Harbour Falls (A Harbour Falls Mystery #1)(74)

Helena took a sip of water. “Yeah, Maddy,” she said as she lowered her glass. “I could see him looking for you in Harbour Falls, but Fade Island is so remote. How’d he know you were there?”

I saw no harm in sharing how Julian had discovered my whereabouts. In fact, I hoped maybe the two of them could offer some insight into crazy Ami and her antics. But I had no intention of going into detail about the reason for his visit: thinking I was in some kind of danger on the island. Revealing that might clue them in to my true intentions.

“Uh, Ami Dubois, er, I mean, Hensley, told Julian where I was living. She and Sean are vacationing out in Los Angeles, and I guess she looked him up.” I paused, rolling my eyes, and adding for effect, “God only knows why.”



“How strange,” Helena said, her voice oddly flat. “That poor girl sure has problems. I guess she didn’t hear that you and Adam are dating.”

Trina nodded. “Yeah, I’ve only met her a few times, but Adam told me all about her, uh, problems. It’s just so sad.”

Remembering how Jennifer had mentioned my schoolgirl crush on Adam—something only Ami had known—I asked Helena, “Do you know if Ami is friends with Jennifer Weston?”

“I don’t think so,” Helena replied, eyeing me with curiosity. “Why do you ask?”

The waiter returned to clear away our plates, so I took a sip of water and then continued after he was out of earshot. “Jennifer mentioned something about a crush I had on Adam back in high school. Ami was the only one who ever knew about that crush.”

“Hmmm…” Helena seemed contemplative, but something about her demeanor still felt off. “That is bizarre. Who knows? Maybe they are friends, but I’ve never seen them hanging out together.”

With a shudder Trina asked, “Speaking of Jennifer, what’s the latest with that creepy J.T. O’Brien?” She shot me an apologetic look. “Is he still in rehab?”

Helena glanced uneasily to me and said quietly, “Actually, Nate said he got out yesterday.”

I nearly knocked my glass over. “What? I thought he was in for at least two weeks?”

Helena placed her hand over mine in a gesture of support. “He was supposed to be, Maddy. But that facility is overcrowded, so J.T. was released into the outpatient program early.”

“Great,” I mumbled sarcastically.

“That’s ridiculous,” Trina chimed in. “He’s another one with some serious issues. They really should just lock him up and throw away the key. In fact, all the things he’s done in the past, I’m surprised he’s not at Willow Point.”

OK, so it was clear Trina disliked J.T. O’Brien as much as her brother did. I had little doubt it was due to J.T.’s past involvement with Chelsea. But Willow Point? Even I wouldn’t wish for J.T. to end up there.



Trina, now on a roll, continued, “Maddy, it was terrible what he did to you at the café. Adam asked me not to bring it up, but really, just thank heavens he and Nate got there in time.”

“Yeah,” Helena added. “If Adam hadn’t arrived, you could have ended up like Chelsea.” She snapped her fingers. “Poof! Just disappeared into thin air.”

Trina gave Helena a pointed look, and Helena glanced to me apologetically. “Sorry, I got carried away.”

It was crystal clear who Helena believed was responsible for Chelsea’s disappearance. Not that I disagreed with her. J.T. O’Brien could’ve very easily been behind Chelsea’s unexplained departure. Crime of passion and all that.

And now he was out.

A silence fell over the table as we all absorbed the impact of Helena’s words. I glanced over to Trina, who was nervously playing with a dangly earring, eyes downcast. Flashes of the letters I’d discovered in Adam’s desk flipped through my mind. I couldn’t rule Trina out as a suspect either, despite her brother’s insistence of her innocence.

And I couldn’t figure out why Adam continued to hold onto those incriminating letters. Unless he believed his own sister had followed through on her threats. Did he plan to confront her someday with that evidence? Or would he be so cold as to use it to exonerate himself if he ever were arrested? God, I hoped not. It seemed unlikely, though, since he could have used those letters ages ago when the police were really bearing down on him.

Then there was Helena, another suspect. The case files revealed her alibi to not be nearly as ironclad as Nate’s. Just because she claimed to have gone to the bathroom down the hall from the rental office of their former apartment complex did not make it a fact.

But did I really think Helena or Trina were more likely suspects than someone like J.T. O’Brien? No. But I also couldn’t blindly ignore the evidence I’d uncovered thus far.



In any case I didn’t want our day to be ruined by the damn Harbour Falls Mystery, so I said, “Maybe we should change the subject. Agreed?”

Helena and Trina nodded emphatically. Both seemed relieved, and we began to discuss less serious topics. Like which stores we’d be hitting up on our shopping extravaganza. Trina excitedly listed off a dizzying array of shops and boutiques in the area. I hadn’t been shopping since before I’d left LA, so I was kind of excited to get started.

After leaving the bistro, we walked down the block to the first boutique on Trina’s list, and then the next and the next. Trina’s list was inexhaustible, it seemed. Our shopping spree continued down the corridor of fashionable shops. There was no end in sight until we finally, as late afternoon approached, entered a trendy boutique specializing in women’s business wear. Exhausted, we all agreed to make it our final stop for the day.