“What about?”
“The tea room.” Missy smiled. “I was so happy for her.”
“You used to work together, right?” Evanski asked.
Missy didn’t know where she was going with this. “Fifteen years at the bookstore, until Noreen left.”
“Did she ever talk to you about starting a business together?”
“Oh yeah.” Missy nodded. “We kind of always talked about it. But we never came up with a solid plan or definitive idea. We were such good friends, the idea of doing our own thing always seemed like a good one to us.”
“Did you ever talk about opening a tea room?”
“It was more a hypothetical conversation.”
“Why? You didn’t want to?”
“I would have loved to, but I never had the money so it was more just talk than anything else.”
“You and Noreen have been friends a long time,” Bryant said.
“Since middle school.”
“So about twenty-five years?”
“When you put it like that.” Missy groaned. “It makes me feel old.”
The detectives exchanged an indecipherable look that put Missy ill at ease. She could tell from their questions the direction of their thinking.
“And then Noreen left the book store?” Bryant asked.
“Yes, our boss could only keep one of us on. He talked to Noreen first, otherwise she’d still be there.”
“No,” Evanski said. “She’d be here, wouldn’t she?”
It had been a harmless thing to say, but the way Evanski challenged her made Missy feel guilty.
“Yes, you’re right. She’d be here.”
“You must have been upset after working with her so long,” Bryant said, making it into more of an observation as opposed to a question.
“Of course,” Missy said. “We’d been best friends forever and were used to seeing each other every day. It was difficult.”
“For her too?”
Missy nodded. “I think so.”
“Didn’t you talk about it?” Bryant asked. “You and Noreen?”
“Talk about it?”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “After she left, did you talk about how much you missed her at the bookstore?”
“Yes. We still talk a lot.”
“But significantly less than before?” Bryant said.
Missy hated where this was going. “I wouldn’t say significantly.”
Bryant frowned. “Well, you used to see each other every day and find time to talk outside of work too, right?”
Missy nodded.
Bryant continued. “And then she left the bookstore and as I understand it, she spent a lot of time getting this place lined up. So you didn’t talk as much, right?”
“No, not as much.”
“Did you still talk every day?”
“No.”
“How often, then?”
Missy had to think about it. And thinking about it, she realized that there had been many sizable gaps over the last few months.
“On average, once or twice a week.”
“Did you ever express interest in working here?”
“No.”
Evanski finally spoke again. “You never expressed regret to Noreen about not doing this with her?”
Missy had to rack her brain. The way Evanski asked the question, it sounded like Noreen had mentioned this to the detectives. But Missy couldn’t remember ever—
“I think so, but it was jokingly.” She remembered now. They’d met up for drinks at Hank’s, a local bar famous for its wings one night.
“Jokingly?” Bryant asked.
Missy nodded. “I had a bad couple days at the bookstore, where I got maybe two customers.”
“Only two customers?” Bryant shook his head. “It’s a real shame that nobody reads anymore.”
“How much longer do you think the bookstore is going to stay open?” Evanski asked.
Missy shrugged. “It’s only a matter of time.”
“So what jobs have you applied for?” Bryant asked.
“I haven’t gotten as far as applying anywhere yet.”
Bryant looked from the other detective back to Missy. “You’re about to lose your job at the bookstore and you don’t have any irons in the fire?”
Missy’s fingernails dug into her palms. This was not going well. They were making her out to be the jealous friend who regretted not getting in on the ground floor of the tea room. And honestly, she had no good reason for not looking for another job. She’d known the bookstore was on life support for a long time now.
“I’ve put feelers out there,” Missy said.
“Where?”
“I went to one of the chains out here, actually.” It was true.
“One of? I thought there was basically only one chain of bookstores left.” Bryant smiled. “And everybody is buying books on Amazon these days.”
“The chain is still going strong,” Missy said, not sure how true that actually was. “And I supplement my income in other ways too.”
“Like how?”
“I flip repurposed goods at flea markets locally.”
“What does that mean?” Evanski asked.
Bryant looked at her. “It means Missy is an entrepreneur. She buys old things, spruces them up on the cheap, and resells them for a profit. Right, Miss?”
She nodded. “And I’ve done a little bit of copy-editing too.”
“Copy-editing for who?” Bryant leaned in. “Anybody famous?”
Missy shook her head. “Some local self-published authors. I try to help them out, polish up their manuscripts before they release them.”
“Cool,” Bryant said. “Anything else?”
There were almost too many things to mention. As Missy went over them in her mind, she realized the breadth of her odd jobs to scrape a few more bucks together was reaching a level of absurdity.
“I just started dog-walking for a few people in my neighborhood. I also sell scrapbooking templates online. I’ve developed web copy for local businesses from time-to-time. And I’ve tried blogging too.”
“Renaissance woman.” Bryant grinned ear-to-ear, like he was proud of her. It was off-putting.
Evanski wasn’t impressed. “Why didn’t you just come here? Noreen told us she wanted you here.”
Missy held her smile in place, but her insides were knotting up. “I didn’t think it would be a good fit.”
“Why not?” Bryant asked. “You’ve worked in a customer-facing role all your life at the bookstore. You seem pleasant and friendly. Why wouldn’t this be a good fit for you?”
“Especially with the bookstore’s closure looming over you,” Evanski noted.
They were going to make her say it. In the back of her mind, she’d known the whole time this moment would come.
“Well, like I said before, Tonya and I didn’t really get along.”
Evanski finally emoted. She gave Missy the tiniest of frowns. “You said you disliked each other but that you’d always been civil.”
Missy knew what they were doing. Evanski was trying to make her think she’d contradicted herself.
“Same difference,” Missy said, trying not to sound defensive. “We didn’t like each other, we didn’t get along…it’s the same thing.”
“But you said you’d always been civil.”
“And we were,” Missy said.
The detectives allowed the silence to grow. An old trick to make Missy feel like she had to fill the gap. But she knew better. She just waited for them to ask their next question, or even better, tell her she could go.
Bryant blinked first. “Just so I understand, your dislike of Tonya was so strong you did not want to come work here with your best friend, Noreen?”
What he’d said was true, but it almost made it sound like she and Tonya were ready to kill each other.
“Look, you’re trying to imply some bitter hatred between us that just wasn’t there. Tonya and I didn’t get along. That’s a
ll. We didn’t spend our time plotting our revenge against each other. She probably thought about me as much as I thought about her, which is to say very little. We just didn’t get along. That’s all. Sometimes that’s just how it is between people. And honestly? I know for a fact Tonya didn’t want me here.”
The detectives exchanged another look. It took all Missy’s will power not to squirm in her seat. The interview had become an interrogation where Missy felt threatened. Bryant was pretending to be the nice, easy-going guy, while Evanski was a cold, calculating detective trying to trip her up with her own words.
How long before they just came out and accused her?
“How do you know that for a fact, Missy?” Bryant asked.
Missy groaned inwardly. Now that she’d thought about it, she should have kept this to herself. “I overheard her telling some friends today that she’d never work with me basically.”
The detectives exchanged another look. It didn’t take a genius to read between the lines there.
“Do you know if Tonya drank any other tea today?” Evanski asked.
“Not with certainty, but I’d assume so.”
Evanski gave her the slow nod. “Okay, Missy. Thank you for your time. We might have some more questions for you as the case develops.”
“Case?” Missy asked innocently. “What exactly happened to Tonya?”
“Poison,” Bryant said.
“Poison?” Missy only had to put on half an act. Because part of her still couldn’t believe someone had poisoned this woman.
“Looks that way,” Bryant said. “Can you believe that?”
“No.” Missy shook her head. “That’s what people were saying outside, but I didn’t believe it.”
“People were saying that outside?” Evanski asked. “Why didn’t you tell us that?”
Missy hid her anger. The woman had a way of asking questions that made Missy look guilty. “I thought it was just people talking.”
“The murderer might be out there,” Evanski said. “And you’re just telling us this now? How would anyone outside know, unless they were the killer?”
“Look.” Missy held her palms out. “My friend mentioned it in passing. She overheard some of the cops talking, that’s all.”
“Who’s your friend?” Bryant asked.
“Alison Breckmyer,” Missy said.
“Did she describe these cops to you?”
“No, and I didn’t ask.”
Evanski raised both eyebrows, the second tiny display of emotion from the woman since the interview had started.
Bryant said, “None of the officers outside know anything about Tonya’s death yet. So I find that hard to believe.”
“Unless your friend knows more than she’s letting on,” Evanski said.
“Just talk to her,” Missy said. “She’ll give you a description.”
“We will.” Evanski stood, signaling the end of the interview.
Chapter Five
Outside, Missy tracked down Noreen. Her friend was sitting in her car with the driver-side door open. The radio wasn’t on. Noreen had a cigarette up to her lips.
“Hey, Nor.” Missy smiled. “How are you doing?”
Noreen only moved her eyes to look at Missy. “Not good.”
“I’m sorry.”
Noreen took another drag and her eyes drifted away from Missy. “I saw the whole thing.”
“It must have been awful.” The words felt so weak.
“I can’t believe it happened.”
“What exactly happened?”
“Tonya and I took a breather in the kitchen. It was the first time all day we’d stopped moving. We were just talking about how well the grand opening was going. We couldn’t believe it. During our conversation, she complained about her stomach hurting. But she figured it was just from not eating. We hadn’t gotten a chance all day long to eat.”
Missy filed that away. If Noreen was being literal, it meant Tonya had been poisoned through her tea.
Noreen went on. “In less than two minutes, she’s doubled-over. Before I could even react or get her something, she starts to cough blood…she didn’t last much longer after that. I screamed and nearly blacked out.”
“This is terrible. I’m so sorry.”
Noreen finished the cigarette and flicked it onto the pavement. “You know what’s terrible? I’m shocked and hurt that Tonya is dead, but I’m also worrying about the health inspector coming through and if they’re going to shut the place down and how I’m going to run this place without Tonya…”
Noreen began to cry quietly. Missy put her hand on her friend’s shoulder.
“What can I do to help?” Missy asked.
“What can anybody do?”
“Nor, I’ll do anything you need me to. I’m here for you.”
Noreen got out of her car and hugged Missy. “Thanks, Miss. As soon as I can stop my head from spinning, I’m sure I’ll think of something.”
Missy knew how upset her friend was, but all the same she had to discuss Tonya’s death with her. The cops were viewing it as a murder.
“Did they tell you what they thought happened?” Missy asked.
Noreen nodded and broke the hug. “It’s awful. I mean, who would do that to her?”
“Somebody here,” Missy said. “You knew her well. Who jumps out at you?”
Noreen didn’t have to think about it for long. “Her sister. That woman has a screw loose.”
“Why do you think that?”
“She and Tonya were supposed to open a tea room a few years ago, but Tonya backed out last minute. It caused a major rift in the family, and Beth never forgave her for it. They had a huge falling out all over again, when Tonya told her she was going to open this place with me.”
“Would she know anything about poison?” Missy asked.
Noreen shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe.” She thought about it. “I mean, everything’s on the internet these days. You can figure out easy ways to kill anybody if you’re motivated enough.”
Missy nodded. “When you say she’s got a screw loose, do you mean that literally?”
Noreen fished out another cigarette and fired it up. “She’s voluntarily committed herself a couple times. She suffers from depression.”
Missy thought Beth made a good suspect. She just hoped the detectives thought so also.
“Hey, they’re talking to Alison Breckmyer.” Noreen frowned. “Why would they do that?”
Missy whipped her head around, just in time to see Alison look back at her before ducking inside the tea room with Detective Bryant.
“She overheard a couple cops outside discussing the poison.”
“Really?” Noreen frowned. “Which ones? That seems really unprofessional.”
“I don’t know.” Missy looked around, her eyes taking in the troopers working the scene outside.
“They think I’m a suspect.” Noreen shook her head. “Can you believe that?”
“What?” Missy couldn’t believe it. But then again, the detectives didn’t have the background here. They hadn’t watched Noreen and Tonya grow immensely close over the last year.
“I was the last one to see her alive.” Noreen folded her arms. “So I’m an automatic suspect. Crazy.”
“They’ll clear you quickly,” Missy said.
“Yeah. Hopefully they’ll read the partnership agreement and see I don’t stand to profit from Tonya’s death.”
Missy didn’t quite know how to ask this delicately. “What happens to the business? Where does Tonya’s share go?”
“I don’t really know, I need to speak to an attorney,” Noreen said. “But even if we get past the board of health, and Roger wants to continue with the business, I’ll still need to find someone to replace Tonya.”
What a disaster. Missy felt so bad for Noreen. And for Tonya. Her parents and siblings had been here today, planning to celebrate what should have been a happy occasion. Now they’d be burying their daughter in a few days.
Tyler drove them back to Grove City as night fell. They ordered takeout and brought the Chinese food back to Missy’s place where her beautiful Irish setter, Cody, was antsy to get out of the house.
“Sorry, girl,” Missy said.
She had barely gotten the back door open a few inches, when Cody pushed through and zipped into the back yard to relieve herself. Missy turned on the exterior light, and since there weren’t any mosquitoes waiting to eat them alive, Tyler brought the food out and they ate on the back porch while the stars came out. After a few minutes, the cricket chorus began.
Cody traipsed over and immediately put her paw in Missy’s lap.
“Cody.”
The dog took its paw away, but kept its pleading eyes on Missy.
“I poured your food. You know where it is.”
The dog didn’t budge.
Missy sighed. “Do you even like Chinese?”
Cody barked once.
“Once for yes, twice for no?” Tyler asked, a sly grin on his face.
“This dog.” But Missy wasn’t really upset with Cody. She loved this dog. The Irish setter had literally saved her life during Missy’s first murder investigation. A man had nearly choked the life out of her, not more than thirty feet away in the driveway. Cody had jumped through the screen door to come to her rescue.
Cody whimpered.
Missy gave her a look. “Go eat your food and if you’re still hungry, maybe I’ll give you an egg roll.”
As if she understood, Cody strutted away and nosed the back door open. They heard her chowing down a few moments later.
Tyler smiled at her. “You okay?”
“They think I did it.”
He shook his head. “They don’t think anything yet. They’ve got a number of suspects they have to rule out. They’re looking at everybody.”
“That isn’t exactly comforting.”
The back door opened and Cody slipped outside, coming to rest next to Missy in the same spot. She treated Missy to dog breath.
Missy looked down at the dog. “Did you eat it all?”
Cody barked once.
“You promised, Mommy,” Tyler said.
Missy smiled. “Alright, Cody.”
Tea Room Toxin: Missy DeMeanor Cozy Mystery #5 (Missy DeMeanor Cozy Mysteries) Page 4