Serving Up Suspects

by Emmie Lyn

  “What time was that?” I continued my line of questions, trying to get this timeline accurate. This information was useful since the car Rudy described was most likely Judith’s car. “Because Lily and I were there at five thirty. The only car we saw in the driveway was a small sedan belonging to the murdered woman.”

  “I’m not positive.” Rudy turned to Rose. “When did I leave here?”

  “It was close to one by the time you left. Did you go straight to Sue Ellen’s house?”

  “No, the plan was to meet her around four, but like I already told you, she wasn’t home. I tried to call her to check on my timing, but my call went straight to voice mail.”

  “You’re sure about that time?” Maggie asked. “What were you doing between when you left Rose’s house and when you say you arrived at Sue Ellen’s house at four?”

  Rudy’s eyes shifted from one person to another until they stopped at me. “Actually, I bumped into someone who said she’s an acquaintance of yours. She owns Creative Designs across from the Little Dog Diner.”

  “Kelly? You went to her store?”

  Rudy nodded. “We chatted for a bit and I looked at her beautiful display of ceramics, blown glass, and paintings. There’s a lot of talent in Maine. I’d love to do a series of videos on artists and their creations.”

  “I can’t imagine that took three hours,” I said.

  He threw up his hands as if to say, what can I tell you. “At the most, I was in that shop for forty-five minutes. I had time to kill before Sue Ellen expected me, so I meandered up and down Main Street. I wasn’t in a rush, and I wanted to get a feel for the town, since I don’t live here. I knew it would help me with the video.” He paused; his expression wary. “Why all the questions about my activities?”

  Sue Ellen sidled up next to Rudy like a mama bear protecting her cub. “Geesh, you guys are looking at Rudy like he killed my friend. Why would he do that?”

  “Good question, Sue Ellen.” Maggie sipped her wine. “And I don’t have an answer, but I would like to know why he’s lying about when he went to your house.”

  Sue Ellen’s jaw dropped.

  Maggie continued, “I spoke with your neighbor, Alice Cross.” She checked a page in her little notebook.

  Sue Ellen, “I know Alice, nice, but a bit of a busybody.”

  “Well, Alice is positive she saw someone who fits Rudy’s description to a T… at three o’clock, and again at four.” Maggie paused to let that sink in. “Did you go twice, Rudy?”

  “No! What difference does it make anyway? I never went inside.”

  “Rudy?” Sue Ellen scowled at him. “I want to believe you and Alice does stick her nose where it doesn’t belong sometimes, which causes more trouble than you’d believe, but still, I don’t like this.” She picked at the chips on her plate and scooped up some of Rose’s bean dip. “I suddenly have a bad taste in my mouth and it’s not from the food I brought.”

  Maggie refilled her wine glass and sat at the table watching Rudy who fidgeted like a nervous, cornered chipmunk. “Are we allowed to dig into this food yet?”

  “Yeah, dig in,” Moving the focus of our conversation to our food instead of Rudy’s whereabouts, worked for me. The sooner everyone ate, the sooner they would leave.

  I was ready for a break in this drama-filled day.

  Chapter Ten

  The mouthwatering aroma of frying bacon and brewing coffee drifted upstairs while I lay comfortably in bed at Sea Breeze early Saturday morning. Rose had changed her morning routine from relaxing with her coffee to fixing breakfast for us, giving me time to take a jog on the beach with Pip before I left for the diner.

  I liked being spoiled that way and Pip never complained.

  I pulled on my running shorts and t-shirt and bounced downstairs. As expected, Pip greeted me with a yelp, a wagging tail, and a new bandana, one of Rose’s indulgences, as soon as my foot hit the last step.

  “Be back in twenty minutes,” I shouted into the kitchen as the colorful Pip and I left the house. I did a minute of stretching on the patio with the misty air cooling my skin before we headed down the steps to the strip of beach that ran along Blueberry Bay.

  My feet dug into the soft sand, and seagulls squawked at our intrusion. This only made Pip run faster until they surrendered their spot on the beach and flapped off into the sky. She didn’t have as much luck controlling the waves because as soon as she nipped at one, another took its place.

  I laughed at her antics and said a silent thank you that I’d been able to rescue this little bundle of energy from a traumatic situation and now we were partners.

  Early morning was the best time to be out; we had the beach all to ourselves. At an outcropping of rocks, which marked the end of the sandy stretch, I did a few jumping jacks and turned around to head back. Pip hung behind sniffing whatever interested her, but as hard as I tried, she always shot ahead of me before we returned to the steps leading up to Sea Breeze.

  I collapsed in one of the patio chairs, laughing, and petting her. “I don’t think I could ever tire you out.”

  Rose carried a tray out, setting it on the table before she sat down. “Pip won again?”

  “Are you kidding me?” I said before I guzzled a big glass of juice. “What did you expect? It’s that new lime green and pink bandana you got for her. Have you seen how she runs like the wind, trying to make it fly off? What were you thinking, buying that for her,” I said, teasing Rose. “It’s a terrible color combo.” I piled eggs on toast, topped it with a strip of bacon, and took a bite, laughing to myself.

  “I think it’s quite nice—like a sunset over a field of new grass. Sort of,” Rose said defensively as she poured us both coffee. She was as attached now to Pip as I was.

  “By the way, Dani,” she warned, turning serious. “Keep your ears open in the diner today. I’ll bet you’ll hear a ton of chatter about the murder, including speculation and rumors. But who knows? Judith knew a lot of folks in town and you might pick up an interesting tidbit or two. I’ll keep Pip with me next door while I’m working on the paper, but I’ll pop into the diner when I can.”

  I shoved the last bite of bacon in my mouth, washed it down with coffee, and headed for the kitchen with my dirty dishes. “Thanks, I will. A quick shower for me then off to work.”

  I was extra careful driving into town since AJ had given me one warning on my record a while back, and I couldn’t afford to get a ticket. It sure took all the fun out of driving Rose’s MG.

  When I pulled into my spot in front of the diner and entered the kitchen, I found Lily hard at work. She had the grill cleaned and hot, breakfast ingredients prepped and ready, and both pots of coffee steaming. The diner sizzled with the first customers and their expectation of delicious food we served. Early morning regulars who liked to start their day greeting their friends and reading a copy of Rose’s Blueberry Bay Grapevine didn’t waste time filtering inside to order a breakfast sandwich or muffin, or a big stack of blueberry pancakes. Lily and I got the food dished up and served, while the good people of Misty Harbor devoured it over chatter about Judith’s murder.

  As I moved through the diner with steaming coffee and plates of Lily’s fragrant pastries fresh from the oven, the unmistakable whispers about murder, gold coins, and a vengeful spouse met my ears. Nothing captured peoples’ attention more than a murder wrapped around the possibility of a scandal involving money and love.

  “I heard a bag of gold coins was stolen,” one old man reported to his friend.

  “It had to be an outah townah that did her in. Poor thing was only hanging her quilt when she got suffocated by it,” the friend said.

  I had to tune out all the exaggerations. None of these people knew what happened to Judith, unless the killer was sitting in the diner quietly listening and laughing. A chill crept up my spine as I surveyed everyone enjoying breakfast.

  Rudy sat alone in the same corner seat he’d occupied the day before. From his rumpled clothes, disheveled hair,
and day-old growth on his face, I’d say he hadn’t slept for more than five minutes since he left Rose’s house last night. Luke and his dad, Spencer, sat at the counter, discussing the progress of their blueberry crop. Excellent, from what I could tell.

  The next customer to step up to the counter tested my ability to keep my face friendly instead of shocked. “Barry?” I said, aware of an element of surprise that squeaked into my voice. “What brings you into the Little Dog Diner?”

  In contrast to Rudy’s grizzled appearance, Barry’s clean-shaven smile belonged in a toothpaste ad. “Delicious baked goods and the best coffee besides my own. I’ll have one large coffee to go and a half dozen of those moist, chocolate-frosted brownies. I’ve never tasted anything so sweet and delicious in my life.”

  “Well, thank you. I didn’t know you were such a connoisseur of baked goods,” I said and handed him his coffee and brownies.

  He handed me a twenty. “Judith made the best chocolate cheesecake.” Barry looked away and sniffled, now wearing the long face of a grieving widower. “There is one more reason why I came here this morning.”

  “Oh?”

  Barry glanced around as if he was about to reveal a top-secret tidbit. “When I was at the library yesterday, I overheard Sue Ellen telling someone that she suspected Judith was stealing from her.”

  “Stealing? Judith?” An image of the bland, fearful woman came to mind. “What could Judith have been stealing? She seemed so devoted to Sue Ellen.”

  Barry seemed to have a difficult time holding it together, but he managed to blurt out, “Sue Ellen was behind a bookshelf and moved away before I heard any more of the conversation.”

  I immediately thought of the gold coin the police found in the hollowed-out book wrapped inside Sue Ellen’s rug along with Judith’s body.

  Was she stealing that coin or moving it out of sight before the auction?

  Barry seemed to blink back a tear after that juicy tidbit, and waved a wordless goodbye, too overcome I expected, then headed toward the exit. It just so happened that AJ was entering the diner at that moment and he held the door for Barry as he left. All heads turned in AJ’s direction and silence dropped like a curtain as if they expected him to make a big announcement.

  He tipped his cap and walked up to me at the counter. He grinned, just short of salivating at our offerings on display under glass. Around us the sound of eating and conversations resumed. “A large coffee, please, Dani. And do you have any of your baked cider donuts this week?”

  “We do. How many do you want, AJ?”

  While he considered his answer, the door opened, and Maggie sauntered inside.

  “Two please,” he said, apparently unaware of the diner’s newest customer.

  I smiled to myself. This would be interesting.

  She stepped in place next to AJ. “Morning, Detective.”

  Without looking at her, AJ answered, “Good morning. I trust you won’t be in my way today.”

  “Of course not. Can I buy you coffee?”

  “Nope.” AJ handed me his money, picked up his coffee and bag of donuts, turned, and left without a nod or a further word to Maggie. I looked her up and down and thought she’d wasted her time on her sleek hairdo, and form-fitting jeans and t-shirt. But who was I to say in my flour-doused apron and sagging messy ponytail.

  “Brrrr,” I said rubbing my arms with my hands. “The chill coming off AJ is enough to freeze the ice cream Lily just bought for our pie a la mode. Maybe you should quit your job with Sue Ellen.”

  Maggie pulled a scrunchie out of the tote bag she had slung over her shoulder and said, “I can’t do that. It wouldn’t look good,” while she tied back her long, dark hair. “No, I have to stick this out and hope AJ solves this before I do or else any chance I have with him will get washed out with the tide.

  I wasn’t sure Maggie had a chance with AJ to begin with, but that wasn’t an opinion I planned to share.

  Sue Ellen breezed into the diner dressed in dark red pants and a pink top. She sniffed the air like Pip sometimes does when I open her favorite can of food. A smile bloomed on her face and she said, “Coffee?” as if it were a rare find, like a diamond in a coal mine.

  I didn’t state the obvious, that coffee was a staple in our diner. “With sugar and cream?” I asked.

  She waved her hand. “Black for me. I can’t understand why anyone even drinks coffee if they need to disguise the flavor with a ton of sweetener and then dilute it with cream. If you drink coffee, taste it the way nature made it—strong, slightly bitter, and with a jolt of caffeine. Which gets me to why I’m here.”

  “Coffee coming up,” I said, not bothering to hide my confusion.

  Sue Ellen’s laugh filled the diner. “The coffee is an added bonus while Maggie over there,” she pointed her bright red-tipped finger to a booth in front of the window, “and I put our heads together. We need a plan to solve Judith’s murder before the spiral that has become my life ends up completely down the drain.” She dropped her giant bag near her sandaled and pedicured feet and accepted the mug of coffee I handed to her. She raised her nose again and sniffed. “Is that bacon I smell?”

  I refrained from pointing out that finding frying bacon in our diner was as common as, well, spotting the color red in Sue Ellen’s closet. But I practiced good customer relations and bit my tongue, pulling out my pad to take down her order.

  “Could I get two eggs over easy and three slices of bacon?” she asked. “No toast. Cook up an order for Maggie, too.”

  “I’ll bring it over when it’s ready,” I assured her.

  Sue Ellen waved at Maggie and called, “Yoo-hoo,” as if anyone enjoying their breakfast that morning had missed her arrival. She picked up her bag, and with a focused determination, marched across the diner to join her PI.

  When her order was ready, I balanced the two plates on one arm and carried the coffee pot to their booth. “More coffee?” I asked after setting the plates down. They both slid their mugs toward me for a refill.

  Sue Ellen asked Maggie, “Where did you stay last night?”

  “Lily was kind enough to put me up. It wasn’t exactly my plan but …” she shrugged off the rest of her comment and I made a mental note to ask Lily if she’d gleaned any fresh gossip from her guest.

  “If you can smooth things over with that cute detective,” Sue Ellen wiggled her eyebrows, “life will be great, right?”

  “Riding out a wild thunderstorm might be easier. AJ told me to back off. If he finds out I’m interfering in any way, he’ll escort me out of town.” Then Maggie put on a wicked grin. “But … at least he’s talking to me.”

  “Ooh, she’s a lively one,” Sue Ellen said to me as I set the sugar in front of Maggie.

  I snickered and wiped my hands on my apron. “That she is. Maggie,” I asked, my curiosity peaked beyond my ability to keep it under control. “If my memory serves me correctly, didn’t AJ refer to you as dynamite when you were last in town?”

  Maggie’s green eyes sparkled with delight when she said, “He sure did. I took it as a compliment at the time. Now? I might have to rethink my approach.”

  The conversation gave way to the sound of forks scraping on plates, bacon crunching, followed by the satisfied moans of the typical Little Dog Diner customer. I turned to leave.

  “Dani, wait a minute.” Sue Ellen caught the back of my apron. “Now that my stomach is satisfied, let’s get to the problem facing us.” She retrieved her giant leather tote and pulled out a red notebook.

  “You’ve got notes already?” Maggie asked.

  “Darn tootin’. I’m not letting any comment, clue, criminal, or snippet of information get lost in the shuffle.” She tapped her notebook with a red pen. “It’s all in here.”

  All of a sudden, I felt all eyes in the vicinity, meaning those belonging to anyone other than Lily working in the kitchen, focused on Sue Ellen. “Are you sure you and Maggie don’t want some privacy?” I suggested somewhat nervously. “You could
use Rose’s office next door at the Blueberry Bay Grapevine. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.” I crossed my fingers hoping Sue Ellen would take me up on the offer.

  Sue Ellen narrowed an eye at me, her habit when someone crossed her. “Why on earth would we do that? You found Judith’s body, Dani. I need you to help, too. And, you noticed that chocolate stain on the rug that Detective Crenshaw overlooked. How can I trust he won’t miss something else?”

  I guess Sue Ellen never heard the line about loose lips sinking ships. And murder cases. I knew almost everyone who came into the diner. It was the almost part that had me worried. Suppose the killer was in our midst listening to Sue Ellen, ready to thwart her plans?

  But Sue Ellen’s mind was elsewhere; perhaps she was auditioning as a relationship counselor. She patted Maggie’s thigh. “Sorry, to be so blunt about your boyfriend, but I’m only stating the truth here.”

  Maggie choked on her coffee. “My boyfriend? He’s barely talking to me. Listen, Sue Ellen, you hired me to help you find Judith’s killer, and I won’t let my almost nonexistent relationship with Detective Crenshaw get in the way. My business life is completely separate from my personal desires.”

  Right, I thought. You can’t kid me. There’s always an overlap. Maggie was walking a fine line if she had hopes of winning AJ’s heart and keeping out of his way while she questioned suspects.

  She had a lot going for her—looks and brains. Well, two things. But the most important things. Would either of them help her as she attempted to navigate this impossible state of affairs?

  “Listen,” I said, acting on a sudden brainstorm. “How about we meet when I get done here at the diner? Sea Breeze at four? How does that sound?”

  “What am I going to do between now and then?” Sue Ellen asked. “I can’t just sit around and twiddle my thumbs.”

  “Well, why don’t you work on rescheduling your auction?” I asked. “That will help to get your life back on track. Maybe you could find another location to host your event.”

  Sue Ellen’s face brightened. “Bless your heart, Dani. That’s a brilliant suggestion. I think the library should do it. After all, the money we raise is for their benefit.” She stopped and looked at Maggie. “Yes, I quite like that idea. I’ll head there now and get it set up. I’ll get the word out that the auction is rescheduled for tomorrow night. With the curiosity factor about the murder added in, we might have a bigger turnout than ever.” She reached across the table and grabbed Maggie’s arm. “I just remembered something else. I did see Barry at the library yesterday afternoon. He had his nose stuck in a book. By the size of the pile next to him, he had plans for a long afternoon reading.”