Murder in Mississippi

by Susan Harper

  “Yeah – and out of the same building!” Pauline exclaimed.

  “How does that work?” Kendell questioned.

  “Pretty well, actually,” Felicity said. “The two of them are friends.”

  “I really want to check out this shop of yours,” Kendell said. “How do you make such different businesses work under one roof like that?”

  “We’ll go by there tomorrow,” Felicity said. “Grandmama, you haven’t been by since we added in the detective agency, anyways. It’s really starting to come together. I’d love for you to see it.”

  “I’d love to see it!” Pauline cried. “I’m so proud of you, Felicity.”

  “Thanks, Grandmama,” Felicity said with a big smile.

  Soon they were pulling up to a small house in a little neighborhood. Nothing like the neighborhoods in New York where the houses were right up on one another and separated by gates. The yards were large, and some homes had a line of trees separating them. Some lots were very large with woods in the back while others were a bit smaller. Kendell smiled, loving the quaintness of the area.

  “Hey!” a voice called, and Kendell got her first glimpse of Jefferson.

  He was adorable. The man was standing out on the side porch, a grill up and going. He smiled down the driveway in their direction, abandoning the grill for a moment to come and greet them. He looked very youthful; his eyes shimmered a bit, and even though this was Kendell’s first time seeing them, she could already tell he completely adored Felicity. “Jeffrey!” Pauline called, waving him on as he made his way to them.

  The young man smiled and gave the old lady a hug. “Always good to see you, Ms. Pauline,” Jefferson said. He then put his hand out. “Kendell, right?” he asked, shaking.

  “That’s right,” she said with a smile.

  “Dad overflowed the bathroom, and now the guest room is flooded,” Felicity said. “I hope you don’t mind if Grandmama and Kendell stay with us for a few days?”

  “No, not at all!” Jefferson said, immediately going to grab their bags. “Felicity, would you mind throwing a few more burgers and hot dogs on the grill?”

  “On it!” Felicity said, hurrying up to the house.

  Kendell and Pauline followed Jefferson inside as he put their bags down on the couch. “Hmm…” Jefferson said under his breath. “It would probably be best if I maybe stayed at Jack’s That way each of you ladies could have your own bed, and Felicity could take up the couch.”

  Felicity shook her head, coming in from the porch. “My bed is plenty big enough for me and Grandmama to share,” she said.

  “Okay, then Kendell can have my room, and I’ll slum on the couch,” Jefferson said. “Sounds like a plan to me. Besides, Jack’s place is starting to smell like kitty litter. Brittany talked him into getting two cats.”

  Felicity laughed. “So, I heard!”

  “You guys are so sweet,” Kendell said, smiling. “But, Pauline, is there a reason we’re not just staying at your place?”

  “Oh, honey, I sold it,” Pauline said with the wave of her hand. “After my retirement trip, I was planning on getting myself just a little apartment or a trailer. It was time I downsized. Got tired of taking care of my big yard. I am getting too old for that nonsense.”

  “I didn’t realize you had sold your house,” Kendell said.

  “Good retirement investment. We paid off the house years ago, so all that went into savings,” Pauline said. “A little camper sitting on my daughter’s property sounds good to me – I can be close to my daughter if I need her when I get really old, but far enough away to where I won’t drive my son-in-law crazy.”

  Felicity laughed. “Dad loves you,” she assured her.

  “Oh, I know he does, but you know we drive each other crazy,” Pauline said, and Felicity laughed.

  “I’m going to go check on the burgers. Feel free to settle in,” Jefferson said, dipping out of the room after giving Felicity a friendly peck on the cheek.

  He sure is sweet – no wonder Pauline likes him so much, Kendell thought as she watched Jefferson skip out of the room. Kendell glanced around the living room. Her eyes were drawn to the mantle above the fireplace where there were a bunch of framed photographs. It looked like a shrine to a group of friends. She smiled, looking at one group shot – it looked like Felicity and Jefferson had a tight-knit group they hung with. She picked up one frame in particular; it was of Felicity and another man in a tight embrace. Jefferson was also in the picture, smiling and awkwardly to the side. “Who’s this?” Kendell asked curiously, finding the picture to be a bit strange.

  “Oh,” Felicity said, her cheeks turning a bit red. “That’s Brian. He was my fiancé before he was killed.”

  “Oh!” Kendell exclaimed, feeling sorry that she had asked. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

  “No, it’s fine,” Felicity assured her. “Jefferson’s actually the one who framed that picture and put it up there. I guess it’s healthy to remember him fondly instead of shoving the memory of him away.”

  “That’s my girl,” Pauline said. “I’m sure it helps to have someone as supportive as Jefferson around.”

  Felicity smiled. “Definitely so.”

  A few minutes later, Jefferson was entering into the living room, a plate full of burgers and hot dogs. “Dinner is served!” he sang, heading towards the kitchen.

  Kendell sniffed the air, and her stomach growled. She hadn’t realized how hungry she had gotten. She was eager to take a bite out of one of those hamburgers. They gathered around the kitchen table, slapping on toppings and laughing while Pauline told them about their adventure in London. “The Globe Theater was just beautiful!” Pauline cried. “Wasn’t it, Kendell?”

  “It was,” Kendell said, though she was personally thinking about how an actor had gotten killed while they were there.

  “And, you went to Africa, too, right?” Jefferson asked.

  “Nairobi, Kenya,” Pauline said. “A beautiful country. We stayed at Giraffe Manor. Kendell, tell them about your little wake up call you got!”

  Kendell laughed. “Yeah, a giraffe stuck it’s head in through the window of our room and licked my face. About gave me a heart attack!”

  Jefferson laughed. “That’s so cool. I hope you guys have pictures.”

  “Oh, don’t worry, we do. I’m planning on getting some of them printed while I’m home,” Pauline said. “Oh, and Hawaii! Simply beautiful. I dumped your grandfather’s ashes there from a helicopter.”

  Felicity smiled. “Grandaddy made it to Hawaii after all, huh?”

  “That’s right,” Pauline said. “And, after that we got stuck in Texas and stayed on a ranch. So fun! Then on our way here we stopped by in Mississippi. I rode a Ferry, and we enjoyed some blues music. It really has been a wonderful trip! But, now, I want to hear what all you’ve been up to, dear.”

  Felicity went on to tell her grandmother more about some of her recent adventures, and Kendell found herself quite captivated listening to Felicity talk about her party planning business and about the detective agency. She was really looking forward to checking out the shop the following morning.

  3

  “Whoa,” Kendell said under her breath as she entered Overton Family of Companies behind Pauline. The little shop on Main Street, Senoia looked like any other building on the street, but once you got inside the magic began. The main floor of the shop Kendell now found herself standing in looked like something straight off the Clue board game. There were elegant red lounge furnishings set up where customers were already sitting and looking at sample books. A chandelier hung from the ceiling, giving the room a classy dining room feel. Crime scene tape acted as accent décor on the back wall. The base of the lamp sitting on one of the end tables was a stack of Nancy Drew and Sherlock Holmes books.

  There were floating shelves on the walls covered with sample books galore where patrons were happily looking through them for inspiration for their own events. In the middle of the floor, a chalk outli
ne of a body. The whole place looked like murder mystery threw up in there and arranged itself perfectly and majestically. “You like it?” Felicity asked her with a smile.

  “It’s amazing,” Kendell said.

  “Jefferson’s idea to do the whole murder mystery theme in the shop,” Felicity said. “Playing up my reputation as Senoia’s Nancy Drew.”

  “Is that what they’re calling you now?” Pauline asked, smiling proudly as she plopped herself down on one of the red furnishings.

  “Pretty much,” Jefferson said, passing by them and going to the counter a young girl was standing behind, filling out something on the computer. “Thanks for getting the place opened up for us this morning, Trixie.”

  “Of course!” the young girl said. She finished up what she was doing and scurried around the counter, smiling. “Are you Ms. Pauline?” she asked.

  Pauline stood back up. “I am.”

  “I’ve heard a lot about you from Felicity and Jefferson and Jack,” she said. “I’m Trixie.”

  “Oh, yes, Felicity told me about you,” Pauline said. “Sounds like you really help keep this place running smoothly.”

  “I do my best,” Trixie said. “Felicity, I got us a booking this morning – when you have time, would you mind taking a look?”

  “Of course, Trixie,” Felicity said. “But, I think my grandmama wants a tour.”

  “I want to see the detective agency you’ve added in,” Pauline said.

  “Same,” Kendell said with a big smile in Trixie’s direction.

  “Trixie, this is Kendell. She’s been accompanying my grandmama on her travels,” Felicity said, and Kendell shook the young woman’s hand.

  “So, you’re one of Felicity and Jefferson’s employees?” Kendell asked.

  “One of two,” she said. “My boyfriend Fix works in the agency upstairs. If you’re taking a tour, I’m sure you’ll meet him too.”

  “Come on, let’s try out the elevator,” Felicity said. “We just added that in. Before, everyone had to take the stairs to get to the detective agency, so we wanted to add handicap accessibility.”

  “Oh, honey, that must have been expensive!” Pauline exclaimed.

  “It was quite an investment,” Felicity admitted. “But, the year has been pretty good to us, and we were able to swing it.”

  “I’m sure she’s not too worried about finances now that she is driving around a five-million-dollar investment,” Kendell muttered to Pauline under her breath.

  “You’re not kidding,” Pauline said, laughing.

  Kendell and Pauline followed Felicity into the back room while Jefferson got to work with Trixie speaking to the customers who were currently sifting through sample books. The back was basically a giant storage room – full of shelves of items they used for some of their events. To the right was an office, Felicity’s. To the back of the room was a spiral staircase leading up to the buildings attic, and to the left was the brand new elevator. “All aboard,” Felicity said, and the three of them headed inside.

  The elevator took them up into a large room with drab carpets and a decent amount of sunlight coming in from an open window. It was clear that this office area used to be an attic due to the rafters above their heads, but it was redone nicely. There were two desks on opposite sides of the room, and a large bulletin board set up with case information. In addition, there was a display wall with framed newspaper clippings on past cases and a large filing cabinet in the corner.

  “Well, well, well,” a man sitting at the larger desk said, standing. “If it isn’t Ms. Pauline!”

  “Jack,” Pauline said with a smile. “Hope you’ve been staying out of trouble.”

  “Please, Pauline, you know I’m business partners with your granddaughter now. I’m always into some sort of trouble now,” Jack said, heading over to give Pauline a big hug. Kendell smiled at him, and he beamed right back at her. “You must be… Kendell, right?”

  Kendell nodded. “That’s me,” she said, feeling that it was a nice change of pace to be somewhere familiar to at least one of them. Pauline seemed to know just about everyone they had run into thus far.

  The kid sitting at the smaller desk stood and came over, grinning somewhat sheepishly. “Grandmama, Kendell, this is Fix. Our other employee,” Felicity said. “He helps Jack and me out a lot on our cases. He’s going to school for criminal justice.”

  “A pleasure to meet you, young man,” Pauline said.

  “Pleasure’s all mine,” the boy said politely.

  Kendell, while Pauline was playing catch up with Jack and showing off Dot to him, made her way to the display wall to check out some of the newspaper clippings. Felicity hadn’t been boasting when she had called herself Senoia’s Nancy Drew. The nickname had come directly from the local papers. Kendell pointed to one of the newspapers. “Hey, that’s your Cobra right there,” she said.

  “Yup,” Felicity said. “That was my very first case I worked. It was at the Senoia Car Show. The cars owner was murdered here in Senoia the same month my shop opened up, and a friend of mine was framed for the murder. I helped get him set free and find the real killer. Detective work just sort of fell into my lap, and soon Jack and I started working together.”

  Pauline had made her way over to the bulletin board where information on their current cases were pinned up. Pauline shrieked in alarm. “Felicity, what’s this? These are pictures of your room!” Pauline exclaimed, and Kendell hurried over to see what had her friend so worked up.

  There were pictures of Felicity’s room as well as pictures of the shop in shambles posted on the board. “What happened?” Kendell asked.

  “It’s nothing,” Felicity assured them. “We had a break in a while back. We’re still trying to find out what happened. We’ve added security cameras since then. Someone stole some files from the agency and my sleuthing notebook from the house. And, they trashed the place. No one was hurt, but the culprit still hasn’t been caught.”

  “Felicity! That is very concerning,” Pauline said.

  “There’s no reason to get worked up about me, Granamam,” Felicity assured her. “Me and my team have it handled.”

  Jack’s desk phone rang, so he hurried over to pick it up. “Yo, Jefferson,” he answered. “All right, I’ll tell her.” He hung up and smiled at everyone. “The Hornsby’s are here.”

  “Oh, awesome!” Felicity said. “We have an event tomorrow for them.”

  “Ooh, so I get to see you in action, am I right?” Pauline asked.

  “Of course – the event is open to the public,” Felicity said, leading them back onto the elevator.

  The elevator let out in the back room, and Felicity hurried them back into the shop. Kendell spied a young couple standing in the middle of the room – a smiley blonde woman and a serious looking redheaded man. A young toddler was roaming around being chased by Trixie. “Hey, Felicity!” the young woman said perkily. “Just coming by to make sure we’ve got everything set for the art show tomorrow.”

  “Of course,” Felicity said. “Stephanie, TJ, this is my grandmama, Pauline, and her friend, Kendell. Grandmama, this is Stephanie and TJ Hornsby. They run a local art group, and we’ve done a few events together in the past. They always go really well. These two put a lot of work into their art events.” Felicity knelt down as the little boy came scurrying up to her, all smiles. “Awe, is this little Oliver? He’s gotten so big! I can’t believe he’s walking now!” Felicity exclaimed as soon as the little boy fell on his behind.

  “Barely,” Stephanie said with a laugh and picked up the little boy. “We got to watch him. He’s a big climber.”

  “Ha – show them that picture you took on your phone this morning,” TJ said.

  Stephanie laughed and pulled out her phone, showing a picture of her kitchen where vm of her chairs and stools were up on the counters. “This is what I have to do every morning before he wakes up because he climbs up onto the kitchen table and tries to jump off! He’s such a mess!” Stephanie laugh
ed, shaking her head.

  “That’s so cute,” Kendell said, smirking. “So, you two have an art show tomorrow?”

  “Yes – it’s an auction. We do a lot of those,” TJ said. “There will be live music and talks. Authors will be there. Painters, sculptors. Basically any kind of art you can think of.”

  “That sounds really cool,” Kendell said.

  “It’s at that museum you like, Grandmama,” Felicity said.

  “The one in Fayetteville?” Pauline asked.

  “That’s the one,” Felicity said. “The Holiday Dorsey Fife Museum.”

  “Sounds exciting,” Kendell said.

  “It will be,” Felicity assured her.

  “Well, then, count us in,” Pauline said. “We’ll definitely attend. I might just have to get myself some artwork as well!”

  “I’m sure the artists will appreciate that,” Stephanie said. “Our last one got rained out. It was really a bummer, and we didn’t sell much. Plus… we kind of planned it during a big football weekend, so we’re hoping this one is going to go over a little better.”

  “I’m sure it will,” Felicity promised her. “Let’s go through everything to make sure we’re good to go for tomorrow. Jefferson, why don’t you take my grandmama and Kendell to our favorite coffee shop for some breakfast while I work through everything?”

  “I’m assuming you want me to bring back your usual?” Jefferson asked.

  “Definitely,” she said, smiling.

  Pauline and Kendell laughed, and they followed Jefferson out the front door. “The Senoia Coffee shop has been around for a while. It’s gone through a few owners, but it’s still a favorite,” Jefferson said.

  It was only a few doors down from them; Kendell’s stomach growled. She was eager for some good breakfast. As they entered into the shop, Kendell jumped when she found herself face to face with a zombie. “Oh my goodness!” she yelped.

  “Oh, sorry,” the man in the incredibly gory costume said. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” He headed out, coffee in hand.