Room with a Clue: A Park Hotel Mystery (The Park Hotel Mysteries Book 3)

by Diane Capri

  When I’d disconnected the call, I felt sad, and I didn’t know why. For the next couple of days, that feeling stayed with me. Ginny thought I was getting depressed, so she tried at every turn to lift up my spirits and make me laugh. She’d been doing a good job. But after days of being cooped up in the hotel and under watchful eyes of the entire Park family, I made my escape and headed for a long walk through the village.

  I didn’t get far before I spied Clive Barrington strolling along Main Street, hands casually resting in the pockets of his khakis. The yellow golf shirt he wore accentuated his beautiful dark skin and made him seem sunny all over. He crossed the street to talk to me.

  “Good evening, Ms. Steele. Lovely to see you,” he said gallantly, in his even more lovely British accent. Why hadn’t I noticed that accent the first time we’d met? Probably because I’d been too mesmerized by his sexy self.

  I nodded. “Mr. Barrington. Are you coming from the Top of the Lilac?”

  He smiled again, another megawatter. And those eyes. Ginny was right. Simply stunning. “Well, I was actually saving that one for a special occasion. Since it’s your favorite, would you like to join me for dinner one evening?”

  I didn’t know exactly what to say to that, so I kept quiet.

  “You did say that your job is to make sure I get whatever I want while I’m on Frontenac Island, did you not?” He arched his eyebrows and grinned. “I travel quite a bit, and I do tire of eating alone. I’d be honored if you’d join me for dinner tomorrow night.” When I continued to pause, he said, “Please.”

  It was dinner. In a public place. Where I was well known. Surely there’d be no harm in it. But still, I felt a little nervous about it. I didn’t normally dine with guests of the hotel. It was an invisible line I’d drawn for myself. Which meant I could cross it any time I wanted to.

  I nodded. “Sure. I’d be happy to go. As I said, Top of the Lilac is my favorite place in town, outside of the Park.”

  “Excellent. Let’s meet in the lobby at seven o’clock, and we can walk down together,” he replied.

  I nodded again. “I’ll call for a reservation. And I’ll see you then.”

  He tipped his head, and I had the silly impression that he’d have tipped his hat if he’d been wearing one. I watched him saunter away and wondered, Just who are you, and what is it that you’re up to, Mr. Clive Barrington from Hong Kong?

  I continued my walk and stopped in at June’s Blooms, but the sign on the door said CLOSED. And I had a feeling that the sign wasn’t going to change for some time.

  After turning right into the marina—there was someone I wanted to see—I walked along the docks, taking in the different boats. Some were very large yachts. I’d heard there was a boat docked here worth more than two million dollars called the Magpie. Others were smaller skiffs made for sailing for a few hours on calm waters.

  I turned to head down another dock, when I spotted a particular redhead standing at a vacant slip. As I approached, she turned toward me. I saw a pair of gardening shears in her hand, which reminded me of the time she’d used shears to damage a car. Why was she holding them now?

  “Hey, June,” I said cautiously.

  “Hi, Andi.”

  Her hair was unruly, but her cheeks were flushed. She wore deck shoes and her usual blouse-and-ankle-pants outfit, as if she’d dressed for sailing. “What are you doing here?”

  She turned and pointed the shears toward a boat docked there. I knew whose boat it was. She said, “I was just checking to see if he came back.”

  Simon Gervais had vanished after that night I’d seen him at the fountain. After I’d told the sheriff about Simon living on his boat in the marina, the sheriff had come down to check. The boat had been unoccupied and Simon was gone. The sheriff thought he’d taken a ferry to the mainland for a faster get away. He’d put out a BOLO, but we’d heard nothing more.

  I looked at June. She seemed distant. Ungrounded. Barely holding herself together.

  Simon’s actions had broken June to pieces. She wasn’t the same woman as before he’d betrayed her so cruelly. Before she had been accused of murder and gone to jail. That kind of trauma changes a person. She hadn’t been capable of murder before, but Simon’s actions might have pushed her too far.

  “What are doing with the shears?” I asked carefully, with what I hoped was a playful lightness in my voice.

  “What?” She seemed surprised, then she looked at the shears and shrugged. “I’d left them on the boat. Figured I’d take them back with me.”

  “Sure,” I said. “That makes sense.”

  She looked and me, then down at the water. “He fell off the boat. Maybe hit his head or something. He was still here. All that time.”

  I followed her gaze. Which was when I saw Simon Gervais floating face up, his body lodged in the corner of the dock, banging against the sea wall. He’d been dead for days, from the look of him.

  I peered more closely at June’s shears. I didn’t really believe June had used them to kill Simon. There was no fresh blood on them for one thing. And he really didn’t look like a new kill. What did I know, though? He might have threatened her. She could have brandished the shears to fend him off. Maybe he’d stepped off the dock while he was coming after her. Whatever happened, the sheriff would sort things out. This time, I was going to stay out of it. I believed in June, and that’s all that mattered. Poor woman.

  I reached for my cell phone and called the sheriff. When he picked up, I told him where I was, who I was with, and what I’d seen.

  “I’ll be right there. Take June home and stay there with her until you hear from me,” he said.

  “Will do,” I replied before I disconnected and dropped the phone into my pocket.

  I patted June on the shoulder. “Do you want me to walk you home? We could grab a coffee along the way.”

  She nodded. Still dazed, she allowed me to remove the shears from her hand. I held them carefully to avoid contaminating any evidence the sheriff might find.

  Together, we walked off the dock and onto the main street. As we passed various villagers, they smiled and said hello. Some of them gave June the side-eye, though. I hated to see it. Although she’d been cleared of all charges, there were still rumors floating around. That’s what happened in a small town, I supposed.

  We grabbed a coffee at Beano’s and I asked for a bag. I slipped the shears into the bag and then we continued our walk.

  “So, I was thinking of leaving,” June said.

  “For good?”

  “I’m not sure. A few months, most likely.” She closed her eyes and lifted her face to the sun. “I have some money saved up, and I’d like to travel. I haven’t been anywhere. So I think it’s time I go somewhere and see a few things.”

  “When would you go?”

  “In a couple of weeks.” She glanced at me, her eyes bright and clear. “I was thinking of starting in Italy. Have you ever been?”

  I shook my head. “No, but I hear it’s beautiful there.”

  She nodded, then was silent for a bit as we kept walking. Finally, we made it to her house and she turned to me. “Thank you for helping me.”

  “You’re welcome, June.”

  She hugged me and then pulled back. “So, I was thinking of renting out my house for the months I’m gone.” She gave me a small smile. “Do you know anyone who’d want to rent it?”

  I returned her smile. “I might. Do you allow cats?”

  “Absolutely.”

  * * *

  Thank you so much for reading Room with a Clue!

  I hope you love Andi Steele and her Frontenac Island family. Find out what happens when Andi stumbles across another dead body, leaving her to juggle attentive men and ornery bosses, while staying one step ahead of a killer.

  Order Late Arrival now so you don’t miss it!

  And if you loved The Park Hotel Mysteries, you’ll love my Willa Carson mysteries, too. Find out what happens when a dead plastic surgeon washes up
under the Sunshine Skyway bridge and Judge Willa Carson’s sister is the prime suspect.

  One-Click Due Justice now!

  Join Willa Carson and her colleagues as their Hunt for Justice continues!

  The Hunt for Justice Series:

  Due Justice

  Twisted Justice

  Secret Justice

  Wasted Justice

  Raw Justice

  Mistaken Justice (novella)

  Cold Justice (novella)

  False Justice (novella)

  Fair Justice (novella)

  True Justice (novella)

  Night Justice

  ~Keep reading for more from Diane Capri~

  MORE FROM DIANE CAPRI

  I hope you enjoyed this Park Hotel Mystery as much as I enjoyed writing it for you. I hope you’ll recommend my books to your friends who might like them, too. The best way to share your honest review of my books is to post a quick two or three sentence review where you bought this copy and give the books some stars. Please do that. I promise I won’t forget it! And now that we’ve found each other, let’s keep in touch. Readers like you are the reason I write!

  For new release notification, and general information for members only, please sign up for our Diane Capri mailing list. We don’t want to leave you out!

  Join Diane Capri’s Mailing List at:

  http://dianecapri.com/get-involved/get-my-newsletter/

  Have you read all of Diane Capri’s books? Maybe it’s time to give them a try!

  For a complete list of Diane Capri Books visit:

  http://dianecapri.com/books/

  or visit Diane’s Amazon Author Page

  (Click each title to buy or download a sample)

  The Park Hotel Mysteries Series:

  Reservation with Death

  Early Check Out

  Room with a Clue

  Late Arrival

  The Hunt for Justice Series:

  Due Justice

  Twisted Justice

  Secret Justice

  Wasted Justice

  Raw Justice

  Mistaken Justice (novella)

  Cold Justice (novella)

  False Justice (novella)

  Fair Justice (novella)

  True Justice (novella)

  Night Justice

  The Heir Hunter Series:

  Blood Trails

  Trace Evidence

  Jordan Fox Mysteries Series:

  False Truth

  An 11-book continuity series

  The Hunt for Jack Reacher Series:

  (in publication order with Lee Child source books in parentheses)

  Don’t Know Jack • (Killing Floor)

  Jack in a Box (novella)

  Jack and Kill (novella)

  Get Back Jack • (Bad Luck and Trouble)

  Jack in the Green (novella)

  Jack and Joe • (The Enemy)

  Deep Cover Jack • (Persuader)

  Jack the Reaper • (The Hard Way)

  Black Jack • (Running Blind / The Visitor)

  Ten Two Jack • (The Midnight Line)

  Jack of Spades • (Past Tense)

  The Jess Kimball Thrillers Series:

  Fatal Enemy (novella)

  Fatal Distraction

  Fatal Demand

  Fatal Error

  Fatal Fall

  Fatal Edge (novella)

  Fatal Game

  Fatal Bond

  Fatal Past (novella)

  Fatal Dawn

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Diane Capri is an award-winning New York Times, USA Today, and world-wide bestselling author. She writes several series, including the Park Hotel Mysteries, the Hunt for Justice, Hunt for Jack Reacher, and Heir Hunter series, and the Jess Kimball Thrillers. She’s a recovering lawyer and snowbird who divides her time between Florida and Michigan. An active member of Mystery Writers of America, Author’s Guild, International Thriller Writers, Alliance of Independent Authors, and Sisters in Crime, she loves to hear from readers and is hard at work on her next novel.

  Please connect with Diane online:

  http://www.DianeCapri.com

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/DianeCapri

  Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Diane.Capri1

  http://www.facebook.com/DianeCapriBooks