Diary and Death Read online

  Sylvia wandered through the rest of the house. She picked up a few trinkets then set them down, but nothing major caught her attention.

  When she stopped in the dining room, she was mesmerized by the wall made of small square mirrors. Each mirror was rimmed in gold. She reached out to take one from the wall, to check the price, but was surprised it didn’t budge.

  “Won’t come off the wall. They were cemented on.” A tall, dark haired man spoke from behind her. Sylvia jumped slightly and turned to face him.

  “I’m Peter Pendecot.” He stuck out a hand and gave Sylvia a strong shake. “I’m the grandson.”

  “Oh, are you Alice’s brother?”

  His face seemed to cringe. “Nope. My mom and her dad are brother and sister. We are cousins, but we never met before today. She spent a few summers here; I came for Christmas.”

  Sylvia was intrigued. Perhaps the diary would give more insight into the reason why the grandchildren visited at different times of the year.

  “I’m sorry about your grandmother’s death.”

  The man shrugged. “She was ninety-five. Couldn’t live forever. I wasn’t close to her. Just so you know my true character, though, I came here just to hear the reading of the will. I hoped I would get something, a small fortune or just a few thousand, but no doing. The old lady left it all to charity.”

  Sylvia frowned. She did feel sorry for the two grandchildren. It didn’t seem right that their grandmother left them nothing.

  “Used to be some old coins around. My grandfather owned them. I was quite attached to them. Used to stare at them for hours. I’d hoped she would give them to me.”

  “Oh, I heard they were lost.”

  “Seems that way. No one has found them yet. But even if they did, it’s all part of the estate. I couldn’t afford to buy them.”

  Hubert happened to be walking past and called into the room. “Sylvia, I think there are some teacups you might like in the dining room.”

  Sylvia nodded and looked back at the mirrored wall. “It’s truly exceptional.” She assured Peter, however, as she glanced at the wall, something didn’t seem right. She tried to decide what but couldn’t quite make it out. She finally moved on to the dining room and kitchen.

  Just then, Sylvia heard the loud voice of another person she knew. Doc Holiday had just entered the front door. The man was the epitome of an old cowboy. He wore the twenty-year-old cowboy hat, faded and overused jeans, and a too big for his body belt buckle. To top it all off, there was always a wad of chewing tobacco in the side of his mouth.

  Why his parents chose to name him Doc Holiday, no one knew; their last name was Digby. But that was the name he’d been given. He was a coin collector.

  “Heard there was a mighty fine old desk for sale today, Hubert.” Doc’s voice rang across the room.

  Sylvia moaned.

  Hubert shook his head slowly. “Was one, but it’s been claimed.”

  “Claimed? Claimed? What does that mean? If it’s not been bought, then it’s still for sale. I’ll take it.” The man reached into his back pocket, pulled out a long wallet and started pulling hundred-dollar bills from it.

  Hubert’s eyes searched the room frantically, then landed on Sylvia. She nodded and moved toward the front door.

  Sylvia reached the front desk and handed her ticket to Hubert. Gathe Denver was leaning against the counter.

  Gathe looked at the ticket. “I see you’re purchasing Mrs. Pendecot’s desk. It’s a real beauty. A bit masculine for a woman, but sturdy. I had my eye on it myself. Thought I’d like it as an office desk, unfortunately I didn’t have a chance to look it over.”

  Sylvia was a bit taken aback at his tone. She’d always known him to be so pleasant, but something in his voice made her feel she had displeased him.

  “When you have time to stop by, I’d love to have you look it over with me. Help me decide on a price.” Sylvia smiled as she reached into her bag for her credit card.

  “I thought about buying it for myself. I saw it in the Gazette last week. It reminded me of something my grandfather used to have in his office. I wanted to show it to Tricia, but she couldn’t get here until later in the day.”

  “Well, bring Tricia to my shop to see it.”

  Gathe smiled with a nod.

  Just then, Doc Holiday’s voice interrupted them. “I’ve got good old American cash here, and I want that desk.” He almost pushed Sylvia out of the way.

  Hubert frowned.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Holiday. I claimed the desk first. I don’t think cash or credit make a difference in the purchase.” She looked toward Hubert who nodded in agreement.

  “What you want an old clunker like that for?” The man’s voice rose in irritation.

  “As an investment.” She bristled slightly. “I need not explain myself to you.” She turned and pushed the credit card into Hubert’s hand, and he began to slide it through the credit card reader.

  “Now just you wait,” The old man tried to grab the credit card from Hubert’s hand.

  “No, I don’t have to wait. I have the rights to make this purchase.

  “That’s correct, Miss Sylvia. Now Doc, stop causing trouble.” He turned back to Sylvia. “And you want it delivered to the shop?”

  Sylvia bobbed her head.

  Hubert wrote something on her ticket. The transaction was completed fairly quickly.

  “We’ll deliver it to your shop on Monday morning. Don’t worry about meeting me there; I know where you keep the key.”

  Hubert handed her the receipt. Sylvia picked up her bag and made her way to the front door. She wasn’t able to purchase anything else; but the atmosphere was so hostile, she felt she should leave.

  Before she stepped outside, she turned and looked back. Alice Pendecot, Hatty, Doc Holiday, Gathe Denver, Jason Jones and Jennifer were all staring at her. Not one friendly smile could be found.

  Sylvia shivered then walked out the door.

  Goodness, estate sales are getting more cut-throat each day. All that hostility over a desk. Perhaps I shouldn’t have bought it after all. I could have just asked Hubert to sell me the diary. But the desk is so unique. Yes, a bit pricy, but I love it. And finding a diary hidden inside makes it so much more valuable.

  Before she reached the waiting taxi, she stopped, turned, and slipped back into the mansion. No one was at the front desk now except for Jennifer.

  Sylvia glanced across the room and saw another man looking at the desk. He seemed to be a casual shopper and didn’t open any drawers. Unlike the dark haired Pendecot grandchildren, he was a rather short man with blonde hair.

  “I’ve decided to have the desk I just bought delivered to my house, instead of the shop. I’d like to keep it for my own personal use. Can you work that out?”

  Jennifer nodded, pulled out the sales ticket and made a note on it.

  “We do our shop deliveries on Mondays so it will arrive at your house on Tuesday,” Jennifer explained.

  “That’s fine. In the meantime, could you please strap it closed? I don’t want everyone pulling the drawers out.”

  Jennifer nodded. Just then Jason came up to the front. Jennifer pulled out some long, mover’s straps and asked him to help her wrap up the desk.

  “Do you know who that man looking at my desk is?”

  Jennifer looked up then shook her head. “Never seen him before.”

  Sylvia finally made her way out the door and toward the taxi. Bill was leaning against the front panel, a toothpick hanging from his mouth.

  “So, did you buy anything? Your bag looks kind of empty.”

  “Yes, I got a lovely desk, and I did find one special treasure.” She patted her bag.

  “A diary?”

  Sylvia held a finger to her lips. “Shhh.”

  Bill nodded, opened the door and waited until Sylvia slipped into the seat. As he walked around the car to get in the driver’s side, he laughed.

  She always finds a diary.

  Cha
pter 2

  “Where to?” Bill asked when Sylvia was settled into the back seat of the taxi. “Back to the Good Old Days?”

  Sylvia laughed. How she would love to go back to the good old days! But now the only “good old days” for her was the antique store she owned.

  “I’d like to stop at the Harbor Inn Nursing Home. I haven’t seen Laura Lee in a week.”

  Bill nodded. Laura Lee was Sylvia’s older sister. The two women lived together until a year ago, when Laura Lee fell and broke her hip. After that, she wasn’t able to care for herself, and Sylvia couldn’t do it either. That’s when they decided Laura Lee should move into the nursing home.

  “How’s she doing?” Bill asked as he pulled away from the mansion.

  “Fair to middlin’. But she’s quiet these days. The doctors think she’s showing signs of Alzheimer’s.”

  Bill looked into the rearview mirror and noted Sylvia wipe her eyes with a small hankie.

  “Now, I’m right sorry about that, Miss Sylvia.”

  Sylvia waved the hanky at him. “It’s to be expected. She was already frail. Remember, she is eighty years old.”

  Bill nodded and drove on. Sylvia told him about finding the diary along the way. When he pulled into the circular driveway in front of the nursing home, Sylvia glanced up and said, “Now Bill, I don’t know why I feel this way, but please don’t mention to anyone that I found a diary in the desk I bought.”

  Bill swished his hand back and forth across his chest. “I promise. You know you can always count on me, Miss Sylvia.”

  She patted her hair into place. “I know, and usually it wouldn’t make any difference, but for some strange reason I thought Alice Pendecot seemed a bit too interested in what might be in the desk. She did mention a diary, but until I get to read and document it, I don’t want anyone to know about it. However, once I’ve finished, I’ll ask Alice if she would like to see it.”

  Bill rubbed his fingers across his lips like a zipper being closed. “Your secret’s safe with me.”

  “There did seem to be a lot of interest in the desk itself. I thought I was going to have to call the police.”

  Bill frowned. “Why?”

  “That old coot Doc Holiday was trying to get the desk.”

  “Hmm, wonder what he wants it for? He usually goes for the coins.”

  Sylvia tilted her head. “That is exactly what I’m wondering. I can’t wait to have a good look at the desk. Maybe there’s a hidden compartment I didn’t see.”

  “What if there are some old coins worth a fortune?” Bill laughed.

  “I’ll let Doc have them.”

  Bill nodded. He was sure that’s just what Sylvia would do. She’d never consider herself first.

  He stopped the car by the front door, turned off the engine and got out. He moved around to the other side and opened the door for Miss Sylvia.

  “Can you wait for me?”

  “Sure can. I’m off the clock now so you have me for the rest of the day.”

  Sylvia smiled and walked to the front door of the nursing home and went inside.

  Bill watched her go in then leaned against the taxi. Because she didn’t drive, Miss Sylvia used the taxi service so often, the company no longer charged her by the mile. They just charged her a monthly fee. Bill often drove her around after he was off the clock. She was sort of the grandmother he never had. And since his wife passed away and his kids were all grown and living out of town, there wasn’t anything else for him to do most of the time.

  Just then, a rather rough looking man pulled up in an old Ford truck behind the taxi. He beeped his horn several times so Bill got in and pulled the taxi to the parking lot. He sat in the car and watched as the man left his truck in front of the nursing home and stomped inside.

  Sylvia found her sister sitting in the dining room at a small table with one other woman. They were early but anxiously waiting for their lunch.

  “Hello, Laura Lee.” Sylvia leaned over and gave her sister a hug.

  Laura Lee stared at Sylvia for a moment then suddenly said, “Oh, Sylvia May, it’s you.”

  “Yes, dear.” Sylvia sat in the chair beside her sister.

  “Where have you been today, Sylvia?” Laura Lee asked.

  “I went to an estate sale at…”

  Suddenly, a man stomped up to the table. “Mother, I went to your room, but you weren’t there!” His voice boomed causing Sylvia, Laura Lee and the other woman at the table all to jump.

  “I’m sorry, Donald. It’s almost lunch time.” The woman sounded nervous.

  The man pulled a chair up beside his mother. “It doesn’t matter. How are you?”

  Sylvia realized she’d been holding her breath. The man must not be as bad as he seemed because the other woman was smiling and talking in an animated way.

  She turned back to her sister and continued her conversation.

  “I went to an estate sale at the Pendecot Mansion.”

  “Oh, I was sorry to hear that Mary passed away.”

  “Yes, I was as well. But I bought a lovely old desk, and guess what was hidden in it?”

  Laura Lee shrugged, “What?”

  “A diary. I’m sure it’s Mary Pendecot’s own personal diary.”

  Laura Lee’s eyes lit up. “That’s wonderful; she was a rich woman.”

  “Yes, but her granddaughter told me Mary gave all her money away to different charities and organizations. She did say there were jewels hidden somewhere, but no one has found them.”

  Laura Lee nodded. “I remember those emeralds she wore at the Mayor’s Ball several years ago.”

  “Yes, and the rubies she wore to church. But they’re gone now, or hidden.” Just then, the attendant set a tray of food down for Laura Lee and the other woman.

  Sylvia squinted at it and gulped. It didn’t look very good, but Laura Lee assured her the food here was wonderful.

  “There was an article about the jewels in the Gazette last week. I haven’t read it yet. I think it talked about some missing coins, too.”

  Laura Lee cocked her head and in a rather loud voice exclaimed, “Missing jewels and coins! That sounds interesting. I’d like to read that Gazette article, too.”

  “Shh!” Sylvia’s eyes scanned the room. The man sitting with his mother was staring openly at her.

  “I don’t know anything about the jewels and coins. As I said, I found a diary inside the desk I bought.”

  “Maybe she wrote about them in the diary,” Laura Lee whispered.

  “Perhaps. When I get back to the shop, I’ll have a look at it. You never know; I may have to go on a treasure hunt.” Sylvia laughed and patted Laura Lee’s hand.

  “Maybe once you search the desk more, you’ll find something else hidden in it.”

  “I was thinking the same thing myself. I’m having it delivered to the house on Tuesday. I thought it would make a nice addition to the sitting room, rather than taking up space at the shop.

  “Well, I better go now; Bill’s got the taxi outside waiting for me.” She stood and pressed a small kiss on Laura Lee’s cheek.

  “Bye, bye, honey. Let me know what you find in that diary.”

  When Sylvia turned to leave, she noted Donald and his mother were not speaking. He was still staring at her.

  When he realized, she was staring back, he turned his head slightly and began to speak to his mother again.

  Bill drove Sylvia home instead of to her shop; she was tuckered out. Her age was taking a small toll on her. An estate sale and a visit to her sister were all she could take for one day. Considering she was seventy-two, she thought it was a good day.

  “Here you go, Miss Sylvia. Home sweet home.” Bill opened the taxi door, and she got out.

  “Thank you, Bill. I’m tired.”

  “Well, you get rested up. I’ll pick you up in time for church tomorrow.”

  “Thank you.” Sylvia made her way into her house, closed the door and sank into a chair. First a cup of tea, then an aft
ernoon nap.

  No ring?

  Chapter 3

  Monday morning, Sylvia May pushed open the door of the Cup N Cake coffee shop. It was the best place for coffee in town and, luckily, in the same square as her antique store.

  “Good morning, Miss Sylvia,” Penny Lyle, co-owner of the cupcake and coffee shop, called out. Penny was married to a famous mystery writer named Kyle London. They'd combined his coffee shop and her cupcake shop together when they got married.

  “Morning, Penny. What’s the special today?” Sylvia glanced around the shop.

  Penny held up a plate filled with lemon poppy seed scones.

  “They look yummy. I’ll take three to go and my regular cup of coffee.” Sylvia opened her purse and pulled out her credit card.

  Just then Tricia and Gathe Denver entered the shop. Gathe stepped up behind Sylvia.

  “Hello, Miss Sylvia. How are you today? Did Bill just drop you off?”

  Sylvia turned and nodded. “Oh, Gathe. I’m fine, just fine. Yes, Bill left a few minutes ago, got another call.”

  “Did you get your desk yet?”

  “No, I expect it to be delivered tomorrow.”

  Gathe looked confused. “Wasn’t it supposed to be delivered today?”

  “Yes, but I changed my mind, decided to have it sent to my house instead. They’ll deliver it tomorrow.”

  “I heard that the Pendecot jewels were lost,” Tricia, Gathe’s wife, interjected.

  Sylvia shook her head. “Yes. That’s what I was told.”

  “And there were no clues left behind?”

  “None that I know about, at least not yet. It’s not only jewels, but some rare coins are missing, too.”

  “That sounds intriguing. Tell us more,” Tricia dropped her voice.

  “You want to join us for some coffee?” Gathe asked.

  “No, I need to get my shop opened. Hubert promised me the leftovers from the estate sale so I need to make room at the shop. But Tricia, stop by later. I picked up a little something at the estate sale that might hold the answers.”

  Tricia nodded, and Sylvia turned toward the door. From the corner of her eye, she noted Jennifer and Jason sitting at a small table, holding hands. She realized they had been sitting close enough to overhear her conversation with Gathe and Tricia. Not that it mattered.