Shamrock Shenanigans (Zoe Donovan Mystery Book 19) (4 page)

Zak looked around the room. “It looks like a good place for a clandestine meeting between a man and a woman. Brent was here alone, and he appeared to be a young, single guy.”

“So who was he meeting?” I mentally ran though my list of female suspects. “Piper and Susan were the only two who were out of the room when Brent left to make his call. Piper is much too old for Brent and Susan was with Luke.”

“Was she?” Zak asked.

Actually, I didn’t know if Susan and Luke were together or not on the night of the murder. I’d witnessed them sizing each other up, and they’d both excused themselves after dinner, but that didn’t prove they’d hooked up once they left the group. The hookup was strictly supposition on my part.

“I guess we really don’t know that for certain,” I admitted. “Based on the timing of their departure from the group I guess I just assumed. Do you think it could have been Susan?”

“I suppose it’s as good a theory as any, although all we have is a theory. We don’t even have motivation. Part of the problem is that I get the feeling that not everyone here is who they want us to believe. We really don’t know anything about anyone. Susan was introduced as Sam’s assistant, but that isn’t very much information. Sam works out of San Francisco, so we assumed Susan lives there as well. Brent is an actor so we assumed he lives in LA, but no one actually stated that he lived there. Maybe Brent and Susan knew each other before the weekend.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to talk to Lord Dunphy to see what he knows about each of the guests,” I offered. “We probably should have done it in the first place, but to be honest I still had him on my suspect list.”

“And you don’t now?” Zak asked.

“Not if what Drew told you about Dunphy setting up the weekend as a way to generate income to save the castle is true. Brent’s death has hurt Dunphy’s chances of saving the land that’s been in his family all these years. I really don’t see that he had a motive.”

“What about Drew?” Zak asked. “Other than Susan, she’s the next best candidate to have arranged a hookup with Brent. You said she left for a period of time, although no one could remember how long she was away.”

“Why would Drew kill Brent?”

“She came to the castle to do a fluff piece on a murder mystery game and ended up with a chance to write a career-changing exposé on the murder of a Hollywood star. I’d say that could provide motive.”

“Maybe.” I frowned. “It seems a bit far-fetched. Still, I agree she should stay on the list.”

“Have we eliminated anyone from the list?” Zak asked.

“In my mind we’ve eliminated Lord Dunphy.”

“Anyone else?”

I thought about it. It did seem to feel like we were spinning our wheels. Liam was still my number-one suspect, followed by Susan, if she and Luke hadn’t hooked up. I hadn’t established an alibi for Piper, but I really didn’t think it was her. Millie didn’t seem like the sort to kill a man, but she had made some interesting comments about Brent having odd energy, so I intended to leave her on the list for the time being. As for Armand, I couldn’t see why a world-renowned scholar would kill a Hollywood actor, though stranger things had happened.

“No,” I admitted. “The only person I feel confident in eliminating at this point is Lord Dunphy. I guess our next move is to have a chat with the guy to see what he knows.”

“Do you still want to go check out the stable?” Zak asked.

“Might as well. I don’t think there’s much for us to learn here, and so far the rain seems to be holding off. Who knows when we’ll get a clear spell again?”

I took one last look around the cottage. Based on the fact that Brent had been facing the door when he was shot in the back, I was going to assume he’d never made it inside. That would indicate that the killer had intended from the beginning to kill him as he approached. From the way he’d fallen, it seemed the killer had been hiding in the trees just beyond the clearing. The problem I had with the whole scenario was that the door had been unlocked when Zak and I arrived. Later, when we’d returned, it was locked. Was it normally unlocked and the killer had opened it, intending for Brent to meet him inside? Or had the killer locked it later, after removing the body?

I discussed this paradigm with Zak as we walked toward the stable. Could there actually have been two different people involved that evening, with the person Brent went to the cottage to meet being a totally different person from the one who’d shot him? It seemed like a long shot, but Zak agreed it was possible that someone was waiting inside the cottage for Brent and a different person came from out of the woods and shot him before he arrived at his destination. If that was what had happened, the person who was waiting inside might know who had pulled the trigger.

“Yeah, but why wouldn’t the person in the cottage come forward?” Zak asked as we made our way along the narrow path that led to the stable.

“Fear. If they saw what happened they probably don’t want the killer to know they saw it. We’re trapped here at the castle. All of us. With a killer. There’s no way to escape or to call for backup. If you think about it, we’re all sitting ducks. I can imagine the person waiting inside the cottage, if there was someone there, would have hidden when Brent was shot and then returned to the castle after the killer left. Admitting to anyone that there was a witness to the murder wouldn’t be a life-sustaining move.”

Zak and I hesitated when the stable came into view. The horses must all be inside; I didn’t see any in the pasture.

“How should we play this?” I asked.

“We’ll just wander over to the barn and look around. If anyone asks, we were walking Charlie and decided to stop by to check out the horses.”

“Okay; that sounds like a good plan.” I slipped the leash on Charlie. He was a well-behaved dog in most situations, but I didn’t want to run the risk of him getting too close to a horse’s hooves.

The barn was warm and smelled of hay and wild grains. It was spotless, which led me to the realization that even if Liam was a killer, he was also an excellent stable hand. There were four rows of stalls with four stalls in each row, each containing a large horse. I didn’t know a lot about horses, but it appeared that the stock was all from excellent lineage. If Lord Dunphy wasn’t able to find the money any other way, I was willing to bet he could raise a few bucks selling off part of his stable.

“These really are beautiful horses,” Zak commented.

“It’d be fun to ride on the beach. I hope the rain clears before we have to leave.”

Zak and I continued to discuss horse riding, horse breeding, and horse care while we looked around, just in case anyone was watching. So far no one had appeared, which could mean Liam was elsewhere. On the other hand, if he was the killer he might just be watching us. We needed to figure out a good reason to check out the rooms in the back, where Liam lived.

“You know,” I said, after winking at Zak, “I need to use the ladies’ room. Do you think there’s one on the premises?”

“I guess you could check out those closed doors at the back of the building,” Zak answered a bit too loudly for it to be a natural response.

“I think I’ll do that.”

Behind the first door I found a storage closet. Behind the second door was a small room that contained a bed, a table and chairs, a mini refrigerator, and a microwave. I didn’t want to get too nosy until I checked out the third door, which actually did lead to a bathroom.

“It looks like we’re alone. You keep watch and I’ll look through Liam’s stuff,” I suggested to Zak.

It didn’t take long to search the small rooms. I didn’t find anything that would lead me to believe Liam was the killer, although if he was, he most likely would have hidden any evidence of his crime elsewhere. I was about to leave when I heard Zak say something. I hoped he was speaking to Charlie until I heard a second voice answer him back. I peeked out the door and found Liam’s back was toward me, so I slipped into the hall and then into the bathroom. I waited a few seconds and then made a very noisy exit from it.

“Wow, that’s a lot better,” I said as I pretended to notice Liam for the first time.

I explained about taking Charlie for a walk and needing to use the bathroom. Liam didn’t say anything to indicate he didn’t believe my story, but I suppose if he were the killer he wouldn’t give himself away by making a big deal of the fact that Zak and I had stopped by.

When we returned to the castle, I took Charlie to our room for yet another bath, while Zak went in search of additional towels and Lord Dunphy. We hoped we’d be able to set up an appointment with him to discuss the other guests. Not that he’d have any reason to share what he knew with us, though I can be pretty persuasive when I really need to be. If nothing else, if what we’d heard about his financial crisis was true, we might be able to bribe him.

I realized that figuring out who had killed Brent and then moved his body wasn’t my responsibility, but I had to admit the events of the weekend so far had me intrigued. As wacky as Millie had turned out to be, my Zodar was telling me that she’d been spot-on with her assertion that things weren’t entirely as they appeared to be. I really hoped Lord Dunphy would have some information that would help shed some light on the situation as a whole.

As it turned out, Lord Dunphy was nowhere to be found. According to the staff, he hadn’t been seen since early that morning.

At least Zak managed to score some extra towels to replace the ones I’d used to bathe my furry little sidekick.

“Lord Dunphy is missing?” I clarified.

“I didn’t say missing,” Zak assured me. “I said he hadn’t been seen since this morning. This is a huge castle. There’s a very good chance he’s simply off somewhere working to restore phone service.”

“I guess you could be right.” I began gathering the towels I’d used for Charlie’s bath. “But it seems odd that he’s not doing more to identify Brent’s killer. I mean, think about it: We’re all trapped on this island with whoever shot Brent. What if it wasn’t personal? Do you think we’re in danger of additional murders?”

Zak paused, I assumed to consider my question. “I suppose it’s possible there’s some sort of deranged killer on the loose, but my instincts tell me Brent was the killer’s target. Chances are the rest of us are perfectly safe. Still, I don’t want you to go anywhere alone, and we both should keep our eyes open for any subtle clues as to what’s really going on.”

“Agreed. So what now? It’s hours until dinner.”

“Perhaps a nap.” Zak wrapped his arms around me.

“I’m filthy.”

Zak’s grin was even bigger.

I laughed. “From the mud outdoors.”

Zak kissed me quickly on the lips and took a step back. “Yeah, me too. I guess Charlie isn’t the only one to need a bath.”

“It’s a pretty big tub,” I commented.

“I like the way you think, Mrs. Zimmerman.”

An hour later Zak and I sat on our bed dressed in clean sweats as we tried to sort out the difference between what we knew and what we suspected.

“Right now we have seven suspects,” I began. For some reason I had all this nervous energy in spite of our very relaxing bath. I found myself rapidly clicking my pen open and closed as I spoke. “Liam, Luke, Armand, Piper, Millie, Susan, and Drew were all away from the rest of the group for a period of time, giving them all opportunity to varying degrees. As far as we know, Liam was never there, and Luke, Armand, Piper, and Susan left the group shortly after dinner. Drew and Millie were with the group for most of the time but left at some point, making it possible if not probable they killed Brent.”

“Maybe we should work on eliminating those we think are the least likely candidates. At least we’d have a shorter list to work with,” Zak suggested.

“Okay, I guess that would be Drew and Millie because they were with the group the majority of the time, and Piper, because I really don’t think she did it.”

“I saw Drew in the study working on the computer when I was looking for Lord Dunphy,” Zak volunteered. “I’ll go strike up a conversation with her. I haven’t seen Piper, but Millie is in the arboretum doing yoga. Maybe you can start with her.”

“That sounds like a good plan. We’ll meet back here when we’re done.”

Now here’s the thing about Dunphy Castle. It was built centuries ago and had managed to maintain its old-world charm. The floors and walls were made of stone, and the draftiness you’d expect from such a structure had been more than evident during our stay. Almost every room had a fireplace, which was the primary source of the heat in the huge structure. The castle had a moat, which was currently flooded, medieval weaponry on the walls, and a long, winding staircase leading to the roof.

But modern plumbing and electricity had been added over the years. And the kitchen…well, let’s just say the kitchen is more elaborately outfitted than many of the world’s finest restaurants. If Lord Dunphy was struggling financially, as we’d heard, I had to believe that was a relatively new development.

I bring this up because the arboretum, which I was heading toward, was like nothing you’d expect to find in an old stone castle. Based on what I’ve heard from the others, Lord Dunphy’s grandfather had built the arboretum for his wife, who was ill and unable to go outdoors. It’s one of the most awesome rooms I’ve ever seen, with a variety of plants and trees, a trickling waterfall, and climate control to ensure blooming flowers year-round.

As Zak had informed me, Millie had a mat laid out in front of the waterfall and was practicing a fairly difficult yoga routine. I didn’t want to disturb her, so I took a seat on a nearby bench and watched the rain through the windows that completely encircled the room. It was pretty awesome to have the comforts that came from being indoors while enjoying the wide-open feeling of the outdoors.

Lord Dunphy’s grandfather must have loved his wife very much if the thought that went into this room was any indication. It was obvious great attention had been paid to even the smallest detail to make the room a magical place in which to spend time.

Based on what I’d heard, it hadn’t sounded like his parents had been very happy, and by all accounts it didn’t appear the current Lord Dunphy was involved in a romantic relationship. There was of course the remote possibility that he really was hooking up with Piper. I wondered if the love Lord Dunphy’s grandfather had demonstrated for his grandmother was the exception in the Dunphy family line. It didn’t sound like things usually started off very well in terms of happily ever after in most of the Dunphy generations.

“Zoe. I’m sorry I didn’t see you, dear.”

Millie rolled up her mat and headed toward me.

“I didn’t want to disturb you. You’re very good.”

“I practice every day. I find that yoga helps to keep my energy pure.”

I smiled.

“Is there something I can help you with?”

“I wanted to follow up with you concerning our discussion this morning,” I answered.

“Oh. What part?”

“The part where you said that Brent didn’t seem like Brent. What did you mean by that?”

Millie sat down on the bench next to me. She paused before answering. I supposed she was choosing her words carefully. “People have an energy that’s unique to them. Most don’t notice it, but to me it’s like a fingerprint or a signature. It’s part of who they are, and most of the time it’s congruent with what I know about them. I’ve found that certain types of energies seem to fit different profiles. Most of the time if someone is lying about something major such as who they are or what they do for a living, I can tell because their energy won’t be consistent with their story. I could tell the minute I met Brent that something was off. His energy was all wrong. He was acting in a way that didn’t demonstrate his true character.”

I had to pause to let that sink in. What Millie was saying was sort of out there; on the other hand, it made total sense. What if Brent wasn’t Brent? What if he was someone else pretending to be Brent Silverwood, Hollywood actor? I’d been trying to establish a reason why anyone on the premises would want to kill a man who was here researching a part in a movie, but what if Brent was really here for a completely different reason?

“If you could tell who he wasn’t can you tell who he was?” I wondered.

“It’s not like I can provide a name and address, but I could tell that the man had a secret. More than one. In fact, it seemed as if he was the sort who monitored very closely what he shared and who he shared it with. If I had to guess, he was a man who, rather than living in the spotlight, was used to living in the shadows.”

“In the shadows? Do you think he was wanted by the law?”

“Perhaps. It’s hard to say.”

That certainly gave me something to think about. If Brent wasn’t Brent, we would need to look at a completely different set of motives.

“You left the lounge last night for a short period of time. Did you see anyone else in the hallway?”

“No, I didn’t, and if you’re wondering, I didn’t kill Brent.”

“I didn’t think you did.”

Millie smiled at me. “Remember, I can tell when people are lying.”

“Okay, I did suspect you a tiny bit. It’s just that when I spoke to you this morning, you seemed so excited to have a real murder to investigate. It seemed really out of character based on what I’d observed about you so far.”

“You must have spoken to Molly.”

“Molly?”

“My other personality. She mostly stays in the shadows, but every now and then she likes to poke her head out and chat someone up.”

“You have two personalities?”

“Certainly. We all have multiple personalities. It’s just for most people, our alter egos stay tucked inside.”

I know my face must have conveyed the fact that I thought the woman was crazy with a capital
C
.

“Haven’t you ever acted out of character?” Millie asked.

“I guess there was a time or two in my youth when I might have had a tad too much to drink and a person who wasn’t me in the least took over my body and went a little crazy.”

“Really? Who was she?”

I frowned. “What do you mean?”

“This person who took over your body when you were drunk. If it wasn’t you, who was it?”

“I didn’t literally mean it wasn’t me. I just meant that—” I stopped as it suddenly hit me. I totally got what Millie was trying to say. “It was me. Drunk Zoe was me; it just wasn’t a part of me that I allowed to come out very often. Not at all, really, since I was a teenager.”

“Exactly. Alcohol lowered your inhibitions and allowed Crazy Zoe to strut her stuff for a few hours. The thing is, Crazy Zoe is always there. She’s a part of who you are even if you normally suppress her.”

Wonderful. Just what I needed: a crazy alter ego waiting to burst forth the moment my inhibitions were lowered.

“Okay, I get what you’re saying, but I don’t give my crazy side its own name, and I remember what she did and said. Usually.”

Millie laughed. “Don’t worry; your energy is pure and free of fractures. While most people manage to find congruency between their selves, there are those, like me, who struggle with that congruency, due, usually, to some sort of childhood trauma. I was badly abused as a child, and carefree Molly, who finds fun in any situation, even the most gruesome and painful, was my way of coping. If things got too intense Molly would take over until things settled down a bit. I’ve known of Molly’s existence for quite some time. We’ve learned to coexist, although I do believe we have additional work to do to really find seamlessness. But that’s a heavy subject, for another day. For now, just be assured that I didn’t kill Brent and I’d bet my reputation on the fact that the man who died didn’t make a living in Hollywood.”

Well, that conversation certainly had turned out to be different than I was expecting. I spoke to Millie a while longer about her work with law enforcement and the crimes she’d helped solve. It really was fascinating to realize that someone could find a kidnapped child simply by holding an item belonging to that child. I supposed Millie was like a bloodhound who just needed a sniff to find the scent.

I hoped I’d have more time to chat with this fascinating woman before we left the castle, but Zak was waiting for me, so I said my good-byes and headed back to our room. Millie had given me quite a lot to think about. Too much. It felt like my head was going to explode.

By the time I got to the room Zak was back as well.

“How’d it go?” he asked.

“You first. I’m still trying to process everything.”

“Okay.” Zak sat down on the edge of the bed. “As I already told you, Drew confirmed that she was sent here by her editor to do a fluff piece on the murder mystery weekend in an effort to promote the idea to large companies looking for a unique corporate retreat. She also said she was unhappy with the assignment because she’s been working hard to establish herself as a serious journalist; doing that kind of piece wasn’t going to help her career in the least.”

“Did she mention why, out of all the journalists in the world, she was chosen for that assignment?” I asked.

“She said her boss knows Lord Dunphy somehow, and he’d promised him coverage of the weekend as a favor. She’s convinced her boss singled her out because he feels threatened by her aggression and wanted to knock her down a peg or two.”

“Yikes.”

“Yeah, yikes. Anyway, she also admitted that while she felt bad that a man was dead, she was over-the-moon hyped about being in the right place at the right time to nail this story. She seems to think it might be just what she needs for national exposure.”