Chapter Fourteen
Thankfully, Sam had a better night’s sleep than she’d had the night before. By the time she collapsed into bed after Aiden left, she fell into a dead sleep for nearly twelve hours. Twelve much-needed hours after such a long day.
The next morning, Sam sat in her sunroom, Arlo on her lap as she drank her second cup of coffee.
Sam texted back to tell him she’d be ready. She gave Arlo an apologetic look. “Sorry, buddy. I’m going to head out with Aiden in a few minutes.” She rubbed his soft coat for a couple of minutes before moving to get ready.
Sam supposed they were going to go to the coffeehouse to catch Sofia. She smiled. She was going to be wired after another cup of coffee. Maybe she should get a decaf.
A few minutes later, she climbed into the car as Aiden gave her a warm smile. “Sleep well?” he asked.
“Like a rock.”
Aiden drove toward downtown. “How do you think we should approach Sofia this morning?”
“Directly. She’s already misrepresented herself to the book club. Dancing around the issue won’t help.”
“True,” said Aiden.
Sam frowned a little. “But then, it does sound like she just lost her mom. We don’t know what happened between the two of them, but that must have been hard for Sofia. We’d better tread carefully until we know the exact situation.”
Mountain Perk was quiet, but then, it was a Saturday morning. Most people in Sunset Ridge were having a later start. It occurred to Sam that Sofia might not even be working that morning.
But she was. When they walked in, Sofia was behind the counter. When she spotted Sam walking in with Aiden, her face tightened.
Aiden ordered a large coffee, then turned to see what Sam wanted. “I’ll have a decaf,” she said. Then she added, “Sofia, I was wondering if I could talk with you for a minute. Do you have a break coming up?”
Sofia pressed her lips together. “Give me five minutes.”
They sat at a corner table after Sofia got their drinks. A young man came out to take over behind the counter.
“Thanks for talking with us,” Sam said as Sofia took a seat with them.
“Did I really have a choice?” Her voice was defensive.
“Sure you did,” said Aiden. “But we thought you might want to talk something out before Chief Hawkins comes back with more questions.”
Sofia’s eyes widened slightly. “What do you mean? More questions about what?”
Sam said in a quiet tone, “The fact you’re Sofia Brennan. You were Margaret’s daughter, weren’t you?”
Sofia took a deep breath. “That’s right. But it’s not what you think. I was trying to reconcile with my mother. I never wanted any harm to come to her.”
“You’d left after book club ended, you said.” Sam searched her face. “Did you notice anything else? See anyone else leaving?”
Sofia said, “I didn’t really see much. There was just so much tension between my mother and me.
I thought that was the reason she stayed behind in the back room of the bookstore.
She didn’t want any interaction with me.
” She hesitated. “I think Claire was still in the shop when I left. She’d been talking to Charlotte.
And Gerald was heading to his car when I pulled out. ”
Of course, the problem there was that the murder very likely took place before anyone left the shop. After the poison in Margaret’s coffee had taken effect.
Aiden said quietly, “You said you were trying to reconcile with your mom. What happened between the two of you?”
Sofia rubbed her face. “My mom happened.” She glanced over at Sam. “You met her. You saw how she was.”
Sam said, “I’m guessing she was probably a pretty tough person to grow up with.”
“Yeah, you could say that. I mean, my mom was brilliant, but she couldn’t turn off the criticism. Not even with her own daughter.”
“That must have been hard,” said Aiden.
“She pushed me really hard in high school. No grade was ever good enough for her. If I was proud about an A I’d gotten, she’d tell me I should have gotten a 100 on the test instead of a 95.” Sofia shrugged as if it hadn’t been a big deal, but the hurt was written across her features.”
Sam said, “It’s especially bad when criticism is coming from a parent. I didn’t have the best relationship with my folks, either.”
Sofia gave her a curious look. “Are you still in touch with them?”
“Not for a few years. They’ll call me, but I don’t pick up.”
Sofia nodded. “I totally get it. My mom was furious when I didn’t get into her alma mater. She thought I’d go to Brown University, the same as she had. When I was rejected, she acted like I’d failed at life.”
“So you fell out of touch when you went off to college?” asked Aiden.
“Yep. I decided to take out loans. Well, Mom told me she wouldn’t pay for my school since I’d been ‘such a disappointment.’ At that point, I just took out my loans and stayed at school instead of ever going home.
Over the holidays, I stayed with a friend’s parents.
” She shrugged again, but the hurt was still there.
Sam said, “When did you last speak with Margaret? Before you joined book club, I mean.”
“Three years ago. I called on her birthday to wish her a happy day. But she lectured me for fifteen minutes about my career choices. I couldn’t take it.
” Sofia took a deep breath. “I like to think I can let that kind of poison just roll off of me, but I can’t do it. I guess that’s just a flaw I have.”
“Not at all,” said Sam. “Believe me, I totally get it. I’m the same with my parents. I wish it was different, I really do. But I have to consider my own mental health.”
Aiden asked, “What made you decide to join book club? Did you know your mom was a member?”
Sofia nodded. “There was a small write-up in the paper about it. The reporter had gotten a few quotes from members and one of them was my mom. It was supposed to be a piece that helped generate business for Twice-Told Tales after the hurricane had done so much damage. Anyway, I saw that and decided to join.” She paused, thinking.
“I wanted to see who my mother was when I wasn’t around.
I wondered if she was different with other people or if she was difficult and critical with everyone. ”
“What did you find out?” asked Sam.
“That she was just herself. Brilliant and cutting and incapable of holding back.” There was sadness in her voice.
Aiden said, “Did your mom recognize you? It sounds like it had been a while since you’d seen each other. You said the last time you talked was on the phone.”
“That’s right. It had been six or seven years. And no, she didn’t seem to recognize me at first.” Her tone was bitter. “But then, she didn’t really look at me when Charlotte introduced me to the group, and I wasn’t using her last name. She acted indifferent.”
“But later? She knew who you were then?” asked Sam.
“It took a few weeks. Then I saw her studying me, this sort of flat expression on her face. She didn’t look happy to see me.
But she clearly knew who I was.” Sofia sighed.
“I thought maybe if I could understand my mom better, I could figure out how to talk with her. I wanted to try to bridge that gap between us.”
Sam said gently, “You wanted your mother alive.”
“Of course I did. I was angry and hurt, but I didn’t want her dead. I just wanted her to really see me for once. Maybe to even be proud of me.” She gave a short laugh. “Although that might have been asking too much. But our time together was cut short anyway, so I guess I’ll never know.”
They were quiet for a few moments. Then Sofia continued.
“Look, I know how this seems. You’re right that it’s better for me to figure out how to present this because the police are sure to take it seriously.
I lied about who I was. I lied about how I was connected to Margaret. My mom. I just panicked.”
Aiden nodded. “It’s understandable. Still, it’s probably better for you in the long run to tell the police about your connection to Margaret before they find out on their own.”
“You’re right.”
Sam said slowly, “So, the last time we spoke, you mentioned Dylan was someone who might have wanted to murder Margaret.”
“That’s right. Honestly, he’s the one who worried me most. After that open mic disaster and the interview where my mom gave that awful quote, he was totally devastated.”
Aiden asked, “So he was more upset than angry?”
“Well, he was both. Definitely more upset at first. His poetry is something he’s obviously passionate about.
He was embarrassed by what happened. But then, a couple of weeks later, something shifted.
Dylan looked furious to me. There was something on his face.
It looked like he wanted to kill her. Believe me, I understood. My mother took it way too far.”
“Did you ever hear Dylan threaten your mom?” asked Sam.
Sofia shook her head. “Not in so many words. But his body language was pretty clear. I mean, other people weren’t happy with my mom either.
But his anger was the most visible in the group.
And, after all, his humiliation was both public and documented.
I wouldn’t have thought it possible for him to murder her at first, but after the newspaper article came out, he seemed capable of anything. ”
Sofia glanced at the clock behind the bar and straightened. “I’ve got to cut this short. My break’s almost over.” She looked between Sam and Aiden, her expression still raw from everything she’d revealed. “Thanks for listening. And for not making me feel like a terrible person for lying.”
“You were just protecting yourself,” said Sam gently.
Sofia managed a small smile. “Maybe. Or maybe I was just a coward who couldn’t face telling my mother I wanted to get to know her.”
Aiden stood, picking up their empty cups. “For what it’s worth, I think it took a lot of courage to go to book club at all.”
Sofia’s eyes glistened, but she blinked quickly and reached to take the cups from Aiden. “I’ve got these.”