Given the meticulous, tidy exterior of the house, the inside made no sense. Theo, or his wife was—or they both were—hoarders. Hoarders of crystal figurines, hoarders of stacks upon stacks of newspapers, hoarders of an entire shelf full of empty cardboard paper towel holders. They were equal opportunity hoarders.
Theo followed Addison’s eyes around the room and said, “The, uh, outside of our house is my domain. The inside is my wife’s. For years, I’ve tried to help her get organized. I even hauled off a truck full of this stuff once. She has a hard time getting rid of things, so it didn’t go over well. I blew up, and she almost left me over it. Now, I guess you could say I learn to deal with it the best way I can. That’s love, I suppose.”
He glanced down at his hands and avoided eye contact, like he was ashamed for her to see the conditions in which he lived.
“My father is like this to a degree,” Addison said. “When my mother died, he refused to get rid of any of her things. All of it is still everywhere, displayed throughout his house like she could walk right back in the door and pick up where she left off, even though he lives somewhere else now—next to me, actually.”
“You know why he does it, don’t you?”
“I didn’t for a long time. I do now. What she left behind ... they’re more than just things to him. They’re memories, sentiments he’s placed a value on, which makes them too precious to part from.”
He stretched his arms out to the side. “As you can see, I understand.”
I noticed an enticing aroma coming from the kitchen. “When you said you were cooking a pot roast, I have to admit, I thought it was a way to get rid of me.”
He raised a brow. “I’m not a liar.”
“I’m sorry for making false assumptions. I shouldn’t have.”
“It’s all right.”
For the first time since she’d arrived, Theo smiled.
“You seem nice. Come on, follow me to the kitchen,” he said. “Why don’t you tell me how you know about the conversation I had all those years ago with Scarlett?”
“It’s hard to explain to someone who doesn’t believe in things he can’t explain.”
“I’m sure it is. You’re here. I haven’t kicked you out yet. May as well give it a try.”
Theo slid an oven mitt over his hand, opened the oven, and stabbed the roast with a prong.
“Yep, about fifteen minutes more, I’d say.” He freed his hand and looked at Addison. “Go on. Sit down, start talking. Seems like you’re good at it.”
She lifted herself onto a barstool. “I see things sometimes.”
“In your dreams?”
Close enough.
She nodded. “Call them visions. I have no control over what I see or when I see it.”
“Are you saying you saw me in the car the day of the car crash? Impossible. Why would you even dream about an event so far in the past that has nothing to do with you?”
He may not have been a believer, but it didn’t stop him from fishing for more information.
“The song “You’re So Vain” was playing on the radio. You were wearing tan suede boots. You had one of them on the dash. I can keep going.”
Theo was stunned. He slumped against the counter to keep from face-planting on the floor. Addison hopped off the barstool and rushed to his side.
“Are you okay? I didn’t mean to—”
He caught his breath and said, “I’m fine. I’m just ... well, in shock. Give me a minute to process.”
He shuffled to the pantry, flipped on the light, and leaned over a shelf, pushing items to the side until he found what he was after—an unopened bottle of whisky.
He pulled it out and said, “I always said I was saving this for a special occasion. I suppose a shocking one will have to do. Care for a drink?”
“I’m fine. You go ahead.”
“Oh, I will.”
He twisted the top off and tipped the bottle back, taking a few hearty swigs. He set it on the counter without putting the lid back on and winked at Addison.
“Gonna keep this within reach,” he said. “I may need another hit. I’m not sure my heart can take any more surprises. For now, let’s say I believe you. What is it you want from me?”
“I know it’s been a long time, but is there anything you can remember about the vehicle that hit you?”
“After the accident, I was angry. I ran it through my head so many times. I thought if I kept going back over it, I’d catch a glimpse of something I could pass on to police. I thought maybe I had seen something and blocked it from my mind because of how traumatic it was.”
“And did you think of anything?”
He shook his head. “Sorry to disappoint. Scarlett was the love of my life, you know. I mean, the first love of my life.”
“How long had she worked for the Belles?”
He looked to the side. “A few months. I can’t remember the exact number. Most of the time, she went there on the weekend.”
“And she was the nanny they hired after Libby Carrington, right?”
“When Libby went missing, the Belles laid low for a while. There was a lot of speculation about what happened, and from what Scarlett told me, some of the starlets who were regular guests weren’t comfortable going there anymore. They didn’t know what happened to the girl or why. It was a bit too scandalous, even for them, and they wanted to distance themselves from it. After some time went by and everything died down, the parties picked up again, and that’s when Scarlett got the job.”
“Scarlett wasn’t worried about Libby not being found?”
“Worried? She took the job because of Libby.”
“I don’t follow.”
“Scarlett wanted to ...”
The front door opened, and his words trailed off.
“Dearest,” a woman’s voice called, “I’m home.”
“In the kitchen,” Theo said.
A slender woman dressed in fitness attire with long, gray hair twisted into a bun entered the room carrying a yoga mat under her arm. She brushed her lips across Theo’s cheek and spun around, facing Addison.
“You didn’t tell me we were having company tonight.”
“He didn’t know I was dropping by,” Addison said. “I’m just headed out.”
She stuck a hand out and said, “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Harriet.”
“Addison.”
“Well, Addison, you’ll have to forgive me for not cleaning up. The house usually doesn’t look like this.”
Theo and Addison exchanged glances.
“It’s fine,” Addison said. “Like I said, Theo didn’t know I was coming.”
“Why did you drop by, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“To ask him a few questions about the car accident he had in college.”
She nodded. “I’ll wager a guess and say you didn’t get far. He doesn’t like to talk about it. Not even to me.”
Theo stuck the oven mitt back on and pulled the roast out of the oven. “Dinner’s ready. We’ll have to pick our conversation up some other time, Addison. I’ll walk you out.”
They reached the front door, and Addison glanced back at Theo. “I’d like to ask one more question before I go.”
“All right. I have time for one more question.”
“You said Scarlett took the nanny position because of Libby. Why? Did they know each other?”
He nodded. “They were both on the college volleyball team and became close friends. Like everyone, when Libby disappeared, Scarlett was sure someone killed her. She decided to take the nanny position to see what she could find out. I didn’t want her to do it, but Scarlett was headstrong. She wasn’t the kind of girl who could be told what to do or what not to do.”
“And did she learn anything while she worked there?”
“I’m not sure. She wasn’t allowed upstairs, and she said every time she tried to look around, she was caught and had to find an excuse to explain herself.”
“Who caught her?”
“The same person every time. Sara’s father, Lawrence Belle.”