Room for Murder (Book 4 in the Lighthouse Inn Mysteries) (10 page)

“
No work talk, remember,”
Elise said. They had agreed on that beforehand.

“
Sorry. So what’s new with
you?” he asked.

“
Nothing since we spoke
this afternoon,” Elise admitted.

Somehow they got through dinner, but Alex
found that he was relieved to be driving back to Hatteras West.
Something had gone terribly wrong with the evening, and he didn’t
have a clue how it had happened. All his expectations, all his
preparations, and they had ended up having a terrible time.

He couldn’t just let it die, not like that.
Instead of driving directly back to the inn, Alex stopped at Bear
Rocks.

Elise asked, “What’s wrong?”

Alex grinned. “Well, I figured we should go
ahead and get our ‘good night’ kiss out of the way before we get
back to the inn.” Before Elise could say anything, Alex added,
“Relax, I’m just kidding. Man, that was one huge disaster, wasn’t
it?”

Elise said in a near-whisper, “Alex, I’m so
sorry. It’s all my fault.”

Alex replied, “I’m not about to let you take
all the credit. Let’s make a list of my mistakes tonight. I was way
overdressed for Irma’s, the flowers were probably over the top, I
shouldn’t have ordered our food ahead of time without at least
asking you. Let’s see, did I leave anything out?”

Elise laughed, a sound that was sheer joy to
his ears. “I think you were sweet. We both put too much pressure on
ourselves to possibly have a good time. It was dreadful, wasn’t
it?”

Alex joined her laughter. “It was indeed
pretty painful. So does this mean we’ve passed permanently into the
‘friends’ zone?”

“
I don’t know,” Elise
admitted.

“
I, for one, hope not,”
Alex said, keeping his gaze locked forward. “Elise, the more I get
to know you, the more I care for you. You’ve become a good friend,
but I’ve got to admit, every time I see you, my heart jumps a
little. I just wish this would have worked out.”

“
Me, too. Believe me, Alex.
So what do we do now?”

Alex admitted, “I’m at a complete loss. I
was hoping you’d know.”

Elise nodded. “I don’t. We might as well go
back to the inn.”

“
I guess you’re right.
Sorry our evening was such a bust.”

She hesitated a moment, then said, “I am,
too. Let’s just put this behind us.”

He nodded. “I guess that’s the only thing we
can do.”

Alex drove back to the inn, walked her to
her door, then said, “Good night, Elise.”

She leaned forward and kissed him gently on
the lips, a peck so brief he could barely believe it had happened.
“Don’t give up yet, Alex. My heart’s been known to skip when you’re
around, too. Nobody said this was going to be easy.”

“
Nothing worthwhile usually
is,” he said as she disappeared into her room.

Alex was left with nothing but the gentle
reminder of her perfume in the air, and the memory of the slight
pressure of her presence near him.

For tonight, it would have to be enough.

The next day, things were still a little
awkward between them, and Alex wondered if that particular dream of
them ever being together was dead beyond all hope. Truth be told,
after breakfast he was happy enough to go off on his own cleaning
Main while she tackled Dual.

He was just finishing the hallway sweeping
when he heard someone calling him from downstairs. Conner Shook was
the last person on earth Alex expected to find visiting his
inn.

“
Alex, how are you?” There
was no way to tell from the warm tone in his voice that the two of
them had stopped talking since Conner’s marriage with Tracy had
broken up.

“
Conner,” Alex said evenly.
“What can I do for you?”

“
It’s about this mayoral
race. I was hoping to talk to you about throwing your support my
way.”

Alex could barely believe the man’s gall.
“Conner, you know better than that. Tracy and I have been friends
forever.”

“
Friendship is one thing,
but the office of mayor is something else altogether. Tell me
something, Alex, do you really see Tracy running Elkton
Falls?”

“
I think she’s just what
this town needs,” Alex said.

Conner shrugged. “Okay, that’s fine, I
understand, but if you change your mind, I’d be happy to have your
support.”

“
I wouldn’t count on it if
I were you, Conner.”

The man just laughed. “By the time the
election rolls around, you might not have a choice.”

“
What are you implying?”
Alex asked, the steel coming out in his voice.

Conner said, “The last I heard, Sheriff
Armstrong was looking hard at Tracy as a suspect in Oxford’s
murder.”

Alex said coldly, “How about you, Conner? Do
you have an alibi for that night?”

“
I was in Charlotte on
business, not that it’s any of your concern.”

Alex wasn’t about to let up. “That’s mighty
convenient, Conner. Is there any way you can prove you were there
the entire time?”

“
I don’t have to,” Conner
said, the schoolyard bully coming out in his voice. “I’m not a
suspect.”

“
At least not that you know
of,” Alex said.

“
Why? What have you heard?
I know you and Armstrong are tight. What did he say to
you?”

“
That he’s still looking,”
Alex said. That much was true.

Conner’s expression froze for a moment, then
he forced a smile to his lips. “Alex, I’ve got nothing to hide. The
sheriff can look all he wants to.” Conner started to walk way, but
he paused and called back, “Let me know if you change your
mind.”

“
It’s not happening,
Conner.”

He just shrugged. “Have a good day,
then.”

After he was gone, Alex stood there silently
in thought, wondering about the real reason Conner Shook had come
out to the inn. One thing was certain: he was lying about being
there to solicit Alex’s support. Conner knew too well that he
supported Tracy.

So what was it, a fishing expedition? Could
Conner have had anything to do with the murder of his candidate? He
could have been after the limelight himself. Perhaps Oxford
Hitchcock had gotten in the way of Conner’s big plans to take over
the campaign himself.

Alex was just finishing up his chores when
he heard someone drive up in the parking lot. That was one of the
great things about having a gravel drive; cars usually announced
themselves well before the occupants arrived. This was certainly
the inn’s day for visitors.

Alex was happy to see Grady Hatch come
in.

“
Mayor, what brings you out
here?”

Grady said sternly, “I got a handful of
complaints about that overgrown night-light of yours out there, and
I promised I’d follow up on them.”

Alex stammered, “Mor said he cleared it with
you beforehand.”

Grady’s hard expression melted away. “Relax
Alex, I was just pulling your chain. Truth to tell, a couple of
folks thought you should light it up every night.”

“
I’ve been meaning to talk
to you about that. What are the odds the Town Council will loosen
up their restrictions on it?”

“
I’d say somewhere between
slim and none. You want me to take another run at them, Alex? My
term’s almost up, but I wouldn’t mind tumbling with that group one
more time. I can tell you what the answer’s going to be ahead of
time, though. Alex, folks like you fine, but your big old
flashlight in their living room is not something that makes them
overly fond of you. It doesn’t help matters that Madelyn Rose lives
within eyeshot. She called me yesterday morning screaming her head
off about you breaking the law. I finally got her calmed down when
I told her you were doing regular maintenance, but she was still as
mad as a wet cat when we got off the phone. Why don’t you wine and
dine her instead of that pretty maid of yours? Maybe she’d get off
your back then.”

Alex had been waiting for the first volleys
to be fired about his date with Elise. It certainly hadn’t taken
the town of Elkton Falls long to pick up on the latest bit of
gossip. He was just unhappy that there were no other fruits of the
date than everyone else’s idle speculation.

“
I doubt I’d do much good
with either one of them at this point,” Alex admitted.

Grady slapped his back and laughed. “The
ways of love are wild and unpredictable, my friend. You can’t give
up just when you’re finally getting started.”

Alex had heard just about all the advice he
cared to hear. “I appreciate your concern, but I can’t believe
you’d drive all the way out here to talk to me about my love life
and my lighthouse.”

Grady said, “Well, I just felt like a drive,
truth told. Say, what do you think about Oxford Hitchcock? Terrible
thing, isn’t it?”

“
Were you two close?” Alex
asked.

“
No, we worked on a few
projects together, but there was nothing personal between us. Still
and all, he was a fine man, and he would have been good for Elkton
Falls.”

“
How about Tracy?” Alex
asked. “Please tell me you’re not backing Conner.”

Harry shook his head. “Alex my friend, I’m
not endorsing anyone. Nope, I promised myself I’d stay out of this
election, and that goes double when we’ve got exes battling it
out.” He winked at Alex as he added, “It should be a whale of a
fight though, don’t you think?”

Alex nodded. “I’m dreading the debate.”

Grady slapped him on the back. “That’s when
I expect to see the most fireworks. I’m introducing them both next
week at the debate, then I’m getting off the stage before they
light into each other.” He glanced at his watch as he added, “Well,
sir, I’ve got to go. Oh, by the way, did you hear we postponed our
‘Save the Bridge’ meeting until after the election?”

“
How’s the fund-raising
going?” Alex asked.

“
Oh, slow but steady. Folks
don’t want to give much to the cause. I’ve been hitting up some of
our local businesses, but so far it’s just trickling in. Don’t
worry though, we’ll see that old bridge repaired sooner or later, I
promise you that.”

“
I didn’t think you made
campaign promises,” Alex said, teasing.

“
In this case, I’ll make an
exception. See you around, Alex.”

An hour later Mor came in as Alex was
putting his broom away, and from the look on the big man’s face,
something new had gone very desperately wrong.

Chapter 9

“
What is it?” Alex asked,
dreading to hear the answer to his question.

“
It’s Emma. She just turned
herself in for killing her ex- husband.”

The broom in Alex’s hand fell to the floor,
sending a crashing echo through the lobby.

“
I can’t believe
that.”

Mor said, “You can’t? How about me? I’m in
shock.”

Alex said, “Tell me what happened.”

Mor walked over to one of the tables set up
for backgammon, a game he and Alex often enjoyed playing together.
Neither one of them was in any mood for games at the moment,
though.

Mor pushed the game aside and said, “Last
night we had a long, drawn-out discussion about this whole thing,
mostly about Toby just popping up like he did. Well, I got mad at
her for not telling me about it when he first came to town.” Mor
looked at his hands folded in front of him, then added meekly, “I
lost my temper and stormed out. Turns out she knew the guy was
going to come around before he even stepped foot in Elkton Falls;
she just didn’t know when. You know me, I have a tendency to fly
off the handle when it comes to Emma. The next thing I know,
Sandra’s calling me this morning and telling me Emma’s in
jail.”

“
I still can’t believe it,”
Alex said.

“
You’ve got to do
something, Alex. I know she couldn’t have killed him. I don’t have
any proof, but it’s clear in my heart that she’s
innocent.”

Alex studied the big man before speaking. He
hated seeing his friend in such torment. “I want to help, but what
can I do, Mor?”

“
Talk to her. Convince her
she’s not helping anybody by pulling this stunt.”

Alex said, “She’ll listen to you better than
she would to me, Mor.”

The handyman shook his head, and Alex could
see he was as close to tears as he’d been in ages. “That’s just it.
She won’t see me.”

Alex nodded. “I’ll do what I can.”

Mor struggled with his thanks, then
hurriedly left the inn.

Alex went in search of Elise to tell her the
news. As he hunted for the housekeeper, he couldn’t help wondering
if it was possible that Emma’s confession was legitimate. He knew
Toby Sturbridge had terrorized her during their marriage; Emma had
confessed that much to him on several occasions. But could she have
killed him? No, he wouldn’t believe it if she told him herself.

Alex found Elise finishing up her rooms in
Dual.

“
I need a huge favor,” Alex
said.

Elise replied, “I’ve seen that look in your
eyes before. You’re going to meddle in this business with Oxford
Hitchcock, aren’t you?”

Alex shook his head. “Absolutely not, I’m
staying clear of that one. Mor just came in and told me Emma’s
confessed to Toby Sturbridge’s murder.”

“
That’s ridiculous,” Elise
snapped.

“
I think so too, but she’s
locked up over at the jail now, and she’s refused to see
Mor.”

“
Go talk to her, Alex. I
can handle things here.” He smiled gently. “Thanks, Elise. I
appreciate it.”