Bone-a-fied Trouble Page 15

  She heard Roger gasp and then she was aware of the young woman who stood in the corner of the room. Cold seeped over Tabitha, and her breath condensed as she exhaled. Not even in the séances led by professionals had she felt such a strong presence. A person manifested in front of her. Lisa East. She knew her, was aware of the bullet hole in her forehead.

  “Lisa?” She didn’t know if she’d spoken aloud or only in her mind, but the spirit came forward, gliding on the air.

  The only sound was the lead of her pencil across the page—and then Tabitha was fully awake and conscious of everything around her. The spirit was gone. Lisa East had vanished. When Tabitha looked down at the pages of writing, she inhaled sharply. In a strange hand were the words, “Danger. Beware. Help her.” The symbol she’d found on Trudy’s calendar and on the dash of the car was beside the words. In several other pages were the initials T&S and a plus sign.

  “Did I write that?” she asked Roger.

  He nodded, holding the pages up for others to see.

  “The messages are from Lisa East.” Tabitha made the pronouncement in a firm voice. When she looked up, Lisa was back in a corner of the dim room, not completely manifested but a shade of herself. She nodded, and in a moment she was replaced by a beautiful older woman in a lavender dress who wore the scent of magnolias. Suellen was in the room now and she came forward, a calming presence filled with peace.

  Suellen is speaking. She says, “Watch over Samuel and Charline,” Suellen said. “They never want to believe the worst of those they love. Hannah needs to be watched. Danger! Beware of—”

  Antoine pushed back from the table. “You may all buy into this chicanery, but I will not. I’ve had a bellyful of talkative ghosts and spirits. I don’t know what you Longs hope to accomplish, but it’s not going to work. Hannah is going to claim her birthright and I am going to help her.”

  The sudden interruption made Tabitha feel unbalanced. She swayed in her seat, but Roger put out a strong hand to hold her.

  “Are you okay?” he whispered.

  She nodded and faced Antoine. “What happened at T&S Financials?” Tabitha asked softly. “Suellen says there is a story there to be heard.”

  “You think you’re very sly.” Antoine leaned down into Tabitha’s face. “Accusation by innuendo. Prove it, if you can.”

  Roger grasped the man by the neck of his shirt and held him in a tight grip as he slowly stood up and pushed him back away from the table. “Easy on, there, Antoine. My aunt and uncle don’t much care for fighting in the house, but I’ll drag you into the yard if I need to. It’s one of my character flaws that I don’t let men push women around.”

  “I don’t fall for a set-up when I can smell it from a mile away.” Antoine shook free of Roger’s grasp. “You’ll do whatever you have to do to retain control of Hannah’s inheritance. Fair warning here, we’ll be married shortly, and when that happens, as her husband, I intend to step into a role in this family business. As her representative, I will fully engage in the decisions to make sure her interests are best served.”

  Samuel started to stand up from the table, but he stumbled and sat down heavily. The color had drained from his face and his breathing was ragged. Tabitha went to him. He was cold and clammy. The confrontation playing out before him was affecting his heart. “Stop it.” She spoke to Roger and Antoine. “Stop it now.”

  “I have a right to my share of the family business,” Antoine said.

  “You are not a member of the Long family,” Roger pointed out. Both men were too angry to heed Tabitha’s warnings.

  Out of the corner of her eye, Tabitha saw Trouble jump to the top of a hunt board. The grandfather clock in the foyer began to chime relentlessly. With one delicate nudge, Trouble sent a candelabra tumbling. The hot wax spread across the decorative cloth that had adorned the furniture—and burst into flames.

  “Fire!” Charline stood so quickly her chair fell backward. The racket finally penetrated the anger of the two men. Roger leapt into action and used his napkin to beat out the flames. In a moment, it was all over. Trouble leaped gracefully to the floor and went to rub against Charline’s shins.

  “The cat did that on purpose,” Hannah said. She eyed Trouble with a speculative look. “Perhaps he’s possessed by the spirit of Suellen. She always hated family brawls.”

  “I hate to do this,” Charline said, “but Hannah, you and Antoine need to leave Long Hall. I don’t want you here, upsetting Samuel and everyone else.”

  “You think you can put me out on the street?” Hannah asked.

  Trouble walked over to her, jumped on the table, and hissed in her face. A low growl warned that he was capable of much more than hissing.

  “Even the cat hates you,” Roger said, adjusting his tie. “I’ll carry your bags out, Mother.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.” Hannah took another swallow of her drink. “I find that I like it here at Long Hall.” Before she’d even finished her sentence, she leaped up from the table. Pluto was clinging to her calf with all four paws. He rode her as she jumped away from the table and hopped around the room. Finally he sprang free.

  “It seems the cats have a different take on the situation,” Samuel said. He’d regained some color and a straight back. “Leave or I’ll call the sheriff to assist you out the door.”

  “You’re going to regret this,” Antoine said as he followed Hannah up the stairs to collect their things.

  Tabitha couldn’t be certain, but she thought she caught a self-satisfied smile flicker across Antoine’s face.

  Chapter Seventeen

  That was one spooky séance, and I’d be willing to bet my sleek black hide that Tabitha was not pretending. I know she came here to con some folks, but there was something utterly sincere about what happened here tonight. Cats do have an affinity for the other side, and I believe Tabitha saw exactly what I saw. The spirits came to her when she called them. People have all sorts of strange beliefs about cats and ghosts. We can see spirits more easily than humans, but we can’t always see on command. By the way, dogs see ghosts too, but they are no better at “see on demand” than a cat. All animals are sensitive to the spirit world because we’re more sensitive to all stimuli in the physical plane. Bipeds have to wade through belief systems, years of training not to be sensitive, fear, and a host of other issues that blind them to what an animal simply accepts. There are spirits among us, good and bad. Take Suellen, for example. Her love for her family and the land is palpable. That Micah Malone, for whatever his reasons, truly loved Hannah, and he is definitely worried about her. He sees her as the potential victim of danger—which I don’t get. Yet. What I do get is that had Micah lived, Hannah might have had a completely different life. He saw good in her. And I learned something else while watching the séance. Something that Roger will want to know. Micah Malone was more than just a surf bum. A lot more. But that’s a revelation for another time. My focus is on Queen Bee Hannah.

  The bloodletting is done and the wicked queen and her consort have packed their belongings and are leaving. Antoine has pulled the car up to the front porch, and soon they’ll be away down the long drive. Tabitha has taken it upon herself to make tea for Charline and Samuel, who look like they’ve been in a session of brutal fisticuffs, though not a single blow was landed. At least not physically. The emotional trauma will affect both of them for much longer. Charline and Samuel truly care about Hannah, though she’s done all in her power to make them disdain her.

  And what is Roger up to? He’s sidling out the back door. I follow like the sleek black shadow of a famous cat detective. Roger jumps in his pickup. He’s going to follow Hannah and Antoine. Brilliant deduction on his part! Should I go with him or stay to protect my favorite psychic-medium? Pluto and Vesta are here to watch over Tabitha, but still I wish I could leave a note to let them know what’s going on. Opposable thumbs. It is the only advantage the bipeds have over me. Perhaps I can train my tail to hold a pen and scribble. If the humanoids can do it,
how hard could it be?

  The choice is upon me. I leap onto the hood of Roger’s truck and startle him, but he opens the door and grabs me to pull me inside. I believe he’s just a little happy that I’ve chosen to surveil with him. A stake-out can be lonely work.

  The evil duo seem to be headed to Zinnia. Perhaps they’ve called for a room at the Prince Albert. I’m curious about their financial state. It’s my understanding that Hannah is in Sunflower County for her quarterly allotment of funds from the Long Agricultural business. I also understand she runs through her money quickly, so therefore should be short of funds. Yet she’s been lolling about the area, staying in the poshest hotels, dining at the finest restaurants. Zinnia isn’t New York City as far as prices go, but two weeks of vacationing, even in Zinnia, can run into quite a bill. Especially when only the very best will serve. The bog-standard is not for Queen Hannah. So does she have another source of income? A possible lead!

  Now Roger is driving intently—and at last calling Tabitha.

  “I’m tailing my mother and that man. Trouble is with me—just so you don’t worry.”

  Bless his pea-picking little heart. He’s taken care to let Tabitha know I’m safe. And her response is exactly what I anticipated.

  “Charline and Samuel are fine now. They’ve settled down. I’m…”

  The last bit was garbled. I couldn’t grasp it—and neither could Roger. He’s got that frown on his face that means he’s worried. He can either turn back or follow the lead he’s got. And we’re pulling into downtown Zinnia right now. True to form, Hannah and Antoine are headed to the Prince Albert. But wait! Hannah is getting out of the car and Antoine is driving away. Roger is taking care that he isn’t spotted as a tail. We have to go forward with our spy mission now. Tabitha is safely at Long Hall. If she will only remain there, all will be well.

  Why, then, is my little kitty heart so concerned?

  No time to ponder the intricacies of emotion and my preternatural instincts. As Sherlock would say, the case calls for cold, calm, logical calculation, not worry and angst. Roger is following Antoine, who is going to…Lisa East’s house? Oh, my, this is beginning to get tricky.

  He’s pulling to a stop, and Roger is doing the same, about three blocks back. I can see we’re going to have to sneak through the darkness to see what Antoine is up to. Why would he be interested in anything at Lisa East’s? Soon I’ll have my answer or my name isn’t Trouble.

  * * *

  Tabitha cleaned up the papers, pencils, and various paraphernalia she’d used at the séance. She made sure each candle was snuffed completely. The last thing anyone needed was another fire. She was at loose ends since Roger—and Trouble—had taken off on a clandestine spying mission. Aside from feeling a little left behind, she realized that Roger had entrusted her with making Charline and Samuel feel safe and secure. She’d done that, brewing chamomile tea for each and making certain they were over the shock of the séance. Samuel had gone to their suite to prepare for bed, but Charline was in the kitchen, making another cup of tea.

  “I was really glad to hear from Suellen, but Micah Malone was something of a surprise,” Charline said as she stirred the hot drink. “Tell me, do you know why Micah came through so strongly. I honestly hadn’t thought of him in years. I’d almost forgotten what terrible heartbreak Hannah went through. Instead of grieving, she was the type who went out and got drunk and wrecked a car. When she first learned that Micah was dead…It was possibly the last time I saw her show real emotion, real compassion.”

  Tabitha had her suspicions, but she wasn’t going to open her mouth until she had more evidence. “I don’t know,” she finally said. “The spirits—time doesn’t have any meaning for them on the other side. What takes decades here is a blink to them. And I presume it’s the other way around, too.” Tabitha was only repeating the things Mama Bettite had taught her. “How did Hannah and Micah meet?”

  Charline settled into a kitchen chair, the mug held between both her hands. When she shivered slightly, Tabitha got a throw from the parlor and wrapped it around her. “Thank you,” Charline said. “I remember Micah coming up to the beach where Hannah was sunning. He was like a California god. Such a handsome young man, that blond hair, blue eyes, and tan. Hannah was instantly smitten.” She paused. “She was never an easy girl. I tried to win her over, to make her like me, but she was so…aloof. But with Micah that protective shell fell away and she smiled and laughed and…I was so happy for her. Micah was more than just a beach bum. He was going to law school. He had his eye on environmental law. That summer Hannah started to talk about pursuing a career in law or maybe urban planning. They would work together to create communities that used the land wisely. She genuinely cared about what humans were doing to the planet and finding alternatives.”

  Charline looked so sad that Tabitha put a hand on her forearm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you upset.”

  “No, it was good. Micah adored Roger. He was the only man Hannah dated who treated Roger like anything more than an inconvenience. Things would have been different for everyone if Micah had lived.”

  “Was he killed instantly when he hit the rocks while he was surfing?”

  “Yes. He was on a wave or whatever they call it. He was further north up the coastline. The surf was bad that day. He shouldn’t have gone in the water. A wave caught him and he was smashed into some rocks. Luckily Hannah and Roger weren’t with him that day. They’d gone into town with me to buy groceries. We’d planned on staying at Big Sur until the fall semester started, but as soon as the funeral was over, we packed up and came back to Mississippi. Hannah never recovered. She went back to college and left Roger with me. When she showed up at Christmas, she was horrible. Suellen and Big Sam tried. They really tried.”

  “How old was Roger at that time?” Tabitha calculated that Charline herself must have been a young bride, new to the Long family. She’d taken each member as her own blood.

  “Two or so.” She cleared her throat. “Micah gave him a sense of belonging, of being a son. It was a tragedy for everyone. Hannah dropped out of school and began her life as a girlfriend of wealthy men. She’s been at it a while now, and to be frank her looks won’t hold much longer. Antoine may be her last fling, which is why she’s considering marriage.”

  “Tragedy marks all of us,” Tabitha said. She was thinking of her missing sister. “I suppose I should turn in.”

  “Yes, Samuel will wonder what happened to me. Thank you for the evening, Tabitha. It was good to hear from Suellen. And Micah. Maybe it will wake Hannah up, make her remember what could have been.”

  Charline put her mug in the sink and left the kitchen. The house fell still and silent around Tabitha. She had one more thing to do before bed—search Hannah and Antoine’s room for any clues. It was unlikely they’d left anything telling behind, but now was the time to look.

  She waited until she was certain the Longs were asleep, and then she crept up the stairs past her own door to Hannah’s rooms. She eased the door open and almost screamed when a black cat jumped from the bed to the floor and came to circle her ankles.

  “Pluto, what are you doing here?”

  The cat head-bumped her shin, then disappeared under the big four poster bed that Hannah had left in complete disarray. The entire room looked as if a cyclone had gone through it twice. Tabitha shook out the sheets and was rewarded with the clink of something hitting the floor. She found a heavy broach that looked like it had been crafted in the 1890s. It was a work of art, and the emeralds in it looked real. She put it on the dresser so that if Hannah came back for it she could find it.

  “She’s mighty careless with her things,” Tabitha said to the cat, who darted back under the bed. She searched the room, finding only empty drawers and closets. Hannah had left a mess, with dirty towels scattered everywhere, but she’d gathered up all the paperwork she might have had with her. There was nothing that tied Hannah or Antoine to any nefarious plots.

  Pluto
poked his head out from under the bed and stared at her. In a moment he came out, crying softly. He blinked his big green eyes, and Tabitha knelt to draw him out from under the bed. She couldn’t leave him shut up in the room. There were no litter boxes. “Come on, big guy. I’ll find you something to eat in the kitchen.”

  Pluto inched back under the bed, just out of reach.

  “Come on,” she pleaded. She was tired and worried about what Roger and Trouble might get into. She also needed to get out of the bedroom before she was caught snooping. She reached under the bed from him, and something cold and hard clattered across the floor and into her hand. Pluto had swept it with his paw like it was a hockey puck going into the net for a goal.

  Tabitha grasped it and brought it out for an examination. It was a cufflink. The initials T&S—just like the business card--were embossed in black jet in the gold background. Antoine. He was somehow involved in Trudy’s disappearance. She had no doubt of it now. Her heart pounded at the realization.

  * * *

  Roger had parked two blocks from Lisa’s little bungalow and he and Trouble darted from shrub to shrub in the darkness, hurrying to get to Lisa’s to see what Antoine was up to. While they’d been watching, another car pulled down the street. It was too far away for Roger to get a model and too dark to get a color, but it was a sleek design, something like the car Antoine was driving. Expensive.

  A tall, slender person got out of the car and jogged toward Antoine’s vehicle. There was a brief confab, and then the person left. Antoine got out of his vehicle and began working the lock of Lisa’s bungalow, clearly intent on getting inside.

  Roger eased closer to the little cottage and stopped beside a large, dense shrub. The cat followed at his heels. He made it to a thick Indian hawthorn near the back door of the cottage. As Roger watched, Antoine passed in front of the back windows. He was doing something in the house, but Roger couldn’t tell what.