Teaberry Book Club

XIX of Teaberry Farm Bed & Breakfast

Wallace, R.A.

(2019)

Tags:
Cozy Mystery

Cozy Mysteryttt

The book club members opt for a lesser known mystery for their next read. When their chosen book turns up clues to a more current mystery close to home, Megan helps to find the puzzle pieces. This mild cozy mystery offers a clean read with a female amateur sleuth and friends in a small-town setting. Main characters in the series are multigenerational. 

Teaberry Book Club
A Teaberry Farm Bed & Breakfast Cozy Mystery

R. A. Wallace

2019

Author’s Note

This is a work of fiction.  Names, characters, dialogue, places, and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner.  Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Material in this book is not intended as a substitute for legal or medical advice from qualified professionals. The author has no connection to any software or website mentioned.

© 2019 R. A. Wallace. All rights reserved.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Megan’s Recipe

Books by R. A. Wallace

Chapter One

“What about clouds?” Megan wrapped both hands around her tea mug and leaned against the door frame with her head tilted to one side.

Dan nodded thoughtfully even though it was the third time she’d suggested it and there had been a million other ideas carefully considered in between.

“I can see clouds. We could do some on the walls and up onto the ceiling.” He motioned with his hands to illustrate what he was thinking.

She nodded her agreement slowly. Then her nose wrinkled and she began to shake her head.

“No, maybe not. You would have to have the white clouds against another color and the only other color for a sky is blue. What if it’s a girl?” She frowned at the walls again.

He stifled a grin. “I’m glad we still have time to figure it all out. At the rate we’re going, we might have the door knob for the door selected before you go into labor. I’m not sure about anything else though.”

She started laughing as she straightened. “No, we get to cross that off the list. There’s already a door knob on the door. It’s everything else that we’re missing.”

“Except the crib and the rocking chair.” He turned around in the middle of the room and faced her.

“Those are my most favorite gifts of all time.” Her eyes scanned the blank walls again.

He watched the dreamy look return to her face as she tried to visualize what the nursery should look like. Before he realized what he was doing, he had walked back to her and was leaning in for a kiss.

“What was that for?” she asked.

“Giving me the best present ever,” he said.

She leaned forward and rested her head against his chest. “Seriously, I think we should get the carpet in. We’ll just pick something with a lot of varied colors that won’t show whatever is going to get spilled.”

“You’re sure you want to do that before you pick the color of the walls?” He leaned back to look down at her.

“No. I think we should pick the paint out when we have a piece of the carpet sample in our hands. We need to get it done. Best to let the carpeting have time to air out now, right?” She looked around the room one last time before turning away to walk down the hall toward the kitchen.

“Actually, that does sound like a great idea. We’ll pick out the carpeting based on the quality and wear value with some colors we like. Then we’ll choose the paint scheme from there. You’re brilliant.” He crossed the kitchen to take the breakfast casserole out of the oven.

Megan pulled a trivet from a drawer and set it on the kitchen table. Dan set the casserole dish on it and picked up her plate and a serving spoon.

“Enough?” He held the plate for her review after filling it.

She nodded her agreement and reached for the plate. “Thanks.”

He took his seat and served himself. “I have to say, I’ve never heard of pizza breakfast strata before.”

“The pregnant woman gets to pick the breakfast food,” she said with a smile as she cut hers up to help it cool.

“I’m not complaining. It smells great. Some people say pizza is the perfect breakfast food anyway.” He forked up a large chunk and blew on it before taking a bite.

“It does have all the best things in it.” She pointed at the casserole dish. “There’s sausage, pepperoni, peppers, scallions, black olives, eggs, and a lot of cheese.”

“That’s not actually pizza dough in the bottom, is it?” He took another bite.

“No, I just went with some leftover bread that we had. It was kind of a last-minute idea and I used what we had on hand. I imagine you could do it though.” She took a bite. It was as good as she’d hoped.

“You have me sold on it.” He eyed the casserole dish as he contemplated putting more on his plate. “What do you have planned for today?”

“There’s supposed to be a new baby book that might be good to have. It’s being mentioned a lot. I thought I’d check it out and see if we might want to get it.” She watched him take another spoonful of the strata.

“From Olde Tomes?”

“Yes. Tia is usually pretty good about getting things like that in. Whenever a book is getting a lot of buzz, she usually has it on her shelves.” She pushed her empty plate away and picked up her tea mug again. It was empty. “What about you? Have you made a decision on a replacement for Trina yet?”

Dan’s hand paused for a moment before he continued eating. “Not yet, but I think I have it narrowed down.”

Megan pushed herself up. She put the kettle back on the burner and turned it on before reaching for her tea tin.

“That’s good. I’m sure you want to have someone in place before summer is really here,” she said.

“Mother’s Day is usually the tipping point. Everything seems to just go crazy after that.” He stood and carried his empty plate and coffee cup to the dishwasher. “Do you need help?”

“No, I’m good. You go ahead and finish getting ready.” She smiled at him before he left.

When the kettle began whistling, she turned back to remove it from the burner. As she poured the hot water into her tea mug, she wondered why he’d been putting off replacing Trina for so long.

***

Tia unlocked the front door of Olde Tomes and stepped inside. After adjusting the alarm system, she moved through the store following her typical morning routine. The music was turned on to play quietly in the background. She preferred instrumental much of the time. It didn’t compete with the words in the stories she read to entertain her between customers.

By the time she had everything configured the way she liked it, she saw the delivery truck drive past and knew the driver was just looking for a place close by to park their truck. The thought of the delivery put a smile on her face as she crossed the shop to the front door.

“Good morning!” Tia opened the door.

“Thank you.” The uniformed woman carrying the box glanced around the store.

“On the counter by the register, if you can.” Tia followed her across the shop. “Thank you so much.”

“You have a good day.” The brunette flashed Tia a smile before leaving.

Tia rubbed her hands together as she walked behind her counter. She found the box cutter and quickly sliced through the tape on the top of the box. She lifted each book out one by one, pausing to open each new one to flip through the contents. Once she had them all out of the box, she flattened it and began ticketing the books and entering them into her computer system. She was nearly finished when she glanced up and saw someone else approaching her front door with a box. She moved quickly across the shop to open the door again.

“Leah? What is this?” Tia could see books peeking up over the side of the box.

“I wondered if you would have better luck with this than we would.”

Leah checked the counter by the cash register and saw that it was already covered with a new shipment of books. She shifted direction and carried the box to the comfortable seating area Tia had set up in the front of the shop. It allowed Tia to sit and read or glance up and people watch through her large front window.

“Just set that on one of the chairs,” Tia said as she followed Leah.

“We got this at an estate sale yesterday.” Leah set the box down then took the seat next to it.

Tia took the seat on the opposite side of the box and began removing the books. It didn’t take long for her to realize they were all the same.

“The same title?” She gave Leah a curious look.

“I know. Seems odd, doesn’t it?” Leah picked up one of the books. “I wondered about that too. Why would anyone have so many copies of the same book? There’s about a dozen in the box.”

Tia flipped it open and read the copyright date. “It says it was printed in eighteen ninety four.”

“That was one of the reasons I bought the whole box. I had to anyway, they wouldn’t sell it piecemeal, but the books just called to me for some reason.” Leah ran her fingers lightly over the cover.

Tia read the title out loud. “Mystery of the Haunted Coins.”

“What do you think?” Leah asked.

“About taking them? You want me to try to sell them on consignment for you?” Tia made a face as she considered it. “I don’t see why not. I could put some of them in the display in the front window. Or we could split them? You could try to sell half at Vintage and I could try to sell half.”

“Actually, I was wondering about our book club.” Leah gave her friend and business neighbor a hopeful look.

Tia face scrunched in confusion for just a moment. It quickly changed to delight when she realized what Leah had in mind. “You want to let the others borrow them so we could read it for our next book? Do you think the others would go for it?”

“We can ask. They can say no if they don’t want to. Just like when we pick any title.” Leah looked down at the book in her hand. “I was just thinking that we don’t always have to read something hot off the presses, right? Maybe it would be just as interesting to read something that was written so long ago?”

The bells on the door interrupted Tia’s response.

Megan crossed over to join them. “Some new acquisitions?”

“In a manner of speaking.” Tia rose and put the book back into the box. “We were talking about our next book club meeting.”

“I know you’ve said no in the past, but you should really think about joining us,” Leah said. “We always have a good time.”

“We do read mysteries pretty often,” Tia said. “A lot of us really enjoy them.”

Megan rested her hand on her belly. “I think I might be a little busy for a while.”

“What brings you in today?” Tia held up one finger as she crossed over to the counter. “Or can I guess?”

Megan laughed as Tia held up the book she had come for.

“That’s exactly what I was hoping to look at.” Megan reached for it.

“Take a seat and take your time,” Tia said.

Leah reached for the box. “I’ll have these at my place tonight and everyone can decide. You ladies have a good afternoon.”

Chapter Two

She set her purse and ebook reader on the counter in the kitchen near the door to the garage. After checking the charge on her phone and tucking it into her purse, she returned to the bedroom to continue getting ready. Since she’d spent much of the afternoon working outside in the yard, it had required a little more effort than usual but at least she’d gotten the shower out of the way and her hair was now dry.

Carol Jiblonski stood in her walk-in closet holding a shirt in each hand. One had long sleeves, the other had short. The problem with going to someone else’s house was that you never knew how warm it might be. She finally decided on the short sleeve and planned to bring something to layer over it.

“You look fetching this evening.” Stan stood behind her as she curled her hair.

Carol’s eyes met her husband’s in the mirror. “You always say that.”

“It’s always true.”

After over thirty years of marriage, they had the routine down. They were both showing their years, but in a good way. Sure, they were both heavier now than they had been in high school. Stan had a lot less hair than he did back then. As she looked back at the mirror to check the curl she’d just formed with the iron, she admitted that she did too. She set the iron down and used her fingers to separate the curls into waves. The blonde hair of her youth was mostly gone but with Irlene’s magic touch the color she sported now was close.

“Aren’t you getting ready a little early?” Stan asked.

“I need to get a few things at the store. I figured I’d do a little shopping first before I go to book club.”

“Who is hosting this time?” Stan asked.

“It’s Leah’s turn.” Carol double checked that the iron was now unplugged before searching for her lipstick.

“I know what that means.” Stan watched her apply the same shade she’d been wearing for as long as either of them could remember. “Daryl and the others will be out later. Most likely, at the Station Pub & Grill having a drink.”

“You could join them,” she said as she picked up the sweater from the bed.

“I might,” he said as he followed her from the room. “I just might do that.”

“I didn’t ask. How was your day?” Carol led the way down the stairs.

“It went. I had a couple of showings. Maybe a nibble on one.” Stan reached the first floor and followed Carol toward the kitchen. “I got a new listing. Do you remember the Bowman house?”

Carol went to the fridge and opened it. “Not really.”

“Yeah, I imagine you wouldn’t. It’s not in the best location. And boy is it small. Perfect for someone just starting out though.”

Carol smiled as she carried the bottle of water over to her purse. “That bad?”

Stan laughed. “Yeah, it really is. It’s going to take a lot of work to sell this place. I can’t imagine anyone actually wanting to buy it. I suppose they’d have to be in pretty dire straits to even consider it.”

“Unfortunately, that’s the case for some,” Carol said as she crossed the room.

“Good point. It’s priced right so it might end up being just exactly what someone needs.” He leaned in for a kiss. “You have a good a time at book club later.”

“I’ll try not to buy the store out first,” she said with a wave.

***

Luella finished ringing the sale and handed the bag to the customer. After wishing them a wonderful afternoon, she walked around the counter and returned to her work on the nearby display. It was one of her favorite things to do at the craft store. Creating a display that drew customers to it and sold whatever products she’d assembled for the display. Today, her focus was on floral displays.

“That looks nice,” Everett said as he carried another box of supplies to her.

“Thanks.” She stood back to examine her work. “I’m hoping it helps to move the baskets too.”

“I brought some floral foam in case you want to add that to the display.” He lifted some from the box after setting it on the floor near the display. He glanced at the clock as he straightened. “What time do you have to leave?”

“I have a couple of hours before book club. Plenty of time.” Luella saw a customer head for the cash register but before she could move, Everett was already half way there.

She turned back to her display with a satisfied smile. She loved being married to Everett. They had the same interests and goals. She continued working on her display. It took her several minutes to realize that Everett hadn’t returned yet. She turned around to see what he was up to and found him staring into space.

“Is he writing stories in his head again?” Megan approached Luella after walking through the front door.

“It looks that way, doesn’t it?” Luella turned to Megan with a smile. “What brings you in?”

“I’m looking for ideas for the baby’s room.” Megan glanced at Everett again. “Maybe I should ask Dan to work on a book case? I already have a couple of Everett’s books. It would be a good place to keep them all since that’s where I’ll need them.”

“I’ve heard your husband is amazing with his woodworking projects. I definitely believe reading to children is important.” Luella reached into the box to pull out more flowers for her display. “I love reading. Have you ever considered joining the book club?”

Megan rubbed her side after a solid kick. “Tia has mentioned it a few times. I just don’t know that it’s for me.”

“It isn’t for everyone, but I enjoy it. I imagine it depends on the group you’re with. Some only meet once a month or so. Ours can be a little more often depending on the time of year and the book we’re reading. Right now, we tend to get together a lot more often. The weather is nice and we take advantage of it. We’ve even had picnics with our meetings.”

“What exactly do you do in book club?” Megan had never figured it out.

Luella laughed. “Well, we eat a lot. Food is a big focus. And we talk a lot about different things. But we do spend time discussing the book too. Especially the mysteries. Those are usually the liveliest conversations. We usually meet more often with those books too. We like to try to figure out the mystery before we get to the end of the book. Sometimes we even limit how much we should read so we’re all at the same point and have the same information to work with.”

“How do you pick which book you’re going to read?”

“Technically, whoever hosts the next gathering gets to pick but we’ve all gotten into the habit of making sure everyone else in the group agrees to it first. You can always read any book on your own. You want to pick one for book club that appeals to everyone on some level.” Luella glanced over at Everett. He was still staring into space, but now a line had formed at the cash register.

Megan shared a smile with Luella. “I think you’d better save them.”

Luella chuckled as she headed to the cash register to ring out the customers.

Megan left the craft store a short time later and headed to the grocery store driving slowly through town. The kids had just gotten out of school. There were buses running and more traffic from the kids who drove to school each day. Those who lived closer to the school and didn’t have the option of driving were walking. She turned down another street and saw someone she knew.

At thirteen, Bella Prescott was tall for her age. Already at Megan’s height, Bella was easy to spot as she walked down the sidewalk away from Megan. It wasn’t just her height that made her stand out though. Bella had the self-assurance of someone much older. Megan wondered if that came from being so smart. She wondered if it made parenting harder or easier. As she watched, Bella looked toward the street. There was another pickup truck coming down the street toward Megan. Before she knew what was happening, Bella ran into the street directly in front of the other truck waving her arms.

Megan slammed on her brakes and opened her door. As she slid out of her truck, she could hear the driver of the other truck yelling at Bella.

“What do you think you’re doing? I could have killed you!” The man in the truck was obviously mad. He gestured at Bella as he shouted some more.

Bella ignored him as she ran behind his truck. As soon as she was clear of his path, he hit the gas and took off. Megan walked over to the Bella. The young girl was crouched on the street in front of a bag.

“Bella, what is it? Are you okay?”

Bella’s eyes were large as she raised them from the bag to look at Megan.

“Sweetie, what’s wrong?” Megan wouldn’t have believed that Bella would deliberately run in front of a moving vehicle if she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes.

“The bag. It was moving.” Bella’s eyes focused on the bag again. “Before he ran it over, it was moving. I didn’t see it in time.”

“Oh.” Megan looked both ways then slowly lowered herself to the ground. “Why don’t you stand over there and watch for traffic?”

Bella shook her head. She wouldn’t leave Megan’s side, but she did glance around for traffic.

Megan slowly reached for the burlap bag. As her hand touched it, it moved slightly. Her eyes met Bella’s briefly before she carefully opened the burlap bag. She folded the layers back and found the puppy inside.

“How bad?” Bella asked.

“It’s bad. We need to get him to Casey.” Megan knew she couldn’t stand while holding the puppy. She glanced at Bella.

Bella stood quickly and helped Megan up before bending again to retrieve the bag. She carried it to the passenger side of the truck and slid in with the bag on her lap. Megan drove as quickly as she could. Bella opened the bag enough to see the puppy’s head. It was obviously in distress and Bella tried everything she could to soothe it. When they reached the veterinarian, Bella leapt out of the truck and ran inside cradling the bag with the puppy inside.

Megan followed more slowly. When she stepped inside the building, the reception area was empty of employees. There was a woman with a cat on her lap and a concerned look on her face as she stared where Megan knew Bella must have passed. The door leading to the other side with the exam rooms was open. She walked through it and followed the commotion at the end of the hall. She found Bella huddled with Ethan on one side of an exam room while Casey worked on the puppy.

“You should wait outside.” Casey never stopped moving. The receptionist was pulling supplies from the cupboards.

“I’d rather stay,” Bella said.

“I may have to remove the leg. It’s too badly damaged,” Casey warned them but didn’t take the time to stop what he was doing.

Megan reached out and put her hand on Bella’s arm. Ethan looked down at Bella and motioned to the door with his head. Bella took one last look at the puppy and nodded before walking through the door. Ethan and Megan followed.

“What happened?” Ethan asked when they reached the waiting room. The woman with the cat was no longer there.

“Someone must have dumped him in the road,” Megan said. “Another vehicle went by and didn’t see it.”

“I couldn’t stop him in time. I tried but I didn’t see that the bag was moving until it was too late.” Bella wrapped her arms around herself.

“You should call your mom and tell her where you are,” Megan said gently.

Bella didn’t respond at first. Ethan took a step closer to her. She nodded and took out her phone, but it wasn’t her mom that she called. It was Rhys.

Chapter Three

The sound of her daughter through the baby monitor alerted her that Grace was stirring. Lauren automatically reached for the water faucet to rinse the pastry dough from her hands.

“I’ll get her,” Bev said from the other side of the room.

Lauren watched her mother-in-law set her glass of iced tea down before leaving the room. She frowned a little as she reached for the dough again. Bev returned several minutes later holding a sleepy Grace.

“Hey, there.” Lauren called to Grace across the room as she filled the pie pan with fruit.

“She’s not sure if she’s awake yet.” Bev bounced slightly with Grace then began slowly rocking her sideways. “Sometimes it takes a little longer to figure it out. Doesn’t it, sweetie?”

“Are you okay?” Lauren asked.

Bev stopped moving. Her eyes shifted to Lauren quickly before refocusing on Grace.

“Of course, I’m okay. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’ve just been a little quiet, that’s all. I just wondered if everything was okay.” Lauren lifted a sheet of dough and laid it over the fruit. She quickly began trimming the excess.

Bev didn’t answer her.

Lauren decided to change the subject. It was normally one that Bev found lots of things to talk about. “Are you seeing Vince tonight?” She could hear Mia and Noah enter the other kitchen, no doubt looking for an after-school snack before going outside to play.

“I don’t know. Maybe. We didn’t make any real plans.”

When Grace began getting fussy, Bev left with the baby to feed her and check on the other kids. Lauren put the last pies of the day into the oven and wondered why Bev wasn’t sharing her thoughts with her. Usually, the two of them talked non-stop.

***

Harriet worried that Miles was being so quiet. She glanced in the rear-view mirror first to check for traffic then stole a look at him in the passenger seat.

“Did you have a bad day at the jewelry store today?” It was her third attempt to get him talking in less than fifteen minutes.

“No, not at all.” He seemed to shake himself from his reverie. “And you? How was your day?”

“After that last tax season, every day seems unusually easy. I was worried I wasn’t going to get all of my customer’s returns submitted on time.” She slowed for another stop sign hoping that he’d continue the conversation. He didn’t.

She tried to think of a new topic. The reason for their current drive came to mind. “What did you think of the book?”

“The one we’re finishing tonight?” He turned to look at her. “What did you think of it?”

She was happy that she’d finally found a topic that caught his interest. Sort of.

“I thought it was okay,” she said hesitantly. She wasn’t yet sure why his response had seemed so intense.

“What would you have liked better about it?” He clasped his hands in front of him. “Or, if it’s easier, what didn’t you like about it?”

Harriet spared another quick glanced at him before focusing on the road again. Suddenly, she understood.

“Are you worried when it’s time for you to host the book club meeting? The host is usually the one that suggests the next book.”

He looked out the passenger side window. “I just don’t think anyone else shares the same interests that I do. I’m worried that they’re going to say yes to be kind but secretly be unhappy with my choice.”

“That isn’t true at all. You love mysteries, right? A lot of us do.” He didn’t respond. Her mind returned to something she had discussed with her mother recently. “Miles, I was wondering.”

“Yes?” He turned back to her.

“You should tell me no if that’s what you think about my suggestion. I don’t want to force you into anything that you aren’t comfortable with.” She paused to order her thoughts and finally decided that getting to the point was the best option. “What would you say about us co-hosting?”

She stole another glance at him and was relieved to see the furrows in his forehead smooth as the smile touched his lips.

“You would come to my house and help me host the next time it’s my turn?” His voice held wonder at the very thought.

Harriet couldn’t help smiling. “Yes, Miles. That’s what I meant. We would host it together. Like a couple.”

“Oh, that sounds lovely. I would like that very much.” Miles relaxed back in his seat. “And you can pick the book when we host it together.”

Harriet laughed. “We could pick one together.”

“And the food. We’ll choose the food together.” Miles flashed another smile. “I’m really looking forward to it now. I can’t wait.”

“Irlene is next, right?” Harriet tried to remember the order. “I think we would be after that.”

“Yes. Looks like most of the others are already here.” Miles pointed as he leaned forward in his seat. “Looks like there’s a spot a few houses up to park.”

Harriet released her seat belt and opened the door. Miles was around the car quickly to help her out. She didn’t need the help, but she appreciated his thoughtfulness.

“I can’t wait to tell everyone,” Miles said as they walked to the house.

They saw Tia pull into a spot a couple of houses down and slowed to wait for her. They reached the door at the same time and rang the bell before opening it. They knew Leah was expecting them. They passed through the house and into the family room in the back where others were gathering. Irlene entered the room from the kitchen carrying a tray of food. Leah came in behind her carrying another tray. Others were standing around the table that held the food.

“Welcome, you two.” Leah motioned toward the group. “Dive in. There is no shortage of food.”

Miles spotted the cupcakes and his eyes widened. “Are those from Lauren?”

Leah nodded. “I just picked them up a little bit ago. They are almost right out of the oven.”

He worked his way into the crowd to grab a plate and get a cupcake and realized there was another man already doing the same thing.

“Oh, hello. I’m Miles.”

Gavin switched the plate into his other hand and shook hands. “Gavin Jefferson.”

“That’s right. Leah said we were getting a new member. You’re the teacher, right?”

“High school math, yes.” They moved away from the table with their plates of cupcakes to make room for others.

“This is a nice spread,” Gavin said. “I probably should have gotten real food before dessert but the cupcake called to me.”

“It’s a baker’s secret, I think. Lauren’s oven is magical or something.” Miles bit into his cupcake as Harriet reached them with her own plate.

She introduced herself to Gavin and told them she was going to take a seat. Miles and Gavin returned to the table for more food before taking a seat also.

Gavin turned to set his plate on a table by the chair so he wouldn’t drop it and saw another familiar face. “Cindy! I didn’t know you were a member.”

“Gavin. I heard you might come. I hope you enjoy it. It’s a nice way to get out of the house every now and again.”

“You have a young son, right?” Gavin was sure he’d heard that from someone.

“Logan, yes. He’s with my neighbor. Jessilyn and I trade off babysitting duties.” Cindy slid back in her chair as the others looked like they were ready to discuss the book.

Leah led the discussion until it seemed as though the topic was winding down and diverting to other subjects. She glanced over at Tia and raised her brows. Tia nodded her encouragement so Leah stood.

“There’s one more thing before we talk about anything other than the book and get more food,” Leah said as she moved to a box under the table. She slid it out and Gavin quickly moved to help her with it.

“This is heavy.” He put the box where Leah indicated and pulled out a book. “I think it’s funny that I’m so used to using an ebook now that I’ve forgotten what a real book feels like.”

“I am exactly the same way,” Leah said. “That’s why we, that’s Tia and I, were wondering if maybe you might want to try a real book next.”

Leah looked around the room. She saw a combination of surprise and uncertainty. She raised both hands.

“If you decide you don’t think it’s a good choice after you look at it, we can always pick another book. It is technically Irlene’s turn to choose the next book since she’s hosting next. It’s just that I ended up with a whole box of the same book and it does happen to be a mystery.” Leah turned to Gavin. “Would you mind passing them out?”

Miles reached for the book Gavin passed to him and glanced at the title. He turned to Harriet with a grin. “Now this looks like my kind of mystery.”

Harriet took a book from Gavin and flipped open the cover. “Oh, my. This is so old. Are you sure it’s okay if we read them?”

“It does look like it’s never been open,” Cindy said as she carefully flipped through some of the pages.

“The front matter says the printer was fairly local,” Irlene said.

“The Mystery of the Haunted Coins.” Carol turned to Luella and shrugged. “I’m in if the rest of you are. It might be nice to hold a real book in my hands again.”

Leah watched the nods around the room and turned to Irlene. “Are you sure you’re okay with it?”

“I think it’s a great idea.” Irlene looked around the room. “Everyone?” She saw the nods of agreement. “Then there’s only one thing left to do. I think there’s just enough cupcakes left for each of us.”

***

Stan looked around the table at Emmet, Vince, and Daryl. “Anyone want another round?”

Daryl looked longingly at the empty plate of chicken nachos. “I’d better not. I promised Leah I wouldn’t overdo it.”

“Carol said the same thing.” Stan sighed as he pushed his empty plate to the side of the table. He looked over at Vince. “You’ve been awfully quiet tonight. What’s up with you two?”

Vince gave a half shrug. “Not much.”

“I thought you were planning some sort of surprise for Bev?” Daryl asked. “How is that going?”

“I’m still planning it.” Vince pushed his empty plate away and picked up his drink.

“What surprise is this?” Stan asked.

“I haven’t told anyone yet.”

Stan’s hand stopped hallway to his mouth with his glass. “You mean, it’s a surprise to Bev, too? How often does that work out for you?”

“What do you mean?” Vince looked around the table.

Daryl was nodding knowingly. “When I surprise Leah, I always run it past her first.”

“It’s safer that way,” Stan said. “That way, they get the surprise they really want.”

Vince turned to Emmet.

Emmet raised both hands. “Don’t look at me, I’m with them. This could really backfire on you.”

Vince looked at the drink in front of him but didn’t answer. He knew they were right. He just didn’t know what else to do.

Chapter Four

Irlene pulled the load of towels from the dryer and carried the basket to the front of the salon. She preferred to people watch as she folded. It was a beautiful day out and there was a fairly steady stream of walkers past the large front windows of the Teaberry Salon.

She could hear Sean Mitchell at the other end of the salon talking to his customer as he rinsed the color from her hair. She had grown accustomed to having him around while she worked. Although Marissa also rented a station from her, the younger woman kept reduced hours. It was Sean who had a similar work ethic to her own. He was always quick to pitch in and help around the salon. He was also a sponge when it came to learning and appeared to truly appreciate when Irlene shared her business experiences with him. She was folding the last towel in the basket when her next customer entered the salon.

“Carol, you’re right on time.” Irlene motioned toward the sinks in the rear. “Pick any chair. I’ll be there as soon as I put these away.”

Carol passed through the salon. “Good morning, Sean.”

“Good morning. There’s fresh coffee in the pot.” Sean flashed Carol a smile before returning to his own customer.

“That might tempt me this morning. I was up late last night.” Carol sat in front of a sink and began leaning back when Irlene reached her side.

“What kept you up?” Irlene tested the water on one hand. “Or do I even need to ask?”

“Did you start reading the new book yet?” Carol raised her voice to talk over the sound of the spray.

“I haven’t had a chance. I’ve been going crazy with this renovation.” Irlene turned the water off after rinsing the shampoo from Carol’s hair and nudged Carol to sit up.

“That’s right. How is it going?” Carol waited while Irlene loosely wrapped a towel around her head then stood to follow her.

“It isn’t. That’s why I’m going crazy.” Irlene swung her chair around so Carol could sit, then rotated her toward the mirror and began pumping her up.

“Did Carson run into something he wasn’t expecting?” Carol asked the reflection in the mirror.

Irlene quickly combed through Carol’s wet hair. “Honestly, I don’t know what the problem is. It seems like every time I leave in the morning, he has all kinds of plans for what he’s going to get done. It always sounds so promising.”

“And then?”

Irlene lifted her scissors and looked at Carol in the mirror. “When I get home at the end of the day, I swear he’s gone backwards.”

“Backwards?”

“Yeah. Instead of seeing more progress, it’s like there’s even less done than there was before.” Irlene pumped the chair once more than began snipping furiously.

“Did you ask him about it?”

“Of course. Several times. His explanation always sounds so good at the time.” Irlene continued cutting.

“I can tell it has you upset.” Carol watched Irlene’s progress in the mirror. “You usually color me before you cut.”

Irlene’s hands froze.

Sean appeared behind Irlene. “I can mix the tint for you. If we stick her under the dryer, she’ll be ready to color in just a couple minutes.”

Irlene gave him a rueful smile before lowering Carol’s chair.

***

Megan drove through the town and found a parking space about a half a block away from the administration building. After passing through the entrance, she walked the short distance down the hall to Jessilyn’s office. The younger woman was leaning forward studying the spreadsheet on her computer screen.

“Are you ready for me?” Megan paused at the doorway.

“Of course.” Jessilyn motioned to the chair in front of her desk. “Take a seat.”

Megan lowered herself into the chair.

“You’re still getting around pretty well.” Jessilyn sat back in her chair. “I remember what it’s like though I have to say I never really thought of it any of as being bad.”

“You’re saying you’d do it again?” Megan knew Jessilyn was only in her late twenties.

“Definitely. In fact, Seth and I have already been talking about it.” Jessilyn made a face. “Mind you, there are some aspects of being a parent that I’m not as thrilled with.”

“Like what?”

“There’s school, for one thing. It isn’t just that suddenly you’re competing for your child’s affection.”

Megan smiled. “With their teacher?”

Jessilyn laughed her agreement. “For a long while, every new conversation centers around what their teacher said.”

“I can see that.”

“There can also be a lot of drama involved with school. I don’t just mean between the kids either. Sometimes, it’s the parents that are the worst.”

Megan reached for her phone. “Are you still having problems with bullying?”

“Thankfully, that situation seems to have gotten better since the school began focusing on the subject. They started some programs about it, not just for the kids and their parents but also for the teachers in terms with them monitoring for it.”

“That’s good to hear.” Megan pulled up a web site on her phone.

“Unfortunately, my problem with the PTA president hasn’t come to a resolution. As long as I avoid all contact with her, we do seem to be able to live in the same town.” Jessilyn turned back to her computer. “What did you want me to look at?”

Jessilyn keyed in the web address as Megan read it off to her. She scrolled slowly to the bottom as she read through the content.

“I think it came out great. Don’t you?” Jessilyn turned to Megan for her response.

“I thought so too. I’d like to get some more current photos from this year’s events to add to it though.”

Jessilyn nodded. “Sounds good to me too.”

***

The Jammin’T was gearing up for the lunch crowd. Megan glanced around when she walked inside. She saw Casey at the counter. Cy was in the seat next to him. Normally, Megan would sit next to Cy and chat with them both. She looked across the room and caught Erica’s eye. Holding up one finger, she crossed over to Casey.

She rested her hand lightly on Casey’s shoulder. “How is he?”

Casey turned to see Megan. “He made it through the night. That one’s a little fighter, he is.”

“Are you thinking he might be okay now?” Megan smiled a greeting at Cy.

“He’s going to have to adapt to only having three legs. At his age though, he won’t really know the difference. He’s still only a couple months old, I would guess.”

“What do you think will happen to him now?” Megan saw Tyler carrying a pot of hot water with tea bags toward Erica.

“He’ll need to stay with me for a while first. I want to make sure there aren’t any complications. After that, I don’t know.” Casey made a face at Megan.

“I understand. Thanks.” Megan crossed the room and took the seat across from Erica. She put the tea bag into the mug and poured hot water over it.

“What’s up with Casey?” Erica was sitting with her back to the wall. It gave her a good view of the door and a couple of the televisions that were suspended from the ceiling.

Megan explained the situation with the puppy.

Erica was frowning when she was done. “Good thing you and Bella came along.”

Tyler appeared beside them. “You two ready to order?”

Megan looked at the board on the wall by Holly. “I’ll take the special.”

“Make that two,” Erica said.

Tyler jotted down the order. “You picked a beautiful day to be off.”

“It is beautiful. We’re taking the babies out for a walk when I leave here,” Erica said.

“Becca and I are planning to go to the state park and take a hike when she gets off work.” Tyler nodded to someone as they entered the diner.

“You two go out there pretty often, don’t you?” Megan asked.

Tyler grinned. “Went there on our first date.”

Megan turned to Erica when he walked away to put in their order. “I’ll bet the twins enjoy going for a walk this afternoon.”

“It’s a good time for all of us. They always seem to sleep better when they get some fresh air too.” Erica lifted her iced tea glass. “Come to think of it, so do we.”

Megan laughed. “You’ll be chasing them down the street in no time.”

The furrow between Erica’s eyes appeared immediately. “We’ll see. I mean, I’m sure it will happen eventually. I just don’t know when.”

“I’m sure it will be sooner than you expect. From what I’m reading, they go in spurts with some things.”

Erica idly wiped the condensation from the tea glass. “I hope so. It just seems like Mason is farther behind in his development, you know? Maddie is always pretty much on time with whatever the charts say. Sometimes, she even does something before she’s supposed to.”

“All babies are different. I wouldn’t worry. He’s healthy and happy, right?”

“Yeah. I guess.” The furrow between her eyes was still there.

***

Rhys walked into the police station and stopped to chat with Martha at the front desk.

“Looks like things are a little quiet at the moment.” Martha passed over some notes.

Ian entered the station and joined Rhys.

“I’d like to try to track someone down first.” Rhys explained what happened with Bella and the puppy.

Martha shook her head. “Good luck with that.”

“Do you know who ran him over?” Ian followed Rhys down the hall toward the main office.

“Megan gave me a pretty fair description of the man that yelled at Bella.” Rhys walked over to his desk to check his email when they reached the office.

“Any chance he might have seen whoever threw the puppy out?” Ian sat down at his desk and turned to his computer. “Of course, we’re assuming he wasn’t the one who threw him out.”

“Yeah. That’s the thing. I’d like to talk to him and see what he has to say.” Rhys finished scanning his mail and began searching for matches to Megan’s description.

Ian swiveled around in his chair. “Any luck with what Megan gave you?”

“You know Megan. She didn’t just describe the truck. She told me what the logo said on the side.” Rhys motioned to his computer. “Here’s our guy. Art Bowman. He owns a key making business.”

Chapter Five

Linda went into the public meeting room at the library and looked at all the boxes. Every table was full of them. Every box was full of donated books. It was time for the annual Friends of the Library book sale. The proceeds helped to fund some of the special projects that the group did in association of the library throughout the year.

“This room looks fuller every time I go by,” Becca said.

Linda turned to see her at the doorway. “I think they have more than last year but, to be honest, I say that every year.”

“I know it’s stressful to have the clutter in here for so long but it’s worth it all in the end.” Becca moved into the room and crossed over to a table.

“You made me promise to talk you down,” Linda said.

Becca laughed. “Thanks. I doubt it will work, but it’s worth a try. I think I’m one of the biggest customers when they have the book sale.”

“You and me both,” Linda said as she moved over to another box to check out the contents. “What’s this?”

Becca crossed over to look in the box. Linda held up a book and flipped it open.

“The mayor’s husband dropped that box off. He said they’re reorganizing a bit.” Becca lifted another book. “They’re in beautiful condition.”

“They are, aren’t they.” Linda made a face at Becca.

“Maybe we should put this box aside until we have a better chance to examine it,” Becca said.

Linda pointed at her. “You’re an enabler.”

Becca gave an innocent smile. “It’s true. I happily confess to enabling hundreds of people to find the books of their dreams.” She pointed at the box. “These might be ours.”

Linda wanted to argue but couldn’t do it. She knew Becca was right.

“We’ll donate them back as soon as we’re done reading them,” Linda said.

“And the Friends of the Library will have our donations in the meantime. Everyone wins.” Becca grinned as she lifted the box. “I’ll just set this behind the counter so it doesn’t get mixed up with the rest.”

Linda followed her out of the room. She saw Archie approaching from the other direction.

He pointed at Becca. “Isn’t she going in the wrong direction with that?”

“We’ve decided to adopt those ones ourselves,” Linda said.

Archie’s eyebrows danced as he chuckled with her. “They’re off to good homes then.”

She pointed at the book in his hand. “Is that another donation?”

“It is. I know it isn’t much, but it’s just sitting around collecting dust at my place.” He held the book out.

Linda reached for it. “I’ll put this in one of the boxes. Do you need help in the computer room?”

Archie turned to head that way. “Maybe. We’ll see how much trouble I can get into on my own first.”

***

The front room was empty when she entered Anderson Florist. Megan immediately passed through into the rear where she knew Caitlyn did most of her work.

“That looks nice.” Megan leaned against one of the counters lining the walls. There were cupboards both up and down to hold all of the supplies Caitlyn needed to make her designs.

“Thanks. Do you want me to send one to your mom?” Caitlyn never paused from her task as she wove another flower into the arrangement.

Megan felt her brows go up. “You’re right. It’s that time of the year, isn’t it? Yes, thanks.”

Caitlyn straightened from her task and laughed at Megan. “You won’t likely forget it this time next year. You’ll be a mom too.”

“It’s not that I really forgot it,” Megan said. “I just lost track of time.”

“Happens to me a lot lately.” Caitlyn lifted the arrangement to examine it.

“How are things going with the wedding planning?”

“Good. We’re looking at early fall right now.” Caitlyn pointed at Megan. “The plan is to give you a little time to recuperate first.”

Megan rested her hand on her belly. “I like the sound of that but don’t go out of your way on my account.”

“We aren’t. We’re in our happy place right now. This is all good. We’re enjoying the whole thing. For us, right now, it’s the planning stage. When we’re ready to move on to the next stage, we will.” Caitlyn put the finished arrangement in the fridge behind her and began pulling out supplies for the next one.

“Sounds healthy.” Megan glanced at the beautiful arrangements already in the fridge. “At least you won’t have to worry about your flowers.”

“Or my cake,” Caitlyn agreed. “I’m going to let Lauren decide what she wants to do with it.”

“Wow.” Megan considered it for a moment. “She probably hates you for that.”

Caitlyn laughed. “I know, right? It’s to get her back for when she wanted me to design her wedding bouquet. Now she’ll understand the stress it caused.”

“The wedding bouquet you made for her was amazing.”

Caitlyn pulled some loose flowers from another fridge. “I know. But I agonized over it for months before the wedding.”

Megan moved over to a chair near the coffee maker and sat down.

Caitlyn stopped in front of her with a bunch of flowers in her hand. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just a little tired. I’m learning to sit when I have the chance, that’s all.”

“How are things going with you?” Caitlyn crossed back to the work island in the center of the room.

“Good. We’re trying to figure out colors for the nursery. That sort of thing. I guess you could say we’re in our happy place with it. I’ve been enjoying the whole process but I think I’m ready to move on the next stage and actually pick something out.”

Caitlyn let out a sigh. “I am so looking forward to that. Being a mom is going to be awesome.”

***

“What if there’s something seriously wrong?” Erica stood next to her husband as they watched the twins. Her hands were clasped in front of her.

Brad wiped his hand across his face. “Lauren said it’s normal.”

“But they’re twins. Shouldn’t they be progressing at the same rate?” Erica watched as Maddie tried to get to her knees.

“The doctor said they all progress at different rates but there’s a window where most babies fall when it comes to this stuff.” Brad took a quick step forward to catch Maddie as she wobbled but she managed on her own.

He stepped back to watch them again. Mason was happy where he was on his back. He could just reach Maddie’s foot with one hand. Maddie had successfully managed to get to her hands and knees. She was now rocking back and forth.

“Maybe if we turn him so he can see what she’s doing, he’ll get the idea,” Erica suggested.

“I guess. I mean, it wouldn’t hurt, right?”

He closed the distance between them and turned Mason onto his stomach so that he was facing Maddie. Mason immediately reached for her foot again. Maddie’s muscles quickly tired as she practiced her new skill and she collapsed back to the floor. Brad watched the determination on her face. He knew she’d be back on her knees again soon. He looked over at his wife. Erica was frowning at Mason.

“I need to get back to my code,” Brad said.

“What?” Erica focused on him. “Oh, yeah. Thanks for watching them while I went to lunch.”

“How is Megan?” He looked at the twins. Maddie was trying to get her knees back under her.

“Good. She seems good.” Erica frowned. “Have you ever thought about what happens when the kids go to school?”

Brad had been walking out of the room to get back to work. He now turned and looked at Erica.

“Say again?”

“Megan was telling me about something Jessilyn said. I guess there can be all kinds of drama once they start school.” Erica crossed over to Mason and sat on the floor next to him.

“Like what?”

“Bullying, for one thing. Jessilyn had a big problem with that last year.” She lifted a small stuffed toy and began waving it just out of Mason’s reach like a carrot, hoping he would try to move forward to get it.

“I think we should take it one day at a time,” Brad said. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Yeah, you’re right. They haven’t even begun walking or talking yet and I’m already worrying about school.” Mason lost interest in the stuffed toy she was holding and grabbed Maddie’s foot.

“They’re healthy and happy. We should just enjoy the moment.” Brad turned to leave again.

“Funny. That’s exactly what Megan said.” Erica stretched out on the floor next to the babies. “I’m sure school can’t be as bad as everyone says.”

***

Cindy reached out and straightened the strap of the book bag on the young child in front of her.

“Remember to walk, not run.” She watched as the little girl made her way down the hall with the rest of the students leaving the building for the day. Another third grade teacher walked over to join her.

“How did your day go?” Val asked.

“Good. We didn’t make it as far on my lesson plan as I’d hoped, but it’s that time of the year.” Cindy looked down at the end of the hall to watch the kids.

“I can’t believe we’re at the end of the year already,” Val said. “At least we only have one more parent-teacher night.”

“Yeah. Speaking of which, they’ll be voting on a new PTA president, right?” Cindy took a step into the middle of the hall to watch as the last of the students trickled out to the buses.

Val took a step closer to her. “Have you heard anything about the current one?”

“Brianna? No, why?”

“I have her son in my class,” Val said.

“And?”

Val lowered her voice. “I’m starting to get worried.”

“About what?”

Val shook her head. “I don’t know. He’s just quieter than usual.”

“That happens.” Cindy turned back toward her classroom.

“I know but I’ve heard rumors about Brianna.”

Cindy stopped. “Like what?”

“Her behavior in PTA meetings lately has been a little erratic. Some of the parents are talking.”

“That could mean anything. We all get a little stressed sometimes. Being the PTA president is a lot of work.”

Val looked around and moved in closer. “Yeah, but they’re also saying she’s wearing long sleeves a lot. At this time of the year, it gets pretty warm.”

“It’s still spring. I wore a sweater this morning too.” Cindy gave one last check of the halls to make sure they were clear before heading to her classroom to get her purse.

“Yeah, maybe.” Val waved before heading back to her own classroom.

Chapter Six

Gavin finished posting the assignments for the following week into the system. It allowed both students and parents to log into a secure account from home and check what homework was assigned. Gavin thought it was a great idea even though he knew not everyone took advantage of it. He logged out and shut down the computer before walking toward the door of his classroom. After turning off the lights, he pulled the door closed behind him. It was a routine he had practiced for two decades.

“Running a little late getting out of here?” Renata stopped in the hallway.

“I can say the same about you,” Gavin responded with a smile.

“I’m the principal. I have an excuse.” Renata fell into step with him.

“Technically, I do too. I was getting all of my assignments for next week entered into the system.”

“I can’t complain about that. I wish all of the teachers would do the same thing. It would make my job easier when a parent complains that their child is failing a class and they have no idea why.” Renata studied him for a moment as they walked. “You need to get out more. It’s been three years, Gavin. It’s time. Don’t you think?”

Gavin’s steps slowed for just a moment. “Three years. How time flies.”

Renata’s eyes flashed in his direction with his attempt at flippancy. “I know it isn’t easy when a marriage breaks up.”

He gave her a gentle smile. “That you do.”

“But it’s been three years since your wife left you. It’s time to move on.”

Gavin pushed the exit door and held it open for her. “As it happens, I agree with you.”

“You do?” Renata didn’t try to hide her surprise.

“I actually joined a book club recently. Just went to my first meeting.” Gavin grinned at the look on her face. “Maybe you should try it?”

“What did you think of it?” She sounded sincerely interested.

“It wasn’t bad at all. I imagine it depends a lot on the group. This one sounds like it meets a lot when the weather is nice but they also seem to have a lot of fun when they do it. And the food was awesome.” Gavin stopped when they reached his car.

“Huh. Maybe I should look into that.” Renata gave a finger wave before continuing on to her own car.

***

Megan stood next to Irlene’s station. “I’m not sure I understood the message you left on my phone asking me to stop by. I don’t really need a haircut.”

“Those vitamins they give you when you’re pregnant make your hair grow really fast.” Irlene motioned to her chair.

“I should be getting home. I’ve been gone for quite a bit and need to get dinner started.” Megan heard laughter on the other side of the salon. Sean was working on someone else and the two of them were talking a mile a minute. She wondered how anyone could be so happy while having their hair cut.

Irlene wasn’t giving up. “I’ll just spritz the ends and trim them for you. You might not have another chance to get it done until after the baby is born.”

Megan slid into the chair. “I thought you said you had something to tell me.”

“And I do,” Irlene agreed as she pumped the chair up. “But I can cut while I talk.”

Megan saw the concern on her own face in the reflection. She mentally told herself to relax. It was just a trim. Everything would be just fine. Irlene had never done anything with her hair that she didn’t want her to in the past. She looked up at Irlene in the mirror and realized that Irlene looked concerned also.

“What did you want to talk about?” Megan watched as Irlene spritzed the ends of her hair.

“It’s about the book club.” Irlene set the spray bottle down and reached for her comb and scissors.

“You’re the third person to mention that to me recently. I really don’t think I’ll have the time to join right now.”

“That’s too bad but it isn’t what I was going to tell you.” Irlene snipped the tiniest length from Megan’s hair.

Megan relaxed. “Oh, that’s good. It sounds like you all have a good time with it though.”

Irlene smiled. “We do. And we’re just starting a new book. That’s always a fun time. It’s another mystery so we’ll probably be meeting pretty often as we try to solve it before the end.”

“That does sound nice.”

Irlene drew her brows together as she snipped another tiny swath of ends. “The thing is, it’s my turn to host the next time.”

Now Megan felt her brows pull together. She wasn’t making the connection with the conversation. She watched Irlene in the mirror.

“And I’m having my house renovated.” Irlene paused and met Megan’s gaze in the mirror. “It isn’t going as quickly as I’d hoped. And the person doing it warned me that there’s going to be a lot of dust with what he’s going to do next.”

It was starting to make sense. Megan waited for it.

“I was thinking I would just spend the night with you at your bed and breakfast.” Irlene stopped cutting and looked down at her scissors for a moment before lifting her eyes back to Megan’s in the mirror. “That way, the book club could meet at your place. There would only be about nine of us or so.”

Megan managed a smile. “Sounds like fun.”

Irlene beamed at her. “It does, doesn’t it?”

***

Rhys pulled up to the stop sign and looked both ways. “What did you think?”

“I think I don’t really like the guy.” Ian looked across the lawns to watch the kids playing in front of them.

“Yeah, I felt the same way. Not only did he not care that he ran an animal over by accident, he didn’t sound like he would have cared much either way if he’d hit Bella too.” Rhys pressed the accelerator a little harder than he had to. “Maybe I read him wrong.”

Ian glanced at him. “No, I got the same feeling. He was mad that Bella even slowed him down.”

“Said he had a job to get to,” Rhys said.

“An emergency. Someone was locked out of their car.” Ian looked at his notes. “Maybe we should check on that.”

Rhys slowed to take another turn. “You think he was making it up?”

“I don’t know. Could be. He wouldn’t look you in the eye when he said it and he didn’t even know your relationship to Bella.” Ian pointed. “He said the customer’s name was Smith.”

“Yeah, I wondered about that. It’s why I asked him twice. He didn’t back down though.”

“Let’s see if we can find anything on them,” Ian muttered as he pulled the computer onto his lap. “What are you planning to do with the puppy?”

Rhys looked at Ian quickly. “What?”

“The puppy. Where are you going to put the puppy?” Ian stopped what he was doing and focused on Rhys.

Rhys didn’t answer.

“You said you wanted to get a puppy for Bella, right? Here it is.”

“I don’t know,” Rhys said. “Bella might not want to keep this one.”

“Listen. You’re not understanding how it works. They’ve already bonded. Bella’s heart is made up. This is a done deal here. You are now the proud owner of a puppy.”

“Casey had to take the puppy’s leg.” Rhys frowned. “How is it going to get around?”

“You need to do your homework. It will probably need some special care, but it will get around way better than you think.”

“What kind of special care?” Rhys asked.

“What leg was it? Front or back?” Ian asked.

“Uh, Bella said it was a back leg. Back left, I think.”

Ian rubbed his chin. “Well, I imagine it’s going to have problems with stairs. There will be some situations where you’ll have to be more conscious of terrain.”

“Why? Balance?” Rhys stopped at a light and looked at Ian. “Are you sure about this?”

“About Bella wanting to keep it?” Ian pulled out his phone. “You better get on board with this before you accidentally break her heart.”

Rhys watched as a young girl walking a dog on a leash stepped into the crosswalk and passed in front of their car. He shook his head. “What if the dog is never mobile?”

“Wouldn’t matter either way. She’d still keep the thing and you know I’m right about this.” Ian held up his phone and turned it toward Rhys. “See?”

“Huh.” Rhys watched the video showing a three-legged dog running around playing with a small boy. “That’s pretty amazing.”

***

Irlene heard the sound of the saw before she even stepped through the door to her house. She let out a sigh. She had hoped that Carson would be done working for the day by now. She’d even stopped at the grocery store just so she would get home later than usual.

Irlene carried the first bag into the kitchen and stood staring as she wondered what to do with it. There were empty spaces where her counters were when she’d left the house that morning. She was still standing there staring when Carson found her.

“They’re gone,” Irlene heard herself say. “All of the counters are gone.”

“I can put up something temporary for you to use in the meantime.” Carson smiled at her then his eyes dropped to the bag in her hands. “Oh, let me take that.”

Irlene stared at her empty hands for a moment before turning to go back to her car in the garage. When she returned a few moments later with another bag, Carson had set a board up on two horses. The first bag of groceries was sitting in the middle. Irlene added the second bag and set her purse down next to it.

“I wondered why you were later tonight.” Carson looked between Irlene and the groceries. “Would you like to see what I’m working on.”

Irlene rubbed her forehead. “Maybe later. I’m going to change first.” Irlene took a few steps before stopping to look at him. “Do I still have a bedroom?”

Carson chuckled. “Of course. I’ll wait out here for you.”

When Irlene returned to the kitchen, she found Carson putting away the last of the groceries.

“I didn’t know you were planning to start in the kitchen.” Irlene crossed over to the fridge and bumped Carson out of the way. She began removing what she’d planned to have for dinner. She started with the bottle of wine. When she turned around, Carson was right behind her. She handed him the wine.

“The glasses are over there.” She waved vaguely in the direction of where the cupboard was when she’d left in the morning. She wasn’t brave enough to turn around and make sure it was still there. She’d been so surprised when she’d entered the kitchen that she hadn’t taken stock of everything yet.

She continued pulling things from the fridge. She’d cheated at the grocery store. She’d picked up some things that were already made. She pulled the roasted chicken out. It was still warm. There was some potato salad. She closed the fridge and looked around. Carson had put the crusty bread on the makeshift counter. She carried the rest of the food over to join it.

Carson handed her a glass of wine. He looked like he was going to say something but she held up her hand to stop him and took a long drink of the wine.

“Let’s eat first. You can show me later.” Irlene looked around the room. “Where’s the kitchen table?”

“I moved it into the spare bedroom for now. It’s still pretty warm outside. We could eat out on the deck.” Carson looked hopeful.

Irlene waved in the direction of the cupboards again. “Grab a couple of plates.” She turned to where the counter used to be and lifted silverware from the exposed top drawer. They each fixed a plate with food. Carson grabbed what he could carry. Irlene got the rest, making sure that she had the wine, and followed him out to the deck.

“This is nice,” Carson said when they sat down.

Irlene looked around. It was still warm out. The back yard looked nice. She was planning to put her spring flowers in this weekend. The yard will look even better after that. The wine was wonderful. The food was pretty okay, all things considered. Irlene plastered on a smile and aimed it at Carson. She knew full well that it was either smile or she was seriously going to cry.

Chapter Seven

Stan looked across the small breakfast table and realized his wife hadn’t touched her breakfast. He pushed the plate a little closer to her hand.

“Have some toast, at least.” He watched as her unfocused eyes lifted from the pages in front of her.

She had the book propped up on the table in front of her. “What?”

“Breakfast. You haven’t touched your breakfast.” His lips twitched.

“Oh, thanks.” Her eyes dropped to the plate in front of her. Her hand automatically reached for the triangle piece of rye toast. She took a bite and slowly chewed as she resumed her reading.

“It must be a good book.” He picked up his coffee cup and leaned back in his chair.

She made a noise of agreement as she took another bite.

He looked at the title. “Mystery of the Haunted Coins. I didn’t know you liked ghost stories.”

She tried to take another bite of toast and realized her hand was empty. She looked at him in confusion for a moment before setting her book down.

“It depends on the author, I guess.” She reached for another triangle of toast.

“Minnie Tillman Alexander. I don’t recall seeing the name before. Of course, I don’t usually see the book covers anymore.” Stan set his cup down.

“I’ve never read anything by her before.” Her coffee cup was still full. She took a sip and realized it was barely lukewarm.

“I can’t remember the last time you read a real book.”

“It’s a lot heavier than I was expecting, that’s for sure. I’m used to my ebook reader cover propping it up on the table for me.”

Stan narrowed his eyes at the book. “Is it a new publication?”

“No, can you believe it? It was printed in eighteen ninety four.”

“Is it any good?” He stood to carry his empty plate to the sink.

“I don’t know yet. I just started reading it but I really like it so far.” She glanced at the clock on the wall. “What does your day look like?”

“I actually got a call on the Bowman place. They want to look at it this morning.” He returned to the table to get her plate.

“That’s the one you said was so small?” She finished her tepid coffee and passed him the cup.

“Yeah. It’s pretty run down. I didn’t think anyone would be interested. Goes to show you that you can’t always predict your market.” He finished putting everything in the dishwasher. “I’d better finish getting ready.”

“Good luck with it.” She propped her book back up on the table.

***

Everett picked the first box up from the pile and carried it to the front of the craft store. He pulled his box cutter out and sliced the tape open on the lid then began transferring the items from the box to the shelf near the cash register.

“I got everything ready for your lunch,” he said to Luella. “You can take a break whenever you’re ready.”

He continued transferring the items from the box. When he finished, he realized that she’d never responded to him. Or did she? Maybe his mind had wondered again. He knew it happened often. He would escape into a new world that existed only in his own mind. That is, until he wrote it all down. Once it was on paper, it took on a life of its own. He glanced back at Luella. Now he was sure his mind had wondered.

He decided to try again. “How is the book?”

Luella stood behind the counter with her book propped up. She was completely focused on it. Everett stepped over to the counter and set the box on top so he could slice the rest of the tape and flatten it.

Luella looked up. “Oh, Everett. There you are.”

Everett grinned. It was nice to see he wasn’t the only one who could be transported away by a story.

“How is the book?” he repeated.

“I only just started reading it.”

“Really? I thought you were supposed to have a book club meeting about it today?” He put the box cutter away and lifted the box.

“We agreed we would only go the first so many chapters. We’re going to try to figure out the mystery as we go along.” Her eyes trailed back to the book in front of her.

Everett took the empty box to the delivery dock in the back of the store and grabbed the next one. When he returned to the front of the store, Luella was talking to a customer.

“What did you think?” Harriet asked Luella.

Everett listened to the conversation as he emptied the box.

“I like the style of writing so far. How about you?” Luella finished ringing the sale.

“I can’t wait to talk about it tonight.” Harriet picked up her bag. “I’ll see later.”

Luella picked up her book. “Did you have lunch yet?”

Everett laughed. “You go on ahead. I’ll watch the store.”

***

Irlene finished taking everything from her small suitcase and tucked it into the closet. After a quick shower and change, she went downstairs to help Megan. She found her in the kitchen working at the sink.

“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this.” Irlene waved to the kitchen table. “You take a seat. Tell me what you want me to do.”

“I enjoy helping. We can work together.” Megan nodded toward the fridge. “I thought a fruit and cheese platter would be nice. Do you want to get started on that?”

“That does sound nice.” Irlene opened the large fridge and started looking around.

Megan called out the items to her and gave her a general idea of where it was. Irlene carried the fruit over to the counter near the sink. As she and Megan worked together to assemble the platter, Irlene talked about the project at her house.

“I know it got pretty bad here with the dust when they put our addition on,” Megan said. “I can’t imagine one person doing all that work alone.”

“Maybe that’s my problem. I shouldn’t have expected Carson to do so much.” Irlene lifted the finished cheese and fruit platter and set it on the kitchen table then followed Megan’s directions for the next item. She pulled out bags of cookies from the fridge and began assembling another tray.

“Of course, I didn’t really expect him to do as much as he is.” Irlene frowned as she opened another bag of cookies. “It started with updating the guest bathroom.”

“I thought you said he tore your kitchen apart?” Megan opened the oven to check the crab dip.

“He did. That’s just it. Every time I go home, he’s demolished some other part of my house.” Irlene leaned over to look in the oven. “Oh, that looks nice.”

“It goes well with crackers. I’ve also used pita bread or baby naan with it.” Megan reached for the hot pads.

“No, don’t you dare,” Irlene said. “I’ll take it out.”

“I have some slow cookers going in the dining room and the plates and silverware are already out. I think we’re just waiting for people to show now.” Megan picked up a trivet from the kitchen table.

“I’ll follow you,” Irlene said as she carried the crab dip.

They split up half way there when the doorbell rang. Megan opened the door to half of the book club members. The rest arrived within minutes.

“I have never seen so much food in one place,” Gavin said to Miles as he ladled a large dollop of crab dip on his plate.

Miles picked up a plate. “I’m starting with the finger foods first. I’ll move on to the lasagna after that.”

“It’s good to have a plan of attack,” Gavin agreed. “Now I see why you like book club so much.”

“It’s not just the food.” Miles glanced across the room at a small cluster of women. “It gave me the opportunity to get closer to Harriet.

“Wow. This is really good.” Gavin followed Miles’s gaze across the room as he scooped up more crab dip with a cracker.

“I don’t know what this is, but it looks good,” Cindy said as she made her way to the table.

“Megan called it a layered salad, I think.” Gavin waited until Cindy put on her plate. “That looks healthy.”

Cindy took a bite. “It tastes good too.”

Gavin put some on his plate then followed Cindy to one of the chairs. The rest of the group was doing the same thing.

“Thank you all for coming,” Irlene said to the group. “And thank you, Megan, for letting us take over your home. This is all so wonderful.”

Megan smiled at the compliments and sat back in her seat to listen to the discussion.

“I’d like to open the book discussion by talking about the theme of the book.” Irlene looked around at the group as many nodded. “I know we haven’t finished it yet, but I think this is a safe topic for discussion at this point. Gavin, since you’re new to the group, I’ll let you go first.”

Gavin set his plate on his lap and wiped his mouth. “Well, let’s see. I really like the theme. It has a lot of elements of fact to it that I find interesting. I know that a lot of people from here did travel to California during the gold rush.”

“Really? I wondered how factual that was,” Carol said.

“Oh, it’s true,” Leah said. “Not all of them made it back. There were a lot of deaths along the way to get there and even more once they were in California.”

“From what?” Cindy asked. She turned to Gavin.

“You’re really testing my memory now.” He offered a rueful smile to the group. “I used to read a lot about this when I was younger. Finding gold or anything else valuable like that in the ground really appealed to me for some reason.”

“Me too,” Miles added. “I think it’s one of the reasons I became a jeweler. I can see them converting the gold into coins to use as currency. That makes sense.”

“The phrase mountain fever sticks in my brain. I’m not sure if that was a real thing or if it was just a catch all phrase.” Gavin gave a half shrug. “The basic premise that one of the young men found gold in California and died on the return trip from illness is plausible.”

“And that he would be bringing something valuable, like gold coins, back with him,” Harriet added.

Leah nodded her agreement. “He buried it when he realized he wasn’t going to make it. That sets up the stories about a ghost protecting the gold coins and scaring people away from his stash.”

“What I want to know is, did anyone else recognize anything?” Cindy looked around the room.

“Like what?” Irlene reached for some cheese and crackers from her plate.

“The big rock,” Cindy said. “I mean, I know they have rocks everywhere, but it just seemed like such a perfect match.”

Irlene’s eyes widened with excitement. “The one by the state park?”

“You’re right,” Carol said. “I wondered why it sounded so familiar.”

“Are you talking about the one that is held up by trees?” Tia asked. She lifted her hands to demonstrate. “It’s on the side of a cliff hanging precariously just above the road and it’s suspended by trees that grew up around it.”

“That always gave me nightmares as a kid,” Carol said. “Whenever we drove past it I was afraid the trees would let go and it would come rolling down on top of us.”

“Me too.” Cindy picked up her copy of the book. “And what about this part.” She read a passage that she had flagged.

“That sounds like the old road leading the back way from the state park to Teaberry, doesn’t it?” Irlene looked at Carol. “Am I remembering right?”

Carol nodded slowly. “Yeah. It isn’t used as much anymore. I can’t remember the last time I was even on it. The road winds around forever.”

“Are you all saying that the book is set near Teaberry?” Megan asked.

Everyone turned to her and nodded.

“I think the haunted coins are buried here,” Irlene said.

Chapter Eight

Erica stopped at the red light and turned to Jerry.

“I don’t know. It just seems like one is progressing faster than the other one.” When the light changed, she accelerated.

“I’m sure that’s normal. None of my nieces or nephews did things exactly the same way or at exactly the same age.” He watched out the passenger window as they passed the town square.

“Maybe.” Erica checked her rear-view mirror. “What are you guys planning now that the weather is nicer? Are you going to put in a garden or anything?”

Jerry looked at the flowers in bloom around the town square. “I don’t know what Madison has in mind.”

“It’s going to be your house too, right?” She flipped her signal on before negotiating the turn.

“Yeah. We’re planning to live there after we’re married.” He glanced down a side street as they passed. “I’m pretty much there all the time now.”

“That’s the thing about getting married. It’s no longer yours and mine.” She slowed when they came to a crosswalk and watched as a couple moved from one side of the street to the other.

“Well, yeah. I guess.”

“Then you could be making plans too. Or make them together.” Erica accelerated again. “I know we’re planning to put in some tomato plants. I told you about that, right?”

“Yeah. You’re going to use those planters. Those are nice. I was looking at some of those too.” He motioned in front of them. “Watch out here. I don’t think they see us.”

Erica braked just as a car pulled into their lane. She knew the moment the driver realized that they’d just pulled out in front of a cop car. They slammed on the brakes.

“Why do they do that?” she muttered.

“At least you knew it was coming.” Jerry shook his head.

“Anyway, all I’m saying is that you need to start thinking of the house as ours instead of hers.” Erica waited until the car in front of her began moving again before she pressed on the gas.

“Yeah. Something to think about.” Jerry frowned as he looked out the side window.

***

“I don’t want you to get your hopes up.” Ava pulled into the veterinarian’s parking lot and turned off the engine.

Bella unbuckled her seat belt but didn’t open the door. “It’s been over a week since I last checked. Dr. Adams should know by now if he can come home with us.”

“That’s what I mean, Bella. I’m not sure he can. We just don’t have the room for a puppy in the apartment.” Ava pressed her lips together. “I’m sorry.”

Bella took a deep breath and nodded. “Then he’ll have to go home with Rhys.” She opened the door and slid out.

“I’m not sure that’s an option.” Ava hurried to catch up with her daughter. “We haven’t talked about that with him.”

Bella paused for a moment in front of the entrance. “We can’t leave him here and we can’t take him to Ham and Joni’s. It’s the only possible solution.”

Ava watched Bella disappear into the building. She followed more slowly. Bella was speaking with the receptionist when she walked in.

“Dr. Adams thought you might be by to check on the patient.”

Bella followed her instructions to pass through the door to the hallway leading to the rear. Ava flashed the receptionist a smile before following Bella.

“Listen,” Ava said as she walked down the hall. “Let’s not make Dr. Adams any promises today. We’ll talk to Rhys later and figure something out.”

Ethan appeared in a doorway at the end of the hall. Bella could hear excited barking behind him. He stood with a smile on his face and watched her approach him. She passed by him into the room. He nodded to Ava as she followed Bella in.

“As you can tell, he’s not our only guest at the moment.” Ethan went over to a cage that held an excited Pomeranian. He reached his hand in. The dog stopped barking and began licking his hand.

“How is he?” Bella looked around trying to spot him.

Ava hung back and remained by the door.

“He’s a real fighter, that one is,” Casey said as he passed through the door. He nodded at Ava and kept going. “You can approach him and talk to him but try to focus on keeping him happy. I have to warn you, the wound is still pretty ugly. Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

Casey looked down at Bella and searched her face for her response. He must have been okay with what he saw there. He nodded to a small cage on the other side of the room. Bella followed him to it. When she reached the cage, she smiled at the squirming puppy inside.

“There you are. How have you been doing?” She turned to Casey with a question in her eyes. When he nodded his approval, she opened the door and put her hands inside to touch the puppy.

“Have you thought about what you’re going to name him?” Ethan crossed the room and stood behind her.

“Galen,” Bella said. “His name is Galen.”

“Bella, I’m not sure you should name him.” Ava moved closer to the group huddled around the small cage.

“A dog needs a name.”

Ava turned toward the voice and found Rhys standing in the doorway. She raised her brows at him. He looked over at Bella and moved farther into the room.

“Sorry I’m late. It took me longer to get the supplies than I thought,” Rhys said.

Bella turned to look at him. “Supplies?”

“Sure. He’ll need bowls for his food and water, right? I wasn’t sure what size or what kind of food. I came by here first and got a list from Casey.” He stopped next to Ava and put his arm around her. “I got a bed for him too. I figure we’ll set it up in the room Bella is going to use. That way, he’ll be used to sleeping in there when you guys move in after the wedding.”

Bella flashed him a happy smile before turning back to the puppy. “Hear that, Galen? You’re coming home with us.”

***

Vince wiped his hands and surveyed his work. Although the spread of food in front of him looked perfect, the heavy feeling in his heart was still there. He set the wine glasses on the counter next to the food and returned to his office to wait for Bev.

Maybe if he kept his mind occupied, it wouldn’t torment him as much. He pulled up the itinerary for the trip he was planning to surprise Bev with. They’d talked about traveling in the past and had taken many smaller trips together.

This trip was a little more extensive. She’d mentioned once that she’d like to see Europe someday. He figured now was a good time to do that. They were both in their fifties which was still fairly young in his mind. They should get out and do some of the things they’d always dreamed about. He pulled up another web page and looked at some of the options for activities while they were there. Things to see and do that might interest her.

He found himself staring at the screen as his mind wandered again. That was the problem. He wasn’t really sure what might interest her or what she might want to do. It was a new feeling for him. They’d always been so compatible in the past. He couldn’t put his finger on any one thing that had changed now. He just knew that her behavior lately had been a little different.

He tried to focus on the information in front of him again. Maybe a trip would put them back on track together. The doorbell jolted him from his thoughts. He hurried to open it and found Bev on the other side.

“Hey, there.” He leaned in for a kiss when she stepped inside.

She presented her cheek then passed quickly to the kitchen.

“Everything looks lovely, as usual.” She slid onto the stool next to the counter.

“How was your day?” Vince took the wine bottle from the fridge and filled the glasses.

“Good. Grace is becoming a little more mobile. I’m sure we’ll all be running after her in no time, trying to catch up.” Bev wrapped her hands around the wine glass and stared at it.

“Are you okay?” Vince studied her face. She did seem a little pale.

“Just a headache.” Bev tried to smile but couldn’t manage it.

“Do you want to lay down? I could maybe get you a cool cloth for your forehead?”

She looked at the food he had laid out in front of them. “Would you mind terribly if I just went home? I think I just need to rest. I’m sure I’ll feel better tomorrow.”

She slid from the chair. “I feel bad about the food. It all looks so nice.”

“Don’t worry about it. It will keep.” Vince watched as she walked out.

***

Becca pointed. “There. I think that’s it.”

Tyler slowed and pulled off the road. They parked the car at a trail head and got out.

“You’re sure this is it?” He looked around.

The leaves on the trees were beginning to open. The undergrowth was already green. There were a lot of small bush-like growths scattered in the woods and more ferns than Tyler had ever seen.

“Yeah. If we walk down this trail about half way and cut off to one side, we should be able to see that big rock Megan told us about.” Becca finished tying her hiking boots and put her tennis shoes back in the car.

Tyler closed the car doors and locked them. “Okay. After you.”

“I love going into the woods this time of year.” Becca pointed at a patch of green plants with white flowers. “Those are called mayapples.”

“Can you eat them?” Tyler pulled his phone out and took a picture.

Becca laughed. “No, you can’t. They aren’t that kind of apple. I understand that certain parts of the plant have been used for medicinal things over the years though.”

Tyler pointed. “Do you know what those leaves are?”

Becca followed his finger. “The ones with spots? Those are dogtooth violets. The ones that grow here have yellow flowers but they might be done blooming now.” She looked around. “Oh, there’s one that still has the flower.”

“How is it you know so much about plants?” Tyler continued following her down the trail.

Becca shrugged in front of him. “I don’t know. I live here. I like looking at them. I always have. I’d feel stupid if I walked past something and didn’t know the name of it.”

“Spoken like a librarian.” Tyler stopped again. “What about that one?”

Becca paused to look then kept walking. “Those are some of my favorites. I love trilliums, especially the red ones.”

Tyler snapped a picture before catching up to her. Then he stopped again. “Okay, there’s no way you’re going to know the name of this. I’ve never seen anything like it before.” He took more pictures.

Becca laughed. “That one is easy. It’s called a jack in the pulpit.” She continued walking. “Come on, I want to find the rock.”

“Why are you in such a hurry?” he asked as he quickly caught up with her again.

She flashed him a grin. “Have you noticed it’s really easy to walk?”

Tyler made a face as he considered it. “Sure, we’re walking downhill.”

“It’s more of a mountain, really. Walking down is the easy part. On the way back up, we’ll be taking lots of breaks.”

He turned around to look at the steep slope behind them. “Oh, yeah. I’ll have lots of time to take pictures then.”

Becca stopped and looked around before pointing. “I think we want to work our way over there.” She walked off trail for a few moments before motioning to Tyler. “There’s a deer trail here. It will be easier if we follow it.”

He had no idea how she kept everything in that big brain of hers. He followed her across the trail. They were traveling laterally across the mountain now instead of straight down.

Finally, Becca stopped. “Do you hear that?”

Tyler mostly heard the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. He strained to listen for something other than that. It took a few moments.

“Is that water?” he asked.

Becca turned toward it and began walking again. “It’s a waterfall. From the runoff down the mountain. A long time ago, people used to use the runoff for drinking water. There would be a pipe sticking out the side of the mountain usually right next to a road. People would bring their jugs and fill them up with water. For those who relied solely on their wells for water, sometimes it was their only other option.”

“Seriously?” Tyler stopped again when he realized Becca was standing still. “Where to next?”

Becca put her hand on a moss-covered tree next to him. Tyler looked up and realized it wasn’t a tree. It was the largest rock he’d ever seen.

“How are those trees holding that up?” He took several steps back to take pictures including several with Becca standing in front of it.

“Megan said those were two of the clues. The big rock and the waterfall. We need to look for the third clue.” Becca looked around for a moment then took off walking again.

Tyler followed. “Are we going back toward the main trail again?”

“Yeah. I think the waterfall behind us feeds a stream to our right. We need to walk as straight as we can from the rock following the stream toward the main trail.”

Tyler heard her muttering to herself as she walked in front of him but he was too busy trying to keep up to ask her what she was saying. Finally, she stopped again.

Tyler bent over and put his hands on his knees as he sucked in deep breaths. “What now?”

“There should be a barbed wire fence.” Becca looked around.

“There’s no way a barbed wire fence from back then would still be here.”

“Parts of it might be. Check the trees.” She started moving from tree to tree.

“What?” He had no clue what she was talking about.

“The trees. That’s where they often put the fence. They used the trees as fence posts. The trees usually ended up growing around the fence. The rest of the fence would collapse over time but little pieces might be stuck in the tree. Here!” Becca pointed. “Look!”

“I’ll be.” Tyler took a picture of it as Becca began checking the trees around them.

“Here’s another one.” She flashed him a grin. “We did it. We found the clues.”

Chapter Nine

“I was wondering where you were. Breakfast is ready.” Matthias Reynolds took a few steps into the study. His wife was focused on her computer.

“Sounds wonderful.” Barbara finished typing her notes for her next town council meeting. She let out a sigh and stood from her desk. “What can I help with?”

“I think Kaylee and I have it handled.” He waited until she reached him then leaned in for a kiss. “How did it go?”

“I think I’m getting there. We don’t have a lot of major items on the agenda.” She followed him to the kitchen and went straight to the coffee pot.

Matthias took the plates from the cupboard. “Kaylee did the hard part. She made it to the kitchen first.”

Kaylee carried a plate of pancakes to the table. “Yeah, couldn’t sleep.”

“What has you troubled?” Barbara settled into a chair with her coffee cup.

“Nothing really. I think that’s the problem.” Kaylee returned to the stove to crack some eggs into the skillet.

“Say again?” Matthias carried the syrup to the table and sat next to Barbara.

“I’m all caught up on my assignments, that’s all.” Kaylee flipped the eggs.

“Are you working with Erica and Brad today?” Barbara transferred some pancakes to her plate.

“For a little bit. Erica has the weekend off so they’ll both be home.” Kaylee carried the skillet to the table and set it on the trivet before taking a seat.

Matthias pushed the juice closer to her. “What do you like most about programming?”

Kaylee paused as she poured the juice into a glass. “Like?”

“Yeah, you know. What part of programming do you like the most?” He reached for the syrup Barbara passed to him.

“Figuring it out, I guess. When you first approach the problem you have to figure out what is really needed but then you have to add in other things too, like security.” She picked up the spatula and slid an egg onto each of their plates as they held them out.

“And you’re currently missing that challenge in your classes?” Barbara asked.

Kaylee didn’t answer at first as she filled her own plate. “I guess. I mean, we have homework assignments.”

“That aren’t challenging you enough?” Matthias wasn’t surprised.

Kaylee made a face. “Not really, no.”

“Have you thought about an internship?” Matthias asked. “Maybe if you check with the college, they would let you use some internship hours toward your degree?”

“Maybe.” Kaylee cut her pancakes.

“Maybe you could talk to Brad about it,” Barbara suggested. “His company might have an opening.”

“Sounds like an excellent idea. His company is fairly sizable. It might even be a paid internship,” Matthias said.

Kaylee drizzled more syrup on her pancakes. “Might look better on a resume.”

Matthias smiled at Barbara. She nodded her thanks. He was right. Talking to Kaylee about an internship was a good idea.

***

Dan drove her truck. Megan watched the scenery as they drove toward the state park.

“Thanks for doing this,” she said.

“You didn’t really think I’d let you hike a mountain without me, did you?” He eased his foot off the gas then pressed it again.

“Everyone else in the book club is going to be there too.” She tried to look in the side mirror. She knew there was a row of vehicles behind them with all of the members.

“That’s another thing. If you’re going to find a stash of haunted coins, I want to be there. Just make note of that for the future.” He sped up a little then backed off.

“Good to know. Whenever there are ghosts involved, I’m to call you.” She looked over at him.

“Ghosts or coins, yes.” He frowned as he checked the dials in front of him.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“How long has the truck been acting like this?” He slowed to take a turn.

“Like what?”

“It’s not reacting correctly. There’s a slight hesitation.” He mumbled something more after that.

“What’s that?” Megan looked out the window. “Oh, turn here.”

Dan found a spot and parked the truck. They both got out and waited for everyone else to join them.

“You guys having trouble with the truck?” Leah asked. “I noticed you weren’t keeping your speed.”

“I think the engine might need some work,” Dan said. “I’ll have to check it.”

“It’s a nice truck,” Gavin said as he joined the group.

Irlene adjusted the band around her head. “I have to say, I never expected a book club to actively look for treasure.”

Miles held up his metal detector. “My kind of book club.”

Gavin flashed Miles a smile as he took a shovel from Dan. Others grabbed either shovels or metal detectors.

“I have extra water bottles in the car if anyone needs them,” Carol said. “I have to say, Stan thinks we’re crazy but in a good way.”

“He thinks crazy is good?” Cindy asked as she tried to put her backpack on.

Gavin quickly reached to straighten her strap.

“Thanks,” Cindy said with a smile.

“My husband said the same thing,” Tia said. “He thought it was a nice twist to book club.”

“We are getting exercise,” Luella said. “That has to be a good thing, right?”

“It’s this way,” Becca said as she and Tyler took the lead to the trail.

“Are we there yet?” Irlene joked.

Everyone laughed as they fell into line.

“The restrooms are at the trail head if anyone needs to go before we actually start,” Tyler said.

Megan shared a look with Dan and started laughing.

“We can catch up with everyone if you don’t want to wait,” Dan said.

“Don’t be silly,” Irlene said. “This is a group effort.”

“Becca can actually name all of the plants,” Tyler said to the rest of the group. He motioned to Megan and Dan. “We’ll be right over there waiting.”

“I did bring my camera,” Leah said. “I wouldn’t mind getting some pictures.”

Becca kept the group entertained pointing out plants and trees. They took off shortly after.

“The trip doesn’t seem as long this time,” Tyler said to Becca.

“That’s because we know where we’re going this time and we won’t have to go all the way to the big rock.” Becca turned to see how everyone behind them was keeping up.

Tyler stopped when he saw the colored tape they hung on a branch the last time they were there.

“This is where we poked out,” he said.

“If we walk straight that way, we’ll get to the fence line that the book seems to be describing,” Becca said.

“That wasn’t so bad,” Irlene said with her hands on her hips.

Leah tapped her shoulder and pointed in the direction behind them. “Wait until we have to go back up.”

“What exactly did the book say about the fence?” Harriet asked.

Cindy pointed to her backpack and turned her back to Gavin. “I have the book.”

Gavin unzipped her bag and pulled the book out.

“I flagged the pages,” Cindy said.

Gavin flipped the book open and skimmed the passage.

“It says that the ghosts have been spotted where the waterfall can be heard.” He skimmed a little farther. “It mentions a hemlock grove.”

“I doubt the same hemlocks will still be there,” Irlene said.

“Actually, they might,” Becca said. “Technically, they’re supposed to live for hundreds of years.”

“Do you remember seeing hemlock trees?” Tyler asked her.

Becca tried to remember. “Maybe. I didn’t know that was one of the clues when we were here. I was focused on the sound of the waterfall and the fence.”

“If we get to the sound of the waterfall, we should be in range to see the hemlocks,” Dan said.

“It’s worth a try,” Leah added as she snapped another picture. “We’ve come this far.”

Becca and Tyler led the way to the area where they heard the waterfall and pointed. “The big rock is that way, the fence line is that way.”

“I can definitely hear the waterfall,” Harriet said.

“Too bad I can’t see it from here to get a picture.” Leah walked closer to the end of the cliff. There was a substantial drop off. She immediately took a few steps back. “Wow. That’s down there.”

The others stepped closer to look.

Becca pointed. “Look. There’s hemlock.”

“Is that what that looks like,” Irlene said.

Leah took a picture. “Too bad it’s in such a treacherous spot.”

Dan turned to Megan. “Don’t even think about it.”

Megan smiled. “I’ll stay here. I’ve hiked places like this before. You want to do a controlled fall down the side.”

“What does that mean?” Tyler asked.

“It’s practically straight up and down,” Megan said. “You’re using the trees as much as possible. Do what it takes to get to the first one. Then you use the branches, if you can, and hold on to them as you begin moving to the next tree. At some point, you have to let go of your safety net and basically drop to the next tree. You use it to stop your fall.”

“Then you start the process all over again,” Dan said. He looked around the group. “Ready?”

Irlene raised her hand. “I’ll stay with Megan.”

“Me too,” Harriet said.

“Me three.” Leah smiled. Tia raised her hand.

Cindy walked over to the edge to look down. “I think I’m going to give it a try.”

“Right behind you,” Becca said.

Gavin held up his shovel and looked at Dan and Miles. “I think that’s our cue.”

“The shovels might help with balance on the way down if they’re dug in,” Miles said.

“Good point.” Gavin passed his shovel to Becca and took the metal detector from her.

The group on the edge watched over the side as the others eventually made it to the hemlocks without serious injury. Soon after, they could hear voices as the group below figured out a pattern to follow with the metal detectors.

“They may not ever get the mud out of their clothes,” Irlene said.

“But they’re in one piece and coming up is usually somewhat easier.” Megan made a face. “In a manner of speaking. They’ll have to basically crawl on their hands and knees.”

The first loud tone of a metal detector was soon followed with others. Harriet looked over the edge.

Miles saw her and called up. “Probably just more barbed wire fence.”

The others peered over the edge down at the group. Megan could see Dan digging with the shovel. Cindy and Becca ran a metal detector over the dirt he tossed onto a pile. Gavin periodically checked the hole he was digging to see if they still got a tone. Finally, they heard the loudest squeal yet. Miles bent down and picked something up.

Megan and the others watched as Miles rubbed the dirt from whatever he had in his hand.

He looked up and grinned at Harriet with his hand held high. “You’ll never believe it. It’s a gold coin!”

They could hear everyone down below laughing. Dan sunk his shovel in again then backed away to make room for Gavin. They saw Gavin swipe the metal detector over the hole. Suddenly, everyone down below stepped away.

“What is it?” Leah called.

“What’s wrong?” Irlene shouted at the same time.

Tyler looked up at them and pointed toward the hole. “We found bones.”

Dan stood with the shovel in his hand and looked up at Megan. “They’re human.”

Chapter Ten

She held the long sleeve dress shirt in one hand and the short sleeve in the other. The problem with meetings in unfamiliar buildings was that you never knew what the climate would be like inside. Better to take the short sleeve shirt and a jacket. That way, she could add or remove a layer as needed. Madison returned the rejected shirt to the closet and put the other in her rolling garment bag.

“How are things going in here?” Jerry crossed the room to the closet.

“I’m almost ready to go. My plane doesn’t leave until just before noon so I still have a little time.” She watched him pull a shirt from the closet. “What do you and Erica have planned today?”

Jerry pulled on his shirt and began fastening the buttons. “We caught that new case.”

“Yeah, I heard you on the phone last night. I couldn’t understand everything you were saying though.” She checked her makeup bag to see if she had everything inside.

“It’s definitely different. A group of people went treasure hunting and found a skeleton.” He tucked his shirt tails in.

Madison stopped what she was doing and turned to him. “Seriously?”

“That’s what they said.” He watched her tuck a few more things into her suitcase.

“Do you believe them?” Madison glanced back at the closet and frowned. Maybe she should bring a sweater too. Just in case.

“Megan and Dan Palmer were in the group. You know some of the others too. Irlene, the lady that does hair. A couple of the shop owners including Vintage. I’m not sure about the rest yet.” He watched her return to the closet.

“Do you suspect foul play?” Madison tucked the sweater into her bag.

“They found it out near the state park. It wasn’t technically on state park lands, it was about half way down the mountain.”

Madison stopped and looked at him again. “We’ve been down there. How did Megan do that in her condition?”

Jerry shook his head. “You know her when there’s a puzzle to solve.”

“I guess.” Madison took one last look around. “I think I have everything. I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Sounds good.” Jerry crossed the room and pulled her in for a hug. “Listen, I was wondering. What were you thinking of doing with the yard this summer?”

Madison shrugged. “I don’t know. We haven’t really talked about it. Did you have something in mind?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. I wasn’t sure what the options were.”

Madison leaned in for a kiss. “It’s your yard too. The options are whatever you want to do with it.”

He glanced out the window. “Are you sure about that?”

She closed her garment bag and zipped it up then turned to smile at him. “Are there going to be palm trees in the back yard when I return from my trip?”

He gave her a half grin. “Would you have a problem with that?”

She smiled back. “I’m actually quite fond of palm trees.”

***

Erica sensed Jerry’s presence behind her as she stared at the blank murder board.

“Were they able to come up with anything yet?” He stopped next to her and stared at the same empty board.

“A little.” Erica crossed over to the board and picked up a marker. “We know the gender now.”

Jerry watched her write John Doe on the board. “Any clues on the time frame?”

“Actually, there was but I’m not sure how helpful it’s going to be.” Erica drew a line underneath the name and added the words class ring.

“Seriously? Where was the ring from?” He moved over to Erica’s desk to grab the case folder on it.

“The local college.” Erica drew another line and wrote the name of the college.

Jerry pulled the photo of the class ring from the folder. “This is a woman’s class ring.”

“Hence my point about it maybe not being helpful.” Erica capped her marker and closed the space between them to look over Jerry’s shoulder. “At least we know the college and the year.”

“That does give us a place to start.” He sifted through the other things in the folder. “They have a cause of death.”

“They do.” She pulled the cap from her marker as she returned to the board and wrote blunt force trauma. “They know that the victim was hit on the head.”

Jerry continued reading. “Says they aren’t sure what caused it yet though.”

“It was a shallow grave. The remains were disturbed over time.” Erica capped her marker again.

“From what they did have to work with, it’s looking like a shovel. Interesting.” Jerry searched the folder for any more information.

“That makes it a murder,” Erica said. “We just aren’t sure exactly when it happened.”

Jerry held up another print out from the folder and began reading. “Maybe we do,” he muttered.

“What?” Erica put the marker down and crossed back over to him.

He held up the print out. “See this?”

She read the words he was pointing at. “They found a tiny gold football with the bones? How does that help?”

“It isn’t just the football. It’s the letters that are on it. The gold football must have been made for the bowl game that year.”

Erica looked at the letters signifying the number of the bowl game. “Do you have any idea when that game would have been?”

Jerry looked offended.

“Just tell me if it puts it at the same year as the class ring,” Erica said.

“It does.” He put the folder back on her desk. “If the clues are right, our victim died around thirty three years ago.”

“Hopefully, we can find someone from the college who was there in the same time frame with information to help us.” Erica sat down at her computer.

“That shouldn’t be a problem. Most people remember who they went to school with.”

***

Jessilyn shifted the strap of her bag as she walked to the administration building from her car. Her mind drifted back to the meeting she had just left. As the Town Events Coordinator, she often had meetings on-site with the entities she worked with. The group she just left were scheduled to be part of the Memorial Day parade.

The route plan for this year would be slightly different than the one they followed in previous years. There were more groups involved and that had necessitated a change in the route. Since it was something that hadn’t been done in the past, she was trying to account for any possible issues that might arise.

She stopped on the sidewalk and turned around to look at the street in front of the administration building. It was a wide street. The sidewalk on this side of the street was much wider than the other side but the sidewalk on the other side was a standard size. That should mean that more people would be able to fit in this new planned route. This new section was also more accessible. They could use the lot on the side of the building for parking with special tags. She nodded to herself as she visualized it. Adding this street into the route should work out well. Satisfied with her plans, she turned to continue walking to the administration building and slammed into someone.

“Watch it!” Brianna raised her hands and pushed Jessilyn away.

Jessilyn’s automatic apology froze in her throat when she realized the person she had run into was her tormentor from school. As a young girl, Jessilyn had suffered the bullying of Brianna all the way through school. She had thought it was all in the past and could be forgotten. Unfortunately, Brianna had taught her son to bully Jessilyn’s son and continue the history of torment to the next generation.

“Must be nice to be able to wander into work whenever you want to,” Brianna said.

Jessilyn reminded herself that she was no longer a young girl held captive to Brianna’s torment. She flashed her most professional smile.

“Actually, I just left a meeting. I do apologize for not seeing you there.” Jessilyn backed up a step and made a wide circle around Brianna before continuing her way into the building.

After passing the entrance, she took a deep breath and walked down the hall to her office. She had no idea why Brianna was in this section of town. She hoped it didn’t bode Ill for the future.

***

Dan pushed the cart closer to the stack of feed in the stock room and began hefting the bags onto the cart. Once he had enough to restock the supply in the aisle, he pushed the cart back into the store and positioned it at the end of the aisle. He then began offloading each bag.

“That looks like work,” Carson said.

Dan straightened. “Hey, Carson. How’s it going?”

“Slow, but sure. I ran into a problem in Irlene’s kitchen. I was hoping you had the plumbing fixtures here that I might need.” Carson looked around the store.

“I might.” Dan motioned to the other side of the store then began walking with Carson. “I try to keep pretty well stocked with things like that.”

“I know you do,” Carson said. “That’s why I always stop here first when I need something.”

Dan led him to the plumbing section. “What’s the problem you’re having?”

Carson described the situation as he looked at all the fittings on the shelves.

“You need something to go from the old existing pipe to the new type you just installed,” Dan summarized.

“Yeah, that’s about it.” Carson rubbed his chin as he stared at the shelves.

“You’re talking half inch?” Dan asked. At Carson’s nod, he reached for a box. “This should work.”

Carson smiled as he reached for the box. “Thanks. I’ll grab a few other things while I’m here. Seems like it takes twice as much material to renovate a house as it does to build new.”

Dan laughed. “Let me know if you need any more help. I’ll be over where I was when you found me.”

“I thought you usually have more help working with you,” Carson said as he grabbed something else from the shelf.

Dan stopped at the end of the aisle and glanced around to see if anyone else needed him. “Yeah. I’ve been looking at applications. Should have someone in place soon.”

Chapter Eleven

He unlocked the front door of the small two story home and took a step back. The woman who had asked to look at the property remained on the short walkway leading to the house. She hadn’t climbed the steps leading into the house.

Stan assumed it was because there wasn’t enough room for more than one person to stand on the front stoop. He remained silent while she stood assessing the house. He offered no excuses for the condition of the home. He offered no platitudes about its future potential.

There were garbage cans next to the front stoop. By the smell of them, they hadn’t been emptied for a while. One of the windows on the second floor was covered over with a piece of pressed wood. According to the owner, Art Bowman, he was in the middle of replacing the window. Art promised he’d have it done soon.

There was a small porch covering the front stoop. It wasn’t much, but it might offer some momentary respite in a rain storm while the owner searched for their key. Stan looked up and reassessed his opinion. He was pretty sure the porch had been leaking for some time.

The houses on either side of the property were close. He assumed that it was possible to hear loud noises emanating from them at times. The area across the road was a lumber yard and pre-dated the house but not by much. The lumber yard was from the late eighteen hundreds. The house, like the others around it, was built around nineteen hundred. Many of the inhabitants in the original neighborhood had worked at the businesses across the road. In addition to the lumber yard, in the late eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds there were also machine plants, boiler works, asbestos mills, and various factories. Some of the properties were still in use now including the lumber yard.

The houses built across from the businesses were meant for the many workers that were needed to run them. They were built quickly and cheaply to fill the need at the time. There was about a tenth of an acre of land with the house they were currently viewing. It wasn’t much larger than the footprint of the house itself. There was no garage. Many of the residents in the area parked on the street directly in front of their house.

Stan studied the woman who had remained on the short walkway. The tension on her face was evident. She was not well pleased with what she saw. He wasn’t surprised given what she was used to but he also knew that wouldn’t stop her from going inside. It was one of the very few properties that fell within the budget she had quoted him. There simply were no other options in town.

He knew the moment she had made her decision. He watched as she drew herself up. He could practically see her spine straighten as she willed the anxiety on her face away. Once again, she wore the mask of disdain that he’d grown accustomed to seeing.

He waited as she stepped toward him. Rather than trying to make room for her on the small stoop so she could precede him inside, he stepped into the house and walked to the living room.

“As I mentioned on the phone, there are five rooms total. You have the living room, the kitchen, one full bath, and two bedrooms.” Stan watched her survey the condition of the living room where they stood.

The corners where the walls met were cracked in some places. The ceiling had obviously been patched over the years. It wasn’t done well. Stan guessed that the bathroom above it had leaked. He could still see some evidence of the discoloration on parts of the ceiling. The area affected the most had been smeared with spackling and painted over without much effort given to sanding it first.

“The kitchen is this way.” Stan led the way to the other room.

The newest appliance was over ten years old. He watched as her lips thinned at the sight of the laminated countertops and the linoleum floor.

“The bedrooms and the bathroom are upstairs,” he said with a gesture. “If you’d like to go up the stairs first?”

Brianna raised her hand to stop him. “It doesn’t matter.”

He remained where he was waiting for her decision and watched as she pushed her long sleeve back down to her wrist when she lowered her hand. He knew that she was accustomed to much more elegant living arrangements. The home she lived in with her husband and young son was worth well over twenty times the house they stood in now.

“I’ll take it,” she said.

***

Cindy followed the last student from her classroom at the end of the day. Val stepped out of her classroom a short way down the hall and followed a student toward Cindy. Both teachers said goodbye to the third grader and stood watching the flow of children through the hall.

“The warmer it gets, the harder it gets to keep their attention,” Val said.

“Always,” Cindy agreed.

“Tell me again about your adventure,” Val said. “I didn’t get to hear how it ended.”

Cindy gave her a brief summary.

Val’s eyebrows disappeared into her bangs above them.

“Tell me you’re kidding,” Val said. “Wait, I think I might have heard something about that on the radio on the way in this morning. The police don’t know anything yet, right?”

Cindy gave a brief shake of her head. “I honestly don’t know. If they do, I haven’t heard about it yet.”

“Did you have to talk with them?” Val asked. “I mean, did they question you and everything?”

“Oh, yes. They questioned all of us. They wanted to know what we were doing there.” Cindy smiled and waved at a former student as they passed her.

“That had to be unbelievable.” Val turned to face Cindy when the stream of students leaving the building turned to a trickle.

“It was something, that’s for sure. The thing was, the police didn’t seem surprised with what we found.” Cindy watched the last child leave the building.

“What do you mean?” Val asked.

“It sounded like one of the women with us has some experience with things like this.” Cindy turned back to her classroom. “I should get my things and find the boys.”

Val let her go but made Cindy promise to give her more details in the morning. Cindy grabbed her purse and the bag of schoolwork from her desk then walked to the gym. She found both Logan and Evan playing there. A young attendant waved to Cindy as she called to the boys that it was time to go.

“Do we have to?” Logan asked. “We were going to play basketball.”

“You two can play when we get home,” Cindy said as she ushered them from the building.

“We don’t have a basketball hoop at home,” Logan said.

“I guess you’re right about that.” Cindy put her hands on their heads to navigate them around the school buses that were leaving the parking lot.

“Maybe Seth can put one up?” Evan suggested.

“That is a good idea. We’ll ask him.” Cindy guided them toward the faculty parking lot.

As they neared her car, she could see Gavin approaching from the direction of the high school.

“Hey!” Gavin hailed her. “Have you heard anything new?”

Cindy glanced down at the boys and flashed Gavin a warning look.

He understood the meaning and nodded. “Hey, boys.”

“Logan, Evan, this is Mr. Jefferson. He teaches at the high school.” Cindy smiled as the boys gave a curious greeting to the man then turned her focus back to Gavin. “No, I haven’t heard anything.”

“If I had known book clubs could be that interesting, I wouldn’t have waited so long to join one.”

Cindy shared a smile with him. “Not all of the meetings have been that interesting.” She looked down at the boys. They were both staring at Gavin. She unlocked her car with her fob. “In you go, boys.”

“If you hear anything, let me know,” Gavin said as he watched the boys climb into the back seat of her car.

“I will.” Cindy waved before getting into her car.

Gavin stood staring in the direction she had driven long after she was gone.

***

Carson stood staring at the front door of Irlene’s house willing it to open. It didn’t work. He knew it wouldn’t, of course. She didn’t typically get home quite this early. He walked slowly through the house, checking out the many projects that needed to be completed.

Although she’d originally asked him to update a bathroom, he’d managed to incorporate several other rooms into the renovation plans. It was the result of an attempt borne of desperation. He had known Irlene for as long as he could remember. Although he was a year ahead of her in school, he had been aware of her even back then.

He doubted that she remembered, but when they were in high school together he’d even asked her to prom during his senior year. She hadn’t been able to make it, of course. Even back then, she was working on getting her license so she could work in a beauty salon. She’d taken some special classes in the evenings after school. They hadn’t allowed her the pleasure of being involved in many of the after-school activities.

The smell of the chicken roasting in the oven brought him back to the present. He returned to the kitchen carrying one of the work horses. After retrieving the second one and setting it up next to the first in the kitchen, he put a sheet of plywood on the top.

It was warm enough to eat dinner outside when Irlene got home but he could use the workspace in the kitchen to finish getting the dinner ready. He already knew she liked roast chicken. She’d brought one home from the store for one of their meals together. That was why he’d picked up a fresh chicken at the store earlier. He’d also gotten a few bottles of wine and put them in the fridge.

He was taking everything out of the oven when he heard the front door open. The look of hope on Irlene’s face fell when she realized that nothing much had changed in the kitchen. Her shoulders slumped as her eyes focused on his.

“I need to change my clothes,” she said.

“I’ll have dinner ready when you get out. It’s roast chicken,” he said with a smile.

The smile she gave him in return didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Smells good.”

Carson reassessed his plan as he waited for her to return. Maybe he should try to get one or two things done in the kitchen? Just to make it look like he was getting somewhere.

Chapter Twelve

Dan returned to the kitchen and grabbed his lunch cooler from the table. He found Megan in the living room. He wasn’t surprised. He knew the couch was more comfortable for her than the kitchen chairs for any length of time. Emma was curled up next to her. Megan had one hand on Emma’s head to rub her ears when she wasn’t using it to turn a page.

“Planning to stay home today?” He leaned over the back of the couch to kiss her temple.

She lowered the book she was reading. “I was thinking of stopping by the police station.”

He glanced at the title of the book. “Is that the reason we scaled down the side of a mountain?”

She grinned. “It is. I got a copy from Leah thinking it might help me to figure out more clues.”

“Get anything yet?” He straightened.

“No, but I just started. You might like the book.”

“I wouldn’t mind reading it,” he said. “It isn’t every day that you scale down a mountain to find gold buried with a skeleton.”

She read a while longer after he left for work but eventually rose to get ready. Erica had responded to her text with a time they would be available. Megan didn’t want to miss her window of opportunity. A short time later, she was in the reception area of the police station. Martha called back to the main office. Jerry appeared a few minutes later.

“Need help getting up?” he asked after greeting her.

Megan chuckled. “Not yet, but I’m sure that day is coming.”

She followed him down the long hall to the main office. Erica was working at her desk. She had paperwork in front of her and was referencing something on the computer as she read through everything. She raised her head from her work and focused on Megan, watching her as Megan carefully maneuvered herself into a chair.

“How are you doing for real?” Erica asked.

“I didn’t have any problems with our walk in the woods the other day,” Megan said. “Honest.”

Erica pointed at her. “You went half way down a mountain and back up again. That isn’t a walk in the woods.”

“But I’m fine,” Megan assured her. She glanced at the papers on Erica’s desk. “Is that about the case?”

“You mean, the case of the haunted coins?” Erica asked.

Jerry grinned as he took a seat near Megan. “I kind of like that name.”

“It’s actually a pretty good book. I just started reading it,” Megan told him.

Jerry glanced at Erica. “We should probably get a copy.”

Erica narrowed her eyes at him. “You just want to read the book.”

Jerry gave her an innocent look. “It could hold clues to the case.”

“That’s what I thought too,” Megan said.

Erica shook her head at him but one side of her mouth pulled up. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“Check with Leah. She might have another copy,” Megan suggested to Jerry before turning back to Erica. “Can you tell me anything?”

Erica swiveled her chair around the rest of the way to face Megan and Jerry. “We know it was a male.”

“Well, that’s something,” Megan said.

“Why do you say that?” Erica asked.

“I haven’t gotten all the way through it but I understand there’s going to be a part in there about young men who went to California back in the eighteen hundreds.” She watched Erica’s eyes slide over to Jerry. “What?”

“Our victim was probably a little more recent than that,” Erica said.

“We don’t have all of the autopsy results back yet, but based on what we found in the grave we’re guessing about thirty three years ago,” Jerry said.

Megan frowned. “That’s a pretty specific range of time.”

“Thank Mr. Football over there,” Erica said with a wave toward Jerry. “He pinpointed it based on some sports trivia.”

Jerry briefly raised his brows but didn’t respond. Instead, his eyes went over to the murder board on the far wall.

Megan swiveled her chair and looked also. “You found a class ring too?”

“We did,” Erica agreed as she swiveled around also. “The date on the ring corresponds to the weird math Jerry did with the bowl game.”

“You’re looking for a man who graduated from college around thirty three years ago?” Megan did the math in her head as she watched Erica glance at Jerry again. “What now?”

“The ring appeared to be a woman’s graduation ring,” Jerry said.

Megan pulled her brows together. “A girl might carry around a man’s ring, but it doesn’t usually happen the other way around,” she muttered to herself.

“Good point,” Erica agreed.

“You’re thinking the killer was a woman?” Megan guessed.

“It’s one theory,” Jerry said.

“Anything else?” Megan asked hopefully.

“Not at this time,” Erica said as she began to swivel back around to her computer.

“I might learn something else at my next stop,” Megan said.

Erica reverted her swiveling and looked at Megan. “Where’s that?”

“Linda called me. She wants me to stop at the library so she can tell me something.” Megan struggled out of the chair. “I’ll let you know if it has anything to do with the case.”

“You do that,” Erica said. “Be safe.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Jerry said as he quickly jumped up. “I wanted to ask for your opinion on something.”

Megan waited until he went past her to begin walking. She preferred to stay behind him as they went through the hallways in the police station.

“What’s up?” she asked.

He glanced back at her quickly. “I’m thinking of a tree in Madison’s yard. Our yard.”

Megan smiled at his quick correction.

“I was thinking I might like a fruit tree,” he said. “We really like your orchard that you have out at the farm.”

“How many trees are you thinking of planting?” she asked.

“Is that important?” He paused to let a group of people pass in front of them at an intersecting hall.

“Some trees require cross pollination,” she said. “Others can technically do well on their own but, in reality, still do better with cross pollination. There’s also the issue of time. Some apple trees, for example, could take up to ten years before they produce.”

“I definitely wouldn’t want to wait that long for our first taste,” Jerry said.

“Size is an issue too. With apple trees, you have dwarf, semi-dwarf, and standard. On the other hand, peach trees and some cherry trees can be a more manageable size compared to a standard apple.” She stepped out into the reception room and faced him.

“Peach, huh? That sounds good. How long do those take to produce?” he asked.

She made a face as she thought about it. “I’ve had some give me peaches the second year. By the third year, they’re usually doing pretty well. Enough for some pies and eating fresh peaches.”

“That sounds like something we’d like,” he said with a smile. “Thanks.”

“If you go to Anderson & Cramer Nursery, Jax, Seth, or Trina could give you more ideas on what would work for what you have in mind.” Megan left Jerry thinking about fruit trees a short time later and drove the to the library. She found Linda at the front desk.

“Megan, thanks for coming.” Linda looked around the library then motioned with Megan to follow her as she stepped to the other side of the counter. “We should be able to talk over here.”

“Does this have anything to do with the remains we found in the woods?” Megan asked when they reached a table.

Linda motioned to a chair. “In a way, yes it does.” She waited until Megan was settled in her chair before continuing. “Becca told me about what was going on.”

“It was quite an adventure, that’s for sure. Are you familiar with the area out there?”

“I haven’t been out there in years. Not since I was young,” Linda said.

Megan’s eyes widened. “You went to college here.”

Linda laughed. “I should have known you’d figure it out. Yes, that’s why I called you.”

“The police believe that the victim may have died around thirty three years ago. Is that when you graduated?”

“Yes. Yes, it is. I hadn’t heard about the time frame though. I didn’t realize that kind of connection existed,” Linda said slowly.

“What do you know?”

“It’s about the book,” Linda said. “The one that Becca said the book club was reading.”

“You’re familiar with it?”

“We read it in college in my senior year. Thirty three years ago.”

“Seriously?”

Linda looked around the library again to see if anyone needed her then lowered her voice as she leaned closer to Megan. “It was a class assignment. The professor picked that book to celebrate some anniversary related to the author.”

Megan hadn’t considered the possible significance of the author. She tried to picture the name on the front of the book. “It was a woman who wrote it, right?”

“Minnie Tillman Alexander. I didn’t remember the exact connection to the college so I looked it up while I was waiting for you. Her husband, Alpheus Alexander, was the president of the college in the late eighteen hundreds.”

“She was from this area?” Megan asked.

“That I don’t know but she definitely lived in the area for a while.” Linda rose as she saw someone approach the front desk.

Megan texted the information to Erica as she waited for Linda to return. When she did, she asked Linda for details on her class. Specifically, she wanted to know the names of the other students.

***

Bev looked up at her friend with a smile when Susan approached her table in the Jammin’T.

“I’m glad you could make it,” Bev said.

“I’m glad you called. I love excuses to get out on a beautiful day.” Susan watched as Bev’s eyes drifted to the front door of the diner. “Are you expecting Vince?”

“No,” Bev said quickly. “No, I’m not.”

Susan placed her drink order when Sissy stopped at their table. Once they were alone again, she focused on Bev. “Okay, out with it. What’s wrong?”

Bev let out a sigh. “That’s the trouble with old friends. You can’t hide anything from them.”

Susan waited patiently.

Bev sat back while Sissy set their drink orders on the table. They both declined ordering a meal and Sissy left them on their own.

“The thing is, I have no clue what’s wrong,” Bev said.

“But something is.” Susan made it sound like a statement, not a question. “Is it something Vince said or did?”

“No,” Bev said quickly. It was followed with a frown as she traced her finger in the condensation left on the table by her glass of iced tea.

“But?” Susan prompted.

Bev shifted her gaze back to Susan. “Have you ever wanted… more?”

Chapter Thirteen

Rhys looked over at Bella in the passenger seat. She was holding the puppy in her lap. “How’s he doing?”

Bella rubbed the space between the puppy’s ears. “Galen seems fine. Are you worried about him?”

“Ian said that not all dogs do well in cars.” Rhys slowed for a stop sign.

“I didn’t know that.” Bella smiled when Galen turned warm brown eyes to look at her. “He doesn’t seem to be having any problems with that.”

Rhys glanced over again. “You know, we never talked about this but I want to make sure that you realize this isn’t your fault.”

“What?” Bella turned toward Rhys.

“With Galen. You know that the accident wasn’t your fault, right?” He sensed her turning her focus back to Galen but didn’t take his eyes from the traffic in front of him.

“I should have stopped it sooner,” Bella said quietly. “I wish that I had. But I know I’m not the reason he was on the road in the first place.”

“You didn’t know Galen was in trouble, Bella. Once you did, you helped him and he’s fine now. That’s the important part.”

Bella gently rubbed Galen’s head again.

“I never had a chance to ask Casey any questions,” Rhys said.

“About what?”

Rhys made a face. “I don’t even know what kind of dog he is.”

Bella laughed. “I can tell you that. He’s a German Short-haired Pointer.”

“Okay. What does that mean, exactly?”

Bella gave Rhys a sideways glance. “Well, he’s going to be pretty big.”

“You’re thinking the little bed I bought for him won’t cut it for long, huh?”

Bella grinned. “It will do for now.”

Rhys glanced over again. “He’s brown, right?”

Bella nodded. “Technically, he’s liver colored.” She smiled when Galen licked her hand.

“He’s a pointer, huh? Is that why his tail is so short?”

Bella ran her hand down Galen’s back to his tail. “His tail was docked like this. Casey said it would have been done shortly after he was born.”

Rhys pulled into his driveway. “Hang on, I’ll get the door.”

He ran around the car and opened the door for Bella to make it easier for her to get out then he quickly moved to the front door of the house to open it for her.

Ava came out of the kitchen when she heard them. “I bought some puppy pads, just in case.”

“Good idea. Casey said we might want to try them at first. Until he gets a little older and understands how to tell us when he wants to go out.” Bella set Galen down on the living room floor. She sat down next to him and waited to see what he would do.

“I made some lemonade,” Ava said.

“Sounds good,” Bella said as she watched Galen struggle to his feet. Once he was up, he began moving around slowly.

“I’ll be,” Rhys said as he sat down on the couch to watch. He smiled at Ava when she returned with a glass of lemonade for him.

Ava set the other glass on the table next to Bella. “Lunch will be in a little while.”

Rhys glanced at the clock. “I wish I didn’t have to leave on his first day here.”

“We’ll be fine,” Ava said. “We’ll stay here until later this evening and be back early tomorrow morning.”

“Hopefully, Galen won’t be too lonely when he’s by himself,” Bella said wistfully.

“Oh, I forgot.” Rhys held up a finger as he stood from the couch. He returned to the living room a moment later with a stuffed toy. “I thought he might like company.”

Bella smiled her thanks as she reached for it.

***

Jerry parked his car in the large lot in front of the nursery. He looked both ways, not sure which way to go first. He could see flats of flowers and what he assumed were vegetable plants in the distance on the left. To the right, he saw trees.

“Hey, Jerry. Need help?” Trina stopped in front of him.

“I want to get some plants,” he pointed in one direction. “But I also want a tree. Or two, depending on what you suggest.”

Trina looked at his car. “We can probably get the trees on the floor of your back seat. The plants will be okay in your trunk.”

Jerry hadn’t thought about that. “Good point. Do you have any peach trees?”

He followed Trina as she started walking toward the trees. He could hear voices coming over her communication device. He was reminded of work.

“I heard on the news that you have another murder mystery,” Trina said as they reached the trees.

“An older case,” he agreed as he studied the trees in front of him trying to tell them apart. He couldn’t do it but noticed they had tags with pictures on them.

“This one doesn’t technically need cross pollination,” Trina said as she pointed at one. “If you’re thinking of just one, it’s a good option.”

Jerry nodded as he stared at the tree.

“Different trees live longer than others, right?” he asked.

“Sure. Around here this one might live about ten years. It depends on the weather and other factors.” Voices could be heard over Trina’s radio again.

“What about trees like hemlocks? How long might they live?” he asked.

Trina responded to the voice on the radio first. “You mean, like in the woods around here?”

Jerry nodded.

“Hemlocks can live for hundreds of years.” Trina heard the response on the radio. “I have to go but I’ll send someone over with a cart to get this tree for you.”

“Sounds good, thanks. I’m going to get some flowers too.” Jerry studied the peach tree after Trina left. Megan was right. The original hemlocks in the book about the haunted coins could still be alive. Maybe there was something to the story after all.

Barbara greeted Jerry Stevens as she and Matthias approached the potted flowers.

“Beautiful day to pick out flowers,” she remarked as Matthias held up a tray of impatiens. She nodded her approval and he set the tray on a cart.

“Mayor Reynolds. I see you both had the same idea.” Jerry motioned to the cart in front of him. “I need to get out of here. So far, I’ve bought pretty much one of everything I’ve seen.”

Barbara laughed as she waved at his cart. “That’s not bad. You’ll notice we each have our own cart.”

“My other cart is already in the main building by the cash registers,” Jerry said.

Barbara picked up a tray of petunias. “I hear you have a new case.”

“That we do,” Jerry said. “So far, it’s still something of a mystery.”

“I’ll look forward to the report,” Barbara said with a nod as Jerry turned to push his cart toward the office.

***

Miles looked at the picture on his phone. He should have taken more than he did. He only had one showing the front of the gold coin and one showing the back. He’d tried to wipe as much dirt from the coin as possible before taking the pictures but he just couldn’t make everything out.

He jumped when the phone in his hand buzzed but when he saw who it was he quickly answered.

“Harriet, how nice.”

“Did you have any luck?” Harriet asked.

Miles frowned. “No, sorry. I just can’t see the details as much as I’d like.”

“Did you try sending the picture to your computer? Maybe you can zoom in better?”

Miles cheered up. “Excellent idea. I’ll call you back.”

He forwarded the pictures to his computer then crossed over to sit down in front of it. Harriet was right. He should have thought of this himself. He pulled up the first photo of the coin showing the front. Then he opened up the web site with the descriptions and examples of coins printed in California during the gold rush. What he found surprised him. He reached for his phone to call Harriet.

“It’s one of them. It really is,” Miles said.

“One of the California gold rush coins? Are you sure?”

“I’m positive. I can see it clearly now. You were right. I can zoom in much better on my computer.” Miles shifted the phone into his other so he could move the mouse. “I think it says it’s a half dollar. Some of the letters in the first word are blurry on my picture, but I’m pretty sure that’s what it says.”

“That is so exciting. Do you know how old it is?”

“It was minted in 1852.” Miles shifted to the next picture. “The other side isn’t as clear. It looks like there’s a head on the front.”

“You said you didn’t have the proper tools to clean it on the scene,” Harriet reminded him. “But you managed to get good pictures anyway.”

Miles sat back in his chair, a satisfied smile on his face. “Boy, this sure has been fun. I told you think was my kind of book. We should go out and celebrate our find tonight.”

“I agree, Miles. But first, we need to tell the others what you learned.”

Chapter Fourteen

She was doing it again. Brad watched from the entrance to the living room.

“He’ll crawl when he’s ready,” he said as he walked into the room.

The guilty look on Erica’s face was priceless. She was sitting on the floor with both babies. She froze with the stuffed toy dangling in front of Mason’s face.

“I know that.” Her face betrayed her concern. “I’m just trying to encourage his muscle development.”

“The doctor said his muscle development was fine.” Brad crossed the room and handed her a glass of iced tea.

“I know that too.” She leaned back against the couch with her glass and watched the twins. “I know that he’s perfect just the way he is and that I’m driving both of us crazy with worry about nothing.”

He smiled indulgently at her. “But you’re going to keep doing it anyway.”

“Probably,” she agreed as the doorbell rang.

“That’s probably Kaylee.” Brad left the room but returned a moment later with Kaylee behind him.

She immediately sat down on the floor to greet the babies.

“How did the homework go?” Erica asked.

Kaylee made a face. “It went. I have all of my assignments done ahead of time so technically my semester is over.”

“Seriously? I remember the end of semesters being a lot more stressful than that.” Erica danced the stuffed toy in the air when Maddie turned toward her voice.

Brad smiled when Maddie laughed. “What about the contest?”

“What contest?” Erica asked.

“Yeah, what contest?” Kaylee crossed her legs to sit up straight and held her arms out to Maddie to encourage her.

Brad frowned as he tried to remember. “I don’t know. It was just some email I saw from work. It’s some sort of contest the college students compete in. My employer offers summer internships to the winner.”

“Seriously?” Kaylee focused on Brad. “I’ve never heard of it. What’s it called?”

Brad shook his head slowly. “I’m not sure. It’s at the national level so it shouldn’t be difficult to find.”

“Check your email,” Erica suggested.

Brad laughed. “Now there’s an idea.”

“Let me know when you find it. I’d like to look into that. Matthias was just suggesting that I try for an internship.” Kaylee slid closer to Maddie.

“He’s a pretty smart guy.” Brad watched Maddie try to get her knees under her.

“Grandma was talking about your new case,” Kaylee said to Erica. “It sounds pretty interesting.”

“That’s one word for it,” Erica agreed. “We found out yesterday that the author had a connection to the college.”

“She was from the area?” Brad asked.

“At least for a time.” Erica knew the moment Maddie’s hands were in the right position to lift herself. It seemed to happen so quickly. She went from struggling to being in the position to crawl in the blink of an eye. Just as quickly, she toppled forward onto her face.

“Aw! You’re okay.” Kaylee reached forward and scooped Maddie up. Maddie smiled at her. “I wouldn’t mind finding a buried treasure. What kind of coins are they?”

“Old,” Erica said. “Our people are saying from the late eighteen hundreds. They’ve only found a few so far.”

“I imagine those woods are going to be crawling with treasure hunters looking for more,” Brad said.

“You got that right. The uniforms that are posted in the area have already turned several away.” Erica smiled at Mason when he rolled over onto his back and looked at her.

***

“Thanks for coming with me,” Megan said as she watched the scenery from the passenger window.

“I’m looking forward to it. It isn’t every day that you find yourself involved in a mystery like this.” Dan slowed his speed as they reached the outskirts of town. “I will need to probably stop off at the feed store when we’re done and check on things.”

“How is your search for a new employee to replace Trina going?” She turned to look at him.

“I have an applicant that I’m considering.” He stopped at the first stop sign as they reached town.

“Just one?”

He threw her a smile. “I’ve had more than one applicant. I’ve just narrowed it down to one candidate.”

“Have you offered them the job yet?”

“No.” He accelerated again.

“Why not?”

“The applicant doesn’t have any experience and I suspect they’ll be terrible with customers.”

Megan frowned. “Then why are you even considering them?”

He was silent for a few moments before he finally answered. “Because this particular applicant needs the job the most.”

He found a parking space near the bookstore. They walked inside a few moments later.

Tia followed Megan and Dan into the conference room on the other side of Olde Tomes.

“This is nice,” Dan said as he joined the group of people involved in the book club.

“Ross put the conference room on his side for the business incubator but he said we could use it for the book club whenever we wanted to,” Tia explained as she stood by the interconnecting door. “I’m just going to listen for the bells on my door in case anyone comes into Tomes to shop.”

Megan distributed the prints out she’d brought with her.

“This is what I have from Linda. It includes the information about the author of the book that you’ve been reading as well as a list of the students who took the class with her.” Megan looked around the table of people. “As well as she could remember, anyway. She wasn’t able to list all of them, of course.”

“Even the list she has is pretty impressive,” Cindy said. “It was over thirty years ago. I couldn’t tell you the names of anyone I took classes with and it wasn’t that long ago.”

“The police will be able to get the actual university records of the students in the class. They were able to confirm the identity of Linda’s professor. That person is not our victim.” Megan said. “I thought this list of students in the class might be something to start with.”

“I think college was different back then,” Carol said. “More of a little community of people you suffered with as you tried to pass your classes. A lot of the last names sound familiar to me. I wonder if any are local.”

“We could probably find out.” Tia looked at the copy she held in her hand. “Everyone is on social media these days.”

“What do you mean?” Irlene looked around the group. “Are we planning to talk to these people?”

Leah pointed at the list. “Daryl is watching Vintage. I could probably take a little time today to see what I can find.”

Gavin looked around the table. “I know I’m new to the group, but I have the weekends off. I could try to help.”

Cindy nodded. “Me too. Jessilyn has the boys today. I could spend a couple of hours today but I wouldn’t be able to make it tomorrow.”

“Once we find out if anyone is local, we could try to talk with them,” Miles said.

Megan sat back in her seat. She could see the excitement on their faces as they turned to each other to discuss the people on the list and what they might ask them. She glanced over at Dan and smiled.

He leaned in closer to her. “Everyone loves a mystery,” he murmured.

***

Becca led them to a small room on the side of the library.

“No one has this reserved, so you should be okay in here.” Becca looked around at the group. “Are you expecting anyone else to join you?”

Leah shook her head and motioned toward the five people with her. “The rest of the book club members have to work today.”

“This sounds so exciting. I have to stay out in the main area of the library where people can see me but let me know if I can help with anything.” Becca pointed to the short row of computers on the side of the room. “The login information is on the computers.”

Leah walked over to the closest computer. “Okay, everyone. What’s our plan of attack?”

Cindy followed her over. “We could split up the names. There aren’t enough computers for each of us but we can share.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” Gavin followed Cindy to a computer. He dragged a couple extra chairs over as he did.

“Good idea,” Miles said to him as he grabbed a couple more chairs. He took a seat behind Harriet.

“There are twelve students who took the class that Linda could name,” Harriet said.

“And we have three computers to work with,” Luella added as she took a seat.

Carol turned on the computer in front of her. “That means each group needs to search for around four people.”

“We already know where Linda is.” Carol turned to Luella with a grin. “We’ll put her on our list. That leaves us with three more names.”

Everyone else laughed.

Miles circled the last four names on the list. “Harriet and I will take the last four.”

“Gavin and I will take the middle four,” Cindy said.

“And we have the top of the list,” Luella said with a smile. “This is going to be fun.”

“I just hope it helps to solve the mystery,” Carol said as she pulled up a search engine.

“It has to,” Miles said. “I mean, who else could be involved with the murder?”

“These students all read the same book in class,” Luella pointed out.

“The same year that someone in search of the treasure in the book was murdered,” Harriet added.

“What I don’t get is the haunted part,” Cindy said.

“How far are you in the book?” Gavin asked.

“Not as far as I’d like. I’ve had a lot of grading lately.” Cindy handed Gavin the list before typing in the first name.

“It is that time of the year,” he said. “The end always gets hectic.”

“I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone by talking about it,” Carol said.

There were murmurs of agreement from the others.

“If I’m the only one who hasn’t gotten that far, I give you permission to spoil away,” Cindy said.

“Suffice it to say that there is a ghost who is searching for the treasure,” Gavin said. “The ghost scares others away from doing the same.”

“Oh, I see.” Cindy tapped her fingers on the keyboard. “I’m not having any luck here.”

“Do you have any social media accounts?” Gavin asked.

“Sure. Oh, I see. You think if I log into one of them and search, I might find someone.” Cindy pulled up another web page.

“It’s worth a try,” Gavin said.

“We might want to search online newspapers too,” Carol suggested.

“This definitely looks easier when they do it on television,” Harriet muttered.

Chapter Fifteen

“Hey, Bella. Wait up.” Ethan pushed his way through the hallway to catch up with her.

“Hey.” Bella glanced around. “Were you waiting for me?”

Ethan couldn’t hide his smile. He should have known she’d figure it out. “I was. How did Galen do his first weekend?”

“Better than I thought he would. Rhys said he’s only keeping him awake half the night. I thought it would be all night.” Bella started moving toward her classroom.

Ethan winced. “It’ll take a little while for him to adjust.”

Bella smiled. “Rhys said that too. He grumbled about it a bit, but he seemed to understand. Hopefully, Galen will settle down soon. I won’t be staying there with him until Rhys and my mom get married.”

“When is that?” Ethan asked as he checked the time.

“This summer. Not too much longer. In the meantime, we’ll be there during the day a lot.” Bella stopped at her classroom door. “The problem is, both Rhys and my mom think it’s a little far for me to walk there so I can’t easily get there on my own.”

“I can’t wait to get my driver’s license,” Ethan said as he shifted the books in his arms. “I’d better go.”

Bella watched as he sprinted down the hall toward his classroom. She ducked inside her own just as the bell rang.

***

Carol turned and looked at Luella again. “Are you sure about this?”

Luella stared at the door in front of them. “Megan makes this look so easy.”

“No kidding,” Carol muttered as she reached for the doorbell.

The woman that answered looked at them with narrowed eyes. “Sorry, I’m not interested in buying anything.”

“No, wait. It’s Amy, right? Amy Gibson? I’m Carol Jiblonski. You know my husband, Stan. He sold you this house.” Carol didn’t give the woman a chance to interrupt her. “This is Luella from the craft store in town. You’ve probably been there.”

“We were hoping we could ask you some questions about a class you took in college,” Luella added quickly.

Amy looked at both of them. “What?”

“We were in the book club group that found the skeleton,” Carol said. “We found out that a class you may have taken in college read a book that may be involved.”

Amy looked even more confused now. She also hadn’t invited them in.

“Please. It will only take a moment,” Carol said.

Amy nodded to some chairs on her front porch. She opened the door and joined them, taking one of the chairs.

“Thank you,” Luella said as she took a seat.

“Do you remember any of the books you read in college? This one was The Mystery of the Haunted Coins.” Carol realized she was holding her breath for the answer and made an effort to breath.

“Doesn’t ring a bell,” Amy said. “It was probably one of those required classes.”

Carol and Luella shared a look.

“This one was about a young man returning from the California gold rush. He found a lot of gold there but he died just before reaching home,” Luella said.

“He lived around here,” Carol added quickly.

Amy scratched her head. “Yeah, I guess I did hear about something like that on the news. You say you two found the guy?”

“Not exactly,” Carol said. “The skeleton we found was a little more recent.”

“The police think he was somehow associated with the college where you took classes.” Luella watched Amy’s gaze wander to the street as a car drove by.

“The college where you read this book.” Carol knew they’d lost her attention.

Amy shook her head as she stood. “Sorry. Like I said. Doesn’t ring a bell.”

***

Carol sat in the car staring at the building in front of them.

“Maybe we should try another way?” Luella suggested. “We couldn’t seem to get Amy interested in talking about what we need to learn.”

“I know, but what?” Carol turned to Luella. “How does Megan do this?”

Luella stared at the building. “Maybe if we mention the gold that we found. That might spark their interest.”

“Or start another gold rush,” Carol said.

“True.”

Carol let out a sigh as she reached for her door handle. “We might as well get this over with.”

Luella followed Carol to the front door. She read the signs on the outside of the business and still had no idea what they did there. It said something about fuel injection. She figured it involved trucks somehow. There seemed to be a lot parked around the building. When they walked into the small office, there wasn’t anyone around. They followed the sound of country music to a work bay.

“Excuse me.” Carol called across the room.

A man in coveralls turned to stare at them.

Luella zeroed in on his name tag. “Are you Clem? Clem Bridges?”

“Who’s asking?” Clem remained where he was.

Carol took a couple of steps closer. “I’m Carol. This is Luella.” She motioned to Luella.

“We would like to ask you some questions about a class you took in college,” Luella said.

“Is this some sort of survey?” Clem pulled a straw from his pocket and stuck it in his mouth.

“Not exactly.” Carol tried to raise her voice over the sound of the music. She looked back at the office. “Mind if we go…” She pointed.

“Oh, sure.” Clem followed them over. When they reached the office, he went around to the far side of a counter and leaned against it before pulling the straw out of his mouth. “Don’t mind this. I’m trying to quit smoking.” He stuck the straw back in his mouth.

“Oh, that’s very admirable.” Carol looked at Luella.

“We understand that you took a class back in college with Linda Spelling.” Luella saw the confusion cross his face. “The librarian?”

The confusion cleared. “Oh, sure. That was a long time ago.”

“Do you, by chance, remember reading a book when you were in class with her?” Carol rested her hands on the counter. “It was about gold coins, ghosts, and a young man who died returning from the gold rush.”

Clem chewed the straw absently as he frowned. He rubbed the stubble along his jaw just before a look of surprise lit his face. “Yeah. Yeah, I do. I remember getting pretty excited about it. Thought maybe I could find the gold.”

“Did you go looking?” Luella asked.

“Nah. Never could figure out the clues.”

They heard a phone ringing in Clem’s pocket. He ignored it.

“Do you remember anything you discussed about the book?” Carol asked.

“Do you know if anyone else tried to find the gold?” Luella looked at Carol. “Sorry.”

“That’s okay. It’s a good question,” Carol said.

“Yeah, not that I remember.” Clem looked at each of them. “Either question, sorry.”

***

“I’m not sure I should quit my day job.” Luella added more sugar to her coffee and stirred it.

Carol laughed. “I know what you mean. I’m not real sure what we learned today.”

“We learned that some people don’t remember what they did in class three decades ago.” Luella lifted her coffee cup and cradled it in front of her with both hands, her elbows resting on the table.

“Do you two need anything else?” Tyler asked as he stopped at their table.

Luella looked at the board by Holly’s window. “I’ll take the special.”

“Make that two,” Carol said.

“I take it today didn’t go well.” Tyler looked at each of them.

Carol shook her head. “I hope the others have more luck.”

“We do still have one more to track down.” Luella let out a loud sigh.

“Anyone I know?” Tyler asked.

Carol took the list from her purse and set it on the table in front of her. “Martin Currie.”

“You are in luck.” Tyler topped off Carol’s coffee cup. “He usually comes in for lunch.”

“Really?” Luella suddenly had more energy. “Will you point him out if he comes in today?”

Tyler agreed before moving off to put in their order.

“I guess we should have thought of that,” Carol said. “From what Gavin and Cindy found about Martin, he does work locally.”

“Insurance, right?” Luella turned the list around to read it.

“Yes. I’m sure Stan knows him too. He knows most of the business people in town.” Carol sipped her coffee as her eyes went up to the closest television suspended from the ceiling. “Oh, look. There’s something about the case on the news.”

Luella swiveled around in her chair to watch. “Can you tell what they’re saying?”

Carol read the scroll at the bottom of the screen. “It says the police are making some progress.”

Luella turned back around. “Of course, they are. They’re professionals.”

Carol grinned. “I didn’t really hear anything else. They’ve switched to another story now.”

Tyler paused to top off Luella’s cup. “Tall guy, blue shirt, just came in.”

Carol turned toward the door as Tyler took off. She waved at the man and gestured toward an empty chair at their table.

Martin crossed over to their table. “Hi, Martin Currie. You’re Stan’s wife, right?”

“Carol, yes. This is my friend, Luella. Do you have a minute?”

Martin pulled the chair out and sat down. Sissy swooped by, flipped his cup over, and filled it with coffee before taking off.

“What’s up?” Martin glanced at each of them. “Looking for insurance?” He smiled as he reached for the creamer.

Carol chuckled. “No, not exactly.” She explained their book club discovery of the skeleton.

Martin motioned toward one of the televisions. “I did hear about that on the news. You guys must have a really fun book club.”

“We enjoy it,” Luella said. “The thing is, we were hoping you might have information.” She explained the connection of the book he read in college to the current mystery.

“Wow. You really do have an interesting book club.” Martin looked up as Tyler stopped to set food down in front of Carol and Luella. “That looks good.”

“Be right back with yours,” Tyler said.

Martin waved to their food. “You two start. I’ll try to tell you what I remember.” He frowned a little as he sipped his coffee.

Carol couldn’t resist the smell. She lifted her fork. Luella followed suit.

“Let’s see. The professor told us that it was some sort of anniversary for the author of the book. That’s why she chose that book to read in class.”

“Your professor was a woman?” Luella asked.

“Yes. So, definitely not your victim. We didn’t spend the whole semester on just that book, of course. We had to read others as well.”

“Do you remember reading The Mystery of the Haunted Coins?” Carol asked.

“I do, actually. It was a pretty good book.” Martin shrugged. “I thought so, anyway. Who wouldn’t like a mystery involving a buried treasure?”

“Did you know that the story was set locally?” Luella asked.

“We discussed that. I can’t say that I remember it being a given. I think we talked about it possibly being local. You know, because the author was tied to the college somehow.” Martin thanked Tyler when he set a plate of food in front of him.

“We were lucky that some of us had been out to the area before,” Luella said. “We recognized the clues.”

“Yeah. That had to be something. I think a lot of kids dream about finding a stash of hidden treasure. Maybe a lot of adults too. I can’t imagine actually finding a skeleton though. Do the police know who it was yet?” Martin picked up his fork.

“They must. We just saw something about it on the news,” Carol said.

Chapter Sixteen

Erica erased the words John Doe from the murder and replaced them with Denny Fleming.

“Age twenty-eight,” Jerry read from his notes.

“How is it that no one ever knew this guy was missing?” Erica muttered to herself.

Jerry heard her. “He was an adjunct professor at the college. He accepted a job at another institution just before the end of the semester. Everyone just assumed that he left for his new position once classes were over.”

Erica wrote the title down. “You would think someone would have asked questions when he didn’t show at the new job.”

“They might have but they may have been looking at the location of his next job. He wasn’t from Teaberry and had no relatives in the area. He was teaching part-time at the college and completing his own degree.”

Erica capped the marker. “Still.”

“As far as anyone at the local college was concerned, he was a success story that moved on. He completed his Ph.D. and got a full-time teaching job in another state. They probably even threw him a going away party.” Jerry leaned back to study the board with his laced hands resting on the top of his head.

She used the marker to rub the spot between her eyes. “Okay. We need to find everything we can on this guy.”

“I called the college. There’s someone we can talk to who was just starting out in the department when Denny Fleming left.”

“What did Denny teach?” Erica returned the marker to the board.

“History. Might explain his interest in the book.” Jerry logged out of his computer and stood.

Erica grabbed her notes. “Let’s see what we can learn.”

***

Leah looked around the small parking lot wondering if maybe the notary wasn’t currently open for business. She followed the had-written sign telling her to try the back door. After walking around the house, she found herself at the basement entrance. She wasn’t sure if she should knock or just walk in. She tried knocking first, but no one answered. She grabbed the door handle and tried it. It opened easily so she stepped inside.

“Hello?” Leah took in the small waiting room area. It was obviously used for storage as well. Based on the types of things she saw stashed around, she assumed the notary must also work as a photographer at times. There was a door leading to what she assumed was an office. She heard a voice on the other side of the partially opened door and waited for it to silence before approaching the office.

“Hello?” She pushed the door open.

The man inside was typing something into a computer. He was wearing his reading glasses low on his nose and tilting his head up to see through them.

“Oh, hello. I didn’t know anyone was out there, sorry.” Dean Gallagher tilted his head down to look at Leah over his glasses. “Do I know you?”

Leah smiled. “I think you’ve been in Vintage Teaberry before.”

His eyes lit up. “Oh, yes. That’s it. You have a nice antique store. What can I do for you? Something notarized today or do you need plates for a vehicle?”

“No, not today, thanks.” Leah took a couple of steps into his small office and sat on the chair across from his desk. “The thing is, I belong to a book club and we ended up reading a book that you may have read when you were in college.”

Dean chuckled. “Okay. You aren’t here to test me on it, are you?”

Leah smiled back. “In a manner of speaking. Did you happen to hear about the skeleton that was found recently?”

Dean sat up straighter in his chair. “That was you? I mean, your book club?”

“It was. We figured out the location based on the clues in the book. I was wondering if you remember anything about the time you read it in college?”

“I knew I should have paid more attention in my classes.” Dean shook his head. “I can’t believe you actually found a gold coin.”

“Were you aware that the book was set in the local area when you read it in college?” Leah watched him frown.

“To be honest, I don’t remember the book at all. You are talking about thirty years ago. Thirty years plus.”

“I believe it was a history class, right?”

Dean nodded slowly. “I guess. I don’t remember one way or another. I mean, if you say I read the book, then I probably did.” The frown returned. “How exactly did you know I read the book in college?”

“One of your classmates told us that you were there when it was read. Linda Spelling, the librarian.”

“Was she in that class?” Dean rubbed his hand across his mouth. “I have to tell you, I don’t really remember.”

***

Tia stared at the open book in front of her trying to divine the secrets from within it. Unlike some of the other book club members, going out to interview former classmates of Linda’s wasn’t an option. She needed to keep Olde Tomes open. She missed the excitement she was certain her fellow book club members were having.

Instead, she was stuck inside trying to extract anything else from The Mystery of the Haunted Coins that might help. She was positive there had to be some sort of tie-in between the college class that read the book and the death of the man whose remains they had discovered. He must have also followed the clues. What she hadn’t expected was to find out that all of the former classmates had been accounted for. Her initial assumption had been that the skeleton was one of the students.

She turned the page and read another passage for the tenth time. This new reading didn’t help her with ideas any more than the nine other times before it. She closed the book and set it on the table beside her. She kept a cozy arrangement of chairs near the front window of her shop hoping to entice readers to come in and stay awhile.

She stared out the large picture window for a few moments as her mind returned to the case. It has to be one of the former classmates. Who else would have known to follow the victim to the side of the mountain? And how did the victim find the location? He must have been local to the area. How else would he have been able to interpret the clues? But then, why wasn’t he missed? Surely, someone from Teaberry would have alerted the authorities when he disappeared?

She shook her head. She was going around in circles again. Until she heard back from the other members of the book club about what they learned from the former classmates, she was only wasting time. She glanced at the clock. She needed to keep busy.

Crossing the room to the counter where her cash register was located, she picked up an old letter opener and used it to open the box of new books she’d received earlier. She would scan them into her system so she could tag them with a price and put them out on the shelves. She was pleasantly startled from her routine a few moments later when the bells on the door rang.

“Carol, Leah! You’re back. Tell me you have good news. I’ve been going out of my mind trying to imagine everything you’ve been learning and all the fun you’ve been having.” Tia narrowed her eyes at the two of them when they shared a look of dismay.

“I don’t think we’re cut out for this.” Carol picked up the new book Tia had just scanned into her system and read the title.

“I have to agree.” Leah looked into the box to see how many more there were.

“What were you able to find out?” Tia scanned the last new book from the shipment into her system and handed it to Leah to look at.

Leah pointed the book at Carol as she checked out the title. “You first.”

Carol set her copy of the book on the counter. “No one we spoke with even remembered reading the book. Well, except for Martin.”

Tia reached for her list of students they wanted to question and stepped around the counter. “That’s Martin Currie?”

Carol nodded absently. “He seemed nice. We ended up having lunch together.”

“Let me guess. He didn’t remember anything useful either?” Tia asked.

Leah set the book down she was holding in her hand and followed the others over to the sitting area.

“No, and neither did Clem Bridges or Amy Gibson.” Carol slumped into a seat.

“Ditto for Dean Gallagher and Brody Dawson.” Leah took the chair next to her.

“What did Brody Dawson have to say?” Tia held her pencil up as though ready to write something down that would be helpful.

“He was fairly certain he didn’t go to that class much. According to him, the class was pretty early in the morning. Brody said he preferred to sleep in.” Leah crossed her arms. “I guess it was a lot to ask for.”

“That someone would remember reading a book thirty years ago?” Tia looked like she was about to argue the point.

Leah made a face. “No, that we would be able to find clues like the police.”

“Oh.” Tia sat back in her seat and studied the list. “I wonder if anyone else had success?”

“It sounds like the police are,” Carol said. “We saw a short report on the news when we were at the Jammin’T. It said they’ve identified the remains somehow.”

Tia said up again. “Do you know who it was?”

Carol and Leah both shook their heads indicating no.

“The scroll didn’t list the name. It did say something about him being a teacher there.” Leah glanced at the clock. “It’s getting late. Harriet and Miles said they would try to interview some former students once they left work for the afternoon.”

“Speaking of which, I should get home.” Carol pushed herself up from the chair. “Who knew sleuthing could be so tiring.”

Leah laughed as she stood also. “I know what you mean. I’ll be happy to get back to Vintage. I’m starting to think that we should leave the real detective work to the people who know what they’re doing.”

Chapter Seventeen

Miles couldn’t contain his excitement as he drove across town to pick up Harriet. Having the opportunity to spend time with her was exciting enough. To investigate a mystery together was worlds beyond that. Discovering that the woman he loved had the same interests that he did was mind boggling. So far, he’d been taking their relationship forward slowly. He believed that they had the same goals in mind. He just didn’t want to spook her by racing to the end of it all. Besides, there was something to be said for enjoying the time they spent learning more about each other.

Such as the fact that Harriet enjoyed treasure hunting. That she didn’t mind trekking down and up a mountain to chase a ghost and his gold. He found a parking space in front of her office where she ran her own company as a bookkeeper. He was glad for her sake that another tax season was behind them. She had spent many weeks working extended hours every day of the week to get everything done before the deadline.

He’d done his best to be supportive during that time. He’d brought her meals and tried to help Harriet and her mother around their house with chores and anything else he could think of. Harriet had been exhausted at the end of it all but she’d also told him several times how much she had appreciated his efforts.

He didn’t know that his face split into a smile when she stepped out of her office onto the sidewalk. He only knew that hers did when she saw him waiting for her. She quickly crossed over to his car and slid inside.

“Where to first?” he asked.

“We’re supposed to talk to Matt Irwin and Cory Szabina.” Harriet snapped her seat belt into place. She looked around to help him check for traffic as he pulled back into the lane and accelerated.

“Did you hear the news this afternoon?” Miles checked his rear-view mirror.

“No, I was swamped with payroll for some of the businesses I handle.” Harriet used the GPS on her phone to enter the address they needed to find.

“The police figured out the identity of the skeleton we found.”

“They did?” Harriet forgot about the directions. “Who is he?”

“I guess his name was Denny Fleming. He taught classes there at the college part-time.” Miles glanced at the phone in Harriet’s hand. “Which way.”

“What? Oh.” Harriet looked back at her phone. “Ah, turn left up here.”

Miles flipped on his turn signal and checked his mirrors again. “They didn’t really say much more than that.”

“He couldn’t have been teaching there and taking an undergraduate class at the same time, right? That just isn’t done.” Harriet remembered she was holding the phone and looked back at the map. “Oh, sorry. We need to take a right in about four tenths of a mile.”

“No, he couldn’t have. They wouldn’t hire someone who didn’t have an advanced degree. He must have had at least a master’s degree to teach there.” Miles flipped on his signal and made the turn.

“Okay, it says we’ll be there in six miles.” Harriet leaned back in the seat.

“What are we looking for, exactly?” Miles glanced around at the changing scenery. They were headed out of town.

“Matt Irwin owns his own electrical contracting company. I’m sure I’ve seen the building before and just never noticed.”

Miles smiled his agreement. “You don’t usually go to their place of business, they come to you.”

Harriet checked the GPS. “Two miles.”

“You’re sure he’s going to be in?” Miles saw a house in the distance with a nearby building made of concrete block.

“His website said he mainly deals with the office side of things. His sons are in business with him now. They handle most of the calls.” Harriet turned the map feature off. “There. The small building out front must be it.”

“That must be nice. Having sons to help with your business.” He was afraid to look at her and chose to concentrate on pulling into the small, gravel parking lot. They were both silent as they exited the car.

Harriet glanced at him as they walked toward the building. “He said he has four sons.”

“Oh.” Miles tried to imagine that as he opened the door for Harriet. He introduced them both to the man they found inside. Matt Irwin was a short, stocky man with a pleasant look on his weathered face. Miles knew that he was only in his fifties, but he looked as though he spent a lot of time outside.

The pictures all over the office gave Miles the clues to the lines on the man’s face. They showed a smiling Matt with his sons enjoying various outdoor sports year round. The pictures all over the walls showed a progression of time from when the boys were very young until more recent times.

“What did you say this was about?” Matt leaned against a work counter.

Harriet explained their interest in his former history class.

Matt scratched at the stubble on his chin. “I do remember that book, actually.”

“Can you tell us any of the details from when you read it for your class?” Miles asked.

Matt shook his head slowly. “I enjoyed the book. I remember that much. It had to do with buried treasure and ghosts.” He offered an apologetic smile. “Who wouldn’t, right?”

Both Miles and Harriet nodded their agreement.

Matt realized quickly that he was speaking to like-minded people. “I had dreams about finding that treasure for the rest of the summer.”

“Did you ever go looking for it?” Harriet asked.

Matt smiled at one of the photos on the wall. “No. My wife became pregnant with our first son.”

Harriet glanced up at the photo too. “You have a beautiful family.”

Matt beamed. “I did hear on the news that they figured out who the skeleton was.” He waved at them. “Were you two part of the group that found him?”

Miles explained their role in the adventure.

Matt shook his head in amazement. “Now, that had to be something.”

They asked him several more questions before leaving though Matt asked just as many as they did. His interest in finding buried treasure seemed to be as strong now as it was when he was in college. The next stop was twenty minutes away. Cory Szabina didn’t have the free time that Matt did. They explained why they were there.

“Sorry I can’t stop what I’m doing.” Cory finished removing the cover of the outboard.

“Not a problem,” Miles said. “We appreciate your time.”

“Time.” Cory huffed out a laugh as he reached his hands inside the motor. “College was a long time ago.”

“Do you remember the book you read in class?” Harriet asked.

“Can’t say that I do, sorry. History wasn’t my major, it was business.” He nodded at their surroundings as he wedged a tool down into the motor. “Those business classes gave me what I needed to open this place three decades ago. If I’ve ever used anything we covered in the history class, I can’t say that I remember it now.”

They discussed dinner plans on their way back to town. Miles offered to take Harriet and her mother out to dinner. Harriet counter offered a home cooked meal made by her mother. Miles didn’t hesitate to agree. As they drove back to Harriet’s house, he wondered if anyone was having better luck getting someone to remember a book they’d read over thirty years ago.

***

Linda looked around at the other diners as she followed the hostess to her table at the Station Pub & Grill. A waiter stopped a moment later and she put in a drink order for the three of them in anticipation of Hilary and Claire arriving. She often met her sister and friend for dinner. They always began the meal with their preferred drink of choice. She raised her hand when she saw the two of them near the front entrance.

Hilary sat next to Linda and leaned back as the waiter arrived with their drink.

“Oh, perfect timing.” Claire reached for her glass.

“Here’s to a beautiful evening,” Hilary said before taking a sip.

“How was your day?” Linda turned to Hilary first.

“Busy. It might just be my imagination but the incident rate of minor accidents coming into the hospital is increasing.” Hilary glanced around the restaurant to see if she knew anyone.

“It’s getting to be that time,” Claire said.

“It is,” Hilary agreed. “As the weather gets warmer, the kids go out to play. We’ve been getting a lot of bicycle accidents lately.”

“I can imagine.” Claire looked at Linda. “How about you? How is the mystery of the old college book coming along?”

“I saw they’ve identified the victim,” Hilary said. “I’ll bet that brought back old memories for both of you.”

Linda cradled her wine glass in front of her. “Why do you say that?”

“You didn’t know him?” Claire asked. “They flashed a picture of him on the news. I vaguely remembered him. I’m pretty sure I saw him on campus when I was there for classes.”

Linda shook her head slowly. “I don’t think so. Not really. He definitely wasn’t the professor that taught the class when we read the book about the haunted coins. That was a woman.”

“Are you sure?” Hilary propped her elbows on the table and held up her wine glass with both hands.

Linda shrugged. “I think so. Why?”

Hilary looked uncertain now. “I don’t know. I thought I remembered you complaining about a guy.”

Linda drew her brows together but she didn’t say anything.

“What about him?” Claire asked Hilary.

“I was just a kid at the time.” Hilary made a face. “Maybe I didn’t understand what was going on. I just remember Linda complaining about a teacher that kept hitting on her.”

Linda’s eyes widened. “I’d forgotten about that.”

“Was it him?” Claire motioned with her hand as she tried to come up with the name she saw on the television scroll. “Danny?”

“Denny,” Hilary corrected her. “Denny Fleming. I used to watch Linda get ready for class. She was gone most of the day. She had several classes each day so she spent a lot of the day on campus.”

Claire nodded agreement. She’d had a similar schedule.

Linda looked at her sister as she tried to pull the memories from her brain. “I didn’t have Denny Fleming for class.”

“No, but he kept annoying you about something.” Hilary took a sip of her wine.

“Yeah,” Linda said slowly before it came to her. “Yes, he did. He was always asking me about Teaberry. You know, where things were.”

Claire tilted her head to one side. “The newscast said he wasn’t from the area. Maybe he was just trying to learn his way around?”

“No, no. Not like that,” Linda said. “He’d ask me about where someone might hide something.” Linda looked up at the ceiling. “I can’t believe I forgot about that.”

“It was over thirty years ago,” Claire reminded her. “I didn’t remember him until they flashed his picture.”

“And you definitely didn’t like the guy,” Hilary added. “Even as a kid, I knew that much.”

“He was like some fanatic,” Linda said. “He just made me nervous, you know? Always harping on the same thing. I just tried to avoid him.”

“You need to tell someone,” Hilary said.

Linda bit her lip. “Probably. I’m not sure how important it was though. I’ll call Megan. She’ll know what to do.”

Chapter Eighteen

Vince walked into the library and immediately headed for the section on travel. As he passed by the videos, he realized that there were a lot of movies featuring different parts of the world. He hoped that he might have a few good videos of some of those places himself sometime in the future. Of course, he was hoping that Bev would have the star role as his companion on the trip.

He stopped at the beginning of the travel section and slowly began working his way down the aisle. He had already selected several books when he heard a voice behind him.

“Planning a trip?”

Amos McClintock was standing behind him with a curious look and a friendly smile. Not much younger than Vince, Amos was the park recreation manager who now dated Linda, the librarian. Vince was afraid to let his eyes drop to the books in his arms. He wasn’t ready to make his plans public. His concern must have been evident on his face.

Amos got a knowing look on his face. “It’s a surprise.”

Vince let out a breath. “Guilty.”

“Your secret is safe with me,” Amos said. “Bev’s surprise won’t be spoiled.”

“Thanks.” He glanced back at the shelf full of books. “You wouldn’t happen to have any suggestions, would you?”

Amos slapped one hand on Vince’s back. “I’m sure whatever you have in mind will be fine. No matter where you end up, you’ll be together. That’s the important part, right?”

Vince nodded slowly. Amos was right. It was why he’d thought of the trip in the first place. They’d be together. “Yeah, thanks.” His eyes tracked over Amos’s shoulder.

Amos turned to see Linda at the front desk. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.” Vince was afraid he was going to need it.

Amos crossed the library to the front desk. “How was your morning?”

“Good.” Linda smiled at him. “Better now that you’re here.”

Amos narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you sure?”

Linda motioned behind her. “Lunch is in the back. I hope you don’t mind. I also called Megan and asked her to meet me here.”

Amos leaned against the counter. “Is this about the skeleton they found?”

“I was wondering the same thing.” Megan stepped up to the counter next to him.

Linda looked around the library. Everyone seemed to be fine where they were.

“I had dinner with my sister and Claire last night,” Linda said.

“Now I’m really confused,” Amos said with a smile.

“It was something Hilary remembered,” Linda said to him before turning back to Megan. “You remember that I said my college class read the book?”

“The Mystery of the Haunted Coins,” Megan said.

“Yes. My professor was a woman. That’s one reason they knew she wasn’t the victim.”

Megan nodded her encouragement.

“The police have determined the name of the victim,” Linda said.

“I saw that. Denny Fleming. Did you know him?” Megan watched Linda glance at Amos.

“I did. I didn’t like him.”

“Really?” Amos sounded surprised. “I don’t think I ever remember you saying that before.”

“The odd part is, I didn’t even remember.” Linda leaned against the counter. “Hilary reminded me.”

“Hilary?” Amos wrinkled his forehead. “She was just a kid when you were in college.”

Linda made a face. “Apparently, I grumbled to her a lot about Denny Fleming.”

“Was he one of your professors?” Megan asked.

Linda shook her head. “No, thankfully. He did also teach in the history department.” Linda’s eyes widened again.

“What?” Amos asked.

“His research interest was in lost coins. He was like one of those investigators you see on television now. You know, where they follow the clues to find different treasures.” In her excitement, Linda gestured with her hands.

“I watch a lot of those shows,” Amos said.

Linda turned to him. “I know. We both do, together. And I like them now.”

“But you didn’t like that sort of thing then?” Megan guessed.

“It wasn’t that.” Linda glanced around the library again to check on everyone. “It was Denny Fleming. He was a total fanatic about it. He was constantly asking me questions about Teaberry and the geography around here.”

“He was trying to figure out the clues to the treasure from the book. Just like we did?” Megan said slowly.

“Yes, I see that now. Back then, I didn’t.” She glanced at Amos. “He would hit on me all the time. Trying to get into my good graces so he could pump me for more information.”

“Now I don’t like him either,” Amos said with a scowl.

“Minnie Tillman Alexander obviously must have known where the treasure was also,” Megan said.

“I agree.” Linda frowned. “That was also something that I didn’t pick up on in my youth. The author sort of romanticized the story, you know?”

“There’s a note in the back of the book that she kept certain facts hidden to protect herself and the treasure.” Megan glanced over at the computer room. She could see Archie through the glass wall. He was using one of the computers.

“At the time, I honestly thought that was just part of the fiction to make the readers believe there really was a treasure,” Linda said.

“And now?” Amos asked.

“I think the author was smart to hide the clues.” Linda looked at Amos. “Think about it. It could have launched another gold rush.”

“People can get a little crazy when it comes to treasures,” Amos agreed. “What about the ghosts?”

“The author claimed that ghosts protected the treasure.” Megan saw Archie rise from his chair and begin to walk toward them.

“Are you wondering if she made that part up?” Amos asked.

“Made up the ghosts protecting the gold coins to keep people away?” Linda tilted her head as she considered it.

“I remember those ghost stories.” Archie stopped and leaned against the counter. He motioned with one hand. “You’re talking about where they found the skeleton not long ago?”

“Yes. You remember the ghost stories?” Megan wasn’t surprised.

“Every good hidden treasure story should have ghosts to protect the treasure from modern day marauders,” Linda said with a smile.

“Exactly.” Archie’s bushy eyebrows began to dance. “Of course, when I was a little boy, I didn’t know where the treasure was.”

“I’m not surprised,” Amos said. “Someone would have dug it up if they knew where it was.”

Megan turned from Amos to Archie. “If you knew where the ghosts were, why didn’t you assume the treasure was there?”

Archie chuckled. “The ghosts were smarter than that.”

Megan grinned at his answer. “They wouldn’t give up their secrets that easily?”

He motioned with a sweep of one arm as he leaned on the counter with the other. “There were stories of ghost sightings all over the place.”

“I see. That makes more sense.” Amos tried to picture it. “I wonder why those stories were lost to time before my day?”

Megan gave a half shrug. “We’ve all been operating under the assumption that the treasure is still there just because we found one of the gold coins.”

Amos nodded slowly. “One could have been left behind when the rest of the stash was taken earlier in the nineteen hundreds.”

“Or it could easily still be there. That’s the fun of a hidden treasure. You just never know.” Megan turned to Linda. “Anything else you can remember?”

When Linda said no, Megan excused herself and left for Lauren’s. She hadn’t seen her cousin in a while and she wanted to check up on her. A short time later, she was standing in Lauren’s kitchen.

“Bev just went to get Grace. We heard her wake from her nap over the monitor.” Lauren smiled as she heard Bev’s soothing voice talking through the speaker on the corner of the counter.

“How is Bev doing?” Megan turned to pull a glass from the cupboard.

Lauren didn’t answer at first. She glanced over at the baby monitor again.

“I’m not sure.” Lauren took the last of the cookie dough from the mixing bowl and rolled it out.

Megan heard Bev laugh at something Grace must have done. “She sounds okay.”

“Yeah, she is. She’s fine.” Lauren picked up a tool that allowed her to make precise cuts of the dough quickly. “She’s just been a little quieter lately than usual.”

The voices stopped coming through the baby monitor. A few moments later, Bev appeared carrying Grace.

“Look who’s here,” Bev said in a happy voice to Grace. “Who is that?”

Megan made a face of surprise then laughed when Grace did too.

“Is she getting around any better?” Megan reached for the pitcher of lemonade and poured a little into her glass.

“Watch this.” Bev set Grace on the floor. “Go ahead, sweetie.”

Grace immediately began scooting herself across the floor in a sitting position. She looked at each of the adults with joy in her face to see if they were impressed.

Megan laughed. “I guess that’s one way to clean the floor.”

“She’s a little side scooter that one is,” Bev said. “She hasn’t started crawling yet, but she gets around using one leg to push herself.”

“She’ll keep you running after her, that’s for sure.” Megan watched Grace work her way across the room.

“How have you been doing?” Bev asked her.

“Good. How about you and Vince? Do you have any plans for the summer?” Megan sipped her lemonade.

“Oh, not that I know of. We haven’t really talked about anything.” Bev focused on Grace. “He seems to be keeping to himself a little lately.”

Megan wondered if that was why Vince had ducked behind a tall bookcase when she’d seen him at the library.

Chapter Nineteen

She could feel her heart pounding. She told herself to calm down but her heart refused to listen. He was supposed to wait for her in the gymnasium if she was ever late to pick him up. She wouldn’t let him ride the bus home. There were too many ways that could go wrong. Instead, she insisted that he wait for her with a lot of other adults around.

“What do you mean you don’t know where he is?” Brianna crossed her arms and stared the other woman down.

When she received no answer, she stormed past the smaller woman. She was only an aide anyway. A teacher’s helper. Brianna wanted to speak to a real teacher. Barring that, she’d go to the principal or the superintendent if she had to. Someone had better know where her son was. She left the gymnasium and nearly ran down the hallway, the high stiletto heels of her shoes slamming into the tile floor so hard the resulting dents were probably permanent. She didn’t care. She finally saw someone that she recognized. She stopped abruptly in front of the woman.

“Sheldon?” Brianna forced an entire question into that one word.

Renata studied Brianna before answering her. “Your son volunteered to help feed the fish in the administrative offices. It seemed to be very important to him. His principal told him that he could. I happened to be here for a meeting and volunteered to find you and let you know.”

Brianna knew she was panting. She made an effort to rein her emotions in though she knew there was no way the high school principal could see the panic in her eyes. Even though Brianna was inside the elementary building, she was still wearing her sunglasses. She drew herself up and willed her face to be smooth and devoid of emotion.

“Brianna, are you alright?” Renata asked. She tilted her head as she continued to study Brianna.

“Fine. I’m fine.” Brianna began moving toward the door to the administrative suite.

Renata reached her hand out and placed it on Brianna’s arm. Brianna couldn’t stop herself. She flinched. She pulled her arm down and took a step away from the other woman.

“Brianna,” Renata said gently. “If you ever want to talk to someone.”

“I don’t.” Brianna crossed the hallway and entered the administrative suite. Her eyes flew to her son. He was laughing at something the fish in the aquarium had just done. The fist around her heart tightened as she tried to remember the last time she had seen her son laugh.

***

“The warmer it gets outside, the harder it is for the kids to concentrate.” Val closed her classroom door behind her and walked over to join Cindy.

“I know what you mean. I’m not really complaining though. The idea of summer almost being here makes me pretty giddy too.” Cindy grinned when Val laughed.

“Careful over there.” Val raised her hand to get the attention of two children who were bumping into each other as they walked down the hall to exit the building.

The kids turned worried faces to the sound of a teacher’s voice. Both turned their backs toward the teachers and walked with exaggerated care the rest of the way down the hall. Cindy stifled a grin in case any of the other kids were watching her. There weren’t many left in the hallway now. Most had already exited the building for the day either to get on a bus or to get picked up by a parent.

Val took a step closer and lowered her voice. “Have you heard anything else about your skeleton?”

Cindy shook her head. “I got a text from some of the other book club members that the police identified the victim. It was a part-time teacher at the college.”

“Aren’t some of the book club members trying to find out who might have killed him?” Val took a step away and looked both ways down the hall. It was empty.

“Yes. I can’t wait to hear what they learned.” Cindy fell into step with Val to leave the building but stopped when she reached the gymnasium. “Have a good night.”

Val responded as she kept walking. Cindy took one step inside the gym. Evan saw her and called to Logan. Logan made a final throw of the ball toward the hoop before both boys went running after the ball to return it before leaving.

“I’m not mad, Sheldon. I just didn’t know where you were.”

Cindy turned to smile at the owner of the voice, but Brianna didn’t see her and slammed into Cindy.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Cindy put her hand out to steady Brianna.

Brianna caught her sunglasses as they fell. She glared at Cindy before slipping them back on her face. Brianna stalked off with Sheldon without saying a word to Cindy.

“Mom, Mom!” Logan came at her in a full run and stopped short just as he reached her. “Can we play outside when we get home?”

Cindy stood watching Brianna walk away. “What?” She reached for her son’s head and cradled it closer to her. “Sure. Yeah.” She smiled at Evan. “Sure you can. Come on, we should go. You’re eating dinner at our place tonight Evan. Your mom is going to be a little later than usual getting home.”

***

He used the last bag of mulch to cover the area around the peach tree and straightened, folding the empty bag up as he did. He looked around the back yard with satisfaction as he crossed it to reach the trash can. He put the last empty bag inside and closed the lid with a smile. He slid his phone from his pocket to check the time. If he hurried, he could get a shower and have dinner started before she got home.

Jerry climbed the steps to the back deck. He couldn’t help himself. He stopped at the door and looked around the yard again. It had taken him several days to get everything done. He’d dug up some spaces in the yard that had never had flower beds before. That had been time consuming enough. Mulching them after everything was planted had also taken some time.

He was out of the shower in no time and back in the kitchen. He had the wine chilling in the fridge. The salad was already made. He was working on the main course when he heard the garage door opening. He turned the stove off and set the pan aside then went to help with her luggage. He met Madison at the door from the garage to the kitchen.

“Hey, how was the trip?” He leaned in for a kiss as he slipped the luggage handle from her hand.

“Oh, thanks. I got tired of lugging that thing around about thirty seconds after I left here.” Madison walked into the kitchen. “Oh, something smells good.”

“It’s just some grilled chicken with vegetables.” Jerry carried her luggage through the kitchen. “Wine is in the fridge.”

“I want a shower first. There’s just something about being crammed in an airplane with a bunch of other people.” Madison followed him through the house. “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

Jerry had a glass of wine ready for her when she returned to the kitchen a little while later. He had the lid on the pan to keep it warm and the salad on the table.

Madison took a sip of wine then set it down to lean into him. “It feels so good to be home.” She laid her head against his shoulder. Her eyes went to the view of her back yard through the door to the deck.

“We could eat outside if you’d like.” Jerry smiled at her.

“Sounds good to me.” She looked out the door again. “Is there something different in the yard?”

Jerry didn’t try to hide his smile. “Maybe. Want to check it out?”

She beat him out the door. “Oh, my.” She stood still and looked around.

For a fleeting moment, he wondered if making her speechless was a good thing. Her hand went up to cover her mouth. He swore he saw moisture in her startled eyes when she turned to look at him. He held his breath and wondered how hard it would be to put everything back the way it was.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Really?”

She nodded and walked over to hug him. “I can’t believe you did all of this while I was gone.”

“It was a lot of work, but I thought it came out okay.” He let out the breath he was holding. “I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it, are you kidding?” She turned back to the yard. “Are those fruit trees?”

“They are. I checked with Megan. She suggested peach trees.”

“Are you kidding me? We’re going to grow our own peaches?” Madison was down the stairs before he knew what she was doing.

He caught up with her half way across the yard. “She said they should produce in a couple of years or so.”

“I cannot wait.” Madison turned around and got a different view of the yard. “All around the deck too. And look, on the sides of the yard. I’ve always wanted that.”

Jerry laughed. “Does this mean you approve?”

“Are you kidding? I love it. You do good work.” Madison took his hand. “And now it’s our yard. I’ll have to thank Megan for the suggestion with the peach trees.”

***

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” Dan held the folded canopy tent upright on the stone patio.

“You’re doing all the hard work. I’m just going to help pull the corners out a little.” Megan nodded toward the canopy.

Dan frowned. “Maybe I could get Ethan to help with it?”

“I’ll be fine. I want to get it set up so I don’t have to worry about it.”

“Are you sure our guests will want to use it this weekend?” He began pushing the four corners of the canopy apart.

“Yes. They like to sit out here when I’m grilling.”

Dan looked around the canopy. “I’ll be grilling this time.”

Megan smiled as she tugged on one corner. “That sounds great.”

“Do these guests come often?” He pulled a little harder to separate the corners more. It was about halfway open.

“They’re friends of my parents. They used to live in the area. Whenever they come back to visit, they stay here.” Megan held on to her corner as Dan pulled.

“That sounds nice.” He pulled one last time. “I think that’s it. Now we just have to raise each corner. You stay where you are. I’ll run around and do it.”

She steadied her corner as he pushed the others up into position. Finally, it was done.

“There, that wasn’t so bad.” She stood back to check it out.

“Okay. We get to cross this off our list.” He reached for her hand. “Are you planning to be busy between now and when our guests get here?”

Her hand slid into his. “I would like to learn a little more about the mystery of the haunted coins.”

Chapter Twenty

Jessilyn shook hands with the newest town sponsors. After grabbing her briefcase, she gave the couple a friendly smile and went back to her car happy that their contribution would make a difference to the many recreation programs in Teaberry.

She glanced at the clock in her car after starting it up. She had missed dinner with her family but she knew that Evan was happy with Cindy and Logan and that Seth was still at the nursery. The thought of both of them made her smile as she put the car in gear and began the drive home. Her meeting had taken her to the other side of town. Although she would never truly be lost anywhere in Teaberry, she didn’t actually know all the names of the streets in her current location.

She stopped at a sign and checked all four directions. That was when she saw the woman walking toward her unsteadily on her feet. Jessilyn hesitated before pulling away. She didn’t want to stare at the woman, but she didn’t want to just drive away if there was someone in need either.

That was when she noticed the red blotch on the woman’s shirt. Her eyes traveled up from the blotch to the woman’s face. She realized that she knew her. Jessilyn slowly eased through the stop sign and pulled over, lowering the window as she did.

“Brianna. Get in.”

Brianna turned toward her voice. Her eyes were unfocused at first. When she realized who had spoken to her, a scowl came over her face.

“Don’t make me get out of the car and drag you inside. Just get in.” Jessilyn released her seatbelt and stretched across the front seat to open the passenger door.

Brianna looked around first then walked over to the car. She slammed the door closed once inside.

“There. Are you happy now?”

Jessilyn reached into the center console and pulled out a travel packet of tissues. “Here, wipe your face.”

Brianna grabbed the packet from her hand and ripped it open as Jessilyn began driving again.

“Where am I taking you?” She had to know which way to go.

Brianna didn’t answer at first. She took a swipe at her face with a wad of tissues. When she pulled the wad away, it was spotted with blood.

“My mom’s house.” Brianna’s voice sounded tired now.

Jessilyn stole a glance at her. “What happened?”

Brianna sighed. “I left my husband. I thought I had everything packed and transferred to my mom’s place.”

Jessilyn could think of only one reason why Brianna would have willingly returned to her former home under such circumstances.

“Sheldon forgot something?”

Brianna looked out the passenger window. “It wasn’t his fault.”

“No,” Jessilyn said quickly. “It wasn’t. He’s just a little boy.”

Brianna looked at Jessilyn in surprise. “My husband came home earlier than I expected and blocked my car in the driveway. We got into a fight.” Brianna turned back to the window. “As you may have noticed, it wasn’t the first time.”

Without her sunglasses on, it was easy to see the bruises around her eyes. Jessilyn kept driving.

Brianna looked around. “Where are you taking me?”

“My house. I have a shirt you can use and probably a spare pair of sunglasses. If we get you cleaned up first, it won’t be as scary for Sheldon when I take you to your mom’s.”

Brianna leaned back in her seat. “This doesn’t make us friends, you know.”

Jessilyn smiled at Brianna’s unexpected attempt at humor. “No, it does not.”

***

Tia was the last one to make it to the library. She found some of the book club members gathered around the table.

“Sorry I’m late.” She took an empty seat next to Irlene. It was a small group. Not all of the members were able to make the impromptu meeting.

“It was one of those days. All of my customers were running behind schedule today.” Irlene handed Tia a print out.

“I compiled the notes everyone typed in of their interview results,” Harriet said.

Tia scanned down the pages quickly. The results of the interviews definitely weren’t what she had hoped for.

“As you can see, we weren’t very successful,” Harriet added.

“The police released the identity of the victim,” Carol said. “That’s helpful.”

“They’re definitely better at this sleuthing business than I am,” Leah muttered.

Irlene laughed. “It always seems so easy when you’re reading a book.”

“Someone else wrote the script,” Miles pointed out. “It’s harder when you have to come up with your own questions.”

The others nodded their agreement. “Maybe we should let the professionals handle this.”

Tia looked around the group. “Are you sure?” All eyes turned toward her. “I mean, I’m not suggesting that everyone should go back out and hit the interview trail.”

“What are you suggesting?” Carol asked.

“We might still be able to help. We did a fairly decent job coming up with the current locations of the former students who read the book,” Tia pointed out.

“True, once Megan gave us the names.” Carol looked around the group. “That was kind of fun.”

“Maybe we could try finding something else like that?” Harriet looked around the group to see how her suggestion was received.

“There’s the class ring. That’s a solid clue.” Miles reached for the notes in front of him and began folding one corner. “It’s just a thought.”

“It’s a good one,” Tia agreed. “We know the year and we know it belonged to a woman.”

“We could track all the women who graduated in that year.” There was more excitement in Leah’s voice now.

Carol nodded her agreement. “I know a lot of that is online. Colleges have alumni pages, for one thing.”

“We wouldn’t have to be the ones to follow up on the clues.” Leah turned to Carol. “We discovered we weren’t very good at that.”

Carol laughed. “Definitely not my cup of tea.”

“We could give the names to Megan.” Irlene looked around at the group. “She seems to have the knack for this.”

Tia glanced at the computers on the side of the room. “I have a little time now.”

Miles stood quickly. “The library closes soon. Maybe we can split the work up and get a head start on this.”

***

Her long thick braid was a little damp from the shower but she was now dressed in shorts and a tee. Erica found her family on the back deck enjoying the warm weather and the view. Kaylee was holding Mason when Erica took a seat next to Brad but passed him over to her as soon as she was settled.

“There’s my little man.” After covering him in kisses, she leaned over to give Maddie some. Brad was holding her on his lap.

“Thanks for helping,” Erica told Kaylee.

“If you don’t need me anymore, I’ll head home. I’m almost done with the programming challenge and I want to get it submitted.”

“I found the email from my company about it,” Brad told Erica. “It looks pretty challenging and Kaylee doesn’t have as much time with it because I didn’t know she was interested in an internship.”

“If you don’t get it this time around, there’s always next summer,” Erica called to Kaylee as she left. Kaylee turned at the door and flashed her a confident smile.

“I’m sure she’ll do fine.” Brad lifted Maddie slowly into the air and back down again. She laughed at him so he did it again. “How was your day?”

“We got a little farther with our haunted coin case.”

“How many coins are we actually talking about here?”

“There were only a few in the grave with the victim. There are a million theories running around the department about why that might be.” She turned Mason around so he could look toward the yard.

“I can imagine. How many treasure hunters have the police turned away from the mountain?”

She huffed out a laugh. “A lot. People with metal detectors and shovels have been showing up by the car load. They don’t care that it’s a crime scene or that it was someone’s grave. They want to dig up the whole area and see what else is there.”

“What are the theories?”

Erica slid down in the recliner to get more comfortable. “That there’s a whole tunnel system under the gravesite. That there are little pockets of money dumps all over the mountain. That there are clues scattered all over the mountain and if you find those you can find the gold.”

“I like that one,” Brad said.

“Which one?” She turned to him.

He grinned. “All of them.”

She rolled her eyes.

He laughed. “Come on. Deep down, there’s a treasure hunter in all of us. Are you saying you wouldn’t want to go searching?”

“At least one person lost their life looking for that treasure. According to the book, many others lost theirs finding it in the first place.” She looked down at Mason. “I think I’d rather be right here doing what we’re doing.”

“Yeah.” He turned Maddie around so she could see Mason better. She immediately reached for him. “Me too.”

“There have been some instances where someone is getting past the guards,” Erica said. “They must be going out in the middle of the night to do it. We’ve found some dig sites the next morning but haven’t found out who’s doing it yet.”

“You think it’s one person?”

“Hard to say. Maybe. The activity looks like it’s only one person. Each time it’s happened, there’s just been a small area dug up.”

“And not all in the same place? That means they don’t know where the gold is either. They’re still searching.”

She thought about the implications. “Yeah. And they might be digging only where they don’t think they’ll get caught that night. We’ve been doing some patrols out there. It means they’re monitoring what’s going on.”

“Do you think this person, whoever it is, was involved in the murder?”

She leaned forward and kissed Mason’s head. “I don’t know yet.”

He turned to her. “What’s next in the case?”

“We’re looking for the owner of the class ring.”

He made a face as he considered it. “That shouldn’t be bad, right? You know the college and the year.”

The sound of a hawk calling to its mate distracted her for a moment. She turned to spot the large bird circling above them.

“Someone out there knows who it belongs to. We just have to find out who it is.”

Chapter Twenty-One

She pulled her mid-length hair into a tail as she left the bedroom. Dan already had his lunch cooler in his hand when she made it to the kitchen.

“I shouldn’t be too late getting home from work today.” He leaned in for a kiss.

“You’re training your new employee, aren’t you?” She crossed over to the fridge to pull out some fruit.

“Yeah. Hopefully, I won’t have to put in quite as many hours soon. Once they have the hang of things.” He watched her place the fruit by her purse on the counter. “Did you have a chance to read through the list of graduates?”

“I want to double check everything before I leave this morning. Tia seemed pretty confident that the list she sent me was complete so that isn’t the issue so much as just figuring out who might be available to talk.”

“This group would have graduated with Linda, right?” He wondered how many of them he might know.

“Yes, and they’re only interested in the females.”

He tried not to show his concern. She saw it anyway.

“Some of them are people that I already know. Like Claire, for example. She was in college when Linda was. She may have seen something without even realizing it.”

He frowned but remained silent.

“I know that one of them may technically be a killer,” she said. “I promise I will be careful.”

“Does Erica know what you’re up to?”

Megan picked up her phone and waved it before tucking it into her purse. “Yes, I sent her the info. She made me promise to send her a list of the people I plan to speak with before leaving the house this morning.”

“That’s a good plan.” He still didn’t sound convinced.

Megan crossed the room to kiss him again. “She may not even be in the area anymore. In fact, the chances are probably pretty remote. But maybe someone else will remember something helpful.”

After Dan left, she sat in the living room with her computer for a while checking on addresses. Once she had a plan in place, she sent the list to her phone and headed for town.

***

Irlene wondered why she even bothered. It wasn’t possible to cook a breakfast in her kitchen. Not in its current condition. She felt the despair threaten to swallow her again. This wasn’t what she’d had in mind when she hired Carson to renovate her bathroom. True, she’d been the one to mention that the rest of the house could stand some updating as well. She just hadn’t imagined at the time that he would be so quick to dive into a whole-house renovation project without ever finishing anything he started. She closed her eyes and exhaled as she stood in the center of the kitchen.

“Morning.”

Even though she knew he’d arrived, his voice still startled her. She turned quickly to look at him. Her face must have given away her anguish. She could see the hurt in his eyes.

“Carson.”

“No.” He put his hands up. “I’ll work in here today. I promise. You’ll see some improvement when you get home.”

She shook her head slowly. “I think the project is just too much for one man.

“Irlene.”

“No, Carson. I believe I’m right about this.” She raised her hand to her eyes and covered them as she contemplated a way out of the mess she was in.

“No, Irlene. You’re completely wrong about this.”

“Excuse me?” She moved her hand away from her eyes.

Carson sighed loudly. “Irlene. The only reason I’ve been dragging everything out is so I could spend more time with you.”

“It is?”

“I was hoping that if you got used to having me around, you might not mind if I keep doing it.”

She realized her hand was still frozen mid-air. She lowered it. “Why?”

Laser blue eyes locked onto hers.

“Oh.” She dropped her gaze to the floor.

“Did you really never suspect?”

“Well, you have been staying for dinner a lot.”

He waited it out.

“You’re usually here before I even leave for work.” She lifted her eyes back to his. “The thing is, Carson, I don’t know how to do this. I’ve been alone for a long time.”

“I’m no expert myself. You can tell by the number of rooms I had to demolish before getting up the nerve to say anything.”

Her own laugh surprised her. She realized that she did it a lot when Carson was around.

“What do you say we go to the Jammin’T for breakfast. You still have time before you need to be at work. I can drop you off at the salon when we’re done and pick you back up at the end of the day.”

She didn’t have to think twice. She started moving to get her purse. “You promise you’ll have something done when I get home tonight?”

Carson followed her from the room. “To be honest, I was running out of ideas for demolishing things.” The sound of her laughter made him smile.

***

Claire opened her front door to Megan. “You just caught me in time. I have a little while before I need to leave for work.”

Megan followed her to the living room. “You look like you were expecting me.”

“Linda warned me that you would probably be around to ask me about my college days.” Claire motioned to a chair. “That one is probably the easiest for you to get in and out of.”

“You’re right about that.” Megan used the arms of the chair to lower herself down.

Claire took the couch. “I’m not really sure how much I remember. Three decades was a long time ago.”

“It was,” Megan agreed. “I’m hoping I might be able to help prompt you.”

Claire sat back. “What do you mean?”

“I saw a photo of the victim on the news. Did you see it?”

“Yes. Actually, I’d forgotten all about him until I saw it. Oh, I get it. One memory might lead to another.” Claire nodded slowly “Okay.”

“When you saw the picture, what popped into your mind?”

Claire looked away from Megan for a moment. “A sunny day. Grass and trees.”

“Interesting.”

Claire laughed. “Isn’t it, though? I can’t imagine why.”

“Did you picture Denny Fleming in that setting?”

“Yes, actually. I did.” Claire narrowed her eyes. “I don’t think it was any single time, though. I think I must have passed him often on the way to one of my classes.”

“Do you remember what he was doing when you saw him?”

Claire shook her head slowly as she looked down at the floor. “Laughing. Talking. There were usually people around him.” Claire lifted her eyes back to Megan. “That’s funny. I didn’t think I would remember anything.”

“Can you picture any of the people around him?”

This time Claire looked more certain. “No, not really. I mean, they were students but I can’t say that I recognized any of them. Needless to say, my major wasn’t history and I didn’t take the same class Linda took for my elective. Linda and I weren’t speaking at that point.”

Megan thought about the history between the two women. They’d grown up as friends. A young man who didn’t deserve either one of them had gotten in the way of their friendship. They hadn’t reconnected for decades and were immediately both under suspicion for killing that very same man.

“If you think of anything else, please let me know.” Megan pushed herself up from the chair.

“I will. I was one of the many you helped by solving one of your puzzles. It would be nice if I could help you to solve another.”

***

She found Akira Glover working the reception desk at the Teaberry Counseling Clinic. Megan introduced herself and explained the reason for her visit. Akira looked past Megan. Megan turned to see another woman approaching them with a coffee cup in her hand.

“There she is.” Akira smiled at Megan. “I was filling in for Polly while she took her break.” Akira disappeared from the counter and reappeared a moment later next to Megan in the hallway. “We can talk in my office, if you’d like.”

“I promise I won’t take much of your time,” Megan said.

Akira chuckled. “That’s exactly what that nice police officer said too.”

“Not to worry. They know I’m here.” Megan took the seat Akira indicated.

“I’m not sure what else I can tell you.” Akira took the seat behind her desk.

Megan looked around the office. “You majored in counseling?”

“For my undergraduate degree, yes I did. I specialize mostly in addiction counseling now.”

“Did you by any chance take a history class with Denny Fleming? I’m assuming that’s why the police spoke with you.”

Akira nodded. “They have access to all of those records.”

“What did you think of him?”

“Well, that’s a tricky question. I was raised not to speak ill of the dead.” Akira leaned back in her seat.

“Too much homework?” Megan guessed.

“You got it. I was buried with my other classes that I needed for my major. I took that class hoping it would just require some basic reading, writing, and test taking skills.”

“That’s not what you got?”

Akira gave a wry smile. “Most definitely not. I barely squeaked by in that class.”

“What did you think of the man himself?”

“He was intense, that’s for sure. He lived and breathed his subject.” Akira looked around her office. “I know that many would say I’m the same way about my career but I don’t agree. When I go home, I  leave this office behind me.”

“Everyone needs a break to clear their head,” Megan said.

“Exactly. Denny Fleming hadn’t learned that yet.” Akira tilted her head to one side. “Maybe he would have as he’d gotten older. He was only in his late twenties when he was killed. I guess we’ll never know.”

***

Shay Oliana’s eyes widened. “No. I didn’t like his class. Not at all.”

“What part would you say you disliked about it the most?” Megan watched as the woman quickly restocked her basket with medical supplies.

Shay stopped moving for a moment and she glanced up at the ceiling. “I guess I just didn’t think it was fair.”

“Fair? You mean, the workload?”

Shay shook her head as she lifted her basket and carried it over to a desk. The desk was lined with small vials of blood samples.

“No, I mean him. He made it obvious that he wanted to take me out, you know? At first, I just ignored him.” Shay’s eyes met Megan’s. “In retrospect, I should have just continued doing that.”

“Turning him down didn’t go well?” Megan began moving toward the door. She knew Shay was out of time. Megan appreciated the few moments Shay was able to give her before the next blood sample needed to be drawn.

“Definitely not. I swear my grade suffered because of it. He was that kind of man.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

She paused at the entrance to the Jammin’T and looked around. Seeing Casey and Cy at the counter, she turned and made her way over to join them. Megan slid into the seat next to Cy. After a quick hello, she leaned forward to look past him and greet Casey. Tyler appeared by her shoulder a moment later.

“A little warm out today. Do you want hot decaf tea or cold?”

“Cold please.” Megan glanced at the board next to Holly showing the special of the day. “I’ll take the special too.”

“It’s good today,” Cy said with a satisfied nod of his head. He pushed his empty plate across the counter.

Tyler came back with a glass of tea for Megan and took Cy’s plate before disappearing again.

Megan leaned forward again to look around Cy. “I haven’t had the chance to ask anyone. How did things turn out with Bella’s puppy?”

“She named the little one Galen.” Casey set his newspaper down. “I hear he’s keeping Rhys up at nights.”

“It’s to be expected.” Megan reached for her glass. “He’s such a little thing. Probably not used to being on his own yet.”

“I still can’t believe someone would just drop him off like that.” Cy shook his head.

“Don’t get me started again,” Casey warned him.

Megan smiled at their banter. She was sure the two of them had discussed the topic several times already.

Casey chose to change the subject. “Are you working on a puzzle again?”

“I am. I’m sure Tyler told you about his adventure?”

“More than once.” Both men spoke at the same time.

Megan wasn’t surprised to find Tyler standing next to her again.

“They’re just jealous,” Tyler said as he set the plate of food in front of Megan. “Who are you speaking with now?”

“Some of the graduates. You heard about the class ring?” Megan turned to look at Tyler. She saw him nod but her focus was really on the man at the other end of the counter.

Tyler followed her gaze. “He’s one of them?” He didn’t sound convinced.

“No. His wife was.” Megan tried to keep her voice as low as possible. She glanced down at her plate then turned to Cy. “I’ll be right back.”

She crossed over to the other end and sat down next to Art Bowman.

“Can I have a minute of your time?” Megan asked.

Art turned from the coffee cup in front of him to focus on Megan. His eyes narrowed when he recognized her.

“If this is about that bag on the road, I never saw it and I didn’t know there was anything in it.”

She could tell he wasn’t happy. She wondered if Rhys had questioned him about it.

“I told that police officer the same thing.” Art continued glaring at her.

“No, I was actually hoping to ask you about the skeleton that was found recently.”

Art’s face filled with more color. “Why?”

“I understand your wife was in college at the time he worked there. I’m sorry for your loss. I just learned that she died around that time also.” Megan watched him turn back to his coffee.

“What of it?” He kept his focus in front of him.

“I don’t mean to bring up bad memories. Her name was Wendy, right? I was just wondering if she ever spoke about him?”

He turned to look at her again. “Why would she?”

Megan made a face indicating it could be any number of reasons. “From what I’ve heard, his students didn’t like him much. Maybe Wendy complained about the homework he gave?”

“Oh.” Art looked over at one of the television monitors. “I don’t remember her saying anything like that. I doubt she had him. She loved all of her college classes.”

“She used to talk to you about them?”

“Oh sure.” He looked down at the counter in front of him and reached for his coffee cup. Instead of drinking it, he just wrapped his hands around it. “She talked about school all the time. I miss that. Talking to her.”

“I’m sorry,” Megan said.

He shrugged and shook his head but kept his focus on his coffee cup. “Not your fault. It was an accident that took her away from me. I still miss her, that’s all. I think about her every day.”

Megan heard a burst of laughter from a nearby table. “I should get back to my lunch. Thanks for talking with me.”

She slid back into her chair a moment later. Cy lifted his brows at her. Casey leaned forward and sent a distrusting look at the other end of the counter where Art sat. She shook her head. It was noisy in the diner, but she wasn’t going to take any chances that her words could be heard by anyone. Besides. What would she tell them? That the man still missed his wife? Who could blame him for that?

***

The pharmacy counter at the drugstore wasn’t nearly as busy as she’d seen it in the past. Megan stepped up to the counter and introduced herself to Heidi Morton before explaining the reason why she was there.

“You were with the group the found the skeleton?” Heidi’s eyes dropped to Megan’s stomach. “That’s quite a hike.”

Megan didn’t disagree. “My husband almost had to push me up the last few yards.”

“I’m not surprised. I haven’t been out there in years though.” Heidi excused herself to answer the phone.

After an intense discussion about possible drug interactions, she returned to Megan. “What can I help you with?”

“As you might understand, the whole mystery has my interest. It’s not every day that you find a skeleton and a gold coin from the eighteen hundreds.” Megan gave what she hoped was an appealing smile. She didn’t want to put the woman’s guard up. “I’ve been trying to work through some of it on my own. I understand that you graduated from the college at the same time Denny Fleming went missing?”

“I did. I remember him too. I mean, I can’t say that I’ve thought about him in years. But I did recognize the picture of him as soon as they started showing it on television.” Heidi looked past Megan.

She stepped aside so Heidi could get a prescription for someone. When Heidi was done, she returned to her conversation with Megan as though they’d never been interrupted.

“I told the police this too. I remember that gold football they asked me about.”

“You do?” Megan remembered that the football had helped Jerry figure out a possible timeframe for the death.

“The guy wore it all the time.”

“You had him for a class?”

Heidi nodded. “Oh, yes. I can’t say that I remember anything we learned in class. The only thing that really stuck with me was how intent the guy was on finding treasure.”

“Did he ever tell you any stories about what he was looking for at that time?”

Heidi laughed. “Not me, no. I wasn’t his type.”

“Type?”

“I was pretty intent on my studies. He was interested in the kind of girl that found him exciting. He really played the treasure hunter angle up a lot, you know? He was always trying to get girls interested in him.”

“Did it work?”

Heidi tilted her head to the side quickly. “Yeah, pretty much from what I remember. It was a long time ago.”

***

Megan turned to look at the woman sitting alone in the corner. “That’s Lexi Perkins?” The person she had stopped to ask for help nodded their agreement. Megan thanked them and crossed the hospital cafeteria.

“Lexi Perkins?” Megan smiled at the woman who looked up at her in surprise.

“Yes?”

“I was wondering if I might ask a few questions?” Megan didn’t wait to be invited to sit. She pulled out the chair across from Lexi.

“About what?” Lexi looked at Megan suspiciously.

Megan explained that she was with the group that found Denny Fleming.

Lexi’s distrust turned to interest. “I can’t imagine that. It sounds just like one of the adventures he used to talk about in class.”

“Hunting for treasure? He talked about that in class?”

Lexi smiled. “If you were good, you could get him on the topic and never have to crack open the book the whole time you sat in class.”

“Really? How did that work out at test time?”

Lexi laughed. “Yeah, you’re right. It wasn’t fun. We were still expected to know the material.” She shrugged. “I didn’t mind. It was all in the text anyway.”

“What else do you remember about him?” Megan watched Lexi look at the clock then start to gather her snack remains on the table.

“Not much really.” Lexi stood.

“Do you remember him hanging out with different girls?”

“Oh, yeah. I didn’t mention that to the police though. They didn’t ask. He was pretty interested in the female students.”

Megan pushed herself up from the chair. “Was it reciprocated?”

“From what I remember, yes.” Lexi motioned to Megan before tossing her garbage into a can. “Do you have much longer to go?”

Megan’s hand automatically went to her stomach. “A little while longer. Thanks for talking with me.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

“I’m sure he’ll love it.” Tia passed the book over to Bev.

Bev stared down at it for a moment before remembering her manners. She managed a smile.

“Thanks. I’m sure he will too.” Bev left Olde Tomes with the book in her hand.

She knew why she’d made the sudden decision to buy Vince a gift. It was her guilt. What she didn’t understand was why she needed to. Oh, she knew she’d been behaving badly. That wasn’t the point. The point was, she didn’t know why she was doing it. What was wrong with her?

She glanced at her car parked on the side of the street as she walked past it. She didn’t have anywhere to go other than Vince’s to give him his gift. She just wanted to do a little thinking first. She owed him that much. She found herself walking toward the center of town. Along the way, she passed other shops and restaurants.

As she got closer to the town square, some of the buildings began to get larger. There were old stone churches with colorful stained-glass windows. She paused in front of a brick church built in the late eighteen hundreds. It had several tall towers. She knew the one containing the old bell was over a hundred and fifty feet tall.

She continued walking toward the town square, her mind wandering as she passed through more of the historical section of town. Some of the original old houses were converted to businesses. The style ranged from Victorian to Italianate to Queen Anne with all of the gables and multiple roof lines. There were a few Greek Revival homes interspersed for good measure.

She stopped at the corner to wait for her turn to cross. The walkway across the road was paved with brick. That same brick was also woven into the sidewalks in patterns. The old Victorian lamps lining the streets held banners promoting upcoming events. She crossed the street and turned to walk around the outer perimeter of the town square.

The spring flowers were in bloom all around. The large gazebo was completely surrounded by them as were the fountain and the Veterans Memorial. She knew that the town square would be filled to capacity at the end of the month for the Memorial Day celebration.

Before long, she found that she had walked the complete circumference around the town square. She considered finding a park bench to sit on but changed her mind. She needed to see Vince. A discussion was in order. She’d been putting it off for far too long. Straightening her spine, she quickly walked back to her car. Several minutes later, she was standing on Vince’s front porch.

He answered the door quickly. The look of hope on his face was replaced by concern when he looked at her. He took a step back to allow her room to enter. She realized immediately that she missed his usual greeting. The one where he leaned in for a kiss and asked her how she was doing. She held her hand out with the new book in it.

“This is for you.”

His eyes remained focused on hers for a heartbeat before dropping down to the book. He seemed surprised to find it there.

“Thank you.”

She passed by him and walked to the kitchen. It was a room where they had made a lot of happy memories. She climbed onto a tall stool by his work counter. He automatically walked around to the other side. Normally, he would be cooking something for her. His hands were still at the moment. He realized he was still holding the book. He set it down on the counter but turned his gaze back to Bev.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

His smile was sad. “For what?”

“Being an idiot.” She took a deep breath. “I think I’m ready.”

His brows went up. “For?”

She didn’t blame him for making her spell it out. It wasn’t a time to make assumptions.

“Moving on,” she said.

She watched the different emotions cross his face. Still, he waited.

“I’m hoping you’re ready to do it with me.” She saw his eyes close for just a moment. When he opened them again, they held hope. She realized it had been a while since she last saw it there.

He stretched both hands across the island. Her hands met his half way, her fingers curling into his palms.

“I don’t know what’s been wrong with me lately,” she said. “I’m happy. I know that I am. What we have is good.”

“But?” His eyes held hers.

“I don’t know. I just feel like I’m missing something.” She shifted her hands and grasped his fingers. “This. I’m missing us moving forward. We’ve been treading water.”

He slid his hands from hers and held up a finger. Her brows drew together but he smiled at her before leaving. When he returned, he handed her some papers. She glanced down. Not just papers. Tickets.

“What is this?” She didn’t wait for his answer. She started looking at the documents. Once she realized what they were, her eyes flew back to his. “We’re taking a trip?”

“To Europe. You don’t mind, do you?” He wasn’t completely certain yet that they were on the same page.

She laughed. “Mind? I can’t wait. When do we pack? We should take the time to enjoy ourselves before all the work we’ll need to do when we return.”

His smile was slow to come. “What about when we get back?”

“It’s going to be a bit busy, I think, but they say it’s a good time to sell a house.”

His eyes glanced around the room.

She shook her head. “I’m rather fond of this kitchen. I like that it comes fully equipped with a man who knows how to use it.”

***

Megan heard laughter on the other side of the door just before it opened. The smile on Vince’s face was the largest she had ever seen.

“Is this a good time?” she asked.

“It’s a great time.” Vince led the way back to his kitchen. “Can I offer you ladies some homemade lemonade?”

Megan greeted Bev with a smile and agreed to the drink with her thanks. Her eyes fell on the tickets in front of her.

“Planning a trip?”

“Already planned,” Bev said. “It was a surprise that I just learned about.”

“Well, good for you. I’m sorry I interrupted but I promise I won’t take long.” She took the glass of lemonade from Vince.

Bev reached over and patted Megan’s hand. “Don’t worry about us. We have lots of time to celebrate together. Are you here about a puzzle?”

“The skeleton with the gold coin, perhaps?” Vince handed another glass to Bev.

“I am.” Megan turned to Bev. “You took classes at the college around that time, didn’t you?”

“I did, yes. It’s funny how it seems so long ago in one way. In others, it was only yesterday.”

“Did you know the adjunct professor that died?” Megan took a small napkin from Vince for the condensation under her glass.

“I remember him, yes. I didn’t actually have a class with him though.” Bev turned to Vince. “Do you remember back then?”

Vince handed Bev a napkin. “I was working at the time.”

“You remember the accident though, don’t you?” Bev asked him.

“That I do.” He turned to Megan. “It’s always such a shock when someone that young in a town dies. You just don’t expect it.”

“You’re talking about Wendy Bowman? Art Bowman’s wife?” Megan asked.

Bev nodded. “Her maiden name was Knight. That’s really how I think of her still, though they were married for probably a couple of years at that point.”

“Around that.” Vince returned to the fridge and pulled out some fruit and cheese. “We didn’t actually go to school with Art and Wendy. They were ahead of us.”

“About five years or so.” Bev reached for a grape then slid the plate closer to Megan.

“What do you remember about her?” Megan reached for a thick slice of muenster cheese.

“Not much. She was taking classes part-time at the college,” Bev said as Vince added some crackers to the plate.

“Did you have any classes with her?” Megan took a cracker and some more cheese.

“Yes, one. That’s another reason why her death was such a shock. I’d gotten to know her a bit.”

“What was she like?”

Bev thought for a moment as she reached for a cracker. “She seemed to enjoy college life.”

“What do you mean?”

Bev tilted her head. “Well, some of us went to class and came home. Others preferred to stay on campus, get involved, go to some of the parties. That sort of thing.”

“She went to the parties alone?” Megan couldn’t imagine leaving Dan at home to do that.

“I got the impression that Art worked a lot.”

“Are you thinking that her accident may have been tied to the death of the teacher?” Vince asked.

Megan made a face. “I don’t know. I’m not even sure if she knew Denny Fleming.”

“Oh, she did.” Bev reached for another cracker. “I saw them together on campus more than once.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Stan joined Carol in the kitchen. She turned from setting their breakfast on the table.

“What has you moving so fast on a Saturday morning?” She watched him fill his coffee cup. “You look ready to take on the world.”

He gave her a wry smile. “I don’t know about all that, but I will be closing on a house today that I didn’t expect to sell this quickly.”

“Which one is that?” She took her seat at the table.

“The Bowman place.”

Carol thought of the old house. “Well, that’s good. I’m glad you were able to sell it. I’m sure Art is happy.”

“I’ll bet.” He didn’t look convinced.

“What?”

“I’m just hoping she’ll be able to pay for it.”

“She?”

“Brianna Hagan. Do you know her?” Stan picked up his fork.

Carol shook her head. “No. Is she young?”

“Young enough. Late twenties. I know she has a young son.” Stan frowned at his food.

“What?” Carol reached for her coffee.

“She’s married, but she didn’t list her husband.” Stan pushed his food around on his plate. “I suspect she had good reason.”

“Ah. Well, perhaps it’s for the best then that she’ll have her own place.”

“Perhaps. She’ll have a tough time starting out though. It doesn’t look like she has any work experience whatsoever.”

Carol set her coffee down. “Education?”

“A little. Looks like she got a bit of college in.”

“Hopefully, she has a good support system to help.”

Stan made a face. “Not sure how good that system is. I’m guessing she’s had a hard time of it for quite a while now.”

“But she’s taken the first step,” Carol pointed out.

Stan finally scooped up some eggs on his fork. “Yeah. We’ll see how long it lasts.”

***

Kaylee clicked submit and sat back in the chair. She’d done her best. At this point, it was up to the judges to decide if her solution to the scenario was the best one. She stood from her computer and walked downstairs. Matthias was in the kitchen.

“All done?” he asked.

“Done and sent.” Kaylee went to the fridge to pull out some juice.

“I’m sure it’s a worthy submission.” Matthias smiled at her over his coffee cup.

“But not necessarily a winning one?” She leaned against the counter with her glass of juice.

“The world can be a funny place. Sometimes, the best doesn’t always win,” he said. “There could be other factors in play.”

She tilted her head to the side. “Sometimes your best just isn’t good enough.”

He chuckled. “I don’t believe that’s a problem for you. You’re one of those who doesn’t require anyone else to push them to greatness.”

Kaylee smiled at his confidence in her. “We’ll see.”

“And in the meantime?”

She considered it. “The idea of an internship appealed to me. It would give me hands-on experience and I know I would like that. If this doesn’t pan out, I’ll look at other places.”

“Always a good idea,” Matthias agreed. “What else do you have planned for the day?”

Kaylee finished her juice and carried her glass to the dishwasher.

“I’m headed to Brad and Erica’s. She’s hoping they’ll get a lead on that case soon.”

“Nothing yet?” Matthias stood from the table.

“It doesn’t sound like it.”

***

Megan pulled up in front of Rhys’s house and turned off the engine of the truck. The unexpected noise it made startled her. She knew Dan had checked it out. He hadn’t sounded completely convinced that he’d solved the issue. She’d just taken it for granted that everything would be fine with it. Apparently, that wasn’t the case. She slid from the truck and walked to the front door. She hoped that the truck would start when she got back to it.

“Megan, come on in.” Ava’s smile was warm and friendly.

Megan stepped inside and looked around the house her husband used to own before selling it to Rhys. “I like the colors you went with.”

Rhys laughed from the other side of the living room. “Ava gets the credit for that. She picked all the colors. I just push the brush around.”

Ava shook her head. “Bella helped. She has a good eye for colors.”

“It sounds like a group effort.” Megan was surprised when a small furry bundle came into the room.

The liver-colored bundle of energy nearly quivered with excitement when he saw her. He let out a bark that seemed to come all the way from his tail. His back end tittered precariously for a moment before he regained his balance. Bella stopped behind him.

“He seems to be getting around well enough.” Megan sat on a chair near him and reached out her hand.

Galen moved closer and sniffed her hand before licking her.

“Maybe he remembers that you were the one to bring him to the doctor,” Bella said.

Megan smiled. “I just stopped by to see how he was doing. I saw Casey yesterday and he told me you named him Galen.”

“It seemed to fit.” Bella sat on the floor next to the puppy. He got too excited to see her there and ended up collapsing in her lap.

“I’m glad things worked out for him,” Megan said. She turned to Rhys. “Did you ever have any luck finding out who left him there?” She could tell by the scowl on his face that the answer was no.

Rhys shook his head. “I talked to Art Bowman but he claims he never even saw the bag let alone someone leaving it there.”

“Funny,” Megan said. “I never really knew the man but now his name seems to keep cropping up.”

Rhys automatically flipped to cop mode. “How so?”

“Just a lot of random things, really.” Megan reached her hand out when Galen came back over to her. “There was the incident with Galen. After that, Carol Jiblonski mentioned that Stan was trying to sell his house. Did you know that his wife graduated in the same year that Erica and Jerry are investigating?”

“The class ring that they found with the skeleton? She graduated then?” Rhys asked.

“I guess. She died in a car accident. I’m not sure if it was technically before she graduated or not.” Megan frowned. “I remember that we had the option of buying the rings that last semester though. She may have purchased it before the semester actually ended.”

“Did she die before the teacher or after?” Bella asked idly as Galen returned to her.

Megan glanced at Rhys. “I’m guessing it was right around the same time.”

“I’ve cleaned his house,” Ava said.

“Really?” Rhys sounded surprised. “You didn’t mention that before.”

Ava shrugged. “It didn’t seem important. I don’t do it anymore. One of my employees was doing it until he sold it.”

“What kind of man is he?” Rhys asked.

Ava shrugged. “No idea. He didn’t spend any time talking to me. I can tell you that he must have an interest in gold.”

“Why do you say that?” Megan asked.

“He seemed to have a lot of books about the gold rush.” Ava shrugged. “That all I really know about him.”

“You say Stan Jiblonski is handling the sale?” Rhys asked.

“That’s what Carol said.” Megan laughed with the others when Galen barked at the sound of Rhys’s voice. “I should let you go.” She pushed herself up from the chair. A short time later, she was crossing her fingers as she turned the key. The truck started without issue.

As she drove away from Rhys’s house, she wondered if Stan knew any more about Art Bowman than Ava did. She figured since she was already out and Stan’s office was nearby, it wouldn’t hurt to take a little detour. She wouldn’t bother him at home on a Saturday, but it would only take an extra minute to drive by and see if Stan was in his office.

She found a parking space right outside his real estate business. His car was in the spot in front of her. She watched as a young woman left Stan’s office then climbed down from her truck. Stan looked up when she entered.

“Oh, I thought you were someone else,” Stan said.

“The young woman that just left?” Megan crossed the room to take the chair in front of Stan’s desk.

He was writing something on a form in front of him. He nodded absently. “Brianna. I’m sure you know her.”

“Oh?”

“Dan just hired her,” he muttered as he finished writing something. “There. What can I do for you?”

“I was wondering what you can tell me about Art Bowman?”

Stan chuckled. “I can tell you that I just sold his house.”

Megan made the connection. “To Brianna?”

Stan nodded. “That was good of your husband to give her a job.”

She thought that might be a conversation for another day. “What about Art?”

“What about him?” Stan leaned back in his chair. It groaned in protest.

“I just spoke with him not long ago for the first time. I was asking him about his wife.”

Stan gave a wry smile. “Bet you got an earful. He doesn’t have a single good thing to say about Wendy.”

“Excuse me?” Megan thought back to her conversation with him. He’d seemed like the man who had lost his one true love.

“I made the mistake of mentioning that he didn’t have any pictures of Wendy in his house. Boy, did that set him off.”

Her brows went up.

Stan nodded. “He told me he couldn’t get rid of her stuff fast enough.”

She tried to do the math in her head. “Did you go to school with Art?”

“I was a couple of years behind him. I knew them both, of course. Never could figure out why they got married.” Stan rocked back in his chair.

Megan wondered how it managed to stay upright. “Why do you say that?”

Stan shrugged. “He knew she cheated on him in high school. What would make him think she’d change her spots after they got married?”

Megan felt the puzzle pieces shift in her head.

“I remember the funeral. I went, of course. I had no idea what I was going to say to him during the calling hours.” Stan looked up at the ceiling with distant eyes as though he’d traveled back to that time. “When I stepped up to him, I quickly realized that he was more mad than anything.”

“Mad?”

Stan nodded. “He never did remarry. Lived alone in that same house all these years.”

“I understand he had an interest in the gold rush?”

“Yeah. He had a lot of books on that in the house when I first went to look at it. There are also a lot on gold coins.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Megan could hear the sound of Mia and Noah playing outside. Brad stepped into the kitchen long enough to grab the plate of meat before ducking back outside to join the other men at the barbeque.

Caitlyn held Grace on her lap. Grace’s small hand kept reaching for the necklace around Caitlyn’s neck.

Caitlyn laughed. “No, you can’t have this.”

Grace smiled at her, flashing adorable dimples, and tried again.

Lauren reached down and scooted a small rubber toy closer to Maddie. Maddie rolled over to her belly and tried to get her knees under her, her gaze intent on the toy in front of her. Her knees kept sliding on the floor because of the fabric of her pants. It didn’t seem to dim her enjoyment of the attempt. She laughed as she tried again.

Erica shook her head and kissed the top of Mason’s head. “He still hasn’t tried to crawl yet.”

“He will,” Lauren said in a comforting voice. “It will happen.”

“Tell us how the story ends,” Caitlyn said.

Erica took a sip of her iced tea first. “Turns out, Wendy and Denny were an item.”

“Did she read the book in class with Linda?” Lauren asked.

“No. She found out about it from Denny. He heard about it from who knows where. One of his colleagues in the history department had assigned it in class. He could have heard about it from the colleague or one of the students who maybe also had him. Hard to say.” Erica shifted Mason.

“Wendy was from Teaberry. Maybe he managed to figure out the clues by asking her questions?” Caitlyn said.

“Linda said that Denny was always asking her questions about the area,” Megan said.

“Art agrees. He said Wendy was pretty mad about that,” Erica said.

“Wait, what?” Lauren looked at Erica with wide eyes. “He knew she was cheating on him at the time?”

“Claims he suspected it before she died. It wasn’t confirmed until he got her things back after her accident. There was a gold coin in with the rest of her stuff.”

“Seriously? He must have known she was with Denny when he found the gold.” Caitlyn wrapped her arms around Grace when the baby twisted to look at Maddie.

“From what we’ve been able to piece together with his confession and a little conjecture, Denny went to search for the gold on his own without any plans to share with anyone. Wendy followed him with plans to confront him and take at least some of the treasure. Maybe all. We don’t know for sure. Wendy and Denny got into an argument and she ended up hitting him with a shovel. After that, she panicked and buried him.”

“That’s when she lost the class ring?” Lauren guessed.

“Yes.” Erica smiled as Maddie finally got up on her knees. “She did find one gold coin, but that was it at the time. She wanted to get more, but as I said, she panicked. She drove into town to get her husband.”

“Seriously?” Lauren flashed a look of disbelief.

“She told Art that she needed his help, but his temper got the best of him. They got into an argument.” Erica tightened her grip on Mason when he leaned forward in her lap toward Maddie. “He figured she was lying about the gold, possibly so he wouldn’t leave her.”

“The accident was after that?” Caitlyn asked.

Erica nodded. “Wendy jumped into her car to leave. Art was too mad to let her go. He jumped in his truck and followed her. In her haste to get away from him, she took a corner too quickly and couldn’t regain control of the car in time. She was killed instantly when she hit the power pole head on.”

“Art saw the whole thing?” Lauren asked.

“Saw it, then drove away,” Erica said. “After that, he pretended to be surprised about it all.”

“Oh, that is sad.” Lauren shook her head.

“Art tried for years after that to figure out where the gold was. He never did. He told us he’s been out there recently, still trying to find it.” Erica looked down at Mason. He was straining forward in her arms.

“I’m glad you were able to figure all of that out. If Leah hadn’t bought a whole box of the same book, it might have remained unknown,” Lauren said.

“From what Leah was able to figure out, the owner of the estate where she bought the books was somehow related to the author of The Mystery of the Haunted Coins,” Megan said.

“But what about the gold?” Lauren asked.

“Yeah. Is it still buried in the mountain?” Caitlyn asked.

Erica shrugged. “I have no idea.”

“I’m sure people will keep looking for it,” Megan said. She could see the men through the kitchen window. They were standing around the grill laughing about something. Seeing Dan that happy made her smile.

“Dan hired someone new at the feed store,” Megan said. “It’s the same person who bought Art Bowman’s house.”

“Anyone we know?” Caitlyn asked.

“Brianna Hagan.” Megan turned back to the others and leaned against the counter.

“I’ve been there,” Erica said. “It’s a pretty small house. Needs a lot of work, from what I remember.”

“It’s a new start for her,” Megan said.

Erica looked down at Mason. “Kaylee got an internship with Brad’s employee.”

“That’s great!” Lauren said.

Erica smiled. “It is. Might make things a little more hectic, but she’ll be working from home on programs the way Brad does.”

Grace strained against Caitlyn’s arms again. “I think she wants down.”

“Go ahead,” Lauren said. “She’ll be fine. She’s starting to get around a little. Sit her up on the floor.”

Caitlyn bent over and placed Grace carefully on the floor. Grace laughed and started scooting across the floor.

“Well, look at that.” Erica laughed just as Mason tried diving out of her arms. “You want down with the others?”

She leaned over and set him down. Mason immediately scooted after Grace. Erica’s mouth dropped open as Mason chased Grace around the room. She looked over at Maddie. Maddie laughed at the others as she rocked back and forth on her knees.

“Looks like he’s mobile now,” Caitlyn said.

“That’s officially the beginning of a new phase,” Megan said.

“Yeah,” Lauren said. “Now you get to wonder every second of the day what he’s getting into.”

Megan’s Recipe

Layered Salad

2 heads of lettuce, finely chopped (such as iceberg or romaine hearts)
8 ounces of baby spinach, chopped
8 hard boiled eggs, chopped
16 ounces of bacon, cooked and chopped
4 whole tomatoes, chopped or use grape tomatoes to make it easy
1 bunch of green onions, chopped
8 ounces of cheddar cheese, shredded
1 bag (10 Ounce) of frozen peas, partially thawed, or one can of peas, drained
FOR THE DRESSING:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon sugar

Layer salad ingredients in the order they appear above. A 9x13 glass pan with a lid can be used for stackability in the fridge or a bowl/serving dish with high sides. End with the layer of peas. Grape tomatoes can be used instead of chopped tomatoes. Put those on top of the peas instead.

Combine dressing ingredients for the dressing in a separate bowl and mix well. Pour over the top of the peas and spread to cover, bringing dressing all the way out to the edges of the bowl.

Cover and refrigerate for up to 8 hours. Toss just before serving.

Books by R. A. Wallace

If you enjoy a book, please consider leaving a review.

R. A. Wallace is the author of two cozy mystery series:

Indigo Investigations Cozy Mystery Series

Callie Indigo is struggling to make ends meet with her private detective agency, Indigo Investigations, while juggling the complexities of an extended family and life in general. When she isn’t working a legitimate case, she’s often talked into helping out friends and family. Just when she’s wondering if she’ll ever turn a profit, her life becomes even more complicated with the appearance of Greyson Divine who has the uncanny ability to appear just as Callie is solving a case. Callie has to admit, however, that sometimes Greyson Divine may actually be helpful. This cozy mystery offers a clean read with a female sleuth, friends, and family.

Teaberry Farm Bed & Breakfast Cozy Mystery Series

Megan is the main character in the series but interacts with a wide range of other characters in the fictional town of Teaberry. A difficult first marriage ended in the accidental death of her husband. She supports herself with her bed and breakfast, produce from her farm, and her tech skills as a web developer. Over time, she discovers that the love of her life was in front of her all along. Main characters in the series are multigenerational.