6
“Hey, it’s Alice. Call me when you get home. I want to ask your opinion about something.”
Annie deleted the message and immediately returned Alice’s call.
“What’s up?”
“Hi. I just got my new Divine Décor catalog, and it has some darling little cornucopia centerpieces that might work great for the harvest banquet. Want to come look?”
“I might in a little while. I have to call LeeAnn back. She wants some ideas about what to get her husband for his birthday. And of course, Boots is demanding her dinner.”
The cat was already rubbing against Annie’s ankles, making assorted purrs and meows to entice her to come into the kitchen.
Alice laughed. “Naturally, the queen must be appeased. You sound tired. Everything OK?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I went out to Susan’s old house, out on Elm, and met Tom Maxwell.”
“Really? Did you find out anything?”
“Only that he doesn’t much care for nosy strangers poking around asking questions.”
“No. He didn’t actually
say
that, did he?”
“Not in words. But it was the weirdest thing. I’m sure his wife was looking out the window at me, but as soon as I saw her, she disappeared. I wonder why.”
“Maybe she wasn’t dressed for company or something.”
Annie considered that. “I suppose that might be the case. He was all rumpled and everything, as if he’d been asleep. Maybe she had been too. Still, I wish I could have talked to her. Don’t you think it’s weird that nobody in town really knows her? Does anybody ever even see her around?”
There was a shrug in Alice’s voice. “I know I never have. But he doesn’t seem to know anybody outside of his handyman work, either.”
“Ian says he’s met Tom before, and Tom said he knew Pastor Wallace, but what about his wife?”
“Did you ask him about Susan?”
“No, but I didn’t expect him to know anything about her. She was gone long before he bought the house. But now I’m wondering what’s going on with Mrs. Maxwell.”
“Isn’t one mystery enough for you? Or have you given up on the Susan thing?”
“Not hardly. I still want to find her.” Annie nudged Boots out of the way and sat on the couch. “And I’d still like to know who put that note through my mail slot.”
“What did Ian say about it?”
“He’s going to ask Chief Edwards about it unofficially. It’s probably not a big deal.”
“Well, I’d say you had enough on your hands without stirring up things out at Tom Maxwell’s.”
“Still, I’d sure like to talk to Mrs. Maxwell myself. There’s something strange about those two.”
“You don’t think he’s one of those guys who doesn’t want his wife having any friends, do you, Annie?”
“I don’t know. I’d go back out there and find out if I was sure he wasn’t going to be home.”
“I suppose if you knew somebody he was doing a job for, they could tell you when he was going to be working. But I don’t know who.”
“Alice, you’re a genius! Peggy’s already given his phone number to Mary Beth. She can arrange for him to install her cabinets, and while he’s there, I can go make sure his wife is OK.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. That’s a pretty big conclusion to jump to just because a woman doesn’t feel like meeting a total stranger who showed up on her property uninvited. And if there is something going on, don’t you think you should let the police handle it?”
“They already think I’m crazy. Besides, I don’t think he’s holding her hostage or something like that. I just want to talk to her without worrying about him being around. It’s not that scary.”
“But, Annie—”
“I’m going to try to catch Mary Beth before the shop closes. Call you back in a minute.”
She clicked off the phone and clicked it back on again. When she heard the dial tone, she punched in Mary Beth’s number.
“A Stitch in Time. This is Mary Beth. How can I help you?”
“Hey there. It’s Annie Dawson. I’m glad I caught you.”
“Hello, Annie. What can I do for you?”
“Did you ever get your cabinets in?”
“As a matter of fact, they came today. The right model, the right color, and the right amount. It’s a miracle.”
Annie smiled to hear the relief in Mary Beth’s voice.
“That’s great. Do you have somebody to put them in for you yet?”
“I suppose I’ll try that Tom Maxwell Peggy was telling me about since Wally’s going to be busy for a while. Why? Do you know of somebody else?”
“No, actually I was hoping you were going to hire Tom. Um, it’s kind of a weird situation …”
Mary Beth laughed. “It’s not more about Susan Morris, is it?”
“No. Well, not entirely. Remember Peggy said she thought the Maxwells were living in Susan’s old house?”
“Yeah. And?”
“I found out that she was right. I went out there, just for old times’ sake more than anything else, and met Mr. Maxwell.”
“What’s he like?”
“He wasn’t too happy to see me, I’m afraid. I don’t think it was anything personal, but I think he had been napping when I showed up, and he was pretty grouchy.”
Again Mary Beth laughed. “I don’t blame him.”
“Anyway, he wasn’t going to introduce me to his wife, and he was pretty reluctant to say much of anything except that neither of them socializes much. I thought it sounded a little strange, and then, when I was driving off, I’m sure I saw her looking out the window.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing, I guess. Maybe I’m looking for a mystery where there isn’t one, but I would really like to talk to her when he’s not around. I thought maybe you could hire him to do your cabinets, and while he was over there, I could go introduce myself to her. Even if she doesn’t feel like making a new friend, at least I could talk to her and make her feel welcomed.”
“And you want me to hire this monster to work in my shop?” Mary Beth teased.
“I think he’s probably all right. I mean, he’s worked in the area for a long time according to Wally. I don’t think Wally would recommend the guy if he was trouble, do you?”
“No, I think it’s OK. Besides, it’s just some cabinets, not a whole new kitchen or something, right? I’ll give him a call to see when he can come out, and I’ll let you know. And I hope there’s nothing going on with Mrs. Maxwell that shouldn’t be.”
“Me too. Thanks, Mary Beth.”
Boots was considerate enough to wait until Annie had hung up before she began demanding dinner again. This time Annie was sure she couldn’t put her off.
“All right, come on. Anything to quiet you down, pest.”
Annie scooped her up, snuggling her close until they got to the kitchen. Then, with Boots occupied with “a hearty seafood blend,” Annie went back to the telephone and called Alice.
“We’re set.”
“You don’t mean Mary Beth is in on this, do you?”
“Sure. Why not? She’s going to call him up and see when he can come do her cabinets, and then she’ll let me know. It’s a perfect plan.”
Alice made a little huffing sound. “You know, as much as there’s probably nothing out of the ordinary going on over there, this whole thing is making me nervous.”
“Don’t make it into a big deal. I’ll just go over and have a friendly chat with Mrs. Maxwell. If she’s all right, that’ll be the end of it. Maybe she’ll even want to be friends. And if she does need help, I’d hate to think we all stood by and did nothing, wouldn’t you?”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Once Mary Beth tells you when Tom’s going to be at her place, let me know, and we’ll go over to see his wife.”
“We?”
“Yes, we.” There was unshakable determination in Alice’s voice. “You didn’t think I was going to let you go over there by yourself, did you?”
“I don’t think we both need to—”
“No arguments now. Either I go with you, or I call up Tom Maxwell and tell him everything.”
“You wouldn’t.” Annie bit her lip. “Would you?”
“Absolutely. If your snooping gets you into trouble, it will be up to me to get you out of it. Or at least be right there in the middle of it with you.”
“All right, you can come. But we’re not going to make it a big deal. I just want to have a friendly chat with Mrs. Maxwell. Some people need a little extra encouragement, as Gram used to say. Then I will have done what I’m supposed to. Fair enough?”
“Fair enough. You let me know what Mary Beth says.”
“All right. Have a good night.”
Annie hung up the phone and was about to go fix herself a sandwich when the phone rang.
“Hey, Annie. This is Ian Butler.”
“Hi, there. What’s going on?”
“Just wanted to let you know that I talked to Chief Edwards about that note you got. He had Officer Hamilton take a look. Evidently there are two different sets of distinct prints on it and some partials of a third. You and Alice both need to go see him so they can rule you out.”
“All right.”
“Of course, there’s a good chance that those two sets of prints belong to you ladies, but we’ll see. Maybe we’ll get lucky anyway.”
“Do I need to make an appointment with him?”
“No, he said just come by whenever you’re in town. They’ll take your prints, and then take it from there.”
“OK.” Annie hesitated for a second, thinking she’d tell him about her visit with Tom Maxwell, but she decided not to risk another lecture. “Thanks for talking to Chief Edwards for me, Ian.”
“Anytime, Annie. I want to make sure you’re safe.”
Annie smiled as she hung up the phone. It was nice to have someone looking out for her.
****
Alice was busy all the next day, but Annie coaxed her into coming into town with her the day after that, promising to help her look for a new outfit at Dress to Impress, and then to treat her to a cup of coffee after they had gone to see the chief of police.
“I want something to go with that new line of faux opals and diamonds I just got in,” Alice said as they pulled up to the town hall in her little red Mustang. “Something pastel, I think.”
“That’d be pretty. Maybe a lavender or a baby blue.” Annie smoothed her hair in the passenger-side mirror and got out of the car. “Thanks for doing this, by the way. I hope it won’t take too much time.”
“Not a problem. If there’s a weirdo in town, I want to know who it is. Besides, it’s kind of exciting having your fingerprints taken and being part of an investigation.”
Reed Edwards looked more like a lumberjack than a police chief. The thought had crossed Annie’s mind the first time she had met him, while he was coaching the softball team at the church picnic last summer. Now, when he stood up from behind his desk, towering over her as he swallowed up her hand in both of his, she couldn’t help thinking it again. He was definitely the rugged, outdoor type, with a deep tan and sun-bleached hair to show for it.
“It’s good to see you again, Mrs. Dawson.”
He released her hand and took Alice’s.
“Thanks for coming in, Alice, though I didn’t expect to have either of you in here unless it was to get a permit to raffle off something at the church or get donations for the food pantry.”
“I’m sorry it’s not for something a little more pleasant than it is,” Annie said.
Chief Edwards nodded. “Ian gave me the note and told me how you got it. Is there anything else I ought to know?”
“I wish there was something else I could tell you. Do you think someone gave that to me as a serious warning?”
“It’s hard to say, I’m afraid. You’ve been asking around town about this Susan Morris lately …”
“You don’t happen to know anything about her or her family, do you?”
“Sorry. That was well before my time. I did check our records, but there’s nothing on any of the Morrises. As far as I can tell, they were all upstanding citizens.”
Annie frowned. “Although that’s good to know, it certainly isn’t helpful at this point.”
“Anyway, with you making your search public knowledge, it could be that our mystery correspondent knows something he’d rather you didn’t dig up. Or, as Ian said, it could be somebody’s idea of a joke. Either way, we’ll see whether or not this person was careless.” The police chief pressed a button on his telephone, setting off a buzzer in the room next door. “Hamilton?”
“Yes, Chief?”
“We’re ready.”
Roy Hamilton came in with all of his fingerprinting paraphernalia and grinned at Annie.
“So you came to see me after all.”
Annie pursed her lips. “I couldn’t resist.”
Chief Edwards looked from Roy to Annie and back again. “I see you two have met.”
“Briefly but memorably.” Roy winked at Annie and then nodded to Alice. “Hello there. Been keeping busy?”
“As always. Business is booming.”
“That’s great. Well, we’ll try to get this all done quickly. Wouldn’t want you to miss a sale.”
“Thanks.”
“What do we need to do?” Annie asked as Roy took her hand.
“Let me have your first finger, right hand.”
She extended the requested digit, and he rolled it on his ink pad and then on a little card with her name typed on it. The card had designated spaces for all ten fingers, which Roy filled with practiced ease.
“There you go, ma’am. Sorry to have soiled those lovely hands.”
“Thanks for helping us out,” Annie replied. “I just hope this isn’t a waste of everybody’s time.”
“Not a problem.” Roy began the fingerprinting process again, this time for Alice, although he was still directing most of his comments to Annie. “Stony Point tends to be pretty quiet most days. This gives us a little practice on procedure and with much better company than usual.”
Annie kept her smile sincere and impersonal. It was the best way to deal with a flirt.
Finally, Roy handed Alice a paper towel to wipe the excess ink off her fingers. “I guess that’ll do it for now. Anything else, Chief?”
Edwards shook his head. “Just let me know if the prints on the note belong to somebody besides the mayor or one of these ladies.”
“Will do.” Roy gathered up his things and nodded particularly at Annie. “See you girls around.”
“Anything else we need to do?” Annie asked once Roy had gone.
“Not really, but do be careful. Here’s my card. If you get any more notes, any kind of communication at all that seems out of place to you, let me know right away. If you see anybody who’s where he shouldn’t be or who just feels wrong to you, let me know that too. Big or small, we can check it out.”