by Tonya Kappes
There was no time to go to the office if Mundy was an early riser. I had to take the opportunity while I felt like I had it. According to the file, Mundy lived on the south side of Lexington, not too far from Le Fork and the shopping strip.
The sunny morning had turned back to grey. It was typical Kentucky spring weather. You never knew what mood Mother Nature was going to be in. A few drops of rain splattered on the windshield. I turned on the wipers.
The entire forty-five-minute drive I rehearsed the typical questions I was going to ask him. I’d even checked the batteries in my tape recorder so I could get the full interview on it. My plan was to be all friendly and tell him I needed him to answer some questions. Maybe throw in the cake-baking class I’ve been taking from Le Fork and establish a little trust between us.
The apartment complex wasn’t the nicest I’d seen in Lexington. The buildings were brown and dull. Mundy lived in building five, apartment nine. There were a couple of unread papers on the doorstep. I gave a hard couple of knocks and backed up. There wasn’t anyone around and he didn’t answer.
Had he skipped town? I knocked again. The papers certainly appeared to show he’d not been here a couple of days. I knocked again, this time harder and a few more raps.
This time the door cracked open. I took the flashlight from my holster and used the butt to push the door open.
“Mundy?” I called into the apartment. “Mundy?” I asked again, a little louder as I stepped inside.
There wasn’t any sort of movement or sound coming from within. I put the flashlight back in the holster and exchanged it for my gun. I held my gun out in front of me just in case he was in there and going to pounce on me.
“Sheriff’s department!” I yelled and moved swiftly through the rooms, securing them one by one. There was a kitchen that overlooked a small family room and a bathroom. “Mundy!”
It wasn’t like I had jurisdiction over the Fayette county area and he didn’t have to give up, but still, words had power. I turned my back toward the family room with my gun pointed down the hall. There were two doors, one on each side.
“Come out, Mundy! I’m here to talk to you about Frank Von Lee’s murder!” I swung open the first door down the hallway on the right with the toe of my cowboy boot. My eyes darted around the bedroom before they focused on a pair of feet sticking out from the far side of the bed.
I stuck my gun in my holster on my way over to the body.
“Mundy,” I gasped. There was a gun in his limp hand and a bullet wound in his head, or what was left of it. By the looks of it, he’d sat next to his bed and shot himself. There was brain matter splattered everywhere on the ground.
“Yeah. I guess we have our killer.” Poppa ghosted next to me.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Why on earth did you come up here without telling me?” Finn asked, pulling me aside to let the Fayette County sheriff’s department do their job.
“I was coming to the office because Betty told me that the evidence from the lab had come in, but I was waylaid by seeing Ben at his diner. I took the opportunity to go in there and question him. He obviously didn’t kill Frank. He confirmed that he knew Mundy and Mundy did have the motive. He also told me that Mundy was an early riser so I took the opportunity.” My stomach dropped as the coroner took Mundy’s body out of the apartment.
I bowed my head and said a silent prayer for him as he went to the great beyond as they passed me.
“I really wished you’d called me.” Finn studied me thoughtfully.
“Well, I sorta went ahead and took the lead back,” I said and walked out of the apartment to grab my bag.
“You knew more about Mundy than you let on.” His eyes clung to mine.
“You know how I said I questioned the employees at Le Fork?” I asked, but didn’t wait for his response. “I’ve been taking this cake-baking class there.” I waved my hand. “Actually, I didn’t want to take a class, but I had to distract the store so Jolee could sneak back into the office to get a look at Mundy’s file.”
“Jolee?” He gasped. “You’ve dragged her into this?”
“I had to clear my mama.” I shot him a look. “I couldn’t ask you to do it and we certainly had no time to get a warrant from the Fayette County judge. It was easier for me to sign up for a class and have her look.”
“How did she know how to find things?” He wasn’t going to let it go. It was the cop in him.
We stalked to the Jeep. I opened the door and pulled my bag out.
I couldn’t tell him that my ghost grandfather had gone in and done the work for me and I told Jolee exactly where to look.
“I don’t know. She’s good at snooping, I guess.” I shrugged and headed back inside of the apartment.
“Sheriff,” the officer called for me. “We found a note.” He held out a piece of paper to me. He had on a glove and handed me one to put on.
I put it on and took the note. I quickly read through it. Mundy had admitted to killing Frank Von Lee because Frank had ruined his career from the beginning. He’d even gone into detail on how much he liked Ben and knew Ben was in financial trouble. He knew Frank was going to try to ruin Ben because that was how Frank was. His life’s mission to end Frank Von Lee’s career had happened and he no longer wanted to feel the sadness Frank had given him, so he decided to end his life.
“I guess we have our killer.” I handed the letter to Finn and let him see it.
“I guess we do.” He stared at it for a few minutes before he handed it back to the officer.
“Be sure to get all the paperwork to us.” I pulled a business card out of my pocket and handed it to the officer before Finn and I left.
“I’m going to go finish up the paperwork at the department.” Finn stood next to his Charger. “Now what?
“I think I’ll take the day off since you said you were going to finish up the paperwork.” It wasn’t a bad suggestion, though I had other plans for him that he didn’t need to know about yet. “Why don’t you come over for supper?”
“Sounds good.” He smiled, bending down to give me a kiss. “I can bring over some good Chicago pizza. My sister sent me some.” He kissed me again.
The sound of a click drew us apart. Before I could spot Edna Easterly, I saw the familiar feather disappear through the door of Mundy’s apartment but quickly fluttered back out when one of the officers ushered her out. The feather darted back and forth as she tried to explain why she should be there.
“Edna Easterly must live by that police scanner,” Finn half joked. “I’ll see you tonight. Good job, even though you probably could’ve used some backup.”
“You know that I’m used to doing things on my own. But I’ll get better.” It was true. I still wasn’t used to having to call Finn for backup when it was still so new working together.
I let out a small sigh of relief on my way back into town. A sadness draped over me because I’d not seen Poppa again and I knew that he only showed up during the investigation process of a murder or crime. I’d wished I’d known I was going to find Mundy because I’d have told Poppa goodbye until next time.
I headed to the south side of Cottonwood to Dixon’s. I was going to make Finn a cake for tonight. It wasn’t going to be refrigerated overnight, but I still had time to let it cool. The excitement of baking a cake coursed through me and I picked up all the stuff I needed.
Too bad Toots wasn’t working. I was going to tell her that the murder had been solved and telling her meant the word would get around fast.
The sun suddenly came out as I was leaving. My heart lifted and I held the Dixon’s paper bag close to me. I couldn’t help but smile thinking that Poppa might’ve had a hand in the sudden shift of weather. At least that made me feel better about not being able to say goodbye to him.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Hey, Riley.” I greeted
him in the new addition he was working on at Finn’s. I tapped the toe of my boot on the hardwood floor. “This looks great. You’ve done a lot over the past couple of days.”
I’d gotten home from Dixon’s and immediately started my cake. I put it in the oven and decided to go to Finn’s and grab the pizza so he could just come straight to my house after he finished up the paperwork.
His addition was coming along nicely. I didn’t know much about construction, but the sheer fact that Danny Shane said Riley Titan wasn’t certified could’ve fooled me. The drywall was all screwed in and the drywall tape had been placed for him to slap on some drywall mud. The wood flooring was a nice dark bamboo.
“He’s going to love this bigger family room and so is Cosmo.” I couldn’t help but smile looking at the ornery cat curled up in the sunspot coming from the new bay window in the addition.
Cosmo had come from another murder investigation. We had to find a home for him. Finn’s sister had agreed to take him but quickly realized she was allergic to cats once she’d gotten him back to Chicago. Being the sensitive guy Finn was, he couldn’t stand the thought that Cosmo might have to go to a shelter, so he adopted him.
“I barely recognize you out of uniform.” He looked me up and down with my true fashion sense of my sweatshirt and jeans. Not that his paint-splattered plaid shirt and jeans were any better. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Do you have an issue with me being here?” I asked.
Cosmo gave a little meow when I walked over to pet him.
“No. Deputy Vincent just said that I’d be here all day alone because he was going to find that chef that made such a ruckus the day that food critic died.” He took the drywall spatula and swiped it overtop the drywall tape going down the seam. “That cat doesn’t mind all the beating and banging.”
“He’s sweet.” I pulled my hand back when Cosmo got up and arched his back into a big stretch. “Anyways, you do have the work permit, don’t you?”
There was a law that any new addition to a structure had to be approved by the council as well as have a permit posted on the window.
“Do you think that Deputy Vincent would let me in here without one?” he asked over his shoulder as he dragged the spatula full of drywall mud down the tape.
“Of course he wouldn’t. I’d gone to see Danny Shane and he mentioned that you weren’t a registered contractor,” I probed.
I took a step back and looked into the finished part of the house. There was a direct line of vision to the front windows where the permit should be posted.
“Aw, he’s sore that I’m taking all the business away from him around here since he’s been doing bad work.” He dropped the spatula to his side and twisted sixty degrees to look at me. “Word gets around Cottonwood fast.”
“It sure does.” Out of the corner of my eye, Cosmo jumped down from the window ledge. He pranced into the other room followed up by a few meows, which I knew meant he was hungry.
“Kenni.” Poppa appeared. “I’m not getting a good feeling about you being here alone with him.”
I gave him a slightly confused look. Why on earth was he here? The murder had been solved. Hadn’t it?
“I keep thinking about him.” Poppa ghosted next to him. “This job.”
I looked around, wondering what Poppa was talking about.
“This was a brand-new addition. Everyone knows that the flooring goes in last.” Poppa walked around the perimeter of the room. “Here is drywall mud on the floor. That’s one of the reasons the floor goes in last.”
“I’m not sure when Finn will be back.” Riley threw the spatula in the bucket of drywall mud. His stare was intense. “I’ll be sure to tell him that you stopped by.”
“I’ll call him.” I watched his moves. He’d suddenly become uncomfortable. “I’ve got some new information on the case that gives Chef Mundy an alibi.”
“That’s good.” His eyes narrowed. I could tell he was trying to call my bluff.
“Look there.” Poppa pointed to Riley’s face. “That’s the classic face they teach in the academy.”
Reading body language was one of my favorite classes and I did know the look.
“You have to think about all the clues up until now. Everyone knew that Frank Von Lee was coming to town. He suddenly shows up as a contractor and begins to take jobs that can be linked to Frank?” Poppa scratched his chin.
I bit the edge of my lip and looked at Riley, who was staring back at me.
“I’m going to feed Cosmo before I head on out.” I gave a slight wave. “Good work. I just might have to hire you.” I looked at the floor and noticed more and more dried-up drywall mud.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him notice I was looking at the floor. I hurried out of the room. I glanced up to the front of the house. My eyes slid across each window and the front door’s window panels to see if there was a posted work permit. There wasn’t.
My mind rolled back to the things Poppa had said. Riley showed up at Ben’s and put himself in the right place at the right time to talk Ben into hiring him to do that work. Frank was going to be spending a lot of time at the diner. My heart started to beat rapidly when I remembered Riley was at the diner when Mama and Ben had met with Frank alone.
After Frank died, Riley was all of a sudden doing Finn’s work, which gives Finn an ear to talk to. Not that Finn would discuss the case, but you never knew what was said over a beer or three.
Then there was the fact that there wasn’t a work permit posted at either of the places he’d worked.
Cosmo continually meowed for his food. I slid my glance to the new addition. Riley was still looking at me. I smiled again.
I bent down next to the bag of cat food and pulled out my phone. I quickly scrolled through to Malina’s phone number that she’d given me. Quickly I texted her. “Is Riley Titan staying at The Tattered Book Cover and Inn?”
“I don’t see a Titan in the register,” she texted back.
I used the scoop inside the bag and put two heaping scoops of cat kibble in Cosmo’s bowl. While squatted, I glanced over my shoulder through the new door into the addition. Riley’s arm was extended in the air, mudding the top of a piece of tape. My eyes drew down the side of his body. His shirt was lifted away from the waist of his jeans. About an inch of his skin was exposed. The metal buckle on his belt caught my attention.
Names on belts as well as needlepoint belts were really popular. Maybe now that Finn and I were on better terms, I’d have a belt or a name plate made for him from Lulu’s.
“Kenni.” Poppa bent down and looked at the name plate. “That don’t say Titan.”
I squinted my eyes.
“It says Tooke. T-o-o-k-e,” Poppa read off the letters. “Where have I heard that name before?”
Cosmo smacked his bowl. The food flew across the floor. I scrambled around to pick up a few of the pieces so I could buy some time to figure out what to do with this information. While on my knees, I put my hand in the garbage can to drop the kibble and noticed a couple of frozen meal packages.
Tooke. Frozen meals. Things were beginning to add up. My hands shook. I turned back to Cosmo and reached for him. I had to get him and me out of there. He darted off into the new addition.
I stood up and noticed a wallet on the counter.
“Good boy, Cosmo,” I said in order not to draw attention to my snooping. I opened the wallet and pulled out the license just enough to see Riley’s photo and the name Riley Tooke.
Tooke was the family’s name from the newspaper article I’d read at the library after I’d read Frank Von Lee’s biography on the Culinary Channel boasting how Frank was harsh in his reviews and this was what made him so sought after. The article said one of the restaurants that Frank Von Lee had given a bad review was a family-owned restaurant by the Tooke family. A shiver rippled through me.
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br /> The family that’d gone bankrupt because of Frank. The same family whose father committed suicide over it. Riley’s father. This was the perfect motive for Riley to seek revenge.
If I thought back further, Riley had his ear to the ground when I discussed things. He was at Ben’s when the fight went down between Ben and Mundy. That would be perfect for him to pin the murder on Mundy, but why Mama?
“Kenni, let’s go. He’s going to do something,” Poppa predicted. “He’s part of that Tooke clan. Now, Kenni,” Poppa stressed.
I slid the ID back into the wallet and took out my phone. I had to make sure before I accused him. Not that the frozen dinner, name, and lack of construction knowledge wasn’t proof enough that something wasn’t right.
“What about the name Tooke?” I quickly texted Malina, ignoring Poppa.
“Yes. Riley Tooke. He’s in room six. He’s a cutie-pa-tooke.” She ended her text with a kissy face emoji. “Get it? Pa-tooke? I talked to him while he made his frozen dinners. Why?”
“Cute but deadly,” I whispered.
“So you’re trying to figure out exactly how I’m part of this whole Frank Von Lee murder,” Riley’s voice boomed from behind me.
I jumped, wishing I’d had my gun holster on me. I slid my phone back into my pocket but not without hitting the voice recorder button.
“Too late!” Poppa threw his hands in the air. “I don’t get it. I’ve been runnin’ all over hell’s half-acre to help you and you just don’t listen. Why am I here if you aren’t going to listen to me?”
“Excuse me?” I tried to play off Riley’s words and scooted closer to the garbage can.
“I’m not stupid. Maybe a little careless, and I underestimated the girly sheriff a little, but I can take care of that.” Slowly he tapped the head of a hammer in his palm. “I’ve got a new job pouring concrete. I really don’t know much about it, but I’m sure I can practice digging a hole big enough for a dead body and fill that with concrete.”
“You could.” I shrugged and glanced around to find anything I could to whack him with before he got me. “Or you can just come clean right now. It’s completely understandable how much you wanted to get back at him for bankrupting your family business.”