“Mrs. Sharpe?” Guttman said, looking back at Deena.
She just shook her head.
Guttman offered his arm back to Darlene. “Now, that’s a story I want to hear.”
Instead of his office, Guttman took Darlene and Deena to an interrogation room. He read Darlene her rights and let her know everything she said was being recorded.
She looked up at the ceiling and saw the video camera in the corner. “Am I going to be on TV?” She waved at the camera.
“Detective Guttman, can I speak to you outside before you get started here?” Deena shot him a look that left him no choice but to comply.
He followed her to the hallway. “Excellent job, Deena. If you’re worried about getting credit for the arrest, don’t. I’ll be sure everyone knows how much you helped in this case.”
She held up her hand to stop him. “I don’t want credit for this, I just want Darlene to get a fair shake. Her attorney is on the way, and you shouldn’t question her until he’s here.”
“But you heard her waive her right to an attorney.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “I can ask her anything I want at this point.”
“But surely you can tell she’s not understanding the gravity of the situation. Please, wait until Mr. Marlin is here.”
Guttman breathed heavily out of his nose like a bull in an arena. “Whose side are you on? This is just what you need to get Wendy Fairmont off the hook. Oh, and by the way, you could’ve told me that Stephanie Gander recanted.”
“You’re right. In fact, we should talk about that. Let’s go to your office so we can also discuss Julius Dunbar and his involvement in this case.”
“Nice try, but I am going back in there. You might as well go on home. I’ve got this covered.”
“Detective Guttman,” the officer from the front desk said, “Jacob Marlin is here to see his client.”
Deena smiled and tried not to appear too smug. “Looks like you have to wait after all.”
Before Guttman could make a move, Darlene stuck her head out of the door of the interrogation room. “Do you mind if I go to the ladies’ room? I just need to check my hair again.”
Guttman pointed down the hall. “Sure, why not?”
Deena walked past him out to the front. She introduced herself to the attorney. “Did Ian fill you in on the details?”
“Just enough to know that my new client is in desperate need of representation.”
“You can say that again.”
The front desk officer led them back to the holding room.
When Darlene came back in, her face dropped. Deena could read her mind. Apparently, she had not expected her new lawyer to be so old.
He reached out his hand. “I’m Jacob Marlin, and I’m here to represent you.”
“Okay, I guess.” Her shoulders sagged as she said it.
“Let’s get you out of here so we can talk,” Marlin said.
Detective Guttman walked in with a look on his face that Deena had never seen before. He was pale and sweaty as though he might have a heart attack.
“Linus, are you okay?”
Before he could answer, Marlin said, “I’m taking my client out of here. She won’t be making a statement today after all.”
“That’s fine with me, since she obviously didn’t do anything.”
Deena cocked her head at Guttman. “What do you mean?”
Guttman held up a piece of paper. “The medical examiner’s report just came in. Ray Brewster died of natural causes.”
Chapter 28
After hearing all the details of the medical examiner’s report, Deena sat in her car wondering what to do next. Should she be relieved or disappointed?
She couldn’t bring herself to go back to work. Maybe she should go see Gary. He might understand how she was feeling. First, however, she needed to call Ian and tell him the news. He would want to talk to the DA about dropping the charges against Wendy.
When Ian didn’t answer his cell phone, she called the office number.
Rob picked up. “He’s not here. He’s at the hospital. Sandra is in labor.”
Deena’s heart fluttered as she started up the car and raced toward the hospital. She whispered a prayer under her breath that everything would be okay.
Of course, when she got there, she was directed to the family waiting room where she sat all by herself. She called Gary, who insisted on coming up to be with her right—after he stopped by to check on his mother.
The waiting area was barren except for a coffee machine in one corner and a few vending machines in the other. A small TV was muted and showed the weather station. She was too anxious to bother changing it. Gary would likely put it on a sports station as soon as he arrived.
When Gary got there, she unloaded on him. She told him about Stephanie and the Abbotts and Darlene and the medical examiner’s report. It felt good to get it all out in the open. When she finished, exhaustion took over, and she fell asleep leaning against Gary’s shoulder.
She continued drifting in and out of sleep with only an occasional noise or Gary shifting in his seat causing her to open a droopy eye. She slept that way for several hours.
As though coming out of a dark tunnel, she awoke to the sound of Gary calling her name and shaking her. “Deena, wake up. Ian is here.”
She wiped the saliva off the side of her mouth and sat up. “Is everything okay?”
“It’s a girl! She’s beautiful. Do you want to see her?”
“You bet I do,” Sylvia screeched from across the room.
“When did you get here?” Deena asked.
“About an hour ago. Edwin dropped me off. You’ve been out of it this whole time, sleeping beauty.” But this time, Sylvia’s snarky comment was accompanied by a softness in her face that was usually reserved for Gary. “Let’s go see that new baby,” she said, walking over and taking Deena by the hand.
Sandra was beaming as she held her new little bundle. “Isn’t she the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?”
“Absolutely!” Deena said. “And so are you.” She stroked Sandra’s cheek with the back of her hand.
“Do you want to hold her?” Sandra asked.
“I certainly do,” Sylvia said, pushing Deena to the side. “After all, she is my namesake.”
Ian gently lifted the baby and carried her over to the rocking chair.
Sylvia sat down and cradled baby Sylvia in her arms. She cooed and made all the normal grandmotherly sounds you would expect.
Ian walked back and stood next to Sandra on the opposite side of the bed from Deena. “So what happened at the police station? Is Darlene under arrest?”
“You’ll never believe it. As it turns out, Ray Brewster died of a heart attack, not poisoning.”
“You’re kidding! But what about Darlene? Was she just lying to get attention?”
“Nope. They found traces of epinephrine in his system, but said it had nothing to do with his heart attack. Guttman said they could still charge her with attempted murder, but won’t because she wasn’t actually trying to kill him.”
“That’s incredible,” Ian said.
There was a soft knock at the door, and Wendy stuck her head in. She held out a big vase of fall flowers. “Hey, I just wanted to stop by and say congratulations and to thank you. The DA called and they’ve dropped the charges against me.”
“That’s wonderful,” Deena said. “Have you told David?”
“He must’ve found out somehow, because he called and said he was willing to take me back.”
“What did you say?” Deena asked.
“I told him he could take his stupid proposal and stick it where the sun don’t shine.”
“Good for you! You’re too classy for him anyway,” Deena said. "Are you okay?"
"Yep, better now, of course," Wendy said. "Looks like there won’t be any tulle in my future, not for a while anyway."
“Hello? Remember me?” Sandra asked. “Let’s not forget about the miracle of birth tha
t just happened here.”
Ian leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I could never forget you, dear.”
Chapter 29
Although Deena could have pulled out one of her other Thanksgiving wreaths to decorate the front door, she felt like this year her house deserved a fresh start. The grapevine deer, rusty tin stars, and barn wood plaques had called to her from the aisles of the crafts store. This year’s wreath would have a rustic Texas theme.
She was just putting away her glue gun when Gary came in from work.
“Look at my sweet little homemaker,” he said and kissed her on the side of her neck.
Deena rolled her eyes and chuckled. Her mood was particularly bright after today’s follow-up appointment with Sylvia at the doctor. She clasped her hands around Gary’s neck and gave him a long, lingering kiss on the lips.
“Stop that, you two,” Sylvia said from the den. “Save that for when you’re behind closed doors.”
Gary loosened his tie and glanced in the kitchen. “I love Taco Tuesday. Yours are even better than the ones at Las Abuela’s.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” Deena said. “The secret is your mother’s special salsa recipe.”
Gary walked into the den. “So what did the doctor say?”
Before Sylvia could answer, Deena rushed up like a freight train. “He said her ankle was almost as good as new and that the boot could come off on Friday and that she would then be able to drive. Isn’t that great news?”
“Sure it is.” He turned toward his mother. “I bet you’ll be glad to get back home.”
“I’ll be glad to get you two out of my hair.”
“Sylvia,” Deena said, walking back to set the table, “it hasn’t been that bad, has it?”
“Now that I’ve taught you how to keep a decent house and how to take care of my boy, I guess my work here is done. However, I don’t know how you’ll manage next week when you start back to work at that thrift store.”
Gary helped his mother out of the rocker and escorted her to the table. “Now Mother, Deena worked for over thirty years when she was teaching, and we managed. We’ll be just fine after you leave.”
Is Gary actually defending me to his mother? Sounds like he’s as anxious for her to leave as I am. “Before you sit down,” Deena said to Gary, “check the news. I want to see what the early returns say about the mayor’s race. It should be on the scrolling banner on the local station.”
Sylvia took one of the cloth napkins she had purchased for Deena and flipped it across her lap. “I can’t imagine anyone would vote for that charlatan after he made the police lock up that poor girl Wendy. Especially after we made sure word got all over town.”
“Yep,” Deena said. “We made the small town grapevine work in our favor this time. I mentioned it to Penelope at church, and it spread throughout the entire Bluebonnet Club and beyond.”
“It must have worked,” Gary said as he joined them at the table. “Marty Fisk is winning by a landslide.”
“Good. He’s for positive growth, even if he is a little sneaky.” Deena brought the food to the table and poured everyone a glass of sweet tea.
“That’s not such a bad thing, right my dear?” Sylvia lifted her glass. “Here’s to being sneaky.”
Deena smiled and joined in the toast. “Speaking of sneaky, I talked to Detective Guttman today. He got Julius Dunbar to admit to interfering with the case in exchange for agreeing not to press charges. The DA had already decided it would cost too much money to fight the O’Malleys and their money machine, but Dunbar didn’t know that. He admitted to following me around town, which means I wasn’t just being paranoid. Also, he admitted to bribing Stephanie and trying to bribe Darlene.”
“It was a good thing Darlene didn’t give in,” Gary said. “Still, I’m surprised Reverend Abbott hired her back as the church secretary.”
“Like he said in Sunday’s sermon, Sylvia said, “‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ Reverend Abbott is a good man. You should be glad to have him as your pastor.”
Deena nodded. “Guttman also convinced Dunbar to let Stephanie keep the car.”
Sylvia raised her eyebrows. “Is that a good idea? Isn’t that rewarding her for giving in to temptation?”
“She’s going to sell it and use the money for college. After coming forward and saying how sorry she was, Guttman thought she could use a leg up to get her life back on the right track.”
“Who knew Guttman had such a soft heart,” Gary said. “I guess you never can tell about people.”
“You know,” Deena said, “even though Ray is gone, I think some good actually came out of his death.”
“What’s that?” Gary asked.
“Reverend Abbott’s secret is out and his family is actually closer now. Also, Wendy found out what a creep her fiancé was before she made the mistake of marrying him. And Stephanie...well, Stephanie will hopefully learn to listen to her conscience.”
“All I know is that I’m glad things have settled down,” Gary said and nodded at Deena.
“You shouldn’t be so quick to wish away life's little surprises,” Sylvia said. “You never know what adventure might be waiting for you just around the corner.”
“Or even right next door,” Deena said and winked at Sylvia. “Too bad you'll be leaving soon.”
“Actually, I might just stay around a little while longer. Perhaps I could move in next door with Edwin. How about them apples, neighbor?”
Deena's jaw dropped and her eyes nearly fell out of her head. “Why, you little tart! You really can’t judge a book by its cover.”
THE END
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Darlene is a hoot! I think we’ll have to see more of her in the future. And what about Sylvia? Will she really move in with Edwin? We’ll have to see.
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Keep reading the series with Sharpe Cookie: Two Sides to Every Coin, book 6.
SHE'S A SHARP COOKIE. BUT SO IS THE KILLER!
WHEN AN AUCTION OF family treasures leads to murder, amateur sleuth Deena Sharpe sets out to catch the culprit. A missing coin collection could be the key to the puzzle.
While Deena babysits the thrift shop for her friend who is out on maternity leave, strange things start happening. Her sister-in-law Estelle thinks they are messages from beyond the grave that point to the killer. Can they separate truth from fiction before someone else gets hurt?
Sharpe Cookie: Two Sides to Every Coin is book 6 in the Maycroft Mysteries. Follow Deena as continues her quest for justice.
Works by Lisa B. Thomas
MAYCROFT MYSTERIES
Sharpe Shooter: Skeleton in the Closet
Sharpe Edge: Stranger on the Stairs
Sharpe Mind: Hanging by a Thread
Sharpe Turn: Murder by the Book
Sharpe Point: Needle in a Haystack
Sharpe Cookie: Two Sides to Every Coin
Sharpe Note: Sour Grapes of Wrath
Sharpe Image: Danger in the Darkroom (Prequel Novella)
KILLER SHOTS MYSTERIES
Negative Exposure
Freeze Frame
Picture Imperfect
BEACHSIDE BOOKS MAGICAL COZY MYSTERIES
Pasta, Pirates and Poison
Apples, Actors and Axes (April 2019)
Visit www.lisabthomas.com for the most up-to-date book list.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to all the readers who encourage me to keep writing. I feel your support every time I sit down to write.
Most of all, love and thanks to my husband for making it possible. And to Kiki. I miss you every day.
Cozy Suburbs Mystery Box Set Page 80