Gelato with a Side of Murder

by Meredith Potts

  “Only you’re overlooking the part where your feelings were unrequited,” I said. “Love is a magical thing, except when it goes wrong.”

  “I would never hurt Delilah. And if you’re trying to insinuate otherwise, you’re wasting both your time and mine,” Ziggy said.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Matt Tilden was a brawny, mustached, tattooed, thirty-eight-year-old man who had a shaved head and very little interest in speaking with David and me. But he had no choice. We weren’t going to leave his workplace, Treasure Cove Auto Repair, until we got our questions answered.

  Matt elected to head out back behind the repair shop to talk to us instead of conducting the interview in plain view of his boss.

  “Mr. Tilden, isn’t it true that you stormed into Delilah’s crystal shop yesterday in a rage?” David asked.

  “I wouldn’t say it was a rage,” Matt replied.

  “We heard differently,” David said.

  “Who told you that? Was it that space case who was behind the cash register?” Matt said.

  “Mr. Tilden, the focus is on you right now,” David said.

  Matt scoffed. “This is crazy. I can’t believe you just showed up at my job to hassle me like this. Why don’t you just leave me alone?”

  “We’d be happy to,” David said.

  “Good—”

  David cut Matt off. “Once we get answers to our questions. Now, back to this incident at the crystal shop.”

  “First of all, it wasn’t an incident,” Matt said.

  “Fine. Misunderstanding. Whatever you want to call it. From what we hear, it was pretty heated,” David said.

  Matt pointed at David. “I know what you’re doing.”

  “Trying to discover the truth,” David said.

  Matt shook his head. “No. You think I had something to do with that crazy lady’s death. But I didn’t.”

  “Why don’t you calm down?” David asked.

  “How about you back off, first?” Matt said.

  “You know, when you behave like this, you aren’t exactly helping your case,” David said.

  Matt threw his arms out. “How else do you expect me to behave? This is nuts. I had no reason to want that woman dead.”

  David snickered. “You must think we’re idiots. But guess what? We’re not.”

  “We know about the memory eraser enchantment that Delilah performed on your ex-girlfriend,” I said.

  “I’m sure you do. And I’ll bet you think that gives me a killer motive,” Matt said.

  “Well, you did storm into the crystal shop and make a big scene,” David said.

  “I admit that I didn’t react well when I found out about that crazy enchantment,” Matt said. “But when I left the shop, I cooled down and moved on with my life.”

  I put my hands on my hips. “You can understand why we’d have a hard time believing that.”

  Matt shook his head vehemently. “No. This is all just nuts to me. After all, my girlfriend is the one who broke up with me. If I really had such an ax to grind, why wouldn’t I have just killed her?”

  “Because maybe you thought you could win your ex-girlfriend back. I mean, clearly you still have feelings for her. Delilah, meanwhile, was the one who had the power to make your ex forget about you,” I said.

  Matt scoffed. “Come on. You don’t actually believe that crazy crystal shop mumbo jumbo, do you?”

  My eyebrows knitted. “If you thought Delilah’s services were bogus, then why did you get so worked up and storm into her shop in the first place?”

  “Because it’s not about what I believe. My girlfriend was the one who bought into Delilah’s hogwash,” Matt said. “That crazy crystal lady poisoned the well.”

  I scratched my forehead. “Wait a minute. Something isn’t adding up.”

  “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” Matt said. “You’re wasting your time suspecting me of anything.”

  “That isn’t what I meant. Now, you just said that Delilah poisoned the well. But if your ex only went to Delilah for the memory eraser enchantment, it would have been too late for that to be true. After all, you had already broken up by then.” I bit my lip. “Unless your girlfriend had gotten some service previously from Delilah—before your breakup occurred.”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Matt snapped.

  I stared deep into his eyes. “I just hit on a sore spot, didn’t I? Your ex-girlfriend had gone to Delilah before, hadn’t she? What did Delilah tell your girlfriend that made you believe that she poisoned the well?”

  Matt narrowed his eyes. “That doesn’t matter.”

  “It does to me,” David said.

  “Yeah? Well it doesn’t change anything. Like I told you before, I didn’t kill Delilah,” Matt said.

  “There’s one way to prove that,” David said.

  “How?” Matt said.

  “Tell us where you were last night,” David said.

  “I was at home, watching the Marauders game,” Matt said.

  “Alone?” David said.

  “Do you want me to tell you everything that happened during the game to prove that I was watching it? Because I can do that,” Matt said.

  “That doesn’t prove anything,” David said. “You could have taped the game and watched it later. Or you could have read a summary of the game.”

  “Look. I was watching the game last night—”

  David cut Matt off. “Alone, you mean?”

  “Yes. But I was at home,” Matt said.

  “I have a difficult time believing that,” David said.

  “I don’t know what else to tell you,” Matt said. “Except that I need to get back to work.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  The walk back to David’s car was a disappointing one.

  “Who knew the truth was so hard to come by?” David said.

  “Especially from a group of people who were so quick to plead their innocence,” I said.

  “Yeah. It’s a shame they were so allergic to giving us straight answers.”

  “Well, it is allergy season,” I joked.

  “Too bad there isn’t a medication to clear up chronic lying.”

  “No. That would make this case too easy.”

  “You wouldn’t hear me complaining,” he said. “Doing things the hard way gets awfully tiring.”

  “I’m with you. Exhaustion is having its way with me right now,” I said.

  “I’m sure your empty stomach has a little something to do with that.”

  “Yeah. I could definitely go for some brain food.”

  David put his hand on his belly. “Or just any food, really.”

  “It’s settled, then. Let’s take a break before getting back to work.”

  “I actually think we should give this case a rest for the night.”

  My eyebrows rose. “Really?”

  “Unless you have any burning leads that I don’t know about.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t help you there.”

  “Neither can I,” he said. “We’ve questioned all the suspects, we’re completely out of leads, and my brain feels like pudding right now.”

  “Mmm, pudding.”

  He chuckled. “I can see that your mind isn’t on the case right now, either.”

  “Hey, you’re the one who brought up pudding.”

  “You’re right. I should have known better than to have mentioned a dessert item around you.”

  “It’s too late now. I have chocolate pudding on my mind, and there’s no getting rid of it until I have a bowl of my own.”

  “How about we start with some dinner first?”

  I shrugged. “I suppose we can do that.”

  “If it were up to you, we’d just jump straight to dessert, wouldn’t we?”

  “What can I say? It has been a stressful day. During times like this, it’s hard to go wrong with chocolate.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Once again, chocolate did not let m
e down. But even though pudding was able to buoy my spirits for the remainder of the evening, the break in the case that I was looking for remained elusive. So after finishing up dinner and dessert, David and I decided to shut our investigation down for the night in favor of getting some much-needed rest.

  Unfortunately, when I woke up the following morning, I was just as stumped as ever. Perhaps some caffeine could jump start my mind. I headed over to Daley Buzz to find out.

  As I finished off a cup of coffee and waited for a jolt of energy to hit my system, a familiar face greeted me.

  “Does the craziness in this town ever end?” Daphne Lipton asked.

  So much for pleasantries. Apparently, Daphne had zero interest in small talk that morning. I didn’t blame her. Especially given how there were so many big issues to tackle.

  “I have been asking myself that question a lot lately,” I said.

  “Am I going to like your answer?” Daphne said.

  I grimaced. “Probably not.”

  Daphne was visibly deflated. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

  “Sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault. You’re one of the few bright spots in this town. I don’t know what Treasure Cove would do without you.”

  “I think you’re being a little generous.”

  “And I think you’re just being humble. You are a real treasure.”

  “Thank you for saying that, but right now, I don’t feel like I’m living up to all that hype.”

  “What’s the matter? Is the case getting you down?”

  “Actually, I’d rather not talk about it.”

  “Fair enough,” she said. “I won’t bring up the case again.”

  “What I could go for is some good news. Do you happen to have any of that?”

  Daphne smiled. “As a matter of fact, I do.”

  “Really? Let’s hear it, then.”

  “Speaking of random craziness, your instincts are more amazing than I even realized.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “Last night I ran into an old friend from San Francisco that I haven’t seen in over ten years.”

  “Is that so?”

  She nodded.

  “Where?”

  “On the boardwalk. After work, I decided to go out for a stroll on the beach. Then, on my way back to my car, I spotted William. It was so good to see him. He’s so nice and funny and handsome,” Daphne said.

  I smiled. “Is that a glimmer I see in your eyes?”

  She blushed. “Maybe.”

  “Back in your San Francisco days, did you and William ever happen to date?” I asked.

  “No, but I have a feeling that might change very soon.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “It’s definitely a possibility.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “How about the fact that we spent the whole night talking and laughing and catching up?”

  “I guess it was good that you ran into each other, then.”

  A dreamy look came to Daphne’s eyes. “It was more than that. It actually felt like fate was bringing us together.”

  I scratched my forehead. “I didn’t know you were a big believer in that kind of thing.”

  “I wasn’t. But things change. Especially around here.”

  “I can’t argue with that. In Treasure Cove, things have been known to change in an instant.”

  “I think that’s exactly what they did.”

  “You must have had an amazing night.”

  Daphne nodded. “It was the kind of thing you see happen in movies, but never in real life. Two old friends, both recently single, just happen to run into each other at random and reconnect.”

  “So he just got out of a relationship too, then?” I asked.

  “Not only that, but he came here to Treasure Cove in order to get a break from his life. To leave his heartbreak behind. But here’s the thing. After being here for a few days, it turns out he likes this town so much that he’s thinking of moving here.”

  “Wow. You two must have really hit it off.”

  “We did,” she said. “But he was actually thinking of moving here even before he ran into me last night. Now he has even more reason to do it.”

  “I guess it’s safe to say that you’re going to see each other again.”

  “Oh yeah. Tonight, actually, for dinner.”

  “You two are moving fast.” I bit my lip. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. It’s nice to see you happy. But you did just get out of a relationship.”

  “And you’re worried that I might be getting a little too ahead of myself?” Daphne replied.

  “I hope I’m wrong, but the thought did cross my mind.”

  “It crossed mine too. Except, here’s the thing. I’ve taken it slow before. I have been plenty cautious in the past, guarding my heart until I felt like the timing was right to open up to a man. And look at me, I’m just as single as ever. But you know what I’ve never done?”

  “What?”

  “Opened myself up to whatever the universe has in store for me. Turned myself over to fate and seen what develops,” Daphne replied. “Will it work?” She shrugged. “I can’t say. But I’m willing to give it a try.”

  “I hope it works out for you,” I said.

  “So do I. After how things ended with Jake, I can really use a break.”

  “You sure could. I’ll pray for you.”

  “Thanks. But I think you should save your prayers for trying to get a break in this case you’re working on. I have a feeling you’re going to need all the help you can get.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Daphne wasn’t wrong. I needed a lot of assistance. The night before, I had prayed for a break in the case to come my way. I would do more of that later. In the meantime, I needed more caffeine.

  As Daphne grabbed her latte and left Daley Buzz, my jet-black-haired mother, Elizabeth Daley, came up behind me.

  “You look like you could use more coffee,” Elizabeth said.

  “Thanks, Mom,” I said. “It’s like you read my mind.”

  “I wish I could read minds,” Elizabeth said. “In truth, it was just a lucky guess.”

  “Either way, you’re spot-on.”

  Elizabeth took my cup. “One refill, coming up.”

  “Thanks again.”

  “Of course. Anything to help you. Especially since it sounds like you need it.”

  “I do. Although, there’s something I can use even more.”

  “What’s that?” Elizabeth asked.

  “A big fat lead to fall into my lap.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t help you there.”

  “You haven’t heard anything juicy about this case, then?”

  She shook her head.

  I bit my lip. “It isn’t like the rumor mill to let us down.”

  “You can only expect so much from coffee shop customers.”

  “I was talking about Grandma, the one-woman rumor mill. I thought she knew everything that went on in this town.”

  “Usually, she does. But she has been a little busy.”

  I shrugged. “What’s more important than helping me solve a murder?”

  “Trust me. You don’t want to know,” Elizabeth said.

  I stared into my mother’s eyes.

  “What aren’t you telling me? Where is Grandma right now?” I asked.

  “I’d rather not say.”

  The coyer that my mother became, the more it raised my curiosity. My mind raced with possibilities. I settled on the most probable answer. “Is she out gobbling up samples at Costlow again?”

  Elizabeth shook her head. “Her appetite has sunk to a new low.”

  “All right. The suspense is killing me. You have to tell me now.”

  Exasperation filled Elizabeth’s face. “You’re not going to drop this, are you?”

  “Not a chance. Now, come clean. What is it that you don’t want to tell me?”

  Elizabeth groaned. “She’s ou
t getting gelato.”

  A baffled look came to my face as I looked at the time on my phone. It was a little after nine in the morning. “She’s getting ice cream at this hour?”

  “According to your grandma, it’s never too early for gelato.”

  “I didn’t even realize the gelato shop was open right now.”

  Elizabeth shrugged. “Go figure.”

  My eyes lit up. “What a delicious discovery.”

  I gazed out the window of the coffee shop with great longing.

  Elizabeth cleared her throat. “Sabrina, please tell me you aren’t thinking about gelato right now.”

  “Can you blame me?” I asked.

  Elizabeth shook her head. “Oh dear. Not you too.”

  I held my pointer finger out. “Hey. It’s not my fault. I’m powerless when it comes to ice cream.”

  Elizabeth squinted. “Even at nine in the morning?”

  I shrugged. “My sugar craving doesn’t care what time it is.”

  Elizabeth chuckled. “You really do take after your grandmother.”

  “So you’re saying that I keep good company, then?”

  “That’s one way of putting it,” Elizabeth replied.

  “Anyway, I should be going.”

  “To work on the case, right?”

  I nodded.

  Elizabeth stared hard at me. “Before or after you get some gelato?”

  I remained coy. “Who says I’m going to get gelato?”

  “Come on, Sabrina. You don’t think I know you?”

  “Aren’t you a little bit interested in giving this morning gelato a try?”

  She shook her head. “Not in the least.”

  “Where’s your sense of culinary adventure?”

  Elizabeth laughed. “I wouldn’t call morning gelato culinary adventure.” She put her hand on my shoulder. “Tell your grandmother that she’s a bad influence.”

  “I told her that when I met up with her for Costlow samples a while back. She seemed to relish the role of defying expectations. I’m pretty sure that she isn’t going to care,” I replied.

  “Of course she did. She’s the only eighty-three-year-old who makes the rules up as she goes.”

  Chapter Twenty-One