About That Night by Norah McClintock Page A

“I’m in your—”
    â€œMath and English classes,” he finishes. “I know.”
    â€œI’m sorry to barge in on you, but your dad said you were down here.”
    â€œWhich I am.”
    He turns off the tap and begins to dry the Christmas-tree stand with a rag. “My mom is kind of anal. Everything has to gleam all the time, even if she isn’t going to see it again for a whole year.” He drops the stand into a plastic bag, which he closes with a twist tie. Then he waits patiently for her to speak.
    â€œThis is kind of awkward,” she says.
    â€œI don’t bite.”
    â€œIt’s about a bracelet you bought from my sister’s friend Tasha.”
    He smiles right away. “Sterling silver. Early Victorian.”
    She is stunned.
    He laughs. “I showed it to my mom. She’s the one who recognized it for what it was.”
    Was? That doesn’t sound good.
    Then he says, “Do you like it?”
    â€œExcuse me?”
    His eyes flit to her wrist. He frowns and shifts awkwardly. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I thought…well, I guess I assumed…” His voice peters out.
    â€œDo you have the bracelet, Adam?”
    â€œMaugham has it.”
    â€œMom? You gave it to your mom?”
    â€œNot my mom. Derek Maugham.”
    â€œWhat?” She can’t believe what she’s hearing.
    â€œI bought the bracelet from that kid, Tasha. She was trying to unload it. She had no idea how valuable it was.” Like he got the better of her.
    â€œYou didn’t either, from what you just said,” Jordie points out.
    â€œTrue. But I got it cheap. Then Maugham tells me he’s looking for something special for his girl.” Here he frowns. “I thought that was you.”
    â€œIt is.”
    â€œSo, what, he didn’t give it to you yet?”
    â€œIt was supposed to be an anniversary present. He was going to give it to me on New Year’s Eve. And then…” Her voice trails off.
    â€œYeah, I heard,” Adam says. “They have any idea who did it?”
    Jordie shakes her head. “Adam, are you telling me you sold the bracelet to Derek? I mean, he paid you and you handed it over to him?”
    He nods. “If he didn’t give it to you yet, it’s probably at his house.”
    He’s right. Derek must have gone to get it, just like he said he would. But someone killed him before he made it home. Or he did get home and got it, and someone killed him on the way back to her house. She’s not sure which. So the bracelet must be either in his room among his things or on him—assuming, that is, that it wasn’t stolen by whoever killed him. She wonders for the first time if anything was stolen—his watch, maybe, or his wallet.
    â€œI’m really sorry about what happened to him,” Adam says. “I never knew anyone who was killed. Murdered, I mean.”
    Jordie thanks him and heads back up the stairs. If Derek had the bracelet, and if it wasn’t stolen, then the police must have found it on him. Do they still have it? Or have they returned it to his parents? It’s a murder case, so she’s not sure how long the police hang on to things.
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    Ronan Barthe pushes the snow shovel up and back across the ice. Up and back. Up and back. After each length, he turns to look at Jordie, who is retreating across the ice. The very last time he looks, she is gone. She has rounded the point and is back where the big houses are. She’ll go up the stairs that allow for public access to the lakefront.
    Ronan shoulders the shovel and skates back to the shore on his side of the point. He’s left his boots there, on top of a snow-covered rock. He sweeps some snow aside and plunks himself down to unlace his skates. He pulls on his boots, ties the laces of his skates together and slings the skates over his shoulder before grabbing the snow shovel and climbing