Thirty-Four and a Half Predicaments: Rose Gardner Mystery #7 (31 page)

“I read about it in Dora’s journal. But why would he react that way?” I wasn’t sure what to make of his reaction. It sure sounded like the behavior of someone wracked with guilt.

“I only know it was a tense situation. Your daddy was planning on quitting, but there was no need because the fire destroyed the factory and he lost his job. Then a week later Dora died. It was too much for him. Dora had drawn up a will just days after your birth. Your uncle and I were shocked to find out she’d made Earl the executor of the estate. The farm was yours and Earl would obviously have let your daddy live there until you turned eighteen.”

“But he brought me to you.”

“Like I told you last June, Rose, he was a broken man.”

The rest I knew. Momma brought Violet to Aunt Bessie and Uncle Earl’s farm and convinced Daddy to get back together with her. She stayed long enough to claim she’d given birth to me, and then the four of us went back to our unhappy home.

Aunt Bessie let out a small gasp. “I’m not sure why I didn’t suggest this before, but if you want to know more about Dora, you should talk to her best friend.”

“What?”

“She and Hattie were really close. I’m sure she can tell you all kinds of things about Dora.”

“
Hattie?
Do you know her last name?”

“No. But I know they went to school together.”

“Thank you, Aunt Bessie. That helps more than you can know.” I hung up and turned to Neely Kate. “We have to go out to the farm.”

“Why?”

“Dora had a best friend, Hattie, but Aunt Bessie doesn’t know her last name. They went to school together, so she’s bound to be in Dora’s yearbooks. And I know exactly where they are. We can also try to look for the second journal.”

“I thought you said that would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.”

“It will be. I still need to try.”

“Okay. But don’t we need to get Muffy first?”

“Yeah. I guess it’s later than I thought.”

Bruce Wayne was working outside when we pulled up to the nursery. He had a large bag of potting soil slung over his shoulder and he looked up at us and waved.

Neely Kate got out of the car and stared at him. “Ding dong. When did Bruce Wayne start getting so buff?”

“Huh.” I studied him, thankful he’d turned his back to us. He’d be horrified if he knew what we were discussing. “I guess all the landscaping work has given him a workout.”

As I got out of the car, a woman came out of the nursery carrying a paper coffee cup. She wore a threadbare tweed coat and a pair of jeans. Her face was dark-complected, and her hair was jet-black and fell around her head in tight ringlets that stopped at her shoulders. She stopped next to Bruce Wayne as he tossed the bag of soil on top of a pile next to the greenhouse. He gave her a shy smile as he took the cup from her.

“Oh, my stars and garters,” Neely Kate murmured. “He likes her. Is that Violet’s new employee?”

I studied them for a minute. The woman watched as he took a sip and then handed the cup back to her before bending down to pick up another bag. Then he turned back to her with a dreamy look in his eyes. Neely Kate was right. Even though I’d never met her, I’d seen her working in the shop in a vision. “Yeah, she must be. I think her name is Anna.” I thought about going over to introduce myself, but then I decided otherwise. “Let’s let them talk for a moment,” I said, grabbing Neely Kate’s arm and tugging her toward the front door. “I don’t want to interrupt them.”

She groaned. “But Violet’s in there.”

“Suck it up and deal with it,” I said as I reached over to pull open the door. I wasn’t excited about seeing my sister right now either. But then I realized she hadn’t been back to the nursery since the day of her miscarriages. “Oh, my word, Neely Kate. I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinkin’.”

Anger filled her eyes. “Don’t you dare apologize. It’s like I told you. I don’t
want
you to handle me with kid gloves. I want to pretend that everything is normal.”

I closed the door and looked into her eyes. “But it’s
not
normal. Nothing’s normal. You have every right to be upset or angry or any other emotion you feel.”

Her anger burned brighter. “You don’t know what I’m going through, Rose Gardner, so don’t you dare preach to me about what I should or shouldn’t be doin’ or feelin’!”

I nodded, properly chastised. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her anger had been replaced with contrition. “No, I’m sorry for yelling at you.”

I gave her a tear-filled smile. “Don’t be. That’s what makes us work. We’re not afraid to tell each other how it is.” My chin quivered. “I have no idea what to do or say to make you feel better, but I’m trying.”

She wrapped her arms around me and pulled me into a hug. “I know and I love you for it. Don’t give up on me, okay?”

I leaned back and searched her face. “Give up on you? What are you talkin’ about? Did you whack your head on something when I wasn’t lookin’?”

She laughed. “No.”

“Neely Kate,” I said, turning serious. “I’m not goin’ anywhere. If anything,
you
should be runnin’ from
me
. You’re the one hurtin’ right now and my family drama’s taking center stage.”

“We all have our family secrets, Rose. Some are just buried deeper than others.” Something in her voice made me think she wasn’t talking in the abstract.

“What’s that mean?”

She forced a smile. “Let’s go say hi to Violet.” She pushed open the door and called out, “Hey, Violet.”

Muffy tore out of the back room, barking up a storm as she plowed into my legs. I bent down and picked her up, rubbing the back of her head. “Hey, girl. Did you miss me?”

She answered by licking my open mouth.

I screeched my disapproval and put her back on the floor.

My sister had been watching us through the window from behind the counter. She walked around the end and gave Neely Kate a soft smile. “How are you doin’?”

Neely Kate’s smile faded. “I’m gettin’ by.”

“My offer still stands, okay?” Violet said, holding Neely Kate’s gaze.

She nodded.

What in the world were they talking about? Violet and Neely Kate were usually so antagonistic to each other, it was odd watching them be nice. I looked out the side window at Bruce Wayne. “It looks like he’s makin’ good progress.”

Violet nodded. “He is. Thanks for loanin’ him to me. Joe was gonna come move the bags, but he’s been tied up with sheriff business.”

“Well, we’re slow, so if you have anything else for him to do, let us know. I’m sure he won’t mind. Business is going to be slow for a while at RBW Landscaping, and he gets stir-crazy with nothin’ to do.”

Neely Kate grinned. “And it looks like he likes the company.”

Violet leaned against the counter. “That’s Anna, my new help. It’s only her second day, but she fits right in. In fact, if she weren’t so great at her job, I might be annoyed. But she’s only been out there twice and both times when we had nothing to do. And it is cold, so I can’t begrudge her takin’ him something warm to drink when he’s workin’ so hard.” She grinned. “And I can’t believe I’m sayin’ this, but they’re cute together.”

I smiled at Violet and she gave me a strange look. “What?”

“You said two nice things about Bruce Wayne. In a row.”

“So?” she asked, sounding defensive. “I can admit it when I’m wrong.”

I expected Neely Kate to offer some jab, but she remained surprisingly quiet.

What was goin’ on with this day?

I shook my head. “We just came by to get Muffy.” My little dog stood at my feet, looking up at me expectantly.

“She can hang out here if you like,” Violet said. “Ashley and Mikey have been missing her. I’m sure they’d love to play with her after school.”

I seriously considered letting her stay. It had been a couple of weeks since she’d last seen the kids and she loved them, but given the threat on Mason’s life, I felt better with her by my side. But I didn’t dare tell Violet any of that or she’d get upset. I cocked my head and smiled. “Can we get a rain check on that? I feel like I’ve neglected Muffy sorely these last couple of days and I’d like to spend time with her tonight.”

“Sure.” But Violet looked unconvinced by my explanation. Thankfully, she didn’t press the issue. “Don’t forget I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow. You said you’d cover for me.”

“Uh…yeah.” I felt bad. I
had
forgotten, but in my defense, she’d asked the week before. “Ten, right?”

“The appointment’s
at
ten. Can you be here by 9:40?”

“Sure. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

As we headed for the door, Anna was coming back in. She was pretty, but in a non-made up way. She kept her dark brown eyes downcast before she lifted her gaze to me. She was about my height but thinner, and I couldn’t help thinking that she needed a good home-cooked meal at Maeve’s.

I held out my hand. “You must be Anna. I’m Rose. Violet’s sister.”

She shook it before quickly dropping it. “Nice to meet you.”

“I see you met my partner Bruce Wayne.”

Her cheeks turned pink. “Yeah.”

As I got back into the car, setting Muffy in the back seat, I found myself hoping that something was really kindling between the two of them. Bruce Wayne deserved all the happiness in the world. And while I was rooting for him, I had more pressing matters to attend to.

I had to verify the identity of my birth father.

I parked Maeve’s car behind the house, hoping I could give Mason a believable explanation if he came home before I took Neely Kate back to the office. Muffy took off running to the front of the house and dove for the bushes, rooting around underneath. I unlocked the front door.

“Huh,” I said, looking around the living room from the threshold. The alarm usually beeped as soon as we opened the door. “I could swear Mason set the alarm before he left.”

“Are you sure?” Neely Kate said, walking up the porch steps behind me.

I walked through the living room into the kitchen and studied the keypad. I hated the alarm system and found it confusing, but Mason always got aggravated when I didn’t set it, which happened often enough given the number of times I’d accidentally set it off. “It says it’s ready. Maybe he didn’t.”

“What if someone broke in?” Neely Kate said. “Someone
is
after Mason.”

I looked around for any sign of a break-in and found none. “How would they know the code? It’s not very likely. It’s half the length of the
Encyclopedia Britannica
. Which is why I’m always screwing it up.”

“Maybe you should call him and check.”

I shook my head as I continued to look around. “He’s in court. He said he’d call as soon as he’s free.” I realized Muffy was still outside, so I went to the front door and called her.

I heard her under the bushes, releasing a slow growl.

I moved to the top of the steps and put my hands on my hips. “Muffy! Leave whatever poor creature you’ve got trapped under there alone and come inside.”

She emerged with her head down, still snarling at the bushes.

“Does she ordinarily do that?” Neely Kate asked.

I sighed. “She had a raccoon trapped under there a few weeks ago. It was next to impossible to get her to come in.” Muffy was still at the bottom of the steps. “Muffy!”

She reluctantly made her way up, one step at a time, letting the creature under the bushes know that she wasn’t one bit happy about leaving it behind.

Once she was inside, I closed and locked the door behind her and turned to Neely Kate. “The yearbooks are in the office.”

I pushed open the French doors and walked around the desk to the bookcases. Mason had taken over the office and it totally reflected him now. An empty coffee mug was on a coaster and he had stacks of legal pads and a few books. His sweatshirt was crumpled in his chair. His mother had given me his forensics trophy from when he’d gone to state his senior year in high school, and I’d put it on a shelf to tease him. I was suddenly struck by how integral he had become to my life and the farmhouse. Parts of him were everywhere. If something were to happen to him, I didn’t think I could stand coming home and seeing things like his sweatshirt as he’d left them…not with the knowledge he’d never come home to wear it again.

“Rose?” Neely Kate asked, worry in her voice.

I wiped a stray tear. “Someone wants Mason dead.” It was one thing knowing that it was true and another considering this his enemies might actually be successful.

“I know, honey.”

“I can’t lose him, Neely Kate.”

She pulled me into a hug. “You’re not going to. Joe’s going to make sure he’s okay.”

I took a deep breath and pulled loose. Here I was whining about hypothetically losing Mason when Neely Kate was grieving an actual loss. “You’re right.” I forced a smile. “He’s gonna be just fine.”

I turned to face the bookcases and went straight to the section that held school yearbooks. I ran my finger along the spines, looking for the years that would fit Dora’s time in high school. I grabbed four books off the shelf and hefted them onto my hip.