Trunk Show Murder (A Seagrove Cozy Mystery Book 2)

by Leona Fox

  Sadie’s group stayed in the living room and she sat on the couch, waiting her turn. The chief sat next to her, and they surveyed the other women left in the room. There wasn’t anything about them that screamed murderer or mayhem. And really, why should there be. These were women Sadie counted as friends.

  Jude questioned her about the events of the evening and Sadie told her everything, including Marjorie’s visit earlier in the day. Mara, who was in the group with Sadie and Lucy, went red in the face.

  “She came here early to get a jump on the rest of us?” Mara asked.

  Sadie nodded, her lips forming a thin line.

  “That’s awful,” Mara said. “So unfair.”

  “She thinks just because she’s the mayor she deserves better than any of us,” Tracey said and blanched. “Thought she thought she was better. And now she’s dead.” Her face went pale.

  “That was just like her,” Shannon said, coming in from the bedroom. “She felt because she was Mayor she should get special treatment. And if you didn’t offer it to her, she just took it. I say she deserved what she got.”

  “Surely you don’t think people should be killed for being assholes?” Mara asked. “We’d all be dead.”

  “I just meant the karma of it all. She was trying to get her foot in, and she slipped and died on the sidewalk instead. That’s karma intervening.” Shannon made a show of digging through her purse, and she wouldn’t look anyone in the eye.

  “Ouch,” Sadie said. “I guess I’d better keep an eye out for karma if it’s going to start bumping us off for being self-interested.” She was trying to lighten the mood, but she knew as the words came out it wasn’t going to work. Damn it, she should have just changed the subject.

  “The downstairs people have already left,” Mara said. “Can we go now?”

  “Sure,” Jude said. “I think we’ve covered everything. Thank you for your cooperation, ladies.”

  They trooped down the stairs and Sadie thanked them for coming to her party. Thankfully the ambulance had already left and there wasn’t anything to remind the women of who had lain there an hour before.

  Chief Woodstone asked if he could stay for a while and followed Sadie back upstairs after she let Mr. Bradshaw out of her office. Mr. Bradshaw sulked off into the bedroom while Sadie and Chief Woodstone joined Lucy in the dining room. Lucy was packing up what remained of her jewelry.

  “Let us help you with that,” Sadie said, grabbing a cloth bag and sliding a necklace into it.

  The three of them stood around the table packing away the rings, bracelets, necklaces and earrings that hadn’t been purchased.

  “Did you do okay, tonight?” Sadie asked. There seemed to still be quite a lot of jewelry left. Surprising because so many of the women had been covered in it.

  “I did very well,” Lucy said. “I brought more than usual because this group complained last time. They were very competitive even without Marjorie. What do you suppose happened?”

  “She was murdered,” Chief Woodstone said. “A blunt instrument to the back of the head.”

  “How do you know that?” Sadie asked. “You were with me the whole time.”

  “The ME texted Jude, and she told me while you were seeing people out,” he said.

  “Ugh. Now I’m not going to want to go out my front or my back door. I can’t believe it. No murders in Seagrove for something like fifty years and then there are two in a month and they are both right outside my shop.” Sadie suppressed a shudder.

  “Jude is going to have her hands full, finding the killer,” Lucy said. “Didn’t half the town hate the mayor?”

  “Hating the mayor and killing Marjorie are two different things,” the chief said. “Killing is very personal – unless you are a contract killer, and contract killers don’t bash people over the head.”

  “So you are saying that someone who doesn’t like the mayor can vote against them next election. But to kill her there would have to be a very personal motive. Or what seemed like a personal disagreement?” Lucy said.

  “Pretty much,” the chief said. “And right now I can think of two people who fit the bill.”

  “Can you tell us?” Sadie asked.

  “Its common knowledge,” the chief said, “but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t go around town talking about it. No need to get the wind-up.”

  “Who is it?” Lucy asked she had stopped packing up and was looking at Chief Woodstone with anticipation.

  “There is a developer that has been trying to put a hotel on property overlooking the ocean. City Council has blocked him at every turn. He might think getting the mayor out of the way would change the atmosphere in his favor.” The chief rubbed his forehead.

  “Ryan Pallone,” Sadie said. “He wants to ruin our one remaining bluff.” The chief nodded.

  “The other is Britt Rumstocking’s boyfriend. Marjorie has forbidden Britt to see him, and he threatened revenge. Did a bunch of property damage at the Rumstocking place doing donuts with his car and driving through hedges.”

  “Lawrence Hall,” Lucy said. “I’d forbid my kid to see him too, if I had one, I mean. That kid is up to no good and he thinks he’s untouchable because his dad is rich and on the town council.”

  “Is he untouchable?” Sadie asked. “Could you lose your job if you arrested him, Chief?”

  “This is Jude’s case, so I won’t be doing the arresting in any case. But no. The town council can’t touch the police department.” The chief held up a pair of earrings – a sliver of a silver moon with a small crystal dangling in the crescent. “You should have these,” he said to Sadie. “They make me think of you.”

  “Why do those make you think of me?” Sadie asked, perplexed. A breeze found its way into the room from the open balcony door and she shivered.

  “Because you are mysterious like the night?” The chief said. “No, I’m kidding. I’ll tell you some time, but not tonight.”

  “Why not tonight?” Lucy asked.

  “Because, I don’t want my explanation all tangled up with Marjorie’s murder. It needs its own moment.” The chief looked around. “Are we all done here?” Lucy nodded.

  “Good. Can we go into the living room and talk some more? I have some questions.”

  Sadie brought three wine glasses and the remains of three bottles of wine. “We might as well finish these up,” she said. “Or I’ll be using them for vinegar.”

  They settled themselves, Chief Woodstone on the couch next to Sadie, and Lucy in the comfy chair across from them.

  “What I want to know is if any of the women that were here tonight might have wanted Marjorie dead? Because, while it’s possible that her death outside your door was a coincidence, it’s very possible it wasn’t.”

  “None of them liked the way Marjorie always turned up early to these things and tried to get the best deals before the others even saw the merchandise. She would say that being mayor should have some perks, but most of the sales reps I know refused to cooperate with her. That doesn’t mean there weren’t plenty that caved. If there was only one of something, you could count on Marjorie going home with it.”

  “Anything pointing to a woman with a grudge this evening?” the chief asked.

  “Shannon Sinkwater spent a lot of time saying how happy she was that Marjorie didn’t show up. And she made that crack about karma. You heard that.” Sadie said.

  “Marjorie had a way of making herself unpopular,” Lucy said. “Just about anyone at the party could have held a grudge against her, including me and Sadie.”

  “Neither you or Sadie would hit someone over the head over a grudge,” the chief said. “Of that I’m confident.” He stood up and stretched. “It’s late. I’d better be going.”

  “Me too,” Lucy said. “Or I’ll end up sleeping on the couch and wake up with a crick in my neck.” Sadie and Mr. B. walked the chief and Lucy down to the street and helped Lucy load the car.

  “Lock the door when we go,” Chief Woodstone said.
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  “I have to take Mr. Bradshaw for his evening constitutional,” Sadie said.

  “Do you even have your keys with you?” the Chief asked.

  “As this little conversation could go on for a while, I will say goodnight,” Lucy said. She gave Sadie a hug and shook the Chief’s hand.

  “Good luck on the case,” she said. Sadie waved as Lucy drove away.

  “I’m just going to take Mr. B. across the street,” she said to the Chief, who was looking at her through slitted eyes. “I’ll never be out of sight of my door.”

  “I’ll stay here and wait for you,” he said. “Just to be safe.”

  Sadie made sure to avoid the spot Marjorie had been lying, and dashed across the street to let Mr. B. do his business. The Chief was leaning against her door waiting for her when she and Mr. B. got back.

  “Now go in and lock the door,” he said.

  “I like to stand on the sidewalk and watch my visitors leave,” Sadie said. “Closing the door on people seems so impolite.”

  “I’m not leaving until you are locked inside, Sadie Barnett.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “There is a murderer on the loose in this town, in case you’ve forgotten.”

  “Oh pooh. No one wants to murder me,” she said.

  “I’m sure Marjorie Rumstocking would have said the same thing. Now in with you.” He opened the door and held it for her.

  She stood for a moment and then gave up and walked in. Probably he was even more stubborn than she was. And besides that it was late. He closed the door behind her and she locked it.

  “Good night, Chief” she called through the door.

  “It’s Zack, Sadie. Zack.”

  She waited downstairs until she heard the jeep engine roar to life and then she and Mr. Bradshaw went upstairs to bed.

  The next morning dawned clear and warm. Not that Sadie was up to see the dawn. She barely had time to make herself coffee in her new one serving coffee maker before going down and opening the shop. Normally, she would have set herself up at a table on the sidewalk, with her coffee and the shop financials. But she imagined she could see a blood stain on the street where Marjorie had fallen, so she stayed inside.

  The shop had been open for an hour when Sadie’s new assistant, Betty Versa, came in. She was a little taller than Sadie, and a little rounder, with short black curls and dark, smiling eyes.

  “I’m here,” she said. “And I’ll never understand why you don’t just let me open in the morning. Do you ever have customers before nine?”

  “No, not really,” Sadie said. “But I’m so used to having an early cup of coffee with Roger next door, it’s hard for me to get out of the habit of getting up early. And once I’m down here I may as well open. Don’t you think?”

  “Just know that if you are ever not here in the morning, first I’ll open the shop and set everything up. And then I’ll panic and call the hospital and the police department,” Betty said.

  “Maybe you should check upstairs to make sure I didn’t just sleep in before you call the Chief. He has a tendency toward overdramatization where I’m concerned,” Sadie said. “I wish he’d get over it.”

  “It’s just because he’s got a crush on you, that’s all,” Betty said. “Give the poor man a break and ask him out on a date. It’s not dignified for the police chief to be running around all moon-eyed.” Betty bustled into the back room to start her day before Sadie could reply.

  Mr. Bradshaw patrolled the shop for unwanted interlopers such as chipmunks and mice while Sadie figured out what she must sell before she went on another buying trip. It was a little depressing as junk hadn’t been selling as well as she would have liked. But the bell over the door rang and she went out to help a dark-haired woman with glasses and her husband.

  The woman spent a lot of time looking at and taking pictures of the strangest items in Sadie’s shop. Which was okay by her, the strangest things were her favorites too. The husband followed her around saying “We don’t have any place to put that,” and “No.” But in the end, they went home with a giant stuffed alligator that had been living in a corner of the shop for rather longer than she would have liked. It might have sold sooner had she displayed it front and center, but it had given Sadie the creeps. And until the moment it sold she had regretted buying it. She helped to load it in their car and noticed that while the woman was busy making alligator puns her husband looked resigned.

  Sadie suppressed a shudder and waved goodbye to the alligator whose head was sticking out the back passenger window when Mara walked up.

  “Do you know who that was?” Mara asked.

  “Just a customer,” Sadie said. “I have her name on the sales slip. Why?”

  “She’s a celebrity, that’s why,” Mara said. “She’s one of the most popular bloggers on the Web.”

  “I’m not a big blog reader,” Sadie said.

  “You should look her up in the next day or two. That huge reptile she just bought will probably be on her blog.”

  “Alligator,” Sadie said. “She bought an alligator.”

  “That sounds exactly like her.” Mara continued on her way and she went back inside to get away from the blood stain.

  At lunch time, she put the closed sign on the door and loaded Mr. B. in the car. They drove west to the office complex on the outside of town and parked in front of Ryan Pallone Enterprises. It occurred to her as she beeped the car remote lock that she probably should have made an appointment. She went in anyway and found his office on the third floor overlooking the atrium.

  A very uptight looking receptionist guarded the entrance to Ryan’s office. She had her hair pulled back so tight that Sadie imagined it was like having a facelift. Anyone who could inflict that kind of pain on themselves was a force to be reckoned with. She was just working on what strategy to use when Ryan came out of his office. He stopped at stretched face’s desk and said he was going to lunch. Sadie started forward so that when he turned to leave he just about knocked her over. He was supremely apologetic, which is what she had intended.

  “I’m so sorry,” Ryan said catching Sadie gently by the shoulders. “I didn’t see you there.”

  “I’m sure it was my fault,” Sadie said. “Please don’t worry.”

  “Did you need something? I was on my way to lunch,” he said and glanced at his watch.

  Sadie thought he was trying to be courteous without having to change his plans. He didn’t really want to talk to her.

  “Perhaps I could walk you to the parking lot?” she asked.

  “Actually, I’m meeting someone downstairs in the café, but you could walk me there if you like,” he said.

  “Thank you,” she said and fell into step with him. “I was wondering if you knew that Mayor Rumstocking died last night?”

  “Yes, I heard it on the news this morning,” he said. “Tragic.”

  “I imagine her death will make your life much easier,” Sadie said, hoping he didn’t turn around and belt her.

  “Where are you from again?” He asked. “Are you a reporter?”

  “No I’m not a reporter,” she said.

  “From the police? If you’re from the police you have to identify yourself before questioning me,” he said stopping and turning to frown down at her.

  “No I’m not the police either,” she said and wondered if that was technically a lie. She wasn’t from the police, but she certainly would tell them everything she found out.

  “Then why are you questioning me?” he asked.

  “Marjorie was killed on the street outside my shop,” she said. “And that makes me an interested party.”

  “The death of Mayor Rumstocking may or may not make my life easier, as you put it,” he said.

  “That will depend largely on the City Council. Frankly, I’m appalled that you would ask me that question. I’m not a common thug.” He started quickly down the stairs and Sadie had to rush to keep up with him.

  “You’ve been fighting Marjorie Rumstocking over
that development for several years,” she said. “And I understand it’s gotten quite nasty recently.”

  “Yes, there’s been some name-calling on both sides, but it sounds to me like you’re inferring that I will benefit from her death. I assume that means you think I have a motive. I can assure you, Miss - whoever you are, that I had no part in killing our mayor. It angers me that you would even suggest it.” He stopped on the landing and faced her.

  “I didn’t suggest it,” Sadie said. “You jumped to that conclusion. For all you know, I’m predevelopment. Did it ever occur to you that I might want to put a shop in your hotel? I assume there will be a lot more foot traffic than in our downtown.”