Sweet Suspects (The Donut Mysteries)

by Beck, Jessica

“I don’t care what you do, Billy Briscoe. As of right now, I’m done with you.” It was clearly Janet’s voice, and she was angry.

  “I just asked you who you had lunch with,” Billy said with a whine. “I’m not being over-possessive.”

  Janet’s voice got louder, and I had to wonder if it was because she was now closer to the door. “I don’t care. Don’t call me, and don’t come see me anymore. Do you understand?”

  “Give me another chance, Janet,” Billy pled, and I thought I could hear him start to cry.

  “No,” she said coldly, clearly unmoved by the display.

  I glanced down to see the doorknob start to move.

  Grabbing Grace’s arm, I pulled her to a nearby alcove where the ice machine and a few vending machines were located.

  “What are you doing?” Grace asked me.

  “Shh,” I said. “She’s coming.”

  Sure enough, we heard the door slam, and a few seconds later, Janet’s angry steps echoed down the hallway toward us. If she happened to glance into the alcove, Grace and I were dead, maybe even literally.

  Fortunately, she passed right by us without a single glance our way.

  “Whew, that was close,” Grace said after Janet was gone. “What should we do, follow her, or go talk to Billy?”

  “I don’t think we’ll get much out of Janet when she’s that mad,” I said. “Besides, Billy might be a little more willing to talk to us now that he’s out of the picture with Janet.” Grace frowned, so I asked her, “What’s wrong with that plan?”

  “It seems kind of heartless going after him when his heart is breaking,” she said.

  “Ordinarily I would agree with you, but we can’t forget that he was seeing a married woman, and he might even have had something to do with Zane’s murder. We can’t afford to tiptoe around Billy right now.”

  “I know you’re right,” she said, “but I’m beginning to wonder when we got so heartless about all of this. We didn’t used to be this way.”

  I stopped dead in my tracks and thought about what she’d said. After a few moments, I answered, “Grace, I know you’re right, but I’m not sure what to do about it. Maybe investigating all of these murders has had an impact on me after all, as much as I like to think that I’m above all that. Then again, I know that the old me would never take advantage of someone’s pain, no matter how they got it. We’ve met too many murderers since we first started doing this. A lot of them have looked us straight in the eye and proclaimed their innocence, and some of the time I actually believed them. What we have to focus on right now is the fact that someone was murdered, and we’re trying to discover who did it. If that makes us cold and calculating, then maybe it’s just part of what we’ve both become.”

  “Maybe, but we’re still human,” Grace said. “As much as I love tracking down killers with you, I’m not thrilled by the idea that I’m walling off a part of me that I actually like.”

  “Neither am I,” I said. “I don’t know what we can do about it, though, do you?”

  “Suzanne, I know that we have to keep pushing forward. I just want us to be aware of what we’re doing, that’s all.”

  “I agree,” I said. “In the end, if Billy turns out to be the killer, then we were justified in grilling him.”

  “And if he’s not?” Grace asked.

  “Then we’ll probably owe him an apology,” I said. “With donuts.”

  Grace nodded and offered me a slight smile. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to make an issue of it.”

  I hugged her. “That’s one of the reasons that you’re my best friend,” I said. “You keep me in line when I need it.”

  “Right back at you,” Grace said.

  “Are you ready to do this?”

  “I’m ready,” she said, and we approached Billy’s door together. I knew that I could get too caught up in our investigations sometimes, and I’d lost a few friends over the years since Grace and I had become unofficial murder investigators, but I was going to make a concerted effort to remember that many of these people were my friends, and nearly all of them deserved the benefit of our doubt. That might mean that we tiptoed a little more in the future than we had in the past, but I could live with that. In the end, I had to live in April Springs, and even the surrounding communities, and I had a business to run. I’d hate to solve a few murders and end up losing the donut shop because people didn’t want to come in anymore. After all, I didn’t offer anything that was essential to anyone’s wellbeing. I was, first and foremost, a donut maker, by trade and by avocation, and if I lost that, I’d lose a very real part of myself.

  “Billy, do you have a second?” I asked as I tapped on his door.

  There was no answer.

  I tried again, saying, “We just saw Janet leave your room, so we know that you’re in there. We’re so sorry about what happened.”

  I could hear footsteps approach the door, and then Billy opened it tentatively. He’d been crying; that much was clear from his bloodshot eyes and his runny nose. “Sorry. I’ve got allergies,” he said as he dabbed at his cheeks with a tissue.

  “I get them sometimes myself,” Grace said softly. “Do you have a minute?”

  “Why not?” He stepped aside and ushered us in. If I’d been alone, I would have tried to maneuver him to somewhere more public, but since Grace was with me, I felt a little safer. After all, no matter how we might sympathize with him, Billy was still a suspect on our list of possible murderers, and we’d found nothing so far to clear his name from it.

  “What did she say to you?” Billy asked as he closed the door behind me. “Did she mention me?”

  “No, but then again, she looked pretty upset,” I said.

  Billy nodded sadly. “I pushed her too hard. I know that now.”

  “What exactly happened, Billy?” Grace asked him.

  “I don’t want to talk about it,” Billy said, and then he frowned at both of us. “Why are you here?”

  “We’re digging into Zane’s murder,” I said.

  He looked at us as though he didn’t believe us. “Since when did you two become cops?”

  “We aren’t,” I said quickly, “but we’ve helped the police chief out in the past on several occasions, and he’s come to rely on our assistance.” That last bit was more than a little bit of a stretch, but how could Billy possibly know just how much I was exaggerating the situation?

  “And you think I did it,” Billy said. “Well, you’re both dead wrong. I didn’t kill Zane.”

  “You have to admit that it looks bad for you,” I said.

  “What are you talking about?” Billy asked, a wary edge creeping into his voice.

  “Come on,” Grace said. “You were seen arguing with the man a few hours before he was murdered. That doesn’t exactly help your case.”

  “So we had a fight.”

  “What was it about?” I asked him. “Did it concern Janet?”

  “Actually, it was about Helen Marston,” Billy said.

  “What about Helen?” I asked.

  “Zane was bullying her about something at the reunion. I overheard them, and then I scolded Zane for doing it. He told me to mind my own business, and that was when the argument started.”

  “So you two fought over Helen,” I said.

  “Sure, but it could have been for any one of a dozen different reasons. Zane and I used to fight all the time in school. It’s the relationship we had. Why was this time any different?”

  “Well, for one thing, you’re both grown men now,” I said, “and for another, he died soon afterward, remember? Add your relationship with the widow into the mix, and I’m a little surprised that you’re not sitting in a jail cell right now.”

  “Janet and I are just friends,” Billy said, and then he added softly, “I’m not even sure we’re still that at this point.”

  “You’re more than that, and we all know it. We saw you two at the reunion,” I said, keeping the fact that it was all caught on video to myself for now. “
There’s no use denying it.”

  “Nothing happened,” Billy said. “I was drunk, and I tried to kiss her on the dance floor. She let me for about five seconds before she jerked away, slapped my face, and then stormed off. Did you happen to see that part of it? You’re wasting your time trying to pin this on me. If you’re really looking for Zane’s killer, you should talk to Mr. Davidson. He’s the one who had a real motive to kill Zane.”

  “What might that be?” Grace asked.

  “No way am I telling you that,” Billy said. “If you want to know, you’re going to have to get that from him yourself.”

  “At least give us a hint,” I suggested.

  Billy thought about that, and then he shrugged. “Sure, what could it hurt? Ask him about Zane and his new girlfriend.”

  “Zane had a girlfriend on the side?” I asked.

  “Not his girlfriend, though I wouldn’t be surprised if that were true, too. The man was a dog. I’m talking about Helen Martson.” Billy was clearly expecting us to be surprised by the news, but we disappointed him. “You knew about that already, didn’t you?”

  “We did,” I said.

  “Well, you might know that, but I’m willing to bet that you don’t know about the relationship between Helen and Zane.”

  “Tell us,” Grace asked.

  “I really shouldn’t. I’ve said too much already,” Billy said.

  “We’ll keep your name out of it,” I promised him. “You can trust us.”

  He was about to add something when his cellphone rang. After a quick glance at the caller ID, he said breathlessly, “I have to take this.” Grace and I stood firm as he answered his call. “Hang on one second,” he said as he answered it, and then he held the phone to his chest. “Please? This might be my last chance.” He was pleading now, and there was no doubt in my mind that Janet was the one on the other end of the line.

  “We’re going. Thanks for your time,” Grace said.

  “And the information,” I added.

  He led us out, but before he closed the door, Billy said, “Remember, you didn’t hear any of that from me. You promised.”

  “We promised,” I echoed the sentiment, and then he closed the door and deadbolted it.

  “Well, that was productive,” Grace said once we were out in the hallway alone. “Who do you suppose was on the other end of that telephone call?”

  “Is there any doubt in your mind? It had to be Janet,” I said.

  “After the way she stormed out of his room after yelling at him? Do you really think so?”

  “I have a hunch that Janet may have suddenly realized that she couldn’t afford to have Billy as an enemy while the police are looking into her husband’s murder.”

  “Not to mention us,” Grace added.

  “So far, we haven’t been much of a threat,” I said. “And don’t tell me that these things take time. I know that, but it still frustrates me.”

  “It frustrates both of us,” she said, “but we can only do what we can do.”

  “True enough,” I said, “but what do we do now?”

  “We don’t have much choice, do we? We have to talk to Helen and see what Billy was talking about.”

  “Do you think that she might have killed Zane?” I asked as we headed back to my Jeep.

  “At this point I’m not sure of anyone that we can clear,” she said. “How about you?”

  “Everywhere I look, I see people who wanted to see Zane out of the picture,” I answered. “It must have been a tough way to live his life.”

  “He still deserved better than he got,” Grace said.

  “That’s one of the reasons that I keep pushing,” I said. “I’ll be honest with you, though. The main thing that motivates me right now is solving this before your earlier indiscretion comes to light. I don’t want you to take any hits that you don’t deserve.”

  “I stole,” Grace said softly. “I deserve whatever I get.”

  “What you deserve is compassion,” I said tenderly. “Once this is all over, we’ll figure out a way to make this right.”

  “I don’t know how that’s possible,” she said. “Everyone I wronged is gone.”

  “We’ll come up with something. Trust me,” I answered.

  “I always have, and I always will,” she replied.

  It was a somber drive back to April Springs, and I struggled to keep myself from speeding to get there quicker. I wanted to talk to Helen Marston, and the sooner, the better.

  “Helen, do you have a second?” I asked her as we walked into the office at the high school. She was a guidance counselor there, which may have explained how she’d gotten involved with one of our former teachers. I’d read somewhere that proximity in the workplace was the number one reason couples got together, and in a way, I suppose that’s how Jake and I had met. The only difference was that he had been investigating a murder at the time, and I was one of his suspects.

  Helen frowned before she spoke. “Sorry, but I have a meeting with a parent in three minutes.”

  The secretary behind the desk piped up at that point and said, “Mrs. Porter canceled. Didn’t you get my email?”

  “I haven’t had a chance to read it yet,” Helen said testily.

  “Listen, we can talk out here, or we can do it in your office,” I said. “Personally, I’m fine with it either way. I just thought you might want to have a little privacy for this particular conversation.”

  We all glanced over at the secretary as I said it, and she looked quickly away. It was pretty clear that she’d been eavesdropping on our conversation, and just as obvious that Helen wasn’t pleased about it. “I suppose that would be best,” she said before turning to the secretary. “Marcy, call me in ten minutes. I have to get my notes ready for the meeting tonight.”

  “Sure thing,” Marcy said, and we followed Helen into her office. She took her chair behind a large dark oak desk, a commanding presence that was not so subtle about telling visitors who was in charge, at least in that particular room. It didn’t faze me a bit, but I was willing to bet that it intimidated most of the students who sat where I was sitting now.

  “Now, what can I do for you?” she asked as she shuffled a few papers on her desk.

  “For one thing, you can tell us exactly what your relationship was with Zane Dunbar and Billy Briscoe,” Grace said before I even had a chance to come up with a question. I didn’t mind; I might have taken five minutes trying to work myself up to that question, but Grace had cut straight to the point.

  “They were classmates of mine, the same as they were with you both,” she said.

  “That’s not what we heard,” I said. “Come on, Helen. You might as well be candid with us.”

  “I really don’t see why I should be,” she said. “You’ve got no cause to accuse me of anything.”

  “Hang on a second,” I said. “No one’s made any accusations, at least not yet. We’re just gathering facts. We know that Billy got into an argument with Zane because of your honor last night. What exactly was that all about?”

  Helen frowned. “Billy Briscoe has had a crush on me for years,” she said. “When I started seeing Henry, he took it personally.”

  “I thought he had a thing for Janet,” Grace said.

  “That was old news,” Helen said dismissively.

  That wasn’t what the video had shown, but I decided not to bring that up at the moment. “So Billy had a crush on you. That would explain why he might be jealous of Henry, but not of Zane,” I said.

  After a few moments, she sighed. “You’re going to make me say it, aren’t you?”

  I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. “It would be better all around if you did,” I said, trying to sound as though I knew more than I was letting on.

  “Fine, I’ll say it. In a moment of weakness last month, I spent the night with Zane at a motel. It was a mistake, and we both knew it the next morning. I’d had a fight with Henry, and Zane had argued with Janet. We ended up at the sa
me restaurant, and one thing led to another.”

  “Did anyone else know about it?” Grace asked.

  “Billy spotted us coming out of the motel room the next morning,” she admitted. “Listen, I’m not proud of what I did, but nobody took advantage of me.”

  “How did Henry and Janet react to the news?” I asked.

  She looked surprised by my question. “They don’t know, not unless Billy said something to them, and I’d appreciate it if you’d keep what I just told you in confidence. I could lose more than my job if word got out about what happened.”