“Hi,” Allen said, grinning when I opened the door. He seemed to be really happy with himself. He looked down at his dripping boots. “Let me take these off, so I don’t get your floor all wet.”
“Good idea.” I was playing it cool.
“Can we go out to your studio? I want to show you something, and I think it would be best where the light is better.” It was true, the studio had terrific light, with huge windows on the side and at the back.
When we got into the studio, he pulled out two small packages from his bag. “The first one is for you,” he said, gently placing a fiery red box in my hands.
My coolness was fading. It was hard to be mad at someone who was giving me presents. “Should I open it?”
“Yes! Of course!” he said, eager to see my reaction to what he’d brought.
I removed the silky burgundy ribbon and pulled off the lid. Inside was a beautiful bracelet, made of my beads.
“But, I don’t understand, I took these away from you—you stole them.”
“I didn’t steal them, I took them so I could keep them safe. I found your bracelet broken on the balcony—I think it must’ve broken while you were struggling to help Rosie.” Allen was trying to hard to be sweet, to explain that he meant well. It would’ve been better for him to have given this crucial evidence to Detective Grant, or at least explained his plan to put the jewelry back together. Then again, if the detective had analyzed the fingerprints on the beads, he would have be accusing me of strangling Rosie, because my fingerprints were all over those beads.
If I took it to its ludicrous extreme, I could say that because the beads were missing, the detective didn’t take me into custody. By not being in custody, I was able to discover not only Misty’s murderer, but who had tried to kill Rosie, as well.
“But how’d you get them back after I confiscated them from you?”
“Oh, easy. Marta. She’s one tricky woman. I had her sneak them back out of the house.” Yes, I thought, she was tricky in many ways.
I recalled asking her where the baggy of beads that I’d lost were, and she never had answered the question. Instead, she’d distracted me by giving me a glass basset hound.
“Don’t be mad, okay? I was trying to be nice,” he said, earnestly.
“But how’d you know how to string them?” I asked. I put on the bracelet. It was perfect.
“I watched one of the demos this weekend, of course. It was supposed to be a weekend of education, right? Well, I learned how to string a bracelet and a necklace.” Allen was proud of himself. What a great guy. I could definitely feel my coolness melt away.
“And this one,” Allen said, opening the larger black velvet box tied with a red ribbon, “is for Rosie.”
“Oh, Allen, it’s magnificent, you put it back together exactly how it was before.” It was Rosie’s special collection necklace, with the different beadmakers’ beads flowing together in one long strand.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I put one of your beads in Rosie’s necklace, too. You have one less in your bracelet than you had before. But I thought she’d like to have one of your beads since you saved her life.”
“I don’t mind at all.” I was touched. How sweet of him. I reached out to hug him, and he’d decided he wanted more than a hug. He wrapped his arms around me, and gave me a kiss. A really nice kiss. Wow.
We heard Stanley hacking and coughing, and trotting toward us. When Stanley got to the studio door he dropped one of Allen’s beautiful leather boots, now covered in dog spit and teeth marks, on the ground at our feet. And then he coughed up a piece of boot leather that landed on the top of Allen’s foot.
Immediately, Allen’s mood changed. The sweetness was gone.
“Goddamn it!” Allen yelled. Stanley turned and ran down the hall, careening off the walls.
Allen picked up the slobbery boot and headed back down the hall, cursing the whole way to the door.
“Where are you going? Look, I’m sure Val will pay for your boots, or I can. Wait!” I said, following after him.
“You know, Jax, you seem like a really great person. But, I’ve got to say, this situation is crazy. Dogs eating my boots, your psycho cat attacking me, you accusing me of stealing—this place is a loony bin!”
He stood at the front door looking pathetic, holding one boot in his hand. The other boot was nowhere to be found. Stanley probably had taken it off to a secret lair to chew on later.
“I love my life, every single crazy bit of it,” I said, opening the door wide. “If you can’t have a sense of humor when things go wrong, then you shouldn’t be here.”
“But I…” he gestured with the boot in his hand, frantically looking around for any sign of his missing footwear.
“Out.”
He left, carrying one boot as he walked gingerly down the front path in his stocking feet. In the rain. Poor man. Bad man. At least I’d figured it out sooner, rather than later.
I found Stanley back in the guest room with his head on top of Allen’s other boot. I reached down and gave Stanley’s head a good scratch. “Good boy,” I said. His big tail gave a few good thumps on the floor in appreciation.
I needed to get over to Aztec Beads as soon as possible. I had Rosie’s fabulous necklace, and I knew she would be happy to see it again.
I hopped into the Ladybug and headed over to Aztec Beads.
Rosie was standing at the front counter when I came in the door.
“I want you to have this,” I said, handing her the elegant black box.
“Oh, Jax, what is it?”
“Open it and see,” I said, urging her on.
She opened the box and was silent for a moment.
“Oh, my goodness,” she said finally. “It’s perfect. I never thought I’d see these beads again. I figured they were gone forever.”
“I didn’t do it. Allen did,” I said, feeling like I should confess that I hadn’t put the necklace back together. “He learned how to string beads this weekend.”
“That’s nice. I’ll have to thank him next time I see him.” It might be a long time before we see him again, given his exit from my house a little while ago.
“And look,” I said, “he fixed my bracelet too.”
“Such a quick learner, and a nice guy too.”
“Let’s just stop at ‘quick learner.’”
Rosie looked at me now, her expression softer than I’d ever seen it.
“Jax, thank you for helping me. I know I’ve not always been the easiest person to be around.” Understatement of the century. “I’m going to try and relax and not be so bossy, and I going to trust Tracy to take on more responsibility here at the store. I don’t want to destroy my family, or my business.”
I had a few dozen questions for Rosie, about Benny (her grandson?) and Rudy (her husband?), but those questions could wait.
I went over to Tessa’s and brought Stanley along. I figured Joey could give Stanley a good run around the backyard. The poor dog only had Marta his whole life. He seemed to enjoy playing catch with Joey, and Benny, who was over for a play date.
“So, it turns out Marta confessed to killing Misty, and trying to murder Rosie,” I said to Tessa, sipping my coffee. We were sitting out on her back porch while the sun streamed down on us through the big pine trees in the yard.
“Marta had her perfect dream—to live in the apartment upstairs and run her pet shop, sell her dog necklaces, have a grooming area where the gallery is now. And live happily ever after.
“In fact, that was going to be the name of her shop ‘Happily Ever Arfter,’” I said.
“Arfter?”
“Yes, get it? It’s a play on words.”
“I get it, but it’s too cute for words,” Tessa said.
“You mean cuter than ‘dog necklaces?’” I asked.
“Yes, just about that cute,” Tessa said.
“But Rosie beat her to the punch. She got the place, and rented it right from out from under her friend.”
> “Not nice,” said Tessa.
“No, not at all,” I agreed, “but at least Rosie didn’t go around murdering people.”
“I wish we could get Rosie to lighten up. I wonder how?” Tessa asked.
“I talked with Rosie earlier, and I think she’s going to try and relax.”
“You know, working with beads can be soothing,” Tessa said. “She’s got a shop full of them. Maybe she’ll make a necklace from time to time.”
“Any news on Nick?” I asked.
“Great news,” Tessa said. “Frankie Lawton got in touch with him, and Nick’s going to make some beads for him in the style Misty used to make.”
“Terrific.”
“And Nick has been sleeping on the couch at Dylan’s apartment lately, and is going to help him with the rent.”
“That will definitely help Dylan make ends meet,” I said.
“How’s everything working out with Stanley?” Tessa asked.
“Val is completely smitten. She says she’s given up men for Stanley.”
“We’ll see how long that lasts,” said Tessa, with a laugh.
“Well, I’ve also got the challenge of getting Gumdrop and Stanley to like each other. We are somewhere between mild loathing and indifference.
“They’re not getting along?”
“It’s much better than it was. Before, it was a full-scale war.”
“And how’s your kitchen looking? Did Rudy finish painting?”
“Geez, he’s taking forever. He seems to like to come over and work each morning, then take a break in the afternoon when Val comes home from the salon. They’ve been on a Star Trek binge lately. It’s making me crazy.”
“Star Trek? Val just doesn’t seem the type,” said Tessa.
“I couldn’t agree more. But, I’m getting the neighbor-of-Val discount, so I can’t complain.”
We heard a knock on the front door. “Come on in,” hollered Tessa.
It was Tracy. She walked through the house and sat with us on the back porch. We watched the boys and the dog rampage around the yard.
“Tracy! Tracy! Look at this ball!” Benny handed her a wet and slobbered-on ball. “I threw it! The dog gave it back to me!”
“Cool! You want to throw it to him one last time?”
“Yay!” Benny threw the ball as far as he could, and Stanley went running after it.
“Okay, kiddo. Let’s go, I have special friend named Dylan I’d like you to meet. I think you’re really going to like him.”
“Is he nice?” Benny asked.
“He’s terrific, and he’s looking forward to meeting you.”
“Someday I need to tell you about Tracy and Dylan. And Benny,” I whispered.
“What—”
“Shhhh. Don’t ruin the moment.”
And with that, Tessa and I looked at each other, clicked coffee cups, and smiled as Tracy and Benny walked hand in hand out the door.
AKNOWLEDGEMENTS
It takes a village to write a book. Thanks to all the amazing villagers who read, reviewed, and edited mine: Lori, Jennifer, Sharon, Pam, Leslie, Phyllis, Jim, and Deborah.
And an enormous thank you to Jeff and Kiera for their support, patience, and love. I couldn’t have done it without you.
High Strung: A Glass Bead Mystery (The Glass Bead Mystery Series) Page 20