Family Matters (6 page)

She’d been no saint herself, pulling some stunts that could have landed her in big trouble. She and Michael had really enjoyed high school and had probably added many gray hairs to their parents’ heads during those years. They had been in love since the 8
th
grade, and until the accident almost two years ago, they had enjoyed life to the fullest. Gracie turned to his picture on the end table. It was the year he had taken a first prize with one of their Brown Swiss cows at Pike Fair. He had the cow’s lead rope in his left hand and was holding up a large blue ribbon in his right. His beaming face made Gracie smile. He had been a very happy man that day. They’d both been very happy. The dairy farm was going well, Gracie was finally pregnant after trying for years, and life was extraordinarily good. She thought they were untouchable, but within three months, she would be a widow and would lose their baby. Gracie closed her eyes trying to erase the memories.

Walking out to the patio, she took a deep, cleansing breath. The night air was cooling, and the humidity seemed less intense. The peepers were performing a lively concert against the thrum of a lone bullfrog, all residents of the small pond beyond
the backyard. Moonlight made the creamy hydrangea blossoms glow. The bushes were heavy with blossoms this year. She would have to remember to cut enough to dry, so she could enjoy them all winter. The sweet scent of stock made the air a touch heady. Gracie absently deadheaded a few snapdragons and daisies that the patio lights shone on, and then padded in bare feet back to the living room. If she could focus on the flowers, maybe the other thoughts would go away. She sipped at the tea left in the mug. It was lukewarm. She dumped it down the sink and put the mug in the dishwasher.

Trouble with Isabelle was only beginning, and the documents Uncle Stan had given her
would be demanded at some point. Maybe Uncle Stan had had second thoughts and told Isabelle what he’d given away. She wasn’t ready to roll over and just give them to Isabelle, but she needed to have a copy of them just in case.

Gracie took all the documents to the spare bedroom that contained her small home office. For the next hour, she carefully scanned in all the newspaper clippings and each page of the diary. There would be time to read the entire diary later, but she wanted to ensure that she had everything Uncle Stan meant her to have. She saved it all in a folder named Misc. Dog Info. Gracie was feeling like a CIA operative. The way Isabelle was behaving, she felt that she should be very careful about everything. Gracie pulled out her flash drive and copied the folder onto it. Her motto was “Always Have Plan B.” You never knew when it would come in handy.

Gracie stared out her kitchen window, absently buttering an English muffin. Joe Youngers was pedaling into the driveway on a black mountain bike. It was 6:45 a.m. He was early, and that was a good sign. Jim’s Explorer was right behind Joe announcing its arrival with a rumble. The muffler was definitely worse. Who knew when he’d get it fixed. The day was overcast, but the clouds were breaking up, and the sun was making an attempt to shine. She’d already decided to let Jim handle the training, to give Joe a fair chance. Gracie had a million errands to do today and phone calls to make. With some luck, she’d be able to disappear for a few hours. Maybe she could even get her hair cut. She needed a trim in the worst way.

Jim jumped out of the Explorer and with a bag in his hand. “Are you decent?” he yelled as he strode up the bluestone path and up the steps.

Gracie opened the door. “Yes, as decent as it gets. What’s that?”

“It’s a peace offering. They’re warm and the first batch out of the oven at Midge’s.”

Gracie inhaled deeply, enjoying the cinnamon and the brown sugar syrup smells wafting from the bag as Jim pulled out the Styrofoam container.

“Not necessary, but Midge’s sweet rolls are always welcome. I’ve got coffee ready, if you want some.”

“I’ll be back in a few minutes. I’d better get Joe started on feeding the dogs and cleaning runs.”

“OK. We can plan out the day when you get back.”

Jim slammed the door with his usual enthusiasm and half-jogged out to the kennels. Joe was standing at the door with hands shoved in his pockets. Gracie looked at the English muffin and the white container. It was no contest. She tossed the muffin into Haley’s dish, opened the container, and pulled out a warm, gooey roll. It was dripping with pecans and brown sugar syrup. Haley eagerly gulped down the muffin, and Gracie sat down at the kitchen bar to go over the appointment book and enjoy her breakfast. There seemed to be a break in the action by the looks of the schedule. There were four grooming appointments and only two pickups and two arrivals. It wasn’t great for business, but all of that could change quickly. Marian would be in at 9:00 along with Beth. If it wasn’t too hectic, she should be able to do some grocery shopping, banking, and talk with Deputy Stevens. She might even be able to see Uncle Stan today. Haley woofed as Jim came through the kitchen door.

“Hey, Haley.”
Haley greeted Jim with a wagging tail and paws on his chest.

“Get off, Haley. Jim, I swear you’re the worst influence on her. Just when I think she’s over jumping on people, you encourage her.”

Jim pushed Haley down and rubbed her backside. “We’d better behave, girl, or we’ll be in the doghouse together.” He grabbed a mug off the hook under the row of oak cupboards and poured himself a cup of coffee.

“I’ve got him going on the runs. We’ll see how quick he picks up the routine.”

“It’s not rocket science, but does have to be done right. We’re building a pretty good reputation, and I don’t want any problems. We’ve had enough of them for this week.”

“I know, Gracie. I don’t want that either. Like I said, we’ll give him a week. What’s the schedule look like for today?” Jim sat down next to her and pulled the
appointment book over. It was a black three-ring binder with the daily appointments printed out.

“It’s really pretty light, so far. As long as it’s still calm by nine o’clock, I’ll do my errands this morning. I think Marian and Beth can handle the phones and the grooming. They seem to have hit it off.”

“Marian can get along with anybody,
and
she’s a great teacher. She’ll have Beth trained in no time. If it’s going to be quiet, it’ll give me a chance to really go over things with Joe. I want him trained ASAP. I’m still planning on that St. Lawrence fishing trip in August.”

“I know. I just hope Joe works out. I don’t want to be looking for somebody or training another newbie while you’re on vacation.”

“Not my first choice either. We’ll hope for the best.” He finished the coffee and tore off a piece of roll, dripping syrup on the granite counter. “These are always so messy,” he complained, grabbing a paper towel and wiping up the sticky puddle.

“Yeah, but they’re so good.” Gracie licked her fingers and poured another cup of coffee.

“You were going to tell me about your dark family secret that Isabelle was all up in her nightshirt about yesterday.”

“Oh, right. In fact, she stopped by again last night to try and get the books back that Uncle Stan gave me.”

“What books? Are they valuable?” Jim wiped his mouth and helped himself to more coffee and another roll.

“Well, it’s
kinda strange actually. He gave me some books, but they were stuffed with a bunch of clippings and reports about Charlotte’s death. He also stuck Charlotte’s diary in with everything else.”

“You’re kidding. What’s going on with that?” Jim’s face and voice turned serious.

“I’m not sure. That’s one thing I want to see him about today. I don’t know why he gave all this stuff to me. Isabelle saw the diary last night on my coffee table, and she’s on the warpath to get everything back. I told her it was my diary and hid the clippings before she came in the house. Isabelle was actually scary. I’m not sure I can hold onto this stuff without a fight.”

“There’s nothing to fight over. Isabelle should have her sister’s stuff. Stan probably just wants to tweak Isabelle, or he’s seriously confused.”

“I don’t know what to think, but I have a weird feeling about the whole thing. Uncle Stan wants me to have it for some reason. He was pretty intense about it. I’m going to talk with my parents when they get back this weekend. Maybe they remember something.” Gracie pulled back her unruly red mane, grabbed her hair clip off the counter, and twisted the hair into a pile on her head.

Jim slid off the stool and went to the door. He pulled a Yankees baseball cap out of his back pocket and jammed it on. “I’m not sure if you want to tangle with Isabelle over Charlotte’s stuff. You’d better be careful.”

“I know. I’ll try to sort it out with Uncle Stan today. Let me brush my teeth and then I’ll meet you in the office.”

Gracie headed for her bathroom and heard the door slam, announcing Jim’s departure. Tail wagging, Haley followed Gracie.

Within minutes, Gracie and Haley were in the office. She began entering payments and calculating invoices for the day’s pickups. She printed a copy of the day’s schedule for Marian. Gracie kept trying to shake off the creepy feeling that came with the realization somebody had broken into the kennel. The experts were right; she felt violated and not at all comfortable in her own office. She was glad there were others in the building. It was way too weird to be here alone.

After sniffing every inch of the office, Haley was bored and trotted down the hallway to the runs. The barking volume in the run area rose quickly and then settled down. Haley was making her presence known. The sounds of
buckets scraping against concrete and dog food hitting metal bowls echoed back down the hallway. Gracie could hear Jim yelling over the din, telling Joe how to check the feeding instructions for each dog and where to look on the run tag if a dog needed meds. It sounded like everything was going OK so far. Gracie finished up the deposit and shoved the checks and cash into the green vinyl Deer Creek Bank bag. She had to remember to call Deputy Stevens before she left. She wanted to pick up the report and then get groceries. She took a quick inventory of the grooming and cleaning supplies. She tacked up the day’s schedule on the board in the grooming room and made sure the appointment book was on the desk in the reception area. Haley was back in the office, begging by the treat jar.

“Just one, my dear.
You don’t want to lose your girlish figure.” Gracie tried to sound firm, but knew Haley would use her big, sad Lab eyes to get at least two more from her. “You can chase after them if you’re going to be greedy.” She threw one toward the reception area. Marian was just coming through the door and Haley momentarily left the treat to greet her with a generous kiss, whacking Marian’s legs.

“Watch out for the tail of destruction,” Gracie laughed.

“Ow, Haley. You’re right. She’s got a deadly weapon there. What a good girl! Come with Marian, and I’ll give you better treats.”

Haley happily bounded off ahead of the tall woman, crunching the current treat and obviously anxious for the jerky Marian kept in the grooming room.

“Morning, Marian. It’s good to have you here. Don’t spoil that dog.”

Marian walked around the corner to Gracie’s office, hands on her broad hips and looking extremely happy.

“I
will
spoil that dog, and I’m glad to be working. I thought I would go out of mind, just cleaning house and watching TV. Not healthy. I’m not retiring until the dogs are too much to handle. Besides, my husband is driving me crazy. He retired last month and is underfoot all day.”

Gracie laughed. By the smile on Marian’s face and the way she was playing with Haley, she would be working for quite some time.

“Today’s schedule is on the board, Marian. It’s not too bad, so I’m going out to do errands in a few minutes. I’ve got to see that deputy too.” Gracie gathered the bank bag and her grocery list. She put both in her large canvas tote bag decorated with an embroidered black Labrador.

“I wonder if they’re really working on finding that thief. We need a sheriff who wants to do the job.” Marian unsuccessfully tucked her short platinum blond hair behind her ears. Her broad Eastern European face was stern, blue eyes dark with indignation.

“I’m sure the police are doing something, but at least the thieves didn’t get the money. I should have been more careful and locked it up though. Life around here is pretty tame, so I didn’t think too much about it.” Gracie picked up the tote bag, searching for her keys in its depths.

“Our homes and businesses should be safe. But that Sheriff Chamberlain just doesn’t care. Haven’t you read about the robberies at Silver Lake? He doesn’t have any suspects yet, and they’ve been robbing homes over there for two months.”

Gracie had a feeling that once Marian started complaining about local law enforcement, she’d never get out of the office. Fortunately, they were interrupted by Beth, who looked a little glum. She had her long dark hair pulled back in a ponytail and was wearing jeans and her Milky Way Kennels T-shirt. She was slender and long-legged. Gracie imagined that Beth probably had plenty of teenage boys interested in her.

“Feeling OK, Beth?” Gracie asked.

“I guess.” She was biting her lower lip as if in an effort to keep from crying

Marian put an arm around Beth. “Boyfriend trouble?” she asked knowingly.

“Well, yeah, I guess.” Beth’s face drooped again.

“Men are always trouble. I could tell you some stories. Come with me, and let’s get going on today’s schedule. I’ll show you how to clip toenails.” Marian’s motherly firm tone left no doubt that moping wasn’t allowed, and there was work to do.

Gracie smiled and made sure she had all the stuff necessary for her errands.

“I’m heading out, ladies. I should be back around one or so,” she called out.

“We’ll be here,” Marian boomed back. “Do you want Haley in the kennel or in the yard?”

“Put her in the yard. She’ll just be a pest for customers otherwise. Thanks, Marian.”

“No problem. We’ll handle everything here.”

“That’s music to my ears. Thanks.” It was good to have Marian. Gracie knew that everything would be handled, and she could actually think about something other than the kennels for a while.
Throwing the tote bag onto the front passenger seat, Gracie remembered she needed to call Deputy Stevens. She hurried back into the house to get the number from her answering machine. As she listened to the messages again, Gloria Minder’s voice prodded her memory.

“Rats, I need to call her and let her know I’m OK,” she said to herself. She wrote down both numbers and called Deputy Stevens first. The dispatcher who answered told her that Deputy Stevens was off duty, but would be in about three o’clock. She would have him call her. Gracie gave the dispatcher her cell phone number and the kennel number. Then she dialed the parsonage. She got the answering machine there, but left a message saying she was fine, and the sheriff’s department was working on the case.

“Finally, I can get on the road,” she said to the empty house. The phone began to ring just as she grabbed her purse and headed for the door. The caller ID said it was Isabelle.

“Forget it,
Izzy. I don’t have time for any threats today.” Gracie stalked out and climbed into in her vehicle. She could feel the anger coming up through the roots of her hair. Gracie took a deep breath to refocus her thoughts. The grief counselor had gotten her into the habit of breathing exercises to clear her mind and refocus on positive thoughts. Sometimes it worked. Not so well today, but she really needed to see Uncle Stan and find out what he wanted her to do. Life was too busy at the moment for any more excitement. How could Isabelle and Charlotte have been so different? Isabelle was maddeningly like Aunt Shirley, following the rules and demanding that everybody else toe the line. Charlotte had been a free spirit, although a little too free for her own good sometimes. Was Uncle Stan really a free spirit too? Maybe he had been held captive by Aunt Shirley all these years, and now he was cutting loose. Hopefully he had some answers for her. Maybe he knew who the father of Charlotte’s baby was.