Reservations for Murder

by Tim Myers

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked. “It’s a great deal of work.”

  “It couldn’t be much worse than taking care of Mr. Sturbridge, and I did that for more years than I care to remember.”

  Alex offered his hand. “It’s a deal, then. When do you want to start?”

  “I’ll be here first thing in the morning. How does five a.m. sound?”

  “I don’t know. I haven’t been up that early since I was a kid. I usually don’t get started until six-thirty, Emma.”

  “Tell you what, let’s split the difference. I’ll be here at six, with bells on.” She turned to Mor and said, “We’d better head back into town. I’ve got a full day ahead of me tomorrow.”

  Mor winked at Alex, then complained loudly, “I knew I’d end up being the one who suffered from this arrangement.”

  Emma started scolding him. “Mor Pendleton, you can certainly spare a few hours of my company—”

  She caught the smile the two men were sharing, then turned her back on them both. “Mor, I’ll wait for you in the car. Alex, I’ll see you in the morning.”

  After she was safely ensconced in the car, Alex said, “You two seem to be getting along well.”

  “Yeah, well, Emma kind of grows on you after a while. She’s really something.”

  “Spare me the details. I’m just glad you’re doing all right.”

  Mor punched Alex gently on the shoulder. In a rare moment of seriousness, he said, “Don’t worry about Elise, Alex. I know she’s coming back.”

  “Yeah, I think so, too,” Alex said. As he watched Mor drive away, he couldn’t help wondering though. It sounded like Elise was settling in for a long stay up north.

  Alex hoped Elise planned on coming back, but he had to accept the possibility that she was gone for good. After all, it appeared that she had already lined up a replacement, just in case she decided to stay in West Virginia.

  The evening was certainly cool enough, so Alex gladly used it as an excuse to build a fire in the main lobby. He hadn’t had enough money to restore the fireplaces in all of the rooms yet, but the massive communal hearth in the lobby had never failed the Winstons in all the generations they’d owned The Hatteras West Inn.

  As he reviewed his current situation, he acknowledged that it was a distressing predicament for an innkeeper to be in. One of his guests had been murdered, and another had disappeared without warning. To top it off, the rest of the crafters were leaving tomorrow night after the lighting ceremony, and Alex would be left with a nearly empty inn again. He knew that the first Golden Days Fair would also be the last, certainly as far as Hatteras West was concerned. It was just too much for him, added to his usual hectic life running the inn. When he lit the beacon tomorrow night, it would be a welcome end to something that had started out with so much promise.

  As the logs caught fire, Alex decided to use one of the special pieces of firewood one of his guests brought him every year she visited the inn. He loved watching the minerals in the crusted wood ignite in flames of red, gold, green and blue. Alethia Garson brought a stack of driftwood she collected from her home in Buxton on the Outer Banks every time she visited Hatteras West. Alethia was a lighthouse nut; there was no polite way to say it. She’d proudly showed Alex pictures of her own home, filled with every imaginable product ever made in the shape of a lighthouse, from salt and pepper shakers to birdhouses to dinner bells. Without question, though, her proudest possession was a small-scale version of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse sitting in her own front yard.

  Every time he burned a piece of wood from her special stack, Alex thought warmly of her and everyone else who had crossed his threshold to stay at The Hatteras West Inn. Alethia and other guests like her were the real reason Alex continued with the inn when all intelligence told him it was a foolhardy proposition. Not only was Hatteras West the only home he knew, but the people who came back to stay with him year after year were more of a family to him than his own brother had ever been.

  As Alex watched the flames, he found himself wondering for the thousandth time who really had murdered Jefferson Lee. Could it actually have been Bill Yadkin, the most obvious suspect, despite Alex’s gut feeling? Jalissa Moore, a girl he’d gone to high school with and who now worked as a reporter for Elkton Falls’ only newspaper, once told him that one of the first things she’d been taught in journalism school was that if you hear hoofbeats, think horses not zebras.

  Bill Yadkin was the obvious choice.

  But Alex knew that even his good friend Shantara had reasons of her own to want the blacksmith dead.

  Did Marilynn Baxter have something to hide concerning the murder? Could she have seen something she shouldn’t have? Had she run, or had she been kidnapped, as her husband believed? For that matter, did Craig Monroe know more about her disappearance than he let on?

  There was also Jenny to consider. After all, she’d dated the blacksmith recently, and Alex knew firsthand how her moods could swing. How about Rachel? The woodworker was powerful enough, she’d proven it when she’d grabbed his arm, and she was certainly capable of it if she felt her lover was threatened. For that matter, all of the women at the fair were physically strong enough to have done it.

  Alex had a thousand questions and not one solid answer for any of them. He wished yet again that Elise was there to talk it all over with him. Even if they didn’t come up with a solution on their own, they’d make a go of it, he was certain of that. He pulled the bracelet of hers he’d found from his pocket and toyed with it, wondering what Elise was doing at that very moment.

  Chiding himself for his behavior, Alex got up and stoked the fire. As the embers danced upward, Alex tried to clear his mind of murder, kidnapping and Elise.

  He didn’t have any luck forgetting any of them, not even for a moment.

  Chapter 12

  Alex was just about to douse the fire and head off to bed when he heard footsteps coming down the staircase. Who could it be prowling around this late?

  Jenny Harris came down the steps dressed in a lacy white nightgown only partially covered by an open silk robe. “I thought I heard someone down here.”

  Keeping his eyes on the fire, Alex said, “I was just about to call it a night.”

  She asked softly, “Would you mind keeping me company for a little while?”

  Alex didn’t feel all that sociable, and he certainly didn’t want another discussion with Jenny about their past. He said, “Sorry, but I’m beat.”

  She stared at him a full ten seconds, and for the life of him, Alex thought she was about to cry.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked gently.

  “I just can’t believe how you’ve been treating me lately,” she complained. “Alex, we had something together once, and now it’s like you can’t even stand being in the same room with me.”

  “Jenny, it’s not that. I like you. I’m just not interested in pursuing it any further than that.”

  “Okay, I believe you, Alex. Does that mean we can’t at least be friends?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

  “Friendship is fine with me, as long as that’s where it starts and stops,” he said.

  As Alex started to stand, Jenny leaned forward. “Please, don’t go. Alex, I don’t want to be alone. Could you stay? Please?”

  “Just for a little bit,” he agreed reluctantly, “but it really has been a long day.”

  Staring into the fire, Jenny said, “Alex, these past few days have been like some kind of nightmare. I can’t believe Jefferson’s dead, can you?”

  “I hate the idea of anybody being murdered, especially at Hatteras West, but I didn’t know him as well as you did.”

  Jenny started to cry softly, and Alex couldn’t just sit there and coldly watch her tears. He moved beside her and put his arm around her shoulders, offering comfort in the only way he knew how. Jenny instinctively turned to him, burying her head into his chest. There was nothing false or manipulative or even sexual about it. The woman genuine
ly needed a friend. Ironically, as the sobs finally subsided, Alex was suddenly very much aware of Jenny’s physical presence.

  As he started for the other couch, she said, “Hold me just a little longer.”

  “I can’t.” It was obvious she needed someone to cling to, but it couldn’t be him. For the first time since she’d been gone, Alex was just as happy that Elise wasn’t there to see this.

  Suddenly the front door opened. Jenny still had her

  hand on his arm. Alex jumped up and found Rachel Seabock standing at the door, a surprised look on her face.

  “Excuse me, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she said as she started past them.

  “You didn’t,” Alex said a little too loudly. “We were just enjoying the fire. Why don’t you join us?”

  Averting her eyes, Rachel said, “Thanks, but I’m going straight to bed. I’ve been looking all over Elkton Falls for Bill, but I couldn’t find him anywhere.”

  “There’s a lot of that going around,” Alex said.

  “Is Elise missing, too?” Rachel asked.

  Obviously she was the only person left in all of Elkton Falls who didn’t know Elise had gone to West Virginia. “No,” Alex said, “she was called away for a family emergency.”

  Rachel’s eyebrows rose as she asked, “So who else is missing?”

  “That’s right, you haven’t been around. Craig Monroe is under the impression that his wife was kidnapped this evening. The sheriff thinks she’s shacking up with her mystery lover. I think they both have overactive imaginations.”

  Rachel shook her head. “What’s happening around here, Alex?”

  “It’s not Hatteras West’s fault,” Alex said.

  “I’m not blaming you, but this Golden Days Fair has turned out to be a real nightmare.” She stared at the fire a second, then said, “I’m going to bed.”

  “Me, too,” Alex said before Rachel could leave. As he moved to kill the fire, Jenny said, “I think I’ll stay up a little longer, if you don’t mind.”

  “Good night, then,” Alex said while he still had a chaperone. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust himself to be alone with Jenny; it was just that the woman seemed to know the right strings to pull to get to him. At least this would be her last night at Hatteras West, since the fair was shutting down tomorrow.

  Alex dead-bolted his door after he closed it behind him. He suffered through a miserable night of sleep, missing Elise but remembering the smell of Jenny’s hair.

  Alex woke up grumpy the next morning, having tossed and turned all night, fighting off nightmare steel lances rushing toward him in his sleep. Alex knew he was a real bear without the proper amount of rest, and he always tried to get at least eight hours every night, but as an innkeeper that wasn’t always possible, not by a long shot. He wasn’t normally a coffee drinker, but this morning he made an exception and brewed up a pot. Elise had been after him to start offering at least bagels, fruit and some juice to their guests each morning, and Alex realized he’d been wrong to stubbornly fight her on it. Starting tomorrow, he’d implement her suggestion. He just hoped she came back to see it.

  Alex was just finishing his second cup of coffee when there was a hearty knock on his door.

  Emma Sturbridge, dressed in neatly pressed but well-worn jeans and a faded flannel shirt, was ready to start work.

  “Morning, Alex. Point me to today’s to-do list, and I’ll get started.”

  “Would you like a cup of coffee first?” Alex asked.

  “No time for that,” Emma said stoutly. “There’s work to be done.”

  Alex laughed and felt his earlier bad mood lifting. Emma was a dose of energy, and that was exactly what he needed at the moment. “We can’t get started on the rooms yet, no one’s up, but we’ve got more laundry from yesterday I didn’t get around to and all of the floors in the common rooms need sweeping.”

  “I’m on it,” Emma said, bustling off toward the small laundry room in back.

  Alex said, “Let me grab a quick bite, then I’ll join you.”

  Emma waved her hand in the air. “Take your time, Alex, I’ve got the situation well in hand.”

  There was a crackling competency about Emma Sturbridge, and Alex was suddenly glad Elise had made arrangements for Emma to help out. Certainly he’d rather have Elise working with him, but Emma was the next best thing.

  Alex had a quick bowl of cereal and was heading to the laundry room to help Emma, when Jenny came down the stairs dressed in another brightly woven dress she’d made herself. She looked carefully at him as she said, “Alex, I want to thank you for last night. Your company meant the world to me.”

  “You’re welcome, Jenny. I’m always here for my friends.”

  She took his hand and squeezed it. “We are friends, aren’t we, Alex? Despite everything that’s happened between us in the past and my behavior these last few days.”

  “Absolutely,” Alex said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a basket full of sheets to fold.”

  Jenny said softly, “You know, the whole time we were together, I always felt your heart belonged more to this inn than it did to me.”

  Instead of trying to explain again how much a part of him Hatteras West was, Alex just smiled and said, “What can I say? She’ll always be my first love.”

  Earnestly, Jenny asked, “Alex, do you honestly believe any woman will accept second place in your heart?”

  Alex laughed heartily. “Jenny, if I’ve learned one thing over the years, it’s that anybody I get involved with will have to love Hatteras West almost as much as I do.”

  Jenny shook her head and smiled softly. “Good luck finding her, Alex, and I mean that sincerely.”

  Alex caught himself whistling as he walked down the hall to the laundry room. It looked like Jenny had finally accepted the fact that there was nothing but friendship between them, and memories left from their past.

  “Why the broad smile?” Emma asked as he walked into the small laundry room. There was a mountain of white cotton sheets in the basket in front of her, and she’d been systematically converting the jumbled mess into a pristinely organized stack.

  As Alex grabbed a sheet and started folding, he said, “I’m just happy to be alive today.”

  “My, you’re in a particularly good mood, especially with Elise gone.”

  “Emma, I can’t do anything about that. But this is my home, and there’s no place in the world I’d rather be.” He chuckled slightly as he put the folded sheet onto the pile and grabbed another one from the basket.

  “Alex Winston, sometimes you don’t make any sense at all.”

  He patted her cheek and said, “Just sometimes? Emma, I thought you knew me better than that.”

  She couldn’t help joining him in his laughter; his mood was that infectious. “You’re an odd bird, Alex Winston, you know that, don’t you?”

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  They were just finishing up the last of the laundry when Shantara came in. “There you are. I’ve been looking all over the inn for you.”

  Alex realized he’d forgotten to put the proper sign on the front desk in case one of his guests needed him. He had a whole batch of ready-made signs telling them where he was, including one that said, I’m in the Laundry Room if You Need Me.

  Shantara’s eyes, usually so deep and intense, had a very worried look about them.

  “What is it?” Alex asked, his good mood suddenly gone.

  “It’s over, Alex, I can’t fake this anymore. I’m canceling what’s left of this disaster right now before something else bad happens.”

  Chapter 13

  “You can’t cancel the fair,” Alex said. “Shantara, people are counting on you.”

  She looked ready to burst into tears. “What’s the use, Alex? This entire weekend is going to be remembered forever as the Murder Fair.”

  Alex suddenly felt his blood turn to ice. “Has something happened to Marilynn Baxter?”

  Shantara
shook her head. “I haven’t heard anything about Marilynn. She’s probably safe at home by now. I’m talking about Jefferson’s murder. Surely that’s enough, isn’t it?”

  Emma said calmly, “Shantara, if you shut the fair down now, whoever killed Jefferson Lee will most likely get away with it. What are the odds the sheriff is going to be able to track down the killer if the majority of his suspects fly the coop? You can’t let that happen, not while it’s in your hands.”

  “Mrs. Sturbridge, how can I ask people to pay to see a young blacksmith who may or may not show up, a pottery team who’s doubtful, and another blacksmith gone because he was murdered on the spot? The only exhibitors I know I can count on are Jenny and Rachel. It’s not much of a show with just the two of them.”

  Emma said, “Shantara, I’ve told you before, call me Emma, please. You’d better believe all of Elkton Falls will come out here today! If nothing else, they want to see what’s going to happen next!” She cut off Shantara’s protests with a raised hand. “I’m not saying you should cater to their base desires, but I certainly think you have every right to continue your fair. I, for one, have been looking forward to seeing Jenny Harris do her weaving demonstration this afternoon. Not only that, but I missed Rachel Seabock making a Shaker chair yesterday, and I want to be certain I see it today.” She turned to Alex and winked so Shantara couldn’t see. “In fact, Alex and I were just discussing that very thing, weren’t we?”

  “Absolutely,” Alex said. “You can’t disappoint the people who really care about the old-time crafts. That was one of the reasons you did this, remember?”

  “Well,” Shantara wavered, but Emma steamed on.

  “Tell you what. Why don’t I walk around the grounds with you, and we’ll make certain everything’s ready for the paying guests. You don’t mind if I skip out for a few minutes, do you, Alex?”

  “Go right ahead. I’ve got everything here under control.”

  Alex nodded his approval as the two women left. He had liked Emma Sturbridge from the moment he’d met her as a guest at the inn. There was such an air of confidence about her, a sheer and utter serenity that made him feel that nothing could go wrong whenever she was around.