Murder Drama With Your Llama (Friendship Harbor Mysteries Book 1)

by Erin McCarthy

  Oliver took a moment to realize I’d stopped. He braked too, his wheels skidding a little on the tarred sidewalk.

  “Soph, are you okay?”

  I nodded, grinning like a crazy person. “Yes. I know who did it.”

  “What?”

  But I was already pedaling again, speeding my way back to my house.

  Funny, my head suddenly felt just fine.

  “Cliff liked younger women, right?” I asked Oliver. “Yet I can almost guarantee he liked money more.”

  Thirteen

  “She’s here,” I said, as excited as a kid who’d just spotted their favorite Disney princess at Disneyland. Or in this case, I was looking at the Evil Queen.

  Oliver spotted her too. “I really hope you are right about this. Otherwise, we are going to look like lunatics.”

  “Oh, I’m right.” I had no doubt in my mind I was right. Last night, I had pieced together exactly who the killer was and why. In fact, I was so confident, I had contacted Justin and told him to be here tonight too. He had been reluctant at best, but he’d agreed to be present.

  In my pocket, the key piece of evidence seemed to burn through my jeans. The odd shape bulged slightly, but I ignored it, certain no one would notice.

  Dean watched me walk across the pub, his brows pulled together as if he could immediately sense I was up to something. Which I was. I was about to solve a murder. In fact, two murders.

  I sat down at the bar, acting as if I was just another one of the Tuesday, Two for One crowd. Oliver took the stool next to me.

  “Hey.” I was greeted by Jessica, who sat just a barstool away. “Imagine seeing you here.”

  I smiled. “Hi. Well, you said Tuesdays at the pub were pretty much the height of excitement in this town. And being the owner, I decided I should probably check it out. Plus, it’s Oliver’s last night here.”

  Oliver waved. “Yep, returning to L.A. tomorrow morning.”

  Jessica gathered up her wineglass and purse and slid down to sit beside me. Tonight, she was back to her glamorous incarnation, and clearly on the prowl. She wore a tight red dress that showed off all her curves and her long, blonde hair was loose, spilling over her bare shoulders. Her lips were stained a deep red, but instead of looking sultry, the color made her hard. And a little desperate, honestly.

  It hadn’t occurred to me when I’d first met Jessica to ponder too deeply why a woman like her was both single and working for a crotchety old woman. Neither seemed to fit her personality. No, she was more the type who’d want a man to take care of her financially.

  A man like Cliff.

  Dean appeared, placing a pinot noir in front of me. He set a pint of ale in front of Oliver.

  “I like a man who knows what I like.” Oliver smiled, which garnered no reaction from Dean other than a raised eyebrow.

  I raised my glass. “I think we should toast to you surviving Eleanor Hall.”

  Jessica grimaced, but did raise her own wineglass. “I’m not sure I want to toast to her, but I can definitely use a drink after spending hours with that old witch.” She clinked glasses with both of us and took a long swallow of her wine. Her huge ring was back and glittering.

  I sipped mine, then set it down. “How long have you worked for them?”

  “Oh, a few years. It seems like longer.”

  “Bless you,” I said and she chuckled.

  “I figured that it must have been awhile, because I heard Millie say you had a key. And I don’t picture either of those ladies to be particularly trusting.”

  She regarded me for a minute and I thought for a second I might have already overplayed my hand. Crap. Then she shrugged. “I guess.”

  She drained the remainder of her glass and gestured to Dean to bring her another one. Good, I was hoping the alcohol would loosen her up a bit. From the corner of my eye, I saw Justin enter the bar. He took a seat at the corner. Jessica wasn’t facing him and didn’t notice. Another plus. Instead she glared at Dean, who seemed to be taking his sweet time pouring her another glass.

  “Do you actually have to stay with Eleanor? Probably not, right? I’m sure Millie doesn’t go anywhere,” Oliver said almost like he was thinking to himself. Nice improvising. He really was a great actor. I hope he found an awesome role when he got back to L.A.

  “Oh, I’ve stayed with the old witch many times. Millie was leaving a lot there for a while. Although I doubt she’ll be traveling quite so much now.” She said “traveling” with a hint of sarcasm.

  Oh, my theory was so correct. I hid my smug smile behind my glass as I sipped my wine.

  Then I shook my head. “I can’t imagine. Staying there, making meals, handling her meds. All the stuff you have to do with an older person. That’s a lot of work.”

  Jessica nodded. “And she complained about it all.”

  I shook my head sympathetically. “I feel for you. And Millie. It cannot be easy for her either.”

  Jessica chuckled dryly. “Don’t let Millie fool you. She’s as much of a witch as her mother.”

  “Really?”

  Jessica nodded, grabbing up her drink as soon as Dean set it down. She really didn’t like him. I got a feeling he was one of her conquests that got away. I’d have to ask Dean about that one day. Then again, maybe not. I’d already asked about Brandy. I didn’t need Surly McSteamy thinking I was obsessed with his love life.

  “I would have never guessed that,” I said, refocusing on my mission.

  “Yeah, she seemed pretty sweet to me,” Oliver agreed.

  “She’s sneaky. And vindictive,” Jessica said. “I could tell you some stories. Did you know she was seeing Cliff? Stole him from June, really, if you want the truth of it.”

  I gaped at her, playing my role of naive town newcomer to the hilt. “Really? I thought she might have been from her outburst at Cliff’s celebration of life, but you know, I wasn’t really sure.”

  Oliver nudged my knee with his, but I restrained the urge to nudge him back. We couldn’t blow it now.

  “She was sneaking around with him. That’s why I was watching her mother. Cliff was an old fool but he was not dumb, I’ll give him that. He went where the money was.”

  She took another long drink, and even after she was done, I could see the wine hadn’t dampened her anger. If my suspicions were right, and she’d made a play for Cliff, I didn’t imagine it felt great that Cliff had chosen a portly woman in her sixties over her.

  “So you think he was dating Millie for her money?”

  “For sure. But you know what? I guess they deserved each other. Don’t let Millie fool you. She was good at playing people. Almost as good as Cliff.”

  Oh, she was getting close. I could see her anger rising with each question. And I knew that’s where she would slip up.

  “Good how?” I frowned, pretending to be utterly confused by her comment.

  She glanced at me, clearly realizing she was saying too much. “Just good at conning people.”

  I nodded and calmly sipped my wine. I set the glass down again. Then casually I said, “He did a pretty good job of conning you too, didn’t he?”

  She shifted on her chair and gaped at me. “What?”

  “Well, you thought you were going to take the old guy for all his money, right? But he beat you at your own game. It turned out that Cliff always loved money more than having a piece of eye candy like you on his arm. He went for dollar signs instead of sexy times.”

  Her blue eyes grew larger. I knew I was right. I knew it. Her shocked reaction urged me on.

  “You thought you could out-con the old con artist, but in the end, you didn’t get what you wanted. And that really irked you, didn’t it?”

  She stared at me for a moment, then polished off her wine and grabbed her purse. “I have no idea what the hell you are talking about.”

  She stood and so did I. I dug in my pocket and pulled out the gray, rubber cork thing I’d found back when we’d been looking for evidence on the trail where Cliff was kil
led. I set it on the bar top in front of her.

  She looked at it, clearly puzzled.

  “I found this where Cliff was killed. It’s the foot to one of the legs of Eleanor’s cane. The cane you stole to kill Cliff with.”

  She stared at it, then shook her head. “I have no idea what you are talking about. I honestly think you are crazy.”

  Not even remotely crazy. I was exhilarated to see I was obviously right. Jessica looked agitated and guilty.

  “You thought if you used Eleanor’s cane to kill him, that would frame Millie. Because let’s face it, you really hate her. She stole Cliff away from you, after all.”

  Beside me, Oliver made a hissing noise through his teeth. “That had to have been a tough blow.”

  “This is insane.” Jessica frantically scanned the pub as if looking for someone to support her on this. Instead, her frenzied gaze landed on Justin. Her face grew pale under her perfectly applied makeup. Justin stood up too and started toward us.

  “But unfortunately, June knew you’d had an affair with Cliff. She also knew you had stolen from him. And that was when you decided June had to go. So again, you decided to frame poor Millie. You stole some of Eleanor’s medication, nifedipine to be exact, and slipped it in her drink.”

  “Justin,” Jessica said to him as he stopped beside me. “Are you hearing all this? She’s as crazy as her grandmother.”

  I frowned. Again with my grandmother.

  “We’ve already talked to Eleanor Hall,” Justin said, his voice calm and certain. “She does take nifedipine. And that rubber cover is the same make as the other ones on Eleanor’s cane.”

  Jessica looked around as if she was debating whether to run.

  Not likely in those spiked heels, I thought wryly.

  She turned back to Justin, batting her eyes, attempting the only defense she had left. “It wasn’t me. It had to have been Millie.”

  Justin was unmoved by her feeble attempt at maiden in distress. “We already confirmed that Millie was at the courthouse at the time of the murder. I really think you should just come with me and we’ll talk about this.”

  He pulled a pair of handcuffs from behind him. “Now you can come with me easily and quietly without a scene. Or I can cuff you. Your choice.”

  I could see she was debating whether to resist, or maybe to keep defending herself. But after a moment, she gave in. “Fine. I’ll go with you so we can clear all these lies up. But I want my lawyer present.”

  As she stood up I grabbed her hand and tugged off the huge, sparkling diamond on her finger. Pear-shaped in a halo setting.

  “Hey,” she snarled at me. Gone was the polished woman I first met.

  “I believe this belongs to Millie Hall,” I said, holding it out to Justin. “I hope she can finally get it.”

  Justin nodded, then put his hand on Jessica’s elbow and led her out of the pub.

  I smiled proudly at Oliver, my adrenaline running high. For a split second there, I’d thought Jessica might try to claw my eyes out.

  “You were right,” Oliver said. “Though I can’t believe you made me pick up a filthy press-on nail at the crime scene and it meant nothing.”

  “Sorry, not sorry,” I told him, cheerfully.

  Around the bar a few people clapped, and until that moment, I hadn’t even realized anyone had been watching us. Down at the end of the bar, Dean caught my eye, and for a fraction of a second I thought he looked impressed. But then he went back to washing pint glasses in the small sink behind the bar.

  “You did it, Super Sleuth.”

  I did.

  And not even as Jennifer Flescher, with memorized dialogue.

  As Sophie LaFleur.

  Fourteen

  “I don’t want you to go.” I hugged Oliver again. It was going to be quiet and much less snarky without him there.

  “I’ll be back. You know me, I can’t go without pestering you for too long.” He smiled, but I could see sadness in his gray eyes. We had counted on each other for a long time. Maybe it was good for us to both go it on our own for a while.

  I hugged him again. This time he squirmed away, pretending to be sick of my repeated displays of affection.

  “Okay,” he said with a deep sigh. “I better go. Who knows what things we could encounter on the wild back roads of Maine. And I can’t miss my flight.”

  “You have to be careful of all the bears and lumberjacks,” I reminded him.

  He smiled and this time hugged me. Then he got in the Uber.

  “Stay safe,” he said out the open window. “And keep your mystery-solving to a minimum.”

  “I will,” I promised.

  “And don’t let Dean push you around. Show him who’s boss.”

  I saluted him. “Aye. Aye.”

  I could see he was shaking his head as he drove away. For a moment, I stood there, feeling forlorn. This was it. I was now on my own.

  I turned and looked up at the huge Victorian. Grammy’s house. Then I smiled. No, my house. I headed up the path and around the lawn toward Jack Kerouac’s pen. He was outside grazing on his favorites, dandelions and clover.

  “Hey, buddy. I think we are doing pretty fantastic here. Though I have to say, with Oliver gone, you’re going to need to step up and be my friend and partner in crime. You’d make a good detective.”

  Jack twitched his banana ears and continued to eat.

  He was a handsome llama. “You just need sunglasses.”

  He spit on me.

  “Or not.”

  That night, I made another big move. I decided to make Grammy’s room my own. I moved my stuff out of the lilac and green guest room, putting my clothes in the dresser. My shoes in her closet along with some of her cool, boho dresses. And the quilt I bought from Millie on my bed. Once I was done arranging things the way I wanted, I wandered over to look out at the backyard. It was quiet. The pub was closed. Only the light from Dean’s guesthouse illuminated the garden.

  Then I saw him. Dean stood in his doorway. Shirt off. Barefoot. His jeans slung low on his narrow hips. He was looking up at my window. I immediately stepped back, hoping he hadn’t seen me. Then I caught myself and moved back. We stared at each other for a moment, then I waved. To my surprise, he waved back.

  I smiled to myself and closed the heavy velvet drapes over the French doors.

  Now, Dean Jordan was one mystery I didn’t think I was ever going to solve.

  “Nah,” I said aloud to myself. “I’ll figure him out eventually.”

  Feeling good, feeling at home, I crawled into bed and fell back against the fluffy pillows. I lay there for a moment, just enjoying my home.

  I rolled over to turn off the light, when my grandmother’s still open book caught my eye. I picked it up and flipped through it. A folded piece of notepaper fell out onto my chest.

  I sat up and opened it.

  Dear Sophie,

  If you find this, then I’m going to assume you decided to move into my house. Your house.

  My heart melted a little seeing her flowery handwriting and realizing she had reached out to me one last time before she passed on.

  I hope you love the house and pub as much as I do.

  “I do, Grammy.”

  I also hope Dean is showing you the ropes. He is a hunk, isn’t he?

  A surprised laugh escaped me. I glanced back to the now curtained French doors, remembering him shirtless moments before. Oh, he definitely was that.

  I’m sure you are finding Jack Kerouac to be the special fellow that I found him to be. But he can be a handful at times too. Still, I think you will grow to love him.

  I smiled. He was and I did.

  Friendship Harbor is a wonderful place. And I’ve always been so happy here. I know you will be too.

  “I am happy.”

  Most of the people are kind and helpful. And eccentric too. I’m sure you met Cliff by now.

  My smile faded a little. Well, presumably Grammy knew how that all went.

&nbs
p; But no matter what you may hear about me, please know it’s not true.

  I reread the sentence again. What wasn’t true?

  I love you, sweet girl. And be happy here. I know you will.

  Love you always, Grammy.

  I fell back against the pillows, clutching the note to my chest. No matter what I hear?

  Hmm, not only had Grammy left me a beautiful home and quaint pub and a delightfully quirky pet, she’d just left me another mystery.

  Thank you for reading Murder Drama With Your Llama!

  Book 2 in the Friendship Harbor Mystery series is coming soon.

  LLAMA SEE THAT EVIDENCE

  About the Authors

  USA Today and New York Times Bestselling author Erin McCarthy sold her first book in 2002 and has since written over seventy-five novels in teen fiction, romance, and mysteries. Erin has a special weakness for tattoos, high-heeled boots, Frank Sinatra, and martinis. She lives with her husband and their blended family of kids and rescue pets.

  Connect with Erin:

  www.erinmccarthymysteries.com

  Click to receive news on Erin’s mystery books!

  Kathy Love is a USA Today best selling author of over twenty-five books. She has written in several genres, including contemporary and paranormal romance and horror. Kathy loves all things groovy and retro, especially The Beatles, flower power and disco balls. But she also loves ghost stories, Halloween and New Orleans. What can she say, she's eclectic. Kathy lives in Maryland with her family, three rescue mutts and four rescue cats. It's a full house!

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