by J A Whiting
Kim’s hands shook and tears gathered in her eyes. “I’m afraid of them.”
“Why are you afraid?”
“I can’t say.”
Angie watched the girl’s face. “Do you need to talk to the police? I know Chief Martin and….”
Kim cut Angie off. “No.” She practically shouted the word. “No police.”
Angie let a few moments pass. “Tell me what’s going on, then I can help.”
“No.” The word came out as a whisper. “This is a mess that can’t be helped.”
Angie had a million questions that she wanted to fire at the woman sitting beside her, but she knew an interrogation would only result in Kim clamming up or bolting from the room. “Is there something you want me to do?”
“Will you come with me to the meeting?” Kim’s pale face was covered with blotchy spots and the rims of her eyes were red. “I don’t have family. My good friends are in Europe. I’m alone right now. No one will know if I’m in trouble.”
Angie’s eyes went wide. “What kind of trouble are you expecting?”
“I just don’t want to go alone. I want someone with me.” Kim’s voice cracked.
“Should you bring a lawyer with you?” Angie was about to tell the nervous young woman about her friend, Attorney Ford.
“I just want you to come. Just another set of ears. That’s all. That’s all I need.”
Angie wasn’t sure what to say. She thought that attending the meeting with Kim might reveal some important information, but she also had no desire to put herself in danger. For a minute, she wondered if Kim was trying to set her up, pretending to be afraid just to get her into a worrisome situation. Angie cleared her mind trying to pick up on Kim’s true intention. All she could feel was the girl’s distress. “What time is the manager expecting you?”
“In an hour.” Kim wrung her hands.
“Let me check my schedule for the day. Why don’t you head up to your room and try to relax and I’ll let you know in fifteen minutes if I can join you.” Angie forced a comforting smile.
Kim exhaled loudly. She nodded, gathered up her purse with a shaky hand, and went up to her room. Angie darted down the hall and into Jenna’s jewelry shop to talk over what just happened.
“I don’t know.” Jenna’s face was lined with worry. “Is it a trap? Is Kim really afraid of the Rider Firm? Is she in danger? Why does she have to go to the mansion?”
Angie shrugged. “I didn’t pick up any sensations that she’s lying to me or that she’s trying to trick me.” She gave her sister a grave look. “But I wouldn’t stake my life on it.”
“I don’t think you should go to the Winston house. It’s too isolated.” Jenna rolled a pencil over her desk top. “Have Kim tell the human resource manager to meet her at the resort. There are plenty of people around there. It would be much safer.”
“Good idea, but will the manager go for it?”
“If not, then don’t go with her.”
“I’ll go talk to Kim.” Angie went to the foyer and up the stairs to the second floor. She walked down the hall to Kim’s door and called her name. No one answered.
“Kim?” Angie called again and knocked on the doorframe. When there was no answer, she leaned her ear close to the door. She couldn’t hear any sounds in the room.
Angie ran down the stairs and stopped short. A chill skittered down her back.
The front door was ajar.
She rushed to the door and pulled it open. Her heart pounding, she stood on the front porch and looked out to the sidewalk. Turning, she noticed Kim’s car parked in the Victorian’s driveway, but the young woman was nowhere to be seen.
A meow caused Angie to whirl around and look back into the foyer through the open front door.
Euclid sat on the bottom step of the staircase. He turned and galloped up the stairs. Angie followed. The orange cat stopped at Kim’s door, waited for Angie to catch up, and when she was beside him, he stood on his back legs and used his front paws to push hard against Kim’s unlocked door. It opened.
Angie peeked in, and dread flooded her body. The desk chair was overturned and Kim’s purse was on the floor. She looked at the cat and whispered. “What’s going on, Euclid? Did someone get in here?”
Two doors down the hall, Mr. Finch, his eyes bleary and his hair sticking up, poked his head out of his room. “Is something wrong, Miss Angie?”
Angie nodded and Mr. Finch, leaning heavily on his cane, came up next to her to see what was so distressing. He looked into the room and saw the chair on its side on the floor.
“Have you seen Kim Hutchins?” Angie asked.
“I haven’t.”
“Did you hear anything just now? A scuffle? A shout?”
“Nothing, but I was asleep.”
The two stepped into the guest room and Angie told Finch about her conversation with Kimberley. They looked about for any indication of why the young woman might have rushed away. They hoped she’d left of her own accord. Mr. Finch held his cane in his left hand and carefully balanced his weight as he bent down to pick up the purse from the floor.
Angie turned. “Maybe we shouldn’t touch anything.”
Mr. Finch straightened up, a strange, faraway look on his face. The purse was in his hand.
A pulse of anxiety swam through Angie’s blood. She took a step towards the man. “What? What is it?”
Mr. Finch dropped the purse. His fingers trembled. He made eye contact with Angie. “I have an inkling of who attacked me last night.”
Chapter 18
“It was Kim? She attacked you?” Angie whispered.
Finch gave a slight nod. “I’m not positive, but I think it could be her.”
Angie plopped down on the bed. “She hit you?”
Finch sat down beside Angie. “I felt something when I touched her purse. It was a woman who hit me. Blonde hair.”
Angie groaned. “Everyone involved in this case is blonde.”
Finch’s face was serious. He blinked. “I’m getting some flashes of remembrance.” He clutched his cane. “Can we go downstairs and make some tea? Then I can tell you what I remember.”
Angie helped him up and they headed for the stairs. “Jenna’s downstairs. I’ll have her sit with us and you can tell us both what you recall.” She settled Finch at the dining table, retrieved Jenna, and then placed a call to Police Chief Martin. After she relayed what had happened, the chief said he would pay a visit to the Winston’s rental mansion and have a couple of officers drive around town to see if one of them could spot Kim.
Angie brought tea into the dining room. “Is your memory returning?”
Mr. Finch looked unnerved. He sipped his tea. “I’m having some flashes of insight.” The China cup clattered a bit from his shaking hand when he placed it back on the saucer.
“Can you tell us what you remember?” Anger flushed Jenna’s cheeks red when she heard that Kim was probably the one who had knocked the older man over the head.
“I was in the main living room of the Winston’s rental house walking about and listening to bits and pieces of conversation. A blonde woman brushed past me. I didn’t see her face. The crowd blocked my view, but I caught a glimpse of her from the back as she rushed away. She gave off an air of anger and fear. She was in such a hurry.” Circe jumped onto Finch’s lap and curled there. He stroked the soft black fur. “I decided to follow her. She went into the large room where the service was held. I entered just as she disappeared through the door that led to the hall.”
“You followed after her?” Jenna’s eyes were wide.
“I did. One of the benefits of getting older is that many people assume that you are feeble-minded and confused.” Finch winked. “I have been known to use that to my advantage.”
The corners of Angie’s mouth turned up.
“So I wandered into the hall planning to act like I was lost and looking for a rest room. No one stopped me. I moved down the hallway listening for any sound that might indi
cate where the woman might have gone.”
“You heard something?” Angie asked.
“I thought I heard a slight sound of movement or a cabinet door closing, so I stepped into the large den off the hall. I turned towards the windows and a bright flash exploded in my brain. That’s the last thing I recall. I think it was Miss Hutchins who hit me.”
Jenna almost leaped to her feet. “How dare she? That awful, terrible woman. Striking you like that. It’s a good thing she’s not here. I’d like to get my hands on her.”
“Did she have the gun with her? Could you tell?” Angie leaned closer.
“I don’t know.” Mr. Finch narrowed his eyes, concentrating. “I wonder if I had the opportunity to touch the gun, if I might sense something.”
“I’ll talk to Chief Martin, tell him what you remember. Maybe he can arrange for you to see the weapon.” Angie tightened her grip on her mug. “So Kimberley must be working with someone. Someone wealthy, of course, since she was paid a quarter of a million dollars. Maybe things have gone wrong and that’s why she’s afraid to meet with anyone from the Rider Firm.” Her voice quavered. “Is she the killer?”
“Well, if she didn’t pull the trigger, maybe she helped arrange the hit.” Jenna’s eyes were dark.
Angie’s eyes narrowed. “That woman at the memorial service who worked at Rider, she told me that Kim was Nelson’s assistant, that she traveled with him, handled his appointments, kept him on track, basically did all of his work. Kim must have known where he was most of the time, so it would be easy to arrange a hit.”
“The money she received.” Mr. Finch’s hands were steadier now. “That is an important link. It will lead to who Miss Hutchins is working with.”
Jenna sat up. “We should talk to Todd Moore, if he’s still in town. Maybe there are some clues in that heated discussion he was having with Kim on the terrace of the beach restaurant.”
“Let’s go right now.” Angie started to get up, but then she realized that they couldn’t leave Mr. Finch alone in the house due to his recent head injury. While she was trying to think what to do, the Victorian’s front door opened and Courtney entered the foyer still wearing her apron from the candy shop. Rufus Fudge, her sort of boyfriend, followed in after her. He gave a big smile to the people gathered around the dining table.
Courtney pulled the elastic from her ponytail and her hair fell in loose waves around her shoulders. “What’s cookin’?”
“Plenty.” Jenna got up. “Angie and I need to go out.” She gave her youngest sister a look so she would understand that it was important. “Can you stay here with Mr. Finch until we get back?”
“Of course.” Courtney asked Mr. Finch how his head was feeling and she was pleased to hear that he was much better. “Since you’re feeling better again, want to watch some crime shows with me?”
Rufus sat down at the dining table with Finch. “Or we could play a game of cards, if you’re up to it.”
Rufus and Mr. Finch had started playing cards together some evenings after dinner, and they were often joined by Courtney and Tom, who considered themselves cardsharks. Angie, Ellie, and Jenna, and sometimes Jack Ford and Josh Williams would play board games while the card players dueled with one another.
“That would be most pleasant.” Mr. Finch’s face brightened as Rufus went to the China cabinet to get the deck of cards. Finch gave Courtney a smile. “We could play cards in the family room and watch crime shows with you at the same time.”
“Let’s do it.” Courtney took off her apron and tossed it on one of the chairs. “I’ll get some tasty snacks for us. Meet me in the family room.”
Angie and Jenna headed for the front door. Jenna called to Mr. Finch, “Try not to beat Rufus too badly.”
***
The girls approached the Seagull Inn near the beach and maneuvered around the tourists. Walking into the lobby, Angie asked her sister, “Do you think Todd has checked out?”
“If luck is on our side, then he’s still here.” Jenna smiled at the clerk behind the reception desk. “Our friend, Todd Moore, is a guest here. We don’t think he’s checked out yet. Could you ring his room for us?”
“Who should I say is calling for him?”
Jenna hesitated for a second. “Tell him friends of Bethany would like to speak with him.”
The man punched some numbers and held the phone to his ear. When the call was picked up, the clerk spoke. “Mr. Moore, there are two friends of Bethany here in the lobby to see you.” The clerk listened to the response. “I’ll tell them.” He placed the phone on his desk. “I’m afraid that Mr. Moore isn’t able to come down right now. He said he’d try to catch up with you at another time.”
Jenna’s smile faded. She thanked the man, and she and Angie walked to the door and left the inn.
“Did you watch as he punched in the numbers?” Jenna squinted from the bright sunlight.
“Yup. 226. Did you see the same?”
Jenna nodded and gestured to the walkway that led to the guest cottages behind the main inn. The girls were familiar with the layout of the inn’s rooms and suites from staying sometimes at the hotel when they were children. “Shall we pay Todd a visit?”
When they reached Todd’s suite, they knocked, and after a few minutes, Todd opened the door. His face hardened when he saw them. “The desk clerk gave you my room number?” He stepped out and pulled the door closed behind him.
“No, he didn’t.” Jenna stood straight. “We watched the numbers he pushed when he called you.”
“Can we talk with you for a few minutes?” Angie made sure not to use a confrontational tone.
Todd started to make an excuse, but Angie interrupted. She decided not to reveal her suspicions that Kim might be the killer, but instead, use concern that Kim might be in danger to get Todd to talk with them. “Kim Hutchins is afraid of Nelson Rider’s family. She had an appointment to meet with them, but she didn’t want to keep it. She’s staying at our bed and breakfast. I went to her room and the door was ajar. Things were knocked over inside. I worry that she might be in trouble.”
Alarm spread over Todd’s face. He rubbed hard at his forehead.
“If you don’t want us to come in, why don’t we go somewhere else,” Jenna suggested. “There’s a place around the corner. We won’t take much of your time.”
Todd looked like he was searching for an excuse to avoid the girls. His eyes flicked around the hotel grounds and his breathing quickened. Worried that Todd might take off, Angie took a half step to the right to close the distance between her and Jenna to block Todd’s escape route.
Jenna looked at Todd hopefully. “Kim might be in danger. If we could just chat, even for a few minutes, it might help.”
Todd let out a quick breath. “There’s a place on the corner. A breakfast place, a small café. You know it?”
“Yes. Phil’s Restaurant.” Angie nodded.
“I need to finish up what I was doing before you knocked. Meet me at Phil’s in thirty minutes.”
Jenna’s eyes narrowed. “How do we know you’ll show up?”
Todd opened the door to his suite just a crack. “You don’t.” He stepped inside and shut the door.
The girls walked slowly down the brick walkway.
“Is he going to show?” Jenna took a look back to Todd’s suite.
“Who knows?” Angie checked her phone for messages.
“We need to watch the cottage to see if Todd will try to make a getaway.”
“Let’s lurk over there behind those trees. We can see if he comes out and if he heads to the café to meet us or if he takes off for the parking lot.” Just as Angie was placing her phone back into her purse, it buzzed. She looked at the incoming text. “It’s from Bethany. She needs to talk. Right away. It’s about Kim Hutchins.”
“Tell her to come to Phil’s Restaurant.” Jenna’s mouth turned up in a sly smile. “Then we can talk to Todd and Bethany at the same time.”
Angie texted a reply a
sking Kim to come to Phil’s, but she did not mention Todd. “Let’s see what she says.”
A new text came in. “Bethany says she’s at the resort and she can’t get away. She needs us to come there.”
“Should we divide and conquer?” Jenna asked.
“I’ll go back to the Victorian and take my bike to the resort. You stake out Todd’s suite and see if he heads to the café or not.”
Angie hurried away up Beach Street to the Victorian, playing the events of the past days in her mind. Kim Hutchins was looking more and more like she was either the killer or an accomplice. As Nelson’s assistant, she knew where and when he would be in a particular place. She must have received the big payout for her role in the murder. Now she was frightened of people associated with the Rider family and firm. Still, something seemed off. The cats didn’t like her, but they didn’t react like she was a killer. Angie thought that she and her sisters and Mr. Finch needed to go back to the crime scene bungalow and investigate, and the sooner it happened, the better.
She thought about Bethany and Todd, in love with each other, but destined not to be together because Bethany was supposed to marry Nelson. They would both benefit with Nelson out of the picture, which gave them motive to kill.
Was she missing something? Angie blew out a long breath. Something popped into her head and she stopped in mid-step. Uh oh.
She whirled and ran down Beach Street back towards the Seagull Inn.
Chapter 19
Angie raced into the inn’s parking lot and ducked into the corner where a huge Maple tree grew in the lawn at the edge of the hardtop. She was breathing hard. She removed her phone from her pocket and texted Jenna to ask if Todd had emerged from his cottage. When Jenna replied in the negative, Angie asked her to go and knock on his door, and if he didn’t answer, see if she could peek in his front window.
After a few minutes, the phone rang.
“No one answers and I can’t see in the window. The shade is drawn.”
Movement on the other side of the parking lot caught Angie’s eye. A woman wearing a big, floppy hat and sunglasses was walking towards some parked cars. Angie turned her attention back to her phone call with Jenna, but before she could say anything, she spun back to take another look at the woman. Something about the posture and the way she moved convinced Angie. She spoke into the phone. “Come to the parking lot. Hurry.”
