by Cindy Bell
“Do you carry them? Please, I just need one bag,” Charlotte said.
“I’m sorry we’re closed. You can come back tomorrow. Or better yet hit the grocery store. It’s still open for an hour and they carry a variety of brands.”
“We don’t have our car at the moment and I don’t want to walk that far. Maybe I could pick it up in the morning?” Charlotte asked.
Stephanie locked the door. “You’re better off going to the grocery store. I carry a lot of products, even if that’s one of them, I can’t guarantee that I have it in stock.”
Arnold snorted and tried to sniff Stephanie’s shoes. The closer he got to them the more excited he became. Ally tried to tug him back.
“Could you please make him stop?” Stephanie moved her foot as if she might kick Arnold. Ally moved fast to lean down and shield him. Her hand brushed across Stephanie’s shoe as she reached for the pig. Ally pulled him away.
“Sorry,” she said, but she shot a glare of warning at Stephanie. The very idea that someone might try to hurt Arnold made her very angry.
“Just keep control of him. Who has a pig for a pet, anyway?” She shook her head and turned to walk away. Ally tried to peer through the front window to see if the brand of walnuts was on the shelf. When she brushed her hand across the window she noticed that she left a dark smudge behind. After all the trouble she had with keeping the front window clean she was sensitive to smudged windows.
“Ugh, she must have had dirt on her shoe.” Ally turned her hand to the side and saw a large smear of brown across the side of her hand.
“Oh gross, is that mud or something worse?”
Charlotte leaned close and sniffed. “Relax, it’s chocolate.”
“No wonder Arnold was going nuts. He must have smelled the chocolate.”
“Here.” Charlotte handed her a tissue to clean her hand with. “What would Stephanie be doing with chocolate on her shoes?”
“I don’t know, but between the walnuts and the chocolate, I’m starting to think that she had something to do with her sister’s death.”
“Maybe, but it doesn’t prove anything. Let’s follow her a bit and see where she ends up. It’ll be fun.” Charlotte winked at Ally. Ally grinned.
“Mee-Maw, we have to talk about your version of fun.”
“Sh. Look, she’s going away from the parking lot.” Charlotte pointed out Stephanie’s bright red jacket. She was walking towards the small patch of woods.
“What is she going back there for?” Ally frowned.
“We’re going to find out.”
Ally and Charlotte walked across the parking lot to the other side. Then they followed Stephanie into the trees. Stephanie was still several feet ahead of them when they heard a male voice.
“We shouldn’t be meeting like this. Not with the kids in town.”
“I had to see you. What are we going to do?” Stephanie asked.
“The same thing I told you to do. We just need time for things to die down.”
“I don’t know, Nate, I just want to move on with our lives.” Ally and Charlotte looked at each other when they heard his name. Was this Myrtle’s ex-husband?
“Relax, the process takes time. We don’t want to make a mistake and be caught.”
“I know, but I just want to have Myrtle’s murder behind us?”
“It will be soon enough.”
“What happens if the kids figure us out?” Stephanie asked.
“It’s okay we’ll just tell them the truth.”
Ally held her breath. She wanted to hear a full confession. Instead she heard the unmistakable sound of lips smacking in a kiss. Her mouth fell open in shock. Stephanie and her sister’s ex-husband? It made her feel uncomfortable to even consider it.
“Nate, I wish we didn’t have to wait so long.”
“Me too, Stephanie, but they just lost their mother.”
“Some mother.”
“She was a hard woman, but she was their mother. They don’t need anything else to shake up their lives right now. They will find out eventually, and as much as they love you, I’m sure they will find a way to accept it.”
“I hope so.” Stephanie sniffled.
“Don’t cry my love. It’s all right. Everything is falling into place now, hmm?”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s just that I feel like I’m being followed, or watched, or something.”
Ally and Charlotte exchanged a glance. Suddenly a little mouse raced by Arnold. Arnold let out a loud snort and tried to chase after it. Ally did her best to hold onto his leash, but she wasn’t expecting him to bolt and didn’t have a good grip. He rushed off through the woods after the mouse.
“Arnold!” Ally tried to cry out, but Charlotte put a hand over her mouth to quiet her.
“Who’s there?” Nate shouted. Then there was a rustling of leaves as the two ran off through the woods. Charlotte let go of Ally and Ally rushed through the woods to find Arnold. She searched everywhere, but there was no sign of him. Her eyes filled with tears as she realized that she had lost her grandmother’s beloved pet.
“Ally, come out of there. We need to go home.”
“But, Mee-Maw, I didn’t find Arnold!”
“Arnold will come home on his own. He’s gotten away from me before. Even pigs need a little freedom now and then.” Charlotte smiled at her granddaughter. “Just come home with me, then we’ll go looking for him in the morning.”
“What if that awful woman, Stephanie, gets hold of him?”
“I think Stephanie has bigger problems right now.”
“I know. What did you think about their conversation? I thought they might be talking about the murder.”
“Maybe. But they didn’t say anything really incriminating, other than the fact that they are lovers and trying to hide it. That doesn’t make them criminals or murderers.”
“No, but it does give them motive. Especially, if they knew that Myrtle was about to change her will.”
“The question is, did they know? She might have confided in her sister, but we don’t know that for sure.”
“You’re right,” Ally agreed. “Maybe I just got caught up in the fact that she was trying to kick Arnold.”
“There is still the wrapper.” Charlotte patted her purse. “Maybe that will lead us somewhere.”
“I’ll check in with Luke in the morning.”
“Good idea.”
“If he’ll take my call.”
“I’m sure he will be fine, Ally. I know I was upset with him at first, but really Luke was just doing his job. I’m sure he’s working hard to get the shop reopened.”
“I know you’re right, but it’s hard not to be upset with him.”
“Well, he didn’t give us a hard time. He’s tried to be helpful and I think he’s just doing his job.”
“I guess.” Ally glanced over her shoulder several times as they walked back to the cottage. She kept hoping that Arnold would come running up to her.
“Try not to worry, Ally. Things always have a way of working out.”
Ally nodded, but she still felt miserable. When she arrived home she closed herself off in her room and curled up with Peaches. She could feel the soothing vibrations of her purring. Ally began to relax.
“Peaches, you have to help me find Arnold. Okay?”
Peaches rubbed her cheek against Ally’s and offered a soft meow. Ally smiled. She pet the cat and closed her eyes. All of her thoughts about the case swarmed through her mind. If she couldn’t figure out who killed Myrtle, then she might not ever be able to repair the reputation of the chocolate shop in the community. It would take time and a very clear verdict for people to forget the scandal.
Chapter Twelve
The next morning Ally pulled herself out of bed without much enthusiasm. In fact she would have preferred to close her eyes and go right back to sleep. But she wanted to find out if Arnold had made it home. As she trudged out into the kitchen she could smell the coffee that her grandmo
ther had already made.
“Did Arnold make it back yet?”
“No. I’m afraid not. But I’m sure that he’ll come home when he gets hungry. Silly pig, he must think he’s a cat, chasing after that mouse.”
“It was pretty silly.” Ally frowned. “I can’t believe he took off like that. He’s pretty fast for his size.”
“He is a spirited swine.”
“I know.” Ally gazed out the window that overlooked the driveway. It took her a moment to recognize the car that pulled to a stop in front of the house. “Oh no, Luke’s here and I’m still in my pajamas!”
“Relax, it’s not the first time that he’s seen you in your pajamas.” Charlotte ran her fingers through Ally’s hair and buttoned the top button of her pajama top. “There you go. You look ravishing.”
“I’m sure,” Ally said laughing. She felt very uncomfortable having to face Luke in her pajamas. However, there was no time to change as Luke was already out of the car. The sun shone on his hair, as usual, making him look like something crafted by the universe just for her. Instead of walking up the driveway to the front door of the cottage, Luke walked over to the back passenger door of his car. Ally raised an eyebrow as he opened the door. She watched him stumble and struggle with something. When he turned around he had Arnold’s leash in his hand and the pig started dragging him towards the house.
“Arnold!” Ally no longer cared about how she looked. She rushed out the door and met Luke halfway up the driveway. “Oh, you found him, thank you so much!” As soon as Ally took Arnold’s leash and bent down to his level, Arnold calmed down. He nuzzled her cheek and sniffed her hand. “Where did you find him?”
“Digging up Mrs. Penn’s roses. I would have taken him in for criminal mischief, but the cuffs kept slipping off.”
“Ha ha.” Ally grinned. “Thank you, Luke.”
“Of course.” He tilted his head towards the door. “May I come in for a moment?”
“Yes, sure.” Ally took Arnold to the door holding onto his leash. The door was still slightly open. Arnold pushed the door the rest of the way open with his snout. Ally stepped inside and Luke stepped in behind her.
“Oh, there’s my boy!” Charlotte clapped her hands as she bent down to hug Arnold. “I bet you’re starving. Let me get you some chow.”
“I am a little hungry.” Luke nodded. Charlotte and Ally looked at each other and laughed. “Oh, you meant the pig? Of course, sorry.”
“I’ll make you some chow, too, Luke, please have a seat.” She gestured to the table. Luke settled into one of the chairs. Ally sat down across from him.
“Arnold isn’t the only reason that I’m here. I also wanted to check on the two of you. I know all of this has been stressful, and that you probably see me as working against you. But I’m not.” He looked between the two of them. “I want to do everything I can to make sure that this case gets solved quickly.”
“That’s very kind of you, Luke.” Charlotte patted his shoulder.
Ally smiled at her grandmother and then looked back at Luke. “As for the case, we found some interesting information last night,” Ally said.
“Oh?”
“Yes. As we told you the chocolates that were poisoned did not come from our shop. The walnut on top wasn’t caramelized and was left whole. We found, actually Arnold found, a package for walnuts in the garbage of Stephanie’s store, the convenience store.”
“Interesting,” Luke said. “But that doesn’t prove anything.”
“That’s not all. She also had chocolate on her shoe.”
“Are you sure it was chocolate?” Luke winced.
“Yes, I sniffed it!” Charlotte called out as she buttered a few muffins.
“You sniffed her shoe?” Luke looked over at her with a raised eyebrow.
“It’s a long story. The point is, she has no reason to have chocolate on her shoe,” Ally said.
“Unless she stepped on a pre-packaged brownie, or anything else chocolaty for that matter, and got chocolate on her shoe. As for the walnut packaging, that’s not much to go on.”
“I know, but I’m sure it’s related to the murder,” Ally said.
“Maybe it is, but it’s a stretch,” he said. “Thank you for the muffin.”
“You’re welcome. Coffee, dear?” Charlotte asked.
Luke looked at her with a half-curled lip. “Sure, thank you.” As Charlotte went back to the coffee maker, Luke leaned towards Ally. “I thought she hated me.”
“She’s more forgiving than I am.” Ally shrugged.
“Aw, I did find Arnold, I thought that might get me back in your good graces.”
“Hmm, maybe it would, if you reopened the shop.”
“Give me a better suspect, and I will.” He looked into her eyes. “I mean it, Ally. I want that shop reopened as much as you do. It will mean that I have a real suspect.”
“One other than me you mean?”
“Yes. Unfortunately, we don’t have too many leads. There are plenty of suspicious people in her life, but no evidence to back-up those suspicions.”
“Maybe this will help.” Ally did her best to smooth down her hair. “We overheard Stephanie and Nate, Myrtle’s ex-husband, the father of her children, fighting about something.”
“How?”
“Well uh, we might have followed them.”
He rubbed his hands together. “Okay.” His eyes narrowed. “I thought he was still out of town. Maybe he came back early for the funeral. What were they fighting about?”
“It seems that they are lovers,” Ally said.
“Why is that important? If Myrtle and Nate were already divorced why would it matter?”
“Oh, you must not be around very many women.” Charlotte set down his coffee. “A sister dating the ex? Not acceptable.”
“Okay, so it’s more acceptable to kill her?” Luke said.
“Maybe they heard about Myrtle trying to change her will. They thought they would stop her before she had the chance to change it.”
“Don’t think I haven’t considered that possibility. However, what we need is hard evidence, not hearsay and assumptions. So far I don’t have any of that,” Luke said.
“Not even the fact that they were lovers?” Ally asked.
“Falling in love isn’t illegal, Ally.” Luke locked eyes with her. “As far as I know. It’s also not news. I’ve had a few people tell me about their relationship.”
“Oh.” Ally sighed. “Then I guess we’re left with a whole lot of nothing.”
“Don’t worry. There is no perfect murder.” Luke smiled. “Whoever did this is going to make a mistake.”
“Unfortunately, it has to be a mistake that is also evidence.” Ally frowned. Luke gave the back of her hand a light tap.
“Don’t give up on me now, Ally.”
Ally smiled as she met his eyes. She hadn’t really thought about the fact that he needed her to believe in him.
“Thanks Luke, it makes me feel a lot better knowing that you’re on the case.”
He smiled at her and stood up from the table. “Just give me a little time, Ally.”
“I’m sure you will figure it all out.” Ally stood up and walked him to the door. Luke lingered by the door.
“And I’m sure that you’re not going to give up. So, just be careful, Ally. Please?” He held her gaze.
“Well, since you asked so nicely.” She leaned in and pecked him on the cheek. The movement was impulsive and unexpected for both of them. Luke grinned as a hint of red rose in his cheeks. Ally laughed and glanced away from him. “Sorry, I guess I was just caught up in the moment.”
“Don’t be sorry. Please.” He winked at her and then turned to walk down the driveway. Ally watched him for a moment, then closed the door. After she closed the door, Ally turned to face her grandmother.
“That’s so sweet the way you talked to him, Ally. I’m sure that he really appreciates your confidence in him.”
“Well, I hope he does, but that�
�s not the only way this case is getting solved.”
“What do you mean?” Charlotte set down her cup of coffee before she even had a chance to take a sip.
“I mean, if it’s hard evidence that Luke needs, then it’s hard evidence we have to find.”
“What are you suggesting?” Charlotte raised an eyebrow.
“I am suggesting that we do a few searches of our own. If Stephanie is involved and she had chocolate on her shoe, then she had to make those chocolates somewhere, and she might have even left behind a footprint of chocolate.”
“Oh, Ally, that’s a great idea. But where do you think she would have made the chocolates?”
“I think the store is too small for her to be able to do it there, plus we don’t have much chance of getting past that security. I think we should check her house.”
“Aren’t Myrtle’s kids staying there?”
“Yes, and I’m sure I can get invited inside with a little convincing. Then I can take a look around her house and see if I find anything.”
“All right, that’s not even breaking and entering, Luke shouldn’t get upset about that.”
“No, he shouldn’t.” Ally smiled proudly. “So, it’s a perfectly good way to help him solve the case.”
“Sure.” Charlotte’s sly smile was lost behind her cup of coffee.
Chapter Thirteen
Charlotte knew where Stephanie lived, however they still parked a few streets away. Ally was sure that if Stephanie spotted her she would do her best to prevent Ally from getting inside the house. The best chance she had of getting inside was to get the attention of one of Myrtle’s children. If she could get invited in by them, then she might be able to look around before Stephanie asked her to leave. When they walked up to the house Charlotte held a bouquet of flowers in front of her. Ally knocked on the door and took a slight step back. A moment later the door swung open.
“Hi Mark.” Ally offered a tight smile. “My grandmother and I wanted to offer our sympathy.”
“Did you?” He nodded and took the flowers from Charlotte. “Thank you.”
