Death of a Christmas Caterer (12 page)

Hayley watched from the floor in awe as Mona then seized Tiffany's right arm and yanked it behind her, wrenching it up high enough for Tiffany to yelp in pain.

Mona forcefully led her into the shower room.

Hayley heard the water gushing and Tiffany screaming.

She could only imagine Mona holding her opponent's head under the freezing water so she would literally cool off.

Chapter 20

“It is crazy to me that I am supposed to investigate these suspects when I still have no idea how the murder was committed,” Sergio said, shoveling a spoonful of mashed potatoes out of a ceramic yellow bowl and slapping it down on the plate in front of him. “Just crazy.”

“Well, as long as Sabrina has classified Garth's death a homicide, then you really don't have a choice,” Hayley said, snatching the bowl away from him and handing it to Dustin, sitting next to her, who started loading his plate.

“How did I get it so wrong?”

“That's the million-dollar question. You examined the crime scene thoroughly. There were no signs of a struggle, and yet the evidence Sabrina wrote in her report proves otherwise,” Hayley said, jabbing a few carrots with her fork and eating them.

Randy sighed and picked up a bread basket. “Another roll, Gemma?”

“No, thanks, Uncle Randy. I am on a strict diet. The Virgin Mary was poor and in need of shelter, so I can't eat carbs until after the Nativity pageant.”

Randy had invited Hayley and the kids over to dinner that evening at their sprawling, rickety, two-story, old New England house, near the town's shore path, which sported an impressive ocean view.

“How did the killer even get inside the warehouse? I searched that place high and low, and there are no windows or secret entrances. The only way inside Garth's kitchen was through the front door, which was locked. It just does not make any sense.” Sergio sighed, then gulped down a glass of wine before pouring himself another.

Randy suddenly slammed down his fork. “Okay. That's enough. No more shop talk. I went to a lot of trouble making this meal and I don't want it ruined by all this chatter of murder and mayhem. So . . . let's focus on something else. Dustin, how was school today?”

“Nothing special,” Dustin said, pouring gravy on his potatoes from a ceramic boat that matched the yellow bowl of potatoes.

“Okay, well, what did you do after school?” Randy asked, trying to coax a conversation out of him and failing miserably.

“Cleaned my room,” Dustin said, mixing the gravy with the potatoes and then taking a small bite. “Mom said if I didn't, she was going to cancel Christmas and take all of the cool gifts she bought me back to the store.”

“You told him that?” Randy asked, turning to Hayley, an incredulous look on his face.

“It's called ‘tough love,'” Hayley said. “And it worked, didn't it?”

“These potatoes need salt,” Dustin said, crinkling his nose.

“I'm sorry I'm not the gourmet chef your mother is,” Randy huffed, nearly hurling the saltshaker at Dustin. “What about you, Gemma?”

“Reverend Staples cast the role of Joseph today and he is a total stud! I snuck a photo of him at rehearsal today and posted it on Instagram. All of my friends are totally jealous. Want to see?” Gemma said, pulling out her phone.

“Yes!” Randy exclaimed, a bit too enthusiastically before catching himself. “I mean, if you really want me to.”

Gemma handed him the phone.

“Nice-looking boy, but you can barely make him out. It's so dark.”

“The tech guys were doing a lighting check and it was between cues. Trust me, he's, like, nineteen or twenty and hot. I knew you'd like him, because I got my taste in men from you, Uncle Randy. I invited him over to the house to run lines before our dress rehearsal.”

Hayley swiped the phone from Randy and studied the photo. “Let me see this older boy you invited over to the house without telling me.”

“I just did, Mom.”

The boy was in the shadows and it was hard to see him, but Hayley could tell he was definitely a looker. There was also something strangely familiar about him, like she had seen him somewhere before.

Sergio clapped his hands together, startling everyone. “Hayley, would you mind helping me clear the plates and serve dessert?”

Randy set his napkin down on the table and started to stand up. “No, that's all right. I can do it.”

Sergio placed a firm hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down. “No, babe. You went to the trouble of making this delicious meal. Let Hayley and me clean up.”

Hayley waited for Dustin to scoop up the last of his third helping of mashed potatoes and shove it in his mouth before stacking the kids' plates on top of her own and following Sergio out of the dining room.

“I'm not stupid! I know this is a ploy so you two can discuss the case in the kitchen,” Randy yelled.

Once they were in the kitchen, Sergio opened the fridge and pulled out a pecan pie and a bowl of freshly made whipped cream, with Saran wrap covering it. Hayley placed the dirty dishes in the sink and reached into the cupboard for some dessert plates.

“So you think Ken Massey and Garth's wife, Tiffany, were secretly seeing each other behind Garth's back and plotted to get rid of him?” Sergio asked as he cut the pie into slices with a knife.

“Yes. They both got very nervous, not to mention physically abusive, when they suspected I was onto them. Garth's catering business was far more successful this year than it was when Ken walked away from it. It was probably killing him that Garth was thriving without his business acumen. Not only did he want to get his hands on Garth's business, he also wanted to get them up Tiffany's skirt. But if Garth found out Tiffany was two-timing him with an old enemy, there would be hell to pay. So maybe Ken got rid of him so he could wind up with both Garth's business
and
his wife? They could wait a few months for all of the hoopla over poor Garth's death to die down, and then, very slowly, they could roll out the next phase. Be spotted having dinner together. Just old friends bonding over their shared loss. Then a few more very public dinners. Maybe show up together at a couple of town events. Six months down the road the town gossips start speculating. No one is surprised. It's natural that their mutual mourning would lead to romantic feelings. How can those poor soul mates be expected to fight their intense attraction? The town will be rooting for them. And they will have gotten away with murder.”

“Boy, you really thought this out, didn't you?”

“I read a lot of trashy novels.”

“It sounds like a popular theory.”

“No, I just thought of it. Nobody else knows about it,” Hayley said, and then realized what he meant. “Oh, you mean
plausible.
It sounds like a
plausible
theory.”

“Yes, Hayley. That's what I said.”

No, he didn't.

But why argue?

“But we are going to need hard evidence if we ever hope to make an arrest, especially since we are still stumped as to how they did it.”

Hayley was certain of one thing.

After getting manhandled by Ken and nearly choked by Tiffany, she was more determined than ever to bring this small-town Bonnie and Clyde to justice.

Chapter 21

When Hayley and the kids got home from dinner at Randy and Sergio's, Hayley quickly checked to make sure they did their homework and rushed them off to their rooms. She then cleaned up the kitchen, inspected the dog and kitty bowls to make sure there was enough dry food to satisfy them until the morning, and dragged herself upstairs to her bedroom, where she disrobed, pulled on some sweats and a t-shirt, and climbed on top of her comforter, cradling her laptop to begin making a few notes on her next column, which was due by the following midday.

Leroy padded into the room. After a few attempts to jump up on a bed that was way too high for him to reach, Hayley leaned over the side and scooped him up, his tail wagging excitedly. He settled down next to her and closed his eyes. Blueberry sauntered into the room only a few seconds later. His own tail was swishing, but not out of excitement. It was more out of contempt. He obviously didn't want to be alone downstairs, but he certainly was not going to give Hayley or Leroy the satisfaction of knowing he wanted to be in their company. He plopped down on a woven area rug by the foot of the bed and licked himself clean.

 

 

Hayley was trying to come up with the perfect holiday recipe when her phone rang. She hoped that it might be Aaron calling to wish her a good night and say he missed her.

No such luck.

It was Liddy.

Hayley pressed the talk button. “Hey, how was the party?”

“I rocked it!” Liddy gushed, shouting so loud that Hayley had to pull the phone away from her ear. “When I swept into the Northeast Harbor Club on Sonny's arm, wearing my Dolce and Gabbana sleeveless full-skirt lace combo in bright red for the holidays, jaws dropped! It was everything the woman at Bergdorf Goodman said it would be!”

Liddy had just returned from one of her famous shopping trips in New York City the weekend before.

“I'm sure you looked smashing!” Hayley said, a little envious that Liddy had such a sizable clothing budget due to her real estate successes. Hayley's biggest wardrobe splurge this month was a discounted Liz Claiborne faux-wrap sweater dress at JCPenney and she found a tear in the fabric after she wore it just once.

“I know some of the small-minded people in this town have been judging my relationship with Sonny because I'm a few years older than he is!” Liddy screamed.

Sonny was twelve years younger than Liddy.

“So it was my mission to look fabulous and just blow people's minds and put to rest this ridiculous obsession they have with our age difference!”

“Liddy, why are you yelling?”

“Sorry! I am in bed with Sonny and he's snoring so loud right now I can't hear myself think!”

“Hold on, Hayley! I'm going to try to get him to stop!”

She heard a loud honking sound and heavy breathing on the other end of the phone. It cut off for a few seconds and was followed by short, loud gasps. Suddenly she heard Liddy howl, as if in pain.

“Liddy! Liddy! Are you there? What's wrong?”

“Damn it! I pinched his nose closed to get him to stop snoring and he took a swing at me in his sleep! His hand hit the side of my nose! My cute pert nose is one of my best features!”

“Can we please resume this conversation in the morning? I really don't want to picture you in bed with Sonny.”

“No! I didn't just call you to let you know how jealous those spiteful, judgmental bitches at the party were of me tonight, I have actual, useful information.”

“About what?”

“What?” Liddy screeched.

“I said, ‘About what'!”

“Sonny! Sonny! Wake up! I can't hear what Hayley's saying! Sonny!”

She was obviously trying to shake him awake, but to no avail.

The snoring and wheezing and heavy breathing were deafening.

“This is what happens when he drinks too much! I had to drive home because he spent too much time at the punch bowl bragging to his golfing buddies about all of the big cases he's working on.”

Sonny was a fresh-faced young attorney in town who recently set up his own practice right out of law school. He had been successfully poaching some high-profile clients from the shingle of Ted Rivers, Bar Harbor's longtime premier lawyer.

“Liddy, I have to work tomorrow! I can't be up all night! What kind of information do you have for me?”

“It's about the Garth Rawlings murder!”

Hayley sat up in bed with a start. Her laptop fell off to one side, smacking into an irked Leroy, who had to adjust his sleeping position.

“What, Liddy? What did you find out?”

“Well, you know how Sonny is—young and idealistic. He's always going on and on about his professional ethics until I want to put a gun to my head. He takes all that attorney-client-privilege crap way too seriously.”

“That kind of goes with the territory.”

“
Please!
I'm his girlfriend. He should be able to tell me anything. Anyway, I heard a couple of gossipy hens by the dessert table talking about Garth Rawlings and how rumor was he was planning to divorce his wife because she was cheating on him.”

So word was getting out.

“I already know that, Liddy. She's been sleeping with Ken Massey.”

“Okay, fine! Way to steal my thunder! But did you know there was an ironclad prenup?”

“Well, I guess you haven't uncovered every clue, now have you?”

“How did those women know about the prenup?”

“They didn't!” Liddy screamed over Sonny's earsplitting snores. “Just a minute, Hayley! I'm going into the bathroom.”

After a few seconds of sighing and shuffling and a door slamming, Liddy was back on the line. “After I heard them talking, I got to thinking. With all of Garth's business holdings, if he was going to file for divorce, then he would most certainly have to hire a crackerjack lawyer. Garth would never go to Ted Rivers because Ted hated him.”

“He did?”

“Yes. Don't you remember? Ted's wife, Sissy, hired Garth to cater a cocktail party at their house last year and Garth had put peanut oil into one of his dipping sauces. Ted has a peanut allergy and blew up like a blowfish and was hospitalized for two days.”

“I don't know how I missed that one.”

“Anyway, there is only one other lawyer in town with the killer reputation of a barracuda, and that's my Sonny.”

“This is all starting to come together now. We both know how loose-lipped Sonny can get when he's been drinking.”

“That's right. I made sure his plastic cup was full of spiked punch all night long. Then, when the party was winding down, I confiscated his car keys and got him singing like a bird all the way home. According to the prenup, Tiffany was going to get nothing if they divorced due to infidelity. Just a small monthly stipend for living expenses. All of the stocks, bonds, and the entire business would remain his.”

“Let me guess. But if Garth died when they were still married, she would get it all.”

“Every penny. But there's one thing that doesn't make sense. Garth was the face of the catering business. He was the one with the talent. Tiffany may be a smart, conniving black widow, but can she even boil water?”

“She wouldn't have to. The public would be rooting for her. Picking up the pieces after the devastating loss of her husband, trying to carry on. She would have access to all of his secret recipes. She could hire a couple of culinary-school grads to re-create Garth's most sought-after dishes. After a few successful parties and events, she could then confess she has no head for numbers and decide to bring in her husband's former partner to help run the business side of things. Publicly beg him. ‘Do it for Garth,' she would say. Ken would then ride in like a knight in shining armor to the rescue. It's the perfect arrangement. Together they can take the business to the next level as a tribute to Tiffany's beloved late husband. Before you know it, she's Maine's answer to Rachael Ray, paving the way for cookbooks, a kitchenware line, maybe a cable-TV show. Everything Garth dreamed of for himself.”

“And no one would have any idea they had planned the whole thing from the beginning,” Liddy said. “That's cold.”

“Having seen the nasty side of both Ken and Tiffany, it's very easy for me to believe.”

Yes. It was a solid theory.

But the nagging question still remained.

How? How did they do it?