Custom-Made Murder (A Chocolate Centered Cozy Mystery Book 8) Read online

  “No, Ally.” She straightened up and stared hard into her granddaughter’s eyes. “I’m telling you right now that Jeff didn’t have anything to do with this. If he’s been arrested, then a terrible mistake has been made, and it needs to be fixed right away.” She turned on her heel and headed towards the door. “I’m going there right now to get him out of jail.”

  “Mee-Maw, wait.” Ally grabbed her by the wrist before she could get too far. “It doesn’t work like that. The police are going to want to question him first. It’s going to take time. If you go there now, you’ll just be adding to the chaos. Luke said he’d update me as soon as he finds out anything. It’s best if we just stay here for now, all right?”

  “I guess you’re right.” She frowned. “I’m sure all of this will get straightened out very quickly. But poor Jeff, he has to go through all of this, all because of some silly mistake.”

  “If it’s a mistake then I’m sure they will figure it out quickly.”

  “There’s no ‘if’, Ally. It absolutely is a mistake.” She shook her head. “I know Jeff and he is not capable of this. I would not be friendly with a man who was capable of murder.”

  “I understand.” Ally bit into her bottom lip. She wanted to say more, but she wasn’t sure how to phrase it. Instead she decided to try and change the subject, to distract them both. “How did the delivery go?”

  “What delivery?” Charlotte blinked and her expression grew vacant. “Oh, right. It was fine. The bride was quite happy, but obviously busy and distracted.” She wrung her hands. One foot in front of the other, she began to pace. “When do you think I should go to the jail to see him?”

  “It’s best to give it a couple of hours at least. But they might be holding him at the police station still.”

  “Oh, he’s going to be so embarrassed, he’s such a proud man.” Charlotte walked behind the counter and tried to busy herself straightening out the sample trays. “I just can’t believe this.”

  “It’s quite a shock. Why don’t you let me do that?”

  “It’s okay, I need to keep myself busy.” Charlotte continued to fiddle with the chocolates.

  “Mee-Maw, did you notice whether Jeff was upset about anything recently?”

  “No, he was looking forward to our dinner tonight. There was nothing wrong.” She wiped her hands on a towel, “Maybe you’re right, maybe I should find something to do in the back. I don’t feel like hearing the customers gossiping about Jeff today.”

  “We need to make some milk chocolate caramels for an order if you’d like to work on that. Or you could just go home if you want, Mee-Maw, I can handle this.”

  “No way.” Charlotte shook her head. “I’m not going anywhere, except to Jeff.”

  After Charlotte disappeared into the back, Ally checked her phone. She hoped to hear something from Luke soon. The best news would be that Jeff had been released. However, there were no missed calls or texts. She tried to think of all of the things her grandmother told her about Jeff, in case there were any red flags she’d missed. After some thorough mental digging, she realized she didn’t know very much about Jeff at all, and had to wonder if her grandmother really knew as much as she thought she did. Before she could dig any deeper through her thoughts, the bell above the door chimed. She was faced with an entire crowd of people who had just left their Book Club meeting together. As she dealt with the rush, she was relieved not to think about the murder for at least a few minutes. When the last customer left she heard her phone ring. As she reached it, her grandmother popped out of the back room.

  “Is it him?” Charlotte stepped close to Ally and peered at her phone.

  “Yes, it is. I’ll put it on speaker.” Ally answered the phone and switched it to speaker so they could both hear. “Hi Luke, you’re on speaker.”

  “Listen, I know it’s a short opening day so you are closing soon and I think it’s better if we meet to talk about this in person. Is that okay?”

  “Yes,” Ally said.

  “There’s a new diner halfway to Broughdon, Lucky’s, do you know it?”

  “Yes, I know it,” Charlotte said. “Jeff and I have met there for lunch.”

  “Okay, I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Just get there when you can.”

  “We’ll be there.” Charlotte shook her head as Ally hung up the phone. “That didn’t sound very promising.”

  “One step at a time, Mee-Maw. I’m sure whatever it is, like you said, it will all be straightened out.”

  “I’ll close out the register.” Charlotte began to sort through the money in the register. Ally cleaned up all of the samples, the counters, and made sure that everything was off in the kitchen. Once they were ready to leave, Charlotte grabbed her purse and walked towards the door. Halfway there she stopped, and looked over at Ally. “It’s not true, you know. He wouldn’t do this.”

  “I believe you, Mee-Maw.” Ally nodded. “Let’s just go and see what Luke has to say.”

  “Yes, that would be best.”

  On the drive to the diner Charlotte was silent. Ally turned on the radio to try to soften the tension. The lyrics of the song playing were about heartbreak and lies. It didn’t seem to help ease the tension in the car. She snapped the radio back off.

  “Mee-Maw, I’m sure this will get sorted out.”

  “I hope so.” Charlotte gazed out through the side window. “I just spoke with him this morning. Just this morning. How do things change so quickly?”

  “When you confirmed dinner?” Ally looked over at her for a moment before turning her attention back to the road.

  “Yes. We often meet for a coffee first thing in the community room at Freely Lakes before I come to work. On my days off at least we talk for ages about anything and everything. He’s very easy to talk to.”

  “When you talked to him this morning did he tell you that he was going to the jewelry shop?”

  “No, he didn’t. He said he had an appointment today with a client. Then he was going to be free for the rest of the day. Free.” Charlotte sighed. “I just keep picturing him in handcuffs. What an awful thought. He’s such a strong, and intelligent man, to be reduced to a prisoner, it’s terrible,”

  “I can only imagine how difficult it is, Mee-Maw. But remember, if he’s as strong as you think, he’ll be able to handle it.” Ally turned into the parking lot of the diner. She recognized Luke’s car parked near the front. As the two walked up to the door, Luke stepped outside and held the door open for them.

  “I got us a table in the back.”

  “Thanks.” Ally noted the tight knit of his eyebrows. Her stomach twisted. Her grandmother was right, this wasn’t going to be good. A waitress approached, but Charlotte waved her away.

  “Luke, I’m not here to eat, I want to know when Jeff will be released.”

  “He will have a bail hearing in the morning.” He spoke each word carefully.

  “A what?” Charlotte shook her head. “This is ridiculous, he didn’t do anything!”

  “You may feel that way, Charlotte, but the Broughdon police do not. They have charged him with first degree murder.”

  “Ridiculous!” Her voice carried through the diner and drew the attention of other people nearby.

  “Mee-Maw. You have to try to calm down.”

  “No, I don’t. Don’t tell me to calm down. Jeff does not belong behind bars. You need to get him out right this instant!” She looked at Luke.

  “Charlotte, I can tell you what evidence I know about. If you would like to hear it.” Luke stared across the table at her.

  “Mee-Maw, Luke is only trying to help.”

  “I know.” She nodded. “Go ahead, because none of the evidence can be valid.”

  “The owner of a costume jewelry and jewelry supply shop, Dean Lawler, was killed this morning just after the shop opened for business.”

  “Dean Lawler?” Charlotte’s heart dropped. “That’s Jeff’s friend and Erica’s father.”

  “Erica, the girl that come
s into the shop at least once a week, right? Always orders dark chocolate covered peanuts?” Ally’s eyes widened.

  “Yes, that’s her.” Charlotte’s voice trembled. “Poor girl. How did this happen? Was it a robbery?”

  “I’m not sure, but I do know the murder weapon was a long metal cylinder shaped object. They believe it was a ring mandrel,” Luke said.

  “A ring mandrel?” Charlotte narrowed her eyes.

  “Yes, it’s a tool used in jewelry making to make a ring the correct size. I’m sorry to tell you this, but that ring mandrel belonged to Jeff. It was wiped clean, but he identified it as belonging to him.”

  “What?” She sat back in her chair. Ally slid her arm around her shoulders.

  “Jeff was also seen leaving the jewelry shop in a hurry, within the thirty-minute window that the police estimate the murder took place.”

  “Well, that doesn’t mean anything. Anyone could have come and gone in that window.”

  “But why didn’t he tell you that he was going to the jewelry shop this morning?” Ally offered hesitantly.

  “I don’t know why, but it wasn’t because he was planning a murder. That’s insane.”

  “The police are interviewing him, and trying to find out more details about the incident. As far as I know he’s been cooperative, but he has denied involvement.”

  “Of course he has.” Charlotte slapped her hand lightly against the table. “Because he’s innocent. Doesn’t the store have security cameras?”

  “Dean hadn’t got around to installing them yet so there is no footage that is helpful.”

  “This is terrible.” Charlotte shook her head. “Jeff would never do this.”

  “At this time he is their prime suspect.” Luke grimaced. “I do hope that changes.”

  “That’s impossible. It’s just impossible. You have to tell them that he’s innocent, Luke.” She stood up from the table and stared into his eyes. “You have to go there right now, and tell them that he’s innocent.”

  “I can’t do that, Charlotte, I’m sorry.” Luke offered his hands, palms up.

  “Why not?”

  “Mee-Maw.” Ally stood up. “Let’s just try to figure this out.”

  “There’s nothing to figure out. If you knew him like I do, then you wouldn’t doubt it for a second. He’s innocent, and he shouldn’t be behind bars. Please Luke, just tell them.”

  “I can’t,” Luke said. “I would do anything in my power to help you, Charlotte, but this is something I simply can’t do.”

  “Why?” She stepped closer to him.

  “Because it will make no difference. The police have to go off the evidence, not what I tell them. The murder was in Broughdon and it’s not my jurisdiction. And besides all of that I’m not sure that he is innocent.” He held her gaze. “You’re right, I don’t know him like you do. I’m sorry if that upsets you, but the evidence…”

  “Forget the evidence. He’s a good man, and he is not guilty.” She looked as if she might launch into more, but Ally grabbed her by the arm and steered her away from the table.

  “We should go. Luke, thank you for the information.” Ally tried to catch his eye, but his attention was focused on Charlotte.

  “Wait, I’ll walk you out.” He stood up, but Ally had already guided her grandmother towards the door.

  “That’s all right, Luke, just let us know if you hear anything new. Okay?” Ally glanced back at him with an apologetic frown. She knew Luke had no power to influence whether Jeff was arrested or not. Her grandmother knew that, too, but she was too strong-willed to accept it.

  She wanted to fix the problem as quickly as she could.

  “Yes, I will.”

  Charlotte nodded, but didn’t speak. Instead she walked through the door and out to the car. Once settled she gazed emptily through the windshield. Ally toyed with the keys, then slid one into the ignition. As the car started she wasn’t sure where to go.

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “Just drive, Ally.”

  “Yes, Mee-Maw.” She pulled out of the parking lot, with no particular direction in mind.

  Chapter 3

  After driving a few blocks with her grandmother in silence, Ally cleared her throat.

  “Do you want to go to the cottage? I’m sure Arnold would love to see you.”

  “No. I’ll go back to Freely Lakes.”

  “No, Mee-Maw, we’re going to go to my house, to have some tea, and talk this through. The last thing you need to see are the nosy residents trying to find out what happened.”

  “What’s to talk about. Luke already said he’s guilty.”

  “That’s not what he said, Mee-Maw.” Ally frowned. “He doesn’t know Jeff and he needs to look at the evidence first, you know that.”

  “I do know that. But don’t you agree with him?” Charlotte looked across the car at her.

  “I’m not sure what happened yet, but I do know that we need to figure out what it was.”

  “Yes, I agree.” She sighed. “I’m sorry I shouldn’t have gotten so annoyed, I know Luke is only trying to help.”

  “Yes, he is, but I am sure that he understands why you are determined to make sure that Jeff is free. You believe he is innocent. Here we are.” Ally turned the car into the driveway and parked. “You can stay here tonight if you want to keep a low profile.”

  “If there’s one thing that these old bones have learned over the years, it’s that hiding your head in the sand never solves anything. Plus, sand is really hard to get out of your ears.” She cracked a smile. Ally smiled in return.

  “I imagine sand crabs up your nose aren’t too pleasant either.”

  “Ugh!” Charlotte pinched her nose and laughed as she opened the door.

  Ally followed suit, then walked up the front walk. As soon as she opened the door Arnold came charging forward with a snort and a whimper.

  “Aw, you know I’m out of sorts don’t you, boy.” Charlotte reached down to pat the top of the pot-bellied pig’s head. “I’ve missed you, too.” She sat down on the couch and the pig immediately crawled onto the couch and rested his head on her lap. “Oh, you’re such a lap pig.” Charlotte sighed and patted his back.

  As Ally sat down beside Charlotte, her cat Peaches jumped into her lap. The two were soothed by the comfort of their animal friends as they settled into a few seconds of silence. Then Ally broke it.

  “If it wasn’t Jeff, then who could it be?”

  “It wasn’t Jeff, there’s no if about it. But I don’t know.”

  “Has he mentioned any issues with the store owner lately?”

  “No, not at all. They were friends and grew up in Mainbry together. In fact Dean hosted a special showing for Jeff’s jewelry just last week. Why would he do that if there were any problems between them?”

  “I’m not sure, but maybe something came up between then and now.”

  “Nothing that could possibly turn a good man into a killer. That I don’t believe.”

  “I’m not asking you to. Instead, let’s try to figure out who else might have done it. Did Jeff ever mention that Dean had problems with anyone else?”

  “No, not that I can think of.” Charlotte shook her head slowly, then snapped her fingers. “Well of course there was Silvio.”

  “Silvio?”

  “He runs a costume jewelry supply shop and since Dean opened his shop recently they were always competing for customers.”

  “A business rivalry?”

  “Yes, but they took it a little far sometimes. Jeff mentioned once that he thought they would get into a fist fight if he didn’t separate them. It made him nervous, because he doesn’t like violence.” She pursed her lips. “What kind of killer doesn’t like violence?”

  “You don’t have to convince me, Mee-Maw. I think Silvio would be a great person to talk to. What about Dean’s family? Was he married?”

  “I don’t think so. He and Jeff would go out for drinks and dinner now and then, and Jeff never menti
oned a wife. He does have two daughters though. Erica of course and Jane. Erica was recently married.”

  “Okay, the best place to start is the suspect, let’s see what we can find out about Jeff online. Maybe there is a clue there about who might want to frame him.”

  “I’m not sure that he’ll have that much of a footprint.”

  “Everyone has a footprint these days.” Ally did a search on his name then skimmed through the results. “Here’s his jewelry website.” She opened it and scrolled through some of the posts on it. “Nothing but good reviews.”

  “Because he’s a great person and a talented artist.” Charlotte frowned. “This seems like a waste of time.”

  “Maybe not. Let’s see what we have here.” Ally clicked on another link and pulled up a social media page. “This looks like it belongs to Silvio, the owner of the other jewelry shop. Do you know Silvio?”

  “I met him years ago, but I haven’t seen him for ages. I don’t even know if he would know who I was if we met in the street. I have never heard anybody say anything bad about him.”

  “There must be a mention of Jeff on here somewhere.” Ally scrolled through the comments on the social media page, then raised an eyebrow. “There are three reviews here about getting better deals at Dean’s shop, and two of them mention Jeff as a great designer.”

  “Well, that doesn’t surprise me.”

  “Someone named Troy has replied to those reviews and claims that Jeff’s designs are outdated and low quality, and that the reviewers will get what they paid for, as in cheap jewelry.”

  “Ugh, he has no idea what he’s talking about. Who is he anyway?”

  “He must be someone associated with the page to reply to the reviews. Let me check out the information page. Let’s see.” She scrolled through the pictures of the employees. “Aha, Troy Culpepper.”

  “Troy Culpepper. I know him, well I know of him and his family, not much though. He grew up in Broughdon.”

  “He’s the assistant manager. I’m assuming in such a small shop he works directly below Silvio, and since from what it looks like here Silvio is quite a bit older, he’s likely in charge of the social media accounts.”