10
A chocolate chip cookie sat at the bottom of the Death by Coffee to-go cup. Small bubbles rose and burst as I poured in coffee, bringing with them tiny chunks of the cookie. Bleary-eyed, I took a sip, savored the flavor, and then let loose with a yawn that threatened to go on forever.
Needless to say, after the day I’d had, I didn’t sleep all that well. I spent half the night at the window, watching Caitlin’s house, worried that Jacob would come sneaking out of it at any moment, intent on murdering both Jules and me in our sleep. When I did attempt to lie down, I ended up tossing and turning until I was up again, peering out the window.
Which was why I’d seen Jacob leave Caitlin’s house a few minutes after midnight. Instead of crossing the yard to my house, knife in hand, he instead climbed into his car and drove off with a chugging of an engine that would have woken me up if I had been asleep. He wasn’t sneaking up on anyone in a car like that.
After that, I managed to get a little shut-eye, but every sound had me jerking awake, scanning the dark for any hint of movement. Misfit slept through it all.
I leaned against the counter and continued to sip at my coffee, ignoring the questioning stares coming from the dining room of Death by Coffee. Almost everyone who worked for me was there, sitting in a small huddle. Even with the heat on, I felt chilled, and it was only going to get colder.
The door opened and the last employee staggered in, looking as pooped as I felt. Then again, Eugene Dohmer always looked that way. His long, skinny legs appeared as if they belonged on a scarecrow as he crossed the room and took a seat next to Lena.
“All right, everyone is here.” I stifled another yawn as I straightened. “I’m sure you’ve all heard about the murder that happened down the street the other night?” Nods followed. “And I’m sure rumors have gone around about how and why the man was killed.”
Jeff Braun raised a hand. He waited until I acknowledged him to speak. “Was Mr. Phan attacked?”
It appeared as if rumors of what had happened at Phantastic Candies had also spread. “No, Jules is fine.” Relieved sighs went around the room. “But he did receive a package that was similar to the one Andrew Carver found on his doorstep before his murder.”
This was met with grumbling. Beth asked, “Are we in danger?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “That’s why I called everyone in here so early.” I took a large gulp of coffee to consider my next words. Should I bring up the note luring Jules to Death by Coffee? Or should I skip over it in the hopes that nothing would come of it now that the police were on the case?
There didn’t appear to be a right answer. If I told them about the note, that might scare them. At the same time, leaving it out would leave them unprepared if the killer were to make a move.
“The police don’t know for sure if the gifts are tied to the murder,” I said, “but I wanted to be safe and let you all know about them. If you receive a mysterious package, here or at home, call the police immediately. If you see someone lurking around here or at your home, do the same.”
Pooky Cooper’s eyes were so wide, they looked as if they were about to fall out. “Any sort of package? Like from Amazon?” she asked.
“Honestly? I don’t know. The one Jules received was wrapped in blue paper and had no identifying marks.” I took a breath. “A note inside attempted to lure him to Death by Coffee after closing.”
“Here?” Beth’s brow furrowed. “Why here?” Her question was met with raised voices as the rest of the group chimed in.
I raised my hands to quiet them. “I’m not trying to scare anyone,” I said. “I’m telling you just so you’re prepared in case something does show up. The police were here last night—”
“Detective Buchannan?” Lena asked.
I nodded. “From what I was told, he set up a trap for the killer.” Though I didn’t know if anything had come of it. I figured I would have heard something if the killer had been caught, but so far, I’d been told nothing, though it was still early.
“Should we do something?” Eugene asked. “Like, check the ID of everyone who comes in?”
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” I said. “As I said, I just wanted you to know what happened and for you to be on the lookout for any mysterious packages. It’s not a bomb. It’s not poisoned or rigged with knives or anything of the sort.”
Worried glances and more grumbling followed.
I knew I was only making them worry, but I didn’t know what else to do. I’d rather make everyone nervous than have a box show up on one of their doorsteps with them having no idea that it might have come from a killer.
A glance at the clock told me we were nearly out of time. “I’m sorry I woke some of you for this. You can grab a coffee or a cookie on your way out.” And then, because I wanted them to be reassured, “The police are on the case.”
As one, they rose, though only a few took me up on my offer of coffee. Jeff headed for the door looking like he expected a killer to slither out of the tiles, or leap from the top of a nearby building, at any moment. As he exited, someone else pushed in past him, ignoring the CLOSED sign still hanging from the door.
Donnie Cooper scowled as he came to a stop, just inside the door. Pooky’s brother, Donnie, had recently fallen on some tough times and had been staying with Pooky before she was forced to kick him out for taking advantage of her hospitality. I had a little something to do with that, and Donnie obviously hadn’t forgiven me for it. He glared a hole through me before he turned to Pooky, who’d just finished pouring herself a coffee to go.
“Donnie? What are you doing here?”
“Claire.”
I winced. Pooky hated when anyone called her by her given name. A part of me wanted to step in and help her deal with him, but at the same time, it wasn’t my place to interfere, not without her permission.
Besides, it didn’t appear as if she needed my help.
Pooky jammed a fist into her hip, eyes narrowing. “Excuse me?”
“Sorry,” Donnie said, ducking his head. “Pooky.” He made a face like just saying her nickname put a bad taste in his mouth. “I tried you at home.”
“This early? You know I’d either still be asleep or here at work.”
Donnie shrugged, would have looked embarrassed but for the half-sneer on his face. “I was up and decided to check in on you. Can’t fault me for that.”
Pooky sighed. She noted me standing nearby, obviously eavesdropping, but instead of pulling Donnie aside, she seemed to gain strength from having me there.
“Look Donnie, we’re not going to do this here. I understand your predicament, and I care, I really do. But there’s nothing I can do for you right now.”
Donnie glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. “Yeah, I know, but—”
“No.” Pooky cut him off with a slash of her hand. “I’m not doing this. Not now. Not here. If you want to come back to my place, we can sit down and talk like two grown adults.”
His scowl deepened, but he nodded. “Whatever. I guess I’ll see you in a little bit.” He paused to shoot me one more death-glare, and then he turned and walked out.
I opened my mouth to speak, but Pooky beat me to it.
“I’m sorry about that. Donnie still thinks he can keep pressuring me and he’ll eventually get his way. He’s my brother and I love him, but there’s no way I’m going to go through that again.” The last time she had let him move in with her, he’d taken over her life. Her work had suffered and she’d been miserable.
“You’ll be okay?” I asked.
Pooky’s smile was reassuring. “I will. Thank you.” The smile faltered and died. “But I think I might talk to him about that gift thing, just in case. If something were to happen to him . . .” She shuddered, and then followed her brother out the door.
No more early morning surprises followed. The next twenty minutes were spent solely on finishing morning setup. The plan had Eugene working upstairs with Beth handling taking orders downstairs. Lena would serve as a floater between them, jumping in wherever she was needed. That left me free to do as I pleased, which included heading out to run errands.
But even though they had everything well under control, I decided to stick around and chip in where I could. I kept expecting Detective Buchannan to show up to tell me how last night’s stakeout had gone, but he never did. When we opened the doors to the morning rush, I forgot completely about Buchannan and killers because we were slammed.
Peppermint cappuccinos were the order of the day. Second by second, the candy canes dwindled down to almost nothing. I was worried they wouldn’t last the day and made a mental note to check with Jules about getting more.
Upstairs, Eugene had his hands full with a small contingent of older women who were determined to chat him up, despite other customers looking to check out. Every so often, he’d look to me for help, but I was stuck filling coffee orders or wiping down tables.
When the rush finally slowed, and then blessedly stopped, I helped Beth clean up behind the counter before I joined Lena in the dining area to tidy up the tables and empty the near-overflowing trashcans. I, of course, had ulterior motives in joining her.
“How are you holding up?” I asked, desperately trying not to glance toward her bruised arm and failing miserably.
“Good.” Lena shot me a smile and then turned quickly away. “Been keeping busy. Thanks for letting me come in to help.”
“You know you’re always welcome.” I eyed her with a frown. Her shoulders were hunched as if she expected a blow. “Are you okay? Really?”
Lena picked up a half-eaten candy cane and tossed it into the nearest trashcan. “Yeah, sure.”
That wasn’t reassuring in the slightest.
“Zay—”
“We’re good,” she said before I could finish the thought. “It’s just been a lot, you know?”
No, I didn’t, but I wished I did. “If you need to talk . . .”
She turned a smile on me. “Thanks. I’m okay. Just got a lot on my mind.”
The door opened and two women came in, carrying similar well-wrapped bundles. Lena used the distraction to slip away to the back, muttering something about grabbing fresh trash bags as she went.
“Trisha!” I said, turning to the new arrivals. “Shannon. It’s good to see you both.” I approached them, unable to keep the goofy grin off my face. “And R.J. and Shay. How are you two doing?”
There’s a thing about babies that makes some people lose their minds. I’d always thought it was something that only happened to other people, yet from the moment I’d laid eyes on Robert Dunhill Jr. and Shay Pardue, I turned into one of those people.
Strange sounds burbled from my lips as I looked down at their chubby faces. Even the fact that R.J. was my ex-boyfriend’s son couldn’t damper my excitement at seeing the two babies, despite past tensions I’d had with their mothers due to them each having dated boyfriends of mine; Trisha with my ex, Robert, and Shannon with my current, Paul.
“Hey, Krissy,” Shannon said, handing over Shay without me having to ask. The baby girl was snoozing so deeply that she didn’t stir with the transfer. She was practically lost beneath the layers of blankets protecting her from the cold. “I’m going to run to the restroom real quick. Be right back.”
I was too busy making faces at Shay to respond, let alone notice when she hurried off.
“These two are a handful,” Trisha said, bouncing R.J., who unlike Shay, was wide awake and babbling incomprehensively. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she takes a quick nap in there.”
“How’s Robert handling it?” Robert Dunhill was a man I’d never imagined as a father, yet here we were.
“Surprisingly well, actually,” Trisha said with a laugh. “Though I think he’s starting to worry himself a little too much over making sure R.J. is taken care of. He’s been looking for opportunities to increase our income.”
“Like a second job?” Not that I knew if he even had a first job.
“Kind of.” Trisha moved R.J. from one arm to the other. “He’s been talking about getting a loan to buy a local business. I’m not sure how he expects to secure a loan of all things, but he’s pretty adamant about it.”
Robert had a tendency to act before he thought, hence his cheating on me back when we were dating. He’d also followed me all the way from California to Pine Hills, Ohio, in a vain attempt at winning me back. I was worried that he might be following a similar dead-end path with the new business and would drag both Trisha and R.J. down with him.
“What do you think about his plan?” I asked.
Trisha shrugged one shoulder. “If it works out, I’m all for it. Babies are far more expensive than I realized. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t give him up for anything, but we’ve had to tighten our belts these last few weeks.”
Considering Trisha had recently been twice as big as she now was due to her pregnancy she could have meant literally, but I got what she meant.
“Do you know what place he’s looking to buy?” I asked, wondering if I already knew, considering my conversation with Justin about Ted and Bettfast.
“Honestly? I’m not sure. You know how excited he gets about things. He sometimes forgets to fill the rest of us in on what he’s thinking until after he’s gone through with it.”
Oh, I knew all right. “Well, I hope it works out.”
Shannon returned then and took Shay back. She didn’t look as if she’d napped, but she did look refreshed, like the brief break had helped rejuvenate her. Trisha had Robert to help her keep up with the newborn. Shannon was on her own. The baby’s father wasn’t in the picture. I didn’t even know who he was, or if he even cared that he had a daughter.
“I really should get her to her crib,” Shannon said. “If I can get her to sleep for more than an hour, it’ll be a miracle.” She yawned. “I could use a little shut-eye myself.”
“R.J. should get his nap too,” Trisha said, though R.J. looked as if he was ready to spend the rest of the day wide awake. “We saw your car outside and wanted to stop in after our morning class and say hi.” Both Trisha and Shannon had signed up for some sort of parent and baby bonding class. Not being a parent, I had no idea what that entailed, but it made them both happy.
“I’m glad you did. If either of you need someone to watch the little ones while you get some sleep, let me know. I’ll happily babysit them for you.”
“I might take you up on that,” Shannon said.
“Me too.”
R.J. made a high-pitched squeal I took for a third vote in my favor.
I followed Trisha and Shannon to the door, intent on walking them out. And to get a little more time with the little ones, of course. When they stepped outside, a cold blast of wind shot straight though me, causing my teeth to chatter.
“I hear it’s only going to get worse,” Shannon said, pulling Shay close to her chest.
“Maybe it will snow for Christmas,” Trisha said, looking to the flake-free sky.
“We can hope,” I said, although a part of me wouldn’t entirely miss it if it wouldn’t. I hated driving in the stuff, though it was pretty.
The two women said their goodbyes and hurried for Shannon’s car. It took them a few moments to get the babies safely secured in the back seat, and then they were off with a honk and a wave.
I went back into the warmth of Death by Coffee to grab my coat and purse. I had a few things I wanted to get done before dinner with Paul, Dad, and Laura tonight, and I was already behind schedule, thanks to the morning rush keeping me at Death by Coffee longer than I’d planned.
Once I was bundled up, I headed for the door, but stopped dead when I saw the black-clad figure standing on the sidewalk outside.
Jacob was looking in through the window, a leather jacket covering a shirt with some sort of indecipherable scrawl across the chest and a black-robed figure in a forest beneath. He saw me looking at him, but instead of waving or coming in, he suddenly turned and started walking at a quick clip away from the store.
Well now, that was odd.
So odd that I found myself moving forward at a quick pace of my own. I stepped out into the frigid cold and turned toward where Jacob was hoofing it down the sidewalk, hands shoved deep into his pockets, with his wallet chain slapping the side of his leg.
My car was sitting right there. The smart thing to do would be to climb in and drive off so I could get my errands finished.
But when did I ever do the smart thing?
With shoulders hunched against the cold, I followed after a man who very well might be a murderer.