by Dana Moss
Taffy would, of course, but she was still smiling. At least Macy didn’t have to sit around in that jail.
“Did her father post bail yet?”
“Not yet. She mentioned he might not.”
That seemed strange. “Then Nana and I will. Let’s get her out of that cell sooner than later. She’s fragile.”
“If you say so.”
“Maria, I suggest you find Einer. There’s something fishy about him, and he’s the only one who disappeared last night. That right there reeks of guilt.”
“We’re on the lookout.”
“Check the bars. He was awfully friendly with that bottle last night.”
Maria said she’d send an officer out looking later this afternoon. Then she hurried off the phone.
Taffy was tempted to drive around town a bit to look for Einer herself first, but she’d promised to meet Ellie at the factory. So she wended her way up the ridge where the Sweet Abandon Candy Factory perched on a bluff overlooking the town and harbor.
She could see the yacht from here. It looked small as a toy, but it contained a dark secret.
What had happened last night on that boat? Taffy was determined to find out.
* * *
Once through the candy-red door of the Sweet Abandon Candy Factory, Taffy made her way past Aubin Terkle’s receptionist desk with a quick wave and brief hello. Now that Taffy was in charge, she didn’t have to wear the pink and white jacket that was the basic uniform for the staff, but Aubin always hinted that she looked too cute in it and maybe if Taffy didn’t like the jacket she could get a cape made, since she was the boss. Taffy had done her best to brush off the suggestion lightly, without laughter, but Aubin still brought it up from time to time. Taffy had considered changing the uniforms completely, but every candy elf had protested—they liked their uniforms; they made them feel as if they belonged to some big, happy family.
Ellie, sporting her striped jacket with extra-wide stripes to show she was the factory manager, was happy to see Taffy but shocked to hear about the recent murder and the suspicion now surrounding her visiting friends.
Ellie’s deep-brown eyes went wide. “Do you think she did it?”
“Of course not!”
“But she might have, right?”
Taffy shook her head. “If you met her, you’d understand she couldn’t do something like this.”
“I guess you’ll be wanting to help Maria sort this all out?”
“As much as she’ll let me.”
“Well, you’ve got a knack for it,” Ellie said with a trace of pride, and it felt good to Taffy to have someone believe in her.
Ellie said, “I’ve got things under control here. Apart from the nutty licorice suppliers. They keep sending us whips when I ask for nibs. But you don’t need to worry about it. I’ll take care of everything.”
Taffy felt grateful. Maybe it was time to give Ellie another raise next month.
“You should bring your friends by some day,” Ellie added. “A little outing. They’ll get bored here otherwise. Abandon’s such a little town, and they’re used to a big city.”
Taffy thought that was a great idea. “Once they’re settled,” she said. First, they had to deal with these horrible suspicions.
And Taffy really needed to talk to Macy, so could find out her side of the story. She wasn’t sure why she felt so certain that her friend was innocent, but she’d learned to trust these hunches. Yet what if Macy had snapped? No, Taffy couldn’t imagine it, but she’d feel a lot better when she had a chance to talk to Macy after she made bail later that afternoon.
Taffy signed a few checks, gave the go-ahead to one of Ellie’s recent new candy research and development plans, and approved the next batch of supply orders. Then she made excuses for having to get home to check on Cher. Ellie understood.
* * *
Not long after Taffy got home, after she’d parked but before she’d made it into the house, a white van pulled up in her driveway. The Castle Rock Resort logo was painted on the side door.
Cher, looking showered and refreshed, stepped through the front door onto the porch just as Taffy was on her way in.
“Thanks, Greg!” She called out as she waved in the direction of the van. She turned to Taffy, saying. “I called Greg and asked him to bring our stuff over. Isn’t he sweet?” She blew him a kiss.
The young man Taffy had been talking to earlier climbed out of the driver’s seat. He grinned like a school boy when he saw Cher and then started unloading bags.
Cher said, “I have to tinkle. Back in a sec.” She disappeared into the house while Greg made four trips to and from the van.
Ethan pushed open the screen door and saw the pile of suitcases accumulating on the porch. He leaned toward Taffy and whispered, “Exactly how long is she staying?”
“Some of it’s Macy’s too. The judge has allowed her to stay with me while the investigation proceeds. She’s not allowed to leave the state.”
Ethan stared at her. “You’re serious?”
“They’re my friends, Ethan. Wouldn’t you do the same for your friends?”
Greg brought the last of the bags and piled it precariously on top of the others. He waited around for Cher to return, but when she didn’t right away, he said he had to head back to the resort and asked Taffy to say goodbye to Cher for him. Taffy tried handing him a tip, but he waved it away. “My pleasure.”
The van pulled out of the driveway, and Ethan eyed the heap of stuff.
“I guess I should head back to my place. It’s going to get crowded here.”
“Are you angry?” Taffy said.
Ethan paused. “Not exactly…”
“You think I shouldn’t be getting so involved?”
“You’re going to do whatever you want to do, Taffy. I can see that now.” He sighed, and then he seemed about to say more, but they were both distracted by the arrival of a police car.
Officer Malcolm Peck helped Macy out of the back seat. She looked ashen and exhausted, but her eyes flickered to life when she saw Taffy and Ethan.
“Oh, Taffy, am I ever happy to see you,” she said. “And all my stuff!” She smiled. “It will be like one long extended sleepover!”
Ethan’s eyes drifted heavenward in an attempt to disguise his eye roll, but Taffy saw it even if Macy didn’t.
Macy laid a hand on Ethan’s arm. “Thanks for sticking around to help carry all this stuff inside.” She walked into the house without lifting a bag herself. From inside, they heard her giggle and say, “How quaint! Now we’re really roughing it.”
Ethan gave Taffy a look.
“Just give her a break. Think of what she’s been through…”
Malcolm handed Taffy a clipboard. “You have to sign here. You’re responsible for her now.”
Ethan mumbled, “What’s that they say about the blind leading the blind?”
Taffy scowled at him. “I thought you were on your way home.”
“Oh you mean after I schlep all the bags upstairs?”
Taffy handed the clipboard back to Malcolm and surveyed all the suitcases. “I really could use some help. Do you mind?”
As Taffy and Ethan carried the bags inside, they overheard Macy and Cher in the front room reuniting and hugging and whining and crying and carrying on all over again.
“Do you believe all this? Kyla’s having a hissy fit.”
“What about our parents?’
“I doubt mine will even care,” Macy said.
“As soon as this mess is over, we’ll go straight home.”
On the second trip through with bags, Taffy and Ethan stopped at the threshold when Macy, holding up the wedding planner that had been sitting on the coffee table, said, “So who’s getting married?” She glanced at them and arched her eyebrow. “Not you two?”
Ethan frowned.
Taffy clarified. “Finn and Maria. In a few months.”
“Really? Maybe we can help!”
“That would be so fun,” Cher said. “Anyth
ing to distract us from this terrible business.” But she seemed distracted already as she turned to Macy and said, “There’s this lovely claw-foot tub upstairs. Why don’t I draw you a bath?”
Macy sighed. “That would be divine.”
As Cher led Macy toward the stairs, Taffy said, “Macy, we need to talk. I spoke with Lorne and Anya earlier today, and they told me some things about—”
Cher jumped in. “Taffy! Can’t you see she’s not well?”
Macy’s eyes had started to flit about in a panic. She bit her lip.
Cher said, “Can’t you see she’s not ready yet? She’s barely been here ten minutes.”
“But we really need to—”
“After the bath. Okay?” Cher said. Macy had sort of wilted against Cher’s arm and was now being propped up.
“After the bath,” Macy echoed.
Taffy nodded and let them pass. What had she gotten herself into? Did the two of them even realize the extent of the “terrible business”?
Ethan carried the other bags upstairs.
Passing Taffy on the way down, he said, “Good luck with all this.”
She felt a slight wave of panic. “You’re leaving?”
“I’m sure you want to get busy with your girly ‘sleepover’ plans.”
As if on cue, Cher called down. “Taff, do you have any other nail polish colors?”
She reached for Ethan’s arm. “What do I do?”
He shrugged. “Bubble baths? Facials? Weepy movies and—”
“Stop it.” She boxed him the arm. “You know what I mean.”
He glanced up the stairs. “You have a better understanding of this situation. Try to convey it to them.”
He moved toward the door, but she didn’t want him to go.
From upstairs, they overheard Macy, with a slight whine in her voice, say, “I wish these towels were fluffier.”
Taffy said to Ethan, “Was I really like that before?”
Ethan grinned. “A little.” He kissed her on the cheek. “I’ll call you later.”
CHAPTER NINE
After Macy had had a bath and both girls had used up the remains of Taffy’s facial ingredients, they all sat together on the back porch waiting for their freshly painted toenails to dry. Taffy had rifled through her mostly empty cupboards to put together some picnic-style snacks, and she’d made up some iced tea and brought it all out on a tray.
Macy reached for a stale cracker. “I told you, I hardly remember anything. It was like waking up after a bad dream, but the waking up was a nightmare all by itself.”
She’d told the police that she could remember very little of the previous night. She didn’t remember holding a knife or screaming. She did remember seeing Blake lying unconscious on the bed. She sort of remembered blood and guessed that just the sight of it had sent her into a state of shock.
“I can’t imagine who would have wanted to do that to him. It’s horrible. I can’t believe he’s gone.” Then she started crying. When her tears dried up, and after much fussing from Cher, Taffy asked why her parents hadn’t posted bail right away.
Macy explained that her family’s business had recently gone bankrupt, her father was facing jail time for insider trading, and there was no money left.
“I was going to have to get a job,” she said, as if that equated to being shipped off in exile to Timbuktu. Or Oregon. Taffy smiled.
“It’s not all that bad.”
Cher said, “But she thought landing a rich husband was a better idea.”
Macy glared at her. “You know it wasn’t like that, Cher.”
“But you intended to say yes, didn’t you?” There was a resentful tone in Cher’s voice.
Taffy turned to Macy. “So you knew about his plan to propose?”
Macy stood up, crossed her arms, and paced the length of the porch, which looked odd with the cotton tufts between her toes sticking up as she duckwalked on her heels.
“That’s what everybody’s going to think, isn’t it? They’re going to think I was after his money.”
“Well, were you?” Taffy said.
Macy didn’t say anything right away. Then she shrugged. “It certainly would have been a perk.”
“You would have been like a paid whore,” Cher said with disgust.
Macy threw up her arms. “What else was I going to do? He wasn’t that bad outside of the bedroom.” She plopped back down on the wicker sofa.
“How bad was he in the bedroom?” Taffy asked as she refilled their glasses with iced tea. “Lorne and Anya mentioned something about pornography.”
Macy examined her toenails for a moment and then looked up at Taffy. “I was handling it. If things had gotten really bad, I could have divorced him.”
“And walked away with a sweet prenup settlement,” Cher quipped.
Macy glared at her and then returned her gaze to Taffy. “But what does all that matter now?”
“It matters because the police are looking into any motivations you might have had. And if money was one of them…”
Macy’s eyes widened. “You know I didn’t do it!”
Taffy put a reassuring hand on her friend’s knee. “I believe you, but I’m not the one you have to convince.”
“I did love him. In a way.”
Cher groaned.
“I did! He could be very funny. And he treated me pretty well. Most of the time.”
“Bought you trinkets and things, you mean? You’ve always been distracted by shiny things.”
Taffy said, “You’re really not helping, Cher.”
“Well, what am I supposed to do?”
Taffy sighed. “Macy needs you to be supportive and encouraging right now. On top of that, you’re the strongest character witness she’s got because you were all on the boat together and you know each other so well.”
“I’ve already told the police everything I could. She was swimming when the murder took place. We both were. That’s all there is to it.”
“The police are looking at everyone on or near the ship that night. Everyone’s a suspect, but with the witnesses and evidence so far—”
“You mean Lorne?” Macy scoffed.
“He’s a suspect, too, isn’t he?” Cher asked. “If not, he should be.”
“He claims he saw Macy standing over Blake with a knife.”
Macy sighed. “He did. He walked in two minutes after I did. I do remember that part. He called the ambulance, but it was too late.”
“He thinks it’s obvious Macy killed him.”
“He was like that when she walked in,” Cher said. “Someone else got to him first.”
“But who?”
Macy’s eyes filled with tears again. “I didn’t do it, Taff. I could never do something like that.”
Cher held Macy’s hand. “What if no one believes us?”
Macy’s wide wet eyes looked to Taffy. “Would they put me in jail for a crime I didn’t commit?”
“They’d have to have enough evidence to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.”
She seemed relieved by the bit of news, even though so far the evidence was stacking against her, but Taffy didn’t mention that because she didn’t want to send her into another panic. And she also believed Macy was innocent.
Taffy added, “We just have to find a way to prove that you didn’t kill him.”
For a moment, Macy looked skeptical. “How do we do that?”
“The best way is to prove who really did.”
The girls looked at each other. Cher gripped Macy’s hand tighter. “Where do we start?”
Taffy folded her hands in her lap. “First we have to look at everyone connected to that yacht. For one thing, where was Einer last night? Where is he now? As far as I know, the police haven’t tracked him down yet.”
Macy and Cher looked at each other again.
Taffy continued. “Could he have killed Blake? Would he have a reason to?”
Macy was openmouthed. “Not Einer. He was—”
<
br /> “He gave me the creeps,” Cher said. “He was always creeping around. You never heard him coming.”
Macy shook her head. “He was harmless. He’d get drunk when he wasn’t seeing to the ship, but otherwise he kept to himself.”
“Don’t you remember how he was always watching us? Spying on us?”
“You’re just being paranoid, Cher. And who wouldn’t be staring when you were parading about in your buttless bikini. Everyone stared, even me.”
Cher smiled at the compliment and then looked at Taffy. “I think he could have done it. He was adept at handling tools. A knife would have been easy for him.”
Macy shook her head again. “He had nothing against Blake. I’m sure of it.”
Cher said, “But if we had proof he did it you’d be off the hook, Macy. Don’t be so quick to dismiss the possibility.”
“It’s true,” Taffy said. “What can you recall about him?”
Macy sighed. “He didn’t talk much. Blake relied on him to take care of the boat. He didn’t much like Lorne. They sort of snapped at each other. Lorne liked to lord his superiority as captain over him. But he was dependent on Einer’s expertise too. Though he never seemed grateful or appreciative.”
“He slunk around like a weasel—”
“His work was behind the scenes, Cher. The functioning of a yacht isn’t supposed to be obvious,” Macy said, defensively. “It’s a small fantasy on the sea, isn’t it? The guests are living the dream while someone else is pulling the strings. I don’t feel right accusing someone who was a bit quirky just doing his job.”
Taffy said, “But if he did do it, if he was motivated by something you didn’t even know about, you’d want him locked up, wouldn’t you?”
Macy nodded reluctantly.
“Better him than you,” Cher said.
Macy nodded again, less reluctantly.
Taffy said, “Do you remember anything else?”
Macy thought for a moment. “He would disappear sometimes once we were docked. But he always came back. He was always ready to go when it was time to set sail.”
“What do you think he was doing when he disappeared?”
Cher jumped in. “Planning the perfect murder!”
Macy looked to Taffy. “If we can prove who did it, we’ll get to go home?”