Part 19 (1/2)
”Sorry about that.” Hannah stepped inside and watched as he shut it again. ”I should have thought to check it before I asked you to climb over. And speaking of that climb you made, have you been working out?”
”You noticed!” Norman looked pleased. ”I've been swimming out at the new fitness club. They've got a lap pool. You should come out with me sometime. Members can bring a guest.”
”Are you talking about Heavenly Bodies at the mall?” Hannah guessed. And when Norman nodded, she was almost tempted to give it a try. But then she remembered that her old swimsuit didn't fit her anymore. That meant she'd have to try on suits in a department store fitting room, and that was always depressing.
”Do you want to split up to look for the car, or do it together?”
”Together, but separate,” Hannah said, enjoying the apparent contradiction. ”Let's do what the police do when they search for something in the woods.”
”Walk forward in parallel and meet at a designated point?”
”Exactly. That way you'll hear me if I spot it, and I'll hear you if you do. Let's pick a starting point and walk straight down the rows. Then we'll meet at the fence in back and start up another two rows.”
It took three rows out of what must have been at least twenty, but they lucked out. Norman called out from the middle of his row, and Hannah darted between the cars to join him. She found him standing next to Gus Klein's Jaguar with a smile on his face. ”This has got to be it. It's probably the only Jaguar in the lot.”
”It's the one Gus was driving,” Hannah confirmed it, ”And there's the jacket I remembered.”
”Linen,” Norman commented. ”I think that's the same one he was wearing when he drove up in front of the church.”
”Mother said he wore it to the brunch he hosted at the Lake Eden Inn. He must have hung it up so that it wouldn't wrinkle for the drive to the lake.”
Norman stepped up to the window, pressed his nose to the gla.s.s, and peered in. When he stopped back, he was shaking his head. ”I don't think so,” he said.
”Why not?”
”Because his pants and s.h.i.+rt are there, too. They're hanging behind the jacket. And I really don't think he drove out to the lake in his underwear.”
Hannah and Norman stood there staring at the expensive linen suit. For long moments, the only sounds were the humming of insects and the far-off drone of cars on the highway.
”This just doesn't make sense,” Hannah said at last. ”Gus changed clothes at the cottage. His suitcase was open on the bed. And the closet was right there, no more than three or four steps away. I just can't figure out why Gus went outside and hung his suit up in his car.”
Hannah smiled across the picnic table at Norman. ”It was so nice of you to make Clara and Marguerite's Mexican Hotdish for Jack's birthday party.”
”Maybe not. You haven't tasted it yet. I doubled the spice. Marguerite says it's even better that way. She felt so bad about not being able to bake it for Lisa and Herb's family reunion, and I volunteered to do it for her.”
”That was really nice of you, Norman.”
”It was fun, and really easy. Taste it and tell me what you think.”
Hannah took a bite and smiled. ”It's excellent, but it's a little spicier than I remember.”
”Then Clara must have made it the night you went over there for dinner. She uses only one packet of taco seasoning. When Marguerite makes it, she uses two packets.”
”The sour cream on the side is a nice touch.”
”That's a little trick I picked up in Puerto Vallarta. We went to a place that was famous for its fish tacos and they were too spicy for Bev. The waitress brought her some sour cream to cut the heat.”
”That's nice to know,” Hannah said, referring to the sour cream, not to the fact that Norman had taken his ex-fiancee, Beverly Thorndike, to Mexico.
”We should go sometime. You'd love it down there. We could stay at the La Jolla de Mismaloya resort.”
”Isn't that the location John Huston used in The Night of the Iguana?” she couldn't resist asking.
”That's right. Of course it's all modern and restored now, but they really did a good job of keeping the original ambience.”
”Nice,” Hannah said, deciding that one-word responses were best. She really didn't care to hear much more about Norman's Mexican vacation with Beverly.
”They run the movie continuously in the bar. The first night Bev and I were there, we sat through it twice.”
”Really.”
”You'd love the place, Hannah. It's very relaxed, and you can practically live in your swimsuit.”
Swimsuits again. It was the second time in less than an hour that she'd been reminded of swimsuits. ”Great,” she said, not mentioning that if she agreed to go anywhere with Norman, and the way she felt right now the odds of that happening were drastically reduced, it certainly wouldn't be somewhere he'd vacationed with his ex-fiancee.
”I wonder what's wrong with Lisa,” Norman said, changing the subject abruptly. ”She looks worried.”
Hannah turned to look. Her friend and partner was making her way through the crowd toward the picnic table where they were sitting.
”I don't know, but she's definitely upset.” Hannah glanced around for Jack Herman and was relieved to see him smiling and laughing with Marge and a full table of relatives. Whatever the problem was, it wasn't with Jack. But there was definitely something wrong.
”Oh, Hannah! I've got to talk to you!” Lisa said, rus.h.i.+ng up.
”Of course. What is it?”
”Not here! Mac and Herb are waiting on the dock for us. It's private there. I promised to come and get you right away. You too, Norman.”
Hannah and Norman exchanged glances as they got up to follow Lisa. Hannah's glance said, Uh-oh. This is something big! And Norman's answering glance said, You can bet the farm it is!
The sun had lowered in the sky, changing from a bright yellow ball high in the sky to a huge orange orb at the edge of the horizon. The surface of Eden Lake gleamed with color. Red, yellow, orange, and pink streaks rippled with the waves across its surface, forming a riotous canvas for the darker reflections of the pines that lined the sh.o.r.es. The dock protruded, a dark carpet rolled out to greet the approaching evening. Two motionless figures in silhouette stood at the end of the dock, and as they drew closer, Hannah could see their tense postures and serious demeanors.
”Norman,” Herb reached out for his hand. ”You've met my Uncle Mac, haven't you?”
”Yes.” Norman reached out to shake Mac's hand.
”And thank you for coming, Hannah. You've met my Uncle Mac?”
”Yes, at the dance.” Hannah gave him a nod and a brief smile. ”Nice to see you again.”
For several moments that followed the polite greetings, no one moved or spoke. It was as if they'd been turned into carved pieces on a chessboard, waiting for someone or something to move them.
”So what's wrong?” Hannah asked at last, taking a step closer and breaking the grip of inertia.
”It's Dad,” Lisa said, sounding tearful. ”We're afraid he killed Uncle Gus!”
CLARA & MARGUERITE HOLLENBECK'S MEXICAN HOTDISH Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the center position.