Grave Missteps

by Lily Harper Hart

  Grave Missteps

  A Maddie Graves Mystery Book 13

  Lily Harper Hart

  HarperHart Publications

  Copyright © 2018 by Lily Harper Hart

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  1. One

  2. Two

  3. Three

  4. Four

  5. Five

  6. Six

  7. Seven

  8. Eight

  9. Nine

  10. Ten

  11. Eleven

  12. Twelve

  13. Thirteen

  14. Fourteen

  15. Fifteen

  16. Sixteen

  17. Seventeen

  18. Eighteen

  19. Nineteen

  20. Twenty

  Mail List

  Acknowledgments

  Books by Lily Harper Hart

  1

  One

  “I’ve decided I’m twitterpated.”

  Maddie Graves, her blond hair flying, did a perfect cartwheel. She landed on her feet with a loud thud, raised her hands in the air and did a little bow for her fiancé Nick Winters’ benefit. She wore simple cargo pants and a T-shirt – Converse shoes that probably dated back to when they were teenagers – and a broad smile that made Nick’s heart completely melt.

  “Twitterpated, huh?” Nick had already spread out a blanket and placed their picnic basket at the center of it. He was eager to play as much as Maddie, but he was also lazier in the grand scheme of things and didn’t mind relaxing a bit first. “That’s what they are in Bambi, right?”

  Maddie nodded without hesitation. “It’s what happens when spring hits and hormones get out of whack.”

  She was so serious Nick could do nothing but smile. “Well, then I guess I’m twitterpated, too. My hormones are seriously out of whack. Why don’t you get over here and fix that?”

  Instead of acquiescing, Maddie rolled her eyes. “I think I’m busy doing other things.” She performed another perfect cartwheel. “I haven’t tried doing one of these since we were teenagers.”

  “I remember.” Nick reached into the picnic basket and pulled out a small stack of wrapped sandwiches. “You fancied yourself an Olympic gymnast at the time, if I recall correctly.”

  Maddie’s smile turned rueful. “Yeah. Even though I’m like eight inches taller than most gymnasts I thought it was a possibility.”

  “I happen to like how tall you are.” Nick was serious. “It makes it easier to hug you without wrenching my back.”

  “Ha, ha.” Maddie wrinkled her nose. “In truth, I was practicing because I thought I might try out for the cheerleading squad.” Maddie was embarrassed by the admission. “I didn’t tell you because I thought you would laugh at me.”

  Nick stared at her for a long beat. She was the prettiest woman he’d ever seen in real life – and that wasn’t simply because they were getting married in a few months, he really meant it – but she often suffered from poor self-esteem. She was getting better. In fact, over the last year she’d grown in leaps and bounds. He liked to think he had something to do with that but tooting his own horn at Maddie’s expense when she was the one who put in all the work seemed like the wrong way to go.

  “I knew you were considering trying out for the cheerleading team,” Nick said finally, opting for honesty. “I prayed every night before bed that you wouldn’t go through with it.”

  Maddie stilled. “Because you knew I wouldn’t make it.”

  “Because you were just as good as most of the girls – except Phyllis Zimmer who went on to be a cheerleader at Michigan State University, she was at her own level – but you were too shy,” Nick explained. “You would’ve fallen apart at the tryouts. In fact, I remember talking to your mother about it and begging her to forbid you to try out.”

  Maddie was stunned. “Excuse me?”

  “Oh, don’t give me that look.” Nick made a face. “I was trying to protect you. Your mother understood that. She wouldn’t step in, though. She said she thought it was a good idea because you needed to fail … and in public … because it would be good for you to face your biggest fear. I remember being really mad at her that day.”

  Maddie often felt she was mad at Olivia Graves these days. The woman might have birthed and raised her, taken care of her, but she also did a few things Maddie wasn’t thrilled with. One of those things was dying, although Maddie couldn’t fault her mother for that. It was Olivia dying that brought Maddie back to Blackstone Bay almost a year before. That was also the reason she and Nick reunited and were looking forward to a bright future.

  So, while Maddie wasn’t happy that her mother died young, she also acknowledged she didn’t have a lot to complain about because she had everything she ever wanted … including her mother. Yes, Olivia Graves might have been dead, but she was still hanging around as a ghost. Maddie’s “peculiarity” allowed her to see and talk to ghosts – as well as experience a psychic flash or two when times were tense – and she spent her younger years hiding her secret from everyone (including Nick) to the detriment of her own emotional growth. As soon as she returned to Blackstone Bay and constantly kept running into Nick, she found she could no longer hide the truth and he accepted it with more grace than she would’ve thought possible.

  Oh, Nick was angry, too. His fury stemmed from his best friend abandoning him after high school, though, and not the fact that Maddie was different. He convinced himself that he hated Maddie … even though, in reality, his heart ached for her. Their reunion was tense and full of strife. Then it turned glorious because they no longer had obstacles in their way. In short order, they declared their love and moved in together. Nick proposed over Christmas and they were currently planning for a summer wedding.

  Everything was perfect, including the return of Maddie’s father George. He hadn’t been around during her younger years – due to a multitude of reasons – but he was trying to make it up to Maddie now. He still traveled for work, but he was making Blackstone Bay his home base so they could spend time together. After initially being leery, Nick was onboard with the situation because he trusted George wanted to do the right thing. So far, things were working out well. That didn’t mean Maddie wasn’t occasionally snippy with Olivia’s ghost for purposely cutting off contact with George. That was the one relationship that still needed smoothing over.

  “My mother never said anything to me about trying out for cheerleading,” Maddie admitted, chewing on her bottom lip. “I wonder why.”

  “Probably because she wanted you to make your own decisions.”

  “Or because she knew I would make a fool of myself and she thought it might be funny.” Maddie’s expression turned dark. “That’s probably it.”

  Nick didn’t bother to hide his eye roll. “I doubt very much that’s it. In fact, I think it’s a little mean to cast aspersions on your mother that way. I know you’re still angry about the George situation, but Olivia was a good mother to you.”

  “Except for the fact that my father kept showing up wanting to see me and she wouldn’t allow it because she was bitter and selfish.”

  Nick bit back a sigh. Maddie kept waffling back and forth on this topic, her emotions careening from one end of the stratosphere to the other. One second, she forgave her mother for everything and wanted them all to be one big happy family. In the next second she was furious with Olivia and didn’t want to talk to her. Nick found the whole thing aggravating because, in general, Maddie’s moo
ds were fairly even. He didn’t enjoy the constant up and down of late.

  “Mad, we’ve talked about this.” Nick kept his tone calm and placating. “Olivia made mistakes and she recognizes that. I thought you were going to try and move past it.”

  “I am.”

  “Then go back to being twitterpated,” Nick suggested. “I like watching you do cartwheels. It would be more fun if you were in a cheerleading skirt – we’ll have to look at buying one of those – but I can learn to compromise.”

  Maddie made an exaggerated face as Nick fought the urge to kiss her senseless. “That is so not funny.”

  “I think it was a lot funny.”

  Maddie did another cartwheel, this one a bit wobblier than the others, and her expression was thoughtful when she returned to her stance. “I never made it to the point where I would get embarrassed by not making the squad. I hid in the girls’ locker-room for two hours until the tryouts were over with. I panicked when I was in there because I knew Marla was on the squad and she would never allow me to be picked.”

  Marla Proctor was Maddie’s high school nemesis, although it was all on Marla’s part because Maddie did her best not to engage. Nick despised Marla with everything he had and often protected Maddie to the best of his ability, but even he couldn’t save her from everything Marla threw at her.

  “I remember that day.” Nick took on a far-off expression. “I believe I met you outside the school when you finally got the courage to leave and took you for chocolate malts at the Dairy Queen.”

  Maddie brightened at the memory. “Hey, that’s right. You did take me for ice cream that day.”

  “I believe I also took you for a walk down to the lake,” Nick added. “It was still warm because school hadn’t even started yet. It was the run-up to football season so it was late August. I caught you a turtle instead of going to practice like I should have.”

  “You were the star of the team,” Maddie pointed out. “You didn’t need to practice.”

  “The coach thought otherwise.”

  “The coach was an idiot. I … .” Maddie broke off when she caught a hint of movement in the trees to her left.

  Nick immediately sensed the change in her demeanor and swiveled, scowling when he caught sight of a familiar face picking her way through the sparse foliage. Spring was officially upon northern Lower Michigan, but it would be weeks until the weather was predictable. That meant some of the trees were budding but others remained bare. There weren’t a lot of places to hide between the house Maddie and Nick shared and the small field they enjoyed picnicking in.

  “Maude,” Nick intoned, keeping his expression flat. “Is there a reason you’re spying on us from the bushes?”

  Maude Graves, Maddie’s grandmother, made a face as she moved away from the trees. She was dressed in all black – something that bothered Nick profoundly since he was a police officer – and she had a guilty expression on her face. “How did you know I was here?”

  “I think Maddie sensed you,” Nick replied.

  Maddie shook her head. “I heard her. I thought maybe it was a skunk or something at first. You’re not very stealthy, Granny.”

  “And I don’t like it when you call me ‘granny’. You know I don’t like that.”

  Maddie’s full smile was back in place. “Why do you think I do it?”

  “Because you’ve developed a sadistic streak that is completely unbecoming,” Maude replied without hesitation. “I blame Nick.”

  Nick wasn’t surprised by the statement. He was genuinely fond of Maude – and vice versa – but she wasn’t above throwing him under the bus to get her way. In fact, she was quite comfortable with it. “And why am I to blame?”

  “Because I said so.”

  “Good to know.” Nick took a second look at Maude’s outfit and shook his head. “You look as if you’re dressed for a covert mission. I don’t suppose you want to tell me what you have planned, do you?”

  Maude adopted an innocent expression that would only work on people who had never met her. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “That’s ninja garb, Granny,” Maddie supplied as she joined Nick on the blanket and dug inside the picnic basket for goodies. “You’re very clearly going on a ninja mission with your Pink Ladies.”

  The Pink Ladies were Maude’s social group and they were known for causing mischief and mayhem at regular intervals.

  “I am not going on a ninja mission,” Maude shot back. “In fact, we’re having a very nice evening of tea and book conversation.”

  Nick marveled she managed to get out the statement with a straight face. “Book conversation?”

  “Yes. We’ve started a book club.”

  “I see. And what did you read this month?”

  “Any Witch Way You Can by Amanda M. Lee. It’s a timeless story of a family caught on the edge of despair. The great-aunt, the most powerful witch in the Midwest, is trying to keep things together, but her goofy nieces and great-nieces keep working against her. She solves a murder in a tracksuit and even has her own pot field. The books are set in this area and they’re fan-freaking-tastic. I think I’ve found my new spirit animal.”

  Nick couldn’t help being impressed. “That was very good. I almost believed you.”

  “I don’t care whether you believe me or not,” Maude shot back. “We’re reading the entire series of books and using the witches as inspiration in our war against Harriet Proctor.”

  “Good to know.” Nick grabbed a bag of grapes from the picnic basket. “Does that mean you’ll be spending the night elsewhere this evening?” He knew better than most that the Pink Ladies enjoyed adding bourbon to their tea and that generally meant they stayed the night at someone’s house, only venturing outside if they could do it on foot.

  “Probably.” Maude bobbed her head. “We’re gathering at Rita Barton’s house tonight and it’s likely to be a long book conversation.”

  Nick pursed his lips. “Rita Barton, huh? Doesn’t she live one block away from Harriet Proctor?”

  In addition to being Marla Proctor’s grandmother, Harriet Proctor was also Maude’s arch nemesis. It seemed lifelong enemies ran in the Graves family.

  “Oh, I think you’re right.” Maude was back to being innocent. “What a funny coincidence.”

  “Yes, I’m laughing hysterically inside,” Nick drawled. “Do me a favor and don’t do anything that requires law enforcement to be called to the scene. I have plans for my day and they don’t involve bailing you out of trouble.”

  Maude’s expression was so exaggerated Nick had to hold in a smile. “I never get caught. You know that.” She flicked her eyes to the picnic basket. “I see you guys are being lame as always.”

  “Lame?” Maddie was understandably offended. “We’re having a picnic.”

  “And that’s lame. You should be out having crazy adventures … or at least public sex.”

  Maddie was mortified. “Granny!”

  Maude refused to back down. “What? You’re young and ridiculously good looking. Both of you. This is the time to have public sex.”

  “We’ll take that into account,” Nick said, rubbing his hand over Maddie’s back as he tried not to laugh at Maude’s gregarious attitude. “As for being lame, we’re fine with it. In fact, we’re twitterpated.”

  Maude blinked several times in rapid succession. “Is that some sort of weird sex thing I’ve never heard about?” she finally asked. “Wait, I know everything about sex. That can’t be it.”

  Maddie was officially at her limit. “It’s not that, Granny. It’s when it’s spring and you’re in love. I mean … basically. That’s how we’re using it.”

  Nick cast her a sidelong look. “That’s not exactly how you described it to me a few minutes ago. You said it’s what happens when hormones get out of control.”

  “She doesn’t need to know that.”

  Maude snorted. “Well, at least you’re having some fun.” She offered a half-wave as she turned t
o go. “I’m only here because I didn’t want you guys waiting up for me. I’ll be gone all night.”

  “Thank you for telling us,” Nick said. “Don’t get arrested.”

  “Be careful,” Maddie called out. “It’s still cold at night, so if you decide to vandalize Harriet’s house after you get drunk, make sure you wear a hat.”

  Maude made a clucking sound with her tongue. “Lame, lame, lame.”

  Maddie waited until she was sure Maude was out of earshot to speak. “We’re not lame, are we?”

  Nick smirked as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t think so. I don’t really care what other people believe, though. I happen to be happy with the way this is all going. If picnics are lame, love, I don’t want to be one of the cool kids.”

  Maddie giggled, genuinely amused. “Me either.” She leaned so she could rest her head on his shoulder. “I’m so glad spring is finally here. I love it when we can get outside. I mean, before you know it, summer will be here. We’ll be able to head to the lake so you can catch turtles for me and we’ll be able to hike in the woods. I can’t wait.”

  Nick pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Me either.”

  “It’s almost been a year.”

  “What’s almost been a year?”

  “Since I came back. In a few weeks, it will have been a year. That’s like an anniversary of sorts for us, don’t you think?”

  Nick shrugged. “We didn’t exactly fall into each other’s arms when you first came back, Mad. I held out a full two weeks before I realized I was hopelessly in love with you. I think we should celebrate our first date as an anniversary.”

  Maddie screwed up her face in concentration. “I don’t think we really had a first date.”