The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society (35 page)

Officer Joey Daniels steps into the office, followed by a woman wearing jeans and a pale pink button-up shirt, boots. Her gray hair is pulled back in a bun. Her cheeks are sun-chapped. She takes in Connie’s all-black attire, her spiky hair.

“I want to press charges,” she says in a faint voice.

“But I didn’t take her!” Connie protests. “I found her. I’m the one who made up the signs!”

“You had her for almost eight weeks!” the woman cries. “Nobody saw these signs until today! You only brought her in because you thought she was sick. Fun’s over, huh?”

Connie looks at Eli in disbelief. “You believe me, right?”

“Rayna, let’s calm down,” Eli says. “Everyone’s worked up and I do believe Connie. She has no reason to lie about this. I think she’s sincerely concerned about Serena’s—I mean Daffodil’s—welfare.”

“I don’t care,” Rayna says. “I have been worried sick about Daffodil, and to think that something might have happened to her …” She shakes her head.

“I’m going to have to ask you some questions, Connie,” Officer Daniels says. “And there was some property damage to the Dohertys’ farm. Can you come down to the station?”

Connie nods, numb. She’s never been in any kind of trouble, even when she was in all those foster homes. “Can I at least see Serena before I go?”

“No!” Rayna is livid. “I don’t want you near her, ever.” She turns to Officer Daniels. “I want to file a restraining order against this woman.”

“Mrs. Doherty, let me talk to her first,” Officer Daniels says. “This may be a big misunderstanding.”

“Yes,” says Eli.

“Doubtful,” sniffs Della.

“Let’s go, Connie.” Officer Daniels nods to the door. “We’ll sort this out at the police station.”

“May I take Daffodil now?” Rayna asks Eli.

He hesitates, glancing at Connie, then nods. “You can bring your truck round back,” he tells Rayna.

Connie follows Officer Daniels out the door and through the busy waiting area. Animals and humans alike turn to look at her, their faces curious. Officer Daniel’s squad car is out front, and everyone up and down the street is watching them.

“Do I go with you or follow in my car?” Connie asks in a small voice.

Officer Daniels turns to Connie. “You’re not under arrest,” he says. “But don’t take any detours, okay?”

Connie’s hands are shaking as she fumbles for her keys. Officer Daniels flips on the lights to the squad car. The siren blares as she follows him to the police station.

Chapter Fifteen
 

Ava sits on the hard bench, her face twisted with worry.

“I have to pick up my son from preschool,” she tries to tell a passing officer, but the officer keeps walking.

“Excuse me,” she calls to another officer but the officer shakes his head.

Ava glances anxiously at the clock. There’s a scuffle as the double doors burst open and a pretty blond woman is escorted in, her hands also in cuffs, a triumphant look on her face. After a second Ava recognizes her as Yvonne, Isabel’s friend, the woman she met at the scrapbooking meeting.

The officer seats Yvonne next to Ava on the booking bench with a stern reprimand. Yvonne looks at Ava in surprise, notes the cuffs around Ava’s wrists as well. “Oh, hey,” Yvonne says. “Ava, right?”

Ava nods. “What are you in for?”

“Disturbing the peace. You?”

“Destruction of property.”

Yvonne nods. They watch as two officers confer between the desks, glancing at the two women.

The doors swing open again and Madeline bursts through, a worried
look on her face. “Sergeant Overby!” she calls out, and then stops when she sees the women sitting on the booking bench. “What in the world?”

Ava and Yvonne offer guilty smiles. “Hi, Madeline,” they say.

“Goodness, what are the two of you doing here?” she asks, when Sergeant Robert Overby emerges from a room in the back of the small station.

“Are you here about Connie?” he asks Madeline.

Madeline nods. “Where is she?”

Sergeant Overby comes over. “She’s in the debriefing room—she’ll be done soon. What do you know about that goat of hers? She said you were there when she brought her home.”

“Yes,” Madeline says. “She’d gone to the farmer’s market and found her there.”

“Did she say what her intentions were? Apparently some flyers went up today, but why did it take her so long before notifying anybody about the goat’s whereabouts?”

Madeline knits her brows. “Is Connie in some kind of trouble?” she asks.

Sergeant Overby looks grim. “She’s in some kind of trouble, all right. She’s been accused of theft—goat-napping, to be precise.”

“But that’s ridiculous!” Madeline exclaims. She’s about to push past Sergeant Overby when he holds up his hands and shakes his head.

“I’m afraid not, Madeline. Rayna Doherty is pressing charges. Someone broke into the petting zoo about eight weeks ago. There were skid marks everywhere—a busted fence and trough—and they took off with one of Rayna’s goats. This one was pregnant, too. Did it in the middle of the night, scared everyone.”

“I can assure you that Connie would never do such a thing,” Madeline says vehemently.

“Can you vouch for her whereabouts the night before?”

“Of course.” Madeline casts an anxious look at Ava and Yvonne. “She was home, with me.”

“Are you a light sleeper?”

Madeline stiffens. “Average, I’d say. Bumps in the night wake me up.”

Sergeant Overby nods. “Early to bed?” he asks.

Madeline’s face is a blank.

Sergeant Overby sighs. “No offense, Madeline, but this happened just after midnight. Connie could have easily slipped out, gone to the Dohertys’ farm, stashed the goat, then brought her around in the morning. You wouldn’t be any the wiser.”

“If there were skid marks everywhere, couldn’t you match the tire tracks with Connie’s car?” Yvonne asks. Everyone turns to look at her in surprise. “That would resolve it once and for all, wouldn’t it?”

“This is Avalon, Ms. Tate. We don’t plaster tracks unless foul play is suspected.”

“You didn’t suspect it then but you suspect it now?” Ava asks. She looks at Yvonne for support. “I mean, tire tracks and a broken fence sound like foul play to me.”

Yvonne and Madeline are nodding while Sergeant Overby looks flummoxed.

“So if there’s no way to match up the tire treads,” Yvonne continues, considering this aloud. “What about checking her car for any damage? Even if she had it fixed up you’d be able to tell, right?”

“Yes!” Madeline says. “Her car is right there on the curb and I know it hasn’t been in any sort of incident, ever. Connie is a very conscientious driver.”

Connie emerges from the debriefing room looking shaken. Officer Juanita Tripp is behind her. When Connie sees Madeline she rushes forward.

“They didn’t even let me say goodbye!” she cries as Madeline puts her arms around her. “They think I stole her!”

“Connie, we’re going to inspect your car now,” Sergeant Overby says. Connie sniffs and nods. They watch as Officer Tripp goes outside.

Sergeant Overby looks at Ava and Yvonne with a shake of his head. “Please tell me you weren’t planning on booking these women,”
he says to Officer Daniels with a sigh. “Get those cuffs off of them, for Pete’s sake.”

Officer Daniels looks up with a frown. “Sergeant, Ms. Catalina dumped a trash bag full of diningware into a convertible sports car without provocation,” he reports. “Pots, pans, plates, bowls, glassware, forks, spoons, and
knives
.” He lingers on the last word, eyebrows raised knowingly.

Sergeant Overby isn’t impressed. “And?”

Officer Daniels checks his notes. “Ms. Tate publicly humiliated a member of the Hill family and caused excessive damage to their front porch.”

“First of all, there’s hardly a dent on that porch,” Yvonne says. “And second of all, I needed to wipe my hands on something and it turned out the towel around his waist was all he had on.”

Ava giggles. Even Sergeant Overby gives a chuckle.

Officer Tripp reappears in the station and hands Connie back her keys. “No marks, sir,” she says.

Sergeant Overby nods. “Connie, you’re free to go,” he says. He grabs the handcuff keys from Officer Daniels and quickly removes the cuffs from Yvonne and Ava. “We still need to talk to each of you.”

“Can I go first?” Ava asks anxiously. She quickly apologizes to Yvonne. “My son is in preschool and I’m already late—really late—to pick him up. They charge a lot for after-school care and I don’t want him to be worried.”

“Do you have anyone else who can go in your place?” Sergeant Overby asks.

Ava shakes her head. “It’s just me …” she starts to say, when she remembers. When she was filling out the paperwork for the school, it was mandatory that she list an emergency contact. She didn’t have anyone, didn’t have any names or phone numbers to put down except for …

The door swings open and Isabel walks through, Max in her arms.

“Max!” Ava cries in relief, rushing forward.

“Mommy!”

“Isabel?” Yvonne breaks into a grin.

“Yvonne?” Isabel looks bewildered as she looks between Yvonne and Ava. “Ava? What the heck is going on here?”

Ava is kissing Max’s face as he squirms and giggles. “How did you know I was here?” she asks breathlessly. She holds her son tight, so grateful that she can’t help smiling at Isabel.

But Isabel doesn’t return the smile.

“I didn’t know you’d be here,” she says. She thumbs in Yvonne’s direction. “I came looking for her. But I’m glad to see you because I have a question.” Her eyes are hard as she leans in. “What in the hell were you thinking by listing
me
as your emergency contact?”

“I tried to tell you,” Ava begins, stammering, but Isabel isn’t paying attention. She’s crouched down so that she’s eye level with Max. He’s cowering behind Ava’s legs, startled by Isabel’s harsh tone.

“I’m sorry, Max,” Isabel says, her voice tight but gentler. “I was surprised to see your mom and I got a bit carried away. But I’m happy to see she’s okay.”

Ava can’t tell if this is a lie or the truth. But Max seems to relax.

“Max, let’s go outside for some fresh air,” Madeline suggests, and looks to Ava for approval. Ava manages a nod. Connie holds out her hand and Max takes it, and the three of them leave the station.

“Again,” Isabel says. Her voice is lower but Ava can tell she’s furious. “You put me down as your emergency contact? Your
backup
?”

“I never thought they’d ever use it,” Ava confesses nervously, “and I didn’t know who else to put down. I wrote about it in the letters I sent you …”

“I never read those letters.”

Ava swallows. She can feel Isabel’s eyes on her and, unnerved, turns to Yvonne. “I know it was wrong to put her down without her permission, but I didn’t know what else to do. The school wouldn’t let me submit the paperwork without a name and number.” Ava bites her lip and finally turns to face Isabel. “I’m sorry, but the truth is, you’re the only person I really know. The only person I trust with Max.”

“You don’t know me,” Isabel informs her hotly. “You don’t know
me at all. How do you think it makes me feel to get a call saying that I have to go and pick up a boy who’s my husband’s son? My dead husband’s son? Whatever gave you the idea that you could trust me with him?”

“Because he’s Bill’s,” Ava says in a small voice. “I know you would never hurt Max, because you loved Bill, too.”

Isabel is sputtering, unable to form whole words. Yvonne clears her throat, touches Isabel on the arm. “Let’s talk about this later.”

“And you!” Isabel turns to her friend. “Why weren’t you answering your phone?”

“Hugh’s mother called the cops on me,” Yvonne explains, a bemused look on her face. “They caught up with me a couple blocks away from the house, sirens blaring and everything. To hear her tell it, I took off with her grandmother’s silver instead of a nubby department store towel. Officer Daniels almost drew his weapon! It was quite the spectacle—I’m sorry you missed it.”

“I told you not to do anything crazy! I called Hugh to make sure he wasn’t cut up into little pieces on his front lawn and he told me what happened. He did not sound happy. I came over thinking I’d have to post bail or identify your body in the morgue!”

“Now you’re exaggerating.”

Isabel looks exasperated. “Yvonne, you don’t storm up to somebody’s house who’s threatening you. You don’t know anything about them, you could have been hurt.”

“Hugh’s a wimp and his doughnut-loving brothers are the reason people make fun of plumbers.” Yvonne says defiantly. “Anyway, it’s all over now.”

Isabel turns back to Ava. “What’s your story?”

Ava hesitates. “I dumped everything but the kitchen sink in Randall Strombauer’s Maserati.”

Isabel gives a start and Ava can tell this catches her by surprise. “Randall Strombauer? Why?”

“I won’t be able to get another job as a dental assistant because of him,” she says. “He ruined my chances of getting a job, a really good job, and he’ll do it again, I know. I went to confront him and he tried
to blackmail me, told me that he’d treat me nice if I treated him nice. I went to my car and took the bag of things I was going to donate and dumped it in his car instead.”