Page 12 of One Last Lie

He snatches the medicines from my hand, rather rudely, and quickly scans them. “That will be seventeen-ninety-nine.”

My eyes narrow a little. Something in his manner strikes me as odd. He’s afraid. Why?

“I heard that you and the Ashfords have a great relationship. I’m sure you were devastated to hear of Johnathan’s passing.”

He chuckles nervously. “Yeah, it’s tragic. Life’s a bitch sometimes. Seventeen-ninety-nine.”

“Those poor children,” I say. “How devastating to lose their father—”

“Yes!” He catches himself and lowers his voice. “Yes, it is. Seventeen-ninety-nine. Please.”

I glance around. There are six other customers in the store and none of them near the checkout counter. Still, it’s not as though I can interrogate him in public. I return my gaze to him and say, “Shall I pass the family your condolences?”

“I… ah… sure. Listen, I have a lot to do, so—”

“Of course! Of course. Here you are.”

I hand him my card, and he scans it rapidly. “All right. You’re good to go.”

“The receipt? I’ll need to expense—”

“Yes, fine, here you go, bye!”

He rushes past me and accosts another customer, asking almost desperately if she needs help finding anything.

I watch him for a moment longer, then return to Javier. On the way home, I mention Simon’s jumpiness, and Javier frowns. “Hmm. I guess he was having a bad day. Honestly, I don’t know him very well. He might just be like that. I knew a guy at a gas station in Albany who used to swear at people when they asked him how his day was going. No reason. Just hated talking to people.”

Javier continues to regale me with tales of rude people he’s met in the past. I pay enough attention to nod politely and comment where expected, but my mind remains on the nervous pharmacist I talked to a moment ago.

Why would he get so upset at the mere mention of the family? What was his relationship with Johnathan? He certainly didn’t seem displeased about his death. Displeased to have me talking to him about it for sure, but that was all. Perhaps I should do some more research on Johnathan. Few people seem to miss him outside of his family.

I arrive home and give Samuel the medicine. Elijah tries to flee Samuel’s room when I arrive, but I hold my hand up to stop him. He frowns and says, “I’m just going outside to get some fresh air.”

“No, you’re not. You are to remain on the grounds today.”

He blinks. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. You are to remain on the grounds. You may walk through the garden or by the pond, but you are not to cross the fence onto the deep grounds.”

For the first time, he reacts in anger. “You can’t tell me what to do.”

“That is exactly what I’ve been hired to do.” I lower my voice and add, “Think of the example you’re setting for your brother and sister.”

“I’m not their dad,” he spits back. “I’m not supposed to set an example.”

“Of course you are. You’re the oldest. They’ll follow your lead whether you like it or not.”

“Yeah? Well, that’s their problem.”

He pushes past me and ignores me when I call after him.

“I could have told you that would happen,” Isabella says smugly. “He never listens. He only ever listened to Dad.”

“Isabella, may I talk with you a moment?”

“You can do whatever you want.”

Samuel sneezes loudly, and Isabella quickly hands him a tissue. She looks at me and says, “Can it wait, actually? I want to be here for Samuel.”

---