Murdered By Wine: A Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery (Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series Book 13)

by Dianne Harman

  He walked around his desk and shook both of their hands and then opened the door.

  After they got in their car, Kelly said, “Mike, what did you think of him?”

  “I liked him, and I feel sorry for him. I’ve been in that predicament where you’d really like to spend your time going after the person you consider to be of interest, but you can’t start with them until you’ve done all your due diligence or some sharp lawyer will tear your case to shreds when it goes to court. I just hope we can help.”

  “We will. What do you think we should do next?”

  “I’d like to go out to the winery and talk to the manager of the Moretti Winery and vineyards. He might have thought of something, and he probably knows as much about what goes on there as anyone.”

  “Good idea. Glad the sheriff said we could use his name. That might give you some credibility with him.”

  CHAPTER 18

  When Kelly and Mike arrived at the Moretti Winery, a number of law enforcement personnel were just finishing up their investigation. Mike walked over to the man who seemed to be in charge and introduced himself.

  “Hi, I’m Sheriff Reynolds visiting here from Oregon,” Mike said as he showed the deputy sheriff his identification. “I just spent some time with Sheriff Dawson, and I’ll be lending a hand with the investigation while I’m here. Find anything of interest?”

  “Nothing that would point to who did it, assuming she didn’t just accidentally fall in the wine vat. From talking to the manager and the tour guide, both of whom seemed to know her well, she was far too careful to let something like that happen. I think it’s a pretty safe assumption she was pushed in. Wish I had more to tell you and Sheriff Dawson. Maybe we’ll get lucky with some of the prints.”

  “Well, good luck. This won’t be easy. I heard there weren’t any signs of trauma on the body when she was pulled out of the vat.”

  “That’s correct, sir, which is another reason we believe she was pushed into the vat. The coroner is doing an autopsy on her to see if she was poisoned or if she had some medical issue that caused her to fall in the vat, possibly a stroke or a heart attack.”

  “I’m assuming you’ve talked to her husband about any health issues she might have had. How is he doing?”

  “He’s in shock. He says his wife was in excellent health, and that just corroborates our thoughts that this wasn’t an accident. He said he planned on spending the next few hours calling family members in Italy. He said his wife had made so many friends in the valley that he thought he should hold the funeral here, rather in Italy. He also said he thought her family would probably hold some type of memorial service for her at their village church. It’s a sad situation.”

  “I agree. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.”

  Kelly and Mike walked up the steps to where the winery offices and tasting room were located. Kelly turned and paused for a second. “Mike, why don’t you go talk to Jim? I want to see how Josie is doing.”

  “Sure. Let’s meet here on the porch when we’re finished. I don’t think it will take too long,” he said as he opened the door. “As I recall from yesterday, Josie said the manager’s office was down this hall.”

  Kelly retraced her earlier footsteps and knocked on Josie’s door. In response to “Who is it?” she answered, “Josie, it’s me, Kelly Reynolds. My husband is helping Sheriff Dawson, and he wanted to talk with Jim, so I came with him. I thought I’d pop by and see how you are doing.”

  When she entered, she saw Josie sitting at her desk and noticed how pale she was. “Come on in, Kelly. In answer to your question, I’m doing okay. It’s hard when your best friend has died and was probably murdered. I kind of feel like I can’t trust anyone, and that’s a new feeling for me.”

  “I can well imagine. I see that Foxie has bonded with you,” Kelly said, referring to the dog that was fast asleep on Josie’s lap.

  “Yeah, poor little girl. She and Angela were very close. Angela took her everywhere she went, even put her in the car when she had to go into town. I’m glad she’s accepting me. I can’t imagine anything worse than seeing someone you love murdered.”

  “From that statement, I take it that you’ve had time to think about it, and you’re pretty sure Angela was murdered.”

  Josie’s eyes met Kelly’s. “No, I’m not pretty sure. I am absolutely certain. Angela was a stickler for safety. When she came to work here, she borrowed a handyman from Jim. He does all kinds of repair things around here, from fixing a sagging fence to repairing a broken water main. He’s really a jack-of-all trades. Anyway, she had him do some research to find out what could be applied to the steps leading up to the top of the vats that would provide a rough surface, so she wouldn’t slip. Angela was that kind of a person. Nothing was too small to escape her attention if it involved safety. No, there is absolutely no way she would have slipped and fallen into the vat.”

  Kelly sat down and took some peppermints from her purse. Opening the pack, she offered one to Josie. “I understand the coroner is going to do an autopsy and some tests to see if Angela had a medical problem that could have caused her to fall. I guess he’s also going to see if there were any foreign substances in her body as well.”

  “In my opinion that’s an utter waste of his time,” Josie said, sucking on the candy. “She had her annual checkup with her doctor last week, and I remember her telling me that the doctor said if all his patients were in as good as health she was in, he wouldn’t have a job.” She shook her head from side to side. “No, Angela did not have a medical problem.”

  “What about foreign substances, such as drugs or alcohol?” Kelly asked.

  Josie thought it over. “Once in a while she and I would share a glass of wine late in the day after my last wine tour, but we didn’t yesterday. On the infrequent occasions when we did that, the most wine she ever had was one glass. She limited her wine consumption because she said her palate needed to be sharp for her tasting of the wine in the vats or what she did on a revolving basis with the wines in the barrels.”

  “I see. She must have had an incredible ability to differentiate tastes.”

  “Angela had the most sophisticated palate of any wine person I’ve ever known. I would taste a wine and say it was fine, and I’ve had a lot of training. Not Angela. She would taste the same wine and throw away the bottle because to her taste, there was a hint of something off. I mean, no one who bought the wine would ever be able to taste it, but Angela could. It was pretty amazing.”

  “I would think she’d at least give the bottle to someone who probably couldn’t afford to buy it.”

  “No. Anything that came from this winery had to pass her exacting standards, and trust me, they were the most stringent I’ve seen in the wine industry. She was very clear that only the best wines would be available at the Moretti Winery and anything that was less was to be disposed of, and not by drinking it.”

  Kelly raised an eyebrow. “I’m sure a lot of owners wouldn’t have been all that happy with her philosophy. I’m guessing Signor Moretti was.”

  “Yes, he agreed completely. In his own way, he’s just as careful that this winery produces only the best wines. As a matter of fact, he called a little while ago and told me he was coming here to talk to Matteo about taking over Angela’s job.”

  “Isn’t that a little soon? Poor guy’s not going to have much time to grieve.”

  “That’s true. Angela told me once that there’s a saying in Italy that pasta waits for no man. She said that it should have been wine waits for no man, and there is some truth in that statement. Timing is everything in wine production, and even if there’s been a murder, the winemaking process must continue. Matteo is well aware of it.”

  “Two things, Josie, and then I won’t take up any more of your time. How do you feel about Matteo getting the job and secondly, you never answered my question about Angela and foreign substances?”

  Josie’s face became stern. “Let me start with the foreign substances,
because that’s so cut and dried it requires only a couple of words. Angela did not ever do drugs. That’s the answer, and I repeat, ever. As a matter of fact, she once laughed that she’d never even tried marijuana, and it was on her bucket list before she died.”

  “Okay, what about her relationship with Matteo? Maybe I should ask if there was another man in her life. She was quite attractive.”

  Josie looked away and was silent for a while before continuing. “Emphatically, there was no one else in her life, but Matteo. Angela adored him and in his own way, I think he adored her. As I mentioned this morning, he was jealous of her. Having him take over her position is going to be hard for me, but if he has the good of the winery at heart, then I’m sure it will work out. I’ll just feel a whole lot better about it when the murderer is found, and it’s not Matteo. I know he’s hurting, because he was crying when I called a little while ago to tell him Signor Moretti would be here later and wanted to talk to him.”

  “Is he at home now?”

  “He was when I called, and I haven’t seen his truck leave, so I’m assuming he is. Why?”

  “I’d like to talk to him and offer my condolences,” Kelly said, putting the peppermints back in her purse. “I think you mentioned yesterday that his house is the one on the end. Right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Thanks. I’m going to head up there. See you later,” Kelly said as she left Josie’s office and walked towards Matteo’s house.

  CHAPTER 19

  Kelly knocked on the door of the attractive red-tiled house with the cream-colored siding and pots of fall plants blooming in a riot of color on the steps and the porch. She wasn’t too surprised that it was neat and attractive, given what she’d heard about Angela.

  The door was opened by one of the handsomest men Kelly had ever seen. Her immediate thought was, If I were twenty years younger…

  The man standing in front of her had jet-black hair pulled back into a ponytail, soft brown eyes that looked like they’d recently been wet with tears, a smooth olive complexion, and was wearing a white tee shirt over jeans, which accentuated his muscular body.

  “Yes, may I help you?” he asked.

  “My name is Kelly Reynolds. I was on a tour here yesterday and briefly met your wife. I want to express my condolences.”

  “Thank you, please come in. I just got off the phone with relatives in Italy. It is not a happy day.”

  Kelly followed him inside. The small house was decorated in white throughout with a vibrant assortment of colorful accessories bringing the place to life. A hand painted vase containing cut wildflowers and a watercolor of the ocean next to a stack of old books clearly indicated a woman’s touch and a simple life lived well.

  “I can only imagine. Matteo, I know this is rather indelicate, but the sheriff’s department is treating Angela’s death as if the cause was possibly murder. My husband is a sheriff in Oregon, and we’re here for a short time. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, the people we were meeting here had to leave unexpectedly. When we found out about Angela’s death, my husband offered to help the sheriff. He’s talking to Jim, the winery manager, right now. I was wondering if you have anything to add to what you’ve already told the sheriff.”

  “Please sit down and forgive me for what the house looks like. Angela was a very exacting housekeeper, me not so much.” He stopped talking and looked down at his hands which were tightly clenched.

  Kelly moved some papers from the couch and sank back into its softness.

  Matteo remained standing, nervously pacing back and forth. He hesitated for a moment and then said, “I didn’t tell the sheriff or his deputy about something that happened yesterday between Angela and me, because I was afraid they would think I murdered her.”

  “Why would they think that?” Kelly asked.

  “Because I was very abrupt with Angela yesterday morning. I had what I guess you Americans would call a temper tantrum, and I became very angry with her. We’d had arguments and discussions about her being the winemaker here many times. After we had the argument yesterday, I stormed out. I knew what the sheriff would think, and I probably would have thought the same thing, but it wasn’t that way.”

  It was easy to see that Matteo was grieving deeply and trying not to fall apart in front of her. He took a long, deep breath before continuing.

  “I loved Angela more than anything in the world, but sometimes I just got angry about the winemaking. It’s kind of hard when your wife is more successful than you are, at least it was for me. It’s all my fault she died. You see, I often went with her to the vat barn. She’d take Foxie, and I’d go in the barn with her. It was an unwritten agreement that I wouldn’t interfere when she was tasting the wine, so I usually checked my email messages while she did her tastings.”

  “Why didn’t you go with her last night?” Kelly asked.

  “I was in town, buying a bouquet of flowers for her at the florist’s. After the way I’d acted yesterday morning, I knew I needed to do something special for her. I wanted it to be unique, so I asked the florist to make a bouquet that was like the one she carried down the aisle when we got married. She was so beautiful in that dress…” He started sobbing and put his head in his hands.

  I’m a pretty good judge of character, and I have one of the strongest feelings I’ve ever had that Matteo had nothing to do with Angela’s death, Kelly thought.

  Kelly stood up and walked over to him, laying her hand on his shoulder. “Matteo, if she was in fact murdered, I know there’s nothing I can do to make your pain go away, but I want you to know that I will do everything I can to make sure that the murderer is found and you’re no longer a suspect.”

  Matteo raised his hands in frustration. “What could you possibly do? This is an impossible situation. When you knocked on the door, I was sure it was the sheriff who had come to arrest me. You must believe me. I had nothing to do with Angela’s death, and I certainly didn’t murder her.”

  “Right now, I don’t know exactly what I can do, but I’m certain there is something. I told you my husband’s a sheriff. What I didn’t tell you is that I’ve helped him solve a number of murders in the past. I don’t know why, but I seem to have a knack for it. I understand that Signor Moretti is coming to talk to you in a little while. If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you some questions, so I can get started.”

  “Why are you doing this for me?” he asked, lifting his head from his hands.

  “I have a son who is away from home. Actually, he’s on a military tour of duty in Afghanistan. If he was ever accused of something, I would hope someone would help him. Other than that, I have no rational answer, it’s just something I feel I need to do.”

  “Thank you. I could tell when I talked to Angela’s parents, that although they didn’t say anything, they obviously wondered how I could allow this to happen or worse. Yes, perhaps they thought I was the murderer. You see, in Italy, we protect our women. I obviously didn’t. Not only is Angela dead, I’ve spoiled the Lucci name,” he said as tears again filled his eyes.

  “Matteo, you can’t go back. What’s done is done, but I think Angela would want more than anything for your name to be cleared, so let’s begin. You mentioned you were at a florist’s yesterday evening. Can you tell me when you were there and who helped you?”

  “Yes, I was at Paula’s Posies. It’s the florist that’s on the square in town. I know the name is kind of silly, but Paula told me once she gave her shop that name because it was easy to remember. Angela loved flowers, so I often bought bouquets for her. Paula was the one who helped me. I was there from about 6:30 to 7:30.”

  “That seems like an awfully long time to pick out a bouquet.”

  “It was. She even had to stay late because of me, but I’ve been a good customer. Like I told you, I was trying to do something really special and that was to try and duplicate all the flowers that were in her bridal bouquet the day we were married.”

  “And were you able to?” Kelly asked.


  “Yes, but it wasn’t easy. In fact, Paula did quite a big favor for me. She had previously made up several floral arrangements she was going to deliver today, but some of the flowers I wanted were only in those bouquets, so she had to take several apart. She said she would have one of the flower growers make a special delivery to her this morning to fill them back in.”

  “This has no relevance, Matteo, so forgive me, but my feminine curiosity would like to know what flowers Angela carried on her wedding day.”

  “It was a beautiful bouquet of white baby orchids, the palest pink baby roses, white freesias, and pale orchid roses. She had baby’s breath and ferns in it as well. It turned out just like when we were married.”

  Kelly had noticed the wedding photo of them on the fireplace mantle, a radiant Angela holding a bouquet exactly like the one Matteo had described. “So, you were with Paula that whole time? Is that correct?"

  “Yes. I got there about 6:30 and left her shop about 7:30. From Paula’s shop, I went to the chocolatier in town and bought a box of chocolate truffles, because they were Angela’s favorite.”

  “Who waited on you?”

  “The owner, Salvatore DeMarco. Since he’s from Italy, we’ve developed kind of a friendship, plus I go there every few months to buy truffles for Angela. He was the one who sold them to me last night.”

  “How long were you there?”

  “Probably fifteen minutes. We talked a little of this and that, nothing really important. He giftwrapped the truffles in a box and put a special bow on it. One of his helpers even admired it, so she can vouch for me as well.”

  “That covers the time from 6:30 to about 8:00. Would that be correct?”

  “Yes, as a matter of fact I looked at the clock in my truck when I pulled into the winery, and it was a few minutes after eight. I couldn’t figure out what was happening because there were so many red and blue flashing lights. I realized something had happened, but I never…” He stopped and took a deep breath. “I never thought for a minute the lights and the people were there because my wife had been found dead in one of the wine vats. It was surreal.”