“Unless they signed it while they were killing Bob. How does he even know they were actually at the gazebo?” I asked.
“GPS coordinates,” Millie said. “Besides, what motive would they have? Once the papers were signed Carla could buy the stock and it would all be out in the open anyway, so Bob telling on her was no threat. And Myron got to sell a loan so he wouldn’t care about Bob.”
“Good point, but the cats were specifically showing me…” I looked around the room. “Hey, where are the cats?” They usually ran in at the first sight of Millie.
“Probably napping somewhere or outside with their friends.”
I frowned remembering the cats I’d seen at the crime scene. Were Nero and Marlowe in some kind of cat gang?
“What were you saying about the cats anyway, dear?” Millie continued.
“Oh nothing. I just sort of thought that maybe they were pointing me toward Myron and Carla.”
“Oh, they might have been. Nero and Marlowe are very perceptive. They know things. And of course they see things that humans can’t see. But even if they were pointing you toward Myron and Carla, it could’ve been to tell you that you were on the wrong track,” Millie said wisely.
“Great. Well, this doesn’t help us clear Flora.”
“I know. That is a problem, but I’m sure she must have an explanation for all these things that appear to point to her. Things are not always as they seem, you know.”
The kitchen door opened and Mike strode in with my mom giggling behind him. He shot me an apologetic glance.“I found your mom dancing down at the beer tent. Seemed like it was a good idea to take her home.”
Mom slouched into a kitchen chair and hiccupped out a sentence.“Yeah. That Oyster Rock Brew sure has a kick to it.”
“New local beer,” Mike said by way of explanation.
Mom cradled her head in her arms on the table and Millie said,“I’ll make a pot of coffee.”
Mike smiled at my mom then turned his pearly whites on me.“This brings back memories, Sunshine. Like the time I found you drunk in a beer tent back in high school. I think that was the first time you went drinking. You acted a lot like your mom is now. Except when you—”
“Never mind that,” I cut him off. That day had not been one of my finest moments. I didn’t want to remember how Mike had saved my ass by dragging me out of that beer tent where I was holding court with a bunch of college guys.
Truth be told, I was grateful he’d barged in and pulled me away, but my memories of the actual events were a bit fuzzy. I had the ridiculous feeling that he’d kissed me that day, but I wasn’t a hundred percent sure. Even so, my cheeks burned and my heartbeat sped up when my gaze met his.
Was Mike’s memory of that day the same as mine? I saw something flicker in his eyes, then his gaze turned suspicious. “So, what were you guys up to down there?”
Millie’s expression was all fake innocence and sweetness. “Whatever do you mean? We were simply making sure the Oyster Cove Guesthouse table was set up properly.”
“Uh huh.” Mike looked like he didn’t believe a word. “And that’s why you needed to bring Paula? She’s upstairs passed out by the way. I drove her home with Rose.” He leaned against the counter nonchalantly, folding his arms over his chest. “And why were you over at Myron’s table with Paula and Sheriff Chamberlain?”
How did he know that? Had he been spying on us?
“They just happened to be there too.” Millie averted her gaze and pretended like she was checking on the loaf pan.
“Interesting. I just hope you aren’t up to something you shouldn’t be. The sheriff is perfectly capable of conducting an investigation.”
Millie sighed.“Of course he is. You don’t think we’re trying to figure out who killed Bob Biddeford on our own, do you? I mean if we were, we’d ask for your help.”
Mike didn’t look like he was buying Millie’s song and dance in the least.
“He should join forces withushh andweed find the killersfashter,” Mom slurred. Her head was resting on her arms atop the table but she’d turned it sideways to look at us.
“Aha!” Mike said. “I knew it.”
“Knew what? We’re just baking a loaf cake.” I pointed at the oven. “She’s drunk. Doesn’t know what she’s saying.”
Mom frowned at me but was smart enough to hold her tongue.
“I’m not the enemy here and I’m not trying to ruin your fun. I just don’t want you to get hurt. Any of you.” His eyes drifted from Mom to Millie and then settled on me. “You’re all very precious to me.”
“Don’t worry, dear. We’ll be careful,” Millie said. “I don’t need to remind you that Rose, Josie and I are mature adults and don’t need you telling us what to do.”
Mike threw up his hands in exasperation.“Fine. I know I can’t tell you what to do. But I just hope you won’t get into any serious trouble.”
He pinned me with his gaze, but to his credit didn’t elaborate as to how we should back off on the investigation—or worse—how we should leave it to a professional like him.
“Yes, dear, and thank you for bringing Rose back.” Millie pushed him out the door. “I know you’re very busy downtown with your new job and all, so we’ll let you get back to it.”
Mike paused at the door and turned to me.“I’ll be back later to double-check the foundation and walls under the conservatory.”
He would? That was news to me.“Now? Ed won’t be starting in there for a while.”
He looked at me funny.“I think you might be focusing too much on investigating and not enough on what is going on in your own guesthouse. Some structural work was done to the walls already and I need to make sure it didn’t effect anything because of the weird way they constructed that room.”
Again, news to me.“What weird way?” Wait! Ed had already done something in there?
“When they added the conservatory, they used the wall of an existing barn that was adjacent to the house. That old barn had been original to the property. Did you notice that the foundation underneath is giant slabs of granite?”
I nodded.
“You can’t find those anymore. Anyway, since that existing wall and foundation is so old, I want to check the structural integrity before too much more work gets done.” Mike glanced at his watch then grimaced. “Gotta run. Have to inspect an addition over at the old Dunkirk place.”
Mike shot a smile in my direction and went out the door as I digested this new tidbit of information. Not only had Ed lied about being in the conservatory, but the foundation and one of the walls dated back to Jed’s time. My thoughts drifted back to the conversation between the Biddefords right after we’d discovered the skeleton. They’d been talking about looking for a map and wondering if one could have been in the wall with Jed. Doris had said she’d looked in there pretty good, but she hadn’t seen a map and since they’d all arrived at the same time none of them could have taken it without the others seeing. The thing was, there was one person who had been there before any of us and that person could have taken the map. Ed.
I looked up at my mother and Millie, a feeling of dread blooming in my stomach.“I think we better go talk to Ed.”
[Êàðòèíêà: img_2]
Nero, Marlowe and the other cats crouched under an azalea bush, inspecting the shovel that protruded halfway out of the ground. There was no doubt why it had been buried. The coppery scent of blood and murderous intent hung maliciously in the air. A faint breeze rustled the leaves, the only sound breaking the silence as the cats watched Harry carefully brush away some of the dirt.