CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

My heart pounds as I dig through the files in Dr. Chalmers's desk. If that file isn't there, then my task becomes far more difficult.

When I find it exactly where I left it the last time, I release an audible sigh of relief. Luck is finally on my side.

But I'm not done here. I need Dr. Chalmers's personal cell phone number, and I can't get it from a member of the family. The success of my plan depends on everyone being unaware of every aspect of it.

I look through the office, but of course, Dr. Chalmers doesn't need to be reminded of his own cell phone number. The medical reports list his business number under his information and no cell number is given.

I try to think who might have it written down. Eliza wouldn't because it would be in her own cell phone.

I walk into the lobby and look for any sign of it. It has to be somewhere. It's a small office, but even a small office would have a nurse, wouldn't it?

A nurse who would almost certainly have the number in her phone as well.

My earlier sense of triumph fades. I fear I didn't think this through.

Perhaps I can find it listed somewhere at the estate. It's not as though Dr. Chalmers is persona non grata at the estate. His number's bound to be listed somewhere in case of emergencies that don't require a nine-nine-nine call.

I'll finish checking the office first, and if I don't find it, I'll check the estate.

I look everywhere, but Chalmers's phone number isn't listed anywhere I can see. I calm my irritation and tell myself I can find the number at the estate.

I'm about to leave when something under his desk catches my eye. I walk closer, and when I see the glimmer again peeking out from underneath his desk, I bend low and retrieve the object. When I see what it is, I gasp.

This is it. This is the proof I need. Now, all that remains is to create a circumstance that will allow me to use this proof.

The walk back takes only forty minutes due to my nervous energy. My emotions swing on a pendulum between excitement and anxiety. It's not the end of the world if I have to wait to call him on Tuesday, but… well, it might be. The more time Eliza has to warn him, the more time he has to prepare an alibi or a defense, and the less likely my plan is to succeed.

And the more time they have to simply remove me as a threat as well. No, it has to be tonight. This is the best chance I have of catching the two of them before they manage to elude justice once more.

I reach the estate and head straight to Sebastian and Veronica's room. I'm sure Veronica has his number saved, but maybe Sebastian will have it written somewhere, or perhaps I'll find some sort of correspondence with the number included.

I realize I'm grasping at straws, but I'm so close ! I can practically see the finish line. Justice for Minnie is within my reach. I can't stop now.

The more I search and don't find what I need, the more my heart pounds. Despair begins to creep into the edges of my psyche, and I have to fight to keep from exclaiming in frustration.

Damn it, it has to be here somewhere! Do people not write down numbers anymore? Am I the only old-fashioned person remaining who finds it useful to jot important information down?

"What are you doing?"

I stand up straight and come face to face with Hazel. She stares at me in shock, a duster in her hand. She wears a slightly soiled apron, and I realize that she's taking advantage of the family's absence to get some cleaning done. Damn it, the woman is a ghost!

No, it's my fault for forgetting about her. I was so focused on what I was doing that I didn't think about her.

"Mary?" she asks.

"I'm sorry," I say, "you startled me."

Her eyes narrow. "What are you doing?"

I feel heat climb my cheeks. God, what can I say? How can I defend myself?

Then I remember that I have a prescription from Dr. Chalmers. That's my excuse!

"I was looking for Dr. Chalmers's cell phone number," I say. "I… this is embarrassing, but the pills he prescribed me for sleep aren't working, and… well, I'm exhausted." I chuckle nervously and say, "I was just hoping he could maybe send a different prescription over today. I know it's presumptuous of me, but I'm going positively daffy without sleep."

She keeps a wary expression on me and says, "The pharmacy's closed on Sundays, and I doubt it will reopen just for you. But if you want his cell phone, it should be in the notebook next to the phone under emergency numbers. The phone's in the drawing room."

"Right." I give another nervous laugh. God, I am a horrible liar. "I should have thought to check there."

She nods, but I can see the tension in her shoulders relax. She's buying it, thank God. "Well, you do need sleep. I heard you up again last night. It's not healthy to go without for too long. If you don't get a hold of him, let me know. I'll make you some chamomile with valerian root. I think I still have some left over for my own insomnia."

"Oh, that's dear of you, Hazel. Thank you."

She nods again. "Right. Well, off you go. It won't do to have the missus find out you were in her room. And—not to suggest you would do something like this—but she is aware of exactly where everything is in here, so if anything turns up missing, that wouldn't bode well for you."

"Of course," I say, cheeks burning. "She won't have to worry about that."

"Right. Well…"

"Right. Off I go."

I rush downstairs, heart pounding. My face flames brighter than the late morning sun. Of course, his phone number would be next to the bloody phone! Leave it to me to complicate something absurdly simple.

I reach the phone and, as Hazel promised, the number is on the third page of the notebook under the heading "Emergency Numbers." I shake my head and have a good laugh at myself. Looking for a phone number everywhere but by the bloody phone.

Well, I have it now. It's time to put my plan in motion.

I take a deep breath, then pick up the phone.

***

I reach the house just before the family does. I'm dirty and sore and irritable, and I have no idea if any of the pictures I've taken have come out at all, but I've managed somehow to complete all of my tasks for the day.

Sebastian greets me with a warm smile. "Mary! You look like you've had quite a refreshing safari!"

"Dear, please," Veronica chides, blushing.

"What? Why must that mean something negative? All good naturalists look as though they've been in the sun."

"Sebastian!" Veronica turns to me. "I'm so sorry, Mary. Despite the family's insistence that I'm the drunk, it seems my husband is more soused than I am."

"Oh, I am not," he insists. "I had one of those horrible drinks, and then I couldn't bear to drink another. What on Earth were they called anyway?"

"Mimosas," Eliza says. She eyes me curiously. "So you've taken your pictures of trees?"

I smile at her. "Oh yes. Trees, flowers, grasses, and a few species that I believe were bamboo but could have been ferns. I'll trust in your judgment to tell me, Sebastian."

"Bamboos for sure," he says. "Anyway, let's look at them."

"Of course! Lucas, would you mind if we borrowed your computer? I'm afraid I'm not sure how to download images off of the memory card."

"Sure," he says, eyeing me suspiciously.

I return an innocent smile and say, "Lead the way, then."

"Yes!" Sebastian exclaims. "And I want to see yours as well, son. What did you photograph anyway?"

"Oh, um… a few different animals and insects around the estate."

"Oh, jolly good!" Sebastian cries out. "Did you see the family of foxes by the stream?"

"Not recently, but I have a photo from last year."

"Oh, pity. I was hoping to see how the kits have grown."

"I found a nest of starlings, though."

"Hmm. Never been particularly fond of birds." He smiles and claps Lucas on the shoulder. "Perhaps today I shall be made a believer!"

I turn to the rest of the family. "Would you all care to join us?"

Oliver cocks his head and thinks a moment, then shrugs. "Very well. It's better than lounging around all day."

"I'll join you too," Veronica says. "I can't wait to see Lucas's work!"

"I think I'll take a nap," Eliza says. "I promised a friend I would meet them tonight, so I need to rest up."

"Oh?" I ask. "You're going out tonight?"

Her eyes narrow. "Why is that any of your business?"

"Oh, it's not," I say quickly. "I apologize. It's just… I… I hoped to make my cheesecake for dessert as a thank you to all of you for welcoming me to your home."

"Ooh, cheesecake!" Veronica cries out. "Eliza's favorite!"

"She can save some for me," Eliza says irritably. "I'll be back before midnight. I'm only going out for dinner."

"Well, it's clear that you do need a nap," Veronica chides. "There's no need to be rude."

Eliza rolls her eyes. "Very well. I'm off then. Sorry to offend the help."

"Eliza!"

Eliza sticks her middle finger out at her mother as she ascends the stairs. Veronica turns to me, face burning. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what's gotten into her."

"It's no trouble, ma'am. I understand how trying it is to go without sleep."

"Still… there's no cause for that." She takes a breath and smiles at me. "Well, anyway, let's go see Lucas's pictures."

"And Mary's too!" Sebastian exclaims.

He's too excited to talk about trees to care much about Eliza's attitude or my sudden revelation of baking skills. I hope that my burning cheeks communicate embarrassment at the spat with Eliza and not at my woeful skill at lying.

We go up to the room, and Lucas helps me download the pictures. I glance at the clock. Five minutes until two o'clock. I take a deep breath and release it slowly. I'll know soon if my ruse has worked.

The first picture in the queue is of the baobab tree. Sebastian crows with delight and immediately launches into a soliloquy about the wonderful water-retention qualities of the tree, the habitats it provides for lemurs and birds, the critical shade it delivers to other wildlife, and other facts numerous enough to make any naturalist approve.

Oliver listens to his father's excitement with amusement. Veronica looks bored. Lucas listens raptly, and I feel a pang of guilt for what's about to happen. This could be the most quality time he's spent with Sebastian in years. Mr. Carlton might not be his father biologically, but he's the only father Lucas has ever known, and I hate to create a circumstance where the two can become close only to use it as a distraction to confront Minnie's murderers.

As the minutes slowly count down, I feel another rush of anxiety. I begin to feel as though my plan is too clumsy and foolish to work. Too many things need to go right, and very few can go wrong. Otherwise, I'll only be presenting myself as a madwoman and creating drama without accomplishing anything to make the drama worth it.

But I had to try. I had to do something.

The doorbell rings, and I steel myself. Too late to turn back now.

Sebastian frowns. "Who's that?"

"Eliza's friends, perhaps?" Veronica says.

"Oh, yes. Anyway… where was I?"

The doorbell rings again, and Sebastian scowls. "Could you answer that, Veronica?"

She rolls her eyes but smiles affectionately and pats his shoulder. "Of course, dear."

"I'll go with you," I say. "I need to stretch my legs. Lucas, why don't you show your father some of your pictures until we return?"

"Oh yes!" Sebastian says. "Show me the starlings. Those are the white birds with the black wings, right?"

"No, they're the black birds that shimmer blue and green in the sunlight."

"Ah yes! They look like small peacocks, right?"

"Well… the color, I suppose."

I leave the two of them grinning and follow Veronica downstairs. The doorbell rings a third time, and she rolls her eyes and calls out, "Yes, yes! I'm coming." She looks at me and says in a quieter voice, "Young people have no patience."

I smile at her, but my heart pounds too much for me to manage a reply.

She reaches the door and opens it. Rupert Chalmers rushes in, wraps his arms around her, and kisses her deeply.