by Leena Clover
“Why isn’t Kelly here yet?” Heather asked Brandon. “Looks like she had a little too much champagne.”
“Kelly’s an early riser,” Brandon said with a frown. “I’m going to call her.”
He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and turned around, jabbing some buttons on the screen.
“It’s ringing,” he explained.
A tall, strapping young man came running from the beach. Jenny sensed the panic in his coal black eyes. He came to a stop before Brandon and began gesticulating with his hands.
Brandon stared back at the youth in confusion.
“Get a grip, man!” Brandon exclaimed. “What’s wrong with you?”
The man pointed somewhere behind him and started walking back.
“I guess he wants us to follow him,” Heather muttered.
The youth whirled around and looked pleadingly at Heather.
“You wait,” he stuttered.
He looked at Brandon.
“Come with me.”
Brandon shrugged and began following the guy.
Heather raised her eyebrows and stared at Jenny.
“Who is he?” Jenny asked.
“The gardener?” Heather mused. “How would I know?”
A shout went up somewhere in the foliage behind Jenny. There was a flurry of footsteps and Brandon ran up to them, white in the face.
“It’s Kelly,” he cried, collapsing on the lawn.
He clutched his head in both hands as he stared wild eyed at Heather.
“She’s dead. My Kelly’s dead.”
Ada Newbury came out on the porch.
“What’s the commotion?” She gave Jenny a piercing look and stared at her grandson. “Why are you sitting on the grass, Brandon? Get inside. Cook’s poaching the eggs for your Eggs Benedict.”
Jenny found herself taking over. Ada refused to believe her grandson. She grabbed Heather by the hand and started walking through a gap in the trees. Jenny realized there was a small path there she hadn’t noticed before. Heather and Ada were back a few minutes later. Heather gave a slight nod as she stared at Jenny. Jenny pulled out her phone and called the police.
Heather told her how they had found Kelly floating in the pool, face down. There was no doubt she had been dead for a while.
A wail of sirens sounded in the distance and grew louder as they approached the Newbury’s mansion. The cook was coaxing Ada to drink a cup of tea. Jenny sat on a delicate chair with spindly legs, feeling out of place in the ornate parlor.
A tall, uniformed man came into the room, leaning on a cane. Jenny’s heart sped up as she gazed into his piercing blue eyes. Adam Hopkins was the sheriff of Pelican Cove. He was also Jenny’s betrothed. After a rocky courtship, Jenny had finally agreed to marry Adam the previous autumn. Six months later, they still hadn’t set a wedding date.
“What are you doing here, Jenny?” Adam asked with a frown.
“I can’t believe this is happening again,” Ada Newbury wailed.
A stranger’s corpse had been discovered on the Newbury estate several months ago.
“Did you know the deceased?” Adam asked stiffly.
He took his job seriously and was firmly in cop mode.
“Of course I did,” Ada snapped. “My grandson was going to marry that girl.”
“Where is he, by the way?”
Brandon had locked himself in his room. He had been inconsolable.
“That poor boy,” Ada sobbed.
“When was the last time you saw this girl?”
Adam launched into a series of questions. Jenny knew the drill. Adam would be merciless in his questioning. He was just doing his job.
Adam let Jenny go after a few cursory questions. He warned her not to gossip about what had happened.
“Surely you know me better than that?” she fumed.
It was hard to keep anything secret in Pelican Cove. The Magnolias were waiting for Jenny back at the Boardwalk Café. This was a motley group of women Jenny had grown fond of. She would lay her life down for one of them. Betty Sue Morse was the unopposed leader of the pack. Jenny’s aunt Star was the most free spirited member of the group. Heather and Molly were the youngest. The Magnolias had suffered a shock the previous year when Petunia, their kindest member, had been struck down. They were still grieving for her. Petunia had left the Boardwalk Café in Jenny’s care and she was doing everything she could to live up to her friend’s legacy.
“Heather called,” Betty Sue told Jenny, her hands busy knitting a canary yellow scarf.
“Is it true?” Molly asked, her eyes popping out of their Coke-bottle glasses.
Tall and scrawny, Molly worked at the local library and was hailed by her friends as one smart cookie.
“Do you know what happened?” Star asked Jenny.
Jenny looked thoughtful.
“That girl was brought up right,” Betty Sue stated. “She asked after my arthritis. She even brought a wrap for me from inside.”
Jenny remembered Kelly was an orphan. She wondered if anyone would grieve for her. She remembered the tall, handsome man who had been hanging around her. He had a funny name.
The Magnolias decided to stick around at the café until Heather got back. Jenny worked through the lunch crowd, trying to keep herself from calling Adam. He didn’t appreciate personal calls when he was busy on the job.
“Time to have lunch,” she told the Magnolias as she brought out a big platter of sandwiches.
The Magnolias sat on the deck of the café, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The bright sunlight was a bit deceptive as a cold wind whipped Jenny’s tresses around her face.
The ladies were quiet as they munched on Jenny’s chicken salad sandwiches. There was a big sigh of relief when they spotted Heather walking along the boardwalk toward them. She jogged up the café’s steps and collapsed in a chair with a thud.
“I’m starving!” she complained. “I never had that breakfast.”
Jenny fixed a plate for her while the others bombarded her with questions. Heather warded off their questions while she took a few bites. Then she delivered the shocking news.
“Ada Newbury has been arrested.”
“That’s outrageous!” Betty Sue declared. “Looks like your young man is up to no good again, Jenny.”
“What was she arrested for?” Star asked Heather, ignoring Betty Sue.
“Kelly’s murder.”
“Isn’t it too soon to say that?” Molly asked.
“Apparently not,” Heather explained. “The police have decided that Kelly was murdered. And they think Ada had the strongest motive.”
“That’s a bit hasty, even for Adam,” Jenny said reluctantly.
“Ada wasn’t too fond of Kelly,” Heather told them. “I think most of the staff knew that. She thought Brandon was marrying someone beneath him.”
“So what’s new?” Star asked, rolling her eyes. “Ada thinks everyone is beneath the Newburys.”
“That’s not a strong enough motive,” Molly agreed.
“Adam must have had his reasons,” Jenny said, coming to his defense.
“Does Julius know?” Betty Sue asked, referring to Ada’s husband.
“Julius is out of town. He was going to call Jason when I left. I think Jason will bail her out soon.”
Jason Stone was the one and only lawyer in Pelican Cove. He had known Jenny as a teen, when she had spent summers on the island visiting her aunt. He had tried to woo Jenny when she came to live in Pelican Cove again. Jenny was very fond of Jason but he hadn’t made her heart race like Adam did. Jason still flirted with her at every possible opportunity and Jenny took it in her stride.
“Did you talk to that girl yesterday?” Star asked Jenny curiously.
“She was sweet,” Jenny nodded. “And so pretty. No wonder Brandon fell for her.”
Star exchanged a glance with Betty Sue.
“She was there,” Betty Sue nodded cryptically. “The shameless hussy.”
“Com
e on, Grandma,” Heather grimaced. “That’s all water under the bridge.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Jenny asked them.
“Just some gossip,” Heather dismissed. “Pay no heed, Jenny.”
“Are they talking about Megan?” Molly asked.
“Isn’t that the redhead Brandon was walking around with last night?” Jenny asked. “Who is she?”
Chapter 3
Betty Sue clammed up at Jenny’s question. Molly began to look uncomfortable. Heather took pity on Jenny and spoke up.
“Megan Patterson used to be Brandon’s girl friend.”
Jenny’s mouth hung open.
“He seemed pretty friendly with her last night.”
“Megan dumped him,” Heather explained. “I wonder if Brandon still has a thing for her.”
Jenny’s opinion of Brandon took a nosedive.
“You don’t say? Did Kelly know about their past?”
Heather shrugged.
“How would I know?”
Betty Sue rushed to Brandon Newbury’s defense.
“Brandon’s a good boy. He turned out pretty well, considering.”
“Why don’t you tell her the whole story?” Star suggested.
“Ada and Julius adore Brandon,” Heather supplied. “Ada as good as raised him. He spent a lot of his childhood here.”
“What about his parents?” Jenny asked.
“They like to travel,” Betty Sue grunted. “They are off gallivanting in some little known country most of the time. They never had time for Brandon.”
“What does this have to do with Megan?” Jenny asked, wondering if there was a point to the conversation.
“Megan’s grandparents live here too,” Star explained. “She did some of her schooling here. She was a popular girl, head of the cheerleading squad and all that.”
“So Megan and Brandon met years ago?”
“They are childhood sweethearts,” Heather sighed. “It’s hard to forget that kind of history.”
“What does this Megan do?” Jenny asked.
“She lives in the city,” Heather explained. “I have no idea what she does. No one knows what went wrong between her and Brandon.”
“They must have made up though,” Molly spoke. “Why would he invite her otherwise?”
“Ada threw last night’s party, remember?” Betty Sue said. “Maybe Ada invited Megan.”
“Let me guess,” Jenny smirked. “Ada actually likes this girl?”
“She’s besotted by her,” Heather corrected. “Very few people can gain Ada’s favor. Megan’s one of them. She’s always been welcome at the Newbury mansion.”
Jenny wondered if Ada had been trying to mend fences between Megan and Brandon.
“What sort of man is Brandon?” Jenny asked. “Would he leave Kelly in the lurch if Megan went back to him?”
“Men!” Star spat. “Who can predict what they will do?”
“Brandon’s not like that,” Heather argued. “He really loved Kelly.”
“Where did he meet her?” Jenny asked.
“We were going to talk about that this morning,” Heather said. “I guess we won’t be doing that anymore.”
“Speaking of weddings,” Betty Sue said. “When are you setting a date, Jenny?”
Jenny couldn’t control the blush that stole over her.
“I haven’t thought about it yet.”
“You have had six months to think about it,” her aunt reminded her. “You have to stop dilly dallying now.”
“I can’t wait to be a bridesmaid,” Heather hinted.
“I thought Chris and Molly might beat me to it,” Jenny said, trying to divert attention from herself.
Molly obliged them by turning red. She was dating Chris Williams, a young local realtor. Molly and Chris had exchanged promise rings a few months ago, instead of engagement rings. They both wanted to be completely sure of their commitment to each other before assigning any labels to their relationship.
“We are not in a hurry,” she said quickly. “I think you and Adam should take the plunge first, Jenny.”
Heather looked at them irritably.
“You are both one of a kind. You know what I would be doing if I was in your place? I would be knee deep in wedding magazines and stuff, planning the wedding of the century. And here you can’t even set a date.”
“Don’t forget, Heather,” Jenny said gently. “Adam and I have both been married before.”
“So have I,” Molly reminded her.
Neither of their marriages had ended well.
“So what?” Heather rolled her eyes. “This is a new beginning for both of you. Forget those losers you were married to before. Adam and Chris are some of the finest men you could ever meet.”
“I fully agree with that,” Jenny said with a laugh.
“What’s holding you back then, sweetie?” Star asked, looking worried.
Jenny rubbed the tiny gold heart shaped charm that hung around her neck. She did that whenever she thought of her son Nick. Nick had gifted her a gold charm every Mother’s Day ever since he turned eight. Jenny wore them all on a chain now. They provided her a tangible connection with her son whenever she thought of him.
“What does Nick feel about this?” Molly asked, picking up on Jenny’s thoughts.
“We’ve never really discussed it,” Jenny confessed.
“It’s high time you did,” Star quipped. “Nick is a grown man. He just wants you to be happy.”
Jenny humored the Magnolias as they pestered her about her wedding. The group finally broke up when Molly got up to get back to the library. Heather and Betty Sue returned to the Bayview Inn to prepare for the arrival of their new guests.
Star stayed back to help Jenny.
“When are you going to hire some help?” she asked Jenny. “You’ve been running the café singlehandedly for over six months now. It’s taking a toll on you.”
Jenny barely heard her aunt. She had been ignoring her aching back and sore feet for several weeks now. She couldn’t explain why she hadn’t hired some permanent staff for the café. The truth was she still missed her friend Petunia. Hiring someone else felt like she was replacing her. Jenny couldn’t imagine doing that.
Jenny drove home as the daylight waned early under a cloudy sky. Her phone rang moments after she collapsed on the couch in her great room.
It was Adam, asking her what kind of food she fancied that evening. She had completely forgotten their dinner date.
Jenny showered and slipped into her trusty little black dress. She wished she had something new and bright to wear. Maybe she needed a shopping trip with the girls.
Adam was right on time. Jenny had a hankering for Mexican food. Adam drove to a small Mexican restaurant in a neighboring town.
Adam was in a sober mood.
“She was barely 25, Jenny,” he moaned, referring to Kelly Fox. “She had her whole life ahead of her.”
“Are you sure she didn’t drown by herself?” Jenny asked hesitantly. “The champagne was flowing freely last night.”
“I’m sure,” Adam said. “We’ll know more after the autopsy. But I am pretty sure someone killed that girl.”
“But why?”
“That’s what I have to find out.”
Adam took a hefty bite of his taco and chewed thoughtfully. Jenny recognized the grim determination in his eyes.
“She seemed very happy,” Jenny supplied. “Who wouldn’t be? Brandon Newbury is supposed to be a great catch.”
“Ada Newbury didn’t like her,” Adam said flatly. “Almost every member of their staff told me that.”
“Did they have an argument or something?”
“Ada warned her off. Told her no good would come of marrying Brandon.”
“Is that why you arrested her?”
“I didn’t arrest her, Jenny,” Adam sighed. “You have to stop listening to the grapevine. I just brought her in for questioning.”
“Why does she nee
d a lawyer then?” Jenny pounced. “You are hiding something from me.”
Normally, Jenny’s statement would have produced an outburst from Adam. But he had mellowed a bit since their engagement.
“I don’t have to tell you everything I know, Jenny,” he said with a smile. “I can’t. It’s part of an ongoing investigation.”
“How did you zero in on Ada so quickly?” Jenny pressed. “Doesn’t she have an alibi?”
Adam and Jenny parried back and forth, Jenny trying hard to squeeze as much information as possible from Adam. They shared a caramel flan for dessert and Adam took her to their favorite beach. Jenny forgot all about the Newburys as she held hands with Adam. They walked silently in the bright moonlight, enjoying each other’s company.
Jenny started the next day with a smile on her face. She beamed at her favorite customer, the first in line when she opened the Boardwalk Café for business every morning. Captain Charlie gave her a knowing look.
“How’s that young man of yours?” he asked. “I hear he hasn’t thrown a tantrum in three full days.”
Adam Hopkins was known for his irascible nature. Everyone believed Jenny had succeeded in taming him.
“Adam’s fine, Captain Charlie,” Jenny sighed. “Are you going to try one of my yogurt parfaits today? You need to start eating healthy.”
Captain Charlie agreed to try Jenny’s fancy breakfast, provided he could still eat his muffin. Jenny packed a blueberry muffin for him along with the berry parfait.
Most of the café’s customers turned out to be like Captain Charlie. They went for the parfait only after they had their fill of muffins and omelets, treating the parfait as dessert.
“Does anyone here understand the concept of a low calorie breakfast?” Jenny wailed.
“I don’t see why you are complaining,” Star laughed. “More business for you.”
“I thought I would help build some healthy habits,” Jenny said reproachfully.
“That’s a noble thought,” Star said sagely. “But it ain’t happening here, Jenny. The people in this town are set in their ways. You should know that by now.”
After a dozen more customers chose a crab omelet over the parfait, Jenny had to admit her aunt was right. Jenny brainstormed about how she could make her parfaits more attractive.