Murder at the Geo-Cache...A Citrus Beach Mystery (Citrus Beach Mysteries Book 3)

by Victoria LK Williams

  Megan and Lucy finished their meal and then decided that they each needed to go their separate ways. Lucy had a jewelry order she needed to finish and Megan would head back to the office and check on her staff and take the dogs for another walk. She figured she could think as she walked and the fresh air would do her some good.

  As she’d expected things were going smoothly at work and Janice only needed a moment of her time. Since she had parked her car in front of the office when she pulled in, Megan grabbed the golf cart and took the two dogs out to the back half of the property. It was wide open for the small planes that used the airstrip and perfect for dogs to run and wear themselves out. She grabbed a bottle of water and Barney’s favorite ball, herded the two dogs into the golf cart, and set out on her way. The puppies were ecstatic to have open playtime, and Megan’s arm gave out long before they did. She gave the ball a final toss and then she left them to just run while she sat on the back of the golf cart, thinking. She barely had a moment’s peace before her cell phone was ringing. Megan pulled the phone out of her pocket, she peered at the number on the screen but didn’t recognize it. Thinking it might be a potential customer, she answered the phone in her most professional manner. But she was astounded to find out that the voice on the other end of the line was not a potential customer, but rather it was Henry DeChante calling to talk about the ring.

  “Mrs. Cassidy, this is Henry DeChante. I believe you talked to my wife yesterday regarding a family ring that you thought might belong to us.”

  “Yes, I did.” Megan’s answer was hesitant and non-informative. She wanted to find out what he had to say before she offered any information.

  “When my wife told me about your phone call, my curiosity was aroused. I know that her set has been in the family for years and all the pieces are where they should be. So I was wondering if you could give me some information about where you found the ring and who is in possession of it now.”

  “I’m sorry, Mr. DeChante, but I do not feel comfortable giving that information out without talking to the current owner of the ring beforehand.”

  “Would you feel comfortable passing a message onto the owner of that ring?”

  Megan hesitated a moment, knowing that she was outright lying to the man. There was no way she could get a message to the owner of the ring. For that matter she wasn’t sure who the owner of the ring was, but she considered herself the guardian and she would not let that ring out of her sight no matter what.

  “Well, I can certainly try. How can I help you?”

  There was a slight pause on the other end of the line and she heard the man clearing his throat as if he was nervous. Megan’s experience as a mother told her that this hesitation was the sure sign of a fabrication of the truth, maybe not an outright lie, but certainly not the whole truth. She waited, wondering what the man had to say.

  “I would like very much to meet with the owner and examine the ring firsthand. There is a distinct possibility it might be a missing piece to the set, possibly even a piece my wife’s family wasn’t aware existed. If it is part of the family collection, I’d like to buy it from your friend to add to my wife’s collection.”

  Megan knew she had to stall the man. Why did Mr. DeChante seem so interested in the ring? Megan wasn’t buying his story of wanting to add it to his wife’s collection. She had read the write-up about the collection, and if there was a piece missing, the family would’ve known about it.

  “Mr. DeChante, why don’t you give me 48 hours to talk to my friend and let her make her own decision? I think that’s a fair amount of time. After all, you didn’t even realize the ring existed until yesterday. Right?”

  The man was not pleased with her answer, but after a few moments of haggling back and forth he realized that she would not budge on her time limit. She heard the resentment in his voice as he agreed to her terms, telling her he would call back in two days. Megan wished the man a good day and hung up before he asked any more questions. Mr. DeChante may have agreed with her terms, but Megan had a feeling she would hear from him before the 48 hours were up.

  Chapter 26

  After hanging up the phone with Mr. DeChante, Megan felt her sense of slip away. With a call to the dogs, she broke up their playtime, and once they were all in the golf cart, headed back to her house. She let the dogs out on the screened porch to soak up some late afternoon sun while she grabbed her laptop and sunglasses and joined them. Megan decided she wanted to know as much as she could about the DeChante’s and their jewelry. She was also curious why Henry DeChante was so adamant about finding her source for the ring. After all, it was his wife’s family story, not his. It would be in her best interest to find out all she could about the man. As she settled down in her favorite chair, she opened her up her laptop and searched the Internet for information. She was amazed at the amount of information she could find, but most of it was on Mrs. DeChante and her family history. The more she read, the more she realized that Henry had married above his means, and it was his wife’s family fortune that paid the bills in their family.

  Megan lost herself in her research, and it was a combination of her rumbling stomach and Aiden’s voice as he came around the side of the house to the screen porch that brought her out of her work. Before Megan got up and welcomed Aiden, Gypsy had seen him and was waiting at the screen door, jumping with excitement at seeing her favorite person. Megan smiled at the sweet picture it made when Aiden opened the door and the puppy jumped into his arms. Aiden enjoyed the attention from the dog as much as Gypsy enjoyed his attention; as odd as it seemed, they were a perfect match.

  Aiden looked over at Megan smiled hello, put the dog down and then walked over to give her hug.

  “Hey. How was your day?” He sounded exhausted, but she could tell he was pleased to see her.

  “Interesting, I can say that much. Did you get anywhere with Rita’s claim?”

  “Not really, all I seem to do is hit stumbling blocks. I took your suggestion and called Charlotte, and we’re meeting on Thursday. It looks like tomorrow I’ll be flying up to Jacksonville to examine state records since I’m not getting very far with county records. But enough about that, I took a chance, and I picked up dinner. I hope you haven’t eaten because I’d like to sit and just relax with you for the rest of the evening.”

  “That sounds perfect Aiden, for the next hour let’s just enjoy each other’s company and not talk about Mary or Rita or anything else. Why don’t we eat out here by the pool, where it’s nice and cool?”

  “I’ll agree to that, Megan. Let me run back out to the car and grab the food. Would you mind getting drinks? I didn’t think to pick up anything?”

  Megan assured him that she had plenty of drink selections and while he went to get the food, she ran into the kitchen to get plates and silverware and a chilled bottle of wine from the fridge. On a whim she picked up two candles, and added them to the tray she was carrying. Why not throw a touch of romance into the evening? Back out by the pool, she set the table, lit the candles and turned on the small CD player on the shelf by the back door. Soon tropical music filled the air and the slight breeze made the candles flicker.

  Megan knew that Aiden had returned from the delicious smells drifting towards her on the evening breeze. She inhaled deeply and appreciatively, enjoying the scent of Italian food, most likely spaghetti and meatballs, Aiden’s favorite. She turned towards him as he opened the screen door and saw that, yes, the take-out bags of food had the logo of their favorite Italian restaurant in town. As if to applaud the coming meal, her stomach rumbled once more. While Aiden was took the food out of the bag, Megan was amused to see the small bag said dog meals. Aiden had even brought home food for the two dogs, and from the excitement the dogs were showing, they could read what was written on the bag.

  “Oh, this looks so good. Excellent choice tonight, Aiden.”

  “Yeah, I figured I needed comfort food tonight and you can never go wrong with this restaurant’s food.”

 
; Aiden set down food for the dogs and then walked over to Megan side of the table and held the chair for her to sit down. Megan loved Aiden’s gentlemanly gestures, it not only showed his character, but it made her feel special. While he stood behind her he reached over and opened the bottle of wine, pouring a glass for each of them before he took his own seat. There was little conversation as they dug into the delicious meal in front of them, hunger was priority over small talk.

  Once their immediate hunger was satisfied Aiden asked how Gypsy had fared during her day with Megan and Barney. Megan was quick to tell him what a delightful little dog she was. She reassured him that he would have no problems with the dog if they ever wanted to travel. Gypsy loved being in the car and was well behaved.

  “She was no trouble at all, Aiden. Barney enjoyed having some K-9 company, and he looked out for her.” Megan hesitated for a moment and then asked the question that had been playing through her mind since she’d seen Aiden walk through the door.

  “Aiden, just how much of Mary’s murder can we talk about before it becomes a conflict between the two of us? I’ll be honest up front, I in no way want to help you prove Rita’s claim true. But you have to know that I am doing my best to find out who killed Mary. If I can have your advice without getting in the way of our friendship or hurting your case, then I would gladly take it.”

  Aiden reached across the table and took her hand, looking at her and weighing his words to be sure he said the right thing. He knew their friendship was teetering on the development of something stronger and he didn’t want to jeopardize it. He would gladly give up the case if it came to that point. To be honest, he’d love an excuse to get rid of the case. Yet, in the back of his mind, he was sure if he could keep Rita away from the farm and out of the sheriff and Megan’s hair, they could solve Mary’s murder that much faster and things would go back to normal.

  “At this point there’s no indication that Rita is involved at all with Mary’s murder. Her claim on the property is a different issue. I think as long as we consider it a different issue, we should have no problems. The sheriff is keeping me abreast of his investigation, because I asked him to, since I was with you when we found Mary’s body. I also think that he feels I can look out for you and keep you out of danger if it comes to that point. Although, danger seems to find you before any of us even know of it. As cliché as it is, I think I have to say we will play it by ear and decide when it becomes clear that we’re crossing lines.”

  Megan contemplated what he said and then nodded her head in agreement. She felt a little of the tension leave her body, knowing that Aiden had her back on her investigation.

  “Well if that’s the case, let me tell you about my day and what we found.”

  As she got comfortable in her chair, Megan picked up her glass of wine and told Aiden of the discovery the ring and her trip down south, ending with a phone call from Henry DeChante. He listened attentively, nodding his head when he agreed with something she said, and asking simple, concise questions as needed. When she had finished, she got up and brought the ring and the papers from Mrs. Purdy out for him to glance over. While Aiden examined the ring she finished her glass of wine and waited to hear Aiden’s thoughts on the matter.

  “Finding that ring was brilliant, Megan. I have a feeling that may have something to do with Mary’s murder. Let the sheriff investigate the money end of things, I still think that’s where everything starts and ends. But the ring is important. I find it curious how much interest it’s generated within the family already. Let me make a call or two and see if I can find out any other useful information about the DeChante family. You need to let the sheriff know what you’ve found out too. I can also run the pictures from the pawn store and see if the woman who pawned the ring is on any of the FBI’s data lists.”

  Megan agreed to contact the sheriff while he made a couple of calls to his contacts. Unconsciously, she slid the ring on as she talked to the sheriff. It was a perfect fit, and she couldn’t help but admire it as the gems caught the light from the candles on the table. Aiden caught her in the act of admiring it on her finger and grinned. It seemed that Megan liked glittery things, even though he rarely saw her wearing any jewelry other that her cross necklace and earrings that always seemed to match her outfit. He filed this information in the back of his mind for future use, after all Christmas wasn’t that far off.

  As Megan spoke with Sheriff Green, she got the distinct impression he did not feel her discovery was as important as she considered it to be. Like Aiden had said, the sheriff was convinced the money was the key. He was sure the money was part of a money laundering scheme that Mary had stumbled smack into the middle of. It surprised her how focused he was on this one line of thought, he usually listened to her ideas. But then again, Aiden himself still felt the same way. Both men showed interest in the ring, but not as much interest as they were showing the stacks of money that had been found hidden in the boxes in the barn. With a sigh, she decided it would be up to her to investigate other possibilities.

  Chapter 27

  Wednesday

  Megan knew that today she would have to come up with answers if she wanted to prove to Sheriff Green and Aiden that there were other possible motives for Mary’s murder. She wasn’t sure when this had become a competition in her mind, but it was. She felt she was right and the only way to change the men’s mind was with solid proof. Plus she had a tingly feeling that Henry DeChante would contact her before the promised 48 hours were up. It wouldn’t surprise her in the least to see him show up in Citrus Beach. There was also the identity of the woman Mary had followed to the pawn shop. Yes, today would be a key day in the murder investigation.

  She pushed back her chair, grabbed the now empty coffee cup off her desk and called to the two dogs. They were sitting in the window seat, looking out the window of her private office while they waited to see what the day would bring. They jumped down and ran to the door to wait for her. The two of them had already had a full morning chasing each other around the pathway and gardens that separated Megan’s home from the private office she loved.

  Aiden’s knock on her door at the unreasonable hour of 6am was how her day had started. She was up, coffee made, but not fully awake. He was dropping Gypsy off before he caught a ride with Carol Bloomquest in her private plane to Jacksonville. They had arranged for the puppy to stay with Megan for the day, and Aiden thought he was simply letting Gypsy in through the back door. Instead he found Megan up, coffee brewed and a to-go cup ready for him to take on his flight. Since there was no time to talk, she had grabbed her cup and walked with him as far as her office. Wishing he didn’t have to run off and leave her again today, Aiden kissed her good-bye with a bit more fervor than usual. As he walked away, Megan touched her finger to her lips, contemplating what was behind his actions.

  While sitting in her office chair, watching the puppies play in the garden as she drank her coffee, Megan decided on a plan of action for the day. She started with two messages to get things started and was now waiting for some results. Her first message was to all the volunteers that had worked on the geo-Cache, requesting that they forward her any pictures they‘d took during the event of the participants and guests. She was beginning to get responses and was eager to look through their photo galleries.

  The second thing she did was to call Charlotte on her cell phone. Early mornings were no problem for her friend, she started her day at 5:30 to be sure she didn’t miss a moment the day had to offer. Of course, she went to bed early to. As she had expected, Charlotte was already out of the house, involved in some project. Megan asked if she could look at the security tapes that would have been running at the farm, not only for the day of Mary’s murder, but for a couple of weeks leading up to it. As executor of Mary’s estate, Charlotte could authorize Megan’s viewing of the tapes. Megan shook her head after talking to Charlotte; why hadn’t she thought of that earlier? Maybe she could catch a glimpse of who was hiding money in the barn. Charlotte had to
ld her that the sheriff only inspected the tape from the day of the murder. She had a copy of that one and tapes from the past few weeks. Mary didn’t record over her tapes, she used them for security reasons, and as a log of any new animals and their adaption to the farm.

  The final thing she did before finishing her drink was to print off the information she had found on about Henry DeChante, including a recent photo of him from the society pages. Somehow, she had a feeling she would run into Henry before they were properly introduced, and it would be best to recognize him.

  Megan opened the door, glancing at the clock made from the shells she had collected on the sands near the lighthouse on Neptune’s Trident and saw it was late enough for Janice to be at work. She headed in that direction, telling the two dogs to stay by her side. Barney knew her command, and Gypsy followed his lead as they walked across the grounds to the main office together. This was the busiest time of day at the office, crews from both Citrus Beach Builders and Citrus Beach Concierge leaving for their assigned job sites. Supply trucks were frequent at this time of day, and not everyone realized they needed to lookout for the dogs. Barney had learned early on to stick by Megan’s side when she gave the command, he wanted nothing to do with the big trucks and vans coming and going. They made it safely to the office, and Megan held the door open for the dogs to rush in and greet Janice.

  Janice and the few of the staff members who were getting their day’s assignments were thrilled to see the dogs and made a big fuss over both of them. Barney took it all in as part of his normal routine, but Gypsy lapped up the attention and preened like a beauty queen. Megan let the staff play with the dogs while she and Janice went over a few last minute jobs that had come up overnight in her office.