Death of a Coupon Clipper (6 page)

Hayley felt his lips press firmly against hers. His strong hands were gripping her
upper arms, pulling her close to him. She thought he was going to suck her lips right
off her face. She tried desperately to keep them shut, because her biggest fear at
the moment was opening her mouth to scream and giving him the chance to thrust his
purplish tongue down her throat. That was something she was never going to allow to
happen.

He was tall and obviously worked out. He had a rock-hard chest, curly grayish hair,
and a Tom Selleck mustache. He almost looked a bit like a younger version of Alex
Trebek from
Jeopardy!
Which would make sense. They both made their living as game show hosts. But there
was something seedier, less polished, about Drew Nickerson, who now held Hayley tightly
and didn’t seem to notice her trying to wriggle free from him.

It had all started so innocently.

Earlier that morning when Hayley arrived at work, Sal called her into his office and
announced she would be interviewing Drew Nickerson, the dapper host of
Wild and Crazy Couponing.
Hayley was curious as to why she was qualified to interview a celebrity. Her job
was food and cocktails. But ever since Hayley had fibbed her way into a hotel room
last fall to meet her country music singing idol, Wade Springer, by posing as the
Island Times
entertainment reporter, Sal had decided she could fulfill that role on occasion.
Hayley didn’t protest because, after all, how many stars came to Bar Harbor? It’s
not like she would ever have to actually interview a famous personality. That was
before
Wild and Crazy Couponing
had decided to tape an episode in town. Sal was elated at the prospect of one of
his reporters, who also happened to be a contestant on the upcoming show, getting
up close and personal with the suave, smooth-talking TV host.

Hayley just had no idea how “up close and personal” the interview would get.

Drew had arrived the night before and checked into the Captain’s Arms, one of the
few bed-and-breakfasts in town that was open during the winter. Sal gave Hayley a
ride over at the appointed time of 11:00
A.M.
, giving Drew enough time to enjoy breakfast, lift his weights, which he always traveled
with whenever he was on the road, shower and dress, gel his hair, and douse himself
with some sweet-smelling but masculine cologne.

Hayley instructed Sal to swing by the B and B in thirty minutes to pick her up. She
couldn’t imagine her questions requiring any more time than that for Drew to answer.
When she knocked on the door of his first-floor corner room, she could hear classical
music playing inside. Vivaldi’s
Four Seasons.
Something she actually could identify, which amazed her.

The door opened and Drew stood there. He was an impressive sight. Tall. Handsome.
A jaw you could crack a walnut on. He smiled. The teeth were blinding. He would’ve
made a much better Dudley Do-Right in a movie than Brendan Fraser. Except for his
personality. He exuded arrogance. Entitlement. And he hadn’t even spoken yet.

“Why are there no decent restaurants in this town?”

Suspicions confirmed.

“Well, Mr. Nickerson, it’s February and most of the good ones are shut down for the
season,” Hayley said. “But if you come back in June or July, we have many fine establishments
with creative gourmet menus—”

“I was told by some friends to come early before we taped the show to enjoy the pleasures
of this quaint little town, and not a damn thing’s open.”

“Well, I’m sure your friends visited here in June or July or—”

“I thought Martha Stewart lived around here. You would think if she had a house on
the island, there would be some edible food somewhere!”

“Well, she’s mostly up here during the summer, and like I said, it’s Februar y. .
. .”

“I know what month it is. I’m not an imbecile.”

“Well, things are pretty quiet around here this time of year.”

“Even worse, I’m stuck staying in this dump. The sink clogs up, there is no mini bar,
and the thread count on my sheets is lower than the owner’s IQ.”

This interview was not off to a good start.

But then something changed.

He fixed Hayley with a stare as if noticing her for the first time.

“Well, aren’t you a cute little thing.”

Hayley had been called “cute” before.

Even “thing.”

But “little”?

Drew opened the door wider to allow Hayley to enter. A voice inside her head screamed
at her to run, but she knew Sal would be disappointed if she failed to secure the
interview. So she crossed the threshold with trepidation. The door slammed shut behind
her.

Vivaldi’s
Four Seasons
ended. She expected another classical piece to follow, but instead she heard Marvin
Gaye singing his classic “Let’s Get It On.”

Drew Nickerson’s iPod was on shuffle.

She spun around and he was staring at her with a wolfish grin.

“So, if, uh, you don’t mind, I—I have a few qu-questions . . . ,” Hayley stammered.

“Fire away,” Drew said, moving forward and brazenly entering her personal space.

He was so close that her nose almost touched his Adam’s apple.

“Okay, well, what made the show decide to tape an episode here in Bar Harbor?”

Drew exhaled his breath. Hayley was hit with a blast of mint. At least he brushed
and gargled. For that, she was grateful.

“I’ve always been a fan of this beautiful little hamlet. I’ve spent many summers boating
around the island, browsing the gift shops, enjoying your famous lobster rolls, but
here, now, in the dead of winter, I am happy to report Bar Harbor is just as charming
and inviting.”

Hayley looked up at him, her mouth agape. “Didn’t you just say . . . ?”

“That was off the record. This is on the record.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“In fact, there are fun little surprises to be found everywhere in this town,” Drew
said, stepping closer to Hayley as she tried casually backing away from him.

Did he just call her “little” again?

“Great. I think I’ve got what I need,” Hayley said quickly, eyeing the door.

“That was just one question. I’m all yours. Ask me anything.”

“No. I think that will do it.”

“Then let me ask you a question.”

“Uh, I really should go. . . .”

“Are you as hot with desire as I am?”

“Probably not, to be honest.”

“Those adorable rosy cheeks tell another story.”

“I’m just embarrassed for you, that’s all.”

“I know all about you shy small-town girls. You just need a little push.”

He called her a “girl.” Okay. Points for that one. No, on second thought, he was too
disgusting. No points at all.

And that’s when he grabbed Hayley by the arms and rammed his lips into hers, and now
she was caught in an impossibly grotesque situation.

 

 

Hayley would’ve preferred Alex Trebek making a pass at her.

Not this scumbag.

She struggled in his strong grip. It just made him even more excited.

He was backing her toward the blue-and-white canopy bed.

She reached up with her right hand and grabbed his dimpled Dudley Do-Right chin, yanking
it down hard. His tongue snaked out of his mouth; he shut his eyes tightly, as if
he assumed this was foreplay.

Hayley grabbed hold of his tongue and pulled hard. His eyes suddenly popped open in
surprise and he tried saying something. He couldn’t, though, because Hayley was holding
on to his tongue like some slippery, flopping fish on the deck of Mona’s boat. When
she let go, he retracted his tongue and immediately began rolling it around in his
mouth to check for damage.

That’s when Hayley slapped him.

He stumbled back, caught off guard, throwing a hand to his cheek.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he wailed.

“Teaching you some manners,” Hayley said. “I’m sure where you come from, girls fall
over themselves to get your attention. Here in Maine, we don’t give a rat’s ass about
how much money you have or how many people know you.”

He stood there silently, sizing her up and down, deciding on his next move.

Hayley didn’t wait for it.

She whipped her head around and hightailed it out of there.

She had only been in the room for ten minutes. Sal wasn’t scheduled to swing by and
pick her up for another twenty. So she trudged on foot through the mud and snow back
to the office.

She had really done it this time. Her genius plan to win the show, collect the cash
prize, and pay off all her hefty expenses was suddenly in jeopardy. Now that she had
completely alienated the host of
Wild and Crazy Couponing,
who would inevitably discover that she was also one of the two contestants competing
on the show, she was totally screwed.

Because Drew Nickerson was definitely the type of man who would not soon forget she
had done him wrong. And it was more than likely he would find a way to sabotage her
chances of even being on the show, let alone winning.

After her ill-fated interview with the detestable Drew Nickerson, Hayley was too upset
at the office to concentrate on her next column, so she put it off until that evening.
She knew Randy would be working late tending the bar, so she would have the whole
house to herself. After a bowl of her leftover beef stew, Hayley washed the dishes
and sat down in front of the crackling fire with her laptop. She stared at the blank
screen while Leroy slept next to her, snoring softly.

She hadn’t even thought about a topic. Hayley knew she was the queen of procrastination,
but this column was due today, which technically gave her another three hours before
midnight, so she had to focus.

Meals on a budget. Meals on a budget.

She barely had begun typing when the house phone rang. Hayley sighed, stood up, and
picked up the receiver. She checked the caller ID. It was Randy calling from Drinks
Like A Fish.

Hayley picked up. “Slow night? You bored and calling to bug me?”

“No, sis, this is bad.”

Hayley’s heart nearly stopped beating as she clenched the receiver more tightly. “What?
What is it now?”

“Officer Donnie was in here again tonight, calming his nerves with a beer, when he
got a call on his radio.”

Hayley took a deep breath. “What?”

“Bad accident on Mount Desert Street. Two-car collision.”

“Anyone hurt?”

“I’m not sure. He ran out of here so fast. But one of the drivers was Imogen Tubbs.”

Imogen Tubbs. Hayley had a soft spot for the eighty-five-year-old church organist.
Seven years ago her husband had passed away of natural causes. He was ninety-three.
Because they had no children and had been married for over sixty years, most people
in town naturally assumed his loss would be too much for her and she would wither
and die soon after. Imogen, however, surprised everyone. She poured her energies into
fund-raising for the church and feeding poor people in need all over the island. She
was a spitfire and didn’t allow her age to hinder her in any way. She powered around
town in her giant 1982 Cadillac, driving as if she were racing in Le Mans. There were
a few whispers that it might be a good idea for the police to confiscate her driver’s
license, given Imogen’s advanced age, but she swept that ridiculous talk aside as
malicious gossip. She had too much to do and didn’t need to waste her time thinking
about her detractors. Hayley had always liked Imogen.

“Who was in the other car?” Hayley asked.

“I don’t know. That’s all I got before he left.”

“Thanks, Randy.”

Hayley hung up and immediately called the hospital.

Evelyn Tate, the hospital receptionist still on duty, answered the phone. “Bar Harbor
Hospital, how may I help you?”

“Hi, Evelyn, it’s Hayley Powell.”

“Hello, Hayley. Lex isn’t here. He left ten minutes ago. I’m afraid there has been
no change in Mr. Hollingsworth’s condition. The doctors insisted Lex go home and get
some rest and come back in the morning.”

“That’s not why I’m calling, Evelyn. I need to know if anyone was brought in by ambulance
in the last hour.”

“Yes. Mrs. Tubbs. Poor thing. Rammed into a car on Mount Desert Street. I heard she
was driving on the wrong side of the road. She’s eighty-five, you know.”

“Is she going to be all right?”

“I don’t know. I was on my break when they brought her in. I just heard the nurses
talking.”

“I’m coming right over,” Hayley said, hanging up and scurrying over to the closet
to grab her coat and boots.

 

 

When Hayley rushed through the doors of the hospital twenty minutes later, Evelyn
was still at the reception desk. She waved her on up to the third floor, where they
had taken Mrs. Tubbs. Upon reaching the nurses’ station, Hayley was greeted by a smiling
Tilly McVety.

“Congratulations, Hayley. I hear you were picked to be a contestant on my favorite
show,
Wild and Crazy Couponing.
I can’t believe they’re coming to Bar Harbor! It’s the most exciting thing that’s
ever happened to me, and it’s not even happening to
me
!”

“Tilly, I was hoping you could tell me—”

“I’m just dying to get a glimpse of that gorgeous hunk of a man Drew Nickerson. I
wonder if he’s as handsome in person as he is on TV?”

Hayley didn’t have time to give her the lowdown: Drew Nickerson was about as charming
as Officer Donnie’s case of shingles.

“Tilly, I’m here to see Mrs. Tubbs. I heard she was brought in here by ambulance.
Do you have any idea how she’s doing?”

“Oh, she’s fine,” Tilly said, picking up a file folder and thumbing through it. “Do
you believe they still let her drive? They’re checking to see if she has any broken
bones.”

“Can I see her?”

“Oh, sure. She’s right across the hall. Room 305.”

“Thanks.”

“I know Candace is one of my coworkers, but I really hope you beat her,” Tilly said
in a whisper, followed by a burst of giggles. “Don’t tell her I said that.”

So it was finally confirmed.

Her competition was Candace.

Hayley smiled and then crossed to room 305 and gently knocked on the door.

“Come in,” a frail, raspy voice said.

Hayley pushed open the door. As she entered, she saw Imogen Tubbs in a pale blue hospital
gown, sitting up in her bed, clutching her red purse to her bosom. Imogen was usually
immaculate, with perfect hair tied in a bun and flawless makeup. She had been crying,
so her makeup was smudged and wisps of her fine white hair were flowing in all different
directions. She looked smaller than Hayley remembered. Almost helpless.

“Don’t let them take away my driver’s license, Hayley. Officer Donnie tried to take
it out of my purse, but I grabbed my purse back from him and swatted him in the face
with it. His nose started to bleed. Do you think I’m going to have to go to jail for
assault?”

“I don’t think Officer Donnie wants to lock you up, Mrs. Tubbs. He’s probably more
embarrassed that you got the better of him. How are you feeling?”

“I’m perfectly fine. But the doctors think I may have a broken bone or two. I just
want to go home.”

“Do you remember what happened?”

“I don’t remember much. I went to practice on my organ at home for Sunday’s service,
but I forgot my music sheets at the church. I decided to drive back over there and
pick them up, and the rest is a blur. I’m so confused. Do you think I have early onset
of Alzheimer’s?”

Early onset?
The woman was eighty-five!

Hayley shook her head. “You’re as sharp as ever, Mrs. Tubbs. Trust me.”

“I do remember the roads being just so dang slippery, and I thought I might have to
pull over. But then the next thing I knew, I was being loaded into the back of an
ambulance by that sweet paramedic, Jay Higgins. He’s so big and strong and quite the
looker. If I was ten years younger . . .”

Jay was thirty-seven.

Mrs. Tubbs reached out and squeezed Hayley’s hand. “Please, Hayley, you have to go
over to my house and check on Blueberry.”

Blueberry was her Persian Blue cat, hence the name.

“Don’t worry,” Hayley said softly. “I’ll make sure he’s okay.”

“He’s probably torn up my couch with his claws—he’s so worried about me. I never leave
him alone for this long. Oh, and while you’re there, could you also pick up some personal
items for me? My makeup, a hairbrush, a few magazines from my coffee table? There’s
no telling how long they’re going to keep me here.”

“Absolutely,” Hayley said, bending down and kissing Mrs. Tubbs on the forehead. “I’ll
take care of everything.”

Hayley had a soft spot for feisty old women like Mrs. Tubbs. Perhaps it was because
she was hoping to be just like her someday.

Hayley walked out of the room and past the nurses’ station. Tilly McVety was on the
phone.

“She’s over two hours late for her shift and I can’t reach her,” Tilly said breathlessly,
her face scrunched up with concern.

The elevator doors opened and Hayley stepped inside. As the doors closed again, she
managed to hear Tilly say, “It’s so unlike Candace not to at least call with an excuse.”

 

 

Hayley left the hospital to make the three-block trek to Imogen Tubbs’s house. Trudging
through the snow, bundled up, breathing in the blistering cold night air, she suddenly
realized Mrs. Tubbs was Candace Culpepper’s neighbor. Hayley was burning with curiosity
as to why Candace blew off work. Maybe after feeding Blueberry and packing up a few
of Mrs. Tubbs’s belongings, she would peek inside Candace’s windows to see if she
was just playing hookey from work.

Not because she was nosy.

Just out of neighborly concern.

Yeah, right.

As Hayley rounded the corner onto Hancock Street, she noticed all the lights on in
Mrs. Tubbs’s house. Candace’s house next door, on the other hand, was pitch-black.
Clearly, nobody was home. As she approached Mrs. Tubbs’s driveway, she noticed something
on the edge of Candace’s snow-covered lawn, like a fallen tree branch. However, since
the streetlight closest to the house was out, she couldn’t be sure.

As she got closer, she stopped suddenly, nearly losing her balance on the icy sidewalk.

Was it a deer?

What was it?

It was so dark that Hayley couldn’t see much except the outline in the snow. She fished
inside her coat pocket and fetched her iPhone. She pressed the button and a light
snapped on, illuminating the figure in the snow.

It wasn’t a deer.

It was a person.

Facedown in the snow, his arms and legs splayed as if making a snow angel.

Hayley stepped closer.

The head was turned to the side, facing her.

It wasn’t a him.

It was a her.

It was Candace Culpepper.

Her glassy, dead eyes stared at Hayley.

Hayley tried to scream, but it got caught in her throat. It was so cold that she was
having trouble breathing.

As the winter winds kicked up, coupons began flying up from the ground like a flock
of birds disturbed by an approaching car.

And then the light from her phone caught a glint of something.

A large pair of industrial-size scissors sticking out of Candace’s back.