Independence Day Murder

by Linnea West

  "I'm sure it is all just a mistake," my mother said softly into her ear.

  I thought back to Derek's threats towards Murray at the parade a few days ago and I wasn't so sure. Even if Derek was innocent, that was enough to give him an ironclad motive. When will people learn to stop threatening others in public?

  Mandy looked at me with shimmering, tear-filled eyes. She hiccuped a few times, sniffling between to try and clear up her nose. I couldn't help but think she looked like a sad child, the kind that everyone can't help but feel sorry for.

  "Can you do something about it?" she asked earnestly, searching my face for any sort of affirmative answer.

  I sat back on my heels, thinking about it. I had been with Max this morning when we found the boat and the body. That may make him more likely to let me in on what clues had actually been found at the crime scene. I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly.

  "I can try," I said, taking Mandy's hand in mine and giving it a squeeze. "I'll try my hardest."

  I made my way to the snack table and poured myself a mimosa, heavy on the champagne. There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach as I realized I was getting myself mixed up in another murder investigation. As I downed the mimosa in just a few gulps, I realized that I had judged Carol too harshly. Depending on the circumstances, it was perfectly acceptable to have a drink in the morning.

  Chapter Seven

  The rest of the morning had been spent putting together the wedding favors, which suddenly seemed like such a waste of time for a wedding that was effectively canceled and while there was a murder investigation I was supposed to be launching. But out of love for Mandy, I dutifully tied little purple ribbons around the bags until we had managed to put together a few hundred of them. Mandy was well known around town and had invited way more people than she really had to because she was too nice.

  As soon as Mandy drove off with the completed favors safely ensconced in her trunk, I called Max. It rang all the way to voicemail so I left a somewhat rambling message asking him to call me and trying to inquire about the murder without actually coming out and asking about it.

  Even though it was almost lunchtime, I headed up to my room hoping I had time for a nap. It wasn't so much that I was physically tired, although the mimosas I had were making me a little drowsy, but the day had been pretty emotionally heavy. First, we found a dead body. Then, I had to drive a non-grieving widow home. Now I had been forced into a murder investigation with the fate of a wedding hinging on it. I needed a break.

  My room in the bed and breakfast was actually originally intended as a library for my parents. When they had converted the house, they had made the private family living quarters with two bedrooms. One was obviously for them and the other was a guest suite that Tank lived in for now. He would be leaving for college after another year and then it would be for whichever child needed a place to stay for a few nights.

  They hadn't counted on me moving back in. As their oldest child, they thought I was firmly out of the nest, but then Peter died and I had fallen to pieces. They knew they had to be the ones to pick me up and put me back together, but the only place left to stick me was the library. That meant that my room was filled with shelves and shelves of books and was also so tiny that I barely had room to walk between my bed and a desk on the opposite wall. It was certainly cozy but I was starting to go a bit stir-crazy with my tight quarters. I didn't really have a steady job yet but I was almost back on my feet and would hopefully be able to move out soon. The cost of living in Shady Lake was quite low, so I didn't have to worry too much.

  I laid down on my bed and shut my eyes. The blinds were open and light was streaming into the room, but I couldn't bear to shut them because a nice, cool breeze was blowing in the open window. Maybe this cat nap would be more of a "resting of the eyes" situation.

  At some point, I must have drifted off because I was awoken by a very loud honk. I startled awake, sitting up in my bed and looking around the room for the duck that must have somehow wandered in. Of course there was no duck' I was alone.

  Another loud honk split the air and I was awake enough this time to realize it was coming from outside. I looked out and saw Trevor standing in front of the B&B with a bicycle. Not just any bicycle, but a tandem bicycle, a bicycle built for two.

  "Surprise," Trevor said, motioning to the bicycle. "Look what I'm giving you."

  I stood up, banging my head on the bottom of the window. Rubbing the back of my head, I pinched my leg with the other hand, figuring I had to be dreaming. Nothing happened, so I pinched myself once more. Besides a small bruise that started to bloom on my leg, nothing changed. Trevor was still standing outside with his ridiculous bicycle that for some reason he was gifting to me.

  Dashing out of the room and down the main stairs, I threw open the front door and ran to where Trevor was standing happily with the baby blue tandem bicycle. As I got closer, he waved his hand around in front of it like a woman presenting the prizes on a game show.

  "I remember when you said you wanted a tandem bicycle a few months ago," he said proudly. "And my parents had one that I've been meaning to give you. I was going to have Mandy give it to you as your maid of honor present, but she thought it wasn't an appropriate gift for a wedding, so I am giving it to you now."

  Trevor stood back with a wide smile on his face. We had been getting along much better recently and while I tried to appreciate all of his quirks and ignore the parts of his personality that were a bit more grating, I still just didn't understand him sometimes. His mind worked in ways that I could not fathom.

  "That's very nice of you Trevor," I said slowly, still trying to take in the idea of my best friend's almost husband gifting me a novelty bicycle. "I did say that I would like a tandem bicycle. But why are you giving it to me now?"

  "It's an incentive for you to solve the murder," Trevor said, as if it were just that easy. He shrugged his shoulders and smirked a little. It was the kind of smirk that previously I would have wanted to smack off his face.

  I sat down on the front steps, wondering how I had come to this point in my life. A few years ago, I had been working a high-powered marketing job, the kind where I was advancing rapidly up the career ladder. Now I was being offered a tandem bicycle as a bribe to solve a murder.

  "I already told Mandy that I would try," I said. "But I'm not exactly sure where to start."

  "I know, but I figured giving you this sweet bike would make you want to solve it a little more," Trevor said, reverting back to his high school skater boy persona. "And I think you've got a pretty good start on it since you were the one to find the body. Nice job inserting yourself into the case early."

  "Listen Trevor, I am going to help as much as I can," I said. "I want your wedding to go on as planned almost as much as you and Mandy do, but I can't promise anything."

  "I know, but I still want you to have this bike," Trevor said. "It's been living in the hallway to our apartment and Mandy won't be happy if I bring it back there. Hop on, I'll show you how to do it."

  Trevor produced two bike helmets from somewhere and without actually agreeing to it, I found myself climbing on the back seat of the bicycle. We started down the driveway, a little wobbly at first but soon enough we found our stride.

  "Isn't this fun?" Trevor yelled, turning just enough so that I could hear him. I tried to yell back that it was alright, but he couldn't hear me. He just smiled a big, stupid grin and turned back around to honk the horn a few more times.

  I had figured we would just go for a quick spin around the block, but Trevor had other ideas. He steered us out to the path around the lake and I quickly found us riding around the perimeter of the lake, which was almost five miles around. I guess my summer workout goals were starting now.

  Towards the end of the ride when I was huffing and puffing and sweating profusely, we rode towards the beach. The parking lot was full of cop cars and as we rode by, Max was talking to a few other police officers. He was so handsome
even though I didn't really have time to look at him. I was focused on just biking the rest of the way home.

  As we breezed by, Max glanced up and gave us a confused look. I'm sure as a cop he is used to seeing some weird things, but his girlfriend and her best friend's fiance riding a tandem bicycle together probably wasn't one of them. Trevor waved a big, over-the-head sort of wave while I managed a small turn of the wrist.

  Max lifted one hand, more in shock than in a wave. Maybe this would get him to return my phone call.

  Chapter Eight

  The bicycle ploy had actually worked on Max. He had not only called me back when he got my message, but he asked if we could have dinner together that night. He had wrapped up all of his initial work on the case and the crime scene, so I went over to his house.

  I found Max grilling up some steaks and vegetable kebabs in the backyard. My contribution to dinner was some grocery store potato salad and pasta salad that I bought from the deli section. After my adventures that day, I was not in any mood to cook. When I ventured around the house and into the backyard, Max smiled and gestured towards the table.

  "I have a bottle of white wine chilled for you right now," he said, winking at me in jest. "After that bike ride, I figured you would need it."

  "You are right about that," I said with a laugh. "I wasn't expecting to get that workout in today. I thought finding a dead body would be the worst part of my day."

  Max threw his head back and laughed, a long deep gut laugh. It was the kind of laugh that a person could only do around someone they truly loved and trusted because it was utterly unattractive. I always loved when I could make him do that. Our relationship just seemed so easy. We connected in such simple ways.

  For a while, we had only been dating casually. We had agreed to not be exclusive, so I had also been dating another man named Clark Hutchins. Clark was someone who had not grown up in Shady Lake and that already made him so much cooler than anyone else. But he was so handsome and popular that I had been constantly on my guard, always nervous that I was going to say the wrong thing or wear something that made me look stupid.

  I never felt like that with Max. I knew that no matter what, Max would have my back. Even when we got into arguments, we still loved and respected each other.

  "Speaking of finding a dead body, did you find any clues with it?" I asked. I figured I ought to go right for it. He knew it would be coming anyway.

  Max shook his head as he flipped the steaks over. He was used to my meddling.

  "You know I can't tell you that," he said. "Although I'm assuming you already know who the main suspect is."

  "Yes I do and shame on you for ruining Mandy's wedding," I said. "Even if he was the one to do it, couldn't it have waited until after Mandy and Trevor finally get married? It would only have been a few more days."

  The sound of sizzling steaks filled the air and somewhere down the block, someone was mowing their lawn. The sounds of summer filled the air and I basked in the cooling evening air, drinking my white wine as I waited for Max to respond.

  "You are right," Max said, turning to face me. "Next time I have a murder to solve, I will make sure it is convenient for you."

  "Thank you," I said with a cheeky smile.

  Max took a swig of his beer and strode towards me. He bent down and kissed me hard on the mouth. As much as I hated the taste of beer, I could stand it as long as it came from his lips.

  Our conversation turned towards my tandem bike adventure instead and I let it, knowing I'd ask him about the murder again later. Max swore up and down as we ate dinner that I would never get him on that bicycle, but I knew that I would someday. I would just have to bide my time.

  We finished dinner, but neither of us wanted to get up to clean up the table. The smell of freshly cut grass wafted over from wherever the mowing had finished. It was mixed up with the smell of the citronella candle in the middle of the table that was trying to keep away the mosquitoes. I was a winter loving girl, but I couldn't deny that these sorts of warm summer evenings were wonderful.

  "Max, could you just tell me why Derek was brought in as a suspect?" I finally asked. "Besides the rant he went on at the parade, were there any physical clues?"

  Max sat and thought for a moment, nursing his beer. He didn't want to jeopardize his investigation but I had actually been helpful to him in the past. I could tell he was debating on what he actually wanted to tell me. I used my fork to push the leftover potato salad around my plate, trying to keep my mouth shut and not plead my case.

  "I can tell you that we wouldn't have brought him in if there wasn't any physical evidence," Max said, picking his words carefully. "We were able to place him in Murray's boat, but he says that he has never been in that boat and that he has an alibi. The only person who can corroborate that is Greg, so it isn't much of an alibi and while they say they have video evidence, they refuse to give it to us."

  "But you won't tell me what the physical evidence is?" I asked. I was pushing my luck at this point and I knew I would need to stop soon if I wanted to stay on Max's good side. If I could get Mandy's wedding back on track, I would need a dance partner who wasn't annoyed at me.

  "No, I won't tell you," Max said. "But I'm sure you'll go visit Greg and hear what he has to say."

  I had already been planning on visiting Greg at the winery the next day, but Max was hinting that he must know what the evidence was. I smiled at him. He was giving me just enough to set me on the right track without jeopardizing his investigation. Max knew I would try not to impede on what they were doing but as someone who wasn't a police officer, I was not as restricted in how I could investigate a murder. That came in handy sometimes.

  "That's enough murder talk," Max said. "Let's go lay in the hammock."

  We both drained our drinks and Max pulled me to my feet, leading me over to the hammock stand in the middle of his backyard. We laid down, tangled up in each other's arms. We talked about our future and how we wanted to get married in the future before we finally lapsed into a content silence.

  The summer evening slowly faded from sunlight to a night sky and I ended up drifting to sleep for a little while, waking up only when Max told me I had better head home. I wanted to lay under the stars with him all night, but we both had a murder to solve.

  As I drove home listening to the drone of the local AM radio station, I vowed to myself that I would find who really murdered Murray. I just had to hope that Derek really was innocent. If he was the killer, I would find a way to still have the wedding. Even if I had to host it in the B&B backyard, that wedding would go on as planned.

  Chapter Nine

  The winery was closed when I arrived the next morning, as I expected it would be. Most people don't start their day with a wine flight. But I had been helping with Mandy's wedding so much that I knew Greg's car by sight. I was a little surprised that Greg was at work while Derek was in police custody but on the other hand he had a business to run. He couldn't just abandon it to sit at home and wait for Derek.

  I looked inside the front door of the tasting room. Greg was standing over behind the bar, doing some sort of work. A light tap on the glass got his attention and he smiled when he noticed me. I'm sure he thought I was here on wedding business since that is what I had been doing for so long now.

  "Good morning," Greg said as he opened the door. I could tell he was forcing a smile. "What brings you here this lovely morning?"

  Greg was an attractive man with shaggy blond hair that was styled just perfectly. He was a little bit shorter than Derek, but he still stood taller than me. Together, he and Greg made a very handsome couple and I was honestly a little jealous at their ability to always look good and coordinated without being matchy matchy. Any time I suggested we wear coordinating things, Max just scoffed at me.

  "I'm actually here about the murder," I said. "I hear Derek is in police custody, the wedding has been postponed and I have a feeling that you could use a little help."

  Greg's face f
ell and the pleasant expression that had been plastered on his face was replaced with an anguished sob. He sat down at one of the tables and I sat next to him. I put my hand gingerly on his back, never quite sure how to comfort someone when they were this upset.

  "They took Derek in yesterday," Greg said with a sniffle. "I've been doing everything I can to keep the place running by myself, but I kind of freaked out and told Mandy we would have to postpone the wedding because things aren't looking good for Derek."

  "That's what I've heard and that's why I'm here," I said. "I have an unfortunate reputation around town of helping to solve murders and I would like to help clear Derek's name. Of course, you will have to help too. You can start by giving me his alibi. I heard he was being a little cagey about it."

  Greg sucked in his breath through his teeth before he abruptly stood up. A few strides took him behind the bar where he poured himself a glass of water and drank most of it down in one gulp. He poured another along with a glass for me and carried them both back to the table. I was just glad it wasn't wine. I was too old for all of the day drinking that had been happening recently.

  "I wish he would have just told them the truth," Greg said. "He was here with me at the winery which the police said wasn't really an alibi because a significant other would cover for their loved one. But there is a videotape that he doesn't want anyone to see that would prove it."

  I took a drink of water while I mulled that over. There was actual proof of Derek's alibi, but he was hiding it. What could it contain that was so bad?

  "What is on the tape, Greg?" I asked.

  After another deep breath, Greg leaned forward and grabbed my hand. He was shaking slightly and his breath was unsteady as he gazed into my eyes. He seemed to be assessing whether or not I was really trustworthy.