PoisonBuried Punch (Black Cat Cafe Cozy Mystery Series Book 6) Read online

  Samantha pulled out a black garbage bag and looked inside. She whistled when she reached inside, holding up a stack of money. “Nice, all hundreds it looks like. Eddie wasn’t kidding when he told me we’d be rich.” She laughed.

  “You? He was planning to split it with you?” Dusty said with disgust.

  “Uh huh, and I wasn’t thrilled with that part of the plan. Too bad he had that unfortunate accident and won’t be around to enjoy this with me.” She cackled. “It would have been better if Christy had finished him off, but it wasn’t much trouble to push him onto that cement wall and make sure he was finally dead.” She stood up and heaved the bag filled with money over her shoulder. “Let’s go. Make sure those two won’t wiggle loose any time soon. I have a car hidden for the get-a-way.”

  Dusty held out his free hand for the bag of money. “I can carry that.”

  “Right! I don’t think so. You’ve got the gun. I’ve got the cash.” Samantha headed for the door without a glance back. She had what she came for and Dusty better keep up if he wanted his share.

  Silence filled Christy’s kitchen like a tomb.

  “What do we do now?” Annie asked.

  “They won’t get far. The computer has a tracking device and Dusty didn’t know about that.”

  A gunshot tore through the silence. Annie’s heart felt like it burst apart. “Did he shoot her?”

  Chapter 25

  “I don’t think so,” Christy said while she fiddled with the rope tying her hands together, shaking them free. “I’ll need to teach Dusty how to tie better knots.”

  “What? We won’t see him again,” Annie said, her voice filled with disgust.

  “Don’t count on it.”

  Christy grabbed her phone. “Tyler? They’re on their way.”

  Annie pulled against the rope tying her hands and yelled at Christy. “Christy Crank! Untie me right now and tell me what craziness is going on.”

  “Not until you promise to stay calm.” Christy stood in front of Annie with her hands on her hips.

  “Calm? You could have gotten us killed. Well, at the moment I don’t think I could care less if Samantha shot you, but I’m not ready to die.”

  Christy laughed. “Thanks a lot. And I thought we were friends.” She untied Annie’s hands. “You better call Jason and tell him you’re okay. I had to let him in on the plan to make sure he didn’t follow you over here and mess everything up.”

  “What plan?” Christy had her attention as she rubbed some feeling back into her hands.

  Dusty walked inside, laughing. A faint whiff of skunk followed him.

  Annie froze.

  “You should have seen the look on Samantha’s face when the skunk scooted out from under her car. I pretended to try to shoot it, but,” he looked at his gun, “it doesn’t help when it’s loaded with blanks. She got a direct squirt of skunk, threw the money in the car and hightailed it down the street without even checking if I was following her.”

  Christy bent over, she was laughing so hard. “Poor Tyler. He’ll blame me for having to transport a skunky prisoner.” She looked at Annie. “The skunk wasn’t part of the plan, but I like the timing.”

  Annie grabbed Christy’s arm. “Tell. Me. What’s. Going. On. Now,” she demanded through gritted teeth.

  The grin on Dusty’s face evaporated. “She doesn’t know?”

  “Nope. I haven’t had a chance to fill her in yet.” She looked at Annie. “Call Jason first, then we’ll explain everything.”

  Annie took a deep breath. A very deep breath. She filled her lungs and slowly let the air back out. She repeated the process and started to feel calmer. At least, calm enough to call Jason. He said he’d be right over.

  Christy brought three beers to the table, handing one to Annie and one to Dusty. “I think we deserve this while we wait for Jason.”

  “How did Dusty get blanks into Samantha’s gun?”

  Christy flicked her wrist. “It was his gun.”

  “And you knew?”

  “Of course.” Christy took a long swallow of the beer. “I was parched. This tastes great.”

  “Start at the beginning, please.” Annie finally sipped her beer and felt her body start to relax.

  Dusty and Christy both pulled out chairs and joined Annie at the table.

  “I figured out that Eddie was the mastermind and, with Dusty working behind the scenes, we decided Samantha was the easiest participant to manipulate into being his partner to steal the money from me. Of course, Samantha loved the idea of splitting all the money between just the two of them.”

  “So, all that crap Samantha told me—”

  Christy interrupted, “Yeah, all crap. She played you like a cheap violin.”

  The back door opened and three hyper dogs rushed inside, followed by Jason. “Thought I’d bring your dogs back.” Roxy jumped all over Annie while Blue and Bella slobbered on Christy.

  Jason helped himself to a beer from Christy’s fridge. “Everything went as planned?”

  Christy nodded. “Like a well-oiled machine. Thanks for helping.”

  Annie glared. “I can’t believe you were all in on this and let me think I was about to have my head blown off.”

  Christy patted Annie’s arm. “You played the most important role. Samantha had to believe she had you wrapped around her finger with all her sob stories. We couldn’t risk having her suspect you didn’t believe her.”

  “Nice try to make me feel better about being completely blindsided tonight, but it’s not working.”

  Christy’s phone rang. “Okay,” she said and hung up. “Tyler wants us all to come down to the station.”

  Jason stood behind Annie with his hands protectively on her shoulders. “You can come with me. A little distance from Christy will do you good.”

  Christy chuckled. “I thought it was a lot of fun.”

  Annie followed Jason to his car and opened the back for Roxy to jump in.

  “It smells like skunk out here,” Jason said as he sniffed the air.

  Annie finally started to laugh. The combination of stress, adrenaline and the absurdity of Dusty trying to shoot a skunk knowing the gun was loaded with blanks made her break down into hysterical laughing and crying.

  “It’s only a skunk,” Jason said, shaking his head in confusion.

  Annie leaned on the car. “Yeah, it’s only a skunk. The skunk and I weren’t in on the plan.” She looked at Jason. “I made it out alive and I’m glad the skunk got away to spray someone else another night.”

  Everyone at the police station had their hands covering their noses. Annie started to laugh again, but this time, it was only a giggle that she didn’t let get out of control.

  Tyler informed Annie that Samantha, Kyle, and Dennis were all in his custody, and with the money recovered and the notebook he found in Eddie’s apartment, all the money would be returned to the victims. “It was complicated, but everything worked out in the end.”

  “And the skunk got away,” she added.

  ***

  After a hot shower, Annie curled up under the down comforter and fell asleep two seconds after her head hit the pillow. No dreams, just pure, restful sleep.

  The smell of coffee hit her nose even before her eyes opened. Sun filtered through the curtains and she stretched under the covers, thinking about the skunk that got away. She smiled.

  Jason walked in carrying a tray with coffee, one yellow sunflower, and a pumpkin scone.

  “Feeling guilty?” Annie asked, her lips curled up at the edges. She scooched up higher with pillows behind her back.

  “A little. Especially after I lectured you to stop keeping secrets from me.” Jason sat on the bed and rested the tray across her legs.

  She broke off a piece of the scone. “Mmmm. I could get used to this treatment.” She sipped her coffee. “Perfect.” After setting the cup down, she asked, “How did they talk you into being part of the scheme?”

  “It wasn’t easy. Tyler and Dusty ganged up
on me. Dusty was positive that Samantha was about to make her move, and if he wasn’t part of the plan, the gun would have had real bullets.” Jason stared into Annie’s eyes. “I know Tyler wouldn’t let anything bad happen to you. I thanked him for that.”

  Jason stood up. “You might want to think about getting dressed soon. Company’s on the way over.”

  Annie sat up, sloshing the coffee over the edge of the cup. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Not kidding.” Jason’s eyes crinkled at the corners. “Do you want to finish your coffee or should I bring it back downstairs?”

  Annie sighed. “I was so looking forward to a quiet and peaceful morning.” She handed the tray to Jason. “I’ll be down soon.”

  Annie found her comfy, worn-in blue jeans and a soft flannel shirt. She looked in the mirror and gave her hair a quick comb. Good enough for me, she thought, so good enough for whoever is coming over this early.

  The sound of chattering voices grew louder with each step she took down the stairs. Of course, Leona was the first one to spot her.

  “Don’t you have any decent clothes to wear over here?” she asked as her eyes traveled over Annie’s casual outfit.

  Annie ignored the comment. “What brings you over so bright and early? Is the café out of business?”

  “Of course not, I like opening a little later during the week at this time of year.”

  Jason approached Annie and put his arm around her waist. “Leona brought over a feast. Come and have a look.”

  Platters of scrambled eggs, hash browns, corn bread, and fruit salad filled Jason’s dining room table. “There’s enough for an army.” She looked around the room at all the people staring at her.

  “Help yourselves before the food gets cold!” She picked up a plate for herself and loaded it with some of everything.

  Conversations started up again and Annie was happy to blend into the background with Jason by her side while she enjoyed Leona’s delicious cooking.

  “Hope you don’t mind that I’m here too?”

  Annie blinked. Then blinked again. Dusty stood in front of her, smiling his incredibly engaging smile. “Surprised, I guess. Your project here in town is done so I assumed you’d be leaving.”

  Dusty glanced toward Camilla then back to Annie. “I kind of like the scenery here and I’ve got a new project to work on.”

  “Oh?”

  “I heard there will be a pub in town looking for a new owner.”

  Annie smiled. “And a certain blonde doesn’t have anything to do with your decision?”

  Dusty actually blushed. “Ah, yes, a little, and she said I need your approval.”

  Annie’s hand flew to her mouth to catch the food that was about to fly out when she burst out laughing. She kept one eye on Camilla. “She said that, did she?”

  Camilla rushed over to Annie’s side. “What do you think?” Her eyes were wide with anticipation.

  “He didn’t shoot the skunk so that makes him okay in my book.”

  “That reminds me,” Jason turned around and handed a gift bag to Annie, “Christy is working but she asked me to give this to you.”

  Annie’s eyes narrowed to slits. “Is it safe to stick my hand inside?”

  Jason nodded, trying to control the quiver of his lips.

  Annie stuck her hand in the bag. “It’s soft.” She looked at the three faces watching her as she pulled out a stuffed animal and laughed out loud. “A skunk,” she said between her fits of laughter. “Perfect.”

  Behind the scenes with Lyndsey

  With Halloween approaching, my daughter called me and put 5 year old Mark on the phone. He asked if I could make him a Halloween costume. That sounded like a fun project so I asked what he had in mind.

  “Well, you know how I love superheroes?” Mark asked.

  “Yes, I do, and Danny loves them too,” I answered, wondering what I was getting myself into.

  “Can you make us capes?” His voice coming through the phone was full of hope.

  “Okay. That doesn’t sound too hard. How about Superman and Spiderman?” I knew they had underwear with those superheroes.

  He yelled a loud yes so we made a date and I bought the supplies I would need.

  When I arrived at their house with two capes in hand, Danny asked, “What about baby Emma? Can she be a superhero too?”

  I smiled at his thoughtfulness. “Of course. I already planned something for her.” I reached into my bag and pulled out a long sleeve purple onesie with a black bat stenciled on the front. “How about if Emma is Batgirl?”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah. She’ll like that.” Mark held the onesie up so Emma could see it and she smiled. Of course, she always smiles when she sees someone’s face, but Mark was positive it meant she liked the costume.

  With Emma happy, I fastened the capes to Mark and Danny. They dashed around their house in true superhero fashion while I got set up to make a Halloween treat for them. By the time I was ready, they were curious what I was doing so I pulled two chairs up to the counter so they could help me make:

  Boysenberry Punch

  I measured two cups of frozen boysenberries, 1 cup for each grandson to dump into the blender. I added 2 cups of water and let Mark turn the blender on. They loved watching the mixture turn into a deep maroon color.

  Danny stared at the swirling liquid before asking, “Are you making Poisonberry Punch, Mimi?”

  I laughed out loud. “No, it’s boysenberry, but we can change the name if you want to.”

  They both looked at me with big grins and said, “Yes!”

  “Okay. Next,” I told them, “I have to dump in a 12 ounce can of frozen lemonade.” It was Danny’s turn to turn the blender on and we watched as everything mixed together.

  I poured this into a big glass pitcher, adding a 1 liter bottle of plain seltzer.

  With our punch ready, I carried 5 tall glasses to the table for Mark, Danny, their mom, dad and myself. I also brought a big plate of sugar cookies to go with the punch. Halloween shapes and colors of course!

  When everyone was sitting, I poured the punch into glasses filled with ice and added extra boysenberries on top for a garnish.

  The boys each chose a pumpkin cookie frosted with orange icing and chocolate chips forming a face.

  Danny sipped his drink, declaring, “It’s delicious Poisonberry Punch, Mimi!”

  I hope you enjoy Halloween as much as we do, and be sure to try some Poisonberry Punch too!

  Cheers

  ~Lyndsey

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lyndsey Cole lives in New England in a small rural town with her husband, dogs, cats and chickens. She has plenty of space to grow lots of beautiful perennials. Sitting in the garden with the scent of lilac, peonies, lily of the valley or whatever is in bloom, stimulates her imagination about mysteries and romance.

  ONE LAST THING …

  If you enjoyed this installment of The Black Cat Café Cozy Mystery Series, be sure to join my FREE COZY MYSTERY BOOK CLUB! Be in the know for new releases, promotions, sales, and the possibility to receive advanced reader copies. Join the club here—http://LyndseyColeBooks.com

  OTHER BOOKS BY LYNDSEY COLE

  The Black Cat Café Series

  BlueBuried Muffins

  Annie Fisher is scared. She’s scared of the mess her boyfriend, Max Parker, is in the middle of and she has to get out of his house. She puts a whole state between them and drives like a madwoman from Cooper, NY to her hometown of Catfish Cove, NH where she hopes she’ll be safe.

  She decides to start a new life, a life she ran away from two years ago but is finding herself missing as soon as she gets home. Annie immediately has a place to live, a job at her Aunt Leona’s new café—Black Cat Café—and plenty of boyfriend prospects. Unfortunately, she also has plenty of bad things follow her.

  Like Max Parker. Only the next time she sees him he’s dead. Suddenly everyone she runs into turns into a potential suspect. There are ghosts from her past and ne
w neighbors that make her hair stand on end. And right in the middle of everything is Annie with Max’s last warning to her—Don’t trust anyone. Will those words prove to keep her safe or put too much distance between Annie and those trying to help her?

  StrawBuried in Chocolate

  Annie Fisher wakes up on Friday the thirteenth, but she reminds herself she’s not superstitious. The Black Cat Café is loaded up with special Valentine’s Day goodies, the most popular being Annie’s chocolate covered strawberries. She is so looking forward to a romantic weekend with current flame, landlord and neighbor, Jason Hunter.

  But when her Aunt Leona finds a body in Jason’s house, all plans for that romantic weekend are scrapped. All Annie, Leona, Mia and Jason can think about is who killed Lacy McGuire and why.

  With more and more clues pointing toward Leona as the killer, they need to work fast to figure out who the real killer is before Leona ends up in jail for good. To complicate matters for Annie, information surfaces about her birth parents, a mystery she’s been working on for the past few years. She thinks she wants to find the answers, but will it destroy her world?

  Now, Annie must struggle to save her aunt, but as she questions neighbors and relatives, will she put herself in danger with the real killer? Will she save her aunt but get herself killed in the process?

  BlackBuried Pie

  The Fourth of July weekend promises lots of excitement for the cozy town of Catfish Cove. A dog parade, bonfire, barbecue and fireworks are sure to bring in the crowds and give a boost to all businesses, including the Black Cat Café.

  To prepare for the onslaught of customers, Annie Fisher has to keep their supply up of blackberries from Hayworth Fruit Farms for everyone’s favorite, blackberry pie. But when she finds the berry farmer unconscious in his field, her mind immediately goes to the worst possible scenario. To make matters worse, the farmer’s neighbor turns up dead and anonymous messages drag Annie into the mystery when all she wants to do is spend time with her handsome boyfriend.

  With clues pointing in every direction, Annie needs to figure out who’s lying and who she can trust before she ends up as the next victim in the killer’s web of deceit.