William Jarvis - Sky Valley 04 - Murderous Coffee Crumble

by William Jarvis

  “I’m in.” Audrina said, “But I’m going to sleep for tonight. Is my room still available?”

  For some reason, this made them laugh. Audrina can surely turn things around in just a couple of seconds.

  “It sure is.” Emmy smiled. “I’m glad you’re back.” She held Audrina’s hand.

  She smiled back. “I am, too.” She then stood up and tapped Troy on the shoulder as she held her luggage. “Get some sleep, too.” She said. “Hopefully, by the time you wake up, you’ll understand what we’re going through. And you’ll see that we’re just trying to help you redeem your name.”

  Audrina then went upstairs and Troy told them that he will be sleeping in his office at the basement. Soon enough, it was just Daniel and Emmy in the living room. They were quiet for a couple of seconds until Daniel spoke.

  “So…” He said.

  Emmy took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.” She said. “I’m sorry for everything. I know I…I maybe should not have broken up with you and I don’t really know what we are right now, but…I was just confused. I felt like what we had was something wrong because things just kept on getting worse and I really didn’t know what to think anymore. I felt like maybe I shouldn’t have gone back from Paris and that I shouldn’t be in a relationship with you but I tried because I’ve always loved you and still, things got out of hand. It’s just…it’s just not fair.”

  “Sssh,” Daniel said and held Emmy’s hand. “First of all,” he said, “I’d like to say sorry, too. Maybe, I just didn’t show and made you feel that I’m really here and that I do care. But I do, okay? I do. And I love you. And…we’re not in the past, Em. For me, we’ll always be in the present. I just want you to not keep denying that. Unless…” he paused and then, “unless, you really have fallen for Frank.”

  “No, no, it’s not like that.” She said. “I mean…I mean, I thought he was genuine but I should’ve listened to you right away. I should’ve known that he was bad news when you told me about those flowers but I wanted to prove that I was right. I didn’t even interpret my dreams right, for heaven’s sake! I was very stupid, Dan.”

  “We all have those moments.” He said. “And you know what?” He went on, “what matters is that you choose to stand up from those moments. I know it’s hard but I hope you know that I’m here.”

  She smiled despite of herself. “I love you.” She said. She was scared to say it but she couldn’t help it anymore; not after tonight.

  “I love you, too.” He said. “And don’t worry, Em.” He said, “We’re going to bring those enemies down.”

  She laughed. “You sound like a hero from a movie!”

  He laughed, too. “I am your hero.”

  And then they laughed at the same time, realizing how cheesy they were being.

  “Thank you,” She told him.

  “No,” he said, “Thank you.”

  CHAPTER 4

  SURPRISE

  “That’s it,” Emmy said, “add those chips gradually so that they stick to the rest of the mixture. Then let’s add more buttermilk.”

  “I can actually just eat it this way, you know?” Daniel said and Emmy laughed. The following afternoon, they found themselves in Emmy’s kitchen, whipping up some coffee cupcakes.

  “That won’t be magical!” Emmy said. She was surprised at how easy it was for her to cook again even after what transpired last night. Maybe, she just wanted to bask in the happiness of being with Daniel again because she knew that things might take a sour turn again. They still have to figure out whether or not they were right about Lena and Tripp, and if they were, they wanted to know what their reason for doing so is.

  “Speaking of magical,” Daniel said. “Well...can you come out for a second with me?”

  “Come where?”

  “Just at the garden.”

  “Oh…okay,” Emmy didn’t know what Daniel was planning but she gave her hand to him and allowed him to lead her to the garden. She was surprised to find out that he set up a long table and some chairs, complete with flowers in mason jars and white drapes in arcs. These were some of the things that she loved most.

  Her father was also on one end of the room, together with Anja. Troy was holding a bottle of wine in one hand. There were also pink and silver balloons tied to the chairs and the arcs, and some rose petals on the ground. A boom box was also playing their favorite songs from the 90’s, which made the mood all the cheesier and romantic.

  “Surprise!” Daniel smiled.

  “Dan,” Emmy said as she looked at him. “This is beautiful! What? Is this some dinner thing that you planned? And where’s Audrina—“

  “Audrina said that she’ll get your favorite Texan Fried Chicken and obviously she’s not here yet but I just can’t wait anymore. I feel like I have been waiting for so long and…” Tears were rushing out of his eyes, much to Emmy’s surprise. “Emmy, I’ve known you for a long time. We’ve spent days playing, drinking tea, and listening to nana’s stories when we were wee little kids. We’ve spent nights not going to sleep just to study for our exams. We’ve had our fair share of ups and downs.

  Do you remember when you broke up with me for the first time? It was when you were about to leave for Paris all those years back. I wanted to tell you then that you didn’t have to break up with me because I’d be here for you no matter what. But I let you go. I was stupid for doing so but I guess, I also wanted you to see the world because you deserve so much more than what I could give you. And, I knew that you’d be great out there. I knew that you deserve to make your dreams come true and so even though it broke my heart, I let you go.

  So, yeah, we had relationships with other people. For a while, I thought that maybe, that was it for us. Maybe, we really had to move on with our lives because it’s useless to get stuck in the past. I would hear news about you and would be happy for everything you get to achieve then, you know, my relationship with Ruby faltered and for a time, I thought that maybe, love just won’t be for me. Because realistically speaking, I kept looking for what we had, which of course, wasn’t really fair for others so I just decided to be alone.

  And then you came back and we made amends and tried to make things work. And then we broke up once more. It hurt me. I didn’t know what to feel but I realized, maybe, you just need time. But nothing would change how I feel about you. I also realized that actions, not words, are what I should show you. I guess, I’ve often made the mistake of not letting you feel how much I love you and how much I care for you, and now, I would like you to know how I feel.

  Emmy, I love you. I always have and I know I always will. I know there will be hard days. There will be days when we probably won’t feel like ourselves and when we’d think that it’s better to be apart. On days like that, I would like you to remember that you have me, and that I love you and I’d always be here. I just want you to realize that and not forget it. I want you to know and understand that I won’t let you down and it will be stupid for us to forget about our love for each other and to think that it’s wrong to be together.

  I love you, Emmy. Will you marry me?” He took out a box from his pocket and took a beautiful white gold ring with three pink diamonds on top.

  Emmy couldn’t believe this, but her heart was bursting with pride and happiness because she felt like this was the moment that she has been waiting for so long. “Yes.” She answered almost breathlessly and Daniel put the ring on her finger and gave her a long hug.

  “I love you.” He said.

  “I love you, too.” She shot back with tears in her eyes. Troy popped the champagne as Anja clapped beside him.

  “Oh my god!” Audrina, who just arrived, said. “I missed it, didn’t I?” She said. She was about to cry, too. She placed the bucket of chicken on the table and gave Daniel and Emmy a hug. “I am so happy for you!” She smiled with tears in her eyes.

  “Thank you!” Emmy told her. “But what took you so long?”

  “Oh, never mind,” Audrina said. “I mean…it’s…
it’s really not a good thing.”

  “What do you mean?” Emmy asked, “What happened?”

  “Em, you just got engaged.”

  “No, tell me.”

  Audrina took a deep breath. “I passed by the country club and…” She paused and then, “Well, I guess you just have to see it for yourself.”

  CHAPTER 5

  LET’S SEE JIMMY

  Emmy wanted to just stay in the moment and feel the glow of being engaged but she also knew that it was not possible at the moment, especially after Audrina came and they saw how anxious she seemed.

  So, Emmy, Daniel, and Audrina used Daniel’s car to make their way to the country club. The number of tables around, paired with a whole lot of flowers, balloons, and 60’s music did not make it hard for them to realize that something big was going on—and that it’s not something that would make them happy because Tripp Meyer was around and so were his bodyguards.

  “Oh god.” Emmy said as they watched people drink coffee and eat some cake while they were inside Daniel’s car.

  “I know.” Audrina sighed. “Apparently, Tripp did something to allow the officials of this town to let him use the country club for an unspecified amount of time so he could serve coffee and cake. I’m pretty sure he just wanted to make show last night when he told everyone that he was going to bulldoze Time for Coffee coz he’s too chicken to do that—“

  “But now he wants to prove that he can have a great business and he’ll serve the same things that we do. Wow.” Emmy said. “I just can’t believe the guy.”

  “And look, McMahon’s around, too.” Daniel noticed.

  “And so are Frank and Serena.” Emmy said through gritted teeth. “Oh god I am going to kill them!”

  “Em!” Audrina and Daniel said at the same time but they were too late because Emmy was already able to make her way out of the car.

  “Emmy, wait!” Daniel said as he saw Emmy making her way towards Lena.

  “Hey,” Emmy said. Lena did not hear her the first time so she called out her name again. “Hey, Lena!” She said.

  Lena McMahon turned towards her. “Emilia Byrne.” She said after sipping some coffee. “I didn’t know you were invited.”

  “I guess she’s not, mom.” Serena said. “But you know how she loves to invite herself to parties she’s not even invited to.”

  “Oh yeah?” Emmy said, “That’s not what your husband made me feel when he kissed me in your room. How can you even stay with a man who says that you’re his stalker and that he has no feelings whatsoever for you?”

  Serena turned red. She seemed to be seething with anger. “You know he didn’t really like you.”

  “What makes you think that he loves you, Serena? I think he’s in love with your mother.” Emmy spat.

  “Shut up, Emmy.” Frank said. “Why don’t you just go home?”

  Emmy took a deep breath. “Well, I do like to invite myself to parties I’m not invited to, right?”

  “Emilia,” Lena spoke with such domination in her voice. “I think you should listen to Frank. Go home with your boyfriend and that girl. This isn’t the place for you to be.”

  “Really, Lena?” Emmy asked. “Isn’t it your plan to bring me here? Didn’t you want to provoke me to be here?”

  “Mom, you can really arrest her now.” Serena said. “She’s saying all these libelous things!”

  “Shut up, Plastic Princess.”

  “What did you just say?”

  “She said you’re a plastic princess and she’s right.” Audrina said. “You don’t even belong here.”

  “I am Lena McMahon’s daughter.”

  “So?” Emmy asked. “That doesn’t give you the right to be here.”

  “What’s going on here?” Tripp Meyer asked. He then saw Emmy, Daniel, and Audrina looking at him like they wanted to take him down right then and there. “Oh,” he said, “Looks like some gatecrashers want to join the party. Don’t worry, though, we’ll be here for a while. Actually, today is just the opening of my new business venture. A coffee and cake shop right in the country club. Isn’t that neat?”

  “You really think you’re someone great, huh, Tripp?” Emmy said. “You’re using the country club for yourself when you know that a lot of people can use it. You don’t own this place, Tripp.”

  “Apparently, I do now.”

  Emmy shook her head in disgust. “You’re sickening.”

  “Ha!” Tripp said and laughed. “Aren’t you the one who should be disgusted about yourself, Emilia? You’re the one who’s always found in situations where one turns up dead or almost turns up dead. Luckily Serena got out of your grasp.”

  “No, Tripp.” Emmy said. “You know what? I have no reason to be ashamed. You’re the one who should be ashamed. I know you’re up to something. And believe me, when I find out what it is, you’re going down.” She then looked at Lena. “And you are, too.”

  They walked back towards the car. No one said anything until Daniel started driving back to the house again.

  “I have an idea.” Emmy said.

  “What is it?” Audrina asked.

  “We have to see Jimmy. We have to ask him what he really knows so we can finally get some answers.”

  “I think that’s a good idea,” Audrina said, “but I’m not sure what we could get out of Jimmy’s mouth. I mean, he seemed hell bent on taking the blame. But, yeah, maybe we should go.”

  “Dan?” Emmy asked.

  “Sure,” Daniel said. “First thing in the morning tomorrow.”

  Emmy took a deep breath. She hoped that things will go her way—or else all hell breaks loose.

  CHAPTER 6

  THE CONVERSATION

  It was a sunny day, the kind of sunny that felt like your skin was just going to crack because of the heat of the sun. It hurt, and it made Emmy feel unsure about what she could expect.

  She, Daniel, and Audrina were waiting for Jimmy Outen to see them at the visitor’s area of the jail. Emmy just wanted to see Jimmy right away to ask him what he knows about what happened to Annabeth and possibly to Ruby, too.

  Almost a year ago, Jimmy admitted that he killed Annabeth Meyer by putting cyanide in her coffee cup by passing through the back door of Time for Coffee. Audrina and Jimmy had been together in the past but apparently, Jimmy had been with Annabeth, too, and he actually got her pregnant but she didn’t want everyone to know that she had a relationship with Jimmy so she chose to marry Matthew instead. Matthew and Emmy have been together back in High School but it never really materialized into something serious because they were just too different and they couldn’t connect. Now, Matthew’s dead, too.

  Everything seemed to be crazy and a lot of people have been lost. Emmy always wanted to talk to Jimmy but in the past couple of months, it seemed as if she was blindsided by the need to find peace; she didn’t realize that she had to do what she had to do early on so that the other deaths may have been prevented—and so she could finally move on.

  But then again, one can never be too sure. What if Jimmy actually didn’t know anything? What if they’re all wrong? But the thing is that, if they would not talk to Jimmy now, they probably would not get any answers at all. If they do not talk to Jimmy now, it would be as if they’d just be prolonging the agony and it would just make things worse—and that’s really not something that they want to happen. If it were up to Emmy, the right culprits would be in jail now, but how could that happen?

  “I don’t know what you want from me,” They heard Jimmy speak as he arrived and saw down across them, two police officers a few meters away from him, “but you probably won’t get it.”

  “Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy,” Audrina said, “Come on. We just saw each other again after so long…”

  Jimmy smiled but his eyes spoke of a thousand specks of loneliness and pain. “I’m not up for a reunion.”

  “Jimmy,” Emmy said. She noticed that he looked much older than the last time they saw him; like life in prison has finally caught up
with him and made him age more than he should. “We just wanted to talk to you.”

  “About what?”

  “About Annabeth. We want to know what you know.” Emmy spoke in hushed tones, careful not to alert the police.

  “What do you mean?” Jimmy asked. “I already admitted that it’s my fault. I’m here, aren’t I? I’m in prison. I think that already speaks for itself.”

  “But we don’t believe you, man.” Daniel said.

  “That’s right.” Audrina added. “I know you, Jim. You’re not as bad-ass as you think.”

  Jimmy laughed. “Funny choice of words you have, Audrina.” He said. “But let me say it again. I’m here. I’m in prison. That’s that.”

  “So, you really want us to believe that you killed Annabeth?” Audrina said. “You want me to think that this guy I dated is a killer? I know you, Jim. That’s not who you are. So, cut the crap and tell us what you know now.” She went on, “If it were me, I’d think that you really weren’t planning to kill Annabeth. You’re working for Tripp during that time so it’s possible that…that you were planning to kill Emmy, or that Tripp Meyer wants to kill Emmy and asked you to do the deed for him and pin it on me. That was the plan, wasn’t it? But obviously, things went haywire, Annabeth died, we all saw how she choked, and when they were about to incarcerate me, you showed up and said that it was all your fault. Since you have this big photography streak, you thought that the fact that you had cyanide with you would easily connect you to the crime, and so you decided to be the fall guy. My question is why? And, if I’m right, then why don’t you just admit it right now?”

  Jimmy took a deep breath. “If I did, what good would that bring?”

  “It would mean you’d get out of jail.” Daniel said. “It would mean that you could be with your family again and that you can live your own life again. It would mean that the truth would finally be out because it’s meant to be out, anyway.”

  “See, that’s the thing.” Jimmy said, “Sometimes, the truth could be so much more than what you think it is. It’s not like you can blurt it out right away.”