by Kathi Daley
“I’ll go and take a look outside,” Jeremy offered. “He may have gone for a walk.”
Fiona looked at Lisa. “Would he have left for any reason?”
“Left how? We all came in the limo, so he doesn’t have a car, and this quaint little inn you selected is out here in the middle of nowhere.”
I supposed I couldn’t disagree with Lisa’s assessment that the inn wasn’t close to town, but I didn’t like the way she said quaint little inn with so much disdain.
“I’m sure he’ll turn up,” Carson said. “Let’s all get cleaned up and continue with our plans. If Alvin is off sulking somewhere and he misses the limo into town, then that’s on him. I’m starving, and I hear the restaurant where we reserved a table has excellent lobster.”
Everyone grumbled their agreement to Carson’s plan.
Fiona looked at Georgia. “If he shows up before we head into town, remind him that the limo will be here at noon. If he doesn’t show up before we leave but shows up later, he can call an Uber if he wants to join us.”
“If I see him, I’ll pass along the message,” Georgia promised.
If one of my friends was missing, at the very least, I would be slightly concerned, but it didn’t look as if anyone was, so perhaps Alvin did this sort of thing quite often.
By the time the group left, Alvin still hadn’t shown up. Georgia, Jeremy, and our part-time employee, Nikki, planned to clean the rooms while the group was away, and I planned to go into town. I needed to speak to Vanessa Blackstone, the owner of Firehouse Books, about scheduling a book signing for my second thriller, which would launch over the summer.
Since Georgia was busy cleaning, I took the dogs for a quick walk before heading into town. It was another beautiful day. Blue sky, blue sea, white seagulls flying overhead. Ramos and Molly seemed to be having a wonderful time chasing the birds that swooped in to check us out as we made our way along the bluff. Once the dogs had done what they needed to do, I settled them into the cottage and made my way out to my SUV. The ride into town was almost as beautiful as the walk along the bluff. I really loved days such as this.
“Abby,” Vanessa greeted after I arrived at the bookstore. “How nice to see you. It’s been a while.”
“It has,” I acknowledged. “I’ve been on deadline, which has been occupying most of my waking hours, but I finally got my manuscript submitted, and now I’m working on setting things up for my book tour this summer.”
“Oh, please say one of your stops is here with us.”
I nodded. “Actually, I’d like to have the launch party here, if that’s okay with you.”
She grinned. “It’s more than okay. I’d be honored to host your launch party. Let’s have a cup of coffee and discuss the specifics.”
Vanessa and I spent the next hour discussing the launch party, book signings in general, and basically just catching up. By the time I left the bookstore, I was ready for lunch, so I decided to stop by Velma’s Diner. Velma was one of the first people I met after arriving in Holiday Bay. She is the one who introduced me to Georgia, and she’s also the one who convinced me that perhaps I did need the cat I was certain I hadn’t wanted in the beginning. She always has a warm shoulder to cry on, strong arms willing to provide a hug, and good advice when requested. Along with Georgia and Lacy, she was one of my very best friends.
“So how’s the big pre-wedding party going?” she asked after I sat down, and she poured me a cup of coffee.
I filled her in on the activities of the group to date, as well as my assessment of each individual based on what I had observed to this point. “Of course, today most everyone is hungover. I can’t believe how much alcohol they went through last night.”
“Sort of surprising from a group of professionals in their thirties,” she said. “A bunch of college-aged kids sure, but generally speaking, once most folks get to a certain age, they take a step back from the heavy drinking.”
“I didn’t have the impression that anyone meant to get drunk. I think they were just having fun, and it snuck up on them. One of the guests, the best man, made Bloody Marys for breakfast, which actually seemed to help.”
Velma chuckled. “Sure. The best cure for a hangover is more alcohol. It’s a vicious circle to get into, though. Drink to cure the hangover, and then end up with another hangover which requires more alcohol.”
“Hopefully, they won’t do that. Georgia has a gourmet dinner planned. It’d be a shame if everyone was too drunk to appreciate it.”
Velma took my order and then went to the kitchen to make my sandwich. It was almost two o’clock, which was closing time for Velma, so we were the only two in the place. Once she returned with my meal, she sat down across from me.
“So other than the hangovers, how is everything else going?”
I took a bite of the triple-decker sandwich before answering. “It’s going okay. One of the guests seems to be missing.”
“Missing?”
I nodded as I took a second bite of my sandwich. I really shouldn’t eat such a big meal ahead of Georgia’s big dinner, but I was starving, and it was delicious. “He was with the group last night, but when his girlfriend came down this morning, she said he wasn’t in the room. We searched the inn and the surrounding area, but there was no trace of him.”
“Could he have left for some reason?” she asked.
“The group arrived in a limo, so he didn’t have the means to drive away, but I suppose he might have called for a taxi or an Uber. No one seemed overly concerned, so I didn’t ask a whole lot of questions. I suppose if he hasn’t shown up and no one has heard from him by the time the group returns, we might want to do more to determine what happened.”
“If none of his friends are worried, I’d be willing to bet he’s done the disappearing thing before,” Velma said.
“That’s what I was thinking.”
By the time I arrived back at the inn, Georgia, Jeremy, and Nikki had the place spotless, and Georgia and Jeremy were in the kitchen taking care of the prep work for the evening meal.
“Did Alvin ever show up?” I asked.
“He did not,” Jeremy answered. “I’d suspect he decided that this event wasn’t to his liking and took off, but all his stuff is still in the suite he’s sharing with Lisa. Well, not all his stuff. I did a bit of snooping and noticed that his phone, watch, and wallet are missing, but his laptop is still set up on the desk, and his clothes are in the closet.”
“It sounds like he might have gone somewhere last night, intending to return, but he never made it back,” Georgia said.
“Yeah, but where?” I asked.
“Into town,” Georgia speculated. “Not that we have any nightlife to speak of, so if it was late, there wouldn’t have been a reason to go into town. Besides, how would he have gotten there?”
“I was going to call Colt and ask him to check to see if a cab or Uber was called out to the inn last night. I’ll do it now.”
My call took longer than I expected it would because Colt wasn’t aware that we had a missing guest. I explained that given the fact that his friends weren’t really all that concerned, I hadn’t been either, but that it did seem odd to Georgia, Jeremy, and me that the guy had simply taken off and left his stuff behind. Colt promised to check on the taxi and Uber angle and get back to me.
“Have you heard from the group?” I asked Georgia after I hung up with Colt.
“No. They want dinner to be served at eight and plan to have cocktails beginning at six. There are additional guests who are coming from town for a total of eighteen unless Alvin never shows, and then I guess we’ll have seventeen. Jeremy is going to man the bar before dinner, so hopefully, no one will get drunk before they can enjoy the meal I’ve been working on all day.”
“It does seem like it might be a good idea to keep Mike in front of the bar rather than behind it. Do you need help?”
Georgia shook her head. “Jeremy and I have it. It would be nice if you popped in around six to meet
the new guests and to chat with those you met last evening.”
I picked up an apple and took a bite. “I’ll do that. In the meantime, I need to call my agent about my launch party. Vanessa is happy to host, and personally, I feel like her store has exactly the vibe I’m looking for.”
Chapter 6
The guest list for the dinner party consisted of the eleven people staying at the inn and seven guests who were staying in town. The people staying in town were Fiona’s guests but were not part of the wedding party. Based on the tidbits of conversations I overheard, it seemed to me that other than Carson, Mike, Ambrosia, Jennifer, Willa, Jordan, and Stephanie, everyone in the room was worth tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars. I still found it very odd that Fiona had chosen to have her pre-wedding party here out of all the ritzy places in the world she could have chosen, but I guess if she was going for something different, then we surely delivered.
“It seems the group has mellowed this evening,” I whispered to Jeremy, who’d just walked up beside me as I stood off to the side, watching the group interact.
“The man talking to Naomi is actually their uncle. I suspect Fiona warned everyone to watch their behavior given his position in the family.”
“He looks young to be an uncle. Is he Naomi and Fiona’s father’s brother?”
Jeremy nodded. “Frederick Arlington is Drake Arlington’s much younger brother. I think someone mentioned that there are fifteen years between the two brothers, but none the less, next to Drake, Frederick has the most control over the family’s businesses and assets. It seems that Drake manages the day to day operations, but it’s Frederick who manages the money.”
“So Fiona and Carson wouldn’t do anything that would shine a bad light on them with Uncle Frederick around.”
He nodded. “Basically. Naomi seemed to think Frederick was here as a spy for Drake, who really doesn’t approve of the match and is looking for a reason to put an end to things. According to Naomi, Frederick wasn’t invited to attend this weekend, but when he heard about the party, he more or less invited himself. Since he’s staying in town, Fiona couldn’t argue that there wasn’t enough room at the inn for him.”
“So Frederick is the buzzkill. What do you know about the others?”
“The woman in the red dress with the dark hair is Frederick’s date, Bronwyn. They aren’t married but, based on comments made by others, it sounds as if they are living together and have been for some time. Bronwyn is English, and while her last name is escaping me at the moment, it seems as if I heard somewhere that she’s from old money too, only her old money is British pounds while the Arlington’s riches come in US dollars.”
“And the two women talking to Fiona?” I asked.
“Old friends from college. I was chatting with Carson, and he mentioned that the taller of the two was named Patience. I guess Fiona and Patience were sorority sisters. I can’t remember the name of the other woman, but I think she might have been in the same sorority. The two men standing just off to the side of the group are the dates of Patience, and…” Jeremy paused. It appeared as if he’d been trying to remember the name of the second friend. “Savannah. Her name is Savannah. I’m afraid I didn’t catch the names of their dates.”
“And the tall man wearing the bright purple ascot who’s standing alone near the back of the room?” I asked.
“Caspar,” Jeremy answered. “I’m not sure how he fits in with this group. He must be a decade older than anyone else, and he really hasn’t engaged in conversation with anyone since he’s been here. I did notice Willa chatting with him for a while, but it appeared she was introducing herself to him. I’m going to assume that, like the other dinner guests from town, Caspar is here as Fiona’s guest.”
“Maybe another uncle?” I asked.
“Perhaps.”
“He may be somewhat of a wallflower, but he is a colorful wallflower.”
Jeremy chuckled. “That he is. I really love his red jacket. Velvet is a bit outdated, and the red is so Masterpiece Theater, but I do enjoy the fact that the man isn’t afraid to stand out.” He glanced toward the kitchen. “I’d better get back to the bar before Mike decides to take over.”
“Good idea. I’ll go and check with Georgia. By this point in the meal preparation, she might need help.”
When I walked into the kitchen, the first thing I noticed was that it smelled wonderful. Georgia seemed well in control of her ship, but I asked her if she needed help anyway. She indicated that I could keep an eye on the sauce she had simmering on the stove that she would serve with the lamb chops while she finished preparing the salad. The dinner she had planned consisted of seven courses, which I personally thought was more food than anyone would ever be able to eat. Although the first course was a single bite of ahi on toast with some sort of flavored cream cheese layer and a sprig of arugula, and the soup had a clear rather than a cream base, so perhaps it wouldn’t be too filling.
Once the predetermined time of eight o’clock arrived, Jeremy, along with Nikki, who were both dressed in a black tux they must have rented, called everyone to the table and served the first course. Georgia and Jeremy had worked out the timing of the seven courses ahead of time, so there wasn’t a lot for me to do, but I did hang around in case my help was needed.
Once the final course was served, those guests who’d come from town, began to gather their belongings. They’d come out to the inn in a limo, so they left as a group. Once the guests from town had gone, Mike took over at the bar however horrible of an idea that might be, and Jeremy, Nikki, Georgia, and I began cleaning up.
“That meal was probably the best thing I’ve ever eaten,” I said to Georgia, who’d set plates back for the three of us to nibble on as we worked.
“A meal such as that takes a lot of planning to ensure that the flavors and textures complement each other, but I think it turned out well.”
“Well, in my opinion, you nailed it,” Jeremy said to Georgia. “I could overhear pieces of conversations the guests were engaged in while I served, and everyone was very impressed. Jennifer even made a comment about watching and enjoying your cooking show and how excited she was when she found out that you were the inn’s chef.”
“I hope the food didn’t disappoint.”
“It didn’t seem like it. She was smiling and happy and looked like she was having a wonderful time,” Jeremy assured her.
She grinned. “Well, I’m happy to hear that the food was well received.”
“Is it weird that you’re famous?” Nikki asked Georgia.
She blushed. “I wouldn’t say famous, although the show is doing very well.”
Georgia looked uncomfortable with the praise, so I changed the subject. “It seems like everyone is having a wonderful time in spite of the fact that Alvin is still missing,” I said. “Am I the only one who finds it odd that no one seems to be at all concerned?”
“I overheard Lisa and Jennifer talking,” Nikki shared. “It seems that Lisa and Alvin had an argument the night Alvin disappeared, which is why she went up to their suite alone in the first place. Lisa seems convinced that Alvin just took off. She mentioned to Jennifer that he isn’t the sort to want to deal with any type of real feelings or emotions. I suppose if the group as a whole agrees with Lisa’s assessment, that might explain why no one is concerned.”
“Yeah, I guess that makes sense,” I answered. “Although, according to Colt, who did some checking, Alvin didn’t call for a taxi or an Uber. If he left, how did he leave? I suppose he might have called a friend to pick him up, but if that was the case, why not take his stuff?”
“It really is odd,” Jeremy said. “I never noticed any headlights in the drive. I guess Alvin could have left after I was asleep, but there is that high window in the basement that is actually ground level from the exterior of the inn. It overlooks the drive, so I usually see a car pulling in after I turn in.”
“Maybe Alvin wanted to be dramatic and slip away unseen,” Georgia said. �
�He could have walked out to the road and met someone.”
“If that was the case, why didn’t he take his laptop?” Jeremy asked.
“I’ll call Colt in the morning and have him look into things a bit more formally. He did check on the taxi and Uber thing, but no one has actually determined that Alvin is a missing person, so I don’t think he really did much more than that. It’s late now, and we have a lot of cleaning up to do before we can turn in for the evening.”
“I’m going to start running this trash out,” Jeremy said. “It’s a good thing we have a pickup on Monday. The alcohol bottles alone have filled the dumpster, so I’ve been bagging everything and putting it out on the back porch, but I want to move the bags to the garden shed until we can have it taken away.”
“This group is generating four times the amount of refuse we acquire on a normal weekend, and it’s all pretty much bottles. Beer bottles, wine bottles, champagne bottles, tequila bottles, and bottles from what looks to me to be a very expensive scotch,” Georgia agreed.
“I’m actually amazed these folks are still standing,” Jeremy said as he picked up two heavy-duty garbage bags and headed out the back door to the garden shed near the back of the lawn area. The shed was concealed by a hedge so as not to be an eyesore.
“Man, I’m exhausted,” Nikki said, yawning.
“I think Georgia, Jeremy, and I can finish up,” I said. “I know you worked the breakfast shift at the diner before coming in here. You really must be about to drop.”
“I am tired. Are you sure you don’t need me?”
I nodded. “I’m sure. Thank you so much for all your help today. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay. And thanks. I don’t work at the diner on the weekends, so I should have more energy to help out here.”
Once Nikki left, I returned to the dining area to pick up the random dishes that remained. Georgia, Jeremy, and I had at least another hour of dishwashing to attend to, but unlike Nikki, I wasn’t really that tired despite the late hour. It was fun to work alongside my team. I did help where I could, but I was a writer first and inn owner second, so most of the time, I left the work of running the inn to my employees.