by Maci Grant
“Are you sure?” AJ narrowed his eyes.
“I’m sure. I couldn’t see his face, but those bright colors I could see.”
“See?” Blu smiled at AJ. “That should be enough proof for your uncle, right?”
“I don’t know.” AJ shook his head. “This is a beach town. Almost everyone has a windbreaker. I have one.” He met her eyes. “Does that make me a murderer?”
“No, of course not.” She dropped her gaze. “Could you just talk to your uncle?”
“Alright, I’ll see what I can do. Just promise me that you’ll wait here until I get a hold of him. Okay?”
“Sure.” Blu nodded.
She watched as AJ walked away to make the call. But who was he calling? Was he calling Kayla to warn her that the murder was about to be solved? Was he really calling his uncle to have her arrested? Or was he warning someone else entirely?
Blu still didn’t know why AJ felt so familiar to her. Despite her suspicions, her first instinct was to trust him. But she couldn’t take the chance that he was going to get rid of the only evidence that she might have. What if it was Brian on the other end of the line? After all, AJ did run the bar where Brian and Penelope explored the limits of their open marriage.
No, she couldn’t wait.
She watched Jeffery toss a ball for Duke. Duke chased it down with his tongue wagging as he ran. The dog knew how to chase down what he wanted.
So did Blu.
As soon as AJ was a safe distance away, she hopped into her car and took off. There was no way she was going to allow time for that windbreaker to disappear.
Chapter 29
She pulled up in front of the Rosses’ beach house. It was twice the size of the one that she stayed in. It was spotless, with top of the line architecture and perfectly manicured bushes. From the outside it might as well have been a palace, but she knew now that it hid something much darker inside its walls.
She dialed Maddie’s number. Maddie answered quickly.
“Hello?”
“Are you home?”
“Yes, the kids are in the pool. Why?”
“I’m out front.”
“What? Why?”
“Can you bring me the windbreaker?”
“Oh, Blu, I don’t know. This is crazy.”
Blu stepped out of the car and tightened her grip on the phone. “Please, Maddie. This might be my last chance to make this stick. If this doesn’t work, I’m going to have to give up.”
Maddie sighed. “Alright, I’ll let you in. Just give me a minute to get the kids out of the pool.”
While Blu waited on the doorstep, she heard a siren wail up the street. She turned to see a patrol car skid to a stop in front of the house. From the opposite direction a dark blue sedan pulled up.
Her heart fluttered as she realized that the driver of the patrol car was Chief Pitman. AJ was in the passenger seat. He glared at her through the windshield. She glanced away from his angry stare. But what made things worse was the driver of the blue sedan. It was Brian Ross.
Brian jumped out of his car and began walking toward her in the same moment that Chief Pitman and AJ climbed out of the patrol car. Blu was surrounded.
“What’s wrong? Is it one of the kids?” Brian sounded out of breath. His face grew a darker red with every second that passed.
“No, nothing like that, Mr. Ross.” Chief Pitman pulled off his hat and held it in his hand. “Could I speak with you for a moment?” His nature with Brian was far more charming than it had ever been with Blu.
Brian settled his gaze on Blu and then looked back at Chief Pitman. “Is this because of her? Something she said? Did she tell you that she came on to me and I turned her down?” He waved a hand in her direction. “She’s nuts!”
Blu opened her mouth to protest, but AJ shot her a look that silenced her. His teeth clenched so tight that she could see the movement of his jaw. Blu pursed her lips and tilted her head toward the door.
Just as she was about to point out where the windbreaker was, Maddie appeared at the door.
“Maddie? Do you know anything about this?” Brian’s fury was clear in the tone of his voice.
Maddie visibly winced and Blu mouthed an apology to her.
“Mr. Ross, do you happen to own a windbreaker?” Chief Pitman put his hat back on top of his head and lowered his voice.
“What?” Brian looked at him. “What if I do? Why does it matter?”
“It probably doesn’t. Can you please just answer the question, Mr. Ross?”
“Yes, fine. I just bought one recently. I haven’t even worn it yet.”
“Could we see it? Just for a second, Mr. Ross? Then we can put this craziness to rest.” Chief Pitman smiled. “That’s all it will take.”
Brian stared at him for a long moment. His brow furrowed.
Blu braced herself as she expected Brian to put up a fight.
Instead he just nodded. “Alright, if that’s what it will take to make this craziness end. But when I prove to you that there’s nothing interesting about my windbreaker, I want her arrested for harassment.” He jabbed his finger in Blu’s direction.
Blu took a sharp breath.
“Absolutely,” said the chief. “I would be glad to ensure that this young woman’s poor behavior is dealt with.”
“Good.” Brian smirked. “Why don’t you come with me? We can all look at it together.”
“Perfect.” Chief Pitman nodded.
“You too, Blu.” Brian smiled at her. “I wouldn’t want there to be a single doubt in your mind about me. That way when you’re sitting in your jail cell, you’ll have plenty of time to think about how wrong you were.”
Blu’s heart dropped. She studied Chief Pitman for any sign of reassurance that he wasn’t serious. Chief Pitman refused to even look in her direction.
Maddie led the way and AJ lingered behind the others. Blu stepped up beside him.
“I told you to wait.” He locked eyes with her.
Blu didn’t say a word. She moved past him and followed the others into the house.
Brian marched right into his bedroom and opened his closet. “There it is.” He chuckled. “Is it illegal to have bad taste?”
“No.” Chief Pitman ran his finger and thumb along the scruff of his beard. “But I thought you said you just bought the windbreaker?”
“I did. I always have my new items dry-cleaned before I wear them. I mean, the thought of putting on something that hasn’t been properly cleaned—well, it makes me very uncomfortable.”
“Ah.” Chief Pitman nodded. “I see. I suppose if there was any evidence on the windbreaker it’s gone now.”
“Why would there be any evidence on it?” Brian glared at him. “I didn’t do anything to anyone.”
“I understand.” Chief Pitman gestured to the door. ‘We’ll leave you to your peace.”
“Wait!” Blu stepped forward.
“Blu, enough.” AJ’s eyes snapped toward her. “There’s nothing that can be done.”
“I’ve been a nanny long enough to know one thing.” She walked over to the closet and plucked the windbreaker from the rod.
“Don’t!” Brian warned.
“What is it?” Chief Pitman looked at her with interest.
“Brian, you claimed that you never wore this? Not even once?”
“Not even once.” Brian shook his head. “This is getting to be pathetic.”
“Well, as someone who has spent many summers on the beach I can tell you that no amount of washing—no amount of dry cleaning—ever gets all the sand out of pockets.” She lifted the plastic that covered the windbreaker. “So why don’t we just have a look?”
“I don’t want her pawing all over my things!”
“I’ll do it.” Chief Pitman took the windbreaker from Blu. “You don’t mind, do you, Brian? If you’re telling the truth, there shouldn’t be a trace of sand in these pockets.”
“Fine.” Brian shoved his hands deep into his pockets. “Look al
l you want.”
Chief Pitman slid his hand into one of the pockets. He paused, and then looked over at Brian. “Do you want to change your story?”
“No, sir.” Brian locked eyes with him.
“Are you sure?” Chief Pitman pulled his hand out of the pocket and rubbed sand from his fingertips.
“That doesn’t prove anything!” Brian growled.
“It proves that you were on the beach that morning. It proves that you lied about being there.” Blu shook her head. “What I don’t understand is why? It doesn’t seem like you were jealous of Sam’s relationship with Penelope.”
“Oh please.” Brian pressed his palms to his forehead. “Look, how much is it going to take to handle this? I’ll get my checkbook out right now.”
Chapter 30
Chief Pitman shifted his hips and rested his hand on his gun holster. “I can’t really calculate that without knowing the whole story.”
Brian rolled his eyes. “It doesn’t matter. There isn’t a shred of evidence against me.”
“Except what our witness who saw you in that windbreaker heard you say to Sam.” Blu brushed off AJ’s restraining hand and stepped forward.
Brian arched an eyebrow. “Oh? What was that?”
“You were upset, but not because Sam rejected your wife, or because Penelope was in love with him. You were upset because Sam wasn’t going to keep his mouth shut. Isn’t that right?”
A grimace rippled across Brian’s perfect features. “No.”
“Isn’t it?” Blu smiled. “Of all the things in the world that you value, there’s only one thing that you would kill to protect, right? Your reputation.”
“It wasn’t my fault!” Brian roared, which drew the attention of everyone around him. “All he had to do was accept the pay-off, just like everyone else always did. He signed the paperwork, didn’t he? Didn’t he, AJ?”
AJ balled his hands into fists. “That didn’t give you the right to kill him, Brian! Why would you do something like that?”
“Because Sam wasn’t the only man that Penelope was interested in. She and Ian West were seeing one another.”
“So?” Blu frowned.
“So, Ian was married too. Sam knew that. When Penelope wouldn’t take no for an answer, Sam threatened to tell Ian’s wife about Penelope. If he did, it would get out to everyone. There would be no stopping it. It would make Penelope look weak, and it would ruin her business.”
“And that’s a reason to kill a man?” Blu narrowed her eyes. “He was trying to be honest.”
“All he had to do was take the money. When he turned down Penelope’s offer, and then mine, I knew that things were out of control. I knew that there was only one option to make it right. I did it to protect her.”
“Don’t lie, Brian, not now. Don’t lie when you know that you did it to protect yourself, and your lifestyle. You like the freedom that Penelope gives you, you like the money, and all of that was going to disappear if Sam spoke the truth.”
“I was just going to scare him.” Brian looked down at his own hands. They trembled as he stared at them. “I was just going to hold him under the water long enough to get my point across. But he was stronger than I expected. I had to use the surfboard to hold him down—and the cord got tangled. When I tried to bring him to the surface, he fought me. He almost pulled me under.” He looked up at Chief Pitman. “I tried to pull him up. Don’t you see? It really was just an accident.”
“No.” Blu glared at him. “An accident that would never have happened if someone didn’t create a dangerous situation. It wasn’t an accident. It was murder.”
“We’re going to need to clear the room.” Chief Pitman spoke into his radio to summon backup. Then he turned Brian to face the wall.
“I should go check on the kids,” Maddie mumbled.
“I’ll go with you.” Blu linked her arm through Maddie’s and guided her out of the room.
“I can’t believe it’s true. I can’t believe it.” Maddie shook her head. “How can this be happening, Blu?”
“There will never be a good explanation for it, Maddie. The important thing now is that we protect the children as much as possible from what their father has done.”
“You knew, didn’t you, Blu? Somehow you knew the entire time.”
“I didn’t know as much as you think. I wasn’t sure until the very end. I thought I was about to experience life behind bars.”
“Blu?” AJ stepped out in the hallway with them.
“Yes?”
“Can I steal you away for just a moment?”
“It’s okay.” Maddie nodded. “‘I’ve got to call Penelope.”
Once Maddie was headed down the stairs, Blu turned back to face AJ. “I know, I know—you told me to wait.”
AJ studied her for a long moment. “You know, you were right about me.”
“What?” Blu’s eyes widened. Was he still somehow involved in the murder?
“I’ve been turning a blind eye to what happens at the bar, because the money is good. I’m going to change that. From now on, the only thing exchanged in the elite section will be alcohol and beer nuts. Maybe if I had been more honest from the start, this wouldn’t have happened to Sam.”
“It’s not your fault, AJ. It’s no one’s fault but Brian’s. He’s the one who made the choice to take the life of another person—an innocent man.”
“Maybe.” AJ grimaced. “But I can’t help but wonder if things might have been different.”
“A million things could be changed to save Sam’s life, but now it’s too late for that. He’ll have his justice, and a dangerous man will be in prison. You played a big part in making that happen,” Blu said.
“I guess.” He slipped his hands into his pockets. “Don’t forget, you still owe me that drink.”
“Oh, yes.” Blu’s heart suddenly dropped. She checked the time on her phone. “Oh no, I have to pick up the kids!”
She ran down the stairs and out the door to her car. With a quick wipe of her eyes, she drove to the birthday party.
Maybe she had solved a murder, but all that really mattered to her was making sure that Marley and Joey made it home to their parents—happy and safe.
Summer in Diamond Bay
(Book 2)
Sandcastles and Secrets
A Nanny Blu Cozy Mystery
By
Maci Grant and Lillianna Blake
Copyright © 2015 Maci Grant
Cover design by Beetiful Book Covers
All rights reserved.
Chapter 1
“Oh, it’s so sticky!” Joey sighed and shook his hand right in front of Blu’s face.
Blu ducked away from his Popsicle-juice-covered fingers and handed him a napkin. “If you would eat it a bit faster it wouldn’t melt all over you, Joey.”
“But it’s too cold to eat fast!” Joey frowned.
Blu looked at his sun-reddened cheeks and his drooping eyelids. The Popsicle wasn’t the problem. Joey was tired.
Over the past few days summer had kicked into high gear. With all of the kids’ summer activities they spent just about all of their free time on Diamond Bay’s beach. From sunup until sundown, the kids were active and having a blast, but by the end of the day they were tired—especially Joey, who didn’t get a nap in the middle of the day like Marley still did.
Marley stumbled backward a few steps. She couldn’t see where she was going because she had the Popsicle tipped upside down in her mouth and her head tilted back as far as it could go.
“Marley! Careful!” Blu guided her away from the statue she was about to bump into.
The patio off the back of the beach house was one of Blu’s favorite places to be. As she gazed out at the waves the last of the sunlight trickled across their surfaces. She took a deep breath of the sea air and let the fact that this was her life sink in. Just as she drifted off in her mind, a shrill voice snapped her back to the present moment.
“Hi, kiddos!” Maddie jogged up
to the patio with a huge smile on her face.
Blu couldn’t help but smile back. Maddie was her best friend and always had a way of being loud, even when her mouth was closed. Her presence was vibrant, attention-grabbing, and more than a little demanding.
“Hey, Maddie, how did your day go?” Blu stood up and gave her a quick hug.
“It was fine, but really, how many times can you go to the aquarium? We’re at the beach, right?” She laughed. “Anyway, I stopped in town on the way home and I just wanted to let you guys know that the Beach Bum is hosting a sandcastle competition. It’s open to everyone—you just have to go down there to sign up.”
“Oh, can we sign up Blu, can we, please?” Joey’s pout turned into excitement as he met her eyes. “It’ll be so much fun! Please say yes?”
“Yes, of course we can.” Blu smiled. “I’m glad to see you excited about something, Joey.”
“Excited isn’t the word! I’m going to go draw up plans!”
“Oh, he’s so cute.” Maddie shook her head as Joey disappeared into the house. “I have to say, I’m not really looking forward to it. But the kids talked me into it, so we’ll be doing it too.”
“Give it a chance, you might have fun.”
Blu reached out to untangle a few strands of Marley’s hair.
“Honey, with what I pay for these nails…” Maddie displayed her fingernails for Blu to see. The coloring and shading resembled the waves on the horizon.
“They are beautiful, but it is the summer.” Blu smiled at her.
“Yup, and my kids are older—they can play by themselves.” Maddie winked at her. “I have to go. I have a date!”
“Another one? Same guy?”
“Different guy. Wish me luck!”
“Good luck.” Blu smiled.
Maddie rushed off looking quite excited. Blu was excited for her. They both worked as nannies, and it was hard to remember sometimes that they were adults. Maddie needed a fun night out. Blu, on the other hand, was content to tug Marley inside for a game of Go Fish.
