Pumpkin Spice Sacrifice

by Addison Moore

  “You’re a good friend, Lottie.” Noah reels me in, and I relax over his chest as if it were my new home. “I just wish you weren’t such a good friend to my former brother.” He frowns at the fountain behind me. “I’m sorry. It’s silly of me to say.”

  “No, I get it.” I hike up on the balls of my feet and brush a kiss over his lips. “If I’m being perfectly honest, I’m not entirely thrilled you have to spend so much time with Ivy—and never mind how insane it makes me that the two of you are keeping secrets.”

  A dull laugh rumbles through him. “Only because you want the upper edge on the investigation.”

  I’m about to tell him that I’m pretty certain I have the upper edge but think better of it.

  “Never mind that.” I pull him in closer by the tie. “Did you find the answers you were looking for?”

  “Maybe. But, in truth, I think we only came away with more questions. And you?”

  “Um—same.” I shrug. There’s no way I’m handing Jules King to Ivy on one of my delicious cookie platters. When I’m good and certain, I’ll tell Noah and he can make the arrest. And then Keelie’s father, the captain of the sheriff’s department, will see what an asset he is and take him off probation—and if I’m lucky, he’ll fire Ivy for being useless.

  Noah tips his head into my line of vision. “You have a naughty look in your eye. Am I going to like what you’re thinking?”

  “I think you are very much going to like what I’m thinking. I have the bakery staffed for the rest of the day. How about we grab a pizza and cuddle up with Pancake and a movie at my place?”

  “You’re right. I very much like what you’re thinking.” His brows bounce, and that crooked grin graces his face.

  “Well, Detective Fox, I think pizza is my new favorite food group.” I give his tie a tug as I touch my nose to his.

  “I think I’ve got a hankering for something a little sweeter.”

  Noah lands a kiss over me that’s far sweeter, far more demanding and exciting than anything I could whip up in the kitchen.

  Noah’s kisses taste a lot like love.

  We pull up to Country Cottage Road and are immediately greeted with the strobe of the flashing lights on top of at least a half dozen police cruisers. I look over to where they are and gasp.

  “They’re at Everett’s house.”

  Noah and I park in haste, facing the wrong way, and we hop out and run over to the two-story home that sits next to mine.

  “Everett!” I call out as he stands next to a sheriff’s deputy.

  He excuses himself and walks our way.

  “What hap—” I don’t even finish the question before my eyes land on the malfeasance. Scrawled in dripping red paint across his white double door entry is the word murderer. The window next to the door has a giant hole in it and shattered glass sparkles over the porch. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Just kids, probably.” He looks indifferently toward the damage. “They tossed a brick inside before they left. No one saw anything. Apparently, the entire neighborhood was at the funeral.”

  “Any security cameras?” Noah’s eyes shoot at the four corners of the house at once.

  “Not yet.” Everett sighs. “I’m having them installed Tuesday. It looks like I was off by three days.”

  “I’ve got ’em.” Noah gives my hand a squeeze. “I’ve got one pointed at Lottie’s just in case. I’ll go see if it caught anything.” He takes off to speak with the deputies, and a couple of them head across the street with Noah.

  “You’re right. It was probably just kids—teenagers,” I say it with all the angst I can muster. “Your name is going to be cleared very, very soon.”

  “Not soon enough. The city council contacted me yesterday and asked me to step down until I’m no longer a suspect.”

  I suck in a quick breath. “Everett! I don’t know what to say.” My hands cover my mouth, and I take him in like this, stoic, strong even in the face of adversity.

  He pulls back and swallows hard. “It’s okay. Although, I will confess, I wish my father would have hung out a little longer. Now that we’re no longer locked in a feud, I’d rather prefer he was with me.”

  “That’s very sweet.”

  “I guess I’ll have to opt for the next best thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “A girl by the name of Lily Swanson invited me out to dinner.”

  “No!” My voice resonates a little too much punctuation for someone who’s just friends with Everett, and I hate that.

  “I did say no. I’m going to dinner with Fiona instead.”

  “Fiona Dagmeyer?” I’m not feeling so great about her either. Fiona is a defense attorney that works down at the courthouse with him. And she also happens to be one of his infamous exes. She’s a gorgeous brunette, smart as a whip, and quite possibly Everett’s last hope—that is, unless I come through for him.

  “They don’t call her The Dagger for nothing. I figure I’d better stay one step ahead of the sheriff and lawyer up as they say.”

  “I’d hate for you to bear the expense, especially since your name will be cleared in no time.” Like as soon as I get my hands on Jules King.

  “Don’t worry about that. Fiona doesn’t charge me. At least not in dollars.” He gives a quick wink as he heads toward the sheriffs.

  Noah comes back shaking his head. “The camera is too high and square on your house. I’ll have to get another one and point it his way.”

  “Aren’t you the knight in shining armor. Hey, Everett just told me the city council asked him to step down while the investigation was underway. Is there any possibility you can clear his name by Monday?”

  Noah winces. “I wish I could. Lottie, what I’m about to tell you is for your ears only. Do not, and I repeat, do not say a word to anyone, least of all Everett.”

  “I won’t say a word, I promise.” My heart drums into my throat as if he were about to give me devastating news, and I think he might be.

  “We have solid evidence that Everett placed a powder-like substance into Collette’s mug that night.”

  “What?” My entire body tingles with disbelief. There’s no way it’s possible. I was with Everett for most of the night—with the exception of that big argument he had with Collette. My God, he didn’t really have it out for Collette, did he?

  “I wouldn’t kid about something like that. We have it on tape.”

  “Did you ask him about it?”

  He looks past me at Everett. “We just reviewed the evidence yesterday. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack, but we got the footage off a cell phone of someone who was at the ceremony that night. A few people voluntarily turned in their phones because they had been taking footage of the event. Unfortunately, that’s what we stumbled upon.”

  “He’s not guilty, and we both know it.”

  Noah closes his eyes a moment as he looks over to Everett. “He sure as hell looks it.”

  A heavy sigh expels from me.

  He sure as hell does.

  Chapter 13

  Baking requires both common and uncommon ingredients. I’ve secured some of the more exotic ingredients all the way from Italy, and others can be purchased at the local grocery store. Every ingredient needs to be measured carefully so it can best accomplish its purpose, and I’m betting that’s exactly how the killer went about preparing the wolf’s bane.

  Keelie leans over my shoulder. “What’s wolf’s bane?”

  “Would you shush?” I seal my laptop closed and glance at the customers seated around me at the Cutie Pie Bakery and Cakery. The paper turkeys and cornucopias brimming with pumpkins give this place a fun festive feel for the upcoming holidays, and I’d hate to break the spell with talk of poison of all things. “Noah thinks that’s what they used to kill Collette,” I whisper.

  “It sounds deadly.”

  “It is. According to the information I was able to find, the proper name is Aconitum, and it stems from the sunflower family. You can on
ly grow it in certain climates—and just a little can be deadly. Whoever was able to slip this into her drink knew exactly what they were doing, and they are most likely a gardener or have had access to this plant.”

  “Maybe we should go to that garden club our mothers belong to?” She slides into the seat across from me, her eyes never leaving mine. “I want to help you catch this killer.” I shared with her all about Everett’s predicament, and I was about to share some far more intimate things regarding Noah and me, but we were interrupted.

  “The Horticulture Hotties? I think if I showed up out of the blue and began asking about poisonous plants, I might raise an eyebrow or two. Discovering three bodies in three months has sort of put a pox on me socially. I’m lucky the bakery hasn’t been affected.”

  “Speaking of hotties”—Keelie bubbles with laughter before she can get the words out—“I do believe you were about to tell me all about your special night with a certain detective. Did things get steamy? Is my best friend officially over her self-imposed dry spell?”

  “Yes—I mean no. Noah and I are officially together now, but we’ve chosen to take things slow.”

  “What? I think a spell of another kind has been cast on you. Are you feeling well? If you take things any slower, we’ll be rewinding time.”

  “We agreed we think it should be special. We’ve decided on early December. That way we can get Thanksgiving out of the way—and I might have included Black Friday in that scenario.” I wince. “But only because I love a deal.”

  “Amen, sister.” She fans herself a moment with her fingers. “So December, huh?”

  “Early December. Right before the holiday hustle and bustle. I’m thinking about taking a weekend off from the bakery.”

  “An entire two days off in a row?” she teases. “You do realize you’re the only person in the bakery who’s worked seven days a week since opening day.”

  “It’s my baby. Nell put me in charge, and I don’t want to let her down.”

  “You’re letting me down—by scheduling sex. You’ve managed to take something exciting and spontaneous and turn it into something akin to a doctor’s appointment.”

  “And I’m sure the doctor will be very, very thorough with his examination.” I blink a wry smile. “Keelie, this is what works for us, and it’s going to be great. Noah is great.”

  “Just remember, if you overthink something, you might actually ruin it. Trust me, spontaneous is the only way to go. But since you’re insistent, I’ll buy you a calendar for Christmas, and you can pencil him in to your heart’s content.”

  “Make it a calendar filled with kittens and I’ll be more than content.”

  “Sex kittens.” She waggles her brows. “So, what’s next with the investigation? Any more strip clubs, mobsters, or Jungle Rooms to explore? I think your homicide hustle is far more interesting than what you don’t have going on in the bedroom with Noah. And just for the record, that boy really is a fox.”

  “Don’t I know it.” I strum my fingernails over the table a moment. “Next up in my homicide hustle is speaking with a woman by the name of Jules King. She worked with Collette down at the PR firm.”

  “Ooh, are we bringing more cookies to those suited-up cuties down in Ashford?” Her shoulders shimmy in giddy anticipation.

  “No. I’m afraid I’ll arouse too much suspicion if I go back. Besides, I’m pretty sure they’re sick of seeing me. I thought we should just try to run into her—you know, something natural.”

  “Something natural. And how do you suppose we do that?”

  “We follow her. We leave the bakery at four, so we arrive in Ashford by five and hopefully we see her head to her car. Maybe she’ll go to the supermarket, or a restaurant before she goes home?”

  “Or maybe she’ll head to the Jungle Room and I can see this delicious place for myself!”

  Keelie has been more than upset that I opted to take Everett over her.

  “Or maybe she’ll head home and we can see a movie instead?” I offer.

  “We can hit dinner at the Ashford Grill. You can have your favorite Gouda grilled cheese, and I’ll get the mac and cheddar.”

  “Now that you mentioned grilled cheese, I’m sort of hoping she goes home.”

  “Me too.”

  Jules doesn’t go home. Instead, she heads straight to the Ashford Hard Body Gym where both Keelie and I pick up a day pass to “check out the facility.” I no sooner thanked the woman who issued the pass than I asked where my friend Jules might have gone.

  “The dark-haired woman? She’s a part of the Monday night Skin Swim—water aerobics. The locker room is right through those doors. You’ll have to lock up all your things. They have a strict no cell phone policy. The only things you can bring into the pool room are your towel and a smile.”

  And she wasn’t kidding. Not a stitch of clothing is permitted during what the teenager monitoring the locker room door referred to as the skinny dip hour.

  Keelie and I head down through the gym to the private entrance to the pool room with our towels wrapped around our bodies as if we just got out of the shower. And my God, I’m going to need thirty showers just to wash this day off me.

  “We’re going to swim naked!” Keelie trills. Her excitement for this event seems unrivaled by just about anything we’ve done before just as mine is waning.

  “Yes, Keelie, we are. And please, for the love of all things holy, do not look at my bits and pieces.” The walkway opens up to a cavernous room locked in a blanket of humidity. The stench of chlorine burns my nostrils—and I’m assuming it will be burning far more delicate places sooner than later. A mass of flesh congregates near the opposite edge of the pool, and a smattering of people are already enjoying the cerulean blue water, swimming fearlessly, expanding and retracing their limbs like a frog, the way my mother does at the lake in the summer.

  Keelie leans in. “My God, this gives an all new meaning to the words breast stroke.”

  “I’m just thankful there are only a handful of men, and they all look about ninety.”

  Her lips crimp. “Too bad that hottie judge isn’t here. I’d sure like to climb on his shoulders and play a game of chicken.”

  My stomach tightens when she says it. I’m not sure how I feel about Keelie crushing on my Everett.

  GAH! My Everett? He’s not my anything. He’s ornery, curt, and hardly ever smiles. He’s a brick wall of a man who is so far removed from his emotions it’s— That image of him shedding tears after speaking with his father comes back to me. Everett has a heart. He just chooses to save it for those few and far occasions such as contacting the dead.

  “Well, he’s not here. Grandpa Moses is. So put away your happy hormones and help me get through nude swim. I’m pretty sure this is what PE in hell looks like.”

  A dark-haired girl cannonballs into the water before rocketing back to the surface with her tresses perfectly glossed back.

  “This is heaven!” she shrills as she swims over to a group of women all seemingly happy they were splashed in the face by her shock and awe campaign.

  “That’s her,” I whisper to Keelie as we head for the small crowd at the end of the pool.

  An older woman wearing nothing but a whistle around her neck eyes the two of us, riding her gaze up and down our towels with what feels like bitter judgment.

  “We got newbies!” she hollers, and the sound of her voice reverberates throughout the room.

  At once each pair of eyes looks our way, and I can feel my skin growing hotter than a dumpster fire.

  Dear God, what did she have to do that for? It was bad enough I’d have to drop my towel at all let alone with an audience at rapt attention.

  “What are your names, girls?” She gives her graying curls a quick scratch—the ones on her head. Sadly, this type of occasion does call for clarification.

  Keelie waves as if old friends were greeting us. “Kiki and Lottie!”

  The crowd offers us both a warm welcome as our monikers cir
cle the room in an echo.

  “Kiki?” I hiss at my best friend’s new nickname, which I know nothing about.

  “I wasn’t about to tell them my real name. What if one of them steps into the Honey Pot Diner and says hey, it’s Keelie from the nudie pool! This way I can say it was my twin sister Kiki.”

  “You do have a twin, and her name is Naomi.”

  “Drats. I always forget about that.”

  The crowd bursts into spontaneous song set to the turn of “Happy Birthday,” stopping both Kiki and me in our naked tracks.

  “We welcome you, we do! We welcome you, we do! We welcome you, Kiki and Lot—tie! We welcome you, we do.”

  The last stragglers hanging around next to the pool quickly get into the water, and the entire lot of them turns their backs to us.

  “First, they sing—and then they shun us,” I whisper. “Such is life.”

  “My name is Carol!” The older woman swims against the crowd to join us. “Whenever we have new people, we offer up a warm welcome. We all know how hard that first time can be getting into the water, and seeing the class is only an hour long, we found that turning our backs makes the process go by a whole lot faster. So, go on and drop your towels and come on in. The water is fine!”

  She promptly turns the other way, and both Keelie and I glower at one another as if the reality of what was about to transpire were suddenly upon us.

  We count to three, and no sooner do our towels hit the floor than we’re both in the water. Thankfully, it’s as warm as a bath.

  The class gets underway, and I mosey us over to Jules who’s stretching and panting with the rest of them.

  “Hope you don’t mind,” I whisper as I take the spot next to her.

  “Nope! It’s all yours. The first time’s the toughest, but after a month you’ll have to remind yourself to get dressed in the morning.” She chortles as if the struggle was real.

  “Well, I doubt that, but thank you for your reassurance.” I’m pretty sure if I start showing up to the bakery in the nude I’ll find myself wearing a nice tight straitjacket. And here I’ve feared that psychiatric accouterment for entirely different reasons all these years.