Deadly Arrangements (Book Two in the Cozy Flower Shop Mystery Series) (The Flower Shop Mystery Series)

by Annie Adams

  Alex gave my father hearty congratulations, and then we made our escape. I would have to process everything later.

  It still seemed like I had just woken from a dream when we pulled into Alex’s driveway. I’d done some calculations in my head as we drove. I was no math wiz, but I was pretty sure my parents’ “wedding” had occurred after my sister Sandy was conceived. My mother, of all people, had been lying to us our whole lives. Not that it mattered when and how and who came first. But the last person who would ever be suspected of having a secret pregnancy was my mother! The same woman who had tried to lecture her daughters—actually one daughter in particular—only an hour before about avoiding the very thing she had done herself.

  Alex turned off the car. “Tonight was certainly…”

  “Entertaining?” I offered.

  “I was going to say interesting.”

  “Leave it to my family. Hey, we never got to talk about your thing.”

  “What thing?”

  “You know, whatever it was you wanted to talk about when you called today and I interrupted you.”

  “Oh…that,” he said quietly. The mood in the car chilled like the early evening air outside.

  He got out and came around to open my door. “Mrs. Bernhisel has been watching us through her kitchen window. I’m afraid she’s going to break her hip. Let’s go inside.”

  I looked at him, confused.

  “She asked me to come look at her kitchen faucet once. While I was there, someone pulled into the driveway. She climbed on top of a box of laundry detergent so she could peek over the curtains instead of moving them aside to look out the window. She thinks no one notices she’s watching when she does that.”

  We sat on the bench swing on Alex’s back porch, despite the cool air, wanting to witness the last pink streaks in the western sky. I snuggled into him for warmth and he held me in his arms.

  “So, what did you want to talk to me about?” I asked.

  “It can wait. Tonight was eventful enough for you, with your family, I think.”

  “About my family. Don’t internalize the crazy too much. It always seems worse than it really is.”

  “Don’t worry about me. I like your family. I think they like me. What about you? Pretty intense with your parents, huh?”

  “I’m not sure what I think about all that. I had a good talk with my dad that night he came over.”

  “Did he tell you then about living in sin with your mom?”

  “Hey! They’re not living in sin,” I punched him lightly on the shoulder.

  He leaned away from me and laughed. “It’s your mom’s term, not mine. When you were checking out of the hospital after I found you…” My body did an involuntary cringe at the memory of when he found me, injured, in a barn in the middle of nowhere. He pulled me closer. “I told her I was worried and wanted to stay with you at your house, since you wouldn’t stay with anyone else. She told me it would be over her dead body she would allow her daughter to live in sin with some police imposter.”

  “She said that?”

  “Yeah, no big deal. She was just doing her job as a mom. I think she’s been trying to be both parents to you guys for a while.”

  “I guess so. When Dad and I talked after you left that night, he didn’t say anything about their wedding or asking my mom to renew vows. He just talked about how he felt about her, how he’d felt since he left, and how he wanted to give it another try.” I began to shiver, relenting to the chilly night. “I better get going,” I said.

  “Yeah, I’ve got to get up early tomorrow.”

  “How come?”

  “Early meeting. I think I’m getting another out of town assignment.”

  Heavy sigh from me. “All of your assignments are out of town, aren’t they? I mean, since you don’t really work for Hillside P.D., Mr. Imposter.”

  “Yeah, well this imposter caught the bad guy didn’t he?”

  “Yep, and I’m really glad he did. Prison wouldn’t have been very fun. Where will you be going?” I silently pleaded for it to be somewhere within the state and not for longer than a few days.

  “I’m not sure yet. Just got word today.”

  “Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

  “Kind of. There’s more. How about we talk about it tomorrow? I’ll come get you after work.”

  We walked together to my van. “I have to go to the bird refuge while it’s light tomorrow,” I said.

  “Why? You’re not snooping around a crime scene with K.C., are you?”

  “Of course not. My crime solving days are over. I’m actually getting some grasses and cattails for a really large arrangement, and Danny needs me to get some measurements of the front of the visitor center so he can plan the decorations for outside the building.”

  “Outside the building too?”

  “Oh, you have no idea. This is going to be an event unlike any other ever seen in these parts.”

  “With Danny and K.C. involved, I have no doubt about that.” He held my hands and clasped them to his chest. “Your hands are freezing. You need to get inside. How about we go to the refuge to talk tomorrow?”

  “Okay.” I paused, thinking he would kiss me goodnight, but nothing happened, so I climbed into the van. Maybe he was just cold—from the temperature, of course—so he just skipped the long embrace. Yeah, sure.

  “Quince?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I…” He leaned into the car and kissed me. Our lips must have been blue, because it felt like two trout had bumped into each other, rather than two passionate sets of lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  The light from my headlights glinted off Mrs. Bernhisel’s giant glasses as I passed her window.

  “Sorry to disappoint, Mrs. Bernhisel,” I said as I drove away.

  CHAPTER NINE

  It was almost a relief Allie wasn’t working the next day. The big wedding bomb our dad had dropped had been shocking to everyone, but it was probably more so to her. I was the black sheep, Sandy was married and living in her own home, but Allie was still living at home with our mother. She had been the closest to mom and her religious household. Being the black sheep, I didn’t feel like I was the first person she would feel the most comfortable confiding in at the moment. I would call her later, after I figured out how to talk to her.

  Once Daphne arrived, I went with K.C. to deliver lunch to Fred. His apartment was actually a nice condo on the east end of Hillside. After enduring a five minute eternity of exchanges of “snookums,” and “chi-chis,” and all other manner of made up terms of endearment between the two love-birds, we all sat down to eat and visit.

  “Any word on the investigation, Fred?” I said.

  “None. I hear that Gordon is improving, though. Apparently it was real touch-and-go there for him the first day. He’s still at the hospital, but his wife thinks he’ll be home soon.”

  “Quincy is supposed to do the wedding flowers for that boy that went missing,” K.C. said. “Hard to have a wedding if the groom isn’t there. It seems as if the mother of the bride doesn’t really care if he’s there or not.”

  "Oh," I said, “I forgot to tell you, she finally conceded that they wouldn’t be able to hold the wedding without the groom. We’re going to decorate Jacqueline’s boyfriend's place with the wedding money. It’s all such a weird set of circumstances, and no one seems to care that Brock is missing. What possible reason would anyone have had for attacking you guys?”

  “Yeah,” K.C. said, “just what were you boys discussing that it was so important for you to be there?”

  Fred exhaled slowly and shrugged. “I guess I can tell you two about it. I’ve already told the police what I know. I was trying to be discreet, so…you can’t discuss this with anyone else while the police are investigating.”

  K.C. crossed her heart and made the zipper motion across her lips. She nodded toward me and I did the same.

  Fred looked at both of us, then looked from side to side, as if someon
e might be hiding in the condo, listening in. Apparently satisfied we were alone, he began his story. “A little bird had told me—“

  “Hah, good one, honey. A bird told him,” K.C. said.

  “Oh, yes, a bird. How interesting. I didn’t mean to make a pun,” Fred said.

  Were these two made for each other or what?

  “Anyway," Fred continued, "someone in the Friends of Feathered Friends group mentioned to me they had seen someone dumping their waste water into the marsh, along with some other toxic stuff—“

  “You mean Harold…” K.C. said.

  “Now, cuddlekins, I didn’t mention any names.”

  “We all know if there’s any tattlin’ you can bet Harold is the one a rattlin’,” K.C. said.

  “Be that as it may, my dear, I had to report it to Gordon in case it was true. I told Gordon everything the informant told me,” Fred glanced pointedly at K.C., who rolled her eyes. “Gordon said we should meet to talk to Brock about it.”

  "What does Brock have to do with this?" I asked.

  "Brock supposedly witnessed the polluting, or had knowledge of it," Fred said.

  “Who was the supposed polluter?” K.C. asked.

  “I’d rather not say until we find out if it’s true. We never got to talk to Brock about that. He’d just arrived when it all happened.”

  “So, this informant,” I glanced at Fred, who grinned pleasantly at my choice of words, “how does he know that this dumping happened and that Brock knows about it?”

  “That man has eyes on the back of his head and everywhere else, I tell you,” Fred said. “He runs around those marshes with binoculars and top of the line recording and photography equipment. As unpleasant as he is, he is a valuable asset to FOFF. He's a human encyclopedia when it comes to any bird species, and he knows that land better than any of us. He has no life other than the marsh and the bird refuge.”

  “And neither you nor Gordon remember anything about the people who attacked you?” I said.

  “No. Gordon doesn’t even remember walking up to the tower. He has a terrible head injury. I just hope he can fully recover. I remember all three of us leaning on the railing, and then hearing someone telling us not to move. Wait…” Fred held up a finger. “Harold showed up before Brock. I don’t know how he knew we were there, or when he got there. He came stomping up the stairs and he was going on about Jack Conway being a liar about the Booby sighting.”

  I stifled a giggle about a booby sighting and thought of Alex and his response to the Booby lecture. I loved the goofy look on his face.

  “You said Harold stomped up the stairs. You could hear him coming. Do you remember if you heard the bad guys coming?”

  “That’s what’s so strange. I didn’t hear anything. There was absolutely no warning. We were talking, though. Brock was actually pretty animated as soon as he approached and was talking loudly. Gordon asked him how he was doing, and he started in about his mother-in-law and the wedding and the pressure. Poor kid. There were a lot of financial expectations coming from his fiancée, according to Gordon. Gordon said he felt sorry for the kid because as his boss, he knows how much the kid earns.”

  “So there was some extra financial pressure on Brock,” K.C. said. “Maybe someone was paying him to look the other way when he saw someone polluting the marsh?”

  “That could be tempting. Pleasing Jacqueline isn’t an easy job,” I said, knowing first hand.

  “Do you think it could have been Harold that grabbed Brock?” K.C. said.

  “No, not old Busby. He came by the hospital to see how I was doing the same day that I got there.”

  “That sounds suspicious to me,” K.C. said. “He knew you were in the hospital because he put you there.”

  “Harold couldn’t have done it. I’ve known him forever, and besides, how would he have been able to knock out the two of us and whatever else happened to Brock? No, it wasn’t him. And what would be his motivation for taking Brock? Harold’s a tattletale. I can see him coming to see if he got Brock into trouble, but that would be his reward, not hurting Brock.”

  “Harold does seem to love the marsh,” I added. “Maybe his anger over the polluting and Brock—a person who is employed to protect the marsh—turning a blind eye to the polluting pushed Harold too far. He lost it.”

  “I see where you’re coming from, Quincy, but it’s just not the Harold I know,” Fred said.

  K.C. bolted up, hands raised. “I’ve got it. It’s the polluter. He or she had motivation to stop Brock from talking.” K.C. paced back and forth in front of the coffee table. “He wouldn’t know how much Brock had shared with you, so he conked you both over the head, not caring what happened to you—the bloody bastard!”

  “Karma, dear! You’re so upset—calm yourself. We don’t want your blood pressure to get too high.”

  “You’re right, sweetums, but I’ve got to know who that dirty polluter is. C’mon Freddie, please tell me who it is.” She sat down next to Fred and cuddled up, then batted her eyelids.

  “I can’t tell you, honeybun. I don’t know that I have all of the facts. Until they find Brock and we get to talk to him in person, I won’t substantiate what’s only gossip at this point.”

  “Well darn your integrity right now—no offense. When I get my hands on the guys that did this to you…” K.C. said, her hands wringing the imaginary neck in front of her.

  “Thank you, sweetcake. I don’t even know if there was one guy or a gang of them. I think I heard someone telling another one to tie us up. But now, I’m not even sure about that. I know I didn’t hear them coming, that’s for sure. Anyway, it’s all in the hands of the police now.” Fred clapped his hands together. “So, let’s talk about something new. We’ve got a wedding coming up soon, haven’t we girls? What still needs to be done about that?”

  ***

  Despite just having had lunch, K.C. thought dessert at Bulgy Burger would be just the thing, and I agreed. Scones at Skinny’s wouldn’t be on the menu for a while, at least until Elma cooled off. She wouldn’t ever forget, but maybe the banishment threat would lessen in intensity over time.

  “We’d like…” I started to say at the drive-through speaker.

  “You just want the regular?” the voice from the speaker box said.

  “How can you be so sure you know who this is?” I said.

  “Please. It’s two o’clock and you’re in a white Astro van. You want bacon on your Bulgy Burger this time?”

  How depressing was this? “No, actually, we want dessert this time.” So there.

  “A large Iceberg with chocolate chip ice cream and hot fudge—hold the cherry, and a peanut butter Avalanche with almonds instead of peanuts, then?” Though his voice was tinny because of the speaker, I understood what he said.

  I blew out a sigh. “Yep that’ll be it.” I turned to K.C. “We’re pathetic.”

  “So we’re predictable when it comes to our junk food, so what? That Iceberg’s still gonna taste like good sin,” she said.

  “I got some bad news in the mail today,” I said.

  “Oh no. It’s not the paternity test, is it? Alex is the father. I knew it. I’d hoped against it, but it was too obvious, wasn’t it? Well, at least you’re not on one of those TV shows where they announce the results over the air to the whole world and someone does the happy dance all over the stage. Oh, kiddo, I’m so sorry. What did Alex say?”

  “No!” I almost shouted. “The check you got from Lori Mangum the other day bounced. I tried to call Kyle but he didn’t answer. I thought maybe I’d just stop by the house and return it. We can work out some kind of repayment later on. That’s all. I just hate having to tell people their check bounced.”

  “Oh. That’s a shame. Well, I never really suspected Alex was the father anyway,” K.C. said. “Have you talked to him about…you know?”

  “Not yet. He had something important to talk about yesterday, but my parents provided a big enough distraction. He thinks he’ll have to go
out of town again. He finds out at work today.”

  “Oh no! How long will he be gone? He won’t miss the wedding, will he?”

  “I don’t know. We’re meeting tonight. I imagine he’ll have more to tell me then. We’re going to the bird refuge so I can cut some grasses and take final measurements for Danny. I’ll keep you posted.”

  “Say, since you’re going to the marsh, you could look around for clues at the tower.”

  “First of all, I’ll be with Alex who has already warned me against snooping around. Not that I was going to anyway. That’s probably why he volunteered to go there with me. But secondly, the police have already been there. Alex was there when we found Fred and Gordon and I’m sure he wouldn’t have let the sheriff miss anything. Our snooping isn’t going to help.”

  “You’re probably right. I just wish I could hurry up the investigation and find the punks who did this to Fred and Gordon and Brock, and bring them to justice.”

  “I’m afraid your brand of justice might exceed the limits of the law just a teensy bit,” I said.

  “You might be right about that too.”

  ***

  “You sure it’s okay to cut this stuff down?” Alex said.

  “Yeah, K.C. knows the property owner and we got his permission. He acted like we were silly to ask. I guess it’s all just weeds to him.”

  Alex steered the Scout around the numerous holes in the hard packed dirt road. Every time we hit a larger bump, a groaning noise emanated from the bottom of the truck and Alex beamed with joy. Now, I do appreciate the satisfaction one feels when they drive a reliable car—Zombie Sue, for instance. She just drives and drives and never asks for more than a little gas and oil once in a while and just a little love. Clearly, I have strong feelings for Zombie Sue. ‘Strong feelings’ doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface when describing Alex’s car crush for his Scout.

  As we bumped and bounced along, a tire landed in one particularly large rut and a giant wheat colored bird flew straight up out of the ditch, only three feet from the car.

  “Whoa, what was that?” Alex said.