“In that case, why don’t you prove me wrong?” I said.
“How am I supposed to do that?”
“Why don’t you tell us where you were last night?”
“That’s easy. I was at home.”
“Doing what?”
“A number of things. I took a bath, did some reading, and then watched some TV.”
“Were you home alone the entire time?”
“Why does that matter?”
“Is that a no?” I asked.
“Wait. Don’t you believe me?” Cheryl said.
“Will you please answer Sabrina’s question?” David said.
Cheryl took a deep breath before responding, “Yes. I was alone. But I was at home all night.”
“I wish I could believe that,” David said.
“There’s nothing stopping you—”
David interrupted Cheryl. “Actually, there is. You already lied to us once during this conversation. Which makes it difficult to believe you now.”
Cheryl groaned. “What do you want from me?”
“The truth,” David said.
“I just told you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get to work,” Cheryl said.
David shook his head. “You’re not going anywhere yet. I decide when this conversation is over.”
Cheryl lost control of her temper. “I’m only going to say this one more time. You’re talking to the wrong person. Now, I’m sorry that someone bludgeoned him with a wrench, but it wasn’t me.”
My eyes widened as I listened to Cheryl’s statement. In her anger, she had let a key detail slip out.
“Hold on a second,” I said. “How did you know that Jeff was bludgeoned? With a wrench, no less?”
A look of panic came to Cheryl’s face. “You told me.”
I shook my head. “No, I didn’t.”
“Nor has that information been shared with the press,” David added.
“As a matter of fact, the only way you would have known that detail is if you were responsible for Jeff’s murder,” I said.
Instead of admitting the truth, Cheryl eyed the exit and tried to dash away.
David wasn’t about to let that happen. He pulled out his gun and pointed it at her. “Stop right there.”
Cheryl reluctantly stopped in her tracks.
“Put your hands behind your head,” David said.
At that point, Cheryl couldn’t hold her emotions back any longer. “Things weren’t supposed to turn out this way. Jeff and I were meant to be together. I was so much better for him than Vanessa. Why couldn’t he see that?”
“So, because you couldn’t have him, you made sure that no one would,” I said. I then shook my head in disgust. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Chapter Eleven
David hauled Cheryl back to the police station and booked her on murder charges. Meanwhile, I called Vanessa to tell her that Jeff’s killer had been apprehended. As expected, Vanessa was happy to hear that Cheryl was behind bars.
After getting off the phone with Vanessa, I waited for David to finish his work at the police station. Once he had completed all the necessary paperwork relating to Cheryl’s arrest, my husband met up with me.
At that point, I breathed a huge sigh of relief.
“That sums up my feelings perfectly,” David said.
I took a deep breath before responding, “I’m so glad this case is closed.”
David chuckled.
My nose crinkled. “What’s so funny?”
“You just say that after every case.”
“Can you blame me? Solving murders is exhausting.”
“Not to mention, ridiculously stressful,” he added.
I nodded. “Exactly. Besides, we’re not as young as we used to be.”
David grimaced. “Don’t remind me. As it is, I don’t know any other detectives in their midfifties who haven’t retired yet.”
My eyes widened. “Wait a minute. Did I just hear you right? Are you thinking about retiring?”
“The thought has crossed my mind,” he said. “But I’m not going to do it quite yet.”
I shrugged. “Why not?”
“Have you taken a look at our bank account recently? Unless you buy me a winning lottery ticket for Christmas this year, retirement isn’t in the cards for a little while.”
“Fair enough,” I said.
“How about you? Haven’t you ever thought of calling it quits?”
“I would love not having to investigate another case—”
David threw out his arms. “Then why did you act so surprised when I brought up the topic of retirement?”
I held my hand up. “You didn’t let me finish.”
“All right. Go ahead.”
“When I said that I’d love not having to investigate another case, I meant that it would be nice if murders stopped occurring in Treasure Cove.”
“Oh.”
“But if trouble keeps finding its way into my life, I’m going to make sure that justice is served.”
He gazed deep into my eyes. “You’re a one of a kind woman, you know that?”
“In what way?”
His eyes lit up as he smiled at me. “I’ve just never met anyone like you. And I probably never will.”
I blushed. “That’s so sweet.”
He leaned in and gave me a kiss. “It’s just the truth. I love you so much.”
“You sure know how to make a woman feel special.”
“Let’s be honest. You are special.”
“Before you go too overboard, you’re pretty amazing yourself.”
“Thanks,” he said. David then stared off into the distance. “You know, it’s pretty amazing—”
I nodded. “I agree. This case was something.”
He shook his head. “I wasn’t talking about the case.”
My forehead wrinkled. “What were you talking about then?
“You and I have been together other twenty-eight years, yet I love you now more than ever.”
I smiled wide. “That is remarkable.”
David nodded. “Like a Christmas gift from the universe.”
“Maybe the best Christmas gift of all.”
David bit the corner of his lip. “I’m not sure about that.”
I squinted. “What’s better than that?”
A playful look came to his face. “How about Christmas cookies?”
I chuckled. “I should have known that sweets would get top billing.”
He grinned. “I’m just kidding. You mean a lot more to me than sweets.”
“There’s a serious compliment,” I said.
“Speaking of sweets, I’d really love some cookies right now.”
I chuckled. “You sound like me.”
He shrugged. “What can I say? After all these years, you’re rubbing off on me.”
“I sure am.”
“So, are we going to get some cookies or not?”
I nodded. “Absolutely.”
Epilogue
A week later
Forget about material gifts.
There was one thing I wanted for Christmas more than any other.
Peace.
Thankfully, the Lord answered my prayers. The remainder of the holiday season went by without any incidents.
Before I knew it, Christmas arrived, and not a moment too soon.
Don’t get me wrong. While I loved opening presents, the greatest gift I received that year was the ability to relax and enjoy the holiday.
Much to my delight, I didn’t receive a frantic call from one of my friends. In addition, David’s police radio stayed completely quiet. It was incredible. Not to mention, an incredibly welcome experience.
Instead of rushing off to solve a crime, David and I were able to celebrate the birth of Christ with our family.
There was great food, wonderful gifts, plenty of laughs, a whole bunch of smiles, and even some Christmas carols.
I loved every minute of it.
The End.
Ice Cream with a Side of Murder
Chapter One
“This can’t be happening,” Shannon Marlowe said.
The look in Shannon’s eyes broke my heart. I knew what she was going through. I had been in that exact situation before. It was absolutely devastating to lose a family member. Especially when it happened so unexpectedly. In truth, the loss was so fresh that Shannon was still in shock.
She wasn’t alone. I was having a hard time making sense of what had happened. Of course, murder was never easy to come to grips with. But Kristie Wakefield’s death was particularly puzzling.
“I’m so sorry,” I said. “This is awful.”
“I don’t even know what to say,” Shannon replied. She then took a deep breath before putting together another sentence. “How could this have happened?”
As much as my friend craved answers, they were in short supply. It was going to take a while to piece together who was responsible for this heinous act. Of course, that was the last thing Shannon wanted to hear. She just wanted her beloved cousin back.
What a terrible loss this was. While I didn’t know Kristie Wakefield quite as well as Shannon did, I had spoken with the successful businesswoman a number of times. She was more than just the owner of a local catering company. She was also a kind woman who had a generous soul. In this day and age, that was a rare combination. She would certainly be missed.
While I could have easily remained lost in thought, Shannon was waiting on a response from me. Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything I could say that would make her feel better. This was just an awful situation, all around. There was no sugarcoating things.
“The sad fact is that there’s a lot of maniacs in this world. And when they strike, disasters like this happen,” I said.
“Sabrina, we live in Treasure Cove. It’s not surprising to me that there are monsters out there,” Shannon said. “What doesn’t make sense to me is the timing of all this.” She looked at her phone. “Kristie just left me a voicemail not too long ago. She called to tell me she was running late for our breakfast meeting. And now she’s dead.”
I exhaled. “I know it isn’t any consolation, but it doesn’t make much sense to me either—”
She shook her head. “I just can’t believe this. She sounded fine in her message. There was no indication that she was in any danger.”
“The killer might have snuck up behind her—”
“Which means that she never saw it coming.”
I put my hand up. “I would hold off on making any definitive claims. It’s still too early to know what truly happened here.”
“One thing is clear. Kristie is gone and she’s never coming back.”
I gave Shannon a big hug. “This is just so terrible.”
Shannon pulled back and wiped tears from her eyes. “My life is never going to be the same.”
“I wish there was something I could tell you that would make you feel better.”
“There is.”
“Really?”
Shannon nodded. “Tell me you’re not going to stop until you find out who did this.”
“Trust me. David and I are going to do everything in our power until we discover the truth,” I said.
“Good,” Shannon said. “Because whoever is responsible for this needs to pay.”
Chapter Two
For the next few minutes, Shannon’s emotions kept jumping back and forth between sadness and outrage. In truth, her mood would probably be all over the map for a number of weeks. My heart went out to her. I hated to see my friend suffering. Part of me wanted to spend the entire day with her and provide her with all of the comfort that I could.
We both knew I was needed elsewhere. My investigative skills could be really helpful in solving this case. Besides, Shannon’s husband, Joe Marlowe, was on his way over. Joe would take care of Shannon to the best of his ability.
Speaking of Joe, he arrived at Kristie’s house about fifteen minutes later to pick up his wife. Before they left the scene, I gave Shannon one more big hug. After that, Joe and Shannon drove away.
Once their blue sedan left the street, I turned my attention to Kristie’s green split-level home. My husband, Detective David Carlson, was on the front porch of the house having a conversation with the medical examiner.
As I made my way to the porch, David’s conversation with the examiner ended. The balding, bespectacled examiner then went back inside the home while David took a few steps toward me.
“Shannon looked like she was in really rough shape,” David said.
I nodded. “She was. And I don’t expect her mood to improve until we’ve apprehended the killer.”
“There’s some added pressure for you.”
“Considering how much pressure we’re already under, that’s saying a lot.”
He exhaled. “Isn’t that the truth?”
“Unfortunately, that’s just the hand we’ve been dealt.”
“And what a grave circumstance we’re faced with.”
I put my hands on my hips. “Of all the phrases you could have gone with, you chose that one?”
He grimaced. “Sorry. It was the first sentence that came to my mind.”
“I don’t blame you. I can certainly understand why.”
He bit the corner of his lip. “It also happens to be more painfully accurate than you realize.”
My nose scrunched. “Do you know something that I don’t?”
He winced. “Actually, yes. You see, I have some bad news for you.”
“You mean, worse news than Kristie being dead?”
He nodded.
I threw out my arms. “How is that even possible?”
“Let’s just say that I hope you weren’t expecting this to be an open and shut case,” David replied.
I gritted my teeth and then replied, “Let me guess. The medical examiner was not able to provide you with much information.”
“Correct.”
I winced. “How little are we talking here?”
“Just the absolute basics.”
“So, time of death and cause of death?” I asked.
David nodded.
“He wasn’t able to pull any fingerprints from the bronze statue that Kristie was bludgeoned with then?” I asked.
David shook his head.
I let out a groan.
“Did you really expect anything different?” David asked.
“Don’t get me wrong. I never expect a killer to be sloppy enough to leave identifying information around,” I said. “But sometimes you get lucky.”
“Not this time, I’m afraid.”
I took a moment to push my frustration aside before steering the conversation elsewhere. “Back to the time of death for a moment. How long has Kristie been deceased?”
“According to the medical examiner, she was killed shortly after she left that voicemail for Shannon.”
“What a chilling detail.”
“I know what you mean. And judging by the conversational tone of Kristie’s voicemail, she had no clue that trouble was about to come for her.”
I nodded. “I’ll bet she didn’t see it coming.”
David stared off into the distance. “This case just keeps getting more depressing, doesn’t it?”
“I don’t want to focus on that.”
“Neither do I. But it’s hard not to.”
“It’s going to be difficult, but we just need to find a way to stay focused on the facts.”
David took a deep breath. “I suppose you’re right.”
“For example, the fact that the killer doesn’t have much of a head start on us,” I said.
David looked at the time on his phone. “True. You’re looking at ninety minutes maximum.”
“Which means the murderer couldn’t have gotten very far.”
“While I don’t disagree, it also isn’t as helpful of a detail as you’d think.”
I put my hands on my hips. “How do you figure?�
��
“It’s not like we know who the killer is and we’re just looking to nail down their whereabouts,” he said. “At this stage of the investigation, we don’t have the slightest clue who was behind this.”
I bit the corner of my lip. “You’re right. I guess I was so desperate to find some sort of silver lining that I got ahead of myself.”
“I don’t blame you. Who wants to dwell on the negative?”
“Not me,” I said.
“I’m right there with you. Which is why I think we should get down to business,” David said.
“All right,” I said. “Let’s do it.”
***
While David and I began to put together a suspect list, we were soon interrupted by a burly twenty-eight-year-old police deputy named Matt Everton.
“Detective Carlson,” Matt said.
David turned to the deputy. “Yes.”
“You need to hear this,” Matt said.
David’s eyes widened. “What is it?”
“I was just speaking with one of Kristie’s neighbors,” Matt said.
“And?”
“They saw something very curious,” Matt said. “Apparently, the neighbor spotted a man driving away from Kristie’s house a little more than ninety minutes ago.”
David’s eyebrows rose. “Are you serious?”
Matt nodded.
“Was the neighbor able to describe this mystery man to you?” David asked.
“He was able to go one step further and identify the man,” Matt said.
“In that case, what is the mystery man’s name?” David asked.
“Greg Dockweiler,” Matt said.
Chapter Three
David rushed over to his squad car and looked up Greg’s address on his police laptop. We then drove over to Dalton Road to speak with Mr. Dockweiler.
Unfortunately, when we arrived at Greg’s brown ranch-style home, the suspect wasn’t home.
In addition, there was no car parked in Greg’s driveway.
It would have been easy to immediately jump to the worst case scenario. I tried to resist doing that. Especially since David was yet to call Greg’s workplace yet.
Sabrina Carlson Cozy Mystery Anthology Page 19
