He rushed down the aisle to the courtroom doors before stopping. “You have been very blessed, Joshua. Not every man gets a second shot at love after burying his wife. I hope you realize that.” Before they could respond, he hurried out and was gone.
“What was that about?” Cameron asked after the clang of the courtroom doors shutting had quieted.
Joshua shrugged his shoulders. “Albert never got over his wife dying back all those years ago. Eventually, he sold all of the livestock on his farm, and now, he lives there alone. All he’s got is the house and his legal practice.”
With his arm across her shoulders, they walked down the aisle toward the door.
“Is he any good . . . as a lawyer?”
“He’s very good. He beat my butt today.” Joshua stopped at the door. “He goes to my church. I see him every Sunday. But today, it was like I actually looked at him for the first time. I never noticed how old he was.”
“We’re all getting older.” She brushed her fingers through his silver hair. “I’ve seen the pictures of you back when you were in JAG,” she smiled. “Your hair was darker then. But I like it better now. I love my silver fox.”
“I’ve earned every one of these silver locks.” He pointed to his head. “Let’s lock you up in a house with five teenagers and see how long your hair remains cinnamon-colored.”
“Am I allowed to stay armed?”
“I was armed, and it didn’t do me any good.”
“That’s why I have a cat instead of children.” Keeping hold of his leash, she put Irving down. “Albert’s aged. It happens to all of us eventually.”
“But, it’s like he’s aged twenty years overnight. I think I’m going to invite him to dinner after church this Sunday.”
Instead of responding, she was watching Irving wrap his leash around Joshua’s leg.
“Do you mind?” he asked while stepping out of the confines of the leash.
“It’s your house.” She picked up the cat before he had a chance to tie Joshua up again. “You can have whoever you want.”
“You think he’s weird.”
“I didn’t say your cousin was weird,” she said.
“You didn’t have to. I could see it on your face.”
She squinted at him. “I have a poker face, I’ll have you know. That’s why I’m so good at interrogation. No one knows what I’m thinking ever.”
“If you say so.” Joshua went through the door.
“I do say so.” She followed him. “Just for that, you’re buying me a pizza with everything on it.”
“How about a bacon cheeseburger and waffle fries?”
“I’m easy. I’ll settle for that. Remember, non-fat milk for Irving. He’s watching his weight.”
Irving agreed with a meow.
Albert Gordon never missed Sunday service at the First Christian Church on Indiana Avenue in Chester. There was no sign on the left aisle seat in the third pew back, but it was understood that was Albert’s seat. That’s why everyone noticed when he wasn’t there the next Sunday.
Joshua Thornton and his family sat directly across the aisle from Albert. Over the years, as four of Joshua’s five children had flown the nest, the crowd that filled the pew was reduced down to that of father and his youngest son.
Oldest sons, Murphy had graduated from the Naval Academy and his twin, Joshua Junior from pre-law at Pennsylvania State University. Murphy was now serving at the Pentagon while J.J. was embarking on law school. Younger daughter, Sarah had taken Murphy’s place at the Naval Academy in Annapolis; while her older sister Tracy was with the CIA; Culinary Institute of America, that is. The only junior Thornton left was Donny, who was a sophomore at Oak Glen High School.
The baby of the family was no more. As if in response to his siblings’ teasing for being the runt of the family, Donny hit puberty with style by sprouting over a foot between twelve and thirteen years of age. At sixteen, he was two inches taller than both his father and brothers.
Rebelling at first to his father’s insistence that he go out for football to get him away from his computers and into the fresh air; Donny discovered that he had inherited his father’s talent for football. In his youth, Joshua had led his high school to the state championship. Whoever would have guessed Joshua’s computer geek son would become a top linebacker?
The exercise served Donny well. As much as he hated to admit his father was right, he was pleased to discover that his toned muscles gave him a physique to complement the Thornton dark, wavy hair and striking blue eyes. He had no trouble getting dates on Friday and Saturday nights, which made for less time with his computer games, which made Joshua happy.
Several years since returning to his home town after the death of his wife had left him with five children to raise on his own, Joshua found that he would still do a double-take when Dr. Tad MacMillan, stepped up onto the stage behind the church pastor to lead the choir. If ever there was proof that people can change, it was his cousin.
A little over ten years ago, Tad MacMillan was a womanizing town drunk. Rumor was that the charismatic rogue had slept with every available woman in the Ohio Valley. Now, he was Chester’s town doctor and Hancock County’s medical examiner. At an age when most people were becoming grandparents, Tad and his wife, Jan, were expecting their first baby.
“Is Albert sick?” Mildred Hildebrand blocked Joshua’s exit out the front door after the service. Her tone was not unlike that of a boss wanting to know where one of her employees had disappeared.
Mildred went to great lengths to dress for her role of church leader in colorful suits, scarves, and hats. While most of the congregation had bundled up in heavy sweaters and winter boots to defend themselves against January’s freezing winds, Mildred donned a winter ensemble, which included a wide-brimmed, red hat trimmed in white fur.
Joshua cocked his head to look beyond her hat to see Donny engaged in a conversation with a pretty girl with long blond hair. Her family was new to their church, and the young man had swooped in as soon as the service was over to introduce himself.
“When are we going to meet your new lady friend?” Mildred went on to demand. “She does go to church, doesn’t she? Donny needs a mother who will reinforce his religious upbringing.”
“Cameron is Catholic. She goes to mass every Saturday at St. George’s in Aliquippa.”
When Joshua tried to sidestep her to catch Donny’s attention, Mildred sidestepped with him.
When he saw his father trying to catch his eye, Donny turned his head. The blond was smiling up at him.
Another one of Albert’s elderly friends Doris Sullivan came up from behind and grasped Joshua’s elbow. The tall, gaunt woman’s cold, bony fingers felt like bird claws gripping his arm, which caused him to let out a shriek at her unexpected touch.
“I hope Albert isn’t sick,” she said. “Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen his car move out of his driveway in days.” Doris Sullivan lived alone on a horse farm located along the same country road. The Sullivan family bred and raced Thoroughbred horses. After giving up the livestock on his farm, Albert allowed Doris’s horses to graze in his fields.
“He must be,” Joshua said. “He was in court the other day, and he wasn’t feeling well.”
“He didn’t come to the spaghetti dinner Friday night.” Mildred crossed her hands and rested them on her plump tummy. “Albert always comes to our spaghetti dinners, or any functions the church has that offers a meal.”
Her displeased expression made Joshua feel as if he had done something wrong. He resisted the urge to tell her that it wasn’t his job to watch his elderly, distant cousin. He noticed Ralph Hildebrand, Mildred’s husband, make a gesture at Doris from behind his wife’s back and slip out the front door into the wind.
“He says he likes our cooking,” Doris said. “Excuse me.” With a quick glance over her shoulder to see that Joshua still had Mildred’s attention, she followed Ralph out the front door.
The reference to their good cooking brought a smile to Mildred’s face. “Albert loves my coconut cream pie.” She glanced both ways before telling Joshua in a low tone, “Doris baked a cake for our Thanksgiving dinner. Albert told me that he had to sneak it into the garbage. It was so bad.” With a laugh, she looked over across the back of the sanctuary in search of her rival.
Refusing to join in the gossip, Joshua finally caught Donny’s eye and excused himself.
“Should I stop by Albert’s house to check on him?” Mildred called after him.
“No,” Joshua replied while hurrying away. “I’ll do it. He’s my family.”
Grabbing Donny by the arm, he led him outside. “Haven’t I told you that when Mrs. Hildebrand starts talking to me to come tell me that you want to go home?”
“That was Sarah’s job,” Donny said.
“Now that she’s gone, you’ve inherited it.”
“Man! Irving, you’re so lucky you have that nice fur coat.” Cameron waited for the gust of wind to pass before pulling up the collar on her winter coat and throwing open her SUV’s door. The wind whipped her hair around her head while she ran up the sidewalk to the front porch of the farmhouse on Snowden Road.
Catching a whiff of the freezing wind during the brief moment the door was open, Irving backed up to his seat on the passenger side of the car and curled up under the blower where the hot air had been coming out of the heater.
Cameron had checked Albert’s mail and paper boxes at the end of his long driveway. She counted four newspapers in his box, and the mailbox was full of bills and advertisements.
Deduction: He hadn’t collected his mail or newspapers for several days.
After noting that the elderly man’s sidewalk and porch were still clear of snow from his shoveling it following the blizzard the week before, she pounded on the front door. “Mr. Gordon!” she yelled. “Mr. Gordon! It’s Detective Cameron Gates, Joshua’s friend. Are you okay? Your family has asked me to check on you! Can you answer the door?”
The only movement was Irving’s head popping up to peer at her from the driver’s side window of the car. His meow sounded like an order to hurry up.
“I’ll be there in a minute,” she replied. “Keep your tail on.”
Irving returned to the passenger seat to wait.
She went around to the side door that opened to a breezeway leading into the kitchen. The lock was old and would be a piece of cake for her to pick. She reached into the inside breast pocket of her coat and extracted her lock pick kit. After glancing around to determine that no one was around to watch, she knelt to get to work. Unable to feel the inside workings of the pick in the lock, she was forced to take off her gloves. Her fingertips instantly went numb. The wind went down her neck to send a shiver through her body.
The things I do for my friends.
“Careful. Someone watching might think you were breaking and entering.”
Startled, she whirled around so fast that she lost her balance and landed on her rump in a pile of snow. Joshua’s and Donny’s laughter could have been heard across the snow covered acres around them.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Checking on Albert,” Joshua said. “What are you doing?”
“Tad called and asked me to stop by on my way to your place,” she said. “Seems Albert wasn’t in church.” She returned to picking the lock. “I don’t suppose you have a key to any of these locks.”
After saying he didn’t, Joshua poked around under the door mat and other places he could think of where Albert would hide a key to use in case he locked himself out of his home.
“There are four newspapers in his paper box,” she told them. “Everything is locked up tight. We have to break in.”
“He’s either out of town, or something happened to him,” Donny said.
“And leave his car behind?” She pointed to the car parked in front of the garage.
“Why didn’t he park it in the garage?” Joshua asked.
“Probably not enough room.” She peered into the lock while working the pick. “The garage looks like it’s filled with junk. Take a look in the window.”
“Maybe someone drove him to the airport.” Hugging himself, Donny stomped his feet to keep warm.
Joshua shook his head. “Albert is one of those people who thinks that if you go beyond Pittsburgh that you’re going to drop off the ends of the earth. He doesn’t go out except for court, church functions, and Sunday services.”
Donny peered through the kitchen window as if it were possible to see through the thick curtains blocking the view inside. “If we break in and he went to Vegas for a vacation, then we’ll be charged with breaking and entering.”
Her hand on the door knob, Cameron stood up. “You know, it’s surprising how easy it is to pick these old locks. We’ll simply open the door. Step inside to make sure Albert is okay. If he’s not here and hurt, then we can leave and lock the door behind us, and no one will even know we were here.”
She pushed open the door and went inside. Her scream brought Joshua and Donny in at a run. None of them had ever seen a scene like that stretched out before them.
Floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall; the house was packed with everything that had ever come through the doors: mail (both opened and unopened), church bulletins, newsletters, gifts still in their boxes, clothes, cushions, books, magazines, blankets, games, newspapers, and anything else imaginable. If it had ended up in Albert Gordon’s possession, it didn’t leave his home.