Murder by Arrangement (Edna Davies mysteries Book 5) (7 page)

Chapter 9

“Who were you
talking to?” Starling said, entering the kitchen ten minutes later and looking
around the room as if expecting to see someone else.

“Helen Tucker,”
Edna said abstractedly. “She left while you were in the shower.”

Leaning back
against the edge of the kitchen sink, coffee mug in hand, Edna had been mulling
over Tuck’s news. Before she could explain further, Starling surprised her.

“Was she here
about Peppa’s accident last night?”

“How did you
know?”

“I had a text
from Charlie on my phone this morning. He asked me to call him when I got up.
He told me Peppa might have killed her ex-husband. Isn’t that awful?” Starling
paused as she poured herself a cup of coffee and then looked over at Edna.
“Actually, it’s you he wants to talk to and as soon as possible, so I invited
him to join us for breakfast.” She looked anxious, as if Edna might object,
given the horrifying news of the morning. “You don’t mind, do you?”

Knowing her
daughter conspired to spend as much time as she could with the police
detective, Edna nearly laughed at Starling’s transparency. “Of course not,” she
answered, although she knew a reply hadn’t been necessary. “What are you making
us for breakfast?”

Starling choked
on her coffee, as if she’d swallowed a too-hot mouthful, and Edna did laugh
this time. She knew her daughter to be a willing and adequate cook, but since
her children were grown and had homes of their own, Edna hardly ever asked one
of them to cook in her kitchen. This morning, she’d been half joking with her
youngest child, but said, “I’ll make popovers if you do the rest.”

“Yummm. My
favorite breakfast treat,” Starling said, raising her eyebrows in delight.
“I’ll make bacon and scrambled eggs to go with them.”

“And I think I
also have some oranges to make fresh juice.”

Starling
chuckled. “It sounds perfect. I’ll start the bacon. I bet the smell will stir
Manda-Panda’s taste buds. She might even make it downstairs before Charlie gets
here.”

As Starling
began to turn toward the cupboard where the frying pans were stored, Edna put a
restraining hand on her forearm. Leaning toward her daughter, she said in a low
voice, “No talk of death, accidents or murder in front of Amanda, please. If
Charlie wants to talk to me about Peppa’s situation, I’d appreciate it if you’d
take your niece to Mary’s after breakfast.”

Starling nodded,
all humor gone. “Good idea.” Five minutes later, when the doorbell rang, she
hurried to greet Charlie. Edna moved to the stove to tend to Starling’s
abandoned frying pan, certain that her daughter would pass the suggestion along
to Charlie, as soon as “good morning’s” were out of the way.

The three adults
barely had time to fill their coffee mugs before Amanda was heard talking to
Benjamin in the hallway. When the youngster entered the kitchen with the cat
slung over her shoulder, any chance of serious talk was forgotten for the next
half hour.

After breakfast,
when Starling suggested they visit the neighbor’s menagerie, Amanda gave no
protest. Once aunt and niece headed off to Mary’s house, Edna refilled
Charlie’s coffee mug. “Starling said you wanted to talk to me. I assume it’s
about Peppa’s accident last night.”

“It is,” he
said, taking a cell phone out of his jacket pocket. He studied the display,
fiddled with the buttons, and finally handed it to Edna.  “Can you identify
this?”

Edna studied the
photo for several seconds before looking at him with a frown. “It’s pretty
crumpled, but I’d guess it’s a Christmas Rose. Lily Beck has some blooming in
her garden.”

“Clem Peppafitch
was clutching that one in his hand.”

Edna gave a slow
nod. “He’s been working for Lily, living above her garage. Did you know that?”

“Not before this
morning. John Forrester showed up at the scene. Knows all about the Becks.”

Edna was
puzzled. “Who’s John Forrester?”

“Detective.
Retired last year, but he listens to a police scanner and shows up whenever
something interests him. He was the initial lead on the Haverstrum case a
couple years back, so when he heard the call this morning, he drove over. He’s
an okay guy. Doesn’t get in the way. Knows a lot about who’s who around town,
so he’s usually more useful than interfering.”

She was still a
little confused. “Okay, he knows about the Becks, but how did he happen to
connect Clem to them?”

Charlie thought
for a minute, as if the question had just occurred to him, too. Then rather
than answer her, he asked one of his own. “Do you know when Clem started
working for Lily Beck?”

“Sometime last
fall, according to what Lily told me. Tuck says about six months. She ran into
him last November when she was at Lily’s for a garden club meeting.”

Charlie lifted a
hand, palm up. “There you have it. Forrester must have seen him there. I hear
John’s been revisiting the Haverstrum case. He probably dropped by to talk to
Lily and could have met Clem then.”

“Isn’t that some
sort of harassment?” Edna mused. “Why would he be questionning Lily? Wasn’t
that case closed?”

Charlie took a
sip of coffee, delaying a moment before shrugging. “I heard it was, but I
wasn’t here much at that time. Back then, I was spending most of my time
tracking a burglary ring between here and Canada.”

“You said
Forrester was the
initial
lead on the case. What does that mean?”

Charlie thought
for a few seconds, frowning. “The day after Haverstrum’s body was found, John
was sent to Washington for two weeks. I thought it strange at the time to pull
him off a major investigation for training, but that’s what happened. Someone
else took over. John never was part of the team again, even when he got back.”

“Don’t you think
it’s even odder then that he’s looking into it now?”

Charlie shrugged
as if it were no big deal. “Maybe because it was something he started but
wasn’t able to finish. Sounds like he thinks it shouldn’t have been closed, or
it might be his way of keeping busy these days.”

Edna thought
about Rosie’s obvious frustration when she’d talked about the detective who
seemed to be reopening her husband’s case. More than just a way to occupy
himself, Edna thought. She realized the way Rosie talked, John Forrester was
obsessed. Shaking her head as she remembered her own vulnerability when she’d
been treated as a suspect, Edna decided it was useless to continue speculating
about the old detective’s motives. She looked again at the Christmas Rose
displayed on Charlie’s phone and returned to their earlier conversation. “Since
Clem was living there and working for Lily, it’s a good bet this came from her
garden. Is that what you came to find out this morning?”

Charlie nodded.
“That and whatever else you might be able to tell me about the species. Is
there something significant about the plant itself? I’m wondering why he was
clutching it. It doesn’t seem like the sort of cut flower you’d bring to your
lady love, not like a single red rose or something.” he said. The tight set to
his jaw told Edna his remark was not meant as a joke.

She remained
silent for a minute as she stared at the photo, not so much seeing the picture
as trying to pull a vague detail from the back of her mind. “I know it’s
poisonous.” She looked up to see Charlie watching her. “If I recall, there
might be blisters around or inside his mouth.” Mentioning the symptoms brought another
foggy image to her mind, but before she could grab hold of it, Charlie
interrupted the thought, shaking his head.

“I didn’t notice
anything like that. I think I would have if they’d been obvious. I’ll ask the
medical examiner if I don’t see it in his report. We won’t get that for a few
days yet, I’m afraid.” He paused briefly before going on. “Just how poisonous
is this plant?”

Edna shrugged.
She thought about Lettie’s comment that her grandmother made “medicine” from
the plant, but decided not to mention it until Charlie could tell her about the
M.E.’s conclusions. She didn’t want to muddy waters, if it weren’t relevant to
the case. Aloud, she said, “I remember bits and pieces, but I need to refresh
my memory. I want to look over Mrs. Rabichek’s journals again. How soon do you
need to know?”

“Yesterday,”
Charlie answered with a grim smile.

She studied the
detective as she thought about what Tuck had told her and tried to put it
together with what he was asking. “How did Clem die? I thought you arrested
Peppa for running him over with her car, but you’re asking about the Christmas
Rose. Are you thinking he might have been poisoned?”

“I’m not
thinking anything at the moment. I’m just following up on whatever leaves a
question in my mind. That flower in his hand, for instance …” Charlie paused to
nod at the picture displayed on the phone she still held. “That is something we
don’t usually find on a corpse.”

“So you don’t
actually know if Peppa killed him or not?” Edna was mostly thinking aloud and
didn’t like any of the implications, so far. “You’ve ruled out natural causes?”

Charlie shook
his head and reached for his cell. “I didn’t say that. What I said was, we
won’t know anything definite until we have the M.E.’s report.”

“What about
Peppa? Is she under arrest or not?”

“There’s enough
evidence, plus motive, to hold her, if they decide to. You know better than I
do that Peppa held a lot of resentment against Clem. We’re all trying to give
her the benefit of the doubt and, until the results of the autopsy are in, I’m
looking into whatever else I can find, but I’m not the lead on this. Whether
she’s booked or not isn’t my decision.” He held up the phone, redirecting her
attention. “How much information do you think Mrs. Rabichek’s journals will
have about it?”

Edna shrugged.
“I’ll look and let you know.” Sensing he was ready to leave, and remembering
her promise to Tuck, she said hurriedly, “How’s Peppa holding up?”

It was Charlie’s
turn to shrug. “I haven’t spoken to her since last night when Detective King
took her to the station for questioning, but I understand her lawyer was seeing
the judge this morning. He’s asking to have her released. Says we don’t have
enough evidence to hold her.” Charlie snorted a laugh. “What do you want to bet
the judge is one of her Saturday morning story kids?”

Edna laughed
too, but as with Charlie, there was appreciation but not a lot of humor in it.
“I’ll call later today and see if there’s anything I can do for her.”

She saw Charlie
to the door, extracting a promise from him that he’d keep her posted with
whatever news he could reveal about the case, knowing he couldn’t say much
about an ongoing investigation. In turn, she told him she’d look at Mrs.
Rabichek’s journals as soon as possible and call him with whatever she found.
As she closed the door, she wondered at the coincidence of another Beck being
linked to a suspicious death. Could Clem’s fatality be, in any way, connected
to that of Lily’s son-in-law? She shook her head to clear her mind.
The
thought is too absurd.

Chapter 10

Taking advantage
of Starling and Amanda’s absence after Charlie’s departure, Edna went to her
office and picked up the three volumes that comprised the journals Mrs.
Rabichek had left when Edna and Albert purchased the house nearly two years
before. Not remembering where she had found it before, she scanned the first
book with no luck in finding any mention of the Christmas Rose. Two thirds of
the way through the second tome, she found her reference.

To her surprise,
the word that caught her eye first was
buttercup
. She read on, recalling
more of the facts as she did so.
Christmas Rose--a perennial flowering plant
in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. Dark, leathery, pedate leaves. Stems 9
to 12 inches tall. Large flat white flowers on short stems. Blooms from
midwinter to early spring. Difficult to grow
, Mrs. Rabichek had gone on to
note.
Prefers moist alkaline soil, rich in humus.

As was her
custom, the elderly herbalist had noted medical uses in green ink. For the
Christmas Rose, she had written
old days: used to treat paralysis, gout,
insanity.
More recent: toothache, earache, indigestion.

Her color coding
further consisted of warnings in red ink.
Highly toxic. Not recommended for
human use. Poisonous substance is ranunculin. Acrid taste. Causes burning of
eyes, mouth and throat.

Antidotes would
be listed in blue ink. There was no such entry for this section. 

Not very
pleasant
, Edna thought, marking the page with a yellow sticky flag. She was
about to pick up the phone to call Charlie with what she’d learned when she
heard loud knocking on the front door. Followed by Benjamin, she went down the
hall, wondering who would be calling, unannounced, at eleven o’clock on a
Sunday morning.

Standing on the
stoop was a stranger. He was a big man who looked to be about Edna’s own age.
An inch or two over six feet, he had a heavy paunch and sagging jowls beneath a
bulbous nose. He wore his iron-gray hair in a military buzz cut. Mirrored
sunglasses hid his eyes.

Instantly wary,
Edna kept the screen door shut, relieved when she glanced down and reassured
herself that she had locked it earlier, after Charlie left. “Yes?” she said,
when the man said nothing. He seemed to be waiting for her to push the screen
door open. “May I help you?”

“I want a word
with you,” he said. “May I come in?”

“Who are you?
What do you want?”

“Name’s John
Forrester. I want to talk to you.”

Edna instantly
recognized the name of the retired detective Charlie had mentioned as the first
lead on the Haverstrum investigation. Charlie had said he was a good guy.
Perhaps it was Rosie’s reaction to the detective that made Edna reluctant to
unlock the screen and allow Forrester to enter. “I’m busy at the moment. Tell
me what you want.”

“You’ve been
asking questions about the Gregory Haverstrum case.” He made the statement
sound accusatory.

“Yes.” Edna
didn’t follow her single-word response with “so what,” but she might as well
have from the scowl on Forrester’s face.

“I’ve come to
tell you to find something else to occupy your time. That investigation is none
of your business.”

“I beg your
pardon?” Edna was taken aback by the man’s abruptness.

“I think you
heard me, Miz Davies. I said stop meddling.”

Edna felt her
cheeks start to warm as her temper rose. She fought to sound reasonable. “I
understand the case is closed. Why would you consider any questions I have as
interfering?”

He answered her
question with another of his own. “Why did you tell Rosie Haverstrum she
doesn’t have to talk to me.”

“I didn’t
exactly put it like that, but she doesn’t, does she?” Edna said, confused as to
why it would matter so much to this retired policeman. The case was closed and
that should be the end of it, yet according to Rosie, John Forrester had begun
to investigate again.

Edna took a step
back in order to shut the door. She didn’t like this man. Charlie might think
well of his former colleague, but she didn’t. The man was arrogant and
bullying. No wonder Rosie got upset at the mere mention of the former
detective.

As Edna closed
the door, she heard him call out, “No more amateur detecting or two-bit advice
to Rosie Haverstrum. I’m warning you.”

Heart racing,
Edna stood with her back pressed against the door until she heard a car door
slam and the sound of tires retreating around the broken shell driveway. She
remained still for another minute or two, waiting for her heartbeat to slow.
Looking down, she saw Benjamin staring at her. His head was tilted slightly and
he seemed to be either curious or concerned or both. Whatever it was, she was
distracted enough to relax a little and even smile as she bent to stroke his
head. Her feeling of relief was quickly replaced by one of determination, as
she headed to her office to call Charlie. Now, not only would she have
information on the Christmas Rose, but she’d give him an earful about what she
thought of his pal. She was standing by her desk, taking in deep breaths to
calm herself further before reaching for the phone, when she heard Amanda’s
voice calling from the kitchen.

“I’m in here,
sweetie,” Edna called back, forcing John Forrester to the back of her mind. She
would not let him spoil her last day’s visit with her granddaughter. She sat
and swiveled her chair in time to greet Amanda as the girl came bounding into
the office, face flushed. Edna guessed Amanda had run across the yard from the
neighboring house.

“Mary says it
sounds like the ghost is riding a horse,” the youngster said, flinging herself
down onto the chair next to Edna’s desk.

Benjamin, most
likely alerted by the girl’s voice, had vacated his favorite office chair
seconds before Amanda sat. He ambled from the room with only the briefest,
resentful glance over his shoulder, having deftly avoided being picked up by
the youngster.

As Edna was
enjoying these antics and taking in what Amanda had said, Starling appeared in
the doorway and leaned a shoulder against the doorjamb, pushing her hands into
the side pockets of her black woolen slacks.

“A horse?” Edna
gave her daughter an amused, raised-eyebrow look while Amanda’s attention was
on the disappearing cat. 

“That’s right,”
Starling returned. “Mary’s been researching South County history, practically
back to the first settlers. She’s now pretty certain that her rebel ghost must
be reenacting Paul Revere’s ride. A Rhode Island version of the ride, if there
ever was such a thing,” Starling added with a shrug. “She swears the noise
sounds like hoof beats.”

“We learned
about Paul Revere in school,” Amanda announced with some pride. “We’re studying
King Philip’s War now.” She frowned, adding, “I don’t think ‘King Philip’
sounds much like an indian name.”

“His real name
was Metacomet,” Edna explained. “The colonists just called him King Philip.”

“Why?” Amanda
demanded.

“Probably
because they couldn’t remember or pronounce his Wampanoag name.”

“I wouldn’t want
strangers doing that to me,” Amanda said, wrinkling her brow.

Changing the
subject, Edna asked, “Did you know that King Philip hid from the settlers in
the Great Swamp?”

Amanda nodded
enthusiastically. “That’s what my teacher said.”

“Do you know
it’s not far from here?” Starling asked.

Amanda’s large
brown eyes turned to her aunt as she slowly shook her head. “Where?”

“Know where
Larkin Pond is?”

Amanda nodded.
“That’s where I go to Girl Scout camp.”

Starling smiled
at her niece. “That’s the place. The Great Swamp is just down the road from
Camp Hoffman. Wanna go see it? Should be a nice day for a walk. The wind’s down
and it’ll be warmer away from the ocean.”

The girl’s eyes
glowed with excitement. “Can I take pictures to show my teacher?”

“You bet.”

Looking at the
time on her computer screen, Edna broke in. “Let’s have lunch and then take a
ride over there, shall we?”

“Good idea. I’m
hungry,” Starling said. “How about you, Manda-Panda?”

The girl nodded,
then looked skeptical. “What are we having?”

Edna laughed at
her granddaughter’s suspicion and thought she might have had enough seafood.
“How about tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches?” she said, mentioning one
of her children’s favorite meals when they were young.

“Yeah,” Amanda
nearly shouted.

“Why don’t you
go help your aunt set the table, and I’ll be there shortly,” Edna said. “I’ve a
call to make first.” She then turned to Starling. “Do you have dinner plans
with Charlie tonight?”

Starling shook
her head. “He didn’t mention anything. He’s probably busy with Peppa’s case,
and he knows I have to drive back to Boston tonight.”

“Tonight?” Edna
was side-tracked for the moment. “I thought you weren’t leaving until tomorrow
morning.” She felt a brief pang of sadness, missing her girls already.

“I changed my
mind, especially when I thought of trying to get my niece up that early. Plus,
if I leave tonight, I can avoid morning rush hour.”

Surprisingly,
Amanda didn’t comment on her aunt’s implied accusation. Edna thought the girl
was probably happy that she wouldn’t be rousted before dawn.

“You’re probably
right,” Edna admitted reluctantly before picking up her earlier thought. “I
need to call Charlie with some information. Since you don’t have other plans,
I’ll see if he can join us this evening.” Edna looked back at her granddaughter
and smiled. “How would you like to make Auntie Starling’s favorite meat loaf
and mashed potatoes for supper?”

Again, the child
nodded vigorously, jumped up from her chair and trailed Starling to the
kitchen, while Edna picked up the phone to call Charlie and extend the
invitation. When he accepted with enthusiasm, she gave him only the highlights
of what she’d learned from Mrs. Rabichek’s journal. He could read the page for himself.
She also decided to save her temper and tell him about John Forrester’s visit
later that evening.

She had just
pushed herself up from the chair to go to the kitchen when she had another
thought. Turning back to the phone, she dialed Mary’s number and asked her to
join them for the afternoon’s excursion and the evening’s meal. Since Starling
would be taking Amanda home after supper, Edna thought a small impromptu party
would be fun for the child’s last night.

“Pretty tragic
what happened in the Great Swamp,” Mary said, after learning where they were
going. “Besides the warriors, all those Wampanoag women and children were
killed by the colonial militia.” She paused for a second or two before asking,
“Think the old fort site is haunted?”

“I think you’ve
got ghosts on the brain.” Edna laughed.

“Maybe so.
Thanks, but I’ll skip the walk. I need sleep. Can’t get much at night, so I’m
taking a nap this afternoon. I’ll have dinner with you, though.”

“Good. Why don’t
you come over around five for drinks first.”