Murder Welcomes You to Buxley

by Maddie Cochere

“Ravens,” he said when he saw me. “Congratulations. I guess you’ve finally made it to the big time.” He held his hand out to shake mine.

  He was being downright cheerful, and it was positively frightening. “Thank you,” I said warily. “Thank you for coming. How are you feeling?”

  “I feel fine. I’m taking it easy, and I’ll be back to work soon.”

  “Good. I promise I’ll try not to upset you in the future.”

  “No worries,” he said. “All is well.”

  The man had obviously been given a brain transplant while he was in the hospital.

  Glenn’s phone rang, and he stepped outside to take the call. When he came back in, he said, “I have to leave. There’s a double homicide out at the trailer park, and I need to help out.” He turned to me. “Want to come along?”

  Sergeant Rorski raised his voice. “No! Do not take her with-” He stopped and said softly under his breath, “All is well. All is well.”

  I didn’t want to go to a murder scene – especially in a dress in cold weather. I pulled him off to the side of the room.

  “Will you be very long?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not on duty, so if the guys have everything under control when I get there, I’ll be right back, and we’ll go to dinner as planned. If there are complications, I might be several hours.”

  I leaned in close to him. “I think I’ll stay here until everyone’s gone. If you’re not back by then, I’ll go home and wait for you, but you have to promise to wake me up when you come in.”

  “You have to promise to wear the dress to bed.”

  I laughed. “I’ll leave the bra on. It’s doing all the work.”

  “Wheeler!” Sergeant Rorski semi-yelled. “You got somewhere to be?”

  Glenn kissed me, grabbed his coat, and headed out the door just as Howard Sanders was coming in. It didn’t make any sense that he was here if there were two people dead at the trailer park. As the county coroner, he was usually at the scene when there was a homicide.

  He paid no attention to me, but made a beeline for Jackie. I left him to chat with her, and I slipped back into my office. I was curious about the box on the desk.

  I picked it up and saw it had been mailed to me here at the office. There was no return address, but the postmark was Carbide City, Ohio.

  Susan and Darby lived in Carbide City. Why would one of them have sent something to me? And how could they have possibly known about the office? I suspected Pepper once again.

  I opened the box. It was full of tissue paper. A handwritten note was on top.

  Dear Jo - It was a pleasure meeting you and your family. As much as I enjoyed seeing her again, her place is with you. Maybe we’ll meet again one day, and we’ll have that racquetball game. Sincerely - Susan

  I unwrapped the layers of tissue paper to find the little clown figurine inside. Darby must have told her about my rant over Roger selling our things.

  I didn’t know why, but Susan’s kindness and the little clown brought tears to my eyes. I placed her on my desk. It seemed the right place, and I felt as though she’d bring me good luck in my work.

  I looked over at the whiteboard. Keith had been in here and had drawn at least ten squares with a case to solve in each one. I scanned them. A woman wanted me to find her brother. A man wanted information on a man his daughter was dating. Mrs. Murgatroyd wanted to know who was stealing her newspaper on Saturday mornings.

  Pepper came in and stood beside me. “Looks like you’re going to be busy for a while.”

  I pointed to one square and laughed. “Find out who’s stealing Casey Burrell’s panties and bras. Do you think he’s making these up?”

  “He better not be.” She slipped her arm around me. “Congratulations, Jo. I’m really proud of you.”

  “I never dreamed I’d be in an office with my name on the door. It’s kind of scary.”

  “Nonsense. There’s nothing to be scared about. Just keep doing what you’ve been doing, and you’ll be great.”

  Mama stuck her head through the doorway. “What are you two doing? Come back out here. Howard’s telling stories about what the bodies at the morgue do when he’s not looking.”

  Pepper followed her, but I hung back and looked around my office once more. I felt completely at ease here, and I felt good about my future as a private investigator.

  I looked out into the reception area and saw Keith sitting wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open as Howard told about putting a body in one drawer only to find it in another the next time he checked. Keith would probably have nightmares for a month.

  Pepper and Jackie stood together near the door to Parker’s. I assumed they were hoping to make a fast getaway. My emotions were high tonight, and I felt love for both of them. I may have new business cards on my desk, but I was still going to answer my red phone with my Two Sisters and a Journalist greeting. The three of us were still a team.

  I walked over to stand beside Sergeant Rorski. I smiled and put my hand on his arm for a moment. I really was going to try to be more cooperative and not rattle him so much.

  I allowed my thoughts to drift to Glenn and seeing him later tonight. I was glad we had exchanged keys. The way things were going, I could see us moving in together soon. I took a deep breath and let out a sigh of contentment.

  Sergeant Rorski muttered something obscene under his breath about Howard.

  I smiled, placed my hand on his arm again, and said, “All is well, Sergeant. All is well.”

  The End

  however…

  Dear Reader,

  Murder Welcomes You to Buxley is a parallel story of the same week occurring in Buckeye Hunter, the seventh and final book in the Susan Hunter series.

  In Susan’s book, you’ll read her thoughts and reactions to Jo, her family, and her friends as events unfold around her throughout the week. Darby falls in love with the town, and Susan fears he may never want to leave. In the end, Susan makes a life-changing decision.

  Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed Murder Welcomes You to Buxley, I hope you’ll give the Susan Hunter series an opportunity to entertain you as well.

  ~Maddie Cochere

  Easy-breezy reading from Breezy Books!

  Murder Under Construction, Two Sisters and a Journalist #1 – Jo Ravens is thirty-two, divorced, and stuck in a rut. She wants two things in life - a new career as a private investigator and to lose the sixty pounds she packed on after her divorce. When she crashes her nephew's bike in a construction site, she lands on a girl with a large knife in her chest. Jo enlists her sister, Pepper, and her journalist friend, Jackie, to help solve the girl's murder. Things become creepy for Jo when the girl appears to her in dreams and offers unusual clues to her death. Murder Under Construction is a humorous mystery with Jo's family adding to the antics of the three women. Mama caterwauls, Jackie's two children offer sleuthing assistance, and her brother, Hank, laughs at all of them from the sidelines.

  Murder Is Where the Heart Is, Two Sisters and a Journalist #2 – Amateur private investigator, Jo Ravens, is the only common link in the murder of three people and the abduction of a cab driver. While police are busy building a case against her, Jo races to prove her innocence. Her sister, Pepper, and journalist friend, Jackie, are on hand to assist in catching the real killer. The antics of her ex-husband and eccentric Mama add to this humorous mystery.

  Murder Welcomes You to Buxley, Two Sisters and a Journalist #3 – Jo is busy trying to locate a stolen car, find a missing teen, and catch a philandering husband in the act. She already has more work than she can handle when she finds a murdered girl leaning against a dumpster. Has the girl really been strangled for stealing a cell phone? Jo meets Susan Hunter when Susan comes to town to assist in the opening of a Slimmer’s Weight Loss center. Their interaction, as well the continued antics of Jo’s madcap family, adds to the humor in Murder Welcomes You to Buxley.

  Coming Soon! Murder Wins the Game - Two Sisters and a Journalist #4

 
Be sure to check out the Susan Hunter series from Maddie Cochere:

  The Susan Hunter books are not your typical mysteries, and Susan is not your typical sleuth. Often, she is simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, and things go downhill quickly. All of the books cross genres of chick lit, mystery, romance, humor, and action, bringing you a fast-paced, easy-breezy read.

  Sunshine Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #1 – Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, Susan Hunter enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. … When she finds out her new boyfriend of three months is married, she bolts with her best friend to Florida for a week. But someone has followed them, and they are now being stalked. To make matters worse, a murder has been committed back home in Carbide City, and Susan is wanted for questioning. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Sunshine Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading!

  Big Apple Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #2 – Susan has life-changing decisions to make. Should she accept the new position with Slimmers Weight Loss? Should she give in and move the relationship with Mick to the next level? . . . When Darby has business in New York City, Susan jumps at the chance to tag along intending to indulge in a weekend of shopping. It doesn’t take her long to realize she’s being hunted in The Big Apple. And what does the stalker have to do with Darby’s new client? It becomes a matter of life-and-death when the stalker shows up in Carbide City demanding something that Susan lost in New York.

  Sin City Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #3 – Susan is in Las Vegas for ten days of work and play. Her parents come in from Dallas to spend some time with her and have their own fun. But fun turns to terror for Susan when a magic act goes wrong. … When a man is murdered, Susan knows who did it. Unfortunately for her, the killer knows that she knows. Her actions in Sin City ultimately put not only her own life on the line but that of Mick’s as well.

  Big Easy Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #4 – When Susan is accused of being a cat burglar, and a serial rapist is on the loose over by the mall, she takes off for New Orleans to attend a wedding and finds even more trouble in The Big Easy. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Big Easy Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading.

  Windy City Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #5 - It’s two weeks before Christmas. Susan and her best friend, Darby, travel to Chicago to compete in a national cooking competition. They aren’t even in Chicago an hour when they stumble upon a murder crime scene. The lead detective on the case is egged on by an eager insurance investigator, and Susan and Darby quickly become suspects. To make the weekend even more complicated, one of Darby’s cooking ingredients is sabotaged during the contest, and unbeknownst to them, they befriend a local art forger. With Mick away in England, things become desperate for them in The Windy City.

  Maple Leaf Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #6 - Susan and Mick have a romantic weekend planned in Niagara Falls and Toronto before her big meeting with a children’s book publisher. When they decide to spend the following week at a fishing lodge on the Ottawa River, Darby, Nate, and Alex decide to come along, too. A Sasquatch, gold hunters, a kidnapping, and dangerous men all make for another unforgettable vacation for Susan.

  Buckeye Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #7 - Susan travels to Southeast Ohio to assist in the grand opening of a Slimmers Weight Loss center. There she meets Jo, Pepper, and Jackie - local sleuths from Two Sisters and a Journalist. When a murder is committed on Susan’s doorstep, Jo is there to find the body. Susan can’t believe the trouble swirling around her even though she is only two hours from home. She makes a life-changing decision in this final book of the Susan Hunter series.

  Visit the official website of Maddie Cochere at Breezy Books:

  http://www.breezybooks.com/