Part 15 (1/2)
Jenny was just coming out of his office when he walked inside. ”I was just going to leave you a note. I thought you were never coming back.”
”Have any luck?” he asked as he put the mail down on the front desk.
”No, I'm not sure where it's gone. So, have you heard anything about Jefferson's murder? I can't believe our esteemed sheriff let Bill Yadkin go.”
”You sound positive he did it,” Alex said.
”Well, when you take into account how much he hated Jefferson, his horrid temper and the murder weapon itself, I don't see how it could be anybody else.”
Alex could think of at least three other people who could have committed the crime, but he kept the names to himself. ”Did you hear about Marilynn Baxter?”
Jenny nodded her head sadly as she said, ”I'm surprised it took her that long to try.”
”Did I miss something?”
”Yes, but it's not your fault. Alex, there's a fair circuit some of us go on; it's the only way to pay the bills. It's mostly weekends, little fairs like this one where we have a chance to sell our wares and demonstrate our crafts. It's kind of a vagabond lifestyle, and we get to know each other pretty well. Almost too well, if you ask me. I've been waiting for Marilynn to snap. She's been fooling around behind Craig's back for months.”
”How did you feel when you found out she was sleeping with Jefferson Lee?”
Jenny dismissed his statement with the wave of a hand. ”It didn't happen while we were dating. Jefferson must have gone after Marilynn right after I dumped him. There just wasn't any real spark between us.” She inhaled sharply, then suddenly said, ”Oh my G.o.d.”
Jenny had suddenly gone white.
Alex asked urgently, ”What is it?”
”I just figured out why she tried to kill herself. I wonder if she killed Jefferson herself! That would explain why she took those pills. She couldn't face going to prison for the rest of her life.”
”Slow down, Jenny. Do you have any proof that Marilynn killed him? What possible reason would she have for murdering him, especially the way it was done?”
”Don't be such a man, Alex. She killed him to save her marriage. You know she's powerful enough to do it, working with her hands like she does. I don't doubt for one minute when she tried to end the affair, Jefferson told her he'd tell Craig what they'd been doing if she stopped seeing him. There's no doubt in my mind he would have used every bit of leverage he had. Suddenly it all makes sense.”
Alex said, ”Jenny, don't spread that rumor around town. Marilynn's got enough problems as it is at the moment.”
”You're right, Alex. It's all sheer speculation, anyway.” She glanced at the clock above the desk. ”I can't believe the time. I'm late! Gotta run.”
Jenny had been gone less than a minute when the telephone rang. ”Alex, have you heard the news?”
It was Rachel, and she sounded upset.
Alex asked, ”What's happened, Rachel?”
”Marilynn Baxter's dead.”
Alex felt his heart sink at the news. He couldn't believe she was gone! Since he'd been the one to find her, Alex had been pulling for her to make it with all his heart.
”When did she die?” Alex asked sadly.
”Less than twenty minutes ago. Craig called and asked me to sit with her while he came out to see you, and I couldn't just leave the man alone when he got back. He was so distraught.”
Alex could believe that. He'd had a feeling in his gut that Marilynn was going to pull through. He couldn't imagine what her husband was going through. ”How's Craig taking it?”
”He's under sedation right now. They had a horrible time getting him away from the body.”
”I can only imagine,” Alex said. ”Thanks for calling, Rachel.”
Alex immediately phoned Doc Drake. When he was finally put through, he said, ”Doc, I just heard about Marilynn Baxter.”
”Yes, it was a real shame, Alex,” the doctor said brusquely.
”Excuse me for saying so, but you don't sound all that upset about it.”
Doc took a deep breath, then said, ”Alex, I've been up all night with two different emergencies, both of my patients fighting for their lives with every ounce of strength left in them. Marilynn Baxter threw her life away by choice. I'm sorry, it might sound heartless to you, but I don't have any tears left for her. I'll save my emotions for the ones fighting for their last chance.”
In all the years he'd known Doc Drake, Alex had never heard him sound so cynical. ”I'm sorry. I was just concerned. To be honest with you, I sort of felt like I had a stake in her well-being, since I'm the one who found her.”
Doc took a deep breath, then said, ”Alex, I'm the one who's sorry. I've been up around the clock, and I still have a full day of work staring at me. I'm sorry for what I said. I hate losing any of my patients, you know that. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a nap. I have seventeen minutes before my first patient, and I plan to sleep sixteen of them.”
Alex wondered what Craig Monroe would be like now that his wife was dead. Alex remembered the s.h.i.+vers Craig had given him the night before, and though he felt foolish about his reactions in the light of day, he couldn't help wondering if his instincts were trying to tell him something. Was Craig Monroe a grieving spouse, or was he a murderer, intent on covering the last vestiges of his trail? More importantly, did Monroe believe that Alex had held back on him, refusing to share something d.a.m.ning his wife had said? He'd believed Craig when the man had broken down, but could it all have been an act? Alex was going to have to watch his step until he knew for sure.
Alex found himself with time weighing heavily on his hands at The Hatteras West. With no guests at the inn, he'd easily done his day's work in the morning, and while he liked someone to always be at the front desk to answer the phone, he was going crazy all by himself. The travel agent had called with regrets, so that was that. There was really no other reason to hang around. Finally, Alex decided to hang a sign out front and lock the place up tight. He believed in his heart that the answers he was looking for were in town, not at Hatteras West.
The first place Alex stopped was at Shantara's General Store. Alex loved the old mercantile; he had since he was a kid, though his friend hadn't owned it then. Old Mr. Gruber had been delighted to have kids explore the shelves filled with treasures every inch of the way. Shantara hadn't changed much of the old, but she'd added enough new to give the place her own mark. The tiny post office was still in one corner, with its odd little boxes and the iron-barred window in front of it. The aisles held everything from ma.s.sive electric coolers stocked with chilled beverages to shelves filled with nails, screws, kitchen gadgets and a thousand other things a general store should have.
The shelves on the outside walls featured biscuit mixes, pots, pans and all types of specialty goods that weren't available anywhere else in town. Shantara had added a craft corner where the old pickle barrel had once stood, displaying samples from many of the people who had worked the Golden Days Fair. Another corner featured a potbellied stove with three mismatched rocking chairs around it, while the fourth corner held the sales counter and the cash register, a machine that looked old-fas.h.i.+oned but in fact was a modern piece of equipment.
Alex found Shantara behind the counter selling Jake Trush a pound of sixteen-penny nails.
”I should have bought an inn instead of a farm,” Jake said, smiling when he saw Alex. ”It must be nice goofing off in the middle of the day.”
Alex knew the man was just trying to be neighborly, but he wasn't in the mood for light banter. Still, he had to hold up his end of the exchange, or the word would go out that Alex was in a ”bad way,” no doubt attributed to Elise's absence.
He said as lightly as he could manage, ”Yeah, it probably is nice not to be working, but I wouldn't know a thing about it. If I find somebody who is goofing off, I'll be sure to give him a pat on the back.”
Jake smiled. ”Give him a rap for me, too, will you? See you later, Shantara. You know what they say: Every new project takes three trips to the store before it's done.”
”You've got one more coming then, Jake.”
After he was gone, Shantara said, ”What brings you over here in the middle of the day, Alex? Not that I'm not glad for your company.”
”I thought you might like to know. Marilynn Baxter just died.”
”I found out an hour ago. Alex, from what I've heard, she never really had a chance.”
”Is there anything you don't know, Shantara?”
”It's part and parcel to running a general store. Everybody and his brother shows up sooner or later, and it's a rare customer who doesn't have a bit of gossip to share over this counter.” Shantara lowered her voice as she added, ”I just wish I knew who killed Jefferson Lee. Alex, I won't feel safe until they arrest someone.”