Sage Advice to Cover Up a Murder! (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 2) (7 page)

Melissa checked her phone on the walk over to the attorney’s office. Jason left a voice mail message apologizing for not being there with her and Logan at the precinct. His boss had him under ‘lock and key’ since he was known to be in a relationship with her. She sighed with annoyance. Logan asked what was wrong, but Melissa just shook her head.

After settling into a small conference room in the attorney’s office space, both Melissa and Logan explained every fact that they knew about the death of Mr. William Hawkins. Janice had already heard most of it, but wanted their sides of the story. They all agreed it was peculiar. The attorney assured her clients that, so far, the police did not have a lot to go on. That was in their favor. At this point, they couldn’t even prove Mr. Hawkins was poisoned despite the dead seagulls. The bread was Melissa’s only connection to the case. The only thing connecting Logan was that he found Mr. Hawkins dead. However, finding a dead person was not a crime. Janice was confident Logan was completely in the clear. However, Melissa was another matter. How did her bread become poisoned? They needed to know at what point the bread was poisoned. If after baking, then she was fine. Anyone could have introduced the poison after baking though.

What really bothered the young lawyer was there was no motive whatsoever for Melissa to want Mr. Hawkins dead. In that aspect, the police department had nothing. Melissa admitted she barely knew the man. He never even came to her bakery. She only ever saw his wife. Mrs. Hawkins came into the shop fairly often. Logan was friends with their granddaughter, Emily. Otherwise, they had no connection to the family whatsoever. After she jotted down some notes from their conversation, Janice encouraged them both to go about their daily lives. If the cops called on them again, they should have her number on speed dial. “One last thing…can your boyfriend help us out with any additional information about the case? I doubt Detective Sunshine told us everything they know today,” Janice asked. Sadly, Melissa didn’t believe Jason would be allowed to help them. The attorney drove them home. Just in case reporters had been informed the two had been hauled into the police department for questioning, she didn’t want them harassed.

Later that night, Melissa cooked ‘breakfast for dinner’. Biscuits and gravy with sausage links and eggs served as comfort food for the duo. Afterwards, they decided the best way to get their minds off their current dilemma was to ‘veg’ in front of the television. That was a huge mistake. The local news popped up on the screen first. The same obnoxious reporter from News Channel 9 conducted an interview with Joseph Hawkins, the son of the deceased Mr. Hawkins.

The younger Hawkins spoke eloquently about his beloved father and his love for his family. His tone changed to one of anger as he verbally throttled the Kill Devil Hills police department for the rushed determination that his father died of natural causes. He admitted to the reporter that the police would never have reopened the case if he hadn’t threatened them to do it. “Good thing I did that. Otherwise, we never would have discovered my father was actually poisoned with a loaf of my mother’s favorite bread from the Kill Devil Delicacies – lemon sage bread. The proprietor, Melissa Maples, poisoned my father with her bread. Just last summer she was suspected of killing someone else. Somehow, she got out from under those charges. She will NOT be so lucky this time,” Joey Hawkins ranted.

Logan grabbed the remote control and hit the power button. The two sat in stunned silence for a long time. Within minutes, Melissa’s home phone began to ring. The shrill tone of the house phone startled them from their reverie. They were both afraid to answer the phone. Just as she was about to pick up the receiver, her cell phone blared her ring tone – “Sweet Home Alabama”. Flustered, she motioned for Logan to let the home phone go to voicemail as she checked the caller id on her cell phone. It was her brother, John David. Taking a deep breath, she answered. Logan could tell the conversation was not going well, even though he just heard one side of it. The home phone began to ring again. Again, Melissa indicated to Logan to not answer it.

Eventually, she handed her cell phone to Logan so he could talk with his father. As the home phone began ringing yet again, Melissa decided to risk answering it. Of course, it was a news reporter. She replied calmly, “No comment”. She hung up the phone and immediately unplugged it from the wall. Logan’s father informed the boy that he was coming out to the shore to pick him up. The teenager explained to his dad that the cops would not allow him to leave the area. Besides, there was no way he was leaving Aunt Mel during this craziness. His aunt interrupted that perhaps it was best if Logan went back home to Charlotte, NC. He exerted his stubborn streak – a common trait in the Jones family. He refused to leave her. Together they would get to the bottom of this fiasco.

John David, for the first time in years, really listened to his son. He agreed Logan could stay, but they were going to have another guest. He was coming out there to check things out for himself. Besides, he argued, if Aunt Mel needed help then there was no one better to do so than her own brother. Logan wasn’t so sure his mom would agree to all this, but his dad told him not to worry about her. Mom was on a business trip in Chicago for a couple weeks anyway. As he hung up the phone, Logan smiled.

All was quiet in the small cottage for a few minutes. Logan and Melissa both were overwhelmed after the call with John David. The silence was broken suddenly as someone knocked on the front door. “Oh dear,” Melissa fretted, “It’s probably the reporters already.” She peeked out a small window in the kitchen to try getting a look at who was at her front door before she made the mistake of opening it. Relief flooded over her as she saw one of her best friends, Cheryl, and her husband. The couple rushed through the door as it opened. Cheryl hugged her friend tightly. Ronnie muttered something about the news vans causing a traffic mess on the way over.

Cheryl took charge of everything. She ordered Melissa and Logan to sit down and relax while she prepared some chamomile tea for them. Ronnie informed his wife that Melissa may need something stronger than tea. She agreed and instructed him where to find a bottle of red wine and a cork screw. Logan, however, could only have the tea. Within a few minutes, the group congregated in the living room to discuss the day’s events. Melissa retold the story of being hauled into the precinct and questioned by Jason’s partner. She explained what the cops had discovered about the seagulls being poisoned and that the poison apparently came from bread from her bakery. “Now, they’ve expounded on the poisoned birds to suggest that Mr. Hawkins was poisoned, too.”

Ronnie perked up a bit at the mention of the poison. He asked, “Did the cops indicate what poison specifically?” Melissa shook her head. Cheryl’s husband further explained that the rumor at work was that Hawkins had not exactly retired early, but had been forced out of the company. Some speculated it was because he knew too much about Johnson’s misdeeds and had threatened to go public with it. No one knew for sure what Hawkins held over Johnson’s head, but it had to be something bad. For years, Hawkins had been the one to clean up Johnson’s messes and cover up illicit deals. It would have to be something pretty explosive for the old man to be pushed out the door.

“Okay, but what does that have to do with Hawkins being found dead, and possibly poisoned?” Logan asked. Ronnie further explained that after Mr. Hawkins’ sudden retirement, Mrs. Hawkins had come into the office fuming. Her shrieks were heard throughout several floors of the tall office complex. Apparently, she was not too happy about her husband’s retirement. However, she left with a huge smile on her face. Everyone thought Hawkins had his job back. That wasn’t the case though. No mention was ever made that he would return to the company. A few days later, he’s dead.

Well, that was all interesting. However, Melissa and Logan didn’t see how Hawkins’ early retirement played into his death. Cheryl prodded Ronnie to continue. He seemed reluctant to add more, but the story needed to be told. “Due to my lovely wife’s ‘encouragement’, I decided to check around to see what Hawkins worked on prior to these events,” he stated with some emphasis on ‘encouragement’. What he discovered was indeed interesting and pertinent. Mr. Hawkins had been working to obscure the company’s involvement with a small holding company out of the Caribbean. This company dealt with a weed killer that used a poison that was deemed illegal in most countries throughout the world. There was even a recent case of a father and his children who visited their vacation home in the islands, but shortly thereafter were found unconscious. Bloodwork showed a particular poison in their systems. An investigation discovered the landscapers for their residence used the weed killer manufactured by the holding company in question. Thankfully, the family recovered. However, they faced a long road to complete rehabilitation as the poison damaged their cardiovascular systems extensively.

Ronnie did not have definitive proof that Hawkins was run out of Johnson Shipping International because of his knowledge of, or objection to, the holding company. Basically, it was pure speculation at this point. However, if the poison in the bread was determined to be this same poison, then it was likely Mr. Johnson decided retirement wasn’t enough to silence Hawkins.

Melissa’s head reeled at the possibility that Edward Johnson, Sr. could be behind the death of Mr. Hawkins. Just last summer, his son was found guilty of manslaughter in the investigation of Linda Stevenson’s death. The death that had occurred in her bakery and she had been arrested as the primary suspect. Little Eddie Johnson, Jr. was currently serving time in the state penitentiary in Raleigh for the crime. Now Daddy Johnson may be involved in another suspicious death. If so, was he seeking revenge for his son’s arrest by framing her for Mr. Hawkins’ murder? 

Melissa woke up the next morning with a splitting headache. The events of yesterday had taken their toll. She had lain awake most of the night as her mind raced through all the possibilities that may have led to Mr. Hawkins’ death. Most importantly, she rehashed all the ways she had been roped into this fiasco. Unable to take the intensity of the migraine that set in, she gulped back two migraine pills with a glass of water and returned to bed.

Logan decided to clean up the house a little before his father arrived that afternoon. He admitted he was nervous about Dad becoming involved in all this chaos. However, he also admitted to himself that he was happy about it, too. He couldn’t recall the last time his dad took a vacation from work, much less to spend time with him. The young boy realized that the circumstances weren’t ideal, being neck deep in a murder investigation, but he would take whatever attention he could get from his dad.

After making up the guest bedroom and cleaning the kitchen, Logan stepped out onto the back deck to make a call. Frankly, he was more nervous about the call than his dad’s impending arrival. He knew he had to do it though. He had to speak to Emily. Considering the media circus from yesterday, he didn’t expect she would give him the time of day if she believed any of that garbage. Regardless, he had to at least try to get her to understand that neither he nor his aunt had anything to do with her grandfather’s death. As he listened to the phone ring, he held his breath. Silently he prayed, “Please, just answer the phone.”

A raspy voice, as if the person had been crying a lot, answered “Hello”. It nearly broke Logan’s heart to hear it. Without thinking, he asked how she was doing. The exasperated sigh on her end of the line let him know it was a ridiculous question. How was she supposed to be doing? Emily politely answered anyway. After an awkward silence, she asked wearily, “Logan, what do you want?”

Honestly, he wasn’t sure what he wanted. He knew he wanted her to be okay. He knew he wanted to make her pain go away. He wanted a lot of things, but right now couldn’t find his voice to say as much. “I just needed to know you were okay. With everything that’s happened, I kind of figured you would be upset, angry, sad….,” his voice trailed off as he tried to find the right words.

“Logan, I don’t know how I’m feeling right now. No, I’m not okay. My grandfather is dead. Just a day or two ago, we believed he died of a heart attack while fishing. That was rather comforting to know that he passed away doing something he really loved. Now, the news reported that the cops believe he was murdered. To add to that, it was more than insinuated that you and your aunt had something to do with it! I’m confused! I’m heartbroken! I don’t know what to believe or think right now,” she ended with a heart-wrenching sob.

Logan wanted to cry right along with her. He reassured her that neither he nor his aunt had anything to do with her beloved grandfather’s death. He pleaded with her to believe him. They had no reason to want to hurt anyone, much less kill someone. The young man swore he especially would never do anything that would hurt Emily. He truly cared about her and valued their friendship.

She acknowledged that the idea that they killed her grandfather with poisoned bread seemed ridiculous. Besides, the only evidence the cops had were dead seagulls. “How bizarre is that?” she asked. Emily didn’t want to believe her grandfather was killed. Her grandmother certainly didn’t put any faith in the accusation. She even remarked how the news had agitated her grandmother so badly that she had ranted for hours last night. There had been a huge argument when her father arrived back at the house. Both had calmed down somewhat this morning, but things were definitely tense in the household.

The two teenagers discussed the situation at length, but could not come up with any answers. Logan was so relieved Emily believed in him, that he was on cloud nine when they hung up the phone. He went back inside just as the front door bell rang. Nervous that it could be reporters again or the cops, he peered out a side window first. It was his dad! “He must’ve sped the entire way if he’s already here,” he thought.

The look on John David Jones face as his son opened the door was one of both fatigue and tension. He stepped inside and caught his son up in a huge bear hug. Logan realized his father had not done that since he was a small boy. He tried not to weep as he tightly squeezed his dad back. The young man was always worried that his dad would be disappointed if he didn’t always act like a “man”. Up until last year, Logan rebelled from that notion. He gave his parents a hard time regarding everything. Last summer had changed him. His parents had noticed their son seemed more responsible, less troublesome. They just hadn’t taken the time to let Logan know they had noticed.

Melissa appeared in the hallway just as the two men moved further into the house. Logan offered to take his dad’s suitcase to the guestroom as the brother and sister greeted each other. After a long overdue hug, John David pulled away and looked into his beloved sister’s face. “Migraine, huh? I can’t imagine why,” he remarked. He always could tell when Melissa’s headaches had set in, even when she tried to hide the agonizing pain she was in. She assured him she would be fine. The medicine hadn’t done the job as fast as she would have liked, but hopefully a tall dose of caffeine would assist.

The three family members settled down in the kitchen as the coffee brewed and Logan scrambled eggs. Melissa and Logan filled John David in on the events as they understood them. The young man added that he spoke with Emily that morning and that she and her grandmother believed they had nothing to do with Mr. Hawkins’ death. His father scowled as he reprimanded his son for contacting the young girl in the first place. If she wasn’t convinced of his innocence in the matter, she could easily try to illicit information from him that could be used against him later. Neither Logan nor Aunt Mel believed Emily would do that, but still they realized they should be more cautious in the future. John David glanced over at his sister. He hated to ask, but it was important. “Mel, any word from that cop beau of yours? Is he going to be a help or a hindrance in proving your innocence?” It was a valid question. Honestly, she wasn’t sure. Aside from the voicemail yesterday after she had been questioned at the precinct, she hadn’t heard from him at all.

Over at the Hawkins’ residence, Emily camped out in her room to avoid both her father and her grandmother. Things were still tense between the mother and son. Joey was convinced his mom was ignoring the obvious that his dad was murdered just because it was inconvenient for her. With the case re-opened, the insurance company wouldn’t cut the check to her for the life insurance. Sophie Hawkins was angered that her son wouldn’t just accept the fact that William died of natural causes. She failed to comprehend why he insisted that it was something else. Emily just wanted to hide from them both.

Joey left mid-morning to visit the police department to see what else they had uncovered. The loud slam of the front door shook the entire house. Just as Emily was about to emerge from her room, she heard Sophie on the phone in the office next to her bedroom. According to the shrill tone in her voice, she could tell Grandma was upset and letting someone have a big piece of her mind. Curious, Emily put her ear up to the wall. Didn’t help much. She still could only make out a few muffled words. What she did overhear made her nervous. Sophie threatened whoever was on the other end of the line that they better fix this NOW, or she would… Drats! Emily couldn’t make out the rest of what was said. “She would what?” she pondered.

A few moments later, there was a soft knock on her bedroom door. The young woman decided to not let on that she heard anything. She pretended the knocking had just woke her up. Rubbing her eyes, she opened the door. Grandma Sophie was all smiles as she greeted her grandchild. She informed Emily that there was plenty of scrambled eggs and bacon left over from breakfast if she were hungry. However, she needed to run some errands so she would see the young woman in a little while. After reassuring her grandmother that she would be fine alone, Sophie hurried out.

Emily couldn’t get the conversation she “sort of” overheard out of her head. Everything since her grandfather’s death had just been weird, to say the least. Instead of sitting around moping, she decided to take action. She didn’t really believe her grandfather was murdered. She didn’t believe, even if he had been murdered, that Logan or his aunt had anything to do with it. Now her dad was on the warpath and her usually sweet southern belle grandmother was issuing threats to persons unknown over the phone.

With the house to herself, she headed to the office next to her bedroom. Oddly, the room was locked. Her grandparents never locked any room in the house. Undeterred, Emily grabbed a hair pin from her vanity dresser. Along with fishing and surfing last summer, Logan taught her how to pick locks. His preferred method involved the use of credit cards, but she had to make do with what she had. Apparently, she was an apt pupil as it took no time to unlock the door.

Her grandfather’s things were still everywhere. This had been his hideaway from his wife for most of their marriage. Family pictures hung on the walls, as well as pictures of enormous fish he caught over the years. The sailfish he reeled in when he vacationed in Mexico was his favorite, she knew.

Emily had no idea what to look for, so she chose to rifle through the desk first. On top of the desk was a copy of his life insurance policy. Glancing over the document, it was the usual legal jargon that made most legal documents difficult to understand for anyone other than lawyers. Being a young teenager, most of it didn’t make sense to Emily. However, she understood the paragraph that had been highlighted, most likely by her grandmother. It read that in the event of suicide or if the insured died of suspicious causes, the insurance company had the right and authority to deny release of funds to the beneficiary until a judicial ruling absolving the beneficiary of any wrongdoing could be obtained. It was in such miniscule type that Emily had to squint to read it. She sat back in the oversized desk chair. “So that’s why Grandma is so upset. She can’t get her hands on his life insurance money yet,” she thought with dismay. “If she’s so concerned about getting the money, why is she spending money like there’s no tomorrow.” Sophie’s uptick of extravagance had not gone unnoticed by her granddaughter. Emily considered that perhaps that was her grandmother’s way of dealing with grief.

Disappointed that her grandmother may be more concerned about getting her hands on the life insurance money rather than finding out the truth about what happened, Emily continued to snoop around. She found nothing else of interest in the desk so she moved to the filing cabinet in the closet. Surprisingly, it was locked. Emily put her new lock picking skills to work again. Seemed to be mostly work-related files, but she perused them anyway. There was one file that seemed out of place. It was marked by a red label with the words, “J Chemical Holding Company”. She pulled the folder out and sat back down at the desk to read over it. What she discovered shocked her. Her grandfather left detailed notes in his own decrepit handwriting regarding his advice to his employer to extract himself from a certain holding company. The company produced a weed killer that contained a chemical illegal in most countries, including the United States. Attached to the notes were news articles about people getting deathly ill after coming in contact with the poison. Some survived their exposure to the chemical, while others in less developed countries did not. It was a publicity nightmare waiting to happen, according to her grandfather. His notes included his boss’ rejection of the idea. William Hawkins seemed to believe Mr. Johnson was more concerned about his profits than the ramifications of being involved with a company known to deal with illegal chemicals that could seriously harm people or even kill them. His last notes indicated how he planned to give Johnson one last chance to do the right thing or he was going to the Federal authorities with the information. 

Just as Emily finished reading the notes in the folder, she heard the front door slam as her father returned from his visit to the police station. The young woman made a split second decision as to what she needed to do with the information she just found. “Hey, Dad,” she called out, “Can you come here for a minute?”