Much Ado about Nutmeg

by Sarah Fox

  “She worked for the Seattle Insider. It’s about half a step above a tabloid.”

  “That explains it.” His hands tightened on the arms of his chair. “How did I not clue in that she was like that? I guess I was blinded by a pretty face.”

  “She put on an act when it suited her,” I said. “Don’t beat yourself up about it.”

  Ed heaved himself to his feet. “Please don’t put yourself at risk anymore, Marley. I hate to think of anything worse happening to you.”

  “I’ll look after myself.” Maybe it wasn’t quite the assurance he was looking for, but it seemed to be enough.

  After he left, I returned to the swing and set it in motion. As it moved gently back and forth, I considered what I knew about Yvonne’s murder. It seemed likely that whoever killed the reporter was from out of town. With the Golden Oldies Games set to close later in the week, everyone would head back to wherever they were from. No doubt that would make Ray’s investigation more difficult, but I hoped it wouldn’t stall it completely.

  Flapjack stood up and stretched before nuzzling his head against my injured arm. He pressed against one of my bruises, so I quickly pulled my arm away and gave him a scratch on the head. The spurt of pain reminded me that I’d planned to spend the day doing nothing but resting and relaxing. Solving murders didn’t qualify as either, so I picked up my book and immersed myself in its story.

  * * * *

  By Wednesday morning I was feeling much better. My bruises had turned ugly shades of brown and green, but they were far less painful. My wrist still ached, but I was managing without the bandage now. I’d surprised Brett—and myself—by leaving the mystery of Yvonne’s murder alone during my time off. Thoughts of suspects and motives had never strayed too far from my mind, but I’d managed to stay focused on other things.

  When I stepped inside The Flip Side at six o’clock, enticing smells wafted toward me. I followed my nose to the kitchen, where Tommy was in the midst of filling two boxes, one with maple pecan sticky rolls and the other with apple cinnamon scones drizzled with a delicious maple glaze.

  “For the volunteers,” Ivan said when he caught me eyeing the baked goods.

  I held my hands up in surrender. “I wasn’t going to steal any.”

  He eyed me suspiciously, but then went back to his work.

  Tommy closed up the boxes and stacked them. “All ready to go.”

  The closing banquet for the Golden Oldies Games was taking place on Thursday and would be followed by an outdoor party in the evening. Volunteers were spending the next two days setting up and preparing for the events. I’d offered to take some food by to keep everyone fueled.

  “I’ll run them over to the school in a couple of hours,” I said after thanking Tommy.

  The volunteers wouldn’t start setting up for the banquet in the school gymnasium until eight o’clock, so there was no point in heading over there right away. I kept myself busy getting The Flip Side ready to open, and later with some work in the office. Once eight o’clock rolled around, I left Leigh and Sienna to take care of the customers and set off. I’d brought my car that morning, knowing I’d be transporting food across town.

  It only took a few minutes to get to the elementary school and find a parking space. The school’s front door was unlocked, so I headed down the hallway toward the back of the building where the gymnasium was located. The double doors to the gym stood open. Inside, several people were rushing around. Numerous tables had been set up and draped with white cloths. Three volunteers were busy unloading folding chairs from a large dolly and setting them up around the tables. Several teenagers were hanging decorations on the walls while a couple of women stood huddled over a clipboard, holding a quiet discussion.

  I hesitated inside the door for a moment, not seeing anyone I recognized. A moment later, I spotted Avery hurrying over to help out with the chairs. After our odd and awkward encounter on Friday night, I didn’t really want to approach her. Fortunately, Sally North came through the door behind me. I’d heard she was one of the event volunteers.

  She smiled when she recognized me. “Hi, Marley. How are you doing today?”

  “Great, thanks.” I held up the bakery boxes, hoping she wouldn’t notice my bruises and ask me about them. “I brought the promised scones and sticky rolls.”

  Sally’s smile brightened. “Fantastic! Are the rolls those delicious maple pecan ones you serve at The Flip Side?”

  “The same.”

  “I know from personal experience that they’re heavenly, so all the volunteers are going to appreciate them. Thank you so much.”

  “You’re welcome,” I said as I handed over the boxes.

  “I’ll put them in the cafeteria. That’s where we’ve got the coffee and tea for the volunteers set up. Will you be at the party tomorrow night?”

  “I hope to be.” The post-banquet party would take place at Wildwood Park. The dinner was only for athletes and coaches, but the party was for anyone who wanted to attend. There would be food trucks, live music, and fireworks to wrap things up after dusk.

  “Then maybe I’ll see you there.” Sally almost turned away, but then stopped. “Oh, and your dress is coming along well. If I don’t see you tomorrow night, I’ll see you Friday?”

  “Definitely.”

  Sally smiled and thanked me again before heading out into the hallway with the boxes of baked goods. I was about to follow after her when something along one wall of the gym caught my eye. Another table had been set up there, covered with a white cloth like all the others. Several photos were set up on the table, including two large ones—one of Easton and another of Yvonne. Smaller photos were set out around the large ones, but there were far more of Easton than of Yvonne.

  The reporter was by herself in each of her pictures and all appeared to be professional headshots. I wondered if the organizers of the memorial had found them all on the Internet. The pictures of Easton were different. While he was alone in one of the smaller photographs—dressed in fishing gear and holding up a large salmon—in all the others he was with family or friends.

  Rowena was in most of them. In one picture, Easton—looking no older than forty—was beaming with pride, his arm around his wife as she held up a trophy. I leaned in for a closer look before studying the rest of the display. Another photo showed Easton on the deck of his yacht, along with Rowena and Pippa. Some of the other photos on display included people I didn’t recognize.

  I stepped back from the display, sadness pressing at my heart. Easton would be missed by so many, but I had to wonder how many people would miss Yvonne. Her daughter probably would, but was there anyone else? I wasn’t sure, and that brought me as much sadness as knowing how Easton’s death had affected so many.

  I decided not to linger in the gymnasium any longer. I didn’t want to end up talking to Avery. She hadn’t noticed me yet, but I didn’t doubt that she would if I stuck around.

  I made my way out of the school and around to the parking lot. The day was already heating up, but there was a pleasant, gentle breeze that I was sure The Flip Side’s outdoor diners would appreciate. I unlocked my car and was about to climb into the driver’s seat when a piercing scream shattered the quiet of the morning.

  Slamming my car door shut, I ran in the direction of the alarming sound. It wasn’t hard to figure out where it had come from, since a second scream followed the first.

  I rounded the corner of the building and stopped so suddenly that I nearly lost my balance.

  Avery stood outside an open door, her face pale and her eyes wide. As she let out a third scream, I saw the source of her distress.

  My stomach churned.

  Jay Henkel lay sprawled on his back, his camera on the ground beside him and an arrow piercing his heart.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  I whipped out my phone as Sally burst through the back door of t
he gymnasium.

  “What on earth is—” Sally spotted Jay’s body. She let out a gasp as her face paled.

  “Don’t get any closer,” I cautioned. “I’m calling 911.”

  Sally’s face still had a startling lack of color to it, but she seemed to absorb my words. She took Avery’s arm and pulled her niece away from Jay, moving closer to me. Avery burst into sobs and buried her face in her aunt’s shoulder. Sally held her and patted her back, but her stunned gaze remained fixed on Jay’s body.

  I didn’t need to check Jay for a pulse to know he was beyond help. The gray tinge to his skin and the partially dried blood told me he’d been lying there awhile.

  The gymnasium door opened again, and a middle-aged woman poked her head out. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head when she saw Jay.

  “There’s been a terrible accident,” Sally said quickly. “Please keep this door shut and tell everyone to stay in the gymnasium.”

  Her wide eyes glazed with shock, the woman nodded and pulled back, shutting the door with a loud click.

  After I called in the emergency, I tucked my phone into my pocket and stared at the gruesome sight before me. I tried to take in what I was seeing, but Avery’s loud sobs distracted me.

  “Maybe take her around the corner,” I suggested to Sally, hoping Avery wouldn’t be quite so distressed once she could no longer see the body every time she raised her head.

  Sally nodded and led Avery away. As they disappeared from sight, I took a couple of steps backward. I wasn’t too close to Jay, but I didn’t want to contaminate the scene in any way. At the same time, I didn’t want to go around the corner of the building with Sally and Avery. If I kept the body in sight, I could at least make sure nobody else approached the scene.

  I could still hear Avery crying, but the sound wasn’t so loud anymore. I returned my attention to Jay. The front of his T-shirt was soaked with drying blood. There was so much of it that I was barely able to tell that the shirt had once been gray. Blood had also pooled on the ground, especially to the left of his upper body.

  That probably meant that he’d been killed here and not moved from somewhere else. But why would he have been behind the school gymnasium? And when did he die?

  As I’d already noticed, the blood on his shirt was starting to dry, but some of it still looked wet. I doubted he’d been there all night, but possibly since early that morning. The strap of his camera was around his neck, the camera itself lying on its side next to his head, the lens cracked.

  I took another step backward as sirens sounded in the distance. They grew louder, and I waved when the first sheriff’s department cruiser turned into the parking lot. I gladly left Jay’s body behind and walked quickly over to meet Ray as he climbed out of his vehicle.

  “It’s Jay Henkel,” I told him. “The photographer.” I nodded at Sally and Avery. “Avery—the younger woman—found him. I heard her screams.”

  Ray nodded as another cruiser turned into the parking lot. “Stay here.”

  I was more than happy to do as instructed. I had no desire to see Jay’s bloodstained body again, and my legs suddenly didn’t want to hold me any longer. As Deputy Devereaux got out of his cruiser and joined Ray, I sat down on a concrete barrier that separated the parking lot from a walkway that ran along the side of the building. Sally came over to join me, bringing Avery with her, holding her niece’s hand. They both sat down. Avery had stopped crying, but she was still sniffling. Even though I didn’t like her much, I felt sorry for her. She’d had the shock of a lifetime, one that would probably affect her for a long time to come.

  Sally pulled out her cell phone. “I’m going to call your mom, okay, honey?” she said to her niece.

  Avery nodded, staring at the ground.

  A third cruiser arrived on the scene. Sally phoned Avery’s mother and explained the situation to her, and then we all sat silently as we waited. Eventually, I had to stand up to stretch my legs. They were going numb from sitting on the concrete barrier for so long.

  Finally, Deputy Devereaux approached us and spoke to us one at a time. It was late morning before I was allowed to leave the scene and return to The Flip Side. By then, everyone at the pancake house already knew that the sheriff and his deputies had been called to the elementary school. I told Leigh, Sienna, Ivan, and Tommy that Jay had been murdered, but The Flip Side was so busy that I didn’t have a chance to provide them with any details.

  When the last customers had left and I’d locked the front door, we all gathered in the kitchen.

  Sienna spoke up first. “How was he killed?”

  “He was shot with an arrow,” I said. “Right through the heart.”

  Leigh’s face took on a green tinge, and she sank down onto a nearby stool. “How awful.”

  I focused on Tommy. “And Avery found his body.”

  Shock registered on his face. “Is she okay?”

  “Not really, but her aunt was there and her mom picked her up from the school.”

  He glanced down at the frying pan he’d been about to put away. “That’s good she’s got family with her.”

  Leigh and Sienna peppered me with questions, and I answered the few that I could while Ivan and Tommy listened.

  “So the killer didn’t steal his camera?” Sienna asked.

  “You think someone would kill him just for the camera?” Leigh sounded surprised. “An arrow through the heart seems like a lot of effort for a thief to go to.”

  “I was thinking the killer might have been after what was on the camera,” Sienna explained.

  I nodded. “His photos.”

  Sienna and I told Leigh about Jay’s habit of sneaking photos of people in their private moments.

  “And you think that’s why he was killed?” Leigh asked. “He had photos that the killer didn’t want getting out?”

  “It’s definitely a possibility,” I said. “But his camera wasn’t taken.”

  Sienna bit down on her lower lip for a second. “And why kill Yvonne and Jay? I mean, it’s most likely the same killer, right?”

  “Probably,” I said. “And I’m not sure why.”

  But I knew I wanted to find out. My plan to leave the investigation to Ray had gone up in smoke when I’d seen Jay’s body.

  The mystery had grown even more complicated, and I knew I could no longer leave it alone.

  * * * *

  Leigh and Sienna left the pancake house shortly after our discussion in the kitchen, but Ivan and Tommy kept working, doing some prep work for the next day and cleaning up. I was in the office, updating The Flip Side’s social media, when Tommy appeared in the doorway.

  “All done for the day?” I asked.

  “Yep. See you tomorrow.”

  “Tommy,” I said before he could turn away. “I know it’s none of my business, but are you and Avery an item?”

  Tommy shifted his weight, clearly uncomfortable. “She wanted us to be.”

  “But you didn’t?”

  He ran a hand through his hair, messing up his short faux-hawk. “I liked her at first, but then…” He shrugged. “We’d only known each other for about a week when she started getting all possessive. It kind of weirded me out, so I broke things off.”

  “To be honest, she unsettled me too,” I said. “I had an odd encounter with her on the weekend. I was having a barbecue with Brett’s family and realized she was watching us from the beach after it got dark. When I asked her what she was doing there, she said she was hoping you were at the barbecue. The whole thing was strange. I think you did the right thing by ending things before they went any further.”

  “Yeah.” He didn’t look very happy. “I feel really bad for her, though. Finding the body must have really freaked her out.”

  “It did, but her mom will look after her.”

  Her mother had taken Avery into her arms a
s soon as she’d arrived at the school, and Avery had seemed to take great comfort from her presence.

  “That’s good.” Tommy took a step back into the hallway. “See you tomorrow, Marley.”

  “See you.”

  Ivan left shortly after Tommy. I’d finished up all the work I’d planned to do that day, but I stayed in the office, leaning back in my chair, feeling unsettled. Avery had mentioned that she was into archery. Could she be the killer? But what possible reason would she have to want Jay dead?

  Chapter Thirty

  “How much does Charlie know about tides and such?” I asked Brett the next morning as we got ready for the day.

  Brett pulled a T-shirt from a drawer. “He’s pretty knowledgeable, I think.”

  “Then I need to talk to him again.”

  Brett tugged the shirt on over his head. “About Yvonne’s murder?”

  I sat down on the edge of the bed. “We don’t know where she was killed. I’m hoping Charlie might be able to help with that. Was she killed on land and pushed into the water from shore? Or did the killer take her out on a boat?”

  “Not everyone has access to a boat,” Brett said, following my line of thought.

  “Exactly. So that could help narrow down the suspect list.”

  Brett took my hand as we headed downstairs. “Do you want me to come with you? I could meet up with you after work.”

  “I’ll let you know. If I get a chance, I might pop over to the marina this morning.”

  We ate breakfast together and then went our separate ways. Brett took an excited Bentley to work with him, and I enjoyed my leisurely stroll along the beach. As soon as I arrived at The Flip Side, Tommy poked his head out the pass-through window from the kitchen.

  “I’ve got news,” he announced before disappearing.

  I pushed through the kitchen’s swinging door. “What kind of news?”

  “About Jay’s murder.” Tommy stirred a large bowl of batter. “I talked to Rob from the Wildwood Cove Weekly again. According to him, the SD card was missing from Jay’s camera.”