Cryptic Cove Cozy Mystery Box Set

by K P Stafford

  Lexi knew that all too well. When she returned here after being raised in the city, it had been a while before many of the people warmed up to her. If they hadn’t known her as a child or that she was Velda’s granddaughter, it’s likely they never would have accepted her. They welcomed tourists, but not those who came here and planned to stay. She looked around at the group of ladies staring at her. “I’ll find out what he’s fishing for and why he’s being so nosy.”

  “He’s also asking us about Shirley’s death,” Ms. Jensen replied, “Maybe you should ask him why he’s so interested in that too.”

  “I will. I promise. But that is a news story and reporters are interested in the news, especially when it’s something as bizarre as her death.”

  “Murder,” Mavis Clark said, looking at her. “It was murder. You know it, I know it. The whole town knows it. I’m not so sure he didn’t have something to do with it.”

  “He didn’t even know Shirley. Why would he kill her?”

  “For a better story than some silly Halloween traditions.”

  The bells over the door jingled. Everyone turned to see Decatur Williams hurrying through the door. She headed straight to where Grams was standing. “I’m running late this morning,” she said as she placed a stack of books on the counter in front of Grams. “That silly cat got out this morning. I spent an hour chasing that thing down, and I have to get to the library early to start pulling some older books about Halloween for that incessant reporter in town.” She patted the books she’d placed on the counter and never lost a beat, “These are the books you asked me about the other day. It took a while to gather them all up. It seems some of them were mis-categorized,” she stressed the last word as she cut her eyes towards Ms. Jensen. “The place is a complete mess in some sections.”

  Grams looked from Ms. Jensen back to Decatur. “Oh dear, Decatur, what happened to your hand?” she asked, pointing to the bandage on the woman’s hand.

  Decatur rubbed the bandaged hand with her good hand and stood silent for a moment before returning to her bantering speech. “That silly cat. He was so excited about his escape and making me chase him down. When I finally caught him, he latched onto me with his claws and his teeth. Clearly he did not want to be captured.” She said with a slight giggle.

  “You should have that checked by a doctor.”

  Decatur waved her other hand in the air, “No time. Busy, busy. I’m sure it’ll be okay. I’ve got to run now, I’ll catch you all later.”

  And like a whirlwind she was gone as fast as she’d appeared. The woman was known to be a talker, but today she was in overdrive. Everyone sat quietly after she left, apparently worn out from the way the woman had rushed in, talked a blue streak and left.

  CHAPTER 8

  By the time the ladies were done with their morning vigil, Lexi had an hour left before having to head to the constable’s office. A dozen or so questions ran through her head, so she headed back to the B&B to run some things by Peyton.

  “The ladies were clearly upset over the reporter snooping around. They’re wondering why he’s so interested in Shirley’s death and the town’s past.”

  “He is a reporter, and granted, that story is a lot more interesting than the one he came here to write about old Halloween traditions.”

  “That’s what I told them, but they weren’t happy with that explanation. Of course, Decatur Williams came in like a whirlwind chatting ninety to nothing and she seemed to be okay with having to meet him. The tension between her and Ms. Jensen was thick.”

  “Is it that obvious?”

  “It was more of a feeling, but as Ms. Williams was explaining to Grams that she had trouble finding the books Grams requested, she cut her eyes at Ms. Jensen about how books had been categorized in the library.”

  “There may be some animosity there,” Peyton said. “What books did your Grams get?”

  “I didn’t get a chance to ask, and no clue why it was a big deal about them being in the wrong section. I’ll have to ask Grams later to straighten that out. Another thing I find odd is that Grams and her friends don’t have a lot to do with Ms. Williams.”

  “It’s probably the whole library thing. Ms. Jensen ran the library most of her life and you know how protective the older ones are about their place in this town. I suspect the same thing will happen when someone steps up to take over the Magistrate’s Office from Mavis Clark. Sparks will fly when they tell her she’s too old to do her job.”

  “You have a point there. Ms. Williams was clearly hyped up after having to chase her cat all morning.”

  “She has a cat?” Peyton cocked her head sideways. “I’ve never known her to mention having any pets.”

  “Apparently she does and he’s pretty feisty. When she finally caught him, he clawed her up pretty good. She had a bandage covering her hand.

  “Ah, maybe he’s a new cat and he doesn’t like her too much,” Peyton suggested as she stifled a giggle. “That’s not funny, but I really can’t imagine a cat liking her. She’s always so uppity.”

  “Well, this morning she was a chatterbox.” Lexi paused. “I didn’t think about it at the time but she had that bandage on her hand yesterday. Maybe the cat attacks her every day?”

  “That’s definitely strange and I can’t say I blame the poor kitty.”

  “That’s what I was thinking. I also got the impression she’s excited about talking to the reporter, despite the fact that the rest of the ladies are not.”

  “It’s probably nothing. With everything going on, everyone is acting a bit odd. Have you and John found out any more about that item Shirley had in her hands?”

  “Not really, but the morgue was broken into and our office too. Both places were ransacked, so we suspect whoever did it is looking for that thing.”

  “It would have to be someone who knew Shirley and knew that she had it.”

  “You’re right. I didn’t really think about that, and that means that half the town may be suspects now.”

  “Oh boy. That’s not going to make things any easier. I know how upset they all got when that elderly couple was murdered and you and John had to dig into that.”

  Lexi sat quietly, thinking about everything that she didn’t have answers for. When she looked up Peyton was staring at her, her eyebrows pinched together. “Sorry, I was thinking about something else.”

  “I noticed. Wanna share what that was?”

  Lexi told her about the voice in her dream the night before, and that she wasn’t sure it was a dream or just a voice in her head. “I know strange things happen in this town, but Aunt Agatha repeated the same words to me when I went downstairs for a cup of tea. I’m not fully ready to accept that the dead, or something, are sending me messages. There has to be a logical explanation for it.”

  “I agree. That’s kind of creepy.”

  “I wish we knew more about that Cryptex. It seems awfully familiar to me, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one.”

  “OH,” Peyton exclaimed, “There’s a movie that came out a long time ago. You and Jake should rent it when he gets back.”

  “I don’t see how a movie would help.”

  “It may not, but it may help you to think things through from a different angle. I think it was about a code of some sorts. Yeah, the Da Vinci Code.”

  “I guess it can’t hurt. We’re definitely clueless as it is. How about we all have a date night and watch it together?”

  “I don’t think me hanging out with you and Jake is a date.”

  Lexi giggled, “Don’t try to deny that you and Charlie have been hanging out together. A lot! Ask him to come. He’s read a lot of books, too, and maybe he knows something about the history of these items.”

  Peyton pinched her face up. “We’re not dating.”

  “Okay, don’t call it a date. It’s not like we haven’t all hung out together before.”

  “You’re right. It could be interesting. When does Jake get back?”

  “Tomorrow,
and that’s not soon enough for me. I miss him.”

  Lexi headed to the constable’s office, thinking about Jake. He’d only been gone two days, but it seemed like weeks. She felt like she was going in circles with not being able to bounce questions off him. They’d spoken enough on the phone for him to know a little about the situation, but that was it. Peyton and her always brainstormed ideas, but then she’d run them by Jake to get his opinion.

  On top of all this, she was supposed to be planning a wedding, but it had taken a backseat to this murder investigation. It didn’t look like this one would be solved anytime soon, either. There was still way more to dig into.

  CHAPTER 9

  All day long, Lexi had a strange feeling she couldn’t shake. She and John discussed what they knew so far, and it wasn’t much. Shirley had definitely been killed. She’d had a strange object in her hand. The morgue and their office had both been ransacked, and they could only assume it was because of that strange item. Whoever wanted it wanted it bad enough to take chances in broad daylight.

  Lexi looked at John. “Grams and the other ladies are upset with how the reporter is snooping around. I thought they were being silly, but the more I think about it, the more I’m concerned he should be a suspect.”

  “We can’t just suspect him because he’s irritating people.”

  “I know, but back when I worked at the law firm in the city, the reporters could get pretty brave. They were constantly sneaking in and trying to get insider information. If this guy is like those guys were, he’d go to great lengths to get what he wants. If that happens to be that Cryptex thing, we may have a problem with him.”

  “You may have a point. We’re so used to old man Jordon knowing everyone’s business without having to snoop around, that we aren’t familiar with how a real reporter would act or what they’d do to get a story. I guess we’ve kept ourselves too sheltered in our little town.” John let out a sigh as he sat back in the chair.

  “That’s completely understandable. Everything and everyone here seems to be set in their ways, and it works out for the whole town.”

  “If it weren’t for tourists, we probably wouldn’t even know an outside world existed, to be honest. Maybe that’s not a good thing. We don’t trust outsiders, which isn’t a bad thing, but it could also be the thing that causes us the most trouble. Perhaps we’ve locked too much away, even from ourselves.” John’s words trailed off. He wasn’t making a lot of sense, but his last statement sparked her curiosity.

  “John, do you remember any dark secrets in this town’s past that someone would be after?”

  He sat in silence for a few long seconds, lines etched across his forehead as he was deep in his thoughts. When he finally looked up at Lexi, his face was contorted, like his mind was grasping for a lost memory. “That’s a good question. So much time has passed since childhood, but there was something. Something that rattled our grandparents back then. I think maybe they wanted the past buried. I do remember as kids, we would all try to figure out what the big deal was. Of course, stories of curses led our imaginations all over the place. We eventually forgot all about it though.”

  “Maybe it’s time you and the others start trying to remember, so we can figure this out.”

  “You’re right, but sometimes the lines between myth and legend get blurred. We were so young and our parents were insistent that some things never get mentioned again.”

  “Well, we need to start jogging your memory, even if you think it’s silly, and try to put some pieces together. The library should have old newspapers and documents, but Ms. Williams seems awfully protective of anything like that, and she’s not real happy when I ask about it.”

  The phone rang causing them both to jump a little. John picked it up. The look on his face told Lexi something else was up. He hung up and looked at her. “Speaking of Ms. Williams, that was her. Someone has broken into the library.”

  “Does she know what’s missing?”

  “No, says she saw the mess and called us straight away. We better get down there.”

  CHAPTER 10

  Ms. Williams clutched her chest as John and Lexi approached her, the bandage still visible on her hand from the fiasco with her cat. She recounted how she entered the library, like any other time. She unlocked the door, went inside and began turning lights on. That’s when she noticed the door to the backroom was slightly ajar. On her husband’s grave, she swore she never leaves it open. When she peeked inside, she noticed files and boxes had been gone through.

  John looked around the room, asking her if she noticed anything missing. She replied that she couldn’t really tell because she hadn’t been through every file herself. That remark piqued Lexi’s suspicion. It was the opposite of what she had said to her on a prior visit to the library looking for old files. “Ms. Williams, the other day you told me you’d been through all of the files.”

  She glared at Lexi for a moment before speaking. “Yes, I have been through all of the files in the main section of the library, not these files.”

  “So, you lied or you’re hiding something?”

  “Definitely not!” Her snippy tone bit through the air, “The files you were looking for would have been in the main section. I didn’t find it relevant that I haven’t been through the files in this room.”

  She had a point, but Lexi didn’t like her attitude. Of course she couldn’t let her dislike for someone get in the way of an investigation. Her personal feelings were moot, but her gut was telling her there was something off about the woman’s story.

  “Right,” John broke in, “But it may be relevant now.” He said as he looked over his notes. “We all know you close the library to take your lunch. You were late getting back today. Can you tell us where you were?”

  “I met with that reporter and then I had errands to run.”

  “What kind of errands,” John asked.

  “The personal kind. If you ask me, whoever vandalized the cemetery could have done this. Apparently, nothing is sacred in this town anymore. Are you doing anything to find out who is going around destroying things?”

  “We are looking into it, but a murder investigation takes precedence. I’m sure you’re aware of that.”

  “Yes. I’m sorry. Everything has me on edge lately. I know you have a job to do.”

  “We’ll let you know when we have more information for you. In the meantime, it wouldn’t hurt to hire an assistant or have someone stay here with you.”

  John wanted to believe it was just some kid, or kids, pulling pranks because of Halloween, but this was turning into more than a coincidence of events.

  As they headed out of the back room to leave the library, Lexi noticed a small piece of cloth lodged in a splinter on the door. She grabbed the tweezers out of her backpack and a small plastic evidence bag. She didn’t know if it was a clue, or how long it had been lodged there, but Marcus Finche would be happy to look at it. As town coroner he’d also taken an interest in forensics. It began as a hobby for him, but over the past two years he’d invested quite a bit of time and money into setting up a small lab. This little fiber would give him something to look into. It probably had nothing to do with their case, but it would be nice if it lead them in a new direction to check out.

  CHAPTER 11

  John decided it was time to question Mr. Norman Davis, the reporter who had come into town a few days earlier. Not only did he have the whole town stirred up, but everything weird going on had started after his arrival. He was staying in a little bungalow close to the boardwalk, the real tourist section of Cryptic Cove that was nestled into a small cove on the ocean shore.

  The boardwalk was practically empty this time of morning. The colder breeze from the ocean could bite right through you. Store owners and shopkeepers were busy getting ready to open for when the tourists would start emerging from their hotel rooms and wander around looking at the sights. The bungalows were at the far end, tucked into the tree line that surrounded a small beach. The r
eporter was registered into number nine. It was the most secluded, and probably one Lexi would have chosen if she were a writer and needed to be away from all the noise of the boardwalk.

  She raised her hand to knock on the door. John stopped her and pointed to the blood on the doorknob. He pulled out his gun before nodding for Lexi to knock on the door. They listened, but didn’t hear anything. Lexi dug around in her bag, pulled out a latex glove and slipped it over her hand so she could try the doorknob to see if it was unlocked. The knob turned easily, but the blood was still damp, probably from all the fog in the air, which would make it impossible to tell how long it had been there. She pushed the door open so John could go inside to check things out while she stayed on the small porch and looked around the area to see if anything else was out of the ordinary. After a few minutes, John called her to come inside. Norman Davis lay on the floor, blood covering his face from a deep gash above his left eye. He’d been conked on the head with something heavy, from the looks of it. Lexi looked around the small room but didn’t find anything he could’ve been hit with.

  John looked at her as he pulled out his cell phone. “The sheriff won’t be happy about this.”

  Lexi shook her head in agreement. “Have you noticed we tend to get our murders in sets of two.”

  “I was trying not to.” John said as he walked over to inspect the body while waiting for the sheriff’s office to answer. “You better get Marcus out here to take the body into town.”

  Lexi pulled out her cell phone and called Marcus Finche. He said he’d be there in about half an hour. She relayed the message to John. He nodded as he dug around in the reporter’s pockets.

  “Here’s his car keys.” John said as he tossed them to her. “Go see what you can find in it. This room is pretty bare. I don’t even see his camera or a laptop.”