Death by Intermission

by Alexis Morgan

  “Very funny.” When he started to pick up yet another cookie, she slid the plate out of his reach. “For the record, I do not find that idea amusing.”

  “Okay, okay. I won’t yank your chain anymore about it for tonight. Now, can I have another cookie?”

  She pretended to give the matter some serious thought before finally pushing the plate back within his reach. As she did, the sound of a car in the driveway caught their attention. Zeke barked and charged down the hallway when someone rang the front doorbell.

  Tripp asked the obvious question. “Who would be dropping by this late at night? Gage said he wouldn’t be here until tomorrow morning.”

  “Maybe Mom forgot her key.”

  They headed for the front of the house. Past experience had taught Abby to never open the door without looking to see who was standing on the other side. Zeke wasn’t pitching a fit, but she preferred to err on the side of caution. Seeing her mother’s distraught face through the narrow window by the door, she unlocked the dead bolt and threw the door open wide. As soon as she did, a police cruiser backed out of the driveway and drove away. Where was Owen Quinn and why would Gage have one of his deputies bring her mother back to the house?

  Tripp gave voice to the questions running through Abby’s head. “Mrs. McCree, what happened? Where’s Owen?”

  Her mother’s chin quivered as she tried to answer. “That man we found. He was murdered.”

  Puzzled, Abby said, “We already knew that much, Mom.”

  She hadn’t meant to upset her mother, but the simple statement sparked the woman’s temper. “Yes, but what we didn’t know was that he was stabbed with a chef’s knife.”

  Abby had a bad feeling about what was going to come next. Bracing herself for the worst, she asked, “And that’s important why?”

  By that point, her mother’s eyes were flashing with fury. “Because that Podunk police chief claims the knife belongs to Owen. They hauled him off to jail, and God knows what they’re doing to him right now, hoping he’ll confess to something he didn’t do.”

  CHAPTER 3

  Up until that ridiculous comment, her mother was the last person Abby would’ve accused of being a drama queen. Granted, the woman barely knew Gage Logan, but she knew full well that both Abby and Tripp had great respect for the man and trusted him implicitly. Apparently their opinion on the nature of his character didn’t carry much weight right now. Phoebe McCree clearly was in no mood to be reasonable when it came to anything to do with Owen Quinn.

  Regardless, Gage would never mistreat a prisoner, much less browbeat Owen into making a false confession. Heck, when Gage had been forced to lock Tripp up a while back, he’d allowed Abby to bring his prisoner cookies, and even let Zeke come along for a few visits. He’d also spent hours playing chess with Tripp to keep him from going stir-crazy.

  She wasn’t the only one who felt compelled to defend Gage, because Tripp was frowning big-time. “I don’t know what’s going on, but you can trust Gage to do right by Owen. And he’s not always been a small town cop. He had years of experience as a homicide detective in Seattle and a distinguished military career.”

  Gage’s impressive credentials clearly didn’t satisfy her mother. “Neither of you were there tonight when he all but accused Owen of killing that man. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to call my attorney.”

  When she pulled out her cell phone, Abby tried to snatch it out of her hand. “Mom, just stop.”

  Phoebe backed away, still brandishing her phone. “Why should I?”

  “Well, for one thing, it’s the middle of the night, and cousin David won’t appreciate being dragged out of bed at this hour. For another, if Owen does end up needing legal advice, he’ll want a criminal attorney. Unless something’s changed, David specializes in estate planning and wills.”

  Some of the air seeped out of her mother’s balloon full of righteous indignation. “But I have to do something to help Owen.”

  “And you will, Mom. Just not tonight. Why don’t we go sit down at the table? Tripp can make us all a fresh cup of tea. Then you can tell us more about what happened, and we’ll make plans.”

  Tripp took the hint and hustled down the hall to the kitchen. He was already serving up three more helpings of his special recipe when they caught up with him. Abby waited until her mother sat down before she took her own seat. Tripp set a mug of the steaming brew in front of each of them before getting his own. After adding a few more cookies to the plate on the table, he finally joined them.

  “Mrs. McCree, you’ll want to drink that tea slowly. I may have been a bit heavy-handed with my secret ingredient.”

  Her mom dutifully took a small sip and then another. For the first time since walking in the front door, there was a small glint of humor in her eyes. “That’s some special ingredient, Tripp. No wonder Abby likes how you brew tea. You’ll have to give me your recipe.”

  Okay, the brandy must be hitting her mom pretty hard if it had her cracking a joke so soon after her near meltdown over Owen’s trip to the police station. “Mom, eat a couple of cookies. You don’t want to drink too much of that tea on an empty stomach.”

  Abby took one for herself, mainly to set a good example. Okay, that wasn’t true. Somehow gingersnaps partnered perfectly with the heady combination of Earl Grey laced with brandy and honey. She waited until her mother had made serious inroads into her tea and finished off two cookies before directing the conversation back to what had happened after they’d left the park. “So, I take it they found the knife at the scene.”

  “That’s what they’re claiming. I never saw it, and I was standing right over the body . . . I mean, that poor man.” Her mom set the mug down on the table with unnecessary force. “I assume you would’ve said something at the time if you’d spotted it.”

  Abby put down her own drink with a great deal more care. “Mom, I know everything that’s happened has upset you a great deal, and that’s understandable. However, I would really appreciate it if you would stop insinuating that Gage and his deputies have mishandled the situation. They would never twist the facts or allow an innocent man to take the fall just to close a case quickly.”

  Phoebe remained unconvinced. “Well, they sure jumped on the chance to point the finger at Owen. I tried telling them that he was with me all evening, but that didn’t carry any weight with them at all.”

  Tripp added more hot water to his tea. “There must be a reason they thought the knife belonged to Owen. If so, Gage would need his help to figure out who else had access to the knife and when Owen last saw it. That fact alone might be the key to the whole case.”

  Her mother held out her mug for him to top off hers as well. “Even if that makes sense, they could’ve simply asked him all of that out at the park. Why take him to the police station?”

  Drawing on her own experience, Abby did her best to explain. “Gage might take a preliminary statement at the scene, but he’ll also need a more formal one from key witnesses. The police have to nail down all the details while the events are fresh in the witnesses’ minds. That’s why he’ll be here first thing in the morning to talk to us.”

  Which meant they should all get some sleep. She picked up her mug and carried it over to the sink. “I don’t know about you two, but I’m calling it a night.”

  Tripp was already up and moving. “Zeke and I will do one last patrol before turning in. I can let him back inside and lock the door, so no need to wait up for him.”

  That left her mother sitting alone at the table, her shoulders slumped as she fiddled with the tag on her tea bag and stared at her cell phone as if willing it to ring. As much as Abby ached to climb in bed and ignore the world for a few hours, she couldn’t bring herself to abandon her mother right now.

  “Mom, are you coming?”

  Phoebe sighed and moved as if to follow Abby, when her cell lit up and chimed. Her mom swiped the screen and asked, “Owen, are you all right?”

  Abby postponed going to bed until
she learned what Owen had to say. Rather than listen in on their conversation, she decided to join Tripp and Zeke out on their patrol. It took her a few seconds to spot Tripp sitting on the steps of his front porch. Then a movement near the trees caught her eye. Zeke had his nose to the ground, no doubt following the trail of some varmint.

  She made her way across the yard to take a seat next to Tripp. He bumped her with his shoulder. “I thought you were turning in for the night.”

  “Mom and I both were, but that plan got derailed when Owen called. I decided to wait up to see what he had to say. You know, in case Mom decides to break him out of jail or something else equally crazy.”

  “Good idea.”

  As they waited, she let the peaceful night sounds calm her ragged nerves. The small frogs that inhabited the stretch of wetlands a couple of blocks east of her house were belting out a rousing chorus of their favorite song. There was no telling what it was about, but she had to admire their nightly enthusiasm for sharing it with everyone in the neighborhood.

  Tripp pointed toward the top floor of Abby’s house. “Looks like your mom’s off the phone. The light just came on in her bedroom upstairs.”

  A few minutes ago, Abby couldn’t wait for this night to end, but that sense of urgency had faded. Chances were her mom wouldn’t want to rehash the night’s events again anyway. “I think I’ll stay right here until she’s had time to get settled before I go in.”

  She glanced at Tripp, “That is if you don’t mind some company.”

  “It’s fine, Abs.” His smile wasn’t all that it could be as he added, “I’m really sorry how things turned out tonight, and especially that the two of you found that guy. It’s been tough on your mom, but I’m more worried about you.”

  He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and tugged her in closer to his side, a brief reminder of how she’d hoped the evening would’ve played out for the two of them. Instead, everything had gone off the rails through no fault of their own. “I don’t know why stuff like this keeps happening around me, and I sure don’t mean to keep dragging you into my messes.”

  He huffed a small laugh. “At least things are never boring around you.”

  “Very funny.”

  Zeke wandered by on his way toward her back porch, pausing long enough to glance in their direction before climbing the steps to wait by the door. Must be his bedtime as well. When Abby didn’t immediately leap to her feet to follow him, he jumped up to put his paws on the railing and woofed.

  “Looks like you’ve been given your marching orders.”

  “Yeah, I can take a hint.”

  Tripp stood first and offered her a hand up off the steps. “Come on. I’ll walk you home.”

  Like she couldn’t make it across the yard on her own, not that she was going to give up even a few more minutes in his company. Meanwhile, Zeke bounded back down off the porch to help Tripp herd her in the right direction. She patted the dog on the head, enjoying the company of the two men in her life.

  When they reached the steps, Zeke charged ahead of them to stand by the door, clearly anxious to get inside. She couldn’t blame him. It had been long night for all of them. “I’m coming, I’m coming.”

  Evidently Tripp had other plans. “Give us a minute, buddy.”

  The dog stretched out on the porch with a heavy sigh, his much put-upon air making his two humans laugh. After Zeke settled in for the duration, Tripp stepped between Abby and the porch, blocking her from going inside. If he had something to say, she wished he’d get on with it.

  She would need a decent night’s sleep to face everything that tomorrow morning would bring. Giving a formal statement to the police would never be on her list of favorite things to do, but she wasn’t concerned about dealing with Gage herself. No, it was shepherding her mother through the process that had her worried.

  Before she could ask him what was going on, he cupped her cheek and gently tilted her face up to look her straight in the eye. “I want you to know that despite everything, I enjoyed tonight.”

  Her pulse picked up speed. “So did I.”

  “So we’ll do this again sometime soon.”

  “I’d like that,” she answered, even though he hadn’t exactly framed his comment as a question. At least his words had eased the niggling worry that he might’ve had his fill of hanging out with a woman who somehow attracted trouble.

  “The night started off great, even allowing for some unappreciated canoodling. It was only that last part that wasn’t any fun.” His eyes stared down into hers. “So I’m thinking we should rewrite the ending a little. Maybe finish the night on a high note.”

  That sounded like a fine idea to her. When his hand dropped away from her cheek to land at her waist, she inched closer to him and slid her hands up to his shoulders. Never slow to take a hint, Tripp immediately leaned down and brushed his lips across hers. It was a nice start, but not nearly enough to wipe away the taint of finding another body.

  “Tripp, no teasing.”

  He smiled at her impatient demand for more and had just started to kiss her again when a sudden flicker of light nearly blinded them both. Her brain took a second to realize the porch light had just come on. It immediately blinked off before coming back on twice in rapid succession. Tripp glared at the offending light. “Did you put that thing on a timer or has the wiring suddenly gone bonkers?”

  “No, I didn’t, and the wiring is fine.”

  She almost wished it wasn’t, because right now she was flashing back to high school when she still lived at home. Bracing herself, she counted down the seconds until the further humiliation that was bound to come next. Sure enough, the door opened to reveal her mother. “Abby, isn’t it time you call it a night?”

  Abby dropped her head forward to rest against Tripp’s chest. “Mother, please let Zeke inside. You don’t need to wait up for me.”

  Instead of retreating, Phoebe stepped out onto the porch. “I’m sorry, but morning will be here before you know it. We’ll both need a good night’s rest to deal with the police tomorrow.”

  It was no surprise the woman wouldn’t give up easily. Back in the day, the blinking porch light had been her mother’s code that Abby had spent enough time alone with her date. Maybe her mother was feeling extra protective because of everything that had happened, but Abby was no longer a teenager subject to her parents’ house rules.

  Abby turned to face the woman directly. “For Pete’s sake, just go back inside.”

  “But—”

  Praying for patience, she added, “Now, Mom.”

  And when that didn’t convince the woman to finally back off, Abby threaded a lot more temper in her next words. “While you’re at it, turn off that stupid light.”

  With that, her mom disappeared back into the house, closing the door hard enough to rattle the windows. Abby closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. Did she really want to see Tripp’s reaction to that whole embarrassing fiasco? No, but since he was still standing right beside her, there was no way to avoid it.

  He smirked as he gave the back door a pointed look. “I guess I know where you got your stubbornness.”

  “That’s not funny—or true.”

  “You’re wrong on both counts. However, your mom was right about one thing. It’s way past your normal bedtime. Tomorrow is shaping up to be a long day for all of us.”

  As he spoke, he once again wrapped her in his arms and leaned in close for one last kiss. “Now, let’s see if I can get it right this time.”

  And bless his heart, he did. She was still smiling half an hour later when sleep finally claimed her.

  CHAPTER 4

  The warm press of a heavy body tucked in next to Abby’s helped make a really great dream even better. The good times lasted right up until reality hit with the slurp of a tongue accompanied by a heated blast of doggy breath. Surrendering to the inevitable, she opened her eyes just far enough to squint at her furry companion. “Sorry, Zeke, but it’s way too early to be awake
.”

  After everything that had happened last night, she was in no hurry to get out of bed. When she snuggled down further under the covers, Zeke plopped his huge head down on his paws, his brown eyes full of disappointment. She relented and patted his wrinkled forehead. “Sorry, big guy, but I’m not ready to face the day.”

  He seemed content to stay beside her in exchange for her scratching that spot behind his ears that always had him sighing with doggy pleasure. The two of them had almost drifted back to sleep again when she heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps coming down the stairs from the third floor. When they paused on the landing outside her door, Abby remained perfectly still in the foolish hope her mother would walk on by.

  She should’ve known better. Phoebe McCree had always been a cheerful morning person and couldn’t understand why anyone else might have a different opinion on the subject. Back when Abby had been part of the workforce, she’d learned to drag herself out of bed at the crack of dawn out of simple necessity. But since her divorce and subsequent move to Snowberry Creek, she’d fallen back on old habits. Well, except on the days when one of her elderly friends decided to call her before the sun had cleared the horizon. At least when that happened, she had the option of letting the call go to voice mail.

  Not so with her mother, who now stood right beside the bed. “Abby, I’m heading down to start breakfast. How do bacon and eggs sound?”

  Zeke lifted his head and woofed softly, voicing his approval. Clearly there was no use pretending to be asleep. However, that didn’t mean she would bound out of bed just because everyone else in the house was awake and hungry.

  “Fix whatever you want, Mom, but nothing for me. I’ll have cereal or yogurt later whenever I decide to get up.”

  To make it clear she wasn’t leaving her bed anytime soon, she added, “Zeke will be glad to keep you company, though. Please close my door on your way out.”

  Her mother was nothing if not determined. “You know the police chief is coming over this morning at ten.”