When Danielle and Lily returned to Marlow House early Monday afternoon, Lily headed back across the street. Danielle stepped into the kitchen as Walt walked in to get the filled baby bottles she had left in the refrigerator that morning.
“Hey, you’re back. Good timing.” Walt dropped a quick kiss on Danielle’s lips. “Did you find out anything?”
“I found out who gave the quilt to the Becketts. That’s about it.”
“I was just coming to get the bottles and warm them up. Marie has both of the babies in the parlor with her. I’m assuming you would rather nurse.”
“Yes. Definitely.” Danielle moved the bottles to the freezer, washed her hands in the kitchen sink, and followed Walt to the parlor.
Less than fifteen minutes later, Danielle sat on the sofa with the nursing babies, while Walt sat next to her, and Marie perched in the chair facing them. Once Danielle had the babies settled down, she told Marie and Walt about her and Lily’s morning.
Marie cringed. “Poor Iris, living in that horrid care home.”
“It looks like they’ve recently remodeled the place. Plus, it didn’t smell like urine and Lysol like when you were there. Not to mention it’s under entirely new management. But some of the same staff is there. We saw SeAnne Eason. Oh, and we had to sign in. I don’t remember doing that when you were there.”
“I still wouldn’t want to live there,” Marie said.
“Were you good friends with Iris?” Danielle asked.
Marie shook her head. “No, not really. I knew her, but I wouldn’t call us friends. She worked for Ansel and Alice Beckett for years. They were Scott Beckett’s grandparents. Ansel and I attended school together, and Alice was much younger than Ansel and me. Not long after they married, she started having babies. One right after another. My son, Warren, was a friend with their son, Georgie. They were in Scouts together. That’s really the only reason I remember, because I never really cared for Ansel when we were in school together.”
“Iris told us Alice’s friend, someone name Gemma, gave her the quilt. She didn’t know if Gemma made it,” Danielle said.
“Oh, that would be Gemma Francas. She moved to town when Warren was a freshman. I remember, because she paid Warren and Georgie Beckett to help her move some boxes when she moved into her house.”
“And she wasn’t married or anything when she first moved to town?” Danielle asked.
“No. She was a single woman, on her own. From what I understand, she met Alice when she first moved in, and she was looking for help to move some boxes. That’s how Warren and Georgie got hired.”
“Was Francas her maiden name? Or the name of the man she married?” Danielle asked.
“The man she married, Dan Francas.”
“What happened to Dan Francas’s first wife? From what Iris told us, when Gemma married him, he had two babies, twins. Was he a widower?” Danielle asked.
“No. I’m not sure what happened there. Dan Francas and his first wife moved here a couple of months before Gemma showed up. I remember they stayed at Elenore Percy’s house while Elenore was in Florida visiting her sister. As I recall, the Francases were having a house built, and it wasn’t finished yet. I’d heard they had twins, but never saw the wife around town or the babies. I assume because she was busy at home taking care of them. Then someone said his wife had to leave to take care of a sick family member, and Gemma, who had just moved to town, started helping Dan with the babies while he worked.”
“So what happened to the wife?” Walt asked.
Marie shrugged. “She never came back. It took him a couple of years to get a divorce. At least, that was the rumor.”
“She just left her babies?” Danielle glanced down at the infants who had just fallen asleep at her bosom. She couldn’t imagine such a thing.
“I always assumed it was postpartum depression. Imagine dealing with postpartum depression while trying to care for not just one newborn, but two,” Marie said.
“The mother never came back?” Danielle muttered.
“She may have, but I’m not sure one way or the other. I wasn’t friends with Gemma or Dan.”
“How was Gemma supporting herself before she started taking care of the babies?” Danielle asked. “A single woman, moving to town alone. Was she renting? Did she buy the house?”
“Again, I was not friends with Gemma. But someone at church said Gemma was living on an inheritance from her parents.”
“Any chance Gemma is still alive?” Danielle asked.
“She was still around when I passed. And I assume I would have known if she’s since moved on, considering news like that is typically the hot topic when I stop by the cemetery and visit with those who haven’t moved on. But Dan passed away about twenty years ago. Gemma never remarried. She’s always been a recluse. Never leaves her house.”
“Sounds like Pamela Beckett,” Danielle said.
“I suppose they’re a little alike,” Marie mused. “Although I never thought about it before. Neither one was very sociable. Homebodies.”
“What happened to the twins?” Danielle asked.
“I just know they don’t live in Frederickport anymore. I never really knew them. They were much younger than Warren, yet older than my grandsons, so they didn’t go to school with any of them. I imagine they’re in their mid-forties by now. When their father, Dan Francas, passed away, one of my friends attended his funeral and mentioned that neither of the daughters came to the service. Apparently, they had both left town after they graduated from high school and never returned. Not even for their father’s funeral.”
* * *
Down at the police station, Joe Morelli was having a difficult time accepting what Brian had told him. Even the chief seemed to accept the notion that paranormal activity and not Walt’s magic tricks might be responsible for what he’d witnessed at Marlow House. But what he found more confusing was the cavalier attitude both men displayed when discussing the possibility.
Because the chief would only be at the office for a few hours, there was no time to discuss the matter with him in private—without Brian present. So when the chief was ready to leave, needing a ride to physical therapy before going home, Joe offered to drive him.
Once the two were in the police car and on their way to the chief’s appointment, Joe glanced briefly at him before asking, “Do you seriously believe in ghosts? Or whatever Brian suggests made things move at Marlow House?”
Before answering, the chief took a deep breath and stretched his legs, wincing a bit from the pain. “Joe, there are lots of things in this world we don’t understand. I have seen things, experienced things, that don’t have what you call a logical explanation. Things I have never shared with you.”
Joe frowned, his hands firmly on the steering wheel as he looked down the road. “Are you saying you’ve seen ghosts?”
“Hmm. No. I’m not saying I’ve ever seen a ghost. But the things I’ve witnessed, well, I don’t need to share them with you. Because it’s not important for me to make you believe or find explanations for things I’ve experienced in my life. Those are my life lessons. And the conclusions I’ve drawn are mine. I suppose what you witnessed at Marlow House is your life lesson. It’s up to you to come to terms with what you witnessed with your own eyes. And I suspect, knowing you, you’ll want to find your own logical explanation, one that works for you.”
“Chief, you’re being awful cryptic. Not to mention how nonchalant you are with all this. If nothing else, I’d expect you to tell me I was imagining things over at Marlow House.”
“So you, Kelly, June, not to mention Walt and Heather, were all imagining the same thing? And weren’t Lily and Ian there too?”
“Honestly, Chief, I’m not sure what I find more unbelievable, the fact I witnessed flying stuffed animals over at Marlow House or the fact both you and Brian are calmly accepting a theory that paranormal activity is behind what we witnessed, and not some elaborate hoax.”
“Walt and Danielle have their hands full learning how to be parents, not just to one newborn, but two. They really don’t have the time, or I suspect the interest or energy, to be practical jokers.”
“That’s another thing. I can’t imagine having something like that happening under my roof with my wife and newborns without immediately moving out.”
“As Brian reminded you, Danielle claims to have had experiences with the paranormal. And if you’ll recall, Heather has made similar claims. While the activity might be considered terrifying to some, I suspect with Danielle, she finds it more annoying. Paranormal activity is disruptive and scares people. But there doesn’t seem to be any evidence to suggest it’s lethal.”
“And you believe it’s possible paranormal activity is behind what happened at Marlow House?” Joe asked.
“You’re the one who saw flying stuffed animals. You tell me.”