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I TURNED AND SAW LOUISE there with a pile of books. She smiled at me but seemed distracted. We chatted a little about the weather while I got her checked out. Then she said quickly, “I’m going to run to the restroom real quick. Can I leave these books here at the desk for a minute?”
“Of course,” I said.
“Thanks. I think Sadie and Lynn are still deciding what books they want.” And she hurried off. Half a minute later, Sadie and Lynn were at the circulation desk.
I smiled at Sadie. “Ready to check out?”
She grinned back but, as usual, I saw that tiredness in her eyes. “I am. But I’ve just got a bunch of things for Lynn again. I promise the next time I come in I’ll look for something for myself to read, too.”
I said, “Maybe you should try a collection of short stories. That way you can unwind at night before you turn in, but you don’t have to try to keep up with a bunch of characters or story lines.”
Sadie nodded thoughtfully. “Maybe something funny? I feel like life hasn’t given me much to smile about lately.”
“Have you read anything by David Sedaris?” I asked.
Sadie shook her head.
I said, “Give me just a second and I’ll pull out a book of his for you.”
“And I’ll get started on self-checkout while you’re doing that,” said Sadie, pulling out her library card and moving toward the scanner.
I walked over to the stacks and hesitated for a couple of moments to decide which book Sadie might like best. Then I picked out Calypso and walked back to the desk.
“Let me know if you like it,” I said as she thanked me and carefully put the book under the scanner.
I wanted to ask her some more about Roger, but Sadie seemed distracted. This might have been because Lynn was apparently hungry and had started crying. The crying was increasing in volume as Sadie continued fumbling with the books. I quickly offered to check them out myself and she gave me a quick smile in response. Sadie reached down and picked Lynn up and started bouncing her around. As I finished up, I glanced around for Fitz. He’d have been the perfect thing to cheer Lynn up. But I saw that Fitz, although looking in our direction, was sitting in Linus Truman’s lap. There was no way I was going to disturb that. I thought again how tough it would be to be a single mom as Lynn continued crying.
Louise hurried up. “I’m so sorry! I was in the ladies’ room. You shouldn’t have tried managing checkout all by yourself.” She reached out for Lynn and swung her off Sadie’s hip and into her arms with surprising strength. She gave the toddler a doting look. “What does Gramma’s little girl want today? A candy bar?” She dug in her purse and produced a Kit-Kat bar. Lynn smiled through her tears at Louise.
“Mom, you’re spoiling her,” said Sadie half-heartedly. She looked relieved that the crying had stopped, though.
Soon her little face lit up with a smile through her tears. I found a plastic bag Sadie could hold her books in.
Louise walked over to a bench against the wall and she and Lynn sat down on it, Louise helping Lynn unwrap her candy.
Sadie seemed to be lingering for a moment so Lynn could enjoy the candy. I said, “Did Roger ever talk about Kenneth Driscoll?”
Sadie’s eyebrows rose. “What . . . the doctor? I don’t think so. I mean, Roger never went to the doctor. He was one of those annoying guys who was never sick. And I don’t think the two of them would have been friends.”
I said slowly, “Could you see a situation where maybe Roger would know something about someone else and maybe use that information against them?”
Lynn reached into the plastic bag and grabbed one of the board books. She started looking at the pictures as Sadie jiggled her around. “You mean like blackmail? Roger?”
I said quickly, “I didn’t know Roger. It just seemed like he might somehow had been putting some pressure of some kind on Driscoll. I wondered if that sounded like something he might do.”
Sadie looked thoughtful. “I don’t know. I wouldn’t have immediately said so, but I also wouldn’t have said Roger was the kind of guy who would totally ditch all of his responsibilities. I mean, he never did anything for his mom and then the fact he wouldn’t take any responsibility for Lynn, either? I never would have guessed that when I started dating him.” She frowned. “I did see the doctor acting kind of weird lately. I just didn’t think anything much about it at the time because I was trying to juggle Lynn and some of the books we were returning.”
“What did you see?” I asked.
“He was just acting real furtive, which I thought was weird since he was here at the library,” said Sadie.
“Furtive, as in he didn’t want anyone to see him?” I asked.
“That’s right. And he had something in his hand. It was just sort of odd. I mean, almost everyone goes into the library with something in their hand, right? Maybe they’re returning books, or they have their laptop with them, or their stuff they need to study for school or for work. I mean, I wouldn’t have thought anything of it if he’d just walked right through the library door, holding something. But the way he was acting looked suspicious.” Sadie shrugged.
“When was this?” I asked.
“Yesterday? Or a couple of days ago. Real recent. And the other weird thing was that after he went in the building, he came right out again almost immediately. He was still looking around to see if anyone was looking at him,” said Sadie.
“Did he see you?” Lynn wasn’t exactly quiet, after all. It seemed odd that Kenneth wouldn’t have seen them.
“No. I’d realized Lynn needed changing, so I’d changed her in the car really fast. She was still looking at a book and I wasn’t talking so I don’t think he noticed us.” She became distracted again as Lynn resumed wailing now the candy was finished. “Sorry, I need to get her out of here. See you later.”
I nodded, feeling distracted myself. It certainly sounded like Kenneth was my anonymous letter writer. I felt somehow chilled by this revelation. Here was someone in a position of trust for our town and he was sneaking around the library to give a local librarian threatening notes? It may be time for everyone to find a new doctor.
I glanced up automatically to greet a patron when I heard the automatic doors swish open after Sadie left. But then I froze. It was Grayson, my neighbor. He grinned at me and headed over to the desk.
“Hi there,” I said, somewhat inanely. I pulled myself together. “Good to see you today. Can I help you find anything?”
“Oh, I thought I’d just run in here to escape Zelda from pitching the homeowner board to me again,” said Grayson lightly.
My eyes opened wide. “Wait, is she outside?”
“No, sorry, just kidding. But if she had been outside, that’s just what I’d have done. No, I thought I’d just check out the library since I hadn’t made it over. And I could use something new to read, too,” he said.
Here I was in more of my natural element. “What kinds of things do you like to read?” I asked. I waited, expecting nonfiction of some sort—maybe an inspirational book by a business leader or a biography of a successful investor.
He said, “Well, I like to read everything and cover all the bases. I realize that would make me better-rounded. But the fact is I tend to like to read science fiction. Have any recommendations?”
“Sure,” I said, quickly coming around the side of the desk. I paused. “I’m guessing you’ve read a lot of the modern classics. “Dune? Collections by Ray Bradbury? Novels by Ursula Le Guin?”
“I won’t say I’ve read them all, but I’ve read a fair amount of their work. And I’ve read the Dune series,” he said as he followed me to the stacks.
“How about The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick?” I asked.
He frowned, thinking. “I haven’t read it, but I swear I’ve come across it recently somehow.”
“Philip K Dick also wrote Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. And The Man in the High Castle has been made into a television series, so you might have come across it there.”
Grayson snapped his fingers. “That’s it. But I haven’t watched it. Thanks, I’ll give it a go.”
I pulled the book out of the shelves and handed it to him, feeling relieved I’d finally had an interaction with Grayson that didn’t involve me fumbling for words. “Sounds like you also need to be set up with a library card,” I said.
“As a matter of fact, I do.” He grinned again at me and followed me back over to circulation, chatting lightly about our neighborhood and Whitby in general and his thoughts on the town.
I registered him for a library card and then he checked out the book, printing out a small slip of paper as a reminder/bookmark.
“You’re all set,” I said, smiling at him.
He smiled back at me. “Thanks. And thanks for the help.”
A moment of warmth and connection passed between us. At least, I thought it had. But then I heard a voice approaching.
“Grayson?” the voice said.
He turned, and my friend Trista immediately slid into his arms as if she belonged there. He hugged her, and she planted a light kiss on his jaw since she was about a foot shorter than he was.
“I thought I saw your car out there.” She grinned at me. “Hi, Ann. This is the guy I mentioned to you.”
I smiled back at her, even though my heart was somewhere in the vicinity of my stomach. “Grayson and I have actually met. He lives in my neighborhood.”
“How perfect is that?” asked Trista. “Now we really will all have to grab drinks together soon.” She turned back to Grayson. “Don’t tell me you’re a big reader, too? Somehow I wouldn’t have pegged you for it.”
Grayson gave her an indulgent smile. “Clearly, you don’t know everything about me. I’m a huge reader. I just need to have something to read, and now I do.” He turned to me apologetically. “Sorry, I should know, but the last time we spoke, I realized you hadn’t given me your name.”
I colored a little. It sounded like exactly the sort of thing I’d have done in something of a stressful situation. Apparently, there’d been a one-way introduction. “I’m sorry. It’s Ann. Ann Beckett.”
“Can we go grab some food?” Trista asked, turning her focus back on Grayson. “I’m starving. I’ve missed at least one meal today.”
“Sure thing,” he said with a grin. He looked back over at me, eyes twinkling. “Thanks for your help, Ann. See you soon?”
“See you, Ann!” said Trista.
And they were gone.
I should have known nothing escaped Luna. A couple of minutes later, she was standing next to me. “Dishy guy. Too bad about that vile woman who came in.”
I made a face at her and continued entering periodicals into the system. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, come on, Ann. It was written all over your face,” said Luna with a snort.
I quickly put a hand up to my face and said in alarm, “Was it?”
“Don’t worry. I think it was only obvious to me. I’m, after all, an expert. I’m a librarian—I’m a pro at reading stories,” said Luna dryly. “What’s the story there? An ex?”
I sighed. “Nope. We finally finished going through a rather drawn-out introduction phase today. He’s a new neighbor who I tend to embarrass myself around, that’s all. And the woman isn’t actually vile at all. We’ve known each other since college. I have to hand it to Trista—she’s a fast mover. He hasn’t lived in Whitby very long.”
Luna said, “That’s the thing about a town like this. You have to move really fast before someone gets there before you do. Although, I have to say that, nothing against your friend, but she looks like the kind of person it’s really easy to get sick of. I give that relationship six months. But let’s think about what you can do in the meantime. There are plenty of fish in the sea.”
“Are there?” I asked lightly. “I hate to tell you this because I realize you’re single, too, but I think Whitby has been fished-out. We may have to go farther afield.”
“Nonsense,” said Luna robustly. “I categorically reject that. After all, you had a date with Roger. He was un-fished.”
I said, “Yes, and apparently there were lots of really good reasons for that. I appreciate the sentiment, Luna, but the fact of the matter is I have really horrible luck with blind dates. With, actually, any kind of setup. Roger was only the latest in a long string of examples.”
“So, you’re happily single for now, then?” asked Luna with a sigh. “You’re no fun at all. You should know everyone thinks it’s fun to set people up on dates.”
“It’s just, unfortunately, not fun for the people being set up,” I said with a chuckle. “Yes, happily single.”
Luna hurried back to the children’s area to help a patron find where the kids’ periodicals were and I glanced at the old newspaper again. Elsie’s car accident was horrible, but a better thing to focus on than the fact that the town doctor was giving me threatening letters. Besides, something just didn’t seem right about Elsie’s accident.
Linus Truman gave a small cough and an apologetic smile, which jerked me out of my reverie. “I’m sorry,” I said, shaking my head at myself, “I didn’t notice you come up.” I colored. Wasn’t it perfectly obvious I hadn’t noticed him walk up to the desk?
He gave me a tentative smile. “I’m sorry to bother you. It looked like you were really deep in your thoughts. I usually check my books out myself, but I have a small fine and I thought I’d pay it in change instead of swiping my card to pay for it.”
“Of course!” I said with alacrity, smiling back at him. I took care of checking out his books and handling his fine. He hesitated, and I said quickly, “Is there anything else I can help you with?” Sometimes patrons were nervous about asking for help. It was a funny thing because that’s exactly what I was there to do—provide any kind of help I could.
He said slowly, “I saw from your paper here that you were reading up on Elsie Brennon’s accident. At least, that’s what it looked like.” He quickly added, “Sorry. I normally don’t like to invade anyone’s privacy by being nosy.”
I smiled. “If I’d cared about privacy, then I shouldn’t have put the newspaper up here on the circulation desk.”
He nodded and said, “I just wondered about it. I’ve seen you speaking with the police chief. Have they made any headway on her case?”
“Not that I heard,” I said. “I’m sorry. Was Elsie a friend of yours? I remember you’d told me she’d owned Fitz and the tabby before she died.” I flushed again. “Sorry. I mean, I believe you may have left me a note to that effect.”
“I did leave the note. And I’m afraid she really wasn’t a friend. But she was a neighbor. I wasn’t probably the friendliest neighbor, unfortunately. I didn’t go out of my way to speak with her.”
This didn’t surprise me a bit, considering how quiet he’d been in the library. I could tell it troubled him, so I said, “I’m sure she didn’t mind. It takes all sorts in a neighborhood. Some people want to chat and others would rather keep to themselves.”
“But Elsie, although I didn’t really know her well, was a kind woman. And the accident she had didn’t ring true to me at all.”
“In what way?” I asked.
Linus said, “Let’s just say I was quite familiar, as a neighbor, with her driving. I have another neighbor, on the other side, who has a teenage son. He flies down the road, making people and wildlife dodge out of the way. There’s a patron who’s frequently here who drives like that, too—terrifying. She scares me to death when she’s in the parking lot because she flies through it like it was a freeway. Elsie was the sedate driver. She’s the one who is barely moving.”
“She was always really slow?” I asked.
Linus nodded. “I think even if she’d hit a tree, at her usual speed, she’d have been just fine. I mean, twenty miles an hour would have felt like speeding to her. She drove as if she were in a crowded parking lot, all the time. Maybe ten miles an hour.”
I nodded. “The fact the accident happened at a higher speed gives you concern?”
“I’m thinking she must have felt scared or chased. I really can’t wrap my head around the fact she would have had that sort of accident,” said Linus.
I said, “The chief did say there were signs there was another car there. Tire tracks, for one.”
“That makes sense,” said Linus quietly. “I’m glad they’re checking into it further. I was worried no one was really paying attention. Like I said, she was a nice woman. I didn’t think what happened to her was fair.”
“The woman . . . the patron you said was driving so crazily in the parking lot. Do you know who she is?” I asked.
He shook his head. “I sure don’t. But I’ve seen you speaking with her before. She has a toddler girl. The mom has curly hair? Tall?”
“Sadie Stewart,” I said slowly.
“Not sure. But if you could maybe ask her to slow down in the parking lot, it would make things a lot safer.”
He gave me a quick, small smile and then hurried away back to his books.