A Misty Morning Murder (Myrtle Grove Garden Club Mystery Book 4)

by Loulou Harrington

  Jesse nodded and chose a chair that faced the side porch so she could see when the rest of the staff began to arrive.

  “Use your words,” he said, facing the room with his back toward a heavy china hutch.

  “What?”

  “You need to say it instead of nodding.” He pointed to his notepad. “I need to hear the words.”

  “What was the question?”

  “Cynthia Stanton showed up at your door? Which door?”

  “Cynthia Stanton. Yes.” Jesse felt a sudden chill, almost the same chill she had felt when she walked into the kitchen and saw what she’d thought was a dead body. “The front door.”

  Marla approached and set a fancy china mug of chocolate in front of each of them. “Misty says these are the biggest things you’ve got. Sorry.”

  Jesse watched the deputy walk away. In the dead of night, chilled, tired and beginning to feel hungry, she understood that sometimes people just wanted more. But that was what the teapot was for. Or the chocolate pot, or the coffee carafe, and Lindsey probably hadn’t shown Misty where they were kept.

  “Perhaps this might be a good time for you to explain to me who Cynthia Stanton is exactly. And why she would show up on your doorstep not once, but twice, tonight. What’s her relationship to Misty Bennett? Oh, and I guess you need to tell me about Misty’s father, as well as your relationship to Misty Bennett, and why your mother was so astonished by her arrival, which I assume was a surprise.”

  “That’s a long list.” Jesse took a gulp of the hot chocolate and fought the urge to down it all.

  “Yep.” Joe pushed his elegant, little mug toward her. “Have mine. What I really need is coffee.”

  “Lindsey should be here any minute. Maybe she can fix you some coffee before you give her the day off.” Jesse took the chocolate he offered and drank what was left of hers. “Thanks. I didn’t have much in the way of supper last night.”

  “Is that supposed to make me feel guilty?”

  He was smiling when she looked up. Jesse felt herself relax, charmed in spite of herself by his teasing tone and the thoughts of the dinner they had almost shared and the evening they might have had. “No. We had plenty to eat here. I just got sidetracked.”

  “Speaking of sidetracked, can we get back to my questions now?”

  “It’s not short or simple. Good thing you’re planning to take notes.”

  He spread his pocket-sized notepad out on the table and picked up his pen. “Fire away.”

  Jesse took a fortifying breath. “Okay, I moved to Austin a couple of decades ago.”

  She was aware that Joe Tyler had moved to Myrtle Grove and become their sheriff during the time she was living out of state.

  He nodded. “After you and Matt divorced.”

  “Yeah, after Matt. I keep forgetting what buddies you two are.” She felt herself getting grumpy and tried to focus on the job at hand. “Anyway, I met Ronald Bennett a few years after his wife died. Since I had lost my dad when I was about the same age as Misty, I understood what she was going through and she and I became close. But when my grandfather’s Alzheimer’s got worse, I realized that loving Misty wasn’t a good enough reason to marry Ronnie. So I ended the engagement and moved back home to help Mom and spend what time was left with my grandfather.”

  “Let me guess,” Joe said. “Cynthia Stanton, soon to be Bennett, came along and took your place with Misty’s father. But Misty doesn’t like her.”

  “Can’t stand her,” Jesse confirmed. “And it would appear the feeling’s mutual. So all I can figure is that Cynthia’s trying to prove something to Ronnie. Late last night she came pounding on the door, throwing a scene about Ronnie sending her to bring Misty back to Austin.”

  “But they’re not married yet?”

  “Nope. Engaged, and Ronnie didn’t even know she was here. Or that Misty was here until my mom called him Friday night.”

  “Are you still fond of him?”

  “Good heavens, no. If it weren’t for Misty, I’d never have been engaged to him at all.”

  “Good, ‘cause he seems like a real jerk. His minor daughter leaves the state, and he doesn’t even know she’s left town? What an a-hole.”

  “I know, but don’t say that too loud. He’s Misty’s father, and she loves him. It’s that awful Cynthia I’m worried about.” Jesse glanced around and lowered her voice. “What was she doing here last night? Sneaking around in a dark house with everyone asleep? Do you realize she could have been trying to kidnap Misty?”

  “Or she came here to argue some more, found the door wasn’t locked and let herself in. You do realize this house smells amazing the minute you walk through the front door. With all the vanilla and cinnamon swirling in the air, she might have simply wandered back to the kitchen to find something to eat.”

  Jesse stared at him, wondering if he was joking.

  “Hand to God,” he said, raising his hand as if pledging. “But I digress. So, she pounded on the door and what happened then?”

  “I told her Misty wasn’t leaving here with anyone but her father. Then the odious woman tried to force her way into the house. I literally had to fight her back. Then I told her she was crazy and if she didn’t leave, I was going to call the police.”

  “Which, of course, you didn’t do,” he pointed out. “Did she leave quietly?”

  “She got into her stupid, little subcompact and burned rubber all the way down the street.”

  “Just for the record, Jesse, the next time some irate person shows up on your doorstep and tries to shove his or her way inside, call me,” Joe said without drama. “Just for the heck of it, call me and let me know that it happened. And, by the way, you possibly have the most exciting life of anyone I know.”

  “Are you being serious?” she asked, as confused as she’d been when he’d said how wonderful her house smelled.

  “I’m completely serious. You can’t imagine how shocked I was when that body on the floor turned out to not be dead. Do you realize how unusual that is, Jesse? That I am more surprised when someone around you has not died than when they have?”

  “Well, the night’s not over yet,” Jesse said. “There’s still time.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Which reminds me of something I need to talk to you about.” Jesse leaned closer and glanced to the side to make sure no one was near. “It’s about Ronnie,” she whispered, “but I don’t want Misty to hear.”

  The entry door opened, and they both turned to see Deputy Todd Angeles enter.

  “Todd, duck back out there and tell me if there’s a subcompact parked out front.” Joe looked at Jesse. “What color was it?”

  “Dark. I couldn’t tell what color. Misty said it was a rental because that’s not what Cynthia drives in Austin. And it was very unimpressive.”

  “A dark, unimpressive subcompact,” Joe repeated.

  Todd raised a hand in salute and exited through the front door. Almost simultaneously the door from the side porch opened, and Lindsey entered. Jesse suppressed a groan at one more interruption.

  “Why were all those flashlights running around the back garden a while ago? And why are the lights on in here?” Lindsey looked at the two people at the table, zeroing in on the uniformed sheriff. “And why are you here?”

  “Before you go,” Jesse said, “he’d like a cup of coffee.”

  “What do you mean before I go? This is Sunday, isn’t it?” Lindsey’s gaze traveled from Jesse’s face to her bare feet. “And where are your clothes?” Her eyes came back up, filled with alarm. “We haven’t been robbed, have we?” Then her hand went to her throat and the alarm turned to dread. “Oh, please, not another dead body. And not here!”

  “She wasn’t dead,” Jesse answered.

  Sophia wandered in from the hallway, dressed, makeup in place and looking daisy fresh to start the day. “My goodness, it’s like a three-ring circus in here. I was wondering what all the commotion was about. And who wasn’t dead?”

&nbs
p; “Cyn-thi-uh,” Jesse said, using Misty’s pronunciation.

  “Oh, that horrible woman.” Sophia put her hands on her daughter’s shoulders and kissed the top of her head. “Good morning, dear. And where are your clothes?”

  “No cars parked out front,” Todd said, reentering the foyer. “I walked around the corner and checked up and down the block. No dark subcompacts in sight.”

  “Okay, Todd, thanks,” Joe said. “Can you police the kitchen area, gather up the glass and milk jug and pull some prints from the counter and dishwasher? Probably the refrigerator and anything else you see that looks questionable or out of place. My phone has some pictures I took of the crime scene when we first arrived. And you don’t have to hurry. You’ve got all day.”

  “Anybody besides the sheriff want coffee?” Lindsey asked from her corner behind the counter.

  “Got mine.” Todd held up an insulated cup he’d brought with him.

  “Got chocolate,” Marla answered.

  “I had a cup before I came down,” Sophia said. She shifted her attention to the sheriff. “And what do you mean he’s got all day? Customers will be getting here long before we can be ready with you all underfoot.”

  Joe flipped the pages of his pad to a blank one and stood. “I think I’ll let your daughter explain it to you. Misty, do you have that minute for me now?”

  Jesse reached out to stop him. “Don’t forget that we have to talk.”

  “Just tell me when,” he agreed. “I thought you might want to wait.”

  Sophia turned to look at Misty in her blue-and-white pinstriped shirt gown. “Good grief, why isn’t she dressed?”

  “Mom, I have to stay with Misty while he questions her.” Jesse stood and tugged her tee shirt as far down toward her knees as she could get it, which wasn’t nearly far enough. “Would you run back upstairs and bring me a robe?”

  “As soon as you tell me what’s going on here and not one minute sooner.”

  Jesse clasped her hands in front of her, feeling like a student about to give a recitation. “It would appear that we forgot to lock the door last night.”

  “Oh, dear heavens, not again,” Sophia said, more exasperated than surprised. “So what happened? Is Misty all right? Was it that awful woman again?”

  “Well, yes, but something happened besides that because Cynthia was unconscious on the kitchen floor when I came down to see where Misty was.”

  “And where was Misty?”

  “Standing in front of the refrigerator, staring down at the body.”

  Sophia sucked in a shocked breath and leaned in to whisper, “Misty didn’t knock Cynthia unconscious, did she?”

  “I don’t think so, but I need to listen to what she tells the sheriff,” Jesse whispered back.

  “Where’s Cynthia now? Was she arrested?”

  “She’s at the hospital being examined, and the sheriff hasn’t had a chance to question her yet.”

  Sophia grabbed Jesse by the shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. “All right, dear. I’ll get your robe now. I’m just so glad you’re okay. You are okay, aren’t you?”

  “I’m fine, Mom. Just sleepy.” Jesse pressed her cheek against her mother’s. “I love you, too.”

  With a last hug, Sophia departed to retrieve the robe. Shoving her concerns for Ronnie to the background, Jesse quietly took a seat at the table adjacent to where Joe was already addressing his first question to Misty.

  “Did something wake you?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” she answered calmly, and seemed to be feeling much better. “I woke up kinda startled, but I couldn’t remember hearing anything.”

  “What did you do then?”

  “I laid there.”

  “Could you elaborate on that?” he prompted when she didn’t continue.

  “Huh?”

  Joe laughed. “You don’t watch a lot of police shows on TV, do you?”

  “I’m on the soccer team,” Misty explained, as if that answered his question.

  “So you spend a lot of your time outside?”

  Misty nodded, and Jesse waited for him to tell her to use her words.

  “Could you give me a verbal response as much as possible?” he asked nicely.

  “You mean use my words?” Misty asked with a grin. She slid a teasing glance toward Jesse, which apparently meant some of her own conversation with the sheriff had been overheard. “Gotcha.” Misty pointed to his pad. “Like in court, ‘cause you’re taking notes.”

  “Yep.” He nodded. “Exactly.”

  “I’m outside a lot,” she confirmed. “I have a friend whose dad has a boat. He takes the whole family out on the lake in the summer, and I go with them. And my Nana Peg has a big garden that I help her with. I have my own vegetable patch. Between her and Jesse, I’m pretty good at it. Plus, I usually listen to music when I’m inside.”

  “Gotcha,” Joe said. “Now what I need to know is exactly what you did before Jesse came into the kitchen and found you standing over Cynthia Stanton. So you said that you woke up. You don’t know why, and then you just laid there. What did you do while you just laid there? And why did you decide to get up? And then what did you do? And why did you do that?”

  Giggling, Misty held up a hand to stop him. “Okay, okay, I get the idea. So, like I said, I woke up and just laid there listening. It was raining and windy, and there was thumping and bumping from somewhere. And I was trying to figure out where it was coming from, and if that was what woke me up. Then I decided it was just wind and tree branches and, yeah, that it was probably what woke me. And by then I was hungry.”

  “And that’s why you got up?”

  She nodded and leaned closer. “I did the same thing the night before, too. I woke up hungry, came downstairs and had a bowl of cereal. Then I put the bowl in the dishwasher.”

  “Tonight?”

  “No. Last night. Tonight, I had just gotten the milk out of the refrigerator and was going to get the bowl and the cereal when I saw those feet.” Misty lost some of her color and shuddered.

  “What about the glass? When did you get that?”

  “I didn’t have a glass. I drink water mainly, and I’ve got a bottle upstairs by my bed.”

  “You didn’t have a glass,” Joe repeated with a frown. “Where did the glass on the floor come from?”

  She shrugged. “Beats me.”

  “But you’re the one who dropped the milk,” he confirmed.

  “I don’t remember dropping it. I know I got it out of the refrigerator, so I guess I must have dropped it. But once I saw those white legs sticking out from under the dishwasher door, I don’t remember anything else. I was too scared to run, even.”

  “Did you notice the glass on the floor?”

  “I saw a pair of dead-looking legs so close I could almost touch them. I didn’t notice anything else.”

  “How did you enter the kitchen?”

  Misty pointed toward the door at the front of the dining room.

  Joe lifted his brows, looked her in the eyes and tapped his notepad with the end of his pen.

  Misty grinned sheepishly and said with exaggerated care, “I came down the stairs and through the dining room door. There was just enough light to see my way around the tables and find the refrigerator. The light from the refrigerator was enough to see the feet and legs, but nothing else.”

  “Did you scream?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Did you recognize who it was?”

  “It was a pair of legs,” Misty repeated. “But they looked like a woman. Wearing some really ugly shoes. I did notice that, and I thought, ‘man, when I die, please don’t let me be wearing shoes like that.’ And then there was this beam of light, and I was about to freak, but it went off and then I heard Jesse talking to me.” Misty stopped and sucked in a deep breath, then continued with a hitch in her voice. “She…she told me there was glass on the floor and not to move, real soothing like.”

  A big tear ran down Misty’s cheek
, and it was all Jesse could do to remain seated and quiet.

  Joe turned toward the kitchen where Marla was taking pictures and Todd was cataloging whatever looked like evidence. “Todd, it would appear that the glass was dropped before these ladies appeared on the scene. So, any fingerprints on any of those shards could be really handy.”

  “The glasses are kept in the second upper cabinet from the right,” Jesse said, forgetting to butt out. “There might also be fingerprints on the door handle if that glass is from our kitchen.”

  Joe gave her a disgusted glance, then turned back toward the kitchen and Todd. “What she said. It’s also possible they got the glass from the dishwasher.” He turned back to Misty. “So, you don’t know what woke you up. You came downstairs because you were hungry. You didn’t turn on a light, so you didn’t see anything out of place until you opened the refrigerator door. You dropped the milk and froze, and then Jesse came in with a flashlight. And the two of you were still standing in your original positions when we all got here and turned on the overhead lights. Is that about it?”

  Misty sniffed, nodded, and then remembered to speak. “Yes.”

  “Since your arrival here yesterday, have you had any contact with Cynthia Stanton other than the two instances tonight?”

  “Well, I didn’t actually have contact with her tonight. I was inside the house, and Jesse talked to her on the porch. And when I came into the kitchen, I didn’t know who that was on the floor there until you got here and the lights came on.” Misty’s gaze dropped down to her hands, clenched on the tabletop in front of her, and her voice softened to a little-girl whisper. “She scares me.”

  “Who scares you?” Joe asked. “Cynthia?”

  Misty nodded, still staring at her hands.

  “Why does she scare you?” This time he ignored her nonverbal response.

  “Why is she here?” Misty asked, looking up into Joe’s eyes. “Why isn’t my dad here? And what does she want with me?”

  He nodded. “I see your point. So, if neither one of you two…” He glanced toward Jesse to include her. “…let Cynthia Stanton in here tonight, we can assume she let herself in after everyone had gone to bed and the lights were all out.” His returned his attention to Misty. “And you think that she came in here tonight looking for you?”