She dressed carefully in her best business attire. She was going to the mayor’s office today, and she was going to demand that he ban Aaron Grady from the library. She didn’t care if the guy sued. She’d take her chances in front of a judge. There was simply no way she could work under the present conditions, and if she had to leave her job, so be it. Knowing this was a distinct possibility made her heartsick, but Lindsey knew that she couldn’t go on like this. So there it was. She was going to have to force the mayor to choose between her and Grady. She dreaded finding out who he’d choose.
Robbie knocked on her door promptly at seven thirty. He was standing there, holding a coffee and a muffin, and he didn’t even drop them when Heathcliff launched himself at him for his usual exuberant greeting.
Lindsey took the coffee and the muffin so Robbie could use both hands to pet Heathcliff. Her puppy accepted nothing less as he hugged Robbie around the knee with his paws and barked all his latest news at Robbie.
“Is that so, boy?” Robbie asked. Heathcliff licked him. “Tell me more.”
Heathcliff barked and wagged and then wriggled loose to run around the front yard a few times. When he lapped back, he resumed hugging Robbie’s knee and barked a few more times until Robbie pulled a dog biscuit out of his pocket and handed it to the puppy, who charged inside and flopped onto his dog bed to enjoy his cookie in peace.
“You spoil him,” Lindsey said.
“Sure,” he said. “I’m not the one who buys him his own ice cream or had Nancy knit him a sweater.”
“He gets cold in the winter,” Lindsey said. “And the ice cream is Sully, not me.”
“Uh-huh,” Robbie said. “You’re both pitiful over that mutt.”
“Takes one to know one.” Lindsey laughed. She turned and locked up the house, telling Heathcliff to be good. “Hey, thanks for giving me a lift today.”
“My pleasure,” he said. “Emma and I talked about your admirer, and we’re both concerned. You’re going to have to be very careful until he gets the message.”
“I know,” Lindsey sighed. “I just thought if I was direct, he would catch on.”
Robbie held open the passenger-side door, and Lindsey climbed in. She took a sip of her coffee—perfection—while he walked around and slid into the driver’s seat.
“Here’s the thing, pet,” Robbie said. “From my own experience, I’ve learned that the person with the fixation isn’t operating in reality. They think they have a relationship with you when in truth they don’t even know you. They’ve created some sort of alternate reality in their own mind, and nothing you say will dissuade them.”
“Exactly,” Lindsey said. “I keep trying to figure out what I did to cause this, but I only did a reference search for information on roses. That’s it.”
Robbie navigated the roads through town with ease. The traffic was minimal, as school was out and the summer tourists were still asleep.
“For the more rabid types, the only thing that works is to shut them down. Once they start crossing the line, you have to hold firm and refuse to engage with them in any way.”
“Weren’t you kidnapped by an overzealous fan once?” Lindsey asked.
“Yeah, that was mental,” he said. “But not nearly as bad as the woman who showed up at my house with a gun. She was convinced I was a fake Robbie Vine who had murdered the real Robbie Vine, and she was going to kill me. Crazy.”
“I’m not sure if this is making me feel better or worse,” she said.
“Don’t worry,” Robbie said as he pulled into the parking lot. “We have a whole schedule set up between me, sailor boy, Ian and Charlie, to keep an eye on you until the nutjob goes away.”
“I hate that this is causing everyone grief,” she said.
“No worries. This is what friends do for each other.” He parked the car and patted her shoulder. “Come on—I’m on duty all morning until Ian tags in at noon.”
Lindsey clutched her coffee, her muffin and her purse as she stepped out of the car. She took one step toward the building and froze. Sitting outside the back door, propped up against the wall, waiting for her, was Aaron Grady. Robbie glanced from her to Grady and swore.
“Get back in the car and call Emma,” he said. “I’ll go chat with him.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she said. “What if he’s armed?”
“I’ll charm him,” Robbie said, looking anything but charming. “Do it.”
Lindsey reluctantly climbed back into the car. She put down her coffee and muffin and fumbled for her phone, glancing at Robbie as she did. He approached Grady with his hands out in a placating gesture. Grady didn’t move, didn’t acknowledge him in any way. A shiver went down her spine. She found Emma’s phone number and pressed “Call.”
She held the phone up to her ear as she watched Robbie bend down as if offering to help Grady up. Except he didn’t. Instead, Robbie jumped back. He turned and ran toward her.
“Lindsey, what’s up?” Emma answered the call.
“Hang on,” Lindsey said. She pushed open the door and stood. “Robbie, what is it?”
“Grady,” Robbie said. He was short of breath, and his words came out on an exhale. “He’s dead.”
CHAPTER
7
What?” Emma cried. “Where are you?”
“The library.”
“I’ll be right there,” Emma said. “Put Robbie on.”
Lindsey handed over the phone. She sank back into the passenger seat, feeling the shock roll over her. Grady was dead. At the back entrance to her library.
“We thought he was sitting and waiting for Lindsey,” Robbie explained the situation to Emma. “So I went to chat with him, but he didn’t respond. When I got close enough, I could see he’d been shot in the chest, but there’s no weapon near him that I could see. Whoever did it took the time to pose him so that he’s sitting as if waiting for Lindsey. Grisly stuff.”
He glanced at Lindsey while he spoke. His eyes were kind but also worried, as if he couldn’t wrap his head around what was happening. Well, that made two of them. Who would have shot Grady? And why at the back of the library? Had he shot himself? Was that even possible? Lindsey felt her stomach roll, and she feared she was going to be sick. Her staff would be arriving in a few minutes. What was she going to say?
The sound of sirens grew louder, and a police car whipped into the parking lot, followed by another cruiser and an ambulance. The EMTs hopped out and began to grab their equipment. Emma, still on the phone with Robbie, dashed past them to the body.
“I’ll be right back,” Emma called. She tucked her phone into her pocket, and Robbie handed Lindsey’s back to her.
Robbie and Lindsey watched as the paramedics and the officers swarmed Grady. Officer Kirkland, who’d been in the second car, began to cordon off the area with yellow crime scene tape. The EMTs left, realizing there was very little they could do and that this was now a job for the medical examiner.
A second wave of nausea forced Lindsey to put her head between her knees. She was wearing a tailored skirt, so this wasn’t as easy as it could have been. She began to sweat in the hot, humid air, and she took off her jacket and put it on the seat behind her. She wanted to call Sully, but he was out on his tour boat and wouldn’t be back for hours. She didn’t want him to fret while he was out there.
“It’s going to be all right,” Robbie said. “Emma is brilliant. She’ll figure this all out.”
“I hope so,” she said.
“Wait here,” he said. “I’ll go see what she can tell us.”
Lindsey nodded. She didn’t know how to feel about Grady being shot and killed. It was horrible, no doubt. But she did know that she wasn’t going to have to look over her shoulder anymore, and she wasn’t sorry about that.
Unfortunately, unless Grady had committed suicide, there were going to
be a lot of questions. Number one being who had murdered him. The showdown between Sully and Grady at the Blue Anchor last night had been witnessed by most of the town. Had they heard Sully threaten Grady? She knew that it had been a hollow threat—Sully would never have hurt Grady—but would the rest of the town stand by Sully? She didn’t know.
She saw Ms. Cole and Beth arrive in the parking lot at the same time. Beth, like Lindsey, had always ridden a bike to work, and she did today, too, despite the heat. She rode her cruiser right up to Lindsey. She stopped and lowered her sunglasses. She glanced from the crime scene tape to Lindsey and back.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
There were so many people in the area that Grady’s body was no longer visible. Lindsey glanced past Beth and saw Ms. Cole coming their way. She was dressed in her usual monochromatic fashion, as if everything matched when it was technically the same color. Today’s color was teal or aqua; Lindsey wasn’t sure, because Ms. Cole had both happening, from her teal shoes to her aqua skirt to her teal and white striped blouse.
Beth glanced over her shoulder and saw Ms. Cole and then turned back to Lindsey. It was clear she understood that Lindsey was waiting for Ms. Cole to join them before explaining.
“Just tell me this,” Beth said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Lindsey nodded. “I’m all right.” It felt like a fib, a big one, but she hoped that if she said it often enough, it would become true.
“Good morning,” Ms. Cole said. She glanced from Lindsey to the building and back.
“We have a situation,” Lindsey said. “When Robbie and I arrived this morning, we found Aaron Grady sitting outside the back door of the library.”
“Oh no,” Beth said. Her eyes were huge. “He didn’t harm you, did he?”
“No,” Lindsey said. “Robbie went to talk to him while I called Emma. I thought she should be involved.”
“Very wise,” Ms. Cole said. “His behavior definitely warrants some police interference.”
“Yes, well, when Robbie approached him, he discovered that he’d been shot and killed,” Lindsey said. “The police are investigating now.”
Beth gasped, and Ms. Cole’s eyebrows shot up on her forehead.
“But who? Wait . . . here? He was shot here?” Beth cried.
“No, he wasn’t,” Emma said. She stepped into their group, with Robbie beside her. “The crime scene techs are certain he was shot somewhere else and delivered here, trying to make it look like his murder was tied to Lindsey, no doubt.”
“You mean, they tried to make it look like I killed him?” Lindsey asked.
“I’m guessing you or someone close to you,” Emma said.
“Sully.” Lindsey met the chief of police’s gaze and didn’t look away.
“Perhaps,” Emma said. She turned to Beth and Ms. Cole. “There is no indication that anything happened inside of the library. You’re free to open the building as usual today, but don’t come through the back door until the crime scene personnel are done. I’ll let you know when that is.”
Both women looked to Lindsey. She tried to sound calm as if it were business as usual as she said, “Go ahead and open up. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Beth gave her a considering look, but Lindsey forced a small smile, hoping she looked reassuring and not as if she was unraveling. It must have worked, because Ms. Cole gave a brisk nod and turned on her heel, heading for the front door with Beth hurrying behind her.
“Lindsey, I have some questions for you,” Emma said. She sounded regretful, as if she hated to ask but had no choice. “Where were you this morning?”
“At home until Robbie picked me up,” she said. “I woke up at six thirty. Sully was already gone since he had an early-morning boat tour around the islands.”
“Did you see Sully this morning?” Emma asked.
“No, but he left me a cup of coffee and a note,” she said. “I know what you’re thinking, and I know you know that it isn’t true.”
Emma tipped her head to the side. “What am I thinking?”
“That Sully had something to do with this, but he didn’t.”
“Why would I think that?” Emma’s tone was infuriating, and Lindsey lost her temper.
“Don’t do that,” she snapped. “Don’t go all chief of police on me. You know me, you know Sully, and you know we had nothing to do with this.”
“Easy now, ladies, there’s no need to throw a wobbler,” Robbie said. His British accent was turned up to extra-soothing. It didn’t work.
“Hush,” Emma hissed at him at the same time Lindsey said, “Shh.”
Robbie threw his hands in the air as if exasperated.
“I know you didn’t have anything to do with this,” Emma said. “And I know Sully didn’t either, but I am the chief of police, and just because I believe you doesn’t mean I can treat you any differently than I would any other person of interest. And because of Grady’s obsession with you, like it or not, both you and Sully are persons of interest. So we will do this by the book so that there is no doubt that the investigation has been handled without bias. Am I clear?”
“I’m sorry,” Lindsey said. “Of course, you’re right.”
“So do you have any knowledge of Sully’s whereabouts this morning before you woke up?” Emma asked.
“No, I don’t,” Lindsey said. For just a second she debated lying and saying that she saw Sully off that morning. It was a stupid idea, because she was a terrible liar, but also, the truth always came out. She knew that. Even worse, she knew it would be a wasted effort because when Emma questioned Sully, she knew without a doubt, he would tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth because that was the sort of man he was. She was just going to have to trust Emma and the system whether she liked it or not.
“Come on,” Robbie said. “Let’s go inside and have a cup of tea. It’ll calm your nerves.”
Emma and Lindsey exchanged a glance.
“It won’t,” Emma said. “But it’ll give you something to do. I’ll stop in when we’re done here.”
“Hey, Chief Plewicki!” Officer Kirkland shouted to her from the side of the building. He was bent over a thick patch of azalea bushes. He popped up and waved her over.
“Excuse me,” Emma said. She jogged over to Kirkland.
Not to be left out of what was happening around her library, Lindsey followed with Robbie trailing after her. Kirkland was wearing blue latex gloves, and dangling from his loose grip was a handgun.
“I think we have our murder weapon,” Kirkland said.
“Oh my God, they just threw it in the bushes?” Lindsey gasped. “What if a child had found it?”
“Bag it,” Emma said. “We’ll need the ballistics to verify that it matches the bullets that killed Grady.”
Kirkland nodded and dropped the gun into an evidence bag before taking it to the crime scene techs.
“You need to leave,” Emma said to Lindsey. “I can’t have the crime scene compromised by your presence.”
Her tone was harsh, and Lindsey sent Robbie a look with raised eyebrows. He gave her a small nod, letting her know that he thought this was out of character for his girlfriend as well.
“Let’s go,” he said. “Em, love, if you need me, I’ll be inside.”
Emma’s face softened for just a moment as she met his concerned gaze. “Thanks.” She glanced at Lindsey. “Sorry, it’s just . . .” She waved her hand at the crime scene, and Lindsey nodded. She understood. She did. There was a murder to investigate, and Emma didn’t have time to worry about everyone’s feelings.
“No problem,” she said.
She and Robbie were around the corner of the building when Robbie leaned in close and said, “You need to text Sully and tell him to get here immediately.”
“Okay.” Lindsey frowned. “But why?”
&n
bsp; They paused by the front door, and Lindsey used her key to unlock the automatic door and manually push it open. They stepped inside, and she closed it and locked it. They had ten more minutes until the library was officially open, which gave her just a few minutes to call the mayor’s office and tell him what had happened.
“What do you know about firearms?” he asked.
“Beyond point and shoot?” she said. “Not much.”
“Well, I do,” he said. “My sidekick in an episode of the Masterpiece Mystery! series I did was a former U.S. naval officer. Our props team had to research what sort of weapon a former navy man would carry.”
“Not really following,” Lindsey said as she waved at Ms. Cole, who was setting up the circulation desk, while they made their way back to her office.
“Sully is former navy—am I right?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said. “He left the service several years ago.”
She flipped on the light switch in her office and moved to sit behind her desk. Robbie dropped into the seat across from her.
“When a navy man leaves the service, he takes his weapon with him,” Robbie said. “The gun that Kirkland found was a SIG Sauer P226, which is standard issue for navy personnel. I remember the weapon from the show. It was a major plot point since only specially trained officers carry firearms in the U.K.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that if that’s the murder weapon, and I believe it is, then as a former navy man who was likely issued a SIG Sauer, Sully just became the prime suspect,” Robbie said.
CHAPTER
8
Lindsey was rattled. It wasn’t Sully. She knew that all the way to the marrow of her bones. Despite his military background, Sully wasn’t a killer. A sailor, sure, but not a killer. It had to be a weird coincidence that the gun was the murder weapon, or maybe it had been back there behind the bushes coincidentally. Highly unlikely, but she wasn’t above clinging to even that sliver of hope.
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