“We need pie,” Molly said as Sam drove back toward Main Street.
He laughed. “It’s almost nine o’clock.”
Molly glanced at the dash and saw he was right. “Yeah, but Come N’ Get It is open until ten, and they serve pie. This proves that after nine isn’t an unreasonable time for such a thing. In fact, I’m pretty sure there’s no bad time to have pie.”
Taking a right at the four way stop, she saw him shake his head in the dark cab. “You do make several good points.”
“I knew you’d see it my way.”
Molly stared through the windshield at the moon and the passing streetlights, thinking about the different things she’d learned over the last day and a bit. She needed to write everything down or it would swirl around in her brain and drive her nuts. She loved technology and had the same addiction to her phone as everyone else, but when she was sorting through a puzzle or story, she needed to see it on paper.
“I think I can actually hear the gears turning in your brain. What’d you think about Judd?” Sam turned onto Main Street.
“I get why you care for him. It’s easy to see. I still think that even people we can’t imagine snapping have the ability to do so. We saw that with the car show. And the wedding. And Vernon. Wow. We’ve seen it a lot.”
Sam reached over and took her hand. “We have. And I know you’re right. Good people can do really bad things. Judd’s not like that though, babe.”
She wanted him to be right. She linked her fingers to his, liking the connection. “What struck me was his lack of anger.”
“He’s not an angry guy,” Sam agreed.
“That’s just it. If someone is framing him for murder, you’d think he’d be pointing fingers and raging. But he isn’t. In fact, he spoke kindly toward almost everyone. That doesn’t scream killer to me. Even if Magnolia pushed all of his buttons.”
“I’m glad you see that.”
Molly swallowed around the lump in her throat. “But he could still be guilty, Sam. We need to be prepared for that.”
“I am,” he insisted.
As they got out of the truck and walked toward the restaurant, she wondered if any of them could ever be ready for the deep, dark secrets some people kept.
Calli and Dean were sitting in a booth with Sarah and Chris. Molly grinned and looked up at Sam as the door shut behind them.
“See? Never too late for pie.”
“You can’t see what they’re eating.” Sam pressed a kiss to her head, laughing at her in a good way. She liked making him smile. Plus, she knew she was right.
As they approached the table, everyone said hello. Obviously having heard them, Sarah held up her plate with a mostly eaten piece of strawberry-rhubarb custard pie.
“Never too late,” Sarah said.
Calli and Dean shuffled out of their side of the booth, taking their near-empty sodas with them.
“Sit. We need to clean up anyway. You want some pie, doll?” Calli gave Molly a side hug as she asked.
“Lemon, I think,” Molly said, hugging her back.
“I’ll have a slice of blueberry peach, if you have it,” Sam said.
Molly started to sit but stopped. “Hmm. Maybe I want that one.”
Sam rolled his eyes and gave her a little nudge so she slid into the booth. “We can share.”
Dean laughed and walked back to the kitchen. Calli smiled at the group. “You want anything else? Chris? You want another coffee, hon?”
“I’m good, Calli. Thanks. Any more and I won’t sleep tonight.”
“And that would be different from most nights, how?” Sarah asked, scooping up another bite of pie.
Chris put his arm around her shoulder and pressed a kiss to her temple. “Maybe I should switch to warm milk.”
Sam’s bark of laughter made Molly smile. He slid into the booth. “If you go that way, you might need to start going to bed at seven. Eating dinner at four like the retirees.”
Chris crumpled a straw wrapper and tossed it at Sam. Calli shook her head, muttering about boys.
“This is a nice surprise,” Molly said, shrugging out of her jacket and stuffing it beside her with her purse.
“Gotta grab the dates where we can. Someone is working overtime all the time,” Sarah said. She leaned her head into the crook of Chris’s arm.
“That’s about to get better.”
Sarah sat up and looked at him. Molly and Sam both leaned forward.
Chris shook his head and sighed. “Shouldn’t have said that out loud, but you guys will find out at the town hall meeting. Brandon—Sheriff Saron—isn’t running for mayor. That means he’ll be back where he should be and I’ll go back to being a detective.”
Sarah smiled and scooted up to kiss his cheek. “That’s good. That’s really good. You’re not disappointed, are you?”
“No. I barely got a chance to put on my detective badge before everything blew up and Brandon had to step up as mayor. I’m happy to work my way up the ranks a little slower,” Chris said, picking up his coffee and tipping it back.
Calli brought their pie over. “Should have asked if you two wanted a drink.”
Molly smiled, noting that Calli had cut both pieces of pie in half so she and Sam each had a sample. “I’ll just have a water. Thank you.”
“I’ll take the same. Thanks, Calli.”
“No problem. When are you two christening that back patio with a BBQ?”
“Good question,” Chris said, scooping a piece of Sarah’s pie.
“Soon. But you can at least see it tomorrow at the party.”
“Between the party and everything else going on, we’ll need a nice quiet night with friends on your back deck. When things calm down. No pressure,” she said.
After she left them and Molly had taken her first bite of delicious lemon pie, Chris leaned in. “So?”
Molly chewed and swallowed, pausing when Calli dropped off their waters. Dean was on the floor but he was mopping under tables so Molly just focused on their group of four.
“Beau and Deb both lied about their alibis. Beau I’m sure of, and Deb I’m going to confirm tomorrow if I can get Cora to talk to me. I have Jill working on that right now. Magnolia’s son seems too…spoiled to have done anything like this himself. His sister makes the decisions, from what I can see. Judd’s cousin had a bad feeling about Tiffany and Deb. And I found out some interesting information about Beau.” She paused, looking at him and knowing how good he was at his job. “Have you done any digging on Tiffany or Beau?”
Chris smiled and looked like he was scrolling through his thoughts. “Tiffany Faye is twenty-nine, divorced, has worked in film and television, and was born in Utah. She was hired by Magnolia’s company to come out here as an assistant for the play. Beau Harrison was born in Portland. Lived in Los Angeles for three years, worked as a grip on the set of Magnolia Sweet’s television show. They married fifteen years ago but separated after three years.”
Molly’s jaw dropped open. Sarah set her fork down with a clang, saying, “Wow. That is a lot of facts and holy drama, Batman.”
Chris smirked. “There tends to be a lot of drama around murders, babe.”
“Yeah but there’s drama and then there’s drama,” Sarah said, drawing the word out the second time she said it.
Sam turned his head, his fork stopped in mid-air. “Did you know Beau and Magnolia were married?”
“Found out today,” Molly said.
“Though I don’t want to boost your ego in this area because normally I wouldn’t condone you digging into things, you’re very good at getting people to open up to you, Molly.”
She grinned at Chris and straightened in her seat. “Well, thank you, Detective Beatty. You’re pretty good at this stuff, too.”
Sam laughed, taking his bite of pie. Sarah laughed, covering her mouth with her hand and Chris just gave an exasperated sigh and shook his head. Molly caught a hint of a smile on his lips though.
“Any chance you can find out if Beau stands to inherit anything from Magnolia’s death?”
Chris nodded. “I’ll ask around tomorrow.”
“In other news,” Sarah said, “not to drag us away from murder and intrigue, but how are things going with your mom and Brandon, Sam? I ran into him shopping for a card for her and he looked more than a little smitten.”
Molly looked down at her plate, trying not to respond to the question. Sam needed to come to terms with his mom dating in his own way.
From the corner of her eye, she saw him press his fork to the plate repeatedly, picking up the crumbs. “She’s happy. In the end, that’s all I want for her.”
Molly looked up, smiling at him. “You’re so sweet.”
“I’m always saying that,” Chris said, deadpan.
Sarah laughed. “You are, Sam. She’s lucky to have you.”
“Hey!” Chris said.
Sarah rolled her eyes. “You’re very sweet, too and your mom is very lucky to have you.” She leaned in, meeting him halfway in a brief kiss. “As am I.”
“That’s better,” Chris said. He folded his arms on the table and looked at Sam. “Heard you were out checking John Granger’s tractor.”
Sam looked at Molly and gave her a mock frown. “Are you posting my activities in The Bulletin again?”
Now Molly rolled her eyes. “Right. Like I need the single ladies of Britton Bay to know your whereabouts. I fully expect Cora Lester to lecture me on my intentions toward you when I swing by tomorrow.”
Cora’s daughter Shannon had a huge crush on Sam, which apparently the whole town knew about. When Molly had arrived, she’d met Cora at the bakery by way of Cora telling her that she was breaking her poor daughter’s heart.
Sam, finished with his pie, pulled Molly against his side. He leaned in, his lips brushing over her hair. “You’re the only one that matters, babe.”
Her heart did that tumble thing again, and she wondered if that would fade over time.
Sam looked back at Chris. “It wasn’t anything major. Why?”
“Just wondering if it was part of the vandalism he’s been struggling with. Not even sure if I’d call it that. Just stuff getting moved and messed up. Things disappearing or showing up in places he didn’t leave them.”
“Nothing came of it the last time you followed up with him?” Sam pushed his plate away.
“No. I’m wondering if maybe it’s Teddy’s friends goofing around. They’re about seventeen and we’ve picked them up a couple times for loitering and being a little too boisterous after hours on the beach.”
Molly leaned back in her seat and covered her very full belly with her hand. “Is Teddy his son?” The makeshift bed, if it could be called that, popped into her head.
“He is. The other one is only eleven, I think. Could be him, too.” Chris said.
Calli came to their table. “As much as I love y’all, if you leave, I can close up and go home. Pie and drinks are on the house.”
“You don’t have to do that, Calli,” Chris said.
“Really,” Sam agreed.
Dean joined them, slinging an arm around Calli’s shoulder.
“Don’t have to, but I am,” Calli said, leaning into her husband. Her hair was looser, coming out of its usual ponytail.
Chris held up his hands. “I won’t argue then. Thank you.”
“Always easier not to argue,” Calli agreed. “Speaking of which, things any…calmer on set, Sarah?”
Sarah was pulling her jacket on. She paused and shrugged her shoulders. “Tiffany—she was Magnolia’s assistant and is now the director— is pretty intense, too, and everyone is on edge with the murder and all. It’s a weird vibe to say the least.”
“Yeah, that girl has her own store of temper,” Dean said.
All eyes turned his way, but it was Calli who spoke. “You know her?”
Dean nodded. “She was there when I was helping with the set. I ran out to grab something from my truck and she was arguing with a woman. Yelling at her pretty loud. Definitely has her own temper.”
Chris and Sarah slid out of the booth and Molly and Sam followed so they were all standing in a sort of circle. Sam helped Molly with her jacket and she slung her purse over her shoulder, her curiosity prickling.
“Who was she arguing with?”
“Don’t know. Didn’t see her face. Blonde hair, fancy clothes, bright red, long nails.”
Chris and Molly locked eyes and both of them spoke at the same time. “Vivien.”
“She didn’t have her nails on when I saw her today,” Molly said, thoughts swirling.
“In her statement, she said she never visits the theater,” Chris said, his voice so low she wasn’t sure if anyone else heard.
“The daughter?” Sam asked.
“Yes. Something isn’t adding up. Can you look into when Vivien and her brother actually flew into town? She told me she arrived the night after the murder.” Molly needed to write things down to sort her thoughts.
Chris nodded. “First thing in the morning.”
“Sure, would be nice to see Judd cleared,” Calli said. “He’s a nice man. And speaking of that, anyone seen Corky?”
They all said no, but Molly thought again about the Granger barn and wondered if it was possible that the problems out there weren’t from teens at all.
“He’ll turn up,” Chris said, putting a comforting hand on Calli’s shoulder.
“We should go,” Sam said.
They said their goodnights and left together. The stars lit up the black sky. In the distance, Molly could see the moon glistening on the still water. At the moment, Britton Bay was quiet and calm personified. Which seemed oddly ironic for a town that had so much happening below the surface.