by Alana Ling
I screamed and so did Sam.
Shuddering, I shook my head and stepped on Sam’s foot.
‘Oi,’ she shouted.
‘Sorry.’ I fluffed my hair again and felt something against my arm. I got hold of it and pulled it down. The room was washed in light. Not a spider after all. Just a good old-fashioned pull-cord switch.
‘She must have something down here that will help us get this door open,’ I said.
Sam was holding the railing for dear life and staring at me as if I was a ghost. ‘You can do that,’ she said. ‘I’ll keep guard.’
‘Guard from what?’
‘G-ghosts,’ she replied.
I laughed and went downstairs. ‘You can do something more useful. Like call for help?’ I suggested, and as if I’d reminded her she had a voice, she climbed the few remaining steps to the top and started banging on the door, crying for help.
I got to the bottom and looked around. It was a very small basement, in comparison to the size of the house. A few mice at the other end squeaked and went for cover as I approached them to look at the shelves that were decorating the walls.
There were several plastic boxes full of papers. A few others had old used candles and fluffy toys, which made me wonder if they belonged to Melissa or Arthur. Somehow, I couldn’t imagine either of them playing with stuffed bears, not even as kids.
There was a carpet propped up against the wall, covered in protective plastic and a bunch of vases gathering dust.
‘Any luck down there?’ Sam shouted.
‘It seems these people weren’t much into DIY. There’s literally no sign of a tool down here. Any luck on your end?’
‘Yes, I’m out and waiting for you to join me in the open,’ she said in her best sarcastic voice.
‘Keep trying.’
‘Wait a minute. I hear something,’ she said.
I ran upstairs and pressed my ear against the door, just like Sam had.
The sound of broken glass followed by the sound of footprints crunching on glass.
‘Help!’ Sam shouted and banged on the door. I bent down and looked through the crack at the bottom but I couldn’t see anything.
‘Help,’ I shouted as well.
Then I saw a pair of shoes appear from the end of the hallway. They were a nice chocolate pair of dress shoes and they walked towards our direction.
‘There’s someone here,’ I said.
Sam paused for a moment, and then resumed her shouting twice as loud.
The pair of shoes stopped in front of the door. Then they disappeared.
‘They’re gone,’ I said.
Sam wasn’t defeated.
A screeching sound pierced our ears. Moments later we heard the door creaking. It popped open with a loud splinter. I looked up to see who the shoes belonged to.
Blueberries.
I had never been happier to see Ollie.
Twenty
Sam jumped out of the basement and wrapped her arms around Ollie.
‘Ollie, what are you doing here?’ I asked him.
‘Saving our butts,’ Sam answered, clinging on to him.
He extended an arm towards me and pulled me in closer to him as well.
‘I saw you driving. You were racing across town so I thought something was wrong. I followed you here and then Melissa came out and took your car and you still hadn’t come out, so I knew something was wrong.’
‘My car!’ I said.
I ran out of the front of the house but my car was gone. Melissa’s was still there, but now it was locked. She must have transferred her suitcases to my car and taken it to the airport. I ran back inside the house where Ollie was still standing next to Sam.
‘I need to use your phone,’ I said.
Ollie passed me his mobile and I typed the phone number for the police station. It rang twice before it was picked up.
‘Can I speak to Detective Anderson, please? It’s an emergency,’ I said.
‘One moment, please,’ said a monotonous voice.
A minute later, Daniel came on the line.
‘Daniel, it’s Jo,’ I said.
‘Jo, are you all right? They told me you have an emergency.’
‘It’s Melissa,’ I yelled at the phone. ‘Melissa Foster killed her husband and Sylvester Meyers. You need to get her.’
Daniel paused and then said, ‘What? How do you know?’
‘She just confessed everything to us before she locked us in her basement.’
‘Are you okay? Are you hurt?’ his voice shook.
‘I’m fine. Oliver rescued us, but Melissa, she’s got my car and she’s heading for the airport.’
‘I’m on it. And Jo? Stay put. I’m sending a car your way.’
I collapsed on one of Melissa’s sofas and tried to pass the phone back to Ollie.
Sam took it off my hands and stood in front of him.
‘Thank you. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t found us,’ she told him.
Ollie smiled. ‘Don’t worry about it,’ he said.
‘Would you still like to go on that date you mentioned in all of your many cards?’ she asked him.
Ollie smiled and kissed Sam’s hand. ‘It would be my pleasure.’
It was all going to be okay.
A loud noise blasted in my ears.
I looked down at Alfie who was snoring. I must have fallen asleep.
After the officers Daniel had dispatched had arrived at the scene to take our statements and collect evidence, we’d been driven back home in Ollie’s car and I had curled up with Alfie on my sofa.
The doorbell rang again. Alfie opened his eyes, shook his fur and proceeded to bark at my guest. I followed him and looked through the peephole. It was none other than Daniel.
I opened the door and was taken by the gooey goodness of his peanut butter brownie.
‘Jo, are you okay? I’ve been knocking for ages,’ he said, stepping into the house and touching my face. He looked into both my eyes like a doctor examining his patient.
I pushed his hand away and rubbed my eyes.
‘I’m fine. I was asleep.’
He relaxed.
‘What happened?’ I asked.
‘We got her. She was checking in for a flight to New Zealand.’
‘Oh good. Did she tell you what she did?’
Daniel nodded. ‘She confessed everything. Harold’s safe.’
I brought my hand to my heart and let out a sigh of relief. ‘Thank goodness. What about my car?
He pointed outside and I saw my mint green beetle winking at me from my drive.
‘Daniel, that’s amazing! Thank you.’ I hugged him. ‘Any luck with my phone?’
He reached into his pocket and extracted my smartphone. I grabbed it from him and checked that it was still working.
‘Oh thank, God,’ I said and hugged him again.
He remained rigid. I slowly retrieved myself off him and waited. He didn’t speak. He was staring at me.
‘Go on, then,’ I said.
‘What?’
I rolled my eyes. ‘I expect this is the part where you tell me for the tenth time that what I did was dangerous, I could have got hurt, I shouldn’t be interfering with police work, what else? Oh, yes, you’re a professional and I don’t know what I’m doing.’
He didn’t react. Or, to be more precise, he did by lowering his head.
‘I won’t,’ he said.
I winced. Had I heard right?
‘I’m sorry, can you repeat that?’
Daniel looked up at me again. ‘I won’t tell you any of those things. Even though they’re true, I won’t. I-I wanted to apologise for the way I spoke to you. What I said was completely out of line and I’m sorry.’
He was direct and clear. He wasn’t biting his words nor was he muttering under his breath.
‘Ah…thank you…’ I said. I was still not sure if there was a lecture to come.
‘I would have put everyone’s favourit
e mayor behind bars if it weren’t for you, Jo. I owe you one.’
I smirked. Perhaps not all hope was lost for my ex-brother-in-law.
A knock came from my right and I turned to find Kit waiting by the door, an awkward smile on his face.
‘Kit, hey!’ I said.
Kit waved at Daniel and Daniel extended his hand to him.
‘You must be Mr. Rider, our new landlord? I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure yet,’ he said and shook Kit’s hand. ‘Detective Daniel Anderson.’
‘Nice to meet you, Detective.’
‘Welcome to Haven-on-Sea, Kit. Let me know if you need the department’s help with anything, will you?’ Daniel looked at me then back to Kit. ‘Right, I should get going. Good day to you both. Stay safe.’
Daniel passed me my car keys and walked off. Kit still stood by the door.
‘Jamie told me what happened. Are you okay?’ he asked.
‘All the better for seeing you.’ I smiled and he reached in for a hug.
It felt good being in his arms. He smelled of daisies and ginger and tasted of raspberry cheesecake.
I let him in and brewed some chamomile. It was Kit’s favourite tea and my nerves still needed calming. Sipping the brew reminded me of Arthur and his unfortunate ending. He really would have been a terrible mayor, but he definitely didn’t deserve to die. And the same applied for Sylvester. A victim to Melissa’s scheme.
After what had just happened, I really hoped this town would get a good mayor when Harold stepped down. Haven deserved it.
Being overwhelmed with the flavours of my victims and suspects was when it hit me.
‘Would you like to bake something with me?’
Kit smiled. ‘What are we making?’
I opened my cupboard. ‘Earl Grey,’ I said and put the tea box on my kitchen counter. ‘Chamomile. Ginger.’
‘And what are we making with these?’
‘Carrot cake, of course.’
‘Yum-um.’ He bit his lip. ‘My favourite.’
My phone pinged.
I lifted it and unlocked it. I had a new message from Colton.
Hi, Joanna. I’ll be in town next week. It’ll be good to catch up and go through the event in more detail.
‘Oh, shoot,’ I hissed.
Kit came next to me and looked into my eyes. ‘Are you okay?’
I breathed in and put my phone down. Now was not the time to stress. I had all the time in the world to worry about my next event.
‘Yeah,’ I said, ‘I just remembered I haven’t found a venue for my next event and my client is meeting me next week.’
‘What sort of event is it?’ he asked.
I opened a drawer and pulled a bowl out to mix all the ingredients I needed for the carrot cake. ‘Would you mind grating carrots?’ I asked him and he opened the fridge. ‘It’s for this wholesaler. He’s inviting some of the best wine and gin producers from all over the world to expand his portfolio and he wants to wine and dine them, but he’s making such a big deal out of it.’
‘Why don’t you have it at mine?’
I paused and stared into his pretty eyes. ‘You know what? I’ve been so busy I didn’t even think to ask you.’ I laughed.
‘Bonus points if it will mean we get to spend more time together.’ He smirked.
‘Wouldn’t be that bad, now, would it?’
Twenty-One
The cake was such a success I decided to make a second one for Harold and Althea. Harold was the one to answer the door. He was dressed in his pyjamas, a silky blue set with a matching robe.
‘I’m sorry, Harold. Did I wake you?’ I asked.
‘Oh, Joanna, don’t be silly. I was having a lie-in.’ He laughed and gave me a tight hug while I tried to juggle the cake in my hands. ‘I can’t,’ he started and released me, ‘thank you enough. I’m free thanks to you.’
I waved the notion away. ‘I’m sure Daniel would have let you go eventually. He’s good at his job.’
‘But you’re better, which says a lot about our police department. I would look into it more, but I’m not going to be in charge for much longer. I’ll be sure to speak to Patrick about it, though. Don’t just stand there. Come on in.’
He unblocked the entryway and I stepped into the house and guided myself through to the living room.
‘Patrick Gardner? You think he’s going to win?’
Harold took a seat in his favourite armchair next to the fireplace and I sat opposite him.
‘There are no real candidates on our side, and after everything that’s happened, I think the Unified Greens might be a breath of fresh air for this town.’
‘Literally.’
‘Besides, I always supported him. Despite my not being able to in public, due to Arthur’s…threat.’
I pursed my lips and didn’t say anything. It had been bad enough that he’d kept it from the police, but to keep it from me too? That was the silliest thing he could have done.
‘Is that Joanna I heard?’ Althea sing-sang as she popped her head in, and upon seeing me she came round to give me a big hug, enveloping me with her sugar and lemon pancakes tang.
‘My sweet girl, how can we ever thank you for what you have done?’ she said.
‘Don’t mention—,’ I started, but Harold cut in.
‘I promised her a generous payment for helping us out and I’m not one to break a promise.’
I paused. I could never in a million years imagine taking money from Harold for helping him out in a difficult time like that, especially for time spent snooping around in other people’s business. But there was definitely something he could do for me.
‘Actually, I only want a favour, if you don’t mind.’
‘Of course, sweetheart. Anything,’ Althea said. ‘Right, honey?’ She turned to Harold, nodding. He mimicked his wife, staring at me.
‘Well, I hear the winter bazaar might be in need of a planner—.’
‘Let me speak to the lady on the council and I’ll see what we can do,’ he said.
‘Thank you. I brought cake for you, by the way. You’d better eat it before Effie finds out I’ve brought it over.’ I chuckled.
Althea took the box from my hands and opened it.
‘Oh, Harold, it’s your favourite. Carrot cake,’ she said.
‘It’s a bit different than usual. I hope you like it. It’s got a blueberry cream cheese icing.’
‘That sounds even better,’ she said. ‘I’ll get some plates.’ She disappeared into the kitchen with the box.
Harold laughed. ‘You know, somehow I doubt I’ll get to enjoy much of that cake.’ He looked in the direction Althea had gone.
‘Yeah, perhaps you’ll want to hide some slices,’ I said. He chuckled. ‘Are you sure you’re okay, Harold?’
He looked at me for a moment and smiled. ‘Yes, I am. It will take me a while to get over the shock of finding Sylvester in that state, but I’ll be fine. Plus, I’m retiring. I don’t have to deal with those people anymore. After I hand the keys of the town over, Althea and I will be going for a little trip to our house in the south of France and put all this behind us.’
It was good to hear he was okay. Seeing him scared and exposed in the police station was not a good look for one of the most powerful men in town and in my life.
‘Oh shoot, I almost forgot. I need to go.’ I shot up just as Althea returned with a tray of carrot cake slices.
‘Joanna, where are you going?’ she asked.
‘I’ve got to go to the airport,’ I explained.
Althea pursed her lips and nodded with a smirk. ‘Oh, yes, of course. That boy doesn’t waste any time, does he?’
‘Nope.’ I said. ‘He doesn’t.’
‘Alright, then. Off you go. Tell him we said hi,’ she said.
I set off in my beetle and headed east to Sam’s house. She was waiting outside her flat with a large black suitcase and dressed in a long, flowing, green dress. Her blonde hair was caught in a bun and her eyes were hidd
en by a huge pair of sunglasses.
‘You know you’re only going for two nights, right?’ I told her, looking at her luggage.
She blew raspberries, squeezing her case in the backseat. ‘There’s so many things I might need while I’m there. I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she said and took her place next to me.
‘If you say so.’
I drove off and stopped a few blocks down where another person, this time Jamie, was waiting out on the street. His ’fro created a halo around his head and he wore a blue vest that complemented his complexion. He had a rucksack and small hand luggage. Sunglasses rested on his head and a pout on his face.
‘You’re late,’ he said as soon as I pulled over.
‘Thank you, Joanna, for driving me to the airport even though you have so many things to do,’ I muttered while he took a seat in the back, barely having any space next to Sam’s stuff.
‘Well, yeah, that too, but I might lose my flight because of you,’ he said.
I peered at him through the rear-view mirror and raised my eyebrow.
‘Whatever, drive,’ he said.
And so I did.
I drove along Seaside Way and headed west, driving the few miles out of town to where the small, semi-private Haven Airport was situated. It was a quaint, state-of-the-art airport that housed a lot of private jets and only a select few of the premium airlines.
As soon as I stopped in front of the entrance, a valet rushed to our service and another one carried Sam’s and Jamie’s luggage while we walked to check-in.
‘Oh, Barcelona, here I come,’ Jamie said, drawing some attention from the other travellers.
Ollie met us at the lounge and proceeded to kiss my cheek and shake Jamie’s hand.
‘How are you guys?’ he asked.
He took Sam’s hand and kissed it. She blushed.
Her cucumber flavour and his blueberry sweetness shouldn’t have gone together, but seeing them both like this, my oldest friend and my newest one together, had a nice, albeit odd, aftertaste.
‘I can’t believe I’m doing this,’ Sam said.
‘Oh shush, you,’ Jamie told her. ‘Who wouldn’t want to be swept away to Paris for their first date?’
Sam raised her eyebrow.