by Lyndsey Cole
The café buzzed with music, aromas, and activity when Annie entered. She’d have to figure out how to get her morning routine done earlier once Leona was gone. And that was only a matter of a week or so.
Greta was already busy checking all the tables. She must have attended to the drink cart first since the fresh brewed coffee smell beckoned to any caffeine-deprived customers. Annie helped herself.
She set her cup on the work counter and chose an apron before she joined Leona near the oven. “Everything under control?”
“I think Greta is going to be the biggest surprise we’ve had in this place. She’s so motivated and efficient, she’s putting the rest of us to shame,” Leona marveled. “I’d like to clone her for the Harper House once we get to the point of needing to hire someone.”
The café door jingled.
“Annie?”
Annie’s back was to the door but she knew exactly who belonged to the voice. She rolled her eyes at Leona and whispered, “Christy is having boyfriend trouble. I hate it when I get sucked into the middle of someone else’s drama.”
Annie felt fingers tap on her shoulder. “Are you avoiding me?”
“Of course not,” Annie answered. “I was hoping for some peace and quiet before we open for the day but I see you can’t read my mind.”
Christy sat on the stool next to Annie. “Let’s not start flinging insults before we get to the heart of the conversation. Do you want to talk here or in the hall?”
Annie finished her coffee. “Let’s sit outside on the deck. It’s not too cold and I like to enjoy every minute of decent weather before the snow starts to fly.” Ha, she thought to herself. She was calling the shots today, after all, she was the almost-new-boss of the Black Cat Café and she needed to learn to be assertive.
“Suit yourself.” Christy fixed herself some coffee and followed Annie through the French doors.
They sat at a table with their backs to the café and their eyes taking in the view of the lake.
“I love it here, even November with its weather that can’t make up its mind,” Annie said. “Do you feel it, too—the change that’s coming?”
Christy snorted. “Are you referring to the weather or my love life? I know you and Cody had a heart-to-heart last night.”
Annie turned her head to face Christy. “Cody’s a decent guy.”
“But?”
“No but. I guess the important question is, how did your heart-to-heart go with him?”
Christy sighed and rubbed her nose. “Not great. We’re taking a break until this whole thing is solved with his brother’s murder.”
“Cody is a suspect?”
“He has to be until that missing twenty minutes is fleshed out. I don’t want anyone to say I’m going easy on him.”
“Yeah, I suppose that’s a tough spot for you to be in.”
Christy laced her fingers behind her head and tilted back in her chair. “So, tell me about Greta. She’s working at the café now? I didn’t know Leona was even looking to hire someone. And Greta Grayley?”
“Leona’s leaving to run the Harper House with Danny. They bought it.”
“Get out!” Her chair legs crashed back onto the deck. “Let me guess, you’re running the café now? That’s the change you were talking about?”
“That’s my change.” She would let Christy fill in her change if she wanted to. “And, yes, Greta is working at the café. She’s really gung-ho, said it’s time for her to get out of her bubble.”
“Well, I hope the evidence doesn’t crash around her, forcing you to look for someone else.”
“I’m confident it won’t. Have you looked into Brian’s girlfriend, Rachel? She was at Kitty’s party, or rather, outside. I don’t think she went in.”
Christy stood. “She’s my next stop, if I can track her down, and Brian’s lawyer. Cody said Brian wanted to talk to him about the land and he doesn’t know who gets Brian’s share now. Maybe Rachel can shed some light on that subject.”
“I think I know what you’re thinking—did Brian change his will and leave his share of the farm to Rachel?”
“Your words, not mine, Annie.” But Christy did smile so Annie was sure they were on the same page about that subject.
“Rachel told me that she followed Brian here to fix a problem they were having. Maybe that’s the case, maybe not.” At any rate, Annie was glad that Christy was on Rachel’s trail.
Christy left and Annie returned inside. While she had been talking to Christy, the café opened and the first customer arrived. It wasn’t pleasant.
Kitty had Greta backed up to the drink cart, jabbing her finger in her face. “You need to keep your stray cat inside. He’s already done enough damage to my poor Missy. I don’t want him near any more of my cats.”
Annie grabbed Kitty’s shoulder and pulled her away from Greta. “You should know better than to come into the Black Cat Café and accost one of my employees, Kitty Brown.”
Kitty whirled to face Annie. “Stay out of this. Greta’s filthy cat has no business coming around when my cat is in heat.” She stomped her foot. “I won’t have it. One ruined litter is bad enough.”
Greta found her voice. “What on earth are you talking about, Kitty?”
Kitty whirled back toward Greta. “What am I talking about? Don’t pretend you don’t know anything about the birds and the bees. Your black, scruffy stray managed to find a way to get Missy pregnant. What am I supposed to do with those kittens now?”
Greta burst out laughing. “You must think Lucky has some magical powers if you think he’s the father of your kittens.”
“I saw him with her.” Kitty’s face was streaked red, her fists were balled at her side, and she leaned inches from Greta’s nose.
“Lucky can’t be the father. As soon as he decided to move in with me, he made a trip to the vet and, well, he doesn’t have the ability to be a father. In case you skipped that chapter of the birds and the bees—Lucky has been neutered!”
Kitty’s mouth opened and closed several times before she managed to get her words out. “I don’t believe you.” She turned and stomped toward the door, her heels clicking loudly with each step. She pulled the door open and as she walked through, the shoulder strap of her purse caught on the knob. It stopped her forward momentum so quickly she jerked backwards and almost made a very awkward landing. Almost, but not quite. She managed to catch herself.
As soon as she was gone, everyone inside laughed. Not so much at her near tumble, but at her expression when Greta informed her that Lucky lacked his fathering ability.
“That was quite the show. I wonder who she will accuse next. Apparently there is more than one black cat that lives in town. Do you think she’ll march home and knock on every door along the way looking for the father of her kittens so she can yell some more?” Annie asked.
“She ought to just keep track of her own cats and stop worrying about everyone else’s. One of her cats is always hunting between our two houses. I think it’s Moby. He has actually come on my porch and taken things. He seems to like anything shiny. I saw him carrying a full soda can away once, don’t ask me how he managed that, and another time, he dragged a shiny belt across the yard and into Kitty’s house. I don’t know what he does with the items.”
“Maybe he has a secret hiding place under Kitty’s bed,” Annie joked. “Once all those shiny objects overflow from underneath, she’ll come over and accuse you of throwing your belongings under her bed,” Annie told Greta. “I get the feeling that nothing is ever Kitty Brown’s fault.”
The café door jingled, effectively ending the conversation. A family with two young children entered. The mom was drawn immediately to the shelves of books but the two kids made a beeline to the pastry display. With their little hands pressed against the glass, they pointed and looked pleadingly at their father.
Leona elbowed Annie and nodded toward the French door. “I want to talk to you outside for a minute.”
Mia had the at
tention of the dad and the kids and Greta was pointing out books to the mom. Annie followed Leona outside.
“It’s about Cody,” Leona began. “You know that he’s working with Danny at the Harper House, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Danny said he was acting a little weird ever since the Halloween party—not focusing, making mistakes, even disappearing at random times. And I got this text from Danny a few minutes ago.” Leona held her phone out for Annie to read—Cody didn’t show up for work??? Leona stared at Annie. “Do you know what’s going on?”
Annie’s pulse quickened. “I don’t know.” Her hand reached for Leona’s arm. “Listen, Leona. Cody had a fight with Brian just before he was murdered. Greta witnessed it but turned away and never saw what happened next and Cody insists he lost his memory for about twenty minutes after the argument. He could be the murderer but blocked it out or someone else saw the whole thing and is letting him take the fall.”
“But who else is there?”
“Brian’s girlfriend. I want to talk to Rachel again. Christy is also trying to find her but I think Rachel will open up to me more than she will to Christy. You know, the whole Detective Crank intimidation thing she has. Something doesn’t add up with Rachel’s story.”
25
Annie changed her mind and decided to have a quick chat with Kitty before she tried to track down Rachel. Kitty told her that Brian was thinking about moving back to Catfish Cove. Was that with or without Rachel and did it have something to do with the farm?
Annie drove down Main Street and parked across from Kitty’s house. As Annie dashed across the street, one of Kitty’s Maine Coon cats jumped up the front steps to the porch. Annie caught a glimpse of something dangling from his mouth.
“Hello there, Moby,” Annie said. “It looks like you found yourself a new shiny treasure.” Moby rubbed in and out between Annie’s legs as he waited by the front door. She bent down to rub around his ears, which sent him into a fit of purring. A silver skeleton earring fell from his mouth. “Where did you find this?” Annie picked up the earring and watched each silver section dance. “Kitty will surely want this back.” She stuck it in her pocket, straightened with Moby in her arms, and knocked on Kitty’s door.
“Just a minute,” Kitty’s voice rang out from somewhere in the house. Footsteps echoed through the closed door. The heavy inside door opened. “Oh. It’s you.”
Was she expecting someone else? Moby wiggled in Annie’s arms, wanting his freedom. “I found your cat wandering near the road and thought you might not want him there,” Annie lied. She needed something to break the ice with Kitty and cat safety might be just the trick.
Apparently, the strategy worked.
Kitty opened the storm door. “Oh, you bad boy. I’ve been looking all over for you. Why are you always wandering where you might get hurt?” She reached toward Moby and the big cat practically leaped into Kitty’s arms. “Thank you. Do you want to come in for a minute? I owe you an apology for my behavior this morning.” She shook her head and one skeleton earring from Brian danced eerily. “Everything has become so crazy lately.” She looked at Annie. “Sometimes I’m not sure what I’m doing . . . if I’m coming or going.” She extended her arm. “Come on in.”
Annie entered and waited for Kitty to close the door and lead the way. They went down the hall into her kitchen and Kitty deposited Moby on one of the kitchen chairs. The chair’s seat was barely big enough for his bulk. “See if you can stay out of trouble, Mr. Moby.”
“I found this on your porch.” Annie fished the earring from her pocket and held it out to Kitty.
Kitty’s fingers immediately checked both ears. “I haven’t taken these skeleton earrings off since Brian gave them to me. I don’t know how I didn’t realize that one had fallen out.” She took the earring from Annie and poked the wire through the hole in her ear. “I told myself I wouldn’t change these until Brian’s murder is solved. It helps me remember the last conversation I had with him.” Her bottom lip quivered. “He said he completely misjudged me.”
“Obviously, you’ve been affected deeply by Brian’s death.” Annie softened her voice. “Is there anything he told you about the farm that might have provoked his murder?”
Kitty slumped into the chair next to Moby. “He didn’t tell me all the details but I had the impression that he was thinking about changing his will. Whether that happened already or not, I’m not sure.”
“Did he talk about what he might change?”
“Well, way back, Brian and Cody agreed to leave their shares to each other. So, any change would be potentially bad for Cody.”
“But you also said you didn’t think that Brian would force Cody to sell his share to pay him off. How could it be both ways?”
Kitty stroked Moby and he batted at the silver charms swinging from her bracelet. One of his claws got stuck in a small silver loop of the bracelet. “You just love these shiny charms, don’t you?” Kitty carefully extracted his claw from the loop.
“Are those all cat charms?”
Kitty smiled. “Yes, I add one for each of my babies.” She lifted each silver charm to show Annie. “This sitting cat is for Missy; the sleeping cat is Misty; Jasper is standing all the time; Smudge likes to leap on his hind legs.” She laughed. “I still haven’t added the fifth one for Moby. His charm is a cat with one paw raised. Maybe that’s why he’s always batting at my bracelet; he’s trying to remind me to add his charm.” She looked at Annie. “What did you ask me?”
“About Brian’s will. If he changed it, how could it not affect Cody?”
“I suppose he could add in that Cody had life rights to live at the farm or something like that. Doesn’t Cody know what’s in the will?”
“As a matter of fact, Cody seems to have gone missing.”
Kitty’s jaw dropped. “Missing? Where would he go?”
Annie stood. “I don’t know but I’ve got someone else to track down now.”
“Oh?”
“Rachel. She saw Brian and Cody argue the night of your party. I think she knows more.”
“That one is trouble. Brian certainly sounded like he was trying to get away from her clutches. I’m glad you’ve finally realized she could be the murderer.”
“But something bothers me. If Rachel came here to fix their problems, murdering him sounds like the last thing that would be on her mind.”
“Unless the problems weren’t fixable.” Kitty slapped her hand on the table. Moby jumped off the chair and fled from the room. “Brian said he was thinking about moving back to Catfish Cove but Rachel didn’t like the idea. At all. She was quite upset, as a matter of fact. He thought it might be a reason to end their relationship. If that was the case and Rachel didn’t want to lose Brian, killing him would be a big motive, don’t you think?” She waved her hand through the air. “You know, if I can’t have him, no one will.”
Annie nodded. It made sense. Rachel following Brian to Catfish Cove always seemed a bit desperate. As she sat in her Jeep on Halloween night and watched Brian walk from Kitty’s house to Greta’s porch, did she see the perfect opportunity to murder him in a fit of jealous rage? She could have dashed over after Cody left, stabbed Brian when he was blinded by frosting, and slipped away with no one knowing she was even in town.
But she didn’t leave. That part didn’t make much sense. Why did she stick around?
“Where will you find Rachel?” Kitty’s question brought Annie back to the moment.
“I know where she’s staying but whether she is there when I show up, only time will tell.”
“Oh, right. We dropped her off at her friend’s house when we all went to the spa. Let me know what happens if you find her,” Kitty said.
Annie nodded. It was easier to agree, but whether she confided in Kitty in the long run depended on what she found out from Rachel. She let herself out and glanced at Greta’s house. Lucky was stretched out on the side porch watching Kitty’s house. Even though he wasn’t t
he father of Missy’s kittens, Annie wondered if Greta might adopt one of the kittens. Kitty certainly didn’t have any interest in kittens that weren’t purebred Maine Coon cats—ridiculous.
While Annie drove home, she decided the best plan would be to take Roxy for a walk on the Lake Trail toward the house where Rachel was staying. She might get lucky and bump into her or, at least, see her Jeep in the driveway and know she was in the house. Then she could decide how to approach her. With Roxy at her side, she didn’t think Rachel would be a threat.
A note was propped on the dining room table against a bud vase with a single red rose.
See you tonight. I’ll take care of dinner since you already have a lot going on. Love, Jason
Annie’s heart skipped a beat. How had she gotten so lucky to have Jason in her life, she wondered? She scribbled a reply: Taking Roxy for a walk. See you soon. Hugs and Kisses, Annie.
Roxy waited for Annie at the porch door. She danced around Annie’s legs while she pulled on a warm fleece. Annie turned the knob and yanked. The door was stuck. She pulled harder and it flew open, letting Roxy squeeze through before Annie clipped on her leash. She zipped her fleece against the chilly breeze and followed Roxy’s fast pace along the Lake Trail.
Roxy had a plan of her own and dashed up the path to Thelma’s house. “I guess we have time for a quick visit.” She patted her pocket where she had remembered to stick a bag of chocolate cookies as she left the café.
Roxy had her two front feet on Thelma’s kitchen door and scratched impatiently. Annie laughed. “Hold your horses, what’s the hurry?”
Like usual, Annie knocked, cracked the door, and called inside for Thelma before she let herself in. Roxy was already through the door and out of sight by the time Annie walked through the kitchen. She heard voices but it wasn’t Thelma chatting with Roxy. She paused to listen. Her stomach tightened into a knot. Did Roxy follow the scent to Thelma’s door thinking she was in danger?