“Mrs. Nickens?”
Dolores looked up and nodded.
“I’m Evelyn Young”—she pointed to the emblem on her gray golf shirt—“deputy coroner. I am so sorry for your loss. My job is to make the process of identification as painless as possible for you and your family.”
Lascomb opened his mouth, perhaps to correct her assumption that Elton and I were family, but then he closed it without speaking.
Evelyn pulled a chair closer to Dolores. “I am going to explain our process to you, and then when you are ready to see your husband, you let me know. There is no hurry.”
I was sure Dolores found Evelyn’s soothing demeanor as comforting as I did, because by the time Evelyn had completed her explanation, Dolores had released my hand from her viselike grip.
We sat in silence for a few moments, and then Dolores stood. Elton was by her side in a flash, and she took his arm. Deputy Lascomb and I fell in behind them. Evelyn led us to a small room with light blue walls and one wide window, with white drapery on the far side of the glass.
Evelyn had a phone in her hand. “Now, Mrs. Nickens, you tell me when you are ready, and I will tell Clarice to open the curtain. As I said before, Mr. Nickens will be lying on his back and a sheet will cover him from feet to shoulders. You will be able see his face clearly.”
“I’m ready.” Dolores’s voice was surprisingly strong. Elton stood at her side, with one arm around her so his hands were lending support to both of her arms.
Evelyn put the phone to her ear. “Clarice, we are ready.”
The white curtains slowly began to open. The only thing we could see was a white sheet draped over the center of Willis’s lifeless body. All at once the curtains jerked completely open and Willis’s head came into view.
Dolores sobbed and her knees buckled, but Elton had a secure grasp and he kept her steady. Deputy Lascomb pulled a folding chair from the corner of the room, and he and Evelyn helped Dolores sit. Elton took a bottle of water out of his pocket and insisted Dolores take a drink.
While everyone was distracted, I moved to the window for a closer look at Willis. The left side of Willis’s body was facing the window. His eyes were closed and his face was ashen, his florid color long gone. I leaned against the window and stood on my toes. I was sure I saw a slight discoloration under his right eye, but no matter how I stretched or strained I couldn’t see the right side of his face. Was it only a shadow? Or was it a bruise? And if it was a bruise, how did it get there?
“Jess, you’re in my way.” Dolores sounded drained.
I moved away from the window and stood against the far wall, deep in thought. If Willis had a bruise . . . Well, there was the heavy white river rock that didn’t belong in the koi pond. I was becoming more and more convinced that Willis Nickens’s death was no accident.
I caught Evelyn studying me. I gave a tentative smile and she came right to my side. “Are you all right, ma’am? Do you need a chair or perhaps some fresh air?”
Bingo! If I could get her alone and ask a few questions . . . “I am a bit light-headed. Perhaps I could go back to the waiting area . . .” I took a step toward the door.
Evelyn immediately said, “Why don’t I walk with you?”
She signaled Lascomb, and then she and I walked down the hall. I sat in a chair while Evelyn hovered around me, offering water and even a cup of tea.
She looked relieved when, after a few minutes, I told her that I was feeling much better.
“Would you like to go back and say your good-byes to Mr. Nickens?”
I shook my head. “I think I will let Dolores say a private good-bye. One thing though: In the car on the way here, she repeatedly hoped that you would be able to tell us the actual cause of death. Did he have a heart attack, or—”
Evelyn cut me right off. “I am sorry, ma’am. The coroner’s report is not finalized, and when it is it will have to go through proper channels. I wish I could help but I can’t.”
She pulled out her cell phone and said, “Clarice, it’s time to close the curtains.”
Elton had Dolores firmly in his grip and Deputy Lascomb was right behind them. Dolores held her emotions in check just enough that she was able to thank both Evelyn and Lascomb for their kindness without bursting into tears.
Elton got us settled in the car and promptly handed us each a bottle of water and opened one for himself.
“You were such a huge help, Elton. I am extremely glad you are with us today,” Dolores said.
“It’s completely my honor. Would either of you ladies like some fruit or a muffin?”
When we declined, he took off his jacket, folded it carefully, and placed it on the front passenger seat. Then he climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine. “We don’t need to be heading out anywhere just yet, but I thought some air-conditioning might be the cooling off we all could use.”
After a while Dolores said, “I guess it was the shock of seeing Willis lying there so still. In life he was a dynamo—always go, go, go. That was the reason Willis insisted we have separate bedrooms. Even in his sleep he would flail and roll from one side of the bed to the other all night long. Did you ever hear of anything like that?”
“Oh yes. In fact, back in Cabot Cove,
