The Ghosts of Peppernell Manor (10 page)

“It does all the things that were happening to her—joint pain, intestinal problems, pain in her feet. The coroner said that just one dose could have done all that, and that eventually her hair would have fallen out.” Her tears came faster then. “She had such beautiful white hair!”

She spread her hands wide and said imploringly, “How could we not have known something was seriously wrong with her? I'll never forgive myself!” She was inconsolable now.

I stared at her, not knowing what to say. I put my arm around her shoulders.

“The coroner said . . . he'd have to . . . call the . . . police to—to begin an investigation into her poisoning . . . even though it didn't cause her death,” she said between gasps of air. My arm tightened around her body as it wracked with cries.

The police?!
My first thought was of Lucy. Thank goodness Brad was visiting and would keep her occupied in Charleston for almost a week, at least after school every day. I would have to decide whether to let Lucy spend nights with him, too, while he was here so she could be kept away from Peppernell Manor entirely.

“What are the police going to do?”

Evie was calming down a bit. “I don't know. I guess they'll come in and ask everyone questions.”

“When?”

“We don't know,” she answered with a shrug.

“What does thallium look like?”

“I have no idea.”

“Where would someone get it?”

“I don't know. The coroner told Daddy and Mother that there aren't a lot of uses for it.”

“Why would anyone do that to her? She was such a sweet lady.”

“I wish I knew.” Her breathing quickened. “It had to have been someone from the manor. What if someone from her own family did it?” Her eyes filled with tears again as her voice rose. “But we always ate the same food together in the dining room. How could she be the only one who got sick?” She raised fists to her eyes and wiped away her tears forcefully.

I spoke quietly. “We don't know how she got that thallium into her system. Maybe it came from some other source. Has anyone told Ruby?”

“Not yet. She will not take it well when she finds out. I suppose Daddy will tell her. I'd hate for her to find out from the police. Poor Ruby.”

We sat in silence for a while, each lost in our own thoughts, and eventually I went upstairs. I knew Evie needed to talk and share my company, but my chief concern was for Lucy, who was alone in our room. I was beginning to feel spooked. I walked faster and faster up the stairs as I thought of her alone up there, then jogged down the hallway and burst into the room to find her sound asleep, blissfully unaware of all the grown-up problems swirling around her. I carried her into my bed, where I slept that night with my arms wrapped tightly around her.

When I dropped her off at school the next morning with a promise to see her that night at Brad's bed and breakfast, I felt a sense of relief that was almost like a physical weight had been lifted from my shoulders. She would be safe at school. And I dropped her off just in time, for when I returned to Peppernell Manor, the police were there in force.

They wanted to talk to me first. I was the outsider, they said, the newcomer to the household. Why was I there? How long had I been there? How long was I planning to stay? Who wrote out my paychecks? What was my relationship with the rest of the family? Where was my daughter? And so on. I gave them permission to search my room, and of course they found nothing of interest.

They questioned everyone in the manor and got permission from Graydon to search the basement and first floor of the house, as well as Cora-Camille's bedroom and the master bedroom and office. Phyllis gave them permission to search her apartment, and Ruby allowed them to search her room, too. When the police left that afternoon, they took several items with them from the kitchen.

I walked out to the kitchen and found Phyllis at the table with her head in her hands.

“They think I did it. I know it,” she said flatly.

“Why do you say that?”

“Because they only took things from the kitchen. And I'm the one in charge of cooking and serving the meals.”

“Did they take anything from your apartment?”

“Yes. Stuff from my own kitchen.”

“Did they say anything to you before they left?”

“No.” She sighed. “I better start looking for a new job. Graydon had told me that he'll keep me on, but this changes everything.”

“It only changes everything if you're guilty of poisoning Cora-Camille, and I don't think anyone believes that you did it.”

She looked at me sullenly. “Vivian will be glad to get rid of me.”

“Why?”

“Because she hates me. She doesn't want a black woman in her house.”

“Oh, I don't think she hates you.”

Phyllis cocked an eyebrow at me. “Have you ever seen the way she looks at me?”

“No, I guess I never paid attention.”

“Have you ever heard the way she talks to me? Or about me? Have you ever heard her refer to me as a domestic?”

“Yes,” I admitted. “I have heard her call you that. But Graydon stuck up for you.”

“That's another reason she wants to be rid of me. Because Graydon is kind to me. I think she feels threatened.”

“Well, let's just wait and see what the police have to say.”

She nodded absently.

I needed to get back to work. My progress had suffered since Cora-Camille's death because I had spent so much time helping the family deal with the funeral arrangements and visitors. And now with this added danger enveloping the house in its pall, I knew I needed to keep my hands and my mind busy to avoid being overwhelmed with worry. I considered going back to Chicago even though the family wanted me to continue working on the restoration, but the police told everyone to stay local, so leaving wasn't an option. I called Brad and told him that I would come into Charleston to see Lucy and drop off her overnight things, if he wanted to keep her for a couple of days. I didn't mention the police or the poisoning. I just let him think I was offering out of the goodness of my heart.

I
got back to work on the trim for the dining room window and door surrounds. I worked steadily for hours with complete focus, hardly noticing the time slipping by and the shadows lengthening outside the garage. After finishing for the day, I hurried inside and showered, then joined the family for a quick dinner that turned out to be rather uncomfortable. The silence was thick and palpable. No doubt the family harbored unspoken suspicions and doubts in connection with Cora-Camille's death that loomed large over the table.

After dinner I grabbed Lucy's overnight bag and drove into Charleston to drop it off and to say good night to her.

When I arrived at Brad's bed and breakfast they were in the parlor playing one of the board games Lucy had taken. Brad looked slightly annoyed when he saw me, his lips in a thin line, but Lucy was thrilled. She threw herself into my arms and gave me a big hug. I hated to let her go, but she was excited to stay overnight at the hotel. She told me she and Brad had gone to a pizzeria for dinner, and that she ate all her food. Then they went for a walk and she got a cupcake from a bakery near the restaurant. She was chatty and animated, and I knew it wouldn't be long before she suddenly became exhausted and weepy. Part of me wanted to stay to help her calm down, but part of me maliciously wanted Brad to have to deal with it. It was clear from his expression and the way he kept clearing his throat that he wanted me to leave, so I kissed Lucy and told her good night. I told her I would see her the following afternoon since I had to run into Charleston to pick up the dining room wallpaper.

When I got back to the manor, I found Evie in the drawing room, curled up on the couch and sipping a glass of wine. There was a glass on a side table for me.

“What's up?” I asked.

“Who do you think poisoned Gran?” she asked abruptly.

I was startled. “I don't know. Maybe it was accidental.”

“I'm suspecting everyone and I can't help myself,” she said quietly. “How can I trust anyone around here?” She bit one of her fingernails.

“I think you need to let the police do their job. They'll find out who did it. And it's entirely possible that the poisoning was accidental. So let's not jump to conclusions; let's assume everyone is innocent until proven guilty.”

She shook her head. “I just can't help it. I hate myself for distrusting my whole family.”

I tried to soothe her. “Evie, we have no idea what happened. Let's take a deep breath and step back until we know all the facts.”

“You're just trying to make me feel better.”

“That's right,” I said, smiling. “You'd do the same thing for me, wouldn't you?”

“Yes,” she replied grudgingly.

“What can we do to keep you busy?”

She sighed. “I'm just thinking. Daddy asked me to go through Gran's clothes and things and decide what should be given to her friends, what should be donated to charity, and what we may want to keep. It's going to be an awful job.”

“If you do it in the evenings, I can help,” I offered.

“Would you?”

“Sure. As long as Lucy is staying in Charleston with Brad, my evenings are free. Besides, it'll help keep my mind off missing her.”

“We can get started tomorrow night. I'm too tired to do anything about it now.”

With that, we both went upstairs. I missed seeing Lucy's small body sleeping in the bed near mine, and it was hard to fall asleep. I eventually did, though, and woke up still tired. I worked on the drawing room floor during the day. I had decided to try to sand and reseal the old pine plank floors, so I moved the all the furniture to one side of the room and started the sanding job on the side of the floor that was bare. It was a hot, dirty job that took most of the day, but toward dinnertime I took a quick shower and drove into Charleston to pick up the wallpaper for the dining room. In Charleston I stopped to see Lucy at a park where Brad had taken her before dinner. She acted like she hadn't seen me in a year, holding my hand and showering me with hugs and noisy kisses, and my mood lifted considerably once I saw her. I hated to leave her overnight with Brad again, but she was safer in Charleston and I had promised to help Evie start sorting through Cora-Camille's belongings.

Brad pulled me aside while I was in the park with them.

“I don't think you need to come into Charleston tomorrow to see Lucy.”

“Why not?”

“Because you've had her all to yourself since the end of August and it's only fair that I get some time alone with her.”

My thoughts raced while I tried to think of a compelling reason that I had to see Lucy while she was staying with Brad in Charleston, but I couldn't think of one and I had to agree that it did only seem fair that he see her alone for the next five days or so. I reluctantly agreed and gave Lucy an extra hug before I left, assuring her that I would see her in a few days and promising that she would have lots of fun with her daddy while I was gone.

After dinner that evening, Evie and I got to work. We went into Cora-Camille's room, which hadn't been aired out since she passed away. It smelled musty and stale. Evie threw open the windows to let in the soft evening breeze and the outdoor sounds of rustling palmetto leaves and nighttime bugs.

Cora-Camille had quite a wardrobe. Evie and I spent at least two hours just sorting through the clothes in her bureau. We didn't even get to the closet. By the end of the evening we had filled several boxes with clothes for friends and various charities. We agreed to quit for the night and work again the following evening on the clothes in Cora-Camille's closet.

The next day I was finally able to start hanging the dining room wallpaper. It was a bittersweet job, since I felt Cora-Camille's absence keenly. She had so looked forward to seeing the dining room completely restored.

It was painstaking work, and I was ready to take a break when Heath came into the dining room around lunchtime.

“Ready for a rest?”

“Sure.”

“Phyllis made ham salad. Ruby made bread. Sounds like a sandwich to me. Want one?”

I accompanied him to the kitchen and we made lunch. As we sat down at the table, Heath asked, “So how's it going in the dining room?”

I grinned. “Great. What do you think of the wallpaper so far?”

He grimaced. “It's not my taste. It's hard to believe that kind of thing was actually popular at one time.”

“There's something very elegant about it. The wallpaper almost tells a story. Or you make up your own. I'll bet you could find a new detail every day on the wall.”

He nodded. “Well, I know Gran was excited about it, so I'm sure it's exactly what she wanted. I wish she could see it.”

“I wish she could, too.”

“Did the police talk to you?”

“Yes. They had a lot of questions for me because I'm new to this area and I'm an outsider living in the manor. I guess it seems kind of suspicious.”

“They talked to me, too, and they searched the carriage house. They didn't take anything with them when they left, though.”

“I'm sure if they didn't find anything, then they'll leave you alone after this.”

“I can't believe that anyone around here would poison her! Everyone loved her!” he burst out suddenly. Then he paused for a moment. “Do you suppose it was an accident?”

“I don't know. I hope so. But we just don't know enough yet.”

He put his head in his hands. “That has to be the answer. It must have gotten in her body unintentionally. I can't stand the thought of someone poisoning her.”

“I think everyone feels the same way.”

“Are you nervous about having Lucy here?”

“A little, but she's spending the week in Charleston with her father. She was going to come back here to sleep every night, but I decided it would be smart to have her stay there while Brad is visiting. He's happy, she's happy, and I'm not worried. It's a win-win-win, except that I miss her.”

“She's awful cute.”

I smiled. “Thanks. She looks just like my mother.”

“She's fun to have around. I saw Dad playing with her a few days ago. She made him smile even though he was missing Gran.”

“She has that effect on people. I think all children have that ability to make adults smile, especially when they're overwhelmed with their own problems. Kids are somehow able to remove grown-up problems for a while.”

“My wife hated kids. I always wanted them, but she put her foot down.”

I was shocked. I didn't know Heath had been married.

“You had a wife?”

“Yes. We divorced several years ago.”

“I'm sorry to hear that.”

“Don't be. She's absolutely nuts.”

“How so?”

“For one thing, like I said, she hated kids. But I didn't know that until after we were married. She let me go on thinking we would have children, and then she announced that she had always despised kids and wanted nothing to do with them. And while that was enough for me to want to divorce her, she also stole stuff and threw things around when she was mad.”

“She stole things?” I asked incredulously.

“Yup. She'd steal anything from pens to makeup to artwork. I told you, she's nuts. She works in Charleston at a boutique that sells expensive clothes, and I swear I don't know how she ever got that job. That place must lose inventory every week.”

“And she threw things, too?”

“Yeah.” He chuckled. “One time she threw a plate at me because I was late getting home for dinner. Another time she threw a mug at me because I didn't want to go out with a bunch of other couples. She was awful.”

He pointed to a small scar next to his eye. “This is a souvenir from the plate-throwing event.”

“I can't believe that,” I marveled. And I thought Brad was bad.

“I'm sure you're wondering why I married her. Everyone does,” he continued. I remained silent. Of course I wondered, but it was really none of my business.

“We got married when we were too young. Well,
I
was too young. I don't know about her.

“You've seen her,” he went on.

“What?!”

“Remember that day we were sitting outside for lunch at that restaurant in Charleston? You and Lucy were in town for the day.”

“I remember.”

“And while we sat there a woman walked by and seemed to pay a little too much attention to our table?”

I thought back to that day. There
had
been a woman, a beautiful woman, with a white dress and long black hair.

“The one with the long black hair?”

“That's the one. Her name is Odeile.”

“She's very pretty.”

“She may be pretty on the outside, but she's downright ugly on the inside.”

I wondered why Evie had never mentioned Odeile. I didn't know what else to say to Heath so we sat in awkward silence for a moment.

“I need to get back to work,” I finally told him.

“See you later?”

“Sure.”

I returned to the dining room and worked for a long time on the wallpaper. It was tedious work, matching seams perfectly so that the scene portrayed on the wall flowed without interruption or blemish. I was very pleased with the outcome so far. Cora-Camille would have been thrilled, I knew.