Thai Coconut Murder: Book 6 in The Darling Deli Series (2 page)

The deli was almost unbelievably busy on the Fourth of July. Like every other store on Main Street, Darling’s DELIcious Delights had holiday-themed decorations and was offering generous sales. Moira had a whole bushel of Michigan black cherries sitting out front, to be sold by the pound, and the blackboard announced the daily special:
Sweet Bell Pepper Soup, with a Red, White, and Blue Sandwich
. The sandwich was two slices of toasted white bread with freshly sliced corned beef, salami, and bleu cheese. She was also offering a patriotic fruit salad with blueberries, strawberries, and white raspberries. Everywhere she looked, she saw the colors of the American flag, and the wonderful scents of charcoal and sizzling meat seemed to hang over the small town of Maple Creek.

The day was perfect: hot and sunny, but with a faint, refreshing breeze coming from the direction of Lake Michigan. Everyone who stopped at the deli was in a good mood, even the old, crotchety Arlo, whose diner had been on the verge of going out of business only a few months ago. The deli owner chatted with him for a few minutes as Darrin prepared his order in the kitchen, and she was glad to hear that the diner was doing better. Arlo’s Diner had been a fixture in her life for as long as she could remember, and Arlo had been in the restaurant business since before she was even walking. It would be a shame to see the diner get shut down, even if she and Candice didn’t get dinner there as often.

She listened to a couple of her customers talk of the Cherry Festival in Traverse City, and couldn’t help but smile. The festival had always been fun when she had gone with Candice years ago.
It’s been far too long since I’ve had a vacation
, she thought. She loved her job, but she was starting to think she might benefit from some time off. It couldn’t be healthy to live vicariously through her customers; it would be much better to go and have some adventures of her own.

Later, though,
she thought. Now was no time to plan a road trip; there was a long line of hungry faces to serve, and later, a date with a handsome private detective to get ready for.

It was still light out when the deli closed that evening, which meant that Moira had time to go on a quick walk with Maverick, the handsome German shepherd that she had adopted a few months ago. He had previously been owned by a cruel man who had abused him, but the dog had quickly and happily settled in to his new life with her and Candice. He had his own bed next to hers, and got plenty of attention from the two women throughout the day. She already felt safer just having him in the house, even though he hadn’t so much as barked at a stranger yet.

“Hey buddy,” she said when she let herself in through the front door. He greeted her with a wagging tail and an eager nose. She suspected that he could smell food from the deli on her, since he always gave her clothes a thorough sniff when she got home from a long day at work.

“Do you want to go for a walk?” she asked once she had set down her purse. Maverick gave a soft woof and spun in a circle, his mouth open in the canine version of a grin. Moira smiled; “walk” was one of the dog’s favorite words, the other being “dinner.”

She grabbed his leash and clipped it to his collar, then paused to change into a pair of tennis shoes before stepping out the door. They took their usual route, making their slow way around the block to the small park next to the elementary school. Maverick seemed to enjoy pausing to sniff every few feet, and Moira wasn’t in a hurry, so she let the dog choose their pace.

Just as she was about to get the dog’s attention and start heading home, she heard a voice call out her name. She looked over her shoulder to see her friend Martha hurrying towards them. A little white and black dog with floppy ears trotted at her side, and Maverick’s tail began to wag even harder, smacking into Moira’s leg. She laughed and walked over to meet the other woman. Maverick and the little dog greeted each other with enthusiasm while the two friends hugged.

“I can’t chat long,” Moira said. “I’ve got a date with David tonight. But it’s great to see you. Are we still on for Wednesday morning?”

“Definitely. And Denise and I will expect to hear all about this date of yours. Where are you going?” Martha asked.

“We’re going to watch fireworks on the beach at Lake Marion. We’re going to bring food and drinks, and make a picnic out of it,” she said. “What are your plans tonight?”

“Oh, I’ll probably just watch Maple Creek’s fireworks from my back porch with Diamond,” she said, looking down at her dog. “Maybe with a bottle of champagne, if I make it to the store on time.”

A few months ago, just before Moira had adopted Maverick, Martha had gotten a gorgeous collie from the same person who had had the German shepherd. When David and Moira had discovered that the collie had been stolen, a very upset Martha had given the dog back to her family. She had been too sad to get another dog right away, but just a few weeks ago, Moira had convinced the other woman to go to the animal shelter with her; Martha had fallen in love with the little black and white mutt.

“That sounds nice,” the deli owner said. “I would probably be doing something similar, if David hadn’t asked me out. I thought about bringing Maverick to the beach, but it’s probably best to leave him at home. He doesn’t seem to like loud noises much, and I wouldn’t want him to be scared.”

“That’s probably a good idea. This way you won’t have to worry about him; you can just enjoy your evening with David.” Her friend sighed. “You’re so lucky. I’m pretty sure you’re dating the only eligible guy for miles around.”

“We’ve only gone out on a couple of dates, and something always seems to go wrong.” Moira grimaced. “I’m surprised that he asked me out again. He must think I’m a magnet for bad luck.”

“At least you aren’t boring,” Martha said with a laugh.

“I’m boring most of the time.” Moira couldn’t help but chuckle; her friend did have a point. David lived for mystery, and there had definitely been enough weird occurrences popping up around her to make things interesting. “I should be going; I need to change before heading to Lake Marion, and David will be expecting me soon. He wants to get a good spot on the beach.”

“Have a good time, and don’t forget to say hi to your private investigator for me,” Martha said, grinning.

She met David at his office, and they drove over to the lake together. He had a wicker picnic basket in the back, along with a blanket and what looked like a couple of folding chairs. It had been a while since she had done more than just watch the fireworks from her backyard; once Candice hit her teen years, she had been more interested in doing things with her friends than with her mom, and that included watching the local firework shows.

The beach was already crowded when they got there. Couples walked hand in hand along the paths, children laughed and screamed as they ran around in the fading light, and the smell of sizzling hot dogs filled the air. Tourist season was in full swing, and even such a small town as Lake Marion got its fair share of out-of-towners on holidays like this.

Doing her best not to be tempted by the deep-fried foods sold from the food carts lined up in the parking lot, Moira helped David unpack the car. She took the chairs while he hoisted the basket and the blanket. They made their way down the path and onto the sand. It was clean and white, and she found herself wishing that she had worn sandals so she could curl her toes in it.

The spot they found was only a few yards above the waterline, close enough that no one would be able to sit in front of them and block their view, but far enough back that they wouldn’t have to worry about stray waves soaking them. They spread out the blanket, set up the chairs, then took their seats with the picnic basket between them. She smiled over at David, feeling warm and happy. This was turning out to be the perfect summer evening.

While they waited for it to get dark enough for the fireworks, and the beach filled up behind them, they snacked on the sandwiches and string cheese that David had brought. She didn’t see anyone she knew, but a few people came up to greet David and see how he was doing. He introduced Moira, being sure to tell everyone about her deli. When a few people promised to stop by and check it out the next time that they drove to Maple Creek, she gave David a quick smile of gratitude. She just might end this evening with a few new customers.

Gradually, night fell. A few boats floated just off the shore, visible only by the lights on their prows. Moira knew that one of them would be from the fire department, ready to pump water directly from the lake if there was a fire.

People began to fall silent in expectation as lights appeared on the opposite shore where the fireworks would be set off. She looked up, and saw out of the corner of her eye that David, too, had his face tilted up towards the sky.

The first firework was lit, and the entire beach hushed as it rushed up into the sky. When it exploded in a shower of red and gold sparks, people whooped and clapped. Grinning, she leaned back, her arm brushing against David’s, and settled in to enjoy the show. After a few moments, his hand found hers and clasped it gently as the fireworks exploded above them.

After the grand finale burst above them, people gave one last round of applause and began to pack up their things. The people who had watched from boats rowed their way towards shore and, when they could go no further, hopped out and sloshed the rest of the way up onto the beach. Moira rose and stretched, glad that David had brought chairs so they hadn’t been forced to sit on the ground. She had reached the age where sitting cross-legged in the sand just wasn’t comfortable any more.

She was just reaching for one of the canvas bags to pack the chair when an earsplitting scream pierced the air. Whipping her head around, she saw a commotion near one of the little rowboats that had come to shore near a submerged tree. When more people began screaming, she traded a glance with David. What could be going on?

“I’ll go check it out,” he told her. “You wait here.”

“But what if someone needs help?” she asked, concerned.

“There’s already too many people crowding that area; if someone
is
hurt, they’ll need their space,” he pointed out. “Plus, I need you to watch our stuff.”

“Okay,” Moira said, knowing that he was right. She wouldn’t be much help in an emergency, and would probably just get in the way of anyone who might actually know how to help. The last thing she wanted to do was contribute to the chaos that was already starting to spread over by the boat. “I’ll start packing up.”

She watched as David walked over to the crowd of people that had gathered around the boat and the submerged tree, a frown pulling her lips down. What on earth could be going on? She heard the sound of someone retching, and then a woman started sobbing. She felt chilled. Something was definitely wrong.

When David pushed his way through the crowd and she lost sight of him, she turned her attention to packing up the blanket and chairs. She had just finished fitting the canvas bag around the second chair when red and blue flashing lights lit up the beach and police began to split the crowd up. She watched as people began to walk away, some of them hanging back at a distance to watch what was happening, and others heading straight for their cars. After a few seconds, only a few people remained by the rowboat and the submerged tree; a pair of uniformed police officers, the couple that had been in the boat, and David. She also saw an oblong shape on the ground, half in the water, that looked like it might be a person… but why would they just be lying there like that? Why wouldn’t someone have helped them out of the water?

Feeling helpless, Moira dragged the picnic basket, blanket, and chairs over to a tree and leaned against it while she waited for the private investigator to return. A few minutes later, David walked away from the officers and headed towards her, his face grim.

“What happened?” she asked, dreading his answer, but needing to know.

“They found a body,” he said. “The body of someone who looks like he’s been in the lake for months.”

Moira shuddered at the thought, and was immensely glad that she and David hadn’t been sitting over there. The private investigator opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something else, but sighed instead.

“Come on,” he said, “I should get you back to the car.” She followed him, a chair tucked under one arm, and the blanket under the other.

Even through the next day, Moira was still shaken by the thought of the body that had been found. It wasn’t until Wednesday morning that she finally had something else to think about: her coffee get-together with Denise and Martha. She enjoyed the casual weekly meetings with her friends a great deal; it seemed like most of her friends from childhood had moved away as their children grew up and went off to college. She was gradually rebuilding her social circle, and it was a nice feeling.

She would have to go straight from coffee to the deli, so she took a few extra minutes to make sure that she had everything she would need for the day. After a quick goodbye pat for Maverick, she grabbed her keys off the car and locked up. Tomorrow she wasn’t scheduled to go into the deli at all, but today would be busy.

“Moira, we ordered you your usual,” Denise said, waving at her from a table in the back corner of the little coffee shop. The owner of the Redwood Grill had pulled back her dark red hair into a tight bun and was wearing a sharp pantsuit that couldn’t have differed more from Moira’s relaxed khakis and blouse. Martha was sitting next to her, twirling a strand of her mousy brown hair around her finger as she read something on her phone.

“Thanks.” The deli owner slipped into the empty chair and picked up the caramel cappuccino, taking a sip of the sweet, foamy drink. “Just what I needed.”

“So,” Martha said, setting her phone down and leaning forward eagerly. “How was your date?”

“Well…” Moira sighed. “It started off just wonderfully. But when the fireworks ended, something horrible happened.”

“What happened?” Denise asked, looking concerned. “Did you find out that he’s married or something?”