A Cup of Murder (Roasted Love Cozy 1)

“You do believe I had nothing to do with Michael Simms’ murder, don’t you, Laila?”

My split second hesitation caused a renewed fury in him. This time he ordered me out of the office. I pulled the door closed. Foreboding crept through me once again. I found I was on a seesaw with him. There was no honest answer I could possibly have given him. It was simply a question that once again had no definitive answer in my mind. His mood changes didn’t help the situation. It was at that moment that I decided, one way or another, I had to prove Jacob was innocent or guilty. Either way, the outcome would have to be accepted.

Getting back to work helped somewhat, but by now Lily and Janie were both on edge. The unrest in Roasted Love began taking its toll on all of us. Customers drifted in and out until the busy time sank into a lull. Janie was ready to clock out and I didn’t miss her looking at the clock to make sure her time was up and she could escape. I didn’t blame her. Right now, I wanted to be far away from Roasted Love, too. Lily gave me a half smile. I believe she tried to reassure me. So far, I had not heard her voice an opinion of the whole situation at all. The phone rang and she took the opportunity to answer it. Then she handed the receiver to me.

“It’s Jen Perry from across the street,” she said.

It was hard to understand Jen. The Sunrise Barista talked in a muffled tone and I heard what sounded like sobs in her throat that tried to reach a voice she meant to be normal.

“I have to see you again,” she said. “I’m two blocks from you.”

We agreed to meet in the alley once more behind Roasted Love. Jacob didn’t need to know she was on the premises again or I would have invited her in to join me at a back table. In less than five minutes, she stood waiting outside the door. Thor stood by watching and waiting. I opened the back door just as I heard a soft growl escape his lips. I was ready in case he was still there and fed him two cinnamon muffins and made a mental note to buy dog food. Jen didn’t seem to have noticed the fact he was appraising her and trying to decide whether or not to attack. Once he gobbled the muffins and saw she was no threat he plopped on the short patch of grass and waited. Naturally, the fact they were already acquainted may have had something to do with it.

“I don’t know what to do,” said Jen. Puffy red eyes told me she either missed Michael or she was in fear of imminent arrest for his murder. “Do you think I should reopen the Sunrise? The police told me they will be taking the tape down in the next day or two.”

That was the last thing I expected from her mouth. It was hard to believe she thought it would matter if I thought so or not. She apparently forgot I was her competition.

“You’ll have to make that decision on your own,” I told her. “But what else is bothering you?”

“All right,” she said. “I’ve seen Michael’s brother, the Senator around. The police even let him come in with them when they searched the place. They haven’t let anyone else in. I’ve been sitting in my car watching off and on. He caught my eye when he came out and I’m sure he suspects me, too. His eyes bored right into me.” She sniffed again.

I hadn’t gotten past what she said about the Senator and the fact he was Michael’s brother. It finally hit me that the man I'd seen recently was Senator James Simms. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t made the connection. The familiarity I experienced had to do with how much he resembled Michael. The day James Simms came into Roasted Love was the first time I had seen him there. For that matter it was the first time I had seen him anywhere in the neighborhood. I asked her how long she had known the Senator.

“I met him once when Michael and I were out for dinner together. We were in what we thought was a secluded place where no one would know us and in walked James. Michael took it in stride as if he didn’t care that his brother saw us together and introduced us. James looked more at me than at his brother, and at the time it gave me the creeps wondering what he was thinking about me. A few days later I heard Michael arguing loudly with someone on the phone. He told me it was his brother James and that they didn’t always see eye to eye.”

I added these facts up in my head. So James Simms and Michael Simms may be related but apparently there was animosity between them for whatever reason. I redirected my attention to Jen.

“Have the police talked with you again?”

She told me they had come to her apartment and interviewed her briefly. She then had to go down to the police station and make a statement regarding her whereabouts from the time she closed the Sunrise late until back at work the next morning. Though Jen appeared rather superficial at times in the way she flaunted herself in front of customers, especially the men, I didn't get the feeling she was capable of the crime.

“One cop picked up on the fact that Michael broke off the affair and then made me keep Sunrise open an extra two hours. They took that as suspicious when I told them I was sure he had gone home. At least, he wasn’t at Sunrise. I told them if Michael came back to the shop that night it would have been after I left around ten. They knew we had an argument that night but they let me go. I’m sure they think I had something to do with poisoning him.”

“Have they determined it was poison that killed him?” I said.

“They didn’t tell me that but I overheard two cops talking before I gave my statement and they were talking about Michael. One said he thought it was interesting that the victim was poisoned while drinking his own coffee. So I guess that was the cause; I have no idea what kind of poison or where it came from.”

“All I can tell you is to stick to the truth in what you know. Unless they have some evidence, they won’t arrest you.”

By this time I was more than a little weary of Jen, Jacob and the whole incident. The information regarding James Simms piqued my resolve though and I glanced at my watch. We had a few hours before closing. We had a busy evening ahead since most of the shops on the Piazza opened until eight or later for people leaving their day jobs for a night on the town. The variety of shops to full-scale restaurants drew them. Shoppers came in one after another to Roasted Love.

Jacob left before closing time. Lily and I could have used his help that night but neither of us commented when he walked out the back door. Her teenage son cleaned the kitchen. Lily brought him in at my request. Bits and pieces of conversation about the murder were heard throughout the coffee house. When closing time finally arrived we locked up and readied Roasted Love for the next day. Lily and I said goodnight and I thanked her for her hard work performed under stressful circumstances.

Before I got into my car, I went around the shop to look for Thor. He waited as if he knew I was going to take him home with me which I did. He stayed in the car while I dashed into a small neighborhood grocery store for dog food. I didn’t take time to read the ingredient label but bought a sack that said for large dogs. That fit the orphan I took upon myself to adopt.

Thor readily followed me into my kitchen as if he was used to finding his way around my house. I pulled a plastic bowl from the cabinet and poured food for him and filled another with water. My mind was on a plan to find the real murderer of the owner of Sunrise when I heard Thor whine. He stood by the back door and I let him out for his needed break. I sat on the patio and thought.

I had to come up with some kind of ruse to get to New York City where I remembered James Simms and his wife, Sarah occupied a plush condo. I wanted to talk to him about Michael but wasn’t sure how to accomplish that. The Senator was accustomed to talking with people of the state, especially voters or potential ones. I didn’t doubt I could set up an interview with him if I pretended to be a reporter for the West River Daily News. I decided not to call ahead for an appointment so he would have no time to check my fake references if he wanted to. The day he was in Roasted Love he spent his time looking across the street at Sunrise. He never really saw me, so I can't imagine he would recognize me.

I knew I was jumping ahead of myself. There was much more to do before I interviewed James Simms. I needed more information on

Michael Simms for one thing. The other goal was to find someone to take care of my new dog when I decided it was time to go to New York City. The idea of having a dog around may be a good thing for Jacob. I planned how to approach him and whether or not to tell him if and why I was going into the city. In regard to Thor, maybe one growl from him toward Jacob would be enough to calm him down if he decided to display his anger again.

If I told Jacob my intentions of finding the murderer of Michael Simms I wasn’t sure what his reaction would be. He was a proud man and a fighter. He may not like the idea I planned to interfere on his behalf. But the way I looked at it, I was his main ally or at least the one person he could trust whether he realized it or not.

I cringed when I reflected on my hesitation earlier to reassure him about his innocence.

Chapter Seven