Twenty-five
Granny first tried to herd them into her car, but Mackenzie insisted on getting Eliza.
She ran up the stairs in the cottage, shouting. “Eliza! We need to talk!”
No response. She flung open the doors to their room, then the bathroom. Silence except for the rumbling of the incoming storm.
She thundered down the stairs. “She’s gone! Missing! Kidnapped, maybe!”
“There’s no need to work yourself in a tizzy,” Granny said, slowly removing her coat. “Why don’t you use that phone you’re always staring at and call her?”
“If I call her, she’ll think someone died. It’s not that dire.” She pulled out her phone and sent a text.
Where are you?
The response came back in seconds.
I went for a walk on the beach.
A cool pulse spread over Mackenzie’s chest. So she hadn’t been arrested or kidnapped, at least not yet.
I need to talk to you, please.
She waited a minute. Two. No response.
Rude .
“Maybe we shouldn’t drive in this storm.” Granny turned from the window. “I’ll just call Margie.”
“I’m going to find Eliza.” She trotted through the open door, rain blowing in. “Eliza! E- liz -a!”
What were the chances Stacy was still sniffing around, looking for her? She pulled the hood of her jacket over her head and pressed on.
The hill sloped down to the water, and Eliza stood like an apparition, her skin milky white, her lips pale and tight.
The wind blew Mackenzie’s hood down as she ran to her. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “I’m fine. What’s going on?”
“Stacy came looking for you at the tea shop. Granny sent her away.” She looked over her shoulder. There was nothing but the ocean, white-capped and angry. “I think she was looking for the bag. I think she might’ve tried to plant it on you.”
Eliza looked up. “It’s raining.”
“Uh yeah.” She stepped closer. “We should probably throw the bag into the ocean. Get it out of here.”
Her gaze floated back down to Mackenzie, her eyes unfocused. “It’ll just wash up on shore.”
“I was joking.” She nodded toward the house. “Granny said she knows someone who can help. Do you want to go talk to them?”
She hesitated, then nodded, and Mackenzie led the way back to the cottage.
Inside, they shut the door and peeled off their coats. Mackenzie’s skin radiated heat. At least they were safe in here.
“Girls!”
They walked into the kitchen. Mom and Granny were seated at the table, Granny’s cell phone laying face-up.
“I’ve got Margie on the line,” Granny yelled a bit too loud. “She’s my friend – I told you about her. Her husband is Chief Hank.”
“Hello, ladies!” Margie’s voice was clear on the speakerphone, but Granny fussed with the phone, making it even louder. “Patty just filled me in. Nasty business, isn’t it? I didn’t like this robbery from the moment I heard about it.”
Mom smiled. “Really? Because we all just loved it.”
A laugh cackled out of the phone. “I’m going to call my brother, Mike. He retired from the FBI, but he still has contacts. He can help.”
Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t expected Granny to have FBI friends. She thought it was going to be someone at the library. She took a seat. Eliza hovered next to her.
A quieter voice said something indiscernible on the phone.
“Oh, that’s my daughter,” Margie said. “She’s going to help me do a three-way call. Hang on to your hats!”
Mackenzie pretended to put an invisible hat on her head and made a face at Eliza. She offered a weak smile.
The line went quiet for a minute before returning. “You still there?”
“I’m here,” a man’s voice said.
Granny leaned in. “We’re here, too.”
“I did it!” Margie shrieked. “Okay, Mike, say hello.”
“Who’s gotten themselves into trouble now?” Mike asked.
Mackenzie leaned forward. “My sister is being framed for a robbery she didn’t commit.”
“Margie said something about a crooked agent?”
“That’s what we think might be going on,” Mackenzie said. “She was mean to Eliza when she was interrogating her and called her stupid.”
“That’s not exactly what happened,” Eliza said quietly. “She asked me if I was stupid.”
“That’s not the most compelling evidence that she’s a crooked agent,” Mike said with a laugh. “But go on.”
“Eliza found the truck used in the robbery, and the agent just happened to be there. Wait! Then she saw a video of the agent throwing away evidence from the robbery. A wheelchair!”
“Okay, slow down,” Mike said. “Throwing evidence away?”
“Into a dumpster,” Eliza said.
Mom looked up, her forehead creased. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this?”
Eliza looked down and shrugged.
Mackenzie kept talking. “So we followed her, and maybe she saw us, because that night we found a bag stashed at our tea shop with a bunch of stuff from the robbery. Like the disguise and some money.”
“Oh. This is getting interesting,” Mike said.
“The next morning, she came to the shop and the first thing she did was insist on going into the bathroom.”
“Uh, so…she had to go to the bathroom?” Mike asked. “How is that relevant?”
“That’s where the bag was left,” Eliza clarified.
“She was quite pushy,” Granny yelled. “I asked her to leave, but she insisted on going to that bathroom!”
“Huh.” Mike grunted. “All right. Is that all you’ve got?”
“It’s a lot!” Mackenzie snapped. “I just didn’t tell it in the most coherent way.”
He laughed. “I’m not saying it’s nothing, but it’s a lot of presumption.” He was quiet for a moment. “I can see it, but if she’s got you in her sights, you might be in trouble.”
“Is there someone I can talk to?” Eliza asked. “I’m innocent. Shouldn’t it be easy to prove I’m innocent?”
“Unfortunately,” Mike said, “innocent people do guilty-looking things sometimes, precisely because they’re convinced justice will surely prevail.” He sighed. “For now, don’t talk to anyone on the case again. I’ll put you in touch with a friend at the FBI who can handle this delicately.”
“What about Agent Stacy’s…” Mackenzie flashed a look at Eliza. “Accomplice? Can we turn him in?”
Eliza looked up at her, glaring.
“Do you have evidence of an accomplice?” Mike asked.
Mackenzie crossed her arms over her chest. If Eliza wasn’t willing to turn Joey in because she was in love with him, she’d have to step in. “Not yet. But we will.”
“If you’re sure you know who it is,” Mike said, “Get him to turn her in. That’ll solve it quickly.”
“We don’t know who he is,” Eliza said, cutting in.
“I think we might,” Mackenzie whispered.
“Whoever he is, he needs to think it’s in his best interest to rat her out. Talk to my agent first. She’ll figure it out—she’s sharp.”
Mackenzie looked at Eliza. She had her arms crossed and her gaze was a thousand miles away.
She nudged her with her foot. Eliza looked up.
“Please?” Mackenzie mouthed.
“I’d be happy to talk to her,” Eliza said. “Thanks for your help, Mike.”
“No problem. I’ll send her number over and give her a heads up.”
Mackenzie let out a sigh. Mom met her eyes, shaking her head.
“Thanks, Mike! And Margie!” Granny said, waving at the phone. “Toodles! We’ll be in touch.”
“Toodles,” Mackenzie repeated with a smile.
Eliza turned to her. “I’ll be the one talking to this agent, okay?”
Mackenzie put her hands up. “Sure! As long as you tell her about the tassel in Joey’s plane.”
She sat, staring at the table. “I will.”
“Good,” Mackenzie said.
Mom nodded. “We’ll figure this out. Try not to panic.”
“We will.” Granny stood, a smile on her lips. “I think a nice cup of tea always puts things in perspective. Chamomile, anyone?”