Cliffhanger (The Belinda & Bennett Mysteries, Book One)

by Amy Saunders

  Lily emitted a noise somewhere between a sigh and a snort. "Updating my stemware."

  Belinda and Victoria exchanged glances.

  "To take back home?" Victoria kept in grabbing distance of Belinda should things get ugly.

  Lily examined a nearby champagne flute. "I have a lot to celebrate these days."

  "Earning your way to junior partner?" The words came out bitter, somewhat to Belinda's surprise.

  Lily's eyes gazed through the flute in her hand. "What would you know about earning anything? All you do is traipse around Portside and throw your name in people's faces."

  Belinda seethed. "If you want to know why Mark dumped you, take a good look in the mirror."

  Lily turned her piercing eyes on Belinda, her hand clawing at her own throat. "You should've stayed out of it."

  Belinda's nostrils flared.

  "Well," Victoria said before things got out of hand, "this has been a pleasure as usual." She took Belinda's arm, forcing her toward the door. Belinda hugged the shopping bag, staring Lily down until Victoria practically pushed her outside.

  "They have to solve this case before Lily and I kill each other," Belinda hissed, stomping to her car. It was yet another public outburst that everyone would talk about. Well, if nothing else, Belinda was making a splashing re-entry to Portside. "Did you notice how Lily's hand went to her throat? Like she's lost something she keeps forgetting about?"

  Victoria returned her credit card to its slot while trying to keep her eye ahead of her. "Maybe. I'm not sure. Like a necklace or something?"

  Belinda's pupils dilated. The photos. Lily knew. But how would she have.... Belinda chewed her lip. She should have dug around in Lily's possessions some more. If only she'd had more time. Belinda stepped up her pace, Victoria practically running to keep up.

  Belinda zipped them back to one of the main roads to drop Victoria off at the music school. She needed to think and talk to the detective. Not necessarily in that order. If Lily had what Belinda thought she did, then that meant not only did Lily know what had happened on Mark's boat that day, but she also went to his boat—after Belinda left the night before Mark died. That was particularly disturbing after what Stellan had revealed.

  Belinda left the glasses in Victoria's care and returned to town, now free to think all she wanted without having to make polite conversation. She reminded herself to thank Kyle for his suggestion. The honeymoon bar glasses were a much better choice than a bread maker. Or ice pick. Especially better than the ice pick.

  Chapter 19

  "I'm waiting for a warrant to search Lily's house," Jonas said to Bennett. The edge of irritation grew in his voice as he talked. "Mr. Trebor's last noted delivery was to her."

  "Quite the puzzler for your first official assignment as leader."

  "I keep telling myself it could be worse." He looked longingly at one of the closed bars in downtown as they passed. "How about the mysterious bald stalker?" Jonas detoured across the street, swinging open the coffee shop door. He couldn't drink on duty, but he could pump himself up with legal stimulants.

  "Finn and I have crawled through all of the surveillance video that we have and no one who looks like that ever shows up. I'm pretty sure he'd stick out, so I'm guessing if he wasn't meant to be there, he took a back door to avoid being seen by too many people. I only had cameras in the front, first-floor hallways."

  "Do you think he knew there'd be cameras?"

  Bennett shrugged, scanning the pastry shelves nearby while Jonas ordered some sort of quadruple-infused espresso drink. None of the cakes, scones, or muffins inspired him, though he might feel differently if Belinda offered one to him. When he looked up from his browsing, Belinda was standing right there, her starlight smile lighting up her latte eyes. Not that Bennett was even that crazy about coffee, but the comparison was appropriate considering where they were.

  He pulled out his wallet after she ordered, placing the cash in the woman's hand before Belinda could protest. Jonas sipped his beverage across the room, watching the two of them with great interest. Belinda, all grateful and flushed over his financial offering, and Bennett, pleased as punch, even if he didn't look it to a casual observer, to shell out ten dollars on a coffee to see her smile. Jonas had to admit her smile was worth at least that much. He had no problem understanding his friend's growing attraction to the Portside native, and he thought the whole experience was good for Bennett. It was time to get over the past.

  After a few seconds, Belinda spotted him and waved, then she and Bennett made their way around the counter to wait for her coffee.

  "We were just talking about you," Jonas said, leaning against the high counter.

  "I'm sorry to intrude on your gossiping then." Belinda punched a straw into her cup. "Should I worry about what you were saying?"

  "Nah. I wouldn't let Bennett say anything bad about you." Jonas winked, enjoying Bennett's glower over top of Belinda's head.

  "Well, that's good to know though I'm not sure it's deserved." Belinda grinned, traipsing out of the building where the air was less stuffy. Bennett was right on her heels with Jonas trailing behind him, smirking to himself.

  "I ran into Lily today," Belinda looked at Bennett significantly, her nose crinkled up in distaste. "Obnoxious as usual, but I think she's lost something special and I need to know if she had it on at the party."

  Bennett scratched his head. "What am I looking for?"

  "A necklace."

  "Is this significant?" Jonas said.

  Belinda glanced at him coyly. "I'll tell you when I find out for myself." Bennett and Jonas exchanged amused glances. "I think the necklace I want Bennett to spy out looks like a knot."

  Jonas rubbed his jaw. "This is making me think it's high time I gave the two of you an assignment. You up for some surveillance?"

  Belinda lit up. "Seriously? You'd ask me to do that?"

  "Don't get too excited," Jonas said. "It's boring work, which is why I'm passing it off to you two." He grinned.

  "Who are we supposed to watch?" Bennett said.

  "Stellan Mayhew. We may not have pinned him to either death—yet—but he's bound to be guilty of something."

  Bennett thought that plopping down on the rocks near Stellan's house under the guise of fishing would be a good way to keep watch, but would be slightly more entertaining to Belinda than sitting in a car waiting for something to happen. So Belinda carpooled in Bennett's truck over to a narrow turnoff on Ocean Avenue. He pulled his fishing pole and bait box out of the back and Belinda followed him across the street to the rocks where she often saw people fishing.

  "I had no idea that you liked to fish," Belinda said, balancing her way along the rocks behind Bennett. She held her arms out like a tightrope walker, her eyes glued to her feet as she navigated the path.

  "I really don't," he said, having to yell over the waves, "but this is a good spot to watch from."

  Belinda nodded, too immersed with not slipping and crashing into the water to make sense of what Bennett said.

  Bennett landed on a good, flat spot of rock that was elevated enough to keep them from getting soaked and had Stellan's house in good view. He set his bait box down and held out a hand to help Belinda up. He caught her by her waist as she bobbed around to get her footing, pulling her in closer than he intended. Or, maybe he did intend to pull her in that close. Belinda flushed, loose hairs getting caught in her mouth and eyelashes. At least Bennett's arm prevented her from getting blown off-balance.

  Once she had her balance, Bennett let go of her waist, and set the fishing pole in front of her. "Hold this," he commanded while he knelt down to get something out of his box. He came back up with a neon lure with some sort of fuzzy thing attached to one end.

  "No worms?" she said, wanting to sigh in relief. She'd been worried about him using live bait. Belinda could just picture him showing up with a bag of live eels and insist that she impale one of them on the hook with her bare hands. And between his steel eyes and clipped se
ntences, how would she refuse? Especially when they had to stand so close because of the size of the rock.

  Bennett's mouth crooked up. "Next time I'll bring something slimy and wriggling just for you."

  Belinda made a sour face. "So you don't like to fish, but you do know how apparently."

  "My dad loves to fish," he said, holding the hook in front of his eyes as he threaded it through the top of the lure. "I go out with him about once a year. As far as it goes for a pastime, I would say it's too boring. But in this case fishing serves a greater purpose."

  "Spying on potential murderers."

  Bennett smiled. A tight-lipped smile that could almost pass as a neutral expression, except that Belinda was getting familiar with him and this definitely passed as a smile. For Bennett, anyway. And it was the first time she could say she'd truly seen him smile and witnessing it with her own eyes made her whole day.

  "Hold it out," he said.

  Belinda looked at him quizzically. "What?"

  "The fishing rod." He moved a few paces back so Belinda could face the water head on and indicated for her to swing the line out and drop the lure. Bennett looked around, found a suitable rock to sit on, and helped Belinda maneuver there with the fishing pole in hand.

  The rock was cool, even through her jeans, and while it was a relief right then to sit, she knew she would be cursing that unforgiving piece of stone soon enough.

  "You watch the fishing line and I'll watch our target."

  "What am I watching for?"

  "Pull." He tugged on the line.

  "It's pulling now though."

  "That's just the current. Trust me. You'll know when something's crunching down on it."

  Belinda took his word on that and diligently guarded the fishing pole. For a few minutes that is, until she started to feel bored. "Can we talk while we watch?" she said.

  "That's your specialty."

  Belinda cut him a glance, which he picked up on—and enjoyed—despite her shades. She wiggled around a little to avoid numb butt syndrome and shook her head dismissively.

  Bennett handed her a printout of Lily at the party. "Is this what you expected to find?" He pointed to the pendant at the nape of Lily's neck.

  Belinda stared at the image and dropped her hand, feeling her stomach constrict. She swung her legs to try and keep cool, but her heart thundered in her chest. She was right about Lily. All this time, she'd known Lily was a rival, but this changed everything.

  "Oh!" She jumped from her station. "It's pulling! It's pulling!"

  Bennett observed the line calmly. "Well, stop hopping up and down and reel it in."

  A couple of old men perched on another set of rocks across from them snickered watching Belinda crank and pull, crank and pull, with Bennett snapping out directions. Belinda yelped as the fish broke the water's surface, flailing and flopping while Bennett got a hold of that end of the line and set him down on the rock. The old men clapped and whistled and Belinda waved back, grinning proudly.

  "My first catch!" she said, kneeling down to get a good look. Its iridescent scales sparkled like diamonds in the sunlight, its gills contracting repeatedly and mouth gawking. "Aw, I feel bad now." She examined the hook caught in his jaw.

  "Shall I throw him back?" Bennett said, holding the fish down so he could remove the hook. "He's too small to be any use to us anyway." Bennett held the fish firmly then looked back at Belinda. "I think you should do the honors."

  Belinda screwed up her face as he stuck the fish out to her, telling her how to hold it so it wouldn't slip away. "Just swing back like you're holding a bat and let him fly."

  Belinda nodded, swung her arms back with the fish struggling to escape her hands, and rapidly swung back around. A dazzling rainbow ensued as water flew through the air with the fish, the sunlight reflecting off of its scales, almost blinding them. Belinda laughed as their audience gave her two thumbs up. She went to clap then saw her hands. "Eww," she said, frantically looking for a way to wipe them off.

  Bennett ripped a paper towel from his bait box, instructed her to dunk her hands in the salt water near her feet, then thoroughly wiped them down with the towel.

  "I smell like fish now." Belinda scrunched her nose up.

  "It washes off, I promise."

  Belinda smiled as Bennett wiped her final pinky finger of any trace of fish goo, his face intent on his task. For a second, Belinda forgot about the old guys fishing or the cars whirring passed them on the road. All she could feel was the spray as waves crashed in front of them and the tip of her nose as it grew numb and the texture of Bennett's fingers as he held her hand. He raised his eyes to hers and she fell still. Like the water at sunset with maybe a seagull bobbing on the surface.

  After a few seconds of gazing at her, Bennett leaned in, and then she leaned in and shut her eyes and was just waiting for his warm lips to meet hers when she felt a sheet of ice water crash over her head. They both froze under the blanket of pin pricks.

  Howling laughter from the old men reached their ears. A grin spread across Belinda's face and she got the giggles. To her amazement, it spread to Bennett and they both sat there and laughed. They'd probably just given the older fishermen the best show they'd had in ages.

  "I should've brought more paper towels," Bennett said. Belinda giggled, ringing out her sleeve.

  "It's a good thing it's sunny." Belinda shimmied back up to the higher rock, raising her face toward the sun.

  Bennett joined her, returning to the reason they were actually there, which he temporarily forgot while Belinda's cheeks glowed and her laugh echoed off of the water. Far from being a waste of time, which Bennett never would have thought anyway as long as Belinda was with him, the view of Stellan's house produced results.

  Bennett nudged Belinda with his elbow, and she glanced back at him and shrugged after he jutted his head around for no apparent reason. He leaned toward her, whispering for her to look up. She did, trying to be subtle about it. When she turned back to Bennett her face was satisfied if not happy.

  Lily Devore half-slid her way back down the path from Stellan's house to her car.

  Chapter 20

  Belinda and Bennett scurried off the rocks, Bennett half-dragging Belinda along behind him, and jumped into his SUV. Bennett kept Lily's car in sight along Ocean Avenue and onto the main strip into downtown. But Lily cut down a side street and zipped out of sight after a car pulled out in front of them. Bennett muttered to himself while Belinda checked all of the parked cars on the road lined with Colonial-age townhouses in the Historical District.

  "Do you think she saw us behind her?" Belinda said. Bennett turned left on the one-way street they finally came to, creeping down the lane. "There! There! That's her car." The silver four-door sat with its tires cockeyed next to the brick sidewalk. "I guess she was in a hurry."

  Bennett found a space just down the road, adjusted his mirrors to see the car and scanned their immediate environment for any signs of where she may have gone. "Stay here and keep your eyes on her vehicle. I'm going to see if I can find where she's gone to."

  Belinda yanked on his arm. "What if she sees you?"

  "I'll be fine, but you keep out of sight." He pointed at her face, his jaw tight. Belinda shrunk back into her seat, her lips plumping into an unintentional pout.

  Perfectly kissable lips, he thought as he strolled down the next side street. If he didn't need to worry about following Lily, he would have grabbed her chin and given her the kiss of her life. He loved having her along, but she made it hard for him to concentrate—on his assignment that is. Bennett could focus on her just fine.

  Mixed in among the residences was a lawyer, his name on a black plaque engraved with gold near the door. Curious that she was in that vicinity, he picked up the pace, rounding a corner and heading back up the street they'd driven down. Bennett ran his hand over his head. Lily could have gone into downtown for all they knew. This was a convenient—and cheap—place to park. Still, he had a feeling about that oth
er side street with the office. So he circled to go back there, glancing at the truck to check on his associate. His heart stopped when she wasn't in the front seat. Bennett ran over, opening the driver's side and checking the back. No one. He grappled for his phone in his jacket pocket as it vibrated and his heart started beating again. A text. From Belinda.

  BG. LILY. PARK.

  Bennett didn't know what BG was, but he didn't dare text her back for fear it would ring and draw attention to her. He stretched his mouth into a sharp line and hiked up the hill toward the park, deciding to slip down a side street and come up from the other end. It was only a block long and he would have a good view from there.

  He stood on the corner and peered around the building he leaned against, spotting Lily Devore near one of the shade trees, but Bennett couldn't see the man she spoke to. And he couldn't see so much as a hair on Belinda's head. Good girl.

  From the way Lily's body was turned, Bennett was afraid she would see him come around the corner and scare them off. Or, more importantly, that he might somehow alert them to Belinda's presence somewhere in the park. So he stayed put, keeping his eye on them and their surroundings.

  ~ * ~

  Lily stood with her arms crossed over her chest and leaned on one leg with her mouth all pinched up while Bald Guy gestured with his hands, apparently doing most of the talking.

  Belinda's body was going numb, especially her arm, which she now held up at the elbow with her other hand, recording the entire conversation Bald Guy and Lily were having. She had squeaked into a prime location behind a tree with a trunk like a beer mug, but it was starting to get tough to stand still.

  Their conversation was pretty cryptic. Unfortunately, they weren't offering much exposition to explain what they were talking about, though she did hear Jarrett's and Stellan's names more than once. The rendezvous ended with neither participant looking especially thrilled, and Lily went one way while Bald Guy chose another path. Belinda panicked and squished up against the tree as Bald Guy naturally decided to walk in her direction. She held her breath as he passed, thinking she was in the clear when he turned. His round eyes bulged and a vein cutting across his skull protruded as his eyes found her cell phone.