Grave Misgivings (17 page)

“That’s exactly what I want you to do.”

“What do I do if I find her?”

“Come find me,” Maddie said. “Come find me right away. I don’t care if I’m around a bunch of people. Find me and I’ll find a way to get away from everyone. I can’t explain what’s going on, but I feel like I’m running out of time. If we don’t find Cassidy in the next few hours, I’m really afraid that we never will.”

“We’re working together on this now,” Rose said. “If the last months of my life taught me anything it’s that I can do whatever I put my mind to. I’m putting my mind to this.”

“Good luck.”

“To you, too.”

“I think we’re both going to need it,” Maddie said.

“Do you think Rose is going to be able to find Cassidy?” Nick asked, his fingers linked with Maddie’s as they walked back toward the main house.

“I think she’s got a better shot at it than we do.”

“Why aren’t you more excited then?”

“Because I need to find a way to put Rose to rest,” Maddie replied. “She’s so sad.”

“It sounds like she’s more disengaged than sad,” Nick said. “If I had to guess, her life was just as depressing as her after-life. Wow, there’s a sentence I never thought I’d say.”

“Look at all the conversational topics I’ve brought into your life with my return,” Maddie teased.

“You’ve brought a lot more to my life than that, Mad,” Nick said. “You brought sunshine and light back into my life, too.”

“Oh, so schmaltzy.” Maddie pinched his cheek and shook it.

“So pretty,” Nick said, dipping his mouth to hers.

“Well, I’m glad to see that your ex-girlfriend’s disappearance and probable death hasn’t gotten in the way of your romantic weekend,” Marla said, appearing on the back patio as the couple approached.

“I’m glad to see you’ve taken the time to fix yourself a drink instead of looking for your friend,” Maddie shot back.

Nick’s eyebrows flew up his forehead, surprise washing over him. Maddie was rarely catty, but she was in fighting form right now.

“Hey, I’m trying to make myself feel better,” Marla said. “My best friend is probably dead in a ditch somewhere.”

“How did she get in a ditch?” Nick asked.

“I … you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, have another drink,” Nick said, rolling his eyes.

“Why don’t you go on another romantic walk?” Marla shot back.

“We weren’t on a romantic walk,” Nick said. “We walked down to the cemetery to look around in case Cassidy was down there. We wanted to check the mausoleum. The door sticks, in case you’ve forgotten. We just wanted to make sure she didn’t accidentally get shut in there.”

“Oh,” Marla said, her face softening. “I’m guessing you didn’t find her.”

“It doesn’t look like she’s been down there,” Nick said.

“What are we supposed to do?” Marla asked.

“Keep looking.”

“SO,
tell me what you found down at the cemetery,” Christy said, settling next to Maddie on the library couch.

In an effort to give Maddie and Christy some privacy, Nick left them in the library to talk while he corralled everyone else on the back patio. He was hoping they could brainstorm and think of another lead, or that’s what he said. Maddie thought he was really trying to give her time to decompress after her conversation with Rose, and she loved him for it.

“Not much,” Maddie said. “Cassidy definitely wasn’t down there.”

“What about the ghost?”

“Her name is Rose.”

“Was Rose down there?”

“She was,” Maddie said. “We had a long talk.”

“About?”

“She’s agreed to help us,” Maddie said. “She’s going to search the grounds and house for Cassidy, and if she finds her, she’s going to come and tell me right away. So, if you see me kind of staring off into space, that’s probably what I’m doing. You might need to supply me with a distraction.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Christy said. “I haven’t flashed anyone in years. I figure I’m about due.”

Maddie faltered. “I … you’re joking, right?”

“No, I often go around showing random people my boobs,” Christy deadpanned. “Of course I’m joking.”

Maddie exhaled slowly. “That’s good to know. I was worried you were trying to pick up a date in the worst way possible.”

“Oh, see, you’re getting to be funny and snarky these days,” Christy teased. After a few moments, her face shifted from amused to serious. “Does Rose want you to help her pass over once she finds Cassidy?”

“She does,” Maddie said. “That’s a problem all on its own, though.”

“Why?”

“She doesn’t know who killed her,” Maddie explained. “All she knows is that she woke up to a pillow pressed over her face and she died about a minute later.”

“She was smothered?”

Maddie nodded.

“Shouldn’t her husband have noticed that happening? He was in the same bed with her, after all. Shouldn’t we assume he’s the culprit?”

“We are assuming he’s the culprit, even though Nick says it’s never smart to lock in on a suspect without absolute proof,” Maddie said. “The problem is, Rose says she and her husband had separate bedrooms.”

“Well, that’s a little depressing,” Christy said. “Who wants to get married so they can sleep alone?”

“It sounds to me like she didn’t want to get married in the first place,” Maddie said. “I had to read between the lines, but I think it was a business deal more than anything else. She said her father just told her she was marrying Jim Denton one day and that was it.

“It also doesn’t sound like their marriage was a happy one,” she continued. “Once she gave birth to a male heir, though, I think he pretty much left her alone.”

Christy snorted. “Of course he did. He was too busy fornicating with the staff to pay attention to his wife.”

Maddie was confused. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, come on,” Christy said. “You’ve never heard the stories about Jim Denton?”

“He was a little bit before my time,” Maddie said. “How do you know about him?”

“I’ve already told you, I love to gossip,” Christy said. “It’s a family thing. My mom loves to gossip and my grandmother does, too. My grandmother knew Big Jim pretty well, in fact.”

“Big Jim?”

“I think he nicknamed himself,” Christy said. “With all the sex he was having, I’m guessing he was trying to prove something to everyone who would give him the chance.”

“Tell me about him,” Maddie said.

“Why?”

“It might help me help Rose.”

Christy shrugged. “Keep in mind that this is all coming secondhand from my grandmother, so take it with a grain of salt.”

“I’m used to grandmother gossip,” Maddie said. “Did you forget who I live with?”

“Your grandmother is fat with the gossip,” Christy said, chuckling. “I’ll bet she has some good stories about Big Jim. From the sounds of it, he tried to tap anything with a pulse and he didn’t care who knew about it.”

“That must have been rough on Rose,” Maddie mused.

“The thing is, Big Jim liked to put in public appearances in town,” Christy said. “He was the one who always lit the Christmas tree every year. He was the one who lit the bonfire at the Fourth of July party … and Memorial Day party … and Halloween party … and the Easter party.”

“I get it. He liked to be the center of attention.”

“That’s just it,” Christy said. “He liked to be the center of attention, but he never did any of those things with his wife on his arm. I guess it was a running joke that someone was going to end up with a pinched rear end whenever he was in the general vicinity.”

“That must have been a sign of the times,” Maddie said. “He wouldn’t be able to get away with that these days.”

“I think Big Jim got away with just about whatever he wanted to get away with,” Christy said. “In addition to romancing some of the women around town – whether they were married or not – the rumor is that he was also a frequent guest in the servants’ quarters.”

Maddie frowned. “Seriously?”

“My grandmother says he had heavy turnover with the maid staff because they either had to put out or get out.”

“That is despicable,” Maddie said.

“That was a sign of the times, too,” Christy said. “He fired women because they wouldn’t sleep with him, and even the ones who did sleep with him weren’t known to hang around long because he only liked to dip his wick for so long before he got bored. I think he had a six-month cycle, too.”

Maddie made a face. “That isn’t funny.”

“It was a joke,” Christy said, poking her in the side. “Don’t worry. Nick is infatuated with you. There’s no way he’ll ever get bored.”

“Of course he won’t,” Maddie sniffed.

“Your self-esteem is getting better,” Christy said. “That’s a good thing. Anyway, where was I?”

“The maid staff.”

“Oh, right,” Christy said, rubbing her hands together as she gleefully got to the meat of the story. “Big Jim essentially hired a new maid every six months until one woman – and I wish I could remember her name, but I can’t – changed all of that. Apparently she was some dark-haired beauty. She supposedly looked like a model.”

“Did he fall in love with her?”

“That’s the rumor,” Christy said. “For once in his life Big Jim wasn’t the one in control of a relationship. This maid stole his heart and his … you know.”

“I’m pretty sure I do know,” Maddie said, her tone dry.

“The affair went on for years,” Christy said. “The maid wanted to move upstairs with Big Jim and claim her rightful place in the house – or at least what she thought was her rightful place – but Big Jim refused because he knew that would be the talk of the town.”

“I thought he didn’t care what the town thought.”

“He didn’t. People thinking he’s having sex with the maid is different than the maid moving into his bedroom, though. That would’ve been pretty hard to explain in the big money circles he was running in.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Maddie said, rubbing her neck thoughtfully. “What happened?”

“Things remained as they were for another couple of months,” Christy said. “I think there were rumors that the maid was pregnant, but I’m going to have to check with my grandmother to see if that’s true. I could just be making that up in my own head because I watch so many soap operas.”

Either scenario wouldn’t surprise Maddie, but she forced her face to remain neutral while Christy finished her story.

“When Rose Denton died it was a shock to the whole town,” Christy said. “The woman wasn’t well known by the residents, but she was well liked. Most people thought she got the short end of the stick – maybe in more ways than one – when she married Big Jim. When she started working at the hospital, most people thought she was gearing up to leave him.”

“I don’t think that’s true,” Maddie said. “She made it sound like she was perfectly fine to let him do his thing as long as he left her alone to do her thing.”

“That’s probably true,” Christy said. “If the maid showed up pregnant, though, I don’t think Rose could’ve pretended she didn’t know what was going on. That might have been too much for her to deal with.”

“I’ll ask Rose if the pregnancy rumors were true next time I see her,” Maddie said. “Tell me about the maid. Whatever happened to her?”

“Rose’s death was never ruled a murder,” Christy said. “That’s important to note because if she was murdered, Big Jim obviously would’ve been a suspect.”

“Obviously.”

“The death was ruled natural. I think it was deemed a heart attack. Rose was put to rest in the family mausoleum, and Grandma said that everyone expected Big Jim to put in the proper mourning time and then officially move the maid into his bedroom.”

“That didn’t happen?”

“No,” Christy said. “Instead, the maid disappeared about five months after Rose died. Some people thought she moved away because she gave Big Jim an ultimatum to marry her and he said no. Other people think he killed her because she was putting too much pressure on him. I’m not sure anyone knows the truth about what really happened to her.”

“You know, if this maid was as adamant as you say she was about marrying Big Jim and claiming what she thought she deserved, she might have been the one to kill Rose,” Maddie mused. “Big Jim was probably scared to divorce Rose because he didn’t want his reputation to take a hit. In his mind, having sex with the maid and letting his wife ignore him was probably the best of both worlds.”

“That’s an interesting thought,” Christy said. “Smothering someone does sound like the way a woman would commit a murder instead of a man.”

“I need to find out this maid’s name,” Maddie said. “Do you think you can call your grandmother and find out who she was?”

“Sure,” Christy said. “Keep in mind, though, this was forty years ago. I love my grandmother, but sometimes I think she can’t remember my name.”

“It’s the only option we have right now,” Maddie said. “I’ll give Granny a call, too. Even if she doesn’t know the name of the maid, she’s been hanging out with the Pink Ladies all weekend. I’ll bet one of them knows.”

“That’s a good idea,” Christy said. “If you do find the maid, what are you going to do?”

“I have no idea right now,” Maddie said. “I’m just playing this by ear and taking it one step at a time.”

“And you’re feeling better about the whole Marla-and-Cassidy-spying-on-you-and-Nick-while-having-sex thing, right?”

“I wouldn’t say I’m feeling better, but crying about it isn’t going to do me any good,” Maddie said. “It is what it is, and Nick brought up a good point.”

“What’s that?”

“We were both on top of our games last night,” Maddie said, winking.