Murder Beach

by Rena Leith

  Samantha nodded and then winced with pain. “I’d just run into a significant cold spot and was filming when I heard a shuffling sound behind me. I turned with the camera still in front of my face. I saw him, bundled in a heavy jacket, scarf, and hat. He reached out and slammed the flat of his hand against the lens of my camera and that knocked me down. I don’t remember anything else. The doctor told me that you don’t feel the blow that knocks you out. My concussion was caused by a blow to the back of my head, not the camera in the face, bad as that looks.”

  I thought back to her camera design. No display screen. I guessed that refinement would come with investments.

  Jack frowned. “That means there might have been two of them.”

  “Or she hit the back of her head when she fell. But at least you got them on film,” I said.

  Samantha looked away. “Bill Daniels said they didn’t find my camera.” She started crying.

  “I’m so sorry. I know it was your prototype. We were up on the top of the hill this morning and didn’t see your stuff. Your car is still parked on the road. At least, it was when we left.”

  Samantha sobbed. “I just don’t understand why.”

  “They didn’t…I mean, you weren’t…uh…” I cleared my throat. “You weren’t raped, were you?”

  She looked shocked. “No!”

  I was embarrassed. “Sorry, but I had to ask. The person who hit you must have taken your camera intentionally. Maybe the motive was robbery.” But that didn’t make sense because they wouldn’t have known if it had any value. It clearly wasn’t a smart phone. Whoever it was hadn’t wanted to be filmed and suspected he had been.

  A nurse came in through the open door. “You have another visitor. One of you will have to leave.”

  Jack said, “Gillian and I will go down to the gift shop. Take care, Samantha. We’ll see you later.”

  Samantha said, “Thank you.”

  I stood up. “I’ll go, too. But I had to make sure you were okay. If you remember anything else, let me know. I’ll be back tomorrow to check on you.”

  “Look for my stuff? Okay?”

  “You bet.” I turned to leave as Ricardo came in. “Hey, Ricardo. If you come by my place after you leave here, we could use some help checking the park for Samantha’s camera.”

  “Absolutely. I figured I’d come by to see if the boss wanted me to close up shop while she’s laid up.” He winked at me as Samantha squawked in the background.

  “Careful. You’ll raise her blood pressure.”

  “I’m so happy she’s okay, that I’d keep it open twenty-four-seven if she wanted,” he whispered. “Oh, dinner at Brendan’s tonight.” The door closed behind him.

  I took the elevator down to the first floor and found Jack and Gillian in the gift shop. “Ricardo’s with her now, and I guess we’re having dinner at Brendan’s.”

  “Bummer. I was looking forward to pizza again,” Jack said.

  ****

  Someone knocked on the door.

  “That must be them!” Jack swung the door wide. “C’mon in. Cass is getting her stuff together. Let me take your jackets. This could take a few minutes. Want anything to drink?”

  Ricardo followed Jack into the kitchen.I looked up from my computer. Mia was stunning in a green silk, off the shoulder maxi with a handkerchief hem.

  “Hi Mia. I think I’m underdressed.”

  She laughed. “No, I’m just desperate to wear this vintage dress I found in the City.”

  “I never fit into vintage. Too hippy.” I hit Command-S. “I’m almost finished here. Did you bring the sketches?”

  She held up an envelope as she walked over to the table. “Right here.” She set the envelope down and picked up one of Mina’s books. “I think I’ve seen this in the bookstore.”

  She flipped through the book as I saved the file to a flash drive.

  “Hmmm. ‘Is Las Lunas haunted?’ Yeah, I’d say so. Ever since I moved here, there’ve been weird goings on.”

  I leaned back. “What do you mean?”

  “I was so frightened, so insecure when I tracked my father here. Then unexplained things kept happening. At first, I thought my dad was protecting me. Then I thought I had a guardian angel, keeping me from harm. But when I started dating Ricardo, he kept telling me that I was imagining things, and because I was falling in love with him, I let it go.” She glanced toward the kitchen. “But I never believed that this town was normal, so I kept investigating on my own.” She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “I even started to wonder if Ricardo was in on it.”

  Jack and Ricardo came into the living room, carrying beers.

  “Don’t spoil your dinner. I suspect Brendan will have put in a lot of effort.” I scolded.

  Mia read through the table of contents. “For example, ‘The Woman in Black.’ I swear one night around midnight when I was on my way home after one of our meetings, I saw a woman suddenly appear ahead of me. There one minute, gone the next. Then I heard a cat meow. The story is that she turns into a cat and runs away.”

  I thought about the cat I’d seen in the fog. “I think I may have seen her, too. What else?”

  The air behind Mia shimmered, and I was so tempted to introduce her to Doris, but now was not the time.

  Mia raised an eyebrow. “The murders on your beach and all the ghosts.”

  “You’re going to scare her, Mia.”

  If only Ricardo knew, I thought. “Oh, don’t worry about me. I’m more curious than scared.”

  But Ricardo continued to look worried. “Mia hasn’t lived here very long. I’ve lived here my whole life. You can destroy the reputation of a whole community—”

  Mia cut him off, waving the book in his face. “Hello! Published! I’m not spreading any stories that a tourist can’t read him or herself.”

  “And that gives me an idea.” I opened my laptop again and started making notes. “What if we incorporate some of the local legends into our designs?”

  Gillian nodded. “Not a bad idea. It could be a theme tying the web sites together into a community. Do they still do webrings? I haven’t seen one in a while.”

  Mia quirked a smile. “The concept’s a bit dated now. Very Nineties. But that’s not to say that we can’t develop our own structure for the community around a theme. Personally, I like the idea of using legends.” She cast a glance at Ricardo. “But we’ll have to think it through. It might not work for all businesses. For example, no ghosts for real estate agencies.”

  I laughed to cover up the ghostly chuckle from just over my left shoulder. “Got your point.” I glanced over my shoulder to let Doris know that I was aware of her presence.

  Jack took another swig of beer. “Ricardo, you’re the only one in the room who grew up here. Is this book accurate? What are the local legends?”

  Ricardo looked at all of us solemnly in turn. “They aren’t to be mocked.”

  That got my attention but Mia rolled her eyes.

  He ignored her and continued. “Most people have talked to a ghost without realizing it.”

  And then there are those of us who do.

  “They usually aren’t wispy, nor do they moan and drag chains around. But ghosts aren’t the only creatures that live here in Las Lunas.”

  I realized I was leaning forward. “What else is here?”

  “I’m guessing sea monsters and mermaids.” Jack dropped his bottle into recycling, breaking the spell.

  Ricardo stopped, and I sensed the tension in him.

  “What? You’re at the seashore. Ergo…” Jack shrugged.

  I was annoyed at Jack for his flip attitude that I usually found so endearing. I had really wanted to hear what Ricardo was about to say. I hadn’t forgotten the strange noises and bumps in the night and the fireflies that weren’t fireflies.

  Ricardo slipped his jacket on and picked up Mia’s coat, holding it open for her to slip her arms into the sleeves.

  I stood and picked up my laptop and Mia’s envelope.
“Ready to go. Who wants to drive?”

  In the creeping twilight, the warmly lit Queen Anne beckoned and Brendan met us at the door. “I’m so glad you could come.” He held the door open for us as we walked into the entry hall.

  “Brendan,” I said, “I have to ask you about the color scheme. Is it a guy thing to paint a house so dark? I mean, black, maroon, and bronze hardly seem like cheerful house colors.”

  Brendan’s laugh was deep and rumbly. “While this house is a lovely painted lady, as Victorians are referred to in the Bay Area, and are usually brightly painted around here, I did some research on paint colors in Victorian times. Why own a bookstore if you can’t use it for research? I discovered that these are typical colors for a house during this part of Queen Victoria’s reign during which it was built. I thought long and hard about it, but in the end, I went for historical accuracy. I must admit that I’ve really gotten into restoring her authentically. It’s become a bit of an obsession.”

  I looked around. “You’ve done an amazing job.”

  “Thanks.” He showed us into the living room. “For example, the long drapes that outline the tall windows are pulled back with reproduction brass pulls. Looped over the pulls are silk tassels I found in a repro catalog. When I could find original hardware, I grabbed it.”

  I handed him a bottle of wine in a green velvet sack.

  He untied the cord, slid the bottle out, and examined the label. “My favorite vineyard.”

  “You flatterer. I’m waiting for someone to write a book called Wine for the Palate-Challenged.”

  “What a beautiful Oriental carpet,” Jack said.

  “And I love the lace doilies,” Gillian added.

  “That doily is an antimacassar. Macassar was oil that men used on their hair.”

  “Yuck,” I said. “I’m not a fan of a lot of hair product.”

  “Most women don’t like oil staining the upholstery, so they tatted antimacassars to prevent the oil from being transferred to the upholstery.”

  “Is this macramé?” Mia asked.

  We turned our attention to a shadow box that contained earrings and a brooch that looked like fine macramé.

  “That’s hair jewelry,” Brendan said. “Victorian women would collect hair from a loved one—often deceased—into a hair keeper and weave or braid it into jewelry as a memento.”

  “Gross!” Jack leaned closer.

  “This is like a museum.” I wondered why Brendan hadn’t become a teacher.

  “Would you like the grand tour?” Brendan asked.

  We all looked at each other and nodded.

  “Good. Let’s start at the top and work our way down.” Brendan led us up two flights of stairs to the top of the house. The Persian runners on both flights were held in place by brass rods along the backs of the steps. Underneath the runners the hard wood was beautifully polished. I thought about the work all this must have taken.

  On the third floor, the rooms were untouched and full of old furniture, boxes, and trunks. Brendan pointed out the rooms and their histories without taking us into them. The second floor showed evidence of recent construction.

  Brendan said, “I’m working on a suite of rooms for a new English professor who starts at the college in the fall. I’m putting in a few amenities, such as a whirlpool bath, for her. I’ll fix up the wooden fire escape at the back of the—”

  Though we were on the second floor, the hammering at the front door made us all jump.

  Brendan frowned and hurried down the stairs. “They’ll damage the door pounding like that. I’m coming! I’m coming!” he shouted.

  We all followed him down. By the time we reached the front hall, George was handing Brendan a folded sheet of paper. His eyes widened when he saw me, but he was all business.

  “I have a search warrant.”

  Brendan shook his head. “But why?”

  “We have reason to believe that you had unusual access to Alan’s Book Shoppe.” He pushed past Brendan, followed by two police officers. He pointed to one. “You start upstairs. You,” he pointed to the other, “in the back.”

  By the time the officers moved off to start the search, we had stopped behind Brendan. Brendan opened the warrant and read it.

  I was uncomfortable and tapped him lightly on the arm. “Perhaps we should just leave.”

  Brendan looked up. “Wait a minute.” He turned to George, who had moved off into the living room. He turned back and held up a finger. “Wait just a minute.” He went into the living room.

  I said to Ricardo and Mia, “I don’t know if we should stay and offer moral support or get out of his way.”

  Jack said, “If we stay, we may find out something.”

  “I’m sure he spent time and money on dinner,” Mia said. “It would be impolite to leave.”

  “Okay then,” I said, swallowing my feelings. “Let’s tag along.”

  But there was no need because George pushed passed us and went out the front door.

  Brendan followed him but stopped next to me. “He got a call. Seems they found the young man, the missing gamer, they were looking for. I guess searching my house dropped to a lower priority for them. That’s a good thing. Anyway, the two officers will search—”

  The officer who’d started searching at the back of the house interrupted him. “We’re through with the kitchen and dining room.” He went into the living room.

  “That was fast, thank heavens. Let’s have dinner.” Brendan herded everyone out of the hall and into the dining room.

  Despite Brendan’s patter, we were a quiet group as we ate the salmon pâté and sipped a nice light Chardonnay. One of the officers stuck his head through the door and told us they were leaving. Brendan got up to escort them out and lock the front door. He looked distinctly relieved as he served the main course with a flourish.

  I turned to Brendan. “Okay, so what were they looking for and how do you tie into the murder?”

  “Ah, subtlety.”

  “Brendan.”

  “Oh, all right. You did say you wanted a little local history, Cass.”

  I’d been thinking Doris’ history, but I’d take what I could get.

  “Alan and I were rivals. Say, I wonder if Sara would consider selling me Althea Romeo’s collection now that Alan’s gone to his reward?”

  I made a speed-it-up motion with my hand.

  “Just a thought. To make a long story short, I have…had a key to Alan’s. Undoubtedly, the police found out as it was listed on the warrant. They apparently have evidence that I used it, which I did, but not to commit a crime.”

  That answered one question. “So you didn’t know that Samantha videotaped you using a key to enter Alan’s store?”

  Brendan nearly dropped his wine glass.

  “Why do you have a key to Alan’s store?” There was an edge to Mia’s voice.

  “To spy on him, of course. While it’s not really a secret, I had no idea there was a video of me using it.”

  He looked so shocked that I believed him.

  “Why did you need to spy on him?” She furrowed her brow and cocked her head sideways.

  “What does it matter? My reputation is probably ruined now.”

  “I doubt that anyone will notice. Too much else going on,” Ricardo said.

  Brendan brightened. “Do you really think so?”

  “Unless you’re arrested for murder, of course,” I added.

  Brendan’s face fell.

  “Oh, you’re a big help, Cass.” Jack shook his head.

  I shrugged. “There’s always the possibility that a little scandal might help. They say all publicity is good publicity.”

  “That’s optimistic.” Brendan removed our plates to the sideboard and set a small stack of fine porcelain dessert plates and a cherry cheesecake down then proceeded to cut pieces for all of us.

  It was hard to resist diving immediately into the cheesecake, but I had to know. “Oh, you’re not getting off the hook so lightly, Bren
dan. How did you get a key to Alan’s shop?”

  Had Brendan been a cat, the cream would have been dripping off his chops. “You know I’ve been writing a mystery?”

  “Yeah.”

  “In one scene I have my protagonist acquire a house key by bribing a parking attendant to let him have the key ring while the target attends a gala.”

  “So?”

  “So I did some research to see if it would actually work, and it did.”

  “A valet gave you Alan’s key ring?” That was the last time I was leaving my keys with a valet. “He could have been fired! What if Alan had wanted his car while you were copying keys?”

  “I gave him more than he would have made for the entire night, and he kept the car keys with him. The keys were tagged and put on a pegboard, so he could have pled ignorance if challenged. Besides, it only took me a minute to take impressions of all the keys. That wasn’t the hard part.”

  “Okay, I’ll bite,” I said. “What was the hard part?”

  “Finding somebody sleazy enough to make the keys and then sneaking around at night to try them out on the door. It’s amazing how honest people are on the coast.”

  Jack laughed. “Next time take pictures of them and print them out on a 3D printer.”

  Gillian poked him in the ribs. “Don’t give him ideas!”

  “What a great idea!” Brendan looked like an overgrown boy recounting a favorite adventure. “I can use that.”

  I said, “Samantha caught you on camera.”

  He was incredulous. “People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Filming people without their knowledge has to be illegal. I should turn her in.”

  That settled the question of whether Brendan had known he’d been videoed and whether he’d attacked Samantha for it, at least in my mind. I believed him. “Brendan, she didn’t turn you in. She’s in the hospital. She was attacked in the same area where Alan was killed.”

  “What?”

  He looked so stunned that I couldn’t believe he’d had anything to do with it. He was either the best actor I’d ever seen or he had absolutely no control over his face.

  Ricardo said, “We don’t know much about it yet, but she was attacked close to the beach on the other side of the hill from Cass’ house.”