Scraps of Evidence: Quilts of Love Series Page 6

  Logan reached for his wallet, but the driver shook her head as she pressed the gas pedal. “No charge for the city’s finest.”

  She let them off at the station with a wave of her hand.

  Logan hated to break the mood, but he couldn’t help it. “Tess, I want to take a tour of the crime scenes.”

  She nodded. “We should start at the lighthouse.”

  That was where they discovered her friend’s body.

  “I can go by myself.”

  She shook her head and turned to walk to the car in the parking lot. He noted that she kept her face averted as she fastened her seat belt. When she lifted her chin and looked out the windshield, he frowned at how pale she’d gone.

  “Tess—”

  “Look, you don’t have to coddle me,” she said, still not looking at him. “I’ve lived with this for years. I told you, I’m willing to do whatever it takes to catch the man who killed my friend.”

  He started the car and drove to the park near the lighthouse. She directed him to a parking spot and got out. He followed her as she walked, seemingly lost in thought, under huge old trees with gnarled trunks and twisted branches, dripping with Spanish moss.

  “You never see trees like this up north,” he told her.

  She glanced up at the lighthouse, painted bright white with a thick black stripe that wound around it, then smiled at some kids who ran past, laughing.

  “Sam and I pulled some of the moss down once and played with it when we were kids,” she said. “We pretended it was mermaid hair. What a mess. Little bugs live in the stuff and burrow into your skin. I thought we’d go crazy until our moms got rid of them.”

  She walked over to a spot under one of the trees, stopped, and looked up at him. “This is where they found Sam.”

  Logan nodded and walked over to where she stood. He squatted down and studied the scene. Even though it had been years, he used a pen he pulled from his shirt pocket to stir the grass and look for clues for a few minutes.

  When he rose, he saw that she still stood in the same place but was looking at the lighthouse. A breeze stirred the branches of the trees and raindrops fell, sprinkling her hair and catching in her eyelashes. They glittered like tears, but Tess’s cheeks were dry.

  “Why this place?” he asked her quietly. “Do you think there was some special reason why she was found here?”

  “It’s a popular place for teens to hang out at night,” she said. “But I think it was because it was a favorite place for her. She worked at the lighthouse part-time. It may be she felt safe there that night when she came here with her boyfriend after the prom—although he denied leaving her there.”

  He moved closer and touched her cheek. “You okay?”

  She nodded, and her eyes searched his.

  “Looks like you have diamonds caught in your eyelashes.”

  “Diamonds,” she whispered and looked so strange, he grabbed her arm and shook it until she shook her head and stared at him. “What?”

  “What about diamonds, Tess?”

  “I don’t know.” She backed away from him, and he let go of her arm. “I don’t know.”

  7

  Tess prowled the aisles of her aunt’s quilt shop, not certain what she was looking for. She told herself she’d know it when she found it.

  When she felt the prickle at the back of her neck, she turned, knowing the person she’d see.

  “Gordon, haven’t seen you here in ages,” she said.

  “Taking Kathy to lunch.” He looked around. “Where is she?”

  “She’s just finishing up teaching a class.” Tess walked to a bookcase, pulled out a book, and added it to the stack in the crook of her arm.

  Gordon checked his watch. “Do me a favor and let her know I’m here? Otherwise she’ll stand around talking and I want to get going.”

  “Sure.”

  Impatient as always, she couldn’t help thinking as she carried the books to a planning table and stuck her head into the classroom. When her aunt looked in her direction, Tess tapped a finger on her watch. Her aunt glanced up at the clock, nodded, and dismissed the class.

  The students began gathering their quilts and supplies into their tote bags and carryalls and filed out of the room. Tess caught her aunt’s eye again and when she did, she tapped her finger on the third finger of her left hand. Her aunt’s hand flew to her mouth, and she turned to her student who was chatting with her.

  “I’m so sorry! I forgot Gordon was coming by. Would you mind having Tess help you with those directions?”

  The woman shook her head and handed them to Tess. “Not at all. How’ve you been? Missed seeing you in the Wednesday evening class. Guess you must have been busy with the murder.”

  Tess nodded as she studied the directions.

  “You got to catch this guy,” she went on. “Why, we were talking about it at my breakfast club this morning. Gladys sleeps with a gun under her pillow.”

  Alarmed, Tess forgot all about the directions. “Gladys Petersen?”

  “Why, yes.”

  Tess had pulled her over several months ago when she ran a stop sign. Gladys had claimed she didn’t see the sign and from the way she was squinting, Tess had sent her for a vision test at the driver’s license office. Her blood ran cold at the thought of Gladys shooting someone she couldn’t see.

  “Maybe I should go over and talk to her.”

  Then she thought about it. She’d look up the number and call first.

  “Lynn, we can’t guarantee anything, but so far the man has gone after—” She hesitated, then plunged on, “His victims have been younger women.”

  “But you don’t know he won’t decide to start going after women of my age.”

  “Serial killers tend to focus on younger women.” Tess tried for a reassuring tone. “I’ll be happy to talk to your breakfast club next week if you think it’ll help. The best thing everyone can do is stay calm and just take the usual precautions—make sure they lock their doors and windows. Too often people make it easy for the bad guys by failing to do simple things like that.”

  “I’ll ask the ladies if they’d like you to speak to them.”

  “Fine.”

  They put their heads together over the directions, and Tess did what she could to explain them to Lynn. Tess returned to the table where she’d left the quilt books and spread them out.

  “Planning your next quilt?” Claudia asked.

  She nodded and pointed to a photo of a quilt with a nautical theme. “I think I want to make one with a lighthouse in the center and scenes from the area around the border.”

  “Sounds lovely. Have you picked any fabrics yet?”

  Tess shook her head. “Want to help?”

  Claudia grinned. “Just try to stop me from making suggestions.”

  They roamed the several rooms filled with fabric, pulling out bolts, discussing and accepting and rejecting, until Tess’s arms were piled high with bolts she carried to the cutting table.

  Aunt Kathy returned from lunch and looked over the fabrics as Tess sat at the planning table. “Nice choices. Any particular reason for choosing a lighthouse?”

  “Not just any lighthouse,” Claudia pointed out. “Our lighthouse.”

  A customer walked into the shop, and she went to greet her.

  Tess shrugged. “I don’t know. I just want to do it.”

  “It’s not going to be easy working on this case,” Kathy said quietly. She perched on a stool next to Tess, watching her as she cut the lengths she needed for the quilt.

  “No. But years ago Gordon made sure I understood what I was getting into.”

  When she looked up from the fabrics, she saw that her aunt’s eyes were worried. “What’s wrong?”

  She took a deep breath, then let it out. “The job changes you, that’s all.”

  Tess laid a hand over her aunt’s. “What’s wrong?”

  “I just don’t want you to become cynical about people. Not care as much as you do about
them now.”

  “Is that what Gordon’s done? Become cynical?” She knew the answer to that—nearly every police officer she’d worked with carried a healthy dose of cynicism about his fellow man.

  “More than I knew.”

  “Ring me up?” Tess asked, holding out the fabrics and supplies she’d chosen along with her credit card.

  “Sure.”

  Tess’s cell rang. She pulled it from her pocket and checked the display. It was Logan. “Excuse me, I have to take this.”

  “Hey, Tess, are we still on tonight?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll pick you up at six.”

  “I can meet you. It’s not a date, remember?”

  “Right. But one thing I’ve learned is that parking is scarce in that area.”

  He was right. “Okay, pick me up. Let me give you my address.”

  “Really, Tess,” he said with a chuckle. “See you later.” He hung up.

  She tucked the phone back into her pocket and saw that her aunt was smiling at her. “What?”

  “Not a date, huh?”

  “It isn’t. He’s—” She stopped when her aunt perked up. “It isn’t a date.”

  “Who are you trying to convince?” Kathy asked.

  Tess rolled her eyes. “You know, it’s really not a crime to be single.”

  Kathy patted her cheek. “I just want you to be happy.”

  “I’m happy.”

  “You deserve a nice husband.”

  Tess folded her fabrics and put them in her tote bag. “I don’t think it’s a matter of deserving. I just think I haven’t met the right man yet.”

  “How can you? All you do is work and fix up that house of yours.”

  A customer walked in. Kathy looked over, acknowledged the woman, and sent Tess a look that promised the conversation wasn’t over. Tess sent up a silent thank you to the big guy upstairs and quickly threw the supplies she’d bought into the tote. She waved at her aunt, pointing at her watch to show she had to be somewhere and escaped.

  “I’m a grown woman and here I am running away like a little girl,” she muttered as she got into her car. Shaking her head, she checked for traffic and pulled out of the lot.

  As she drove home, she found herself mentally going through the contents of her closet. She forced herself to stop. It wasn’t a date, so why was she even thinking about what she was going to wear?

  Logan buttoned up his shirt and debated adding a tie.

  He hadn’t ever lived anywhere quite so casual. Shorts and flip-flops were the uniform of the day. At night, you wore your better shorts and flip-flops. But surely a dinner at a fancy little restaurant called for a dress shirt, tie, and dark slacks. Maybe even a sport coat? He pulled one off a hanger and laid it over his arm.

  Joe lay in the middle of the bed washing himself.

  “Big date, huh? Oh, maybe it’s not a date.”

  Logan took a final look in the mirror and left the room. Maybe he should have asked Tess how dressy he had to be for the restaurant . . .

  Then he chided himself. Tess didn’t strike him as the type to be overly concerned with such things. He walked into the kitchen to make sure Joe had food and water. The cat followed him, looked in the dish, and turned his nose up at it.

  “Maybe I’ll bring you home a doggie bag,” Logan told him. “Cat bag? Leftovers. If there are any.”

  Grabbing his car keys, he left the house, laying his jacket carefully on the back seat. The minute he started the car he turned on the air conditioner. The temperature had dropped some and there was a little bit of a breeze, but he wanted to make sure she was cool riding to the restaurant.

  When he pulled into her driveway, Logan tried not to stare as she came out of her house. She wore a spaghetti-strapped black dress showing off her curves and her golden tan. Her only jewelry was a long rope of some sparkly stones. Strappy, black high-heeled sandals made her legs seem even longer than usual. Her hair was always tucked into a fancy little bun thing at the nape of her neck but tonight she wore it loose and flowing over her shoulders.

  Wow. Double-wow. The everyday Tess was pretty. This nighttime Tess looked stunning.

  “Hi,” she said, sliding into the passenger seat.

  “You look nice.” Lame, he thought. But better to err on the side of caution with a partner.

  Tess tugged at the hem of her skirt. “Thanks. I can’t remember the last time I got dressed up.” She glanced at him. “You look nice, too.”

  “I brought a sport coat. I wasn’t sure if I needed one.”

  “We’re pretty casual in Florida. It’s totally up to you.”

  “You’re not cold, are you?”

  “I’m fine.”

  He tried to ignore the faint scent of her perfume—something light and lemony—drifting toward him. “I’m hungry. I hope this isn’t one of those places where they act all arrogant and give you little bitty portions?”

  She laughed. “No, Aunt Kathy and Gordon went there for their anniversary, and they were both very pleased with their dinners.”

  He parked, and they got out and walked the short distance to the restaurant.

  “Tell you what, if you’re still hungry after we eat, I’ll treat you to a pizza on the way home.”

  He grinned. “Sounds fair. Joe’ll like that, too.”

  “Joe?”

  “The cat.”

  “‘The cat,’ not ‘my cat’?”

  “The goal’s to find him a home.”

  “So he likes pizza, huh?”

  “Yeah. Pepperoni.”

  Logan opened the door and delicious scents poured out as Tess walked inside. The lighting was low, the mood intimate. They were seated at a small table in a secluded corner, and a server came immediately.

  “Good evening, folks,” he said. “Are we celebrating any special occasion tonight?”

  Logan looked at Tess.

  She smiled. “Just a nice dinner. Logan’s new in town.”

  “Well, welcome to St. Augustine,” the man said.

  They ordered sweet tea and spent a few minutes studying the menu.

  “I warned you about the prices,” she whispered.

  He made a dismissive motion with his hand. “It’s good to get out someplace nice like this once in a while, don’t you think?”

  Tess settled back against her upholstered chair. “It is nice. I always wondered what it would be like to eat here. Dine,” she corrected herself. “We eat at some restaurants. We dine at places like this one.”

  She spread her napkin on her lap and smiled at him. “I hoped we’d come here for dinner before the prom but of course it was way beyond the budget of a high school boy.” She sighed. “Everything looks good. What are you going to order?”

  “The steak. I know, predictable, but I saw one go past on the server’s tray and it looked good. You?”

  “The lobster ravioli. The ravioli’s not just stuffed with lobster, it comes with a lobster tail.”

  “So, can friends share the ‘baked Brie for two’?”

  She made a face at him. “Very funny.”

  They chatted easily over the appetizer—kind of a fancy way to serve cheese, in Logan’s opinion but it seemed like a night to try new things. Well, the steak wasn’t new, but the way the menu described it, he figured it was new for him. The cheese came wrapped in flaky pastry with apple chutney on top. He’d never tried chutney, but it tasted so good that Tess was going to have to eat fast or he’d be taking more than his share.

  The diners seated at nearby tables were mostly couples although there was a small group here and there. Logan liked looking over occasionally at one elderly couple who sat holding hands while they enjoyed their meal.

  Tess saw them, too. “Anniversary? Wonder how long they’ve been together?”

  “Who knows. They remind me of my parents. The two of them always looked happy together.”

  “I’m sorry. It’s tough to lose family.”

  “And friends who become fam
ily, like Sam.”

  She nodded. “Like Sam.”

  A waiter carried a small cake to the table, and the couple beamed.

  Tess and Logan exchanged a look. “Has to be an anniversary. Or a birthday.”

  They finished dinner and asked to see the dessert menu.

  “I could read this menu all night,” Tess said. “Listen to this: ‘to celebrate our beautiful bougainvillea tree, we have created a special dessert of strawberries sautéed in butter and black pepper, vanilla bean ice cream, and Cabernet vanilla sauce in a crispy phyllo cup.’”

  “A strawberry sundae,” he told her.

  “Sure. Just like what we ate was just ravioli, and steak, and cheese in pastry. I’m getting it. What are you having?”

  “Rum cake.”

  She scanned the description. “Sounds good, too.”

  Tess excused herself, and Logan called the waiter over.

  When she returned, the couple was leaving the restaurant. Both of them looked puzzled, but happy.

  Logan’s cell vibrated. He pulled it out and checked the display. “Sorry, Tess, I have to take this. It’s about a case back home. Be right back.”

  “There’s a quiet place back near the restrooms.”

  “Great. Go ahead and eat your dessert. This’ll just take a moment.”

  When he returned, Tess was setting her spoon down on her plate with a sigh.

  He grinned as he sat down. “That good?”

  “I managed to save you some,” she told him. “It’s only because I’m so glad we came here tonight. Otherwise, there’s no way I could be so generous.”

  Logan looked at the dish she pushed toward him. Barely a tablespoon of the strawberry sauce sat atop a small dollop of ice cream. But he was enjoying the way she looked so relaxed and happy, and he played along with her supposed generous gesture.

  He spooned it up and tasted strawberry heaven—rich berries that were sweet, but with the dash of butter and black pepper it had a unique flavor like nothing he’d tasted before.

  “I’m getting this next time we come.” He took a bite of his cake and pushed the plate toward her so that she could taste it.

  “We’re coming again?”

  He met her look. “I hope so.”

  She nodded slowly. “I’d like that.”