Killing the Carnations (A Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mystery) (8 page)

Aunt Ida was about to tell him when Vicky laid her hand lightly on her aunt's shoulder.

“Don't,” she warned her. “We need to find out who did know about the passage, it's better if Nicholas knows nothing about it at all.”

“
Why do you say that?” Nicholas asked quizzically as he studied her. “Don't you think I'm guilty?”

“
No,” Vicky suddenly said and shook her head. “No, I don't Nicholas. I don't think you had anything to do with this. I'm sorry if I made you feel that I did.”

Nicholas studied her
, as if he was trying to figure out whether to believe her or not.

“
It's okay, Nicholas,” Aunt Ida reassured him. “If Vicky believes your innocent that means she'll do everything in her power to prove it.”

“
Yes, I will,” Vicky agreed.

“
You will?” Mitchell questioned as he jogged up to the small gathering. “What's going on here?” he demanded as he looked between Aunt Ida, Nicholas, and Vicky.

“
How did you get here so fast?” Vicky asked as she looked from him to the parking lot. Mitchell shifted awkwardly and then lowered his voice.

“
Once we released Nicholas, I wanted to make sure you were okay,” he murmured. “So I might have been camping out in the parking lot.”

“
Might have been?” Vicky arched an eyebrow.

Mitchell drew his lips into a thin line of warning. She knew that he had a job to do, and he needed to focus on it.

“I want all of you to tell me everything you know, now please,” Mitchell said sternly as he flipped open his notebook.

Vicky described
remembering and then finding the passageway, and showed him the shoeprints she had taken pictures of. Then she took Mitchell aside and confessed to hiding in Emily's closet and finding what she believed to be the murder weapon.

“
I know that you need a search warrant,” Vicky explained. “That's why I left it right where it was. I didn't touch the handle or the metal part at all,” she insisted when she saw his disapproving expression.

“
Vicky, I care about the evidence, but I also care about you,” he reminded her. “If Emily had something to do with this, then you were in danger the entire time you were in her room. You should have called me the moment you found the passageway.”

“
Well, maybe if you had told me that you were hanging out in the parking lot I would have,” Vicky pointed out with a small smile.

“
Good point,” Mitchell smiled a little, too. He glanced down at the notepad he was holding and then back up at the room they were standing in front of. “I highly doubt it was Emily who actually committed the murder,” he said and clenched his jaw. “Something does not make sense here.”

Vicky had her suspicions but she was not ready to share them with Mitchell. She had already assumed that one man, whom she was now convinced was innocent,
might be guilty. She didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

“
Do you know where Emily is now?” Mitchell asked Vicky.

“
Actually I do,” she replied with raised eyebrows. She led Mitchell towards the kitchen while Aunt Ida hung back with Nicholas to discuss what they had both seen in the passageway.

“
Do you think she's okay with him?” Mitchell asked as Vicky unlocked the side door into the kitchen.

“
I think so,” Vicky nodded as she glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Aunt Ida embrace Nicholas warmly. Despite the tension of the situation she found herself smiling at the sight.

When Mitchell and Vicky walked into the kitchen, Henry and Emily looked up guiltily from their bowls of ice cream that were next to a huge bucket of ice cream.

“
Vicky, I can explain,” Henry said quickly.

“
Henry, give us a moment alone please,” Vicky said in a stern tone as she settled her gaze on Emily. Mitchell had asked Vicky to stay with him because he thought it would make Emily feel more at ease.

“
Sure,” Henry nodded and glanced nervously at Emily. “But I swear it was my idea...”

“
This is a police matter, Henry,” Mitchell explained and gestured towards the door. Henry didn't have to be told again. He headed for the door and glanced sympathetically at Emily as he stepped outside into the garden.

“
A police matter?” Emily asked as she looked between Vicky and Mitchell. “Have I done something wrong?”

“
Have you?” Vicky challenged, which drew a reproachful look from Mitchell. Vicky cleared her throat and stepped aside, knowing that she had to let Mitchell perform the interrogation. Instead of questioning Emily though, he picked up a bowl and a spoon from the butcher's block that the ice cream container was resting on.

“
Do you mind?” he asked as he gestured to the ice cream and met Emily's eyes.

“
No, it's fine,” Emily replied, though she seemed very confused. Vicky was also confused, she had no idea why Mitchell wanted to eat ice cream instead of talking about the corkscrew she had found.

“
How are things going, Emily?” he asked as he dished up some ice cream. When he ate a spoonful he grinned and moaned a little, “Oh, that's tasty.”

“
Things are going okay I guess,” Emily replied. The normally shy girl seemed to be relaxing a little bit.

“
That's good,” Mitchell nodded as he put the spoon down. “You know, Emily, you've been such a great help over the years to Vicky and Sarah. Vicky's told me so much about you.”

“
Oh?” Emily blushed a little and glanced at Vicky. Vicky managed a smile in return. The truth was she did often talk about Emily. She had started at the inn when she was only eighteen and was one of the hardest working young women she knew. She always made sure all of her tasks were complete and would often offer to help others that may have fallen behind. She was certainly not someone who would strike her as violent. She seemed to genuinely care about the guests that stayed at the inn and was especially good with the children who stayed there. But, none of that changed what Vicky had found in her closet.

“
But it seems to me every time I see you, you're alone,” Mitchell suddenly said, drawing Emily's attention sharply back to him.

“
Well, I am alone a lot,” Emily agreed nervously.

“
Shy right?” Mitchell's smile spread warmly. “You know when I was in high school I could barely speak to a girl. If one tried to talk to me, I'd drop my books, stumble over my words, or do something else terribly embarrassing. It got to where I would just avoid them.”

Vicky
raised an eyebrow. She didn't know this about Mitchell, and wondered if he was telling the truth or just trying to coax Emily. What she couldn't figure out was what he was trying to coax her into.

“
I was really shy in school, too,” Emily admitted and then she added in a whisper. “I used to snort every time someone tried to talk to me. I couldn't help it!”

“
Of course not, some people are just shy,” Mitchell shrugged and encouraged her to take another bite of the ice cream.

“
But that's changed for me now,” Mitchell added. “Since I met Vicky, I don't think I’ve stuttered over my words once,” he glanced up at Vicky with a smile. Vicky was feeling very out of the loop but she smiled at him in return. She was sure he had a plan, but she felt as if he was wasting time. She was more of a charge in and interrogate kind of woman, and though she respected Mitchell's expertise, she was getting impatient.

“
Oh me, too,” Emily abruptly squealed. “Isn't it amazing when you finally meet the right person?” she asked with a heavy sigh. “It's like all that shyness, all that nervousness just disappears.”

“
Mmhm,” Mitchell agreed and then settled his gaze on her. “So you've met someone like that?”

Suddenly
, Vicky knew where Mitchell was going with his line of questioning. So far she hadn't revealed to him that Emily and Jeremy were having an affair. She didn't want to give Jeremy more ammunition for his lawsuit, and she also didn't think it would be relevant. But things had certainly changed.

“
Maybe,” Emily said more quietly. She seemed to begin to realize that she was getting caught in a trap.

“
It must be so hard, someone as beautiful...” he glanced up at Vicky briefly with an apologetic look before looking back at Emily, “as you are, to have to see someone like Amanda with the man you love.”

“
What?” Emily asked, her eyes widening. “What are you talking about?”

“
It's okay, Emily,” Mitchell said calmly. “We know what really happened.”

“
What do you mean?” she demanded.

“
Maybe you were hoping that he would leave her for you. Maybe the two of you argued, and you just couldn't help yourself. I know what it's like to feel like things are one-sided, it's like getting slapped across the face.”

Vicky stepped closer to the butcher's block. She tried to meet Mitchell's eyes, but he was too busy holding Emily's gaze.

“Did you see Amanda with Charleston? Is that what got you so upset?” he asked with quiet confidence.

“
Charleston?” Emily shuddered at that very idea. “You think I was in love with that slob? Please, he's nothing like Jeremy.” After she said his name, she reached up and cupped her mouth with her hand. She stared wide eyed at Mitchell, and then looked over at Vicky.

“
Jeremy?” Mitchell repeated. It was obvious that he had been in the dark on that one.

“
Jeremy Minkle,” Vicky supplied, “the CEO of Ballant Industries. He and Emily have been having an affair.”

Mitchell shot a cool look at her, and she knew that he was wondering how long she had known about that.

“I'm sorry, Vicky,” Emily said quickly. “It just happened last time he was here, and then...”

“
And then when he came back, it picked right back up?” Vicky suggested and then shook her head. “Emily, we just want to figure out what happened here. Just be honest with Mitchell.”

“
I'm trying,” Emily promised, she was now very flustered.

“
What do you know about Charleston's death?” Mitchell asked pointedly. He was taking advantage of her being a little off balance.

“
Nothing,” Emily said swiftly. “Nothing at all. I'm telling you, nothing,” she insisted.

Mitchell narrowed his eyes and pulled out his notebook
, he jotted something down on it and then looked back up at Emily.

“
If you know nothing, then you'd be okay with me taking a look around your room?” he asked calmly.

“
Of course you can,” she shrugged a little and lowered her eyes. “There's nothing for me to hide anymore.”

Vicky was surprised by this. She knew what was in Emily's closet. She was certain that it was the murder weapon. So why would she be so comfortable with Mitchell looking in her room? Before she could think about it for too long Mitchell was standing up.

“Let's get that ice cream in the freezer, and go have a look around,” he suggested. His tone was still friendly enough that Emily willingly agreed.

“
I'll take care of the ice cream,” Vicky volunteered.

She needed a moment alone to
try to piece together the puzzle. Mitchell nodded and led Emily out to her room. Vicky already knew what he would find in her closet. She also knew that it might lead to Emily's arrest. But she was sure that Emily had not committed the crime. What motive could she have to kill Charleston? She didn't seem to have the strength to kill him with a corkscrew. She knew something wasn't quite right. She took the time to sort through all of the information she had swimming through her mind.

Everything led back to one name. It didn't make sense to her, but it did lead back to only one name. It was a hunch she decided to investigate on her own.

Vicky rode the elevator up to the third floor. It was very quiet in the hallway, the sun had not even risen yet. The guests had not begun to wake up. But when she paused beside one door in particular she heard footsteps. Slow, deliberate footsteps. Vicky narrowed her eyes. She considered knocking on the door, but the knob began to turn before she could.

Vicky didn't want to be caught off guard so she ducked into the shadows of the hallway. It was still dim enough that the focus of her hunch did not notice her
. She hoped he would get into the elevator. It would give her a chance to search his room. Instead he paused in front of Charleston's room. He stared into the open doorway, and then he spoke, causing a shiver to race along Vicky's spine.

“
Why did you want to see me?” he asked. Vicky was about to assume he was talking to a ghost, when she heard another voice reply.