“I’ll talk to the judge,” Sean said. “I’m sure you’ll be in a bit of trouble, Burton, but I’ll make sure the DA gives you a good plea bargain. At the very least, though, you’re looking at a huge fine and a great deal of community service.”
“I’ll do it all, whatever you say,” Burton said, humbly. “I’m just so relieved Sloane is all right!”
“Come on, Dad.” Sloane gave him a one-armed hug and a kiss on the cheek. “It’s fine now.”
“That monster!” Burton’s voice began to shake with rage. “How could he even think of framing you!”
“He’s a textbook narcissist, I think.” Sean shrugged. “They tend to believe they’ll get away with murder. He’s locked up tight now, and I have half a mind to throw the key away. He’s confessed to the whole thing, now that he knows the game is up, he’s trying to cooperate so that we’ll be kind.”
“I never want to hear his name again!” Sloane exclaimed.
“You’re okay now, right?” Nora patted Sloane’s hand. “And Patrick?”
“He’ll recover,” Burton said. “He’s scared right now, and miserably confused but he's got a fine, strong man underneath that layer of insecurity. It was so brave of him to risk his life and charge at Alvarez! I mean, no offense, Nora. You’re a hero already. But Patrick? I thought he was a little wimp. He sure proved me wrong.”
Nora smiled. “He’ll be glad to hear it, I think. Be a friend to him, Burton, he needs one badly right now.”
“More than that,” Burton said. “I’m going to be a business partner to him.”
Eyebrows were raised in surprise at this declaration, and Burton blushed. “With Mia gone, Patrick needs someone who’ll be able to handle the B and B. I’m going to suggest that he take me as a partner, and if he’s willing maybe give Sloane a job here too. Between the three of us, we should be able to have it running smoothly.”
“That’s a brilliant idea, Dad!” Sloane exclaimed. “I hope he agrees!”
“I’ve a feeling he’ll be even more excited than you.” Sean smiled. “Good for you, Burton.”
“And it’s all thanks to you.” Sloane smiled at Nora. “Hey, we do have a little surprise for you. Our way of saying thanks.”
“What is it?” Nora asked.
“You’ll see.” Sloane winked at her mysteriously.
Nora didn’t see, until two days later. Between Harvey, Mrs. Mullally, and Tina fussing over her, she had a hard time convincing people that she was ready to go to work again. When she finally did get to the diner, she paused at the entrance, and her mouth fell open.
Burton had replaced the picture window, but he’d done a lot more than just replace it. One side of the window now had a giant mural of a cartoon black and white cat, with tiny cartoon figures of Tina and Nora peeking out from behind its paws.
“Like it?” Tina smiled, giving Nora a hug. “Welcome to Madness Diner, version 2.0.”
“It’s brilliant!” Nora exclaimed. “Did Donna do the artwork? She really is turning out to be a very talented artist.”
“Not only did she do it, she says she’s already got three more offers from other businesses in town.” Tina smiled. “Burton made murals fashionable again.”
“I love it,” Nora said, her eyes tearing up a little. “It’s perfect.”
“Great,” Tina said. “Now if you’re done staring, maybe you can come back inside and help me figure out the mystery of why my bread won’t rise!”
Nora laughed. “Now, that’s the kind of case I should be solving more often.”
The End (of Death At A B & B)
Continue for Death On Social Media…
A MURDER IN MILBURN, BOOK 10:
Death On Social Media
By
Nancy McGovern
Chapter 1
Beauty & The Bodybuilder
There was one hour left for the diner to close, and Nora was glad. She'd just recovered from a rather nasty bout of flu, and still felt a little shaky. Her partner Tina was on a long holiday visiting relatives in California, and without her cheery voice reading out orders and whispering the occasional gossip, the diner seemed rather empty. Nora leaned against the counter, and rolled her shoulders twice, hoping to work the kinks out of them.
The diner looked lovely thanks to Tina's interior design. The mint and magenta tones all over the diner gave it a funky 80s feel, while the tasteful wooden booths and artwork--Nora's contribution--helped it retain a certain coziness. From the inside, the picture window showed a mirror image of the mural Donna Worth had recently painted, a giant tuxedo cat with a cartoon Nora and Tina, peeking out from behind it. Nora smiled each time she saw it. Watching the diner come to life over the years, she'd begun to believe that it had a personality of its own. Quirky, offbeat, and yet wholesome, that's how she liked to think of it.
Her thoughts, however, were interrupted as the door slammed. She saw a bulky bodybuilder storm out of the diner, pulling the hood of his jacket up with a rough jerk as he exited. In a booth toward the back, a young girl buried her head in her hands, and began to sob. Nora bit her lip. It wasn't the first breakup she'd seen in her diner, and nor would it be the last. Poor girl. There was only one other family in the diner, a mother and her two teenage daughters, all hunched over their mobile phones and occasionally biting into their burgers. Nora paused a minute, wishing Tina was there as she'd have known exactly how to comfort a crying girl. Nora just felt awkward and edgy. Nevertheless, someone needed her help, so she rolled up her sleeves and got to work.
The girl was wiping away her tears with the edge of her t-shirt, when Nora slid a chocolate sundae with rainbow sprinkles in front of her. "On the house," she said. "You look like you need it."
"Oh!" The girl looked shocked, her mouth hung open. "Thanks."
"Breakups are tough, I know," Nora said. "But you'll find a better boy, I promise."
"Breakups?" The girl threw her head back and laughed. She shook her head. "I wish this was just a breakup." She wiped her eyes again, and sniffed into a tissue. "I'm just so confused. I tried going to the police, and they laughed me off... I don't know what to do."
"The police?" Nora sat down opposite her, curiousity aroused. "Did that bulky brute hurt you?" Her voice had more than a tinge of suspicion to it.
"Tank? No. Not yet, at least." The girl shuddered a little. "I don't know." She sighed. "Look, it was really kind of you to give me this ice cream, but I'm on a no-carb diet. I can't have this."
Nora stared at her, openmouthed. "You're on a diet?" she asked. The girl looked nothing short of perfect. Even though she was dressed casually in skinny jeans and a t-shirt, it was easy to tell that her body belonged on the cover of a fitness magazine. She had the fresh skin and energetic glow that only athletes possess, and the collarbones and cheekbones to match.
"How old are you?" Nora asked. "Seventeen?"
"Twenty-two." The girl gave Nora a watery smile. "Everyone always says I have a baby face."
"Well, as someone who's older and may or may not be wiser, let me give you a piece of advice." Nora grinned. "Never turn down free ice cream."
The girl sighed, and dug her spoon through the whipped cream digging through the layer of crushed peanuts, and chocolate chunks, till she hit ice cream. Scooping up a bite, she gulped it down, and gave a sigh of happiness. "You're right. That does make me feel better. A little bit." Then, her lip quivered. "Lulu would be so mad if she found out I ate that."
"Who's Lulu?" Nora asked.
"My best friend," the girl said. "I'm Val, by the way. Valentina Gomez. Lulu is..." She shook her head. "I don't know. I just..." Once again, she buried her head in her hands, and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm a mess."
"It's all right." Nora said. "Take your time. But if you're confused, it might help to talk it out."
Valentina nodded. "I guess it would. See, Lulu is my best friend--or was my best friend--but I haven't seen her in three days."
"Did the two of you fight?" Nora asked, won
dering how the bulky bodybuilder was related to this.
"No!" Valentina slapped a hand on the table. "That's the problem! We didn't fight. I don't know where to begin..."
"How about right at the start?" Nora said. "Have you known each other a long time?"
"Well, I work at Dino's Gym as a trainer," Valentina said. "Lulu moved into town about ten years ago. I've known her since high school. We've been best friends since. Inseparable. You know how it is when you meet someone and she knows you better than your own sisters do? That's what we were like. She used to come work out with me every day, morning and night. We're both a little fitness obsessed. Well, I'm fitness obsessed. Lulu is looks obsessed. I would be too, if I looked like her." Valentina took out her phone, and opened up her Instabook app. With a few clicks, she was on the profile of a blonde with a childish pout and deep, mesmerizingly blue eyes. "That's Lulu," Valentina said. "Beautiful, right?"
"I think I've seen her before!" Nora exclaimed. "Around town, I mean." In fact, Nora remembered exactly where she'd seen Lulu--being escorted out of a shop by Sheriff Sean Dracon. The girl had been cursing and spitting, trying to escape Sean's grasp while he warned her. Even so, she had the kind of radiant beauty that made heads turn. That was less than a week ago and Nora made a note to talk to Sean about it soon.
"So..." Nora said, "is Lulu annoyed with you? Best friends fight sometimes. Why are you so upset?"
"Oh we used to fight every day. It's not that. It's that I haven't seen her for the last three days. I'm really sure something's happened to her! Why is she missing?"
*****
Chapter 2
The Missing Girl
"Missing!" Nora exclaimed. "You say you told the sheriff?"
"I did." Lulu sighed. "Sheriff just laughed me off, said that she's an adult, and doesn't need me keeping tabs on her. He just doesn't get it!"
"That doesn't sound like Sean." Nora frowned. "He's usually very conscientious."
"Yeah, well. He wasn't in this case." Valentina stirred the ice cream, which was melting into a slushy pile. With a disgusted grunt, she pushed the dish away from her. "I just can't have more," she said. "Sorry. It's delicious, but it'll ruin my abs."
Nora shrugged. "Good on you. I can never have that kind of self-control." Personally, she thought she'd rather have a little flab than no ice cream.
"So what about Lulu?" Nora asked. "Why do you think she's missing."
"Well, the last time I talked to her was at one a.m. on Saturday night," Valentina said. "We'd returned home after a party, and I called to gossip about one of the couples there... you know how it is."
"Sure," Nora said.
"Well, halfway through the call, Lulu suddenly goes, 'What the hell!' and hangs up on me."
Nora winced.
"Well... she did say that," Valentina said, a little defensively. "Anyway, I tried calling her for a while, but I was more than a little drunk, so I fell asleep. After that, she hasn't contacted me. She never showed up to work out, she hasn't even liked my posts on instabook!”
"Well..." Nora was a little doubtful. "Does she have family here in Milburn?"
"Her mom." Valentina nodded. "But they don't live together. As soon as she turned eighteen, Lulu got her own apartment. She never got along with her mom, you know. I think she hated her for making her move here to Milburn. She's wanted to get out of here as fast as possible. Moving to New York City was her dream."
"So Lulu's mom is still here," Nora said. "Did you talk to her about Lulu's disappearance?"
Valentina nodded. "She didn't take me seriously either. That's the main reason the sheriff probably ignored me. Theresa--that's Lulu's mom--just shrugged and said, 'Lulu's a rolling stone. She'll be rolling back home when her partying money runs out and she needs more from her mama.'"
"Theresa... is that Theresa Brown? The receptionist at Dr. Finlay Grant's clinic?"
"Yep. She works for the dentist," Valentina said. "You know her well?"
Nora shrugged. "Er... no. Not really. Anyway, so tell me why you think Lulu's missing when her own mother doesn't?"
"She has to be. Someone's kidnapped her," Valentina said. "I know everyone thinks I'm probably crazy, but believe me, she would never just ghost me like this. We talk online every single day, all day. We work out together twice a day. How could she just... stop responding to me? Why wouldn't she pick up my calls?" Valentina started shuddering. "What if... what if someone's done something and--"
"Come on, Valentina. Deep breath." Nora patted her on the shoulder, trying to ease her. "Nothing's happened to Lulu, I'm sure. Maybe she's just playing a mean-spirited prank on you. You said you were at a party together. Maybe she got annoyed at you during the party. Maybe some boy she liked flirted with you instead."
Valentina gave a sardonic laugh. "As if. Nobody would even look at me when Lulu's in the same room."
"That's not true, I'm sure. You're a very attractive young girl."
Val rolled her eyes. "Look, even if she were angry at me for some reason and trying to make me suffer, Lulu would never, ever, ever stop posting on Instabook. She's trying to be an Instabook model, and she's getting pretty successful. She posts an average of fifteen pictures a day, and gets more than three thousand likes on each, so she's already somewhat successful."
"An Instabook star?" Nora was confused.
"Yeah, there are people out there who make their living just posting pics online," Valentina said. "You have to build a large enough fan following, and then attract companies who want you as their brand ambassador. Lulu's doing pretty well for herself. She even got an offer from a handbag company to advertise their products last month, but the deal fell through."
Nora nodded. "So you're saying she sees this as her job? Does Lulu have an actual job?"
"Well... not at the moment." Valentina hesitated. "I suppose you'll find out anyhow, since this is a small town. She used to work at the grocery store, but then she got fired last week."
"Ah." Nora nodded, remembering the scene with Lulu being carried out in handcuffs. "Why?"
"The manager is a jerk," Valentina said. "He's had it in for her since she didn't give him any attention."
"Sounds like she stole something and he called the sheriff on her," Nora pointed out.
Val ignored this. "I just don't know. Lulu always told me that the three keys to success on insta are to post what people want, engage with your audience, and never, ever, ever miss a single day! I can believe she'd stop talking to me, but why stop posting online?"
"Did you go by her apartment?" Nora asked.
"I did. She lives on East Fremont Street. The door was locked and nobody answered. I tried peeking through the window, but it didn't seem like anyone was home."
Nora had steepled her fingers under her chin, and she nodded. "I see."
"I don't know, I just started freaking out. I went to the sheriff but he said that she's an adult, and adults sometimes take sudden breaks. He acted like I'm some kind of idiot!" Val fumed. "I wish I could find someone who believed me."
"What about the bodybuilder?" Nora asked.
"Tank? He's Lulu's boyfriend. Well, he was Lulu's boyfriend. I saw him today and he told me he doesn't care about her anymore, and stormed off. I don't know what's wrong with people. Why aren't they taking this more seriously?"
"I don't know either," Nora said. "But if it's any consolation, I do believe you. If something has happened to Lulu, we need to find out."
"I just don't know what else to do." Valentina sighed. "I feel like I'm facing a brick wall."
"I'll talk to Sean," Nora promised. "We'll figure something out."
*****
Chapter 3
Sean's Opinion
The next day was depressingly rainy, with gray clouds overhead and what felt like a river of mud out on the streets. Nora was busier than ever, serving lunch specials to her customers. Her latest burger was a big hit. She'd hit upon the idea to make crispy, orange chicken, from a copycat recipe she'd found o
f a chain chinese restaurant. Somehow, orange chicken tasted even more delicious when sandwiched in a thick bun. She'd prepped the sauce the day before, and marinated the chicken patties overnight. It wasn't strictly according to the recipe, but she always felt extensive marination made her chicken extra juicy.
She was rewarded by the silent gulps and slurps of appreciation, and a larger crowd than usual for lunch. Still, she wasn't quite sure if it was the terrible weather or the delicious food that drew people inside.
"Heavenly," Sean said, as he sat at the counter, a half-eaten burger before him. "You should offer complimentary bibs so that people don't drip sauce all down their fronts, Nora."
"Your handkerchief seems to be doing the work fine." Nora smiled.
He looked down at the clean, blue-bordered cotton handkerchief that was tucked into his neck, and said, "Well, can't afford to have stains all over my uniform, can I? We're not a very busy town, but a sheriff's still got to look the part."
"Speaking of which, Sheriff, what's all this about you laughing a girl out of your office?" Nora asked. "I met Valentina Gomez yesterday, and she's convinced her friend is missing. So am I, for that matter."
Sean groaned. "Nora, honestly? Valentina Gomez is a drama queen, so is her best friend Lulu. I'm personally sick of their antics. They're party girls who like to stay at bars long past closing time. Feels like I've had to drag both of them out of every bar in the county. They've puked in the back of my car three times in the last year! Don't put much stock in what she says."
"But don't you find it funny that Lulu hasn't posted on social media for the last three days?"
"I haven't posted on social media for the last three months. Like to fill out a missing persons report on me?" Sean joked. "Lulu's probably just sulking somewhere, or having an adventure with a new boyfriend. Ignore it."
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