“You have to tell me something, Mr. Wells. Why were you such a threat to Fink’s plan?” Tabby inquired. “And what was in the safe deposit box that was so important to them?”
“I was one of the witnesses to the original will that the Swansons drew up. There was never any new will to negate the first one. I had one of the originals in my safe deposit box. The drive-in was left to Marsha’s brother, Peter Waters. I knew it and the will proved it. The sheriff returned the key so I can give the will to Peter to fight the sale of the property in court. And their name wasn’t Fink.”
“I didn’t figure it was. Who were they?” Greg interjected.
“Their real name is Carpenter; Andrew and Lily Carpenter. Lily worked in the attorney’s office where the original will was drawn up. I recognized her in the wig when I went to talk to Lisa Carver about taking over my rentals. I didn’t say anything, but she must have seen my facial expression when I realized who she was.”
“Why was Mr. Pierce killed?” Tabby inquired.
“If that was his real name,” Greg added.
“I hired him. He was a private detective that I put in the shop across the street to keep an eye on Fink. My guess is he got too close to what was happening. They must have killed him to get the recordings he made of the two of them talking in the realty office. His real name was Patrick Johnston.”
“Well that answers all my questions; except one,” Tabby announced. “Why didn’t you tell the sheriff who the fake Lisa Carver was when we found you?”
“When Stan brought me to the hospital, the doctor said I was dehydrated. He insisted I stay until I had something to eat and an intravenous. This old body is not what it used to be and I fell asleep for most of the afternoon. Stan came to check on me in the early evening. He drove me home and while we were in the car he told me that they had arrested Lily Carpenter and recovered all the money she and her brother had stolen. You simply beat me to it!”
Mr. Wells reached into his coat pocket and brought out two envelopes. He handed one to Tabby and one to Jenny.
“What is this?” Jenny asked.
“This is my way of thanking you girls for saving my life. Don’t open them now. Wait until you get home tonight in the privacy of your own home,” the elderly man insisted. “Now, I have to go. I’m presiding over the watermelon seed spitting contest. Sheriff Puckett has won the last two years. Why don’t you kids enter and try to beat him?”
“Sounds like a challenge to me,” Alex replied. “Are you up for some spitting?”
“Not me. Gross. I’ll watch,” Jenny frowned making a face.
“I’m in,” Greg agreed. “How about you, Miss Moon?”
“I’m in. Let’s go.”
The rest of the day was spent walking around the town participating in many of the scheduled activities. Tabby made several corsages in the two hours she was at the flower shop. Greg closed the shop at five and Tabby packed a picnic lunch for the four friends. They sat on the gazebo green, ate supper, and watched the fireworks with most of the town. At ten o’clock, the friends said good night and parted ways.
Greg stayed at Tabby’s for the night instead of driving all the way back to Larsen. Sunday was his only day off and they planned on using their leisure time to go swimming at Fuller’s Point.
They sat on the couch together drinking a wine cooler.
“So, what’s in the envelope?”
“I forgot all about it,” Tabby said, getting up to get her purse.
She opened the envelope. Reading quietly, she suddenly gasped. A second piece of paper was stapled to the back of the letter.
“Is everything okay?” Greg wondered.
“I don’t believe this,” Tabby answered in amazement, setting the papers down in her lap. “This is a copy of the deed to this building. Mr. Wells is giving it to me as a thank-you for saving his life. He also gave Jenny her building for helping.”
“That’s some gift. Are you going to accept it?” Greg asked.
“I don’t know. I’ll have to talk to Mr. Wells about it before I make up my mind,” Tabby answered hesitantly. “But for now, I just want to get some sleep.”
“If it’s okay, I’m going to sit here for a while,” Greg said.
“That’s fine. The television remote is in the side pocket of the recliner,” Tabby informed him, bending down and giving Greg a kiss.
It had been the first time that Tabby had been the one was to initiate the kiss. Greg was pleasantly surprised, but kept his comments to himself.
“I’ll see you in the morning, Mr. Stone.”
“Yes, you will, Miss Moon.”
Chapter 14
* * *
Time flew by. Tabby had so many last minute things to do for her grand opening she spent very little time with Greg. Friday night was upon her before she knew it. The next day she would be one of Whipper Will Junction’s newest business owners.
She decided to hire Janice Spenser, a girl she had graduated from college with, to be her assistant in the store. It would be a full-time job until January and then, in the winter, it would change to part-time hours. Janice agreed with that arrangement as she was a budding author who wanted to be free to write during the winter months. It worked out well for both of them.
Greg dropped by the shop and brought Tabby and Janice some dinner from the diner. They sat at the wedding table and ate. Both girls had been so busy neither one realized they had worked through the supper hour.
“I have a big surprise for you tomorrow,” Greg teased.
“And what would that be?” Tabby asked with lifted eyebrows.
“I’m not telling you. How would it be a surprise then?”
“He’s got you there, Tabs,” Janice agreed. “Thanks for supper, Greg. I’m going to run. It’s going to be a long and busy day tomorrow. I need my beauty sleep.”
“I’ll see you in the morning,” Tabby said, smiling.
Ghost nimbly jumped up on the table and began nosing around the food.
“Bad kitty,” Tabby scolded, as she lifted him off the table and onto the floor. “You must be hungry. It’s way past your supper time.”
“They seem to like the cat door I installed,” Greg mentioned.
“Ghost has been up and down all day. Marmalade is still afraid of the flap.”
“Are you almost done for the night?” Greg asked.
“I’m done here, but not upstairs. I have to bake at least a dozen batches of Gram’s biscuits for the morning. I’m putting jelly on them and giving away samples to entice people to buy the jars.”
“Great idea. Are you selling the biscuits, too?”
“Once I get going I will. Tomorrow, they are for sampling only. Want to come up and keep me company while I bake?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t because I have two special orders I have to finish up tonight. Margaret couldn’t take care of them, but I will be here first thing in the morning, I promise.”
Tabby baked well into the night. She crawled into bed at one-thirty; she realized that six-thirty was going to come very early. Even though she was exhausted, she couldn’t fall asleep. The excitement of opening her own shop in less than twenty-four hours prevented her brain from slowing down enough to doze off. The last time she remembered looking at the clock it was a little after four. She was awake and up before the alarm went off.
At seven o’clock, Tabby walked into her shop. She carried the first batch of biscuits on a silver platter and set them on the sample table. They had been cut into small pieces and each piece would hold a small amount of jelly for tasting. She looked at the shop around her. If you were a customer walking through the front door, the first thing you saw was the wall of jelly jars. Tabby had managed to stockpile over two thousand jars of jelly for the grand opening.
She had set up a round table with a floor length periwinkle blue skirt by the register to highlight the jelly of the month. Blue Sin, a jelly that tasted like a blueberry pie minus the crust was the featured jelly.
&n
bsp; The wedding corner had fresh bridal bouquets scattered around the area and a bride and groom arrangement on the consultation table. Toasting glasses, ring pillows, and other accessories needed for a wedding lined the walls.
Wedding gift baskets and jelly gift baskets filled the wall just inside the front door. A white lace curtain hung behind the register hiding the work space out back. The sheriff had returned Jelly Bear to Tabby and he now sat proudly on the register ready to greet people as they paid for their purchases.
An eight-foot-long table had been set up to the right of the door. Every type of jelly that Tabby offered for sale was on the sample table. Small white spoons were in a basket for people to use once and throw away. A large punch bowl was set on one end of the table; Tabby had borrowed the biggest one the lodge had for this special day. The punch was chilling. The only thing left to do was bring down the sealed containers of cut biscuits to put behind the sample table.
“Hello,” Janice called from the back room. “I’m here.”
It was seven-thirty. Tabby tore down the large sheets of paper that were blocking the front windows. Beautiful wedding displays filled the two front windows with jars of jellies scattered in and around the displays. People were already outside looking in the windows. The shop would open at eight.
The Smells So Fine Flower Shop truck pulled up in front of Tabby’s shop. Greg jumped out of the truck and opened the back doors. He pulled a beautiful Hibiscus plant out of the truck. Tabby unlocked the front door and Greg waltzed in with the gorgeous blooming plant and set it on the floor next to the register counter.
“Happy opening day,” he said, with a swift kiss on her lips.
“It’s beautiful!” Tabby exclaimed. “Thank you so much.”
“Oh, it’s not from me. There are ten more arrangements coming in from the different business owners in town. Do you have another table you can set up next to the register counter?”
“Seriously?” she questioned in astonishment. “Let me run upstairs for the spare table. I’ll be right back.”
Tabby hustled down the stairs with the table and set it up. Greg brought in each gift to the new shop owner and they set them where everyone could enjoy them. Tabby couldn’t believe how the townspeople were supporting her venture.
“Would you mind moving that big wedding gift basket on the end of the register counter?” Greg requested.
“There is still room on the table,” Tabby answered.
“My gift is coming in next and it needs a permanent place to stay. That spot would be perfect for it,” Greg insisted.
“I guess I can put it on the floor in front of the basket wall,” Tabby consented.
“You need to sit at the wedding table and close your eyes until I say to open them. NO peeking,” Greg instructed. “Janice, would you stand in front of her so she doesn’t cheat?”
Tabby sat down and Janice made her face the far wall. Greg brought in his gift. It was a smaller version of the frog fountain that Tabby had originally fallen in love with that she had lost at the auction to Greg. It was exactly like the big one in Greg’s shop. He filled it with a gallon of spring water and plugged it in. The water gurgled after a few seconds and flowed down around the frogs into the smaller lily pond. Greg walked over and placed his hand over Tabby’s eyes. He led her to the counter and positioned her in front of the fountain.
“Now your shop is complete,” he said, uncovering her eyes.
Tabby could not believe her eyes when she saw the miniature frog fountain and started crying.
“Why are you crying? Doesn’t it make you happy?” Greg asked, crushed.
“Happier than you will ever know,” Tabby replied with laughter, wiping away the tears running down her cheeks. “I can’t believe you did this for me.”
“I love you and I would do anything for you,” Greg promised, kissing her gently on the cheek. “How about you wipe away those tears and open this shop up for business? You have quite a line forming out there.”
“Look whose first in line,” Tabby pointed out.
Greg turned and Gladys Twittle had her face pressed against the door.
“Are you ready, Janice? Let’s open the doors to Jellies, Jams, and Weddings,” Tabby announced bursting with pride.
The shop had a steady stream of customers all day. The locals came in to buy Gram’s jams and jellies by the boxfuls. Tourists came in to see why the crowds were gathering. Greg came back during his lunch hour to help out wherever he was needed. The jelly flew out of the store. Two brides booked consultations with Tabby for Fall weddings. The day was a tremendous success. Five o’clock arrived before the new shop owner knew it. She stayed open an extra hour and at six o’clock she sent Janice home and closed the doors on the first day of business.
She sat down at the wedding table, exhausted. Tabby closed her eyes and for the first time she was able to enjoy the sounds of her fountain.
Ghost was meowing at the cat door to be let in. Tabby thought with the high volume of traffic on an opening day it was smarter to keep them upstairs. She unlocked the cat door and Ghost came pushing through the flap.
“Come on, Marmalade. Come see me,” Tabby said, calling upstairs; the cat was nowhere to be seen.
Her jelly wall had been decimated. The one saving grace for Tabby was the store was not open on Sundays. She did not have to rush to clean things up tonight; she had all day tomorrow to do it. Greg knocked on the front door.
“Well, how did it go?” he inquired, taking her in his arms.
“Look at my jelly wall; there’s nothing left. People were in and out all day and I received several orders for cases of jelly monthly. It was wonderful.”
“Do you want some help cleaning up?”
“Not tonight thanks. I’m closed tomorrow and I have all day to reset the store. Do you want to get some supper? All I have to do is close out the register and hide the cash upstairs. In all the excitement, I forgot to get night deposit bags from the bank.”
“That’s a lot of money to leave around. I have a safe at the store. Do you want to lock it in my safe until Monday morning when you can take it to the bank?”
“You’re right; I shouldn’t leave that much money just lying around even with the alarm. Can we drive to your shop and put it in the safe?”
“Sure, we can. Do you want to go to the fish fry at the lodge?” Greg asked.
“Let me feed the cats and then we can go.”
Ghost followed the couple upstairs and Marmalade was sitting at the top of the stairs waiting for Tabby. She fed the cats. The connecting door to upstairs was locked and Tabby emptied the register, set the alarm, and the couple left for supper. The money was safely deposited into Greg’s safe.
The fish fry was well attended by many of the locals who came up to congratulate Tabby on the opening of her shop. She was laughing and enjoying her evening with Greg when exhaustion hit her. Suddenly, Tabby could hardly keep her eyes open. Greg noticed how quiet she had become and suggested that they head home. He parked out back next to Tabby’s car.
“Are you coming up?” Tabby asked, yawning.
“No, it’s twenty minutes to Larsen and if I don’t go now, I may fall asleep behind the wheel.”
“You could stay here. I have the second bedroom and it’s not like you haven’t been seen leaving here in the morning already,” Tabby suggested.
“That would be nice; I am really tired.”
“Good, lock up the car and let’s go upstairs.”
Greg grabbed the spare clothes he kept in his trunk. Mr. Wells had promised him the rental house in Whipper Will Junction; soon his ride home would take under five minutes.
Once upstairs, Tabby took a shower and Greg followed close behind. They snuggled on the sofa for a while and Greg covered her neck and lips with kisses. Tabby tried to stifle a yawn in between the kisses.
“Am I boring you?” Greg joked.
“I’m sorry; I am just so tired,” Tabby apologized.
“Let’s
go to bed,” Greg said, picking her up and carrying her to her room.
He tucked her in, called the kittens up on the bed, and turned off the lights. He started walking down the hall towards the second bedroom.
“Greg,” Tabby called out from the darkness.
“Yeah,” he said, walking back and sticking his head through the doorway.
“I think I am beginning to believe in love at first sight,” Tabby said quietly.
“I’m glad. I guess I’ll stick around for a while.”
He shut off the lights in the hallway and retired to the spare bedroom. Marmalade stayed with Tabby while Ghost followed and slept with Greg.
This was the first of many more mysteries to come.
THE END
AL’S BACKWOODS BERRIE LLC.
14 King Phillips Road
Plymouth, Massachusetts 02360
BLUEBERRY SIN JELLY
2 Large Pans (one for cooking, one for sterilizing the jars)
Wooden Spoon (for strength)
2 Pounds of Fresh Blueberries or equivalent of frozen berries
1 Package of Store Bought Pectin 1.75 ounce
7 Cups of Sugar
8 - 8 Ounce Mason Jars with Lids
Ground Cinnamon (to taste)
Place blueberries into large saucepan and bring to a boil while constantly stirring. Add pectin slowly and bring back to a boil. Start to add sugar, slowly, stirring constantly to prevent the sugar from burning. Bring mixture to a hard boil for one minute.
In the larger pan, place the eight jars and covers in water, submerged completely, and bring to a boil. Remove jars, one at a time and fill with jelly. Place lid on jar, invert the full jar for thirty seconds, then turn upright and let cool.
This should yield 8 - 8 ounce jars of jelly.
Equivalents; 1 pint of fresh berries = ¾ pound or 2 ½ cups blueberries
1 quart of fresh berries = 1 ½ pounds or 4 cups
Bodies and Blueberries (Jams, Jellies and Murder Book 1) Page 17