Legacy of Lies

Nerves quivered beneath Nicole’s skin. Digging through a garbage bag in the wee hours was not an appealing prospect, but she needed to assure herself that her suspicions were baseless. But what if they weren’t? Then she needed to get at the truth. A baby was dead. Someone had to be held accountable. Her ingrained sense of justice wouldn’t allow any alternative.

Abandoning her milk on the counter, Nicole grabbed a flashlight from on top of the refrigerator and went to the back door. She glanced down at her bare feet. No help for that now. She wasn’t going back upstairs for her slippers. And even the flashlight was pushing it for a light source since Grandma’s room faced toward the garage and alley. Nicole didn’t want her grandmother to suspect she was checking up on her.

The outside air was still muggy after the warm summer day, but a breeze ruffled Nicole’s pajama pants as she soft-footed down the deck stairs. Grit on the sidewalk stuck to the bottoms of her feet as she hustled toward the alley. A three-quarter moon lit her way, so she didn’t bother with the flashlight. The single-car garage that housed her grandmother’s late-model Chevy loomed to her right, and beyond the building at the end of the short driveway squatted the large, plastic trash bin.

Nicole stopped at the bin and glanced around. The house across the alley lay in darkness. To her right, she made out the arced form of her compact car sitting on a cement pad. To her left, the wind rustled the leaves on a hedge of bushes that lined the Keller property on the alley side. The neighborhood lay quiet. Not even a dog barked at this time of night.

She eased open the lid of the garbage can, and a rush of foul smell attacked her nostrils from years of trash passing through its confines. Using the lid as a shield, she pointed her flashlight down into the container. Her eyes widened. The can was empty. Nicole’s gaze quickly scanned the area again. Nothing out of place. Certainly nothing that resembled a stray trash bag. What had her grandmother done with the garbage from the kitchen?

Nicole shifted her stance, and a pebble nipped her heel. She let out a grunt of pain. Why was she standing out here in the pitch dark in her pajamas and bare feet, hunting for a sack of refuse? Because she couldn’t stand a mystery unsolved, that was why. The only other place she could think to look was the garage. A few steps took her to the side garage door. She twisted the knob, but it didn’t budge.

Grandma told her she’d started locking the garage at night since the rash of petty thefts had resulted in people losing lawn mowers, leaf blowers, snowmobiles and even motorcycles.

Nicole blew out a breath that ruffled her bangs. So much for plan A. She’d just have to move on to plan B. Squaring her shoulders, she headed back to the house.

A few hours later, her fitful slumber was blasted by the shrill of her alarm clock. Moaning, Nicole groped for the shut-off switch…or maybe she should just press the snooze button. She forced herself to sit up straight. Dawn light filtered around the blinds on the bedroom window. As much as she could use a little more shut-eye, she needed to hunt for that garbage bag while her grandmother was still in bed.

Nicole threw on a blouse, denim capris, ankle socks and tennis shoes. Halfway down the stairs, she halted and groaned. Plan B was shot, too. A distinctive smell wafted from the kitchen. Bacon. And her grandmother’s tuneless hum accompanied the sound of frying. Nicole continued down the stairs.

Grandma’s humming ceased. “Pancakes or waffles?” her voice called before Nicole showed her face in the kitchen.

Shaking her head, Nicole leaned her shoulder against the doorjamb. “Worms.”

Her grandmother turned from the stove, brows lifted.

Nicole chuckled. “Isn’t that what the early bird is always after?”

Grandma laughed and turned a slice of bacon in the frying pan.

“Waffles, please. You know I love those.” Nicole headed for the brew in the carafe beside the automatic drip coffee-maker. One of the few gadgets of which her grand mother approved—other than the electric sewing machine.

“Waffles it is, then.”

Forty-five minutes later, they cleared the meal dishes from the table, and Nicole still hadn’t had a chance to go outside. Conversation had been sporadic small talk. The garbage truck was due any minute.

“I’d better take the trash out,” she said as she ran wash water in the sink. No dishwasher in Jan Keller’s house, of course. She held her breath for her grandmother’s response.

“Already done, dear,” the woman answered, face serene.

Nicole ducked her head and squirted dishwashing liquid into the warm water. She hadn’t realized her grandmother was such a stellar actress. What did that say about her claims to know nothing about the bones in the garden?

Outside, the rumble of a truck announced that the garbage truck had reached their alley. Sounds of garbage collection continued as Nicole washed the dishes and her grandmother dried.

“Slow down, dear,” Grandma said. “I know you want to get over to the shop, but it’s early yet.”

Truck noises retreated down the alleyway. Nicole’s grandmother hung her dish towel on a bar over the sink and squirted lotion onto her hands from the bottle on the counter. A wide smile stretched her lips. “I think I’ll go back to bed for a while and join you at the shop later.” The woman stretched and left the room with a sprightly tread.

Nicole gazed after her, frowning. Grandma was way too happy about something. Did she think the garbage bag had been taken by the city truck? If so, where was the bag when Nicole looked for it last night? Had someone removed it from the trash bin after Grandma Jan put it in there and before Nicole went outside? A tiny shiver shook her.

Whoever had disposed of that infant’s remains could still be in the community. Were they watching the house? That person might do anything to keep from being exposed.

A few ticks before 8:00 a.m., Rich pulled his SUV into the alley outside the Keller home with Derek Hanson—a young, rookie cop, but a sharp one—in the passenger seat. Behind him, Terry’s black-and-white cruised to a halt. The little Ford on the parking pad by the garage was just backing up. The car halted, and Nicole got out, staring at the police vehicles.

Rich stepped toward her and pulled a pair of documents from the pocket of his uniform shirt. “We’ve got warrants to search the Keller home and the shop.”

A tentative smile morphed into a scowl. Nicole waved toward the house. “Grandma’s barely stirring, and I was just headed for the shop. What in the world do you expect to find?” Dressed in tan slacks and a print blouse, she came around her car and stopped in front of Rich. Her lips were pressed into a tight line as if restraining herself from saying more.

He gazed into her shuttered face. “The remains were found on Keller property. The judge agreed it would be due diligence to conduct a thorough search of the premises.”

“But why the shop, too?” She put her hands on her slender waist.

The other officers flanked him. Terry stuck his thumbs in his belt and rocked back on the heels of his cowboy boots. “Mornin’, Nicole. We got a job to do. I’m glad we caught you home.”

The inflection on I’m suggested a personal interest without strictly flirting. Rich shot the man a sharp look. Then he turned toward Nicole.

“The fabric from Jan’s store plays into the case. I know it’s a long shot, but that baby deserves every chance for justice.”

Her gaze softened. “I agree. My heart bleeds for that child…for the parents. We need to find out who did this, but I don’t want—” She halted and licked her lips, a wordless dread flickering in her deep brown eyes.

Rich’s gut clenched. She had to have picked up on the fact that her grandmother was hiding something. That put her in a bad predicament—torn between compassion for the dead infant and fear for the fate of her living grandmother.

The deputies moved off toward the back door. Nicole’s expression firmed. Scowling, she darted in front of them.

“Hold it!” She put up a forestalling hand. “I won’t have you barging in on Grandma Jan. I’ll go get her.”

“We’ll accompany you,” Rich said evenly. “But, yes, you can let her know we’re here.”

“You might have told me last night that you were planning this,” she shot back.

Terry sent him a startled look that Rich chose to ignore.

Nicole marched up the sidewalk ahead of them. Striding beside him, Terry’s gaze was glued to her swaying hips. Rich jostled his shoulder, and the man answered with a slick grin. Rich frowned him down. What the guy did off duty was one thing, but they were on the clock. Never mind that he didn’t like anyone eyeing a class act like Nicole with such sleazy eyes.

They went into the Keller house. The kitchen was neat and clean, and smelled like bacon. Rich’s stomach muttered a complaint. He hadn’t felt like eating much breakfast this morning. He’d known this search was going to give him a major black eye with Nicole.

“Grandma,” she called as they neared a doorway. “We have visitors.” The way she spat the last word, she might as well have said intruders.

“Oh, really? Who, dear?” The older woman stepped out of her room, dressed in casual pants and a button-up shirt, and pulling a brush through her thinning white hair. Her eyes grew big, and then she smiled. “I suppose you’re here to search. We’ll get out of your way.”

Rich narrowed his eyes. Janet Keller was as chipper today as she’d been obstructive yesterday. Had he already missed the boat on discovering evidence? If so, then Jan not only knew something about the dead child, she had deliberately destroyed evidence. Rich’s jaw clenched. He hadn’t been able to get in touch with Judge Christy for the warrant before this morning. Yes, he might have tried Judge Becker last night, but he’d just as soon leave Simon Elling’s crony as far out of this case as he could.

Nicole and her grandmother went outside, and he and his deputies got to work. A couple of fruitless hours later, he stepped out to find the women seated at the small porch table sharing coffee and donuts from a convenience store down the street.

Nicole avoided his gaze, but Jan beamed at him. “What did you find?” She nodded toward the yellowed newspaper clippings he held in his hand.

“Nothing I plan to take along. I’ve got copies of these and more in my file back at the office. I thought Nicole might find them of interest.”

Nicole accepted the sheaf of clippings. “What are they?”