Hospitality and Homicide

by Lynn Cahoon

  Greg shook his head. “I have to go back. I just wanted to make sure my girl was all right.” He hugged me again. “I’ll leave you to your family.”

  As he walked back toward the gate with Emma at his heels, tears filled my eyes. Family. New and old members. Present and not. We were family. And when you have a strong family, you can weather anything.

  Aunt Jackie hugged me. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”

  As we sat down to eat together, I was grateful too. Not only for my safety, but for the people who cared about me. Maybe if Felix had more people who cared, he wouldn’t have been so broken for so long.

  And maybe not. That wasn’t my concern today. I broke the pastry crust on my pie and steam flowed out of the creamy chicken mixture inside. I was home with people I loved.

  CHAPTER 22

  Aunt Jackie and Harrold left around nine. She’d closed up the shop early to come be with me so she wanted to put a few things to rest before she went to bed. Harrold gave me a quick hug as they walked out the door. “I wanted to tell you how sorry I was for talking bad about your friend, Esmeralda. I had no right. And I’m so glad you’re safe. I can’t believe how normal the guy looked and acted. I’d talked to him several times since he moved here. You just never know about people, do you?”

  I watched them drive away and looked over at Esmeralda’s house. The porch light was on and I could see a glow upstairs, which must be her bedroom or maybe a study. I’m sure fortunetellers had paperwork too. But just as I turned to go inside, her front door opened and she emerged. She waved at me and headed toward the street. Apparently, I had a message from the other side of the road. Or she just wanted to make sure she had all the gossip on Walter’s killer.

  I sank into a rocking chair and when she came into the yard dressed in jean shorts and a 49ers jersey, I motioned to the other one. “Have a seat. I didn’t know you liked football.”

  “Love it. That’s one of the advantages of working with a bunch of alpha males. I can hold my own during the season.” She studied me in the fading light. “You look calmer than I thought you’d be.”

  “Aunt Jackie brought food.” Food in my book was the natural anti-depressant. Need a boost? Eat a chocolate bar. Feel anxious because you witness a man falling down the rabbit hole of insanity—eat comfort food. “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think I’ll ever forget Ian’s wall. That man spent his entire life obsessed about something that happened in his teens. It’s sad.”

  “A lot of people get lost in the high school glory days. It’s a time where you think you can do anything. Before you have to make house payments and clean the gutters.”

  Maggie wound her way through my legs, then jumped on my lap. She must have followed Esmeralda across the street. I used to worry about the cat getting hit on the road, but she had limited her visits lately to when her human was there to cross with her. I scratched behind her ears. “Do you want something to drink?”

  “We have been doing the neighbor visit thing a lot lately.” Esmeralda smiled. “Honestly, when you moved in, I wasn’t sure about you. You were coming from such a dark place. But you’ve turned out quite nice.”

  “Thank you?” I continued to stroke Maggie’s soft fur. “Does that mean you do want something to drink?”

  Esmeralda laughed. “No. I’m heading to bed. I just wanted to thank you for giving my godson a chance today.”

  That confused me. I ran through the things that had happened before the whole Ian-Felix encounter and then it hit me. “Deek’s your godson?”

  “I’ve known his mother since high school. She has a gift too. She practices in a conglomerate in the city. Big money, but you have to deal with all the butt heads who just want to know why they aren’t rich yet.”

  “She’s a fortuneteller too?” Deek had said his mom had told him she had a good feeling about him coming into the shop today, but I thought it was to deliver the yearbook. And frankly, since I’ve been around Esmeralda so much, some of the weird things people say seemed normal. At least in South Cove.

  “One of the best in the area.” She stood and took Maggie off my lap. “Besides me. Deek will be an excellent addition to your little coffee family. I better get home. Three’s a crowd.”

  I was about to tell her I didn’t have any company when Greg’s truck pulled into the drive. She must have seen the lights coming down the road. Yeah, that was the explanation.

  I watched as she quickly greeted Greg, then disappeared back across the road and into her house.

  He climbed the stairs and sat in the rocking chair Esmeralda had just left. Somedays no one came to visit. Today, I’ve had a flood of people. All that had to happen was for me to be in a room with a man who had wanted to cut me up into little pieces like he did his clocks. I pushed the thought away and smiled at Greg. “I didn’t think I’d see you again tonight.”

  “I’m heading back to the apartment. I wasn’t planning on stopping, but then I saw you and Esmeralda out on the porch. I wanted to make sure you were okay.” He sighed and leaned back in the chair. “Okay, maybe that was a lie. I wanted to be with you so I could feel okay again. Talking to Ian or Felix, whatever his name is, makes me want to take a shower to get the darkness off my skin. I don’t believe in evil, but if I did, this guy would be the picture next to the dictionary definition.”

  “That was the feeling I got just talking to him. One moment, we were talking about Harrold’s clock and the next, he was trying to find out what I knew about Walter’s murder. If I hadn’t seen the yearbook picture, he would have outed himself.” I thought about the brooding senior portrait that had alerted me to the fact Ian and Felix might be the same person. Even if that had been true, it wasn’t enough to move from a silly fight to a murder years later.

  “The guy has lost it. I’m sure a good defense attorney will cry insanity. And they won’t be wrong.” Greg put his forearms on his knees, rubbing his hands together like he was washing off the badness. “Oh, and guess what we found when we searched his apartment?”

  “A box of fava beans?”

  “Funny, but no.” He looked around the porch. “He had a pair of slacks with a piece of fabric ripped out of the bottom. When they took pictures of him while they were processing him, Tim found a bite on his calf. Emma got him good.”

  “You think he was the one who tried to break into the house?”

  “We’ll have to test the fabric, but yeah. Anyway, let’s talk about something else. What have you been doing?”

  “Mary and Bill came by to chat earlier. Apparently, Bill felt bad about telling me they hadn’t received an offer to buy Walter’s B&B when they actually had.”

  Greg shook his head. “Because you actually thought Bill and Mary might kill someone over money?”

  “No. Well, maybe. I did think Bill lied to me. But Mary explained she had opened the letter from the lawyer. When they’d got a call saying I was asking about purchasing the place, they knew I’d been investigating.” I rolled my shoulders. “I guess the lawyer thought he could get us in a bidding war.”

  “Wait, you talked to Walter’s attorney too?”

  “No. Of course not.” I rubbed his arm. “He was out of town. I talked to his assistant.”

  Greg sighed. “Let’s change the subject again. What did Esmeralda want?”

  “She came over to thank me for hiring her godson.”

  Greg looked up from his hands. “Wait, you hired someone for Sasha’s spot? And he’s related to Esmeralda? Are you looking for trouble?”

  “She’s a good worker, you know that. Anyway, he’s not related. His mom is one of Esmeralda’s friends. She’s also a fortuneteller.”

  “Shut the front door. Seriously?” Greg laughed. “I guess that makes sense. People tend to hang around with others that have common interests. I wonder what they talk about?”

  “I don’t know, maybe crossed wires? Your ghost called my channel?” I smiled. It felt good to laugh about something. “Deek seems like a nice kid. And he’s g
ot a lot of qualifications that should make a great employee. I just hope Aunt Jackie can look past his appearance. He’s kind of scruffy.”

  “I’m sure she’ll have him whipped into shape in no time. So all you have left to finish is your exam tomorrow night?” Greg stretched. I could see the fatigue setting in. “Are you ready?”

  “I think so. After work tomorrow, I’m heading to Bakerstown and studying in the library until it’s time for class. Then there’s one more decision to make.” I felt ready.

  Greg yawned. “What’s that?”

  “I think you shouldn’t sign that lease. We should move in together.” I saw his eyes widened and all trace of sleepiness leave his face.

  “Wait, seriously? You are full of surprises tonight.” He stood and pulled me close, trying to see my face in the now darkened porch. I hadn’t turned on the light to avoid being swarmed by bugs. “I would love to take you up on your offer. If you’re sure. Maybe we should let today settle a little. You’ve had quite a shock.”

  “I’m fine. I just want to move on. I haven’t had the best luck in relationships, but I’m willing to take a leap of faith rather than be stuck in the past. Believe me, I don’t think it will be easy.” I laid my head on his chest. “But I want to try.”

  “There is no try. There is do or do not. We’ll go with the do.”

  “Where did you get that? A fortune cookie?” I looked up and our gazes locked.

  He shook his head. “Master Yoda did say, yes, he did.”

  “Star Trek?”

  “Oh, we have to educate you in the world of science fiction. Not Star Trek, Star Wars. The originals.” He looked at his watch. “I’ve got a meeting with John early tomorrow. I better get home.”

  “Stay. You might as well get used to your new commute.” I raised my hands to his cheeks, framing his face. “I love you, Greg King.”

  His lips curved into a grin and then he said, “I love you too, Jill Gardner.”

  And then he kissed me.

  *

  I’d been waiting for over a week for my grades to show up in the mail. I felt confident I’d at least passed the courses, but an A would look better in my aunt’s eyes. I’m a grown woman and I’m still worried about my grades pleasing someone. Bakerstown College had computer scheduling, online classes, and yet, they still sent their grades via snail mail. I sat on the couch, looking around the new décor of the living room. Greg had brought his recliner and crazy big television with him. A lot of his furniture had gone to either his brother, Jim, or the local charity resale shop. It had been an adjustment finding his stuff everywhere. But a good adjustment.

  We’d agreed that the money he had been putting into rent would go into a joint account we’d use for travel. I had started planning a fall getaway.

  Today I hadn’t worked my shift. Deek had taken over a couple of my morning shifts as his own, which would give me more time to study. And later today, he’d have his first book club meeting for both the middle grade and high school kids. Nick was working the midday shift and would be around to help, but from all of the plans I saw from Deek this last week, I didn’t think he’d need to step in.

  I thought about Sasha and her new life in the city. She’d been a part of our “coffee family” as Greg called it, and I hoped she would stay involved. I’d already gotten two reviews from her to post on the website. Deek had taken on the role of webmaster and newsletter editor after he’d seen my lack of skills.

  The business was thriving, we had plenty of staff to cover hours and we’d opened the shop on Mondays just this last week. Aunt Jackie was planning what festivals we’d attend with the coffee truck.

  Now, all I needed before I could relax into full summer mode was my grades. I’d already signed up for classes for the fall. I curled my feet up underneath me and promptly got lost in a historical mystery that my aunt had told me I had to read.

  I heard the footsteps on the porch and my gaze jumped to the clock. It was after one. Greg had gone in for a short Saturday to work on routine paperwork so I’d had the house to myself. Emma and I had run early to avoid the heat. And I’d missed the postman. I jumped up to greet Greg at the door, my book still in my hands. “Did we get mail?”

  He kissed me and then moved his arm from behind his back to show me a stack. “We got mail. They finally got my address change at the post office working.”

  As I thumbed through the stack of envelopes, most with a yellow tag on the front with Greg’s new address, I found one addressed to me. From the college. I held it up and shoved the rest of the pile back at Greg. “Here it is. Now I find out if I passed.”

  “You know you passed.” Greg followed me back to the couch and started going through the mail. “Bill, junk, bill, junk, bill…” He checked the return address on one and opened the envelope.

  I noticed, but I was too involved in the ritual of opening my grades. First, I had to clear my mind. Then think good thoughts. Then focus on the letter A. Finally, I waved my hand over the envelope, hoping to push all that positive mental energy into the letter inside. It had worked. Once.

  I slowly opened the envelope and unfolded the letter. Smiling, I held the letter out for Greg to see. “I got an A and a B+. I’m a genius.”

  “Good job.” He glanced at my letter, then returned to his own letter.

  I was a tad disappointed that his enthusiasm was a bit muted. “So can we go out to dinner to celebrate?”

  “What?” He glanced up from his letter and then smiled. “Oh, the grades? Of course, we can. Just let me finish this and I’ll go get changed. We can go wherever you want.”

  Now, I was curious. I moved closer. The letter was handwritten and started with one word. Dude. “Who’s that from?”

  He pulled me closer to him on the couch. “My best friend from high school is getting married this fall and he wants me to be his best man.”

  Marriage. The word dampened my joy about my grades. We’d just moved from dating to living together. Would his friend getting married move up our timeline too? “That’s nice. When is the wedding?”

  “September.” Greg picked up the letter. “He sent this a month ago and I just got it. He must think I’m ignoring him. That post office hated me. They’ve been holding this a lot longer than two weeks.”

  “They probably don’t even know you.”

  He glanced at me. “You’re right. I’m just so happy for Levi. He’s been so focused on making a killing with some software he designed that he didn’t have a private life. I’m surprised he sent this via the mail. He typically is much higher tech.”

  “Do you have an e-mail account?”

  Greg laughed. “You know, I don’t think I’ve check it since Sherry and I split, so it probably went dormant. Besides, she set it up so our address was really lame.”

  “Now, this I have to hear. Greg and Sherry forever at gag me dot com?”

  “Not far off.” He tickled my side. “Do you want to make us our own mailbox? Maybe Greg and Jill no try, just do?”

  “That’s crazy. I have my own e-mail.” I liked the idea he offered to share one with me. Like a couple. “So we need to make plans for the wedding? When exactly is it?”

  “The end of September. However, Levi has set up his own bachelor party for next weekend. He’s renting out the Castle for the weekend. And the women in our lives are invited.” Greg shook his head. “He never did understand the need for a wild and crazy weekend with just the guys.”

  “Disappointed?” I imagined a night with poker, too much beer, and strippers was the normal party plan.

  “Not in the least.” He squeezed my leg. “I’m going to call Levi and RSVP for us. You can get away, right?”

  “I’m so flush with staff right now I could probably take a week without anyone noticing.” I called after him as he made his way into what was now our office. “I’m getting into the shower.”

  A knock on the screen door turned me away from the stairs. Toby stood at the door dressed in his deputy uni
form. “Do you need Greg?”

  “Nope, I’m here to see my other boss. Sorry to bother you on your day off.” He put on one of his Toby killer smiles. “I’m on my way to the bank to deposit my poll winnings and wondered if you needed me to drop off a deposit from the shop?”

  “I ran it earlier today, but thanks for asking.” I opened the screen and stepped outside on the porch. “I didn’t realize you won the poll.”

  “There was some complaining that I had insider information, but Lille put that to rest and Tiny had to pay out.” He sat on the porch rail. “Over five hundred dollars into the Toby’s down payment fund. Thank you.”

  “I didn’t say yes because of the bet.” Although it had bothered me that people were gambling on my inability to commit.

  Toby nodded to the open door where we could hear Greg talking and laughing with his friend. “He’s a good guy. You two are lucky.”

  I could see the pain from his breakup with Sasha still fresh in his eyes. “Love happens when you’re not looking.”

  “Is that a quote from one of those romances you always read?”

  I shook my head. “Nope, that’s a Jill original. I never thought I’d go down this path again. You’ll find the one.”

  “I’d just be happy with almost the one, right now.” He stood. “I better go. I have to pick up my lunch from Lille’s too.”

  I watched as Toby jogged toward the police cruiser in my driveway. Our driveway, I corrected myself. When I turned around, Greg was standing at the door behind me.

  “What did Toby need?” He slipped his cell into his pants pockets.

  I put my arm around Greg. “He just stop by to brag about winning the poll on when I’d say yes.”

  As we walked back into the house to get ready for our celebration dinner, I thought maybe I’d tell Greg we were celebrating more than just my outstanding grades. We were celebrating our new step in our relationship.

  Or maybe I’d wait and I could get another dinner out on that gem.

  Credit: Angela Brewer Armstrong at Todd Studios