Death In The Library: A Culinary Cozy Mystery (A Murder In Milburn Book 3)

by Nancy McGovern

  “No.”

  “Harvey, I know I’m not very demonstrative. I know you get jealous easily.”

  “That’s my fault, not yours,” Harvey said. “I’m sorry. I know you’d never do anything, it’s just… I get angry at any man who looks at you.”

  “Harvey…”

  “So,” Harvey said. “About that dinner with the Mayor. The one where May asked you to settle down with me.”

  Nora turned red. She put a hand over her mouth.

  Harvey bent down on one knee. He put a hand inside his coat.

  “Oh Harvey!” Nora gasped. “I love you. I do.”

  He looked up at her with a mischievous smile. “ I love you too, Nora.” With a flourish, he bought out a handkerchief from his pocket, and began to clean his shoe. Nora gave a little gasp of outrage.

  “What?” Harvey asked. “Did you get ideas in your head?”

  “Harvey Nathaniel, you complete devil! You know exactly what you and I were thinking when you got down on that knee.”

  “I was thinking that my shoe is rather dirty,” Harvey said, springing up and linking his hand with her. “That’s all that’s on my mind.”

  “You’re going to torture me,” Nora said. “I just know it.”

  “Me? Never!” His laugh rang out as he kissed her again.

  *****

  Chapter 22

  A week passed by, with no further news. Nora spent that week mostly busy with her catering jobs. Her bank account was looking healthier than ever now, and she longed to invest it all on the diner.

  Tina looked morose still, but helped Nora out each evening. They’d fixed the date, the fifteenth. In the meanwhile, they had begun to start putting out help wanted signs, and looking for staff. Nora spent her days completely immersed in bringing the diner to life. She obsessed over everything, from the font on the menu, to the shade of each curtain. She herself scrubbed and painted and looked over each inch of the diner.

  Still, at the back of her mind, something lurked. The pieces of the puzzle seemed like they almost fit. It was like one final piece was needed- a piece that Nora knew she had within her. She just couldn’t remember what it was.

  She stayed awake nights, mulling over every conversation she’d had. Who could it be? She began to spend as much time as she could in the diner, trying to soothe her brain by working so hard that it could not think. Her subconscious mind, she knew, would not let it go. But maybe it was time for her conscious mind to take a break.

  On one of those evenings, Tina asked Nora to stop by Selena’s old house.

  “The construction crew wrapped up the work to the foundation,” Tina said. “I need to start cleaning this place out. Which means throwing things away. The way the investigation is heading, I don’t know what to do. Should I throw anything? Sam won’t even hear of it. He wants to keep the house as it is, even if it means losing money. He’s talking very seriously of hiring a private detective to help find out about Selena’s death.”

  “He’s taken it hard,” Nora said.

  “I’m worried about him,” Tina said. “I’m so worried. He’s changed, Nora. My husband is a completely different man and I don’t know if I’ll ever get him back. I’ve tried reaching him in so many ways, but- something’s always missing.”

  Nora nodded.

  “Sometimes…” Tina hesitated. “Sometimes, I catch him looking at me. He looks at me with this… thoughtful look in his eyes. As if he’s calculating… calculating what it would take for me to kill someone.”

  “Oh Tina!”

  “I know! I know it’s a ridiculous thought. But he’s not the only one. This entire town looks at me as if I might be a murderer. People are whispering, Nora, and you must have heard some of the whispers.”

  Nora didn’t respond.

  “You have, haven’t you?”

  “I always told them that Sean had let you and Sam go after questioning,” Nora said, “And that he never brought charges against you.”

  “Yes,” Tina said. “But the truth is, that the town’s not going to let this go. Until Sam and I produce a murderer for them.”

  The house was dark, the electricity now having been turned off. Nora held a lantern in one hand, as she navigated through the familiar sterile living room, and up into the chaotic study.

  “Sooner or later,” Tina said, “We’ll have to get rid of these books.”

  “So why did you bring me here today?” Nora said, suddenly uneasy. “After all… it’d be better to wait for daylight to sort through them.”

  “Yes,” Tina said. “It would, wouldn’t it?”

  “Tina,” Nora said sharply. “Why did you actually bring me here? It wasn’t to clear out books.”

  “No,” Tina said. “It wasn’t.”

  “What was it?”

  “It’s going to sound silly to you.”

  Nora slowly stepped away. “Try me.”

  “Well, you see, like I said before. Sam and I need to produce a murderer for the town to believe in us again. I racked my brains trying to figure out what to do. I drove around town every day, looking into people’s faces, wondering… who?”

  In her pocket, Nora pressed a button. It was a new app Harvey had downloaded for her, one that would instantly transmit her location to him when she needed it. They’d agreed that she’d use it if she ever felt even mildly in danger.

  “So you see,” Tina said. “The other day, I was passing by here, and I saw a light in one of the windows.”

  “A light?” Nora stalled, as she tried to move away.

  “Yes. A light. I was wondering who it could be, and it struck me. The murderer.”

  “Did you actually see this light?” Nora asked. “Or did you imagine it?”

  “Funny, that’s exactly what Sean asked when I told him,” Tina said. “It’s as if he didn’t believe me. He didn’t take me very seriously. He sent a patrol car here for a few days, and now it’s gone.”

  “So what’s the next step?”

  “Well, I thought you and I could wait it out, and see if we can catch him ourselves,” Tina said. “I told Sam, and he said it was a ridiculous idea.”

  Nora took a deep breath, feeling relief run through her lungs. “You know, for a minute there, you scared me, Tina.”

  “Scared you?” Tina looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

  “You sounded like a murderer,” Nora said.

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “You could have chosen a better way to tell me.”

  “Well, I thought what with you and Harvey being so pally again, that you might refuse to come,” Tina said angrily. “But wow, so it’s not just the town. It’s you too. You think I’m capable of killing Selena. Just because I had a silly fight with her? Or because I wanted her money? Well why would I kill Robert, then? Huh?”

  “I don’t know,” Nora asked. “Why would you?”

  “Next you’ll be saying I loved him myself, secretly. That’s why I killed him,” Tina said. “Or… or that he was blackmailing me.”

  “Both are sound theories,” Nora said.

  “This is a bitter pill to swallow, Nora,” Tina said. “I feel shattered.”

  “A bitter pill,” Nora said. “Of course. Of course it is!”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “We have to get out of here, Tina. Now.”

  “What? Why?”

  “If you’re right, if the murderer does come here, you and I could be in a lot of trouble. Let’s go. Now. There’s a better way to do this.”

  “No! I want to stay. I want to catch him red-handed so that--”

  “Tina, I’m telling you, I’ve figured it out. I know. Now all we have to do is--”

  The stairs creaked, and both of them fell silent.

  Nora felt her breath begin to hitch. Tina whispered. “I have a gun. I came prepared.”

  “Are you prepared to use it?” Nora whispered. “Let’s leave, Tina.”

  “No,” Tina said. “I hav
e to know who it is.”

  The door was flung open, and Tina fired off several shots. There was an eerie silence.

  Tina ran to the door. “Who is it?” she cried. “Is it--”

  “Tina! No!” Nora cried, trying to grab hold of her. Tina’s momentum pushed her off, however, and Nora was left on her knees, the gun in her hand as Tina reached the door.

  As if in a nightmare, a shadow arose, grabbing Tina by the throat, using her body to shield its own.

  Nora pointed the gun. “I will shoot!” she said. “Give up.”

  The figure only smiled, and stroked Tina’s cheek with the knife in its hand.

  *****

  Chapter 23

  “Don’t shoot, Nora,” Tina pleaded. “Please!”

  “I won’t,” Nora said.

  “But don’t give yourself up either. Don’t give him the gun.”

  “I might not have much choice,” Nora said. “If he’s threatening to hurt you.”

  “Oh I am,” he said. “I will hurt your friend very badly if you don’t do as I say.”

  “Don’t listen to him!” Tina cried. “He’ll kill us both. It’s better if--” she let out a scream as he tightened his hold on her.

  “Quiet!” he rasped. To Nora, he said, “When did you find out?”

  “I suspected,” Nora said. “I had my theories. But as always, it’ll be up to Sean to find the proof. Still, I think once I tell him this theory, finding the proof will be easy enough.”

  “You’re a maniac,” Tina spat out.

  “I’m a peaceful man who wanted to be left alone,” he said. “Selena shouldn’t have poked her nose where it didn’t belong. She shouldn’t have brought back the past.”

  “No?” Nora smiled. “Is it only the librarian who can have access to the town’s history?”

  Grant laughed. “I had no intention of ever writing that book, Nora. Though there are plenty of stories I could have told.”

  “The book was written for you,” Nora said. “When you found out that Selena had asked Karen for JJ’s files, that’s when you decided to kill her.”

  “I did,” Grant said. “I wanted to kill JJ, but a deputy? I couldn’t possibly touch him. Luckily, someone else did it for me. I took it as a sign that god was on my side. That even He didn’t want the past to be unearthed.”

  “Evil will always be found out,” Nora said. “Even if it takes fifty years.”

  “But how?” Tina asked. “And why?”

  “Grant is the obvious connection, really,” Nora said. “As soon as you figure out his motive. Fifty years ago, he killed the girlfriend who left him for an older man. Helen. Poor young Helen. What was worse, he blamed an innocent woman for the crime.”

  “I had no intention of ruining Maude’s life,” Grant said. “She was just a convenience.”

  “Your father ran the town pharmacy. You worked there. You knew Maude’ pills, and her dosage. You knew everything about Helen’s schedule too.” Nora sighed. “You killed Helen and framed Maude.”

  “Not very easy to prove,” Grant said.

  “No. Not very easy to prove,” Nora agreed. “But you still didn’t want the case to be reopened.”

  “I couldn’t risk it,” Grant said. “With modern testing… they were sure to find my DNA somewhere it shouldn’t be. No. Selena had to die. So did Robert. He was a threat.”

  “That’s why you invited him here in the first place,” Nora said. “Isn’t it? You found out that he was planning to write this book.”

  “Selena’s literary agent has lunch with me each time she’s in town,” Grant said. “She told me about him.”

  “You thought the perfect opportunity was when he and I met at the library that day,” Nora said.

  “It was like a godsend,” Grant replied. “Robert had told nobody but me. You, I assumed, would tell someone that Robert had invited you there. I thought I could make it look like a murder-suicide. I was going to spin some tale, write a nice note. I was desperate by then, to be rid of the whole thing. I got rid of Robert, but Harvey barged in and saved you. I was unlucky.”

  “Wrong,” Nora said. “Your plan would never have worked. If you had killed us both, Sean would have known within days that it was you, either through the prints or DNA you left behind, or simply because you had better access to the library than anyone else. As a matter of fact, you got away with it for too long because that coma of yours put me off track.”

  Grant laughed. “You can imagine how scared I was, Nora. I’d just killed Robert. I was about to get rid of you when Harvey played the hero. I had to think fast. I dropped a heavy book on myself. I was prepared to die then, but I believed luck was on my side. I knew I would survive.”

  “Some evil force was on your side, all right,” Nora said. “You got away for so long because after the coma, none of us thought of you as a suspect. The library door threw me off track too, after all, if you had done it, why throw the door open?”

  “Ah.” Grant looked smug. “That was a brilliant move on my part. You couldn’t figure it out, could you?”

  “I did. Just now. It clicked together somehow when Tina talked about a bitter pill. It’s when I remembered that you were the pharmacist’s son,” Nora said. “I also remembered exactly what happened that day. You went downstairs, and then I heard you scream. Robert ran down to get you, as you expected. You had opened the library door so that you could hide in the darkness and wait for your prey to step into the patch of light in front of the door. That’s exactly what Robert did, isn’t it? I saw his body as I was coming down the stairs. I only saw a bit of it, and for the longest time I assumed that it was you I saw lying there. But of course, it wasn’t. You snuck upstairs through another route, and tried to kill me. You hid when Harvey ran in to save me and then, when Harvey took me to the hospital, you panicked at the thought that you would soon be caught. You hid Robert’s body in the basement, dumping it in a trunk full of mothballs so that no one would catch the scent. You hit yourself over the head and that was that.”

  “Right.” Grant smiled. “You’re a smart woman, Nora. But are you an emotional one?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean this. My game is up. I know it. But before I die, I’d rather take you with me than Tina.” He smiled. “Now if you put down that gun and kick it to me, I’ll let Tina go. I have nothing against her, so I’ll just kill you and me. Otherwise, you have the choice. Feel free to kill me. Tina will die.”

  Nora didn’t hesitate. She put down her gun.

  “No!” Tina screamed. “Nora, don’t be stupid. Don’t kick that gun to him. We’re both dead if you do!”

  “I know what I’m doing, Tina.”

  “You really don’t! Don’t do it!”

  “Tina.” Nora gave her a stern look. “Look at me.” Tina looked at her.

  “Goodbye,” Nora said, looking Tina in the eye.

  But she said it to Grant.

  From behind him, Harvey sprang, wresting the knife away. Tina pushed herself away, gasping and rubbing her neck.

  Grant, with the power of a maniac, struggled hard in Harvey’s grip, but in seconds, Nora was standing over him, gun in hand. “Game’s up,” she said, and Grant slumped, defeated.

  *****

  Epilogue

  Grant’s arrest went through the town like a ball of lightning. For a week, it was all anyone could discuss. The trial, when it happened a year later, would become one of the most highly watched TV programs in the town’s history. When he was sentenced to life imprisonment, cheers went up around the room, and Sam swept Tina into his arms, kissing her over and over.

  As Nora had predicted, Sean found the evidence he needed soon enough. Backed with Grant’s full confession, it was a pretty easy decision for the judge and jury.

  What was harder, and took a lot longer, was the judge’s posthumous dismissal of all charges against JJ’s Aunt Maude. With the proceeds from selling Selena’s house, Sam renovated the old library, and renamed it after Selena
, Helen and Maude. As for Grant - any sign that he had ever been librarian was removed. Except for the Milburn Report article about his arrest.

  Nora’s cast came off two days before the diner was due to open. Harvey took a photo of the moment, uploading it to Facebook, much to Nora’s embarrassment.

  “Well, well, well.” Mayor Almand walked in, a bouquet in hand. “There’s no lady who deserves this more than you, Nora.”

  “Thank you, Mayor.”

  “I’m here to give you an official commendation from the office of Mayor. You can expect a medal for bravery to be at your doorstep soon,” he said.

  “I really wasn’t trying to be brave this time,” Nora said. “I promised Harvey I’d give up all my false bravado.”

  “Yes, we know how long that lasted.” Harvey leaned down and kissed her.

  “On a personal note, Nora.” Mayor Almand hesitated. “I… I’ve come to ask you… to request you--”

  “Not to speak about you and Helen?” Nora said.

  “I’ve decided to speak about it to May myself,” Mayor Almand says. “It terrifies me, but I’m hoping she’ll come around. Eventually.”

  “Mayor Almand, may I speak to you as an equal for a second?” Nora asked. “And not as Mayor?”

  “Why, of course. I’ve often told you to call me Brett.”

  “Brett, then. You’re a fool. You really think May doesn’t know?” Nora shook her head. “She’s a smart lady. She knows, believe me. She probably always did. She loved you anyway.”

  Mayor Almand hung his head. “Then there’s a chance,” he said, hopefully.

  “You’ll be in the doghouse for a long time, though,” Harvey said.

  “It’ll be worth it, I think,” Mayor Almand said.

  Harvey turned to Nora as the Mayor left, and asked, “What do you think?”

  “What do I think? I think May loves him very much,” Nora said. “I also think she’s likely to break a lamp against his head if he’s not careful.”

  “He’s a politician,” Harvey said. “My bet is he’ll charm her so well, they’ll be like a newly married couple in no time.”