A Juicy Murder

by Eryn Scott

  “What?” Hadley asked.

  “Well, I was just telling Luke that I’m not equipped to keep her for much longer. We have a few borders coming in toward the middle of the week and being such a small clinic …” She trailed off, looking expectantly between Luke and Hadley.

  Understanding flowed through Hadley. “Oh, I mean—sure—one of us could certainly … did you talk to Louise?”

  Danielle shook her head. “Not yet. I wanted to give you and Luke first rights of refusal before I talked to her.”

  Hadley met Luke’s gaze, and they shrugged at one another.

  “I guess I hadn’t really thought about it. I’m sure I could take her. That is, unless Barnaby needs a friend?” She pointed at Luke.

  Running his hand along the light brown stubble on his jaw, Luke exhaled. “I don’t know. Last time I brought him in to see Danielle, she had to keep him separate from the other cats because he kept bullying them through the cages.”

  “He was not impressed with the other cats,” Danielle confirmed. “Sweet Pea’s been through enough, so wherever she went would need to be relatively stress free.”

  “Of course.” Hadley nodded emphatically. “I’d be happy to take her. I can always talk to Louise if it doesn’t seem like a good fit.”

  The vet smiled. “Perfect. She’s ready to go anytime you want to come get her.”

  Thinking of her big plans tonight, Hadley shrugged. “Does now work?”

  “Sure! I’ll meet you down at the clinic.”

  Hadley turned to Luke. “Wanna come with?”

  The grin that spread across his face made her stomach flip a little, in the best kind of way. Instead of answering her, he craned his neck as he searched for someone across the parking lot, then cupped his hands around his mouth.

  “Hey, Jo,” he yelled at his sister. When she looked over from where she was talking with a small group, he added, “Had’s gonna give me a ride home, so you can take the truck.”

  Jolee gave her brother a thumbs-up, and Luke started toward Hadley’s new-to-her car.

  “How you liking this?” he asked, patting the roof of the hatchback.

  “Well, I don’t get wet when it rains, and it doesn’t guzzle gas, so … it’s already great compared with my bicycle and the Jam Van.” She shrugged.

  Luke laughed. “Good point.”

  They climbed in, and Hadley headed the car in the direction of the vet clinic.

  “Could you believe what happened back there?” Luke asked, jabbing a thumb back toward the high school.

  “The part where no one’s seen the woman in an entire year or the part where our town is full of nut bars?” She stayed deadpan as she kept her eyes the road.

  Laughing, Luke said, “Both?”

  Hadley exhaled. “Someone has to be lying, right?”

  “I don’t know, Hads. I mean, we’ve lived here our whole lives, and neither of us recognized her. What’s saying anyone else in town would’ve been different from us. Plus, as insufferable as Jeff is, he has a point. Agoraphobia is a real thing. She could’ve been a recluse.”

  “Online stores are selling fresh food now, so I guess you’re right. She could’ve gotten everything delivered, easily.” The possibility opened up as Hadley thought about what Luke was saying. “Then what was she doing near the juice bar? That place is always packed. It would be an agoraphobic’s worst nightmare.”

  Luke tipped his head to the side. “True. Maybe she heard the hype about the juice and just had to try it out.” He cringed. “Sorry, too soon.”

  Hadley snorted. “You’re awful.”

  “Seriously, if she’d ended up at any other business, we might be able to say it’s a coincidence. No one knows Simone yet. I have no idea what kind of person she is,” Luke said.

  “She supports your family farm.” Hadley eyed him.

  He smiled. “Okay, yes. That’s good. But isn’t it weird that the girl that no one’s seen for a year dies next to this new person’s shop, right after she moves here? What if Simone knew her?”

  “From the way Paul watched her tonight, I’d bet he’s taking her very seriously as a suspect.” She pulled into the vet clinic parking lot next to Dr. Murphey’s car.

  Hadley and Luke followed the veterinarian inside. The clinic smelled like disinfectant, but there was a hint of ammonia. It was dark and quiet inside. Dr. Murphey led them to a back room with a couple of crates inside. Each crate was fitted with a food and water bowl, a cozy blanket, and a litter box.

  Sweet Pea peeked out from behind the metal bars of the crate closest to the door. She meowed when she saw the people enter.

  “Hi, girl.” Dr. Murphey knelt down next to the cage and opened it. “Luke, would you hand me the carrier behind you?”

  Luke passed her the plastic carrier.

  “You can borrow this, Hadley. Bring it back whenever you have time. It’s a little busted up because it’s our loaner. It’s missing one of the side connectors, but it shouldn’t be a problem for how far you’re going.”

  Hadley nodded.

  After transferring the cozy blanket into the bottom of the carrier, Dr. Murphey coaxed the cat inside. “Hadley will take you so you have a cozy house stay in while we figure out where you get to live,” the vet told the cat in honeyed tones.

  Sweet Pea meowed and peered at Hadley through the holes in the plastic crate, as if she understood what the veterinarian was saying.

  “Do you need any food?” Dr. Murphey asked, standing up and handing over the crate. “She’s been on the same stuff you use.”

  “I’m good, then.” Hadley held up a hand to stop her from grabbing any more. “I have plenty at home.”

  The vet clasped her hands together in front of her. “Okay, keep an eye on her energy. If she seems sluggish, vomits, or seems to be breathing hard, let me know. Like I said, she should be just fine from this point on, but you can never be too safe.”

  “Gotcha.” Hadley almost felt like giving her a salute, but kept both hands clutched on to the carrier.

  Leading them out of the clinic, Dr. Murphey locked up, and they parted ways in the parking lot.

  “I can drop you off on my way home …” Hadley suggested, looking to Luke as he settled the crate into the back seat of her car.

  He scoffed, “And miss seeing you introduce her to the others? Not a chance.”

  Smiling, Hadley climbed into the driver’s seat. “Okay, but I don’t think it will be as entertaining as you expect.” She waited for him to buckle in before starting the car and pulling out of the lot. “My plan is to keep her in the laundry room for a day or so until the others acclimate to her scent. Then I’ll try letting her roam free. That’s what I did with Marmalade, and it seemed to work great.”

  Actually, how it worked was that Ansel—her black-and-white older cat—had been furious about the addition of the little orange kitten, even after days of separation. Marmalade was a bundle of energy and sassy as all get out, so she hadn’t taken no as an answer. Once out of the laundry room, she’d strode right up to Ansel and smacked him in the face—just once. Surprised, Ansel stopped hissing, and they’d been best friends ever since.

  “That’s okay. I’ll take notes in case I ever get crazy enough to introduce another cat to Barnaby,” Luke said with a snort.

  Hadley eyed him. “You would really want more than one cat?”

  He laughed. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

  “Of course I’m surprised. Earlier this year I didn’t even think you liked cats.”

  “I didn’t either. People change.” He lifted one shoulder and let it drop. “Two cats wouldn’t be bad. I sometimes wonder if the Barn man is a little lonely.”

  Picturing her own two curled up together sleeping on her bed, a warmth spread through Hadley’s chest. “Two is pretty great.”

  “Hopefully three is just as great.” He gestured to Sweet Pea in the back seat.

  Hadley chewed her lip. “Yeah. I’m sure it will be.” She pulled into her dr
iveway.

  “Well, we’re about to find out.”

  They took one final deep breath and then got out of the car. But as Luke pulled the carrier out of the back seat, the corner caught on the car door. The two pieces of the plastic carrier disconnected, and the bottom fell on the ground. Still standing in the broken carrier, now on the ground, Sweet Pea blinked up at Luke.

  Hadley’s heart jumped in her throat. The cat’s body tensed as if to bolt, but Luke moved like lightning and scooped her up before she could make a move.

  “Got her.” He clutched the cat to his chest and bent to grab the blanket too. “Dr. Murphey wasn’t joking about that crate being in bad condition. It just flew apart.”

  Hadley, still holding her hand over her heart after the scare, exhaled in relief. She led the way to the house, unlocking it and pushing open the door.

  “You know where the laundry room is, right?”

  Luke nodded. Hadley trailed after him as he walked through her living room and past the kitchen.

  As they usually did whenever she got home, Hadley’s cats trotted out from her bedroom where they’d been sleeping. They peered at the bundle in Luke’s arms.

  And Sweet Pea noticed them too.

  Before Luke could even make it through the kitchen, Sweet Pea launched herself out of his arms in a surprise leap. Luke fumbled but couldn’t catch her in time. The cat landed on all fours on the kitchen floor. Luke and Hadley watched in horror as she booked it straight for the other two cats.

  Ansel took a few steps back, but Marmalade arched up and stood her ground. The fur on her tail poofed out slightly.

  Oh no, oh no, oh no. Hadley started toward them, arm stretched out to grab Sweet Pea, but the new cat reached Marmalade before Hadley could grab her.

  Sweet Pea rubbed against Marmalade, purring up a storm. Marmalade flinched for a second but decided she liked it and rubbed her face against Sweet Pea in return. As if this was all the sign he needed, Ansel stepped forward and joined in on the greeting.

  Hadley’s mouth pulled into a wide smile as she took in the spectacle. It was as if they were all long-lost friends, reunited at last. Shrugging, Hadley looked back at Luke.

  “Okay, I’m guessing that’s not normally how it goes,” he said.

  “Nope. But I’m pretty sure we can leave her out.”

  “I hope it’s this easy when we introduce them to Barnaby one day.” He caught her gaze with his.

  Hadley’s heart skipped. Was he suggesting bringing Barnaby over for some cat companionship, or was he implying something else? Something more?

  Regardless, it wasn’t what was important right now. There was a killer in Stoneybrook, and Laney might not be their only intended victim.

  8

  Once she pushed aside her doubts about Luke, Hadley enjoyed the rest of that evening. Luke stayed to watch a movie, but they ended up watching the cats instead. To say the felines were fast friends would have been an understatement. Sweet Pea was like the piece they’d been missing.

  By the end of the movie, the three cats were curled up together on the couch, with Sweet Pea in the middle. She was the visual transition between the two: from Marmalade’s orange fur to Ansel’s black and white, Sweet Pea was the perfect blend of white, black, and orange calico.

  When it was time to take Luke back home, he and Hadley snuck out the door, not wanting to disturb the new feline friends.

  “Pretty sure that’s the cutest thing in the entire world,” Luke said with a chuckle once they were in the car on the way to his house. “I’m almost mad about how adorable they are.”

  Hadley laughed. “Don’t you feel bad for me that I will live with that now?”

  “You poor thing,” he said, deadpan.

  They laughed again.

  “So … how’s work going? When do you have to go to Seattle next?” Hadley asked, keeping an eye on the now dark road.

  Luke’s plant-focused tech company was headquartered in the large city to the south. He’d lived there for a decade while he got it off the ground, but after a series of bad relationships, he’d come home.

  He was still working on convincing his old-school farmer father to utilize the high-tech equipment he manufactured. But Red Fenton was a taste the soil to see if it’s moist enough kind of farmer, and he didn’t know what to make of Luke’s digital watering timers or CO2 greenhouse monitors. And while Luke could oversee the business remotely at this point, he would make a trip every quarter or so to check in.

  Luke inhaled. “I’ll head down in a few weeks. We just got a new client, and I’ll want to be there when we deliver the first order to them in person. I like to show them how to use everything and answer questions.”

  Hadley was constantly impressed with what he’d done with his life. He’d gone from the laid-back class clown to a tech mogul.

  “I’m still in awe every day about what you’ve created,” she said. Heat crept up her neck as she felt his eyes on her.

  It was silent for a moment. She licked her lips.

  “Thanks, Had. That means a lot coming from you.”

  She chanced a quick glance over at him in the dark car.

  “I’m in awe of you too,” he said.

  Scoffing, Hadley brushed off the compliment. “Psh. I make jam and sometimes pickle stuff.”

  His hand settled on her arm, gentle but insistent. “Hey, don’t downplay your business. You created something from scratch. You dug yourself out of the hole your divorce put you in, financially and emotionally.”

  Hadley pulled off the valley highway and onto Luke’s dirt road. She exhaled. She had. There’d been a time after the divorce when she hadn’t been sure about anything, about whether or not she would make it through. Thinking about it now felt silly. Of course she had. Her friends and family had a huge part in that.

  She parked outside his house and turned toward him, finally.

  “I guess you’re right. It’s just hard to compare myself to your giant company.”

  “Then don’t. We’re both doing what we love.” His blue eyes caught the light of the moon, and she recognized the deep sincerity behind them, what she’d learned to expect from Luke.

  “Right.” She nodded.

  The car was too dark, too quiet, too close. Hadley felt herself leaning toward him. She still held the same doubts. She didn’t want to lose Luke when she’d only just gotten him back in her life. But darn was he handsome, and kind, and supportive.

  “Thanks. I had a great evening,” he said, breaking her train of worried thoughts.

  Then he leaned forward, planting a kiss on her cheek. The brush of his lips against her skin made a shiver rush up her spine.

  As he pulled away, she whispered, “Yeah, me too.”

  She knew the response didn’t really make sense, but she couldn’t think straight. Luke smiled and got out of the car.

  “See you around, Had. Thanks for the ride.”

  Hadley watched him disappear into his house, her fingers tracing the place on her cheek where he’d kissed. When he turned off his porch light, she snapped out of her trance and started driving home. It was a good thing she had a few minutes to think—she was going to need it.

  The next day, Hadley woke up early and went into the kitchen. Between her work on Sunday and the early start, she was done with any jam work by the time Gran had arrived to open the retail shop at nine. So when Suze came by around eleven that morning, asking if Hadley wanted coffee, Gran waved her away, saying, “Take a break dear. You’ve been a jam machine.”

  It wasn’t until they were outside and walking toward Cascade River Coffee that Suze divulged her real plan.

  “I’d also love to grab something for Paul and Kevin, if you don’t mind helping me carry everything over.” She shot Hadley a pleading smile.

  Hadley chuckled. “Sure. Why’d you wait until out here to tell me that?”

  “Well”—Suze tipped her head to one side—“I figured Millie would want to be involved if we went to the sherif
f’s office. Yesterday at the town meeting, she leaned over and whispered to me she couldn’t wait to do some sleuthing on this new case.”

  Hadley’s grandmother had usually taken the stance of “I’ll stay back and watch the shop while you go help Paul solve the case.” But that had been before she’d gotten a copy of an Agatha Christie book from the Friends of the Library sale last month. Since then, she’d been raring to jump into a case just like Mrs. Marple.

  “It’s not that I don’t want her to be involved,” Suze said, holding up a hand, “It’s just a much more tech-heavy case than we’ve ever had, and I don’t think it’s in her wheelhouse.”

  “You never know.” Hadley tsked. “Dad gave her his old laptop, and the woman is webbing and netting all over the place.” She chuckled. “But I get it. Sometimes I want to protect her too.”

  Arriving at the café they ordered four lattes and a few pastries to go. The deputies often got so involved in a case that they forgot to stop and eat. They left a few minutes later, each carrying two coffees and a bakery bag full of goodies as they headed toward the sheriff's office in the town hall.

  Sharon, the receptionist, smiled a hello at them before waving them back. Hadley and Suze skirted around the large front desk and walked toward Paul’s.

  But it wasn’t Paul they found there.

  A young man, probably in his twenties, sat where Deputy James usually did. Case files and stacks of paper had been pushed aside to make room for a formidable laptop. The young man’s eyes tracked across the screen as if it held the secret to life. His dark slightly greasy hair flopped into his face as he worked. His focus bounced all over the screen while his fingers flew across the keyboard.

  Paul stood behind him, next to Kevin. The two deputies stared at the young man in front of the computer, jaws set firm. Suze and Hadley sidled up to them. They handed over the coffees and pastries, receiving grateful smiles in return.

  “Who’s that?” Suze asked, gesturing to the young man still clicking away at the computer.

  Paul leaned in and whispered, “Some kid McKay uses when he needs help with cases that involve computers. Laney’s laptop had been smashed when we searched her apartment, but this kid thinks he can recover the hard drive.”