Met Her Match Read online

  Nate gave Terri a quick kiss, then left the house, Rowan right behind him. She took a deep breath and went to the door to let in the first of the visitors. As she knew they would, they carried containers of food. She couldn’t help but think that the dishes were like a movie ticket. They were paying for a show. In this case it was information about the car found in the lake. And the people who’d been there for years wanted to know about Billy. And Stacy. Was it true that Terri and Billy were back together? Had Nate really dropped sweet Stacy flat? Good for Terri to dump him and go back to Billy.

  More than one person admitted he/she was torn about Nate. “He fished our son/daughter/dog out of the water” was said many times. But they also said, “Stacy has always been so nice to us. I hate to see her hurt.”

  Terri did her best to be gracious and thank them for yet another casserole—and she listened to all the gossip they told her. The only surprise was when they said that Billy Thorndyke was now a minister. “And he’s taking over St. Anne’s Church.”

  “I can’t believe he didn’t tell you!” They waited for Terri to make a comment but she didn’t.

  She called Nate three times to see how he was doing, but it went to voice mail. She figured he was as overwhelmed as she was and couldn’t answer the phone.

  After lunch—eaten cold and quickly—she called Elaine and asked about her dad.

  “He ranges between depression and relief. His beloved wife did not leave him, but she was murdered. He’s been talking about her all day. I’m taking good care of him.”

  Terri wanted to hug Elaine. Most women would have been jealous, but not her. “Thank you,” she whispered as she choked up.

  “Anytime, honey.”

  Her talk with Elaine gave her new energy and she greeted the next batch of well-wishers with a smile.

  At three, Nate called.

  “You can’t believe how busy it is here,” she said. “I—”

  “Terri! Where is the Chinese bowl?”

  “It’s—” She looked at her coffee table. It wasn’t where she’d left it. “I don’t know. The guys gave it to me and I’m sure I put it on the table. It was still in that tote bag.”

  “Could you have put it somewhere else and don’t remember?”

  In other circumstances, she would have snapped at him that she was far from being senile. But the urgency in Nate’s voice kept her from replying.

  With the phone in her hand, she ran through the house, throwing open doors to closets, the laundry room, bathrooms. “I don’t see it and there has been no time to tuck it away somewhere. Do you think it was stolen?” She remembered that Nate said it was valuable.

  “Who has been there today?”

  “Half the lake.”

  “I need their names.”

  “I’ll make a list and send it to you.”

  “No!” Nate said. “Now. Tell me. I’ll write them down.”

  Terri didn’t waste time asking why he needed it. She heard his tone. She thought back from the morning and gave him names. She opened the refrigerator and looked inside. The casserole dishes had the names of the owners taped on them. She read them off to Nate, and if she remembered, she gave him the cabin number.

  When the doorbell rang, she ignored it. “Can I ask what this is about?” she asked.

  “Not yet. I want you to go to one of the empty cabins and stay there. I want you to hide. Understand me?”

  “Yes.” She tried to sound calm. “Nate, please don’t do anything dumb.”

  “Change my entire personality in an instant?”

  She didn’t smile at his joke as her heart was pounding in her throat.

  “I love you,” he said, then clicked off.

  “Back at you,” she said to the silent phone as she began running. She threw clothes in a bag with her cell charger, locked the house, then got into her boat.

  She knew ways to move about the lake so no one could see her. Even binoculars couldn’t follow her as she ducked between trees and under plants that needed pruning.

  At last she hid her little boat and made her way up stone steps to a cabin she’d only visited twice before. It wasn’t one she usually took care of so no one would know she’d be there. But she knew it was empty, the owners wouldn’t be back for weeks and she knew where the key was hidden.

  She didn’t turn on the lights. Instead, she sat down in front of the glass window, phone at her side, and watched the lake. There wasn’t much activity and she thought that fear had taken over everyone. For all that her mother had been locked in a trunk long ago, the discovery was new. The fear was new.

  At eleven she dozed off and woke at one with a jolt. Since ten she’d had no calls, but several texts and emails. None of them were from Nate or Rowan, Elaine or her father, so she ignored them.

  She wanted to call Nate but she didn’t want to wake him. At least she hoped he was sleeping somewhere.

  As she fumbled her way to bed, she wondered what was going on. Had one of the visitors to her house stolen the Chinese bowl? What made Nate ask about it? Was it related to her mother’s murder?

  She didn’t sleep well and woke early. She managed to occupy herself until 10:00 a.m., then she left. She docked her boat at her house and went up the stairs. Right away she saw that Nate hadn’t been there.

  She called him and got a message that his voice mailbox was full.

  It took some doing but she made herself calm down. She ate a portion of one of the casseroles and tried to think about what to do. If these were normal circumstances, she’d call Frank. But he wasn’t here. She couldn’t call her dad. He was under enough stress without her adding to it.

  She drove to the sheriff’s office. Calm, she told herself. Don’t panic, don’t cause anyone else to panic. Nate had probably slept in one of the jail cells. He’s probably just fine—and he’d bawl her out for showing up.

  She hoped that was what would happen!

  The office was busy—and Della was running it. She was barking orders at one of the young deputies. When she saw Terri, she said, “Where is he?”

  Terri put on her best fake smile. “At home reading Uncle Frank’s files. He won’t be in until later. He sent me here to get something.” She tried to look exasperated. “But he didn’t tell me what it was. You have any idea what he needs?”

  Della stared at Terri for a full ten seconds before responding. “I gave him a package from his mother. It was a book.”

  “Other than that,” Terri said. How did she pull this off without upsetting anyone? Should she say, I think Nate is missing? I think he found something and went after it? Would gossipy Della tell the press? The headlines would be Chain Saw Killer on the Loose. “What else?”

  Della wasn’t one to let go of the topic. “He was really, really interested in the book. He went outside to make a call. He didn’t tell me who it was or what it was about but I saw that it was a Connecticut area code. Then he called you and asked who all the people were who went to your house.”

  Terri’s fists clenched so hard her nails bit into the palms. Della the snoop. Della the spy. “Where’s the book?”

  Della had it on her desk. It was a thick volume about Chinese antiques.

  Terri tried to keep her eyes from widening. “This is probably what he wants. Thanks.” She started out the door but turned back. Della was staring at her, calculating. “You’d better not say anything about—”

  Della cut her off. “I’m a deputy now. The days of this town getting free information out of me are over!”

  That’s one way to look at it, Terri thought but didn’t say. She just nodded in agreement and hurried out of the office, the big book tucked under her arm. She drove down the road, then pulled to the side before she opened the book.

  It took only minutes to find what Nate had seen. There was a full-page photo of her Chinese bowl. Not one like it bu