Mountain Ice (David Dean Mysteries)

"Do you think you should tell Donnie's mother?" Cynthia asked. Dean gave her a let's-not-get-involved look one more time. Both agreed the less said, the better.

When Dean told his wife about the bearded man who seemed to be following Edith Shipton, Cynthia just shook her head.

"Edith didn't say a word to me when she came in, just whispered something to Donnie and was up the stairs. She didn't even mention being too late to take him to dinner."

"Whoever the guy in the Blazer was, he gave Edith the look-see when he drove past Bird Song."

"If the man was her husband, she didn't seem in fear of him up on the mountain when I saw them talking. If it's anyone else she's meeting, it still isn't any of our business." Dean didn't disagree.

Cynthia took a deep breath. "Well, I guess it's time we see if Fred needs any help with our guests from Boston."

"Back to the ghosts," Dean said, joining her. "Time to figure out what we're running here, a house for haunted women or just a house for 'hunted' women!"

The two ladies had joined Fred in the parlor where he was showing them the letters they had purchased from him, sight unseen. The other guests were nowhere about-the children off playing hide and seek, Edith still closed in her room and Gladys dreaming of far off galaxies.

Claire Quincy had donned reading glasses and was scrutinizing the letters as Fred O'Connor followed his notes and explained the information on Annie Quincy he had gathered at the library. "Best I can determine, she married the reverend in the spring of '99. The letter before that time talks about the wedding. I suspect the new Mrs. Martin passed on sometime a year or so later, after the last letter. I haven't found an account of her death in the papers yet but her hubby died of the flu in '04 and it didn't mention his wife in his write up."

"The poor man!" Effie said, sniffing back a sob. "He lost his beautiful wife and died so young himself." She looked from one to the other. "Anne was my grandfather's favorite sister."

"Next to Great-aunt Rachael," Claire muttered.

The Deans took seats on the far side of the room. "What do you know about Annie from your end?" Dean asked. "Did any of her letters from Ouray survive?"

"No," Claire answered. "Only Rev. Martin's note informing the family of poor Annie's death." She withdrew a single sheet of paper from her purse, unfolded it and adjusted her glasses. As she read, her sister Effie mouthed the words of the note from memory.