Faith could picture the scene. She"d been in Bonnie"s kitchen once, dropping off some large containers of Have Faith eggplant lasagna Bonnie had ordered for a luncheon her women"s club was having. The room was so clean, you wondered if it had ever been used, but Faith could see plates of cookies and brownies that surely had not come from boxes. The house was only a few years old and still looked like a model home. There wasn"t any clutter, not even the kind Faith tolerated-out of the way in baskets or behind closed cabinets. No sign of a morning paper, no pictures except one that perfectly picked out the color of the tile floor and matching curtains. It was of a large fish surrounded by either offspring or prey, depending on one"s point of view. There wasn"t even a Post-It next to the phone or on the gleaming fridge. Bonnie kept her life in absolute order without reminders. Faith knew instinctively this was a woman who used leaf polish on her houseplants.
"I didn"t know how mad she was at first, because she didn"t say anything. Just sat there. I started to tell her I was sure I was wrong. I mean, she was beginning to scare me. Staring off into s.p.a.ce, with her hands folded on the table. Then she stood up and told me to get out of her house. I couldn"t believe it. Bonnie, my own sister-well, half sister. So I tried to tell her that this was all crazy-to forget I"d said anything and let bygones be bygones."
"What did she do?"
"She wasn"t even listening to me, kept kind of moving me to the door. She grabbed my jacket and pushed it at me. "Just leave, Lora," she said. So I did."
But, Faith said to herself, she didn"t deny it. Out loud, she asked, "This was on Thursday. Have you heard from her or anyone else in the family since?""
"Not directly. I was gone over the weekend. Normally, I have Sunday dinner at my grandparents. We all do. My grandmother knew I wasn"t going to be there, but she called Friday afternoon late and asked me if I could change my
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plans. So maybe Bonnie told her. I never got a call before when I haven"t been able to make it At that point, even if I could have gone, I wouldn"t have. You don"t know how they can get. Everyone would be on Joey"s side, and I just couldn"t take it."
"What about your brothers?"
"Well, maybe they"d be better, especially Eddie. But as I told you, family is family and I was wrong to accuse Joey, especially to his wife. I see that now."
Faith didn"t. Lora was trying to get help and it was unfortunate that her sister had reacted the way she had.
"Lora, I really think you ought to tell Charley. I"ve found out a little more about Brad, and he does seem to be capable of violence-at least to his bedroom wall."
"I heard about that." Lora sounded contemptuous. "But he"d never hit me. He knows I wouldn"t stand for it, nor would my family. And, as I told you, I am not telling the police. Especially not now." There was pride in her voice. Lora might not be the most popular member at the moment, yet she knew their priorities. She might have broken the Deane code, but they would come to her defense if she needed it.
Faith played to her family feeling. "Then if you still won"t go to the police, tell your grandparents. I"m sure you"ve heard about the letters people have been getting, and there may be some connection with the calls."
She"d forgotten that Lora had been away and so wouldn"t have heard about the letters. She filled her in, and the teacher was definitely alarmed, although not, it seemed, about herself.
"What is going on in this town? I can"t believe it. It sounds like some kind of nut is on the loose! Though why he would be calling me and writing to these POW! people doesn"t make any sense. I don"t care about the bog."
She"d put her finger on the main thing that was missing in Faith"s logic. The wording of the call and the letter was the same, but the targets were completely dissimilar.
Faith had one last question. Ben would soon cross the
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line between antic.i.p.ation and frustration. The last thing his mother wanted Miss Lora to witness was a full-blown Fair-child fit.
"And the other calls? They"ve stopped? I know you weren"t there, but was there anything on your machine?"
"Nothing, except a lot of hang-ups. But people don"t like to leave messages. My mother is the worst. You know, clears her throat several times, then whispers, Til call you back. It"s Mother"-like it"s a deep secret-and hangs up fast. That"s if she leaves anything. I"ll call her tonight. Maybe she"s been trying to reach me."
Faith nodded. The parsonage machine offered a sample of virtually every message-leaving style.
"Mom?" a little voice called out tentatively. "I"m getting overwaited."
"It"s time, Ben," she called back, and sat well out of the way. If she"d had a stopwatch handy, he might have made the record books.
Play-group days always left Faith fatigued, and she"d gone straight to sleep, despite all the thinking she"d planned to do. Those minutes between head touching the pillow and oblivion tended to be her most productive time of day and she kept a pad and pencil next to the bed to scribble notes for recipes or other projects that every once in a while seemed just as brilliant in the morning. So when she was awakened by the scream of the sirens, she was more than usually cranky. From the sound of them, they were converging in the Fairchilds" driveway.
Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to summon sleep again. Tom, who only woke if one of the children sneezed or whimpered, had not moved a muscle. She hitched the comforter over her ear and then sat up. She wasn"t in Manhattan. She was in Aleford. Sirens in the night, especially this many-the noise was continuing unabated-were not a common occurrence. Now, in her old apartment, a night without sirens would have been the exception.
She went over to the window and looked across at the
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green. No activity there and nothing seemed amiss. She walked down the hall and crept into Ben"s room, which was at the rear of the house. She could hear shouts from a bullhorn, but not the words. And she could see bright orange light at the end of the block. The whole sky appeared to be in flames. Two figures were in the Millers" backyard, and as she watched, they ran toward the street. Obviously Fix and Sam. She ran, too, back to her room, where she threw on some clothes.
"Darling," she whispered in her husband"s ear. Getting no response, she shook him slightly, then harder. "Darling!" she repeated, and Tom woke up all at once. "What is it? What"s happened?" He reached to turn on the light and the glare flooded the room. He rubbed his eyes. "Faith, what"s all that noise?"
" "There seems to be a huge fire at the end of the block. You can see it from Ben"s room. I"m going to find out where it is."
"Wait, I"ll come with you. No, the kids. But be careful."
Tom was in a slight state of confusion and had pulled out one of his black clerical jackets instead of his bathrobe from the closet. Faith took it from his hands and effected the change. She left him sitting on the bed, looking at his slippers.
"Go to sleep. I"ll come back and tell you what"s going on as soon as I can."
It was cold, yet the color of the sky gave an illusion of warmth as she walked rapidly down the block, joining others similarly awakened from their beds. There was an air of excitement. She had started smelling the smoke as soon as she stepped out the door. Cold was no longer a problem as she got closer. The heat was intense and companies from all the surrounding towns were fighting the blaze. The new wood crackled and went up like the proverbial matchsticks. But no need to be concerned about life or property. This house had never been lived in, and never would be. It was the new spec house the Deanes had almost finished-the house on Whipple Hill Road that the neighbors had often
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wished would disappear. And now it was-right before their startled eyes.
Faith looked around at the faces in the flickering light. A fire, especially a large fire, has a peculiar effect on people-mesmerizing, fascinating, beguiling. It brings out the pyromaniac in everyone. The flames were magnificent, beautiful. They shot high up into the night sky; torrents of sparks cascaded to the ground. Faith found herself almost enjoying ,the spectacle-that is, until Fire Chief O"Halloran"s voice shouting instructions to Aleford"s Ancient Order of Hook and Ladder Volunteers reminded her that this was real and not Backdraft at Universal Studios. The firefighters were struggling desperately to keep the blaze from spreading to the surrounding houses; the street was a river of water as the hoses drenched trees, walls, and chimneys.
How had it started?
Faith knew there would be no answers tonight. The smoke was filling her lungs. She had to leave. The house would be a total loss. But the Deanes would be insured. Insured. Insurance. How much and to whom?
She turned to go home. She could see some of her neighbors gathered in small groups, but she didn"t feel like talking to anyone, even the Millers. Fortunate or unfortunate-which was it? The neighborhood would be happy, although the Deanes still owned the land. The Deanes couldn"t be, even with insurance. All that work. She looked around to see if any members of the family were here. They would have to be. And they were. Gus and his grandsons were standing with Charley Maclsaac by one of the trucks. They were watching in silence, their faces grim.
How had it started?
A few steps toward home, she was stopped by a loud shout. It was one of the firemen from Byford. He was directing his hose into one of the windows on the first floor. Faith paused. He shouted again.
"Jesus Christ! There"s somebody in here!"
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Four.
Nelson Batcheldor did not find out he was a widower until 4:30 A.M. It had taken that long for the fire to be extinguished enough to recover the body. There had never been any hope of survival. And the only reason a positive identification was made so quickly was that Margaret had died as she"d lived-binoculars in place.
Chief Maclsaac appeared at the parsonage, where the Fairchilds were waiting. As soon as Faith heard that someone had been trapped inside, she"d hurried home and the two of them sat together, waiting to hear who the victim was. At one point, Tom had walked down to the fire, but soon returned. There was little he could do there, he"d told Faith, except get in the way. She remembered her own first moments of fascination at the sight of the fire and felt sick.
Charley was wearing a heavy firemen"s raincoat and his face was streaked with grime. He refused Faith"s offer of coffee. He"d been drinking it for hours.
"It was Margaret Batcheldor, and we have to tell Nelson." Charley seemed to break down for a moment. He cleared his throat, swallowed hard, and went on. "d.a.m.n nice woman, even though she did go overboard with the birds. What the h.e.l.l could she have been doing in the house? No birds there. Unless she thought one was trapped or something...." He sounded utterly defeated.
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Tom and Faith were listening intently, but it took a moment for them to register.
"Margaret? Margaret"s body?" Tom asked.
Charley nodded and Faith started to cry. "Poor Nelson. What"s he going to do without her?" It was impossible to think of one without the other.
" "I thought you ought to be there when I tell him, Tom. He"s going to need you."
Faith gave her husband a fierce hug. He and Charley left immediately and she wandered about the house, unable to settle down to anything, certainly not sleep. She had a fleeting impulse to call the Millers, but then decided not to. She didn"t feel like spreading this kind of news. Aleford would know soon enough.
Margaret Batcheldor trapped in a fire in the house the Deanes built. Margaret and Nelson, the recipients of a poison-pen letter. Margaret and Nelson, pillars of POW! Finally, Margaret and Nelson in ski masks and out of mufti, emerging from Beecher"s Bog. Aleford had had its ups and downs, serious tragedies, a feud or two, but nothing like this. The smoke from the fire seemed to have seeped in through the walls of the house. It was as if some noxious gas were permeating their lives, carrying distrust and now death throughout the village.
She began to long for the children to wake up. Her thoughts were beginning to terrify her. She picked up a book, a new Barbara Kingsolver, but the words swam in front of her eyes.
"Momeee!" a frightened voice called out, "Where are you? Where"s Dad? You"re not in your bed? I want to know. Where are you?" It was Ben, and she rushed upstairs to rea.s.sure him. Holding him close, rea.s.suring herself.
Nelson answered the door. He was in rumpled striped pajamas and had obviously been sound asleep. He seemed extremely surprised to see the two of them and his mouth dropped open at the sight of Charley in his raincoat and Tom clad in dog collar and jacket at such an unG.o.dly hour.
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"I"m afraid we have bad news," Charley said. "Can we come in?"
"Of course, of course," Nelson said, bewildered. "I"ll get Margaret."
Tom and Charley looked at each other. This was not going to be easy.
"Why don"t we sit down over here," Tom suggested, and led the way to the couch and chairs comfortably arranged in front of a large neldstone hearth. Bird plates and bird pictures adorned the walls. Carved birds and porcelain birds perched on every surface. Needlepoint bird pillows were carefully arranged wherever one might think to sit.
Charley came straight to the point. "Margaret"s had an accident. I"m afraid she"s dead, Nelson."
"Dead! Margaret! That"s impossible!" Nelson"s voice rose to a high-pitched screech and he jumped up. "She"s asleep in her bed. Nothing"s happened to Margaret!" When he ran out of the room, they followed. Could he possibly be right?
He wasn"t. They found him in a small bedroom crammed with more bird artifacts and shelves of guides and photographic essays. There was a single bed beneath the window, its spread stretched taut. A bed that no one had slept in.
"But I don"t understand. Where is she?" He grabbed Charley by the shoulders, and although Nelson was much the weaker man, Tom had all he could do to pry him away. Then Charley took one side, Tom the other, and they forced Nelson to sit on the bed between them.
"When did you last see her?" Charley asked.
" "When I went to bed last night. I was tired and went up first. She was going to sleep in here." For a moment, he seemed embarra.s.sed. "I guess I snore sometimes, and anyway, she was getting up early to go birding and didn"t want to disturb me." He began to sob. "Why didn"t I go with her? What was it? Her heart? The doctor said she would be fine if she took her medication. Outlive us all." He put his face in his hands and let go. Tom and Charley waited a while.
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