A Dangerous Snag (An East Pender Cozy Mystery Book 8)
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A Dangerous Snag
An East Pender Mystery Book 8
Leona Fox
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 1
The day began brightly in East Pender. Ellen opened the cafe with a wide smile on her face. Scampy bounded by her feet, the small black dog yapping loudly.
“Yes, I know, I'm happy, too!” Ellen said.
She wiped down the counter and took a moment to breath in the moment. This was the time of day she loved the most, the morning, when everything was fresh and new and the entire day was waiting for her, unwritten. What surprises would find her? What new experiences would unfurl as they day continued? She did not know, but she couldn't wait to find out. The previous night’s fundraiser had gone smoothly and the issue of the gas bandit had well and truly been put to rest. She was glad that when it counted the town had rallied around those who needed aid. She only hoped Andy would be able to relax more now that Paul Diamond had left the scene. The Hollywood actor had caused quite a stir in the small town, even with Ellen, especially with his admission that he was attracted to her. When she was younger she always dreamed of falling in love with a movie star, but she was more than happy with Andy and appreciated what the two of them were building. It was something of trust, honesty, and mutual respect, and it was the best thing in her life.
The sun was shining in through the windows and the empty cafe looked homely. Ellen glanced around with pride at what she had built, and felt a great swell of satisfaction. When she first had opened the cafe she had done so because she had the opportunity and needed something to give her purpose in life. Little did she know what it would lead to. Without it she never would have begun working with Andy in solving crimes, and so much of her life would have been different, as would the lives of the people in East Pender. The small tables were arranged neatly and the menus stood tall on each of them. The smell of freshly-brewed coffee filled the air, as did the sweet scent of baked treats that Ellen laid out on the counter. Breathing a sigh of contentment, she was happy with the world, and was looking forward to everything the day would bring.
When Ellen heard the low droning sounds of the bell in the clock tower that signaled nine o'clock in the morning, she opened the door and let the crisp morning air inside. Already people were coming in, regulars who enjoyed chatting with her about the goings-on in the town. Never averse to a bit of gossip herself, and wanting to lend a friendly ear to these lonely people, she welcomed them in and became involved in their lives, giving them advice on all manner of things. The cafe soon was filled with happy chatter. Ellen moved in between the various tables, serving them breakfast and coffee. As usual, she had to keep a keen eye on Scampy, for he had an annoying habit of begging for scraps of food. Not that he had to beg very hard, since most of the customers were all too eager to toss him a little treat.
Newspapers rustled in the front of the cafe and bacon sizzled in the back. The morning passed swiftly, and before Ellen knew it her stomach was rumbling, too. When she got a moment she served herself up a crispy bacon sandwich, with a few pieces of fruit. In the middle of the afternoon, in the post-lunch lull, she was doing a bit of cleaning when Kelly arrived, breezing through the door with a wide smile on her face. As soon as she entered, Ellen dropped what she was doing and rushed to greet her with a tight embrace. The two women gripped each other tightly, and the hug went on for so long that the people left in the cafe looked on with curiosity. For those who had not been at the event the previous night this display of excitement would have seemed strange since the two of them were firm friends and saw each other regularly. Yet this embrace was as though they had not seen each other in years.
“Let me see it again,” Ellen said.
Kelly raised her hand, showcasing the glittering jewel that rested in the gold band atop her finger.
“I'm so happy for you,” Ellen said, hugging her again.
The two women took a seat at a table in the corner and excitedly spoke of plans for the future.
“Thank you, I'm happy, too. I just feel like an idiot that I waited so long,” Kelly said, running a hand through her long blonde hair.
She seemed even prettier than usual, radiant almost, And Ellen looked upon her with envy.
“Everything takes its time. I'm just glad you two managed to work things out. I've never been a maid of honor before, I'm quite looking forward to it.”
“There was no one else I had in mind for the role. Have you had a chance to think about the wedding yet?”
“You only told me last night, give me a chance! Besides, it's your wedding and you call the shots. I'm just here to support you and make sure you don't go crazy.”
“I think that ship sailed long ago,” Kelly said with a wry smile, “but I want your input as well. You are the host and, well, I was kinda hoping we could have the reception here.”
“Of course! Whatever you need, although are you sure you don't want something that can have a bigger crowd?”
“No, we just want to keep it small. I don't have that many people to invite anyway and Matthew already has had one wedding, I think we both just want to get to the married part as quickly as possible.”
“Whatever you like, although I'm still going to do my best to make the day memorable and special,” Ellen promised.
“So what time frame are we looking at here? I'm guessing we'll need at least a few months to get everything ready--”
“Actually,” Kelly interrupted, “we're thinking of doing it as quickly as possible. Like I said, we don't want anything fancy. I don't have a big family and neither does he. We just want to get married and get on with being together. That's what this really means, the rest of our lives. The one day of the ceremony isn't that much of a big deal when compared with that. So we're actually looking at a date a few weeks from now, while it's still sunny, so we can get married in the park. Don't you think that will be wonderful?”
“I do...but is that going to give us enough time to organize everything?” Ellen asked, her brow furrowing with concern.
“Of course! It all will be fine,” Kelly said waving away the problems with her hand.
Everything was always so blasé with her, and often Ellen envied the way she was able to approach life with such a laid-back attitude, but this was her wedding!
“If you're sure,” Ellen said.
“And, of course, your plus one will be Andy. How are things between you two? I don't suppose there's any chance we could have a double wedding? That really would be something.”
“Even if you were getting married next year I don't think that would happen. We're content taking things slowly. Why rock the boat, you know? I don't think marriage is a big deal for either of us. We both know where each other stands and right now I don't see that a wedding would change anything.”
“It would give me a chance to be a maid of honor for you.”
“I'll keep that in mind for the future. Right now we're still getting over the whole movie thing.”
“Oh yeah, how is it now that the actor has gone?”
“Better, I think, he just hates being reminded of his past. I hate it, too, to be honest, because there's nothing I can do to help him. No matter how hard I try to make him see he's not that person anymore there's a part of him that always is locked back there. I just want him to be able to enjoy life again. He's carrying around all this guilt because of one case that he didn't solve an
d I totally understand it but it's not doing him any good.”
“Yeah,” Kelly said with sympathy, reaching over to clutch Ellen's hand.
Ellen smiled at the gesture. “I'd like to say I hope he has a lot of work to keep him distracted over the summer but I'm hoping it'll be quiet in East Pender so nothing will interfere with my wedding.”
“Why would you jinx things like that!” Ellen said. Kelly scoffed and laughed dryly.
“Please don't tell me you believe in all those silly superstitions. Nothing I saw will have any consequence on what happens in the future.”
“That may be, but I'd still prefer not to take the chance. It's your wedding for goodness' sake!”
But Kelly remained relaxed about the whole thing, and the two women continued speaking about the wedding plans and what they needed to do in the short time they had. However, while they were talking about happy things Ellen noticed Kelly started to get quieter and more distracted, looking away from Ellen as though she were ashamed of something.
“There's something I have to tell you,” Kelly said.
Then she began telling Ellen about how she and Matthew had talked through their problems. She said that mostly they had been caused by the fact that she had not been able to let go of a secret she had been keeping for years. Now it was time for her to tell the truth because she had been hiding it from Ellen, too.
Ellen looked surprised. As far as she was concerned Kelly always had been an open book, and from the grave look on her friend's face she knew this secret had been weighing heavily on her. In a drawn out tone Kelly told Ellen about how she had lied about becoming an artist, that actually she had won the lottery and used those funds to maintain her lifestyle while she managed to carve out a humble living as an artist. It all never would have happened if it hadn't been for that lottery win and she felt so fraudulent about it, Kelly said. Even now it drove her close to tears and Ellen's heart went out to her friend.
“I hate that you feel like you couldn't have told me about this a long time ago. Of course I don't judge you or anything, I'm just sorry you felt like you had to keep this secret to yourself.”
“You're not going to look at me any differently?” Kelly asked, sniffing.
“No, well, I'll be looking at you to get the drinks more often,” Ellen said, and the two women laughed with relief.
“I'm just glad you were able to get through it yourself and talk to Matthew about it. It seems silly to let something like that get in the way of your relationship, when now you're getting married!”
“I know. To be honest, I looked at you and Andy and saw how you were with each other. I know you've always been a stickler for honesty and that being open with each other helped the two of you have a stronger bond. I wanted that for me and Matthew.”
“Having no secrets definitely helped me and Andy,” Ellen said.
And yet, while she was saying this to Kelly, Andy was back in his house, sitting in his office with a pained look on his face. His head was in his hands and he was tearing his hair out as he stared at the letters he had been receiving, all of them referencing that case. That one case that he never would be allowed to forget, as much as he might try, as much as Ellen wanted him to move on. The letters may as well have been sent by the demon that was plaguing his own mind, the one that continually replayed the mistakes he had made, the ones that had cost a young boy his life.
When Andy had been a young boy he had dreamed of becoming a hero and saving those in need. He had failed that little boy. Who knew what he had dreamed of? It didn't matter in the end because he never would dream of anything ever again. Andy's hand curled into a fist and he beat the desk, causing everything to jump. He had tried so hard to move on and establish a life for himself, and just when he started to believe it was possible this had happened. Not only that, but Paul Diamond had come to town as well. He had to ask himself if the two were connected, but he couldn't come to any firm conclusions. His mind was all over the place and he couldn't focus on anything. Who would be coming after him after all this time, and why? It didn't make any sense. Or was it all just some cruel, sick prank?
They all had been typed on a typewriter. The hammer had smashed the words into the soft paper, leaving small dents. The writing was formal and to the point. There were no flowery words and as far as Andy could see there were no hidden meanings in the words either. It was simple. Whomever was sending him the letters blamed him for the death of that little boy. He threatened to bring the truth to light, and that justice soon would be done. What did he mean by that? Andy did not know, but it was dark and disturbing. As of yet he had not told anyone else, not even Ellen, even though he knew she would be angry at him. In truth he hoped they would have gone away by now, that the mysterious author would have become bored with this little game. Yet the letters kept coming and Andy grew more and more irritated with them.
In a fit of anger, he swept them off the desk and roared in frustration before his primal emotions fell from their crescendo and he was forced to clean up the mess and hide it again from Ellen's sight. As he gathered up the papers he was filled with a sinking feeling of shame, guilty that he was hiding something of such magnitude from Ellen. But how could he tell her when she had begged him for so long to break free of his past? He stuffed the file back into the drawer and locked it, then inhaled deeply and returned to the normal routine of the day.
When Ellen returned to his place she spoke of Kelly's plans for the wedding and Andy tried to not give her any sign that his mind was on anything else. However, Ellen was a keen observer of people and it took a skilled liar to get anything past her. Yet when she inquired as to what was bothering him he merely brushed it off as the distractions that came from Paul Diamond's visit. He only wondered how long that excuse would last.
Ellen wasn't convinced at all but she wasn't about to pry, feeling that he would tell her if she gave him enough time and space. Besides, she wanted to think of happy things and so concentrated on Kelly's wedding. Although her friend had expressed a wish to keep things small, Ellen still wanted to make sure it was a special day. There had been an old case she had worked on where she had encountered a wedding planner. It turned out they were innocent of the crime but now Ellen figured she may as well get in touch and use the person’s services.
However, as she was looking for the information she caught sight of a piece of paper jutting out from in between the desk and the wall. She leaned down to pick it up, but when she looked at it she froze. Upon her first reading she didn't process what the letters meant, so she read it again and a chill crept up her spine. She looked around the rest of the office, for this letter referenced others so it couldn't have been the only one. But as she searched the desk she stopped. She realized she was no better than a meddler, clandestinely burrowing through her boyfriend's things, trying to get to the bottom of it, when all she needed to do was go to Andy. Yet that was difficult as it was clear he had been keeping this from her, after all the discussions they had had about keeping secrets.
Chapter 2
The anger inside her swelled as she gripped the letter in between her fingers, and in the heat of rage she stormed into the bedroom and flung it down on the bed. Andy took one look at it and his expression turned to stone.
“Where did you find this?” he asked, his voice hollow.
“Does it matter? When were you going to tell me about it? Or is that a stupid question?” she yelled.
Andy pushed himself up in bed and pressed his lips together, making a concerted effort to keep his voice low and even.
“Ellen, you have to believe me, I wanted to tell you but I thought it would stop and when it didn't it just...come on, I know how much you've wanted me to leave my past behind.”
“Yes, but I don't want you to hide something like this from me! How many have there been?”
With a reluctant sigh Andy dragged himself out of bed, looking older than she ever had seen him, and beckoned her to follow him down to the office. He opened t
he door and pulled out the file, handing over all the letters to her. Ellen took them, still unsure of the emotions running through her. Her brow furrowed and her throat tightened as she opened the folder and took out the letters, reading them one by one, while Andy stood leaning against the wall, his head arched back.
The window to the room was slightly open, allowing a soft evening breeze to come through. The glow of dusk gave a dim illumination to the room. The leaves of plants rustled outside. Birds chirped, dogs barked in the distance, it all seemed peaceful and yet Ellen felt an unsettling fear creep up her spine as her eyes danced over the typed words. They were cold, and calculating, and as she read them she tried imagining the person writing them, sitting behind a desk, hunched over a typewriter. As she read them she placed the letters face down on the able, but hiding the words did not sap away their power. The letters only grew more personal, more violating the more she read them, and by the end of it she was speechless. When she had found them her first reaction had been to shout at Andy, to yell at him for once again keeping secrets from her. Now that she had read them she only wanted to hold him close to her, to reassure him that he was safe, to cloak him in the comfort that only she could offer. Ellen let the final letter fall down to the desk. It swayed as it was pulled down by gravity, and before it had landed on the neat pile of paper Ellen strode across the room, embracing Andy tightly.
“I thought you'd be mad,” he said softly, his arms lazily wrapping themselves around her waist.
The cool air from outside wafted against his cheek, and this only made the warmth of her body more apparent. They melted into each other and Andy relaxed. For the first time since the letters started the tension had eased within him, and he felt complete with her again. Ellen kissed him softly and buried her face in his chest.
“I am a little…you know that I hate us having secrets. Why didn't you just tell me this from the beginning?”