by Laina Turner
“Stop,” Sally said to me playfully. “I just like to know things.” She turned to Macie. “Mr. Tobias has been changing his will on a monthly basis for something like twenty years. Pete always foists it off on whomever he can. I saw Mr. Tobias at the diner when I stopped for pastries and heard him say he was heading to the firm to, and I quote, ‘cut out those good-for-nothing sons of his once and for all.’ So it was all deductive reasoning.”
“Still, that’s pretty good. Yeah, Pete warned me about him, and he’s harmless. Just an ole blowhard. I feel bad for his kids.”
“I think they’re used to it by now,” Sally said, and then turned to me. “You know, speaking of men in this town, Don and Harvey did have that falling out years ago.”
“That was what, fifteen years ago? Water under the bridge by now, and they’d been doing their old men coffee club for years together since then.”
“Maybe Don’s been harboring a grudge all this time?” said Cora.
“That’s an awfully long time to wait. I don’t know. Something about the whole deal just doesn’t seem right,” I said. “I just don’t know what it is. Well, besides the fact Doris seems nuts.”
“Then maybe we just ask Don ourselves?” Macie suggested. “You know, casually. See what his reaction is.”
We all looked at each other.
“Hmm. Maybe we should,” I said.
Chapter 22
“Are you sure this is going to work?” I asked Macie as we sat in her car, parked on the street across from Cora’s house.
“Nothing is one hundred percent, but this guy has been a creature of habit, and I think we have a good chance here.”
Macie’s research into Cora’s stalker showed a clear pattern. With the other two women he stalked, he followed the same routine. Macie said while there were two documented cases, there were probably many more who never reported it. His dropping off flowers and candy and cards had become more and more frequent, until it was a daily, and then several times a day, occurrence. For the last three days he’d dropped off something to Cora’s house, so Macie was pretty sure he would be stopping by today. It was just a matter of when. Sally and Cora were at the shop showing Rachel the ropes, while we staked out Cora’s house. We assumed, of course, that he would show up when Cora wasn’t home, as was his pattern.
“Have you done this before?” I asked her. “You know, watched for a stalker.”
“Once, unfortunately. A girlfriend of mine in law school was being stalked. Much like this situation, the police couldn’t do anything. She was scared to go home because he would either be waiting for her or had left notes or presents. We thought if we confronted him, he might leave her alone.”
“Did he?”
Macie hesitated. “He left her alone, but didn’t stop his stalking tendencies toward women. We found out about a year later that he soon fixated on another female law student, who wasn’t so lucky.”
Alarm must have shown on my face because she continued.
“These kinds of situations are often unpredictable and hard to stop. Once someone shows they have stalker tendencies, they are always going to be that way. I’m sure there is someone out there who has changed his ways, but I haven’t met him.”
“So what, we scare him away from Cora, and he just goes and does this to someone else? What will it take to ever stop him?”
“In this situation, we have a bit of an advantage. He has two documented restraining orders for this behavior, and I’m an attorney, which can be scary to someone who has already been in trouble with the law. It’s a wonderful power I didn’t realize I would have when I made this career decision. Definitely a perk. I am going to confront him, while you videotape, and tell him what will happen to him if he bothers Cora or anyone else again.”
“Is that legal?” I asked.
“It’s not illegal.” Macie smiled.
“Do you think that will stop him?”
“Nothing’s for sure, but it’s worth a try.”
We spent the next two hours talking and staring out the window. If this was a taste of what being a private eye was like, no, thank you. It was boring with a capital B. Two of Cora’s neighbors stopped to ask what we were doing, and we filled them in. Luckily, they knew me, or they might have called and reported us for stalking. They both promised to watch for the guy. It was nice to live in a community where people still looked out for one another.
“I need to pee. I’m going to run over to Marie’s house real quick,” I said to Macie. Marie was one of the neighbors who had stopped to see what we were doing. She had told us to stop by if we needed anything, like a bathroom, during our stakeout.
“Okay.”
I had one foot out the door when Macie put a hand on my arm.
“Wait a minute. I think he might be here.”
We watched as a car slowed to a crawl in front of Cora’s house and parked just past it, in front of the neighbors’ house.
“Do you recognize that guy?” Macie asked.
“Not anyone I know. But he has the blond hair and the slight build Cora described.”
Macie nodded. “Let’s give it just a minute and see what happens.”
The man got out of the car and looked around, then opened the back door on the driver’s side and reached in, pulling out flowers and a small box.
“That’s got to be him,” I said, and Macie agreed. It would have to be one hell of a coincidence for this to not be the right person.
“Showtime,” she said, opening the car door.
We walked purposefully up behind the guy as he made his way to Cora’s door. It wasn’t until he bent to set the flowers and the box on her front step that he noticed us behind him. I’d been taping as we walked up to make sure I caught what he was doing—and to get a full view of the look of surprise on his face I was sure he’d have when we, or rather Macie, confronted him.
“Hey, what are you doing?” he demanded, as if he thought he had a right to be here and we didn’t. Macie had told me to let her do the talking, and I’d agreed. She knew much more about how to handle this situation than I did.
“I think we should be the ones asking those questions, Jeff.”
I could tell by his reaction that he hadn’t expected for Macie to know his name, and I could see that threw him off balance. The look on his face showed his mind was racing to figure out how we knew who he was.
“How do you know my name?” he asked suspiciously.
“We know all about you. Your stalking women. The restraining orders. Nothing is a secret anymore,” Macie said in a cool, strong voice.
I was quite impressed, and Jeff was definitely caught off guard.
“Those restraining orders were bogus. Those ladies just didn’t realize how much I loved them. If they would have just given me a chance . . .” His voice took on a whine, which made him seem much less threatening.
“Jeff, you need to leave Cora alone. In fact, you need to leave all women alone. See my friend here? She is videotaping this entire exchange.”
The realization he might have said too much dawned on him, and I could tell he was searching for the right thing to say next. Macie didn’t give him a chance.
“You will stay away from Cora and all other women. This tape will be given to the authorities as soon as we leave here, and will be used against you in its entirety if you are caught harassing women in any way. I’m an attorney, and I understand the law a little better than you. Do you understand me, Jeff?” Macie said in what had to be her best stern lawyer voice.
Jeff swallowed and nodded, and started backing away from us.
“Don’t come back here again,” Macie warned.
I continued taping until he reached his car and drove off. I then shut off the camera and turned toward Macie.
“Impressive. You were quite scary.”
“Well, thank you,” she said, taking a short curtsy.
“But tell me, would what he said really be considered evidence?”
Macie shoo
k her head and smiled. “Not at all, but he doesn’t know that, and it’s the best we can do considering the circumstances. I do want to turn it over to the police, but it won't amount to anything.”
I thought about that for a second. “Considering the laws, I guess it’s just good we were able to do something.”
“Exactly. Now, how about we head back to town and grab a celebratory coffee and cupcake?”
“Perfect idea. We can stop at Avery’s place, CupCakes, where we order our selection from. Give you a chance to meet her.”
“That would be great.”
Chapter 23
“Are you sure this is smart? You know crazy people are unpredictable,” Sally said to me after I told the girls my plan.
“I will be here in a room full of people, and trust me, I won’t be eating anything on the table,” I joked. I’d asked Dawn to meet me, telling her I knew she had killed Harvey, and we needed to discuss what I wanted from her in order to keep quiet about it. Of course, I wasn’t sure she had killed Harvey. It was just a hunch. But it was enough for her to meet me at the shop, further confirming my suspicions she had something to do with Harvey’s murder. Maybe she helped Don. Though I didn’t think he was involved. I expected her in a couple minutes.
“I wish you would let us be part of the conversation,” Sally grumbled.
“I don’t think that would be conducive to getting her to admit she’s a murderer, or is it murderess? She will be here any minute.” This plan had been last-minute, and so I hadn’t filled them in on what I thought. “In fact, here she comes through the door. Now, go bring us some cupcakes and coffee.” I shoved Sally away.
A few minutes later, Sally returned with two steaming mugs of coffee and two red velvet cupcakes. I thought it only fitting. Since it was the flavor of cupcake that killed Harvey.
“I hope this is okay,” I said to her sweetly. “No reason we can’t enjoy our conversation with some treats.”
She looked at me suspiciously.
“It’s okay. Please, eat. They aren’t poisonous. I promise,” I said sweetly.
She again looked at me. Which gave me more indication she was guilty.
“What did you want to talk to me about that’s so important, Trixie?” she said, taking a sip of coffee but ignoring the cupcake.
“I thought you might want a chance to revise your story? Before I go to the police,” I said, taking a bite of my cupcake, more to make a point than because I was hungry. Though, truth be told, I never had to be hungry to eat a cupcake.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Don didn’t kill Harvey. You did.”
She made a big show of looking shocked, and then offended. “Well, I—”
“Cut the act, Dawn. I know it wasn’t Don,” I bluffed.
She paused for a moment. I could see she was trying to think of what would be the best thing to say.
“Just admit it. You’ll feel better once you get it off your chest,” I said soothingly.
A few long and uncomfortable minutes went by with her silent and me just sipping my coffee. It was hard, but I thought if I waited long enough she might start talking, which she finally did about five minutes later.
“I had no choice, you see,” was how she started out. “I had no choice, because he was going to tell Don what I did, and everything would have been ruined.” Her voice rose on the last few words.
“What makes you think it would have ruined everything? Maybe you could have worked it out?” I tried to be vague enough that she would think I knew what she was talking about, so she would tell me what she was talking about.
She shook her head. “No. Don would have blown a gasket if he’d found out. Then he would have pulled his endorsement, and the scandal would have prevented me from getting other investors.”
I racked my brain, trying to figure out what in the heck she was talking about, when it finally dawned on me. She must’ve been talking about the charity she ran called Helping Hands, a non-profit organization that helped the elderly and shut-ins.
“He would have pulled his endorsements from Helping Hands?” I questioned.
“Yes, and that would have scared everyone away, and I would have been ruined.”
Again, trying to draw her out, I said, “Maybe he wouldn’t have been as mad as you think?”
She just looked at me. “You don’t know Don. He would have pulled his support the minute he found out I had borrowed that money. He is very righteous. As if he’d never done anything wrong before in his life.”
“You embezzled from Helping Hands?” I asked a little loudly, as I was surprised.
“I just borrowed a few bucks. It was nothing, really. I planned on paying it back. I just never had the chance.”
“And Harvey was going to tell Don?”
“I made the stupid mistake of trusting him when we were dating, and I’d mentioned it. He didn’t think it was a big deal, that’s why I couldn’t believe he was going to tell Don. Miserable old goat.”
“Why was Harvey going to tell Don when he hadn’t turned you into the police?”
“Because Don was his friend. He didn’t care what I’d done, but he didn’t want Don to lose his investment.”
When she had been talking, I’d given Sally our prearranged signal to call the police. I saw them coming through the front door. The police walked up to our table, and Dawn looked up at them, and then at me.
“You tricked me!” she exclaimed, seeming shocked when they started to read her rights to her.
I just looked at her and let the police do their thing. It was finally over.
Chapter 24
“What made you suspect Dawn?” Sally asked, as Clive and his deputies walked her out in handcuffs.
“The whole Don killing Harvey thing didn’t make sense, but there was limited access to that cupcake. The only person at that table besides Harvey and his two friends was me when I dropped it off. Until I remembered Dawn stopping to give something to Don as I was walking away from the table. I heard her ask Harvey if she could have a tiny bite of frosting, claiming it was her favorite. She must have palmed a strychnine tablet and stuck it in the frosting when she took a bite. Those cupcakes have chocolate chunks sprinkled on them, so he wouldn’t have noticed if he bit into something. I’m sure the overwhelming sweetness of the cupcake masked any taste the tablet might have had.”
“So, she killed Harvey so he couldn’t tell Don she was embezzling from the very company she had persuaded him to invest in?” Sally said.
“That’s what it sounds like,” I replied.
“Who would have thought such a nice lady would embezzle and murder?” said Cora.
“It just goes to show, you don’t know what a person might be capable of.”
“What a perfect day for a beautiful wedding,” I said to Sally, as we stood next to the dessert table at Cora and Jonathan’s reception, trying to decide what we wanted.
“It sure is,” Sally said. “Even being divorced and knowing people don’t always get the happy ending they want, I still get caught up in the ceremony and the possibilities of what could be.”
“Me too. Weddings never stop being beautiful. And if anyone can make it, these two can.”
The End
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Download the next in the Read Wine Bookstore Cozy series: Wine & Revenge.
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If you liked this story you can read a Presley Thurman cozy mystery Promotions & Poisons.
Copyright © 2019 by Laina Turner
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
About the Author
A little about me…
As a child, I though
t I would either be a truck driver (thanks to Jerry Reed in Smokey and the Bandit) or work at Taco Bell (my favorite restaurant as a child). Though I ended up going to college for business. Probably a better choice. The last place I need to work is somewhere I can get a discount on tacos.
I live by the motto, “don’t be a one-trick pony” and am proud of my vast experiences in life from barrel racing to being on the dance team for a semi-pro basketball team to being a mom of 2 amazing kids,
Taking the plunge to write books (cozy mysteries and chick lit) that I actually let people read in 2010, I have worked my way up to being a real author, having 5 fans (maybe 6 now). And I tell my family and friends that no one is safe from their escapades slipping into my books.
You can also find me at www.lainaturner.com or on social media.
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