“What can I get you?” The bartender slid a napkin in front of Lexy.
“A White Russian with a splash of Coke, please.” Lexy stole a sideways glance at Peter Saunders and caught him looking at her.
“Hi.” She smiled at him.
He nodded a greeting. “You look familiar.”
“I’m in the Bakery Battles contest.” She tilted her head in the direction of Bakery Battles Stadium. “Do I know you from there?”
“Oh, probably. My wife is…I mean, was a judge.” He looked down at his drink. Lexy thought she saw the gleam of a tear in the corner of his eye.
“You’re Peter Saunders?” she asked.
He nodded, still staring down at the drink.
“I’m so sorry for your loss.” She stuck her hand out toward him. “Lexy Baker.”
He stared at her hand, then made a half hearted attempt at shaking it.
“Thanks,” he said dully, then picked up his glass draining it in one gulp. He motioned at the bartender for a refill. Judging by the way he swayed on the chair, it wasn’t the first refill he’d had either.
Lexy sipped her own drink. She had forgotten to eat supper, and the alcohol made a beeline for her brain, emboldening her.
“I just don’t understand why anyone would want to do that,” Lexy said.
“Me either. I mean, Mandy could be a bit abrasive and some people really didn’t like her, but you don’t kill someone just because you don’t like them.”
“Are you holding up okay? I mean, you must really be in shock. You guys were very close.” Lexy fished for information on their relationship.
“We’ve been married for ten years, but lately things have been a little strained. We had some money troubles. We had been fighting a lot, but I still loved her…” His voice trailed off.
“All couples fight, and most have money troubles at times too.”
“She said everything was going to be okay with the money. I didn’t know what she meant.” He rubbed his face with his hands.
“Did you notice Amanda acting strangely at all?” she blurted out.
Peter turned his head toward her, his eyes squinting. “Strangely? She was acting kind of…secretive. Quiet. Distant. I wondered if, well…”
“She was having an affair?” Lexy prompted.
Saunders’s shoulders sagged and he nodded.
“Was she?” Lexy took another sip.
“She said she wasn’t. We argued about it. She swore nothing was going on, but a few times she left the room early - I’m not sure she was going where she said she was going. Even that morning…”
“Didn’t that make you mad?”
“What?” Peter narrowed his eyes at Lexy, his body stiffening.
“Did you get along after you argued, or did things simmer?” The alcohol encouraged her to persist against her better judgement.
Peter stood up, knocking over his drink in the process. “What’s with these questions? I already answered them for the police!”
Lexy couldn’t help herself. She had to ask., “Where were you when your wife was murdered?”
Peter Saunders’s face turned beet-red. “Are you accusing me?” he shouted, then took a step toward Lexy, reaching out to grab her.
She jumped up from her chair stepping out of his reach. His outstretched arms flailed toward her. In his drunken state, he misjudged the distance and stumbled forward, causing Lexy to jump back - bumping into, and almost knocking over, Detective Jake Ryan.
“Whoa, whoa. What’s going on here?” Jake stepped between Lexy and Peter holding his hands up to keep them apart.
Peter pointed at Lexy. “She accused me of murder!”
“I did not. I simply asked where you were when your wife was killed.” Lexy crossed her arms over her chest.
“OK, I’m sure you’re both upset about the murder but let’s leave the detecting to the police.” He glared at Lexy. “We don’t know who killed Mrs. Saunders, but we’re working on it.”
Detective Ryan’s speech seemed to diffuse Peter’s anger. “Fine, but keep her away from me.” He jerked his head in Lexy’s direction, then stomped back to his seat at the bar.
Lexy looked up at the detective, expecting to get the same lecture Jack usually gave her. Instead she saw him smiling down at her.
“Wanna have a seat?” He gestured toward one of the small tables.
“Sure,” Lexy said glancing over at the bar toward her drink.
His eyes followed her glance. “We can get you a new one,” he said, then put his hand on the small of her back, leading her over to a table.
Detective Ryan held out a chair, and Lexy plopped into it. She stared across the table at him. She recognized him from the murder scene - the nice detective who had questioned her first.
But she must have been preoccupied then because she hadn’t noticed his boyish good looks. His straight white teeth must have cost a fortune. They were the perfect accessory to his chiseled jaw, which wore a bit of five o’clock shadow giving his baby face a hint of danger. Lexy thought one could easily get lost in his blue eyes.
“Do you want another drink?” He jolted her out of her daze.
Lexy gave herself a mental head shake. She already felt a bit tipsy from her first drink. Considering the way her stomach fluttered when she looked at Detective Ryan, she had better not.
“Just a coffee, please.”
He disappeared in the direction of the bar, returning in a few minutes with a beer for himself and a coffee for her.
“Thanks. I don’t think I got your first name?” Lexy peered at him over the rim of her coffee cup.
“Jake. Jake Ryan.”
Lexy smiled at him. “You probably already know my name, I guess. Lexy Baker.”
He laughed. Lexy noticed his voice had a rich timbre one could easily get used to. “Yes, the body-finding baker.”
Lexy shrugged. “What can I say, I have a knack for finding bodies.”
She looked over at Peter Saunders, who was back in his chair with a fresh drink. “Speaking of which, do you think Saunders did it?”
“What do you think?” Jake held her gaze with his baby blues. Lexy wasn’t all too happy about the fluttering effect this had on her stomach. She took a sip of coffee, hoping the sobering effect of the coffee would stop the fluttering.
“There’s some talk she may have been having an affair. Maybe Saunders found out and killed her in a fit of passion?”
“Well, the strangulation could indicate a crime of passion, but there’s no hard evidence to suggest it was him.”
“Do you guys have any idea who it was?” Lexy asked.
“We’re still sifting through the information. So far, we’ve ruled out most of the contestants because we could verify they were in their rooms at the time. We’re going through all the surveillance tapes in the casino and hotel now, so we’ll know who the killer is shortly.”
Lexy remembered the confession of Aurea’s room-mate. Should she tell him?
“Am I a suspect?” She tried putting on her most innocent face. It usually worked with Jack - hopefully Detective Ryan was no different.
Jake laughed. “Well, a lot of the evidence we have right now does point to you, but once we sift through all the video tapes I’m sure that will prove you couldn’t have done it.”
Lexy watched the steam from her coffee waver as she breathed out a sigh of relief. They didn’t think she had done it. She took another sip.
“I talked to some of the other bakers to see if they noticed anything unusual, and I found something that might be useful to you.” Jake leaned forward, his eyes narrowing with interest. “Go on.”
“Aurea Pearce - she’s one of the contestants - her roommate said Aurea left the room at 3:25 that morning.”
“Really? I don’t remember her telling us that.”
“She said she just told you Aurea left before she did, but not the exact time. I hope I didn’t get her into trouble.”
“No. Thanks for tell
ing me. That’s important to know.” Jake took a swig from his beer. Lexy realized he had hardly touched it. “Do you have a cell phone?” he asked.
Lexy nodded. Jake held out his hand, and she dug it out of her pocket and handed it over.
“I’m going to put my cell number in here. If you hear any other interesting information, will you call and let me know?”
Lexy wasn’t sure how to answer. Did he really want to know if she found anything out, or was his number an invitation for something else? She decided she didn’t want to know.
“OK.” She watched him punch in his number, then reached out for the phone. He handed it back, brushing his finger tips against hers.
Thankfully, the coffee had done it’s job of keeping her clear headed, and she successfully ignored the tingle in her hand.
Is this the sort of thing that happened with Amanda Scott-Saunders and Evan Westmore?
Lexy stood up. “Well, Detective, thanks for the coffee. I’d better be going now.”
Jake stood, his mostly full beer still on the table.
“It was nice talking to you, Ms. Baker. Don’t forget to call if you find anything else out.”
“Oh, I won’t,” Lexy said, then left the bar, heading toward the casino. She didn’t go straight to the slot machine she had been aiming for originally though; the conversation with Saunders had given her an idea.
She headed for Bakery Battles Stadium. If Amanda and Evan Westmore were having an affair, that might give Peter or Evan a motive for killing Amanda.
The question was, were they having an affair? She didn’t know for sure, but she had an idea where she might be able to find a clue.
Skirting the edge of the casino, Lexy took the back hallway toward Bakery Battles Stadium. The dim lighting in the empty stadium area gave the large room a sinister ambiance. Lexy forced herself forward, jabbing her finger into her eye to keep it from twitching.
She took the middle hallway toward the back where the offices were. Her footsteps echoed hollowly in the empty room.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
Scuff.
What was that?
Lexy whirled around. Was someone behind her?
No one was there.
“Hello?” she called out tentatively. No one answered.
She gave a little laugh. Silly me, getting all spooked by an empty room.
Lexy turned back around. She willed herself to keep facing forward as she picked up the pace to the back of the room.
The offices were makeshift rooms separated by temporary walls. Each had its own door, but there were no locks so every office was accessible. She found Evan Westmore’s and turned the knob.
The door clicked open. Taking one last backward glance, Lexy slipped into the office, then silently closed the door.
Dim light from the stadium filtered in through opaque glass slots at the very top of the walls, giving the office a dusk-like feel. Slats of light reflected dust motes suspended in the air.
Looking around, Lexy realized she had no idea what she was looking for.
An antique mahogany desk sat in the middle of the room. Pretty ritzy for a temporary office. Behind it, a book-case with neatly stacked books. To the left, a filing cabinet.
Lexy tried the filing cabinet drawers. Locked. She moved over to the desk. The top was neatly arraigned with a desk pad, onyx pen set, and a gorgeous pair of onyx book ends. Westmore certainly had expensive taste. Lexy wondered how much the event coordinator position paid.
In the center of the desk, she spotted some blank personalized stationary papers with matching envelopes. Lexy ran her fingertips over the paper. She had an affinity for good-quality paper, and this particular stock was extraordinary.
She lifted a piece. It was heavy. Handmade with an interesting texture. Probably mulberry paper - only a few places even made this type of paper. She knew it was very expensive.
Replacing the paper, she took care to line it up exactly as it had been. Sinking into the high-backed desk chair, she heard the soft tufted leather make a puffing sound.
Starting in the middle drawer, she leafed through the contents. It held the usual stuff - pens, pencils, notes, paper, some personal photos including one of Westmore in a tux standing next to another man in a tux, their arms linked together. Lexy saw the happy smile on the normally dour man’s face and mused at what the occasion might be.
Muffled sounds filtered into the room, increasing her anxiety. She cast a nervous glance at the door. Getting caught in there would probably result in her being kicked out of the competition. She didn’t want to stay any longer than necessary, so she sped up her search even though her nervous eye twitch was making it difficult to see.
Hidden under a stack of papers in the bottom right drawer she found what she was looking for. A small black leather date book. Inside were cryptic messages written on various days. Just the thing someone who was having an affair might keep.
Lexy shoved the book into her back pocket and stood up. Replacing the chair to its exact position she looked around the office to make sure everything looked the way it had when she entered.
A noise in the hallway outside made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She tiptoed over to the door. Cracking it open, she peered out. The hallway was empty. She slipped out the door, holding the knob as she closed it so it wouldn’t make a sound, then hurried down the hall and out into the main corridor to the casino.
7
“You saw her going into Westmore’s office?” Nik raised her eyebrows at Jake.
“Yep. I followed her into the stadium after hours and she went straight to his office. Seemed like she didn’t want anyone following her either.”
“Did she see you?”
Nik saw a flash of Jake’s dimples. “Come on, Nik, you know I know how to follow someone without being seen.”
Nik turned to the board they had laid out with suspects’ names, pictures and data. “Why, would she be going to Westmore’s office?”
“I’m not sure. When I saw her in the bar, she was having words with Peter Saunders about the victim and Westmore having an affair.”
“They were?” Nik turned to look at him.
“Yeah, Saunders looked like he was going to hit her.”
“No, I mean Westmore and the victim - they were having an affair?”
“Oh…Lexy said there were rumors about that, but I haven’t heard anything.”
Nik wrinkled her brow. Turning back to the board, she drew a line from Evan Westmore to Amanda Saunders with a question mark in between.
“We better check that out. It still doesn’t answer the question of why Baker would be going there.”
Jake rubbed his chin. “It looked like she didn’t want anyone to see her there - maybe they were having a secret meeting.”
Nik picked up a manilla folder from the desk and held it out toward Jake. “This is the folder on Westmore - seems he was into some shady business.”
She watched Jake thumb through the folder. “I wonder how he got the event coordinator job with a track record like this?”
Nik shrugged. “Who knows. He’s never done anything even close to murder, but he appears to be quite the swindler.”
“Do you think Lexy Baker and Evan Westmore are running some kind of scam together? Maybe Saunders got in the way?”
“It’s possible. What did you tell her before she went to his office?” Nik asked.
“Just that we were weeding through the surveillance tapes and would soon know who the killer was…do you think she went to warn Westmore?”
Nik screwed up her face, thinking about it. “We need to find out more about Lexy Baker. Too bad my contact in the police department in her town hasn’t called me back. Baker and her grandmother claim they actually helped bring in the killer from the murders she was messed up in: I wonder if it was to cover their own tracks or if they really are just amateur crime fighters.”
“There’s another thing she told me that was very interesting.”
Nik invited him to elaborate by raising her eyebrows.
“She said Aurea Pearce’s roommate told her that Aurea left the room at 3:25. That would mean she was out of the room at the time of the murder. And that she lied to us about when she left the room.”
“Aurea Pearce is Lexy’s strongest competitor. She would have a strong motive to get her kicked out of the competition…or arrested.”
“Yeah, a $100,000 motive. But Pearce also had a motive to get rid of Saunders.”
“Oh?”
“With Saunders gone, a new judge will have to be named from the pool of alternate judges. One of those judges happens to be good friends with Aurea Pearce.”
“We better check that out too. Find out what room Pearce is in and put a rush on looking at the surveillance tapes for that area. See if you can find out when she left and where she went. And keep a close watch on Lexy Baker - whether she’s up to something or not, her amateur investigating could lead you to some interesting clues.”
“You two stayed out awfully late last night.” Lexy stood in the middle of their hotel room, looking at Cassie and Nans.
“I won $500 on a jackpot, so I wanted to keep playing,” Nans said. Her bright green eyes sparkled as she pulled a wad of money out of her purse to show them.
“I was on a roll at the poker tables. Kind of hard to leave when the cards are going your way. You were fast asleep when I got in,” Cassie said.
“I got something even better than money last night.” Lexy reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out the little black date book.
“What’s that?” Cassie held out her hand.
Lexy felt her cheeks grow pink. “I kind of found myself alone in Evan Westmore’s office and it just happened to find its way into my pocket.”
“You stole it?” Nans asked.
Lexy nodded.
“Lexy! If you get caught you’ll probably get kicked out of the competition,” Cassie said in wide-eyed shock.
“I know, but I ran into Peter Saunders in the bar. He got so mad when I mentioned that Evan Westmore and his wife might have been having an affair, I wanted to see if I could find any evidence to prove it.”
Lexy Baker Cozy Mystery Series Boxed Set Vol 1 (Books 1 - 4) (Lexy Baker Cozy Mysteries Boxed Sets) Page 19