Allison Janda - Marian Moyer 01 - Sex, Murder & Killer Cupcakes

by Allison Janda

  “I thought you were in danger.”

  “Get that thing out of here,” she cried, waving her arms frantically.

  “What the hell is going on?”

  “I don’t know. I just brought her the flowers. We thought they were from Mika but she opened the card and started freaking out.”

  “What’s the card say?” Rory asked, stepping closer.

  “I don’t know! It’s over there,” and she pointed to the other side of my desk. Rory gingerly reached for the card as Addie continued to rub my back. My head was pounding. After reading the note, Rory cast us a worried glance before reading it again. “Well?” Addison begged impatiently. “What’s going on? What does it say?”

  Rory swallowed hard and handed the card to Addie. After reading it, her hand flew to her mouth. “I can’t believe this.”

  After a moment’s pause, she and Rory wrapped me in a tight hug. I’m not sure how long we stayed there, but out of the corner of my eye I could just barely make out the words that had been sent as a message along with my beautiful bouquet.

  Dear Marian. These were for your funeral. I’d hate to see them go to waste. XO

  Betsy walked in and looked at the three of us huddled together on the floor. “What’s going on?” she asked. “I heard screaming and then I saw Rory running upstairs with a gun.” She paused. “Please tell me you didn’t find another body.”

  “Nothing like that,” said Rory, clearing his throat and then standing. “We just thought that-”

  “False alarm,” Addison cut him off. She, too, stood and moved next to Rory. He turned to her, confused, but didn’t say anything further. “It’s okay though, Betsy, you can go back to work.”

  I could feel Betsy cut her eyes to me. I was still huddled into a ball on the floor, my forehead pressed tightly against my knees. All I could see were their shoes. Rory’s sensible brown loafers. Betsy’s furry, black boots. Addie’s sky-high red heels. Betsy wanted to say something to me, obvious by the way she hesitated, but eventually she turned and made her way to the door, where she paused. I heard her take a deep breath and I raised my head, watching her. She was searching the room. When her eyes landed on the flowers, she wrinkled her nose. We locked eyes and, I swear, my heart stopped beating when I saw the ice in her gaze. “Smells like a funeral parlor,” she scoffed. With that, she turned and made her way back down the stairs.

  The room around me became devoid of air. “How did she-?” I asked.

  Rory was staring after her, slack-jawed. “What did she just say?” Addie demanded.

  “Did you say that you met the florist at the front door when you came back?” I looked to Rory, then to Addie, then back to Rory. “Isn’t that what you told me?” I shrieked when neither one of them responded.

  “Yes! I’m sorry. Yes,” Addie blurted out. “He said he hadn’t gotten anyone to answer the door.”

  “But Betsy was here,” I said, confused. “She just told us that she heard screaming and then saw Rory running upstairs with a gun. Why wouldn’t she answer the door?”

  Addison turned to me, her eyes wide. “Maybe she just got here. You don’t think that she- I mean, Betsy isn’t capable of- why would she?”

  I stared back at her, speechless. Without warning, I felt hysterical laughter bubbling up in my throat. I couldn’t help it. I began to laugh so hard that I clutched at my stomach, tears rolling down the sides of my face.

  “She’s lost it,” Addison mumbled, coming to sit down next to me. Slowly, my laughter turned into wrenching sobs. Between wails I gasped for air, laying my head heavily onto Addison’s shoulder.

  “Okay, let’s not lose total focus here,” Rory said, beginning to pace the room.

  “He’s not very comfortable around women who cry” Addison told me. I could only wail louder, unsure of how to reign in my emotions. She looked to Rory apologetically but could only shrug at him.

  Rory continued to pace, cringing slightly each time a new cry ripped from my throat. “Just a few hours ago, we were convinced it was James. Now we’re looking at Betsy?” He jammed his thumb towards the door. “You think that, that could be a cold blooded killer?” He shook his head. “No. There’s no way. She has no reason to kill anyone in this room.”

  “We turned her down for the modeling gig,” Addison said simply.

  “After the original murder, though.”

  “Maybe she was hoping that by getting rid of a model, she could take their place.”

  “How would she know that a model would eat the food? They never eat the food.”

  Addison paused. “Maybe she just doesn’t like the three of us?”

  “Then why kill Alec?”

  “It could have been an accident.”

  “You’re crazy.”

  “I’m just trying to consider every possibility,” Addison shot back.

  “It was just a stupid, off-the-cuff comment she made,” Rory cried. Putting his hands on his hips, he took a deep breath. “Okay,” he said. “I think it’s fair to say that Marian is having a stressful day.” I sniffled in response, my sobs having trickled down to a quiet whimper. “But I also think that if we’re being rational about all of this, Betsy simply didn’t hear the knock on the door from her cubicle. I think she made an ill-timed comment. However, I do not think that it makes sense that she would murder a male model in an attempt to gain access to the modeling world.”

  “We can’t be rational about this,” Addison said. “Nothing about any of this is rational.”

  “That’s true,” I finally chimed in, shaky. “But Rory is right, we can’t keep jumping to conclusions.”

  “What if Betsy hired James?” Addison asked, looking back and forth between us. “Did you think about that?”

  “Do you have any idea how much a hit man costs?” Rory asked her.

  “No. Do you?”

  He smiled and ran a hand through his hair. “Touché. But trust me, a college student probably couldn’t afford it. And I’m willing to bet that if she’d borrowed the money from her parents, they’d have been less than inclined to assist.”

  “She could be James’s assistant,” I murmured. They both turned to stare at me. “Well it kind of makes sense,” I went on. “Some crazy restaurateur that we drove out of business wants to kill us. Betsy isn’t included because she probably wasn’t even working for the magazine at the time the negative review was written. James needs someone we’re close to and not suspicious of. He offers her a fistful of cash. It’s done.”

  “She’s not even trained to kill,” Addison cried out in disbelief. “She leaves cans and wrappers all over the building, but you think she’s capable of wiping down fingerprints?”

  “Could be a cover,” I muttered.

  “If, and only if, this were possible, why take out Alec first?” Addison challenged. I could see the wheels in her head turning as her mind began to weave together a potential story.

  “It was probably an accident,” I shrugged. “She probably poisoned the cupcakes the night before. For whatever reason, Alec had the munchies and figured he’d catch some grub at the studio. He’d know from past experience that we’d already have the food delivered for our shoot the following day.”

  “And James would know that the food was delivered because he owns the damn company. He could have made the arrangements!” Addison cried. “Holy crap, Marian! You might be right.” She looked at Rory, her eyes alight with excitement. “I think we just solved a murder mystery.”

  “Alright,” Rory said, holding up his hands. “But before we go breathing any of this to the public,” he eyed Addison sharply, “we need to check our facts.”

  “I know, I know, I know,” she said excitedly. “I’m going to head over to the florist and get a copy of the receipt for those flowers. It’s bound to have credit card information or a contact number or something.”

  Rory nodded and looked at me. “You need to keep researching our client list. Are you up for it?” I nodded and he offered me a hand, pullin
g me from my tangled sit.

  “What are you going to do?” Addison asked him.

  “I’m going to go back downstairs to the admin offices and keep an eye on our intern. If she tries to leave-” he picked up his gun off the desk. “I’m only half joking,” he added dryly, moving towards the door.

  Just about two hours later, I was printing off my findings. Of the hundreds of reviews we’d written over the last few years, 27 places were completely out of business with no rumblings of a second attempt. News articles had cited economic conditions, poor service and unfavorable reviews as reasons that many of the places had closed their doors. I took special stock of the ones that mentioned our personal reviews as having been detrimental to the business.

  I was just starting to make copies when Addison barreled through my door with Rory hot on her heels. “Aren’t you supposed to be watching Betsy?” I asked him, not looking up from the copy machine.

  “She left to study for a test she has in the morning.”

  “There’s not really a way to track if she’s telling the truth without being creepy,” Addison added.

  “We could follow her.” They both began to laugh as if this were perhaps the funniest thing they’d ever heard. Straight-faced, I continued to make my copies. “I was serious.”

  “Let’s save drastic measures for drastic times,” Rory said.

  “That’s not- never mind. Fine. Addison, what did you find out for us?” She shot Rory a worried look. Something passed between the two of them that I couldn’t quite catch and it made me anxious. They’d clearly already chatted through her findings. “Well?”

  “Don’t freak out,” she said, gingerly taking a step towards me. “It might not be as bad as it looks.”

  “Well, how bad does it look?”

  “Pretty bad,” Rory said in a surprisingly upbeat tone. Addison shot him a look. “Well it does.”

  “Okay, look,” I said, interrupting the spat. “My first love interest might have been hired to kill me. My intern might have been hired to kill me. The police department thinks I’m trying to kill myself as part of some big conspiracy. So please. Tell me. What could possibly be worse than all of that?” Addison handed me a copy of the receipt she’d gotten from the florist. “Well, there’s nothing here,” I said, handing it back to her with a shrug. “No credit card, no contact phone number. It’s a dead end but it’s really not so bad in comparison to the aforementioned issues.”

  “Well, it’s not a total dead end,” Addison said. “The person who ordered the flowers didn’t want to do so over the phone because the florist would only take a credit card. Someone ordered in person with cash.” She looked again to Rory. “The florist was able to give me a description.”

  “Well, that’s an impressive memory. Does it sound like Betsy?”

  Addie shook her head. “It was a man.”

  “James?” I guessed.

  She shook her head again and handed me her notebook. I scanned the page, skipping over her questions and leads. Under House of Flowers she’d written an address, a phone number and – “Oh. My. God.” I said, meeting her worried gaze.

  “No wonder she remembered him, eh?” Rory said, attempting to get me to crack a smile. It wasn’t going to happen. The florist had given Addie an exact description of Mika.

  “What is happening to the world?” I asked angrily, thrusting Addison’s notebook back to her.

  “Should we call the police?” Rory asked.

  I almost laughed but noticed he was serious. “No!” I admonished. “Last I heard from Barry, we were still suspects.”

  “You’ve worked with the police for years,” Addie vented. “I just can’t understand why when one of their own is in trouble, they point a finger.”

  “I’m not a cop,” I said simply.

  “Yeah, but you’re still family. Extended, but that aside.”

  I shrugged. “I really wish I had answers. The only two that I ever got close to were Barry, who is doing what he can to help us from the inside, and Janet, who transferred out two years ago when her husband took up an assignment in Tampa.”

  “Do you still have Janet’s number?” Addison asked. I could sense an idea forming in her head.

  “I think so, we talk every once in a while,” I said, pulling my phone from my pocket, beginning to skim through my list of contacts.

  Addie nodded. “Call her. And call Barry. Ask them who else we can trust in the department. If we have to go with the plan that Rory and I came up with last night, we’re going to need a few allies.” I nodded. “Then call Mika.”

  “What?” I asked, nearly dropping my phone. “Can you hear yourself talking?”

  “Just ask him out for coffee,” Addie soothed. “We need to see if we can find out more about why he ordered the flowers.”

  “Or if he’s working alone,” Rory added.

  I paused. I hadn’t considered that scenario. I’d simply been working under the impression that this was all James’s doing. And until now, I’d never even considered that Mika, of all people, would be involved. So much for two incredibly attractive men being totally into me at the same time. What a joke. “It’s probably better that I never became a detective,” I muttered.

  “You would make a brilliant detective,” Addie said, coming to put her arm around me. “You’re just emotionally involved all around here. Plus, it’s technically your first case.”

  I gave her a small smile. “I’ve got some phone calls to make.”

  “Add James to your list of calls,” she said, moving away.

  “I have to meet with both of them?”

  “I think it wouldn’t hurt to let both of them think you’re still into them despite recent events. If they are trying to kill you, especially if they’re not working for themselves, a little human connection could go far in keeping you alive.”

  She had a point. An hour later, I’d left a message for Janet, lined up a meeting with Barry on his day off that Thursday and set up coffee dates with James and Mika for that same evening. I could only hope that both men would let me live long enough that I’d still be around to hear from Janet and meet with Barry.

  I was scheduled to meet with James soon. The coffee shop was just a short drive away. Rory was planning to drop me off and wait just around the corner in case an emergency escape was needed. “We’re going to record this, right?” I asked as Addie was primping me with tools from her purse.

  “Yes,” she paused. “Oh, crap,” she said, powdering my nose. “We can’t, I gave the pin to Barry.” She mused for a second. “That’s okay, I’m sure we can figure something else out. We have…” she checked her watch, “30 minutes. Rory!” she barked.

  He looked up from the computer. “Yes?”

  “I need you to go to my office at the Journal. I have a tape recorder there. It should be somewhere in my desk. Can you make it there and back in less than 30?”

  He stood and grinned. “At least give me a challenge.” Pulling his keys from his pocket, he jogged for the exit. “I’ll be back in a flash!”

  Half an hour later, Addie had somehow turned me from frumpy to casual. She’d pinned my borrowed shirt so that it wasn’t quite as busty in the front, smoothed back my hair, which had dried in a rather frizzy manner, and glossed up my makeup with the products she kept in her purse. “You never know when you’re going to have to coerce a Senator for comments,” she told me as she glossed over my lips. Additionally, I had a small, handheld recorder taped tightly between my breasts. “We won’t be able to hear what’s going on but Rory will be just around the corner, watching the front door. I’m going to camp at the service entrance, just in case. Only dig if you feel comfortable. Otherwise, just work to establish the connection. You have about an hour before we have to take you to meet Mika,” she told me.

  Rory dropped me just around the corner from the coffee shop. Squaring my shoulders and taking a deep breath, I walked as confidently as I could to the entrance. I checked my reflection in the window, tu
gging slightly at my bangs so that they totally hid my gash. When I walked in, James stood and waved. He had scored us the comfortable, overstuffed chairs near the back by the fireplace. As I approached, I noticed that he seemed unsure of what to do with himself. That was a first. He finally settled for an awkward hug. “Sit,” he told me. “What would you like to drink?”

  Thoughts of a possible sense-altering drug being dumped into my coffee bid me pause. Still, this date wasn’t about acting suspicious. It wasn’t even about getting evidence. I had to appear trusting and unruffled. “Vanilla latte,” I replied calmly, removing my jacket and flinging it over the back of a chair.

  “Milk or soy?”

  “Surprise me.”

  He smiled and strode towards the counter. I positioned myself in the chair closest to the fire with a clear view of James, the barista line and the counter where they placed finished orders. If anyone slipped anything into my drink, I would know about it.

  The place wasn’t very crowded and our drinks were ready shortly after James had ordered. I watched him pick up the two bright mugs of piping hot drinks and carry them over eagerly. There was no funny business. He handed me my latte with a bright smile and took the chair beside mine.

  “I can’t say I’m surprised that I had to be the one to reach out for date two,” I said in a way that I hoped sounded flirtatious rather than annoyed.

  He laughed nervously. “You were pretty upset the night I dropped you off,” he said. “And then that thing with your car.” He stirred at his drink distractedly. “I didn’t think you’d ever want to see me again.”

  “You could have at least sent flowers,” I chided. “You do seem to know where I work, after all.”

  “I-” he stopped, seeming to catch himself. Had he been about to tell me that he’d been behind the flowers that were sent to my office?

  I looked at him curiously. He was clearly uncomfortable. I could see things taking a very different turn if I didn’t steer the conversation another direction. “Anyway, I’m glad you agreed to meet with me!” I said brightly, totally changing the subject.