Eve Lloyd’s A Deadline Cozy Mystery Box Set 2

by Sonia Parin

  Everyone nodded and murmured their approval.

  Mira put her hand on Jill’s shoulder. “Don’t you think that’s a bit extreme? After all, the police are looking into the case. If, indeed, there is a case. For all we know, that man died of natural causes and Jack is only being overcautious and thorough.”

  Noticing everyone’s attention shifting to the door, Eve swung around.

  Jack stood by the door, raindrops trickling down his cheeks.

  Eve sighed. “For heaven’s sake. What now?”

  “Eve. Could I have a word with you, please?”

  Eve strode toward him with everyone else following her.

  When she turned, they stopped.

  She sighed. “I guess anything you have to say to me you can also say to them.”

  “I’m afraid it’s not good news.”

  Eve turned to the others. “Is anyone here surprised to hear that?”

  They all shook their heads.

  Lowering his voice, Jack said, “The preliminary lab reports came in. All signs point to the possibility, and I can’t stress that enough, it’s still only a possibility, but considering our current situation,” he raked his fingers through his hair, “The fact we’re all housebound—”

  Eve grumbled. “Stew Peters died of poisoning.”

  Chapter Six

  “How could you drop a bombshell like that in front of everyone?” Eve asked in a hard whisper as she drew Jack into the kitchen and away from the door leading to the dining room.

  Jack frowned. “I tried to be subtle, but you jumped to conclusions.”

  Glancing around her, Eve saw everyone agreeing with Jack.

  “Was my conclusion wrong?” she asked.

  Jack pressed his lips together.

  “Well?” She knew he didn’t want to come straight out and say it. So, she said it again. “You believe he was poisoned, but you won’t know for certain until you get the lab results. Meanwhile, you would like us to take extra care. Thank you for giving me a few dots to join.”

  Jack looked almost relieved. Eve imagined he’d been in a difficult position. On the one hand, he wouldn’t want to be an alarmist, but on the other hand, he had a duty of care and had to make sure they all survived the night.

  The fact they were forced to spend the night together with a bunch of possible suspects still puzzled her. Deep down, she knew Jack would never deliberately put her in the path of danger.

  “I know you want them all out of here, Eve—”

  “Yes, yes. Finding alternative accommodation at such short notice, and on a stormy night, would be impossible, more so as my inn is the only place offering such services on the island.”

  Jack laughed under his breath. “They’re putting their lives in your hands, Eve.”

  Frowning at his uncharacteristic behavior, Eve turned and sent her gaze bouncing from one person to the other. Everyone had leaned in to hear her murmured conversation with Jack. “Hands up anyone who instantly thought I had something to do with poisoning Stew Peters,” she whispered.

  Thinking they hadn’t heard her, Eve was about to repeat herself when Jill’s hand shot up.

  “Jill!”

  “What?” Jill whispered, “I’m not saying you did it deliberately. Maybe he had an allergic reaction to something he ate.”

  Eve closed the doors leading to the dining room. Knowing she’d need a buffer between the noise in her kitchen and the dining room, she’d had new doors installed. Fire-rated to avoid the spread of a disaster in her kitchen and just for good measure, double thickness to minimize the noise. She turned to face everyone. “There are other ways of ingesting poison.”

  Mira brushed her hand across her chin. “It’s interesting that you should say that, Eve.”

  Eve turned to Jack. “Have you informed the others?”

  He shook his head.

  “Are any of them under suspicion?”

  “We’re still looking into it. At this point in time we don’t have any proof to link back to any of them.”

  Eve brushed her hands across her face. “Jack, are you saying one of them is a killer but since you don’t have enough proof to haul them away for further questioning, we are all going to spend the night under the same roof?”

  Everyone stilled to hear Jack’s response.

  Eve knew he’d been placed in a difficult position. She could sense him trying to find the right words.

  He cleared his throat. “I’ll be here, along with some other officers,” he offered.

  Eve counted to ten, but her patience splintered. “Why can’t you drive them away... somewhere.”

  “It’s chaos out there, Eve. The storm has caused some damage. Emergency services are busy assisting. I’d prefer to contain the situation and keep everyone here.”

  Eve raked her fingers through her hair. “Wait a minute. This is unconscionable. The police would never deliberately endanger civilian lives.” Either he didn’t have enough information or he simply didn’t suspect any of the guests.

  “You have nothing to worry about, Eve,” Jack assured her.

  “That’s what I thought when I allowed them to set foot inside my inn. Now the damage is done,” her voice rose, “My reputation has been tarnished.”

  “In all fairness,” Mira said, “Your reputation has never exactly been squeaky clean.”

  Eve looked at everyone around her and saw a mixture of shrugs and nods.

  “You’re all unbelievable.” Eve turned to Jack. “I suppose you also expect me to feed you and your officers.”

  “If it’s a problem, we could order takeout. Although, I’d rather not send one of my officers out there or have a delivery person driving in these conditions.”

  “And how long do you think it’ll take for news about you getting takeout to spread? I can just imagine what everyone would say. The local police were so wary of Eve Lloyd’s food, they ordered takeout.” Eve lifted her chin. “I have a good mind to call your bluff. You can’t possibly be serious about us all staying under the same roof.” The firm set of his mouth said otherwise. Eve gave a small nod. “Fine. So, what do we do?”

  “If anyone needs to leave this area, do so with a partner. Having said that, I don’t believe you have reason to worry.”

  “In other words, we have no reason to worry but we shouldn’t let our guards down.” Jill rolled her eyes.

  Resigned to this impossible situation, Eve sighed, “I assume the killer had a motive.”

  Jack nodded. “That’s usually the case, but I didn’t say Stew Peters had been murdered.”

  No, he hadn’t. Eve tried to remember Jack’s exact words but they’d meshed together with her impulsive conclusions.

  Stew Peters had died of poisoning.

  Regardless, Eve said, “You want us to believe it was personal and so the killer won’t have reason to kill again. His job is done and now he’s going to ride out this stormy night in the comfort of my inn. What if William Hunter and his guests suspect we’re onto them?” Worse, what if the killer suspect...

  “There’s no reason why they should.”

  “Aha!” Jill pointed a finger at Jack. “You’re not denying there’s a killer among them.”

  Jack put his hands up as if to call for calm. “Have you allocated the rooms yet?”

  Eve shook her head.

  “I suggest you put them in the top floor. I’ll have an officer standing guard on the landing. If anyone comes out of their rooms, they’ll have to get past him. This should all be sorted out in the morning.” He looked at her dinner guests. “I assume you’re all staying the night?”

  Mira grabbed hold of her editor. “I’ll take my chances out there. I’m taking Jordan home with me. As intriguing as all this is, I’d rather not risk losing my editor.”

  Jack nodded. “If the weather conditions don’t improve, I’ll have to insist you all remain here.”

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” Helena raised her glass. “I’d love to stay, but I have
an appointment early tomorrow morning. And Abby’s staying with me.”

  That didn’t surprise Eve. Abby had been hesitating about staying at the house she’d once owned saying she hadn’t quite come to terms with the two murders that had taken place there.

  Abby gave Eve a brisk smile. “Sorry, Eve. I’ll stay for dinner, but I have no desire to become a statistic. Of course, I’ll come by early tomorrow morning to see how you all fared.”

  “Hang on,” Eve said, “If they’re leaving, why can’t the guests leave?”

  “Because they have nowhere to go,” Jill reminded her.

  Eve tried to engage her brain. There had to be more options.

  No, there weren’t.

  As the captain of this ship, Eve thought, she had no other option but to steer them all away from troubled waters or navigate them as best as she could.

  Eve and Jill looked at each other. “I guess it’s just you and me.”

  Jill nodded. “And the killer.”

  * * *

  Eve washed her hands and checked her reflection on the bathroom mirror. “I can’t believe I had to relieve myself with you standing guard.”

  Jill laughed. “You heard Jack. We have to travel in pairs. This reminds me of school. Hurry up. I want to go too.”

  Eve stepped out of the bathroom and nodded at the officer who’d also accompanied them. Once Jill emerged, he left.

  “It’s just the two of us now. Let’s go have a peek at our killer guests,” Jill suggested.

  Along the way, they bumped into one of them.

  “It’s Valentine. The supermodel,” Jill whispered.

  “Can you please point me in the direction of the rest room?”

  Clearly, the guests hadn’t been given the same instruction to travel in pairs. Eve pointed her to the end of the hallway.

  “This dreadful business has put me on edge,” Valentine said as she swept past them.

  Eve made a conscious effort to keep her eyes ahead but she couldn’t help turning and watching the woman walking away. “I don’t think she ever stepped off the catwalk.”

  “Fancy walking like that in the middle of town. We’ll have to try it someday. Hey, do you think she went in there to get rid of lunch?”

  “Hang on, I’m actually trying to picture her as a killer,” Eve said. “What do we know about Valentine?”

  “Wife number one and soon to be wife number five. I’ve seen photos of her taking part in charity events and then there are the usual interviews reliving her glory days.” Jill shrugged. “I’m a little intimidated by her. When she asked me for pink salt I swear she wanted to whip me for not bowing to her.”

  “Let’s wait a moment. By the time she comes out, I might have thought of something to ask her.”

  Their patience paid off. When Valentine strode out of the rest room, she had her cell phone pressed to her ear. Seeing them, she disconnected the call.

  She gave them both a raised eyebrow look.

  Eve felt awkward hovering around.

  “I love the wallpaper,” Valentine said, and strode past them, her head held high.

  “She’s not the type to dirty her hands with murder,” Eve murmured under her breath.

  “No, but I think she might be the type to pay someone to do it for her. Let’s nail her down with a solid motive.”

  “How are we going to find one stuck here for the night?” Eve asked.

  “We’ll use our collective memories. Someone must have heard something or other. We only need a smidgen of information to paint a bright picture.” Jill laughed under her breath.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “I’m thinking of that TV show where a bunch of people are stranded on an island. The millionaire, his wife. The movie star. The professor and Mary Ann.”

  “Let me guess, they never got off the island?”

  Jill nodded. “In every episode, their efforts to leave the island failed.”

  “Well, we have an advantage. We’re in the kitchen with all sorts of knives. No one will dare make an attempt on our lives. Also, we have police presence. That should be enough to keep us safe.”

  They edged toward the living room.

  “Let’s just casually stand here for a moment.”

  As they watched the group, they saw Valentine move from one person to the other. She did all the talking while the others nodded.

  “She’s some sort of ringleader,” Jill whispered, “I’m guessing she’s telling them to hang tight. This will all be over soon. They are going to get away with it, so they have no reason to worry.”

  “You think they all had a hand in killing him?”

  “It’s going to be a long night. If we only have one suspect, we’ll end up playing scrabble and Mira will beat us all hands down. I vote for keeping our minds otherwise engaged.”

  They both straightened and swung around only to collide with Jack who stood with his hands hitched on his hips.

  “Lost your way?”

  Eve stood her ground. “Keep an eye on the super model. I mean, keep her in your radar but don’t look at her. She’s trouble. I can sense it.”

  “What are you basing your suspicion on?” Jack asked.

  “She went to the rest room to make a phone call. That has to mean something. She could have been planning her getaway or alerting her accomplice.”

  “Because this is an inside job and she’s been hired to kill everyone?”

  Eve looked over her shoulder. “What if Stew Peters wasn’t the only target?”

  Chapter Seven

  “Three steaks with potato salad and sandwiches, just in case anyone wants to nibble on something and a basket with sandwiches and strong coffee for the police officers.” As Jill took the plates into the dining room, Eve checked their table to make sure she’d set enough place settings for everyone. She hadn’t planned on sitting down with them, but that was before her undesirable guests had taken over her living and dining rooms. Giving everyone a cheerful smile, Eve said, “I hope you haven’t lost your appetites.”

  Everyone had settled around Mira who’d sat down with the laptop to, supposedly, do some research. They looked up and gave distracted nods.

  Sighing, Eve checked on her quail. Seeing that it only had a few more minutes to go, she reheated the rosemary and red wine sauce she’d prepared earlier.

  Jack came to stand beside her.

  “Where’s Josh?” Eve asked. “I want to know if he’ll sit down to dinner or if he’s happy with sandwiches.”

  “I’ll let him know. He’s hovering around the other guests. He’s using his interest in J.M. Kernel’s books as a cover. How are you holding up?”

  Eve smiled. “Under the circumstances, as well as can be expected. Thank you for asking. I’m sure someday I’ll be able to put a positive spin on this and have a good laugh about it.”

  Jack gave her a reassuring hug.

  When they all settled down at the table, Mira cleared her throat. “I did some research online and hunted down a few gossipy articles about Martha Payne.”

  “The revolver carrying wife number four?” Eve asked. While she didn’t want to encourage the conversation, the sooner they had a suspect, the sooner the group would be out of her inn.

  Despite Jack insisting they had to wait until the lab reports came through, Eve was convinced Stew Peters had died of something other than natural causes.

  “Yes, that’s the one. They have one child. They’re on good terms now, but they went through an acrimonious divorce. Martha dug up some dirt on him and won full custody of their daughter. Apparently, he’d been having an affair. They still have ongoing issues about her alimony, mostly concerning the fact William is quite generous when he wants to be, even after his divorces. Valentine, wife number one and about to become wife number five, received car upgrades every year while Martha had to make do with the same model Benz.”

  “That would give me reason for murder,” Helena murmured. Having gone through a couple of marriages, she had a few
tales to tell. “But William wasn’t the target. Did Martha have any reasons to want Stew Peters dead?”

  Jack sighed but refrained from once again reminding everyone the cause of death had yet to be determined.

  Mira held up a finger. “Stew Peters is... was William’s personal accountant and financial advisor.”

  Jill rubbed her hands. “Now we’re getting somewhere. Maybe Stew Peters was responsible for tightening the purse strings and advising William against buying Martha Payne a new car.”

  They all looked at Jack.

  “Guesswork will only get you so far,” he offered.

  “This wine sauce is superb, Eve,” Helena remarked.

  “Thank you. I’m glad to see everyone is enjoying the meal without fearing for their lives.”

  Abby grinned. “You should definitely have this on the menu.”

  “I’m thinking of doing game dishes on Sundays. Jill thinks I should have fun food on Friday nights. Burgers and pizza. I’m also thinking of having guest chefs, perhaps once a month. But that depends on how fast word spreads about my Inn of Death. The idea might never see the light of day.”

  A hard thump had them all looking up and turning toward the dining room. After a couple of minutes of silence, they resumed eating.

  “More wine anyone?” Eve offered. As she topped up everyone’s glasses, she gauged their moods. So far, she didn’t detect anyone on edge and eager to leave.