A Bitter Sweet Murder (A Chocolate Centered Cozy Mystery Book 3)

by Cindy Bell

  “No nothing.” Ally shook her head. “Like I said, I barely spoke to Dustin.”

  “But the valet insisted on taking the car keys,” Luke asked in a hushed voice.

  “Yes. And he had that same pin on that we found in the trunk. But so did a few other staff members I saw,” Ally said softly.

  “Hm. Did Denise have one?”

  “No.” She cringed as she recalled the jacket that the body was wrapped in. “Luke, I have to tell you something, but I want you to hear everything I have to say first.”

  “What?” His expression stiffened, but his voice remained soft.

  “The jacket that Dustin was wrapped in, I recognized it.”

  “What do you mean?” He turned to face her fully.

  “I have known Denise for a long time, and she would never do anything to hurt anyone. But that was her jacket.”

  “What? And you didn’t think to tell me this before? Ally, we could have avoided all of this!” Luke frowned and ran his hand back through his hair. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because, I know Denise didn’t do it.” Ally tried to keep her voice low even though she was upset. “If I told the detective about it, he would have thought she was involved.”

  “Ally, they’re going to figure out it’s her jacket either way. If we had told them, it would have made your case look a little better.”

  “I wouldn’t want to do that. Denise is just as innocent as I am.” Ally crossed her arms and regarded him with irritation. “I want you to believe me.”

  “I’m sorry, but the only thing that I believe right now, is that you didn’t do this, which means we need to prove that someone else did.”

  “Not Denise.” She shook her head.

  “Sh.” Luke looked down the hall. “Someone’s coming. Here.” He pulled open a door and tugged her inside. The space was rather small. Ally was pinned against the wall, while Luke did his best not to flatten her against it. “Sh.”

  She nodded. In the hall she could hear a male and a female voice. It took her a moment to recognize that the female voice belonged to Lisa, the maid that was in charge of distributing the chocolates for the turndown service.

  “So, you’re saying she asked you to give him two specific candies?” The man asked.

  “Yes. I thought it was a little strange, but she said it was because he didn’t like mint or dark chocolate.”

  “But she claims never to have met him before yesterday. How would she know that?”

  “I don’t know, Detective. I just did what she asked and put the candies in his room.”

  Ally didn’t recognize his voice so she presumed he was the Mainbry detective. A cell phone rang outside the door. “I just have to take this,” the detective said.

  “Is that true? Did you give him special chocolates?” Luke whispered as he met her eyes.

  “He didn’t like mint or dark chocolate. He told me when I met him and offered him a chocolate. I just asked the maid to make sure that he got the caramel ones on his pillow.” She braced herself against the wall as Luke leaned closer to her.

  “That doesn’t look good. It looks like you had a personal connection to him.” He paused a moment, then took a breath. “Did you?”

  “What?” She narrowed her eyes, speaking as quietly as possible.

  “Did you have a personal relationship with him? Maybe you flirted, maybe you spent some time talking after your meeting with Denise? Anything like that?”

  “Luke, no.” Ally shook her head. “Not at all.”

  “I’m only asking because if you lie about it, it will only make things worse for you, Ally.”

  “I’m not lying.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “I barely spoke to him. He showed me to Denise, then I met with Denise, and that was it.”

  He nodded.

  “Sorry about that,” the detective continued talking in the corridor.

  Luke put his finger to his lips as the pair stopped outside the door.

  “Did you notice anything strange in his room while you were there? Anything out of order?” The detective asked.

  “Nothing strange, he just had no dry towels left when I checked the room so I asked the maid that works the floor to leave fresh towels. When I bumped into her later she had two of the hotel wine glasses on her from his room, they must have been left there after I had left the chocolates. I took the glasses from her.”

  “Why did you take them?”

  “I’ve become quite friendly with her and she asked me to help her out because I was going downstairs. One of the glasses had lipstick on it, and that’s tough to get off the glass if it sits too long.”

  “Where are the glasses now?”

  “In the kitchen I presume. They would have been washed last night.”

  “Great.” The detective sighed. “So, he had a female guest. Had you noticed him with anyone?”

  “I’m sorry, Sir, I only started last week. That’s why I have this pin, I’m still in training. They put me in charge of the turndown service because I did it at another hotel in the city. I’m not that familiar with the people that work here.”

  Ally bit into her bottom lip. So that was what the pin meant. It also meant that whoever left the pin in the trunk was likely a trainee. Which might make it easier to narrow down. Lisa still had hers, but that didn’t rule her out. Maybe she asked for a new one. She was determined to check with Denise about it. The voices faded as the pair walked away. Luke remained close to her. She tried not to think about how heavy her heart pounded against her chest. If she let herself get caught up in it, she might get too distracted to figure out the truth.

  “Do you think it’s safe yet?”

  “In a hurry to get away from me?” Luke leaned a little closer with a sly smile.

  “Luke.”

  “Okay, okay.” With a quiet motion he opened the door. He checked the hall again, then gestured for Ally to follow him. As they headed down the hall, Ally wondered if Luke doubted her. The way he had looked at her, made her think that he wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth. If even he wasn’t convinced, then why would the police believe her? As they neared the main lobby Ally heard a familiar voice.

  “That’s Denise,” she said softly.

  “Are you sure?”

  Ally nodded. Luke peeked around the entrance to the lobby. Ally did as well. She saw a man who stood very close to Denise.

  “I had nothing to do with this,” Denise said.

  “No? Because I have just heard from my partner that there were two wine glasses in the victim’s room. One with lipstick. I would guess it matches that lovely shade you have on.”

  “No.” Denise shook her head. “I never saw Dustin that night. I went home.”

  “But no one can prove that?”

  “I live alone.”

  “No boyfriend?”

  “Not right now.” She cleared her throat.

  “Not since you and Dustin broke up?”

  Ally ducked her head back. Her heart pounded as she listened for Denise’s answer.

  “Yes, we were dating. But it’s been over for almost two weeks.”

  “That’s not very long. Maybe he invited you into his room to talk about things. Maybe you forced your way in. Emotions ran high, and he ended up dead?”

  “No! I did not go in his room. I was at home. We were fine with the breakup. We were still friends.”

  “It isn’t very friendly to murder someone.”

  “That’s ridiculous.”

  “Is it? Several of the staff here have informed myself and my partner that you and Dustin had some rather loud verbal altercations.”

  “That was before we broke up. He wanted to continue things, I told him we couldn’t because I took this job. They don’t allow dating between personnel and security, it’s too much of a risk. He wanted to continue in secret, but I didn’t. As soon as I made that clear we didn’t argue anymore.”

  “But maybe he wasn’t satisfied with your decision? Did he come after y
ou? Hurt you?”

  “No, he was a good friend. You don’t have any proof, if you did, I would be in custody.”

  “Good idea. I think that we’re ready to take that step. We know a few things. You have a motive, you had the opportunity, and you just happened to conceal the body in the trunk of a car that belongs to a friend of yours. Maybe she told you she would get rid of it? I guess she didn’t turn out to be such a great friend after all.” He held out his handcuffs. “Now, are you going to make a scene?”

  Ally tensed. Luke put his hand on her arm to hold her back from pushing past him. He shot her a stern look.

  “Don’t,” Luke said firmly, but he kept his voice quiet.

  “I have to help her,” Ally pleaded.

  “Ally don’t.” When she started to pull away from him, he grabbed her by the crook of her elbow. “You promised. Remember?”

  All of her defiance deflated. Luke was right. There was nothing she could do to help Denise in that moment. But if she revealed that she and Luke were there, then there would be a lot of questions to answer. Still, it was hard for Ally to watch the officer lead Denise out of the hotel to a waiting patrol car.

  “She didn’t do this, Luke. I know she didn’t.”

  “It’s been a long time since the last time you saw her, hasn’t it? Maybe she’s changed, Ally. Life and stress can do a lot of crazy things to you. Or maybe, like the detective said, Dustin put her in an impossible position.”

  “But how would killing Dustin benefit her?”

  “Maybe she just lost it.”

  “They seemed to get along.”

  “You never know what’s happening beneath the surface.” Luke’s jaw rippled.

  “In your experience?”

  “Yes, experience has shown me that you never know what goes on behind closed doors.”

  “Maybe you’re right, Luke, but I don’t know. None of it makes sense. It just doesn’t add up.”

  “It will, we just have to be patient.”

  Ally nodded, even though that seemed like the worst possible path to take. Luke’s phone vibrated. He glanced at the screen and frowned.

  “I’m being called in.”

  “Don’t they know that you’re babysitting?” Ally smiled a little in an attempt to lighten the mood.

  “I don’t think I need to anymore, since Mainbry has a suspect in custody.”

  “So she goes to jail, and I’m free?”

  Luke met her eyes. “I didn’t know my company was such torture.”

  “It’s not.” Ally glanced away. “Not at all.”

  “I have to go, Ally. I can’t ignore a request. The best place for you right now is at home with Charlotte. I know she’ll keep you out of trouble.”

  Ally tried not to smile at that. Maybe Luke was getting to know her pretty well but he clearly had no idea what Charlotte was really like. “Luke, it’s fine, I’ll be fine. Let’s just get back to the cottage. There’s nothing more we can do here.” He stared at her.

  “You’re not going to fight me?” Luke asked softly.

  “No, I think you’re right. Like you said we can’t be caught here. There is not really anything that can be done to help Denise right now.” Ally shrugged. “I want to check on Mee-Maw and make sure that she’s not too upset.”

  “Good idea,” Luke said and then checked to make sure the hall was clear. He then led her back towards the maintenance entrance. Once they were outside again Ally felt a sense of relief. A tension left her that she didn’t even realize was there until it was gone.

  “Are you okay, Ally?” Luke put an arm around her shoulders as they walked. Ally stole a look in his direction, but looked away before he caught her.

  “I think so.”

  “You’re strong. You know that?”

  “You think so?”

  “Sure. Most people in your situation would have lost it or given up. You have such a problem solving mentality. Maybe it gets you, okay both of us, into trouble at times, but it’s a very valuable thing to have.”

  “Thanks Luke.” She smiled. They reached the car and he opened the door for her.

  “When this is all over, you owe me breakfast, remember?” Luke said. He grinned and closed the door. When he settled into the driver’s seat Ally did her best not to let him see the blush in her cheeks. She knew that he was determined, and that thrilled her. But she was also determined not to be in a position that she did not feel comfortable in. As Luke’s friend, she was very comfortable. If their friendship became anything more than that she had no idea how she would feel. When they reached the cottage Luke pulled the car up outside the front.

  “I will find out what I can about the case and meet you back here as soon as I can. If anything happens call me right away. Understand?” He looked into her eyes intently. “Just try to relax, I’ll do what I can to help you.”

  “Thanks Luke. That means a lot to me.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. Her heart fluttered at the contact. His eyes widened. He tipped his head as if he might kiss her in return. Instead he smiled.

  “I’ll see you later. Take care,” he said as Ally got out of the car.

  After Luke had driven off Ally opened the door to the cottage and was greeted by Peaches who wound around her legs with such speed and excitement that Ally nearly tripped. Ally reached down and stroked the cat from head to tail. When she straightened up again she was face to face with her grandmother.

  “Ally, I was worried. How did it go?”

  Ally’s lips tightened into a grim line. “They arrested Denise.”

  “What? Why?” Charlotte’s eyes grew wide.

  “Apparently she was in a relationship with Dustin. A maid found two wine glasses in his room. One with lipstick. I guess the police think that she was with him shortly before he was killed, and was probably the one to kill him.”

  “Oh no, I couldn’t imagine that being true. She is a very kind woman.” Charlotte wrung her hands. “This is insane. First it was you, now Denise.”

  “I know. I don’t believe it either. I saw the two of them together and they were very friendly to each other. There didn’t seem to be any problems between them. How could they go from that to murder in just a few hours?”

  “Even if something did happen, maybe he attacked her, maybe she defended herself and things got out of control, why would she put the body in your trunk?”

  Ally gazed out the front window of the cottage. “I don’t know. Unless maybe she hoped I would help her. But why wouldn’t she have said something to me when I called her?”

  “I don’t think she did this, Ally.” Charlotte raised an eyebrow. “Where’s Luke?”

  “He got called in to work. I’m on my own. Which is why we need to figure out a way to get into the crime scene. If we wait too long any clues that we might find will be gone.”

  “I don’t think we can, Ally, they took your car.”

  “Not that crime scene. Dustin wasn’t killed in my trunk. Someone put his body there. Which means that he had to have been killed at the hotel. Maybe in his room? If we can get in there we might be able to find a clue as to who the killer is.”

  “But the place will be flooded with police. How will we get past?”

  “I’m not sure.” Ally sighed. “But we have to do something. I have to help Denise.”

  “I think it’s worth a try. But it will be difficult,” Charlotte replied.

  “The first step is getting there.”

  “Let me just feed Arnold and Peaches, or we might come home to a torn up cottage.”

  “Good point.” Ally nodded. “I’m going to change. I should have changed even before I went to the hotel with Luke. It will be harder for people to recognize me if I’m in different clothes. I’ll just be a minute.”

  Ally stepped into her bedroom and to her surprise Peaches followed after her. Normally the cat would race into the kitchen to get food. “Aw honey, you’re worried about me aren’t you?” Ally scooped her up and snuggled her close to her chee
k. “I know, you can tell I’m upset. But everything is going to be okay. I just have to get a few things straightened out. Go eat.” Ally put her back down on the floor. Peaches gave her a forlorn look, then took off at the sound of the can opener. Ally laughed as she gathered some clothes to change into. Though Peaches was a cat, Ally considered her to be her closest friend. Once she was changed she grabbed a pair of gloves, put them in her pocket and met her grandmother in the living room.

  “I’m taking some chocolates with us,” Charlotte said as she held up a box of chocolates. “That way if we are caught we have an excuse for being there.”

  “Good thinking.” Ally smiled as she placed a hat on her head and handed a shawl to her grandmother so she could tie it around her head and be less recognizable. “Let’s head out. If Luke comes back before we go, he might not want us to follow through.”

  “Might not, Ally?” Charlotte’s eyes shone. “I think you know better than that.”

  “Plausible deniability, Mee-Maw. It’s important.”

  “You might consider that Luke knows what he is talking about. Getting involved in this, especially when you are probably still on the suspect list, is a big risk.”

  “I know. But I’m still going to do what I can. I think Mom would have done the same for Denise.”

  “You’re right.” Charlotte smiled fondly. “She was just as brave and stubborn as you.”

  Ally’s heart swelled at the thought of being similar to her mother.

  Chapter Six

  As Ally and Charlotte started driving towards the hotel Ally’s nerves began to rattle. Were they really going to break into a crime scene? She tried not to think about the consequences. To distract herself she glanced over at her grandmother.

  “Mee-Maw, does Rose know that Denise was arrested?”

  “I don’t know. She will be so upset. Denise is her only daughter and they have always been so close. She hasn’t been well lately. I’m a little worried about her health. It might be best to try to keep her out of this until it all settles down.”

  “Yes, this might be too upsetting. But I wonder if she might know something that could help us.”

  “Let’s see what we turn up first, then we’ll think about talking to Rose.”