Exousia (Karass Chronicles Book 4) Read online

  Yes, that phone call had frightened him. No, if he were going to be truthful, at least with himself, he would have to admit that it terrified him. What would they find in Pittsburgh? His image tensed again. Not good.

  Harold talked to himself. Even if they found something, it didn’t mean anything to him. He had nothing to do with those girls dying. Harold was confident that although he had let himself get out of control a few times, he still knew how to project authority and trust. Do it, he commanded the image. Calm down. Be strong. Project authority and confidence. It worked. He still had it.

  Smiling at himself in the mirror, Harold sucked in his stomach and promised himself he would take Dr. Joe’s advice and start walking or maybe even start working out. This thing about those women would blow over, and he could move on. He was only sixty-two. So many more years to enjoy. He just had to get control of himself. He needed a little practice.

  Tina would be the perfect person to practice his return to glory with. She needed a man in her life, and he intended to be that one. Yes, she had rebuffed him the other day when he tried to talk to her. But, he hadn’t been himself. He had gone over to see her when he felt angry. He had been too pushy. Today, he would walk over with softness in his heart. She would fall for it. They always did.

  For a brief moment, Harold wondered what happened to Valerie, but since she hadn’t come back, and the police weren’t at his door, he figured he was safe for now. He promised himself he would be the perfect husband again for her. Bringing attention to himself right now was not wise.

  In the meantime, he would woo Tina. One last glance in the mirror assured him he had everything under control. He would walk around the block and arrive at the gas station from the back.

  No point in being noticed for something as light-hearted as a little dalliance with a lovely young woman. The kids were in school. Valerie wasn’t home. The timing was perfect.

  *******

  Tina watched with disgust as Harold opened the back door of the gas station. Because of him, she had installed cameras everywhere. Harold had scared her the last time he visited. He had tried to make her believe that she would want someone like him.

  She had been taken in by Frank and his sweet talk, and later his anger had chained her to him. But now she was no longer a scared woman.

  Although Harold was better at the charm and manipulation than Frank could ever dream of being, she knew the moves. There was no way she would surrender her mind and will to someone like him again.

  The door creaked, and Harold paused, wondering if Tina had heard. He didn’t know that she was watching him on her computer screen.

  I should have locked the back door when I took the garbage out, she told herself. I know better. But it was too late. Harold was already in the station. She had a choice. Call the police, or deal with him herself.

  She chose the latter.

  Thirty-Two

  While Valerie rested, the women planned. After a short discussion, they decided that Grace would pick up Hannah, Johnny, and Lex from school. Valerie had called the school earlier in the morning and explained to her secretary that she wouldn’t be in that day, she wasn’t feeling well. Her secretary had assured her they would be fine. As hard as Valerie had been trying to hide it, her secretary had a good idea about what was going on in Valerie’s home.

  The women decided that it would make sense that Valerie would send her best friend, Grace, to pick up the kids after school. Johnny could drive, but they still weren’t letting him take a car to school. Valerie said that he had to prove that he learned his lesson. It wouldn’t be long though. She was proud of Johnny. He was working with Pete and Hank, and they both had only good things to say about his work ethic.

  While Grace went to pick up the kids, Ava would take Valerie to the farmhouse. She would set up Valerie and her two children in the two extra bedrooms in the house. It would feel like old times with the bedrooms and bunkhouse almost full.

  The two groups in Pittsburgh called the women while they waited for Valerie to wake up. Sam, Craig, and Emily were on their way home with information that they wanted to share with everyone. Evan’s group also called to let them know they too were on their way home. They had decided that instead of trying to read everything there, they made copies of all that they could find about that time in Doveland. That way everyone could go through it together.

  That was the plan.

  Until, once again, someone else stumbled in the door. This time it was Tina.

  *******

  She had to admit it. Harold scared her. However, there was no way she was going to let him know it. Instead, Tina grabbed a wrench she had been using to tighten the pipe under the sink and stood in front of the cash register, holding it high, standing tall and pretending to be unafraid.

  “What’s this, Tina,” Harold said in a voice that felt oily and slimy to her. If Tina had been someone else, that voice might have worked. She was immune to it.

  “This is me telling you to back off and leave me alone,” Tina replied. “Either go away, or I will call the police.”

  Harold laughed. “If you were going to call the police you would have done it already. Besides, what are you going to tell them? That I threatened you? With what?” He looked up and waved at the camera, and Tina put the wrench down. She was the one who would get in trouble if something happened. He knew the camera was there. She was safe. Or as safe as she could be with a snake.

  “Look,” Harold said, “I just wanted to apologize for coming on so strong last time. And I probably shouldn’t have come in the back door. It just seemed like you would appreciate it not being so public that I came over to see you. I didn’t mean to come on to you anyway.

  “It’s just that day I wasn’t doing well. Valerie and I had a little squabble, and I was feeling low. You are a beautiful woman, Tina, and I was nursing my wounds, entertaining thoughts I normally would never think,” Harold paused and gave Tina a pleading look.

  “I’m sure you understand. You and Frank must have had some rough times. You probably looked at other men when you and he fought.

  “Anyway, I just wanted to apologize. Say I’m sorry. Perhaps, I could make it up to you somehow.

  “Maybe we can have coffee sometime. Just talk. I know a bit about business. Perhaps I could help with repairs, or help fix up the station. I have to do that all the time over at the Bed and Breakfast. They don’t call me handy Harold for nothing.”

  Tina had no idea that anyone called him handy Harold, but so far, he hadn’t said anything that wasn’t true. When she and Frank argued she often wished for someone to talk to that would understand, and here Harold was looking for the same thing.

  “Okay,” she said. “Why not. If you have time now, it’s not busy. Do you want coffee now? I was planning to have one myself.”

  Harold smiled and nodded. “That’s perfect, Tina. I appreciate your help. Lately, I haven’t been feeling quite myself.”

  Tina got Harold a coffee, the one she knew he liked. He had been making it a point to come in every morning for coffee on his way to wherever he went. Although Harold was only apologizing for being pushy the day before, he had been making eyes at her for months. She had mostly ignored him until the other day and then got scared because he reminded her of Frank.

  However, this morning, he was calm. Why not have coffee with him? Tina poured his coffee from one pot, and hers from another.

  “What do you mean, you haven’t been feeling quite yourself?” she asked.

  “Tired. More tired than usual,” Harold answered and sipped his coffee. “Probably just the stress of what is happening on the hill. I hate seeing the town I love upset.”

  Tina listened as Harold chatted on and on about his life. She knew he loved to talk. All she had to do was nod and listen. Finishing with his coffee, he stood up to go, sw
ayed, moaned, grabbed the table and collapsed onto the floor.

  “Harold,” Tina screamed. “Harold, what’s wrong?”

  When he didn’t move, she knew she had to get help. Everyone had told her to learn CPR, but she never had. She could call someone or run across the town square to the coffee shop. There was always someone there. It would be faster.

  Not wasting her breath screaming, she ran as fast as she could and stumbling in the door, yelled, “Call the doctor!”

  The women looked at each other as they rushed to help Tina. Craig was out of town. They would have to call Dr. Joe. Grace dialed while Mandy and Mira raced to the gas station with Tina, and Sarah headed upstairs to get Valerie.

  Sarah couldn’t help thinking that something more significant than just Valerie and Harold having a fight was going on. She wished Leif were there to help her figure it out.

  When she reached Valerie, Leif was there waiting for her. Although he couldn’t hug her, he could make her feel warm and protected. Eric was there too.

  “It’s more than it looks like, isn’t it?” Sarah asked the two of them. “Yes,” Leif answered, “it is.”

  Thirty-Three

  It was a somber group that sat around the Anders’ living room that night. Stacked in the corner were the bags and boxes from Melvin’s attic. Nobody felt like dealing with them. The files that Evan’s group brought back were waiting on the dining room table, unopened.

  Harold was in the hospital. Tina, Valerie, and Craig were with him. Mandy and Mira had taken Tina and Valerie there before coming back to the Anders’. Grace had picked up Tina’s children, Lynn and Manny, along with Valerie’s, and brought them all to the house.

  While the grown-ups sat quietly in the living room, all the children were with Hannah in the family room watching TV. That was not something they normally allowed Hannah to do, but everyone knew the children needed a distraction.

  Ava had provided them with popcorn and drinks, and they seemed happy enough to sit watching a movie Ava had chosen for them. Ava knew her daughter well enough to know that she only agreed to the TV to help the other kids. Hannah was already tuned in to what was going on and would have preferred to be with the grownups.

  Then there was Sam’s revelation. One that everyone had suspected, but finding out it was true had reduced Emily to a puddle of tears. She had cried the whole way home from Pittsburgh. Now she was sitting beside Hank, who had a protective arm around her shoulder. Everyone knew that Hank had adopted Emily as one of his own, and that knowledge was the one bright spot in the room.

  “I wanted to know, didn’t I?” Emily said. “I came here looking for my Aunt Jean. However, I think I was secretly hoping that she was still here. Maybe she changed her name. Or found love and moved away. But it makes more sense that none of that happened. She would never have abandoned my mother.”

  A fresh set of tears rolled down her cheeks, and she accepted a Kleenex from Mira who was sitting across from her beside Sam.

  “I know I look weak and sad. However, inside I am furious. What can I do to help find out what happened to her? And the other three women? Now that we know one of the bodies is Aunt Jean it should be easier to find out who the others are, won’t it?”

  Sam nodded. “I think so. If we can find a picture of your aunt in these bags with the other women, it will go a long way to helping to find them. So, searching the bags and the files are a priority.”

  “They are that, Sam,” Sarah said. “However, I think we need to know more about what happened with Harold. Do you think they are connected?”

  “I don’t see how,” Sam said, but seeing her face, he added, “And yet, I think you are going to tell me that they are.”

  “Well, for one thing, we know that Harold got increasingly agitated when he found out that Joe had sold the land, and that Emily was building on it. Why would that be unless he knew those bodies were there?

  “Was Harold afraid they would be discovered? Since that night, Valerie said he has become more and more upset. Valerie said Harold received a phone call this morning that made him so mad she was terrified. Would it be possible to find out where the call came from?”

  “It makes sense that he might know who did this. After all, he is from Doveland isn’t he? He would have been a young man when this all happened,” Mandy added. “But it’s a leap to think that he did it. Isn’t it?”

  “Yes, but perhaps not that big of a leap to make. You two have made a strong point,” Sam said. ”Yes, I can get someone looking for where the call came from. I’ll let the police know what you told me. I am sure they will want to question Harold as soon as he can talk.”

  Evan’s phone rang and everyone turned to see who was calling. “Okay, Craig, I’ll put you on speaker.”

  “Sam and I are planning to come to the hospital, Craig,” Evan said. “It turns out Harold might have some information about the women from the hill.”

  “Not going to happen, buddy,” Craig said. “He’s going to need to recover first. He can barely breathe, let alone speak.”

  “What’s wrong with him?” everyone said at once.

  “Don’t know. No one knows. Dr. Joe was here until a few minutes ago, and he is stumped too. Harold didn’t have a heart attack, which is what we first thought. Joe suggested that it could be a poison of some kind, but that will take time to discover.”

  “Right now, a few police officers are getting statements from Tina and Valerie. Once they are done, I will take Tina home and bring Valerie back to the house in an hour or so.”

  “Wait,” Grace spoke up. “Can you put Tina on the phone for me?”

  Grace took Evan’s phone, turned off the speaker, and waited until she heard Tina’s tentative voice.

  “Dear,” she said, “you’ve had quite a shock today. Why not let Craig bring you to my house, and you can stay over with me tonight?”

  Looking at Ava, who nodded knowing what Grace would say next, “Ava says the kids can stay here for the night and go to school in the morning with Hannah.”

  Grace listened and then said, “I’m not kidding, Tina. It won’t be a bother at all. I could use the company.”

  When Grace hung up, everyone started laughing. “What?” she said, bewildered at the reaction.

  Sarah stood and hugged her. We’re laughing because it is lovely to see you being yourself again, Grace.

  “An old busy-body?”

  “Yes. And we love you for it!”

  *******

  Joe sat alone at his desk, his favorite drink in his hand. Scotch, just like his father. They both chose scotch in times of stress. However, today sipping it wasn’t helping at all. Harold’s illness had shaken him to his core. It surprised him. He didn’t know he would take it so hard. Perhaps it was the many memories of Harold as a young boy. Harold’s father had died when Harold was a toddler, and his mother had no idea how to raise a son on her own. So Joe watched over him. It was easy to do. After all, he was their family doctor.

  He watched Harold grow from a timid child into one who knew how to get what he needed using his charm and ability to discern what other people wanted. By the time Harold entered his teens, he had started coming to Joe for more than his health needs. Harold admired Joe. He wanted to learn what he knew. It was a beautiful time for them both. Harold was the perfect pupil. He soaked up everything Joe taught him.

  And then something happened. Something neither one of them saw coming. As a result, Harold decided to go away to school rather than staying close by. Joe knew it was for the best, but that didn’t change the pain he felt when Harold left. They kept in touch for a while, but eventually all that they had meant to each other faded away.

  Joe figured that Harold felt that he had outgrown him. He heard that Harold had become a successful businessman. Then, almost twenty-five years later, Harold s
howed up in Doveland with a wife and a child.

  Once again, Joe was part of Harold’s life, but it was as if they had never been friends. Joe was simply the doctor for Harold’s family. He even delivered their second child, Lex. Joe had hoped that he and Harold would connect again, but something about Harold had changed. He had a wall up around him that hid the essential parts of himself. He was even more charming, but Joe could tell it was only on the surface. Underneath, Harold was boiling with anger.

  Joe wasn’t surprised that Harold collapsed. He was a heart attack waiting to happen. That’s what everyone had thought at first, but it wasn’t a heart attack. Although they didn’t know what was wrong, Joe was sure they would find it was a poison of some kind.

  Perhaps Valerie or Tina would be blamed for it. The police would eventually find out what Harold had been doing with those two women. What would happen then? Maybe they would call on Joe to help with the investigation into what happened. He was looking forward to it.

  Joe was reasonably sure that Harold would not survive this attack. Tomorrow he would revisit Harold. Joe wanted to be there for him. He was there at the beginning; he would be there at the end.

  Thirty-Four

  Ava had asked everyone if they would help finish the bags on Tuesday. She was pushing the process for two reasons. Of course, they needed the picture for the investigation. But they also needed to finish because Melvin had told her that he wanted to go home. He hadn’t realized how much he missed his farmhouse until he had spent these few days away from it.