by Emmie Lyn
I finished my coffee and stretched. “Shouldn’t AJ be doing all this?”
“Good point and my guess is that he’s also looking at every angle but not the way you and Lily would. Different eyes; different perspective. Lily can always say she needs to put the final touches on the funeral, so her visit looks innocent. Whereas if AJ barges in, those two brothers will be on the defensive, closing up tighter than a lobster claw clamping on its prey.”
Rose took a deep breath and flexed her ankles, signaling me she was done with this detective work. “Go wake Lily,” she said. “I don’t know how anyone can sleep this late.”
“Scandalous. It’s seven o’clock already? The day’s almost over.”
Rose looked down her nose at me. “Don’t get sassy, Dani.”
And that was why I wasn’t sure living with Rose would be a good decision. I loved hanging out with her, but she liked things her way on her schedule. I couldn’t blame her. I was exactly the same way. Would we clash too much if I moved in? A big part of me would love to live at Sea Breeze and be out of town where my neighbors, and let’s face it, in that small town everyone was my neighbor, had their nose in my business. Here, on the other hand, Rose could scrutinize every little thing I did. Which would be harder to deal with? That was my problem. I didn’t know.
Pip leaped to the back of the couch, tearing me away from having to make this decision for now. Her tail wagged furiously, her nose twitched, and her ears pricked toward the doorway indicating that something was about to happen.
By the time my ears picked up the sounds of scuffing, Lily was dragging herself in from the bedroom. I turned my head and caught her stretching from side to side and over her head, releasing a ripple of cracks in what looked to be an attempt to loosen up her stiff muscles.
“Mornin’ Rose, Dani. Any coffee left?” She bent over and scratched behind Pip’s ear as we greeted her.
“I’ll make another pot,” I said.
“Thanks, Dani.” She fell into the nearest chair, clearly not rested, at least to my eyes, from her night’s sleep.”
“What’s up, Lil? You look like you had a restless night.”
She ran her hands over her face and even though dark circles outlined her eyes, nothing could take away her natural beauty. She let out a pitiful sigh and pleaded, “Will you come to the funeral home with me today, Dani?”
How could I say no? “Sure, but why?” She didn’t know about the plan Rose and I cooked up.
“This funeral has me on edge. I want to discuss the refreshments with Frank and Nick for Sunday. It hit me that I need to offer something after Ray’s funeral. Right?”
The stress of the last few days had etched itself in a shadow of sadness around her mouth. “Sure, I’ll come with you. Let’s all go in the kitchen for some breakfast and talk about your plans.”
Rose got up to join us. “Yes, I think Ray would approve of you having a reception afterwards,” she said. “We could make meat, veggie, and cheese platters, cookies, and a variety of salads and invite everyone who is interested, to come here afterwards. How does that sound?”
“I don’t want to impose,” Lily said somewhat hesitantly. “But it probably won’t be too many people.”
Rose put her arms around Lily in a gentle embrace. “Lily, you know I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t want to do this, so don’t think for one minute that helping you is an imposition. But, just to be clear, I’m doing it for you, not Ray.”
“All right, then.” Lily tapped my arm. “Do you have enough of your blueberry cordial to make a sparkling punch?”
I didn’t want to waste my cordial on Ray’s relatives, but I couldn’t say no to Lily. “It all depends. I don’t know if my little stash made it through the destruction at the diner or whether AJ will even let me go in to get any survivors.”
Lily pulled the refrigerator door open and scoffed at my concern. “He already let you in once so I’m sure he’ll agree to this. Ray was his best friend even if he told me they weren’t really close lately.” Then she bent over to check the contents before lifting her head over the door. “Can I help myself to whatever is in here, Rose?”
“Of course, and fix something for us too, while you’re at it. I don’t want your short-order cooking skills to get rusty while the diner is closed.” Rose sat in the kitchen nook, kitty-corner to the seat Pip adopted as hers—the prime spot in front of the window.
With the fog lifting, Blueberry Bay’s early visitors came into view. A few lobster boats cut through the water checking their traps. Small boats moored at their buoys bobbed in a gentle rhythm with the wave action and above it all, the seagulls soared parallel to the beach. I’d be crazy to say no to this view every morning I told myself.
Lily snapped her fingers in my face. “Earth to Dani, scrambled or fried?”
“Scrambled. I’ll be on toast duty.”
As soon as the coffee pot had finished dripping, a loud bang on the front door got Pip yipping and charging toward the intruder.
“Isn’t it too early for a visitor?” I moaned. I liked our little group of three, or four, not meaning to forget to count Pip.
“Add more eggs to the pan, Lily,” Rose said, as she left the kitchen, following Pip to the door.
I resented this intrusion but, of course, Lily cracked more eggs.
Chapter Twenty-Four
AJ twisted his hat in his hands, an apologetic expression on his face as he gave his report.
“Sorry to intrude so early but I wanted to let you know that we’re done in the Little Dog Diner and you’re free to go back and start cleaning up.”
“Well come on into the kitchen,” I said. He seemed afraid to step over the threshold as if maybe the floors had just been mopped.
“Like I told Dani already,’’ he said, moving up to the island, “I can probably round up some help with cleanup. We took lots of photos, but if you see anything unusual or find anything missing, let me know. Of course, I had to take the rolling pin as evidence.”
I handed AJ a mug of coffee, thinking it might help him relax a little or it might do the opposite and kick his nerves into high gear.
Hmm, but what about my nerves. “That should be good news,” I said, “but I’ve got mixed feelings about going back inside.” Just thinking about the scene inside the diner brought back the memory of seeing Ray’s dead body on the floor. Somehow, I’d have to figure out how to erase that image.
AJ looked from Lily to me and said, “That’s why I think you should have someone else do the cleanup. Once the diner looks like new again, it will be easier to move forward.”
“Well, it didn’t exactly look new even on the best of days,” I countered, “but I get your meaning.” However, I still wasn’t convinced.
Rose took her seat at the window nook and, as usual, brought a rational note to the conversation. “AJ is right, Dani. Just check if any of your blueberry cordial survived and forget about everything else. I’ll hire a crew to take care of the cleanup. Besides, I’ve made up my mind to gut the place and do a complete remodel. This is as good an excuse as I’ll ever have and it’s probably long overdue anyway. The insurance settlement will help to cover some of the renovation expenses.”
AJ leaned against the counter and sipped his coffee. “What’s the blueberry cordial for?”
“A reception after Ray’s funeral,” I said. “Here at Sea Breeze. Lily wants to have a touch of local flavor.”
Mention of the funeral made me wonder how Luke was coping with the loss of his wife. “Did you hear the news about Luke’s wife?”
AJ’s hand stopped midway toward his lips.
“She died last night.”
He let out a deep sigh. “I’m really sorry to hear that. Luke has had a lot fall in his lap lately. I’m glad his alibi checked out so at least he doesn’t have to rush back here as a murder suspect.”
A pall fell over the kitchen, and though the loss of Luke’s wife was a tragedy, we had to move on for the moment. I knew we wou
ld all be there for him when he returned to Misty Harbor.
“Speaking of suspects,” I said to deftly change the subject, “what about that Marty Fontaine guy leaving town? I bumped into his wife yesterday.” A chuckle bubbled out. “You managed to ruin her plans. The way she explained it, you might have ruined her whole life when you told her she had to stay in Misty Harbor.”
AJ scowled. “To be honest? I’ll be glad when they both leave town, and I never have to lay eyes on them again. People like the Fontaines don’t fit in our town with their uppity attitudes and big ideas to develop every square inch of land.”
“Oh?” I said, surprised. “Are they cleared as suspects?” If that were true, the suspect list was shrinking quickly. I popped four pieces of bread into the toaster and pushed the lever down.
“Ava spent a couple of hours shopping when Creative Designs opened, asking questions and buying all sorts of items. Her alibi checks out. Marty didn’t stay with her but at this point there isn’t a strong motive for him to have killed Ray. Since Ray was working with him to steal Blueberry Acres from Spencer, why would he want Ray dead? Did I miss something else with him?” AJ asked.
“Only that Ava told me Ray sold Marty a worthless piece of land. Did you find anymore paperwork involving those two, Lil?” I buttered the toast and checked to see if the eggs were ready.
“Not yet.” Lily turned the burner off and moved the pan of eggs off the heat. “There’s plenty of scrambled eggs if you want a quick bite, AJ.”
He held up his hand. “Thanks, but I’m good. Keep looking through those papers, okay? I plan to question Marty some more when he returns. His wife promised it would be later today, and I hope she’s right. It feels like I’m heading into a bunch of dead ends. I had high hopes that the rolling pin and that earring would connect someone to the murder but so far, no one has asked about a missing diamond earring and the lab results …” he made a circle with his thumb and forefinger, “less than helpful. Is there any chance the earring was in the diner the day before the murder? Maybe someone bought it at Creative Designs then went to eat at the diner and dropped it, but it wasn’t discovered until after Ray was killed?”
“Unlikely,” Rose said and shook her head for emphasis. “The diner gets a thorough cleaning every night—floors swept and washed. I don’t think it would be possible for an earring, or anything else, to be on the floor and not get discovered by the end of the day.”
“Okay, thanks, ladies.” AJ put his mug in the sink and headed for the doorway. “You’ve given me some angles to think about. I have to head back to town; just wanted to let you know about the diner. I’ll let myself out.”
Lily divided the eggs onto three plates, and I added the buttered toast before we joined Rose and Pip at the kitchen nook. “Do you think he came here to tell us about the diner or ask that question about whether the earring could have been on the floor before the murder?”
I took a bite of toast covered with eggs.
“Both,” Rose said, “but I think the earring question was important. We all made the assumption that the earring belonged to the killer because we know the diner is thoroughly cleaned every night. The diner was closed the day of the murder so no was inside except Ray and the murderer. I’m not even counting you two when you got the blueberry cordial because, well, that’s a no brainer since neither of you killed him. AJ has to rule out the possibility that someone besides the killer dropped the earring during the murder. It’s very unlikely that it belongs to anyone but the killer. Right?”
I drummed my fingers on the table as I tried to work through various possibilities. “Luke and Ava have alibis. AJ doesn’t think Marty has a strong motive so let’s forget about him for now. That sparkly diamond earring didn’t walk into the diner by itself, and Pip sure as heck didn’t lose it. That leaves Rhonda or Frank, who both lost an earring. One was lost at the funeral home and one in the diner. Are you with me?”
At the sound of her name, Pip lifted her head, but she didn’t wag her tail or bark. I think she was waiting for me to reveal the murderer. I wished I could.
Rose and Lily each gave me a big head nod to indicate they were on the same page; so I continued.
“Don’t you think it makes the most sense that Frank lost his earring while he was getting Ray all set in the casket for the fake funeral? So, whose earring was found at the murder scene at the Little Dog Diner?”
Rose suggested a new idea. “We’ve been so focused on the earring, what if the murderer didn’t drop it?” she asked. “I told AJ I was sure the earring would have been swept up if it had been lost the day before the murder, but in reality, it’s possible it was already there, just not likely. So, I think a new question is, if we forget about the earring for a minute, who else could have been in the diner with Ray? I think Marty did have a motive to kill Ray and what about Nick? If Frank is a suspect, his brother should be too, in my opinion.”
I looked at Lily. “What do you think? You know the Wilde brothers better than we do.”
She shrugged her shoulders with an I-don’t-know gesture. “Nick’s a quiet guy. He’s always in the background with his head down working while Frank is more the face of the company. Maybe he’s jealous? I’ve never seen them argue or fight, though.” She scooted over to the counter and grabbed her purse, found a dollar and slapped it on the table. “I put my money on Rhonda. She was always jealous of Ray. Anyone care to make a bet on someone else? Frank, Marty, or Nick?”
I fished a dollar from my pocket and threw it on the table. “My money’s on Frank because I think Rhonda would convince him to do her dirty work. What about you, Rose?”
“I don’t bet, but I think you’ve both spun interesting scenarios. Since you’re going to the funeral home to discuss more details for Ray’s funeral, poke around with some questions about the earring and see what you can discover. I’ll be at my office working on this article.”
I wiped up the last of Lily’s creamy, perfectly seasoned scrambled eggs with my toast and washed it all down with the rest of my coffee. “Well, that hit the spot. When do you want to leave, Lil?”
“How about a half hour? If we stop at the diner first to get the blueberry cordial, then go to the funeral home, we’ll be there around nine. We should be able to find one or both of the brothers even though I didn’t make an appointment.” Lily grinned. “I like the idea of catching them off guard.”
I stacked the breakfast dishes and carried them to the sink. “That works for me.”
“Don’t worry about the dishes,” Rose said. “I’ll put everything in the dishwasher then head to my office.” She waved her hands and shooed both of us out of her way.
It didn’t take long for Lily to meet me by the front door, showered, wet hair braided, and dressed in her black leggings and cream-colored rayon tunic.
I looked down at my hot pink capris and my Little Dog Diner t-shirt with a bowl of steamin’ clam chowdah decorating the front. “Do I have to change? You look so … ready for a business meeting or something.”
Lily laughed. “You’ll keep Frank and Nick off balance with your outfit, which is exactly what we want.”
I slapped my leg. “Come on Pip. We’re heading off on another adventure.”
Pip pranced to the front door sporting a rainbow-colored bandana. Apparently, Rose had an endless supply to give Pip a splash of color and dash of flair to match her mood each day.
“Aren’t we the trio?” I said as I opened the door.
Chapter Twenty-Five
With Pip in her co-pilot spot, I was extra careful to stay under the speed limit as I drove into Misty Harbor. The next time I got pulled over, I doubted I’d get off with just a warning. I’d surely get a ticket thrown in my pitiful face.
The fog had lifted but clouds hung low in the sky, threatening a dreary day with the possibility of rain. I parked in front of the diner, which, at least from the outside, looked pretty normal. Thankfully, the police had pulled up all their yellow crime tape, but they had
completely trampled our narrow strip of grass.
Lily and I took the shortest path to the cabinet with the blueberry cordial, the side door.
“Are you ready?” Lily asked me. “I don’t have much of a memory beyond Ray’s body on the floor. I blacked out everything else and then took off. Do you want to stay out here? I don’t mind going in by myself.”
I sucked in a breath for bravery. “I can do it,” I said. I felt Pip lean against my leg. She either sensed my anxieties or she had her own bad memories to deal with. I picked her up.
Lily opened the door and gasped.
“What?” My heart pounded.
“I can’t believe this colossal mess. Rose made the right decision to gut the place and remodel. There isn’t much worth salvaging.” Lily turned in a circle. “Someone must have just pushed everything off the counters and walls. It makes the booths look old and tired…so depressing. Let’s get out of here. Where’s the blueberry cordial?”
I stepped over papers and pots. My foot crunched on shattered plates as I made my way to the cabinet where I hoped my blueberry cordial was waiting. On the bottom shelf: four pint jars filled with the beautiful blue liquid sat untouched and waiting for me to rescue them.
“I may as well take them all,” I said and carefully packed them in a small basket lying on the floor. “No point in tempting fate after they survived one disaster.”
With my basket secured at my side, we tiptoed over the debris back toward the door. Now that I had my treasure, I couldn’t get out fast enough.
A violent banging on the door made my blood drain to my toes.
“What should we do, Dani?” Lily whispered.
I put my finger to my lips, hoping that if we were quiet, the person would leave.
Pip, unfortunately, didn’t understand my strategy and she charged the door as ferocious as a mama bear protecting her cubs, barking to let the intruder know she meant business.
“Lily? Are you in there with Dani? Open the door. I need to talk to you.” Rhonda’s angry voice competed with her pounding and Pip’s ruckus.
