Teaberry Tea & Thyme

by R A Wallace

  Jill took a deep breath. “I met him about six months ago. He came into Tea & Thyme.”

  “Where was he before he came to Teaberry? Was he married?” Megan asked.

  “He was from Ohio. His wife passed away there. He said it held too many sad memories, so he came here.” Jill looked away for a moment to compose herself. “He said that I made him happy. And we were too, so very happy together. He was so attentive and romantic. He said we were meant to be together forever, like soulmates. He promised he would spend the rest of his life just trying to make me as happy as I made him.”

  Megan ignored the eye roll Janice gave. “What happened at the party before his death?”

  The twins looked at each other and shrugged. Janice spoke first. “There were so many people here, it’s hard to keep it all straight.”

  “Early in the party, I was still mainly greeting people as they arrived and talking with them.” Jill looked back at her sister for confirmation.

  “I was trying to help out, bringing things from the house to the tables outside and talking with people too,” Janice said. “Then, as the party went on, we both started mingling with guests.”

  “Did you argue?” Megan asked.

  Both women shrugged. “A little,” Jill acknowledged. “Blake wanted to made amends with Janice, so she would approve of the marriage.”

  Janice snorted. “He told me I was being selfish.”

  Megan changed the subject. “Can you give me some of the names of the people who were at the party? Maybe someone saw something.”

  The twins looked at each other then turned back to Megan. “The police spoke with them all.”

  “I’d still like to try,” Megan said.

  ***

  Megan found Lauren in her work kitchen, as usual. Justin was working his nursing shift at the hospital. The children, Mia and Noah, were in school.

  “Do you think either one did it?” Lauren stood at the island in her work kitchen rolling out dough.

  Megan shook her head slowly. “I’m not sure yet.”

  “I might know something,” Lauren said hesitantly. She didn’t like to gossip but she understood that Megan gathered small pieces of information to see how, or if, they fit into the larger puzzle. She didn’t want to hold back a piece that might end up being important.

  Megan watched her cousin’s internal struggle. She hadn’t expected Lauren to have any clues about the Swindell twins. She stopped at Lauren and Justin’s just to drop off more fruit. Lauren used the produce from Megan’s farm for her baked goods. She advertised the fact that the produce was locally grown and named the Teaberry Farm Bed and Breakfast specifically in her ads.

  Lauren finally looked up. “I heard Janice arguing with Blake Vargo at Tea & Thyme.”

  “Arguing? About what?” Megan asked.

  Lauren shrugged. “I didn’t hear the entire conversation, so I may be mistaken. But when I walked in, I heard Janice shout something about Blake pulling the wool over Jill’s eyes, but Janice had his number. That sort of thing. Then she ordered him out of the shop.”

  “I’m not surprised. They both admitted that Janice didn’t like Blake.” Megan saw Lauren relax in relief. She hadn’t said anything that Megan hadn’t already heard from the twins themselves.

  “What are you going to do next?” Lauren asked as she resumed working on her pies.

  “I need to start speaking with some of the guests to learn what they may have seen.”

  Chapter Nine

  Tia Jamison opened the box she had just received from the delivery truck and looked inside with the same level of excitement a small child would have on Christmas morning. It was an order of books she had placed recently for some mysteries. Tia knew that many people her age wouldn’t be so excited about old fashioned books, but she had loved them since she was a small child. Now forty, the enchantment hadn’t dimmed.

  She entered them into her computer and then printed the labels with the pricing information. She tagged each of the books with the appropriate label before taking the stack of paperbacks over to the mystery section in her bookstore, Olde Tomes. She’d owned the store for over a decade. Although the bookstore still managed to bring in some money, she was fortunate that her husband also worked.

  For Tia, Olde Tomes was more a labor of love than a goldmine. She passed her days pleasantly in her bookstore. She knew most of her customers well enough to order in new titles for them before they even knew that they wanted them. When she didn’t have customers, she read new books like the mysteries she’d just received. She loved all books, but mysteries were her preferred genre.

  She also held book club meetings regularly and enjoyed discussing the books with other book lovers. Of course, Tia thought as she looked around her bookstore, she didn’t have as much space as she’d like. Trying to crowd the book club members into her shop was difficult and awkward. Her shop was located on Main Street in the building recently purchased by Ross McMann.

  In fact, her shop was directly next to the new business incubator that Ross had started in the former photographer’s shop. He seemed like a nice enough man. Tia hoped that he didn’t have plans to evict any of them. She knew that Ross had begun seeing Susan Anderson, who used to own the florist shop. Surely, Ross wouldn’t evict Caitlyn, would he?

  Tia finished arranging her new mysteries, then carried the empty box back to the room in the rear of the shop. After breaking down the box, she put it in the bin for recycling. Then she turned and picked up the mail that she had also received. Skimming through them, she saw that one of the letters was from Jennifer Parker, a local lawyer.

  Tia knew that the Swindell twins had received a letter from Jennifer also. Theirs had been good news. Holding her breath, Tia opened her letter as she returned to the front of the shop. She read it twice before allowing herself to believe it. Then she looked at the wall between her and the business incubator and grinned.

  Quickly, she flipped the open sign on her front door to closed and walked a few feet down the sidewalk to the business incubator. She tried the door, but it was locked. Looking around, she decided to check in the florist shop.

  The bells rang on the front door, causing Caitlyn to pop her head out from her workroom in the back. When she saw Tia, she stepped into the front. Caitlyn had known Tia for as long as she could remember. Tia had owned the bookstore in the same building for longer than Caitlyn had owned the flower shop, though Susan had owned it before Caitlyn. Tia wore her long blonde hair in a messy bun that Caitlyn had often envied. Her reading glasses were kept on a beaded chain around her neck. She tended to prefer long, flowing outfits and today was no exception.

  “Tia, how are you?” Caitlyn asked as she brushed her hands off.

  “I’m thrilled. I just can’t believe it!” Tia said excitedly.

  Caitlyn raised her eyebrows, wondering what she’d missed. She looked down at the letter Tia was holding in her hand. Pointing with her chin as she wiped her hands, she said, “About that?”

  Tia looked down at the letter. “Oh, yes. I forgot I still had it. It’s from Jennifer. Well, Ross McMann really. He’s such a nice man, isn’t he?”

  Caitlyn stared pointedly at the letter. “He sent you something?”

  “Oh, yes. He’s offered me an extension on my contract at the same rate. That was nice enough of him. But he also said that I could use his newly refurnished meeting room in the incubator for my book club meetings. Isn’t that amazing?” Tia gushed.

  Caitlyn thought it was a nice idea but wondered about the actual execution of the plan. “How will you access it?”

  “That’s the thing. He said we could add an access door from my shop to his meeting room to make it easier. It will be like a shared space between us. Isn’t that amazing?” Tia still couldn’t believe it.

  “Yes, yes, that’s amazing,” Caitlyn agreed. She didn’t actually need more proof that Ross was a nice man and she wasn’t surprised whenever she found it.

  Tia looked at Caitlyn and n
arrowed her eyes. “Have you gotten your letter yet? I know Tea & Thyme has gotten theirs. I’m not sure about anyone else yet.”

  “No, no we haven’t.” Caitlyn had wondered why but hadn’t wanted to be the one to broach the subject to Ross.

  “Well, I should get back to my shop. I was just bursting with the news and had to tell someone.” Tia waved with her letter and walked back to her shop. After unlocking the door, she flipped the sign back to open. She was walking toward the back of her shop when she heard the bells on the door ring. Turning around, she saw Megan enter.

  “Megan, I was just thinking about you. I have some news for you to add to my web site.” Tia was still brimming with excitement as she explained the letter to Megan.

  Megan looked over at the wall separating the two spaces. “That will be nice for you. I know you’ve been having a lot of space issues for your book club meetings.”

  “We’re working on a mystery right now. You should join us.” Tia thought about what she’d just said, then her eyes narrowed at Megan. “Are you already working on one of your own?” She had heard about Megan’s involvement with some recent mysteries in Teaberry.

  Megan took a few steps farther into the shop. “Actually, that is why I’m here. I understand that you were at the Swindell engagement party?”

  Tia walked over to the counter where her cash register sat and leaned against the counter. “I was, yes. I hadn’t planned to stay long, but of course I wanted to put in an appearance since we all have shops in the same building. To show my support, you know.”

  Megan nodded. She would have done the same thing. “Did you see or hear anything unusual while you were there?”

  Tia thought about it for several moments and shook her head slowly. “I really don’t think so. I was standing in line waiting to get my food. I had just stepped up to give my order to that nice man that stopped in my shop not long ago. He was working at the food truck. That’s when I heard the screaming. I never did get to eat.”

  Megan raised her eyebrows. “Nice man?”

  “Oh, yes,” Tia said. “It was very sad. He stopped in to look at my books. I asked him if he was here to buy for himself or his wife. But he said that he’d lost her.”

  “He was working at the engagement party?” Megan asked.

  “Yes, for the new Station Pub & Grill catering truck. There were two men working. I didn’t recognize the other one,” Tia explained.

  Megan asked for a description and then filed the information away. “But you didn’t speak with Blake or the twins while you were at the party?”

  “No, just Jill when I first arrived. She was greeting people, but she was busy, of course. I just spoke with her briefly and then went around and talked to others that were already there.”

  Megan asked Tia more questions but didn’t get much more that she thought would be relevant. Soon after, she thanked Tia and promised to post the information soon about the new meeting room accommodations for the book club on the book store web site.

  Chapter Ten

  Megan looked up the addresses of the names that the Swindell twins had given her. She mapped them out logically using her GPS and began visiting each one. First on the list was Philip and Sunny Barclay. They were both now retired, so Megan hoped to find them at home. Philip answered the door and invited Megan in. He led the way to the deck in the rear of the house. Sunny was checking her flower beds for rogue weeds. She smiled in relief when she saw Megan.

  “Megan, how nice to see you. I was looking for an excuse not to weed.” Sunny pulled off her gloves as she took the steps up onto the deck. “Philip, dear, would you get us some of that lemonade?”

  Lifting the wide brim hat from her head, Sunny fluffed her short, snow-white hair and sat in the closest deck chair. She motioned for Megan to join her. Sunny asked Megan about her parents while they waited for Philip to return with a tray carrying three glasses.

  “Now, I’m sure you have more important things to do on your farm. What brings you out our way?” Sunny asked as she leaned back in her chair with her lemonade. She watched Megan with intelligent blue eyes as she sipped her drink.

  Megan explained that the twins had requested her help with their current situation.

  Sunny nodded slowly. “We’ve been talking about that situation since the party yesterday.”

  “It was quite the surprise for us all as you might imagine,” Philip added.

  “I’m sure it was upsetting for everyone involved,” Megan murmured.

  “Oh, it was. Poor Jill. Can you imagine?” Sunny stretched out a hand covered in age spots and patted Philip’s. “I don’t know what I would do without my Philip.”

  “Did you see or hear anything in particular that you thought was odd?” Megan asked.

  “The police asked us the same thing, you know.” Philip pulled at his chin as he thought.

  “We didn’t really have a chance to talk with Blake while we were there,” Sunny said as she looked over at Philip for confirmation.

  He nodded in agreement. “We said hello to Jill when we first got there.”

  “Everything looked very nice. The food was amazing.” Sunny turned to Philip. “We didn’t have time to finish though.”

  “That was when we heard the screaming, right after we started eating.” Philip nodded in agreement.

  Megan thought for a moment. “What about Janice? Did you see or talk with her?”

  Sunny and Philip looked at each other. “Not to talk to her,” Sunny said slowly. “We did see her at the food truck though, now that you mention it.”

  “That’s right. She was talking with one of the men working with the catering truck,” Philip agreed.

  Sunny chuckled. “It looked a little more serious than just chatting.”

  Philip smiled at Sunny. “He was trying pretty hard, wasn’t he?”

  “Trying hard to do what?” Megan asked.

  Sunny turned to look at Megan, still chuckling. “To get her to agree to a date.”

  ***

  The next couple on Megan’s list were Randy and Rae Hagar. She assumed Randy would be at work but knew that Rae chose to only work part-time while her children were young. She figured the kids would be in school but hoped that Rae would be home. She parked her truck in front of the Hagar house just as Rae was pulling into her driveway.

  Megan watched Rae get out of the car and begin to grab grocery bags from the back of the SUV. She quickly jogged across the street and grabbed a few bags as she greeted Rae.

  “Do you have a few minutes to talk to me about the party yesterday?” Megan asked as she followed Rae into the house.

  Rae had her mid length hair pulled back in a tail. She was wearing khaki capris and a tank top with a plaid seersucker camp shirt over it.

  “If you don’t mind me putting the groceries away while you talk,” Rae said amiably.

  Megan explained that the twins had asked for her help.

  “That poor woman. I can’t imagine what she must be feeling today. She was probably in shock yesterday. I doubt it even sunk in until today.” Rae flashed compassionate eyes toward Megan for a moment before turning to put away several boxes of cereal.

  “I know both you and your husband spoke with the police yesterday. Can you tell me if you also talked with Blake or either of the twins?” Megan asked as she leaned against a counter. She had picked a neutral corner in the room, trying to stay out of Rae’s way as she worked.

  “Yes, we told the police what we knew.” Rae flashed Megan another look before turning again to open the fridge. She lifted gallon jugs of milk from the grocery bags. “Other than saying hello to Jill when we first got there, we didn’t talk with any of them really. We didn’t have a chance to speak with Blake or Janice at all.”

  Megan was about to thank Rae for her time when she pulled her head from the fridge and spoke again. “But we did see Blake. He got a phone call and walked away from the party. Like it was too noisy for him to hear the person on the phone, you know?”r />
  “He got a phone call? When was this?” Megan asked.

  Rae looked up at Megan from her bags of groceries. “Not long before we heard the screams.”

  ***

  Megan went into the small building a few blocks from the town square and found Diane Lewiston sitting in the front room. Diane worked the front desk for the insurance agency. She was on the phone when Megan entered. Diane ignored Megan and continued speaking into the phone. Megan turned to examine some brochures piled on the counter so it wouldn’t appear as though she were openly eavesdropping on what was obviously a personal call.

  Diane was a very attractive woman in her late forties. She tapped a manicured nail on the desk as she talked. She finally finished her call then turned to the computer to type something in before finally acknowledging Megan.

  “Can I help you?” Diane picked up some papers on her desk, shuffled them, and then returned them to the same spot.

  Megan explained the reason for her visit. The change in Diane’s countenance was immediate. She went from bored to animated and began telling Megan all about the inconveniences she had suffered having to wait to be interviewed by the police.

  Megan listened to Diane’s comments and then interrupted her as she was about to begin repeating the same complaints. She asked Diane the same questions she’d been asking the others. Did Diane speak with the twins or Blake? Did she see or hear anything unusual?

  Diane had not, or, at least nothing related to the people in question. “I still can’t believe he just ignored me. Can you imagine?” Diane asked indignantly.

  “Who ignored you?” Megan felt as though she’d missed part of the conversation.

  “The cute man at the food truck, silly. I told him I was single. That’s usually enough of a hint for a man to ask me out.”

  Megan raised her eyebrows.

  Diane took it to mean that Megan was as equally surprised as Diane. “I know, right? He actually told me he wasn’t interested. Can you imagine?”