School's Out for Murder (Schooled in Murder Book 2) (5 page)

Emily took her by the arm and led her to the side of the booth. "Please keep your voice down. We don't want to be scaring anyone unnecessarily." Emily tried to keep her voice calm and rational, but those were two words that had never applied to Jenny Hanson.

She jerked her arm out of Emily's grasp and continued to rant at a decibel only slightly lower than a foghorn. "I will not keep quiet. Everyone should hear what I'm saying. Don't you all care about the safety of your children?" She sent a pointed glare at several parents still within hearing distance.

Emily decided the time for tact had passed them by. "Stop it, Jenny! You have no idea what you're talking about. You're the one frightening everyone for no reason. We do
not
have some serial killer on our hands. The mayor was clearly targeted. The rest of us have nothing to fear. But if you don't want Nicole to work the booth, I certainly understand and respect your decision."

This seemed to mollify the irate Jenny a little, though she seemed oblivious to the fact that her daughter was already at work beside Michelle, trying to ignore her mother's antics. Emily figured she had had a lot of practice at that. She turned back as the woman continued to crowd her personal space. "Did you say the mayor was a target?" Jenny was asking her.

"Obviously, whoever committed the murder, planned to kill the mayor and the mayor only. No one else was hurt or threatened in any way." Emily said, trying to placate her, while looking for a way to escape her clutches.

"That's true. I hadn't thought of it that way." Emily wasn't too surprised. Thinking things through was also not an ability that came naturally to Jenny. She hoped this would send the helicopter mom on her way, but instead she continued to hover, leaning in even closer to Emily as she whispered, "If Mayor McBain was the target, I bet I know who did it!"

Emily blinked at the quick change in subject. What could she possibly know about who would want to harm the mayor? She didn't necessarily want to encourage Jenny to gossip, but the curious part of her couldn't help asking, "Why would you say that?"
Yeah, yeah, curiosity killed the cat and all that, but…

"Well," she drew the word out as she pulled Emily over to a nearby bench. Her face was mere inches from Emily's, and Emily tried not to be obvious about leaning back out of the direct path of her hot breath. Up close, Emily could see her age in the fine lines around her eyes and mouth. Nicole had been a much longed for child who had not come along until later in Jenny and her husband's life.

Jenny alluded to that very fact when she said, "You know that I went to school with Janice McBain." Emily nodded, even though this was news to her.

"And Susanna Fowler was also in our class. You know—the town librarian?" This time when Emily nodded she knew exactly who Jenny was talking about. Susanna was always a big help to her during her research unit with her juniors. Emily was fond of the shy, retiring woman. She hadn't had a clue that these three women had gone to school together, though.

"Clearly, Susanna would be the most obvious one to want to off the mayor." She finally leaned back and gave a small, smug smile, crossing her arms across her ample chest.

Emily just stared at Jenny as if she'd grown an extra head. Susanna as an obvious murderer? Not unless the world had just turned upside down. She realized Emily was not on her same wavelength, so she leaned back in and added, "You know that Susanna and Larry were the hot item in high school? Every girl had a crush on Larry."

"Larry McBain?" Emily asked incredulously. While no slouch in the looks department, Larry didn't strike Emily as the stud muffin type. He always seemed a little distracted or preoccupied with his own thoughts, sometimes even mumbling to himself. Now that she thought about it though, it made more sense to see Larry with Susanna, the intellectual, quiet type, rather than his wife, who was his polar opposite with her aggressive and outspoken ways, both in her office as mayor and in her personal life as well. "So how did he end up with Janice then?" Emily asked, hating herself for encouraging the gossip, but interested despite herself.

"Back in our junior year, Janice was gaga over Tim Briar, but he never gave her a second glance. He only had eyes for Susanna, but unfortunately for Tim, Susanna had her sights set on Larry McBain. Susanna and Tim broke up right before our junior prom, and Janice was certain he would go to the prom with her then. But Tim decided not to go at all, and Janice was left devastated. She made it her mission in life to make Susanna miserable. Janice spent our entire senior year trying to get Larry away from Susanna, and with a few well-placed rumors that Susanna and Tim were carrying on behind Larry's back, Larry finally broke up with Susanna and took Janice to the senior prom. Neither Susanna nor Tim ever showed up for prom, and Tim left town as soon as graduation was over. He's never been back. But Susanna returned after college to take over running the library, as you well know."

"Okay?" Emily questioned. "I can see where that would cause some hard feelings, but surely high school drama is ancient history by now, isn't it?" She hated to think that either Janice or Susanna could hold a grudge for so many years.

"Oh, sure," Jenny continued. "But one has to wonder if Susanna doesn't still hold a torch for Larry. She never did marry. And on top of that," she went on before Emily could protest, "Janice has made no qualms about voicing her decision to cut funding for library acquisitions to put more money toward tourism promotion."

Emily wasn't sure what to say to this revelation about Larry, but she had already known about the proposed library funding cut. Still, Susanna as a murderer made about as much sense to her as Gabby as a murderer. She stood up from the bench, trying to indicate that the conversation was over. She turned to Jenny and said, "I'd hate to see any rumors about Susanna and Larry coming to the forefront of things." It was a not-so-subtle warning, and Jenny's eyes got round as she realized the true import of Emily's words.

"Well," Jenny sniffed, heading to the booth to grab her daughter, "I never. I certainly don't need to start any rumors. Everyone knows that Larry's having an affair, and it only makes sense that it's with Susanna." And with that final proclamation, she sailed off into the crowd, Nicole in tow, who was looking back apologetically at Emily. Emily gave her a reassuring smile and returned to the booth.

Michelle clearly had things under control, so Emily decided now was as good a time as any to see if Tad had made it back to the carnival. She was in the middle of telling Michelle where she was headed, when the man in question popped up in front of her. "Emily, can we talk?" Tad asked, his expression serious.

"Sure. I was just coming to look for you." Emily exited the booth, and she and Tad returned to the bench Emily and Jenny had just vacated.

Before she could say a word, Tad, scrubbing at his mop of hair that was going a little curly around the ears as it was badly in need of a trim, said, "Em, I'm really sorry I didn't come by last night. When I took Maclaine home, Larry was there, and it was not a pretty scene. It was late by the time I felt comfortable leaving them. I drove by your duplex, and it was dark. I didn't want to wake you. But I did try to call you several times…"

Emily felt her insides soften at this information, and she laid her head on Tad's shoulder and let loose a huge sigh. He put his arm around her, pulling her even closer to his side and leaned in for a kiss. Emily was happy to comply, but before she could get too lost in the deliciousness that was Tad, she wanted to discuss what she had learned about the mayor's death.

He was as surprised as she was to hear about Susanna's infatuation with Larry. "Though, you know," he said thoughtfully, "I can see Larry with Susanna more than I could with Janice."

Emily nodded in agreement, but she had to ask, "Then what about the rumor that Larry's having an affair with Amelia?" At his shocked glance, Emily realized she hadn't had a chance to fill Tad in on that particular tidbit. She was in mid-story when her cell's ringtone sounded from her back pocket. Emily tugged it free and saw it was Gabby calling, so she silenced "Crazy Train" with a swipe of her finger across the screen.

"Hey," Gabby said as a way of greeting. "Lunch is a go. We're meeting at Meg's Tea Room at 1:00 p.m. And Em," Gabby warned, "Amelia doesn't sound too hot."

"We'll cheer her up," Emily assured Gabby before hanging up.

"Looks like you gotta head out," Tad said, and Emily nodded.

"I'm just going to check on the booth and then I'm outta here," Emily told him, already moving in that direction.

"Okay, but promise me we will finish this conversation later," Tad said looking deep into her eyes before he planted one last steaming kiss on her.

Reeling slightly, Emily promised, "You can guarantee it."

Tad added, "Her boyfriend is supposed to be back by tonight anyway."

"Maclaine has a boyfriend?" That was news to Emily, and welcome news at that.

Tad nodded and headed back in the direction of the Mathlete's booth. Emily checked in with the two students who had come in to relieve Michelle, and with the report that they needed some more stuffed ravens, Emily headed out to get to the bottom of this rumor about Larry and her dear friend Amelia.

Emily hopped into her vehicle and headed in the direction of Meg's Tea Room. Her metallic peacock-colored Nissan Note was fun to drive, but she still missed her little red PT Cruiser that had been totaled in the same accident in which she had broken her arm the past fall. Emily had always felt like Hercule Poirot driving around in her little PT, but she decided she seemed like some more modern-day detective in her spiffy new vehicle. Not that she considered herself a detective, but she
had
figured out the circumstances surrounding Coach Layton's murder earlier in the year. And here she was, worrying about another murder in her beloved little town of Ellington, Missouri. Coach Layton's murderer had tried to frame Helen, and Emily was determined that whoever killed Mayor McBain was not going to try the same trick with Amelia.

It was with this sense of determination that she parked outside the gorgeous, old pale-blue Victorian house, adorned with miles of creamy-white gingerbread trim, which housed Meg's Tea Room. She and Gabby had spent many delightful lunch hours enjoying the scrumptious little tea sandwiches and fattening, but oh-so-good, pastries that Meg Nolan, the owner, whipped up on a daily basis.

Pushing open the ornately carved wooden door with its custom-made stained glass window showcasing a steaming teacup (the only change Meg had made to the original building), she found Gabby already ensconced at a table for three by one of the large bay windows. Gabby waved her over, and Emily hurried to join her. They needed to figure out a game plan before Amelia arrived. They hadn't seen her in several months, as Amelia had been so busy getting her dentistry practice up and running that she hadn't had time for much socializing. They couldn't exactly lead with asking Amelia about the rumors of her having an affair with Larry McBain. But before they had a chance to come up with a battle plan, Amelia was collapsing in the last cushy chair at their table.

Emily tried not to let her shock at the sight of her friend show. Amelia was a tall, curvy brunette with long, shiny hair that usually hung straight down her back, brushing her waistband, and her gorgeous figure typically displayed an impeccable fashion sense. Or at least, that was the Amelia she used to know. This version of Amelia was skinny to the point of looking almost gaunt. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her hair looked dull and lifeless. Worst of all, she was clad in baggy scrubs and—horror of horrors for a shoe fanatic like Emily—Crocs. Emily tried not to stare, but catching Gabby's eye, she could see that her best friend was as shocked by Amelia's appearance as she was. Amelia had obviously been working way too hard. Emily felt guilty for having not stopped by to see her before this. Touching her lightly on her stick-thin arm, Emily asked gently, "Are you okay? You look, um…well…"

"Terrible?" Amelia finished for her. She brushed her limp hair out of her eyes and rested her elbows on the table, cupping her normally adorably dimpled chin in her hands. "Things haven't exactly been going according to plan lately."

"What's wrong?" Gabby asked, concern shining in her huge, brown eyes.

"Well, getting the practice up and running has been harder than I originally anticipated. But that I can cope with. I love being a dentist, and it's always been my dream to open my own practice. But—I don't know if you've heard…" Here Amelia trailed off as her eyes filled with tears. The poor thing looked absolutely exhausted, Emily thought.

"Heard what?" she asked, shaking her head slightly at Gabby. She thought it would be best to let Amelia be the one to bring up the rumors.

"That—well, it's all ridiculous, but there have been some rumors that—that I've been having an affair with Larry McBain." At this declaration she could no longer hold back the tears, and they slipped down her cheeks silently. Gabby rummaged for a tissue in her voluminous purse that seemed to always hold everything but the kitchen sink, while Emily rubbed Amelia's arm in sympathy.

"Well, that's just plain idiotic," Gabby declared staunchly, handing over a pack of tissues. "Anyone who knows you at all would know that there is no way you would be involved in an affair, especially not with the mayor's husband." Fire glinted in Gabby's eyes. No one besmirched the reputation of her friends and got away with it. Gabby turned into an avenging knight at the first hint of trouble for anyone she cared about.

"Thanks, Gabby," Amelia responded, "but unfortunately, I'm afraid that the police will still consider me a suspect in the mayor's death."

"Why?"

"The night of the murder," Amelia explained, "Larry had come by the office just as I was closing up."

"Why?" Gabby asked, sipping on her tea.

"Well, the thing with Larry is that he has a slight obsession with his dental hygiene. That was why he spent so much time at my office. Dr. Woods, the other dentist in town, got sick of Larry constantly pestering him and foisted him off on me. At first, I was thrilled with the business, but when I started hearing the rumors, I looked for a way to get him to stop coming to me. When he showed up that night, wanting me to check a crown he thought was loose, I told him that I wasn't comfortable acting as his dentist anymore."

"How did he take it?" Emily asked.

"Not well, at first," Amelia admitted. "But he understood that I was bothered by the rumors, though he said he didn't put any stock in them. He said Janice would never believe he would have an affair."

"Then there's nothing to worry about, right?" Gabby asked her.

"Afraid so. That puts Larry and me together right before the mayor was murdered. Anyone who believes the rumors might think I got rid of Janice so that I could have Larry all to myself."

"That's still idiotic," Gabby asserted. "No one would think you murdered the mayor."

"Exactly." Emily nodded emphatically in agreement.

Amelia sniffled into one of the tissues for a minute, then looked at them from beneath her lashes. "So you believe me?" she asked, sniffing again.

"Of course," Emily and Gabby said together.

"I can't tell you how much that means to me," Amelia said softly. "I haven't had a lot of time for anything outside of work lately.

"Well, it's time to change that," Gabby declared, and then motioned the waitress over to place their orders.

While they waited on their food, they sipped on a delicious rose hibiscus tea. Emily was relieved to see a small smile gracing Amelia's face as they visited. The three of them devoured the tea sandwiches and most all of the pastries on the gorgeous three-tiered china server that was delivered to their table. As they were winding up their lunch, Amelia excused herself to use the restroom. Gabby immediately leaned across the table and said urgently to Emily, "We have to do something for her. She looks so miserable."

"I agree," Emily said, thinking fast. "How about a girls' night out?" she suggested.

"Perfect," Gabby said. "Are you free tonight?"

"Now that the carnival is closing up by nightfall, I'm a free woman," Emily said. "Let's not take no for an answer, okay?" she asked as they saw Amelia making her way back to the table.

Before Amelia was even back in her seat, they were launching into their plans for the evening. When they finally quit chattering, Amelia smiled shyly at them and said. "I really appreciate the idea. But—"

"No
buts,
" Gabby said firmly. "You can spare an evening to enjoy yourself and forget about all this nonsense."

"It's not that," Amelia said. "It's just I was wondering if you would be interested in having a couples' evening instead?"

Emily and Gabby exchanged a puzzled glance. Seeing them, Amelia hurried on to explain. "I actually have been seeing someone, but he's been away on a business trip. He's coming home tonight, and I'd really like you guys to get to know him. But if you'd rather have a girls' only night…"

"No, that's fine!" Gabby exclaimed. "We'll do a couples' barbeque at our house. We just finished our new deck, and I've been dying to have people over to see it." Gabby winced at her unfortunate choice of words, but Amelia didn't seem to notice.

Instead, Amelia bounced slightly in her chair. "Yay! This is wonderful! I can't tell you guys how much I appreciate all of this. What time do you want us there?"

"How about 8?" Gabby asked as they settled their bill and headed out to the parking lot.

"Perfect. See you then," Amelia responded and dashed off to her little blue Mini Cooper.

"Good job, Gabs. It's good to see her smiling." Emily high-fived Gabby and then they headed in their separate directions, Gabby to pick up the twins and Emily to pick up more stuffed ravens from her classroom.

*   *   *

Emily headed up the front steps of the high school, running through her to-do list in her head. She didn't realize anyone else was around until she practically ran smack into Maclaine darting out of the front doors. Emily wasn't in any mood to deal with her right then, but clearly Maclaine had other ideas. Once again, she began to gush to Emily about how supportive Tad had been. Emily nodded, waiting for a chance to ask her about her supposed boyfriend, but before she could get a word in edgewise, Maclaine gave her a hard hug and hurried off down the steps.

Emily watched her hurry to her car, wondering what she thought about her uncle's supposed affair with Amelia. Maybe she had said something to Tad. Emily made a mental note to ask him later. And realizing just how long she'd been gone from the carnival, she hurried into her classroom to schlep down another big box of the stuffed ravens they were using for prizes at the Whac-A-Mole booth

Staggering under the weight of the box, she tried to make it down the stairs without tripping over her own feet. Thankfully, she was wearing a pair of flats in deference to a day spent on her feet on the uneven ground of the school carnival. Still, she wasn't sure she could manage carting the large, unwieldy box down the outside steps and to her car without another pair of hands. Hoping Helen might be working in her office today, Emily left the box at the base of the stairs and took a detour down the short hallway off of the main office.

She was disappointed to see that Helen's office door was shut and the lights were off. Resigned to manhandling the awkward box by herself, she turned to head back to the stairs. But before she'd taken more than a couple of steps, she heard raised voices coming from further down the hall. Turning back, she saw a light shining under the door at the very end of the hallway. Someone, or several someones, was in Superintendent Johnson's office, and based on the sound of their voices, they were
not
happy.

Emily crept down the hall, trying to determine who the voices belonged to. The glass window in the door was frosted, but as she got closer, she clearly recognized the imposing figure of Superintendent Johnson on the other side. His words were indistinguishable, but his tone was definitely angry.

Checking to see that no else was lurking in the hall with her, Emily crouched right next to the door. When the superintendent's voice rose in a shout, Emily was so startled she fell over on her tailbone. Praying no one had heard her rear smacking the tile floor, she rubbed at the sore spot, once more resting on her ankles by the door. Superintendent Johnson was yelling, "Larry, you're acting the fool! A cuckolded fool at that!"

Larry? Was Larry McBain the one in the office with Superintendent Johnson? And what did the superintendent mean by that crack? Were the rumors wrong? Was Janice the one in their marriage who had actually been doing the cheating? Shaking her head to clear her whirling thoughts, Emily listened closely to hear Larry's reply, but his voice was too soft to make out his exact words. He sounded tired and overwhelmed.

"All that family money is yours now, isn't it? Convenient, don't you think?" Once again, Emily reared back in surprise. She had never heard such venom in the superintendent's voice again.

Apparently he had struck a nerve with Larry, as well, as that man yelled back, "Well, let me tell you what I plan to do with some of that money, Ed. I'm going to use part of it for my own run for mayor. And when I'm elected, I plan to carry on many of the initiatives that Janice had in the works."

"You mean like closing down the school carnival?" the superintendent snarled.

"If need be," Larry said calmly.

Emily was at a loss as to the import of this exchange. Larry McBain and Superintendent Johnson were known to be golfing buddies, and there had never been a hint of discord between them before, not even when Janice was trying to get the school carnival shut down. What had led to this animosity now? Was the superintendent worried about his status as a suspect and trying to shift the blame to someone else? Before she could decide what to think, she heard footsteps heading toward the office door. Panicked, she looked around for a good hiding place. Her box of stuffed ravens was thankfully out of sight at the bottom of the stairs, but the only place for her to hide was in the nearest restroom. Unfortunately, the only restroom at that end of the hall was the men's. Still, Emily ducked inside and hightailed to a stall just in case one of the men headed in there next. Once again squatting, only this time on the lid of a stool, Emily heard the door slam open and Larry's angry voice when he called back, "This isn't the end of this conversation, Ed."

The superintendent didn't respond and Emily wondered if he had stayed in the office or followed Larry out. Not sure whether to go or stay put, Emily stayed crouched until her legs were asleep and could no longer hold her up. Limping to the restroom door, she opened it a crack. The light was still on in the superintendent's office and Emily could see his silhouette seated at his desk. She decided to get while the getting was good and raced as quietly down the hall as she could, scooping up the box of ravens as she went. Her sudden burst of adrenaline at the fear of getting caught eavesdropping made the box feel much lighter than it had before. In seconds, she was stuffing the big box into her backseat. Slipping behind the wheel, she started to call Tad to tell him the latest, but decided it would be easier to explain in person. Besides, she needed to tell him about their plans for the evening. Gunning the engine, Emily headed her Nissan toward the carnival, anxious to hear Tad's take on her morning's findings.