by Lyndsey Cole
Annie sucked in her breath.
Kitty walked to the drink cart just as Greta was checking the sugar container.
Kitty stopped dead in her tracks. “What are you doing here?”
Annie moved between the two women. This wasn’t what she expected when Leona dumped the idea of hiring Greta in her lap; it was worse. “Greta works here,” Annie informed Kitty.
“A possible murderer? Well that will be the end of the Black Cat Café.” She left her cup of coffee on the cart and stomped from the café.
Greta’s eyes filled. “If it hurts your business to have me here, I think I should leave.” She untied the apron.
“No you don’t.” Annie held Greta’s arm. “I refuse to let Kitty Brown intimidate you or me. She needs to grow up and once we prove your innocence, she’ll be the one who owes you an apology.”
“Thank you, Annie. I have always found it easier to stay in my house and avoid all the whispering and fear directed my way, but now I realize that only keeps it going. I want to be part of the community on my terms, not theirs.”
Annie smiled. Greta’s words made perfect sense. Maybe, if Brian hadn’t been senselessly murdered, he and Greta could have become friends. What a waste.
“The roadblock we have to get through is finding Brian’s killer. You realize that, don’t you?”
Greta nodded. “I have no idea where to begin.”
“I do, Greta. Try not to worry.”
She planned to begin at Cody’s doorstep. An important thread was Brian and Cody’s family farm. Was Brian planning to force Cody to sell and, even more importantly, who inherited Brian’s share?
21
Jason strolled into the café after the lunch rush was over.
“Good timing,” Annie whispered as she passed him with a fancy cake box for a customer. “I’ll be done in two minutes.” She pulled Greta to one side. “See you again tomorrow morning?”
“I’d like that . . . if you want me back. I’m serious about not wanting to cause problems for the café.”
“I know you are, Greta. Business was fine today. I think it’s mostly Kitty with a problem and if she tries to spread her brand of hate, we’ll fight her together.”
“Thanks, Annie. This means the world to me. I’ll be here at six-thirty?”
“Six-thirty sounds perfect. My mom will come in early and I’ll switch Camilla to work the later hours. She likes to sleep in anyway. I should be here by seven.”
Annie left with Jason as a mixed feeling settled in her stomach. A mixed feeling that she knew she was doing the right thing but it wasn’t going to be easy.
“What was that all about?” Jason asked.
“Remember our conversation this morning about me deciding whether to run the café or not?”
“Uh-huh.” He opened the café door and followed Annie out.
“Well, I agreed, and then Leona hit me with a new employee.”
“Greta?”
“Right.”
Annie paused when they got outside. The weather had cleared and the lake looked peaceful. Looks could be deceiving. Who knew what could be churning beneath the surface?
“Greta is an odd choice for Leona to make. Not a bad choice, but why Greta?” Jason asked.
“I’m not sure. She said they had a good talk when Leona brought the replacement birthday cake. Maybe Leona saw something in Greta that we’ve all missed.”
“Or she knows Greta needs someone to watch out for her. Kitty always wanted to destroy Greta and with Brian coming back to town and getting himself murdered, it feels like the old Kitty has resurfaced—sneaky and mean.”
Annie looked at Jason. “Yesterday, when we were at the spa, she did accuse Greta of being the killer but she also accused Rachel. You think Kitty can somehow make Greta look guilty of Brian’s murder?”
“Possibly. She always tends to go with a knee-jerk reaction but she can convince herself of anything if she wants to. She and Brian were close. Everyone thought they’d get together eventually, but they ended up taking separate paths. She isn’t like you, Annie.”
“What do you mean?”
“She doesn’t look at all the possibilities and dig down deeper to flush out the facts. She leaps before she looks.”
They continued walking toward Jason’s car. “I did tell Greta that I would help prove her innocence.”
“Of course you did.” Jason put his arm around Annie’s waist and pulled her close. Their adjoining legs moved as one until Jason released her. “Just be careful.”
“That’s why we’re going to Cody’s house together. He’s got some explaining to do.”
“He said he’d be home after lunch to pick up some tools or something. With some luck, we’ll catch him.”
Cody’s farm was off the beaten path, several miles outside of town. His dirt road wove through a wooded area before opening up to fields surrounded by stone walls.
“I remember coming here as a kid and these fields were our world,” Jason reminisced. “Cody tried to tag along but Brian always figured out a way to ditch him. Maybe that’s where their tension started.”
“And Kitty?”
“Kitty came more often than not. We were like the Three Musketeers, even brandishing play swords sometimes.” Jason stopped behind Cody’s black Jeep, parked next to his work truck. “We had a lot of fun.”
“It looks like luck won. Cody’s truck is here.” Annie climbed out of Jason’s car.
The front door of the farmhouse opened. “Come on in,” a voice from inside welcomed, “if you don’t mind a mess. I’ve been working overtime with Danny to get the kitchen at the Harper House done. You wouldn’t normally find me home in the middle of the day, but I forgot some supplies this morning. My brain hasn’t been functioning properly ever since . . .”
Jason pulled Cody into a bear hug and patted his back. “I know. We’re all missing Brian.”
“It still hasn’t really registered, you know. I expect him to pop in, say, ‘Hey, Cody, crack a couple of beers and let’s chill.’”
Jason kept his arm loosely on Cody’s shoulder as they walked into his living room. A big picture window gave a stunning view of a couple of old apple trees, a stone wall, and a field with the mountains just peaking over the trees.
“I remember those exact words. They usually followed some kind of prank Brian pulled with you as the target.” Jason shook his head. “What are you going to do now? With the farm?”
Cody shrugged and sank onto a chair. “I don’t know. I always thought I’d live here forever.” He looked at Jason and Annie. “Brian always paid half of everything even though he hasn’t lived here for twenty years. I’m not sure I can afford the upkeep on my own. Or the taxes. I might have to put the place on the market.”
“Could you sell some of the land and keep the house?” Annie asked.
“I can’t answer that. I don’t know what’s going to happen with Brian’s share of the farm.”
“What do you mean?” Jason asked. “You don’t inherit it?”
“I don’t know. One of the reasons Brian was coming home was to talk to me about the farm but we hadn’t gotten to that conversation yet. Originally, when our folks died, I agreed to leave my half to Brian and he did the same, leaving his share to me. For all I know, he may have changed his will.”
Jason leaned back on the couch. His hand rested on Annie’s thigh. “Interesting. Any idea who he might have left his share to?”
“Not really, except during one of our rare conversations he did say that he and Rachel were moving along in their relationship. Moving along to where, he didn’t specify and, as you know, Jason, Brian wasn’t one to put down roots very easily.”
“He did like to play the field, didn’t he?” Jason smiled. “Do you know what happened with Brian and Kitty before he left for college? I always thought they’d be a couple.”
“Brian never said but my guess is the high school prank with Greta impacted their friendship. He wanted to apologize
to Greta on this visit.”
“He told us that, too,” Annie said. “Everyone tried to make him change his mind.”
“Why now? Twenty years too late. That’s what I told him.”
“But he walked over anyway.”
“I guess so.” Cody turned his head and looked out the picture window.
Annie wanted to get up and shake Cody. He guessed so? He knew Brian walked over. They argued, according to what Rachel saw. Why was he being evasive with his answer?
Cody brought his attention back to Jason. “You said there was something you wanted to talk to me about?”
“I wondered what you remember from Kitty’s party.”
Cody scrunched his lips to the side and placed his finger over them. “Well, I wasn’t at the party for long. I saw you all at Kitty’s house but I left to wish Greta happy birthday.”
Annie raised her eyebrows. Not that she was surprised to hear this, but she was surprised that he offered the information so readily.
“We, Greta and I, had this . . . thing, all these years. I always felt that Brian should have apologized after that prom fiasco but he didn’t. I know it wasn’t my responsibility, but it made me feel better to say something to her and that conversation led to an annual birthday visit and she always had a cake.” Cody looked at Annie. “Greta’s a nice person. She’s gotten a bad rap in town but that’s only because she’s quiet and stays to herself.”
“You don’t have to convince Annie,” Jason said. “Greta just started working at the Black Cat Café.”
It was Cody’s turn to look shocked. “She didn’t tell me anything about that development.”
“Were you that close? You know, that she’d confide in you about things?” Annie asked.
“She told me some things.”
“Did she talk to you about Brian?”
Cody’s nostrils flared. “She had feelings for him but I convinced her he would never be what she deserved.” He stood. “I need to get back to work. Danny’s running a tight ship and I need this job more than ever.”
Jason and Annie followed him to the door. “One more question, if you don’t mind,” Annie said as they stood next to his truck.”
“Did you have cake with Greta this year?” Annie asked.
“Cake? Oh, for her birthday. No. She said she bought a cake but something got mixed up and it was inedible. A beautiful chocolate cake with orange frosting. But, you must already know that since she bought it at the Black Cat Café.” Cody opened his truck door and slid in behind the steering wheel. “Good seeing you both. I hope this tragedy around Brian gets cleared up quickly.”
Annie put her hand on the door before he pulled it closed. “Any idea who might have killed your brother?”
“It wasn’t Greta. I’ve heard all the whispering around town but she would never have done anything to hurt Brian. Even if he deserved it,” he added under his breath before he closed the truck door and backed out carefully to avoid scraping his Jeep or Jason’s car in the tight space.
“Did you hear the last five words he muttered?” Annie asked Jason.
He nodded. “Cody let his true feelings out with that statement. He thinks Brian got what he deserved.”
Annie looked at Cody’s Jeep. “I guess there were at least two black Jeeps parked outside Kitty’s house the night of the Halloween party.”
“Oh?”
“This one,” she said, pointing to Cody’s. She cupped her hands around her face and peered through the glass. “And Rachel also drives a black Jeep.”
“What are you looking for in there?”
“Not what I’m seeing.” She moved to the side. “Take a look and tell me if there’s something odd inside.”
Jason scrunched his face close to the window. “Looks like a mess and he spilled something that he didn’t bother to clean up.”
“You know what that is smeared on the steering wheel and the floor?”
“Orange goo?”
“It looks an awful lot like the orange frosting from Greta’s birthday cake. The cake that was smashed into Brian’s face.” Annie let that sink in for a few seconds. “How do you think it got inside Cody’s Jeep?” She pulled out her phone and snapped pictures from different angles.
“What’s that for?”
“Proof. In case Cody realizes he needs to clean it up before Christy inspects his Jeep.”
22
As Jason drove Annie back to the Cove’s Corner parking lot so she could get her car, all she thought about was orange frosting. Orange frosting near the gas pedal of Cody’s jeep and dabs of orange frosting dried on the steering wheel. She also wondered why Cody didn’t clean up the frosting immediately. But the fact that it was in his Jeep in the first place didn’t bode well for him.
“It’s early, I’m going to walk to Greta’s house and see if she has any new thoughts about working at the café. You know, maybe after she got home she decided it really wasn’t to her liking,” Annie said as she got out of Jason’s SUV.
“Good idea. I’m sure you won’t be digging for any more information from her about Cody’s visit Halloween night, right?” Jason’s lips twitched as he looked at Annie.
“Only if the subject comes up.” She blew Jason a kiss. “I won’t rule out that I might be the one to bring it up.” She smiled and closed the door.
Was Greta hiding information about Cody? She said she didn’t watch Brian after he left her porch, but maybe she did. Maybe she saw a lot more than she shared so far; like Cody smashing the cake in Brian’s face and stabbing him.
Annie walked to Greta’s front door and knocked. No answer. She peeked through the narrow glass window next to the door. Nothing. Greta described herself as a homebody but maybe she had turned over a new leaf. Annie walked back to the sidewalk and looked in the direction of Kitty’s house.
Kitty was outside washing her car. She didn’t particularly want to rehash the fact that Greta was working at the Black Cat Café with Kitty, but it might be better to deal with it sooner rather than later.
“Hi Kitty.”
Kitty looked up but didn’t say anything. She rinsed the soap off the side of her car before she turned the hose off. “Last wash before winter sets in,” she explained.
“Did you enjoy the spa yesterday?”
“I don’t believe you walked all the way over here to ask me that, Annie. What do you really want to know?”
“Actually, I came to talk to Greta but she’s not home.”
“She drove out about an hour ago. What’s up with hiring her to work at the café? Are you trying to put the café out of business?” Kitty dumped out the rest of the soapy water and coiled up her hose.
“She’s a hard worker, reliable, and she already came up with some great suggestions for the café. What’s your problem with her?”
“My problem?” Kitty snorted. “Where do you want me to begin? Ever since Brian took her to the prom, she’s had it in for me.”
“What do you mean? Wasn’t she the victim of a prank?” Annie didn’t go as far as to accuse Kitty of masterminding the prank; that didn’t matter at the moment.
“A joke. A bit of high school fun. But Greta turned herself into the victim so she could get Brian’s sympathy and turn him against me.”
Greta was the victim and she never had a chance to turn Brian against Kitty since Brian left town. Kitty must have a huge guilty conscience that she had yet to admit all that to herself.
“Turn Brian against you? You told me yesterday that you and Brian stayed in touch over all those years.”
“I didn’t say Greta was successful with her plan, only that she would love to hurt me.”
“Maybe it’s time to bury that hatchet, Kitty. Did you ever consider that?”
Kitty burst out laughing. “Next, you’ll be telling me to invite Greta over for a heart-to-heart. Or maybe invite both Greta and Rachel to share a glass of wine while we reminisce about how much we’ll all miss Brian.” She pointed her finger at Annie. “Y
ou seem to have developed a loyalty toward Greta for some unknown reason, but what about looking for skeletons in Rachel’s closet?”
“What do you know about Rachel?” This was more the subject that Annie wanted to dig in to anyway. Discussing Greta with Kitty was pointless but she might be able to shed some more light on Rachel.
“Why do you care, Annie? You keep asking questions and it’s starting to get under my skin.”
Annie clenched her jaw. “Why don’t you care, Kitty? I can’t erase the image of finding Brian on the ground. I want to know what happened. Don’t you?”
“Of course I do!” Kitty snapped the words out angrily. “Brian was always special to me but . . . oh, never mind; you wouldn’t understand.” She jerked her head toward Greta’s house. “She just got home.” With those words spit out like a bitter mouthful of coffee grounds, Kitty turned around, walked into her house, and slammed the door.
Annie didn’t know what to think of Kitty’s outburst. She did have a good point, though. Annie was asking a lot of questions but the tiny bits of information that emerged created more confusion than clarity.
Greta was crouched on her porch petting Lucky when Annie approached. “Greta?”
Her hand flew to her chest. “Oh, you startled me. Lucky was telling me about his day. We aren’t usually apart for so long.”
Annie blinked.
Greta chuckled. “Please don’t tell me that you think I can actually talk to my cat, Annie. He needed extra rubbing time on my legs and I reminded him that I said I’d be back. Don’t you talk to your pets?”
“Actually, I do and they have a canny way of replying with a tail wag or a whine from Roxy and the two cats pretty much ignore me when I displease them, which is often.” She laughed. “Do you have a minute to talk?”
Greta stood with Lucky purring in her arms. She turned her ear toward his face. “What’s that? Invite Annie inside? Are you sure?” Greta looked at Annie. “Lucky said it’s okay if you come in for a visit.”
“Thank you, Lucky.” Annie followed Greta inside, down the hall, and into the kitchen.