Mission to Murder (19 page)

“I need someone to watch Fifi for a couple of days. I’ve got to go in to the city and get some of my belongings. I’ve scheduled a mover to come and put my stuff into storage until I figure out where I’m going to go.” Brenda’s eyes filled with tears. “I’d take her with me, but I can’t have her at my apartment. And I don’t need the landlord to have any reason not to give me back my deposit.”

I thought about the fenced backyard and considered Emma’s territorial reaction. “When are you leaving? I need to see if Greg will take her or Emma. Having them together wouldn’t be the best idea.”

“I don’t have many friends I could even ask.” Brenda watched as Jackie sprinted toward the back room. After she’d disappeared, Brenda smiled sadly at me. “See what I mean?”

“She probably . . .” I paused, trying to think of an excuse.

Brenda laughed. “She doesn’t want to have to tell me no. That’s okay, I get it. I’m heading back in to town on Thursday after the party. Then I should be back next Monday.”

“We’ll figure something out.” I patted her on the arm. “No worries.”

But as Brenda left, I wondered if her life with the less-than-petite Fifi would be the heaven she’d always imagined. Craig could take care of the large dog mostly because he lived on site at The Castle and the property backed up to national forest land. Fifi had lots of room to wander, hunt, and just be a huge dog. No apartment Brenda could afford would give Fifi the same life.

Not my worry, I thought as I started my day at the shop. Soon, tourists started flocking in, keeping me busy making coffee drinks and serving up treats. Customers were buying more books today, especially mysteries.

“So, this is the author who’s coming this week, right?” A local teenager smiled and handed me a twenty.

I glanced down at the paperback. It was a cozy author who wrote knitting mysteries set in Colorado. I loved her stuff and now brought in the hardbacks for her die-hard fans, like me. “This book is great. Have you read her other stuff?”

The girl peered at me like I’d grown two heads. “Duh. I’m in here as soon as I know it’s available. I have the entire collection.” She pulled up her phone. “I keep her digital editions on my phone in case I need something to read.”

I glanced down at the paperback she was buying. “This came out a year ago, are you sure you don’t have this already?” I hated buying something I’d already read.

“I have it. This is a gift. And I’m coming in from Santa Maria with a friend for the Uncloaking.” She glanced behind me. “So is Toby working today?”

Now I knew why I didn’t know this frequent customer. She was one of Toby’s girls. The guy brought in more traffic during his shift that I did on the morning rush when people really needed coffee.

“He’s coming in at noon.” I glanced at the clock; it was almost that time now. Funny, Toby usually showed up early for the Saturday shift, knowing I was often busy.

The girl took her change and her coffee and nodded. “I guess I’ll browse for a while. Maybe there’s another book I need.”

She wandered off and I focused on taking the next customer’s order. Toby was a lady-killer, that was for sure. I had to admit, hiring him was the best decision my aunt had made when she first showed up and took over the day-to-day shop management.

Fifteen minutes after noon, Toby rushed in. He glanced around the nearly empty room and sighed. “Sorry.”

He stepped behind the counter, slipping his jacket off and throwing it into the back. As he washed his hands and put an apron on, he focused on me. “I would have called, but we kind of lost track of time.”

“We?” I dumped out coffee and added more to the espresso maker. Double shot latte—caramel—one of my favorites and it appeared it would be the last drink I’d make for the day. Traffic had been slow for a Saturday, and Toby could take over without a problem.

He stood next to me and heated milk for the latte. “Greg asked me to come in this morning and go over the results we got from the crate break-in last night. I hear you slept through the whole thing.”

I reddened. “Hey, it wasn’t like he even let me get out of the car. What would you have me do?”

He grinned and poured the coffee into the cup, then topped the drink with whipped cream and a cover. Toby handed it to the waiting customer. “There you go.”

I leaned against the counter watching the few stragglers wandering around the shop scanning the shelves. I liked my life. Toby stood next to me. “Did Greg tell you the drug dogs found a trace?”

I nodded. “I would have never guessed Craig was into that scene.” I didn’t like the guy, but being a drug supplier? That fell into a whole ’nother category of slime.

“I know, right? I’ve been arresting DUIs and breaking-and-entering kids for years and there was a drug dealer living right in our town?” Toby shrugged. “He must have kept that part of his life out of the town. I wonder what other secrets are hiding in our little community.”

I wondered that, too. “I guess there’s at least one more.”

Toby cocked his head and focused on me. “What’s that?”

“Someone murdered Craig.” I glanced around the quiet shop. “And unless they came from the outside to do the deed, they live here with us.”

G
reg’s promised day together failed to materialize on Saturday so after I took Emma for a run on the beach, I sank onto the couch with a book and settled for canned soup for dinner. Locking up the house when I went to bed, my thoughts went back to Greg’s parting comment Friday. I guessed now that they’d found a drug connection, I’d lost my status as Suspect Number One, as Greg teasingly called me. At least, I hoped he was teasing.

As I climbed the stairs, Emma on my heels, I considered Craig’s murder. Killing a successful drug mule was like killing the goose for the golden egg. Craig had kept this part of his import business under wraps. The only reason anyone knew now was because he was dead. So why would he be killed after one shipment? Someone would have to be stupid to cut off the supply.

Brenda’s face floated into my mind. “What if he was trying to change for her?” I asked out loud. “He’d have to go straight if he was going to repair the marriage.”

Sometimes Emma could be a great sounding board. Tonight, the dog glared at me like my idea was the stupidest thing she’d ever heard a human say.

I slipped the chair back under the doorknob and patted her on the head. “You’re right. Craig wasn’t the changing type.”

Emma let out a quiet yip like she agreed with my statement, then went to lie on her bed, pawing at the cedar shaving–stuffed pillow making it just right before she plopped down.

Sunday morning came quickly, my sleep having been dream- and crisis-free. I moved the chair, feeling stupid for the extra security, and Emma raced me downstairs.

After letting her out and starting coffee, I sat at the table with my notebook. I wrote down the day’s chores, mostly because I knew if I didn’t, something would be forgotten. I only had two days to get the home stuff done before I went back to the grind on Tuesday.

Of course my job now was enjoyable, not like when I’d been a lawyer and had kissed the floor of my apartment every Friday night when I walked in the door. I’d loved the weekends then. Now I loved most days. I still put off most of the chores until I had a day to myself. Today, Toby had volunteered to take my shift and I’d let him.

A knock sounded at the front door. Glancing through the window, I saw Amy with bags from Diamond Lille’s in her hands. When I opened the door, she breezed through past me and toward the kitchen.

“Great, you already have coffee going,” Amy called out. I closed and locked the front door again, feeling stupid for the extra precautions. I expected Greg sometime today, and I knew he’d check before he knocked. I didn’t feel like getting a lecture on personal safety.

“Come on in,” I said to the empty living room. By the time I got to the kitchen, Amy had plates set out, orange juice and coffee poured, and an assortment of breakfast items laid out on platters in the middle of the table. “Whoa, are we expecting the guys?”

Amy’s face screwed up and she burst into tears. She plopped down into a chair and, covering her face, sobbed. I grabbed some tissues from the box on the counter and pulled a chair up next to my friend. Rubbing her back, I handed her the tissues and she loudly blew her nose, wiping her eyes with a clean tissue. Finally, she took in a shuddering breath and the tears slowed.

“Was it something I said?” I figured this had to be about Hank, but I’d let her tell me in her own time.

Amy took her juice and drank down the full glass. She squared her shoulders, then said, “Hank broke up with me.”

I tried to put a shocked look on my face instead of the smile that wanted to fight its way out. I’d hoped the couple wouldn’t be long for this world, but I’d always thought Amy would be the one to wake up and realize what she was doing to herself. I thought about my next words, finally going with, “That’s awful. What happened?”

Amy picked up a piece of toast and smeared raspberry jam on the top. “He thought I was sleeping with Justin. Can you believe that?”

Well, I could, but this was Amy’s story to tell. And she didn’t wait for an answer anyway.

“He said he didn’t trust me to even surf alone because he knew I’d slept with some of my surfing buddies. The guy totally went off on me, accusing me of the most terrible things.” She pointed the toast at me, and I saw a drop of jam fly off onto the kitchen wall. I watched it slide down the wall, wondering if jam hurt paint.

Amy poked me with the toast. “Look at me. Hank accused me of sleeping with the mayor.”

I burst out laughing. “Mayor Bird? He thinks you slept with him? What is he, crazy?”

“I know, right?” Amy fell back into her chair and sighed. “I guess he didn’t understand me or my personality. I’m not a total flirt, am I?”

Smiling, I pulled a plate closer and started loading it with eggs and bacon. “No. You aren’t a total flirt. You like people. It shows when you talk to anyone.”

Amy nodded to the bacon. “Hand that this way. After the morning I’ve had, I deserve some fat. Crunchy, pork-filled fat.”

“Hank’s an idiot.” I took a bite of the scrambled eggs and smiled. Maybe we had a chance of getting Justin as part of our group sooner than later.

A knock sounded at the door. “Busy place this morning.”

Aunt Jackie stood at the door this time. She whipped in, kissed me on the cheek, and sniffed the air. “Good, you’ve already made coffee.” She took her bags and went into the kitchen, as well.

Seeing Amy sitting there with all the food didn’t even faze my aunt. She pulled out three different coffee cakes, set them on the table, and then went to get a plate and a cup of coffee.

“You won’t believe who came by Saturday during my shift.” Jackie cut a larger-than-normal slice of the blueberry coffee cake.

Amy was lost in thought, shoveling food in, one fork at a time, so I answered. “Who?”

“Josh Thomas brought me a box of chocolates and more flowers.” Jackie sniffed. “He said he had a marvelous time and wanted to thank me.”

I put a slice of coffee cake on my plate, then handed one to Amy. She picked it up with her fingers and ate it without a word. I turned back to Jackie, who was sampling the French toast. “So, that was nice.”

“Nice?” She snorted, then stood and went to the pantry. Pulling out the maple syrup, she poured some into a cup and put the cup into the microwave. While the machine did its magic, she stared at me. “You know, he’s just going to ask again.”

“Would that be so bad?” I knew my aunt was lonely. She needed some companionship, even if it wasn’t from someone who would be the love of her life.

Jackie seemed ready to tell me all the reasons having Josh court her would be one of the signs of the end of the world when a knock sounded at the kitchen door. She went back to her chair, pouring the hot syrup over the butter she’d spread on the French toast. This time I could see Greg standing in the window, holding a bag from the Bakerstown Bakery. Bagels and cream cheese. I wouldn’t have to cook for days.

I stood and opened the door, kissing him on the cheek. Emma stood at the door, sniffing the food odors wafting out. I put my foot out to keep her from jumping into the middle of the table. “Stay.”

Greg slipped in the door and glanced at the two women sitting at my table, both focused on the food. “I didn’t realize you were throwing a party this morning.”

I took the bag of bagels and placed them on a plate. I nodded to the cabinet. “Better grab a plate and some food before it gets cold.” Although at the rate Amy and Jackie were going, having leftovers might not be in my future.

“Amy, Jackie.” Greg nodded at the women, who both grunted rather than spoke. He looked at me, wide-eyed.

“You’re the wrong sex.” I smiled as I set down his coffee. “Toby said you guys were working on the case yesterday?”

“I would have him chasing down leads this morning but apparently he’s taking your shift today?” When I shrugged, he took the coffee and kept his eyes on the women eating next to him. “Lab tests confirmed there was cocaine in the crate. Apparently the ATF had been watching Craig for a while but couldn’t get anything on him. They even interviewed Brenda last year. She was clueless.”

“Did they tell her why she was being questioned?” I thought about Brenda’s calmness when she heard about Craig’s death.

“Everything they could. They tried to get her to go undercover, but she was too afraid. They kept an eye on her for the last year, too.” Greg finished off the scrambled eggs and handed me the platter since I was standing. Jackie glared at him. He held up his plate. “I’m sorry, did you want some of those?”

She shook her head. “I do want another slice of bacon.” She pushed the rest of the bacon on her plate and handed the second empty platter to me. If I didn’t fill my plate soon, there wouldn’t even be crumbs left. My stomach growled as I sat and grabbed the leftovers.

I spread jam on a piece of toast. “Brenda didn’t even mention this and we’ve talked twice since she’s been back.”

“Would you tell a friend the feds were investigating you?” Amy asked, slowing her grazing.

“Probably not.” I poured syrup over the French toast and thought about Craig. Obviously he had ticked off more people than me. “So you think he was killed for the drugs?”

Greg shrugged. “We don’t know yet. Good news is the district attorney’s crossed your name off the suspect board.” He bit into the coffee cake. “This is good.”

“My name’s on a suspect board?”

Jackie waved away my question. “Of course it is, dear. You were the last one seen fighting with the dead man. Don’t you watch any of the murder shows? It’s always the cute, quiet ones whom you have to watch out for.”

Greg laughed. “You got that right.” He spread cream cheese on a bagel.

“Just for that, you’re taking Fifi next week when Brenda goes out of town. I was going to let you have Emma, but now you can deal with the crazy dog.” Fifi had been known to take her frustrations out by chewing. On anything. Greg’s furniture would be prime targets.

“Now, wait.” Greg put his hands up. “Who volunteered me for puppy duty? That dog is worse than Craig ever was. I can’t believe Brenda wants to keep her.”

“She needs someone to watch her, and you know Emma doesn’t get along with Fifi.” I polished off the French toast and gazed longingly at the empty blueberry coffee cake plate. Instead of trying one of the others, I stood to get the coffeepot. Filling my cup, I went around the table and warmed up the rest. Funny little ragtag group, and I loved each and every one of them. They were my family.

Amy’s phone buzzed, and she quickly grabbed the cell, checking the display. She leaned back in the chair and answered, “Hey, Justin.” She stood and walked into the living room to continue her conversation.

Greg caught my eye and smiled.

“What’s wrong with her?” Aunt Jackie asked. “I’ve never seen her without a smile and she’s totally Debbie Downer today.”

I peered around the corner, judging Amy might be outside of earshot. “Hank dumped her,” I whispered.

Greg shook his head. “The guy’s not only a jerk, he’s stupid, as well.”

“That’s not charitable. Some people are born dumb.” Jackie tapped the table with her finger. “Like the man the two of you let drive me home Friday night.”

“Here we go,” I mumbled. I knew Jackie wouldn’t let that one go.

“Now, you know I had to work. And I can’t be dragging civilians with me to crime scenes.” Greg tried to appease her.

Jackie pointed at me. “You took her.”

I raised an eyebrow. Technically, I took him. “It was my car.”

“Did you tell him about Ray being at the crate on Thursday?” Jackie asked, an evil glint in her eyes as she ratted us out.

“What?” Greg stopped eating.

I sent my aunt what I hoped was a withering look. I’d get her back somehow. “Okay, so Jackie thought it would be a good idea to check out Craig’s crate.”

“You agreed.” She pointed a slice of bacon at me.

“Anyway, she found out Brenda had a hide-a-key rock at the crate,” I continued.

“Brenda knew about the crate?” Greg sat up straighter.

“Do you want to hear the story or not?” I shushed him. “So anyway, we got there, Jackie talked us past the guard, and we unlocked the crate. We didn’t see anything, so we locked it back up and left.”

“So when does Ray come into this picture?” Greg’s voice sounded tight, and a muscle twitched in his jaw.

“Jackie took the rock,” I said.

“I forgot I had it!”

“Jackie forgot she was carrying a fake rock, so I told her I’d take it back to the crate. When I got there, Ray and this other guy were looking for the rock.”

“Tell me you weren’t seen.” Now Greg had his eyes closed.

“I didn’t even get close.” I stood and went to the cabinet and pulled out the rock from a drawer. “So I still have this.”

Greg took the rock and stood. “I’ll be right back.” He got on his phone and I heard him call Tim to come pick up the rock.

Jackie watched Greg leave the house and shrugged. “If we didn’t live out here in the boonies, we could have taken a taxi.”

“We live in a tourist town, not out in the boonies. Besides, you got home safe and sound,” I challenged. “You didn’t need to tell Greg about our trip.”

“I think you needed to tell him, but apparently you didn’t. So sue me.” Jackie glared at me. I started to respond, but Greg had returned to the kitchen.

“Tim will run the rock for fingerprints. I take it the two of you will show up?” He looked at Jackie, then at me.

“I kind of wiped it off, so maybe.” I thought about the days the rock had stayed in my purse. “Mine will be on the rock.”

“I still don’t understand why you let a possible criminal drive me home,” Jackie jumped into the conversation.

He cleared his throat. “His background check came back clean. If I had thought you’d be in danger, I wouldn’t have let him drive you home.”

Jackie preened. “You ran a background check before the date?”

“Of course. You’re a valued member of the community and part of Jill’s family. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” Greg smiled killer smile number fifty-eight and my aunt was lost.

She grabbed her purse and excused herself to powder her nose.