For Whom the Bread Rolls

by Sarah Fox

  “Not for money. I never picked up the money. I just wanted to scare them.”

  “But what about dad?”

  “I never blackmailed him. Of course I didn’t. I wrote up a few notes at once, and didn’t add the names until I was ready to send them. I was going to send one to Ida eventually, but for obvious reasons that was no longer necessary or possible.”

  “What were you going to blackmail Ida about?” Melinda asked before I had a chance to voice the same question.

  “It didn’t matter. I could have chosen any number of things, but keeping the note general was enough. Just about everyone has a secret they want kept quiet. Even if you don’t know what it is, you can still stoke a fear of exposure.”

  “So that’s what you did with everyone?” I asked. “You just took a chance that they’d have something they wanted to keep quiet?”

  “Not always. I suspected that Deanna Paulson was having an affair with Dr. Orman, and I’d heard rumors that Kirk Jarvis was involved with stolen goods. I saw that Collins girl in Port Angeles, kissing a man who had business dealings with my late husband. A man engaged to be married. I doubted she wanted the whole town to know about her indiscretion. And like I said, I could have chosen from any number of things for Ida.”

  “That woman was a menace,” Melinda put in, no longer so shocked by Sheryl’s actions.

  “That’s putting it mildly,” her mother said. “Do you know that she won the top prize at last year’s flower show with roses she stole from gardens in the neighborhood?” she said to me. “She took my most beautiful Chicago Peace, and Joan from across the alley swore that several of hers were stolen the night before the show too. It was an absolute outrage! But what could we do? Absolutely nothing. We had no evidence, so if we’d complained, it would have looked like sour grapes because we’d lost.”

  “So you killed her,” I said.

  “I didn’t kill her!” Sheryl shouted.

  My gaze shifted to her daughter.

  “I didn’t kill her either. You’re probably just trying to pin it on us because you killed her.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” I said.

  “No more ridiculous than trying to blame us,” Melinda shot back. She stomped down the porch steps. “Come on, Mom. She’s not worth our time. Let’s get out of here.”

  Sheryl leaned closer to me, her nostrils flaring, and my heart rate kicked up its pace. “Don’t say a word about any of this. You’ve caused enough trouble already. You should go back to the city where you belong.”

  She stormed down the steps after her daughter. I stood there in the doorway, stunned, as they got into Sheryl’s car and zoomed off, kicking up a cloud of dust in their wake.

  Shutting and locking the front door, I stared down at the note in my hand. Though Sheryl had had harsh words for me, she hadn’t attempted to silence me permanently. So was she telling the truth when she said she hadn’t killed Ida?

  I shook my head and returned to the family room, where I found my phone on the coffee table. I called Ray but got his voicemail, so I left him a brief message and asked him to call me. Hopefully he wouldn’t write me off as a pest and ignore my request.

  Thinking about the blackmail notes reminded me of the note I’d found on the front door of The Flip Side. If the author of the note didn’t show up because he or she realized I’d brought the police with me, had that person been lurking nearby, watching who arrived?

  I recalled the movement I’d seen in the upstairs window of Joan’s house. Maybe she’d seen someone hanging around.

  My phone still in my hand, I called Lisa. As with my last phone call, this one went to voicemail. I left Lisa a message, telling her about the meeting that never happened in Ida’s yard and the possibility that Joan had seen something important. I asked Lisa to give Joan my number and to let her know that I wanted to speak with her.

  That done, I sank onto the couch. Although still tired, my mind was now wide awake and running in circles. Sleep was out of the question, so I decided to have a tall glass of iced tea instead of a nap.

  As I got up from the couch, I heard someone coming up the steps to the back porch. I tensed for a moment, worried that Sheryl or Melinda had returned, but then I spotted Chloe through the French doors and relaxed.

  “Hi, Marley,” Chloe said when I opened the door.

  “Hi. Come on in.” I headed for the fridge. “I was just about to have some sweet tea. Would you like some?”

  “That would be great, thanks,” she said as she joined me in the kitchen, Flapjack following her. “How was your day?”

  “Busy and eventful.” I told her about the fundraising and the news that Jake and Kirk had been charged in relation to the illegal dumping. Then I related the tale of Sheryl and Melinda’s visit.

  “Sheryl Haynes was behind the blackmail?” Chloe pulled a chair out from beneath the kitchen table and sank into it. “How did she even know about me and Matthew?”

  “Apparently she saw you together in Port Angeles, kissing. And she knew Matthew through her late husband.”

  Chloe’s face had paled. “What if she decides to spread that information around?”

  I set down the jug of iced tea. “Chloe, why don’t you just tell your family? Then you won’t have to live in fear of them hearing about it from someone else.”

  She shook her head, adamant. “No. I can’t do that.”

  As much as I wished I could change her mind, I could tell that arguing the point would do no good.

  “Did you tell Ray about Sheryl being behind the blackmail?” she asked.

  “I left him a message,” I said as I poured our drinks. “And I kept your name out of it.”

  She looked at me with relief in her blue eyes. “Thank you.” She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “That’s good news about the illegal dumping. Now that Jake and Kirk have been caught, maybe that’ll put an end to it, at least for a while.”

  I handed her a glass of iced tea. “That would be nice. Of course, Jake and Kirk might not be the only ones responsible for all the dumping in recent months, including the drug lab site, but hopefully it won’t be as much of a problem now.”

  With a glass in my own hand, I led Chloe back out onto the porch, where we settled into chairs overlooking the ocean. The tide was on its way in, and laughter and happy shrieks came from a gaggle of children who’d built a large sand castle, now getting flooded by the incoming ocean.

  After taking a sip of iced tea, Chloe set her glass on the arm of her chair and dug a notebook out of her purse. “I’ve got a list of what people are bringing for the barbecue on the Fourth. I thought we could go over it and see if there’s anything else we’ll need.”

  “Good idea.”

  She read out the list and we chatted about the menu, ultimately deciding that I would provide a quinoa salad and watermelon while Chloe would bring marshmallows for toasting at the fire pit and a batch of homemade cookies.

  “All this talk about food has made me hungry,” I said as my stomach gave a growl. “Want to stay for dinner?”

  “Sure.”

  I grilled some veggie burgers out on the back porch while we continued to chat, and before long we had full stomachs. I washed up our dishes while Chloe dried, and when I let the water out of the sink I had to clap a hand over my mouth to cover up a yawn.

  “I’m getting sleepy myself,” Chloe said with a smile. “I’ll head home now. Thanks for dinner.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m glad you came by.”

  As Chloe fetched her purse from one of the kitchen chairs, somebody knocked on the front door.

  “Who could it be this time?” I headed for the foyer while Chloe remained in the family room.

  I hoped it was her brother on the front porch, but I knew he most likely would have come around to the back door. If it wasn’t Brett, I hoped it wasn’t anyone who would take up much of my time. The only thing that appealed to me at the moment was sleep.

  Stifling another yawn, I too
k a quick look through the peephole. Surprised by who I saw on the other side, I opened the door.

  “Hey, Marley.” Gavin brushed his hair off his forehead and smiled at me. “I was hoping to have a word with you about the fundraising. Is it okay if I come in?”

  I hesitated. “Actually, I was planning to go to bed early. Will it take long?”

  “Not long at all.”

  I hesitated again, although this time I wasn’t quite sure why.

  The smile fell from Gavin’s face and his eyes seemed to darken. “Let me in.”

  Fear shot through me and I tried to slam the door shut. He jammed his foot in the way and gave the door a hard shove, throwing me back two steps. By the time I regained my balance, he was inside the house, slamming the door shut behind him. He pulled a black handgun from the waistband of his jeans and pointed it at me.

  I froze as I stared at the weapon.

  His smile reappeared, but this time it lacked any warmth or charm. “Now we can have a good talk.”

  I swallowed, my throat dry, my heart booming in my chest. “Is the gun really necessary?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  I looked over his shoulder at the closed door, wishing it were still open. Not that it made much difference. The property was shielded from the street by a grove of trees, and tall fences and foliage provided borders on each side. Nobody would have seen Gavin shove his way into my house.

  A scuffling sound came from down the hall and Gavin jerked his head in that direction.

  “Who’s there?” he yelled.

  “Marley?”

  I stiffened at the sound of Chloe’s voice, my gaze locked on the gun. Gavin pointed the weapon over my shoulder. I turned around in time to see Chloe freeze in the middle of the hallway, her blue eyes big and fearful.

  “Let’s stay calm,” I cautioned, speaking mostly to Gavin.

  “Get over there.” He used the weapon to wave me toward Chloe.

  I moved carefully, not wanting any sudden movement to startle Gavin into firing the gun. When I reached Chloe’s side, she clutched my arm.

  “What’s going on?” she asked quietly, her voice trembling.

  “I don’t know,” I replied.

  “Don’t you?” Gavin said, his gray eyes boring into me.

  My stunned mind slowly began to connect the dots. “You killed Ida.”

  Beside me, Chloe drew in a sharp breath and tightened her grip on my arm.

  Gavin continued to glare at me. “I did this town a favor.”

  “By murdering someone?” I said, incredulous.

  “It even helped you out, didn’t it? She was causing trouble for you and your business. Now she’s gone, thanks to me. But instead of appreciating the benefits, you had to go around asking questions. Everyone knows you’ve been digging around for clues. Why couldn’t you let sleeping dogs lie?”

  “I may not have liked Ida,” I said, “but she didn’t deserve to be murdered. And no one in this town wants to have a killer living among us.”

  “What would you know about this town? You’re not one of us. You move here from the big city and within weeks you think you can decide how things go around here? That’s not how it works.” The barrel of the gun swung toward Chloe. “And you! You weren’t supposed to be here. There were no extra cars parked out front.” He aimed the weapon at me again. “You were supposed to be alone.”

  We both stared at him, not knowing what to do or say.

  Gavin motioned with the gun. “Turn around and walk to the back of the house.”

  We did as we were told, Chloe clutching my hand as we made our way into the family room. The ocean breeze wafted in through the open French doors, the beautiful view of the beach a stark contrast to what I knew was behind us. I caught sight of a flash of orange out of the corner of one eye. Flapjack had sidled around the couch, out of sight. Usually he was curious about visitors, but he must have sensed the tension and decided to hide. I was glad of that. I didn’t want him getting hurt.

  “Shut the doors,” Gavin ordered.

  I approached the French doors, my eyes darting left and right, seeking out someone who might be able to help. But there was no one in sight, and I knew that if I yelled for help or tried to make a run for it, Gavin could end up shooting me or Chloe.

  My heart sinking, I pulled the doors closed until they latched with a click.

  “Now sit on the couch. Both of you.”

  My stomach clenched. Would he shoot us both? Maybe I should have screamed instead of shutting the doors. I didn’t see how we could possibly get out of the situation now.

  “Let Chloe go,” I said as I sat down on the couch.

  Chloe, sitting next me, shot me a terrified, questioning look.

  “Neither of you is going anywhere,” Gavin said. “Not yet.”

  Keeping the gun trained on us, he pulled the curtains over the family room windows. Then he stood across the coffee table from us. “Where are your cellphones?”

  “Mine’s in my purse,” Chloe said, tentatively pointing at the bag still sitting on the kitchen chair.

  “On the kitchen table,” I said.

  Gavin strode over to the table, always keeping the weapon pointed our way. “There’s nothing on the table.” Dangerous anger sharpened his words.

  “There’s not?” I said, surprised.

  “I think you left your phone upstairs, Marley,” Chloe told me, giving me a pointed look, her face angled away from Gavin.

  I realized she must have done something with my phone. Slipped it into the back pocket of her shorts, maybe?

  “Right,” I said, trying to sound convincing. “I think it’s in my bedroom.”

  Gavin dumped the contents of Chloe’s purse onto the tabletop, snatching up the pink-encased phone. He crossed to the open kitchen window and threw the device outside. Chloe winced but said nothing.

  Gavin turned on us. “Stand up.”

  We did as ordered, slowly getting to our feet. Gavin came toward me and I held my breath, worried about his next move. I grimaced as he checked the pockets of my shorts, no doubt looking for my phone in case we’d lied to him. Finding nothing, he moved on to Chloe. My heart jumped in my chest, but he didn’t find anything on her either.

  While relieved that he hadn’t discovered our lie, I wondered what Chloe had done with my phone, and whether or not it could still be of any help to us.

  Apparently satisfied that we didn’t have any means of calling for help, Gavin pulled his own phone from the pocket of his jeans. He sat down in the chair across from the couch as he tapped the screen, his eyes darting back our way every second or two, the gun still pointed at us.

  “Listen up,” Gavin said into the phone, “I need you to do exactly as I say.” After a short pause, he practically snarled, “I don’t have time to answer questions now. I need you to come meet me.” He rattled off my address. “It’s Marley McKinney’s house,” he said after another short pause. “Yeah, that’s her. Just get over here as fast as you can and don’t tell anyone where you’re going.”

  He hung up and fixed his eyes on me and Chloe.

  “Now what?” I asked, not sure I wanted to know the answer.

  “Now we wait.”

  “Who did you call? Your dad?”

  He let out a sharp burst of laughter. “No. Good ol’ Dad would have an aneurysm if he knew what was going on. A buddy of mine is going to help me out.”

  “And when he gets here?”

  A humorless smile appeared on his face for half a second. “Then we’ll be taking a short trip.”

  I didn’t like the sound of that. I glanced at Chloe. Her face was drained of all color and the fear hadn’t left her eyes. Although I wanted to offer her some comfort, I didn’t dare put an arm around her in case the movement startled Gavin into firing the gun.

  The seconds ticked by, the clock on the kitchen wall marking each one. The repetitive sound only added to my anxiety. I didn’t like to think that the clock could be counting away m
y final minutes.

  Doing my best to not be obvious about it, I shifted my gaze here and there, looking for anything within reach that I could possibly use to help Chloe and me out of this situation. Unfortunately, the only thing close enough to grab within a split second was a magazine sitting on the coffee table, and that wouldn’t be of much help. I could flip the low table over and possibly hit Gavin with it, but that would require something to distract him first, something to cause him to point the gun away from us, even if just for a moment.

  Unable to sit in tense silence anymore, I said, “Why bother with us, Gavin? Why don’t you just take off?”

  He glared at me. “Because then I’d have to live the rest of my life on the run. I’d have to give up on going to med school.”

  “You’ll still have to do that, even if you kill us. The sheriff’s going to figure out that you killed Ida, if he hasn’t already done so.”

  Gavin’s expression darkened. “I doubt that. I’m pretty sure I’ve outsmarted that idiot and his lackeys.”

  Beside me, Chloe stiffened. “He’s not an idiot.”

  Gavin’s attention shifted to Chloe, but I quickly drew it back. “And you think the sheriff will just give up? That’s not going to happen, especially if his niece goes missing.”

  Someone knocked on the front door and Gavin stood up, ignoring what I’d said. He gestured at us with the weapon. “Get up.”

  We stood up slowly and he herded us toward the front door. I hoped fervently that it wasn’t Gavin’s buddy at the door, that it was someone who could help us, but that hope was dashed as soon as Gavin took a quick look through the peephole and ordered me to open the door.

  Kirk stood on the front porch, staring first at me, then Chloe, then Gavin.

  “What the hell’s going on, Gav?”

  Gavin’s eyes darted about. “Did anyone see you arrive?”

  “I don’t think so.” Kirk sounded as puzzled as he looked. “Gav—”

  “Get inside!”

  Kirk stepped past me and Chloe, and his eyes fell on the gun for the first time. “Whoa! What the hell?”

  Gavin slammed the door and stepped back so he stood across the foyer from me and Chloe. “I need you to help me take care of a small matter. Well, two matters, actually.” He never took his eyes off of us.