by Leena Clover
“You’re looking chipper,” Captain Charlie grunted as he picked up his coffee and muffin.
“It’s a wonderful day, isn’t it?” Jenny gushed. “I watched the best sunrise on my way to work.”
Jenny was in the habit of seeing the sun come up over the ocean every morning on her way to work. On a clear day, one could see the big orange ball of the sun splashing the sky in shades of red, pink and mauve.
“How was your meeting with the Cohens?” Betty Sue asked her later over coffee.
Star was sketching something on a piece of paper, barely paying attention. Her head jerked up when she heard the Cohens mentioned. Her hair was windswept as usual and Jenny wondered where she had spent her morning.
“Are you set up by the marshes again?” she asked her aunt.
Star shook her head.
“I’m out by the lighthouse. I’m out of all my lighthouse pictures. They are flying off the shelves this year.”
Star had a small gallery where she sold sketches and paintings of the surrounding area. Summer was a busy season for her, with tourists flocking to buy paintings of the ocean and the marshes.
“Are you putting your new paintings online like I showed you?” Jenny asked.
Star nodded. “I sold a few pieces online this week. I can’t keep up with the demand.”
“Demand is good,” Molly said. “You can start a waitlist and offer some kind of incentive.”
“Forget about that for a minute,” Star dismissed. “What’s this about the Cohens?”
“We didn’t get a chance to talk,” Jenny explained to her aunt. “I met Linda again. And I met some of the Cohen kids.”
“Kids!” Heather sniggered.
“Stop it, Heather,” Betty Sue ordered. She leaned forward with interest. “Did you meet Walt?”
“Walt seemed a bit aloof,” Jenny reported. “Heidi was angry. I think she’s been mad at Asher her whole life.”
“You’re missing the point,” Molly interrupted. “Ask her about her date with Jason.”
“We don’t have to,” Heather said, pointing at Jenny. “She’s turning red.”
Jenny walked to the seafood market after work. Chris Williams was stacking shelves. His face broke into a smile when he spotted Jenny.
“Hey Jenny! How are you?”
Jenny chatted with Chris for a while.
“When do I get to taste your crab cakes? Heather can’t stop singing your praises.”
His face clouded over when he spoke about Heather. Jenny wondered if Heather had told him about her crazy dating idea.
“All well?” she asked.
“Has Heather talked to you about us?”
Jenny hesitated.
“She wants to date other people,” Chris burst out.
“I think she’s confused,” Jenny said.
“I’m not,” Chris said strongly. “I was getting ready to propose. This thing has thrown me out of whack.”
“I’m sure Heather loves you, Chris.”
“She has a fine way of showing it,” Chris smirked. “Why is she acting out?”
“You know what I think? I think you should let her have her way.”
“I’ve always imagined growing old with Heather. What if she finds someone else?”
“She won’t,” Jenny assured Chris. “But if you don’t let her do this, she’ll always wonder.”
“What if she goes out with a scumbag?” Chris asked. “I won’t be there to look out for her.”
“She can take care of herself. Maybe she needs to prove that to herself.”
Chris packed a pound of shelled and deveined shrimp for Jenny.
“So I should just wait for her to come back to me?”
Jenny picked up some fresh sea bass and handed it to Chris.
“That sounds best.”
Jenny had a surprise in store for her when she got home. Jimmy Parsons sat on the porch with her aunt. He was dressed in shorts and a faded shirt. His clothes were old but they looked freshly washed. That was quite an improvement. Jimmy himself looked like he had showered and shaved.
“I asked Jimmy over for dinner,” Star said hesitantly. “Do we have enough?”
Jenny held up her shopping bag.
“There’s plenty to go around, don’t worry. Why don’t you two catch up? I’ll take care of dinner.”
Jenny chopped garlic and made a marinade of freshly squeezed orange juice, paprika and fresh dill. The sea bass went into it for five minutes before getting seared in a hot pan. Jenny doused the shrimp in Old Bay seasoning and added a squeeze of lemon juice and oil. She added it to another hot pan.
Star had cooked some brown rice. Jenny made a quick rice salad with blueberries and dill. She sliced the yellow tomatoes Betty Sue had grown in the inn’s garden.
“What’s new with you, Jimmy?” Jenny asked as she served dinner.
Jimmy Parson’s reputation as the town drunk preceded him. But Jenny had no idea what he did for a living.
“It’s tourist season,” he said, biting into a plump shrimp. “Lots of chores to keep me busy.”
Jenny debated asking about the chores. Star came to her aid.
“Jimmy rents out some cottages to the tourists.”
“Oh?” Jenny exclaimed. “I didn’t know that.”
“The Parsons family lost a lot of land in the big storm,” Jimmy said, sipping his sweet tea. “We only have half a dozen cottages now, scattered across the island.”
Jenny understood who funded his drinking habit.
“I didn’t know you had family on the island.”
“My nephew’s wife and kids live here,” he nodded. “He’s away most of the time, working on a rig. My baby sister lives in Atlanta with her husband. We hardly ever see her.”
Jenny was shocked to learn Jimmy Parsons wasn’t the hobo she had thought him to be. She had to learn to look beyond appearances.
Star must have read her thoughts because she gave Jenny a withering look.
“Star tells me you’re looking into Asher’s death?” Jimmy asked. “He was a good man.”
“You knew Asher Cohen?” Jenny asked.
The day was full of surprises.
“We were buddies,” Jimmy said softly. “We went fishing in that creek on his land. We sat around for hours, shooting the breeze.”
“Any idea who did this to him?”
“Asher didn’t take crap from anyone. But he was a fair man. He provided a lot of employment for people up and down the coast.”
“What about his kids? Do you know them?”
“I knew Paul growing up. That’s the youngest of Olga’s kids. He left town as soon as he finished high school.”
“What about Hans? Maria’s son? Did he hang out with you and Asher?”
“That kid?” Jimmy snorted. “He’s married to the bottle. Hangs out at the Rusty Anchor most of the time. Drinks on the job too.”
“I bet Asher didn’t like that.”
Jimmy forked a big piece of fish into his mouth and shook his head vigorously.
“Asher couldn’t stop stewing over it. Called him out for it too.”
“Shouldn’t he have fired him?”
“Blood’s thicker than water, I guess,” Jimmy shrugged. “And Maria would have given him an earful. She’s the only one of Olga’s kids who comes to visit.”
“What about Linda?” Jenny asked. “Do you know her?”
“Jimmy and Linda are the same age,” Star supplied. “Jimmy dated her in high school.”
Jimmy Parsons turned red.
“Ah! It was just puppy love, Star.”
He gave her a meaningful look. A silent message passed between the older couple. Jenny tried to hide a smile.
Star had baked a berry pie for dessert. They sat on the porch, eating big slices of the warm pie topped with vanilla ice cream.
A large yellow Labrador came bounding up the beach. He jumped up on the porch and put his paws on Jenny.
“Tank, you monster! Let me eat.
”
Tank butted her with his head and barked happily. A whistle sounded in the distance. Adam Hopkins walked up slowly, barely leaning on his cane.
“Hello everyone. Tank, stop bothering Jenny.”
The yellow lab plopped down by Jenny’s feet and put his head on her knee. She put her plate aside and fondled him.
“Care for some pie?” Star asked.
“I shouldn’t,” Adam said, staring at her plate.
“Why don’t you sit down?” Star laughed. “I’ll bring you a small piece.”
Jimmy seemed uncomfortable in Adam’s presence. He gobbled up his dessert and said goodnight.
“Did I drive him away?” Adam asked.
“Maybe.”
“How’s your little project going, Jenny?”
Jenny didn’t take the bait.
“Very well. What about your investigation?”
“You know I can’t talk about that, even if I wanted to.”
“Have you found a motive yet?”
Star came out with a plate of pie in her hand.
“What happened to Jimmy? Did you scare him away, Adam?”
Adam shrugged.
“I didn’t say a word.”
“You have that effect on people,” Jenny teased. “Most people are intimidated by you.”
“But you’re not one of them,” Adam said with a hint of a smile. He took Jenny’s hand and wove his fingers through hers. “I’m glad.”
Star cleared her throat.
“Did Jenny tell you about her date with Jason?”
“It wasn’t a date,” Jenny protested. “Just dinner.”
“You keep telling yourself that, girl!” Star sighed and went inside.
“How about a walk?” Adam asked.
Jenny nodded. Tank scampered after them. They set off the motion detectors at Seaview. The three storey house Jenny had bought recently lit up like a Christmas tree. The scent of roses and gardenias perfumed the air as Jenny leaned against the gate to admire her new home.
“When do you finish repairs on Seaview?” Adam asked.
“The work’s stalled,” Jenny told him. “They barely started.”
“Oh yes, Cohen Construction is doing your renovations, right?” Adam asked. “I forgot about that.”
“Asher went over the plans himself,” Jenny said sadly. “He was excited. He said he would give it his personal attention since I was involved.”
“Who’s going to oversee the work now?”
“I don’t know,” Jenny said. “I forgot to ask.”
Chapter 8
“How about meeting at the Rusty Anchor later tonight?” Heather asked Jenny. “We need to talk.”
“Have you…” Molly asked, looking interested.
“Later!” Heather cautioned. “We’ll talk later.”
The Magnolias commented on some of the tourists and devoured the lemon blueberry muffins Jenny had baked that day.
“It’s getting too hot,” Star complained, pulling off her paint splattered smock. “I feel like adding ice to my coffee.”
Jenny liked the idea.
“You read my mind. I was thinking of offering iced coffee on the menu. Some people asked for it.”
“That’s it then,” Betty Sue stated, placing her knitting down on the table. “We are drinking iced coffee until summer winds down.”
“Can you make mine a frappe?” Molly asked.
“Well, I’m no barista,” Jenny said modestly, “but I can try.”
The girls met at the local pub that evening. Heather ordered the first round of drinks.
“I did it,” she beamed. “I downloaded one of those dating apps. I created a profile too. Now I just need to upload a picture.”
“Use an old picture,” Molly said. “That’s what everyone does.”
“You mean, like, one from my college days?”
Molly nodded vigorously. “You want to look young. Younger than you are, that is.”
“I don’t think that’s a wise move,” Jenny said disapprovingly.
The girls argued over the photo, finally calling a truce. Jenny snapped a picture of Heather and they uploaded it.
“What happens now?” she asked Heather.
“Now we wait, I guess.”
“You don’t have to,” Molly said. “You can express interest in other guys.”
“How do you know so much about this?” Jenny asked, her hands on her hips. “I’m beginning to think you have done this before.”
“Not exactly,” Molly said evasively.
A chubby man with a protruding beer belly was seated at the bar.
“Isn’t that Asher’s grandson?” Heather asked. “Hans something.”
“Maybe you should date him,” Molly kidded. “I heard he’s single.”
“Hush,” Jenny said. “I need to talk to him.”
She walked over to the bar and held her hand out.
“I’m Jenny King. You are Asher’s grandson, aren’t you?”
“So what?” he asked belligerently.
He took a deep sip of his beer and belched. Jenny tried to keep a straight face.
“Linda’s asked me to look into Asher’s death. So I am talking to people.”
“What’s that?” he asked, peering at her through red eyes.
Jenny decided he had already knocked back a few drinks.
“I talked to your aunts and uncles. I would like to ask you some questions about Asher.”
“You some kind of detective?”
“Oh no! I run a café in town.”
The man’s frown turned into a smile.
“That’s right. You’re that cake lady. Grandpa couldn’t stop talking about his birthday cake.”
Jenny smiled and nodded.
“What do you want to know?” Hans said, draining his beer.
He called for another.
“Can we go get a table?”
Hans grabbed the mug of beer and led her to an empty table at the far end of the room.
“Err…I didn’t get your name,” Jenny began.
“Hans Geller.”
“How long have you lived here in Pelican Cove?”
“I spent a lot of summers here, growing up,” he told her. “Mom always came here to visit Gramps. I started working at the business a couple of years ago.”
“You like the construction business?”
“It’s not bad,” Hans shrugged, hiccupping loudly.
“Can you tell me something about your grandpa?”
“He was old!” Hans sniggered and started coughing.
“Other than that,” Jenny said with a smile.
“He was a skilled carpenter,” Hans said. “He made music boxes. You know the ones? Music plays when you open the box. It was cool.”
“Did he teach you how to make them?”
“He tried,” Hans said. “But I’m not into that kind of thing.”
“What about Linda?” Jenny asked.
“She’s my grandma.”
“She’s not related to your mother though?”
“Linda’s always been my grandma,” Hans said, looking uncertain.
“You know what happened to Asher, don’t you?” Jenny asked delicately.
“He died, dude!” Hans said.
His speech was becoming slurry but he continued to drink.
“I mean, you know how he died?”
Hans looked back at her blankly.
“Did he have any enemies?”
“Why would he? He was such a sweet old man.”
“Can you think of someone who might have wanted to harm him? Someone who might have argued with him recently?”
Hans looked jubilant as he connected the dots.
“Luke, of course. Luke and Gramps didn’t get along at all. Luke was trying to steal the business from him.”
“Who’s Luke?”
“He likes to think he’s the head honcho over at Cohen Construction. But he’s just a hired hand.”
“Why did this
Luke fight with your grandpa?”
“It was about me,” Hans said proudly. “Luke went behind my back and told Gramps I drank on the job.”
“Did you?”
Hans gave her a sheepish grin.
“I might have, once or twice.”
“What did your grandpa do?”
“I’m still here, aren’t I? Grandpa gave him an earful.”
“You think this Luke hated your grandpa?”
“You’re not very sharp, are you? Luke hates me! He’s on my case all the time.”
Jenny ignored the barb at her.
“We are talking about who might have hated your grandpa.”
“Why would anyone hate him?” Hans asked. “He had money. Tons of it.”
“What do you do at the construction business?” Jenny asked, trying a different tack. “Are you a foreman or something?”
“I came here to be a foreman,” Hans said with anguish. “You think I came to this hell hole of a small town to unload trucks?”
Jenny sensed a tirade coming.
“Gramps made me foreman on a job but that Luke went and told him I almost cut myself with a saw.”
“That sounds dangerous.”
“Luke said I couldn’t use any power tools until I cleaned up.”
“Looks like he’s looking out for your safety.”
Hans snorted and rolled his eyes.
“He’s looking out for himself. He wants to steal the business.”
“How can someone steal a business?”
“Luke’s been at it for years. He acts like he owns everything.”
“What about Asher’s kids?”
“My aunts and uncles? They couldn’t care less. They didn’t exactly get along with Gramps. Aunt Heidi hated him.”
“So your Mom was the only one who came here to visit?”
“She’s smart,” Hans said. “She said she did it for me. She hates Pelican Cove.”
“So you don’t like working at Cohen Construction?”
Hans drained his beer and tried to lift his arm to call for another.
“You’ve had enough for tonight, buddy,” Eddie Cotton called out from the bar.
Hans muttered a string of profanities, making Jenny cringe.
“I’m getting out of here,” he roared. “Saying goodbye to this crappy town.”
“Where will you go?”
“Back home, of course.”