by Lyndsey Cole
Wild-eyed, she turned toward Annie. “Of course. Why do you ask?”
Annie poured two cups of coffee—at least Leona had the presence of mind to get that started—and carried them to the counter. “Come here. Sit with me. Tell me what’s going on,” Annie said, trying not to sound overly bossy to someone who hated to be told what to do.
Leona’s shoulders sagged. She brushed her fingers through her wild mass of strawberry blond hair and slumped on to the stool. Her face fell forward almost hitting the counter. “Danny was passed out drunk when I got home last night.”
Those words hit Annie like a sledgehammer. Danny gave up drinking as soon as he and Leona started dating. This was bad. She put her arm around Leona’s waist and pulled her close. “He’s under a lot of stress. People slip sometimes.”
Leona nodded and wiped a tear from her cheek. “I know, but he went someplace and he doesn’t remember where.” She stared at Annie. “He left early this morning without talking to me. I’m really worried.”
Annie slid off the stool. “Maybe he needs time by himself to process what he’s going through. Give him some space. Come on, baking will get your mind off your problems.” She looked around the kitchen. “I see you’ve got every pan out, what’s first on the list?”
Leona surveyed her mess and managed to laugh until it turned into a big snort which got Annie going too. Leona turned the radio on, handed Annie an apron and preheated the oven. “Blueberry muffins and a couple of those special raspberry tortes. Martha said the shower is on for today and she added that for a surprise for Abby.”
“You get started with those and I’ll get a batch of Chubby Chickpea Salad ready for lunch. We haven’t had it on the menu in a while and I’m in the mood for some.”
Mia arrived and started setting the tables and arranging the books on the freebrary shelves. The three women maintained a pleasant rhythm, and before long the café was filled with the sweet aroma of baking muffins. When Leona pulled them from the oven, she set the biggest one aside. Annie knew she was saving it for Danny who hadn’t missed having a blueberry muffin and coffee since the day the Black Cat Café opened.
The cuckoo clock let them know it was seven o’clock and time to open for the day. Annie watched Leona step outside on the deck with a coffee. She stood at the railing, gazing out over Heron Lake. Annie suspected she was worried about Danny but at least she had pulled herself together.
The door jingled. When Annie turned around to see who was coming in, her smile spread across her face. “Good morning. I knew you wouldn’t miss your blueberry muffin.”
Danny’s face was drawn but he smiled and tucked his Red Sox baseball cap into his back pocket. “Where’s Leona?”
Annie nodded to the deck as she handed Danny a plate with the saved blueberry muffin. Nodding his thanks, he walked through the French doors.
Annie couldn’t hear what he said but she did notice the smile when Leona turned around and saw Danny. She ran to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, almost knocking the plate from his hands.
Mia asked Annie what was going on between Danny and Leona. Annie filled her in quickly before heading to the pastry case to help a customer. Henry Harper the third stood drooling at all the sweets. “I heard you and the other two stooges got nabbed at my granddad’s place.”
The hairs on Annie’s neck pricked up but she smiled politely. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Henry. I went to retrieve the jacket I left inside and we rescued a stray dog and her puppies. Whoever told you we were nabbed had some faulty information.” She unclenched her hands, willing the rest of her body to relax. “Would you like something?”
“Stray dog? My granddad had a dog who disappeared after he died. What does the dog look like?”
Annie knew Detective Crank was bringing Bella and her pups home today from the shelter, and for some instinctive reason, Annie didn’t like the idea of Henry the third getting his hands on the sweet dog. “A brown mutt. She’s at the animal shelter.”
Henry shrugged. “I don’t like dogs, but Granddad was attached to his mutt. No difference to me.” He surveyed the treats. “I’d like a half dozen of the blueberry muffins, but only if they’re fresh.” After Annie nodded, he continued, “And one of those raspberry things there.” He pointed to Leona’s new raspberry torte.
Annie put six muffins in a waxed bag and carefully placed the torte in a box. “Here you go.” As Henry reached for the goodies, Annie noticed an interesting ring on his finger. “That H on your ring? I’ve seen it before. What does it mean?”
Henry scrunched his brow. “Are you serious? H for Harper. This was my granddad’s ring. I recently found it in a box at my dad’s house.” He rubbed his index finger over the design, lost in his thoughts. “Where did you see it?” He stared at Annie with a cold hard gaze.
She turned her eyes away. “I don’t remember,” she lied. “It just looks familiar.”
His gaze lingered on Annie longer than made her comfortable. After what felt like an eternity, he carried his bag and box to the cash register and left the café.
Chapter 11
Camilla click clacked into the café on her pointy toed heels. Annie marveled that she could walk on those stilts without twisting her ankle. Camilla’s eyes roved around the mostly empty café before she approached Annie. “I need to talk to you,” she said while studying all the goodies in the pastry case. Camilla sighed. “The problem with coming in here is that I can’t resist trying something sweet.” She pointed to the raspberry torte. “Is that new?” Annie nodded. “I’ll have a piece please.”
Annie carried the treat to the booth and slid in across from Camilla. She rubbed her earlobe, feeling the soreness and reminding herself how she had to force the diamond earrings through the partially closed holes. “I can’t accept the earrings, Camilla.”
Camilla savored a bite of the torte with her eyes closed before answering. “Sure you can. The police checked out my story and released the diamonds to me. I can do whatever I want with them. You saved my life and that’s that.” She shoveled another big bite into her mouth indicating there was no more to discuss on that subject. “Unless you don’t like them,” she added after she swallowed.
“Oh no, they’re exquisite.” Annie laughed. “I’ll have to open a safety deposit box or I’ll worry constantly about them being stolen.”
Camilla waved her fingers. “Just wear them. No sense in hiding them away.” She reached to her neck and fingered the beautiful diamond necklace she was wearing. She leaned toward Annie and whispered, “These are still the fakes. I haven’t put the real diamonds back into the setting, but don’t tell anyone. I’m constantly getting compliments on this design.” She lowered her voice even more. “I laugh every time I think of how you hid the diamonds in the parrot’s cage. I had to clean the poop off once the police returned them to me.”
Annie settled against the back of the booth seat. “Okay, I’ll wear them. Thank you. Leona will be green with envy. You know, Bob had trouble getting the diamonds away from his parrot, Charlie.” They both laughed at the image. “So, how long are you staying in Catfish Cove? Camilla Rockwell is your legal name now?”
Camilla nodded. “New name, new lease on life. How long are you employing me at the Fisher Fine Art Gallery?”
Annie smiled. “As long as you want to stay. With your connections in the art world, all the artists that I feature are selling plenty of their work. We’re thrilled to have you.”
“Then that’s settled.” Camilla scraped the last bit of torte from the plate. “This is Leona’s best creation yet.” She wiped her mouth. “There’s something else I want to talk to you about. Do you know Henry Harper the third? Not that it matters, but is there a Henry Harper the second?”
“Henry Harper the first owned what’s known as the Harper House. Where Claire McClaven was murdered.”
Camilla nodded.
“When he died, his son, Henry Harper the second, sold the Harper House to Claire, and his son is Henry
Harper the third. It is confusing. Why the questions about Henry the third?”
Camilla shifted on the bench seat, crossing her legs and pulling on a broken fingernail. “Well, he came into the art gallery yesterday and asked me to look at a couple pieces of gold he has.”
“Gold?”
“Yeah. He had a couple of twenty dollar gold coins. He said he wanted to know what they’re worth, but I think he was flirting with me.” Camilla fluffed up her hair and leaned over the table. “Do you think he’s wealthy?”
Annie put her hand over Camilla’s. “You don’t want to go there. From what I’ve observed, he’s a sneaky, opportunistic fraud. I’d love to know more about where that gold came from.” And she added silently to herself, he could be a thief and murderer, too.
Camilla’s face fell. “Why do I always fall for the people who see me as an easy target?”
Patting her hand, Annie responded, “At least you know that about yourself now so you can be more critical with people you meet.” Annie narrowed her eyes. “Did Henry have any jewelry to show you?”
“No, but he was wearing an interesting gold ring that caught my attention. When I asked him about it, he puffed up like a peacock and said he had more jewels he inherited from his granddad.” Camilla grimaced. “I’m such a sucker for a guy who likes jewelry.”
Violet Sheldrake and her son Larry entered the café in a heated argument with each other. Larry’s face was red with anger and his hands were clenched into tight fists. Annie overheard Violet say, “Don’t worry about Cody McClaven, I’ll handle him.” She put a friendly smile on her face as she approached the pastry display.
Annie and Camilla slid from the booth and Camilla headed across the hall to open the art gallery. With Martha occupied with her granddaughter, Abby, Camilla said she would work all day.
“Everything in here looks absolutely delicious. How does anyone decide on just one?” Violet asked more to herself. She asked Larry without turning toward him, “Would you like a blueberry muffin?”
Larry’s back tensed as he poured himself a coffee at the self-serve cart. “No. Can’t you remember that I don’t like blueberries? Get me something with chocolate.”
Violet looked at Annie and shrugged her shoulders. “You try to be nice and that’s the attitude you get. I’ll take a slice of that raspberry torte, and a brownie for Larry.”
“I don’t want anything with nuts either,” Larry said from the booth where he sat with a scowl on his face.
Annie put a chocolate brownie, without nuts, on one plate and a piece of the raspberry torte on another. “How is it going at the Harper House? Such a shock about Claire,” Annie said, hoping to get some information from Violet. She set the plates on the top of the display. “Here you go.”
“Yes, that’s the last thing I expected when she sweet-talked me into helping her finance her project. I’ll pay you back in six months, Claire promised. Now I’m stuck working alongside her son, Cody. And a possible lawsuit on top of everything else.” Violet’s hands flew around as she talked, threatening to knock the plates off the display top.
Annie asked in her sweetest, most innocent voice, “A lawsuit? What would that be about?”
“I’m so angry, I don’t even want to talk about it.” She glanced at her son and lowered her voice so only Annie could hear her next comment. “Larry is fit to be tied. Of course, he thinks my money is already his and he’s furious I’m in this situation now.”
Annie nodded, hoping she looked appropriately sympathetic. “Does Larry visit often? I didn’t even recognize him when he came in with his wife yesterday morning.”
“Not nearly often enough.” Violet frowned. “It’s that wife of his. She turned Larry against me. They didn’t arrive until almost dinner time two days ago. I was waiting all afternoon, wondering whether I would be eating alone again.” She smiled a devious smile. “I knew he would come eventually. He comes to get his allowance and he’s not about to forfeit that. Who said a little bribery didn’t get you what you want? But I’m about ready to cut that allowance and I told him so.” She chuckled as she took the plates to the booth.
Annie kept one eye on Violet and Larry wishing she could hear their conversation but the café had a few more customers come in and she had to give them her attention. Violet’s comment about Larry not arriving until almost dinner time stuck in Annie’s head. Something didn’t sound right but she couldn’t put her finger on it.
Margery hustled into the café weighed down with several shopping bags. She stopped just inside the café door looking around until she saw Larry and Violet. A smile blossomed on her face as she marched to their booth and slid in next to Larry. The smile on Violet’s face vanished the second she saw her daughter-in-law but Margery was cheery and friendly, either ignoring or else oblivious to Violet’s sudden change of mood.
Annie watched as Margery took one purchase after another from her bags to show to the other two. Violet and Larry barely paid attention to Margery’s excitement. Violet wrapped the remainder of her torte in a napkin and scooted out of the booth leaving Larry trapped with his wife.
As Violet walked by Annie, she cupped her hand around her mouth and said with disgust, “She didn’t waste any time spending Larry’s allowance.”
As soon as Violet left the café, Annie remembered the conversation she had with Larry in the art gallery the day before. Larry told Annie that he had spent the afternoon he arrived with his mother, but Violet said Larry didn’t get to her house until almost dinner time. Why did Larry lie and where had he been?
Chapter 12
The lunch time crowd filled up the café, keeping Annie busy and pushing her thoughts to the back of her mind. The Chubby Chickpea Salad was a hot request. The best way to make something popular was to stop serving it for a while. The curly sweet potato fries added the perfect complement to the salad. The grill was sizzling with burgers, both beef and veggie, plus grilled chicken for juicy sandwiches with bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato and avocados for additional options.
When the café hummed with activity and savory aromas, Annie enjoyed the pace. But as soon as it slowed down enough, she hung up her apron, scooped some salad into a bowl and scooted across the hall to her gallery to give Camilla a break. Not that she appeared to need one. Henry Harper the third had Camilla tittering like a silly schoolgirl.
As Annie approached, Camilla quickly glanced at her but continued to look enthralled with Henry’s story. The tail end caught Annie’s attention.
“ … my father and I never knew Granddad had all these valuables. It was a shock to find them,” she heard Henry tell Camilla as he dangled a gold chain in front of her.
When Annie reached Camilla’s side, Henry quickly shoved all his trinkets into a black velvet lined metal box, slamming the lid closed. “See you later Cam?”
Camilla responded, “I’ll text you Henry.”
Henry never acknowledged Annie’s presence before he tucked his box into his backpack and left the gallery.
“So, you certainly have an admirer,” Annie teased.
Camilla paused and watched the doorway, checking to be sure it was empty. “Actually, something about him makes my skin crawl but I want to find out more about all this gold he has. If he’s not more careful, someone’s going to steal it.”
“Not you, I hope. You finally got jewelry theft off your résumé.”
“No. I wouldn’t dream of stealing anything. I’m just saying, he’s one careless, arrogant man to flaunt all that stuff like it’s only a bunch of cheap baubles.”
Annie set her bag on her office desk. “I brought you something to eat if you’re hungry.” She settled into her desk chair. “I’m planning to hang around here until the baby shower starts.”
Camilla touched Annie’s arm. “Henry wants to take me out for a bite to eat when I’m done working.”
Annie sensed there was more to Camilla’s comment and waited for her to continue.
“I want to see if I can find out more
about where all this gold stuff came from.” She cocked her head and raised her pierced eyebrow.
“Okay …” Annie said, drawing out the word as she tried to figure out what Camilla might be planning. “You’re going to string him along? Play on his emotions?”
Camilla smiled. “It’s something I’m pretty good at. And now I have an angle to keep me from falling for him. It will be good practice for me. Aren’t you curious about the gold too?”
Annie offered Camilla a container of curried chicken salad. “You read my mind. That gold could be a key to why Claire was murdered.”
Camilla’s hand stopped on its way to accept the bowl of food. “What do you mean by that?” Her face went pale.
“Well, there have been rumors for years that old man Harper had hidden valuables in his house.” Annie rummaged in her bag, searching for the gold watch cover. “Look at this. Leona found it last night when we went to the Harper House to get my jacket.” Annie handed the cover to Camilla, thinking she might as well continue the excuse for why they went into the house. Just in case the story was repeated to the wrong person.
With the food forgotten, Camilla studied the gold cover, turning it over and tracing the engraving gently with her index finger before looking up at Annie. “Do you know what this is?”
“I think it’s the cover of a pocket watch.”
Camilla nodded. “It’s beautiful. And old. Do you think this H is for Harper? Part of the old man’s hidden treasure?” She handed it back to Annie.
“That’s exactly what I think. When you meet Henry the third later, do some fishing and see what you can come up with. No specific questions, but if he’s flirting with you and showing off his treasures, maybe you can get more information without sounding too obvious.” Annie tried to hand the food to Camilla again, and this time she took it and sat in the extra chair. “One more thing,” Annie added. “Don’t tell Henry the diamonds in your necklace are fakes.”
Camilla’s hand went to her throat. “Is that why he’s spending so much time flirting with me? He’s after the diamonds?”
