Crowned and Moldering

“The thing is,” I said, “I hate to shuffle the guys around at random. So if you think someone is happier doing one job rather than another, we can take that into consideration.”

“Don’t worry about it, Sha

I smiled. “Thanks, Carla. You give the best pep talks.”

“That’s because they come from the heart.”

“You can’t see me,” Wade said, “but I’m rolling my eyes right now.”

“No, I can’t see you,” Carla said. “But I can hear them rolling in their sockets.”

“That counts,” I said.

“You bet,” Carla said. “Okay, I’ve got my tablet ready. Let’s go over priorities at Mac’s place.”

I checked my own list. “Normally we’d start with the basement, but I’m a little concerned about doing anything down there yet. We never inspected it the day of the walkthrough, so let’s leave it alone for now.”

“I’m more than happy to wait,” Carla said, her tone somber.

The image of those bones scattered on the basement floor flashed through my mind. I shuddered and tried to shake off the memory so I could concentrate on the notes I’d made on my tablet. “Okay, since the kitchen is a complete remodel, let’s start in there. You can tear out all the cabinets, take the walls down to the studs, and get rid of the linoleum, but leave the dumbwaiter alone for now. I want to maintain the integrity of the shaft and the i

“Don’t touch the dumbwaiter,” she murmured as she wrote down instructions. “Sounds good. Kitchen’ll take us a day or two, at least.”

“And we talked about widening the kitchen door and putting in French doors, but don’t do anything yet. I’ll ask Mac if that’s still what he wants. Since the house turned into a crime scene, we haven’t gone back and firmed up all the work he wants done.”

“I understand. Should we do anything with the exterior?”

“Sure.” I sca

“Shutters,” Carla murmured, and wrote it down on her list.

“The chimney on the north side of the house is missing some bricks. I’m not sure why, so could you inspect it for possible earthquake damage? I’m afraid we might have to take down the whole thing and rebuild it according to the new regulations.”

“Might as well plan on that, boss,” Wade said.

“Yeah.” I made another note. “Oh, and, Carla, if you get a chance, can you check the windowpanes on the solarium for any cracks or other damage?”

“Got it.”

“And we’ll want to get rid of that tacky latticework covering the underbelly at some point. And a number of planks on the porch are rotted. But you guys won’t get to that this week.”

“We might not pull them up, but I can do an inventory of the ones that’ll need replacement. I’ll also check the balusters and handrails.”

“Can you measure the balusters while you’re there? They looked a little too far apart to me.”

“I’ll check them.”

Some states had laws that required balusters to be less than four inches apart, and I abided by that. Four inches was the approximate size of an infant’s head, and I didn’t want any babies getting their heads stuck inside the porch railings. Not on my watch.

I scrolled down my list. “There’s a root cellar around the side of the kitchen. No idea what’s down there, but if you can convince one of the guys to explore it, let me know what he finds.”

Please, no more bones, I thought, but didn’t say aloud.

“You got it,” Carla said. “I think all of this will keep us busy until you can get back out there.”

“I really appreciate it, Carla,” I said. “Hey, Wade, I’ll see you in a little while.”

I ended the call a few seconds later, in time to see Callie standing outside my kitchen door, ready for school. Mac waved from the balcony as we took off in the truck. He had been willing to have me drive Callie back and forth only because I was going to be working at the school anyway. But he didn’t want me to feel obligated. For now, his plan was to write in the mornings and be available after school for Callie.

I figured after a few days the poor girl would start complaining about all the attention I was giving her, but until that happened, she seemed to be enjoying my company. We chitchatted and laughed all the way to campus.

I smiled as I parked the truck. This arrangement was going to work out just fine. At least I thought so, until we split up at the senior parking lot. I was crossing the blacktop to meet Wade when I happened to turn to watch Callie heading toward the main school building. From out of nowhere, two boys approached her.

“Oh my God. No,” I said, and waved my hands in the air, as if I were shooing away flies. “No. Get away from her.”

Wade had joined me by then and started laughing. “What is wrong with you?”

“Me? Nothing’s wrong with me.” I pointed toward Callie. “It’s those boys.”

“They look perfectly normal,” he said, staring after the animated threesome.

“They always look normal from afar,” I grumbled, then forced myself to focus. “Let’s get to work.”

*   *   *

The next day I left the job site early to meet my girlfriends for lunch at the Scottish Rose, Emily’s tea shop on the town square. Jane He

“Sorry I’m late,” I said as I gave each woman a hug.

“You had to come the farthest,” Jane said. Her B and B was only three short blocks from Emily’s shop.

“Besides, you’re not really late,” Lizzie said, patting my shoulder. She and her husband, Hal, owned Paper Moon, a book and paper shop that faced the town square, a few doors down from the tea shop. “It’s only five minutes past noon.”

“I hope you can take time to relax and chat,” Marigold said in her usual gentle way. She and her aunt Daisy owned the beautiful Crafts and Quilts shop, also on the town square. Many of the handcrafted toys and quilts she sold were made to order by her Amish family and friends and shipped out to her from the Pe

“It’s our busiest time,” Emily explained, after setting a teapot down in the center of the table. “So please just enjoy yourselves and I’ll try to swing by to catch up on things as I can.”

Lizzie grabbed her hand. “We need to meet at someone’s house next time so Emily doesn’t always have to miss the latest scoop.”

“Don’t worry about me,” Emily said lightly. “Just take note of all the juiciest gossip and fill me in when I come back around.”

“I think Sha

“Oh my God, Sha

“Did you know her in school?” I asked. Lizzie was five years older than me and had been my babysitter when I was little.

“Barely,” she said. “She was younger, so our paths didn’t cross much. But I knew the family.”

Jane frowned. “Yes, the family wasn’t a happy one.”

“Tell me about them,” Marigold said. She had been raised back east in the Amish world and had moved to Lighthouse Cove years ago to live with her aunt. So even though she hadn’t grown up locally, she’d been here long enough to know many of the people we were talking about.

I gave her a brief history of Lily, Sean, and Amy and what they’d gone through as the children of a violent father and an alcoholic mother.