Murder's a Beach

by Agatha Ball

  I thought back to the mural on Georgia's wall that showed her dropping anvils on Doyle's head. Seems Georgia may have thought getting rid of Doyle would have solved all her problems, too.

  "Doyle wanted Georgia dead, Johnny, so that you could get the Edward inheritance," Linda explained to Johnny with mock sweetness. "And I was just too happy to do it."

  Doyle leaned against the bars of his cell and closed his eyes. "I knew that your mom left all her worldly belongings to Georgia. I didn't trust Georgia would keep her promise to give everything to you. It was an opportunity. I killed Georgia for you, Johnny. So, that when the day came and your mom died, everything would go to you."

  "You killed Georgia for me?" Johnny reiterated. His little surfer brain was having a tough time keeping up. "You killed her so I could get an inheritance that doesn't exist from a mother who is missing but not dead?"

  "It's complicated."

  "Listen, man, you can lie to yourself but you killed Georgia because you wanted your girlfriend to run a grift from a tollbooth and I was the justification," Johnny clarified for everyone.

  I guess Johnny was keeping up much better than I gave him credit for.

  Johnny turned to Linda. "AND you were dating my dad? And me?"

  "The better to get closer to you to kill you!" shrieked Linda. She reached through the bars with both hands as if somehow they would bend beneath her weight and allow her to strangle the life out of Johnny.

  "I told you, not my son!" shouted Doyle. He reached through his bars to swat at Linda's hands.

  "You were set to inherit a crapton of money from that family." Linda pointed her finger at Nate.

  "Byron did not leave Johnny anything in his will," Nate reminded everyone in the room.

  "Byron had been sticking child support into bank account for Johnny for years. Or didn't you know that, Mr. Founding Family Man?" Linda said. "Johnny's mom never touched it. Twenty-one years of monthly deposits, all waiting for Johnny, as soon as she decides he's not an idiot like his father."

  "I AM NOT AN IDIOT!" Doyle yelled.

  "Thing is, Johnny," Linda continued, pressing once more against the bars. "Your dad didn't have a claim while you were alive, but if Georgia died and you died and I could get to your mom, if I could get her... maybe kill her if she came to the island for your funeral, Doyle could have taken it. The money would be his and ours! He didn't know I had worked it out, but I had. But your dad decided to give your pie to that old woman. He decided to be generous. Instead of eating the pie I gave you, your father shared it with her Granny." Linda pointed at me.

  "I could kill you, Linda!" shouted Doyle, banging on the wall that separated them with his fists.

  "I am going to need everyone to calm down," said Nate, trying to defuse the situation.

  I looked at Doyle, ready to kill him myself. "What did you do to my Granny?"

  He held up his hands. "I didn't know. Honest. Linda had given me a pie for Johnny. She said he was hungry and there were a bunch of leftovers from the pie truck. I didn't think anything of it. I work at the pie truck and if there's extra, yeah, we bring them home. It's like, a perk of the job. Listen, I had a bunch to drink that night."

  "Like every night!" Linda yelled.

  Doyle continued. "And your grandmother was walking down the street. Evidently, a shipment had come in, so I told her I would help her carry the boxes into her backroom. I tipped over the pie and it got all over my hands. I was going to throw it away, but your Granny said she wanted to taste the crust and see if it was as good as what she could make. I took it out to the dumpster and that was that. I didn't think it was filled with horse tranquilizers. Which seems pretty stupid, that being how we did Georgia in."

  Linda cut off Doyle and spat at Johnny. "So since daddy-poo screwed up my plan, I decided I was going to tranq you and make it look like you had gotten killed in a late night swimming accident, but you just wouldn't die."

  Johnny nodded sagely. "I promise I will someday, though, if that makes you feel any better."

  "I'm so sorry, son," said Doyle. "I didn't mean for all this to happen."

  "Hey! Thanks for saving my life on the beach, though!" said Johnny, trying to come up with something positive. "I appreciate that."

  "Least I could do," said his dad. He glared in the direction of Linda. "You ruined everything."

  "I did it all for you!" said Linda. "I was going to work the booth and you were going to just be able to relax and enjoy your life, just like you always wanted!"

  We all stood there in shock over everything that had been revealed. Johnny stood up and brushed off his pants. He looked at his dad and there was sadness in his eyes.

  "This sucks," he said. "This really, really sucks. So, you are, like, going to prison? Again?"

  Doyle hung his head and sighed. "Yeah, son." Doyle was not a man good at expressing much more than anger, but a tear trickled down his cheek before he had a chance to wipe it away. "Hopefully they'll look kindly on me for finally doing the right thing," said Doyle, but we all knew that wasn't going to happen.

  But the thing about Johnny is he always sees the good in people. Even if it is stupid to ignore the horrible things that have gone down, he sees the spark of light. And so, in typical Johnny fashion, he went over and hugged his dad through the bars. "I'm surely glad you did."

  Chapter Twenty

  The next morning, Granny was up bright and early. She kissed me on the cheek while I was finishing the morning bake, and I gotta say, she was a sight for sore eyes. She was dressed in a silk kimono, and I noted she was making two fancy coffee drinks to take upstairs.

  "Hot date?" I asked.

  She gave me a wink. "Must strike while the iron is hot. We could all drop dead of a heart attack tomorrow.

  "You're looking great," I remarked. And she really did.

  She waved her hands dismissively, refusing to allow me to get sentimental or maudlin. "A little R&R never hurt anyone, even if it was because I was drugged up with horse pills and hooked up to medical equipment."

  I paused, leaning against the counter. "You knew," I said, reaching out and holding her hand. "You knew that Johnny was Byron's son."

  She sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Oh, lawsie. Did that all finally come out?"

  "Yes," I replied. "You missed a lot."

  She shook her head. "Heaven help me, I did." She looked at me with a little sad smile and then busied herself making coffee as she talked. "Byron was a cad. I hated that boy since he hit puberty. He had flirted with poor Georgia, probably the only man who really ever captured her heart, and then went off and got her step-sister pregnant. Johnny's mom always swore the baby was Doyle's, but it wasn't. Georgia came in one day crying, when she was just a teenager and told me everything. And then she hated me for the rest of her life for the fact I saw her soft underbelly. Byron Edward turned that woman bitter and mean. And then she went and wrote that book that exposed everything. Poor Johnny. That's no way to find out who your real father is. I tried to talk some sense to her..."

  "You went and bought every copy of that book to protect Johnny," I realized. I realized the generosity of a woman willing to spend $10,000 of her own money to keep a friend from having his life become town gossip. I walked over to Granny and gave her a hug. "Thank you. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know in this entire world."

  She patted my back. "Now, now, none of that. It would have come out. But, it needed to happen in the right way. Johnny's a good kid and he never deserved that horrible family of his, genetically related or otherwise. Us islanders have to look out for each other." She shrugged, sending the sleeves of her silken kimono rippling in the air. "It was money well spent." She sighed. "Except, the cat's out of the bag, and I've got 1000 copies and $10,000 worth of terrible books taking up space in my storeroom."

  "Sounds like the perfect night for a beach bonfire and some s'mores," I replied.

  "You're always thinking," said Granny, giving me a kiss on the forehead. She then whispe
red, "But we'll make sure to save a couple for Johnny. And maybe sell a couple copies in the shop for anyone else who might be interested. It is her view of history," said Granny. "As crazy as it might sound to us, it was the way the world appeared to her." Her face brightened. "Plus, with all of the interest in the crime, it is sure to become a bestseller. And we're the only vendor in town!"

  She smiled a great big Cheshire cat grin and walked upstairs with her two cups of coffee.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  I walked down the street with Trevor. It was so quiet now that the Founders' Festival was done. We still had summer tourists, but not like the madness of two weeks ago.

  "So... you and Madison, huh?"

  He shrugged. "I dunno, Paige. I just... like her. She's powerful. She knows what she wants. We just sort of... well, it just sort of happened."

  I didn't have the heart to tell him that the reason it happened was probably that Madison had decided it was going to happen. Dollars to donuts, she had informed Trevor what role she expected him to play, and made it seem like it was his idea. They deserved one another.

  "Well, I'm so happy for you," I said as we paused in front of Jake's place, except now it was sporting a sign that said Trevor's Saloon. The bar had been completely redone with new signage and refinished floors. It still maintained the homey charm of everyone's favorite watering hole, but Trevor had really made it nice. He had also incorporated a lot of antiques and old-timey feeling things into the decor. "They were just lying around in a storeroom downstairs," he remarked. "They're too cool to just have them taking up space where no one could see them."

  "Well, I look forward to attending your grand opening tonight!" I said. I gave his arm a squeeze and began to walk down to Granny's shop.

  "And hey, Paige?" he called out.

  I stopped and turned around.

  He continued. "I know you were doing it for other people, but thanks for figuring out that murder. It feels really good to have folks look at me like just a normal guy."

  I gave him a smile and a nod, and then continued on to Bitter Beans. I opened the door and there was Madison, dressed in a baby-pink, mini-suit. For a moment, I almost considered turning around and leaving. But the elevated voices made me stay.

  "I just need you to sign this," she whined at Granny.

  "I ain't signing nothing until I get a chance to read it," Granny shot back.

  I couldn't believe the conversation I was hearing. Trevor's new girl or not, this was unacceptable. "Are you trying to get my Granny to sign a contract you're not even going to let her read?"

  Madison folded it up and put it in her purse. "It's not that big of a deal."

  "Oh, I'm sure it is," I said. I pointed at the door. "You need to get out now. You are not welcome here until you know how to behave."

  "What is with you people? I just try to get a few names on a petition to make this place better, and you're all getting ridiculous on me." She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Have you seen Nate around?"

  "Yeah, I'll show you where he is. Follow me." I marched out of Bitter Beans. Madison scrambled to follow behind.

  "I just need his signature," she said, tripping slightly on the uneven boardwalk. "You can just tell me."

  I stopped and spun around. "I haven't seen him for a couple days. He went over to the mainland, but should be coming back on the ferry this evening. So, let's go over to the ferry dock. AND WAIT."

  "You don't need to get huffy with me," she pouted. "I'm just trying to do my job. I mean, what is it with you people? I come here, I try to make you all rich beyond your wildest dreams, and you act like I'm the enemy."

  "You want to know why you're the enemy?" I said. "We had a guy who offered everyone here wealth beyond their wildest dreams. And they all said 'no.' And then you showed up, with pretty much the same deal. And we're all saying 'no.' But you're still here. You're still bugging all of us. And now you are about to start dating my friend Trevor, which means you are a part of this town, so you need to learn to behave like a part of this community."

  Her jaw set. "I wouldn't stay here if Trevor got down on his knees with the Hope diamond on a platinum engagement ring." Madison looked over at his saloon with resentment. "I'm going to get him to sell that gross bar of his and then we're getting out of this place and get him back into politics where he belongs. If anyone could run the city council of Seaside and ACTUALLY do some good for his town, he's the one, not that waffle boy Nate you've got."

  "What?" I said in shock.

  Madison pointed a finger in my face. "Before I'm done with Trevor, he is going to be president and I’m going to be the first lady and everyone will say, the only reason he's anything is because FLOTUS was behind him, pushing him along. Before she got a hold of him, all he wanted to do was hide out on some godforsaken island running a rundown bar."

  I blinked and started marching to the terminal. "You're like a cockroach. Except you don't even scatter when we turn on the overhead light."

  She narrowed her eyes at me. "Oh, it's going to take a nuclear holocaust to send this girl scampering under the cupboards."

  "Well, get ready for ground zero, because the ferry just arrived."

  We stood there in angry silence as the ferry pulled up into the terminal, and the passengers made their way off. Nate and Johnny walked out together deep in conversation.

  Madison smoothed her hair and covered over the streak of nastiness I had just witnessed, as if it had all been in my imagination.

  "NAAATE!" squealed Madison. "I have all the papers here, ready for you to sign!"

  Nate stopped her, his hand on Johnny's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Madison. It appears you were right. There is another heir. Johnny."

  Madison looked at Johnny, her smile frozen and stiff upon her face. "Oh. I heard about that. How nice."

  "And the two of us have just finished discussions with the county and it turns out that all of the buildings here on this island are historic properties."

  "What?" she said, her eyes suddenly filled with spite and rage.

  "The preservation society was so excited for this new partnership," Nate informed her.

  "We're gonna do, like, pioneer days where everyone, like, dresses up like they are old-timey and stuff. And I'm going to get to wear one of those striped bathing suits with the suspenders and maybe even grow a handlebar mustache!" gushed Johnny. He pretended like he was running around, lifting imaginary weights. "Hup! Hup! Hup!"

  "So, I'm afraid that the island is currently not available for development." Nate took the papers out of Madison's hands and slowly ripped them in half.

  Madison lost her smile and glowered at Nate. "How dare you."

  "We dare," said Nate, putting his arm around Johnny's shoulder.

  "You're going to hear from our lawyer!" said Madison.

  "And I am sure that the preservation society is going to be absolutely thrilled to have a nice long talk with you and your associates. I bet it will be across the front page how the citizens of Seaside have decided to turn down a multimillion-dollar offer and, in lieu of that, are going to preserve their historical roots. As a matter of fact, I bet that it will be across the front page of the newspaper tomorrow," Nate said pointedly.

  Madison turned around and glared at him as she stalked away, screaming with frustration. "This is NOT the last you will hear of me! I could just kill you, Nate Edward! I could just kill you!"

  "She fits in well with our island," observed Johnny as she left.

  "I think maybe it is an element we shall try a little harder to keep out," said Nate.

  I hugged them both around the neck. "Our island? You saved Seaside?"

  "It was your idea," said Nate. He then patted his cousin's back. "And Johnny agreed. When it is gone, it is gone, and it got me to thinking that there are a lot of people interested in making sure places like this don't disappear. They could help us save the island. So, I was in touch with my lawyer. That day Johnny was sick, I had the first meeting with the historical societ
y, and... well... here we are. Seaside is saved. It is saved in all its glory. And it is up to us to make sure that it stays around for a long, long time."

  He looked at me. He looked at me deeply, and I knew his question wasn't just a question, but carried a much deeper understanding he was trying to reach with me. "I know you have things you want to do, but... would you stay here... for a little while longer, Paige... and help us to make sure this place gets off to the right start?"

  I planted a kiss squarely on Nate's lips. "Yes, you big goof. I thought you would never ask. Yes!" I looked at both of them. My heart sang and I couldn't believe all the possibilities before us. "What'd you say we celebrate tonight with a great, big party on the beach and some s'mores? Granny's got a whole bunch of fuel for a bonfire and a bakery full of treats!"

  "RAD!" shouted Johnny. And then he fired his finger guns into the sky in celebration. "Pew! Pew! I'll bring some fireworks."

  I wrapped my arm around Nate. "I think we've got plenty of those already."

  Find out what happens next in book three - Mystery Comes in Waves!

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  Books by Agatha Ball

  Paige Comber Mysteries

  The Secret of Seaside

  Murder's a Beach

  Mystery Comes in Waves

  The Cove Conundrum

  Grey Skyes Adventures

  Skye's the Limit

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  This is a work of fiction. All names and places are products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously.