Лейганн Доббс - A Twist In The Tail

Tony looked at Tina, crestfallen. ‘Is that true? You were cheating on me?’

Tina glared at me. ‘No, it is not true. Well it’s partly true. I was in Charles’s room.’

‘Aha!’ I said.

Meow. The cats obviously agreed.

‘But not because I was having an affair with him,’ Tina added.

Tony still looked dubious. ‘Why were you in there then?’

Now that his attention was on Tina, I thought it might be a good time to do something to detain him for the police. I needed to know what he had for a weapon first. I tried to peek behind his back, but all I saw was what looked like a plastic bag. Had he brought the cleaver in a bag? I supposed it would raise suspicion if he walked around holding it in his hand.

Tina sighed and looked down at the floor. She shuffled her feet, then she said, ‘I was in his room looking for his recipe book.’

‘Aha!’ I said again. My vocabulary had apparently diminished during the conversation.

‘A recipe book?’ Tony looked like he wanted to believe her but wasn’t sure.

‘Charles was supposed to be writing a book with unique recipes. It was going to be a hit. And… well… my food column isn’t going very well and I just thought if I got a peek at the recipes maybe I could re-create some and write a book too.’ She whipped out a tissue and sniffled, tears welling up in her big blue eyes. I could tell by the look on Tony’s face that the tears had softened him.

‘Wait a minute, so you’re the one who took his cookbook?’ I asked.

Tina nodded, dabbing her eyes with the tissue. ‘It’s in my room. But I swear he wasn’t there. I had seen him that night up on the cliffs and I knew it would be a long time before he could make it back, so I figured that was my chance to get in his room and look for it.’

‘Let me get this straight. You weren’t mad about the lemon meringue pie review, the two of you are having an affair, but Tina wasn’t also having an affair with Charles?’

They both glanced at each other and nodded. That explained why Tony’s wife was acting like he was a cheater. He was. But was he a killer too? If Tina wasn’t having an affair with Charles, then there would be no motive for Tony to kill him. The affair could also explain why Stella had seen Tina out at the Timber Me Motel.

‘Did you guys meet at the Timber Me Motel?’

Tony’s eyes widened. ‘Yeah, how do you know about that?’

‘I have my sources.’ I turned to Tina. ‘But you weren’t having an affair with Charles?’

She shook her head.

‘And you were seen coming out of his room because you stole the cookbook?’

She nodded vigorously. ‘Yeah and I can prove it too. It’s in my room upstairs. I’ll get it.’

Before either of us could answer, she ran up the stairs.

I turned to Tony. There were still unanswered questions, not the least of which was why he’d snuck in here carrying a weapon in a bag. ‘Well then, if you and Tina had your affair at the Timber Me Motel, why did you sneak out the window in the West wing?’

His eyes widened. ‘How did you know I did that? Do you have cameras in this place? Do you have cameras in the rooms? You watching what’s going on?’

‘No. We saw a footprint in the bark mulch outside the very room Charles Prescott was killed in.’ I glanced down at his feet. ‘It was a chef’s clog and the sides had extensive wear on them, as if the owner walked on the sides of his feet.’

Tony backed up. I was a little nervous because he was still holding his left hand behind his back. What did he have back there? ‘I didn’t kill Charles. But I did sneak out that window. I came here one night to meet Tina when she first arrived in town. But then that busybody old lady saw us. I panicked and wanted to get out without being seen. I was afraid word would get back to my wife. Tina knew that section of the guesthouse was closed off so we went down there and I went out the window.’

‘What night was that?’

‘It must’ve been two nights before the guy was offed? Because after getting caught out in the hall here, we decided to lay low the next day and meet at the sleazy motel on Tuesday and that’s where we were the night that guy died.’

I cringed at his coarse language, but that wasn’t the worst thing about what he’d said. If he really was at the sleazy motel the night Charles was killed, then he might have an alibi. And if he did, then who was the killer?

Tina had also been in the breakfast room that morning, so how could he have been at the Timber Me Motel? Then again, I didn’t know if she’d come into the dining room from her room or from outside. It was possible she’d just gotten in from her midnight interlude or had snuck back in the wee hours of the morning. If they were trying to fly under the radar, that would make sense.

Tony must’ve seen the look of doubt on my face because he continued, ‘You can ask that sheriff guy. In fact, he came to visit me after you got poking your nose into my business. That’s how I know when this Charles guy was killed. That sheriff started spouting off some stuff about me being a suspect and I told him just what I told you. He went down to the sleazy motel to verify my alibi. And that’s why I came here tonight. I knew I had to explain myself and beg you not to tell my wife.’

Before I could answer, Tina came back down the stairs with the cookbook. It was a blue three-ring binder just like Ava had described.

‘See? This is what I got from Charles’ room.’ She looked down at the floor again. ‘I know it was wrong to steal it. And after he died, I tried to put it back, but the police were in there and then you were in there and well I figured since he was dead maybe I could use the recipes…’

I opened the book. It was filled with handwritten recipes. I turned to Tony. ‘If all this is true and you only came here to talk to me then why did you bring the cleaver?’

‘Cleaver?’ Tony looked down at his hand. ‘Oh this?’ He whipped his hand out from behind his back, the white plastic bag dangling menacingly. ‘This isn’t a cleaver.’

I stepped back as he reached into the bag.

‘It’s a ricotta pie. I brought it as a peace offering. I was hoping that if I got in your good graces you and those crazy old ladies would stop coming to the restaurant and wouldn’t tell my wife about the affair with Tina.’

And just like that, my prime suspect evaporated. If what Tony said was true, I could easily verify his alibi with Seth. And why would he lie about it?

I accepted the ricotta pie, grimaced as Tina and Tony gave each other a sickening smooch goodbye and then proceeded to the kitchen. At least I had the ricotta pie to offer my guests for breakfast. I didn’t have time to sort through recipes and put something together for the morning. I needed to come up with a new suspect.

I put the ricotta pie away and went to my suite to settle in with the cats. Okay, I admit I did take a teeny sliver of pie with me, but only because I had to test it out to see if it was good enough for the guests. Tina had gone back to bed and by some miracle the rest of the guesthouse had not been awakened by the argument down in the foyer, so it was nice and quiet.

The owner’s suite wasn't big, but it was comfortable and cozy. It consisted of a small fireplace, living room that had a window overlooking the ocean, complete with blue cushioned window seat, a bedroom that was part of the rounded turret, and a small bath. It was done in neutral shades of gray and mocha.

The trendy colors blended nicely with the antique touches like the carved mantel and hardwood flooring to give it an eclectic feeling. The living room had a microsuede sectional and I settled in, pulling a fleece blanket over me. The cats immediately jumped on the blanket and curled up beside me. The low hum of their purrs was comforting. Maybe I could get used to having cat companions.