Teaberry Class Reunion

by R A Wallace

  Teaberry Class Reunion

  A Teaberry Farm Bed & Breakfast Cozy Mystery

  R. A. Wallace

  2018

  Author’s Note

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, dialogue, places, and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Material in this book is not intended as a substitute for legal or medical advice from qualified professionals. The author has no connection to any software or website mentioned.

  © 2018 R. A. Wallace. All rights reserved.

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Megan’s Recipe

  Books by R. A. Wallace

  Chapter One

  The large Queen Anne at the edge of town held secrets. She was certain of it. She knew full well that everyone had secrets, including her. It only made sense that the house did as well. The house had kept all of those secrets safe for generations, just as it now helped Kaylee to feel safe. This was the house she had run to when her world had collapsed. When all of her hopes and dreams had ended with a few malicious taps on a keyboard. Kaylee listened to the silence that wrapped around her, like the softest of blankets. She loved it here. She knew that it wasn’t really the house the made her feel safe. It was her grandmother. Barbara Vance Reynolds was like a beacon in the night. Her spine was made of the strongest steel. She had made the adult Kaylee feel safe with a simple hug just as she had many times before throughout Kaylee’s childhood. Her grandmother could slay all dragons.

  Kaylee rolled over on the bed and glanced at the clock. It was morning again. Another day to face without school. She’d always known what to do when she was taking classes. Her schedule was fixed. She knew exactly when to go to class, when to write code, and when to study for her other classes. That had been a life that made sense. It was ordered and organized, just like the code she wrote. She’d been working on her programming degree and was in the middle of her junior year at college when it had all happened. When the lies had been unleashed and then gone viral on social media.

  There was no escaping it and no denying it. Once the lies had been told, it was impossible to contain them. They were shared, reposted, and embellished countless times by people who had never even heard of Kaylee Vance before. When the administration had called her in to defend herself, she had told the truth. It hadn’t been enough. After an investigation, the administration understood that she wasn’t to blame, that she wasn’t guilty of the crime. But no one else did. And they never let her forget it. Instead of dwindling over time, the postings seemed to take on a life of their own. Their number grew with each passing day. Her instructors stopped trusting her, questioning every line of code she wrote for each assignment she submitted. Her classmates stopped talking to her and the people she had begun to think of as friends avoided her. They only spoke about her behind her back. Nothing was the same.

  The liar had said that she stole the code for her program assignments. Just as they had promised to do if she wouldn’t pay the blackmail money. Someone had randomly chosen her and threatened to spread the lies and ruin her if she didn’t pay up. She’d been so naïve. She’d thought her innocence would see her through, but she’d been wrong. Because there was no evidence of wrongdoing, the university hadn’t tried to expel her for plagiarism or cheating, but the damage had been done. Her credibility had been stripped away. So she had dropped out of school and come here where she was safe. Where her father had grown up in the safety of the house her grandmother owned. Kaylee wished the house could tell her stories. It could tell her how her grandmother had grown so strong. She needed to know that, so she could be strong too.

  Her parents and her brother would be here soon, along with many other relatives that she hadn’t seen in a while. There were also some new ones from Matthias’s side of the family. Her grandmother had decided to invite everyone for the weekend after Thanksgiving. That would give them time to enjoy a family gathering without interfering with any plans they may have for the actual holiday. Kaylee had been dreading facing her parents. She’d called them to let them know where she was, but she hadn’t given many details about why she was there. She knew that she wouldn’t be able to duck their questions once they were in the same room.

  Kaylee sat up in bed. She hadn’t slept much last night but that had been the case each night since the lies about her had gone viral. She needed something to do and have some routine to follow. Something that made sense, like writing code. Writing code always made sense. Kaylee slipped out of bed and headed for the bathroom. Maybe once she was dressed she could find something to do to help her grandmother. She’d start with making everyone breakfast. Cooking wasn’t as fun as programming, but at least it made her feel useful.

  ***

  “Have you thought any more about my suggestion?”

  Matthias stood behind Barbara and looked into the vanity mirror, watching as his wife applied makeup that he didn’t think she needed. She was sitting at the vanity in their master bedroom as she did every morning.

  Barbara met his eyes in the mirror. “Yes, and I agree. To a point. I think you have half of a good idea.”

  He felt a smile tug at his lips. “Do I? Which half?”

  Barbara turned around in her seat. “It’s fairly obvious that she needs to keep busy. She’ll drive us both insane if we don’t find something.”

  “And you were just recently saying that you wanted family to spend more time here,” Matthias reminded her.

  “And I do, as you well know. But she’s hurting, and she needs help to get past that. Whatever that is.”

  Barbara turned back to her mirror. Kaylee had yet to explain to them why she’d left the university. Barbara had wanted to wait and let Kaylee tell her on her own, without pressing her. But it had yet to happen.

  Matthias crossed the room and rested his hands lightly on her shoulders.

  “I know. We shouldn’t complain that she wants to keep busy though. It’s not a bad trait. In fact, I think I smell coffee. She must be working on breakfast again.” Matthias smiled. He liked Kaylee’s breakfasts.

  Barbara met her husband’s eyes in the mirror again. “You go ahead. I’ll be down shortly. We’ll see what kind of mood she’s in today. If she’s open to my ideas, I think it will be for the best.”

  Matthias leaned over and kissed her forehead. “If you came up with it, I’m sure it’s a good idea.”

  He descended the staircase slowly. Although he no longer required a cane to get around, he also didn’t want to lose his footing and cause more harm. The hip replacement had corrected his problem and he liked being mobile again. He wanted to keep it that way.

  He followed his nose to the kitchen and found Kaylee busy at the large stove. “Good morning.”

  She turned and smiled at him before returning her focus to the skillet on the stove. “Hey, coffee’s ready. Hope you’re in the mood for pancakes.”

  “Pancakes sound wonderful and they smell
even better.”

  Matthias poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table. She’d already placed the morning paper there for him. He had noticed very early on that she preferred to have a routine. Getting the paper for him each morning had become part of the new routine she’d established since coming to stay with them.

  “Looks like another cold one out there,” Kaylee commented as she transferred another pancake to a plate that already held an impressive stack.

  “Perfect weather for the holidays. I’m looking forward to it all. You’ll help decorate this year, won’t you?” Matthias looked up from his paper to watch her response.

  Kaylee threw him a surprised look over her shoulder. “We’re going to decorate? I didn’t realize Grandma did that anymore.”

  “She hasn’t been, but she’s missed it. We want to go all out this year to make up for what she’s missed.”

  Kaylee turned the stove off then took the last pancake from the skillet and transferred it to the plate. “Yeah, I’m all in. That sounds like fun. I can’t wait to do the staircase. That will look awesome.”

  Matthias nodded his agreement as Kaylee set a plate of pancakes in front of him.

  “I agree completely,” Barbara said as she entered the kitchen. “Oh, the pancakes look wonderful.”

  Barbara poured her own coffee and took a seat near Matthias. Kaylee quickly set a plate of pancakes in front of her.

  “Are we going to use pine boughs on the stairs?” Kaylee asked as she refilled her own coffee cup.

  Barbara considered it for a moment. Over the years, she had used a variety of decorations including garlands, ribbons, and groupings of holly. “We’ll see what catches our eye. What we don’t find at the tree farm will be at the florist shop. Caitlyn does such a beautiful job with the arrangements and the garlands.”

  Matthias pushed his empty plate away and watched Kaylee tuck into her breakfast. He raised his eyebrows at Barbara.

  Barbara reached for her silverware. “What do you have planned for today? Will you have time to check something out?”

  Kaylee looked up quickly and frowned. “What do you mean?”

  Barbara shrugged nonchalantly as she cut her pancakes. “I was wondering if you would be interested in taking some online classes. You would be able to stay here but still work on your degree. If you apply now, you’ll be ready to start classes in the spring semester.”

  Kaylee dropped her eyes and focused on the plate in front of her. “I guess.”

  Barbara set her utensils down and reached for the syrup as she studied Kaylee. She had her waist-length dark hair pulled up in the back and held with a large clip. Her thin frame looked even thinner in the baggy sweats she was wearing. “I thought you’d like the chance to take classes again. You seemed to like college.”

  Kaylee shrugged and kept her focus on her food. Barbara met Matthias’s glance across the table. He lifted one shoulder in a half shrug.

  Barbara picked up her coffee and held it between both hands. “In the meantime, I was wondering if you might help someone out.”

  Kaylee quickly looked up again, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Help?”

  Barbara nodded. “Yes, it shouldn’t be much trouble for you and it would really be appreciated. You used to babysit when you were in high school, didn’t you?”

  Kaylee’s eyes opened wide in surprise. She hadn’t expected that question. She nodded her agreement without realizing it.

  Barbara continued. “Excellent. There’s a young family who could use your experience. I’m sure it won’t be much trouble. And you’d be helping out a young family.”

  Kaylee considered it. She’d always enjoyed spending time with children. It would give her something to do. How bad could it be?

  ***

  Brad looked down at his arm. He’d tried covering his shoulder with a towel, but it hadn’t been enough. After feeding Maddie, some of her formula had come back up and gone all over the sleeve of his shirt when he’d burped her. He was pretty sure it wasn’t going to wash out. Her tiny mouth was yawning now and her eyes were closed. He used the only clean corner of the towel to gently wipe around her mouth. She brought one of her hands up and wedged it into her mouth, but she was no longer fussing. Brad rubbed her back gently and swayed back and forth a little until she finally fell asleep. Slowly, he moved into the nursery and placed her in her crib. Then he straightened and watched his little angel sleep for just a moment.

  He knew that Erica wasn’t as lucky. He could hear Mason from the other side of the house. He was still crying even though he’d been fed and burped. Brad quietly left the nursery. Like a coward, he considered going to their bedroom and climbing into bed. He hadn’t slept well in days. In fact, not since the babies had come home. Getting any work completed on any of his programming projects felt like a distant dream. Taking a deep breath, he headed for Erica and found her pacing the room with Mason. She looked even more tired than he felt. He held out his arms and took the baby from her.

  “He won’t stop this time. How did you get Maddie to sleep?” Her long red hair was worn loose. She hadn’t had time to braid it yet today. She was wearing one of Brad’s old tee shirts and sweats.

  Brad began rubbing Mason’s back. He knew it worked for Maddie, but they hadn’t found the trick for Mason yet. Nothing seemed to settle him. He would stop screaming only when complete exhaustion took over.

  “With any luck, she’ll be out for a while,” Brad said just as they heard the first wail from the nursery.

  Erica wiped her hand across her face. The dark circles under her eyes were a stark contrast to her pale skin. She turned and began walking toward the nursery. The sound of the doorbell caused her to change course. She found Megan at the door.

  “Are you sure you want to come in here?” Erica turned and walked toward the nursery.

  Megan followed her. She could hear both babies crying. When they reached the nursery, Megan nudged Erica away from the crib. “I’ll get her. Why don’t you go take a nap? You’ll feel better.”

  Erica was too tired to argue and didn’t want to anyway. She turned on her heel and headed for the master bedroom. Megan followed the sounds of the other crying baby and found Brad in the living room with Mason.

  “We tried keeping them apart to see if it helps. One seems to get the other one crying.”

  Megan assumed keeping them apart hadn’t worked. She stood near Brad and rocked Maddie gently. After several minutes, both babies were slowing to hiccups. She motioned to Brad with her head and he followed her back to the nursery. She placed Maddie in one crib then took Mason from Brad and settled him down next to her.

  “Go take a nap. I’ll sit here with them and make sure they’re okay.” Megan dragged the rocker over to the crib and watched as the fussing continued to lessen. She glanced behind her once to make sure Brad had taken her advice. He was no longer in the room. Turning back to the babies, she could see that Maddie’s little fist had made it to her mouth. Both babies were now sleeping.

  Chapter Two

  The light dusting of snow on the ground looked pretty from inside the warm car. Bev Dempsey turned to look at the driver sitting next to her. Vince had suggested picking her up for their lunch date with Susan and Ross. She had agreed immediately knowing that Vince would pick her up at her door and she wouldn’t have to deal with removing the ice from the windows of her own car. It was only November, but already winter was showing its willingness to return to Teaberry.

  “You look nice,” Vince said.

  Bev smiled. He always said that even when she knew it wasn’t true. Today, at least, she’d enjoyed picking out an outfit for lunch without having to consider how well it would fare against the weather. She had confidently styled her blonde hair that now sported silver highlights knowing that she wouldn’t have to cram a warm hat on her head or deal with bringing a pair of stylish shoes to swap with boots once she reached her destination.

  “That’s because I didn’t have to worry about
anything. Some dashing man swept me off my feet at my door and will deliver me to the restaurant. I was able to wear something with more form than function. Otherwise, I’d be bundled in boots, a heavy coat, hat, gloves, and a scarf. I wouldn’t mind having you take me places all winter.”

  Vince chuckled. He knew she didn’t really mean it. She loved her independence. It was one of the reasons why they’d never tried to merge their two households into one. “I would be happy to take you anywhere you want to go.”

  She admired the festive decorations already displayed throughout the town as they passed through the streets on their way to the restaurant. She loved this time of the year. It made her think of happy family times and all of the people she loved. The parking lot of the Station Pub & Grill was showing signs of a busy lunch crowd. Vince dropped her off at the door and then parked the car. Bev went inside to see if Susan and Ross had already arrived. She saw them seated at a table and returned their wave. Vince appeared behind her a moment later and they joined their friends.

  She greeted several people on their way to the table. At this time of the year, she often saw faces of people who had grown up in Teaberry but had moved away and were visiting family for the holiday. It was one of the reasons why the class reunion was held the weekend of Thanksgiving. Even those who had moved away often returned to visit family.

  Bev sat next to Susan and her eyes immediately fell on the book in front of her.

  “Oh, my goodness. I haven’t looked at our class yearbook in decades.” Bev turned to Susan. “What on earth made you dig this out?”

  Susan watched her friend begin to leaf through the pages. “I thought it would help to orient Ross.”

  “Those of us who didn’t grow up here will be at a disadvantage during the class reunion,” Ross pointed out.

  “I’m not sure you could convince me to suffer through someone else’s class reunion,” Vince said with a grin at Bev. “Going to my own is hard enough.”

  Bev shook her head. “You’re always the first to arrive and the last to leave.”