Hot Chocolate and Homicide

by Cindy Bell

  “Here is a report I found about a business online that said they had the same experience. The company hired a private detective in an attempt to expose an affair the owner was having which was apparently just a rumor. They did it in order to ruin her business so that they could purchase it. She claims that the information was fabricated. I think that might have been what the detective was hired to do.” She sighed. “I bet he didn’t find anything about Gladys though, she was such a loner.”

  “Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean that the private detective is innocent in all of this. It’s possible that Gladys caught him.”

  “Well, you know about the police report now don’t you, about her suspecting she had a stalker?”

  “Yes, Errol flagged it for me, so I saw it. I can’t believe it got overlooked in the first place. Parker being involved makes me even more suspicious of him. Something is really fishy here, and I intend to get to the bottom of it. But Ally, you’ve got to back off a bit. If this man, Oscar Hanso, is involved in the murder he could have shifted from investigator to hired gun, and his goal will be to get rid of anyone that gets too close. I don’t want you in the crossfire. Understand?”

  “Luke, we’re getting so close and—”

  “Ally.” His voice grew almost stern. She knew he was always careful about not being too forceful, but she could tell from the edge in his voice that his patience was growing thin. “I mean it. If you and Charlotte insist on figuring out this situation with Isaac and Harriet so that you can help them, fine, but when it comes to the private detective, and Rick, I need you to stay clear. If they are involved in Gladys’ death anything you do could taint the investigation. Okay?”

  “Okay.” She was reluctant to agree, but she knew he wouldn’t accept anything less. She also knew that he was right. If she did something to harm the case he was trying to build against Rick, and perhaps the entire company, then it would be torn apart by their high priced lawyers and Gladys’ murderer might just get away with it. As much as she didn’t like it, she had to face the fact that she could only investigate so much. After she hung up, her grandmother looked over at her.

  “What did Luke have to say?” Charlotte pulled up to the driveway of the farm, but didn’t turn in.

  “He had some new information, and we’ve been handcuffed.” She quirked a brow and frowned.

  “Handcuffed?” Charlotte stared at her with wide eyes.

  “He asked us to stay away from Rick, and the other man he met with at the farm, Oscar Hanso, who is a private detective. I think he really believes that the company caused Gladys’ death. He’s concerned that any interference might cause damage to the case he’s building against them.” She sighed. “I know he’s not wrong, Mee-Maw, so why does it feel like I’ve just been sent to the corner?”

  “The hard part is, as much as Luke cares about you, he still has to do his job as a detective, and it’s important that we both let him do that. Otherwise he could be in danger of losing it.”

  “I do know that, and his job is so important. I don’t want to do anything to put it in jeopardy.” She frowned as she looked out through the windshield. “Good thing he didn’t say anything about not going to the farm. We’re not here to speak to Rick or Oscar, we’re here to speak to Parker. If we can find something that puts a hole in his alibi, then Luke can take a deeper look at him.”

  “Let’s see what we can find out.” Charlotte turned down the driveway, then continued past the house. “If Parker is still here, he’ll be in the office.” She parked in a small parking lot not far from the house. It faced a trailer that served as Gladys’ office.

  Ally noticed right away that there was a man standing near the trailer. She recognized him, though didn’t know his name. He walked towards the car as they stepped out of it.

  “Can I help you?” He looked between the two of them.

  “We’re looking for Parker.” Ally stepped in front of her grandmother and gazed at him with squinted eyes. “Is he here?”

  “I’m the farm supervisor. Chuck.” He eyed them both again. “Why are you looking for Parker?”

  “We just have a few questions for him.” Charlotte offered a friendly smile. “We’re customers.”

  “Ah.” He studied her for a moment. “Do you have an appointment?”

  “No, but we won’t take long, we just need a few minutes.” Ally shrugged. “Any chance you can find him for us?”

  “He’s not here right now. He should be back in an hour or so.” The man adjusted his hat, then glanced over his shoulder. “I’ve got to get back to the cows. Anything else you need?”

  “No, nothing.” Charlotte frowned. “Wait, can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure.” He paused and looked towards her.

  “Do you know what’s happening with the farm? Did the sale go through?”

  “Yes. It’s going to change hands tomorrow, after the funeral.” He shook his head. “Seems a little cruel to me to do it on the day of her funeral, but that’s how business goes I guess.”

  Ally stared after him as he walked off. “So Bernice signed the papers?” She sighed.

  “It looks that way.” Charlotte pursed her lips. “Honestly, I hope that Gladys can’t see any of this from wherever she is.”

  “Me, too.” Ally glanced towards the office. “It looks empty. Maybe we should have a look inside?”

  “That sounds like a good idea to me.” Charlotte glanced around. “I don’t see anyone else nearby. Let’s see if the door is unlocked.” She walked up to the door and tried the knob. It turned easily in her hand. “It’s not locked.” She looked over her shoulder again to be sure that no one was approaching. “Let’s see what we can find.”

  Ally nodded as she stepped in behind her. Charlotte went straight to the desk and began to scan over some papers. Ally scanned the office. It was a little cluttered, with an assortment of farm supplies and stacks of file boxes. It looked as if the police had already searched the place as there was fingerprint dust on the windowsill and counters. She didn’t think they’d find anything unusual if the police had already dug through it all, but still she searched. After a few moments she took a step back and looked at the office as a whole.

  “Nothing.” Charlotte sighed as she set down a stack of papers. “Just business paperwork, and honestly I don’t know if I’d even know if anything was odd. I’ve never run a farm before.”

  “Mee-Maw!” Ally gasped as she stared past her at the top of a filing cabinet.

  “What?” Charlotte gazed at her with wide eyes. “Is someone coming?”

  “No, Mee-Maw look!” She pointed over her shoulder at the filing cabinet. On the top of it was a box of chocolates and a hot chocolate container from Charlotte’s Chocolate Heaven. The packaging was unmistakable.

  “Oh!” Charlotte shrugged as she glanced at it. “I’d guess someone gave it to her. I don’t remember her coming in to buy any.”

  “No, she didn’t.” Ally walked over to the box and the container. “This is one of the boxes of chocolates that Isaac bought. I know, because you told me that he asked for two flavors and this was one of them. I think it was the only almond and toffee hot chocolate we’ve sold. Did you sell any others?”

  “No.” Charlotte shook her head.

  “That means he gave the other, cherry cordial, to his wife.” Her stomach twisted with fear. “Oh, Mee-Maw, I think we know who he was having an affair with.”

  “Gladys?” Charlotte grabbed on to the desk to steady herself. “I never would have expected that. She was always so standoffish and distant. Honestly, it never crossed my mind that she might be interested in romance.”

  “Well, whether she was interested or not, Isaac sure was.” She held the hot chocolate container, using the edge of her shirt to cover her fingertips and read the label. If the police had overlooked the box and container they might not have tested it for fingerprints. “Yes, just as I suspected, this is the hot chocolate he bought. There’s no question in my mind that he’
s the one who gave her these.” She frowned as she looked into her grandmother’s eyes. “He was either in love with, or having an affair with Gladys, or both.”

  “No wonder he was so upset when he came into the shop.” Charlotte pressed her fingertips to her lips as she recalled how distraught he was. Outside, the rumble of a motor drew her attention. “Ally, we have to get out of here, fast. That doesn’t sound far off.”

  Chapter 13

  The roar of the motor bounced off the walls of the small space. For a split-second Ally considered that it might be Gladys, haunting her favorite place. But that notion faded as the sound dug into her ears. There wasn’t anything supernatural about it. A ripple of almost overpowering fear rushed over her. Whoever it was, was about to catch them in Gladys’ office, a place they had no right or permission to be.

  “I’m right behind you!” Ally eased the lid back down on the chocolate box then followed her grandmother out of the office. As they stepped out, she saw a quad bike roaring up the trail. It skidded to a stop right in front of them, and Parker climbed off. She noticed that he wasn’t wearing a helmet, despite the fact that his own mother-in-law had just been killed in a quad bike crash.

  “I was told you wanted to speak with me?” He crossed his arms as he looked between the two of them. “What were you doing in Gladys’ office?”

  “We thought there might be somewhere to sit inside.” Ally pursed her lips. “We’d been waiting so long, we were getting tired.”

  “Good luck finding any space in that mess.” He chuckled. “So what can I do for you?”

  “We need to know about our milk supply. I keep hearing rumors about the farm being sold, but no one has let us know if we need to change suppliers.” Charlotte narrowed her eyes as she studied him.

  “Yes, the sale is going through tomorrow. Change of hands the next day.”

  “The same day as the funeral?” Ally stepped forward, her shoulders straight and her eyes sharp.

  “So, you already know the details?” He looked between them. “But your milk supply shouldn’t be affected.”

  “So, you really are selling the farm?” Charlotte asked.

  “Yes, I’m doing what needs to be done.”

  “I had hoped that it was just a rumor.” Charlotte shook her head, then passed her gaze around the farm. “Gladys would have hated this. She fought for her farm, didn’t she? That’s why there was bad blood between you.”

  “Excuse me?” He folded his arms across his chest as he focused all of his attention on her. “Are you implying that my mother-in-law and I had a difficult relationship? Do you really think that you know me well enough to make that kind of assumption?”

  “No, honestly, I don’t. And I didn’t know Gladys that well either. But I do know that she loved this farm, and that she would have done anything to save it.” She gazed right back at him, unaffected by his stern attitude.

  “Not everything can be saved. Nor should it.” He glanced past her, at Ally. “I’m sure that you will make an acceptable deal with the new owners or be able to find someone else to supply your milk. As of now, I’m requesting that both of you leave this property, and do not return. Understand?” His eyes hung on Ally with added pressure of authority. “I don’t want to have to involve Detective Elm in all of this, but I will.”

  She narrowed her eyes but sealed her lips tightly. She knew that anything she said at this point could be used against her, or even against Luke. But she was still tempted to ask more.

  “Let’s go, Ally.” Her grandmother slipped her arm through Ally’s and steered her back towards the car.

  “But I wanted to ask him some more questions.” Ally frowned as they reached the car. “He was right on the edge. If we pushed just a little harder, he would have admitted to something.”

  “Or he would have had us both arrested for harassment and filed a complaint against Luke. Trust me, Ally, that man is far more conniving than he looks.” She shivered as she climbed into the car beside her.

  “We have to figure out whether Bernice was involved in all of this. I’m honestly not ready to rule out Parker as the killer.”

  “And now we know that Harriet might have had a motive as well. So, either Bernice helped Parker cover up for his involvement, or was involved herself, or Harriet took care of her competition.”

  “Or, Luke was right and Rick and Oscar conspired to kill Gladys.” Ally shook her head. “Honestly, the deeper we dig the more reasons we find for Gladys to be murdered, and the less certainty we have about who did it.”

  “You’re right. A good night’s sleep might give us some clarity.”

  “You keep the car. I want to pick up the van from the shop.” Ally settled in the car. “I might have one more stop to make.” She fired off a text to Luke.

  I have new information. Can I stop by?

  By the time they arrived at the shop, Luke had replied.

  Yes. Asap.

  The short text made her feel a little uneasy. She guessed he was just very busy, but her instincts told her there might be something more to it. After saying goodbye to her grandmother, she settled into the van and drove towards the police station. As she approached she tried to plan out what she would say. She had no way to prove that the box of chocolates that Gladys had, came from Isaac. She had no way of knowing whether she and Isaac were having an affair or just very good friends, but she was certain that finding the box of chocolates there was important.

  When she parked outside the police station the parking lot was mostly empty. Shift change had just occurred, and she knew that the late shift was sparser. But Luke was clearly still there, and no matter what he was dealing with he had made sure to make time for her, which was very kind of him. She just hoped that the information she had for him would make the impact she wanted it to. As it looked, he might be working overtime for the next month as he tried to solve this murder. If she could give him the clue that cracked the case they might be able to have a little more time together. There were so many reasons she wanted Gladys’ death solved, but the most important one was to restore a sense of safety to the community. No one wanted to believe that a murderer was living among them, and unless they found out who did it, that could be the case for years to come. Everyone would be a little suspicious of each other as long as an unsolved crime lingered.

  When Ally stepped into the police station she found the lobby to be just as empty as the parking lot, while an officer snoozed at the front desk. She nodded to a few other officers as she made her way back towards Luke’s desk. She visited often enough that they recognized her and didn’t question why she was there. She could see Luke before he could notice her, as his back was to her. A very tense back. His desk phone was pressed to his ear. She soundlessly walked up to the desk, not wanting to interrupt. However, when he looked up at her she thought about turning right around and walking out. That look. It made her tense immediately. It was both betrayal and accusation, wrapped up in a grimace that she rarely saw on the very patient man. Her lips parted as he slammed the phone back down in the cradle, but before she could say a word, he locked his eyes to hers and took a deep breath.

  “Ally, were you just out at Bloomdale farm?” His tone was calm, too calm, despite the flush in his cheeks.

  “Yes, I was just there.” Her voice wavered some as she wondered what had him so upset. “What’s going on, Luke?”

  “Parker just filed a complaint against me. He is claiming that I gave out personal information.” He locked his eyes to hers. “Any reason why he might have done that?”

  Her heart sank. She was certain that the complaint was unfounded, but she also knew that the only reason Parker filed it was because she and Charlotte had visited the farm.

  “Honestly, I didn’t tell him any personal information of any kind. I don’t know why he would say that.” She bit into her bottom lip.

  “But you did speak to him?” He stood up from the desk and walked around it to her.

  “Yes, I did.” He
r cheeks burned as her heart slammed against her chest. Had she said something that made the complaint valid? She didn’t think so.

  “What did you say?” He perched on the edge of the front of his desk, his eyes still settled to hers, and his voice still calm, but strained.

  “I just asked him about the milk supply, when the farm was closing.” She narrowed her eyes as she recalled the conversation. “Things may have gotten a little heated when Mee-Maw said that Gladys wouldn’t have wanted to sell the farm. But they didn’t get very heated, and I didn’t repeat any information that you shared with me.”

  “He seems to think that you did.” He folded his arms and stared at her. “But of course, I trust your word over his. Which means he is just interested in making trouble for me. Any reason he might want to do that?”

  “Maybe we got a little too close for comfort?” She frowned as she thought back over the conversation. “It is pretty heartless of him to have the sale of the farm finalized on the day of the funeral.”

  “Maybe, but it’s not illegal.” He ran a hand across his forehead and took another deep breath.

  “I’m sorry if I did anything to get you into trouble, Luke, I certainly didn’t mean to.” She reached for his hands. His long, warm fingers wrapped around hers as he met her eyes again.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing. It’ll be dismissed once this case is solved.” He gave her hand a squeeze. “Now, what is the information you had to share with me?”

  “We found something.” She swallowed back her guilt and focused on giving him the information. “We found a box of chocolates and an empty container of hot chocolate in Gladys’ office.”

  “In her office?” He raised an eyebrow as he continued to hold on to her hand. “And what were you doing in her office?”

  “Luke, that’s not the point, the chocolates—”

  “It is the point. It’s the point if you didn’t have permission to be there and decided to just let yourself in. Parker could have you charged for that.” He frowned.