Welcome to Sweetwater (Annie Parker Mystery Shorts Box Set)

by A. J. Bromley

  “When this is over I’m sure I can get your money back. You did a great job, Kate.”

  Susanne got on the phone to the expert. Joel Fields was sorry to learn about Jane’s death. Susanne went on to explain about the bracelet. She told him that she would like to bring it to him today.

  “You can come by this morning. I’m working the New York Times crossword puzzle and would welcome the interruption.” He then went on to give directions to his home.

  Susanne was finishing her call when Molly and Polly showed up carrying shopping bags.

  “Looks like you two have been busy. Did you have fun?” Taylor was bursting to tell them the latest.

  Polly pulled out a big jar of something “Sherri was so helpful. She said we both needed conditioner. We promised to come back when we run out.”

  “Paul has a big selection of books on travel. Since we are still pondering the next trip we got four to study.” Molly pointed to the bags they carried.

  Susanne quickly spoke up when she saw everyone preparing to leave. “Taylor, you and I need to take the bracelet to Mr. Fields. He can see us now.”

  “We will see you all back at the house, okay?” Taylor was happy when Kate and the twins agreed. She was amazed how well the posse worked together.

  Closing up the shop, they went to their vehicles. Both Taylor and Kate had found parking spaces in front of Old Time Treasures. Bea was standing at the window with a puzzled look on her face. Who’s that woman? She must be Jane’s sister. Oh dear, Bea was starting to hate her life.

  Chapter 11

  Annie arrived at the Snowflake Café and Bakery shortly after Sam. She felt that she had been away forever but it had only been two days.

  Roy and Caitlyn were happy to see their boss. It didn’t take them long to fill her in.

  “Yes, Annie the place is still in one piece. What could possibly go wrong? See, you can go away.” Roy enjoyed joking with her; she was a good sport.

  Caitlyn had the coffee pot and walked to the back booth where was Sam waiting.

  “Can I get you anything else Annie?”

  “Please bring us a couple of cinnamon buns Caitlyn.”

  Sam was standing by the booth. He gave Annie a quick hug and kiss. “I have missed you, Annie.”

  “Sam, it is so good to see you. I’ll be glad when this crime is solved.”

  Sitting down across from each other, they held hands for a few minutes. Caitlyn came with the buns but didn’t wait around.

  While fixing her coffee, Annie started filling Sam in about the case. “Jane’s sister, Susanne, is due there this morning. Maybe she knows something that will be helpful.”

  “How’s your posse doing? I know there is safety in numbers.” Sam only wanted Annie to come home.

  “We had a busy day yesterday. Kate and I questioned a former employee.” She went on to give him the details. “Molly and Polly went to the shop with Taylor. The police had asked her to do an inventory. One of the other shops was broken into yesterday. I’m hoping the police get this solved soon.

  “You’ll find this amusing, Sam. Taylor has a crush on the young police officer on the case. She blushes whenever his name is mentioned.”

  “Runs in the family, Annie. Do you want me to check him out?”

  “Good grief no!” Annie was laughing. It felt good to relax and joke with Sam.

  Sam’s cell phone rang. Answering it, he frowned. “Can’t you handle it, Dennis? I’m busy.” After a few more words back and forth, Sam hung up. “I’ve got to get back to the station. The Grays are having a dispute and Dennis thinks he needs backup. I’m sorry to cut our visit short. Will I see you tonight?” Sam started to get out his wallet. Annie waved it away.

  “My treat. I’m hoping to finish up today. I’ll call if I need to stay.”

  Gathering up her purse, she saw that there was a text from Taylor. She had better head back.

  “Roy, I need to grab some nut sandie dough from the freezer. The cookies will be good with tea this afternoon. Is everything okay? I plan to be back in the morning.”

  “Annie, I almost forgot. Some man came by yesterday looking for you. He wouldn’t leave his name. ‘I’ll come back. I want to surprise her.’ That was all he said. He must be some secret admirer.”

  “Roy, I don’t have time for this now. I need to get back to Boulder. So much is happening.” Responding to Taylor’s message, Annie headed back.

  Chapter 12

  Susanne was anxious to take the bracelet to Joel for his expert opinion. She and Taylor went to his house. Being retired now, he had kept only a few clients. Jane had been going to him for several years.

  Mr. Fields greeted the women at his front door. He was a distinguished older man with a friendly manner.

  After examining the bracelet, his immediate impression was that it was a fake. “Actually it’s quite well done.” He started out by showing the obvious modern technique used in assembling the jewels and silver pattern.

  “What was the price?” Joel was curious.

  “My friend paid $500 for it.” Susanne was hopping Kate would get her money back when this was all done.

  “I would guess that the actual value would be under $200. After I do a more detailed exam, I’ll write up a report. It should be ready tomorrow.” He carefully put it back in the box.

  They thanked Mr. Fields and left with a feeling that they knew who the killer might be.

  It was lunchtime when they got back to Taylor’s house. Molly, Polly and Kate had a chicken salad with crusty bread waiting for the troops.

  Annie drove in as they were starting to eat.

  “Have I missed all the excitement?” A smiling Annie came through the kitchen door. She sat down at the table and started drinking some iced tea. The drive back was easy but the weather was very warm.

  “You sure have. Wait till we tell you what happened this morning.” Taylor was bursting to tell everything at once.

  One by one everyone got to report about her assignment.

  Annie had to laugh about the twins spending time with Sherri. Then Kate told her about going to Bea’s shop to buy a piece of jewelry. “I told Bea that my husband had forgotten our anniversary and I wanted to correct that.” Kate was still enjoying the thrill of her adventure.

  “Her jewelry isn’t authentic and we think that Jane was suspicious of her.” Taylor was really feeling part of the posse. “Susanne and I are going to the police with this information. Will you come with us Aunt Annie?” Taylor was ready to turn the leadership back to her aunt.

  Annie smiled at the group. “I’d like that Taylor. Maybe I’ll run into my good friend Officer Weber. We bonded so well.” Annie remained annoyed with that man.

  When lunch was finished, Annie, Taylor and Susanne left for the police station. They agreed that after turning over information the posse would leave for home.

  Taylor drove Susanne and her aunt to the police station. Officer Weber was in his office. Even this man didn’t dampen their spirits. Taylor looked around for Alex but didn’t see him.

  “We have some information for you officer. It should be helpful in Mrs. Rogers’ case.” Annie waited for him to have some negative response.

  “Isn’t that great? I suppose you women have all the answers.” He looked at Taylor and then went onto say. “My deputy tells me that you have been in and out of here a few times.”

  “I stopped in for the keys because I had to do inventory that your department requested. Then I brought Susanne Stevens, Mrs. Rogers’ sister, here to answer some questions.” Taylor was exasperated.

  “Simmer down. I know I come on a little strong sometimes. I apologize.” He did manage to look sorry. “Come in and sit down.” He noticed only two chairs for the three of them. “Let me grab another chair.”

  After everyone was comfortable, Susanne went on to explain about the fake jewelry purchased at Bea’s shop. “Mr. Fields is an expert on antique jewelry; he will be sending me a detailed report which I will bring in to
you.”

  Taylor went on about Jane Rogers suspecting Bea. The books and her notes backed up this theory. She also told about the brooch that Bea was wearing at the meeting of the shop owners.

  “You all have been busy. We need to question Beatrice Ames again.” His attitude was starting to improve. “We’re suspicious about the break-in at her shop. Some things didn’t add up. We’re still working on it.”

  “Do you know how my sister died?” Susanne was hoping for some answers.

  “We’re waiting for the written results. It looks like she had a blow to her head or struck a sharp object when she fell.” Looking directly at Susanne, he went on. “I don’t like to speculate.”

  “I will be staying at my sister’s house. You have my phone number. I’ll be waiting to hear from you Officer Weber.” Susanne stood up; reaching across his desk, she shook his hand. “Thank you for your cooperation.”

  As they walked out Annie told Susanne that she handled that very well. “You didn’t get him all upset like I did. Let’s go back to Taylor’s and relax before heading home. I brought back some cookie dough from the café. I’ll bake some to go with our iced tea.”

  Annie called Kate while Taylor was driving them back. She told her about having a quick get together before returning to Sweetwater.

  Molly and Polly cleaned the bedrooms. Kate straightened up the living room and kitchen. She had enjoyed the two days with her posse friends.

  Taylor pulled into the yard. Miss Olive was sitting under a shade tree reading a book.

  “Hi Taylor, is everything okay?”

  “Everyone will be leaving this afternoon. The police are still working on the murder. They have some good leads thanks to my friends.” Taylor thought she would tell her landlady more details after the police made an arrest. “My roommates will be back this weekend and we’ll have you over for dinner.” Miss Olive went back to reading pleased with her new tenant.

  In a short time, everyone was sitting around the table telling the latest news. Annie felt at home baking cookies in Taylor’s kitchen. “Taylor will you keep us posted on any new developments with the case and your police officer?”

  “I will call you when I get an update about the case.” Taylor smiled as she kept thoughts about Alex to herself.

  Taylor was left with only a few dishes and two cookie sheets to wash. The nut sandies were a big hit. The posse headed back to Sweetwater and Susanne went to her sister’s house.

  Chapter 13

  Taylor got a call from Alex early Thursday morning. “Can you meet me for coffee? I have the day off.” He held this breath waiting for her answer.

  “I would love to Alex. Where and when?” Taylor was thrilled.

  “How about Elmo’s Diner in two hours?”

  “Perfect. I’ll be there.” She quickly hung up and went to pick out the right outfit.

  Alex was waiting in the booth when Taylor arrived. After changing outfits six times, she settled for a green sleeveless dress with daisies. She had left her hair down. Her white sandals matched the flowers in the dress.

  The warm smile Alex gave her said that she had made the right choice. They both ordered coffee then Taylor waited for Alex to begin.

  “I have some news for you Taylor. We brought Mrs. Ames in for questioning yesterday afternoon. She put up a lot of resistance at first but finally confessed to killing Mrs. Rogers. Then she also admitted to staging the so called robbery at her shop.”

  “Oh Alex, why did she do it?”

  “She claims that she was desperate. She thought Jane was suspicious of her selling fakes. Mrs. Ames was having financial problems when she found someone who knew how to make jewelry look like valuable antique pieces. Some of Mrs. Rogers’ customers had shown the jewelry to her. The workmanship was good but didn’t have an authentic quality.”

  “That must have been when Jane asked Paul for the books. I wish Jane had shared this problem with me.”

  “No I don’t think that would have been a good idea. Bea would have gone after you too.” Alex didn’t want anything happening to this sweet girl.

  “Did she tell you about Monday morning?” Taylor was hoping to get all the details from Alex.

  “Mrs. Rogers had set a meeting with Mrs. Ames for early that morning. Bea said Jane wanted to confront her about selling fakes. She was going to give Mrs. Ames an opportunity to set things right and get out of the jewelry business.”

  “When she came to the shop that morning, Jane met her at the door. They started arguing then Bea shoved her against the display cabinet. Mrs. Rogers stumbled. That was when Mrs. Ames said she couldn’t control her anger. She struck her in the face causing her to hit her head on a sharp corner.

  “Mrs. Ames outweighed your boss by about forty pounds. Along with that and the adrenaline rush, it wasn’t hard for her to overpower Mrs. Rogers. Then she admitted to ripping the brooch off her dress, commenting, ‘She won’t need this.’ This woman may need a psych evaluation before the trial.

  “Now Taylor, I have given you more details then I’m permitted. When you report into your friends, please be very brief.” Alex didn’t intend telling this girl so much. What was she doing to him?

  “Alex, I’ll only give the basic facts.”

  Saying good-bye, he said, “I’ll call you soon. Maybe we can have a real date, unless you’re seeing someone.”

  “That would be nice Alex. I’ll be busy with classes starting but I can definitely make time for you.” She was smiling as she walked to her SUV.

  Taylor’s phone rang as she was about to start for home.

  “Hi Taylor, Susanne calling. I am at the shop and wondered if you could stop by for a few minutes? I have some questions about the business. I won’t keep you very long.”

  “I can be there shortly. Alex invited me for coffee and we have just finished.” Taylor was happy to help Susanne and wanted to know if she still had a job.

  Entering the shop, the first thing Taylor saw was a large SOLD sign hanging around the neck of the carousel horse. Oh no, thought Taylor. Someone has bought my Jelly Bean.

  “Is that you Taylor?” Susanne called out as she was walking from the office.

  “I’m here. How did someone buy the horse when the shop has been closed?” Taylor was trying not to get emotional.

  “Someone called and asked to buy it. Said they had seen it and didn’t want to wait for the reopening.” Susanne tried to hide her amusement at Taylor’s distress. “Come on into the office. I have a couple of questions regarding some customers.”

  When they were both sitting down in the office Susanne quickly went on to ask Taylor about staying on as a salesperson. “You are so personable and good at your job. My sister always had glowing reports about you.”

  “That would be great, Susanne. I have been hoping you would ask me.” Taylor was all smiles.

  “Now why don’t I answer those questions that you have.”

  When Taylor was about to leave, Susanne spoke up. “Do you have time to help me with something right now?”

  “I’d be glad to help.”

  “Well, the carousel horse needs to be delivered this afternoon. I know it will take the two of us to move it. Thank goodness for my pickup truck.”

  Taylor wasn’t that anxious to see her horse packed up and delivered but she would survive.

  They carefully lifted the horse into the bed of the truck. Susanne had bungee cords to secure it in place.

  “If you will follow me Taylor we can finish up this transaction quickly.” Susanne was so excited about doing this.

  Before Taylor realized it, Susanne was pulling into Taylor’s place. When both of them were standing in the driveway, Taylor asked. “Did you forget something in the house?”

  “This is where I was told to deliver this package and give it to a Taylor Stillman. That’s you isn’t it?”

  Taylor was speechless and the tears were starting to flow.

  “Your aunt and I wanted you to have something special; t
his horse is our gift to you.”

  “Thank you so much.” Taylor gave Susanne a big hug and wiped away her tears.

  “Okay let’s get this unloaded.” Susanne knew Jane would agree with what Annie and she had done.

  Chapter 14

  Annie awoke after a good night’s sleep. Sam came by last night to welcome her home and they made special plans for this Friday night.

  By midmorning, she was back in high gear at the café. The locals were happy to see her. Even Joe Havers, the cantankerous 80 something year old, had a pleasant greeting.