Murder at the Church: Cottonwood Springs Cozy Mystery Series

by Dianne Harman

  “Are you looking for anything special?” the older woman asked. Holly wished Margaret could have been the grandmother she’d never had. She could tell Margaret had been blonde when she was younger, before her hair had turned white, because she could see slight traces of blond mixed in with the white. Her friendly, lined face had never once scowled at Holly. She was pretty sure the older woman had figured out why she came to the library so often. There wasn’t much that remained a secret in the small town of Cottonwood Springs.

  After the first few times Holly checked out books in the morning, and then stayed there all day to read them, Margaret had introduced herself. She’d invited Holly to the employee’s lounge where she shared tea and cookies with her, and they’d become friends.

  Holly often helped Margaret with the simple duties around the library. Reshelving the books back into their rightful places had been the main chore she performed. Holly couldn’t stand it when she found books laying around in odd places, and Margaret reciprocated by bringing in snacks to share with Holly.

  Holly left the books she was returning on the counter, so Margaret could check them in when she got a chance. She wandered through the stacks of books looking for ones that were out of place, killing time while she waited for her meeting with Wade. It wasn’t until after she’d gotten home yesterday that she remembered he’d said his parents would pay her for helping him.

  As far as she was concerned, spending time with Wade would be payment enough, but she couldn’t afford to turn the money down. Her shoes were getting worn down from all the walking she did. Part of her thought she should tell her mom about Wade and being paid to help him, but she was afraid her mother would think Holly felt she had to earn money because she couldn’t properly support her daughter. Holly didn’t want to put any additional stress on her. She didn’t want to have to hand the money over to her mom either, in case her mom used it for drink or drugs.

  Holly picked out a few books she thought might help Wade. They’d been studying cells in science class recently, so she guessed that was probably what he needed help with. She pulled out her favorite books on the subject and put them on the table she usually occupied in the back corner of the main room in the library.

  “Hey, Holly,” she heard a familiar voice say. Looking up she saw Wade crossing the library floor to where she was sitting.

  “Hey, yourself,” she said smiling. He was wearing a black baseball cap, a Colorado Rockies baseball jersey, a black jacket, and a pair of jeans that looked like they were new.

  “I came here early hoping I’d beat you, but obviously I didn’t get here soon enough.” He dropped his backpack on a chair before sitting in the one beside it.

  “Yeah, I got here just as they opened this morning. I was bored.” Actually, getting to the library when it first opened was one of her favorite things to do, but she didn’t think girls that Wade would be interested in would find that their favorite thing to do, so she didn’t mention that part.

  “That’s cool,” he said, digging in his backpack. He pulled out a sealed envelope and slid it across the table to her. “That’s from my parents as payment. I have no idea how much they put in there, and I don’t want to know. Please, don’t open it until later.” He had a pained expression on his face.

  “Why?” she asked as she put it in her pocket.

  “Because the larger the amount of money they gave you, the more hopeless they must think I am. They’ve both tried to help me, but it hasn’t worked. They finally told me to find a classmate who’d be willing to tutor me. If they gave you a decent chunk of cash, that means they probably think I’m a lost cause, and I’m going to stress you out,” he said with a nervous laugh. He pulled off his cap and pushed a wayward chunk of hair out of his eyes, only for it to fall right back down again.

  “Wade, don’t worry. I’ll stick around however long it takes for you to get it.”

  “Good, because it may take a while,” he said.

  “It doesn’t matter how long I stay here at the library. My mom won’t miss me,” Holly said, although it hurt her to say it.

  Wade was silent for a moment, and then he said, “I heard she’s doing better. Is that true?” He’d said it softly, as though he was afraid to ask.

  Holly’s eyes shot up, fear gripping her, before she realized he hadn’t meant anything bad by what he said. She nodded. “Yeah, so far.”

  “Good,” was all he said.

  Holly picked up one of the books she’d selected and began working with Wade. Over the next couple of hours, they studied for a while, took a break, and then studied some more. Since they were in the same grade, they’d known each other their entire lives. Growing up in Cottonwood Springs, it was pretty hard not to know all of one’s peers.

  “I really appreciate you doing this,” Wade said on one of their breaks. “You’re probably saving my baseball career.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that,” Holly said modestly.

  “No, I mean it. After our mid semester grade cards came out, I thought I was toast. Coach got ahold of me and told me if I was still failing science at the end of the year I couldn’t play on the team anymore.” He leaned back and sighed. “It’s not like I can just go to some other team. Since there aren’t any other school baseball teams around here, my options are pretty limited.”

  “Honestly, Wade, it’s no trouble at all.” She pulled the envelope out of her pocket and pushed it across the table to him. “And your parents don’t need to pay me. I don’t mind. I enjoy helping you, and I’d be here anyway.”

  He put his hand over hers and stopped her. “No, keep it. You deserve every cent they gave you and probably more.” He smiled. Their eyes met a moment before he realized he was still holding her hand. He blushed and quickly pulled it back.

  Holly looked away. She didn’t want to read too much into the gesture. She looked around the room, trying to distract herself, so she wouldn’t look embarrassed. She saw a familiar face and tried to remember where she knew the woman from.

  “Hi, Holly,” the woman said, waving to her. She noticed the woman’s vivid red hair and remembered she was the woman who’d made the amazing brownies and driven her mom home the other night.

  “Hi, Brigid,” she said, waving back at her.

  Brigid walked over to their table and smiled. “What are you two up to?”

  “I’m just helping Wade study some stuff from our science class,” Holly said gesturing towards her companion.

  He nodded. “She’s really great at it, too. For the first time, it’s actually starting to make sense to me.”

  Brigid looked at the books and grimaced. “Science, huh? I’d be lost, too. I never was any good at it.” She smiled at them. “Well, I’ll leave you alone, so you can finish your studies. I’m just here returning a few books. Enjoy the rest of the day.” She smiled and walked away.

  “How do you know Brigid?” Wade asked after she’d left.

  “I met her when she drove my mom home. Do you know her?” Holly asked.

  “No, not exactly, but when that lady who owned the B & B was murdered, I remember reading that she was the one who helped catch the person who’d committed the crime.”

  “Really?” Holly said with surprise in her voice. Looking at Brigid, you sure wouldn’t think she was a crime-solving kind of lady. She looked too posh for that.

  Wade shrugged, “I don’t know any more than what I read in the paper. It had a picture of her and everything.”

  Holly turned around and looked at Brigid as she stood at the library counter. It made her see the woman in a whole new light.

  When she’d brought her mother home from her meeting, Holly had thought Brigid was some rich person trying to do a good deed for the poor people in town, kind of something to make her realize just how good she had it. The thought she might actually be a good person who truly wanted to help people made Holly pause and reconsider.

  “Wow,” Holly said. “That’s pretty cool.”

  “Yeah,
they even had her dog in the picture. I guess he helped catch the person by jumping on them and holding them down.” Wade dug in his backpack and pulled out two granola bars. “Here,” he said tossing her one.

  “That’s crazy,” Holly said in awe as she caught the granola bar.

  “I know. Didn’t you see it on the news?” he asked as he bit into his bar.

  “We don’t have a TV,” she said quietly, peeling off the wrapper.

  “Oh,” he said a little flustered. “Really?”

  “Well, we have a small one, but we don’t have cable,” she explained.

  “What do you play video games on?” he asked, clearly surprised.

  “Uh, I don’t,” she said feeling embarrassed. Now he’s going to realize how poor I am, she thought, and he won’t want to be around me anymore.

  “Dang,” he said. He was quiet for a moment and then he said, “Why don’t you come over to my house when we’re done? We can play video games or just hang out and watch TV.” He smiled. “I think my mom has a pizza in the deep freeze and a bunch of other snacks. Want to?”

  Holly sat in shock for a moment before she collected herself. “That sounds great, Wade. Thanks.”

  CHAPTER 7

  Brigid’s cell phone buzzed with a text as she was brushing her hair. When she picked it up she saw it was from Linc.

  Almost back home. They’re in a good mood.

  Linc had left earlier to pick up his parents at the Denver airport. He and Brigid had made plans to have dinner at Linc’s house after they’d had a chance to spend a little time with him. Linc was making an Italian style pot roast which he’d started in his slow cooker before he’d left for Denver. He told Brigid he’d do the finishing touches on it when he got back.

  After Brigid left the library, she’d gone shopping for a new dress to wear that evening. She wanted to make a good impression on Linc’s parents, and she hadn’t liked anything she’d seen in her closet that morning. She’d settled on a floral wrap dress with a soft deep blue background.

  She took one last look in the mirror, pleased with her makeup, the new dress, and the way her hair had turned out. She walked into the great room where Jett was in his customary place on his loveseat. “You about ready to head over to see Linc?” Brigid asked the big dog. Jett raised his head as soon as he heard Linc’s name. “Yeah, I thought so,” she said smiling.

  Brigid debated whether they should walk to Linc’s house or drive, but then she remembered rain was forecast for the evening, and it was already clouding up. “I think we better err on the safe side and take the car,” she said to Jett. “If you got wet on the way home, I’d be smelling wet dog all night long, and that doesn’t particularly appeal to me.” Jett woofed, seemingly in complete agreement with Brigid. After they walked out the front door, Jett waited patiently beside her as she opened the back door for him. A few minutes later, they pulled into Linc’s driveway.

  “Jett, I want you to be on your best behavior. We want to make a good impression on Linc’s parents,” Brigid said turning towards him before getting out of the car. “No funny business.” Jett started panting with excitement when he realized they had arrived at Linc’s house, but to Brigid, it almost looked like a smile.

  They walked towards the front door, but before they could ring the doorbell, Linc opened it. “Brigid, Jett, you’re just in time.” He greeted Brigid with a chaste kiss on the cheek.

  A moment later Linc introduced Brigid and Jett to his parents, James and Marilyn Olson. They laughed at how big the dog was and began to pet him, cooing over how well behaved and sweet he was. It was apparent Jett was enjoying being the center of attention.

  “He’s a really great dog,” Brigid said. “I’m so glad I adopted him.”

  Marilyn Olson was a small woman with dyed blonde hair. She didn’t look her age and moved and acted as though she was only slightly older than her son. Brigid noticed that Linc and Marilyn shared the same shape of nose and even their cheekbones, but even though Linc shared some facial traits with his mother, it was his father, James, who he most resembled. The two men were the same height and roughly the same build, although the older man didn’t stand quite as straight as his son did.

  “I’m so glad you were able to stop here and see Linc,” Brigid commented as they sat down at the long wooden dinner table. “Where were you visiting?”

  “We’re on our way back from a trip to New York. We decided to go there for our anniversary,” Marilyn smiled. “It was even better than I’d imagined. It’s quite different from Arizona.”

  “I’ve never been to New York, so I can only imagine.” Linc appeared and poured everyone a glass of wine. Brigid lifted her glass and took a sip. “I really would like to go there someday.”

  “Maybe Linc will take you sometime. After living there for so long, he knows it pretty well,” James said with a wink.

  “Well, if he’s anything like his father, it may take a long time,” Marilyn said with a laugh.

  During dinner which consisted of an Italian pot roast served over noodles, butternut squash soup, Italian herb bread, and the cream cheese brownies Brigid had brought for dessert, they talked about this and that. Jett was stretched out under the table, hoping one of them would drop a crumb, either accidentally or on purpose.

  Brigid began to relax, realizing that James and Marilyn were very likable down-to-earth people. There was nothing false or showy about them. They were who they seemed to be, and that was that. After the way her ex-husband’s family had been, Linc’s parents were a breath of fresh air.

  “I don’t know about all of you, but I’m stuffed. That was excellent, Linc, and Brigid, thank you for the brownies,” James said as he stood up and began clearing the table.

  “Dad, you don’t have to do that,” Linc said, standing up to help him.

  “Sit down, son. Your mother has trained me well. You cooked a wonderful meal, and you’re letting us spend the night here. Carrying the dishes into the kitchen is the least I can do.” When he was finished he said, “I’d love a cigar, and I remember that Linc doesn’t like me to smoke in the house. Marilyn, let’s go sit out on the back porch. Brigid, would it be okay if Jett joins us? He reminds me a lot of a dog Linc’s brother had when the boys were growing up. I’d love to spend a little time with him.”

  “Of course, I think he’d like that,” Brigid said. James called the dog who happily hopped up and joined his new friends as they went outside.

  When he heard the glass door to the back patio being shut, Linc turned to Brigid. “They seem to really like you,” he said.

  “I hope so, because I sure like them. I don’t understand how your ex-wife could have had problems with your parents.” Brigid couldn’t fathom anyone not getting along with the easygoing couple.

  “Well, you’d have to understand what she was like, not exactly a warm fuzzy person. She was very superficial and thought my parents were too rough around the edges for her. I don’t like to admit it, but she was a snob. She hated anything rural, which was why I always ended up skiing and doing things like that on my own.”

  “Forgive me for asking, but why did you marry her? She sure doesn’t sound like she was very compatible with you.” Brigid couldn’t understand how Linc could have ever been with a woman like that. He seemed so outdoorsy and rugged, and there was nothing superficial about him.

  “I honestly don’t know, Brigid. I guess the best answer is that I was young and didn’t really know who I was at the time. As I got older, I became determined to do the things that I loved, which turned me into the man you see today,” Linc said with a shrug.

  “Well, I like the guy I see today.” Brigid placed her hand on his. “Thank you for inviting me over to meet your parents.”

  “And thank you for agreeing to meet them,” he said. “I have to admit I was terrified to ask you.”

  “I’m sorry you were concerned,” she said. “Not only do I like you, I like what we have together. If something comes up, we’ll figure it out
as we go. Life’s too short for anything else. I just don’t want to overly complicate it.”

  Linc paused, listening to the music that had been playing in the background. He raised a finger, “Is that…?” he continued to listen. “It is!” He jumped up and hurried over to the kitchen where he had his phone plugged in playing background music. After turning up the sound, he came back to Brigid and held out his hand. “May I have this dance?” he asked in a formal tone of voice.

  Brigid laughed and took his hand. “Why, of course.”

  Linc pulled her into his arms and began to sway with the music.

  “What is this song?” Brigid asked, listening to the blues song.

  “You obviously don’t listen to blues, do you?” Linc asked as they moved together in the area between the kitchen and the dining room. It was a wide-open area that echoed the music well. Brigid shook her head.

  “It’s called ‘I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man’ by Muddy Waters,” he began. “I first heard it a long, long time ago, and I’ve loved it ever since. It’s been redone a number of times by more well-known artists. Some people think it actually influenced the way music is done today.”

  “Really?” Brigid had never really listened much to blues, but she had to admit the lyrics of the song were catchy. She found herself wanting to sway with the sound as it filled the room. The music, Linc’s arms wrapped around her, and the heady smell of his cologne made Brigid feel as though she was dancing on air. She felt Linc’s fingers begin to slide up and down her spine, gently caressing her. Looking up into his eyes, she saw a softness there. No expectations, no pressure. Just a complete and total fondness for her. Brigid felt herself melt just a bit inside at the thought of someone feeling that way toward her.