Chapter 20 Luke
Luke
Whistling softly to myself, I walked up to Mina’s front door later that evening and raised a fist to knock. Before my hand could hit the white door, however, the lock clicked and it swung open.
My hungry gaze took in the woman who answered. Since I saw her at lunch, she’d changed out of her jeans and work tee and into a pair of gray capri leggings and an oversized white t-shirt. From the wide neckline, I could see the edge of her pale blue sports bra.
“Hi,” she chirped with a sunny smile. Moving to the side, she held the door open. “Come in.”
I sniffed the air as I stepped over the threshold. “It smells good in here. What did you make?” When she texted me and told me to come hungry, I had no idea what to expect, except that it probably wouldn’t be stew. My nose confirmed that. I smelled bacon. And cinnamon.
“Cinnamon chip waffles, bacon, and O’Brien potatoes.” She swung the door shut, then led me toward the kitchen.
“Joe!” Mina hurried forward and shooed the cat off the counter with a huff.
The cat glared, eyeing the bacon for a long second before he jumped down empty-handed. He didn’t wander far, however. I could see in his eyes he was just waiting for her attention to wander again.
Chuckling, I perched a hip on a barstool. “You’re going to spoil me. I never eat this many home-cooked meals.”
Turning a quick grin on me, she picked up a bowl of batter and scooped some into the waffle maker. “Get used to it. I like to cook. Why do you think I want to open a café?”
“I’m not complaining.” Reaching across the counter, I snagged a slice of bacon from the platter. “Did you talk to Claire?”
“No. But she’s supposed to call.”
As if on cue, Mina’s phone trilled from its spot on the counter.
Snatching another piece of bacon, I grinned. “She heard you talking about her.”
Mina laughed as she answered the phone. “Probably.” Tapping the phone screen, she put the call on speaker. “Hey. Luke and I were just talking about you.”
“Good things, I hope.” I could hear the smile in Claire’s voice.
“Yes,” Mina said. “I was telling him you were supposed to call with an update, then you did.”
“Oh, well, I won’t keep you waiting, then.”
I shared a quick look with Mina.
“So, I know Ozzie warned us off the case, but all of this is public record. I didn’t do anything shady or anything a realtor wouldn’t do when researching property.
If anything, he should thank me for saving him some valuable time.
It’ll be easier for him to verify than to dig it all up in the first place.
Anyway, your café isn’t the only property Walter Shuman unloaded recently.
He’s sold two others—both through Miranda Benning—in the last six months. ”
“Really? That’s interesting. And it fits with what I overheard at the diner today.”
“What?” Claire said. “What did you overhear?”
“That Walter unloaded a few properties, not just the building Mina bought.”
“Were they commercial or residential?” Mina asked Claire as she opened the waffle maker and removed the now-cooked waffle.
“Commercial. His house has yet to hit the market. I checked.”
I frowned. “Why would someone sell all their other properties, but not their house if they were leaving the area?”
A light touch on my leg made me look down. Joe rubbed against my shin. I ate all but the very end bit of my bacon, then let my hand drop to my side, giving the small piece to the cat.
Mina narrowed her eyes but stayed silent. I just smiled innocently. I was still of the camp of keeping the cat on my good side.
“I’m not sure,” Claire continued. “He might have plans to sell it. Maybe he needs to find a new place first.”
“That makes sense.” Mina added more batter to the waffle maker and shut the lid. “What did you find out about the commercial sales? Anything weird?”
“Yep. So, the records’ office keeps amended deeds, and after I looked up Walter’s real estate holdings, I looked up the addresses for previous sales and such.
Two of them went to him through amended filings.
In both cases, Moira’s real signature is on the original, but the final versions where Walter’s listed as the new owner have her forged signature.
When I checked the originals, the properties were both supposed to go to Sarah Cole. ”
With wide eyes, Mina glanced at me. “Just like the antique store,” she said.
“Yep,” Claire chimed.
The grim look Mina aimed at me matched the dark pit forming in my stomach. Absently, I scratched Joe’s head as he stood up on his hind legs, feet pressed to my thigh as he begged for more bacon. Someone back then had been stealing property, it seemed.
“Have you told Ozzie all this yet?” Mina asked.
“No. He’s still eyeballs deep in not just Moira’s case but that one from yesterday. I want to double-check a few things before I light that fuse.” She heaved a sigh, then changed the subject. “I also looked for connections between Walter and Moira’s boyfriend, Rich Stevenson.”
“Real estate connections?” I asked.
“Yes. I came up with zilch. Legally, they aren’t connected, but I don’t know about any verbal agreements, like property usage and such.
If any of that took place, well, that’s a lot harder to trace without talking to people and spreading all this all over town.
Even I know better than to do that. I’ll leave that up to Ozzie. ”
Smart woman, I couldn’t help but think. He’d be angry enough she didn’t let sleeping dogs lie and dug up more property records.
Mina let out a quick laugh. “I can foster some gossip at work. People talk in coffeeshops, you know.”
“Oh, I’m sure.” Claire chuckled. “But let me deal with Ozzie first.”
Mouth cocked to the side and amusement lighting her eyes, Mina let out an aggrieved sigh. “Fine.”
Claire laughed. “Thank you. I’m going to go dig a little more before Ozzie gets home. I’ll text you after I talk to him and let you know what he says.”
“Sounds good.” Mina’s hand hovered over the phone. “Talk to you later.”
“Yep. Bye.” The line clicked off.
Mina cleared the call, then sagged into the counter, her eyes meeting mine. “Walter’s looking more guilty all the time.”
“Yeah.” Grabbing yet another piece of bacon, I stared past her as I munched, thinking. “Maybe.”
“Why maybe?”
I met her eyes. “I still don’t understand why he would sell the antique store if he murdered Moira and put her in the wall. It’s risky, you know? He had to know you’d want to renovate the space.”
She shrugged and opened the waffle maker. “Maybe he didn’t care anymore. It could be he decided it was time for warmer pastures. Ozzie still hasn’t been able to locate him. If he fled to a non-extraditable country, it might not matter even if he does.”
I shook my head, honestly a little in awe of Walter.
It was practically the perfect plan. Some of those countries without extradition treaties were fairly cheap to live in.
With the proceeds from his three commercial deals and whatever retirement savings he had, he could live more than comfortably for the rest of his life and never have to worry about being arrested.
“We can’t do anything more about it tonight, though, so I vote we table it all until tomorrow.” Mina loaded waffles and potatoes onto a plate, then slid it over to me. “Don’t give any of that to Joe. He’s bad enough about scrounging on my counters for food.”
I chuckled, even as my mouth watered at the deliciousness wafting into my nose. “Deal.” Reaching for the syrup, I paused right before dousing my waffles in it. “Did you remember the chocolate?”
A pretty pink blush dusted her cheeks, even as a coy smile slipped over her face. “Eat your waffles and find out.”
I flicked open the syrup cap with my thumb. “Yes, ma’am.”