roadside antique stores just to poke around, and then finally reached the inn. It was a little shabby, but bustling with people. Phoebe made a stop in the ladies’ room first. When she caught up with Duncan again, she saw that he’d scored a table in the bar area next to a roaring fire. They both ordered mussels and shared a bottle of ice-cold pinot grigio. Duncan seemed less talkative during the meal than he had been in the car, but she figured he was simply chatted out for now. Just after they’d finished eating and ordered espressos, a young guy with a Lehigh University baseball cap strolled into the bar. Lehigh, she knew, was in Bethlehem.
“Tell me what you think of college men today,” she said, setting down her espresso cup. “Especially the ones at Lyle. I keep hearing that they’re not on par with the women.”
“I have a few amazing guys in my classes this term, but it’s true that many guys seem clueless these days. As a society, we’ve done a good job of empowering girls—deservedly so, of course—but some boys have gotten lost in the shuffle. The female students at Lyle often seem very frustrated with them.”
“That reminds me of something that I turned up about Lily, something I don’t want to lose sight of.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Right before she died, she had apparently started seeing someone new who wasn’t a student. It sounded as if she was frustrated by the guys here, too.”
“You’ve really been quite the sleuth,” Duncan said. “Who told you that?”
“Her roommate. And serial killer theory aside, it’s possible that this guy is tied to her death somehow. I wish I could find out who he is. As Hutch pointed out to me, women are vulnerable when they dump guys who don’t want to be dumped.”
Just then Phoebe’s cell phone rang. When she glanced down, she saw that Hutch was calling.
“Speak of the devil,” she told Duncan. “Excuse me for a sec.”
“Thanks for those notes you took,” Hutch announced after she’d said hello. “They turned out to be very insightful.”
“What do you mean?” Phoebe asked. She felt a prick of excitement. “Did you find something in them?”
“In a sense, yes. Mindy, that girl you talked to at campus security, was nice enough to make me a copy of some of my old notes that I didn’t keep here, and when I compared them to yours, a lightbulb went off. Can you drop by and see me again?”
Natch. It was just like Hutch to insist on a one-on-one.
“I’m in a restaurant right now, but why don’t I give you a call in a bit. I can arrange to meet you.” Even if she was going to spend the weekend with Duncan, she could still pick up her car and swing by Hutch’s at some point.
“He found something in the notes I took,” she explained to Duncan after she ended the call, “but he’ll only tell me in person.”
“I thought you were going to back off from this whole business.” Duncan looked displeased.
“I’m just going to follow up on this one matter. Sounds like it may be important.”
“Are you all set, then?” Duncan said. “We should probably hit the road.”
“Okay,” Phoebe said, surprised by his sudden urgency. She had imagined them lingering by the fire over another espresso.
Duncan swiveled his head, hunting the room with his eyes for the waitress. As soon as she brought the bill a moment later, he handed her his credit card without bothering to even check the math. Phoebe offered to contribute, but he shook his head.
“Did you leave anything at my house you need to go back for?” he asked.
“No—I don’t think so,” Phoebe said. What’s going on? she wondered.
“Then I’ll take you back to your place,” he said. “I’m sure you’ve got as much work as I do today.”
“Yes, tons,” she said, trying not to seem disconcerted.
“Do you feel safe enough with the new window locks?” he asked. “I hate the idea of you home and afraid.”
“I’ve got to face the music at some point,” she said. “There’s no point in prolonging it.”
That was the truth. But still she felt her stomach doing a weird flip about this turn of events. So much for being Duncan’s captive for the weekend.
19
But during their drive back to Lyle, he seemed distracted, even slightly aloof, and her gut told her something was definitely up. She realized he might be annoyed that she’d promised to go see Hutch after assuring Duncan she’d cease playing private eye. And yet she remembered she’d actually noticed a slight change in him when she’d first returned from the ladies’ room. He’d seemed more pensive.
Perhaps what she’d witnessed had just been a gradual mood swing—intensified by the wine at lunch and spending hours in the company of the same person. She remembered how right from the start she had wondered if Duncan was prone to moodiness and retreating into himself.
As they drove, Phoebe watched the landscape roll by and commented from time to time on how lovely it was. Duncan acknowledged her comments pleasantly but added nothing more.
“Is everything okay?” Phoebe asked finally. Men hated that line, she knew, and it rarely produced an honest answer, but she felt she had to give it a shot. “You seem kind of quiet all of a sudden.”
“Oh, sorry,” he said. “I got a call when you were in the ladies’ room about a few things I need to take care of today. I apologize for seeming distracted.”
“Not a problem,” she said. “Just wondering.”
Once they reached the outskirts of Lyle, Duncan seemed to relax more into his seat, and she sensed his remoteness dissipating. As he pulled up to her house, he glanced over and smiled.
“This isn’t going to cause your neighbors’ tongues to start wagging, is it? It’s not quite the walk of shame at this hour, but if any of your neighbors have hawk eyes, they’ll realize you’re basically wearing the same clothes you had on yesterday.”
“Well, they didn’t notice anyone climbing in my window or hauling rats through the back door, so apparently their observation skills aren’t all that good,” Phoebe said.
He put the car in park. “Why don’t I come in for a minute and make sure everything’s okay.”
Part of her was tempted to say yes, but she shook her head instead. She didn’t want to prolong the awkward vibe that had taken hold since lunch.
“Thanks, but I should be fine now,” she said. “The locksmith declared the house tight as a drum.”
A large vehicle came rumbling down the street at that moment, and they both looked up in unison. It turned out to be from a Philadelphia television station, and it was obviously headed toward campus.
“I wonder if there’s some new development,” Duncan said, narrowing his eyes.
“Or they’ve just come back from a late lunch at Taco Bell,” Phoebe said. “Speaking of lunch, thanks for a lovely day.”
He reached his hand behind her neck, pulled her close, and kissed her on the mouth.
“I had a great time this weekend,” he said. “Call me if there’s any problem—no matter what time it is, all right? I’ll just be grading papers tonight,” he said. It was as if his detachment during the drive home had been a figment of her imagination.
As she unlocked the front door of the house, she could hear the motor of the car humming behind her, and she realized Duncan was waiting until she checked inside. She scanned the living room and then turned and waved
