Drowning in Dahlias (Lily Bloom Cozy Mystery Series Book 4)

by Lyndsey Cole

  Daisy followed Lily back in to talk to Gwen. Only one cupcake was left on the plate. Lily felt her lip twitch but managed to suppress a laugh. Lily wondered if she ate them or stuffed them into her big purse.

  “Gwen, I’m happy to hear you like my cupcakes.”

  Gwen delicately wiped crumbs from the corner of her lips. “That was the best cupcake I’ve ever had. What other types can you make?”

  Daisy handed a brochure to Gwen. Lily had encouraged Daisy to make one so it would look more professional when customers wanted to see a product list. Gwen glanced at the choices. “They all sound delicious. How about two dozen assorted, your choice.”

  Daisy smiled. “No problem. For tomorrow?”

  “Yes. Walter would like the flowers and food delivered around four o’clock. How does that sound?”

  “Perfect,” Lily and Daisy said at the same time.

  Gwen pushed herself out of the chair and picked up her purse. Lily carefully asked, “How is Walter doing? He’s such a sweet man, this must be devastating for him.”

  Gwen frowned slightly. “Walter is alright. He has a lot to deal with on his own now but I told him I would help him.”

  “That’s kind of you.”

  “The first thing on the list is to stop that silly land purchase that Harriet had me working on.”

  Lily’s ears perked up. “Oh?”

  “Harriet was so set on stopping that library from interfering with her sunroom view, she couldn’t listen to reason. I saw the plans for the library and the building is nothing but tastefully designed. You know what she objected to?”

  “No.”

  “Mr. Lyman wanted the entryway to be designed like one of his novels so when people walked into the library it would feel like they were walking into a book. How clever is that? Harriet didn’t want to be looking at what she called, a tacky eyesore.”

  “Her opposition must have gotten a lot of people angry.”

  “That’s an understatement, but Harriet didn’t care. With all the money she had, she thought she could buy whatever she wanted,” Gwen said without trying to hide her disgust. “Sorry I took up so much of your time. I need to skedaddle, I have some mother-daughter time set aside for this afternoon. Kristy has finally decided to settle down here in Misty Valley and buy herself a little house since she’s working at the hospital now. See you tomorrow.”

  Chapter 8

  Lily and Daisy had a busy afternoon getting flowers ready for Harriet’s service at the Lyman Estate the next day. They called Iris to come in and help out in the front of the shop to minimize interruptions. When Iris arrived, Lily looked at the time—already three in the afternoon. She wondered where the time had flown to. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast.

  Lily finished up the arrangement she was working on and put them in the cooler. “I’m going to take Rosie for a quick walk around the block and grab a sandwich at the Sunflower Café. Want me to pick something up for you, Daisy?”

  “Sure. I wouldn’t mind something gooey and sweet. Preferably with chocolate.”

  Lily called the order in, a veggie wrap for her and a chocolate covered canoli for Daisy. Jennifer said it would be ready in ten minutes.

  Lily and Rosie headed out the back door at a fast pace. She used the time to sort out the information she had so far about Harriet. It wasn’t much. Was she killed for money or to get the library back on track? Or both? Nicole and Julius would probably benefit financially and Nicole was probably happier with Harriet out of her life. Gwen seemed to be awfully involved in Walter’s affairs; maybe just a good friend. After all, Walter certainly needed friends, especially at a time like this. Or maybe she had some other scheme. What about Gwen’s daughter, Kristy? She was at the estate when Harriet was killed. Did she have anything to gain? Questions but no answers. Yet.

  A mountain bike stopped next to Lily, startling her out of her thoughts. She heard a deep voice that always made tingles run from her head to her toes. “Where are you headed?” Smiling, she turned to see Ryan getting off his bike to walk next to her.

  “Just a quick walk with Rosie and to get a wrap to go from the Sunflower Café. I’ve got a lot of orders going to the Lyman Estate tomorrow. Is there an official statement about the cause of death yet?”

  Ryan frowned. “I just got done talking to Nina Baldwin. She asked me the same thing. What’s going on?”

  “Nothing, Ryan. I’m curious. Wouldn’t you be too if you found someone dead?” Lily was annoyed.

  “You’re right. But I’m also worried that you’ll ask too many questions and end up in someone’s cross hairs.”

  “Don’t worry about me. So is it official yet?”

  “Yes. I told Nina that it appears Harriet died from a severe blow to the right side of her head, not the bruise from falling.”

  “Anything else you want to share with me?”

  “About Harriet? No. But I’d love to share anything else with you when I get off work.” He winked and grinned. “I wish I wasn’t in uniform right now so I could show you what I’m thinking.”

  Lily looked away and smiled. “That sounds tempting, but I can’t tonight. I’m treating Mom and Daisy to dinner for helping out with all this work.” She conveniently left out the part about inviting Nina to join them. Ryan would surely be suspicious of that.

  Ryan’s face fell. “Maybe I’ll just get some paperwork done then. Here we are. Want me to run in and get your food so you can stay out here with Rosie?”

  “That would be great.”

  Lily stood off to the side watching the cars go by. One in particular got her attention. She wasn’t sure, but it looked like Nicole laughing and sitting too close to the driver in a fancy dark blue convertible. And it wasn’t her husband, Julius. Was Nicole involved with another man? That could be interesting. Maybe her mother found out and was putting pressure on her to end it. This was like a big family soap opera, Lily thought.

  Ryan came out with a bag of food. “Jennifer says hello. She wouldn’t let me pay. Said this is thanks for the flowers you gave her this morning.”

  “I don’t have time to argue with her now, but your sister can’t give her food away if she expects to make a living at this café.”

  Ryan laughed. “I think she’ll say the same thing about you giving flowers away. I’m not going to get in the middle of this. Have fun tonight. I’ll be thinking about you.”

  Lily watched him ride off. She liked everything about him, his rugged good looks, those eyes that looked like pools of melted chocolate that she could just fall into, and how his touch made her tingle; everything, except his worrying about her. Maybe he has good reason to be worrying. He must know more than he can tell me. “Come on Rosie. At least I’ve got you to keep an eye on me.”

  The rest of the afternoon went by in a blur of flowers, but between the three women they managed to get it all done. Lily closed the cooler door and collapsed into her chair looking at Daisy and Iris. “Are you up for some sleuthing?”

  Daisy cocked her eyebrows. “Sleuthing? Didn’t Ryan tell you to be careful?”

  “Of course he did and of course I will be, but when I was talking to Nina earlier today, we agreed to share information. She’s writing an article on Noah Lyman and the Lyman Estate. I think she has a lot of info about Noah and the library. I was thinking of calling her to see if she could meet us at Mom’s house. Are you two in?”

  Iris immediately agreed but Daisy hesitated. “I have to get the cupcakes made for Gwen’s order. And I might be having some company to help.”

  “Adam?”

  “Not really any of your business,” Daisy said with a smile which said it all, as far as Lily was concerned. “But fill me in tomorrow.”

  Lily picked up her quilted tote, called Nina and told Iris she would get a couple of pizzas from the market on her way over.

  Nina was already at Iris’s house when Lily pulled into the driveway. Rosie was excited when she realized where they were
and her best friend, Poppy, would be there to play with her. Ah, the life of a dog, Lily thought, so uncomplicated.

  Nina and Iris were in a deep discussion about Noah Lyman. Lily was surprised her mother knew so much about him. But, then, Iris was always full of surprises. She had lived in Misty Valley her whole life and was always sticking her nose everywhere, so she knew a lot about everyone. “Hey, wait for me. You’ll have to go back to the beginning of this story if you want to hear my information.”

  Lily put the pizzas on the table. Two small pizzas, one with pepperoni and one with veggies. Billy, at the Misty Valley Market did a good job with his deli business. It was convenient and good quality, and especially in the summer he moved a lot of prepared meals.

  Nina pushed her notebook out of the way to make room for a plate and an ice cold beer. “Thanks Lily. This is a heck of a lot more interesting than sitting in my tiny apartment playing solitaire on my computer eating a frozen dinner by myself. I hate to cook.”

  Lily’s phone interrupted their eating with a text message. She suddenly felt dizzy. “It’s Adam. He says to meet him at the emergency room. Daisy had an accident.” Lily looked at her mom and saw the color drain from Iris’s face to a sickly ashen color. Lily felt her own hands get clammy and her heart start to race.

  Nina stood up. “I’ll clean up here. Get going.”

  Lily and Iris sprang into action, racing to Lily’s minivan. Iris found her voice. “Did he say anything else?”

  “No. We’ll be at the hospital in ten minutes.” They drove in silence with all kinds of possibilities running through their heads but not wanting to say any of them out loud.

  Adam was waiting for them at the hospital entrance. “She’ll be fine. It’s not too bad.”

  Iris clung to his arm. “What happened? And don’t sugar coat it.”

  “There was a gas build up in her stove and it exploded when she turned it on. She has burns on her hands. Not too bad, she was extremely lucky. I’ll take you back to her cubicle.”

  Daisy was sitting up in the hospital bed with her hands bandaged but she was smiling when they walked in. Probably from the pain killer they gave her, Lily thought to herself. The nurse was giving her instructions she would have to follow when she went home and to make a follow up appointment with her primary care doctor.

  The nurse turned when she was done. “Family?”

  Lily and Iris nodded. Lily looked again at the nurse. She looked familiar.

  “Daisy will be fine. She has some minor blistering that will take a few days to scab over. Other than that, all she needs to do is get that old stove replaced. She can leave but she shouldn’t be alone for tonight.”

  Lily sat on the edge of Daisy’s bed. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like an idiot. I’ve had trouble with that stove before but I didn’t want to spend money on a new one.”

  The nurse started to walk out.

  Lily finally placed her and looked at her name tag. “Aren’t you Gwen Brooks’ daughter?”

  She stopped but didn’t turn around immediately. “Yes. Do I know you?”

  “We were at the Lyman Estate when Harriet died. Actually, we found her. I saw you in the sunroom.”

  “You saw me? What are you talking about?”

  “When the police came and were questioning everyone. You were standing with your mother, talking to Walter.”

  “Oh, that’s right. What a difficult day for him.”

  Lily watched her walk out of the room. She must be busy, she seemed so preoccupied. Adam took Lily’s arm and led her from the room.

  “I don’t want Daisy or your mom to hear this. When I got to Daisy’s house, the gas smell was strong enough to make me gag. I turned the valve off at the tank before I went in. She was knocked out on the kitchen floor. From the explosion I guess. It’s a miracle the whole house didn’t explode. It was probably just a matter of time before that happened.”

  Lily felt her legs go weak. She almost fell, but Adam was still holding her arm and guided her to a chair. Her mouth fell open as she looked at him.

  “Can she stay at your house for a while?” Adam asked her.

  “Of course. Did you tell Ryan?”

  “I called him after I got Daisy here. Ryan should be over there now investigating.”

  Lily and Adam both turned when they heard a loud voice and the click clacking of heels on the tile floor.

  Nina waved to Lily. “There you are. Is Daisy alright?” She looked at Adam, checking him out from top to bottom. “Do I know you?”

  Lily stood up between Nina and Adam. “Don’t you remember Adam May? Detective May? He was here investigating when Carla Sullivan was murdered at the Cozy Motel. He’s dating Daisy now.” Lily figured she better add that last part in before Nina got any ideas about Adam for herself.

  Nina’s face fell. “All the good ones are taken,” he mumbled, but of course Lily and Adam heard her and they chuckled. “So, Detective May, are you here investigating another crime? I always like to get my quotes straight from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.”

  “Actually, I’m here with Daisy and I’d better get back inside to see how she’s doing.”

  Nina elbowed Lily after he’d left. “He deflected that question like a pro. What happened?”

  Lily looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. “Adam found Daisy on the floor of her kitchen. She has some minor burns but she’ll be fine. If he hadn’t gotten there when he did—” Lily grimaced, not even able to say what might have happened.

  Ryan was suddenly at her side looking serious and worried. “I just came from Daisy’s house. Someone tampered with her gas line.”

  Chapter 9

  “What?” Lily clutched Ryan’s arm. “Someone tried to kill Daisy?”

  “That’s what it looks like. Or at least blow up her house.”

  Nina butted into Ryan’s space. “Can I quote you on this?”

  Ryan looked at Nina with his nostrils flaring. “What are you doing here?” He glared at her. “No. Not unless you want it on your conscience if something else happens. If you keep this quiet for now, I’ll contact you first when we have the details.”

  Ryan turned his attention back to Lily. “Is Daisy alright?”

  “Yes. Adam said he got the gas turned off just in time. Daisy only has minor burns on her hands. She’ll be fine. I haven’t told her yet, but she’ll be staying with me for a while. You can go in and say hello if you want.”

  Ryan looked from Lily to Nina and scowled but didn’t say anything as he walked into Daisy’s room.

  Lily whispered to Nina as a couple of nurses walked by, “I think this could be connected to Harriet’s murder.”

  “Oh?”

  “First my car got vandalized and now this? When can we get together to talk about Noah Lyman and the new library? I think there’s going to be a good story once all the facts are out in the open.”

  Nina took out her phone to check her schedule. “I’m free tomorrow afternoon.” She looked up hopefully at Lily.

  “It will have to be late afternoon, after I make my deliveries. My house?”

  “Your house. Be careful,” Nina said sincerely, then started to leave. She put her hand on Lily’s arm. “I won’t write anything about the explosion.”

  “Thanks.”

  Lily waited around until all the paperwork was done and Daisy was discharged. Ryan and Adam both went back to Daisy’s house to look for more evidence. Iris went home to get Rosie and Poppy and to wait at Lily’s house.

  On the ride home, Lily told Daisy about the gas line. Daisy looked puzzled, then sat up straight. “I heard something a little while before I got blown to the floor. I was almost done with the baking and the pilot light blew out. I’ve had a lot of trouble with that stupid stove. When I lit a match to get it going again, that’s when there was an explosion.”

  “There hadn’t been enough time for too much gas to build up when you lit that match. That’s probably what saved you. You t
hink you heard something?”

  “At the time, I didn’t give it any thought. Ya know how that is? It’s always hindsight when something takes on some significance. Anyway, I heard a car door close and I assumed it was Adam but he didn’t come in. Then the car drove off, actually, squealed off, like kids do. What do you think?”

  “The timing sounds right for when the tampering was done. Did you look out the window? See the car?”

  “No. I was trying to finish the cupcakes that Gwen ordered before Adam got there. I was kind of distracted,” Daisy said, blushing slightly.

  “Adam’s a nice guy.”

  Daisy sighed. “Yeah. But I don’t know how long he’ll be staying here. His job takes him all over the state. Makes for a lot of competition for me.”

  “I wouldn’t worry about that too much. He seems to like you a lot.” Lily pulled into her driveway. “Looks like Mom is here already. Let’s go get you settled into the guest room. We’ll be happy to have you around for a while.”

  “We?”

  Lily laughed. “Me and Rosie. Who did you think I meant?”

  “We keep expecting more to happen between you two lovebirds.”

  “We?”

  It was Daisy’s turn to laugh. “Me and Mom. What are you waiting for?”

  Lily shrugged. “I don’t know. Every time things start to heat up, something happens. A dead body, my car alarm, your house almost blowing up. Ya know, just some little interruptions.”

  They walked inside arm in arm, leaning on each other. Lily thought, Isn’t this what sisters are for? To lean on and support each other? “You’re the best Daisy.”

  They both stopped and looked at each other when they heard Iris’s voice and a man’s voice coming from the living room. They snickered. “Did Mom bring a boyfriend?” Lily whispered to Daisy.

  “Ya never know with her. I hope she didn’t pick up a serial killer. We better let them know we’re here.”