her spine. Someone must have broken into the house. Or the shop. Someone must have taken the laptop and the backup drive and maybe the cell phone. Everything else in the house and the store seemed to be in place. What was on the laptop that someone would want? What were they looking for? Olivia’s hand started to shake at the thought that intruders had been in her house. She hurried to the front door and turned the deadbolt.
Chapter 12
When Olivia called Detective Brown to report Aggie’s missing laptop and cell phone and Martin Andersen’s unexpected business trip to London, he asked Olivia if she was a fan of crime television.
“I’m not,” Olivia replied. Her voice carried a tone of indignation.
“I don’t see the laptop’s relevance to your aunt’s death,” Brown explained. “Perhaps it will turn up. You say that there isn’t any sign of forced entry into your home or the antique shop, nor is anything else missing. Is that correct?”
Olivia wanted to groan. She knew how it sounded. Like some nervous girl imagining connections that weren’t really there. “That’s right,” she told Brown.
“And Mr. Hannigan reported that Mr. Andersen was called out of town frequently. And unexpectedly. So I don’t see how him rushing off to London has any significance either,” Brown said. “Am I missing something?”
Olivia held the phone to her ear but didn’t reply right away. “I guess not.” She didn’t report that Andersen went to Munich unexpectedly and without telling anyone and that there were no charges on his credit card for his last week away. She figured Brown would shoot holes in that too, and she already got the sense that he thought she was playing detective.
“Why don’t you go down to the Ogunquit police station and file your concerns about the missing laptop,” Brown said. “Then there will be a record of it in case it turns up as part of recovered property.”
Olivia knew he was trying to placate her. “I will,” she told him, even though she didn’t think she would. “Sorry to bother you,” she said.
“No bother,” Brown said. “If you need to get in touch again, you know where to find me.”
Olivia ended the call feeling small and unsettled. Brown wasn’t any help. Intuition told her the laptop was stolen.
Aggie always told her to listen to her intuition.
Chapter 13
Olivia wore a soft rose colored sundress that was fitted to the waist. The skirt was full and knee length. She wore beige strappy flat sandals and carried a bottle of white wine. Alejandro Callas was having a party at his grandmother’s Ogunquit home. Brad and Olivia knew Alejandro and his sister Esme from when they were all kids, but they hadn’t hung around together because the Callases were several years older. Alejandro had been in to Brad’s café and he told Brad to invite any friends of his to come along to the party. There would be a DJ, beer and wine, and tapas. Brad had invited Olivia and two of his employees, and Olivia was meeting the others at Brad’s store after closing so that they could all walk to the Callases’ together.
Brad, Miss Jennifer Big Chest, and Sean, a new employee of Brad’s, were just coming out of the bookstore when Olivia arrived. Jennifer batted her eyes at Olivia in mock friendliness and turned to talk to Brad. Sean and Olivia walked side by side making small talk.
The Callases had a big sprawling white Colonial off of Shore Road which overlooked the Atlantic Ocean. As they approached, they could hear music and people’s chatter coming from the back yard. The back lawn had tiki torches lit along the edges of the property, and colorful paper lanterns hung from tree branches. Some guests were dancing and others were clustered in groups, talking and laughing. The girls’ spring dresses and the lights and music created a festive atmosphere. Olivia and the others mingled and danced with the guests, and she ran into several people that she used to know when she was a
Chapter 12
When Olivia called Detective Brown to report Aggie’s missing laptop and cell phone and Martin Andersen’s unexpected business trip to London, he asked Olivia if she was a fan of crime television.
“I’m not,” Olivia replied. Her voice carried a tone of indignation.
“I don’t see the laptop’s relevance to your aunt’s death,” Brown explained. “Perhaps it will turn up. You say that there isn’t any sign of forced entry into your home or the antique shop, nor is anything else missing. Is that correct?”
Olivia wanted to groan. She knew how it sounded. Like some nervous girl imagining connections that weren’t really there. “That’s right,” she told Brown.
“And Mr. Hannigan reported that Mr. Andersen was called out of town frequently. And unexpectedly. So I don’t see how him rushing off to London has any significance either,” Brown said. “Am I missing something?”
Olivia held the phone to her ear but didn’t reply right away. “I guess not.” She didn’t report that Andersen went to Munich unexpectedly and without telling anyone and that there were no charges on his credit card for his last week away. She figured Brown would shoot holes in that too, and she already got the sense that he thought she was playing detective.
“Why don’t you go down to the Ogunquit police station and file your concerns about the missing laptop,” Brown said. “Then there will be a record of it in case it turns up as part of recovered property.”
Olivia knew he was trying to placate her. “I will,” she told him, even though she didn’t think she would. “Sorry to bother you,” she said.
“No bother,” Brown said. “If you need to get in touch again, you know where to find me.”
Olivia ended the call feeling small and unsettled. Brown wasn’t any help. Intuition told her the laptop was stolen.
Aggie always told her to listen to her intuition.
Chapter 13
Olivia wore a soft rose colored sundress that was fitted to the waist. The skirt was full and knee length. She wore beige strappy flat sandals and carried a bottle of white wine. Alejandro Callas was having a party at his grandmother’s Ogunquit home. Brad and Olivia knew Alejandro and his sister Esme from when they were all kids, but they hadn’t hung around together because the Callases were several years older. Alejandro had been in to Brad’s café and he told Brad to invite any friends of his to come along to the party. There would be a DJ, beer and wine, and tapas. Brad had invited Olivia and two of his employees, and Olivia was meeting the others at Brad’s store after closing so that they could all walk to the Callases’ together.
Brad, Miss Jennifer Big Chest, and Sean, a new employee of Brad’s, were just coming out of the bookstore when Olivia arrived. Jennifer batted her eyes at Olivia in mock friendliness and turned to talk to Brad. Sean and Olivia walked side by side making small talk.
The Callases had a big sprawling white Colonial off of Shore Road which overlooked the Atlantic Ocean. As they approached, they could hear music and people’s chatter coming from the back yard. The back lawn had tiki torches lit along the edges of the property, and colorful paper lanterns hung from tree branches. Some guests were dancing and others were clustered in groups, talking and laughing. The girls’ spring dresses and the lights and music created a festive atmosphere. Olivia and the others mingled and danced with the guests, and she ran into several people that she used to know when she was a
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