Out of the corner of her eye, Addie saw a dark shape and looked up at a pale-faced Carolyn, a puddle pooling around her boots. “It appears my water broke.”
Martha jumped to her feet, and in one motion took Carolyn’s arm and seated her on the box of flour.
“I can’t sit here. What if the flour is ruined?”
“Pish, it can be replaced. You sit tight. Addie, call an ambulance and then Pete. I’ll get a cool cloth for her head,” Martha ordered, and went to the sink. “Darn it, there’s no paper towels left. That idiot Betty must have used them all when she cut her hand, reaching for them when she put out the fire.”
Addie hung up with the 911 dispatcher and stared at Martha. “The blood they found in here was Betty’s?”
“Yes, fool that she is.” Martha found an apron in the cupboard, drenched it with water, and placed it on Carolyn’s brow. “Apparently, when the oven fire started, she grabbed for the roll of towels but sliced her hand over a knife sitting on the counter beside them. After she got the fire out, she stopped the bleeding and cleaned up. The police and I only just found all of this out when they went to her house to ask a few questions about me. Of course, she, having just been fired, was less than flattering toward me when she spoke to them, which doesn’t help my case.”
Martha crouched down in front of Carolyn and fixed her gaze on hers. “Now, you relax and take some deep slow breaths. You know the drill. You’ve had nearly as many babies as I have.” She held out her hands. “Now, take these and squeeze them when a contraction starts and keep squeezing until it stops. Can you do that?”—Carolyn nodded—“Good, okay, here we go. I’ll count the time between them.”
Martha’s hands turned white as Carolyn did what she was told, and then the color slowly reemerged in them. “One,” Martha said breathlessly, “two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten . . . another one already? Okay, squeeze.” Martha looked up at Addie. “Maybe you should go out front and show the paramedics back when they get here.”
“Are you going to be fine on your own with her?”
“Oh yes, we’re doing great, and Addie,” she whispered, “tell them to hurry.”
When the ambulance arrived, Addie hung back in the front area of the store. Between the carts of cooling racks and the boxes of supplies that hadn’t been put away since Saturday’s delivery, there was barely enough room for the two burly paramedics, a stretcher, and her. She paced the floor and frantically checked the time on her phone clock. Visions of Pete rushing to the hospital to meet the ambulance raced through her mind. Why weren’t they taking her? Couldn’t they tell she was going to deliver soon? They were running out of time.
Cries of a baby filled the air. Tears streamed down Addie’s cheeks as the paramedics wheeled mother and baby past her. Addie’s gaze sought out Carolyn’s, a wide grin across her damp face.
“It’s a girl! Tell Simon he has a new niece,” Carolyn said, and hugged the tightly swathed bundle in her arms closer to her chest.
Addie glanced over at Martha, who followed the procession out of the kitchen. Her cheeks were covered in droplets of freshly shed tears.
“Are you okay?” Addie raised a questioning brow.
Martha nodded. “For the first time in a long time, these are tears of happiness,” she said, and openly sobbed.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Paige burst through the bakery door, fear etched across her face. “Mom, are you okay? I saw the ambulance and—”
“Oh, honey, I’m fine.” Martha wrapped her arms around her little girl. “I just delivered a baby.” She stood back at arm’s length, and her face lit up like the fairy lights in Addie’s window displays.
“You did?”
“Yes, it was the best thing that’s ever happened to me, aside”—she stroked Paige’s cheek—“from birthing my own. And I’ll tell you, I sure couldn’t have done it if Addie hadn’t come in to check on me.” She glanced at Addie with gratitude.
“I didn’t do anything. I’ve never even been around puppies being born.”
“Yes, but without you here, I would have had one heck of a time calling the ambulance and delivering that wee one at the same time. It all happened so fast.”
“Well, well, Miss Greyborne,” Marc said from the doorway, a teasing glint in his eyes, “can you imagine my relief at walking into a scene, seeing you, and knowing there’s no dead body for me to investigate.”
“I imagine it is a relief.” Addie couldn’t stop the grin spreading across her face. “You know I don’t always have the bad luck of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.” She glanced at Martha. “Actually, sometimes I can be in the right place at the right time.”
“Let’s keep it that way in the future.” He skirted past her to the back room, poked his head in, and turned to Martha. “I’ll get someone in to clean up back here. Why don’t you head home now? The tape should be down in the next day or so. Come back then.”
“I don’t have my car. I came with Paige.”
“One of my officers can give you a ride. Jefferies,” he called, “please see that Martha Stringer gets home safely.”
“Yes, Chief.”
Martha shuffled to the coatrack behind the counter, retrieved her handbag from a cupboard, and kissed Paige on the cheek. “I’ll see you at home later,” she said, and nodded at Officer Jefferies. “I’ m ready, but I do have one favor to ask.”
“Sure, what’s that?” he asked, pulling the bakery door open for her.
“Is it possible for me to sit in the front seat? I don’t want all the townies to think I’ve gone and gotten arrested again.”
“Umm . . .” He glanced at Marc and chuckled at his nod. “Sure. No problem.”
“Well, Paige and I should get back to the bookshop.” Addie glanced at Marc. “See you around.” She dashed out the door. “Martha, wait a minute,” she called as Jefferies started to close the front cruiser door.
“What is it, dear?”
Addie leaned down and kept her voice low. “Remember what we were talking about before all the excitement?”
“Yes, why?”
“I’m working on a theory, and maybe you can help me put a few missing pieces to the puzzle together.”
“Sure, if I can. What do you need to know?”
“What time did you leave the beach on Saturday night?”
“Well”—her gaze followed Jefferies as he slipped his way through the snow piles around the hood of the car toward the driver’s side—“I’m not exactly certain. I had it out with Brett’s latest hussy, and she took off in tears. Then I went back to the refreshment table and cleaned up. Ken helped me pack my car, and we left.”
“Together?”
“No, heaven forbid! Except when he wants something from me that man is as useless now as he was twenty years ago.” She pinned Addie with an unyielding gaze. “Not sure what he’s after this visit, but I got my eye on him so gonna keep him close until I know. So no, he was in his car, and I in mine. I only happened to follow behind him until he turned off on Hemlock Street to go to his aunt’s, and then I went on up the hill to my house.”
“And you have no idea what time that was?”
“Probably close to ten because by the time I unloaded the car and put the coffee urn and everything in the garage and got inside, the kitchen clock said ten-twenty.”
“I guess you wouldn’t have any idea what time Amber went back to the Grey Gull, would you?”
“No, and I didn’t care where she went at the time. I was just happy she had left the area. She was the one pushing for custody of Emma, it seems.” Martha bit her lip, no doubt to stop the flow of tears behind her eyes.
“I know that according to what Amber Carr told me,” Jefferies piped in as he leaned over in his seat and looked up at Addie, “and confirmed by witnesses when I questioned her, she went up to her room about nine-thirty and ordered room service. At about midnight, another guest at the inn was walking down the hallway and heard shouting, but h
e said it sounded like the woman was by herself, so she must have been on the phone.”
“Thank you, Officer.” Addie smiled and squeezed Martha’s shoulder. “We’ll talk later.”
Addie couldn’t contain the butterflies in her tummy. That midnight phone call confirmed that Amber must have been the person on the phone Old Bill overheard Brett arguing with. Now she only had to track down Bill and somehow make him reveal the other man on the beach. She loved it when pieces started to fall into place.
Martha pulled the door closed, and the cruiser pulled out into traffic. Addie spun around to head into her shop and jumped. “Marc, I didn’t know you were behind me.”
“It sounds like Jefferies didn’t either.”
“Don’t be mad at him. He didn’t share anything about the investigation. He only answered a question that may not have anything to do with the case.”
“You really expect me to believe that?”
“What?”
“How many times do I have to tell you not to—”
“Save your breath. I know the rest of the standard line.”
“Do you?” A harsh laugh erupted from his chest.
She flipped her ponytailed head, spun around, and marched into her shop to the tune of his laughter and the overhead bells ringing.
“It sounds like you and Mom had a pretty exciting morning?”
“Yes, yes, we did.” Addie smiled. “It was amazing actually.” She took off her jacket and laid it across the wooden countertop.
“You missed some excitement in here, too.”
“Really, what happened?”
“Kalea came in looking for her final paycheck.”
“I forgot all about that in the commotion. Was she upset that it wasn’t ready?”
“A little. Then, of course, she went on to whine about her tragic life.”
“I bet she did. She didn’t happen to mention where she and Jared were on Saturday night, did she?” Addie dropped a pod into the coffee brewer.
“As a matter of fact, she did.”
“You’re kidding?”
“No. She said she wondered if one of the reasons you were angry with her was because she didn’t let you know she was leaving town on Saturday and didn’t come home. She went on to tell me”—Paige’s eyes held a glimmer of mischief—“that it hurt her if that was the only reason because she and Jared had such a lovely evening in Boston, and to know that her happiness upset you was more than she could take.” Addie’s neck hairs bristled. “She huffed at that point and said she thought you’d be proud of her, not angry, because she was finally making something of her life and trying to prove to you that she wasn’t the same girl you knew in college.”
“Oh, I’m angry with her, but not for just that night, and it tells me she really hasn’t changed.” Addie shook her head. A sardonic chuckle formed in her chest. “Because last night I told her exactly why I was mad at her, but obviously none of that part has sunk in yet.” Addie eyed Paige. “Look, it’s not busy, and most likely won’t be until that police barricade comes down and stops detouring foot traffic past our door. Believe it or not, Kalea’s little talk with you has helped fill in a few of the puzzle pieces. Do you want to be my set of fresh eyes on the crime board?”
“Me? Shouldn’t you call Serena or Simon for that? I’ve never helped before. I wouldn’t know where to begin.”
“Nonsense, you read as many mystery novels as I do. Come on. It’ll be fun.” Addie scooped Pippi into her arms, and they headed toward the back room. Addie regaled Paige with Kalea’s latest antics and the deception she was attempting to pull off with Jared.
Paige stood in the doorway of the back room. Her fingers whitened around the wooden-frame molding. “She bought my sister’s dress shop? I didn’t realize Mellissa was actually serious about selling it. She told me she was only thinking about it.”
“It seems she did more than think about it. Keith told me since he and Mellissa . . . um . . . separated that her heart didn’t seem to be in it anymore.”
“Keith is such a sweetheart. He’s been like a father to both me and Emma, and a right-hand man to Mom since he first started dating my sister. They used to be so close until word got out that he left the Ship ’n Anchor with a local barfly and were spotted later by the lighthouse in a compromising position, to say the least. Still, Mellissa must have rocks in her head to even think about divorcing him. She’s never going to find a better man than he is, and once Mom gets over being mad at him. I’m pretty sure she’ll tell her the same.” Paige flopped down on a wooden crate. “I just wish she wouldn’t be so rash and hold off selling their shop until all this settles down, and she clears her head.”
“First off, having her husband cheat on her must have been a big blow and—”
“Yes, it’s tough, but not impossible to work out. It’s not like it was an ongoing affair. She was just some drunken-spur-of-the-moment fling.”
Addie’s brow rose. “Still, his indiscretion hurt your sister deeply, and—”
“But to sell the dress shop after they both worked so hard to make it successful.”
“I’m not sure this sale will go through once Jared discovers Kalea isn’t good for the money he fronted her. Because”—Addie’s eyes narrowed as she thought hard about what she’d said to Kalea last night—“I can’t imagine a businessman with his standing didn’t check out Kalea thoroughly before he fronted her money.”
“Good, maybe by then Mellissa and Keith will get counseling and be able to work it out. They have two kids.” Paige’s eyes filled with tears. “This isn’t fair to them.”
“No, it’s not, but there’s nothing we can do. It’s between Mellissa and Keith to work out.”
“You’re right.” Paige’s shoulders shuddered with a deep breath. “Okay, let’s focus on getting Mom off the list of suspects. Maybe we can salvage at least one of my family members here.”
“That’s my girl,” Addie said, flipping the cover from the board and then standing back to review what she’d previously written.
Paige gasped when she read the title of the first column on the board.
Murder
And then she continued to scan down the list.
Victim—Brett Palmer—Paige’s ex—Emma’s (Martha’s and Ken’s granddaughter) father
Murder weapon???
Murder scene???
Crime scene—alley behind Martha’s Bakery
Victim involved in two family public disagreements—Brett, Martha, Ken Stringer (Paige’s father/Martha’s ex)
Keith—husband to Mellissa (Paige’s eldest sister and son-in-law to Martha and Ken) broke up fistfight between Brett and Ken
Amber Carr—Martha had altercation with
Paige’s eyes widened as her gaze pored over the information written in the Book column on the right side.
The Secret Garden—belonged to Paige and Emma, gift from Ken, Martha’s ex—Paige’s father—on loan to Gloria
Gloria fall—in hospital
Book last seen—Gloria’s nightstand—by Addie and Martha
Martha informed of 25K value of book
Spare key to Gloria’s house—Martha
Book gone—Martha denies any knowledge—no indication of a break-in
Searched Gloria’s with police, absolutely no evidence of a break-in
Ken, Martha, Gloria all high school friends familiar with house
Brett, first on scene after Gloria’s fall
Jared Munroe, financial investor—Kalea’s boyfriend argued with Brett in park on Friday
Ken and Brett knew each other in Boston
Came to town the same time
Did Ken tell Brett about the book prior?
“Addie, I have no idea where we even start with all this.”
“We look at each clue and figure out if it tells us a connection to the murder and how strong of a connection it is, given means, motive, and opportunity. But before I forget a thought I just had . . .” She plucked the chalk sti
ck from the ledge and added beside Jared’s name: money to Kalea, and excuse to stay in town???
“This list over here”—Addie said as she scrawled the heading Reasons to Commit Murder beside the second column. She continued to talk to Paige while she scribbled—“is generally the main reason why a person commits murder. That is aside from serial killers or psychopaths who do it for fun or sport or other sick reasons, but I’m pretty sure that’s not what we’re dealing with here.”
Monetary
Passion
Revenge
Personal Vendetta
Self-defense and in-defense
Anger
Hatred
Jealousy
“The most important thing you have to remember is with any murder case, the key is to look at the”—she wrote across the top of the two columns—“means, motive, and opportunity, and then figure out which one of the suspects best matches all three.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
“We have to be missing something,” Addie said, scanning the board, “because according to this, everyone on here had a motive to kill Brett but what I don’t see is who had the opportunity.”
“You mean, besides my mom?” Paige said. “We’ve been at this for over an hour, and we’re no further ahead in proving her innocence. It still looks like she’s guilty because all the other suspects on here were somewhere else at the time of the murder, and have alibis.”
“I’m afraid you’re right. It does appear that given the coroner’s estimated time of death each of the other suspects have witnesses for where they were.”
“Yeah,” Paige said in a huff, crossing her arms. “Because Kalea and Jared were in Boston, someone saw my dad at my aunt’s house and swears he never left, and according to staff and another guest, Amber was at the hotel. Unfortunately, it looks like, at least according to the information we have so far, no one but Mom had a motive to kill Brett, and also had the opportunity to do it at that time of the morning.”
A Page Marked for Murder Page 17