Unleashed (A Melanie Travis Mystery) (23 page)

I’d seen those clothes earlier in the day, and Brian Endicott had been wearing them.

“Melanie, what’s happening? Are you all right?”

I’d forgotten all about the phone. I was still holding it to my ear.

“I’m okay, Aunt Peg.”

“You’re not in any danger? Do you want me to call the police?”

“No.” I gazed at the scene, feeling helpless and sad. “The police are already here.”

“What are they doing?” Her voice was insistent. “Are you at Brian’s house? What’s going on?”

“I think there’s been another murder.” Judging by the way nobody was rushing around trying to help Brian, that seemed like a pretty safe assumption. “It looks like Brian’s dead.”

“He can’t be dead,” Peg cried. “He was supposed to meet you at eight.”

As if the two things were mutually exclusive. I heard her gasp softly and realized that the same thought had just occurred to both of us.

“The murderer was just here,” I said, blowing out a long breath. “I must have just missed him.”

“Melanie, turn your car around and come home this minute!”

“Too late.”

At first the three officers on the scene had been too busy to notice me. Now they did. One left the others and strode purposefully in my direction.

“What do you mean it’s too late?” Aunt Peg demanded.

“I’m hanging up now. One of the policemen wants to talk to me. I’ll be home as soon as I can, okay?” I pressed the end button before she had a chance to protest, then rolled down my window.

As he approached, the officer stepped carefully out of the glare of my headlights. He took a moment to pull out a pen and jot down my license plate number before walking around the side of the car. He had short hair, smooth cheeks, and a direct gaze. The name tag on his dark blue uniform read, OFFICER TANDY.

“Ma’am,” he said, leaning down to look in the window. “Do you mind telling me what you’re doing here?”

“I had an appointment with ...” I waved unhappily toward the body in the driveway. Even though I knew it had to be Brian, I had a hard time admitting it, even to myself. I swallowed hard and started over. “I was coming to see Brian Endicott. We were supposed to meet at eight.”

Officer Tandy stared at me for what seemed like a very long time, then glanced back over his shoulder. “I’d think it would be hard to tell from here. What makes you so sure that’s Mr. Endicott?”

“I recognized the clothes,” I said. “I saw Brian earlier today, and that’s how he was dressed. That is him, isn’t it?”

Tandy nodded. “The housekeeper heard the gunshots and called nine-one-one. She’s already identified the deceased.” He gestured toward the side of the driveway. “Detective Walden is on his way, I’m sure he’ll want to talk to you. If you could just wait here in your car for a few minutes?”

Like I had nothing better to do.

I pulled over and turned off the engine. Officer Tandy was already walking away. I called after him. “Do you mind if I go inside and see about Brian’s dogs?”

He stopped and turned. “I’d rather you stay where you are. Someone will be along to talk to you shortly.”

What Officer Tandy’s idea of shortly meant, and mine, were two vastly different things. I sat in my car and watched the crime-scene unit arrive and stake out its turf. More cars arrived. Official looking people began to mill around. Purchase is a quiet town; it doesn’t see many murders. The Harrison police were out in full force.

While I waited, I called Aunt Peg and gave her an update, which contained no new information except for the fact that I apparently wasn’t going to be home anytime soon. I listened to what I thought at first was the rumble of distant thunder, then gradually came to realize was the sound of Brian’s dogs. The Saint Bernards, in their kennel behind the house, were filling the night with sound.

My fanciful side imagined them mourning their master’s death. Then practicality kicked in. More likely, they were simply protesting all the unusual activity on their property.

More time passed. I wondered what Brian had been planning to tell me about Sam. I wondered whether or not I’d have believed him. All in all, it was not the most productive way to spend an hour and a half.

Eventually someone remembered my presence. By then, I’d gotten out of the Volvo and was sitting on the hood, watching the activity. If it hadn’t concerned someone I’d known, I might have found it fascinating.

Detective Walden seemed young for his job. His face didn’t yet have the drawn, weary look I’d grown accustomed to seeing on men whose careers exposed them to too many things they’d rather not think about. He carefully looked me up and down as he approached, probably storing away an impression for future dissection.

“Detective Walden, Harrison police,” he said, offering a hand. “Officer Tandy didn’t get your name.”

“Melanie Travis.” I shook his hand and released it. “Don’t go too hard on him. He did take down my plate number.”

He started to smile, then seemed to think better of it. “I hear you knew Mr. Endicott. You were supposed to meet him here tonight?”

I explained the somewhat convoluted nature of our relationship, going into enough detail to have Walden nodding with impatience.

“You need to know this,” I said, when he tried to hurry me along. “Because Sheila Vaughn, my fiancé’s ex-wife and Brian’s business partner, died a week ago.”

“How?”

“She was murdered. The state police in Somers are looking into it.”

“State police?” He looked down and made a note. “Where did she die?”

“North Salem. Detective Holloway is investigating.”

“I’ll get in touch with him. What else can you tell me?”

Lots, I thought. It was just a matter of getting my facts in order. I kept talking, and Detective Walden kept taking notes. Occasionally he’d interject a comment or a question, but mostly he just let me ramble on. By the time I was done, he’d filled half a dozen pages in his small notebook.

“By the way,” he asked at the end, “where were you earlier tonight, before coming here?”

“At home. With my aunt, my son, and a very pregnant Poodle. When I left them, I came straight here, and I’m a pretty fast driver, so I doubt there’s any time unaccounted for. Feel free to check with my aunt.” I gave him Peg’s name and phone number. “She’ll be really curious about what happened. I’m sure she’d love to hear from you.”

Walden’s eyes narrowed at that, and I doubted he’d be calling to check up on me. Probably just as well, for his sake.

“What about Brian’s dogs?” I asked, when he was done.

“What about them?”

“He has a number of Saint Bernards here. Both in the house and the kennel out back.”

“Is that what I’ve been hearing?” Walden’s head craned around. “I wondered what that noise was.”

“There are a couple of Pugs, too. Is there somebody here to take care of them?”

“The housekeeper’s inside, I spoke to her earlier. She’s upset, but managing. You might want to check with her tomorrow about making some arrangements.”

“I could talk to her now—”

“Sorry.” Walden was firm. “The house is off-limits for the time being.”

I guessed that meant it was time to go. He didn’t have to tell me twice. Checking my watch, I saw that it was nearly ten-thirty.

Davey had been in bed for more than an hour. Aunt Peg was probably drinking a cup of tea and reading a mystery novel, with Faith curled up at her feet.

Real life. Normal life. I couldn’t wait to get back to it.

I woke up Saturday morning with the nagging feeling that I’d overlooked something. Something important, something I should have paid attention to. Showering, dressing, fixing breakfast, I assessed the various aspects of my life.

Faith, on day sixty-one, appeared calm and was eating normally. Aunt Peg had volunteered to check on Brian’s dogs and see if anything needed to be done. By my reckoning, that would serve the dual purpose of satisfying her need to know what was going on, while conveniently keeping her out of my hair. Davey, running around in his bathing suit before I’d even gotten up, was angling for an afternoon at the beach. With any luck, Sam would be home by dinnertime.

As far as I could tell, everything was under control.

In my experience, that usually means it’s time for all hell to break loose.

Nevertheless, in honor of the beautiful July day, I shrugged off my worries, packed a picnic lunch, and dug out a beach pass I’d pilfered from Aunt Peg earlier in the season. Davey got his swim and Faith enjoyed a long walk around Todd’s Point. Just after four, we arrived home to a blinking light on the answering machine. As usual.

Aunt Peg had called to say that she’d made arrangements with the local Saint Bernard club to find temporary foster care for all of Brian’s Saints, except Boris. That big dog, plus the Pugs, were still in the house, where Brian’s housekeeper was fussing over them like the orphans she considered them to be.

By the way, Aunt Peg asked tartly before hanging up, why wasn’t I at home minding my pregnant Standard Poodle? I considered calling to defend myself, but the second message put that thought right out of my head.

It was from Sam. He’d landed at Kennedy Airport and would be arriving within the hour.

“Yippee!” cried Davey.

My sentiments exactly.

There was just enough time to get most of the day’s accumulation of sand off of Davey and to mix Faith a dinner, which she sniffed politely but didn’t eat, before the doorbell rang. Sam has a key. I hoped he hadn’t lost it. It only took me half a minute to reach the front hall, but by the time I got there, Davey and Tar were already rolling around on the floor.

Sam was standing just outside on the step. For some inexplicable reason, he seemed to be hesitating before entering. Then he saw me and smiled.

He looked tired, and sad, and somehow older than he had only a week earlier. But Lord above, he looked wonderful to me. And in that moment when his eyes found mine and some of his weariness seemed to fall away, the events of the last seven days began to feel, if not all right, at least infinitely more bearable.

Without even thinking, I began to run. I raced down the hallway and didn’t stop until my arms were tight around Sam’s body and my face was pressed against his chest, absorbing his warmth, his scent, and all the comfort that had lately been missing from my life.

His hand came up, fingers tangling in my hair as he held me in place. Sam felt the tiny tremors that rippled through me and soothed them away just by being there. For a long time, neither one of us said anything. Words would have been superfluous to the connection we were somehow re-forming after what seemed like an eternity apart.

Finally, I was the one to step away. Even then, Sam didn’t let go. He let his hand slide across my shoulder and down my arm, grasping my hand and squeezing it solidly.

“It’s good to be home,” he said.

“It’s about time you got back,” Davey said. “You should see how good I can dribble now.”

“Well,” I corrected automatically. “How well you can dribble.”

“Really well,” my son added for emphasis. “Want to see?”

“Maybe in a few minutes.” Sam glanced past us, looking around the living room and hall. “Where’s Faith? Don’t tell me I missed the big event?”

“No, not yet,” I told him. “I put her out in the backyard just before you got here. Poor thing, she’s probably going crazy trying to get in and join all the excitement. Davey, would you go open the back door?”

“Sure.” My son scrambled to his feet. “Come on, Tar!”

“There’s something I have to tell you,” I said as soon as Davey was out of earshot. “More bad news, I’m afraid.”

Sam’s expression sobered. “About Brian? I heard. It’s amazing how quickly the dog world grapevine travels. Someone called Sheila’s parents because of the magazine connection. Like me, they hadn’t seen Brian for years, but it was hard for them anyway, coming on top of everything else.”

“How about you?” I asked as we walked into the living room. “How are you doing?”

“Better. A little.” Sam sighed, shook his head. “It was good that I went to Illinois. Good for me, and for Sheila’s family. I don’t think any of us will ever understand what happened, but it helped us all to face it together.”

“I’m glad. I’ve been worried about you.”

“I’ve been worried about you, too.” As we sat down on the couch, he gathered me closer to him. “What was I thinking? Asking you to look into things and then leaving town as if you were just supposed to handle everything on your own. I’m really sorry—”

“Mom? Sam?” Davey came tearing down the hallway and skidded around the doorway into the living room. “Where are you guys? Something’s wrong with Faith.”

“What is it?” I asked. “What’s she doing?”

Before he could answer, the three of us were already hurrying toward the back door.

“She’s walking in circles and making funny noises. And when Tar and I went outside to get her, she didn’t want to pay any attention to us. I think she’s sick!”

Beside me, Sam was smiling. His grin was infectious, and I laughed as I reached down and gave Davey a hug. “Don’t worry, honey. Faith isn’t sick. That’s perfectly normal at a time like this. She’s having her puppies.”