The Inn at Holiday Bay: Note in the Nutcracker

by Kathi Daley

  “That’s crazy. If the long black hair was used as an argument why the killer had not been the nanny, then it should have worked as an argument to clear the father as well.”

  “I agree,” Colt said. “I suppose there were other things in play at the time that contributed to the series of events that unfolded. Still, in my mind, the nanny seems to make a decent suspect.”

  I paused to think about it. Pamela did say that the nanny was still at the estate when she and her father left for her piano lesson. She said Nanny Emmy was on her way out to catch a plane, but the only one who could corroborate that the woman had left shortly after Pamela and her father was Pamela’s mother, and she was dead. If Pamela’s father had not come back to the estate and killed his wife but had, in fact, gone window shopping and then for a drive as he’d said, then the nanny would be the most likely suspect in terms of opportunity.

  “Wow. I think you are onto something with the nanny theory, but if the nanny was the killer, I’m afraid that will destroy Pamela even more than not proving her father’s innocence will. This woman was more of a mother to her than her own mother was. She raised her from the time she was a tiny baby while Pamela’s parents only spent a few months a year with her.” I took a deep breath. “Why would Emily Garwood kill the mother of this child she loved?”

  “Landon Wells asked himself that same question. He did some digging and found out that the Norwoods had made arrangements for Pamela to be sent to a boarding school after the Christmas break. The staff wasn’t simply given bonuses and sent off to enjoy the holiday, they were all given notices of a layoff to take effect after the Norwoods returned to South America.”

  “How did I miss all of this if it’s right there in the file?”

  “You’ve been busy, and I assume, picking and choosing what to look at. You would have eventually stumbled onto it.”

  “So, the defense attorney argued that the nanny stayed behind to speak to Mrs. Norwood about her plan to send Pamela to boarding school, the two argued, and Mrs. Norwood ended up dead.”

  “Basically.”

  “So, the altercation probably caused her to miss her plane, and she checked into the motel.”

  “That was his theory. In his summary, he painted a picture of a woman in deep mourning over the loss of the child she’d raised. She’d acted out of rage, rather than premeditation, but in the end, Mrs. Norwood was still dead, and her husband, who was innocent, was in jail doing time for killing her.”

  “It sounds like the defense attorney made a really good case.”

  “I agree. I’ve requested the court transcripts so we can get the rest of the story.”

  This case just kept getting more and more complicated. “Were there any other strong suspects?” I asked. As much as I didn’t want the killer to be Mr. Norwood, I really didn’t want the killer to be Emily Garwood.

  “There are a few additional individuals who were looked at,” Colt answered. “The dig the Norwoods had been working contained artifacts worth a lot of money. The artifacts were carefully cataloged and stored as they were unearthed. It seems that not long before the Norwoods came home for Christmas, some items turned up missing. There was speculation that one of the individuals working the dig had stolen the items with the intent to sell them on the black market, but there was also speculation that one or both of the Norwoods had stolen the missing pieces. It seems that the pieces that were missing were items that would have disproved a theory Mr. Norwood made famous.”

  “Pamela mentioned that as well. She is convinced that her father did not kill her mother, but she seemed open to the idea that her father had stolen the artifacts. She told me that her nanny told her that her father was a proud man and that being well-regarded by his peers was important to him.”

  “I guess that is as good a reason as any to steal the artifacts. They never were found, and at this point, no one knows for certain what became of them.”

  “Could anyone else from the dig have stolen the items?” I wondered.

  “Two grad students were working the dig under the supervision of the Norwoods. Both were in the States at the time of the murder, and both would have had access to the artifacts that had been uncovered during their time in South America. There was a theory floating around that the students had been the ones to steal the artifacts to sell them on the black market, and that made them suspects in Mrs. Norwood’s murder in the eyes of some. This may or may not have been true, but no proof was ever found one way or the other, so the defense attorney focused on the nanny in his attempt to establish reasonable doubt.”

  Man, oh, man, oh, man. Boy, did I hope that the nanny had not been the one to kill Pamela’s mother.

  Chapter 9

  I woke to the sound of buzzing. At first, I thought it was a fly circling my head, but after I woke up a bit, I realized it was the phone on my bedside table. I’d put my cell on vibrate during the Christmas pageant last night, and now it was vibrating like crazy.

  “Hello,” I answered.

  “Hey,” Colt said. “Did I wake you?”

  I glanced at the clock. It was after nine. “No, I was awake,” I lied. “Is something going on?” We’d chatted for quite a while yesterday. I was sort of surprised he was calling me back so soon. Not that I minded. I was always happy to hear from him.

  “No. Nothing is going on,” he answered. “The kids have been going nonstop since we’ve been here, and both are pretty tired, so we decided to hang out at the hotel and wait until after lunch to go to the park. They want to go down to the pool later, but right now they are watching cartoons, so I have some time to myself. I was going to log on and go over the police file as I promised I would, but I figured I could do that while they are swimming, and what I really wanted to do was to find out how the pageant went.”

  I scooted up and rested my back against my headboard. Rufus crawled onto my lap and began to purr loudly. “It was so great,” I answered. “Annabelle did such a good job as the snow princess.” I adjusted my pillows to create a better backrest. “Not only did she look adorable in her costume, but she spoke loudly and clearly, and she remembered all her lines. And the triples! Talk about adorable elves. Watching them made my heart both happy and sad if you know what I mean.”

  “I do know what you mean,” Colt said softly. “And I’m really sorry I missed it. Was there a good turnout?”

  “It was packed,” I answered. “Standing room only. And even those who were standing were packed in pretty tight. Thankfully, Lacy cautioned us to arrive early, so we got seats. Pretty good seats, actually. I love how the whole town comes together to celebrate every little thing. I really feel like I am a part of the community. The whole evening was magical.”

  “It does sound like fun. Maybe next year, I’ll just have the family come to my house for Christmas, so I can spend time with the kids and enjoy a Holiday Bay Christmas.”

  “I’m sure the kids are having a memorable Christmas at Disney World, but Christmas in Holiday Bay is hard to beat, as I’m sure you know. After the pageant, I went for ice cream with Lonnie, Lacy, and family, along with Jeremy and Annabelle, and Christy, Haley, and Noah. We were feeling adventurous and decide to pig out and get banana splits rather than just having cones. Lonnie and Lacy’s kids shared two banana splits between the six kids, but it was still so much food. I think I am in sugar overload and should probably try to eat healthy today, but we really did have the best time.”

  “You didn’t mention Georgia. She wasn’t with you?” Colt asked.

  “No,” I answered. “I mean, yes, she went to the pageant, but she and Tanner went off together somewhere afterward. They seemed to have romance on their minds, given the glances they exchanged during the pageant. I’m really glad they decided to move their relationship forward. They seem really good for each other.”

  “I agree. They are great together.”

  “Nikki was at the pageant as well,” I continued, after realizing that the conversation had suddenly become awkward.
I had a feeling Colt would like to move our relationship to the next level, but unlike Georgia, I just wasn’t ready to take that step with anyone. “But she didn’t join us for ice cream since she had a date as well. And our new guest, Mylie, went out for a drink with the developer I told you about who arrived yesterday.” By this point, I was rambling, but I didn’t care. Anything to return the conversation to the lazy Sunday morning chitchat we’d been sharing before I’d inadvertently brought intimate relationships into the mix.

  “I’m a little surprised by that,” Colt said, seeming to want to move the conversation along as well. “Based on what you’ve told me about Mylie and her quest, I wouldn’t think Mark Westgate would be her type.”

  “I don’t think he is, but he did ask her out, and I think Mylie plans to give all the men who come into her orbit a fair shot, so she doesn’t end up dismissing the man the psychic sent her to find.”

  “I guess that makes sense. I’m sorry I’m missing out on watching the story unfold. It does sound entertaining.”

  “It has been. We all have an opinion who she’ll choose, but almost everyone has chosen the man who is checking in today as the most likely to win Mylie’s heart, which I find interesting since no one has even met him.”

  “So, why are they choosing him?” Colt asked.

  “Of the three single men staying here at the inn, on paper, he appears to be the most settled and, therefore, the most likely to be ready to put down roots. I guess we’ll have to see what happens after he shows up.”

  Colt chuckled. “It seems there’s never a dull moment in your neck of the woods.”

  “There really isn’t,” I smiled. “How is the weather there?”

  “Sunny and warm. Not hot, which is nice, but warm enough to enjoy the pool. Is it still snowing there?”

  “Off and on. I think we have flurries in the forecast for today, which will be a nice accent with the sleigh rides.” I glanced at the clock once again. “I suppose I should head over to the inn and see if Georgia needs help with anything. I hope you all have a wonderful day.”

  “I’m sure we will. As I mentioned, the kids want to go down to the pool in a little while, so I am going to bring my laptop and continue reading the file while they are swimming. After that, I think we are going to go to the park and stay until dinner.”

  “Let me know if you find anything important in the report after you have a chance to look at it.”

  “I will, although my gut is telling me we are going to need the court transcripts in order to get the whole picture, and with the holiday and all, I doubt we will be able to get access to the transcripts until after the first, which means we may not be able to make much progress at this point.”

  “I know. But the police file is a thick one. I’ve really only brushed the surface, so I keep hoping something will pop.”

  “Perhaps something will pop as being key to the case,” Colt encouraged. “There is a lot of information to get through.”

  “I’m happy to have your help, but I don’t want you to feel like you have to spend your vacation doing police work.”

  “I don’t mind helping when I have some downtime, it helps me feel connected to the investigation, even if that connection is from a distance. If I find anything relevant, I’ll call you right away. If not, I’ll call you this evening after I get the kids settled for the evening.”

  “Sounds good. And again, I hope you all have a wonderful day.”

  After I rang off, I climbed out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom. A hot shower should chase the remainder of the cobwebs from my mind. It had been a while since I’d slept in past nine o’clock. It was nice not feeling like I needed to hit the ground running. I hoped to have time over the holiday to refresh and relax. I still hoped that would be the case, but it did seem that there was too much going on to really let my guard down all the way. Of course, having a lot going on and being busy did keep me from obsessing over everyone who wasn’t with me this Christmas.

  When I arrived at the inn, I found the place almost deserted except for Georgia, who was busy in the kitchen. It seemed that Georgia was always busy in the kitchen as of late. If she wasn’t baking cookies, she was preparing meals for our guests. “Where is everyone?” I asked.

  “Christy and Haley went to church to hear Noah speak. Annabelle wanted to go with them, so Jeremy went along as well. Mylie went into town to have breakfast with Mark, and Riley is upstairs working on his blog.”

  “I see. Will anyone be here for the sleigh rides?”

  She nodded. “Everyone will be back by noon, and the sleigh is scheduled to arrive at one. I called and invited Lonnie, Lacy, and family. I was about to call Velma and invite her when you walked in. The sleigh can hold up to six at a time, and each loop is thirty minutes, so I figure the gang can divide up into groups so everyone can have a turn.”

  “Sounds fun. I’ll call Velma,” I offered. “I wanted to chat with her anyway. Do Nikki and Tanner know about the sleigh?”

  She nodded. “Nikki is actually coming by within the next half hour to clean the rooms, and Tanner said he would stop by mid-afternoon. He has a potential new trainer that he needs to interview this morning.”

  I picked up a piece of bacon that had been left from breakfast that was sitting on a plate along with a couple of muffins. I bit into it and chewed slowly. “It sounds like you have everything under control. Do you need help cleaning up?”

  “No. Between Nikki and me, we have it handled.”

  I glanced at the plates full of cookies that Georgia had been baking all week. “Have you decided which recipe to enter in the contest tomorrow?”

  “It’s been a hard choice, but I think I am going to go with the chocolate pralines. While there are several good options, I feel like they are a bit more original than the others.”

  “The chocolate pralines are a good choice,” I agreed. “Do you have everything you need?”

  “Actually, I do.” Georgia began wiping down the counters. “I want to discuss tomorrow with you. I will be at the competition most of the day. Jeremy is taking over in the kitchen, and Nikki will be here all day to help with everything else. We have one check-in tomorrow; Bud and Beth Trenton. They will be in suite one. Everything should be ready for their arrival.”

  “Okay. I’ll make sure to poke my head in and check on things, and I’ll let both Jeremy and Nikki know they can find me in the cottage if they have any questions. Anything else I need to know?”

  “I don’t think so. The competition is over at four, so I’ll be home for dinner. Jeremy is going to prepare the meal, but I’ll be here to help serve.”

  “Are there any events planned for tomorrow?” I asked.

  “Officially no. Unofficially, I know there is a group planning an ice skating trip, and I heard talk about a gingerbread house. Mylie and Christy are still working on crossing off all the items on Pamela’s list. They have actually made a lot of progress.”

  “Skating sounds fun. I haven’t been in years. Maybe I’ll free up some time to go with everyone, although I don’t have any skates.”

  “The outdoor rink at the edge of the park rents skates. You really should go. The setting is beautiful, and the festive atmosphere will make it a good place to glide around for a few hours. Did you ever tell Pamela that we had guests working on her list?”

  “No,” I answered. “Our conversation was pretty intense, and it never came up. I might call her later with an update. If the opportunity presents itself, I may mention it, but I don’t want to do or say anything that might make things worse for the poor woman.”

  “I get that. I suppose knowing that others are having the adventures she was never able to have could be a sad thing.” Georgia paused as Ramos walked over to her. “Do you need to go out?”

  He put his paw on her leg.

  “I’ll take him. Molly, too,” I offered. “I could use some fresh air.”

  “Okay, thanks. Bundle up. It is cold this morning.”

 
After I changed into my heavy boots and coat, I called both dogs, and we set off along the bluff. Even after speaking with Tanner, who led me to believe he would handle things, I still couldn’t get the idea of a resort basically right on top of me out of my mind. The inn was situated on a beautiful bluff with no other structures within sight other than Tanner’s place, which was far enough away to be almost unnoticeable. A huge resort with a hotel and restaurants would completely change the quiet and solitude we enjoyed. The more I thought about it, the more determined I was to keep a close eye on things, and if Mark Westgate did continue with his plan to buy the property, I was going to need to do everything in my power to prevent the sale from going through. Maybe I should talk to Tanner again. I was certain he was as motivated as I was to maintain the silent isolation of the bluff we shared.

  I paused and looked out toward the sea. The dark clouds hung low, making the water beneath the bluff look almost black. I pulled the collar of my coat up to protect my neck from the chill in the air. There was something about the raw beauty of this place that fed my soul the way the hustle and bustle of the city never had.

  Ramos was clearly waiting for me to catch up, so I picked up Molly, who I suspected needed a break, and continued down the path toward Peyton Academy. I knew that a fence would block my path, forcing me to use the gate if I went far enough. There were days in the summer when the fence served as my turn around point, but it was cold today, and I had limited energy, so I called to Ramos and headed back toward the warmth and comfort of my little cottage.

  When we arrived at the cottage, I clicked on the gas fireplace and then headed to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. Once it was done, called Velma and invited her over for a sleigh ride. She was closed on Sundays and graciously accepted. I mentioned that I might call and invite Pamela as well, and Velma offered to swing by and pick her up on her way over if she wanted to come so that I wouldn’t need to go out. Then I called Pamela, who was thrilled with the invite. I really should have made an effort to invite her to the inn sooner. I arranged for Velma to pick her up, and then I headed back into the living area, where I found Rufus sprawled out across the middle of the sofa. I scooted him to the side, sat down on the sofa, grabbed a cozy throw to place over my lap, and then leaned forward and picked up my laptop, which I’d left on the coffee table the previous evening. I opened the lid and logged on. Rufus gave me a dirty look for moving him, but he eventually curled up next to me while Ramos and Molly curled up on the rug in front of the fire.