Secrets in the Stacks, page 22
“I’ve heard that from a lot of people.” Rarity wasn’t sure what to think. Was Lloyd really just giving up now that the journals were gone? “I’ll call her and give her your message. Where are you staying?”
He handed her a card. “That’s my cell. I’m at the Holiday Inn & Suites outside of town. I’ll buy her dinner if she’s willing to meet me. I just want her to know that her grandmother was more than just a housewife. She could have been something big. She was that good.”
After Lloyd left, Rarity called Darby. “Hey, did I catch you between classes?”
“I’m grabbing some lunch at the quad. I’m glad you called. I’m not sure I locked the back door. I’m kind of freaking out here and wondered if you’d go lock up.” She sighed. “Maybe I should just skip class and come back to town.”
“Don’t do that. I’ll go check it. I guess I can get in if the door is unlocked, right?”
“Actually, I left a key to the house in my bag at the bookstore. I worried I was going to lock myself out. I did it a lot, but that was when… Well, now I don’t have anyone to let me in. So I hung a bag in the back room and put a key to the house in there. It also has a little money in case I need it.”
“Okay, then. I guess it’s a smart idea, but maybe we should put it in the safe or the register, just in case someone breaks in here.”
“I hope you’re not mad. I was going to ask you if it was okay, but it’s been a little crazy.”
Rarity tapped the card. “I’m not mad. I think it’s a great idea. I just want you to be safe. Anyway, Lloyd Jones is leaving town since the journals have been stolen, and he wanted to buy you dinner tonight. He says he’d like to tell you about your grandmother.”
There was no answer on the other end.
“Darby? Are you still there?” Rarity held out the phone to see if they were still connected.
“I’m here. I’m just a little shocked. Maybe Malia would come with me. I don’t want to say no, but I don’t want to go alone.”
“Well, if she can’t, call me, and I’ll go with you.” She called Killer over to the counter and clicked on his leash. “I’ll text you and let you know I’ve locked up the house. That way you don’t have to answer during class.” She went back to the back room and found the bag hanging with a few random jackets. The key was down in the bottom. She pulled it out and put it in her jeans pocket.
“Thanks, Rarity. I appreciate you.”
After she hung up, Rarity put up the out-to-lunch sign. She looked down at Killer. “This way we can stop at the diner and get a sandwich for lunch. And maybe some fries.”
Killer barked at the word fries. Rarity knew she shouldn’t, but every once in a while, he got one or two of her fries. Sharing was good. She locked up the store, headed down the sidewalk, and stopped at Carole’s, which was on the way.
Rarity waved at the hostess from the window, and she came outside to meet her. “Sorry, I need to get a to-go order. I’ll be back in about ten minutes to pick it up.”
“Sounds good.” The girl leaned down and rubbed Killer’s ears. “What can I get for you?”
After ordering lunch, Rarity and Killer headed to Darby’s house. The place was larger than most of the houses on the street, but not so big as to be out of place. It looked like a happy house. Rarity used the key to let herself in, and they went straight to the back door that, as Darby was worried about, was unlocked. She locked the door and then checked it to make sure.
As she was walking out, she glanced at the door to the study. Something about the red journal covers had bothered her. Like she’d seen one before. Maybe it was still on the bookshelves.
She opened the door to the study and froze. A man with a gun was standing there. Their gazes locked, and Killer started barking. She reached down to pick him up, hoping to calm him.
“Smart move. I have to say, you’re not who I was waiting for, but maybe you and your dog can keep me company while we wait for the grandchild to show up. Darby’s her name, right? I would have rather had the son, but he’s gone missing. Again. You wouldn’t know where he’s hiding, would you?” The man waved at her with the gun, and Rarity moved into the room and sat on the couch where he’d pointed. It was the man she’d talked to at the bookstore. And now, she realized where she’d seen him before. He had bought and thrown away the Churchill book.
“I’m expected elsewhere,” Rarity said. “But if you want to stop by the store, I have the book you trashed waiting for you.”
“Oh, I didn’t realize it would find its way back. I guess I should have left it somewhere else.” The man shrugged. “Hopefully, no one will come looking for you. I’m trying to keep the collateral damage to a minimum. I’m not a monster.”
“Yet you’re the one pointing a gun at me,” Rarity pointed out.
“It’s unfortunate. If it makes you feel better, I won’t kill the dog. Someone will find your bodies before he starves. People are in and out of this house all the time. Catherine built a good life for her family here.” He sank into a chair opposite her. “A life I didn’t get.”
“You knew Catherine?” Rarity decided that keeping him talking might not save her life, but maybe it would extend it. Drew was busy with his dad. Archer was at a hike until later today. Sam was with Drew. No one but Darby knew she was here. And her life was on the line, just like Rarity’s was. She had to find a way to either escape or warn Darby. It might not save Rarity’s life, but maybe she could save Darby’s.
“Let’s just say Catherine knew me. She dug in too deeply, but I didn’t realize how much she’d already poisoned my life with her meddling. By the time I’d convinced her to back out of writing the story, the damage had been done. I lost my job, my wife, my family because of her. I thought I’d return the favor.”
“You’re Taft.” The words came out without Rarity realizing she was saying them.
His eyes narrowed. “Oh, I hadn’t expected that. You were already onto me. I don’t understand how. Catherine hid from that life very well. If she hadn’t gotten that award for her work with the homeless in Flagstaff, I might never have found her. Good deeds can get you in hot water. At least I have her journals. That way no one should be able to track me after I leave.”
Rarity wanted Taft to tell her everything. It wouldn’t save her life, but maybe if she stalled long enough, Darby would realize something was wrong and call Drew. “You killed her husband, Tom.”
He rolled his shoulders and let his arm holding the gun rest on his leg. “He was supposed to be a warning for her to back off. Like I said, the damage had already been done. I didn’t realize that at the time. It was a calculated risk, and I lost. But this was her fault. She put herself in this position.”
“By trying to tell the truth?” Rarity saw the anger on Taft’s face and pulled Killer closer. She wasn’t extending her life by making him mad. “Anyway, you took her life from her when you killed Tom. And she stopped writing the article. Wasn’t that enough?”
He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. “It didn’t stop my pain.”
Chapter 24
They stayed that way for what seemed like forever. Hoping that he’d fallen asleep, Rarity glanced at the door and started to stand.
“I wouldn’t if I were you.”
The words made her sink back down in the couch. “Look, Darby didn’t hurt you. You killed Catherine, and she was the one you blamed for losing your family. Isn’t that enough?”
“Are you a Christian?”
The words surprised her, especially from a man holding her hostage with a gun. Now she wished she’d taken the time to eat before she’d come to Darby’s. Maybe he would have left, thinking no one was coming. But no, that would have just made it Darby who was killed today. Maybe she still had a chance to talk him out of this. “I went to church as a kid. I had a cancer diagnosis a year ago. Now, I’m not sure what I believe.”
“Honesty. I like that.” He opened his eyes and looked at her. “You look like you made it through. Your hair is probably shorter since the chemo, but then again, it’s the style now. Anyway, in the Old Testament, there are lots of stories of revenge. Even from God himself. Mercy doesn’t seem to be a theme in the stories until Christ shows up in the New Testament. God’s not the loving Father of today’s watered-down sermons. He wiped out entire nations to ease his anger. I’m just taking out one family.”
“That’s not fair. You don’t kill everyone just because of what one person did. Besides, you were the one trying to make AGN9. You were the killer.” Rarity clamped her lips together. She hadn’t meant to mention the pesticide.
“You have done your research.” He stood and started pacing. “Who else was working with you? I might have a few loose ends here in town to clear up before I go looking for Jeff. I have to say, Catherine’s family is keeping me entertained. I thought I’d exact my revenge and be done in a few months, not decades. For a life’s mission, she’s keeping me busy.”
Her stomach growled, and she wondered how long she’d been here and—she closed her eyes—how close it was to the time when Darby would walk through the front door and time would cease to exist for her and Rarity.
He must have heard her stomach, because he laughed. “Our bodies betray us. Even in your fear of dying, it still wants to eat. To stay alive to fight another day. I’d let you go get something from the kitchen, but it has too many sharp objects. And I don’t have anything to tie you up with so I can go instead. If it helps, I’m hungry too. But I’ll wait until I’m in Flagstaff to stop. I need to get some distance between your law enforcement and me before I relax even a little.”
The grandfather clock in the hallway rang out three chimes. Rarity’s heart fell. Darby would be home from Flagstaff at any time. And then this would be over. She tucked her head next to Killer’s and gave him a kiss. “You were a great sidekick. Sam will take you in. Maybe the next home you’ll be in it a little longer, but remember, you were always loved.”
Taft started slow clapping. “Very moving. Maybe I need a dog. What’s this one’s name? I hate to take something that ties me to Sedona, but if I keep him out of sight for a while, it might work.”
“No, you said you’d leave him alone. My friend will take care of him.” Rarity stood and pointed her finger at him. Even the thought of him taking Killer made her see red. “You just leave him alone.”
The door to the study burst open. Rarity felt herself pushed back to the couch while a wall of black stood in front of her. They looked like the soldiers in the older Star Wars movies. She called out, “What’s going on?” But no one seemed to hear her.
She heard a thud and a few voices, then the wall of black moved, and one of the soldiers pulled off his helmet. Drew reached out a hand and pulled her to her feet. “Are you okay?”
“How did you know to look for me? And why are we in a movie?” She looked around the room. The soldiers had what looked like automatic weapons on their chests. And Taft was on his stomach on the floor. His hands behind his back in handcuffs.
“Did you hit your head? Did he hit you?” Drew stared into her eyes. “You don’t seem to have a concussion. I should know, I’ve been dealing with Dad all night.”
“Just get me out of here. I’ve got a to-go order that’s waiting for me.” Rarity looked back at Taft one last time. “And I’m starving.”
Rarity let Drew lead her out of the library. Poor Darby, so many things had happened in that house in the last few weeks, Rarity wasn’t sure she’d want to live there. Drew sat her down in the dining room. “I’ve called Archer to come get you. He said he’ll pick up your to go order. It’s at the Garnet?”
Rarity blinked, his words weren’t making a lot of sense. She rubbed her arms, trying to focus. “No, Carole’s.”
Drew texted a message to Archer as she looked around the dining room. Darby had started making the space her own. At the end of the table was a pile of her school books and she’d set up a small television in the room. Darby. “Darby called and said she thought she’d left the back door unlocked. That’s why I came over.”
“We know. When she didn’t get a text from you, she got worried. So she texted Sam, who checked the shop and seeing it was still locked up, she called me.” Drew sat down next to her. “Then we used the Sedona network to find out what was happening here.”
“I don’t understand. What Sedona network?” Rarity wondered if she was going into shock. Words weren’t making sense. She pulled Killer closer and he licked her hand.
“The neighbors. They’d seen you go in but they knew Darby was at school, so they were worried. I came into the house through the back door and heard you talking in the study about Catherine. So I called in the swat team. I didn’t hear all the conversation, but he’s the one who killed Catherine’s husband?”
“William, Billy, Taft. He wanted to eliminate her whole family because she’d caught him trying to produce a pesticide that would have killed people. I don’t understand some people and their lack of personal responsibility.” She turned to Drew. Her vision was clearing and she didn’t feel like she was going to heave anymore. “Thank goodness for Darby following up. If she’d just come home, well, I hate to think about it.”
“Yeah, she’s a smart one.” Drew turned and Archer was hurrying into the dining room with a to go bag. “Here’s your lunch, special delivery.”
Archer ran to her and pulled her and Killer into a hug. “I can’t believe what just happened. Are you all right?”
At that moment, Rarity felt better than she had in years. She held on tight, hoping they wouldn’t squeeze Killer in the hug.
* * * *
A few weeks later, Rarity was sitting out by the pool with Sam. Killer was sitting by Archer and Drew at the grill, hoping for something to drop. Rarity sipped her wine, dragging her foot through the water. “I’m so glad this whole thing is over.”
“Why? So you can eat?” Drew teased after shutting the grill cover. “I swear, the first thing she said to me after telling me we were in an old movie was that she had food waiting for her.”
“My girl has priorities.” Archer came over and refilled the wineglasses before sitting next to Rarity.
“Stop it, both of you. I was distraught. I clearly didn’t know what I was saying. The guy was going to kill me and Darby. And take Killer as his trophy dog.” Rarity snapped her fingers, and Killer ran over to her, expecting a treat. She pulled him up on her lap instead. “By the way, Sam, I told him that if something happened to me, you’d take him in.”
“You told Killer I’d be his godmother.” Sam shook her head and drank more wine. “You were out of it.”
“Don’t worry about it. Killer always has a home with me.” Drew rubbed the dog’s ears. “Sam might be able to move in, too, if she plays her cards right.”
“Thanks so much. That makes me feel so wanted.” Sam playfully slapped Drew on the arm. “At least Jonathon and Edith have left for Tucson again.”
“Finally. I didn’t think they’d ever leave,” Drew deadpanned. “Even better news, Taft pled guilty, so you and Darby will only have to testify at his sentencing hearing.”
“I still need to go to court?” Rarity sighed. “I was hoping him pleading guilty would keep me from having to go to Flagstaff.”
“I’ll go with you, and we’ll make a long weekend of it.” Archer rubbed her shoulders. “I say we talk about something else for the rest of the night. Like a couples’ trip to Colorado.”
“Okay, I’m a police detective, and the rest of you own businesses that you either are the only one working in or you only have part-time help. How long is this trip going to take?” Drew stood and went to the grill to check the steaks.
“Maybe a long weekend to Tucson, then?” Archer laughed as Drew turned with the tongs in hand. “Okay, maybe not Tucson. I forgot about your parents.”
Drew shrugged. “On the other hand, we could just drop in on them for a while. Eat all their food, leave clothes all over the place, and stay up late watching television. It could be fun payback.”
“Drew…” Sam started, but he shook his head.
“Okay, then, just fun.” He turned the steaks. “Looks like dinner’s ready.”
Sam stood. “I’ll help bring things out of the kitchen.”
“Thanks.” Rarity opened the door and went to the fridge. “I’ll get the salads if you get the dinnerware and silverware.”
“Sure. Hey, the teapot came. You never said anything.” Sam picked up the teapot that was sitting on the stove. “Do you like it?”
“You sent it?”
“Yeah, I wanted to send you a gift for your first anniversary year here in Sedona. Didn’t the card have my name on it?” Sam set the teapot down and opened the cupboard to get the plates.
“No name, no card. Thanks for the gift.” She smiled as she reached in to get the potato salad. “One more mystery solved.”
As they brought out the salads and plates and got ready to eat, Rarity said a short blessing for her life. Maybe Taft had taken another one of her cat lives, or at least scared it out of her, but she was alive and surrounded by people she loved. And who she loved back.
This gathering of souls was what she’d always wanted in her life, and the magic had happened. It had just taken walking through hell to get here. And as the saying went, all she had to do was keep on going.
