As Sorrel tilted her head, her shoulder-length reddish-brown hair slipped across her face a bit. She pushed the wayward hairs behind her ear. “So maybe someone got the book out of her purse and then chucked the purse. It wouldn’t be any good to them.”
“That’s true,” Penelope said as she tapped Tom’s truck absentmindedly. “Come on. Let’s get back before Mabel strains her back trying to peer over that fence.”
Chapter 4
“What are we hoping to find again?” Penelope turned to look at Leo as they walked through the greenhouses. It was dark, but the path was lit by hanging lights strung up overhead as well as solar lights along the ground.
Leo shrugged and said, “Well, we’re still missing that book.”
“There’s no way to know if it’s still here,” Penelope complained. She sounded whiny even to herself.
Leo replied simply, “We don’t know that it isn’t either. That’s why we have to look.” They were silent for a moment before Leo offered, “Or we could do this during the day with all of your customers looking on?”
“No,” Penelope said firmly. “This is just fine.” Penelope unlocked the door and stood back so Leo could go in first. She followed him inside as she rolled her eyes. “I haven’t let anyone back in here since it happened. The plants could use a bit of watering.”
Leo nodded as he walked over to where the ground had clearly been disturbed by the events that had taken place in the greenhouse. “Looks like there was a bit of a struggle before Elizabeth fell or was pushed into the corner of the table.”
“You’re sure she died from that?” Penelope asked the question as she peered over at the corner of the planting table. She had never noticed how sharp the corners were.
There was little doubt in Leo’s words. “The medical examiner was quite sure. The blunt force trauma to her right temple was the only wound on her other than some superficial scratches that she probably got while falling or during the struggle.”
“The struggle,” Penelope said as she tried to imagine what had happened in the greenhouse. “She had to have fallen backward.”
Leo glanced over at Penelope. “Yep,” he said as he straightened up. “It looks like she fell backward and turned as if she was trying to catch herself. The turn is what made the corner hit her temple.”
“She could have just fallen. It could be a complete accident,” Penelope mused.
Leo clicked his tongue in thought. “That’s a fine theory, but someone had to let her in here. Then you have the other set of footprints.” He pointed down to the ground where the earth was disturbed. There were two distinct types of shoe prints. “We know that the flat-soled shoes were Elizabeth’s. The other print we haven’t found a match to.”
Penelope nodded slowly. “Don’t you think the person has ditched those shoes by now?”
“Probably,” Leo acknowledged. “The deputies got all of your and Sorrel’s shoe imprints yesterday, and they didn’t match.”
Penelope sighed. “But we knew they wouldn’t. You aren’t going to check Tom’s?”
“Not unless you think he wears a size six women’s shoe,” Leo said in amusement. “The only person we have found thus far with that size shoe is Sorrel.”
Penelope put her hands on her hips. “Is that why you wanted to start with the fruits and flowers side? Her shoes proved she wasn’t here, Leo. You know, I think Margaret wears that size shoe too; you want to check hers? She might have figured out how to be in two places at once.”
Leo rolled his eyes at the irritated woman. “People can throw out shoes, Penny.” Leo walked around the table. He frowned. “Was someone planting in here?”
Penelope threw her hands up. “Last week,” she said with a sigh. “She was transferring the seedlings into bigger pots.” She turned and walked out of the greenhouse with Leo behind her.
“Look, I know it’s hard when it involves someone you know or love, but I can’t just take her off the list.” Leo sounded sincere as he walked along behind Penelope, but she was not quite ready to just let it go.
They both turned at the sound of steps padding up behind them. Bramble nosed between them and rubbed his head against Penelope’s leg. “Wouldn’t it make more sense to ditch the book inside where it wouldn’t stand out as much?”
“Not really,” Leo said thoughtfully. “Remember, the person would have been in a hurry that night.”
Penelope shook her head. “But if it is someone who works here, we’ve all been here all week.” Pushing aside her annoyance, Penelope tried to be reasonable. “If someone ditched the purse in the parking lot, then they more than likely took the book with them.”
“That’s why I’ve arranged for a few deputies to help search the houses of all the Greene Field employees—at least the ones who were in town. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Tom about that. I don’t want there to be any doubt about whether he and Sorrel were tipped off and had time to hide any evidence.” Leo gave Penny a long look before he gave her a smile. “I don’t think Sorrel did it, but if I show any favoritism, it’ll put doubt on the case.”
With a nod, Penelope accepted Leo’s strategy. “I get it. I won’t say anything to anyone. It’s a good thing I’m a size nine.”
Leo laughed and agreed. “Yeah.”
Bramble took off with a run as he barked. “Bramble?” Penelope called out after the Lab. The dog ran along the fence line, and Penelope shook her head. “Sorry; there’s been a rabbit out here, and Bramble thinks he has to run it off.”
“It’s okay.” Leo laughed. “I like rabbits.”
Penelope huffed. “That just means you haven’t met any rabbits. They’re mean little things.”
“I think someone hasn’t forgiven Mr. Fluff for biting her in third grade,” Leo teased.
Penelope corrected him, “Mr. Fluff was a hamster.”
“He was?” Leo frowned. “Are you sure?” Penelope arched her eyebrow at Leo for the question. He raised his hands in surrender. “Okay. I honestly don’t remember. It was little and fuzzy.”
Penelope cleared her throat. “Back to the conversation at hand. Do you honestly—off the record—think that Sorrel could do something like that?”
“People do things unintentionally. It’s possible there was a struggle and Elizabeth just lost her footing. People panic and do things because they’re scared of the consequences to themselves or to someone they care about.” Leo folded his arms. “How long has Sorrel been seeing Tom?”
Penelope laughed. “They haven’t. They are still at the stage where they haven’t admitted they like each other to one another, let alone to anyone else.”
Leo nodded slowly and chuckled. “I remember that stage.”
“Don’t start with me, Leo,” Penelope said half-heartedly.
The man looked down at his feet. His curly brown hair had always made him look young and somewhat innocent to Penelope. “Did you know that Margie still hasn’t come down to the station?”
“Are you going to start arresting even the members of the staff who were out of state at the time of the murder?” Penelope looked out across the yard and whistled. “Bramble!” The dog barked and bounded back over to them.
Leo said simply, “Someone got into Greene Fields. Either they stole and copied one, or they had one. Are you sure that Tom couldn’t have gotten a key?”
“What’s with the Tom thing? You said yourself a woman called 911. The only shoe prints other than Elizabeth’s are size six women’s shoes. It doesn’t sound like it was Tom.” Penelope eyed Leo curiously. The man usually had a reason behind his questions. Leo had always had a strategic mind and could win any game that just needed a bit of logic, except for maybe Monopoly, because he would never cheat.
The brown-haired man looked at Penelope for a moment before he answered. “Tom doesn’t have to commit a crime to be involved. It’s possible that he’s merely trying to protect someone he loves.”
“You think he’s trying to protect Sorrel.” Penelope w
as in disbelief. “But she didn’t do it.”
Leo shook his head. “I never said she did, but Tom might think she did. If he’s lying because he thinks it’ll incriminate Sorrel, then he’s jeopardizing the whole investigation. We might never know the truth.”
Penelope saw Leo’s point. Would Tom do that if he thought Sorrel might get in trouble? She really couldn’t say. “Geez,” Penelope whispered. “Let’s finish looking this place over. At this rate, I’ll never get to sleep tonight thinking about all of this.”
Leo chuckled and followed Penelope toward the next greenhouse. “Let’s check all the houses and then we’ll give the building a quick look. I really doubt it will be inside. It would be easier to get rid of and retrieve the book if it were hidden in the greenhouses or out on the property somewhere.”
They went through the rest of the greenhouses that held fruits. After not finding anything in the flower section as well, they went through the vegetable greenhouses. Penelope turned with a sigh as they came out of the last greenhouse. “Well, that’s all the houses. Off to the building.” Penelope trudged toward the building, feeling the fatigue of the long day weighing her down. Bramble looked worn out as well; once inside, the Lab collapsed on the floor. Penelope shook her head at the dog as he sprawled out on his belly. “You lazy thing,” Penelope chided as she stepped over him to get into the offices.
Leo followed her and looked around the office. “Are you and Sorrel the only ones with access here?”
Penelope nodded. “Yeah. Margie just has the keys to the storage rooms on the other side of the hall, the greenhouses, and the gate.”
“Tom doesn’t have any keys, correct?” Leo looked over at Penelope for confirmation. Penelope gave him another nod, and Leo gave the room a quick once-over while she stayed near the door. When he was done, they checked the storage room, which was neat and tidy, making the search quick and easy. The seedling room was also easily glanced over. “There really aren’t many places to hide things in here.”
With a shrug, Penelope agreed. “Yeah. It’s never occurred to me how neurotic we are about labeling things until I started searching this place. We need to lay off the label maker.”
Leo chuckled. “At least it makes the search easier. I guess that’s it until tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” Penelope asked in trepidation. She did not want to look forward to another day of the same.
Leo stuck his hands back in the pockets of his field jacket. “Yeah. I thought I’d drop by in the morning with a deputy to search your house while we’re getting the others’ houses searched. It’ll look better if we don’t leave you out.”
“Yay,” Penelope said with mock enthusiasm. She turned out the lights and locked up, and Leo led the way to the gate. As Penelope locked it behind them, she said, “Feel free in the future, Leo, to exclude me anytime.”
Leo chuckled and jingled his keys. “I’ll take that into consideration,” he said as he turned to walk toward his black SUV.
Penelope sighed down at Bramble, who grinned up at her with his tongue hanging out. “What are you grinning at?” She ruffled the dog’s ears playfully as they started toward her dad’s truck.
Chapter 5
The next morning Leo showed up at the crack of dawn, and Penelope did her best to act surprised. She mostly just sat outside and drank her coffee with a scowl on her face, which she figured was probably what most people would do in such a situation. Bramble alternated between keeping Penelope company and following the men around the house as if he were keeping an eye on them.
Penelope’s phone started ringing an hour later, and she answered it, still scowling. “Yeah?”
“They’re searching my house,” Sorrel said in distress. “I went to school with those deputies, and they’re searching through my dresser drawers. My underwear is in there!”
Penelope could not help but laugh at the sound of utter panic in Sorrel’s voice. “Well, Leo and a deputy are here searching my house as well. I bet they are doing the same thing to Tom.”
“What could they possibly be looking for?” Sorrel sighed heavily into the phone. “What sort of moron murders someone then brings the crap home to keep on the mantle?”
Her coffee cup paused midway to her lips as Penelope smiled at her cousin’s observation. “It happens on those true crime stories,” Penelope said with amusement.
“Oh please,” Sorrel muttered. After a time, Sorrel groaned. “Tom’s probably just going to throw his hands up in the air and leave town after all of this trouble.”
Penelope took a sip of coffee and thought about that. “Nah, I doubt he will. If anyone understands how this stuff plays out and feels, then it’s Tom. Relax, Sorrel.”
“At least Leo is doing your inspection. I got Bobby Trenton.” Sorrel made a gagging noise that took Penelope right back to fifth grade.
Pushing some of her red hair behind her ear, Penelope grinned. “You mean Hotty Bobby?”
“Do not ever say that to me again,” Sorrel said dramatically. “I clearly must have been mixing up mouthwash with my contact lens solution to ever think that boy had a good-looking bone in his body.”
Penelope stuck her tongue into her cheek as she enjoyed herself. “I think there was only one bone on that boy you were interested in.”
“I think I am going to hurl,” Sorrel said, complete with mock gagging again.
A shadow fell over Penelope as she sat on the front porch swing. Leo had stepped between her and the morning sun that had just come up over the magnolia to the east. “We’re all done, Penny. Looks like it’s clear.”
“Is that Leo?” Sorrel asked. “You tell him that the next time I see him, I’m going to kick his—“
“Bye, Sorrel,” Penelope said as she hung up the phone. She gave Leo a smile. “Sorrel sends her best.”
Leo pursed up his lips and said, “I bet she does.” He looked around as the deputy came out. “See you back at the station,” Leo said to the man. The deputy gave Penelope a dip of his hat before he was off to the waiting patrol car. Leo took a deep breath. “The other searches should be wrapping soon. I’ll let you know what we find or don’t.”
“Thanks, Leo,” Penelope said with genuine gratitude. For all the hard time she gave the man since his return to Fall Creek, he really had been doing his best to be fair to her and Sorrel, even if her cousin did not see it.
Leo gave her one of those slight smiles of his that he does when he’s hesitant. “See you later, Penny,” he said softly. Penelope watched the man walk off. The chilly morning was already giving way to the warmth of the sun, and Penelope dragged herself into the house to get ready for the day.
“Sure, it’s a big Bertha, but I want the yellow one,” Gertie Simmons said emphatically as she tapped the package.
Penelope had been on duty at the cash register when the woman approached, complaining that her tomatoes had been yellow but then turned red. Penelope explained kindly to the woman, “That’s not the right kind if you want your tomato to stay yellow. There should be some hybrids and heirlooms in the seed room that will remain yellow even when ripe.” Penelope waved Margaret over, and she approached with a smile. “Could you show Mrs. Simmons where the yellow tomatoes are in the seed room, please?”
“Sure thing,” Margaret said happily. “Right this way, Gertie. By the way, how is that grandson of yours?”
The two women turned toward the building as Mrs. Simmons launched excitedly into telling Gertie all the latest exploits of her mathematician grandson. Penelope took a deep breath and sighed in relief when the women were safely away from her. “Hello there, Bert.” Penelope gave the man a bright smile. “We just can’t keep you away these days.”
“I’m afraid that I’ve developed quite the addiction to peppers this year. I am trying to plant a whole bed of them at home,” Bert said enthusiastically as he placed several seedlings on the table next to the register.
Penelope nodded. “Peppers are great for cooking. I love to keep some right by
the back door. Just pop out and grab some to go with anything.”
“My doctor says they are also good for my blood pressure,” Bert said, quite pleased with himself.
The smile on Penelope’s face was quite genuine. She had always liked Bert. Penelope told him his total and packed the man’s seedlings onto a soft cardboard tray, so he could carry them safely. “You have a good day, Mr. Griffin.”
“He looks happy,” Sorrel remarked as she came to lean on the table near the register.
Penelope grinned. “He’s discovered peppers.”
“I think he just likes plants that start with the letter P.” Sorrel grinned back at Penelope. They two of them shared a chuckle, then Sorrel’s face changed from jovial to sober. “I haven’t seen Tom all day.”
“Well, he’s off today,” Penelope said reasonably.
Sorrel puffed her lips with a sigh. “Yeah, but he usually stops in. You don’t think they found something, do you?”
“I seriously doubt it,” Penelope said and gave Sorrel’s arm a pat. “Relax. You and Tom are innocent, and I’m sure Leo will prove that—and if he doesn’t, I will.”
The sunlight hit Sorrel’s hair, making the red tint of her ruddy brown locks shine. Sorrel’s mouth dipped into a scowl. “I just hope it’s before the town convicts us of the crime.”
“Mayor didn’t seem too concerned about the murder from that article in the paper. What was it his big agenda was? Trash removal?” Penelope shook her head and clucked her tongue. “One might think he didn’t care that Elizabeth was dead.”
Mabel walked up and gave them a raise of her eyebrow. “Sounds like trash removal is just what they should call that murder.”
“You better be careful, Mabel, or Leo might get the idea that you were in on it,” Penelope chided the woman as she rang up the rosebush she had brought up to buy. “What size shoe do you wear?” Penelope asked the question in jest, but Mabel looked thoroughly confused.
Mabel eyed Penelope in confusion, her eyes crinkling as she squinted at the young woman. “I’m sorry?”
Narcissist in the Daffodils Page 3
