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Chapter Twenty-Three

After a two-day stay in the Edinburgh Hospital, I was fine. Only trace amounts of the ethylene glycol had made it into my system. More than likely, Dara or Mr. Carthage had tried to pour it down my throat while I’d been passed out.

They flushed my kidneys just in case. The doctors were more worried about my brain. I kept slipping in and out of consciousness. But part of that had to be from the exhaustion. We’d all been going nonstop for days.

Since this wasn’t the first time I’d been conked on the head by a criminal, they’d had to observe me for concussion, but it had been completely unnecessary. My body recovered quickly.

I still had a headache, but considering what I’d gone through, it wasn’t so bad.

By the time Mara, Jasper, and I made it home to Sea Isle, I’d never been so happy to see our little town.

The pub was open, and we dropped her off in front. “I’ll bring you some lunch,” she said. “Just let me take my bags up.”

“I’ll be okay,” I said. “Don’t worry.”

“Nay, we won’t be leaving you alone. Abigail and Tommy are right behind us. She said he needs to see you alive.”

I smiled. Tommy was a good kid.

Jasper drove up the small hill to the five-hundred-year-old church where my home and office was.

“Home,” I said.

“Can’t say I blame you for being happy about it. That was the most interesting wedding I’ve ever been to.”

I laughed, but it hurt. I tried to help him with the luggage, but he pushed me toward the door. “Just go on inside—I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Put the kits in my office,” I said. Abigail would have to replenish the kits, as we’d used most of our supplies.

Jasper took my other bag up the stairs to my bedroom. I couldn’t wait to crawl into my bed. I don’t care what anyone says, hospital beds are not comfortable.

When he came back down, he shivered.

“Is your heat on?”

“Yes,” I said.

“I’ll make a fire.” He set about putting the wood and kindling together, then lit a match. “I need coffee—do you?”

“Jasper?”

“Yes.”

“I’m fine. The doctors gave me the all-clear. You can go home.”

He snorted. “And have Abigail and Mara murder me in my sleep for failing with my friend duties? I think not.”

“Coffee sounds good. I like having you around, and you’re probably not wrong about our friends.”

I forced myself to follow him into the kitchen. While he made the coffee, I stood near the hob, which was what everyone here called a stove. The AGA was always on, and I spent a great deal of time in the kitchen.

Jasper opened the fridge.

“It’s—”

“Empty,” he said.

“Well, we were going to be gone,” I offered.

He shook his head.

The front door buzzed. Ewan had had one of his men install the buzzer, because I couldn’t always hear someone knocking if I was in my room.

I sat down at the table near the hob. Although the snow had stopped, the wind still whipped around the old church.

The weather here was harsher than I’d expected, but other than the criminals I’d run into over the last few months, it was the only thing I didn’t like about Scotland.

Mara came around the corner with two large paper bags.

“I brought some shepherd’s pie, and Gran has been baking all morning. I have blueberry muffins, some brown bread, and some of grandad’s roast.”

Those were all my favorite pub foods. Well, I liked everything Mara and her gran made.

“Where is Jasper? I bet he’s hungry.”

“He’s gone to get you some cream and milk. I think your empty fridge scared him.”

I laughed. “Abigail usually keeps it full for us, but I told her not to bother this week since we’d be gone.”

“I know that. You know that. But I think Jasper’s worried you aren’t looking after yourself very well.”

“He’s a good one.”

“Aye. Ewan texted and asked about you.” She nestled into what we called her corner of the couch.

“Oh?” He hadn’t been around much. Not that I’d expected him to be.

“Did I mention he was there that first night at the hospital when you were sleeping so much?”

I frowned. “I don’t remember that.”

“You were out of it. He sent Jasper and me to the hotel down the way, to rest. I can’t believe I forgot to tell you.” She smiled.

“Why are you smiling?”

She shrugged. “I just thought you should know.”

“I will admit to being surprised that half the town wasn’t lined up outside with food when we arrived.” That had also happened the last time I’d been laid up in the hospital.

“Ewan warned them off. Said if he heard anyone show up before you were rested, he’d fine them six hundred pounds.”

My eyes flashed open. “What?”

“Aye. He told everyone to let you rest a few days before hounding you.”

“I don’t need him protecting me.”

She cleared her throat. “Do you want most of the town at your doorstep right now?”

“No,” I admitted.

“There you go.”

“Have you heard from Angie?”

“Aye. They’re postponing their honeymoon,” she said.

“Oh no. She was so looking forward to going to the Caribbean.”

“She says they can’t leave until the mess is sorted. Damien needs to show he’s in charge of the family business.”

“I feel sad for them. Not only do they have to miss their trip, but he’s also having to deal with a great deal of emotional fallout. Do you think it’s true Robbie was his half brother?”

“They took DNA, so I imagine we’ll know soon. By the way, Abigail handed over all the evidence, blood—everything—to the team in Edinburgh. Since they tried to kill you, Ewan didn’t want you or her to process the evidence. Everything must be by the book.” She said the last bit in a low Scottish brogue.

Frustrating, but understandable. “You sound like him.”

She laughed.

“Did he say anything else? Do they know who pushed the gargoyle?”

She shook her head. “It’s an—”

“Ongoing investigation,” I finished.

“But you’re the coroner—you’re entitled to know the truth. Give him a call.”

“Maybe later.”

We talked a little longer, but I must have fallen asleep mid-conversation.

When I woke up, Jasper snored softly in the big chair. Mara was asleep in her corner, and my coffee was cold. I checked my phone. It was two hours later, and I had a message from Ewan.

Stopped by, but you were resting. That’s all it said.

I really wanted to know about the case, but I had to clear the cobwebs from my brain.

I sipped the cold coffee.

Nope. I made some more.

My muscles hurt, and I had to keep moving. The bruising on my right leg was better, but the dislocated knee still gave me trouble. That wasn’t unusual, but it was annoying.

As the town doctor, I was on my feet all day.

My leather bag was on the kitchen seat where I’d been sitting earlier. While I waited for the coffee, I pulled out my tablet to go through the patient list for the next day.

I didn’t care what Ewan said. I sent everyone an email that we would be open.

I read through their files and was well ensconced in my happy place, which was why I might have screamed a bit when someone banged on the back door.

Jasper and Mara came running into the kitchen.

“What is it?” Mara asked. They were looking all around the kitchen for a threat.

“Someone knocked,” I said, as if that explained everything. After a quick peek through the peephole, I unlatched the door.

Ewan and Tommy came in and then slipped off their wellies in the back room we used as a mudroom.

“What’s wrong?”

Ewan frowned. “Nothing. Tommy needed to see that you were all right. He wouldn’t leave Abigail alone, so I promised to bring him down.”

I smiled. “Tommy, I’m fine. Just a bump on the head.”

“Hospitals. Bad,” he said. It was understandable, after everything he’d gone through in his young life, why he might have an aversion.

“Everything is okay,” I said.

“Movie night.” Tommy showed me a DVD he held. It was an action film with The Rock. Who didn’t like that guy?

“Is it the one with the big gorilla?”

“Cars,” Tommy said. “We need snacks.”

Mara, who was a bit disheveled, smiled. “Well, now that I know we aren’t being murdered in our sleep, I’ll get the snacks going. Where is Abigail?”

Ewan cleared his throat. “She and Henry forced the chemist to open this afternoon. She was worried about supplies for tomorrow.”

He gave me a look.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

“I told her not to worry because you would be taking a few days off. Then she told me about the email you sent out that the practice would be open tomorrow.”

I smirked. “The good people of Sea Isle need their doctor, and no one is going to tell me what to do.” I crossed my arms.

“Oh, I’m aware,” he said.

He glanced at the crowd in the kitchen. “I need to speak to the doc alone,” he said.

Mara made a face. “She’s just going to tell me whatever you say.”

Ewan just stared at her.

“Fine, but when Tommy gets upset because his popcorn isn’t ready, don’t blame me.” Mara huffed.

After they left, Ewan motioned for me to sit down at the table.

“Why do I have a feeling this isn’t going to be good news?”

“How are you feeling?”

I shrugged. “I’m okay—why?”

“I’ve filed attempted murder charges against Mr. Carthage.”

“What about Angie’s stepmom? I’m certain she was the mastermind behind everything that happened.”

“Aye, she is. We have a confession from her. She’ll be in prison the rest of her life. The murder weapons were in her car, and she made direct threats against you in the taped confession. We had her, and her barrister knew it.”

“Who pushed the gargoyle?”

“Mr. Carthage,” he said. “He also helped her put you in the trunk of the car and did not come to your aid.”

“How did she get Robbie to drink the poison? He had to have known.”

“It wasn’t in a water bottle. She masked it in a soda, which was sweet. We found the bottle in her car, along with the rest.”

“I need to know why she did all of this.”

Ewan stood up and helped himself to a cup of coffee. “Do you want one?”

“My cup is there on the counter.”

“Greed,” he said. “She wanted out of her marriage with Angie’s da, and she’d signed a prenup. If she divorced her husband, she received nothing. Mr. Carthage had offered to pay her a large sum of money if the wedding was called off.”

“She was going to knock Robbie out of the equation at some point. So, she wouldn’t have to share the money. But Robbie couldn’t go through with his part.”

“Yes. If she helped Mr. Carthage destroy the wedding, he’d give her half a million.”

“Money the motivator.”

“Aye. Robbie had threatened to tell everyone the truth, so she killed him. She did not plan to kill Angie, though. There, she’d drawn a line. She only allowed her to drink enough to make her sick.”

“Phew.”

“I know. Angie only drank a sip, but Mara chugged a bit before setting the bottle down.”

“When that plan didn’t work, Dara hit Angie on the head with the mallet. She took it upon herself to kill the bride, rather than just making her sick.”

“Yes. If you hadn’t been there doing the tests or helping Angie, then we would have had to wait for a hospital. If they got rid of you …”

“I guess they don’t know about Abigail,” I said. “She would have kept our friends alive.”

“I’m glad we didn’t have to find out.”

“What will happen with Caleb?”

“He’s been released into rehab.”

“Technically, he didn’t do anything wrong, did he?”

“Yes, he did. When he didn’t come forward immediately with the information about Robbie.”

I scrunched up my face. “I feel like poor Damien has been through enough without his brother also going to jail.”

“The prosecutor hasn’t made a final decision yet. I believe he’s waiting to hear what the rehab facility has to say.”

“Hey, Tommy wants to start the movie. Are you coming?” Mara yelled.

“Are you staying?” I asked Ewan.

“For movie night?”

“Yes.”

“Aye. The Rock is one of my favorites.”

By the time we finished the snacks and settled down to watch the film, Abigail and Henry arrived with more food and boxes of meds. She stored them in our in-house pharmacy. Then she and Henry sat on either side of Tommy on the floor.

I glanced around at my little Sea Isle family.

This was what life was about. Being with the people you cared about and enjoying moments like this with them. I’d never had people love me so much or known that I could love them right back.

For so many years I’d put a steel box around my heart, determined to keep it safe, but these folks had changed that.

Five minutes into the film, Ewan’s head hit my shoulder. I started to shove him away, but he snored softly. The poor guy probably hadn’t slept in days.

I left him there.

Never in my life had I fit so squarely into a place. Sea Isle was my home.