Murder in March

by Camilla Chafer

  "Do what makes you happy and keeps you financially solvent," said Mom. "Whatever you decide, I know you'll do the right thing. You always have. It's time you started living a little anyway."

  "I do live."

  "Not in the way you want. You have all those travel magazines and that great, big map on your office wall. You need to start putting the pins in the map! And maybe find someone nice to travel with you. Your brother is going traveling. You could go together!"

  “With RJ? I don’t think we’ll make good traveling companions.” I thought about Mark and sighed. Fat chance that was going to happen!

  "I have to go," I said, pushing onto my feet. "Let's catch up soon."

  "You know where I am. Come for dinner next week. Tom wants to experiment with some Thai recipes and I promised him guinea pigs."

  "Count me in." My stepdad was a terrific cook and his experiments usually veered to the gourmet end of the scale. I hugged my mother, kissed her on the cheek, and waved goodbye before I walked away along the path. By the time I reached the sidewalk, my mind was back on Dina Preston. Somehow, I had to engineer a meeting but I didn't want to go back to the hotel to do it. How could I get her to talk?

  Chapter Seventeen

  I knew today was Dina's day off because Janey had mentioned it earlier, but I wasn't sure how the Maple Tree Hotel's manager would spend that time. Was she a homebody who liked decorating and tidying up? Or did she venture off to the library or browse the boutiques and antique stores on and around Main Street? I could spend hours scouring town looking for her or I could call one person who might know. I paused on the corner of my mom's street, pulled out my cellphone and dialed Janey.

  "Hi!" she said breathlessly. Someone tooted a party horn and I heard a chorus of cheers.

  "I'm sorry to interrupt the party," I told her. "I was wondering if you knew where I could find Dina? You mentioned today was her day off."

  "Is it important?"

  "Kind of. I'd rather not discuss it but I'd really like to find Dina as soon as I can."

  "You could try the park. She takes boot camp once a week. One of those army training things. Running, jumping, and getting shouted at. Not my idea of the best way to spend time off!"

  I laughed and agreed with her, then thanked her.

  "Don't say it came from me," warned Janey. "Obviously, I'd never give out another employee's address but after all, the park is a public place."

  "I won't mention it at all," I promised as another cheer sounded. "Enjoy the party!"

  The park was only a few blocks from my mother's house and it wouldn't take me long to walk there. As an added bonus, all the fresh air and exercise would do me good, if only to clear my head. I continued around the corner and stepped up the pace, power walking my way there. A few minutes later, I walked through the big, scrolled ironwork gates with the park's name hanging across the bridge. It was an elegant entrance that had been there since the park was officially designated as public land. Since the park was accessed on all sides, the gates were rarely shut.

  Like Main Street, the park was a big hub of activity, hosting numerous festivities throughout the year. During Easter, families aired out their picnic rugs for the first official event of the year. Chocolate eggs wrapped in shiny paper were carefully hidden around the park for young children to find; and when their little baskets were filled, everyone would assemble to hear the town band play a medley of popular songs in the bandstand. On July fourth, the fireworks were the main event after a day-long town party with food stalls dotting the park’s perimeter. In August, the park hosted the town’s bring 'n' share picnic where everyone pitched in, filling their plates as often as necessary, and staying out late into the night. Other special kinds of entertainment were held there too, including the Amateur Drama Society's series of theater shows, as well as concerts and festivals that attracted plenty of tourists who were eagerly prepared to open their wallets and generously contribute to the town's economy. I always intended to go to a lot more of the affairs than I actually managed to do. Another thing that needed to change!

  I headed down the main path, staying alert for any army noises or troupes of people who appeared to be having a terrible time. I found them easily. A pile of bags were thrown together just off the path in the western quarter of the park. A mixed group of ten men and women ran up and down the prescribed lengths while a huge man with thighs like tree trunks shouted at them. In addition to urging them to go faster, he occasionally interspersed his orders with motivational gems such as, "No pain, no gain!" and "you're not crying; your fat is crying!"

  I took a seat on a nearby bench and waited for the right moment to catch Dina's attention, whom I spotted in the middle of the group. She was wearing purple tights, a black t-shirt and a fiercely determined expression. I watched her run four more lengths before they were ordered to "Stop and take five!" Dina jogged over to the pile of bags and jackets and pulled a water bottle out, tipping her chin upwards to suck in a mouthful. When she stopped drinking, she looked around and saw me. I raised my hand and waved, smiling at her. She waved back and jogged over.

  "Hi, Ava! What are you doing here? Are you thinking about joining?"

  "Oh, I doubt it but it's awfully interesting to watch."

  "I know it doesn't look like fun but it's more challenging than the gym and it keeps me fit too." She gasped for a few moments, still catching her breath.

  "Is it always like this? I mean, all that running?" I glanced over at the other participants, now resting on the ground and some were drinking water.

  "No, we do bodyweight exercises too, you know, push-ups and crunches, and we work with ropes and kettlebells for strength training as well as cardio. Are you sure I can't get you a brochure? I know Dan always carries some extras and he'll give you your first training session for free."

  "I'll take a brochure but I'm definitely not the running and jumping type."

  "No problem. It's not for everyone. I can't get my daughter to come along either," Dina said, shaking her head. "How are you holding up after the arrest? It must be very upsetting."

  "It is, but I'm sure Detective Logan is staying on top of things."

  "Oh?"

  "I mean, the truth will come out one way or the other." I wasn't sure what else to say without breaking Detective Logan's confidence so I added, "I hope the guests aren't giving you too hard a time?"

  "Fortunately, most of the guests have already checked out and the rest are due to leave in the next couple of days. By the time all the rooms change over, no one will know anything like this ever happened. It's sad, but true."

  "Do you think I can pick up Esther's things now?"

  "Oh, I thought you knew!"

  "Knew what?"

  "Detective Logan cleared the room out. We shipped everything to her office this morning."

  I blinked in surprise. I never expected that or how swiftly Dina dealt with it. If I'd actually gone to the police station, like I planned, I probably would have known already.

  "I didn't want her family to come all the way down here just to collect her things. I'm sure it would have been too painful for them," explained Dina. She took another glug of water before fastening the lid tightly.

  "That's thoughtful of you." I paused, wondering how to broach the topic of the stairwell. "I was thinking," I started, "about Esther's behavior while she was a guest at the Maple Tree. I feel bad now for recommending your hotel after how she treated everyone. I heard some gossip that she shouted at someone in the employee stairwell shortly before she died. I'd like to personally apologize to that person. It could have been a guest. Or maybe another employee. I know your office is close to there so you might have heard the commotion. Do you have any idea who it was?"

  "Hmm, let's see, when was that?"

  "Around five o’clock that same day."

  "I was probably in my office but I don't seem to recall... No. Wait. I do remember some raised voices. Mrs. Drummond's might have been one of them."

 
"Do you know who the other voice belonged to? An employee perhaps?"

  "No." Dina shook her head. "I'm sure it was a man’s though. He must have been one of the guests because his voice wasn't a familiar one."

  "Do you know what they were arguing about?"

  "I don't recall, but I heard Mrs. Drummond call him a loser."

  "Dina!" the huge man called out as she waved.

  "I have to go now," she told me. "I'll tell Detective Logan what I overheard now that you've prompted my memory. And don't trouble yourself about this any further. You don't have to apologize to anyone for that woman." Dina smiled warmly and patted my shoulder before returning to the group. I sat on the bench and watched her go. I only had one potential witness left and Dina just pointed the finger firmly at him. He was the only male voice left, yet Janey said Detective Logan cleared him! I wondered if my theory about another unknown man could have been true.

  I didn't want to stay and watch the group finish their workout, or appear to encourage Dan the leader into recruiting me, so I retraced my steps to the entrance of the park and headed home. As I unlocked my door, my cellphone rang. I glanced at the screen. Mark. I stared at the phone for several long rings, uncertain of what to do. I wasn't sure I trusted myself to speak to him right now. Not that he'd done anything wrong. He hadn't even said he was interested in me! I just couldn’t be sure that my disappointment wouldn't leak out in my voice. I let the call go to my voicemail and tossed the phone on the entry console as Purrdie ran through from the kitchen. She wound her small, warm body around my ankles.

  "Hey, you," I said, picking her up and giving her a cuddle. "At least I have you. You're always sweet. You never shout. All you want is food and tickles." Purrdie meowed and wriggled in my hands until I put her down again. She followed me into the kitchen and waited while I made a snack and poured a cold drink, then followed me upstairs into the office. I sat at my desk and Purrdie curled up in her spot on the couch.

  I scrolled my cellphone for Esther's office and placed the call.

  "Hi," I said when Lisa picked it up. "It's Ava."

  "Hi, Ava. I was just going to call you."

  "Really? What about?"

  "I got a shipping notification from Esther's hotel. Apparently, they're sending all her things back. Did you organize that?"

  "No." I frowned. "The hotel did. I thought I would get a chance to pack up all Esther's things and consult you about what to do from there. I hope you don't mind the hotel shipping everything instead?" Truthfully, I was a little upset that the hotel managed everything without involving me, even though I wasn't looking forward to going into Esther's room. Now I definitely wouldn’t find any more clues. I supposed they wanted to clear it out as fast as possible in order to hire a professional cleaning crew to sanitize the room or whatever people did after a murder.

  "I guess it doesn’t matter who did it. I just assumed it was you."

  "I'm sure everything will get there. If you think anything's missing, let me know, and I'll go back to the hotel."

  "I'll pass that on to Derrick when I take everything to him. He's the best one to determine if everything is there."

  "How's he holding up?"

  "He's okay. Keeping busy. He has to arrange for Esther's body to be flown home, which is hard. I don't think anyone is prepared to talk to the people at a morgue or the funeral homes."

  "I could accompany her if he wants? Would that help?"

  "That's very kind of you. I'm sure Derrick would tell you not to go to any trouble but I'll let him know you offered. Is Mark okay? I tried to call him earlier but he didn't answer his phone."

  "He's fine," I said. "But I haven't spoken to him today. He checked out of the hotel." I decided not to tell her the rest since that was Mark's business. He probably wouldn't want his arrest spreading around his home city, especially since it was part of Detective Logan's ruse to catch the real killer. I wondered how Sam was getting on with that and if I should call him next.

  "Where is he staying?" Lisa inquired.

  "Oh, I..." I paused. I had no idea. I still had all of his things at my house and he would need them if he checked in somewhere else. There wasn't a lot of available lodging in town beyond the main hotel and most of the others, as well as the rented chalets, were closer to the ski resorts. He would surely want plenty of privacy if he were staying with his girlfriend. I hoped they didn't expect to stay with me; that would be uncomfortable! "I'm not sure. We'll probably both find out the answer to that at the same time."

  "Probably. I know you must want to know the business news. We had a meeting in the office today and decided that all authors would be split between the junior agents for now. Derrick hasn't decided if he wants to keep the agency or sell it; and he refuses to make any decision just yet. If you have a preference for an agent, let me know, otherwise we'll allocate one to you. Since you're the most affected by this, I know it must be difficult now for you to work."

  "I haven't been able to concentrate but Mark thought we could figure something out. I'm going to take a few days off before I get my head stuck into the edits Esther gave me. I'm sure I can still make the deadline."

  "Well, that's good news! We're all very pleased with how your current book sales are doing and I'm sure you are too. That reminds me, we fielded a few calls from Calendar from people asking who you are."

  I paled. "Oh, no!"

  "We didn't tell anyone anything and we won't," Lisa assured me, "but some of the callers threw a few names around. I just thought I should tell you."

  "Thanks. The gossip mill never stops grinding here."

  Lisa laughed. "I'm sure it does."

  We hung up and I rocked back on my chair. I ate my snack while I looked out on the quiet street and sipped my drink. I thought about opening my laptop before I realized I meant what I said. I would take a few days’ break and methodically work through all the edits until I was finished. Then I would take a couple weeks off before pouring everything I had into the next, and final, book. Only then could I pull out my thriller manuscript and work on that until it was perfect. Once I knew my position with the agency, I would submit it elsewhere. Finally, I had a plan that I actually liked.

  That reminded me, where was my missing manuscript? Dina hadn't mentioned packing it up but I figured it was unlikely to be among Esther's things since Detective Logan hadn't found it. Another page from my novel was purposely planted in Mark's room, which could only mean someone else still had it. But why would they keep it? It meant nothing to Esther and I would probably never know why she bothered to print it out. It wasn't worth anything to anybody except me. Its only significance were the two pages that seemed to fit with the murder. Could someone have stolen it from Esther and used it to quickly plan her murder? Or was it deliberately being used as a lucky red herring? Either way, the thought of the murderer leafing through the pages I wrote, and seeking a way to complicate Esther's murder all the more, gave me the creeps.

  By the time dusk started to fall, I missed another call from Mark and exhausted any other viable theories about where my manuscript might be. I picked up the phone to call Detective Logan and put it down a half dozen times. What could I insist that he do? Search every desk and briefcase in the hotel to find it?

  I got up and went downstairs to fix myself some pasta for supper. When it was ready, I poured a glass of wine and took them both into the sitting room and placed them on the coffee table. I reached for the remote control and turned on the TV, flicking through the channels, looking for something to watch that would distract me for an hour before I decided what to say to Mark.

  I took a long sip of wine, set the glass down, and reached for my pasta bowl, leaning forward. Just as I did, a horrible crack sounded behind me and something sailed through the air, narrowly missing my head. I screamed in fright and instantly dropped to my knees, releasing the pasta bowl on the coffee table.

  On the floor, I shuffled around, searching for the airborne missile. A brick slipped off my sofa and la
nded on the floor with a nasty thud. With a horrible knot lodged in the pit of my stomach, I realized a single sheet of typed paper was wrapped around the brick, and held in place by a rubber band. I took it off and opened it before I gasped.

  Another page from my manuscript!

  Chapter Eighteen

  "You didn't see anybody?" Detective Logan stood in my sunroom looking grim. An officer was in the sitting room and two more officers were outside with the squad cars, speaking to the small crowd of residents that had come out to see what the fuss was all about. Although the flashing lights and sirens had drawn out most of the neighbors, I knew it would be miracle if any of them saw who might have thrown the brick.

  "No! It was dark and if I hadn't been reaching over to pick up my pasta bowl, that brick would have hit me in the head. I didn't want to get up and give them a second shot!" Despite the shivering, my stomach gave a small groan of dissatisfaction when I glanced at my ruined dinner on the table. I leaned against the wall, partially to watch all the buzzing activity at my house, and partially so the wall could hold me upright. I was afraid if I sat, I might start to cry.

  Detective Logan nodded. "I'm not sure I can say with any certainty that it was actually aimed at you. It might have been a 'lucky' throw," he said, using his fingers to make air quotes.

  I touched my head, more than grateful I hadn't been hit. "Yeah, lucky me."

  "Is this page from the same manuscript?" Detective Logan asked as he held up the plastic baggie he deposited the page into.

  "You mean the one I wrote? Yes, it is."

  "Hmm."

  "There's nothing on this page about throwing bricks at innocent people! It's about identifying the accomplice to the murder," I pointed out.

  Detective Logan raised his eyebrows. "And you're not seeing any issue with that?"