by Kathi Daley
“Spar?”
“Verbally. Not physically.”
“In your mind, is it possible that the men may have both come downstairs for something to read or perhaps something to drink, and while they were both downstairs, an argument ensued, and Mr. Standoff ended up dead?”
“No,” I answered without hesitation. “Gaylord would never kill one of our guests or anyone for that matter just because they were a self-entitled boob.” I tapped down my irritation with this line of reasoning and tried to remind myself that the man was just doing his job. He didn’t know Gaylord the way I’d come to know him, so he couldn’t know that the man was perfectly harmless.
“Okay,” Officer James continued. “Go on. Who else was staying in the inn last night?”
“As I already mentioned, Gaylord is staying in unit six. Our victim, Milton Standoff, was in unit five. Unit four is currently empty since the guests who were in that unit checked out yesterday, and no one is due to check in until the weekend. A man named Noah Daniels is in unit three. He is in town to interview for the head pastor position at the church. He is a very nice man, mid-thirties, and he has a calming and serene way about him. I don’t know him well, but I would be willing to bet there is no way he would kill anyone.”
Officer James continued to jot down notes. “Continue. What about units one and two?”
“Christy and Haley Baldwin are in unit two. Christy is in town so that her daughter can visit her grandparents. Christy’s husband, Ron, died just about a year ago and his parents asked Christy to bring Haley to town so they could spend time with their granddaughter.”
“And unit one?”
“Empty as well. We have a couple checking in on Thursday.”
“So, in your opinion, none of the current guests would have been likely to have killed Mr. Standoff?”
I slowly shook my head. “No. As I’ve already stated, I really can’t see that any of them would have done such a thing.” I glanced at the sheet-covered human form laying on the floor. “I can’t explain how anyone who was not a guest or employee could have gotten in here to kill this man, but I just don’t think the killer was anyone we’ve spoken about.”
“How long has Mr. Standoff been staying with you?”
“Almost two weeks. Like I said, he is in town to direct the pageant.”
“And this pageant, is it an annual event?”
I nodded. If this man didn’t know about the Holiday Bay Thanksgiving Pageant, he must be new to the area since our pageant was a well-known event throughout Northern New England. “The pageant is part of the week-long ‘kick-off to the holidays’ celebration’ the town sponsors to lure tourists into the area. From what I understand, the town hosts the pageant every year on the weekend before Thanksgiving, but this is the first year they’ve brought in outside talent. Normally, Emma Johnson from the high school directs the play.”
The officer looked at me. “Do you know why the town is doing things differently this year?”
I slowly shook my head. “Actually no, I’m not sure why the committee decided to bring Mr. Standoff in. I suppose he does provide a degree of name recognition. He was just in that movie with Denzel Washington. I can’t remember the title. It was some sort of a thriller that I never did get around to seeing. And I think he did a movie with Will Smith a while back. Both movies were popular, but Standoff just had bit parts. Still, I suppose he has had bit parts in other movies as well. I think he might have been one of the villains in a Marvel movie. I imagine the committee figured that if they brought in a professional actor to direct the pageant, they might attract more spectators from the larger cities west of us.”
“So, in the almost two weeks the man has been staying with you, have you been made aware of anyone who specifically might hold a grudge against him?”
“If you are looking for a list of individuals who will breathe a sigh of relief when they find out this man is no longer in the picture, you are going to need a bigger notebook. But wanting the man gone does not mean that the men and women who pour their hearts and souls into the pageant each year necessarily wanted him dead.”
Officer James jotted down a few more notes. He paused and looked around the room. The pilgrim statue was still lying on the floor. He bent over and picked it up with a gloved hand. “It’s heavy.”
I nodded. “It’s made of lead.” I nodded toward the mantel where the female pilgrim still stood. “It’s part of a set. Antiques. I’ve been told they are over a hundred years old.”
I watched as the gloved officer slid the statue into an evidence bag.
“The fact that this man was hit over the head with an object close at hand indicates a crime of passion,” Officer James stated. “If I had to guess, Mr. Standoff either ran into an employee or another guest after he’d come into the parlor for some reason. He argued with whomever he ran into, the employee or guest became angry, grabbed the pilgrim statue, and hit the man over the head with it.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I really don’t think it was a guest or employee that killed this man.”
Officer James began tapping his pencil on his pad once again. It seemed to be a nervous habit. “Okay, if not a guest or employee, then who? According to what you just told me, no one else, except for your contractor, has a key to the place, and we’ve established that the murder occurred after Mr. Slater locked up for the evening.”
“I suppose Mr. Standoff might have asked someone to meet him here. As I’ve already indicated, the doors are locked at ten p.m., but the guests have access to move about at will. All the exterior doors open from the inside, which would allow any guest to invite someone in, and, as I’ve already indicated, the keys to each suite open the back door which leads from the drive into the kitchen. We’ve set things up this way so that anyone who might still be out after we lock up, can get in. So as you see, it is totally possible Mr. Standoff invited someone to meet him here. If that is true, then the killer could really have been anyone.”
Books by Kathi Daley
Come for the murder, stay for the romance
Zoe Donovan Cozy Mystery:
Halloween Hijinks
The Trouble With Turkeys
Christmas Crazy
Cupid’s Curse
Big Bunny Bump-off
Beach Blanket Barbie
Maui Madness
Derby Divas
Haunted Hamlet
Turkeys, Tuxes, and Tabbies
Christmas Cozy
Alaskan Alliance
Matrimony Meltdown
Soul Surrender
Heavenly Honeymoon
Hopscotch Homicide
Ghostly Graveyard
Santa Sleuth
Shamrock Shenanigans
Kitten Kaboodle
Costume Catastrophe
Candy Cane Caper
Holiday Hangover
Easter Escapade
Camp Carter
Trick or Treason
Reindeer Roundup
Hippity Hoppity Homicide
Firework Fiasco
Henderson House
Holiday Hostage
Lunacy Lake
Celtic Christmas – December 2019
Zimmerman Academy The New Normal
Zimmerman Academy New Beginnings
Ashton Falls Cozy Cookbook
Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mystery:
Pumpkins in Paradise
Snowmen in Paradise
Bikinis in Paradise
Christmas in Paradise
Puppies in Paradise
Halloween in Paradise
Treasure in Paradise
Fireworks in Paradise
Beaches in Paradise
Thanksgiving in Paradise – October 2019
Whales and Tails Cozy Mystery:
Romeow and Juliet
The Mad Catter
Grimm’s Furry Tail
Much Ado About Felines
Legend of Tabby Hollow
Cat of Christmas Past
The Great Catsby
Count Catula
The Cat of Christmas Present
A Winter’s Tail
The Taming of the Tabby
Frankencat
The Cat of Christmas Future
Farewell to Felines
A Whisker in Time
The Catsgiving Feast
A Whale of a Tail
The Catnap Before Christmas – October 2019
Writers’ Retreat Mystery:
First Case
Second Look
Third Strike
Fourth Victim
Fifth Night
Sixth Cabin
Seventh Chapter
Eighth Witness
Ninth Grave
Rescue Alaska Mystery:
Finding Justice
Finding Answers
Finding Courage
Finding Christmas
Finding Shelter – Early 2020
A Tess and Tilly Mystery:
The Christmas Letter
The Valentine Mystery
The Mother’s Day Mishap
The Halloween House
The Thanksgiving Trip
The Saint Paddy’s Promise
The Halloween Haunting
The Christmas Clause – November 2019
The Inn at Holiday Bay:
Boxes in the Basement
Letters in the Library
Message in the Mantel
Answers in the Attic
Haunting in the Hallway
Pilgrim in the Parlor – October 2019
Note in the Nutcracker – December 2019
A Cat in the Attic Mystery:
The Curse of Hollister House
The Mystery before Christmas – November 2019
The Hathaway Sisters:
Harper
Harlow
Hayden – Early 2020
Haunting by the Sea:
Homecoming by the Sea
Secrets by the Sea
Missing by the Sea
Betrayal by the Sea
Thanksgiving by the Sea – October 2019
Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mystery:
Murder at Dolphin Bay
Murder at Sunrise Beach
Murder at the Witching Hour
Murder at Christmas
Murder at Turtle Cove
Murder at Water’s Edge
Murder at Midnight
Murder at Pope Investigations
Seacliff High Mystery:
The Secret
The Curse
The Relic
The Conspiracy
The Grudge
The Shadow
The Haunting
Road to Christmas Romance:
Road to Christmas Past
USA Today best-selling author Kathi Daley lives in beautiful Lake Tahoe with her husband Ken. When she isn’t writing, she likes spending time hiking the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home. She has authored more than a hundred books in eleven series, including Zoe Donovan Cozy Mysteries, Whales and Tails Island Mysteries, Tess and Tilly Cozy Mysteries, Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mysteries, Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Series, Inn at Holiday Bay Cozy Mysteries, Writers’ Retreat Southern Seashore Mysteries, Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mysteries, Haunting by the Sea Paranormal Mysteries, Family Ties Mystery Romances, and Seacliff High Teen Mysteries. Find out more about her books at www.kathidaley.com
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