Killing Weeds (3 page)

Was it a murder, as Mai and Al had surmised, or was it a terrible mistake?

Eucalyptus

A fast-growing tree, native to Australia. The trees can grow quite tall and have an interesting bark and fragrance. The leaves have been used for generations as a medicinal.

Chapter Four

Peggy had seen too many careless mistakes with botanicals in recent years. People didn’t understand that plants and their extracts could be deadly. They used plant chemicals they knew nothing about in ways they were never meant to be used. Hadn’t she recently read a case of a woman accidentally using eucalyptus to burn out her sinuses?

Mai handed Peggy a sealed sample container and a thin wood stick that she was supposed to use to scrape off some of the goo that was between the victim and her coat.

It was part of her job to gather this evidence, but Peggy didn’t like it. Her work was centered on plants—how to grow them and how to improve them. Forensic work was fascinating, but could also be disgusting.

She carefully used the tiny wood spatula to push a little of what was left of the woman’s skin and clothes into the container. Mai quickly sealed it and wrote her name, the date, and time on it.

“Maybe you should get one more while you’re there.” Mai handed her another container and another spatula. “It’s good to have two samples, right?”

Peggy agreed and got the sample before she got back on her feet.

“I can see why you thought it was acid,” she said to Mai. “Actually, the material is completely smeared on the inside of the coat. It’s where it came into contact with the skin that burned her.”

“Cause of death was probably shock from chemical or biological burns,” Mai said. “I hope never to see anything like this again.”

Peggy was still scanning the woman on the floor. On the right sleeve of the mink was a tag.

“I think the store tag is still on the coat.” She glanced around the room. “And there’s the box it came in.”

She and Mai went over to it. The large box was open, both halves on the expensive silk sofa.

“Stewart’s.” Mai wrote it down and took a picture. “We’ll have to examine the box for any residue of what’s in the coat. Looks like she got it today, tried it on, and it killed her.”

“I guess she didn’t try it on at the store,” Peggy said. “Maybe she ordered it online and it was delivered here.”

Al came to stand with them by the box. “Ladies. Anything interesting?”

Mai confidently told him their theory. “I guess you should check with the store, huh? And the lobby downstairs. Maybe there’s a video of someone selling it to her or bringing it up here.”

He wrote what she said. “Thanks. Careful now. We’ll be like one of those forensic shows on TV, and I’ll be out of a job.”

“I’m not carrying a gun,” Mai said. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to step on your part of the investigation, Al.”

Peggy knew Mai was excited and nervous about being there. She was only an assistant medical examiner. “Where’s Dr. Beck?”

“She’s at a conference,” Mai explained the whereabouts of the ME. “It’s been a while since I had to take over for her. It makes me worry that I’m not doing something right.”

“Steve’s at a conference too,” Peggy said. “Maybe they’re at the same conference.”

Mai’s brown eyes widened. “That’s not what I meant. I’m sure Dr. Beck isn’t at a conference with Steve. I mean, they wouldn’t be there together.”

Al laughed and patted her arm. “Don’t worry about it. You’re doing a good job. I’m sure Steve and Dr. Beck would get a good laugh out of the idea that they met for something besides business at a conference. I’m going to send someone downstairs to see if there’s video of people going in and out.”

Mai’s pretty face was red. It had become a little rounder since she’d been pregnant with her daughter, Rosie. “I’m sorry I didn’t understand what you meant, Peggy.”

“Don’t be silly. I was just teasing you. Is there anything else you’d like me to do while I’m here?”

“No. That’s fine. I guess I’ll see you later at the lab. I hope you can figure out what killed her.”

“Before Dr. Beck comes back, right?” Peggy smiled.

“That would be nice,” Mai admitted. “But not necessary.”

“Okay. I’ll see you later. Say hi to Paul for me if you see him.”

Mai looked confused. “You just saw him last night. Is something up with you two?”

Peggy considered her words carefully. She hadn’t seen her son last night. Was Paul taking extra shifts to make ends meet? Mai wouldn’t like that since she felt that he worked too much anyway.

But if he was going to make her his alibi, he needed to let her know.

“No. Nothing’s up. I just worry about him. That’s all.”

“Oh. Of course. Bye, Peggy.”

Peggy left the condo and went back downstairs. A group of concerned tenants were questioning Al about what had happened. Two officers flanked him, but it seemed unlikely the young, well-dressed crowd would get rowdy. She walked around the people in the lobby area and went back out to her car.

She shivered as she got inside, thinking about that poor woman upstairs. She wasn’t trained to make deductions about what she saw—only come up with facts about botanical agents that may have been used during a crime.

But if deductions had been her job, she would’ve considered a toxic mink to be something that involved a crime of passion. Who else would give a woman an expensive coat? She hoped Al checked with the woman’s boyfriend or lover. She obviously lived alone but that didn’t mean she didn’t have someone special in her life.

Peggy checked her phone. There were several messages from her assistant at the garden shop, Selena Rogers. There were also a few messages from Sam.

She didn’t want to block anyone in at the condominium and decided she’d wait to answer those messages until she got to The Potting Shed. No doubt she knew what Sam and Selena had to say.

She’d already seen the message from Eve Malcolm that the investigation was complete. That meant cleanup could commence.

The glory of a Southern spring surrounded her as she drove the short distance between Providence Road and Brevard Court. Colors, smells, and warm days had seemed to erupt all at once, engulfing the city of Charlotte in its embrace.

Peggy marveled at a double flowering, weeping cherry tree on one corner. It was all she could do to stay in the car. Daffodils and tulips lined walkways and porches. Forsythias spilled their bright yellow blossoms in nearly every yard.

It was hard to see these marvels without feeling a lift in her heart. Despite Nita Honohan’s death—or maybe because of it—it was wonderful to be alive on such a day.

Traffic was light. The sky was brilliant blue. Peggy sighed and took her time getting to The Potting Shed. It was unheard of for her not to be excited about spending time at her shop, but knowing the destruction that waited for her put a damper on her usual exuberance.

She took the time to appreciate the beauty around her as she organized her thoughts for cleaning and restocking. Should she keep the shop open even though it would mean being embarrassed when a customer asked for something she didn’t have? Or should she leave the closed sign up and plan a grand reopening? She could see the merits in both plans.

Brevard Court was busy when she arrived. Even in the back loading area where she parked, there were dozens of cars. Wouldn’t it figure that just as people were venturing out of their winter hibernation to enjoy the nice weather, her shop would be closed?

Grabbing her handbag and refusing to allow Sam or Selena to see her sadness about the damage, she put on a bright smile and marched up the metal stairs into the shop.

To her surprise, the back storage area was almost completely clean. The trash was gone, and the concrete floor had been swept. She didn’t understand until she saw one of her best customers, Claire Drummond, with a scarf on her head and a broom in her hand.

“Oh, Peggy.” Claire hugged her. “I came as soon as I heard. I think I scared Selena because I brought my own cleaning things. But it’s just as well because some people didn’t think of it, and they needed to use your brooms and such. I’m so sorry someone did this. But we’ll have it straightened up in no time.”

Peggy was speechless. She stared at Claire, but couldn’t think of a single thing to say. She walked into the front of the store where a dozen more customers were picking up shelves and taking out trash.

Walter was there in shorts that were too tight and short. Starr Richards was helping Selena take inventory of what had been destroyed. Emil and Sofia, from across the cobblestones, were handing out free coffee and donuts.

Even one of the FBI agents who worked with Steve, Millie Sanford, was there. She appeared to be giving the dead Koi a proper burial in a shoe box.

“I didn’t know if you wanted to bury them or flush them. I thought you could decide when you’re ready.” Millie hugged her, her straight red hair swinging across her shoulder. “I’m glad I didn’t go to the conference. When Steve told me what happened, I came right over. Do they have any idea who did this yet?”

Feeling completely overwhelmed by all the effort on her behalf, Peggy was close to tears. She spoke with each of her friends and thanked them for being there. She answered the question on everyone’s minds—so far they had no idea who’d damaged the shop.

Sam came in as everyone was talking and drinking tea or coffee. His handsome face was grim as he asked Peggy to join him outside in the courtyard.

There were benches and tables available for shoppers to take a break and enjoy the historic shopping area. Each of the pots of flowers had a small sign advertising The Potting Shed since she and Sam took care of them.

Right now there were purple hyacinths and yellow pansies in every pot.

“Can you believe it?” she gushed. “All those people came out to help us. It’s amazing, isn’t it?”

“Maybe you should sit down, Peggy,” Sam said. “Something else has come up.”

Trumpet vine

An attractive wild plant in many locations, the trumpet vine flower is loved by hummingbirds and butterflies, but hated by some gardeners who find it invasive, but the plant can be grown with care and kept in its place.  The tubular flowers vary in color from yellow to red during the summer. In fall, the plant produces long seedpods.

Chapter Five

After they’d found The Potting Shed completely trashed, and she’d gone to a terrible crime scene, Peggy felt comfortable standing for whatever his bad news was. Maybe Mrs. Hood wasn’t willing to wait to have her landscaping done. Maybe she’d hired someone else to do the work. Either way, compared to everything else, she was sure she could handle it.

“What is it?” she asked.

“If you won’t sit, maybe I will.” Sam collapsed on the cute wood bench next to them, and put his head in his hands.

She sat, too, when she saw how upset he was. “Was Mrs. Hood nasty to you about not getting the job done right away?”

Sam stared hard into her eyes. “Mrs. Hood, who contracted me to work on her landscaping, wasn’t Mrs. Hood.”

“I don’t understand.” Peggy could hear laughter and music from inside. It was awkward being out here knowing her friends were inside cleaning. She wished he’d get it over with.

“I got a call from Mrs. Hood. She wanted me to start doing her landscaping.”

“Yes. I know. That was last week.”

“That’s right. I made an appointment and went to see her. We walked around her yard for an hour as she described what she wanted to change and the plants she wanted to add.”

Please get to the point.
“Yes. That’s what you always do.”

“I went to tell her what had happened, and to reschedule. Only the Mrs. Hood that I spoke to a month ago wasn’t there.”

She understood what he was saying, but couldn’t grasp the explanation. “Who was there?”

“Mrs. Hood. The
real
Mrs. Hood, I assume. She didn’t look anything like the other woman, and she knew nothing about me doing her landscaping.” He pushed a stray lock of hair out of his face in frustration. “I must have sounded like a crazy person. She called her husband and took out her revolver before she showed me her driver’s license to prove who she was.”

Now he had her complete attention.

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Peggy tried to get at the heart of it. “Who else would’ve been there besides the owner?”

“I don’t know. But because I knew we were on a timetable, I reordered everything for her before I went back to her house. I thought it would be good to present her with a done deal, you know? Now we’ve got about ten thousand dollars in plants coming tomorrow, and no one to sell them to. I called, but I couldn’t stop it. I’m sorry, Peggy.”

She mentally calculated what the loss would be if they couldn’t find someone else to take the plants before they were too far gone to survive. It was going to hurt, especially on top of the loss from the vandalism.

Her mind kept coming back to someone impersonating Mrs. Hood to hire Sam for the job.
Why would anyone do such a thing?
“It wasn’t the woman who lives next door to the Hoods, was it? Was it some kind of mistaken identity? I guess you only met with Mrs. Hood outside.”

He nodded. “We didn’t go inside. But you know that’s not unusual. I don’t know how it happened. It was the right house. I remembered everything she’d said she wanted and where she wanted to put it. I don’t know if I’m losing my mind or if we were set up.”

“Who would purposely do something like this?”

“I don’t know. I already told Sergeant Malcolm about it. I think she was opting for me going crazy. She said she’d get back with me, but what’s there to say?”

Peggy got to her feet. “I’m not sure. Let’s tell Millie about it. I know she can’t actually involve the FBI, but maybe she can shed some light on the matter.”

Sam’s sister, Hunter, came up the cobblestones as they were about to go inside. She was with off-duty Charlotte Police Officer Luke Blandiss. They’d been dating since he’d given her an expensive speeding ticket last year.