The Sour Cherry Surprise (24 page)

“We are taking the phone off the hook when we get home,” he told her as the doctor was patching up her head wound. “You are going to sleep in tomorrow. And I am bringing you breakfast in bed.”

She smiled at him, stroking his cheek gently. “Careful, baby, I could get used to being spoiled.”

“Get used to it. Your man wants you to.”

Brandon made good on his promise, too. He let her sleep sinfully late. And he really did serve her breakfast in bed—orange juice, bacon, eggs and toast. Brandon had never been the greatest of cooks. But she forced down every greasy, lukewarm bite, yumming enthusiastically as he hovered over her, plumping her pillows. She still had herself an awful headache, as well as that persistent ringing in her ears. But she felt sinfully decadent as she lay there sipping her second cup of coffee. And was genuinely touched by the way Brandon was fussing over her. He kept the local newspapers away from her. She wasn’t ready for them. Instead, she leafed her way through the
New York Times
and
Boston Globe
, barely noticing the headlines. Nothing was taking place in the outside world that seemed to matter to her.

Until, that is, one particular item in the
Globe
caught her eye. And held it.

As he left for work Brandon made her promise that she’d take it easy today. Des promised him she would. She was real convincing, too.

But once he was out the door Des switched into action mode. Dialed 411 for Moodus. Had herself a good, long talk with someone who she’d been wanting to speak with for a couple of days. Then
she climbed into a fresh uniform, got in her cruiser and started back to Sour Cherry Lane with her head spinning. And not because of any damned concussion.

The thunderstorms of last night had passed over. The day was clear and bright, with puffy white clouds and a cool, fresh breeze blowing off of the Sound. Des rolled down her windows and savored it, knowing there wouldn’t be many more days like this before the sweltering humidity of summer settled in.

The Procter house was a shattered, sodden wreck. There was broken glass everywhere. Virtually every pane of every window had gotten blown out in the firefight. The window frames and front door were in pieces. The weathered cedar shingles nothing more than splinters and shards.

Des rolled up to find all three generations of Beckwith women hard at work out on the front porch. Patricia, who had cared for Richard Procter a great deal. Kimberly, who had been ga-ga over him. And Jen, the born achiever, who never, ever smiled. Jen was helping her mother sweep the broken glass into a trash barrel. Patricia was taking a tape measure to the windows and jotting down her findings on a yellow legal pad.

Des got out of her Crown Vic and tipped her big hat at the regal old woman. “What do you intend to do now, ma’am?”

“Fix it up, naturally,” Patricia answered. “Then re-let it. I was assured by a highly reputable contractor this morning that it’s still structurally sound.”

“And it has one heck of a fine root cellar, I happen to know.”

Patricia paused from her measuring to cast a critical eye at Des. “You’ve been through quite an ordeal, young lady. I’m surprised to see you back at work so soon.”

“I’m fine, ma’am.”

“I’m told that Carolyn Procter has been informed of Clay Mundy’s death,” Patricia said. “Her sister, Megan, doesn’t believe
in shielding loved ones from bad news. A belief that I happen to share. I’ve never abided coddling.”

“How did Carolyn take the news?”

“Like the strong, capable woman she truly is. She did not fall into hysterics or any other such nonsense, Megan said. Molly is spending the day with her at the hospital today. As soon as Carolyn’s doctors feel she’s ready, Megan intends to take them home to Maine. Permanently, it would appear.”

“I hate to admit it,” Jen said glumly. “But I’m going to miss the little squirt.”

“Then we shall go to Maine and visit her,” her grandmother responded, gazing cooly over at Kimberly. “All three of us, if that is acceptable to you.”

“Really? I mean, sure. Sounds … great.” Kimberly was visibly floored by her mother-in-law’s invitation. Clearly, this signaled a major thawing of family relations. “I got me a week of vacation time coming in July. We could drive up. It’ll be fun, won’t it, honey?”

Jen blew a loose strand of blond ponytail away from her mouth. “If you say so.”

Des stood there studying the girl, wondering if she’d ever figure out how to get her happy on. Or if her whole life would merely be filled with one grim, dogged achievement after another.

Now Amber and Keith came toodling down Sour Cherry for home in Keith’s pickup, waving as they drove past. Des excused herself and strode down the lane after them.

They’d been out grocery shopping. Big, blond Keith yanked a forty-pound bag of birdseed from the back of the truck, hoisted it over his shoulder and started around to the backyard with it. Several bags of groceries remained behind. Amber, who was looking bug cute in a cropped knit top and tight jeans, muscled two of them out of there. Des grabbed two more.

“You would not
believe
the commotion we set off at the market,” she chattered at Des as they made their way inside through the front door. “Absolutely everyone wanted to know everything about last night. They kept asking us a million questions. It’s like we turned into overnight celebrities just because we to live across the lane. Can you believe it?”

“I can, actually. In fact, I had something I wanted to ask you myself.”

They put their bags down on the kitchen table. It was an old-fashioned farmhouse kitchen, sunny, cheerful and spotless.

“Sure thing,” Amber said. “What is it?”

“Did you wash the knife and put it back in your knife rack over there or did you bury it?”

Amber froze, gaping at her in wide-eyed shock.
“What
did you just say?”

Keith came in through the kitchen door now. All three of them were in there together.

“After you slashed Professor Procter’s throat,” Des said to them, “did you two hide the murder weapon in plain sight or did you bury it?”

He swallowed hard but did not respond. Just moved closer to his beloved bride, draping a beefy arm around her.

“Because if you
did
bury it,” Des continued, “then my money’s on that ton of cedar mulch piled out in the driveway. I’m guessing that the troopers never got around to digging it up. And they sure won’t be bothering now. Why would they, right?” On their stunned silence she added, “I’m guessing your bloody clothes are under there, too.”

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, Des,” Amber said quietly. “But are you still feeling the effects of that bump on your head?”

“Thanks for asking, but I feel fine. Plenty well enough to take care of business before I got here.”

“Business?” Amber’s big dark eyes bored in on hers. “What business?”

“Well, I had a nice chat on the phone with Professor Robert Sorin, who was Richard’s closest friend on the Wesleyan faculty. You remember him, don’t you, Amber? Lives up in Moodus? He sure remembers you. Professor Sorin has been away at an academic conference in Yellow Springs, Ohio. He got home late last night and was real shaken when he heard about Richard’s death on the news. Given that his friend is no longer alive, Professor Sorin was willing to share with me something Richard told him a couple of months ago in the strictest confidence. Which was that he’d become romantically involved with a former student. A young Dorset woman who’s now a grad student at Yale. And married. Kind of sounds like someone we know, doesn’t she?”

Amber lowered those big dark eyes and stared down at the pink and yellow linoleum floor, wringing her hands.

Des kept going. “Keith, I also had a chance to read this morning’s
Boston Globe
from front to back.”

Keith raised his square chin at her challengingly. “So …?”

“So the Red Sox trounced Toronto eight-zip the night Richard died. At no time during the game did the Sox ever trail. Yet when I showed up here in response to Amber’s nine-one-one call
you
told me the Jays were killing them. You weren’t watching that game on TV at all, were you? You were out in the lane slashing Richard’s throat. Then the two of you carried him down to the river together and dumped him there, figuring he wouldn’t wash up for days and days. And when he did that any and all suspicion would land on Clay Mundy and stay there. Then you cleaned yourselves up and hid the evidence, quick like bunnies. Which Molly never saw because she was too scared to climb down from her tree house until I got here. She didn’t see anyone leaving the crime scene either. No one did. That’s because you didn’t have to
leave. You were already home. Still, you two were very careful. Amber, you called nine-one-one just in case one of your neighbors had heard Richard scream—figuring it would never occur to anyone that you were involved if
you
were the one who reported it. Especially the way Keith kept insisting he hadn’t heard a thing.” Des shook her head them disgustedly. “Clay was telling me the truth yesterday. He had nothing to do with Richard’s death. Hell, Clay was no killer at all. A killer would have shot Molly dead the instant she started for that kitchen door. He just tried to scare her with a warning shot. The poor bastard didn’t realize how gutsy she is. Not that I’m saying I feel the least bit sorry for him or Hector. They get no love from me. Those two sold dope that messed up thousands of people, a lot of them kids. They trashed Carolyn’s life. Terrorized Molly. Tied me up and threw me in that root cellar. No, no, I will not be mourning them. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to pin Richard’s murder on them so his real killers can go free. No one deserves that. Do they, Keith?”

“Des, I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said in a steady, earnest voice. “It’s a total fabrication. Insane. And you can’t prove any of it.”

“Sure we can,” she promised him.
“If
we have to. But I don’t think it’ll come to that. I know both of you and you’re good, decent people who love each other very much. Most of the time, you can barely take your eyes off of each other. Yet right now you’re afraid to so much as make eye contact. Would you like me to tell you why? Because you did something horrible together and you both know it. The guilt is already eating away at you. I know it’s eating away at me.”

“At you?” Amber frowned at her, puzzled. “Why you?”

“Because I should have seen this coming and headed it off. It was staring me right in the face, damn it. Richard
told
me what the deal was. Put it right out there when I found him out on Big
Sister that day. He kept muttering it over and over again: ‘They both threw me out. They both threw me out.’ I thought he was referring to Clay and Carolyn. My bad. He meant Carolyn and
you
, Amber. Both of the
women
in his life. When he took that afterdinner stroll from Mrs. Beckwith’s he didn’t head for his old place to see Carolyn or Molly. He showed up here to beg you to leave Keith. He was still crazy about you, wasn’t he? Couldn’t get you out of his system. It’s like a very wise person said to me last night: You can’t turn it on and off like a faucet.”

Amber gazed at her searchingly for a long moment. “Keith and I … weren’t married yet.” Her voice was soft and trembly. “When Richard and I got involved, I mean.”

“Do
not
say another word,” Keith ordered her.

“Oh, screw that,” Amber shot back. “I’m tired of keeping quiet. Keeping quiet has done nothing but send us straight to hell.” She drew in a ragged breath and continued. “Keith and I got into this huge fight at Thanksgiving last year because I wanted to set our wedding date and he didn’t. He wanted to wait a while longer. You know how scared off men can get.”

“Sure,” Des said. “Not like us.”

“Things got so out of hand between the two of us that I threw him out. He moved back in with his brother Kevin. We were through, okay? It was
over
between us. Not for long. We patched things up over Christmas and Keith moved back in. We were married soon after that. But during those few weeks we were apart I was real lonely and hurting. Vulnerable, too, I guess. Richard knew right away that Keith wasn’t around anymore. And one night he stopped by. Confessed that he’d been madly in love with me ever since I was a sophomore, barely nineteen. I’d never known how he felt. I mean, sure, he helped me get into Yale and found me this cottage and all. But I thought he was just interested in me as a promising young scholar. I realize now how incredibly naïve and
stupid that sounds. An older man taking an interest in a female protégé—it
has
to be about sex, right?”

Des didn’t answer. It wasn’t really a question.

“But Richard was never like that. He’d never so much as hinted that he wanted me. Besides, he and Carolyn seemed so happy together. And he adored Molly. I-I was shocked when he told me. And flattered. And angry at Keith. And, let’s face it, just a total fool. Because I let it happen, okay? It was all over in a couple of weeks as far as I was concerned. Had to be over. I’m not the sort of person who can sneak around with a married man in a succession of cheap motels scattered halfway across the state. He had Carolyn and Molly to think about. I had Keith.” She gazed up at him, smiling sadly. “We were totally miserable those weeks we were apart. And so we got married and our lives returned to normal. I didn’t tell him about Richard. And Richard didn’t tell Carolyn about me. We agreed it would be better for everyone if we kept it a secret. We all need our secrets, right? No one tells their loved ones
everything.”
Amber halted, her eyes shining. “But Richard wouldn’t let go. He kept calling me on my cell phone. Saying he was going to leave Carolyn. That without me he had nothing to live for. I told him
no
a million times. He wouldn’t listen to me. Just kept calling and calling. Sounding increasingly, I don’t know,
unstrung
with every call. And then the crazy fool went and did it. He told Carolyn he was in love with someone else.”

“Did he tell her it was you?”

Amber shook her head. “Richard had an intensely old-fashioned sense of honor. Behaving like a ‘gentleman’ meant everything to him. Carolyn’s response was to throw him out, ‘gentleman’ or not. He moved into Bob Sorin’s guest house, and that’s when he really started to lose it. I could barely make sense out of what he was saying on the phone. And then one night he even showed up here. Knocked on that very door right there and begged me to take him
back. Thank God Keith had volunteer fire department business and wasn’t home. When I said no he fell to his knees and started to weep. Then he marched up the lane and stood out there in his own driveway begging Carolyn to take him back.”