Unfortunately, despite how fit and fleet of foot our police officers were, the man in the long coat eluded them, and when they came back to the library, they were winded and angry, both of them. “How did he do that?” Officer Watson asked as he bent over his knees to get his air back.
“He must know the town because we lost him down an alley,” Tuck said as he looked at me. “Near your shop, actually.”
I groaned. Of course the man had disappeared near my shop. Of course he had. “I’ll keep an eye out,” I said, trying to keep the weariness out of my voice given how tired Tuck looked. “Did you recognize him?”
“Oh yes, that was Joe Cagle. He works at the gas station at the edge of town. I’m sure you’ve seen him,” Watson said as he stood and smoothed his long, blond hair back from his face. “Fine enough guy. But a little brusque, I guess.”
“Fine enough until he ran from you,” Walter snapped.
“Well, yes, that is suspicious,” Tuck said with a knowing nod. “But Joe doesn’t have a lot of extra cash. He’s always picking up odd jobs to help make ends meet. He won’t be able to stay away from his job long . . . unless he really has something to hide.”
Mindy sat back down at the table. “We’ll need to keep the library closed?”
Tuck nodded. “For a couple of days at least. We’ll let people keep the idea that it was a water leak for as long as we can, though.”
A bell rang from behind the counter. “That’ll be the front door,” Mindy said as she pushed herself to standing again.
“I’ll go with you,” Stephen said, “Just in case.”
I looked at Tuck and then Deputy Watson, thinking one of them might want to be the “just in case” person on duty, but Tuck shook his head. “If we’re looking to keep up the façade of a water leak, it’s not going to work to have one of us answer the door.” He pointed to his uniform.
“Ah, yes.” I leaned against the table. “So this Joe Cagle guy? You think he might have killed Sidney?”
Tuck ran his hand over his head again. “I wouldn’t have thought so, but people don’t usually run unless they have something to hide.”
Just then, the coroner and his assistant came in with a stretcher. “Point the way, Sheriff,” he said.
Tuck led them back to Sidney’s body, and within minutes, they had studied the scene and gotten Sidney up onto the stretcher. “Is there a back door we could use?” Tuck asked.
Mindy walked toward the back of the children’s section with her keys in hand. “I just have to disable the alarm.”
“We parked back here just to keep a lower profile, but I suspect we were noticed when we pulled in,” the coroner’s assistant said.
“Oh no doubt about it,” I added as I looked at the text message on my screen. My dear friend Cate’s message said, “Coroner at the library.” I held the phone up for Tuck to see and then showed it to Mindy.
“Sorry,” Tuck said as he and Mindy followed the stretcher. “I’ll release a statement. Try to keep people away from here for a bit.”
Mindy’s shoulders sagged. A sad day had just gotten harder for her.
As soon as Sidney’s body was loaded, Mindy re-locked and alarmed the back door. Tuck and Watson gave one more look around the area where Sidney’s body had been and then they headed out, too. Then Mindy sent Lucy home with instructions to watch something fun and have some hot tea. Lucy smiled and left quietly.
“She’ll be okay?” Walter asked. “I could drive her home.”
“She’ll be okay. Lucy lives at home with her mom and only works here because she’s fresh out of school and hasn’t found a teaching job yet. I’ll let her mom know she’s on her way.” Mindy took out her phone and began to text.
“Can we help you tidy up and close the library?” I asked as she typed.
She looked up and smiled before nodding. “That would be nice.”
Walter, Stephen, and I all headed in different directions to put unshelved books on the trolleys and straighten the sale tables. No reason Mindy needed to come back to a mess when she was able to reopen.
Whether I was driven by my morbid curiosity or random luck, I can’t say, but I found myself back where Sidney’s body had been. I tried to avoid the exact spot where I’d found him and straightened up the tables on the other side. That’s when I saw it, a piece of paper sticking out from under one of the books.
I reached into the pocket of my sweater and took out the gloves I always carried along since the wind this time of year could be cold coming off the water. After putting one on my right hand, I tugged the paper out. It was the size of a small notepad, maybe three by five inches, and someone had scribbled, “Stiff, Roach, inside back cover.”
I stared for a minute and then realized that the note referred to Mary Roach’s book about cadavers, Stiff. It was one of my favorites by the author. Out of instinct, I did a quick scan of the tables, but I didn’t see a copy of the book amongst the sale books. I moved over to the shelves and looked for the book there, but the space where it normally would have been shelved was empty.
My own investigative skills at an end, I carried the note carefully up to the front with a small stack of books to be shelved under my arm. “Do you have a bag?” I asked Mindy as we reconvened at the counter. “I think I found something.”
She took a look at the note and said, “Oh, that’s from Sidney’s desk and it’s his handwriting, too. He must have been looking for something for someone.” She reached under the counter and pulled out a plastic sleeve like the ones that go around the CDs in audio books.
I slid the paper in. “Perfect. I need to get this to Tuck.”
She nodded and picked up her keys again after giving the library one more glance. “Thanks. It looks good. Now, let’s get out of here.”
Stephen and Walter followed us out the doors to the hallway, which Mindy locked up behind us, and then we all walked out, our arms full of books, into the mid-day sun. The warm light belied the dark shadow that seemed to linger over all of us.
“You okay to get home?” I asked Mindy. “You can walk with me to my house, and I can drive you from there if you want.”
“Nope, we’ve got her,” Stephen said as he slipped an arm through Mindy’s. “I’ll ride with you, or drive your car if you prefer.”
Mindy smiled. “That’s not necessary.” She wanted to sound certain, I could tell, but she definitely didn’t.
“Our pleasure,” Walter added. “I’ll follow along like the chase car. Pretend you’re in the Tour De France.” He chuckled. “You okay, Harvey?”
“Totally fine,” I said. “Texting Mart now.” I held up my phone and wrote my best friend. “Found body at library. Going to the store. You free?”
“Be there with the dogs in ten,” she replied.
Normally, I tried to stay away from my shop on the days I was off because I needed the space but also because I wanted my assistant manager, Marcus, to know I was confident in him. But today, I needed the comfort of my own store, even more than my home, because I wanted to be around people. I hoped Marcus would understand.
As I walked the couple of blocks to the store, I found myself scanning for Joe Cagle. I both hoped I would and prayed I would not see him. My phone was at the ready, but if he was dangerous, I could only hope that being out where other people were walking their dogs and taking a stroll in the warming spring air would keep me safe.
He was nowhere to be seen, though, and when I reached the store, I felt more relief than I’d expected and realized just how nervous I’d been. I opened the door and stepped through and heard the bell sound overhead. When Marcus looked up from the counter where he was ringing up a customer, I smiled in apology, but he gave me a look of complete understanding.
When Rocky, the café manager and Marcus’s girlfriend, came over with a huge vanilla latte, I said, “You already heard?”
“Cate texted. She and Lucas are on their way. Lu’s bringing us all lunch.” She handed me the mug. “Word travels fast.”
I sighed. “It sure does. Guess I better get in touch with Mom and Dad and Stephen and Walter, too.”
“Already done,” Marcus said from behind me. “I used the group text to let everyone know we were gathering here. Pickle and Bear are on their way. Woody and Elle, too.”
I smiled. “I hope Lu is bringing enough food.”
“I think she’s got it covered,” Rocky said with a smile as she looked out the front window. There was Lu’s food truck. She was parking right in front of the store.
“I’ll say.” Suddenly, I realized the bowl of cream of wheat with raisins that I’d had for breakfast was long gone, and I was famished. “Am I terribly rude if I don’t wait?”
“Nope,” Marcus said, “not as long as you cover the counter when you get back so I can get our order.” He smiled at Rocky.
“You know I want some of that mole,” she said with a smile before heading back to the café counter.
I stepped outside and took a minute to actually enjoy the spring day. The planter boxes in front of the shop were bursting with tulips that my friend Elle had planted last fall. They were all shades of red and purple, and the simple joy of them seemed to shake a bit of the darkness off of me.
By the time I was done basking and admiring, Lu had the window of her truck open, and I rushed over, eager to get in line before anyone else so that I could relieve Marcus for a few minutes. And so that I could get my tacos. “Hey Lu,” I said as I looked up at my friend. “You okay?”
She sighed. “I’m fine. Glad to be here.” She paused. “How was Tuck?”
“He looks tired. Is he okay?”
“He’s okay, but election year is always hard. He has to fight twice as hard as anyone else just to keep his job.” She winced. “They say racism is dead.”
I groaned. “I really wish it was.” Tuck was a black man in the South, and despite the wonderful job he did as sheriff, some folks here in this part of the Eastern Shore didn’t like the idea of an African American sheriff. I’d known that, but I hadn’t thought much about how that kind of prejudice might make winning an election hard. “People already campaigning against him.”
Lu nodded. “Not so much against him, but more with the racist stuff about crime rates and black men.”
“Despicable,” I said. I wanted to say more, but I was at a loss. I’d just have to spend the next few months working hard to secure Tuck’s win. I could do that.
“But anyway, we have another murder, I hear.” Lu shook her head. “That poor man.”
“Yeah.” I didn’t know what else I could say. Tuck shared a lot with his wife, but it was his decision how much of an investigation he shared, not mine. “Thanks for coming out today. Could I get two chicken tacos with mole, please?” Lu made the best mole sauce I’d ever had, and I ate as much of it as I could.
“You got it. Figured you all might be my best customers today. Plus, I wanted to be with my friends.” She gave me a wan smile and then served my food.
I could hardly wait until I got to the front counter to eat, but I resisted temptation and made it to the register before I took a bite. Marcus darted right out for his and Rocky’s orders, and I scarfed down a whole taco as I watched a customer wend her way to the counter.
When she arrived, I finished chewing and apologized. “Sorry. Lunch on the go today.”
She smiled and pointed to a corner of her mouth,. “You’ve got a little. . . “
I picked up a napkin and blushed. “Thanks. If you’re hungry, I have to say that Lu makes the best mole in the world.” I pointed toward the front of the store and the truck outside. “Great prices, too.”
“Oh, that does sound good. Mind if I eat and read on your bench outside? It’s just a lovely day,” she asked as I rang up her books, which included a copy of The Cracked Spine, Paige Shelton’s wonderful cozy mystery set in Edinburgh.
“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t,” I said sincerely. “Enjoy.” I handed her the bag and smiled. But as soon as she was a few steps away, I dove into my second taco. I was sure Lu’s food was good cold, but I didn’t want to test the theory today.
As I finished, my best friend and roommate, Mart, arrived with my dogs, Mayhem and Taco. Most days I would have taken them for a walk with me, but this morning, I’d just felt like wandering without the worry of bathroom stops and tangled leashes. I was glad I’d made that call because it would have been a long morning of waiting outside the library if I’d taken them along.
Mart released them, and both pups bounded over. Well, Mayhem, a hound dog, bounded; Taco, the Basset, sort of lumbered. Their affection was similar – all squeals and wiggling butts – and I gave them each a good rub before sending them off to bask in the sunlight on their dog beds in the front window. They gladly obliged after a lap at their water bowl by the counter. Between their cuteness and the food truck outside, we might just have a high sales afternoon.
“You doing alright?” Mart said. “Hard morning?”
“Hard for sure, but yeah, I’m okay. Sadly, I guess I’m getting used to this whole ‘find a body’ thing.” I sighed and slumped against the stool behind me. “Still, Sidney didn’t deserve that.”
“So it was the librarian, then? I’d heard a rumor, but you know how rumors are.” She leaned her elbows on the counter. “Was it awful?”
I thought for a minute. “Well, yes, because he was dead.” I stared at my friend with pretend disgust, but I knew what she really meant. “But no, he honestly looked like he was sleeping.”
“Maybe he went peacefully?” She took a deep breath and looked out the front window. “I better get out there. The line is already getting long.
I followed her gaze and saw that, sure enough, Lu had ten or so customers waiting, including our friends Lucas and Cate. They waved when I caught their eye and pantomimed to ask if I wanted anything. I held up my empty red and white paper bowl to show I’d already eaten, and they laughed.
Within minutes, all our friends were gathered in the café with Lu’s food, and while normally we discouraged outside food, today it felt just fine to have this deliciousness in our space, Rocky and I agreed. When a few customers followed suit, I smiled and waved them on in. “Enjoy,” I said because sometimes gracious hospitality is the antidote to very hard things.
We all huddled up around a bunch of tables pulled together, and Marcus and I took turns getting up to help customers. We talked about the weather and what everyone was doing for the rest of the weekend, and when Tuck arrived, we did our best to not talk about Sidney’s murder. But our best didn’t last long because Tuck needed to talk.
“It’s just so sad. He really only wanted to be left alone to do his job and read. And he was set to retire in a couple of years.” Tuck shook his head. “He just told me that last week when I stopped in.”
“Oh, that is sad,” Elle said. “Who wants to kill a reclusive librarian anyway?”
I sighed. “It doesn’t make much sense at all.” I sat back and looked over the store, letting my eyes naturally scan over the shelves. When they reached the creative nonfiction section, I sat up. “Oh, Tuck, I forgot to give you something.”
I raced over to the counter and took my sweater off the stool to get the note in the CD sleeve. “I found this near where Sidney’s body was. I don’t know if it’s relevant, but Mindy said that was Sidney’s notepaper and handwriting.” I handed him the sleeve.
He studied it for a minute. “You have any sense of what it means?”
I nodded. “It’s a book. One sec.” I went over to the shelf that my eyes had snagged on a few moments before and brought a copy of Stiff over. “This one.”
Tuck took the book from my hands and flipped it over to read the back cover. “It’s about what happens to dead bodies?”
I nodded. “It’s fascinating,” I said with enthusiasm. When I saw my friends’ faces, I added, “It sounds bad, but it’s actually a really fascinating and well-written book.” I wasn’t making headway here, so I stopped trying to explain and thought about how Roach herself must get similar looks all the time.
“Mind if I borrow this? I can buy it if you’d like,” Tuck said.
“Nope, keep it. I’ll get another.” I smiled and said, “When will you know cause of death?”
Tuck sighed again. “Probably this afternoon.”
I nodded and then asked the question I always had, “Anything we can do to help?”
Cate sat forward. “We’ll bring you all dinner tonight, okay?” Lucas and Cate were both excellent cooks, and their gift to most situations was the perfect comfort food, including Lucas’s amazing cupcakes.
Tuck smiled. “That would be great. Thanks. And Lucas, could I buy a dozen cupcakes for the station tomorrow? It’s going to be long days for a bit, and the team could use a little pick-me-up.”
“No, you may not,” Lucas said sternly and then smiled. “I will give them to the department after I bake up a new batch tonight.” He stood. “Thanks for lunch, everyone. Work calls.” Lucas was the director at the local maritime museum.
“See you later, love,” Cate said as she stood and stretched to kiss him on the cheek.
The rest of us also stood and moved the tables back while Elle and my mom cleared up our trash. “Lu’s food always makes things better,” Mom said as she patted me on the back. “Thanks for inviting us to join you.”
My parents had moved to St. Marin’s last summer, and they’d quickly become an integral part of the circle of people I spent time with, which is not something I could have foreseen or would have even wanted a couple of years ago. Now, I didn’t want to go a day without seeing them.
She and Dad lingered while everyone said their goodbyes and headed back to their workplaces and homes, but when Tuck asked to speak to me, Mom and Dad wandered into the bookstore so we could have privacy.
“I need to find Joe Cagle, Harvey. He didn’t come into work as was expected, so now it’s imperative I locate him.” He studied my face. “I didn’t want to announce that with so many people around,” he said in a quieter voice, “but could you let everyone know to let me know if they see him?”
I’d long ago grown used to the way that our sheriff relied on his trusted friends for help with investigations. He simply had to, given how small his budget and, therefore, his staff, was. But he never breeched confidences or put his investigations in peril. He simply relied on us to be his “eyes and ears on the ground,” as they said in those police shows.
“Absolutely. I’ll send the text out right now. They should call your cell?”
“Perfect.” I knew that some people might frown on the sheriff’s methods, so I never questioned his requests, especially when it meant he kept his nose – and his phone – clean. No need to give his election any more trouble.
“Keep an eye out for Joe Cagle from the gas station. Call Tuck’s cell if you see him. Related to this morning. Thanks.” I kept the message short and sweet, and my friends responded with simple thumbs ups on the message. If Joe was in town, one of us would see him soon.
Mayhem and Taco had barely lifted their heads for the last hour, so I figured they’d be good for a bit longer. “Mind if those two stay with you for a bit?” I asked Marcus as I walked across the store to meet Mom and Dad.
“Well, they are a lot of trouble,” Marcus quipped with a smile.
I laughed. “Thanks,” I said and turned to my parents. “Fancy a walk by the water?”
“Sounds like a lovely idea,” Dad said as he took his two women by the arm and led us to the door. “Treat you to ice cream?”
I grinned. “Now you’re talking.”
We strolled down Main Street past Elle’s farm store and the art co-op that Cate managed. The police station looked quiet as we passed, and I hoped Tuck got a lead soon. That note was something, but it didn’t tell him much without context.
We turned down the street that led to the maritime museum and made our way over to the shack where two teenage girls were serving ice cream to tourists. Dad ordered each of us a double cone, mine with mint chocolate chip and pralines and cream, and then we settled at a picnic table by the waterfront. Near us, the shipbuilders who worked for the museum were hard at work constructing a schooner, their latest project for the shipbuilding school they ran. So far, they had the hull built, and I could see some massive tree trunks to the side that I thought might become the masts. One of these days I was going to learn to sail . . . when I had the time.
Mom looked around and then said, quietly, “So why the guy from the gas station?”
I told them about Cagle running from the library and disappearing this morning, and Dad said, “That really surprises me. He seems like a straight-shooter, sort of a loner, too. Can’t imagine he’d have any beef with a librarian.”
I sighed. “Sidney was kind of a hermit in his own way. Maybe there was a recluse rivalry?” I smiled at my sorry attempt at humor, but then grew quiet. Two quiet men, both in the library. That wasn’t surprising, but maybe there was something to that.
I was just beginning to let my mind follow that train of thought when movement near the water caught my eye, and I turned just in time to see Lucy, the children’s librarian, drop something into the water. “What she’s doing?” I said more to myself than my parents.
At first, I thought maybe it was bread for the birds or a rock or something, but when she saw me watching, she let out a little squeak and walked away quickly.
I stood and ran to the railing over the water just in time to see what looked like a bag sink below the surface.