Meredith Potts Fourteen Book Cozy Mystery Set Read online

  I kept saying the words, but it didn’t change the truth. I could try to deny it all I wanted, but it was no use. Jake was gone, and there was nothing I could do about it. The feeling of powerlessness was the most maddening of all.

  My rage was unbridled. I couldn’t keep a lid on it or rein it in, no matter how much I tried. It was almost as if it had a mind of its own. My emotions were so raw and painful that I just wanted to make them go away. They were too much to try to juggle all at once. What I needed more than anything right then was relief.

  It came in the most surprising of packages. In the end, it was nature that brought me back to reality. Ever since I’d discovered Jake’s body, adrenaline had been coursing through my veins and fueling my emotions. As powerful as adrenaline was, it could only take me so far. There was a point when the weather refused to be denied any longer.

  It had reached that point in the night where that was the case. My prolonged exposure to the cold, even with my multiple layers of clothing on, had caught up with me. The chill in the air was so strong that it brought me back to reality. I began shivering uncontrollably as my tears threatened to freeze to my cheek.

  Suddenly, I switched into self-preservation mode. I had to shelve my emotions and get back inside as quickly as possible before I turned into an ice pop. When I was safely inside and warmed up, I could try to piece everything together.

  Or, so I thought. I entered the building and stood next to the heater, desperate to thaw out. No sooner after I finally regained some semblance of composure, did I spot trouble staring me down at the end of the hallway in the form of the local police detective.

  Chapter Six

  In my fragile emotional state, the last thing I wanted to do was talk to the police. Frankly, I wasn’t really in the mood to speak with anyone, for that matter, but especially the boys in blue. If I had my druthers, I’d go home, crawl into bed, and cry myself to sleep.

  As much as I loathed discussing what I’d discovered with the detective, I knew I couldn’t avoid it. There were questions that needed answering, and as the person who discovered Jake’s body, I held the first key to unearthing the truth. As shocking as it was to come to grips with, my boyfriend’s office was no longer just the home to his private-eye business—it was also a crime scene. And, with all the blood coming from his body, it was clear he hadn’t died from natural causes.

  He’d been murdered. Even more, the killer was out there somewhere, completely on the loose. That was a chilling thought—one that Detective Adam Stone had come to address with me. I knew the detective would have preferred to leave me in peace—that the questions he was about to ask me were just part of his job. At the same time, that knowledge didn’t make the situation any easier for me to stomach.

  If timing in life was everything, having to talk to an officer of the law while simultaneously trying to come to terms with the fact that the love of my life had been murdered was too much to grapple with at once. Conversely, for the detective, getting his questions answered as fast as possible was crucial.

  There was a truism in the investigative world. The best chance of solving any murder case was the first forty-eight hours after the crime occurred. With each additional hour that the investigation stretched on, the chances grew of the case getting cold. So, while I could have easily spent the next two days sobbing uncontrollably, the police needed to spend that time trying to dig up as many leads as possible. That process began with me.

  I wish I could tell you that was the first time I’d ever talked to a police detective. In truth, that was far from the case. Detective Stone’s angular face and square jaw were actually becoming quite a familiar sight to me.

  My eyes opened wide as I contemplated how I’d become on a first-name basis with the local police detective. That was certainly something I never thought I’d ever say, but that was just how crazy my life had become of late. I had gone a significant portion of my life without ever having spoken to the authorities. In the last few months, we’d become all too acquainted with each other.

  Please allow me to explain. That was not due to any illegal action of my own. I lived my life on the right side of the law. My interaction with the police centered on the sudden and disturbing spike in the local murder rate. With each new homicide case that was opened, I’d stuck my nose in the middle of the detective’s investigations. I know, I know—I’d been worried about Jake putting himself in danger all this time, yet I’d investigated cases myself. The difference was, I’d done all my sleuthing with the aid and firepower of the local authorities.

  As for my investigating, sometimes I’d gotten involved because of my insatiable curiosity. Other times, it was to exonerate a friend who had been wrongfully suspected of murder. Suffice it to say, my sleuthing did not go over well with the detective at first. Adam was the kind of broad-shouldered fifty-five-year-old who walked around with a stiff upper lip even during the best of times, so when he caught me snooping around his crime scenes and independently questioning his suspects, he reacted predictably poorly.

  My only saving grace was that, despite my distinct lack of professional credentials, in the end, I happened to have an uncanny knack for solving murders. Despite the detective’s initial rebuke of my amateur sleuthing, I had solved three cases in a row. Even a boisterous man such as the detective had a hard time arguing with those kinds of results.

  My investigative success aside, after closing the book on my last case a few months ago, I had believed that my days of sleuthing were behind me. Little did I know I’d end up in the middle of a new murder investigation—one that hit more close to home than any that had come before.

  Detective Stone knew everything was different this time around. That was why he shelved his typical hard-as-nails, never-showing-a-crack-in-the-armor approach. He addressed me not as a stiff detective, but rather as a friend. There was sympathy and anguish in his voice as he tried to console me.

  “I know this isn’t a good time,” Detective Stone said.

  My emotions were so raw that I was unable to restrain them. My agony came out. “You’re right. It’s a horrible time.”

  Detective Stone looked me deep in the eyes. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”

  I could tell he wasn’t just saying that. Those were more than hollow words. There was an emotional truth behind them.

  While it was refreshing to see that sympathetic side to him, it could only do so much to dull the pain I felt.

  “Thank you. This whole day has been like a nightmare—one I can’t seem to wake up from,” I replied.

  Detective Stone got choked up. “Unfortunately, I know exactly what you mean.”

  When consoling the bereaved, people said things like that all the time. Some did it because they didn’t know what else to say. For others, it came from a place of truth. I knew that, coming from the detective’s mouth, it was more than just a platitude. Grief and tragedy were more common than not in his line of work.

  As the detective knew what I was going through, he also knew how difficult it was for me to answer. His last statement hung in the air, begging to be followed up on. I just had a hard time getting the words out. An awkward moment of silence developed as I wrestled with trying to find the right words.

  After a few more seconds had passed, the detective decided to break the silence. He continued with his line of thought.

  “Tragedy aside, it doesn’t change the fact that I need to talk to you.”

  I sighed. My tongue had been doing its best to avoid answering, but there was no way to skirt around the issue anymore. The elephant in the room was waving its trunk around and stomping its paws, making it impossible to be ignored any further.

  “I know you do,” I said.

  “I hate to do this to you right now, but I’ll try to make it quick. I have to get a statement from you about what happened here.”

  I already knew what he was going to ask. What time was it when I found Jake? What condition was he in? Was he already unconscious when I g
ot here? Had told me anything before slipping away? Did I see or hear anyone outside fleeing from the scene? Did I know anyone with reason to want my boyfriend dead?

  The questions were always the same, no matter the case. I’d asked them myself many times in the past. The thing was, back then, I’d always been the one asking the questions. I’d never had the roles reversed on me, staring down nothing but grief, knowing each answer was more debilitating than the last.

  I clammed up, even more so than before, only not just out of anguish. Suddenly, something more was at play as I became lost in my thoughts. A new feeling in my gut began forming. I couldn’t quite make sense of it yet, but I knew something interesting was brewing.

  While I tried to sort out what was going on inside my body, the detective’s focus was on how inward my attention had turned.

  “Andrea, stay with me. I need you out here,” he said.

  Detective Stone succeeded in getting my attention, although only briefly. Before he was able to get another word out, a number of things dawned on me in quick succession. The first of which really struck me the hardest. There was no disputing that, regardless of my mental state, the case was going to go on without me. Life stopped for no one, no matter how dire the circumstances. That was the way it always was and always would be.

  So, while my feet felt like they were stuck in cement as the world collapsed around me, everyone else would carry on like things were business as usual. Jake’s murder needed solving, and once the detective was done with me, he’d get straight to investigating. That was where I felt torn. As much as I wanted Jake’s killer to be brought to justice, I wasn’t confident that Detective Stone could find the perpetrator alone.

  After all, if anyone else had been the victim, I would have been joining in on the case. When I threw in the fact that I had outsmarted the detective during the last three investigations, it painted a disillusioning picture in my head that I could rely on Detective Stone to bring justice to this case.

  At the same time, I was a complete mess. While that fact was not lost on me, neither was the knowledge that when it came to finding Jake’s killer, there was only one opportunity to do this right. So, even though tending to my feelings seemed like the most important thing to do in the short run, ultimately, nothing was more crucial than justice being served.

  Unfortunately, I was a woman of two minds, and they were both warring with each other. It was time to call a cease-fire. This was too big and important to risk messing up. As I honed in on that, my emotions suddenly calmed, and I got a razor-sharp focus. Suddenly, I knew what I had to do.

  The detective had been left hanging for too long. He tried to get an answer out of me once again. “Andrea, I really need to get a statement from you.”

  An unexpected resolve came to my face as my emotions spoke for me. “You will, detective. A definitive one. Like, leave this to me.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m going to find Jake’s killer,” I said.

  Up until that point, the detective had been very kind to me and accommodated my wildly erratic emotions.

  All that changed after my last statement. He shook his head and stood firm. “No. That’s not a good idea.”

  “Detective, I wasn’t asking. I was telling you. This investigation is too important--”

  He wouldn’t let me finish my sentence.

  “You’re right. It’s too important to let your emotions cloud the truth.”

  I was heavy in denial. “My emotions have nothing to do with this.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong again. Your emotions have everything to do with this.”

  I wanted to put a quick end to it. “Detective, we’ve argued about this topic in the past. Do I have to remind you how that turned out?”

  “No.”

  “Good, then we’re clear.”

  “Not so fast. If this was any other case, I’d agree with you. But this is unlike anything you’ve ever experienced.”

  I groaned as my frustration boiled over. “I’m not in the mood to argue with you about this anymore.”

  “Andrea, I’m not the enemy here. I’m looking out for you.”

  “Are you sure about that?”

  He stared me down and tried to reason with me. “Yes. Your boyfriend was just murdered. You’re not in a position for rational thought, much less to conduct an investigation.”

  It was hard to dispute that. At the same time, I had a valid argument of my own.

  “Even so, we both know I can help solve this.”

  It was then that I saw a brand-new side to the detective—one I didn’t know existed. He pleaded with me. “Please don’t do this.”

  I was beyond reason. Stubborn to a fault. I didn’t relent in the least. “Nothing you’re going to say will stop me. So, unless you’re planning on arresting me for interfering with your investigation, don’t waste your breath.”

  He valued his breath less than I did. “I’m not saying this as a detective. I’m saying this as your friend. Let me handle this case.”

  I tried to argue with him, but he wouldn’t let me, looking at me with pleading eyes once again.

  “Please. Just stay out of this one.”

  That time, I didn’t just hear his voice. He was like the voice of reason. I listened to his words. That, combined with the look in his eyes, swayed me. As I came down from my emotional high, I realized that as much as I hated to admit it, he was right.

  When I stepped back, I saw the lunacy in my words. My adrenaline had done the talking for me. As I settled down, I changed my tune and gave him the statement he was looking for. Shortly after, the detective drove me home. As he dropped me off at my house, he assured me he’d do everything he could to bring Jake’s killer to justice. I knew it was more than just lip service. He meant it from the bottom of his heart.

  Chapter Seven

  Two Days Later

  Unfortunately, the detective’s word wasn’t enough to go on. Two days later, the case was disturbingly still unsolved. Despite the detective’s best efforts, not only was the killer still on the loose, but he hadn’t been able to narrow down the handful of suspects. The lack of progress made in the case troubled me to no end. It also made Jake’s funeral feel incomplete.

  As I looked over the pews, I felt so bad for his poor parents, Todd and Nancy. Jake was their only child. He was their pride, their joy, and now he was gone. No parent wanted to outlive their children. It wasn’t the natural order of things. I’d tried my best to console them, but I was having a hard enough time keeping from falling apart myself.

  That difficulty only grew as I paid my last respects. There was a finality in seeing Jake’s body in the casket but no closure associated with it. The phrase “rest in peace” was uttered by the pastor, but those words didn’t apply, not until the case was closed.

  I could feel rage swelling in my body. While no one could fault me for being bent out of shape, church was hardly the proper venue to blow my lid or vent my frustrations. I had to find a way to calm down, and fast. Causing a scene would be a disaster. Then again, so would bottling up my feelings.

  There was already so much going on inside me. The mourning process was nearly all consuming on its own. This added pressure threatened to throw me over the edge. After all, there was only so much turmoil I could endure before I tore apart at the seams.

  Usually, a few deep breaths did the trick in lowering my heart rate. I coupled that with a reminder that the funeral service was about paying tribute to Jake’s life, not questioning all that had occurred after his death.

  With my mind focused on the service again, my heart became heavy as I stood at my boyfriend’s casket. As broken up as it made me to even think it, this would be the last chance I’d get to say good-bye to him face to face. I wanted to make the moment count, not even just for Jake. There was no doubt in my mind that he was in heaven. The moment was as much for me to honor his legacy and get some peace of mind.

  I looked at his b
ody and talked to him, letting my emotions spill out without any filter.

  “I miss you so much. You’re the love of my life. I don’t know how to go on without you. I still can’t believe this happened to you, that someone would do something so awful. Every time I try to make sense of this, I draw a blank.”

  I had to stop, as I was getting choked up. After wiping the tears away from my eyes, I exhaled and continued.

  “I’m trying to stay strong, but I feel like I’m sinking in quicksand. The more I struggle to get out of it, the deeper I sink. I love you so much.”

  More tears came to my eyes. As they streamed down my cheeks, I knew I couldn’t keep my composure any longer. I had to wrap things up before I completely fell apart.

  “I can honestly say that my life will never be the same.”

  At that point, I’d hit my limit. I couldn’t hold myself together any longer. I gave Jake’s body one last glance then stepped away from the casket.

  I wiped my tears away again, knowing there was still a lot I could have said to him if I had just been able to muster the strength. As I had fallen short in that regard, I tried to comfort myself with the knowledge that I’d still managed to get my point across.

  Before leaving the church, I kneeled down at one of the pews to say a prayer. Like with Jake, there was so much I could have said to God. I decided to keep things brief. I had no doubt that Jake was in heaven, but that didn’t stop me from continuing to pray for him anyway. I wished him well in the afterlife and prayed to join him one day, in the distant future, of course.

  That wasn’t all I asked God for. I also prayed for myself, calling on the Lord for strength during this tumultuous time. I wanted answers, both when it came to the case, and for my future. I didn’t know when I’d get an answer, but I sure hoped it would be soon.

  When I opened my eyes and got up from the pew, I grabbed my parka and bundled up, braving for the cold that awaited outside. That was when I spotted something very unusual.