Homicide In The Hydrangeas

by Leighann Dobbs

  “Oh, I couldn’t ask you to go to that trouble.”

  “It’s no trouble. We take care of our own,” Araminta said.

  “Thank you. But what are the two of you doing here?” Trinity gnawed her bottom lip. “This is about Joey, isn’t it? He’s why you’re here?”

  “We found a clue near the body that led us here.” Araminta narrowed her eyes. “You did seem overly upset when we found the body. Did you know the victim?”

  Trinity set the drink aside and twined her fingers together in her lap. “I knew him. Well, sort of. He works for Tony and so does his girlfriend, Vivianne. He’s usually in here a lot—or he was until this morning. He and Vivianne had a big fight last night... right before he died, I guess.”

  “So that’s why you ran away this morning when Joey’s body was found?” Araminta asked.

  Trinity nodded. “I was afraid you’d find out what I do here if I was questioned about how I knew him.”

  Araminta patted her knee. “Now, don’t you worry about that. We’ll make sure the police don’t hassle you. And as for the family being upset, I can assure you we are not.”

  Trinity’s look of relief warmed Araminta’s heart. She felt badly that the girl had to stoop to dancing and was committed to making sure her grandmother had enough money for her treatment. She was also smart enough to know that Trinity’s moonlighting at the Lantern Lounge was a lucky break for her because now she had an inside source which was going to make her investigation a lot easier.

  Chapter Six

  On the way home, Araminta couldn’t help but notice her great-niece’s silence. “What is going on in your head, young lady?”

  Stephanie shook her head, then a big grin split her lips. “It’s just too out there, Aunt Minta. Hard to wrap my thoughts around. I can’t believe you actually went to the Lantern Lounge!”

  Araminta chuckled. She had obviously shocked the girl, but she was determined to go wherever the clues took her. That was one of the things Jacob never could understand about her too. He’d complained many times she was going to land headfirst in a world of trouble someday if she didn’t learn to be more circumspect. “I only wish Trinity would have come back with us instead of making her own way.”

  “She didn’t want to change things up with all that is going on. Mr. Tuccinelli’s murder and all. If she had returned with us tonight, it may have seemed suspicious.”

  “Perhaps,” Araminta conceded. “I worry about the girl. And the dancing. She should have come to myself or Daisy. If we had known…”

  Stephanie stared out the window at the passing scenery. “People have their pride.”

  “Bah. Pride goeth before a fall, and it doesn’t seem right for a Moorecliff … I know, I know, she’s not family, but she’s ‘in the family’… to be working another job. People might think we don’t pay our staff a living wage. Daisy will feel affronted for exactly that reason.” Araminta tapped her hand against her thigh. “I suppose it’s better we will arrive home first, dear. We can explain the situation before Trinity has to face her and fess up.”

  Stephanie frowned. “Was that car parked there when we left?”

  Araminta blinked at the subject change. She sat up to peer out the window in the direction Stephanie motioned to. “Which vehicle? All I see is a black limousine.”

  “Yes.” Stephanie nodded. “It’s just sitting there. Seems a little odd.”

  Odd, yes, Araminta thought. Was someone watching the house? She made a mental note to keep an eye out in case whoever had parked there didn’t leave soon... and so she would know if it showed up again.

  Their car pulled up in front of the manor, and Araminta waited for Stephanie to exit before going inside. It was almost nine thirty. If someone was lurking in the dark, she didn’t want Stephanie out there by herself. The two ladies entered without mishap. Araminta handed Harold her coat while Stephanie greeted her stepmother.

  “More roses? Oooh, look Aunt Minta. They’re gorgeous!” She surveyed the bouquet while Daisy busied herself with re-situating a few of the blooms in the vase that Harold had brought her, a pleased little smile teasing the corners of her lips.

  “Still no card?” Stephanie hugged her stepmom then leaned over to fiddle with the flowers, looking for a card or something that would hint at who was sending the beautiful roses that had arrived like clockwork, every other day, since her father’s death. “You definitely have a secret admirer, Daisy. Do you have any idea who it could be?”

  “None,” Daisy said. She pushed the vase into the center of the hallway table and turned to Araminta. “Any luck at the club?”

  With Trinity away for a few hours, Mary had taken it upon herself to bring out a tray with some dainty finger sandwiches and tea. She was always looking out for the family like that, taking up slack when one of the other servants was busy elsewhere. Araminta waited while she poured a cup for Daisy, Stephanie, and herself, but the minute the cook went back to the kitchen, Araminta sat in the wingback chair across from her great-niece and niece by marriage. “Hmm. Luck, yes. Good or bad? Could be debated. We saw Trinity there.”

  Daisy laughed. “She’s young, Araminta. Nothing wrong with enjoying a few drinks and a little downtime after work.”

  Araminta’s brow rose. “I agree. Time out of the house is good. Time around other people is good. Daisy, the girl wasn’t having a bit of a breather. She was dancing. For her set.”

  When Daisy seemed perplexed, Stephanie explained, “Trinity is apparently moonlighting as an exotic dancer at the Lantern Lounge. Daisy, don’t think badly of her, please. She is doing what she feels necessary, the only way she can. Her grandmother has health issues and expenses not covered by her insurance. Surgery, too, I believe?”

  Stephanie glanced at Araminta for confirmation. Araminta nodded. “Poor thing. She’s had all these family issues and said not a word. I suppose she’s too proud to ask for help, but…”

  “But we Moorecliffs take care of our own,” Daisy finished.

  Araminta nodded. “That is exactly what I was telling Stephanie on our way back here from the Lounge.”

  Daisy sighed then placed her teacup on the table. She stood and straightened her shirt. “I suppose it’s time to break out the Moorecliff Means and Ways Grant? I’ll just head into the study and make sure everything’s in order.”

  “Moorecliff Means and … what?” Stephanie asked. “I’ve never heard of any such gran—”

  “Your aunt and I started the charity some time ago for things just like this.” She cut Araminta a sly glance. “Right, Araminta?”

  Araminta felt a moment of pride for the woman her nephew had married. Archie had been right to leave everything to her. Daisy was shrewd and quick on her feet. Araminta hadn’t even had to suggest they make up some foundation or charity in order to give Trinity the money she needed and let the girl still keep her pride. Daisy, bless her, had come up with it all on her own. “Precisely.”

  As Daisy started toward the office, the door opened and Trinity came in. When she spotted Daisy, she looked like she might start crying again, but Daisy warded that off by enveloping her in a big hug.

  “Trinity, why didn’t you say something?”

  “I didn’t want to trouble you,” the startled girl said.

  “It’s no bother. Archie always wanted to take care of the staff, and I want to honor those wishes. That’s why we have a charitable fund. No arguing now. I’m going to write you a check right away.”

  Luckily, Daisy’s idea for giving the funds they were going to give to Trinity was the trick they needed to keep her from balking at the thought of taking money from either of them. At first, she’d been hesitant, but when Daisy explained her situation was exactly the reason they had created the grant in the first place, Trinity accepted the money.

  “Thank you. I—I don’t know how I can ever repay you for this, but thank you.”

  Daisy shook her head. “No repayment is necessary, Trinity. I believe there should be enough funds in
the—ah—grant to cover your wages from the Lantern Lounge and to take care of your grandmother’s medical expenses. I only hope if you find yourself in a situation you cannot handle in the future, you know you can come to us first.”

  Trinity nodded, then the tears started. Stephanie stood up to give her a hug. “It’s all right now, Trinity. Your grandmother is going to be okay.”

  The girl sniffled and then shook her head and smiled. “Yes, and I am so grateful for that, but it’s not the reason I was crying. I’m so happy I don’t have to go back there or dance anymore.”

  “Now that we have that out of the way, I was wondering if you could tell us more about Joey Tuccinelli and the argument between him and his girlfriend—Vivianne, I believe you said is her name?”

  “I don’t really know much,” Trinity told her. “I mostly keep to myself when I am there. I do my set and then leave. But I can get you backstage if you’d like? Introduce you to Vivianne?”

  “I would love that, actually. If you aren’t too tired, of course.”

  Trinity laughed. “Of course not. Vivianne works in the office in the back, but she usually doesn’t come in until after nine p.m. Will that be too late?”

  Stephanie glanced at her aunt and grinned. “For Aunt Minta? Never. You should hear some of the stories she told me on the way home tonight. Seems she was a bit of a mover and shaker in her day.”

  Chapter Seven

  Vivianne’s office was bare-bones with a metal desk and three filing cabinets. The only decoration was a potted plant in the corner and a few framed photographs. Araminta noticed more than one of them was of the victim. The pictures were askew and the potted plant had some soil spilled out, but otherwise one would never guess that the girl sitting at the desk had just experienced the death of someone close her.

  Vivianne looked up at Trinity’s soft knock, and it was then that Araminta could see the girl was putting on a good show, but her red eyes gave her away. She’d been crying.

  “Trinity, you did well on your set today,” she said. “I know Joey is usually the one to give compliments, but…”

  Her voice broke. Trinity waited for her to regain her composure before introducing Stephanie and Araminta. Then, she said, “Are you too upset to talk about Joey? We can come back tomorrow.”

  Vivianne sniffled then put down her pencil, closed her laptop, and shook her head. “No, no. I am fine, really.”

  Araminta wasted no more time. “Trinity tells us you and Joey had a fight last night?”

  “Yes, well.” Vivianne’s face clouded. “It was more of an argument, really. Joey likes—liked—women. A lot. But he didn’t do so well with limiting his attentions to just one. He was always smiling, chatting, flirting.”

  A moment of pain danced across her face before she met Araminta’s gaze. “I didn’t like it. I guess maybe I’m a little jealous. Maybe I prefer my men to keep their attention on me?”

  She fiddled with her pencil in silence for a moment. Then: “That’s why we fought, why we were arguing. He was spending too much time with women who ain’t me, you know?”

  Her fidgeting became more agitated, and she got up to pace around the room. “He was upset, stormed out. I—I never saw him again.”

  The tears started again, and Trinity wrapped her in a consoling embrace. “So it wasn’t you, then?”

  Vivianne’s head snapped up. “Me? No! No, I didn’t kill him. I loved him. I could never hurt him.”

  When Stephanie and Araminta shared a glance, Vivianne said, “You can ask Tony, if you don’t trust me. I was here. He can vouch for me because he was here too. He heard Joey and me fighting, saw Joey leave. When he came in, I was a mess.”

  She shrugged. “He comforted me.” Vivianne sighed and then sat back behind the desk. “He’s sweet like that, you know? Tony, I mean.”

  Araminta didn’t know, so she simply smiled.

  “Maybe I should have got involved with him instead?” she said, her words followed by a short bark of laughter. “He’s a very attentive man. When he has a girlfriend, he buys them expensive jewelry, takes them out for fancy dinners. The works.”

  “Tony never lets a woman forget who she’s with.” She sighed. Then, she crossed her arms in front of her. Her expression became pouty. “Joey, he was kind of a slouch, you know?”

  Araminta didn’t comment on the boyfriend. Instead, she asked, “Do you have a cat?”

  “What?” Vivianne asked, confused.

  Araminta pointed out the soil on the floor beside the potted plant, then she walked over to inspect the damage. “I saw it and it reminded me of something my cats, Arun and Sasha, sometimes do if they are allowed into the solarium.”

  “No, I don’t have a cat,” Vivianne said, but Araminta was barely paying attention now. She’d caught a glimpse of something in the trash she wanted a closer look at.

  “Tony does, though. A giant Norwegian Forest cat he named Bear. He brings it into the office with him sometimes.”

  “Oh, a Norwegian!” Araminta said, turning back to Vivianne. She apparently spun around too quickly, though, because she lost her footing and stumbled into the wastebasket.

  “Aunt Minta, are you okay?” Stephanie rushed over to help her, but Araminta had already righted herself.

  Brushing off her great-niece’s fussing attempts to make sure she was all right, Araminta said, “I’m fine. Just a little light-headed. Must have had one too many drinks before we came back here.”

  Movement in the doorway caught Araminta’s eye. It was Sal, the bouncer they’d met the day before.

  “Oh, hi, Araminta. You back again?” Sal nodded a greeting at Stephanie and Trinity.

  “Hello, Sal. How are you?” Araminta asked to be polite.

  “Good.” He turned his attention to Vivianne. “The limo’s ready for you.”

  Araminta raised a brow at Vivianne, who blushed. “Tony lets me take the limo to go shopping when my car is in the shop. Sal drives me.”

  “How nice of him,” Araminta said. “Well, I’ll just let you go then. We have to be on our way, anyway.”

  In the car, Araminta held something up to the light. It was part of a photograph, she realized, only it was just the corner. There were no people, no bit of a face, just the edge of nothing. Still, it roused her curiosity. Why would anyone throw away the blank corner of a photograph?

  Chapter Eight

  “Are you sure you don’t see anything?” Sasha stretched her neck forward, peering into the hydrangeas under which Arun was scratching. “Something feels off. I know it.”

  Arun slinked from beneath the hydrangeas and shook the damp soil off his paws. “Nothing out of the ordinary. Sometimes I wish Araminta still allowed us to roam further than the yard at night.”

  “Mary would have heart failure. You know she gets upset when we try to help her weed the herb garden,” Sasha reminded him. “Still, I wouldn’t mind a walk in the moonlight now and again.”

  Arun turned his back on her to administer a bit of heavier grooming. “Don’t go getting all soft on me now, Sash. I’m pretty sure our moonlit stroll days ended when Jake retired from the force.”

  Sasha knew it was probably true. They used to accompany Araminta outdoors at night all the time, especially when she was working on a case. But ever since Jacob Hershey retired, there had been precious few visits to the manor. Now, only his grandson, Ivan, showed up. Although… “Do you think Ivan has a thing for Stephanie?”

  Arun’s head popped up, and his ears twitched forward. “I think I caught a whiff of something foul in the air.”

  “Well, I hardly think Ivan having a thing for Stephanie is foul,” Sasha said.

  “Not that. I mean something smells bad over there in the grass.” Following a scent caught on the breeze, Arun nudged around a clump of grass and rolled out the butt of a recently smoked cigar. “Not Yancy’s. Nor Reggie’s. And I’m pretty sure Ms. Daisy wouldn’t dare.”

  Sasha tiptoed over. “She would not. But look, Runie. Isn’t th
is where the body was found? If there’s a stogie butt so close to where the murder happened, maybe it’s a clue?”

  Arun was sure the foul-smelling tobacco product was definitely a clue... but to which mystery? “I would have thought the police would have bagged all evidence. Ivan and his boys are pretty thorough. Remember what they did when Shirley was found in the solarium? Nothing stayed in its place.”

  “Hmm. We should get Araminta. She will know what to do.” Sasha took off like a shot toward the house.

  Arun stayed where he was, for the most part. It couldn’t hurt to knock off a hydrangea blossom here and there while he waited for Sasha to return with Araminta. He could tell Sasha had been feeling a little down lately. If he made sure there were a few sweet-scented petals lying around when she got back, who would complain?

  It was late morning when the doorbell rang. Araminta opened it to find Ivan waiting on the other side. His look of eager anticipation faded when he saw her. Who was he expecting to answer the door? Stephanie? “Good morning, Ivan. To what do we owe the pleasure of your call?”

  He looked kind of sheepish. “I—ah—I need to have a few words with Ms. Moorecliff. Is she available?”

  “Oh.” Araminta turned and motioned for him to follow her inside. “I thought you’d come to pay a call on Ms. Stephanie. My apologies.”

  Ivan’s sheepish look turned into a full-on blush. “No, I am here on business, unfortunately.”

  Araminta nodded. “Daisy is in her study. If you will wait in the parlor, I’ll ask her to join us. But first…” She pulled out a handkerchief with a cigar butt inside. “I found this near the hydrangeas earlier this morning. Did you and your fellows perchance miss a clue, Hershey?”

  Ivan took the handkerchief from her and studied the stogie then shook his head. “No, we didn’t miss a thing, Araminta. There was a cigar butt, though. We found it under the body. It was soggy from all the rain—there were thunderstorms the night Mr. Tuccinelli was murdered, remember?”