Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 07 - Missing Milt (15 page)

Lucy laughed.  “That quieted ‘em down!”

Since Liz’s stakeout was in the back of the complex, they agreed she would drop the others off, then park the car out in front of the park. Frances was first.  Liz handed her a pair of binoculars and a walkie-talkie. 

Frances reached out to grab the items.  Liz pulled her hand back.  “Under no circumstances are you to approach the suspect.  Got that?”

Frances nodded and exited the car.  She lowered her body and crept across the manicured grass to the edge of the shed.  She gave a thumbs up and Liz drove on.

Lucy was next.  Instead of binoculars, she grabbed her monocular, her snacks and a walkie-talkie.  Lucy had a different strategy.  She bolted across the lawn, slammed her body to the ground when she reached the mulch bed and then slithered behind a bush.

“She’s pretty agile,” Liz observed. 

Gloria was in awe.  “Yeah. If I tried that, I’d have busted my behind.” 

Catalina Court and Stella White were next.  Gloria patted her pocket to make sure she had her cell phone.  She grabbed her monocular, wrapped the binoculars around her neck, just in case, and picked up the walkie-talkie. 

She opened the rear passenger door.  “Good luck,” she whispered as she slunk out of the seat and hurriedly strolled to the side of the fence that divided Stella White’s house from the neighbors next door.

Gloria shook her head as she gazed down the side of the fence that seemed to continue on indefinitely.  These people were really into their fencing!

Liz parked in her spot and headed to the men’s room, praying there was no one inside!

(Several Days Earlier)

Milton Tilton was sporting a massive headache.  He groggily opened his eyes and lifted his head.  A sharp pain shot through his skull.

The room came into focus and he realized he was in a bathtub. He reached out to grasp the sides of the tub when he noticed a handcuff on his wrist.  Attached to the handcuff was a long length of chain.  At the other end of the chain, fastened to a safety bar inside the shower was another handcuff. 

Milt lifted himself from the tub.  The length of the chain allowed him to reach all the way over to the sink but it wasn’t long enough to reach the bathroom door handle. 

Milt rubbed his wrist and glanced down at his clothes.  At least he still had his clothes on.  “Is anybody here?” 

He waited.  “Hello?”

Silence.  The only sound he could hear was the ticking of the clock on the wall.  It was 3:30 in the afternoon.

Milt lowered the lid to the toilet seat and sat down.  The last thing he remembered was eating dinner.  He was eating dinner at someone’s house and he began to feel groggy so he decided to lie down.  That was the last coherent thought he had…until now.

Had someone drugged him and chained him to the bathroom wall?

Milt’s mouth was parched – as if he’d just swallowed an entire bag of cotton balls in the middle of the Sahara desert under the noonday sun.

A small glass cup sat on the counter next to the bathroom sink.  Milt grabbed the cup and filled it with water. He downed the cup and filled it again.  He drank glass after glass until his stomach started to churn. 

He wiped the last bit of water from his lips with the back of his hand and realized he was still wearing his watch.  He glanced down at the face. His eyes widened when he noticed the day.  It was Sunday.  He shook the cobwebs from his brain.  It couldn’t be Sunday!  It was Friday. 

It all came rushing back.  He’d golfed a few rounds with the guys and then headed home to clean up.  After that, he had a dinner date. His eyes narrowed. 

“Milt, my love.  Are you awake yet?”  The door swung open and Milton Tilton faced his abductor.

Gloria took a deep breath, sucked in her stomach and squeezed between the lamppost that stood at the edge of the property and the tall, white vinyl fence.  She stooped over and tip toed the length of the fence before arriving at the back corner of Stella White’s property. 

A thick, low hedge ran a straight line across the back yard until it ended at a tall, concrete wall on the other side.

This lady has more perimeter borders than Lowe’s
, Gloria decided.  She darted across the back of the property and came to a sudden stop halfway in.  There was a small gap in the hedge.  She vaulted over the low bush and skidded to a halt on the other side.

A dog barked in the distance and Gloria’s eyes widened.  She hadn’t thought about that.  What if Stella had a dog?  A big one that didn’t like strangers in the yard. 

Gloria dropped down on all fours and crawled across the back lawn until she reached the side of the house. 

“Gloria, do you copy?”

The radio in Gloria’s front pocket squawked.  She fumbled with the button and quickly twisted it between her fingertips.  She had forgotten to turn it down! 

She pulled the small radio from her pocket and pressed it to her lips. “I’m here, Lucy,” she mumbled, “what’ve you got?”

“Nothing.  No one’s home,” Lucy answered.  “What about you?”

Gloria stared down the side of the house before she lifted her eyes.  “This place is lit up like the 4
th
of July,” she whispered.  “Just hang out.  Maybe Vivian will come home soon.”

Gloria shoved the walkie-talkie into her pocket, pressed her back against the wall and inched her way around the corner.  There were two low windows and a smaller, higher one in the middle.  Must be a bath, Gloria thought. 

She eased up to the edge of the first window and peeked inside.  The curtains were open, the lights on but no one was around. 

Gloria ducked her head and eased past the window.  She could see a faint shadow move back and forth through the glass of the bathroom window but nothing more.  The window was too high and on top of that, the glass was frosted.

She crept past the bathroom window and stopped at the window on the other side.  More curtains and the lights were on.  It was another bedroom.  This one looked to be the master.  She could see a door off to the right.  If her calculations were correct, the door connected the master bedroom with the bath.

“Gloria, do you copy?”

Gloria’s pocket was going off again.  This time it was Liz. She pulled the radio from her pocket and pressed the button.  “Go ahead.”

“I’m in the backyard.  The curtains are drawn and I can’t see a doggone thing,” she complained. 

“Circle around the side,” Gloria instructed.  “Don’t call me back until you’ve made it around the entire perimeter,” she barked into the radio. She was beginning to regret having given each of the women a radio.

Gloria moved on to the front and to a large picture window that faced the street.  A semi-sheer curtain obscured the view.  Gloria could see a little of the inside, mainly the table lamps.  She noted that the TV was on. 

There were two men duking it out inside a boxing ring.  “Great, hopefully this Stella lady isn’t into boxing,” she mumbled under her breath. 

Her eyes scanned the room as she searched for clues.  Something that screamed Milt’s name – or maybe even Milt himself.  Nothing looked even remotely suspicious.

Gloria tiptoed past the front door and over to the other side of the house.  There was another window.  This one higher.  From her vantage point, Gloria could see the tippy top of a refrigerator.  It was the kitchen.  A shadow moved back and forth. 

Stella was home!

Gloria leaned around the side of the corner of the house.  There was a long, paved drive leading back to a one-stall garage.  This side of the house was windowless.  There was a door near the back. 

She stepped back behind a tall, thin juniper tree that decorated the front corner. 

Gloria was torn.  Should she make her way towards the garage or circle back?  She decided to head back to the living room window to try to catch of a glimpse of Stella inside.

Staying close to the wall, she slunk back to the living room window and stood silently staring inside. 

Gloria impatiently shifted back and forth on her feet.  The woman was taking
forever
in the kitchen! 

Finally, Stella wandered into the living room with a plate of food.  It looked like pizza.  Gloria’s stomach growled. 

Stella paused for a second as she switched the TV channel to a car race before she continued into the bedroom.  She shut the door behind her.

The radio beeped again.  It was Lucy.  “Yeah, I think I’m onto something over here.  There’s a bottle of men’s cologne on the kitchen counter and some sort of men’s hair goop right next to it.”

That sounded promising.  “I’ll be right there.”

Gloria didn’t dare pass by the bedroom window since Stella had gone into the room. Instead, she stuck to the edge of the fence and stepped out onto the sidewalk. 

Gloria spotted Lucy one block over, crouched down and hidden behind the bushes. 

Lucy motioned her over to look in the window.  Sure enough, there was a bottle of men’s cologne and a box of
Just for Men
.  “See?  Vivian is a widow, too.  What’s she doing with men’s stuff?”

Good point.  “Good eye,” Gloria complimented her friend. 

Gloria’s radio squawked again.  It was Liz.  “Gloria, we need to rendezvous stat!”

Gloria rolled her eyes.  She could hardly wait to find out what kind of pickle Liz had gotten herself into now.

“The cops just picked up Frances!”

“Frances had just radioed to say Carol Towers was clean and I was on my way over there to pick her up,” Liz blurted out. “When I rounded the corner, the cops had Frances handcuffed and were putting her in the back of the cop car.”

“Was it a Montbay Sheriff?”  On the one hand, Gloria hoped it was since she could talk to Paul and straighten this whole thing out. 

On the other hand, she hoped it wasn’t the Montbay Sheriff for the exact same reason.

Liz nodded.  “Yep.  Sure was.”

“Well, we better get down to the sheriff’s station and try to spring Frances,” Gloria told them.

Paul’s squad car was in front of the station when Liz pulled up.  The girls climbed out of the car and up the front steps.

Gloria recognized the girl behind the counter but for the life of her, she couldn’t remember her name.  She smiled brightly.  “How are you this evening?”

The girl returned the smile.  “Just fine, Mrs. Rutherford.” She tapped her pen on the counter. “Are you here to see Paul?”

“Yes, dear.  If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, I need to speak with him for a moment.”

“I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.” The girl turned, headed through the door and into the back.

“I don’t know about the happy part,” Liz muttered under her breath.

Gloria took a deep breath and waited.  Paul rounded the corner and made his way over to where they were standing.  “I’d like to say I’m surprised to see you but I’m not.”

He waved them down the hall and into his office.  “Have a seat.”

Gloria let Liz and Lucy sit closer to the wall.  She sat near the door. 

He propped his feet up on his desk.  “Well?  What happened?” 

“You see, we-uh,” Gloria tried to form the most reasonable explanation.

Liz went for a total cover up.  “This is clearly a mistake.  Frances was out for a walk with…”

Paul held up a hand to stop her.  “Don’t dig the hole, Liz.  Frances was caught with a set of binoculars and a walkie-talkie, peeping into a resident’s window.”

He pointed to the walkie-talkie sticking out of Gloria’s pocket.  “And it looks just like that one.  Start again.”

Gloria spilled her guts, explaining to him how the girls had decided to do a little investigative work in hopes of either finding Milt or finding some clues.

“And?”

Gloria averted her gaze and studied her hands. 

“You have something, don’t you?”

Liz and Lucy leaned back as Paul focused his gaze on his girlfriend.  “Well-uh,” Gloria stuttered.

“We found some men’s toiletry items in Vivian Coulter’s house.” Lucy clarified.  “We saw them through the window. We didn’t break in or anything…” she trailed off.

“Vivian is definitely single,” Liz added. 

He clasped his hands together.  “We’ll bring her in for questioning but just because someone has men’s grooming products in their house doesn’t mean they had something to do with Milton Tilton’s disappearance. For all you know, he could be dead.”

Paul was right.  He could be dead.  But why – and who – was in his house the other night?  Gloria had a gut feeling he was alive and well.

“Maybe he doesn’t want to be found,” Paul pointed out.

“I had that same thought,” Gloria admitted.

Paul stood.  “I’ll spring your friend but you have to promise me you’re going to let this go!”

Lucy and Liz nodded.  Gloria didn’t like to make promises she couldn’t keep.  “I’ll try” was all she would say.

Gloria was silent on the ride back to Liz’s place.  Liz could almost see the wheels spinning in Gloria’s mind.  “What?  I know you’re onto something,” she prodded.

Gloria was thinking about the day’s events.  It looked as if Vivian Coulter might be suspect but there was something else. 

It was floating around the back of her mind, just out of reach.  A clue.  “I’m missing something.  I know I am.” She climbed out of Liz’s car and reached for her purse.  “I’ll have to think about it.  Mull it over.”

She turned to Frances.  “I’m sorry you ended up in the slammer,” she told her apologetically.

Frances patted Gloria’s arm.  “Don’t worry about it.  I know you’re trying to find Milt and I appreciate it,” Frances reassured her.

Gloria shuffled to the car and unlocked the doors.  Lucy dropped her backpack on the back seat and climbed in next to her friend.  “I’m sure you’ll figure it out.” Lucy sounded more confident than Gloria felt.  “Maybe he is dead or wanted to disappear.”

Lucy frowned.  “True, but what about the lights on in his house?  Someone was in there,” she pointed out. 

“I guess I just can’t understand why someone would up and leave without telling anyone.” That’s what stuck in Gloria’s craw.  It didn’t make one bit of sense.

She dropped Lucy off at her house and headed home.  The house was dark.  The porch was dark.  How nice would it be to come home to someone again? 

Gloria dropped her purse on the table and hung her keys on the hook while Mally waited patiently for Gloria to finish before she nudged her hand.

Gloria bent down and wrapped her arms around Mally’s neck.  “I shouldn’t feel sorry for myself.  I’m the luckiest person in the world.  I have you!”

The next morning, Gloria rambled around the farm, puttering at this or that, her mind half on her chores and half trying to figure out what clue was just out of reach. 

She finally gave up.  Dinner that evening consisted of a leftover burger from the cookout and a bag of potato chips. 

Gloria carried her plate into the living room and settled into the recliner.  Mally laid at her feet while Puddles jumped up on her lap.

She turned the TV to the local news just in time to catch a small clip about Milt.  They flashed a quick shot of his face.  It was looking at Milt’s face, his shiny, cue ball head that Gloria had her “aha” moment. 

Vivian Coulter was not the suspect in the disappearance of one Milton Tilton.  She scrambled out of the chair and raced to the phone to call Paul.  “I think Stella White, one of Dreamwood’s residents over on Catalina Court, has something to do with Milt’s disappearance and here’s why.”

Paul listened to Gloria’s explanation.  It was a bit of a stretch but worth looking into.  His girl had a nose for sniffing out the clues.  “I’ll bring her in in the morning.”

Gloria could hardly wait for Paul to call her back.  He promised to stop by Stella White’s house early the next morning, catch her off guard and try to get inside.  Inside the house where Gloria believed the woman was keeping Milt against his will.

Gloria scrubbed her house from top to bottom.  She mopped floors, cleaned out the refrigerator, and dusted the inside of all the curio cabinets. 

Finally, the call came.  “She confessed.  We found Milt inside her bathroom, handcuffed to the handicap bar in the bathtub.”

“I knew it!” she exclaimed.  After she hung up, the first call she made was to Liz.  “I have some great news.  I’ll be right over.”

She swung by and picked up Lucy on her way.  Lucy tried every which way to wrangle the story out of Gloria, but Gloria clamped her lips shut and shook her head.  “No.  I’ll explain it to everyone at the same time.”

Frances was pacing the sidewalk when the girls pulled up.  “They found Milt!  Alive!”

Gloria nodded.  “I know.  Stella White abducted him.”

The girls headed inside Frances’ house.  They all slid into the kitchen chairs and stared at Gloria, waiting for her to explain.

She told how when the girls confronted the women at the clubhouse during their bridge game, everyone talked.  Everyone that is, except for Stella White, who was strangely silent, something Gloria found interesting.

“That’s why I wanted to check out her place.”

Then she explained how she surveyed the perimeter of Stella’s house.  How she looked in a bedroom window. Nothing. She walked past the frosted bathroom window to the other side and peeked inside the master bedroom, still nothing.

Into the living room where the lights were on but no one was around.  When she got to the kitchen, she saw Stella’s shadow standing there.  How she moved back and forth.  Just like Gloria noticed a shadow moving back and forth through the frosted glass in the bathroom.  Which meant Stella could not be in two places at once:  in the bathroom and in the kitchen.

The final clue was when Stella carried her plate of pizza to the bedroom and closed the door.  “Why would someone who had the living room TV, the lights, everything on, go into the bedroom and close the door?”

Lucy was lost.  “Why?”

“Because Milt was in that bathroom and she was taking food to him!”

“I ruled Vivian out last night,” Gloria added.

“That’s what I don’t understand,” Frances said.  “She had the men’s grooming stuff on her counter.  You saw it yourself.”

Gloria snapped her fingers.  “Right, I saw men’s cologne
and
a box of JustForMen haircolor.  Milt is bald.  He has no facial hair!”

“Ahhh,” Frances nodded.

Gloria tapped the side of her head.  “Gotta always be thinking.”

“So when Paul got there and asked Stella if he could come in, she slammed the door in his face.”

“And?” Lucy asked.

“He went back to the office and got an expedited probable cause search warrant.  When he showed up on her doorstep a second time, warrant in hand, she had to let him in.  Paul found him handcuffed to the safety bar in the shower.”

Liz shook her head.  “Well, I’ll be.”

Lucy shook her head.  “But why?”

Gloria took a deep breath.  “Believe it or not, she thought she was helping him.  That by keeping him prisoner in her home, the men he owed money to wouldn’t be able to track him down.  The police just found his car in the Meijer grocery store parking lot.”

Liz pushed back her chair.  “I assume he’s going to press charges.”

Gloria slowly shook her head.  “Believe it or not, Milt told Paul he didn’t want to press charges – at least not yet.”

Frances jumped to her feet.  “I hate to rush you all out of here but I just saw Milt’s car pass by and I want to go check on him.”

She rushed out the door and down the sidewalk.  Milt was unlocking his front door when Frances got there.  He opened the door and he and Frances disappeared inside.

Gloria watched until Frances was out of sight.  “That lady is gaga over him.”

Liz groaned.  “A little too much, I suspect.”