Claus for Alarm

by Gretchen Allen

  “Maybe you should. How about this? You go, and I’ll keep my phone on. If you don’t call me by within a certain time, then I’ll know to rush over there.”

  “I like that idea, but instead of you rushing over, how about you call the police?” Charlotte suggested.

  “I suppose that does make more sense. Let’s catch a killer! Oh, boy, I sound like I’m from one of those shows I’ve been obsessed with. Actually, I sound like my grandma. She used to love murder mysteries.”

  Unfortunately, Charlotte thought, those mysteries were fictitious, this one was devastatingly real, and she was getting frighteningly closer to solving it.

  Chapter 16

  Charlotte left Franco hoping he transitioned from eating couch chips to cookies. She felt bad for the guy, but had to move on. She still felt that going to see Norm was the right thing to do, and so, she was going to do what her gut told her.

  When Charlotte arrived at Norm’s house, she saw that he was outside in his yard, digging through a large tote. She was thankful that he was outside and she didn’t have to go to the door. This way, she was out in public where neighbors could see, and if things weren’t going well, she could just leave rather than be inside his house trying to figure out a way to escape. She wasn’t sure why, but even if Norm hadn’t killed his wife, something told her that Norm knew more than he was letting on.

  “Hi,” Charlotte said, exiting her vehicle.

  “What a surprise.” Norm said, looking up. “I know you’re Mrs. Claus and all but do you have some sort of sixth sense?”

  Charlotte eyed him. “What do you mean?” She worried that he’d caught on and knew she was asking around about Kira’s murder.

  “I just dug out my holiday decorations and here comes Mrs. Claus right down my driveway,” Norm said, singing the words to the tune of a holiday favorite.

  She wondered if he’d gone off of his rocker too. Perhaps he and Franco needed to get together. Although, Charlotte realized that she’d never even had a conversation with Norm before. She knew nothing about him or his personality.

  “You’re decorating? That’s great,” Charlotte said, walking closer.

  “Yep. So, can I help you with something? I figure you aren’t really here to help decorate.” Norm chuckled, pulling a wreath from the tote.

  Charlotte suddenly felt panicked. She knew that her plan to say she brought the cookies to his house because the senior center was closed wasn’t going to work. She had no reason to bring them to his house. He wasn’t even involved other than letting her borrow his hat. She knew it was time to break out the honesty, because his calm mood was distracting her.

  “I wanted to offer my condolences, first. I am so sorry for your loss. I can’t imagine what you are going through.”

  “Did you bring food?” Norm asked, frowning.

  “Uhh,” Charlotte faltered. “I happen to have some cookies in the car if you’re hungry?”

  “I didn’t mean that. I just mean that everyone keeps coming over to offer their condolences and food. I have no more room. So, actually, if you’re hungry, you’re more than welcome to come in and eat,” Norm offered.

  “That’s okay. No need to feed me. Maybe you have a moment or two to talk?”

  “I think I can make that happen. If this is about the cookie exchange, don’t ask me any questions. I have no idea.” Norm held up his hands, mock surrendering.

  “Actually, it is.” Charlotte thought on her feet. “I have all these cookies and I don’t know where to bring them. I only stopped here because I saw you outside. I wanted to say hi, but I was also hoping you might know what to do with them. I tried the senior center, but it was closed. Gabby was in a meeting and no one at the town offices knew what I should do. I tried calling a few of the other ladies, but no one picked up, so my last bet was going to Emmy’s. I know she stepped down, but it was the only thing I could think of. I put hours into baking, and I didn’t want to make a mistake or lose out on the exchange, because I’m clueless. I finally got to Emmy’s and had a run in with her son, and just left. Now, here I am.”

  Norm grimaced. Just what Charlotte had hoped for. If Kira had truly had a thing for Teddy, mentioning him in a round-about way was sure to garner a reaction from him.

  “I forget his name, but he wasn’t very helpful,” Charlotte continued.

  “Teddy Kline. I’d never forget that name. Was he rude to you?” Norm asked.

  “Not rude exactly. Just unhelpful.” Charlotte didn’t want to say anything bad about Teddy. One, because she didn’t want to sway Norm’s reaction, and two, she didn’t have anything bad to say about him… yet.

  “Surprising. I never liked the man, personally.” Norm shrugged. “Since you aren’t here to talk about my opinions, I’ll say that I don’t rightfully know what to tell you to do with the cookies. I wish I could be more help.”

  “No problem. I’ll figure it out. Is it too much to ask why you don’t like Teddy, though?” Charlotte asked.

  “Because my wife did.” Norm tossed the wreath back into the tote.

  Charlotte hadn’t expected Norm to be so forward. “I see. Were they friends?”

  Norm scowled. “They were something. She never got over him. I know it.”

  “They had a relationship?” Charlotte played dumb.

  “Sure did. They dated, and they broke up and Teddy went straight to Hannah. If you ask me Kira never got over that. I was thrilled when Teddy left town. I finally thought we were rid of him for good. Then here he comes, strolling back into our lives. I saw Kira talking to him that day at your little meeting. I was furious.”

  Charlotte put her hand to her chest. “Are you saying you thought they were seeing each other again?”

  “No way. Teddy holds a candle for Hannah Sutton. He’d never want Kira. Doesn’t matter though, since she wanted him. I don’t doubt that she loved me, but I do think she’d have left me for him if she was given the chance.”

  “Do you think Hannah feels the same way?” Charlotte asked.

  “How would I know? Last I knew, Kira was gossiping about how Hannah’s weird little assistant was trying to date her. I can’t tell you why she’d want him or why she’d go back to a man that left her.”

  “Norm?” Charlotte asked. “Do you know why your wife was at Hannah’s the night she was killed?”

  “Sure.” He nodded. “She went to complain about not being put in charge of the cookie exchange.”

  “Thanks for the help!” Charlotte said, rushing back to her car.

  Charlotte considered an idea that hadn’t crossed her mind yet, and she had just one more stop to make.

  Sending a quick text to both Emmy and Teddy for good measure, Charlotte drove directly back to Franco’s house making sure to turn on her voice recorder.

  “You finally got it, huh?” he asked, meeting her at the door, still in his bathrobe, somehow looking worse than before.

  “Explain it to me, Franco. I don’t quite understand.”

  “I didn’t mean to. I loved Hannah.”

  “You loved her so much you framed her for murder?” Charlotte scoffed.

  “I didn’t try to frame her, it just worked out that way. I couldn’t bring myself to admit the truth. That’s why I look like this. I’m ashamed, I’m unworthy of her love.”

  “You’re a mess because she’s sitting in jail for a crime you committed? Here I was thinking you were upset because you killed someone.”

  “That doesn’t help my case, no. I didn’t mean for Hannah to get in trouble. I didn’t even mean to kill Kira. I didn’t plan this,” Franco wailed, slapping his hand over his mouth, eyes darting around the street. “Can you come inside so we can talk?”

  “Absolutely not. Did the fact that Kira liked Teddy have anything to do with why you killed her?”

  “You catch on quick, but not quite. I couldn’t care less what Kira did. I professed my love to Hannah, and then Teddy came back. I had to go to her house before she got the letter I mailed.”
>
  “You checked Hannah’s mail and ran her errands all the time. No wonder no one ever thought about you. You were always at her house. The last time we talked, and you asked me all those questions, it wasn’t because you cared, it was because you wanted to know our side of the story so you could keep yours straight.”

  Franco blinked, staring into space.

  Charlotte continued, “Norm said Kira went to talk to Hannah about the exchange, and you were at Hannah’s already. You snuck around once, and you snuck around then, too. Hannah came right to my house after work that day, so she wouldn’t have gotten her mail and you knew that. You also knew her schedule better than anyone else. So, you knew she’d be at my house, giving you just the right amount of time to get the mail, and hide the letter. Franco, why? If you loved her, why didn’t you just tell her?”

  “I tried, but I knew I didn’t stand a chance with Teddy back in town.”

  “Yes, but you took it back by going to get her mail. Let me guess, did Kira catch you at Hannah’s house snooping around while she wasn’t there? Or did you hear her at the door and think it was Hannah coming home? Wait. It all makes sense now. You heard Kira at the door, and looked outside to see who it was. You saw Teddy’s car in the street and knew Hannah was at my house, and you.. Oh, Franco… tell me if Hannah had come home you wouldn’t have killed her for being with Teddy.”

  “Of course not!” Franco exclaimed. “I already told you that…”

  “That you loved Hannah. I understand. You loved her so much that you got angry when you thought she was at my house with Teddy, so you killed Kira, who just was at the wrong place at the wrong time, so you could frame Teddy for the murder. You saw him there, giving him the opportunity, and you even tried telling me that you thought it was him. You weren’t trying to frame Hannah. You were trying to frame Teddy so you could get him out of the picture and have Hannah all to yourself again.”

  “I would have succeeded if it wasn’t for you.”

  “I’m surprised by you, Franco. When you were stalking around trying to help Hannah, I was impressed how well you hid your identity, making sure no one caught you helping her. I never would have thought that meant you were hiding your identity as a killer, too.”

  Just as Franco stuck his arm out, attempting to drag Charlotte into his house, a little, red taxi pulled up in front of Franco’s house.

  “Did someone call for a ride?” Burt asked, yelling out the window with a grin.

  The voice startled Franco, causing him to recoil and giving Charlotte enough time to get away. She looked inside the taxi. Teddy and Emmy were both in the backseat. Burt got out of the car, walked around to the passenger side and opened the door. “We saved the front seat for you.”

  As Charlotte got into the car, Franco glaring at them, Partridge Point’s finest pulled up behind the taxi. Charlotte had succeeded in helping Hannah, and couldn’t have done it without her new friends.

  Chapter 17

  “I wanted to thank everyone for meeting me here,” Hannah said, looking around her living room, and giving everyone a warm smile.

  “Why are we here again?” Stewart asked. “You’re cutting into my shoveling time.”

  “I’ll help you shovel,” Teddy offered. “How about we just listen to what Hannah has to say.”

  Charlotte sat with the new friends that she’d made since she’d arrived in Partridge Point. She, too, was curious about why Hannah had invited everyone to her house. Charlotte’s original plan had been to gather a few people in Hannah’s life and have a little welcome home from jail, I’m glad you aren’t a murderer party, but Hannah had been one step quicker.

  She’d invited Stewart, Burt, Norm, Gabby Raye, and even Emmy and Teddy to her home and was keeping everyone in anticipation.

  “I brought you all here to celebrate Charlotte. Without her, I might not be here right now.” Hannah put her arm around Charlotte. “I feel so lucky to have her in my life.”

  “Oh, my. That’s so sweet of you to think of me,” Charlotte said, feeling her face turn red. “I’ve heard quite a few times since I’ve been here that everyone is very competitive here, and while that may be true, I think all of you are wonderful. I’m the lucky one.”

  “I’d like to say something.” Gabby Raye held up her hand. Once everyone’s attention was on her, she began, “I want to thank Charlotte for coming here and being in the Christmas spirit. As you all know, we don’t get a lot of that around here, and it was a breath of fresh air. To Charlotte,” Gabby Raye said, raising her glass.”

  “To Charlotte,” the group said in unison.

  “Funny you should mention that,” Charlotte said. “I am by far the most festive person I’ve ever known. When I came here and didn’t see any decorations lining the streets, and realized that no one was very interested in the holiday, I let myself fall into a slump.”

  “Was it a slump, or was it the fact that something tragic happened and pulled you from the spirit?” Burt asked.

  “Maybe a little bit of both.” Charlotte nodded. “That hasn’t ever happened to me in my life, though. I know I did some decorating, but it just wasn’t the same. I’d like to thank all of you for reminding me that it isn’t only about lights and garland. The love and kindness you all showed me, and even each other is what it’s all about.”

  “You gave a few of us a sense of wonder we haven’t seen in a very long time,” Gabby Raye said, smiling. “I told you we’d be great friends.”

  Charlotte grinned, remembering the day she first met Gabby Raye. She’d heard more than once that she wasn’t so easy to get along with, and while she could see their points, she knew that at heart, Gabby Raye was a dear, just like she’d said before.

  “I’d like to say something as well,” Teddy began, getting up and walking closer to Hannah.

  Everyone in the group was silent, watching.

  Charlotte reached out and rested her hand on Hannah’s leg for support as Teddy continued, “I need to apologize to you, Hannah.”

  “We can do this later,” Hannah said quickly.

  “No. I want to do it in front of everyone. I have no reason to hide anything anymore.”

  Hannah nodded.

  “Over a year ago, I left town. I left you and I never even told you why. That was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I didn’t want to go, and I didn’t want to be away from you but I thought I was making the right choice by you.”

  Teddy’s hands were visibly shaking, as were Hannah’s.

  “Why did you leave?” Hannah asked.

  “Franco.” The group gasped collectively.

  “You left because of Franco?” Hannah turned to face Teddy.

  “Franco told me that you were too busy with your career to be distracted by me, but that you were afraid to tell me and hurt my feelings. You never liked to hurt people, so I believed him. I knew you were busy being mayor, and that you loved every second of it. I didn’t want to get in your way so I silently packed up my things and left.”

  “I hated you for over a year, Teddy. Why didn’t you just tell me?” Hannah asked.

  “I wanted you to hate me. It was better than having you feel guilty for preferring your career over me. I thought I was making the right choice back then, and I only came back because I knew how sad my mom was that I was gone. It wasn’t until Charlotte mentioned something about how lucky you were to have someone like me in your life that I realized how terrible of a choice I’d made. I’ve missed you since the day I left. I miss you right now. I’m so sorry that I didn’t tell you sooner.” Teddy put his hand over Hannah’s as Charlotte moved hers away.

  “I never once told Franco that. I thought you were going to propose to me the night you left,” Hannah admitted, letting out a breath.

  Charlotte looked over to Emmy, who sat watching her son and Hannah. She didn’t look thrilled, but you could tell by the look on her face that she was happy Teddy was happy and had been honest.

  Teddy hesitated, looking around the room. �
��Maybe we should talk about this more, later.”

  Hannah looked at the group as well, unable to hide her laughter. “We do have quite the audience.”

  “I’d like to thank all of you for being there for me.” Norm stood. “My relationship with Kira wasn’t an easy one, but you are all a good group of men and women. I’ve known most of you for either all of my life, or the majority of yours, and I never thought of any of you as friends. I’d like that to change. Starting now. If you’re willing to have me in your circle, of course.”

  Norm hadn’t been wrong. The life he lived with his wife was strained, and since mostly everyone in town knew that, they were the big gossip most of the time. Charlotte had the feeling that that was about to change.

  “I think we only live a few streets down from one another. I saw you outside with some decorations the other day when I drove by, but noticed that none of them are put up yet. I’d be willing to help you out if you want,” Burt offered, looking at Norm.

  Norm grinned. “I don’t get excited about very many things, but I think I’ll take you up on that.”

  Charlotte could agree there. She’d never met a more stoic man than Norm. Perhaps he even beat Stewart out at that game. Speaking of Stewart, he’d stayed mostly silent the entire time. She was shocked that he’d even come. Glancing over at him, she saw him sitting with his hands folded in his lap. She couldn’t tell if he looked uncomfortable or if it was actually painful for him to be in the room with everyone.

  “I’d love to help, too,” Gabby Raye chimed in. “I actually have an idea if anyone wants to hear me out.”

  A few comical groans erupted.

  “I’d love to hear it,” Hannah said, breaking her gaze from Teddy.

  “What if we all get together and help each other decorate? We can do one house at a time, and have a potluck or something at the end of the day.”

  “I think that’s the best thing I’ve heard all day!” Charlotte beamed, thrilled with Gabby Raye. “I’ll host the dinner, and I don’t mind doing all of the cooking. All of you have done more than enough for me, and I’d love to treat you all to dinner. Plus, I haven’t had the chance to cook a big meal in quite a while. Cooking only for oneself is no fun.”