“I did think that,” said Lydia. “But I was also thinking that a boat might be the answer to this crime.”
Daniel looked confused. “Are you accusing a boat of being a suspect?”
“Of being the murder weapon. We couldn’t understand why someone afraid of the dark would go out into the dark ocean at night. Maybe Chase was on top of it with an illuminated boat and a friend. There are safety regulations near the shore, but people do go boating at night.”
Daniel nodded. “He could have been pushed out in deep water without having a mark on him. If he were surprised, he wouldn’t have time to fight back. That’s also why he didn’t empty his pockets. And the killer steering the boat could have made sure that Chase’s swim to shore was impeded.”
“And maybe Chase had alcohol in his system because he was sharing a drink with his best friend on his boat,” Lydia suggested. “Maybe this was where they were going to discuss Jenna.”
They echoed the wish that they could find Logan soon and began wondering which boat belonged to him. However, they didn’t have to wait long.
Logan strode along the pier toward them, but he didn’t look happy at all.
“What are you doing here?”
“We were actually hoping to talk with you,” Lydia said sweetly.
Logan pointed an angry finger toward them. “I don’t know what you’re up to, but I don’t like it. Jenna said that you went by her smoothie stand and you were asking questions. Now you’re here. Who are you really?”
“I really am the lifeguard who tried to save Chase,” said Daniel.
“So what? So, you think that means you can pry into all our lives?” Logan demanded.
Lydia decided to take a chance and tell him why they really were there. He was so angry he was unlikely to tell them anything if they weren’t straightforward.
“What if we told you that we weren’t certain that Chase’s death was an accidental drowning?” asked Lydia.
Logan lowered his finger. His anger seemed to drain out of him and was replaced by helpless confusion.
“It wasn’t an accident?”
“We’re looking into it,” Lydia said.
Logan moved as if he was in a trance toward a boat named “J.L.” and climbed aboard. He sat down and held his head in his hands. Lydia followed and sat right next to him. Daniel stood at a bit of a distance.
“We didn’t mean to upset you,” Lydia said soothingly. “And we’re not completely sure what happened. We’re trying to find out.”
Logan took a few deep breaths, and Lydia looked at the décor on this boat. It was tan and was more low-key. However, there was a large cooler with a lock on it. Maybe that had held the drinks that Chase had from the night he was killed.
“I don’t know what to say.” Logan looked up at them. “I felt there was something wrong about it too. But I thought that it might have been my fault that he died.”
“Why is that?” asked Daniel.
“Because of Jenna.”
“You were seeing her?” asked Lydia.
“No. I mean, I wanted to. But I didn’t make a move yet. Jenna and I had always been friendly. And we bought this boat together. Neither of us had enough money on our own, so we combined funds to get it. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But then she found out that Chase cheated on her with Nicole. And she was mad at everyone for a while. But she still came to use our boat. And then I realized that I had feelings for her. And she didn’t want anything to do with Chase anymore. I asked him if he would mind if I asked her out. But he just got mad.”
“When was this?” Lydia asked.
Logan sighed. “The day he died. That afternoon. We had been surfing together. He was getting excited about the contest. Then, I tried to talk to him about Jenna. He got mad at me and swam back to shore with his board. I didn’t hear from him again. And you see, that’s why I thought it might be my fault. I upset him, and he did something stupid that night because he wasn’t thinking straight. But if you think it might not have been an accident, then that means it wasn’t my fault.”
“That depends,” said Daniel. “With Chase out of the way, it means that you don’t have to worry about him being an obstacle for the woman you care for. And you’ll most likely take his spot in the surfing competition.”
Logan stood up indignantly. “You think I hurt him?”
“Some might say you have a motive,” Lydia agreed.
“Chase was my best friend,” Logan protested. “I never wanted to hurt him. That’s why I asked him first instead of pursuing a relationship with Jenna right away. He was very much alive the last time I saw him. He was ignoring me and swimming towards shore, but he was fine.”
“And you didn’t hear from him at all that night?” asked Lydia.
“No. He ignored my texts. And believe me, I was sending them. When Jenna said that she was busy that night, I went to Buoy’s. I was there most of the night. The bartender should remember me. And Sadie was there too. I didn’t kill my best friend.” He glared at them. “And I think you both should get off my boat.”
12
Thinking it Through
Daniel and Lydia headed back to the boardwalk. Though Lydia suspected it was a slow business day near the shore, and she knew Jeff could call her if there were any problems, she did want to get back to the taffy shop. However, she and Daniel were taking their time walking along the boards. They were trying to get their thoughts in order.
“What do you make of it?” Daniel asked.
“I’m glad we spoke to everyone involved in that love triangle. Or maybe it’s a love rectangle,” said Lydia. “I think they all are suspects.”
“I can check with Buoy’s later and see if the bartender really does remember seeing Logan there,” said Daniel. “But Logan might still have been able to commit the crime after closing time.”
“And Jenna also has access to that boat,” Lydia said, considering all the possibilities. “Any one of them could have lured Chase out onto the ocean with them and then pushed him overboard. It was supposed to look like an accident.”
“And it almost did.”
“Good thing your gut knew something was wrong.”
“I’m glad I can still rely on it,” Daniel said. “There are times when I still use gut feelings and quick reactions as a lifeguard, but it’s not the same as when I was in the Coast Guard.”
“You were in the Coast Guard?”
Daniel nodded. “I’ve been out of it for over a year, but it was an important part of my life. I left to take care of someone. And then, I needed a change.”
“Thank you,” Lydia said, looking at his face. “For sharing that with me. I know you’re a private person.”
He met her eyes, but then looked away. “Some things are still difficult for me to talk about.”
Lydia wasn’t sure she should press her luck, but there was something else that she did want to know. “Is it difficult to talk about whether you are in a relationship or not?”
“Well…” Daniel began.
However, he didn’t get to finish his thought. He was interrupted by a drawling voice saying, “Well, well, well. The taffy shop owner can afford to be away from her shop.”
Lydia looked up and groaned. She had been focused on discussing the case and learning more about Daniel and hadn’t paid attention to where they were walking on the boardwalk. They had ended up near Cones and Cola.
The shop sold ice cream, but Lydia found the owner to be less sweet than the goods she sold. Amber Allen had decided that she and Lydia would be enemies from the moment she arrived on the boardwalk. Though Lydia thought that the two shops could coexist because the treats they sold were different, Amber thought that they were rivals and hoped to crush her competition. She seemed to enjoy being catty to Lydia.
“Hello, Amber,” Lydia said cordially. “Have you met Daniel Brine? He’s a lifeguard here.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Amber said, taking his hand and shaking it. “An
d I certainly do feel safer going out into the water with a strong man like you here.”
Lydia frowned. The first time she had met Daniel she had rambled like an idiot, but Amber was so smooth. She was struck again by how pretty Amber was, though Lydia still thought she was too thin to run an ice cream stand.
“If you ever get hot out there in the sun, promise me you’ll stop by here for a cool treat,” Amber cooed.
“Thank you for the offer,” Daniel said. He looked from one woman to the other. “How do you two know each other? Are you friends?”
“I wouldn’t say that,” said Lydia.
“We’re both business owners,” Amber said genially. “And business owners look out for one another here, which was why I was so surprised to see you out here. Do you have enough coverage for your shop? Aren’t you having trouble getting people to want to work there? After that whole murder business. I don’t know if you know this, Daniel, but a piece of taffy was used to poison someone. He died right outside of Lydia’s shop.”
“I did know that,” Daniel said. “But I’ve been fine after all the taffy I had there. And it has all been delicious.”
Amber didn’t seem to like that answer and turned back to Lydia. “I heard that you were having trouble with your interviews. That you were scaring potential employees away.”
“How did you hear that?” asked Lydia.
Amber giggled and gestured toward her ice cream stand. Two applicants that Lydia had spoken to, including the young woman with culinary school experience, were now standing behind the ice cream counter in uniform.
“Word gets around,” Amber said, losing the fake sweetness in her voice.
“It has been difficult to find the proper employee,” Lydia said evenly as an idea popped into her head. “But I might have just interviewed the right one. Her name is Kara, and I don’t think I could run my taffy shop without her. She’ll be that perfect.”
“Oh, what a shame,” Amber said. “I have a resume from a Kara on my desk. I think I’m going to hire her. In fact, I need to rush off and do that now.”
Amber bounced away. Lydia waited until she was gone and then laughed.
“What’s going on?” asked Daniel.
“Since Amber has always been so awful to me, I just tricked her into hiring an employee that should give her a headache or two. She might keep her around for a while thinking it will spite me.”
She started walking again, and Daniel followed.
“Next time we meet someone that you hate, you can just tell me,” he said.
“I don’t really hate her, but she’s always been mean to me. I’m trying to be the bigger person.”
“So, you’ll just use her own tactics against her?” asked Daniel. “Instead of screaming in her shop and causing a big scene?”
“Exactly. Though sometimes I do have the urge to call her out on her behavior.” Lydia paused as a thought occurred to her.
“What is it?”
“I was just thinking – Logan said that the last time he spoke to Chase he had told him about his feelings for Jenna. And Jenna said she was busy that night when Logan asked. Maybe Chase had gone to confront Jenna?”
“And maybe it ended in murder,” Daniel agreed.
13
Another Cherry Berry Confrontation
“Back for another drink? Or are you here to ask more questions?” Jenna asked as Lydia and Daniel approached the smoothie stand. “Logan says I shouldn’t talk to you anymore.”
“When did he say this?” asked Lydia.
“This morning. After you left, he came by. He wanted to know what you were up to. I didn’t think you were up to anything at the time, but now I think you might be.”
“Our visit is twofold,” Lydia said. “I really would like another one of your Cherry Berry smoothie specials. That was very good. But we also do have some more questions.”
“Why? Are you weirdos who like following people in mourning?” asked Jenna, starting to tear up yet again. “Is this fun for you? Because this isn’t fun for me.”
“It’s not fun,” said Lydia. “We just want to get to the truth. We don’t think that Chase’s drowning was an accident.”
“What?”
“We think he might have been murdered,” Lydia said. “Perhaps by someone who pushed them off their boat.”
This time Jenna didn’t cry. She looked scared.
“Someone murdered Chase?” She shook her head. “No. Not for real.”
“Are you saying that because you know that if his death is declared murder, you’d be a prime suspect?” asked Lydia. “You did see him that night, didn’t you?”
“You know that?” Jenna asked in a lowered voice.
“He came to confront you, right?” Lydia asked. “To see if you were dating his best friend.”
“As if he had room to talk,” Jenna said. “He was the one who cheated on me. I didn’t know how I felt about Logan, but he had been really nice to me. He was supportive and a good friend. Chase came over to my house and started accusing me of cheating on him when we were together.”
“He was angry?” Lydia suggested. “Perhaps you ended up acting in self-defense.”
“No!” Jenna said. “I realized what he was up to. He was upset that I might have cheated, but what he really wanted was to get back together. He thought that if we both made a mistake, then it would even out. We should be able to reconcile without one person being totally in the wrong. But I didn’t want that. I hadn’t cheated on him. Logan was my friend, and we shared a boat, but that was it. And I loved Chase, but I was furious at him. I told him to leave.”
“Around what time was this?” asked Daniel.
“Maybe eight or nine. I went to the gym after work, and then he caught me at home. Logan texted me at the same time. It was annoying.”
“Did anyone see Chase arrive and leave?” asked Lydia.
“I don’t know. The lights were off at my neighbor’s house, so I don’t think they were home. But what does it matter?”
“We were just wondering if anyone could verify what you told us,” said Lydia.
“I didn’t kill Chase,” said Jenna. “And he drowned. He couldn’t have drowned at my house.”
“But you could have taken him out on your boat,” said Daniel. “Did you go out again that night?”
“I took a walk to clear my head, but I didn’t go on my boat,” Jenna said. “And I would never have hurt Chase.”
“Do you think Logan might have?” Daniel asked.
“You’re not the police, are you? I don’t have to answer these questions?” Jenna asked, crossing her arms.
“We’re not the police,” said Lydia. “But we thought you might be interested in finding out what happened to Chase.”
“I’d be interested if you weren’t trying to blame me or my friends,” Jenna said. “But that seems to be what you want to do.”
“We just want the truth,” said Lydia.
“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go on break,” Jenna said. “This has been a hard shift for me.”
She left the counter and headed into a back room. Lydia turned to Daniel.
“Looks like we’re not going to get those smoothies,” she joked.
“But I think we got some good information,” said Daniel. “Jenna did see Chase that night, and no one can verify when and if he left alone. She might have taken him to her boat.”
“Or he might have met up with Logan that night,” said Lydia. “Jenna seems willing to lie to protect him. She became defensive when we suggested that Logan could be involved with the death.”
“Logan does seem to have the most to gain,” Daniel said. “I’ll check on his alibi tonight.”
“Good plan. And maybe we can ask Jenna’s neighbors if they saw Chase arrive or leave. But I think I need to get back to my taffy shop first. I need to make sure that my employees didn’t get into any sticky situations.”
They agreed to get in touch later if they had any breakthroughs
and went their separate ways. Lydia hurried to her shop. She wanted to make sure that everything was still going smoothly there, and after the hectic day she had, she could really use another piece of double chocolate taffy.
14
Back at the Shop
“Any trouble today?” Lydia asked as she entered the taffy shop.
Jeff and Kelsey both shook their heads.
Double Chocolate and Death Page 6