She rolled her head. “I’m going to kill you.”
“But Mona took the fall for the crime. See, what I don’t get is why you became involved with Parker over there. Why get into a relationship with Emma’s ex-husband? As a form of revenge? And why threaten Emma with an incriminating note if you were going to kill her? Did you just lose conrol?”
“You don’t know what it was like working here. Or how horrible Emma was to Mona. She deserved what she got and I—” Nadine snapped her trap shut like she realized she’d let too much slip.
“Ah. Oh, I see.” Realization dawned. “So this thing with Parker was… what, an attempt to upset Emma?”
“Yes.”
“And when that didn’t work because Emma had moved on from Parker, and you were fired, you decided to take matters into your own hands,” I continued, gathering steam. “But the note you had sent worked against you. And once you realized that Mona might get in trouble for your crime, you needed to find a scapegoat.” It was the only explanation. “And there was Parker. The perfect person to take the fall. Am I hitting close to home here?”
No answer.
“You decided that you’d bring Parker here, and what… stab him? That wouldn’t clear Mona entirely, and it would also make you look bad.”
“I wasn’t going to kill him. He was going to kill himself,” Nadine said, at last.
“You made him write a suicide note, I take it? Admitting to killing Emma?”
She gave the barest hint of a nod.
Nadine had sent Emma the note, likely to get her to back off and stop pestering both Mona and herself, and when that hadn’t worked, she’d killed her. But Mona had taken the fall for the crime. So, Nadine had figured she’d use Parker to see the Gossip Queen freed.
“But now it’s all ruined,” I said. “Because I’ve seen you here. And Gail has seen you here. And the police will be here soon. I suggest you don’t do anything to make your case look worse in front of a jury, Nadine.”
Anger flashed across her face and she took a threatening step forward, sweeping the knife through the air, and opening her mouth to—
“Hi-yah!” Aggy bashed out of the glass doors, yelling like a madwoman, and lifted my can of pepper spray. The one I’d thought was still in the Corvette. She assaulted Nadine with a spray of the liquid, aiming for her eyes but hitting her on the mouth instead. The fumes were enough, though, and Nadine screeched and dropped her knife, clasping her hands over her eyes.
Parker made a run for it and ran face-first into the front door of the office with a terrific boink. He groaned and slumped over backward.
Aggy dropped the can of pepper spray and wobbled on the spot, pale around the gills now that the moment of action had passed, she stumbled, fell to her knees, and then tipped over sideways.
“Great,” I said. “Anything else?” I picked up the pepper spray, approached Nadine, and gave her another squirt in the face for good measure. Her resulting howl would have woken the dead, but both Aggy and Parker Dirke remained firmly out.
“Is it over?” Gail asked, from the office doors. She was pale, but still standing—miracles did happen.
Sirens howled in the distance.
“I think so,” I replied. “Got any rope?”
“Rope?” The mention of the word appeared to horrify her.
“Citizen’s arrest.” I gestured to the incapacitated murderer, now on the floor, rubbing her eyes furiously.
“Oh! No, but I think there’s a curtain tie in Emma’s office.” Gail hurried off to get it while I kept the pepper spray at the ready.
Police vehicles screeched to a halt outside, and Liam and Arthur leaped out of them, darting toward the front of the building.
Another case solved, but as I watched my boyfriend—if he was still that—entering the building, his gaze hot and angry, I couldn’t help ask myself… At what cost?
20
The following week…
* * *
“It will be fine,” I said to Aggy, forcing a smile. “You can relax.”
My cousin clasped her hands together and pressed them against her stomach, staring at the Burger Bar across the street. Today, Aggy wore an oversized sun hat with a cutesy dress and open-toed slip-ons that were a size too big for her. It made her seem like a grown toddler, which, in retrospect, was an apt description for her most of the time.
“But Missi’s in there.”
“Yeah. And Grizzy. And Vee. We need to get in there and talk about everything that’s happened. There’s no use hiding out.”
“But… what if they’re still mad?”
“Then they’re mad. I don’t know, Aggy, I can’t control how other people feel about our actions. I can only apologize for the things I’ve done wrong.” And I hadn’t technically done anything wrong when it came to my friends, other than taking money from a woman they despised.
Mona was out of jail. Cleared of the murder. Both Arthur and Liam still had their jobs, but their Captain was in a lot of trouble for the way he’d forced their hands when it came to the investigation. I wasn’t clear on the details, but rumor in Sleepy Creek said he’d threatened their jobs if they didn’t arrest Mona. No wonder they’d been upset about it.
And as for Nadine? She had confessed to her crimes. What with the testimony against her, the documentary evidence, and the physical, she didn’t stand much of a chance in court.
“Let’s go.” I checked both ways before crossing the street, trusting that my cousin would follow me.
I opened the Burger Bar’s glass front door, the bell tinkling above it, and entered. The familiar scent of burgers and fries nearly overwhelmed me. Man, I missed eating in this place. Most of all, I missed my friends.
The chatter in the restaurant dulled. Heads turned. People stared.
“There you are, Watson.” Missi spoke from her favorite booth. She rose and came over, fluffing her gray hair. Virginia joined her, offering a small smile.
“Hello,” I said. “How are you today?”
“I owe you an apology,” Missi said, immediately. “While I’m not Mona’s biggest fan by any stretch of the imagination, she’s not a killer. And I jumped to the wrong conclusions without enough information about the case.”
“Me too,” Virginia put in. “Could you ever forgive us, dear? For our lapse in judgment?”
I shrugged. “Nothing to forgive.”
“Christie.” Grizzy, my long time friend, came around the bar at the back of the room and approached. “I’m sorry too.” Her eyes filled with tears. “I haven’t been myself lately, but I should’ve stuck by you instead of going along with all the anger in town. It’s just been so… difficult.”
“It’s OK. I understand. You were worried about Arthur’s job. And I was in the wrong not to tell you about what I’d done. Shoot, I was in the wrong for taking the case in the first place.”
Missi, Vee, and Aggy went over to the booth and sat together, Aggy’s cheeks flushed as she talked to the twins. She was at ease now that the tension had broken. The other diners in the restaurant resumed their meals, and the noise level returned to normal.
I followed Grizzy to the bar at the back of the diner. “Milkshakes?”
“Sure,” Grizzy said, smiling at me, but tears spilled down her cheeks.
“Griz? What’s wrong?”
“It’s… well.. It’s—Oh, Christie, I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you sooner but I was so upset over the stupid Mona thing that I didn’t. I really should have. I—”
“Tell me what? Grizzy, please stop crying.” I rounded the milkshake bar and hugged my friend. “Stop. Please! What is it? Is it Arthur? Did he lose his job? Is Curly Fries OK?” Man, I never thought I’d be worried about that particular cat.
“It’s not any of that,” Grizzy said, and let out a hiccup of laughter. She pulled back. “Christie, I’m pregnant.”
“You’re… oh my gosh! Are you serious? Grizzy? Are you really?”
She nodded, smiling at me. “That’
s why I’ve been so emotional lately. And moody. And hungry. And I’ve wanted to tell you ever since I found out but then there was the case and—I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”
“Congratulations! That’s amazing news.” I hugged my best friend, but not too tight, then released her, grinning broadly. “I can’t believe it. This is fantastic. Oh man, I can’t wait to see Curly’s face when the baby is born. Do you know if you’re having a boy or a girl? What did Arthur say? Do you have any cool cravings?”
Grizzy burst out laughing.
I settled onto the stool in front of the bar and listened to her tales about her pregnancy so far while she fixed milkshakes for us. She was happy, positively glowing from the pregnancy, and animated as she talked.
One chocolate milkshake later and the world seemed right again. For the most part. I still couldn’t sleep properly after what had happened with Liam.
The bell over the Burger Bar’s front door tinkled, and I caught sight of Liam entering the bar, wearing his button down shirt and a pair of jeans. He was handsome as the day I’d first met him, but his expression was serious, gaze fixed on me.
Oh boy. Here we go.
Liam had wanted a break.
Was he here to tell me he didn’t think we should get back together? Or that he was reporting me for my impersonation of a law enforcement official? Or maybe this wasn’t about me and he was just here for a burger?
My heart turned over, twisting in on itself, as he walked up to me.
“Christie,” he said.
I spun on the puffy red stool, facing him. “Hi,” I managed, emotion clogging my throat.
“I can’t do this anymore.”
Ah. So he was going to break my heart at last. I couldn’t say that I hadn’t seen this coming after the way I’d behaved since my return to Sleepy Creek. I had stepped on his toes more times than I could remember, and he’d dealt with it cordially every time.
I wanted to say something. To talk. But I couldn’t form words. My mouth was dry.
“I quit,” he said, taking a breath. “My job.”
“Huh?” The words didn’t mesh together for a second.
“I quit my job,” he replied. “I’m not going to report you, and I can’t continue working there if I don’t. So, I quit.”
“What? No! Liam! Look, I’m sorry I ever interfered but you can’t—”
“I don’t care anymore,” Liam said, talking over me. “I’ll find something else I want to do, but the police department here doesn’t need my help the way it used to, and every time anything happens in this town it comes between us.” He pointed at my chest and then his.
“But—”
“And I can’t have that anymore,” he continued.
“You—”
Liam dropped to one knee in front of me, his eyes focused on me, solely. He reached into his pocket and drew out a small, black velvet box. “I might not be able to provide for you right now, but I will do everything in my power to make sure that you are kept safe, that you have food, that you are always looked after, Christie.”
Someone told him all the gory details. Aggy? The errant thought drifted away, unanswered.
“Christie Lillith Watson,” he said. “Will you marry me?” The ring in the box was beautiful, and he removed it and held it out to me.
“Yes,” I choked, tears stinging my eyes.
The restaurant erupted into applause. Liam slipped the ring onto my finger then swept me into an embrace. He pressed a kiss to my lips, and I lost myself in the moment. Liam wanted to marry me. Grizzy was having a baby. I had my friends back.
At the same time, everything was a mess. My business still wasn’t perfect, Liam didn’t have a job, and Aggy was as lost as the day she’d found me.
But right now, in this perfect moment, with Liam by my side, the locals in the Burger Bar cheering and clapping, none of that mattered.
My dreams were slowly coming true.
* * *
Christie’s adventures continue in the fourth book in the Sleepy Creek Cozy Mystery series, The Turkey Burger Murder. Coming November 2021!
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The BBQ Burger Murder Page 10