twenty-one

I talked to Pluckie a lot on the way to our B&B. I intended to keep my mind away from Justin and the murder investigation … and those kisses. As it turned out, I did discuss them a bit with my alert dog, who sat in her harness in the seat beside me staring and panting a little, as if she was eager to contribute to the conversation.

All I got from her, though, was her concern for my increasingly bad mood, which I definitely would not take out on her.

Were there superstitions about how things you didn’t want to think about took up every square centimeter of your brain? If so, were there any cures—touching a steering wheel or talking to your dog or whatever?

Guess I was tired as well as frustrated. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be having such weird thoughts.

I parked in the lot beside the B&B and let Pluckie take her time as we headed toward the building. This would be her last outing for the night and I didn’t want to rush her.

She soon took care of business, and I led her around to the front so we could enter under the horseshoe. Would that insert some good luck into my life? Who knew?

I used the key I’d been given to enter the building. Inside, the lobby was still lit although more dimly than if it had been earlier in the evening. I headed for the stairway.

“Rory? Are you okay?”

Startled, I turned right, toward the sound of the voice, and saw Gemma standing at the open door to the room where the inn’s owner Serina often relaxed and watched TV. Gemma wore a comfortable-looking print shirt dress and a large frown.

“I’m fine—or at least I was. What are you doing down here?”

“Waiting for you. I tried knocking on your door and you didn’t answer, and you didn’t respond to your phone, either. I was worried.” She came into the lobby, followed by Stuart. That was interesting. On the other hand, he was staying here, too, so maybe it would be natural for her to ask a friend to keep her company while she fretted about something.

I pulled my phone from my pocket. It wasn’t turned on, which was unusual for me, but when I pushed the button I realized it was out of power. I mustn’t have gotten it fully charged last night. Not a wise move. What if I’d really needed to call someone?

Like I did now, in fact. I promised Justin I’d let him know when I got here.

The charger was in my room so I could call him when I plugged the phone in. I considered asking Gemma to join me so I could have her say good night to Justin, too—and reassure him he was right to try to clear her from suspicion and assume she was innocent. But that could wait for another time.

Preferably when Stuart wasn’t standing beside her, an arm comfortingly over her shoulders. He was clad in a yellow knit shirt and long khaki shorts. Maybe he, too, would be proven innocent. Maybe not.

But whichever, it wasn’t going to happen that night. I approached and gave Gemma a hug of my own. “It’s sweet of you to be concerned,” I said. I whispered into her ear, “I had my car along so I wasn’t … walking.” As she had been on that fateful night.

She pulled back and smiled at me. “That’s a good thing. Anyhow, I’m glad you’re okay. Did you hear, by the way, that the town is going to hold a memorial for Lou?”

“No, I didn’t.” Did Justin know? If so, had he purposely avoided telling me? Or had he simply not thought I’d be interested in attending? “When and where?” I asked.

“They’re still deciding,” Stuart said. “Probably this weekend, though.”

“Sounds like a nice gesture,” I said without really stating an opinion. I wasn’t sure I had one at that moment. I was too exhausted to decide if I liked the idea. “I’m going to bed.”

“Me too,” Gemma said.

“That’s all of us,” Stuart added. The editor did look tired. His light brown eyes drooped beneath his thick blond brows.

Of course, I’d no doubt he’d perk up if Gemma suggested that they not go to bed alone. Maybe she already had, but I wasn’t about to ask.

“Including Pluckie,” I said, bending to pick up my dog. “Good night, all.” Hearing the others behind us, we headed up to our room.

I plugged my phone in and called Justin immediately. I noted from numbers on the screen that he’d apparently tried calling me before.

He answered quickly. “Rory, are you okay?”

I explained that my phone had been out of juice, and I was fine.

“Good.”

I asked if he’d heard about the probable upcoming memorial for the deputy mayor. “I just learned about it,” he said. “I checked my email after you left. I assume I can’t talk you out of going.”

“Good assumption.” I didn’t try to hide the smile from my tone. He was learning that I didn’t take orders well, even if they were meant to be helpful.

“I’ll see you in the morning at the Lucky Dog,” Justin said after a few seconds. “I’ll be checking out some things in town and can stop in. Okay?”

“Fine.” I had a feeling that the things he was going to check out in town involved mostly me. Was he getting overly interested, overly protective?

Maybe so, but I still had a smile on my face when Pluckie and I settled into bed twenty minutes later.

Justin did, in fact, show up at the Lucky Dog Boutique fairly early the next morning. Jeri and I had just opened and already had a few customers checking out decorative collars and superstition-related amulets when I happened to look toward the entrance.

There he was, Destiny’s police chief, his posture perfect, his wide shoulders filling the doorway.

Pluckie saw him too. She started to pull at her leash, which was attached to one of the counters. When I glanced at her, she seemed to be smiling.

I knew Justin left Killer at home while he went to work, but he also had a dog walker stop in mid-afternoon to take his dog for a walk and to play with him.

My customers, a senior couple, were engaged in a debate about which collar to buy the little Yorkie they’d brought along who sat in the woman’s purse, so I excused myself and went over to greet Justin.

“All okay here?” he asked.

“All’s fine here. And far as I know it’s fine next door at the Broken Mirror too. Gemma, Stuart, and I walked here together after breakfast and I waited a few minutes while they opened up.”

We’d talked about the pending memorial for Lou. We’d also discussed that Stuart needed to return to New York within the next week or so to check in with his publishing house. He seemed inclined to return here as soon as he could, but that remained uncertain.

I didn’t mention any of that to Justin, though. I was much too glad that he’d done as promised and stopped in.

He didn’t stay long, though, which wasn’t a surprise.

“Hope you catch Lou’s killer today,” I whispered to him with a smile as I saw him on his way.

“I could always stop next door to do that,” he said, but since he, too, was smiling I felt somewhat relieved to think that was meant to be a joke.

He looked over my shoulder and bent down to kiss me quickly on the lips. And then he was gone.

Which I found myself regretting sorely about an hour later.

It had been a while since I’d had Pluckie out for a walk, and Millie had just arrived at the store. She and Jeri planned to go out for one of their coffee outings, an event I encouraged to keep them happy.

Martha hadn’t come downstairs yet that day, but I’d gone up briefly to see her and she was doing well.

I told my assistants that Pluckie and I would be back in a few minutes, and they could leave on our return. I unhooked my sweet dog’s leash from the counter, greeted some customers whom I left to Jeri and Millie to help, and headed out with Pluckie.

The sidewalk, as always, was filled with tourists on this Friday morning. I joined them, telling a few randomly the town’s edict that they had to be careful as they walked. “Step on a crack, break your mother’s back.” That old saying was taken seriously here in Destiny, even though I’d never heard of any mother’s back being injured. My own mom had passed away a long time ago, so at least I didn’t have to worry about her.

Most of the strangers I mentioned it to smiled and made a point of saying how fun it was to visit Destiny. A couple appeared shocked, and I wondered how they ultimately would enjoy their trip here if they really believed in this superstition.

Someone, probably one of the shop owners, had apparently seeded the sidewalk with a few heads-up pennies that morning, so I had the fun of describing the good luck that would bring to those who found them: “Find a penny, pick it up, and all the day you’ll have good luck.” I saw no buttons, though, so I didn’t have the opportunity to mention that finding one also portended good luck.

I didn’t spend much time on greeting the tourists, though. I started walking with Pluckie toward the Broken Mirror Bookstore.

And saw Frank Shorester stride through the front door.

Some of the nearby visitors started asking me questions about shops and superstitions, since I’d already made myself appear to be knowledgeable. I answered a couple briefly, but started gently bulldozing my way with Pluckie toward the neighboring shop.

What was Frank doing there? Was he going to be nice or nasty to Gemma?

Was he going to accuse her directly of murder, as he apparently was now suggesting to the cops?

I doubted he had gone in there to admit he was the killer—but could I somehow get him to admit it anyway?

Maybe I was worrying too much since he’d already been there so often. That was before his most recent conversation with Detective Choye, though. Was he going to do something to make Gemma appear more dangerous—like a murderer—now that he’d made his allegations to the cops? Was he going to attack her now and allege self-defense?

Just in case, I pulled my phone from my pocket and called Justin, who’d only left this area an hour or so ago.

“Something wrong, Rory?” he asked after saying hello.

I’d stopped right outside the door into the bookstore and peered in. “Probably not, but—”

“But? What’s up?”

I told him. “There are customers in there, but I don’t see Frank or Gemma through the window. Or even Stuart. Everything is probably fine, but—” There was that word again.

“You’re most likely right,” Justin said. “But just in case, wait outside for now. I’ll get someone over there to check things out in just a few minutes.”

“Don’t bother,” I said. “I’m sure I’m overreacting. I’m still looking through the window and don’t even see anyone frowning.”

“That’s what I’m figuring, but wait out there anyway.”

We hung up, and then I stared for a second at my phone.

Everything was fine. And I still wasn’t overly excited about following Justin’s orders.

“Let’s go in,” I told Pluckie. And then I opened the door.