Just a Wish Away (9 page)

"Are you thinking about your aunt?" Braden asked.

She gave him a quick look. "You read my mind."

"I've had some practice," he said lightly.

She nodded. There had been a time when they could both read each other's minds, but Braden's thoughts were locked behind a guard wall. Hers apparently were not so difficult to see. "I just want her to be okay," she said.

"It sounds like she will be."

"I'll feel better when I see her."

She turned into the hospital lot and parked the car. Upon arrival, they discovered that Phoebe had been moved out of Intensive Care and into a private room on the third floor. As they exited the elevator, they saw a crowd of people spilling out of the nearby waiting room.

"Looks like half the town is here," Braden observed.

Their arrival drew more than a few surprised looks and subsequent murmurs. Alexa wondered if they were shocked she was in town or that she was with Braden. He seemed to be generating some interest, too.

"Keep walking," he said on a hushed note, hustling her past the waiting room and down the hall.

"You're not being very friendly," she said.

"Trust me, if we start talking to those people, we'll never get out." When they reached her aunt's room, he said, "I'll wait out here for you."

She glanced down the hall, seeing a couple of women looking in their direction. "You'll be a target."

"I can take it," he said shortly, although he didn't look at all happy about the idea.

"Why don't you come in with me? I'm sure Aunt Phoebe would love to see you, too."

"All right. If you don't mind, I think I will."

She knocked on the partially open door and then pushed it open. She was immediately reassured to see her aunt's eyes open. A nurse was standing by the head of the bed.

"Shall I come back?" she asked.

"No, please come in, Alexa," her aunt said, lifting a weak hand to wave her forward.

"Don't stay too long," the nurse said, as she moved across the room. "She needs to rest."

Her aunt offered her a tired smile. "Alexa, it's so good to see you."

"It's even better to see you awake." Her aunt's skin was pale, and her thinning blonde hair seemed more gray than platinum. There was dark bruising around her eyes and nose and a bandage around her head. She looked very small in the bed and not at all like the bustling, energetic woman she was.

Phoebe's eyes widened as her gaze moved past Alexa. "Braden? Is that you? You're here with Alexa? I can hardly believe it."

"I'm glad you're feeling better," he said, joining Alexa at the bed.

"My goodness, it's been a long time since I saw the two of you together. You were just kids then."

"We were," Braden said.

"How are you feeling, Aunt Phoebe?" Alexa interrupted, knowing that neither she nor Braden wanted to talk about why they were together.

"I have a bad headache," Phoebe said with a wince. "But I'll survive. I'm a tough old broad."

Alexa smiled. Her aunt had always had a strong will. There was no doubt about that. "Did they tell you when you might be able to go home?" she asked.

"The doctor thinks I should stay a couple of days," Phoebe said with annoyance. "I don't know why. I can sleep at home same as I can sleep here."

"Well, you need to do what the doctor says."

"He's young," Phoebe said. "How much could he know?"

"More than you, Aunt Phoebe. You need to listen to him. I'm taking care of the shop for you, so you don't have to worry about that."

"Evie told me you were unpacking for me. You don't have to do that, Alexa."

"I want to. Every new piece is a discovery. It's fun."

Her aunt let out a weary sigh. "You sound just like me."

As her aunt's voice drifted away, Alexa debated her options. She wanted to ask some questions, but despite her aunt's confident attitude, she still didn't look well. Then again, they needed some answers, and waiting might only make things worse. "Aunt Phoebe, do you remember what happened when you went to the antique store night before last?"

"I don't," she said with a sigh. "Everyone keeps asking, and I try to remember, but it's all shadows in my mind."

"What do you remember?" Braden asked. "Start with how you got there. Did you drive?"

"I did drive. I parked in back like I always do," she said.

"So you went in the back door?" Braden continued.

Her aunt nodded. "Yes."

"What happened next?" Braden asked.

Alexa watched as her aunt's brows knit together. She liked the way Braden was taking it slow, one step at a time. And he was so calm, so patient. She could see that his approach was helping her aunt to relax.

"I put my purse down on the desk in the back room." Her gaze narrowed. "Oh, dear, I bet it's still there."

"I'll look for it when I go back and I'll bring it to you," Alexa said.

"Thank you. There's no cash, but I do have my credit cards in it."

"After you set your purse down, what did you do?" Braden asked, bringing Phoebe back to the subject at hand.

"I grabbed the first box by the back door and took it into the office."

"Why did you do that?" Alexa asked. "Why not just unpack in the storeroom?"

"It was in my way. I couldn't even get into the showroom. So I thought I'd put some of the smaller boxes in the office. I was going to make a nice, orderly stack. I do love things organized. It's so much easier to find everything. Whenever I get a delivery, I have to unpack it right away. It just bothers me so much to have boxes sitting around."

"Then what?" Braden asked, obviously sensing that her aunt was getting off track.

"I heard a noise," Phoebe said, looking a little surprised. "I just remembered that. Something broke. It sounded like glass. I stepped into the showroom and I was about to turn on the lights when something bright flashed in my eye. I think I saw the shadow of someone. Maybe he had a flashlight."

Alexa caught her breath, watching her aunt wrestle with her memory.

Phoebe's frown grew deeper. "I don't know what happened next. I feel like I might have screamed, but I don't know if that was just in my head." She paused. "Then I woke up here in the hospital. I guess I hit my head on the counter or something." Her aunt's voice rose. "Or did someone hit me? Who would do that?"

"You don't need to think about that," Alexa said quickly. As much as she wanted information, she didn't want her aunt to stress herself out, and it was clear she was becoming agitated. "We don't need to talk about this anymore."

Her words did little to reassure her aunt. "I've just never had anything like this happen before," Phoebe said. "And I don't know what was stolen. My assistant won't be back until Monday, so it's frustrating not knowing what I've lost."

"I know you didn't have a chance to look through the boxes that you received from the Wellbourne estate," Braden said, "but did you have any idea what he was sending you? Do you think there were some valuable items included?"

"Everything I sell in my store has value," Phoebe replied. "But if you're asking if there was some big, expensive piece of jewelry or something, I don't know. Jack was a wealthy man, and he had a lot of interesting pieces that he picked up on his travels. I'm itching to see what he sent me. I hope there's some rare treasure." Shadows dimmed her gaze. "I guess anything valuable is probably gone now."

"I don't know how much the thief got," Alexa said. "A couple of the boxes were intact, so your sudden arrival obviously deterred them."

"I guess it's good I was there then."

"How well did you know Jack Wellbourne?" Alexa asked.

Phoebe smiled. "Jack was very charming and had a big personality. We had dinner a few times in recent years. He was a huge flirt, trying to turn my head with flattery, but I could see right through him. I told him to stop wasting his time. Once he backed off a little, I did enjoy his company. We had some things in common. He was a widower, too. His first wife died of breast cancer. It was very sad. Jack wasn't the same after that. He started dating younger women," she said with a touch of disapproval in her voice. "That second wife of his was a real piece of work. Roberta had her eye on the prize though. She saw in Jack the opportunity to gain money and power, and she went after him. He told me later, he got involved with her, because he knew he'd never break her heart. She didn't want love. She just wanted money. I think they both cheated on each other. There were always rumors flying around about them. Then one day she was gone."

Alexa wondered if Jack had cheated on his second wife with Shayla. But wouldn't there have been an even bigger age gap? "How old was Jack?" she asked.

"He was sixty-four, five years older than me. That's young these days."

"It is young. How did he die?"

"Cancer. He got the diagnosis last year. He didn't tell me until six weeks ago." She gave a sad sigh. "That disease seems to take so many of my friends. It's terrible."

Alexa nodded in agreement as she mentally calculated that fifteen years ago Jack would have been forty-nine years old and Shayla was twenty-five. That fit with what her aunt had just told her about Jack's predilection for younger women.

"Jack built the house on the beach for his first wife, Laura," Phoebe continued. "It was Laura's fantasy house. She loved to paint out on the deck in the late afternoons. After she died, Jack couldn't bear to live there, so he rented it out most of the year, and he traveled. After his last divorce, he settled in there. I guess he finally decided to come home." She paused. "Why are you asking me so much about the Wellbournes, Alexa?"

"It just seems like a coincidence that the boxes arrive and someone breaks into your shop," she replied.

Phoebe frowned. "I didn’t think of it like that."

"We don't know that the two events are connected," Alexa said quickly. "I don't want you to worry. I'm going to stick around and help you figure out what happened and get things put back together in the shop. Once your assistant gets back next week, we can talk about when you'll be able to reopen."

"You can take time off work?"

"Yes, it's no longer the busy tax season. And I'd like to help you."

"Your mother won't like it," Phoebe said, giving her a pointed look.

That was probably true, but Alexa didn't care. "I'm a grown woman now. I do what I want."

"You should stay at my house."

"I have a room at the Cheshire Inn."

"But you're family, honey."

"I'm fine there, really."

"Well, if you need anything, the spare key is where it always was."

"Okay." She paused, seeing a question in her aunt's eyes. "Is there something else?"

"I was just wondering if your father knows I'm in the hospital."

She'd been covering for her dad for too many years, Alexa thought, always having to explain away some bad behavior on his part. But now wasn't the time to get into the truth about her father with her aunt. "I left him a message. I'm sure he'll be in touch."

Phoebe smiled sadly. "I'm not so sure. Rob is not the man I thought he was." She took a breath, licking her dry lips. "You know I had to raise Rob and Stan after our parents died, and I guess I tried to make up for the loss by giving them what I thought they wanted. I probably spoiled Rob. He was the baby of the family. I just wanted him to be happy. But I didn't realize the extent of his selfishness. When Rob and your mom split up, I took his side. I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I should have treated your mother with more kindness. I didn't know all the facts then, and I shouldn't have chosen sides the way I did. I regret that. I lost you because of it."

Alexa was touched by the apology. "You didn't lose me, Aunt Phoebe, I'm right here. Don't think about any of that now. Do you want me to stay for a while and keep you company?"

"No, no, you and Braden have better things to do. I'm fine. I think I have some friends in the waiting room."

"Only most of the town," she said with a smile. "You're very popular. I'll be back later."

"All right, dear. Thank you for coming. And you, too, Braden. It's nice to see you on your feet."

He tipped his head. "It's good to
be
on my feet."

"Your mother was worried about you when you were overseas. She's happy you're back now. We all are. I hope you're going to stay."

"We'll see," he said. "You take care."

"I will. And thank you for helping Alexa. I always felt like she was safe when she was with you. It's good you have an opportunity to reconnect."

Alexa smiled. If her aunt still had the energy to match make, she couldn't be feeling too badly. "Good-bye," she said, leaning over to give her aunt a kiss on the cheek.

After leaving the room, Alexa and Braden walked back down the hall. Louise, one of her aunt's best friends, asked if it was all right to go in, and Alexa nodded. "Just a few at a time," she added.

"Don't worry, we won't overwhelm her," Louise said. "We just want her to feel our support."