Garage Sale Stalker (Garage Sale Mysteries) (4 page)

CHAPTER 5

H
er time-sens
itive jaunt finished
and aglow with her success at the sales, Jennifer relaxed on the drive home. Gliding past the well-kept McLean houses surrounded by manicured lawns, she reflected that this community “showed” well today just as it had twenty-five years ago when Jason’s new job first prompted their springtime visit to the Washington, D.C. area.

After a week of fruitless house-hunting but still seeking a roomy, affordable home for their five young children, they extended their search to a Virginia suburb of D.C. called McLean. That morning their agent showed them a house new on the market—colonial-style on a quiet cul-de-sac where springtime flowers splashed glorious colors across the yard. With a large yard bordered behind by wooded park land for their kids to explore, two blocks from pool and tennis and three blocks from an outstanding Fairfax County elementary school, this property seemed
perfect
. But the cost! Would they sacrifice the kids’ college funds to buy it? They moved in a week later.

Jennifer smiled. Despite a tight budget in those early days, time proved this decision wise. Their family thrived in this congenial neighborhood and the property’s price quadrupled in the intervening twenty-five years. Eventually, they financed their children through college after all.

Nearing home, Jennifer snapped out of her reverie, pressed the remote control to open the iron driveway gates, maneuvered the van through the tall brick columns on either side, pressed a second remote to open the garage door and drove inside. Jumping out of her SUV, she picked up the toaster, piled an armful of her other purchases atop it and hustled them into the house.

She found Jason drinking coffee and reading the newspaper on the long glass-enclosed sun porch covering the entire back of their house. “Hello, Hon,” she called. “Are the children up yet?”

“Just me, but I heard the shower, so at least one’s awake.” Jason looked up from the paper and added, “The girls usually sleep late like all college kids—lucky if we see them before noon. Aren’t you home sooner than usual?”

“Becca’s summer job interview is this morning. Her car’s in the shop so she asked to borrow mine because you need yours for golf at ten.”

Though eager to tell him about her buys, she knew function equaled desirability to her engineer husband: something to
use
ranked higher than something to
see
. So she needed to apply some finesse. Ignoring his skeptical frown, she held up two sturdy garden trowels and said, “Here’s something for you! Didn’t your last one break yesterday? They’re new and only a dollar each!”

“Great,” he said without enthusiasm, but she knew he’d garden with them before the day ended.

“And a lot of ‘smalls’ plus these nice earrings!” She pointed to her earlobes. “The clip-on’s I wear are nearly impossible to find retail any more. And a bamboo tree that will look stunning in the living room and a bench for the seating we need in the mudroom.”

He grunted and lowered his eyes back to the paper. “Need help bringing anything in?”

“Thanks, Jay. Just the tree and bench.” She poured herself some coffee, wanting to share what weighed uppermost on her mind: the scary encounters with Wrestler! But she hesitated. This would worry him and maybe further dampen his marginal enthusiasm for her garage sale hobby. She valued his love and protectiveness, but why alarm him with information that might elicit strong objections or even challenge her cherished independence?

And in the unlikely event she ever saw Wrestler again, she’d
really
avoid him this time! Since most garage sale buyers had specific goals, such as replacing a lamp or a chair, they shopped no more after achieving their objective. Regulars like her were the exception, not the rule.

Jennifer’s own garage sale experience began as a practical shopping choice when her children were young and the new-house budget tight. Later, this habit blossomed into genuine treasure-hunting because people sell what people have. Wealthy McLean and surrounds offered excellent “gently used” merchandise and finding quality bargains is ever popular, as perpetual sales at retail stores and car lots prove. She’d found many unusual and useful items to benefit her home, her life-style and her family; and the sale “stories” intrigued her.

She knew long established markets existed for “used” houses with several previous owners, for “pre-owned cars” and for antique shops where merchandise is necessarily second-hand. Garage and estate sales were the same idea. Since Wrestler had likely completed his shopping, little probability existed for their paths to cross again. Regulars like Jennifer looked for fun, adventure, practical finds and unique treasures...not trouble.

So unlike what was actually on her mind, she asked her husband, “Find any interesting news in the morning paper? I only grabbed the classified section earlier to locate the sales.”

“Ways to solve Old Dominion Drive traffic congestion,” he droned, “a new store at Tysons Corner; critique of a new local restaurant, a burglary in Great Falls and another in Woodlea Hills... ”

“Woodlea Hills! That’s just down the road. We’d better lock our doors religiously. I must be sure to alert the girls about that. Anything else?”

“Another McLean woman is missing.”

Jennifer looked up sharply. “Don’t I remember headlines about a teenager disappearing a month ago? What ever happened with that case?”

“Don’t think she turned up—maybe a runaway? Who knows better than we do what parents face raising kids these days.”

“Hey, I didn’t know you had five in mind when we married!” she needled.

He stifled a smile. “If I’d known about the five I might not have proposed.” Seeing her raised eyebrow, he conceded, “Well,
maybe... ”
He winked and she strolled over to kiss his cheek.

“Okay, break it up, you two!” Daughter Becca strolled into the kitchen dressed for her upcoming appointment. “Coffee seriously needed!”

Jennifer gestured toward the coffee pot. “Ready and waiting for you. Good morning, Sweetie! Not quite awake yet?”

“Barely! Thanks for coming back early, Mom. Any garage sale goodies for show-and-tell?”

“Well, funny you should ask!
Hold onto your
hat!”
Jennifer smiled and bustled away to her car in the garage.

Jason groaned. “Oh no! When she says
‘hold-on-to-yo
ur-hat,’
years of experience tell me I’m in for a fast ride. I fear that phrase! What wild and crazy thing did she find this time?”

Becca laughed. “Dad, how can she still shock you after more than forty years together?”

“Shock hardly covers it! Life with your mom isn’t boring, but that phrase
always
means steeling myself for a major jolt!”

“While she’s still out in the garage, Dad, does she suspect anything about tomorrow?”

“No, I think we’re really going to surprise her!”

Moments later, Jennifer reappeared and placed the bulky newspaper-wrapped bundle housing the tureen on the kitchen counter. She’d sneak the other Blue Danube pieces into the china cabinet later, confident Jason wouldn’t notice those additions once ensconced.

As she pulled away the wrapping, Jason sat bolt upright, his eyes on the tureen and his voice rising an octave. “Oh geez, I’m afraid to ask the cost of that
glorified soup bowl.”

Anticipating his bluster, Jennifer purred, “Look, today is the last day ever that I’m fifty-nine years old. Tomorrow is the big six-oh! Isn’t this the ideal birthday present for me, Jason?”

Now he pushed back from the table, cast long-suffering eyes toward the ceiling and whistled a loud note. “The price must be a whopper because you just pulled out the big cannons.”

She chuckled and lightly kissed his forehead. “Thank you, honey; it’s
exactly
what I wanted most.” She smiled so happily and Jason moaned in such painful mock distress that they all had to laugh.

As Jennifer handed her the car keys, Becca giggled and pointed to the new tureen. “Bet I can guess what we’re having for lunch.”

“You’re exactly right!” her mother confirmed, “…and sandwiches, too!”

CHAPTER 6

J
ason grinned at
how
w
illingly their grown children embraced his surprise party idea for Jennifer’s 60th birthday. The Blue Danube tureen aside, he thought a party at home with her loved ones gathered was the perfect gift for his dear wife, who doted on her family.

All their married children lived within a two hours’ drive, remarkable in today’s mobile society. Hannah, Becca and their close friend Tina MacKenzie had whisked Jennifer away to morning garage sales on the pretext of furnishing the college apartment the girls would share in the fall. They pledged to return her at noon, their arrival signaling the birthday feast to begin. Meantime, the “fam,” with their spouses and the Grands, began arriving at the house late-morning, bringing covered dishes for the event.

Brown-haired Tina MacKenzie visited the Shannon girls so often—for meals, overnights, video-watching, studying and celebrations—that her presence seemed as normal as if she were just another child of their family. Quiet and friendly but more serious and reserved than the Shannon girls, Tina recently always wore the same unusual gold filigree dangling earrings.

As with many of Jennifer’s astute observations, Jason hadn’t noticed this until his wife pointed it out. “Her dad brought the earrings to her from his last trip to China. When he had the heart attack and died only a week after returning, Tina began wearing them constantly in his memory. Her dad’s death hit her very hard and widowhood’s tough for her mother to shoulder, too.” Then, with eyes full of tears, Jen said to him, “I can’t even imagine life without
you
, Jay!”

Gently pushing that memory aside, Jason basted more sauce onto chicken marinating in two big pans, about to take them outside when he heard, “Here, Dad, let me help with that.” His twenty-eight-year-old son Mike offered as they each carried a large pan out to the patio grill.

“And where’s Bethany?”

“My wife is picking up the cake and should return any minute now.” Kaela swept past them, jostling scissors and an armful of fresh-cut flowers from the garden. “Dad, do you know where Mom’s vases are?”

“In the laundry room cupboards. Here, I’ll show you,” Jason said. “Be back in a minute, Mike.”

After producing the vase, Jason closed the laundry room door on the noisy crowd for a quiet moment, grateful that his children seemed grounded and happy, except perhaps for Hannah.

Five months ago Hannah discovered the boy she dated exclusively through six years of high school and early college had multiple other love affairs going during that same time. At a party she attended with college girlfriends, a stunned Hannah stumbled upon Kevin kissing his newest “squeeze.”

As Hannah’s beau, Kevin had been welcomed into their home for years. His deception startled them all, but the betrayal broke Hannah’s heart. She closed herself in her room for days. When the crying finally stopped, she emerged haggard, depressed and disillusioned.

“I’ll never trust my own judgment… or any man… again,” she sobbed against her father’s shoulder when he tried consoling her.

“Hannah, Hannah. Honey, time
does
heal; broken hearts can mend to love again and judgment grows from experiences like this one. Someday you’ll find just the right trustworthy guy, I promise. They do exist, you know!” He looked into her tear-filled eyes.

“Oh, Daddy,” she wailed, “why couldn’t Kevin be like you?”

“We’re all who we are! And some good may come out of this if Kevin realizes his behavior cost him a wonderful girl and he decides to change that behavior. You’ve moved past someone who didn’t share your expectations and freed yourself to find someone who does, someone you can respect and who feels the same about you.”

Wiping a tear from her cheek, Hannah asked, “Is that how it is for you and Mom?”

This unexpected question from his twenty-year-old daughter caught him by surprise. Blowing her nose into the handkerchief he’d handed her, Hannah didn’t notice his smile grow as he reflected upon how he and Jennifer had stretched, changed, grown and merged in their forty-one years together. Some coincidental mix of intelligence and humor miraculously buoyed them through those harried years of marital adjustment and child-raising. Overcoming rough patches and sharing precious moments forged them together, so that now they felt closer than ever. “Yes it is that way for us,” he answered honestly. Hannah seemed comforted, whether by her parents’ affection or by his honesty, he wasn’t sure which.

Intuitively, he thought Hannah would survive this temporary shock and hurt, land on her feet, emerge wiser for weathering the difficult lesson and some day reach for love again. He reminded himself that people heal differently, but five months of this sadness did seem a
long
time….

Jason returned to the dining room in time to hear a six-year-old Grand shout, “Auntie Bethany brought the birthday cake,” as the youngster rocketed past the table on his way out to the back yard goldfish pond. A fancy chocolate cake with “Happy Birthday, Jennifer” frosted across the top dominated one end of the buffet table; and, if not 60, a large number of candles promised a warm glow.

The front door opened as Dylan and family arrived, with plans to stay several days to visit local museums. After hugs all around, they hustled their suitcases to appointed bedrooms and returned to the main floor just as a scout at the front window ran through the house calling, “She’s here, quick, she’s here!”

Stopping tasks and conversations, parents herded their children together into the dining room where numerous young Grands danced around in barely-contained anticipation. They listened as the automatic garage door droned open to admit Jennifer’s car. Kaela whispered loudly to the group, “Okay, everyone, this is it! Get ready. It’s
party
time!” Seconds later, the door from the garage to the house opened and Jennifer stepped in, followed closely by the three girls. Startled at the unexpected crowd in her house, she stopped in her tracks, amazement showing in her wide-eyed, open-mouthed expression.

The room echoed as shouts of “Surprise!” erupted in various octaves. Jennifer stood transfixed in the open doorway, a widening smile animating her face as a lively high-low chorus of voices launched into an off-key but enthusiastic rendition of “Happy-Birthday-To-You.”

Delighted, she touched Jason’s arm. “I’ll bet you masterminded this, you rascal,” she whispered to him and joked to the group, “Can’t sudden shocks like this level a tottering 60-year old?”

“Speech, speech,” someone called.

Emotional now, she managed to say, “I must be the luckiest person on Earth to have all of you in my life. Sharing this day with me is the very best possible present. Thank you! Thank you!” Approving hoots, foot stomping and whistles followed from the crowd.

Emerging from an impromptu conference with his siblings, Dylan stepped forward. “Mom, this gift is from all your children, but since I’m the oldest they want me to present it.” He read the tag attached to a colorfully wrapped package, “For the woman who already has almost everything, here’s one thing she doesn’t.” He handed her the box.

Fumbling the wrapping open, she drew out a metal rectangle and held it up for all to see. “YRDSALE” said the vanity license plate for her car. She burst into appreciative laughter and the rest joined in.

“Virginia doesn’t allow enough spaces to spell out both words, so we had to abbreviate!” chirped another Grand, twelve-year-old Rachel.

“This is perfect! There’ll be no hiding my madness from the world now.”

“Time to eat!” Mike called, hustling to the barbeque to wield tongs transferring chicken from grill to serving platter. Lunch proceeded with noisy exuberance, followed by candle-lighting of the cake, wish-making and a circle of excited grandchildren helping Jennifer blow out the tiny flames. Afterward, the adults relaxed to talk together while the children played outside.

During a lull in activity, Tina approached Jennifer. “Mrs. Shannon, I have a little present for you also, to celebrate your birthday and to thank you for welcoming me so often into your home.”

Touched, Jennifer hugged Tina, thanked her and opened the small gift box. Inside sat a tiny red cloisonné frog. Reading Jennifer’s puzzled expression, Tina explained, “Shopping for someone like you is hard because you already have so many unusual things, but frogs are good luck omens in the Orient. Red is also a good fortune color there, so it’s a double dose! My dad brought this one from China. It’s small enough to carry with you as a little talisman. I hope you like it.”

“Oh, Tina, thank you so very much. What an original present! You can be sure I’ll cherish it because it comes from you and because nobody can have too much good luck! Look, I’m putting it into my pocket right this minute. He’s on duty as of now!”

A little later, Kaela took her mother aside. “Mom, I’d like to have a garage sale next weekend but my house is too far away. Your address is a better draw if we could have it in your driveway. The other girls want to join in and we thought you’d probably have some things to contribute from your stash in the garage. We’d do everything: put the ad in the newspaper, put up signs and clean up afterward. Even the Grands could sell toys they’re bored with at their own little tables.”

Jennifer looked doubtful, “Remember two years ago how much work that last one was? Are you sure you want to take this on by yourselves?” Bethany, Kaela and Becca all nodded.

“Then if Dad doesn’t mind, it’s fine with me. And you’re right,” she added with a twinkle, “I certainly do have a few items to contribute!”