Murder by Christmas (Edna Davies mysteries) (3 page)

She thought of the portrait she’d sketched of him shortly after his death and wondered if his family would like to have it. She might dig it out and lay it aside, in case. She didn’t know why she’d never offered it to Tom’s daughter or grandson.
Perhaps
, Edna thought,
I haven’t been quite ready to part with it.

She shook her head to dispel sad memories and spent the next half hour sharing sandwiches and tea with Albert. By the time she headed next door, Benjamin was curled up on her husband’s lap, and both man and cat were nodding off for a nap.

Edna passed by Mary’s front door and proceeded to the back entrance where she noticed a bicycle leaning against the house. Since she was expected, Edna didn’t knock but walked into the hallway which led to the kitchen. She’d just opened her mouth to call out “Hello” when she heard a voice raised in anger.

“She’s ruining my life. I could
kill
her.”

Chapter 3

As soon as Edna stepped into her neighbor’s house, Hank came trotting in from the kitchen, tail wagging as he gave her a single welcoming bark. She was also greeted by a half-grown black cat who had been sleeping on a thick towel, folded atop the radiator that stood beneath the window next to the door. Ink Spot arched her back in a post-nap stretch and blinked curiously at Edna.

“Hello, Spot,” Edna said, giving the cat’s ears a scratch after first stroking Hank’s head.

Eight months ago, when Starling first heard the moniker Mary had pinned on the dainty feline, Edna’s daughter had been amused. “Leave it to you to give a dog’s name to a cat,” she’d said, cradling the newly-adopted kitten.

Mary had simply shrugged and grinned. “Spot doesn’t mind. She likes her name. Better than Inky.”

After that, nothing more was said about Spot’s name being the least inappropriate.

Now, on this cold blustery day, the cheerful greetings from Mary’s pets contrasted with the angry voice emanating from the other room. Apparently, Mary and her guest weren’t yet aware of her arrival, so Edna pushed the outer door shut firmly enough to make noise and took time to hang her coat on a nearby wooden peg before striding into the kitchen. Hank followed close behind, but Spot stayed where she was, obviously reluctant to leave the warmth and comfort of her bed.

“Hi, Edna,” Mary was leaning back against the counter at the opposite side of the room, holding a coffee mug in one hand and propping her elbow up with the other. “Come on in.”

Apparently, Mary had heard Edna, but not the young woman whose voice had carried into the back hall. She spun around, her mouth half opened as she was caught in the middle of an obvious rant. She’d been so engrossed in what she was saying, she hadn’t heard Edna’s attempt to forewarn of her entrance. Mary’s visitor was about Edna’s height, five feet five, and nearly fifty years younger. Edna guessed the stranger to be about twenty years old.

“Meet Bethany Marco.” Mary made the introduction and seemed relieved by the interruption. “She’s just been fired from her day job.”

Bethany, face mottled with unspent anger, was nonetheless able to look sheepish when she said, “Hello” in a much quieter voice than she’d used a minute ago. Her fiery blue eyes, olive-toned skin and long, dark hair made a lovely picture, despite her fury.

“Bethany, this is Edna Davies, my friend and neighbor.”

The woman’s discomfort turned to surprised delight at the introduction. “Oh, you’re Benjy’s owner. I’ve heard so much about you.”

“Benjamin,” Edna corrected automatically, giving Mary a hard glare before smiling at Bethany. “I hope you’ve heard nice things.”
And not about murders and mayhem
, she thought. Edna was never certain how much Mary told others about the dodgy escapades the two of them had experienced in the year and a half they had lived next door to each other.

“Of course. Mary says you’re cool,” Bethany assured her.

Picking up on what Mary had said about the young woman’s plight, Edna looked at her with concern. “I’m sorry to hear you’ve lost your job. What is it you do?”

Bethany stared at Mary as if expecting her to explain, so with a shrug, their red-headed host said, “She works …
worked
at CATS. That’s how I know Bethany. We met when I started volunteerin’ there.”

Turning to Edna, Bethany interjected, “I’m a student at the university, so it wasn’t a career job or anything. Minimum wage, but it pays for groceries and my share of the rent. Without it, I can’t afford to live around here and still go to school. If I transfer to Boston and live with my parents, I’ll lose too many credits which’ll mean at least another semester before I graduate. That’ll mean more expenses and more time before I get a job so I can start paying back my loans.” She stamped her foot in frustration. “It’s all a big mess and it’s all Laurel’s fault.”

Edna thought for a minute, trying to remember why the name sounded familiar.

Correctly reading her puzzled expression, Mary said, “Laurel Taylor runs the cat shelter. Remember? You met her this morning at Stop and Shop.”

“Of course.” Sensing that Bethany hadn’t finished complaining about the injustice of it all, Edna asked, “What happened to make her fire you?”

“She says I was ‘consorting with the enemy’,” Bethany sputtered. “That is so totally not right.” She smirked at Mary as if knowing the red-head would understand and agree.

Somewhat amused by what seemed an odd sort of incident for a cat shelter, Edna said, “Enemy?”

“Vincent Valmont,” Bethany replied, as if this were all the answer necessary.

Edna frowned at Mary, waiting for clarification of the cryptic reply. At the same time, she flicked her eyes to the clock on the wall, hoping Mary would get the message that they had work to do and Edna couldn’t spend all afternoon trying to decipher the problems of the young and emotional.

Interpreting the look, Mary pushed away from the counter and set down her mug. “Vinnie’s a local kid,” she said. “Been a prankster ever since I can remember. Been picked up by the police lots of times growing up, but he never did anything worth bookin’ him for. Clownin’ around, is all. He’s nice enough now, far’s I’m concerned.” She smiled at her young visitor. “He’s taken a shine to Bethany.”

“He’s a pest. He won’t leave me alone.” Cheeks reddening slightly in an attractive blush, Bethany turned to Edna. “He shows up. It’s not my fault if he follows me around.”

“I still don’t understand what that has to do with you being fired?” Edna moved to a nearby counter where she’d left her baking tins earlier that morning, but she remained half turned to indicate she was listening.

“Last summer, right after she bought the house and decided to turn it into a cat shelter, Laurel hired Vinnie to build some runs in her backyard. He did a great job,” Bethany said, her face lighting up. “He’s really good at building stuff.” She seemed unaware of the sparkle in her eyes when talking about “the pest.” As suddenly as the sun had come out, however, her face clouded over again. “When it was time for Laurel to give him his final payment, she short-changed him. That’s what he says. She says she paid him in full and he’s trying to cheat her.”

“Why not simply produce her cancelled checks?” Edna asked.

Bethany shook her head. “It was a cash deal. Neither of them can prove how much Laurel paid him … or didn’t pay him.” The young woman paused and looked down at the floor as if trying to decide what to say next. Several seconds went by before she looked up and spoke to Mary with a questioning frown. “Vinnie says Laurel was always flirting with him. Made him uncomfortable, her being so much older. He thinks she stiffed him because he rejected her. I don’t like to spread rumors like that, but do you think it might be true?”

Mary thought briefly, then shrugged. “’S possible. Laurel plays up to all the men, but I don’t think she means any harm. She goes to an assertiveness training class at the hospital. Maybe that’s all it is and he misread the signals.”

 Bethany disagreed. “She kicked him out, told him never to come near CATS again. And she cheated him out of what she owed him. I wouldn’t say that was so harmless. He can’t even use her as a reference after all the work he did.”

“It sounds like a case of his word against hers,” Edna said, bringing Bethany’s attention back to her. Again, Edna asked, “What does it have to do with you getting fired?”

“First off, I got the job through Vinnie. We’re in a class together at the university. That’s how we met. If our being friends wasn’t reason enough, Laurel saw me with him this morning. Well, actually, I wasn’t really
with
him.” She sighed, as if explaining the details was becoming burdensome. “I stopped for coffee on my way to work and happened to run into him. He offered me a ride to Laurel’s in his pickup. It was so cold this morning, I agreed. I practically froze walking from my place to the coffee shop and CATS was another mile away.”

“And Laurel saw you together,” Edna said, trying to speed up the story. Time was passing. She and Mary needed to get on with their baking. She was relieved to see Mary had already gotten out the flour, sugar and butter and was rummaging in the cupboard where she kept her bowls and cookie sheets. Edna walked to the refrigerator and took out a carton of eggs before returning to her place by the counter, as Bethany continued her rant.

“That’s right. She saw me get out of his truck. And now she’s saying I’m in cahoots with him. She said she can’t trust me anymore, that I might do something to get even for him. She wouldn’t let me explain, just told me to get out. And she shorted me a week’s pay.”

“Doesn’t sound right, does it?” Mary said as she knelt on the floor in front of the cabinet. As she did so, Hank rose to come join her in examining the bowls. Laughing, Mary ordered him off to “hit the bricks” in the archway into the dining room before she ducked back to withdraw a baking sheet.

“You’d think she’d at least let you tell your side of things.” Edna spoke to Bethany while she watched the dog’s antics with amusement.

“She’s too mean and vindictive and I’d like to …”

“My guess,” Mary rose from the floor, interrupting Bethany, “is that she either doesn’t have the money, or doesn’t want to spend it. She’s been recruitin’ volunteers and I think she figures she doesn’t need to pay someone if she can get the work done for nothing.” At that thought, Mary gave Bethany a guilty look. “I’d stop going over there if it would get you your job back, but she’d just find some other volunteer to take my place.”

Bethany wailed. “I know it’s not your problem, but what am I going to do? Without that job, I won’t be able to finish school next semester, and I’ve got only three classes left to graduate.”  The young woman’s anger began to rise again, flushing her face anew. “I’m so mad, I could spit nails.”

Mary handed a cookie sheet to Bethany. “Here. Wash your hands and start greasing these. Might as well work while you talk.” As she began to measure flour into a bowl, she restated her opinion. “Do you suppose Laurel is using Vinnie as a convenient excuse to get rid of you, since you’re the only paid worker she has left? I mean, even if you could convince her you’re not scheming something with Vinnie, the real problem seems to be that she doesn’t want to keep paying you.”

“I bet you’re right.” Bethany shook her head in disgust. “It was the only job I could find to work around my class schedule, too. If I don’t find something else, I’ll have to tell my parents there won’t be any graduation party next May, maybe ever. Nice Christmas present, huh?” She turned away, facing the dining room, but not before Edna saw tears brim in the young woman’s eyes.

Mary must have noticed, too, because she broke the brief silence, providing a distraction as she explained to Edna, “Bethany’s the first in her family to go to college. Her graduating means a lot to her parents.”

“Is Laurel really that cruel and inconsiderate?” Edna asked as Bethany turned around, having wiped her tears away with a tissue from her pocket.

“Better believe it,” Bethany said. “You know Doctor Jake and his wife?”

“Of course, he’s Benjamin’s veterinarian and she works with him at the clinic.” Holding a bowl in the circle of one arm, Edna beat eggs with a metal whisk. 

 “Well, instead of going to the clinic, Laurel invites Roselyn over for tea whenever she--Laurel, that is--needs something. If Roselyn can take care of a sick cat or trim claws or bring over free medical samples, then cheapskate Laurel doesn’t have to pay a vet bill.”

“Roselyn doesn’t have to go along with it,” Mary pointed out, unwrapping a stick of butter.

“No, but she’s so nice. She never refuses.”

“I’ve heard that Roselyn is a soft touch when it comes to animals,” Edna agreed.

Mary nodded, raised her eyebrows at Edna and spoke slowly, as if voicing a plan as it materialized in her mind. “Tomorrow’s my volunteer morning at CATS. Since Laurel invited you to tea, why don’t you come with me? Maybe we can appeal to her good side and work something out for Bethany.”

Edna thought for a moment. She really shouldn’t take the time, considering all she had to do, but then she studied the two other women. Mary’s eyes twinkled, probably thinking what fun it would be to go on a spying caper. Bethany’s face was aglow with hope. At that moment, Edna decided she didn’t like the idea of a struggling student being cheated, particularly at the time of year when peace and good will should reign. Besides that, she knew how disappointed she and Albert would have been if one of their children had dropped out of college so close to graduation. Between Mary and herself, they might be able to persuade Laurel to take Bethany back for a few more months. Edna realized that, when it came to someone in trouble, she was as soft a touch as Roselyn, but Edna couldn’t help herself. With a feeling of relief that she wouldn’t have to explain herself to Albert, since he was going to be safely out of the way, she nodded her acquiescence. Still, she couldn’t stop the thought that followed close behind --
only
five days until Christmas and I have so much to do.