“Someone else was in there singing for him?” Roxy said, no doubt remembering when she had been in that same position herself.
Madison nodded. “I cracked open the door just as she finished, and Lou got up and kissed her and told her she had the voice of an angel. I was stunned. And then I saw who it was. That little nobody who sings out of that abandoned restaurant. I had seen her at the theater before. She works at the grocery store and delivers his applesauce every week . . .”
It felt like the wind was suddenly knocked out of me. Amy.
My head began to throb, and I looked up at Grandma, and she had the same look of alarm on her face. We had never completely ruled her out.
“How do you know she delivers the applesauce?” Grandma asked.
Madison sniffed. “I was there one morning when she dropped it off, and he told me. He said he can’t swallow pills, so he puts it in his applesauce. Why?”
Grandma looked at Archer. “Didn’t the police check to see where he got the applesauce?”
“I don’t know,” Archer said, concerned. “But I’ll find out.” He pulled out his phone and started to text someone.
Madison was crying, and Kodiak put his arm around her. He gave us all a look that said he wasn’t happy with us. And we deserved it. I felt terrible, and judging from the looks on everyone else’s faces, they did too.
“Come on,” Kodiak said. “I’ll walk you out to your car.”
We said goodbye to Madison and watched as she and Kodiak walked out the door.
Archer got a call, and he walked toward the bathroom to take it. The rest of us sat at the table, feeling guilty.
“Well, that didn’t go like you planned,” Casius said. He had been so quiet I had forgotten he was there.
“I feel terrible,” Greta said. “We blamed that poor girl and really, she was innocent.”
“And Amy,” I said shaking my head in disbelief. “Here we thought she was so sweet, and she was the murderer all along.”
“Her meeting with Lou must have upset her more than she let on,” Virginia said.
“Or,” Roxy added, “she realized she was just being led on like the rest of us and decided to pay him back.”
“Whatever the reason,” Grandma Dean said, “Archer will tell his police friend, and they’ll sort it all out.”
Archer came back to the table and slammed his phone down. That took all of us by surprise. “Guess what my buddy at the station said.”
We looked at him, waiting for him to tell us.
“They did question Amy. She admitted to meeting him at the grocery store one day, and he told her about his medication. She started delivering him a case every week.”
“So, it was her, then,” Greta said sadly.
“He also said they think the applesauce was contaminated inside the mini fridge. They found traces of antifreeze at the bottom like it had been spilled. Most likely the killer snuck in and added it to whatever was in his fridge at the time—his applesauce, his drinks . . . It was a sloppy job, so whoever did it was trying to be quick.”
“Wait a minute,” Virginia said. “Amy told us she performed once for him, and it was on Archer’s stage. But Madison just said she was in Lou’s dressing room.”
“Is Amy a suspect?” Grandma asked Archer.
He shook his head. “They cleared her on day one.”
“Does that mean that Madison is guilty after all?” I asked.
“What if,” Roxy said, “Madison came back just like she said she did, and she saw Amy on the stage. And she decided then to put an end to Lou. She ran out to her car, grabbed antifreeze, and took it to his dressing room. After she put it in his applesauce, and who knows what else, she hid it in Billie’s dressing room so she wouldn’t be caught walking out with it.”
Casius laughed.
“What’s so funny?” I asked.
“Madison just played us all like a fiddle.”
22
“Where’s Kodiak?” I asked a few minutes later. “Shouldn’t he have been back in here by now?”
Grandma stood up, a worried look on her face. “Let’s go check on him.”
We all went outside and looked around. There were a handful of vehicles in the parking lot, and one of them was Kodiak’s truck. Hattie walked ahead of us as we made our way toward it.
All of a sudden Hattie shrieked. “He’s dead! She got him!”
We ran up to the truck and saw Kodiak slumped over the steering wheel. Hattie flung the door open and jumped in, climbing on Kodiak and pulling his head back. She immediately started giving him mouth-to-mouth. It took me a second to realize he was struggling to get away.
“Hattie!” I yelled. “Let him go! He’s not dead!”
Finally, Kodiak was able to pull her off of him. His eyes were bulging. “What the heck is going on?” he demanded.
Hattie smiled. “You were dead, and I brought you back to life.”
“Dead?” Kodiak yelled. “I wasn’t dead! I was just sitting here thinking. And then you jumped in and nearly gave me a heart attack!
Hattie’s smile broadened. “It’s nice to know I can still stop a man’s heart.”
“What are you doing out here?” I asked Kodiak. “Is everything okay?”
The look on Kodiak’s face changed from fear to sadness. “She broke up with me. She said she couldn’t be with a man who would just sit there while someone accused her of murder.”
“Kodiak,” I said gently. “We still think she’s guilty.”
He looked at all of us—old friends and new. “I know,” he said slowly. “I didn’t want to believe it at first. But I think you guys are right.”
“Where did she go?” Archer asked. “Is she headed home?”
Kodiak shrugged. “She was upset when she left, so I offered to take her home, but she said she had to pick something up at the grocery store first.”
“The grocery store?” Grandma asked, alarmed. “You don’t think she would hurt Amy, do you?”
Virginia reached in her purse and pulled out her keys. “Nikki, you and Kodiak run by the store to see if Amy’s there. Kodiak, give us Madison’s address, and we’ll run by her house and see what she’s up to.”
Kodiak rattled off an address as Casius and I climbed in his truck. The grannies, along with Willie and Roxy and Archer, crammed themselves into Virginia’s SUV. It could seat eight, but it was still going to be a tight fit with everyone.
I told Kodiak what grocery store I thought Amy worked at, and we made our way over there in silence. I could tell that Kodiak was nervous, and Casius, well, he was unusually quiet.
We pulled up in front of the grocery store, and Kodiak put the truck in park. “Now what?”
“I’ll go in and see if Amy is working,” I said, opening the door. “I’ll be right back.”
The automatic doors of the grocery store slid open, revealing a bright and cheerful store. It was late at night, but you’d never know it walking around in there. I almost felt like I needed to shield my eyes, the store was so bright. I saw a manager helping out a cashier, and I stood by the bagger until the manager turned to walk away.
“Excuse me,” I said to her. “Is Amy Walters here?”
The manager’s face fell. “She was until a few minutes ago. Someone came in and told her she had a family emergency, and she had to leave.”
My heart dropped. “She didn’t leave with her, did she?” I asked, silently praying the manager would say no.
“I think so,” the manager answered. “They walked out together.”
“Crap!” I yelled, running toward the door. I pulled out my cell phone and called Grandma. “Madison was already here. Amy left with her a few minutes ago.”
“We’re almost to Madison’s house,” Grandma said. “Archer is calling his police friend right now, but at this rate, we’ll get there before they do.”
“I’ll head your way,” I promised.
As I was running to the truck, I saw Casius hanging out the window, wa
ving wildly. “Hurry up!” he yelled at me. “We just saw Madison leave the parking lot, and there was a woman in the front seat!”
I ran even faster and climbed in. Kodiak sped out of the parking lot and pulled up at a red light.
He banged on the steering wheel. “We’re going to lose her!”
Even though it was late, there were still several cars out on the road. Kodiak pointed to red taillights that were nearly a block away and getting further. “That’s her up there.”
The light turned green, and Kodiak floored it. The taillights were a few blocks ahead of us at this point. She turned right, and when Kodiak finally caught up to the street to turn right himself, there was no sign of her car.
“Where did she go?” Casius asked, looking around.
We were on a straight country road. Even with her being far ahead of us, we still should’ve been able to see her taillights. But we were the only people on the road.
Grandma sent me a text letting me know Madison wasn’t at her house, and I told her what was going on. When I told her where we were, she said that wasn’t too far from Madison’s house, and they would head our way.
“Kill the lights,” I ordered Kodiak.
“Nikki, it’s too dark out here. I won’t be able to see anything.”
I gave him a hard stare and he huffed. “Fine.” He flicked off the lights, and we rolled our windows down, hoping to hear or see something as we slowly made our way down the road.
My phone rang, and I nearly peed on myself from fright.
“Geez Nikki,” Casius said, punching me in the arm. “Turn off your ringer. We’re supposed to be in stealth mode.”
I answered the phone in a whisper, though I probably didn’t need to.
“Greta just looked up Amy’s address, and it’s close to where you are,” Grandma said urgently. “I think that’s where they’re headed. I’m going to text you the address. You guys head there. We’re on our way. Archer’s on the phone now with his cop buddy.”
I hung up and relayed the message to the guys. Grandma’s text came through, and I put the address in the GPS on my phone.
“It’s not even a mile from here!”
Casius took my phone. “Kodiak, look for a street up ahead and take a right. Keep your lights off.”
“I’m not an owl!” Kodiak barked. “It’s nearly impossible to see out here.”
We drove along, all looking for the road. The trees on either side of the road made it even more difficult to see.
“There!” Casius pointed out. “You just missed it!”
Kodiak put the truck in reverse a few feet and turned onto the road.
“She lives down here,” Casius said, still holding my phone.
He flipped the phone over so it hid the light from the screen. As we made our way down the road, it felt like my heart was in my throat. Casius must have felt nervous too, because he grabbed my hand.
Before I could even see Amy’s house, I could hear shouting.
“Pull over,” I said to Kodiak. “We’ll walk the rest of the way so she doesn’t see us coming.”
“Shouldn’t we wait for the police?” Casius asked, alarmed.
“We never wait for the police,” I said, taking off my seat belt.
Kodiak and Casius both looked over at me, surprised.
“You’ve done this before?” Casius asked.
“It’s kind of our thing. I’ll explain later.”
Kodiak pulled the truck to the side of the road and turned it off. I helped Casius out of the truck, and we quietly made our way toward the shouting. It was definitely Madison and Amy, though I couldn’t understand what they were saying. I wished the grannies were here. They always took charge in these situations. I could feel the adrenaline burning in my veins. My fight or flight was kicking in, and I was leaning toward flight.
But then I thought about all the times the grannies and I had been in these situations, and did they back down? No. They ran full force into danger. They never let fear get in their way. I knew that if I didn’t act fast, Amy would be Madison’s next victim.
We were now standing at the end of Amy’s driveway. Her porch light was on, illuminating her yard where she and Madison stood arguing. Madison had her back to me, and she was blocking my view of Amy. But I could sense the danger. I knew I needed to act fast. And then I heard the word that made my heart stop. Gun.
I reached over and grabbed a crutch from under Casius’ arm and charged toward the women. I heard Casius falter behind me, and I hoped that Kodiak was able to grab him before he hit the ground.
I ran through the yard and raised the crutch just as I approached them. I swung it through the air, and it collided with Madison’s shoulder. I had been aiming for her head, but it still did the trick, knocking her over. She laid on the ground shrieking in pain. I looked up at Amy to see if she was okay, and I suddenly froze. She was the one who had the gun, and now it was pointed directly at me.
“Amy?” I finally squeaked out in disbelief. “What are you doing?”
She scowled at me. “Why can’t you people just go on a vacation like everyone else? Go to a show, eat at new restaurants, buy souvenirs? No, you have to go poking around where you don’t belong.”
I looked at Madison, who was still on the ground, holding her shoulder.
“So, which one of you killed Lou?” I asked, completely confused.
“Amy did it!” Madison yelled. “Amy killed him!”
“I did not!” Amy shouted. “You killed him! All I did was distract him that night so you could sneak into his dressing room with the antifreeze!”
“You were in on it together?” I asked, shocked. “Amy, you were so nice. Why would you do something like that?”
She sniffed, and tears welled up in her eyes. “Madison told me that if I helped her move up, she would help me move up. I thought we were just going to make him sick. I didn’t know he was actually going to die.”
“Shut up!” Madison yelled from the ground. “Don’t tell her anything else!”
I never took my eyes off of Amy or the gun. “Amy, let’s put the gun down. You can explain to the police what happened. If you tell them the whole truth, I’m sure they will give you a smaller sentence.”
“No,” Amy said firmly. “I’m not going down for this. I’m going to shoot Madison and tell the police that she came here to kill me, and I shot her in self-defense.” She looked at me and shook her head sadly. “I just have to figure out what to do with you.”
I was thankful she didn’t realize I wasn’t alone, though I didn’t think Kodiak or Casius would be much help to me.
“I don’t understand any of this, Amy,” I said, trying to stall and hoping and praying the grannies or the police would show up any minute.
“What is left to understand?” she asked. “Madison wanted Lou’s job, and she said she would talk to the Seven Sven about hiring me to replace her. Lou made it easy. When he invited me to sing for him, I told Madison, and she came up with the plan. As soon as my bandmates left, I sent her a text. She was waiting nearby . . .”
“I said shut up!” Madison screamed. She struggled to stand, still not taking her hand off her shoulder.
“When did this happen?” I asked. “When did she put the antifreeze in his applesauce?”
“The same day I met you for the first time. Madison and I were at the pizza restaurant so we would have an alibi.”
That’s why Madison was there handing out flyers, even though she already worked for a successful show.
“That’s enough!” Madison yelled, now on her feet. She reached for the crutch that was still in my hand, but I held it firmly. She tried to jerk it away from me, but I tried to pull it away from her. Soon we were in a tug of war over the crutch, and it seemed to push Amy over the edge.
“I can’t take this anymore!” Amy yelled. She pointed the gun at Madison. “This is all your fault! We’re in this mess because of you!”
She had enough panic in her voice that I
knew this was it—she was going to pull the trigger.
I tried to pull the crutch out of Madison’s hand one last time, hoping I could get control of it and knock the gun out of Amy’s hand. I’m guessing Madison had the same idea, because just as I pulled, she pulled too. Neither of us was letting go. I closed my eyes. I couldn’t watch it happen. I couldn’t watch Madison get shot right there in front of me.
I squeezed my eyes tight and waited for the blast of the gun. But instead, I heard a high-pitched sound like something whizzed in front of me. I heard a cry and opened my eyes to see Amy staring blankly in front of her. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth hung open, but she stood perfectly still for just a moment, then she collapsed in a heap on the ground.
What had happened? Then I saw it. A dart was sticking out of Amy’s arm. Before I could react, I heard the whizzing sound again, and this time Madison let out a cry as she grabbed her arm. She swayed, and I could see her eyes struggling to stay focused. She fell to her knees then slumped over.
I looked over toward where the darts had come from, and I saw Casius give Kodiak a high five. “Tranquilizer darts!” Kodiak shouted to me. “I always keep some with me because of the animals.”
I heard sirens, and soon, the yard was lit up with red-and-blue lights. The grannies were right behind them.
While I talked to the police, I could see Kodiak and Casius filling the grannies in on everything they missed.
I walked up to them as Kodiak finished his story. “What kind of tranquilizer did you use?” Hattie asked him. “Mine doesn’t work nearly that fast on humans. It takes several minutes for it to kick in.”
Kodiak beamed proudly. “Well, you have to mix . . .”
“Don’t answer that,” Grandma warned Kodiak. “Hattie doesn’t need to know the answer. She’s dangerous enough as she is.”
I handed Casius his crutch. “These metal crutches are great. I’m pretty sure a wooden one wouldn’t have held up as well.”
Casius looked at me and his eyes narrowed. “Who exactly are you?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “A little mystery is fun. You of all people should know that.”
Road Trip (Glock Grannies Cozy Mystery Book 6) Page 12
