Room for Murder (Book 4 in the Lighthouse Inn Mysteries) (14 page)

“
Alex, I love that you’re
trying, but you can’t fix everything.”

“
I’ve got to at least
try.”

Elise said, “You’re a true romantic, aren’t
you?”

He gestured out to the lighthouse, built by
his forefather as a tribute to love, and said, “What can I say? It
runs in the family. The only thing I feel bad about is leaving you
here alone so much.”

“
I’m getting used to it,”
she said, adding a grin to ease the jab in her words. “Honestly, I
can handle it, we’ve already finished the lion’s share of the work.
Now shoo.”

Alex left the last bits of cleaning to her
and promised to be back in time to help with the daily laundry.

While it was true he wanted a chance to talk
to his best friend, there was more motive behind his actions than
his role as Cupid.

Alex had to know if it was possible Mor had
killed Sturbridge, whether it had been the intended result or
not.

Chapter 12

With Lester Williamson out of town, Alex
knew he was taking a long shot going by Mor or Les’s, but the
handyman had to go back for tools and parts sooner or later, and
Alex hoped to catch him at the shop, where they could talk
uninterrupted.

Mor was behind the counter, nibbling on a
sandwich as he browsed through one of Les’s many magazines.

“
Funny, you don’t strike me
as the type to read Architectural Digest,” Alex said.

“
It’s better than Modern
Bride. I can’t imagine what Les was thinking when he ordered that
one.”

Alex said, “He’s got an addiction, there’s
no doubt about it. You know how the school kids flock to him when
they’re selling magazine subscriptions, and he doesn’t have the
heart to say no. Speaking of modem brides, have you talked to Emma
lately?”

Mor pushed his sandwich way. “Alex, I know
you mean well, but don’t.”

“
Don’t what?” Alex tried to
ask as innocently as he could manage.

“
Don’t butt in,” Mor said.
The two of them had been friends for so long that bluntness had
long been one of the cornerstones of their relationship.

Alex said, “Okay, I won’t say what a
pigheaded monkey you’re being about all this, and how you should be
honored somebody would be willing to go to jail for you. I won’t
even say how I doubt there’s another soul in the world willing to
do that, and that includes me.”

Mor said, “For somebody who’s not going to
say anything, you’re doing an awful lot of talking.”

Alex said, “What can I say, I’m a master
noncommunicator.”

“
Since you’re so all fired
up to discuss my love life, let’s talk about yours. You never did
tell me what happened between you and Elise on your big
date.”

“
There’s nothing to tell,”
Alex admitted, uneasy with the spotlight turned back on
him.

“
Come on, Buddy, I know
better than that. What happened?”

Alex said, “You want to know the truth? It
was a disaster, from start to finish. I’m surprised she’s even
still talking to me.”

“
You didn’t do anything
stupid, did you?” Mor asked.

“
No, not what you’re
thinking, but I surely made plenty of mistakes.”

Mor finished his sandwich with one bite,
took a swig of chocolate milk, then said, “Did anything happen that
can’t be fixed?”

“
That’s kind of what I
wanted to know about you and Emma,” Alex said, holding his
ground.

Mor seemed to think about it, then shrugged.
“I’ll get over it. I’ve gotta tell you, it stings to have her think
I could do something like that.”

Alex knew he had to tread lightly now. He
said, “It’s hard to believe he died waiting for you in your truck.
Listen, I understand if you didn’t want to tell Armstrong, but are
you sure you didn’t speak to him before you found him?”

Mor stood, and Alex realized yet again just
how physically powerful his friend was. Intimidation alone would
stop most men from pushing, but the two of them had been friends
too long for Alex to let that happen.

Mor said, “I told him the truth, Alex. I
didn’t say ‘Boo’ to the man, and I surely didn’t lay a hand on Toby
Sturbridge, not that I wouldn’t have been tempted if I’d known he
was here.”

Alex nodded. “That’s good enough for
me.”

“
I’m so glad you believe
me,” Mor said sarcastically as he wadded up the wrapper from his
sandwich and shot it at the trash can. It ricocheted off an
old-fashioned jukebox waiting for parts and trickled lamely into
the can.

“
Bank shot,” Mor called out
after the fact.

Looking for some way to end their
conversation on a better note, Alex asked, “Hey, are you going to
the debate tonight?”

Mor said, “Are you kidding? It’s going to be
better than anything on television, that’s for sure. I’m getting
there early so I can get a good seat.”

“
I’ll see you there, then.
Save me a spot. And Mor, think about what I didn’t say.”

Mor nodded. “I’ll try my best not to.”

As Alex left, he realized he’d done all he
could. Now it was up to Mor to swallow the remnants of his hurt
pride and move on with his life.

That was one thing Alex couldn’t do for
him.

While he was in town, Alex decided he might
as well go by Armstrong’s office and see if he’d gotten back from
his interview with Oxford’s lady friend. Maybe he’d found something
to divert his suspicion away from Tracy. With the election just
around the corner, any kind of cloud over her candidacy could spell
disaster for her and put Conner Shook in the mayor’s office.

The sheriff was at his desk, frowning at a
stack of papers in front of him. Alex could sympathize. As an
innkeeper, sometimes he felt he was drowning in paperwork, and he
didn’t have to deal with nearly as much bureaucracy as the sheriff
must have faced every day.

Alex sat in the chair across from the
sheriff and said. “Have got a second?’ I’d like to talk to
you.”

Armstrong leaned back in his chair and said.
“Yeah. I’ve been meaning to come back out to the inn, but things
have been a little crazy around here lately.”

“
What’s on your mind?” Alex
asked

The sheriff riffled through the papers, then
pulled out an official-looking document with the North Carolina
state seal on it. He tossed it at Alex, then said “It’s the report
from the medical examiner in Raleigh. Sturbridge died from a blow
to the chest.”

Alex caught himself before he admitted he
already had that particular bit of information. He studied the
report, then said, “It looks like it didn’t take much, did it?”

Armstrong said, “No, but any way you cut it,
it’s still murder.”

“
So what are you going to
do now?”

The sheriff said, “I’m not going to bother
sitting down with Emma Sturbridge and Mor Pendleton and talking.
Sandra won’t let them say a word. I’ve got to dig into it a little
deeper before I approach anybody else.”

Alex said lightly, “I heard a rumor that you
were going to talk with Oxford Hitchcock’s girlfriend today. Any
luck with her?”

Armstrong snapped, “I swear this town needs
something to do besides keeping tabs on me. Yeah, I talked to her,
but she’s in the clear.”

Alex said, “That must have been some
alibi.”

The sheriff nodded. “She was in Hickory
getting an emergency appendectomy the night Oxford was murdered
That’s as good as it gets in my book.”

“
So you’re back to square
one on that case,” Alex asked.

“
Alex Winston, are you
telling me you’re butting your nose into two of my
investigations?”

Alex admitted, ‘Tracy asked me to keep my
eyes open, and that’s what I’m doing. I’m not trying to interfere
at all. Sheriff. Trust me. I’ve got enough on my plate as it
is.”

That seemed to mollify the sheriff somewhat.
“Tracy Shook frets too much, she always has. You’d think she’d be
occupied with this big debate tonight instead of worrying about
what I’m up to.”

“
To be honest with you,
she’s probably worried about both.”

The sheriff said, “She’d better focus on
Conner, at least for tonight. I was at the barbershop this morning
and he was getting a trim. Man, that guy holds a grudge. He’s been
telling everyone in sight that he’s coming after his ex-wife with
both guns blazing.”

Alex suddenly had a thought. “Have you
considered the possibility that Conner might have had something to
do with Oxford’s murder?”

Armstrong looked surprised by the prospect.
“You think he might have killed his own candidate? Why would he do
that, Alex, when everybody knew Oxford was in the lead in the race?
He was looking like a shoo-in.”

Alex said, “Maybe he wanted to beat Tracy
himself. Or maybe there was more going on there than anybody knows
about. He could have his own reasons.”

“
I’ve talked to him a
little about the case, and he didn’t strike me as that likely a
suspect,” the sheriff admitted.

“
I wouldn’t write him off
just yet,” Alex said. “There could be more there than meets the
eye.”

Armstrong just shrugged as his telephone
rang. “Excuse me, Alex, I’ve got to take this. I’ve been waiting
for a call from Raleigh all afternoon.”

After that, there was nothing else he could
think to do. Alex left the station and headed back to the inn. It
was time to work at his real job and leave the detecting to the
professionals.

Later that night, Alex heard a voice beckon
him near the front of the auditorium as he walked into the
cavernous place. “Hey. I thought you’d be here with Elise.” Mor
said as he made room for Alex. “I saved two seats for you
guys.”

“
She didn’t feel right
leaving our guests alone.” Alex admitted. “I know you still haven’t
called Emma, or she wouldn’t be out at Hatteras West keeping Elise
company. They’re listening to it on the radio together.”

Mor shook his head. “That’s not going to be
nearly as good. Radio’s no good for this. You can’t see the
flinches, the flushed faces, or smell the fear in the air.”

Alex asked, “So who are you supporting
anyway?”

Mor smiled. “I was thinking about writing
your name in on my ballot.”

Alex said, “Tell you what, I’ll make you a
deal. I won’t vote for you if you don’t vote for me.”

Irma Bean brushed past them as Alex called
out to her. He said, “I can’t believe it. Irma Bean isn’t at her
restaurant at night?”

Irma said, “Who let you two boys out on your
own? I’m looking for Mrs. Hurley. We were supposed to meet here ten
minutes ago.” Mrs. Hurley was a retired schoolteacher who taught
several night classes at the community college. Mor and Alex had
both taken classes from her, though Mor had had more free time in
his evenings until Emma Sturbridge had come along.

“
I haven’t seen her in
donkey years,” Mor said. “But you’re always welcome to sit with
us.”

Irma smiled. “I don’t know if my reputation
could stand the strain.”

Alex said, “Seriously, is this debate
important enough to get you to shut down for the night?”

“
My staff’s working, so
we’re open as usual, but they’ll have to do without me tonight.
This election is more important than feeding people,” she said in a
lowered voice. “We’ve got to get that girl elected.”

Mor said, “Irma, I never thought of you as
all that political.”

“
Mor Pendleton, there’s a
lot you don’t know about me.”

“
No doubt about that,” he
said. They spotted Mrs. Hurley come in through the back, and Irma
said, “Excuse me, gentlemen, there she is.”

The high school auditorium filled up
quickly, and soon it was time for the debate to begin. Grady Hatch
took the stage first, raised his hands for silence, then began.

“
Folks, I want to thank you
for coming out tonight. Give yourselves a big hand.”

Most folks were happy for an excuse to do
something, even if it was nothing more than clapping for
themselves.

After the applause died down, Grady said, “I
don’t have to introduce tonight’s combatants, I mean candidates.”
There was a snicker from the crowd at his slip of the tongue.

“
Most likely there’s no
need to go into long, fancy bios of the Shooks, you’ve known them
both all their lives. Conner, Tracy, let’s get this rascal
started.”

Conner and Tracy Shook entered the stage
from different sides, barely making eye contact as they walked to
the identical podiums separated by the moderator’s table. Conner
wore a suit that must have cost him a fortune, while Tracy chose a
pants suit like the ones women politicos in Washington seemed to
favor. Alex thought it was funny that Conner was standing behind a
podium draped with Tracy’s colors, while she was behind his. It
took them both a full second to realize their mistake, then they
awkwardly changed sides like tennis players crossing the net.

Alex was afraid the mayor was going to botch
the moderator’s job, and he was relieved when Ernest Faith, a
newsman from one of the Charlotte television stations, took a seat
behind the desk. Grady slipped off into the wings, no doubt to get
away from the heat of the battle, then walked down one side of the
aisle to the back of the auditorium, where it was standing room
only. It was quite a turnout for Elkton Falls.

Ernest gave the audience his well-practiced
smile and said, “Welcome. I’d like to start tonight’s debate by
giving each candidate the opportunity to tell the audience why they
should be Mayor of Elkton Falls. Both candidates have decided that
in order to avoid confusion, we will be using first names only
during this debate.” That got a snicker out of the audience. When
it died, the newsman continued, “We flipped a coin backstage, and
Tracy won. Tracy?”