Meows, Magic & Murder (23 page)

The finish line was five hundred feet from the government building. And since the race had began early this morning, the first runners would be coming along anytime now.

Petunia watched as Noah walked away with the sheriff.

“Don’t worry about Noah. I’m sure he’ll be back soon. The sheriff is probably questioning him out of my hearing range.” She cleared her throat. “You’d better not let this one get away, Petunia.”

“He’s not my boyfriend. I’m not interested in him.”

“Liar. You’re a horrible one, by the way, like that whopper you told Noah about the salve being herbal tea. I went to your aunt’s shop and the tea I bought didn’t help my pain.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why Lucy told everyone that.”

“She was covering for you. She wants to keep the salve all to herself. Can’t blame her for that. She was in quite a state before your salve made her able to enter this marathon, and there she is.”

Petunia stood just as a proud and smiling Lucy ran past, barely looking like she had worked up a sweat. The crowd cheered and Petunia looked around for Noah, but he was nowhere in sight.

* * *

“So, what about those knitting needles?” Sheriff Pinkerton asked Noah.

“She told me she couldn’t find them.”

“You didn’t help her in the search?”

“No. She didn’t want me to. What woman would want a man she doesn’t even know that well to go through her things?”

The sheriff’s brow furrowed. “Really? Seems like you two have been pretty chummy lately.”

Sheriff Pinkerton didn’t need to know how Noah really felt. “I’m trying to help her clear her name, is all.”

“I bet. Can’t say I’d blame you. I was once your age until I met my wife. Us men have a problem not helping out a damsel in distress.”

“I’m not sure I’d describe Petunia that way.”

“Just be careful, is all I’m saying. It’s so easy to be swayed by a pretty face?”

Noah took his leave and saw that Lucy had won the marathon, but couldn’t find Petunia anywhere as a large crowd then circled around Lucy, congratulating her.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Petunia walked toward Lucy to give her a proper congratulation, but someone grabbed her arm. “Hello. I meant to tell you, Petunia,” said Susan Jacobs, the girl who worked at the Hobby Shack. “You left you bag at the store last week.”

“So that’s what happened? I knew I couldn’t remember bringing those knitting needles home. If you could tell the sheriff that, I’d be off the hook. He’s using that purchase against me and believes I’m a suspect.”

“That’s horrible. It’s policy that we keep the purchases at the store until someone claims their packages. Someone else must have told the sheriff you bought the needles that day because he never spoke to me about it.”

“So what happened to it?”

“I gave it to Donna Douglas, the manager. She’s probably holding it in her office.”

Petunia didn’t give it another thought. She marched up the sidewalk and to the Hobby Shack that was a few blocks down. She should have tried to find Noah, but the crowd was massive. Nobody Lucy’s age had ever won the marathon before and she had never exchanged numbers with Noah to tell him where she was going. The way she looked at it, she had to act on the tip.

As she came up on the Hobby Shack, it was smooth sailing since most everyone else in town was at the marathon. Petunia made her way through the double door and asked one of the cashiers who was on her iPhone—watching YouTube videos, from the sounds of it—where she could find the manager.

She was then directed to where she could find the office and knocked on the door. It was opened and Donna greeted her. “Oh, hello. You must be looking for your lost package.”

“I didn’t think it was lost. I just forgot it, is all.”

“Come inside.”

Petunia walked into the office where a man was on the computer. After Donna looked for a few minutes in boxes under the desk, she asked the man, “Hey, Jay. What happened to the package Petunia Patterson forgot? I put her name on it.”

“Oh,” he said, turning. “I gave it to Olivia Brownmeyer. She told me she’d give it to Petunia.”

“That’s not the policy, Jay,” Donna scolded him.

“I know, but you know how those forgotten packages pile up. I was just trying to help.”

“Except that Olivia is no friend of mine,” Petunia said. “Henry used to be my fiancé before she came along.”

“Oh, I’m awfully sorry.”

Petunia whirled with one thought in mind—Olivia Brownmeyer was up to no good and she’d confront her, posthaste.

She walked two more blocks to the house Henry had bought with his new wife, with a lump in her throat now. The cedar-sided house was blue with white shutters, and the lawn quite manicured. Not a weed in sight in the flower bed, where roses bloomed in pinks and reds.

Petunia rapped on the door. A curtain was pushed aside and a quite shocked Olivia looked out. It was five minutes before the door was opened by Olivia. Petunia didn’t even think about why this woman would even invite her in, but that’s what she did.

It wasn’t until the door closed before Petunia knew she had just run into trouble, big trouble, as Olivia held a revolver that was pointed right at her.

“I can’t say I’m surprised to see you.”

“I guess not, when you took those knitting needles that I left behind at the Hobby Shack. Now that I think about it, you were in the store that day.”

“I was, and I’m fully aware of their policy, which is why I waited until Donna had left the store that day. She’s a stickler for the rules, where Jay is not.”

“Why take the needles to begin with?”

“You’re not that stupid, Petunia. I’m sure you have it all figured out.”

While Petunia pieced it together in her mind, it didn’t make any sense. Why take her knitting needles, just so it would make her look bad? No … it was more sinister than that and completely unbelievable to Petunia.

Petunia tried to edge nearer to the door. “You killed Helen, Kaye, and Charlene?”

“See, I knew you’d figure it out.”

“But why? And where is Henry?”

“He’s a little tied up at the moment. It seems he thought he’d leave me and try to go back with you, Petunia.”

“That’s ridiculous. I’ve barely even seen Henry, other than when he’s with you. And I certainly wouldn’t ever take him back after what he did to me.”

Olivia balled the hand that wasn’t holding the revolver into a fist. “You’re a liar, a horrible liar. You saw him at the Hair Hut only yesterday.”

“Yes, but only in passing. I was with Noah that day and went there to question the beauticians. It’s not like I’m stalking your husband.” Petunia shook her head sternly now, as she added, “You’re the one who took those letters to Kaye and Charlene. You lured them out to the beach at Lake Forest and murdered them!”

“Don’t be so melodramatic. They were the likely victims. I went to a lot of trouble to pick victims who would lead straight back to you.”

“My only link to them was in high school. I never spoke to either of them since then.”

“I’m quite aware of what you did to both Kaye and Charlene. It’s quite the circle with Kaye. You stole Henry from her, I stole him from you, but there’s no way I’ll lose him to you.”

“What about Helen? Where does she fit in?”

“It’s quite well known that she hated your cats and called animal control to pick one of them up before. Plus, she was also trying to pose as someone related to you. She was quite the talker when she drank. She told me all about her failed attempt to get money out of your Aunt Maxine and I plan to tell the sheriff all about it. I didn’t want to do that too soon since many people know I stole your fiancé.”

“So what now? You murder me with the last three knitting needles?”

“No, you’ll have them in your hands when I shoot you. You came here to murder poor Henry and I saved the day when I shot you. It’s too late for poor Henry, though. He’ll never keep his mouth shut after he found those knitting needles. He figured out I was the killer and packed his bags. I made sure to put everything back where it belonged so nobody will ever be the wiser that Henry and I were having problems.”

“Nobody will ever believe that.”

“You came here quite angry and wanted to get your revenge. It’s quite believable, if you ask me.”

“Is that you or the voices you hear in your head telling you to do things you know you shouldn’t?”

“Get moving,” Olivia sneered. “Down to the basement.”

She gave Petunia a shove and she didn’t want to go down to what would be her death chamber, but had no choice since Olivia was the one with the gun, not her.

Petunia walked down the steep steps, the musty smell pressing into her nostrils. Henry was near the far corner, bound and gagged, and she raced over, removing his gag. “Let him go. This is your husband, for Gods’ sake,” Petunia said in a panic. If she’d do this to her own husband, what would she now do to her?

Olivia removed three knitting needles from a shelf and handed them to Petunia as she sneered, “Kill Henry, or I’ll kill you.”

* * *

Noah spotted Petunia talking to a woman he didn’t know and followed her, losing Petunia in the crowd as she weaved through it. Where on earth could that woman have gone? Since it wasn’t in the direction of her aunt’s shop or congratulating Lucy, he had a bad feeling that settled in his gut. All those years as a cop had heightened his instincts, and this one was telling him that she might be headed into danger. He knew he had to find her, and soon. He then went back to the woman he saw her talking to and asked, “Where is Petunia going? What did you tell her?”

The girl’s eyes widened. “Just that she forgot the knitting needles she bought last week at the Hobby Shack.”

Sheriff Pinkerton came up, obviously overhearing the exchange as he said, “Nobody told me those needles were left behind when I went there questioning employees.”

“It’s hard to keep track of things sometimes. I sold them to Petunia so it was easer for me to remember, and I wasn’t there the day you were asking questions.”

“I told your assistant manager Jay I wanted to talk to you.”

“He must have forgotten.”

Noah and the sheriff raced into the Hobby Shack and knocked on the office door.

“Have you seen Petunia Patterson today?” asked the sheriff.

“Yes, it seems one of the other managers didn’t follow policy and gave Petunia’s purchase to Olivia Brownmeyer to give back to Petunia. He wasn’t aware of the bad blood between them.”

“When was this?”

“Last week, Sheriff.”

Pinkerton’s face was red now. “When I questioned Jay, he never told me that Petunia left those needles behind.”

Jay turned in his chair, now. “That’s because I gave them to Olivia before that and assumed they were returned to Petunia,” Jay explained. “I’m awfully sorry for the mix-up.”

“Thanks,” Noah said, marching toward the door.

“Hold on, Noah. This is police business,” Pinkerton said.

“I’m not about to stay out of this. Petunia might be in danger. Olivia is the killer and has been trying to frame Petunia all along.”

“Fine, you can come along, but let me handle this.”

Noah nodded and followed the sheriff as he called for backup. They ran over to the Brownmeyer’s house and the sheriff stopped. “I should wait for backup before approaching the house.”

“Go ahead.” Noah walked up to the door, trying it, and pulled out a few tools from his wallet picking the lock.

Sheriff Pinkerton said, “What are you doing?”

“Exactly what it looks like. If we kick the door open, they’ll know we’re coming. Petunia’s life might just be in jeopardy.”

Noah carefully opened the door and he slowly walked inside, glancing around as the sheriff followed him. Nobody was there—or so they thought until voices were heard from the direction of the basement.

* * *

From the moment Olivia placed the knitting needles in her hand, Petunia’s only thought was that she’d use them as a weapon.

Petunia gripped them tightly, and exhaled. “Please, don’t make me do this. I won’t kill Henry.”

The gun was cocked and the gun pointed to Petunia’s brow. She swallowed hard and said, “Fine. I can see I don’t have a choice, but nobody will ever believe I was the killer. People know about those needles that I left behind at the store.”

“I’ll swear that I did deliver them. The sheriff will believe me. I’ve already funneled information to him that I feared we’d be your next victims.”

“Funny. He never asked me about that one.”

“I told him I didn’t want the matter pressed, but now … you get the picture. Hurry up and do what I told you.”

“Don’t do this, Olivia. I love you,” Henry insisted.

“You were leaving me. What did you think would happen? I won’t sit by and watch you take back up with Petunia.”

“I wasn’t leaving you because of her, but what you were trying to do, frame her for murder. I found the bag with the receipt and the remaining knitting needles. It wasn’t hard to put together. You don’t knit, but I know how Petunia tends to buy more knitting needles than she needs. She’s compulsive that way.”

“Great memory, Henry.”

Tears swam in Henry’s eyes as he admitted, “I shouldn’t have cheated on you, Petunia, and I’m sorry how things went down. I still love you.”

Petunia didn’t know what to say, but she was sure his admission was only because he was now facing death. Olivia’s eyes widened and looked like they’d pop out at any moment. She then sneered and said, “Kill him now!”

Petunia trembled as she turned, walking toward Henry with the knitting needles clutched in her hands that were still at her side. Petunia made a motion like she was bringing up the needles to stab Henry, but instead with a backward motion, stabbed Olivia,  who luckily was standing directly behind her, in the leg. Olivia swung her gun downward in response and a shot cracked off, striking Henry in the leg.

Noah raced down the stairs, followed by the sheriff who had his gun drawn. “Put the gun down, Olivia,” the sheriff insisted.

“No, that bitch needs to die for what she’s done to me,” Olivia said as she swung the weapon toward Petunia. Indicating the knitting needles embedded in her leg, she added, “Look what she did to me. She stabbed me!”