Balmy Darlings and Deaths: A Chinese Cozy Mystery (A Raina Sun Mystery Book 4) (3 page)

A
fter a quick breakfast
with Po Po and Louie Po, Raina left the senior condo complex for her apartment. She pulled into her assigned parking spot, got out, and scanned the area for Eden’s car. No green Kia. She’d texted Eden earlier but didn’t get a reply. Her friend was avoiding her.

Raina knocked on Eden’s front door. No answer. She hadn’t expected one, but she had to try before crossing it off her list. Next stop, the newspaper office. She crossed the courtyard to her apartment and grabbed her bike. It was too beautiful of a spring day to drive around the historic downtown area in her car. And unless a part-time job materialized soon, she shouldn’t waste gas on trips that could easily be made on a bike.

Five minutes later, she locked her bike on the bike rack outside the single-story brick-front building. She trotted through the glass lobby door. The newspaper shared the premises with a title company and insurance company. The rent from these two businesses probably kept the weekly newspaper afloat.

She hooked a left at the fork, passed the restrooms, and opened the door to the newspaper office. A counter separated her from the main room. Three desks were pushed against the one wall and two large flat screen TVs hung on the opposite wall. A door at the far wall opened to the editor-in-chief’s office. The commercial printers for the newspaper itself were located in another part of the building.

Dale Sprint got up from the desk closest to Phil’s office and sauntered to the counter. “Eden’s not here. Phil sacked her.”

Raina gasped, her hand flying to her chest.

“Got ya.” Dale snickered at his joke, flashing a dimple at the chin. “Can I help you? I’m assuming you’re not here to buy an ad.”

Raina took a deep breath and hooked her thumbs onto her shorts pocket so she wouldn’t smack him.

In his youth, Dale probably had a rugged face women would swoon over and men would do favors for so they could be seen as the wingman. Two decades, gray hairs, and a small potbelly had a way of neutralizing his magnetic charm. Unfortunately, he’d conveniently forgotten this, and still acted as if he were a big man on campus around women.

“I’m trying to find Eden. Did she come by this morning?” Raina asked, ignoring his smoldering look. Or maybe the man had dust in his eyes.

“You and half the town are trying to find her. Everyone wants to know what she was doing when LaShawna died. You have heard about her death?” He didn’t wait to give her a chance to answer. “Eden probably has the inside scoop on the story.” His face grew dark at the thought.

“Is Eden supposed to come in?” Raina cut in before he went off on a tangent. “It’s Sunday, and the regular edition of the paper came out this morning, but I’m assuming there would be a special run.”

“Two special runs this week. Phil left last evening for Hawaii, so Eden is in charge,” Dale said, his mouth twisting like he bit into a wormy apple. No, he was not bitter at having lost the Assistant editor-in-chief promotion to Eden. “She sent me the email this morning.”

“She is the Assistant EIC. It’s natural she would be in charge when the boss is away.” Raina stepped back until she touched the door. Dale opened his mouth to argue, but Raina cut in, “Tell her to call me when she shows up.”

Outside the newspaper office, Raina considered her options. She could stop by the day spa to snoop around or she could get her car and drive across town to Eden’s boyfriend’s place. She glanced at the digital clock on her cell phone. Almost lunchtime. The day spa was closer to food. She would have to catch up with Eden later.

A few minutes later, she was locking up her bike outside the day spa. The front parking lot was emptied, but the “Open” sign was on. The bell above the front door jingled when Raina opened the door. Without the revolving group of women who came in for their pampering sessions, the place smelled of sawdust and stale air. While outwardly the same, the place didn’t quite have the pizzazz for an exclusive boutique. The minimalist decor could be a sign of a struggling business with large pretensions.

Let them turn their nose up on her gift certificate now
, Raina thought, and immediately flushed with guilt for her moment of satisfaction.

Walt glanced up from the receptionist counter, a smile automatically pasted on his face. It disappeared when he recognized her. “We’re closed.” Unlike yesterday when he was unfocused, Walt was even worse when he wasn’t on his meds. Or at least she hoped it was meds.

“Your ‘Open’ sign is still on,” Raina said.

He glanced at the sign and reached for a button on his desk. The light turned off on the sign.

“When are you planning to open for business again?” Raina asked, ignoring the “Do Not Disturb” vibe rolling off him.

“In a couple days. We need to open for business by Saturday. Taylor better stay on top of the repairs or Myra Jo will be forced to hire someone else this time.”

Raina perked at the mention of Eden’s new boyfriend. Good thing she didn’t waste a trip across town. “Is he here?”

“He’s out back, doing his manly thing,” Walt said, glancing at the watch on his wrist. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to pick up lunch.”

“Oh, are you going across street to the Venus Café? Do you need any help?” Raina hoped he would say yes so she could continue to question him under the guise of being helpful.

Walt hesitated.

“I guess you’re too smart for me. I’m hoping to pick your brain on how to get a job here,” Raina said, peeking at him from lowered eyes. “I don’t want to ask Eden because…”

He relaxed, even managing a half smile. “I understand. You wouldn’t want your friend to think you’re poaching on her territory.”

“Exactly.”

Walt locked up, and they left the spa together. They crossed the parking lot companionably. His tight skinny jeans didn’t even crease once though it looked like it might dig into his skin. Today he had on a fitted polo shirt in a sunny shade of yellow that did great things to his olive skin tone. The man could be a walking advertisement for the day spa.

As they crossed the street, Raina asked, “Your skin looks great. Is it genetic or some kind of treatment from the day spa? Do you get an employee’s discount?”

Walt gave her a sideways glance. The corners of his lips curled even though he tried to play it off. “Naturally…enhanced. And yes, there’s a discount.”

“Do you know when Myra Jo is hiring Eden’s replacement?”

“Soon. There’s a lot of clean-up work. Other than me, everyone else is a contract worker. The stylists, makeup artists, and massage therapists all rent their spots from Myra Jo. Their fees pay for my wages to schedule their appointments.”

“But what do you do when there’s no appointments to schedule? Like today?”

“Part of my job is to make the ladies feel welcome and to book events.”

“How long have you worked for Myra Jo? Is she a good boss? Do you like your job?”

“It started as a summer gig that turned full-time two years ago. Myra Jo is all right, and the job has its…perks.”

Raina held open the door to the Venus Café. “Could you mention my interest to Myra Jo? I worked at the birth resort before it closed down, so I have plenty of clean-up work experience.” She didn’t mention her role contributing to the resort’s closure.

He sailed through the threshold. “Sure. Just don’t forget my part when you get the job.”

Raina waited until he paid for his order before springing the next question on him. “So what happened after Maggie Louie ran into the building? I was outside, but I didn’t see you or Myra Jo. I would think you guys would be one of the first ones on the scene.”

Walt rubbed the back of his neck, glancing out the window toward the spa. A man came around the side of the building carrying a two by four. Taylor! From this angle, they could see the work bench he’d set up near the car accident site. The muscles on his biceps flexed as he pushed down on the table saw.

Raina gave Walt a sideways glance. The receptionist’s gaze followed Taylor’s movements until he disappeared from view, a look of hunger on his face. Like that, huh?

Walt dragged his gaze from the window. “I was by the door, ushering everyone out. Myra Jo was checking the restroom for stragglers.”

“What about Eden? Did you see Eden?”

“I was busy trying to get everybody out of the building, so I wasn’t paying any attention to her.”

Brenda appeared and held out the takeout bags. “I’m surprised Taylor is on the ball with the spa repairs. He takes forever to do any small job we have for him. It's too bad Joe has ten thumbs when it comes to repairs.”

“Do you know how he’s handling LaShawna’s death?” Raina asked.

Brenda shrugged.

“Can I put in a takeout order for lunch?” Raina asked. She gave her orders—guessing at what the grandmas would like—and said she would be back in a few minutes.

Raina and Walt each carried a takeout bag across the street. Through the glass store front, they could see Myra Jo tapping on the monitor on the receptionist counter when they came through the door.

Her strawberry red hair was in a baseball cap, and she had on torn jeans and a T-shirt with streaks of grime on it. It appeared the spa owner had been cleaning all morning, getting her hands dirty, while Walt buffed his nails in his fitted polo shirt with nary a wrinkle on his skinny jeans.

Raina would have fired Walt in a heartbeat if she were in Myra Jo’s shoes. How hard could it be to find someone to schedule appointments? But then, his presence gave the boutique day spa a
je ne sais quoi
appeal lacking in the spa owner.

When they came in through the front door, Myra Jo glanced up, frowning when she saw Raina. “We’re not open for business today.”

“I came to apply for Eden’s job,” Raina said. She crossed her fingers underneath the takeout bag, not quite sure if she hoped to get the job for access to the crime scene or for a more selfish reason.

Myra Jo raised an eyebrow. “Walt, why don’t you give—what’s your name again?”

“Raina Sun.”

“—Raina a job application,” Myra Jo continued. “What kind of job experience do you have?”

Walt disappeared behind the beaded curtain.

Raina gave the spa owner a quick rundown of her duties at the birth resort. There was no need to get into why she ran from her career as a Project Manager for an engineering company a couple years ago. “After my final this afternoon, I’m supposed to work on my graduate thesis this summer. But I’m still looking for actual work which will pay the rent.”

Walt returned and handed her an application, and Raina tucked it in her purse.

“I guess you’ll do. Can you start tomorrow?” Myra Jo asked.

“Yes, ma’am. I’m a hard worker,” Raina said. “The police gave you the okay to clean up the treatment room…” 

Myra Jo’s lips thinned, and she glanced at the appointment calendar, choosing to speak to the monitor. “They are done processing the room.”

Raina couldn’t tell what the tone meant, but she continued, “What do you think of Detective Sokol? He’s so new at homicide. I’m afraid he won’t be able to do his job properly.”

“Why would it matter to us?” Walt asked.

“Could be bad juju for the business. Wedding season is coming up, and you know how superstitious people can get when it comes to the marriage. I’m hoping to keep this job for a while,” Raina said.

Walt chewed his lower lip and gave his boss a sideways glance. “You don’t think they’ll come back asking questions again, do you?”

Myra Jo glanced up sharply. “I hope you’re not always this chatty when you’re working.”

“No, I’m just concerned. I thought it might be a good idea to figure out how to handle the police when they come sniffing around,” Raina said, deliberately using “when” rather than “if.” “Better to be prepared than caught off guard.”

“Can’t we say ‘no comment’ like they do to the press?” Walt asked.

“Enough,” Myra Jo said through clenched teeth. “We’ll figure it out when we cross the bridge.”

“Okay. See you tomorrow morning,” Raina said, backing out the front door.

As she trotted across the street to the Venus Cafe for her lunch order, she grinned, pleased with herself. Not only did she get a part-time gig that would give her access to the crime scene, but she had also planted a seed of fear in Myra Jo and Walt. And fear had a way of shaking things up when it came to murder. Too bad she didn’t have time to chat with Taylor before her final exam, but there would be time tomorrow.

R
aina balanced
the takeout bags on the handlebars of her bike and pedaled the short distance from the Venus Cafe to the senior condo complex. A few minutes later she knocked on Louie Po’s front door.

Po Po swung the door wide open. “I almost ate my own foot. Come on in.” 

“No can do. I have a final. Does Louie Po still need a ride to the health clinic this afternoon?” Raina handed the bag with two cartons to her grandma.

“Three o’clock. Did you talk to Eden yet?”

“Na-uh. My friend is a hard woman to track down.”

Raina promised her grandma she would be back after her final with the car to take them to the health clinic. She biked back to her apartment with one hand on the handlebar and the other holding a turkey wrap, trying to wolf down lunch in the few minutes she had before her exam.

Eden’s car was still missing from the parking lot. As she rolled through the courtyard, she glanced at her friend’s kitchen window, not expecting to see anyone. Her gaze lingered on her friend yakking on the phone.

Her bike wobbled, and the handlebars jerked out of her hands. Time slowed as her body fell off the seat, and the turkey wrap unfurled in the air. It landed with all its parts splattered on the concrete walkway a half second before her bottom landed on the mulch in the planter box. Pain raced up her tailbone, and she lay there—stunned.

Eden’s door jerked open. “Are you okay?”

Raina assessed her limbs—nothing broken. She flushed, more embarrassed than anything else, and brushed off the seat of her shorts. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure? Where’s your shoe?”

Raina glanced down—and sure enough—was missing a sandal. She stood, awkwardly balancing on one foot like a baby stork and searched the planter area. No shoe. 

Eden walked around the planter, studying the ground, and shook her head. “That’s weird.”

Raina hopped off the planter and hobbled her way to her front door. “We need to talk, but I have to get to class first. Come over for dinner later,” she called over her shoulder.

“What do you want me to do with your bike?”

“Just keep an eye on it for me. Thank you.”

Raina rushed into her apartment and slipped into a pair of sneakers. She grabbed her backpack and car keys. As she jogged back to the parking lot, she saw Eden struggling to drag the bike into her apartment. The bent front wheel didn’t make the job easy. “Thank you,” she called out again.

By the time she rushed up the stairs to the Steinburg History Building, Raina dripped with sweat. As she read the exam question, her heart continued to race. She blotted at the moisture on her upper lip. Glancing up, she found a classmate inching away from her.

Her backpack vibrated next to her feet. Whoever called her could wait another fifty-five minutes. She glanced at it, but refocused on her final.

Why was the Tang dynasty considered the Golden…

The phone vibrated again. Her classmate shot her a sharp look. Raina rolled her eyes. Some people needed to lighten up. She finished her exam, but not without two additional calls. It wasn’t until she handed in her paper when she wondered if something had happened to one of the grandmas. 

Raina rushed out of the lecture hall, pulling her cell phone out of her backpack. Four missed calls. All from Matthew. She gave herself a mental head slap. Between Eden becoming a murder suspect and Louie Po’s fall, Raina had forgotten to call him.

She hit redial, mentally doing the sixteen hour time difference calculation. 5 AM. She wondered why he was up so early in the morning.

“Why didn’t you pick up my call?” Matthew barked into the phone.

“Hello to you too, Miss Sunshine,” Raina said, irritated. What got his underwear all in a bunch?

He growled something in incoherent, which was just as well. This was no time for them to bicker like fishmongers. 

“I was taking a final,” Raina said, cutting him off. “What are you doing up at this hour? Did you find something on my grandfather’s secret family in China?”

“I can’t believe you’re so irresponsible. I thought I could trust you.”

Raina’s stomach sank. “What are you talking about?” she replied in an even tone. Who ratted her out? Officer Hopper? Someone else down at the station?

“My grandmother. You were supposed to take care of her while I’m out of the country running a fool’s errand for your family.”

“I was going to call—”

“When? The accident happened yesterday—”

“Something else came up—”

“What is more important than my grandma—”

“A murder.”

Silence.

Between his deep breaths, Raina could make out hustle and bustle in the background. He wasn’t in his hotel room. “Where are you?” she said into the phone.

“Can you pick me up at the airport? I’m in Toronto waiting for my connecting flight. I’ll text you the info.” His voice sounded terse like he was reining in his anger.

Toronto? The tattletale must have called immediately after the car accident. “Okay.”

They hung up without further comments. Immediately her phone dinged, an incoming text with his flight information. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach at the thought of being near Matthew again. He would be a bear.

* * *

W
hen Raina pulled
up to the parking lot on the backside of the senior condo complex, Po Po and Louie Po were outside waiting for her. By their stiff posture and too bright smile, Raina knew they were in the middle of an argument.
Great.
The ride to the health clinic should be jolly.

After everyone buckled in and Raina was on the road again, she said, “Matthew called. I’m picking him up from the airport later this evening.”

“He didn’t need to come home. I’m fine,” Louie Po said.

“No, you’re not,” Po Po said.

“Bonnie, you’re getting out of line. Did I ask you to be my keeper?” Louie Po said.

“Right, because you’re doing a fine job of taking care of yourself. I haven’t been gone for more than a few days”—Po Po jerked a thumb at Louie Po’s bruised face—“and look what you did to yourself. At the rate you’re going, you’ll end up in a padded room.”

“I don’t want to be a burden to my grandson. It’s bad enough he used his college fund to pay for the condo.” Louie Po’s voice wobbled and she swallowed. “I don’t need him holding my hand for every little ache that comes with age.”

“Little? Have you seen the bruise on your face? You could scare a bear out of hibernation,” Po Po said.

“You can be such a jerk, Bonnie,” Louie Po said.

“I love you, that’s all,” Po Po mumbled. “I don’t want to lose my best friend.”

As she pulled up next to the health clinic, Raina didn’t even bother hiding her grin. The grandmas had been friends for the last fifty years. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to lose such a friend. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel. She had to help Eden because there was no one else who would.

The appointment was straight forward—nothing broken or strained—and the doctor asked to speak with one of them about paperwork in his office. Po Po elected to stay and help Louie Po in the exam door, so Raina followed the doctor into the hall. Her grandma wasn’t one to do paperwork. At the nurses’ station, he handed Maggie Louie’s chart to the nurse.

“Is Maggie’s grandson back in town?” the doctor asked.

“By tomorrow morning,” Raina answered. “I’m only a family friend, but she’s like a second grandmother to me. Is she going to be okay?”

“I need to talk to Matthew, and it’s up to him whether or not he wants to share the information. Please have him call me first thing tomorrow morning.” The doctor gave her a professionally bland smile and left after wishing her a good day.

Raina bit her lower lip, watching the doctor make his way into another examination room. This couldn’t be good news. With the health privacy laws, the doctor normally wouldn’t discuss anything with family without the patient’s consent. There must be something the doctor thought Matthew needed to know. He might not come out and say it directly, but he could certainly hint at it.

Po Po and Louie Po came out of the examination room. Next to her grandmother, Louie Po looked pale and wan as if her life force was slowly leeching out of her.

Raina’s heart ached to see the elderly woman who always smelled of milk and cookies shuffle like she was ready for a nursing home. If something were to happen to Matthew’s grandma, his world would fall apart.

She dropped the grandmothers off at the senior condo complex, promising to check in with them tomorrow morning. She drove the few short blocks home on autopilot. What ever happened to new beginnings and sunshine days? With her best friend entangled in a murder investigation and her second grandma with a potential health crisis, Raina wanted to hide until someone else took charge of the situation. Maybe Matthew was the answer. He always knew what to do in a crisis. She sighed. But those crises had never involved his family.

Raina opened her front door and dropped into her new-to-me sofa like a wilting plant. Before she could take another deep breath, someone knocked on the front door. She automatically glanced at the spot above the TV where she once hung a clock with gilded Koi fishes swimming around the dial. The wall was bare.

When she opened the front door, Eden stood at the threshold with a messenger bag slung over one shoulder and holding a shopping bag. Her eyes glittered with suppressed excitement or too much caffeine. Her smile was wide and her white teeth contrasted with her dark brown skin. Her friend didn’t look like someone who was in trouble.

“I’m here for my free dinner,” Eden said, stepping into the apartment and sniffing the air. “What are we having?”

Raina groaned, burying her head into her hands. “Nothing. I was going to open a can of tuna and have it with some crackers.”

Eden made a face, placing a hand on her cocked hip. “Seriously? I’m a cheap date, but not this cheap.”

Raina cracked a smile for her friend’s sake. “How about a mystery freezer pack?”

“Yum. I'll take your mystery freezer pack over anything in the frozen aisle.” Eden held out the shopping bag. “I can’t find your sandal in the courtyard, but I got you these. Don’t worry. It was on sale.”

Raina opened the bag. Nestled inside was a pair of scandals with a cheerful leather flower on top. “I can’t accept this.”

“Yeah, you can. Now make me dinner, woman,” Eden said.

Instead of heading to the kitchen, Raina collapsed onto the sofa. She could feel a cannon ball forming in her stomach. What if her friend thought she was disloyal for getting the job at the day spa? An argument would be the last thing she needed. She exhaled audibly. “I need a few minutes. Could you fill me in on what's going on?”

“You know about LaShawna's death?” Eden asked. At Raina's nod, she continued, “You were here when the police asked for my whereabouts at the time of her death. I went to Ty’s afterwards, but he wasn’t home. I stayed overnight at the newspaper’s office.” Eden shrugged as if there was no more to tell.

“Uh-huh. That’s a great yarn for the police. Now tell me what happened. I was right behind you and Myra Jo and then both of you disappeared from view by the time I got outside.”

“Nothing to tell really. I went into the storage room to get myself under control. I was...too upset.” Eden touched the bald spot on her weave hidden by the careful placement of the ponytail holder. “Can you imagine the rumors if the women saw me crying after the fight with LaShawna?”

“But you also eliminated any chance for an alibi.”

“How was I to know I would need an alibi? It wasn’t like I could ask the killer to coordinate with me,” Eden said. “Don’t worry. We’ll crack the case in no time.”

“Well, I am worried.” Raina gave her friend a sideways look. “I stopped by the day spa this morning. Myra Jo hired me as your replacement.” She winced inwardly at the delivery.

Eden held up a hand for a high five. “I can’t believe she hired you. This is serendipity. You could be my mole.”

Raina patted her friend's palm. “You're not mad?”

“Nope. You could be my eyes and ears at the place. This will give me the inside scoop.”

“What about that boyfriend of yours? The sister owns the place, and he does odd jobs there. Couldn’t he be your mole?”

Eden averted her gaze, staring at the standard rental beige carpet with an intense interest. When she finally spoke, her voice cracked. “He wants us to take a break. With his son losing his mother and moving in with the mother’s sister, Ty can’t handle a relationship right now.”

Taylor and Eden had met when he came by to fix the exhaust fan in her bathroom last winter. At first, Raina thought he was the rebound guy until she ended up on a double date with the two during Valentine’s Day. Her relationship with Blue had fizzled out shortly after, and she wondered if she might be jealous of Eden’s relationship. She couldn’t point to any one particular thing, but her gut said something was off about the guy, and it had nothing to with his living in the garage he rented from college students.

“He has a lot on his plate at the moment,” Raina said because they were the words her friend wanted to hear. “And even though they weren't together, I’m sure Taylor was upset at LaShawna’s death for his son's sake.”