asked Rochester whom they could call, he’d been vehement that they not contact his wife. He’d explained she had a weak heart and he didn’t want to worry her. Sam had to respect the man for caring about his wife and wanting to protect her. Instead, Rochester had given them contact information for his nephew, Adam. Adam worked at the store, too, he’d said. But both numbers he’d provided had gone straight to voice mail. Rochester had cautioned that Adam wasn’t an early riser.
So, Sam was glad Chelsea had come along to soothe Rochester and keep him company until either the nephew arrived or the paramedics transported him to the hospital. Sam had been worried about the man’s pallor and how fragile he’d seemed. She’d obviously eased some of his tension, and his color was much better.
Watching her smile at one of the paramedics, he felt a strange churning in his stomach. Her big green eyes were filled with warmth, and the smile accentuated her well-defined cheekbones and delicate nose and chin.
As the paramedics were helping Rochester onto a stretcher for transport to the hospital, a slim, agitated man rushed into the store.
“What the heck is going on here?” Sam asked Miller, not hiding his frustration. “Do we have a c’mon-in sign hanging out there?”
Miller’s cheeks colored again. “He’s the nephew, Adam Rochester. You said to let him in when he got here.”
It wasn’t Sam’s nature to lose his temper and take it out on members of his team. “Sorry, Joe,” he said with a pat on the young officer’s back. “Coffee’s on me when we drive back to the station.” And he hoped they could wrap up here and be on their way soon.
There was something that didn’t sit right with him about the break-in, and it wasn’t just that occurrences like this were rare in the small town of Camden Falls.
IT WAS NEARING six thirty that evening when Chelsea, balancing her dry cleaning, a large pizza box and a bag of groceries, let herself into her second-floor apartment. As she nudged the door closed with her foot, Mindy, her oversize gray-and-white cat, emerged from the bedroom. Mindy made her annoyance at Chelsea’s late arrival abundantly clear with a haughty lift of her head and a testy meow.
“I’m sorry I’m late. How about salmon for dinner to make up for it?” Chelsea asked to appease the cat.
Mindy responded with a mournful grumble as she sauntered toward the kitchen.
Chelsea tossed her keys on the hall table, hung her dry cleaning in the coat closet and slipped off her shoes. Following the sound of Mindy’s meowing, Chelsea headed for the kitchen. She put the pizza box on the counter, opened a can of Mindy’s favorite food and scooped the contents into the cat’s dish. Then she hurriedly put away the groceries she’d picked up.
With the late start to her workday because of the time she’d spent at All That Glitters and Shines, and subsequently everyone wanting to talk about the robbery, she’d left the gallery quite late. Luckily, considering all the excitement, she’d remembered Paige was coming over for dinner.
Paige and her adorable son, Jason, had been her downstairs neighbors from the time Chelsea moved in until Paige had married Daniel Kinsley. Paige was also Chelsea’s closest friend. The house Paige and Daniel had bought wasn’t far, but Chelsea still missed seeing Paige nearly every day, as she had for almost three years. And it wasn’t just Paige. She missed Jason, too. He was ten and a half now, and how wonderful that he’d been free of cancer for almost three years.
This was one of the rare nights that Paige wasn’t with her family, since Daniel and Jason had a father-and-son event at Jason’s school, and Daniel’s parents had insisted on watching baby Emily for the evening. Chelsea had planned to cook dinner, but she’d run out of time. Thankfully, Paige was undemanding and understanding...and it was probably for the best. Cooking wasn’t one of Chelsea’s strengths, which was why she liked to practice on Paige when she had the opportunity.
She selected a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from her little wine rack and uncorked it to let it breathe.
Checking her watch, Chelsea realized she had exactly seventeen minutes to get changed before Paige was due to arrive.
She was in and out of the shower in less than five minutes, and quickly dressed in her usual leisure wear of black leggings and a chunky sweater. She rubbed her wet hair with a towel before working a small blob of mousse into it to get her preferred style.
Chelsea heard the knock on the door just as she was rinsing her hands. She took a quick look in the mirror before rushing out of her bedroom.
“Paige, it’s so good to see you,” Chelsea said as she gave her friend a warm hug. Taking a step back she ran an approving eye over Paige, her tall slender frame, the long glossy blond hair and clear blue eyes. “How is it possible that every time I see you, you look better than before? Isn’t a baby supposed to wear you out?”
Paige waved the compliment away. “Emily’s been a dream.”
“No, I’m serious,” Chelsea said. “Marriage and motherhood agree with you.”
“I’m very fortunate to have found Daniel,” Paige admitted. “And Jason and Emily are my world.”
“You’re lucky to have found each other,” Chelsea corrected Paige, and accepted the bottle of wine she held out. “Thanks for this. Very nice,” she added, reading the label. “I already have a Cab Sauv breathing in the kitchen. Would you prefer I opened this?”
“Oh, the Cab’s fine.” Paige hung up her coat and bent down to stroke Mindy. She sniffed the air as she rose again. “Smells good. What are we having?”
Chelsea laughed. “Well, about that... I was planning on veal parmigiana, but you know what they say about best-laid plans.” She led Paige into the kitchen and filled two glasses with wine.
“Any excuse to get out of cooking, huh?” Paige teased, then took a closer look at her friend. “Hard day?” she asked with concern.
Chelsea handed one of the glasses to Paige and took a sip from her own as they sat down at the kitchen table. “Oh, hard isn’t the right word. More...unexpected. You know the nice older couple who own All That Glitters and Shines, the jewelry store next to the gallery?”
Paige tasted her wine and nodded.
“Their store was robbed early this morning. Mr. Rochester, the owner, was there at the time and he was attacked.”
“Oh, no! Is he okay?”
“The paramedics said he should be. He got a deep gash in his head, and they took him to the hospital to check for concussion. He looked so pale and weak.” She closed her eyes for a moment, her worry resurfacing. “I’m glad Adam, his nephew, showed up in time to go to the hospital with him. Otherwise, I would’ve gone.”
“You were there when it happened?” Paige asked with alarm.
“No. It happened very early in the morning. The police and paramedics were already there when I...barged in.”
“Barged in?” Paige probed.
“Yeah.” Chelsea
