Black Coffee, Biscotti & Murder

by Sara Bourgeois

  “I don’t know,” Kari said. “I mean, when I was listening to him, it sounded like lines Jake would write. Russell was never able to write like Jake…but now suddenly he can? It just doesn’t seem right.”

  “Maybe you’re reading too much into it,” Kasi said, standing up and stretching. “You’re still upset about Jake’s death, and that’s understandable. You might just be hearing things that aren’t there.”

  “I guess so,” Kari said, though she wasn’t convinced. That was not Russell’s style at all, she couldn’t help but think. Something here isn’t sitting right.

  “You’re overthinking it,” Kasi assured her. “It’s been a long day; we’ll listen to it again in the morning, okay?” She gave her sister a hug and headed up the stairs to her bedroom.

  Kari, however, found she wasn’t tired. Instead of following her sister, she put Russell’s song back on and concentrated on the lyrics. It was as if Jake was right in the room with her.

  Come on, Hunter, you need to solve this thing, she thought as she played it one more time. Before I drive myself insane…

  Chapter 21

  Kari

  “Is it just me, or does it seem twenty degrees colder this morning than it was yesterday?” Kasi wrapped her scarf more tightly around her neck and shivered. “And is the heat even working on this thing?” She fiddled with the knob on the Jeep’s dash.

  Kari chuckled. Her sister never handled cold weather well, and she was prepared for another winter of complaining. The fights over the thermostat in the house when the temperatures dipped below 40 outside were legendary.

  “It’s working,” she assured her. “But you’re right. It did seem unusually chilly this morning.”

  They pulled up outside of On Bitter Grounds and saw Bubba huddling in the doorway, his head covered by a colorful stocking cap and his puffy jacket zipped to his chin.

  “Oh no, he’s early!” Kari hurriedly parked and rushed to the front door to unlock it. “I hope you haven’t been here long?” she said to Bubba as she hustled him inside.

  “Just a few minutes,” Bubba assured her, blowing on his hands. “Wow, I didn’t expect it to be so cold this morning! Who’s up for a cup of espresso?”

  Without waiting for an answer, he tossed his coat into the back room and started busying himself preparing the various machines that would brew the shop’s caffeinated selections.

  “I love him,” Kasi mouthed to her sister, hanging up her own coat and flicking on the shop’s lights.

  Kari nodded her agreement. Having Bubba in the shop will certainly make things easier, and she wondered why they hadn’t hired help months earlier. It felt good to know that neither of them would be left alone if an emergency came up or one of them got sick or wanted to take a vacation.

  Having an extra pair of hands also helped the normal tasks of the day go much more quickly. The three of them got through the opening ritual in record time, and, before they knew it, they were switching the ‘open’ sign and welcoming their first customers of the day.

  The first to walk in the door were Maddy and Andy Perkins. Kari immediately saw the resemblance between Andy and his brother, and she wondered if it was difficult for Maddy to be around him.

  “Hi, Kari and Kasi.” Maddy called to them as they walked up to the counter. “I want you to meet Jake’s brother, Andy.”

  Andy gave them both a wave, though he couldn’t seem to manage a smile. His eyes were rimmed with red, and it looked like he hadn’t slept in days.

  Kari’s heart went out to him. She never wanted to know what it was like to lose a sibling. The mere thought of something happening to Kasi filled her heart with dread.

  “What can we get you this morning?” Kasi asked them. “We’ve got some amazing biscotti from one of our friends’ bakeries up the coast. And black coffee always helps on a cold morning like this! Or…” she winked at Bubba, “our newest drink specialist here can whip up a macchiato that will blow your socks off!”

  “Black coffee and biscotti sound perfect.” Maddy said, then turned to Andy. “What about you?”

  “That works for me,” Andy said with a nod. “Anything that’s hot and has plenty of caffeine.”

  After getting their orders, the two settled at one of the back tables and started going over papers that Maddy had pulled out of her purse.

  Kari was wondering if she should go talk to them when the bell above the door rang again. She looked over to see her favorite Mills Township policeman stride in.

  “Hi, Hunter.”

  He was looking more handsome than ever in his uniform, his light hair combed back from his face, and the chill of the morning showing in his flushed cheeks.

  I’ve missed him, Kari thought. Even though I see him almost every day, I still miss him.

  “How are my favorite baristas?” Hunter asked with a big smile, though his gaze lingered on Kari.

  When he spotted Bubba coming out of the back room, he did a double take. “Wait…is that a new hire I see? Or are you just letting random customers behind the counter now?”

  Kasi giggled. “We finally pulled the trigger!” she told him. “I can’t rely on my sister since she’s always rushing out to solve crimes with you, so I decided we needed some extra help. Hunter, this is Bubba. Bubba, this just happens to be one of Mills Township’s finest, Hunter Houston.”

  “Am I in trouble, officer?” Bubba asked when he spotted the uniformed man at the counter. “I swear, it wasn’t me. It was probably one of these two lovely ladies. They aren’t as innocent as they look.”

  Hunter laughed and shook the young man’s hand. “I’m glad to see the girls are finally getting some help around here,” he said. “Also, glad to see they have a man in the house to help look after them.” He leaned closer and whispered loudly, “They do tend to get into trouble sometimes.”

  “That’s mostly her,” Kasi said, pointing at her sister. “I’m always the one bailing her out!”

  Kari rolled her eyes at their antics and asked, “Did you know Maddy and Andy are here?”

  Without waiting for his order, she poured him a cup of black coffee and slid a piece of biscotti on a plate. She pushed it across the counter and nodded in the direction of their table.

  “Yeah, I actually came to meet them,” Hunter told her. “They wanted me to say a few words at the service, so we were going to talk about the arrangements.”

  He cleared his throat and his face darkened. “Wow. I can’t believe we’re talking about funeral services for one of my best friends.”

  Kari reached over the counter to put her hand on his. “I know how hard this must be for you.”

  He nodded and gave her a grateful look. “I’m sure it’s even harder on Maddy and Andy,” he told her. “I just wish we could find who did this. At least that would give everyone some closure.”

  “You’re sure Razor is innocent?” Kari asked in a low voice.

  He nodded. “There’s no disputing that video evidence. His presence at the gas station was accounted for every minute of his shift. There’s no way he could have even been at the festival, let alone in the dressing room with Jake.”

  “Maybe he had someone else do it?” Kari suggested. “You know, so the suspicion wouldn’t be on him?”

  Hunter shrugged. “I guess it’s possible, though it doesn’t seem likely at this point. He really did seem broken up by Jake’s death when we talked to him. But I’ll keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t start acting funny. Until we find out who killed Jake, everyone is a suspect.”

  Before Kari could ask if they had their eye on anyone in particular, the door opened again, and Russell walked in.

  “Well, it’s all my favorite people!” he said after surveying the room. “I thought I’d have to track you down individually, but this makes it much easier.”

  “Hey, Russell,” Hunter greeted him. “Why were you looking for all of us?”

  “Well, I was thinking of having you all over for dinner tomorrow night.” He
ambled up to the counter and looked at the display case of biscotti. “That looks delicious, Kari. Can I have a piece of that and some coffee?”

  “Of course,” Kari told him, preparing the order. “You’re cooking dinner for everyone tomorrow? That sounds nice.”

  He nodded. “I thought it would be nice to get all the people who were close to Jake together before the services. Maybe we could tell some stories, share some memories, you know? I thought it would be a nice tribute.”

  As nice as your newest song? Kari thought. Are you going to start cooking like Jake, too?

  “Hey, man, that sounds great.” Hunter told him.

  “We’d love to come,” Maddy said, joining them at the counter. “Andy? Are you available for dinner tomorrow?”

  Andy, who had not gotten up from his seat in the back, nodded. “I can be there,” he said.

  “Perfect.” Russell said, clapping his hands together. “Six o’clock?”

  At their nods, he quickly jotted down his address on a napkin and handed it to Kari.

  “I hope you all like steak.” he said before grabbing his coffee and biscotti and walking to the table where Andy sat to join him. “My recipe is absolutely killer.”

  Chapter 22

  Hunter

  “Man, you really think Razor Sharpe is off the hook?” Russell ran a hand over his head, dislodging some dark hairs from his ever-present man bun.

  He’d just listened to Hunter explain how Razor had an airtight alibi for the night of the murder, but he wasn’t buying it.

  “There’s just no way he could have been at the festival,” he told Russell. “I know, I was kinda hoping it was him, too. Just so we could wrap this case up and get some closure.”

  He sipped at his coffee and leaned back in his chair.

  Maddy and Andy had left twenty minutes earlier to meet with the funeral home, and he and Russell had decided to stay and talk more about Jake’s case.

  From Russell’s frequent calls, Hunter knew that he was following the case closely, and that he would appreciate any information Hunter could give him.

  “But you didn’t see him that night of the rap battle.” Russell insisted. “He was really angry. And I saw what he posted on his Facebook page. C’mon, that has to count for something.”

  Hunter shook his head.

  “Hunter, man, you don’t understand how cutthroat this business is. If Razor thought Jake had ruined his chances of making it, it’s total motive. Not to mention the fact that Jake humiliated him, and it went viral.”

  Hunter shook his head again. “Russell, I don’t know how else to say this: he could not have been there that night. We have video evidence to prove it. It doesn’t matter how much motive he had or how angry he was at Jake. If he has an alibi, that’s all that really matters.”

  “Then he got someone else to do it, man.” Russell said, leaning toward Hunter and warming to the subject. “Yeah, that’s gotta be it. He knew there would be video of him at the gas station, and that he’d have an alibi. So, he paid off someone else to kill him.”

  Hunter sighed.

  He had considered the possibility, but it just seemed a little far-fetched, especially since Razor didn’t seem like the type who could coordinate a contract killing.

  “We’re looking into it, Russell, but it really seemed like a crime of passion and not something premeditated.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably exactly how it was supposed to look!” Russell’s excitement seemed to be bordering on mania. “Yeah, he arranged it like that! To throw you off the trail! Man, he probably even acts like he’s kind of dumb and all, just so you wouldn’t suspect him. Don’t criminals do that all the time? Act differently from who they really are to confuse the cops?”

  “Please calm down,” Hunter said in a soothing voice. “Russell, I know you want to find Jake’s killer just as much as I do. I know it’s killing you to know someone is out there, enjoying their freedom, when they took our friend away from us. But that doesn’t mean we can just pin it on the first person we think has a motive.”

  Russell sighed, the excitement draining out of his face. “I guess so.”

  “Now, if we could find Jake’s missing rhyme book somewhere in Razor’s possession, that would be something.”

  Russell’s sat up straighter.

  “His…rhyme book?”

  “Yeah, you know that little leather-bound book he carried with him everywhere and was always jotting down notes on? We haven’t been able to find it anywhere. We searched the dressing room, his house, everywhere. It’s gone.”

  “You know, you’re right!” Russell said, nodding his head thoughtfully. “He did have that on him all the time. But I haven’t seen it since…well, since the night he died.” He looked at Hunter. “You know how much Razor Sharpe would have wanted to get his hands on that thing? I’m sure he’d be willing to kill for it! Maybe he was in on it with some other rapper. Maybe they wanted to form a duo like the Fire Spitters! If they had Jake’s rhymes, they might think they could break into the biz!” Russell snapped his fingers. “And that could have been the dude who killed Jake!”

  Back to Razor, Hunter thought. Was it possible that Razor would have someone else kill Jake, while he was at work?

  From his years on the police force and talking with cops from bigger cities, he knew that nothing was out of the realm of possibility. However, speculating that there was another rapper who was partnering with Razor and who had done the actual killing seemed to be a stretch.

  “Have you searched Razor’s house?” Russell asked. “It might be right there, all the evidence we need! Even if it isn’t there, if you grill him about it, maybe you can break him! Do you want me to go with you? I was there for that rap battle, I totally know all his weak spots!”

  “Why don’t you let us handle the investigation, okay?” Hunter said, knowing he’d already shared too much with Russell about the ongoing case. “If Razor’s guilty, we’ll figure it out. But we need to keep an open mind and consider other possible suspects as well.”

  Hunter’s mind went to Maddy, who he’d briefly considered a suspect until Kari revealed the whole story to him.

  I can’t believe we’ve only had a total of two suspects, he thought.

  With a high-profile murder case like this, he’d expected suspects to come out of the woodwork. Clearly, the captain thought so, too, which was why he’s yelling at them all on a nearly hourly basis.

  “Yeah, okay,” Russell said, though he didn’t look happy about it. “I’ll let the experts handle this. But keep me informed, okay? I want this person caught. Our fans deserve that. And, most of all, Jake deserves it.” He sat back in his chair and blew on his coffee. “This brew is dope, by the way. Best dark roast I ever had.”

  They sat and drank their coffee for a minute as Hunter tried to figure out how to lighten the mood. He’d never been comfortable around Russell and had spent very little time with him when Jake wasn’t present as well.

  He hated to admit it but sitting there alone with him was making him nervous, yet he couldn’t figure out a polite way to leave.

  “So…whatever happened with that guy from Milestone Records?” he finally asked. “Kari said you met with him here the other day?”

  Russell’s eyes lit up. “Man, I’m gonna sign a deal with them!” he said, a smile spreading across his face. “They loved the new song I wrote about Jake. Have you heard it yet?”

  Hunter shook his head. “You wrote a new song…already? About Jake?”

  Russell bobbed his head enthusiastically. “Inspiration hit, man. You gotta jump on it! I gave your girlfriend a copy. You should ask her to borrow it.”

  She’s not my girlfriend, Hunter thought, but he decided to leave it alone.

  “That’s great, Russell. Jake would have been so proud of you.”

  “Yeah….” His smile faded a little.

  “We were about ready to make it, you know? The two of us? And then…” he trailed off. “But I had to keep pus
hing for the big break. Jake would have wanted that. Don’t you think Jake would have wanted that?”

  The need for approval was apparent in Russell’s eyes, and Hunter knew he needed his reassurance.

  “Yeah, of course he would have,” he told him.

  The answer was sincere. Jake was one of the most selfless people Hunter had ever known. He would have wanted his partner to go on to success, he had absolutely no doubt about it.

  “It will be a great tribute to his memory, Russell. Seriously.”

  Russell nodded, clearly satisfied with Hunter’s answer.

  “So, I’m excited to have you all over for dinner tomorrow,” he said. “My steaks one of Jake’s favorite dishes. I also thought I’d get some of that IPA beer he liked so much. It will be a big Jake tribute dinner.”

  Hunter smiled. “He would have liked that, Russell. All his favorite people in one place, honoring his memory.”

  Russell nodded.

  “Yeah, and in the meantime, you’re going to go talk to Razor again, right? Get him to confess?”

  Here we go again, Hunter thought.

  Russell obviously couldn’t drop the subject, so he just nodded and said, “I’ll let you know if we find anything, okay?”

  I wish I was as confident as Russell that we have our man, he thought ruefully. That would make everything so much easier.

  Chapter 23

  Kari

  Kari woke up a woman on a mission. She had a list for everyone she was getting a gift for, and next week she was shopping with Kasi, but today she was choosing the gifts. She paused just outside of her sister’s room.

  “Kasi, are you ready to get started?” She could hear her younger sister moving around as she called out to her but knew that she wasn't even out of her bedroom yet.

  “I am ready to start getting some more sleep. Leave me alone.” That last part sounded like it came from under a pillow. Knowing her, Kari thought, it probably did.