Honeysuckle Homicide (Trash-to-Treasure Crafting Mystery) (5 page)

Doreen Perkins took off when we got out of the car. Kent heard movement, but I told him it was a bird. She was nuts, but I figured she would leave me alone soon, no need to involve the police. As much as I didn’t get along with her, I knew she was hurting because her son was in jail. Even after all that Ross and I had been through, I didn’t wish him harm. I honestly hoped the police found the real killer and let Ross go.

Kent kissed me on the cheek and said goodbye. He was going back to the scene of the crime to have another look. I should have asked if I could tag alon
g. Earlier I’d thought I should avoid the scene, now I wondered if I would see a missed clue.

As soon as I was inside
, I grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and settled at the counter stool to complete my project. Once I finished, I’d write the article for Claire Ann.

I had a bit of burlap left over from a pillow I’d made
, so I cut a piece to fit in the picture frame I’d found. Once I’d secured the back on the frame again, I turned it over and pulled out my new window marker I’d picked up at Wal-Mart in Belleville, the next town over. We didn’t have a craft store or even a Wal-Mart in Honeysuckle.

With the marker I wrote directly on the glass.
Live in the sunshine. Swim in the sea. Drink in the wild air
. The turquoise color of the marker complimented the white frame. Using the markers on the glass, I could change the quote any time I wanted. It was a simple project, but would have a big impact on my dining room wall. The cost had been next to nothing.

Over the past week,
I had been working on a larger project that I thought would be finished in time for this week’s article. I’d been sidetracked with painting my bedroom walls and hadn’t completed it in time. A couple weeks ago I’d discovered a perfectly good dresser sitting along someone’s curb. I’d put it in the backseat of my Mustang and picked up a gorgeous shade of turquoise paint and chestnut-colored glaze to go over it. My idea was to turn it into a media center for the TV I’d recently gotten back from the pawn shop. It had been Ross’ TV, but at least I’d gotten something out of the divorce. That and Ross’ beloved Mustang. Anyway, I’d removed the doors on the front of the dresser and added cute accent baskets to store items on the shelves.

The rest of the afternoon was spent writing the article. I finished just in time to make dinner of baked tilapia and tomato salad. The rest of the evening I spent reading a mystery novel on the front porch until the sun disappeared.

Kent called me as I stepped inside the door. I didn’t tell him about the noise I heard in the backyard as we talked on the phone. Thank goodness I hadn’t heard it while outside. I figured as long as no one broke into my house, I was safe. I wasn’t going to step outside to investigate the noise either. I couldn’t help but wonder if it had been Doreen snooping around.

The next morning
after making a batch of muffins, I emailed the article to Claire Ann. As I nibbled on the fresh-baked blueberry muffin, I stared at the computer screen. That bloody card was still on my mind. What motive would Ross have to murder Luke? Nothing that I could think of, so who would have a motive? Luke had argued with this ex-girlfriend Julian minutes before his murder. And Kent had seen that with his own eyes. How could I find out more about Luke’s ex? The waitress at the restaurant seemed to know a lot about her.

I jumped up and changed into a pair of pale yellow knee-length shorts, a white blouse and a pair of yellow flip-flops. The temperature today was supposed to be somewhere around hotter than hell
, so I wanted to dress for the heat.

Of course
, I wasn’t prepared for the information the waitress gave me. It had come as a shock that Luke’s ex-girlfriend worked for Darcy Parish, the other realtor. Darcy had given me her card and said to contact her if I was interested in selling the house. I wasn’t interested, but that would give me an excuse to stop in her office. It would be a perfect reason to talk with the ex-girlfriend too. Should I ask Darcy how her card had ended up with blood on it in the Dumpster? Maybe I should let Kent handle that.

When I stepped into the office, no one was behind the fron
t desk. Behind the desk and down a small hallway were a couple of closed doors. I assumed one was Darcy’s office. The other was probably a meeting room. On the right was a tiny sitting area with a small beige-colored sofa and a couple brown upholstered chairs. In the middle was a glass coffee table with magazines and various real estate books. Apprehension had settled in and I thought about rushing out of there before anyone saw me. Would I be able to pretend I was actually interested in selling my house?

A woman emerged from behind a closed door. Once she was closer
, I recognized Luke’s ex-girlfriend. Her name, Julian Montgomery, was displayed by a little wood and gold plaque sitting on the desk. She smiled widely as she approached. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail and she wore black slacks and a black and white striped blouse.

“I’m sorry
that I kept you waiting. How may I help you?” she asked.

“Ms. Parish gave me her card and said if I wanted to discuss selling my home that I should stop in and see her,” I said
, looking around the room.

“I’m sorry
, but she’s not here at the moment. Would you like to have a seat and I can take down your information and let her get in touch as soon as she returns?”

This was probably for the best. Maybe Darcy would forget to call me. Now I could talk with Julian with no interruptions.

Julian gestured toward one of the wooden chairs in front of her desk. I sat down and scanned the area again. What I was looking for I wasn’t sure. Julian had a framed photo on the corner of her desk. I was shocked to see that it was of herself.

She pulled out a pad of paper and a pen to take notes. I gave her my name and address. What else was there to talk about? How would I get the conversation a
way from the house and to Julian and Luke? She would probably tell me it was none of my business if I came out and asked about their relationship. I’d have to be subtle. How did one be subtle when asking someone if she’d murdered her ex-boyfriend? ‘By the way, did you off your ex?’

After she finished jotting down a few notes
, she looked at me expectantly.

I leaned back in the chair. “You know, you look very familiar.”

She grinned. “Oh, really? I don’t think we’ve met.”

I pointed at her. “I saw you the other day. Aren’t you dating Luke Lexington?”

If I could have kicked myself I would have. That was about as far from subtle as I could have gotten. By the look that she gave me I wished that I was invisible.

“We were dating, but not anymore,” she said through gritted teeth.

Julian straightened in her chair. Her body gesture told me that she wanted me to take a hike. Something told me she was about to stop being friendly. I had to say something to right this awkward situation.

“I’m sorry about what happened to him,” I said.

She stared at me. “We had broken up. I had nothing to do with his death.”

Whoa. I hadn’t expected that answer. I
’d never even asked if she had anything to do with his death.

“I wasn’t implying anything.” I shifted in my seat. Maybe it was time for me to get out of there.

She released a deep breath. “We had a fight and broke up. That was the end of that.”

Before I had a chance to respond, the entrance door rattled and I looked over my shoulder. A muscular blond man came through the door
. His eyes were fixed on Julian and he said, “Hey, babe.”

It looked as if Julian hadn’t wasted any time finding another love interest.
Maybe I was jumping to conclusions, but he’d just called her babe. That didn’t necessarily mean they were dating though. I was being too suspicious of Julian. Maybe that was skewing my opinion of her.

I stood from the chair
. “Thank you for the help.”

Julian pushed to
her feet. She offered a fake smile, trying to be professional. She was probably happy inside knowing that I was on my way out. Now I’d see if she really told Darcy that I’d stopped by.

“Thanks for stopping by. I’ll tell Darcy you are interested in speaking with her.”
She barely looked at me as she spoke.

Yeah, right. We’d see about that. When
I reached the door I glanced back. The man leaned down and kissed Julian on the lips. So my first impression had been correct. I needed to find out this man’s identity. Maybe he had been jealous and done something to Luke. Okay, I was being suspicious of total strangers. I’d been reading too many mystery novels. Now I thought I was a sleuth.

That hadn’t gone as well as I’d hoped, but honestly
, what had I expected? I hadn’t really been prepared to talk. I wasn’t about to ask her any questions. But it had been odd that she’d immediately told me she wasn’t involved in Luke’s death. That made me think she was having guilt about something. Maybe she was nervous. Then there was the fact that she was already dating someone else. She might have been dating the man before Luke had broken up with her.

I took my time walking home thinking about what had happened and what I’d learned. I went over every clue I had in my mind
, which wasn’t much.

As I strolled down the sidewalk, a couple
gray-haired women watched me from across the street. They scowled at me and I knew that they were fans of Ross. Probably Doreen’s friends. I picked up my pace. The last thing I needed was a confrontation. They’d probably hit me with their pocket books if they had the chance.

As I neared my house I noticed someone was stand
ing on the front porch. A dark-haired woman who appeared to be in her forties waited directly in front of the door. She wore a yellow floral print dress that hit just below her knees with coral-colored flats on her feet.

When I reached the wrought-iron gate, I called out to her. “Hello. May I help you?”

She turned around to face me. “Are you the owner of the inn?”

I walked up the path toward her. “Yes, I am.”

“My name is Charity Clemmons. I saw your sign for the inn. I need a room for a couple of days while I’m in Honeysuckle.”

We didn’t get many visitors in Honeysuckle, but my place was the only one to stay in.
There were no Best Westerns or Holiday Inns. I was thankful for the business.

“Great. I have an available room.” I stepped onto the porch and pulled the key from my pocket.
She followed behind me as I unlocked the door and allowed her in. “I’ll just get your info and then show you the room.”

“Thank you,” she said.

Charity filled out the form I’d printed off from my computer when I’d first started running the inn. It was just a set of basic questions so I’d know more about each of my guests—name, address, type of car, etc. Of course I was curious as to why she was in town. I’d find out as soon as possible because Claire Ann would want to know. Okay, I wanted to know too. After a minute, Charity handed me the paper.

“The room is right upstairs.” I pointed.

Within a couple minutes, she’d settled into her room and I went to the kitchen to make some refreshments. I couldn’t wait for her to come downstairs so that I could ask questions. Maybe I’d have better luck with Charity Clemmons than I’d had with Julian.

I’d just set out lemonade and various kinds of cookies when I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. This was my chance to find out why Charity was in Honeysuckle. I’d start out slowly in my questioning so as not to seem rude or scare her silent. Bribery with the fresh chocolate-chip cookies couldn’t hurt either. I straightened my shirt and smoothed down my hair as I waited for her to approach. No need to look a wreck in front of guests.

The footsteps came down the stairs and through the living room. But instead of getting closer to the
kitchen, they moved farther away. Then the click of the front door echoed across the house. She had left before I had a chance to ask any questions.

I rushed out of the kitchen, down the hall, and to the front door. I almost slid into the door
, but stopped short and pulled up the little shade on the glass window. Charity was standing on the sidewalk in front of the house. But it was who she was talking to that made my skin crawl. Doreen Perkins stood in front of Charity. Doreen waved her arms through the air as she spoke.

This could not end well.
Did Charity know Doreen? By the way they talked it looked as if they did, but I could be imagining things. Now there was no way that I could allow Charity to stay at the inn. Not if Doreen was coming by to visit.

I watched the women and wondered what they were discussing. Part of the conversation had to involve me. There was no way Doreen could stand in front of Honeysuckle Inn without broaching the topic of her evil ex-daughter-in-law.

The women looked my way and I was frozen. It was too late to duck. They’d obviously seen me watching them. The awkward situation had just turned to beyond embarrassing. There was no point in acting like I hadn’t seen them now.

The wom
en looked away from me. They hadn’t acknowledged me even though I knew they were aware of my presence. Now I would have to wait to see what they did next. My wait wasn’t long because Doreen glanced my way. From my view inside the house, I could see the little lines in the corners of her mouth as she scowled. Doreen turned and stomped down the sidewalk away from the house and Charity. Could I really get away without another confrontation with her?

Charity headed for my front door. It looked as if I was about to find out if they’d talked about me.

I slid away from the door and rushed back into the kitchen. After grabbing a towel, I wiped down the counter and attempted to act nonchalant. As if she didn’t know I had been at the door watching them. I intended to act as if I’d just casually been walking by and not watching every move they made.

The front door clicked open and then shut. Charity’s shoes sounded against the hardwood floor as she made her way across the room.

“Hello? Ms. Pendleton?” she called out.

“I’m in the kitchen.” Sweetness dripped from my words.

A couple seconds later Charity appeared in the doorway. “There you are.”

“Would you like refreshments? I have cookies and lemonade. There’s also fresh sweet tea too.”
I gestured.

“Do you have unsweetened?” she asked.

I was sure that I looked at her as if she’d just asked if I was an alien. “Unsweetened? Sorry, no.”

“Lemonade is fine. Thank you.” She crossed the floor and sat on the stool next to the island counter.

I poured her a glass and placed it in front of her. “Here’s a cookie too. I made them myself.”

She eyed the cookie and then said, “Thanks.” After taking a bite and swallowing, she continued, “I suppose you saw me talking with Doreen Perkins.”

I nodded. “Yes, I just happened to pass by the door.” I was sticking to my story. I poured myself a glass of lemonade.

“I guess you’re wondering how I know Doreen.” She took a sip of lemonade. “This is good stuff.”

“Thanks. Yes, the thought had crossed my mind,” I said and then took a drink from my glass.

Charity placed her glass on the counter. “Doreen hired me as her son’s attorney.”

I spewed lemonade across the counter. Thank goodness it didn’t land on her face. I grabbed a towel.

“I am aware now that you are Ross’ ex-wife. Doreen didn’t tell me this before I got to town.”

“That surprises me. I thought it would have been one of the first things she told you. As I’m sure you are aware now, I am not one of her favorite people.”

“She wanted me to leave, but you are the only
accommodations in town. I hoped it’s not a problem.”

This was a tricky question. I needed the money that renting a room would provide, but Ross had also threatened to implicate me
in the murder. Having his lawyer around probably wasn’t a good idea. But where else would she stay?

“Can you stay with Doreen?” I asked.

Charity shook her head. “She has a cat and I’m allergic. If it’s a problem, I can make the drive to the next town and stay there.”

Charity seemed like a nice woman and she’d probably unwillingly gotten dragged into this. I didn’t have the heart to tell her no.

“That won’t be necessary. You can stay here.”

She nibbled on the cookie and then said, “Thanks.”

I would probably regret this. “There is one other thing. Ross has said he would implicate me in the crime.”

Charity
stared for a moment. “You were with him when he discovered the body?”

“No. Is that what he told you? I came by after he found the body and then he showed me. I immediately got the police.”

She nodded. “I see. Well, I will talk with him about this.” Charity finished the lemonade. “If you’ll excuse me, I have some business to take care of.”

“Of course. Let me know
if you need anything.” I forced a smile.

“I certainly will,” she said from over her shoulder as she walked out of the room.