A TOAST OF MURDER

HART TIMES COZY MYSTERIES, BOOK 7

EMMA AINSLEY

SUMMER PRESCOTT BOOKS PUBLISHING

Copyright 2023 Summer Prescott Books

All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication nor any of the information herein may be quoted from, nor reproduced, in any form, including but not limited to: printing, scanning, photocopying, or any other printed, digital, or audio formats, without prior express written consent of the copyright holder.

**This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, places of business, or situations past or present, is completely unintentional.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Also by Emma Ainsley

Author’s Note

Contact Summer Prescott Books Publishing

CHAPTER ONE

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Marissa Lopez asked as she leaned against the sink in the kitchen of the Hart Family Restaurant. She folded her arms and glared at her cousin, Carolina Hart, daring her to make her case for their upcoming catering gig.

“Marissa, if you don’t want to work this one with me, you certainly don’t have to,” Carolina said. She stacked white ceramic plates on a tray, eager to return them to the storage room where she would pack them for her next gig.

“It’s not like I can just take off my assistant’s hat and refuse to work a gig with you. I know this will be a very wise decision, financially speaking, but I just can’t help it.”

“What can’t you help?” Uncle Toad asked from his place by the grill. Both Carolina and Marissa were the nieces of Tomas Baca, whom they had known their entire lives as Uncle Toad.

“I can’t help but think things are going to go haywire,” Marissa said. “Each and every time we do anything within the proximity of Jocelyn Hendricks and her Nouvelle Chic Catering Company we always end up on the wrong end of things. It’s not fair and I’m just not up for it right now.”

“Of course. I understand,” Carolina said slowly. “But I have to take this gig. We discussed this before. We are finally getting to a point where we are economically sound and a gig like this will put our name out there in a way that it has never been out there before.”

“I don’t see how our name is going to be any bigger than Jocelyn’s,” Marissa said. “Just the fact that she’s there sort of neutralizes any positive attention we might get from it.”

“Your mind works in funny ways, cousin.” Carolina chuckled. “I don’t see how this won’t be a net win for us. Do you know how many different companies will be represented at this job fair? Not to mention the college itself.”

“I have to agree with Carolina this time,” Uncle Toad said. “Jocelyn will be catering the luncheon for the board and the CEO of the corporation that’s hosting this job fair. All of the other attention will be on From the Hart Catering.”

“I have a feeling there’s more to this than just being overshadowed by Jocelyn’s company,” Carolina said. “What else is going on here, Marissa?”

Marissa shook her head and turned her attention back to the sink full of dishes in front of her. “I just don’t care for Jocelyn and how she treats our family.”

“I’ve never seen you like this before,” Carolina said. She hated to continue pressuring her cousin to answer, but Marissa’s words were so uncharacteristic, she felt the need to persevere.

“Once again, I hate to agree with one of you over the other, but Carolina is right,” Uncle Toad said. His voice softened. “What is it, Rissa? What’s going on with you?”

Marissa exhaled and gripped the edge of the metal sink. “Okay, fine,” she said and turned around to face Carolina again. “I just hate it. I just hate it and that’s all.”

“You hate what, exactly?” Carolina asked.

“I hate it when Jocelyn is around and she sticks her skinny neck out in her designer clothes and her fancy jewelry and acts like you’re a second-class citizen,” Marissa said. “There. Are you happy now?”

Carolina put the tray with the plates to the side and crossed the kitchen floor. She stopped in front of her younger cousin and smiled. “I’m happy that you have my back the way you do.” She draped her arms around Marissa’s shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. “With support like this, Jocelyn can say any old thing about me she wants to. All that matters is that my family is around me and loves me.”

“It probably doesn’t hurt when Levi’s arms are around you either,” Denise Lopez, Marissa’s much younger sister-in-law, said as she entered the kitchen.

“Hey, now,” Carolina protested. She released Marissa from her embrace and turned to Denise. “You better watch talk like that, girl. Otherwise, I’ll put you on dish duty all week.”

“I don’t care where you put me as long as I don’t have to be anywhere near Jocelyn,” Denise grinned. Her teasing was meant in good fun and Carolina was aware of it. As much as she tried to keep her blossoming relationship with Levi private, the fact that he worked in her family’s restaurant didn’t help.

On cue, Carolina heard the familiar roar of Levi’s motorcycle outside the back door. Before she could think twice about who was standing in the room with her, her face brightened.

“I think somebody is on your mind, Carolina Maria,” Uncle Toad teased. The back door opened, and Levi walked inside. His smile immediately matched Carolina’s. They locked eyes for a moment, then she moved past him with the stack of clean plates on the tray.

“Good morning,” Levi mumbled, his voice deliberately husky, as he passed her.

“Morning,” Carolina whispered. “Glad you rode the bike.”

“You still plan to go with me after my shift?”

“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away,” Carolina said quietly.

“What about a protective uncle?” Uncle Toad appeared between the two of them. Carolina wished her hands had been empty at that moment, and she informed her uncle why.

“I’m not sure he’s too worried about a smack from you,” Denise said.

“I think I better be getting my apron on now,” Levi said. He winked at Carolina before he disappeared.

Carolina shook her head as she walked the rest of the way to the storage room. At times, her relationship with Levi was not exactly difficult, but complicated, thanks to the close proximity of her family. That and the fact that her uncle and father figure was Levi’s best friend, despite the difference in their age. Levi was much closer to her age than her uncle’s.

An hour before closing time, Marissa wandered into the storage room where Carolina was seated at her desk checking over the catering contract one last time. She seemed to browse around the storage shelves for a moment before she turned her attention to her cousin.

“Hey,” Marissa’s tone had changed considerably from their conversation earlier in the day. “Can we talk for a minute?”

“Sure, what’s up?” Carolina asked. She pushed herself back from her desk and gave her cousin her full attention.

“I just want to apologize about earlier today in the kitchen,” Marissa said. “I know that came out of nowhere. It’s just, well, Jocelyn rubs me the wrong way. I can’t seem to get over it.”

“Is it something you want to talk about?” Carolina asked.

“Not really,” Marissa said. “It’s nothing specific that she did, just that she exists. She makes me feel like we’re not as good as her and I hate that.”

“You know, it’s not worth it to let her get to you. With the way she acts, she’s looking for a reaction from one of us. Every time we let her see that she’s bothering us, she wins. Is that what you want?”

Marissa’s eyes widened. “Of course not.”

“Okay, so let’s try to ignore her and not show her that she actually wants to make us poke our own eyeballs out most of the time.”

“That’s such a good way to put it.” Marissa laughed. “Only I’d like to do the same to my ears every time I hear her voice. She’s just so awful.”

“You aren’t wrong, but we can be stronger than her and take the high road. We don’t need to let her get to us. Our business is going well, the restaurant is booming, and to top it all off, we’re good human beings. That’s the most important thing to remember.”

Marissa’s eyes widened for the second time in a full minute. This time she cackled hard. “Are you saying you don’t think Jocelyn is a good human?”

Carolina smiled graciously. “Not exactly, but unless I have to be directly associated with her, I try not to think about her at all. At this gig, we might see her around but the chances of us being in the same area as her for more than a minute or two are slim.”

“Okay.” Marissa nodded. “You’re right. I need to stop thinking about her.” She grinned and surveyed the top of Carolina’s desk. “Are we all ready for tomorrow?”

“As ready as we can be,” Carolina said. She planned an early morning at the restaurant preparing the ingredients for the gig.

“What time should I be here in the morning?” Marissa asked.

“What time can you be here?” Carolina smiled.

“As early as you need me to be,” Marissa said. “At least we don’t have a ton of prep work to do.”

“Not really,” Carolina said. She was grateful the planned menu had been centered around an omelet bar, do-it-yourself waffle bar, and a few Mexican-inspired confectioneries.

“What’s the name of this company again?”

“Cavalier Recruitment Corporation,” Carolina said, reading directly from the contract. “Apparently, tomorrow’s job fair is quite a big deal for them.”

“I guess so,” Marissa said. “Especially if they’re hosting a board meeting in the middle of it.”

Carolina waved dismissively in the air. “That’s Jocelyn’s problem,” she said. “I say let her handle the big wigs and we’ll take care of the everyday, common normal people.”

“When you put it that way, it doesn’t sound too bad at all,” Marissa said.

CHAPTER TWO

Carolina held tight to the back of Levi’s black leather jacket as they rounded another curve north of her hometown of Sycamore Ridge, New Mexico. Since her return from her high pressure, glitzy marketing job in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Carolina had learned to appreciate the beauty of her surroundings in a way she never had when she was growing up.

She was tempted to rest her head against Levi’s back. Their nighttime rides on his motorcycle had become one of her favorite things in the entire world. She loved cruising around out on the highways and back roads. Never once did she worry about her safety.

“You ready to stop for a while?” Levi called back over his shoulder. Carolina didn’t answer. She simply tapped him twice on his right shoulder. It was their signal for “yes.”

He pulled the bike over and pushed out the kickstand with the toe of his boot. Carolina waited until the bike was secure before she stood on her foot peg and swung her leg over the back. As soon as she was off, Levi stood up and swung his leg in a similar fashion. Without a word, he reached into one of the leather saddlebags and produced two cold bottles of Cheer Wine.

“Where did you get this?” Carolina asked, taking the bottle from him.

“That food distributor from over in eastern Oklahoma brought a case or two the last time they came out,” Levi said. “You know this stuff is soda and not alcoholic, right?”

“You forget my father was from Oklahoma,” Carolina said. She twisted off the top and downed half the bottle in a single swallow. “Although, we didn’t have too much of this when I was growing up. We got it when we went back to visit family or drove clear across the state into Arkansas.”

“We should do that sometime,” Levi said suddenly.

“What’s that?”

“Drive across the state of Oklahoma, maybe into Arkansas,” Levi said before he drank his bottle down.

“I think that would be fun,” Carolina said. She studied Levi’s face for a hint of his reaction to her words. He said nothing but smiled so widely his eyes squinted.

Just before eight, Levi pulled into the driveway in front of her small Airstream trailer. Her large flock of hens cackled when they heard the bike approach. The chickens and their coop were part of the half acre of land she purchased from Marissa’s mother and father-in-law when she returned to the area, and she had only added to the flock over time.

Carolina settled into bed around nine and woke just after four the following morning. She grabbed a quick shower and a half a pot of coffee before she left and headed into the restaurant. Just as she had discussed with Marissa the night before, her prep work was minimal.

She began by filling the tortilla machine with ingredients. The tortilla maker was a recent investment for the catering company and one Carolina prided herself on acquiring. Typically, she used a corn-based recipe for the tortilla maker, but for today’s menu, she needed flour tortillas.

As soon as the machine began spitting out the fresh tortillas, Marissa picked them up and sliced them in quarters. Carolina submerged each of the quarters individually into a mix of beaten egg, cream, vanilla, and spices. Each tortilla soaked in the egg mixture for several minutes before she carefully removed it and placed it on the griddle. Butter sizzled as the tortilla triangles fried. She dusted each piece of Mexican-inspired French toast with cinnamon and sugar or confectioner sugar. The tortillas retained their crispiness and flavor in the warming table. It was the perfect sweet treat for the breakfast buffet.

“I think everything’s packed up and ready to go,” Carolina announced just after seven. She planned to drive the catering van to the small private college on the far side of town. Marissa opted to drive herself and her sister-in-law Denise. It was just the three of them until closer to lunchtime when Levi promised to arrive and help run the fajita station.

“I hope things go off without a hitch today,” Marissa said when they arrived. Carolina glanced at the sign in the distance. As a teen, she had momentarily considered attending Sycamore Ridge Community College, but she’d decided the liberal arts school was not quite the right fit for her. Still, the campus was beautiful. Native rock formations dotted the walkways and common areas. The buildings blended in with the scenery almost to the point of disappearing among the blue, pink, and orange hues.

They parked behind the multipurpose building with a domed top and began to unload the catering van. “I’m just so happy they have their own buffet and warming tables here already,” Carolina whispered to Marissa as they pushed their carts inside the back of the kitchen. Having the tables already on the premises made their job quite a bit easier.

“Especially since we’re doing breakfast and lunch,” Marissa said. There was still a slight edge in her voice. She was not too happy to be in the same location as Jocelyn Hendricks.

“Especially because of that.” Carolina nodded. She located the buffet tables and quickly begin to set up for the omelet station. She placed chopped peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, and other fresh vegetables in the small metal pans. At one end, she set up her portable griddle and checked to make sure there was power to the outlet.

“Don’t look now, but the help is here.” Jocelyn sneered from across the room. She walked into the large kitchen, her red high heels clicking across the floor as she sauntered toward Carolina.

“Don’t look now, but the dragon lady is here,” Marissa mumbled.

“What was that?” Jocelyn asked. She planted her hands on her slender hips and glared.

“I said, don’t look now, but the dragon is here,” Marissa repeated. “I decided not to call you a lady after all.”

“Just make sure you and your riff raff stay away from the main event,” Jocelyn said. “I will have a room full of dignitaries and company elite to care for this afternoon. I tried to tell the CEO, Carmine Davenport, they might as well just bus in drive-thru food for everyone else, but he insisted on hiring your firm anyway.”

“Well, I guess you feel better now,” Carolina said with a smile.

“About what?” Jocelyn asked. She dropped her hands to her sides.

“You got to name drop the CEO.” Carolina smiled again. “You must feel important.”

“Oh, I’ll feel better when I’m toasting him with champagne at the end of the board luncheon this afternoon.” Jocelyn smirked.

“I didn’t know you were serving champagne,” Marissa said. “I thought you had to learn how to spell it first.”

“I knew how to spell champagne before you knew how to spell your name,” Jocelyn hissed. “And for your information, the champagne is being furnished by the company itself. I noticed they didn’t invite you and your people for a toast.”

“No, they didn’t, and that’s okay,” Carolina said. She had learned to maintain a grin on her face the entire time she spoke with Jocelyn. It unnerved the woman. She hoped in her heart of hearts that it frustrated her as well.

“Whatever you have to tell yourself to feel better,” Jocelyn said. She turned on her heel and headed toward the door. “Oh, by the way, Carolina. Do me a favor and don’t speak with Billy when he arrives this afternoon. It’s always such bad taste to try to win your ex-husband back in front of his future wife.”

“I don’t think Carolina is too interested in winning him back,” Marissa said. “That’s like trying to reopen a bag of trash you tossed out twenty years ago.”

Carolina bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing right out loud. She honestly held no animosity toward her former husband, but the fact that he was the county sheriff often put him in her way at events. The only thing that ever really dug at her was when Jocelyn paraded their relationship around. It wasn’t that she wanted him back, not at all. But it irritated her that Jocelyn seemed to get so much pleasure out of having something to goad her with.

“See you later, Jossy,” Marissa called after her. “Don’t choke on the champagne.”

“Jossy?” Carolina raised her eyebrows to her cousin once Jocelyn was clear of the room.

Marissa merely shrugged her shoulders. “I had to think of something fast.”

Just as they’d hoped, the breakfast buffet went off without a snag. Carolina had quickly run out of the Mexican-style French toast. She ended up having to turn away people coming back for seconds and thirds. One elderly woman whom she recognized as an English professor at the college even hounded her for her recipe before Carolina finally gave up and pointed her to a similar recipe online.

By lunchtime, the crowd of job seekers had swelled considerably. Carolina was glad that she had overestimated the amount of people that would be there by the middle of the day. “It’s a college,” she’d told Marissa a week prior. “I fully expect there to be more people awake around noon than at nine in the morning.” Her instincts were correct. She had doubled the amount of food from the breakfast buffet and was glad she had had the foresight to do so.

“I think they’re getting ready to make the champagne toast,” Marissa whispered to her after the fajita bar closed down. “I’m going to go see if I can sneak a peek.”

“Why?” Carolina whispered back. “Just so you can see Jocelyn stand up there like a proud peacock?”

Marissa shook her head. “No, not at all. I just want to watch her parade herself around and act like she’s not the help. I hope one of those rich board members looks at her for a refill in the middle of the toast.”

Carolina smiled and followed Marissa down the dark hall toward the side entrance to the large room in the middle of the dome-covered building. They had a perfect view of the stage in front but were concealed by several coat racks pushed to the side of the room.

“And now, a toast,” a tall man with silver gray hair said behind the lectern.

“That must be Carmine what’s his name,” Marissa said.

“Davenport,” Carolina offered. He was a short man, barely taller than Jocelyn. His round belly gave him the distinct appearance of an egg with arms. Two other men and a woman were seated on the stage behind him. Each held a champagne flute in their hands.

“I would like to raise my glass and honor three specific board members today,” Carmine continued. “This year’s job fair would not have taken place without the efforts of Ted Norton, Judy Glass, and Frank Barnes. To you, Ted, Judy, and Frank!” Carolina guessed those were the names of the people behind him.

“Here, here,” the chorus swelled from the other fifty or so people in the room. Carolina watched from her vantage point next to her cousin as the old man raised his glass champagne flute to his lips. He hesitated for a moment then downed the bubbly liquid in a single swallow. Cheers rang out across the room.

A second later, the older man dropped the flute to the floor beneath him. The glass shattered instantly. His arm went limp a second before he collapsed in a heap. The room was still in shock for a moment before cries of disbelief sounded.

“Somebody! Call 911,” a member of the board shouted.

“I know CPR,” an attendee from the audience declared. The woman rushed toward the stage. A second later, she was on her knees next to the large man pumping his chest with her hands. “He’s not breathing!” the woman screamed while the rest of the room held its collective breath.

Carolina watched helpless to move as a pair of paramedics entered the large room at last. They rushed the stage nearly knocking the woman away from Carmine. Within seconds, he was loaded up on a gurney and being wheeled out.

“Why aren’t they working on him?” Marissa asked her.

“I’m not sure,” Carolina said. “Unless there’s just no point to it.”

CHAPTER THREE

“He’s dead,” Carolina announced in the kitchen of the Hart Family Restaurant later that night.

“Are you sure?” Marissa’s face paled at the news.

Carolina simply nodded her head. “I’m afraid so. Alice Buckner just texted me.”

“Who’s that?” Uncle Toad asked.

“She’s the head of the English Department,” Carolina said. “I met her earlier today at the breakfast buffet. She took my name and number for future reference, I guess.”

“Is that the lady that wanted the French toast recipe?” Marissa’s arms were still protectively folded over her middle.

“I thought you served Mexican inspired French toast today,” Uncle Toad asked.

“That’s what she was asking about,” Carolina said. “And yes, Marissa. Same woman.”

“I’m glad she liked our recipe but why on earth would she feel the need to text you to tell you the man died?” Levi asked.

“Probably because I texted her and asked if she’d heard any news,” Carolina said. “I wasn’t about to ask the sheriff.”

“It’s sort of ironic that he was there,” Marissa said.

“It’s probably a good thing,” Uncle Toad said. “What better way to start an investigation into a homicide?”

“Is that what they’re saying? That it was murder?” Denise asked.

“It’s probably a foregone conclusion,” Danny Lopez, Marissa’s husband, said. His words were mildly sarcastic. “Think about it, little sister. The man was essentially poisoned in front of fifty people.”

“Right,” Denise said. “I guess not too many people choke to death on champagne.”

“I wonder what was in it,” Carolina said. “Whatever it was, it acted pretty fast.” She couldn’t get the sound of the man’s body falling to the ground out of her mind.

“Did they take your statements?” Levi asked, standing closer to Carolina than normal.

“Almost immediately,” Carolina said. “Jocelyn was pretty shaken.”

“I bet she was,” Danny said.

“Won’t she be a suspect?” Denise asked.

“Not likely,” Carolina said. “She told us this morning the champagne had been provided by the company itself and not her catering firm.”

“Still, they served it,” Uncle Toad pointed out.

“I guess that’s true,” Carolina said. She took no pleasure in the thought of her business rival being a murder suspect. She was more content to see Jocelyn’s face screw up when someone praised the From the Hart Catering in her presence.

“That might be interesting,” Marissa said.

“What’s that?” Levi asked.

“Billy questioning his girlfriend about the murder,” Uncle Toad said.

“Fiancé,” Carolina corrected him. “And I don’t think that’s allowed to happen.”

“Are you feeling okay about this?” Uncle Toad asked, putting his arm around her.

“I don’t feel anything,” Carolina said lightly. “I divorced Billy more than twenty years ago, and I was a kid when we were married anyway.”

“That’s what I was wondering,” Levi said.

Carolina felt a wave of unease with his comment, but her phone rang before she could process what was said. She glanced at the screen and shrugged, not recognizing the number. She stepped away from the others and walked down the narrow hall toward the back door.

“Hello,” she said when she answered the phone.

“Carolina Hart,” a brassy, shrill voice said on the other end.

“This is Carolina. Can I help you?”

“Yes, you can help me,” the woman said. “You did it before. And now I need you to do it again.”

Carolina took a long breath. Something about the voice was familiar, but she couldn’t quite place who it belonged to. “First, who is this? And second, how can I help you?”

“Fine. Pretend like you don’t know who this is. It’s me, Jocelyn.”

“Jocelyn Hendricks?”

“Do you know another Jocelyn?”

“No, one of you is quite enough,” Carolina said. “What is it that I did for you before and now you want me to do again?”

Jocelyn sighed. Her irritation was evident. “Remember when we first met? You helped investigate the murder of my assistant which cleared my name,” she said. “I need you to do that again.”

“Why?” Carolina asked.

“Because I didn’t do it,” Jocelyn snapped.

“Who thinks you did?”

“Well, my fiancé has his doubts, for starters,” Jocelyn said.

“Billy thinks you killed someone?”

“Well, not exactly,” Jocelyn said. “But he certainly has a lot of questions for me about what happened.”

“Naturally,” Carolina said.

“Whose side are you on?” Jocelyn asked.

“Nobody’s,” Carolina said. “I just mean that as the sheriff, Billy has to ask questions. And the more he asks you, the less it will appear that he is playing favorites. Honestly, I think someone else will be asking you even more questions.”

“I’ve talked to a detective already too, but if you ask me, Billy ought to play favorites. I’m going to be his wife someday.”

“Even so,” Carolina said. “Has he said anything about suspecting you of murder? What on earth could he be thinking about in terms of the motive?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jocelyn asked.

“Nothing, aside from the fact that I fail to see why you would want to kill the man in the first place.”

“You see? That’s good, Carolina,” Jocelyn said. “Maybe you should be an investigator. You would certainly make a better one of those than a caterer.”

“You sure have a funny way of asking for help,” Carolina said.

“It was meant as a compliment.”

“Do you always compliment people by insulting them?”

“Are you going to help me or not?” Jocelyn demanded.

“I still don’t know how I’m supposed to help you,” Carolina said impatiently.

“Find out who killed Carmine Davenport,” Jocelyn said. “That way nobody can think it was me.”

“Was it?”

“Are you insane?”

“Hey, if you want me to look into it, I have to start somewhere,” Carolina said.

“Why don’t you start with the three people who confessed to it?”

“Whoa, wait a minute,” Carolina said. “What three people?”

“The three board members he toasted,” Jocelyn said. “Judy Glass, Ted Norton, and Frank Barnes.”

CHAPTER FOUR

“Hang on a minute,” Marissa said as soon as Carolina ended her phone call with Jocelyn. “She came to you for help, even after the way she spoke with you today?”

“You should have heard the way she spoke to me just now on the phone,” Carolina said.

“And yet, she still managed to ask you for your help,” Uncle Toad said, shaking his head.

“Help with what?” Levi asked. “What does she expect you to do?”

Carolina rested against the sink and dropped her shoulders. “She wants me to figure out who killed the man at the event today,” she said.

“Isn’t that what her boyfriend is supposed to do?” Marissa asked.

“Fiancé,” Uncle Toad corrected, grinning slyly.

“Right. Fiancé,” Marissa repeated. “Why isn’t the sheriff doing that? Or is she setting you up for something?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Carolina said. “I think she’s worried because Billy isn’t telling her what she wants to hear. She’s concerned about how things look, but the weird thing is that there are three other people who already confessed to doing it.”

For a moment, the kitchen at the Hart Family Restaurant was perfectly silent as they each looked at Carolina with their mouths agape.

“Wait a minute,” Uncle Toad said at last. “I don’t think I understand. Jocelyn is worried about being arrested for a murder that three people have already confessed to?”

“That pretty much sums it up,” Carolina said. “I didn’t say she made sense, just that she came to me for help.”

Levi chuckled. “Three other people confessed to killing this guy and Jocelyn Hendricks has a big enough ego that she thinks she might be a suspect as well?”

“Sounds about right for her,” Carolina admitted.

“Who were the people who confessed?” Uncle Toad asked.

“Well, that is a funny one,” she said. “During his toast, the CEO raised his champagne glass to toast three members of his board and those were the three people who confessed.”

Another stunned silence filled the room. “This just gets weirder and weirder by the minute,” Marissa said.

“When did they confess?” Levi asked.

“And why did they confess to killing their boss?” Uncle Toad asked.

“One would think it’s because they did it,” Marissa said. “But the fact that it was all three of them almost makes it unbelievable. At least to me, anyway.”

“Maybe that’s why Jocelyn is worried,” Uncle Toad said.

“I’m not sure what’s going on, but she wants me to meet up with her in an hour or so to talk things over,” Carolina said.

“Are you going to do it?” Levi asked.

Carolina shrugged. “I might as well. I don’t know why, but part of me is curious.”

“I’d meet her,” Uncle Toad said after thinking for a moment.

“You would?” Levi asked.

He nodded. “Think about it this way, if she’s even remotely concerned for herself, it’s possible the police may start pointing fingers at the rest of the catering staff. That could include us as well. I’m not so sure she’s even being considered as a person of interest with confessions having already taken place, but we can’t be too careful.”

“Do you really think that’s a concern?” Marissa asked. “We weren’t anywhere near any of that.”

“That’s true, but they’re going to leave no stone unturned,” Uncle Toad said.

“I think you’re right,” Levi said, finally in agreement.

“You do?” Carolina said, slightly surprised.

“It makes sense. Where are you supposed to meet Jocelyn?” Levi asked.

“My house. In less than an hour,” Carolina said, looking at her phone.

“You probably ought to head home now then,” Levi suggested. “I think you should meet with her, and I plan to be there, too.”

“Why are you going?” Marissa asked.

“Just to make sure she’s not trying to set Carolina up,” Levi said.

“Good idea,” Uncle Toad said. “I think it would be helpful for you to hear what she has to say, too. Maybe you can determine whether we have anything to worry about.”

“I don’t see how any of us would have anything to worry about,” Marissa said.

“If the three people that confessed aren’t enough, that means those in charge of the investigation are going to look into each and every person who had any access to the kitchen or that champagne,” Uncle Toad said. “We might as well find out anything we can on the rare chance there is trouble coming. It never hurts to be prepared.”

“It’s not so much that I’m concerned we might be blamed as well,” Carolina said. “I’m more worried about Jocelyn throwing us under the bus along with herself.”

“Then why are you agreeing to meet with her in the first place?” Marissa challenged.

“It’s like the old saying goes,” Carolina said. “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.”

“So, Jocelyn’s the enemy?” Levi said with a chuckle.

“No, not necessarily,” Carolina said. “But I do think keeping her at arm’s length while everything is going on might not be a bad idea.”

CHAPTER FIVE

Carolina left for home shortly afterward, and Levi showed up about ten minutes before Jocelyn was due. He rode the motorcycle again, a fact that gave Carolina pangs of regret for not planning a ride with him that evening. There were so many things she’d rather do than meet with Jocelyn, but her uncle was right. If there was even the slightest possibility any member of her staff or herself might be suspected of Carmine’s death, she wanted to get ahead of it as soon as possible.

“Are you going to invite me in?” Jocelyn said as soon as she knocked on Carolina’s front door.

“Be careful or I’ll throw you in the chicken coop,” Carolina replied. Levi practically snorted in laughter.

“That better be a joke,” Jocelyn snapped.

“Behave yourself and you won’t have to find out,” Carolina said. “Anyway, come inside.”

“Is there room for all of us?” Jocelyn said doubtfully.

“There’s plenty of room.” Levi rolled his eyes.

“Have a seat, Jocelyn,” Carolina said. “You’re the one that wanted to meet up with me tonight. I’ve agreed to hear what you have to say, but let’s get one thing straight. I’m not going to put up with constant insults from you. Got it?”

Jocelyn’s face instantly hardened. She narrowed her eyes at Carolina and raised one finger and pointed it at her face. She opened her mouth to speak and then closed it again quickly.

“Good idea rethinking that response,” Levi said.

“Why is he here?” Jocelyn asked.

“He’s here because I invited him,” Carolina said.

Jocelyn’s eyes roved over him from his head to his feet. “Not bad, Carolina.”

“I don’t appreciate you objectifying me,” Levi said with a laugh.

“Okay, sorry,” Jocelyn replied unapologetically.

“Anyway, can we get down to the real reason you’re here, please?” Carolina interrupted. “What can you tell me about the confessions?”

“It happened after you left,” Jocelyn said. “I was still there because Billy sent the rest of my staff home.”

“Okay, but what happened?”

“The three of them confessed to it.”

“Right, but can you be more specific?” Levi shook his head. “Jeez, this is like pulling teeth.”

Carolina smirked. “Yes, how did it play out?”

“Oh, well, there were several college employees running around by then,” Jocelyn said. “We were all standing in the middle of the hall in the center of the multipurpose building. There were deputies running around everywhere, and the three of them saw each other. They sort of huddled together in the middle of it all for a moment. Then one of them spotted Billy and called him over. They stood right in front of him, and the first guy raised his hand and said he did it.”

“They were all standing together at that point?” Carolina asked.

“Right,” Jocelyn continued. “After the first one confessed, the woman in the group, Nancy, stepped up and said that no, she was the one who did it.”

“What did the first guy say to that?” Levi stood at one end of the trailer with his arms folded.

“He turned around and started arguing with her,” Jocelyn continued. “That’s when the third guy walked around the other two while they were arguing and said that he was the one who did it.”

“Clearly they weren’t working together then,” Carolina said.

“It didn’t appear that way,” Jocelyn agreed. “It was chaos after that.”

“Were they all arrested?”

“Can you get me some coffee or something?” Jocelyn asked suddenly. “I’m shocked that you didn’t already offer it.”

Carolina stood up and turned the coffee pot on to brew. She had already added water and coffee grounds for the following morning. She returned to her seat and rested her elbows on the table. “Okay. Coffee will be ready in a couple of minutes,” she said. “What happened to them? Were they arrested?”

“That’s hard to say,” Jocelyn said. “Each one was led away by a deputy, but they weren’t in handcuffs. The last thing I heard was Billy talking about taking a really hard look at everyone who was in the room with Carmine when he died. That’s when I started asking him if he meant me, and he got a little testy and said that meant everyone, no exceptions.”

“Did he say anything else?” Levi asked.

Jocelyn shrugged. “Just that he had his doubts about three people who spontaneously confess to murder and then argue about it.”

Carolina stood up and opened the door to the cabinet above the coffee pot. She pulled out three matching mugs and set them on the counter. While she poured the coffee, she considered Jocelyn’s words. Three people had confessed to the same murder in a public space right after they put their heads together. None of it made sense to her.

“Here’s your coffee,” Carolina said when she set the mug on the table in front of Jocelyn. She handed Levi a cup and took her seat at the table again. She first blew on the hot liquid then slowly sipped it.

“Not bad, I suppose,” Jocelyn said. There was no thank you in her words.

“At the time these three people confessed, had they been arguing? Do you recall if they seemed to be angry or upset at each other when they were in their huddle?”

Jocelyn sipped her coffee and seemed lost in thought for a moment. She cocked her head to the side and closed her eyes. “They were certainly having a discussion,” she said. “It’s hard to remember exactly the way things went. So much was going on around us at the same time. I do remember them leaning in and whispering to each other, though.”

“But you don’t remember if they were actually fighting with each other?” Levi asked.

“I think that’s what I just said,” Jocelyn said.

“Aren’t you a peach?” Levi narrowed his eyes at her.

“Do you have a problem with me or something?” Jocelyn asked.

“Not you in particular. Just your attitude,” Levi said. His words were even and calm. “I find it very interesting that you came to Carolina for help with all of this, but you can’t stop yourself from insulting her or acting rude in her home.”

Jocelyn rolled her eyes and shook her head. For a moment, she reminded Carolina of Marissa at around age thirteen when her attitude was at its peak. “This is just who I am,” Jocelyn said. “I guess I forget to turn it off sometimes.”

“Careful,” Levi said. “For a minute there, you sounded like you were about to apologize. But I guess that’s probably as close as you ever get, isn’t it?”

Jocelyn ignored his question and turned her attention back to Carolina. “You never said one way or the other,” she said. “Are you going to help me? Or do I have to try to figure all of this out alone?”

Carolina took her sweet time to reply. She sipped her coffee and closed her eyes, all for Jocelyn’s benefit. At last, she reopened her eyes and set her mug carefully on the table in front of her. “I think there might be something for you to worry about here,” she began. “In fact, I think there might be something for all of us to worry about. For that reason, yes. I’ll help, but there are a couple of things I need from you first.”

“And what would that be?” Jocelyn asked.

“For starters, you answer my questions as honestly and quickly as possible. I don’t want to play any games with you,” Carolina said. “And secondly, you let me do the talking in any situation when we’re together. Even if something sounds a little bit off to you, just follow my lead and keep your mouth shut.”

“Jeez, you sound like a seasoned cop or something,” Jocelyn said.

“I’m just telling you how things might happen, but I need you to promise me that you won’t interfere no matter what,” she said.

“So, you want me to sit back and let you be in charge?” Jocelyn scoffed.

“You can’t be the boss of everything, especially if you want my help. All I’m trying to say is that if I tell someone that I need to look around at the college because I left something behind, you just go with it,” Carolina said. “Even if you know better, just go with it.”

“Is that true? Did you leave something behind?” Jocelyn asked her.

“Come to think of it, I just may have,” Carolina said, fully aware of how well the lie had worked in the past. She just didn’t want to be too open with Jocelyn quite yet.

“Does that mean you’re going back there to look around?’”

“Possibly,” Carolina answered.

“Well, then I’m coming with you,” Jocelyn said.

“Of course, but like I said, don’t interfere.”

“This is my investigation, Carolina. Why do you have to be so bossy?”

She sighed. “Honestly? Because I’m worried that your acting skills are about as good as your people skills.”

CHAPTER SIX

“I can’t believe you agreed to take this on,” Levi said after Jocelyn left. He remained where he stood in front of the small kitchen sink, shaking his head and holding his coffee mug in his hands.

“It’s just like I told her,” Carolina said. “I think there’s something we all need to worry about here. Well, maybe not you because you weren’t there.”

“Do you really think with three people already confessing to the murder that there’s something to her theory about the police looking in other places?” Levi asked.

Carolina could only nod her head for a moment. She did her best to form her thoughts into words. “There’s something about the fact that three people decided to confess all at the same time almost in competition with each other that makes me worry about all of this,” she said. “I have no idea why anyone would want to harm this man. Before this event, I had never heard of him or his company.”

“His company doesn’t seem too controversial either, but that doesn’t mean other people agree with either of us,” Levi said.

“That’s true,” Carolina said. “I guess I’m just having a hard time understanding what a motive would even be. Of course, a motive seems more likely coming from members of his board of directors. Even so, it makes me wonder why three people decided to step forward and claim responsibility for this.”

“If you’re going to start considering possibilities, one thing you have to think of is the likelihood that they were in on that together,” Levi said.

“Why would they all confess then? Doesn’t that sort of defeat the purpose?”

“What better way to sully the waters of suspicion then for three people to step forward and claim responsibility all at the same time?” Levi mused. “Think about it.”

“Oh, I’m thinking about it alright,” Carolina said. “But it sure seems like a big risk to take. Confessing to murder is not something you do in a casual way.”

Levi nodded and set his mug in the sink behind him. “I think I understand why you want to look into this a little further,” he said. “The only thing I have to ask from you is that you please, please be careful.”

“I am always careful,” Carolina said.

“That may be, but we have no idea who these people are,” Levi said. “I mean, big businesses typically involve people with a lot of money, influence, and power. And people like that often don’t think twice about hurting people who get in their way.”

“You sound like you just read that from a newspaper article.” Carolina chuckled.

“I read plenty of newspapers. Maybe that’s why,” Levi said. “Or do I just not look like the type who picks up a newspaper?”

“Let’s not start an argument over nothing,” Carolina said. “When have I ever once complained about the way you look?”

“Come to think of it, I suppose you haven’t,” Levi said. He took two steps towards her and pulled her into his arms.

* * *

The following morning, Carolina decided to arrive at work earlier than normal. She parked her car next to her uncle’s and headed straight for the back door. There was a lot she had to say, and she wanted to hear her uncle’s thoughts before she proceeded any further.

“Carolina Maria,” Uncle Toad said the second she walked past the kitchen door. “Funny seeing you here so early.”

“Is Levi here yet?” she asked. “I didn’t see his truck or bike.”

“He’s supposed to come in a little later,” her uncle said. “Why do you ask?”

“I wasn’t sure what time he was supposed to be in this morning. I wanted to check to make sure he hadn’t already talked to you.”

“About what? Don’t tell me he plans to ask my permission for your hand?” Uncle Toad said.

“Wait a minute,” Carolina gasped. “I’m already in my forties, Uncle Toad. I don’t think anyone’s going to be asking you for permission for anything.”

“You don’t think it would be proper for him to ask me?” Her uncle was clearly crestfallen. “I know I’m not your father, Carolina.”

Carolina immediately softened. “That’s not what I meant at all,” she said. “You’re the closest thing to a father I have on this planet, and I’m so grateful for you. I’m just saying that at my age, nobody is going to be asking for anything. And why are we on the subject of marriage? That’s nothing even closely related to what I wanted to talk to you about this morning.”

“Okay, let’s start over,” her uncle said. “What’s on your mind this morning, Carolina?”

“Levi was at my house last night,” Carolina said. “He was there when Jocelyn stopped by.”

“I think I know where you’re going with this. What happened?”

“She told me a few things that are rather interesting,” Carolina said. “I do think we need to investigate this a little further. I’m not sure I understand exactly what’s going on here, but it’s anybody’s guess who actually killed the CEO,”.”

“What did Jocelyn say?” her uncle asked.

“For starters, she said the three people who confessed to the murder, the three board members, were in some kind of discussion before the first one of them stepped forward and took responsibility,” Carolina said.

“Did she see them confess?”

Carolina nodded her head quickly. “Apparently a lot of people saw them confess. Their confessions took place in the middle of the hall, in the center of that multipurpose building.”

“I’ve never been to the campus before,” her uncle informed her.

“In the middle of the campus there’s a large building with a dome-shaped roof. That’s the multipurpose building,” Carolina explained. “There are various auditoriums and rooms inside, but the center of the building is a large hall where people gather. Sometimes, a stage is erected, and events take place inside it, but most of the time, it’s just a big open space.”

“And that’s where their confessions took place?” Uncle Toad seemed confused by her explanation.

“It is my understanding that everyone was gathered out there after the body was removed,” Carolina said. “Anyway, Jocelyn said the three of them came together and had a conversation. After that, one of the men stepped forward and shouted that he had done it. The woman then claimed she had done it followed by the last guy.”

“What happened after that?” Uncle Toad asked. “Were they all arrested?”

“That’s what I asked her,” Carolina said. “It turns out they were all led away for questioning, but not in handcuffs.”

“Why is Jocelyn so worried, then?” Marissa asked behind her. “It seems like she’s being a little dramatic.”

“Oh, good morning, Marissa,” Carolina said. “I didn’t know you were going to be in this morning.” As her assistant in the catering business, Marissa no longer worked every day as a waitress.

“Danny’s parents are back, so I asked my mother-in-law to look after the baby this morning,” Marissa explained. “I had something on my mind, and I wanted to distract myself for a little while, so I thought I’d come here for a bit.”

“I understand, fully,” Carolina said, also feeling like the restaurant was her safe zone.

“I still don’t get why Jocelyn is so worried if three people confessed to killing that guy,” Marissa repeated.

“Think about it, sweetheart,” Uncle Toad said. “You have three different people competing for the blame and essentially derailing the murder investigation before it can even get started. What better way could there be to throw off an investigation then for three people to step forward and claim responsibility?”

“Right, I get that,” Marissa said. “But I’d think the police would spend most of their time on those three people and not on everyone else.”

Carolina shook her head. “That’s not the way I see it at all,” she said. “Those three people probably will prompt the police to do a far more thorough investigation than they would have done if they had just assumed who was guilty.”

“I hope the police don’t just assume who’s guilty and then go from there,” Uncle Toad said. “That’s not a very optimistic view of law enforcement.”

“My view isn’t based on my opinion of law enforcement in general,” Carolina said. “Which happens to be a very good one. My opinion is based on the law enforcement I know personally.”

“I guess this means you’re going to take Jocelyn up on her challenge to figure out who killed Carmine Davenport, then?” Uncle Toad asked.

“I think it’s best for all of us if I do,” Carolina said. “I plan to leave a little early today and head back over to the college campus.”

“Why would you want to go back there?” Marissa asked.

“I’m not sure exactly,” Carolina admitted. “I want to take a look around. I want to get a better look at the kitchen area and a few other places before too much time passes by.”

“How do you plan to do that?” her uncle asked. “Are you just going to show up and knock on the front door?”

“Of course not, Uncle Toad,” she said. “I figured it would be pretty believable if I called the facilities’ management office and told them that in the confusion of everything, I had left a few things behind.”

Marissa laughed. “I’ve heard that line before.”

“Hey, if it works, it works.” She shrugged.

“It looks like you have your way in, Carolina Maria, but let me suggest something. How about you bring something small along with you in your pocket or a handbag? That way you can make it look like you actually found something you left behind rather than go in there and leave empty handed.”

“Great idea. I like the way you think, Uncle Toad.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

Carolina took advantage of a pause in the morning rush to step outside and place a phone call to the facilities management office at the college. After a quick hold, the receptionist returned and said that she had permission from the facilities management director to return.

“Are you headed over there now?” Uncle Toad asked.

“That’s the plan.”

“I’m a little surprised they’re going to allow you to go back,” Levi said. He had arrived just before eight and stood beside her uncle at the grill.

“I am, too,” Carolina said. “I’m sure there will be parts of the building I won’t be allowed to see, but I have to try.”

“Are you taking Marissa with you?” Uncle Toad asked.

“If you don’t need her and if she wants to go, yes I will.”

“Denise is here,” Levi said. “I suppose you just need to ask Marissa.”

Carolina told her uncle and Levi goodbye before she headed out into the dining room to check with her cousin. “Do you want to run back to the college with me?”

“Yeah, sure. Let’s go.”

When they were almost to the college, Carolina’s phone rang. She picked it up and looked at the screen, then groaned audibly before she answered.

“Good morning, Jocelyn,” she said into the phone. “What can I do for you?”

“Where are you?” Jocelyn demanded. “I went by that diner of yours and they said you weren’t there.”

“I’m going for a drive with my cousin,” Carolina said.

“Is that all you’re doing?”

“Right now, I’m sitting in the car talking to you,” Carolina said. “What do you need?”

“I want to know what’s going on with this investigation,” Jocelyn said.

“Nothing so far,” Carolina said. “I do have a business to run.”

“Yeah, a business you aren’t even at right now. Plus, you told me last night you were going to look into things for me.”

“I’m not a private investigator nor are you paying me for my time, Jocelyn,” Carolina said. “I intend to look into things. Today in fact. But I don’t need you breathing down my neck demanding to know my whereabouts.”

“You’re up to something,” Jocelyn said. “Aren’t you?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Carolina shot a glance at Marissa and rolled her eyes. “Listen, I have to go. I’ll call you later.” She ended the phone call before she had a chance to hear Jocelyn complain.

“What was that all about?” Marissa asked.

“Oh, just Jocelyn being her usual delightful self.”

“Put her out of your mind for now. You don’t need that nonsense to distract you.”

Carolina merely nodded as she opened the door and climbed out of her car. She walked around to the back and opened the trunk, pulling out a large shoulder bag she’d put some utensils in like her uncle had suggested. She tucked her phone, keys, and wallet inside and headed toward the building.

She pulled the door open at the service entrance they’d used for the gig. Marissa followed her inside and they walked down a narrow hallway toward the kitchen. Carolina was surprised that no one stopped them.

“Do you have any idea where you want to look?” Marissa asked.

Carolina shook her head. “Not really, but I’m just going to look and see what I can see.” She went toward the back of the extra-large kitchen and looked around the room. She pulled out a small cheese grater from her bag and held it in her hands just in case someone came around.

“There was a storage room on the other side near the pantry. Maybe you’ll find something helpful in there. Not that I have any clue what you’re looking for.”

“I forgot about that,” Carolina said, handing her a large serving spoon “Why don’t you take this with you and look around here some more? Look for anything out of place.”

“Okay,” she said holding the spoon so tightly her knuckles turned white.

Carolina walked back across the kitchen toward the door marked “storage room.” She could hear voices coming from the other side of the kitchen door. Before she reached the storage room, the door opened, and Jocelyn stood in the doorway gawking at her. “What are you doing here?”

For a moment, Carolina could only stare at her. “We left some things behind.” She held the cheese grater in front of her awkwardly.

“No, seriously, what are you doing here?” Jocelyn demanded. She took a step closer to Carolina. “You’re doing something again without telling me.”

Carolina shook her head. “Would you please be quiet?”

“I never should have asked you to help me.”

“Speaking of that, why are you here?” Carolina asked.

“Trying to get to the truth,” Jocelyn said. “I figured you weren’t going to make good on what you said you would do, so I thought I’d come here and look around myself.”

“And what excuse did you give?” Carolina asked.

“I told them I left my purse here,” Jocelyn said with a smile. “I thought that was unique.”

“Not that unique,” Carolina said. She handed Jocelyn her shoulder bag. “Come with me.”

Jocelyn took the bag without argument and followed Carolina into the storage room. “You really did come prepared, didn’t you?” she said.

“Ironically, it seems so,” Carolina said. “I didn’t tell you I was coming here because I didn’t want it to seem too suspicious.”

“Suspicious how?”

“Like I wanted to get a better look at the crime scene or something,” Carolina said. “You’ll run into those types of people after a murder occurs.”

“You sound like some sort of expert again,” Jocelyn complained.

Carolina shook her head. “I spent more than a decade in marketing. You start to get pretty familiar with different demographics in that line of work.” She flipped the light on and caught her breath in her throat. She had never seen such a large storage area inside a commercial kitchen before. The entire room was big enough for two large residential bedrooms. It might have passed for a small grocery store given the long lines of wire shelves that were on every wall and filled the middle with less than two feet between each unit.

“What should I do?”

“I’ll start on this end while you head to the middle of the room and look through those shelves, okay,” Carolina said.

“What do you want me to look for?”

“Just look. You’re a caterer, so if you see something that doesn’t belong, pay attention,” Carolina said. “And if I venture off, don’t follow me.”

“Where are you going?” Jocelyn demanded.

“Do you want my help or not?” Carolina whispered harshly. “If I get a chance, I plan to look around a little bit outside of this area. That’s all.”

“Fine, I’ll do what you said.” Jocelyn slung the bag over her shoulder and headed toward the first shelf in the middle of the room.

Carolina rolled her eyes and began looking at the shelves immediately behind her. She scanned each level for any sign of something that didn’t look quite right. Before long, she was halfway around the room. The truth was, she really didn’t know what she was looking for, but if she was going to try to prove who killed Carmine Davenport, she had to start somewhere.

By the time she reached the last wall, Carolina began to doubt whether coming there was even worth it. Jocelyn worked through the middle of the room and finally muttered something about this being a waste of her time.

“You’re right. There’s nothing here.”

“Now what?” Jocelyn asked.

“If you don’t mind, stay here for a second,” Carolina said.

“Where are you going?” Jocelyn asked again.

“I noticed a collection of trash cans around the corner,” Carolina said. “I wanted to go see if I could find anything over there.”

“You’re going to go look in the trash?” Jocelyn asked, completely dumbfounded.

“Yes, I am,” Carolina said. “Just please stay here. I’ll be right back.”

“Whatever, trash picker.” Jocelyn groaned. “I’ll stay here, but you’d better text me if you find anything.”

“I will, don’t worry,” Carolina said. She turned on her heel and headed back out of the storage room door and rounded the corner where she had spotted the trash cans. She looked around for signs of anyone else before she flipped the light on to get a closer look. The trash cans had been pushed into a small alcove that looked like it might have been a coat closet at one point.

Each of the large plastic trash cans had been mounted to a trolley with castors. Carolina pulled several canned food flats off the top of the first trash can and peered down inside. She saw nothing unusual and moved the can out of the way. Her knee bumped the second trash can. The movement caused the can to move backwards and hit the third one behind it. Carolina was surprised to hear glass clinking from the back can. She pulled the middle one out of the way and looked inside, surprised to see several empty champagne bottles.

Carolina quickly pulled her cell phone out of her back pocket and snapped a photo of the bottles. She reached in the trash can with her phone and took a closer picture of the label on one of the bottles, making sure not to touch anything. She attached the picture to a text message and sent it to Jocelyn.

“Is this the same champagne they served yesterday?” she wrote.

“No, it isn’t the same,” Jocelyn replied. “It’s a cheaper knockoff of the fancy champagne they served at the luncheon. But they taste the same.”

“I’m heading back,” Carolina responded. She pushed the trash cans back into their places and turned the light off. By the time she reached the storage room door, Marissa had emerged from the kitchen.

“Did you find anything?” Marissa asked quickly.

Carolina nodded her head. “I found a stash of empty champagne bottles in one of the trash cans around the corner.”

Marisa narrowed her eyes at her cousin and folded her arms. “Seriously,” she said. “Because I went to the bathroom just before I found you, and I saw three empty champagne bottles in the trash can, but not a thing in the kitchen.”

They stepped inside the storage room and Marissa was face to face with Jocelyn. “What is she doing here?”

“Oh, hush. We’re all here for the same reason,” Jocelyn said. “Did you find anything besides the champagne bottles?” she asked Carolina.

“Marissa found some in the trash in the bathroom too.”

“What was the name on the label?” Jocelyn asked. “Show her the pictures you took.”

Carolina rolled her eyes but pulled her cell phone back out of her pocket and opened her gallery. She selected the photo of the label and handed the phone over to her cousin. “Is that the same champagne?”

Marissa nodded and handed the phone back to Carolina. “I’m quite certain it’s the same one,” she said.

“How sure?” Jocelyn asked.

“A hundred percent. I just looked at them less than two minutes ago.”

“Maybe one of us should go double check,” Jocelyn suggested.

“I trust that Marissa knows what she saw,” Carolina said. “So, unless you want to take a turn digging in the trash, I suggest we all get out of here.”

“Since when did I become part of your staff?” Jocelyn asked. “Why do you think it’s okay to tell me what to do?”

“Fine, stay here then,” Marissa shot back.

“We’re all leaving together.” Carolina glared hard at both of them and led the way out of the building.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“You’re certain that was not the same champagne used at the luncheon?” Carolina asked again.

“I’m positive it wasn’t,” Jocelyn said. “How many times do I have to tell you that?”

“As many times as you asked Marissa if she was sure she saw the same bottles in the bathroom that I saw in the trash cans,” Carolina said.

“Okay, fine,” Jocelyn said. “But can you tell me why you think anything to do with the champagne matters?”

“I think it’s pretty suspicious there would be so much champagne of any kind tucked away in obscure places,” she said. “Didn’t the luncheon hall have trash cans of its own?”

“The trash cans were stationary,” Jocelyn explained. “They were built into cabinets. I saw the workers empty the trash bags a couple of times yesterday.”

“They might have dumped the bags into those other trash cans,” Marissa suggested.

Jocelyn shook her head. “No, they took them outside to a dumpster,” she said. “One of my waiters saw them doing it. He told Billy that yesterday during his search of the building.”

“Do you know if Billy or one of the deputies searched the kitchen?” Carolina asked. “I mean, I would think they would have done that.”

“Are you suggesting Billy didn’t do his job correctly? Listen, I didn’t agree to come to your house to talk more about this so you could insult my fiancé.”

“I can’t even with you, Jocelyn,” Marissa snapped. “First you say Billy is overstepping by having you questioned and now you’re mad at Carolina for asking questions about what might have happened when you’re the reason she’s doing it in the first place.”

“Yeah, yeah. Just tell me why all this matters.”

Carolina sucked in a breath. “I wonder where those bottles came from. It makes sense to me that if the facility workers took the trash out from the luncheon hall, they would have also emptied the trash bins in the kitchen and the police would have probably noticed and gone through all the trash.”

“Was there another event today?” Marissa asked.

Carolina shook her head. “When I called the facilities management office, they told me nothing was going on today,” she said. “Besides, how many events take place here that require so much champagne, and right after a death, too?”

“That’s a good point,” Jocelyn said. “But it still doesn’t explain anything.”

“No,” Carolina admitted. “But I think it might be significant.”

“In what way?” Marissa asked.

“I’m not sure yet,” Carolina said. “But if that champagne was served at the board meeting, it makes me wonder if the kind you saw served was somehow spiked before the meeting. How many bottles did you see of the more expensive variety?”

“Only two,” Jocelyn said. “But the more expensive stuff was reserved for board members and the CEO himself.” Her cell phone rang suddenly. She walked about ten steps away and answered. After a brief conversation, she returned. Her face had fallen.

“Is something wrong?” Carolina asked.

“That was Billy’s secretary at the sheriff’s department. I don’t know if he knew she was calling me, but she wanted to let me know that all three of the confessors have been released from custody.”

“What does that mean?” Marissa asked.

“It means they aren’t likely to be charged with Carmine Davenport’s murder anytime soon,” Carolina said. She was surprised by the lump that had formed in her throat.

“It didn’t sound like good news to me either,” Jocelyn said. “What do we do now?”

Carolina exhaled all the air in her lungs. “The only thing I can think of is to go and talk to each of them, one at a time. Do you know where they’re staying?”

“You mean you’re just going to go right up to them and ask them if they murdered their boss?” Jocelyn smirked. “That sounds utterly ridiculous.”

“I seem to remember that you’re the one that asked for Carolina’s help,” Marissa said.

“I did, yes,” Jocelyn replied. “But I am starting to wonder if I was out of my mind at the time.”

“I don’t have to help you,” Carolina reminded her. “But if I’m going to help you, speaking to some of the suspects might be a good idea, don’t you think?”

“It just seems ridiculous to me that you could walk up to someone and ask them if they killed someone else,” Jocelyn said.

“That would be ridiculous,” Carolina said. “It’s a good thing that’s not what I was planning to do.”

“Do you mind filling me in on your grand plans then?” Jocelyn asked.

“It depends on if I get to speak with them or not,” Carolina began. “But if I do, I’ll probably start out by asking them some questions and measuring their responses. It’s not that much different than learning about a client when you’re trying to create a marketing campaign for them. The first step is to figure out their motivation.”

“Okay, that sort of makes sense,” Jocelyn said reluctantly. “I’m fairly sure two of them are staying at the Sycamore Ridge Inn. The third one, Frank Barnes, actually lives halfway between here and Santa Fe.”

“I suppose the inn is a good place to start, then.” Carolina still wasn’t sure how she would approach them, but that sort of thing usually came to her in time.

“I’m glad I was able to offer you such helpful information.” Jocelyn held her head high. “It seems like I’m doing much more with this whole thing than you are.”

Carolina ignored the last comment and told Jocelyn she’d talk to her later. Before she left, Jocelyn made her promise that she would be in touch if she got ahold of any of the board members. Carolina felt compelled to agree, but decided she would be the one to determine what really happened.

“How do you think that went?” Carolina asked her cousin as they got into her car to drive back to the restaurant.

Marissa folded her arms over her chest. “I think Jocelyn Hendricks is as insufferable as I thought she was. I’m just glad we don’t have to work closely with her all the time.”

“You and me both.” Carolina chuckled. “I do think we’re on to something with the champagne bottles. That can’t be a coincidence.”

“Okay, but what could it possibly mean? You heard Jocelyn when she said the good stuff was specifically for the big wigs. They probably just served the cheaper stuff to everyone else.”

“Maybe,” Carolina admitted as she drove. “But it’s also possible that more champagne was consumed then we initially realized. It’s also possible that whoever killed Carmine Davenport might have spiked a bottle and kept it to the side.”

“So, maybe the other champagne bottles were sort of a decoy?” Marissa said. “I think we need to find out exactly who had the name brand champagne during the board meeting.”

“That’s what I intend to find out,” Carolina said. “That’s one reason why I really want to speak with each of the three confessors.”

“Confessors,” Marissa giggled. “Now you sound like Jocelyn.”

“Well, they aren’t the only members of the board, but they are the only three that confessed to killing the CEO of the company.”

“Fair enough.” Marissa’s shoulders relaxed and she turned her head to gaze at her cousin.

They drove in silence for several more minutes. By the time Carolina pulled back onto the road in front of the Hart Family Restaurant, traffic had picked up slightly. She glanced in her review mirror to see the familiar white squad car behind her. “Looks like Billy is following us,” she said.

“That’s one thing that definitely doesn’t seem like a coincidence,” Marissa said just as Billy turned his lights and siren on and gestured for her to pull over.

CHAPTER NINE

“What does he want from me now?” Carolina complained. She pulled off the road onto the shoulder and waited for Billy to exit his vehicle. She rolled down her window and gripped the steering wheel with both hands as he walked up to her car door. “I wasn’t speeding.”

Billy stiffened the second she spoke. He pulled a flimsy pad of paper out of his back pocket and a pen from his shirt pocket. “What are you doing?” he asked her.

“We’re driving back to work,” Carolina said through gritted teeth.

“Is that all you’re doing?”

“You mean other than transporting the body in the trunk?” She didn’t try to hide the acid in her voice. “We were just coming from the college where I had to go to pick up some things that we left behind yesterday in the confusion of everything. Ask Jocelyn. She was there too.”

Billy said nothing but leaned down until his face was even with hers. He nodded towards Marissa. “Hi there, Marissa,” he said, ignoring Carolina. “How are Danny and your in-laws?”

“Doing just fine,” Marissa said. “Margie and Herman are back in town for the time being and staying at the house with us.”

“Tell them I said hello, if you don’t mind.” Billy turned his attention back to Carolina. “I have a feeling if I asked you to do the same thing, the message would never get to them.” It was a strange thing for him to say and Carolina couldn’t quite understand why he made a point of saying it.

“I’ll tell them hello for you,” Marissa said brightly. “Can you tell me why you pulled us over?”

Billy glanced back at Marissa and then cleared his throat. “I just wanted to check in,” he said. “I’m conducting a murder investigation and I don’t need any interference with it. Is that clear?”

“You pulled me over to tell me not to do something? I feel like you can spend your time better than that.”

“You are so impossible, Carolina Hart,” Billy said. “You are free to go.” He shoved the flimsy paper tablet back in his pocket, turned on one heel and walked back to his car. He slammed the door and spun gravel when he pulled out from behind her.

Carolina drove back to the restaurant, fuming with frustration. She was angry at Jocelyn as well for pulling her into the mess. “I am so sick of Jocelyn and Billy,” she muttered to herself.

“You’re not the only one,” Marissa said from the passenger seat. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to stop by the Sycamore Ridge Inn on my way home tonight,” Carolina announced.

“Why not go there right now?” Marissa suggested.

“Are you up for it?” Carolina asked.

Marissa patted her cousin on the knee as she drove. “I wouldn’t have suggested it if I wasn’t up for it,” she said. “Plus, I feel better knowing you aren’t alone.”

“Point taken,” Carolina said. She turned right off the road to head toward the Sycamore Ridge Inn. “Look in the glove box for me, please. We should have some business cards in there.”

“Business cards?” Marissa opened the glove box and pulled out a stack of business cards. “What do we need these for?”

“If we’re going to stop by the inn, we ought to have a good reason,” Carolina said. “I’m not sure why I haven’t thought about this before, but we’re going to go in there and offer our services and then ask to leave some business cards with the kitchen staff. If we’re lucky, we’ll get a chance to look around a little bit, too.”

“What are we looking for?” Marissa asked.

“Any chance to run into one of the Cavalier Corporation board members,” Carolina said. “I don’t know of a faster or a better way to get to them than to show up and hope we run into them.”

“Do you even remember what they look like?” Marissa asked.

“I have a pretty good idea, but you might want to look them up on your phone before we get there if you need a reminder.”

Marissa nodded and pulled out her phone. Just before Carolina pulled into the parking lot at the inn, Marissa let out a gasp.

“What is it?” Carolina asked.

“I just found a couple of articles about Cavalier Corporation that I wasn’t expecting.”

“What do they say?” Caroline asked.

“It’s probably nothing, but this one article from about six months ago said Cavalier Corporation was in financial trouble.”

“That doesn’t sound good. Does it say why?”

“It doesn’t say much in the first one, but I’m trying to see if I can find another one with more information.”

“Okay, well, we’re here. So, for now, was there anything that popped out at you that we should know before we speak to the board members?”

Marissa shook her head. “Not especially,” she said. “The only thing that caught my eye was the fact that Carmine Davenport took over as CEO less than a year ago to help the company get out of financial straits. That’s the only thing that seems halfway pertinent.”

“Well, it may or may not be, but we should definitely look more into it after we leave.”

They exited the car and headed toward the door to the lobby. Carolina pulled the door open and held it for Marissa who walked in ahead of her. The lobby was empty, and no one appeared behind the front desk to help them.

“Should we ring the bell?” Marissa whispered.

“Let’s just give it a minute,” Carolina said. She laid a business card next to the silver bell on the counter with the sign next to it indicating to ring it for service. She turned and headed down the hallway to the right of the front desk.

“Where are we going?” Marissa asked again in a whisper. “And why did you leave a business card?”

“The bar is down this way,” Carolina told her. “And the business card was to cover ourselves in case someone comes looking for us.”

CHAPTER TEN

A strong odor of chlorine filled the air as they reached the end of the hallway. The entrance to the indoor pool was on one side of the hallway and the bar was on the other. Carolina opened the glass door with “Sycamore Ridge Tavern” affixed to it. She held the door for Marissa and stepped inside. They waited while their eyes adjusted to the lower lights.

The atmosphere inside the bar was a world away from the rest of the inn. She could no longer detect the chlorine smell from the other side of the door. Instead, they were met with the faint smell of cedar and musky cologne.

“Should we order a drink?” Marissa asked.

“Yeah, let’s grab a seat at the bar,” Carolina said. She moved toward the end of the bar and chose a stool. Marissa followed and took a seat next to her.

“What can I get you?” the bartended asked when he approached them.

“I’ll have a white wine spritzer,” Marissa said.

“Same here,” Carolina said. The bartender nodded quickly and moved away. As soon as he was gone, Carolina turned around on her stool and surveyed the room. She was shocked to see Judy Glass and Ted Norton huddled together at a table in the corner.

“Is that them?” Marissa leaned over to her and asked.

Carolina nodded her head slightly. “That’s two of them.”

“How do we get them to talk to us?” Marissa asked.

“We can either walk straight up to them and start talking, or I’ll order them a drink,” Carolina said. The bartender returned with their wine spritzers. Carolina set a twenty-dollar bill on the bar in front of her. “Would you please send those two people right there at the table another round of whatever they’re drinking?”

The bartender merely nodded and headed back to prepare the drinks. Moments later, a waitress carried a small tumbler of whiskey and an amber beer bottle on a small tray to the table. Carolina turned slightly and watched as the waitress explained where the drinks had come from. Judy looked up and stared at Carolina for a moment. Carolina picked up her own glass and raised it nodding slightly toward the couple at the table.

“Now what?” Marissa asked.

“Now we wait, and hope they want to thank us for the drinks,” Carolina said.

The wait wasn’t long. A second later, Ted stood with his whiskey and approached them. “I am insanely curious to know the reason for you sending us a round of drinks,” he said. He was an older man. Carolina guessed that he was close to sixty. His thinning hair covered parts of his head that no longer had any.

“I was one of the caterers at the job fair yesterday,” Carolina said. “My company catered the breakfast and lunch bars for the open areas. I just wanted to send you a little something. I know it must have been a difficult day for all of you.”

“Are you the one that’s engaged to the sheriff?” Ted asked. He narrowed his eyes at her. His companion must have read his body language. Judy stood and joined them at the bar.

“No. I’m not the one who catered the board of directors luncheon.”

“Is it true that you were once married to him though?” Judy asked her.

Carolina was shocked that a stranger from out of town would already have that information. “I was married to him more than twenty years ago back when we were both clueless kids right out of high school,” she said, chuckling softly. She hoped her humor would dispel any ideas that she might be spying for the sheriff.

“How is it that you wound up a business rival to his fiancée?” Judy persisted.

“Oh, it’s nothing crazy,” Carolina said. “My family owns the Hart Family Restaurant on the other side of town. When I returned from a decade and a half in Wyoming, I decided to take the family business in a different direction. That’s the long and the short of it.”

“I’m sure you have other things to worry about today,” Ted said suddenly. “Thanks for the drinks.”

Carolina looked down at his hands and noticed they were trembling. “Are you alright?”

“It’s been a rough couple of days,” Judy offered. Her own voice wavered slightly as she spoke. Her shoulders suddenly jerked involuntarily. She was shaking as well.

“Both of you are trembling,” Carolina whispered. “What is going on?”

Ted shook his head quickly. “I can’t talk about it. We can’t talk about it. It’s too much. It’s just too much.”

Carolina felt her body recoil a little from the older man. He acted like someone on the verge of an explosion. His eyes darted back and forth. For a moment, she thought he might have been high on a drug of some sort.

“Neither of you looks like you’re feeling well. Maybe you should go back to your rooms or get some medical help,” Marissa suggested.

“That won’t be necessary,” Judy said.

“Not to mention the fact that both of you are shaking like a tree in a brisk wind,” Carolina said bluntly. “Give me a reason not to call an ambulance for both of you right now.”

Judy glared at her. Her eyes misted suddenly, and she dropped her head. “We just found out something rather disturbing, but we can’t talk about it.”

“How long do you have to be in town?” Carolina said. She decided to dispense with any pretenses. “Someone told me the two of you and another one of your colleagues confessed to Carmine Davenport’s murder yesterday.”

Ted’s face hardened. He stopped trembling and gripped the edge of the bar with his hands. “We can’t talk about it,” he repeated. “We really, really can’t talk about it.”

“Let’s get out of here,” Judy said. She grabbed him by the arm and practically pried his hands off the bar. They walked toward the exit and disappeared into the hallway.

“That was very strange,” Marissa said.

“You think that was strange?” the bartender muttered. “You should have seen them earlier this morning.”

“What did they do?” Carolina asked.

“Some other guy came in and met them here at the bar. He was a tall guy, kind of lanky. Anyway, he came in and said something to them and they started arguing with each other. Eventually, the new guy yelled something about knowing too much and then the woman chased him out. The first two have been here ever since, drinking away.” He walked away from them and began polishing glasses with a bar towel.

She finished her spritzer and waited as Marissa drained the last of hers and pushed the glass away. Carolina pulled out another ten dollar bill. “Thanks again,” she called to the bartender on their way out.

“That was interesting,” Marissa said as they walked to the car.

Carolina nodded. “I think we need to talk to Frank next. There has to be more to the story.”

“Yeah, maybe we can get more out of him than we could those two,” Marissa agreed.

“Especially since it’s likely he was the man who showed up here earlier and gave the other two the news that left them in their current state.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

“What do you think had them so shook up?” Uncle Toad asked when they returned to the restaurant.

Carolina shrugged. “For the life of me, I can’t figure it out,” she said. “But whatever the third man had to say to them this morning really got them upset.”

“Carolina,” Marissa said, emerging from the storage room. “Do you remember those articles I saw right before we got to the inn?”

“Oh, boy. What did you find now?”

“I think you’re going to want to see for yourself.”

Carolina said nothing more to her uncle and rushed past him to the storage room. Marissa had pulled open her laptop so she could read the articles on a larger screen. She sat down at her desk and leaned in to scan the first article.

After the first article, Carolina spent the next forty-five minutes researching Cavalier Corporation on the internet. She went deeper down a rabbit hole reading about Carmine Davenport’s track record as a businessman. He was a rich man who invested in several businesses. It seemed that he’d often invested in sinking companies and then turned them around for profit rather quickly, but then the businesses all seemed to fail soon after. She felt a little bad looking into the history of a murder victim, but the more she looked, the more she found. It was hard to tell if he was a good man or someone who liked to play with the money and lives of those less fortunate than him.

“Are you going to sit at your desk for the rest of the day?” Uncle Toad popped his head in the room to ask her.

“No, I’m not,” she said, standing up from her seat. “I am going to run out to the store for a few items.”

“If you need something from the store, I can have Sam run over there for you in a little while,” her uncle offered.

“Not that store,” Carolina said, shaking her head. “I’m going to run up to Santa Fe for more catering supplies.”

“Oh, okay,” Uncle Toad said. “I didn’t realize that’s what you meant. I guess you better get going, then. Don’t they close at five?”

“They close at six, but you’re right,” Carolina said. “I should get going.”

“Going where?” Marissa asked.

“Restaurant supply store,” Uncle Toad said.

“Can I tag along?” Marissa asked.

“I don’t need you here,” Uncle Toad said.

“Gee, thanks.” Marissa laughed.

Uncle Toad chuckled and swatted at her. “You know what I mean.”

“Let’s get going right away,” Carolina said. She was distracted by the information she had uncovered online about Carmine Davenport.

Marissa nodded and followed her out to the car. “Thanks for letting me go with you,” she said as soon as she took a seat in the passenger side.

“Of course. We’re in this together now.”

“Who knew I’d be your assistant in a murder investigation too,” Marissa said awkwardly. “I assume that’s what we’re doing right now.”

“You got it,” Carolina said. “In my search, I found out that Frank lives on the way. He’s just a mile off the highway.

“We’re going to his house?” Marissa asked.

“I’d like to stop by and find out whether he visited the Sycamore Ridge Inn this morning or not.”

“I don’t think you should just come out and ask that,” Marissa said, openly leery of the idea.

“Of course not. We’re going there to see if he needs catering services. We may have to pretend to be a couple of damsels in distress who are seriously desperate for business, but I think we can handle that.”

“So, we’re going to act like we are having business trouble or something?”

“Yeah, or something. Just follow my lead,” Carolina said. “I’m usually pretty good at reading the situation before I make any decisions. I think we’ll figure out what to do once we see how he reacts to seeing us.” She pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the highway. Typically, the trip to the restaurant supply store took just under three hours, there and back. But with the added stopover to find Frank, she wasn’t sure how long they might be gone.

“Do we really need to go after supplies?” Marissa asked.

Carolina shrugged. “We’re not desperate for anything, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“So, this is solely a ruse so we can check out this Frank guy?”

“You could say that,” Carolina said. She turned to her cousin and smiled. “I needed a reason to go that way and depending on what happens, we can decide what to do after that.”

“Did you mention the supply store for Levi’s sake or for Uncle Toad’s?” Marissa asked.

“Both. Neither. I guess it’s more of an insurance policy against them questioning me about it,” Carolina admitted. Her phone began to ring before she could say anymore. Marissa pulled her phone out of her bag and handed it to her.

“Hello? Is this Carolina Hart?” the voice of a young woman on the other end said. Carolina had not looked at the screen to see who was calling her before she answered.

“You’ve reached Carolina,” she said. “Who is this?”

“My name is Laura Dannenberg and I work in the accounts receivable office at Sycamore Ridge Community College,” the woman said. “I’m calling because we have a bit of a problem.”

“Is everything okay?” Carolina asked. She eased the car over onto the shoulder of the highway and stopped.

“What’s going on?” Marissa whispered.

Carolina covered the phone with her hand. “It’s the college,” she said. “They said there’s some sort of problem.”

“Ms. Hart, I wanted to reach out to you and let you know that we have had an issue with payment from Cavalier Corporation, the company that hosted the job fair earlier this week. I believe your company catered part of it?”

“Yes, we did,” Carolina said. She put the phone on speaker so Marissa could hear what the woman had to say. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”

“I hate to inform you of this, but the payment that we received from Cavalier Corporation for hosting the event was returned to the bank,” Laura continued.

“The check bounced?” Carolina felt a lurch in her stomach. A bounced check was not a good thing.

“Essentially, yes,” Laura said. “But I wanted to reassure you that we are working very hard to make sure that all of our vendors are paid. It may take a little while longer than expected, but I fully believe your company will receive some payment for your catering services.”

“Some payment? You don’t expect us to be paid in full?” Carolina asked.

“We have some funds set aside that will cover this event if Cavalier Corporation doesn’t come up with what they owe us,” Laura said. “I can’t guarantee that it will be the full amount you were quoted, but you will receive some money. That is really the best we can do in a situation like this. Otherwise, any further action needs to be taken up with the company itself.”

“Alright, well.” Carolina sighed heavily. “Is there anything we need to do? Is there a complaint we can file that will help speed this process along?”

“Not at this time, no,” Laura said. “We want to reserve harsher tactics for later. If we can resolve this diplomatically, that would be better. If not, we will be contacting our attorneys. I will keep you informed.”

“Thank you,” Carolina said weakly before she ended the call. “Now what are we going to do?”

“I don’t know. I guess if nothing else, we have a real reason to go visit Frank Barnes.”

“I suppose you’re right about that,” Carolina said.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Frank Barnes’ house was smaller than Carolina expected. She pulled up in front of the ranch style adobe house and parked her car in front of the garage. If she was worried how she was going to approach him, she didn’t have to wonder for long. He was seated outside on the driveway in a folding lawn chair. She recognized him right away as the tall, lanky man from the luncheon.

“Why is he just sitting there like that?” Marissa whispered as they were getting out of the car.

Carolina said nothing but was concerned about the disheveled looking man seated on a chair in front of his garage door. His body was nearly doubled over and his elbows rested on his thighs. His head was buried in his hands.

“Mr. Barnes? Are you alright?” Carolina asked carefully.

The man jumped at the sound of her voice. He set up quickly and uncovered his face. His eyes were red and swollen. “Who are you?” he demanded, though there wasn’t much vigor in his voice.

“I’m the owner of the catering company from the job fair at Sycamore Ridge Community College,” Carolina said. She ignored the sideways look Marissa gave her. She had no desire to reveal to the man whether she was representing herself or Jocelyn Hendricks.

“I already know why you’re here,” Frank said, burying his face again in his hands. “You’ll get your money as soon as possible.”

“What happened?” Carolina asked. “Why wasn’t the money there already?”

“Because Cavalier Corporation is sinking,” Frank shouted. He dropped his hands in his lap again. “The company is going under, sinking like a dead weight. And now it’s taking us down with it. We overestimated the need for services like ours. Nobody needs headhunters and recruiters like us anymore. Now if you want a job, you just go online and look for one.”

Carolina studied the man for a moment. He had the same broken look in his eyes that she had seen in his colleagues earlier in the day at the bar. Her mind moved quickly through the newspaper articles she had read online a short time earlier. Suddenly things started making sense to her.

“Did you visit Ted and Judy this morning at Sycamore Ridge Inn?” Carolina asked.

“Why would you ask me that?” Frank said, his eyes darting around.

“Partly because they said someone else came to talk to them and they were acting about as squirrely as you are right now.”

“Who are you again?” Frank demanded.

“I just came here to ask about my money, remember? You said your company is sinking but that I’ll still get it. How will that happen?” Carolina asked.

“We’ll get the money. It just takes time for these things to happen.”

Carolina raised a brow. “What things?”

“Just things. You know, you’re a business owner,” Frank said.

“Did Carmine invest in your company and now that he’s dead, you’re unable to come up with the money?”

“I’d prefer it if you left now. Like I said, you will get your payment.”

“Listen,” Carolina said. “If Carmine scammed you in some way, it’s okay to just be honest about it. I respond much better to honesty. As you said before, I’m a business owner myself. I’d hate to find out that Carmine invested in your company and then did something to hurt things. Is that what happened?”

“You should go,” Frank repeated. He stood up suddenly and began to pace around. “This is all getting to be too much.”

“What is, Frank? Maybe I can help you. If you just tell me the truth, maybe we can work out a payment plan or something.”

“A payment plan? Are you willing to take ten bucks a week until our money comes in?”

“Where is this money coming from? You said yourself that no one needs headhunters anymore. Where is the money going to come from?”

“Insurance money. Okay, are you happy now? We have to wait for Carmine’s insurance money to come in.” Frank’s hands went to the top of his head. He walked down the length of the single-story house and waited.

“Wait, what?” Carolina said, truly surprised. “Insurance money? So, he didn’t invest in your company?”

Frank stomped back toward his chair and flopped down. “Cavalier Corporation is Carmine’s company, not ours.”

“Did you all create a plan to kill him for his money?” Marissa asked, speaking for the first time.

Carolina shook her head and Frank buried his head in his hands again. “No, that doesn’t make sense. That would mean one of the three board members was the beneficiary.” For a moment, she wondered if it was a similar scheme to what she’d experienced before. Was Carmine even dead? Had they faked his death for his life insurance money?

“He’d never leave his money to us,” Frank mumbled. “He left it to the company.”

“Frank,” Carolina said. “What happens to the company now that Carmine is gone?”

“The board has one year to run it and meet the conditions left in his will.” His words were barely coherent.

“Did you kill him in order to make that happen?”

Carolina!” Marissa hissed.

“This is too much,” he said again, shaking his head violently. “This is not how things were supposed to go. Why are you two here attacking me? I knew I was going to take the blame for this. I told them this was a bad idea. This wasn’t my fault!”

“Call the sheriff,” Carolina whispered to Marissa. “Do it now but tell him not to come with sirens blaring.”

Marissa nodded and walked back to the car while Frank’s head was still down.

“So, it wasn’t you then. That’s a good thing,” Carolina said, trying to reassure him. “If you were forced into this by the other two, that only makes things look better for you.”

“I didn’t do it. It wasn’t just me. I just agreed to keep my mouth shut and confess.”

“Were you hoping it would throw off the cops if all three of you did it?”

“They promised me it would work. We were going to do what Carmine did to all those other people. It worked for him so many times, we thought we could do it too. Instead, I’m going to jail while Judy and Ted just get away with everything. This isn’t fair.”

“You just need to be honest, Frank. Tell the police everything.”

He lifted his head and looked at her. “Tell them what? That we killed our boss in order to get his life insurance money? That sounds like a great idea. I tried telling my friends I was going to tell the truth and that didn’t go well. I don’t know what they’ll do if I rat them out.”

“Just tell them what Judy and Ted planned,” Carolina said, still trying to press him for information. “Tell them about the champagne.”

“The champagne? How Judy distracted him while Ted drugged Carmine’s drink? From drugs that I got from some guy on the street? Again, that sounds like another bad idea. You need to get out of here before you find yourself in trouble too.”

“You said you wanted to do what Carmine had done already. What does that mean? Frank, I think if you just explain things, it will be okay.”

“None of us wanted to do it,” Frank cried. “We were just so worried about the business. It might not have belonged to us, but we put our heart and souls into it. Carmine was rich and, as you already seem to know, he invested in other businesses. But he always refused to invest in any of our ideas.”

Still unsure what he meant; Carolina kept pushing. She wanted to keep him talking until the police arrived. “How much money was his life insurance.”

“Ten million dollars,” Frank said, shaking his head again. “All of this for ten million dollars. And now we’re going to spend the rest of our lives in prison.”

“You don’t know that,” Carolina said.

“I’m not going to prison,” Frank suddenly declared. “Can you leave? Please, just go. I sent my family away already. I don’t want anyone around me right now. If you’re right and I just give up my friends, I might be okay. I need to think and you’re distracting me.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Mr. Barnes,” Carolina said. “I don’t think you’re in any state to be left alone. If you were coerced into participating in this thing, I’m not sure things are as dire as you think they are. Even if the drugs that killed him came from you, that doesn’t mean you did it.” Truthfully, she had no idea what that meant, but she wasn’t going to admit it now.

“I need to make a good business decision. That’s what Carmine would do.”

Frank was still seated and mumbling to himself when Billy arrived in his squad car. Carolina stepped toward where Marissa stood while the sheriff and his deputies took care of the distraught man.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

“How did you do it?” Jocelyn asked.

“And good morning to you,” Carolina said from behind the counter at the Hart Family Restaurant the following morning. “Would you like some coffee with your sass this morning?”

“Just tell me how you managed to do all that at Frank’s house,” she said, ignoring her question. “Even Billy said you did a good job and now I need answers.”

“It wasn’t that difficult, Jocelyn,” Carolina said. She poured herself a cup of coffee. “And you’re welcome.”

“You’re welcome? For what?”

“You’re welcome for solving this murder for you,” Carolina said.

“Stop talking in circles and just tell me.”

“You just have to know how to read people,” Carolina said. “That’s just not something you’re very good at.”

“I know how to read people,” Jocelyn sniffed.

“No, you don’t,” Carolina said. “You know how to boss people around. You know how to put people down. You know how to demand they do things for you. That’s a lot different than knowing how they think.”

“Well, how did you get so good at it, then?”

Carolina shrugged. “I guess it’s just my background in marketing. Plus, the fact that I’m a nice person doesn’t hurt.”

“Are you saying I’m not nice?”

“What do you think?” Carolina asked. “Do you even try to be nice to people?”

“No, not usually,” Jocelyn admitted.

“Then I think you’ve just answered your own question,” Carolina said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some work to do.”

“Work? Do you have another gig lined up?” Jocelyn followed her around the counter and back through the kitchen area to the storage room. “If you have a lead on some work, you have to share it.”

“What are you doing back here?” Carolina asked. “You can’t just go wherever you please.”

“Just tell me what work you have lined up,” Jocelyn said. “Ever since those people decided to stiff me on my catering fees, I’ve had a difficult time balancing the books. I can’t even afford to take them to court.”

Carolina smiled. She remembered the words Jocelyn had said to her so many times at the events they were both present for. “You mean to tell me you don’t save money for a rainy day?” she asked in a sugary-sweet voice. “Oh, Jocelyn. That’s not how professionals do it. You have to take what you earn and put it back into your business.”

“Oh, now you’re lecturing me on how to run a catering business.” Jocelyn smirked. “That’s rich.”

“Maybe so, but I’m the one with work lined up and plenty of money in the bank,” Carolina reminded her.

“You are so impossible,” Jocelyn said, throwing her arms above her head. “No wonder Billy divorced you.” She turned on her heels and stomped out of the of the restaurant.

“I bet that felt good,” Levi said after Jocelyn left.

“You have no idea.”

“Are you going to tell me how it all happened?” Levi asked. “Or do I have to promise you a ride on my motorcycle to bribe you?”

“You have to give me a ride on your motorcycle either way,” Carolina said. “And really, I just started slowly putting things together. I didn’t know everything until I talked to Billy later on.”

“What did he have to say?”

“It turns out Carmine has a knack for buying up companies that are in turmoil and then turning them around with record profits a short time later,” Carolina said. “He often does this around the same time the former CEO passes away.”

“Which is why all the articles I read showed the businesses failing.”

“Only they didn’t technically fail, it’s just that owners died,” Carolina added.

“Do you think Carmine Davenport killed them?” Levi asked.

Carolina shook her head. “I’m not sure,” she said. “I don’t know what I think, but I do know that he was involved in some shady business practices. Billy said there will be an investigation opened that will look into everything involving him. From what I gathered, it’s looking like Carmine was guilty of fraud and murder.”

“I think Billy has a lot of work ahead of him untangling this mess,” Marissa said.

“That’s for sure. I have to admit that Carmine killing those folks makes sense. Frank said he and the other two just wanted to do what Carmine did because of how well it worked. Not only that, but the bartender told us Frank said something about knowing too much. It’s sure possible they knew what Carmine was doing. Maybe it’s why they were so mad he refused to invest in their ideas.”

“Why would they want that if they knew he was running around murdering people?” Marissa said, only half joking.

“Who knows. I’ll leave the details up to Billy and his crew.”

“Yup, you did your job,” Levi said. “You did exactly what your friend Jocelyn wanted. You found out who killed Carmine.”

“Jocelyn is not my friend!”

“Speaking of her, were you just lying for her sake when you said we had more catering gigs lined up?” Marissa asked.

“Nope,” Carolina said. “We have a new gig next Friday as a matter of fact.”

“Oh yeah?” Marissa asked brightly. “Where at?”

“At the Sycamore Ridge Inn,” Carolina said. “It turns out the bartender was quite receptive to the idea of us coming in and catering a darts tournament at the bar.”

“Now that sounds like my kind of event,” Levi said.

“As long as they don’t serve champagne.” Uncle Toad laughed.

**

If you enjoyed A Toast of Murder, check out the next book in the series, Beaned By Murder, today!

ALSO BY EMMA AINSLEY

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