by Rosie Sams
"This won't take long," Alvin said flatly.
Melody smiled proudly as he didn't let the mother hen kick him out of the room. "Ramona, eyewitnesses report that you got upset after Alexis threw her drink in the deceased’s face and that you left the vicinity immediately after the incident. Can you tell me where you went?"
"Well, I can't really remember," she said, stalling as she looked at her mother for guidance.
"As it stands right now, you're a prime suspect. It would be beneficial for you if you would think hard and cooperate. We know you had an intimate relationship with the deceased. Jealousy is a dangerous weapon, Miss Newman."
"Now, wait a minute, Sheriff Hennessey! How dare you accuse my daughter of foul play! I will not let you stand here and attempt to intimidate her or smear her good name with your allegations!" Denise almost exploded with rage. "Ramona, get your things. We’re leaving. You need your rest before the pageant." Then, she turned back to Sheriff Hennessey. Apparently, she had more to say. "And you, sir, will not so much as ask my daughter for the time of day without a lawyer present!"
"Well, ladies, in lieu of a pageant this year, you'll be participating in a murder investigation. The only question is, who will be turning in their crown for a pair of cuffs? If I were either of you, I wouldn't leave town any time soon."
"Well, isn't that fortunate, Ramona? If the event is pushed back, you'll have time to get the frog out of your throat." Denise grabbed her big designer bag that housed her large lint roller and hooked it over the crook of her arm.
As the bag moved. Smudge's ears went up, and her nose twitched at the sight of it.
"You have no soul, you evil woman!" Melody said, enraged at Denise’s off-handed comment regarding the pageant’s delay. As Denise shoved passed them, Smudge trotted behind her, but she was really following the bag. Melody watched Smudge curiously move with it as Denise spun suddenly to face Melody.
"You have no idea what I’ve sacrificed or what my daughter has sacrificed to get to this point. Go back to your cupcakes and mind your own business!" But as Denise yelled at Melody, Smudge barked at the bag then jumped up, tapping it with her front paws. Denise yanked the bag away from Smudge. "Get away from me, you mangy mutt, before I use my lint roller to remove your fur!"
Melody gasped, and Smudge growled! The only thing that saved Denise at that moment was Alvin holding Melody back by the arms.
Denise stormed off quickly, commanding Ramona to follow, but as she did, the girl looked back at Melody. Her eyes apologized silently, and Melody was sure that Ramona knew more than she was letting on.
Chapter Ten
A few days later, Melody entered the sheriff's station with a box of croissants and a couple of coffees to find more than a dozen beautiful women lined up and waiting to see her fiancé.
"Interviewing for a new bride?" she asked playfully.
"Never, my love. As it turns out, Ronald Atkins had affairs with all these women and guess what? He promised all of them a fruitful future. Wilbur and I are interviewing them today."
She handed him one of the coffee cups. "It looks like you and Wilbur are going to need sustenance. I brought you your favorite croissants." She set down the tray holding the other coffee cups and popped open the lid of the Decadently Delicious box.
Alvin inhaled the scent of the fresh baked goods that caused him to lick his lips. "You, my future bride, are a lifesaver,” he said.
"You only love me for my goodies," she teased him.
Alvin grinned and kissed her. Then, he picked up a stack of papers.
"You know what these are?"
"With a stack like that, I’m going to guess love letters from Ronald. That’s my final answer."
"Close enough." He touched a fingertip to Melody's nose. "These are 'cease and desist' letters sent to Ronald by Penelope. She sent one for each woman he was allegedly dating. Penelope was fully aware of Ronald’s philandering ways. She wanted him to stop compromising the dignity of the pageant, especially since she was concerned that it already might have a stigma against it."
"They're all so young," Melody said as her eyes moved from woman to woman.
"I guess that's how he liked them."
"That's not exactly true."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"When he hit on me, I told him I was too old for him, but he insisted he was an equal opportunity pervert - I mean lover," Melody said with a laugh.
"I agree you're no spring chicken, but I would hardly call you old." Alvin’s sassy comment earned him a smack on the arm from Melody.
"That's not what I meant! You better watch it, or I'll take back those croissants." She winked, teasing him. "I'm simply pointing out that Colleen, Alexis, and Ramona are all under 25 years old. I suspected he had a pattern."
He rubbed his arm, where Melody smacked it. "Yes, and if you look at all the pretty girls lined up in a row in my waiting room, they all fit that same pattern. What's your point?"
"What if he really was an equal opportunity lover? What if he did date women of all ages? Couldn't he have also had an affair with Penelope? That stack of letters could have been sent to protect the dignity of the pageant, or they could have been sent to protect Penelope's dignity."
"Do you know how sexy you are when you're working an angle?" Alvin moved in to give his girl a quick kiss.
"You're on duty."
"I am, unfortunately. But your theory is a good one. Penelope is on her way here. I'll grill her about her own relationship with Atkins. Maybe she will crack under the pressure of a good old-fashioned interrogation."
"Or maybe just give her one of my croissants and ask her nicely," Melody said, suspecting he may succeed better in using a “get more flies with honey” approach.
After about an hour of interviewing Ronald's collection of jilted lovers, Penelope arrived.
“Tell us about the pageant,” Alvin said, starting off with a question that was designed to get her talking.
"Pageants have always been vehicles of success for women. They open doors for the girls, and not just the winners. It hurts me to see that in today’s time, the contests get such a bad rap.” Her face lit up when she spoke, and her passion was evident in her voice.
“And what about the cease and desist letters?” Alvin asked.
“Ronald's messing around with the contestants did two things; it distracted them from focusing on their independence and future, and it cast a dark cloud over the contest itself. Some women put all their hopes in this opportunity. Ronald was just a selfish man, and I wanted to stop his bad behavior." Penelope dabbed her eyes with a tissue as she explained the nature of the letters to Sheriff Hennessey and Melody.
"I'm sorry I have to question you like this, but did you take extreme measures to make Mr. Atkins stop?" he asked as he observed her reaction.
"There is no way I would commit such a violent act as strangling a person. Yes, he was a lecherous predator. Yes, he was pompous, and yes, he took liberties that no man of his age should take with impressionable young women trying to better their lives. But, I did not and could not kill him, nor was I having an affair with the man. He's not my type."
"Thank you for answering the question, Ms. Cross."
"The woman you want to investigate more thoroughly is Alexis Garnett. She has proven to be a very jealous woman. On more than one occasion, she has made a scene regarding Ronald. Her little demonstration during the reception wasn't her first. Do you know what her special talent is?"
"Her talent?" Melody asked.
"Yes. Each girl is required to demonstrate a unique talent. Alexis is a blackbelt in Judo." Penelope let her comment sink in while Alvin and Melody looked at each other.
"The art of Judo specializes in…" he said.
"Chokeholds." Melody finished his sentence.
Penelope nodded with a sly smile.
Alvin excused Penelope then locked himself in his office with Melody and Smudge, who was curled up on a bed next to Alvin’s desk, snori
ng loudly.
"So, let's work the clues. Alexis, Colleen, Ramona, and now Penelope all had a motive, along with only a dozen or more women that came through here today." He sounded hopeless as he squeezed a stress ball.
"Yes, and we know Ronald was definitely having affairs with Alexis, Ramona, and Colleen. We're not quite sure about Penelope."
"Correct. We also know that Alexis also had the know-how to strangle Ronald."
"But she was so drunk, would she have had the strength?"
Both of them went silent as they considered every detail until Melody spoke first.
"Remember when we last saw Ramona and her mother? Ms. Newman left first. Then, she was really rude to Smudge." Alvin nodded, listening. "When Ramona left after her mother, she looked back at me the very same way she did the first day I met them. It was almost ... apologetic. I just can't help but wonder if Ramona knows more than she’s saying. I think we need to get her away from her controlling mother. Then, she'll really sing."
"Let's go find them. Either way, I know one thing... we'll get our man or woman. We always do," Alvin said confidently, just before he stole a sweet kiss from Melody’s lips.
Chapter Eleven
"Again, Ramona! Again. You still sound like a croaking frog," Denise said as she shook her fist with frustration. She sat, camped out in the front row of the spectator seats watching Ramona sing on stage.
Her belongings were spread across several chairs as if she was saving them for other family members that would never show for the event. It was always just Denise and Ramona. Melody suspected Denise liked it that way.
"I guess this is a dress rehearsal," Melody said under her breath as she led Alvin and Smudge toward the stage. Ramona, who was dressed in the same magenta gown she wore the night of the murder, stopped singing abruptly and stared at them with wide eyes.
Denise turned her head sharply to see the new arrivals. Her eyes, narrow slits full of anger, fell on Smudge. Without acknowledging their presence, she turned back to Ramona and clapped twice.
"Now, focus! The pageant is all you need to be concerned with, Ramona. Sing it again, now."
"The pageant and 20 to life are all she needs to be concerned with," Alvin said under his breath. Smudge yipped in agreement. Melody kept her eyes on Ramona.
Perhaps if I only address Ramona, we'll get somewhere, she thought.
"I'm sorry we're interrupting your rehearsal, but we need to speak with you - and only you. Maybe you can take five?"
Denise leaped from her seat in seconds once Melody suggested that Ramona stop rehearsing. Some of her belongings fell to the floor, including her coat and her big designer bag of tricks.
"Now, you listen here. We are in the middle of rehearsal, and this is not the time nor the place for your distracting questions. I told you before, no one talks to my daughter without our lawyer present. She is innocent, and I've had enough of your meddling. I'm calling the police."
"I am the police, and you, ma’am, are starting to get on my nerves. You are currently obstructing justice, and if you do not stand down, you will be arrested," Alvin said as his frustration mounted. "We haven't accused your daughter of anything. We just need to double-check some facts with her that could help us crack the case. We're looking for her help, Mrs. Newman. If she's innocent and if she loved Ronald Atkins, I'm sure she would want to help us find his murderer." Finishing, he looked at Ramona and asked gently, "Wouldn't you, dear?"
"My mother did it!" Ramona's hand shot up and out toward her mother. Her finger pointed like a laser. Tears streamed from her face as she blurted the admission.
Denise gasped in horror as she spun to face her accuser!
"How dare you make such a vile accusation. I am your mother! Did you forget all that I have done for you? I've been covering up your messes your entire life, you ungrateful brat! If it weren't for me, you'd still be…"
"I'd still be singing in the shower at my leisure. I'd still be relaxing and maybe enjoying a good book, or I’d still be spending time with friends I no longer have. I’d have free time. Now, there’s a novel idea. I'd be happy. Maybe, I would even have a dog like Smudge. Mother, you know it has been me covering for you this whole time. I am always apologizing for your overbearing and embarrassing behavior. Well, now I'm done with all of that! I'm over this pageant, and I've had enough of you! Sheriff Hennessey, I want to come clean."
Melody's eyebrows were high on her forehead as she looked between mother and daughter in shock. Alvin and even Smudge stood frozen in place as they watched both women give up the other.
"I found you with Alexis' sash! I know you killed that dirty old man in a jealous rage, and I did what any mother would do, I covered for you!" Denise said, her face was as red as a tomato.
"There has never been a raging jealous bone in my body, Mother. Yes, he broke my heart, but I could never kill him, and you know that. That's why you did it! You hated the fact that I loved him more than I loved all of this!" Ramona mocked the contest by putting on her best pageant smile and walked across the stage, waving to the invisible crowd.
As the women argued back and forth, Smudge wandered over to Denise's bag. She hadn't lost interest in the bag yet. She sniffed it, then barked to get Melody's attention. Melody, who could barely peel her eyes from the Newman Family meltdown, turned her head slowly toward Smudge in query.
"Shoo!" Denise said, breaking her attention away from her traitorous daughter long enough to wave a hand at Smudge.
"You never cared about me, Mother! You wanted that crown for yourself. I never wanted it!" With the dam of secrets broken, Ramona continued to spill her guts.
Smudge barked at the bag again now, repeatedly. The sound of her bark echoed through the auditorium over the arguing women. She pawed the bag and looked at Melody. Her deep chocolate eyes were insistent.
Denise reached for the purse when Smudge pawed at it again. One of the straps caught on her paw, causing the bag to tip open. Its contents flew across the floor. One item slid right into Alvin's shoe. He glanced down, then instinctively reached for the thing before Denise lunged for it!
"That's Ronald's phone!" Melody said, shocked! In the excitement, she ran to Alvin. "Turn it over! Look for his initials!"
Alvin took out a plastic evidence bag and examined the phone encased in a protective gold cover. He flipped it over, and there at the very bottom of the case were the initials "R.A." He noted that it was a bit sticky. "Looks like we have a winner! Ms. Newman, you have the right to remain silent," Alvin said as he removed his cuffs from his belt.
Chapter Twelve
"It was you! You saw an opportunity, and you took it!" Melody pointed at Denise as all the fragmented memories her mind clung to from the night of the murder fell into place.
Denise laughed, but Alvin was moving toward her to slap the cuffs on her wrists. She took a few steps back from him, trying to keep out of his reach. Even though she laughed, her eyes were wide like a deer caught in headlights.
"That's ridiculous. I've done nothing but protect my daughter!" Smudge blocked Denise's path while Alvin advanced. Melody continued formulating her theory as she pieced it all together.
"You knew Ronald liked younger women, but you also knew he wanted older women just as much. He was a relentless flirt. I bet he flirted with you, too. You probably watched him ask all those contestants to put their phone numbers into his phone. It wasn’t that you wanted his affections. You just knew how to exploit his own weaknesses in order to manipulate him, didn’t you?
"The man was a pig!" Denise took another step back but jumped when she saw Smudge advance.
"When Alexis threw her drink in Ronald's face, you saw how upset Ramona was, and you also knew how drunk Alexis was. You waited until she passed out and grabbed her sash, thinking you could frame her for the murder," Melody continued with her accusations.
"Alexis was a selfish brat and a drunk. She doesn't deserve to wear a crown." Denise was cracking quickly. Melody knew it was ingrained in he
r character to compulsively correct others. It wasn’t a big surprise that Denise couldn’t stop confirming her bad deeds. The woman was a bit of a showoff, and Melody suspected she thought she was the smartest person in the room.
"Yes, and framing her helped eliminate some of the competition, but just in case that part of your plan fell through, you made sure you gave Colleen motive to kill Ronald by sending her those breakup texts. You're the one I saw texting outside in the shadows." Melody continued to egg on Denise.
"Colleen thought Ronald was going to gift her the crown! She would have won without earning it. My Ramona has worked tirelessly. She deserves to win!" Denise turned to Ramona just as Alvin reached her. He pulled her hands behind her back and cuffed her.
"Baby, I did this all for you! All of it! I just wanted you to be happy! I wanted you to be the best!" she pleaded to her daughter with the hope that she would be sympathetic.
"There's only one thing I haven't figured out," Melody said. "How did you snag his phone?" Denise glared at Alvin as he tugged her toward the red carpet for her walk of shame. The gig was up. With no reason to hold back any longer, Denise gave them the last piece of the puzzle.
"I saw him in a lustful embrace with Alexis before the reception. You saw them, too. Your little interruption distracted him enough that after you walked away, he rushed out of the room, worried he had been caught yet again. The word was out - Penelope had already warned him that if he was caught romancing another contestant, she would out him publicly. That's when I saw that Alexis was already half in the bag, and he’d left his cell phone on her vanity table."
"Brilliant! What an opportunist! Your mother really knew how to look out for you, Ramona," Melody said as she watched Alvin lead Denise away.
