Banana Split and Bodies

by Allyssa Mirry

  Daniel finished his lunch as Lydia continued to consider the code. After he wiped his mouth with his napkin, signifying that he was done, he leaned forward across the table.

  “There’s something else strange besides the numbers,” he said quietly. “I think a lot of the other diners are staring at us. At least the locals are.”

  Lydia sighed. “That’s probably because Amber has been telling everyone who will listen that I’m a murderer who killed someone to hurt her business. I thought Brie might have stopped her, but it doesn’t look like it held her back.”

  “Maybe there’s another reason,” he said, trying to sound comforting.

  However, the only other reasons that Lydia could think of weren’t any better. She considered that people might be staring at her because they didn’t understand how the handsome new man in town was eating lunch with her, the candy lady whose hair was always pulled into a messy bun and who was often covered with patches of sugar. It might also be that someone who was staring at her was involved in whatever Norman had uncovered and was determining whether Lydia needed to be disposed of too.

  “Do you want to go for a walk?” Lydia asked, suddenly not wanting to remain in the bistro amid the stares.

  Daniel agreed right away. They left a tip on the table and then headed outside. They decided to walk on the beach instead of the boardwalk and dipped their toes in the water as they strolled down the shoreline. The water was still cool, but it was beginning to warm for the summer. It felt delightful on Lydia’s feet as she walked along. If she wasn’t concerned about a killer on the loose, it would be very relaxing.

  “I don’t know what I’m missing,” Lydia said, finally. “I know that there must be a way to crack this number code, but I don’t see how right now.”

  “Believe me I wish I had a book of answers for solving this too,” Daniel said. “But I’m sure we’ll figure it out eventually.”

  Lydia paused, considering what he said. It had started the gears in her head turning, and she realized a possibility for the code. However, she was so focused on her thoughts that she missed how a wave became larger as it moved toward her. Instead of lapping against her ankles, it splashed the pedal pushers she was wearing. However, she was suddenly so excited that she didn’t care about her wet clothes.

  “Daniel, you’re a genius!” she cried.

  “How so?” he asked with a smile.

  “A book of answers! He was a librarian. It would make sense if his code had something to do with a book.”

  “I don’t think it’s the Dewy Decimal system or ISBN numbers.”

  “Maybe a book is used to decode the message,” Lydia said. “The first number could be the page you turn to, the second could the paragraph, and the third is the word. Maybe this will spell out a message from Norman.”

  “I think you could really be on to something,” Daniel said. “And I don’t mean to rain on your parade, especially since you were already splashed – but there are hundreds of books at the library and millions in the world. How will you know which book he used? If you don’t use the right one, you won’t get the right answer.”

  Lydia frowned. She knew he was right and she had already seen the inside of Norman’s locker at work. It didn’t contain any books. She might be able to ask Leo which books were found at Norman’s house, but she bet her detective brother wouldn’t want to answer her.

  Before she could formulate a plan about how to best find the book that Norman might have used, something else happened to increase her frown.

  Amber stormed right toward her from the boardwalk. She looked angrier than she had ever seen her before – and considering how they met the last couple times, that was saying something.

  12

  Pointing Fingers

  “You just have to hurt me more and more, don’t you?” Amber said accusingly.

  “What did I do now?” asked Lydia.

  She felt like she had been showing restraint by not doing something similar to what Amber had threatened to do. Amber said that she was going to tell everyone in town that Lydia was a conniving killer. Lydia could have used actual facts to say bad things about Amber around town, but refrained.

  “You’re trying to steal Brie,” said Amber.

  “What?”

  “I know that you’ve been going around town with her. She didn’t want to tell me why she couldn’t meet up with me, but I found out. And it was because of you. It’s not bad enough that you sabotage my business and turn it into a crime scene? Now you need to steal my best friend too?”

  Lydia tried to think of the proper response. If Brie hadn’t told Amber why they were going around town, it must be because Brie didn’t want the person who came after Norman to have an excuse to come after Amber. Lydia didn’t want to destroy the steps Brie had taken to protect her friend, but she was also tired of being yelled at for crimes she had not committed.

  “I’m not stealing Brie,” Lydia assured her calmly. “We’re just working on a project together. Once it’s completed, everything will go back to normal.”

  “I don’t like the idea of her hanging out with a killer.”

  “I’m not a killer,” Lydia protested. “I have an alibi for the murder. Right after work, I picked up takeout which I have documentation for, and then a detective was over at my house with me. I’m not to blame for this.”

  Amber seemed to digest what she had been told. Finally, she said, “I guess I don’t know for certain that you killed that man. But if you hurt Brie, I will hurt you.”

  “I don’t think now is the time for threats,” Daniel said.

  Amber finally registered that Daniel was there as well as Lydia. She tried to recover, and she fluffed her hair.

  “I didn’t notice you,” she said, trying to sound lighthearted. “Which is strange because you’re so tall, dark, and handsome. Did you just appear out of nowhere?”

  “Amber, I know that you’ve been having a stressful time lately,” he began.

  “Oh, you have no idea,” Amber said. “I came across a dead body near my sweet little ice cream shop, that you should stop by more often once it finally opens up again. And Lydia has been making things difficult with—”

  Daniel cut her off and gently asked, “Don’t you think that you should go home and recover from the shock?”

  “That might not be a bad idea,” she agreed.

  Amber shot Lydia another dirty look but didn’t say anything else. She started back toward the boardwalk.

  “Thank you,” Lydia said. “She doesn’t listen to me at all.”

  “I didn’t like hearing what she was saying to you.”

  “And I’m afraid I’m not going to make it any easier. I need to talk to Brie again. I remembered something she said, and it might lead us to the book that Norman Nunn used to write his message.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’m not familiar with the author, but Brie mentioned that Norman said that Lyndon Malcolm Wallace would be impressed by what he was working on. We thought this might have been someone involved in the cover-up operation, but Norman might have really been making a reference to the writer. Maybe that’s the book that Norman used to form the coded message.”

  Daniel wished her luck with her search and told her to let him know if she ran into any problems, but he needed to return to the lifeguard stand to work. Lydia called Brie and only briefly mentioned her run-in with Amber. She wanted to focus on the discovery that she had made.

  Brie thought she was on to something with Lyndon Malcolm Wallace. However, she didn’t know where they could find a copy of the relatively unknown author’s book. Lydia suggested that they try the library.

  * * *

  Ms. Marsh had not seemed especially pleased to see them back at her checkout desk. However, she was more amenable to helping them find a book than answering their questions.

  “We’re looking for a book by Lyndon Malcolm Wallace,” Lydia said. “Can you help us find it?”

  Ms. Marsh t
yped into her computer. “We have one book by Lyndon Malcolm Wallace entitled Catching the Corrupt and Criminal. Let me see where it is located.”

  “Isn’t that it there?” Lydia asked, noticing the title in a pile of books that were stacked on a shelf marked “returns.”

  “So it is,” Ms. Marsh said.

  She grabbed the book and asked for a library card. Lydia had let her library card lapse when she had moved away for a period of time, so Brie took out hers. She ended up having to pay some fees in late fines, and she was grumbling about how Norman had always made her fees disappear as she and Lydia headed to an empty table that would provide them with some privacy.

  It took a while to flip through the book and find all the correct words, but a message was starting to form. It would have been easier to read if Norman Nunn had included punctuation in his code, but his meaning was clear.

  Norman addressed his message to his “beloved reporter” and told her how he hoped this story would help her career and that coding it would keep it secret. He said he hoped it wouldn’t be too difficult for her to read when he handed it off to her, but that this was a crime that went up to the mayor’s office.

  “Am I reading this right?” Brie asked when she finished looking over the message.

  “I think so,” Lydia agreed. “Norman was accusing the mayor of stealing the funds raised for the community center and hiding it in a fake company called Dune Investments.”

  “This is a big story that could help my career,” Brie admitted.

  “But it’s also a story that got Norman killed,” said Lydia. “We’ll need to be careful when we approach the mayor.”

  13

  The Mayor’s Office

  “As I’ve told you, I’m not sure when the mayor will be back.”

  “And we’ve told you that we would wait,” said Brie.

  Lydia and Brie were situated in the lobby of the mayor’s office, much to the chagrin of the mayor’s assistant, Gary Sand. He kept trying to usher them out of the building, but the two women had taken seats and had no plans of rising until they had spoken to the man in charge.

  “But it could be hours,” Gary said, checking his fancy wristwatch.

  “Good thing I brought some taffy for us to eat while we wait,” said Lydia.

  “Wouldn’t you rather make an appointment and come back?” asked Gary.

  “I thought one of the mayor’s campaign promises was that he always had time for his constituents,” said Brie. “Especially members of the press.”

  Gary held back a sigh of exasperation and checked his watch again.

  “That’s a very nice timepiece,” Lydia said. “It looks expensive.”

  “It was a Christmas gift from the mayor,” he said quickly. “And it’s very useful for checking when he will be back, which could be a long time from now.”

  Brie and Lydia just smiled and waited. Lydia took some banana split taffy out of her purse and offered it to Brie. They both chewed on the snack as Gary tried not to pace around the room.

  Lydia glanced about as she tried not to focus on Gary. The room was chic and comfortable at the same time without being overbearing. There was a slightly nautical theme, and there was even a shiny anchor on display on an end table.

  “I like the décor,” Lydia said. “We’re looking at making my home more beachy at the moment too.”

  “The mayor hired some local woman to do it,” Gary said, brushing off the topic. “But are you truly sure that you wouldn’t want to come back when the mayor is certain to be in his office?”

  Gary glanced at his watch again, and then the mayor walked into the room. Lydia realized that the assistant must have been trying to get rid of them before the mayor’s arrival.

  “Gary, what have you found out about this mess?” he demanded before noticing there were visitors.

  Ned Neilson’s face instantly transformed into a jovial smile. He was a middle-aged man who was trying to look younger. He wore a tropical shirt under a sports jacket and had several large rings on his fingers.

  A slight limp was noticeable as he walked further into the room. He stretched out his hand to shake both of the women’s.

  “I’m sorry about that outburst,” Mayor Neilson said. “It’s so wonderful to see you both. Brie Rankin, it’s always a pleasure.”

  “This is Lydia Doherty,” Brie said, making the introduction. “She’s a local business owner.”

  “Always happy to meet with them,” the mayor said.

  “Are you all right?” Lydia said, gesturing to his leg. “It looks like you hurt yourself.”

  “A slight knee injury from golfing,” he said. “But I’m not going to let it get me down.”

  “I’m surprised you’re not using a cane if you hurt your knee,” Lydia said with a significant look at Brie. Perhaps the mayor had destroyed a cane he was using after using it as a murder weapon.

  “No. I’m not someone who needs a cane. I just fight through the pain,” he responded.

  Lydia considered his answer. She couldn’t tell whether this denial sprang from wanting to distance himself from a murder or from a desire to make himself appear tough and younger.

  “Mr. Mayor, I have some serious questions for you,” Brie said.

  “And I wouldn’t expect anything less from our local press,” he said, inviting them into his inner office. “What are we discussing today? What have tourists done to offend the locals, and how can we coexist with them?”

  Gary followed behind them, still looking peeved.

  “It’s actually a different topic of conversation,” said Brie. “Do you know a man named Norman Nunn?”

  “No. I’ve heard Nunn-thing,” the mayor joked. “Who is he? Is he looking for mayoral support for a cause? I do like names with two N’s in them.”

  “He’s the man who was murdered the other day,” Gary said. “On the boardwalk.”

  Mayor Nielson cleared his throat. “I hope what I just said can be kept off the record. I wouldn’t joke about the dead. You know that. And I wouldn’t want anything I said off the cuff to offend his friends and family.”

  “So, you don’t know anything about his death?” Lydia asked.

  “I did hear about a murder on the boardwalk, and I am going to coordinate with the local police to make sure that we are all doing our part to keep our town safe,” the mayor said. “But I’m not aware of all of the details. I’ve been busy with another matter.”

  “With the community center?” asked Lydia.

  The mayor paused for a moment as if sizing them up. Then, he smiled broadly again.

  “Yes. I know lots of money has been raised for the community center to make improvements to it, and I am eager to see them happen. I bet you think we’re taking a bit too long, but sometimes the best things are worth waiting for.”

  “Have you raised enough funds to complete the project?” asked Brie.

  “I know there has been a lot of fundraising,” Lydia said. “My friend won a raffle to benefit the community center, and I’ve been accepting donations in a jar at my taffy shop to support it.”

  “The leaky roof is something that we will need to fix,” Mayor Neilson said. “And I don’t have the books in front of me, but I think we are getting close so the repairs and improvements can begin.”

  “That’s so good to hear,” Brie said. “Because we believe that the man who was murdered noticed an impropriety with the money before he was killed. But you’re saying that’s not the case.”

  “An impropriety?” asked the mayor.

  “Someone was taking the money and funneling it into a false company,” said Lydia. “And there’s been a cover-up to hide this from the public.”

  “No. We don’t know anything about that,” Mayor Neilson said. “And I’m afraid I’m going to have to cut this meeting short. Gary, we have another meeting, don’t we?”

  “Yes, sir,” said Gary dutifully. “I’ll show these women out. I’d schedule another meeting for you, but we really don
’t know anything about this matter.”

  He ushered them out forcefully. Lydia turned to Brie once they were outside.

  “The mayor is lying,” said Lydia. “I’m positive.”

  14

  The Full Scoop

  “It’s just about time to make like a banana and split,” Kelsey joked.

  Lydia was pulled out of her reverie. Her thoughts had been circling around the conversation that she and Brie had with the mayor ever since she returned to Doherty’s Taffy and Trinkets. She wondered if there was more they could have done to get him to talk. He had rushed to get them to leave his office, so it was clear that he was upset by what they had brought up. It looked like Norman had been right. Lydia just wished that he had focused on providing evidence instead of encoding his message.