Sweet Saboteur

by C A Phipps

  “But . . .”

  Scarlett put her hand up. “No, Olivia. The book is gone. Things happen, and no-one is to blame apart from the person who took it.”

  “The worst thing about this is not knowing who that could be. I certainly never told a soul.”

  Scarlett shrugged. “I don’t remember who came into the house during or after the funeral. To be honest, it’s all a blur.”

  “But how would anyone know to look there?” Violet wondered.

  “This is true. If the place had been ransacked like Mable’s, we would have noticed. Whoever took it was only after the book, and they knew exactly where it was kept. Maybe we should ask Daisy? Perhaps she let it slip?”

  Scarlett was thinking aloud when she saw Olivia flinch, then smile sadly.

  “She’s just as mortified as I am that the book disappeared. That’s why we were both delighted to help with the house renovations. It was a small way of relieving our guilt at holding onto this secret.”

  George chose that moment to jump onto Ruby’s lap and across to Olivia’s. Butting her chin with his head, Olivia buried her fingers in his fur, eliciting a deep rumble.

  “It wasn’t a small thing you did.” Ruby rubbed George between his ears, her eyes swimming with unshed tears.

  “Absolutely. I vote we go ask Daisy if she accidentally told someone about the book.” Violet stood determinedly. “She’s probably awake too.”

  “It couldn’t hurt, could it?” Scarlett was just as eager to know if there was any chance of finding the culprit. The only one who appeared reluctant was Olivia.

  “I suppose you have a right to ask. We’ll take my car,” she said resignedly.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  The diner was quiet. Which was typical for this time of day on a Sunday. Things would get busier at breakfast time in an hour or so. Scarlett breathed a sigh of relief at their luck. She had a feeling that Daisy had told someone, and if she were about to divulge the name of a friend, it would be potentially easier done without witnesses.

  They went inside, causing the doorbell to chime. Daisy stood in the doorway to the kitchen, wiping her hands on a navy blue apron.

  “Something’s wrong.” Suspicion dripped from the words like an accusation.

  Olivia grimaced. “The girls know about the book.”

  Daisy gasped. “You told them?”

  “I had to. Scarlett saw the book at Mable’s,” Olivia confessed.

  “That’s impossible.”

  “I did,” Scarlett assured her. “Why would it be impossible?”

  “Well, it’s missing for a start,” Daisy spluttered.

  “It seems that somehow, Mable was in possession of it,” Scarlett explained. “For a time anyway.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Scarlett led their shocked friend to a table, while Olivia turned the sign at the door to closed.

  “What are you doing?” Daisy asked.

  “The girls need to ask a question, and you might get upset. You don’t want customers to see that, do you?”

  “Are you accusing me of something?” Daisy stood, blood draining from her face.

  “Of course not. We just want to know if you happened to mention the book to anyone.”

  Daisy’s lips pursed. “I promised I wouldn’t.”

  These weren’t the words Scarlett needed to hear. She tried again. “Did you break that promise by any chance?”

  “What a thing to ask!”

  Daisy’s outrage filled Scarlett with distress because she could see that it was another way of fending off the question. If she was wrong, she’d apologize profusely.

  “I’m sorry, Daisy, but we know you did. Whoever it was you told, stole the book. Was it Mable?”

  Daisy hung her head. “Yes. I’m sorry. It slipped out one day after your mom passed away. It was a sad time, and she was a willing ear. Wine may have been involved.”

  “Of all the people you could have spoken to, why Mable? You could have talked to me. In fact, you should have!” Olivia yelled uncharacteristically.

  Daisy cringed. “I’m sorry. With the book missing again, it doesn’t really matter now that I told her, does it?”

  Olivia turned her back, her arms folded while Daisy dipped her head again.

  Scarlett looked at her sisters, not sure where they could go from here. Daisy spoke out of turn, and the book was stolen by Mable. Who took it from Mable?

  “The same thing is true as it was before.” Violet frowned. “Whoever stole it, knew what it was, and where to find it. The only difference is that before there were only a few suspects, now it could be anyone.”

  Scarlett went to the large window, gazing up and down the street. From here, she could make out Mable’s house. Violet was right, and in Scarlett’s brain, a machine began to whirr as she saw several pieces of the puzzle click into place. “I disagree. Whoever stole the book, wasn’t at the funeral. That narrows it down.”

  Daisy looked up, hopefully. “Yes! That sounds right. We need to make a list of those who weren’t there.”

  “Unless it was a stranger to town, “Ruby offered.

  Violet shook her head. “Then they wouldn’t know anything about the book or Mable having it.”

  Scarlett snapped her fingers. “Precisely. It could have been someone who lived nearby so they could get in and out fast enough to stash the book.”

  “Surely not?” Daisy was pale again.

  Scarlett looked up and ran to the door. Opening it, she beckoned someone inside. Three someones.

  “We were looking for you,” Sam said, his warm smile slipping when he saw the rest of the women.

  Nate’s eyes narrowed as Scarlett shut and locked the door behind Brent, who simply looked confused.

  “We’re so glad you’re here, Sheriff. We have some information about the break-in at Mable’s.” Scarlett told him.

  A stillness crept over the room as Scarlett explained the book, where it came from, and that it was valuable.

  Nate wrote furiously, then recapped. “Mable stole the book from your house, then someone stole it from her?”

  She nodded. “It appears that way. The one problem I have is how she managed it when the three of us never left the house for days.”

  “While that’s good to know, we don’t have any proof or suspects,” Nate pointed out.

  “We were just discussing that and how it had to be someone local.” Scarlett gave Nate a penetrating look, before moving on with her hunches. “I think it would be an excellent idea to go door to door and search every house.”

  “Yes,” Daisy stood, heading to the door. “You should start right away. There are plenty of houses near the funeral parlor.”

  “And businesses,” Scarlett added.

  Daisy wheeled. “What?”

  “Businesses,” Scarlett repeated. “Let’s not forget that a lot of them on Main Street have people living above them.”

  “That’s true,” Daisy agreed. “We could all help with the search. Maybe I could write up a list of everyone and you could start at one end of the town. We’d have to keep things quiet, so no one has the opportunity to get rid of the book.”

  “They might have already,” Sam suggested.

  “It was only yesterday.” Scarlett headed to the kitchen. “I’d say it was still in town.”

  Daisy followed her. “Did you want coffee, dear? Shall I make some for everyone?”

  “No, thanks. I think you should start right here, Nate. Then work down the street.”

  A light lit his eyes, he came purposefully across the room. “Yes, I’ll start in your kitchen, Daisy.”

  “I don’t understand. Is this a joke between you and Scarlett? If so, it’s in very poor taste.” Daisy’s mouth quivered. “You can’t suspect me?”

  “It’s not personal, and you do have other staff, so we’ll check every place,” Nate assured her as they filed into the kitchen.

  It wasn’t as tidy as The Cozy Café, nor was it as clean. Dais
y leaned defensively against a counter.

  “Don’t you need a warrant?”

  “Is there a reason I can’t search right now?”

  She gave him a scathing look. “I have a business to run. You know very well that I cook Sunday breakfast and lunch.”

  “There don’t seem to be any customers just yet, so I think it’s a perfect time. By the way, how is business?” Nate moved around the kitchen with ease, and Daisy followed closely.

  “A little slow, as you might have noticed. Why do you ask?”

  “I heard that your chef quit?”

  “He had a family emergency.” She pursed her lips. “To be honest, it’s been pretty tough, having to do all the cooking.”

  “Tough enough to steal the book from Mable and kill her, because the diner isn’t doing so well?” Scarlett asked.

  There were several gasps, and Olivia looked as though she couldn’t understand what she was hearing.

  “I didn’t kill her!” Daisy screeched. “It was a heart attack as you very well know, and my business is doing okay.”

  Scarlett stretched to pluck something from a shelf, opening her hand to reveal a pink cupcake paper. “I knew I’d seen these before. You attempted to poison Mable, but you didn’t need to when she died anyway. Then you tried to frame our café.”

  “I.I.I…”

  “More than anyone, you had the opportunity to steal the book, swap the cupcakes, poison Olivia, and break into Mable’s.” Scarlett continued, knowing by the guilty look on Daisy’s face, no matter that she continued to deny it, some or all of what she was saying was true. “How could you, Daisy. We loved you like an aunt.”

  “I was your mom’s best friend! How can you accuse me like this?” Daisy clutched her throat, and Olivia made to go to her.

  Sure of so much more than when she’d made the plan to confront Daisy, Scarlett held up a hand to stall her. “The last piece of the puzzle is—why did Mable have the book and not you?”

  “She must have stolen it!” Daisy yelled, realizing too late what she’d admitted to, and slumped onto a chair.

  Her sister’s stood in stunned silence, but Scarlett needed every question answered.

  “You slipped up there. Mable never stepped foot in our house. Not even after the funeral. You knew that. For some reason, you gave Mable the book.”

  That gave Daisy back a little fight. “I would never give that woman a thing! She was mean and vindictive.”

  “Are you saying she took it from you?”

  Daisy pursed her lips once more and looked away.

  Nate stepped forward. “Here’s the thing, I will search this place, with or without a warrant, because I have probable cause to do so. If you make me wait for that, you’ll come down to the station to give a statement. There will be no time to remove anything from this property, and we will search every inch anyway. Do you understand, Ms. Archer?”

  “You’re taking the word of this girl over me? I’ve known them since they were children and treated them like my own. Surely that counts for something. You know how nosey Scarlett can be, and how vivid her imagination is. Or, are you so in love with her sister you can’t see straight?”

  Nate straightened, towering over Daisy, his face turned to granite.

  “Ms. Archer, I am merely doing my job. Things will go slightly easier if you co-operate.”

  “And, Scarlett doesn’t lie,” Sam stated.

  “What she’s done is far worse than lying. She’s hurting everyone around her and doing so for years with her stubbornness! Just ask her sisters.”

  Violet and Ruby looked at her guiltily. Upset that her sisters had clearly been confiding in Daisy, Scarlett leaned on the unit that housed pots and pans. It wobbled slightly, and Daisy put a hand up as if to steady it. Hastily, she moved away, glared at Scarlett.

  “Go ahead. You won’t find anything, and I want you out of here as soon as possible. All of you.”

  Olivia, Violet, and Ruby turned away from the torturous look on Daisy’s face. They were confused and frightened at this turn of events.

  Her earlier delight at thinking the crimes were solved dissolved, leaving Scarlett feeling uneasy. This was Daisy. Nearly as close to them as Olivia, she’d been in their lives for years. The idea she could want to hurt them was appalling. Then there was the horror of getting things so wrong. If this were the case, she’d never be able to make it up to Daisy.

  While the group backed away and found seats, Nate put a call through to his deputies, then he went to the front door to let them in. Even if she wanted to, it was too late to stop what Scarlett had put in motion.

  Sam moved to her side. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m not sure,” she whispered. “This could be the worst thing I’ve ever done.”

  “You must have more reasons why you think Daisy is guilty,” he stated, as though he knew it to be true.

  She looked up at him in wonder. “They were hunches until a little while ago.”

  “You sound so sure.”

  “I am. Unless the book isn’t found.”

  “Nate’s pretty good at what he does,” Sam said with a slight smile.

  She couldn’t return it, but his words lifted her spirits enough that she could focus once more on the where and how.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Two deputies began their search in the dining area. The opening and closing of drawers and cupboards behind the long counter resonated for some time.

  Scarlett watched Daisy. Daisy watched the door.

  Nate came back with one of his deputies, George ran between his legs and headed to where Scarlett stood.

  “Who let him in? This is a kitchen!” There was a slight sheen on Daisy’s brow as she yelled with desperation in her voice. “Well? Did you find anything?”

  “Nothing yet,” Nate acknowledged. “We’ll do the kitchen now. Could you all please go into the diner?” He nodded to the deputies to escort them.

  “I’ll stay to keep an eye on my equipment. It’s worth a lot of money.” Daisy crossed the room defiantly.

  Nate hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Just keep out of our way, please.”

  Almost casually, Daisy moved over by the pots and pans. Scarlett was about to pick up George when he shot across the room to the shelves. He sniffed Daisy and meowed loudly.

  “Get away, you mangy thing!” Daisy yelled.

  “Pull the shelves out,” Scarlett said, steel in her voice.

  “Shut up! Let them do their job and get this cat out of my kitchen,” Daisy demanded.

  Nate nodded to Sam, and the two of them hauled the shelves a couple of inches from the wall with Daisy attempting to push it back.

  “There’s something behind here!” Sam yelled.

  Scarlett gently pulled Daisy away, and the men dragged the shelves out further. It wasn’t easy. So many pots and pans weighed a tremendous amount, but eventually, there was a big enough gap to see a parcel wedged up against the bottom shelf.

  George jumped on the shelf and dropped into the space to sniff it. Daisy fell to the floor in a sobbing heap, but this time Scarlett had no sympathy.

  “Let me get it,” she offered.

  Nate gave her a pair of gloves, and Scarlett pulled out the largest pot. It was a simple matter to lift the parcel out from the back of the shelf.

  A little red-faced, Nate pulled on another pair of gloves to take the parcel from her. Carefully, unwrapping the brown paper, he revealed the same book Scarlett had seen in Mable’s bedroom.

  George meowed around their feet, seemingly pleased with his find while Scarlett wasn’t sure how to feel. It still remained to see if it was the same book that was stolen from their mom. And to find out if Daisy was a murderer, and why she relinquished the book to Mable.

  Offering no resistance, the deputies handcuffed Daisy. Then between them, they marched her back out through the diner to the astonishment of the others. Scarlett could say nothing while Nate read Daisy her rights.

  “Dai
sy! I can’t believe this. You loved Lilac. How could you?” Anguish coated every word from Olivia.

  Daisy shuddered. “I did love her. Even when she took the man I loved more. Then she opened that stupid café and stole too much of my business. The book was payback.”

  Olivia flinched. “If that’s the truth, then how did Mable end up with it?”

  Daisy suddenly cackled, a weird look in her eyes. “Everyone thought she was so squeaky clean. A librarian. Hah! That was just a front. Mable was cunning and knew exactly what she was doing. As soon as she found out about the book a few months back, she began to ask me to do terrible things. She wanted me to get rid of you girls and get Olivia off the committee, or she would tell you what I’d done. I was sick of it!”

  Scarlett could picture Daisy gossiping after a few glasses of bubbles. Daisy was a lightweight drinker, and as far as Scarlett knew, Mable didn’t drink at all.

  “So, you let her have the book because you knew how to get it back,” Scarlett stated.

  “Very astute.” A feverish gleam in her eyes, Daisy grinned. “There was only one way.”

  “Are you admitting to the murder of Mable Norris?” Nate asked clearly.

  Daisy crumpled like a bag of laundry. “I’d like to call a lawyer,” she whispered from the floor.

  “You’ll get the opportunity soon.” Nate motioned to his deputies to lift Daisy, and they half carried her between them. “We’re heading to the station, and I’d like you all to go home. Statements will be taken in due course,” he said.

  Sam led the girls to Olivia’s car. He reached for Scarlett’s arm, holding her back for a moment. “Well done. Not only a brilliant baker, you’ve discovered another talent in sleuthing.”

  Touched by his sincerity, she managed a small smile. “Baking is enough for me and it made all the difference to have you in our corner. I just wish it hadn’t happened this way with someone I saw as a friend.”