3
Misfit wound around my legs, purring like he thought I was about to drop a bag of treats in front of him. The orange cat had turned into Mr. Loveable the moment Dad and Laura had arrived at my house. He had yet to turn off the rumble machine.
“We’ll be back soon,” I told him as I pulled on a shirt with the words “coffee” and “books” surrounded by a big pink heart on the front. “Then you can love all over Dad as much as you want. He enjoys the attention.”
After finding a cheap, fake Christmas tree and some string lights, I’d finished helping Rita set up for the party, and then spent the rest of the day with Dad and Laura—after their naps, of course. We’d consumed well beyond our fair share of coffee and cookies and other not-so-healthy snacks that had Laura warning my dad that they were going to need to spend at least a week doing nothing but running to work it off.
All in all, it was about as pleasant a day as I’d spent in a long time, not counting those spent with Paul. Those . . . well, I wasn’t going to talk about those days, with Dad or anyone else.
I headed back out to the living room. Misfit trailed behind, doing his best to get underfoot and trip me. “I’m rea—” I jerked to a stop at what awaited me in my living room.
Dad had his arms around Laura in an embrace that would make just about anyone blush. At the sound of my voice, he leapt back from her like she’d suddenly grown spikes. “Buttercup, er, Krissy.” He coughed and grinned. “Sorry about that.”
“It’s fine.” And I found I meant it, despite my embarrassment. “But maybe next time, hang a sign up or something to warn me, okay?”
I almost cheered when Dad’s face flamed much like mine did when he’d made that joke about Paul stopping by. It wasn’t often I could embarrass him.
“Yes, well.” He cleared his throat. “I’ll consider it.”
“We’re ready,” Laura said, hiding a smile before breaking out in a face-eating yawn. “I don’t know why I can’t stop yawning.”
A flash of worry passed over Dad. “Are you sure you’re up for this?” he asked.
Laura nodded. “I’m fine. Just a bit tired.” She sniffed and fished out a tissue. “And a smidge stuffy, I suppose.”
“If you don’t want to go—” I started, but she cut me off.
“No, I’ll be okay.” She stuffed the tissue back into her pocket. “Let’s go.”
Dad and Laura were driving themselves at Dad’s request. I wasn’t sure if it was because they were afraid of my driving, or if they wanted to spend time alone. Probably some combination of both.
I was about to climb into my Escape when someone called out to me.
“Krissy! Do you have a moment?”
I waved for Dad and Laura to go ahead, and then crossed the yard toward my neighbor and friend, Jules Phan, who was making his way toward me. We stopped where our yards met.
“Sorry to bother you on your way out,” he said. His white Maltese, Maestro, was tucked under his arm, squirming to be let down, but Jules kept a firm hold on him. “I just wanted to let you know I have a fresh shipment of candy canes at the store for you. You can pick them up tomorrow or I can deliver them to you; whichever serves you best.”
“Perfect timing,” I said, holding my hand out for Maestro to sniff—and lick. “We were getting low. I’ll pick them up tomorrow morning, if that’s okay?” The candy canes we used for the peppermint cappuccinos at Death by Coffee came from Jules’s candy store, Phantastic Candies. It was a good way to help another local business.
“Tomorrow is perfect. I’ll be there all day.” Jules shivered, despite his large, thick coat. “It’s frigid out here.” The tip of his nose and his cheeks were both bright red. “Maestro didn’t even want to come out to do his business, it’s so cold. I sometimes wish he was a cat so he could use a litter box.”
Maestro barked and shook his head, little legs pumping as if he could already feel the grass beneath his feet and was intent on running as far and as fast as he could.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” Jules said, kissing the dog atop the head. “I’ll let you go before we both freeze our butts off. Besides, I’ve got to get this rascal back inside before he manages to slip free.”
“You be good.” I rubbed Maestro behind the ears. “Tell Lance I said hi.” The latter was for Jules, though I suppose Maestro could have passed the message on in his own way.
“Will do. He’s inside mixing us something to warm us up.” Lance Darby was Jules’s significant other, and was a master of mixing all sorts of drinks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic alike. My mouth watered, but I didn’t have time to pop in for a taste.
“Enjoy that,” I said. I was only mildly jealous.
“Oh, I will.” Jules winked, clearly meaning more than him only enjoying his drink.
And then, with a mutual, good-natured laugh, we parted.
* * *
A handful of cars were already in the church parking lot when I got there, including Dad’s rental. I pulled up beside him and got out, thinking he and Laura had already gone inside. One look at the car, however, told me otherwise.
A hand swiped across the steamed-up window and a second later, the car door popped open.
“Hey, Buttercup we were just wa—”
I held up a hand. “I don’t want to know.”
“But—”
“Nope. Not listening.” I started for the church doors, and then, because I didn’t want to seem rude, waited there for Dad and Laura to make their way over to me.
Laura flashed me a smile and a wink on her way past, while Dad just scurried past me, into the church. Once they were inside, I paused to look toward Andrew’s Gifts. Like much of the town, the store closed shop relatively early, so the lights were off, and the place empty.
I turned away and went inside.
“James!” Rita caught sight of us the moment we were up the worn stairs, which were printed with bible verses, and through the door. “I’m so glad you made it.” She hurried over, leaving her friends, Georgina McCully and Andi Caldwell, sitting alone together. She came up short when she spotted Laura. “Oh. Well, you too, of course.” She turned to me. “Krissy! Did you know Lena Allison is back in town? And she’s here!”
Lena, sensing our attention, waved from across the room. She was talking to one of the other writers’ group members, a man I hadn’t seen in quite a while, Adam. He looked dead on his feet, as if he’d spent a long couple of days working without a break. I knew nothing about him, other than he was a member of the group, not even his last name.
“Yeah, I saw her at Death by Coffee earlier. Actually, I think I’m going to go over to talk to her now. Will you three be okay if I leave you alone together for a few minutes?”
“Go on,” Dad said. “We’ll be fine.”
“I’ve already started Scars of the Heart,” Rita said, dismissing me without a word. “I must say, I already think it’s the best you’ve ever done.”
I left them to discuss the book and headed over to where Lena and Adam were chatting. Adam was middle-aged, and seemed disinterested in what Lena had to say, but then again, he always looked that way. When I reached them, he muttered something completely unintelligible and wandered off to the drink table.
“I didn’t mean to scare him off,” I said, watching as he poured himself a drink. He sipped it slowly, head bobbing to the light music playing from a speaker Rita had set up.
“It’s not you. When I first came over to talk to him, he looked panicked, like he was afraid I might bite.” She grinned. “Little does he know . . .”
At the door, two more people entered. Haley and Wendy were newer, college-aged members of the group. I’d only met them a few times, and briefly at that. They saw Adam and made a beeline for him. For the first time since I’d known him, he perked up.
“Looks like someone has a crush,” Lena said, watching them.
“Yeah, but on which one?”
“Probably both. You know how men can be.”
I glanced over at Dad, who was trapped between two women himself. Rita was talking his ear off, while Laura stood stoically by his side. Every so often, she’d reach out and touch him on the arm. I don’t know if she was giving him strength, or if some inner jealousy was seeping out and she was looking to remind Rita that James Hancock belonged to her.
Whatever her reason, it was endearing. To me, at least. Rita didn’t seem to notice.
“Do you think Chief Dalton will show?” Lena asked. There was an odd tone to her voice that made me wonder if the question had something to do with her injuries, rather than mere curiosity.
“I doubt it,” I said, deciding not to pry. “Paul was going to come with me tonight but got called in to work because a couple of officers are sick. She’s probably pulling a double or triple shift right along with him.”
“That sounds like her. I think she lives in her uniform.”
I started to laugh, taking it for a joke, but then paused. Had I ever seen Chief Dalton out of uniform? Now that I thought about it, I wasn’t sure I had.
Lena rubbed at her arm, wincing slightly as she did. “I miss everyone. College is great and all, but . . .”
I opened my mouth to ask her about her bruise when a group of women entered. Doris Appleton was leading them.
“Uh-oh,” I muttered, watching as she looked around the room, nose held high in the air. She glared hard at Rita and sniffed in derision.
“Who’s that?” Lena asked.
“Someone who’s not a fan of the writers’ group.”
Rita caught sight of Doris and stiffened. She said something to Dad and then marched over to where Doris and her group still stood.
“I think I might need to go over there,” I said, not sure what good it would do. But standing back and watching would help no one, Rita especially.
“I’ll pass,” Lena said. “She doesn’t look like a nice lady.”
“She’s not.” I crossed the room, but stopped a few feet back, not entirely sure I really wanted to get involved.
“You’re ruining the sanctity of the church.” Doris raised her voice so she could be heard by those nearby, though she tried to make it appear as if she was talking solely to Rita. “Events such as these should not be allowed.”
“We’re not hurting anything,” Rita said. “In fact, our group has brought more people into this church than yours ever has.”
Doris scoffed, looked back at her crew, who all grumbled in unison. “Right.” She glanced around the room, eyes lingering on Lena. “Just because you invite the riffraff, doesn’t mean they deserve to set foot in a holy place such as this.”
Okay. That was enough for me. I marched over to join them. “These are good people,” I said. “We’re just here to relax and have some fun, not cause any trouble.”
“This isn’t a place for fun.” Doris sneered the word. “This is a house of worship and what you’re doing here is against everything we stand for.”
I opened my mouth to retort, but Rita cut me off with a stern look.
“Doris Appleton, you have no idea what you are saying,” she said. “I know you and I don’t get along, but that doesn’t mean you have to put down my friends.”
“Your friends do not belong here.” Doris glared hard across the room at Georgina and Andi, who’d remained seated since I’d gotten there, hurting no one and doing nothing to earn the reprimand. “I will find a way to get this little group of yours removed. Your presence is insulting to the rest of us, isn’t that right, Agnes?”
There was a beat of silence. The woman with the tiny handbag—Agnes, I supposed—didn’t appear to be in attendance.
“You go ahead and try.” Rita was practically trembling with rage, something I’d never seen out of her in my life. “We have every right to use this space, the same right as you do.”
“And perhaps I wish to use it now.” Doris pushed past both Rita and me and wandered into the room a few feet before stopping. “Then again, it needs to be cleaned first.” She turned right back around and headed for the door. “I think it’s time I worked with the town’s leadership to bring real faith back to Pine Hills. We need to get rid of groups like these, get rid of businesses that exploit my faith for their own profits.” She shot me a dirty look, before turning away. “Let’s go.”
Doris and her crew stormed out with a chorus of “Amens” and “Heathens” though I noted Cleo remained silent, despite her following Doris around like a lost puppy.
Rita’s hands were bunched into fists and her entire body was stiff as a board. I could almost hear her teeth groaning under the pressure she was putting on them.
“Don’t worry about her,” I said. “She’s all talk. She can’t do anything.”
Rita took a deep breath, let it out in a huff. “I’m not worried, dear. I’m just . . . angry.” She looked around the room, at her writers’ group. They were all still watching, Dad and Laura included. “She’s ruined the night.”
“No, she hasn’t.” I kept my hand out of her line of sight as I made a “get on with it” gesture to the rest of the room. Everyone hopped back to mingling, though they kept shooting glances our way.
“I honestly don’t know what I did to upset that woman,” Rita said. “She’s had it in for me from day one and hasn’t let up since. I mean, I understand she is a woman of faith, but doesn’t she realize she’s supposed to love and care about everyone? Not just her little group of followers?”
“Some people are like that.” And I’d met my fair share of them. “Come on, let’s get back to the party. Forget about her.”
“I can’t.” Rita wrung her hands together before patting my arm. “You go ahead and have fun. I think I’m going to go ahead and call it a night.”
“But the party’s just started.”
“I know, dear. I’ve lost the heart for it.” And with that, Rita gathered her things and left.
“What was that all about?” Dad asked once she was gone.
“I guess there’s some town drama I’m not privy to.” But two other people in the room might be. “Be right back.”
“Actually, Buttercup, I think we’re going to head out.” He motioned to Laura, who’d joined us. “I’m beat and still haven’t recovered from the trip.”
“Me too,” Laura added. “It was nice to get out, but I think it best if we do most of our partying tomorrow.”
“Are you sure?” I felt bad, like I’d abandoned Dad and Laura while I’d dealt with Rita and Doris. “This will only take a sec and then we can spend the rest of the evening together.”
“I’m sure.” Dad shot a quick glance at Laura, who looked exhausted. “I’d rather you have fun with your friends without worrying about us.”
Laura managed a smile that vanished into another yawn before she asked, “Breakfast tomorrow?”
“Sounds great. I’m meeting a friend in the morning, but should have time for breakfast first.”
“We can meet at Death by Coffee and you can tell us all about what we missed.” Dad leaned forward and pecked me on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Buttercup.”
“See you then.”
They turned away and headed for the door.
I watched them, frustrated, yet there wasn’t anything I could do about the night. The day had started out great, but had devolved as it stretched on. And now, with Laura, Dad, and Rita gone, the party was looking like it might fall apart before it even began.
I spent the next few minutes making sure Rita hadn’t left anything behind in her haste to leave. I imagined the decorations would be fine if left overnight, but I wasn’t so sure about her speaker. I made a mental note to grab it on my way out, just in case, and then decided to make the rounds.
I took a moment to speak to a few other members of the group before I walked over to where Andi and Georgina sat, chatting animatedly with one another. The two older women were notorious gossips, and would be a good source of information when it came to whatever problem Doris had with Rita. They saw me coming and both straightened in their chairs.
“Andi,” I said, coming to a stop in front of them. “Georgina.”
“Hello, Krissy. It’s been a goodly long while since you’ve been to group,” Georgina said, patting at her white cloud of hair. “A good long while.”
“I was starting to wonder if we’d ever see you again,” Andi added, squinting at me like she was having a hard time seeing me.
“Sorry about that. I was curious—”
I never got to finish the thought or ask my question.
“Something’s going on outside!” Haley, who must have stepped out at some point because she was wearing her coat and was standing at the door, pointed back the way she’d just come from. “The police are here.”
My heart sank straight through the floor before ratcheting up in speed.
Rita.
Now, I didn’t truly believe Rita would have gone and hurt anyone, but she’d been so angry. Could she have gone outside and confronted Doris? Would the women have gotten into it enough that the police had to be called?
Or could it be Laura? She’d looked awfully tired when she’d left. What if she was sick, not just tired, and had collapsed the moment she’d stepped outside?
Or worse, what if it was Dad? He wasn’t as young as he used to be.
I was moving before I realized I was going to. It started as a quick walk, but by the time I hit the stairs, I was running. I kept thinking that I was going to step out into the freezing cold of winter and would find someone I cared about lying motionless on the sidewalk.
When I burst outside the church, the first thing I noticed were the red-and-blue flashing lights. The night was so bright and crisp, the lights seemed to reflect off the very air, making it blinding. It took me a moment to realize that no one was on the sidewalk on this side of the street. All the excitement was happening on the other side, at Andrew’s Gifts.
More people spilled out of the church doors behind me, but I barely noticed. My eyes shot to the parking lot, to the empty space where Dad’s car had been. Rita’s car was gone as well. Nothing had happened to either of them.
But not everyone was so lucky.
Across the street, a stretcher was being carried out of Andrew’s Gifts. On it, was a sheet-covered body. And following behind, a grim-faced Detective John Buchannan was barking orders at anyone who’d listen to him.
He jerked to a sudden stop, as if he sensed someone watching. His gaze zeroed in on me standing across the street for a heartbeat before he spun around and marched right back into the gift shop.
That look might have only been brief, but there was no questioning its meaning.
Whatever had happened across the street wasn’t a mere accident. If my guess was right, it appeared as if someone had been murdered.