Meredith Potts Fourteen Book Cozy Mystery Set

by Meredith Potts

  Hannah seemed eager to get down to business. “So, what questions do you have for me?”

  Kaitlin was more than happy to launch into the investigation. “Hannah, you didn’t seem surprised to see us. Why not?”

  Hannah didn’t skip a beat. “I figured you’d want to question everyone involved with that blowup at the reunion last night. By the looks of it, I was right.”

  Kaitlin continued. “I can’t help but notice how calm you are.”

  “Of course. What reason would I have to be panicked?”

  My daughter didn’t make a habit of stating the obvious, but in this case, it was actually necessary. “Because you’re a murder suspect.”

  Hannah laughed.

  I was confused and stepped in. “What’s so funny?”

  “If you two think I’m a suspect in this case, you’re really reaching,” Hannah replied.

  I couldn’t wait to hear her logic, if she even had any. “What would make you think that?”

  “Why would I want to kill Sid Harper?” Hannah reasoned. “Now, if you’d found Peter Widmark dead, that would be another matter.”

  It was inevitable that we’d come to Peter Widmark at some point. I just figured it would be after we’d talked more about Sid. But, since Hannah had brought up the topic of her ex-lover, I was more than happy to delve into the subject.

  “Are you saying that you still harbor a grudge against Peter after all these years?” I asked.

  Hannah was not shy with her answer. “Of course I do. That scumbag knocked me up and then left me completely in the lurch. For nineteen years, I’ve been raising my daughter all by myself with no help from him financially, emotionally, or otherwise. It’s one thing to want nothing to do with me--it’s another to take no part in his own daughter’s life.”

  That was the first time since we began talking to her that Hannah had raised her voice. Perhaps she wasn’t as even-keeled as she led on.

  I couldn’t help but smile after hearing her response. “Are you still going to pretend that you don’t have a motive?”

  Hannah was not prepared to drop the charade yet. “That was Peter I was talking about, not Sid.”

  I set out to expose the flaw in her logic. “True, but Sid was the lynchpin of this all. He’s the one who broke the case wide open. Without Sid’s private-eye work, there’s no telling how much longer your affair might have lasted.”

  Hannah kept living in denial. She continued arguing the same point. “Trust me, if I was going to kill anybody, it would be Peter, not Sid. Either way, it doesn’t matter, because I’m not the killing type.”

  Kaitlin’s patience reached its limit. She sounded off. “You keep acting like you had no reason to kill Sid, but if he hadn’t exposed your affair, you could have just pretended the baby was your husband’s instead of Peter’s, and no one would have been the wiser. But when Sid revealed your affair, your husband divorced you, Peter left you in the lurch, and your reputation became so tarnished that you left town. There’s no denying that your life fundamentally changed because of Sid’s actions. You can’t pretend like that isn’t a killer motive.”

  “True.”

  I was just about to breathe a sigh of relief.

  Then, Hannah kept talking. “If I blamed Sid for all that happened. But all my anger is for Peter.”

  Hannah was by far the most frustrating suspect I’d ever questioned. Not only was she doggedly determined to keep hammering the same point, but her body language didn’t waver in the least.

  Kaitlin thought she knew a way to make progress. “You keep saying that, but there’s one way to find out the real truth.”

  Hannah furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”

  “Where were you last night between midnight and twelve thirty?” Kaitlin asked.

  “Here.”

  “Alone?”

  Hannah shook her head. “No. My daughter was with me.”

  “What were you doing?” Kaitlin wondered.

  “Watching some television before bed.”

  “Just you two?”

  Hannah nodded. “Ask her. She’ll tell you.”

  Without realizing it, Hannah had walked right into our trap. Kaitlin and I had both worried that Hannah and her daughter had come together to concoct a fake alibi that they could both corroborate. That was why I was more thankful than ever to have spotted those security cameras all around the motor lodge. They were the key to breaking this interrogation wide open.

  A smile came to Kaitlin’s face. “I’m sure your daughter will tell me exactly that. Only, this fake alibi that you two concocted won’t fly with us.”

  Hannah got a disgusted look on her face. “Fake? What are you talking about?”

  Kaitlin exposed Hannah’s lie. “The motor lodge has security-camera footage showing you pulling into the parking lot a short time after Sid Harper was murdered. Now, do you want to tell me where you really were between midnight and twelve thirty?”

  I expected the calm look to be wiped clean off of Hannah’s face. Surprisingly, she showed no sign of panic. She answered without sweating. “The convenience store on Route Six.”

  Kaitlin kept at her. “You know that convenience stores have security cameras too. Even if I need to get a warrant, I’m going to check those tapes. Are you still sticking to that story?”

  Hannah reached into her purse and pulled out a receipt. “Like I said, I was at the convenience store.”

  Kaitlin looked at the receipt closely. It was from the convenience store, just as Hannah claimed. It was not, however, as exonerating as Hannah seemed to think it was.

  “This receipt is from eleven forty five,” Kaitlin said.

  “So?” Hannah asked.

  “So, the store is only a few blocks away. The security camera here at the motor lodge didn’t show you pulling into the parking until after midnight. Where were you during interim?”

  “There was an amazing full moon last night. I pulled over to the side of the road, gazed up at it, and got caught up in my thoughts for a little bit.”

  It was true, there was a full moon last night. That was the only part of her story that was a hundred percent certain. Everything else was just her word against ours.

  “It’s a shame you have no one to verify that, though,” Kaitlin said.

  Hannah narrowed her eyes. “That’s what happened.”

  “That would be easier to believe if you hadn’t already lied to us once. Don’t you go anywhere. Let’s see if your daughter decides to lie to us as well,” Kaitlin replied.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Our conversation with Hannah provided little clarity. Perhaps talking with her daughter, Sabrina, would shed some light on the truth. The nineteen-year-old had a trim body, an oval face, blue eyes, and long black hair. Like her mother, Sabrina was as calm as could be. I saw a number of parallels between them. There seemed to be a lot of that going around. My daughter and I were filled with dogged determination, Widmark women were combative basket cases, and the Gable women were surprisingly at ease. Apple's had not fallen far from any of our family trees.

  Metaphors aside, Kaitlin decided to go straight to the hard questions with Sabrina.

  “Where were you between midnight and twelve thirty?” Kaitlin asked.

  Sabrina didn’t even blink. “I was here, in the room.”

  “Were you alone?”

  That would make for a telling answer. Kaitlin and I knew the truth. We also were aware that the Gables had concocted fake alibis. Would Sabrina stick to hers?

  “My mom was here,” Sabrina replied.

  She walked right into the trap. We had her right where we wanted her.

  Kaitlin briefly played along. “Oh, is that so? What were you two doing?”

  “Watching TV,” Sabrina said.

  Kaitlin put the pressure on. “Is that the story you’re sticking with?”

  Sabrina wrinkled her nose. “It’s not a story. It’s the truth.”

  Kaitlin folded her arms. “Nice try,
but we know you’re lying.”

  Sabrina played dumb. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “The hotel’s security-camera footage shows your mother pulling into the parking lot shortly after the time Sid was murdered. Your mother’s story is that she went to the convenience store then pulled over to the side of the road to gaze at the moon. So much for your mother corroborating your alibi. Now, why don’t you tell me the truth about where you were at the time of the murder?” Kaitlin said.

  Sabrina began fumbling over her words. “I did tell you the truth.”

  Kaitlin stared her down. “We just caught you in a lie.”

  “The part about me being here in the room was the truth. The only lie was about my mother being here,” Sabrina said.

  Sabrina was getting awfully squirmy, but she wouldn’t be able to wriggle her way out of this.

  I applied some pressure of my own. “You can say whatever you want to us, but it doesn’t change the fact that you have no one to verify your story.”

  “I don’t need anyone to verify it. I was sitting on this bed, watching the last half hour of David Conklin’s late-night show.”

  Her story wasn’t completely out of the realm of possibility. David Conklin was a comedian who had a late-night talk show that ran from eleven thirty to twelve thirty every night. But just because the show was on didn’t mean Sabrina was here watching it just as she said she was.

  “That would be a lot easier to believe had you not already lied to us once,” I said.

  Sabrina kept trying to pretend it was our fault that we didn’t just blindly accept her story. “You two are trying to make this more complicated than it is. Honestly, you’re wasting your time. I mean, I have no motive.”

  Kaitlin scoffed. “Now you’re just being ridiculous.”

  Only, I could tell by the deadly serious expression on Sabrina’s face that she hadn’t meant that as a joke.

  “Seriously, Peter Widmark is the one I have a right to be violently angry at, not Sid,” Sabrina said.

  It was uncanny how both mother and daughter had taken a page out of the same playbook, admitting hatred for only Peter.

  Kaitlin responded to Sabrina the same way she did to her mother. “You don’t even realize how incriminating that answer just was. You just admitted how angry you were at Peter.”

  Sabrina tried to correct her. “Yes, Peter, not Sid.”

  Kaitlin pressed on. “Only, Sid spurred all this on. He was the catalyst, the engine behind this trip down the road to ruin. If not for Sid, maybe your mother’s affair with Peter would have never come out. When you were born, your mother could have pretended her husband was the real father, and as a result, your mom and Brad Gable might have never gotten divorced. You would have grown up in a two-parent home instead of being raised by a bitter, struggling single mom. Sid breaking the news of the affair sent both your and your mother’s lives down much different, darker paths. To me, that’s all the motive you need.”

  Sabrina didn’t budge an inch. “We’ll just agree to disagree on that.”

  Kaitlin narrowed her eyes, piercing Sabrina with her stare. “I’d tell the truth if I were you. Or, are you afraid to?”

  Sabrina held her ground. “I already told you. I was here watching TV last night. End of story.”

  She clearly wasn’t going to give us anything more to work with. We were at a verbal stalemate that showed no sign of ending.

  With no further leverage to work with, Kaitlin decided to end the interview. But first, she issued Sabrina a warning.

  “Don’t either you or your mother think about leaving town.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  For the first time since our investigation began, there was no logical next step for us to follow. Our path to uncovering the truth was muddled. It was a bad time to hit a dead end, but we’d run out of suspects to question. I didn’t want to give up looking, but we had no road map to our final destination, and I didn’t want to just wander aimlessly. That was the easiest way to get lost.

  I wasn’t the only one who was unclear as to where to go. Kaitlin looked like she was drawing a blank as well. Secretly, I hoped that I was reading the situation wrong, but there was one way to find out.

  “So, what now?” I said.

  My daughter’s first reaction wasn’t to reply, but rather to groan. I’d turned to her for guidance, but she seemed to be just as lost as I was.

  One thing was clear—we were short on leads, but long on frustration.

  Kaitlin vented hers, muttering as she exhaled again. “Unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot more we can do at the moment.”

  That was what I feared but didn’t want to say aloud. With my suspicions confirmed, the poor morale spread. “That’s discouraging.”

  Just because we were down didn’t mean we were out. Kaitlin might have been licking her metaphorical wounds, but she wasn’t about to roll over.

  “I’m going to check back at the station,” she said. “Maybe the lab has some results for me or some kind of new lead.”

  “Want me to come along?”

  She declined. “No, you’ve already done plenty today. There’s no reason to overexert yourself.”

  My maternal instincts refused to be denied at that moment. Suddenly, I wasn’t a retiree investigating a murder case any longer, but rather just a mother concerned about her daughter. “Don’t forget to take your own advice. It’s important to get a good night’s sleep, especially after a day like this.”

  “I know, Mom.”

  Even though Kaitlin was now in her forties, she’d managed to hold on to a few of the annoying habits that she’d had since childhood. That was one of them. Sometimes, it truly wasn’t the words being said, but the tone in which they were uttered. Kaitlin had slathered her response in sarcasm. It was the equivalent of the annoyed “yes, dear” that my husband used to throw my way when he wanted to get me to talk about something else. Only, I wasn’t going to change my tune.

  Instead, I emphasized my point again. “I’m serious. Rest is important.”

  “So is solving this case.”

  Despite how clearly I was making my points, I couldn’t seem to get through to her. I was determined to leave no doubt in her mind.

  “How do you expect to do that if you don’t have enough rest?” I said.

  That wasn’t so much of a riddle as it was a rhetorical question. More importantly, it looked like it worked. Finally, I’d worn her down.

  “All right. I will,” she replied.

  “Good. Now, if you do happen to get any leads, be sure to call me.”

  “I will. In the meantime, sleep on it, and I’ll do the same.”

  “Love you,” I said.

  “Love you too.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Home had never looked so sweet. As Kaitlin dropped me off, it wasn’t just the welcome mat that greeted me. Exhaustion had finally tracked me down and tackled me like a mugger in a dark alleyway. While we were questioning the suspects, I found myself getting different spikes in my energy levels from the adrenaline of the case. With nothing else on my schedule for the evening except for some much-deserved rest and relaxation, my body didn’t need any prompting to wind down.

  It made for a staggering contrast, then, when Roxie greeted me with a wagging tail, flush with pent-up energy.

  “Hey, girl,” I said.

  She bopped up and down, looking like she wanted to wrap her paws around me and give me a big hug. Roxie was always full of energy, but even more so that evening. It was an interesting and inopportune night to make an exception considering my emotional raggedness, but was also understandable, seeing as how unheard of it was for me to be out of the house for such a long stretch of time.

  “It’s good to see you too. I’ll bet my little princess is hungry, isn’t she?”

  That was probably the most rhetorical question I’d ever asked. Of course she’d worked herself into a tizzy. She was the canine equivalent of a vacuum cleane
r and hadn’t been fed in hours. In her mind, that was as good as starving.

  There was more than just the usual begging for food going on that evening. It would be easy to mistake this as just a plea for dinner, but even after I gave her kibble and wet food, she was still wired. Little Roxie looked like she’d been saving up all her energy to spend with me. She licked her bowl clean then looked up at me with smiling eyes.

  “My, aren’t you full of verve tonight?”

  As much as I hated to disappoint her, unfortunately, I couldn’t give her the attention she wanted. I was beat, and not dinner or a cup of coffee could enliven me. I’d outsprinted age for a long time, but it finally caught up with me that evening.

  “I’m sorry, girl, but I can’t play with you tonight.”

  I gave her a few rubs. While Roxie was visibly disappointed, as she watched me sluggishly drag myself around the kitchen, she seemed to understand my exhaustion. Not that she liked it. It was more like she begrudgingly accepted it. I threw together a light dinner consisting of a handful of cashews paired with a bowl of strawberry yogurt then flopped on my bed.

  When my head hit the pillow, I was convinced that I’d be out like a light. I didn’t even bother to start counting sheep. Maybe I should have. The decision to crash out proved to be less of a no-brainer than it seemed. As I curled up in bed, my body and mind went their separate ways.

  My body was ready for eight hours’ worth of rest and recharging. As for my mind, it wasn’t just awake, it was buzzing. Usually, it was my loneliness that got to me. On the bad nights, I stayed awake for hours thinking about how much I missed my husband and how I’d never get to see him again.

  That evening, things were different. It was the case that was keeping me from my all-important rest. I kept going over the various suspects, trying to read between the lines and make sense of it all. My brain wasn’t doing me any favors.