Page 15 of Secrets in the Stacks

“Actually, that’s not my dad’s. One of the sanitation guys dropped it off at my office last night. He found it in a trash can outside your shop last night. He thought maybe the owner made a mistake and threw it away and then didn’t want to dig it out.” He rubbed Killer’s tummy as the little dog melted in Drew’s arms. If his parents hadn’t been living with him when Killer needed a home, Rarity thought, she wouldn’t have gotten Killer.

She pulled the Winston Churchill book out of the bag. “This is the guy who was at the festival this weekend. He asked if we had this specific book, and I told him we’d bring it over. But he didn’t show up again at the festival. He came to the store. I hope he realizes he lost it and comes back.”

“Why don’t you call him?”

“One, I don’t know him, and two, he paid in cash. I can’t even look up the charge.” Rarity pulled out the receipt from the empty bag and held it up for Drew to see. She put the book back in the bag with the receipt and tucked it under the counter. “Hopefully he’ll realize what he did before he leaves town. He said he wasn’t a local. I’ll hold it for him.”

“You’re a good person, Rarity Cole.” Drew nuzzled Killer and then put him down. “I’ve got to go to Flagstaff. They’re doing Catherine’s autopsy today. If you talk to Darby, she’s cleared to go back to the house. Although you might want to get someone in there to clean before she goes back. The place is a mess.”

The idea had hit her as soon as he mentioned the house. “That’s what we can do for Darby. I’ll gather the book club, and we’ll go over and clean the house tonight.”

“Rarity, you may want to hire someone. Dealing with a death scene isn’t just a normal house cleaning job.” He pulled out a card and set it down on the counter. “Call Alex at this number. She’s really good at getting bloodstains out. And she’s fast.”

Rarity picked up the card. “Well, it’s not as personal as doing the work ourselves, but I get it. Maybe we can do a welcome home gathering to make her feel more comfortable there without her grandmother.”

“Tell Alex I’ll leave the house key at the front desk at the station. Maybe she can get it cleaned today, and you guys can take food over for dinner for Darby. That way she doesn’t have to eat her first meal there alone.” He tapped the counter. “If you need me, I’ll have my phone on in the car.”

“I think we can manage for a few hours without you.” She picked up the card and dialed the number. A cheerful woman answered, and Rarity asked if Alex was available to clean a house today.

“Of course. I kind of expected this call. I’ve been watching the news. Crazy how this happened, right? I knew Catherine. We’re on the same board for the battered women’s shelter. Although she’s more active than I am. I think they asked me to join the board just in case they needed my professional services. I’d feel obligated to give them a discount.” The woman took a breath. “Wow that was a lot of information. I think I had one too many coffees this morning. I’m Alex Moline, by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Alex. I appreciate you doing this on such short notice. Once you’re done, stop by the bookstore, and I’ll pay you.” She wondered if she should ask for an invoice. But she should know what she was doing, right? “Sorry, I guess I should get a quote on what you think this is going to cost.”

“I work by the hour, one hundred even, and with that size house, you’re probably looking at six hours tops, depending on how much fingerprint dusting is around. It’s almost harder to find and get cleaned up than the blood. At least the blood is usually only one room. They can fingerprint the entire house. That dust goes everywhere.” The woman paused, and Rarity assumed she was making notes. “I’ll be there within the hour. I should be at the bookstore at five, if that’s not too late. I’ve been meaning to drop in and say hi, but between work, school, and the single-mom duties, I haven’t found time.”

Rarity finished with the arrangements, then texted Holly to see if she could talk without Darby hearing. Her phone rang immediately.

“Darby went to class today. I’m not sure why; the girl’s a mess. But maybe the drive will give her some alone time to put herself together.” Holly paused. “What’s up?”

Rarity explained what she was doing and that she wanted to get the book club together for a meal to welcome Darby home. “What do you think? Good idea or horrible one? The crime scene cleaner has already been hired, so that part’s non-negotiable.”

“I think she’ll love it. She’s been wanting to go home, but she’s scared she’ll freak out. With all of us there, she should feel more comfortable. I’d stay with her, but I have to work tonight. Maybe Malia can sleep over. I don’t think she works until this weekend.”

“Killer and I can sleep over one night. We could take shifts. Maybe just until she gets tired of us and kicks us all out.” Rarity started looking at the calendar in front of her. If they all took a night, it would be almost a week before they’d have to take a second night.

Holly laughed. “I’m not sure that’s going to happen. She enjoys being with people. Heck, she loves being here with me, even in my crowded apartment. I think she’s going to be lonely living alone. She needs to sell the house and get her own space in a building where she can make friends.”

Rarity didn’t know if that would be best or not. She’d tried living in an apartment, and the noise that came through the walls had made her anxious and jumpy all the time. She liked her house where she had privacy and didn’t have to fight for a parking spot in the lot. But instead of disagreeing, Rarity softened her response. “I think Darby needs to make that decision, but not now. It’s too soon. The professionals say not to change your life for at least a year after a loss like this. And with a traumatic loss, I’m pretty sure she’ll need more than just a year.”

“Oh, you’re right. I’m just a ‘do it and move on’ type. Sometimes I forget that not everyone reacts the same as I do.” Holly turned down the music that had been blaring in the background. “Look, I’ll call the others. I can’t stay late tonight, so I’ll make sure we have a meal and everything is set up. Then we can work out a schedule when we’re there with Darby. She needs some input in the decision. I wish her folks would call back. She’s feeling a little powerless right now.”

After handing off the planning, Rarity got back to work. Wednesdays, she was busy ordering, and she worked between her notebook that she kept under the counter and the list of sales the computer pushed out for the week. Sometimes, it meant she ordered more, hoping for a strong week. Sometimes, like this week, she took the fact that the festival had brought a lot of sales into the equation and ordered less. Doing it that way, she had room to bring in new stock she hadn’t carried before, as well as keeping up with the books that had been sold. She paused as she ordered the book that now sat in a bag under her counter. Why had it ended up in the trash can? She remembered watching him walk out of the shop on Tuesday, and then he’d paused near the trash can. Maybe the book had just slipped with the piece of paper or whatever he’d thrown away. Maybe he hadn’t noticed until he’d arrived home. Maybe… She just knew she had one extra book right now, and she needed the owner to come and retrieve it. If he didn’t, the book would go to the library charity she worked with. They’d be happy to get the book, especially one on the recent-ish history.

With that decision made and off her mind, she dug in to finish her ordering. Alex would be here to be paid around five. Malia was bringing over the tray of lasagna Rarity had ordered for tonight’s dinner from the Garnet. Shirley was making something in her crockpot according to a text Rarity had gotten from the oldest member of the book club. And, if Rarity knew her, Shirley would also bring at least one dessert. Shirley loved to cook, and with her husband in a memory care facility, she didn’t have anyone but the book club to feed. Of course, everyone ignored the fact that she pretended George was still home, in the basement, working on his World War I model airplane collection. She still kept the pretense going, even though he hadn’t lived with Shirley for years. Rarity hadn’t known until Drew had told her the reality about the couple’s situation.

Whatever worked for a person was the truth for them, no matter what society’s truth or reality was. Even if the entire state of Arizona disagreed with her.

Archer texted her around four, asking if she had dinner plans. Since the bookstore was slow, and she’d checked off her to-do list except for waiting for the house cleaner to come by, she called him back instead of answering the text. “Hey, I hope this isn’t a bad time.”

“Nope, I’m just sitting here planning out next month’s tours. We’re adding a new one focused on little kids. It’s down at the river walk, and Calliope’s been busy figuring out stops that will keep the kids busy. She’s doing a handout where they can mark off each stop as they find it. Cute, huh?”

“Yeah, it’s adorable. And if you get the kids interested in hiking early, you’ve got a feeder crop into your more difficult tours when they’re adults. Maybe you should look at setting something up for youth groups too.” As much as Rarity didn’t like Calliope—or maybe didn’t trust her intentions was a better description for the emotion the woman’s name brought up—it was a good idea. She’d give her that.

“Calliope said the same thing, but I want to see how this works out first. If we get signups, then I’ll reach out to the local youth groups and see if I can get some interest. Marketing isn’t my strongest talent.” He chuckled.

“I beg to differ. You started my bookstore-to-business-connection bookmarks, and now I have them in five different stores. I’m hoping the chamber of commerce accepts my proposal, although they want me to foot the bill for all of the costs.” She pulled out her planner and made a note to call her chamber contact next week. “One more item on my to-do list.”

“That’s a big name for my suggesting making bookmarks that list your bookstore with a local business. But I’ll take the credit. Besides, you love your lists. Don’t deny it. I would be flying by the seat of my pants if Calliope wasn’t there to keep my schedule in line.” He paused, and Rarity wondered if he realized how many times he’d brought up the woman in one conversation. “Anyway, how about dinner? I’ll cook if you want to stay in.”

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