Tea Room Toxin: Missy DeMeanor Cozy Mystery #5 (Missy DeMeanor Cozy Mysteries)

by Brianna Bates

  Gold developed a fascination with his empty pint glass. “Through the transmitter.”

  “What transmitter?”

  “The one I put on you.”

  “Where?” Missy felt like she’d been violated. She looked down at her shirt, like she was looking for a poisonous insect that had just landed on her.

  Then she saw it: a tiny black dot.

  It was nestled right in the middle of her chest.

  “HOW DID THIS GET HERE!”

  At her outburst, the patrons sitting at nearby tables all whipped their heads around to look at them.

  “Take it easy, Miss,” Gold said, keeping his voice low. “It was just a safety precaution.”

  “How did this get here?”

  The man had somehow put a transmitter right between her…

  “When you weren’t paying attention, I put it there,” Gold said. “Standard operating procedure.”

  Missy asked, “Does standard operating procedure include not telling me I’m on a wire?”

  He nodded. “Actually, yeah.”

  “Actually, yeah?”

  He nodded again. “That way you’re not thinking about me listening, you’re just reacting naturally to the conversation.”

  She got up. “I don’t believe this, Paul. You put this thing on my body.”

  Missy ripped it off her shirt and dropped it into her vodka sour.

  “Whoa! Don’t do that! Now it’s ruined.”

  “I want you to destroy the recording, too,” Missy said. “You know, Gold, just when I think you’re an okay guy, you go and do something like this.”

  Missy stormed out.

  ***

  Driving home, Missy went over her conversation with Krauss. As angry as she was with Gold, she had to admit he had a point. Krauss had just as much reason to hate Tonya as he did to be grateful to her. Though his life had spun out of control after their break-up, it was Tonya who’d brought him back from the brink.

  Still, though, she couldn’t ignore the fact that Krauss was a chemist of all things and Tonya had been poisoned.

  On her way home, Missy drove past WiredFit guiltily. A day had turned into two, into three, and now into four. Pretty soon, it would be habit again not to exercise. She really had to get back.

  Tyler called her when she was five minutes away to let her know he’d gotten caught up at the police station. He wasn’t sure when he’d be home.

  Cody was waiting for her at the door. The Irish setter wagged her tail wildly and led Missy to the back door. Missy let the dog out and then microwaved some leftovers. She went outside and sat on the patio while the dog rolled around in the grass.

  In her mind, Missy went over her short conversations with the chief suspects at the viewing that morning. Again, she was overwhelmed by the fact that all of them had a reason to kill Tonya. And, Missy was still too worked up from her earlier conversation with Detective Evanski to make sense of anything.

  Cody stopped rolling around and started barking. Missy had learned on her first murder investigation to listen to the dog, since Cody was good at spotting trouble. Missy looked right and saw headlights lighting up her detached garage. Somebody pulling into the driveway.

  Missy got up and instinctively reached inside the back door to grab the baseball bat she kept there. Ever since she’d been attacked at her home, she kept plenty of makeshift weapons handy though she’d never learned how to use a gun.

  The car’s brakes squealed and the lights went out. Missy tiptoed to the edge of the house and peered around the corner. A four-door sedan had parked behind her truck. At first she worried it was Evanski or Bryant come to question—or worse, arrest—her. But a woman with hair longer than Evanski’s got out of the car.

  “Alison?” Missy asked.

  “Oh!” Alison jumped, not expecting to see Missy come out from around the back of the house. “You scared me!”

  “Sorry.” Missy smiled, feeling silly now with the bat in her hand.

  “You practicing?” Alison asked. “The Phils need another slugger, I hear.”

  Missy laughed. “Come on around. I’m just sitting outside with Cody.”

  “Great.” Alison met her in the backyard, taking the chair opposite her.

  Missy didn’t know why Alison was here. They were on decent terms and probably would have been closer, were it not for the fact Missy had been forced to interrogate the woman on several occasions, all for crimes she had no involvement with.

  “It’s nice to see you,” Missy said. “Can I get you a drink?”

  “No!” Alison practically shouted. “I mean, no thank you.”

  Missy laughed. “Tough day or something? That was quite a reaction.”

  Alison smiled. “Work. You know.”

  “I’m lucky. I don’t know that I’ve ever had that difficult a day at the bookstore.”

  “You are lucky,” Alison said. Shaking her head, she said, “My manager is just out to lunch and…”

  She took a deep breath.

  “Ah, who wants to hear about work?”

  Missy nodded. “What brings you out here?”

  “In the neighborhood,” Alison said. “And I thought, you and I never hang out. But we should.”

  Missy smiled.

  Alison held her palm out for Cody to sniff, then rubbed the dog’s head. The Irish setter was flat on her back in seconds.

  “Nice dog.”

  “The best,” Missy said. “She saved my life.”

  “I heard about that,” Alison said. “So what do you think about Tonya’s murder?”

  Missy was taken aback, but when she thought about it, Alison had always been pretty blunt. “Someone there poisoned her.”

  Alison smiled. “Yeah. But who?”

  Missy was suddenly uncomfortable. “There are a few people that come to mind.”

  Alison nodded. “Grant. Roger. Emile. Beth. Noreen.”

  “Noreen?” Missy said. “Why would she kill her friend?”

  “Why would she kill her best friend?” Alison asked. Missy got the sense Alison was getting a dig in, by calling Tonya Alison’s best friend. “Because then the business would be hers.”

  Missy shook her head. “I don’t think it’s that simple, actually. From what I hear, the agreement is a bit more complicated.”

  “Oh really? I guess that makes sense.”

  “That and the fact Noreen is not a killer.”

  Alison smiled. “I was just mentioning her because other people are saying that. Not because I think it.”

  Missy wasn’t so sure. “Noreen’s not a killer.”

  “Okay.” Alison looked away for a moment. “Nice place you’ve got here.”

  Missy couldn’t help but feel like Alison was fishing for information. But why? “Yes. I got it under market value from my uncle.”

  “Family is great.” Alison shook her head. “Except when it isn’t.”

  Missy was about to ask if Alison had experienced issues with family of late, but the other woman asked her next question before Missy got the chance.

  “Beth is a good candidate,” Alison said. “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, especially when she’s been scorned by family.”

  “Why do you think of Grant and Roger as suspects?” Missy asked.

  Alison tilted her head to the side. “Come on, Miss. Everybody knows by now. Tonya was plonking both of them.”

  Missy nodded. “I’m not one to spread rumors, and I didn’t know if you’d heard.”

  “You are a class act,” Alison said. “Unlike me. I just say whatever comes to mind. Have you been losing weight by the way?”

  “In the spirit of being blunt: no.”

  Alison laughed. “You shouldn’t. I’d kill to have your figure. When men look at me all they see is a prepubescent girl.”

  “A lot of men like that.”

  “You’d be surprised. But Missy, I have to be honest, a lot of people think you poisoned Tonya.”

  Missy had figured as much. All t
he same, she felt the outrage build inside her. “It’s true we didn’t get along, but I’d never murder someone.”

  “Of course not.” Alison gave her a sidelong look. “You’re Missy DeMeanor, amateur crime-fighter.”

  “I don’t know about that. I was ready to be done with that, especially after Olivia…” Missy’s mind drifted back to the last investigation. One of the girls she used to babysit had been murdered at the monthly scrapbooking crop. It had hit Missy hard. “Anyway, I’m happy to leave the police work to the police.”

  “Even this time?” Alison asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Seems out of character, especially since Noreen’s friend got killed. I would have thought you’d—”

  “I’ll help in any way I can.” Missy didn’t know why she was being so coy about what she was doing, but for some reason she didn’t want to let Alison in.

  “Do you know anything about poisons?” Alison asked.

  Cody wandered over and sat on her haunches next to Missy. She ran her hand through fur the color of rust.

  “Chemistry was actually my worst class,” Missy said. “I barely managed a B.”

  “Don’t tell me, you otherwise got straight A’s?”

  Though she shouldn’t have been, Missy was embarrassed by her good grades like it was something to be ashamed of. That was how the popular kids—with the exception of Tyler—had always acted. Like doing well in class was lame.

  “I worked really hard,” Missy said. “It helped that I was a total book worm and loved to read.”

  “Oh one of those,” Alison said. “I couldn’t be bothered in high school, but nowadays I read constantly. Go figure.”

  Missy stretched and forced a yawn. “Are you sure I can’t get you anything to drink?”

  “No,” Alison said, again a little too forcefully. “I should be going. I can tell you’re tired. But would you mind if I use the bathroom before I go?”

  “Of course not. I’ll show you where it is.”

  Missy led Alison inside and pointed her to the bathroom, then returned to the back yard and waited with Cody. The dog seemed uneasy and after a few moments put her nose up against the screen door, as if waiting for Alison to come back out.

  Missy’s phone buzzed. “Hey, Tyler.”

  “Hey, Melissa. Just calling to let you know I’ll be home soon. How’d it go today?”

  “Tell you all about it when you get here. I’ve got company right now.”

  “Don’t tell me you invited Paul I.S. Gold back?”

  She laughed. “Alison Breckmyer stopped by.”

  “That’s nice.”

  “I’m pretty sure it’s not a social visit,” Missy said.

  “Oh really?”

  “Yeah, tell you all about it. See you soon.”

  “Can’t wait.”

  Missy admired the engagement ring on her finger in the porch light. Alison came out a moment later.

  “Whoa. Nice rock there.”

  Missy smiled. “Thanks.”

  “I didn’t even notice it,” Alison said.

  For a moment, they just stared at each other. The silence seemed full of meaning, confirming Missy’s suspicions.

  “Congrats, Missy.” Alison gave her a quick hug then started away. “I’ll see you soon. Maybe we can go out for drinks?”

  As Alison reached the edge of the house, Missy said, “So you’ve been telling the police I hated Tonya, haven’t you?”

  “Missy.” Alison froze. Missy felt Cody tense beside her. “What are you talking about?”

  Missy saw right through the lie. “The day of the crop, when Olivia died, that was the day Noreen and I got into a pretty big argument over Tonya. And thinking back, I remember you kind of waiting in the wings to talk to me. You must have heard our whole argument. The police asked me about that.”

  “Missy, seriously, what are you talking about?”

  “You told the cops Noreen and I had this big blowout about Tonya, which is a huge stretch of the truth.”

  “Missy. I didn’t tell the cops anything. But honestly, I remember your argument with Noreen. It was hard not to notice it, because you guys never fight. And I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say a bad word about anybody before that day, but you had plenty to say about Tonya. So yeah, the whole thing stands out in my mind.”

  “I didn’t kill Tonya,” Missy said. “And I don’t appreciate you telling the cops I hated her when that’s not true.”

  “I come over to see you and this is how you act?” Alison asked.

  “You think I poisoned her tea,” Missy said. “That’s why you wouldn’t let me get you anything to drink. Am I right?”

  Alison was about to say something, then her shoulders sagged. “Okay, you caught me.”

  Missy couldn’t believe it. “You came over to interrogate me?”

  Alison waved an apology. “I thought I’d give amateur sleuthing a try. Why should Missy DeMeanor get all the fun?”

  Despite her rising anger, Missy laughed. “Alison, I did not kill this woman.”

  “Somebody did, and you’ve got to admit you’re a suspect.”

  Missy shook her head. “I didn’t put a toxin in her tea.”

  “You sound like a real detective, Missy. Toxin. Like it’s all official.”

  Missy had had enough. “Alright, I’ll see you later.”

  “Forgive me?” Alison asked.

  Missy was about to say no but realized that made her a bit of a hypocrite. “Who am I to judge you for doing what I do?”

  Alison smiled. “So how about we get that drink later this week?”

  Missy couldn’t believe how odd this woman was. She’d basically just admitted to suspecting Missy of being a murderer and not more than a minute later she was asking her to go out. Probably this was just a ploy for Alison to continue her own investigation.

  “I’m really busy this week,” Missy said.

  “Doing what?”

  “Finding out who killed Tonya.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Missy spent most of the next day alone at the bookstore. Brett called late in the morning to let her know he wouldn’t be in till later. It turned out to be no big deal, as only five customers entered the shop between opening and when Brett showed up in the afternoon.

  In the early afternoon, Noreen popped in. “Wow, this place looks different.”

  Missy realized her best friend hadn’t been in the store since she’d been let go. To Missy, the store didn’t look significantly different.

  “You got rid of shelves.” Noreen pointed toward the Mystery section. “What happened to the Lawrence Sanders block? We used to have an entire shelf of his stuff…”

  Missy nodded. “His books always sold well, and we’re not replacing inventory at this point.”

  Noreen walked around the store. “All the cozies are practically gone!”

  “The Little Old Ladies have cleaned us out. When they heard we were closing, they splurged.”

  “Probably spent all their social security.”

  “I think they’ve been saving up.”

  “Oh my God.” Noreen had stopped in the Horror section. “Where is all the John Saul? And I only count ten—TEN!—Dean Koontz…”

  Missy was actually getting choked up. She couldn’t think about the store closing right now.

  Noreen went into the children’s section. “Where did all the Berenstain Bears books go?”

  The huge lump in Missy’s throat prevented her from speaking.

  Noreen finally registered Missy’s reaction. She hurried to the front desk. “Sorry, Miss. I didn’t mean to…”

  Missy was able to find her voice. “It’s alright.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  Missy forced a smile. “No idea.” She looked around. “Every day a few more books disappear…and there’s very little stock left in the back.”

  “I can’t believe it,” Noreen said. “You know, as much as Brett warned us, I never thought…”<
br />
  “Me either.” Missy shook her head. “To be honest, I don’t know if we’re even going to last two months at this point.”

  Noreen came around the front desk and hugged her. “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay.”

  Noreen pulled away to look her in the eye. “Missy, you should really think about coming to work at the tea room. I know—”

  “Thanks, Nor. I appreciate it. But I just wouldn’t feel right.”

  Noreen nodded sadly. “I know. But seeing this place and knowing you don’t have anything lined up…it makes me feel awful.”

  “I’ll figure something out.”

  “Tyler’s moving in, right? Do you need to go to work?”

  Missy made a face. She could occupy herself with her hobbies, which brought in a little income. But she felt like she had to work.

  Since graduating, she’d been employed and taken care of herself. She loved Tyler more than anything, and he wasn’t putting any pressure on her to find a job. But she wanted to have one. As crazy as it sounded, she liked the idea of going into work and being part of a team—albeit a small one. Missy couldn’t picture herself working for anything other than a mom and pop shop.

  “I’d like to find something,” Missy said. “At least part-time.”

  “I understand.” Noreen nodded. “Well, the offer’s always there. Assuming the board of health lets us reopen.”

  A wave of guilt passed over Missy. She’d forgotten all about the tea room’s closure. “Any update there?”

  Noreen shook her head. “All the more reason for me to help you crack the case. I’m meeting with Roger tonight to talk about the future, and I’ve been racking my brain about the best way we can question him. I can’t bring you with.”

  Missy didn’t have to think too long. It was pretty obvious.

  “I’ve got an idea.”

  ***

  After an exhausting workout at WiredFit, Missy showered and dressed in the locker room. Her clothes were surprisingly loose. She rolled her window down to help dry her hair and managed to get the radio working. Finding a pop song she liked, Missy thumped the seat in time to the music. No matter how difficult the workout was, she always left the gym in a good mood.

  The night was warm but not humid as she drove through Grove City, over roads that were as familiar as the back of her hand. She’d ridden countless times over these streets and found the rhythm and hum of the concrete mesmerizing.