Haunting Danielle 27 The Ghost and the Mountain Man Bobbi Holmes (best pdf ebook reader for android .TXT) 📖

same names as Uncle Teddy’s two wives. I don’t think he remarried. And I don’t think they arrested him for pushing his second wife down the stairs.”

“How did he die?” Walt asked.

Danielle shrugged. “It didn’t say.”

“Did it say what he was doing in Portland?” Walt sipped his brandy.

Danielle turned back to the computer and brought up the article. She quickly skimmed the obituary. “It said he was a driver for Kitterman’s Laundry.”

“You’re kidding me,” Walt said.

“Why?”

“George Hemming’s cousin owned Kitterman’s Laundry. I never met them, but they used to go to Portland and stay with them. George’s cousin was actually Kitterman’s wife. And George’s wife and she were pretty close. That’s who introduced George to Marie’s mother.”

“And Ted worked for them?” Danielle asked. “Wow, small world.”

“Knock, knock,” Marie’s voice said just before she appeared in the parlor.

“We were just talking about you, sort of,” Danielle said.

“I was with Heather earlier, and she told me what happened at the museum, and she said you might want to talk to me,” Marie said.

“Yeah, that too. But we were actually talking about your Kitterman cousins,” Danielle said.

“Goodness, I haven’t thought about them in years. How did their name come up?” Marie asked, taking a seat on the chair next to Walt.

“It seems the Ted Newsome Walt knew worked for Kitterman’s Laundry, according to a Portland newspaper. He died the same year as Walt.”

“Do you know what he did for the laundry?” Marie asked.

“Driver, why?” Danielle asked.

“When I was a teenager, I remember one visit to the Kittermans. They had a daughter my age, Charlotte. Oh, we had so much fun. Anyway, during that visit, when our parents started talking about how 1925 had been a horrible year for all of them. For my parents, it was my father finding Walt hanging in the attic,” Marie explained.

Walt cringed. “Please, I’d rather not think about that.”

“Sorry, Walt,” Marie said with a shrug and then continued. “And for the Kittermans, someone murdered their driver that year. Murdered while on the job. Horrible thing. They caught who did it, and there was a trial. It was probably this Ted if he died in 1925. They only had one driver at the time.”

“The obituary said nothing about him being murdered,” Danielle said.

“I remember something else Charlotte’s mother told us. She once heard him bragging to one of the girls in the laundry about how he was coming into money. Some sort of inheritance. Charlotte’s mother always wondered if there really had been an inheritance, and who got it after he was killed.”

“Who would Teddy inherit money from?” Walt wondered.

Danielle shrugged. “Not his father?”

“From what my grandmother told me, he didn’t have any family. His parents died before mine,” Walt said.

They considered the question for a moment, and then Danielle suggested, “August Becker?”

“August Becker?” Walt asked.

“Yeah, wasn’t he Teddy’s uncle, and according to Ginny, he had a lot of money,” Danielle said.

“Not a blood uncle,” Walt reminded her. “His wife was Teddy’s aunt. He had blood nieces and nephews to leave his money to.”

“True, but he didn’t get along with his family,” Danielle reminded him.

“Who’s August Becker?” Marie asked. “The name sounds a little familiar.”

“His house used to be where Beach Taco is now,” Danielle said. “He died in 1929.”

“I suppose there is some poetic justice there,” Walt said.

“What do you mean?” Danielle asked.

“If his second wife was telling us the truth, and he was responsible for my parents’ death, it sounded like his life didn’t quite work out for him. If he really believed August would leave him a substantial inheritance, he had the misfortune to die before cashing in on it.”

“Plus, remember what Ginny told us,” Danielle said.

“What?” Walt and Marie asked at the same time.

“Remember, according to her grandmother, August was perpetually on his deathbed. Doctors were always at his house. Sounded like he had people believing he had one foot in the grave,” Danielle reminded.

“Then I suppose August didn’t let Teddy know he had his feet firmly planted on this side, or I imagine he would have given him a shove like he did his second wife—and my parents and Maddie,” Walt said.

“If someone hadn’t murdered Teddy, and if he was waiting for an inheritance from August, according to Ginny, August lost his fortune just before he died, from the stock market crash. So it looks like it was never in the cards for Teddy to inherit,” Danielle said.

“Does any of this help you find what you’re looking for?” Marie asked.

“Not really. But I should have the answers to those questions when we see Bud again,” Walt explained.

“Yes, Heather told me about that. She also told me what happened at the museum with Caitlin,” Marie said.

“We were hoping you or Eva might try helping Caitlin adjust to her reality. Help her move on. She sounds too volatile for Heather, or even for Walt and me,” Danielle said.

“I’m going to find Eva and see if she’ll go over there with me tonight. I think it might be best if she comes too. She’s better at this sort of thing,” Marie said.

Heather walked slowly down the grocery store aisle, paying scant attention to her surroundings as she looked down at her cellphone in her hands, her thumbs typing out a text message. She smiled when she hit send and then looked up, preparing to shove her phone in her purse, when she came to an abrupt stop. Walking in her direction was Kelly Bartley, who by her expression, had just noticed Heather.

Irrationally believing Kelly might see her text message and learn she had just been texting with Brian, Heather shoved her phone in her purse.

“Hello, Kelly,” Heather said hesitantly.

“Hi,” Kelly said curtly, preparing to step around Heather and continue on her way.

Heather stopped walking and looked at Kelly. “Can we talk, please?” Heather blurted.

Reluctantly Kelly stopped and turned to Heather. “About what?”

“You need to understand, I would never hurt Connor. You are his aunt, and you love him. I get that. I would feel the