Maddie's Gift of Mystery (A Rockcrest Cove Cozy Mystery Book 5) (6 page)

A
nthony was casually strolling
down the street when they spotted him about a half a mile from the dorm. He had apparently been in no real hurry to get away after he had dumped the backpack. He had his hands in his pocket and a set of earphones, plugged into an iPod in his breast pocket, in his ears.

Bailey, sitting in the front seat next to a Detective Sanderson, pointed him out as they rounded the corner. Sanderson turned on the police whistle for only a second to get his attention. Anthony’s face turned completely ashen as he turned in the direction of the sound. He froze momentarily as it dawned on him that they were looking at him. He almost turned to flee but then realized he had nowhere to go, so he remained rooted in place.

Sanderson pulled the car to a stop. “Stay here,” he said to Bailey as he got out, unbuckling his holster. Bailey watched as he approached Anthony with his gun drawn.

“Anthony Carvone?”

Anthony’s eyes darted this way and that, partly from embarrassment and partly from fear. A crowd was beginning to gather to watch the proceedings.

“Anthony Carvone,” Sanderson repeated, “you’re under arrest. Get down on your knees and put your hands over your head.”

Still unmoving, he stood there as if he was trying to process the overload he was taking in.

“Now!” Sanderson shouted with forcefulness.

The sharpness of his voice caused Anthony to realize that he had no choice. Slowly he kneeled on the ground and placed his hands over his head. Sanderson approached, still keeping his gun trained on him until he was fully cuffed. Pulling him to his feet, he Mirandized him as he walked him to the car.

His fierce eyes landed on Bailey, and they felt like daggers. “You’re not really a reporter, are you?”

“No, I’m not,” Bailey confirmed.

He opened his mouth to say something else but apparently thought better of it and fell silent on the way to the station.

At the station, he was put in an interview room by himself for about an hour while the others gathered in Willis’s office to try to decide what to do. Forensics expert Anderson came in to speak to the group, but before he could speak, Willis started.

“Did you find anything in the backpack that could directly link him to the murder?”

“Yes, we did.” He reached in and pulled out a package of photos and laid it across Willis’s desk. “This pillow matches the cushions on Jimmy’s sofa and is most likely the very one he was smothered with. It is my guess that if you do an autopsy on Jimmy, you’ll find the same fibers in his lungs.”

He then showed another image of a number of lockets found in the bag. “Aren’t those…?” Maddie said, pointing at the picture.

“Yes, they are,” he confirmed. “He had been buying up lockets all over town, trying to find one that matched the locket Emily wore. It appears it was his plan to frame her all along for the murder.”

The picture showed six different lockets, all strikingly similar to the one Emily wore. It must have taken him months to find the exact match, indicating that the plan to frame Emily had been in the works for quite a while. There were also photos of objects that had been taken from Jimmy’s house—things that no one would have even known were missing but could easily have incriminated Anthony.

Willis remained silent while he studied the pictures of evidence. “It looks pretty cut and dry to me,” he said. He turned to Eleanor. “I’m going to recommend that all charges against Emily are dropped immediately.”

A collective sigh of relief went through the group, and Eleanor quickly excused herself and stepped out of the room to call Emily and give her the good news.

“There’s still one thing that bothers me,” Willis said out loud. “We still don’t have a clear-cut motive for the crime. It just doesn’t make sense that they would plot to kill Jimmy. We must still be missing something.”

“I think I have the answer to that,” Anderson confirmed. He pointed out another photo of a small diary. “This is Maria’s diary,” he said. “There are excerpts in her diary about her infatuation with Jimmy. Apparently she had developed strong feelings for him but was always thwarted by his relationship with Emily.”

“But that’s ridiculous.” Eleanor said. “Jimmy and Emily were like brother and sister.”

“In Maria’s eyes they weren’t. They’re connection was something that she was never able to break.”

“But it still doesn’t make any sense though. Why would Maria want him dead? Wouldn’t she be more concerned with getting rid of Emily?”

“That’s true, but Maria may not have known the extent Anthony would go to to protect her. He probably thought that he could get rid of Emily by framing her for Jimmy’s death.”

The whole plot seemed far-fetched to say the least, but the evidence was clearly laid out in front of them. “What’s this?” Maddie asked, pointing at another photo.

“Jimmy had a strange interest in a school competition for membership in an academic club.”

“Yes. It’s one of my extracurricular programs,” Eleanor said.

“What is it?”

“Well, students accepted into the academic club get first pick at apprenticeship programs with several law firms around town. I only accept two students each semester for the program.”

“Let me guess,” Anderson said, looking at a paper he was holding. “Your first choice was Emily.”

“That’s right.”

“Your second choice was Jimmy.”

“Yes,” Eleanor said, realization slowly entering her voice.

“And your third choice was Maria.”

“How did you know?”

He handed her the paper, which she immediately recognized as coming from her office. Apparently Anthony had managed to get a copy of her acceptance list.

“But I hadn’t even announced my decision yet.”

“Well, he found out about it anyway. I guess he believed that if he eliminated his sister’s competition, she would be first in line to get the appointment.”

It was hard to believe that Anthony had such affection for his sister that he would go to such lengths to protect her. There was still the debate as to whether Maria knew what he had planned or not, but that would be revealed through further investigation. Clearly she knew what he had done after the event, but no one was sure if she had been a part of the planning. That would have a clear bearing on her culpability in the case.

Eleanor, Maddie, and Bailey stood silently outside the courthouse after Anthony’s arraignment in utter disbelief of all the things that had transpired.

“Are things getting that competitive in schools these days that students would go to such lengths to succeed?”

“I don’t know,” Bailey said. “I know it’s tough, but I can’t compare it to what you guys went through in school. Some kids do get desperate though. Just imagine spending your whole life preparing for this new career, and no matter how hard you try, you just fall in the middle of the pack. I think it’s what drives some kids to do drugs, others to start a life of crime, and still others will go to the lengths that Antony and Maria did.”

“It’s sad,” Maddie said silently. “It’s like they’ve lost all hope.”

“But this is not a sad day!” Eleanor announced. “I won’t allow it.”

“You’re right,” they all agreed.

Emily emerged from courthouse, all smiles. Immediately she was surrounded by a host of reporters all barraging her with questions. She answered what she could and deftly averted those she couldn’t.

“You’re right,” Maddie said to Eleanor. “She was born for this business.”

They all laughed and chatted while they waited for Emily to extricate herself from the crowd. Before long, she ran into the group and gave them all big hugs for their help and support.

“Why don’t we all head off to the bakery for a little mid-morning treat?” Maddie suggested.

“That sounds great!” Emily agreed. “But let’s take the car if you don’t mind.”

“But it’s only a few blocks away.”

“I know, but I don’t want the crowd to follow me.”

They all let out a good laugh. “I tell you what,” Eleanor said. “Emily will come with me, and we’ll meet you at the bakery a little later on.”

When they arrived at the bakery, they were surprised when Maddie walked right in through unlocked doors.

“Gran,” Bailey said, “did you leave the bakery unlocked this morning?”

“Oh, I always leave it unlocked when I’m not going to be far away.”

“Don’t you think it’s dangerous leaving the place empty like that?”

“It’s not empty,” she replied. “I left my security on.”

“What security?”

Maddie turned and called, “Astoria! Astoria!”

The cat lumbered through the swinging doors with a mild meow and stood looking at the group.

“Did anyone come in today while I was gone?” she asked.

The cat simply jumped up on the counter and gave her a full body shake.

“Good girl,” Maddie exclaimed and gave her a simple treat.

“Now I tell you, Bailey, do you think anyone can protect this place better than Astoria?”

Bailey had to chuckle. “I doubt it, Gran.”

Maddie held up her hand to the cat. “High five, Astoria.” The cat raised her paw and high fived her back.

Yes. Things had suddenly gotten back to normal once again. Life in Rockcrest Cove was just as it should be: a simple place full of happy people living a purely simple life.

F
ind
out what Maddie discovers in the next installment of The Rockcrest Cove Mysteries! Coming Soon!

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