by Rose Pressey
Charlotte was to my left and Minnie on my right. They stared at Nancy expectantly.
“Good afternoon, Nancy.” I scanned my surroundings. “I suppose you heard about the tragic event that took place in Sugar Creek.”
“At least you got right to the point. Though you might try easing into it next time,” Charlotte said.
If I eased into it she would have told me to get to the point.
Nancy’s expression changed. Never mind that I had been right in the middle of that tragic event. People in town would be talking about that. I pressed on though since there was nothing I could do about it. I had nothing to lose at this point, right? Okay, I could be chased out of town, and my boyfriend could break up with me. That was all a bit paranoid thinking. None of that would happen . . . I hoped.
If Nancy had a hint of a smile on her face before, it had completely faded now. “Yes, I’ve heard. You were there at the time?”
“She knows you were there,” Charlotte said.
“Nancy hasn’t asked her to leave though,” Minnie said.
“That’s because she just wants you to tell her every little detail so she can gossip to everyone else in town.” Charlotte tapped her fingers against the counter.
Nancy studied my face, as if anxiously awaiting the details of the crime. Now I had my suspicions that she did want to gossip behind my back. Though I didn’t always admit it, Charlotte was often right. She read people well.
“I was at the photo shoot providing my assistance with the vintage clothing, but I didn’t see the murder actually take place. Anyway, is there a model named Krissy Dustin staying here?” I wanted to control the conversation and not let Nancy question me.
“I can’t give that information.” She stared at me.
Couldn’t she give me the info? She obviously knew that I knew.
“She can’t give you the info, but she wants to talk.” Charlotte pointed at Nancy. “Ask her again.”
“I know you can’t tell me which room, but is she staying here?” I pressed.
Nancy looked around as if someone might overhear. As far as I knew we were alone in the lobby.
Nancy sighed and said, “She was staying here with her boyfriend, but she left right after the murder. I think she went to stay at the bed-and-breakfast down the road.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“That must mean that the boyfriend has something to do with the murder,” Nancy said with determination.
“I suppose the police will figure that out. Thank you again, Nancy.” I turned toward the door.
“Good job, Cookie,” Charlotte said. “Now let’s get to that bed-and-breakfast.”
“Cookie is a good detective,” Minnie said as she followed me out the door.
We rushed into the car and I pulled out onto the street.
“Nancy might be on to something. The fight that we witnessed. Plus, Krissy leaving the hotel could be because she knows Darrin murdered Tyler. I mean, would you stay with someone you thought was a murderer?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t,” Minnie said from the backseat.
Charlotte chuckled. “I agree with Minnie.”
A short distance down the road and I arrived at the bed-and-breakfast. With any luck, Krissy would speak to me about the murder and why she’d had a fight with Darrin. I pulled the car up the pebbled driveway and shoved it into park. Charlotte and Minnie had already gotten out of the car and were waiting for me by the front door. Apparently they were anxious. Unfortunately, my movements weren’t as swift as the ghosts’. The old Victorian house sat on several secluded acres with tall oak trees providing lots of shade. A wraparound porch invited guests to sit and sip iced tea on a hot day. Rocking chairs and several planters full of flowers decorated the porch.
Once out of the car and over to the porch steps, Charlotte said, “You know, if my boyfriend had been as possessive as those guys say Darrin was, I would have broken up with him a long time ago.”
Charlotte had little patience for games. I agreed though. Darrin would have a restraining order against him faster than he could say “jail time.”
“I hope she’s here,” I said as I walked up the steps and to the front door.
Charlotte took a seat in one of the rocking chairs on the porch. She pushed it back and forth. To anyone else it looked as if the chair was moving on its own. I had just raised my hand to knock when someone from behind me gasped. When I spun around, I saw Krissy standing at the bottom of the steps staring at the moving rocking chair.
“Oops,” Charlotte said, stopping the movement.
Krissy’s eyes were wide. “I knew this place was haunted.”
How would I explain this?
“Did you see that?” Krissy asked.
“See what?” I asked.
“Cookie, you’re going to let her believe you didn’t see that?” Charlotte rubbed her index fingers together in a shaming motion.
It was better than telling Krissy that two ghosts were on the front porch with me.
Krissy pointed at the chair. “It was moving as if someone was sitting in it.”
Charlotte got up from the chair.
“It was probably the wind,” I said.
Krissy glanced around at the still tree branches. Not a single breeze around.
“You’re a terrible liar,” Charlotte said.
“This isn’t the first thing that’s happened around here.” Krissy rubbed her arms, as if fighting off a chill.
“Oh, find out what else she’s witnessed. I’m curious,” Minnie said. “I love ghost stories.”
“Yes, all we need now is a campfire and marshmallows to roast,” Charlotte said drily.
Before I had a chance to speak, Krissy asked, “What are you doing here? I gave all the clothing back.”
“She’s a real peach, isn’t she?” Charlotte folded her arms in front of her waist.
Krissy’s attitude was a bit snippy.
Moving down the steps, I closed the distance between us. “Actually, I came to speak with you.”
She studied my face. Usually I read people well, but she was hard to gauge. Would she speak to me about the murder?
“About what?” She crossed her arms in front of her.
Already she was on the defensive. That didn’t bode well for me. Charlotte and Minnie stared with wide eyes, waiting for Krissy’s reaction, when I finally revealed my reason for the visit.
“First, I’d like to say I’m sorry for what you encountered at the photo shoot. That must have been terrible,” I said.
“Good idea, Cookie. Befriend her. That way she’ll be more likely to talk with you,” Charlotte said.
I wasn’t sure she would be more likely, but I figured it was worth a shot. Maybe if I had been a bit more aggressive she would have felt pressure to talk. No, it was probably best to be nice.
Krissy tucked a strand of blond hair behind her ear. “Yes, it was traumatic.”
“She doesn’t seem that upset.” Charlotte eyed Krissy up and down. “Her attitude is sort of flippant about the whole thing.”
“Did you see anyone when you went back there?” I asked. “Maybe someone . . . other than Tyler’s body, of course.”
“Don’t you think I would have said something if I did?” Krissy narrowed her eyes.
“Whoa. Why so defensive?” Charlotte asked.
“Perhaps she needs a cup of tea to calm her nerves,” Minnie said.
“A big cup,” Charlotte added.
“She must be hiding something,” Minnie said. “I just realized something . . . what if she killed the man? That means we’re standing here with a murderer. Maybe you should leave, Cookie; this doesn’t seem like such a good idea, after all.”
“You’re just now realizing this, Minnie? Cookie knows how to take care of herself. Don’t you, Cookie?” Charlotte said.
The ghosts were getting way too worked up. With all the chatter, I could barely remember why I’d come to talk with Krissy in the first place. Did I know how t
o take care of myself around a murderer? Something told me it wouldn’t be as simple as running away if Krissy decided to come after me.
“Krissy, I saw you arguing with your boyfriend. Once while at the photo shoot and again out in front of my shop. Why were you arguing?” I asked.
She glared at me. “Why is that any of your business? What are you, a detective? Are you stalking me?”
“I’m just a concerned citizen,” I said. “And no, I’m not stalking you.”
“You have a right to be concerned,” Charlotte said. “You live in this town and don’t want people going around murdering others. Though it probably does seem as if you are stalking her a bit.”
Krissy crossed her arms in front of her chest. “If you must know, he’s just jealous.”
“It seems as if she might actually want to talk about her dilemma with this guy,” Charlotte said.
“She could be under a lot of stress because of him. However, she could be the killer too,” Minnie said.
“Is that why you broke up with him?” I studied her face.
“How do you know that I broke up with him? Have you really been following me?” Krissy asked, stepping back a bit. “You are stalking me.”
“No, I am not stalking you, but I have connections in town and I know these things,” I said.
“Now you really have her freaked out,” Charlotte said.
“Why was your boyfriend mad at Tyler?” I asked.
“He just thought I was seeing Tyler,” Krissy said.
“Were you?” I pressed.
“No, I wasn’t seeing him. Darrin and I had nothing to do with Tyler’s death. Do you think I would have done something right there with everyone around?”
“Is she saying she would have if we weren’t around?” Charlotte asked. “Someone killed the man and she was right there.”
“Darrin seemed mad enough to kill if I remember correctly,” I said.
“Just because he was upset doesn’t mean he would kill anyone,” Krissy said.
“Doesn’t mean he wouldn’t either,” Charlotte said with a click of her tongue.
“But you admit he has a temper. Maybe it got away from him this time?” I asked.
“I’m done with this conversation.” Krissy stormed past me and up the steps.
A gardenia scent floated across the air. The screen door banged shut in her wake.
“That didn’t go well,” Charlotte said as she walked toward the car.
Minnie was already sitting in the Buick. I stared back at the door. Krissy was nowhere in sight. I turned and headed toward my car. Charlotte got there ahead of me and motioned for me to get in. Glancing over my shoulder, I looked at the front door one last time and realized that my discussion with Krissy hadn’t turned out the way that I’d hoped, but I wouldn’t let that discourage me. What had I expected? For her to confess? I suppose that would have been great, but not likely.
Chapter 6
Charlotte’s Tips for a Fabulous Afterlife
You can say whatever you want.
Most people can’t hear you.
When I pulled up in front of my shop, Ken Harrison was leaning on the wall next to the entrance. He’d been looking down staring at his black shiny loafers until he heard my car pull up. Ken was the local attorney who I had befriended. I suppose he wanted to be more than friends, but the timing hadn’t been right. Just my luck to meet two fantastic men at the same time.
Ken’s appearance was the opposite of Dylan’s. Ken had short blond hair and more of a boy-next-door look, while Dylan was a bit more mysterious. They were equally dashingly handsome. Ken wore a gray suit with a crisp white shirt and red tie with blue stripes running diagonal across the fabric. Not vintage, but stylish nonetheless.
I parked the car in front of the shop and got out. The ghosts hurried along beside me. Wind Song had jumped out and was strolling with us too. Charlotte really liked Ken. She had a tough time picking between Ken and Dylan. When Ken was around she liked him better. When Dylan was here she liked him better.
“Who is that?” Minnie asked.
“A handsome man who loves Cookie,” Charlotte answered.
“He doesn’t love me,” I whispered.
Ken didn’t know about the ghosts yet. I suppose I should tell him. After all, friends shared things like that, right? Would he still want to be my friend after I told him something crazy like that?
Charlotte looked Ken up and down. “Why so glum, chum?”
Ken had no idea she was talking to him. Or did he sense her? For a second he glanced to his right as if a breeze had lightly touched his face. Charlotte left cool air in her wake everywhere she went. Ken did seem down. Usually the first thing he did when he saw me was offer a smile. He barely mustered a grin this time.
“Ken, I’m surprised to see you here. Is everything okay?” I asked.
“I don’t know.” He slumped his shoulders. “I guess I just felt like I needed to talk with someone.”
“Oh, I hate seeing him like this,” Charlotte said.
“He’s like a lost puppy dog,” Minnie said.
I unlocked the shop door. “Would you like to come inside?”
He ran his hand through his hair. “Sure.”
Ken followed me inside, almost unknowingly bumping into Charlotte along the way. Wind Song ran past us and hopped up onto the windowsill to sit in the sunshine. I placed my bag on the counter and faced Ken. He had already taken a seat on the settee.
“He took my seat.” Charlotte pointed out.
With a tilt of my head I motioned toward the chair by the dressing room. Charlotte narrowed her eyes and pouted over to the chair.
I sat down next to Ken. “What’s wrong? It seems like something is bothering you. You know you can always talk to me.”
“You think?” Charlotte called out from the other side of the room. “He’s like a chicken with an egg broke in it.”
“Look at his big puppy-dog eyes. It’s so sad.” Minnie stood beside me.
“I’m just trying to adjust to small-town life, I guess. Nothing seems to go according to plans.” Ken leaned back on the settee.
“What he means is he wants a girlfriend. Since you show him no love, he is sad.” Charlotte had left her chair and joined us.
I knew she wouldn’t be able to stay away for long. I hated to admit it, but Charlotte might be on to something. If Ken wanted a girlfriend, that would surely make him down in the dumps. I had no idea how to fix it though. Being around people who were upset made me sad too.
“Maybe you need to take a trip. Go on vacation,” I said.
He ran his hand through his hair. “I suppose that is a possibility. Though I have some cases I need to take care of right now.”
“You should plan a trip,” I said. “As soon as the cases are finished you can take a vacation.”
The bell jingled, capturing our attention. We looked over to see who had entered. I’d almost forgotten that it was time for business. This wasn’t a customer though. Heather had walked in. She quirked an eyebrow when she saw me sitting on the settee next to Ken. I shrugged. Heather smiled at Minnie and gave a tiny forced grin at Charlotte.
“Well, if it isn’t a ray of sunshine coming to greet us this morning,” Charlotte said.
Now Heather knew how I felt. She wanted to answer Charlotte, but she couldn’t speak to her in front of Ken. Heather would save it up and return the snarkiness to Charlotte later.
“Did I come at a bad time?” Heather asked.
I wasn’t sure how much Ken wanted me to say.
“We were just discussing life, I guess,” I said.
Heather nodded in understanding. “I know just the thing to help with that.”
Ken glanced over at her.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Oh dear. I doubt we want to hear this,” Charlotte said.
“What is it, Heather?” Minnie asked.
She was too distracted to answer Minnie.
“I should do a
tarot card reading for Ken,” Heather said.
He furrowed his brow. “I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“No, I insist. My next appointment isn’t for another thirty minutes. That’s plenty of time.” Heather pulled a deck of cards from her big burlap tote bag. “Come over to the counter and I’ll do a reading.”
“This should be interesting.” Charlotte followed Heather.
“I think this is a bit scary,” Minnie said, trailing along behind Charlotte.
Heather had already set up the cards on the counter. I glanced over at Wind Song. Grandma Pearl used the tarot cards to speak to us. Sometimes Wind Song liked to give messages about his favorite food, but most of the time it was Grandma Pearl coming through.
“If you don’t want to do this you don’t have to,” I said.
Ken pushed to his feet. “No, I’ll do it. She seems so happy to try. What’s the worst that can happen?”
I hoped nothing bad.
Ken and I joined Heather and the ghosts at the counter. Heather had placed the cards facedown on top of the counter. I had a separate set of cards for the cat. On the back of Heather’s cards were drawings of beautiful flowers. My cards featured cats in different costumes. It seemed fitting since the cat was the only one who ever used my cards.
Heather looked Ken in the eyes and said, “Pick three cards, but don’t turn them over.”
Ken studied Heather’s face. Next, he reached out and selected three cards.
“Excellent,” Heather said.
“I get the feeling that Ken doesn’t believe in all this hocus-pocus,” Charlotte said.
Charlotte might be surprised. Something told me there was a lot about Ken that we didn’t know. He might seem like the boy next door, but he also seemed quite passionate, and of course he was extremely intelligent.
Heather picked up the three cards and turned them over.
She tapped the first card, which featured a woman in a long white gown. “Someone new is about to come into your life.”
Charlotte and I exchanged a look. Wow. It was as if Heather knew what we’d been talking about. Maybe her gift was much better than we realized.
She studied the next card, which had two women standing side by side with sunlight behind them. “You shouldn’t look to the past.”
