CranBuried Coffee Cake (Black Cat Cafe Cozy Mystery Series Book 7)

by Lyndsey Cole

  “She’s feeling better, but where have you been? Leona said you were on your way here at least an hour ago.”

  “I wanted to talk to Edwin Fleming again. He—”

  “Annie. You need to let Tyler and Christy do their job. They came here looking for Phyllis. I don’t know what she’s been up to but we were all afraid you were somehow involved.”

  “Phyllis? Did she murder Alice?”

  “That’s not what I said.” He pulled her up the stairs. “We can talk about it in our room. Mia and Leona are waiting there for us.”

  The grand suite was quiet. None of Leona’s out of tune singing of Christmas carols or even a soft conversation to break the silence. Dead quiet. Even Jason and Annie’s footsteps were muffled by the thick carpet.

  Mia sat in a wing back chair buried under a thick comforter. She held a teacup between both hands, maybe more to warm her hands than to soothe her throat.

  Leona wrapped her arms around Annie. “You’re safe. We couldn’t help but imagine the worst.”

  “Why all the drama?”

  Leona looked at Jason. “You didn’t tell her?”

  He shook his head. “Not everything.”

  “Sit,” Leona ordered as she pointed to the love seat. “Martha heard through the grapevine, probably someone she knows that works at the police department that Edwin Fleming called about a break-in at Alice’s house. He claimed he saw someone inside. The description matched Phyllis.”

  “I was at his house just before I came here. And,” she looked at the others, “Tyler was leaning against my car as cool as a cucumber when I left. Edwin Fleming is not the most reliable witness, in my opinion.”

  “Tyler probably had to check it out. Did you talk to him?” Jason asked, an edge in his voice whenever Tyler was even remotely connected to Annie, given their past relationship.

  “Nothing much. He didn’t seem at all interested in what I had to say.” She almost passed on Tyler’s message to her mother but decided she didn’t want to be his messenger.

  “Did you bring any food to Edwin?” Leona asked.

  “Yeah, some Christmas cookies that you had just finished decorating. Why?”

  “He was rushed to the hospital with food poisoning. Apparently his son arrived, must have been right after you left, and Marty found his father unconscious.”

  Annie was confused. “Marty suspects Phyllis of poisoning his father?”

  Jason explained, “The two incidents aren’t necessarily connected. Leona got a bit ahead of herself. The police are looking for Phyllis about the break-in. Some of Alice’s items were removed from the house, according to Mr. Fleming.”

  Annie sniffed the air. “What do I smell?”

  Leona uncovered a tray of goodies. “All this stuff I made for the book club party—Christmas cookies, which you already sampled, cranberry coffee cake, and these gingerbread women.” Leona moved the tray under Annie’s nose. “It’s probably the ginger you smell.”

  Annie reached out to sample one but Leona quickly moved the tray out of her reach. “None for you. I want these to dazzle the ladies at the book club party.”

  “How about the men?” Annie asked, glancing at Jason from the corner of her eye.

  He put his hands up. “No thanks. I’m not crashing that party.”

  Now that the mood had lightened up a bit, Annie asked, “Do you know what was taken from Alice’s house?”

  “Some figurines. Of cats, I think,” Leona said.

  “She had a whole shelf filled with cat figurines,” Mia added after blowing her nose. “I saw them when she showed me the one she said Roy sent her. The cat that’s the murder weapon. Why would anyone steal something like that?”

  “Why indeed,” Annie mumbled mostly to herself. “Edwin Fleming has a shelf filled with cat figurines in his house, too. I wonder,” she looked around the room, “and don’t shoot me down for this observation. I wonder if whoever took the figurines from Alice’s house wanted the ones in Edwin’s house, too, and poisoned him to get him out of the house.”

  “Interesting,” Jason said. “Was there something special about the figurines?”

  “They were unusual, and Edwin was angry when I picked one up. He said they belonged to his son, Marty. Edwin told me that Marty gave part of the collection to Alice before the engagement broke off.”

  “And Marty just happened to show up this morning,” Leona observed.

  “Maybe Marty is the thief,” Jason alleged.

  “And murderer,” Annie added. “He showed up yesterday. He always goes to his father’s house on Fridays and sometimes stays for the weekend.”

  The other three all looked at Annie like she had two heads. Leona voiced what they were all probably thinking. “He killed her to get a bunch of cat figurines?”

  Annie shrugged. “Just thinking of every possibility. I don’t know the guy, but if he’s anything like his father,” Annie twirled her finger in a circular motion at the side of her head. “Definitely a weirdo. Do you know what Edwin told me?”

  Of course the others shook their heads no.

  “He has been hoping for a reconciliation between Alice and Marty.” She paused. “For twenty years, three months, and five days.” She let that sink in. “And, according to what Phyllis told me, Alice had no use for her busybody neighbor, but he had a key and routinely checked her house. Inside and out. It just doesn’t add up to anything that makes sense.”

  Jason clapped his hands. “Enough of this talk. Let’s go down and have some dinner before I get back to work and your book club party starts. Are you coming, Mia?”

  “No. I’d rather stay here. No sense in spreading these germs to all the other guests.” She blew her nose which started a coughing fit.

  “Well,” Annie said indignantly, “it would serve Mrs. Delaney right to spread those germs after refusing to let me book our wedding here.”

  Mia’s red rimmed eyes popped open. “You didn’t tell me about that. Is it because of me?”

  “Don’t worry about it, Mom. It’s because she’s the weak kneed Inn owner who won’t stand up to bullying by a good customer.” Annie put finger quotes around the word good. “By the name of Phyllis Morris.”

  Jason squeezed Mia’s shoulder before he wrapped his arm around Annie’s waist and pulled her close. “We’ll find something much better. I already have an idea that I think you’ll all love. Shall we head to the dining room?” Jason extended both arms—one for Annie and one for Leona. “We’ll bring something back for you, Mia.”

  “Hot tea would be nice,” she said before another coughing fit took over.

  The lobby at the bottom of the stairs was filled with holiday cheer—Christmas music softly played in the background, lights twinkled on the tree, logs blazed in the fireplace, and pleasant conversations drifted from the dining room.

  Before they even got to the dining room door, Sheila rushed from some hidden corner and pounced on Annie like a cat on a mouse.

  “I’ve been waiting for you to come down. We need to talk,” Sheila whispered in Annie’s ear.

  Annie felt Jason’s protective grip on her arm. “Can’t it wait? We’re about to eat.”

  Sheila’s fingers tightened around Annie’s other arm. “Did you hear? Phyllis is at the police station.”

  “What’s that all about?” Annie asked, wanting to hear Sheila’s version without spilling any of her own information. Not that she had much to spill.

  “She broke into Alice’s house and stole one of those silly cat figurines.”

  Annie shook Sheila’s hand off her arm. “There must be a logical explanation. Maybe Phyllis gave it to Alice and she didn’t want it to just get thrown away.”

  Sheila leaned against Annie, pushing her into Jason. “Those figurines are valuable. Phyllis made Alice an offer for all of them in the past, but Alice would never part with them. She said those cats were her family.” Sheila rolled her eyes. “The figurines and that big white cat of hers. She had a thing for white cats.�
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  “I’m sure the police will sort it out,” Annie said as she, Jason, and Leona tried to make it to the dining room door.

  “Maybe she murdered Alice,” Sheila said, following right along.

  Annie stopped and turned to Sheila. “Weren’t you with her the morning Alice was murdered? Maybe you know what happened because you were there helping her.”

  “We left the funeral together and went to Alice’s house. After we left, she said she forgot to tell Alice some book club information and needed to go back. I had some phone calls to make so she returned alone. That’s when I saw your mother heading toward Alice’s house. I don’t know which one of them was the last one to see Alice alive.”

  “Did you tell this to the Police Chief?”

  Sheila shook her head. “What would I tell him? I wasn’t there.”

  Annie yanked her arm away, leaving no chance that Sheila would stay attached.

  The dining room buzzed with conversation almost as loud as the buzzing in Annie’s ears. Sheila’s information added a new layer to the mystery of Alice Wolfe’s death but no concrete clues to actually hang on to. Edwin’s odd behavior kept him front and center along with his son, Marty, coming into the picture. Phyllis had an agenda. That was obvious. She wanted Alice’s bookstore.

  But what was Sheila’s agenda? Annie had a strong suspicion that Sheila felt her business was threatened in some way by Phyllis and her plans. Was she throwing Phyllis under the bus to protect herself?

  Chapter 12

  The wine glasses were filled and scrumptious appetizers were on the table before Annie’s brain stopped going in circles and focused on the conversation at her table.

  “What do you think, Annie?” she heard Jason ask.

  Heat crept up her neck, confirming what the others must have suspected.

  “About my suggestion?” he prompted but gave no other clue what that suggestion was.

  “Perfect?” she tentatively said, wishing she knew what she had just agreed to.

  Jason extracted his phone from his jacket pocket. “Then it’s settled. I’ll call now and confirm.” He held his phone poised at his ear, giving Annie a few seconds to ask questions.

  She hesitated, refusing to look like a distracted fool.

  “Are you sure?” Jason asked, his finger ready to punch in the numbers.

  Her shoulders sagged. “No. What did I just agree to?”

  Jason put his phone away. “That’s what I thought. You weren’t paying any attention. And here I thought I was such a captivating and handsome date tonight.” The corners of his eyes creased and the edges of his lips crinkled. He covered her hand with his. “I know you’re worried about your mother, but sometimes it helps to let yourself focus on something else, like us.” His hand swept around the table. “And a good meal.” He placed a spinach pear salad in front of Annie. “I ordered smoked salmon for your entrée. After we eat, maybe you’ll be able to see everything in a new light.”

  Annie smiled. “You’re right. Thank you for pulling me out of all the noise in my head. It all just keeps spinning in circles.” She sipped her wine, looking at Jason over the top of her glass. “Um, you still didn’t fill me in on what I agreed to.”

  “Don’t worry. It’s nothing you won’t love.” He dug into his salad without another word.

  “You can’t keep me on the edge of my seat,” Annie whined.

  “Yes I can. Pay attention next time.”

  Leona laughed. “Jason took over the wedding planning since you can’t seem to keep more than one thought in your head at a time.”

  Annie twitched one shoulder. “Oh, is that all it was? I thought it was something important.”

  Jason affectionately swatted Annie’s arm.

  Conversation moved easily to Danny’s fishing trip and Jason’s remodeling ideas for Cobblestone Cottage but never to Alice Wolfe’s murder. Annie relaxed. Sitting between Leona and Jason created a bubble of safety around her which she happily slipped into. For the moment.

  With the plates licked clean, the wine finished, and dessert on its way, Jason asked, “Are you ready to run the book club party?”

  Annie patted the corners of her mouth with her napkin. “The party will be a cinch. Leona has all the bribes in place, including her cranberry coffee cake. Who can resist that sweet treat? That will certainly relax everyone and some unsuspecting book fanatic will let a tasty bit of information slip out. I think the problems will start with the actual book club meetings but I’m not going to worry about that yet. I still have to be elected officially. And I suspect Phyllis will see to it that that doesn’t happen.”

  “If she shows up,” Leona added.

  “Yes, if she shows up. Do you think Tyler and Christy have uncovered more information about the murder?” Annie asked between bites of her walnut apple tarte smothered in whipped cream.

  “That’s their job,” Jason replied.

  “And you were helping Christy last night,” Annie prodded, hoping Jason would share any information he had, but knowing deep down that he didn’t want her to be involved.

  “I was.”

  Annie sighed. “You’re not planning to tell me anything, are you?”

  “Exactly. I was wondering how long it would take you to figure that out.” Jason set his fork down and pushed his chair back. “You two go back to the room and see how Mia is doing. I’ll get some hot tea and chicken soup to bring up for her.”

  Leona and Annie walked arm in arm up the stairs. “I think I ate too much,” Annie groaned. “I’ll never have room for the treats you made for the party.”

  “Don’t worry about that. Just keep your ears open for all the chit chat. According to Martha, Alice didn’t make many friends in the book club.”

  “That couldn’t have been good for her business.” Annie swiped her card to unlock the door to their room. Jason hurried up behind them.

  “Apparently business was slumping.” Leona added.

  The sound of running water met their ears. “Mom?” Annie called.

  Singing from the shower drifted through the partially open door. Annie looked at Leona with both brows raised. “Miraculous recovery?”

  The scent of lavender drifted up from a piece of paper on the table next to the chair where Mia had been resting. Annie picked it up, her eyes darting quickly over the words. Leona leaned over Annie’s shoulder.

  Dear Mia,

  Since Roy can’t explain any of this to you, I will try. He was a dear friend but nothing more than that. Nothing. He helped me through some rough times. I don’t regret his visits and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive him. It was never his intention to hurt you. Maybe that’s why he decided to keep our friendship a secret. Something I could never understand. For that I am sorry.

  Alice

  Annie slumped into a chair. “Dad didn’t have an affair with Alice. Why didn’t Mom tell us about this sooner?”

  “I didn’t read the letter until you left for dinner tonight,” Mia said, coming through the bathroom door with a towel wrapped around her hair and a thick robe encircling her body. “Alice gave it to me when I went to her house to find out about the flower charge on Roy’s credit card bill. I was angry and stuffed it in my purse.” She shrugged. “I found it after you left for dinner when I searched in my purse for some cough drops.”

  Annie stood up and waved the paper in the air, almost knocking the soup out of Jason’s hand. “You have to show this to Tyler. If Dad didn’t have an affair, you don’t have a motive.”

  With the hot tea and soup safely on the table, Jason said, “Don’t get me wrong, but the police will look at that letter and say there’s no way to prove it. Both people involved—Alice and Roy—are gone.”

  Annie glared.

  Jason held up both hands in a peace gesture. “I believe what Alice wrote. I’m only saying the police won’t be able to validate it.”

  Mia finished drying her hair. “Whatever. It works for me. Now let’s get to that book club pa
rty. Maybe we can find the smoking gun there.”

  Annie’s eyes moved as far to her right as possible to see Leona’s expression.

  “It won’t be a smoking gun, more like an angry cat,” Leona observed. “It sounds like you’re feeling better, Mia.

  “I believe I am. My pity party is over. Let’s find the killer.” She looked at the others. “What? You’re not coming?”

  Annie and Leona each took one of Mia’s arms.

  Jason slipped his coat on. “I’m heading home. Call me with any information. Annie?”

  She stopped and turned around to face Jason.

  “Please don’t follow anyone into a dark room or anything like that. Okay?”

  Annie waved her hand. “Don’t worry. I’ve learned my lesson.”

  Annie’s phone beeped with a message from Martha. Where are you? Phyllis is all smiles thinking you’re not coming.

  “Let’s hurry,” Annie said. “It doesn’t look good for the president of the book club to be late.”

  Leona dashed back to get her tray of bribes. “Can’t forget these,” she said as Annie waited to close the door behind everyone.

  Chatter from the Book Nook filled the hallway before the three women even made it to the door. This wing of the Inn was all the way in the back, away from the hustle and bustle of the lobby and dining areas. They walked by several closed doors. Private meeting rooms?

  Silence descended as soon as the three women entered and all eyes turned to Annie. Martha came to the rescue. “Welcome to our new book club president.”

  “Interim president,” a voice near the coffee maker interrupted. Phyllis stared daggers at Annie.

  Martha took Annie’s arm, guided her around the room and introduced her to the women she didn’t already know.

  “Don’t forget me,” a deep voice said from the recess of a window alcove.

  Martha blinked several times. “Hello. I’m not sure we’ve met before.”

  The man walked into the light of the room. “Marty. Marty Fleming. Alice lived next to my father.” His eyes traveled to take in all the women in the room. “I hope you don’t mind that I’m here.” He sipped his coffee. “We were close. At one time,” he said for an explanation that revealed nothing.