The Body in the Beach House

by Grace York

  "It's their job. They've gotten very good at it. Of course, that's all surface stuff. Once we looked closer it was obvious they weren't who they said they were. But they go into a con banking on selling their story so well that no-one looks too closely."

  "They nearly got away with it," said Addison. She remembered how close Ivy and Dan had got to her money.

  "They certainly took a risk staying around after killing Patrick," said Issac. "If they'd disappeared straight away, chances are we'd never have found them."

  "Greed will get you every time," said Adam. He finished his beer and pulled another from the esky.

  "So what about the cocaine you found in Patrick's room?" asked Jason. "Was that Dan's?"

  "Yes," said Isaac. "Ivy told us that the plan to strangle Patrick and make it look like suicide was a pretty hasty one. They had to move fast once they realised Patrick was onto them. They weren't sure it would work, which was why they added in the touch about making the room look as if it were locked from the inside.

  "Then as an extra backup, Ivy knew Louie was a drug user – she'd caught him smoking in the garden once before – so after Dan had strangled Patrick and they'd posed him, she left some tiny traces of Dan's cocaine stash in Patrick's room. Not enough to be seen by all of you, but enough to be found by forensics. It was enough to throw suspicion on the only person on the suspect list with a history of drug use. The fact that Louie had discrepancies in his story initially was an added bonus to them."

  "Wow," said Olivia. "That's not a bad plan for one conceived so hastily. No wonder they got away with things for all these years."

  "Like I said, it was their job," said Isaac. "The way they made their living. They knew what they were doing."

  "So why did they steal Patrick's laptop from the police station?" asked Amelie. "Why not take it when they killed him?"

  "They had nowhere to hide it," said Isaac. "If we came in and searched before they had a chance to get rid of it, having it in their possession would have been difficult to explain. Plus, they weren't initially sure there was anything on it. It was only once one of you mentioned Patrick was working on a secret project that Ivy thought they should stop us from examining it further, so she sent Dan to break in and steal it."

  "You're right," said Jason, scratching his head. "They were good."

  "Not good enough to fool our super sleuth, though," said Layla. She beamed at Addison. "That's two murders you've solved since you came to Getaway Bay, cousin. When are you opening your detective agency?"

  Everyone except Isaac laughed.

  "I've had help," said Addison. "But no, there'll be no detective agency at the beach house, thank you very much. I'm having enough trouble running it as a boarding house."

  "But you're going to keep doing that, aren't you?" asked Adam, eyes wide. "I've got nowhere else to go."

  Addison had given the subject a lot of thought over the last few days. She loved having a house full of creative, interesting people. But the fact that she'd allowed a murdering con-artist to live under her roof was disconcerting. Still, as sorry as she was for what had happened to Patrick, she couldn't let a pair of criminals get the better of her.

  "You don't have to go anywhere," she told Adam. "The beach house retreat for writers and artists is still open for anyone who needs a place to call home."

  Adam's frown broke into a wide grin, and Amelie wrapped Addison in a tight hug.

  "Thank you," they both said.

  "I'll drink to that, too," said Hazel, and they all raised their glasses again.

  "To the beach house," said Addison, turning around to salute the home she'd created.

  "The beach house," her friends repeated.

  Addison smiled at Isaac, happy that things had finally turned out okay.

  He smiled back.

  Note from the Author

  Dear Reader,

  Grifters! Addison didn’t see that coming.

  Did you?

  Are you ready for a new adventure?

  Because the carnival is coming to Getaway Bay, and with it – you guessed it, a murder!

  Addison’s son Justin and his fiancée Emily are in town for Easter. Olivia is back as well, making it a lovely family break for Addison. They’re enjoying a day at the carnival when tragedy strikes – the knife-thrower is stabbed in the back with one of his own knives.

  Isaac is sick with the flu, and Addison was a possible witness to the murder, so she muscles her way into the investigation.

  Magicians, staff, and the owners of the carnival are all on the suspect list. Even the clowns have a motive for wanting Frankie dead.

  Hanley Brothers’ Carnival is a family affair. But as Addison and Isaac follow the clues, they find this family has a lot to hide.

  The show must go on – but at what cost?

  If you enjoyed The Body in the Beach House, you’ll love The Corpse at the Carnival.

  Get back to Getaway Bay now:

  The Corpse at the Carnival