Morning Cup of Murder (14 page)

“How was your visit with your grandma?”

“Interesting. I told her about you, by the way.”

He quirked an eyebrow and threw her a smile. “Did you now?”

“That you’re the pastor of her new church,” she added.

“Oh, that,” he said, sounding disappointed.

“I should warn you that she’s probably going to be picking out wedding patterns for us when she gets out of jail. Marrying a pastor would be her dream come true for me.”

“But not for you?” he asked.

“I haven’t given a lot of thought to marriage lately,” she answered honestly. Not since her lying, cheating ex-fiancé dumped her for her sister.

“But your grandmother doesn’t take your past into account?” he said sympathetically.

“No, but it’s impossible to be upset with her when she’s so sincere in her efforts. At least she stopped trying to fix me up with her friends’ grandkids. That was awkward.”

“I sense a good story. Tell me more.”

“Well, there was the time she sent me on a blind date with Gladys Smith’s grandson. He’s forty, divorced, a proctologist, and wears a bad toupee.”

“And you didn’t marry him on the spot?” he said.

She shoved at his arm. “Don’t laugh at me. It was horrible. And there was no easy way to explain to the meddling grandmothers why we didn’t make an instant love connection.”

“Any other misadventures in dating since you’ve been home?”

“Just one,” she said, turning to stare outside the window.

“What was it?” his somber tone matched hers.

“The next guy she set me up with was much more my style--young, handsome, a teacher.”

“What happened?”

“Something he said reminded me of Robert. I burst into tears in the middle of supper and had to flee to the restroom. I couldn’t stop crying. He took me home soon after.”

“Uh-oh,” Tosh said. “That’s bad.” He glanced at her again. “You didn’t cry last night, and you’re not crying now. Is that a sign that you’ve moved on?”

She shook her head. “It’s a sign that you remind me nothing of Robert.”

“And that’s a good thing?” he asked.

“That’s a very good thing,” she agreed. “And the other positive outcome was that my grandmother realized I wasn’t ready to date just yet. She backed off setting me up with people, although she still drops a whole lot of not-so-subtle hints.”

“I want to visit her, but I’ve been tied up with funeral preparations. Do you think she’ll see me in a couple of days?”

“She would never refuse a pastor anything,” Lacy said. “She’s wholly devoted to the church.”

“I’m liking her more and more,” Tosh said.

“You’ll love her,” Lacy said. “She’s the best.”

They arrived at the restaurant and once again Tosh waved off Lacy’s offer to pay. “So tell me about Barbara Blake,” he said when they received their food and sat down. “From what I can tell, there was no love lost for the woman in this community, and no one from
New York
has come forward, either.”

“
New York
?” Lacy said, surprised. “That’s where she’s been living all this time?”

He nodded. “In some swanky apartment in
Manhattan
, although she didn’t own it. Someone else had been paying the rent for her. I don’t know who. Details are sketchy. That’s why anything you can tell me will be helpful.”

Lacy scanned her mind, trying to find
anything
that might be even slightly positive. “She had expensive taste. She seemed to enjoy the finer things in life. Her closet was like my every dream come true. Everything was a designer original. She must have been very wealthy.”

Tosh shook his head. “From what I’ve been told, she didn’t have a job.”

Lacy frowned. “Then how did she get all the goods?”

Tosh laughed. “Do you always talk like you’re in a gangster movie from the thirties?” He laughed again when she wrinkled her nose at him. “Maybe she had very kind admirers. Have you seen her? She’s beautiful, even now. She doesn’t look her age at all. If I didn’t know how old she was, I would guess her to be in her fifties.”

“Tosh, that’s it,” she said excitedly.

“What’s it?”

“The journals. There was a list of possessions, and next to each item was a nonsensical name. I bet it’s a list of what people gave her.” She paused and tasted a fry. “But why would anyone keep a list like that?”

He shrugged. “Maybe she just liked lists. Lots of people do. Or maybe she had a reason for keeping track, like for thank-you notes.”

“From what I know of her, she wasn’t the type to send out thank-yous.”

“Then maybe it was for blackmail.”

“That’s sinister, but a good possibility. Blackmail seems right down her alley. Maybe her admirers were married.” She drummed her fingers on the table.

“There’s really no way to know for sure without more information.” Now it was his turn to stare thoughtfully at the fries. “Too bad we can’t get back in the house. Sounds like another search is in order.”

“You sound just like me, and, before you get your hopes up, that idea has already been nixed by Jason.”

“Of course it has,” Tosh said. “He’s really living up to the reputation of a no- nonsense cop.”

“And you’re really killing the reputation of a blameless pastor.”

“I was a guy long before I became a pastor, and I’ve always been the adventurous type. Strange that your boyfriend isn’t.”

“He isn’t my boyfriend, and he was the adventurous type in school.”

“So what happened to change him?”

“He really loves his career,” Lacy answered, feeling somewhat defensive on Jason’s behalf.

“So do I. Doesn’t stop me from daydreaming about how the other half lives or what I would do if I weren’t wearing a clerical collar.”

Lacy chewed her chicken, thinking over Tosh’s statement about Jason. From what she knew about him, she expected him to be a little bit wild. When had he become so careful and settled? Had something happened to alter his personality, or had her bad boy image always been incorrect? Was Jason more of a choirboy than she realized?

“Back to Barbara,” Tosh said, recalling her attention. “She likes nice things and lists. Anything else? Did your grandmother say anything about her?”

“No. Grandma insists she didn’t know her. She said she took her a pie to be neighborly.”

“If she didn’t know her, how did she know she was back in town?”

“You ask good questions, Tosh,” Lacy said sincerely. Once again he was proving to be a good sounding board. “Let me write that one down so I can remember to ask Grandma, not like she’ll tell me, though.”

“You know, Lacy, there’s a way to find out without asking,” Tosh said. He continued speaking when she looked up at him. “You could search her things.”

Lacy gasped. “You think I should spy on my grandma?”

“It sounds worse when you say it. I’m merely pointing out that you’re doing your best to free her and she’s standing in your way. It’s possible that circumventing her might behoove you.”

She blinked at him. “Did you just say ‘behoove,’ Pa Ingalls?”

He flicked her knuckle with his index finger. “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you, Lacy.” His finger lingered, smoothing gently over her knuckle, and she found the sensation not at all unpleasant. “So, back to Barbara.”

“She had friends when she was here. She was on the homecoming court, so I guess that means she was probably popular in school. She held on to her parents’ house all these years. That smacks of loyalty, I think.”

“Or desperation,” Tosh said. “She probably needed a backup plan in case her male admirers fell through.”

“Tosh, you’re supposed to be finding the silver lining within this information, remember?”

“You’re right. But so far I don’t think I like the picture I’m getting of this woman. She sounds like a conniving user.”

“That’s pretty much what her group of high school friends said about her. Maybe I can talk to them again tonight and try to wheedle a few positive attributes.”

“I would appreciate that,” Tosh said. “Otherwise I’m going to have to revert to my emergency backup sermon.”

“What’s your emergency backup sermon?” she asked.

“Reading a children’s book. Don’t laugh; it works every time to make people cry. You choose a touching book about a puppy who dies, or something, and anyone who actually cared about Barbara can apply it to her. Then you read a few verses from Ecclesiastes and--bam!--you’re done.”

Lacy laughed and shook her head. “Tosh, you’re not like any pastor I’ve ever met before.”

“And that’s a good thing?” he guessed.

“That’s a very good thing,” she assured him. She and God hadn’t exactly been on speaking terms lately, but if someone like Tosh believed the things her grandmother had been teaching her all her life, then maybe there was some truth to them.

“That reminds me. Do you attend my new church?” Tosh asked. He rested his head in his hand in what was becoming a familiar gesture to her while his eyes probed her face, searching for she knew not what.

“I haven’t gone much since I’ve been back.”

“Maybe now is a good time to start,” he said.

“Maybe so,” she agreed. They shared a smile then he checked his watch and hopped out of the booth.

“We have to book it,” he said. “Ready?”

“Ready,” she said. Somehow by the time they reached the car, they were holding hands, and Lacy had no idea how it happened. Why was touching Tosh second nature while touching Jason felt like an electric jolt every time? With him she was sure she would never look down and be surprised to realize she was holding on to him; she would know the second his hand touched hers. What was it that made her reaction to the two men so different and, more important, which way did she prefer?

Chapter 12

They were the first ones at the funeral home.

“Do you want to see her?” Tosh asked.

“I suppose,” Lacy said. Her discomfort over viewing a dead body was overpowered by her curiosity about Barbara Blake. Who was this woman who had no mourners?

Once again Tosh took her hand, but this time he tucked it securely between both his in a comforting gesture that both reassured her and made her feel like a little girl. Slowly they walked together up to the casket. Lacy felt an odd pang at her first sight of the dead woman, but since it was the same initial feeling she always had when approaching a deceased person she chalked it up to anxiety.

Tosh hadn’t been exaggerating; Barbara Blake was beautiful. Her skin was taught and flawless. Her blond hair was perfectly streaked with highlights and lowlights, making the color appear natural. If not for telltale age spots and wrinkles on her hand, Lacy would have guessed her age to be fiftyish. She studied the woman, trying in vain to find some clue about her from her appearance. Why had someone killed her? How had she gone through life with no connections?

She had no idea how long they stood there, staring, but eventually voices sounded from behind them. People began streaming in, some of them Lacy recognized. They came forward and only then did Lacy realize they thought she and Tosh were the receiving line.

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” an elderly gentleman said, shaking her hand.

Lacy blinked at him in surprise. How did she get herself out of this awkward situation?

“That’s so kind,” Tosh answered. “But we aren’t family. I’m the pastor of the church where she was a member.” He didn’t explain Lacy’s presence, but the man drew his own conclusion.

“Oh, I heard we had a new pastor in town. You look too young to be a pastor, but I guess if you’re old enough to be married, you’re old enough to pastor a church.”

Lacy’s discomfort increased another notch, but Tosh draped his arm over her shoulder and smiled. “Pleased to meet you,” he said. After the man moved on, he leaned down to whisper in Lacy’s ear. “We’ve got to get away from here and circulate before people start asking us when we’re planning to have children.”

She smiled, patted his chest, and they moved apart, deciding they could learn more by separating than if they stayed together and drew questions of their own. Lacy wasn’t surprised to see her grandmother’s group of friends arrive. Not only was attending the viewing the proper thing to do, but the women would no doubt want to see what their former friend looked like now.
Unless one of them had already seen her,
Lacy thought. Remembering how nervous and shocked they had all been that first morning after the arrest, Lacy wondered again what their story was. What were they hiding? Was it possible that one of them had killed Barbara?

Lacy edged closer, picked up a bulletin, and pretended to study it while secretly eavesdropping on the group.

“She looks good,” Gladys said grudgingly.

“She always did,” Rose said. She pulled a handkerchief from her ample bosom and dabbed at the sweat on her upper lip. Everything about Rose was ample, from her pudgy body to her booming voice.

“Looks were never her problem,” Maya said. “It was always her personality.”