“They’ll listen to me,” Des said. “And you have my word that neither man will be around Sour Cherry Lane for much longer.”
“My sweet little baby girl,” Carolyn sighed. “Her father’s dead and her mother’s a drugged out whore. God, what must she think of me?”
“She’s concerned about you,” Megan said. “But she’s resilient and she’s strong.”
“And a lot of good people are looking out for her,” Des said. “Not only the Beckwiths but Amber and Keith. Also Bella.”
“And your friend Mitch, I bet,” Carolyn said, nodding her head. “I know Molly adores him.”
“Well, no. Mitch moved back to New York.”
Carolyn looked at Des in disbelief. “I knew that. You two broke up months ago. Sorry, there are big chunks of things I keep forgetting.”
“The doctor told you there might be short term memory lapses,” Megan said. “But you’re going to get better, sweetie. As soon as you feel up to it we’ll head home to the farm and I’ll put you to work out in the fresh air. You’ll be your old self before you know it. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“If you say so,” said Carolyn, unconvinced.
“How much do you know about Clay’s business?” Des asked her.
“He never works at it very hard. Although he and Hector always have plenty of money. That’s all I know.”
“Those men who you said were making deliveries-deliveries of what?”
“Haven’t the slightest idea. I wasn’t very conscious of what went on outside of my bedroom.”
“Do you remember when I came to your house to tell you that Richard had been hospitalized?”
“Maybe,” she answered drowsily. “Not really.”
“How about when Richard showed up there last week?”
“He wanted to come home. I didn’t want to see him. Or him to see me. I told Clay to make him go away.”
“Carolyn, what can you tell me about last night? Think hard, please. Any light you can shed will be a tremendous help. Did Richard show up there again? Did he knock on your door? Ask to see you?”
Carolyn’s eyelids were starting to droop. “I don’t remember anything like that. Richard knocking on the door. Or anybody else. Doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. I was so high that anybody could have been… They heated up a pizza.”
“Clay and Hector?”
“They were in the kitchen playing cards. I was in bed with my iPod, blissing out on Green. I still love R.E.M. When I was in college they were the coolest band. So smart and hip.”
“What else do you remember?”
“Hector,” she replied, curling her lip in disgust. “He came in and did what he felt like. He smells really bad. I don’t know, maybe I crashed after that. Until there was this huge commotion.”
Des leaned forward slightly. “What kind of commotion?”
“You coming in to tell me that Richard was dead. Only I didn’t believe you. I wanted to see him for myself. And there were police cars. And neighbors standing out there staring at me and…” She trailed off. “I wigged out, didn’t I?”
“Just a little.”
“Now I’m so tired,” she murmured, her eyes falling shut. “I’m just so completely, totally tired.”
A nurse bustled in to check Carolyn’s vitals and change her IV bag. Des put her big hat back on and left the lady to it. Megan followed her out into the hospital corridor.
“May I ask you what else her doctor has told you?” Des said to her.
“That the emotional burden of Richard’s death will make it even harder to wean her off of the meth. No surprise there.” Megan jammed her hands in the back pockets of her jeans, rocking back and forth on her heels like an old-timey New England farmer. “He asked me if she’s a strong person emotionally. I told him she is. But dear God, nobody’s that strong.”
“He discussed short term memory loss with you. How about the other possible side effects of prolonged meth use?”
“Such as…?”
“Paranoia and rage. Episodes of violent behavior. We have a lot of criminal cases on file that fit such a pattern.”
Megan glowered at her. “What are you saying-that you think Carolyn may have killed Richard herself and doesn’t remember it?”
“I’m saying we can’t rule anything out.”
“I know my sister, okay? She’s the gentlest soul on earth. She could never, ever do something like that. I don’t care how stoned she was.”
“We believe that two people were involved. The slasher and whoever helped him dispose of the body.”
“She wasn’t involved. And you’ll never make me believe so.”
“I don’t mean to be harsh, Megan. I’m just trying to prepare you. Have you met Clay Mundy yet?”
“I have no interest in meeting him,” she said, yawning hugely. And looking plenty weary herself.
“I take it you sat up all night with her.”
“I did, yeah. I’m told there’s a decent motel across the street. I’ll get a room there until she’s ready to leave.”
“I was surprised it took you so long to get here yesterday from Blue Hill.”
Now she eyed Des very guardedly. “What do you mean by that?”
“When I phoned your partner, Susan, she told me it’s an eight to ten hour drive, depending on the traffic. You left there at noon and yet you didn’t get here until midnight.”
“That’s all true. Except Susan didn’t tell you that I was up at five a.m. putting in a solid six hours of chores before I left. My eyes started to get tired after a few hours on the road, so I pulled off at a rest stop outside of Ogunquit and took a nap for a couple of hours.”
“That would be Ogunquit, Maine?”
“That’s right. Now you’re making it sound like I’m the one who killed Richard.”
“Just connecting the dots, as I said before.”
“And I didn’t like it when you said it before,” Megan blustered. “I’m not a dot. My sister’s not a dot.”
“I take it you and Richard had issues.”
“Richard Procter was an overbearing, pompous jerk. I could barely tolerate the man. Is that what you mean by issues?”
“Did he have a problem with you?”
“Do you mean because I’m gay? As a matter of fact he did. He was not comfortable spending time with us at the farm. Didn’t care for his precious Molly being around ‘The Girls.’ He was petrified that somehow Susan and I would indoctrinate Molly into the secret ya-ya sisterhood of queerdom. When we were here for Christmas he made it abundantly clear to us that he did not want to return to Blue Hill this summer.”
“How did you feel about that?”
Megan shrugged her shoulders. “Sorry for Carolyn, mostly. Richard was a smart man. And a decent father, I suppose. But that doesn’t mean he couldn’t be a complete ass. Was I surprised when Carolyn told me he’d been sleeping with another woman? Not at all. Was I surprised that she told him to get out? You bet. And kind of proud of her, too. Carolyn can be something of a doormat. But she stood up for herself this time.”
“Did you encourage her?”
“Maybe I did,” Megan admitted. “She’s my baby sister. I’ve looked out for her since she was in pigtails. But, believe me, I had no way of knowing the two of them would completely crash and burn like they did. I never saw it coming. If I had I would have been down here in a heartbeat. And if she’d wanted to take him back I would have made every effort to help, despite my own feelings for the man.” Megan ran a hand over her face, stifling another yawn. “May I ask you something now?”
“Absolutely.”
“How do I get Clay Mundy and that friend of his out of my sister’s house?”
“We can help you there-when the time comes.”
“When the time comes,” she repeated. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Right now, it’s best if they stay where they are.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re suspects in an ongoing murder investigation. We want them right where we can find them. The status quo is the way to go-no matter how odious it may seem. Understand?”
“I’m a farmer. I understand pigs and goats. But you seem to care about what you’re doing, so I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Provided you’re looking out for Molly.”
“Molly’s perfectly safe, I assure you.”