“I’m running the race too.”
“Is that so?” Autumn couldn't help but frown since her ex had never been interested in things like salads and exercise.
“That shelter lady might say there’s no point in being competitive, but I’m not going to come in last,” Dan stated.
Trouble might have been Dan’s middle name, but competitive ran it a close second.
“Neither do I. I guess we’ll see who has the better training plan.” Autumn’s brows rose. “I’m willing to bet that kale smoothies and an abundance of energizing vitamins and minerals will win out over the greasy food you feed yourself for breakfast.”
Dan’s mouth opened and shut in stupefaction. “I can beat you any day of the week, Autumn, you just remember that.”
“I won’t have to remember it,” Autumn responded. “We’ll see who trained the best when race day comes. And may the best competitor win.” She was about to head back to the café when Dan stopped her.
“Would you care to make a wager?”
She turned back around. “Like what?”
Dan thought for a moment. “Loser agrees not to play any more tricks on the winner. Forever.”
Autumn laughed. “Dan, we both know how long that would last.”
Dan didn’t deny that it was a hopeless idea.
“I have one," Dan replied. "The loser has to wear a Halloween costume of winner’s choosing—no matter what it is.”
The look of fear on Dan’s face was comical, but Autumn managed to keep her smile at bay.
When Dan had regained his composure, he lifted his chin.
“You’ve got a deal," Autumn agreed.
“Good. See you on race day.”
As Autumn made her way back to the Harmony Café, Autumn found herself grateful that she’d have the delightful task of thinking up a dreadful Halloween costume to keep her mind off of that wretched crop circle and the disruptive Cosmic Keepers.
But it hadn’t taken long for things at the café to get out of hand as well.
Autumn saw a line winding out the door long before she reached the front stoop. She made her way through the crowd and was glad to find both Rowan and Skye hard at work behind the counter. She was about to head back to wash her hands and put on her apron when she noticed another new special advertised next to the pumpkin spice smoothie. UFO Power Smoothie was printed in bold lettering beside the featured fall drink. It was a green smoothie with kiwi and an assortment of berries piled on top. Autumn pursed her lips as she made her way to the back. He may not agree with the Cosmic Keepers, but it was no surprise that Rowan was choosing to capitalize on the current alien craze that had overtaken Mineral Springs. Autumn, on the other hand, didn’t think it was a good idea to encourage the mania, but it seemed to be good for business, so she let it go. There were customers to serve.
Chapter 6
Autumn suppressed a groan when there was a knock at the door just as she and Skye settled down to a gourmet, vegetarian dinner.
“If whoever’s at that door so much as says crop circle…..” she muttered. Autumn was forced to swallow her words when she opened the door to find an uncertain-looking young woman standing there. She was rail-thin and wore a red, over-sized sweater. Her black hair fell loose around her lean face which was too pale to be healthy.
“Nikki,” Skye exclaimed before the woman could say a word.
“Nikki?” Autumn repeated as her little sister pushed her aside to usher her friend through the door. “Mick’s…”
“Yes, Mick Milton's girlfriend,” the woman said.
Unsure of what to say, Autumn invited her new guest to take a seat.
“Are you hungry?” Skye asked.
Nikki shook her head, keeping her arms wrapped around herself. Autumn and Skye joined her at the table, but neither of them touched their food.
An awkward silence ensued.
“I hope I haven’t come at a bad time,” Nikki finally said. “It’s just that I knew Skye would be here and….”
“You’re more than welcome,” Autumn said.
Nikki forced a thankful smile. “You have no idea what a rock your sister has been for me.”
If the topic had been less solemn, Autumn probably would have laughed. “Glad to hear that.”
“I needed to be near a friend during this time.” A tear slid down Nikki’s face.
“Where are the tissues, Autumn?” Skye snapped, dashing for the cupboard. When she’d found them, she brought the entire box over to her friend and pressed a few into her hand.
Nikki blew her nose and dabbed her eyes.
“Are the police harassing you about what happened?” Skye asked.
Nikki shook her head. “It’s those Cosmic Keepers.”
Skye gasped. “Oh, they came to your house?”
Nikki nodded, swiping at her cheeks. “They asked me all sorts of questions.” She sniffed, loudly. “I just want them all to go away. I don’t know anything about Mick’s death. Why won’t anyone believe me?”
Skye placed a reassuring hand on her distraught friend’s shoulder. “We believe you, Nikki. It’s just that everyone’s so worked up about the whole thing that they're not sensitive to your situation. It’s not right for them to be so careless about the fact that you’re grieving.”
Nikki sniffed, grabbing another tissue. “I just want it all to be over.”
“It will be,” Autumn said. “Just give the police time to find out what happened to Mick.”
“They came to see me and said that Mick died of a head injury,” Nikki stated.
Autumn glanced at Skye.
“Really,” Skye said.
“He did have what looked to be a head wound.” Autumn said, carefully. “But, I didn’t notice any blood on the scene.”
Nikki blinked at her in confusion. “How could there be no blood?”
Autumn went on, carefully gauging Nikki’s expressions to make sure she didn’t say anything that would upset her unnecessarily. “Mick’s head wound was already sewn up. It was all clean.”
Nikki’s brow furrowed. “That’s so strange. Do you think that it could be the work of the Cosmic Keepers or someone like them? How could they?” She’d reached her limit and broke down.
“There’s no need to talk about it anymore tonight,” Skye said, sending Autumn a desperate look.
“Would you like to stay here?” Autumn offered.
Nikki uncovered her face. “Well, it has been pretty dreadful staying at my place, waiting every moment for some nosy person to knock on my door.”
“Then it’s settled. You can share the spare bed with Skye. No one will think to bother you here. Hopefully, it’ll afford you a little peace at the least.”
Nikki’s smile was watery. “Thank you so much. You don’t know how much I appreciate it.”
“It’s no trouble,” Autumn replied.
Autumn made sure that Nikki had everything she needed, put the uneaten gourmet meal into storage containers, and then helped Skye and Nikki get comfortable. Though Skye had claimed there was no reason to speak more on the matter, Autumn heard the distinct sounds of Skye and Nikki whispering late into the night.
Chapter 7
“Anybody up for a run?” Autumn asked the next morning. Skye and Nikki were in the kitchen eating scrambled eggs.
“A run?” Skye sounded as if Autumn had just asked her if she wanted to step outside for some skydiving.
“Yeah. Remember, the pumpkin run? You have to train if you want to get faster, you know. It doesn’t take just one jog.”
Skye scowled. “No, I don’t want to go. I got a blister on my heel last time, not to mention a horrible rash.”
“It’s because you didn’t wear socks,” Autumn pointed out.
“I never had trouble running sockless before,” Skye argued.
“That’s because you’ve never run before.”
Skye rolled her eyes, going back to her plate. "Very funny."
“Let me see the rash,” Autum
n said, moving toward her. “Maybe we can find some longer socks, and you’ll be fine.”
“And have me look like a retired oldie in shorts and knee highs?” Skye retorted. "No way."
“You wouldn’t have to wear shorts. It’s too cold for that.” Autumn frowned when she saw the rash. “This doesn’t look like a running wound. I think poison ivy is the culprit here.”
“Just my luck,” Skye muttered.
“Are you coming or not?”
“Not.” Skye itched her ankles.
Autumn shrugged. “Suit yourself. I won’t be the one lagging behind on race day.” She turned to Nikki, her expression softening. “Stick around for as long as you’d like—you’re perfectly welcome.”
Nikki sent her an appreciative nod.
Autumn and Mochi left for their run. Though she wasn’t superstitious, Autumn didn’t want to tempt fate by taking the same trail where Mick had been found dead. She wasn’t afraid that aliens would attack her and place her in the center of a crop circle, but she figured it was best not to relive finding a dead body again so soon. She picked one of her and Mochi’s favorite trails around the back of the historic library.
As they jogged, Autumn found herself feeling grateful for the chance to train for a race again. She’d fully embraced a healthy lifestyle since her father had died of a heart attack some years back. She hiked and attended yoga regularly and had felt one hundred times better after going completely vegetarian. She also felt that she was doing Mineral Springs a service by providing healthy options at her juice bar. Besides the friction of having her ex-husband working down the street, she felt that she’d done well at transforming her life.
Autumn picked up the pace and Mochi fell right into step alongside her. She was determined not to let the out-of-control situations that tended to pop into her life disrupt her pursuit of a well-balanced, drama-free existence. People like the Cosmic Keepers might be intent on stirring things up, but she wouldn’t let it get to her.
Chapter 8
When Skye didn’t get out of bed to join Autumn in taming the morning rush at the café the following day, she didn’t bother waking her. Skye had never been an early bird, and she figured it would be easier to get the job done herself rather than having a half-asleep cranky little sister wandering about at the busiest hour of the day.
The rush went smoothly, but Autumn was worn out by the time Rowan arrived. “Nice of you to show up,” she remarked, dryly, dumping another blender into the sink.
Rowan glanced around, confused. “Where’s Skye?”
“When has Skye ever voluntarily woken up for a morning shift?”
Rowan conceded with a shrug. “You could have called me—I was up.”
Autumn exhaled. “I didn’t think of it. Well, it’s over now. Will you help me get things back in order?”
Rowan set down his newest sci-fi novel and put on an apron.
“So, since you weren’t here, what were you up to this morning?”
“Checking out the new alien symbol sighting," Rowan informed her.
Autumn’s brows lowered. “What?”
“You know the symbol that was painted on Foolish Dan’s door? Another one was found at the ice cream shop this morning.”
Autumn rolled her eyes. “I swear, I wouldn’t be surprised if those symbols were being painted by some mischievous tourists. Notice how they’ve only chosen food places to make their mark? It seems they’ve been frequenting the food shops of Mineral Springs getting their fill of Earth food.”
Rowan scowled at her. “Whoever they are, I think they are familiar with comic books.”
“Why’s that?” Autumn asked.
“I kept thinking about that symbol because it looked familiar and I think I know now where I’ve seen it before. It was at the comic book shop.”
Autumn paused, thinking. “If we could prove that symbol is a rip off from a comic book then that would narrow down the suspects. We could start by looking for comic fanatics.”
“Don’t look at me,” Rowan said, raising his hands, defensively.
“Of course I wouldn’t suspect you,” Autumn said. “Will you take me to the comic book store after work and show me what you found?”
Rowan shrugged. “Sure, I guess.”
“Great, thanks. This could be a lead, you know.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Rowan said, sounding doubtful.
“We have to latch on to anything that could lead us to the criminal, Rowan. I’m determined for this to come to an end.”
“Aren't we all," Rowan muttered.
“Nikki is a mess, and there's a vandal messing with shops all over town,” Autumn said. “I'm going to figure this out before the Cosmic Keepers cause any more trouble. Are you with me?”
Rowan nodded, though the gesture lacked confidence.
Right about lunchtime, Skye appeared in the café. Autumn told Rowan to go on his lunch break even though it was clear he would have rather stayed and worked where he could gawk at Skye some more.
Skye almost made up for leaving Autumn alone for the entire morning by picking up the slack for the afternoon rush. The UFO special continued to be a hit, so Autumn allowed it to remain on her pumpkin spice smoothie sign.
“So,” Autumn said once the flow of customers had slowed some. “How is Nikki this morning?”
Skye shrugged. “She’s….okay? She’s planning to head home now. She’s really messed up about this whole alien thing though.”
“That’s understandable. That kind of hype is bound to add tension to an already emotional situation.”
“I wish I knew how to help her," Skye muttered, shaking her head.
“I think that doing everything we can to get to the bottom of this is the best we can do. I’m going with Rowan to the comic book shop this evening. He says that there was another alien symbol painted in town and he thinks he recognizes it from a comic book. It could be a way to narrow down our suspects.”
Skye thought about it for a moment. “You could be right. Can I come with you? If it’s a clue, I want to be there.”
Autumn agreed.
“Wait, you’re going to come with us to the comic book shop, Skye?” Rowan's eyes went wide.
Autumn and Skye turned around to see Rowan peering into the shop from the back.
“Rowan, I thought you’d gone to lunch,” Autumn said.
“I am, but I just heard….are you coming, Skye?”
“Yeah,” Skye responded, absently, oblivious to the way Rowan continued to stare at her.
“Great,” he finally managed.
“If we don’t get to work, none of us will get out of here on time, so let’s get back to it, huh?” Autumn said, knowing the only merciful thing to do was move along the conversation before Rowan embarrassed himself some more.
Autumn thought about the possible connection between the symbol and comics for the rest of the day. But with so little to go on, it was impossible to make any speculations. The group closed the café right on time and eagerly left for the local comic book store.
Chapter 9
The comic book store was run by a man named Deano. No one knew his real name, and no one had bothered to ask.
“All aboard,” Rowan exclaimed, holding the front door of the shop open for Autumn and Skye. Since the moment he'd found out Skye was coming, Rowan had been extra jittery. Autumn figured she should plan on bringing Skye along on other aspects of the investigation if Rowan’s participation was required. For reasons Autumn couldn’t understand, Skye’s mere presence made the café assistant much more efficient.
The shop smelled of musty books and dust. Deano was huddled behind the counter with his nose in a book. It looked like one of the sci-fi novels Rowan never failed to bring with him to work. The shopkeeper glanced up, looking annoyed by the arrival of customers. He angled away from his guests and tucked back into his reading.
“Where do you think we’ll find the symbols, Rowan?” Autumn asked.
“Follow me,” Rowan
said, having adopted an air of superiority. He led Autumn and Skye to the back of the shop, searching the rows and rows of comic books. Finally, he plucked the one he’d been looking for off of the shelf. “Here,” he said, thrusting it toward Autumn.
It was called The Invaders.
“Inventive title,” Autumn murmured, paging through the volume. She was about to ask Rowan to show her where the symbol was, but it took only a moment for her to locate multiple instances where the symbol was portrayed. “Interesting….”
“What do you think it means?” Skye prompted.
“I’m not sure.” Autumn set about searching out the gist of the comic. She was surprised to find many parallels between the fictional story and the happenings of Mineral Springs since the arrival of the Cosmic Keepers. The comic book storyline consisted of an alien arrival in which case a mortal was abducted and killed before being placed inside a crop circle. After that, more symbols showed up, leading to the full-on invasion of a small town.
"Told you," Rowan responded proudly.
“It seems like whoever is playing this vicious prank on Mineral Springs followed this story verbatim.”
“Do you really think that’s what it is?” Skye asked, her eyes wide.
“There’s only one way to find out,” Autumn said. “Come on.”
Skye and Rowan followed Autumn back to the front of the shop where Autumn dared to disturb the cranky clerk for the second time.
“Excuse me, but could you tell me if you’ve sold this book to anyone recently?” Autumn asked.
Deano peeled his eyes away from his book, exhaling as he blinked owlishly at the title. He then shrugged and reached for his book again. "Nope."
“Would you be able to look it up, please?” Autumn insisted, wondering how on earth this awful salesman stayed in business.
Deano frowned at her. “No.”
“Why not?” Autumn was half-expecting Deano to simply say that it was because he didn’t feel like it.
Pumpkin Smoothie Murder (Harmony Cafe Cozy Mystery Book 4) Page 3