Live and Let Chai

by Bree Baker

  “Where did you buy it?” Were they available everywhere? Could I pick one up at the gas station?

  “Are you thinking of getting one?” she asked. “If so, we could see if my dad has some advice. Truthfully, mine’s getting old and it’s probably not charged.”

  I let us into the house and locked the dead bolt behind. “Are you kidding? I’d probably stun myself. I was just curious.” I smiled, feeling a little guilty for thinking Amelia would hurt me.

  She followed me up the private staircase to my living area, then wandered into my kitchen. “Do you have any ice cream? I’ve never had to go to the police station before, and I’m kind of upset about it.”

  “Of course I have ice cream. Why are you upset?”

  She leaned against my kitchen island. “You’ll think it’s silly, but I have massive guilt for giving out the description of those kids. They’re just kids, and what were they hurting, really? They were only putting sand into the libraries. Stay on the island long enough and there’s no place you won’t find sand.”

  “Amen to that, but those kids need a good scaring. It’s not like they’ll get into any real trouble. The cops will probably just tell their parents and let it go, but I definitely want them found. They probably saw the maniac who pushed me into the marsh.” I opened the freezer and waved one hand to showcase my stash of frozen dreams. “Lady’s choice.”

  “Butter Pecan,” she said, helping herself to a spoon on the drying rack. “No bowl necessary.”

  I followed her excellent example and picked out a pint of Mint Chocolate Chip.

  Amelia leaned against the counter and gazed around my small kitchen. “Your house is amazing. Have I told you that? I’ve loved it all my life. There’s nothing else like it in Charm. Maybe not even in all of the Outer Banks.” She moved to the window overlooking the ocean. “Gorgeous.”

  The cat slunk into view on the deck outside, green eyes flashing in the night, and Amelia jumped. I opened the sliding door to let Maggie in.

  “How did she get up there?” Amelia asked, walking out onto the deck and peering over.

  “I have no idea. I think she’s the reincarnated ghost of a woman, or maybe two, who died here.” I stuffed a hunk of Mint Chocolate Chip into my mouth. I was warming up to Aunt Clara’s hooey about the mistress and the scorned women. Plus, ghost cat would explain a lot about Maggie’s mysterious appearances.

  Maggie wound around Amelia’s legs, and Amelia scooped her up, nuzzling her face into the ragamuffin’s fur. “She’s not a ghost cat. She’s a princess. Aren’t you?”

  “Fine, she’s a homeless germ-fest who’s getting a bath if she keeps coming up here.” Maggie gave me the stink eye.

  “Aww.” Amelia stroked her head. “Maybe I could take her home with me? People love to see cats in bookstores.”

  “No.” I almost spit the ice cream out of my mouth.

  Amelia grinned.

  “I think she lives here,” I said hastily. “That’s all.”

  “You love her,” Amelia sang. “You think she’s sweet.” She lifted the cat’s paw and waved it at me.

  “I do not.” I smiled around my next spoonful of minty heaven. “But Lou would miss her if she left. I think they’re friends.”

  “The gull? Sure. Sure.” Amelia let Maggie jump down on the deck and went back to the ice cream she’d left sitting on the railing. “I think you’ve got the best view in the world.” She tipped her head back, letting blond hair fly over her face. “Standing here, I feel like I’m in another era. I feel like a wealthy landowner’s mistress waiting for his arrival.”

  “What?”

  Amelia laughed. “Just kidding. Clara told me all about this home’s history.”

  “That was mean.” I chastised myself for being so gullible.

  “I think the stories are neat. A little gruesome, but cool. It doesn’t even matter if any of it is true. Having a story to go with your home is just so Charm.”

  I hadn’t thought of it that way. I’d never known a life without my aunts’ wild tales. My whole life had a back story.

  I spooned ice cream into my mouth and let the wind throw my hair everywhere at once. Watching dark waves roll in, I dared voice the question that had been on my mind for days. “Who do you think has been threatening me?”

  Amelia gave me a sad smile. “I don’t know. Based on personality, I’d say the angry contractor is the most likely islander to lash out, but I don’t know why he would exactly. There’s definitely something fishy about his beef with Paine, and the real estate aspect would also tie him to Sam Smart.” She frowned. “I think this is all about the three of them—Metz, Smart, and Paine. I just don’t know how.”

  I wasn’t convinced of anything anymore. I just hoped it would soon be over.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The next day was quiet. I woke with a sugar high from the late-night ice cream and worked on pins and needles through lunch, but nothing remotely scary or interesting happened. Unless I counted Lou carrying his still-live catch onto the deck and tearing one of the poor crab’s claws off in front of my lunch crowd. A table of men and women in golf gear cringed. Everyone else exchanged knowing looks. Survival of the fittest was a common theme for wildlife in Charm, right alongside proper use of sunscreen and community spirit for the humans.

  I knew I was back in the town’s good graces when a patron asked if he could leave a flyer advertising the annual street party on my counter. I agreed to the request and asked for a second copy, which I proudly displayed in my window—just in case anyone wandering in for tea or a snack was still unclear about my full public pardon.

  At closing time, I headed upstairs to change, wishing I’d remembered to tell Grady about the event.

  I locked my front door around eight and headed down the boardwalk toward Main Street. Warm wind off the ocean whipped my hair into a frenzy and fluttered my flowy off-the-shoulder blouse. I tipped my head back and held out my arms, feeling ten years younger in my faded jeans and flip-flops. The pale gray color and light fabric of my top reminded me of Aunt Clara—except that her entire wardrobe screamed mystical hippie. An apt description of both my great aunts, now that I thought about it. I could only dream of being half as peaceful and centered as either of them tonight, but maybe someday.

  I faced forward and watched where I was going as the boardwalk went parallel to Ocean Drive. A dark pickup approached, so I waited. When it slowed, I stepped back, fear jumping all over my skin, tearing me out of my happy place.

  The driver’s-side window rolled down and Grady peered out. I pretended not to notice him, certain I was in trouble for hijacking his family’s ice cream party last night.

  He stopped the pickup before me and hung an elbow over the open window frame. “Good evening, Swan.” His voice was tight and his expression unreadable, but his pale gray eyes were as unfairly attractive as usual.

  I lifted a hand in greeting. I couldn’t tell if I was in trouble.

  He pushed the truck into park. “Where are you headed?”

  “Main Street. Why?”

  “Alone after dark?”

  I smiled and tried to keep my voice light. “You don’t think I’m safe to walk a mile these days?”

  “I’m starting to think you’re not safe waking up in the morning.”

  “Ha, ha.”

  A small smile formed on his lips. “It just so happens I’m headed your way. You want a lift?”

  I dithered for a moment, feeling certain this was some sort of ambush. “I don’t know.”

  Grady leaned out the window, giving me one hundred percent of his attention. “I have a confession.”

  “Yeah?” I took a step forward.

  He dipped his chin in affirmation. The vibe around him was charged and strange. “I was on my way to see you.”

  “Me?” I asked, utterly baffled. “Why?�
�� I shuffled closer to his door. I supposed it wasn’t about Sam Smart, even though Grady had said he’d come over after that mess yesterday and then never showed. My heart rate spiked. What if someone else was dead? We’d have to change the town name if people kept dropping every few days—Charm wouldn’t really be appropriate anymore. “What happened?”

  “Nothing.” His blank cop face turned a little vulnerable. “I was going to invite you to the street party.”

  I rolled the words over in my head, trying to make sense of why he wanted to do that. “Why?” I asked again, this time with a blush. Seriously. Why?

  He worked his jaw. “I heard some folks saying it’s a good time, but I don’t know anybody. Not really. Feels like everyone I’ve met this week has been in an official capacity. They’re starting to look at me funny. I figured you could show me around, introduce me to folks as your friend, not just the new detective. Teach me how this place works. You might not believe this, but I’ve never been anywhere like Charm.”

  “You need me,” I said with a fresh smile.

  “I just thought it would be nice to go together.”

  I cocked my hip and crossed my arms, gloating a little. “So, I’m not always a big pain in your keister. Admit it.”

  Grady narrowed his eyes. “Get in, Swan.”

  I rounded the hood of his truck and climbed into the passenger seat, feeling unreasonably victorious. “Are Denise and Denver meeting you there? Denver will love all the junk food. And there will be live music and lots of light-up toys and glow sticks and stuff like that.”

  He waited while I buckled in, then pulled carefully away from the curb. “They’re there now.”

  I gave him a cursory look. “Without you? Why?”

  He slid his eyes my way. “I was coming to get you.”

  A strange new idea formed in my head. “Is this a date? I’m just asking so I know.”

  “Do you want it to be?”

  I twisted toward him, evaluating his expression. He hadn’t answered my question. He just asked me a new one, as if I wouldn’t notice the evasion. “I thought you didn’t like me,” I finally said.

  “What?” He widened his eyes in what could only be faux shock. “Why?”

  “I don’t know. I’m a clumsy mess. Butting in to your investigation. Being a distraction. Making your job harder. Stuff like that. Or so I hear.” It was confusing, and I felt half nauseated by an attack of middle school-type butterflies. I pried my tongue off the roof of my mouth. “Basically, I make trouble everywhere I go.”

  “True.” He grinned.

  I got comfy in my seat and watched the scenery rolling past my window, enjoying the fun twist my evening had taken.

  We rode in companionable silence for a bit until we reached Main Street. The street had been blocked off with wooden barricades. Ropes of white lights swooped between streetlamps over the pedestrian-filled roads.

  Grady parked in the grass a couple of blocks away, as close as possible to the festivities. We’d have to walk from there. Music and chatter floated on the evening breeze as I slid down from his cab. He met me on his side of the truck and cast me an appreciative gaze. “You look nice tonight; did I tell you?”

  “No.” Did I also look floored, rattled, and at a complete loss for words? Because that’s how I felt.

  “Well, I meant to,” he said.

  “Thanks.” I fought a goofy blush.

  A pair of little girls ran through the grass beside us, sparklers flaring, bare feet flying, and pigtails streaming behind them. Their parents were lost in conversation several steps behind them, carrying two pairs of pink flip-flops and two half-melted ice cream cones.

  “What must that be like?” I wondered, recalling all the times I’d brought my grandma and two great-aunts to Parents’ Day. “Two normal parents, making regular family memories.”

  “I wouldn’t know,” Grady said. The sadness in his tone reminded me that he’d had a normal life once.

  I let my eyes slide shut for a quick beat. “Sorry. I didn’t mean…” He’d lost his wife too soon, too harshly. He could’ve known what it was like to raise a child with a partner, if fate hadn’t been so cruel.

  “It’s fine.”

  “No,” I said, stopping to look at him with determination. “What happened to your family isn’t all right. It sucks. A lot, actually.”

  He nodded. “You’re right.”

  I nodded back, then fell into step at his side.

  “Thank you,” he said softly.

  I walked a little closer to him after that, feeling strangely protective of a man who clearly didn’t need protecting. We joined the crowd inside the first wooden barrier. Families filled the sidewalks, wiping their children’s sticky mouths and bouncing babies on their hips. Couples laughed and leaned against one another, lost in private moments no one else could understand.

  Grady nodded toward side of the street lined with vendor stalls. “Where should we start? Funnel cakes? Ice cream? Maybe a little steak on a stick?”

  “I’m not eating anything that comes on a stick,” I said. “You could put your eye out.”

  He nudged me toward a vendor cart with his elbow. “How about some delicious fried butter?”

  “No.” I laughed. “Just. No.”

  “Fried pickles?”

  “How about a lemonade?” I countered. A drink with a lid and straw seemed like the way to go. It would be significantly harder to spill on myself or get stuck in my teeth.

  Grady raised his eyebrows at the lemonade line. “Look at all those people in line for a drink. You need a booth at this event.”

  I smiled. The town council had settled the street fair plans long before I’d finished unpacking and months before I’d had time to open up shop. “I missed the deadline for vendor applications this year, but next spring, Sun, Sand, and Tea will be represented.”

  He lifted a palm, and I gave it a high five.

  “Everly.” Mr. Waters came in our direction, pulling a cart of light-up toys and glow sticks from Molly’s Market. There were flashing necklaces around the brim of his hat.

  “Hi, Mr. Waters.” I gave him a squeeze. “Love the new look.” I took a blinking pinwheel from the cart and blew on it to see the petals spin.

  “Who’s your friend?” he asked.

  “Him?” I turned to be sure no one else had joined us. “That’s Grady.” Had he not met Grady?

  Grady lifted a hand and they shook. “I’m Detective Grady Hays. I’m new to Charm. Miss Swan here has agreed to show me around and introduce me.”

  Clearly, I was off to a poor start.

  Mr. Waters’s lips parted in apparent shock. “Aren’t you the one who insinuated she poisoned the tea?” He stared at me. “That’s him, right?”

  “Yep.” I puffed again on the pinwheel. “I’m surprised you haven’t met.”

  “Why would we meet?” Mr. Waters asked. “I’m not in any trouble. Unlike you,” he added with a teasing smile.

  “I’m not in trouble at the moment,” I informed him.

  Grady pulled a money clip from his pocket and extracted a business card. “I’d actually planned to drop in on you and your wife tomorrow. Would you give me a call when you have some time?”

  A group of kids with cash in hand giggled their way up to the blinking cart of toys so Grady and I stepped away, allowing him to handle the crowd.

  We moseyed to the end of the lemonade line. “Why do you want to talk to Mr. Waters and his wife?”

  Grady stared ahead at the menu board. Small, medium, large. Not exactly worth studying.

  “Hey.” I batted his hand, which was dangling at his side. “What was that about back there?”

  “I’m just following a lead,” Grady said, attention still fixed on the three-item board.

  “Yeah, right.”

  A coupl
e carrying hot popcorn and cotton candy drifted past, and my mouth watered. The rich buttery scent tickled my nose so delectably I nearly forgot what I was saying.

  “I went out today, looking at the area around the Little Libraries after reading Amelia’s report.”

  I softened my expression. Grady had news, and he was going to share it.

  “I found a new frying pan in one of the public beach trash cans between the library where you confronted the kids and your place. The tags were still attached, and there was blood and hair on the back.”

  My heart skittered and my hand flew up to touch my barely concealed goose egg.

  “So I ran the numbers from the tag and learned it was in a shipment sent to Mr. Waters’s store. I’d planned to talk to him tomorrow about it. Plus, the Waterses have been in Charm for thirty-five years and run the busiest store in town. I hoped they’d have some personal insight to offer.”

  I gave him my most serious face. “When were you going to tell me about the frying pan?”

  “Tonight.” He sighed. “I’d hoped you’d consent to a DNA swab so we can match the blood and tissue on the pan to you. Until we know it was the weapon used to attack you, it’s not worth anything.”

  My stomach bucked and rolled. I couldn’t tell if it was because Grady had found the weapon used to assault me or because he apparently only asked me to come to the street fair to fill me in on the details. A man in a paper hat leaned over the lemonade stand counter. “Can I take your order?”

  Grady pushed me closer to the window and ordered two lemonades. I was still trying to figure out when we’d gotten to the front of the line. Grady paid and handed one bright yellow cup to me.

  “Thank you.” The icy sweetness loosened a wad of bunched muscles along the back of my neck. “You can do the DNA test. If that pan was the weapon used to hurt me, then I want its owner found.”

  He sipped and nodded. “Good. Thank you. We couldn’t pull any fingerprints from it, but I know where it came from, so this isn’t over yet. With Waters’s records, we might be able to find the buyer through credit card receipts. If the purchase was cash, we can use the timestamp on the register tape to check surveillance footage from nearby shops and look for shoppers leaving the market.” He bumped his cup to mine. “Tossing the pan in a public trash receptacle was a sloppy mistake. Here’s to soon-solved cases.”