“If you find out anything different, let us know right away.”
Will nodded.
Mark stepped in closer to Will. “Molly’s mother. Do you want us to tell her?”
“I’ll do it,” he said, then he left without saying another word. His assistant followed him out the door. Out of curiosity, I scooted over to Pinky’s door and opened it a crack to watch where they went, but they were already out of sight. And what business of mine was it, anyway? Both sides of the street were lined with idling parked cars. With the number of official vehicles there, the town was anxiously waiting for the story of what had happened in Curio Finds. And the medical examiner’s van made it clear to all passersby that someone had died.
5
The team finished processing the scene, and Dr. Long left with Molly’s body. Clint and Mark each took down an end of the crime scene tape that spanned the archway between Curio Finds and Brew Ha-Ha and rolled it up. They joined Pinky, Erin, and me, who were sitting silently at the coffee shop serving counter. Each of us was lost in our own thoughts.
Mark sat down next to me on the third seat from the end. I had been thinking about Molly’s coat and cell phone and keys and wallet. “You forgot to send Molly’s things with her husband. And what about her car?”
Clint moved in behind Mark. “We didn’t forget.”
All part of the investigation, I supposed.
“Pinky, let’s go back to one of your tables where we can talk,” Clint said.
“Just Pinky?” I said.
“Yup, just Pinky. But you’re next, so don’t you run away, Camryn.”
I couldn’t run if I tried. “I will be right here.”
Pinky and Clint disappeared to the back area.
“Do either of you want something to eat or drink?” I asked Erin and Mark.
“Nah,” Mark said and leaned his arms on the counter.
Erin lowered her voice. “Don’t tell Pinky this, but drinking a cup of coffee seems downright scary to me after what happened to Molly. And I have no appetite whatsoever.”
“I know what you mean.” I glanced up at Betty Boop’s hands. “Golly, it’s after six o’clock. Time flies even when you’re not having fun.”
“You know what I’ve been thinking that is really terrible?” Erin said
Mark leaned closer to me, and I leaned closer to Erin. “What?”
“That as bad as I feel about Molly’s death and the way it happened, I can’t help comparing it to the shock I felt when my father died. It’s not even close.”
“Of course it’s not, and that’s not terrible at all,” I said. Like my own parents’ death when I was only five years old. Nothing could ever compare to that awful day if I lived to be one hundred. Thinking about them reminded me of the penny I’d found earlier, the one I believed my mother had left for me. At the time I’d hoped it was to reassure me that things would get better. Mama, I guess you were warning me that time, weren’t you?
Pinky rejoined us some minutes later. She bent over and whispered in my ear, “Your turn with Officer Eye Candy.”
“Do not even go there,” I mumbled back. I cringed when she said it, even though it was true. And if I was asked under oath if I found him to be a good-looking man, I’d have to answer, “Yes.”
Clint’s five-o’clock shadow was right on schedule and gave him a more human look. He looked up at me like he was seeing me for the first time. Although we were not bosom buddies, we had gotten to know each other during the course of a previous murder investigation.
“You know, we really should quit meeting like this,” I said.
His lips tugged ever so slightly upward. “That would be fine by me. Sit down.”
If Clint worked harder on his bedside manner, it was possible I might grow to like him.
He had his pen and notepad at the ready. “I know we went over some of this already, but tell me everything you remember from the time Molly arrived at your shop this morning to the time you found her body.”
I filled him in on as many details as I could. I started with how Molly arrived at work in hideous clothes and how I’d given her my spare outfit to change into. I highlighted the challenge of training both her and Emmy, and about how irritated Emmy was with Molly all day. As an afterthought, I included the part about Ramona Zimmer being in Curio Finds and breaking one of my snow globes—probably on purpose—and then racing out of the shop without so much as an apology.
“And to top off the terrible behavior shown by the senator, her husband had actually been in earlier this morning. He had the nerve to stop by to see me.” I waved my hand in the air. “Never mind about his visit, since it was before Molly started work and wouldn’t count.”
Clint narrowed his eyes, and I suspected he was trying his best to read my thoughts behind what I’d said about the Zimmers. I’m sure he’d heard as much about that scandal as everyone else in the country who was tuned in to any kind of media source. And I was the hometown girl, so most people in Brooks Landing thought they had a personal stake in the whole mess.
“The visit does count, but not in this particular investigation. Unless he came back later and bought a cup of coffee and laced it with poison,” Clint said.
His words caused nerve endings to prickle on the back of my neck. With all the people in the shops during the afternoon rush, it was a possibility Peter Zimmer had been back. Not likely, but it was remotely possible he had mixed in unnoticed with the crowd. Even if he had returned, what motive would he have had to kill Molly? None, as far as I knew.
Clint placed his left forearm on the table and leaned into it. “Tell me what you know about Emmy Anders.”
“I’m guessing her given name is Emma, but I’ve heard her tell people to just call her Emmy. I met her when I returned to Brooks Landing last spring. She stops by here often. I got the impression she hasn’t been in town for long, but I haven’t really talked to her about it. She isn’t the kind who talks much about herself.”
Clint looked up from his writing. “I’ll be interviewing her later. Go on.”
“Okay. Well, I’ve always thought of Emmy as a lonely, kind older woman. But she wasn’t overly kind to Molly today. The two of them did not hit it off at all.”
“You don’t say.”
“It’s not that they hate each other or anything. I mean, why would they? But Emmy acted like she was irritated with Molly from the get-go.”
“You don’t say.”
The way he was concentrating on me made me more and more nervous by the second. “I mean what possible reason would Emmy even have to poison Molly, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“That’s not what I’m thinking, nor am I putting words in your mouth.”
He was right; I was the one who was blabbing on and on about dear old Emmy. If he’d just quit looking at me like that. We were way too close for comfort, so I leaned back in my chair.
“Pinky told me you helped her out here in the coffee shop for quite a while during the afternoon rush. During that time your two new employees, Emmy and Molly, were alone in your shop, correct?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Did you notice anything unusual going on between the two of them when you returned?”
You mean how Emmy looked like she was ready to seriously injure Molly at any given moment? “Well, to be honest, things were tense between them. But you have to remember it was their first day on the job, and they were trying to learn as much as they could about Pinky’s business and my business. I’m sure you understand how hard that would be. Emmy hasn’t worked for years, and it doesn’t sound like Molly had an outside job during most, maybe all, of her marriage.”
Clint nodded. “Regarding the cup of coffee Molly allegedly drank from, did you see anyone deliver it to her? Did she get it herself?”
“No, I saw Emmy carry a cup from Pi
nky’s shop to mine, but I didn’t see what she did with it.”
“We’ve collected the trash bags from the two shops, so we have any discarded cups if we need to check DNA.”
Clint impressed me from time to time.
The bell on Pinky’s door dinged, then Mark’s voice rose in volume like he was addressing a crowd. Apparently he was talking to someone outside. “Sorry, but I’m not authorized to release the name of the victim just yet. We’re doing an investigation to cover all the bases, and we’ll let you know as soon as we can.” The door’s bell dinged again followed by the click of the dead bolt lock.
Clint let out a sigh. “We’ll have to get a statement together for our friends at the newspapers and radio stations. The waiting public needs to be informed before any number of rumors start circulating.”
I nodded. “And that reminds me, I left a message for my parents earlier and I’m surprised they haven’t called me back.”
“We’ll wrap this up for now, but you will call if you think of anything else, right?”
“Right. Can I ask what you meant when you said you didn’t forget to give Molly’s things to her husband?”
He put his pen and pad in his pocket. “We want to check her phone and her car to see if there is any evidence that someone had threatened her.”
“Oh.” Police had to think of everything.
We returned to the serving counter where Pinky, Erin, and Mark were all swiveling right and left on their counter seats. Clint lifted his thumb when Mark looked at him. “Let’s shove off, partner.”
“Ten-four, boss. An evening of report writing ahead of us, huh?”
“Yup, after we pay a visit to Emmy Anders.”
“See you girls when the sun is shining again and we all feel better,” Mark said, then he followed Clint out the door.
Pinky jumped up to lock it behind them. “You better check your door, too, Cami.”
I wanted to call Emmy to tell her about Molly and let her know the police were on their way. But what good would that really do? Police were trained to deliver all kinds of upsetting news.
Pinky, Erin, and I slowly wandered into Curio Finds. I tried the door, and it was indeed locked. I sighed as I turned back to my friends. “Golly, what should we do now?”
“I don’t think I can do any baking tonight. Maybe we should go somewhere and hash this all out.”
Erin looked around the shop. “I’ve read that sometimes ghosts don’t know they’re dead and they hang around in the place where they met their untimely death. Cami, you have that psychic thing of yours going on. Do you think Molly is going to haunt this place?”
“I’m not an expert on ghosts, but no, I don’t.” My friends gave me more credit for understanding the spirit world than I did. Yes, I sensed my biological mother’s—and even my biological father’s—presence at times, but I was not psychic. Plus, I believed everyone had times when they instinctively knew what to do or what to avoid or felt like they were being guided. Some people called it having a sixth sense; some called it extrasensory perception. I was just more in tune with it than others, that’s all.
Pinky reached over and gave Erin’s shoulder a small shake. “Stop that, Erin. It’s dark out, and the way the wind is howling and banging against these old shop windows makes it feel eerie enough. We don’t need any ghost stories.”
That was for sure. On to more practical matters. “How are we ever going to be able to use that bathroom again?” My voice had a whiny ring to it.
“Do you think you should close it down until you can get professionals in to clean it, or what?” Pinky said.
“I don’t know.”
“Cami is like a professional cleaner. Who could do a better job than she can?” Erin said.
“True,” Pinky agreed.
I’d think about it when I could do so more clearly. “Let’s get out of here. If you two want to do something, go on ahead without me. I need to tell my parents the news before they hear it from anyone else.”
“I hope your dad doesn’t blow a gasket,” Pinky said.
“Maybe we should go with you,” Erin said.
I put a hand on each of their shoulders. “Dad has mellowed a lot in his older age. It’ll be good to spend some time with them; it helps keep me grounded. Then, if it’s not too late, I’ll stop by Emmy’s house. She’ll be upset by her police visit, I’m sure.”
—
The cars parked outside our shops, filled with curious onlookers, had all left at some point, and the main street through town was deserted. The sun went down early in mid-November, about 4:45 p.m., making it seem much later than 7:20. Pinky had picked Erin up on the way to the shops and parked in the back lot next to my car. We took the path between our building and the one north of it, momentarily protected from the cold wind. The streetlamp on Central Avenue shed some light, and it was comforting to have my friends alongside me. If it wasn’t bad enough Molly had died in Curio Finds, Erin’s ghost talk had taken it to a scarier level. I’d never seen a ghost before, and it was a trend I planned to continue for the rest of my life.
“We’ll be at Erin’s for a while, if you want to stop by,” Pinky said.
“Thanks. I’ll let you know.”
We all got in our vehicles, and I drove to my parents’ house and let myself in through the side door of their attached garage. I knew they were gone, because all the lights were off except the one over the kitchen sink. They kept that on twenty-four hours a day for a reason I had yet to find out. I’d asked my mother about it one time, but instead of giving me an answer, she only smiled like she was keeping a secret. “Hello?” I said out of habit, knowing there would be no reply. I stepped into the kitchen and flipped on the switch, pushing out the darkness.
The red light on the answering machine was blinking, indicating my message hadn’t been heard. It was possible my parents had gone out for dinner, but the best bet was that they were at the home of one of my four siblings. I picked up the phone and tried each of them, but not one of them answered. I leaned against the counter, wondering if I should try their cell phones next. I gave my dad’s cell phone a try. It went straight to voicemail, which meant it was probably turned off. My mom’s did the same thing. No one had called to tell me anything was wrong with anyone, so that was good. When my family members heard about Molly’s untimely death in Mom and Dad’s shop, the phone lines would be burning. I wrote them a note to say I’d stopped by and to please call me the minute they got home.
—
I hadn’t been to Emmy’s house, but I knew where she lived. It was in an older part of town, not far from my own neighborhood. I parked on the street in front of the small rambler instead of pulling into her driveway. The branches on the trees and bushes in people’s yards were being pushed this way and that by the wind, making them look like living creatures in the poorly lit area. I was not the bravest person in the world and tried not to let my imagination run wild when I got out of my car and made the maddest dash possible to Emmy’s front door.
The curtains were drawn, but a lamp near the window shone through. I rang the doorbell then called out, “Emmy, it’s me, Camryn.”
I heard movement then a thump and put my ear closer to the door, wondering if Emmy was all right.
“I’ll be right there, Camryn,” she called out.
Emmy opened the door. She glanced up at me then looked down. “Come in. The police were here with the news about Molly and left not ten minutes ago.”
I touched her shoulder. “It’s a big shock, all right.” We went into the living room. Her bedroom door was open, and I noticed a suitcase on the bed.
“Did you stop by to talk about Molly?” She pointed at a chair for me to sit on.
“I wanted to see how you were doing and if you felt up to coming back to work. It was kind of a rough day, and then with Molly . . . well, I’m going to have t
rouble going back there myself.” I took my seat, and Emmy sat down on a rocker by the window.
“Well, dearie, as it turns out, I was going to call you because of something that’s come up. I just got off the phone with a friend of mine who asked if I might be able stay with her awhile, and I just couldn’t say no.”
There was something in her words that didn’t ring true somehow. Maybe it was the timing, the suddenness of it. “Oh, well—”
“I’ll be leaving in the morning. And Camryn, I’m sorry for you, what with that awful fright you had today. Is there anything special we should do for Molly’s family?”
Golly. Molly’s family. “I’m not sure, but I can let you know. Do you have a cell phone number?”
“No, sorry, but I’ll be sure to call you soon.”
“Emmy, I’m sure the police asked you this, but did you see how Molly got that cup of coffee with the poison in it?”
Emmy shook her head, looked down, and watched her folded hands twist to the right then the left. “I didn’t notice. I saw her drinking from a cup shortly before you told me we were done for the day. Molly had disappeared, and the bathroom door was closed, so I thought that’s where she’d gone.”
“You didn’t see her go into the bathroom?”
“No.”
“She didn’t say anything to you about feeling sick?”
“Not a word.”
“Was there anyone in the shop today who you thought acted nervous or suspicious?”
“No one special that I can think of. But there were quite a few people throughout the day.”
I nodded. “Pinky told me someone had been in her shop asking for me. Actually, he was looking for ‘the blonde.’ He was wearing a stocking cap and was about Pinky’s height. Do you remember anyone like that?”
She looked up at me. “Sorry, dearie, but I don’t.”
“Okay. He might have nothing to do with anything, but it had me curious.” I stood up. “I hope your friend is better soon and you can get back home.”
Her smile was weak. “Thank you.” She rocked forward then used her hands to push herself out of the chair.
The Iced Princess Page 7
