Dead in the Daisies (A Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mystery) (5 page)

Vicky grew more nervous
when the rehearsal dinner began. She had made sure that Henry, the head chef, had everything that he needed to create a successful and delicious meal. Sarah kept poking her head into the kitchen to check on things as well. Trinie and Seth were surrounded by people they loved, who they assumed loved them in return. It was a beautiful evening, with lots of heartfelt toasts, and hilarious memories shared.

The one time Vicky was sure that the night was a success
was when Seth stood up and in front of the entire gathering proposed to Trinie again. There was a tense moment when Trinie hesitated to accept. But her playful grin indicated that she was just teasing him, and when she did accept, the entire group erupted into applause. Vicky was someone who tended to assume that most celebrities were stuck up or spoiled, but by the end of the night she was wishing for nothing but happiness for the sweet couple. If Trinie and Seth could take the risk knowing how long most celebrity marriages lasted, wasn't it something she should begin to consider?

***

After the rehearsal dinner was over, Vicky headed back to her apartment. She found Mitchell waiting for her outside the door.

“
Hi,” he said shyly as she smiled at him with surprise.

“
What are you doing here?” she asked as she paused beside him.

“
I'm sorry, I know that you're probably worn out, and it's the big day tomorrow. I was just hoping we could spend a few minutes together,” he shrugged mildly. “If it's not a good time, I can go though,” he offered

“
No, it's fine,” she smiled and opened the door. “Come on inside,” she stepped in and waited for him to follow after her. They hadn't really done much hanging out at each others' places yet. Just the occasional after date drop off, but no evenings in. Mitchell nervously stepped inside and she closed the door behind him. Luckily, she tended to keep her place pretty neat, but she still glanced around wondering if something embarrassing might be in plain sight.

“
Want a glass of wine?” she offered as she headed for the kitchen.

“
If you're having one,” he nodded slightly and sat down on the couch. As she poured them both a glass of wine she wondered why he might be there. Was it just to spend some time with her or was it because of what Ethan had said? It was hard not to think that the little boy's innocent words hadn't disturbed Mitchell at all. When she returned to the living room with glasses in hand he was sitting forward on the couch waiting for her.

“
Thanks,” he murmured as he accepted the glass of wine and she settled down on the couch beside him.

“
So, what brings you here?” she asked as she reached out to lightly trace the slope of his shoulder.

“
I just wanted to make sure that you were ready for tomorrow,” he said calmly. “I thought you might like a massage.”

“
A massage?” Vicky grinned. “That sounds wonderful.”

“
Here,” he shifted on the couch so he could reach her shoulders and gently rub them for her. His thumbs traced slow circles along her muscles, encouraging them to relax. “Everything is going to be perfect,” he assured her. “Don't let yourself get worried.”

“
Right now I couldn't worry about anything,” she purred as she unwound beneath his touch. There was something so loving about the way his fingertips sought out the tight areas of her shoulders and upper back.

“
Good, remember that,” he chuckled warmly, “because I want you to think about something.”

Immediately Vicky began to tense up again.
“What?” she asked hesitantly.

“
I'd like to take you away for the weekend. Sometime soon,” he suggested. “Maybe after this wedding is over, we could get a few days to ourselves, hmm?”

Vicky sighed as his fingers found just the right spot on her shoulders to relax her once more.
“Do you really think you could stand me for two whole days?”

“
Oh,” he leaned forward slightly and whispered in her ear. “I think I could stand you for much longer than that,” he assured her and then kissed her cheek softly. “Just think about it Vicky, you don't have to answer me now.”

“
Okay,” she sighed as he drew his hands away from her shoulders and she sunk back against his chest. “If I say yes will I get another massage?” she asked hopefully as she looked up at him.

“
As many as you like,” he promised with a warm smile. “Now, I want to let you rest. But promise me, you're actually going to sleep, and not end up pacing all night going over your lists?”

Vicky sat up on the couch and
studied him for a moment. It amazed her that he really did know her very well.

“
I promise,” she grinned and they stood up together. She walked him towards the door and found herself having to resist asking him to stay. When he leaned in for a lingering kiss, she nearly did, but he pulled away.

“
Goodnight,” he smiled at her. “I'll see you in the morning.”

“
Goodnight,” she called out and watched him walk out of the side entrance of the inn. As she saw the door fall shut behind him, she had a strange thought. What would it be like not to have to say goodnight?

Vicky's alarm went off early the next day. She wanted a good start so that she could check on things. She hurried to dress and headed out into the crisp morning air. The weather was supposed to be perfect, but that couldn't always be counted on. She double checked the tents to make sure that they were secure. Then she continued to evaluate everything that was needed for the day. So far she had discovered that the wine was not being chilled, and the cake had been delayed by an hour. She averted both crises quite easily.

Vicky
decided to take a walk around the grounds and gardens to make sure that nothing was out of place from the set up the day before. As she rounded the corner of the inn she noticed that the flowers that lined the building were crumpled. They usually looked pristine. As she stepped closer, she spotted a shiny black shoe laying in the daisies. It was hard to see from a distance.

“
Oh no,” she gasped and wondered if one of the groomsman was drunk and had thrown his shoes out a window. What she saw next, partly hidden by the daisies was a sock wrapped around a foot. She began to tremble as she saw the wide open eyes of a man gazing endlessly up at the morning sky. The scream stuck in her throat as she realized this man was dead. It was the photographer who had come at the last minute as a replacement.

“
Help,” she squeaked out barely able to hear her own voice. “Help!” she cried out louder the second time as she reached for her cell phone. She called Mitchell as some of the inn staff came running towards her.

“
Mitchell, I need you here, now,” she gasped into the phone. As he listened to her words, he started heading out of his office.

“
Let's go Sheriff, something has happened out at the inn,” he called out as he hurried past the older man.

“
I'm on my way, Vicky,” Mitchell said firmly into the phone. “Just stay put, I'll be right there!”

Vicky was beside herself as she waited for Mitchell's arrival.
Was this really happening? How was this possible? Was she dreaming? This was not the first dead body she had found in the gardens of the inn.

She did her best to steer all
the guests away from the area. Sarah was the next to arrive, and when she heard about the discovery, she reacted just as Vicky had expected her to.

“
That's it, we're going to have to call off the wedding,” she announced dramatically and shook her head. “This will be the end of the inn.” She wrung her hands and groaned. “I know, I know, that shouldn't be what I'm thinking of now, I should be thinking of that poor man who’s lost his life, but I just can't!”

“
Sarah, take a breath,” Vicky said firmly as she settled her gaze on her sister. “This is something none of us could have predicted. It’s happened. It's terrible. But it doesn't mean we have to cancel the wedding,” she insisted.

“
Vicky, how can you even say that?” Sarah demanded as she stepped closer to her sister. “Someone is dead, and the ceremony is in just a few hours. How long do you think it's going to take the police to process the scene? Do you really think Trinie is going to want pictures with red and white flashing lights in the background?”

“
Please, just wait before you cancel the wedding,” Vicky said with despair in her voice. If Seth and Trinie didn’t want to cancel the wedding, and the police didn’t make them cancel the wedding she knew that her sister would be the one to decide in the end, but she couldn't imagine disappointing Trinie and Seth. “The body is nowhere near the wedding garden, the police can still conduct their investigation. The ceremony isn't until nearly sunset, so we have time to clear this up as much as possible.” Vicky knew that it would be hard to convince her sister, but she was determined to try.

“
I don't know, Vicky,” Sarah hesitated as she glanced in the direction of the garden where the ceremony would be held. It was a good distance away.

“
If we cancel the wedding, the reputation of the inn will be jeopardized,” Vicky reminded her older sister with urgency in her tone. “If we go through with the service, and everything goes as planned, then we've lost nothing. Trinie and Seth will have their happy day, the guests won't be disturbed, and the crime, if it is a crime, will still get solved.”

Sarah sighed and nodded slowly.
“You're right,” she reluctantly agreed. “But if anyone is in danger or the police say that we have to cancel it we're going to need to come up with a plan.”

“
Okay but just think of all the security that's here,” Vicky pointed out with confidence. “This has to be the safest place around.”

“
Ahem,” Sheriff McDonnell cleared his throat behind her. “Tell that to the man who is dead in the daisies.”

Vicky turned to face him and drew a deep breath. Sheriff McDonnell
’s shirt was stretched to the point that the buttons were strained enough to reveal the white undershirt beneath. He wore his pants high up on his waist, and stood with his shoulders held back to show off the Sheriff's star pinned to his chest. His entire life had been defined by working in law enforcement. “Do you know how he ended up there?” he inquired brusquely.

“
I’ve got no idea what happened,” Vicky said quickly. “I found him just a little while ago when I called Mitchell. All I know is that he's a photographer, and he replaced the one who was meant to be here.” She hesitated a moment and then pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I'll get you his name,” she said as she searched for the email from the photography company.

Mitchell walked up to join them, and nodded his head respectfully at Sarah who was watching as several officers
and medical personnel swarmed the area beneath the window. The sheriff looked up at the window above the flowers and rubbed his chin slowly.

“
His name is Graham Walker,” Vicky said. “I have details of the photography company but no more information on him.”

“
I'm sure he has ID in his wallet,” Mitchell stated. He glanced up at the window as well. It was open wide with the curtains billowing through.

“
Well, it's pretty obvious that he fell through the window,” Sheriff McDonnell said quietly. “Poor fool was probably drunk, or maybe he was trying to get a closer look at the flowers,” he muttered and arched an eyebrow. “Unfortunate event,” the sheriff nodded as he walked towards the body.

Mitchell hung back and looked into Vicky's eyes.
“Are you okay?” he asked her tenderly.

“
I will be,” Vicky nodded and managed a slight smile. The discovery of the body was weighing heavily on her mind, not just because of the wedding, but because this wasn’t the first dead body she had discovered in the garden.

“It's going to be fine,” he promised her. “I'm sure it was just an accident.”

Vicky nodded, but she was not convinced.

“What do you make of this?” Sheriff McDonnell asked Mitchell as he stepped up beside him.

“
Well, it could be an accident,” Mitchell said quietly as he crouched down in front of the body. “Or even a suicide.”

“
Strange place to commit suicide,” the sheriff muttered as he studied the man's wide open eyes. “Why come to an event like this if you planned to off yourself?”

“
Media attention?” Mitchell suggested as he glanced back towards the gates that blocked the entrance of the inn. “Maybe he thought he'd get his name in the news, because of Trinie and Seth's wedding. Or maybe it's something simpler, a love affair?”

“
You mean with the actress?” the sheriff asked with surprise.

“
Well, actresses aren't exactly known for their fidelity, are they?” Mitchell asked with a light shrug.