The Long Stitch Good Night: An Embroidery Mystery (21 page)

“I didn’t want to get into my feelings for Tawny when I was trying to cultivate a relationship with you. But she loved me—as a friend—and I never stopped loving her.” He briefly closed his eyes. “She was married. Did you know that?”

“I didn’t.”

“She didn’t want her husband to know anything about her past, though, so she kept our friendship from him,” he said. “We met once or twice a month in secret. Drew has grown up calling me Uncle Andy.”

“He’s the nephew with the Jack Russell?”

“Yeah.” He grinned.

“How about Tawny’s husband? Was he someone you knew?”

“I’ve never met him,” Andy said. “Like I told you, she didn’t want her old life interfering with her new one.”

“Have you seen Drew since his mom died?” I asked.

“Once…in February. He was with Tawny’s dad and wanted to see me, so Mr. Milligan gave me a call.”

“It must be hard,” I said. “You’re grieving for her. And, in a way, you’re grieving for Drew too.”

“We still get to stay in touch,” said Andy. “We e-mail and Skype and text each other. And I’ll probably see him again the next time he comes to see his grandpa.”

“That’s good.” I glanced at the clock and saw that it was after five p.m. “Andy, what kind of car do you drive?”

“A Camaro. Why?”

“They’re pretty low to the ground, aren’t they?”

He nodded.

“Would you mind giving me a ride home?”

I locked up the shop and put the sign in the window assuring my students I’d be back in time for class. Andy helped me into the passenger seat of his yellow Camaro.

“This is nice,” I said.

“Thanks.”

We drove most of the way home in silence, except for my giving him directions. When we got there, I told him I’d invite him in to say hi to Angus, but I really needed to change clothes and get back to class.

“That’s fine,” he said. “Hopefully, I’ll see him another time. I know I acted like a total drip earlier. It’s just—”

“We’ll pretend it never happened,” I interrupted.

“Yeah. I know I probably shouldn’t even ask, but may I still take you out to dinner tomorrow night?”

“I’d like that,” I said.

I dug my keys out of my purse before stepping out of Andy’s car. It was so much easier to get into and out of than my Jeep. For a second, it made me rethink my purchase. Still, I
knew Angus’s toenails would likely damage the leather interior, and he wouldn’t have as much room in a sporty little car as he did in the Jeep. While it would sometimes be nice to have either a car or a stepladder, I’d rather have Angus than convenience.

I turned and waved to Andy as I unlocked my door and went inside. The first thing I did was go upstairs and trade in my pencil skirt for a pair of jeans. I kept the sweater and the black pumps, though. I had to admit, it was nice to look and feel feminine. And though I often wore heels to counter my height—or, rather, lack of height—I usually dressed tomboyishly unless it was some sort of special occasion.

I went back downstairs and let Angus in. I fed him, and I ate a bowl of cereal and a piece of toast. I made Angus a piece of toast too. Then, since I’d left Angus home today, I took him back to the shop with me. Thankfully, the Jeep’s engine turned over on the first try…good as new. The bill I’d be getting in the mail wouldn’t be so hot, but at least I had my Jeep back.

As I waited for my students to arrive, I busied myself with the Mountmellick project. I was almost halfway through it, and I was really
pleased with how it was turning out. While I worked, I wondered what—if anything—the fact that Tawny was dead would have on the investigation. If Graham was her son’s father, then Drew was entitled to a share of his estate unless Graham and Tawny had some sort of legal agreement that Graham would have no financial responsibility for his child’s life. While I thought Tawny was living, this had given her an excellent motive to want Graham dead. But didn’t Drew’s guardian still have motive to want Graham dead? Maybe Tawny’s death had left her husband in a bind financially, and he’d been the one to confront Graham about money. They could’ve argued, and the husband could have taken advantage of the crowd at the Brew Crew to shoot Graham and then slip away unnoticed.

I set my embroidery aside long enough to go back into my office and look up the article about Tawny’s mother again. I read it more carefully this time and learned that Tawny’s dad’s name was John Milligan. He still lived in Lincoln City at the time of his wife’s death. I was guessing he was still there because Andy said he’d gone to see Drew in February while the child was with his grandfather.

I searched the white pages and came up with
an address for Mr. Milligan. I decided I’d pay him a visit before coming to work in the morning to see what he could tell me about Graham, Drew, and Tawny’s widowed husband.

I heard my students beginning to filter into the shop, and I exited out of the windows I’d opened on my computer and went to greet them. Tonight’s class was beginning needlepoint. It was a diverse group—teens, tweens, moms, and grandmothers. And Sadie. I’d finally convinced her to take the class so she could complete the kit I’d given her in October. So what if it was a bear dressed as a pumpkin for Halloween? She’d have it when Halloween rolled around this year.

Angus was thrilled with all the attention he received from the students. Before class got started, they played fetch with him, rubbed his belly, and talked about how adorable he was.

Class went smoothly, and afterward I asked Sadie to stay behind for a second. After everyone else had left, I told her about how I’d found the photo of Tawny and her son and that Andy was in the picture.

“So I called Andy and asked him to come by,” I said. “He told me that he didn’t know who the father of Tawny’s child was, but Captain
Moe said almost everyone thought the baby belonged to Graham.”

“And this is important because?” Sadie asked.

“Because it provides a motive for Graham’s murder. At first I thought maybe the killer was Tawny—that she’d needed money or got sick of Graham not supporting their child or something. But then Andy told me that Tawny had died in a car accident in January of this year.”

“So that rules out that theory,” she said.

I raised an index finger. “Not necessarily. Tawny was married. Andy doesn’t know who she was married to because he never met the guy. Tawny kept their friendship secret because she didn’t want her husband to know about her tarnished past.”

“So you think the husband could’ve killed Graham? For money?”

“Stranger things have happened,” I said.

“Stranger than what?” Blake asked.

Sadie and I were in my office and hadn’t noticed the bells signal Blake’s arrival. She told him about my discovery, my conversation with Andy, and my latest theory.

“Who did Tawny marry?” Blake asked.

“Andy didn’t know,” I said.

“Well…I hope she was happy,” he said softly.

Sadie frowned at him. “You sound a little sentimental there.”

“Eh, she was a nice girl. She deserved better than she got from Graham,” Blake said.

“Did you know her well?” Sadie asked.

“We dated for a brief time,” he admitted.

“How come you never told me that?” Sadie clamped her lips together in a firm line.

Meanwhile, I wished I was somewhere else. Or at least invisible. This was a private moment between a wife and her husband, and I didn’t need to be witnessing it.

“Babe, please,” said Blake. “That was a lifetime ago. Let’s just allow the past to be the past, all right?”

Sadie said okay, but the strain was evident on her face when they left. I hoped it was simply because she was tired. I mean, she’d been through a
lot
the past few days, and this had to be one more straw on that poor camel’s back. I’d call and check on her after I got to work in the morning…and maybe tell her what I’d been able to find out—if anything—from Mr. Milligan.

O
n Friday morning, I dressed more sensibly than I had the day before. Today’s outfit consisted of jeans, sneakers, and a long-sleeved T-shirt. I fed Angus and put him outside with the promise that I’d come back to get him before I went in to work. I grabbed a protein bar and a Diet Coke, went out to the Jeep, and punched in the address for John Milligan. I then started the approximately half-hour drive to Lincoln City.

When I got to John Milligan’s house, he was sitting on his porch in a sweatshirt and running pants. I pulled up to the curb and got out.

Mr. Milligan was reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee. He had thick gray hair that was kind of wavy, and when he
looked up at me, I could see that he, too, had those violet eyes.

“Good morning,” I said.

“How are you, young lady?” He put the paper aside. “Can I help you with something?”

“Are you Mr. Milligan?”

He nodded.

“I came by partly to express my condolences on the loss of your daughter. I only found out about her accident yesterday.” I took a step toward the porch, and he invited me to come on up and sit down.

“You knew Tawny?” he asked.

“No, I’m afraid I didn’t—but several of my friends did: Todd Calloway, Blake MacKenzie, Riley Kendall.…” I sat down on the wrought-iron chair beside him.

“Are you here about Tawny or that business about Graham Stott getting shot last week?” His tone took on a less friendly tone.

“I’m actually here about Drew,” I said. “I started looking into Graham’s past because I wanted to help my friends. I don’t think they’re guilty of murder.”

He shrugged. “If they are, they did the world a favor, in my opinion. But I can’t help you.”

I let his comment pass. “If Graham was Drew’s biological father, even if Graham denied
paternity while he was living, Drew is entitled to a portion of his estate. And I think the boy should have it.”

“Drew doesn’t need any of Graham Stott’s filthy money,” Mr. Milligan said.

“Well, not now, maybe, but it would be good for Drew to have for college or for some unexpected emergency.” I looked into Mr. Milligan’s violet eyes. “I’m not trying to meddle. But it appears to me that Graham treated your daughter horribly, and her son deserves to be compensated for that.”

He offered me a slight smile. “I believe your heart is in the right place, miss. But even though Tawny named Graham as the child’s father on the birth certificate, he wasn’t.”

I frowned. “Why did she say he was, then?”

“She wanted him to be,” he said. “And I believe she honestly thought the child was his at first.” He dropped his head. “She loved Graham so much. She thought the baby would bring them together…and that even though Graham had denied the baby was his initially, that when he saw the boy, he’d know…and that he’d love the child and maybe Tawny too…and that they’d all live happily ever after. She was such a dreamer.”

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out that way,” I
told him. “Did Tawny make Graham take a paternity test? Or did she simply give up when he remained firm in his denial?”

“Graham didn’t need to take a paternity test,” Mr. Milligan said, raising his eyes to mine again. “After she gave birth to the child, Tawny called Graham and asked him to come and see his son. Graham came, all right, but it wasn’t with flowers and declarations of love. It was with his medical records and an attorney. The medical records proved Graham had been sterile since being injured in a dirt bike accident when he was twelve. The attorney provided a legal injunction forbidding Tawny to use Stott as the boy’s last name.”

“I’m so very sorry,” I said.

He smiled sadly. “Me, too. My baby girl was heartbroken. After that, she changed her name to Sarah, and she and her son used the surname Masterson—it was my mother’s maiden name. And then Tawny took the boy and moved to Portland.”

“That couldn’t have been easy for you or your wife.”

“It wasn’t. We felt a little better about her after she married,” said Mr. Milligan. “Charlie was a good man she’d also known in school,
and he had become a newspaper reporter and was doing well for himself.”

“Wait,” I said. “She married Charles? Charles Siegel?” No way. It had to be a different Charlie who was a reporter in Portland.

“Yes. Do you know Charles?” he asked.

“Not very well. I met him through Todd Calloway recently. But I had no idea he was married to your daughter.” I frowned. “Is it possible that
he
is Drew’s father?”

“No. The two of them didn’t get together until Drew was a couple years old,” he said. “Charlie loves the boy as if he’s his own, though.”

“That’s wonderful,” I said, wondering why on earth Charles had decided not to mention his relationship with Tawny. “And it’s good Drew has his uncle Andy in his life too.”

“Yeah.” Mr. Milligan smiled. “Andy stuck by Tawny through thick and thin. And he stays in touch with Drew even now. There were times when I wished Tawny would have married Andy. Anyone with eyes in his head could see how much Andy loved her.” He lifted and dropped his shoulders. “But she wound up with Charles, and he loved her too. And she loved him. It worked out for the best. It seems you’re acquainted with all Tawny’s old friends.”

“It does seem that way,” I said. “I wish I could’ve known her too.”

I stopped by the library on my way back through Tallulah Falls to talk with Reggie. I didn’t know what to make of this new development, and I wanted her input.

The library was housed in a beautiful brick Victorian building about a mile outside of Tallulah Falls. Upon opening the main door, there was a cozy seating area to the right that contained two weathered leather sofas and some overstuffed chairs. I went into the room to my left where the circulation desk was located.

“Hi, I’m here to see Reggie Singh,” I said to the fresh-faced young woman manning the desk.

She dialed Reggie’s extension on an intercom and told her I was there. “She said to go on back. Do you know where her office is?”

“I do. Thanks.” I walked down the narrow hallway, glad I wasn’t wearing heels today to clack on the hardwood floor. I tapped on Reggie’s semi-closed door, and she asked me to come on in.

Reggie’s office was one of the most eclectically decorated I’d ever seen, and yet, it worked.
Indian influences mixed with coastal photographs to create a pleasantly exotic look. Actually, Reggie herself had a pleasantly exotic look. Today she wore a pink beaded tunic with matching slacks and a white pashmina. The gold hoop earrings she wore set off her face, which was framed by her salt-and-pepper pixie-cut hair.