Trouble and Treats (A Chocolate Centered Cozy Mystery Book 6)

by Cindy Bell

  “There’s nothing I can do. I couldn’t find any solid proof that he’s the one who did this.”

  “But you haven’t looked properly. Have you?”

  “How can I? He never leaves the house. I can’t just knock on the door and ask Jack to let me search the house.”

  “He won’t be there tomorrow, will he?” She smirked. “He’ll be showing off for everyone at the funeral. He won’t miss the attention. He’s a widower now, women eat that up.”

  “Mavis!”

  “I’m just saying what needs to be said. If you don’t like it, don’t listen.”

  “So, you are suggesting that I look through his place while he is at the funeral?”

  “It seems like the ideal time to me. Unless you just want to let that poor girl die with no consequences for her killer.”

  “Mavis, we don’t know for sure that Jack is the killer.”

  “No darling, you don’t know if he is, I do.” Mavis turned and walked away. Her last words pounded through Ally’s mind. How could she be so certain? Was she trying to throw suspicion off herself? She had said that Emma was good to Marley, but was she just saying that to hide the truth? Ally’s mind spun as Mavis’ words ran through her head.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The next morning as Charlotte prepared to head off for the funeral, Ally had other intentions. She hadn’t told her grandmother about Mavis’ visit because she didn’t want her to worry about what she was about to do. Ally grabbed the keys to the van, her purse, and her cell phone.

  “You take my car. I’ll get the van from the shop and meet you there, Mee-Maw. I want to stop at the shop and pick up some things.”

  “Are you sure? We can go together.” Charlotte paused just inside the door. “It’s getting late.”

  “No, it’s fine, I’ll just be a few minutes.”

  “Okay.” Charlotte kissed her cheek. “I know today is going to be hard for you, Ally, but keep in mind that our show of support matters, too. Emma will have a beautiful funeral, regardless of who is there that shouldn’t be.”

  “I know.” Ally took a deep breath. “All that matters now is honoring Emma. I’ll be there.”

  After Charlotte left, Ally grabbed some gloves and tucked them into her purse. Peaches wound her body around Ally’s legs and let out a loud yowl.

  “I know, I know, Peaches. I’ll be careful, I promise.” She stroked her hand back over the cat’s fur to soothe her. Peaches ignored the soft touch and continued to wind through her legs. “I have to go, Peaches. It’s the only time I can. You look after Arnold.” She slipped out of the cottage and hurried down the street. There was a bit of heavy traffic as many of the local residents left to attend the funeral. Ally did her best to keep out of sight, as she didn’t want anyone to suspect what she was up to. A few feet away from Emma’s house, Ally’s phone rang. She winced when she saw that it was Luke. How did he know what she was up to? She knew if she didn’t answer he would worry.

  “Hello?” She paused a good distance from the house.

  “Hey. Charlotte just arrived without you. I wanted to make sure that you didn’t need a ride.”

  “No, I’ll be there soon.”

  “Is everything okay, Ally? You sound a little off.”

  “I’m fine. I think the thought of the funeral is just getting to me.”

  “I understand. This is hard on everyone. We can get some lunch after the funeral if you want?”

  “Yes, that sounds great. I’ll see you soon, Luke.” She clutched the phone a little tighter. It crossed her mind to tell him the truth about what she was up to, but the desire passed. It was just going to be a quick look around, and then she would go to the funeral.

  Ally continued to walk towards the house. The closer she came to it, the more anxious she felt. Jack’s car was in the driveway. Before she could react she saw Jack step out of the front door. He was almost to the car when his cell phone began to ring. The sound made Ally shudder. It was the same ringtone she’d heard in the shop the day it was ransacked. That sealed it in her mind, Jack was the one who ransacked the shop. He was the one who prowled through her grandmother’s apartment. He must have been looking for the wooden box. What Ally couldn’t work out was why he didn’t search the cottage for it. She fought the urge to confront him. If he saw her then, she would blow the whole thing.

  “I know, I told you already, I’m handling it. It won’t be much longer. Just be patient.” He paused and punched the side of the car. “Don’t you dare threaten me. I will take care of it.” He hung up the phone and shoved it into his pocket. Ally watched as he jerked the car door open. Someone made him very angry. He tore out of the driveway at high speed. Ally stared after the car to make sure it disappeared down the street.

  One thing Ally was sure of, was that he was a liar, and a con artist. It didn’t take much of a stretch of the mind to believe that he could be a killer as well. With limited time, she hurried around to the back door. She found the key under the flower pot, just where she had found it before. After one quick glance around she slid the key into the lock. It stuck at first, then turned. She pushed open the door.

  Inside was a pile of trash bags. It startled her as the last time she was in the house things were quite tidy, except for the bedroom. When she looked around the kitchen she could see through the glass fronts of the cabinets that there were no dishes inside. When she stepped out of the kitchen and into the living room she saw several boxes lined up near the couch. Each one was labeled with a room in the house. Her heart dropped. Jack was leaving. He was moving out. Maybe he would leave as soon as the funeral was over? Could a grieving spouse really pack up an entire house so fast? Wouldn’t he be more concerned about saying goodbye to his wife than to the house that he now technically owned? As strange as that was Ally knew it still wasn’t enough. Maybe he just wanted to move on because he was too devastated. She headed up the stairs to check out the bedroom.

  With each stair she climbed her mind went right to thoughts of Emma. What was she thinking when she climbed these stairs for the last time. Was she afraid? Did she know that someone was after her? Or was it just another day? She gripped the banister with her gloved hand until she reached the top. There she paused and took a breath. Sunlight filtered through the window beside the stairs. It reminded her that time was passing, and she couldn’t linger.

  Ally hurried down the hall to the master bedroom. If there was anything to hide, she guessed that Jack already packed it up. But maybe he didn’t. Maybe he had left something behind. She opened the door to find the room was empty of everything but furniture. Even the bed had been stripped down to the mattress. The mess she’d found before was gone, which also meant there was very little chance that she would find anything that would prove Jack was the killer. Still, she opened the closet and searched inside. She peeled back a loose corner of carpet and found nothing but dirt.

  As she headed back towards the bathroom she heard a sound that made her freeze. She thought a door had opened. After listening for a few moments she assumed she must have heard wrong. After thinking that someone might be there she pulled out her cell phone. She set it to record, just in case. If anything were to happen to her she wanted the proof. Once she was sure the phone was recording she stepped into the bathroom and found a box of hair dye next to the sink. It wasn’t used yet. There was also a razor sitting out. Did Jack, or whoever he was, intend to use that hair dye to disguise himself?

  Ally opened the medicine cabinet and found that to be empty. As she stepped back out into the bedroom she had no idea where to look next. Then it struck her, the basement. Emma had said that she had found the wooden box in the basement. If he was hiding anything it was probably down there. She made her way towards the stairs. Morning sunlight shone through the large window on the landing. Ally noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. She stood at the top of the stairs and stared down at the entrance area. Her heart raced as she noticed the shadow flicker across the tile floor. It couldn�
�t be a piece of furniture if it was moving. It couldn’t be a pet, as Emma and Jack didn’t have any. Gary had Emma’s cats.

  As far as she knew Jack was at the funeral, so who created the shadow that stretched larger and larger across the floor? She held her breath and wondered if she should hide. However, she was afraid that if she moved a creak of the stairs would give away her presence. She didn’t want to risk being discovered when she wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place. Instead, she stood frozen where she was and waited. The shadow disappeared.

  A moment later she heard the engine of a car as it pulled into the driveway. She saw a flash of sunlight bounce off a windshield through the front window. She swallowed hard and wondered if the shadow might have been a trick of light the entire time. Knowing that she only had mere seconds before someone opened the door she began to descend the stairs. Then she heard loud footsteps. Not from behind her, but from beyond the front door. A heavy fist pounded on the door. She froze at the bottom of the stairs. Where she stood she couldn’t be seen through the window. Jack wouldn’t knock would he? It had to be someone else. Whoever it was knocked again.

  “Who’s in there? Ally?”

  She recognized Luke’s voice right away. Her heart dropped. He knew that she was there. Or did he? Maybe if she was quiet enough, he would just give up and leave. He pounded again. She grimaced and reached for the door knob.

  “Don’t!” The voice emanated from the doorway of the small sitting room beside the entrance. It made her fingertips tremble before they could ever touch the door knob. “If you open that door, I’ll have to kill you both. Is that what you want?”

  Ally drew her hand back. She bit into her bottom lip to keep from screaming. A glimmer of silver revealed the unmistakable barrel of a gun. Luke was just on the other side of the door, it would take only one twist of her wrist to unlock the door, one loud scream to let him know she was inside. But he had no idea that there was a man with a gun. What if he opened the door without his weapon drawn? He’d be shot right there in front of her, and it would all be her fault. As much as she wanted his help, she couldn’t risk his life to save her own. She stepped back from the door.

  “Good, quiet now. Not a sound.” Jack remained in the doorway and didn’t step any closer. Ally stood where she was and didn’t utter a word. She could tell that Luke was still outside the door as she heard his feet shuffle against the doorstep. A flurry of thoughts raced through her mind. Should she call out to him? Would he know that she was inside anyway? What would he think when he found out that she was there the whole time with the killer? She wished she’d listened to his advice, and never come back to the house. After a few more seconds she heard footsteps as he walked away. With every footstep her heart filled with dread. What would Jack do? Would he shoot her?

  “Jack?”

  “Sh.”

  “Jack, you don’t have to do this.”

  “Quiet!”

  “He’s gone, it doesn’t matter now.”

  “I know he’s gone, but that doesn’t mean anything to me. You think I don’t know that you might have signaled him in some way? Come with me.” He reached out and grabbed her arm. For the first time she let it sink in that it was indeed Jack, the very man she witnessed weep at the news of his wife’s death, that was responsible for her murder. He wasn’t just any man, she knew that now after discovering the money and IDs hidden in the box, he was most likely a criminal or a spy. Since he was so eager to harm her, she guessed he was a criminal.

  “This is your chance, Jack. Just let me go. I can leave and never say a word about any of this. You don’t have to have two murders on your shoulders.”

  “Stop it!” He pulled her hard past the stairs and the sitting room. “It wasn’t a murder.” He shoved her into the kitchen in front of him, then reached past her to open the door to the basement. Ally grabbed the door frame as the basement stairs stretched out in front of her.

  “What do you mean it wasn’t a murder?” She gulped out the words in an attempt to distract him from whatever he intended to do next.

  “I didn’t know she was selling the house. She was going to surprise me once she had an offer. She cleaned out the basement. Since neither of us ever went down there, I stored something very important there, which she sold. None of this was supposed to happen.”

  “The box, with the money and IDs in it. The one that we bought.”

  “Yes.” He gritted his teeth. “If that fell into the wrong hands it would ruin my life. I couldn’t be patient, or try to figure out where it was, I needed her to tell me flat out what she’d done with it. I asked her where it was, and I guess the way I asked frightened her. She ran from me to the stairs. I needed to know who had the box. I chased her, and when I reached for her arm she pulled away.” He stared past her at the stairs. “Then she fell. I didn’t even push her. She just fell. By the time she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was gone. You see, it was an accident.”

  “Oh, so really, you were the victim?” Ally sighed. She was trying desperately to placate the man so he wouldn’t feel like he needed to kill her. “Then don’t worry about any of this. You can explain what happened. We can let all of this go. It never has to be revealed.”

  “No, the time for that has passed. I searched the basement and bedroom for the box. You actually turned up with your grandmother while I was searching the bedroom and then I saw the box in your purse. I couldn’t believe my luck. But now that’s changed, I know you saw and have what was inside the box, and I can’t risk that. I work for people that would tear me into tiny pieces if they knew the information fell into the wrong hands. I’ve been working for these men for years. They are ruthless. I’m sorry, Ally, but I have no choice.”

  Ally tightened her grip on the door even as she felt his hands against her back.

  “That’s because you’re a liar.”

  “What?” He paused, as she hoped that he would.

  “I know that’s not how Emma died. She didn’t just fall down the stairs, like you claim. What really happened?” He was silent as she teetered on the edge of the basement stairs. “Go on, tell me. What does it matter? You’re going to kill me, too, aren’t you?”

  “It wasn’t like that. She did run from me. She was at the top of the stairs and screaming at me. She kept saying that our lives were a lie, that she was never going to forgive me. She kept repeating that Gary was right, that he’d warned her and she hadn’t listened. As if that jerk could love her more than I did. As if somehow I was worse than him.” He grunted and continued with venom in his voice. “She lost her mind. She accused me of horrible things. I just wanted her to be quiet for a minute and listen, that was all. But she kept running her mouth, louder, and louder. Something just came over me. I just didn’t want to hear it anymore. She had no idea what danger she had put me in, and all she wanted to do was argue about our relationship. She didn’t care that I was a dead man. I tried to explain, but she just wouldn’t listen. I was so angry, I just wanted her to be quiet for a second. So I shoved her and she hit her head against the wall and just sort of tumbled down the stairs. I didn’t even think about her being at the top of the stairs. I didn’t intend to kill her.”

  “But you did. She didn’t pull away, and tumble down the stairs. You shoved her as hard as you could and you sent her flying into the wall and down those stairs.”

  “I suppose so.” His voice softened. “When I saw her at the bottom of the stairs, I was relieved. Then I realized I’d let myself get in too deep with her. She was supposed to be my cover, but really I’d grown too attached. In my line of work I can’t put down roots, and I should have known better. In that instant it was all over and I no longer had to worry about someone drawing the wrong kind of attention to me. I guess, I need to do the same thing with you.” Ally braced herself. She knew there was no way she could resist his strength and remain upright at the top of the stairs. She had very few options and had to come up with a solution fast.

  Ally expecte
d to feel his hands shove hard against her back, but instead she felt him step away from her. Was she wrong? Was he going to let her live? But when she felt something metal pressed against her back and heard the safety being released her breath caught in her throat. He was going to shoot her instead. She braced herself for the shot. But what she heard was his cell phone ring. The sound made her jump. It was Jack’s phone and it was coming from down the hall.

  “Who is that?” Jack said to himself with exasperation. Ally tensed as she wondered if he would answer the phone. Would he shoot her first before answering the phone? She felt the gun that was pressed against her back being removed. “Down the stairs.” He shoved her lightly as she slowly walked down the stairs. Once she was at the bottom he tied her hands behind her back and through the railing on the stairs. “I need you to show me where the box is, but I first have to go to the funeral.” She heard him quickly walk back up the stairs. “Once I have the box this can all be over,” he said from the top of the stairs. A moment later she was bathed in darkness as he slammed the door shut behind him. As relieved as she was that he had left, she was also terrified. She knew that he would be back. And when he did come back he would force her to get the box. After he had the box he would kill her! Would he kill Charlotte, too?

  Ally desperately tried to untie her hands. Her arms ached as the rope dug into her wrists. She tried to calm down and think of ways to get free. Then she heard the door behind her swing open. She gasped as she anticipated Jack coming back. Had he changed his mind? Was he going to shoot her now? The light flicked on, and she held her breath, uncertain of what to do. She couldn’t see the door from the bottom of the stairs and she could only assume it was Jack that started down the stairs.

  “It’s okay, Ally, it’s okay.” Relief flooded her as she recognized Luke’s voice. It floated through her mind like a dream. Then she saw him running down the stairs. He knelt down and untied her hands. When she was free she turned into his muscular arms.