Cozy Creek

by K M Morgan

  Crumple went up to the counter and ordered a muffin to-go. He then eyed the exit.

  “Are you coming to the courthouse today?” Crumple asked.

  Daisy shook her head. “I wasn’t planning on it.”

  “You should go. There’s a good chance that the verdict comes in at some point today,” Crumple said.

  “I realize that.”

  “So, why don’t you gather your things and join me?”

  “Because I’m nervous.”

  Crumple held out his hand. It was trembling a little. “You don’t think I’m nervous?”

  Daisy’s eyebrows rose. “Wow. You’re really having some trouble there, aren’t you?”

  He nodded. “I’ve been having some real difficulty holding myself together throughout this trial.”

  “Yet you keep showing up at the courthouse every day.”

  “Of course.”

  “What do you mean, of course? It’s not mandatory.”

  “To me, it is. I want to be there when that scumbag is convicted of murder.”

  “You seem awfully confident that he will be found guilty.”

  “I don’t know that confident is the right word. Let’s just say I’m hopeful that the jury will make the correct decision.”

  “I’m right there with you. Although, I do have my doubts.”

  “Daisy, we did everything we could. We gathered as much evidence as possible. In turn, the prosecution put forward a pretty convincing case.”

  “I agree.”

  “Then what’s the problem?”

  “Why don’t I ask your trembling hand that question?” Daisy replied.

  “You can never predict what a jury is going to do.”

  “Exactly. Sometimes, a jury ends up throwing you a curveball when you least expect it.”

  “Let’s hope that doesn’t happen this time.”

  “Detective, I pray that it never happens. Yet, it still does occasionally. That’s why I’m so nervous.”

  “I really think Corey will get convicted.”

  “You sounded like you were trying to convince yourself as much as you were trying to convince me.”

  “No. I meant that.”

  “Okay. I’m glad someone is confident.”

  “Anyway. Generally, the shorter the deliberation, the better. If we have to wait a while to hear from the jury, it usually means they are having a hard time coming to a consensus.”

  “That’s good to know.”

  “In the meantime, I will be keeping my fingers crossed.”

  “Same here,” Daisy said.

  Crumple looked at the exit once more. “All right. Time to head over to the courthouse.”

  Chapter Five

  Normally, when Daisy headed over to the office, she had some meetings with potential interior decorating clients. There was nothing on her schedule that morning, however. What a shame. Not just for her wallet. But also because it meant that she didn’t have much to keep her occupied. Sure, she could always do some busy work at her computer, but that wouldn’t be nearly the distraction that she needed to keep her mind off of the trial.

  Daisy decided to do something completely different. She got up from her desk and left her office. She didn’t go home, though. Nor did she get another snack. She did have some restraint, after all.

  When she got into her car, she set a course for her favorite furniture store in Cozy Creek. Daisy never got tired of shopping. Or even browsing, for that matter.

  Besides, as an interior decorator, it never hurt to get new ideas. To be inspired by new pieces. And to keep up on all of the latest furniture lines and décor. She never knew when that information would come in handy with a future client.

  Over the years, Alexandra’s Cozy Creek Furniture Store had become a little bit of a second home to Daisy. She had picked up countless pieces there for clients. The store itself was housed in an old warehouse, which meant that Alexandra could stock an incredible amount of inventory. The business was like a treasure trove for Daisy. She had found herself wandering up and down the aisles for hours.

  As Daisy entered the store, Alexandra Higgins was sitting at the front counter, staring at her computer.

  Ms. Higgins was in her early fifties. She had long brown hair, glasses, a round face, and a full-figure.

  Alexandra looked up from her laptop and greeted Daisy with a smile.

  “If it isn’t Daisy McDare, interior decorator extraordinaire,” Alexandra said.

  Daisy laughed. “I like the ring of that.”

  “I’ll bet you do,” Alexandra said. “It doesn’t just sound good, though. It’s also the truth. I saw that your decorating company got another five-star review online.”

  Daisy’s eyes widened. “Is that so?”

  Alexandra squinted. “You didn’t see it?”

  “I try not to read online reviews. Some people can be really savage.”

  “They certainly can. Which is why you need to appreciate the good reviews when they come.”

  “That’s a fair point. I guess the problem is, if you’re on the review site, it’s hard to ignore a bad review if you happen to see one.”

  “I know, right? A one-star bomb draws your eye like a magnet.”

  “Exactly. That’s why I just do the best work I can and hope that my clients are happy.”

  “I wish I could be like that.”

  “You’re not that way?” Daisy asked.

  Alexandra shook her head. “I check the review site every morning. In fact, I’m there right now.”

  Alexandra spun her laptop around so Daisy could see it.

  The new five-star review of Daisy’s business was on Alexandra’s screen. Since the review was right in front of her, Daisy couldn’t help but read it. A smile came to her face as she finished looking at it.

  “Wow. That is a great review,” Daisy said.

  “Isn’t it?” Alexandra replied.

  “It warms my heart,” Daisy said. “It’s so nice to know that my work is appreciated.”

  “Makes you want to look at your reviews more often, doesn’t it?”

  “Nope. I told you, as much as I love the positive ones, the negative ones just wreck me.”

  Alexandra grimaced. “Yeah. They do make me pretty miserable.”

  Daisy threw out her arms. “Then why do you look every day?”

  “I can’t help it.”

  “You’re a braver soul than I am.”

  “It has nothing to do with being brave. It’s a matter of necessity. If customers have a problem with the way I’m running my business, I want to know about it. Maybe I can change their mind.”

  “Good luck with that. It’s so hard to change someone’s mind on the internet. Especially since some people love trashing on others.”

  “That’s the other reason I look at reviews. Sometimes, the poster gets something incredibly wrong. Other times, they are clearly just an online troll. In that case, I like to reply politely so that other customers that are browsing the site know that the reviewer is on a mission to make me look bad.”

  “Does that actually work?”

  “It seems to.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” Daisy said. “But in the meantime, I’m going to check out what new items you have in stock.”

  “Sounds good to me. If you need any help, let me know.”

  Chapter Six

  Daisy was only able to make it through a few aisles before her phone rang. When she checked the caller identification screen, her eyes widened. The call was coming from Detective Crumple.

  That was very odd. He almost never called her. Also, they had just spoken a little while ago at Sweet Tooth Bakery.

  Since it was such a rarity for Crumple to phone her, Daisy knew he must have something important to share with her.

  She answered her phone. “Detective. What’s going on?” she asked. “Is it about the trial?”

  “It is,” Crumple said. “The jury reached a verdict.”

  Daisy’s mus
cles tensed up. She couldn’t believe that she was about to receive breaking news like this while standing in the middle of an aisle of coffee tables.

  “Tell me,” Daisy said. “What is it?”

  “The jury found Corey guilty on all charges,” Crumple said.

  Daisy’s eyes widened. “Are you serious?”

  “Dead serious.”

  Daisy exhaled. “What a relief.”

  “Isn’t that great news?” Crumple asked.

  She nodded. “It certainly is.”

  “After I left the courthouse, I just had to call you. I wanted you to hear it directly from me rather than seeing a story about it on the news.”

  “I’m glad you phoned me.”

  “I’m just glad that I had good news to share.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. The trial could have easily gone much differently.”

  “Don’t remind me. I was freaking out a little this morning.”

  “I could see that.”

  “In all honesty, I was actually a lot more nervous than I led on.”

  “Is that so?”

  “I didn’t want to admit this before, but I had some serious doubts that Corey would get convicted.”

  “Why didn’t you just tell me that earlier?”

  “Frankly, because it scared me.”

  Daisy’s jaw dropped. “Wow.”

  “Why do you sound so shocked?” Crumple asked.

  “It’s just that in all the time I’ve known you, you’ve never admitted to being scared before. Which is saying a lot, considering how many killers you’ve stared down. The Chris Crumple I know has always put on a strong face.”

  “What can I say? Things have changed. Maybe it’s because I’ve gotten to know you better. So, I feel more comfortable being honest with you.”

  “Perhaps.”

  “Then again, when I was younger, I never used to get scared of anything. I was a fearless cop,” Crumple said. “I remember those days fondly. I used to throw myself into danger without thinking twice.”

  “Detective, you still throw yourself into danger on a regular basis.”

  “I realize that. But it doesn’t come as naturally to me anymore. I’ve just seen so much in my years on the beat. And in the courtroom. I know everything that can go wrong.”

  “Knowledge can be a real burden sometimes.”

  “That’s so true. I’ve seen juries fail to convict murderers before. I’ve seen convicts get paroled way too early. I’ve seen enough to make me question almost everything.”

  “That has to be really tough.”

  “That's why I was shaking so much at the bakery this morning. I hate it when things are out of my hands. When I have no control over what’s going to happen.”

  “It is definitely a vulnerable position to be in.”

  “As a cop, you have to trust the justice system to get things right. And most of the time, it does. But every once in a while, things go terribly wrong.”

  “Let’s just be happy that things worked out this time.”

  “That works for me,” Crumple said. “Anyway, enough candid admissions for one conversation.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to make a few more?” Daisy joked.

  “Don’t push your luck.”

  “All right.”

  “Before I hang up, I just want to say thank you for your help during the investigation. Corey might not have been brought to justice without you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Have a good rest of your day.”

  “You too,” Daisy said.

  Chapter Seven

  That night, Daisy figured a celebration was in order. When she arrived home, she was in a great mood. She felt like an incredible weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. She didn’t have to worry about Corey walking free. Or possibly running into him in town. He would be in prison for a long time. That worked for Daisy. As far as she was concerned, Corey deserved to spend the rest of his life in jail.

  Daisy arrived home early enough that evening to cook an entire meal from scratch. She made some lemon chicken, a side of garlic mashed potatoes, and roasted some vegetables. She was pretty sure that her husband was going to flip over the meal.

  It certainly smelled great. As the aroma wafted through the kitchen, Daisy became so hungry that she had to stop herself from taking a few early bites.

  When Gavin came home, Daisy called to him from the kitchen. As he entered the doorway, she expected him to have a big smile on his face. Instead, he looked awful. Stress lines were all over his face.

  Daisy’s muscles tensed up as she looked at her husband. What was wrong? Clearly, something had made him distressed.

  Given the fact that he was a private investigator, the answer could have been a great number of different things. Some cases were particularly hairy. In fact, Gavin frequently saw troubling things on the job.

  “Honey, what’s wrong?” Daisy asked.

  “I can’t believe what I just saw,” Gavin replied.

  “What was it?” Daisy asked.

  Gavin took a deep breath, but he didn’t respond.

  “Please talk to me,” Daisy said. “You’re making me really nervous.”

  He pointed at the kitchen table. “You’re going to want to sit down first.”

  “Uh-oh. Is the news that bad?”

  “Will you please just take a seat?”

  “Okay.” Daisy sat down at her kitchen table. “Now, what happened?”

  It took Gavin a few seconds to untie his tongue. “This isn’t easy to say.”

  “I’m sure it isn’t. You look like you just got run over by a truck.”

  “That’s exactly how I feel right now.”

  “Was it a case you were working on? Did someone get violent with you?”

  Gavin shook his head. “Actually, no.”

  Daisy squinted. “I’m confused then.”

  “I did my case work today without any trouble. It’s what I saw after finishing my work that has made me so rattled.”

  “What did you see exactly?”

  “Samantha’s husband…with another woman.”

  Daisy’s eyebrows rose. “Wait a minute. Are you saying what I think you are?”

  “I wish it wasn’t the case. In fact, at first, I didn’t believe my eyes. Unfortunately, I wasn’t just imagining things. I know what I saw.”

  Daisy put her hand up. “Hold on. Let’s back up for a second. When you say Trevor was with another woman, what do you mean exactly?”

  “He was kissing her.”

  “And judging by the level of distress on your face, Trevor wasn’t just giving this woman a peck on the cheek?”

  Gavin shook his head. “No. It was a deep kiss.”

  Daisy winced. “That’s so disturbing.”

  “You’re telling me.”

  “Did you recognize the woman he was with?”

  Gavin shook his head. “I have no clue who she is. But she had fiery red hair.”

  Daisy took a deep breath and then replied, “I can’t believe it.”

  Gavin walked over to the table and took his wife’s hand. “I hate to be the one to break this news to you.”

  Daisy stared deep into her husband’s eyes. “And you’re sure about what you saw?”

  “I know you don’t want it to be true. I know you wish I was wrong. But I know what I saw.”

  Daisy grimaced. “Did you happen to get a picture of this kiss?”

  “No,” Gavin said. “Although, it wasn’t from a lack of effort. When I saw Trevor and the redhead kissing, I reached for my phone. But before I was able to snap a photo, they walked out of my view.”

  “That’s a shame.”

  “Trust me. If tailing them wouldn’t have involved darting across a busy street and risking getting run over by a car, I would have definitely followed them to get some answers.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t risk your safety. What if you had gotten into an accident while attempting to tail them?”


  “That would have been horrible.”

  Daisy shook her head as she continued to process the heartbreaking news. “What an awful spot to be in.”

  “It is pretty terrible.”

  “It’s more than that. It’s devastating.”

  “I’m sorry to be the one to break the news to you,” Gavin said.

  Daisy lowered her head and stared at the ground.

  When she didn’t reply, Gavin broke the silence between them.

  “Should I not have told you?” Gavin asked.

  “I’m glad you didn’t keep this from me. As distressing as it is, it’s important that I know the truth,” Daisy said. “I’m just thinking about what my next step is going to be.”

  “Are you going to tell Samantha about this?”

  A pained look came to Daisy’s face. “That’s the problem. There’s no easy answer to that question. Samantha deserves to know the truth. On the flips side, this is going to absolutely crush her.”

  “It certainly will.”

  Daisy threw out her arms. “Why did Trevor have to do this? What was he thinking?”

  “I wish I had an answer for you.”

  “Unfortunately, there are a lot of questions that I don’t have answers to right now,” Daisy said.

  Chapter Eight

  For the rest of the evening, Daisy mulled over her options. By the end of the night, one thing was clear. She had to tell Samantha about what Gavin had seen. The question became, how would Daisy break the news to her best friend?

  As Daisy went to bed, she had not made a decision. There was just no easy way to tell her best friend such an awful truth. Daisy was hoping that an answer would come to her in her sleep. Even if that wasn’t the case, it wouldn’t hurt to get some rest.

  Unfortunately, when she woke up the next day, Daisy was staring down the same question mark.

  When Daisy headed over to Sweet Tooth Bakery in the morning to grab some breakfast, she had no clue what she was going to say to Samantha.

  As Daisy entered the bakery, Samantha was standing behind the counter. Samantha greeted Daisy with a big smile.

  “I’ll bet you’re in a good mood,” Samantha said.

  Daisy’s nose scrunched. “What makes you say that?”