Body Bags & Blarney (17 page)

“It sounds
lovely.” Vivienne replied.

“Don’t get me
wrong, I love living in Cayuga Cove.” Joshua continued. “But there are times
when things get so hectic here, I can’t help but feel nostalgic for the
tranquility that I grew up with.”

“So when it’s
a full moon, do you all turn into wolves and run together in the woods?”

“The
two-natured gene is only present in males.” Joshua did his best to explain.
“The women of the species are the protectors of hearth and home. They cannot
shift, but they have the unique ability to communicate with us while we are in
full wolf form.”

“I never would
have guessed that.” Vivienne was fascinated. “I mean, it makes sense from an
evolutionary point of view. They literally keep the home fire burning when the
moon is full and the men run wild.”

“When it comes
to werefoxes, it’s the females of the species who are the two-natured and the
males who are the caretakers. It’s generally a taboo subject to question the
structure of societal roles.”

“That’s good to
know.” Vivienne filed the information away in her memory. Should the time ever
come when she would meet Joshua’s family, she would save herself from offending
them with taboo subjects. She was about to ask another question when her cell
phone went off. Vivienne glanced at the coffee table and saw Kathy’s name on
the caller display screen. “Leave a voice mail.” She muttered.

“You can take
the call.” Joshua added. “I don’t mind.”

“No.” Vivienne
shook her head. “She can leave a message.” The phone went silent and then her
house phone rang. “I don’t believe this.”

Joshua let out
a little laugh. “So much for a quiet Sunday.”

Vivienne
rolled her eyes. “This is our time right now. I’m going to be selfish and keep
it that way.”

Joshua pulled
her close to him in an embrace. “Whatever you say.” He began to nuzzle her
neck.

The answering
machine went off and then Kathy’s voice blasted from the speaker. “Vivienne,
pick up the phone. You’re not going to believe this but I’ve been robbed.”

Joshua looked
up in alarm. “What did she just say?”

Kathy’s
message went on. “Someone broke into the store and stole the demonstration
jewelry from the display case. I called the police and they’re on the way.”

Vivienne
jumped off the loveseat and hurried over to the telephone on the other side of
the living room. She picked up the handset. “Kathy, I’m here.”

Joshua’s cell
phone suddenly chimed with a text message. He read it and looked at Vivienne.
“Hunter checked himself out of the hospital. He told me not to worry, but he
has something important to do.”

Vivienne
nodded. “Just a minute, Kathy.” She turned to Joshua. “Is that wise given the
injuries he had?”

Joshua typed a
short message on his phone and sent it to Hunter. “I told him that he’s in no
condition to go chasing criminals alone.”

Vivienne
listened as Kathy described the damage inflicted to her store by the robbers.
She was about to ask for more details when Joshua tapped her on the shoulder.
“What is it?”

Joshua’s phone
beeped again as another text message came through.
”I just got a message from another number.” He raised an eyebrow
as he stared at the screen. “Mind your own business, Deputy. This doesn’t
concern you.”

“Is the number
local?” Vivienne asked.

“It’s area
code 305.” Joshua shrugged and opened the browsing software in his phone. He
searched for the answer and found it within seconds. “It’s from Miami.”

“How did they
get your personal cell number?” Vivienne anxiously asked.

“I don’t know,
but they’re messing with the wrong guy.” Joshua furiously typed a text message
back to Hunter. “I’m telling him to wait for me and not do anything foolish.”

“Good.”
Vivienne replied.

Hunter texted
his reply a few seconds later. Joshua took a deep breath before reading it. The
urgent tone in his voice relaxed. “He said he’ll meet me down at Clara’s in
fifteen minutes.”

Vivienne
wanted to go with him, but she couldn’t leave Kathy at a time like this. “You
go and find out what Hunter’s up to. I’m going to head down to Kathy’s store
and see what I can do.”

“I’ll call you
as soon as I find out what’s going on.” Joshua dashed off toward the front
entry where they kept their car keys. “After I meet Hunter, we’ll stop over at
my office and run that Miami phone number.”

Vivienne
turned her attention back to the telephone. “Kathy, I’m going to come right
over. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” She hung up the phone and raced over to
Joshua as he was stuffing his feet into a pair of tan work boots. “This is what
I was talking about earlier. There is something very strange going on.”

“I never said I
didn’t believe you.” Joshua tied the laces of his boots. “I was just hoping
that for once your intuition was wrong.”

Vivienne
grabbed her winter coat off the wall rack and stepped into her polka dot Wellies.
“We need to keep it together. Just focus on what is important and we’ll deal
with the big picture later.”

Joshua grabbed
the keys to his Jeep and opened the front door. A blast of cold air blasted
them both with a few flakes of dry snow. “I love you.”

“Love you
too.” Vivienne grabbed her keys and followed him out the door.

CHAPTER
THIRTEEN

Vivienne
parked her car next to the Cayuga Cove Sheriff vehicle that was pulled in front
of Trade Winds Clothier. Kathy was standing inside by the front door with her arms
folded across her chest. The police officer, a young man with a head of thick
ginger red hair, stood next to her inspecting the lock. Vivienne walked up to
the door and waved to get Kathy’s attention.

Kathy noticed
her right away and opened the door. “Come in from the cold.”

Vivienne was
glad to do so. She gave a quick glance at the police officer’s name badge.
“Hello Officer Drexler.”

Officer
Drexler gave her a little nod. “Ms. Finch.”

“So what
happens now?” Kathy continued her conversation with the officer.

He pointed to
the front door lock. “There is no sign of forced entry at any of the doors, so
we should focus on who you know who has a key to the store.”

“No one has a
key to the store but myself.” Kathy looked to Vivienne. “I certainly didn’t
break and enter into my own boutique.”

“I didn’t say
you did, ma’am.” Officer Drexler replied calmly. “If you were going to commit
insurance fraud, you’d steal more than some display jewelry of low value.”

“Thank you.”
Kathy grimaced. “I think.”

Officer Drexler’s
face reddened slightly at his unintended dig. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”

Kathy waved
him off. “So, nothing else seems to be missing except the demonstration
jewelry.”

“Every piece
was taken?” Drexler asked.

Kathy was
about to answer when she ran her hands along her neck. “No, I’m still wearing
this necklace that was part of the collection.”

“May I see
that?” Officer Drexler asked.

Kathy removed
the emerald necklace and handed it to the young officer. “Here you are.”

He held up
toward the light and whistled. “This sure looks like the real thing to me.”

“That’s the
entire point.” Kathy replied. “It’s supposed to look real without the anxiety
of wearing something expensive.”

Drexler handed
the necklace back to her. “I can see why someone might break in and steal them
now.”

“Except you
said there is no sign of someone breaking in to do that.” Kathy repeated. “So
what now?”

“Have you ever
loaned your key to anyone?” Vivienne asked.

Kathy paused
for a moment. “I don’t think so.”

“Are you
absolutely sure?” Officer Drexler asked again. “This could be important.”

Kathy suddenly
slapped the side of her head and groaned. “I loaned a spare store key to Alexis
Warner the day of the jewelry party. I had several more errands to run that
morning and she offered to set up the store ahead of time for me to save time.”
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I forgot all about it until
now.”

“Where does
Alexis Warner live?” Officer Drexler asked.

“I have some
paperwork in the safe that has her tax information.” Kathy hurried off to grab
it. “Excuse me a moment.”

Officer
Drexler waited patiently with his notepad in hand. “Thank you.”

“For what?”
Vivienne asked.

“For prompting
her about loaning the keys.” Officer Drexler spoke softly. “I’m still new at this
and I get a little nervous.”

Vivienne
smiled warmly. “Everyone does at a new job.”

“I just want
to impress Deputy Arkins and Sheriff Rigsbee so much.” He continued.

“As long as
you do your work with integrity, you’ll impress Deputy Arkins.” Vivienne whispered
back as Kathy frantically dumped a folder of paperwork onto the register
counter and started sorting it.

“I hope so.”
He smiled.

Vivienne could
tell he was fresh out of the academy. He had an innocence to his face, having
yet to be jaded by the evil things people often did to each other. “Officer
Drexler, can I ask you something in confidence?”

“I guess so.”

“Has there
been any word on the death of Father William?”

Officer
Drexler lowered his eyes. “Yes, but I don’t know if it’s my place to say anything.”

Vivienne
nodded. “I understand. I’m not asking you to give me all the details of the
investigation.”

“I’m sorry
this is taking so long.” Kathy frantically tossed papers aside. “Thank God
whoever did this wasn’t interested in the safe contents.”

“It’s okay.”
Officer Drexler waved to her. “Take your time.”

“I wasn’t just
a good friend of his. I happened to be the one who found his body in the
baptismal pool.” Vivienne offered. “All I want to know is if the medical
examiner’s office has completed their autopsy.”

Officer
Drexler glanced around him, as if expecting Sheriff Rigsbee to be glowering
over him. “I’m only telling you this because you and Deputy Arkins are so
close.”

Vivienne put
her right hand in the air. “I won’t say a word, I swear.”

“The medical
examiner has called in some additional help due to some unusual findings. I
overheard some of the guys at the station say that when this happens, it’s
usually ruled a homicide. But it’s not official yet.”

“Thank you,
Officer Drexler.” Vivienne nodded.

“I found it.”
Kathy shouted with glee. She came running over to Vivienne and Officer Drexler.
“Alexis Warner, 243 Lakewood Avenue.”

He wrote the
address down in his notepad. “I will go over and ask Ms. Warner some
questions.”

“Do you think
she was behind this?” Kathy asked him.

“That’s what I
would like to talk to her about.” Officer Drexler smiled. “At the very least,
it could lead to more information.”

Kathy snapped
her fingers. “She’s been seeing this little punk socially.” Kathy fumbled for
his name. “Johnny…”

“Guido.”
Vivienne helped her out. “Johnny Guido from Florida.”

“That’s him.”
Kathy continued. “He was here in my shop with her the night she was working the
jewelry party.”

“Is that his
real name?” Officer Drexler raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t know.”
Kathy cut him off. “Anyways, he and his entourage tried to bring alcohol into
the store that night and they ended up causing quite a scene.”

Officer
Drexler furiously wrote down more notes. “Were the police called?”

“No.” Kathy
looked at Vivienne. “Joshua’s brother came to the rescue, actually. He sort of
took control and escorted them out the front door.”

Officer
Drexler Vivienne. “Deputy Arkins has a brother? I wasn’t aware of that.”

“We were as shocked
as you.” Vivienne added. “His name is Hunter and he’s from Indian Lake, New
York.”

“Do you think
he knows more about this Johnny Guido guy?” Officer Drexler asked her.

“I didn’t see
anything that would suggest they knew each other before their confrontation.”
Vivienne offered. “However, I happen to know that Deputy Arkins’ brother is a
bounty hunter for hire. He might have some information that we don’t.”

“Well, I think
I better start with Alexis Warner and go from there.” He put the notepad away.
“I will keep you informed during the investigation. But for now, I’d be sure to
change the locks just to be on the safe side.”

“Of course.”
Kathy nodded. “Thank you for coming so quickly.”

Officer
Drexler tipped his hat to both of them. “I’ll be in touch.” He left the store
and climbed into his patrol car.

“I still can’t
believe this happened.” Kathy walked over to a pair of low back wooden chairs
near the front display window and sat down. “So much for a relaxing Sunday
afternoon.”

Vivienne
plopped down in the chair opposite Kathy. “This entire weekend has been an
exercise in exhaustion.”

“Speaking of
that,” Kathy added, “what’s going on with the Luck of the Irish carnival
planning board?”

“Nothing at
the moment.” Vivienne couldn’t help but think about Father William floating
lifelessly in the baptismal pool. “Unless someone takes charge, I think it’s
going to end up being cancelled.”

“That’s
terrible.” Kathy exhaled. “That was the one event he loved so much. You’d think
everyone would want it to go forward as a tribute.”

Vivienne
thought about her words for a moment and smiled. “You’re right. Father William
would absolutely want us to go through with the carnival.”

“But what can
we do?” Kathy asked.

“Well, I know
most of the people on the planning board. I think it’s time that someone let
them know that it’s not inappropriate to go forward with the celebration.
Father William was never one to let anyone down. It would be a fitting tribute
to his legacy in the community if we kept the Irish carnival alive.”

Vivienne got
up from the chair and walked over to the register area. She looked around
puzzled. “Nothing was taken except for the demonstration jewelry?”

“As far as I
know.” Kathy pulled herself out of the comfy chair and joined Vivienne at the
counter.

Vivienne
pointed to the small safe under the counter. “Isn’t it strange that they didn’t
even bother to try to force open the safe?”

“They didn’t
screw with the cash register either, but I don’t leave anything but coins in
the tray anyway.” Kathy leaned back against the counter.

“Alexis knew
that the jewelry was fake, didn’t she?”

“Yes.” Kathy
nodded.

“So why would
she come into the store and steal it?” Vivienne asked.

“Well, it
looks real enough. Maybe that Johnny Guido wanted to try to pawn it off on some
unsuspecting fool and make some quick cash?”

“I don’t know.
Stephanie told me that this guy comes from money. Why would he resort to petty
theft?” Vivienne asked.

“I’m hoping
the police are going to ask her these questions. Maybe you should go over and
help Officer Drexler out?” Kathy’s eyes brightened.

“Oh no.”
Vivienne folded her arms defensively. “I am under orders not to interfere with
the police in any way, shape, or form.”

“Oh, poo.”
Kathy dismissed her remark with a wave of her hands. “You’re better at this
than they are and Sheriff Rigsbee knows it.”

“I’m not
carrying a badge or a gun.” Vivienne countered. “I’m perfectly fine with
leaving this to the police to follow up on.”

“I suppose
I’ll have to call the main office in Florida tomorrow and report what
happened.”

“It’s just
fake jewelry.” Vivienne tried to ease her mind. “I mean, what could that cost?”

“Hopefully
very little.” Kathy’s voice wavered. “I’m more worried about what they will think
about the security of my store and the merchandise inside it.”

Vivienne
reached over and gave her a hug. “Don’t beat yourself up over something that
you have no control over.”

Kathy embraced
her friend. “Thanks for coming over today, Vivienne. Just having you here has
made me feel so much better.”

“You’d do the
same for me.” Vivienne smiled back. “Now, I have to find Joshua and follow up
with him.”

“How’s Hunter
doing?” Kathy asked.

“He’s his
usual self, from what Joshua told me.” Vivienne avoided the question.

“Well, tell
him I expect him to stop by the store so I can thank him in person for his help
at the party.”

Vivienne
nodded back. “I’ll do that.” She dashed out the door, taking a moment to look
up at the sky. The sky was the pale blue of winter still, but wisps of
thin-white clouds could not lessen the warm feel of the sun upon her face. She
paused, imagining herself sitting out on her lawn on a tranquil summer
afternoon. Oh, how she missed summer.

Her moment of
peace was interrupted when Joshua’s Jeep came to a sudden stop near her car.
She jumped back in surprise. “I was just going to look for you.” She shouted
through the glass.

Joshua lowered
the passenger window. “He ditched me.”

Vivienne shook
her head. “Oh, no.”

“I have a
plan, but you need to come with me right now.” Joshua reached over and opened
the passenger door.

Vivienne did
as he asked, barely having time to fasten her seat belt before they took off
onto Main Street. “What’s the hurry?”

Joshua seemed
agitated and gripped the wheel tightly as he sped a good ten miles above the
posted twenty-five mile per hour speed limit. “I should have known he’d pull a
stunt like this. He always refused to listen to anyone.”

“So what now?”
Vivienne held onto the small handgrip above her window as they turned a corner
quite fast.

“I’m going to
shift into wolf form and track him by scent.” Joshua replied.

“Isn’t that
like searching for a needle in a haystack?” Vivienne asked.