Chaos And The Caper (An East Pender Cozy Mystery Book 10) Read online

  Scampy eyed him suspiciously but ended up falling out of Ellen's arms and sat on his hind legs. Nick grabbed some equipment and began examining Scampy.

  “Has he shown any bad signs?” he asked.

  “None at all, he seems to be back to his best,” Ellen replied.

  “That's good. Like I said last time, I'm pretty sure everything has gone out of his system but it's best just to make sure. You never know with things like this.”

  “Have you treated many poisoned animals?”

  “More than I would have liked,” he said grimly, and paused a moment. “Unfortunately, it's all too easy for people to do.”

  “I'd much rather he had poisoned me rather than Scampy. He's been through too much already. I don't want him to get hurt ever again.”

  “He's a tough little champ,” Nick said, ruffling Scampy's neck, “and he can take a lot more than you'd think. Probably learned that from his owner.”

  Ellen scoffed. “I don't know about that. I don't think I'm setting a very good example at the moment.”

  “Unfortunately, I only can treat animals. I don't have anything to treat poisoned minds.”

  “Excuse me? My mind hasn't...”

  “Hasn't it? Forgive me for saying so, and I apologize if I am overstepping my boundaries here, but it does seem that what you've been through recently has had an adverse effect on you.”

  “It would do the same to anyone,” she said, a defensive tone creeping into her words as she wasn't sure she liked where this conversation was going.

  “Oh, certainly, but what I mean to say is the only treatment is time, and the support of those around you. You're fortunate to have a whole town full of friends, Ellen. Use them if you need them.”

  Ellen thanked him but privately thought that part of the problem of living in a small town was that everyone knew your business and had no qualms about offering their two cents. She collected Scampy and paid the bill then took a short walk, trying to enjoy the afternoon air while she could.

  Her mind was still being stung with paranoid thoughts as she strolled along and she tried keeping them under control as best she could. People smiled at her as she passed, but they all seemed false. Each one had a pitying look in their eyes, as though they knew exactly what she had been through. This only made her wish she could get away for a while like Kelly and Matthew.

  There was a mystique that had arisen around Ellen that suggested she was better than everyone else just because she did something out of the ordinary and helped the police solve crimes. Yet in her own mind she was no different than any of them, not that they seemed to understand that.

  From the way they looked at her she could tell they didn't know how scared she was, how vulnerable she felt each waking moment. She already had lost one of her pillars of support in Kelly and the crisis she was suffering inside didn't seem to be coming to a conclusion anytime soon.

  When she returned home she found Andy dressed, sitting in the lounge with a grave look on his face. Instantly her heart began racing.

  “How's Scampy?” he began, and at the mention of his name Scampy barked, then jumped into Andy's lap. Andy stroked and caressed the dog.

  “As you can see, he's as good as he's ever been,” Ellen replied, smiling, “but I can see you're not. What's wrong?”

  Andy sighed heavily. “I just got a call. I've been asked to go to a training course on the other side of the country. Apparently one of the speakers had to drop out at the last minute. Someone I used to work with is running the whole thing and he's been keeping tabs on me. He wants me to go there and lead some of the sessions.”

  “Oh...what did you say?”

  “I said I had to tie up a few things first. I wanted to speak to you before I did anything,” he said as he stood up. “If you don't want me to go then I won't. If you need me to stay here I will.”

  Ellen blinked and thought things over for a couple of minutes. “Do you want to go?” she asked.

  “I always enjoyed being at the academy and for a long time I thought about pursuing a career as a teacher but, well, after everything that has happened I didn't think that was a possibility. But this isn't a priority for me. You are. I know it's going to be tough for you without Kelly and I don't want to add to that. So just say the word and I'll turn down the offer.”

  Ellen looked at him and was filled with love. All she wanted to do was ask him to stay, to tell him that she never wanted him to leave her but she knew she couldn't. It wouldn't be fair to him for her to keep him with her. She had to be stronger, had to survive by herself. She couldn't let her own doubt seep through and affect Andy's life. She put on her best false smile and kissed him lovingly.

  “It sounds like you've wanted something like this for a long time and I'm not going to stand in your way. You don't have to worry about me, I'll be fine. I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself.”

  From the wide smile that appeared on his face she knew she had made the right decision. Andy whooped in delight and gathered her up in his arms, peppering her with kisses.

  “God I'm going to miss you, though,” he said, and together they sank into the couch.

  Just after dawn, East Pender was peaceful. One man stretched his limbs and yawned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he opened the door to his store and walked inside. At first, in his half-asleep state, he didn't notice anything was amiss but as he turned on the lights and the electricity surged through the bulbs, he was suddenly alert.

  The place had been ransacked and, although at first glance he couldn't tell exactly what had been missing, he knew that it was a lot. The first thing he did was rush to the cash register, then he beat his fist on the side for he saw that it was empty. He knew the night before he’d forgotten to put the cash in the overnight safe, as he did on most nights. For a few moments he stewed in his anger and contemplated revenge against whomever could have done this. Then he called the police.

  Chapter 2

  When Ellen awoke she had not heard anything of the burglary, and enjoyed a lazy morning in bed with Andy. The previous night he had informed the station of his departure and that he was not to be contacted unless it was a desperate, dire situation.

  Much like the previous day when she had had to say goodbye to Kelly, Ellen was filled with emotions that struck her as irrational. Andy would be back soon and he was remaining in the country, so they still would be able to maintain contact. Yet there was something desperately sad about the fact that she would not have him by her side. For the longest time they had been a team and now that he was going she felt isolated and alone. If only one of them or Kelly had left she would have been able to deal with it more easily, but with one gone and the other leaving, she was at a complete loose end.

  They shared an emotional goodbye. Andy hugged her so tightly it didn't seem as though he ever would let go. She wished he wouldn't, but eventually he relinquished his grip on her and went to his car.

  “I'll give you a call when I get there. If you need me just say the word and I'll come back as quickly as I can,” he said.

  “Don't worry about me, just go and show those officers how we do things in East Pender,” she said, and waved him off.

  The car pulled away and disappeared around a corner. As soon as it did her face fell and she began to chew her lip again. Not wanting to show any sign of weakness around Andy, she had kept her true feelings secret. Although he only had been gone for a matter of seconds she already was feeling his absence.

  With little else to do she made her way to the cafe, hoping that working would take her mind off things. When she arrived she heard the phone ringing and quickly scrambled to unlock the door. She managed to catch the receiver before the caller hung up.

  “The Chrome Cafe, this is Ellen speaking, how may I help you?” she said in her politest tone. The person on the other end of the line breathed heavily and his voice cracked and stammered.

  “Hello, Ellen. Uh, I mean Miss Thatch. This is Jimmy, that is, Sergeant Lister and I
was just wondering if you'd be able to help me with something? You see, there was a burglary last night and, well, with the chief gone I've been left in charge but it's all rather overwhelming. I know you've helped him a lot. I was just hoping you could do the same for me.”

  “I appreciate you calling Jimmy.” As she spoke she searched her mind and tried to remember what he looked like, “But right now I don't think I can, I'm sorry.”

  “Please, I've never been on my own like this before and I don't want to make a mistake,” he said and his pleading tone made it extremely difficult to resist.

  Ellen contemplated her decisions for a few moments and, even though she assumed she would regret it later, she agreed to help Jimmy. The relief in his voice was palpable and Ellen wondered just why Andy would leave such an inexperienced man in charge. She finished a few things in the cafe and then made the short walk down the main street to the general store that had been broken into. The area was quiet and, on the outside at least, there were no signs that anything was amiss.

  However, once she stepped inside she saw the store owner was distraught. He was acting frantically and didn't seem to be able to stand still. He was tearing out his hair and mumbling incoherently about the unfairness of it all. Standing beside him was Jimmy, and now that Ellen saw him she remembered seeing him before. He was a thin man, tall, taller than Andy even, but without the imposing authority that the chief of police had. Jimmy had a baby face and a soft voice, and he seemed content to let the victim babble on.

  Ellen's natural instincts, along with her experience, told her to make her presence known. She strode through the store and in a loud voice proclaimed, “What's going on here?”

  Jimmy smiled at her and instantly seemed to relax when she announced her presence. It also brought an end to the victim's stream of babbling. Jimmy quickly made Ellen aware of the facts of the case as they knew them so far. Then she turned to the victim.

  “Did the video surveillance catch anything?” she asked.

  “It was cut before it could catch anything.”

  “So we're dealing with someone who knows what they're doing,” Ellen mused. “And what was taken?”

  “Money, everything that was in the till, and some other stuff but I haven't had a chance to take an inventory yet,” he said, gesturing to the mess that was all around them.

  “I can't believe this happened to me, in this town. I thought we all were friends, you know? This is going to set me back a long time. I had plans for that money and I'm going to have to waste another day of business cleaning up this mess.”

  “I'm sure the police can spare a few officers to help you with that, and to take an inventory,” Ellen said.

  After a pause she glared at Jimmy, who seemed to get her meaning. He went over to a couple of other officers and told them to help sort out the store. She turned back to the owner and placed a hand on his shoulder.

  “I'm sorry this happened to you but we'll find out who did it.”

  The owner nodded. “I'm glad you're here, though. That other guy doesn't seem to know what he's doing. Why is he here and not Andy?”

  “Andy was called away unexpectedly to handle a training course out of town. He has the utmost faith in Sergeant Lister, though,” Ellen said.

  “At least one person does,” the owner grunted. Ellen glanced over at Jimmy but didn't respond to that.

  “The police will remain here and help you get this place sorted out. If you can think of anything else that may come in handy just let us know.”

  She left him with a blank look on his face as he stared at the destruction surrounding him. Then she went up to Jimmy and pulled him aside, speaking in a low voice.

  “What did he say in his statement? Did anyone have a grudge against him?”

  “Not that he said,” Jimmy replied, leafing through his notepad as if he seemed to have difficulty finding the right page.

  His cheeks reddened and he seemed to be getting more flustered with every passing moment. Ellen wondered to herself why Andy had chosen this man to be in charge when he seemed so clearly ill-equipped for the job.

  “No, there was nobody he could think of.”

  “And what about anyone else? Did anyone see or hear anything?”

  Jimmy shook his head as he flicked to another page. “Nobody had anything to add. We might be able to figure out a motive once we know exactly what has been taken, but right now we're pretty much in the dark.”

  “That's not necessarily true,” Ellen began. “They cut the surveillance camera so we know they're not an amateur.”

  “That is right.”

  “And it happened in the dead of night. So although all this mess makes it seem as though it was frantic, the thief most likely had all the time in the world. It's not like they just saw the store and were gripped with a sudden urge to break in. This was planned, and they were looking for something specific.”

  “You're good. I know why Andy values your help so highly,” Jimmy said, although Ellen didn't feel worthy of receiving any glowing praise. Especially not since what she just had said was pretty basic.

  “I have to admit,” Jimmy continued, “I'm glad you're here. I don't think I could handle this by myself. This is the first crime scene I've handled on my own. It's a lot different when you have to call the shots.”

  “Yes, it is...If you don't mind me asking, Jimmy, why are you a sergeant if you find these situations so uncomfortable? I'd have thought you'd have had some experience at least?”

  She searched her mind and remembered him helping out with previous searches, but the more she thought about it the more she realized she couldn't remember anything of note about him.

  “Well, I joined the force because I wanted to make a difference but I didn't really think much about the future. I was just a kid, after all. And, you know, some people just have that leadership quality, like Andy, but I don't. I've tried focusing more on the logistics side of things and work behind the scenes. Frankly, I'm surprised the chief left me in charge at all, but I guess I'm the next-ranking officer so he had no choice.” His voice faltered in that instant and Ellen felt great pity for him.

  “If Andy chose you to take care of things in his absence then he did so because he trusts you and he has faith in you. He doesn't do things just because the guidelines say so. You're here because he wants you and because he knows you can do the job.” Jimmy smiled appreciatively.

  “But can I offer a little piece of advice?” Ellen added.

  “Of course! I'd love to hear anything you have to offer. You and Andy have worked on so many cases and we're all so impressed with the way you handle things. I'd love to learn as much as I can.”

  “Okay, in that case you need to learn how to take control of a situation. Like it or not, you're the one in charge and everyone is going to look to you for guidance, and I don't just mean your fellow officers. The victims, the witnesses, they're all going to take their cues from you and if you're not in control then that is going to affect how they act.”

  “I appreciate that, really I do, but people have been telling me the same thing throughout my life. They always said I had to speak up more at school, be louder and more confident, but it's not that easy to do. It's not like there's a switch I can flick on and off.”

  “I understand that, really I do, but for the sake of your job and everyone you're working with you're going to have to learn. The best thing to do is just fake it, act like you're confident, and eventually you'll be confident.” Ellen spoke true words but Jimmy remained unconvinced, although he thanked her nonetheless.

  Ellen made her exit and told him to notify her if he needed her help with anything else. Although, truth be told, she hoped he wouldn’t and that she could go back to the cafe and take a break from everything.

  Stepping out onto Main Street, the town was becoming alive as people went about their daily business. Yet she had been investigating crimes for so long now that she only could see the nightmares behind the façade. She wondered t
o herself if she ever would be able to see the humble town again, or if she was cursed to see the darkness.

  Trying to push that particular thought from her mind she wanted to return to the cafe, to her safe haven, but before she did so she wanted to have a good look at the surrounding buildings herself. The lure of a crime was too much for her to resist. However, the adjacent buildings didn't seem to show anything. So she walked down a little farther, inspecting the sidewalk and the nooks and crannies in the walls, just to see if, by chance, a clue had been left. Unfortunately, it was not to be the case.

  On her way she saw that a building that had been empty for a while had been bought. Out of curiosity Ellen walked up to the building and peered through the window. The insides were covered with sheets and it was very much a work in progress. There was a woman inside on all fours, wearing overalls. Ellen knocked on the window and the woman turned around with a startled look on her face. She wiped her glistening brow, for what she was doing was hard work, and opened the door for Ellen.

  “Hello, I'm Ellen. I just was passing by and was curious about what you're doing here.”

  “I'm Maggie, good to know ya,” the other woman said, holding out her hand and shaking Ellen's with a firm grip.

  She was about Ellen's age, with flame-red hair tied back into a tight ponytail. Her cheeks were flushed red and they were peppered with freckles, but otherwise her skin was unblemished. She had green eyes and a shapely figure, and from Ellen's guess Maggie was around the same age as she was.

  “I've just moved here. I'm opening a cafe.”

  “Oh, how strange! I actually own The Chrome Cafe along the road.”

  “Really?! People I've spoken to have said only good things about it. Are you busy at the moment? Would you mind if I picked your brain about a few things?”

  “Of course not, would you like to come to the cafe and we can have a chat there?”

  “Sure thing, just give me a few minutes to get myself cleaned up and I'll be right out.”

  She disappeared into the back of the cafe, leaving Ellen to stand in the empty building. For now, it didn't look like much but soon enough that all would change. Already she was envisioning what she would do to the place, and wondered if her plans aligned with Maggie's. The building was a little smaller than her own cafe, and while there was a part of her that didn't welcome the competition, overall she was glad to have a similar business around. A rising tide lifts all boats, after all.