by Lynn Cahoon
Chapter 19
“Did someone break in?” a woman asked, glancing back at Tim, who was just finishing up the dusting on the door.
I handed her a large mocha. “I think ‘tried to break in’ is probably more accurate. South Cove Police is just very careful about property vandalism. I’m betting it was some kids out too late and causing problems.”
“There was a shop in Bakerstown that was robbed just last week. It’s such a shame.”
As she left, Tim walked over and nodded to the back door. “I’ll get the back door done and then I’m out of here. You can clean up the mess now. Boss still around?”
“He’s upstairs talking to my aunt.” I glanced toward the door. He should have been done a while ago. What exactly was he asking her? “Thanks, Tim.”
“No problem. That’s what we’re here for, to serve and protect.” He grinned as he crossed over to the office door. “I wouldn’t turn down a cup of coffee and a piece of that cheesecake when I’m done, though. Probably against regulations, but I was rousted out of my apartment before I could grab some breakfast.”
“Let me know what you want and it’s yours. On the house.” I glanced around the now-empty shop. “I’m going to go wash off that stuff and I’ll be here as soon as you’re ready.”
“Winn’s going to be so jealous. She loves coming here on Sundays to buy a book or two along with our second breakfast. We do like our treats.” He disappeared into the back office.
I grabbed a bar towel and a bottle of spray cleaner. I cleaned up the door first and took the stop out from underneath so it could close. Then I cleaned the light fixture. I didn’t know what they would find, but I assumed there would be way too many prints to try to separate out. Cleaning the door handle and the light switch wasn’t on the list of daily tasks Jackie had on her many lists. I think it was on the Sunday list, which meant almost a full week of prints were on the door handle. Greg appeared from the back as I was putting away the cleaners.
“You were talking to her for a while.”
He nodded and refilled his coffee cup, this time putting a lid on it. He leaned over and kissed me. “I already checked in with Tim. I’ll see you tonight.”
“Aren’t you going to tell me what you talked about?” I watched as he strolled across the dining room.
“No, I’m not.”
A few minutes later, Tim came out of the back room. “I’m done. Greg said coffee and cheesecake was fine, but if you don’t mind, I’ll take it to-go. I’ve got a report to write at the station.”
I boxed up the cheesecake and poured his coffee. He didn’t look at me while I got the order ready.
When I handed it to him, he smiled. “Thank you so much.”
Then he left through the front door. I didn’t even bother to ask him what he’d found. He was learning from the best, and if Greg didn’t want him to talk, he wasn’t going to talk.
The good news was, Greg thought he was coming home tonight. We might have a normal dinner for once. The bad news was, I didn’t think he’d be any more talkative about what had happened in my shop that morning.
Deek came in at noon. I glanced at the schedule.
“I thought Toby had this shift?”
Deek washed his hands and put on an apron. “He called me last night and asked if I’d take it. He sounded beat.”
“He’s getting a lot of hours out of this investigation.” I picked up my tote, ready to go home. “Remember, you’re working a longer shift tomorrow. I’ll see you then.”
“No problem. I’ve already talked to Trina and she’s excited about working here tomorrow night. She’ll be so wired by the time we close, she won’t sleep for days.”
“I hope not.” I gave him a quick salute. “The shop is in your hands.”
“I’ll be careful with it.” He poured himself a cup of coffee and opened the newspaper. Hopefully, customers would start coming in sooner or later.
As I made my way home, I decided I was going to have to disappoint Emma on our afternoon run. All the excitement had worn me out. All I wanted to do was heat up some soup and cuddle up on the couch with a book.
When Greg came home, he brought dinner with him. Emma was at the door as soon as she could smell the chicken. In the bag from Diamond Lille’s would be fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and a quart of coleslaw. My stomach grumbled as I followed him into the kitchen and pulled out plates and silverware. “Iced tea or soda?”
“Iced tea. I’m waiting for a call back from our friend Mr. Hess. He called in sick today, but he wasn’t at his apartment, so I left a message on his cell to contact me as soon as possible.” Greg washed his hands, then took the food out of the bags and set it on the table. “I asked Tessa, the receptionist, to check your name to see what address they have on you. It’s the shop. She said your counselor, Denyse, sent you some pamphlets talking about how to prevent identify fraud with an elderly family member. She keyed it in yesterday after they looked up your coffee shop.”
“That doesn’t answer how they got my home address.” I picked out a wing and a breast and put it on my plate as I waited for Greg to finish piling potatoes on his plate.
“No, it doesn’t. But it does tell us how they guessed that your aunt lived above the shop. I know she thought she was being careful, but I’m sure she let drop that she was working for you and living in an apartment.” He took a leg and a thigh and then finished the plate with some coleslaw. “The weird thing was, Tim didn’t find any prints. I had him dust your aunt’s doorways too. Nothing.”
“Well, you can’t expect to get clear ones with all the people we have coming in and out on a daily basis.” I took a bite of the chicken. Juicy, crunchy, and perfect. Tiny, Lille’s cook, knew how to fry a chicken. “This is so good.”
“Yes, it is, but you aren’t listening to me. I didn’t say Tim couldn’t separate out the prints. He didn’t find any prints at all. The handles were wiped down. As was the wall plate on the light switch.”
I set down the chicken and wiped my hands on a napkin. “I think I just lost my appetite. So someone was in the shop?”
“Looks that way. How, I’m not sure, but there appeared to be some scratches on the door handle in the back. Maybe someone picked the lock?”
“You know this means I have to sell the shop and move, right?” I looked longingly at the mashed potatoes.
“No, that’s not what that means. I’m sure we’ll find this guy. And I’m sure that they’re tied in with the Senior Project staff. I’m not sure how yet. But this Hess guy is looking more and more like my suspect.” He took a big bite of the potatoes. “But if you don’t want your half, I’m sure I can eat your food too.”
“Get your grubby paws off my dinner.” I picked up my fork. “How’s my aunt? She blew me off when I wanted to talk to her after you left.”
“She’s scared and tough all at the same time. She knows this guy isn’t her Ted, but there’s a part that still wants to believe. She must have loved him a lot.”
I nodded. “I didn’t think she’d really fall again until I saw her with Harrold. And now this scam artist has ruined that as well.”
“Well, I’m sure if something happened to me, you would be so grief-stricken you’d never look at another man until the day you died.” He picked up the chicken leg and took a bite.
“Of course. Maybe not until the day I died, but I’m sure I’d be sad for at least a month. Maybe a week. What does this new love of mine look like? Does he surf? Maybe he’s one of Justin’s friends who has seen me from afar and has been in love with me since that day. I couldn’t break his heart, right?”
“You’re evil. That’s all I have to say. I would give up on dating if something happened to you. But apparently, I’m the better man.” He pointed his fork filled with mashed potatoes at me. “You should be more focused on the years without me.”
&nbs
p; “I would be. Especially if Geraldo could teach me how to surf. I would think of you every morning when we arrived at the beach.” I took another bite. “Thanks for dinner; this is exactly what I needed.”
“I figured. Remember that when Geraldo doesn’t want to stop for lunch on your road trips.” He held out the coleslaw container. “You done with this?”
“Go ahead. And if Geraldo isn’t going to make time for meals, he’s not my man.” I was thinking about the shop break-in. “Maybe I should make new keys. I didn’t change the locks when Sasha left. Not that I think Sasha is part of this, but maybe there are just too many keys out there.”
“Wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’ll call a locksmith in out of Bakerstown for you if that’s all right. They give us a deal if the order comes from the police.” He took another leg out of the chicken box and seemed to inhale it.
“If they can come either in the morning or early afternoon, I’ll be at the shop. Deek and I are splitting the day so Aunt Jackie can go into the city with Mary.” I broke off a piece of the chicken and ate it. “Lille’s chicken is so juicy, it’s outrageous.”
“And that’s one of the reasons I brought it home. I know you’ve been fending for yourself for a few nights now.” He leaned back in his chair. “I’m not stoked about your aunt leaving for the day. I’d rather she stick around town so I can watch out for her, but I guess no one will know where she and Mary are in the city.”
“She has to go.” I pointed the chicken I’d just taken off the bone at Greg. “It’s important.”
“Why?” He snatched the bite I’d let get too close and ate it.
“Hey.”
“Sorry, not sorry.” He grinned and pushed the box of chicken toward me. “There’s more. So why does Jackie have to go to the city?”
“Because Harrold’s coming over to finish the patio for her. He wants it to be a surprise.”
Greg focused on his food, but I could hear the chuckle. “I forgot about Project Harrold.”
“What?”
“Harrold has it bad for your aunt. I don’t think he’s going to let her get away with this coy act much longer.”
“She’s not playing coy. She had a stalker calling her and pretending to be her dead husband. That would mess with anyone’s head.”
Greg finished his plate, then took it to the sink to rinse and put it in the dishwasher. “You’re right, of course, but it’s fun to watch Harrold pursue your aunt. He’s in to the courting routine. Are you done with this? I’ll put it in the fridge so we can have a late-night snack.”
“You have to go back?” I wasn’t sure why I even phrased it as a question.
He shook his head. “I’m locking myself in the office and working on some reports. I need to figure out where Mr. Hess is hiding out so I can find him and convince him to confess.”
“Is that all? You should be done in thirty minutes, an hour tops, right?”
He kissed me on the head as he grabbed the mashed potatoes off the table. “Your optimism is one of the reasons I love you. Knock when you’re getting ready for bed. I’d like to say good night.”
I finished my dinner and then cleaned up the rest of the kitchen. Bored, I decided to throw in a load of laundry. As I gathered up the clothes, I pulled everything out of Greg’s discarded work jeans. A folded slip of paper fell on the floor. Curious, I opened it and found a phone number. And a name. Sherry.
I set his keys, his wallet, and the folded sheet of paper on his dresser. Then I picked it up again and looked. Was this ex-wife Sherry’s number? Or some other Sherry? Was it about the case or just someone he knew? Why was I obsessing on this? Sometimes my investigative side took a bad turn.
Like the time I found out my husband had been cheating on me. I just kept gathering data before I finally caught them together. He’d tried to explain it away as a dinner meeting, but I’d already seen the graphic pictures they’d shared over text message. For months after that confrontation and during the divorce process, I’d questioned my sanity. Why had I gone looking for trouble?
But it hadn’t mattered if I’d gone looking or not. The truth was the truth. And if Greg was seeing Sherry again, I’d know soon enough. Until then, I was going to leave Pandora’s box closed. I took the basket filled with the laundry downstairs, then curled up on the couch. Turning on a DVD, I watched Sleepless in Seattle for the hundredth time.
Soul mates were meant to be, even if it took a while and a few cross-country flights to find the one. I glanced at the still-closed office door. I’d hoped I’d found mine.
And I knew my aunt had found her second one. Operation Harrold Wins Jackie Back was going to work. It had to work. All the best books and movies had a happily ever after. Real life should too.
Near the end of the movie, Greg came out with his coffee cup. He set it down on the coffee table and pulled me up into his arms. “You are the best girlfriend I’ve ever had.”
“I’m the most patient one.” It felt good standing there in his arms.
He laughed and tightened his grip. “I think I might call that characteristic stubborn, not patient. But that works too.” He let me go and then picked up the cup. “Want something from the kitchen?”
“A bottle of water, please.” I paused the movie. When he came back into the room and handed me my water, I held his hand for a second. “I washed your work jeans that were on the floor.”
“Thank you. I meant to run a load after dinner and I forgot. Now you’re really the best girlfriend I’ve ever had.” He kissed me, making my heart flutter.
“Better than Sherry?”
“Honey, you passed that standard years ago.” He stared into my eyes. “Something wrong, or does the romance have you weepy?”
“Nothing’s wrong, I’m just feeling a little left out tonight. Let’s go away when this case gets closed and play in the surf.” I did love this guy, even if I had to spend a lot of evenings alone. I always had a good book by my side.
“I was thinking the exact same thing.” He kissed me and then turned and disappeared into the office.
No scrap of paper was going to mess with my emotions. I turned back on the movie and enjoyed the awesomeness that was Tom Hanks as a single dad.
Chapter 20
Saturday morning, the coffee shop was buzzing. Deek’s book clubs had just started new books, so several families had taken advantage of the beautiful fall weather to make the trip to South Cove to buy them, as well as get some coffee and cheesecake. I had most of the inside tables filled with groups, as well as all of the outside tables.
Between making coffee and dishing up treats, I was busy through the late morning. When Denyse from the Senior Project came up to the coffee bar, I’d just grabbed a cup of coffee and was sneaking bites out of a chocolate chip oatmeal cookie. I figured it counted as a breakfast food if you just looked at the oatmeal part.
“Jill, I didn’t realize this place was such a popular spot. I should make plans to pop in for coffee on my way to work. I have a condo south of here.” Denyse picked up one of the seasonal books I kept at the counter to tempt impulse shoppers. “ʻFall on Highway 1.’ What a great concept. I’ve always wanted to write a book. Are you an author too?”
“No, my love is reading. I think writing the book would strip all the magic away from the story for me.” I set down my cup. “What can I get for you?”
“A large coffee to go. A girl has to watch her figure.” She glanced over at the bookshelves. “You don’t have any travel books, do you?”
“A whole section. My aunt curates those herself. She loves to travel, even though she’s stayed closer to home the last few years.” I poured the coffee and nodded toward the bookshelf. I waved away the plastic she offered to use to pay. “It’s the one on the back wall behind the couch. Take this while you browse and pay me when you’re ready to leave. That way, if you decide on a book, you only ha
ve to run your card once.”
“Well, aren’t you the trusting one.” Denyse pulled out an envelope and handed it to me. “These are the fraud pamphlets I found. I didn’t have your address because you didn’t fill out the intake form, but I remembered you said something about running this place. So I took the chance I’d run into you or your aunt.” She began to survey the shop again. “Do you think there are any books on South America? I hear the beaches down there are beautiful and not crowded yet.”
“Thanks for these. I’ll look them over when it slows down. I’m sure there are books on Mexico and Central America, but I bet you’ll find what you need. My aunt loved traveling.” I tucked the envelope under the counter.
“It must have been hard for her to curtail her adventures after the Ponzi scheme. There’s a special place in the afterlife for people like that.” Denyse took her coffee and wandered over to the travel section.
I watched her go. Something she’d said had bothered me. I couldn’t put my finger on it. Maybe it was because it hit so close to home. I did feel bad that my aunt couldn’t travel, even though I didn’t know what I’d do with the shop without her. As much as I complained, she had saved my bacon several times because of her extensive knowledge.
“Miss Gardner?”
I turned to see a man with a tool belt and a clipboard waiting for me. Brad had come in earlier that morning from Bakerstown Lock and Key. He handed me four sets of keys. “I just finished up the apartment upstairs. Here are the keys for all four doors upstairs and down, but I’d consider setting up an actual security system. I don’t install those, but I can send out a guy from our company who will give you an estimate of what it might cost.”
“I’d love to see some information.” I grabbed envelopes. “These two are for upstairs?”
He dug for some information on his clipboard. “Yeah, the ones on the left are for the back door, then the ones next to those are the inside door, and the others are for the two locks down here. The downstairs locks all have the same key.”