Easy Bake Coven: Book One of the Vivienne Finch Magical Mysteries (11 page)

As
she further explored the profile, it revealed that his hobbies were kayaking on
the Finger Lakes and nature walks. There were only two photos posted in his
online album, the close-up cover picture and one of him in uniform that looked
like a standard class photo from police school.

The
ringing of her telephone made her jump. She picked up the receiver without even
glancing at the caller ID display. “Hello?”

“Oh
thank God, I thought you were dead.” Nora’s voice was emphatic. “Why didn’t you
call me?”

“I’m
sorry, Mother.”

“I
just saw it on the early local news and my heart nearly exploded.” Nora
continued.

“I
just got home a short time ago myself.” Vivienne kept staring at the picture of
Joshua and it bothered her how secretive he was.

“What
did the news say?” Vivienne asked.

“Only
that a body was discovered in the alley behind your shop. Were you the one who
found it?”

“No,
thank goodness.” Vivienne’s stomach turned at the thought of finding Mona’s
body.

“Any
idea as to who it is?” Nora pressed.

Remembering
her promise to Joshua, she held the vital information back. Nora loved good
gossip. More than loved, she thrived on it, as the women in her weekly rummy
games could more than attest to. “They wouldn’t say. I was stopped outside on
the sidewalk.”

“What
about your grand opening?” Nora asked.

“I
think cutting the yellow crime scene tape with those giant scissors might put a
few people off.” Vivienne snipped without thinking.

“Hold
your fire.” Nora interrupted. “I just wanted to know if you were okay.”

“I’m
fine.” She felt guilty about taking the tone she did and chalked it up to her
frustration. “I’m sorry, Mother. I didn’t mean to snap at you.”

“I
just wanted you to know that I’m willing to help with whatever you need to get
opened.”

“Thanks.”
Her voice had softened. “I don’t know when they’ll let me into the shop again.”

“I’ll
bet by later tonight.” Nora reasoned. “Maybe you could ask Joshua about that?”

“I’m
sure he has his hands full right now.” Vivienne rolled her eyes. “And yes, we
had a wonderful date the other night.”

“You
did?” Nora sounded genuinely surprised. “I’m so glad to hear that.”

“I
wanted to say thank you for setting it up.”

“You’re
welcome dear.” Nora replied. “So when do you think you’ll go out again?”

Vivienne
stared at the handsome picture of Joshua on her monitor. “You’ll be the second
to know.”

 
“I love you, darling daughter.” Nora closed
the conversation with her usual nickname. “Call me later.”

Vivienne
no sooner hung up the phone before it rang again. The number for
Trade Winds Clothier
appeared on the
display. “Hello Kathy.”

“Oh
my God, are you okay?” Kathy asked breathlessly

“I’m
fine and so is Nora.” She revealed.

“What
happened?”

Vivienne
left the computer chair and paced around her home as she filled Kathy in with
the basics, withholding the true identity just as she had done with everyone
else. She was starting to realize how much she despised keeping secrets. They
were so much work.

She
was just about to finish her conversation when the phone line clicked to
indicate another call was coming through. It was from the Cayuga Cove Sheriff’s
office. “Kathy, I have to go. I’ll call you later.”

“You
better.” Kathy demanded and hung up.

“Hello?”
Vivienne’s voice cracked as she took the other call.

“May
I speak to Miss Vivienne Finch?” It was a woman’s voice.

“This
is she.”
  

“Sheriff
Rigsbee
would like you to come in for an interview
today. Would two o’clock work?” The woman on the other end asked.

“Sure.”
Vivienne glanced at her wall clock and it was still only a quarter to eleven.
“Do I need to bring a lawyer or something?”

“No
ma’am.” The woman replied in a completely neutral tone. “Do you know the
location of the sheriff’s office?”

“You’re
located in the annex building off the county courthouse?” Vivienne asked.

“Yes
ma’am.”

“See
you at two.” Vivienne hung up the phone and suddenly felt a little nervous. She
had watched so many shows on television where characters went into questioning
and how eventually someone cracked under the pressure. At least Joshua would be
there to make her feel better.

“Please
have a seat, Miss Finch.” Sheriff Zeke
Rigsbee
gestured to a simple metal chair that was in front of his desk. “Thank you for
coming down today.” The desktop was cluttered with folders and files, mesh
baskets labeled ‘in’ and ‘out’ and an assortment of pens and pencils. Vivienne
noticed small photos of his wife, Sally, and their two children Nicholas and
Sarah, who were both college students out-of-state.

“It’s
no trouble at all.” Vivienne took a seat facing him. The office was smaller than
she had imagined it would be. A drab tan color had been painted over the cement
block walls in a futile attempt to warm the room but it did just the opposite.
It felt cold and sterile. Even the green philodendron plant, dangling its long
vines and leaves from a dish garden atop a filing cabinet, seemed washed out
and lifeless.

Zeke
Rigsbee
was in his early fifties, but in surprisingly
good shape for a man of his age. He didn’t have the paunchy belly like the
small town sheriff’s on television and in movies. His thinning dark hair was
parted neatly on the side, and his sideburns were cropped and neat. He sat down
after her and folded his hands across the desk. “I know that this has been a
terrible day for you.”

“You
can say that again.” Vivienne craned her neck to look behind for any sign of
Joshua.

“Are
you expecting someone else Miss Finch?”

“I
thought Deputy
Arkins
was going to be here too.” She
turned back to face him.

“Normally
he would, but I was informed of your existing relationship and it wouldn’t be
kosher to proceed given the circumstances.” His bushy eyebrows raised slightly
in response.

“I
wasn’t aware we were actually in a relationship.” Vivienne perked up.

“Relationship,
a date, even just close friends, it’s too personal when it comes to an investigation.”
He straightened his back against the chair. “I have a few questions concerning
your encounter with the victim, Mrs. Mona Clarke.”

“I’ll
help however I can.” Vivienne answered. So Joshua had defined them as a
relationship to the sheriff? She didn’t know why that surprised her so. It was
a good sign, but was she comfortable using the term relationship so early? What
did that mean exactly?

“Miss
Finch? Are you listening to me?” Sheriff
Rigsbee’s
voice raised a notch in volume.

“I’m
sorry.” She blinked in response. Her cheeks flushed warm and she felt silly for
letting her mind wander during the question session. “This is all such a
shock.”

Sheriff
Rigsbee
studied her and his expression seemed to
indicate he didn’t buy her cover story. “Yes it is. Would you like me to repeat
the question?”

“Yes
please.” She leaned forward and pushed all thoughts of Joshua from her mind.

“At
what time yesterday did Mrs. Clarke enter your establishment?”

Vivienne
tried to recall that exact time but she was stumped. She remembered having
something baking in the oven. “It was sometime in the late morning. If I had to
guess I’d say ten thirty or so?”

“You
don’t recall looking at a clock?”

“No.”
Vivienne shook her head. “I had timers set on all the ovens because I was baking
for the opening. Looking at the clock would just make me more nervous about
running out of time.”

Sheriff
Rigsbee
scribbled down her statement as she spoke.
“Did you expect to see her that morning?”

“No,
my day was really too busy to spend time socializing.”

His
pen sailed across the yellow notebook paper in a fluid motion, having taken
many statements over his years as sheriff. “How did your meeting with Mrs.
Clarke come about?”

“She
must have been walking by and saw me working in the bakery.” Vivienne explained.
“She knocked on the door and asked if she could get a sneak peek at the
business.”

“Then
what happened?” He waited for her answer.

“I
invited her in for a cup of tea and a peanut butter cookie. We talked about the
Cayuga Cove Women of Small Business Association and the historic commission
meeting taking place that night.”

“How
long did you talk?”

“Not
long, perhaps fifteen minutes? Before I knew it she said she had something to
take care of and placed an order for some tea and baked goods for the upcoming
meetings.” Vivienne raised her eyes to the ceiling, noticing that one of the
tiles from the drop ceiling wasn’t completely settled into place. How did they
end up like that? It never ceased to bother her that no one ever took the
thirty seconds to fix it.

“Have
you any idea where she was headed?” He flipped the notepad paper over to
continue writing.

“She
never said. I thanked her for stopping by and then she left.” Vivienne
finished.

“Did
anyone else come into the bakery while you were together?”

“No.”
Vivienne scrunched her lips together. “Well, not exactly.”

“What
do you mean?”

“While
we were in the store, Victoria Clemens knocked on the window and waved.”
Vivienne recalled. “She was all smiles and sunshine.”

“But
she never came inside?” He scribbled the name on his notepaper and circled it.

“No.
She looked like she was power walking or something.”

Sheriff
Rigsbee
put his pen down and scratched his chin with
his right hand. “Thank you for coming down today Miss Finch.”

“Is
that all?” She had hoped to find out some more details about what happened, but
he had made sure she did all the talking. Vivienne figured it was some sort of
investigator tactic to weed out fact from fiction.

“Yes.”
He stood up from his chair and smiled. “If we need anything else we’ll give you
a call.”

She
pushed the chair back and rose to her feet. “You know where to find me.”

“Just
to be on the safe side, we’re asking you let us know if you’ll be leaving town
during the next few days.”

“Am
I still a suspect?” Her voice unexpectedly raised an octave.

“It’s
simply standard procedure during any investigation, Miss Finch.” He ushered her
out of his office with a smile. “No need to worry yourself over anything.”

“Oh,
that’s a relief.” She smiled back as they passed the registration desk where a
matronly looking officer was working the desk and answering a phone that never
seemed to stop ringing.

“If
you think of anything else, please don’t hesitate to call or stop in.” He
opened the front door, allowing a blast of chilled autumn air to swirl in along
with a few stray leaves.

“Thank
you, Sheriff
Rigsbee
.” Vivienne stepped out and took
in a deep breath. The reality of the police questioning hadn’t been anywhere
near as lively as she had imagined. As usual, the real deal failed to live up
to the hype of the crime shows on television.

As
she watched the local news on the television in the living room, she hated
seeing her display window surrounded by that awful yellow tape. Gossip had
spread fast and the entire town had become aware of Mona’s death. The burden of
keeping that secret had now passed and she felt a little better not having to
hold back with her friends and family.

The
reporter on the scene didn’t have any specifics, only reporting Mona had been
killed in the alley behind her bakery and the body was transported to Rochester
for an autopsy by the medical examiner.

She
was surprised to see the image of Victoria Clemens appear on the screen with a
microphone near her face. Vivienne reached for her remote and turned the volume
up.

“The
Cayuga Cove Women of Small Business Association has suffered an immeasurable
loss today. Mona Clarke was a champion for so many business owners here
locally. My thoughts and prayers are with her husband, Mayor Clarke, and their
family during this time of great sorrow.” Victoria looked calm and composed,
but perhaps that was simply shock. She didn’t know if they were close friends
or merely worked together on committees, but she was clearly taking charge by
granting a small interview.

As
the news changed over to the weather report, Vivienne turned it off and walked
over to the computer. She was about to turn it on and browse
Social Butterfly
for status messages
about Mona’s death when there was a knock at her door.