Leann Sweeney - The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon

Oh, Mercy was talking. Why should I be surprised? There were no secrets for long in this town.

Kara smiled. “What else have you heard, Phoebe?”

She smoothed the mailing sticker on my box and then put the box on the shelf behind her. “We do have a multitude of strangers in town thanks to the murder and people are talking. Saw Tom Stewart’s ex-wife over at Belle’s. Pretty thing. Never knew he had an ex. Did you?” She was addressing me.

“Not until recently,” I said.

“Hear tell her current husband was the victim,” she said. “Well, I suppose current no longer applies. Poor man was shot in the head. I’m wondering if he was killed before or after Tom’s car crashed. A bullet in your brain makes driving a bit difficult now, doesn’t it?”

“It certainly does, Phoebe,” Kara said. “So you heard the man who died was driving the car?”

“He was found in the driver’s seat,” Phoebe said. “Strange thing, that. Angie Martin and I were talking and we decided Tom and his ex-wife’s husband must have been on good terms if he let the man borrow his car.”

Nolan Roth and Tom on good terms? I thought. Not exactly.

“You ever consider working for my paper as an investigative reporter?” Kara said.

Phoebe tittered at this suggestion. “You could hire anyone in this town for such a job, don’t ya think?”

“I do believe you’re right,” Kara said.

We left, and as we climbed into Kara’s SUV she said, “Why didn’t I think about confirming where Nolan Roth’s body was found?”

“Because we knew he had Tom’s car,” I said. “I simply assumed the obvious.”

“As a reporter, I shouldn’t assume anything, even if it turns out to be true. Phoebe raised an important question, though. Was Roth shot before or after he crashed into the telephone pole?”

“Why is it important?” I asked.

She turned the key in the ignition. “Maybe it’s not. But I know the police are surely asking the same question as they examine the evidence. I may not be a cop, but sometimes I have to think like one.”

We drove to the west side of town to the property Kara had bought with money my late husband had left her. The last time I’d seen the construction, the house had only just been framed. Now Kara was much closer to owning her own home.

The contractor’s truck sat in the dirt path leading to the brick and stone house. No real driveway yet, but stones had been laid for the front walkway. We walked around the outside with the contractor and Kara examined the bricklayers’ work. I loved the natural warmth of the round stones used for the chimney and how nicely they contrasted with the gray bricks.

Once she signed off on the work, the contractor left. Kara held up a key. “Want to see inside?”

“Of course,” I said.

The front door was a builder’s substitute, not a permanent one, and none too sturdy. Since no appliances or light fixtures were in place yet, I supposed Kara didn’t need too much protection from potential thieves.

We stood in the foyer and my gaze first traveled up the curving staircase to our left. She’d decided on an open floor plan similar to my own. From here, we could see most of the first floor. What grabbed me next was the fireplace. The same round stones outside had been used and the effect was dramatic.

“I love this.” I stepped forward and realized the foyer was open to the second floor. Kara led me around, pointing out built-in bookshelves in the living room and built-in large drawers for china in the dining room. We reached the kitchen and she told me about the appliances she’d already ordered.

“Are you getting excited?” I asked. I looked out the window above where the sink would be. Not many trees, so she’d have to do some serious landscaping.

“I am excited beyond words,” Kara said. “This has been such fun seeing my vision come together. Let me show you the upstairs.”

But we’d only made it back to the living room when the front door flew open and Rory Gannon burst into the foyer.

I gasped and Kara put an arm around me.

“What are you doing here?” Kara said.

My heart thumped against my chest and I thought, How did you know where we were? The answer was simple. He’d followed us. Great.

“What have you done with my son?” he said. He wore a navy blue sweater today, the big leather buttons done up wrong. Underneath, he looked like he wore the same clothes he had on yesterday.

I said, “You followed us, so you know he isn’t with us.” I sounded confident, unwilling to allow this man to intimidate me again.

Gannon’s peculiar smile and the gleam of satisfaction in his eyes told me I was right. He knew Finn wasn’t here. During the other encounters, I’d believed his concern. Now, though, it seemed like he was merely enjoying the thrill of showing up and scaring us. This was one unbalanced man.

“You never saw me, did you?” he said. “That’s how smart you two are.” He looked past us and then up the staircase. “Nice place. Too bad if someone were to come in here and smash through some of your drywall or take apart your pretty banister.”

Kara had her phone in her hand. “I’m calling the police again. This time, they’ll put you in jail.”

“You go right ahead, pretty lady. But I travel like a ghost. They’ll never find me—and you won’t know when I’m right behind you. I proved as much today.” He whirled and left.

Kara started after him, but I grabbed her arm. “Let him go.”

“Why?”

“What would you do if you caught up to him?” I said.

She sighed. “You’re right. My martial arts skills are considerably lacking. I wouldn’t mind giving him a good kick in the butt, though.”

I smiled. “At least we know to watch out for him now. Though for the life of me, I cannot understand why he wants to scare us. Or why he’s shown up in Mercy out of the blue.”

Kara tapped her temple. “Number one, he’s not hooked up right. Number two, he’s a lurker. He could have been watching Finn’s comings and goings back in North Carolina.”

“You think he followed Finn to Mercy?” I said.

“I don’t know, but I get the sense he’s been keeping track of him. Takes a while for someone to work up to an obsession—and I’d say he’s obsessed.”

“Maybe—but showing up here?” I said. “It’s downright creepy. Like I said, he followed us, so he knew Finn wasn’t with us. This appearance was all about intimidation.”

“Do you think he’ll come back and vandalize the place like he implied?” she said.

“Since he’s said those things to our faces, he must know he’d be the prime suspect. I think he was just messing with our heads.”

“I don’t like it and I sure don’t like him. Maybe we should call Candace or Morris and—”

“No. Usually I’d agree, but the last thing we need right now is for the police to pick up this obviously unhinged person and take him to the same police station where Finn is being questioned.”

“Are you saying we shouldn’t tell them he showed up here and was following us—for who knows how long?” she said.

“I’ll tell Candace later,” I said. “After I know Finn is no longer being interviewed. What concerns me right now is why Gannon came to Mercy. Because, though obsession may be the explanation, he might have had help knowing where to find his son.”

Kara smiled slowly. “Ah. Yes.”

I nodded at her knowing smile and said, “Tom’s ex.”

Kara kept an eye on the rearview mirror the entire way back to my house. She had work to do for both Tom and the newspaper so when she dropped me at my house, she made me promise to tell Candace, Morris, Mike Baca and anyone else on the police force about Rory Gannon showing up all over town and in a menacing way.