by Lyndsey Cole
“Perfect.”
Hannah turned toward the path through the rocks to Jack’s house. A quick visit before she headed back to The Fishy Dish was in order. She slowed her pace when Pam’s cruiser came into view in Jack’s driveway.
Should she interfere?
Nellie pulled her closer to Jack’s house just as Pam walked out the front door. She leaned against her cruiser, arms crossed, and waited for Hannah.
Hannah felt a catch in her chest but she held Pam’s gaze without a flinch.
“You managed to embarrass your host at the garden party last night.” No hello from Pam, as usual. Nope. Just right to the meat of the conversation.
Hannah wasn’t sure if Pam was referring to Meg’s threat to accuse Marty Dunn of accosting her or to Samantha’s exit out the upstairs window. She remained quiet and played dumb.
Pam’s finger shot out and stabbed the air in front of Hannah’s face. “Marty Dunn was livid and came one inch away from suing your employee for a false accusation. I convinced him to let it go unless he wanted her threat on the front page of the paper, which in my opinion, and he finally agreed, would be worse than a bruised ego.” Pam sighed. “What’s going on? The garden party is certainly not where I would expect to find you as a guest, and it was even more of a surprise to hear that Meg Holmes attended.”
“Clara Hayes is staying in one of my guest cottages and she invited me.” Hannah shrugged. “It’s as simple as that. And the incident you are referring to was completely Marty’s fault. He’s the one that confronted us.”
“Things are never ‘as simple as that’ when you are involved, Ms. Holiday. Did your attendance have anything to do with Dwayne Dunn’s murder, by any chance? Were you looking for some sort of connection?”
Hannah tilted her head. Pam was fishing for information. “Why on earth would you think that, Deputy Larson?”
“Let me ask you a question. Why was Samantha Featherstone, pretend private investigator, locked inside Marty Dunn’s office?”
Hannah flicked that question away as if it was nothing more than a gnat. “She was looking for the bathroom.” Hannah shrugged. “What can I say, Samantha is getting old.”
Pam’s eyes narrowed. “If you have any information that could help this investigation, I advise you to turn it over. Now.”
“Ebony Dunn threatened me. What do you make of that?”
“About what?”
“She threatened to take Patches away unless I give her Dwayne’s papers. I have no idea what she’s referring to, and according to the letter Dwayne wrote to me, which is in your possession, Patches is now my dog. Along with the money to care for him. Have you explained all that to Ebony Dunn to get her off my back?”
“She is aware of the backpack and swears she has no idea where the money came from.”
“Of course that’s what she would say. She probably insists the money belongs to her, too!” Hannah shot back. “And what papers is she expecting me to magically find for her?”
“Good question. All I’ll say is that if you figure it out, it would be best for you, your friends, and the dog, if you share the information with me, because it could be the link we need to solve Dwayne’s murder.”
“I will stop by later today for a copy of my letter from Dwayne. If you don’t mind.”
Pam didn’t respond.
Hannah let out a lungful of air she didn’t even know she had been holding as Pam’s cruiser finally drove out of sight.
18
Hannah turned toward Jack’s house. He stood in his front window and raised his coffee mug as a salute, then crooked his finger, inviting her inside.
“You and my daughter had a nice chit chat?” Jack asked as he met Hannah and the dogs at the door and ushered her to a chair at his kitchen table. “You shouldn’t take what Pam says so personally; she’s only doing her job.”
Hannah let her body slump in the chair, forcing the tension from her muscles. “I know. It’s just—”
“It’s just you let her get under your skin. She’s a master at that and you have to toughen up. Now, tell me what happened.” He poured coffee into a mug and pushed it, along with the cream, close to Hannah.
Hannah told Jack about the events with Samantha and Meg at the Dunn garden party. His eyebrows almost disappeared over the top of his forehead with each revelation, but he remained quiet.
“The thing is, I did find some papers in Great Aunt Caroline’s filing cabinet.”
“And?”
“And, from what I can tell, it looks like Dwayne was working on a clarification process that can be used in wine making. Samantha overheard Marty Dunn and Blake McVee discussing Dwayne but she didn’t hear any specifics. Samantha did get the impression that Marty already promised to sell whatever they were discussing to Blake.”
“Why didn’t you tell Pam? It could be the motive she’s looking for to arrest someone for Dwayne’s murder.”
“The papers I found were entrusted to Great Aunt Caroline and I’m not positive they are the papers Marty was talking about. For some reason, Dwayne didn’t want his brother or his wife to get a hold of them, or why did he give them to Great Aunt Caroline for safekeeping?” She paused and leaned toward Jack. “If they aren’t the papers Marty and Ebony are talking about and I turn them over to the police, then I feel I’m betraying Dwayne’s secret entrusted to Great Aunt Caroline which has become my secret by default.”
“Interesting twist to justify your secrecy.”
“Samantha thinks we should try to get more information out of Blake to find out exactly what he’s trying to buy.”
Jack stood and bumped against the table, making Hannah’s untouched coffee slosh over the edge of her mug. “And you think that’s a good idea?”
“I think it’s worth a few questions, and Blake invited me and my friends to his boat tonight for a glass of wine from his winery. Do you want to come along?”
“The more the merrier,” Jack said without much enthusiasm. “And safer.”
“Great. I always feel better after bouncing ideas off of you. I’m leaving a little before seven.”
Jack gave bones to the dogs before Hannah walked to the door. “How is Patches coping?” he asked.
“He hasn’t tried to run off again so that’s a good sign. Dogs tend to live in the moment and Nellie is good company for him.” Hannah paused with her hand on the doorknob. “It’s almost like once we found Dwayne’s body, Patches attached himself to me.” She patted his head. “He’s a smart boy.”
“I’ll be over soon to man your office,” Jack yelled to Hannah after she was almost to the road.
Meg and Ruby had their hands full with the late morning crowd. Bread bowls filled with chowder, fried fish platters, lobster rolls, and coleslaw looked to be on everyone’s mind. Hannah took one of their new offerings— shrimp salad—and headed into the kitchen.
Meg was dragging. Her hair was plastered to the sweat on her forehead, but fortunately, she wasn’t in a complaining mood. “It was fun last night. I told Ruby the highlights of our adventure. The only problem was my screaming alarm clock this morning. But I wouldn’t have missed last night for anything. The look on Marty Dunn’s face when I threatened to scream that he was accosting me? Priceless!”
Hannah was enjoying a shrimp from her salad and almost choked on Meg’s words. “You are an actress, Meg. I don’t think there was one person at that party that didn’t believe you sprained your ankle.”
“Except the guy that rushed to my side. He whispered that he suspected I was faking but he didn’t blow my cover.” Her shoulders jerked up and down. “He played right along and even asked me if I needed a lift home.”
“He tried to pick you up?” Hannah laughed out loud. “And here I was heading into the lion’s den to rescue Samantha while you were having all the fun.”
“Hey,” Samantha’s voice sounded behind Hannah. “I can take care of myself, and don’t you forget it.” She stood with her feet apart and her hands on her hips. “I even managed
to come up with a good sob story when Blake found me a little bit ago and asked me where I ran off to last night. And, he invited me to his boat tonight. So there.”
“What did you tell him?” Meg asked. “Did you use me as your excuse?”
“Yup. And he bought it hook, line, and sinker.”
“About tonight,” Hannah said. “He invited me and all my friends so I hope you weren’t hoping to have Blake all to yourself.”
“That’s good. I’m not sure I want to be alone with him. He’s not my type.” She made a face. “You know, married.”
“I’m glad you draw the line somewhere,” Hannah teased. “I invited Jack to come with me. Ruby and Meg, do you want to come, too.”
Ruby pursed her lips. “I can’t. It doesn’t sound like anything for Olivia.”
“Count me in,” Meg answered enthusiastically. “Two nights out in a row will be the death of me, but I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“It’s not going to be all fun and games. The goal is to get some information out of Blake about his winery business and what he’s hoping to buy from Marty Dunn. Find out how he’s tied in with Marty and Ebony and who’s trying to backstab who.”
“What about Cal?” Meg asked. “I doubt he’ll blow you off two nights in a row.”
“I’ll ask him when he comes down for lunch. He’s not the biggest fan of Blake but I think he’ll join us.” She slid off the stool. “I’ll be in my cottage if anyone needs me. I have some paperwork to sort through.”
Nellie and Patches waited patiently for Hannah outside the kitchen of The Fishy Dish. She jogged to her cottage, filled the dogs’ water bowls, and took the manila folder with Dwayne’s papers into her office.
“You look like you’re on a mission,” Jack said as Hannah rushed through the door from her apartment into the office half of the cottage.
“I’ve got to photocopy these papers and store the originals someplace safe. Any suggestions?”
“If they are that important, I’ll take them to my house. Who would ever think to look there?”
Hannah ran the papers through her copy machine, stacked them, and slid them into a big envelope. She held them toward Jack, but when he tried to take them, she held on tight. “These are not to be shared with anyone. Understand?”
“Of course.”
“Not even your daughter. Promise?”
“Jeez, Hannah. You know me better than that.”
“Promise me, Jack. I’m not ready to share this information with her yet. I already explained why.”
Jack made an X across his chest. “I promise I won’t show Pam, unless—”
Hannah’s hand jerked back, taking the envelope with it. “There’s no unless. Either you promise or you don’t. I’ll decide if, and when, it’s time to show Pam.”
“I promise.” Jack stared at Hannah. “But I don’t like it.”
“You don’t have to. Just come with me tonight and keep your ears open. Meg, Samantha, and maybe Cal will be coming, too, so between all of us, we should find out something.”
“Explain to me again what you’re trying to discover?”
Hannah gave the envelope to Jack and sat in the chair facing her big antique desk. “Blake is trying to buy something from Marty. It makes sense that it would be something to help him at his winery, right?”
Jack nodded.
“Those are the original papers that contain Dwayne’s clarification process that I told you about. If that’s what Blake wants, it must be worth a lot for Marty and Ebony to be going to so much trouble to get their hands on the papers. I don’t intend to let those two get anywhere near them. Especially if one of them is the murderer.”
Jack shook his head. “Sounds complicated.”
Hannah left Jack to puzzle over her information and she returned to her half of the cottage. She had just enough time to straighten up before she got lunch and talked to Cal.
The bottle of bourbon that Meg found the night before was still on the counter. Hannah pulled a chair over so she could reach the top shelf. As she slid the bottle inside the cupboard, it clinked against something.
Hannah tried to maneuver the bottle of bourbon to the back but it wouldn’t budge. She carefully climbed up onto the counter.
What was inside the cupboard and how did she miss finding it after she moved into the cottage when her Great Aunt Caroline died? And why was it even up here where it would easily be forgotten?
Hannah stretched on her tippy toes and reached as far back as her fingers could go. Her nails scraped against cold metal. As she felt along the unknown object, her finger caught on a small loop. She slid the container to the edge of the shelf and, with both hands, she managed to get a firm grip and slide it out.
A locked metal box. Old. About the size of a loaf of bread. Not too heavy and nothing clanked around inside when she tipped it.
What was inside?
19
Hannah tenderly set the box on her kitchen counter.
With her fingernail as a lever, she tried to force the lid open but all she managed to do was break her nail. A screwdriver from her junk drawer was equally unsuccessful.
A knock on the door that separated her apartment and her office surprised her. She stuffed the metal box in her bread drawer before she opened the door.
“Pam?” The shock in Hannah’s voice was impossible to miss.
“I’m looking for Blake McVee and decided to save you a trip to the police station.” Pam handed Hannah an envelope. “It’s a copy of the letter Dwayne wrote to you. I don’t know why you want it.”
“Thank you. Is Blake on your suspect list?”
Pam’s lip curled into a half grin. “Just looking for answers to a few questions to help me clear up some information. Enjoy your wine with him tonight. Dad thought you should invite me to come along with you, too.”
“Um, well, I’ll think about it.” Hannah steamed that Jack told his daughter about the plans to go to Blake’s boat. Why would he do that?
Pam laughed and reached her hand out and touched Hannah’s arm. “Don’t worry. I’m busy tonight, but your reaction does make me wonder what you might be up to. Blake McVee doesn’t seem at all your type.”
“Oh, and what is my type, Pam?”
“Younger, for one thing, and a whole lot less narcissistic. But I suppose I can see Samantha Featherstone swooning over the likes of a blustery winery owner. Enjoy your evening.” Pam turned around and left Hannah with her mouth hanging open.
Jack peeked around the doorframe. “Oops. Our plan just slipped out when Pam asked me to have dinner with her tonight.”
“No problem. She loves to get under my skin and I think that was her plan all along.” Hannah held up the envelope. “At least I have a copy of Dwayne’s letter now.”
“You’re not mad?” Jack lowered his chin and gave her his best puppy dog eyes.
“I guess not. But I will be if she shows up at Blake’s boat tonight.”
The phone rang and Jack rushed to answer. Perfect timing for Hannah since she wanted to take another look at the letter and see if she had missed anything. She closed the door between her office and her apartment.
MISS HANNAH, IF YOU ARE READING THIS, SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED TO ME. USE THE MONEY TO TAKE CARE OF PATCHES. YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS SHOWN ME ANY KINDNESS SINCE YOUR GREAT AUNT CAROLINE DIED. SHE ALWAYS HAD MY BACK. DON’T LET ANYONE TAKE PATCHES AWAY. THANK YOU. DD
Hannah reread the letter several more times. How did Great Aunt Caroline have Dwayne’s back? What was Hannah missing?
And then something important popped into Hannah’s memory bank. The key that fell out of the envelope the first time Hannah read Dwayne’s letter. She fished around in her jewelry box and found the small key.
With the metal lock box out of the bread drawer and on the counter, Hannah held her breath and inserted the key. It wouldn’t go in. She flipped it around, emptied her lungs, and tried again.
“Come on.” She jiggled the key. “This h
as to fit,” she said, as if talking to the key would magically make it slip into place.
It worked. The key was in the lock. She turned it to the right and, with a click, the top bounced loose.
Her heart raced. What had her Great Aunt Caroline kept hidden in this beat up box?
A single piece of paper, folded in thirds, lay on the bottom of the box. Hannah picked it up with two fingers of each hand and let it fall open. What she saw was the last thing she expected to find—The Last Will & Testament of Dwayne David Dunn.
Hannah Holiday was the only listed beneficiary.
A smile spread across Hannah’s face. This was nothing she even considered she would find, but it was the most important piece of paper to protect Dwayne’s wishes and keep his greedy wife and brother away from anything of Dwayne’s.
Including the clarification process.
She went into her office and made a copy, which she folded and tucked into her pocket.
As soon as she was back in the apartment half of the cottage, her door opened.
Hannah turned toward the door and moved her arm with the original will behind her back.
Cal stood in her doorway. With the sun behind him, she couldn’t see any expression on his face until he took several steps into her room. His eyes traveled from the empty metal box to her side with her elbow sticking out.
“I stopped in to see if you want to get some lunch with me.” A crease formed between his eyebrows. “What do you have behind your back?”
Hannah relaxed. “You won’t believe what I just found.” She held the paper out for Cal to read and walked to the door to close it.
“Dwayne’s Last Will & Testament? I’m confused. You barely knew the guy. Why are you the beneficiary?”
“I don’t have the answer to your question, but my guess is that Great Aunt Caroline had something to do with it because I found it in that metal box hidden in the top shelf of my cabinet.”
“You only found it now? Something seems awfully strange about all this, Hannah. You end up with a backpack full of money, Dwayne’s private papers describing some kind of scientific process, and now his will? Is that piece of paper even legal?”
