Daisy McDare And The Deadly Secret Affair (Daisy McDare Cozy Creek Mystery Book 7) (3 page)

Chapter Seven

Unfortunately, as Daisy set foot in the banquet hall, she was underwhelmed by the launch party.  First off, there were only a smattering of people there.  Second, the book launch had the atmosphere of a stuffy museum exhibit.  Easy listening music played over the speakers, more people were staring at their phones than talking to each other, and everyone was giving off the body language that they’d rather be anywhere else. 

For a moment, Daisy hoped she’d stumbled into the wrong banquet hall.  When she spotted her friend Chloe Wilson with a pained look on her face however, Daisy knew she was in the right place. 

Oh dear.  Clearly this was not the book launch Chloe had in mind.  Things were obviously not going according to plan.  In moments like that, an old friend sure came in handy. 

Daisy got the feeling this would be a night about consoling, not revelry.  She put on a smile and went over to her dear friend. 

“Chloe,” Daisy said. 

There were mixed emotions on Chloe’s face as she spotted Daisy.  Obviously she was happy to see her friend.  At the same time, Chloe was clearly embarrassed about the low turnout for her party. 

“It’s so good to see you,” Daisy said.

Daisy gave Chloe a hug.  It had been a few years since they’d seen each other last, and Daisy knew they had a lot of catching up to do.  After all, there was only so much that could be said over the phone or text message. 

Daisy and Chloe were college roommates at Vancouver University from freshman year all the way through senior year.  That was not a small accomplishment.  Some roommates couldn’t even make it through one semester together.  Daisy and Chloe got along great.  They were interested in the same books, liked the same kind of food, and couldn’t get enough of each other’s company. 

Part of it was that they were both small town girls at heart.  Strangely enough, they had grown up one town over from each other.  While Daisy was from Cozy Creek, Chloe was born fifteen minutes away in Griffin’s Gulch.  Amazingly, even though they grew up in adjacent towns, they never crossed paths in their childhoods.  When they met in college however, they become the best of friends. 

So much that Chloe had done her best to get Daisy to stay in the city after graduation.  Daisy had her heart set on returning to Cozy Creek however.  Ever since then, their paths had diverged, but they remained close friends. 

A part of Daisy had always wondered what her life would look like if she’d stayed in Vancouver with Chloe.  During her down days before meeting Gavin, Daisy was able to live vicariously through Chloe’s life and experiences.  Now that things were going well with Gavin, Daisy was happy she’d made her decision to move back to Cozy Creek.  Still, she wished her hometown was closer to Vancouver so she could pop in to see Chloe more often.  She missed her friend. 

“Daisy.  You have no idea how good it feels to see a friendly face,” Chloe replied. 

Daisy couldn’t help but be a little stumped.  “Are these people not friendly?”

“Are you kidding?  They work for my publisher.” 

Daisy was still a little confused.  “They could still be friendly.”

“You’d think.  When you meet my publisher though, you’ll understand why they’re so grumpy.”

Chloe was not doing a good job of selling the writer’s life.  For as long as Daisy had known Chloe, she’d wanted to be a writer.  In college, she was always writing stories.  Creativity came naturally to her. 

Unfortunately, Chloe’s path to getting a book published was long and arduous, filled with many detours and rejections.  Not just one or two either.  She had to endure an avalanche of rejections, enough to bury most people’s dreams under the rubble of despair. 

Daisy didn’t know how Chloe kept from losing hope.  Yet, somehow she did.  Eleven years and fifteen novels after her first rejection, one of Chloe’s books finally got selected for publication. 

Up until a year ago, when Chloe was still waiting tables for a living, it seemed like this day would never come.  Daisy had to hand it to Chloe.  She developed a thick skin, kept pressing on, and never gave up. 

Given what a long road Chloe took to success, coupled with the fact that she’d been a server, it was no surprise why Daisy wanted her cousin Addison to come to the launch tonight.  Chloe had been in a similar situation and found a light at the end of the tunnel.  Hopefully, Addison would too. 

Although to be fair, Daisy thought Chloe’s success would looked a little different than this.  Granted, Daisy was new to the publishing industry, but this wasn’t what she’d consider a party by any stretch of the imagination. 

Something was seriously wrong.  Daisy couldn’t figure out why there were so few people here.  At the same time, Daisy didn’t want Chloe to feel self-conscious.  She tried to make her feel better. 

“Look at it this way, you’re a published author.  Your dream finally came true.  Not everyone can say that,” Daisy remarked. 

“Don’t get me wrong.  It feels good to finally be published,” Chloe replied. 

“But--”

“I just feel bad having you drive all the way out here for this.  I mean, I was expecting my publisher to put on a real party.  This is as festive as a trip to the dentist’s office.”

It was a tough situation.  Daisy wanted to pull Chloe out of her funk.  The problem was, Chloe was right—the festivities were anything but lively.  The mood was that of a support group meeting that no one wanted to be at. 

Daisy had to find something to say to make her friend feel better.  “Look.  It’s still early.”

Chloe looked down at the time on her phone.  She then got discouraged.  “You actually showed up a few minutes late.”

“Oh.  Sorry.”

“Trust me, I’m just happy to have a friend here.”

“Is there any chance people are just stuck in traffic?”

“My publisher says that people like to show up fashionably late to these things.”

“And you don’t believe him?” Daisy replied. 

“Sometimes it’s hard to see the truth behind the lies with Hank,” Chloe said. 

A strange woman’s voice then rang out through the banquet hall, capturing everyone’s attention. 

“You filthy liar,” the Woman said. 

Chloe and Daisy both turned and saw an argument breaking out across the room.  It was incredible.  As bad as this book launch was turning out for Chloe, it was actually going worse for Hank Hammond.  Then again, Chloe’s bad day was not due to any action of her own.  Hank meanwhile appeared to be his own worst enemy. 

Chloe groaned and took out her frustrations with sarcasm.  “Great.  Just when I thought this night couldn’t get any worse.”

“Do I even want to know who that is?” Daisy asked. 

Chloe was sarcastic as ever.  “Oh, no one.  Just Hank’s wife and his mistress face to face, with Hank caught in the middle.”

Oh dear.  The situation had dumpster fire written all over it.  Daisy wished she could say this was the first time she’d witnessed a man getting himself in such deep trouble.  That was far from the case. 

Hank’s wife, Amelia Hammond, was in her early fifties with shoulder length red hair, blue eyes, a short, stocky build, and an outfit as red as the fire in her eyes. 

Opposite her was Hanks’s administrative assistant Lindsay Donohue.  Lindsay was in her mid-twenties with long blonde hair, a tall, athletic build, and a low cut dress. 

The situation was a sports car and a bad hair piece away from being a classic case of a midlife crisis running wild.  It was an age old tale that apparently never grew tired of being told.  It looked like Hank’s wife wanted to throw in a little twist however. 

Hank tried to calm his wife down before things got too out of control. 

“Amelia, this isn’t the time or the place for this,” Hank said. 

“I know what you’re trying to do.  To handle me.  To get me to go away so I don’t ruin your little party.  The way I see it, trashing this party is the least I can do.  After all, you’ve ruined my life,” Amelia replied. 

Hank looked around and saw that everyone was looking at him.  He tried to grab his wife and lead her away. 

“That’s enough,” Hank said. 

Amelia brushed her husband off and turned her ire on Lindsay Donohue. 

“You should be ashamed of yourself, you home-wrecker.  You two scumbags deserve each other.  I hope you weren’t after him for his money though.  By the time I’m done with him in divorce court, he might not have anything left,” Amelia warned. 

Lindsay stood there in shock, her face as white as a sheet. 

Hank meanwhile erupted.  “How dare you come in here and make a scene while throwing crazy accusations around.  I won’t stand for it.”

Hank tried to grab his wife again, but she shook him off, then slapped him across the face. 

“Don’t touch me with those dirty hands.  It makes me sick thinking about where those hands have been.”

Amelia then stormed out. 

Hank was left with the fallout.  He looked around again and saw that all eyes were on him.  He couldn’t contain his rage. 

“What are you looking at?  Get back to work,” Hank barked. 

Everyone looked confused.  It was hard for them to ignore the train wreck they had just witnessed. 

Lindsay Donohue then spoke up.  “But, this is a party.”

Hank stammered.  “Then get back to partying.”

Lindsay leaned in and whispered something into Hank’s ear.  She then tried to pull him aside to comfort him, but Hank grew uncomfortable, especially when he saw Olivia Connors staring him down in disbelief. 

Olivia was in her mid-thirties.  She had curly, jet black hair, brown eyes, and a lean figure.  Olivia did publicity for the publishing company.  At that moment however, she couldn’t find the words to express the thoughts swirling around in her head.  Instead, she darted for the exit. 

Surprisingly, Hank went after her. 

Lindsay Donohue grew furious that Hank was tailing Olivia instead of talking with her.  She shouted out his name as he left the room, then turned and stormed out. 

Chapter Eight

For Daisy, this was enough dysfunction for one evening.  Not that the universe asked her, or cared what she thought.  Daisy could only imagine what a horrible place that publishing company was to work for.  During times like this, Daisy was glad she ran her own business and that she was her own boss. 

There was more than just herself to think about in that moment though. 

“So, that was awful,” Chloe said. 

Even worse, Chloe’s book launch, the entire reason for the party tonight, got lost in the shuffle. 

Chloe was foremost on Daisy’s mind.  What a blow this was for Daisy’s old roommate.  It was supposed to be a celebration, a culmination of Chloe’s hard work—a high point after years of professional struggle.  Instead, it was turning into a night she wished she could forget.  On top of that, there wasn’t anything Daisy could say to fix this, or even really make it better.  All Daisy could do was offer comfort. 

“Look.  Why don’t I take you out for a night cap after this is over,” Daisy suggested. 

Chloe looked completely rattled.  “Uh sure, I guess.”

“Chloe, I’m so sorry.  None of this has anything to do with your book though.  It’s just behind the scenes drama.”

“Yeah, with the people in charge of publishing and marketing my book.”  Chloe sighed.  “Look, I need to get some fresh air and collect my thoughts.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“Actually, I just want to go this one alone.  I just need a few minutes to myself.”

“Ok.  Well, just know that I’m here for you,” Daisy said. 

“I know,” Chloe replied. 

Chloe walked out to get some fresh air.  That left Daisy standing awkwardly in a half empty room with a handful of disgruntled publishing employees.  Given that, there was never a better time to scope out the buffet table. 

Chapter Nine

Ten minutes later, Chloe still hadn’t returned from getting fresh air.  She also hadn’t responded to Daisy’s text.  So Daisy went out looking for Chloe.  What she found in the lobby was more drama. 

This time, it was Hank Hammond and Olivia Connors arguing.  They were out of earshot, but Daisy could pretty much tell what was being said, and it wasn’t pretty.  Hell hath no fury like a mistress scorned.  Hank was going to regret cheating on his wife in more ways than one.  It took a special kind of bad luck to make three lovers want to kill him. 

Before Daisy was able to get too wrapped up in thinking about Hank’s follies, she heard Chloe calling her name. 

“Daisy,” Chloe said. 

Daisy turned around and saw Chloe standing with a man.  He was in his early thirties and clean shaven, with short, sandy brown hair, an angular face, a gawky frame, and wore glasses.  He also looked like he’d had a seriously rotten day. 

Chloe continued.  “This is Trevor Webster.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Daisy said. 

“Trevor is the reason my book is being published,” Chloe declared. 

Trevor became self-conscious, clearly not used to getting attention or praise. 

“I wouldn’t put it that way,” Trevor replied. 

“Then how would you put it?” Chloe asked. 

“I was just the one who found your manuscript in the slush pile,” Trevor said. 

“Slush pile?” Daisy asked. 

“The pile where most manuscripts go to die.  It’s where all the general submissions to the publishing company are put.  Most of the time, the slush pile is filled with dreck.  But every once in a while, I find a diamond in the rough,” Trevor explained. 

“Like I said, Trevor’s the reason my book is being published.  And let me say, as someone that was waiting tables for a living when you pulled my manuscript from the slush pile, that’s something I’ll never forget,” Chloe said. 

Trevor was clearly getting embarrassed from all the credit he was getting.  He quickly deflected.  “Speaking of, how has your evening been?  I’ll bet pretty unforgettable.”

Both Daisy and Chloe tensed up. 

Chloe finally mumbled an answer.  “You could say that.”

Trevor looked deep into Daisy’s eyes, then Chloe’s. 

“What did I miss?” Trevor asked. 

Chloe tried to change the subject.  “Where were you earlier by the way?”

“I had to work late…again,” Trevor bemoaned. 

“Spending some quality time with the slush pile?” Daisy joked. 

“Oh yeah.  We’re practically best friends,” Trevor replied. 

“Find any more diamonds in the rough?” Chloe wondered. 

Trevor shook his head.  “You’re the last diamond I found.”

Chloe corrected him.  “You mean my manuscript, right?”

“Oh—right,” Trevor stammered. 

Daisy could tell by the look in Trevor’s eyes that he liked something more than just Chloe’s manuscript. 

“So, do you want to tell me what I missed earlier?” Trevor asked.

“Oh nothing.  Apparently Hank has been cheating on his wife with both Lindsay and Olivia,” Chloe deadpanned. 

Trevor’s jaw dropped. 

Just then, Hank Hammond approached, looking like a volcano ready to erupt.  He grabbed Trevor’s shoulder from behind. 

“We have to talk,” Hank said. 

Everyone could tell Hank wanted to chew Trevor out. 

Chloe tried to take the heat off Trevor. 

“Mr. Hammond, I want you to meet one of my good friends,” Chloe said. 

Hank gave Daisy a half-hearted wave and a disinterested look. 

“Hello,” Hank said. 

Hank then stared Trevor down. 

“It’s time to talk…now…alone,” Hank declared. 

Trevor reluctantly walked off with Hank.  Chloe meanwhile wasn’t going anywhere, despite Daisy’s urgings. 

“Why don’t we get back to the party?” Daisy suggested. 

“No, not yet.”  Chloe had laser-like focus as she stared at Trevor and Hank across the lobby of the hotel. 

“You really like him, don’t you?” Daisy asked. 

Chloe played dumb.  “Who?”

“Trevor,” Daisy replied. 

Instead of answering, Chloe had her own question to ask. 

“Do you think he likes me?” Chloe wondered. 

“Are you kidding?  I’m surprised he hasn’t asked you out.  At least not yet.”

“Yet?” Chloe asked. 

“I’m sure he will soon enough.”

“Maybe tonight isn’t so bad after all,” Chloe said. 

Chloe then saw Trevor storming away from Hank. 

“Maybe I spoke too soon,” Chloe continued. 

Chloe ran after Trevor and tried to catch up with him before he left the hotel, but she had no luck. 

Trevor couldn’t get out of that hotel fast enough. 

***

Chloe had no idea what Hank had said to Trevor to make him storm out of the hotel, but she was determined to find out.  She approached Hank. 

“What just happened?” Chloe asked. 

Hank was evasive.  “A little internal business is all.  It’s nothing to concern yourself with.”

Chloe wasn’t taking no for an answer.  “You really expect me to believe that?”

“There’s a party going on.  You should get back to it,” Hank said. 

Chloe was relentless.  “Can you please explain all this?”

Hank started walking away.  “Excuse me, but I have some partying to do.”

Chloe hated that answer.  At the same time, she wasn’t going to get any more information out of Hank. 

Daisy approached Chloe. 

“Come on.  Let’s try to salvage what’s let of this party,” Daisy said.