Murder at the Grill (Cold Creek Book 3)

by Christa Nardi

  Her gaze focused on the table, I said, “I talked to Rebekah some. She’s worried about you, you know.”

  “She’s a good daughter.”

  I waited for her to continue, but when that didn’t seem to be working, I moved on. “Zoe, what can you tell me about people who work at the Grill? Especially the ones not related to you.”

  Her face relaxed a bit and she talked about the two college students. As she told me about Lance and Alex, some life seemed to flicker into her eyes and she even smiled once or twice. She ended with “You can’t possibly think they had anything to do with this. They’re good boys, hard workers.”

  “Anyone else?”

  She hesitated before saying Kent’s name. Her features showed confusion or at least mixed feelings about Kent, her brows knitting together, mouth turned down.

  “I don’t understand how he ended up in Cold Creek since he isn’t from here and he didn’t go to college here. I think he’s a drifter, probably trouble.” Maybe that was what Dawn’s comment about the “likes of him” meant.

  She shook her head and confided, “Now if Rebekah were to have a crush on Lance or Alex, I’d be happy. Kent, there’s something about him. I don’t know what it is. I can’t put my finger on it. Dawn doesn’t like him either and that’s odd. Usually we disagree. I just sense it. Something’s off.”

  I showed her the photo and she gasped, “Is he dead too?”

  “No, Zoe, he’s not dead. Just knocked out. He tried to grab me and, well, remember the self-defense classes? They worked.”

  She let out a laugh with a “You go girl!” Then she added, “But why?” Her brows dipped and her forehead puckered.

  Neither Marty nor I could answer that. We talked a little more and she confirmed that Kent worked the day Jebediah died. I asked if anyone, Kent in particular, asked who Jebediah was or even mentioned his name.

  Zoe explained, “The family – we all had dinner at my parents the night before and then met again that morning before the Grill opened. We knew he was in town and at Mrs. Peabody’s. Mrs. Peabody called to let my mother know first thing. It was early afternoon I think. That was the first any of us heard he was back. My mother called and told me.”

  Mrs. Peabody’s is the local inn of sorts, a cross between a bed and breakfast and a rooming house. Other than the country club hotel, it was about the only place for visitors to stay in Cold Creek.

  “Then someone else called my father to tell him that Jebediah was in town. Jeb had a loud argument with someone outside of Mrs. Peabody’s. I was at my parents when that call came in before dinner. Later that night, the bartender at the Hole in the Wall called Dawn to alert the family he was back, drunk, and in a foul mood.”

  She exhaled and continued, “Armed with that information, we all agreed that if he showed up at the Grill – and we were sure he would – to seat him, wait on him, feed him, and ignore anything he said not related to the meal. I did pretty good keeping to that. Only once I let him know he’d overstepped.”

  Both Marty and I leaned in. I motioned with my hand for her to continue.

  With a sigh, she explained, “We changed Rebekah’s shift. We gave her the day off on purpose. We also didn’t tell her he was in town. Somehow she found out and she came in madder than all get out. She lit into me for not saying anything. Then she said something to him. I didn’t hear what she said or what he answered, but she paled and ran out.”

  She hesitated and quickly added, “She never came back and was never in the food area.”

  She clammed up and didn’t answer any more of my questions. Marty and I left shortly after that. He still didn’t have much to add on Jebediah’s last 15 years or Kent Verde. Hopefully, the IRS records would provide information on Jebediah’s employers and locations over the years, but Marty didn’t have them yet. I realized too late we hadn’t asked her why Jebediah called Dawn and not her.

  I drove to campus more befuddled if possible than before the meeting. I had trouble thinking of Rebekah as a murderer. Because I’d never met him and he tried to grab me, my preferred suspect was Kent, even though there was no obvious motive. I also didn’t have an explanation for why Dawn lied when Officer Matthews showed her Kent’s photo.

  Recalling which of the family members I had spoken with, I decided it was time to meet with Dawn and Trevor. Sooner or later, I also needed to have a talk with Zoe’s parents, especially the senior Jason Baxter. I was leery of him though after Chloe’s comments.

  It was easy to convince Kim to come with me for an early lunch at the Grill. It wasn’t very crowded when we got there. Rebekah was working as hostess and she talked to us a bit after she seated us. My phone rang, again “Private.” I answered but no one responded.

  I asked if she thought it was possible for me to talk to some of the family members at work. She hemmed and hawed but said she’d check on who was available. Kay would be our waitress so Rebekah suggested I ask her myself. I nodded and Rebekah disappeared.

  Kay took our orders and was very friendly at first. I explained to her I was trying to help Zoe and worked with Zoe’s attorney. She started to bite her lower lip even before I asked her if she’d worked the day Jebediah died. Her eyes filled with tears and she wrung her hands as she nodded that she’d been there when he died.

  “I don’t want to talk about it. I just don’t. It was awful. When I walk past that table it gives me the creeps. I don’t think anyone has sat at that table since. I have to go check my other tables.” She started to shake and fled, going into the kitchen.

  I looked at Kim and we both agreed that her reaction was a bit extreme. I looked around for Rebekah. She came over when I managed to get her attention. She looked uncomfortable and avoided eye contact more than usual.

  “Um, Dr. Hendley, I asked Uncle Trevor and he said he didn’t have anything to say to you. My cousin Jason just looked troubled. I’ll ask him again. Aunt Dawn, well, I can’t repeat what she said.” Rebekah blushed as she made the last comment. “I’ll see what I can do about Jason.” With that she walked away.

  “You know Sheridan, they may be stonewalling as a way to protect Zoe. They have to realize it looks bad for her. Short of a confession, maybe they think talking to you will only make it look worse.”

  “Unfortunately, that is what it looks like. And that in itself looks bad.”

  Kay came out with our food and avoided eye contact with either of us. She didn’t say a word and barely hesitated before turning away. I decided to go for neutral ground rather than pushing the issue.

  “Kay, watching someone die is not easy. Have you considered some counseling? Talking with someone about what you saw and how you feel?”

  Kim nodded in agreement with what I suggested. Kay looked back and forth from Kim to me, promptly burst into tears, and fled again.

  “Uh, Sher, you really have a way with words,” Kim teased. “But obviously you hit a nerve. She’s overwrought and needs to talk to someone. It may be that she knows something or just that she watched him die. Hard to tell.”

  “I know. It seems like for every question we get an answer to, another one pops up. Let’s just eat our lunch. I’ll see if I can get a phone number for young Jason or Harrison. One of them may be the weak link in the family armor.”

  We finished our lunch and Kay brought our check. Leaving a generous tip, we returned to campus. I called Marty and shared the results of our not so fruitful conversations.

  He suggested that it might be best if he contacted Dawn and we met with her in his office. That would put us at the advantage. I agreed and told him when my few meetings were so he could schedule around my Cold Creek College responsibilities. Marty texted me later to let me know Dawn had agreed to meet with him in the morning.

  The mundane chores of the day added both structure and a diversion. I reviewed the portfolio for Ryder Colbert again, visited with Terra and Ali, and talked some with Kim about Brett’s party. Thankfully, I didn’t see Max or Priscilla. “Private” only called to ir
ritate me once more. I ignored the call. I confirmed the interview time for the next day and left.

  CHAPTER 14

  I arrived at Marty’s office at 8 o’clock ready to talk strategy. Not quite the good cop-bad cop approach. Ultimately I would ask her to look at the picture of Kent again. If she still insisted she didn’t recognize him, Marty would confront her and reveal that we knew she was lying.

  I was more than a little nervous. No matter how often I’d experienced confrontation in therapy situations, it was not something I was comfortable with. In addition, my experiences so far with Dawn left a bad taste in my mouth. She radiated anger and bitterness. Still I felt sure Marty could handle the interview the way he planned.

  We chatted while we waited for her to show up. About 10 minutes after she was due, Marty’s admin buzzed him. I was pretty sure Dawn’s late arrival was planned. Marty ignored it completely.

  “Bring her in, please.”

  As she marched in, Marty offered, “Come in Mrs. Baxter. I think you know Dr. Hendley. She’s helping me with your sister-in-law’s defense.”

  Dawn grunted and nodded in my direction. “Well, let’s get on with this. I have to get to work, you know.”

  “Please sit down.” Marty pointed to the chair as he spoke. “Can I get you a coffee? Tea?”

  She sat down and huffed, her impatience evident. “I’m fine. Let’s get this over with. What do you want from me?”

  Marty wasn’t fazed at all. He explained, “Mrs. Baxter, it looks like we will be going to trial. I have no doubt that Mr. Bergner will call you as a witness. You worked the day Jebediah died, after all. I would like to hear your version of the events that led up to his death.”

  Her jaw dropped and she stammered a bit. “I don’t know… What do you want me to say?”

  “Mrs. Baxter, when did you first find out Jebediah was in town?”

  After some hesitation, she related the calls to Louisa and Jason, including the one from the Hole in the Wall that came to her directly.

  “Mrs. Baxter, I suspect that Mr. Bergner’s question might be why someone would call you and not Mrs. Gruen. Any ideas?”

  Her eyes widened and she paled before she snapped, “How should I know? I answered my phone, I didn’t make the call!”

  “Okay. So what did you or anyone else in the family do once you heard Jebediah was in Cold Creek?”

  “Jason called a family meeting of sorts early in the afternoon right after the first call. He arranged dinner. He got another call before dinner. After we ate, he sent the kids off to pick up dessert so we could talk. Him and Louisa, Zoe, Trevor and me. Jason was sure Jebediah would come to the Grill at some point. Jason ordered us not to talk to him except to take his order. That was the plan.” She harrumphed at the end.

  “Was there any discussion of why Jebediah came back?”

  “Not a hint. Not then, not since.” The set of her jaw told us that was all she was going to say about Jebediah’s return.

  “So what happened the next day?”

  “He showed up mid-morning and stayed until he left dead. Are we through?”

  “Not quite.” He glanced at me and continued, “Did you have occasion to talk to Jebediah then or before he showed up at the Grill?”

  Her eyes went wide again as if she hadn’t expected the question. She hesitated and her lips turned up as she stated, “I worked in the kitchen and not in the restaurant. I didn’t have to interact with him.”

  “I don’t mean to be offensive, Mrs. Baxter, but Mr. Bergner will pick up that you didn’t answer the question quickly. Just as I did. More importantly, you didn’t answer the question.”

  He stared at her and waited. She squirmed. Still she looked him straight in the eye. She didn’t say another word. When it looked like she was going to end the interview, Marty continued.

  “Okay, we’ll let that go for now. At any point in the course of the day did Mrs. Gruen or anyone else comment on Mr. Gruen’s behavior?”

  She cackled and then caught herself. “That was all anyone talked about. How obnoxious he was. How he insulted anyone who walked by the table. How he complained about his omelet. He sent it back you know. By that time we’d switched the grills to start lunch so that was a pain. Then he sent it back, said he wanted chicken salad instead. Complained about his chicken salad. A real piece of work.”

  “How would you describe everyone’s mood? Your husband, Trevor, for example.”

  “Trevor functions in a world of his own most of the time. When he’s cooking or fixing things, he’s oblivious. Of all of us, he was probably the least rattled but even he was off a bit. Especially with the omelet. He mixed up a couple of orders that I had to fix. That wasn’t typical.” As she spoke of Trevor, there was none of the warmth in her face or her eyes you’d expect from a wife. In fact there was little emotion at all, not even anger.

  “Okay, what about Jason or Louisa Baxter, your in-laws? Were they there that day?”

  “They never come in any more. Trevor takes care of the day to day with Harrison’s help. Zoe and I fill in if they aren’t around. Then my son Jason helps too.” She sat a little straighter.

  At Marty’s skeptical expression, she clarified, “Old man Jason stopped in before lunch to remind us all of the plan, peeked out the door to glance at Jebediah, and disappeared. He left about the time I arrived.”

  “Jason interact at all with Jebediah?”

  She chortled and answered, “He might have taken Jeb on back all those years ago if he’d been there. I was surprised Jason didn’t let him know they found out he’d stolen some money the night he blew out of town. But no, he kept to the plan. Trevor or Zoe would have said something if he and Jeb had words. That would’ve been fun to watch.”

  Marty didn’t let on this was the first he’d heard of the missing money. He kept on a poker face. I tried to do the same.

  “What about Trevor or Harrison or your son Jason?”

  “Harrison’s a wimp. He certainly doesn’t take after me. I think he closed himself up in the office. I wouldn’t be surprised if he hadn’t locked the door to be sure Jeb didn’t come find him. My son Jason didn’t come in until later. Just in time - the excitement was over and the Grill closed.”

  “What else can you tell us about this money that Jebediah stole?”

  “Jason found unexplained withdrawals with no purchase orders to back them up. He ran an audit with Harrison’s help. No one said how long he’d been making these withdrawals. Jeb was gone and nothing to be done about it.” She shrugged and shifted in her chair as if to get up.

  “Why did Jebediah leave?”

  “You’ll have to ask old man Jason that one, Mr. Lawyer,” she hissed.

  Marty took a deep breath. “Let’s get back to the day Jebediah died. Who else worked that day?”

  Dawn fidgeted a bit and said, “Well, I don’t remember for sure. I guess there were a couple of bus boys. Kay had to work. She wasn’t too happy about it but we told Rebekah to take the day off. For some reason, she came in anyway. Not to work but to find out what was going on.”

  “Did Kay remember Jebediah? Wasn’t she young when he left?”

  “Well, yeah, Kay and Rebekah were young. If Jeb said anything to Kay, nobody told me about it. Zoe made it a point to not assign Kay to Jeb’s table. Zoe was the only one who waited on him.”

  “So, Zoe took the order and delivered it, but who prepared it?”

  Dawn jumped out of the chair and yelled, “Who do you think you are? Are you accusing me of killing Jeb? Is that your only defense for Zoe?”

  “Calm down, Mrs. Baxter. It’s an obvious question and when we go to trial someone will ask the question. Didn’t Chief Hirsch already ask that question?”

  She huffed but sat back down. “Yes, he did. Trevor and I were both preparing meals. It’s not like the order slip has someone’s name on it. He’s not the only person to have chicken salad all day. And he sent it back the first time.”

  “So you knew it was goi
ng to Jeb the second time?”

  She blanched and stated emphatically, “Everyone knew. Zoe announced it when she brought the plate back in. Wanted it fresh and no nuts. Are we about done?”

  Marty looked at me and nodded.

  As I handed her a print of the picture from my phone, I asked, “Dawn, I know Officer Matthews and I already asked you, but do you recognize this man?”

  She gave a cursory look at the photo and shook her head. “Nope, never saw him before.”

  I looked at Marty who cleared his throat and stated, “That’s a bit odd Mrs. Baxter. Kent Verde works for you at the Grill. He’s a bus boy most times. He worked that day in fact.”

  “If you already knew who it was why did you ask the question? I’m done here.”

  As she stood and turned, Marty tried again. “The better question is why you didn’t identify him.”

  She stomped out of the office, slamming the door behind her. Marty shook his head, picked up his phone, and asked his admin to bring us both coffees.

  After he hung up, he commented, “That interview rates more than coffee, but not at this hour of the day.” He shook his head. “So what did we gain from that aggravation?”

  Rhetorical question or not, I jumped in.

  “Nobody but Jason Baxter will tell us why Jeb left. He’s the patriarch and possibly the one who decided Jeb should leave.”

  “That sounds about right, Sheridan. It’s clear we need to have a meeting with him and Louisa.” He made a note on his pad as his admin brought in our coffees.

  “Pardon me, Mr. Cohn, but that woman needs better manners. She stormed out of here in such a huff she about knocked me over. Just thought I should tell you.” With that she turned around and left.

  Taking a sip of his coffee, Marty asked, “Where were we?”

  “Aside from Jason, there is some reason that Dawn is protecting Kent or at least didn’t want him identified. I can’t think of anything that makes sense.”

  Marty nodded and I mentally went through the conversation again.