Caramel Sundae & Murder: An Oceanside Cozy Mystery Book 40

by Susan Gillard

  "This makes it seem as if Tom Horn knew his killer and let him inside," said Heather.

  Amy groaned. "We came here thinking that we were going to find Vanessa Horn's killer. Now we just have another crime on our hands. I thought this might've been an easy case."

  "No such luck," Heather agreed. "Because I feel like I just gained more questions instead of answers."

  Caramel Sundae Suspicions

  The next day Heather sat at a table at Donut Delights picking out a Caramel Sundae Donut. Amy was also picking her brain about the case. They had thought that finding Tom Horn would make the job easier, but it seemed to have the opposite effect.

  They had received an update from the hospital. Tom Horn had survived the night, but he was still unconscious. He was still in critical condition, but the doctors were hopeful that he might be able to pull through. The investigators were hoping that he would wake up and could provide some information on who had hurt him.

  However, because it seemed like that want to be happening soon, they had to focus their investigation elsewhere.

  "I wish we had more to go on," said Amy. "Like an eyewitness."

  "That might end up happening," said Heather in between bites of her delicious donut. "But until then will need to focus on what we found at the scene."

  "Well, Ryan already told us that there were no fingerprints on the lamp. I wish killers would get sloppy and forget to wipe off the murder weapon."

  "Me too," Heather agreed. "They did look for other fingerprints in Tom Horn's house, and maybe something there will reveal who had been in his house recently."

  "You really think that it was someone that he knew who attacked him?"

  Heather nodded. "Since there was no sign of a break-in, it was probably someone that he knew and let inside."

  "And how does this relate to Vanessa Horn's murder?" Amy asked as she tapped the table, thinking about it. "It has to relate, doesn't it? Because of Skip?"

  "Well," Heather said. "I think it does have to relate, but there are many different scenarios."

  "I think we might need some more donuts in order to discuss them all," Amy said with a smile.

  Heather was never one to say no to fresh donuts. She also thought that a full stomach helped her think when it came to difficult cases. She was about to fetch them to more Caramel Sundae Donuts when Janae came by their table.

  "Nina and I finished the online order for the Sweet 16," she reported. "The van should be here any minute to pick it up."

  "Thank you for finishing the baking," Heather said. "I think it was a great idea for a party to have sixteen different types of donuts, but it was a lot of work."

  "It sure makes the thought of getting older seem better if you get as many donuts as your years on your birthday," Amy joked. "Eva and Leila would certainly luck out."

  "Is there anything else you would like me to work on now?" Janae asked. "It looks like Digby has the customers here taken care of."

  "I was about to get us more Caramel Sundae Donuts," Heather said.

  "I can take care of that," Janae said. "You stay here and try to figure out who's committing these terrible deeds in town. I'll be right back."

  "Such wonderful service, that Donut Delights," Amy teased.

  Heather smiled because it really was true. However, she intended to make use of the time that Janae had offered and decided to focus on the case.

  "The first scenario that I can think of is that the same person killed Vanessa Horn and attacked Tom Horn," Heather said.

  "But why and when did he drop Skip off with Jamie?" Asked Amy. "Did he know that his ex-wife had been killed and decided to focus on his dog?"

  "That's a very important question that we need to solve," said Heather wrinkling her nose as she tried to think of solutions. "It's possible that Tom Horn didn't notice the blood on Skip's fur because of the mud."

  "So the killer disguised the mess on Skip, and Tom Horn just saw a dirty dog."

  "Right. But Jamie's missing cell phone does complicate things. That makes it seem as if Tom Horn knew about the murder. And if that's the case, then it seems more likely that he was the one to try and hide the blood."

  "Does that mean he's the killer?" Asked Amy. "Maybe we really did solve one mystery and what happened to Tom Horn is unrelated."

  "I think, I'm just not sure exactly how," Heather mused. "That it's possible that Tom Horn killed his ex-wife. Maybe someone learned this and decided to seek revenge."

  "That might explain the two different weapons," Amy said excitedly, realizing an oddity in the case.

  "You're right," Heather agreed. "If someone had a gun and had already used it, why would they decide to switch weapons? Unless the lamp was used because it was the closest object nearby."

  "So if this was a case of vengeance, then we need to figure out who knew that Tom Horn was the killer."

  "But we also need to consider the robbery aspect," Heather said thinking aloud. "The safe was robbed at the house. If Tom Horn had wanted to kill his ex-wife and just wanted to stage it like a robbery, why did you go for the safe? He should have known that it wasn't common knowledge that something was hidden behind the painting. It makes it look at as if someone she knew robbed her."

  "That does defeat the purpose of staging a murder to look like a robbery," Amy said. "If it's just going to point things back at you on a shortlist of people who knew about the valuables inside the safe."

  "But I'm not sure that it really was a robbery," said Heather. "Not since Tom Horn was also attacked."

  "Okay. But who should we consider as suspects right now?"

  "Well," Heather said. "I'm pretty sure it was someone that both of the Horns knew."

  "So we have to look into both of them as victims," Amy said with a nod.

  Then, Janae returned with their donuts. The investigators happily accepted them, and Heather offered a chair for her assistant to sit down in for a few minutes.

  "Thanks," Janae said as she took her seat. "Because there was something I wanted to talk to you about."

  "Don't tell me there's another dead or pre-dead body around here," Amy muttered.

  "No," Janae said with a chuckle. "It's a completely different type of thing I wanted to talk about."

  "Go ahead," Heather said.

  "Well," Janae said looking down. "I know that you saw the background picture of my phone with Fire Frank and I. I've been thinking more and more about it, and I decided that I really do have to move on. And I wanted you to know that I made this decision. Because I think you were surprised to see that photo. So now I'm going to do this with you here beside me."

  She removed her cell phone from a pocket and deleted the photo with the defiant tap on her screen. Amy applauded. Heather patted her on the back. Janae replaced the photo with the neutral picture of a bike and then smiled.

  "I miss him terribly, but he doesn't want to be with me anymore. It doesn't really matter that the reason was because of a terrible fire. He still doesn't want to be with me. I need to accept that."

  "I'm still very sorry that this happened," said Heather. "But I think you're handling it admirably. You're going to be all right."

  "I've just been trying not to dwell on him. In fact, I started thinking about dating other people. It's just a shame that Detective Peters is dating someone now. I know he used to like me, and he seems like a good man."

  "I'm sure you'll find the right person for you," Heather said.

  "Sometimes it just takes a while. It took a long time for me to find Jamie," Amy said.

  "I know you're right," Janae said. "It's only that I thought Fire Frank was the right person. But I have to get over that line of thinking."

  Janae headed back to work to whip up some more icing in the kitchen. Heather and Amy finished up their donuts and tried to decide what to do next for the case.

  "How do we go about finding out who could've done this?" Asked Amy.

  "Well," Heather answered. "I think we should return to the scene of
the crime. And then move one door over. "

  Friend and Neighbor

  Heather and Amy found themselves in the living room of Vanessa Horns next-door neighbor Mrs. Biddle, where they found themselves learning an awful lot about her and not as much about the couple. Heather was trying to steer the conversation towards the day of the murder, but Mrs. Biddle kept talking about her oldest cat's paw problems.

  "Yes. Poor Fluffy," said Heather.

  "And poor Vanessa Horn too," muttered Amy. "She was murdered after all."

  "Did you know your neighbor very well?" Asked Heather.

  Mrs. Biddle pet I calico cat that climbed onto her lap.

  "We would say hello in passing," the older woman said. "But we didn't get together for tea or anything like that. I know she was divorced. There was a big ruckus when her husband left."

  "Really?" Asked Heather.

  "That's right," said Mrs. Biddle nodding knowingly. "He said something about jewels. He was very angry about her keeping them I believe."

  "I bet she kept them in her safe," said Amy.

  "I don't know," said Mrs. Biddle. "But that would certainly make sense."

  "Was Tom Horn ever violent?" Asked Heather.

  "No, no," said Mrs. Biddle. "I never saw anything like that. And he was very gentle and loving to that beast of theirs."

  "You mean their dog?" Asked Amy, raising an eyebrow.

  "That dog is a little hellion," said Mrs. Biddle raising a small fist. "He's always barking at my poor kitties."

  Heather realize this might be the way to get the woman talking about the murder.

  "Was he barking horribly the day that Vanessa died?" Asked Heather.

  "He was making quite a ruckus. In retrospect, I feel a little bad about it. I was cursing him under my breath, but I didn't realize that there was an actual reason for him to bark. I didn’t know that my neighbor was in trouble."

  "Did you hear gunfire that day?" Asked Amy.

  "No. I don’t believe I did. Then again, I might not have heard anything over the sound of my air-conditioner, the dog barking, and my kitties wanting a snack."

  "But Skip was being very loud?" Heather repeated.

  "Oh yes," Mrs. Biddle said. "At first he made a few of those loud yelp sounds that I'm told means he's happy. He was quiet for a little while. And then I heard him barking and howling in the backyard. I was about to go over and tell Vanessa she had to bring the dog inside when someone did just that."

  "Did you see what was?" Asked Amy.

  "No," said Mrs. Biddle. "I assumed it was Vanessa. But it could've been someone at her house. There wasn't an extra car in her driveway. There were some cars further up the street. I thought they were beachgoers. But now knowing that there was a killer on the block, I think it's possible that it could've been the murderer's car."

  "Could you describe those cars at all?" Asked Heather.

  "I'm afraid not. Cars all look very similar to me. But they were cars and not big vans or trucks. There were at least two further down the street. And the colors were neutral. I don't really remember what they were, but they weren't anything obnoxious. Otherwise, I would've remembered."

  Amy frowned. She was a big fan of cars, especially fast ones. Heather knew that she couldn't understand how someone could think they were all exactly the same. It is also frustrating because Mrs. Biddle hadn’t noticed the license plate, which could've given them a new prime suspect.

  "Do you know if either of those cars could have belonged to Mr. Horn?" Asked Heather.

  "No. I just don't remember what his car looked like. They all look so similar these days." Mrs. Biddle pet her cats and started to tell investigators about the different breeds that they were.

  Amy muttered to her partner, "Mrs. Biddle can tell us a million different types of black cat, but she can't tell us any differences between cars."

  "Do you know if the Horns had any enemies?" Asked Heather.

  "I am afraid I wouldn't know anything about that," Mrs. Biddle said. "They seemed like a nice enough couple. And after the man left, Vanessa was friendly enough. It was just that their dog was so loud that I had a problem with them."

  "Do you own a gun?" Heather asked.

  "No!" Mrs. Biddle exclaimed. "I wouldn't have one of those things near all my kitties. What if they came across it and set it off?"

  "Well, you could keep it locked up," said Amy. "I doubt a cat could open a locked box."

  "My cats are very intelligent," Mrs. Biddle said looking affronted.

  "You were home all day on the day that Vanessa Horn was murdered?" Asked Heather.

  "That's right," said Mrs. Biddle. "I don't leave my house very often these days. I get the things I need delivered here."

  "You didn't notice anything at all suspicious that day?" Heather asked.

  "No," said Mrs. Biddle. "It seemed like a normal enough day. But of course, it wasn't. I am sorry I don't have more information to share. You know who you should really talk to? Melissa."

  "Who's that?" Asked Amy.

  "Melissa Felcher I believe," said Mrs. Biddle. "She was Vanessa's best friend. She used to come over all the time. I remember her because she was so kind to my cats. Barney got loose one day, and she helped me get him out of the tree. I bet she knows all about the Horns. She is really the one you should be talking to."

  Heather and Amy exchanged a look.

  "I sure wish you would've told us that before she told us all about Fluffy's feet problems," said Amy.

  Tears Shed

  "Can I help you?" A woman with short dark hair asked opening her door.

  "Are you Melissa Felcher?" Heather asked.

  "That's right," she said eyeing them suspiciously.

  "I'm Heather Shepherd, and this is Amy Givens. We are private investigators assisting the Key West police with their current case. Do you mind if we ask you some questions?"

  "What case is this?" Melissa asked.

  "We're here about Vanessa Horn," Heather answered.

  Melissa opened the door wide and gestured for them to enter. "Yes. Of course. Come on in."

  Melissa brought them into her living room and showed them to some seats. It had a pleasant smell to the room, as some lavender plants were placed on the mantelpiece next to some photos. She dabbed her eyes as she sat with them.

  "I'm sorry," she said. "Vanessa was one of my dearest friends. I've been trying not to think about what happened because it's too painful. But of course, I want to catch the person responsible for it. I'll help you as best I can."

  "You know anyone who would want to hurt Vanessa Horn?" Asked Heather.

  Melissa shook her head. "The only person I can think of had a problem with Vanessa was her ex-husband. But they've been divorced for about a year now. I can't see him snapping all of a sudden. Even though they did have problems."

  "What sort of problems?" Asked Amy, as she took her tablet out of her bag to take notes on the interview.

  "The usual sort of things that husbands and wives fight over," said Melissa with a shrug. "Tom never seemed to be very good with money. And Vanessa thought he might've been having an affair."

  "Do you think he was?" Asked Amy.

  "Probably not," said Melissa. "But Vanessa was convinced he was."

  "After the divorce, they see each other often?" Asked Heather.

  "Not often," Melissa said. "But Tom did come over occasionally to walk Skip. Vanessa won the dog in the divorce settlement because of her great backyard, but Tom was able to see him every so often. They both loved that stupid dog."

  "Then neither of them would've been able to hurt him," Amy said with a significant look at Heather.

  "According to the records that the police have found, neither of the Horns owned a firearm. Does that sound right to you?" Asked Heather.

  Melissa thought about it. "I don't think they had a gun in the house, but I think it would've been easy for them to get one off the record."

  "You mean illegally," said Amy.

 
; "That's right," Melissa said. "Tom's brother seemed to run with a crowd of criminals. I bet he could've gotten them a gun."

  "It's very interesting," said Heather. "Vanessa Horn was shot."

  "I just can't believe someone who knew her would hurt her," Melissa said dabbing at her eyes again. "She was such a nice person. I think it had to be a stranger. No one who knew her could've shot her."

  "You don't think her husband could've done it?" Asked Amy.

  "I don't know. He seems like a good guy at first. But maybe I never really knew him that well."

  "What about Tom's brother that you mentioned?" Asked Heather. "Could he have hurt Vanessa?"

  "Maybe," Melissa admitted. "I didn't know him. I just knew of him. And it always sounded like trouble."

  "Sounds like someone we should talk to," Amy said quietly to her partner.

  Heather nodded and then turned back to Melissa.

  "Where were you on the day that Vanessa Horn was killed?" Heather asked.

  "You can't think that I had anything to do with her death," Melissa said starting to cry again. "She was my best friend."

  "We just want to establish where everyone who knew her was," Heather said. "We can eliminate people as suspects that way too. But we believe that the person who killed her was someone who knew her."

  "I still can't believe that," said Melissa. "Are you sure it wasn't just a robbery?"

  "That goes hand-in-hand," said Heather. "What was stolen was from a hidden safe - we don't believe everyone knew about it."

  "I see," Melissa said. "But Vanessa did have jewels. Maybe the robber forced her to tell them the location."

  "That is possible," said Heather. "But neither of the crime scenes we went to appeared to have forced entry. The victims let the killer inside."

  "More than one crime scene?" Asked Melissa. She reached for another tissue to dry her eyes.

  "That's right," said Heather. "Tom Horn was also attacked."

  "I can't believe they're both dead," Melissa said. She rose to her feet and walked over to her mantelpiece. She picked up the picture frame that was closest to her vase of lavender. It was a photo of her and the Horn couple in their backyard. She had her arm around both of them, smiling at the camera. It looked as if they had been at a barbecue.