Strawberry Cream Murder Read online

"Valuable enough to kill for?" Asked Amy.

  "You can't think I did this. What? For some gems and jewelry? That's ridiculous. I'm surrounded by them all day at work. If I was gonna rob anywhere would be the store. It wouldn't be my friend's ex-wife. And I wouldn't have hurt her. And I definitely wouldn't have hurt Tom."

  "Do you know anyone who would want to hurt either of them?" Asked Heather.

  "I didn't think they had any real enemies," Tony said. "If you think it was a robbery, maybe that was the case. It was nice jewelry. And if someone knew about it, they might want it real bad."

  "That's what I'm trying to figure out," Heather said to herself. "Was the killer after the jewelry? Was the jewelry an afterthought and the murder was the main motive? And why go after both members of the couple? Or were there two killers involved? And was one of them Tom Horn?"

  "You've got an awful lot of questions, lady," Tony said. "However, I don't know how to answer any of them."

  "Unfortunately neither do we," Amy muttered.

  "I'd like to find out if you had an alibi for the time for either of these crimes," Ryan said.

  He and Detective Peters began asking him about specifics regarding his location during the probable time of death, and when Tom Horn could've been attacked. Tony didn't have a good answer for either of the times. He said he was at work at the time that Vanessa was killed, but that the store wasn't open. It was a remodel day, and he was often alone. He also thought he was home when Tom was attacked, but his wife was away for the night.

  It didn't seem like he was going to be dismissed as a suspect based on his alibi.

  "Do you know anyone who is especially interested in the jewels?" Asked Heather.

  "No."

  "What about Melissa Felcher?" Asked Amy.

  "What? Vanessa's old friend?" Tony asked. "I don't see her robbing the place. They were friends."

  "Were they good enough friends that Melissa would have killed the man responsible for murdering her friend during a robbery?" Asked Heather.

  Tony shrugged. "I didn't know her too well. To be honest, most of the time, I thought Vanessa and Melissa were just going through the movements of their friendship. I think they just didn't have other friends to bother."

  "That doesn't sound like a strong endorsement," said Amy. "I don't think she would've killed based on a relationship like that."

  Heather agreed. She also still considered Tony a suspect.

  "Thank you for talking to us today," she said sweetly.

  "Don't leave town," Ryan said less sweetly.

  Stopping to Smell the Flowers

  Heather had never seen Miss Marshmallow keep up such a hearty pace during a walk. She normally would walk at whatever slow pace she preferred, taking time to sniff what she found interesting and avoided anything she found gross. However, today she seemed to want to impress. Skip and Dave were struggling to keep up.

  Cupcake who often went on walks with the dogs was unconcerned. She and Lilly were lagging behind, but Heather was able to keep an eye on them.

  Heather was walking Dave. Jamie was walking Skip who was just starting to get a little more pep in his step, hanging out with the other dogs. Amy was the one who was having to keep pace with Miss Marshmallow.

  "I'm glad that Skip is feeling a little better after his ordeal," Jamie said.

  "Me too," said Amy. "Though I'm not sure I like the effect that this is having on Miss Marshmallow."

  "How was the case been going?" Asked Jamie.

  "We're having a little trouble with it," Heather admitted.

  "I can understand that," said Jamie. "I identified the man who brought Skip in, thinking he was the killer, and he ended up in the hospital."

  "That's not your fault though," said Amy. "You just told us what you saw. And Tom Horn did bring you a dog with blood in his fur. It was a logical assumption to make."

  "We're still trying to figure out whether there was one culprit who both killed Vanessa Horn and attacked her ex-husband. Or if there are two different people who committed these crimes," said Heather.

  "Well," Jamie said. "What do you think right now?"

  "I'm not certain," Heather said. "But I'll try to talk it out."

  "Good," Amy said as she encouraged her dog not to walk so fast that she couldn't hear. "I love seeing my partner’s mind in action."

  Dave looked back at Heather expectantly too. It seemed like everyone was waiting for her to solve the case. Heather wanted to sigh, but she kept a firm upper lip. She might not know who did it at the moment, but she'd solved many cases before, and she was sure that she would figure this tricky one out too.

  "Jamie," Heather said. "You might be able to help with this case a little more."

  "How?"

  "Because I need to figure out whether Tom Horn committed the murder or not," said Heather. "And I think you might be able to shed some light on this."

  "I think I told you everything that happened," Jamie said with a frown. "What else can I do to help?"

  "I just need to get the sense of what you thought about the man. Did he look like a man who had just committed murder?"

  Jamie thought about it for a long time.

  "No," he said finally. "I didn't know anything was wrong at the time, but even thinking back on it, knowing what I know now, I don't think of him as a killer. If I had to describe him, I might say he was a tad panicky. But more so he was sad. But more than that, I think about how Skip acted. He didn't just act like he knew Tom Horn, he was acting relatively calm with him. I don't think Skip thought his owner was a killer."

  "Are you going to trust the Jamie intuition?" Asked Amy. "He's like a dog whisperer right now."

  Skip wagged his tail as if to second this notion.

  "I will trust him," Heather said. "If Jamie can interpret Skips mood, then I think it might be a good indication."

  "So," Amy said. "If Tom Horn isn't the killer, who is? Then is the person who killed Vanessa, also the person who attacked Tom?"

  "I think it might be the same person who committed both crimes," Heather said. "And Tom Horn must know who did it."

  "What makes you say that?" Asked Jamie.

  "Because of Skip," Heather said, realizing something. "Tom Horn must've come to his ex-wife's house. Skip had blood on his fur. He decided that the best thing to do was to hide it and get the dog away from the murder."

  "But who do we think killed Vanessa Horn?" asked Amy.

  "Well," said Heather. "It had to be someone that Tom Horn cared enough about to want to protect. It had to be someone that he didn't want to turn into the police."

  "Well, his brother Johnny has an alibi. He was in Jersey at the time," said Amy. "So are you thinking it was his friend Tony?"

  "Maybe," said Heather.

  She continued walking with her friends and animals, but her mind was on the case. She felt like she was close to figuring it out now. She just had to figure out who Tom wanted to protect.

  She was knocked out of her reverie by the sound of dogs growling. She looked at Dave first who was remaining calm. Miss Marshmallow was making noise, but this seems to be in response to Skip.

  Skip was growling at a house that they passed. Heather looked around to see what the source of his agitation was. She didn't see any cats or any people out. The house was well cared for. There are many flowers in the garden, including gardenias, lavender, and bougainvillea.

  "Calm down, buddy," Jamie said, moving closer to the upset dog. However, Skip was ignoring the instructions. Something was clearly bothering him.

  Heather looked around at the house, trying to figure out what she could be missing. What could be upsetting the dog so much? All she saw was a quaint house and beautiful flowers.

  "The flowers!" Said Heather.

  "The flowers?" Asked Amy and she picked Miss Marshmallow up into her arms.

  "That's what's bothering him?" Asked Jamie.

  "That's right," said Heather. "And it's also the key to this entire case."

 
"You solved the case?" Said Amy excitedly.

  "Well," said Heather. "With a little help from our canine companions."

  The Hospital Bed

  Heather couldn't help but feel a little bit nervous. She had been involved in many stakeouts and had planned some traps for suspects to incriminate themselves with, but she never did something quite like this before.

  Heather lay in the hospital bed, trying to act like she was asleep. The bandages on her head masked her identity, and the covers hid most of her body. It was quite possible that she could be mistaken for the patient Tom Horn.

  She took deep breaths, both to calm herself and to simulate deep sleep. She hoped her plan would work.

  After figuring out a solution to the case, Heather realized that it would be difficult to prove. She decided that she would need to try and force the killer out. She started a rumor that Tom Horn had woken up and would soon be speaking.

  Because she didn't want to use the real patient who was unable to defend himself as bait, Heather had volunteered to take his spot. She knew that any moment now, the uniformed officer outside the door would noticeably accept a call and walk away from his post. This would give the killer and opportunity to sneak into the patient's room.

  As she heard steps tiptoeing into the room, Heather realized that the officer must've left already. The killer had walked inside.

  Heather felt the pillow under her head pulled away. However, before another murder could be committed by suffocation, Heather sat straight up.

  "Not so fast."

  Heather removed the bandages from her head so she could see clearly. Melissa Felcher was backing away with the pillow in her hands.

  "I was just coming to see how Tom was doing. I thought he could be a little more comfortable," Melissa sputtered. "What are you doing here?"

  "We could ask you the same question," Amy said, entering the room.

  She was followed by Ryan and Detective Peters. They stood blocking the doorway.

  "Like I just said," said Melissa. "I came here to check on Tom."

  "No," said Heather. "You came here to kill Tom."

  "Why would I do that?" Asked Melissa, hugging the pillow close.

  "To finish the job that you started," said Heather.

  "Don't be ridiculous," said Melissa. "I told you. I was working at the time of these attacks."

  "We did check with your employer," said Detective Peters. "He did agree that you worked that day. But they are not precise with their timing. You still could've killed Vanessa Horn, and put in some work hours to function as an alibi."

  "But why would I kill Vanessa?"

  "I am guessing it has something to do with the jewelry," said Heather rising from the hospital bed. "We were told that not all the jewelry that Vanessa inherited was for her. Apparently, some of it was for Tom's lover."

  "Which not for nothing," said Amy. "I probably want to take the jewelry in a divorce to."

  "That lover was you, wasn't it?" Asked Heather.

  "What?" Asked Melissa. She was starting to sweat.

  "You robbed Vanessa to get the jewelry, and ended up killing her."

  "And that was causing Skip to go crazy in the backyard," said Amy. "Mrs. Biddle was about to complain, and you realized there was a chance that could happen. So you let Skip back into the house. However, he must've gone towards his owner and became covered in blood."

  "Tom Horn came to the house and saw what happened," Heather continued. "He didn't want to turn his lover into the police despite what she did. So he agreed to help cover up the crime."

  "Officers," Melissa said. "You don't buy this, do you?"

  "Yes, we do," Ryan said. Then he and his partner read Melissa Felcher her rights. They were about to escort her from the room when she started talking.

  "Why couldn't you believe that it was Johnny?"

  "We might have," said Heather. "But he had an alibi."

  "Why did you try to kill Tom?" Asked Amy. "Did he get cold feet about helping you cover up the crime?"

  "He was supposed to kill the dog," Melissa said completely losing her composure. "The dog was a witness and was covered in blood. He was supposed to get rid of him. But Tom couldn't do that for me. When I went to visit him, I realized he never carried through what he was supposed to. I knew I couldn't trust him anymore. I had to get rid of him."

  "We're glad you weren't completely successful," said Amy. "And who knows? Maybe one day soon he really will wake up."

  "How did you know it was me?" Asked Melissa.

  "It was because of Skip," said Heather. "In retrospect, I realize that your interest in him was as a potential witness. Not as a friend of the victim. And he ended up leading us to you."

  "How?"

  "He started growling when he smelled lavender," said Heather. "Your house smelled like it because of the fresh lavender you kept there. And you did too. He must've recognized the scent and associated with his master’s killer. There must also be what Johnny mistook for perfume. He said that Tom smelled like another woman before."

  "The jewelry was mine," Melissa said sadly. "I just wanted what was mine."

  "Well," said Amy. "Now you have a nice long prison sentence that is all yours."

  Skip

  After the case was solved, there was much discussion about what should be done with Skip. Luckily, something happened that made Miss Marshmallow very happy. Though Amy continued to joke that this had all been an elaborate ploy to get them to adopt a second dog, Miss Marshmallow did not end up having to share her home with another canine.

  Tom Horn finally did wake up in the hospital, and it became clear that he would eventually be his old self again. He practically cried when Skip came to visit him in the hospital room.

  Heather remarked that it was obvious to her that Skip and Tom belonged together. Ryan agreed. Though Tom should be held responsible for agreeing to help cover up a crime and assist a murderer after the fact, Ryan believed that a jury would find that Tom had already suffered enough from his time in the hospital.

  Ryan made special arrangements for Skip to spend time with his owner while he recovered. Tom thanked him profusely.

  As Heather left the hospital with her husband, she gave him a big hug.

  “What’s that for?” he asked with a smile.

  “I was just thinking how happy I am to be going home with you to our full house of friends and animals,” she replied.

  “I feel the same way,” Ryan said. “The only thing that could make it better is if there are some of those Caramel Sundae Donuts were involved.”

  “Well,” Heather said. “I think that can be arranged.”

  The End.

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  About the Author

  Susan Gillard is a lover of all things mysterious. She grew up in Kansas City, Missouri where her love of murder mystery novels grew.

  Now she travels the country in search of the best baked goods and engaging with the locals who often become the inspiration for her wacky characters.

  Get in Touch with Susan

  [email protected]