Suspicion of Guilt (13 page)

T
he short, plump blonde was about as much the opposite of Elizabeth Wilson’s six-foot Amazon-type figure as you could get.

“So, there’s not much resemblance between the two of you,” Reece said, keeping his voice deliberately pleasant. Maybe it would be an icebreaker. So far she had pretty much just glared.

“That’s because we’re not blood sisters.”

“Which one was adopted?”

“Both of us. Our mother couldn’t have children, so she made a career of adopting unwanted kids.”

“Oh.” Sean cast him a hmmm-very-interesting look. Reece inwardly winced. He was going to have to talk to the kid about working on his poker face.

Reece gave Linda Wilson what he knew was a winning grin. He wasn’t without his charm, and he knew it. Still, guilt wormed through his stomach, accompanied by a healthy dose of frustration. Why did he suddenly feel as though he was cheating on Denni by flirting harmlessly with a potential witness?

But it worked. Linda de-iced a bit, giving him an uncertain smile in return. “What exactly is it that you think I can do for you, detectives?”

“One detective,” Reece said, keeping the smile fixed. “He’s just an officer.”

A blush crept to her cheeks. “Sorry.”

“It’s all right. But to answer your question. Someone has been causing Miss Mahoney all kinds of trouble. The luncheon wasn’t supposed to have been cancelled. And yet it was.”

“I feel terrible about that. But the caller had the order number and knew everything on the menu.” Her face was still flushed and Reece wondered if her blood pressure was going up.

“I’m sure it was an honest mistake on your part, Linda. But someone was messing with Miss Mahoney’s luncheon. Trying to sabotage her efforts to buy a couple of houses just like that one so she can help more girls. It was an important event that she had to pull together at the last second. All by herself.”

Sean cleared his throat. “With a little help from her friends.”

Reece glared at him, then readjusted his expression and turned back to the plump little cook.

“Anything you can remember about the person’s voice or something they might have said that struck you as particularly odd might be helpful.”

“I’m sorry, detective. As I said, the person calling had all the information I require to cancel an order on such short notice.”

“You didn’t recognize the voice?”

“No. But Miss Mahoney had spoken with me only a couple of times during the two months since she booked
me to cater her luncheon. I wouldn’t have recognized her voice.”

That sounded reasonable. He was ninety-nine percent sure that she was telling the truth. “I see. Do you know why she chose your business in particular to cater the luncheon?”

Linda’s eyes narrowed. “What difference does that make? And what exactly are you getting at anyway? You know about Elizabeth, so don’t you think it’s logical to assume she had something to do with a recommendation for me?”

Hmm, a girl who spoke her mind. Got straight to the point.

“Another thing. I checked with the travel agent and discovered that you booked your vacation the night of the luncheon. Are you always so impulsive?”

Her face was definitely red. “No. Not usually. But that cancellation really was the last straw in a series of bad jobs. I only started the business a year ago. It takes awhile to get off the ground. I—I just needed a break.”

Reece nodded. “Sounds reasonable. Are you feeling more rested?”

“I was until our little chat.”

Reece chuckled. Touché. “There’s just one more question and I’ll be out of here.”

Her face relaxed. “All right.”

“Do you know why someone would go to a luncheon they knew had been cancelled?”

Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. “What are you getting at, detective?”

“I think you know.”

“If you’re implying my sister had anything to do with Miss Mahoney’s problems, you are way off base.”

“But you did tell your sister that the luncheon was cancelled and yet she went anyway?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know why she would do that?”

Linda measured him with her gaze as if deciding how much to tell him. When she spoke, he instinctively felt her sincerity. “She thought Denni had cancelled the luncheon because she wasn’t prepared. I mean, no one could have known that I told Elizabeth it was cancelled, so she decided to show up anyway, play dumb, and get an impromptu look at the house.”

Linda blushed again. “We’re not young women, Detective. It doesn’t take much to make us happy. Elizabeth thought she’d get brownie points with the pastor if she scoped out Denni’s house and found out whether it was really worthy of receiving another grant or not.”

“And what made her think she could really be an impartial judge?” Reece felt his anger rise at the woman who obviously wanted to see Denni fail.

“My sister isn’t holding a grudge, if that’s what you’re implying, Detective. She only wants to be sure the Lord’s money isn’t misspent.”

“I guess you know her better than I do.” Reece gathered a deep breath. “There’s nothing more for us here.” He walked to the door. Then turned. “Oh, I’m sorry. There is just one more thing. Did Elizabeth know we were coming today?”

“I—Well, she…” She shrugged. “Yes, she did.”

“And what did she have to say about it?”

Seemingly taken aback by the question, the woman raised her chin and met his gaze head-on. “Only that she hoped no one was accusing her of anything just because Denni Mahoney denied her a chance at mother
hood. But don’t read anything into it. She’s dramatic that way. She didn’t mean it like it sounds.”

“I hope not. Because it sounds like she might be a woman bent on revenge.”

“Trust me. She’s not. My sister has had her share of trouble and she doesn’t want any more. And if you really want to know why she was here today, I’ll tell you.”

“All right. Why?” As if he didn’t know.

“Apparently my customers have missed me, because I came home to a huge batch of orders and I needed help. My sister came over to bail me out of a bind. It was a coincidence.”

Sure it was. With his hand on the door, Reece flashed her another smile. “Thank you for your cooperation, Linda. We appreciate it.”

“Detective! Wait.”

Reece turned back.

Her face was red again. “I lied to you earlier.”

He froze.

“I mean I lied about why I left so suddenly. I’ve been in a relationship for two years. The day I got the call about the luncheon being cancelled, I also got a call from him, ending things.” Tears filled her eyes. “He found someone else.”

Reece rubbed his head, anxiety rising. If she was going to cry, he was out of there.

Sean came to the rescue. “I’m sorry. It was his loss.”

Linda smiled, “That was really the last straw. And the reason I decided to go on vacation.”

And that explained the red face, Reece thought. His gut told him that Linda had shared everything she knew now. Which meant that while Elizabeth might not want Mahoney House to succeed, she hadn’t called the ca
terer to cancel. As he left the house, his suspect list shifted like sand through an hourglass. There was nothing easy about this case.

“Surprise!”

Denni’s smile froze as clarity came rushing over her. She was the victim of a surprise party. A sigh rushed to her lips, but she disguised it as a gasp of pleasure before it could escape and give away her true feelings about surprise parties, and birthdays after the age of thirty, in general. There would be no sliding gracefully into any new year closer to old age.

“Look, she’s speechless. That’s never happened before.” Keri’s unmistakable voice brought a round of laughter. She stepped up and gave Denni a quick hug, then stepped aside as Raven followed suit. “So, you finally get to be the center of attention.” She grinned. “How does it feel?”

Denni gave a short laugh at her beautiful sister’s ridiculous question. “You’re asking me how it feels to be center of attention? That’s a laugh.” She hugged Raven. “Thanks for coming,” she whispered. “How’s the anchor job coming along?”

“Becca’s still working her dad so he’ll get her firmly placed in that anchor chair.”

“Is it working?”

“Of course.” Raven grinned. “Too bad the guy’s married. I’d go after him and make him fall in love. Then he’d have to give me the job.”

“Way to have a plan, Rave.” Denni laughed, knowing her sister would no more use her beauty to get a job than she would defile herself with a filet mignon.

Denni glanced around the living room. Ruth beamed
like a woman with a secret just begging to come out. “Ruth,” she said, giving the woman a tight squeeze. “This must have been all your idea.”

“Yes, ma’am. And everyone jumped on it like a duck on a June bug.”

“I appreciate it, everyone.”

Only Leigh was noticeably absent, but Denni knew she had to work. Denni continued to peruse the room and her heart nearly stopped at the sight of Reece, leaning against the wall, his thumbs resting jauntily in his belt loops. He sent her a lazy grin and she thought her heart might pound from her chest. Even after she’d broken off any chance of a relationship with him, he’d still come to her birthday party?

She started toward him just as the bell rang, taking her attention. Only a couple of steps from the door, she reached for the doorknob and pulled. Her stomach lurched at the sight of Mrs. James and Sarah standing there. “Were we too loud? We have a lot of people in here.”

“No. You weren’t too loud.”

“Well then…”

“Mrs. James,” Ruth’s voice, filled with delight, spoke over Denni’s shoulder. “You came, after all. We’re so glad you did. And look, you brought Sarah with you.”

The old lady “harrumphed” and looked highly offended. “She didn’t even know I was coming. Looked at me like I didn’t belong.” Sarah looked ill at ease, her eyes shifting around the room, shoulders slumped.

Ruth swept the old lady and her aging daughter into the room. “Of course Denni didn’t know you were coming. She didn’t even know
she
was coming. This is a surprise party, remember?”

The old lady’s face lit up. “Now I do. Glad I didn’t spill the beans.”

Denni stepped up. “Thanks so much for coming to my birthday party. It means a great deal to me.”

“I was proud to be asked. Especially after you talked that policeman into raising my fence for me so that Buffy doesn’t run off anymore.” She smiled again and handed Denni a package wrapped in Christmas paper. “That was all I had on such short notice.”

Denni laughed, and didn’t bother to set the record straight—that Reece and Sean had seen fit to take care of the fence as a favor to her rather than to the elderly widow. “The paper is just perfect. I love Christmas.”

An hour later, the party was in full swing. “Happy Birthday” had been sung slightly off pitch, but she had loved every wrong note of it. With a moment to breathe, she flopped onto the couch, slipped off her toe-pinching sandals and smiled at Cate. “How are you feeling?”

Cate gave a weary sigh. “A little tired. I’ll be so glad when this baby comes.”

“The day will be here before you know it.”

A slight frown creased the girl’s brow. “Do you think I’m making the right decision?”

“On whether to keep the baby?”

The girl nodded.

Denni sucked in a cool breath. She’d tried not to give her opinion on this subject. The girl was so adamant about not tossing her child aside the “way her mom had.”

“I don’t know, Cate. It’s a tough decision. You have to make the choice that you can live best with.”

“How will she feel, though, knowing I just gave her away? If I treat her like she was some kind of mistake?”

Denni scooted over and slipped her arm around
Cate’s shoulders. Tears glistened in the mother-to-be’s eyes. “How am I going to take care of her, Denni?”

“May I pray with you?”

Cate bobbed her head. And they closed their eyes. Denni prayed for peace and wisdom. She reminded God that Cate only wanted to do the right thing. And asked Him to reveal His plan for the baby and for Cate.

When she opened her eyes, Cate’s face seemed more serene. “Thanks, Denni.” She squeezed her hand. “I’m going into the kitchen to nab me a slice of that cake. In a few more weeks, I’m going to have to start the diet roller-coaster again. Might as well take advantage of the end-of-pregnancy hunger while I can.”

Denni smiled and watched Cate waddle into the kitchen. Sensing attention on her, Denni glanced around, looking for the source. Her breath caught when her gaze rested on Reece. After a cursory happy birthday earlier, he had pretty much left her to mingle with the rest of the “family.”

He started to walk toward her, just as a loud knock on the door interrupted their would-be meeting. Reece sent her a lopsided grin and shrugged as she pushed up from the couch and made her way to the door.

Elizabeth Wilson stood on the porch, shaking with fury. Her heels clacked on the porch as she paced.

“Elizabeth?”

“Just what do you think you’re trying to prove? Do you honestly think I have nothing better to do than to set fires in
your
house?”

Denni stepped back at the verbal assault. “What are you talking about? Of course you didn’t set any fires.”

“Then call off your watchdog.”

“Dog? When did you folks get a dog?” Mrs. James asked in the tense silence of the room.

Reece stepped forward. “I believe I’m the watchdog Miss Wilson is referring to.”

The elderly woman lifted her chin. “That’s ridiculous.”

“How about if we step out onto the porch and talk about this?” Reece suggested, taking Elizabeth firmly by the arm.

The irate woman jerked free. “I will not stand for this defamation of character.” Her lips trembled and Denni’s heart melted in compassion. “I have worked too hard to regain my dignity. To—to…”

“Please, Elizabeth,” Denni said, stepping between Reece and the distraught woman. “Come and sit down. Reece, please go into the kitchen and get Elizabeth a glass of punch.”

“Don’t bother,” Elizabeth said with a sniff.

“You’ll love it, trust me. Ruth made it with scoops of lime sherbet. It’s really good.”