Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
D inner was finished and cleaned up, Murielle was finally in bed, and Maisey sat down on the sofa. Aaron was already in his recliner, remote in his hand. “Before you turn that on, I need to put on the boots again.”
“You sure you want to do that?” Aaron asked, but he put the remote down and turned his attention to her.
“Yeah. If I’m ever going to figure this out, I have to get a better grasp on it.”
“Well, okay. Let’s go in the bedroom and close the door.”
“I’ve got a better idea. Let’s go out onto the deck again. At least Murielle won’t be able to hear us out there.”
“Good idea.” Aaron stood, then reached for her hand and helped her stand. “Just be sure you’re ready.”
“I don’t have a choice.”
She took her usual seat on the ottoman, then slipped on the left boot. “Okay, here we go,” she whispered as she slid her right foot down into the other boot.
Everything went dark, but she could see some little glimmers of light here and there, and Maisey wondered if those were lights from the surrounding houses. That hand tightened around her neck again, but instead of panicking, she tried to keep her wits about her. What did he sound like? Could she see his face? His eyes? His hair? Just like the guy from the first murder, he was wearing a hoodie and from what she could tell, gloves.
She could hear Carina’s voice as the young woman cried out, “What are you doing? Stop! You’re hurting me!”
A sickening laugh came from the man, something she hadn’t noticed before in her panic. “Hurting you? Bitch, you’re gonna be nothing but a memory in a few minutes, and it’ll be your fault. Where’s that paperwork?”
Maisey wanted to kick like she had the first time, but keeping the boots on was the only way she’d find out more, so she tried to sit very still. “How is it my fault? I’m doing it to help Dad! That’s all!”
“Just hand over the paperwork and this will stop!”
“They wouldn’t even… know about it… if it wasn’t… for me,” Carina wheezed as the hand tightened around her neck.
“Yeah, so thanks for that!” he barked and laughed again. “All of you can just go to hell for all I care.” As he spoke, his voice grew quieter and quieter, and Maisey realized what was happening.
As soon as Carina lost consciousness, Maisey woke up. “What did you see?” Aaron asked anxiously as he helped her pull off the boots.
“This definitely had something to do with the money. He said, ‘All of you can just go to hell for all I care.’ What did he mean by that?”
“I don’t know. Let’s get some sleep and we’ll tackle it in the morning.” Maisey’s legs felt like spaghetti and she wobbled when she stood, so Aaron reached out and helped to steady her. “This takes a lot out of you. I hope it’s the last time this happens.”
“Me too. No more secondhand stuff for me. That’s for sure,” the short brunette told her tall husband. “So where do we start?”
“It was a man. So we’re going to start with Kyle. Let’s see what he has to say. That’s our jumping-off point, from where I stand anyway. Only makes sense.”
By the time they made it to the bedroom, Maisey had started stripping off her clothes to put on her nightgown. She was exhausted, and she knew Aaron could tell, because he didn’t make a move to initiate intimacy, just cuddled her against him. Being in his arms always made her feel loved and safe, and she was thankful for him.
As she drifted off to sleep, Maisey saw Carina, the Carina in the photo, not the one being strangled by an unknown man. She smiled and laughed, and she looked so happy. It was a pretty dream, a nice one, and she wished she could’ve met Carina. The younger woman looked like a pleasant person.
Maisey wanted to think they would’ve been friends.
The drive to Ashland was three hours, so they got Murielle off to school, stopped at the Waffle World in Lexington, and then drove on to Ashland. Maisey loved their blueberry waffles, and since they didn’t have one in Corbin, it was always a treat to eat there.
By the time they got into town, it was midday, but neither of them were hungry. According to the information Aaron had in the files from the first time Kyle was questioned, he worked at a company that sold commercial maintenance chemicals and paper supplies like janitors would use, so they stopped there. “Sorry. Kyle hasn’t worked here in a while,” the man at the front desk said. “Might want to try over at Mighty Movers.”
“Thanks,” Aaron told the man as they left. “Looks like he’s changed jobs,” he told Maisey when they’d slipped into the car.
“Yep. Looks like it. Mighty Movers. Isn’t that the―”
“Yeah, the chain that rents equipment like trucks and trailers so people can move themselves. Bright red and yellow trucks.” They drove along until Aaron finally said, “There it is! Straight ahead.”
They rolled into the parking lot of the rental company, climbed out of the car, and headed for the building. A bell jingled on the door, but no one was behind the counter. They wandered around for a bit before a voice asked, “May I help you?”
“Oh! Yeah. You sure can,” Aaron answered, and Maisey turned to find him standing in front of a familiar face. “I’m looking for KyleFenton.” It took everything she had to keep from laughing. He most certainly knew that was Kyle in front of him. He was just testing to see what kind of response he’d get.
“I’m KyleFenton. Is there something I can do for you?” the man asked, and Maisey noted that there wasn’t any hesitation in his answer. He didn’t seem stressed at all.
“I hope so. I’m Deputy SheriffAaron Friedman, and this is my wife, Maisey. Our department has recently received information regarding your sister’s murder, and we wanted to talk to you about it, see if you’d remembered anything that you hadn’t told the officers before.”
Instead of standing behind the counter, Kyle stepped out in front of it, and his posture was relaxed and very non-threatening. The minute he stopped and leaned against the counter, Maisey’s mind was made up, but she said nothing. “No. I mean, I told them everything I knew at the time.”
“It said in the file that you were already living here when it occurred?”
“Yes, sir. I’ve been here for quite some time. About eight years, I think.”
“It also says that you weren’t in Corbin the night she was killed.”
“No, sir. I was at a ballgame in Cincinnati with some friends.”
“Right. It said they corroborated your alibi.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Is there anything you can remember about that time period that you can think of? Anything you didn’t tell the officers in the original interview?”
“No, sir. I told them everything I knew.”
Maisey knew Aaron was about to pounce. “Did you tell them about the money?”
“The money?”
“Yes. The unclaimed property money that Carina had found.”
“No. I didn’t think that mattered. Does it?”
“It might, if somebody thought getting rid of her would give them more of it,” Aaron said, his voice steady.
“Nope. That was Dad’s money. I don’t know if he ever got the money or not. I haven’t seen any of it.”
“And his house is still sitting there. Are you planning to sell it?” Aaron asked.
“Eventually. My sister’s dragging her feet. Every time I mention it, she goes on and on about how much work it’ll be to clean it out and how she really doesn’t have time. I’d just like to get it over with.”
“I see. So you don’t know what became of the money?”
“No. Carina was taking care of that. I wasn’t there, so I just figured she’d gotten it for him and put it in an account somewhere. The attorney has all of that. Evelyn probably knows more about it than I do.”
Aaron fixed him with a piercing glare. “But aren’t you anxious to inherit some of that?”
“No.” Kyle shifted his weight to his other hip, and Maisey expected him to fold his arms across his chest, but instead, he pressed one palm to the counter behind him, an open stance that said he was still relaxed. “Let me explain something to you about myself. I live a simple life. I don’t have a lot, and I don’t need a lot. Before I moved to Ashland, I was a…” He seemed to freeze and his eyes almost glazed over before he said, “I was a monk.”
“A… A monk? Like with the brown dress thing and the rope belt and the funny haircut?” Maisey blurted out, stunned.
“Yes. A monk. And I fell in love with a woman who ran a bakery near the monastery. We made plans for me to leave the order so we could get married, so I resigned and got a job in town. But about three weeks before we were supposed to get married, she contracted viral meningitis and died.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Maisey whispered.
“Thank you. It was quite a shock. After that, I moved here and I’ve been here ever since. I live in a two-room apartment, eat at home, don’t even have a pet. Matter of fact, I used to work at a place across town, but I found this job and I can walk to it, so I sold my car. I just don’t like having a lot of stuff, you know? So the money didn’t mean anything to me. I’ll just donate it to someone or something if I ever see any of it.”
“And you said you moved here. Where did you live prior?” Aaron asked.
“At the Monastery of Our Lady of Perpetual Benevolence outside Richmond. I went there when I was twenty and lived there until I came here. Prior to that, I lived with my parents.”
“Were you still living at home when Carina came to live with your dad?” Maisey asked.
“No. I’d already moved out. When she came to live there, Evelyn and I both were already gone.”
“Would you say you were close to her?” Aaron asked.
“Not at all. I mean, we didn’t even know about her until our mother died, and then Dad kind of sprang her on us. Then her mom died the next year and she moved to Corbin. Honestly, it was a bit of a shock. We had no idea he’d had another family. Very disappointing.”
Aaron gave him a knowing nod. “I can see how that would be. Did it harm your relationship with your dad?”
“A bit. Took me a little while to get past it. We’d always been taught to live a righteous life according to the Catholic faith, and I wasn’t expecting that. If I hadn’t already joined the order, that most definitely would’ve driven me to it.”
“I can see how that would be too. Did you maybe feel like Carina wouldn’t have been entitled to that money?”
“No. She was our dad’s child too, and besides, she was the one who found the money. If anyone deserved part of it, it was her. Regardless that I didn’t live there with her, I got along with Carina. She was a sweet soul, very kind and loving. She was a lot of help to Dad as he got older. I’ll always owe her a debt of gratitude for moving to Corbin to help him. That was really generous of her, considering he never lived with them the whole time she was growing up.”
Aaron nodded. “That’s sure true. She sounds like a very nice person.”
“She was. May I ask… How do you know about the unclaimed property?”
“A friend of ours purchased your dad’s storage unit and the boxes of documents were there. We’ve got them all at our house now.”
“I see. I suppose it’s part of the investigation right now?”
“It is. When we’re finished with it, it’ll go into unclaimed property on its own, and you’ll be able to pick it up―you or your sister.”
Kyle nodded. “Sounds fine. Thanks.”
“Well, we won’t keep you, Mr.Fenton, but if you can think of anything that might help us, or if you remember anything, please give me a call.” Aaron handed the man his card, and Kyle slipped it into his shirt pocket.
“Oh, by the way, you said you had new information?” Kyle asked.
“We’re not at liberty to discuss it. Ongoing investigation and all that,” Aaron said to cover.
“Gotcha. Well, please, if I can be of further help, just let me know. And thanks for not forgetting about her,” Kyle said as they moved toward the door.
“We won’t forget, Mr.Fenton. Thanks for your time.”
Aaron held the door as Maisey stepped outside, but neither of them spoke until they were in the car. He turned to Maisey and asked, “Well? Whaddya think?”
“It definitely wasn’t him.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“Not tall enough. He’s not that much taller than me, and the man who killed Carina was standing over her. When he talked to her while he was choking her, he was looking down at her. That man in there? He’s not tall enough for that.”
“How tall was she?” Aaron asked, and Maisey grabbed the file with the documents Morgan had copied for them.
“Says here she was… five foot seven. Kyle may not even be that tall,” Maisey said as she closed the file folder.
“You’re right about that, plus she had on the boots, and the heels on those were at least an inch if not more.”
“Right. And the voice wasn’t even similar. So it couldn’t have been Kyle.” Maisey sat there as Aaron started the car and pulled out onto the street, thinking. “By the way, I notice you didn’t ask him about Evelyn.”
“Nope. We’ll talk to Evelyn ourselves. No need. Besides, based on the things he said, if he believed Evelyn had been involved in any way, I think he would’ve said something. I really do think he’s that honest.”
Maisey nodded. “I do too. I feel good about his answers to the questions, and I felt good energy coming from him. He’s definitely not our killer, and I think he’d like to know who is.”
“I’m hoping we can come up with some answers for him. Right now, all we’re getting are more questions.”
“Yep. More questions.” They already had enough questions. It would be nice to get some answers.
Dinner was nice. Aaron grilled and Maisey took care of the sides, plus she’d put the ingredients in the bread maker before she left that morning, so they had fresh bread. “This is really good, Mommy,” Murielle said, talking while she chewed.
“Thank you, sweetie!” Every time Murielle said Mommy to Maisey, it thrilled the social worker. She didn’t want Murielle to forget Bailey, her real mother, but she was happy the child felt comfortable with her and loved her, because she certainly loved the little girl like her own.
“You’re a good cook. Daddy, can you take me to the skate park tomorrow? I want to ride my skateboard.”
“I don’t know. It’ll depend on what time I get finished at work with my reports and stuff, but I’ll try. Maybe Mom can take you,” he said, pointing toward Maisey.
“I want you to take me. There are big boys there who don’t like me being there, and I’m scared of them.” The child didn’t look up as she spoke, and it enraged Maisey that older, larger kids would be so unkind to smaller ones.
“You have every bit as much right to be there as they do, but yes. I’ll take you as soon as I get home if Mom doesn’t mind us being late for dinner,” Aaron said and winked at Maisey.
Maisey chuckled. “I don’t mind at all if you’ll pick up dinner on your way home!”
“We can do that. I’m sure the colonel has something we can eat,” Aaron said with a grin, referencing the world-famous chicken fast food restaurant that originated in Corbin. “But for now, eat your dinner. You’ve got some homework to finish.”
“I know. Math takes all night and I’m tired of it,” Murielle groused.
By the time dinner was finished and Maisey had cleaned up, Murielle’s math homework was finally done and she was ready for bed. Maisey and Aaron tucked her in, and as they walked out of the room, Murielle said, “I love you guys.”
“We love you too, sweetie,” Aaron said with a smile.
Maisey gave her a smile too. “We sure do. More than you’ll ever know.”
Murielle smiled. “Night-night.”
“Night, baby.” Aaron closed the door, then turned and threw his arms around Maisey, drawing her up against him tightly. It took her by surprise, so she wrapped her arms around his waist.
“What’s this about?” Maisey whispered.
“I love you. Thank you for loving Murielle. She loves you so much, Maise. She really does. As far as she’s concerned, you’re her mommy now.”
“As far as I’m concerned, she’s my daughter.”
“Would you like to make that official?” Aaron asked.
“Are you sure about that?”
“Never been surer of anything.”
“I’ll think about it. But we should talk to Bailey’s parents first. I don’t want them to think I’m trying to sever her from them.”
“I don’t think they’ll think that. But it’ll make legal and parental issues much easier to deal with. Right now, all you’ve got is guardianship. If you adopt her, she’ll be your child, and you can take care of anything I could.”
“True. Like I said, I’ll think about it. And now, I want to put those boots on.”
Aaron sighed and let Maisey lead him toward the bedroom. They undressed and slipped on night clothes, and then Maisey picked up the boots before she sat down at the foot of the bed. “Ready?”
Aaron nodded. “Yep. Ready.”
“Okay. Here we go.” As soon as the second boot was completely on, everything went dark, but Maisey waited, knowing it would come into focus quickly.
She had something in her hand―a garbage bag. Walking along the back fence, she opened the big rolling trash bin and dropped the bag in, then let the lid drop before she turned. As soon as she did, a figure was standing there, light from behind it obscuring it. “Oh! Wha…” she barked out, shaken.
“You’re Carina, aren’t you?”
Maisey could feel the fear rising inside Carina’s body. “Yes. Who are you and what are you doing out here?”
“I wanted to talk to you, but not inside.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“You know what’s happening.”
She was shaking her head. “No. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yes you do. And it’s important that you get that money.”
“Why? It’s for my dad.”
The figure snorted. “Somebody else needs it a lot worse.”
“I don’t know anything about that. You should go before―”
“Before what? I want the paperwork on that money.” He was advancing on her slowly, and Maisey could feel the panic Carina had experienced.
“I can’t do that. The legalities―”
“Yeah, but you can sign all of it and take care of it. And I’ll come pick it up.”
“Why should I do anything you say? I could just call the police.”
He grinned, and Maisey noted that there was something wrong with his smile, but she couldn’t quite put a finger on it. “Now see, you never should’ve said that. Now I’ll just have to find that paperwork and have somebody else finish it.”
“Like who?”
“You’ll never know now, will you?”
He lunged at her, his hand gripping her throat. “Stop! What are you doing? Stop! You’re hurting me!” Maisey heard her cry out.
“Hurting you? Bitch, you’re gonna be nothing but a memory in a few minutes, and it’ll be your fault. Where’s that paperwork?” As he squeezed her neck with both hands, Maisey could feel the woman straining for breath.
“How is it my fault? I’m doing it to help Dad! That’s all!”
“Just hand over the paperwork and this will stop!”
“They wouldn’t even… know about it… if it wasn’t… for me.” The hands squeezed tighter and tighter, and Maisey could feel the woman’s resolve ebbing.
“Yeah, so thanks for that!” His sinister laughter filled the alley around them. “All of you can just go to hell for all I care. If he’d just done what he was told…” The voice trailed off, and Maisey felt herself falling into the darkness.
Once again, as soon as Carina was unconscious, Maisey’s eyes flew open, her hands on her throat. She knew it wasn’t real, but it certainly felt like it.
“Babe? You okay?” Aaron asked quietly.
“Yeah. I’m okay. I got the entire conversation this time, and we were right. It has something to do with that money. And he ended it with ‘If he’d just done what he was told…’ but I don’t know what that means.”
“You mean if Carina had just waited?”
“No. He said to Carina, ‘If he’d just done what he was told…’ and then the voice faded out.”
“Oh.” Aaron wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close, then kissed her forehead. “Could you tell anything else about him?”
“Only that she didn’t know him, obviously.”
“Was he wearing any particular kind of clothes?” Maisey shook her head. “Or maybe jewelry?”
“I didn’t notice anything except the hoodie, but I’ll try to remember to pay attention to that next time.”
“Okay. I hope we crack this before there’s a next time.”
“I doubt that will happen,” Maisey answered, and she knew she was right. They didn’t have enough information, and they were a long way from solving the murder.
They’d interview Evelyn the next day. Maybe that would shed some light. So far, all they had were bits and pieces.
And darkness.
If there was anything Maisey hated, it was waking up to rain, and it was raining pitchforks and puppy dogs outside their bedroom window the next morning. According to her planner, there were four appointments scheduled before lunch. One of them was with a family she had no intention of visiting unless a police officer or deputy sheriff went with her, so Carly told Aaron to accompany her, and that was fine with Maisey.
For once, the family members behaved, and Maisey had to assume it was because Aaron was with her. There’d been a time before when the man had threatened to throw a coffee cup at her head, so their behavior that morning was a great improvement. Once they were back in the car, she reached over and took Aaron’s hand. “Thanks for being here. They sure act a lot different when I’m not alone.”
He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Good. Don’t want anything to happen to my girl. Want to see if we can talk to Evelyn now?”
Maisey shrugged a little. “Sure. Might as well.”
“According to all of the information we have, she works for a realtor in downtown Lexington.”
It was barely an hour and a half drive to Lexington, and they passed the time laughing and talking. Aaron followed the mapping program and drove along until he got close. “I think it’s right up here.”
His cruiser slipped into a parking spot directly in front of a small storefront, and the sign on the front read Action Realty. Underneath the name was the line We Move Property . “Move it to where?” Aaron quipped.
Maisey smirked. “In this economy? From bank to bank.” They ran through their case notes again, then headed into the business to see if Evelyn was there.
No one was at the front desk when they stepped inside, and there was no bell on the door. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway. The occupants wouldn’t have been able to hear the bell for the yelling match they were having in the back room. Maisey and Aaron glanced at each other, then stopped to listen.
“You agreed you’d pay it!” a woman’s voice bellowed.
“I don’t have the money!” a man countered.
“Well, I don’t either! So now what? We tell her she can’t go because we can’t pay for it? You’ll have to get a loan or something.”
“And how am I supposed to do that? I don’t have any collateral. You’re the only one with collateral!”
Aaron cleared his throat―“A-hehehmmm”―to get their attention, and they waited as the bickering stopped.
A door at the rear of the reception area opened and a woman stepped out. Maisey recognized her immediately from the picture at her dad’s house but even more so from the auction―Evelyn. “Good morning! How are you today?”
“We’re quite well, thanks,” Maisey said. “I’m MaiseyFriedman, and this is my husband, Aaron.”
“EvelynColeman. How can I help you? Got a property you need to find a new owner for? Looking for that perfect little house to start a family?” Evelyn eyed Maisey, and she knew the woman was trying to remember where they’d seen each other before.
Aaron smiled politely. “No, ma’am. Actually, we recently received some new information on your sister’s death, and I wondered if you’d have a minute to talk?”
A funny look passed over Evelyn’s face, one that Maisey couldn’t read. “Um, sure. I don’t see why not. Would you care to sit down?” she asked and pointed to some chairs in the waiting area.
Just as they started to sit, Maisey heard a door close. To be correct, it was slammed. “Is someone else here?”
Evelyn let out what sounded like a fake chuckle. “Oh, that’s just one of my agents leaving. Houses to show. So what kind of new information did you receive?”
“I can’t really tell you much about that, since it’s an ongoing investigation, but we’re checking out all leads. Okay, so if I understand correctly, you were already out on your own when Carina moved in with your father.” Aaron drew his notepad from his pocket and pulled the pencil from the side of it.
“Yes. I’d been gone several years. Got married.”
“I see. And you’re still married?”
“No. I’m divorced.”
Aaron was scribbling in his notebook. “How long have you been divorced?”
“Since right after Carina was killed.”
“Did you get along with Carina?”
“Yes. Well, as much as we were together. We didn’t really spend any time together. I was always a little leery of her, just showing up out of the blue to tell us she was our sister. But Dad knew about her, and it was obvious she was his daughter. Looked just like him,” Evelyn said, and Maisey could detect the slightest bit of distaste when she talked about her father and sister.
“How did you feel about Carina finding that money for your dad?”
“Money?” I don’t know who this woman thinks she’s fooling, but it’s not me. She’s the worst actress I’ve ever seen , Maisey thought. “I’m not sure what you’re talking―”
“Yes. You know what I’m talking about. The unclaimed property. You knew about that,” Aaron insisted.
“The unclaimed―”
“Ms.Coleman, we found the documents in your dad’s storage unit. Your brother knew about it. I have to believe that you did too,” Aaron said, his facial expression never changing.
“Oh, that money. I don’t really know anything much about it. I don’t know what happened to it.”
“Do you think Carina kept it?”
“I have no idea. I’ve never seen any of it. I didn’t need it, so I really didn’t think about it.” Bullshit , Maisey wanted to blurt out, but she didn’t.
“I see. And you didn’t mind that Carina would get part of everything when your father died?”
Maisey saw a muscle in the corner of Evelyn’s mouth twitch. “I felt like she wasn’t really entitled to it, but no one cared what I thought, and besides, she found it, so I didn’t have a say.”
“Where’s the money now?”
“I have no idea. I don’t know if she ever pursued it or not.” Dear god, she should stop lying. She’s making a fool of herself , Maisey thought. It was pitiful, really. If the woman was cast as a corpse, she’d have a hard time pulling off the part, even with no moving or speaking.
Maisey was startled at Aaron’s next question. “Is your ex-husband around? Could we speak with him?”
“Oh, he’s out of the country right now. I’m sure he’ll be glad to talk to you when he gets back.”
“Out of the country? How long will he be gone?”
Evelyn seemed unusually smug. “It’s hard to say. But I’ll let him know you want to talk to him.”
Aaron stood, so Maisey did too. “Sounds good. Thank you for your time, Ms.Coleman.”
“You’re quite welcome. Hope you’ll remember me when you need a home,” she called after them as Aaron opened the door for Maisey and stepped out behind her.
By the time Aaron got in the car, Maisey was ready. “She’s―”
“Lying,” Aaron interrupted. “I’m not sure what she’s lying about, but she’s lying about something.”
“That’s what I was going to say! But it’s not something―it’s everything. First off, she’s lying about her ex being out of the country.”
Aaron laughed. “Yeah, unless the country is called the back room, because I’m pretty sure that’s who she was arguing with when we came in.”
“I think so too. But why would she lie about him being around?”
Aaron seemed to be mulling something over. “I don’t know, but I feel like we need to track him down.”
“How do we do that?”
“Easiest way? Go through the court dockets and look for the divorce proceedings. I know the court clerk. I’ll get her to find it.”
“Sounds good. Maybe that’ll tell us something.”
“Yep. But for now, let’s get some lunch and then you can get back to work. So can I. I’ll go to the courthouse first thing.” The cruiser stopped in the parking lot of one of their favorite sandwich shops and Aaron turned to smile at Maisey. “We’ll track all of this down and get some answers, babe. I promise.”
“Thanks. I know.” There were a lot of things Maisey didn’t know, but there was one she knew for sure. Aaron would do whatever it took to make sure her life was happy and stress-free, and she loved him for it. She had no doubt that they’d figure it out, but she hoped it was soon.
She really, really wanted to wear those boots!