A VENEER OF MURDER (Mrs. Fix It Mysteries Book 3) (4 page)

“Crap,” Jessica said.

She followed her former sister-in-law into the house. Kate looked around but realized that Jessica needed help. Kendall was a steamroller, and Jessica was going to get flattened. Kate entered Jessica’s house. The pair hadn’t gotten very far. Jessica grabbed ahold of Kendall’s arm. The woman was still trying to maneuver her way down the hallway.

“Is there a problem?” Kate said.

Both women stopped then turned to her.

“No, Kendall was just leaving,” Jessica said. “This is my appointment. We don’t have much time, and I can’t show you around.”

The last part was said to Kendall, who frowned. “But we’re family. Of course you can trust me in your house. If you can trust a tradesperson in it.”

Kendall gave Kate the once-over and Kate was sure she came up lacking. Oh well. You can’t do fix-it work in designer clothing.

“Kate isn’t just anyone. She’s the town handyperson,” Jessica said with pride, as if she’d birthed Kate. Well, she had singlehandedly kept her in business, and her recommendations to others in town had helped Kate immensely. Still, she didn’t need to be that proud.

“Oh? Do you have a card?”

Kate pulled one out of her pocket but made Kendall come closer to her to retrieve it. “Do you have work that needs to be done?”

She kept moving toward the door, with Kendall following her. Kate could get this woman out of Jessica’s house.

“My house is a little out of town. Will that be inconvenient? We had to move to a place in town since Harvy is mayor. Our house is technically not in Rock Ridge, but in Walter Springs.”

The statement made Kate want to ask how Harvy got elected. Most likely, no one else wanted the job. “That shouldn’t be a problem. Why don’t you make a list of what you need and e-mail me? I can give you a rough estimate of the cost.”

She had Kendall to the front door. “If you get me that list today, I can get you an estimate tomorrow sometime. I’m booked most of the day, so I won’t get to it until tonight.”

“That works. I’ll go right now and look around.”

Kendall put on her flashy sunglasses then left.

Jessica laughed when Kendall’s SUV was gone. “That was good. How did you do that?”

“It’s a knack,” Kate said. “I can only imagine what Christmas dinner was like with her.”

“Don’t make me think about it. Talk about stress. It was always at their house, and the decorations were over-the-top. Think
Christmas Vacation
.”

“Oh, no. Did they have things that moved and made noise?”

“Yes. On the roof. I think you could see their house from outer space,” Jessica said.

Kate shuddered at the idea. Her decorations were understated since no one saw them. She wasn’t even sure she’d put them up this year.

“So she wants to buy your house? Could be a winning situation.”

“No, it couldn’t.” Jessica motioned for Kate to follow her. In the kitchen, she poured coffee.

Everyone knew about Kate’s penchant for coffee.

“A buyer already can’t be a bad thing,” Kate said.

“She’ll nitpick me on items and try to get the price down,” Jessica said.

“Thanks for the coffee.”

“I’m sorry about Meghan,” Jessica said.

Kate’s heart hurt again for a minute. The exchange with Kendall had made her forget about the loss of her new friend. Now the hurt of it all came back to her. “Thanks.”

***

Jessica packed the last of her stuff as Kate looked over the second floor to see what changes she could make to stage it. It seemed pointless if Kendall was that interested in buying the house.

“Why does Kendall want this house so badly?” She fixed the covers on the queen-sized bed in the master bedroom.

Jessica had a suitcase on the loveseat in the corner. She kept walking in and out of her walk-in closet. “Not to put too fine a point on it, but this is the biggest house in Rock Ridge.”

“You aren’t going to miss it?”

Jessica stopped, looking around. “No, I won’t. Not as many happy memories here as I’d like to think. Dudley may have died, but I was going to divorce him anyway.”

“True.”

Kate had forgotten that. Jessica had been unhappy with her late husband. She was a different person with Dean. Much calmer, Kate had to say. Dean wasn’t rich like Dudley had been, but happiness wasn’t always about money. Jessica probably had inherited some money from her husband. The pair would be okay.

Kate fixed the pillows on the bed. Jessica had mostly moved out to Dean’s house. Once the house was on the market, she would be completely out. It would make the staging easier as no one would move the furniture or accessories.

“So Celia was arrested for Meghan’s murder,” Jessica said.

“Yes.”

“I can’t see Celia killing anyone. Did she even know Meghan as more than a librarian?”

“Not that I know of.”

“So why are they so sure that Celia is the killer? Doesn’t she get some benefit of the doubt because she is Ken’s wife?”

“Well,” Kate began. She wasn’t one for gossip, but she’d also found that people talked if you shared something. She’d solved two cases this year by just listening, but each person had to be prompted. “The murder weapon was her letter opener.”

Jessica gasped. “But she’d lost that.”

“How do you know?” Kate stepped back to look at her handiwork on the bed. “Do you have a throw blanket?”

Jessica disappeared into the closet. The one she came out with matched the comforter perfectly. Kate draped it over the corner of the bed as if it had been casually put there.

“Love that touch. Wouldn’t have thought of that. Dean likes my taste. He says I can decorate his, I mean, our house any way I want.”

“Nice.”

Dudley had the tackiest taste. Must run in the family since his brother married Kendall.

“How do you know that Celia lost the letter opener?” Kate said.

“Because she had it at the last meeting of the Founder’s Day Festival Planning Committee meeting. She’d picked up the mail and was opening it while we were discussing other things. We are on several committees together, and she usually is the one checking the mail for each of them. She brings the letter opener everywhere.”

“But how do you know she lost it?”

“After our last meeting, she called me to see if I’d seen it. She said she put it down but couldn’t find it in her purse.”

“Where do you have your meetings?”

“In the community center. Have you been? It’ll be rededicated this week. Dean and I will be there.”

“Are they naming the center?”

“Ironically, yes, after Dudley.”

Kate wanted to laugh. Dean had renovated the center that was going to be named after his wife’s late husband, whom she had cheated on with Dean. Only in Pennsylvania. “Did Celia go back to the center to look for it?”

“The next day on her way to work she did,” Jessica said. She closed her suitcase.

“So she didn’t find it. Who else was at that meeting?”

Jessica rubbed her chin. “The usual suspects. Clara Jenkins and people like that. Oh and Kendall had insinuated herself into the meeting also. She came late and left early, of course. She’s all about the show. She’ll do no work, I’m sure.”

Clearly Jessica didn’t like her former sister-in-law.

“Could you talk to Scott about the letter opener?”

“Sure. I can do that after my meeting today.”

Jessica didn’t have to work as Dudley’s wife. She spent her time on the committees that got things done in a small town. Kate would find it exhausting. She liked working solo most of the time. People to her were fine one-on-one, but any group larger than that and she found herself looking for the door.

“I hope you weren’t offended that I left your reception early,” Kate said.

Jessica patted her arm. “Not at all. I was just happy you were there. I know life has been tough for you and will be in limbo until Greg is found.”

“I’m glad you invited me. I’m not one for large gatherings.”

“Understood. I, on the other hand, love a party.”

Kate laughed.

“Speaking of large gatherings,” Jessica said.

What was she going to get roped into now? Kate wasn’t one for hen parties or committees. “What?”

“I actually need your expertise behind the scenes.”

“Oh?”

Behind the scenes might be okay.

“The wooden bleachers for the parade spectator area are in need of repair. We don’t have a large budget, but we can certainly pay for supplies for you to fix them.”

That Kate could do. “Okay. Can I look them over? I’ll need to before I can buy supplies.”

“Sure. Just ask one of the DPW guys. He’ll show you where they are.”

“Okay. I can do that. Anything else?”

Kate felt an obligation to Jessica, since she’d given her most of her business. Kate wouldn’t have been quite as successful if Jessica hadn’t recommended her to all of her friends.

“You almost done?”

“I’m done with this room. Are you completely moved out now?”

“Yes, I am. You can do what you want with the house.”

“You aren’t taking any furniture with you?”

“Not yet. It’ll go into storage for when Dean builds me a house.”

A small smile appeared on her face. New love. What a joy. Kate tried to remember back to when she’d first met her husband. She couldn’t. His continued absence was beginning to make her resent him.

Greg was slowly becoming someone she didn’t know. Each time Scott uncovered something new about him in his investigation of the man’s disappearance, Kate increasingly felt like she’d married a stranger. Had he even loved her? She didn’t know anymore, and her feelings toward him were getting more complicated.

“You okay?” Jessica asked.

“Just thinking. Too much, of course.”

“About Greg?”

“Yes. Meghan was supposed to show me something. A book that Greg had taken out and not returned. I never found out what it was.”

“Do you think it would help find him?”

“Might shed light on where he is or at least why he left.”

Jessica put her hand on Kate’s arm. “I wish this wasn’t so tough on you. I’d be pretty mad about now. Five years and all. You’ve held up so well.”

Kate smiled at Jessica. “Thanks.

***

Kate stopped at the grocery store to pick up a rotisserie chicken for dinner. Cooking for one wasn’t fun. She met Dean in the frozen foods aisle.

Kate glanced at his cart. “That looks like a bachelor meal.”

He laughed. His dark eyes sparkled when that happened. What a transformation. When he’d come to town, he’d been goth with eyeliner and black nails. Now he looked like every other man in Rock Ridge. She wondered if Jessica had fallen in love with him before he mellowed his look.

“I saw your lovely bride earlier today,” Kate said.

Dean grinned. He was a man who was smitten. “I heard. You deftly got rid of Kendall for her.”

“I did.”

“I had lunch with Jessica. She’s out with some friends for some working dinner. I didn’t ask. I lose track of all of the committees she’s on.”

“She’s a busy woman. You guys heading out of town soon?” She pulled out a bag of frozen peas and dropped them in her cart.

“In a few days. The community center is being dedicated.”

“I heard.”

She chose not to ask him about the name. He got the girl. That was the most important thing. He rubbed the back of his neck, and Kate couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“Uh, Kate. Are you free right now?”

“Free?”

She was sure he wasn’t asking her for a date, but she didn’t know what he meant.

“I want you to come look at something. I need a second opinion and I trust yours.”

“On what?”

“I want you to come look at this office building that I just built. It isn’t complete, and it failed some inspections. For real reasons, not stupid ones.”

Kate had to laugh. Town inspectors could be intermittent with their enforcement of the codes.

“Okay. The one out of town?”

“Yes.”

“I live that way anyway. Sure. You want to go now?”

“I just need to pay for my stuff,” Dean said.

They both used the self-checkout then Kate followed Dean in her truck. They drove past Kate’s house, then out of town. Just at the edge of the zip code, Dean parked his truck by a partially built office building.

“I thought you were further along than this.”

“I was, but I had to take down some of it. There hadn’t been inspections done.”

She looked up at the building. Must be frustrating to do things twice. “Who is in charge of this site? Or are you here full time?”

“I’m not anywhere full time. I have crews and foremen.”

“Who is the foremen for this site?” she said.

He led her into the building. “Let me show you some things, first.”

He took the steps to the second floor. He pointed to some of the electrical wiring. She was no expert, though she could do some minor wiring of an outlet or a light switch. She looked more closely at it. “The electrician didn’t put the wires in correctly. They’re switched.”

“The inspector didn’t catch it because there wasn’t one. I have no idea why anyone thought that was a good idea.”

“Is the electrician union? You can complain.”

“Not that anything will get done. I started out as an electrician,” Dean said. “I saw many guys do a crappy job, and there were no consequences.”

“What else.”

“Pull on that sheetrock.”

Kate did. It came away in her hands as if it were powder. “Where did you get this?”

“I haven’t looked at the records yet, but I’m sure it isn’t where I normally get this stuff.”

“Who’s in charge?”

Dean rubbed a hand down the back of his neck. “My foreman. I’m not sure if he is the one cutting corners or not.”

“Who?”

“Clem Tully.”

“Meghan’s brother.”

“I know. His sister was just killed, and I feel bad coming down on him. That’s why I haven’t yet. I have to be sure. I can’t piss off the local guys or I’ll have no workers.”

“That bites.”

“I know. I just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t losing my mind.”

“You aren’t. This is all substandard work and materials. What are you going to do?”