Miz Scarlet and the Bewildered Bridegroom

by Barton, Sara M.

  I went through the tasks on automatic pilot. It helped to stay busy. As my hands worked, I let my mind roll over the facts of the case, and as I did, my fear started to dissipate. Maybe we were giving too much credit to our harassers. If their job was to chase us out of Cheswick, because Karin wanted to take over both of the Googins mansions, maybe they were more intent on the drama than the danger.

  Just after three, while I was rolling out my pastry crust, Edna showed up in the kitchen with her book in hand, on her way out to the garden to read for a while.

  “I just want you to know where I am, just in case you need me.”

  Those words reminded me that we weren’t quite out of the woods yet as far as trouble was concerned. With a request to keep an eye out for suspicious activity, I encouraged Edna to find a comfortable seat and enjoy her book.

  “And if you finish it, feel free to help yourself to the sequel.”

  “There’s a sequel?”

  “Yes,” I laughed. “You’re welcome to borrow it for your trip to Boston, Edna.”

  “I might just do that,” she told me cheerfully, as she headed towards the back door.

  She spent the remainder of the afternoon on a chaise lounge, in the shade of a big copper beech tree down by the pond. I checked on her from time to time, tempted to snap a photo of the reclining reader for Larry. My workaholic friend would never believe me if I told her that Edna was actually relaxing outdoors, without a broom or dust rag in hand.

  Just after six, as the gang gathered on the patio, Bur fired up the grill. Kenny poured the mai tais while I threaded the shrimp onto skewers and brought them out to my brother on a platter. I made a second trip outside with the corn before returning to the sun porch. It was a comfortable night, so I opened all the windows, letting in the light breeze, and pushed two tables together to accommodate the large group. Jenny threw a pair of red-and-white checkered tablecloths on and arranged the place settings.

  My mother and Thaddeus sat outside with Ruth and Lacey, keeping my brother company. I could hear the genial conversation as they swapped stories.

  Jenny, meanwhile, took all three dogs for a trip through the woods. “We’ll be about twenty minutes. Call me if you need me.”

  Edna insisted on making herself useful in the kitchen, so I put her in charge of the hors d’oeuvres. I pulled the crab-stuffed mushrooms from the oven and left it to her to plate them, and then I pulled the cheese board down from the cupboard, grabbed the sliced cheddar and seedless grapes from the refrigerator, and opened a fresh package of whole wheat crackers.

  “There you go,” I smiled. “It’s show time!”

  “Scarlet, do you have any fresh parsley? I thought it would be nice to garnish the mushrooms.”

  I reached into the crisper drawer and retrieved a handful of greenery.

  “Do you have a sharp knife handy?” she wanted to know. With a quick chop of the blade, she minced the herb and sprinkled it on top of the mushrooms. “That’s better.”

  “Nice touch, Edna.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  I followed her to the back door and held it open while she stepped down and carried the platters out to the patio. I went back to the kitchen to finish my preparations, the only one still inside the house, save for Max, who was still up in the attic storage room, keeping watch.

  Through the open kitchen window, I could hear the occasional howl of laughter. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. You’d never guess we’d had so many calamities in such a short time.

  I put the tossed salad into small bowls, arranged cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, and pitted black olives on top and put these on a serving tray along with a pair of small pitchers containing salad dressing. I carried the tray to the sun porch, placed a bowl of salad at each place setting, and set the dressings in the middle of the table. After adding ice to the goblets, I filled those with water. “Now we’re ready to eat.”

  Glancing out the window, I could see my brother hadn’t yet put the shrimp on the grill. I had time for a quick trip to the powder room. I headed down the hallway and rounded the corner in time to see a sight that chilled me to the bone. A masked man was tiptoeing up the front staircase. Dressed in black, with rubber-soled shoes, his furtive behavior gave me a bad case of the chilly willies. Knees knocking, I quickly contemplated my options. I could scream. It was possible the family would hear me and come running. Or I could bolt down the hall and make my escape, joining the others outside. That seemed to be my best option.

  Before I could flee, a hand covered my mouth and another hand wrapped around my waist. I felt myself dragged into the powder room.

  “You’ve got bad timing, Scarlet!”

  “Max!” I exclaimed.

  “Shush! For heaven’s sake, be quiet!” he hissed at me.

  “But there’s a man sneaking upstairs!” I whispered back, trying to get free. He didn’t let go.

  “I know. I want him to think he’s getting away with it!”

  “Oh. You do?” I asked. Max nodded and then released his too-tight grip on me. The moment his hands were at his sides in the narrow confines of the tiny powder room, I shook myself off and sorted myself out. “Who is he?”

  “He’s the guy who’s supposed to cause trouble for the Four Acorns Inn. Now, I need you to go back to the kitchen and act like nothing’s wrong. Can you do that?”

  “But....”

  “Can you?”

  “I guess so.”

  “I mean it, Scarlet. Don’t blow this lead for us. Not a word to anyone.”

  “Should I send Ruth in to see you?”

  “No,” he growled, exasperated. “Go back to your canapés and cordials! I have work to do!”

  With that, I found myself manhandled out into the foyer, propelled by a very ungentlemanly shove. This was not the usual Max Weingarten behavior. I made a mental note to remind him of this fact once the matter of the intruder had been resolved.

  I was nearly back in the kitchen when I remembered that I hadn’t done what I set out to do.

  “Shoot!” I mumbled, wondering if I could get through dinner without a trip to the powder room. There was no way. “Well, I can’t go back there now; can I?”

  My only other option was to use the attached bathroom in the library. With great care, I returned to the hallway, hugging the wall, and ducked into the room. Padding past the bookshelves, I entered the bathroom, hoping Max wouldn’t hear me and read me the riot act. A few moments later, while washing my hands, I happened to glance out the window and saw a flash of movement. Keeping myself concealed behind the curtain, I took another peek. Sure enough, the masked man leaving by the front door and I was just in time to see him remove his mask.

  “Son of a....” I was so stunned by the revelation that you could have knocked me over with a feather. I even took another look out the window, just to be sure. Not only did I know the identity of the intruder, I knew where he lived and worked.

  Of course, now that I knew who the creep was, I was no longer scared. Oh no. Instead, I was furious. In fact, I was so furious, it was all I could do to keep my mouth shut during dinner.

  Luckily, Bur was busy extolling his virtues as grill master, amusing the dinner crowd with his stories of steaks and Shirazes he had known and loved. As usual, the ladies fluffed up his feathers and told him what a great job he had done.

  “I personally like the grilled shrimp,” Edna informed him. “These were done to perfection.”

  “Another of my specialties,” he crowed.

  As soon as I could, I began to clear the table, removing the empty plates. I carried them into the kitchen and got busy with a pot of coffee.

  “Is something wrong?” Jenny came into the kitchen, looking concerned.

  “No.” I got out the peach pie and began to slice and plate it.

  “Are you mad at me?” She wasn’t about to drop it and I didn’t trust myself to speak. I shook my head. “Oh, did you and Kenny have a fight?”

  What was worse,
spitting out a secret I didn’t think Jenny should know or lying to the teen? Was it so terrible to let her think Captain Peacock and I had a lovers’ tiff? I tried to cover all my bases with a non-committal shrug and a generic comment. The only thing I could think to say was, “I’ll work it out.”

  Jenny returned to the dining room to retrieve the rest of the dishes and silverware in anticipation of serving dessert, no doubt relieved to escape my dark countenance.

  I filled the coffee pot with water, stuck a filter in the basket, and added ground coffee. Flipping the switch, I got the brewing process going before I pulled out a carton of vanilla bean ice cream from the freezer, to let it soften while I loaded the dishwasher. My mind was still on our intruder. I longed to throttle him within an inch of his life.

  “Is something wrong?” Kenny came in, no doubt tipped off by my assistant.

  “This isn’t the time,” I barely managed to mutter before I clenched my teeth, refusing to say more.

  “Did I do something to upset you?” he wondered.

  “No,” I replied, scooping out little balls of vanilla bean ice cream on each plate. He was standing in my way. “Do you mind?”

  “Do I mind?” He sounded baffled. I handed him the coffee carafe. “Wow, you’re in a foul mood!”

  “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet,” I growled.

  I endured a long conversation on popular Boston activities and another on current movies worth seeing before I had a chance to escape. I hopped to my feet to pour a final round of coffee, brought Dr. Van Zandt and Bur more pie, and finally excused myself to go walk the dogs. No sooner had I harnessed and leashed them than I found Kenny at my elbow.

  “Let’s talk,” he suggested.

  “Let’s not,” I snapped.

  Chapter Nineteen --

  “What in heaven’s name have I done?” There was hurt in his voice. I gazed up at that face I adored and grimaced.

  “It isn’t you.”

  “Well then, who is it? Why are you so angry?”

  I glanced down the hallway. I could hear laughter emanating from the dining room. “Not here. Come with me.”

  We hurried down the hallway, leading the canine parade. Once inside the living room, I shut the door.

  “Okay,” he said, crossing his arms, a frown now on his face. “What’s going on?”

  “Do you know who broke in here just a little while ago?”

  “Huh?”

  “We had an intruder just before dinner. Max grabbed me and pulled me into the powder room. He insisted that I do nothing. Do you know who that intruder was?”

  “Ah...this is the first I’m hearing about this, Scarlet.”

  “It was none other than Bobby Zarelli!” I growled through clenched teeth, no longer able to contain my wrath.

  “Okay.” Kenny still seemed confused. “And who is Bobby Zarelli?”

  “I had Neil Kradic and Bobby Zarelli in my homeroom when I taught high school. I never expected any loyalty from Neil Kradic, but Bobby Zarelli?”

  “I’m still not getting the root of your anger here, babe.”

  “I tutored Bobby every day after school for four freaking weeks just so he could graduate with his class. I busted my fanny to get him caught up. And this is the thanks I get? He puts on a mask and breaks into my home? He threatens Lacey with death?”

  “You’re sure it was him?” Kenny took hold of my elbows, pulling me close, as he stared intently at me. “You’re positive?”

  “Yes, I’m positive. Why? You don’t believe me?”

  “Oh, I believe you, Miz Scarlet.” He planted a kiss on my right cheek, and then another one on my lips, his mouth lingering. “Did Kradic and Zarelli ever hang out together?”

  “They were inseparable, like conjoined twins. They lived on the same street and went everywhere together.”

  “What does Zarelli do now?”

  “I’m so glad you asked, Kenny,” I said through clenched teeth. I was spitting mad. “Bobby Zarelli works at Moriarty’s Hardware Store. You remember last week when my set of inn keys went missing? I never lose things, Kenny, never...or rarely anyway. I thought I put my keys in the basket on the hall table, but I couldn’t find them anywhere. I went down to Moriarty’s and that little cheese weasel cut me another set!”

  “The Wilkies must have snatched them. That explains why the gang had such an easy time of breaking in here. They have a set of inn keys,” he groaned, plunking himself down on the sofa. “Oh man.”

  “Tomorrow, I’m marching down there and I’m going to....”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “I most certainly am!”

  “Scarlet, take a breath. You need to think this through. Work with me.”

  “Work with you? The only work I want to do is a tap dance all over that skunk!”

  “Big picture,” he said. “Step back and think for a moment. These guys are breaking in here with a set of keys, and that’s pretty bad, but who paid them to do that?”

  “They’re being paid?”

  “I’m pretty sure they are. They have a game plan; otherwise, why keep coming back here? I don’t think this is about what happened in high school. Someone hired them to ruin the Four Acorns Inn. Now that we know who’s doing the heavy lifting, we can use this to uncover the identity of the brains behind the operation.”

  “But why can’t we have them arrested?”

  “Do you want whoever is doing this to you to hire someone else? Sure, Kradic and Zarelli are creeps, honey, and they definitely need to answer for what they did, but I think it’s more important to find out what’s going on and why. These guys are small fries. We want the big fish.”

  “We do?” I was already feeling the wind go out of my sails. He nodded.

  “We do.”

  “I suppose,” I sighed. “But I’d still like to kick his....” I didn’t get a chance to finish that sentence. Kenny was nibbling on my neck, and at the rate he was moving towards my ear, I was likely to be occupied for some time.

  January trotted over to me and pawed my knee. I leaned over and tickled her chin. “Is it time for a tinkle, little girl?”

  We took the dogs out and walked them on the sidewalk, making a loop around the neighborhood, our heads bent in quiet conversation. Kenny had already rejected my idea of changing all the locks at the Four Acorns Inn.

  “Not necessary,” he insisted. “The other day, Max and I set up video cameras to monitor the exterior doors and the interior hallways. It lets us keep tabs on what rooms they visit when they sneak into the inn.”

  “So?”

  “So what, Scarlet?”

  “Whose room did the creep enter a little while ago?” I demanded. I got a shrug in return.

  “Max knows,” Kenny replied. “He’s the guy on watch at the moment.”

  “That’s probably why he was so rude to me,” I decided, almost willing to forgive his cranky commands. “He thought I’d blow it and start a scene.”

  “More like blow up and start a scene,” Kenny corrected me.

  “What?”

  “Well, you have been known to do such things in the past.”

  “I beg your pardon, Captain Peacock!” I retorted, poking him in the side. “Are you suggesting I’m a hot head?”

  “Might I remind you of your behavior all through dinner?” he pointed out. “You could have opened spa with all that steam you were spouting.”

  “Very funny!”

  “And yet true. You were ready to rip Zarelli apart with your bare hands. Poor Jenny is still convinced you’re mad at her. She’s terrified she’s on your bad side.”

  “Oh, please! Am I that scary?” I caught sight of the face he made at me as we passed under a street light. “You make it sound like I’m impossible!”

  “You’re not impossible, love, just feisty. I have no doubt that, when the time is right, Zarelli’s going to learn a very big lesson.”

  “There’s an understatement,” I grimaced. “By the time I’m through with h
im, he’s going to beg the judge to put him behind bars.”

  “As long as it’s legal, I’m okay with that.”

  Kenny joined the others for the Red Sox game in the living room. Max was still holed up in the attic storage room, keeping an eye on the monitor. I took advantage of the opportunity and sat Jenny down for a quiet talk in the kitchen. I grabbed a bag of my famous cookie dough from the freezer and baked a batch while I explained my unusual behavior. By the time I finished, she was solidly in my corner.

  “I can’t believe those guys did that to you. How mean is that? Tell me what you want me to do, Miz Scarlet, and I’ll do it.”

  “I’ll let you know.” I gave her a quick hug. “Just remember that we’re not supposed to let on that we know. If you run into these guys, you’re going to have to pretend you don’t know who they are.”

  “No problem,” she told me. “I’ve got to go. Hammerhead’s supposed to pick me up. We’re going to the movies tonight.”

  “That sounds like fun.”

  “It will be, as long as the tires don’t get popped.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, Jen. I hate that you have to worry about things like that.”

  “At least now we know what’s going on. Is it okay if I tell Hammerhead?”

  “Can you trust him to keep it a secret?”

  “I think so.”

  “In that case, it’s okay to tell him. Just don’t do it in public, where those goons might catch wind of it. And be careful tonight. I want you home in one piece.”

  “I promise,” she called over her shoulder on her way out the door.

  After finishing up a few little tasks downstairs, I headed up to the third floor, with a Thermos of coffee and a plate of cookies for Max.

  “This is a nice surprise. Thanks.”He sank his teeth into the still warm chocolate chip treat and gave an involuntary moan. “Delicious. I’m sorry about giving you the bum’s rush earlier. Are we good, Scarlet?”