue joined the
conversation, “ Mark Scott, the park ranger working on your case, told us you
couldn’t remember anything about how you were hurt.
 
Have you been able to recall anything
about that day?”

Ellen nodded,
“Just a little.
 
I remember that
Pete and I had a picnic.
 
It was a
pretty day so we went up on the Parkway.
 
I think I took a nap after we ate,” she shook her head, “the next thing
I remember is waking up here in the hospital last night.
 
The nurses had to tell me I’d been shot
and then, just a little while ago, the deputy who came by told me Pete’s body
had been found.”

Sue spoke up,
“When we found you, you were still conscious for a few minutes; you were
looking for Pete but couldn’t find him.
 
Then you passed out and didn’t wake up again, not even when the medics
came.
 
It appeared to us that you
had taken a tumble from the overlook, maybe landed on a rocky ledge about six
feet below.
 
Somehow you had managed
to climb back up to the roadside.”
 
Sue smiled, “you must be a very strong girl.”

Ellen could
only nod.
 
“The deputy really has a
lot of questions for me to answer, but I can’t remember anything.
 
The doctor says I have a skull fracture
and a concussion.
 
He says it may
take awhile but my memories might come back—but sometimes they don’t.”

“I had a
similar experience when I was hurt,” Lin offered. “Eventually I was able to
recall what happened, with Sue’s help.
 
Right now, you just need to try to relax and get well.”

“Was Pete your
boyfriend?” Lin wanted to know more about the other victim.

“Not really,
not yet anyway,” Ellen smiled sadly. “We’d only had a couple of dates.
 
Pete and I went to high school
together.
 
We were always good
friends.
 
I just broke up with
someone recently, and I think Pete asked me out the first time just to help me
get over that.
 
Then we went out a
couple more times.
 
I really liked
Pete.
 
He was a good guy, not like…”
she didn’t finish this sentence.

Lin realized
that Ellen seemed very tired.
 
She
was having a lot to deal with right at the moment.
 
A nurse came in and injected some pain
medication into her IV.
 
She gave
Lin and Sue a look that seemed to say it was time for Ellen to get some sleep.

 
“I think we should go and let you rest,
but if it’s OK with you, we can come back tomorrow sometime.” Lin picked up on
the nurse’s unspoken message.

“Please do,”
Ellen managed a smile. “It really helps to have some company and I’m really
glad to see you again Dr. …er, Lin.
 
Hey, you never did tell me why you are here in Boone.”

Sue spoke up
and explained that they were working as volunteers on the Parkway. “We met last
year when we were both doing similar work out in Arizona.”

“That’s neat,”
Ellen managed a sleepy smile. “I love it up here.
 
That’s part of why I planned to go to
summer school.
 
I wanted to stay in
the mountains.”

Lin reached
over and gave the girl a gentle hug, taking care not to hurt the injured
shoulder. “When you were in elementary school you were ‘Ellie’ if I recall.”

“I still am,
that’s what my friends and family still call me,” the girl responded.

“Then Lin and I
will be back tomorrow, Ellie,” Sue smiled broadly, “Is there anything you’d
like us to bring you?”

“No, I have all
I need,” Ellie replied, “except company, that’ll be the best thing.”

As they left
the hospital Lin questioned Sue, “Do you think she might remember more if you
tried that technique for recall you did with me last year?
 
It really helped me remember important
details of what happened.”

“Perhaps,” Sue
replied, “but she’s not ready for anything like that just now.
 
She needs time to heal and recover from
the trauma.
 
She may even remember
everything on her own eventually.”

“You’re right
and I do hope, for her sake, she recovers quickly.”

“Mark Scott
seemed to think she might need more surgery later on,” Sue recalled. “Her
shoulder and upper arm were pretty well shattered and torn up.”

Lin winced at
the thought, “You’re right, her injury was far worse than mine.
 
Mine was mainly dislocation and torn
ligaments.
 
The surrounding tissue
was bruised but that was all.
 
I
imagine she’ll have a long road to full recovery.”

When they
arrived back at the lodge they found a note stuck to their door.
 
Frank Leonard, their “landlord-to-be”
had called.
 
They decided to return
to the lobby to call him back; the cell signal was stronger there.

“I hope
nothing’s gone wrong with our deal,” Lin groaned as Sue dialed the number.

She watched
anxiously as Sue reached Dr. Leonard.
 
Lin couldn’t hear what he was saying, but Sue was nodding as he
talked.
 
Finally, Sue broke into a
big smile. “That’s great news,” she had a big smile on her face, “I’ll tell Lin
and we’ll make arrangements.”

“It seems that
things are moving along toward our move,” Sue said as she ended the call. “Frank
has been able to get someone lined up to clean the house thoroughly, even the
floors and carpets, by the end of this week.
 
He’s eager to get started on his journey
and has finalized his travel plans for next weekend.
 
He’s leaving town on Saturday evening so
we can move into the house next Sunday if we wish.
 
He wants us to pick up the keys before
the weekend.”

“That’s
wonderful news,” Lin almost shouted. “I’m supposed to work next Sunday but I
feel sure I can swap a day to be off for moving.
 
I’ll talk to Rachel tomorrow.”

“Hopefully,
that will work,” Sue said.
 
“I’m
already off on Sunday but I have no desire to unpack all our junk alone.”

“We need to
celebrate this,” Lin said. “ How about we go down to Applebee’s for a cold beer
before we retire for the night?”

“I’m in” Sue
said with a high five. “This lodge is a great place to stay, but I’m more than
ready to spread out a little even after only a few days.”

Before leaving
to celebrate, they told Sally Mackey that they would be leaving the lodge next
Sunday.

“I’ll miss you
ladies,” Sally smiled, “but I certainly understand your desire for a bigger
place.
 
I’ll enter your room
availability in the computer right now.”

It was almost
midnight by the time Sue and Lin crawled into bed but they quickly fell asleep.

Tuesday evening
saw Lin heading once more into the medical center to visit Ellen.
 
Sue had decided to go out to the house
to pick up their keys and check on a few last minute questions.
 
The hospital was right on the way so Sue
drove and dropped Lin off, planning to pick her up in about an hour.

Ellen looked
much better than she had the day before.
 
She was still quite pale, but her facial swelling had abated somewhat
and someone had helped her put her hair in braids.
 
Lin commented on her obvious improvement.

“I do feel
better,” Ellie said.
 
“They’ve cut
back on some of the pain medication and I don’t feel so sleepy and groggy.
 
My folks just called from the airport in
Charlotte and they’re going to drive up tonight; they’ll be here first thing in
the morning.”
 
This last was said
without much enthusiasm.
 
Lin sensed
that Ellen was not altogether happy that her parents would soon be in town, but
she didn’t say anything.

Instead, Lin
talked about her day on the Parkway and their plans to move into the house the
following weekend.
 
“That’s why
Sue’s not here,” she explained. “She went to get our keys and make sure we have
all the information we need to look after things out there.”

“That’s a great
deal you got,” Ellie remarked. “I know Dr. Leonard, he teaches Art
History.
 
I had him for a class last
fall.
 
He’s really interesting.
 
I may major in art …if I get to stay in
school here…”

Lin realized
that Ellie was close to tears again.
 
She pulled her chair closer to the bed and reached for the girl’s hand.
“Why would you leave school, Ellie? I mean, you may have to take a break while
you recover from all this, but that doesn’t mean you’d have to drop out.”

“No, that’s not
it.
 
I’m a rising sophomore and I
have good grades and all that but it’s my parents.
 
They were already after me to come home
and transfer to UNC Charlotte before this happened.
 
Now my Mom says that’s absolutely what I
must do.
 
I love the university here,
and I really don’t want to leave,” tears were flowing freely now.

Lin tried to
provide some comfort and reason, “Ellie, I’m sure your parents are really upset
about what happened to you this weekend.
 
After all, you were shot, and Pete was killed.
 
I’d be scared too if you were my
daughter.
 
Try to understand.
 
Right now you need to focus on healing
and rehabilitation.
 
You’ll need
help; it makes sense that they want to take you back home.
 
Take things a step at the time.
 
Maybe they’ll feel differently
later.
 
They just want what’s best
for you.”

“I understand
what you’re saying, but that’s not it,” Ellie was clearly upset; she was crying
even harder. “They were already after me to leave here before this ever
happened.
 
They even threatened to
not pay my tuition for the fall term unless I transferred.
 
I was paying for summer school
myself—I have a part-time job, or I did have one, and I had some money
saved—a little bit anyway.
 
That’s why I was going to summer school.
 
I thought if I went home for the summer
they’d never let me come back.”

Lin realized
that there had to be more to this story than Ellie was sharing.
 
Why were her parents so insistent she
change schools if she was doing well academically?
 
She wanted to ask but felt she
shouldn’t.
 
It was up to Ellie to
determine what she wished to share.

Clearly, the
girl wasn’t ready to say anything more.
 
She gradually stopped crying and the remainder of the visit passed with
more casual conversation.
 
Finally,
Lin rose to go downstairs.
 
Sue
would be arriving soon to pick her up.

“Are you going
to be discharged tomorrow?” Lin asked.
 
“Earlier you said you might be going home with your parents when they
came.”

“I think I
might be,” Ellie said, none too happily. “My Mom talked to the doctor.
 
I think she wants me to see a specialist
in Charlotte.”

“I’d love to
see your parents again,” Lin said, “Please give them my regards.”

“Why don’t you
come back when they come?” Ellie asked. “When I told her you’d been by to see
me, my Mom said she’d love to see you again.”

Lin knew she
had the next day off, but she wasn’t sure if she should be there when John and
Hilary arrived.
 
She didn’t want to
invade their personal time with their daughter. “I’ll tell you what,” she
finally said. “I’ll leave you my cell phone number.
 
When your parents come, if they have
time for a visit, they can give me a call.
 
I’m off tomorrow and I’d love to see them, but I’ll certainly understand
if they don’t really have time.
 
Whatever happens tomorrow, you be sure and stay in touch.
 
I’ll want to know how you’re doing.”

***

The next
morning Lin got up early along with Sue.
 
Even with a day off she didn’t sleep in because she wanted to have her
car. She planned to drive Sue over to the Cone mansion and then return to pick
her up later in the day.
 
When Sue
picked up their keys the previous evening, she’d made a list of things they
needed to buy for the house.
 
Dr.
Leonard was storing all of his linens along with some of his better china and
glassware.
 
The dishes didn’t matter
as there were plenty of everyday things available, but they hadn’t thought to bring
sheets and towels from Lin’s place in Charlotte.

“I’ll make a
run to WalMart,” Lin said. “We can buy enough to get by until
 
there’s an opportunity to get back to my
place.
 
Then we can pick up more if
we need them.”
 
They’d also made a
list of grocery staples they wanted to have on hand.
 
These could wait, but Lin thought she
might as well go ahead and shop for them as well.
 
She’d never liked shopping at
“WallyWorld”, but it was really the best choice for this type of shopping in
Boone, and one trip would be quite enough.

She went early,
as soon as she returned from dropping Sue off.
 
The store was open twenty-four/seven and
was less crowded in the early hours.
 
She’d just finished loading her car with sheets, towels, and an
assortment of groceries when her cell phone rang.
 
It was Ellie calling from the
hospital.
 
Her parents were there
and she was, indeed, going to be discharged sometime in the afternoon to return
home with them.

“Mom and Dad
would really like to see you, and we have to wait here for several hours.
 
Could you come by?”
 
Ellie was eager.

“I would love
to see them,” Lin replied. “I just finished some shopping and I need to take
these things out to the house first.
 
I should be able to come in about half an hour if that’s ok.”

“Great, we’re
just waiting on the doctor,” Ellie responded.

Lin drove out
to Dr. Leonard’s and added her purchases to the stash of their stuff that
decorated the corner of his garage.
 
She was back at the hospital shortly thereafter.
 
She was looking forward to seeing John
and Hillary again, but still wondered about their apparent conflict with Ellie
over her attendance at the university here.

The Clark’s
were delighted to see Lin, giving her big bear hugs when she arrived.
 
Ellie looked better, although she was still
quite pale and her injured shoulder was still strapped firmly to her side.
 
She had dressed in loose fitting sweats
and was sitting on the side of her bed as they awaited her discharge.

The four of
them were soon chatting about events past, things that happened when Lin was
still working and Ellie was in elementary school.

Finally, John
turned to Lin with a sly smile, “I couldn’t help noticing that beautiful ring
on your finger.
 
Ellie tells me
you’re getting married again soon.”

Lin realized
she was probably blushing, “That’s true, probably sometime in early fall.” She
continued to tell them more about Neal Smith and how they met.

“I hope you’re
going to have the wedding in Charlotte,” Hillary broke in. “I for one, expect
to be invited, and John and I would love to have a party for you and Neal.
 
You’ll probably want to introduce him to
some of your local friends.”

“That would be
nice,” Lin replied, “The wedding won’t be big, but I do want my friends to be
able to come.
 
I think we may have
it somewhere up at Lake Norman.
 
I
bought a condo there a couple of years ago, and that’s where we plan to live
after we’re married.”

They chatted
amiably about wedding plan possibilities for a few moments and then an aide
appeared with a lunch tray for Ellie.
 
She indicated that the doctor hadn’t yet arrived on the floor to make
his rounds, which meant Ellie’s discharge wasn’t yet imminent.

“I think we
should go somewhere and grab some lunch ourselves,” Hillary offered. “Ellie
won’t be ready to leave for awhile yet.”

“You and Lin go
out somewhere,” John responded, “I think I’ll grab a sandwich from the
cafeteria here and keep my girl company.
 
He winked at his daughter.

Hillary seemed
eager to get away from the hospital.
 
As soon as she and Lin entered the elevator she said, “I’m glad to have
the chance to talk to you alone, Lin.
 
I’m worried about Ellie, and you’ve always had a good head on your
shoulders when it came to kids.
 
I
need some advice.”

“Well, with all
that happened this past weekend—her being shot and her friend losing his
life—it’s understandable that you’d be worried.”

“True enough,”
Hillary said.
 
“Whoever did this has
evidently not been arrested yet, so I am eager to get Ellie away from here, but
it’s more than that.
 
Over this past
year I feel like we’re losing touch with our daughter.”

“That’s often
the case when kids leave home and go to college,” Lin tried to be reasonable,
“I still remember when Lucy and Ben first went away.”

“Well, in
Ellie’s case I think it’s more than just getting away from home for the first
time and feeling independent.
 
If
you don’t mind being a sounding board I’ll explain over lunch.
 
Where should we go?”

“I’ll drive,”
Lin offered, leading the way to her car.
 
She really didn’t know much about the restaurants locally yet, but Sally
Mackey had told her about a local spot called Peppers that wasn’t far from the
hospital and had good sandwiches and a soup and salad bar.
 

They were able
to find an empty booth near the back that seemed quite private.
 
They decided on the soup and salad and
were soon enjoying steaming bowls of clam chowder and crisp, fresh salads.

Shortly,
Hillary turned to the topic that was obviously weighing heavily on her mind.
“I’m really afraid we are losing touch with Ellie.
 
She’s done very well academically, but
her personal life really has me worried. Shortly after she arrived here last
fall she seemed to ‘fall under the spell’ of a young studio art professor she
had for a class.
 
He’s a visiting
professor from some European university and, apparently, quite the free
spirit.
 
I’m afraid Ellie fell in
love with him, head over heels.
 
We
kept telling her it was inappropriate for a faculty member to date a student, but
she wouldn’t listen—said things were different in Europe and we just
didn’t understand, you know the drill.
 
We met him only once.
 
He was
quite handsome and seemed nice enough, but he must’ve been at least thirty, and
he was definitely not someone we wanted Ellie to be with.
 
Things only got worse this spring when
she started modeling for him—in the nude—at his home studio.
 
Ellie won’t talk about it, but I’m sure
they were sleeping together.
 
I’ve
lived in fear she’ll get pregnant.
 
She has so much talent and promise, I just don’t want to see her ruin
her future.”
 
She finally paused in
her story, close to tears Lin could see.

“Ellie told me
she’d recently broken up with someone and had enjoyed having a couple of dates
with Pete Dunne, her old friend from high school.
 
In fact she spoke as if she really liked
Pete.
 
Maybe things are over with
this art professor.”

“Maybe,”
Hillary continued, “we certainly hope that’s the case.
 
Pete was a nice boy.
 
We’d have been happy if she dated him,
but I’m not sure the other thing was entirely over.
 
Ellie told us Stefan, the professor,
kept calling her—even coming by the apartment she shared with two other
girls.
 
Apparently, he wasn’t ready
to let go.
 
I know she went over to
model for him at least once after the breakup.
 
She even mentioned that he had a
confrontation with Pete once at the apartment.
 
In fact, I’m really afraid he might’ve
been stalking Ellie—apparently he was unwilling to accept the fact that
she wanted to break off their relationship.
 
Actually, I’m not sure she really did.
 
I think she might’ve broken up with him
just because her father and I were threatening to make her leave school
here.
 
She said not, she told us she
realized he was using and manipulating her, and she was definitely going to
break it off.
 
I’m just afraid
she’ll not be able to handle the pressure if he persists. That’s why we’re
insisting she leave and come home.
 
Of course, now that she’s hurt, she needs further medical attention, but
we wanted her to leave even before this happened.”