by Emmie Lyn
That was a bit of reassurance, but I still regretted telling Tilly I’d be her partner in crime tonight.
32
After Tilly changed into a black jogging outfit and gave me her dark blue one to wear, we silently slipped out of her house.
“What are we looking for?” I whispered.
“We’ll know when we find it,” Tilly said as she crept across the street to Violet’s yard.
I stayed behind Tilly, with one hand on her back, as we hunched over and darted from shadow to shadow. A dog barked, and we froze until the owner called the dog back inside and silence fell on our street again.
Silent except for my pounding heart. Would that give me away?
Tilly followed Violet’s path to her backyard.
In the dark, I missed the edge of the path and stepped into Violet’s garden. Worried that I’d crushed one of her plants, I turned on my flashlight and checked for damage.
“What are you doing?” Tilly hissed at me. “Turn that off.”
“Wait,” I said. “Look at this.” I pointed to holes in Violet’s flower bed where something had been removed. I reached down and picked up a couple of stems covered with beautiful blue-hooded flowers. “Do you think she’ll miss these?” I asked.
“Really, Sunny? You’re picking posies while we’re trying to gather evidence?”
“Who’s there?” Violet’s voice boomed from her back door. I froze, except for my racing heart, and thanked my lucky stars that we were hidden in the darkness.
Until she turned her backyard light on.
“Tilly? Sunny? You’re lucky I’m tired, otherwise I’d call the police. Get off my property. Now!”
I grabbed Tilly by her arm and pulled her along with me before she had time to do something to make the situation worse.
She slapped at my hand. “Let me go, Sunny!”
When we were safely off Violet’s property, I released my hold. She huffed and puffed but followed me without a word.
Jasper charged from the back of my house, on a mission to protect us if her bark meant anything.
“Shush, Jasper,” I said patting her to let her know we were okay. “We don’t want to give Violet another excuse to call the police.”
“Call the police?” Hitch asked as he arrived just behind Jasper. “I saw the floodlight come on and heard Violet yelling. It only took you ten minutes to get into trouble? What happened?”
“Let’s go inside, and I’ll tell you about our adventure.”
“That Sunny cut short,” Tilly added. “We had the perfect opportunity to get inside Violet’s house, but no, Sunny pulled me back here.” She folded her arms over her chest and pouted.
“Get in her house? Are you kidding me, Tilly?” I screeched. “She was about to call the police because we were trespassing.”
“Oh, she’s all bluster,” Tilly said, dismissing me with a wave of her hand. “I could have talked my way inside, Sunny. Now, we can’t get that look-see that might have turned up a clue or two.”
At this point, all I could do was shake my head. “Listen, Tilly. I’m sorry I spoiled your plans. I was trying to keep us out of jail for the night.”
“Okay, I’ll admit that was a possibility. But still, now we’ll never know.”
“Thankfully,” Hitch said as he ushered us toward my house.
“Let’s go inside and figure out a new plan,” Tilly said. “The night is still young.”
Unbelievable but there was something to be said about Tilly’s ability to swerve from one dangerous predicament to another in the blink of an eye. Reckless?
Me? I had to sit down and get my nerves calmed down, which would take the rest of the night.
I dropped onto my couch, happy to have Stash and Princess Muffin join me. Jasper leaned against my legs. All that four-legged love was just the distraction I needed.
“What’s that blue stuff sticking out of your pocket?” Hitch asked.
“This?” I held up the flower stem I’d picked up in Violet’s garden. “I sort of fell into a hole and when I turned my flashlight on, I saw these. Pretty, aren’t they? Do you know what kind of flower it is?” I handed the stem to Hitch.
“This was in Violet’s yard?”
“Yeah, why?”
“This is aconitum, or monkshood, and it’s very poisonous,” Hitch said.
Tilly and I looked at each other. Her mouth dropped open, and I felt mine do the same.
“The clue you said we’d know when we saw it,” I said to Tilly.
She leaped out of the chair. “We have to go back and get a better look in her flower patch. Are you coming?”
Hitch gently pushed her back into the chair. “Not. Tonight. Tilly. We’ll look tomorrow, when it’s light out. We don’t even know if Ginger was poisoned. I said it was a possibility when I found her.”
“But—”
“No, but,” Hitch said with a finality that left no room for argument. “If it’s confirmed that Ginger was poisoned like I suggested, and if that poison is aconitum, then Violet has some questions to answer. I’m not a believer in jumping to a conclusion that could destroy someone if it turns out to be false. I’m sure she’s not the only gardener around who has monkshood growing in her yard.”
Hitch might have a point, but I wasn’t planning to turn my back on my neighbor.
33
It was strange trying to sleep with Ashley in my guest room and Hitch on the couch. Plus, the knowledge that my neighbor might have poisoned her friend with a common garden plant turned out to be more unsettling than I’d expected.
At least Jasper and my two kittens provided a humorous distraction in the morning.
I couldn’t help but laugh when I walked into my living room. Hitch groaned as the kittens chased each other back and forth on top of his chest while he tried to catch last bit of shuteye before his alarm went off.
Jasper stuck her wet nose under Hitch’s pillow and flipped it to the floor.
Hitch opened his eyes and stretched his arms over his head. “I see why you don’t use an alarm clock, Sunshine. Is it really time to get up?”
“I’ll take Jasper out if you want to stay put so the kittens can continue their game. Or, have a pot of coffee ready for when I get back?” I raised an eyebrow wondering what he’d choose.
“Hmm. I’ll have to think about those choices. And when will Tilly barge in with her latest plan?” he asked.
“Sooner rather than later.” I patted my leg and jiggled Jasper’s leash. “Come on, Jas, ready for your walk?”
Outside, a fresh breeze from Misty Harbor brought the salty air to my nose, reminding me why I loved this area so much.
As we started walking, something caught Jasper’s attention when we approached Violet’s flower bed. I looked at her house and saw her peeking at me. I shivered at that penetrating stare. Fortunately, Jasper barely slowed down, gave a quick sniff at something, and then trotted past. When we got to the turnoff for the wooded path, she paused and looked at the route we normally took but stayed at my side.
A door closed. I glanced behind us and hurried straight ahead.
Chickadees flitted in the trees along the road and a flash of blue streaked overhead. The blue jay squawked his alarm that intruders were coming.
“What do you think, Jasper? Isn’t it nice to stroll out here while the rest of the world is waking up?” I tried my best to bury my fear that Violet was following me.
Jasper woofed and pulled against the leash when she spotted someone heading toward us. I felt trapped between what might be behind me and who was approaching from ahead. Jasper dragged me forward.
“Sunny?” Greg waved at me.
Well this was a surprise. “Greg? Is everything alright? What are you doing out walking this morning?”
Jasper sat and insisted on an ear rub.
“That police officer contacted Carla at the bed and breakfast this morning. She’d asked him to let us know any details about Ginger’s case.”
He me
ant Officer Walker. “And?”
Greg inhaled and looked up at the sky. “He confirmed that she was poisoned.”
I didn’t know how to respond.
He shifted his travel mug from one hand to the other. “Yeah, Carla is with Laura. They’re both a mess. They asked me to let Violet know. So,” he lifted both shoulders, “here I am, walking around trying to figure out how to tell her.”
“Tell Violet?” I asked. Our discovery of poisonous monkshood in her garden flashed through my brain. “Shouldn’t the police be the ones to notify her?”
“That’s exactly what I said, but, no, Carla insisted she’d take it better from me.”
“I really think you should let the police handle it, Greg.”
“Why? You seem kind of agitated, Sunny. Are you feeling alright?” He stepped closer and put his hand on my arm.
I wiped sweat off my brow. “I need to get home. I left without coffee or even a drink of water, and I’m feeling a little light-headed.”
“Here, take a sip of this. I made it for Violet, but it looks like you need some fluids.”
“What is it?”
“Actually, I planned to tell you and Hitch about my concoction with blueberries and ginger in case you want to add it to your smoothie selection.” He held it toward me. “Try it.”
I took the mug and lifted the cover. The drink overpowered me with the smell of ginger. I really didn’t want any, but I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. “What’s this floating on top?”
Greg looked in the mug. “Oh, blueberries that didn’t get completely blended I think.” He adjusted his sunglasses and wiped sweat off his upper lip.
Why was he staring at me?
Jasper paced around me, whining. As I lifted the mug to my lips, she jumped up and pawed at my arm. The mug flew from my grip and spilled on the sidewalk.
I looked at the blue mess spreading out. Small chunks of something dark, definitely not blueberries, were mixed in the glop.
“What’s wrong with your dog?” Greg shouted. He crouched down and tried to push the drink back into the mug. Was he still planning to drink this dirty mixture?
When I looked down at him again, I noticed specks of blue stuck on his sleeve. The blue contrasted dramatically with the white of his shirt.
He suddenly stood up.
I reached toward one of the specks but he grabbed my wrist.
Jasper growled.
“Call your dog off, Sunny, or I’ll break your arm,” Greg said.
“It was you.” Everything became crystal clear as I saw the menace in his eyes. “You killed Ginger because she didn’t want anything to do with you. You dug up the monkshood in Violet’s garden.”
Greg sneered as he twisted my arm behind my back and hissed his words right in my ear. “What? You thought Violet killed the special Ms. Ginger? I’m glad that’s what you think because that’s what everyone will believe soon enough. Poor Violet. When the police show up and find a nice mixture of blueberry, ginger, and poison hidden in her refrigerator. You and Tilly made it too easy for me last night. This drink was a spare. Just in case I ran into a problem. Like you.”
He reached down and picked up a chunk of the monkshood root. “Open up, Sunny. It won’t take long.”
Greg jammed the hunk of root against my lips.
I clamped my mouth closed and twisted away.
I jerked my head around as I tried to get away from him.
Jasper pushed between us, but Greg tightened his grip on my arm and kept trying to force the root into my mouth. Once my lips began to tingle, self-preservation kicked into high gear. I stomped on his foot, then kneed him.
Greg yipped like a little girl but still managed to hold on to me. I couldn’t get away from him.
Jasper bumped me, pushing me right up against Greg.
But, as if an invisible force intervened, my arm miraculously fell free. Greg screamed and fell on the sidewalk, writhing face-first in his poisonous concoction.
When I looked up, Ashley stood over my assailant like a warrior from out of the blue.
“Ashley?” I shook my wrist, trying to get feeling back. “Where did you come from?”
“I always, like, you know, run in the morning and ever since I saw this creep,” she gave Greg a jab with her foot, “I decided I needed to carry my Taser with me at all times. Lucky for you I came this way.”
Hitch’s Camaro screeched to a stop next to us and a police car arrived seconds later.
“Yeah, I called Hitch when I saw that creep talking to you. You can, like, never be too careful, right? Are you okay now?”
I looked down at Greg immobilized on the ground. Yeah, with him out of commission, I was. I could tell the concern in Ashley’s voice was genuine. I couldn’t help but wrap my arms around her.
Hitch and Tilly bolted out of the car, adding their hugs to Ashley’s, which made for a big cluster of bodies with Jasper still glued to my side.
Police Chief Bullock limped over. He looked at Ashley holding her Taser and Greg on the ground. “What happened?”
And then I remembered Violet.
I filled him in quickly and added, “He left a poisoned drink at Violet’s house. You have to warn her.”
Tilly moved off to one side and made the call. All I heard was, “Don’t drink anything until we get there. Trust me, Violet; this is not a joke. I’m deadly serious.”
I told the Chief what I knew about Greg’s plans, having trouble believing it myself.
“And, there’s the evidence.” I pointed to the drink on the ground. “Test it, especially those chunks. And he has bits of monkshood flower on his shirt. I guess he got careless.”
The Chief hauled Greg off to the Pineville jail. Tilly, Jasper, and I barely squeezed into Hitch’s car, but we didn’t have far to go back to my house, and we managed. Ashley said she’d finish her run and be back soon.
“So, Ashley?” Hitch said while I was jammed next to Tilly in the front of his car. “Bet you never thought Ashley could even rescue herself.”
“Where did that bravery come from?” I asked.
“I gave her a pep talk this morning when she got up and found me in the kitchen. I was making a pot of coffee and we talked. I told her she could live in fear or she could take charge and stand up for herself. I said, it’s all in your head. And you know what she told me?”
“Of course not, Hitch. I’m sure it was profound, though.” Now my mind was on that pot of coffee.
“She said, and I swear these are her exact words. ‘I have to, like, channel Sunny or something? I can do that.’”
I choked. “She thinks I’m some kind of superhero?”
Hitch chuckled and added, “That’s what it sounded like. I think you’ve got a new friend, Sunshine. He patted my thigh. “You are pretty special in my book, too.”
Tilly laughed until it turned into a series of snorts. “Who would have ever predicted this?”
Not me in a million years. But here I was, safe with Hitch, Tilly, and Jasper. I’d gained new respect for someone who seemed a bit ditzy at best. Boy, was I wrong.
I had a lot to learn but I planned to enjoy the ride.
In Pineville, Sunny Shaw stumbles into one sweet disaster after another! Ready to find out what happens next?
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Tabby Trouble
Mint Chocolate Chip Mysteries, Book 3
About this Book
I’m Sunny Shaw and, lately, trouble is my middle name.
Things are close to norm
al again when someone dumps a tiny box of kittens in my lap. I figure I’ll get them back to their mother and go about my business. No harm, no foul.
Except, I never expected to stumble over a body. Nor did I think a ten-year-old girl would be the only witness to the murder. Even worse? There’s a rare bird worth a fortune somehow mixed up in this mess.
Ruffling a few feathers is the least of my worries, especially since my goose might get cooked if I don’t hurry up and solve this case.
Come on, Jasper. We have kittens to take care of, a little girl to protect, and a killer on the loose. Surviving this one will take all of our smarts.
1
I crouched down in the dusty driveway of my donut vendor, A Donut A Day. The clang of lobster buoys, and the squawk of seagulls barely audible in the distance.
Isabella Golden, my friend’s ten-year-old daughter, stood in front of me cradling a beat up old cardboard box in her arms. She carefully held it toward me with a plea in her eyes. I opened the top flap, peeked inside, and my stomach twisted into an angry knot at the sight of three tiny tabby kittens inside. Without a word, her big blue eyes begged me to help.
I tucked a few flyaway hairs behind her ear and took the box from her dirty hands. What on earth had she been up to this early in the morning?
“Where did you find this?” I asked, ready to tear into a thoughtless owner who’d abandoned the newborns.
Her messy pigtails danced back and forth across her chest as she scuffed her well-worn sneaker in the dirt. She stared at the depression under her sneaker, avoiding my gaze.
And then she bolted. Two long, blonde pigtails flew behind her as she pumped her arms and ran down the driveway.
“Izzy! Wait!” I yelled. A salty breeze from Blueberry Bay was all that remained after she’d disappeared around the corner.
