by Lynn Cahoon
“You do so much for the library, Trent. You don’t have to replace one flash drive.” Elizabeth smiled at him, causing Mia to wonder what Trent did for the library. The man seemed to scatter goodwill throughout the town, like Magic Springs’s personal Santa.
He glanced at his shoes. “Majors does a book drive every spring and fall for the library.”
“And matches what’s donated to allow us to buy new books. The city council has cut our budget for new purchases three years in a row. And don’t get me started on ebooks. The council won’t even talk to me about the need for a lending program.” Elizabeth started stacking books on the counter to check in from a basket behind the desk.
“We’d better get going,” Trent had started to squirm. “We’ll see you around.”
Elizabeth focused on Mia. “Have you got your library card yet? I understand you live in the district now.”
“No, sorry, I haven’t.” At those words, a frown creased Elizabeth’s forehead and Mia quickly added, “But I’ll come in next week with the girl who’s living with me. We’ll get cards then.”
Elizabeth nodded and Mia added one more thing on her already overcrowded to-do list: library cards.
They walked out the door and Trent laughed. “You looked like you were caught shoplifting back there. It’s just a library card.”
“I hadn’t even thought about getting one,” Mia admitted. “I’m so bad at returning books on time, it’s cheaper for me to buy them than borrow.”
“Humor her. Get a library card. You don’t have to use the thing. I think she’s out to make sure every town resident over three years old has a card. It’s her life’s ambition.” Trent poked her with his elbow. “You don’t want her to go to meet her maker one person short of her goal, now do you?”
“Guilt, the other white meat.” Mia held up her hands in mock surrender. “Fine, as soon as I get the business opened, I’ll get a library card.”
“You’re an angel in disguise.”
“And you’re a royal pain in the butt.”
Mia followed Trent as they walked back to the school. She stopped in front of the store. “You need to check in?”
“Sally’s fine. Besides, it’s my day off.
Mia snorted.
“What?”
“I never knew any small business owner who wasn’t on the clock twenty-four seven. Even when I catered at the hotel, Isaac and I were always running somewhere, fixing something.” Mia brushed the snow from the fence surrounding the park as they passed by. “You never get time off.”
“Then you were doing it wrong. Seriously, you have to have time to recharge or you’re no good to anyone.” He nodded to the park, covered in a blanket of white from the snow last night. “Nature knows how to take a rest, why don’t humans?”
“Nature doesn’t get calls from angry customers who wanted gluten-free lasagna and calorie-free desserts.” Mia slowed her pace and looked at him. “You seriously take off a day a week?”
He raised his eyebrows and lowered his voice to a whisper. “I take off two.”
“Sounds like heaven. Maybe after the business gets up and running, if I’m not in jail for killing Adele, I can learn from your slacker ways.”
He pulled her close to his side. “You’re not going to jail. At least I don’t think you are. But maybe we should see if we’re compatible in the sack before you’re arrested. That way I won’t lose one of my fishing days driving to Boise for a visit.”
“Comforting.” She pushed him away. “Besides, who said I wanted you to visit me anyway?”
“I can see it in your eyes when you look at my butt.”
She slapped his arm with her gloved hand. “You are so bad.”
He pulled her into a clench and stopped their forward movement. The cast iron of the park fence dug into her back, centering her as he reached under her chin. “You don’t know how bad I can be. Yet.”
Then he kissed her. Kisses that stole her breath away, and before she realized what she was doing, she kissed him back. He pulled away from her and adjusted her hat on her head, then took her hand and pulled her back onto the sidewalk. Dazed, she followed him, wondering what had just happened. She didn’t need a new man in her life; she’d just dumped Isaac. Of course, that didn’t seem like such a big loss now. In fact, she wasn’t sure she could even remember what he looked like.
By the time they got back to the school Trent was humming and Mia felt torn. She didn’t want to blurt out, I don’t want to date you, or anyone. Mostly because she wasn’t sure the words were true. She shouldn’t want to date him. She should focus on getting Mia’s Morsels up and going. She should help Christina figure out what she was going to do about her brother and the Adams family. She should be thinking about helping Grans deal with the grief of losing Adele.
Instead, all she wanted to do was kiss Trent again. And maybe again. Maybe something more personal, more private.
“Ready to find out what Adele was researching?” Trent held the front door open for her.
Mia nodded, not trusting her voice. She sprinted up the stairs to the apartment and banged the door open, startling Grans, who was sitting on the couch, knitting.
“Something wrong?” Grans’s head cocked and she studied her.
Mia could feel her grandmother’s magic floating over her body, trying to determine if Mia was all right. Before she could speak the tingles stopped and Grans smiled.
“Oh.” Then she went back to her knitting.
Mia shook her head. She never had been able to hide anything from the woman, even the night Ken Forrey got to second base with her in the back seat of his Camaro after the junior prom. That night Grans hadn’t just said, “Oh.” Mia’d gotten the birds and the bees speech, and the next morning a box of condoms sat on her beside with a note about a doctor’s appointment if she wanted something more reliable.
“There’s no oh.” Mia sighed and headed to the kitchen. She felt rather than saw Trent following her. Like they were attached by a golden cord, invisible yet still strong. She wondered if that was what Grans saw.
CHAPTER 20
Mia set a fresh cup of coffee in front of Trent. “I can take over scanning if you’re getting tired.”
He put his arms in the air and, clasping his hands, he stretched. Then he accepted the cup and took a long sip. “This helps, thanks.”
“Seriously, macho man, you don’t have to solve the case all on your own.” Mia slipped into the chair next to him, glancing at the screen. “You’ve gone through ten years already?”
“Yep. I’m kind of liking this detective role.” He put a finger to his head, “Genius level IQ.”
“Could have fooled me,” Mia deadpanned.
“Jealousy doesn’t become you.” Trent leaned forward and pointed at the screen. “And bingo.”
Mia stared at the screen. A death announcement for William Danforth III had been posted in the Boise paper. She scanned the notice. He’d been living in Phoenix when he drowned in a backyard pool. Private services were held at the gravesite and donations were to be sent to the Friends of Steve community organization. “Friends of Steve?”
Trent shook his head. “No clue.”
“Keep scanning; she must have found more.” Mia watched as images of the Phoenix paper surfaced, and there was the full obituary. William Danforth had died at home. He was preceded in death by his parents and grandparents. Reading to the end, she frowned. “No wife, no kids.”
“Just the Friends of Steve notation here again.” Trent leaned back in his chair. “Sad.”
“Sad? What the heck are you saying? We’ve found Adele’s murderer. William Danforth can’t be the guy staying at the Lodge because he died years ago. That guy must have killed her when she told him she knew he was a fraud.”
“I think it’s sad that the guy died alone with no family or friends. That’s all.” Trent pulled out his cell phone and stood. “I’m calling Levi, I want him to know, just in case.”
Mia nodded a
nd scrolled through the remaining pages. What she found on the last page made her gasp. Travis and Helen Marcum smiled out from the Phoenix Gazette with a twenty-million-dollar, oversize check in their hands. She scrolled the page. Helen, a lunch lady, and Travis, a retired construction worker, had bought the lottery ticket from their local Gas and Go. The paper quoted Helen saying, “I never liked Travis wasting our hard earned money on Lotto, but I guess he had the last laugh.”
The Chicago couple wasn’t who they said they were. Mia studied the article, wondering why the two had come to Magic Springs incognito. Lottery winners weren’t usual in their small town, but not impossible. New money spent just the same as old.
“Time to go. Levi’s got some news and he wants us at the police station.” Trent stood at the kitchen door. He nodded to the computer. “You find something else?”
“Nothing important.” Mia shut the laptop and pulled out the flash drive, slipping it into her pocket. “Just some gossip about a local couple.”
“A lot of our locals thrive on the gossip columns. It’s a rite of passage around here. You’re not someone until your worst actions are published in the society pages. Let’s go take a walk.” He opened the apartment door for her.
Leaving Grans and Christina upstairs, Trent and Mia headed downstairs to bundle up for the walk. The streets still weren’t plowed. The county trucks were still cleaning off the major highways and, of course, Sun Valley. Magic Springs wasn’t high on the plowing list. They slipped on snowshoes and headed off to meet Levi.
He stood outside the front door when they’d reached the building. Mia saw him crush out a cigarette in the snow. He held the door open for them as they slipped off their snowshoes. “You’re not going to believe this.”
As the door closed, Mia walked into a crowded lobby filled with townspeople. In the corner at a desk sat Barney. She crossed the room and enveloped the portly lawyer into a quick hug. “We were worried about you.”
“I got myself stuck out there on those roads. Nearly froze to death, except I found a cabin.” Barney shook his head. “I’m not going to incriminate myself, so let’s just say the door was open when I got there.” He held up his hand to stop Baldwin from speaking. “I’ll reimburse the owner for any damage that happened prior to me arriving on the scene and, as luck may have it, probably saving my life.” He winked at Mia.
“William said you were staying in town.”
Barney sighed. “Would have been the best decision. I got a call from Sheila saying she’d found something on the estate. I ignored my inner warnings and drove back up the mountain, right into that snowstorm. Idiot.”
Levi jumped into the conversation. “Want to guess what Sheila found?”
Mia held up the flash drive, “William’s death certificate?”
The lawyer gasped. “How did you know? Sheila said that Adele had emailed her a copy that had gotten stuck in her spam box.”
“We found Adele’s research material.” She handed over the flash drive to Baldwin. “That should help you find out who has been impersonating the late Mr. Danforth. I’d lay bets on his oldest friend, Samuel Jacobs.”
Mia pulled out the two pictures they’d found in Adele’s study. She just hoped he wouldn’t ask how she came to have the pictures. She didn’t want to have to explain her visit to Adele’s with Grans. Although they had used a key, she figured entering the house of a murder victim was probably in bad taste, especially for one of the suspects.
“That’s the name Adele sent to Sheila. She wanted her to research this guy because he was attending her party. I guess she planned on kicking him out during the festivities.” Barney looked around the station. “Any chance I could get a ride home? I’m tired and cranky and I want a long bath.”
“I’ll take you in the cat.” Levi looked at Baldwin. “Can we go now? Or do you want us to work on more of your unsolved cases?”
“Smart-ass,” Baldwin mumbled. “Get out of here. Just . . .”
“Don’t leave town?” He shook his head. “Seriously, dude, you have to come up with better material.”
“Levi, let’s go.” Trent’s voice held a warning. Even Mia could tell that Levi was on thin ice here.
“I’ll warm up the cat.” Levi tipped a mini salute to Baldwin and then walked out the door, Barney waddling behind him.
Baldwin glanced up at Trent. “That boy’s trouble.”
“No. He’s rude to authority figures and mouthy, but he’s not trouble.”
Baldwin shook his head, “Let’s just agree to disagree on your brother. Keep people close. If you’re right, this Jacobs guy might be mad enough to do some more selective weeding in our little town.” Baldwin tapped the pictures. “Thanks for this. Sheila’s email was damning, but this is solid.”
“Adele deserves to have her murderer caught.” Mia leaned against Trent, her energy draining from her body. All of a sudden she was dead tired.
Baldwin stood. “I’ll head over to the Lodge now and pick up our friend for questioning.”
Trent put his hand on Mia’s back, gently aiming her to the door. He called to Baldwin, “I’ll check in later.”
The sun shone bright on the snow when they left the courthouse. Climbing into the cat, she sat on the back seat next to Trent, her head on his shoulder.
“Tired?” His voice deep like dark chocolate.
Mia nodded. “Glad it’s over.”
An hour later Trent came back into the apartment, putting his phone away. “They have Samuel in custody. I guess when they went to his room he didn’t even put up a fuss.”
“He admitted to killing Adele?” Grans sounded tired. Mia reached over and patted her shoulder.
Trent sat on the couch next to Mia. “Actually, no. He admitted to running a scam, wanting to rip the ‘old lady’ off, as he called her. He said he was still playing the part when he found out she was dead.”
Mia sat up. “Baldwin believes him?”
Trent shook his head. “No. He’s got to find the holes in the guy’s story first before he can charge him, but he’s holding him until it checks out or not.” He leaned forward, running his hands through his hair, “The guy’s guilty; now all Baldwin has to do is prove it.”
“But the pictures,” Grans protested.
“Circumstantial, according to Baldwin.” He stood. “Let me run you home and pick up some clothes and stuff. I think we need to continue the sleepover for a few days.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary. I can go home.”
Mia pulled Grans to her feet. “You can. But you’re not going to. Let Trent take you and we’ll do Mexican night when you get back. Tacos, burritos, Spanish rice, maybe even a few margaritas.”
“Did I hear margaritas?” Levi and Christina walked into the apartment from taking Muffy out for walk. “Count me in.”
Christina elbowed him. “Of course you’re in. You don’t even know if we are invited.”
Mia smiled, watching the two. Christina had been sneaking out to see Levi. Not one of the rich kids whose main goal during their visit was to get in trouble. Of course, who knew what trouble Levi would bring? But the two looked happy, and for now that was all that mattered. Something about the night of Carrie’s party niggled at her brain.
Trent nudged her. “Earth to Mia. Where are you?”
“Something doesn’t make sense. If William, or Samuel, didn’t kill Adele, who did?” She pushed on. “And who called and threatened me?”
“John, if I had my guess,” Levi muttered. “The guy’s a creep.”
“But who had my knife?” Mia crossed her fingers, drawing her hands together and leaned into them. “All this doesn’t make sense. I mean, I guess it could have been John. He admitted to having something to do with Adele’s death.”
“John was just trying to scare you into leaving. He underestimated how strong you really are.” Trent held out his hand, as if to stop her musing. “Slow down. The only one saying William or Samuel didn’t do the deed is him. I wouldn’t
trust the guy to babysit my pet goldfish.”
“Wait, what? You have a pet goldfish?” Christina leaned against Levi, watching them. “I would have thought a German shepherd or a Saint Bernard. You definitely don’t look like a pet fish type.”
“Figure of speech.” Trent sat back on the couch. “Okay, tell me what else is bothering you.”
Mia held up her hand and pointed to her finger. “One, someone attacked me after Adele was murdered. Who?”
Trent shrugged. “My money’s on Isaac.”
Christina walked over and sat on the side of the couch. “Can’t be Isaac. He was with me that night, trying to figure out where Mia had hidden her cookbook. We didn’t leave the restaurant until nine, and she was already down when we pulled up in the driveway.”
“See?” Mia pointed to her next finger. “Two, who locked me in Carrie’s basement?”
“I thought you said the door slammed shut?” Christina looked worried now.
Mia ducked her head. “I didn’t want you to worry.”
“We need to start talking to one another.” Grans shook her finger at Mia. “You’ve been keeping secrets.”
“I don’t know who to trust,” Mia admitted. Seeing the shocked looks on everyone’s faces, she amended her statement. “Outside of the four of you, that is.”
“Almost a good catch,” Trent said dryly. “Anyway, what else has happened?”
Mia went on to tell the assembled group about her missing, then returned knife, and the missing corkscrew. By the time she’d finished they were all gathered around her, lending moral support. Instead of feeling alone, she thought maybe, just maybe, everything would be all right.
Mia finished with the last question that had been bothering her. “Who are the Friends of Steve that William’s obituary mentioned?”
Levi held up his hand. “I can answer that. It’s a memorial fund that sponsors outreach for LGBT teens in the Phoenix area. It’s been on the news lately because it’s cut the rate of attempted suicide in the area down ten percent since its inception.”
Everyone stared at Levi.
He shrugged. “What? There’s a lot of downtime when you’re an EMT. I hang out on the news web pages on my tablet most nights. There’s talk about opening branches of the Friends of Steve in LA next year.”
