Tres Leches & Murder: An Oceanside Cozy Mystery - Book 3

by Susan Gillard

  “And I think we need that name if we are going to figure out who murdered your friend.”

  “I’m sure he had nothing to do with it,” O’Malley said.

  They stared at each other, no one ready to budge.

  Then, Amy said, “Okay. You like to make bets, right?”

  “Occasionally.”

  “So, we’ll make a bet,” said Amy. “And if we win, you give us the name. And if you win, I’ll give you all the money I have in my wallet.”

  “What’s the bet?” O’Malley asked. “I want something where I make the decision.”

  “Okay,” Heather said. “I might have an idea. I have a box I’ve been carrying around. Can you guess what is inside it?”

  “Three guesses?” O’Malley asked.

  “Sure,” Heather said.

  He agreed. “You’re private investigator ladies looking into a murder. So, my first guess is it’s the murder weapon.”

  “No.”

  “What about evidence bags from the scene?”

  “No.”

  “A magnifying glass?”

  “Nope,” said Heather. “We’re also bakers. It’s a box of donuts.”

  O’Malley groaned. “Do they at least knock someone out when they eat them or something?”

  “Try one and see,” said Amy.

  “They’re regular donuts,” Heather said. “Well, regular in that they are normal desserts. Not regular in their special flavor.”

  O’Malley accepted a donut and accepted defeat. “The man’s name is Max Brookston.”

  “Do you have his number?”

  “That wasn’t part of the deal. And I can’t do double or nothing on info I already told you.”

  Heather thanked him, and she and her bestie left.

  “It was a good thing we won,” Amy said.

  “The name could help us catch the killer,” Heather agreed.

  “That,” said Amy. “And he would have been disappointed if he won. I didn’t have any money in my wallet.”

  They both laughed.

  Senior Wisdom

  Heather and Amy realized that O'Malley's home was close to the community center where Eva and Leila had started joining in activities. They decided to stop in and see what the ladies were up to that day.

  “It’s so wonderful to see you,” Eva said.

  “Yes,” agreed Leila. “With or without donuts.”

  “Thanks,” said Heather. “We are with donuts, but only a few.”

  “I think that’s all right,” Amy said. “Doesn’t look like there are many people here. Is that usual?”

  “There are lots of activities to be part of,” Leila assured her. “But today most people have opted to be part of the trips. There’s a bus that transports people who can’t take themselves.”

  “We could have gone to the beach with one group,” Eva said. “But somebody didn’t feel like getting sandy today.”

  "I'm sorry, but I just didn't. With the shoes I'm wearing, the sand would have dug right in," said Leila. "And we could have gone bowling."

  “You two love bowling,” said Heather.

  “But somebody wanted to avoid the romantic advances of a certain gentleman.”

  "Firstly," Eva said. "There is nothing wrong with wanting to avoid romance at this stage in my life. I've been widowed, and I've had to say goodbye to Soupy. I'm not looking for anything right now, and I am fine with everyone knowing that. Secondly, they weren't romantic advances."

  “He asked if they could share a lane,” Leila said.

  “How scandalous,” Amy teased as Eva blushed.

  “And he said he would pick her blowing shoes out for her if she went,” said Leila.

  “Like Cinderella,” said Amy.

  “Oh for goodness sake,” said Eva.

  “Is he handsome?” Heather asked.

  “Very handsome,” said Leila.

  “But he knows it too,” said Eva. “I’m sure he’s something of a player. He must have been seeing if he could get anywhere with the new girls.”

  “I didn’t get that feeling,” Leila said. “I thought he was very polite and he liked your smile.”

  “Let’s stop this line of conversation. I don’t know anything about that man. And I am not interested in romance anymore. I am perfectly happy spending time with best friend,” Eva said. “Usually.”

  Heather and Amy laughed.

  “So, what brings you here?’ Eva asked, focusing on what she deemed more important things. “Have you made any progress with the case?”

  “We went to visit Betty this morning, but her son shooed us out quickly,” said Leila.

  “They said that the other child should be arriving tomorrow,” Eva said.

  “That’s good,” Heather said. “I’d like to talk to her as well.”

  “We felt a little bad going to activities while she was suffering, but we weren’t sure what else we could do,” said Leila.

  “We do have our phone near us in case she calls,” said Eva.

  “And I think our Saturday afternoon plans are still in place,” Leila said. “Unless you think we should cancel them.”

  Heather and her friends and family had decided that every Saturday afternoon they would see the sights of Key West. They thought that putting aside a few hours every week would guarantee that they didn't get too busy to appreciate what the island had to offer or to spend time together. This Saturday they were planning on riding a special train that would take them around the island and point out key sights.

  “Unless there is something specific that we can do for the Turners at that time, I’d rather not cancel our plans,” Heather admitted. “This sightseeing is something I’d like to do with Lilly every week. She’s very excited about it.”

  “Maybe taking a break will help us see the case in a new light,” said Amy.

  "I guess so," said Heather. "We've made progress on the case in some ways. But in others, it feels like we're going in a circle."

  “A big donut circle,” said Amy.

  “We’ve found one man he played poker with who might have had the opportunity, and we found out the name of a bookie who might have taken bets from Theodore,” said Heather. “I think we’d have trouble tracking him down on our own though. We should update Detective Smith on what we’ve found out.”

  “Maybe he’ll have some news for us too,” Amy said.

  “I hope so, dear,” said Eva. “It’s so terrible that this happened to Betty.”

  “It looks like she’s going to have to move away too,” said Leila.

  “We’ll do the best we can,” said Heather.

  “Then you will solve it quickly,” said Eva. “You’re very good at what you do.”

  “I just hope Detective Smith thinks so too.”

  “You’ve certainly been busy,” Detective Smith said after they informed him of all their interviews.

  “Do you think you can find this Max Brookston?” Heather asked.

  “It might take a little while, but we will,” Detective Smith assured her.

  "You think that this bookie might be who Theodore Turner owed money to?" Peters asked. "And he could have killed him for not paying him back?"

  “Or sent someone after him,” Amy suggested.

  “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Detective Smith said. “Let’s find the man and then question him.”

  They all nodded.

  “We’d have to find out if Brookston knew where Theodore Turner lived,” said Heather. “And whether he knew about the gun or not.”

  “But Theodore might have been going for the gun himself and the killer took it from him,” Amy suggested. “Maybe he planned on killing him a different way but then thought the gun would be easier.”

  “There wasn’t much evidence of a struggle inside the house,” Heather said.

  “So, what does that mean?” Amy asked.

  "Well," Heather thought aloud. "Either the killer surprised the victim, so he didn't have time to react. Or Theodo
re wasn't scared of the killer. At least, at first."

  “That sounds it could be one of his poker buddies,” Amy said.

  “Again,” Detective Smith said. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”

  “I feel like we need to catch up to ourselves at the point where we’re solving the case,” Amy said.

  Heather nodded. “Tomorrow we’ll focus on talking to the other sibling, and you can find the bookie. Hopefully, one of them will have the information we need to get to that point.”

  Sisterly Love

  “Are you sure we have time for this?” Amy asked.

  * * *

  “We’ll just have to find her quickly,” Heather said.

  * * *

  They had just over an hour until they had agreed to go on the train ride around the island. They had already made sure that Donut Delights was all set for the day, albeit with no solution to Mr. Rankle's ugly display of attention. He had upped his game by being more specific about who he was accusing of having bad food, still without using their name. Heather's comments about hurting the other restaurants on the street must have struck a nerve with him after all. He had now added his circular pool floats to the display. Of course, he chose ones that were colorful and reminiscent of donuts.

  * * *

  Rudolph Rodney had stormed off to Town Hall again after seeing the display, Heather and Amy had opted for trying to solve the murder case as a distraction.

  * * *

  They were close to the hotel where Betty was staying at when they saw a woman with the same hair colors and cheekbones as her brothers.

  * * *

  “I think that’s her,” Amy said.

  * * *

  “Letty Turner?” Heather called out.

  * * *

  “It’s Leticia,” she said warily. “Only my mom calls me Letty. Who are you?”

  "I'm Heather Shepherd, and this is Amy Givens. We're private investigators looking into the death of Theodore Turner."

  * * *

  “So you are real?” Leticia said. “I was afraid mom was hallucinating when she started talking about how you were on the case. Edward was annoyed, so it was hard to tell how he felt.”

  * * *

  “Before I get to questions about the case, I’d like to ask how your mom is doing,” Heather said.

  * * *

  “I don’t think there’s anything I can tell you about the case,” Leticia said. “I have a medical practice in Virginia. And I’m very busy. I haven’t seen Theodore in about a year. I mean, we’d talk on holidays. But I don’t know very much about what he was up to. And as for my mom now, she’s a mess. She’s trying to hide how badly she’s heartbroken. I think it will be good for her to get out of the area once this is all settled. Edward wants her to move by him.”

  * * *

  “Yes, we know,” said Amy. “He was very insistent. Even while we were still there.”

  * * *

  “He’s wanted her to move closer to him for years,” Leticia said. “But she wanted to stay on the island. And Theodore was there for her.”

  * * *

  “Why did he want her to move towards him?” Heather asked.

  * * *

  “He always says it was because there were better doctors. But if it were really about doctors, don’t you think they should have asked my opinion? Don’t you think I would have some really valuable insight about that? I am a doctor myself. And a genius one too.”

  * * *

  “Right. And so humble,” muttered Amy.

  * * *

  “Part of me thinks he wants to control her money. And part of me thinks he just misses his mom,” said Leticia. “But it doesn’t matter. I can’t do anything to help right now. I have patients I’m away from while I’m here. And I’m constantly busy. I can’t be the one to take care of her. If Edward wants to, be my guest.”

  * * *

  “I’m not getting a great impression of this family,” Amy whispered to Heather. “I think we lost the best member.”

  * * *

  Heather shushed her and then got down to business.

  * * *

  “Where were you the night of the murder?” Heather asked.

  * * *

  “In Virginia,” said Leticia. “I usually work late. I’m sure someone at the desk could look into my exact schedule on that day if needed.”

  * * *

  "You said you hadn't spoken to your brother in a while?"

  * * *

  “That’s correct.”

  * * *

  “What about your mother? Was she worried about Theodore in any way? Or mention any troubles?”

  * * *

  “She seemed to think everything was fine. I heard he gambled a bit, but that was reading between the lines. Mom would never say anything bad about any of her kids, especially Theodore after he moved there to be with her. He was the only one who came to her.”

  * * *

  “What do you know about his gambling?”

  * * *

  “Very little,” said Leticia. “He was taking care of mom. That was all that mattered. To me, at least.”

  * * *

  “What does that mean?”

  “Edward is a bit of a perfectionist. I guess by that I mean that he wants things done a certain way. His way. He and Theodore used to rub each other the wrong way.”

  “We heard Edward hired someone to make sure that Theodore wasn’t stealing from his mother,” Heather said.

  * * *

  "Yeah," Leticia said. "Edward was trying to convince me that something must be wrong and that we needed someone to investigate. I wasn't convinced and didn't really care what he was saying. That was the way Edward worked. He looked for evidence to support his theories. Usually, his theories were there for him to get something he wanted."

  * * *

  “And he and Theodore didn’t get along?” Heather asked for confirmation.

  * * *

  “Right,” said Leticia. “But, I mean, he didn’t kill him. They were brothers.”

  * * *

  "One more question," Heather said. "Does a straight flush of hearts mean anything to you? From nine to a king?"

  * * *

  “Only that it’s the second-best hand in poker,” Leticia shrugged.

  * * *

  Heather thanked her for her time. Then she and Amy hurried to make their train.

  Train of Thought

  The small train they boarded looked like it appeared out of a movie. The group slid into their seats and enjoyed the gentle rhythm as the engine started moving them forward. It was a beautiful day to be in the open-air cars, and the views promised to spectacular. The guide on the train was going to tell stories about historic Key West, as well as where the best shopping was on the modern-day streets.

  * * *

  Heather and Amy had arrived just in time to board. Lilly was excited to see all the landmarks that would be mentioned and thought this would be a wonderful tool for planning future outings, as well as being a fun one that day.

  * * *

  The adults were also excited. Eva and Leila had their cameras ready to start snapping photos. Ryan and Jamie sat next to their significant others and were content to sit back and see the sights that Key West had to offer.

  * * *

  Heather and Amy found themselves still distracted by the case and couldn't stop themselves from whispering about it. The conductor and guide was telling the train about a man named Mel Fisher who had searched all his life for sunken Spanish galleons, and how he had finally found millions of dollars' worth of treasure. They were interested in the treasure, but more so in the murdered.

  * * *

  “It sounds like Edward had a motive to murder his brother,” Amy said quietly to her friend.

  "That's true," said Heather. "With him out of the way, he could finally persuade his mother to move closer to him. And he could control her money."

  * * *

  “He’d also get a l
arger share of inheritance after she passes with his brother gone,” Amy said.

  "But," Heather pointed out. "He has an alibi, remember? Detective Smith said the time of death occurred between six and seven. He was at the physical therapy appointment with his mom. And he was bothering the nurses, so they remember him."

  * * *

  “Ladies,” Ryan said. “Can we discuss the case after the family outing?”

  * * *

  “Sorry,” Heather said, squeezing his hand.

  She listened to the guide describe the unique architecture of the buildings along the street. Eva and Leila were taking pictures, and Lilly would pose with a happy smile for any that included her in the shot.

  * * *

  They heard about how cigars would be hand rolled in Mallory Square and how the process worked to create perfect ones. Then Amy couldn’t contain herself anymore and leaned over to her bestie.

  * * *

  "Don had an alibi, but the other poker player O'Malley didn't," Amy said.