by Cindy Bell
Peaches bumped her head against her cheek and meowed. “Oh no, we’re not talking about Luke.” Peaches meowed again. Ally looked into her eyes. “I’m just not ready, Peaches. I’m not sure I ever will be.” She sighed and snuggled the cat close. Through all the rough nights she had with her ex-husband Peaches had been there for emotional support. Ally treasured her.
As Ally fell asleep she considered whether she was ready to go out with Luke. But the quick fear that rose within her, warned her that she was not. “Maybe I’m meant to be alone for a little while, Peaches. What’s so wrong with that?” Peaches purred and nuzzled her chin. “I know, I know. I’m never alone. I have you.” Ally smiled as she drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Eight
When Ally woke the next morning she hurried to feed the animals. Then she prepared a fresh pot of coffee. She cut two bagels and set out butter and cream cheese. Once the table was set, she checked her phone. It was almost nine and still no text from Luke. She started to wonder if he had forgotten. After another ten minutes slid by, Ally was very antsy. She decided to call him and see what he was up to and if he had managed to make a time. She dialed his number. After several rings she was about to hang up. Then he picked up. At least, she thought he did.
“Hi Luke?” She heard noise in the background. “Luke, are you there?”
“Listen, we’ve talked about this before. I still can’t believe you left without telling me. But I know we need to work through this.”
A garbled voice responded to him, she couldn’t make out what it was saying. Ally realized that the answer button had inadvertently been pressed. It had happened to her on a few occasions when her phone was in her pocket on silent.
Ally’s heart sunk. It certainly sounded like he was trying to make up with someone. A past lover? She tensed at the thought. No matter who it was, she was obviously more important than coming to Ally as arranged. She hung up the phone and tried not to get upset. She didn’t have a right to be, after all. She didn’t know what to do. She had no idea if the meeting had been arranged at the prison. She decided that she would wait a little longer and hopefully Luke would call her. Otherwise she would go to Mainbry prison and try and see Denise. She ate her bagel and then started to clean up the rest of the breakfast that she had set out. Just as she picked up the plate with Luke’s bagel on it there was a knock on the door. When she answered it, Luke was on the other side.
“Oh. Hi.” Ally did her best to avoid his eyes.
“Sorry, I’m running late. Is that coffee I smell?”
“Well, I missed breakfast yesterday, and I thought you might want to have breakfast together today.”
“Wow, thanks Ally.”
“Sure. Let me just toast this for you.”
“Thanks.” Luke smiled as she walked over to the toaster.
“Here.” She offered him the toasted bagel, and again avoided his eyes.
“Thanks. Are you okay?” He tipped his head to the side in an attempt to meet her eyes.
“I’m fine.”
“I managed to set up a meeting with you and Denise.”
“Thanks!” Ally sighed with relief.
“Sorry I can’t come with you.”
“That’s okay.” She smiled but continued to avoid eye contact. “I’ll be fine. I appreciate what you’ve done for me already.”
“It’s no problem. You’ll have to leave soon though,” he said. “The appointment is at ten.”
“Why don’t we take these on the road?”
“A mobile breakfast?”
“I’m just anxious to see Denise.”
“All right, if that’s what you want that’s fine. I appreciate the breakfast, sorry I was late for it.”
“It’s okay. We didn’t set a time really. I know you’re busy, Luke.”
“Never too busy for you.”
“Sure.” She forced a smile and poured their coffee into travel mugs. On the way out the door she gave Peaches a scratch under her chin.
“Let me know how you go with seeing Denise.” He looked at her as they got to the van.
“I will.”
“Call me if you need anything.” He opened up the van door for her.
“Thank you for helping me, Luke.”
“You’re welcome.” He looked at her. “I’ll always be here for you, Ally.”
Ally smiled to herself. She wanted to argue the point, to remind him that she was just fine on her own, but she knew that he wouldn’t listen. She was glad that he wouldn’t.
As Ally drove to Mainbry she was anxious. Not just about seeing Denise, but about Luke as well. No matter how many times she told herself that she didn’t have a reason to be upset about what she had overheard, she couldn’t deny a dull ache in the pit of her stomach. She’d misread Luke completely. His playful flirting really was just playful flirting. What she had overheard on the phone was the truth. He cared about someone very deeply.
Ally was surprised as she turned into the prison parking lot. She had been so distracted she had driven on autopilot. At the gate she leaned through the window and told the guard her details. The guard checked the details and waved her through.
Things are much easier when you go through the front door, she thought to herself. She parked near the building and got out of the van. She walked quickly towards the entrance and walked over to security and went through the various procedures. Although there were many the process was surprisingly quick. Once she was through security Ally felt more confident. This would be her chance to find out information from Denise that could solve the murder. She couldn’t be distracted by Luke’s phone call.
When Ally walked into the visitor’s room, Denise was already seated at the table. Her hands were cuffed, but she was otherwise free. Ally sat down in the chair on the other side of the table. It was hard to look at Denise when she was so upset, but she knew she had to. Denise’s eyes were puffy and she barely looked at Ally.
“Why did you come here?” She sniffled.
“Because I want to help you, Denise.”
“What can you do?” She shook her head. “They’ve made up their minds. I don’t know why, but they think I did this. They think I put him in your car, so that you would help me. Ally, how did he get there?”
“I don’t know, Denise. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Did you and Dustin get together that night? Did you have wine?”
“No.” She sighed. “Not that it matters. No one believes me. We were supposed to get together, but not for romance. He said he wanted to tell me something about one of the staff members. Something he found out. I went by his room after my shift, but he didn’t answer the door. I figured he got caught up in something, and that he would tell me whatever he needed to tell me today. I just went home, alone. Which apparently isn’t a solid alibi.”
“No, it’s not.” Ally grimaced. “What about Dustin? Was he seeing anyone? Did you notice him flirting with anyone? Someone was in that room with him and shared a glass of wine.”
“I don’t know. We didn’t really talk about things like that. He didn’t mention anyone. He was a bit of a flirt with everybody. I even warned him about it earlier that day. There was a guest checking in, and he started flirting pretty heavily. When she turned him down, I took him aside. I warned him that he couldn’t do that type of thing at the hotel.”
“Did you tell the police that?”
“No, I’m not telling them anything. Everything I’ve told them they turned against me.”
“Do you remember the name of the guest?” Ally leaned forward.
“No, I don’t know who she was. Just some cute blonde. It wasn’t like I was jealous or anything, I just didn’t want him to get fired.”
“I understand. What about anyone else in his life? Did he ever mention anyone that might have been a problem when you were together?”
“Not that I know about. He spent all of his time working, or with me, and then when we ended things, I don’t know what he did. I’ve never even see
n him get frustrated, let alone angry at someone.” She lowered her eyes. “He was a good man. He didn’t deserve this.”
“You don’t deserve it either, Denise. I promise, I’m trying to find the real murderer.”
“Thank you, Ally. But please, don’t put yourself in a dangerous situation. Your mother, she wouldn’t want that.”
Ally longed to reach across the table and touch her hand, but she didn’t know if that was allowed. “No she wouldn’t. But she wouldn’t want you in here either.”
“Just be careful. They keep asking me questions about you. I’m worried that they might think we worked together.”
“It’s going to be okay, Denise, I’m going to get you out of here. Just hang on a little longer for me.”
“I don’t really want you involved in all of this, Ally, but there’s one person at the hotel that I know would want to help me. Talk to Kylie, we worked together before. She’s the assistant manager and usually works in reception. She’ll be able to get to things that no one else can.”
“Okay, I will. What about the staff member that he wanted to talk to you about? Do you have any idea who it was?”
“No.” She shook her head. “He wouldn’t tell me anything over the phone. He seemed a little upset by it. But he didn’t say why.” She reached up and wiped away a tear. “Maybe if I had gone to his room earlier, or made him meet me somewhere. I don’t know. I still can’t believe he’s gone.”
“I’m sorry, Denise, I know this is a lot for you to deal with. Just try to hang in there. I’m working on it. Okay?”
She smiled a little as she nodded. “Thanks Ally.”
“Denise. You’re not missing any earrings are you?”
“Not that I know of.” She shook her head. “Why?”
“Oh nothing.” Ally shrugged. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
As Ally walked out of the room an urge to bring Denise with her flooded through her body. Were it not for the armed guard that escorted her to the front lobby, she might have tried to. When Ally got outside she walked quickly to the van. She called Luke to let him know how it went.
“Hi Ally,” Luke answered quickly.
“I managed to see Denise?”
“Oh good,” Luke said. “How did it go?”
“She didn’t know much. Just that Dustin wanted to speak to her last night about a staff member, but she never caught up with him.”
“Does Denise know who?”
“No, but she did give me the name of someone who might be able to help with getting more information. The assistant manager, Kylie.”
“I’m sure that she has already been questioned quite a bit.”
“I’m sure she has, too, but if she and Denise are good friends, she might not have told the police everything that she would tell me. I’d like to see if she has anything more to say. Plus, she might have an idea who the earring belongs to.”
“That earring could be a dead end. It’s a pretty common style and it doesn’t prove anything.”
“Maybe. But it’s just about all we have right now.”
“While you were in with Denise, I had an update on the case. It turns out all of the surveillance video from the hotel has been damaged or deleted.”
“All of it?” Ally raised an eyebrow. “That’s not disabling cameras then, someone got inside the security office.”
“Yes, it seems that way. The more I learn about this case the stranger it gets. Someone went to a whole lot of trouble to kill Dustin and cover their tracks.”
“I bet it has something to do with what he found out about a member of staff. If only he’d told Denise who it was, we’d have our prime suspect, I know it.”
“As of right now Denise is the main suspect. You should be grateful for that, because if it wasn’t for her they’d probably be going after you.” Luke grimaced. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have pointed that out.”
“It’s okay. It’s the truth. But it doesn’t make me feel any better about Denise being in there. We have to find a way to get her out, as soon as possible.”
“I have to get back to work, but if you need me you can call me anytime, all right?”
“Yes, I appreciate that.”
“Just lay low and don’t do any investigating. Please.”
“Don’t worry.”
“I’ll check in with you as soon as I hear anything new.”
“Thanks.” Ally smiled. “Thank you for your support.”
“Anytime.” He hung up the phone.
Ally started the van and drove to the shop. As she got out of the van she turned towards the shop in time to see the door swing open.
“Ally, I’m glad that you’re back.” Charlotte stepped outside to meet her. “How is she?”
Ally hugged her grandmother. “Not great, not where she is. I am more determined than ever to help her. I need to find out who the murderer is and clear her name. I just hope that I actually can.”
“If anyone can I know it’s you, Ally. You have the mind for it. What’s the next step?” Charlotte guided her inside the shop.
“I think we need to get as much information as we can. The best way to do that is to talk to as many people at the hotel as we can. Someone had to have seen something, or know something. Denise gave me the name of someone who will be able to help us. The assistant manager, Kylie.”
“Oh good, that will give us a place to start. In my experience though, people are always much more talkative if they are bribed.”
“I don’t think we have the kind of cash that we would need for bribery.”
“Maybe not cash, but we do have something that might be even better.”
“What’s that?” Ally lifted an eyebrow.
“Chocolate. I’ve got some spare, and we can make a few more batches to take with us. If we are handing out the chocolates we will have an excuse for being there, too.”
“That is a great idea. How has everything been at the shop? In all of this I feel like I’m neglecting it.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ve been taking care of things.”
“I know. Thank you, Mee-Maw.” She sighed and looked into her eyes. “You’re so patient with me, Mee-Maw.”
“Ally, don’t you know how much it means to me that I can rely on you to handle the shop?”
“I just hope I’m doing it well enough. You worked so hard to build up the reputation, I don’t want to do anything to change that.”
“Let me stop you right there, because you will change it, sweetheart. You are going to put your own style and touches on it. That is what I want more than anything. The business was never supposed to be just mine, it was supposed to be something our family could share. I don’t want you to worry, I want you to embrace it and make it your own.”
“Thank you, Mee-Maw.” Ally hugged her again. “I can’t wait to make some more chocolates with you.”
Chapter Nine
When Ally and Charlotte went back into the shop Ally felt a sense of relief. She did her best thinking while creating chocolate. With a little music to keep them in the creative mood they began to work together on an assembly line of chocolates. Ally thought about the many times she had done this with her grandmother and her own mother.
With Denise back in Ally’s life, it was hard not to think about the special memories she had of her mother. Although it had been many years since Ally had said goodbye to her, she still had moments when it felt as fresh as the day it happened. Her heart ached for her mother in a way that she knew would always be with her. But every time she felt that ache she also felt incredibly lucky to have her grandmother in her life. When the chocolates were ready they packaged each one.
“It might bring back bad memories for the staff if we take the caramel chocolates to the hotel if they know they might have been the last thing Dustin ate. We can leave them here because the ladies didn’t get to try any yet. I bet Mrs. Bing is going to love them."
“Good thinking, Ally. I really think the new recipe is going to be a hit.�
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After closing the shop they loaded all of the samples into the van and headed off to Mainbry. Ally drove the route that was becoming very familiar. She wondered if there would be a time when she could look at the big blue hotel as just a building, and not a crime scene. It was a shame that something so tragic had happened when the hotel had only been open for such a short period of time.
When they reached Mainbry Charlotte nervously looked over her shoulder at the pile of boxes.
“Are you sure we have enough samples?”
“Don’t worry, we have plenty.” Ally pushed the switch for what she thought was the turn signal, but instead turned on the windshield wipers. She groaned and turned on the correct switch. “I really appreciate you letting me use the van, Mee-Maw, but I am looking forward to getting my car back.”
“You don’t want a new one?” Charlotte raised an eyebrow as she looked over at her.
“No, I don’t think so. I’ll have it cleaned inside and out of course, but it’s still my car.”
“You’re so down to earth, Ally. Someone else might never get in that car again.”
“I have too many good memories in it.”
“I understand,” Charlotte said.
Ally pulled through the circular driveway of the hotel. Before she could drive past, the valet stepped down off the curb. He smiled at her through the open window.
“Welcome. Can I have your keys please?” He reached his hand out to her.
“Actually, I’d like to park it myself.”
“Uh, that’s very unusual.”
“Do you recognize me?” She leaned out the window some so that he could see her.
“Yes.” His eyes widened.
“Last time I let you take my car, it came back with a body in it. So, you’ll understand if I’d like to park the van myself. Just tell me where the parking lot is, and I will park it.” She met his eyes. “I have a delivery of chocolates.”
“Oh, if you have a delivery that’s okay,” he said quickly. “It’s down the drive and to the right.”
“Thank you,” Ally said as she started to drive off.