Romeow and Juliet (11 page)

I was formulating the perfect big sister response when Camden Bradford walked in with Bill Powell. He waved when he saw me and started across the restaurant in our direction. I could feel my stomach churn as I considered the fact that the two men I most suspected in Keith Weaver’s murder had shown up at one of the most popular restaurants in Harthaven together.

“Cait, so nice to see you. Do you know Bill Powell?” Camden introduced us.

“We’ve met,” I confirmed. “This is my sister Cassie.”

“Nice to meet you.”

Cassie turned a bright red when Cam shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you too,” Cassie stammered.

“So what brings you to the Catholic side of town?” I asked, admittedly somewhat rudely.

“Church, actually,” Cam answered. “I was coming out of the afternoon service when I ran into Bill, and we decided to grab a bite.”

“You’re Catholic?” I asked.

“Born and raised. You seem surprised.”

I wanted to say I was surprised that a churchgoing man would commit a cruel and senseless murder, but then again, churchgoing men commit cruel and senseless murders every day.

Okay, let me stop here and say that I really have no idea why I won’t let go of the idea that Camden Bradford is guilty of killing Keith Weaver. He actually seems like a perfectly lovely man. And he had been really nice when we’d gone looking for the cats on Friday evening. There was just something about him that caused my stomach to knot up whenever he was around.

“It looks like our table is ready,” Bill said, just in time to save me from making a response.

The men said their good-byes before turning to cross the restaurant.

“Who was that?” Cassie breathed.

“New district manager for the bank.”

“Are you dating?”

“Of course we aren’t dating. I barely know the man.”

“It seemed like he was giving you the look.”

“What look?” I asked.

“You know. The look.”

“Can we get back to this much-too-old boyfriend of yours?”

Cassie took a sip of her water. “It’s interesting how you’re so intent on discussing my love life, but when it comes to yours . . .”

“I don’t have a love life.”

“Exactly.”

Cassie had a point in that there was something about Camden Bradford that caused my nerve endings to sizzle. The thing was, I really couldn’t tell if what I was feeling was attraction or a sixth sense that was warning me that the guy wasn’t as nice as he appeared to be. There was something about him that I couldn’t bring myself to trust.

After Cassie and I ordered lasagna with garlic bread and garden salads, we allowed the conversation to gravitate toward less sticky subjects than our love lives. While I worried about Cassie’s choice of love interest, I knew there wasn’t a thing I could do about it. Cassie was the independent sort who wasn’t apt to take advice from me or anyone else.

“So what’s going on with your murder investigation?” Cassie asked.

“What makes you think I’m investigating a murder?” I asked.

“Kourtney Darby told me that she overheard her mother telling someone that you’d been digging around, trying to turn up information on Keith Weaver’s murder.”

“Did Kourtney mention who her mother was speaking to?”

“She didn’t know. Her mom was on the phone and she changed the subject when she noticed Kourtney was listening in. Kourtney said her mom was pretty mad about it, although she also said her mom was pretty mad about almost everything since her dad left.”

“Kim and her husband are separated?” I hadn’t known that.

“Kourtney said her mom and dad had a fight, then her dad went totally ballistic, took his stuff, and split without even saying good-bye.”

“That’s too bad. I hope they work it out.”

“Kourtney is pretty worried about the situation. I guess her dad has been in trouble before for beating up some guy. She said the other guy totally deserved it, but her dad still ended up spending a couple of months in the slammer. Kourtney said her dad is a good guy when he hasn’t been drinking and hopes he’ll manage to keep his cool until he calms down a bit.”

“He doesn’t sound like the sort of guy Kourtney should be living with,” I observed as the waitress set our salads and a basket of golden garlic bread on the table.

“Kourt told me her mom’s temper is even worse than her dad’s. They met at some kind of court-mandated anger management class. Talk about a wacky way to meet the person you’re going to marry.”

Today was Memorial Day. While the schools were out and the bank was closed, this particular day of the year varied only slightly from any other Monday in Pelican Bay. The town was built around the idea of commerce. Danny was booked with whale watching tours and the Bait and Stitch was open to meet the needs of holiday visitors. The main street, which runs along the harbor, features a variety of eclectic shops and restaurants, including Herbalities (Bella and Tansy’s store), Ship Wreck (Banjo and Summer’s place), Off the Hook (a sushi bar), and For the Halibut (a fish market), and on this busy Monday the shops were crowded with day trippers from the mainland out to enjoy the warm spring holiday.

Maggie called to let me know she would be staying with Siobhan a few more days to rest up before her trip back to the island. I felt torn about her decision. On one hand, I wanted my aunt to get the rest she needed in order to experience a complete recovery; on the other, I worried that her absence might affect not only the upcoming election but the quality of life on Madrona Island in the future.

Tara was helping Danny for the day and Marley seemed to be doing okay on her own when I stopped by, so I decided to take an hour to follow up on a hunch that had been lingering in the back of my mind for several days.

It seemed to me that there were several things going on that on the surface seemed to have nothing to do with one another but my intuition told me had to be related.

First of all, there was Keith Weaver’s murder. To my mind, there were two categories of suspects when evaluating this untimely death: those whose motives had to do with the condo project and those whose motives had to do with the affair the man might have been conducting.

And then there was the fact that Maggie’s tea had been poisoned. I’d spoken about it to my aunt, who’d informed me that she ordered her tea from a distributor on the mainland. The tea was shipped to her at the Bait and Stitch at the beginning of every month, a loose-leaf variety that was kept fresh in an airtight canister. Maggie kept the bulk of the tea at the store but had a smaller canister that she kept at home and refilled from the larger supply as needed. Finn verified that both canisters had been contaminated. In my mind the arsenic had to have been added to the tea either prior to shipment or while it was located at the Bait and Stitch. It didn’t make sense that it was poisoned prior to being shipped, so it had to have been doctored by someone who had access to the back room at the Bait and Stitch. I’d considered the list of those people with access to the tea and narrowed it down to pretty much everyone on the island.

The truth of the matter was that Maggie and Marley let a variety of people use the quilting room for their book clubs, prayer groups, men’s clubs, women’s organizations, and on and on. Anyone could have spiked the tea. Anyone with a motive.

Which brought me to the third seemingly independent event: the upcoming election. The only common denominators I could come up with between Maggie and Keith were the island council, the condo project, and the impending election. Keith had been a member of the island council who might have been either for or against the condo development, depending on who you talked to. Maggie, a staunch opponent of the project, was the front runner in a hotly contested campaign for Gary Pixley’s seat. Gary was very vocal about his opposition to the project, and if things had run their natural course, Gary wouldn’t have retired until after the vote. The way things stood now, both Maggie and Francine had to win the election for the project to be rejected. Maggie was out of town due to her illness and Francine was away due to the emotional instability of Camden Bradford’s mother.

So back to my hunch: It occurred to me that, in spite of the trouble he was having with the hardware store he owned, it was beyond odd that Gary would resign from the council prior to the vote. Could it be that whoever killed Keith and poisoned Maggie had managed to threaten Gary into resigning early?

Gary’s hardware store was located at the edge of town. It was a nice day, so I decided to ride my bike into town. Max trotted along beside me as we made our way along the narrow dirt trail that hugged the coastline. Although it was early in the season, the surf was cooperating nicely, so there were several diehard wave junkies dressed in wet suits who had braved the cold to catch the first waves of the season.

As I peddled along the hard-packed trail, I considered the approach I would take with Gary. If he was being threatened, simply asking him about it wasn’t going to net me the answers I needed. I’d have to strike up a casual conversation and then work my way into his confidence through an open window.

I parked my bike in the rack provided for just such a use and attached the leash to Max’s collar. While Gary permitted our four-legged friends in the store, he required that all dogs be restrained at all times.

“Afternoon, Gary,” I greeted as Max and I trotted up to the counter.

“How’d that paint you bought a few weeks ago work out?” Gary asked about the purchase I’d made to freshen the walls in my bedroom.

“The color was perfect. Thanks for suggesting it. I’ll probably do the kitchen in a month or two and I’ll definitely make sure to ask your opinion.”

I figured that would gave Gary an opening to tell me he was leaving the island sooner rather than later, if that was, in fact, the case.

Gary didn’t say anything, but he did furrow his brow.

“I’m here today because I want to do something to add some cheer to Maggie’s house before she returns home. I guess you heard she’s in Seattle for tests.”

“I wasn’t aware. Have they found anything wrong with her? She seemed to be fine one minute and then sick the next.”

“They found arsenic in her system.”

Gary frowned. “Arsenic? Where would she have come into contact with arsenic?”

“Someone added it to that godawful tea she drinks. The tea is so bitter, I guess she didn’t even notice.”

“Is she going to be okay?” Gary seemed sincerely concerned.

“She should be. I sure would like to know who did that to her, however. If she’d drunk enough it could have killed her.”

“I can’t imagine anyone who would do such a thing.”

I looked around the store. We were alone, which was fortunate. “I’ve been thinking about things. It seems like it might be possible someone was poisoning Maggie to keep her from winning the election.”

“Why would anyone do that?”

“Someone killed Keith,” I pointed out.

Gary looked away, not meeting my eyes.

“I heard you were resigning from the council early,” I added. “I have to admit I was surprised, given the current political climate. Without your vote to stop the condo project, it seems clear the proposal will pass.”

I could tell by the way Gary was fidgeting around that he wasn’t at all comfortable with the topic.

“If something is going on, you need to tell someone. Maggie is sick and Keith is dead. The last thing we need is another casualty.”

“Things are complicated,” Gary returned. “I doubt you’d understand.”

“Try me.”

Gary looked at the floor as he appeared to be considering my suggestion. I knew the man had no reason to confide in me, but I also realized that often times, if someone wanted to share a secret, all it really took was a persistent nudge.

“The store has been struggling for a while,” Gary started. “Ever since the ferry began stopping on the island it’s become easier for folks to head to the mainland for a day of shopping. Several months ago I decided it was time to shut things down. My family and I plan to move to the East Coast to be near my parents.”

“Okay, but why quit early?” I asked.

“Money.”

“Someone’s paying you to resign from the council early?” I asked.

“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” Gary verified. “Enough for us to move and get started on a new life.”

“Who’s paying you to resign early?” I asked. The person who was bribing Gary had to be the same person who killed Keith and poisoned Maggie.

“I don’t know. I received a text a while back that outlined the proposal. The text said that as soon as I announced my resignation from the council I would receive $10,000, and when the elections were over I’d receive the other $15,000. I thought about it some, and in the end I realized how much the money would mean to my family, so I did as I was told.”

“And you received the ten grand?”

“It was deposited into my bank account the day after I turned in my early resignation.”

“How did the person who bribed you have your account information?” I asked. “Did you provide it to them?”

“They didn’t ask. I imagine someone from the bank is in on this.”

Someone from the bank. Someone like Camden Bradford. I knew he was too nice to be real.

“Gary, I realize it may mess up your deal, but you have to tell Finn about this. Maybe he can trace the text or the money transfer.”

Gary sighed. “There’s more. Whoever sent the text threatened my family if I didn’t cooperate. It was pretty clear that if I played along I’d be rewarded by getting a bunch of cash, but if I didn’t, something equally bad would happen.”

I couldn’t imagine being in Gary’s position. It was natural to want to take care of your family, but a man was dead and justice needed to be served.

“I’m sure Finn will be discreet. No one needs to know we talked.”

Gary hesitated.

“A man is dead,” I reminded him.

“Yeah, okay. Let’s give him a call.”

It turned out that the text had been sent from a burner phone and couldn’t be traced, and the routing that had been used to transfer the money into Gary’s account was much too sophisticated for anyone on the island to trace. Finn was going to look into it, and promised to keep a low profile until he had some sort of proof. At this point everyone felt it best that Gary continue on the path he’d agreed to with whoever was paying him off.

When I left Gary’s store I headed to the marina to see if Danny was done for the day. It occurred to me that it was time to bring in some reinforcements, and the best—only—reinforcements I could think of were Danny and Tara.

Danny and Tara were sitting on the deck of his boat when I arrived at the marina, sharing a beer while Bandit played nearby with a ball of twine someone had given him. Max wandered over to greet the kitten, who seemed thrilled to see him. Danny tossed me one of the frosty beverages, which I sipped as I revealed the purpose for my visit.

“How are we supposed to find a killer who even Finn doesn’t seem able to track down?” Tara asked.

“We talk to people and hope we catch a break,” I said.

“Sounds like it might be dangerous to get involved,” she commented.

I looked at Danny. He shrugged. “I’m in,” he agreed. “What do you want me to do?”

“We need to create a suspect list and divide it up between us. I really should get home to Romeo and I still need to see to the cats. How about we move this discussion over to my place? I’ll even cook you dinner.”

“Dinner sounds good.” Danny stood up.

“I have my bike,” I said.

“Toss it in the back of my truck and I’ll drive you and Max home,” Danny offered.

After letting Romeo out and seeing to the cats in the sanctuary while Tara made dinner with Danny’s help, the three of us settled around my kitchen table to come up with a strategy. We began by making a list of who might benefit from Keith’s death, who might benefit from Maggie’s illness, and who would want Gary gone from the island. While the three things could be unrelated, we decided to work from the premise that one person or persons was responsible for everything that was going on.

There were people like Bill Powell, who were clearly on all of the lists, and people like Keith’s wife, who seemed to belong on only one.

And then there were those in the gray area, such as Camden Bradford and Francine Rivers. Camden seemed to be tied in with Bill and his project, so we could rationalize that he might want Keith dead and Gary gone. He might also want Maggie out of the running for the council. The problem was that none of us had ever seen him in the Bait and Stitch. It seemed unlikely that he could have poisoned Maggie’s tea unless he was working with an accomplice.

Which brought us to Francine. She wanted the cat sanctuary gone, and creating a situation in which Maggie was too sick to care for the animals could, in a roundabout way, accomplish that. She was also Maggie’s opponent in the race for the open seat on the island council. With Maggie out of the running, she’d have a good shot at winning. But Francine was very much against the condo project. There was no way she could be in on the bribing of Gary Pixley.

“It looks like everything points to Bill Powell as our primary suspect. I say we start with him and then work our way down the list.”

“Start with him how?” Tara asked. “What exactly are we supposed to do?”

“I guess we can try to determine if he has an alibi,” I suggested.

“He has to be Finn’s number one suspect as well as ours,” Tara pointed out. “I’m sure Finn has already looked into him. Maybe you should just ask him.”

“Yeah, you have a point,” I admitted, “although I’m not sure he’ll tell me how his investigation is going even if I ask.”