The Dana Potter Cozy Mystery Collection

by Liz Turner

  “Actually, I think she was. That was her way of letting you know that she was not who you thought she was. She was Laney, and Laney dated Smith. Taylor did not. She wanted, I’m guessing, to warn you against telling her parents. Of course, her state didn’t allow her to see how silly that was. It would have been far more effective to just introduce Smith as a friend. You wouldn’t have been suspicious at all!”

  “This all sounds extremely strange, I must admit.”

  “The mind is a wonderful thing, Dana. But when a crack develops, it tends to splinter quickly.” He smiled and gripped Dana’s hand. “That’s why I get such satisfaction out of my work. I help make people whole again.” He made a show of laying his napkin across his lap. “Now,” he rubbed his hands together eagerly, “let’s get into this crab, shall we?”

  Dana smiled and nodded. Inwardly, she was still shaken, but Jeffery’s confidence was contagious. He had such a gentle and expert manner about him that immediately made her believe everything would be okay, just as he said.

  ***

  After lunch, Dana drove Jeffery to the Reinhart house. She took a deep breath and rang the bell.

  A prim-looking Sara Beth answered the door in her usual cheerful manner. “Hello, Ms. Potter! Who’s this handsome gentleman you’ve brought with you?”

  “Hello, Sara Beth. This is a friend of mine, Dr. Redding. He’s the best psychologist in the Southeast. I’m not saying that lightly—he has an award from the medical board and everything.” Dana laughed gently.

  Sara Beth giggled and shook Jeffery’s hand, clearly thrilled to have such a distinguished man in her home.

  “Dana always goes a little overboard with the introductions,” Jeffery said, smiling his signature warm grin.

  “Well,” Sara Beth hesitated, looking over her shoulder, “I didn’t expect company this afternoon, so the house isn’t in order. But I’ll be glad to have you, anyway. I have a pitcher of iced tea in the fridge!”

  Dana and Jeffery stepped into the house. It was decorated perfectly, not a space on any surface cluttered. Plenty of knickknacks decorated the end tables and ample shelving. A spotless, impressively woven rug covered the bright wood floors in the living room. Dana almost commented on how clean the place was, wondering what Sara Beth could have meant by the house not being in order.

  After Sara Beth had poured them tall glasses of tea and they were all sitting around the living room coffee table, she finally broached the obvious question. “So, why do we have the pleasure of having you two here today?”

  Dana exchanged a look with Jeffery, knowing she had to take the lead on this. She took a breath, trying to determine the best way to delicately state their intentions. “Has Constable Hollows been here this morning?”

  Sara Beth blinked. “Why, no. But he did leave us a voicemail this morning. I haven’t had a chance to call him back yet. He said something about…” she cleared her throat, “a crime? I must admit, I was a little confused. I mean, we don’t have any crime here. But I thought it must have been significant if the constable was making calls to all the townspeople. Do you know something about it, Ms. Potter?”

  Dana nodded. “A young man from Jericho was stabbed late last night.”

  Sara Beth gasped.

  “He’s going to be all right,” Dana said.

  “My goodness! And the police think the culprit is still at large? He could strike again?”

  “Not exactly,” Dana said slowly. “I wanted to come here, actually, to see if Taylor was okay.”

  “What?” Sara Beth said, alarmed.

  “Well, Smith Cox, the young man who was stabbed, is her boyfriend.”

  Sara Beth looked genuinely stunned. “No…” she said and held up a finger. “No, Taylor doesn’t have a boyfriend. She’s not even dating anyone, I’m sure of it.”

  “You can ask him yourself. They’ve been dating for three months. He’s a great young man. I think you’d like him.”

  “I—I don’t understand.” Sara Beth looked from Dana to Jeffery.

  “Why don’t you tell Mrs. Reinhart what you told me, Dana?” Jeffery said gently.

  Dana nodded and proceeded to explain how Taylor had been going by a different name and acting like a different person with her and Smith. “And last night, Smith confronted her. She snapped, Sara Beth—that’s the only way I can put it. She stabbed him and left him on that street.”

  Stricken, Sara Beth began to wheeze with panic.

  Dana swiftly got up to pour her a glass of water while Jeffery used his expertise to calm her down.

  “Your daughter is unstable, Mrs. Reinhart. I think she needs to be evaluated for mental health issues,” Jeffery said eventually.

  “What? I just don’t understand…” Sara Beth said. “Why all the lies?”

  “It’s possible that with her condition, she felt like she needed to separate these two parts of her life.” Jeffery paused tactfully. “Were you or your husband ever insistent that she not date yet? I understand how it is with daughters.”

  “I mean, Lloyd and I always told her to wait until she graduated high school to date, and to only date when she was ready for marriage. I suppose Lloyd could be a little harsh with her whenever she hinted at a boy she liked. Do think that’s why—oh my goodness!”

  Jeffery put a calming hand on her shoulder. “Of course not. You did the best you could as parents. It’s her illness that caused this, not you. I was just trying to find a correlation between Smith and her double-life.”

  Sara Beth began to cry softly, the tears steadily rolling from her eyes. “What do we do?”

  “I think you and your husband should make time to bring Taylor in for a consultation. I’ll be in town for a few days. I’m staying down by the hospital in Savannah. In the meantime, don’t act any differently with Taylor, and especially don’t bring Smith up. She’s unstable and I’m not sure what she might do if pushed. Remember, last time she was forced to confront the truth, she stabbed the messenger.”

  Though Sara Beth was still crying, she promised to make an appointment for Taylor as soon as possible and stated she would contact her husband shortly.

  When they left, Dana noticed a flurry of movement at the top of the stairs. A sick feeling settled in the pit of her stomach.

  Chapter 10

  All About a Choice

  “How does Taylor Reinhart spend her weekends?” Jeffery asked during the drive to Dana’s house.

  “I thought you might ask that. You’re thinking of trying to speak with her prior to the appointment, aren’t you?”

  “How did you guess?”

  “I suppose I just know how you operate.”

  Jeffery cleared his throat. “The Reinharts seem like very controlling people. Very nice, but set in their ways, nonetheless. I’d like to have a chance to speak with Taylor without them present. Since she’s under eighteen, her parents will have the right to be in the room with her at her appointment.”

  “Is your little plan…well…?”

  “Legal? Certainly. I’m just going to speak to her as a friend, not as a doctor.” He winked.

  Dana grinned. “Ordinarily, I’d imagine she’d go into town and hang out at the Blue Swallow reading, as she does most Saturdays. However, with her parents on high alert now, they may not let her out of their sight.”

  Nonetheless, after a quick rest at Dana’s house, the two headed to the Blue Swallow to see if Taylor would be there, or if she would arrive sometime that afternoon. When they got there, the café was busy as usual on a Saturday, with families eating early dinners and book clubs meeting.

  Dana spotted Jenny Meltzer sitting with her grandson, eating a cookie. “Jenny!” she waved.

  Jenny looked up, delighted to see her old friend. She waved Dana and Jeffery over. “How are you?” she asked. Then, without waiting for an answer, she lowered her voice. “Have you heard about that stabbing? That boy from Jericho?” Her eyes were wide with disbelief.

  Dana gathered the incident had quic
kly become the talk of the town while she was out getting Jeffery from the airport. “I did, I’m afraid. It’s just awful.”

  “And here, in our town? I hope they catch the guy who did it,” Jenny said. “I don’t remember such a thing happening hardly my whole childhood, and certainly not since I’ve been back.”

  Her grandson, a boy of about five, pantomimed getting stabbed in the heart and dying.

  “Jeremy!” Jenny scolded lightly. “What did I say? This is not something to joke about.”

  “I imagine they’ll be catching the person who did it soon enough,” Dana said. “I bet the constable already has a pretty good idea who did it.”

  “I heard the boy’s parents said that he didn’t remember anything about it.” Just then, Jenny seemed to notice Jeffery as he happily played patty-cake with her grandson. “My goodness, I’ve lost my head!” Jenny exclaimed, embarrassed. “Didn’t even introduce myself. I’m Jenny Meltzer. Dana and I go way back.”

  “Jeffery Redding. Pleased to meet you.” He stuck out his hand to shake hers. “Dana and I go way back as well, I’d say.”

  Jenny cocked her head at him. “Can’t be as far as us. You’re far too young!”

  The three laughed, but shortly, the conversation turned serious again. Jenny studied Dana. “You know,” she said, shaking a finger mockingly in Dana’s direction, “if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you knew something about this stabbing that you aren’t letting on.”

  “But you do know better,” Dana replied with a wink.

  “I just assumed you wouldn’t know anything about a Jericho stabbing. But then again, you have a knack for being involved in anything remotely dramatic that happens in town! And you keep glancing at the door—both of you do, actually. What’s going on?”

  Dana laughed, unable to help herself. Jenny certainly could read her like a book. “Let’s just say I’m helping the constable on this one, in my own way.” She shot her friend a look, as if saying, I’ll tell you all about later, but please drop the subject for now.

  Jenny seemed to take the hint and proceeded to converse with Jeffery about how he found himself in Pippin.

  Soon, the door to the Blue Swallow chimed as someone entered. Dana looked up to see Taylor walking in and making a beeline for a group of young girls in a corner booth. Dana jerked her head at Jeffery to signal him, and the two went through the double doors by the cash register toward Lydia’s office, the owner of the Blue Swallow.

  “Hey there, Ms. Potter. What’s going on?” Lydia asked cheerfully.

  “We need a favor,” Dana said and quickly explained the situation.

  Lydia listened solemnly though her shock was obvious. “I just…Wow. Yeah, I can help. Why don’t you two take my office?” She disappeared through the doors out into the eating area and then returned about five minutes later with a confused-looking Taylor in tow.

  Taylor eyed Dana and Jeffery and then turned to Lydia. “What’s going on? Did their bills get mixed up somehow too?”

  Dana gathered that Lydia had told her a fib about a problem with her bill to get her to come back to the office.

  Lydia simply shrugged and left the room quietly.

  Taylor looked around, unsure. “Um…Hi Ms. Potter,” she said shyly, darting a glance at Jeffery.

  Dana nodded at Jeffery to take the lead.

  “Hi, Taylor. My name is Dr. Redding,” he said in a soft and soothing voice meant to put Taylor at ease. “I was hoping you could answer some questions for me.”

  “About what?” Taylor asked flatly.

  “About the young man who was stabbed last night. Smith Cox. Do you know him?”

  “No, I don’t. But I heard about the stabbing. That was just awful. Who would do something like that?” She fidgeted, twirling the ends of her hair in her fingers.

  “I heard that Smith Cox was your boyfriend. Is that true?”

  “What? No. I’ve never met him in my life.”

  “Oh, that’s right. I’m sorry, I actually meant to ask if you’d ever met him, maybe even by a chance encounter in the park? Or at his home in Jericho? In that rambling old pickup truck he drives?”

  “N—no,” Taylor said, though it was clear she wasn’t sure. Her eyes started to glaze over.

  “Perhaps your friend Laney introduced you?”

  “Laney?”

  “Yes, Laney. She and Smith were really close. They’d been dating for three months until last night.”

  “They’re not dating anymore?”

  “Well, you can imagine that Smith isn’t keen on dating the girl who stabbed him, right? He didn’t deserve that.”

  Taylor’s eyes flickered for a moment. Then, her face drew into a smirk.

  Dana swallowed nervously, watching the girl’s posture instantly change. Her shoulders slumped, her hip jutted out, and her arms became looser and wilder, no longer pinned to her sides.

  “He was saying crazy, damaging things,” Taylor said, her voice suddenly taking on a gravelly tone. “He deserved it more than anybody.” But just as quickly as she had transformed, she began to look around, clearly disoriented. Her eyebrows drew together, and she looked at Dana and Jeffery with an unfocused gaze. “Who are you?” she asked fearfully. “What am I doing here? Where am I?” She twirled around as if looking for an exit, but didn’t seem to know what to do with the door behind her; instead of trying to open it, she just became more and more agitated.

  Jeffery gripped the girl by her sides and led her to a chair. “Laney, it’s okay. You’re in Pippin. In the Blue Swallow. I’m a friend. I know things have been very confusing for you for a while, but we’re going to sort it all out.”

  Dumbfounded, Taylor slumped in the chair. “I’m not going to jail. I won’t confess! Smith was threatening me!”

  “How did Smith threaten you, Laney?” Jeffery asked.

  “He said he didn’t want to be a secret anymore, and that he was going to tell Taylor’s parents!” Her eyes widened, and she quickly shook her head back and forth. “No, no, no. I told him no. He didn’t get it! He didn’t understand the danger! He was too dumb to see what was right in front of him!”

  “What was the danger, Laney?”

  Taylor stared at them incredulously. “You’ve got to be kidding me. No one knew, of course. No one knew. That’s why she needed me to protect her. Such a fragile, stupid girl.”

  Jeffery remained quiet, waiting for her to continue.

  Moments later, she did. “Her father does not like it when Taylor goes against his wishes. Even for a sweet, harmless boy like Smith. Taylor’s father has a strict policy against dating before graduation, and if he knew about Smith…” Her eyes welled with tears, but she blinked them away, not bothering to wipe them off her face as they rolled down her cheeks. When she spoke again, her voice was so soft, Dana had to lean in to hear clearly: “He hurts her…” Abruptly, Taylor stood and slammed her palm on the wooden desk. “Better Smith than Taylor! Nobody understands that!”

  Dana’s heart pounded. She looked at Jeffery. He didn’t seem to be as surprised as she was about this revelation; he just looked immensely sad. But when he met her gaze, he mouthed for her to call an ambulance.

  Dana understood. They needed to get Taylor out of there and into the care of a doctor immediately, but had every reason to suspect the girl wouldn’t go on her own volition.

  Dana dialed 911 and explained the situation and then sent a text to Constable Hollows. She almost never sent text messages, usually finding all those tiny letters frustrating. But at the moment, she had no interest in explaining the details over the phone.

  Hello Constable Hollows, it’s Dana Potter. Taylor Reinhart confessed to stabbing Smith, but she also leveraged some serious allegations against her father. We’ve called an ambulance for her. Please meet us at Savannah General as soon as possible.

  ***

  Dana sat on a bench outside the Blue Swallow until she heard the ambulance sirens blaring in the distance. Then she turned and went back insid
e.

  ***

  Two weeks later, Dana stepped off the plane onto the runway at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson Airport.

  She was finally paying Jeffery a proper visit. He and Jessie had invited her to stay with them for the weekend while they returned to all her favorite spots in the city.

  Dana looked around at all the hustle and bustle in the busy airport and pulled her suitcase neatly behind her, navigating the crowd like a seasoned pro. A strange sense of nostalgia washed over her. The city was exciting, but she knew that Pippin, with its slow way of life and close-knit community, was where she belonged. Even despite the ugliness of the past month.

  The hectic past month was partly the reason she had so readily accepted Jeffery’s invitation; she’d needed to get away for a short while. To allow herself to fall in love with the town again, for there was certainly a lot of good in Pippin.

  Taylor Reinhart had been admitted to a psychiatric recovery center out in the country after spending a few days in the psychiatric wing in the hospital to make sure she was stable enough to travel. Smith had recovered after another few days, and not a single day had passed where he wasn’t at Taylor’s side during visiting hours, even when she didn’t recognize him.

  Dana reasoned it would be a few months before Taylor understood what she’d done and begun to fall in love with Smith all over again, this time as herself. The thought made her smile.

  The constable had made swift work of investigating Taylor’s allegations against her father. After Sara Beth heard what Taylor had said, she dropped her perfect hostess routine with an immediacy that had stunned Dana. Sara Beth said that she’d believed the physical abuse was only directed at her, but when she heard he’d also been knocking Taylor around, she was furious. She divorced Lloyd immediately and her cooperation with the police made it easy to arrest him. He was now awaiting trial.

  From what Dana had seen on the news, Lloyd Reinhart seemed to be genuinely remorseful for his actions. Nonetheless, she was certain he would be in prison for a long time.

  Dana sighed. Like all places on earth, she supposed, Pippin had its good and its bad. At least in Pippin, however, people like Constable Hollows usually ensured the good always triumphed.