Seven-Layer Slayer: MURDER IN THE MIX 5 Read online

  “Yes.” I clasp onto his arm as if to steady myself. “You remember that stuff I shared with you about me being transmundane? Something subcategorized as a supersensual? She alluded to the fact there were others. And she said there was one thing I must never do.” I glance over to see my supernatural pooch, Dutch, on his hind legs at the dessert table trying his hardest to feast on mounds of butter and sugar.

  “Don’t keep me in suspense.” His breath warms my cheek, and I’m certain Lily’s coven is about to descend on us because clearly the spell they cast has worn off far too quickly for their liking.

  I track Dutch, the most jubilant Golden Retriever I’ve ever seen, as he bounds his way through the bodies at the wake and my heart breaks.

  “She said I couldn’t claim any of the creatures I see as my own. She said it would be very, very bad luck.” I shudder. “And then I thought about how much I love Dutch, and Nell up and died! She died, Everett! Do you think my bad luck killed her?” My voice hikes up a few notches without my permission, and I garner the looks of at least a dozen people as it grows eerily quiet in a ten-foot circumference around us.

  His eyes bug out as he walks us swiftly toward the dessert table where the seven-layer cake sits patiently. “We should probably keep it down. This town is jumpy. The last thing you want to do is cop to a murder you didn’t commit.” His hand clasps over my shoulder as he looks at me with a rare tenderness in his eyes. “Nell died of natural causes. Now, I don’t necessarily believe in bad luck, but if it does exist, you of all people don’t need any of it.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “It means you have enough on your plate what with pets and people showing up from the great beyond.”

  “You got me there.” I glance to the door as a familiar couple walks on in, Connie and Bill Chutney. She knew Nell. Everyone knew Nell. In fact, they were at her birthday party. Something in the pit of my stomach unsettles. “I think I see someone I need to talk to.”

  Everett follows my gaze. “Do you think she did it?”

  “I think everyone did it.” I excuse myself and head on over. Bill Chutney makes his way to the refreshment table, and I spot my ex, Bear, over there as well. “Connie,” I say a little too brightly. “How nice of you to come. My mother is so looking forward to volunteering with you down at the hospital.” I tag it with that last tidbit in the event she needed her memory jogged to place me.

  “Your mother started last week, and she’s just as competitive as Eve Hollister ever was.” Her eyes roll to the ceiling. “Just when you think you’ve gotten rid of one, another one comes along.” She sweeps me to the side with her hand, craning her neck toward the back. “Pardon me, honey. I see an old friend.”

  Just when you think you’ve gotten rid of one? I can’t help but widen my eyes at her.

  She takes off, and I catch a glimpse of my mother across the cavernous room with Brad Rutherford and his snakelike hands roaming up and down her back as if they were the only two people in the room. That man is a sexual menace. If I could go back in time, I just might have cheered his ex-wife along as she tried to fill his pie hole with wolf’s bane.

  I suck in a quick breath as a thought occurs to me. I bet Mr. Rutherford and his imprisoned wife aren’t even officially divorced yet. My mother may not have high standards when it comes to the men she chooses to spend her time with, but a married man? I believe Miranda Lemon just met her threshold. I can’t wait to tell her the news. The quicker she kicks him to the curb, the quicker Lainey and I can pop the bubbly. But I don’t head over to my mother. I head over to Bear who seems to be all by his lonesome at the moment.

  “Hey,” I say, pouring myself a cup of ginger ale. “Did I see you talking to Bill Chutney?”

  Bear growls as if he were a genuine member of the species his moniker is derived from—and how I am thankful that there is no literal, or spectral bear on the loose in the room at the moment.

  “The dude is trouble. I tried warning Eve Hollister, but she was all about saving a buck. I tried to warn your mom—”

  “You mean she still went with him after I forbid her to do it?” It’s nice to know I have zero pull with the woman who raised me. If this is a growing trend, then the very married Brad Rutherford might still have his hat in the ring—and mattress. Gag me.

  “She did. But I’ll talk to her. Does she know what happened to Eve?”

  “You mean with the remodel?”

  “Yup. A guy from the city drove by one day, spotted the shoddy work on her balcony, and ended up doing a full inspection. She just about got red flagged. Not only did she have to pay a steep penalty, but she was going to have to pay me to do the repairs. And those weren’t going to be cheap. I wasn’t trying to gouge the woman. I’d have to rebuild entire sections of crap just to get her up to code.”

  “Eve must have been steamed. Not only did his wife constantly screw her over, but her husband did it, too.”

  “Believe me, she had more than enough. I came over one day late last month to take a look at what needed to be done, and she let me know she was going to file a complaint with the city and do everything in her power to get his contractor’s license revoked.”

  “Could she do that?”

  “Eve Hollister had enough money to do just about anything she set her mind to, and judging by the way she took off for the city that day, she did.”

  I look to where Bill is chatting with a couple of men before meandering into the crowd on his own. That plaid wool coat of his is making him easy to track.

  “Thanks, Bear, you just helped more than you know.”

  I make my way over to the wily builder and step boldly in his path.

  “Bill Chutney!” I try to sound cheery as if I were happy to see him, but my voice wavers and it sounds accusatory. “Thank you for putting a bid in with my mother—for the conservatory.”

  The older gentleman’s gray eyes widen a notch. His hair is shorn close to his head, all salt and pepper, and it matches his five o’clock shadow.

  “Glad to do it. She said she wants the addition put in before spring, and I promised her I’d have it standing by the end of next month.”

  “Wow,” I muse. “You are certainly fast.” There is no way the permit process would have moved that quickly. My mother’s conservatory would have been a death trap come spring. It’s bad enough people believe the place is haunted, not to mention the fact there was a bona fide murder there. A conservatory massacre would be the proverbial nail in the B&B’s casket. No pun intended.

  I step in close to his tall, heavy frame, and it feels intimidating. I can only imagine how Eve felt standing up to him.

  “Can I ask you a question? Did it upset your wife when she found out Eve was trying to have your license revoked?”

  His eyes grow in size, and he takes a full step back. “My wife doesn’t know anything about it.” He shakes his head. “Where did you hear this? She can’t know. She’ll be humiliated. Eve is gone, and the claim died with her.”

  “I didn’t realize—” My fingers fly to my lips as our eyes lock, equally stunned with one another as a revelation hits me.

  Bill takes a couple of blind steps back, his gaze still pinned to mine with a threat blooming in each one.

  A crowd moves between us, but I keep my eyes on his plaid coat as he heads for the door.

  And I bolt right after him.

  Chapter 19

  The icy air licks my cheeks, and it makes my skin burn without warning. Evening is upon us, and the sky quickly grows a dark shade of navy.

  “Bill, wait!” I call after him as he heads toward the parking lot.

  He turns around, his features pulled down with disdain and, dare I say, fury.

  A thought comes to me. “Your wife—she’s competitive by nature. I can tell. She didn’t want Eve around. And once Eve told her what she was about to do, it pushed her over the edge. It was practically a crime of passion.” Not quite true, but it gets the point across.

&n
bsp; A low growl emits from the woods to our left, and Dutch bounds right out of Carlson Hall and speeds that way.

  Oh boy. Something tells me we’re about to have company. And for a moment I wonder what the odds are that Eve’s cuddly pet bear will tear Bill Chutney to pieces right before my eyes? A familiar roar fills the air, and I’m betting the odds are pretty darn good right about now.

  Heavy white plumes expel from Bill in quick succession as his breathing grows rapid. “You think Connie did this?” He shakes his head hard. “No! Not my Connie. She would never in a million years.” He beats his chest with his hands. “I’m the man of the family. I take care of the problems that come into our lives. And if you ask me, Eve had it coming for a long, long time.”

  “You killed Eve.” The words strum from me, numb, as if he caught me off guard, and essentially, he did. “She was going to the city and—”

  “She went to the city!” His voice riots into the night. His face turns a shade darker in this dim light. “A couple of more days and she would have destroyed me.”

  “So you destroyed her instead.” I take a stumbling step back, and his head flops to the side as he observes me.

  “Now where are you going, pretty little lady?” In one clean move he pulls a weapon from under his coat and something from his pocket and threads the two together before pointing it right at me. “Put up those hands where I can see them.”

  My hands raise to the command. “You poisoned her. You didn’t think anyone would notice. You were in her house every single day. How did you get in that last day, the day you spiked that pitcher of water in her bathroom? You overrode the filter, didn’t you?” Just a stab in the dark but a darn good one.

  “The housekeeper let me in whenever I wanted.” A satisfied smile glides over his face. “It took some time, but the old cow keeled over quick enough.” The sound of voices rumbling from the hall behind us lights up the night, and he motions to the woods with the gun. “Come on, honey. I don’t got all night.”

  I glance to the dark thicket of evergreens and realize that if I set foot into that forest I may never come out. I could scream. And he could shoot. Not sure that’s quite the combo I’m looking for.

  His arms begin to shake, and his face twists with rage. “I said move!”

  An ear-piercing growl emits from the woods, and both the long dead black bear and Dutch come flying out. The eyes of that bear glow an eerie shade of yellow, and for once I fill with relief at the sight of the beast.

  “Come on,” I whisper under my breath as I watch them thunder this way.

  Bill turns his head as if he heard them, as if he felt the wild vibrations going off under our feet, and the bear nearly clips him, causing his arms to flail, and I try to bolt for cover behind the nearest car. No sooner do I hit the frozen ground than the windshield of the vehicle I’m using as a two-ton shield shatters to marble-sized pieces, raining down over my hair, my clothes. I didn’t hear the horrific detonation you expect from the firing of a gun, more like a loud snap. I’m betting it was a silencer Bill threaded over his weapon.

  “Oh God,” I whimper before carefully peering out in the direction of the woods. The gentle click of metal clicking against metal goes off behind me, and I freeze.

  “That’s right, hon. Get up nice and slow and start walking. Don’t turn around. No funny business.”

  “Did you feel that earthquake?” I try to turn my head his way.

  “We don’t have earthquakes here. That must have been a truck going by. You got lucky, but you won’t get lucky again. In fact, you might just say this is the unluckiest day of your life.”

  My feet move slowly and carefully.

  Dutch bounces in front of me, panting with his tongue swinging happily to the side as if we were ready to play a game.

  Unluckiest day of my life? As in bad luck? I look to the mystical oversized puppy, and my heart breaks. Could I have brought this on myself simply because I enjoy having a handsome little spectral in my life? I can’t get rid of Dutch. He’s like family at this point. My luck has always been sort of rotten. What’s a bullet or two going to hurt?

  What the hell am I saying? The adorable poltergeist needs to find the next portal home before all of Honey Hollow caves in on itself and quickly become the world’s largest sinkhole.

  Dutch whines as if he heard me, and my insides wrench just hearing it.

  “Where’s that darn bear?” I mutter to the spooky hound, and he glances to my left. “Don’t just stand there—get him now!”

  “What’s that?” Bill pipes up just as we’re about to leave the safety of the parking lot.

  “Just saying my prayers!” Oh dear God Almighty, forgive me for lying—but while I have your attention, feel free to send a little help my way.

  “Lottie!” a familiar male voice booms into the night somewhere in the far-off distance.

  That was quick. I glance to the sky and mouth a silent thank you.

  “Faster.” Bill’s voice shakes with agitation, and I realize this is it. The woods are pitch-black, save for Dutch’s glowing red eyes. Still no sign of Eve’s less than gregarious black bear.

  “Lottie!” Noah’s voice rings out closer than it was before, and it takes a split second for me to decide what to do next.

  “Noah!” I shout and dive behind the trunk of an evergreen. Another shot gets fired, and I hear the bullet vacuuming the air right next to my head.

  The crash of footsteps falls hard in the snow, and I turn to find Bill running away from the woods. He jumps into his truck and starts to peel out before turning hard and heading straight for—

  Oh my God.

  “Noah!” I scream so loud my skull threatens to shatter. Dutch barks up a celestial storm just as the truck speeds up. Noah tries to get out of the way, but it’s too late. Bill’s not slowing down, and Noah can’t move fast enough.

  Out of nowhere that black bear springs to life and steps right in front of Bill Chutney’s pickup, and the truck bucks hard as if it just hit a wall. Noah rolls to the side, shooting up the truck, and the tire under the driver’s side quickly begins to sag. Bill bolts from the vehicle, and Noah leaps over him as if he had the ability to fly.

  Ivy comes up behind him, gun drawn, and soon enough the entire parking lot is filled with squad cars, their spastic lights illuminating the night.

  “Lemon,” Everett barks, and he’s on me, his strong arms caging me in tight before I can process what’s happened. “You’re safe,” he breathes the words hot into my hair, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think he just ran a string of kisses over the top of my head.

  Noah strides over, his clothes slightly disheveled as he tucks his weapon back into its holster.

  Everett takes a firm step away. “Good work, Fox.” He glowers at him a moment, because well, it’s just his way. “Next time, work a little faster before Lemon gets killed.”

  “I’m not getting killed.”

  Dutch barks in protest as if it were a real possibility, and that curse Nell filled me in on haunts me once again.

  “I’m glad you’re safe.” Everett holds my gaze for as long as he can. “Goodnight.”

  We watch as he takes off, and then Noah takes me in his strong arms, his hot kisses tracking over my temple straight to my anxious-to-have-him lips.

  It’s really over.

  Eve Hollister’s killer has been apprehended.

  All is well in Honey Hollow.

  Somewhere in the distance the howl of a bear goes off, and a shimmering light fills the forest before dissipating to nothing.

  I have a feeling Eve Hollister is getting herself a nice firm bear hug right about now.

  Noah tightens his grip over me, and I get one, too.

  Chapter 20

  “To Eve Hollister and Nell Sawyer,” Mom says, hiking her glass to the ceiling and everyone in the room does the same. “Two women whom I adored and admired. You will be greatly missed.”

  A warm coo of approval breaks out as we all drink t
o that one.

  Mom thought it would be a good idea to have a do-over at the B&B after the fiasco the other night. Keelie and Naomi are here, as is their mother Becca, Lainey and Forest, Noah and Everett, and Lily Swanson and Brad Rutherford also managed to score invites. I don’t mind Lily, even though she’s been hanging all over Everett like a wet sheet of toilet paper. The same could be said for Mr. Rutherford and my mother.

  We enjoy a nice meal that my mother catered in. She still insists on only visiting the kitchen on an as-needed basis, and since she’s catering all the food in, it’s just not needed. Bear felt so bad for her, he said he would throw in a kitchen remodel for half the price if she wanted, and you bet she wanted.

  After dinner, Keelie helps me dole out my infamous seven-layer cake. I baked three this month that went uneaten. It turns out, after they arrested Bill Chutney, Carlson Hall cleared out, and there wasn’t a soul left to haunt the place.

  Dutch barks from the foot of the table as if begging for a piece of my delicious Bavarian dream cake himself.

  “This cake is getting eaten,” I say before adding under my breath, “just not by you.” I give Dutch a quick wink as I help pass out extra-large helpings to everyone in the room.

  Noah and Everett are each enjoying a piece by the fireplace, and I head that way.

  “What do you think, boys?”

  Noah moans with satisfaction. “You should really consider opening up a bakery. It’s that good.”

  Everett grunts out a dull laugh. “I’m starting to think the bakery is just a cover. She’s about to put you out of a job, Noah.”

  Now it’s me belting out a laugh. “No thank you. I like it just fine in the kitchen. I’ll take customers over suspects any day of the week. Detective Fox, you are welcome to all the homicide investigations in the world. I want nothing to do with another one of those things.”

  Noah’s dimples press in deep. “Now that sounds like a deal.”

  Everett sways back on his heels. “I’ve got some news.”