Cluttered Attic Secrets (27 page)

“You’re out of it now, for sure,” Hank said when he and Tina reached the Viking’s parking lot. He opened the Jaguar’s door for her. “We’ll collect the people we can find, and they’ll be out of business. I doubt any of us will ever see Michele again.”

Tina wasn’t too sure about that, but she nodded as she got into the car.

It all seemed so anticlimactic. She supposed with Michele gone, they’d never find out who murdered Joshua. But Leslie could move back into her house, if she wanted to.

“You want to go home, or to my place?” Hank asked, pulling her thoughts back to him.

She looked at him. Her first impulse was to say she wanted to go home, to be alone. His returned gaze was steady, patient, loving. “Don’t you have to work?”

“What has to be done now will be done by others. I’ll call Lisbeth, tell her what we’ve found out, but the police and the Feds will handle it from there.”

“’Cause you’re just a consultant, right?”

“You got it.”

“For both?”

“Kind of.”

“Hank.”

He shook his head and started the engine. “It’s complicated. When we get to know each other better, I’ll explain all.”

She laughed. Couldn’t stop. It felt good. She put her hand on his knee. “Your place.”

Hank smiled.

***

The next day, Leslie called and asked Tina to come talk to her parents about Vicky and Sophie. Brandon had arranged for Vicky to stay in a motel until everything could be worked out. Tina was happy to talk to the Youngs, and she told them how much she liked both Sophie and Vicky. Mrs. Young seemed excited at the idea of having them come stay for a while, until Vicky could get back on her feet. Mr. Young looked pleased by his wife’s interest.

After Tina talked to Leslie’s parents, they went up to her bedroom. It felt like old times to be up there, catching up and laughing.

“So,” Tina said. “How was your date last night with Gil?”

“Very nice.”

Tina could tell Leslie was trying not to smile. “It was better than nice.”

Leslie grinned. “Yeah.”

“And you go out with Roger tonight.”

“Yeah.”

Tina hugged her. “This is really good timing. It will distract you, give you time to regroup. I’m happy for you.”

“Your turn. Tell me how it’s going with Hank now.”

Tina couldn’t wipe the grin off her face. “We’re good. We finally did it.”

“You did? Really?”

Tina nodded

“Oh, Tina. How was it?”

“Wonderful. Glorious. Never better. I think we’re going to be all right now.”

Leslie grabbed her hand. “I’m so happy for you. For both of you. I have a favor to ask. Can you come stay at the house with me for about a week starting next Sunday so we can straighten up the office and start to work on the attic? I need the time to catch up at work, or I’d start sooner. Plus I think another week will give me enough time to relax. Will that interfere with you and Hank?”

“I’d love to help you. Hank won’t mind, I’m sure. He loves you like a second brother.”

Leslie smiled. “I know. Both of you have been wonderful.”

“Well, it hasn’t been boring.”

They started to laugh. It took a long time to stop.

***

After church the following Sunday, Tina drove to Leslie’s place. It seemed surreal to step out of her VW and see the house looking exactly the same as it always had. So much had happened, it felt as if the house should be different somehow.

By mid-afternoon, she and Leslie had both unpacked their suitcases and settled in. Leslie took Tina out to dinner at The Chanler at Cliff Walk to celebrate. Tina loved The Chanler because her mother and Uncle Bob had usually taken her there for special occasions like birthdays when it was called the Cliff Walk Manor.

After they ordered drinks, Tina asked, “And how was your date with Roger? Where did he take you?”

“It was fun. We went to La Forge. I didn’t click with him as well as I did with Gil, though. But if he asks me out again, I’ll go.

They stopped talking to watch their server put down their drinks. He took their food orders and left.

“What going on with Sophie and Vicky?” Tina asked.

“Long story. Dad arranged to express ship DNA samples to a private lab from Sophie and him. They called within twenty-four hours. It’s a match. He’s put in to get guardianship in case something happens to Vicky. But Sophie will remain with the Fitzgeralds until all that is settled.”

“What’s your mom’s reaction to all this?”

“Mom is excited, but nervous. I notice she’s eating more, smoking less. This could be a wonderful thing for her. Dad invited Vicky to stay with us right away. She and Sophie can live in the guest quarters over the garage. Things went really fast, and Vicky moved into a guest bedroom three days ago. Mom thinks she shouldn’t be alone for long periods of time. The two of them really hit it off. Your talking to Mom about both Vicky and Sophie relieved any worries she had, and she welcomed Vicky with open arms.

“How is Vicky doing?” Tina asked.

“She seems overwhelmed right now, which is understandable. We’re not sure if she’d be helped with some counseling, so we’re waiting to see how she does without it. She starts to cry every so often, and she does seem a bit lost.”

“Does she talk about Joshua and her sister at all?”

“Some. But she’s shy.”

“Has she told you how she and Joshua met?”

“Yes. She does like to talk about that. They met at Wendy’s. About twelve or thirteen years ago. She saw him sitting by himself, looking lost. Something about him made her think he was like her. She went to talk to him. She found out he’d only arrived a few days earlier and had little money left. She says she had to pull every bit of information out of him. She told him about the local shelter. He didn’t know where it was, so she took him there.”

“So sweet,” Tina said.

“Yes. From what she said, I think he was higher functioning than probably what his parents were told he could be. Somehow he got here to Newport. And remembered where the house he lived in when very young was. But he showed Vicky that much later.”

“Vicky said he worked part time some.”

“Yes. The people at the shelter helped him get odd jobs. He and Vicky saw each other almost every day, first being just friends, but then it became more than that. He asked her to marry him, and she agreed, even though he was so much older than she is. About two years later, Sophie was born. Vicky admits they hoped and prayed she’d be more intelligent than they were. On the other hand, they knew what it was like to be the way she is, so it worked out okay.”

“What happened to Vicky’s parents? How was she brought up?”

“She says they were overprotective. She doesn’t put it that way, but tells about how they wouldn’t let her go out by herself until she was almost an adult and watched her all the time. Her sister, Irene, seemed to waver between loving her to wishing she weren’t around. Her parents died within a few months of each other. By then Vicky was working part-time, and she went to live with Irene. They always rented an apartment together, until Vicky married Joshua. Vicky was surprised when Irene bought the house. She didn’t think she had enough money to do that. Now we know how she was making the money to buy it.”

Tina nodded. “How could she? Did it ever cross her mind that what she was doing could happen to her own sister?”

“I guess not. Of if it did, she didn’t care.”

“It must have been so hard all along for Vicky. She had to worry about Sophie. And Joshua was probably unhappy he had to hide from the authorities or might be taken back to Massachusetts.”

“Yes. Vicky said he didn’t want to enroll Sophie in school because he was afraid they’d check on him and Vicky. Maybe take Sophie away from them.”

“That’s understandable. I hope it works out with your parents for all of them. And that Sophie can go to school. I think she’d thrive there.”

“Me, too. Now, tell me more about this Michele woman. She and Hank had a thing going?”

Tina laughed. “You know him well. Yes, they were an item for a while. As was Nancy Norris, the Realtor I went to about looking for a house. I now expect to run into many more women the longer I’m back in Newport who get all flustered when Hank is mentioned or sighted.”

Leslie grinned. “I know Nancy. I remember Hank bringing her to a couple of parties. She’s a bit older than he is.”

“So is Michele. I have to wonder if most of the women he dated were.”

“Let me think. A couple I remember were closer to our age, but I do think a few years older. Another he had a longer-relationship with was even older than Nancy.”

“How long did these affairs usually last?”

“Six to eight months. I don’t remember one lasting a year.”

“Well, I think I’m going to hold onto him longer than that.”

“Sure you will. And you have back-up. Your mom. And his.”

They laughed and ordered a dessert to share.

When they arrived at Leslie’s she walked into the library, then stopped short. “What a mess. I wonder why they did this. Unless they were just angry. But I have something for you.” She moved around an upturned desk drawer and went over to the bookcase. “You remember those gems we found.”

“You know, I haven’t thought of them at all since that night. But yes. How could I forget them forever? That’s probably what they were looking for when they did this.” Tina swept her arm around the room. “They could hear what was being said while in the secret room. They must have heard us talking about them.”

Leslie shook her head. “What do you mean? They could hear us when we found the gems through the wall in the attic?”

“Not only that. The whole house is wired so they could hear what was going on in it while in the secret room. Probably so they’d know when to be real quiet, when visitors showed up, or even the police. We could hear Hank and Lisbeth in the front hall when they came in to get us out of the space after you were kidnapped.”

“I missed that. My brain was pretty foggy for a while after I woke up.” Leslie pushed on something in the bookcase, and a door popped open at the back. “Tada! Aunt Margaret showed me this when I was about twelve.”

Tina gaped at the opening. “This place is just full of secrets.”

Leslie laughed. “I know. But I think this is the last of them.”

She pulled out a box and walked over to hand it to Tina. “This is for you. I counted the stones. An even dozen.”

“What?” Tina’s hand trembled as she took the velvet-covered box. She opened it to find the necklace she’d admired. It looked as incredible as she remembered it. “I can’t take this. It’s probably worth a fortune.”

“Yes, you can. There’s lots more. I haven’t had a chance to have it appraised, but I will, and will probably sell all but one or two pieces. You came when I called. Remember, I was sure I had a ghost?”

Tina grinned. “Yeah.”

“This house has put you through a lot. It’s time it paid you for that.”

Tina clasped the box to her chest. “I will treasure it forever.” Then she hugged Leslie tight. “Now, let’s get to work clearing this all up.”

Leslie made a face. “Yeah.  I thought all I had left was the attic.”

Tina set a chair upright and placed her purse, which had been on the floor, onto the chair. Then she stood surveying the room.  “You want to re-shelve the books or work on the desk?”

“I’ll do the desk, so I know where everything is.” Leslie walked over to the upended stand for the Statue of Liberty, put it back where it had been, and placed the bust back on top. “That’s heavier than I thought it would be.” She surveyed her handiwork, then said, “You can just put the books back any old way. I’ll sort through them later and arrange them in categories.”

“Good thinking. Keep this up and you can assist me on my next big job.”

“Sure.” Leslie’s expression told Tina she didn’t mean it. “But aren’t you going to be house hunting now? That could take a lot of time.”

“You’re right. It’s amazing how many choices you have on this island for housing. I’m going to have a hard time deciding.”

“Have you told your mother about this?”

“No. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it, as Uncle Bob would say.”

Leslie laughed. “Good plan.”

Leslie finished with the furniture before Tina had gone through half the books. She kept getting distracted reading cover flaps and, in some, the first page. She even set two aside to borrow.

“Break time,” Leslie said. She sat down in the office chair and spun around. “Feeling like a kid again.”

Tina laughed. “That’s good.” She sat down in one of the club chairs and glanced around. “Already looks a lot better.”

“Yeah.”

A noise like a door opening made them both look at the bookshelves in the corner. They both gasped when Michele stepped into the room.

“Who are you?” Leslie asked.

“How’d you do that?” Tina stared at Michele. She didn’t look quite the same.
What was it?
Tina wondered.
Oh, she was wearing the same clothes I saw her in, how many nights ago? And all her makeup is gone. She really needs the eye makeup. And the Glock she was holding did not match her outfit.

“Introduce us,” Michele said to Tina.

Tina swallowed hard. “Leslie, this is Michele. Michele, Leslie.”

“Very good. You may both sit down.” She waved the gun at their chairs.

Tina hadn’t even realized she’d stood up. She sank into her chair, looking at Leslie to be sure she wasn’t about to faint or anything. Leslie crumpled into the desk chair.

The gun didn’t waver in Michele’s hand. “You ruined my life. I can’t leave town without paying you back. You and Hank.”

“You only have yourself to blame.” Tina could feel the heat rushing up from her chest. “Did someone hold a gun to your head and tell you you had to traffic in human beings?”

“I see why Hank likes you. I couldn’t figure it out at first. You seemed to be such a timid little thing. Little Miss Goody Two-Shoes.”

“Well, call me Dorothy. I suppose you see yourself as the wicked witch.”

Michele laughed. It was not a pleasant sound. “More like the wicked stepmother.”

“Well, you know what happened to all of them.”

“Right.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Tina saw that Leslie was shaking.
How were they going to get out of this?
She looked at her purse on the chair next to her with longing. She knew her gun was on top of everything, easy to get to. How good a shot was Michele? Bitterly, she guessed the woman was excellent.

“So, how did you get in? The cellar is locked up tight.”

“I figured out Joshua must have had a key. I went hunting for it after the big round-up. And found it tonight. It opens the back door. Then I hid in the cellar.”

“But how did you get from the cellar to here?” Leslie asked.

“There’s a secret stairway from down there. And from here to the master closet. This house had the best access and layout for our needs compared to all the others. A shame it has to end.”

Tina closed her eyes for a moment. They should have wondered how everyone got to the master bedroom closet.

Leslie’s eyes narrowed as she studied Michelle. “You’re one of my kidnappers, aren’t you? You gave me the shot it my arm. There’s something about you… The way you move, I think.”

Michele looked startled. Then she laughed. “No need to deny it now.”

“Who was the other one?” Tina asked.

Michele shrugged. “No one you know. Just one of our people.”

“Well, how did you know about the secret passages and spaces?” Leslie asked. She sounded peeved. Tina wasn’t sure it was a good idea to sound like that when a person had a gun.

“Your aunt confided in the wrong person--her old housekeeper—who told a friend. Who told her husband. Who is one of us. After Margaret died, we added this house to the group we were already using in the area to house some people. It was just luck to discover the handholds on the wall to the window and that little Sophie was available to let everyone in. Then Joshua Young got suspicious and kept a watch on his daughter’s comings and goings. He saw her climb into the window well and ran to grab her.”

Leslie swallowed convulsively. “You killed him? You?”

Michele took a huge breath of air. “I had no choice.”

“You’re a monster,” Leslie whispered.

“Why did you get involved, Michele?” Tina asked.
Keep her talking. Think about how to get out of this.

Michele laughed. “I like nice things. The government job was exciting for a time. But it doesn’t pay that well. It was easy to turn when the opportunity arrived.”

Tina decided she was looking at pure evil. No one else she had ever known was so cold, so ruthless. She wanted to smash the smirk off the woman’s face. Shooting her would be too good for her. But if she could get to her own gun, it would do.

Tina looked around the room. If Leslie distracted Michele, Tina might have a chance to do something. She knew if she didn’t, they’d both be dead soon. Michele was obviously enjoying prolonging it, explaining. But that would only last so long.

Her gaze fell on the bust of the Statue of Liberty with its crown with sharp points. Heavy, Leslie had said. Fumble in her purse for the gun? Or…

Leslie looked at Tina. Tina shifted her eyes to the bust. Leslie’s eyes widened and her nod was so slight, Tina almost missed it.

“Distract her!” Tina shouted.

Leslie didn’t hesitate. In one swift motion, she stood up and shoved the rolling chair toward Michele. Then she fell to the floor.

The chair hit Michele and knocked her sideways. The gun went off, but the shot was wild. Tina grabbed Lady Liberty and hurled it at Michele’s head. The sound it made when it hit was sickening. One of the crown points pierced Michele’s right eye. Blood gushed from a head wound as she collapsed to the floor. The gun skittered away. Tina went to grab it while Leslie crawled over to Michele.

“I think she’s dead.” Leslie gagged and pushed herself up to stand. She looked around wildly, then collapsed into a club chair.

Tina felt light-headed, but she walked over to Michele, then knelt down to take her pulse. “I think you’re right. The witch is dead.”

“Who’re you gonna calls first?” Leslie asked.

Tina’s laugh was shaky. “Not some ghost busters. Nine-one-one, then Hank.”

Leslie nodded. “Good plan. When you’re done, I’m calling Nancy. I think I’m ready to sell this house.” She shuddered.

Tina bent down to hug her. “I don’t blame you. Maybe we could find a place to share.”

Leslie smiled through her tears. “I’d like that.”

Tina called nine-one-one. Then Hank, taking no satisfaction in the fact she’d been right. They hadn’t seen the last of Michele. Until now.

THE END