Coming to Rosemont (5 page)

Tim looked surprised, but if he was disappointed,
he didn’t let on. “Rosemont is one of the most distinct properties in this
area. I’ve admired it since I was a little boy. The best outcome is for it to remain
the private home of someone who appreciates it. There’s been speculation over
the years that it would become an assisted-living facility or bed and
breakfast. I wouldn’t want either of those.”

Maggie settled into her chair, relieved at his
good-natured loss of a lucrative listing and that he wasn’t trying to change
her mind by bringing up all of the obvious challenges to maintaining the
historic home and spacious grounds.

“I never met your late husband. My condolences on
his death. Will you be working here in Westbury?” Tim was obviously interested
in this development. Like all realtors, he was a repository of the history and
news of his area. He sensed that he had a scoop in the making.

“I’m a consultant. My clients are all over the country
and I work from home,” she said. “I’m going to spend the next week trying to
get Rosemont cleaned up. Then I’ll go back to California to pack up my house
and put it on the market.”

Tim thoughtfully considered this information and
offered to help her with referrals to any services she would need. “Surely
you’re not going to clean that entire house by yourself? Would you like me to
arrange housekeepers to come out? Even with an experienced crew, it will take
the best part of a week to clean that place. And the finest handyman around is
Sam Torres,” he opined.

Maggie smiled at the mention of Sam’s name. She
told him about meeting Sam and having Sunday supper at the Torres home.

“That sounds just like them. People around here
are decent and generous and kind. You’ll like it here,” Tim assured her.

“I’d be very grateful if you could arrange
housekeepers. That’ll free me up to start making arrangements for my move
here,” she said.

“Will do. Don’t hesitate to call me if you need
anything. Do you have children at home?”

“No. My children are grown and gone, and I live
alone. Correction—I adopted a stray dog two days ago, and she and I will
be Rosemont’s official residents.”

If Tim thought it was odd that this accomplished
woman was so anxious to abandon a well-ordered life in the social elite, he
didn’t let on. They parted with his promise to get back to her in the morning
with arrangements for the cleaning crew.

***

Maggie headed into the Westbury
Animal Hospital lobby shortly before five. John Allen led out a buffed-and-fluffed
Eve, wearing a proper collar and leash. “Oh, my gosh. I completely forgot about
getting them for her. I guess I’m not a very good dog mommy!”

“Don’t worry about it. Consider them a welcome
gift,” he said, handing her the leash. “She’s in fine shape. She shouldn’t have
any reactions to her shots. They’ve got her paperwork and dog food samples at
the front desk.”

Maggie got down on one knee to accept Eve’s
enthusiastic greeting. “Thank you very much, Dr. Allen,” she said, looking up
and flashing him a warm smile.

“Let me know if you need anything or have any
questions. You’ll be fine. Just stay away from feeding her people food,” he
reminded her.

“Will do,” she said, smiling back at him over her
shoulder as she and Eve headed to the desk.

Dr. John Allen felt an unexpected jolt of
happiness as he regarded his new patient and her fascinating owner.

***

Tim was as good as his word, and at
eight o’clock the next morning he called to tell Maggie he would be over in an
hour with a cleaning crew to get Rosemont whipped into shape. The crew was
composed of four young Amish women. Beautiful girls with clear skin and long
locks wound into buns under their hairnets.

Evidently they had been working together for some
time because they quickly unloaded their supplies and sprang into concerted
action without direction from Maggie.

Over the next four days, she marveled as Rosemont
was transformed from its state of benign neglect to one of gleaming beauty. The
lively conversations between the hardworking, cheerful girls brought a sense of
vibrancy to the place that had long been missing. She swore she could feel the
house smile. Eve, on the other hand, did not like the frequent running of
vacuum cleaners and gave the crew a wide berth, preferring to glue herself to
Maggie.

***

Maggie, now totally smitten with
her new companion, was anxious to complete the necessary paperwork to secure
the adoption. As late afternoon faded to dusk, the temperature dropped and the
falling sleet froze to the ground, making the roads treacherous. She berated
herself as she cautiously entered the parking lot of Forever Friends.
I
should have turned around and gone back home. I don’t know how to drive in this
stuff. They wouldn’t have given Eve to someone else if I had waited until tomorrow
to finalize things. And if I ran into any resistance, that nice Frank Haynes
would have smoothed things over for me.
Her trusty Uggs provided firm
traction across the icy lot. She was standing at a tall counter, filling out
forms when a vaguely familiar voice called her name. She turned to see a
smiling Frank Haynes coming toward her.

“Mrs. Martin?” he asked, as he extended his hand.

“Maggie, please,” she replied as she shifted her
pen to her left hand and they shook. “I’m getting Eve’s adoption finalized.
Thank you for smoothing the way for me.”

“My pleasure. I heard from Dr. Allen that she
checked out just fine. I hope you’re enjoying her.”

“Absolutely. She’s wonderful.”

“How are you finding Westbury? Quite a change from
Southern California, isn’t it? Especially on a day like today. Most people want
to move
to
California. We don’t have many that do it the other way
around.”

“You’re right about the weather, for sure. But
don’t sell Westbury short. It has a lot of charm. And the people are warm and
friendly. Authentic. You’ve been so nice and helpful to me.” Haynes inwardly
cursed himself. “And, of course, then there’s Rosemont.”

“Ah, yes. Rosemont. A big old beauty, to be sure.
But sort of an albatross, I would think. What with all of the repair and constant
maintenance. Seems like a lot for one woman to take on, if you don’t mind me
saying.”

“Fortunately, I’ve found a wonderful handyman and
we’re getting everything in shape. I’ve only been there a short time, but it’s
home already. I suspect my moving here will strike people as odd. But it feels
right to me.”

“Well, time will tell,” he said through a
tight-lipped smile. “I’ll let you get back to your paperwork. We close in ten
minutes.” And without waiting for further reply, Haynes turned and walked stiffly
away.

***

While Rosemont was being cleaned
and polished, Maggie responded to emails from clients, arranged for cable TV
and Internet service, and added to her lists of things to accomplish both there
and in California. Her clients knew she was on vacation this week, and she
didn’t receive many messages from them. She was surprised, however, that she
received only a few emails from her “friends” back home. Maggie always
suspected that most of them had been centered on Paul or, more specifically, on
what Paul could do for them. She felt betrayed by the people who turned away
from her after the first few weeks of activity following his death. Truth be
told, the funeral and reception afterward had been a social occasion, and one’s
place in the local pecking order was determined by how much you did for the
family of the deceased and how close you sat to them at the funeral. Maggie
loathed the shallowness of it all. As the week wore on, she realized that it
would be far easier to cut ties than she had first thought.

Maggie took photos of each room and made
inventories of furniture, rugs, lamps, and accessories. She loved the Old World
European style of Rosemont: generous, comfortable, inviting, and livable. She
quickly realized that none of her contemporary furnishings in California would
be suitable here and that she was ready for a complete change. It would be much
simpler, anyway, to pack up her clothes and her family photos and heirlooms,
and leave the rest. A lightness settled on her as she decided to let Mike and
Susan take what they wanted, and to sell or donate the remainder.

Sam arrived every afternoon by three o’clock and
worked his way through leaking plumbing, sagging hinges, and a host of other delayed
maintenance items. He always let Maggie know he was there, but he wasn’t chatty
and worked steadily and methodically through his tasks. Maggie was surprised to
see him on Wednesday and assured him it was fine if he quit working early to
get ready for the town meeting. “I know how important this is to you. Be sure
to give that councilwoman my card. I may be able to refer someone who can
help.”

“I’ve already passed it on. Tonya said that a
forensic accountant is exactly what we need and, if we can raise some money to
hire one, she’ll call you. And to thank you very much.”

Maggie’s head snapped up. Of course these good
people couldn’t afford to hire a consultant. She was the person they needed.
Here she was in their midst, about to move into this glorious house she had
been lucky enough to inherit. If this wasn’t the hand of fate telling her to
give back, she didn’t know what it was. She checked her watch and decided to
finish one more email before she got ready to attend the town meeting and do
everything in her power to assist them.

Chapter 4

As she changed clothes for the
meeting, Maggie recognized she would be making her Westbury debut and carefully
attended to her hair and makeup. She dressed in the black St. John suit she
always packed when she needed business attire away from home. Surveying herself
in the mirror, she was pleased with the effect. Elegant, classy, and
understated. Exactly the tone she wanted to set.

Maggie allowed more than enough time to locate the
library and arrived thirty minutes early. A crowd had already assembled, and
she got one of the last spots in the parking lot. She wove around clusters of
people talking animatedly as she made her way to the entrance.
I’m in for
quite an interesting evening,
Maggie thought. Heads turned in her direction
as she passed and a curious buzz followed in her wake.

Maggie caught sight of Sam Torres just as he
spotted her. He waved her over to where he and Joan were waiting for the doors
to open. They greeted each other warmly. “ I can’t believe you’re here! Are you
attending the meeting?” Joan asked.

“Of course I am,” Maggie assured her. “This is
exactly the kind of thing I investigate in my business. I’m so sorry that I
didn’t volunteer to help you right away,” she apologized. “This is a huge
issue. And by the looks of this crowd, it’s vitally important to a lot of
people. My experience might come in handy here.”

“That’s what we were just saying,” Joan agreed. “I
was hoping you’d help us figure out what’s going on.”

Their conversation was cut short as the library
doors swung open and people pushed forward to get out of the frigid evening and
find a seat in the overheated main reading room. Maggie trailed closely behind
Sam and Joan, and they managed to find three seats together in the second row.
Chairs were closely spaced and the bulky winter coats that everyone held on
their laps added to the cramped feeling. The nape of Maggie’s neck was growing
damp and she felt a wee bit claustrophobic. She was wishing she hadn’t stuck
her nose into this whole mess and was home in her pajamas with Eve when a hush
fell on the room and a statuesque dark-haired woman in a tailored navy suit and
pearls took the podium. Tonya Holmes had high cheekbones, mahogany skin, and a
commanding presence. She waited until the room was absolutely still and all
eyes were upon her before she spoke.

“My friends, thank you for coming out on this cold
evening. We’re a bit crowded in here tonight. That’s a good thing. I’m encouraged
that so many of you are interested in what’s going on. We’ve got some pretty
distressing things to talk about, so make yourselves as comfortable as you can.
We’ve got a water station in the back, so feel free to get up and stretch your
legs or get a drink whenever you need to.”

She’s good,
Maggie thought.

Tonya continued in a steady tone, “I promise you
that I’ll listen to what each of you has to say. And if we run out of time
tonight, we’ll hold another town meeting. Everyone will be heard. And no matter
what we uncover in our investigation, we’ll get through this together in a way
that best serves all of us. Westbury has a long, proud heritage of selfless
community action, and we’re going to continue that tradition. I grew up here,
fourth generation. I’ve known all of the powers that be all of my life.
And
I am not scared of any of them.
I’m staying right here until the job is
done.”

At this, the crowd began to clap, at first
tentatively in that space that was usually so quiet, then growing in
enthusiasm. The energy in the room was palpable.

“Now,” Tonya said, “As you know, I have been
calling for an independent audit of Westbury’s books. At first, I simply
thought this was good practice. I never dreamed that something could be wrong.
But the more I requested and pushed for one, the more the mayor and the other
councilmembers balked and stalled and misdirected the conversation.

“I grew up the oldest child in a large family,”
she continued. “I’ve heard plenty of wild excuses and tall tales in my time. My
mother always knew when one of us was lying, and I guess I’ve inherited her
nose for nonsense.” At this, a chuckle rippled through the crowd. “I felt like
I was back in my mother’s kitchen with my brothers when these guys were making
excuses to avoid an audit,” she said. “So I decided to dig in my heels and find
out about the town’s finances, one way or the other. And at last week’s town
council meeting, I finally got my chance. Mayor Wheeler left the bank statement
out on the council table in plain sight when we went to recess.” Tonya paused
for dramatic effect. “So I spent the recess poring through it. Long story
short, the general account is about half of what was recorded in the
treasurer’s report and the pension fund was short by almost forty percent.” A
gasp escaped from the crowd, and side conversations started up all over the
room.

Tonya raised her hands and gestured for quiet. “At
this point, I don’t have a good picture of where the money has gone. I
confronted the mayor and council when we resumed after recess. They scolded me
for looking at ‘confidential town information,’ as they called it, telling me that
I didn’t understand what I was looking at. ‘Well, enlighten me,’ I said.
Instead, they quickly adjourned the meeting. I’ve been calling the mayor and
each of my fellow councilmembers ever since, and no one has been available to
take my call. And they’re not coming to their offices, either.

“They’ve all gone to ground,” she continued. “And
you hunters in the crowd know what that means. We have to drive them out of
their hidey-holes. And this is where I desperately need your help. Each and
every one of you.

“First, I need everyone in this room to contact
the mayor and your councilmembers, demanding an immediate audit of the town’s
financials. You can do this by phone, fax, letter, or email. I want them
inundated with demands. They need to know that they cannot escape this issue.
I’ve put a list of the contact information you’ll need on handouts for you to
pick up on the way out.

“Second, we need to be able to quickly communicate
with each other. I want to know what response you’re getting from them. I’d like
to be the gathering point for information. The handout has all of my contact
numbers. I’m going to send out email updates. If you’d like to receive them,
put your email address on the sheet that’s being circulated.

“Lastly,” she added, “I need a small committee of
volunteers to analyze the information that we receive and formulate a strategy
to deal with whatever we uncover. That should be the town council’s job, but I
don’t think we can rely on them. Former prosecutor Alex Scanlon has agreed to
help us. I’d also like to have a CPA, a business owner, and one representative
from the teacher’s union and one from the town workers’ union. So if you’re
interested in serving, or know someone who would be good, please see me after.

“I know that this is all very upsetting, but as I
said in the beginning, none of us are going anywhere, so we better figure this
out and fix it together. Your coming here tonight has been very encouraging to
me,” she said with a catch in her voice. “I love Westbury and am so proud to be
on the town council. I look forward to continuing to serve you.”

The crowd began to clap. Sam was the first person
on his feet and the rest of the room followed suit with a rousing ovation.
Tonya flushed and discreetly dabbed at the corner of her eye with a tissue.
She
certainly has guts to stand up to the old boy network,
Maggie thought with
admiration.

When the applause died down and the crowd began to
disburse, Maggie made her way to the podium. She introduced herself and told
Tonya that she had just relocated to Westbury, was a forensic accountant, and
would serve on the committee.

Tonya looked visibly relieved. “This is great
news. Sam gave me your card. I was hoping we could get you to help. Since
you’re just moving here, I didn’t think there was any way that you’d have the
time or the interest. I don’t know what to say. I’m very grateful.”

Maggie dismissed her thanks with an embarrassed
wave and told her that she would be in California next week, but would make herself
available for conference calls with the committee and would be available via
email around the clock, if that was what the situation required. “Don’t worry,
we’ll figure this out,” she assured Tonya as she stepped aside to make way for
the crowd gathering around the councilwoman.

“Why, hello, John,” Tonya greeted Dr. Allen warmly
as he approached. “I thought I saw you in the crowd. Thank you for making the
time to come.”

“Wouldn’t have missed it,” he assured her. “If you
don’t have another business owner in mind for your committee, I’d be happy to
help you. This issue affects all of us in many ways.”

“Terrific. I now have three members of my
committee. Have you met Maggie Martin?” Tonya asked. “She’s new in town and is
a forensic accountant,” she said as she turned to Maggie.

Maggie and John smiled at each other and John said
that they had just met, that Maggie’s dog was one of his patients. Tonya
regarded them thoughtfully. “Great. We’re off to a good start.” At this point,
Sam leaned in and offered to be the town worker’s union representative. He
pointed to Maggie and said, “Didn’t I tell you? She’s going to help us, isn’t
she? She’s exactly what we need.”

“Absolutely,” Tonya replied. “For a newcomer, you
sure know a lot of people.” She turned to address a question from a young woman
who had been patiently waiting her turn. Maggie, Sam, and John drifted over to
the door where Joan was waiting.

“I’m returning to California on Sunday to make
arrangements for my move here,” Maggie told them. “I don’t plan to be gone too
long. I’m hoping to be back in a week. I’m used to working remotely, so I can
do my part.”

John looked at her quizzically. He didn’t say
anything but was thinking what a dynamo she must be if she could pack up her
life and move across the country in one week’s time, all the while maintaining
her business and helping on this committee. “Why don’t we get together as a
group once before you leave?” he suggested. “Meet at Pete’s, my treat. I’ll get
with Tonya and set something up.”

With this decided, they headed out into the night.
Freezing rain made the parking lot treacherous, especially in the dress heels
that Maggie wore. She slipped and caught herself on the side mirror of a parked
car. John took her elbow and, ignoring her embarrassed protests, steered her
steadily to her car.

“Thank you so much.” She blushed. “I guess I need
to watch the weather before I pick out my shoes.”

“You don’t get freezing rain in Southern
California too often, do you? You’ll get used to it. How’s Eve doing?” he
asked. “No reaction to the shots?”

“None,” Maggie replied. “She doesn’t much like
vacuum cleaners, but other than that, she’s very happy. I was going to call
your office to board her with you while I’m in California.”

“We’ll take good care of her while you’re gone. No
worries,” he said.

Maggie heaved a sigh of relief. “I’ll feel better
about leaving her with you. I’ll call in the morning,” she said as she got into
her car. She watched him walk away as she pulled out of the lot.