Dead 'N Breakfast

by Paulette Brewster

  Liz sensed her friend’s loyalty and wanted to hug her for it.

  “I hope he does. I plan to stop by his office this afternoon,” Liz replied.

  “Good.”

  They ate in silence for a few minutes.

  “Did you happen to see anything unusual that day?” Liz asked. “I mean, like a man who might have been looking for trouble or bothering people?” This was a real longshot, but she had to ask.

  Shelly paused, looking in the distance while she searched her memory. “No. I can’t say that anything like that comes to mind. I think I would remember if there was a troubling situation.” She stared at Liz. “Why do you ask something like that? Did you have a bad experience?” Her eyes widened with concern. “You did. I can tell. Don’t try to hide anything from me, Liz Marsh.”

  “Okay, okay, I don’t mean to upset you. I just wondered that’s all.”

  Shelly leaned closer and whispered, “Tell me. Better yet, tell Miles. Don’t keep this to yourself.” She pushed her empty plate away.

  Liz’s voice dropped to a whisper as she said, “I’m not so sure Miles knows anything. And I can’t help thinking that the detective is focused on me when he should be looking for the real killer that’s running around loose out there!”

  “Why do you think he’s focused on you?” Shelly asked. “Did he say something to make you believe that? Well, it’s ridiculous for anyone to believe you could have killed that man.”

  “There has to be someone who followed him here or who already lives here that did this. So how do I find out if this man had an enemy nearby?” Liz asked. This was the question that was heaviest on her mind. She slid her half-eaten dish to the side and wrapped her hands around her coffee cup.

  “Do you know his name? Or where he was from? I have access to all kinds of websites for searching.”

  Liz perked up immediately. “Really? Yes, I have his name.” She pulled a pen and scrap of paper from her purse and wrote Kevin’s name on it then handed it to her. “He lived in New York for several years but before that, I don’t know.”

  “It’s not much but it’s a place to start.” Shelly tucked the paper into her purse.

  “I was at Jenny’s office this morning and she hired me to help fill the position of her assistant who evidently left. She said I could work from home, so that’s why I said yes. I’m curious if you know anything about her assistant?”

  “I can’t believe he’s a murderer.” Her eyes were huge. “Is that what you’re thinking?”

  “No, not at all. I have no reason to come to that conclusion. I’m wondering because he might have some pictures that could help me.”

  “Oh! Good thinking.” She nodded then sipped her coffee in thought. “His name is Robert Hart and he comes to the library often with his computer when he isn’t working, which lately I guess he hasn’t been working at the newspaper. He certainly doesn’t come for peace and quiet because his apartment has to be far quieter than the library when school lets out. I don’t know, maybe he enjoys the noise since he lives alone. I believe he’s a freelancer and came from Boston the same as Jenny did. From what I’ve heard he has a degree in journalism and is a stickler for accuracy. The next time he comes in I can let him know you’d like to talk to him if you want me to.”

  “I would really appreciate it. Give him my number and then hopefully we can set up a time to meet.” Liz relaxed against the chair back. Perhaps this would give her some insight and direction.

  “Well, I hate to cut this short, but I do need to get back.” Shelly rose from her seat. “I’ll be in touch as soon as I find anything in the online database searches. Now, like I said, you make Miles tell you what he knows. Okay?”

  Liz smiled. “I’ll do my best that’s for sure.”

  After Shelly left the café, Liz accepted a refill of coffee and stared off into the distance. She needed to have a clear-cut set of questions for Miles but just as important, she would probably have to give up some information she’d been hanging onto. Her fear of incriminating herself could work against her and she felt strongly that time was running out. Both of these had the effect of clutching her middle section like an iron grip, but she knew she couldn’t shrink away from doing what was necessary. Owning up to the facts that had happened might be important, whether it was her confrontation with Kevin on the street or the knife she’d found in the feed barrel, truth and facts mattered. She took a deep breath and pushed herself to her feet.

  Liz paid for her lunch then focused her thoughts on Miles as she walked back to her truck. He’d been easy to talk with after she’d found Kevin’s body. Actually, he’d been helpful when he stopped by her tent on Market Day and gave her his card plus offered assistance if she ever needed any. She’d been bothered ever since that he might have seen the whole episode from a distance and if he had, then withholding that information wouldn’t be in her favor at all.

  She parked at the curb in front of the police station that was just a small building wedged between two larger ones. His patrol car was parked just in front of her so she knew she’d caught him in the office, thankfully. It would have been no surprise if he’d been driving around town keeping watch but luck was with her, so far.

  She pulled open the heavy glass door and stepped inside. There was a counter across the front that faced the large window which was painted with Maple Ridge in bold letters, all caps. Behind the counter were two desks and a long hallway that led to the back of the building. She stood at the counter waiting for him to appear and finally he did.

  “Hi, Liz, what can I do for you?” He propped his hands against the counter and gave her a quick smile.

  Undoubtedly, she had interrupted his work, but she wouldn’t let that keep her from seeing this through.

  “Hello, Miles. I was hoping you might have some information for me about the investigation. I haven’t heard a word from Detective Morris yet.” She rushed into her next sentence before he could respond. “I know it’s only been just over twenty-four hours, but I thought you might be able to give me an idea of how things are progressing?”

  He shrugged lightly and gave her a weak smile. “Sorry, Liz, I don’t have anything that I can tell you.”

  “But you do have something.”

  He just continued to look at her without a hint of what he was thinking.

  “Okay. Then maybe you’ve heard something from someone other than the detective?” Her hopes were quickly dying.

  “I’m sorry, Liz.”

  She heaved a sigh. “Okay. Then how about I tell you something you don’t know?”

  “I’m all ears.”

  She glanced back at the door and said, “If someone comes in, then I’m done talking.”

  “I don’t get many drop-ins. So, go ahead.”

  “When you stopped by my tent during Market Day and you gave me your card and offered to help me even though I technically live outside of your district, was there something that prompted you to do that?”

  His poker face told her nothing but she figured he had very likely seen the whole thing so there was no reason to hold back.

  She nodded in acknowledgment of his no-reply then without hesitation jumped right into the details. “Not long before you stopped to talk to me that day, I was waiting in line at the café. It was a long line and practically all of the people were strangers. A man behind me made a serious threat to me. I confronted him and we had words then he walked away. I came back to my tent. It wasn’t long afterward that you showed up. I didn’t put it together at the time but I thought maybe you’d witnessed the confrontation.” She waited while she watched his face. “The man was Kevin Jones,” she added.

  “I did see that,” he said. “And I’m glad you came in and told me. Have you told the detective?”

  She shook her head slowly. “I was afraid to. I thought if I brought it up then he’d think I had a motive.”

  “I understand. But remember, the investigation can’t proceed down the right path if important facts
aren’t turned in. What I saw was a man confronting a frightened woman. I was too far away to hear what was said so I started in your direction when the man saw me. Then he left and you went in the opposite direction. I didn’t like what I saw so I gave you my card.”

  “I didn’t kill him.”

  “Liz, I’m not accusing you. I believe you. This whole thing is bizarre, to say the least.”

  Even though she was grateful to hear him say he believed her for the second time, that wasn’t enough assurance, although it helped.

  “There’s someone out there who did this,” she said. “It’s possible that it might happen again.”

  He nodded in agreement. “That’s true but we have to wait for the investigation to get deeper into the facts. And it has only been a short time. Listen, if I hear anything I will let you know. I can’t promise a lot of information but I’ll pass it on when I get it.”

  “Thanks.” She picked up a notepad and pen from the countertop and wrote on it. “Here’s my cell number. Call me no matter what time it is.” She smiled at him. “And thank you for believing me.”

  He nodded and smiled back. “We’ll do our best to get to the bottom of this.”

  She left the little building and forced herself to consider the work that was waiting for her back at the house. But first, she had to stop by Polly’s and drop off the cow feed since she had not gotten any word that the cows could come home for good.

  After parking in Polly’s drive, Liz received the usual friendly greetings from all the animals, with Max leading the pack. She hopped out of the truck and closed the door quickly before he could jump inside. Polly came from behind the house waving hello and being followed by several waddling ducks.

  “Good to see you, Liz. I was wondering if you went for the feed today.” She peered over the truck bed. “No word from the detective about the cows going home, huh? Well, don’t worry about that. I’m sure they’ll finish up there soon. I saw their vehicles down there this morning. It can’t take much longer.”

  “I hope not.” Liz walked with her to get the wheelbarrow so she could haul the bag of feed to the barn. She wished she could talk to Polly about the things on her mind but she worried that whatever she said might reach her mother’s ears. The friendship between her mom and Polly was very strong and she was trying to keep as much as possible away from her parents. It was just one of the difficulties she had to deal with. She realized now that her circle of friends was very small and when this was all cleared up, she planned to remedy that. In the meantime, she had Shelly to confide in and to a certain extent, Polly too.

  Liz hoisted the heavy bag from the truck to the wheelbarrow and pushed it toward the barn. She’d noticed over the last few months since she’d come home that she’d gotten better at handling large bags, bales of hay and straw. Her abilities were much improved from her early attempts of struggling, lugging and pushing. A jog in the park or lifting some weights didn’t compare to the work she was doing now and she felt good about that. She really had traded in her dress pumps for mucking boots and loved it every bit as much as she’d hoped she would.

  That evening Brian showed up again for the walk to Polly’s house for milking time and to leave the cows for the night. He’d finally agreed, reluctantly, that he wouldn’t accompany her in the mornings after she’d insisted so strongly that if they never caught the killer she couldn’t nor would she expect him to be her bodyguard forever. But it was her innermost goal that the murderer would be caught.

  Daylight still lingered as they all approached the barn where Polly stood waiting. Myrtie and Pearl perked up as their new animal friends clucked, oinked and barked their greetings. Liz was seriously worried about keeping her cows at home once this mess was all over, not that she’d ever had to go searching for Myrtie up and down the road in the past. But it was obvious that the cow enjoyed being a social butterfly.

  “We’re all set up for you. Ready and waiting,” Polly said as she patted Myrtie’s head.

  “She loves it here, can you tell?” Liz laughed.

  With all three of them working together to bring feed, buckets, and a stool, it was just a short amount of time before she sat down to do the milking. She’d gotten used to being alone during barn chores but she found herself enjoying the company probably as much as Myrtie did. Afterward, Brian helped carry the milk to the house then came back to help with the mucking and hauling it out. When they all left the barn, the commotion quieted down and both cows gave a soft moo of goodbye as Brian and Liz headed back up the road.

  They walked in silence for a while. She’d spent plenty of time during the afternoon to go over the events of her day, but the only result she’d gotten was more unanswered questions. On the other hand, she’d also discovered some unknown avenues of thought which gave her hope. The near darkness brought on by the time of day as well as the overhanging trees contributed to a sense of seclusion. Knowing a little bit more about his past helped to relieve her concerns about him personally and she admitted that she had unfairly characterized him as an opportunist. Through the deepening shadows which gave her some cover, she turned to study him closer. Until now, she’d put up a protective shield around herself and refused to even try to understand who he might be which made very little sense because he hadn’t said or done anything to make her so wary of him. She wondered what he’d say if she told him about doing her own investigating, but his police background kept her from bringing it up. After all, he’d already let her know she’d broken the law, willingly, by crossing the yellow tape. And with that thought, several pieces of the puzzle came together concerning his actions and watchfulness where she was concerned. Once an officer of the law, always an officer of the law and with that thought, she felt more secure and even fortunate that he lived just up the road.

  “Thank you for taking the time to walk with me,” she said out of a need to show appreciation. She pushed her hands deeper into the pockets of her farm jacket searching for her gloves since the air had turned a bit colder.

  “I want to you be safe.” And that was all he said, no elaboration.

  She nodded in the dark even though he couldn’t possibly have seen her.

  “Have you heard anything else?” he asked.

  “No. But I did stop to see Miles while I was in town. He had nothing to tell me other than it’s too soon.”

  “He’s right. But you never know when a case will take a turn for the best.”

  At that moment she wondered if he’d been doing some research on his own and nearly stopped in her tracks to ask him. Instead, she quelled that idea and kept walking. When they approached her driveway, she saw Claire’s red roadster parked near the garage and the lights in the house were on.

  “I see your guest is still here.”

  “Yes. She said the detective told her she would probably be able to leave on Wednesday.”

  “That’s surprising.” His voice sounded disbelieving. “I mean that he’d let her go so soon with an ongoing investigation.”

  Liz shrugged. “I guess he must have removed her from the list of suspects, wouldn’t you say?”

  “Seems like it. Or maybe she’s just hoping it’s true,” he replied, still sounding skeptical.

  “I suppose she’s easy enough to reach since she has a well-advertised business. I saw her business catalog in her room. It looks like she owns a designer boutique in upstate New York. Very expensive.”

  “I doubt that would sway any detective.”

  “Then the only possible conclusion is that he doesn’t think there’s any reason to suspect her.” Liz figured it was true. Claire didn’t even have a loss of appetite or act concerned about any of it. The whole mess was just a blip on her schedule. Unlike herself who feared the worst was just around the corner.

  “I’ll wait till you get inside. Just give me a wave through the window,” he said.

  She nodded in the dim glow coming from the house. Once inside, she closed the door and waved at him. Then he walked away into
the darkness. She slipped out of her jacket and hung it on the hook in the pantry where she left her boots. A rumble in her stomach reminded her that she’d skipped a meal and she wondered if Claire was hungry too. Something simple like homemade soup and grilled cheese was all she wanted so she peeled a few potatoes and diced them. Within fifteen minutes the potato soup was simmering on the stove and she added some fresh broccoli and mild spices to it. Her stomach growled while she grilled the sandwich. Then she poured a glass of milk and sat down at the table with her hot bowl of soup and the gooey cheese sandwich. Her shoulders relaxed as though a weight had been lifted, when in truth that hadn’t happened. She felt sure part of her relief was due to learning more about Brian. It was much easier to believe he was a friend.

  Claire didn’t show up so Liz assumed she’d already had a meal in town and put the leftover soup in the refrigerator for lunch the next day. The tension in her neck had lessened and hopefully, a hot bath would take away the rest of it. After cleaning up the kitchen she headed toward her bedroom where she intended to relax and ponder the events of the day.

  Chapter Nine

  Liz woke up to sunshine creeping through the leaves behind the house. She’d slept better during the night than she had the previous night and wondered if it was due to the long hot bath or the talk she’d had with Brian. Not that the conversation was so enlightening, more than likely it was this new understanding of who he really was. It wasn’t as if she’d been looking over her shoulder all the time, but she knew he had her back so she didn’t have to keep a constant look out.

  After dressing for chores, she followed her usual new routine of drinking a cup of coffee as she studied the vehicles near the barn where the yellow tape still shouted Stay Away. With a sigh she pulled on her barn jacket and headed out the door for the short walk to Polly’s. The morning air was crisp and a few maples were showing a bit more color which could always bring a smile to her face. As she got closer to the pink and purple house, she smelled the wood smoke coming from Polly’s chimney. Undoubtedly, the cookstove was providing some heat against the morning chill. But instead of finding Polly inside where it was warmer, she was out in the barn sitting on the milk stool with a nearly full bucket beneath Myrtie.