Mocha and Murder

by Tonya Kappes

  “Someone at a shelter went to jail for murder?” I wondered if I could find that case in the library. It was how lawyers did structure their cases, by looking up similar cases and seeing the outcome, then tweaking it to their case.

  “No. Other shelters being shut down and the animals shipped off to who knows where. Maybe animal mills for breeding. Not to mention that you helped solve Alexis’s murder.”

  “Louise, I adore you.” The thought of Pet Palace and all the animals going to different shelters broke my heart. “I’m more than happy to help. But I’m not sure if my admission to the Kentucky Bar Association has been approved.” I’d kind of dropped the ball on that after Aunt Maxi was no longer a suspect in Alexis Roarke’s death. “I’ll have to go down to the clerk’s office at the courthouse to check.”

  “You’ll do that for little ole me?” Now that she had her way, her southern charm had returned.

  “I can’t promise I’ll find anything out. I’m not a detective and I certainly don’t know how to solve crimes.” Not that being a lawyer wasn’t part of sleuthing because it was.

  In the distance, I could see Patrick at the far end of the boardwalk near Wild and Whimsy. I told him I’d meet him at his boat slip at the marina. He disappeared down the ramp to the boat dock.

  “Let me look around and see what I can find out.” I assured her, “I’ll even go by the courthouse to see what the status on my paperwork is.”

  As a lawyer, you couldn’t just plop down in any town and start taking clients. There was a whole process with paperwork, certification and it varied from state to state.

  I started walking toward the marina when we said our goodbyes.

  The cottage style building floated on Lake Honey Springs with the rest of the boat dock and slips. It was charming and looked like it used to be a lake house. There was an awning over the front glass door. The flip sign was flipped to the open side.

  Though I knew Patrick was probably already on his boat in his slip, my curiosity of TJ doing work for Big Bib and the summer citizens tugged on me. It wasn’t like Spencer didn’t know what he was talking about, but phooey! Louise was on the hook and I’d promised to look into it.

  Looking into it didn’t mean that I was actually digging in deep and trying to find clues to get her off the suspect list. It meant that I’d keep my ears open to what people were saying. Gossip in Honey Springs was a way of life whether you were looking for it or not.

  The marina was a typical boat shop and general store like most lakes had. Big Bib sold the boating essentials like fire extinguishers, life jackets, floats, fishing equipment, boat batteries, beer, snacks, coolers, koozies, and much more. He knew exactly how to cater to the summer citizens and his prices reflected that he knew he was the only place in town to get this stuff.

  “Hey, Roxy.” Big Bib stood at the register, focusing on the television that was always on the Weather Channel.

  He claimed that he was tired of boaters coming in and asking what the weather was going to be, so now he just pointed to the TV he’d hung on the wall.

  “Looks like it’s going to be a great weekend for boaters.” He nodded.

  “It sure does.” I perused the candy aisle like I was looking for something.

  “Your boy’s already been in here and grabbed some chocolates to go with that fancy wine he had.” Big Bib turned his attention to me. He was a big burly man. He had on a pair of jeans, a sleeveless Metallica shirt that he’d cut the sleeves off of and a pair of red suspenders clipped on the waist of his jeans.

  I smiled. Patrick was really going out of his way to make tonight special.

  “Is Steve still working here?” I asked.

  “Why you want to know?” Big Bib had always been tight lipped under that full beard of his.

  “I met TJ Holmes and he said that he’s been down here working on summer citizens’ boats and I thought that was Steve’s job.” I shrugged and walked over to the counter.

  “TJ is a motor man. He pulls the boats out and works on them at his place. Most of his work is done during the winter months when boaters don’t need their boats. Sometimes I have an emergency that Steve can’t fix and we need a mechanic like TJ, but not lately.”

  “He wasn’t here yesterday?” I wondered because he told Spencer that he was at the marina and that was his alibi. Or was it?

  “Naw.” Big Bib smirked. “He called and said if the fuzz came snooping around to tell them he was here.” He’s brows narrowed. “You aren’t the fuzz are you?”

  “Me? A cop?” I tsked.

  I wanted to say, no, but I’m going to tell the cops.

  “Why on earth would he be trying to hide from the cops?” I snorted, hoping my reaction would come off in a not caring kind of way.

  “TJ hasn’t always had the best record when it comes to keeping clean. He’s been arrested for selling pot, smoking pot, even eating pot in some food. He’s harmless and they’re always on him for weed. He don’t bother me none as long as he gets his work done. He’s the best around here.” He grabbed the phone as soon as it rang.

  I gave a slight wave and headed out the door. If TJ wasn’t where he said he was, where was he? Stabbing Fred Hill because of their lawsuit? Spencer said that TJ said the lawsuit had been settled. He also told Spencer he was working at the Marina. Before I told Spencer that TJ was a liar, I’d check out the paperwork at the courthouse tomorrow when I went to check on my license.

  “There you are.” Patrick held a hand out for me to take to help me on the boat.

  It was a pontoon with bench seating on each side of the front of the boat and a long bench seat along the back with a removable table. In the middle was the steering shaft and a captain’s chair.

  He didn’t waste any time pulling me into his arms and showing me just how much he loved me.

  “What did I do to deserve all of this?” I asked and looked at all the bags from The Watershed on the floor.

  The Watershed was a fancy restaurant on the boardwalk. They had beautiful views of the lake from their tables and they also did dinner cruises. The prices were steep and it was only special occasions that brought us there to eat.

  He handed me a life jacket.

  “You’re my number one gal.” He helped me snap it across my chest and proceeded to untie the rope knots that tied us to the boat dock. “You want to know things I love as a man.” He winked on his way back to the captain’s chair where he started up the engine and began to back the boat out of the slip. “I love spending any time with you.”

  I didn’t question him. The time was special. My insides felt like one of the snow globes that’d just been shaken up. The glitter was fluttering inside of me and my heart soared. How on earth could I ever think we weren’t meant to be together?

  I stood up behind him with my hands on his shoulders and kneaded them as we putted along the no wake zone. As soon as we hit the buoys that marked the end of the no wake zone, he shoved the gearshift up and the pontoon went full speed. I closed my eyes and let the wind whip away all of the day’s stress.

  After a few minutes, the motor of the boat slowed to a low hum as Patrick pulled back on the gearshift and drove us into a cove with a small waterfall at the end. The trickle of the water was so soothing as it ran across the limestone.

  “This is beautiful.” I sat down and enjoyed the relaxation of the boat as it swayed back and forth while Patrick threw out the anchor.

  “Nothing is a beautiful as you.” The lines around his eyes deepened as the smile traveled toward them. “I hope you like what I ordered for you. But I want you to go up there and sit on the edge of the boat with your toes in the water while I get the table set.”

  “You won’t hear any complaints out of me.” I got up and slipped off my shoes doing exactly what he asked me to do.

  Though I loved owning The Bean Hive, I took my customer’s needs into consideration with everything I baked and cooked and brewed. There was a little bit of pressure to please everyone who entere
d the coffeehouse. It was nice to take these couple of hours and be waited on by Patrick.

  Lake Honey Springs was crystal clear and warm. The tips of my toes barely skimmed the top of the water from the boat’s edge. The lake was down a little for this time of the year since the warm summer months seemed to dry everything out. During the spring and fall months we had to worry about the rising waters and flooding.

  Since I only visited during the summer months, I’d never seen a real flood, only heard of it. And now that I lived here, I hoped I’d never have to witness such a tragedy in the community.

  “Here you go.” Patrick’s arm came over my shoulder as he handed me a glass of wine. “Enjoy while I get supper on the table.”

  “Why don’t you sit here with me and enjoy a glass?” I asked.

  “I’d love to.” He headed to the back of the boat and filled his glass up. “You want to tell me what you found out about Fred Hill because I know you. And I know that you just aren’t going to let Spencer do his job.”

  I took his glass while he rolled up the bottom of his jeans and sat next to me to put his bare feet into the calm water. The water rippled.

  “Not when it comes to Louise. She did ask me to be her lawyer.” It was a great excuse for me to use and not look like some nosy lady. I scooted back on the boat deck a little more and drew one leg up as I turned toward Patrick. “I did find out that TJ Holmes lied to Spencer about his alibi.”

  His eyes frowned in a questioning type of way.

  “Yep. He told Spencer he was at the marina fixing a boat motor, but when I got here to meet you, I popped my head into the marina shop where Big Bib was and I asked him in a round about way if TJ was working for him yesterday.”

  “You really should keep out of this. I can’t imagine what I’d do if you got caught in the middle of something.” The questioning look had turned into a look of concern.

  “I’m going to tell Spencer.” Maybe not right away, but eventually after I looked around a little bit, I’d tell him. “Granted, Louise might’ve been in a public fight with Fred, but TJ had more of a reason.”

  “What?”

  “Money. According to Aunt Maxi and Bunny,” Not that I’d consider them the gospel of truth, but they did know a lot. “When TJ bought his house, he had the land surveyed. Part of the actual land that Fred’s apple orchard is on is in fact TJ’s land. They were in a big lawsuit.”

  “That’s old news.” Patrick shoved the gossip to the side. “If I remember correctly, I think TJ had sued and I’m not sure what happened, but I’d heard it was over.”

  “What do you think happened?” I wondered.

  “Obviously, Fred settled and paid TJ.” He made sense. “I imagine Fred wasn’t about to let go of that orchard.”

  “How on earth did the land get misaligned?” I took a sip of my wine and dragged a toe through the water to watch it ripple.

  “Out there it’s more country and when land was sold way back when, they’d walk off the property to what they thought was theirs. That’s how they marked it back then.” Patrick would know since he grew up in the construction business. “Nowadays, that wouldn’t fly. Just like TJ. He probably paid a pretty penny for the land and wanted to make sure he got what was his.”

  “If you ask me, TJ has more motive than Louise over some dumb eggs.” I tipped back the glass and finished off my wine.

  “I guess we’d better eat before the sun goes down.” He made a good point. “The boat has lights, but it’s much more enjoyable when the sun’s out.”

  The relaxation didn’t last long. My phone chirped a message from my mother. She wanted to know where I was and when I was coming home. I silenced my phone. I wasn’t a teenager anymore even though Patrick made me feel like it.

  “Let me guess. Your mom?” Patrick asked from behind me.

  “How on earth did you know?” I asked jokingly.

  “Dinner is served.” He came over to get me.

  On the table he’d put out two candlesticks with lit candles and two mismatched china plates with two big burgers and onion rings on them.

  “I didn’t get plates so I ran over to Wild and Whimsy. Bev said that you’d love these and could use them in the coffeehouse.” He was very sweet and efficient.

  “She was right. I do love them.” I couldn’t help but notice one had a blue pattern around the edges while the other had a gold ring. “It’d be perfect for serving a helping of something.”

  “Tell me about your mom,” Patrick said once we sat down to eat.

  “Well.” I knew that I had to tell him and not be aloof if he was going to be my husband. “I love my mom. I do. But she never wanted to be part of this world. Here in Honey Springs,” I clarified. “She and my dad never fought until it came to summers and me. For some reason, she and Aunt Maxi never got along. I’ve never asked why. Mom said she’d never come to Honey Springs and now she’s here. To live?”

  “Maybe she just wants a relationship with you,” Patrick said.

  “She and I were never as close as my father and me. She was gone on business trips and worked a lot.” I took a bite out of my burger. It was so good.

  “What did she do for a living?” he asked.

  “She worked in the IT department of the IRS.” I continued to stuff my face.

  “Does she still work?” he asked between bites.

  “I guess not. I don’t know. I’ve not gotten to have any time with her since she showed up the other night.” I took a sip of the wine to clear my palate. “She and Aunt Maxi got into a big ole fight at the Beatification Committee today.”

  He laughed. “I can imagine Maxi is a wee-bit jealous of anyone besides herself spending time with you.”

  “She didn’t hold back any punches when Mom claimed me as her daughter. You know Aunt Maxi thinks she’s my mom.” I smiled. “I think I’m lucky to have them both in my life. I just wished they’d get along.”

  “Maybe our wedding can bring peace to the family.” He leaned over and used the napkin to wipe the corner of my mouth. “I love you, Roxy.”

  “I love you too.” My heart melted as his tender and warm lips pressed against mine.

  Nine

  “I’ll never get sick of this view, even in the dark.” I stood on the deck at Patrick’s house that overlooked Lake Honey Springs. There were enough stars to light up the water on the lake. The full moon made it even more romantic. Even the cicadas singing in the dark night sounded pretty. “Remember how we would spend almost every summer night out here?”

  It was hard to not bring up the past and how Aunt Maxi had lived here. It was actually her dream house that she’d built. The last summer I’d stayed with her, the financial market in Honey Springs took a downward spiral. Most of her income was tied up in property and not liquid. The fastest way to keep herself from drowning was to sell her house. At the time I’d no clue what was going on and I thought Patrick’s family had just took her house. It was then that I turned my anger toward Patrick Cane and never came back to Honey Springs.

  Aunt Maxi visited me several times each year and it wasn’t until a few months ago when I’d moved back to Honey Springs did I find out the truth. If Aunt Maxi had to move, I’m thrilled it was Patrick’s family who’d bought it. In the end, Patrick had purchased it from his parents.

  “Dinner was great,” I whispered when he walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. “Thank you.”

  After the wonderful meal, we’d made it back to the boat dock right in time for the sun to set. The girls at the coffeehouse were just closing up when we’d stopped by to get Pepper and put Tank to bed. Emily had left a note saying that she took Tank home and she hoped it was okay. It was absolutely fine. I hated to leave the animals at the coffeehouse all night, but I knew I couldn’t take them home with me. While we were there, I’d taken the opportunity to grab some honey donuts out of the freezer and put them in the refrigerator to thaw overnight.

  “You’re welcome.” He squeezed me. “I’m glad
you wanted to continue back here.”

  Pepper and Sassy nudged between us with each end of the same rope toy in their respective mouths. We took a step back away from the deck railing. I bent down and grabbed the middle of the rope toy and tugged to make them both pull harder.

  “I would offer you another glass of wine, but your mother keeps calling my phone.” He held his phone out to me. “Has she called you?”

  A deep sigh escaped me. I shrugged.

  “I don’t know. I flipped on the silent switch.” This was really starting to get on my nerves.

  “Maybe you should call her?” he suggested. “She seems worried.”

  “She’s not been worried for years.” I shook my head. “Let’s go home, Pepper.”

  There was no use in fighting it. Mom was going to drive me and Patrick crazy until she heard from one of us.

  “You can’t just call her?” Patrick pouted. He shoved the phone at me.

  “If I do, she’ll just beg me to come home.” I ran my hand down his arm and curled up on my toes to give him a nice kiss.

  “So you are going to stay out of the investigation right?” Patrick wanted a confirmation from me after we’d gotten into his car with my bike bolted on the bike rack on the back.

  After he realized I was going to bike everywhere like most of the citizens of Honey Springs, he put a bike rack on the back of his car for times like this.

  “I’m going to help out my client.” I wasn’t going to lie to him. “I can’t help it if I uncover something.”

  “Then you will give that information to Spencer?” he asked.

  I ho-hummed, knowing he’d take that as a yes, but he couldn’t see the look on my face in the dark car.

  Like a true southern gentleman, he walked me and Pepper to the porch of my cabin. The light was on, which was something Mom did when I was a teen and out with my friends.

  “I have to tell you that the other night when I saw you driving up with Spencer, I got a little jealous.” His breath brushed past my ear after he curled me in for a goodnight hug. “I didn’t like seeing you with another man.”