by Thea Cambert
Usually when Luke came, he was either with Ben, who had a key to the front door of The Paper Owl, or Alice was expecting him, so she’d unlocked the door in advance of his arrival. A few moments later, Alice returned to the garden with Luke in tow.
“Sorry, we ate all the cake,” said Franny.
“Cake?” asked Luke, taking a seat.
“Wedding cake,” said Alice.
Poppy, who was almost as enamored with Luke as she was with Ben, came trotting over and jumped into his lap. He mechanically scratched her behind the ears, and she sniffed his hand suspiciously.
“She can smell Finn,” said Alice, watching Luke’s face carefully, trying to read his emotional state—not an easy feat with a man who generally guarded his feelings.
“Ah,” said Luke, nodding numbly.
“You look spent,” said Owen. “Sorry about your, um, friend.”
“Alexandra was no friend of mine,” Luke answered, looking straight at Alice. “She was a manipulative, arrogant, passive-aggressive woman who ditched me and stole my dog.”
“So, how’s Finn doing?” Alice asked quietly.
Luke let out a long sigh. “He’s doing much better, now. He’s at the cabin. I hate that Alexandra drowned, but I’m awfully glad to have Finn back. That’s probably a horrible thing to say.”
“No, it isn’t,” said Alice, feeling her heart warm to Luke a bit.
“We should probably leave you two alone,” said Owen, giving Franny a not-so-subtle wink and a nudge.
“No!” Luke said so suddenly that Alice jumped. “I need your help.”
Chapter 6
Owen and Franny, who’d been about to retreat, settled back into their chairs.
“If you need our help, you’ve got it,” said Alice, noticing Luke’s shoulders tensed up to near his ears and a furrow between his eyebrows. She’d never seen him truly ruffled and had come to expect his calm demeanor to be unshakeable. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Luke muttered. “For obvious reasons, I’m not part of the investigation into Alexandra’s death.”
“That makes sense,” said Owen. “But, what is there to investigate? She drowned, right?”
“I wish it was that simple,” said Luke. “Old Zeb Clark, the coroner, suspects Alexandra didn’t drown at all, and he’s passed her case on to the medical examiner.” Luke rubbed his temples. “Seems Alexandra was dead before she ever hit the water.”
“What killed her, then?” asked Alice.
“Some kind of very strong impact.”
“Like what?”
“I can’t believe I’m talking about this.” Luke looked apologetically at each of them. “Ben’s still on the investigation, and he’ll get to the bottom of it. I know he will. It’s just that . . .” Alice noticed a little falter in Luke’s voice. “You’ve helped us out on cases before,” he said, finally. “If you should have any ideas, or find any clues . . .”
“Of course, we’ll tell you. And Ben,” said Alice.
“Are you saying Alexandra’s death was no accident? She was murdered?” asked Franny.
Luke nodded solemnly, his eyes coming to rest on Alice.
“When did she get into town?” Alice asked quietly.
“Late Tuesday.”
“Did you know she was coming?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Had you seen her since her arrival?”
Luke paused, his eyes full of regret. “Yes.”
“Wednesday.” It came out as more a statement than a question. Alice felt a lump forming in her throat. “When you had that headache?”
“That part was true,” said Luke, reaching out to touch Alice’s hand. “Alexandra showed up at my cabin Wednesday morning.”
“Why?”
“She wanted to talk.”
“About?”
Luke paused. “About us.”
“She wanted you back.” Alice slid her hand away from Luke’s.
“She brought Finn over. She was crying. Said she’d made the biggest mistake of her life. Asked for another chance.” Luke dropped his head into his hands.
“What did you do?” asked Franny, scooting her chair a little closer to Alice’s and putting a loyal arm around her friend.
“I asked her to give Finn back. I love that dog,” said Luke.
“Was that it?” asked Owen, scooting his chair a little closer to Alice on the other side.
“That was it. I told Allie—or Alexandra, I should say.” He looked thoughtful, as if calling to mind a faraway memory. “She hated being called Allie. It was her nickname during med school. But, she changed so much over time . . . Anyway, I told her I’d made a fresh start here, that I’d had time to think about what happened between us. That I didn’t want to see her again. Ever.” He looked at Alice and paused. “And, that I deeply care for someone I’ve met here.”
Alice felt tears stinging her eyes.
“Did you tell her who I am?”
“No.”
“Well, she must’ve asked around, because she came into my bookshop later that day and was horrible to me.”
“She was the rude customer?” asked Franny. “The one who was sizing you up? Of course! It all makes sense now!”
“She sized you up?” asked Luke.
“Checking out the competition, was she?” said Owen.
“Thought I was imagining it,” said Alice.
“Blue Valley’s a very small town,” said Owen. “She could’ve asked any local and found out who Luke Evans is dating.”
“Who would want Alexandra dead?” asked Alice.
“That’s my problem,” said Luke. “Who did she know here other than me? Zeb says time of death was late Wednesday night. I’d seen her Wednesday. We’d argued. Then, I had to go and cancel the only plans I had that night, so I have no alibi. I’m the prime suspect at this point.”
“Steady, now,” said Owen, who’d noticed that Alice’s face had turned bright red.
Alice took a deep, calming breath. “You said Alexandra was an ER doctor,” she said. “Was she in town for the doctors’ conference?”
“Yes,” said Luke. “That was her excuse for coming here, anyway.”
“Well, then, she probably knew someone here other than you. Not a local, maybe. But, one of the other doctors. Surely she knew at least one or two of them.”
“You’re probably right. They’re here from all over the region,” said Luke.
“It’s a good place to start our investigation,” said Alice. “We look for connections with the other doctors. Maybe we’ll come across someone who had some kind of beef with Alexandra. Was she staying at the Valley Inn?”
“Yes,” said Luke, standing and placing Poppy gently on the ground. “I’d better be going,” he said apologetically. “I left Finn alone at the cabin, and he’s probably starting to get antsy.” He let out a long exhale. “I feel terrible talking about all of this. I just want to get to the bottom of it and move on with my life. You three have proved you have superior deductive reasoning skills and sharp instincts.”
“Well,” said Owen, smiling modestly, “we can’t help it that we’re brilliant.”
“We’ll start asking around tomorrow,” said Alice. She grabbed Luke’s arm and gave it a squeeze. “We’re on the case. I’ll walk you out.”
Chapter 7
Alice’s alarm clock landed with a thud on the floor next to her nightstand. She hadn’t meant to whack it quite so hard when it rang after a third round of snoozing. She wouldn’t have believed it was time to get up were it not for the light coming through the windows and the sounds of birds singing cheerfully out in the rooftop garden. Confounded birds!
And then there was Poppy, who had roused herself out of the cozy nest she’d made in the bed, and padded over to sit and stare at her owner, occasionally swatting at her face with a gentle paw. This was Poppy’s way of prompting Alice to get up and pour her a bowl of cat food.
Alice threw off
the covers, got up, replaced the alarm clock on the nightstand, and opened the curtains. Her large bedroom windows looked out onto the rooftop garden, and she could see that Franny and Owen were already seated and drinking coffee.
In the bathroom, Alice gathered her red curls—which were sticking out in every direction after her short but fitful sleep—into a loose knot and splashed cool water on her face. She swiped a little tinted moisturizer under her eyes to downplay the puffy shadows that stood out against her pale skin and added a swipe of peachy lipstick. Any southern woman worth her salt knew that lipstick was the difference between looking pulled together and looking haggard. Alice’s mother had taught her that. After pulling on her most comfortable sleeveless summer dress and stepping into a pair of Keds, Alice went out into the garden, feeling slightly more awake.
“Coffee,” she said, looking fondly at the Joe’s carafe that Franny had brought up. “Oh, thank you that there is coffee in this world!”
“Good morning,” said Franny, pouring Alice a cup.
“Sleeping in this morning, are we?” asked Owen, peering over the rim of his mug as he took a swallow.
“I stayed up way too late after our visit from Luke,” said Alice, sitting down in her chair and wrapping her hands around the warmth of her mug.
Owen set a sweet, flaky German pretzel—one of Sourdough’s specialties—on a plate in front of Alice.
“My favorite.” Alice broke off a crisp piece of the pretzel and took a bite, savoring the finely chopped pecans and vanilla glaze.
“You always say everything is your favorite,” said Owen with a snicker. “Now, tell us about this all-nighter of yours.”
“I decided to search around online for Alexandra Darlington, MD. And, I found her,” said Alice through a mouthful of the puffed pastry. “Boy, did I ever find her.” Alice accidentally blew a few crumbs across the table when she spoke.
“And?”
“She had a blog. Alexandra’s Adventures. The woman shared everything from her outfit of the day to her medical advice for head injuries.”
“Seriously?” Franny’s eyes widened. “Did she tell her fans she was coming to Blue Valley for the weekend, by chance?”
“Oh, yeah,” said Alice, rubbing her eyes. “She said she was off to a doctors’ conference. Mentioned she was planning to set off some fireworks of her own with a special someone—”
“She was talking about Luke, no doubt,” said Owen.
“Probably,” said Alice, stuffing a big chunk of pretzel into her mouth.
“Did she mention where she was staying?” asked Franny.
“Yep. She even included a link to the Valley Inn’s website,” Alice said. “Anyone could’ve known Alexandra was here for the weekend, and exactly where to find her.”
“If someone wanted to do away with her, it makes good sense to do the deed here,” said Owen. “That way, the killer isn’t tied to the location.”
“Which is what makes Luke such a viable suspect when you look at the situation objectively,” said Alice. “He’s the only local who knew Alexandra, and their past together was rocky.”
“And, she went to visit Luke the day she died,” added Franny.
“And, she stole Luke’s dog,” said Owen.
Alice took another big bite of her pretzel, then looked at the plate and was surprised to see she’d eaten the whole pastry.
“Let’s remind ourselves that we know Luke didn’t do it,” said Owen. “We need to formulate a plan.”
“Beginning with the doctors, right?” Franny asked.
“At the Valley Inn,” said Alice. “Do you both have help for this afternoon?”
“Yep, Hilda’s coming in at noon,” said Owen.
“Beth’s working full days through the whole weekend, with all the extra customers in town,” said Franny.
“Good. I’ve got Lacie coming at lunchtime, too. Let’s meet then and go over to the Valley Inn and ask the Berkleys about Alexandra—who they saw her with, what her comings and goings were. I’m betting Luke is not the only person in town who was acquainted with the adventurous Alexandra.”
Chapter 8
“Oh, yeah, I remember her all right.” Samuel Berkley, who owned the Valley Inn with his wife, Eve, rested his elbows on the front desk. “She got in, let’s see . . .” He stood upright and flipped back a page in the large guestbook that sat in the center of the tidy surface, alongside a cheerful vase of verbena. “Says here, Tuesday night at nine-thirty. That’s when Ms. Darlington signed in. Eve and I were up late that night because the doctors came in from all over. I think the last few had trickled in by eleven.”
“Did you see Dr. Darlington again during her stay here?” asked Alice. “Maybe going out or coming in?”
“Oh, yes, she came and went a lot. All of them do. They’re having their main conference in the reception hall. They meet in there several times each day. And then in between, they wander the grounds or drive into town. The police are due here any minute, you know. They want to have a look at the lady’s room. Terrible, what happened.”
“It sure is,” said Alice, who had a sinking feeling that Samuel didn’t have much information to share. “Did Dr. Darlington seem to be spending time with any of the other doctors in particular? I mean, that you noticed?”
“Nope. But, she must have had a friend in town,” said Samuel, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“Really? What makes you think that?” asked Owen, stepping closer to the desk.
“She got a note. No stamp on it, and it was left right here.” He tapped the desk twice with his finger. “I figure it had to be someone local that left it. Or, I guess it could’ve been someone else who was staying at the inn. Hey—maybe it was your Luke Evans, Alice! She knew him. Even asked me where he lives.”
Alice paled at the mention of Luke’s name.
“Yep, then later, she asked me who Luke dates. Hope it was okay with you that I told her. Everyone in town knows, after all. You two sure make a handsome couple.”
“Could we see her room?” Franny blurted out, saving the flustered Alice from responding.
“You all trying to solve the mystery?” Samuel glanced around and lowered his voice. “You know, I’m something of an amateur sleuth myself.”
“Are you?” asked Alice.
“I thought so,” said Owen. “I could tell by the way you deduced that the note was sent locally.”
Samuel looked pleased at this remark.
“Let’s go. You can see the room before the police arrive, as long as no one touches anything,” said Samuel, grabbing a keyring with about a hundred keys jingling on it.
“Never hurts to ask,” Franny whispered as they followed Samuel from the reception area, through a cozy dining room with a fireplace, and out of the main inn house. Outside, a large garden was scattered with chairs, several horseshoe courts, and a large stone fire ring surrounded by benches and baskets of firewood. Several two-story buildings, designed to look like stone cottages, were set out among the trees and connected by little stone pathways that all led back to the main inn house—a gracious old traditional place with wide porches and window boxes brimming with daisies, all surrounded by a picket fence.
“Dr. Darlington was in cottage three,” said Samuel, trotting along one of the paths.
Alice smiled at the way the cottages all had different names—like Honeysuckle Cottage, Shady Nook, and cottage number three, which was called Cobblestone Way. Each was designed to look fairly small, but once inside, the space opened up and there were a surprising number of rooms along the hallway.
“Let’s see, it’ll be fourth on the left, up ahead,” said Samuel, taking out a keyring.
He unlocked the door, and they all entered reverently.
“So, this was her room,” Alice whispered, looking around.
“She had good taste in shoes,” Owen said, pointing to the closet, where no fewer than eight pairs of shoes were neatly arranged in a row.
“All those sho
es for a weekend?” said Franny. “So much for travelling light.”
“There’s the note I was telling you about,” said Samuel, walking over to the desk and bending down to pull a white envelope out of the trashcan.
Dr. Alexandra Darlington was written in swirly red letters on the front, and Alice was relieved to see that it wasn’t Luke’s handwriting, which was small and scrunched and almost illegible on a good day. This handwriting was beautiful—neat and measured, and there were little loops on the tail-ends of the A’s.
“To tell you the truth,” said Samuel, looking around stealthily, “I’ve been curious about this note since it landed on the front desk.”
“Let’s read it!” said Franny brightly.
Samuel gave a stealthy glance toward the door, then opened the envelope and slid out a single sheet of folded paper.
“My fingerprints are all over this anyway, since I’m the one who delivered it,” he muttered, unfolding the paper. On reading the note, his smile faded.
“What does it say?” asked Franny.
“See for yourselves.” Samuel held the note up.
“You’ve caused enough pain. It’s time for you to face the music. I’m here in Blue Valley, and I’m coming for you,” Alice read aloud, without touching the note.
“What are you all doing in here?” Eve Berkely came into the room holding a laundry basket brimming with towels. “Samuel, you know the police said we should stay out of here until they’ve gone over the room.”
“Oh, that’s right,” said Samuel, giving Alice a little wink as he dropped the note back into the trashcan and led the group out of the room.
“Sorry, Eve,” said Alice. “We were just having a look.”
“Trying to solve another mystery?” Eve asked, leading the way down the hall and out of Cobblestone Way cottage. “I’ve heard about you three. We’re lucky you’re on the job.”
“Thank you,” said Alice. “Eve, can you tell us anything about Dr. Darlington?”