Thirty-Three

At six in the morning, Brenda was the only WAG Lady up. She wore a sleeveless green A-line dress, which I suspected was vintage. She sat at a dining table with Mr. Huckle.

“May I join you?” I asked.

“I’m glad you’re here, Holly. I was just about to confess.”

I wondered if I should call Dave.

Shelley arrived with coffee, tea, a basket of breakfast breads, and a small platter of bacon.

We ordered eggs Benedict for the humans, roast chicken and fried eggs for the dogs, and roast chicken for Twinkletoes.

“Brenda has been telling me about the excitement last night,” said Mr. Huckle. “Joanne must be in a state of shock.”

“It’s going to be an interesting meeting with the judge this morning. That’s for sure,” said Brenda.

“How has Wallace taken the news that you now know he wasn’t the driver the night Bobbie was killed?” asked Mr. Huckle.

“He said, and I quote, ‘Too little, too late.’ And then he hung up on me.” Brenda sipped her coffee. “I never dreamed that my brother’s reckless ways would land me in trouble. When I was growing up, I knew that some people didn’t want me around because of my brother. They thought I was like him, I guess. I always acted like I didn’t care. You get a thick skin after a while and learn to pretend. I resented Wallace for that. I used to hear my mother and grandmother talking about the way people looked at them. The whispers they heard on the street and in the beauty salon. It was like a curse on our family that we couldn’t escape. Even worse, it was as though we were guilty. We weren’t the bereaved family. We were the guilty family. And that guilt oozes right over onto you like a slime you can’t wash off.”

It wasn’t until our eggs arrived that Brenda finally said, “I did see Seth in Rose’s yard. I went back because I didn’t see Fagan anywhere on the street. The pretty overhead lights were still on, and I saw Seth clear as day.” She closed her eyes as though she was seeing him once more.

She opened them again. “Louisa had told me the truth. I knew that Seth had lied. I was furious. You can’t begin to imagine the anger in me. Not just for Wallace, but for my entire family. It welled up in me. He looked sick, was lurching a little bit. Seth said, ‘I need help. Can you call an ambulance?’”

She paused, and her hand clenched into a fist. “But I didn’t call anyone. I slapped him. I’ve never done that before to anyone. I slapped him so hard my hand stung from the impact. I can still hear the sound of my hand hitting his face. He didn’t quite fall down. He leaned against the table and flailed his arms in an effort to stand. I think that was when he knocked the berry meringue pie off the table. He grasped the light cord. When he pulled on it, the lights went out, but I could see him, a shadowy figure staggering backward. I left. And in every waking hour since then, I have pondered whether he would have survived if I had called an ambulance like he asked. And the stupid thing is that not only do I get to live with that thought hammering at me, I may end up in jail. It all began with three boys driving drunk, and all these years later, I’m the one who will go to jail.”

My eyes met Mr. Huckle’s. I didn’t know what to say to her. Was she lying? Or had she deftly slid the syringe needle into his back and watched him die?

“Have you told this to Dave?” I asked.

“No. I told Dave I didn’t see him. No one else was there. If someone had just poisoned him, I would have seen his killer. Wouldn’t I?”

“Brenda,” I whispered, “I believe you. Did you see anything at all? Any tiny little thing? The easiest way to defend you is to find Seth’s real killer.”

“All I know is that it wasn’t me.” She sliced into her egg and ate.

“I saw you returning to the street to watch the fire,” I blurted.

Brenda nodded. “That was when I went back to wash the meringue off Fagan’s whiskers. He must have gotten into the pie, and then, when I picked him up, it rubbed off on me. Meringue is some sticky stuff! I didn’t go in the backyard again to check on Seth. I killed him by not calling for help. I knew he was back there, and something was very wrong with him.”

If what she said was true, then someone else had been prepared to kill Seth and had injected the poison. I watched as the WAG Ladies arrived for breakfast and wondered which one of them had done it.

When I saw Louisa take Loki out, I excused myself and called Trixie as an excuse to follow Louisa to the doggie facilities.

“Good morning, Louisa. Are you feeling better?” I asked.

“Almost back to normal. I have to admit that it was scary for a while. The worst part now is that I’m afraid of everything I put in my mouth. I hate that someone did this to me and that I don’t know why.” She frowned and rubbed her face. “I can’t believe that one of my friends would hurt me. Okay, so I did tell Addi that Oriana was seeing Seth. That’s hardly reason to knock me off.”

“You suspect Oriana of switching the pills?”

“They’re my friends. They’re the people I go to with my troubles. You should have seen how wonderful they were to me when Tom was sick. They thought of everything. When I needed someone, one of them was there, even if it was to sit quietly and just listen. I can’t fathom that one of them would kill me.”

Louisa ducked her head and shielded her face with her hand. “Oh no.”

“Who are you hiding from?” I whispered.

The man I had seen exiting her hospital room strode in our direction from the green. He wore a Walley World T-shirt, exactly like the one the dogs had fought over.

“Is it Wallace? Brenda’s brother?”

“No. I don’t think so. I’ve never met Wallace. I wouldn’t know him if I saw him. He’s a friend of Tom’s. Unlike Seth, he was so kind and helpful. He was always there for Tom, right to the end. But after Tom died, he—” she waved her hand “—indicated that he would like to date me. I’m not ready for anything like that! He’s so persistent. And it’s hard to be angry with him because he’s been so kind. But he doesn’t get it. I made the mistake of telling him I was coming to Wagtail, and he came here looking for me.”

She stopped whispering as he neared, smiled politely at him, and introduced us.

“You look beautiful, Louisa,” he said.

She flushed, and I could tell she was struggling to be nice. “I feel better, thanks.”

“I rented a pontoon boat. It’s such a beautiful day. I thought we could take a picnic lunch and enjoy the lake.”

“I’m really sorry, but I’m busy today.”

“The gala is over. You would have been home already if you hadn’t gotten sick.” He seemed almost angry.

“We have a meeting at the judge’s house due to unexpected developments,” I said.

Louisa shot me a grateful look. “It’s true. We were all interrogated by the police last night.”

“Interrogated? Why?”

“Because of Seth’s murder.”

“You’re a suspect?” He took a step back in horror.

“Yes.” Louisa said it with her head held high, which surprised me.

It amused me and worried me at the same time. She obviously had more moxie than I’d thought.

Her friend backed up. His expression revealed his fear of her. “I’ll see you around, Louisa.” He turned his back and power walked, then broke into a full-fledged run.

Louisa tried not to laugh. “Thank heaven there weren’t any rooms at the inn for him,” she whispered. “He’s staying at a bed-and-breakfast. I told him I was busy, but he showed up at the gala in jeans, acting like he was my date. I was mortified. I don’t want to date anyone. Especially not him! And he was bidding on romantic getaways for two. Ick! That’s all I need. I just want him to leave me alone.”

“I think you may have accomplished that.” The two of us giggled all the way back to the dining area.

Louisa joined her friends for breakfast, and I went off to call Dave privately from the inn office.

When he answered, I told him about Brenda slapping Seth. To be honest, I felt like I was ratting on her, but Dave had to know. “She feels like she killed him because she didn’t get him help when he begged her.”

There was a long silence on Dave’s end. “It’s really hard to get fingerprints off skin. They’ve tried a number of ways but without much success. The medical examiner reported the slap mark on his face, but we didn’t think we’d be able to nail the person. What Brenda said sounds about right. If he was begging for help, that means she came upon him after someone injected the poison. She slapped him, and then he must have crawled toward Fritz and collapsed.”

“Does that mean we can eliminate Brenda as a suspect?” I asked.

“Good grief, no. But I do think she may have been telling you the truth. We know now that the judge didn’t make up the story about someone listening in on him. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t murder Seth. I’ve been trying to track down information about his whereabouts that night.”

“And?”

“No luck at all. Mae spies on his house, but she’s angry with me for removing the cats that belonged to other people, so she refuses to cooperate. Either he’s brilliant at sneaking around, or he was home like he claims.”

“Something has been bothering me all along, Dave. When I’ve gone to the Barlow house, Fritz seems entirely content to stay at home. He never darts out the door like some dogs. I wonder if the judge dropped him off somewhere as an excuse to call Seth and get him to come to Wagtail.”

“They say Dovie wasn’t paying attention and let him out by mistake.”

“That just doesn’t fly with me.” I inhaled sharply. “The judge knows exactly what kinds of mistakes murderers make. What if he told Dovie to call Seth? That way he wouldn’t be implicated.”

“I’ll see if I can get phone records.”

“Do you want to be there when we break the news about Joanne being his granddaughter?”

“Yes, most definitely. How’s three o’clock this afternoon?”

“Works for me.” When I hung up, I coordinated with Rose because I knew she would want to be present, then headed for the dining area to inform the WAG Ladies.

The next few hours dragged by. I forced myself to pay attention to inn business, but I was relieved when two thirty rolled around. Twinkletoes snoozed in the office and didn’t even lift her head when I left to meet the WAG Ladies in the lobby. “Where’s Addi?” I asked. “Running late again?”

“She went to see a house that’s being renovated,” said Oriana.

“With your boyfriend,” added Brenda in a snide tone.

I wasn’t worried. I knew Holmes was pumping Addi for information on her friends. “I trust she’ll meet us there.”

We set off for Judge Barlow’s house with a full entourage of dogs. Louisa kept Loki on a leash, but the others behaved well enough to run freely on the green.

“I think I’m as nervous as you are,” I said to Joanne.

“That’s not possible. I’ve heard people talk about butterflies in their stomachs, but until today I’ve never experienced them.”

Rose opened the door on our arrival. The first thing I noticed were framed photos of a young woman on the table in the foyer.

“What’s this?” I whispered to Rose.

She shrugged. “They’re all of Bobbie. Grant says Dovie put them up.”

“Does she know about Joanne?”

“I don’t know how she could. I haven’t uttered a word. However, I suspect they’re there to throw a burr in my relationship with Grant. She’s trying to dredge up old hostilities.” She pointed at one of the photos. “Can you see the resemblance?”

I definitely could. Joanne didn’t look a lot like her mother, but I could see a connection. “Is Dovie here?”

“Grant said she made his breakfast, left his lunch in the fridge, and promised to be back in time to make his dinner.”

“Maybe that’s just as well.”

We filed into the grand living room. Rose had set it up for tea. I helped her bring tea and goodies to everyone, including cookies for the dogs. True to form, Fritz lay quietly by Judge Barlow’s feet.

Dr. Engelknecht said to Judge Barlow in a gentle tone, “We’re here today because we have some wonderful news. I don’t want you to get worked up about it. If at any time you feel light-headed or woozy, I want you to tell me. Okay?”

“Young buck, I’ve seen things your little mind couldn’t even imagine. Bring it on!”

We all looked at Joanne, who said, “Judge Barlow, I grew up without much family. Recently, I was going through some papers and discovered the name Mary Roberta Barlow in them. I think she might be my mother.”

Judge Barlow promptly spilled his tea.

Rose assisted him and patted him dry until he said, “Enough already, Rose.” He peered at Joanne. “How old are you?”

Joanne wasn’t offended by his skepticism. “I’m thirty. I lost my mother when I was four. I recognize this house.” She waved her hand gently. “It’s foggy, but I think the Christmas tree went in front of that bay window.”

“I never thought I’d live to see this. What’s your name?” asked the judge.

“Joanne Williams, but I’m not sure that’s my birth name. My dad moved us around a lot, and I think he may have changed our names.”

“That certainly fits. Bobbie married poorly. I’m sorry if I’m offending you, but we never did approve of that man.” He rose from his seat and located a photograph on a bookshelf. “What did your dad look like?”

“Round face, a little pudgy. Medium brown hair that was straight and receded as he aged. Blue eyes. He was nice looking.”

The judge scowled, “That could describe half the men in Wagtail. “Where is he now? Is he going to walk into this room?”

“I’m afraid not. He’s in an Alzheimer’s facility.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” muttered the judge.

“Sir,” said Dave, “I’m afraid Joanne is the perpetrator of the pranks.”

He sat down and glared at her. “What would possess you to do that?”

“Anger. I had a terrible life with my father. But I knew there was someone else. Someone whom I hoped would come to find me and take me away from my misery. When I researched Bobbie’s background, I suspected she was my mom. And when I came to Wagtail, I knew my memories of Grandmum and Pops and the church bells were real. I was furious. You had money, prestige, respect. Everything you ever wanted or needed. You sat in your house like a fat cat in the sunshine while your own granddaughter suffered. I wanted you to know how it felt to be scared and alone.”

“Mmpff. Well, you were right about one thing. I find oatmeal very frightening.”

The mood lifted when he said that. I didn’t know about anyone else, but I realized I had been holding my breath.

The judge regaled us with stories about Bobbie, who, by all accounts, had been every bit as fun as Rose had described.

“My dear,” he said, “I only wish Theona could be here to meet you. She spent her life looking for you. Your father knew we would want custody and get it if we could find you. We had no idea that your life was so miserable. I’m terribly sorry for that, and I hope you’ll let the remaining Barlows make it up to you.”

“Thank you. If it makes you more comfortable, I’m willing to have a DNA test done so you’ll know I’m your granddaughter.”

The judge nodded. “It’s kind of you to offer. But it won’t do us any good. Bobbie was adopted.”