Chocolate Chocolate Murder

by Susan Gillard

  “Of course,” said Holly.

  “Even seek revenge for her?”

  Holly realized what she had verbally walked into. “I draw the line at murder,” she said.

  Chapter 10

  “That was a smart idea,” Heather said. “You got Holly to admit that she would do practically anything for her friend the bride.”

  “I know. I’m amazing,” said Amy.

  “It was a good tactic,” said Heather. “I thought you were really angry with me. But you were getting suspect to talk.”

  “Well, you know, one stone, two birds. That sort of thing,” said Amy.

  They got into the car and drove in silence. Heather realized she was going to have to make a decision about her move soon. She was either going to have to reassure her bestie that she wasn’t going anywhere, or she was going to have to give details about her move and tell her friend to deal with it. This “in between” was causing them both stress.

  After Heather had dropped Amy off at her house, she decided to drive over to Owen’s Tea Shop. After hearing so much about Maid of Honor duties, she should check in to see how Mona was holding up after the murder at the dress shop. Heather realized she might also have an opportunity to talk to Col about the potential business deal.

  “Heather,” Col said, smiling when he saw her. “I’ve found the perfect tea to complement your Chocolate Chocolate Donut.”

  Heather moved closer and allowed him to pour her a cup of a chocolate infused tea. She wasn’t always a fan of tea, but she found the flavors that Col prepared to be light and delicious. She felt guilty about cheating on her favorite drink coffee, but couldn’t help enjoying the drinks that Col brewed, especially when they were paired with some Donut Delights dishes.

  “This is wonderful,” Heather said. “I wish I had some more donuts to have with it, but I’ve been running around questioning suspects all morning.”

  “No need to worry,” Col said. “Mona brought some in for us. She really likes this new flavor. But what’s not to like?”

  Heather smiled, and they both sat down at a table to chat.

  “Is Mona here?” Heather asked.

  “She is,” Col said with a note of worry in his voice. “But she’s not quite herself today. She wasn’t feeling too well. She’s resting in the employee room right now. You’re welcome to go back and see her, but first, I have a few questions to ask.”

  “Business or wedding?” Heather asked.

  “Business,” said Col, “Mona told me that a man was trying to get you to move to Florida and open up another store. Is this a crazy man? Or is this something you want to consider?”

  “It’s something I want to consider, but I haven’t had much of a chance to do so yet,” said Heather. “I need to find out more details. And I wanted to talk to you about it too.”

  “No need to be nervous,” Col said. “I didn’t think this move was about you running out on our current business arrangement.”

  “Working with you has helped my online orders to grow,” said Heather.

  “I know,” Col said. “It’s been exciting. Those donuts have been traveling all around the country.”

  “And it’s become so busy that it is hard to keep up with them. Another location might be a good idea.”

  “And this man is offering a location in Florida?”

  “His name is Rudolph Rodney,” said Heather. “He’s Roadkill Rodney’s uncle. He has some property on Duval Street, and would like me to set up a second Donut Delights there.”

  “It does seem like a good opportunity,” Col said.

  “You’re not against it?” Heather asked.

  “Of course not,” Col said. “We’re partners. What’s good for Donut Delights is good for Owen’s Tea Shop. But I would want to make sure that this is a good business deal for you. I’m sure Ryan could do a thorough background check on him. And would you mind if I spoke to him at some point before you make an official decision?”

  “Not at all,” Heather said with a smile.

  She was feeling in good spirits when she went in search of Mona, but as soon as she found her, the happy mood was lost. Heather was immediately worried for her friend. She looked like she hadn’t slept at all and a sense of sadness pervaded from her.

  “Mona, what’s wrong?” Heather asked.

  Heather sat down next to her and held her hands. Mona looked like she was about to cry.

  “Heather, I’m glad you’re here,” said Mona. “I could use a friend.”

  “I’m always here for you,” Heather said.

  “I think I have to call off the wedding.”

  “Why?” asked Heather. “Did Col do something?”

  “No,” said Mona.

  “And do you still love him?”

  “Of course I do,” Mona said. “How can you ask that?”

  “Then why do you have to call off the wedding?” Heather asked.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Mona said. “Our wedding is cursed. This is the second time that someone has been murdered while I was planning my wedding. It’s not meant to be.”

  “Mona, those crimes didn’t have anything to do with you,” Heather assured her. “We were just near the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “Exactly,” said Mona. “The universe is trying to tell me that Col and I aren’t supposed to get married. How many people have to die until I get the message?”

  “I don’t believe that for a moment,” Heather said. “You and Col are meant to be together.”

  “Maybe to be together, but not married,” Mona said. “Let’s face it. Marriages don’t seem to work out for me.”

  “Your last marriage didn’t work out,” Heather admitted. “But that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve love. If you and Col love each other and want to become husband and wife, then that should be the only thing that matters.”

  “Do you really think so?” Mona asked.

  “Things weren’t always easy for Ryan and me,” Heather said. “And if we let a murder get in our way, we never would have started dating, let alone get married.”

  Mona laughed. “It’s different for you two. You’re super sleuths.”

  “I’ll take the compliment,” Heather said.

  “Do you really think Col and I belong together?” Mona asked.

  “I do,” said Heather. “But the important question is whether you believe it.”

  “I love him more than anything,” said Mona. “I love working with him. I love being with him. I do want to marry him, but I don’t want him to inherit my bad luck that I seem to have with nuptials.”

  “Would you be willing to inherit his bad luck if it were the other way around?”

  “I would,” Mona said. She thought about it. “Thank you so much, Heather. You’re right. If we want to get married, then we should.”

  “I’m glad I could help.”

  “My feet aren’t cold anymore,” Mona said. “Thanks for being my slippers.”

  She gave her a hug.

  “I’ll miss you if you leave,” Mona said.

  Chapter 11

  Heather was walking with Dave and Cupcake, or rather, she was standing with Dave and Cupcake as they smelled a patch of mud for what seemed like an incredibly long time. Fulfilling her promise to Eva and Leila that they could spend more time with Lilly, the two acting grandmothers were playing a card game with Lilly and Nicolas. Heather would be happy to join them soon but needed a moment of quiet to clear her mind. She was happy that the animals needed another walk so she could enjoy some time thinking. However, she was even happier when she saw Ryan walking towards her to join her.

  “What’s so interesting about that mud?” he asked.

  “I have no idea,” Heather said. “Maybe you could tell me.”

  “It just looks like mud to me. Maybe it smells interesting, but I’ll leave it up to Dave to figure that out.”

  Heather gave her husband a kiss. “I’m glad you got out of work in time to join me.”

  He too
k one of the leashes. “Me too,” he said.

  “Anything new about the case?” Heather asked.

  “The medical examiner confirmed what we already thought about the cause of death as strangulation and the time of death between five thirty and seven,” Ryan said. “And Hoskins continues to get praise for doing nothing.”

  “I don’t understand how the chief can play along with this.”

  “Me neither,” said Ryan.

  “Well, the best thing we can do is solve this current case,” said Heather. “Maybe then they’ll remember who the real detective in town is.”

  “You?’ Ryan joked.

  “You’re the real detective,” Heather said. “But Amy and I are the real P.I.s. She’s still mad at me though.”

  “I hope it’s not affecting your ability to work the case together,” Ryan said, echoing a worry of hers.

  “I don’t think so,” said Heather. “But it’s starting to hurt my feelings. If Amy were going to move, I’d be sad and disappointed, but I don’t think I’d make her feel bad about it.”

  “Maybe this is just Amy’s sense of humor,” Ryan suggested. “It can be a little off sometimes.”

  “Maybe,” Heather said without really believing it. She knew that Amy was upset about the potential move and was trying to sabotage the idea in her head.

  “Do you have any thoughts on the case?”

  “Lots of thoughts, but no new evidence,” said Heather. “No one has a good alibi, except the unhappy bride who had the best motive. So far, I’m not sure if anyone of the remaining suspects had enough anger to not only strangle the victim but to destroy the dresses in the store and to write on the wall.”

  “There are some more unhappy customers to speak to,” said Ryan. “Maybe one of them is the killer.”

  “Maybe,” said Heather. “Did I tell you that I saw Col and Mona today?”

  “How is she holding up after the murder?” Ryan asked.

  “She wasn’t doing too well at first,” Heather admitted. “She started thinking that she and Col weren’t meant to be together.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” said Ryan.

  “That’s what I told her. And she seems better now,” said Heather.

  “Then you were a great Maid of Honor.”

  “Tell that to Amy,” Heather grumbled.

  “She’ll come around,” Ryan said.

  Dave and Cupcake finally became bored with their sniffing, and they began walking again. In fact, they began picking up the pace to make up for lost time, and the humans had to hurry after them.

  “Col has come around,” Heather said. “He thinks the move might be good for business, but he wants to talk to Rudolph Rodney before we make our decision.”

  “I’d like to do that too,” said Ryan.

  “I think we should arrange a meeting,” Heather said. “Let’s get all the information, and then make our decision.”

  “Agreed,” Ryan said.

  Then they had to run with the pets, who just as suddenly became tired and started sniffing a new patch of mud.

  A thought entered Heather’s head. “Mona was upset because two murders happened when she was planning her wedding.”

  “Right,” Ryan said. “But you convinced her it wasn’t her fault. There has been a decent amount of crime in Hillside recently.”

  “But remember who the killer was last time when it was related to picking flowers?” Heather asked. “It was related to Lyle Clarke.”

  “I know that evil mob tied contractor has been involved in several murders,” Ryan said. “But I don’t see what he could gain this time. I don’t think the land that the boutique is on is valuable.”

  “Promise you’ll look into it,” Heather said. “I’d hate to leave Hillside knowing that he’s still around and causing menace.”

  “I promise. And I’d like to see him behind bars too,” said Ryan. “But I really don’t think he’s involved in this case. This crime seems more personal. Both with the cause of death and with the way the scene was found.”

  “I guess you’re right,” Heather said. “Most likely it was a bride.”

  “And you have some more interviews to conduct with unhappy bridal customers?”

  “I do.”

  Chapter 12

  “Betsy Gene?” Heather asked as “Blue Mermaid Dress” opened her door.

  “Yes,” Betsy said. She was a small woman with dark hair and freckles. She also looked puzzled to find the two women standing on her porch.

  “I’m Heather Shepherd, and this is Amy Givens. We’re private investigators consulting on a case with the Hillside Police. Do you mind if we ask you some questions?”

  “Not at all,” said Betsy. “But what is this about? Is it about the grocery store down the street? I thought they were serving outdated food.”

  “No,” Heather started.

  “Is it about the car accident near by job the other day? I was making a coffee run, so I didn’t see anything.”

  “No,” Heather started again.

  “Is it about my neighbor Mrs. Puttman? She’s a hoarder, isn’t she? She’s not hoarding anything dangerous, is she?”

  “Miss Gene, we’re here about Sheila Lordlittle,” said Heather.

  “The dress lady?” Betsy asked. “Why? Is there a class action lawsuit against her? I’d join. My dress was terrible.”

  “And you were angry about this dress?” Heather asked.

  “It made me look like a pregnant fish,” Betsy said.

  “I don’t see how that could be,” Amy said. “How?”

  Betsy invited them inside and then found a picture from her sister’s wedding.

  “Yeah,” Amy said. “Actually, that’s exactly how I would describe it. A pregnant fish.”

  “Why did you buy the dress if you were so unhappy with it?” Heather asked.

  “My sister was getting married in Austin,” Betsy said. “She chose the color of fabric for her bridesmaid but said that we could choose the style of the dress so it would look nice on all our different body types. But because we were all going to have different dresses, she encouraged us to make sure that every dress was different. It would look silly if two people had the same and three were different.”

  “Right,” Amu agreed.

  “So, I went to the dress shop that said it had one of a kind dresses and asked if they would make one with this fabric. Sheila Lordlittle agreed, but she finished it right before the wedding. I didn’t have time to get anything else made with the fabric, so I wore that dress. Well, my sister certainly didn’t have any bridesmaids that had the same dress like me.”

  “Were you angry about this?” Heather asked. “An employee remembered you being upset in the shop.”

  “I was upset when I picked it up,” Betsy said. “I didn’t want to look stupid at my sister’s wedding. I think I yelled and then cried. But there was nothing else I could do. I needed to wear a dress from that fabric, so I angrily paid for it and left.”

  “Did you ever return to the boutique?” Heather asked.

  “No,” Betsy said. “I avoided it for sure.”

  “You didn’t go there two nights ago?” asked Heather.

  “No,” Betsy said. “What did you say you were investigating again?”

  “Sheila Lordlittle was murdered,” Heather said.

  “I didn’t have anything to do with that,” Betsy said. “I was mad at the time. Maybe even still a little mad. But I do realize that I have a funny story because of this. I wasn’t going to kill anyone over this.”

  “Your bridesmaid dress was blue,” Heather commented.

  “Yes,” Betsy said. “My sister wanted all her bridesmaids to be her something blue. You know, according to the saying.”

  Heather and Amy exchanged a look. Then they looked at the picture of the bridesmaid dress again. It was hard to see the exact coloring based on the lighting. It might have been the same shade as the murder weapon.

  “Do you still have this dress?” Heath
er asked.

  “We’d love to see it,” Amy said. “Both professionally and for fun.”

  “I got rid of it as soon as the wedding was over,” Betsy said. “I wanted to burn it, but was less dramatic and just threw it in the trash.”

  “So, you no longer have the dress or any of its fabric?” Heather clarified.