Deadly Southern Charm

by Mary Burton

  “It wouldn’t have been the first time he cheated, but no. Dad’s devoted to Jane.” After coiling the wire, Mia used her hammer to pull a nail from the same tree where I’d found loose nails—carelessly dropped earlier, no doubt.

  Coughing to mask my sigh of relief—I couldn’t imagine Gina stooping to seduce a married man, or any man for that matter—I pressed on to keep Mia talking.

  “Then what did Gina need to tell your Dad privately that would make you try to ki—hurt her?” I kept my voice soft so as not to spook her.

  “I didn’t mean to hurt her.” Tears brewed in her eyes, then spilled down her cheeks. “It was an accident. A terrible mistake.”

  “No, Mia. Stringing wire up and then pretending to be your dad was intentional.”

  “Not Gina. Mama.” A cloud, as stormy as the ones hovering overhead, soured Mia’s features. But then her groan launched a small flock of birds nearby. “I never meant to hurt her.”

  “I don’t understand.” My gut twisted. Her mother had been killed in a hit and run accident, but the police never found the driver. But then a new theory sent my mind whirling. “Wait. Were you the driver?”

  She nodded, hiccupping between sobs. “About an hour after Mama left with her college friends for their girls’ weekend, I found Dad and Jane together. Like, together together. I tried to call Mama, but she didn’t answer her phone. I had to warn her. So, I took Dad’s car and drove to Charleston. Oh, why didn’t she just answer her cell phone? None of this would’ve ever happened.”

  “But you weren’t old enough to have a driver’s license then.”

  “No. Just my learner’s permit. I knew where she and her friends were staying. Mama was furious when saw me drive up alone, so she ran out into the street to stop me. But I was so upset. So nervous. I got confused and jammed on the gas pedal instead of the brakes and I…”

  “You hit her.” Oh, such a burden of guilt this girl carried. My heart broke for her, and yet, her reality had brutal, life-shattering implications. “Why did you leave the scene?”

  “I was so scared I kept driving. I knew Mama’s college friends would call an ambulance to help her. I thought she’d be okay. But she wasn’t. I never told anyone. I didn’t know what would happen if I did. Would I go to jail? Would Dad hate me?” Her eyes pleaded with me, but for what? Understanding? Forgiveness? “I couldn’t lose him, too. After Mama died, Dad was all I had left.”

  “What did you do with your father’s car?”

  “I drove it into the garage door.”

  I’d forgotten about her car accident. She’d sworn she’d just been trying to back out of the driveway and accidently shifted into drive. “You kept a big secret all this time.”

  “After Mama’s funeral, Dad and Jane got married. I wasn’t even invited.” Mia wiped her face on her forearm, still holding the hammer. “Since the police never linked my car accident to Mom’s death, I figured it was all over. Case closed. My secret lay buried in Mama’s grave, until…”

  “Until two days ago, when Gina saw the photo of you and your mother.” In my peripheral vision, police officers crept around the bend positioning themselves in the trees.

  “She was there when Mama died.”

  “She realized you were the hit and run driver, didn’t she?”

  “That stupid picture in my wallet.” Mia squeezed her eyes shut, her face twisted in agony. She loved that photo, as it was the last one ever taken of her mom with her. She always carried it. “Gina threatened to have the police reopen the case.”

  “So you tried to stop Gina before she could tell Parker.”

  “Please, Courtney. Don’t tell him. Don’t tell my daddy.” Her raspy voice hitched on the one word that belied this young adult’s youth. Her naiveté.

  “I’m so sorry, sweetie, but the authorities need to know.” Each word uttered ripped my heart to shreds, yet reinforced my resolve. Mia was in over her head. I’d promised to help her. To be there for her. And I would. Every step of her brutal journey. But first, this young woman needed to own up to the mistakes she’d made. “Parker will understand. Over time—Oh!”

  “No!” Mia jammed her heels into D’Artagnan’s side, sending him charging toward me at full gallop.

  Before I could steer Bay out of the way, a cop lunged from a nearby tree as Mia passed under, landing on D’Artagnan’s rump and taking control of both horse and rider.

  Less than an hour later, a fleet of blue strobe lights pulsed through the woods in the waning dusk. Mia’s wrists were handcuffed, and the police had cordoned off the trail with yellow tape. As I finished giving my statement to one of the officers, Scott and Parker hopped out of an arriving squad car.

  “Mia?” With a stony face, Parker raced past us to his daughter and D’Artagnan. “What’s going on?”

  Scott took Bay’s reins from me to escort us back to the stables. Once we were out of earshot, he asked, “Are you okay, Courtney? Did Mia hurt you?”

  “Still in shock, but I’m fine.” Bay nudged my shoulder with his muzzle. “How’s Gina?”

  “She woke up and spoke with me for a couple minutes. Hopefully, she’ll be back in the saddle before autumn.”

  “Thank God.” I hugged Scott.

  “What the hell got into Mia? Dang, that girl came unglued.”

  I stopped and looked back in the distance at the precious-yet-broken girl, wrists tethered behind her, pleading with her dad. My gut sank to somewhere around my knees at the thought of the dark secret he was learning. Poor guy.

  “Unglued? More like unbridled.”

  DEADLY DEVONSHIRE, by Samantha McGraw

  “What do you mean Kate’s dead? She can’t be. Check again.” Tess glanced up from the scattered contents of the woman’s handbag, now strewn around her on the floor.

  “Sorry, Tess,” replied her assistant Jonah. “I hate to say this, but she’s gone.”

  Just minutes earlier, Kate Pullman was enjoying her lunch at The Tea Cottage. Everyone knew Kate had a nut allergy, but she always carried an EpiPen and was so careful about what she ate.

  But without warning, Kate had reached for her purse as she started to wheeze. Tess had rushed to help her, dumping the purse out on the floor and frantically tossing its contents about, but the pen wasn’t there. Tess had called out to everyone in the teahouse asking if anyone had an EpiPen, but no one did. They all rushed over, circling around as Kate crumpled to the base of her chair.

  Tess had tried to open Kate’s airway, but it was too late. Kate was dead.

  Now, Tess and all the patrons in the tearoom were in shock, stunned that a seemingly healthy young woman had died right before their eyes. Some were holding hands; others had tears streaming down their faces.

  “Tess,” whispered Daniel Rosen, one of the tearoom regulars, “I just got off the phone with 9-1-1. The dispatcher said the police and rescue can’t get here right away. The temperatures have dropped faster than anyone expected. Those snow flurries outside have turned to sleet, and the roads have iced over. Every available cop and ambulance is on a call. Since North Carolina hardly ever gets snow, they aren’t prepared. She has no idea how long it will take help to arrive.”

  “What?” Tess took a deep breath, aware everyone was watching. Then whispering to Daniel, “You mean nobody’s coming?”

  “Not right this minute. The dispatcher asked everyone to remain at the tearoom until they arrived.”

  “Hell’s bells! I can’t believe this is happening!” Tess said.

  “What are we going to do?” Jonah helped Tess stand.

  “Let me think,” she said.

  A dead customer was the last thing The Tea Cottage needed. Tess had sunk her life savings into the charming building. It had been built in the early 1900s and originally served as the town pharmacy. The pharmacist and his family used to live in the two-room apartment upstairs, but her assistant Jonah lived there now.

  Tess decided from the beginning to maintain the building’s historical charm. She spent
hours polishing the original hardwood floors, oiling the mahogany counter and repainting the open shelves. She hired a glass company to restore the stained-glass windows to their original condition. Once the antique dining tables and chairs had been put in place, she fashioned a small reading nook in the front corner with two soft armchairs and a variety of books to please any reader.

  Tess had worked so hard to make her business cozy and warm, a place where her guests could escape the outside world for least for an hour or two. And her guests loved spending time here so much that many came several times a week.

  And now, one of her regulars had died.

  Right in the dining room!

  This news would soon spread through their little town of Havenport, North Carolina, faster than chicken pox in a kindergarten classroom. Some of her guests were already murmuring to each other, asking for their checks and even reaching for their coats.

  “Everyone,” Tess said. “Please go back to your seats and wait for the police to arrive. It shouldn’t be long.”

  No one moved.

  “I understand you want to leave. I know seeing Kate like this must be very frightening, and the weather is getting worse,” Tess said. “But the police are going to need to talk to all of you, so they can figure out what happened to Kate.”

  Several guests nodded, others didn’t look convinced.

  “I promise Jonah and I’ll make sure y’all get home safe.” And then to ease their concerns about the drive home, “Jonah grew up in Vermont and lived there until last year. This kind of weather is normal for him. He will be happy to drive each and every one of you home in our delivery truck if he has to, right, Jonah?”

  “Yes,” Jonah said. “Of course.”

  “So please, be patient. Only a little while longer.”

  As the guests returned to their tables, Tess grabbed two fresh tablecloths from the kitchen and covered Kate’s body. Next, she removed food-safe gloves from her apron and tugged them on. She needed to understand what had happened, which meant she might have to touch things she knew she shouldn’t.

  Trying to settle her nerves, she thought through the last hour. “Jonah, I’m sure I didn’t make anything with nuts this morning. Did you?”

  “No, nothing,” he said. “I didn’t even take nuts out of the pantry. None of today’s recipes called for them.”

  “So how did she have an allergic reaction? We need to check her food.”

  Tess eyeballed every dish on the table without touching anything at first, but when she got to the Devonshire cream, she noticed a shiny coating on the top that she didn’t recognize. By the looks of it, Kate had dipped into it and spread some on her scone. She held the small dish up to the light and then sniffed it.

  “Almonds!” She whispered to Jonah. “Someone put almond extract on top of this Devonshire!”

  “If that’s the case, that means this was intentional,” he whispered. “Put it down, the police will need it for evidence.”

  “Someone in our shop killed Kate,” she said.

  “Who here knew her?” he asked.

  “Kate worked for Phyllis Ingram’s husband, Marcus. She was here alone one table away waiting for a friend. Rose Landry was two tables away. Kate lived next door to Rose at the Bed & Breakfast. And Kate told me she went out with Daniel Rosen a few times. But I wouldn’t think any of them had a reason to kill her.”

  “Well, somebody did, and if we don’t figure it out soon, they might destroy any evidence they have on them before the police arrive. We need to talk to those three. Who do you think we should start with?”

  “Daniel Rosen. Why don’t you ask him to come back over here? Be discreet; we don’t want to alarm anyone.”

  “Sure.”

  “And Jonah, we should save all the food in the kitchen in case the police need it. Would you mind packing everything up while I talk to Daniel?” Tess asked.

  “Sure, I’ll be in the back if you need me.”

  A moment later, Tess and Daniel were sitting together at an empty table in the back of The Tea Cottage dining room while the rest of the guests whispered among themselves near the front picture window. “Daniel, I’m trying to figure out what happened to Kate, so I want to talk to the people who knew her. She once told me that the two of you were seeing each other. Is that right?”

  “Yeah, but not for long. We only went out a few times before she called it quits.”

  “Why did she end it?”

  “She said we didn’t have much in common, but I got the feeling she was seeing someone else. Before our last date, she’d canceled on me a couple of times saying she had to work late. But I passed her office on my way home, and it was dark. She definitely wasn’t working. At least, not in the office.”

  “Did you have any resentment towards her for the breakup?”

  “No, not at all. We stayed friendly. I mean, we didn’t talk much anymore, and we never went out again, but she was always nice when we ran into each other. I saw her when I came in for lunch today and went over to say hi. We chatted for a few minutes.”

  “About what?”

  “You know, the usual stuff. How’s work, nice weather, that kinda thing,” Daniel answered.

  Tess sensed there was something he wasn’t telling her. “Can you think of anyone who might want to hurt Kate?”

  “Wait, what? Are you saying someone did this to her on purpose?”

  “It looks that way. Did she ever mention having trouble with anyone?” Tess asked.

  “Kate? No! Of course not. She’s as nice as they come. Everyone liked her. I can’t believe anyone would want to hurt her.”

  “Thanks, Daniel. I appreciate you talking to me. Remember, don’t leave until the police arrive.”

  “Sure.” Daniel looked down at the white tablecloth covering Kate’s body before slipping back to join the rest of the guests.

  Tess wasn’t sure if she saw sadness or remorse in his eyes.

  “What’d you think, Tess?” Jonah asked as he came out from the kitchen. “I heard him say he spoke to Kate when he came in today. Do you remember seeing him?”

  “I was so busy, but I think so. If he did, I’m sure it must have been polite because there weren’t any raised voices, and she never looked tense or upset. But she did break up with him. He might be lying about them still being friendly. I want to find out if Phyllis knows anything. I know she stops by her husband’s office frequently, maybe she’s seen or heard something there.”

  Gently touching Phyllis on the arm, she whispered “Can I have a word with you? In the back, where we can have some privacy, if you don’t mind.”

  “Sure, I suppose,” Phyllis responded.

  The two walked toward the back, and as they sat down, Tess bumped the table, knocking a teacup to the floor and spilling its contents. The porcelain shattered in a dozen pieces and the tea splashed around Phyllis’s Kate Spade bag.

  “Oh, Phyllis, I’m so sorry. It looks like I spilled some tea on your purse. Let me get a towel.”

  “Don’t worry about it, dear,” Phyllis said. “I’m forever setting my purse down where I shouldn’t. I got that spot a couple of days ago when I set my purse on the floor at another restaurant. I haven’t had a chance to clean it.”

  “Oh, I’m just glad I didn’t do that. I’d be upset if I ruined your beautiful bag.” Tess picked up the sharp broken teacup before anyone could cut themselves. “I wanted to ask you something. I saw you talking to Kate today. Do you know if anything was bothering her?”

  “No, I don’t think so. Everything seemed fine. I saw her over at the office earlier when I took Marcus his lunch. When I saw Kate, I mentioned that I was meeting a friend from Wilmington here for lunch, and she said lunch here sounded like a good idea. I ran a couple of errands and arrived a little before my friend. Anyway, Kate was already having lunch when I sat down. I stopped by her table for a minute to see what she had ordered. We spoke for a few minutes, and then I went to my own table. You had just served my tea when my frie
nd texted and said she wouldn’t be able to make it because of the snow. I guess she was right.”

  “I’m sure Marcus shares things with you. Did he mention if Kate was having a problem with anyone? Were there any issues you or he were aware of?”

  “Are you saying this wasn’t an accident?” Phyllis gasped and her hand flew to her chest.

  “It looks like someone did this on purpose. I’m trying to figure out what happened in case anyone else might be in danger.”

  “Oh dear! I can’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt Kate.”

  “What else can you tell me about her?”

  “Well, I know she moved here about two years ago from somewhere up north, I don’t remember where. She started working for Marcus shortly after that. She didn’t date much and the poor girl couldn’t have had much of a social life because she and Marcus were always working late,” Phyllis said. “I know she bought that adorable stone cottage next door to Rose Landry’s B&B. She often talked about working in her garden on her days off. I think she led a pretty quiet life.”

  “Daniel mentioned that they dated for a bit, but had recently broken up. He thought Kate was seeing someone new. Do you know who it might’ve been?”

  “No, I can’t say that I do,” Phyllis replied. “She hasn’t mentioned anyone to me. And between us girls, I don’t think her relationship with Daniel ended well. Marcus said he was calling the office several times a day, bothering her after they broke up. He heard Kate arguing with him on the phone at least once.”

  “Really? That’s good to know. Thanks for your patience. The police should be here soon, and hopefully, we’ll all be able to get home without much trouble.”

  Tess glanced out the display window where all the guests, including Daniel and Phyllis, were gathered. The sleet was still coming down hard. She wondered how much longer it might take for the police and ambulance to get there.

  She decided she needed to speak to elderly Rose Landry. Her Bed & Breakfast was next door to Kate’s house, and she was just nosy enough to watch who was coming and going.

  “Thank you for being so patient, Mrs. Landry,” she said as they sat down at a table away from everyone else. “I know you want to get home, especially in this weather. I promise, as soon as the police are done with us, I’ll have Jonah make sure you get home safe and sound. While we’re waiting though, I wanted to ask whether you had noticed any trouble at Kate’s house. Anyone bothering her?”