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A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER, it was time to set up the community room for film club. I pulled out some chairs and wheeled in the television since the Whitby library was still too old-school to have flat screens on the wall. Then I dodged into the staff room to get the popcorn machine going for the popcorn and then pour it into bags. I also got myself a large cup of coffee.
When I made it back to the room, it looked like the whole gang was there, which made me smile. I could honestly hold film club every single week because it made me so happy. There were plenty of films out there and my group wasn’t picky. They were enthusiastic about watching A Trip to the Moon, a 1902 French silent movie. They were also enthusiastic watching 1961’s West Side Story. And they had no problem with scary films like Rosemary’s Baby. I could throw almost anything at them and they good-naturedly took it in stride.
When I walked in the room, I saw Timothy, my nerdy teenager patron, was already settling in. Since he was home-schooled, he could make film club. Honestly, if he hadn’t been able to make it, I’d probably have changed the program time because Timothy loved it so much. “Had to come early to pick my seat for this one!” he said with a grin. He was wearing sweatpants and a top that looked far too big for his lanky frame. Topping it all off was a Jurassic Park baseball cap. He looked relaxed and happy.
Today’s movie was actually an old Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell film, His Girl Friday. Timothy reminded me a lot of me when I was his age. I was the old soul of my high school. I thought maybe it was because I’d been raised by my great-aunt, but the truth was I liked old movies, old books, and old music. Timothy was the same way. I had no doubt he probably had a tough time trying to fit in with peers, but he’d found ‘his people’ at film club. This was one place where he felt he belonged. Besides me, he was probably the other member of the club who would be absolutely delighted to meet every single week.
George walked in and gave Timothy a high five. “Got a good one today. Of course, they’re all good ones.” He put his hands on his hips and looked at me. “Of course, you know I’m going to ask you how your social life is going. I don’t want all of your fun tied up in hanging out with film nerds.”
I laughed. Usually, I’d bristle if somebody brought up my dating life or lack of it. But with George and me it had been something we’d banter lightly about every month. George owned a typewriter repair shop and still somehow managed to make a living. He must have been getting business off the internet, otherwise I couldn’t see how he could survive. Still, he always seemed to be busy working on something, at least from what he told us. “My social life? It’s all a soap opera, as usual,” I said, without going into details. It was, right now of course, much more of a soap opera than it usually was.
Timothy piped up. “Ann doesn’t need to settle for somebody who isn’t good enough for her. She just has to find the right person.”
I grinned at Timothy. “Right as usual, Timothy.”
The room started filling up with my regulars and I chatted with everyone as they settled in. When everyone had taken a seat, I dimmed the lights and picked up the remote.
“I’m excited about today’s film,” I started and then stopped when the door to the community room opened again. I gave a big smile to Mrs. Macon, leaning on her walker and hovering uncertainly in the door. I’d hoped she’d come in, but I never really believed she’d make it here.
“Thanks for joining us! Everyone, this is Mrs. Macon.”
“Mona,” she corrected a little tersely. “You can all just call me Mona.”
“There’s an empty seat just over there.” Fortunately, there was an accessible seat available. and Luna’s mom hesitantly walked over as the film club members greeted her on the way over. I saw a face in the window of the community room and turned to see Luna, giving me a quick wave and holding up her crossed fingers. As soon as her mother turned around, Luna quickly disappeared.
“I think you’re all going to enjoy today’s film, His Girl Friday. At least, I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to see it again. I know some of you have already seen the movie.”
Timothy, my nerdy teen piped up, “Funniest film ever!”
I was glad to see Mona smiling at his enthusiasm. A second smile for the day! I’d have to let Luna know.
I laughed. “Way to set up big expectations, Timothy. There’s plenty of popcorn up here, so feel free to get yourself another bag during the movie if you want it. And without further ado, here’s the movie.”
I clicked ‘play’ on the remote and settled into a chair near the back of the room with a pad and paper so I could make some notes to help facilitate our discussion later. Not that our discussion ever really needed too much facilitation.
I’d expected the comedic film to go over well with this group and I wasn’t let down—they were laughing all the way through. I looked over at Mona, hoping she was being drawn in and was relieved to see a smile on her face. The last thing I wanted was for the film to be a big dud and scare her off for good.
When it wrapped up, everyone clapped.
“Bravo!” said Mona.
George said, “How did they talk so fast?”
The film was about a fast-talking editor and his equally fast-talking reporter ex-wife. I said, “I’m not sure. I’m guessing they had to do a lot of takes to get it all perfect.”
Timothy had apparently read up on the film. “The director didn’t mind if they ad-libbed, either, so that was really cool. Like when Cary Grant’s character mentions Ralph Bellamy, who was playing in the movie with him.”
They tossed around their thoughts on the film and compared it to some other Cary Grant movies we’d seen.
“That guy had a lot of range,” said George.
Mona said, “I still love his romantic lead roles the best.” She put her hand over her heart. “To Catch a Thief. He was just lovely in that film.”
George snorted. “What I remember best about that movie is the suspense. But, considering it’s a Hitchcock film, that should come as no surprise.”
I glanced at Mona, hoping she wasn’t offended. George could be blunt. In fact, the whole film club enjoyed engaging in lively debate. I saw her blink in surprise and then mull this over.
“I’d totally forgotten about the whole cat burglar thing,” she said thoughtfully. “I guess it’s the visual feast for the eyes that I remembered the most. But you’re right. He was a great dramatic actor. He was also wonderful in Hitchcock’s Suspicion.”
Timothy piped up, “Okay, yeah, he was good with dramatic roles. But remember all the comedic parts he did.”
Mona tilted her head to one side. “I’m trying. But unsuccessfully.”
Timothy counted off a few. “Topper, Bringing up Baby, Arsenic and Old Lace.”
“Like I said, the guy had a lot of range,” said George.
The discussion went on for a while longer, with Mona becoming more and more engaged. After we wrapped up, I was glad to see several members lingering behind and engaging in conversation with Mona. They encouraged her to the next meeting, and I was glad to see they weren’t their usual, cheerfully pushy selves. Mona was smiling shyly, a good sign.
A few minutes later, I was back at the circulation desk, since frequently some film club members liked to pick up a book or two before leaving. Mona slowly walked up to me, leaning heavily on her walker.
“Thanks for inviting me to go to film club,” she said with a smile. “At least, Luna told me it was your idea.”
“Did you enjoy it?” I asked. “I thought it was a fun film. Although not everyone is crazy about madcap comedy, of course.”
“It wasn’t really all that madcap,” said Mona. “It was really very clever. And somehow I don’t think I’d ever seen it.”
I was relieved. “Well, if you’d like to see what else we have up our sleeves, be sure to try to make it next time. We’ll have something completely different.” And it was. I was looking at doing The Andromeda Strain.
“I’ll try to be here.” Mona looked pleased.
I was walking to the breakroom for my lunch break when I hesitated. Maybe I should head over to Quittin’ Time instead and see what business Heather had had with Mary. I had a feeling I knew what Mary had been there about, but I wanted to make sure. Heather had already admitted to me that she’d been at Roger’s house last Friday. I had the feeling, though, that Mary had seen an opening for blackmailing Heather.
I sighed at the thought of eating out again instead of eating my homemade lunch, but told myself I’d simply eat my lunch for supper . . . and choose something especially inexpensive off the menu.
I realized suddenly as I walked in that I might be eating lunch out for nothing—Heather might not even be working today or her shift might start later in the day. I was relieved when I spotted her across the restaurant as I found myself a table
Heather seemed a little more guarded this afternoon than she had last time. She probably thought I couldn’t mind my own business. I gave her what I hoped was a casual, reassuring smile.
“I’m surprised to see you back already,” she said lightly. “You’re on your way to becoming a regular! What’ll it be today? Another hamburger?”
I laughed. “No, that’s way too much food for lunch. As a matter of fact, I think I’ll just order one of your appetizers.” I hastily glanced down at the laminated menu she’d handed me.
Heather pointed a pink nail at the menu. “If you’re like me, I’m usually looking for something cheap but filling. Our taco salad is a lot of food, but a great price.”
Relieved, I handed her the menu. “That’s perfect, thanks.” I saw the place was filling up and hesitated, not sure how to launch right into questioning her again.
“Is something wrong?” asked Heather, raising a questioning eyebrow.
“No . . . well . . . actually, yes. I was wondering if you could answer a question for me. It might sound strange, but it could be helpful in finding out the kind of person Mary Hughes was,” I said quickly.
Heather sighed and glanced behind her at a table that looked like it was ready to have its order taken. “Let me guess. Somebody in this nosy town saw me and Mary talking together. And you’re curious to know what it was about.”
I nodded, clearing my throat. “It’s just that the person who told me said it looked as if you might be engaging in an argument.”
Heather snorted. “That’s exactly what it was. Except the argument was all on my side.”
I said slowly, “The thing is, I believe Mary was at Roger’s house on Friday. I think she went there to confront him about her job. She’d told me a coworker had informed her of your brother’s death, but I found out later that her coworker didn’t even know who Roger was. Mary herself must have been there. And, considering the fact Mary was having financial trouble, I’m wondering if maybe she tried to blackmail you because she’d seen you at your brother’s house.”
Heather’s eyes narrowed and then she sighed. “You want to know the kind of person Mary was? I’ll tell you. She’d also seen that I’d stopped by my brother’s house last Friday. It was a totally innocent explanation—like I told you, I was just making sure he remembered our mother’s birthday. But Mary was convinced I’d had something to do with Roger’s death just because I didn’t want her to go to the police about it.”
I frowned. “You didn’t seem very concerned about me when you told me about your visit there.”
“That’s because you’re a totally reasonable person. Someone a person can trust. Okay, you might be super-nosy, but I guess that might be an occupational hazard for a librarian. Anyway, Mary was wanting money so she wouldn’t go to the cops about it. Money! I told her off and then basically laughed in her face before I went back inside, slamming the door behind me. there you go. That’s Mary in a nutshell.”
“Got it,” I said quickly. Someone who looked like he might be her manager was glancing over in our direction now and I didn’t want to get Heather into any trouble.
Heather leaned in closely and lowered her voice. “But I didn’t kill her. She wasn’t worth it.”
Since ordering a meal, having it prepared, and then waiting for the check took a little while, I ate really quickly and rushed back to the library as soon as I’d paid up, still thinking about what Heather had told me. Both Roger and Mary seemed to be pretty rough characters, although they didn’t deserve what had happened to them.
I was deep in my thoughts while I was walking across the parking lot to the library and didn’t hear a voice call my name the first time.
The second time, I turned around. It was Lisa, the mom who’d taken the tabby cat home with her. My heart sank when I noticed she was toting a carrier that appeared to have a cat in it.
“Thank heaven,” Lisa laughed. “I was starting to worry I’d gotten your name wrong and have been calling you by the wrong name for half-a-million storytimes.”
I gave her a weak smile and looked anxiously at the carrier. “Hi, Lisa. Good to see you. How are things going with our little tabby?”
Lisa looked at my face and then put a hand up to her mouth. “Oh goodness! You thought I didn’t want her! I’m so sorry . . . I didn’t think about how this looked. No, we love her! My daughter thinks the sun rises and sets on her and this little tabby is just so patient and sweet with her. We named her Harper . . . like Harper Lee. I thought she might want to see how Fitz is getting on, you know? Just let her sort of check in with him.”
I blew out a sigh of relief. “That’s great news. She looked like she was super laid-back, just like Fitz is. Let’s let them spend some time in the breakroom together, since we never acclimated Harper to the rest of the library.”
I brought Lisa in there with me and she set down the crate while I went out into the library to find Fitz. He was curled up with an older lady in the quiet area and I apologetically picked him up. When I got back in the lounge, Lisa opened the door on the carrier. Harper came tentatively out . . . until she saw Fitz. Then she trotted over and started licking Fitz on his head and nuzzling him. He closed his eyes happily.
“Aww!” said Lisa, putting her hand to her chest. “That just warms my heart! Look at those two!”
We chatted about how Harper was doing in her new home while the two cats bumped their heads into each other affectionately. Then, after about ten minutes, Harper gave a trilling meow to Lisa and walked casually into her carrier. Fitz curled up nonchalantly in a sunbeam and promptly fell asleep.
We laughed. I said, “It looks like Harper had a good visit and now she’s ready to head back home.”
Lisa said, “We might just spoil her a little bit.”
I said, “She deserves it! Thanks again for checking back in with us. It was a nice little playdate for both of them.”
––––––––
LUNA WAS WALKING BY on her way to break. “So, how’d things go at film club? I’ve been dying to ask.”
“Didn’t you ask your mom?”
Luna made a face. “Yeah, but in the mood my mom has been in, she’d probably tell me it was awful just to be contrary.”
I said, “She seemed to really love it. She even engaged in a discussion about Cary Grant’s different types of roles. And she said she’d try to come back next time.”
Luna said, “Yes!” and gave a fist pump. “You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that. I’ve been at my wit’s end. Seriously. Well, but you know that because you saw how low I was yesterday. Anyway, thanks.”
“All I did was play the movie,” I said, raising my hands.
“Oh, I think you did a whole lot more than that, Ann. You selected it, you’ve encouraged a good group to attend. And you made sure to facilitate a great discussion, I’ve no doubt. Believe me, I’m very grateful.”
I gave her what was apparently an absent grin. Luna squinted and said, “Okay, something’s on your mind. What’s up? Did you find out something?”
I wanted to talk to her, at least to tell somebody all the things I’d found out today. That Elsie’s death hadn’t been a terrible accident. That Mary had indeed been a blackmailer and had even tried to blackmail Heather. That the person responsible for leaving threatening letters for me might be the person in the town people respected the most. But now the library seemed especially quiet and I knew my voice would carry with the acoustics of the old building. Plus, Luna was about to have her school-age kid storytime since it was the middle of the afternoon. I decided I’d just fill her in on part of it. I leaned in and whispered, “I think I know who my anonymous letter writer is.”