Beware the Orchids (A Shady Acres Mystery Book 1) (2 page)

2

S
till screaming, I got to my feet and darted from the greenhouse. Running toward me was Heath, with Alice teetering on her heels a few feet behind. Then, a curious look on her face was my…mother? And grandmother? Could the day get any stranger?

“What’s wrong?” Heath gripped my shoulders and peered into my eyes. “Shelby? Stop screaming and tell me what happened? Did you see a snake?”

“What?” I frowned. “No, I’m not afraid of snakes. Maybelle is dead under the orchid plants.”

His eyes widened right before he released me and dashed into the greenhouse. “Call 911!,” he yelled.

Alice, breathing hard, punched in the numbers on her cell phone and told the operator about me finding the body. Alice glared at me as if I were the one who’d caused the upheaval in her day.

I returned her sharp look, regaining my senses, and turned to my mother. “What are the two of you doing here?”

“Your grandmother wanted to come.” Mom hugged me. “She’s decided it’s time for a retirement apartment.”

“What better place than right where my Shelby lives.” My over-perfumed, red-haired grandmother, who fancied herself a Lucille Ball look-a-like, wrapped me and Mom in a hug. “This place might just be exciting enough for me. I’ll take it. You say there’s a dead body in there?” She motioned her head toward the greenhouse.

“It’s horrible. I’ve never seen anything so…bad.” I rested my head on her bony shoulder. From as far back as I could remember, breathing in the combination of Taboo cologne and cigarette smoke had meant Grandma was there to make everything better. “Are you really going to live here?”

“I think so. The cottages are adorable. I can help you plan the events. We’ll have a ball.” She stepped back, holding me with straight arms and stared into my eyes. “I think you need me.”

Sirens wailed up the driveway, cutting short our conversation. Alice stepped forward to greet the two officers marching toward us.

“You reported finding a dead body?” The older one, a man resembling Ted Danson, glanced at Alice while continuing toward the greenhouse.

“She did.” Alice pointed at me. “I haven’t stepped foot inside there.”

“You didn’t make it there when you were looking for Maybelle earlier?” I remembered her saying she was heading there.

“I didn’t make it that far, no.” She looked at me as if to ask what I was insinuating.

“Ma’am.” Officer Dan…uh, Lawrence, according to his badge, took me by the arm and pulled me to the side. “The body?”

“Under the orchids.” I pointed as Heath joined us.

“Poor Maybelle.”

The officer sighed. “Please tell me you didn’t touch anything.”

“Not a thing.” Heath shook his head.

“I dragged her from under the shelf,” I volunteered.

“Don’t say anything unless it’s the result of a direct question.” Grandma crossed her arms. “I thought I taught you that.” Then, apparently thinking the officer handsome, she batted her fake eyelashes.

The younger officer, Officer Springer, headed into the greenhouse. By then, an ambulance had arrived and two paramedics carried one of those boards they carry bodies on, and followed the officer.

Officer Lawrence glanced at Grandma and smiled. “That isn’t necessarily the wisest thing, Mrs…?”

“Grayson.” Grandma cocked her head. “Ida Grayson.”

I cleared my throat. “Don’t you have some questions for me, Officer?”

“Yes.” He transferred his attention me. “What is your position at Shady Acres?”

“I’m the new gardener and event coordinator. I was checking out the grounds and greenhouse when I found…Maybelle. Why would her gums be swollen? Oh, and there’s a box of rat poison next to her. Do you think she ingested some?” How horrible.

“We won’t know anything until the autopsy, ma’am. Your name?”

“Shelby Hart. Ida is my grandmother.”

“Today is Miss Hart’s first day,” Alice spoke up. “We do a thorough background check before hiring someone. She has no criminal record.”

I noticed she didn’t mention we didn’t have a face-to-face interview. I’d sent the resume and referrals over the internet and did the interview over the phone. “I don’t actually start work until tomorrow.”

Alice glanced at her watch. “It’s almost dinner time. The residents get cranky if dinner isn’t served on time. Will you need me?” She glanced at Officer Lawrence.

“Not at the moment. I’ll find you later.”

She clip-clopped her way to the dining hall. “Don’t be late, Shelby. I want to introduce you.”

For one of her residents dying what looked like a painful death, she didn’t seem to have a lot of empathy. I took a deep breath and turned my attention back to the officer. “I don’t really have anything more to tell you.” I averted my eyes from the black bag on the gurney containing Maybelle. “I met her a few hours ago while she was looking for her teeth under a bush. Then, I found her here. I guess she found her teeth. They were lying on her tongue.” I shuddered.

“Sounds to me like she ate some poison.” Grandma studied her peach colored nails. “The question here is whether she did so of her own accord.”

“Why would you think that?” Officer Lawrence frowned. “You haven’t seen the victim, have you? Why jump to this conclusion?”

“I watch a lot of crime shows on television. That’s how my mind works. Did someone mention dinner. Are you staying Sue Ellen?”

Her question pulled my quiet mother from her stupor. “Oh, I don’t know if I can eat after all this.”

“Of course you can. There will be plenty of food. You can have that poor woman’s share.”

My gaze clashed with my mom’s startled one. “Not cool, Grandma.”

She waved a hand. “When I die, I don’t expect people to stop eating.”

Officer Lawrence rubbed his chin, high spots of color appearing on his cheeks. “Ladies, I need your contact information in case we have further questions, then you’re free to go.”

We gave our names, addresses and phone numbers. With a nod to me, and a smile at Grandma, Officer Lawrence joined his partner in the greenhouse.

Should I stay and supervise them? They were cops after all, and might resent me hanging around. I glanced at a pale-faced Heath. “Should we stay?”

“No, they can handle this.” He crooked his arms. Mom slipped her hand in one, Grandma in the other.

“You are a doll. I hope you work here,” Grandma said.

“I’m the handyman.”

“I’m sure you are.”

He glanced, red-faced at me. The poor man. His face changed colors faster than a chameleon.

“Let’s go eat,” Grandma said. “We have a mystery to solve. I’ve always fancied myself to be a red-haired Agatha Christie.”

Oh, no.

3

“Y
ou may sit as a guest at the employee table,” Alice told Grandma when we entered. “Or anywhere among the residents. We’ll get you checked in after supper. You have the last cottage available. Oh.” The corners of her lips turned down. “I guess Maybelle’s will be available soon.” She clomped away.

“Some people do not know how to walk in heels without looking like a cow.” Grandma plopped down at an empty table. “Sit, Sue Ellen, before you fall.”

Mom shook her head. “I can’t get over this day. First, you want to move and leave me, then Shelby finds a dead body. It’s too much.”

“You don’t need me around anymore, and you cramp my style. The last time I brought a man home you gave him the third degree as if we were sixteen.” Grandma glanced around the room. “Look at all the eligible men here. Why would I want to stay with you?”

I choked back a laugh and pretended to cough. The men of Shady Acres had no idea the danger in their midst. I was tempted to stand up and yell, “Run for your lives.”

“Living with you was like living with a teenager.” Mom headed for the buffet.

Grandma followed. “I’m too old to need a chaperone.”

“Those two are characters.” Heath sat next to me.

My body flushed. “Especially Grandma.”

“Aren’t you hungry?” His blue eyes focused on me and increased the room’s temperature by ten degrees.

“I’ll wait for the piranhas to get their’s first.” I sighed. “Do people die unexpectedly around here often?”

“Not under suspicious circumstances.” He shrugged. “Heart attacks, stroke, things like that.”

“You think Maybelle’s death is suspicious?”

He shrugged. “The way the cops were acting, it’s a good deduction. At least they’re treating the greenhouse like a crime scene. I don’t think you’ll be allowed access for a few days.”

I gasped. I found the body. What if they considered me a suspect? I thought Donald jilting me at the altar was a bad thing. This was much worse. I folded my arms and rested my head on the table.

“Not a very good first day, was it?” Heath patted my back. “Come on. Let’s hit the buffet. You’ll feel better with something in your stomach.”

I lifted my head and let him lead me to the long line. Today’s theme was Mexican food. The buffet had everything one needed for tacos, nachos, and loaded burritos. I settled for two tacos, grabbing a diet coke on my way. As we finally reached the end, I grabbed a Sopapilla. Then another. I stayed on the verge of being two skinny and was blessed with a high metabolism. It drove my best friend nuts.

“It looks like I’m getting dessert early,” Grandma said as we approached the table. “Handsome, you sit next to me.”

He grinned and gave me a wink. “It’s Heath, ma’am.”

“Of course it is. A man like you wouldn’t have a sissy name like Hank.” She lifted a glass of red wine. “The doctor said a glass of wine a night was good for my heart, so I drink two, just to be safe.”

Heath laughed, the sound ringing across the dining room and attracting the attention of the residents. “You, Miss Ida, are good for my heart.”

“Oh, you flirt.” She blushed. Grandma actually blushed.

“Are you the one who found Maybelle?” A woman with pink tinted hair and wearing a bright yellow jumpsuit leaned over my shoulder. “I need to talk to you. Eight o’clock by the gazebo.” She straightened and left.

“That’s Birdie,” Heath said. “She’s a bit of a…character. Sees a conspiracy wherever she goes.”

“Should I meet with her?” I picked up a taco.

“I’ll go with you,” Grandma offered. “You can’t trust a woman with hair that color.”

“I think your moving here is a bad idea,” Mom said. “It isn’t safe and there is too much trouble for you to find.”

“Oh, hush, Sue Ellen. You need to learn how to live a little.” Grandma downed what was left in her wine glass. “Where can I get another glass?”

“They only allow each resident one glass in the dining room.” Heath cut into a carne asada. “If you want more, you’ll have to buy it and put it in the fridge in your room.”

“Good thing I have some in the van with my things. That’s something a girl shouldn’t run out of. You don’t mind helping me unpack after supper, do you?”

“It will be my pleasure.”

While my sixty-five-year-old Grandmother flirted with a man half her age, I surveyed the others in the room. What if Maybelle had been murdered? I didn’t know enough about her to have a motive of any kind. Had her search for her teeth taken her somewhere she shouldn’t have gone? Maybe she’d seen something she shouldn’t have. Would people in a retirement community have something to hide that would warrant murder?

I shook my head. My over-active imagination was working overtime. A new job should take care of that. I didn’t need to stick my nose where it didn’t belong.

After supper, the four of us traipsed out to Grandma’s van. She handed out orders like a drill sergeant then went to sign up for her cottage. While I was in number 7, she was in number 13. A number she swears is good luck. The best luck I had was that she wouldn’t be living right next door to me.

By the time Mom had the van driven to Grandma’s cottage, Grandma had re-joined us. “Wait until I go in first,” Grandma said. “I have to get a feel for the place in order to know where to put things.”

I peeked into the building after her. It looked almost identical to mine.

“Too much white.” Grandma shook her head. “I need color. Good thing I have several doo dads to brighten the place up.”

I knew that by morning, the cottage would resemble a rainbow inside. It wouldn’t be Grandma’s place if it didn’t. There would be reds, blues, purples, and animal print everywhere.

“Where do you want all these boxes?” Heath squeezed past me, a large box balanced on his shoulder.

“In the kitchen nook. Bring the one that says fridge to me right away.” Grandma took a deep breath. “I need my wine before we meet with Pink Hair.”

“Her name is Birdie.” I took a box from Mom and set it on the table, then headed to the van to help unload.

At five minutes to eight, I hugged Mom goodbye, thanked Heath for his help, and headed down a path illuminated with cheery lanterns to a gazebo strung with white lights. Birdie sat on a bench and leaped to her feet when we arrived.

“Thank you for coming. Maybelle was my friend.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.” I motioned for her to sit and took a seat next to her. “What did you want to meet about?”

She glanced around as if someone might be listening, then leaned close. “Now, she was my friend, but she was also a little…” she twirled her finger around her head. “Still, if she repeated something more than once it would behoove a person to listen. Now, just the other day, Maybelle told me someone here wasn’t who they claimed to be.”

“How would she know?”

“That woman got around, I tell you. Always looking for her teeth, even when they were in her mouth. But sometimes…she left them places. Places people could get to them. I heard she was poisoned. What if someone put that poison on her dentures? Huh?”

“Who told you she was poisoned?” I glanced at Grandma, who shook her head.

“I might have spoken of it to your mother in the ladies room,” Grandma said. “No one was in there. I promise. I always look under the stalls before I gossip.”

Merciful God in heaven give me strength. “You can’t be talking about a live police investigation. Do you want to get me arrested?”

“Oh, you’re already the number one suspect. You found the body.” Grandma grinned. “Remember, I’m full of knowledge from television.”

Maybelle was no longer the craziest person in the community. Grandma was.

A twig snapped in the trees behind us.

“Duck!” Grandma dropped to the wood-slated floor.

Birdie followed.

I turned and listened. A squirrel scampered from the trees. “You’re safe, unless it was a squirrel that killed Maybelle. It’s been a long day. We should go to bed.” I helped the other women to their feet.

“You found her.” Birdie crossed her arms. “You’re the event coordinator and gardener. You can go places I can’t. I want you to find out who killed her.”

“We don’t know there was foul play.”

“I know it in my gut.”

“Fine. I’ll see what I can find out. Do you want me to walk you home?” If I really was the prime suspect, as Grandma thought, it wouldn’t hurt to nose around a little.

“Would you? I don’t want to be the killer’s next victim.”

I rolled my eyes. Things had gotten terribly out of hand.

“We’re Cagney and Lacey, Ives and…whoever that other woman is. Sherlock and Doctor Watson.” Grandma was way too eager to stick her nose into other people’s business. “First thing tomorrow, we compare notes.”

“We don’t have any notes.” I turned to follow Birdie down the path to her cottage. After making sure no boogieman hid under her bed, I rushed to get Grandma home so I could get to my own place and soak in a bubble bath.

“Good night, love.” Grandma kissed me on the cheek. “See you at breakfast. We’re going to have so much fun together. Maybe I’ll ask your mother to move in with me. Do you think they’ll allow it? Nah. I’m a free bird. I changed my mind. She can spend the night occasionally.” She stepped inside and closed the door.

She exhausted me. Shoulders slumped, I trudged to my cottage. On the doorstep was a basket full of fruit and a note that said Welcome. I lifted it, unlocked my door, and set it on the dinette table. While the gift was thoughtful, all I wanted was a hot bath.

I shed my clothes and filled the tub with hot water and gardenia scented bubbles. Lowering myself into the water, I reached for the book I’d placed on the counter. A nice soak, a lovely romance novel, and I’d be ready for bed.

While I soaked, I thought over the last few weeks. I wasn’t as upset over Donald as I should be. I’d been doing what was expected after a long engagement, and greedy for the gifts he’d showered on me, to be honest. As an influential member of the community, he had to keep up appearances after all, and a trophy girlfriend made him look good. It was for the best that we weren’t getting married, and I vowed not to dwell on it any longer.

My thoughts drifted to today. In the course of a few hours, I’d gotten a bipolar manager, a dead body, a hunky coworker, and Grandma. Life would not be boring in the least.

When the bath water cooled, I realized I hadn’t read a single page in my book and climbed out of the tub. I dried off and donned a pair of cotton pajama pants and a tank top, then headed for the gift basket.

Oranges, apples, bananas and a pineapple. Yum. I reached for an apple, my hand pausing mid-air. I checked the note card. No name. If Maybelle had been murdered, how did I know this so-called gift wasn’t from her killer? I couldn’t take any chances. I hefted the basket and headed for the dumpster at the end of the walkway.

“You’re out late.” Alice glared at me, arms crossed.

“Just taking out the garbage.”

“You’re throwing away my gift?” Her eyes widened.

Uh-oh. “No, what? Where is my head? I didn’t mean to bring this. You sent it? Thank you.” I realized I was rambling and clamped my lips shut.

“I’m hoping we can be friends, Shelby, but you’re an odd duck for sure.” She shook her head and headed for the common building.

Since I seriously doubted Alice would kill one of her residents or employees, at least I hoped not, I bit into an apple and hoped for the best. Maybe I should have washed it first. Would hot water take care of poison on fruit?