Death by Coffee (5 page)

5

Needless to say, I wasn’t worth much for the next few hours. I couldn’t get my mind off Heidi and Mason and what they’d talked about. I very well might have overheard them talking about a man’s murder for goodness’ sake!

During that time I screwed up two orders and dropped a third before Vicki stepped in and took over.

“Take a break, Krissy,” she said. “You look wiped.”

While “wiped” wasn’t exactly the word I would have used, I didn’t object. I handed her the mochaccino I’d been making and scuttled off into the quiet of the office. I closed the door and sat down in one of the chairs, thoughts racing.

Could Brendon Lawyer actually have been murdered?

I normally liked letting the police do their jobs while I kept my nose far, far away from their business, but this had happened right across the street from me, to a man whom I’d just served. They might have classified it as an “accident,” but after hearing the Lawyers talk, I wasn’t so sure.

It was a mystery.

That was a bad thing.

Mysteries have always intrigued me. I think it had a lot to do with the books my dad wrote. He used to let me read each and every one ahead of time. I would do my best to see if I could figure out the killer or where the missing link was, and often I would help him improve upon the novel. I liked mysteries. They were like puzzles. You took seemingly unconnected pieces and found ways to fit them together so you could see the whole picture.

But my love of them was also what got me into a lot of trouble in my youth. I’d see mysteries in everything and would often insist on trying to solve them whether they needed solving or not. There was this one time when I could have sworn the school librarian was sneaking smokes in the bathroom. I could smell the smoke almost every time I went in there and she would slip into the bathroom at least two times every class period. I’d been so sure of myself, I took my theories to the principal, insisting something should be done.

Turns out, the librarian had an extremely overactive bladder, which caused her to have to go suddenly at least a dozen times a day. Apparently, it was the janitor who smoked and the smell was drifting up from the basement, through the ventilation, and into the bathroom. The janitor got fired; the librarian was embarrassed; and I was scolded by not only the principal, but by my parents, for interfering.

Still, the error didn’t stop me from continually sticking my nose where it didn’t belong. Even now, I couldn’t help myself.

So, what did I have? Brendon died when he ingested peanuts of some kind. He didn’t have his EpiPen with him, something someone with an extreme allergy never would have done. His wife, Heidi, was seen with his brother, Mason, the day after his death. They were both at his workplace, though Mason had been the one to go in. He’d seemed agitated; yet when he was with Heidi, they both seemed to calm down. And then there was the whole bit about Brendon’s death not being an accident.

I knew there had to be more to the story, but I felt as if I was getting a pretty good picture of what was going on. If Brendon was as big a jerk as he seemed when I first met him, then perhaps more than one person had a reason to want him dead. Heidi could have enlisted Mason—who, as far as I knew, could have been mistreated by Brendon as much as Heidi was—to kill his own brother. Could money have been involved? Could the police trace it back to them if they indeed were the killers?

The door to the office opened and Vicki poked her head in. “You doing okay in here?”

I rose to my feet. I could think about this all day and make no headway. I needed to do something.

“Yeah,” I said. “I just needed a few minutes to clear my head.”

“Well, I hope your head is clear and empty because someone is here, ready to fill it full again.”

The smirk on Vicki’s face told me I wasn’t going to like my visitor.

I smoothed down my shirt and followed Vicki back out. She gave me a quick little wave and a grin before returning to the bookstore. I think she actually giggled on her way up.

“I’m so sorry,” Rita said as soon as I appeared. “I didn’t mean to act so rude earlier. I was so stunned by what you’d done, I didn’t know how to react. It took a little while for it all to sink in and I realized how brilliant the idea really was. But then I realized how horrible I treated you and knew I just had to come back in and apologize before I could go on with the rest of my day.”

“It’s okay,” I said. I looked around for something else to do, but Vicki had cleaned and organized my entire section while I’d been in the back. Unless I wanted to pretend to be busy—I didn’t—I’d have to face Rita and her ramblings.

Then again, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. She seemed to know everyone in town. Maybe she knew something about Mason and Heidi that the police might not know. There was nothing wrong with innocently milking the resident gossip for information, was there?

I leaned on the counter and forced a friendly smile. “It is terrible about Mr. Lawyer, isn’t it?” I asked. “His wife must be devastated. I saw her picture on the news last night.”

Rita huffed. “As if. From what I’ve heard, she was filing for divorce before all of this unpleasantness went down.”

“Really?” My theory that she might have paid someone—Mason, more than likely—to kill her husband had just gained more traction. A divorce might have left her with very little, while his untimely death could make her rich. “Did he leave her lots of money?”

“Some,” Rita said. “Despite Brendon’s attitude and his choice of clothing, the business is small-time. He wasn’t struggling or anything, but he wasn’t as rich as he tried to pretend.”

“I see.” I wasn’t sure if that meant anything or not. I suppose if Brendon and Heidi were going to get a divorce, he could have found a way to set it up so that she would receive next to nothing. Maybe she’d killed him because she found out about his plans, whatever they might have been.

Rita glanced around the room to make sure no one was listening before leaning up against the counter. Her chest tried to make another escape onto the counter.

“I heard from Georgina, who heard it from Andi, that the Lawyers were heard fighting a few weeks back. It was loud enough that the cops were called.” She leaned back and gave me a self-satisfied nod. “Or so I heard.”

I didn’t bother to ask who Georgina and Andi were. More than likely, they were the other main sources of Pine Hills gossip. I could just imagine the three women sitting around a table, telling each other every juicy little thing they’d heard, true or not. I suddenly wasn’t so sure I was happy about living in a town where everyone’s business seemed to be everyone else’s business.

“So,” Rita said, clapping her hands together. I jumped about a foot into the air. “Do you think you’ll be at tonight’s group?”

Crap. I really had no desire to sit through a writers’ meeting. I didn’t write, though that didn’t seem to matter to Rita. She seemed to think creative genes ran in the family.

I probably should have said no, told her that I was too busy or something, but I, instead, found the idea intriguing. Maybe getting to know others in town would help me understand the inner workings of Pine Hills. Perhaps I’d learn something that would help me understand why anyone would go to such strange lengths to kill Brendon Lawyer—if indeed he’d even been murdered. I wasn’t sure what I’d overheard Heidi say was an admission of guilt.

“Sure,” I said. “I think I will.”

Rita beamed. “Oh, I can’t wait to tell Andi! She’ll be so excited.”

I suppressed a groan. I was sure she would be.

The door tinkled open and a woman who looked to be in her late fifties entered. Her hair was pulled up off her neck, exposing the thin gold chains that hung there. Each of her fingers had a ring of some sort—some big enough to serve as paperweights if need be. Her lipstick was a severe red, as was her tight skirt. Her eyes speared me as she approached the counter.

“Could I get a coffee?” She asked it like I might actually say no.

“Sure,” I said, plastering on my “please don’t make me hate this any more than I already do” smile. “Would you like anything in it?”

She grimaced. “Black, please.”

What was it with this town and their black coffees? I mean, with all of the flavors I had available, you’d think someone would at least try one! Where was their sense of adventure?

I got the woman her coffee, took her money—exact change—and watched as she stormed out of the building as if on a mission to destroy some poor chap who’d tried to take her parking space.

“That’s Mrs. Regina Harper,” Rita said. “She’s always hated Brendon.”

“Why’s that?” I asked distractedly as I put the money into the register.

“Well, because he married her daughter, of course.”

It took a moment for that to sink in. “Wait,” I said. “Do you mean that’s Heidi’s mom?”

Rita nodded. She crossed her arms and gave me a self-satisfied grin. She clearly thought her knowledge of the town’s residents was some miraculous feat.

But her knowledge did afford me an opportunity. I couldn’t let it go to waste.

“Vicki!” I shouted as I ran around the counter. “Can you watch the store for me?”

Vicki poked her head around a corner. “Sure.” She hesitated. “Why? Where are you going?”

I hit the door at a run. “Not far,” I shouted back. “I’ll be right back.”

Vicki said something else, but it was lost as the door closed behind me.

I stopped just outside Death by Coffee and looked wildly in the direction I’d seen Regina go. For a heart-stopping second, I’d thought I’d lost her. There weren’t very many people on the street, but Regina was a small woman. She could easily vanish in a crowd of two if she so chose. And if she’d gotten in a car instead of walking, she’d be just as gone and I might never see her again. I had no idea what I could learn from her, outside of confirming Brendon and Heidi had been getting a divorce, but at least I would have confirmation. I wasn’t totally sure how far I could trust Rita’s word.

Just as I was about to give up the chase even before it had begun, I caught a glimpse of Regina’s red skirt as she stepped around a pair of teens leaning against a brick building decorated with green and yellow balloons. I took off after her.

“Mrs. Harper!” I shouted. She didn’t appear to hear me the first time, so I shouted again, this time louder. “Mrs. Harper!”

She stopped and glanced back. A scowl that could melt concrete crossed her face when she saw me.

“I gave you exact change,” she said. “I don’t like being taken advantage of, young lady.”

I was panting by the time I reached her and I hadn’t run all that far. Maybe it was time I started going for a jog in the mornings or perhaps stopped eating a tub of Rocky Road every time I got depressed about something. If working out wasn’t such hard work, I very well might have started already.

“No, it’s not that,” I managed between gasps. “I just want to ask you something.”

Regina continued to scowl, but at least she didn’t storm off in a huff. I had a feeling she wasn’t the type of person you messed with. She seemed like someone who would use her pumps as deadly weapons if you annoyed her enough.

“Well?” she asked when I didn’t speak right away. “What do you want?”

I took a deep breath, happy I could breathe again. I didn’t know how this woman was going to take to me asking questions about her dead son-in-law. I might end up wearing the coffee gripped in her manicured hand if I offended her. This was a woman who wasn’t afraid of confrontation.

“My name’s Krissy,” I said, figuring it might be best to start off with introductions. Maybe she wouldn’t glower at me so much if she knew who I was. “Krissy Hancock.”

Regina tapped her foot, but otherwise didn’t reply.

“I was just wondering what your thoughts are on Brendon’s death.” I swallowed back a surge of fear as her eyes narrowed. “He was your son-in-law, wasn’t he?”

“He was.” Her jaw tightened, as if admitting it was enough to anger her.

“Do you think his death was an accident?”

Her eyes narrowed even more. “What are you implying?”

Okay, time to be careful.

“Nothing,” I said, trying on a smile that only seemed to irritate her more. “It just seems odd he would have forgotten his EpiPen the very day he ingests peanuts.”

Regina gave a disgusted snort. “He probably left it with his whore.”

I very nearly choked on my own spit. “Excuse me?”

Regina Harper glared at me as if she thought I’d been the one to sleep with her daughter’s husband. “Brendon Lawyer was a no-good cheater who couldn’t see the value in what he had. He went around screwing women like they were there simply for his own pleasure. That man deserved what he got. Maybe now Heidi will find herself someone who actually cares about her. I’m glad he’s dead.”

An icy chill crept up my spine. Maybe Heidi and Mason hadn’t worked together to kill Brendon, after all. Maybe Heidi’s own mom had killed him, and her daughter had found out about it. If anyone could heartlessly murder a man, this terror of a woman could.

“Is there anything else?” she asked, clearly wanting to get back to whatever it was she’d been doing before I’d interrupted her.

“No,” I said. My voice came out as a squeak. “I think that’s all.”

Regina looked me up and down, gave an irritated huff, and then stormed away, coffee expertly held so that it wouldn’t slosh out onto her clothes, no matter how fast or hard she walked.

I sagged against the side of the nearest building, which turned out to be a place called Tunes and Loons Music Emporium. Did every store in this town have to have a stupid name? I waited for Regina to scowl her way around the corner before turning back to Death by Coffee, thankful to be alive. I felt like I’d just been flattened by a falling safe and wanted nothing more than to curl up with Misfit on the couch. If it wasn’t for, you know, actually having to work for a living, I very well might have gone home and found a new tub of ice cream to empty.