Time To Get Going
Trixie Frayne rolled her head to the right as she continued to sleep. She pictured her honeymoon in France with the man she had loved for more than 10 years, James Winthrop Frayne. They had seen all the sites, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, the Champs Elysées, and of course, the Eiffel Tower.
They had spent two weeks with just the two of them together. The honeymoon had been extended a few days due to bad weather. Neither of them wanted to risk the chance of something happening on the flight home, so they decided to enjoy the additional time alone. Jim’s father, Matthew Wheeler, had sent the company plane to pick them up in France and return them home.
“Trixie, sweetie, wake up. Come on, Trix, you need to wake up.”
She felt a strong hand gently caress her cheek, slowly bringing her out of her dreams. She took her time opening her eyes, smiling in the process. Her vision cleared and she saw her best friend, now her husband, seated beside her.
“Hi there,” she said softly.
“Hi yourself.” He leaned close and gave her a kiss.
“Is there a reason you woke me?” she asked, moving closer to Jim.
“We’re home.”
Trixie looked around. She could tell they were still on the plane. She looked at Jim mischievously. “This isn’t home.”
“I meant we’re back in the United States. There’s a limo waiting to take us to our home.”
“Our home,” she said dreamily as she sat up slightly. “I like the sound of that.”
“So do I.” Jim leaned close and gave her another kiss. “Come on, let’s go.”
They made their way off the plane to the waiting limousine. The last of their bags were being put in the trunk as they climbed into the back seat. Jim slipped his arm around her shoulder as she leaned against him. Trixie closed her eyes once again as the limousine engine started.
“I can’t believe our honeymoon is over,” Jim mumbled in her ear.
“It’s a shame it wasn’t longer.”
“I know. But because of the school, I couldn’t be gone much longer.”
“I understand.” Trixie turned her head so the side of it was against Jim’s chest. “We’ll just have to make up for it later.”
“I think we can arrange that.”
“Good,” Trixie mumbled, drifting back to sleep.
*****
Trixie stood in a field on a hill, watching everything going on around her. She easily spotted Jim, because of his red hair, down in the field. As she was about to call out to him, she saw someone she didn’t recognize running toward Jim. Whoever it was, jumped into Jim’s arms, and he swung the person around. When they stopped moving, Jim took the person’s face in his hands and gave it a kiss.
“NO!” Trixie yelled.
But Jim didn’t seem to hear her. He kept his arm around the person’s shoulder, and they continued walking away.
“JIM!”
“Trixie, wake up. You’re dreaming.”
She sat up quickly, looking around the room wildly. She was breathing hard.
Trixie felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Jim sitting beside her. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to his chest. He rubbed her back. “It’s all right. You’re all right.”
Trixie looked around and realized she was in their bedroom at Ten Acres. She had no idea how they got there. She didn’t remember the ride home from the airport.
Jim rubbed her back. “Do you want to tell me about it?”
Trixie tried to think what she had dreamed, but she couldn’t remember.
“It’s all right,” Jim said. He reached up and brushed the curls off her forehead.
Trixie closed her eyes and tried to calm her breathing. Jim continued to rub her back as he held her close. She finally let out a breath and felt her body relax. “Jim, I’m sorry I woke you.”
“It’s all right.” Jim kissed the top of her head. “Do you think you can go back to sleep?”
“As long as you’re here.”
“I’ll always be here.” Jim leaned back, and she leaned against him as he pulled the blanket up over them. “Think happy thoughts so you don’t have anymore bad dreams.
“All right.” She nestled her head on Jim’s chest. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Trix.”
Within minutes, she was sound asleep.
*****
The next morning, Trixie rolled onto her back. She reached over, expecting to feel Jim in bed beside her, but no one was there. Opening her eyes, she realized she was alone and couldn’t understand why. Pulling herself to a sitting position, she looked around the room. It had been their first night in their bedroom since the honeymoon.
I can’t believe we’re actually married, she thought, bending her knees and putting her elbows on them. It’s a dream come true that we’re together.
Getting to her feet, she moved over to the window. She looked at the snow-covered trees and wondered when spring would finally arrive.
She suddenly felt a pair of hands wrap around her waist, and she knew that it was Jim. Leaning back against him, she closed her eyes. She could feel the tie Jim was wearing and knew he was dressed for work. “Good morning, husband.”
“Good morning, wife.” Jim kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry if I woke you.”
“You didn’t, but I need to get up anyway.”
“You’re supposed to meet Moms today, right?”
Trixie nodded. “She has some things that I forgot to bring over before the ceremony.”
“It’s not anything heavy, is it?”
“I don’t think so.” Trixie turned in Jim’s arms, opening her eyes. “Will you be at the school all day?”
“Probably. Since we were gone more than two weeks, there’s bound to be a lot I need to catch up on.”
She looked close at Jim and noticed his face was pale. She gave him a critical look. “Are you feeling all right? You look pale.”
“I’m okay. It’s probably the jet lag. A couple nights of sleep on a normal schedule and I’ll be fine.”
“All right.” Trixie wrapped her arms around Jim’s neck and asked softly, “Are you sure you have to go?”
“Yeah, I do.” Jim gave her a kiss. “But I will be back.”
“All right.”
“I love you, Trixie.”
“I love you, Jim.”
They kissed again. Jim said, “I’ll see you later.”
“Bye.”
Jim let go of her. He grabbed his coat and left the room, waving as he went. Trixie knew she might as well get going so the day would go by a lot faster, and she would get to spend some time with Jim.
*****
After some time with her mother and loading the last few items into her Jeep, Trixie headed for White Plains to see how the office was coming for the agency. She and Honey had chosen a location before the wedding and were going to start setting up upon her return.
As she pulled up in front of the building, she saw the front door already had the lettering for the agency. Getting out, Trixie opened the door and entered the office. She saw two desks with chairs were already in place. Looking around, she saw a lot had been accomplished. The walls had been painted a light blue, dark blue carpeting put on the floor and black metal filing cabinets lined the walls.
“You’re here,” a voice said.
Trixie turned quickly to see Honey Wheeler-Belden standing there. Honey hurried over and gave her a hug.
“How was the honeymoon?” Honey asked, stepping back.
“It was wonderful.”
They sat down on the couch lining the one wall. Honey said, “I’m glad you had a good time.”
“I just wish it didn’t have had to end.”
“I felt the same way,” Honey admitted. “So, what do you think of our office?”
“I think it’s amazing. I can’t believe you accomplished so much while I was gone.”
“It was pretty easy since I know what we both like.”
Trixie looked closely at her sister-in-law. “You weren’t moving anything heavy, were you? If you were, Brian will have my hide.”
“I had the movers put everything where it is, so there’s no need to worry.”
Trixie turned sideways on the couch so she was facing Honey. Her sister-in-law looked beautiful at nine months pregnant. Honey took her hand and rubbed her extended stomach.
“I bet you’re anxious for the baby to be born.”
Honey nodded. “I can’t wait. It feels as if I’ve been carrying young Belden for years instead of months.”
“That baby will be here in no time.”
Before Honey could say anything, there was a knock on the door. They looked at one another, and Trixie asked, “Were you expecting another delivery?”
“No.”
Trixie got to her feet and moved to the door, pulling it open to reveal a woman in her early thirties with long blond hair standing there. Trixie immediately figured the woman had money because of the way she was dressed. She had on a navy blue suit jacket and skirt with a white blouse. She had a small black purse in her hand. Her rings and earrings were covered with diamonds.
“Can I help you?” Trixie asked.
“I’m looking for the Belden-Wheeler Detective Agency,” she said. “Am I in the right place?”
“Yes, you are. Please come in.”
Ushering the woman in, Trixie watched her. She had a feeling this could be their first case for the agency, but for some reason, she had a feeling she couldn’t trust the woman.
As the woman looked around the office, Honey said, “I’m Honey Wheeler-Belden, and this is my partner, Trixie Belden-Frayne.”
“How do you do,” the woman said. “I’m Catherine Williams.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Honey said. “Please have a seat.”
Catherine sat down on the couch beside Honey as Trixie pulled a chair over and sat down across from them. Trixie decided to get down to business. “Miss Williams, what can we do for you?”
“I need your help,” Catherine stated.
“Help with what?” Honey asked.
“I need you to find my brother. My twin brother.”
Trixie looked at Honey, who asked, “Why are you searching for your brother?”
“My mother recently died, and in her will, she let me know that I have a brother somewhere in the world. I need to find him. He’s all I have left.”
“And you would like our assistance in finding him?” Honey asked.
“If you could, I would be eternally grateful.”
“What information do you have that could help us in this search?” Trixie asked.
“Not much, I’m afraid. All I have is a copy of my mother’s will.” Catherine opened her purse and pulled out a folded piece of paper. She handed the paper to Honey.
As Honey unfolded the paper, Trixie moved over to her partner and read the will silently. She quickly scanned the paper and found what Catherine had said. Her mother admitted there was another child, but didn’t have any knowledge if the child was alive or dead.
Trixie looked at Catherine. “Why did you come to us? Surely, you would want a well-known investigator looking into this.”
“I came to you because of your reputation,” Catherine said. “My mother was an avid reader of your exploits in the newspaper and always said the two of you would take care of any case that came across your paths. I remember her talking about it every time there was something new in the paper about you, and I know you will be able to solve this for me.”
Trixie looked at Honey. She had a feeling this case would be intriguing, but another part of her felt they were asking for trouble.
“Please help me find my brother.”
Trixie watched as Honey looked up at her. She could see the questioning look in Honey’s eyes. Trixie shrugged her shoulders and nodded her head. Honey looked at Catherine. “We’ll take the case.”
“Thank you so much.”
Honey looked at Trixie. “It looks like the Belden-Wheeler Detective Agency is officially in business.”
“It sure does.”
*****
Trixie stared at the computer searching for information regarding Catherine’s mother. As she searched, she thought about everything Catherine had said, which wasn’t much.
Catherine had no clue as to who the father of the child was. She only knew that her mother and the birth father had met when they were young. They had one intimate night, and that was when the boy and Catherine had been conceived. After that, Catherine’s birth father disappeared, and Catherine’s mother never had any contact with him ever again.
The computer beeped and she looked at the screen. The background information on Catherine’s mother popped up in front of her eyes.
Catherine’s mother, Alexandra Williams, married Robert Williams. Robert had adopted her two-year-old daughter at that time. There was no information about Catherine’s birth father.
Trixie searched for and found Catherine’s birth certificate, but there was no mention of a twin brother.
“There’s nothing here on her brother,” Trixie said, leaning back in the seat.
“Did you check her birth certificate?” Honey asked, shuffling through some papers.
“I did, but nothing is listed.”
Honey looked at her. “I think we’ll have to talk to her old friends and see if someone knows something.” Honey picked up a page and looked at it. “It’s a good thing Catherine made this list of people who were close to her mother.”
“I guess that’s where we have to start.”
“How do you want to do it?” Honey asked.
“I think we need to talk to Alexandria’s friends and acquaintances and see if anyone knows anything.” Trixie got to her feet and started pacing.
“Should we split the list in half?”
“Actually, let’s narrow down the list of people who knew Alexandria around the time the twins were born and before. We should have a smaller list to deal with.”
“All right.”
Trixie continued to pace as Honey worked on the list. She moved behind Honey and watched her work with the list. Honey said, “There are about ten people we need to talk to.”
“Now we just have to find out where they live.”
As Honey typed away at the computer, Trixie’s phone rang. Pulling it out, she said, “Hello?”
“Trixie?” It was Jim.
“Hi, how are you?” she asked, watching Honey type in the names.
“I’m fine. Uh, Trix, where are you? I thought we were going to have dinner together.”
“We are. We have a couple hours until dinner time.”
“Trix, it’s almost seven.”
“No.” Trixie looked at her watch and realized he was right. “Jim, I’m sorry. Honey and I got...”
“Involved in something and lost track of time,” Jim finished with a laugh. “I do understand.”
“Do you want me to pick something up on my way?”
“Actually, I have dinner waiting here for when you finally do come home.”
“I shouldn’t be long.”
“I’ll see you soon then.”
“Bye, Jim.”
“Bye, Trix. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Trixie ended the call.
“I take it that was my big brother,” Honey said, smiling without taking her hands away from the keyboard.
“You are correct.” Trixie straightened up. “Do you realize it’s almost seven?”
Honey’s head shot up. “Seven?”
“That was my reaction too,” Trixie said.
“I’m supposed to meet Brian for dinner.” Honey looked at Trixie. “Could we finish this in the morning?”
“That’s fine. We can’t do anything until we find the addresses and phone numbers.”
“All right.” Honey grabbed her purse. “I’ll meet you back here around nine tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.”
* * * * *
Forty-five minutes later, Trixie made her way along the driveway that led to Ten Acres. As she got closer to the house, she saw the only lights on were in the kitchen. Parking her Jeep, she got out, locked the door and made her way inside. Stepping into the kitchen, she was immediately greeted by the smell of lasagna.
Trixie slipped out of her coat and hung it in the closet. As she turned to head into the living room, she stopped short when she saw Jim standing in the doorway.
“Hi,” she said. “I’m sorry I’m so late.”
“It’s all right.”
Trixie moved to Jim. “Something smells wonderful.”
“I thought you might be hungry.” Jim wrapped his arms around her waist. “I missed you today.”
“I missed you too.” Trixie leaned over and gave Jim a kiss. “So, what did you do with that wonderfully smelling meal? You didn’t throw it away, did you?”
“Close your eyes.”
“Jim?”
“Trust me.”
Trixie closed her eyes as Jim slid her arm through his. They slowly started walking. She had no idea where they were going. When they finally stopped, Jim said, “Take a look.”
Opening her eyes, she saw candles lighting the dining room, and two places had already been set.
“This is wonderful.”
“Let’s eat before dinner gets cold.”
Trixie nodded as they moved to the table and sat down.
* * * * *
After dinner, they settled on the couch together. Jim had his arms around her as she leaned against him. They were talking about their days.
“The kids were really excited that I’m back,” Jim said, pulling her close. “I was excited to see them too.”
“They really do look up to you.”
“So,” Jim said, switching subjects. “What did you and Honey do today?”
“Well, we were checking out the completed work at the office when the Belden-Wheeler Detective Agency got its first official case.”
“Really? What’s it about, if you can tell me?”
“This woman wants us to find her twin brother.”
“That shouldn’t be too difficult.”
“It’s going to be a bit of a challenge. She had no clue who he was, and none of the paperwork she has identifies him.”
“Don’t get discouraged. You’ll solve this. I have faith in you.”
Trixie closed her eyes as she leaned her head against his chest. She hoped Jim was right that they would find the answers, but part of her felt that if they did find her brother, there was going to be trouble.
Jim kissed the back of her neck. “Where’s your mind?”
“That feels nice,” Trixie murmured.
Turning in Jim’s arms, she kissed his lips. Jim held her as his hands moved up and down her back. Her hands moved up to his shoulders.
“I really did miss you today,” Jim said huskily.
“Maybe not as much as I missed you.” Trixie kissed Jim again. “I love you so much.”
“I love you just as much.”
Author’s Notes: I would like to thank Susansuth for her assistance in the editing of this story. Without your assistance, I would be lost. Thanks Again.
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