Page 20 of Merry Murder Season
“Well, I’ll put that as a maybe, but I need pictures of the site to work off to finish this manuscript. I’ve had several interviews where they describe the compound, but they are remembering it differently. I wonder if it was their state of mind or if the cult kept them drugged to keep them compliant. Maybe Jim would want to study up on their techniques.”
“You don’t want that.” I knew she was joking. “I’ve never seen you as a Stepford Wife type.”
Beth giggled. “I think I’m the before Stepford version of a wife.”
I had to agree there. I was the rebel wife as well. Especially since I planned my undercover investigation steps for the next day. Beth was watching me and I knew she was wondering what was going through my head. So Idistracted her.
“I think I have some new cult books at the store. I’ve been watching for them in the new-release catalog for you. Do you want me to bring them home tomorrow?” The smile on her face told me I’d been successful.
Now to implement the real reason I wanted todrive tomorrow.
* * *
Darla arrived at the coffee shop right after my last commuter had bought her favorite Friday drink as well as a book to get her through the weekend. On Fridays, I always tucked a few copies of recent releases right on the counter as an impulse buy. I’d started doing this after watching several regulars try to scan the shelves while I was making their coffee orders. The first week, I’d sold more books that shift than I had in months. And the numbers kept growing as I figured out the different genres mycustomers read.
Today I’d sold fifteen books in less than two hours. It had been a good day. “Hey, what’s going on? Do you need coffee, a book, or gossip?”
Darla picked up a shifter romance from the impulse-buy pile. “How about all three? Large coffee with one pump of caramel in a to-go cup and I’ll buy you one as well.”
“I get my coffee free, so no charge. Do you want to share a pumpkin spice muffin? Sadie said this was the last week she was doing fall flavors. She moves into Christmasflavors soon.”
“Like what? Peppermint? I’m not a fan. But the pumpkin spice I could eat all year long.” She handed me her card. “Did your in-laws leave yet? I thought I saw Beth at your house yesterday.”
“She’s staying around to do some research for her manuscript for a couple of weeks.” I ran her card, then tucked the novel into abag. Hopefully, Darla wouldn’t see through Beth’s cover story. “Let’s sit over at the table. I’ll grab the muffin and be right there.”
When I arrived with the muffin and my coffee, Darla was reading the book she’d just bought. “I haven’t read anything by that author before. Have you?”
Darla blushed as she tucked the book away. “I have the entire series. She’s so good. The books are set in Eastern Tennessee by the Appalachian Trail. Right where you’d expect hot men in flannel shirts and jeans who shift into werewolves to live. And I mean they’reall super hot.”
“The stories or the werewolves?” I teased as Icut the muffin.
Darla snorted. “Both. Matt hates me reading them, so I binge when he’s out of town. But he knows since I keep the books in my library on the ‘keeper’ shelves. He thinks I should read something more proper, like the books we read in high school. I don’t judge the music he likes. He shouldn’t judge my reading tastes. Hey, you need to ask her to come in for a signing. I bet a bunch of people would come for it.”
“I’ll tell Deek. He handles all of that now. I just come to the authors I want to hear talk. He’s taken over so much of my marketing, it’s not funny.”
“You need to be careful about giving up everything. Your boy there is going to hit it big when his book takes off and he won’thave to work.”
I set down the knife. “I’ve taken care of that. I gave him access to a 401(k) and insurance benefits even if he works part-time. He can’t leave me.”
“Good plan. Speaking of employees leaving, did you hear about Sasha?” Darla glanced around to make sure no one had come into the store. “I’m happy for her, but poor Toby. How’s he dealing with it?”
So the South Cove rumor mill had already gotten the news about our star-crossed couple’s demise. “I don’t know. I only found out yesterday and I haven’t seen him sinceThanksgiving.”
Now that I thought about it, Toby had been slightly reserved at Thanksgiving. I thought it was all the people, but now, knowing that he and Sasha had already talked, I knew it was from thefinal breakup.
With that piece of gossip dying, Darla went back to the murder investigation. “Has Greg narrowed down a suspect? Tell me it was one of the motorcycle guys. Matt was teamed up with one at the dart tournament and they kept joking around about how Chip must be having a heart attack with the crew all there. I heard they got banned last year from the bar. I guess it happened after Chip asked for a motorcycle exemption from the no-vehicles list.”
“I thought that was odd.” I sipped my coffee, ignoring the original question. “I thought the dart tournament went well, didn’t you?”
“You raised a lot of money. Carrie gave me an estimation but said you might havea total later.”
I nodded toward the jar on the table. “We got a lot of cash contributions. Amy has some as well from people dropping off checks. And she went around and hit up the mayor and all the city council members for money if they weren’t going to the actual tournament. I’m stopping by there this afternoon, then taking all that money to the charity. You could probably call them Monday for a total.”
“I’ll do that.” Darla made a note on her phone. “You dodged the Greg question. Does that mean you don’t know anything? Or are you hiding what you do know?”
I laughed, shaking my head. Darla knew me too well. “I probably know less than you do. I didn’t even know that Chip and Chris were married three times.”
“I heard it was going to be four. Chris told her best friend that they were driving to Las Vegas for New Year’s to tie the knot. I feel so bad for her. I bet she is in his will. If he had anything. I have to admit, running a bar is profitable. Chip should have had a nest egg, unless he was doing drugs or gambling. Addictions can be a drain on businesses. Especially those like the bar that have a lot of cash flowing around.” Darla leaned back, thinking. “I wonder if that might be a clue to finding the murderer. Rumor is he was tortured and then left to bleed out. That had to be scary.”
