Miss Dimple and the Slightly Bewildered Angel (27 page)

Quietly walking behind her, Augusta hesitated. Well, there was no use in putting it off; it simply had to be done, and gritting her teeth, she cried out and fell smack in the middle of the sidewalk.

“Oh my goodness! Are you hurt?” Whirling, Carolyn stooped beside her.

Augusta moaned. It wasn't necessary to fake pain, as her elbow burned like fire and she was sure she had bruised her knee. “Must've turned my ankle. I think I'll be all right,” she answered in as feeble a voice as she could manage.

Carolyn offered a hand. “Here, let me help you. Do you think you're able to walk?”

Augusta thanked her and nodded. “I think so,” she gasped.

“Look, it's freezing out here. My house is just down the street. Why not come in and get warm until you're sure you're all right?”

Augusta nodded her thanks and hobbled along beside her.

“I'm Carolyn Lowe,” her rescuer said once inside the house. “I don't believe we've met. You must be new in the neighborhood.”

Augusta introduced herself and explained that she was looking for an address a few blocks away. “My mother lived there years ago and I promised her I would stroll by her old neighborhood when I was in town.” She disliked telling a fib, but after all, it
was
for a good cause.

Her hostess brought a warm washcloth for her injuries and dabbed her elbow with antiseptic. Augusta tried not to wince. She'd had no time for breakfast before she left and would dearly love a cup of coffee.

“There. That ought to do it,” Carolyn said, rising to her feet. “Do you think you'll be all right now?”

Augusta thanked her and said she was sure she would be fine.

“Good. Then how about a cup of coffee to warm you up before you go?”

Thank goodness! I thought she'd never ask.
“That would be wonderful,” she said.

“I would offer to drive you to your mother's old neighborhood, but I don't have a car today.” Carolyn brought cream and sugar and joined her.

“That's all right. I really don't have much time before I meet my friend for my ride back home.” Augusta sipped and waited.

“And where do you live?”

“Fieldcroft, but I've only been there a short time.” Augusta closed her eyes.
Sorry, but that was necessary.

“Fieldcroft! Why, you must know my friend Dora Westbrook.”

Oh dear! She didn't know.
Augusta hesitated before telling Carolyn what had happened to her friend.

Carolyn's eyes filled with tears. “I don't understand. Why would anyone want to do that to Dora? Are you sure it wasn't an accident?”

Augusta told her what she'd learned of Dora's peculiar behavior when she arrived in Elderberry and how she had chosen to take shelter in a church rather than spend the night in a tourist home run by a local policeman and his wife. “Some of the people there believe she might still be alive today if she hadn't made that choice,” she added.

Carolyn shook her head silently. “I'm sure it was because she didn't want her husband to find her. I wondered why I hadn't heard from Dora, but frankly, I thought she must've decided to join her sister in Tennessee. I suppose all that's been in the newspapers, but I give piano lessons several afternoons a week, and with my girls and their activities, I don't always have time to read them.”

Augusta noticed the piano in the corner of the room and on it a framed photograph of a naval officer she assumed was Carolyn's husband.

“I guess it's all right to say this now, but Dora was unhappy in her marriage, and she planned to get away. Tell me, do they believe Leonard had anything to do with this?”

“The police checked, of course, but he never left home during that time.”

“What about her mother-in-law? They never did get along.”

“She was in Fieldcroft when it happened, but there have been recent reports about robberies or would-be robberies in the town where this took place. Someone seems to be looking for something Dora might have hidden, and they believe it's somewhere in Elderberry. I wouldn't be surprised if the authorities had their eye on Lucille Westbrook.”

Carolyn sighed. “There must've been something I could have done! Did you know I was the last person Dora saw before she took that bus to Elderberry? She came here first to throw her husband off track so he wouldn't look for her there.”

“I'm sure you did all you could,” Augusta assured her, and when she touched her hand, Carolyn seemed to visibly relax. “Carolyn, do you know why Dora planned to go to Elderberry?” Augusta asked.

“She told me she was to meet someone there.” Carolyn dropped her head, and Augusta could barely hear her when she spoke. “She took something,” she whispered. “Something valuable she planned to sell so she could begin to live independently of Leonard—for a while at least.”

“What? What did she take?” Augusta found she had forgotten all about her cuts and bruises.

“It was a book. Dora said it would be worth a lot of money.”

Of course! What better place to hide a book than in a library?

“What kind of book?” Augusta asked. “What was the title?”

“Dora was afraid to tell me in case somebody came here looking for it,” Carolyn said. Her eyes widened. “I wonder if they've found it.”

“I don't believe so, at least not yet.” Augusta gathered her cape, adjusted her hat, and started for the door. “After all, who would know the title but Leonard Westbrook and his mother?”

*   *   *

The wind had settled some when Augusta left Carolyn's snug bungalow, and the midmorning sun felt warm upon her face as she started down the street. Bare branches of hardwood trees arched overhead, and now and then, piles of newly raked leaves waited by the curb to be collected. Augusta resisted the temptation to jump in one, but this was neither the time nor the place, she reminded herself, however she relished the crisp, tingling smell of them just the same.

If Leonard Westbrook or his mother hadn't been the one who caused Dora's death, then who could it have been? And had Dora known the person who might purchase the book? Walking cleared her mind, and Augusta found herself wandering into the Cherokee Heights section of homes, and admiring the lovely Georgian, Tudor, and Craftsman houses. Along the way, she passed several women pushing baby carriages, and on the corner across the street, two ladies in hats and gloves talked as they waited for the bus. With the shortage of gasoline, most people now relied on public transportation. But young men were obviously absent from the picture, and it made life seem out of kilter. Augusta crossed over onto Napier Avenue, where an older gentleman walking his dog removed his hat and smiled as they met, and smiling in return, Augusta hoped with all her heart the world would soon be at peace.

Walking past Mercer University, in the center of town, she noticed young men in uniform who, she learned, were there to be trained as naval officers. Carolyn had said that the campus of Wesleyan, the college she and Dora had attended, was on the outskirts of town.

Finding a convenient drugstore, Augusta settled in a back booth and indulging in a chocolate soda, found it every bit as good as she'd remembered. Taking her time to sip the delightful concoction through a straw, she scooped up ice cream with a long-handled spoon, and saved the whipped cream and cherry for last. Augusta closed her eyes and decided it was
almost
heavenly.

As she ate, Augusta decided the most logical person to want to find Dora's rare book would be Lucille Westbrook, rather than her son, who, from all she had heard, seemed to appear indifferent to the whole affair.

As she left the drugstore, a sharp gust of wind brought November's brown crumpled leaves tumbling through the street. This would be a good time for a brief visit farther south, Augusta thought. Perhaps someone in Fieldcroft might know if Lucille had left town recently. However, her friend Celeste, she remembered, was on another assignment.

But hadn't Annie's friend Charlie told them her mother had mentioned that the woman who ran the grocery store there knew everything that went on in Fieldcroft? So why not pay her a visit, she reasoned. If anyone would know Lucille's whereabouts, she seemed the likely one to ask.

The main street of Fieldcroft was almost deserted when Augusta dropped in later that afternoon, but a few customers still lingered at the small grocery store in the center of town. Augusta took her time browsing among the root vegetables until she could approach the woman behind the counter and tactfully ask about Lucille.

But according to Edna of Edna's Groceries, as far as she knew, Lucille had been keeping close to home until earlier that day, when she'd bought a bus ticket to Elderberry.

 

C
HAPTER
T
HIRTY-TWO

Although she was disappointed not to be able to visit awhile with Celeste, Augusta thought it best to get back as soon as possible after learning of Lucille's recent departure for Elderberry. While speaking with Edna, she had noticed a rather large woman with hair a more vibrant yellow than any dandelion shopping nearby.

“That's Linda Pearl, Lucille's niece,” Edna whispered, drawing her aside. “Works part-time at the police station.”

Augusta bought winter vegetables for a hearty casserole, thanked her, and left. Looking back as she reached the corner of the street, she saw the shopper with the yellow hair step outside the store, as if to follow her.

It was time to cut her travels short and return to Elderberry.

*   *   *

“Why, Augusta, we didn't expect you so soon!” Phoebe opened the door to find Augusta standing on the porch with her large bag in one hand and a sack of groceries in the other.

“We've just finished supper, but there's plenty left if you're hungry,” she said.

Augusta said she thought she might be able to eat a bite or two, and joined the others, who were lingering over tea and cookies.

“How in the world did you get to Macon and back so quickly?” Velma asked.

Augusta helped herself to the macaroni. “I left very early this morning—way before anyone was up.”

“Did you learn anything there?” Phoebe asked, passing her the slaw.

“Yes, I did, and I'll tell you all about it after supper.” Augusta found she could eat a bit more than a bite or two.

“The meal you left was delicious,” Lily said, and everyone agreed. “Thank you for looking after us.”

Augusta smiled. “That's the very reason I'm here … but I didn't make the cookies,” she said, noticing the platter on the table. “They look delicious.”

“They are delicious,” Miss Dimple said. “Annie made them this afternoon.”

Annie smiled. “They're called crybabies. It's a recipe that I saw in the paper. They're made with molasses, brown sugar, and spices, and they're supposed to be especially good for shipping. I'm going to make more to send Frazier.”

Augusta found the cookies to be moist and flavorful and took hers into the parlor with a cup of tea while she told everyone about her visit with Carolyn Lowe.

“I think I know now why someone broke into the library,” she began. “They were looking for a book.”

Lily frowned. “Why couldn't they just check it out like everyone else?”

Augusta laughed. “Because it was a particular book. Carolyn said it's probably worth a good bit of money, at least enough so Dora would have had the means to leave her husband and begin a life on her own.”

Of course everyone wanted to know the title, but were disappointed to learn that Carolyn wasn't given that information. Dora was afraid someone at home might come there asking questions and didn't want to put her friend in that position, Augusta explained.

“So, what did she do with the book? Where is it now?” Annie asked.

“We'd all like the answer to that,” Augusta told her. “Carolyn said Dora took it with her when she left.”

“Then it has to be somewhere in Elderberry.” Frowning, Phoebe set her mending aside.

“Well, it's not here,” Velma insisted. “I've looked everywhere I know to look. Besides, Dora wasn't here very long.”

“And it's certainly not at the library,” Phoebe added. “Augusta, you helped put all those books back on the shelves. Don't you think we would've noticed it?”

“But we didn't know to look for something like that,” Augusta reminded her.

“Evidently, whoever broke into the library didn't find it, either,” Dimple said.

“What about the church?” Annie suggested. “When Dora left here, she went to the church—or at least she ended up there. Do you suppose she hid that book somewhere in the church?”

Lily sighed. “Well, if she did, they'll never find it. How would anyone know what to look for?”

Augusta nodded. “A thimble in a haystack,” she said, and of course everyone looked at her oddly until Annie finally laughed and said that was close enough.

“I'll telephone Evan Mitchell tomorrow,” Dimple said, referring to the minister there, “and ask them to be on the lookout for it. I just wish I could be more specific.”

“What about Odessa's husband, Bob Robert?” Phoebe suggested. “After all, he works part-time as sexton there and was the one who found her. He might remember seeing it somewhere.”

“It won't hurt to ask,” Augusta said, “but if we only knew the title!

“By the way,” she continued, “I heard from an acquaintance in Fieldcroft that Lucille Westbrook bought a bus ticket for Elderberry this morning, so it appears she's up to something.”

“That's comforting,” Velma said, frowning. “We should all sleep soundly tonight.”

Going to the window, Dimple pulled aside the curtain and looked out on the street, now dark except for a dim light on the corner. “If she left this morning, she should be here by now. I wonder where she went.”