Page 56 of Little Shattered Dreams

“I’m not trying to keep you here.”

“Yes, you are. Isn’t that what your meeting was about? You and the other woman you work with, trying to convince us we’re safe becauseyou’rehere, and two more officers are on the way. I’m not sure how you think that came across, but as far as I’m concerned, you don’t send officers to keep an eye on things unless there’s a threat, a reason for them to be here.”

I wanted to offer a rebuttal, but I couldn’t.

Thinking about it from her perspective, I saw her point.

I’d thought telling everyone the chief of police was sending officers to the retreat would make them feel better about what had happened here.

I was wrong.

I wondered if everyone else felt the same way Margie did.

“Can we sit, just for a few minutes?” I asked. “And then I’ll get out of your way, and you can leave.”

She tapped a foot to the ground, debating. “Five minutes.”

I followed her to the living room, and we sat across from each other, her on the couch, me on a chair. Knowing the clock was ticking, I dove right in. “What brought you to the retreat this week?”

“Last year, I started meditating in the morning. I tried doing it on my own at first, but it was too hard. I couldn’t just sit there and clear my mind. Thoughts would seep in, and it seemed impossible to push them to the side. I almost gave up, and then I found some videos on the internet. Guided meditations. Every day, a different theme. I tried them out, and they worked. A few months later, I learned Karl, the meditational guide, worked here.”

“And you decided to book in?”

“I did. I couldn’t wait to meet him in person.”

“We’ve been doing some background checks on everyone and—”

Margie raised a hand, stopping me. “You’ve discovered I worked for Quinn.”

“I did.”

“It was a long time ago. Twenty-something years, at least. I worked there for a couple of years, and then one day she called me into the office. She said the business wasn’t doing well and she couldn’t afford to stay open and longer.”

“Did she say why?”

“She didn’t. It was strange though. One day the business was thriving, the next it wasn’t.”

“Why? Any idea what happened?”

“You ever talk to someone and it’s like they’re standing there, right in front of you, but they’re somewhere else in their mind?”

“I have.”

I was guilty of it myself.

“That’s how I would describe her,” she said. “She was a bright, smart, savvy businesswoman one day, always working hard to grow the business, and thenpoof, everything changed. She lost focus, became indifferent. I assumed it was because her marriage was falling apart at the time. Now I’m not so sure.”

“What makes you think something else happened?”

“Four years after the business went kaput, she called and asked me to go to lunch. She’d booked us in at a lavish five-star restaurant. She said she’d started a new business, a gift shop, and it was doing well. She even offered me a job, but I already had one. I have to say, she looked great, like a woman with a new lease on life.”

“What was discussed during lunch?”

“She apologized about the floral shop closing. I said I understood. I knew the pressure she was under, given her marriage was ending at the time.”

“What did she say?”

“The oddest thing. She said the end of her marriage was hard, but it wasn’t what tanked the business. There was something else. Something she didn’t want to talk about. As happy as she seemed, whatever it was, I could tell it still weighed on her mind. Since she didn’t want to talk about it, I didn’t press her for more information.”

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