Lady Blues Page 23

  I stabbed another bite of the melt-in-your-mouth pot roast and swirled it in gravy. “It was my pleasure. The more I got to know him, the more I liked him. We have a lot in common.”

  Camille smiled and poured more ice water into her glass. “Gus went to see him almost every day.”

  Bella stopped with her fork mid-way to her mouth, beaming. One of the tall bayberry candles flickered, and a drip of wax suddenly trickled down the side. “You are good people, Gus LeGarde. You and that pretty lil’ wife of yours.” She took another bite of potato, chewing thoughtfully. “But I wanna know more about this woman who kidnapped my Kip. Tell me more about why she done it?”

  I pushed back from the table, stuffed to the gills. “I know she’s been threatened by the Novacom reps, probably the same guy who came here. She’s a witness to the whole disgraceful business. Maybe she was afraid they’d try to hurt Kip, too. From what I heard, he demonstrated the most progress of all of the patients at Bello Mondo.”

  “So, you think that’s who broke into my home?” Curtis asked. He started to clear the table.

  I nodded. “I’m sure of it.”

  “But what the hell were they looking for?” he said.

  “I don’t know. Evidence, I guess. Some kind of proof.”

  Bella stood, looking determined. “Well, that lady’d betta take damn good care of him. I’ve thought my man died seventy years ago, and I’m not gonna wait one day longer than I hafta to see him alive. I’m gonna find my Kip. You can count on it.”

  I leaned over to put my hand on her arm. “And we’re going to help you, Bella”

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  It wasn’t that easy.

  The rest of the week dragged. I tried to contact Lucy, stopping at her place six times and calling her phone all hours of the day, but discovered after a call to the local arts council she had probably gone down to Charlotte, North Carolina, for an art show and sale. I located her website, and found the dates of the show in her “events” page.

  When Debbie hadn’t contacted us by Tuesday, I began to panic.

  What if the Novacom thugs found her?

  Lucy was my only connection to Debbie and Kip, and although I wanted to spend all day on the phone calling every hotel in Charlotte, Maddy convinced me to ask for Joe’s help. He began the search, and chastised me for investigating on my own. I promised to keep him in the loop. What I didn’t tell him was that I wanted Debbie to be safe, with no chance of being picked up by the law. I knew in my heart her intentions were the best, and didn’t want it to get complicated.

  The police called hotels in Charlotte on Wednesday, but couldn’t unearth Lucy Sedgewick. I tried the number for the show hall, but the vendors’ booths didn’t have phones, and the woman on the other end, frightfully overwhelmed with calls, put me on hold for about ten minutes.

  She finally returned. “Sorry, no, I can’t connect you. I can put a note on the message board, except there are already hundreds of notes up there, and there’s a chance she might miss it. Wait. Can you hold on a second? I have another call.”

  I waited until she came back on the phone, gave her my name and phone number, and hung up, disappointed.

  Thursday and Friday crawled. By Saturday morning, Curtis and Bella were at their wits’ end, and I was getting desperate.

  I’d just decided to drive out to Lucy’s again in case she’d come home, when she showed up at my kitchen door at nine, looking frantic.

  “I got your notes. Drove through the night. I haven’t been able to get hold of Debbie, and I’m worried.” Her reddened eyes were encircled with purple smudges.

  I grabbed my car keys and walked with her to the driveway. “Come on. I’ll drive.”

  We hopped in the car and headed down the driveway. I called Camille to let her know we’d headed out to check on Debbie. She urged me to be careful, and I told her not to worry.

  As soon as I pulled onto Maple Beach, I noticed the tail.

  Lucy spotted them, too, when we turned toward the lake. “Take a right on Barber Hill. Let’s see if they follow us.”

  The gray sedan turned with us, staying about a quarter mile behind. “Now turn left. Here. On this road.”

  I followed her directions; they did the same.

  “Pull into the cemetery,” she hissed. “Let’s get out and walk among the gravestones.”

  I turned onto a dirt track in the Lake View Cemetery and parked. The tail slowed down, nearly stopped, and sped off when we both turned and stared.

  “Good. Now hurry. Get us out of here.”

  For some reason, I didn’t question her authoritative commands. She’d been right, and she knew her stuff. We got back in the SUV, backtracked to Maple Beach, and headed up in the direction of her place.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “Canandaigua. A place in the hills my friend rents out.”

  “Okay. Just tell me when we get close. Should I go up to Routes 5 and 20?”

  She tapped on the dash with her fingers. “No. Swing over to Honeoye and go down East Lake Road. Just like you’re going to my place. Then we’re going to head left on Route 33.”

  I settled down to concentrate on driving. The grey sedan didn’t reappear.

  “Lucy?”

  She scratched her scalp and yawned. “Yeah?”

  “Were you ever in law enforcement?”

  She chuckled for the first time that morning. “It shows, huh?”

  I smiled. “Kind of.”

  “Yeah. I worked for the Bureau for fifteen years. ‘Til I couldn’t stand it anymore. We had a…a parting of the ways, I guess you could say. I’m not too fond of the feds anymore, ‘nor the local yokels. If you know what I mean.”

  “I understand,” I said. “So you opted for life in the country, huh?”

  “Yeah, much nicer than D.C. And my dog’s a lot happier here.”

  “D.C.?”

  “Yeah. The fast lane. When everything went sour, I decided to follow my dream and get back into woodworking. It’s what I love.”

  “Well, you’re damned good at it.”

  She shrugged. “Thanks.”

  I turned up route 33. “Can I ask you something else?”

  Another shrug. “Sure.”

  “Why did you come to my place today? Why didn’t you just head here alone?”

  She paused. “You mean instead of going to check on Debbie myself?”

  I nodded and slowed for a curve. The grey sky loomed ahead, peeking in and out of the wooded hills. Dark clouds threatened a downpour.

  “Well,” she said, “I don’t trust the cops, and the only friends I have faith in up here are out of town. You were my next best choice. Debbie trusted you, and I know you were friends with the music man.”

  “And you wanted someone to watch your back?”

  She half-smiled. “Something like that. I’ve got my revolver, but it’s always a good idea to have another man at your side.”

  I laughed. “Well, I’m glad you’re armed. But I’m not sure how much help I’ll be. I’ve got the cell phone, but since you don’t want the cops involved…”

  At that moment, I wished I’d brought Siegfried with me.

  “Can you whack someone with a club?” she teased.

  I smiled and tried to convince myself I was up to this. “You mean crack ‘em in the knees and drop ‘em?”

  She smiled. “Yeah. Something like that.”

  “I’ll give it my best shot.”

  She motioned to a driveway. “That’s it, but park up the road a little. There. Pull off on that track. We’re gonna sneak up on them.”

  I obeyed my new commander and pulled over. We got out and headed up the wooded hill.

  ***

  I scrambled up the hill behind Lucy, slipping on wet leaves as the heavens let loose, drenching us. Lucy moved fast, agile and surefooted. Where the rain seemed to neatly roll off her shorn gray hair, mine plastered to my head and dripped in my eyes.

  We stopped hal
fway up to rest against a small stand of maple saplings.

  “What are you expecting to find, anyway?” I said, huffing from the climb.

  She squinted against the rain and grimaced. “Hopefully, nothing. But I can’t take a chance someone has overpowered them. It’s best to move slowly.”

  I swiped at the moisture dripping down my face. “When’s the last time you heard from her?”

  “I left Sunday around dinner. We were supposed to speak again on Wednesday, and she never called. I tried all day Thursday and Friday, and when you called about the music man, er, Kip, I panicked. I didn’t know about that part of her plan.”

  “She didn’t tell you she was going to, um, kidnap him?”

  I received a sharp glance in response. “It’s not kidnapping if he went willingly.”

  I loosened up my drenched shirt collar. “True. I hope the cops share your attitude.”

  A red squirrel leapt from one branch to another overhead, and scurried down the trunk of an old oak in the heavy downpour.

  “Come on. We’re almost there.”

  I couldn’t see the house, but trusted her. We moved quickly, startling a small black bear who stood on his hind legs and emitted a feeble roar. He scurried back up the hill, leaving us to our maneuvers.

  Another five minutes of steady climbing and skin-soaking rain, and I saw the house. More of a lodge, the spacious log cabin had a deep wraparound deck. One side boasted a natural stone fireplace that climbed the height of an outer wall, and the near side was filled with massive windows. A semi-circle window let in sunlight beneath the roof peak.

  Neat hedges and plantings lined the deck, and an outside fireplace sat on the near end, surrounded by metal chairs and a table. Planters and flowers of all colors graced the deck. Petunias, geraniums, and ivy, shouted for attention in reds, yellows, and whites. On any other day, the place would look inviting.

  We waited behind a stand of honeysuckle. Before us stretched a garage with three double doors, suitable for housing at least six cars and many pieces of lawn equipment.

  A stab of jealousy hit me as I imagined all the stuff I could fit in there. “Where’s her car?” I whispered.

  Lucy motioned toward the garage. “Inside. She didn’t want anyone to see it.”

  I nodded, remembering the bright yellow beat-up Dodge. “It is pretty memorable.”

  “Let’s approach from the north,” she said in a low voice. “We can try to get a look through the kitchen window or the sliding glass doors in the great room.”

  She led the way again, drawing a small pair of binoculars out of her overall pocket.

  A curl of wood smoke spiraled out of the chimney, wafting over the hillside with the familiar smell of home. I found myself relaxing, and doubting the Novacom reps had overtaken Debbie and Kip. Why would they start a cozy fire? It didn’t make sense.

  We crept behind a huge woodpile.

  Lucy rose up on her toes to peer over it.

  “Do you see anything?” I asked.

  She shushed me and kept looking. I waited. And waited. Finally, she stiffened. “I see Debbie,” she said. “She looks normal. She’s laughing.”

  “What’s she doing?”

  “Dishes, I think. It looks like she’s talking to someone.”

  “Let me see.”

  Lucy hunkered down beside me and passed the glasses. I raised them to my eyes, refocused, and scanned the windows. At first I thought she’d moved, but after a few seconds I became oriented and noticed blurry motions behind what must be the kitchen window. I steadied my hands, and saw her.

  There she stood, her penny-red hair pulled into a loose curly ponytail that flipped when she moved her head to speak to someone behind her. Her cheeks were flushed, but her eyes shined.

  Lucy pulled on my shirt and beckoned for the glasses. “Did you see Kip?”

  I shook my head. “No. But she looks fine. I think we should just go in, Luce.”

  “You’re probably right, but let me just—”

  I hushed her as the back door opened. An elderly gentleman with white silky hair and unusually good posture stepped outside.

  Kip. Safe and sound. Tossing bread to the birds.

  Relief washed over me and I handed the glasses back to Lucy. Kip disappeared inside.

  “Now we just have to figure out how to approach the place without scaring them to death,” I said.

  She rose and laughed. “Right. Okay, let’s head back down the hill and go to the front door.”

  Chapter Forty

  The front door flew open and Debbie jumped into her sister’s arms. She must have seen us before we reached the house, because she emerged like a catapult, grinning infectiously. “Lucy!” she cried, embracing her sister.

  I stood back and watched, then received my own share of hugs.

  “Gus! Oh my God, you both came.”

  She couldn’t seem to stop hugging and kissing us, and we listened to the constant babble of her explanations.

  “Lucy, I tried to call you, but the land line is on the fritz and I couldn’t get service on the cell phone. But I didn’t dare leave Kip, ’cause he needed constant attention in the beginning, and then, when I saw myself on the national news as a suspect for kidnapping, I really freaked out. I didn’t dare go out of the house. My God, Lucy, you don’t think they’re gonna arrest me, do you?”

  Her smiles melted into an expression of utter despair. “I just wanted to protect him, to save him, to have him back to his real self when he meets Bella.”

  “I know how you feel.” I looked into her wide, earnest eyes and smiled. “How is he? Is he okay?”

  A voice came from inside the door. “He’s just fine, Gus. Why don’t you come inside and say hello, instead of lurking out there in the woods?”

  Lucy barked a short, surprised laugh, and put an arm around her sister’s shoulders.

  “Kip?” I rushed inside to see my old friend smiling, leaning on a cane. “Kip!” I grinned like an idiot, hurrying forward to shake his hand. “Your memory’s back?”

  He nodded and shuffled toward the leather sofa in the middle of the pine-paneled room. “Indeed.”

  A fire crackled and spit in the hearth. Rain smeared the windows, streaming down the glass. A bottle of Merlot breathed on the counter separating the great, high-ceilinged room from the kitchen area.

  He settled into a chair. “Yes, Professor. I’m back. Thanks to Debbie.”

  Debbie hung on her sister’s arm, talking to her in an endless stream of chatter. Lucy simply nodded and smiled, looking solid and competent, as Debbie’s tidal wave of comments rushed over her. Although there was a definite physical family resemblance, the ladies’ personalities were strikingly different.

  Debbie’s red curls bounced as she talked, her face alive with smiles and light. She danced around her sister, pointing to this and that, chatting like a magpie, all the while pulling Lucy into the room.

  Lucy, with calm hazel eyes, simply took it all in stride. She exchanged a relieved glance with me, and turned back to her sister, who dragged her toward the couch opposite Kip and made hurried introductions. After a brief handshake between Lucy and Kip, the sisters settled on the couch side by side.

  “Sit, Gus,” Kip said. He motioned to one of the stuffed armchairs.

  Soft throws draped both chairs and the couch. Wooden cutouts of bears lined the windowsills, and in the corner of the room sat a large collection of green painted pine tree silhouettes. A rustic dining room table and chairs stood in the back, in front of a sliding glass door. Topped with games and sightseeing brochures, the dining set looked untouched. I glanced toward the kitchen, noting the cozy table for two, and imagined Debbie and Kip eating there for the past week.

  The floors, polished oak, stretched from the great room, through the kitchen, and along a long pine-paneled hallway, which I guessed led to bedrooms and the bathroom. The kitchen boasted black painted cabinets, rustic brick tile countertops, lots of stainless steel, and even more carved
wooden bears that marched along the windowsill. I was sure Lucy had made them.

  “Nice digs, huh?” Kip said, watching me take in our surroundings.

  “Incredible,” I said.

  “You should see the Jacuzzi. It’s the size of three bathtubs.”

  I chuckled, and Debbie jumped up from the couch. “Oh! I should give you the tour,” she said, as if entertaining us for dinner.

  “Okay,” I said, leaning over to squeeze Kip’s hand. “I’m so glad you’re okay, my friend. I missed you.”

  He glanced in Debbie’s direction. “Like I said, she’s the one to thank.” He reached toward the coffee table and grabbed a remote. “I’ve even mastered this newfangled gadget. Watch this.”

  The doors of a rustic pine armoire slid mysteriously open, revealing a flat screen high definition television. The power clicked on and an old movie appeared.

  “This is a good one,” he chuckled. “Came out when I was a young man. Saw it at the movie house with Bella.” As if suddenly remembering, he bent toward me, his eyes boring into mine. “Is she home yet? Was she upset I wasn’t there? Does she know where I am?”

  The questions reminded me of Debbie’s patter, and his eyes wore concern like a rumpled suit.

  “She’s fine, Kip. Not far away. You can see her soon. And I told her not to worry too much, because I knew Debbie would have your best interests at heart.”

  Debbie flushed, then leaned down to fuss with the Finger Lakes magazines on the coffee table. “Well, I just did what anyone would have done.”

  “No, you’re a hero, sister.” Lucy said. “But you didn’t tell Gus about the pills.”

  I wondered how she’d managed to get Kip back on the pink pills. Did she save a bottle from the nursing home? Had she squirreled some away from a patient who recovered or left the facility? How did she get her hands on those pink pills?

  “Right,” she said, glancing out the window toward the garage. “Well, maybe I should just show you, Gus.”

  I followed her out to the parking area, leaving Kip and Lucy inside. She produced a bundle of keys and turned one in the first door. “This place belongs to Lucy’s good friend. They used to be, er, partners. But she’s living in London now, and rents it out while she’s away. She let me stay for free. She’s a real sweetheart.”