“Hey, boss lady, did you know we’re not allowed back in the bakery? Just tried to open up the store and some old geezer with a badge stopped me. Said I was breaking the law or something. Is that crazy or what?” Britney didn’t appear too put out that she would be unable to work today. The girl was probably more concerned that she wouldn’t be paid.
“Come on in, Brit. Yes, I’m aware. Just had a visit from the same ‘old geezer’ reminding me to stay away.” Melissa offered the young woman some coffee and they sat down to discuss what to do next. Logan, who had a massive crush on Britney, tried acting cool and non-interested in their conversation but Melissa saw him glancing their way a little too often as he ate his bowl of granola on the sofa. It had not escaped his aunt’s notice that when Britney came in, he had quickly put the box of sugary kids’ cereal back and had taken out the “more adult” granola instead. “Poor kid,” she thought, “too young to understand he would never stand a chance with a woman like Britney. Even if he wasn’t just a kid, he wasn’t from a wealthy family. Rich, trust fund heirs were more her type.”
“So now what do we do? Sit around and twiddle our thumbs waiting on the cops?” Britney asked while rolling her eyes to show her personal opinion about the situation. The poor woman had never had a favorable opinion of the police, ever since growing up on the edge of being a juvenile delinquent herself. She had managed to keep her nose clean but had hung out with a bad crowd in high school, including an ex-boyfriend currently doing time up in Raleigh for a robbery spree last year. After growing up poor and taking care of herself since her mom had been too busy boozing it up to be a parent, Britney had recently tasted the good life with her new beau and she wasn’t about to mess that up.
Melissa answered carefully, “Actually, I’m not feeling highly confident that the police are going to look further than yours truly for a suspect.” She proceeded to fill Britney in on her conversations with the cops and how, at least the one, seemed more than ready to cuff her for the crime and call it a day. Melissa had never been one to just let things happen to her and had already concluded she would have to investigate on her own if she had any hope of remaining free. Inwardly she wanted to rant about the injustice of the whole scenario. How could anyone believe she would do such a thing? Why was she being treated like a suspect rather than a victim since it was her bakery that had been broken into? However, it just wasn’t her style. Instead she would rather focus her energies on finding the truth, even if the cops weren’t interested in it.
The young woman’s blue eyes fairly sparkled with excitement at what her boss intended to do and she wanted in! The two women sat around the table for the rest of the morning concocting a plan. They will need to find out what evidence the police have in custody. Also, someone should speak with Mr. Stevenson to determine why he said all those outrageous lies to the news reporter and see if he knew why his wife was at Melissa’s bakery in the first place. Logan tried to appear as if he wasn’t listening in but couldn’t resist commenting. “Shouldn’t we compile a list of possible suspects? Who would have it in for Mrs. Stevenson? Who would also have it in for Aunt Mel?”
“Oh no! There is no way you are involved in this, Logan!” Melissa was not about to allow her beloved nephew to get his hands dirty. Besides her brother would have a heart attack if he found out and his wife would have Melissa’s head on a platter if her son got in any sort of trouble. Too bad the boy inherited his stubborn streak from his grandpa, the late Frank Jones and former mayor of Kill Devil Hills. It was the same stubbornness showcased by his Aunt Mel and Uncle Charlie, who was currently serving his fifth tour of duty with the Army in Afghanistan. Whether she wanted his help or not, Logan was in.
Chapter 7
The trio broke up around noon. The plan was for Britney to visit the Stevenson family to offer her condolences and see what she could discover. Melissa wished she could also go comfort the grieving family but Logan pointed out that it would only cause a scene. Based on Mr. Stevenson’s comments the other night, he clearly would not be receptive to a visit from the woman he held responsible.
Melissa would contact the detective with the kind brown eyes on the premise that she was concerned about anything missing from her bakery and was more than willing to cooperate with his investigation. She was a business owner so she had every right to know whatever impacted her business.
Logan, in the meantime, wanted to contact a friend back in Charlotte who was a computer hacking genius. He thought hacking into the police department’s server was a good idea to see what the cops had on his aunt. Melissa squashed the idea and forbade him from doing any such thing. However, she remembered that the coroner’s son was a big surfer and was often found hanging out at the beach or the Surf Shack, a small surf shop and convenience store. Logan had befriended him a couple summers back so she sent him on an errand to talk to the boy. She doubted he would know anything about his dad’s work, but at least the task would keep Logan from breaking the law trying to get into the cop’s computers.
As Melissa was heading out the door, a young, twenty-something year old, woman with short blonde hair and dressed in a non-descript grey suit and sensible black pumps, walked up the sidewalk towards her house. At first she thought the woman was a reporter trying to get the scoop from her about Linda’s death, but then she recognized the woman from around town. As she approached, the woman smiled and stuck out her hand with a business card. “Hi, Mrs. Maples. I was hoping to find you here. Tried calling you earlier but I am aware you probably are letting all your calls go to voicemail with everything that’s going on. Your phone must be ringing off the hook.” Looking at the card handed to her, it read “Janice Littleton, Attorney at Law”. Deciding she was probably going to need a lawyer sooner or later, Melissa invited the woman inside just as Logan was sneaking out the back in hopes of avoiding the news van parked outside.
Janice quickly introduced herself and explained her reasons for visiting Melissa. There had been a lot of talk around town of the murder of Mrs. Stevenson. Unfortunately for Melissa, a good deal of the talk centered on her being a possible suspect since the two women were known not to be on friendly terms, were even professional rivals, and the fact that the other woman had been found dead in Mrs. Maples bakery. The attorney was quick to point out that she always considered someone innocent until proven guilty. Considering the stuff that was being said about her in connection with the other baker’s death, the woman was adamant that Melissa needed a lawyer…immediately.
What could she do but agree? Since she wasn’t acquainted with any attorneys and didn’t see any others knocking down her door, Melissa hired Janice on the spot. They discussed the case. The lawyer was actually a good source of information as both women jotted down notes as they talked. Apparently, Mr. Stevenson was loudly proclaiming to anyone and everyone that she, Melissa, had it out for his wife ever since she returned to Kill Devil Hills and opened her bakery. This came as somewhat of a shock. She realized Linda hadn’t exactly welcomed her back to town but had never held a personal vendetta against the woman. There was no reason for it. Melissa explained her side of the supposed rivalry. She had never considered it a big deal. They knew each other in high school and had a falling out over a guy. Life moved on and so did she. When she came back into town years later and opened the Kill Devil Delicacies, Melissa didn’t even see it as being a competitor with Linda’s bakery. Linda did extraordinary wedding cakes. Melissa specialized in breads and dabbled a bit in French pastries. How exactly would that make them true competitors?
Melissa explained to Janice how she and Logan had found Linda’s body when they went into work that morning. The back door lock had been busted. She immediately got Logan out of the building and waited for the cops to arrive. End of story. Well, not exactly the end. After being interrogated by the cops for hours and hearing what Mr. Stevenson had to say on the news, she admitted to her newly retained attorney that she had indeed gone back to her bakery just this morning to check on things herse
lf. The young lawyer didn’t seem surprised and even said she considered it reasonable that Melissa would do so. Janice agreed with her client that it was strange about the office being broken into, the safe discovered, as well as recipe cards missing. However, she didn’t believe missing recipes were vital to the case.
They wrapped up their conversation with more questions remaining than answers. Since she was now officially on the job, Janice mentioned she could start making inquiries at the police station. She also planned to obtain a restraining order against the news crew waiting outside so her client and nephew wouldn’t be harassed. Thanking her, Melissa locked the front door as they both headed outside.
Chapter 8
In the meantime, Britney had gone home to dress in something more suitable to wear to the Stevenson’s house. Out of her usual duds and into her nice, new country club attire –pale yellow sundress, white sweater around her shoulders, and white low-heeled sandals. Throwing on her Gucci sunglasses Eddie had given her for their 6 month anniversary, the pretty young woman greeted her boyfriend who had agreed to accompany her on her quest.
Eddie was the quintessential rich boy. Raised by his billionaire shipping magnate father and socialite mother who headed up every charity in town it seemed, Eddie was spoiled. He also suffered from an entitlement complex. Just because of who he was, he believed he should always get what he wanted, when he wanted it. Right now, he wanted two things – promotion at work even though it was really just a job title, he didn’t really work; and Britney. The oversized playboy was in love and didn’t care that his girlfriend did not hold up to his parents’ scrutiny. They recognized a gold digger when they saw one. Actually, his mother had been one herself when she latched onto the senior Mr. Johnson, so she would know.
When they arrived at the Stevenson house, there was hardly any parking available on the street due to the onslaught of locals offering their condolences to the family. Eddie could barely drive his silver Audi R8 Spyder down the crowded street. Grumbling about pebbles chipping the paint job, he helped Britney out of the car. Britney hoped the fact that she worked for Melissa would be overlooked since she was there with Eddie. Otherwise, she doubted anyone would so much as give her the time of day.
The house was overflowing with grieving friends and family. Typical for a small southern town, the kitchen and dining room were overflowing with casserole dishes and vegetable platters. The intent was to provide meals and sustenance for the deceased person’s family, but it came off looking like a Pampered Chef party.
The couple mingled with the other mourners. Plenty of the gentlemen there recognized Eddie. Plenty of the women too, but for different reasons. He may be a rich, pompous dude but his beach body, Justin Timberlake good looks still made the ladies swoon. As her beau was overset by men and women alike looking to make his acquaintance or discuss his daddy’s business, Britney used the distraction to slink off to other, less occupied parts of the house. Running into the Stevenson’s grown daughter Kelly in the hallway, Britney expressed her sympathies to the woman and then feigned she was looking for a bathroom.
With the coast appearing to be clear, Britney tried the door knobs to every room down the corridor. There were just bedrooms and a couple bathrooms until the last door on the left. It was locked. Locked doors didn’t faze her. After all, her ex-boyfriend had taught her a valuable skill – picking locks. Pulling a hair pin from her pinned up mane, Britney set to work on the lock. Within seconds she had the door open. “Thank you Carlos,” she thought with a smug smile.
The room was an office. By the looks of it – Linda’s office. There were pictures and awards displayed all over the walls, including a massive poster of Linda when she was a participant on the reality television series “Amazing Wedding Cakes”. On the small oak L-shaped desk were pictures of her children and one of Linda in high school holding a large trophy shaped like a piece of cake. Surprisingly, Britney noticed a young Melissa also in the picture, standing just to the side of Linda with a smaller trophy. Melissa’s face had a huge “X” over it in red ink. Deciding that was noteworthy, she took out her brand new iPhone and snapped a picture of the picture.
Britney began to rifle through the contents on top of the desk. There was an application for the Outer Banks Regional Bake-Off that was filled out with a check attached to the form. She didn’t consider it unusual for Linda, a baker, to compete in a baking contest so she pushed aside the paper without a second thought. The young woman didn’t notice that the entry was for artisan breads, not cakes which were Linda’s specialty. If she had, Britney would have been interested to know that Linda had indicated on the application that her entry would be Rosemary Sea Salt bread. This particular bread was a staple of Melissa’s baking repertoire.
Not finding anything else in the office worthy of questioning, Britney made to exit the room quickly. With her hand on the door knob, she stopped suddenly at the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway. Waiting, she tried to silently turn the lock in case someone else tried to get into the office and found her there. That would definitely be a bad thing. After a few moments, she heard the bathroom door immediately across the hall open and shut. Britney didn’t waste any more time. She vacated the office as quietly and quickly as possible. In her haste, she didn’t realize she knocked over the high school picture and some papers had fallen to the floor.
Britney quickly found Eddie deep in conversation with the victim’s son about sports cars. Grimacing inwardly, she really hoped he had been more productive in finding out information about the case. Knowing him though, she realized he probably spent the entire time talking about cars and surfing. Good thing she wanted him for his looks and money, not his brain. They continued small talk for a while longer, but Britney was antsy to leave before someone made the connection that she was Melissa’s employee. As they made their way out the door, Mr. Stevenson came in from the back yard just in time to see Britney turn to leave. With a sour look on his face, the middle-aged man pulled his phone out of his pants pocket and dialed a number. “Hello, Detective Reynolds please. This is Lloyd Stevenson.”
Chapter 9
“What a glorious day to be at the beach!” Logan raved to himself. The sun was out. A strong breeze was coming off the ocean. The thermometer read 88 degrees. Perfect surfing conditions! Looking out at the waves cresting about 75 yards out, the young man caught sight of his target – the coroner’s beach bum son, Tanner – as he strutted back towards The Surf Shack in his wet suit and toting a gleaming smooth surfboard. Yes, Tanner had the life! He didn’t have to work in the summers to help save money for college. He spent his days on the beach or on the waves. Not a care in the world.
Logan hailed his friend as he approached the shack. “Dude, you gotta get out there! The sea is ripe today,” Tanner stated with somewhat of a slur. Reaching into a small Yeti cooler, the under aged boy pulled out a soda can. At least it looked like a soda can of Mellow Yellow, but under inspection it was easy to spot the flimsy plastic covering a completely different type of beverage. Logan was amazed Tanner could always manage to obtain and keep booze out in the open without being hauled in by the beach patrol. It was a certainty that the boy’s father was unaware of his son’s habit. At sixteen, the boy was already a lush. However, this could work to his advantage. Maybe a little tipsy, Tanner would be more likely to open up and inadvertently leak any info he may have overhead from his dad. It was a long shot, since Tanner was as observant as a light pole and had the memory of a blank piece of paper. At this point though, the wayward youth was Logan’s best chance to uncover information to help his Aunt Mel.
Tanner offered Logan a can of …well a can of something which he refused. Instead he asked about the waves – a subject Tanner never tired of discussing. It took a while for Logan to transition the conversation to the death of Mrs. Stevenson. Yes, Tanner had heard about the cake lady’s demise. No, his father hadn’t mentioned anything about the autopsy at home except that it looked like someone bashed in the back of he
r head with a sharp object. That was the extent of the boy’s knowledge of the subject. Logan didn’t want the boy reporting back to his dad that the “bread lady’s nephew” was asking questions so he didn’t push the subject. Based on the stench of his breath, Tanner probably wouldn’t even remember the conversation anyway.
As he was about to leave Logan heard a familiar voice from behind him in the shack. It was one of the cops! He turned around to see the incredibly tall younger detective, well younger in relation to his old grump partner. Logan was surprised to see the dude decked out in a wet suit and carrying a board. Somehow it made him look younger. Tanner’s expression was priceless. Of course the cop would know his dad. If he smelled his breath or looked too closely at the contents of his cooler, he was in big trouble. The older boy stammered an excuse about being late to meet up with his mom and scurried away.
Detective Payne greeted Logan with a smile as he placed his board down to finish zipping up his suit. “It’s Logan, right?” he began. The boy nodded with his eyes wide, wondering if the cop was just being friendly or trying to work an angle to get him to slip up and incriminate himself or his aunt. “It’s okay, son. I’m off duty. No interrogations, I promise,” he continued. Not knowing whether to believe him or not, Logan shrugged and looked down at his feet.
Trying to break the tension and put the boy at ease the cop took a stab at small talk, “You surf?” Logan nodded again. “There’s nothing better than losing yourself in the waves. After everything that’s been going on, an hour or so out there will do wonders for one’s soul.”
A Pinch of Sea Salt and a Dash of Murder (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 1) Page 4
