“What do I wear?” Burt asked. “And can I put on my lucky tie?”
“No dear, you can’t put on your lucky tie,” April said.
Burt looked genuinely perplexed. “Why not?”
“Because it’s bright emerald green and won’t go with anything,” April said. “And will look terrible in the photos.”
“But it’s my lucky tie.”
April sighed. “Let’s go shopping for a new suit and we can get a new lucky tie.”
“But—” he started to say.
Ashley gently cut in. “Look at it this way, Dad, after I get married, that new tie you wear will be the new lucky one.” She smiled at her father. Burt grinned back.
“Good point,” he said.
With everyone finally outfitted, the hair and makeup appointments scheduled for the day, and the venue all set up, all Ashley and Sean had to do was decide where they were going to spend the night before the wedding. Ashley opted to go to her parents, and Sean would be in their apartment with Charlie and Susie Q.
He dropped her off the evening before their big day at Burt’s and April’s and gave her a kiss goodbye.
“I can’t wait to see you tomorrow,” Sean said. “You’ll be the most beautiful bride ever.”
“It’s my dream,” she said. “To finally be official.” She put her arms around him and hugged him close.
Just then Burt walked by.
“And being official is good for saving money on your taxes too,” he shouted as he rounded the corner.
April shouted back from the kitchen. “Burt, let the young people have their romantic moment!”
Burt headed for the garage, throwing out one last comment. “Romance is even better with a solid bank account!”
Sean and Ashley laughed and hugged one more time.
“See you tomorrow when you’ll become Mrs. McDonnell,” he said.
“Sounds wonderful already,” she said. “See you tomorrow.”
She watched him drive off and caught her breath. It was all so overwhelming.
April came up behind her daughter and put her arms around her.
“Can I get you anything honey?” she asked.
“Just dinner Mom. Something simple.”
“Roasted chicken, roasted cauliflower, and salad are coming up,” April said. “And lemon sorbet. Watching those calories.”
“Perfect,” Ashley said. “Thanks.”
***
After dinner, Ashley helped her mom clean up, then went and checked her dress and accessories for the hundredth time. She washed up and got into bed. April tiptoed in and gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead.
“Tomorrow you’ll be a Mrs. It’s hard to believe. My baby, a married woman.”
“I know,” Ashley whispered. “Where’s dad? I haven’t seen him since after dinner.”
“He’s in the garage. I think he needs some alone time. Getting ready to give his daughter’s hand to her husband. It’s a lot for him.”
“Well, tell him goodnight, and that I love him. I love you too Mom. Thanks for all your help.”
“Of course. I love you,” April said. She had tears in her eyes as she walked to the door. She then turned and whispered to her daughter, “Sleep well. Sweet dreams.”
Ashley lay in the dark looking at the ceiling. She closed her eyes and meditated for her big day. Her heart was full. “Thank you God, for everything.” She soon dropped off into a deep sleep.
***
Up north in Brewer, Detective Miller sat at his desk with a half-empty cup of cold coffee. He shut down his computer and looked at his scribbled notes again. Then he got up with a sigh and went to the board across from his desk. What had he missed?
He drew another line from the photo of Ben Colton to an actress named Harley Dickson. Then he drew a line to another actor named Grant Trotter. It seemed they all had a connection beyond just being fellow actors. Were they the love triangle that people were talking about?
He had interviewed Harley twice now, and each time she seemed to be nervous and evasive. The first time he questioned her, she said that she had only met Ben when they got into town for rehearsals, but the other actor, Grant, said they had all known each other back in a town called Comfortville. When Miller asked her why she hadn’t revealed that in the first interview, she brushed it off by saying that she only knew who Ben was from the local soccer team in her old hometown, and not that she really knew him.
He had raised his eyebrow at her. “Excuse me, Ms. Dickson, I didn’t ask you if you were bosom buddies, just if you had known of him. It seems you are trying to throw me off with semantics. Please don’t waste my time.”
Harley glanced around the room. “I just misunderstood you, that’s all.” Her leg was shaking, and she put her hands on either side to stop it. “Is there anything else? I need to get back to rehearsal.”
Detective Miller stared at her. “That’s all,” he said. “For now.”
Harley had left quickly, and the detective recalled his interview with Grant Trotter. Miller seemed to get straight answers from the actor, and had finished with his questions in fifteen minutes. Grant gave the detective a smile as he left the room.
“Come check out our plays when we open. Rehearsals are going well. Think you’ll like them.”
“Thanks, but no thanks,” Miller said. “My work is all the drama I can stand.”
“There are comedy plays too,” Grant said. “A fun evening of entertainment.”
“Oh yeah? I’ll keep that in mind,” Miller said dryly. “Good evening.”
“Cheerio!” Grant called out in an English accent as he walked out the door.
The detective had stared at him. There was something oily about the guy. Too cheery. Too cooperative. And a fake.
Miller sighed. Those interviews were a while ago. Since then, he still didn’t have any leads. Only conjecture. Bits and pieces. He stared at the board. The photos stared back at him. Arrows crisscrossed from the photos to his jumbled notes. He cocked his head as he walked around the room staring at the board from afar. He desperately tried to piece together the puzzle.
A wind picked up and the big tree outside of his office groaned and cracked as it swayed back and forth. He made a mental note that it was time to get those big branches trimmed before they crashed through his window one day.
His cell phone rang. It was his wife Sadie. He glanced at the time. It was eleven-thirty.
“Honey, where are you? This is getting ridiculous,” she said. “You need to sleep!”
“I’m coming now. Sorry. This case is breaking me,” he said.
“Please come home soon,” she said.
He sighed. “Okay, leaving now.”
“Careful,” she said. “Hopefully this is our last windstorm for a while.”
“Hope so,” he said. “See you soon.”
Walking to his car took some effort. The wind was howling fiercely and there were small branches all over the ground. Miller glanced back at the big tree and crossed his fingers that it would survive the night.
Some spring, he thought. When would the nice balmy weather arrive?
Just as he unlocked the car door, he noticed a folded piece of paper on his windshield. He opened and read it aloud.
“Leave this case alone. Back off and go back to your small town antics. This is way over your head. Not going to warn you again.”
He looked around. Nothing. But he didn’t expect to see anything. He got in and turned the car for home. No lights behind him. No sound except the wind.
He heard voices in his head.
“This isn’t about some love triangle like the town is saying,” Ben Colton’s parents had said.
Miller wasn’t about to tell his wife about the note. It would only worry her. He would keep it safely tucked away in case he needed it for evidence. He got home and dropped in bed with an exhausted groan next to his sleeping wife. He didn’t want to admit it to anyone, but he had to agree with whoever left that note that he
really was in over his head.
Chapter Five
Ashley’s wedding day was simply beautiful in every way. The weather had started off overcast and then the skies cleared with spring sunshine beaming down. The breeze rustled all the trees and flowers in the meadow, and made the water sparkle across the vast pond. Outside, paper lanterns and flowers were strung on ribbons and fluttered and danced in the air. Inside the tent, everything looked glorious with the flower arrangements and table settings, and people had arrived dressed in lovely spring outfits. Burt and April were beaming. Sean’s mother, Patsy McDonnell, kept wiping happy tears from the corner of her eye. All their extended family and friends were there, and the joy was palatable in the air. Everyone was ecstatic to see these two lovely people tie the knot.
When the time came for Ashley to walk down the small carpet runway with her father to the flowered overhang where Sean stood, she felt her heart would burst. And when she was asked if she would take ‘this man to be her lawfully wedded husband,’ she almost laughed her answer.
“Of course!” she said.
Sean’s eyes were gleaming, and when he was asked if he would take this woman to be his lawfully wedded wife, he grinned from ear to ear.
“Yes, yes and yes,” he said.
Everyone cheered when the minister pronounced them husband and wife. Before the minister could say it, Sean grinned excitedly.
“May I kiss the bride?” Everyone laughed as the minister nodded, and Ashley felt a rush of pure joy as they embraced.
The ceremony blended into the wonderful reception, and all around were loved ones who knew these two people were meant to be together. The music, the food, the dancing in the tent under the stars in the great outdoors; it was a magical day of utter happiness. That evening, as Ashley hugged the last of their guests’ goodbye, she felt a serene peace surround her.
Sean grabbed her and twirled her around. “Now the honeymoon!”
Burt hugged them both. “Welcome to the family son.”
April squeezed her daughter’s hands and twirled around with her. “I can’t wait for grandchildren!”
Sean’s mother Patsy joined in. “Lots of grandchildren!”
Ashley laughed. “Not so fast, you two!”
Soon it was time to go.
They drove back to her parents’ home and gave April and Burt a kiss.
“Bye kids, have a wonderful time,” Burt said.
“Safe travels!” April said.
As they drove off, Ashley teared up.
“Hey, hope those are happy tears,” Sean said.
“They are, they are,” she said. “It’s just that time has gone by so fast.”
“Well, it can’t go by fast enough to get us on that honeymoon tomorrow!” Sean said.
***
The entire flight to Hawaii, Ashley clutched Sean’s hand. They beamed at everyone, and the flight attendants walked by and gave them smiles and salutations.
Sean turned and whispered in her ear. “Is it obvious to everyone that we just got married?”
“It always is,” Ashley said. “At least that’s what I’ve heard.”
She smiled and lay her head on his shoulder. They arrived at their lovely cottage on the ocean and fell into a dreamlike trance with the smell of orchids and hibiscus floating in the air. For the next week, they lay on the beach, walked on the beach, and ate tableside at the beach wherever they were. Ashley felt every part of her body relax completely, and Sean had a perpetual smile on his face. Back home, he rarely got a chance to sleep-in due to his work, but here he was doing nothing but idling the time away with the love of his life. The balmy days and nights flowed seamlessly into one another and the island breezes lulled them to sleep every night. On their last night, they sat at dinner in a local café and watched a fiery orange sunset light up the sky.
“I don’t want to leave,” Sean said.
“I could easily set up a catering business here, “Ashley said.
“Do you think they could use another bakery here too?” Sean asked.
They both laughed and toasted one another.
“People can find a catering company anywhere. There is only one Babycakes,” she said. “There would be a riot if you closed it down and left Comfortville.”
“I’ll take my chances if you run away with me, Mrs. McDonnell,” he said.
Ashley leaned over and hugged him as they stared out at the beautiful sky. That evening as they packed to go home, she watched him as he whistled while putting things in his bag. There were taller men, leaner men, and richer men. But no kinder or more loving man lived than her husband. He was the only one for her. Now and always.
A quote from Shakespeare’s The Tempest came to Ashley’s mind. “I would not wish any companion in the world but you; nor can imagination form a shape, besides yourself to like of.”
***
When they got back to Comfortville, life returned to its routine. Work, family, friends, and of course, taking care of Charlie and Susie Q. Sean had saved a day to unpack and relax before he went back to the bakery, but the day after he was gone again at the crack of dawn. His assistant had done a masterful job of keeping the place running and the pastry-loving locals happy.
Charlie had followed Ashley nonstop the first day she was home. He was always at her heels, like a dog. Susie Q was more sensible, watching from the couch, but purring whenever Ashley went to pet her and snuggling with her at night.
“Your buddy is a basket case,” Ashley remarked to Susie. “What should we do with him?”
Susie gave her a look as if to say, “He’s even worse when you’re away.”
Charlie looked startled. “If you don’t want to be adored, let me know. I’m sure there are plenty of humans that would only be too happy to take your place and adore me in return,” he seemed to say. But he didn’t stop trotting behind Ashley everywhere she went, as if he might lose her around the next corner.
Ashley smiled to herself. How does one live without pets?
Just then her cell phone rang. It was Harley calling from Brewer.
“Hi Ashley, how are you?” Harley asked.
“Wonderful! The honeymoon was the best. We could’ve stayed forever of course,” Ashley said.
Harley coughed and cleared her throat. “Great to hear. So glad you guys had a good time. Congrats again.” She changed subjects. “I was just calling to find out if you and Sean were still coming up here for the Festival.”
“Well I know everything opens the first week in June and goes through August, so we thought we would time it for the last two weeks in June. Depends on Sean’s work.”
“No rush. Even towards the end of August is better.” Harley said. “Or better yet, I’d wait till next year like I mentioned before. Because of the murder and all that.” Her voice sounded anxious.
“I don’t think August would work,” Ashley said. “Sean and I have a food booth to do then and I have three big catering events. Besides it’s hotter and muggier in August.”
“Yeah, I agree. Better to plan for next year in June when the weather’s good and there isn’t a crime investigation going on in town.”
Ashley thought Harley sounded very strange. Why the phone call to try and time their arrival at the festival? Or suggesting that they not come at all? She had looked forward to the Shakespeare Festival and a fun weekend away with Sean. And although she and Harley weren’t close, Ashley was looking forward to re-connecting with her up north and didn’t want to wait too long. After all their years apart, it would take time to get to know her old soccer teammate again.
When Ashley had gone off to college, she had heard Harley went to New York to make her fame and fortune as an actress. As with many people, making it in the biz proved more difficult than Harley thought, and she started doing repertory theatre across the country. Ashley had heard that Harley had long stretches on unemployment between shows. It couldn’t have been easy. Getting full time summer stock work in Brewer must have been a big relief.
Ashley had hoped that Harley had wanted to be in touch with old acquaintances and wanted them to come see her in the plays. So why was she stalling on their reunion now?
“Please come later in August if you can Ashley. Or give me a good time at the end of summer that I can come visit you. We’ll have more time then.”
For a quick moment Ashley thought Harley sounded in distress, but then Harley babbled on about the plays, the practice rehearsals, and other minutiae that was just really a bunch of gossip. Ashley listened politely, but needed to get some work done, and was getting ready to tell Harley she had to go.
Harley then switched gears. “And of course, this murder thing is dragging on and on and getting to all of us. Really depressing.”
“I imagine,” Ashley said. “Most of all, to the poor guy’s family and friends.”
“Well, to us too,” Harley blurted out. “I’m sick of the questioning.”
“Nothing you need to worry about, though,” Ashley said. “Only the real suspect or suspects have a reason to be concerned.”
Harley lowered her voice. “I think I know who did it.”
Ashley gasped. “What did you say?”
Harley barely whispered, “I think I know who killed Ben Colton.”
“Are you sure?” Ashley said.
“No, not a hundred percent, but pretty sure,” Harley whispered.
There was quiet for a moment on both ends.
Ashley took a deep breath. “Have you gone to the police?”
Harley whispered again. “Not yet. I’m not sure they’d—”
“Harley? Harley?”
Ashley heard a muffled sound, nothing else. Then the phone line seemed to disconnect. She glanced at her cell. The call was gone. She immediately dialed Harley’s number. The call went straight to voicemail. She started to leave a message, but something stopped her. She quickly looked online for the local police department up there and called that number.
Ashley Crane Cozy Mystery Boxed Set Page 63