Chapter 22
We arrived laden with soup, sandwiches, and almond-studded cantucci.
In the living room, Harper served up the food with a bemused expression. “Is our menu suddenly not up to scratch?”
“We thought it would be nice for a change not to constantly mooch from you or expect you guys to be on kitchen duty because we were too busy to eat before coming here,” I said.
“No need to, but we appreciate the thought, and the lunch. We were too busy for our lunch as well.” Reina inhaled the aroma wafting from the soup bowl. “Chicken, lemon grass, and a hint of coriander?”
“A healthy boost to the immune system, especially when we’re dealing with a lot of stress.” Ange dipped her spoon into the soup.
“Any stressful situation in particular?” Harper appeared a little worried.
“I’m talking about sleuthing. Bex and I have put in some good spadework, so we’ll leave no stone unturned.” Ange said.
“And have you come up with anything interesting?” Reina asked.
Ange signaled me to take over.
I repeated what Skye had divulged and concluded, “The way I see it, we have two avenues to pursue. First is the question: who knew where to find Tim during the night in question or how to lure him into the corner by the chest? Apart from Candice.”
“Are you sure Skye is innocent? She was in the area, he’d have trusted her or at least he wouldn’t have been afraid of her, and she could easily have visited the fair during her lunch break,” Reina pointed out.
“I’m as sure as I can be.” I took the now empty bowls, went to the kitchen, and put them in the dishwasher.
“What about the second avenue?” Reina asked when I returned.
“The motel. Skye is right. Why would Tim rent a room at the Sweet Haven? If we know that, we’ll be a lot closer to solving this case.”
“My money’s on what we thought straight away. He had a clandestine rendezvous there. If not with Skye, then maybe with Candice.” Ange’s words came out grudgingly.
My phone buzzed before I could answer. “It’s a message from Trey Stone,” I said.
“What does he say?” Ange broke a biscotti in half and crunched it noisily.
Goosebumps formed on my arms as I read. “He’s discovered why the Cannon Hill police had a warrant for Candice’s room.
They were searching for new evidence connecting her to the murder because they found her fingerprints on the murder weapon, a stiletto-shaped letter opener that was stolen from a booth at the fair. ”
“I’m so sorry,” Reina whispered. “Maybe she is guilty after all.”
“No.” The word came out with less conviction than I’d intended. I’d remembered the unopened letter. I took it from my handbag and slid it across the table to Reina. “If this is a confession, break it to me gently that I should hang up my witch hat because she’d fooled me completely.”
“Are you sure?” Reina fetched a blue glass letter opener.
“Yes.”
She slit the envelope and pulled out two sheets of paper, covered in a large cursive script.
“Read it to us, please.” Reina’s siren voice should soften the blow, I thought. My palms became sweaty.
“Hi Bex, I’ve been meaning to say these things ever since you were such a star, coming to our rescue, when Rick and I needed you. But somehow, I didn’t find the right words. As for Rick, well, you know men.”
“I hear you sister,” Ange muttered. “Not Nick, of course, that’s why he’s a keeper.”
Harper glared at her, and Ange fell silent.
Reina continued reading.
“The silly thing is, he’s been trying so hard to impress you, and to prove that he could be successful on his own.
I know you thought it totally sus that there was so little money when you split up.
I couldn’t believe it either. The poor darling had invested so much in an art gallery when it’s obvious that he was out of his depth.
I got him to understand that he didn’t have to be a major success to step out of your shadow, just return to what he’s good at.
Please tell Alex too. I know that Rick’s too embarrassed to man up.
And, please, if anything happens to me or I get arrested – and I swear to you that I’m innocent – keep up your boundaries but don’t let him down.
Without you or me to keep him on track, he’s floundering.
Candice
PS I’ll always be grateful for your support.”
My jaw dropped. “He wanted to step out of my shadow? That’s ridiculous.”
“You think so?” Reina returned the sheets to the envelope.
“He wouldn’t be the first man to be intimidated by a smart, accomplished woman, and the midlife crisis seems to have hit him hard, too,” Ange mused. “I’d say, Rick has a bad case of the man-o-pause.”
“It must have been tough on the girl to write all this to you. Kudos to her, when you could easily use this to sabotage her relationship. Not that you’d ever do such a thing, but then she wouldn’t know you well enough to be sure,” Harper said.
“What does your instinct say? Is this for real or is she trying to butter you up, to keep on your good side for the sake of their business?” Reina asked.
I touched the envelope and waited for a physical response.
“Well? Does it give you the warm and fuzzies? Because she convinced me.” Ange took the letter opener and examined it. “Awesome craftmanship. See how the light is reflected on the glass handle and how the shade of blue changes?” She weighed it in both hands, giving me space to decide.
“I believe her too, all of it,” I declared.
“Good. Very flattering for you, by the way, but also for Rick, to have won over two smart women.” Ange traced every inch of the handle that up close resembled a stylized flower. “The question is, if Tim didn’t meet Skye or Candice in the motel room, what was he doing there?”
“Only one way to find out,” Reina said. “We’ll have to see for ourselves.”
“If we can verify when he stayed at the Sweet Haven, and in which room. I could only narrow it down to two rooms that pulled me closer, and there’s no way to tell when Tim was a guest,” I mentioned.
Ange harrumphed at me. “Now you’re wanting to play devil’s advocate, after the reaction you had to the business card?”
“I was only pointing out my witchy powers also need facts to back them up.”
Reina and Harper shared a wink. “Didn’t we say to leave it to us? Come on, it’s our turn to shine,” Harper said. She opened a cupboard and took out a box, labeled “Halloween costumes”.