Windward Secrets (11 page)

“I need a drink,” Jill said, getting up and going to the kitchen. She returned with a bottle of wine and glasses. “Let’s go to the roof and try to enjoy the rest of the evening.”

***

It was a calm evening as Jill, Caroline, and Diane sat quietly sipping wine and looking at the ocean.

Caroline interrupted the quiet. “Since we appear to be into solving mysteries… how do you think the fire in the parlor gets started?”

“Good question. I wish I knew,” Jill said.

Diane took a sip of wine and looked at her friends. “I know this sounds paranoid, but I wonder if Wendell somehow has it rigged. Nah, that can’t be because it’s real wood and not a gas fireplace.”

“But how can anyone get into this house long enough to prepare a fire when we have been so careful to lock up, and we have Ike who hasn’t caught anyone?” Jill returned.

Diane shook her head and yawned.

“Your guess is as good as mine Jill. The realtor has a key. Maybe someone else has keys. Secret passage?”

Hearing the door from the third floor open the women turned to see Claire and Ike step onto the roof. Claire was wrapped in a blanket from her bed. With Ike following her she slowly walked to the edge of the roof and took a deep breath. As her friends watched, she paced the perimeter of the roof just as Ike had done. When she got to the side of the house that faced in the direction of Wendell’s cottage she stopped. She stood still for a few minutes and then started walking again.

“You okay, Claire?” Diane asked.

Claire turned and approached her friends. “Hi. Sorry I missed dinner.”

“No problem,” Jill answered. “It was just beef Wellington, twice baked potatoes, green beans almandine, and baked Alaska for dessert.”

Claire smiled. “Funny, it smelled like beans and franks.”

Getting the result she wanted, Jill stood up from her plastic webbed, lawn chair and hugged her friend. “We’re so sorry about what you found.”

Claire nodded and sat down, adjusting her blanket more closely around her body. “So, where’s the wine?”

Jill poured a glass and handed it to her.

“Claire, have you eaten anything?” Caroline asked.

“Yes, thanks. I made myself a sandwich.”

“What’s next Claire?” Diane asked, knowing her friend well.

“I can’t let this go. I have to find the answers.”

“I didn’t expect anything less,” Diane replied. “I can’t speak for Jill and Caroline, but I’m with you all the way.”

“I’m worried I’ve put us in danger.”

“What do you mean?” Diane asked.

“The cameras. Do you think they recorded us when we approached the house today?”

Diane tensed. “I suppose, if they were recording. No sense having cameras and not using them.”

“Then we’re going to have to be extremely careful. I think it’s up to us to solve this. For whatever reason, he’s gotten away with it for over forty years. I want him to fry.”

Caroline’s voice shook with emotion. “I’m in Claire.”

“Me too,” Jill said.

“Do you have a plan?” Diane questioned.

“You mean besides cutting the bastard’s balls off?” Claire asked.

“Well, yeah, but maybe something within the law.”

Claire took a huge gulp of wine and turned her chair to face her friends. “We need to get as much background on all those children as we can. We have no computer service here so we’re going to have to see where we can get it in Haworth; probably the public library. If you don’t mind spending the time, I’d appreciate your help researching. Once we have collected as much data as possible we’ll decide what to do next.”

“Why can’t we just go to the authorities with what you found?” Jill asked.

“Two reasons. One, we, in essence, broke into his house; and number two, because I don’t trust them. How could they have not suspected something all these years? How could that many children disappear without someone being suspicious? There are too many unanswered questions.”

Jill’s cell phone rang. Looking at the screen she smiled. “It’s Drew. Hello. Good and you?” Jill walked to the edge of the roof for privacy.

Caroline swirled her wineglass and looked at Claire. “Are you still uneasy about Drew?”

Claire took her time answering. “I really hate to sound neurotic… but, right now, I don’t trust anyone. Drew has given us no reason to be suspicious. I was overprotective of Jill in the beginning, but now I’m more frightened of the unknown. And, let’s face it, we don’t know him from Adam, and he IS moving fast with Jill. Do you agree or do you think it’s just me?”

“I think Drew and Jill found a real connection. I hope he’s sincere because I don’t want to see her hurt. Until we have something on him, I’m in his court. On the matter of what you found today, I think you had an incredible shock and especially when one of the children was a childhood friend. That has to be traumatic.” Caroline leaned toward Diane. “What do you think, Diane?”

“I agree with both of you. I think, for peace of mind for all of us, we have to do something even if all we do is draw attention to this to get the authorities involved. Claire’s right about Chief Peterson, there’s something not quite right about him. Either he doesn’t really care or he’s just plain stupid. I can’t really get a handle on it. Maybe it’s nothing more than he’s close enough to retirement that he just wants to get through his last years without any problems. At any rate, I think we have to help Claire.”

Jill was walking back and forth along the roof phone to her ear.

“Looks like it’s going to be a long conversation,” Diane noted, ruffling her short hair.

“You do know, I only wish the best for her don’t you?” Claire said, looking from Diane to Caroline.

“Yes, of course we do,” Caroline answered.

Diane shifted in her chair. “Claire, would you like me to ask Ed to investigate Wendell?”

“Would he do that?”

“I think so. I should check in with him anyway. I’ll give him a call first thing in the morning.”

Jill finally re-joined the group.

“Well?” Claire asked, raising one eyebrow.

“Oh Claire, you’re so silly. He just called to see how we were getting along and if Ike was giving us any trouble. He’s genuinely concerned about us.”

Claire suddenly sat up straighter and blurted out, “You didn’t tell him about us going to Wendell’s today did you?’

“No, you don’t need to worry, I didn’t mention it. I didn’t think you’d want me to.”

“Thank you. Right now I think the fewer people who know the better.”

Jill covered her legs with a blanket and picked up her wine glass. “What did I miss?”

“Nothing really,” Diane said. “We were just talking about what to do next. Claire do you have any more ideas?”

“Only that I think two of us should go to the library to do research in the morning and the other two should search this house from top to bottom to see if we can figure out how someone is getting in.”

Diane broke in. “Claire, I think you should let someone else do the research. You had enough of a shock seeing those pictures. If we turn up anything you need some time to prepare mentally to deal with it.”

“Good idea,” Caroline said, pushing her glasses up on her nose. “I volunteer to go to the library. Who wants to go with me?”

“I’ll go,” Jill offered. “I like research.”

“Good. Claire and I will stay here and search the house,” Diane said.

The wind picked up and clouds swiftly moved across the sky. Within minutes rain drops were pelting the women.

Ike ran for the door and barked.

“We better take these chairs downstairs in case we get high wind,” Jill said.

Stashing the chairs in the third floor hallway, the women continued down to the first floor. In the kitchen they washed the glasses, discarded the wine bottle, and let Ike out for his final bathroom break. Splitting up they checked all the windows and doors and met in the parlor.

“Did any one notice?” Diane asked.

“There’s no fire…,” Caroline said.

“Is that good news or bad?” Jill inquired.

“I’m relieved. Maybe we can get a good night’s sleep,” Claire said, sighing.

The wind and rain pounded the outside of Windward Cottage with vengeance.

“We’re going to need some extra blankets tonight,” Caroline said, ascending the stairs. “Has anyone seen a linen closet?”

“Closets were rare in this age of house,” Jill replied. “Let’s see what we can find.”

The second and third floors were searched but yielded no linen closet.

“Found a blanket,” Diane yelled, from the second floor landing. “Look in the bureaus in your rooms.”

Blankets were pulled from drawers and soon covered the beds with the women snuggled under them.

“You okay?” Jill asked Claire. “Would you like the light on?”

“I’m fine, Jill. You can turn out the light.”

Claire closed her eyes and listened to the storm. Normally, she liked the sound of the rain on the roof but tonight; rather than soothe her, it set her nerves on edge. Jill started snoring. Claire put her pillow over her head, but Jill was snoring louder than the storm. Claire finally decided to get up. Feeling around for her book, and dragging her blanket, she tip-toed out of the room and down to the parlor. Ike padded silently behind her.

Once submerged in the overstuffed sofa, she opened her book and tried to read with Ike settled beside the sofa. His even breathing soon coaxed Claire into a restless sleep. She saw the little girl again. This time she seemed to be sitting on the sofa with Claire. It wasn’t just any little girl, it was Betsy. Claire tossed and turned. Her tears soaked the throw pillow under her head. Betsy looked as she had in the picture, dirty and frightened. Claire reached out for her. Together they cried. Claire cradled the child in her arms and tried to comfort her.

Chapter Eight

Thursday

A loud clap of thunder woke Claire. She felt a warm body next to hers. Opening her eyes she found Ike sound asleep on the sofa with her.

“Okay, big boy, time to go out!” she whispered, patting him gently.

Ike turned his head and licked Claire’s face before jumping to the floor and lumbering toward the kitchen.

Yawning, Claire stretched and looked around.
Not a bad night considering
she thought, pushing herself up and out of the sofa.

Ike was waiting for her at the back door.

It was barely dawn and the rain was coming down in buckets.

“Ike, I love you, but I’m not going out in that.” Opening the door she added, “Hurry and get back here as fast as you can.”

Turning back to the kitchen Claire filled the coffee maker and opened the refrigerator to retrieve bacon and eggs. A scratch at the door told her Ike was ready to come back in. Ike waited until he was in the middle of the kitchen to shake his rain soaked coat. Water flew everywhere with the final drops propelled off his tail directly at Claire.

“Oh, Ike, for crying out loud. Sit. Stay.” Claire grabbed a towel and dried Ike and then the surrounding furniture and floor. Claire was on her hands and knees when Jill entered the room.

“What are you doing?”

Claire looked at her friend incredulously. “Really Jill? What does it look like? Ike decided to bring the storm inside the house.”

Jill poured herself a cup of coffee. “I was worried when you weren’t in your bed this morning.”

“I came down here to read because you were snoring. Ya know Jill, I would have liked to have had a fire last night. Too bad our secret visitor hadn’t started one for me.”

Peeling open the bacon package Jill separated the strips of bacon and laid them in a frying pan. “Frankly, I’m glad he didn’t because I got a good night’s sleep not worrying about someone sneaking around. How did you sleep?”

“Better than expected. I dreamed of Betsy again.”

“Again? What do you mean again?”

“Oh… didn’t I tell you? I had a dream a few nights ago about a little girl at the foot of my bed. It was the night I couldn’t find my book. I didn’t recognize her then, but after seeing the pictures I now know it was her.”

Jill knitted her brows together and looked at her friend. “Claire, are you saying you saw Betsy here in the house?”

“In the house… as in my dream. It makes sense. This is her house. She knew me. I think she came to me for help.”

“Claire, you’re scaring me. That’s morbid.”

“Don’t be scared. I think this house may be a ‘thin place.’”

“What are you talking about? A ‘thin place’?”

“A thin place is somewhere where the separation between heaven and earth is diminished and we can feel the presence of those who have lived before. I felt it my first day here but didn’t recognize it. Maybe I subconsciously chose Windward House because of Betsy.”

“You’re really losing it.”

“I read about thin places. Haven’t you ever heard of it?” Claire asked.

“No. And, I’m not sure I want to.”

“There’s nothing to be worried about. Thin places are places of peace and tranquility, where the past meets the present. I think, Betsy is our guide. She wants our help.”

Jill smelled burning bacon and turned back to the stove. “Okay, whatever you say.”

“I wonder if it was Betsy starting the fires, moving my book, and crying.”

“Crying? Now what are you talking about?”

Claire was seated at the kitchen table with Ike’s head on her lap. “I heard crying one night. I think it was coming from Betsy’s room. Don’t you think it makes sense?”

Jill turned the bacon and looked back at Claire. “No, this does not make any sense. I’m worried about you.”

“Don’t be. Just keep an open mind. I can tell you I feel more at peace. I’m not as frightened. This feels right.”

Caroline and Diane entered the kitchen at the same time. “What feels right?” Caroline asked.

Claire repeated her theory about thin places and Betsy.

“I need coffee,” Caroline said, looking at Claire with wide eyes and circling her finger around her ear making the crazy sign.

Diane was intrigued. “This is interesting. Tell us more Claire.”

“No!” Jill interrupted. “We’re going to have breakfast in the present time and place. Claire can go into this later. How do you want your eggs?”

Seated in front of a plate of bacon and eggs Claire laid out her plan for the day to her friends. “Okay. Here’s what we do. Jill and Caroline you go to the library and see what you can find about missing children. Sorry, I know this is going to be a big job. Hopefully, the library will have computers. While you’re there, Diane and I will see what we can find here in the house… even though I think I have it figured out with Betsy. Let’s plan to meet for lunch at Blackbeard’s at one o’clock.”

Diane, Caroline, and Jill looked at each other anxiously.

Diane reached over and touched Claire’s arm. “Claire, do you think you ought to call Spence and talk to him about all of this. It might make you feel better.”

“Diane I’m fine. Really. Spence would only worry needlessly.”

Jill had heard enough. “Claire! We’re seriously concerned about you. You’ve always been the practical one with more common sense than anyone deserves. You need to get a grip. We’ll help you with this, but I think you need some professional help.”

Claire responded with assurance. “I’m fine. We only have a day to work on this and then we’ll be home in our safe, little houses and this will all be a memory. Please. Just give me another day.”

As promised Diane made a call to her friend, Ed, who agreed to see what he could find out about Wendell. Jill and Caroline left for the library and Claire and Diane went to the third floor.

“We may as well start up here and work our way down,” Claire said.

Two hours later they had searched every nook and cranny, looked under every rug, felt walls, gone through the kitchen cabinets, and even cleaned the ash out of the fireplace using a flashlight to investigate the inside of the firebox.

Dust covered Diane’s spikey hair. Claire’s ponytail had failed her leaving strands of hair falling in her face that she tried to blow away with puffs of breath.

“Nothing. This is disappointing,” Diane said, plopping down in the old recliner in the parlor.

“I know. I thought we would find something, even if it was only a door to the basement.”

Diane stood, startling Ike who had been stretched out on the rug in front of the sofa. “Basement. That’s it. There was no door. How do we get into the basement?”

Grabbing umbrellas from a brass stand by the door Claire handed one to Diane and then opened the front door. “There has to be an outside entrance.”

On the side of the house opposite the driveway, they found what they were looking for. Partially covered in sand, was a metal, bulkhead door with a rusty padlock the size of a hubcap.

“Well, that’s useless,” Claire yelled, over the wind. Bending down, for a closer look at the lock, she gave it a hard tug. It held strong. She only succeeded in exposing her back to the wind and rain.

“Let’s go back inside,” Diane yelled.

Feeling defeated, they sat at the kitchen table with their hands wrapped around hot mugs of coffee.

“Claire. Do you find it interesting that the one night we don’t have a fire is the night Drew is out of town?”

Claire removed the tie from her hair and shook her head letting her hair fall. “So… I’m not the only one who has questions about Drew?”

“I think I’m beginning to think like you and it scares me.”

Claire fluffed her hair trying to get it to dry. “Frankly, I think it’s very strange. We have plenty of time before we have to be in town. Let’s take a little ride over to Drew’s cottage.”

“Jill is really going to be pissed,” Diane said, reaching for yellow slickers on hooks beside the door.

“If he happens to be home, we’ll just say we were running low on dog food.”

Diane rolled her eyes. “First, we trespass and now we lie. What next?”

Pulling into Drew’s drive, Claire and Diane were relieved his car was not there. The rain had eased and they ran to the porch. There was no answer to their knock so they tried the door and windows on the porch. Locked. They worked their way around the house, as they had at Wendell’s, but had no luck finding an unlocked window. There was a screened-in porch at the back of the house with windows looking into the kitchen.

Claire cupped her hands around her eyes and peered in the windows while Diane kept watch for anyone approaching the house.

“Nothing,” Claire said. “Jill was right. He keeps a neat house. Dishes are even washed.”

Diane shrugged her shoulders. “We may as well go meet Jill and Caroline.”

“Just for the heck of it, let’s drive past Wendell’s.”

“Why exactly would we do that?” Diane asked, incredulously.

“We should keep tabs on him. If we know where he is, he can’t surprise us.”

Wendell’s driveway was empty. Claire was pulling the car into the drive when Diane yelled, “What are you doing? Claire, I’m not going in there again.”

“Relax Diane, I’m just turning around.”

Backing out, Claire turned the car toward Haworth and Diane breathed a sigh of relief.

The rain had let up a little but the day was still dark and dreary. The sidewalks of Haworth were deserted. “Looks like that depressing town where the Twilight movies were filmed, doesn’t it Diane?”

Diane glanced from side to side looking around the small town. “I’m waiting for a vampire to pop out at any minute.”

“How about a Chief of Police?” Claire said, sarcastically as she pointed to the right side of the street. Chief Peterson’s patrol car was parked in a No Parking Zone in front of the Haworth Public Library and he was walking into the library as they passed.

“Gee,” Diane said. “He doesn’t seem like the reading type.”

Claire continued down the street slowly. “I sure hope Jill and Caroline are out of there.”

Turning left at the next corner Claire found a parking spot half a block from Blackbeard’s. “Good. There’s Caroline’s car. They’re here.”

Claire and Diane wasted no time getting into the restaurant. Leaving their slickers and umbrellas in the vestibule, they opened the interior door to the restaurant and were assaulted with noise and activity. It appeared the whole town had decided to have lunch at the same time. Claire spied Jill and Caroline sitting in a booth near the large, open hearth fireplace where a fire blazed.

“This is great,” Diane said, sliding in beside Jill. “How’d you get such a good table?”

Taking a long draw on her straw Jill said, “Just luck. It’s really busy in here today isn’t it?”

“Did you order yet?” Claire asked.

“Only drinks,” Caroline answered, who quickly gave them a rundown of the specials and soup of the day.

“Great. I’m hungry,” Diane said, picking up a menu.

“What can I get you ladies to drink?” came a cheerful voice over Claire’s shoulder. Claire looked up to see a perky, blond waitress smiling with her pad and pencil ready to take their orders.

“Where’d you come from?” Claire asked, surprised by her sudden appearance.

The waitress gave them a fast and furious account of how busy they were, that she liked rainy days because it meant they would be busy, it made her day go faster and her tips better, and on and on, until Diane finally spoke up. “Hot tea for me, please.” Then looking at Claire, and tilting her head toward the waitress. “What do you want to drink?”

“Coffee. Cream and sugar, please.”

“Got it. I’ll be back for your orders in a jiffy!”

Jill smiled and rolled her eyes. “And, that’s Brittany, our server. We already know her life story so, please, don’t give her any opportunity to talk. Be ready with your orders when she comes back.”

“How did you make out at the library?” Claire asked, looking over the top of her menu.

Caroline answered first. “We got a lot done. We found over fifty articles on missing girls.”

“We divided and conquered by state,” Jill said. “We thought that was enough to start with and decided to check out the local newspaper office to see what they might have in their archives.”

Diane leaned forward and with a low voice asked, “What did you find?”

Brittany returned with the beverages before Jill or Caroline could answer. “Have you decided? The clam chowder is really good today. Makes you feel nice and toasty on a day like this.”

“Yes. Yes. We’re ready,” Claire answered.

Orders were quickly given and Brittany did her vanishing act.

Diane repeated her question. “What did you find at the newspaper?”

Caroline played with her straw and looked intently at Diane. “Absolutely nothing.”

Claire blinked and frowned. “How can that be?”

“We searched the microfiche for five years around the time you thought it was. There was absolutely no mention of Betsy’s disappearance.”