Page 75 of Is Anyone Listening?
I pulled into the lot next to Kelly's Pub just before one. It was busy, but a bunch of people seemed to be finishing up and heading out.
I slipped onto a stool at the bar, and as Finn came out of the kitchen to drop off a burger to a customer a few stools down from me, he gave me a quick nod.
After taking care of that customer, he came over. "How are you feeling today, Cassidy?"
"Better. I wanted to thank you again for saving me."
"I'm happy I was there." He paused. "Have you eaten? Can I get you some lunch?"
"That would be great. I feel like a cheeseburger."
"You've got it." He paused. "I'd like to talk to you. Maybe after this rush dies down, and you've had a chance to eat?"
"That sounds good. I'd like to talk to you, too."
"I'll put a rush on that burger."
As Finn disappeared into the kitchen, a waitress set down a glass of water in front of me, and I took a refreshing drink as my gaze moved around the pub. The only familiar face belonged to Margaret, the librarian. She and another woman were just getting up after paying their bill.
As she neared me, she gave me a surprised smile. "Cassidy, right?"
"You remembered.”
"Yes, and I've been hearing your name a lot today." She paused, turning her head to the woman next to her, an attractive blonde woman in her early fifties. "This is Cassidy, Ellen's granddaughter," Margaret said, then looked back at me. "And this is Joanne Garrett, our town doctor."
I straightened. "Dr. Garrett. I was just talking to Becca about you earlier today."
"Oh, why is that?" the doctor asked warily.
"Becca mentioned that you saw Natalie Warren when she was staying at the inn."
"Yes, I did. I already spoke to the sheriff about my very short conversation with her."
"Can I ask what it was about?"
"No," Dr. Garrett replied, her voice clipped and annoyed. "I believe very strongly in doctor-patient confidentiality."
"Of course. I'm just trying to find out what happened to her."
"Yes, I know. Margaret was just telling me about your podcast. I'll have to take a listen. I need to get back to work. It was lovely to meet you."
"You too," I murmured.
Margaret lingered behind. "Now I know why you were so interested in the history of the inn and Ellen and Richard's relationship."
"I would like to know more about my family," I said.
"I can't believe David had a daughter, although I don't know why that would surprise me. He left when he was eighteen years old. I'm sure he's had a complete and wonderful life since then."
"He's very successful. He runs an investment company."
"I always knew he was a smart kid. And he had big ambitions. Good to see they worked out for him. But sad that he doesn't ever come back to see his mother."
"When we spoke last, you said you thought he might have left because of the rumors about his father's death, but that doesn't explain why he stopped talking to my grandmother."
"I don't know, dear. Ellen is a closed book. It's very difficult to get her to open up about anything. But you might have the best chance of making that happen."
As the server dropped off my food, Margaret said goodbye, leaving me to wonder whether the doctor's visit to the inn could shed any light on Natalie's disappearance. But Dr. Garrett wasn't going to talk to me, and whatever she'd said to the sheriff had no doubt been erased or made to look like nothing.
