by Tonya Kappes
I leaned up against the counter and stared at the window, looking at the snow as it started to fall again. The kitchen was open shelving and looked straight out of a Southern Living Magazine, because I used an exact photo I’d found to do it. It wasn’t perfect like the magazine but it was still perfect for me.
After my shower, I went outside to start my car. Even a four-minute car ride to the boardwalk got chilly. Across the street from the cabin was a little stand of trees that stood between the road and Lake Honey Springs. It was so peaceful and the trees had shed their leaves giving me a great view of the lake. It was still beautiful in the winter.
“Let’s get your coat on.” I took my coat and Pepper’s sweater off the coatrack before we headed out. I poured the rest of my coffee into a thermos and out we went.
Pepper darted out of the car once we parked and wasted no time to get into the warmth of the coffeehouse. I wasn’t too far behind him after I’d grabbed the box filled with Christmas lights and a few fun coffee ornaments for the tree along with some other knick-knack decorations. The light on in Odd Ink shook me to my core. It was unusual to see it on and especially now since I knew Otis wasn’t in there. I put the notion of me going in there to snoop in the back of my head and shrugged it off.
“Good morning, Felix.” I flipped on the lights on the inside of the coffeehouse door and couldn’t stop smiling when I noticed the feline was curled up under the Christmas tree that Patrick had dropped off on our way home from the tree lighting. “How are you?”
Felix’s mouth opened but nothing came out. He didn’t even hiss at Pepper when Pepper went to check out the tree.
“No potty on that tree,” I warned Pepper, not sure what he’d do since this was our very first Christmas together.
The six industrial pots of coffee were filled and ready to brew. When all the red lights on them lit up, I knew the coffeehouse would smell amazing in a few short minutes. I pushed through the kitchen door and flipped on the two ovens before I walked into the freezer to grab the items I’d baked for the week on Sunday.
“Okay, Pepper.” I looked down into those sweet eyes and took off his sweater, hanging it on the hook in the kitchen and replaced my coat with a Bean Hive apron. “Let’s get the fire going and I think I’m going to make some Christmas coffee bean bark to take to Juanita.”
He wagged his tail.
“And maybe give you some kibble?” I questioned making him tiptoe dance on his paws.
I filled his bowl and to my surprise, Felix pushed through the kitchen door, watching us.
“Would you like to eat?” I bent down and put my hand out. His nose did two quick jabs at my fingertips and then he’d lost interest. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
The bag Louise had left was under the counter in the front of the coffeehouse. Felix definitely knew the sound of the can tab popping open as he came running with a meow. He hadn’t done that yesterday, so I was happy to see some interaction.
I left him to enjoy his early morning treat while I went over and lit the fireplace. There were a few stray cat hairs on the hearth.
“I see you like the fireplace.” I dragged his cage over there from where I’d put it by Pepper’s. Maybe giving him some of his own space would help him become more social with the customers and make him more adoptable. At least that was my hope.
Before I got started on the tree—which I was itching to do—I wanted to get all the food in the oven, the coffee and tea bars ready and Juanita’s treat made.
One bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips and a half cup of French roast coffee beans would be the perfect Christmas coffee bean bark combination. I put the double boiler on the stove and put the chocolate in there to melt. Slowly I stirred and let the aromas of pumpkin muffins and honey donuts coming from the oven wrap around me.
Felix had come back into the kitchen to join us. I didn’t make a fuss over it, I let him walk around and check out our routine, though it was about an hour earlier than we should be here.
While the chocolate melted a little more, I lined a couple of pans with parchment paper so the yummy creation would break into pieces easier once it was fully hardened.
“And one to grow on,” I said as I sprinkled coffee beans into to the liquid chocolate after I poured it into the pan. “You can never have enough coffee beans.” I put the trays in the refrigerator to help with the cooling process.
Pepper wiggled around in delight. Of course I flipped him a Gingerbread mischief.
The front of the coffeehouse had two big windows on each side of the door. On the left there was a bar top that ran the entire length of the window with stools for sitting. It was a perfect place to sit and chat with friends or even a moment to take for yourself to enjoy a nice cup of coffee while taking advantage of the amazing view of the lake.
Patrick had already rearranged the tables and put the tree exactly where I wanted it. I set the box on top of one of the tables. I’d been collecting different items for decorations over the past few months because I knew Christmas was going to be so much fun in Honey Springs. A couple items the Teagardens had gotten me on their quest to find antiques. My heart nearly stopped and my breath quickened when I opened the box and the annual Honey Springs commemorative ornament from last year was the last item I’d put in the box. Fond memories of me taking Otis a sweet tea when it’d gotten hot during a summer day made my stomach drop.
I’d noticed the ornament and said that I couldn’t wait to start collecting them for the coffeehouse. A couple of hours later, he came over to refill his tea and set the ornament on the counter. When I went to protest, he simply shook his head and pushed it toward me. I knew it was his way of showing kindness and it touched me so much.
Just thinking of him made me look at the light coming from his shop as it made a spotlight on the dark boardwalk.
“I’ll be right back,” I said to a sleeping Pepper and Felix who both were now curled up in front of the fireplace. “Not that y’all care.”
I didn’t bother getting my coat. I checked the time to make sure I knew how much time was left on the oven and grabbed my keys, locking the coffeehouse door behind me.
I stood in front of Odd Ink and looked into the tattoo parlor. He never tried to talk me into a tattoo, which I had no interest in getting for the sheer fact of the thought of letting someone draw on me with a needle. I took a step closer and saw there were papers strewn all over the floor, which was strange since he was so particular about the cleanliness of the place. He did talk about contamination and all sorts of things that gave me the heebie jeebies.
For some reason I reached out for the door handle and when the door pushed open without me turning it, it was like my open invitation to enter.
“What a mess.” I looked around and couldn’t believe my eyes. “Something isn’t right here.”
“You’ve got that right.” Spencer Shepard stood in the door behind me. “That something is you being in my crime scene.”
“Crime scene?” My eyes narrowed, confusion along with that curious trait Aunt Maxi referred to kicked in.
“Otis Peavler was strangled here and his body was placed under the tree.”
And that was the last thing I remember until I woke up with Aunt Maxi and Bunny Bowowski standing over me.
Five
“Here, honey.” Aunt Maxi dragged a cup of coffee under my nose to wake me up. “You need to drink this.”
My brain was foggy as I tried to figure out what had happened to me. The last thing I remembered was my oven.
“My food!” I jerked up from the couch next to the fireplace that was where a lot of customers loved to cozy up to the fireplace and drink their warm cup of joe.
“Spencer took the food out when he carried you over here after you fainted.” Bunny shoved a muffin in my face.
“Spencer?” I asked and shook my head. “Carried me?”
“Let’s let her drink her coffee.” Aunt Maxi patted the couch and Pepper jumped up.
I sat u
p and looked around the coffeehouse. I’d never been so confused.
“Otis,” I groaned when I looked at the tree and the only thing hanging on it was the ornament he’d given me.
“What were you doing over there?” Aunt Maxi sat down on the couch, stuffing her face with a Santa Kiss.
“You’re going to eat up my cookies.” I sighed.
“Nope. These were sitting on my porch from my Secret Santa.” She took a look at the rest of the cookie before she popped it into her mouth. “I guess I can cross Otis Peavler off my list of potential Santas.”
I pushed back some curls away from my face. It’d only been a couple of hours since I’d gotten here and it already felt like I’d been here all day and then some.
“I guess when Spencer told me that Otis had been murdered, I passed out.” I pushed down on the couch to sit up.
“Murdered?” Aunt Maxi jerked back. “No one said anything about a murder.”
“You mean to tell me that we’ve got another murder on our hands?” Bunny asked in an upbeat tone.
Pepper jumped up on his hind legs and put his paws on my knees. I reached down and picked him up, cuddling him for comfort.
“Don’t you be going and getting any ideas,” Aunt Maxi warned Bunny. “Roxy doesn’t know anything about this and she’s not going to stick her nose into it.”
“That’s not so true.” I bit the edge of my bottom lip because my memory was coming back to me. “This morning when I noticed the light on in Odd Ink, I thought it was strange but I kept going. Then when I saw the ornament Otis had given me when I moved here, I really got a strange feeling.” I sucked in a deep breath. “I had a few minutes before I needed to get some things out of the oven and before the coffees had brewed, so I just went over and looked into the window.”
“Go on.” Bunny’s brows rose as she eased down next to me, reaching over to pat Pepper.
“You and I both know how much Otis was a neat freak.” I nodded.
“Mmhmmm. That’s right,” she agreed. “If there was a drip of coffee on the side of his mug, he swiped it clean, immediately.”
“Right.” I pointed to her and ignored Aunt Maxi when she got up, huffing and puffing all the way to the coffee carafes to put them on the bar. “There were papers all over the floor in his shop. Like somebody when in there searching for something.”
“But what? What on earth could Otis Peavler been hiding?” Aunt Maxi turned the sign on the door and it was like she’s opened the floodgates.
Customers poured in and it didn’t stop all morning long. The mumbles of Otis’s murder completely took over the coffeehouse. A few times I’d hear Bunny say to people in a hushed whisper that I’d seen the crime scene.
It was best for me to stay in back and get some more cooking done, until I overheard someone say something about Juanita Lynn Anderson. Then it really struck me as odd that she’d not been heard from or that no one had talked to her. My eyes slid over to the Christmas bark that I’d made specifically to take to her. Before this morning, it was a simple gesture of good will but in light of the murder and all, it’d become part of nosing around.
I sat down on one of the stools that butted up to the steel workstation in the middle of the kitchen and grabbed one of the small chalkboards that I used to post specials on the outside of the coffeehouse when the weather was warmer. I wrote Otis in the middle with a big circle around his name. I drew lines around the circle and it resembled the sun. On one line I wrote Juanita Lynn Anderson and on another line I wrote client.
Not that I was a detective or anything or even thought Juanita had killed Otis, but I was curious and I wanted to know what or if someone had something against Otis.
A lot of my customers ordered to-go items and part of making the coffeehouse so special, I’d ordered to-go boxes with snowflakes that sealed with a The Bean Hive logo sticker. It was perfect for Juanita’s treats and also a special treat to take to Loretta, who was still in shock at the hospital.
“Bunny,” I called her over from a group of chatty women, who no doubt were talking about the big murder. “Can I talk to you for a second?”
She held a finger up for me to give her a minute or so, making it perfect timing for me to refill the coffee carafes from the coffee bar and the teas on the tea bar. If I was going to leave Bunny alone at the shop, I made sure there was plenty of coffee so that she didn’t have to worry herself with trying to make any, which sometimes was a challenge for her.
“Oh, Roxy.” Bunny picked at her apron. “Everyone is talking about Otis. We just can’t believe it. Someone said that the sheriff has no leads. What are we going to do? We have to find justice for Otis.”
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I’m going to take some Christmas coffee bean bark to Juanita and see if I can find out anything. You keep your ears and eyes open for anything unusual. People. Gossip.” She nodded as I talked. This was right up her alley and I knew she’d be good for the job. “Then I’m going to go see Loretta at the hospital. Do you want me to give her any good wishes?”
“A good swift kick in the keister will do.” She winked and walked behind the counter.
“And remember that Felix is up for adoption. He’d make the best Christmas present for someone.” I wanted to make sure that Felix had a home soon. There’d yet to be anyone interested in the sweet feline and I was beginning to get worried.
I’d never had a situation where one of the animals hadn’t been adopted and it worried me that he’d have to go back to Pet Palace, not that it was bad, but like all the animals, he deserved a loving home.
“Can you help me get some of these goodies and carafes in the car so I can stop by the booth at Christmas In The Park for Mom to restock?” I asked. It wouldn’t hurt anything if she left the shop to carry some items to my car.
Once we’d made a couple of trips, and Pepper was settled in his bed, it was time for me to make my rounds. No matter how hard I tried not to even think about Otis, as a former lawyer, I had to get some questions answered. I was hoping Juanita could do that.
Juanita’s home was in town in the subdivision behind the courthouse. Central Park was all lit up and so was the tree, like nothing awful had taken place. It was the subtle things that I noticed that said Spencer and his crew had been there.
I parked my car on the street as close to the booth as I could. There were several people already visiting the local vendors. A lot of them were tourists from around the state that loved to come for the day and get specialty homemade goodies. Of course everyone comes to stock up on the honey from the honey farm vendors, hence the name of the town.
“You’re not going to believe what’s going on.” Mom grabbed my arm and pulled me aside, away from the customers sitting inside the booth next to the fire.
“Otis Peavler was murdered.”
“Roxy,” Mom’s jaw dropped. “Don’t tell me that you’ve already stuck your nose into it.”
“Mom, Otis’s shop is right next to The Bean Hive, how can I not?” My brows furrowed as they slid toward the tree in the gazebo.
“I should’ve known you knew. How did you know?” she asked and followed me over to my car to get the stuff out.
“Long story short, I ran into Spencer this morning and he told me.” I grabbed a couple of the carafes.
“Do they have any clues? Because when I got here this morning, the police were here looking all around.” We went back to the booth. Mom put items in the glass case while I wrote down the names of them on the chalkboards.
“I have no idea. All I know is that his shop was a mess like someone had gone in there looking for something.”
“It must’ve been important if it was that messy.” She stopped and eyed the Christmas bark.
“Try it. You’re going to love it because it’s got French roast coffee beans in it.” It was Mom’s favorite coffee that I brewed and I always made her a fresh pot of it from a French press.
Without hesitation she took a piece and put i
t in her mouth. Her eyes rolled back in her head and a happy sigh escaped with a big smile.
“Yeah. That’s good.” I loved it. I loved when people enjoyed my products. “I’m hoping Juanita Lynn Anderson is going to have the same reaction when I take her some.”
“Oh poor dear. I’d forgotten he dated her.” Mom licked her lips. “Do you think she knows something? You don’t figure she did it, do you?”
“I don’t know anything right now. That’s why I’m going. Plus to offer my condolences.” I finished putting the coffee carafes behind the makeshift counter. “Are you good for a while?”
“I am. If I’m not, I’ll call you.” She put the signs in the glass case and refilled anything that needed to be refilled.
“If you see Jean, can you let her know that I’m going to have Patrick stop by and pick up a tree for the cabin?” I asked.
“I will, honey. See you soon.” She waved me off when a new customer came up to get some coffee.
It didn’t take but a minute to pull up in front of Juanita’s house. My heart took a dip when I noticed the Christmas light strung along the roof of her house wasn’t lit up and the deflated Santa lawn decoration was still flat on the ground. It was a tradition in Honey Springs to leave all your lawn decorations on outside for the entire month of December. Bless Juanita’s heart.
“Roxy, how are you?” Juanita asked, putting her own sorrows aside when she answered the door.
“I’m fine, but I’m sure sorry to hear about Otis and I thought I’d bring you some Christmas coffee bean bark.” I stepped into her house when she moved aside and gestured for me to come in.
“That’s a lovely gesture, but I can’t. I’m diabetic. But I’ll still take them since I’ve had a few stragglers come in to offer condolences.”
“You’re diabetic too?” I asked because Otis told me how much he and Juanita enjoyed the cookies. I followed her into the kitchen.