Her Last Letter (24 page)

“Gwyn.”

“Consider it a Christmas present-from me.”

“Then how about this one?” he said, moving across the room toward the far wall. I turned my head to see which one he meant. I’d forgotten about it, had painted it years ago.

“Yes, this is the one I want.”

It was a small painting, a self-portrait-me-standing in my garden, arranging a vase of wild flowers, wearing a yellow sundress. I’d staged the shot, took it using a timer and tripod. I’d been trying out some new photographic equipment.

“Yes, this one,” he said.

“That’s so old. Look, there’s even dust on the frame. You can pick a better one than this.”

“No arguing. You said I could pick.”

“Okay. It’s yours.” I lifted it from the wall and placed it in his hands.

He stared at the picture, then at me. “Well, I’m off. Tell Caroline I said hi. And good luck with the puppy. Hope it works out. If not, give me a call. Maybe give me a call anyway.”

“I will. Thanks, Josh.”

He placed his hand gently on my shoulder. “And thank you for my present. Have a great Christmas, Gwyn.”

“You too.”

I watched from the window as he trudged down the snowy driveway, then onto the road, the painting cupped in his hand.

By the time Caroline arrived, I’d carried Annabelle out to the drive twice to do her business, and the pup was quickly taking possession of the kitchen, sniffing every chair and table leg, puppy paws clicking as it ran in sudden bursts across the tile floor.

“What’s this?” Caroline asked, standing in the foyer.

“This is Annabelle.”

I tried to lift the pup from a spot near my feet, but she tore into the kitchen.

“When did this happen?”

“This morning, when you gave her to me.”

“What?”

“Josh brought the pup by. His sister’s dog had a litter. He thought I might like one. I’m hoping I can say you gave it to me so I don’t have to explain to Trevor. Is that okay?”

“Sure, I guess. But are you sure you want to do that? Lies have a way of backfiring, you know.”

“Don’t try and sound like my shrink. Better to lie than to listen to Trevor not talk to me for hours.”

“O-kay.”

“You working today?”

“Nope. Nope. Nope. Today I am shopping. You can join me if you like, though one of the presents I was going to shop for is yours.”

“No thanks. I don’t feel like shopping, and I don’t want to leave the pup alone right away.”

We walked into the kitchen where I’d already brewed coffee and warmed a pound cake.

“You planning to go to Linda’s party?” I asked, slicing a piece of cake and lifting it onto a plate for Caroline.

“I guess.”

“Bringing anyone?”

“Okay, now I know why you wanted me over. Details.”

“No, but I am curious.”

“Nate and I have a date this weekend, and if it goes well, maybe I’ll invite him to the party too.”

“Sounds like you and Nate are doing a lot of laundry lately.”

“Hah,” Caroline said with a laugh. “I’ve got more clean clothes now than when my mom did my laundry.”

“The couple that scrubs together.… Oh, I don’t know. What rhymes? Rubs together?”

“We’re not doing any rubbing yet. But I have to say I wouldn’t mind. God, he’s cute.”

“What do you know about him?”

“Enough. He moved here four years ago, because they offered him a job. I guess he used to live in Crowley. He’s not married. He let me know that right away. He doesn’t have any kids either, and he’s not moaning over some broken romance and boring me to death. He actually has some smarts.”

“I like him already.”

“Yeah, so do I. But I hate that giddy stuff, looking in the mirror every two seconds to see if I’ve left spinach in my teeth. I want to be past all that.” Caroline brought a fork full of cake to her mouth, then glanced toward the floor. “Well, what’s this? Annabelle wants to be one of the girls and eat too. She’s chewing my shoelace.”

“I hope Trevor is okay about the dog. Normally, I’d give him some notice. Actually, he might think it’s a good idea, think it’s better for me to have some company during the day.”

“Yeah, he could. And she is a cutie.” Caroline lifted the puppy into her lap, and it immediately brought its paws up and tried to leap onto the table. “No, no, Annabelle. Down you go. Bad Annabelle.” She placed the puppy back on the floor. “She’s a handful.” Caroline’s smile quickly dissolved into a frown. “Hey, what’s that look you’re giving me? What’s wrong?”

“I’ve got something I need to show you. It’s the real reason I asked you over here.”

“What?”

“I should have told you before. But … this is so bad, I wasn’t sure I wanted to involve you. I’m still not sure.”

“What is it? Is this about Sylvia?”

“No. Here.” I handed her Kelly’s letter.

She read it, then looked up at me.

“Where did you get this?”

“I found it taped inside Kelly’s dresser-hidden. I’ve had it since Halloween. I think Kelly must have written it right before she died. No one knows about it except Linda, my shrink, and now you.”

“God.”

“We’ve hired a private investigator-well-Linda hired one. I didn’t know of a good one.”

“This is unbelievable. How did Linda react to it?”

“Not good. She’s in denial. She wants to believe Kelly made it up. I think if it were up to her, she’d destroy the letter and pretend she never saw it. And I still haven’t told her the rest. I haven’t told her about Trevor, that he might be cheating on me. She’d blame him, say he’s a cheat and a murderer. But he’s not. If anyone’s a murderer, it’s Wolfgang. So far, all we’ve done is a background check. And Linda won’t show me the report on Wolfgang. Says there’s nothing in it. She’s treating this whole thing like it’s all going to blow over. They’re even planning a trip to Hawaii over Christmas and New Year’s. I can’t talk Linda out of it.”

“Whoa. That doesn’t sound like a good idea. Do you think Wolfgang suspects anything?”

“I don’t know. God, you’d think Linda would have better sense than to tell him. But she’s so stupidly in love with the guy, who knows what she’ll do? I’ve warned her. I think she has an idea of how dangerous the man could be-for both of us.”

“And-I have to ask this. But what makes you so certain it’s Wolfgang?”

I could feel my face warm at the question. “Why? You don’t think it’s Trevor, do you?”

She shook her head. “I’m totally-I have no idea. Was there anything that could implicate him in the background check?”

“No. Nothing. He’s never been in jail. He’s never done anything.”

“Well, that seems promising.”

“What I really need is to find another investigator, one who will dig deeper. And I don’t want to tell Linda about it.”

“Why not?”

“Because she doesn’t want to face the truth about Wolfgang. She won’t pursue this. I need to find out what he’s up to-and fast. And I want to do some checking on Trevor, not because I think he’s a murderer. I need to know if he’s cheating on me.”

“Gwyn, this is serious business. You have to go to the police.
Kelly is dead.
This guy’s not fooling around. If he finds out-”

“That’s exactly why I
can’t
go to the police, not yet. What if they botch things and decide to interrogate the guys? Either man could retaliate, or at the very least skip town, like Craig did. The cops never found him. It’s too big a risk. Right now, I have the advantage. I think I should keep it that way.”

“Yeah, but I still think you should go to the police.”

“And I plan to, as soon as I have something more to give them than this letter. That’s why I’m going to hire my own investigator. Do you know anyone that’s good?”

“I’ve never hired a private detective, but I guess I could ask Nate. He should know of a good one.”

“And don’t tell him it’s for me.”

“Geez, I hate to start out by lying to the guy. But I suppose I could say that somebody at the bar asked about one, and wants to keep it hush, hush. Yeah, I guess I could do that. I’ll call him as soon as I get home. I’ll get in touch as soon as I know something.”

“Okay, great. Thanks, Care. I really, really appreciate this.”

“You might want to think about hiring yourself a bodyguard too. I’d sure feel better if you did.”

“I think Trevor might notice someone hanging around.”

She shook her head. “You’re scaring me, Gwyn. Big time.”

“I shouldn’t have told you.”

“No, you definitely should have, and before this.”

“I was worried for you. I guess I figured the less people that knew, the better.”

“Gwyn-about Kelly’s letter. You didn’t say it, but you do realize she may have been talking about Josh too. Right?”

“You can’t believe that any more than I do.”

“No. But I had to mention it.”

After Caroline left, I got a call from Trevor. He wouldn’t be home until after eight, though he’d thought earlier he would be home in time for dinner. Some contracts needed signing. Details of the transactions required clarification, and whereas it was supposed to be done tomorrow morning, it turned out it would have to be settled tonight. He was apologetic-too much so. I didn’t mention the puppy, since he sounded so harried already.

I couldn’t sit still, so drove into town to the pet store to buy Annabelle some things she needed, a doggy bed, leash, and toys to chew. I brought her with me in the Jeep, first disconnecting the passenger-side airbag with my key, then snugged her into an old blanket on the front seat. She appeared to laugh at me and just as quickly unsnugged herself and disappeared into the recesses of the Jeep-leaving me to wonder about her safety. I did prepare for her rapid-fire running sprees at the pet store with a makeshift leash I’d fashioned from a rope I’d found out in the garage.

After the purchases, I drove by the old house. Dusk was slowly turning to dark. I pulled the Jeep to the opposite side of the street and turned off the engine, then watched for several minutes as the lights inside the house switched on. I just had a feeling I couldn’t shake.

For a half-hour I trained my eyes on the front window, crouched low in my seat, Annabelle watching too, apparently sensing something afoot. Just as I was about to call off my vigil, a human shadow passed behind the curtains. I stiffened, hair rising at the back of my neck. I ducked lower as the silhouette stopped, stood for a moment, then backed away. Though the curtains were drawn, they were also thin. The intruder was possibly unaware of how easily he could be seen.

I dialed Caroline, who answered on the first ring.

“It’s me,” I whispered. “Care, someone’s in the house.”

“Which house?”

“My old one.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m parked across the street.”

“Don’t you dare go near it. I’ll call Nate.”

“Should I leave?”

“Yes, leave.”

“Maybe I should stay, just in case they take off. Maybe I’ll see whoever it is.”

“Leave and go park at the head of the street. Now let me hang up so I can call Nate.”

“What if it’s Linda?”

“Linda?”

“Maybe she’s over there and didn’t tell me, or maybe she sent Wolfgang over to check on the new locks.”

“Do you see her car?”

“No, but maybe she parked in the garage.”

“Well, call her and find out, but leave.”

I stayed put, though now it was too dark to see should anyone exit by the back door. I dialed Linda’s cell phone, but didn’t get an answer, only the recorded message. Linda’s home number was no better, again the machine. I pulled Annabelle into my lap, and the puppy, perhaps sensing my fear, settled down, watchful.

Another few minutes passed. Then out of the darkness a car pulled slowly in behind me, its headlights flooding the Jeep. I froze and fumbled for the key in the ignition-too late. A frightful visage with empty eye-sockets materialized at my window. It almost stopped my heart until I realized it was Caroline, her features grossly distorted by the bright light.

Annabelle jumped up, barking furiously.

“Shush,” I said, pulling her back. I rolled the window down partway.

“You were supposed to meet us at the head of the street,” Caroline said.

“I was just leaving.”

Nate appeared behind her. He was wearing street clothes, but held a gun at his side. He took off across the road and disappeared behind the house. Another police car sped to a stop a moment later. Caroline and I watched as two more cops jumped out and ran to the porch.

“I didn’t see anyone leave, but I couldn’t see the back,” I said.

“What are you doing here?”

“I was in town buying stuff for Annabelle. I just thought I’d drive by and take a look.”

“Well, that was a good idea,” she said sarcastically.

I studied Caroline’s face. She looked normal now, but I was tempted to mention how awful she’d looked a few moments before. I decided against it. “Did you get a chance to ask Nate about the detective?”

“Yes, I did. He said he’d look into it. Gwyn, you can’t keep doing stuff like this. I told you-you’re scaring me. It’s way, way too dangerous. Promise me you’ll stop. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“And let me in. It’s freezing out here.”

“Sorry, forgot.”

Nate came out ten minutes later and put his face to the window. “No signs of anyone now, except for old footprints near the back door and in the drive. Those could be mine or one of the other guys. We’ve been coming by to check every so often. We’re taking a closer look at those.”

“Well, I saw someone. Thanks for getting here so fast, Nate.”

“Sure. And don’t worry. We’ll catch him eventually. And there’s a good chance he’ll decide things are getting too hot around here and move on.”

I turned to Caroline, then again to Nate. “That does it. I’m selling the house. I’ve had enough of this. I’ll tell Trevor to put a sign up tomorrow.”

The following day, Trevor, Nate, Caroline and I met at the house. Trevor wanted to take inventory before putting the house on the market, make note of some minor fix-ups that might improve its resale value. Care brought Nate along to check things out before we entered-just in case.

I’d also talked to Linda, who agreed immediately to the sale, and assured me that neither she nor Wolfgang had been by the house the previous evening.