Finally Home (Chapter Four)

Finally Home

D. A. Ratliff

Chapter Four

Thick black clouds blew in off the ocean in the early afternoon, casting dim light through the tall windows in the front parlor. Lia sat on the settee gazing out the window toward the marsh with Rhett curled beside her.

“That cat is getting attached to you.”

Lia looked around as Sadie walked in and sat in a nearby chair. “Sometimes, I think he’s evaluating me. He has a way of looking at me as if he doesn’t know if I belong.” She blew out a breath. “Bad choice of words.”

“You should call Jasper and tell him.”

“We’ve been through this all morning. Jasper is out of town today.”

“Then call Cade.”

“He’s with Jasper.”

“You need to tell someone. Maybe you should call the police.”

“And say what? The message just told me to leave and that I’d be sorry. It didn’t threaten me— exactly.”

“I don’t know, Lia. You need to call Jasper.”

Dropping against the cushions, Lia closed her eyes. “I’m going to see Jasper in the morning. Nothing is going to happen between now and then.”

Sadie Lee nodded. “As long as you promise me you will talk to Jasper tomorrow.”

“I promise.”

“Now,” Sadie rose, “what are you planning on doing this afternoon?”

“I don’t have any plans. I was going to sketch a bit more, but I’m not in the mood right now.”

“I held off going through some of Josephine’s things until you arrived. She had a lot of jewelry, purses, and scarves. That woman loved scarves. Would you like to go through them this afternoon?”

“I’d love to see her jewelry. I make jewelry. I don’t know if you knew that.”

“No, I didn’t. You’ll have to show me.”

“I brought a few pieces with me. After we go through Josephine’s things, I’ll show you mine.”

“Would you like a snack before we begin? You didn’t eat much at lunch.”

“I’m still full from last night’s dinner.”

Sadie cocked her head. “That the only reason?”

Lia rose. “The only one. Let’s go upstairs.”

~~~

Lia tidied up the kitchen after having leftover chicken and rice for dinner and retired to her room a little before eight. She and Sadie worked until after six, sorting scarves, shoes, belts, and purses. Her grandmother loved dressing well, and there were so many beautiful things they never got to the jewelry and planned to go through it on Friday afternoon.

She stripped off her jeans and T-shirt, showered, and slipped on an oversized t-shirt. Rhett was lying on the bag containing several scarfs she and Sadie picked out to give to the women she’d had dinner with, at least the ones who were friends with Josephine. Veronica Gibson wasn’t getting one.

“Come on, boy. You need to get off the bag. Good thing these scarves are on the way to the dry cleaners, not just back.” Rhett mewed and reluctantly moved. She scratched him behind the ears.

“You miss her, don’t you?” She bent down and nuzzled his neck. “You know what, I’m beginning to miss her, too.”

Trading the bag of scarves for her sketch pad, she turned the TV on to a cable news program and got in bed, deciding to sketch for a while. Absently, she began to draw, surprised as Cade Ellison’s face began to emerge from the blank page. Portraits had never been her strong suit in art class, but she was astonished at how much the sketch resembled Cade. She was even more surprised she remembered the details of his face so clearly. It was midnight before she put her pad away, having finished the drawing of Cade and a nearly finished one of Rhett. She turned the TV and the lamp off and fell asleep once more to tears.

Chiming from the doorbell and repeated heavy knocks woke her. She bolted upright to the eerie glow of flashing blue lights filling her bedroom. Shaking the cobwebs from her head, she grabbed her robe and phone and rushed down the stairs.

Through the glass door, she saw two police officers. She flipped on the foyer and porch lights, disarmed the security system, and opened the door.

“Ma’am, I’m Officer Tuttle, and this is Officer Martin. Are you all right?”

“I’m fine. What’s going on?”

Officer Martin responded. “Ma’am, your name, please.”

“Uh… I’m Amelia Sinclair. My grandmother was Josephine Sinclair. This is her house—well, I guess it’s my house. She left it to me.”

“You been in Beaufort long?”

“No, I just arrived on Tuesday. Please, could you tell me what’s going on?”

Officer Tuttle pointed to the house across the street. “Your neighbors reported a prowler in your yard. He woke up when he heard his dog growling. When he got downstairs, he said the dog was staring out the front window, the hair on his back raised. He looked out to see what upset the dog and said he saw a man on your veranda, looking into the windows.”

Lia shuddered. “Someone who knew my grandmother was dead and thought no one was here? Until I arrived, no one was staying in the house.”

“Could be, ma’am. Your neighbor said he fled as we rolled up. We never saw him. We have an officer over there taking your neighbor’s statement. We want to take a look and make certain the guy didn’t manage to break in and hide somewhere. Do you mind if we search the house?”

“No, not at all. Please come in.”

The officers stepped into the foyer. Officer Tuttle motioned to Martin. “Check out the ground floor, and I’ll get the third floor.” He turned to Lia. “Ma’am, I’d like to see your identification, please.”

“No problem, my purse is upstairs. I’ll go up with you.”

Rhett waited at the top of the stairs, and Lia picked him up and carried him into the bedroom. “You stay here,” she whispered to the cat, sitting him on the bed as the officer checked through the bedroom and bath. He double-checked the locks on the French doors and the windows, then walked over to her.

“Ma’am, I noticed you shut off the alarm before you opened the door, so you are certain you armed it?”

“Yes, I set it right before I came upstairs, around eight p.m. Here is my ID…” she gave him her driver’s license. “I have a document from Jasper Ellison showing I inherited the house if you need to see it.”

The young officer smiled. “No, ma’am, this is fine. Please wait for me downstairs in the foyer while I finish searching this level.” He left to check the rest of the floor.

Lia closed the door behind her to keep Rhett safely inside and returned downstairs. She had just arrived at the front entrance when Sadie Lee and Danny rushed up the steps and into the house.

“Lia, are you all right?” Sadie grabbed her, hugging her tightly.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.”

Danny hugged her too. “What happened, Miss Lia?”

“The neighbor across the street saw a man on the porch looking through the windows. He ran away when the police arrived.”

“Oh my.” Sadie’s hand went to her throat.

“Don’t worry. The officers searched the house to make certain he didn’t get in. I had the alarm set, and it didn’t go off, so I’m sure no one’s inside.”

“Did you tell them?”

“Sadie, no need to say anything about that text.”

“Yes, there is. You should tell that young man.”

Behind her, Officer Tuttle was coming down the stairs. “Tell me what?”

“Nothing…”

Sadie shook her head. ‘No, you tell him you got a threatening text.”

“Ms. Sinclair?”

Lia dropped her shoulders and reluctantly replied. “I received a text this morning. I don’t think it’s anything.”

“Ma’am, may I see it?”

Lia pulled up the text and handed the phone to him. Tuttle read it. “This could be related. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I’m seeing my attorney, Jasper Ellison, tomorrow morning. I was going to tell him.”

Officer Martin walked into the foyer. “The ground level is clear and secure.”

“Check the rest of this floor, will you.” Martin nodded, and Tuttle turned back to Lia.

“I’m not going to keep your phone, but can you take a screenshot of the text and send it to me? And don’t erase the message.” She nodded, and he gave her his phone number. After she sent him the text, he asked for her phone and pointed to the bench in the foyer. “Mind if I sit there?”

“Not at all.”

Lia turned toward Sadie. “Why did you tell him?”

“Because you may be in danger, and I’m not letting anything happen to you.”

“I’m not….” Lia stopped. She could see the pain in Sadie’s eyes and realized she was all Sadie had left of Josephine. “You’re right. I should have told someone.”

A few minutes later, Officer Tuttle stood up and spoke with Martin, who had checked the main floor. Martin left, and Tuttle walked over to Lia and handed her the phone.

“Are you staying here by yourself?”

“Yes, I….”

“No, she isn’t. My grandson and I will stay here the rest of the night.”

Lia protested. “Sadie, that’s not necessary.”

Sadie gave her a stern look and told Danny. “You go get my purse and your stuff and get back here before the police leave.”

Tuttle agreed. “I think that’s wise. Ms. Sinclair, I will request frequent patrols for the remainder of the night. You make certain that you set the alarm when we leave. Did you say you were meeting with Mr. Ellison in the morning?”

“Yes, around ten o’clock.”

“The detectives will want to talk to you about this text. Perhaps you could have Mr. Ellison call Detective Irvine and arrange a time for him to meet with you?”

“Yes, but I don’t think this is an issue.”

“Well, better we are on the safe side, ma’am. We are continuing to check the neighborhood to see if we can find the guy, but likely he’s fled.” He opened the door. “I’ll stay here until the young man comes back. Then you set the alarm.”

Lia nodded and thanked the officer. As she closed the door behind him, she turned and collapsed against it. The clock chimed three times. Lia stared at it for a moment before she spoke.

“You don’t need to stay.”

“I’m staying, and so is Danny. He can sleep downstairs, and I’ll sleep on the couch in the den. Tell him about Magdalene coming to see you when you talk to Jasper tomorrow. I have a feeling she’s behind that nasty message. Come on, let’s wait for Danny in the den.”

“Do you think Magdalene would do something like this?”

“Yes, I do.”

~~~

It was a quarter to ten when Lia parked across Bay Street from Jasper’s law firm. She hadn’t noticed the small plaque on the door leading to the firm’s second-floor offices when she parked in the same spot two days before. The plaque said Ellison and Ellison, Attorneys at Law. She sat for a few moments staring at the sign. Ellison and Ellison. She wanted to see Cade again, and that fact unsettled her.

She muttered to herself. “Silly girl, you even agonized over what to wear this morning. You need to get a grip.” Sucking in a deep breath, she grabbed her purse, exited the car, put coins in the meter, and walked across the street.

The elevator opened to the reception area of Ellison and Ellison. A chestnut brown leather couch and four rust and gold tweed upholstered armchairs sat on a thick Oriental rug. Green plants and seascapes hanging on the walls gave the area a calming atmosphere. She walked to the vacant reception desk, her navy-blue heels clicking on the polished hardwood floor. A woman emerged from a copy room.

“I thought I heard someone. Welcome, you must be Amelia Sinclair. I’m Leona Davis. Jasper is on the phone right now, so please have a seat. I’ll let him know you’re here. May I get you some coffee?”

“No, thank you.”

“Okay, I’ll go tell Jasper.” Leona paused. “So sorry about Miss Josephine. She was a lovely woman, and we miss her.”

“Thank you. She was well-loved.”

Leona returned to her desk, and a few minutes later, Jasper walked into the lobby. “Lia, come on back.”

She followed him down a short corridor past an office with a partially closed door. As she walked by, she heard Cade’s deep voice, and a flutter of heat rushed through her. She immediately tamped the feeling down. At least, she tried.

Jasper’s office was at the rear of the building, facing the Beaufort River and the marina, and was spacious and cluttered simultaneously. Stacks of files and boxes were everywhere. He laughed as he saw the look on her face. “You’re reacting just like Tillie. She hates clutter, but Cade and I are working on a case, and the material we requested from the defendant came this way. We’ve had a lot of long nights going through this stuff. Please, sit down.”

“I’d like to thank you again for inviting me to dinner. It was an enjoyable evening, and nice to meet everyone.”

Jasper’s eyebrow raised. “Really? Somehow I don’t think Veronica was your favorite. I’m sorry about what she asked.”

“It’s all right. Sadie told me that you know about what happened to me.”

“I do, only because your grandmother kept close tabs on you and Jason. She asked me to look into what happened and see if she could help. I told her you had highly competent attorneys and didn’t need any more legal assistance. I also told her you were going through enough without having her suddenly turn up in your life. I am sorry. Perhaps that was bad advice.”

“No, I think you’re right. I don’t think I could have handled….” She took a breath. “I didn’t have anything to do with what Nigel did.” Her voice broke. “I didn’t.”

Jasper leaned onto his desk. “I know. I read the report. I called in a favor from a French judge. I was in the Peace Corps, and he volunteered for a French youth group in the same village. We became close friends and remained that way. He made some discrete inquiries for me and managed to get a copy of the document filed to release you. No details about the case, just the final police report.”

“Something happened last night I need to tell you about.”

“What?”

“There was a prowler. The man who lived across the street woke up to his dog barking. He looked out and saw a man on the porch looking into the windows. He called the police.”

“Did they catch the guy?”

“No, the neighbor said he ran off the veranda’s back steps and disappeared. The officers were nice. They woke me up and searched the house to make certain he didn’t get in. And before you ask, I had the alarm set.”

“Do you think it was a burglar?”

“Possibly, but there is something else. Sadie said I should have called you yesterday morning or the police, but I got a text message.” She took her phone out of her purse, pulled up the text, and handed the phone to Jasper.

He read the text and pressed the intercom button. “Cade, can you come in here?”

As Cade answered yes, Lia nervously waited for him to arrive. She had the same reaction when he walked into his father’s office as when she first saw him. Dressed impeccably in a gray suit, he took her breath away. That his eyes trailed over her sweater and skirt was not lost on her.

“Lia, good to see you again.” He looked at Jasper, “What’s up?”

Jasper handed Cade her phone. “Lia’s had an eventful twenty-four hours.”

After reading the text, Cade looked at Lia. “Why didn’t you call me? I gave you my cell number in case you needed anything.”

“I knew I was coming here today, so I waited.”

Jasper interrupted. “There’s more. Lia, tell him.”

She spent the next few minutes telling Cade about the prowler and that she was supposed to contact Detective Irvine. When she finished, he leaned forward.

“Have you been approached by anyone in the family?”

“Yes, Magdalene Townsend came by Wednesday afternoon. She claimed she came on behalf of the family to welcome me, but she made it clear how surprised they were that Josephine left everything to me. She told me how they had cared about and taken care of her.”

“That’s crap.” Jasper tapped the table, “those moochers only spoke to her when they wanted something.”

Lia nodded. “Sadie warned me about them almost as soon as I arrived. Magdalene also asked me to tell her when I decided to sell the house. She said she’d always had a soft spot for it.”

Cade asked, his voice low, arms crossed over his chest. “What did you tell her?”

Her eyes locked with his. “I told her I didn’t know what I would do, and that’s the truth. I don’t know.” Lia shivered as he offered her a slow smile.

Jasper picked up his phone. “Leona, get Miles Irvine on the phone for me, please?” He paused, waiting for the detective, then spoke.

“Miles, good morning. I’m calling you regarding a client of mine, Amelia Sinclair. She had a bit of trouble at her house last night, and Officer Tuttle told her to contact you this morning. … Yes, she has it with her … One o’clock?” He looked at Lia, who nodded. “One o’clock will be fine. … Sounds good, thanks.”

He hung up the phone. “Irving would like to see you at one p.m. at police headquarters. You’re planning on going to the bank after we’re done here, right?”

“Yes, I told Charles I’d come straight over.”

“Okay, then, let’s get the paperwork signed. It won’t take long.”

The intercom buzzed, and Leona told Cade he had a phone call. Before he left, he told Lia. “I’ll see you later.”

Jasper took her to a small conference room, where they reviewed the documents, and Lia signed all the required papers. Leona came in to notarize her signature while Jasper excused himself to make a phone call. When he returned, he sat down next to her.

“Lia, I believe the main reason your grandmother requested you not sell the house for thirty days was to give you time to rest after what you’d been through in Paris. I realize this business with the text message and the prowler is troubling, but I hope you will take the time to think about what you want out of life. The fact is, now that you own the property, you have no restrictions on selling it. Josephine only hoped you’d use the time to get to know Beaufort. I think she liked the idea of you living here in her house and having a good life.”

“I’ve only been here three days. I promise I’ll give this time. There’s a lot to do at the house, and I want to help Sadie sort through Josephine’s things.” She picked at the clasp of her bracelet, then continued. “I have to say I feel connected to the house and Beaufort. I don’t know yet if it’s so different from how I’ve been living or if it’s real.”

“Then give it time. From personal experience dealing with my family, I know home is always the best choice.”

“But this isn’t my home.”

“Not to sound like a sappy greeting card, but home is where the heart is. Where we feel secure, content, and loved. It’s always your choice. Give it time.”

“I promise I will.”

Jasper smiled. “Good. Cade is going with you to the bank and meet with Irvine.”

“That’s not necessary.”

“The truth is he told me he was going with you.” The corners of his mouth turned up. “I’ve learned that my son has a knight-in-shining-armor complex, so I’m afraid it’s out of our hands. He held open the conference room door. “Cade asked if you would wait for him in the lobby while he finishes a call.”

Lia rose. “Then I will wait in the lobby.” She paused at the door. “Does Cade know about what happened in Paris?”

“Some of it, your reaction to Veronica’s question the other night puzzled him, and on the way to Columbia yesterday, he asked me about it. I gave him an overview, that your ex-husband was in a French jail, arrested for art theft, and that the French authorities cleared you of any involvement. I told him he should ask you if he had any questions.”

She thanked Jasper and went to the lobby to wait for Cade. He appeared a few minutes later, pulling on his suit jacket. He told Leona he’d be out of the office and walked over to Lia.

“Ready.”

“I appreciate the offer, but you don’t need to go with me.”

“I’m a southern gentleman, can’t let a lady run around town unescorted.” He grinned, and she felt her heart flutter.

“Sounds like a lot of blarney to me.”

His grin widened. “People have accused me of worse, but I promise I’m a nice guy.”

Lia turned toward the elevator. “You know what they say about nice guys…” and left her words dangling.

Cade reached around her, pressed the down button, and whispered in her ear. “Yeah… they always get the girl.”

Lia glanced at Cade and saw his smile had faded, and his serious gaze shook her to her core.

An hour passed, and as they left the bank. Cade checked the time. “We aren’t due at police headquarters until one, so we have time to grab lunch. Where are you parked?”

“Right there.”

Walking across the street, he checked the meter, depositing a handful of coins. “That will keep a ticket at bay until we get back from the police station. I park behind the building, and there is an excellent restaurant on the ground floor facing the river.”

He took her arm, and they walked back across the street to the alley leading to the riverfront. Emerging from the alley, the same view she saw from Jasper’s window greeted them.

“This is lovely.”

“Yeah, the riverfront. It’s not as elaborate as other ‘riverfronts,’ but it is nice. We’re just a small town with a lot to offer.”

Lia laughed. “Do you work for the Chamber of Commerce as well?”

“Think they’d hire me?”

“Maybe…”

The restaurant was a local hangout, and the owner greeted Cade warmly. She led them to a wrought-iron table on the tiny patio covered by an arbor and surrounded by potted plants and palms. Cade held her chair for her to sit down.

She chuckled as he took off his jacket. He arched an eyebrow. “What’s so funny?”

“You are truly a gentleman. I haven’t seen manners like this since I left Paris, except for my stepfather. He’s quite the gentleman.”

Cade sat down. Lia thought he was about to ask a question. He seemed to shake it off and picked up the menu. “I love the turkey club here, but they have great salads and a wonderful shrimp salad sandwich.”

“I love shrimp salad. I think I’ll try that. Hope it’s as good as your mother’s shrimp.”

“Nothing as good as my momma’s shrimp.”

“Spoken like a good son.”

He was leaning on the table. His shirt sleeves rolled up, tie loosened, and the mischievous grin on his face made her knees weak. Lia wanted to look away, but she couldn’t.

When he spoke, his voice was soft, teasing. “I told you, I’m a good guy.”

The server’s arrival saved her from responding, and after giving their order, Cade sat back in his chair. “Well, you’ve been in town three days, and other than an attempted break-in, threatening text, and pushy relatives, how do you like Beaufort?”

“Lovely town,” she replied with an exaggerated smile. “I find the town charming. Everyone has been very kind except for those out to get me.”

“Ms. Amelia Sinclair, you do your grandmother proud. You’re more like than you realize.”

“I understand you worked for her some while in college.”

His head tilted, left eyebrow raised. “You been checking up on me?”

Heat rushed to her face, and she hoped, as pale as she was, that her cheeks weren’t turning pink. “No, not really. When Sadie asked who was at dinner, I told her. She volunteered that you had worked for Josephine.”

“I worked for her some in high school as well. I was pretty good at building and repairing things, so I went to work with a local handyman during high school. When I came home on summer break from college, I was interning with the local judge, but Miss Josie would call me to do a few things for her.”

“What was she like?”

“She was kind, hard to work for, but kind. She expected perfection. I remember she made me paint one of the columns on the front porch three times until it was free of paint runs. Taught me how much paint to get on a brush the hard way.” He bit his lower lip. “But she paid me for the extra hours without a complaint. I was gone for many years and only saw her a few times when visiting. However, I had the chance to see her after I moved back to Beaufort. Those last few months, she concentrated on getting her affairs in order, and I helped my father make certain we were available to her when she needed something.”

Lia fought back the tears threatening to flow. “Thank you. I am beginning to understand what I lost by not knowing her. I’m thankful she had people around her who cared about her.”

Cade curled his fingers around her hand, his thumb rubbing her palm, causing a current of electricity to stream through her. She was about to pull away, but their food arrived, and Cade released her hand.

Her hands trembled as she picked up the shrimp salad roll, taking a quick bite to cover how much he affected her. Through veiled eyes, she saw he was watching her.

She mumbled through the bite. “What?”

He hesitated, and Lia saw his eyes darken, and her breathing sped up, then his expression brightened, and he changed the subject. “How’s the shrimp salad?”

She swallowed the bite. “Very good. You’re right, not as good as your mother’s, but good. I want to thank you for going to the bank with me. I’ve never dealt with securities before. I play with art, not banking for a living. I appreciate you being there to review what Charles had for me.”

“You understood it all quite well. Josephine’s estate is quite complicated. We had Will Ford do most of the work on her financial holdings. Your grandmother was a very shrewd businesswoman. She oversaw the finances of the shrimping business and managed the money very efficiently.”

Lia picked up her tea glass. “I have to say this is all very overwhelming. I was surprised at the extent of her estate. I don’t even know which buildings on Bay Street she owned.”

“I will show them to you when we get back from the police station. Now eat…”

While they finished lunch, Cade entertained her with the history of the waterfront park and her grandmother’s involvement in the planning during the seventies. He told her about the festivals held at the park, an art show, and a shrimp festival. They left for the meeting at police headquarters shortly before one p.m.

Cade got a phone call on the way, and Lia relaxed, content on listening to his voice, when her cell beeped. Thinking it was her mom, she started to answer when she realized she was receiving a text message. She held her breath and opened it.

“We warned you. You need to leave and give back what doesn’t belong to you, or you’ll be sorry.”

As he ended the call, Cade pulled into the parking lot at the police station. “Sorry about the call. Working on incorporation papers for a new startup and….” He stopped when he saw Lia’s face, “Hey—you okay?”

She handed him the phone, and he sucked in a deep breath as he read the message. “We need to talk to Irvine now.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Coming up in Chapter Five: With the police now involved, Lia finds that her family has become increasingly curious about her plans.

____________________

Finally Home is a mystery romance novel being serialized on Vocal.media.

Link to Chapter One: https://shopping-feedback.today/fiction/finally-home-j41pad0zyc%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cstyle data-emotion-css="1x3zcuc-StoryContent">.css-1x3zcuc-StoryContent{pointer-events:none;}