Stacy Matthews - Dear Mary 01 - Think Twice Before You Order (7 page)

June 12
^th

Dear Mary,

Charlie was here at nine o’clock, and we had a lot of work
ahead of us. We went into the kitchen to get some coffee to take with us.
Charlie showed me the address list he had compiled. I asked him how exactly we
were going to approach these people. He said we had to be very careful, we
didn’t want them thinking we were cops. He would do most of the talking, and I
could take notes. It made me feel better knowing I wasn’t going to have the
chance of screwing this up. We went over the list and headed out. I really do
love Charlie’s car. One of these days he going to let me drive it, I’m sure of
it.

The first house we went to was very impressive, it was huge.
It was in Mission Hills, which is where a lot of wealthy people live. Looking
at it from the road it looked to be about seven or eight thousand square feet.
It had a stone and iron fence surrounding the entire property. From the street
you could see a guesthouse about fifty yards from the main house. According to
the list, the house belonged to Mr. and Mrs. Hennessey. We parked a little way
down the street and walked up to the front gate. There was a call box to the
left of the gate, Charlie pushed the button, but no one answered. I was
standing there minding my own business and leaned against the gate. It opened.
We took a quick look up and down the street, and didn’t see anyone, so we went
in. There was a very long driveway going up to the main house. I swear it was a
mile to the front door. I definitely need to start walking more or eating less.
I’m voting for walking more.

We knocked on the door and rang the bell, no answer. We
decided to go around to the back. There was a sunroom at one corner and an
enclosed porch at the other. The back door was locked. Charlie tried looking in
the windows of the main house, while I went to the guesthouse. I knocked; no
one
there
either. Charlie said he couldn’t see much,
but he could see a pile of mail on the kitchen table. About three weeks’ worth
he guessed. Nothing else looked out of the ordinary, so we went back to the
car. We went to two more houses in the same area. Both of those houses were
similar to the first. No one home at either place. It was when we came to the
fourth house on the list that the fun started. We went in the back door and
stood at the kitchen counter. Then the lights went out. You’re not going to
believe this next part.

I woke up to Mrs. Houtz and Mrs. Edmonds splashing water in
my face saying “Sid, wake up.” I did and had a terrible headache. I heard
Charlie telling someone I was coming around, and he would be over after he got
me to the ER and then home and settled. I asked what happened, and Charlie said
the only thing he was sure of was that someone hit us in the head from behind.
He woke up when Mrs. Houtz and Edmonds splashed water in his face. He still had
his wallet and watch. He thought whoever knocked us out hadn’t been there to
burglarize the house, but may have been hiding there. Charlie turned around and
calmly asked Marple and Fletcher how they knew we were at that house, and if
they had seen anything before they came in and found us. They looked at one
another and then at Charlie. They had been back and forth to Mrs. Edmond’s
house moving clothes and what not, and on one of their trips over to Mrs.
Edmond’s house they saw Charlie and I leaving in his car. They had seen us
leaving the night we were dressed in black and going to Dr. Niemeyer’s office.
They didn’t follow us that night, but thought it would be a good idea to follow
us this morning and see what we were up to. They were pretty sure it had
something to do with Grandpa and Tatiana, but they wanted to find out.

Charlie and I looked at one another. They had been following
us since we left the house, and neither of us had noticed a car following us.
No wonder we got knocked in the head. I could tell Charlie wasn’t going to tell
them anything, and was trying to think of something to distract them. I moved
my hand over my head and found a pretty good size goose egg. That was the
opening he was looking for. He asked Marple and Fletcher if they would take me
to the hospital to have it checked out. The only thing they love more than
figuring out a mystery is helping someone in need. They thought the best part
was getting to make up a story about me cleaning the house and falling
backwards. Those two worked up a story that no doctor was going to question.
The bump was nothing serious. The doctor told me to be more careful and sent me
home. I knew my house hunting was over for today and maybe tomorrow. I also
knew I was going to get the third degree from Marple and Fletcher. They decided
I should stay at their house for the night. I tried as hard as I could to get
them to take me to Grandpa’s, but they had it stuck in their minds that I could
possibly have a concussion and should be woken up every two hours. When I
reminded them the doctor said I was fine, the answer I got back was, “He’s only
a doctor. He doesn’t know everything.”

How Charlie escaped the trip to the hospital I’ll never know.
I called him from the bathroom at the ER and told him I was being kidnapped and
taken home with Mrs. Houtz and Edmonds. He thought that was the funniest thing
he had heard in a long time. I told him their plan to wake me up every two
hours and he laughed harder. He owes me big.

He thought going to Mark’s and re-looking into the doctor and
all of the people on the list would be a good idea. I knew he wasn’t going to
say anything but I could tell his head hurt just as much as mine. We had
noticed the two homes that really stuck out were Grandpa’s and Mr. Clark’s.
They were nice enough houses but it was obvious that neither of those two men
had the kind of money the others had. Charlie knows there is some sort of
connection between all of the patients, but he and Mark need to figure out what
that is. He was also going to see if he could get some more information on the
spouses of the patients.

Seeing as how we had been knocked out, I asked him if he
thought we should call the police. He said he didn’t want to say too much at
this point, but he and Mark have a theory and want to check on some things
before he tells me what it is. He asked me to give him at least a couple of
more days before we call the police. He told me to try to keep as much from
Marple and Fletcher as I could. Charlie did have a point, no matter when I call
the police the only thing they will be able to do is put out an “attempt to
locate” for Grandpa and Tatiana. There isn’t any evidence to indicate foul play
or that any kind of crime occurred to warrant an investigation. They don’t have
the manpower to spend time figuring out where two adults may have gone. Charlie
said he would call tonight as soon as he gets the information he needs from
Mark.

I did talk Mrs. Houtz into going over to Grandpa’s and
getting my pajamas and my journal. They put me in one of the guest rooms, and
made a small late lunch for me. When I was finished, they came and got the
dishes. I was to try to take a nap, and one of them would be in every two hours
to ask me my name and if I knew where I was. I kind of played up how much the
bump on my head hurt. When I rubbed it they would ask if I was seeing double or
felt like I needed to throw up. I know that wasn’t nice on my part, but it did
keep them from asking me questions about what Charlie and I were doing.          

Talk
to you later

Later
June 12
^th

Dear Mary,
   I
know news flies fast around small
towns, but this is ridiculous. I had gotten up to use the restroom and get a
drink of water. I heard women’s voices and thought it was just Mrs. Houtz and
Edmonds talking about today’s excitement. As I got to the doorway of the
kitchen, I saw Mrs. Fisher sitting in the living room talking with both of
them. Mrs. Fisher lives a few houses down from Mom and Dad’s old house. The
older kids in the neighborhood used to tell the little kids that she weighed
six hundred pounds. She never used to come out of her house, so we all believed
them. Well she doesn’t weigh six hundred pounds anymore and she was sitting
right there on the couch.

I was just standing there staring at her. I felt like an idiot. It was
the very same feeling I had when I was in third grade and collecting money for
muscular dystrophy. I had knocked on her door and heard her say, “Come on
in.”  I was actually going inside the house and was going to get to see
her. I was scared and excited at the same time. I walked through the door,
turned to my left and there she was, kind of lying on the sofa. I had never
seen anyone that big before. I was just standing there with my mouth open
staring at her. She was very sweet about it then and just as sweet about it
this time. She stood up and came over to give me a hug. I prayed Marple and
Fletcher hadn’t been telling her about today. They had told her something about
today, because she asked how my head was. Knowing those two, it was probably
the same story they gave the hospital. There was no way they were going to
share their mystery with anyone else. After Mrs. Fisher hugged me we all sat
down, and she told me how she lost all the weight.

She didn’t have the bypass, but had one of those lap bands put on. With
exercise and better eating she has lost a total of two hundred and fifty pounds
so far. She really does look great. She said she does yard work and walks a
mile every day. She would like to lose another hundred and fifty pounds,
then
have the surgery to remove the extra skin. After all of
that is done, she will buy new clothes. Until then she is wearing sweat pants
and tee shirts. Her goal is to buy an expensive dress and have Mr. Fisher take
her to dinner and then dancing. If she keeps on track she thinks she will reach
her goal by next summer. We talked until it was time for Mr. Fisher to come
home, and she had to go fix dinner. She said he had also lost some weight
because she refused to make two different dinners. If he wanted to eat he would
have to eat what she fixed. My head was really starting to ache and I made a
mistake and rubbed it. Of course, Mrs. Houtz jumped up and said it was time for
me to go back to my room and lay down. I was having a nice time talking to Mrs.
Fisher, but I was ready to lie down.

As I walked back to my room I couldn’t help but remember when I was in
the third grade. Mom and Dad took me to the State fair in Topeka, and I paid a
dollar to see the “Worlds Fattest Man.”  I felt like an idiot then too.
You walked in one door and to the right they had an area roped off. There he
was, the world’s fattest man, just sitting in a chair. He didn’t talk to you or
anything. You just stood there, looked at him for a few seconds and then left
out the other door. I was really disappointed. He wasn’t nearly as fat as Mrs.
Fisher. I told Mom and Dad I wanted my money back. Dad said they wouldn’t give
me my money back just because I had seen someone bigger than him, and they both
thought it would be best if I kept my idea of Mrs. Fisher doing that job
instead of him to myself. I have to admit it has been fun talking to everyone.

I must have fallen asleep because I woke up as Mrs. Houtz was putting my
dinner tray on the bed. We had meatloaf, green beans, mashed potatoes and
gravy, bread, and chocolate pie for dessert. It was the cutest thing. They
brought in TV trays and had dinner in my room to keep me company. I guess they
had decided to wait and grill me in the morning. The dinner conversation turned
to sports. They wanted to know what I knew about any of it. They told me which
ones their grandkids play, and I did my best to explain each of them in a way
that would be easy for them to remember the differences between them.

They were also trying to figure out what to do about three of Mrs.
Edmonds children, and their children, and both of the Houtz children and
grandchildren wanting to come and visit on the same weekend. I suggested that
the Edmonds family stay at Grandpas, and I could stay there with the two of
them. There’s enough room for all of the Edmonds at Grandpa’s, and that way it
would only be five extra people at Mrs. Houtz’s. The Edmonds could take up as
much room as they needed at Grandpa’s. If Grandpa and Tatiana come back, we’ll
make room. They thought it was a great idea as long as it wasn’t going to be an
inconvenience for Grandpa or me. I knew right then and there they had big plans
for interrogating me in the morning. They hadn’t asked a single question since
we got back to the house.

Of course while I was staying there, dinner would be ready for all of us,
Edmonds, Houtzes, and me every night. I think it will be kind of fun being in a
house with all those people, as long as I don’t get interrogated. With that
many people around I don’t think I will be. But to play it safe I will make
sure I’m never alone with Marple and Fletcher. I had always wanted brothers and
sisters when I was growing up, so this will be my chance to see what a big
family is like. I can only imagine how good the food is going to be. I’ve come
to the conclusion if I can’t get my walking done outside I’m going to have to
buy a treadmill, and get it done inside. This food is just too good to pass up.

When I talked to Charlie at the hospital, he said he would call and see
how I was doing. Thankfully, I happened to be awake when he called. He wanted
to know if I thought I would be up for a little snooping in the morning instead
of the afternoon. My head was feeling better, and I think the bump had gone
down. He stressed that it would be very little snooping and more like a
stakeout. Finally I get to take some food. We were going to go to each of the
houses and watch from the street. Since it looked as though someone had been
taking in the mail at each of the homes we had been to, he thought we might be
able to see the person or people doing it. He wanted to start with the house
where we got knocked out. We would watch it for a little while and then go in
and see if we could find any evidence as to
who
it was
that put our lights out. I told him I thought I could handle sitting in the car
and watching.

It did make me a little nervous thinking about going back into that
house, but this time we would be much more aware and looking for someone that
may be hiding in there. He wanted to get an early start in case one of the
homeowners was actually home and leaving for work. He asked if Marple and
Fletcher and been grilling me. I told him how I would rub my head if I thought
they were going to start asking questions. He was very impressed that I had
come up with that all by myself. Now the only thing I have to worry about is
getting out of the house in the morning without waking up the ladies.

Talk
to you later