Dandelion Dead

by Chrystle Fiedler

  “It’s better to keep busy, I guess. Lily told me what happened.” Lily was busy serving food and taking orders in the café. All the tables were occupied by the usual morning crowd. “It sounds absolutely awful.” Merrily turned over the pancakes as they began to bubble. “So are you going to investigate again?”

  I’d solved three crimes in almost as many years, and Merrily had been working for me the entire time, so she was familiar with the routine. “I hope not. Maybe the police can figure it out this time.”

  Merrily chuckled. “I wouldn’t count on it. If it wasn’t for you, they’d still be chasing their tails over those cases.” She pulled organic maple syrup and vegan spread out of the refrigerator. “You are good, Willow, and they know it.”

  “Still . . .” I went to the fridge, grabbed the soy milk, and poured myself a glass. “It would be nice for once to stay out of it.”

  “If Simon lets you, you mean.” She slid the spatula under each pancake, placing them on a plate. “Are we still doing the dinner tonight? If so, I’ll need to get busy.” She handed a plate to me. “Enjoy.”

  “Thanks, Merrily. These look amazing.” Using a knife, I put a big fat pat of spread on the stack and added a generous amount of syrup. “And, yes, Simon and I discussed the dinner last night, and he said it’s too late to cancel. It’s full speed ahead.”

  The Nature’s Way dinner to benefit Jackson’s animal rescue sanctuary was one of many in the Village of Greenport Monday night. When visitors purchased a ticket for $100, they received an orange bracelet that would open doors to the best restaurants in Greenport and the surrounding area, and a complimentary North Fork UnCorked! logo wineglass. The ticket doubled as an entry for the grand prize of $25,000.

  As Lily entered the kitchen, Merrily said, “Lily, Willow says the dinner is still on. So once breakfast is done, I’m going to get started. Can you handle the café?”

  Lily nodded. “I’m good.”

  But when Lily went back out into the café, Merrily shook her head. “I think she’s having a tough time handling what happened yesterday. You might want to talk to her.”

  “Okay, I’ll do that.”

  • • •

  But by the time I finished breakfast, Lily was busy with four new tables. So I resolved to check in with her later. For now, I grabbed the big box of Halloween decorations from my office and stepped outside.

  Nature’s Way Market & Café was located on Front Street, across from Mitchell Park, which featured the village green, a refurbished merry-go-round, a camera obscura, boat slips, and in warm weather theater productions by local groups. The Nature’s Way building, a three-story yellow Victorian with red trim, featured outdoor seating on the porch, which was nice if you wanted to catch the sea breeze. A black wrought-iron fence surrounded the property and flower beds, and newly planted David Austin English roses in hues of pink, peach, and salmon accented the walkway. To the east of Nature’s Way was the new medicinal herb garden that I’d created in honor of Aunt Claire.

  Today, the Village of Greenport was already buzzing with excitement over the North Fork UnCorked! event. Banners were festooned across Front Street, and signs were plastered in every window announcing the festivities. Visitors crowded the streets, checking out the sights and the shops before lunch and dinner, when chefs at restaurants would pair signature dishes with local wines.

  I’d put pumpkins and gourds painted white with faces to look like ghosts on the steps and strung black-cat minilights around the door. I had just attached a large cobweb to the porch when my cell phone pinged. It was a text from Simon telling me that the police had remained at Pure until after nine o’clock the night before interviewing guests and in particular Ivy, since she had found Amy’s body. He added, I may need your help on this.

  I didn’t text him back and instead finished the task at hand. I needed time to figure out exactly what I was willing to do to help Simon. It depended on the nature of the case. If it was an accident, I wouldn’t get involved, but if it was a murder—and it certainly looked that way—it would be a different story, especially if it meant that Simon would be affected.

  After I finished decorating, I stepped down onto the walkway and looked back at the porch. It looked fun and festive, just what I was aiming for. When I went back inside, Merrily met me at the door. “The police just called. They’ve given the go-ahead for us to pack up our stuff in the kitchen and the rest of our equipment and supplies.”

  The idea of returning to the scene of the crime wasn’t appealing, but we needed our stuff. Besides, I had to admit that the amateur detective in me wanted to check it out. “Okay, I think you’re better off staying here and getting ready for the party tonight. Maybe Lily can go with me.”

  A half hour later, Lily and I arrived back at Pure. I’d texted Jackson to tell him what was going on and where I’d be. He’d reminded me to let the police handle the investigation, and to try to stay out of it.

  Pure looked much as we’d left it, although the tables in the atrium were now gone, and the Steinway piano was covered with a sheet and pushed against the wall. All the tiny pumpkins and gourds that had been on the tables were in a big box on the bar. I texted Simon to let him know that we’d arrived and went into the kitchen to pack up the extra food, supplies, and cooking equipment.

  While we did, I decided to talk to Lily and see how she was feeling, as Merrily had suggested. So as I handed her items from the refrigerator, I said, “Are you okay? Merrily was concerned that you were upset about what happened yesterday.”

  Lily shrugged. “It was just a shock. I’ve never seen anything like that before, and Amy seemed nice, not like her sister at all, and I felt bad that David and Simon’s big day was ruined as well.”

  “I know. Hopefully, the police will figure out what happened soon.”

  She handed me several small Tupperware containers that held the few leftovers. “But Merrily said that you investigate these kinds of things. Can’t you find out what happened?”

  Before I could answer, Detective Koren entered the kitchen and came over to us. “Ms. McQuade. Here to pick up your things?”

  “We got a call saying we could.” I placed the containers in a box.

  “Yes, you can, and I hope that you’ll do so and leave.” He gave me a pointed look. “Where are Simon and David?”

  “I don’t know. I just texted Simon to tell him we were here.”

  A moment later, Simon pushed open the door and stepped inside. “Hey, Willow, Lily.”

  “I was looking for you, Lewis,” Detective Koren said. “I need to talk to you, David, and Ivy.”

  “We can talk to you.” Simon texted David. “But Ivy is exhausted. The doctor just gave her a sedative.”

  A few minutes later, David stepped in the rear door of the kitchen. Detective Koren waved him over, and the three men headed out into the dining room.

  I pulled the last of our food out of the fridge and handed it to Lily. “I think we have everything from here. Let’s do the supplies and equipment next.”

  I grabbed another large box from under the counter and put it on top, then stashed the Cuisinart and a big box of quinoa inside. “If you finish loading this, I’ll check the bar to see if any of our stuff is out there.”

  Truth be told, I also wanted to try to overhear Detective Koren’s conversation with Simon and David. I was here, why not?

  As I stepped out into the atrium and slipped behind the bar, I spotted the three men talking in the middle of the room. Thanks to excellent acoustics, I could hear every word.

  “So what did the autopsy report say?” Simon asked.

  Detective Koren hesitated. “It looks like she was poisoned.”

  “Poisoned,” David said, a look of shock on his face. “With what?”

  Lily came out of the kitchen just in time to hear David and came over to me, her eyes wide. I put a finger in front of my lips.

  “We’re not sure yet. We found the remains of a scallop and some plant. The cor
oner thinks that it’s poisonous. We’ll know when we get the tox screen, which should be very soon.”

  “Oh my God,” Lily whispered. “Do you think that it was one of the edible plants that I picked yesterday morning to serve as a garnish on the scallop appetizer? Did I make a mistake and pick a poisonous plant instead?” Her face went white. “That means Amy’s death could be my fault!”

  “You don’t know that. You are always super-careful. We both are.”

  “I think I’m going to be sick.”

  I put my arm around her and tried to console her. “Don’t jump to conclusions, Lily. We don’t know anything for sure yet.”

  “What are you two talking about?” Detective Koren said. It seemed that the good acoustics worked both ways. “You picked a poisonous plant by mistake?” He walked over to us, followed by Simon and David.

  “No, I think that’s highly unlikely,” I said. “But it doesn’t mean that someone didn’t switch the garnish for the poisonous plant that killed Amy.”

  “Killed Amy? It could have killed me!” David said, freaking out.

  “What are you talking about?” Simon said.

  David went over to a spot near the window. “Amy and I were at this table together talking and drinking wine. I offered her a scallop appetizer because I had more than one, and I knew that she loved scallops from when we were together. At first, she refused, but I pressed her, and she ate it. I was just trying to be nice. Ivy is so tough on her all the time.”

  “Did you eat yours?” Detective Koren said.

  David shook his head. “No, Nora Evans, the head judge, phoned. She wanted to tell me again just how impressed she was with Falling Leaves, our entry in the competition. So I just put the plate down, left it, and took the call. But if I’d eaten it . . . I’d be dead. Someone wanted me dead!”

  chapter four

  “I can’t believe someone would try to kill me. I need a drink. Willow, grab me a beer from the fridge next to the sink, will you?”

  I did as David asked and placed a cold beer on the counter. But Detective Koren pushed it back to me, giving me a stern look. “Calm down, Mr. Farmer. We don’t know anything yet, not really, and I need you to keep a clear head.”

  “But it makes sense that I was the target, don’t you see?” David looked at Simon. “Right, Simon? The texts, it all makes sense now.” Despite Detective Koren, David grabbed the beer, twisted off the top, and took a good, long swig.

  Simon shrugged. “I don’t know, but you’d better tell him.”

  David put down the beer and pulled out his phone. “Detective, I’ve been getting death threats, both in texts and e-mails for the past week now.” He handed his phone to the detective. “All the messages say for me to drop out of the North Fork UnCorked! competition or else. We’re the front-runner in this, and I think that someone wants me out. Maybe whoever killed Amy is the same person who’s been sending the messages, and who tried to kill me.”

  Detective Koren scrolled through David’s texts and e-mail history. “I see what you mean. But why didn’t you report this to us immediately?”

  “Because at first I didn’t think it was real, just a hoax, or a bad joke. I figured I could handle it myself. I’ve been trying to figure out who it is. I’ve even got a tech guy trying to trace the activity, but it’s coming from several different burner phones.”

  “It sounds pretty elaborate for a bad joke,” Detective Koren said. “I think I should keep this and have our guys go over it, too.”

  “Go ahead, keep it. I’m sick of the messages, especially now, and I was planning on upgrading to a new iPhone anyway.”

  Detective Koren put the phone into a plastic baggie, then looked at me. “Where is the leftover food that you served yesterday, Ms. McQuade? We need to check it to see if it contains any more of these poisonous plants, and if so, bag it.”

  “I’m pretty sure that we ran out of the scallop appetizer early, but we were just packing up in the kitchen, if you want to take a look.”

  In the kitchen, I pulled out the containers of ingredients for the dishes. There were only a few leftovers, just a couple of stuffed garlic mushrooms, and oven-roasted cauliflower bites, and a few slices of veggie quiche. The rest of the ingredients in the box were such things as gluten-free breading, cooking oil, and unused veggies such as tomatoes and eggplant.

  Detective Koren quickly went through the box. “I don’t see any scallops here.”

  I nodded. “It was very popular. It didn’t last long.”

  “Why did I have to offer one of mine to her?” David shook his head.

  “There’s no way you could have known,” Detective Koren said.

  “And the garnish you picked? What is your name, please?”

  “I’m Lily Bryan. I work for Willow in her store and café.” Lily pulled a handful of dandelion greens out of a box.

  I took them from her. “These aren’t poisonous, Detective Koren. These are just simple dandelion greens, and I saw Lily pick them yesterday morning in our class. We like to use them because they’re edible and nutritious and they taste good.”

  Detective Koren took all the greens and put them in a large baggie. “Would it have been easy for someone to substitute a poisonous plant for these greens, Ms. McQuade?”

  “Very. They would just need a good reason.”

  “Like trying to kill me,” David said.

  • • •

  Detective Koren left after telling Lily to stay put because he might have more questions for her and after telling me again to stay out of it. But the minute his car pulled out of the parking lot, Simon said, “We’ve got to do something about this, Willow.”

  I turned to Lily, who was clearly upset. “It’s going to be okay. Why don’t you load the van? I’ll be right out.”

  She hesitated, so I went over to her and gave her a hug. “You’re okay, just take a few deep, cleansing breaths.”

  She brushed away her tears, took a few breaths, and put on a brave face. “I’ll get our stuff.”

  “Thank you, Lily.” I motioned Simon and David to the door. “Let’s go outside.”

  We headed out to the lawn and sat down at a picnic table. I took the side with a view of the front lawn, and the tree line that hid the cliffs and the blue-green Long Island Sound. The sun still felt warm, but the breeze off the water caused a slight chill, so I zipped up my LIFE IS GOOD orange sweatshirt.

  “I can’t believe that someone tried to kill me,” David said as he sat down across from me. “And I thought those messages were bad.”

  Simon didn’t sit down, but instead paced back and forth. “And whoever it is, he’s still out there. He may try again.”

  “Oh, God. No, this can’t be happening.” David got up, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lit one up, and started pacing as well. Watching the two of them move back and forth was like watching a Ping-Pong match.

  “Willow, you and I and Jackson have got to work on this together, like before. Now that it’s a murder, we have to. David’s life is in danger and so is Pure. Someone wants to keep us from winning this competition.”

  “Simon told me you three have a good track record on this kind of thing.” David blew out a stream of smoke. “That you’re smarter than the police.”

  “I don’t know about that,” I said. “But we have had good results. We do work well together.”

  “Yes, we do,” Simon said. “The Three Musketeers.”

  “Jackson doesn’t want me to get involved,” I said.

  Simon waved that notion away. “So what else is new?”

  • • •

  Lily and I returned to Nature’s Way and spent the rest of the day getting ready for the dinner that night. I’d left a message with Jackson but hadn’t filled him in yet on the latest developments. I was pretty sure what he’d have to say about it, but I was also pretty sure what I wanted to do—namely, help Simon.

  While Lily helped Merrily prepare the evening’s dinner in the kitchen, Wallace and I set up
the café to accommodate more guests. To that end we’d moved some of the tables and chairs out onto the porch and lawn and added heat lamps to create more usable space. Out beyond Front Street, Mitchell Park was now crowded with people as they crisscrossed their way across the Village of Greenport enjoying North Fork UnCorked!

  We’d just moved the last set of table and chairs to the lawn when Wallace said, “I know that you have a lot of things on your mind, Willow, but can we talk?”

  I pointed to the chair he’d just put down and sat in the other. “Of course.”

  “I’m worried about Lily. She’s a sensitive girl, and that business yesterday at Pure, and today with the police and the news about that poisonous plant, I just don’t know.”

  “I understand, Wallace.” I suddenly realized that, yes, I might need to investigate for Simon, but quite possibly for my employee Lily, too. I knew from experience that once the police zeroed in on someone, it could be extremely difficult to shake them.

  “Wallace, it is normal for the police to have questions since she prepared that particular appetizer and had foraged for the garnish, the dandelion greens. But the fact is, anyone could have switched out the greens for a poisonous plant at just about any time. I do think the police will see that and eventually work on other leads.”

  “Eventually? But how long will that take?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “I’ve been here long enough to know that you have a knack for solving murders, Willow.” He gave me a pleading look. “Can you help her?”

  I told Wallace that of course I would help Lily, but first I needed to discuss it with Jackson. Once most of the setup work was done, I slipped away upstairs to take a shower and change into a black cotton shift dress with quarter sleeves, decorated with small white butterflies, and black heels.

  As I got ready, I took the time to mull over the events of the past twenty-four hours. No clear suspect for Amy’s murder presented itself. But, really, it was too early for that. I needed to investigate—gather the individual pieces—to solve the puzzle of this murder.