Murder on Wheels (9 page)

Walking home, I still didn't see a lot of traffic on the road or inside the businesses. Diamond Lille's had a weekday lunch crowd instead of the standing room only she typically got during the tourist season. I wondered if she was cutting back on serving water to her customers like we were.

My aunt had come back from her water conservation meeting convinced the no water station rule was on target. I'd given in even though I knew it caused more work for Toby and Sasha when they worked the afternoon shift and most of our teens didn't order food or drinks, but instead filled up on the free water. As long as they weren't causing trouble in the shop and occasionally bought a book or a soda, I didn't mind the shop being the teen afterschool hangout. It made us look busy, which drove in walk-in traffic. Lille had a one drink per person minimum if they were going to use a table for a study group or just get together. I hated that they would have to wait in line now, just for water, but I guess it was for the common good.

At least I hadn't gone all-out with landscaping last year. I peered at Esmeralda's lush green lawn and wondered how long it would be before it turned as brown as my dormant grass appeared. Maggie, her black cat, meowed at me from the other side of the picket fence as I passed. I reached through the small opening between slats and petted her soft black fur. Maggie and I had a history. She liked to cross the road and sleep on my lap when I sat on the porch. And I liked listening to her purr. Emma even liked the cat. I guess I was bilingual in the animal world. I spoke both cat and dog.

I finished up Maggie's minute, rubbing the tiny white spot on her neck. “Now, you stay home. The road's too busy on weekends for you to be crossing on your own.”

Maggie meowed again, then walked back to the porch and jumped onto the rattan chair where Esmeralda sat at nights watching the traffic. Or maybe watching my house. I couldn't be totally sure. Today it appeared she was inside doing a reading for a customer, as there was a powder-blue BMW in her driveway. I guess even the rich and famous needed direction from the great beyond.

When I opened my front door, the landline was ringing. I ran to catch it, only to hear the
click
on the other end as the caller disconnected. I put my purse on the table and opened the back door to let in Emma. I walked back to the front to close and lock that door, when my cell went off in my purse. I quickly locked the door and ran back into the kitchen.

“Yes,” I panted into the phone.

There was a pause on the other side of the phone, and I thought maybe I'd missed this call as well. Finally, I heard my aunt's voice. “Where are you?”

I sank into a kitchen chair and kicked off my shoes. “At home, why?”

“Then why do you sound out of breath like you've been running on the beach?” She didn't wait for an answer. “Tell me what you told Josh last night.”

“I didn't tell him anything. He scared the crap out of me. Does he always lock the door behind him when he comes in?” I walked over to the fridge and got the iced tea. I poured a glass and drank about half while I waited for her answer.

“Don't change the subject. I want to know what you told him about where I was.” If I'd thought Aunt Jackie had been grumpy earlier, this was all-out war. Emma left her spot at the door and went to lie on her outside bed, not wanting to get in the middle of a fight.

I had to think for a minute. What excuse had I used? “I think I said you were tired and had gone to bed early.”

“No wonder.” She paused, then jumped back into the conversation. “Why didn't you say I'd gone to town or met an old friend?”

“Sorry, next time you ask me to keep a secret, give me something to say.” I returned to the table and leafed through an old magazine. “Besides, you're lucky I didn't blab everything I knew. The guy scared the crap out of me. You could have warned me.”

She sighed. “You're probably right. I should have left an alibi. I just didn't want Josh to feel bad if he found out. Now I have an expensive flower delivery on my table and a get well soon card from the man. I feel like a total heel.”

“Did you have fun with Harrold?” I thought a change of subject was appropriate. Aunt Jackie could beat herself up about the lie on her own time. I wanted gossip.

“Harrold is a very interesting man. Did you know he traveled through Europe during summers while he was in college? You can't believe the places he's been. He makes me look like a homebody.” Her voice raised a few notches, excited about the topic.

“I didn't know that. You two must have a lot in common.” I didn't push. I liked Josh; I just didn't see him as relationship material for my aunt. Harrold, on the other hand, he seemed more like Uncle Ted.

“I thought I was all past this dating angst. I'm too old to be worried about anyone's feelings but my own.” I could hear her thrumming her fingers on the tabletop.

“Are you telling me you said yes to a second date?” I held my breath and crossed my fingers.

“Do you think I'm stupid? Of course I said yes. I just need to tell Josh I'm seeing someone else. I'm sure he'll understand.”

I glanced at the clock. I needed to get changed and head down to the beach for the memorial. “Hey, I've got to go. Come by tomorrow if you want to talk. With Greg working the case, I'm sure I'll be alone most of the day.”

“I've already got plans for the day, but we'll catch up.” She hung up the phone.

I clicked off my own phone and looked at Emma. “Your Aunt Jackie is smitten.”

Emma woofed at me.

I took that as a “good for her” and ran upstairs to get showered and changed into a pair of nice pants and a dressy shirt. I wore flats that I hoped would keep the sand out of my shoes, but I wouldn't have bet the farm on the fact.

As I went out the front door, I texted Amy to see where she was. The return message told me that she and Justin were already at the parking lot but would wait by the stairs for me to arrive. I hurried toward the highway and the beach. I could see the cars on the highway lining up to turn into the small parking lot and then coming out the other side to drive to the next lot a few miles down. Both had access to the beach where Kacey's memorial would be held.

And both were access to the place where she was murdered. I paused, looking down the road, and wondered whether her killer had waited there for her to arrive.

Of course, I still didn't know how Kacey had died, so my mental gymnastics over the problem were only speculation.

But I still couldn't take my eyes off the other parking lot, shimmering in the distance.

W
hen I finally arrived, Justin and Amy were right where they'd said they'd be, heads bent looking at something on his phone. I wondered who else had texted them and thought maybe I'd be seeing Greg at the memorial. It made sense in a television detective sort of way. The killer always showed his cards when the memorials occurred. He was probably here, watching and gloating about his perfect kill.

When I stopped in front of them, Justin looked up like he didn't even remember my name. “Oh hi, Jill.” He held out his phone. “Check out this geo-app Taylor just hooked me up with. You don't even need a handheld GPS to play the game now. The app is available on any smartphone platform.”

“Nice to know.” I looked at Amy. “Is he for real?”

“He's just excited about his new hobby,” Amy whispered in my ear. “Be glad you don't hang out with him. I'm going a little bit crazy, and if I hear what a wizard Taylor is one more time . . .” She hugged me. “Well, let's just say Greg will have one more murder to solve.”

“Our secret.” I hugged her back, then stepped around her to look at the crowd. “Wow, I didn't realize there were so many club members. I had a couple of women stop in this morning for a bite, but this is amazing.”

“Kacey seemed to be well-liked,” Amy agreed, standing close to me by the wooden railing.

“Well-loved, I believe is the term.” Greg appeared on the other side of me. “Glad you decided to come to this. I thought it might be weeks before I saw you again.”

“Kacey was a nice person. Austin, on the other hand, can rot for what he did to Sadie.” I scanned the crowd. “Speaking of, I don't see him down there, do you?”

Greg shook his head. “Of course, I was pretty hard on him at the station this morning. Maybe he decided he didn't want to answer any more questions about Kacey's death.”

“You questioned him? Like a suspect?” I turned toward Greg, wanting to hear more.

Greg put his arm around me and led me down the stairs. “More like a grieving widower. The guy just lost his wife. If I need to, I'll play hardball next week. Give him some time to pull it together. He looks like he was the one who died.”

I leaned into Greg's body as we walked across the sand to where a small platform and microphone had been set up. “You have a good heart, you know that, right?”

“Baby, I just know what a mess I'd be if I lost you.” Greg kissed the side of my head, and I melted into him.

“You know just what to say.” I nodded to a few people from South Cove who'd also been invited by someone. Bill and Mary Sullivan were there, along with Aunt Jackie and Mary. Next to my aunt was Harrold. And next to Harrold, was Josh. “Uh-oh. That doesn't look good.”

Greg and I watched as Josh tried to maneuver his way between Harrold and Jackie. Finally he gave up and with the grace of an elephant, lumbered over to the last row of chairs and lowered himself onto an aisle seat. He glared in the direction of Jackie and Harrold, and when he caught me watching him, he glared at me.

“How is this my fault?” I muttered. Greg looked over at me and I shook my head. “Don't ask.” We headed to the chairs and sat on the other side of the aisle, in the same row as Josh. At least this way, he couldn't throw dagger eyes at me during the entire ceremony.

“Kacey had a lot of friends.” Greg scanned the crowd. “I don't know a lot of people here. A few I saw the day Justin took us geo-surfing, and of course, the people from South Cove.”

“Geocaching, not surfing.” I put my hand on his leg and he put his arm around me. “She seemed really involved in this club. I think Justin has caught the bug, too. He's all about the game and his new toys.”

“Great. Does this mean we'll have to do another double date tracking down a buried penny? Or maybe we'll get a shiny rock. If he's that into trinkets, I could go to the dime store in Bakerstown and buy him a bag full.”

“Bakerstown doesn't have a dime store. In fact, there's none in the entire United States.” I watched people gather around the front of the area. It appeared that we'd be starting in a few minutes.

“Not true. Wall Drug Store in South Dakota is a classic dime store. You can find anything in that place.” Greg grinned. “And in Nashville, there are a couple of shops off the main drag with anything and everything, including some voodoo charms and trinkets. You just need to look for the out-of-the-way shops.”

“Like in South Cove.” I leaned my head into his chest. “We're all about the original and unique.”

“I'd love to see a Goonies shop open. It could carry magic tricks, gag gifts, and stuff any twelve-year-old boy or adult male would love.” He kissed the top of my head. “Maybe I've found my calling for when I retire.”

“That would be a pretty narrow customer base.” I drew a heart on his jeans with my fingernail.

“Are you kidding? Men are fifty percent of the population. They may act grown-up in the business world, but inside every guy is a kid waiting to burst out.” Greg nodded to the front. “So there's Taylor, but who's the redheaded woman standing next to him?”

“Not sure, but she and that blonde were in my shop today. The blonde's Gloria something.” I tried to remember the rest of the name on the credit card but I couldn't. The overwhelming smell of the tons of lilies all around the chairs and aisle had my head pounding.

“Gloria March,” Greg filled in. “I talked to her a few days ago about the club's finances. I thought she looked familiar.”

I pointed to another woman running down the aisle. “And that's Ginny. She works with Jen at Linens and Loots. She really loves the club, too.”

“I guess some people enjoy their hobbies more than their jobs.” He looked at me. “Like you and investigating.”

“I'm not investigating anything,” I protested.

Greg turned my head toward his so he could see my face.

“Really, I'm not,” I pleaded with him, conscious of the people starting to sit around us. I suspected we only had one or two minutes left before Taylor would start the memorial.

“Then how do you know the names of some of the suspects?” Greg raised his eyebrows to emphasize the point.

“It's a small town. I can't help it that when I go shopping I meet new people. Or when people come into the shop, I check the name on the credit card before I hand back the plastic so I can use their name in closing.”

“You do that? I'm always taken aback when someone I don't know calls me by my name. I'd rather just go by ‘sir' or ‘kid' or even ‘dude'.” Greg pointed to the front. “Looks like the service is about to begin.”

Taylor tapped on the microphone. “Folks, will you please take your seats? There's plenty of room up here in the front. We won't bite, I promise.”

The old joke got a few chuckles, but as I watched, all the seats were filled and the rest of the people stood in a semicircle around the chairs. When Taylor was certain everyone had settled, he pointed to the guy on the portable keyboard, and he started to play “Memories.” I heard people sniff around me. Me, I never loved the song, but it wasn't my memorial, so I suffered through.

After the music had stopped, Taylor returned to the podium. “That was Kacey's favorite song. I can't tell you how many times we'd run the food booth at our events and she'd be humming that tune. For hours. It drove me crazy at times. Now I just wished I could hear her humming.”

He paused, looking at the notes in front of him. “Kacey Elizabeth Pope Austin was born in Nampa, Idaho, on . . .”

As I listened to Taylor read the obituary that had been published in the
Examiner
this week, I thought about how full of life the woman had been. Even the day I'd first met her at the food booth for the club, she had exuded energy. If Dustin Austin had a good side, it had been the women in his life. Both Sadie and Kacey were good people. Austin, not so much. As if my thoughts of him had made him materialize, the grieving widower walked slowly up the aisle to a seat at the front.

“Way to make an entrance,” I muttered to Amy, who now sat on my left side. She slapped my arm. I guess she was still in the poor Austin camp.

After a few more speakers talked about how much Kacey would be missed, the memorial seemed about to end with another song. But then Taylor stood, taking the microphone from the singer. “One more thing. There's a collection jar on your way out. The group is setting up a Kacey Austin Memorial fund to help with club costs. Your donations in her name would be much appreciated by the board.” He handed the microphone back to the woman who'd been ready to sing and she stared at him, obviously uncomfortable with his blatant fund-raising plea in the middle of what should have been about Kacey and not him or the club. This time it was Amy's turn to be outraged.

“That was totally tacky.” Amy didn't whisper and her voice carried over several rows of chairs, causing people to turn to see who had spoken. Justin took her hand and shushed her.

We were the first row released by the ushers, who all wore T-shirts announcing them as part of the Coastal Geocache Club. As we walked past the collection jar, I was surprised to see a line of people using the table to write checks and donate. We just kept walking. When we reached the parking lot, Justin turned on Amy.

“Look, I know you don't like Taylor, but wasn't that a little out of line? You embarrassed all of us.” He looked over to me and Greg for support.

I shrugged. “I was thinking the same thing. I guess I just have a better filter.”

Greg burst out laughing. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and shook his head. “You have
no
filter. Amy just beat you to blurting out the obvious this time.” He looked at Justin. “Seriously, dude, you have to admit, the call for money was a bit crass.”

Justin squirmed uncomfortably. He was clearly outnumbered, but he didn't want to go back on his original support of Taylor. Finally, he rolled his shoulders. “I guess you're right. But Amy shouldn't have said it out loud.”

Greg slapped him on the back, and the boys started walking back to town. “Get used to it. We're dating strong, independent women who have a voice and like to use it.” He paused, then added, “A lot.”

I called after the retreating men, “I heard that.” I put my arm in Amy's and we walked after them in silence for a bit.

Amy broke the silence first. “I'm a little worried about Justin. He's so gung ho about this geo stuff and Taylor. Anything that man says, Justin does—or at least repeats.”

I was a little concerned, too, but I didn't want Amy to worry. “You know men. They jump in feet first, then check the level of the water. Justin's smart. He'll figure this out sooner than later. You just have to be patient.”

“You're probably right.” Amy paused on the sidewalk, looking at Esmeralda's house. “Did you get the letter about the watering ban?”

I nodded. “It was in my mail this morning.” I knew she was calculating how many gallons of water it took to keep my neighbor's house green. “Esmeralda probably hasn't even opened her mail yet. She's been doing readings.”

“If she was that good of a fortune-teller, she would have known this was coming.” Amy pursed her lips. “I'll let this slide for now, but let me know if you see her watering this week.”

“No,” I said.

Amy turned around and stared at me along with Justin and Greg. “What did you say?”

I didn't back down. “I said no. I decided I won't be a snitch on my neighbors.” With that, I turned and went directly to my front door. When I reached the porch, I waved at the trio and called out, “Have a nice day.” Then I disappeared into my house.

I kept myself busy cleaning the house and the backyard, trying not to think about the hurt look on Amy's face when I told her no.

I got a text from Amy about two hours later canceling our standing Sunday morning breakfast. Yep, she was steamed. I sighed and set down my phone. Water conservation was important, and I was acting like a jerk. I would take her cookies on Tuesday after my shift to say I was sorry. Bored with cleaning, I called Darla, hoping to reach her before the Saturday night rush on the winery.

“South Cove Winery, can I help you?” Darla answered on the first ring.

Maybe I could talk her into going for a walk with me, or maybe even dinner. The winery had to have slow days, especially in February. Coffee, Books, and More was feeling the winter blahs. “Hey, Darla, it's Jill. You got time for a quick bite?”

“You're kidding, right? The winery has been slammed since three. I guess we're getting the group from Kacey's memorial. We're seating people outside with the heaters running full-blast. Glad it's a warm day.” Darla paused and I heard her telling a waiter to tie his shoe before he went flying. “Maybe we can do breakfast tomorrow? I'd love to pick your brain about this Kacey thing. What's Greg say?”

“Not much,” I admitted. “But yeah, let's do breakfast. How about nine at Lille's?”

I heard a tray crash in the background. “Perfect,” Darla responded. “Sorry, it's getting crazy here, I've really got to go. See you tomorrow.”

I hung up the phone and supposed Diamond Lille's would be packed for dinner, too. Besides, I didn't feel like eating alone. I texted Greg to see if he'd eaten.

When the text came back that the gang had been fed a few minutes ago since they were all working overtime on the investigation, I slumped back into the couch. Emma stared at me. “That's it, girl. I've made my only friend mad and my boyfriend is too busy to eat with me.”