The Milburn Big Box Set

by Nancy McGovern

  Harvey sighed. “I see your point, but I stand by mine. He’s a jerk.”

  “He’s a jerk who’s saved my life more than once,” Nora reminded Harvey.

  “Is the only reason I’m letting him live in peace,” Harvey said. “I gotta go call Sam and Tina.”

  “Be gentle when you tell her about the poisoned frosting,” Nora said. “She’s going to freak out when she hears.”

  “Are you sure you’ll be all right here?” Harvey gave her a last, worried look. “I mean…”

  “I am going to be fast asleep,” Nora said. “I don’t think an orchestra could wake me up.”

  “You know, you think you’re good at pretending not to care,” Harvey said. “But I can see you do. You’re on the brink of a breakdown.”

  “I’m on the brink of falling asleep.” Nora held his hand, and raised it to her lips. “Don’t worry about me, Harvey.”

  “Someone’s got to,” Harvey said with a weak smile. “All right. I guess my only consolation is that no one is going to harm you here.”

  “I’ll make sure of it,” Deputy Ellerton said.

  “Give Sean a message from me?” Harvey asked.

  “Sure, what?”

  Harvey whispered it into his ear, and Deputy Ellerton laughed. “I could get fired if I said that to him, Harv. No thanks.”

  Nora stretched out on the lower bunk bed in her cell, thankful that she didn’t have to share the cell with anybody else. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but as exhausted as she was, worry seemed to be pumping adrenaline into her system. She couldn’t drift off.

  What was going on? The full implications of what Sean had said were just hitting her. The poisoned frosting had been found inside the diner’s fridge, and she had just been caught crossing a police line illegally. If she was suspected of tampering with evidence, it would make her the prime suspect in Eliza’s murder.

  Of course, it was ridiculous to believe that she would want to murder Eliza - there was no possible motive. Nora had never even seen Eliza before. But perhaps they would argue insanity? Or… Nora’s heart lurched a little. The day Jeremy had kissed Eliza… Onlookers that day had said Eliza flirted with Harvey when he tried to keep everyone at bay. What if they twisted that around, and made Nora look like a jealous girlfriend who…

  There was a clang at her cell door, and Nora sat up. Sean was sitting in a chair right outside.

  “Hey,” she said.

  “So, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being unsalted food and 10 being murderers, how much exactly do you hate me?” Sean asked.

  “Somewhere around 6, right now.” Nora smiled. “About as much as I hate damp towels after a bath.”

  Sean laughed. “Cute.”

  “You don’t seriously believe I had anything to do with the murder, do you?” Nora asked.

  “I don’t,” Sean said. “But it’s my job to pursue every lead. You know that.”

  “All right. But off the record, as a friend. Do you really have a case against me?”

  “I can’t answer that,” Sean said. “I’m sorry.”

  “Fine,” Nora said. “How about Bret? Any sign of him at all?”

  “I ran up a background check on him,” Sean said. “He’s had no priors. I called up a few of the places he worked at before coming here. Everyone had a good opinion of him. Except…”

  “Except?”

  “The last place he worked at fired him for stealing some money. Apparently he owed money to a drug dealer,” Sean said. “The owner told me in confidence, that Bret wasn’t a junkie or anything. Just a good kid who liked to party a little too much, and made some errors in judgment.”

  “It didn’t say that on his references,” Nora said, alarmed. “Tina would have checked for that sort of thing.”

  “It didn’t say so on his references because his ex-boss didn’t want to ruin a promising career over a single mistake,” Sean said. “It’s more common than you think.”

  “So Bret has a history of drug abuse, and called me randomly at 2am saying someone made him do something he regretted,” Nora said. “That sound suspicious to you?”

  “Very,” Sean said. “We’re already doing our best to look for Bret, but the thing is, he’s an adult and I can’t exactly declare him missing just because he doesn’t show up to work for one day. I can’t pin any crimes on him either.”

  “How about fingerprints?” Nora asked. “There’s got to be fingerprints in the diner if he was there yesterday?”

  “Only yours,” Sean said. “I’m reasonably sure that he lied to you. He wasn’t at the diner.”

  Nora groaned. “Why would he do that?”

  “Someone tried to lay a trap for you,” Sean said. “That’s my only explanation right now.”

  “That’s not your only explanation,” Nora said. “There’s a simpler explanation, isn’t there?”

  Sean shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

  “Come on,” Nora said. “You know there is. The simplest explanation is that I killed Bret, made up the whole thing about him calling me, or something, and go to the diner to get rid of evidence. Though why I would do that after your forensics team had run through the place, nobody can explain.”

  “Criminals do stupid things,” Sean said.

  “Yes, I believe they do.” Nora nodded. “You could make a jury believe it, too.”

  “Just… calm down,” Sean said. “A jury and a murder trial is too far away to think about now. Just get some sleep, and in a few hours, we can work it all out. Okay? I’m on the side of truth and justice, Nora, and as long as you are too, that means we can work together to solve this thing.”

  “I’m on the wrong side of these bars, Sean,” Nora said, clutching the cell door. “And as long as I am, I don’t think working together is a possibility. I should have listened to you when you asked me to get a lawyer yesterday.”

  *****

  Chapter 11

  Harvey Investigates

  “I can’t believe Sean!” Tina exclaimed. “He’s really gone too far this time.”

  “Let’s hope Bret hasn’t gone too far,” Harvey said. “This is the last bar we’ve got left, and if Bret wasn’t here, then, well… we’ll have reason to suspect foul play.”

  “We’ve got reason to suspect foul play anyway.” Tina sighed. “Someone is framing Nora. That’s the only explanation for everything that’s going on.”

  “I was thinking that myself,” Harvey said, with a frown. “So the question is who would want to frame Nora, and why?”

  Tina sighed. “Who wouldn’t? She’s put away so many murderers now. Chances are, some of them desire revenge.”

  “All of them probably desire revenge,” Harvey said. “The thing we need to find out is if any one of them is actively plotting revenge.”

  Tina nodded. “But even if they are, how could they execute it when they’re behind bars?”

  Harvey stopped his car and got out. “I’m going in to enquire about Bret. Call Sam and see if he’s had any luck, will you?”

  “Sure. I’d come with you but if people are smoking in there, I don’t want to inhale it.” Tina put a protective hand over her stomach. She watched Harvey as he went into the bar, wondering if he realized how weird it was to see him in sweatpants. Harvey was almost always in a suit. Even when they had casual dinners, Harvey had a sports coat on. But he hadn’t had a chance to change since the events of last night.

  Tina glanced at her watch. It was near noon. Poor Nora. The lawyer had told them that bail would be impossible to get until the weekend was over, and Harvey was feeling especially frustrated that Nora would have to spend another day behind bars.

  The bar was closed. Harvey tried the door anyway, and was pleased to find it was open. “We’re closed.” A teenager was mopping the floors in one corner, and said this without looking back. “Come back at 6.”

  “I’m not here for a drink,” Harvey said.

  The boy paused, and turned around. He was short, and thin, but on c
loser examination, looked to be in his early 20s. “What are you here for, then?”

  “Can I talk to the owner?” Harvey asked.

  “That’d be Tim Blake,” the boy said. “He’s not available right now. Can I help?”

  “Er, depends,” Harvey said. “You work here long?”

  The boy smiled. “I’m Timmy Junior. Officially, I’ve worked here about two years. Unofficially? Since I was 14.”

  “Well, great. I’m looking for this guy.” Harvey took out his phone and showed Timmy Jr a photo of Bret.

  The boy hesitated, and looked up at Harvey. “You the police or something? This guy in trouble?”

  “Nothing like that,” Harvey said. “I’m a friend, just looking for another friend. Have you seen this guy?”

  “Nope.” Timmy shrugged. “Have you tried the Lakeside Bar? Maybe he’s there.”

  “I’ve tried every bar in town, and then some.” Harvey sighed. “I guess he’s vanished into thin air.”

  *****

  Outside, Tina was talking to her husband on the phone. “Any luck?” she asked, when Sam picked up.

  “I wish.” Sam sighed. “Bret seems to have disappeared. The last time anyone saw him was day of the wedding. His landlord said he was late paying rent. Apparently, Bret mentioned something about losing money at a poker match the night before.”

  “That’s something,” Tina said. “Any idea where that poker match was held?”

  “At Matt Harris’ house,” Sam said. “You know him? He’s dating Charlotte’s maid of honor, Maria.”

  “Right.” Tina nodded. “We can ask him about it, then.”

  The car door slammed as Harvey got in. He pounded a fist on the steering wheel in frustration. “No sign of Bret. I’ve asked at all the bars, all the stores, checked his house. Bret’s just vanished.”

  “His phone is switched off too.” Tina sighed. “I’m getting worried about that boy. He can’t have run off, his car’s still here.”

  “Any idea who Bret was friends with?” Harvey asked.

  “No,” Tina said. “But Angela, that’s our other sous chef, she said he was last seen at a poker game the night before. That’s something, right?”

  “That’s nothing.” Harvey sighed. “Okay Tina. Let’s think. You hired Bret six months ago, right?”

  “Right.” Tina nodded. “He answered an ad I put up online. He was working in Colorado then, and had just got fired, but was willing to relocate.”

  “And Angela?”

  “Angela? I hired her around the same time. She’s a Wyoming girl. I know her mom really well. Angela was working at a restaurant in Jackson, but didn’t see her career progressing there, so she jumped ship when I offered her a chance to join us.”

  “Both of them had access to the fridge, right? Both of them could have tampered with the frosting?” Harvey asked. “And both of them had keys to the diner?”

  “Well, yes,” Tina said. “I mean… we have three sets of keys. One is with Nora, one with me, and one was toggled between Bret and Angela depending on what shift they had.”

  “When the frosting was made...” Harvey said, “…Bret had first shift that week, right?”

  “Right.” Tina nodded.

  “So… he could have done something.” Harvey frowned. “He could have put poison in the frosting, and tried to implicate Nora.”

  “But why would he?” Tina asked. “It makes no sense. He isn’t even from around here.”

  “Maybe not,” Harvey said. “But what if he’s related to someone who was from around here?”

  “What are you saying?”

  “Nora’s made a lot of enemies,” Harvey said. “Dangerous ones. We tend to forget about them once they’re behind bars, but they haven’t forgotten about her. What if Bret was paid by one of them? Or what if he was related to one of them?”

  “You mean...”

  “This whole thing, including Eliza’s death, I think it was all a plot to put Nora behind bars!”

  Tina gulped. “There’s no way we can know for sure. Is there?”

  “I’ve hired a man from New York,” Harvey said. “He’s a private investigator. He said he’s doing a background check on Bret. This way, we can find out if there’s any truth to my theory.”

  “For Nora’s sake, I hope not,” Tina said, her face drawn. “Who could it be, do you think?”

  “There’s one obvious suspect,” Harvey said. “Ashley Norton.”

  Tina nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.” She said. “I mean, it’s no coincidence that all this happened at Jeremy’s wedding. Maybe the poisoned cake was meant for him, and he just escaped death because Eliza played that horrible prank.”

  “Right.” Harvey nodded. “After all, Ashley killed Raquel in a fit of jealousy. She hated Nora for finding her out, and she would probably hate Jeremy now that he was marrying another girl. This murder was a stroke of genius, really, if Ashley’s the one who did it. She took down two birds with one stone.”

  “Poor Jeremy,” Tina said with a shudder. “Imagine the feeling that you were once married to a murderer? I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night, knowing she was out there, hating me.”

  “I couldn’t care less about Jeremy,” Harvey said. “It’s Nora I’m worried about, and if Ashley has anything to do with framing her, well, let’s just say that I’m not a man she should cross.”

  “Sometimes I don’t know if you just like making vague threats, or you really mean them,” Tina said.

  “Try me,” Harvey replied. “Anyway, let’s go talk to Angela. Was she friends with Bret?”

  “Not really,” Tina said. “Angela actually didn’t like him much.”

  *****

  Chapter 12

  An Evil Prank

  Angela was dressed in pajamas with illustrated cats jumping around on them. She had clearly been asleep when they pulled up. Inviting them inside, she drew her cardigan tight around herself, and said, “Sorry I’m not dressed yet. On Sundays, I like to sleep in until about noon.”

  “That’s fine.” Harvey took a sip of the coffee she offered him, then rested it on the Ikea dining table that dominated her tiny kitchen.

  “I’m really shocked to hear about the frosting,” Angela said. “I mean… I knew they were studying our kitchen but...” She shook her head. “It’s impossible that Nora is involved. Simply impossible. I haven’t met any murderers but that’s not what they look like.”

  “Well, you’ll be surprised,” Tina said. “Murderers can look just like us. They aren’t a different species or anything.”

  “Yes, well… Nora isn’t one of them,” Harvey said. “I’m glad we’re all in agreement on that.”

  “So the frosting,” Tina said. “I didn’t make it. Who did?”

  “Nora and Bret did,” Angela said. “It was a buttercream frosting, and Nora added lilac food coloring to it so that it would match the cake. No big deal. I remember they made plenty extra, and Nora was planning to use the leftovers.”

  Horrified, Tina said, “So we’re lucky there wasn’t a poisoning outbreak!”

  “Do you suppose the diner will have to shut down forever, now?” Angela asked unhappily. “I loved that place, though I’ve only been there six months. You and Nora made it feel like home.”

  “No way is it going to shut down,” Tina said. “We’re going to clear Nora’s name and figure out who was behind the whole thing.”

  “Even if you do, who would ever come back to the diner?” Angela asked. “No one would trust us anymore. Not if the poisoned frosting was found inside our own freezer!”

  “Let’s worry about that when the time comes,” Harvey interrupted. “Right now, we need to focus on Bret.”

  “Right,” Tina said, taking a deep breath. “Angela, you worked closely with Bret.”

  “So did you.” Angela shrugged. “You know what he was like. A bit of a clown, and kind of forgetful. But a sweet guy.”

  “Tina said you didn’t like him much,” Harvey said.
/>
  “I thought he was incompetent.” Angela sighed. “More often than not, he’d make silly mistakes. Like mixing up the salt and pepper, or pouring half a quart of milk into a sauce instead of half a cup. I couldn’t understand why he wasn’t fired.”

  “Nora thought that he made technical mistakes, but had the potential to be a genius chef,” Tina said. “She said he had a knack for the art out of food, and the craft side could always be improved.”

  “Well, that does sound like Nora.” Angela nodded. “Anyway, so I wasn’t fond of Bret. We hung out a few times after work, but I’m an introvert, and I decided I preferred sticking to my cats and my books.”

  “So you dated him?” Harvey asked.

  “He asked me out, but I told him I wanted to keep things professional,” Angela said. “I don’t think he realized I meant it. So after a few times, I decided to stop going out with him, even if it was in a group.”

  “Who was in this group of his?” Harvey asked.

  Angela shrugged. “A bunch of us. Matt Harris, Eliza, Wyatt, Maria, Timmy Junior… this is a small town, you know.”

  “Timmy Junior?” Harvey frowned. “Bret hung out with Timmy Junior? Who owns the bar on 2nd and North Street?”

  “Right.” Angela nodded.

  “So those two were friends?”

  “Yeah, pretty much.” Angela nodded.

  “Funny,” Harvey said. “Because when I saw Timmy Junior today, he told me he had no idea what I was even talking about. He acted like he didn’t know Bret at all!”

  “Why would he do that?” Angela looked shocked.

  “Well, I think I’ll have to go back and ask him,” Harvey said, his mouth drawn into a thin line. “And this time, he had better give me some straight answers!”

  *****

  “I don’t know!” Timmy cried. “I promise, I know nothing!”

  Harvey had him cornered in an alley, and Tim, who was a whole head shorter than him, was shivering in fear. Harvey hadn’t laid a hand on him… yet.