Pumpkins in Paradise (Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mystery Book 1) (8 page)

After school, Tj dropped the girls at dance class, then decided to drop in on Melanie. If Zachary could be friends with Jeff without her knowing anything about it, then maybe he was also friends with Melanie. After all, Jenna had said that Melanie bought the only takeout orders of clam chowder on the night Zachary died.

Melanie lived in a modest two-story house on Oak Avenue. Overgrown bushes along the front of the chain-link fence provided a privacy shield from the busy street
. The front lawn was neatly trimmed but littered with abandoned bicycles, skates, dolls, and various pieces of sporting equipment. Tj hurried through the rain, carefully picking her way through the toy minefield, and climbed the three freshly painted steps to the covered front porch. The sound of children laughing and calling out to each other could be heard through the partially open windows on the second floor.

“Yeah?
” A teenage boy with shaggy black hair and a silver nose ring opened the door in response to Tj’s knock.

“Hi Troy
. I’m here to see your mom.” Tj smiled at the boy who was dressed only in boxer shorts and white gym socks.

“Mom,” the boy yelled,
then walked away, leaving the door open but not inviting her in.

“Yeah?” someone called from upstairs.

“Door.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Tj could hear something crash from overhead as she waited. A dog barked, and a door slammed from somewhere at the back of the house. And she thought her life was hectic. Tj knew that Melanie’s husband had run off with his secretary the previous summer, leaving her with their six kids. The gossip line had been abuzz as friends and neighbors speculated about how she was going to make it on her own and whether the kids would be shuffled off to various relatives if the poor woman was unable to cope.

“Hi.
” An adorable little girl with a head of blond ringlets and deep blue eyes came to the door. “Mom’s fixing the toilet. Someone—not me—flushed one of Holly’s diapers and water leaked all over the floor. My names Delilah. What’s yours?”

“Coach Jensen.
” Tj smiled at the adorable little girl with the Strawberry Shortcake T-shirt, who, she suspected, was indeed the one who had flushed the diaper down the toilet.

“I’m four and a third
. How old are you?”

Tj thought about it.
“Twenty-six and a half.”

“Delilah, can you let out the dog?
” someone who sounded like her mom called down from upstairs.

“Okay,” she called back
. “I gotta go.” She turned and trotted toward the back of the house, where Tj had heard the dog barking.

A tired-looking, middle-aged woman with bags under her eyes and a diaper tossed over her shoulder came to the door to greet her
. “Hey, Tj. Come on in. I’m sorry Troy left you standing on the porch. His manners vanished the minute he hit puberty. Can I get you something to drink?”

“No thanks.
” Tj followed Melanie through the spotlessly clean if somewhat cluttered home as she led her down a hall toward the family room at the back of the house. As she passed the kitchen, she saw a small child, no more than two, sitting alone in a bright yellow high chair.

“
Becka,” the woman called.

“Yeah, Mom?”

“I have company. Haley’s in the tub. Can you get her dressed?”

“Sure, okay,”
Becka called back.

“And Holly’s in the high chair
. Clean her up and let her play in her room.”

“Okay.”

“Sorry about the commotion. It’s been one thing after another today. I decided to let the older kids stay home, with the late start and all, but to be honest, I’ve been regretting that decision all day.”

“I can see you’re busy.
” Tj hesitated, then sat down on the sofa she wasn’t sure how to proceed. “I won’t keep you long. It’s just that…I guess you heard about Zachary Collins.”

“Yes,” Melanie confirmed
. “I was sorry to hear he passed on.”

“This is going to sound weird, but I was wondering if the two of you were friends.”

“Friends? No. We spoke a time or two on the phone, but I wouldn’t call us friends.”

“You spoke on the phone?”

“He’d call from time to time to talk to Glen.” Melanie was Glen Keller’s secretary.

“Did Glen know Zachary?”

“Sure. Glen managed his estate.”

“Managed his estate?” Tj asked.

Melanie hesitated. “I’m not sure I should be telling you this, but seeing as you were Zachary’s friend and the man is dead now, I don’t see that it can hurt.” Melanie picked up a large gray cat that had jumped onto the couch and settled it into her lap. “Mr. Collins’s grandfather put Zachary’s inheritance in a trust that was managed by Glen’s grandfather, who founded the law firm. For some reason, Zachary never took control of the estate. I don’t claim to have the entire history, but it seems Zachary’s father was afraid his wild, irresponsible son was going to drink and gamble away the entire Collins fortune, so he had the trust documents changed so that Zachary had to be thirty, rather than the original twenty-one his grandfather had stipulated when he set up the trust, to gain full control of his assets.”

“He could do that?
”

Melanie shrugged. “Yeah, I guess
. I’m pretty sure Zachary’s dad controlled the trust until he died, when Zachary was in his early twenties. Anyway, by the time Zachary finally met the age requirement, he was already sequestered in his big old house. When Glen inherited the law firm, he took over as estate administrator.”

“Did Glen and Zachary meet often?” Tj asked.

“Not really. Mr. Collins’s needs were few, and he didn’t seem to care much about the day-to-day management decisions regarding the estate.”

“Is it possible Glen and Zachary had a dinner meeting on Friday?”

“I suppose it’s possible. Glen asked me to pick up two servings of clam chowder when I went to The Antiquery to get my own order. He left shortly after, and I assumed he was taking the soup home to Marjorie, but I didn’t ask.” Melanie stopped to think before continuing. “I overheard Glen talking to the sheriff and he didn’t mention a dinner meeting, although Glen isn’t the type to volunteer information if he isn’t asked. Guess you can ask Glen, although I happen to know he’s in court today.”

“Do you know if he’ll be in the office tomorrow?”

“I’m not sure. I guess it depends how the trial goes today.”

“I didn’t realize Glen was a trial attorney.
” As far as Tj knew, he was more of a paper pusher than a Perry Mason.

“He’s not
. At least not anymore. He worked in a public defender’s office before moving back to Serenity to take over the law firm. The case he’s working on now is really just a favor for Lottie Johnson. I guess you heard, her son Devon was arrested in that bank robbery in Indulgence a while back.”

“I heard
. I have to admit, I was surprised. I didn’t have him in any of my classes, but he always seemed like such a nice kid.”

“From what I’ve been told, he fell in with a bad crowd after his dad died in that automobile accident
. He admitted to being involved in a few minor incidents over the past few years, but he swears he had no idea his friends were going to rob the bank. He said they’d been drinking heavily, but when his buddies mentioned they were going to stop off at the bank to get some money, he thought they were making a legal withdrawal. It was only after they returned to the car that he found out what they’d done. Anyway, Lottie didn’t like the public defender assigned to the case, but she couldn’t afford to hire an attorney, so Glen offered to take the case pro bono.”

“That was nice of him.”

“He does quite a bit of that type of thing. He’s a pretty good guy to work for.”

A phone ra
ng, and Melanie set the cat on the floor, picking a stray cat hair from her tan sweater as she started to get up to answer it.

“I got it,” someone called from upstairs.

“I appreciate your sharing this with me.” Tj shifted in her seat as she prepared to get up. “Maybe I’ll stop by the office tomorrow, if I get the chance.”

“If he doesn’t have court, he should be in by eight thirty, although his schedule has been a bit unreliable lately
. If I were you, I’d call first, just to be sure.”

A girl of around ten with long braids walked into the room carrying the toddler Tj had seen in the high chair in one arm and holding the hand of an identical-looking little girl in the other
. “Tina called. She said she’d be working late again.”

“
Thanks, honey. I’ll see if I can find a sitter for tonight.” Melanie sighed. “Since my ex decided he needed to take off with his playmate to ‘find himself,’ it’s been tough financially, so I’ve started working a few nights a week at the diner. It’s not a lot of money, but the tips really help and the hours don’t interfere with my job at the law firm. Normally my sister Tina watches the kids, but every now and then she has to work late and I find myself scrambling for a sitter.”

Tj didn’t know how she did it; two jobs and six kids.

“I can see you’re busy so I’ll let you go.” Tj stood up. “Thanks for your time, and please bring the kids by the Lakeside Bar and Grill for dinner on me. I’ll leave a gift voucher at the front desk under your name.”

“That’s very nice of you
. I could really use a night out, but is it okay if I bring a couple of friends and get a sitter for the kids?”

“More than okay.
” Tj understood completely. She hadn’t had an adult night on the town since her sisters had come to live with her. Most Friday nights, she and Jenna and the four girls went to a movie and maybe shared a pizza at Rob’s or burgers at the Burger Barn. Not that Tj didn’t enjoy spending time with her sisters; but the thought of Nikki dancing the night away at Fuze made Tj realize that she seriously needed to add some balance to her life.

Tj thought about Tyler
. He was an idiot, but she had to admit he was also fun and spontaneous and about as uncomplicated as they came. Tj guessed he was having a good time with Whitney now, a thought that left her feeling oddly jealous.

As she pulled into the parking lot of the dance studio and got in line with the other parents waiting to pick up their little ballerinas, she realized that spontaneous and uncomplicated were things of the past
. Sure, she and Tyler had fun, but as she watched Gracie skip toward the car in her yellow raincoat and rubber boots, making certain to plop into every puddle along the way, she realized she’d trade uncomplicated for complicated any day of the week.

Tj dropped the girls at the house before walking over to the Grill to leave the gift voucher for Melanie before she got busy and forgot to do so
. The rain that had been pounding the area all day finally stopped and the dark clouds that covered the sky began to part.

The Lakeside Bar and Grill was perched just behind the mile-long white sand beach for which Maggie’s Hideaway was famous
. During the summer guests of all ages played football and tossed Frisbees on the wide strip of sand that separated the deck of the Grill from the crystal-clear water of Paradise Lake. Today, however, the beach was deserted. The large wooden tables with colorful umbrellas that dotted the deck in the warmer months had all been moved into storage in preparation for the snow which, everyone knew, was just around the corner.

Tj filled out the voucher,
then waved to Maude, Millie, Abe, and Andy, who were sharing hot turkey sandwiches with creamy mashed potatoes near a lake-view table. They smiled in greeting and called her over.

“Enjoying our fine weather?” Tj teased
. She noticed that both sisters wore the necklaces she’d commented about the last time she’d seen them. She’d need to take another look to be absolutely certain, but she was pretty sure the necklaces matched Zachary’s exactly. She’d thought she’d known Zachary as well as anyone, but with all the new information about Jeff and Glen, she was beginning to wonder if she’d known him at all.

“Actually, yes.
” Millie’s eyes twinkled with delight. “The storm, coupled with your delightful cabin and wood fire, has provided a very cozy setting.”

“Started a bridge tournament that lasted most of the day,” Abe, a man of around seventy with white hair and a stick-thin frame, added
. “My Millie’s a bold player. Haven’t had such a wonderful time in ages.”

My Millie
?

“We were just making plans with the boys to have room service bring wine and dessert to our cabin a bit later.
” Millie blushed, turning her face the color of her cherry-red turtleneck sweater.

“I’ll let room service know,” Tj promised
. “And dessert is on the house. I noticed there was cheesecake from my friend Jenna’s restaurant in the kitchen when I walked through. Jenna makes the best cheesecake around.”

“Oh, I love cheesecake.
” Maude beamed. “Especially with a hearty cabernet.”

“Pick out your wine and the type of cheesecake you’d like delivered and let Sally know.
” Tj nodded toward the waitress, who was reading a magazine at the front counter. “She’ll be sure to have someone bring it out to you at whatever time you request.”

“Thank you so much dear,” Andy, an exact replica of his brother only with brown rather than green eyes, replied
. “Everyone on your staff has been so friendly and helpful. We could probably use some more candles, if it’s not too much trouble. We used most of what we had last night while the power was out.”

“I’ll have someone bring some by,” Tj promised
. “How’s the firewood holding out?”

“We could probably use some more,” decided Abe, who was eagerly mopping up the last of his gravy with a homemade biscuit
. “You never know when the power will go out again.”

“It must be beautiful here when it snows,” Maude commented
. “Millie and I have been talking about the ice skating you mentioned. At first the idea didn’t appeal at all, but the more we talked about it, the more we realized how romantic it sounded. We’re thinking about coming back this winter. Perhaps in January or February. The boys said they’d teach us how to ski.”

“Winter Carnival usually tak
es place in February,” Tj informed them. “It’s worth attending if you can work it out. We have dogsled races, ice-skating competitions, ski and snowboard exhibitions, even ice sculpting and snowman contests.”

“Ice fishing?
” Andy asked. “I’ve been itching to try it ever since you mentioned it yesterday.”

“Yeah, and snowmobile races too
. There are pamphlets in the lobby if you’re considering it. We usually book up, so you might want to make your reservations early.”

“We’ll do that,” Andy promised.

Tj talked to the foursome a bit longer, then wandered across the room to the four-top in the corner to say hi to Kyle and Carmen, who had wandered in while they were talking. Based on the way the pair was looking into one another’s eyes as they laughed about something one of them had said, it looked like Tj would have to look elsewhere for a date for the ball. Too bad. Kyle seemed perfect for her. Good looking, sense of humor, mystery reader and, most of all, a dog lover. Tj wasn’t looking for anything serious at this point in her life, but she really wanted a date for the ball and she really wanted it to be someone who was totally hot. Someone, Tj had to admit, if only to herself, who would make Tyler as jealous as Whitney was making her.

“How’s everything going?” Tj asked the pair.

“Great. Pull up a seat,” Kyle invited. “Coffee?”

“No thanks
. I just wanted to say hi. I was wondering how the crate was working out.”

“Perfect,” Carmen replied
. “And the stuffed doggy mommy with the real heartbeat you included has been a godsend. Newton curls up with it and goes right to sleep after he’s had his bottle of puppy formula.”

“He’s really a cutie
. I love Echo, but even though I got him when he was only three months old, he already weighed over twenty pounds. I missed out on the fall-asleep-in-your-lap phase.”

“You could always get another puppy,” Carmen suggested
. “My Grandma Bell used to love kittens, so every time her youngest cat got past the playful age, she’d just get another. She ended up with eleven cats by the time she passed away a few years ago.”

“Eleven sounds like a bit much, but sometimes I think about it, although the house is bursting at the seams already
. Besides, cute as they are, puppies take a lot of time, something I don’t really have in abundance at this point in my life.”

“Tell me about it,” Carmen agreed
. “I’m really enjoying Newton, but with my schedule at the university I worry about having enough time for him. If I get this grant, things are going to get even busier.”

“I was going to ask you how your interview went.”

“I haven’t had it yet. The donor was supposed to contact me after I arrived, but I haven’t heard a thing.”

“Probably the storm,” Tj surmised
. “How about your job interview?” she asked Kyle.

“The same, I’m afraid.
”

“I guess it’s lucky we were stuck here at the same time.
” Carmen smiled at Kyle. “At least we’re keeping each other company.”

“Yeah, lucky.
” Almost too lucky. “What did you say the name of your potential donor was?” she asked Carmen.

“Actually, I’m not really sure
. Apparently the donor wanted to remain anonymous. I think it’s a business or a group rather than a person, though. When my dissertation adviser told me about the potential donor she said
they
wanted to interview me before making a final decision. I guess the whole thing’s a little unconventional, but I figured even if the grant didn’t work out, the entire week was paid for, so what did I have to lose?”

Tj frowned. Kyle had a job interview with a company she’d never heard of and Carmen had an interview with an anonymous donor
. Both had been given prepaid trips to the resort and both trips were for the exact same ten day period. Something was going on. Tj had no idea what, but if she had to bet on it, she’d say the presence of these two people was more than a coincidence.