Powdered Peril (24 page)

This was going to be interesting, no doubt about it.

*   *   *

“Hello, Henry. We’re having a buffet in the dining room, if you’d like to join us,” I said in my most gracious Southern accent.

He thrust the flowers at me, and then took two steps back. “Actually, I was hoping to get a minute alone with you, but if you’ve got company, we can do this later.”

I put the bouquets on the porch swing and turned to him and said, “Nonsense. This is fine. We can speak out here.” There was no way Lincoln was getting away from me before he had a chance to talk.

He shrugged, and then looked a little uncomfortable as he said, “Suzanne, first off, I’m truly sorry about the accident.”

“You don’t happen to have a white truck with a tinted windshield, do you?” I asked with a smile.

“What? No, of course not. Why do you ask?”

“Just making conversation,” I said. “So, what would you like to talk about?”

He shrugged, accepting my desire to get to the point, whatever it might be. “When I heard what happened, I felt pretty mulish not giving you my alibi for the night of the murder. I didn’t want to drag the woman I was with into it, but you have a right to know.”

“Have you told the police yet?” I asked, not sure that it was the right thing to say for my investigation, but knowing that it was important, nonetheless.

“I just left the police station,” Henry admitted. “Anyway, I spoke with her this morning and got her permission to tell you. She said her reputation could take the hit, and if it couldn’t, she’d find some way to live with it.”

“I’ll do my best to keep it quiet, but I can’t promise something like that.”

“She understands that.”

“Then I’m listening. Who was she?” A dozen names went through my mind in an instant, but when he told me his paramour’s name, it was all I could do to keep my jaw from dropping.

“Rose White,” he admitted. “I know, she’s a little young for me, but there’s something about that woman that makes me feel alive.”

“Were you at her place all night, or yours?” I asked.

“As a matter of fact, we were in Raleigh at the Hilton by the interstate. Why?”

“Just curious,” I said. So, if Henry’s story checked out, he’d just eliminated himself as a suspect, and Rose White as well. I wasn’t finished with him, though. “How did you two happen to meet?”

“That’s an odd thing. Peter introduced us, if you can believe that,” Henry said. “We both ran into her in Union Square one day, and I got her number. Don’t worry, a dozen folks must have seen us in Raleigh together, including Denton Wicks from Copper Mill. There’s a mayor that anyone would believe. We had a late dinner and caught a show with Denton and his wife, Millie, until midnight, and then I was at the pool when it opened at five
A.M.
to swim my laps, and I talked Rose into going with me to keep me company on the edge of the pool.”

If that was true, neither Henry nor Rose would have been able to get back to April Springs, find and then kill Peter, and still make it back in time for his swim.

“Thanks for confiding in me,” I said.

“Well,” he said, “I just thought that given what happened, you had a right to know.”

“I appreciate that.”

He started to leave, and then hesitated. “You know, I really do hope you find the creep who killed Peter. Nobody deserves to get struck down like a rabid dog like that.”

“I didn’t think you were all that fond of him, Henry.”

“I wasn’t, but that’s beside the point,” he said. “Now that he’s gone, there’s one question that I can’t seem to stop thinking about.”

“Who killed him?” I asked.

“More like how am I ever going to get my money back now?”

I thought about the three thousand dollars that Grace and I were still holding that we’d found in Peter’s apartment, but I wasn’t the slightest bit tempted to turn it over to Henry. It wasn’t my responsibility, after all, and I’d make Grace turn it over to Bryan as soon as the murder investigation was over. If he hadn’t killed his own brother, at any rate.

*   *   *

“Who was that? Henry Lincoln?” Momma asked as she came out on the porch when the man drove away.

“If you know the answer, why do you ask the question?” I asked her with a grin.

Momma glanced down at the flowers. “And he brought gifts as well? That’s certainly out of character for him.”

“He said he heard about the accident,” I admitted.

“Is that the only reason he was here?” Momma asked.

“You’re a suspicious person, you know that, don’t you?”

“What can I say? I get it from my daughter,” she answered without missing a beat.

“I believe that’s supposed to be the other way around,” I said.

“No matter. What did he want?”

I knew it was futile holding out on her. “It turns out that he was with Rose White in Raleigh the night before and morning of the murder, and he’s got some pretty reliable witnesses to back him up.”

Momma shook her head. “Why am I not surprised?”

“That he had an alibi?”

“No, that he was with a woman. I often suspected that’s why he and Peter got along so well, up until the end. They were both fond of the ladies.”

“Well, at least now I can start marking names off my list, since he was with another suspect of ours.”

“How many are left, then?” Momma asked.

I thought about it, and then ticked them off on my fingers as I named them. “It’s not a short one. We’ve still got Leah Gentry, Kaye Belson, Bryan Morgan, and as much as I hate to admit it, my new assistant, Nan.”

“You really think Nan Winters could have done it?” Momma asked as George, Emma, and Grace joined us outside.

“Think who did what?” Emma asked.

“We were just wondering if Mrs. Orange used a slingshot in the tree house,” I said with a smile. There was no way I was going to let myself get roped into that particular conversation.

“None of those things are from the game Clue,” George said.

“You always were a good detective,” I said as I patted his chest. “I can’t slip anything past you.”

“That means you’re not going to tell us, doesn’t it?” Emma asked.

“Wow, hanging around me all this time really taught you to read me pretty well, didn’t it?” I asked as I smiled at my friend.

“Well, we’re off,” George said. “Emma’s got some unpacking to do, and I have a meeting with the county planner in ten minutes.”

“You two have all of the fun, don’t you?” I asked as I hugged and kissed them in turn, Grace and I trading off our thanks. “We appreciate you coming by.”

“More than you even realize,” Momma added. “George was telling us that to keep from overwhelming you with visitors, everyone else is waiting at city hall for his report.”

“Honestly?” I asked.

“I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“And Dad’s going to run a follow-up article tomorrow, with your permission, of course,” Emma said. “Folks want to know how you two are doing.”

I thought about refusing the idea of an article, but then I realized that Ray would run something anyway, so why not let him get his facts from Emma? At least she knew the truth, no matter what her father ended up doing with it.

“Thanks double, then,” I said.

*   *   *

After they were gone, Grace said, “That might work on them, but I want the truth. What happened when you and Henry Lincoln were out here?”

“You two have a chat about it,” Momma said. “I’m going to start cleaning up.”

“We’ll be inside in a sec,” I said.

“Take your time. You both need to discuss what you just learned.”

After Momma was back inside, I brought Grace up to speed about what Henry Lincoln had told me, and she nodded as I finished.

“I believe it’s true,” Grace said.

“Based on what? Do you think Henry would ever be with Rose?”

“He hit on me once,” Grace admitted, “so yes, I believe it.”

“Did you tell Peter about it? What did he do?”

“Nothing,” Grace said. “I’m not sure he even believed me at the time.”

“He was a real prince, wasn’t he,” I said, forgetting for a second how tied in with Peter Grace had been. “Hey, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“No matter what he was like at the end, he deserved better than he got.”

I hugged her lightly. “Funny, even Henry Lincoln just said the same thing. Grace, I promise you that we’re going to do our best to see that he gets it. Momma asked me where our suspect list was now, and I was happy to tell her that it had narrowed considerably.”

Grace nodded. “Kaye, Bryan, and Leah are the only ones who are left. That’s not bad.”

“Don’t forget Nan,” I said.

“Do you honestly believe that your new helper is a killer?”

“Hey, she has ties with just about everyone involved in this case,” I reminded her, “and I know she’s been holding out on me. Tomorrow, I’m going to press her until she tells me the truth.”

“What if she quits?”

I just shrugged. “I’ll worry about that if it happens.”

“Besides, you’ve always got Emma, now that she’s back in town.”

“That’s not why I’m going to press her, Grace. I need her to tell me the truth, especially if we’re going to keep working together. If I can’t trust the woman, I can’t have her helping run the donut shop. It’s as simple as that.”

“I know. So, if you’re going to talk to her tomorrow morning, we only have three folks left on our list. Any ideas about where to start?”

“I’d say we tackle the ladies,” I said.

“You’re not afraid of Bryan Morgan, are you?” Grace asked gently.

I thought about it for a second, and then I admitted, “I wouldn’t say that I’m afraid of him, but then again, I wouldn’t want to be alone in a dark alley with him, either. To tell the truth, he kind of gives me the creeps.”

“I know what you mean, but that doesn’t make him a murderer, does it?”

“No,” I acknowledged, “but it doesn’t clear him, either.”

“So, should we tackle Kaye or Leah first?”

“I vote Leah,” I said. “I heard she’s already back in town, staying with her uncle again. I guess Ida put too many restrictions on her.”

“Great. Nothing like a little family honor to defend. Burt isn’t exactly your biggest fan, is he?”

I grinned at her. “That’s what makes it so nice. I don’t have to tiptoe around him, do I?”

CHAPTER 17

“Is Leah here?” I asked Burt as Grace and I walked into the hardware store.

It was clear that Burt wasn’t all that happy to see us, but that was just too bad. He said sharply, “I told you both, she left town, not that you ever bothered respecting me or my family’s wishes. My sister told me you were up at her place, so don’t try to deny it.”

“Why would we?
She
was really nice to us,” I said, hoping that he’d get the hint.

“Yeah, well, she always was a softie. Don’t make that mistake with me.”

“Burt, we’re going to find your niece one way or the other, so you might as well help us. The last time we spoke, Leah was really cooperative, and we left things on really good terms.”

“I don’t know why you think I should believe that, because I don’t. Not that it matters. She’s not here,” he repeated.

“Come on, Suzanne. Let’s go,” Grace said, tugging at my arm. “It’s no use.”

I wasn’t about to give up that easily, but something in Grace’s expression told me it was time to retreat. I trusted her instincts almost as much as I did my own. “Fine, but we’ll be back later, Burt.”

“Do what you want. I can’t stop you. But I’ll be here, you can count on that,” he said, and then he dismissed us both.

“What’s going on?” I asked Grace as we walked out onto the sidewalk together. “We can’t just let him off the hook like that. We need to find Leah.”

“I did,” she said with a grin. “While you were chatting with Burt, I was looking out the window, and guess who I saw?”

“Leah, I’d wager, but where is she now?” I asked as I glanced up and down Springs Drive. I didn’t see any sign of her now.

“She just ducked into the Cutnip, and if we play things right, we might just have a captive audience when we question her.”

“That’s brilliant,” I said as we walked across the street, passed the town clock, and then headed into the beauty parlor to see what we could find out about Leah and her alibi.

*   *   *

“Are you finally coming in for a new hairstyle, Suzanne?” Wilma Gentry asked as Grace and I walked into Cutnip. Somewhere in her forties, the salon owner was wearing her signature tight black stretch pants and leopard print blouse under her smock. “You know, you could do worse than try mine.”

I looked at the giant ball of teased henna on her head, and it was all I could do not to laugh out loud. It wouldn’t have been well received, though, especially since there were half a dozen women sitting in chairs waiting patiently to have their own big hair done.

“Thanks for the offer,” I said as I spotted Leah getting her hair washed, “but I just need a second with her.”

Cynthia Trent, Wilma’s most conservative stylist and a woman close to my age, was working on Leah’s hair, wetting it under the sink and no doubt cutting off any chance Leah had of hearing our conversation.

“What can I do for you, Suzanne?” Cynthia asked.

“Sorry, I didn’t make myself clear. It’s Leah I need to speak with.”

Cynthia nodded. “It’ll be a second. She can’t hear a thing right now.”

Wilma didn’t look all that pleased to see us hovering in front of Cynthia’s station, but she didn’t say anything. I’d been thrown into her world once when one of her stylists had been murdered, not because of the way she did hair, but because of who she’d been dating.

Cynthia finished soaking Leah’s hair, and wrapped it in a towel as Leah sat up.

“We need a minute of your time,” I said.

“What?” Leah asked as she first became aware of us. It took a second for it to register. “What’s going on, Suzanne? I already told you and Grace everything I know.”

“That’s not quite true,” Grace said as Cynthia quickly toweled off her hair.

“Can’t we do this later? I’m kinda busy right now,” she said.

“I don’t mind if you don’t,” Cynthia said. I wasn’t sure she was enhancing her tip, but I appreciated the fact that she was trying to help me out. Or was she just curious about what we wanted to talk to her client about?