"Barbara," I started again in a firm tone.
"What should I do next? I was thinking I might rearrange the cooler before closing. It's a little cluttered and chaotic."
I sighed silently. (There was a slight groan too.) "I prefer the cooler to stay exactly the same. It's the way Ryder and I have arranged it and it works." It was the first time I'd mentioned Ryder, the person she was temporarily replacing. It seemed I was starting to miss him a lot. But was he actually going to want to return to this quaint, mundane job after months in the Amazon? Gosh, I sure hoped so.
Barbara didn't seem capable of hearing the word no. Maybe she had somehow managed to block it from her brain, or perhaps, she just couldn't process the notion that someone would turn down her idea. Her drawn in brows, brows that were starting to seem more ridiculous with each moment, arched and nearly touched before relaxing. "I'll just make a few changes." With that she whisked off to the cooler.
I stood tongue-tied and feeling like a complete bonehead. I glanced across at Amelia. She was staying focused on cleaning the potting table while working her hardest not to make eye contact with me. She'd obviously heard the entire exchange.
"She's exhausting," I muttered. Amelia chuckled to herself as she wiped the table.
I pulled out my phone and sent Briggs a text. "Did you talk to Nora Banks?"
He rang back.
My smile was instant. "Hello, Detective Briggs."
"Hello, Miss Pinkerton. Yes, Nora Banks told me the nice florist in town told her she should go to the police station and talk to Detective Briggs." There was just a hint of annoyance in his tone. "Which means you decided to approach a possible suspect on your own."
"Yes but this particular suspect was not the least bit scary or dangerous. And I knew she wasn't armed because you had her knife in evidence."
"Lacey," he started.
"Yes, I know what you're going to say. But let's get to the important part. Did you talk to her?"
He decided to drop the subsequent lecture. "She came in and told me about her missing knife and that she'd spent the day at the lighthouse watching for birds. Her sunburn sort of confirmed that. However, she also admitted that she despised Mason, and she told me about what he'd done the night before and her threats the next day in front of Les's shop."
"Sounds like she really came clean then. That's good. Are you still considering her a suspect?"
"Unfortunately, a sunburn isn't an ironclad alibi, and she had no one to corroborate that she was at the lighthouse all afternoon. She stays on the list, but I have my doubts."
"She's too small," we said simultaneously. Our laughs were in unison too.
"We are quite the duo," I said. "Great minds think alike."
"Yep and are you thinking Italian for dinner?" he asked. "I'm craving some lasagna."
"Hmm, sounds good. Count me in. Now I've got to go to the cooler to make sure my new assistant isn't moving everything around so that I can't find anything. See you later."
"I know I'm just wasting my breath, but stay out of danger," he added just before disconnecting the call.
There was a great deal of noise coming from the cooler. I looked at Amelia. She just shrugged in response.
"Ryder, Ryder, Ryder," I muttered as I took a deep breath and headed toward the hallway.
Chapter 21
Barbara's changes in the cooler were minor enough that I decided not to stress about it. I was, however, relieved when it was time for her to pack up for the day. Amelia normally helped me close up, but since she'd watched over the shop while I was out finding dead bodies and tracking down suspects, I insisted she take off too. There was some selfishness in my gesture. The thought of spending the last thirty minutes of business hours all by myself sounded splendid. Not that Amelia was ever a problem, but alone time was always nice.
I'd sat at my computer to finish some orders while both women collected up their purses and keys from the office. They didn't speak one word to each other. So much for my visions of a cohesive work team. Barbara and her unwanted opinions had caused Amelia to keep her distance. The bell on the door broke the chilly silence in the office.
"I'll get it," Barbara chirped.
"No, I'll get it," Amelia said briskly. "I'm the sales assistant."
"The two of you are on your way out. I'll get it." I pushed up from my desk.
Both women, purses on shoulders, still rushed ahead of me to the front of the shop. I followed behind. "You two have a nice night," I said to let them know I expected them to go home. Unfortunately, the extraordinarily handsome man standing in the shop front caused both women to let the purses slide from their shoulders. Chins dropped for a moment, but Barbara was the first to collect herself. She pushed her purse aside.
"How can I help you?" she asked. There was a tiny sashay in her step as she moved.
"Again, Barbara," Amelia said through slightly gritted teeth. "I'm in charge of helping customers." She pushed her purse aside too and tried to jump in front of Barbara.
Poor Dash glanced helplessly over their heads at me.
I couldn't hold back an amused grin. "Actually, girls, this is my friend. He's just here to chat, so the two of you can go home. See you in the morning."
Profound disappointment crossed their faces, but they both took an extra few seconds to admire the beautiful man before trudging back to their purses.
Amelia was still staring starry eyed at Dash as she sauntered toward the door. "Wait, I've seen you down at the marina," she said. "You work on the boats."
"I find boats so interesting," Barbara said, not to be outdone.
Dash nodded. "Yes, I work on boats, and I find them interesting too."
"See you tomorrow," I said again, with a little more force this time.
They finally walked out, but both stretched up to look through the front window once more.
I couldn't stop a laugh. "Good thing you don't come in here often. To what do I owe this visit?"
Dash was awash in a glowing tan, and the summer sun had bleached his hair gold. I really couldn't blame Barbara and Amelia. He was always a sight to see.
"Actually, I am here to buy flowers." He headed straight over to pet Kingston on the head.
"And here I thought you just dropped by to visit a friend." I reached into the shelf for Kingston's treat can and carried it over for Dash to give him one.
Dash held a treat out for Kingston's long beak. "You mean the friend I can visit merely by walking out my front door?"
"True. So, who are the flowers for?" I said with a teasing grin. "And if you say for an aunt who just had gallbladder surgery, I'm going to be sorely disappointed."
"Not gallbladder. It was her hip." He patted Kingston once more and turned his own teasing smile (a much more dashing one) on me. "Not true either. I've got a date."
"Oh, do you?" It had been a few weeks since we'd spoken, but the last time we chatted, he was still bringing up his long distance relationship with Elsie's niece, Britney. I waited expectantly for him to fill me in on the details. Not that he was bound to do so, but I would feel terribly disappointed if he didn't.
We headed back to the work counter. "Britney and I have come to a mutual agreement. She's probably going to spend at least another year in Europe, so it just doesn't make sense to keep things going. We've decided to see other people."
"Does Elsie know?" I asked.
Dash shrugged. "Not sure but she'll be glad to hear it." Elsie was never thrilled with their relationship, mostly because Britney obsessed about it and Dash was far too casual about it all. Naturally, as was often the case with men, once Britney was on her way to France to further her culinary career, Dash instantly regretted that he let her go so easily. But it seemed the long distance between them had finally broken the tie for good.
"Is this a rose kind of date?" I had an ulterior motive for asking. I wanted to know more without being too nosy.
He raked his hair back with his fingers. "It's more of a carnation or dai
sy date. A first date. We met down at the airport. Tiffany is learning to fly planes. She's learning from Bart, the guy who taught me."
"Ah ha, that sounds promising if you both like airplanes. It's always nice to have something in common."
Dash's green eyes sparkled with amusement. "Like solving murder cases?"
"Yes, I suppose that is something James and I have in common." I put up a finger signaling I needed to pause the conversation. I hurried to the cooler. It took me an extra few seconds to find the carnations that Barbara had inexplicably moved to the opposite side. I grabbed a vase of pink and white carnations and a few mauve colored Gerber daisies to add to the mix. It wasn't every day that I got to create an arrangement for Dash.
"Will these do?" I asked as I placed the flowers on the island.
"Sure, those look nice. Don't really know what type of flowers she likes," he admitted.
"I don't think you're required to know that until the third date. Unless your good friend just happens to own a flower shop, then by the second date."
Dash chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Speaking of murder, which we really weren't, but I'm in the middle of a new case." I plucked several of the freshest carnations from the vase.
"Really? Guess I'm not surprised. Murder does tend to follow you around. Who died this time?" Dash hopped up on a stool while I pulled together a first date arrangement.
"A young man who was a member of the bird watching society that came to town for the bird convention."
"Ah, there's a bird convention in town. That would explain the van I passed on its way up Myrtle Place just now. The side of the van mentioned some West Coast Bird Watching Society. I think they were heading up to the Hawksworth place to look for birds."
I nearly dropped the cluster of carnations. "You saw them just now? Heading up to Hawksworth?"
"Sure did. Do you know them?" It suddenly dawned on him. "Is that the group whose member was murdered? Guess they weren't too broken up about it if they went right on with their outing."
"The guy who died was not exactly loved. He had some bad personality traits, which, I can only assume, led to his untimely demise." The cellophane wrapper crinkled as I yanked a large square free from the spool. There was an urgency now for me to finish the bouquet. I needed to finish and close up the shop. I had a sudden urge to head up to the Hawksworth site. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to talk to some of the club members and find out what they were thinking about the murder. If I got lucky, I might even spot the most elusive bird of all—a cold-blooded killer.
Chapter 22
I'd rushed to close up the shop and went directly home to drop off Kingston and feed Nevermore. I flew right back out the door to head up to the Hawksworth house before the sun was too low for bird watchers. I decided to walk and was breathing hard by the time I reached the top of Maple Hill, but I'd been rewarded for my efforts. The society's van was still parked at the site.
Faces looked more familiar now, but the only people I knew by name were Minnie and Andrew. There was no sign of Ivy or Nora in the group. The club members stood in patches of two or three, with binoculars glued to faces as they stared off into the horizon. The Hawksworth mansion, dilapidated as it was, still hadn't lost its million dollar view. If you stood in the right place and looked the right direction, you could see the beach and the tops of the town shops. Another direction gave you a scenic view of the dense forest on the Mayfield side. The opposite direction afforded a patchwork green view of the farms on the Chesterton side.
Minnie was the first to lower her binoculars and notice me. Her cheeks rounded as she swished toward me in a long colorful skirt. She had replaced the large hoop earrings with dangling beaded strands. They shimmered in the late day sunlight glinting off the old relic of a house.
"How did you find us?" Minnie asked. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were following us." There was just enough accusation in her tone to make me think it wasn't a hundred percent in jest.
"It just so happens that I live right down there in the house with the tan shingle roof." I pointed toward my rooftop and produced a polite grin. "I saw the van up here and thought I'd come see how all of you are doing."
Minnie adjusted the binocular strap around her neck. "Andrew thought a few of us would like to get out and you know, clear our heads. It's been such a dreadful day. Of course, John didn't come. He's very distraught. He was close with Mason." She glanced back at the others. Andrew seemed to be looking at me with the same suspicion Minnie had just seconds before. I supposed it was rather coincidental to see me yet again on such an eventful day.
"Yes, I met John earlier. He was quite upset."
Minnie nodded. "It was sort of an odd friendship, if you ask me. Everyone likes John. He's polite and amiable. I hate to speak badly of him, but Mason didn't have any of those qualities. Mason even treated John badly occasionally. Still, they were good friends, so naturally, we all feel quite sorry for John."
I perked up. "Mason treated John badly?" I said as a question hoping to hear more.
Minnie spotted movement in a tree behind me and lifted her binoculars for a second. Lines scrunched up next to her eyes as she adjusted the eye pieces. Just as quickly, she lowered them. "Only a pigeon. Yes, Mason wasn't directly mean to John, but he would borrow his equipment and treat it shabbily. John was too nice. He allowed Mason to walk all over him and take advantage of his kindness. You know, typical one-sided, toxic friendship."
Andrew was apparently curious about our conversation. He peeled away from the others and crossed the lot to us. "Interesting seeing you here," he said. There was that suspicious tone again.
"It turns out she lives right down there." Minnie pointed to my rooftop. "She spotted the van and came up to check on us. Isn't that nice?"
Andrew nodded. "Kind of you. All of us are in shock still, but a few of us thought it would be therapeutic to go out birding. Now that I'm seeing the view up here, I think it'll be a beautiful place to watch the sunset."
"Yes, it's quite impressive up here," I concurred.
"Have they arrested Nora?" he asked casually, but it stunned me nonetheless.
"No, I don't think so. Why do you ask?"
Minnie and Andrew exchanged a knowing glance. "It's just that after what we all witnessed at the convention and the fact that Nora's knife was found at the scene, with blood," Andrew said and looked at Minnie for confirmation to continue. Minnie responded with a nearly imperceptible nod. "Then there was the incident before we sat down for sandwiches at the park."
A rush of giddiness bolted through me. Had I stumbled onto new evidence? Was my intuition about Nora entirely wrong? "The incident before the picnic—" I said, leaving it open ended and hoping desperately he would fill in the blank (all without trying to seem desperate).
Andrew took Minnie's brief nod as his permission to continue. "Nora had sat down with a few of the club members to eat her sandwich. Mason just couldn't leave well enough alone. He'd already humiliated her terribly at the slideshow. He was sitting a few tables away. He stood up and shouted to everyone that Nora had been hysterical this morning when she saw him at the coffee shop. She threatened him with all kinds of stuff, bird attacks, deadly illness. She left right after that."
Minnie, who was unusually silent, huffed. "Of course, when a woman is angry and yelling it's labeled as hysteria."
"Yes, isn't that ridiculous," I said in firm agreement. "And I witnessed the entire thing. She wasn't hysterical, and I never heard deadly illness mentioned. She was upset, but I walked her to my flower shop and she calmed right down."
Both were surprised that I'd witnessed the one-sided altercation.
"So you saw Nora attack him?" Andrew was apparently stuck on the whole hysteria thing.
"No attack just a few good verbal assaults tossed his way. And Mason smirked and smiled and teased her," I said. "It would have been a good opportunity for him to apologize for destroying her in front of her peers. Even
if she was wrong to put in a plagiarized photo, he could have told her he hadn't meant to be so cruel."
Minnie snickered. "Mason Fanning took pride in his cruelty. Look where that got him."
"Yes," Andrew said with a solemn head shake. "He pushed poor Nora right over the edge, and now she'll spend a lifetime in prison."
"We don't know for sure she did it," Minnie said. "We should wait for the police to let us know before we start any rumors. Poor Nora has been through enough."
Andrew took the scolding mildly. "Sure, we'll let the police do their job, but I think most of us know the ending to the story."
It seemed Andrew had already convicted Nora of the crime. It was hard to blame him. What Mason did to her would have pushed anyone into a rage.
"I see the rest of you are getting along all right after the shock, so I think I'll head back down the hill to my house. Enjoy the sunset. It should be beautiful this evening."
"Thanks, we're looking forward to it, "Andrew called as I walked away.
It was a slightly disappointing trek up the hill. The only new information was that Mason hadn't ended his streak of cruelty. It was no wonder Nora left the picnic to be on her own. Or had she left the picnic to hide in the forest to wait for her victim? It seemed nothing was off the table yet.
Chapter 23
That's my favorite dress," Briggs said as he pulled out my chair and smiled appreciatively at my yellow gingham sundress.
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