Nevermore had curled up next to me on the couch for warmth. The chilly fall day had turned into a glacial winter-like night. As the sun had dropped from the sky, a drizzly fog crept on shore, smothering the town with its frosty droplets.
I'd wisely decided to buy some apple cider on my way home, so I could brew up a spicy hot cider for couch sipping. My nose hovered in the warm, clove filled steam long enough that I could taste the spice without even sipping the cider. The scent was strong enough to make my nose tickle.
I picked up my book just as my phone rang. It was my mom. I'd been too busy to call her this week, so I was probably in for a guilt inducing lecture.
"Hey, Mom, sorry I didn't call—"
"Do you remember Kaitlyn Beckman? You used to take dance classes together when you were little."
"Yes, I remember Kaitlyn. I went to two of her slumber parties. She always cried when she lost a game. In fact, she cried a lot, about everything. Why are we discussing Kaitlyn Beckman?"
Mom sighed dramatically. "She's engaged."
"Wow, with that sad sounding sigh, I thought you were going to tell me something terrible happened to her." I knew of course that the sad sigh was because yet another one of my neighborhood friends was getting married before me.
"No, nothing terrible at all. I ran into her mother at the grocery store, and she couldn't wait to relay all the wonderful news. Apparently, he's a lawyer who is joining a big firm, and they just put a down payment on a sprawling ranch house in California."
"That's very nice, Mom, but I'm not entirely sure what I'm supposed to do with that information."
Mom huffed loudly. "Nothing, I just thought it was interesting. Another one of your school chums is getting married."
"We weren't really chums. We were just sort of people who hung out in the same circle. Like I said, lots of crying. How's Dad?" We needed a topic switch.
"He's fine but this cold weather is starting to make his knees hurt. I told him all those years on the golf course had ruined the cartilage in his knees. Are you keeping warm?"
I chuckled. "Nope, I wore my bikini top to work this morning just for the heck of it. And right this minute, I'm standing barefoot on the front porch."
"Such a funny girl," she said wryly. "Now, you're still coming home for Thanksgiving, right?"
I dreaded even thinking about being anywhere near an airport during the holidays, but I'd made the promise back in summer. I believe it was a topic switch back then too because the first half of the call had been about Olivia, my old friend from school, getting married to a podiatrist.
"I'll be there. I'm looking forward to seeing you guys, but James isn't sure he can get all those days off."
A long disappointed grumble followed. "It would be nice if he could make the effort. He hasn't met the family yet."
Yes, all part of my plan, I thought with a grin. "Mom, he's the lead detective for three towns. He plays a pretty important role in the safety and security of this area. He's going to try and get it off, but no promises on that yet. You'll just have to be satisfied with boring old me."
She clucked her tongue. My mom had a plethora of sound effects for phone calls so there could be no misreading her feelings about things. I missed her next Mom-ish comment when the conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. The unexpected knock, along with my startled reaction, sent Nevermore off the couch and down the hall to my bedroom.
"Mom, I've got to go. Someone is at the door." I got up from the couch.
"At this hour? Don't open the door to any strangers, not at this hour. Not at any hour. Should I tell your dad?"
I couldn't stop the chuckle. "I think he might be a bit too far away to do anything about a stranger showing up at my door. I hopped up on my toes and peeked through the peep hole. "Besides, it's not a stranger. It's my neighbor, Dash."
"Oh, it's Dash." Her voice got a little fluttery. She, like most women who met Dashwood Vanhouten, was instantly smitten, even though she knew the entire scandalous story of Dash betraying his best friend, James, by having an affair with his wife. Still, Mom always sounded a little more frivolous whenever I brought up my remarkably handsome neighbor.
"I'll talk to you later, Mom." I hung up and opened the door.
Dash was holding a piece of mail. "This ended up in my mailbox." He took a deep whiff. "Why, dear neighbor, have you been baking?" he asked with his incredible smile.
"Only if you count stirring some mulling spices into cider, baking. Come on in. There's enough for one more cup and it's still warm."
I headed into the kitchen. Dash pointed toward the tarp hanging over Kingston's cage. "I guess this is how you get the guy to sleep at night. I don't think I've ever been over here this late."
He reached the kitchen. I handed him a cup of cider. He took a second to warm both his hands around the cup.
"That cold snap sure came in fast," he said. "Hmm, delicious. Hits the spot perfectly."
We headed out to the living room. I sat on the couch and picked my cider up, while Dash sat on the chair adjacent to the couch.
"Sorry for coming here so late, and it wasn't really just about the mail." He took another sip and lowered the cup. "Kate stopped by earlier this evening. She was pretty upset."
I scrunched my face. "About the new boyfriend? I'm sure it was a big shock to her."
"Yeah, you know Kate. She meets a man, goes on one or two dates and she's picking out wedding china. I think that's the main reason she can't seem to hold on to the right guy. She's just too pushy. I don't think she was dating this guy for more than a week or two. He only just arrived in town a month ago, or at least that was what he told her. Turns out he was quite the jerk."
I leaned forward to place my cup on the table. "I guess the necklace clued her in to the whole scandalous affair."
Dash looked puzzled. "She didn't mention a necklace, however she did show me a picture of the guy walking along the wharf with another woman. Someone slipped it under the door at Mod Frock. Lionel and the woman were holding hands."
I sat up straight. "Did you see the picture? Has she shown it to the police? It could very well have to do with the killer."
"I don't think she's shown it to the police yet. She had it crumpled up in her purse. I only glanced at it, but the woman was wearing big, round sunglasses. It looked like she had streaks in her dark hair."
"The woman on the boat," I said with a clap, then shook my head. "I've really got to found out what that woman's name is. It's not very investigative of me to keep referring to her as the woman on the boat. It lacks a certain finesse." I sucked in an enthusiastic breath. "Wait, you've probably seen her boat down in the marina. It's called Funtasy."
Dash chuckled at the name. "I would definitely remember that one, only I've been working over in Mayfield helping to restore a 1900 steam yacht my client bought at an auction. It's been murder finding parts for it. Speaking of murder—" He smiled. "Like how I did that? Clever, considering I've been up since four in the morning."
"You get a big gold star for the day," I said. "Now what about murder? You know it's my favorite topic. Did Kate have any suspicions about who might have killed Lionel?" With any luck, I'd get some insider information directly from Kate through one middleman. And all for the price of one cup of cider.
"Actually, she's worried that she might be a suspect. She said she got a voicemail from Detective Briggs asking if she could come to the station tomorrow to answer some questions about Lionel Dexter."
I bit my lip, feeling a moment of Kate's angst. "Is she freaking out?"
"That'd be a good way to put it. I told her she had nothing to worry about, unless she was the killer."
My eyes rounded. "You didn't say the last part, did you?"
"Why yes, yes I did because I'm an imbecile. I thought a little humor would help, but it was definitely not what she needed to hear. She sobbed for a good five minutes."
I tried to visualize Kate sobbing, but I just couldn't get an image. She wasn't exactly the sobbing type. She was tough, almost strident in everything she did, but it seemed she had a soft, vulnerable side too.
"I'm sure James will just ask her what her relationship was with Lionel and when she saw him last." My hands flew to my mouth. "I nearly forgot. Lionel's neighbors, who really aren't his neighbors." I waved my hand. "Another part of the story but anyhow, the neighbors told James there was a red Honda in Lionel's driveway the night he died."
"Kate didn't mention she went to see him. She told me she confronted him about the picture, but stupidly, I didn't put two and two together. That's not going to help her."
"But the car was gone long before midnight, when the gunshot was heard. So unless she drove back later, it still doesn't put her at the crime scene at the time of the murder."
Dash grinned. "Look at you, sounding all official."
I brushed some invisible dust off my shoulder. "Thank you, I've been working on my investigator's vernacular. Except that whole 'woman on the boat' thing. I've got to find out her name," I said more to myself than to Dash.
Dash drained his cup and stood up to carry it to the sink. "I need to get to bed. I can barely see straight, and the alarm is going off at four again."
I got up to walk him to the door. "I can't imagine climbing out of bed while it's still dark and heading out into the pea soup fog on the coast to start my day."
"That's where my gigantic thermos of scorching hot coffee comes into play." He stopped at the door. "Good night and I hope you catch the killer soon."
"Ten-four. Wait, is that right? Doesn't matter. Good night, Dash."