Portland, Maine
Despite the faux British pub decor, the Richmond Lion bar and grill was decidedly American in its menu selection. Seated in a corner booth, Mac, Alex and Anna demolished a late dinner of steaks, fish, chips, chicken and apple pie. The admiring glances of the male patrons went unnoticed by the Trouble Twins.
"I won't tell if you won't," said Mac slicing enthusiastically into the last remaining chunk of his thick steak.
"Dianara have you on a diet?" asked Alex.
"Not exactly. I just got fitted for my tuxedo and I don't want to gain weight before the wedding."
"Isn't it usually the bride who worries about that sort of thing?" said Anna with a smile. Unlike her companions, she had stayed out of the conversation for the most part and ate. She was starting her dessert already.
"Dia has the metabolism of a twenty-something. I'm sticking to salads and vegetables and she's grazing through the menu like a ... a football team after a hard game," said Mac. "She says she doesn't care if I regain all the weight I've already lost but I'll admit to some male vanity. Besides, I feel better now that I've gotten more active and not sitting in the office most of the day."
"She does burn more calories per day in her job than you do, Mac. It's hardly a fair comparison," said Alex enjoying her Fontina chicken.
"You were always a good looking man, Mac. You're a little stockier than when you first arrived in town but we all gain a bit as we age," said Anna.
"Ever since I've come over the pond to help you, I've gained nearly a stone," said Alex looking with accusing eyes at her sister.
"Fourteen pounds? Is that all?" asked Anna.
"It's Nestor and Raine's cooking. I can't resist. I'm in the lab all day. I'd feel better if my weight gain meant I was closer to a real antidote."
"What you gave Eve for the Cassadine party worked even at half dosage," said Mac. "Matt was affected but he was able to get past the effects on his own."
"That only blocked the drug for a short time. It's not a true antidote," said Alex. "I'm not giving up but it's slow, frustrating work."
"You live for research," Anna pointed out.
"In my field of neurology yes but this antidote work is biochemistry and pharmacology. Not my cup of tea at all," said Alex.
Anna's phone rang. She answered it. "Yes? Mrs. Hartford, thank you for returning my call." She listened intently for a minutes. "That would be fine with me if it's all right with you. I wouldn't want to inconvenience you at all." She listened and gave her companions a thumbs up sign. "We should be there in a half hour. Thank you so much. See you then."
"Who was that?" asked Mac.
"Let's finish here and get over to her place. It's just two blocks from here. I did some checking on Peter Sinclair's history in this town. He rented a house from Mrs. Hartford's family. She lives in that house now. Better yet, she remembers Peter when he lived there. I told her I was researching Skyview for a book and asked if I could interview her. She just said yes," said Anna. "Tomorrow, you can research at the local library after we tour Skyview or whatever's left of it."
"You're fixated on him. It'll come to no good," said Alex. "Is it because of your amnesia and the treatment he carried out on you?"
"Partly. That part of my life is the patchiest of ... of all. All I really remember are like slideshow pictures. I believe the drugs he was using on me inhibited my memory," said Anna. "But I also have this feeling that he's much more important than we realize. I want ... I need to know more. We may get lucky and figure out where he is now."
Anna stood up. "If you'll excuse me, I shall turn myself into the writer Anna Langton." She left the table for the ladies' room.
After making sure the Anna was out of earshot, Mac asked Alex a loaded question, "Do you believe her?"
"She believes those are her reasons and they could be," replied Alex.
"But?"
"It's killing her to not be with Robert and in on the action. She's watching the operational side like a hawk every minute of the day and nearly all night. She's barely eating," said Alex. "Look at what she just had - half a ham sandwich and soup. I know she's not sleeping well even when Robert was here."
"I know how intense Anna can get," said Mac. "Robby, too."
"It was either let her do this or watch her go crazy at home. Her nails are raw from climbing the proverbial walls."
"She should have gone with him."
"That's what I told her but she and Robert have this ... this unbreakable pact about one of them being there for the children," said Alex. "This round Anna stayed home."
"She's so insistent though that we can find a clue to Robin here. How can she be so sure?"
"She's never told me details about Skyview not like what she's told me about Faison. I believe her when she says she remembers little but what little she does know, she's kept to herself," said Alex. "Something about that time period terrifies her. And, I think, the thought that Peter has had Robin all this time makes her, well, physically ill."
Mac's expression hardened. "Did he ... touch her? Does she think that Robin's been, too? Has she told Robby about this?"
Alex sighed. "I don't know. I just don't know. Do you think Anna would tell Robert in his condition?"
"What condition?" asked Mac. Dinner forgotten.
Alex tensed. "Oh, I put my foot in it this time. Forget I said anything please."
"Too late. What condition, Alex? This isn't the first time I've suspected there was something wrong with him. He's been too edgy and volatile." Mac urged, "Just tell me."
"You'll have to ask Anna."
"She'd give me the watered down version. You're the doctor. Tell me the facts," said Mac. "You know I'm going to badger you until you do."
Alex was saved from answering by Anna's arrival. She had changed her hairstyle, put on more makeup than usual and donned a pair of tortoise shell eyeglasses.
"I've paid the bill. Let's go," said Anna.
"Wait a minute. I want to know about my brother's condition. Alex won't tell me but you will, right?" asked Mac.
"I thought he knew," said Alex as if the four words held all the explanation necessary. "Sorry."
"Mac, this is atrociously bad timing," said Anna.
"Now, Anna."
Anna looked at her watch. "All right. I'll tell you everything AFTER we get back from Mrs. Hartford."
"Not good enough," said Mac. His stance reminded Anna of a bulldog facing a much larger dog and stubbornly holding his ground. "You can tell me in the car on our way there."
"Relationship rule one - Scorpio men in a righteous mood need to be humored," said Anna. "Fine but promise me that you'll control yourself when we're with Mrs. Hartford."
Mac's face fell. "It's that bad?"
"No, no, it's not. It's just ... just hard to hear about. I'll give you the basics then you'll have to ask Robert for the details." Anna led them out and onward to their appointment.
"Mrs. Hartford, thank you for seeing us so late," said Anna.
"I'm going to my sister's place in Vermont. She just had a new grandchild," said Mrs. Hartford ushering them into the front parlor. "I don't know when I'll be back and I did want to talk to you."
"You did?" asked Anna.
"It stopped but it's started up again," said the older woman. "I thought if I gave one interview then you could spread the word and I'd get some peace."
"Hmm, what has started again?"
"Back in 90s when all that brouhaha over Dr. Krieg began, there wasn't a day that went by without an article in the paper and reporters or lawyers coming by the property. It quite annoyed my father," Mrs. Hartford explained. "Doctor Krieg left quite the mess behind, too."
"Mess?"
"He missed his rent and my father came to speak with him. He told me that the house was dusty and papers were everywhere. There were clothes in the closet and food in the refrigerator."
"He left in a hurry then," said Alex.
Mrs. Hartford nodded. "He was always very punctual with the rent. And, he was a very neat man. I remember seeing him using a push mower to trim the front yard every weekend like clockwork. None of the furnishings were ever damaged. Then he changed."
"About the time that the scandal about his treatment came to light?" asked Anna.
"Yes 'round that time," agreed Mrs. Hartford.
"Anyone would be upset by something like that happening. How did Dr. Krieg act?"
Mrs. Hartford thought silently for a while then said, "At first, he was unconcerned. I mean nothing changed. He paid his rent. He kept the property meticulously clean. He was a good neighbor by all accounts. It was the little things. The doctor was never a talkative man but he was never rude. He began to have outbursts over trivial things."
"Like what?"
"There was some plumbing problem and my father had made arrangements with a plumber to fix it. And, as was customary, he added the plumber's bill to the rent. Well, Doctor Krieg had a fit, my father said. Mr. Johnson's dog Ziggy got loose and dug up his flowerbed. Dr. Krieg tranquilized Ziggy and laid it on Mr. Johnson's porch. The poor man nearly had a heart attack thinking Ziggy had been killed."
"A bit extreme for such a small thing," noted Alex.
"That's it! Little things would set him off. The yards were no longer kept clean or mowed. The utility bills were late to be paid," said Mrs. Hartford. "It got so bad that my father was deciding whether he ought to evict him or not."
"Did he evict him?" asked Mac.
"Papa was not one for rash actions you see. He wanted to talk to Doctor Krieg man to man. Maybe see his point of view," said Mrs. Hartford. "Papa left after dinner. He came back an hour later and said he couldn't do it."
"Why not?"
"Doctor Krieg said that he was sorry for the things he'd done and said. He was ... was under a great deal of stress because of his job. He said that things were going to be better because he had help. He said his cousin would see to the repairs and the maintenance. He asked Papa to be patient for a few weeks."
Anna leaned forward. "Did anyone meet this cousin?"
Mrs. Hartford shook her head.
"Did anyone see him?"
"Just twice. My sister and I always go by the house on our way to school and back. Sometimes if Dr. Krieg saw us he would wave," said Mrs. Hartford. "One afternoon he was greeting someone coming out of a car. My sister turned to me and said that the man was probably the cousin who was expected."
"Did you get a look at his cousin?"
"Not then. The next day I did. There were sprinklers on one side of the block and we had to walk on the same side as Doctor Krieg's place. The cousin was on the front porch drinking something. He didn't say anything as we passed. He just nodded politely."
Anna fiddled with her IPhone. She found an old picture of Faison. She showed the picture to Mrs. Hartford. "Is this the cousin? Does it look like him?"
Mrs. Hartford peered at the display and almost instantly said, "Oh, yes, that's him. He had longer hair though. He looks like Doctor Krieg around the eyes I think."
Anna changed the picture to one of Peter. "This is a picture of Doctor Krieg, correct?"
Mrs. Hartford looked again. "Yes, that's him."
Anna took a deep breath and spared a sharp glance at Alex and Mac. "So, the ... uh ... the cousin WAS here. That's confirmed." She turned to Mrs. Hartford. "Did anyone say things like ... like hearing a child, a small child, a boy, crying or ... or playing around the place?"
"Not that I recall. But I know someone who may know."
"You do? Who?"
"My best friend Patty Johnson. She's lived next door all her life." Mrs. Hartford glanced at the clock. "It's too late now but I can let her know tomorrow before I leave that you may want to talk to her."
Anna smiled. "That would be very helpful if you could.
"I just thought of something else." Mrs. Hartford stood up. "Follow me please."
Puzzled, Mac, Alex and Anna followed. She led them to the back porch. She turned on the light and pointed to a stack of boxes.
"My kids have moved to Florida and I've made up my mind to join them as soon as the house is sold off. These boxes were in the attic. I haven't looked through all of them but from what I can tell they were belongings of Doctor Krieg," said Mrs. Hartford. "I have no use for them and Doctor Krieg died a long time ago. I've been waiting for a next of kin to claim his things but no one has come forward. If you want them, they're yours."
Anna smiled brightly. "We'll take them. Thank you."
"One problem. I'm leaving early tomorrow. You'll have to get them out of here tonight."
Mac hefted a box. "I'll start right now." He counted the boxes. There were six boxes of varying sizes. "It shouldn't take too long."
"While you're doing that, I'll make us refreshments. Tea and coffee I think."
Anna, Mac and Alex carried a box each to their car. In the car, Anna opened a box and its contents left her in no doubt that they indeed had Peter Krieg's things. She gave her cohorts a thumbs up for a good night's effort.