Claws for Alarm Read online

  Chapter 14

  I checked back inside before I left. Peyton seemed in no hurry to leave the café. I told Adele to give her whatever she needed, then I put JJ’s harness on and, under the guise of needing snacks for Lucas’s and my afternoon at the beach, we slipped out. I really did need snacks. I hated being on the beach with nothing to eat, and we didn’t have any real beach-appropriate snacks in the house. This reminded me that I hadn’t heard from Lucas yet. Once I was on the road I called his cell.

  He answered on the fourth ring, sounding distracted.

  “Hey,” I said. “You almost done?”

  “I’m sorry, babe. I’m running a little long here,” he said. “I have a difficult client who’s not enjoying her bath.”

  “No worries. I actually have to run an errand anyway. I should be back in an hour or so.”

  “Perfect. I’ll see you then.”

  I hung up, relieved that I had a little time to kill, and pulled up in front of the co-op. I was trying to be on a healthy kick. Plus, JJ loved to visit the co-op. The people who worked there adored him and always gave him treats and catnip toys. Today was no different. After the staff had fawned over him and he’d been appropriately spoiled, I loaded up on plantain chips, organic dark chocolate, and some trail mix. At the last minute I grabbed a bunch of colorful mixed flowers—a summer bouquet—as an excuse to go to Stevie and Mish’s, then hopped back into Grandma’s car and headed toward the east side of town.

  Stevie and Mish lived out on the Duck Cove line, in a house that had been in Stevie’s family forever. I had only vague memories of them. His dad had died when he was young, and his mother had moved off-island before I’d left for California. I knew Stevie’s grandmother had lived here until her recent passing. I didn’t know if he had anyone else. Mish’s family still lived somewhere on the island as far as I knew, but I didn’t think they were close.

  It took me less than ten minutes to get there, since I was going against all the downtown traffic. I drove from memory even though I hadn’t been out here in years, thanks to many of the landmarks, like the sign for the Daybreak Wildlife Refuge bordering Stevie’s property, that I remembered as a kid coming out here for birthday parties.

  I almost missed the street but caught the sign at the last minute, yanking the wheel of Grandma’s car to catch the turn. The tires screeched in protest. This poor car was getting old. I really needed to get myself a car, but none of us had been able to part with Grandma’s old Ford Taurus. Not my style—I was more of an SUV gal—but it made me feel close to her. But it was twenty-something years old now and had a lot of miles on it.

  I slowed in front of the entrance. I’d kind of forgotten this place was so big and imposing. There were a few houses on the property, which spanned a large swath of the street. On one side was the wildlife refuge, and on the other the ocean. Perfect location. The only neighbors were across the street, and the houses were all large and spaced out enough that privacy wasn’t an issue.

  I pulled through the wrought-iron gate that stood halfway open and cruised slowly down the long driveway. I remembered Grandpa telling me once that Stevie’s family had what they called “old island money,” so this amount of property wasn’t surprising. Also, they’d probably built this up back when the land cost maybe one-tenth of what it did now.

  I couldn’t remember which part of the estate was actually Stevie’s, though. I drove past the first house, which looked like a little guesthouse. It seemed empty. The big house was next. Big house was an understatement—it looked more like a mansion. There were a few cars parked in the circular driveway, so someone other than his grandmother must live there. Beyond the big house, there was a small cottage with more cars parked out front—one of them was Stevie’s yellow Subaru. You couldn’t miss that. The other car was a black BMW. With rental plates. An X5. I pulled up a little closer. Yes, I’d seen this car before. Out in front of my house when Jillian came over.

  I rolled to a stop and tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, thinking about this and trying not to jump to conclusions. I glanced over at JJ, who stood on his hind legs, paws on the dashboard, staring intently at a squirrel nibbling on something in the middle of the lawn. The squirrel stared defiantly at JJ as it ate its treat. JJ’s tail swished in anticipation of a good chase.

  “Not happening, bud,” I said. “We like squirrels. So what do you think? Do we go to the door and see if we can find out what’s up here? Or leave it alone?”

  He glanced at me and squeaked. I think he meant Let me out of this car NOW.

  My phone vibrated. Lucas. I picked up, my eyes still on the door. “Hey. What’s going on?”

  “Hi babe. I’m done. Heading home. Where are you?”

  I paused. “Still running an errand. I’ll fill you in later.”

  He groaned. “What does that mean, Maddie? Are we still going to the beach?”

  Lucas knew me well enough to know that when I was kind of evasive, I was usually meddling in something. I really wasn’t trying to be evasive, though. It was just too long of a story to get into right now. Plus, the front door had opened and Jillian stepped into the doorway, turning around to speak to someone behind her. She held a big box and used her knee to keep the door open.

  “We are. Definitely. But I have to go. I’ll see you at home in like half an hour. I got beach snacks!” I disconnected before he could probe any further. I thought about taking off, but they would totally see me if I did. So I shut the car off, grabbed JJ and the flowers, and got out, striding over to the front walkway. Jillian turned and stared at me as I walked up. For once, she seemed to be speechless.

  “Hey!” I exclaimed, trying to sound surprised. “Fancy meeting you here!”

  “It certainly is,” she said with forced enthusiasm, shifting the box to her other arm. “What are you doing here?”

  I brandished the flowers. “For Mish. Because she wasn’t feeling well. We never actually got to talk about how you know each other. This is such a coincidence!”

  “Certainly is. Let me get out of your way. But first, look!” She shifted the box toward me. “The new batch of cat leashes just arrived. They are gorgeous. I can’t wait to show Peyton. I think they’ll pass muster this time.”

  Still avoiding the whole Mish thing. I peered into the box and pulled one out. It honestly didn’t look much different than the one Rhiannon had been wearing, but they were still pretty. The pure silver glitter was the only change I could pick up at first glance—it gave them a sheen that had been missing with the multicolored glitter.

  “You must take one for JJ,” she said.

  I looked at it doubtfully. “It’s not really his color.”

  “He’ll love it,” she said, thrusting one into my hand.

  Stevie stepped out onto the porch behind her, also staring at me like he’d never seen me before. “Maddie?”

  “Hi. I, uh. Is Mish home? I wanted to see how she was feeling. I brought flowers,” I said, waving my little bouquet. “And JJ. I felt bad that she was sick.”

  “Oh. That’s very sweet,” Stevie said. “Hi, JJ.” He reached over and awkwardly patted JJ’s head, then looked back at me. “She’s actually better today and she went over to the shop for a bit.”

  “I’m leaving,” Jillian said over her shoulder to Stevie. “We’ll talk more later. I’ll be back for the rest of the boxes.” She flashed another sweet smile at me. “Bye, Maddie! See you tomorrow.”

  “Yes, see you tomorrow,” I said as she hurried to her car. She opened the hatchback, threw the box in with a bit more force than necessary, then jumped in the driver’s side. She did a rushed three-point turn and took off, kicking up sand in the wake of her tires.

  Stevie crossed and uncrossed his arms awkwardly and leaned against the door jamb. “So. Want me to give those to Mish?”

  I nodded and handed him the bouquet. “Thanks. So how do you know Jillian?” I asked. “Because I know your wife knows her.”

  Stevie looked down at the ground
, shuffling his feet. I had a flashback to when we were kids—probably first or second grade—and I used to see him during gym class, wistfully waiting his turn at bat during softball days, looking very much the way he did now. He’d never been sporty, although I think he’d wanted to be.

  But the answer he gave me wasn’t what I was expecting. “She’s my cousin,” he said.

  “Your … cousin?” My brain worked to process that.

  He half smiled. “Yeah. What, did you think I was cheating on Mish?”

  I felt my face redden. “Of course not,” I lied. “But why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t Mish tell me? And why don’t I remember her?”

  “You don’t remember her because she never lived here. My aunt left the island at eighteen and rarely visited. Jillian’s only been here a few times, and even then, it hadn’t been for years.” Stevie sighed and looked away. “It’s complicated, Maddie. I’d rather not get into it. If we could keep your café stuff separate from our family stuff, that would probably be better.”

  “Especially since Mish doesn’t get along with her,” I said.

  He cocked his head at me. “Why do you say that?”

  “Because they were out in front of my place yelling at each other when Jillian came over the other day.”

  Stevie cringed. “You’re kidding.”

  I shook my head slowly. “Nope.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Not your fault. Family feud or something?” I asked with a small smile.

  He didn’t answer. Clearly it was none of my business.

  “Look. I’m not trying to pry. I just don’t want whatever is going on here to affect what she’s trying to do for the café,” I said. “I don’t know if you know, but she’s doing a fundraiser for us. There’s a lot of money at stake for the animals.”

  Stevie’s gaze held mine, his face unreadable. “Yeah. Her good deed of the week,” he said. His tone reeked of sarcasm. “Don’t worry, Maddie. I’ll keep Mish away so it doesn’t screw anything up for you. Thanks for the flowers.” And he went back inside, closing the door in my face.

  Chapter 15

  My alarm woke me the next morning from a sound sleep. For a minute I was confused about why it was going off on a Sunday, then remembered. The meeting at the Paradise Hotel with Val and Jillian. I sat up, grabbing for the phone to turn it off. Lucas slept next to me, unfazed by the alarm. JJ too. His one upright ear twitched, the only sign that he was awake and annoyed at the noise I was making.

  But too bad for him, because I was taking him with me. He had a knack for charming people.

  I focused on the clock on my phone—eight thirty—and tossed it aside with a sigh. Val and I had to be there at ten. Really, all I wanted to do was snuggle in bed with Lucas, then hit the beach for a real beach day. We’d made it there for a measly hour yesterday, by the time I’d gotten home from my afternoon of running around being nosy. Luckily Lucas was a good sport about it. I’d used the time on the sand to bring Lucas up to speed on everything that was going on with the fundraiser and the Mish, Jillian, and Stevie dynamic. But I hadn’t been able to reconcile the information I’d learned yesterday that Jillian and Stevie Warner were cousins. They were about as alike as the sun and the moon, from what I could see. Of all the possibilities floating through my head, that hadn’t been one of them.

  This made the whole Mish dynamic even more interesting, at least to me. I wasn’t sure about Lucas, but I’d talked his ear off about Stevie’s previous comment about family stuff going on that was “taking its toll” on Mish with his grandmother’s passing. I knew family stuff could be rough, but I wasn’t sure why Stevie went straight to keeping her away from the café. Was her relationship with Jillian so strained that she really needed to be banned from the café until the fundraiser was over? And if so, why?

  But really, it was none of my business, as Lucas had reminded me until the sun started to set and we needed to leave the beach. Grandpa would strongly echo that sentiment. So I should just leave it alone. It was hard, for a number of reasons. One, I was curious. I probably should’ve been a reporter when I’d decided not to be a cop. Both required extreme nosiness and a desire for the truth, both of which I had in spades. And two, I’d known Mish and Stevie since we were like five years old. Granted, that didn’t automatically make it my business, but when you lived on an island like this year round, people seemed more like family than they would in any other setting. I cared about them. If they were having a hard time and I could help, I wanted to. I just wasn’t sure how yet.

  Now I leaned over and gave him a kiss on the forehead. He didn’t wake. I threw my covers off and headed downstairs to get coffee before I got in the shower. Val and Ethan were already up. Ethan had the coffee brewing and Val sat at the kitchen table with her computer.

  “The Paradise is gonna be an awesome place to have this event,” she announced when I entered the room.

  I grunted and headed for the coffee pot. Ethan handed me a cup before I could even get there. He knew me so well. After a few sips, I focused on Val. “You think?”

  She nodded. “The view is amazing. Look at this.” She spun the laptop around and showed me the outdoor function area. It looked dreamy, I had to admit, with all the twinkling lights, the fire pit, and the ocean glittering in the background.

  “Beautiful. You’re sure they’re not booked?”

  Val shook her head. “I called yesterday after Mom left to confirm. Made sure to tell them that Peyton Chandler was the guest of honor. She winked. “They didn’t say it, but they cleared their schedule for us. And since I talked up the whole helping the police department and animal control function, they’re going to actually reduce the cost. So we’re good.”

  “Wow.” I was impressed.

  “She’s good,” Ethan said, setting a plate of eggs in front of her and leaning over to kiss the top of her head.

  “I know. That’s what I was trying to tell her all along.” I drank the rest of my coffee. “Any eggs for me?”

  “Coming right up.”

  “Are you going to be ready to go?” Val asked.

  I shot her a dirty look. She knew I hated to be rushed in the morning. “Yes,” I said through gritted teeth.

  She ate more eggs, still smiling. “Jillian will be impressed, you think?”

  “Absolutely,” I said, amused. I drained my cup and went over to refill it, then filled JJ’s food bowl. He appeared as if out of nowhere at the sound of the spoon hitting the bowl. I put his bowl down, added some of his favorite Temptations treats next to it, then stood. “I’m going to shower.”

  I poked my head into the café on my way upstairs. Clarissa was there cleaning, feeding, and taking Instagram photos of our residents. I thought about Mish and how indignant she’d gotten at Stevie’s suggestion that she should stay away and wondered if she’d been in touch with Adele about the schedule. I waved to Clarissa, shut the door, and headed upstairs.

  After I’d showered and gotten ready, I got JJ into his harness, poured a to-go cup of coffee despite Ethan’s incredulous look at my need for a third cup, and grabbed my keys. “Ready?” I asked Val, who was still hard at work on her laptop.

  “Yeah, I’m good.” She closed the computer then went over to Ethan and gave him a kiss. “I’ll see you soon. Are you going to the nursing home?”

  “Not today,” he said. “Taking a few days off.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I understand. I’ll see you in a bit.”

  I picked up JJ and we headed out. “What’s wrong with Ethan? He doesn’t like the nursing home anymore?”

  “He does like it. But one of his favorite residents died recently.” Val sighed and climbed into the car. “I feel bad for him. She was the first one he’s been super attached to.”

  JJ climbed onto Val’s lap. He liked the passenger seat, and if someone else was along for the ride, they just had to deal with him sitting on them. Also, he liked when there were people there because it boosted him up higher than if he
just had the seat to sit on.

  “That’s sad.” I knew Ethan had been closer to his grandparents than his own parents and that seniors had a special place in his heart. It had only been since we came to Daybreak that he’d found the time to actually volunteer at a nursing home, something he told me he’d wanted to do for ages and just never got around to back in California.

  “He’ll bounce back. But he took it hard.” Val was back on her phone. “So you think we’ll have to get Peyton’s approval on the decorations?”

  “I do. She seems kind of … picky. But the new leashes came in. Jillian had them yesterday.”

  “She did? When?”

  “There’s actually one in the back seat,” I said. “She gave me one for JJ.” I realized I hadn’t told Val about my trip out to Stevie’s, or any of that story. I filled her in quickly.

  “Cousins? You’re kidding.”

  “I’m not,” I said. “But there’s definitely some issues there.”

  “Wow. Hopefully she and Mish won’t cross paths too much.” Val glanced at her watch. “Grandpa said Jillian’s staying there, so hopefully she’ll get the meeting started if we’re late?”

  “I’m sure she will,” I said. But despite her worry, we made it to the hotel five minutes early. I pulled into a parking spot near the lobby door and we hurried inside. I hadn’t been in here in years, and it was gorgeous. Already one of the more modern hotels on the island, the new owner had done a lot of renovations since he’d bought the property last year. It looked more like a waterfront mansion than a hotel, with a wraparound front porch, private balconies for every room, and the pool and garden areas out back facing the ocean.

  Val went right up to the front desk, where a woman with short blond hair dyed purple greeted her with a smile. “Hello. We’re meeting Marianna at ten to discuss an event? Someone from our party may already be here.”

  The woman skimmed a list in front of her. “It doesn’t look like she’s been called yet. I’ll buzz her. She’ll be right down.”