Purrder She Wrote

by Cate Conte

  Crap. I hadn’t meditated today.

  “I’ve had her food too,” my dad said. “But she may not feel comfortable given that she’s not a guest.”

  “I think if she cared, she would’ve said no. I get the sense she’d rather get paid than sit there and pretend to want to socialize. What’s really going on, Dad?”

  I heard him get up and close his door, then come back to his desk.

  “Look. How much do you know about the Goodwins?”

  Clearly not enough, and I hadn’t realized the answer had been sitting under my nose the whole time in the form of my parents. “Just that she runs a catering business and doesn’t get along with her daughter, who also volunteers for me and acts like she’s on something half the time.”

  “Well. I don’t know anything about that. But the Goodwins were pretty big names on the island. Michael Goodwin was on the hospital board for a while. Felicia was … typical of that crowd.”

  I knew what he meant. But I couldn’t picture Felicia sitting around lunching and gossiping.

  “Then about three years ago Michael died unexpectedly. Had a heart attack at the gym. But when he died, Felicia found out they were broke. Michael had made some bad investments, among other things, and, well, long story short once they paid for the funeral there wasn’t much left. The daughter had to leave college and everything. It was … shocking to the family.”

  “I bet.” Now the dysfunction kind of made sense. What a sad story. It had to have been a terrible shock for Felicia. And an embarrassment, especially if she was used to holding a certain level of status around town. This place could be quite fickle. Which was obvious by those women at the restaurant last night. Probably Felicia’s old friends. I felt sorry for her all over again. And Gigi, who’d had to leave school because she was suddenly broke. Still, I wondered why she and her mother seemed to have so much animosity toward each other. “Dad, that’s sad, but I think it underscores even more why she’d want the job. It pays well, I’m guessing. She’s going to be out back cooking and running the kitchen. It’s not like she’ll be out in the mix with all the snobs who used to be her friends. I still don’t see the problem.”

  “There were some problems,” my dad said bluntly. “With her business. Specifically, with the Hawthornes.”

  “You don’t believe in burying the lede at all, do you,” I muttered.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Nothing. Newspaper talk. You can ask Becky about it. What happened with the Hawthornes?”

  “She was catering a party for them last summer. Her daughter was working for her. Something happened with her that night—of course the details change with every telling. But apparently Heather Hawthorne fired them. Because of the daughter. She’s apparently a bit unpredictable. It was quite the talk of the town.”

  “Thanks for telling me sooner, Dad. She’s only working here. Plus I didn’t know you got involved in all this crazy gossip.”

  “Believe me, I try not to. But these people are all part of the hospital. And Anne Marie loved to regale me with the latest tale. I’m sorry I didn’t warn you. Truly. I don’t think it fully registered with me that Gigi was your other volunteer. I’ve been distracted.”

  “It’s okay, Dad.” I sat back and tried to think. What exactly did he mean by unpredictable? Unpredictable enough to kill someone? Sometimes talking to my dad when it was a subject he wasn’t comfortable with was like pulling teeth. “Okay. Well. I don’t know what to tell you. You wanted my help, we’ve got Felicia. Unless she poisoned an entire party of people, I’m going to say we go with her. Speak now or forever hold your peace.”

  I could hear my dad’s brain humming as he frantically weighed his options. Finally he sighed. “Make sure she makes the meeting today.”

  “I’m heading there myself to meet her.”

  I hung up, my own brain humming with this news. My dad could give Becky’s society-page reporter a run for her money. His tidbits were interesting. And disturbing. Heather Hawthorne had fired Felicia, and Gigi was at the crux of it. What had she done? I wondered if Holly had been part of it too. And if they’d embarrassed Gigi enough, had she saved up her revenge until she had the perfect opportunity?

  * * *

  I called Becky as I was getting dressed for the hotel meeting. “Did you know Gigi Goodwin got her mother’s company fired from catering for the Hawthornes?” I asked when she answered.

  “Huh. No, I didn’t. Then again, I’m not up on all that gossip,” she said dryly. “I just try to report the news.”

  “Well. Apparently it was the talk of the town. Don’t you read your own society pages? Plus it seems the result was Felicia being blackballed from all the fancy parties. Which explains why she was so hot to work for me. And why she cried when I asked her to cater my dad’s gala.”

  “When you did what now?” Becky asked. “Why are you hiring people for your dad’s gala?”

  I sighed. “Long story. I can’t get into it now because I have a meeting at the hotel where the gala is taking place.”

  “I don’t even think I want to know,” Becky said.

  “You probably don’t. But can you ask Jodi about it? Maybe she knows the details.”

  “Why do you want to know that?” Becky asked.

  “Well, because if Gigi—or her mother—had a reason to want revenge on the Hawthornes, maybe they’re the ones the cops should be looking at.” That realization had just hit me too. What if Gigi and her mother had cooked up some scheme to kill Holly? Or both of the twins, and they just didn’t get to the other one yet? A chill slid up my spine. What was it they said about all murders—they were driven by love, money, or revenge? This tale had the money and revenge components for sure.

  “Maybe,” Becky said slowly. “But I think it’s a moot point. I mean, since I heard they are really close to an arrest. And you didn’t hear that from me. It’s not confirmed yet.”

  My heart nearly stopped. “You’re kidding. Who? Adele?”

  “My source didn’t offer a name, but he seemed pretty sure things are about to break. Guess they got the evidence they need.”

  Chapter 45

  “So how did the meeting go with Felicia and the hotel?” Ethan asked the next morning. We didn’t open until one today, so he was sitting on the porch swing with his cup of coffee, taking in the sight of the ocean glittering just beyond our backyard.

  I took a moment to drink in the view and the scent of the salt air myself, then went and sat next to him, wrapping my hands around my own coffee. I’d briefed Ethan yesterday on the conversation with my dad, and my renewed concerns about Gigi. And now Felicia. Although I didn’t want to let one gossipy conversation by some mean women change my mind about her when I hadn’t even given her a chance yet. Still, it felt better to talk it through with Ethan.

  Our conversation had been polite, but we never strayed from the topic at hand. I probably shouldn’t have voiced my concerns about him and Val. After all, he was probably just being Ethan—helpful and caring. And now I’d made things weird between us. Apparently socially awkward had become my new norm.

  I pushed those worries aside and tried to act like nothing odd had happened. “It went well, actually. Felicia sounded very competent. She’s got people lined up to help serve, she already has a menu thought out, and it sounds like it’s going to be fine.” I hesitated. “She did tell me she’s going to ask Gigi to help out. Said she wants to get her back working for her. I tried to get her to tell me why they stopped working together, but we kept getting interrupted. I feel like I have to know though. For the sake of my dad and the gala.”

  “People try to protect their kids as much as possible.” Ethan touched his foot down and set the swing rocking gently back and forth. “And they give them lots of chances.”

  “I wonder how much she’s going to need to protect her from,” I said softly.

  Ethan frowned. “What do you mean?”

  I sighed. “Ethan. What if this thing with the Hawthornes was mor
e than just a misunderstanding, or a spilled glass of wine? What if Gigi used her mother’s business as a way to get in there and get some kind of cat-fueled revenge on Holly and it went really wrong?” We were both silent as we thought about that.

  “Maddie. Are you seriously concerned about Gigi?”

  “I’m concerned about a lot of things relating to this mess. But yes, Gigi is one of them.”

  “Do you think we should let her stay on here?” Ethan asked finally. “I mean, if you’re worried about her … state of mind?”

  “I thought about that too. But I feel like that could really have an adverse effect on her. She likes it here.” And though I didn’t say it out loud, I felt a little bit like I owed it to Adele to keep an eye on her. Adele had taken her under her wing, however misguided, and now she was indisposed.

  It sure sounded like, from what Becky said, she was in big trouble. Even if they hadn’t named her, who else could it be? Unless they’d been working a whole other angle to this case and had a surprise up their sleeves.

  “You’re not responsible for her,” Ethan said, as if he’d read my mind.

  “I know. But I feel bad for her.”

  We both turned as a van, followed by two cars, pulled into the driveway. Gabe and his crew. I’d almost forgot they were coming over today to start working. I was surprised, given the Adele situation, but then again I understood he needed to raise the money for her defense.

  “Is that the contractor?” Ethan asked.

  “Yeah. I may have forgotten to mention he wants to get started right away.”

  “That’s good. Is he going to work around the café hours?” Ethan asked.

  “With the really noisy stuff, yes. And once the season winds down it will be easier. I figure he’ll start the brunt of the work once September rolls around. Right now they need to do prep work and all that.”

  Ethan nodded. “Makes sense.”

  I hoped it did. Part of me still wondered if Gabe was really the bad guy here. The problem was, there were potentially a lot of bad guys here. I mean, Gigi clearly had some issues—and some issues with the Hawthornes—but that scene with Gabe and Cole in the alley had been incredibly suspect. And given what Lucas had said about Gabe and Holly …

  But that also strengthened the case against Adele. Because if her favorite nephew was dating a woman she despised, that could only bring problems to the family. Would she have taken measures that extreme to keep Holly away from him?

  By the time Gabe got out of his van and reached the porch, I was on the verge of calling the whole construction project off until this got sorted out. I didn’t need any more drama at my café.

  “Morning,” he said, trying to sounding chipper despite the fact that he looked, once again, exhausted.

  “Morning,” Ethan said, looking curiously at me when I just stared at Gabe.

  “Hi. Yes, good morning,” I said when I realized everyone was waiting for me to talk. “How are you, um, how are you doing?”

  Gabe shrugged, eyes dropping to my porch floor. “Had better days. But work will take my mind off it, I hope.”

  “Yeah. About that.” I took a deep breath. “Gabe, do you think we should postpone this for a bit? Until things are a bit more … squared away? Maybe until after Labor Day?”

  Ethan was staring at me like I had five heads. And Gabe’s face fell even lower than it already was. But the more I heard myself talking, the more I convinced myself it was the best thing for right now. There was too much going on, and what if Gabe was involved in this murder? Selfishly, I didn’t want him ripping holes in Grandpa’s house and then getting hauled off to jail. I also didn’t need the police coming here to arrest him and turning this place into another circus.

  “Postpone it?” he repeated. “Why? Maddie, if you’re worried about disruption I’m well aware how to work this so your operations aren’t disturbed.”

  “I’m sure you are,” I assured him. “It’s me. My planning was poor. I should’ve waited until we’d wrapped up the last few weeks of the summer season. And now I have another project that’s going to take me away from things this week, so the timing is just bad. Is it possible to work your schedule so we start in early September?”

  He was mad. I could tell by the tightening of his jaw, the vein that pulsed in the side of his neck. His fist, unconsciously closing and releasing at his side. I watched him curiously. Was he about to show me a different side of himself? A side that maybe killed his girlfriend in a jealous rage?

  The three of us hung there in limbo for a long moment, while around us the island hummed to life. Gabe’s workers stood in the driveway around the cars, drinking coffee and laughing. Two dogs barked at each other from opposite sides of the street. I heard the ferry’s horn in the distance as it prepared to dock and deliver a crowd of people onto our island. Above me, the sun beat down, already hotter than Hades.

  Finally, Gabe seemed to pull it together. He nodded, his hand at his side. “Fine,” he said. “But I’ll still need to do some prep work so we’re ready to start right after Labor Day. Anything past that and my schedule is already set, and then I don’t know when I’ll be able to get to you.”

  “Understood. That’s perfect. Thank you, Gabe,” I said.

  He nodded curtly. “I’m going to pick up some supplies and bring them back, then.”

  “That’s fine.”

  He turned and went down to the driveway, conferred briefly with his people, then they went around the side of the house.

  Ethan looked at me. “You sure about this?”

  I exhaled. “I’m not sure of anything except there’s enough insanity going on around here right now. I don’t really want to add to it. I’m not sure of Gabe’s involvement in this murder, Ethan. Honestly? I’m not sure of anyone’s involvement. And it’s starting to really freak me out.”

  I faltered as Gabe came back around and motioned to me. I hurried down the porch steps. But before he could ask me whatever he was going to ask me, his phone rang. He answered it, turning away from me. But I clearly heard him say, “What happened?” and “When?”

  Then, he abruptly hung up and looked at me. “I have to go. I’ll be in touch.”

  Then he jumped in his van and peeled out in a move oddly reminiscent of the night at the restaurant.

  Chapter 46

  Despite the murder, the gala, and Gabe’s odd behavior, I still had litter boxes to clean. I left Ethan on the porch and went to fetch one of the forty-pound boxes of litter I kept stashed out on the back porch. I hefted the litter box and hustled through the door, almost knocking Gigi over on her way in.

  “Oh. Hi,” she said, wringing her hands together. “I was coming to get that.”

  “You were? Brilliant. I love you. Here, I’ll bring it in.” I lugged the box into the café. The girl didn’t look like she could carry this. In fact, she looked like she might fall over if a strong enough wind came through the island. But I didn’t have time to worry about her right now. I was curious about Gabe’s phone call. Did it have to do with his aunt? Had they arrested her yet? I needed to talk to Grandpa.

  I dropped the litter in the middle of the floor and turned to Gigi. “You take those boxes, I’ll take these,” I said, waving to the left side of the room. “You want something to drink?”

  Gigi shook her head and got to work. We got into a good rhythm, and we actually finished in record time. Either that or the cats hadn’t been too messy last night. Whatever the reason, I was grateful. “Are you going to hang around today to man the open hours?” I asked her.

  She nodded. “I love doing that. And lots of people are filling out applications too.”

  “I saw the pile. It’s great.” I had to start answering them too. But then Grandpa walked in the door. He blew me a kiss, then headed for the basement.

  I turned to Gigi. “Can you take over for a bit? I need to talk to Grandpa.”

  She nodded. I followed him downstairs.

  “Grandpa,” I called. “I need
to talk to you for a minute.”

  He turned expectantly as he reached his desk. “Morning, doll. What’s going on?”

  I sank into a chair and propped my feet up on the other chair. “Everything. Did they arrest Adele?”

  He hesitated. “What have you heard?”

  “I haven’t heard anything. But Gabe got a phone call and tore out of here, so I assumed it was something bad. And I heard … something might happen today.”

  “Ah.” Grandpa nodded. “I forgot you have your own sources. Anyway, there’s a bit more to it than that. Yes, she’s been arrested. But Maddie—she confessed.”

  My feet dropped to the floor and I sat back, stunned. “She what?”

  “Confessed. To the murder. That’s why they arrested her. And she backed it up with a lot of knowledge about how Holly actually died, even though they didn’t release that information publicly.”

  The hits just kept coming. “But, Grandpa. Why? She’s been saying all along that she’s innocent, that she’s going to get blamed for something she didn’t do. How could she confess?” I pushed myself to my feet and paced the room, trying to work this out in my mind. Adele had not seemed like she was putting me on that morning when I went to her house. She’d seemed genuinely distraught. And scared.

  “Maddie, maybe it’s time to face the fact that she did it,” he said grimly. “People don’t just confess to murders because they want to learn about our justice system.”

  I shook my head. “No way. I don’t buy it. Grandpa, listen. I have a lot to tell you. I’ve been thinking, and there are so many scenarios.” I filled him in on the Cole situation at the restaurant the other night, and how I thought the other guy might’ve been Gabe.