Mobsters and Lobsters (A Hooked & Cooked Cozy Mystery Series Book 2) (2 page)

“Knock knock,” a husky voice broke through her concentration.

“Can I help you?” Hannah looked up into an extremely tanned, rugged face. His eyes perfectly matched the blue of his t-shirt and his smile told Hannah he knew women found him irresistible.

“I’m Lenny DiMarco. Holiday Hideaway, right? I have a reservation for today?”

Hannah stood up. “Of course. I wasn’t expecting you until late afternoon. Your cottage isn’t quite ready.”

“No problem. If I could just drop off my things? I’m heading to the Bayside Marina for an hour or two. I want to explore the coastline. Maybe check out some good fishing spots.”

Hannah couldn’t help but notice how handsome Lenny was—tall and muscular with curly hair and that two day unshaven casual style. Not that Hannah was in the market for a boyfriend, but maybe Ruby?

He smiled. “Will that be okay?”

Hannah felt heat rise to her cheeks realizing that Lenny noticed her staring at him. “Sure. I’ll show you where your cottage is.” She stood up too quickly and her chair tipped over backwards.

Lenny grinned but said nothing.

Hannah grabbed the key. “This way.” She felt his eyes on her backside all the way to Cottage Two.

She stopped to let Lenny enter. He squinted his eyes as he studied her face. “You look familiar. Have we met before?”

“No, I don’t think so.” Another rush of heat went straight to her cheeks even though she decided that was probably his standard pick-up line. “Okay then. Everything should be ready by the time you return.”

“Great. I’m really excited. I’ve got a boat rented and waiting for me.” Lenny dropped his bags inside, smiled at Hannah, and headed back to his truck.

Hannah was pleased to see Cal working on the snack bar. She had confidence he would fix all the problems so she’d be able to open on Saturday. Cal slid his hammer into his tool belt and leaned against the building. “Who’s the new guy?” he asked with a hint of disapproval.

“One of the guests. He’s off to rent a boat to check out the coastline.”

“Hope he’s familiar with the rocky outcrops. They’ve gotten many experienced boaters in trouble.” Cal nodded toward the plumber’s truck. “What’s Bill doing here?”

“A broken water line in Cottage Two. I didn’t want to take you away from this problem.” She pointed to the snack bar.

“I’ve got it all figured out. I should be finished with all the problems on the inspection sheet by tomorrow. Is Meg ready to get rolling with the cooking?”

“Boy, I hope so. I’m counting on her. I’m not sure I can handle it if anything else goes wrong.”

The squeal of the school bus brakes interrupted their conversation. “Three thirty all ready?” Hannah said. “Ruby should be getting back soon, too. She promised she’d only be gone for two nights. I love having Olivia here but it’s so much harder to get anything done.”

Olivia skipped toward Cal and Hannah with her giant pink backpack slapping against her back. Nellie, Hannah’s overgrown one year old golden retriever, woke from her nap and charged over to greet Olivia. Olivia screeched with joy as Nellie licked her face.

“Good thing Ruby isn’t here to see that or she’d be washing poor Olivia’s face with wipes. She blames dog germs every time Olivia gets sick.” Hannah crouched down to hug the kindergartner.

“Is mommy home yet?”

Hannah scanned the road. “Close your eyes and count to ten, then she’ll be here.”

Olivia dutifully counted with her hands covering her eyes. She only made it to five before she stopped and yelled, “Mommy!”

“I think she peeked,” Cal said as he chuckled at his biggest little fan.

Ruby lifted Olivia and twirled her in a circle. “Let’s thank Aunt Hannah before we head home. I have a surprise for you when I unpack.”

The small talk didn’t take long since Olivia wanted to go home and get her surprise. Cal returned to his project of removing the rotten beams under the snack bar and Hannah walked back toward her office. She was surprised to see the young honeymoon couple rushing toward her, their faces pale and drawn with panic.

Aaron had his arms raised and he waved them wildly. As he got closer to Hannah, he rested his hands on his knees and gasped out the message, “Call the police. There’s a capsized boat up the beach.”

Hannah’s blood ran cold. Could it be Lenny?

Chapter 2

Reacting on a surge of adrenaline, Hannah told Aaron to wait in Cottage Four.

Without thinking it through, Hannah sprinted to Cottage Two. Who was this guy Lenny DiMarco? She called the police station. Her curiosity soared and her feet took her into Lenny’s cottage. Her fingers hovered over his bags. This was so wrong, she told herself, but if he was in trouble, maybe knowing more about him could help the police. She had time to take a quick look in his bags before anyone arrived. No one would know.

Hannah ignored the big duffel bag and opened a smaller camera bag, hoping she might find a clue if he had left his camera behind. A beautiful professional looking Nikon camera sat nestled inside the bag.

Her fingers hesitated before snatching up the camera and hitting the power button. What if Lenny returned, she thought. This was completely inappropriate. She stood up and looked toward the driveway. No one in sight.

Hannah scrolled through the digital images and froze. What met her eyes made absolutely no sense. Why did Lenny have images of Ruby on his camera? Was he stalking her?

She quickly returned the camera to its case, her fingers fumbling with the zipper. She slung the bag over her shoulder and hustled to her office. She stashed the bag under the big desk that once belonged to her Great Aunt Caroline. Hannah wondered what other secrets that old scarred desk hid over the years.

The sound of sirens got louder and louder. Hannah’s body trembled. What if she stole evidence,
or
what if it wasn’t Lenny’s capsized boat and he returned to find his camera bag missing? She called Ruby.

Without a hello, Hannah said, “Get over here quick. Without Olivia.”

“What’s going on?” Ruby asked.

“Just hurry.” Hannah disconnected the call as she saw Officer Pam Larson walking toward the office escorted by Cal.

She inhaled a deep calming breath and let it out slowly before Pam pulled the door open.

Pam stood with her hands on her hips. “What mess did you fall into now?” she sneered.

Jack barged in behind Pam and Cal. “I heard the siren. What happened?”

Pam looked at her father. “I don’t know yet. She,” Pam waved her hand at Hannah, “called in a report of a capsized boat. The chief is out investigating now. I got sent here to question Ms. Holiday.”

Hannah needed fresh air. With everyone crowded into her small office, she suddenly felt light headed. “My guests, Aaron and Laura Masterson, told me to call the police. They saw the capsized boat.” She moved toward the door, hoping everyone would get the message and exit.

“Where are they?” Pam asked.

“I told them to wait in Cottage Four.”

Miraculously, Jack, Cal, and Pam walked outside. Hannah followed, letting the fresh air revive her.

“Are you all right?” Cal held Hannah’s arm. “You look like you’re about to faint.”

She waved her hand in front of her face. “I’m better. The fresh air is helping.”

Cal and Hannah lingered behind the others as Jack led his daughter to Cottage Four. Cal asked quietly. “What’s going on? A capsized boat isn’t so unusual.”

“I’m not sure. I need to talk to Ruby about something I found.” Hannah hesitated. “Something that Lenny left here.”

Cal’s eyes widened. “Lenny? The guy renting a boat?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you say the area he was going to could be treacherous?”

“I did. But lots of people are out on the water. What’s the chance it’s
his
boat? That’s what you’re thinking, right?”

She nodded. They were close enough to hear Pam talking to Aaron about what he saw and where they were walking.

Pam’s radio blasted a message. “Capsized boat found and identified. Rented by a Lenny DiMarco.”

Hannah gripped Cal’s arm. “I have to go back and wait for Ruby.”

“Wait a minute, Ms. Holiday.” Pam’s icy voice stopped Hannah in her tracks. “Dad just told me Lenny DiMarco was registered to stay here. Did he ever arrive?”

“Ah, yeah, he did, but his cottage wasn’t ready so he dropped off a bag and left. He said he would be back later.” Her hands were shaking. She knew she was hiding what could be evidence under her desk.

“Where’s the bag?”

“Cottage Two.”

“Did anyone look at it?”

“No.” Hannah felt sweat drip down her side. That wasn’t a lie. No one went through
that
bag. She would be in a boatload of trouble if Pam discovered Hannah was hiding the camera bag. Too late to worry about that now.

“Get me the bag. Meet me in your office.” Pam didn’t mince words, or her attitude. Hannah went to retrieve Lenny’s bag. Something about the way he had looked at her earlier made her skin crawl. Had he been stalking her
and
Ruby? Why?

Cal jogged to keep up. “You’re hiding something. It’s written all over your face. You better pull yourself together before Pam gets to your office.”

Hannah stopped and turned on Cal. “If you want to help, head Ruby off before she walks into my office. Send her to Jack’s house to wait.”

Cal said nothing but headed to the road.

“Cal?”

He stopped and turned around.

“Thank you, Cal. I can’t tell you more because I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m afraid Ruby might be in trouble.”

He nodded and picked up his pace just as Ruby’s car drove into sight.

Hannah picked up Lenny’s bag, surprised at how light it was, and carried it to her office. Her curiosity was killing her to open the bag and look inside but she resisted. Instead, she opened a bottle of water and chugged half of it. She certainly didn’t need her mouth to go dry while she was being grilled by Pam.

Footsteps stomped up the office porch steps. “The bag?” Pam said as she pointed to Lenny’s duffle on Hannah’s desk.

“Yes.”

“If he shows up, tell him I’ve got it at the police station.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Hannah asked.

Pam turned back to face Hannah with her head cocked to one side. “What is it to you?”

Hannah shrugged and forced herself to keep her mouth shut. She didn’t want to ratchet up any higher on Pam’s radar.

“I suppose if we find a body, you might have to identify him. Who else in town knows this guy?”

“Maybe Chase Fuller from the marina. Lenny told me he was renting a boat there.”

“That’s helpful. I’ll go find out what Chase knows.”

Pam left. With the duffle and no thank you.

Jack eyed Hannah. “Where’s Cal? He scurried off like he was on a mission. And you look like you swallowed a canary. I doubt Pam missed that look on your face. What are you not telling her?”

“You don’t want to know, Jack. Pam’s your daughter. And a police officer. Besides, it might be nothing.”

Ruby pushed the door open and entered with Cal right behind. “What’s going on? You tell me to hurry, then Cal sends me to hide out at Jack’s house. Have you gone mad, Hannah?”

Jack and Cal sat down. Should she ask them to leave? They’d always had her back in the past.

Three sets of eyes bored into her. Waiting for an explanation. Hannah pulled the camera bag from its hiding spot. She placed it on the desk and unzipped the bag.

Ruby stroked her chin and raised her eyes to Hannah’s.

“Do you know a guy named Lenny DiMarco?” Hannah asked, her voice deathly quiet.

Ruby barely nodded her head yes.

“You’ve seen this camera before?”

Again she nodded and whispered. “Why do you have it?”

“We probably shouldn’t have this conversation here.”

Jack stood up. “I’ll make coffee at my house. Cal can keep an eye on the office and call you if another problem pops up.”

“Another problem?” Hannah said with raised eyebrows. She laughed because if she didn’t, she’d probably cry. She pulled her long braid and chewed on the end. She had three days to get her snack bar through the building inspection or she’d miss her grand opening. A water line burst in one of the cottages. At least, as far as she knew, that problem was taken care of. And now, Ruby had some explaining to do. Nothing else could go wrong, right?

Cal reluctantly said he’d get back to the repairs on the snack bar and watch the office. Hannah didn’t stop him.

Finally, she was alone with Ruby. “Who is Lenny DiMarco? How do you know him?”

Ruby slumped into a chair. “I can’t tell you.”

Hannah sat down and zipped the camera bag closed. “Okay. I’ll just hand this over to Officer Larson along with the duffle bag she already confiscated.”

Ruby jumped up. “Why is that bag even here? Or his duffle bag?” Her fingers combed through her short brown hair. “Was he renting one of the cottages?”