Busted. I smiled and waved. Since I wasn't a suspect anymore, I figured there was no harm in me speaking to him. Besides, judging by the outfit, he was off duty.
"Afternoon, Ms. Fisher," Reid said as I came within earshot. His polite smile widened when his gaze turned to the stroller. "And to you too. Ben, was it?"
"Exactly. Are you on duty, Detective?"
"Not today."
"Then could you please stop calling me that?" I asked, smiling sweetly. "Just Laura is fine."
Reid laughed. "Fair enough. How's your day been, Laura?"
"A little better now that there's nothing hanging over my head. How about you?" As the words left my mouth, I noticed the bags under Reid's eyes and the stubble on his face. I couldn’t remember either having been there before. "Is the case going okay?"
His jaw hardened for a second. "Laura, day off or not, I can't discuss details of a case with you."
"You said I wasn't a suspect anymore," I said.
"That's one person eliminated out of the whole island. Half the Keys for the Keys for all I know." Reid's shoulders slumped. "Apparently, you weren't the only one with a few choice words for Charlie Porter. You're just the one who got to say them."
"Me and whoever actually did it. Does that mean your talk with Paige didn't go well? Was I wrong about the affair?"
"I couldn't say, Mrs. Hawkins refused to discuss it, beyond denying Charlie ever said anything to her about it." Reid skewed his lips to the side as if he had very definite opinions about Paige's refusal which he didn't care to share.
That theory was always a long shot. But to me, it still didn't let Carl off the hook.
"What about her husband?" I asked, trying to sound casual.
Reid shook his head. His eyes wandered toward the sky. I wondered if he was hoping a smoking bag of arsenic would fall out of the sky.
"Carl Hawkins was even more reluctant to talk than his wife," he said finally. "All he did was tell me he was at work on the day of Charlie’s death. Which is interesting, because I never mentioned when he died."
I furrowed my brow. "Why? They were friends, right?"
"Dunno. Carl wouldn't say."
"My sister said she used to see them together often, Detective," I insisted. "She wouldn’t lie about it."
"I’m not suggesting either of you are lying, Laura." He sighed.
"Then Carl and Paige must be."
"Maybe, but that doesn't mean it has anything to do with Charlie Porter's murder. Love and passion make for good motives on TV. In my experience? In the real world, it's most often money. Charlie Porter didn't have any close family, and I'm having a devil of a time finding anyone who wouldn't just as soon spit on his grave as talk to me about his demise."
My stomach clenched. The weight that had lifted the night before threatened to settle on my shoulders again.
"So what now?" I asked.
Reid shrugged and smiled. Not the tight one he flashed the day Charlie died. This one was softer, warmer. I liked it far more.
"Nothing's changed for you in the last twenty-four hours, Laura," he said. "I told you I go where the evidence tells me. It's telling me you couldn't have killed Charlie Porter."
"That's nice to hear, but I told you that two weeks ago."
"A murder investigation isn't like planning a wedding. There's no easy answers, no end dates, and not a lot of good to balance out the bad," he said. "That's not easy for a layperson to hear."
"Is that why you insisted I stay out of it?" I asked.
"No, that was just me doing my job." Reid kept his expression neutral. But something about his tone made me think there was more to it.
"I apologize for interfering with your job, Detective Reid, but I won't apologize for trying to protect my family."
"Wouldn't respect anyone who did." Reid's eyes turned back to baby Ben. His smile was back, and extra wide this time. "I should get on with my business. You two enjoy your afternoon."
Reid walked away without another word. I watched him go with a heavy sensation settling over me. I tried to fight it. After all, Reid was right. Not only was I not a suspect anymore, the evidence had ruled me out. That was as close to free of this mess as my family and I would ever get.
We can move on, I reminded myself. The Paradise can keep going.
But no matter how many times I repeated it, I couldn't shake the invisible cloud that lingered over my head.
"You know what would cheer us all up, Benny Boy? Desserts." I turned the stroller back in the other direction.
As it happened, I knew an amazing bakery nearby.
Chapter Twenty-One
I walked at double speed to the bakery, hoping to recoup the time I'd lost while chatting with Conner Reid. If I hurried and there wasn't a crowd, I could get my sugary treats, get Ben loaded into the car, and get back to the Paradise before the rental delivery arrived.
The wave of fresh baked goodness that hit me in the nose as I opened the door to Paige's bakery blasted all thoughts of schedules from my mind.
There was an elderly couple standing at the counter, fussing over which of the last of Paige's mini-cakes they should add to their order. The choices were between a strawberry shortcake and a key lime cake.
Paige looked up to acknowledge the bell over the door, locking eyes with me. She flashed a hesitant smile and waved to me before turning back to the couple.
Why would she hesitate?
Leave it to the professionals, Laura.
Paige's customers finally made a decision––the key lime mini cake, which I fully supported––and wrapped up their order. As soon as they were out the door, she turned to me.
"You're not reneging on having my back with the lemon chiffon cupcakes, are you?" Paige asked. "Because I don't know if I have the cocoa powder on hand for red velvet cupcakes and a chocolate groom’s cake. The order for the bachelor party almost cleaned me out. Simon Lambert must love chocolate."
"Nope, my nephew here are just on the prowl for a good old-fashioned sugar rush. Well, I'm in it for the sugar rush. Ben here is going to enjoy it by proxy."
Even though I was talking to her, Paige never took her eyes off Ben. A dreamy smile came to her lips.
"I'll tell you what, let me hold little man there and you can have a cupcake on the house," she said.
"Deal! But he's strictly a loaner. Danielle would boil me alive if I came back without him."
Paige passed me a chocolate explosion cupcake on a plate.
"It's basically a molten cupcake with a chocolate straw garnish and sprinkles," Paige said. She pumped two squirts of hand sanitizer from the dispenser beside the register then came around the counter. Gently, she undid the straps around Ben’s chest and scooped him into her arms.
Fortunately, my nephew was still in the phase where, if they didn’t belong to his mother, one set of arms was as good as any other. Ben smacked his lips and nestled into Paige's arms with a little wiggle.
"Looks like you're a natural," I said around a mouthful of cupcake and liquid chocolate.
"I'm the youngest by a lot. I've had lots of practice with my nieces and nephews." Paige slipped her pinky into Ben's hand for him to grip. "To tell the truth, I didn't mean to wait this long. But Carl and I were always so busy and things have been up and down the last few years. It just never seemed like the right time."
"It's a shame he's going to miss out."
"You're not going to believe this, but we're working things out." The dreaminess in Paige's smile was evident in her voice.
I quirked an eyebrow. That was fast.
"We talked about it yesterday after I closed the garage sale down for the night," Paige continued. "The more I think about it, the more I moved too fast and didn't think things through. We've been together so long. To throw it away because of a silly fling seems stupid."
“So I guess there won’t be another sale this weekend?”
Paige laughed softly. “Not unless you’ve got a hidden interest in smithing. I’m sti
ll trying to turn those tools into baby things.”
“Sorry, I’m more into animals than metal. But it’s good to hear you’re happy.”
"Never happier," Paige said. "A kid needs a dad around. A good dad."
You're here for the sweets, Laura, not to connect dots. No playing detective.
My talks with Conner Reid were beginning to leave an impression on me. He'd already threatened to arrest me once. He'd basically warned me away from the case that afternoon.
Maybe he'd be nicer about it if I were just a concerned citizen instead of a suspect, but I doubted it.
I took another forkful of delectable cake as an additional reminder to leave well enough alone. It was delicious, so much so I could have eaten a wedding-sized cake of it by myself, but it wasn't a great distraction.
Even to an amateur like me, it seemed awfully convenient that Paige and Carl Hawkins’s marriage troubles cleared up so quickly. Especially since neither of them would be straight with Reid. With their divorce off the table, it was even more likely Paige was lying to cover for Carl.
What wife wouldn't lie for her husband? What expectant mother wouldn't want her baby's father out of prison and by her side?
I had to admit, I was curious how far Paige was willing to take the lie.
"How's your husband holding up, anyway?" I asked. "My sister Danielle said he and Charlie were friends."
The same sour expression came to Paige's face that always came whenever I mentioned Charlie. "They were never that close, really. Charlie only had two hobbies: getting loaded and making everyone he could miserable. Carl's never been like that."
"How did they know each other?"
"Umm, let me think… I want to say they used to fish together back in the day. Well, my guess is Carl did the fishing and Charlie did the drinking."
"Sounds familiar." Like Reid, I'd yet to meet a single person who had a kind word to say about Charlie Porter. Though it surprised me to hear that Carl Hawkins was a fisherman. I didn't remember seeing any equipment for sale in Paige's front yard.
"Eventually, I came along," Paige said. "He stopped going out so much when things got serious."
"Oh, I guess I misunderstood." That seemed to be happening a lot lately. Maybe Reid was right. The more I played detective, the more I was swimming out of my depth.
"Anyway, that's all in the past," Paige said, slipping Ben back into the stroller. "There's nothing left of Charlie Porter but bad memories. Eventually, there won't even be that."
"Right." My mind was humming. Paige wasn't telling the truth. She couldn't have been. What twisted relationship did Carl and Charlie have that neither of them would talk about?
Maybe Carl was Charlie's convenient victim before Jason Delany had the misfortune of meeting him?
Reid said money was motivation more often than love or passion. If that logic extended to secrets, Jason or Simon were more likely suspects than Carl Hawkins.
Jason had a motive. Charlie was so cruel he routinely embarrassed Jason in front of strangers, but would he really do something so violent?
Simon Lambert, on the other hand, had already assaulted Charlie in front of witnesses. That and the insurance policy on Charlie put Simon ahead in the motive department as far as I was concerned, but could he really be a killer?
Maybe I was too quick to dismiss both of them because I liked Caroline so much.
Or maybe I was too excited at the idea of having a problem to solve.
"I don't mean to rush you," she said, “but I need to deliver the desserts for Simon Lambert's bachelor party."
Nodding, I slid my fork into my mouth to scrape the last bits of chocolate with my tongue.
"Ben and I should get back, too. Speaking of the Delany-Lambert wedding, we're expecting––" The chocolate turned bitter in my mouth.
I glanced at my watch. Fifteen minutes later than when I should have started heading back to the Paradise. There was no chance I'd get back before the rental delivery arrived.
"Is everything okay?" Paige asked.
"I'm gonna be late. My sister's gonna kill me." Unless I thought of something. Fast.
I turned to Paige. "What's the yummiest cupcake you have a dozen of in stock? I need to smooth things over with my sister when I get back."
She looked up at the ceiling. "The marble with cream cheese frosting. I'll throw in a couple of rum amaretto too."
I opened my mouth to thank Paige for looking out for me, but the bell over the door chimed before I could say anything. Carl Hawkins walked through, his eyes locked on his wife.
When I turned back to Paige, she was already busy assembling my order. Carl came over to the counter, nodding to me.
"Afternoon," he said, holding out a hand. He shook mine a little too firmly for comfort. "I'm Carl."
"Nice to meet you. Don't mind me," I said. "As soon as I get my ‘forgive me’ cupcakes, I'll be out of your hair."
"Take your time. I know how addictive her stuff is. I've been her biggest fan for years."
"That won't get you an extra cookie after dinner," Paige called sweetly over her shoulder.
It was hard to imagine these two had marriage trouble. It was even harder to believe Carl and Charlie had been friends.
"By the way," I said, "I told Paige already, but since you're here I can tell you. I'm sorry for your loss."
Carl's brow furrowed in confusion. "Excuse me?"
"Charlie? My sister said you two were friends a while back."
"She’s mistaken,” Carl said, setting his jaw. "We were never friends."
I blinked. "Danielle isn't usually wrong about things like that but… she did say it had been a while."
Paige cleared her throat. I couldn't quite peg the look she gave Carl, but when I turned back to him, the emotion had smoothed from his face. It was almost like it had never been there.
"Lots of people knew Charlie," Carl said. "None of us for good reasons. What happened was bound to sooner or later."
No, something definitely wasn't right. I could buy that Carl and Charlie had grown apart. I could even buy that they were never as close as Danielle thought. But I knew for sure I'd heard Paige say Carl and Charlie knew one another.
They were absolutely lying to protect each other.
Paige came up to the counter, holding a pink cake box out to me. "That'll be fifty dollars."
I pulled out my wallet, swallowing hard as I passed my card to Paige. I kept trying to find something light to say, but my brain was too busy processing. Something here was wrong. What I was seeing was wrong, and maybe I couldn't prove it, but I didn't have to. Like Reid kept saying, I wasn't a professional.
I grabbed my box and slid it under Ben's stroller. Then I left as fast as I could without seeming suspicious. If there had been any doubt in my mind that Paige and Carl Hawkins had something to do with Charlie Porter's murder, it was long gone.
I needed someone else to help me think this through.
Reid? Not a chance. Unless I wanted to end up in jail, the next time I went to him about Charlie Porter's murder would have to be the last time. I couldn't risk it until I was sure.
"Granny and Danielle," I mumbled. "Come on, Ben. We're going home."
Chapter Twenty-Two
I sent Danielle a text warning her that I might be a bit late. She didn't respond. I sent a follow up explaining that I had a gift. Still nothing. Either Danielle was still busy or she was too mad to speak to me.
Hopefully, the cupcakes and Ben's face would smooth things over.
I expected to find chaos when I got back to the Paradise. The only cars in the parking lot were Danielle's SUV and Granny's old sedan. That wasn't a good sign. The Delany-Lambert wedding had a guest list of nearly two hundred. There was no way the rental company had unloaded everything that fast. I grabbed Ben's car seat and the cupcakes, then hustled to the big house as fast as I could manage without dropping either.
We took deliveries through the back porch, so I went to that side of the house f
irst. Granny and Danielle were lounging in their favorite chairs, each clutching a glass of sweet tea in their hands.
"There's my baby boy!" Danielle cooed, shooting to her feet and taking the car seat from my hands.
"Are they back?" Andrew asked.
I waited a few seconds for my brother-in-law to walk through the door to the kitchen before I realized he was talking through speakerphone. I looked from Granny to Danielle and back as I struggled to catch my breath. "W-what happened? Where's the delivery?"
"They dropped it off right after you left," Granny said. "What've you got there?"
"Cupcakes. Why didn't you call me?" I slumped down on the chaise lounge next to her, setting the box of cupcakes down on the coffee table.
Danielle had already settled down with Ben and brought him up to nurse. "Granny wasn't going as far. It made more sense to have her turn around."
"But––"
"Girl, stop worrying," Granny said, climbing to her feet. "We managed."
She disappeared into the kitchen before I could respond.
"Laura, before you argue, I'd like to remind you that Danielle argues with a lawyer for free," Andrew said. "And I've yet to see her lose a debate."
"Yeah, I'm like a pseudo professional," Danielle said, beaming.
"I could use a professional, pseudo or otherwise." I grumbled a little as I flipped open the box of cupcakes. "I've seen Detective Reid and the Hawkins family. The more I learn about this case the less I understand it."
"Why are you still investigating at all?" Andrew asked. "Danielle told me the department gave the case to Conner Reid."
"They did. He’s stumped too."
It didn’t surprise me to find out Andrew knew what I’d been doing. As far as I could tell, he and Danielle didn’t keep secrets from each other. He probably found out the night I told her.
Granny came out of the kitchen with plates, forks, and three small glasses of milk balanced on a tray. "That handsome boy can't figure this out? I don't believe that gossip. Where did you hear that?"
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