Tj Jensen Cozy Mystery Boxed Set 2: Books 6-10

by Kathi Daley

  “I should have remembered the traffic was going to be a nightmare and started back earlier,” I commented.

  “If you want I can drop you off near the bleachers and then come back to park.”

  “Thanks. That would really help. I’m sure Grandpa and Noah have everything under control, but I should be available if they need me.”

  “It’s no problem at all. After I park I’ll make my way back to find you.”

  “I have my cell. Text me if you can’t find me in the crowd.”

  I leaned over, kissed Kyle, and hopped out of his car. I could jog over to the event faster than he was able to drive. Although maneuvering a vehicle through the crowd was a nightmare, the crowd was upbeat and enthusiastic. I’d forgotten how much I loved the energy associated with the bikini contest. Sure, there were drunks whistling and hollering inappropriate comments at the contestants, who were just beginning to arrive, but there were also supportive boyfriends and families who had come out to cheer on their favorite model between the age of eighteen and twenty-four.

  “Have you seen my grandpa?” I asked one of the busboys from the Lakeside Bar and Grill, who had been recruited to take tickets and help with crowd control.

  “Last time I saw him he was backstage with Noah. The audio system was giving them fits.”

  I glanced toward the staging area and the makeshift dressing rooms. “Okay, thanks. Do you know my friend Kyle?”

  “Yeah, I know him.”

  “He went to park, but he’ll be here after that. Send him back when you see him. Oh, and save a row of seats for Rosalie, Grandpa and his friends, Jenna, and the girls.” I did a quick calculation. “Maybe fifteen seats in all. They don’t have to be in the front, but I know they’ll want to sit together when everyone gets here.”

  “I’ll rope off two rows in section D.”

  “That’d be perfect. Thanks.”

  I jogged around the perimeter of the temporary seating to the makeshift stage and backstage area constructed for the event. It really made for an awesome venue. The bleachers faced the lake, so guests who arrived early could sit and look out over the beauty of the water while they waited for the contest to begin.

  “Oh good, you’re here,” Grandpa greeted me. “Kyle with you?”

  “He’s parking. I just texted to tell him to hurry. There’s a problem with the sound system?”

  “There’s background noise we can’t get rid of,” Grandpa explained. “Whenever we turn on the speakers there’s a very distinct humming.”

  “Probably a loose wire. Kyle is a whiz with that sort of thing. I’m sure he’ll find the problem and get it fixed in no time. Are all the contestants here?”

  “As far as I know. There are a bunch of them in the back getting ready. I recruited Doc to emcee the event. He was more than happy to do it, and he does have a way of keeping folks entertained.”

  Doc would be perfect to fill in for Dad. He had a booming voice and a jolly disposition that others found appealing.

  “Do you know if Jenna and the girls are here?”

  “I haven’t seen them.”

  “I saved a group of seats in section D for the family and any friends who show up. I think I’m going to watch from backstage in case something comes up or one of the girls needs help changing. Kyle should be here any moment, so I’m going to go ahead and head backstage. Text me if you need me.”

  “Will do, darlin’.”

  There were twenty-five girls entered in the contest, all of whom had won preliminary competitions to get to this point. As far as I was concerned, every girl was gorgeous and any one of them would make an awesome spokesmodel. I knew they took the competition seriously, and more often than not I’d settle on a favorite I hoped would win before the finals. This year, however, I hadn’t gotten the chance to get to know any of the contestants, so I was completely neutral about the outcome.

  “Can you help me tape my bottoms into place?” a girl with long blonde hair, deep blue eyes, a perfect body, and a golden tan asked.

  “Sure,” I said and got to work applying two-sided tape to her backside. “I watched part of the rehearsal yesterday. The song you plan to do for the talent portion was really good. I think you have a real shot.”

  “I hope the judges agree. I could really use the scholarship. How’s my side boob?” She turned to show me. “Too much? Should I tape it as well?”

  “Maybe, if you’re going to be doing anything active. Your swimsuit is beautiful, but it’s really teeny tiny.”

  “Teeny-tiny tops are what get the judges’ attention, and like I said, I could really use that scholarship.”

  The winner of the bikini contest was awarded her choice of a cash prize or a four-year scholarship to any university on the list provided when the girls first signed up. Most of the winners chose the cash even though its value was half that of the scholarship. I was surprised to meet a contestant who was after the education that being a spokesmodel for the tanning company could provide.

  “What are you hoping to study?” I asked as I helped her tape her assets into her bathing suit.

  “Law. The scholarship won’t pay for my entire education, but it’ll get me started. To be honest, if I don’t win, I probably won’t be able to go to college.”

  “Have you applied for other scholarships or financial aid?”

  The girl turned around in a circle in front of the mirror, checking for coverage. “I’ve been looking, but I’m not sure the financial aid thing will be an option. If I have to borrow money to cover my entire education, I’ll be so deep in debt when I graduate that I’ll never see the light of day. What I hope is that I can find a way to have my undergrad work paid for, and then maybe borrow money for law school if I have to.”

  “That makes sense. And you look great. Everything that should be covered is covered.”

  The girl smiled at me. “Thanks for your help.”

  “I’m happy to help, and good luck. I really hope you win.”

  She turned and hugged me. “Thank you. You’ve been great. By the way, before you go, there was a man in here earlier taking photos. He said he was with one of the models, but everyone was getting changed and he seemed sort of creepy. He’s gone now, but maybe you should assign someone to watch the stairs leading up to the backstage area. I’m obviously used to being gawked at, but this guy was unsettling.”

  “I’ll have someone come over. Do you know his name?”

  “No, I didn’t catch it, but he was wearing sunglasses with blue lenses.”

  “Okay. I’ll let the guard know to be on the lookout.”

  I stepped away from the girl and called Noah to ask about having someone stationed at the foot of the stairs leading backstage. I told him about the man wearing sunglasses with blue lenses, and he texted back soon after to inform me that he was getting other complaints about the man taking photos and would keep an eye out for him. This contest did tend to attract its share of weirdos, and this certainly wouldn’t be the first time we’d had to escort someone off the resort.

  Once I confirmed that the models were all set and the guard was in place, I headed out to see if Kyle had the sound system fixed. He was on the stage messing with something behind the electrical panel, so I headed over to say hi to Jenna, who was sitting with Rosalie, Helen, Bookman, and the four girls in the seats I’d reserved.

  “Is it going to start soon?” Ashley asked.

  “In about twenty minutes, assuming Uncle Kyle can fix the sound system. Did you girls have a nice day?”

  “The best,” Gracie answered. “Kari’s grandma took me and Kari shopping. She bought us new dresses.”

  I smiled at Helen. “That was nice.”

  “Mine is blue and Kari’s is red. We’re going to wear them to the parade tomorrow so we can be patriotic.”

  “That’s a wonderful idea. I can’t wait to
see them. And you know, you have those new white sandals that should be a perfect match.” I turned to Ashley. “How was the movie?”

  Ashley shrugged. “Okay.”

  Typical Ashley to not want to show too much enthusiasm. As a preteen, she seemed to have already mastered the whole angsty teen thing. I dreaded what the future might bring.

  “We ran into some kids from school, so we all sat together,” Kristi supplied. “We might try to go to another movie later in the week with the same kids, if that’s okay with you and Mom.”

  “Fine by me,” I said.

  “Yeah, me too, as long as the movie is appropriate for girls your age,” Jenna seconded.

  “Me and Kari want to go to the new Disney movie,” Gracie added.

  “The princess one,” Kari joined in.

  I listened to my sisters’ stories of their day until I spotted Sam sitting in the first row of the bleachers. He must have arrived super early again.

  “I need to go say hi to someone,” I told the others. “Let’s all meet back at the house when this is over. We’ll barbeque something.”

  “Aren’t you going to sit with us during the contest?” Ashley asked.

  “No, I’m going to watch from backstage in case someone needs help. I think Grandpa and Uncle Kyle will be joining you, though, so be sure to save them seats.”

  Ashley looked as if she was going to argue, but everyone else agreed.

  There really wasn’t anywhere to sit near Sam, who happened to have a pair of sunglasses with blue lenses tucked in the pocket of his shirt. I couldn’t just stand in front of him and ask him about a relationship he’d had eight years before, so I wasn’t sure what my game plan was going to be. When I’d spotted him sitting there, my first thought was that it was too good an opportunity to pass up, but after thinking it through, I realized what I needed to do was get him alone. Of course, that wasn’t likely to happen when his girlfriend was about to come onstage.

  “Hey, Sam,” I greeted him casually.

  “Hey, Tj. Did you get a chance to put in a good word for Gwen?”

  “Absolutely,” I lied. “There are a lot of really beautiful women competing, but I’m sure Gwen has as much chance as anyone. I saw the talent portion of yesterday’s rehearsal and her dance routine was awesome.”

  “Gwen is nervous about the dance, but I think she’ll do fine. She’s been practicing almost nonstop.”

  I glanced at Sam’s camera. “It looks like you came prepared to take a bunch of photos.”

  Sam nodded. “Photos are sort of my thing. My mom used to say if I was around you could bet there was a photo to prove it.”

  “So photography is more than just a casual hobby?”

  Sam shrugged. “I’m not a professional or anything. I’ve taken a few classes and I have good equipment and a lot of practice. You could say photography is sort of my obsession. My uncle gave me my first camera when I was ten, and I was amazed at the way a simple photo could freeze time. I think I drove my friends and family crazy taking photos of everyone and everything, but a long time from now I’ll have visual images to back up my memoires.”

  “That’s nice, though until digital cameras came onto the market storing all those photos must have been a major undertaking.”

  Sam chuckled. “You’re right about that. I must have thousands of photos. You should see my old room at my mom’s. There are so many boxes of photos stacked up you can barely find the bed.”

  “There were that many when you lived there?”

  “Well, no, not quite that many. I’ve added to my collection since I moved out, so now I use my old room as a storeroom. My apartment is really tiny. I do have a few things there. You should come by my place sometime. I’ve framed some of my best pieces.”

  Although I knew a pickup line when I heard it, I agreed, then moved on down the row to the stairs leading backstage. Sam had given me an idea. If he was as obsessive about photography as he indicated and had been in a relationship with Jennifer Reinhold’s sister, maybe there were photos that provided clues as to what had been going on at the time of the murder. Digging through thousands of photos wasn’t going to be an easy feat. Perhaps he’d catalogued them in some way. It would take effort to assuage my curiosity, but you never knew when someone or something in the background of an otherwise unspectacular photo would provide you with just the clue you needed to solve a case.

  Chapter 17

  During the contest I noticed Sam chatting with a man I didn’t know well but I knew Sam had been friends with for a long time. His name was Wade Vance, and he had lived in Serenity for as long as I could remember. I wasn’t certain Wade had known Sam back when he was dating Kendra, but after Sam left with Gwen, and Wade was left standing alone, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to stop and have a chat with him.

  “Did you enjoy the contest?” I asked casually as Wade looked toward the area where food and drinks were being served.

  “Yeah. It was great. I know Sam is mad Gwen didn’t win, but between you and me she never really had a chance.”

  “There were some strong contestants this year,” I admitted, secretly glad that the girl who wanted the scholarship for law school had come out on top. “Did Sam leave?”

  I knew he had, but I figured asking about him was as good a way as any to work my way around to what I really wanted to ask.

  “Yeah. He’s going to take Gwen out to dinner. She hasn’t eaten a thing in a week since she wanted to look her best for the contest.”

  “Wow. I don’t know that I’d give up eating for a week no matter the reason.”

  “Tell me about it. I kept thinking the chick was going to keel over while she was onstage, but somehow she made it through. I was going to head over to the food court for a bite myself. Do you want to join me?”

  Not in the least, but I did want to continue the conversation, so I agreed to have a beer with the man.

  “Seems like you and Sam have known each other a long time,” I commented as we walked.

  “Since elementary school.”

  “I wasn’t aware you had been friends for that long.”

  Wade got into the line at the back of the bar. “We haven’t. We were friends in grade school and even into junior high, but Sam started hanging around with the rich kids who lived in his neighborhood in high school. We basically went our separate ways. We actually didn’t start hanging out again until after he broke up with the freaky rich chick whose sister died several years ago.”

  “Rich chick?”

  “Some chick he met when he still lived with his mom. I didn’t know her well, but he brought her to a few parties hosted by friends we still had in common. I tried to tell him the chick was a big ol’ ten on the weird and disturbing meter, but he wouldn’t listen. Of course, at the time, Sam was as freaky as she was, so maybe he really didn’t notice.”

  “Would you say this was about eight years ago?”

  The man frowned. I suppose my question had been pretty specific, although he did eventually answer. “Yeah. That seems about right. Why do you ask?”

  I shrugged. “I was just trying to figure out who you were talking about.” We moved up several places in the impossibly long line. “You said the girl was freaky. Freaky how, exactly?”

  Wade took several steps forward. “I’m not one to gossip, but the chick had this really unnerving way of looking at you. It might have been the fact that she was stoned most of the time, but she had this vacant stare and high-pitched laugh that was downright spooky. Of course, Sam was totally into her and she didn’t seem to mind his freaky death photos, so I suppose they were the perfect pair.”

  “Death photos?”

  “Roadkill. Sam carried that camera with him all the time. If he saw a dead animal in the road, he’d stop and take photos of it. We weren’t hanging around much by this point, but he’d bring the photos everywhere
he went and show them to all his weirdo friends. Two beers,” Wade ordered when we finally got to the front of the line.

  After we got our beers, we sat down at an empty table. I knew the family would be waiting, but Wade’s story was both fascinating and disturbing. I wanted to see where our conversation led.

  “Do you know if Sam still participates in this particular hobby?”

  Wade shook his head. “Once he stopped hanging around with that crowd he backed off the whole ‘death is awesome’ thing. He still likes to take photos, but I think now he’s more into chicks than dead stuff.”

  I thought about the fact that he’d been taking photos of the models changing and realized that was equally disturbing, just in a different way. I talked to Wade for a while longer and then made up an excuse and headed to the family BBQ. I wasn’t sure that a weird hobby as a teen and young adult necessarily made you a killer, but I decided not to cross him off our list quite yet.

  “Seems like everything went well today,” Kyle commented after our guests had left and the family had headed inside.

  “It did. Thank you for fixing the sound system. I’m not sure what we would have done without you.” I laced my fingers through Kyle’s as we walked along the beach. It was a warm night, so we were walking barefoot along the water’s edge.

  “I was happy to help. I’m having a hard time realizing tomorrow is the Fourth. I keep thinking of all the things I need to do, and then remembering the entire day is already going to be pretty full with holiday events.”

  “It does seem that with everything that’s happened recently the past few days have blurred together. And to think I was still on Gull Island at this time last week…That seems like a lifetime ago.”

  “Although I’m not happy about the reason we came home, I do find I’m happy to be at Paradise Lake for the Fourth.”