Marked Down for Murder (Good Buy Girls) (7 page)

Maggie reached into her purse and took out her
phone. She handed it to Summer.

“You can use mine,” she offered.

Summer gave her an uncomfortable look, as if it pained her to have to borrow something from her. Maggie couldn’t fault her for that. If the situation were reversed, she’d feel the same way, but given that Summer had just been blubbering all over her, it seemed ridiculous for them to hang on to the old way of being. Obviously, things had changed, even if it was only for the moment.

Summer tapped in the number and put the phone to her ear.

“It’s me, Summer,” she said.

Maggie stared off across the yard, pretending not to listen. She’d get up and move, but there was really no place to go. Instead, she watched as Sam and the ME went back into the house. Sam’s face looked grave, and Maggie wondered what he was thinking.

A chill rippled down her spine as she thought of what awaited them inside. Did anyone, even a homicide detective, ever get used to this?

“Well, I’m sorry to interrupt your time under the hair dryer, but it’s important,” Summer said. She sounded petulant. “Mama, there’s a situation. I can’t talk about it over the phone. No, you really need to come home now.”

Maggie could hear Blair’s screechy voice on the other end of the line. She had to give Summer a lot of credit. She would have hung up on her by now.

“We’ll talk about it when you get here,” Summer said. She was quiet for a minute, then she looked at Maggie. She didn’t maintain eye contact, but turned away and hissed, “You did what? When?”

She glanced back at Maggie with an expression that was equal parts mortification and anger.

“I can’t believe you did that,” Summer said, then she sighed. “It really doesn’t matter right now.”

Maggie heard Blair protesting. Her argument was clearly not winning points with Summer, because she snapped, “No, it is not okay. You have to butt out. This is my life and I will spend it with whomever I choose.”

The squawk on the other end was so loud that Summer jerked the phone from her ear. When Blair wound down, Summer said, “Just get here, and quickly. There’s something more important than my love life or your roots.”

She ended the call and handed the phone back to Maggie. Maggie tucked the phone away.

“I didn’t think I should tell her about Bruce, since she probably wouldn’t be able to drive after news like that,” Summer said.

“Good call,” Maggie said.

“She told me—ugh, she told me she came to see you this morning,” Summer said.

Maggie nodded.

“She tried to buy you off?” Summer asked.

Again, Maggie nodded.

“Oh, my god, she thinks everyone has a price just because she does. When is she going to mind her own business?” Summer asked.

Maggie raised her eyebrows. From what she’d seen previously, Summer seemed to be trying to please her mother by going along with her crazy schemes to match her up with Sam.

“Maybe you should have asked her to do that earlier instead of stalking the man she has in mind for you,” Maggie said. She noticed her tone was sharp, but she was incapable of curbing it.

“Yeah, about that day at the motel,” Summer said. “I was going to warn Sam. I wasn’t going to make a play for him. I swear.”

“Uh-huh,” Maggie said. “Our history makes it hard for me to believe that.”

“Fair enough,” Summer said. “Tyler said the same thing.”

She sounded so gloomy that Maggie couldn’t help but study her more closely. Did Summer Phillips really have feelings for Tyler Fawkes?

“Tyler’s not happy?” Maggie asked.

“He dumped me,” Summer said. There was no question that Summer was depressed over the breakup.

“But you were just hanging on Sam in there,” Maggie said.

“I was upset,” Summer said.

“Are you sure you weren’t trying to win him over with the helpless woman routine?”

“No, I wasn’t,” Summer insisted, then she frowned. “Was I?”

“Looked like it to me,” Maggie said. “If you want Tyler to take you seriously you have to curb the hanging-on-other-men thing.”

“What can I say,” Summer said. “It’s in my DNA.”

Maggie would have argued the point but just then a little black sports car zipped into the driveway and out stepped Blair Cassidy.

Summer stood and waved to her mother, who was looking with annoyance at the ME’s van as if it were taking her usual spot without permission.

Maggie stood and Blair’s gaze narrowed, as if she thought the reason Summer had called her had something to do with Maggie.

As if preparing for battle, Blair threw back her shoulders and hugged her black wool coat close as if to shield herself from their ire. Then she strode forward as if she fully expected everyone to move aside for her.

Maggie took no pleasure in the bad-news bomb Summer was about to drop on her mom. How did you tell someone her husband had been bludgeoned to death? She decided she would go wait by her car so as not to intrude upon the scene. She made to leave the porch, but Blair turned on her.

“What are you doing here, Maggie Gerber? Tattling?” Blair asked.

Maggie was forced backward as Blair stomped up the steps, blocking her exit from the narrow porch.

“Um, now might not be the time—” Maggie began, but Blair interrupted.

“I think it’s the perfect time,” she said.

“No, Mama, it really isn’t,” Summer said.

Blair gaped at her daughter. “Surely you’re not taking her side. How could you? Everything I do, I do for you. Don’t you see?”

“There’s more going on here,” Summer said. She heaved a sigh as if stealing herself for what was ahead. “Come on.”

“What? Why? I don’t understand,” Blair protested.

Summer didn’t respond. Instead, she opened the door and led her mother inside. Maggie stayed right where she was on the porch. There was no way she wanted to bear witness to what happened next.

The scream that came from the house made the hair on Maggie’s neck stand on end. She hugged her arms about her and thought about the night she had been called to the hospital for her own husband. There was nothing worse than finding out the one you loved was dead.

Restless, she began to pace. Leaves, brown and dry, littered the small porch and crunched under her feet. No more screams came from the house, for which she was grateful.

The tip of her nose was cold, and her fingers had started to ache from the bitter chill in the air, even with them tucked in the pockets of her coat. When the front door finally opened, it was Sam who stepped out.

He looked haggard, and she didn’t hesitate as she crossed the small space to hug him. Sam held her close and rubbed her arms as if he knew the cold was seeping in and he was trying to warm her up.

“Sorry for the wait,” he said against her hair. “You’ll be able to go soon.”

“It’s fine,” she said. “I know you have a lot going on right now.”

“I heard most of what happened while I was on the phone with you,” Sam said as he stepped back. “But can you describe to me what you saw?”

Maggie blew out a breath. “The door was unlocked, as I said on the phone, and then I heard a scream. I went inside and followed what sounded like whimpers. When I came around the corner into the kitchen, Summer was standing over Bruce and—”

“And?” Sam asked.

“She was holding a bloody hammer in her hand,” Maggie said. She knew what it sounded like, so she quickly added, “I got the feeling she had just picked it up, which is what she said—she said was kneeling on it when she checked on Bruce. It makes sense that she found it.”

Sam narrowed his eyes. “Why do you say that?”

“Because she wasn’t holding it like you hold a hammer to hit something,” Maggie said. “She was holding it with the tips of her fingers like it was something gross that she had found.”

“Hmm,” Sam muttered. “Then what?”

“She saw me and dropped the hammer and then threw herself at me,” Maggie said. “That was pretty much it until you got here. Bruce was clearly dead and Summer was hysterical.”

Sam ran a hand over his eyes. “You know, the murder rate in St. Stanley is making me homesick for Richmond.”

Maggie gave him a small smile. “It has been a rough few months. You must feel like you retired for nothing.”

“Not for nothing.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, there’s one thing St. Stanley has that Richmond doesn’t,” he said.

“What’s that?” she asked.

“You,” he said. He gave her a quick kiss. “I’m going to have Deputy Wilson take Blair to Doc Franklin’s. She screamed and then fainted. The ME thinks she might have concussed herself when she fell.”

“No one caught her?”

Sam looked abashed. “We were all caught a bit off guard.”

“Doc should probably look at Summer, too,” Maggie said. “She was close to hysterical when I found her. I mean, she actually hugged me.”

Sam nodded. The front door opened and Deputy Wilson came out with Blair, who was leaning heavily on her, and Summer, who was following behind them.

“We’re on our way over to Doc’s,” Dot said.

“Good. Then I’ll need Summer to come to the station,” Sam said.

“What? Why?” Summer gasped.

“I’ll need a formal statement from you,” Sam said. “Since you were the one to find Bruce.”

Blair blanched, and Summer looked like she was about to cry again.

“Am I under arrest?” Summer asked. “All I did was find him. I didn’t kill him.”

“Yes, but you did pick up the murder weapon,” Sam said. “We’ll need your fingerprints to see which are yours and which belong to the killer.”

Blair let out a moan. “My husband. Murdered. I can’t bear it.”

She slumped against Dot as if she were going to faint again.

“Here, I’ll help you get her to the car.” Maggie stepped forward and braced Blair on the other side.

When Blair would have pulled away, Dot snapped, “Look, I can’t carry you myself, so if you’re going to faint, you’d better let her help carry you, otherwise your butt is going to land on the sidewalk.”

“Fine,” Blair sniffed. She extended her arm for Maggie to take while she helped her to the car.

Summer followed behind them with Sam.

“Are you sure you’re not going to arrest me?” Summer asked. Her voice sounded so scared that Maggie found herself feeling sorry for her—again. It was positively unnerving.

Sam didn’t answer her as they navigated the steps and approached Dot’s patrol car. Dot opened the back door, and Maggie let go of Blair and stepped out of the way.

“I guess that depends upon you, Summer,” Sam said. “And on whether the evidence shows whether you killed Bruce or not.”

Summer wailed and Blair held her close as they
huddled in the back of Dot’s car.

“Thanks,” Dot said to Sam. “Now I’m going to have to run the siren to drown out the crying.”

Dot slammed the driver’s side door as she got in, and Maggie glanced at Sam. “Were you trying to shake Summer up?”

“Yes,” he said. “The fact that she had the hammer in her hand looks pretty bad. Who knows what sort of relationship she had with her stepfather. Maybe he was drunk and made a pass, maybe she actually hated him, or maybe she did just find him like she said. Until the ME gives me more info, Summer is all I’ve got. So I need her to be nervous so that she’ll be very forthcoming with every single thing she can remember.”

“I don’t think she did it,” Maggie said.

Sam looked at her in surprise. “Really? I’d have thought you’d be delighted to see her fingered for murder and carted off to jail.”

“Not if she’s innocent,” Maggie said. “I’m not that heartless. Besides—”

“Besides?” Sam asked when she paused.

Maggie lowered her head and mumbled something into the opening of her coat.

“Sorry, what was that?” he asked. He cupped her chin and lifted her face so that her gaze met his.

“Nothing. It’s just that her mother is a horror show and I actually feel sorry for her,” Maggie said. “There, I admitted it. Happy now?”

“Yes,” he said. He kissed her head. “But I’m not surprised. You have a kind heart, Maggie.”

“Maybe,” she said. “Hey, I was thinking I’d give Max Button a call, you know, just to let him know that Summer might need his genius legal services.”

“Do you think he’d agree to represent her?” Sam asked. “I didn’t get the feeling they had the warm fuzzies for each other, since Summer befriended his girlfriend’s half sister, Courtney, who is trying to plunder the Madison estate.”

“They definitely do not,” Maggie agreed. “But even so, Max is trustworthy and a legal genius, so I don’t think Summer would refuse his help if he offered. And who knows? Maybe she can call Courtney off of Bianca.”

“She’d be crazy if she didn’t let him represent her,” Sam said.

Maggie grumbled to keep herself from weighing in on the question of Summer’s sanity. “I’d better get back to the shop. I can’t have people thinking I’m some flighty businesswoman who opens and closes on a whim. It’d kill my business.”

“What are your plans for tonight?” Sam asked as he opened her car door for her.

“We’re meeting at Joanne’s to do a final organization of the nursery,” she said.

“No progress there yet?” he asked.

“Not yet. And Joanne is getting antsy,” she said. “She’s more than ready to meet her sweet pea.”

“A baby,” Sam said with a shake of his head. He sounded as if he couldn’t believe how amazing it was.

Alarm bells starting ringing in Maggie’s head. She tried to ignore them, but they were clanging so loud she could hardly think. Did Sam want a baby? This was not the time or place to ask him, but she was beginning to suspect that he did. He seemed so in awe of Joanne and Michael.

Being a guy, Sam was still young enough to easily start a family of his own, but Maggie had been there, done that, and while the idea of a toddler-sized Sam Collins strutting around in a sheriff’s hat and diaper had a delicious appeal, she really didn’t want to start all over again. She was happy with her shop and her life just as they were.

“I might be tied up late with this,” he said. He gestured at the house behind him.

“That’s okay,” she said. “Call me and let me know how it goes.”

“Will do.” Sam kissed her quick before she got into her car. “And Maggie, be careful. There’s a murderer out there, and I don’t think anyone is safe until they’re caught and locked up.”

•   •   •

“Okay, we’ve got your small bums here on the left,
and then the stack moves on progressively with the baby’s size,” Ginger said as she backed away from the closet where she’d been sorting and organizing a shelf full of cloth diapers and onesies.

“Whoa, that’s a lot of butts to be wiped and changed,” Claire said.

Joanne was sitting in the glider in the corner of the room, rocking back and forth as she rubbed her belly. She had a faraway look in her eyes, and Maggie wondered if she was thinking about what it would be like to be holding her baby in her arms at that moment.

“Okay, ladies, snack time for Mama.” Michael entered the room, carrying a tray. On it was a pitcher of milk and some glasses, as well as a heaping plate of oatmeal raisin cookies.

They’d had a potluck dinner earlier in the evening, with everyone bringing their favorite dish to share. Maggie loved these evenings because it was a great time to try out new recipes. She’d had the occasional clunker, but tonight’s sweet potato casserole had been a keeper.

“I can’t eat another bite,” Joanne said as she took three cookies. “But the baby sure can.”

Michael laughed and leaned over to talk to her belly. “Good baby. We want you big and strong and healthy, so you just take your time, wee one.”

Maggie glanced over at her friends and saw that they had identical expressions of “aw” on their faces. She was quite sure she did, too. What was it about a man with a baby that was so attractive?

She thought of how sweet Sam was with her grandnephew, Josh, and she had to admit, it had certainly been a part of his charm when he’d first come back to town and they were at odds on just about everything else.

“Holler if you need anything,” Michael said, and he ducked out of the room after giving Joanne’s shoulder an affectionate squeeze.

“You’ve got a good man there,” Ginger said.

“I do,” Joanne said. “He’s going to be such a wonderful dad.”

“Lucky baby,” Claire said as she helped herself to a cookie from the plate Michael had left on top of the changing table.

“Thank you,” Joanne said.

She looked choked up, and Maggie knew it was because they had tried for so long to have a baby that now that the time had come, Joanne was very emotional.

“Ugh, we have to change the subject,” Joanne said. She took a big bite of her cookie, chewed and swallowed. “Let’s talk about something else. Any sales happening? Last I heard, the Millpond Outlets were gearing up for the Presidents’ Day sales.”

“That is confirmed,” Ginger said.

“Michael won’t let me go,” Joanne said, pouting. “He’s worried I’ll go into labor and won’t give up fifty percent off a pair of shoes to give birth.”

Claire laughed. “Well, that’s just silly. Now, seventy-five percent, and then there’d be an issue.”

Ginger snorted, and they all shared in the laugh.

“I do have some news,” Maggie said. She hadn’t brought it up before dinner because it seemed bad form, but now that all was quiet and the nursery seemed good to go, she figured they’d all hear it tomorrow anyway.

“Do tell,” Ginger said. She sat on the love seat while Claire sat on the floor.

“Our story begins with Blair Cassidy,” she said. They all exchanged a look and then glanced back at Maggie. “She came to see me today and offered me nine thousand dollars to stop seeing Sam.”

“She didn’t!” Claire gasped.

“Wait, wait, wait. You mean a nine with three zeros trailing after it?” Ginger asked, looking stunned.

“What did you say?” Joanne asked.

“Well, naturally, I took the money,” Maggie said. “I mean, Sam’s nice and all, but really I could do so much more with that influx of cash . . .”

A stuffed teddy bear was launched at her head, and Maggie caught it with a laugh.

“You said no,” Joanne said. She grinned. “And I bet you told her off, too.”

“Yeah, a little bit,” Maggie agreed. “Then I decided to go and have a chat with Summer.”

“Oh, now it’s getting really good,” Ginger said. “What did Summer have to say about her mother?”

“I know what I’d say,” Claire chimed in.

“When I went to her shop, Sheri told me she had gone home for lunch, so I drove out to her house to see her,” Maggie said. She blew out a breath as she prepared to tell her friends the rest of the story.

“Uh-oh,” Ginger said. “Why do I get the feeling this story takes a turn for the worse?”

“When I got to Summer’s house the front door was unlocked, so I went inside, and that’s when I found Summer standing over her stepfather Bruce Cassidy, who was dead,” Maggie said.

“What?”

“No!”

“Oh my god, how awful!”

Her three fellow Good Buy Girls exclaimed at once and then began to fire questions at Maggie so rapidly she could barely keep track of them. She explained that she’d been on the phone with Sam and that he’d arrived minutes after she had. She didn’t mention Summer and the hammer, just because she had the feeling Sam would like to keep that quiet.

“Do you think it was a robbery?” Claire asked with a shudder.

“It didn’t seem like anything was missing,” Maggie said. “I expect Sam will have Summer go through the house to be sure.”

“Where will Blair and Summer stay in the meantime?” Ginger asked. “I can’t imagine they’ll want to stay in Summer’s house.”

“No idea,” Maggie said. “Last I saw they were headed over to Doc Franklin’s to be checked out since Blair fainted and sustained a head injury. I called Max and told him about the situation. If Sam arrests Summer, I think Max should represent her.”

All three of her friends gave her a doubtful look.

“Would Max do that?” Joanne asked.

“I don’t know,” Maggie said. “He didn’t exactly agree to it.”

“Summer has not made a lot of friends in town,” Ginger said. “This could be her bad karma at work.”

“There is no place lonelier than a jail cell,” Claire said. She spoke from experience, having spent some time in jail when she was under suspicion for the murder of a former boyfriend.

“I don’t know,” Maggie said. “I just don’t feel like she did it. And if she gets arrested and she didn’t do it, then the real murderer is still out there and we have no idea why Bruce Cassidy was their target.”

They were all silent as they pondered this alarming possibility.

“Ow!” Joanne jumped in her chair, and they all turned to look at her. “Sorry, the baby is practicing field goal kicking.”

“So it is a boy!” Claire cried.

“Not so fast,” Joanne said. “Girls can be field goal kickers, too.”

Claire sat back with a frown. “I can’t believe we don’t know what it is. It’s like living in the Dark Ages.”

“Buck up,” Ginger said. “Judging by how low that baby is hanging, I think it will be out soon.”

“Now I’m sort of hoping it waits until after Mr. Cassidy’s murderer is caught and St. Stanley is back to normal,” Joanne said.

“Yeah, I miss the days when my biggest problem was how to hit two sales at the same time,” Ginger said.

Maggie couldn’t agree more.