Moonlight Becomes You Page 15

  Instead of going to the old section, he drove to the left and circled up the hill. Pete Brown, a cemetery worker he had come to know from his various meanderings among the old tombstones, was weeding a gravel path in the vicinity of Nuala’s grave.

  Earl stopped the car and opened the window. “Pretty quiet around here, Pete,” he offered. It was an old joke they shared.

  “Sure is, Professor.”

  “I thought I saw Mrs. Moore’s stepdaughter’s car. Was she visiting the grave?” He was sure that everyone knew the details of Nuala’s death. There weren’t that many murders in Newport.

  “Nice looking lady, skinny, dark hair, young?”

  “That would be Maggie.”

  “Yep. And she must know half of our guests,” Pete said, then laughed. “One of the fellows was saying that he saw her go from one plot to another and drop off flowers. All the guys noticed her. She’s a doll.”

  Now isn’t that interesting? Earl thought. “Take care, Pete,” he said, then waved as he drove off slowly. Knowing that the all-seeing eyes of Pete Brown were on him, he continued on to the oldest section of Trinity and began wandering among the seventeenth-century headstones there.

  46

  LETITIA BAINBRIDGE’S STUDIO APARTMENT AT LATHAM Manor was a large corner room with a magnificent ocean view. Proudly she pointed out the oversized dressing room and bath. “Being a charter member here has its perks,” she said briskly. “I remember how Greta and I decided to sign up right away, at that presentation reception. Trudy Nichols hemmed and hawed, and then never forgave me for picking off this unit. She ended up paying another hundred and fifty thousand for one of the largest apartments, and the poor darling only lived two years. The Crenshaws have it now. They were at our table the other night.”

  “I remember them. They’re very nice.” Nichols, Maggie thought. Gertrude Nichols. Hers was one of the graves that has the bell.

  Mrs. Bainbridge sighed, “It’s always hard when one of us goes, but especially hard when it’s someone from our table. And I just know that Eleanor Chandler will get Greta’s place. When my daughter Sarah took me to my family doctor yesterday, she told me the word is out that Eleanor is moving in here.”

  “Aren’t you feeling well?” Maggie asked.

  “Oh, I’m fine. But at my age anything can happen. I told Sarah that Dr. Lane could check my blood pressure just fine, but Sarah wanted me to be seen by Dr. Evans.”

  They sat down opposite each other on slipper chairs that were placed by the windows. Mrs. Bainbridge reached over and plucked a framed snapshot from among the many on a nearby table. She showed it to Maggie. “My crowd,” she said proudly. “Three sons, three daughters, seventeen grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and three on the way.” She smiled with great satisfaction. “And the nice part is that so many of them are still in New England. Never a week goes by that somebody in the family isn’t around.”

  Maggie consciously stored that piece of information; something to consider later, she thought. Then she noticed a picture that had been taken in the grand salon here at Latham Manor. Mrs. Bainbridge was in the center of a group of eight. She picked it up. “Special occasion?” she asked.

  “My ninetieth birthday, four years ago.” Letitia Bainbridge leaned forward and indicated the women at either end of the group. “That’s Constance Rhinelander on the left. She just died a couple of weeks ago, and of course you knew Greta. She’s on the right.”

  “Mrs. Shipley didn’t have close family, did she?” Maggie asked.

  “No. Neither did Constance, but we were family for each other.”

  It was time to ask about the bells, Maggie decided. She looked around for inspiration as to how to bring up the subject. The room had obviously been furnished with Mrs. Bainbridge’s personal belongings. The ornately carved four-poster bed, the antique English pie-crust table, the Bombay chest, the delicately toned Persian carpet, all spoke of generational history.

  Then she saw it: a silver bell on the fireplace mantel. She got up and crossed over to it. “Oh, isn’t this lovely?” She picked it up.

  Letitia Bainbridge smiled. “My mother used it to summon her maid. Mother was a late sleeper, and Hattie patiently sat in attendance outside the door each morning until the bell summoned her. My granddaughters find that ‘a hoot,’ as they put it, but the bell gives me many warm memories. A lot of us old girls grew up in that milieu.”

  It was the opening Maggie wanted. She sat down again and reached into her purse. “Mrs. Bainbridge, I found this bell on Nuala’s grave. I was curious as to who left it there. Is there a custom here of putting a bell on the grave of a friend?”

  Letitia Bainbridge looked astonished. “I never heard of such a thing. You mean someone deliberately left that object there?”

  “Apparently, yes.”

  “But how bizarre.” She turned away.

  With a sinking heart, Maggie realized that for some reason the bell had upset Mrs. Bainbridge. She decided not to say anything about the fact that she had found bells on other graves as well. Clearly this did not represent a tribute that old friends gave to each other.

  She dropped the bell back in her shoulder bag. “I’ll bet I know what happened,” she improvised. “There was a little girl in the cemetery the other day. She came over to talk to me while I arranged flowers around Nuala’s headstone. It was after she left that I found the bell.”

  Happily, Letitia Bainbridge reached the conclusion Maggie wanted. “Oh, I think that must be it,” she said. “I mean, surely no adult would think of leaving a bell on a grave.” Then she frowned. “What is it I’m trying to remember? Oh, dear, something just came into my mind and now it’s gone. That’s old age, I guess.”

  There was a knock at the door, and Mrs. Bainbridge commented, “That will be the lunch tray.” She raised her voice, “Come in, please.”

  It was Angela, the young maid whom Maggie had met on her earlier visits. She greeted her, then got up. “I really must run along,” Maggie said.

  Mrs. Bainbridge rose. “I’m so glad you stopped in, Maggie. Will I see you tomorrow?”

  Maggie knew what she meant. “Yes, of course. I’ll be at the funeral parlor, and at Mrs. Shipley’s Requiem.”

  When she went downstairs, she was glad to see that the foyer was empty. Everyone must be in the dining room, she thought as she opened the front door. She reached in her pocketbook for her car keys and inadvertently hit the bell. A muffled ringing sound made her grab the clapper to silence it.

  Ask not for whom the bell tolls, Maggie thought as she walked down the steps of Latham Manor.

  47

  DR. LANE, NEIL STEPHENS, AND HIS FATHER CONCLUDED their tour of Latham Manor at the entrance to the dining room. Neil took in the hum of conversation, the animated faces of the well-dressed seniors, the overall ambiance of the beautiful room. White-gloved waiters were serving, and the aroma of freshly baked bread was enticing.

  Lane picked up a menu and handed it to Neil. “Today the main course is a choice of Dover sole with white asparagus, or chicken salad,” he explained. “The dessert choices are frozen yogurt or sorbet, with home-baked cookies.” He smiled. “I might add that this is a typical menu. Our chef is not only cordon bleu, but also a dietary specialist.”

  “Very impressive,” Neil said, nodding appreciatively.

  “Neil, we tee up in thirty minutes,” Robert Stephens reminded his son. “Don’t you think you’ve seen enough?”

  “More important,” Dr. Lane said gently, “do you feel that you might recommend the available suite to your clients? Without meaning to pressure them, I can tell you that it won’t last long. Couples especially are attracted to the large units.”

  “I’m going to speak to my clients on Monday when I get back to New York,” Neil said. “The place is most impressive. I’ll certainly send them the prospectus and recommend that they come up and look over everything for themselves.”

  “Wonderful,” Dr. Lane said heartily, as Robert Stephen
s pointedly held up his watch, turned and began to walk down the corridor to the front door. Neil and Dr. Lane followed. “We like having couples here,” Dr. Lane continued. “Many of the guests are widows, but that doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy having men around. In fact, we’ve had several romances develop between single guests.”

  Robert Stephens slowed and fell into step with them. “If you don’t settle down soon, Neil, maybe you should put in your application. This place may be your best chance.”

  Neil grinned. “Just don’t ever let my father move in,” he told the doctor.

  “Don’t worry about me. This place is too rich for my blood,” Robert Stephens declared. “But that reminds me. Doctor, do you remember receiving an application from a Mrs. Cora Gebhart?”

  Dr. Lane frowned. “That name is familiar. Oh yes, she’s in what we call the ‘pending file.’ She visited here about a year ago, filled out an application but did not want it activated. It’s our practice to phone someone like that once or twice a year to see whether they’re nearer to a decision. The last time I spoke to Mrs. Gebhart, I had the impression that she was seriously considering joining us.”

  “She was,” the elder Stephens said shortly. “All right, Neil, let’s be on our way.”

  * * *

  Neil tried calling Maggie once more from the car phone, but he still got no answer.

  Even though it was a beautiful day and he played excellent golf, Neil found the afternoon unconscionably long. He could not shake the ominous feeling that something was wrong.

  48

  ON HER WAY HOME, MAGGIE DECIDED TO PICK UP GROCERies. She drove to a small market she had noticed near the wharf. There she gathered the makings of green salad and pasta pomodoro. I’ve had my fill of scrambled eggs and chicken soup, she thought. Then she saw a sign for freshly prepared New England clam chowder.

  The clerk was a weathered-faced man in his sixties. “New here?” he asked affably, when she gave him her order.

  Maggie smiled. “How can you tell?”

  “Easy. When the missus makes her clam chowder, everyone buys at least a quart.”

  “In that case, you’d better give me a second pint.”

  “Got a head on your shoulders. I like that in young people,” he said.

  As she drove away, Maggie smiled to herself. And another reason for keeping the house in Newport, she thought, was that with so many senior citizens around, she would be considered a youngster for quite a while to come.

  And besides, I can’t just sort out Nuala’s things, take the best offer for the house, and walk away, she told herself. Even if Nuala was killed by a stranger, there are too many unanswered questions.

  The bells, for instance. Who would put them on those graves? Maybe one of the old-guard friends does it on her own and never dreamt anyone would notice them, she acknowledged. For all I know, she thought, there may be bells on half the graves in Newport. On the other hand, one of them is missing. Did whoever it was change his or her mind about leaving it?

  Pulling into the driveway at Nuala’s house, she carried the groceries around to the kitchen door and let herself in. Dropping the packages on the table, she turned and quickly locked the door. That’s something else, she thought. I meant to call in a locksmith. Liam would ask about that tonight. He had been so concerned about Earl showing up unexpectedly.

  One of Nuala’s favorite expressions ran through Maggie’s head as she searched for a phone book: Better late than never. Maggie remembered how Nuala had said it one Sunday morning when she came running out to the car where Maggie and her father were already waiting.

  Maggie hated to think about her father’s response, so typical of him: “And better still, never late, particularly when the rest of the congregation manages to show up on time.”

  She found the phone book in a deep kitchen drawer, and smiled at the sight of the clutter beneath it: Xeroxed recipes, half-burned candles, rusty scissors, paper clips, small change.

  I’d hate to try to find anything in this house, Maggie thought. There’s such a jumble. Then she felt her throat close. Whoever ransacked this house was looking for something, and chances are he didn’t find it, an interior voice whispered to her.

  After she left a message on the machine of the first locksmith she called, she finished putting away the groceries and fixed herself a cup of the clam chowder, which at first taste made her glad she had bought more than she’d intended. Then she went up to the studio. Restlessly her fingers reached into the pot of wet clay. She wanted to go back to the bust she had started of Nuala but knew she could not. It was Greta Shipley whose face demanded to be captured—not really so much the face as the eyes, knowing, candid, and watchful. She was glad she had brought several armatures with her.

  Maggie stayed at the worktable for an hour until the clay had taken on an approach to the likeness of the woman she had known so briefly. Finally the surging disquietude had passed, and she could wash her hands and start the job she knew she would find hardest: the task of sorting out Nuala’s paintings. She had to decide which to keep and which to offer to a dealer, knowing that a majority of them probably would end up in a scrap heap, cut out from their frames—frames some people would value more than the art they had once enhanced.

  * * *

  At three o’clock she started going through the works that had not yet been framed. In the storage closet off the studio, she found dozens of Nuala’s sketches, watercolors, and oils, a dizzying array that Maggie soon realized she could not hope to analyze without professional assistance.

  The sketches for the most part were only fair, and only a few of the oils were interesting—but some of the watercolors were extraordinary. Like Nuala, she thought, they were warm and joyous, and filled with unexpected depths. She especially loved a winter scene in which a tree, its branches laden and bent with snow, was sheltering an incongruous ring of flowering plants, including snapdragons and roses, violets and lilies, orchids and chrysanthemums.

  Maggie became so engrossed in the task that it was after five-thirty when she hurried downstairs just in time to catch the phone that she thought she heard ringing.

  It was Liam. “Hey, this is my third attempt to get you. I was afraid I was being stood up,” he said, relief in his voice. “Do you realize that my only other offer tonight was my cousin, Earl?”

  Maggie laughed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t hear the phone. I was in the studio. I guess Nuala didn’t believe in extension telephones.”

  “I’ll buy you one for Christmas. Pick you up in about an hour?”

  “Fine.”

  That should give me just enough time for a soak in the tub, Maggie thought as she hung up. It was obvious the evening air was turning cool. The house felt drafty, and in an odd and uncomfortable way it seemed to her she could still feel the chill of the damp earth she had touched at the graves.

  When the water was rushing into the tub, she thought she heard the phone again and quickly turned off the taps. No sound of ringing came from Nuala’s room, however. Either I didn’t hear anything, or I missed another call, she decided.

  Feeling relaxed after her bath, she dressed carefully in the new white evening sweater and calf-length black skirt she had purchased earlier in the week, then decided that a little care with her makeup was in order.

  It’s fun to dress up for Liam, she thought. He makes me feel good about myself.

  At quarter of seven she was waiting in the living room when the bell rang. Liam stood on the doorstep, a dozen long-stemmed red roses in one hand, a folded sheet of paper in the other. The warmth in his eyes and the light kiss that for a moment lingered on her lips gave Maggie a sudden lift of the heart.

  “You look spectacular,” he told her. “I’ll have to change the plans for the evening. Obviously McDonald’s won’t do.”

  Maggie laughed. “Oh dear! And I was so looking forward to a Big Mac.” She quickly read the note he had brought in. “Where was this?” she asked.

  “On your front door, ma
dame.”

  “Oh, of course. I came in through the kitchen earlier.” She refolded the piece of paper. So Neil is in Portsmouth, she thought, and wants to get together. Isn’t that nice? She hated to admit to herself how disappointed she had been when he hadn’t called last week before she left. And then she reminded herself of how she had chalked it up as another indication of his indifference toward her.

  “Anything important?” Liam asked casually.

  “No. A friend who’s up for the weekend wants me to call. Maybe I’ll give him a ring tomorrow.” And maybe I won’t, she thought. I wonder how he found me.

  She went back upstairs for her handbag, and as she picked it up she felt the extra weight of the bell. Should she show it to Liam? she wondered.

  No, not tonight, she decided. I don’t want to talk about death and graves, not now. She took the bell out of her purse. Even though it had been there for hours, it still felt cold and clammy to her touch, causing her to shiver.

  I don’t want this to be the first thing I see when I get in later, she thought as she opened the closet door and put it on the shelf, pushing it back until it was completely out of sight.

  * * *

  Liam had made a reservation in the Commodore’s Room of The Black Pearl, a toney restaurant with a sweeping view of Narragansett Bay. “My condo isn’t far from here,” he explained, “but I miss the big house I was raised in. One of these days I’m going to bite the bullet and buy one of the old places and renovate it.” His voice became serious. “By then I’ll have settled down and, with any luck, will have a beautiful wife who’s an award-winning photographer.”

  “Stop it, Liam,” Maggie protested. “As Nuala would have said, you sound half daft.”

  “But I’m not,” he said quietly. “Maggie, please start looking at me with different eyes, won’t you? Ever since last week, you haven’t been out of my mind for a minute. All I’ve been able to think about is that if you had walked in on whatever hophead attacked Nuala, the same thing could have happened to you. I’m a big, strong guy, and I want to take care of you. I know that such sentiments are out of fashion, but I can’t help it. It’s who I am, and it’s how I feel.” He paused. “And now that’s entirely enough of that. Is the wine okay?”