Stolen in the Night (8 page)

“What does that mean?” Erny asked.

Tess reddened. “Nothing. He’s a jerk,” she said. “Ignore them. Let’s go in.”

“T
ess, pay attention, honey,” said Dawn. “This is their driveway.”

Startled, Tess made a sharp right turn into the long driveway that led to Jake and
Julie’s house. It was six o’clock and darkness had already descended on Stone Hill
and its outskirts. Julie had called to invite them to their house for dinner and Tess
had gratefully accepted. She wanted to get away from the inn and the reporters who
were still camped there. Tess had been unprepared for the level of hostility she would
encounter after the DNA results. For years everyone in Stone Hill outspokenly agreed
that justice had been done. Now the DeGraffs’ suffering seemed to be forgotten, as
people hurried to disassociate themselves from the injustice to Lazarus Abbott. It
was almost as if the whole town blamed Tess for this blot on its reputation.

Tess drove slowly, gravel crunching under her tires, up the winding drive between
a bank of trees. The house, secluded from view by the trees, sat on a slight rise,
surrounded by a lawn now brown from the early frosts. It was a small house with yellow
clapboard siding, dark green shutters, and a metal chimney for their gas fireplace.
Jake’s white van, ladders fastened to the top, was parked next to Julie’s neat little
compact. On the lawn was a cement statue of a wood nymph holding a lantern, which
illuminated the path to the front door.

Tess, Dawn, and Erny piled out of the car and Erny ran to the door, opened it without
knocking, and charged inside. Tess and Dawn followed at a slower pace. They walked
in and were greeted by rich aromas from the kitchen warring with the sweet, cloying
fragrance of potpourri. Erny flopped down on the plump, flowered sofa, a pink knitted
afghan draped behind him. One of Julie’s four cats jumped up on his lap. The beige
walls of the living room were covered with framed prayers bordered by pastel drawings
of children and doilylike crosses embroidered with flowers and leaves. There were
a number of framed photographs atop the television, including a wedding photo of Julie
and Jake, Julie looking blonde and doll-like in her cinch-waisted wedding gown. There
were several of Kelli at various milestones in her life—in mortarboard and gown, in
a prom dress, and in an army uniform. Erny smiled broadly from an eight-by-twelve
print of his school photo with its royal blue background, framed in silverplate. Over
the mantel of the gas fireplace was a copy of a Thomas Kincade painting of a Cotswolds
cottage amidst a bower of roses. Julie came out of the kitchen and greeted them, wiping
her hands on a dish towel.

“Oh, I can hear Sassy purring from here,” she said. “That cat likes you, Erny.”

Erny smiled. “I know.”

“How’s your cat?” Julie asked him.

“Good,” he said, nodding. “My friend Jonah is taking care of him.”

Julie smiled at him. “Well, I’m sure he’ll miss you while you’re gone.”

Erny shrugged. “Can I watch TV?”

“Go ahead if you want,” Julie said.

Erny, still clutching the uncomplaining, seemingly boneless cat, leaned over eagerly
to get the remote from the coffee table and turned on the set. Tess thought to protest,
but then decided against it. At home, she limited his TV viewing, but during these
visits to New Hampshire there were no children Erny’s age around, and he ended up
watching more television than normal. There’s no harm in it, Tess reminded herself;
he also did a lot more bike riding and exploring than he did at home.

“You two come in and talk to me while I cook,” Julie said. “Jake’s taking a shower.”

Tess followed her mother through the tiny dining area and into the warm kitchen. “It
smells great,” she said.

“Chicken pot pie,” said Julie.

“You make the best chicken pot pie,” said Dawn.

Julie turned to Tess. “What kind of mother-in-law actually likes your cooking?” she
asked incredulously.

Tess smiled.

“So, I hear you’ve had a rough day,” Julie said as she pulled rolls from the oven
to check them and then slid them back in.

Tess sighed. “Well, I feel like public enemy number one. We’ve had anonymous phone
threats and somebody threw a rock at us when we came back to the inn this afternoon.
It nearly hit Erny in the head.”

Julie straightened up, hands on her ample hips. “You’re joking. How could they?”

“It was no joke,” Tess assured her.

Julie shook her head. “Everybody in town is so busy being outraged about the test
results. They don’t seem to remember what a creep Lazarus really was.”

“He was, wasn’t he?” Tess said, craving a little reassurance.

Julie nodded. “Oh, completely. The boys used to trail after him and try to provoke
him but we girls just avoided him. I think the only job he ever had was working for
Nelson. You know, his stepfather. Nobody else would have him. Nelson worked as the
caretaker at the Whitman farm and Lazarus used to help him out. Although I don’t think
he was much good at it because Nelson was always mad at him.”

Julie frowned, recalling events from long ago.

“He came to my father’s garage sometimes. Nelson had a beat-up old truck he used for
work and Lazarus used to bring it in for repairs and service. I remember that truck
because Lazarus used to drive it up on Lookout Ridge where we kids all went parking.
He’d drive up there by himself with the headlights turned off and stare and, you know…do
other things.” Julie shuddered, unwilling to name his onanistic acts. “He didn’t have
a friend in the world.”

“Well, he seems to have some now,” said Tess.

Julie sniffed. “It’s just because his cousin’s the new police chief…”

“That’s what Jake told me,” said Tess.

“But don’t kid yourself. Rusty was ashamed to be related to him even back then. Rusty
used to work for Nelson from time to time, but he was the first in line when it came
to making fun of Lazarus.”

“Hey, look who I found,” said Jake, entering the kitchen with wet hair and clean clothes
and Erny under his arm. He opened the refrigerator door and reached in for a beer.
Then he looked at Erny. “You want one?”

“Jake, for heaven’s sakes,” said Julie.

“It’s a joke,” said Jake.

“I don’t drink,” Erny said gravely.

“Good for you,” said Julie.

“Don’t listen to her,” said Jake. “What have you been up to?”

Erny shrugged. “Not too much. Hey, Uncle Jake, are you going to take me for a ride
in your truck?”

“Honey, don’t bother Uncle Jake,” said Tess.

“No. It’s no bother. I’ve been looking forward to riding around in the mountains with
this guy. How about tomorrow? I’ll come get you at your grandmother’s. How’s that?”

Erny’s eyes lit up and he looked at Tess. “Is it okay?”

“Mmmm,” said Tess absently.

“Okay. Cool,” said Erny.

“Okay. You’re on,” said Jake.

“Can Leo come?”

“Sure. Why not?” said Jake.

“Thanks, Uncle Jake.”

“Okay. Go on, now. Watch the tube till it’s time for dinner. I want to talk to your
mother.”

Jake twisted off his bottlecap and tossed it in the trash as Erny ducked back into
the living room. Then Jake turned to Tess. “What’s the matter, Tess? You look kind
of shaky.”

“I am,” said Tess.

“How come?” said Jake.

“They’re being harrassed,” said Julie.

“By who?” Jake demanded.

“Malcontents,” said Dawn. “That’s all it is. People with nothing better to do.”

Tess sighed. “I don’t know. There are a lot of angry people around this town. I ran
into Nelson and Edith Abbott today. I thought she would try to gouge my eyes out,
but actually he was a lot nastier to me than she was. The very picture of righteous
indignation.”

“Nelson?” Jake asked. “Jesus, he’s full of crap. Nelson resented every penny that
his wife spent defending Lazarus. He’d tell anyone who’d listen how worthless his
stepson was. Well, you heard him when he came to the inn the other day.”

“He’s changed his tune,” said Dawn. “I guess he had to, or Edith would throw him out
of the house.”

“I don’t like that man,” Tess said. “I get a very creepy…feeling from him.”

Jake drained the beer bottle he was holding, opened the refrigerator door, and reached
in for another. “Nelson’s one of those guys who feels like he got the short end of
the stick. Thinks the world never really appreciated him. But don’t worry about him.
He’s harmless.”

“I suppose,” said Tess.

“That’s not what my dad said about Nelson Abbott,” Julie corrected her husband. “He
said that Nelson was a real bastard. He used to beat Lazarus within an inch of his
life. There was testimony about that at the trial. Some people thought Lazarus shouldn’t
get the death penalty because Nelson abused him so bad…”

“Poor little Lazarus,” said Jake in a singsong voice. “Whupped by his mean old stepfather.
If you ask me, Nelson didn’t hit him enough.”

Suddenly there was a loud knock from the direction of the living room.

“Aunt Julie,” Erny cried. “Somebody’s at the door.”

Julie frowned at Jake. “Who’s that? Are you expecting anyone?”

“No,” said Jake grimly. “I’ll get rid of them.” He disappeared into the living room.

“Could it be reporters?” Tess said wearily. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize,” said Julie. “You’ve got nothing to apologize for.”

“That’s what Chief Fuller said. Just before he implied that it was all my fault,”
said Tess.

Jake reappeared in the doorway to the kitchen. “Tess. I’m sorry. You’d better come
out here. It’s the cops.”

“The cops? What now?” said Tess. She looked helplessly at Dawn and Julie. Then she
followed Jake out into the living room. Erny was huddled in the corner of the sofa,
staring at the two burly police officers who were taking up a large amount of space
in the small living room. Their buzz-cut hair, holstered weapons, and somber uniforms
looked completely out of place in Julie’s flowery, pastel decor.

“Tess DeGraff?” the younger officer asked.

Tess nodded.

“Chief Bosworth sent us. He wants to speak to you down at the police station.”

“Now?” said Julie. “We’re just about to sit down to dinner.”

“Sorry, ma’am,” said the older, taller officer. “He wants to see Miss DeGraff right
away.”

“What for?” asked Jake.

“About the Lazarus Abbott case.”

“Wait a minute, wait a minute,” said Jake. “I know this is big news, but let’s remember—it
happened twenty-odd years ago. What’s the hurry? Why can’t she come in tomorrow?”

“Chief wants to see her tonight,” said the younger officer.

“Tasker,” said Jake in a friendly voice to the older officer. “You know me. We’ve
known each other for years. At least to say hello. My sister has been through a lot.
What’s the big rush here? You’re treating my sister like a criminal.”

The younger officer bristled, but Officer Tasker put a restraining hand on his arm
and spoke to Jake in a confiding tone, gazing from Jake to Tess. “There’s a lot of
pressure coming from the public and the chief is short on answers. The chief was hoping
they’d find the real perp when they ran the DNA results through the CODIS database.
But they didn’t get a match.”

“What the hell’s the CODIS database?” said Jake.

“The FBI has DNA records for every sexual pervert who was ever arrested. But we got
the results and our perp wasn’t in there. So the chief is picking up the pace a little
bit. Miss DeGraff, would you mind?”

Tess did mind. She minded very much. But she did not want to start an argument in
front of Erny. “Can I take my own car at least?”

“We’d prefer you come with us. Someone will bring you home afterwards.”

Tess shook her head. “Fine,” Tess said bitterly. “I’ll get my coat.”

Tasker tugged discreetly at the sleeve of the other officer. “We’ll wait for you outside.”

“We’ll go with you, Tess,” said Dawn as the officers went out the front door and closed
it behind them.

“No, stay here and have dinner. I’ll be all right,” said Tess, picking up her jacket
and putting it on.

“Ma, why are you going with the cops? Are you going to go to jail?” Erny cried.

“No, of course she’s not,” Julie said in a soothing tone.

“That Bosworth is a bastard,” said Jake. “I never liked him. Even when he was a kid
he was mean. Remember that, Julie?”

Erny looked up worriedly at his mother. “Why do you have to go, Ma?”

Dawn patted his hand absently. “It’s nothing, dear. It’s all right,” she said.

Erny jerked his hand away from Dawn angrily. “No, it’s not,” he shouted. The cat,
alarmed, leapt from Erny’s lap. “They were cops. They’re making my mother go with
them. That is bad. Stop saying it isn’t.”

Erny’s sharp words were like a slap in Tess’s face, a stinging wake-up call. Tess
looked at her son, who was glaring back at them all.

“Erny,” she cried. She tried to reach for her son’s shoulder, but he twisted himself
away from her.

“If you go to jail, what happens to me?” he demanded. “Who’s gonna take care of me?”

For a moment, Tess was silent, shaken by his angry cry. Then she said, “Erny, I’m
not going to jail. Don’t even say that.”

Erny met her gaze defiantly. “Why not? My real mom did,” he said.

He rarely mentioned his biological mother or the chaos of his life with her. He often
said that he didn’t remember her, but he knew the story of her demise all too well.
His words pained her, but Tess did her best to conceal it. “It’s not going to happen,”
she said. “Because I didn’t do anything wrong.”

Erny slumped down on the sofa, his arms crossed over his chest. He muttered something
unintelligible.

“What was that?” said Tess sternly. “I didn’t hear you.”

Erny looked up at her defiantly, his chin trembling. “You did do something wrong.
You told the cops that guy Lazarus was guilty. And that was a lie. Wasn’t it?”