Kari Lee Townsend - Sunny Meadows 04 - Perish in the Palm (4 page)

“It’s okay, man.” Sean clapped Cole on the back. “Every wedding experiences a few glitches. Most people just don’t get to see them, laddy. That’s all.”

“That’s not all,” Cole said. “Every time I’m finally happy, something goes wrong.” The look on his face said everything.

The feeling of doom I’d had the entire day intensified, but I pasted on my best maid-of-honor smile at Jo and tried to reassure Cole. “It’s okay. No harm no foul. The party has just begun.”

An ear piercing scream came from the other end of the tent, and we all broke into a run in that direction.

Mitch held up his hands as he whirled around to face us. “Don’t move,” he said, his voice serious and full of authority.

“Why?” I asked, pretty sure I wasn’t going to like the answer.

“Because everything’s
not
okay. There’s definitely harm and plenty of foul…play, that is.”

“What does that even mean?” Jo wrung her hands.

“That this is no longer a wedding reception.”

“Then what the hell is it?” Sean held his hands up in the air.

Mitch’s face turned to granite. “A crime scene.”

“I knew it.” Cole hung his head. “I’m cursed.”

“And Pierce Theodore is dead.”

Gasps rang out among the guests as Detective Mitch Stone stepped aside. The innkeeper lay sprawled on his back beneath the buffet table with the kitchen knife buried deep into his chest and my mother standing over his dead body, looking more than
tempted
. She looked downright guilty as sin.

Party officially over.

H
ours later, what had started out as the best day of Jo and Cole’s lives was quickly turning into the worst. The beautiful wedding reception was now covered in crime scene tape, and law enforcement individuals scoured the grounds. No one was allowed to leave until everyone was accounted for. Mayor Cromwell had his troll like, flaming red head bent in an intense conversation with Chief Spencer who was a slicked back older version of Mitch. Meanwhile a distinguished, bald, goatee sporting Captain Grady Walker was doing his best to keep the peace.

“Please, everyone.” Captain Walker held his hands up high. “Calm down. I promise we won’t keep you here all night. We just have to make sure that everyone who was here tonight has been accounted for. It’s for your own good. The last thing we want is for a murderer to run around on the loose in Divinity.”

People grumbled amongst themselves, but the noise level had lessoned considerably from one of hostility to one of fear. With the storm still raging outside, the tension in the air beneath the tent was tangible. It was clear Peirce Theodore didn’t die by accident. There was a killer among them.

“What a nightmare.” Jo dabbed the tears from her eyes. “I thought
cold
feet
were supposed to strike before a person said
I do.
Cole had no problem marrying me, but now that he
is
married, he’s freaking out. Just because his wife died on the back of his bike and now this happens after marrying me, he believes he’s cursed. He doesn’t want to consummate the wedding, and he offered me an annulment as a way out. Can you believe it? Um, hello, we’ve already consummated our union and then some! After all he went through to get me to say yes, he’s going to wimp out now? I can’t take it, Sunny, I just can’t.”

I grabbed her hands and squeezed them tight with my own. “You won’t have to. We’ll catch whoever is responsible. I can promise you that.”

“I sure hope so.” She sniffled. “Because this is
not
the way I intended to spend my honeymoon.”

“Land sakes, child. You poor, poor dear. And on your wedding day, no less. Here honey.” Granny Gert came to a stop beside Jo, sporting her standard apron over her formal wedding attire. “Have a cookie. It’ll fix you right up.” She held out a tray of an assortment of her famous cookies. “There really is a cookie for everything, and don’t you worry. These things always have a way of working themselves out.”

Sean came to a stop beside Jo, with a flustered Zoe. “What the hell just happened?” he asked, loosening his tie and unbuttoning the top button of his shirt.

“My life is ruined,” Jo wailed around a bit of Granny’s double-chocolate cookie, but even that didn’t help.

“Your life isn’t ruined, it’s just delayed.” Zoe tried to keep the calm, but I caught the worried look she shot Sean.

“Tell that to the groom.” Jo stabbed a finger in Cole’s direction, but he stubbornly refused to look at her
for her own good
.

I grabbed Mitch’s arm and pulled him aside. “We have to do something.”

“What exactly do you want me to do, Tink? Wave a magic wand?” He crossed his arms over his chest.

“Oh, gee, I don’t know…your job, maybe?” I poked him, not liking that Grumpy Pants had inhabited his body once more.

He rubbed his chest and frowned at me. “You’re not gonna like what that entails.”

“Why?” I had a feeling I knew what he was going to say, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to actually believe he would do that.

“Because it involves questioning your mother.”

My stomach dropped, and a feeling of dread washed over me. I pushed back the acid in my throat and forced the words out. “Why would you do that?”

“Just doing my job like you asked. I have no choice, Sunny. She has motive and incriminating evidence against her. You know as well as I do that she was the last person seen holding the knife now buried in Peirce Theodore’s chest. Not to mention she’s made it clear she can’t stand him and would love to take over his inn if only to show him how to run it the
right
way.” The detective grabbed my shoulders and stilled me so I would look at him. “Do I think your mother is the killer? Hell, no. But if you want me to find the
real
killer, then I have to treat this as a real case. Do you understand what that means?”

I sighed. “That my mother is the prime suspect, so my parents won’t be leaving town any time soon.”

“Good girl. And do you know what else it means?”

“That you don’t want me anywhere near the case.”

“Will wonders never cease,” he said with a slight grin, trying to ease the tension and lighten the mood. “I guess what they say is true.”

“What’s that?”

“The more time you spend together, the more you start sounding like each other.” He tweaked my nose.

“Sounding yes. Thinking no. And do you know what
that
means?” I raised a brow, my smile more of a smirk.

“That you don’t plan on staying away from this case for a single second,” he said wearily, looking at me as if he prayed he was wrong.

“Good boy.” I patted his shoulders. “You’re learning.”

He sighed in resignation. “And you’re playing with fire.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time.”

***

“Well, this certainly isn’t Divine Inspiration.” My mother ran her white gloved fingertip along the top of the check-in counter at The Divinity Hotel.

Divinity was an old-fashioned town with big Victorian homes and various businesses that showcased different eras throughout history. Some newer businesses opted for a more modern décor, but many of the older ones stuck to tradition. The Divinity Hotel was a large brick building with a 1930’s Art Deco theme inspired by the artists of Paris.

Lacquered wood furniture trimmed with brushed steel and lined with exotic Zebra skin upholstered fabric was placed strategically throughout the lobby. And the colorful starburst motifs in various shades of greens and oranges with small bits of black and gold arranged in geometric shapes that covered the floors and walls was eye catching.  

I thought it was charming, but my mother thought the place was over-the-top and tacky. With the inn shut down as a crime scene and no other hotel in town, she didn’t have a choice unless she wanted to stay with me. Under strict orders from the captain not to leave town, she’d made it more than clear that jail would be preferable before she would go anywhere near my demon cat.

Chuck Webb’s hard eyes narrowed. “I don’t know why I’m letting you stay here. You being a criminal, and all. You’re lucky Abigail and I have a baby on the way.”

He was a muscular man in his fifties, with a brown military haircut, and he looked scary intimidating. I avoided him whenever possible after our rocky past encounters, though his recent marriage to Abigail Brook had softened his edges a bit. Except my mother had a way of scraping her perfectly manicured nails over anyone’s patience.

“Last I checked it was innocent until proven guilty, darling. Don’t you know anything?” my mother fairly purred, but her eyes gave her away. She might act all calm and cool, but she was worried. I could tell. People might be more sympathetic to her plight if she would allow them to see that vulnerability, but showing weakness wasn’t in her nature. “No, you’re the lucky one, Mr. Webb. It’s a wonder your wife lets
you
stay here.”

He curled his hands into fists, but my father stepped between them, looking as dashing and important as ever. “Mr. Webb—Chuck—Donald Meadows here.” He held out his hand, and Chuck warily grasped his palm and shook after a long hesitation. “I really appreciate you letting us stay in your fine establishment. My wife has had a rough day and isn’t quite herself. You know how it is with women.”

My mother was about to say something, but my father shot her a warning look, and she backed down. He was the only human being on this planet who had that effect on her. It was one of the things I admired most about him. He truly loved her, and she knew it, but more importantly respected it. They respected each other. She knew he
always
had her best interest at heart, therefore she trusted and listened to whatever he said. I felt I had that with Mitch, it was just terrifying to give in to.

“Women.” Webb chuckled. “They truly are from another planet.”

“Exactly.” Dad clapped him on the shoulder as if he felt his pain. “Now if we could have your finest room, I will make it more than worth your while.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Chuck said.

“So, how far along is the Misses?” my father asked as if he genuinely cared. His admirable bed side manner was one of the things that made him such a great doctor. His patients adored him.

I pulled my mother away while my father worked his magic to smooth things over. We sat in a couple of chairs by a cozy fireplace. It wasn’t just a fireplace, it was the focal point of the lobby. A combination of mahogany, walnut, and oak wood had been used to create the mantel. Those woods were easy to carve and featured contrasting grains as part of the design. Carved flowers, leaves, and beading lined the frieze, and a beveled mirror had been built right into the center, surrounded by hand painted tiles.

My mother’s shoulders slumped just a hair, and only for a moment, but I saw. “Mother, what were you thinking?” I couldn’t help but ask.

She waved her hand at me. “He’s harmless.”

“I’m not talking about him, Mom,” I sputtered. “People heard you say on several occasions that you should buy the inn because you could surely run it better than that imbecile, and then you threatened to kill him.”

“I’m not worried because I’m innocent, darling. I wouldn’t be in this God forsaken business if I didn’t believe in it. Detective Stone will catch the real killer soon, I’m sure of it. This is simply an inconvenience.”

“It’s more than an inconvenience, and you should damn well be worried.” As my voice raised, I could feel my blood pressure rise as well. I couldn’t help it. I was worried sick. She was my mother and no matter how much she drove me crazy, I was terrified. She might act all tough, but there was no way she could handle jail. If anything bad ever happened to her, my father would never survive and I would never forgive myself.

She blinked up at me startled.

I took a deep breath and continued in a lower voice. “You kept pushing Mr. Theodore and arguing with him relentlessly in front of all the guests. Half the town was at that wedding. Everyone saw you two argue over the fruit bowl, and how on earth did the kitchen knife you were using end up buried in his chest? Answer me that.” My voice squeaked despite my efforts, so I looked away and practiced my yoga breathing. Wally’s World gym had to start paying off somehow.

When she remained silent, I glanced back at her. She would draw her sleek eyebrows together if she could, but the Botox prevented it, I was sure. “You don’t honestly think I killed him, do you?” she finally asked, as if my belief in her mattered that much. Sitting on the edge of her seat, she stared at me.

I blew out a breath and fell back against the cushions in my chair, because I knew it did. I knew she loved me as much as I did her. “Of course not,” I finally said, “but why were you standing over him when the tent was raised?”

“Like I told Detective Stone,” she replied, more composed now. “I helped Jo cut the cake and then just before the tent collapsed, someone shoved me hard in the direction of the fruit table. I had just regained my balance when I found myself face-to-face with the innkeeper. I admit we were about to pick up where we’d left off earlier in our argument but the tent suddenly fell.”

“What happened after that?”

“Quite honestly, I’m not really sure. There were all kinds of skirmishes taking place beneath that tent before it was lifted. Once it was, I was as shocked as everyone to see Mr. Theodore dead at my feet and the knife in his chest. I don’t recall how it got there. To think the real killer must have been right beside me when he or she committed the heinous act. I don’t know who it was, but one thing is clear. Someone is trying to set me up.”

“They’re not
trying
, Mom, they’ve succeeded. Can you think of anyone who would want to set you up?”

“No one knows me which makes me an easy target. It was pretty clear Mr. Theodore and I disliked each other, and I’m an outsider. The real question you should be asking is who might want Pierce dead or even who might want to ruin Jo and Cole’s wedding. Speaking of them, where are they now? On their honeymoon?”

“No, unfortunately. The honeymoon is on hold. They aren’t allowed to leave yet, either. No one who attended the reception can leave for the time being. It wouldn’t have been much of a honeymoon right now anyway. Not with the memory of a man getting murdered on their special day. And Cole is having a hard time not blaming himself.”

“What on earth for?”

“He thinks he is cursed, so now he’s trying to get Jo to leave him.” I shook my head and sat back to rub my throbbing temples.

“Oh, that’s just ridiculous.” My mother threw her hands up.

“Mitch and Sean are on their way to find him and try to talk some sense into him.”

“Poor Joanne. She shouldn’t be alone at a time like this.” My mother’s face suddenly looked every inch her age. She really cared about Jo, and I couldn’t help but feel a smidge of jealousy. I wasn’t sure she had ever expressed that kind of genuine concern for me. At least she never showed it.

“She’s not.” I pushed my jealousy aside because Jo was pretty awesome and deserved everyone’s affection. “Her cousin Zoe is with her. She’ll be okay. They went back to her new house to check on her dog Biff.”

“Now there’s a pet worth having.” My mother smiled in fondness, then her lips tipped down and her face looked pinched as she studied me in a most disapproving way. “And why aren’t you with them? You’re not being a very good maid-of-honor and best friend now, I’d say.”

And there was the mother I’d known my whole life. No “thank you” for staying with her because, heaven forbid, she admit she might actually need me for a change. Or the world might come to an end if she admitted she was the one in trouble this time. After all these years of knowing how she was, you wouldn’t think I would continue to let her get to me, but I did.