A Sweet Murder

by Gillian Larkin

  Frankie leant against an antique table and rubbed his bristly chin, his eyes looked bloodshot. “Some time in the morning, we went to a club.”

  “We?”

  “Yeah, me and the woman. Put the kettle on, I’m parched.”

  “Put the kettle on yourself. Don’t you think you’re too old to be going to clubs?”

  Frankie’s tired eyes twinkled. “You’re only as old as the woman you feel. Pop some bread in the toaster whilst you’re in the kitchen.”

  “Do it yourself, and don’t be disgusting. How old is your lady friend?”

  “A couple of years older than you. Do you have to nag?”

  “Yes. Will there be many more late nights?”

  Frankie slumped onto the table. “I hope not. I know I look young but I can’t do that every night. Those people in the club never stopped dancing. I think it must be the sugar.”

  “What sugar?” Grace asked.

  “Some of them were eating sweets on the dance floor, must have needed them to boost their energy. I still had some of those banana fizzles you gave me earlier but they didn’t do much for my energy levels. Have we got any bacon?”

  “What did the sweets look like?” Grace asked. Something wasn’t right here.

  Frankie shrugged and yawned again, treating Grace to a full view of his tonsils. He smacked his lips together and said, “I don’t know, they were black like liquorice.”

  Something was nagging in Grace’s brain but she couldn’t catch the thought.

  “I’ll make my own breakfast then,” Frankie said. He heaved himself off the table and slouched towards the kitchen.

  Grace didn’t have time to think about the black sweets as a group of elderly people entered the shop.

  It wasn’t until 4 p.m. that Frankie returned to the shop. He looked brighter and cleaner. Grace had a surreptitious sniff, he smelt better too.

  “You’ll be all right on your own, won’t you?” Frankie said. He headed towards the shop door.

  “I’ve been on my own all day. Where are you going? On another date?”

  “No, I have to limit my dates, it’s not fair for my women to have so much of me all at once. I thought I told you about my meeting with Sylvester.”

  “You didn’t. Where is your meeting?”

  “At the storage auction site we went to yesterday, the one where we got the chair. Sylvester’s agreed it with the office manager for me to have a look there, to get a feel for how the storage business works. I’m going to do a blog about it.”

  Keeping the excitement out of her voice Grace said, “Can I come with you? I’ve been stuck in here all day, we haven’t had a customer for the last hour.”

  She held her breath as Frankie considered her request. It would be wonderful if she could find out who had rented Connie’s storage unit. And why they had stopped paying for it.

  “Okay, you can come along but don’t get in the way. And leave the vending machine alone this time, I think you’ve had enough. How many sweets have you got through today? There’s rubbish all over the floor.”

  Grace looked down in surprise. She’d been aware of enjoying one or two sweets but there were about forty wrappers on the floor. Her cheeks felt warm as she picked the wrappers up and put them in the bin.

  Frankie tutted. “Honestly Grace, you should look after yourself better.”

  Grace kept a tight hold on her willpower and her handbag as they drove to the storage unit. She could almost hear the sweets inside her bag singing enticingly to her.

  The manager was sitting behind the desk as they entered the office that they had been in the previous day. He gave them a cheerful smile. “Sylvester told me you’d be stopping by today. He’s a great guy, isn’t he? We always have a bigger crowd when he’s the auctioneer. I’ve got some paperwork out for you to look at, it shows the forms that people have to fill in. People can do it online too, I’ve left the screen on the computer open at that page.”

  “Thanks so much, I appreciate it,” Frankie said.

  The office manager stood up. “I’ll leave you alone for a while, I always make a check of the units at this time, make sure they’re all secure. Will you be all right on your own? There’s some fresh coffee over there. I won’t be long.”

  He gave them another jolly smile and ambled out of the office.

  Frankie sat down at the desk, Grace pulled a chair over to him. She said, “He’s very trusting, we could be anybody.”

  Frankie gave her a look. “We’re friends of Sylvester, of course he can trust us. Do you have to sit so close, you’re nearly on my knee! Shift up!”

  “I was just looking at the paperwork. Do you think we could find out who rented that unit with the chair in?”

  “Why?”

  Grace thought quickly. “Then you can post a photo of the chair and let your readers know about your visit to the sweet shop. It’ll give your post a personal touch.”

  Frankie nodded. “Good idea. I’ll have a look for it.”

  The office door opened. Irritation rushed through Grace. Was the office manager back already?

  She looked up. Her heart felt as if it had leaped into her throat. She wasn’t expecting to see her.

  Chapter 14

  It was Lucinda Flamingo, Connie’s oldest daughter. The one that Grace had seen in a vision the previous day, the one that had been plotting to kill her mother.

  Grace shrank back into the chair. She knew she was supposed to be investigating Connie’s murder but coming face to face with a possible killer was a scary thing to do. Especially when the possible killer was now smiling at her.

  Lucinda held a clipboard in one hand and extended the other to Grace. “Good afternoon, I’m Lucinda Flamingo. I don’t think we’ve met before, I usually deal with Bill. Are you new?”

  Grace took Lucinda’s hand and shook it. She opened her mouth but it seemed like she’d forgotten how to speak because no words came out. Frankie looked up from the paperwork and gave Lucinda a smile. Lucinda quickly took her hand from Grace and extended it to Frankie. Grace didn’t blame her, she looked, and felt like an idiot.

  Frankie said, “We don’t work here. Bill’s doing us a favour. He’s outside, checking the units. I can get him if you like.”

  Lucinda smiled again. Grace thought it looked forced, there wasn’t any warmth in her eyes. Lucinda said, “Don’t bother him. I’m here to fill the vending machine up, I won’t get in your way.”

  The door opened again and a man stepped through. He was wearing a T-shirt and jeans. He seemed to be about the same age as Lucinda, perhaps a little older. His face was handsome but he had what Grace’s mum would call a ‘lived in’ look. He called out to Lucinda, “How much do we need?”

  Lucinda turned away from Frankie and Grace and walked towards the vending machine. She gasped. “Goodness! Someone’s been having a feast! We only filled this up two weeks ago. Jamie, you’d better bring three boxes in.”

  “Really?” Jamie said. He walked back out of the office.

  Grace saw the grin on Frankie’s face. She saw his mouth open and knew he was about to say something about her eating all the sweets. She took the precaution of loudly saying, “Coffee?”

  “Whoa! No need to shout. Yeah, ta. Keep away from that machine though!”

  The coffee machine was on a table next to the vending machine. Perhaps Grace could talk to Lucinda, make some polite conversation.

  And then ask her if she killed her mother.

  Grace almost dropped the coffee jug as Frankie shouted out, “Don’t open that machine in front of Grace, she’ll empty it before you blink!”

  “Sorry?” Lucinda said, looking back over her shoulder.

  Frankie let out a snort. “It was Grace who practically emptied that machine yesterday!”

  Lucinda turned her attention to Grace and slowly looked her up and down.

  Grace felt like her cheeks were on fire. She tried to shrug. “I was a bit peckish. I love Flamingo sweets.”

  Lucin
da gave her an understanding smile. “I used to like them but lately I can’t stand the sight of them. Oh! I shouldn’t really be saying that. Don’t tell Bill.”

  “I won’t,” Grace replied, glad that they were having a conversation.

  Frankie hadn’t finished tormenting her yet. He said, “Grace, perhaps you should order your own vending machine, you could keep it in your bedroom!”

  Grace looked down at the cups. He really was annoying. Lucinda seemed to feel her embarrassment. “There’s always someone who thinks they’re the office joker.”

  “It’s worse than that, he’s my brother,” Grace told her.

  Lucinda turned towards the vending machine. Her voice was bitter as she said, “Families can be annoying.”

  Jamie returned to the shop carrying boxes. He dropped them at Lucinda’s feet and then crouched down. He took something out of his pocket. Grace stared at the knife he was now holding. Was that the murder weapon? She still didn’t know how Connie had died.

  Her imagination really was running wild. She offered coffee to Lucinda and Jamie but they both refused. They turned their backs on Grace and started to talk amongst themselves about stock and numbers.

  Grace took the coffee back to Frankie and sat down. She kept her eyes on the couple at the machine. She didn’t miss the shared looks and tender smiles that passed between them. Were they a couple?

  Frankie took a slurp of his coffee. He said, “I haven’t found that paper yet, that one about the chair ...”

  A trickle of fear ran down the back of Grace’s neck. She couldn’t let Frankie talk about the Flamingo chair in front of Lucinda, she didn’t want Lucinda to know that they had it. Not yet anyway. Grace needed to speak to Lucinda on her own, find out more about her relationship with her mother.

  She quickly changed the subject. “So, how’s the website going? How many followers have you got now?”

  Frankie’s eyes lit up. “I’ve got over a thousand! I’ve got a comments box on my site so my fans can connect with me. You should read some of the things that they write! Shall I tell you what Owen from Manchester said last week?”

  “Go on,” Grace said, her eyes still trained on the couple. Why did they have to mutter? She couldn’t hear a word they were saying.

  Frankie rattled on about Owen from Manchester. Grace made suitable noises, as if she were listening.

  The vending machine was full again. Lucinda locked it up. She looked towards Jamie. Grace clearly heard her say, “One down, hopefully not many more to go.”

  Jamie touched her arm for a second and said quietly, “Don’t give up now, love.”

  Jamie left the office, taking the empty boxes with him. Lucinda tore a piece of paper from the clipboard and handed it to Grace. “Would you mind giving this invoice to Bill? Thank you.”

  “Of course,” Grace said. Questions were burning up inside of her, she had to speak to Lucinda alone.

  Before she could think of an excuse Lucinda said goodbye and left the shop.

  Grace clenched her fists in frustration, rumpling the invoice. She looked towards the door. She dropped the invoice.

  That’s it! Of course!

  Grace jumped up and ran out of the office.

  Chapter 15

  There was a white van parked in front of the office, Lucinda and Jamie were standing in front of its open back doors. Grace paused, Jamie had his arms around Lucinda, she was leaning into his chest. It was a private, intimate moment. Grace didn’t know whether to return to the office or to make herself known.

  Lucinda spoke, her voice muffled by Jamie’s chest. “I don’t know how much longer I can carry on. I feel so guilty about what we’ve done, I can’t sleep at night.”

  Jamie rubbed her back. “Not much longer now, the money will come through soon, it’ll all be worth it. We can make a fresh start, just like we planned.”

  Lucinda sighed and looked up at Jamie. “I feel like I have to confess, this guilt is weighing me down. Can’t we tell someone? Someone in the family?”

  Jamie’s look hardened. “No! We can’t tell anyone, especially not family. Why don’t we go away this weekend? The gang is going to Brighton. It’ll do us good to forget about everything for a while. What do you say?”

  Lucinda nodded. “That sounds good.”

  Jamie kissed the top of her head and said, “Keep strong, my love, it’ll be worth it in the end.”

  Grace took a step back and grabbed the office door. She pushed it open slightly and then pulled it towards her with a bang. She hoped it looked as if she’d just stepped through.

  Lucinda jumped away from Jamie, her guilty look was unmistakable. She soon composed herself and gave Grace a professional smile.

  “Sorry to bother you,” Grace began. “But I was wondering if you could give me any information on your vending machines. Not just for me!” Grace laughed, it sounded false even to her ears. “It’s for our shop, we’ve got an antiques shop on the high street. Well, not just antiques, all sorts of stuff, we go to storage unit auctions, you find all sorts there.”

  Grace pressed her lips together as she realised she was waffling. Lucinda still had a professional smile on her face.

  Jamie closed the back doors and walked round to the front of the van. Lucinda reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a card. She handed it to Grace and said, “Have a look at our website, we’ve got different sizes of vending machines, depending on your requirements. My number is on there too, although I am going away for a few days. There’s a number for the sales department too, you can speak to them anytime. We’d better be off, we’ve got more machines to fill.”

  Grace took the card and said goodbye to Lucinda. As the van drove away Grace looked down at the card. Connie Flamingo’s name had been crossed out under the title of Director. It had been replaced by a name written in ink – Vincent Flamingo.

  Grace supposed it was too early for the company to have had new business cards made. She frowned. She didn’t even know when Connie had died, she’d have to find out later.

  Grace looked up at the gates that the Flamingo van had driven through. Lucinda was hiding something, and it was something that Jamie knew about too. Who was Jamie anyway? What did he have to do with the company? Another question for Connie.

  Was it possible that Lucinda had murdered Connie? Had Jamie helped? They were waiting for money, money from Connie’s will?

  Grace turned back to the office. She’d have to write all these questions down, her head was getting muddled with all the facts.

  Frankie waved her over as she stepped into the office. “Found it,” he said.

  Grace shoved the card in her pocket, Frankie didn’t need to know about her pretend plans for a vending machine, although it could be a worthwhile prospect if there was a decent profit to be made. And she could get her hands on sweets whenever she wanted to.

  “What have you found?” Grace said. She walked round to where Frankie was and sat next to him.

  Frankie tapped the screen. “I found out about that unit that had the chair in. Look, it was rented by Vincent Flamingo six months ago. Flamingo! That’s a coincidence, isn’t it? Anyway, he stopped paying for the unit two months ago.”

  “Do the records show why he stopped paying for it?”

  Frankie shook his head. “I’ll have to ask Bill about that. It’s weird, isn’t it? How people pay for a unit and then stop paying, as if they don’t care about the contents anymore. We’ve found some valuable stuff in some of the units. People are strange.”

  Grace made a mental note about the unit that Vincent Flamingo had rented. She wished she knew when Connie had died.

  The office door opened, Bill came through whistling to himself. He walked over to Frankie and Grace, “Have you found some interesting information? It’s all straight forward.”

  Frankie said, “Yeah, thanks. I’ve always wondered why people stop paying for the units.”

  Bill smiled. “It’s a great mystery. Some people use the units as a dump
ing ground for their rubbish, it’s easier for them to shove everything in a unit and then stop paying. They use false names and addresses so we can’t chase them up. Some people just forget to pay, or they can’t afford to pay any more.”

  Bill rested his backside on the desk next to Grace. Grace winced as the table creaked. Bill said, “I think that some people use these units to hide evidence.”

  “Evidence of what?” Grace asked. She pushed her chair back. If the desk was going to collapse she didn’t want to be near it.

  Bill moved closer, a gleeful look on his face. He was unaware of the ominous creaking coming from the desk. His eyes darted from Grace to Frankie and back again. In a hushed voice he said, “Murder!”

  Chapter 16

  “Murder!” Frankie said. “What do you mean? Have you found any dead bodies in a unit? What did they look like? Did they stink?”

  Bill moved back and folded his arms. “I’ve never found a dead body, although there could be one locked up in the units now, slowly decomposing. Some people have been renting the same units for years.”

  Frankie raised a hand. “But if they were decomposing you’d smell something, even through a metal door. Perhaps the body is in a vat of acid? That would work.”

  Bill nodded. “That’s a good idea. A fella in the next town found a skull in a locker. The police had to come in and take it away. They took all the contents of the locker too.”

  Frankie nodded and folded his arms. Grace looked at the two men, they looked like two old women discussing the weather.

  Frankie said, “Sylvester told me that if you find certain things in a locker then the police have to be called in.”

  Bill smiled. “Sylvester’s a great guy.”

  “He is,” Frankie agreed.

  Grace butted in. “We’ve never had to call the police out to a locker. What do we need to look out for?”

  “A dead body,” Frankie began. “It would be awesome to find a dead body.”

  Bill added, “Any sort of weapon, like a gun or a big sword. Knives with blood on them would have to be investigated.”