Chapter Twenty-Four. Maggie had gone up to her room

Maggie had gone up to her room. The rest of us sat by the fire. I stared at the flames. "This waiting is killing me. I feel helpless," I said and ran my fingers through my hair, letting out a groan.

"It's okay. You've come up with quite a bit. We just have to figure out why someone wants Maggie out of the way." Teri smiled hopefully.

"Is that all?" I asked. "Well, I don't think I could've gotten this far without you," I said, meaning every word.

"We'll bill you later," Mac said with a wink. "Better yet, we get to use your cabin for a month."

"Mac, I couldn't love you more if you were my own brother." Then I stopped dead in my tracks. My own brother. "I'll be a sonofabitch!"

They both gave me a worried look. "Okay, stay with me. All this time we've been hearing how Nathan's picture was in Miranda's locket. No one wanted to come out and say Nathan and Miranda were having an affair. If they couldn't say that, then they'd never be able to face the obvious conclusion."

I retrieved the photo album and handed it to Mac. "Mac, pick out who you think is Maggie's father." Teri stared at me.

"Okay." He started to leaf through the photos of aunts, uncles, relatives and friends. There were a lot of men from which to choose. He looked for five minutes and shook his head. "I couldn't even guess. Maggie doesn't look like any of them. Well, maybe this guy." He turned the album around. There was an old black and white photo of a skinny young man, perhaps in his twenties.

"We must not have seen that one. I wonder who it is." I gently took the photo out of its place and turned it over. I was shocked. I thought I might be right, but never believed it. I handed it to Teri who looked like someone socked her in the gut. She handed it to Mac.

He stared at the writing on the back and said slowly, "Nathan's 21st birthday, July 1961."

We all sat and stared at the photo. In the distance, I heard the phone ring. My stomach flipped. I hoped it was Steve.

"Kate, do you know what this means?" Teri whispered.

I merely nodded. I put the photo back and closed the album. "I'll be a sonofabitch."

Hannah came back into the room and sat down. "Where the heck did you disappear to?" I asked. "I heard the phone. Was it Steve?"

"No, dear. It was Allison. She..."

Maggie walked in just then, looking a little worn. "Look, I'm going to go out for a while. Don't worry I'll be back in an hour or so."

Hannah said nothing as I looked at her, then Maggie. "Whoa. We need to talk. I don't think it's a good idea for you to go off alone right now. Where are you going?"

"Can't I even go out by myself? Do I need your permission? Christ, I don't need a chaperone. I'm just going out for an hour and I'll be right back for Christ's sake," she said with a caustic bite.

I stared at her with my mouth open. "Hey, hey, don't get snotty with me. I just asked. Have you forgotten what's happening around here?" I started sarcastically then stopped. "Look, you do whatever you want. You're going to anyway," I said and threw up my hands in resignation.

"You..." she growled. "I will be back in an hour," she said angrily and stormed out.

We heard the front door slam and the car engine rev. The tires screamed as she pulled away.

I stood staring at the front door. "Want to tell me what in the hell just happened?" I asked.

Mac and Teri sat dumfounded.

Hannah played with her ring. She said, not looking at me, "She went to Allison." She coughed nervously, and said, "I, uh, listened on the extension."

Teri put her hand to her mouth. Mac smothered a grin. I gave her a shocked look.

"You what? Hannah! Shame on you," I said in a stern voice.

We all sat there for a moment.

Finally, I looked at her. "Well, where did she go?" I asked casually.

"Allison's antique shop," she said.

"She could have told us that. I don't care where she goes; it's none of my business. I just didn't want her going off by herself, that's all. She said she'd be back in an hour," I said and looked at my watch, "Okay, it's three-thirty."

I got up, poured myself another cup of coffee and sat down. "I mean it's none of my business where she goes. I don't care."

"You already said that," Mac said.

"I know what I said," I said quickly. "Do I look like I don't know what I'm saying?"

"No, no, not at all," Teri said.

"Well, then, let's forget it shall we? What the hell was I saying anyway?" I asked.

"Nathan and Miranda," Mac said.

"Okay, right."

I looked at Hannah and told her what I was thinking and what happened with the photo of Nathan. She listened, amazed, and looked at all three of us.

"Let me see that picture," Hannah said urgently.

Mac handed it to her.

She stared at it with tears in her eyes. "This was right before he and Walt went to med school. I remember taking this picture." She looked up at me. "Kate, can this be possible?"

"Hannah, it makes perfect sense. If what Doc said was true, and Jonathon had a wandering eye like your father, then he was not home very much. And when he was, he was not very attentive to Miranda. It's very possible Maggie is Nathan's daughter. Don't you see the possibility?"

Hannah nodded slowly. "Yes, I do, and honestly, I've thought of the possibility many times. It's just something you don't discuss. Miranda never confided in me about anything like that. Neither would Nathan. So I suppose it is possible."

"But if it were true, why would Nathan want to kill Miranda?" Mac asked.

"As we said, perhaps he wanted her and she refused him, or he wanted to continue the affair, and she refused him," I said. "Or maybe Jonathon found out and couldn't bear it."

"I can't imagine Nathan involved in this. I just can't," Hannah whispered.

"Maybe he's protecting Sarah. She's very unstable, Hannah, you know that. Unfortunately, we have a woman intruder but a button belonging to Nathan's jacket in Bedford's apartment," Teri said. "This is confusing."

"Just because the button was from Nathan's coat does not mean he was wearing it. Remember, I initially thought the intruder was a man. It turned out to be Sarah, I'm sure of that. So, if we all agree Nathan wouldn't do anything to Maggie and doesn't have the stomach for murder, then the alternative is Sarah. Sarah who threatened Bedford, and fought with Jonathon and used Allison. And let's not forget her romp in the woods." I was sure of what I was saying. "My only other issue is the fight Bedford overheard with Jonathon about the clinic. And we have to face the facts: If we're looking at everything honestly, the clinic is Sarah's life. I'd love to know what happened there because the next entry in Bedford's little notebook is Sarah taking Maggie's car the same day Jonathon was killed in a hit-and-run. Coincidence? No such thing." I got up and stoked the fire absently. Then I walked over to the doors and looked out at the woods. "Miranda, if ever Maggie needed you, she needs you now."

Hannah looked right at me. "Well, are you going to go bring her back?" she asked.

I looked at all of them and sighed. "Look, she's a grown woman, with a definite mind of her own. She's got ten minutes."

I picked up a magazine and started leafing through it. "The hell with ten minutes," I said, angrily. "Okay, I'm going. I don't like this at all. Boy, she'd better be in trouble, that's all I have to say. If I'm not back or haven't called in half an hour, call Steve," I said.

They gave me a worried look. "Kate, don't go off," Mac started.

"Mac, do you think Maggie would do this and not at least call?"

"Take Mac with you," Hannah pleaded.

I shook my head. "I'm probably over reacting, so I'll feel like a big idiot. However, I'd rather feel like an idiot all alone, thank you," I said seriously. I looked at Mac and Teri. "Half an hour."

"Be careful," Teri called after me as I left.

"Geez, don't say that," I said, helplessly, and closed the door.

Поиск по сайту: