Lin’s heart swelled and she blinked back tears. She’d finally found someone like her. There was so much to know and discover and she couldn’t wait to fire questions at Libby. She could barely squeak out the words from her emotion-filled throat. “I want to help.”
Lin and the dog left Wilson’s house and headed up the street to her truck. With misty eyes, she looked down at Nicky trotting along beside her. “I’m not alone, Nick. I’m not alone.”
Chapter 21
Lin stepped out of the front door of Viv’s house. “You two behave,” Lin told Nicky and Queenie. “And be sure to protect the house.” She locked the door and pulled it closed. Lin was heading into town to meet Jeff at a pub for dinner.
Viv and her band had a gig to play at a night-spot down by the docks. Viv’s boyfriend was still in Boston so a friend of theirs was sitting in for him on the keyboards. Viv was still uneasy about the evening intruder in her yard, so she asked Lin to stay overnight with her again.
Lin was so excited to see Jeff that she practically skipped down the street, her long brown hair swinging beneath her shoulders. Lin chuckled when she realized this would be the first time he would see her when she wasn’t covered in sweat or garden grime so she chose her cutest summer dress to emphasize her nicer appearance.
Jeff was waiting at the pub entrance and when she turned the corner and he caught sight of her, he beamed and strode up the sidewalk to greet her.
“You look great.” He gave her a hug and held her hand as they walked the few steps to the pub door. Lin’s heart raced and her cheeks tinged with pink.
“I thought maybe you wouldn’t recognize me all cleaned up.” Lin’s blue eyes were shining.
“Well, you did shower the night we got takeout for dinner,” Jeff smiled as he reminded her.
They sat down at a table near the window and sipped drinks while perusing the menu. Once they ordered, they chatted about their week and the talk turned again to the murder of Greg Hammond. Lin told Jeff about the bank heist, the notion that Sebastian Coffin helped persecuted people settle on the island, and the rumor that Sebastian and Emily had received valuable items from a pirate’s treasure for helping those people live in safety.
Jeff set his beer glass on the table. “Greg would be very interested in that. He probably thought that he’d find the long-lost treasure and all of his problems would be solved.” He gave Lin a serious look. “I heard some rumors, too.” He seemed reluctant to share.
“What did you hear?”
“I met a couple of friends for lunch the other day. One of them heard something about Greg’s company being in financial peril. Greg put the business up for sale right before he was killed. An audit is being done on the company. It’s hush-hush. They don’t want to tip off any of the employees that there are questions about the finances. It seems someone may have been stealing from the business, probably still is.”
Lin straightened. “I’m not surprised. My guess would be Leonard. When I stopped in at the landscape company a while ago, it seemed that Leonard had free rein in that office. He didn’t want me in there. He could very well be the one stealing from the company.”
Jeff nodded. “If the business was sinking financially, then Greg’s desperation to find hidden money in your cousin’s house makes a lot of sense.”
“But if his finances were a mess, how would a bank ever give him a loan to buy Viv’s house?” Lin asked.
“He could have used his business for collateral. It’s a big property, a well-known business on the island.”
Lin let out a long sigh. “I wish the police would make an arrest. Then Viv wouldn’t have to worry about being a suspect. The whole thing is wearing her down.”
Jeff reached across the table and took Lin’s hand. “I think the whole thing is wearing on you, too.”
She gave a reluctant nod and whispered. “You’re right. It is. They couldn’t pin this on Viv could they?”
The edges of Jeff’s mouth turned down. “I hope not.”
Thinking about her cousin being falsely accused caused anxiety to pulse through Lin’s body.
To lighten the mood, Jeff suggested sharing a dessert and they ordered a slice of key lime pie which arrived on a pale yellow plate with two silver spoons. When the date was over, Lin and Jeff stood on the sidewalk in front of the pub and shared a sweet kiss before parting ways. Despite the late hour, Jeff had promised to help a friend pull out some old kitchen cabinets in preparation for a remodel. He offered to drive Lin to Viv’s house, but Lin wanted to go see her cousin’s band playing in town.
Lin walked along in the light from the streetlamps and headed to the club where Viv and her band were playing down near the docks. Tourists were out in full force strolling by the stores and pubs and walking along the wharves to look at all the boats. Turning the corner, she noticed that the streetlights were out and that storefronts were dark in this section of town. People spilled onto the sidewalks and Lin heard them discussing the area power outage. Approaching the club, Lin spotted one of Viv’s band members amid the crowd at the curb.
“Viv went home. The power went out halfway through our first set. The guys packed up the equipment. I’m just waiting for Joe to come by with the van.”
Lin thanked the young woman and turned for Viv’s house. As she walked, she pondered what she’d learned about the case. No one had been arrested yet so Viv was still a possible suspect. Three hundred years ago, Emily and Sebastian Coffin helped people who fled the mainland out of fear of persecution for witchcraft to settle on the island. Emily and Sebastian may have received valuable gifts for their help. Those gifts had never been located and are thought to be hidden on Viv’s property. Greg Hammond’s business was in financial trouble and he’d put the company up for sale shortly before he was killed. Hammond desperately wanted Viv’s house hoping to discover the valuable items which would have solved his financial woes.
Distracted by her thoughts, Lin turned the corner and smacked into a woman carrying two bags of groceries. The bags hit the ground spilling some of the contents out onto the sidewalk. “I’m so sorry.” As she was about to kneel to gather the things, Lin recognized the woman as one of her gardening clients. “Oh, Mrs. Abbott. I was so distracted and not paying any attention.” She repacked the bags.
The small, silver-haired woman smiled. “It’s happened to all of us. Don’t worry. Nothing I bought can be hurt in a tumble. The wheel broke on my shopping pull-cart so I had to carry everything.”
Lin stood, her arms wrapped around the bags, all the items safely inside. “Let me carry them for you. I’m heading in the same direction.”
Mrs. Abbott gave a meager protest, but it was plain that she was grateful for the help. The two started up the lane heading for Main Street. The woman’s small home was tucked a few blocks away on a side road in town. They chatted about Mrs. Abbott’s gardens which were full and lush this year and the woman credited Lin’s care with their success.
Halfway up the hill, the topic changed. “So terrible about Greg Hammond.” Mrs. Abbott tsk-tsked and shook her head. “Such an awful thing. Our island is usually so quiet and peaceful. The poor man. Did you know him?”
Lin shook her head. “I was introduced to him only briefly.” She kept Hammond’s harassment of Viv to herself.
“He was a nice person.”
Lin looked at Mrs. Abbott out of the corner of her eye. That wasn’t the way Viv would have described the man. “Was he? You knew him?”
“He put in my garden plants a few years ago and he did the brick walkway recently.” The old woman gave a sad sigh. “He’d join me for tea. We had some very nice discussions. We talked about everything, flowers, of course, but current events, books, history, especially the history of the island. He was quite knowledgeable.”