The Lake House Secret, A Romantic Suspense Novel (A Jenessa Jones Mystery) by Debra Burroughs Page B
Authors: Debra Burroughs
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to pick the lock. Until then, she would eat her toast and begin the long process of going through the kitchen drawers, as well as the dressers and the closet in the master bedroom.
She began looking through her father’s closet first. His highly polished dress shoes were precisely stationed on the lower cedar shelves, and his sweaters were neatly folded and stacked on the upper ones. The aroma of his aftershave still clung to them, and to his business suits.
Jenessa pulled one of his sweaters off the shelf and brought it to her face. She breathed in his scent, and a rush of tears made the loss of her father become real. Overwhelmed, she slumped down on the padded bench in the center of the closet and cried. Perhaps she should wait and finish this task when her sister and Ramey could come and help her.
~*~
Around noon, Jenessa made a quick trip to the corner market—an interesting adventure in itself. Several people at the little store recognized her and offered her their condolences before launching into questions about why she’d been away so long and what had she been doing in Sacramento.
“Dear girl, what are you going to do with yourself, now that you’re back in Hidden Valley?” the elderly female store clerk asked.
Jenessa had known the woman since they moved into town, years ago. She shrugged and kept her gaze on her few grocery items.
“Do you have a young man waiting for you back in Sacramento?” the clerk asked as she bagged the milk and bananas.
Uncomfortable with all the probing questions, Jenessa paid the woman and beat a hasty retreat. “Thanks, Madge.” She waved a hand in the air as she dashed out the door.
As she was sticking the carton in the refrigerator, the tone on her laptop pinged that she had a new email. Just as Jack Linear’s cousin had promised, she emailed a picture of the locket, remarkably sharp and clear, laid open on a desk, exposing the photo of the young redheaded girl inside. The child looked happy, with a big grin spread across her face, and bright smiling eyes.
Would Aunt Renee possibly recognize the child? Her aunt had lived in Hidden Valley for about thirty years, so it was a real possibility. Jenessa certainly hoped so, for learning the little girl’s identity could shed some light on who the dead woman was.
Jenessa had planned to head over to her aunt’s house later in the afternoon to help choose some pictures of her dad to display in the foyer of the church before the funeral. As she glanced at the framed photos arranged on the walls of the main hallway of her own home, she pulled a few good ones down to take with her.
Then, when she pulled into her aunt’s long driveway, she noticed her old Toyota still sitting there where she had left it a couple of days earlier. It was surprising that her aunt hadn’t asked her to remove it.
With more important things on her mind, Jenessa opened her trunk and lifted out the box of photos, with her laptop sitting on top. She strode up the walkway and into the house.
After greeting Aunt Renee in the breakfast nook and going through the obligatory small talk, Jenessa set her laptop down and turned it on. She showed her aunt the photo of the child as it filled the screen, then launched into the question that was forefront in her mind.
Aunt Renee’s eyes grew big and her hand flew to her chest. “Why, I think that’s Ramey.”
Chapter 15
“Are you sure it’s Ramey?” Jenessa’s gaze jumped between her aunt and the screen. Could it be that simple?
“Yes, I’m pretty sure. Ask her yourself, if you don’t believe me.”
“You know what this means, don’t you?”
A puzzled expression swept over Aunt Renee’s face. “No, I don’t understand. Where did you get that picture?”
“This locket was found with the remains up at the lake.”
“You mean the decaying body you wrote that article about?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. So, this means the dead woman was Ramey’s
She began looking through her father’s closet first. His highly polished dress shoes were precisely stationed on the lower cedar shelves, and his sweaters were neatly folded and stacked on the upper ones. The aroma of his aftershave still clung to them, and to his business suits.
Jenessa pulled one of his sweaters off the shelf and brought it to her face. She breathed in his scent, and a rush of tears made the loss of her father become real. Overwhelmed, she slumped down on the padded bench in the center of the closet and cried. Perhaps she should wait and finish this task when her sister and Ramey could come and help her.
~*~
Around noon, Jenessa made a quick trip to the corner market—an interesting adventure in itself. Several people at the little store recognized her and offered her their condolences before launching into questions about why she’d been away so long and what had she been doing in Sacramento.
“Dear girl, what are you going to do with yourself, now that you’re back in Hidden Valley?” the elderly female store clerk asked.
Jenessa had known the woman since they moved into town, years ago. She shrugged and kept her gaze on her few grocery items.
“Do you have a young man waiting for you back in Sacramento?” the clerk asked as she bagged the milk and bananas.
Uncomfortable with all the probing questions, Jenessa paid the woman and beat a hasty retreat. “Thanks, Madge.” She waved a hand in the air as she dashed out the door.
As she was sticking the carton in the refrigerator, the tone on her laptop pinged that she had a new email. Just as Jack Linear’s cousin had promised, she emailed a picture of the locket, remarkably sharp and clear, laid open on a desk, exposing the photo of the young redheaded girl inside. The child looked happy, with a big grin spread across her face, and bright smiling eyes.
Would Aunt Renee possibly recognize the child? Her aunt had lived in Hidden Valley for about thirty years, so it was a real possibility. Jenessa certainly hoped so, for learning the little girl’s identity could shed some light on who the dead woman was.
Jenessa had planned to head over to her aunt’s house later in the afternoon to help choose some pictures of her dad to display in the foyer of the church before the funeral. As she glanced at the framed photos arranged on the walls of the main hallway of her own home, she pulled a few good ones down to take with her.
Then, when she pulled into her aunt’s long driveway, she noticed her old Toyota still sitting there where she had left it a couple of days earlier. It was surprising that her aunt hadn’t asked her to remove it.
With more important things on her mind, Jenessa opened her trunk and lifted out the box of photos, with her laptop sitting on top. She strode up the walkway and into the house.
After greeting Aunt Renee in the breakfast nook and going through the obligatory small talk, Jenessa set her laptop down and turned it on. She showed her aunt the photo of the child as it filled the screen, then launched into the question that was forefront in her mind.
Aunt Renee’s eyes grew big and her hand flew to her chest. “Why, I think that’s Ramey.”
Chapter 15
“Are you sure it’s Ramey?” Jenessa’s gaze jumped between her aunt and the screen. Could it be that simple?
“Yes, I’m pretty sure. Ask her yourself, if you don’t believe me.”
“You know what this means, don’t you?”
A puzzled expression swept over Aunt Renee’s face. “No, I don’t understand. Where did you get that picture?”
“This locket was found with the remains up at the lake.”
“You mean the decaying body you wrote that article about?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. So, this means the dead woman was Ramey’s
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